The Interview, Part II

Posted on Tue Aug 29th, 2023 @ 12:41pm by First Lieutenant Bethany Harrison & Jaclyn Morrison & Unawakened Kai Irving

Mission: Drake Academy
Location: Drake Academy
Timeline: Present Day

Jaclyn looked at Bethany. “It's a smooth con. Run a charity store, put up want ads, pick and choose who you hire and depending on who, depends on how you sell it. I was just looking for work, not a cult with delusions of grandeur.”

“Not many people look for a cult to join up with,” Bethany said, looking over at Jaclyn. “They’re either born into it, or they’re people that are down and out, just looking for a place to belong. They’re lured in with honey, only to find themselves soaked in filth. How long were you there before you figured out what was going on?”

"Didn't take much. A 13 year old housekeeper, who told me.."

She looked at Kai who recited. “Meals are eaten as a group, at the table. No eating in the living rooms or bedrooms. No shorts or tee-shirts to be worn when eating. No jeans. Slacks, skirts, not too short though and nice blouses or button downs, make sure your shoulders are covered. And they pray before all meals.”

"Add to that, they didn't let Kai eat with them and they tried to shame me when I asked why. Arseholes, the lot of them. Later that first night I found two of the male boarders abusing Kai... I even called 911. But when I confronted Monica and her husband they drugged me. And tried to play it off like I was sick. I didn't buy it. And when we tried to run they took us..."

"To the compound. The boarding house was used as a halfway spot." Kai said as if it was nothing. She had had worse before Jaclyn had come along, and those others had swiftly been either converted or removed.

Bethany paled a bit as she listened to their stories and when they went silent, she sighed softly. It was all par for the course but, for them, she knew from experience that all of this was like being forced to relive it all. “Kai, how long were you there?” she asked gently, her green gaze turning back to the younger of the two girls.

"My mother and I arrived there when I was nearly 10. My mother vanished a few weeks later." Kai replied.

Three years in that kind of hell. Bethany saw in Kai the same kind of obedience conditioning that she’d seen first hand, as well as over the last few years of digging the villains out of their holes. “I want you to know that those rules are a very basic form of control. Feel free to toss them into the wind and eat dinner in your PJs if you want to.”

There was a brief pause, then the Marshal sighed and said, “My next questions are going to be about your mother. If you’re uncomfortable answering any of them, please tell me.”

Kai nodded silently. She waited for the first question.

“Let’s start with her name and age,” Bethany said, deciding to lead in slowly. She had a bad feeling about what happened to Kai’s mother. She had watched it happen over and over again growing up. “And if you can describe her, that would be a big help in trying to find her.”

“Her name is Miranda Irving. She has black hair and brown eyes, She is...I don’t know how tall, taller than Jaclyn. She was 30 when I last saw her. My dad died when I was 8 in Chicago. We were living there and there were anti meta riots. He was not a meta, well mum said he wasn’t. He was coming home from work. He worked at an art gallery and painted as well. Mom was a secretary.”

Anti-mutant protests and riots weren’t exactly a thing of the past, as there were so many that feared them, but they had been diminishing, and now there were those that rallied to defend them, mutant or not. “You said that your dad wasn’t a meta. Are you certain that your mother is one? Have you ever seen her use any kind of power?” Bethany asked, her voice soft. Losing one’s mother was a pain that she hated to traipse all over, especially when there were so many questions involved. “And if you did see it, what kind of powers did she have?”

Kai shook her head. "No I don't think so." She frowned as she spoke. She thought hard. "I don't remember anything that she did that would have been like a meta." Kai continued. "I guess I always assumed that they got rid of her because she wasn't conforming."

“Forced conformity is vital for a cult to maintain control,” Bethany said, nodding slightly as she sat back in her chair, her hands folding in her lap. She looked between the two girls for a moment, her own thoughts wandering briefly back to her own childhood. She didn’t need them to tell her about the compound, she had that kind of intel from the team that had raided their twisted little group.

