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Post by zek on Oct 8, 2010 2:02:12 GMT -5
Knife looked on calmly and waited for Tseng, while Elena's staring at Tseng was rather irritating, it was as if whenever Tseng was nearby she would stop. Knife had not been in the turks when Elena joined but knew well enough it was not returned by Tseng. she almost felt sorry for Elena. If Gun was here she'd tell Elena straight off but she rather liked the blond turk, even if the pausing to stare at Tseng like eye candy was rather annoying.
"come on Elena quit daydreaming think of what the President would say" she said pinching in hopes she'd stop staring at their leader.
Upon reaching the presidents office she scanned Shinra ID and followed Cissnei and Tseng in, she couldn't help but feel as if Cissnei had matured while she was still the same. She smiled at Elena in hopes of hiding her concerns and took a look at the furry...no strange wolf...man in Rufus's office.
She was definitely not expecting that when she entered, she noticed Cissnei was a bit taken back herself.
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Post by elena on Oct 8, 2010 3:02:36 GMT -5
He had looked at her, and for quite a while, too. She had wondered what he was thinking about. Maybe it was she that was on his mind? Oh, if she could be so lucky! Most of the time, Tseng seemed to not even notice that she was around. He was always so busy and so involved with his job. He always knew what to do, even in the most critical of situations. A Turk through and trough, and she really admired him for his calm and collected air. However, occasionally, when it was just the two of them, Elena would see him looking at her with a thoughtful pull to his brow. It was at those times that she would start to feel a little hope warm her cheeks. Truthfully, she wasn’t sure where he stood toward her. Usually, he was focused on the job, and when she sometimes made a mistake—she was getting better and doing them less often, if she could say so herself—he would promptly reprimand her. But… On those days when he got that rare thoughtful look on his handsome face, he would do something nice right out of the blue. Like, ask her to if she wanted to go with him for dinner when a mission was over. It was at those times that she would wonder if Tseng cared for her as much as she cared for him. "Come on Elena quit daydreaming think of what the President would say…"
Elena blinked at Knife’s words, realizing that she had spaced out for a moment. Self-consciously looking around herself, she realized that she had been left behind. Already, Tseng and Cissnei were waiting within the elevator, and Knife was right on their tail. Scrambling to gather her wayward thoughts, Elena hurried after Knife and the others. “Ah! Sorry guys! I’m coming.”Elena joined them in the elevator then, too embarrassed to look up at Tseng or the others. She had to get a hold of herself. Slipping up and spacing out, like she’d just done, was not at all a professional thing to do. She was Turk for crying out loud! …Even if she was still the rookie… Keeping her arms at her side and eyes on the door, Elena waited the short time it took them to reach the top floor. Then, trailing just behind Knife, she walked down the long hallways toward Rufus’s office. They showed their ID to the guards, who then let them pass without any trouble. However, trouble was to be found on just the other side of the doors. Immediately, Elena noticed a tension within the room. Cissnei, having entered the room first, had already drawn her shuriken looked ready for a fight. Automatically, Elena steeped into a defensive stance with her right foot sliding behind her left. Ahead of them, she could see a large and fearsome looking creature who was neither man nor beast, and yet, was both. It greatly resembled the kind of wolf-men you’d normally find in folklore. And further into the room, was Hojo in all his creepy glory. A shiver went through Elena’s spine, then, and she did her best to suppress it. Quickly raising her hands to protect her face and center, she passed a quick glance in Tseng’s direction… Only to pause… For all the tension in the room, Tseng seemed very unfazed. He was just standing there with his shoulders squared and head inclined as he stared ahead with a look on his face that was neither here or there.Tseng didn’t seem surprised, but he didn’t really seem anything else either. Had he already known what they were going to find in the President’s office?
