MF1.0 - 75 - Those Unchanging

Ryan gave his combat agent a neutral look. ‘Do not ever enter this office without permission.’ ‘Were you monitoring?’ ‘Of course I was.’ ‘What are you going to do about it?’ He gestured to the forms. ‘I already have your opinion on the subject, I will make a careful judgement and act upon that, as I always do.’ ‘You-’ ‘Sometimes Taylor, I wonder if it should be you who is transferred.’ ‘I am where I belong sir.’ ‘No, you belong in the gym, training the recruits.’ Taylor crossed the room and slapped a freshly-required file onto the desk. ‘I know who she is.’ He flipped the folder open - it was the incident report from their first meeting. ’What is your point, Taylor?’ Taylor stabbed the report with an angry finger. ’An event like this makes them more likely to become Solstice. You had no reason for not killing her during the raid, other than your own weakness.’ ‘It is not our job to take innocent lives.’ A red folder joined the blue one. ’I thought it was my prerogative to recruit murderers. Her actions in the training simulation point to her being psychotic. She does not belong in the field. I doubt even the scholars would take her in - do not compromise us again.’ He stood and rounded his desk. ‘What are you insinuating?’ ‘Whenever you get too close to a recruit, it always has negative consequences. I am tired of paying for those consequences.’ ‘Are you talking about Whitman?’ ‘What else what I be talking about, sir?’ The word “sir” was spat, as it always was. He tried to retain his composure. ‘Whitman was a…mistake.’ Mistake. It was a nice safe word. ‘A tragic mistake. It is not one that is going to be repeated.’ ‘It was one that shouldn’t have happened in the first place. You acted-’ He held up a hand to silence Taylor. ‘That has nothing to do with my recruit’s outburst. Striking a senior recruit is a serious offence, but she was right to question his methods.’ ‘She doesn’t have the right to question him, he has seniority.’ ‘Using that logic, Agent Taylor, you do not have the right to question my choices.’ The combat agent went silent for a moment - as if the gravity of the thought was too much for his simple thought processes to comprehend. ‘Only in this incarnation,’ he said at last. ‘My archetype was created first. Worlds always need their warriors, they always need their warriors, the weaker archetypes were made to compliment and support them.’ ‘You want to run this Agency, don’t you?’ ‘I will not challenge you for control, but when one of your mistakes costs your life, I will gladly take it over and run it in the manner that was intended.’ He just stared at the larger agent. ‘You won’t be transferring her, will you?’ ‘No.’ Taylor growled. ‘For her duration, I will have Magnolia take over your recruits’ training. I cannot instruct a cannon-fodder Solstice applicant.’ He walked for the door. ‘Can I request that she at least receive punishment for her actions?’ He nodded, that was one concession he could make. Taylor slammed the door on his way out. ‘One little girl…’ he mused and shifted away. He found her inhaling what should have been a brain-damaging combination of caffeine and sugar. ‘So am I fired?’ she asked as she pulled her legs up onto the bench and sat cross-legged. ‘If Taylor had his way, you would be.’ ‘So am I fired?’ she repeated. ‘You do understand what you did was wrong, right?’ She shook her head and put down the cup. ’No. No I don’t. I don’t understand that it probably broke some rule to repeatedly pummel the nuts of a moron.’ ‘It is covered in the recruit handbook.’ Her eyes went wide. ’But…you didn’t give me one.’ ‘It’s no longer issued. We found that the vast majority of recruits didn’t actually read it. It’s an interesting psychological phenomenon that revolves around people being less likely to read something because it is mandated, no matter how much they may have been interested in it beforehand.’ ‘It’s human nature,’ she commented. ’Stupid humans.’ ‘You struck a senior recruit. It could have been disastrous if had been in the field.’ ‘But it wasn’t the field.’ ‘You only get to use that excuse once.’ ‘How about, I was shot yesterday?’ He considered this for a moment, then shook his head. ’No, you nullified that when you decided to take place in training this morning. By making that choice, you accepted responsibility for whatever came of it.’ ‘You’re really into personal responsibility aren’t you?’ He straightened himself. ’Yes.’ She rolled her eyes and drank some more of the sweet-smelling liquid. ‘I believe that if everyone realised the impact of their actions that they would be a lot more careful, and that-’ ‘You wouldn’t have to shoot so many hackers?’

‘Are the cuffs really necessary?’ ‘Unfortunately, yes.’ ‘I’m not going to run away, inspector.’ He shook his head. ‘I’m afraid, Miss Whitman, that you’ve mistaken me for a police officer.’ ‘But, I just saw you…if you’re not the cops, then…you shot…’ She began to struggle in his grasp. ‘Please, let me go…’ ‘Calm yourself, we do represent the law, even if we are not affiliated with the police.’ ‘Whatever I’m a suspect of, I’m innocent. I’m nobody, I was just here for the audition.’ ‘You’re an actress. Yes, I know, that’s why I can’t trust a word you’re saying.’ ‘The guys with the computers, were they really doing something that bad?’ ‘Worse than you could imagine.’ ‘It’s a sad fact that the intelligence quotient that generally goes along with being a hacker comes with a curiosity factor that leads you to seeking out these corners of the world.’ ‘Guess I should be glad I’m not a cat, or did I just use up one of my nine lives?’ ‘By my count you’ve used up at least four.’ She smirked at him. ‘So do I get a slap on the wrist?’ ‘We are not that kind. And I have no wish to strike you.‘ He made a requirement. ‘There.’ She looked around. ‘Is my head going to explode in ten seconds?’ ‘For the next week, unless on assignment, you will be unable to require.’ She rolled her eyes. ‘Oh, however will I survive? I’ll just have to buy cookies with the hundred grand in my bank account.’ She slid off the counter and opened a few cupboards. ‘I hate you,’ she said slowly. ‘Couldn’t you have given me a warning or something?’ He stared at the cup and ran an analyses. ‘That cup contains more than enough sugar.’ She pouted. ‘It’s not only about the sugar content…it’s the innate cookieness…’ He required a cookie and handed it to her.