After a bit of an uncomfortable silence, Bethany said, “We know that Jaclyn awakened during your escape attempt.” There was another brief pause as she glanced at the monitors on the table. “That’s pretty impressive, by the way. I only know one person that can control metal quite like that, and he’s not out there making giant robots with energy weapons. Anyway, what about Kai? Have either of you been...”

The young Marshal went silent and glanced at the large mirror. “I guess you don’t need to answer that one, the testing is incoming. Typical medical tests, as well as finding out what your limits are, and how well you can control your abilities.” She chuckled a bit, remembering her own time. “Well, most of the time. Some of us make things a bit more difficult.”

“You said that there were other groups out there. Did you ever hear, or see anything that might give us an idea of where any of those other groups are?” Bethany asked, returning her attention to the task at hand. While they had found evidence of contact with a couple of cells, they had been pretty thorough in not keeping many records of that kind. It made sense that only key individuals would have that kind of information.

“There were several people who were sent out to different areas to build up new ‘compounds’” Kai said softly. “I heard Peter once say that there was a compound in Las Vegas and another about 2 hours from the compound where we were.”

Jaclyn nodded “They were gloating about it.” She seemed to hug herself then as she crossed her arms. “The men were all about gaining position to...do things.”

An eyebrow raised slightly at the mention of a cell in Las Vegas and she sighed again. Looked like she’d be heading back to the desert at some point in the near future. Not that it bothered her. Not only had she ended the compound where she was raised during her awakening, but she and Jon had ripped the beating heart of the human trafficking trade out of Reno just a few years ago. Sounded like Vegas needed her particular brand of a come to Jesus moment.

As Jaclyn spoke, the Marshal’s emerald gaze settled on her, her jaw working a bit as she listened. When she responded, her tone was gentle, but straightforward, “Women are pretty much beaten into being subservient baby factories. Men are promised women and power over their own cell. The boy that I was promised to was one of those. Cruel, arrogant, stupid enough to be controlled by the powers that be, but powerful enough to keep control over a gaggle of weak-willed, drugged-up sycophants. It sounds like you’ve been through hell. Both of you should take advantage of everything that Miss Syn offers here. Protection, education...therapy...a home. It’d be better than trying to figure it all out yourselves, at any rate.”

Kai nodded. She personally thought it was a great idea. “I like it here,” she said honestly. “It feels safe.”

Jaclyn nodded at that. “It is safe here.” she added. “I am considering it,” she was honest about her doubts. She was still dealing with her awakening. “How many survived the compound?”

“You’re suffering from shock and trauma on a few levels. Getting help with all of that is going to be the best thing for you. As far as the survivors, I’ll be honest, I can’t give you an exact number. But they put up a fight, so there weren’t many,” Bethany said, giving a brief shrug. “I can promise you that they’re locked away, and it’s very unlikely they’ll ever see the light of day again. It’s kind of difficult to get out from under the weight of their charges, especially with SHIELD having to get involved.”

Kai piped up “What is SHIELD?” she asked curiously

“Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division,” Bethany answered, giving the younger girl a bit of an impish smile. “It’s a government agency tasked with taking care of high order threats, such as HYDRA. Or aliens, rampant mutants, annoying deific-like aliens that seem to enjoy creating havoc on Earth.”

“Aliens?” Kai asked excitedly, sitting forward slightly “Really? That is so cool.”

Jaclyn looked at Kai. “You believe in Aliens?”

“Yes!” Kai chirped. “It must be so cool to go into space don’t you think?”

Jac shrugged. “Sure, and face suffocation and hull breaches.”

“You watch too much Star Trek.” quipped Kai

“Oh and the shuttles that have exploded don’t count?” Jac asked Kai curiously.

Kai rolled her eyes and turned back to Bethany. “Have you met Aliens?”

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TBC
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Bethany Harrison
Fractal
Mutant Underground

Jaclyn Morrison
Awakened.

Kai Irving
Unawakened.