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Post by Rufus Shinra on Oct 8, 2010 6:48:23 GMT -5
The President was rather glad to hear the implication it was possible, though what came through was not exactly what he expected. The wolf like creature slumbering along by its’ masters side, some what more obediently then he imagined Nina, though she did still hold a strong bond to her ‘father’. The blonde mans’ quirked brow was all that gave away his brief surprise at the creation, however he remained comfortably in his throne, cool blue eyes idly glazing over the pair with interest. It was rather primitive and likely would be a nuisance for AVALANCHE if they bumped uglies, but more of them would be much more suitable. After a moment of contemplation Rufus Shinra nodded softly and began to speak once more. “This is created in the same manner as Nina, or in another method. Hmm, though I suppose that doesn’t matter. Can more of these things be created with a more human appearance? I assume he is another kind of prototype?”
After whatever answer was struck, his doors once again opened to welcome the Turks, whom seemed somewhat surprised to see such a creature in their Presidents office. Two of them hastily prepared for battle while of course Tseng was as collected as ever. Out of all the Turks he felt somewhat closest to Tseng – as close as a business relationship could get anyway. A man of no nonsense he could trust to get any job done at his bidding, with the control over others that made him a useful asset to his company. Unlike that red headed joker, he had his moments during the Weapon war but last he had heard the man had fled the Turks to join AVALANCHE or some nonsense. It was a joke.
“Stand down.” Rufus calmly ordered as he took another sip from his wine class. His arrogant gaze lingering over his personal unit of Turks. He lightly nodded to Tseng before motioning to the other side of the room as an indication for the Turks to wait there briefly as he finished up. His attention was back on Hojo a moment later. “In any case make use of your experiment Nina and your new toy and see about completing this task. If it proves to work and is useful I may direct increased funds to your projects.” Was he relying on money? No, just making use of it. He was not his father nor like him in any aspect. He refused to believe that. The world would still be controlled by fear he just simply needed to bolster his forces enough to give him the option of fear. That and it was fairly difficult to strike fear to a man like Hojo. “Take both of your creations and test them, I expect a report on your findings. Thank you, that will be all.” And with that he nodded towards the professor, his cold blue eyes also passing over Nina, before focusing on the Turks. The project most likely wished for some time with Rufus, however with everything that was going to occur his mind was solely on his rise, solely on his ambition.
Four of them stood before him, Tseng as their leader alongside two he was not too familiar with and the infamous Elena. A light smirk touched his lips in his arrogant manner as he relaxed into his chair and began to spoke. “Firstly Tseng, any news I should be aware of? I was under the impression you have been researching something?” The President motioned towards one of the guards at the doors as an indication to fetch the Turks some drinks.
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Post by tseng on Oct 8, 2010 13:14:32 GMT -5
((Sorry it's a bit short. Am a bit busy today.))
“Sir?”
Tseng started, before he paused abruptly. His dark eyes then flickered toward Professor Hojo, very briefly, before setting back upon Rufus.
With Hojo still in the room, Tseng was hesitant to give his report on the Deep Ground investigation. He was especially wary due to the nature of the experiments he had been reading about over the last few weeks. He doubted that Hojo would take well to the news of Tseng’s recent actives—if it ever came to the point that Hojo was to be made aware…
Ah…
Was that why the President brought the investigation up, now, of all times? Did he want Hojo to find out? If so, then why?
Taking care to keep his expression neutral, the Turk watched Rufus as a knot of suspicion tied in his gut.
Just what was the President up to, Tseng wondered.
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Post by Hojo on Oct 8, 2010 15:09:21 GMT -5
Nina and Project Lycan. Deep in his mind, Hojo wondered, just flickeringly, which of the two was truely more powerful. Scientifically, he already knew. He had run the equations, and built the very flesh that they inhabited, bit by bit, and bone by bone. And yet, as it had always so subtley annoyed him, though he would never admit it to others, or even himself, there were always factor in this world. Factors that interfered. Every minute, slight condition could change the outcome of anything, poison data, ruin theories, skew notes. But Nina and Project Lycan were too valuable to be pitted against each other for the sake of study. Hojo's white coat trailed behind him as he turned, with his eyes once more to the ground in thought, preparing to depart.
"We should return. Come now," he said, in an absent-minded voice, as if he did not truly notice anyone else in the room. As soon as the president asked for Tseng's report, however, Hojo stopped, abruptly, in an obvious way. Although to him, whatever the Turk leader had to say the the president probably mattered not, he sensed that they wanted him to hear this information. And more information, even useless, could be filtered and forgotten in his mind if it could not prove useful. He stopped and adjusted his glasses, without turning around, waiting to hear what would be said.
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Lycan
Infantryman
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Post by Lycan on Oct 8, 2010 16:53:56 GMT -5
It was a simple order Hojo issued, as he turned to follow his master… He saw his former allies, the Turks.
“Tseng…” He said, as his eyes rested on the man. “Lycan remembers… you all.” The look in his eyes were sad, as he continued out, until his eyes looked to Elena. He growled, as instinct told him to, she was nervous, and vulnerable. “Storm never forgot Turks.” He said low, hopefully letting Elena or a different Turk hear him, perhaps he’d be remembed.
He walked to Hojo’s side, and stared at the scientist. He awaited new orders.
(sorry doing to many things at once. Couldn't think of more.)
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Post by zek on Oct 8, 2010 18:38:45 GMT -5
(ooc: sorry its short but i got alot of uni work to do right now)
Knife stared out the door confused, the wolf man seemed to know Tseng and Elena, why would he speak like that to them unless... Knife shook the thought from her head, she didn't want to think Hojo would do that but none the less she decided never to be Hojos bodyguard.
She looked at Elena's face hoping the blond turk would know what he had meant, Tseng was neutral looking like always. She soon stopped and decided to wait for Tseng to speak.
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Post by tseng on Oct 9, 2010 13:03:43 GMT -5
So the beast was likely a former Turk.
Tseng could admit that he was not surprised. The assignment of being among Hojo’s security detail was akin to a game of Corel Roulette. Half of those who were assigned to bodyguard Hojo never returned. The lucky ones died in the line of duty, or so they say.
As for the unlucky…
Well, evidence of what happened to them came in the forms of those like Vincent Valentine and the wolf-man before them now.
Working among the Turks for as long has he has been, Tseng had come to learn that the mission of being assigned to Hojo was an unspoken death sentence. It was a realization that often sent a cold chill down his spine. He, himself, had been sent to bodyguard Hojo on a number of occasions. While he had survived each encounter with no fatal harm or experimental augmentation, he was wary of considering himself lucky.
Within the ShinRa General Eclectic Power Company, fortuity was never the product of luck.
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Post by Rufus Shinra on Oct 10, 2010 10:14:14 GMT -5
A light smirk touched the corner of the Presidents lips as his cold eyes drifted to the Scientist as he stopped in his tracks. The curiosity of the man was overwhelming, if not suspicious but then again you could never be free of suspicion when it came to Hojo. Rufus spoke in his collected tone with his eyes still on the old mans back, hunched as it was. He did not mind either way if Hojo heard what Tseng had investigated, there was little that he officially could do at the end of the day, it was the unofficial actions which interested the President. Yet this little moment he had put together just now was simply a message that nothing gets past him. “Goodbye, Professor Hojo.” In a matter of fact tone as an indication the old man did not need to hear the rest of the meeting. Rufus kept a cool gaze on the white coated man without a flicker of emotion.
Rufus would wait until the scientist left the office before continuing the conversation with the Turks. He usually did this sort of thing with Tseng alone, who would then brief his men; however he had little time to waste for such a thing. He wanted to make his move swiftly without all the paperwork involved. The rich taste of mako, of the world, was within his grasp and he would not let anything get in the way. Not AVALANCHE, not Sephiroth, not Hojo.
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Post by elena on Oct 11, 2010 1:56:22 GMT -5
“Storm never forgot Turks.” "Storm?"That name. It sounded so familiar… Elena’s eyes widened, then, in recognition. Wasn't Storm that junior Turk who had disappeared nearly three years ago? The very Turk that had died in the line of duty while assigned as Hojo’s bodyguard? A small frown pulled at her lips as she watched the wolf-man make his way toward the door with heavy steps. Storm… While she could still remember getting the emailed memo about his death, she was sorry to say that she was not all that familiar with the man, himself. They had met only once, after all, and it was during a training simulation. The man’s appearance didn’t stand out in her memory, and she couldn’t exactly recall what he looked like other than a vague image of brown hair. What she did remember, however, was that the man was pretty good with the sword. “Storm never forgot Turks.” Those words… They were spoken as through this wolf-man was Storm… No… That couldn’t be, could it? Was this what had happened to the man? He was turned into a beast? Then… That could only mean that Storm had become one of Hojo’s experiments… But why? How could they let that happen? How did that happen?Elena watched the wolf-man, then, with wide eyes that betrayed a mixture of horror and shock.
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Post by cissnei on Oct 11, 2010 13:08:59 GMT -5
Rufus’s command rung loudly in her brain. Her body moved to follow the order. She pressed a button on her shuriken which had it shrink and realign the edges with each other. It was small enough to latch on to her belt loop. She did not tuck it neatly under her jacket again. Not until Hojo was gone. Her hand, too, remained close to her weapon. The rest of her body straightened up, no longer ready to pounce, but was tense without seeming so.
Her eyes focused on the madman and his ‘dog’. She felt her heart drop at the words Hojo’s newest abomination said. He had been one of them? Cissnei had been lucky to escape such a fate, but she secretly feared that she could wind up there again. This made her quite content about her desk job at the moment. She hoped none of her fellow co-workers would be subject to such a fate again.
Her eyes remained on the ‘threats’ on the room. She did not have to look at the President or Tseng to hear what they were saying.
But something in Rufus’s tone and Tseng’s tenseness made her think that this was all going to change around. She shifted slightly on her feet.
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Post by zek on Oct 12, 2010 3:41:14 GMT -5
Knife kept quiet as everyone seemed to thinking the same thing, the wolf mans words were haunting. She had always disliked the idea of guarding Hojo, the case of Vincent Valentine was well known, though he seemed well off now.
She looked at Rufus and Tseng, something more was going on, Hojos 'new' pet...or bodyguard was a distraction from the tense air in the office.
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Post by tseng on Oct 12, 2010 4:05:07 GMT -5
((Sorry it's short and abrupt. Been busy and I need to get my butt to bed.))
Tseng waited patiently until Hojo and his experiments left. After he was confident that they were no longer within earshot, Tseng resisted heaving a sigh of relief. It simply would not due to show how much the man unnerved him. Although he would deny it to anyone who’d ask, Tseng was very wary of the scientist.
That lunatic was almost singularly responsible for bringing the world near the brink of destruction. How he managed to stay employed with the company after all he’d done…
Well, Tseng could understand why.
Hojo was a threat, but at least he was a known one. So long as Hojo was kept within the company, an eye could be kept on the him. After all, it was better to keep a man like that on hand than out of reach. For all his faults as a human being, Hojo was still brilliant. Until a viable replacement could be found, Tseng figured that Shinra would likely want to keep that man under watchful employment.
And…
Speaking of keeping an eye on less than reputable scientists, Tseng had a report to give on one that was currently unaccounted for. So, without much further ado, Tseng squared his shoulders and turned his dark-eyed gaze on Rufus. With his face held into a neutral expression, Tseng spoke methodically.
“One month ago,” Tseng stated, by means to provide a context to his fellow Turks for the briefing ahead. “I commenced an investigation into Deep Ground. The intent of this investigation was to uncover any loose ends that will pose a threat to ShinRa’s interests. During the investigation though Deep Ground's laboratory archives, I uncovered a person of interest—a cyberneticist by the name of Doctor Velent Gram.
"A report containing the full details of his role within Deep Ground has been encrypted and sent to your inbox, Sir. But, in summary, the report covers his work as a scientist employed under the Weapons Department of Deep Ground’s Research and Development section.
"I’ve done a check into his current whereabouts and discovered that he was reported AWOL shortly before the Tsviets purportedly overthrew the Restrictors and took control of Deep Ground. Due to this, I suspect that Dr. Gram was involved with the rebellion. The timing of his disappearance, along with the rebellion, is too close to be a coincidence.
"Additionally, when crosschecking with the list of Deep Ground employees captured by WRO peacekeepers, I found that he still remains missing. Since Doctor Gram worked directly with classified ShinRa technology and digital infrastructure, he would be in the possession of classified information regarding both. Therefore, it is my assessment that , should he still be alive, Doctor Velent Gram would pose a risk to the company’s security.”
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Post by Hojo on Oct 13, 2010 2:43:48 GMT -5
Hojo pondered for a moment, to move forward, or stay motionless where he stood. He truly doubted that the president would take actions to force him out, but whatever the Turk leader had to say, could hardly interest Hojo now. Not with the other things on his mind at this moment...
His white coat raggedly billowing behind him, he seemed to signal Nina and Project L without a word, to follow. He could feel the disdainful, and even fearful eyes of the rooms occupants on him all around, but they reflected off him as he paid them no mind. The three of them stepped into the elevator. Hojo brought one of his rugged hands forth to push the button as the elevator went down.
"Hm. And what did the president wish to discuss with you?" Hojo's eyes shifted slowly to Nina as a small grin crept to his face. Although it did not seem so, Hojo was aware of Nina's feelings for the president. He wondered now, to whom her loyalties would lie.
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Post by nightwraith on Oct 13, 2010 6:39:00 GMT -5
Disappointment.
But she knew that business was business, and indeed the President was busy. She was sure he'd summon for her when he could, and then they would have privacy. But for now, Hojo would be her focus. Rufus dismissed them, and Nina was to follow. Though she didn't wish to leave, it was necessary. Rufus would have to speak to his turks without her presence, or Hojo's. Whatever was going on obviously had to be very important. She figured, as she stepped into the elevator with Hojo, that maybe later she might be able to ask about it. Nina didn't really tread on subjects that weren't her business, but this matter intrigued her some. It was something Rufus deemed highly important, and that Hojo was desperate to hear.
Nina looked to her creator in her silence, her face not betraying the somber feeling in her heart. But he knew...
"I do not believe the President wished to speak to me personally. I... Was merely there for formalities I suppose."
She looked away for a few moments, trying to avoid his gaze. Nina wasn't sure, but she had a feeling that he could see right through her. Of course it would make sense... She was -his- project after all. He would know best out of anyone. Besides, the grin gave hint. He never grinned unless he knew something. Nina thought it best to try and change the subject, looking briefly to the beastly creature that crammed into the elevator with them.
"Hojo... Do you mean to replace me? Am I not doing well?"
It sounded almost like a saddened child, to ask that. In a sense, she was. Nina still owed her loyalty to her creator, and cared about his opinion more than anyone else's. It couldn't be helped, Nina wanted his approval, his pride. While she might never receive it, the desire to earn those things was great. Such was a nature that probably wouldn't fade, not completely anyway. Hojo might doubt his creation, but she would not give reason. Her feelings for Rufus were deeply set of course, but her master came first. Nina knew it, and it wasn't about to change just yet.
She wasn't sure if it was the cramped elevator or just the deep feeling of disappointment, but Nina's stomach was turning in on itself. Feeling somewhat ill, Nina tried to hide it. Any sign of weakness around Hojo right now seemed like a bad idea. But it began to show some, as it felt like the heat had been turned up. Nina closed her eyes, rubbed her forehead and felt somewhat dizzy. But she had to keep herself together, for what if Hojo was intending to replace her with that monster? She couldn't help it, the minutes that passed felt like forever in that elevator. And the more that passed, the sicker she felt. Her mind began to focus more intensely on the negatives, and it made things worse, like a slight deleria.
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