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Who: Soldier: 76 and Ana Amari
When: after this kerfuffle.
Where: the decontamination center
What: mission debrief, excessive worrying
Warnings: nothing yet!

[They're separated shortly after the fog happens, and though Jack isn't exactly happy about it, he knows it could be worse. The comms still work, miraculously, and he uses it to stay in touch for most of the search, at least until she finds others. From there, Jack signs off with a be careful, knowing that trying to stay in her ear will only prove a distraction if something important is about to happen.

Doesn't stop him from worrying--he knows that Ana is more than capable of handling herself, but after everything they've been through, the thought of her injured or incapacitated or lost under his watch is too much for him to even think about.

Then the fog clears, and there's only silence on the other end of his communicator, which leads him to believe she had something to do with it, and that maybe something has gone wrong. Staying calm is sort of a tall order, but he steels himself and heads back to the complex they snuck into, asking around until he catches wind of people pulled out of the facility and taken to decontamination. They won't let him in (it's decontamination for a reason), but Jack is waiting for her as close as they'd allow him to get. When she's released, the relief in his body language is almost palpable.]

Got here as soon as I could.

[Read: he tried to force his way into quarantine, but that didn't fly, so he's been waiting outside ever since, and he's quick to close the distance, giving her an obvious once-over for any sign of injury.]

Are you okay?

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( It had certainly been an adventure, and something that Ana wished she'd had Jack's support on. She could complete a mission, and had worked solo for a time before reuniting with Jack, but the support of unknown individuals... she didn't know them enough, and they weren't a team.

Waking up in decontamination had not pleased Ana. She'd made a lot of effort to avoid it after the asteroid, and being there now had been a little frustrating. She assumed that the Savrii had taken her there, and the wait between waking up and being released was a quiet but tense one.

Seeing Jack out there, and perhaps guessing in between the lines (she had gone off comms for longer than necessary) made her smile somewhat. She could always count on him )

They didn't find anything. ( Though it was also their fault that she was there ) I'm not sure if they were hoping they would, just to prove a point.

[They’re going to have a lot to talk about, that much is certain, but he’s going to make sure she’s all right, first. His hands hover, like he’s not sure whether or not he should or is allowed to touch, and even with the mask on, it’s clear he’s checking her over for wounds or anything else out of the ordinary. She asserts that she’s clear, but Jack wants to be absolutely certain. Any amount of time where he was unable to reach her over comms has him worrying.

Better safe than sorry. He finally musters up the conviction to take her by the arm, as if to affirm that she's solid.]

What happened?

[The fog is gone, but of course no one will confirm if the thing that caused it is still a threat. Was it contained? Destroyed? Did Ana have anything to do with it?]

Did they hurt you?

( There's a nod in response to his hovering hands, knowing that he'd be most satisfied, or maybe relieved was more apt, if he checked himself. Just in case, though there was nothing to find )

They didn't. When the decontamination team reached us they knocked us unconscious.

( All of them, Ana assumes, but she hadn't exactly been able to go and snoop around to check on everyone )

There was something else down there. Someone. I would doubt it to be alive now.

Knocking you unconscious isn’t exactly gentle.

[He’d consider that a method of hurting someone by definition, but it’s clear that she’s not visibly injured. It doesn’t mean he feels any better about this, and it has him thinking back to the Savrii guard who told them to get away, almost as if they knew what the thing in the vat was capable of. The fact that the decontamination team felt the need to knock Ana unconscious rings alarm bells. Why the use of force? What happened down there?]

In the fog? They killed it?

[Whatever it is.]

( She didn't stand down when she saw them coming, that might have been one thing that lead to it. It wasn't the only thing though, and regardless of Ana's actions it may have happened )

That's what they said would happen-- the girl, not the team.

( And it's an almost reluctance that Ana calls it a girl. It looked like one, but it wasn't made by any methods she tended to know, and it didn't entirely act like one either )

After visiting the asteroid I'd had a strange dream. I'd forgotten about it until I was down there. The feeling I got from it was the same as the dream.

[Jack is starting to realize that he needs to back up--Ana is throwing out a lot of details that don't quite fit yet, at least, not with the information he's working with. It occurs to him that they're standing in the middle of the decontamination center (the part of it they allowed him into), and when he comes to that realization, he's pulling Ana to the side, somewhere a little more private.

He's not sure this is something they should be talking about with the Savrii around. He can get them somewhere else in a moment, but he wants to make sure Ana is all right, first.]

Maybe you should start at the beginning.

[At least so he knows who the 'girl' is.]

As we go.

( Because she sure would like to be away from decontamination, and Savrii ears, as much as possible. What they don't know about the tunnels Ana certainly isn't filling them in on )

When I arrived down there there were already others, some from our team and others new. We'd stopped at a forcefield, with-- a sac behind it. That was where the girl came from.

[He nods in agreement, because he knows just as well that they shouldn’t be having this conversation here. He won’t even confirm whether or not she’s actually free to go, ushering her out of the complex and casting a glance behind them, just in case.

Beyond that, he won’t push her, knowing she’s probably some kind of exhausted and wanting her to recount all the details at her own pace.]

The girl—the biohazard?

[Is that what it was, the whole time? A form it took, perhaps?]

( She'll nod, because it's the best assumption that Ana has about it all. There were so many "them"'s and "they"'s in the conversation that assumptions were all they'd had )

Apparently there were others, though they were killed-- along with those on the asteroid.

( Ana had assumed that the people there had been responsible for it all, though apparently they'd only been the makers, and trying to help. That part she didn't believe, but she could consider that they were dead. The Savrii hadn't reacted well after they'd visited there, though the biohazards hadn't given them any reason to )

We're definitely running without all of the cards.

( Which they'd already known, but having it confirmed wasn't a pleasant thought )

The Savrii?

[It wouldn’t surprise him if they did the killing. They’ve been known to do so before, explicitly to protect their Ingress technology, so who’s to say they wouldn’t take out something they perceived to be a threat? Whether they were threatened by the existence of the Asteroid itself, the potential biohazard, or the technology, however, is difficult to say.

She voices what Jack is thinking—that they don’t have all the pieces to the puzzle. He doesn’t need them, however, to determine that there’s something very strange about all of it.]

You think they’re hiding something. There was something on the asteroid they didn’t want anyone to know about.

[He’s suspected this for some time, but the suspicious behavior surrounding the asteroid is just another mark against them.]

There were things on the asteroid the greeters didn't want us knowing about-- ( The locked doors had been answer enough to that ) --but the Savrii didn't approve of our travel there.

( Perhaps even before the biohazard business. What was she missing from before? From the memories of her last stay here )

And they didn't want us to find out more from the tunnel.

( They were quick to knock them unconscious and take them away )

I think we need to dig some more.

[He nods in agreement--because everyone here is shady not just the Savrii, but what are they supposed to do when everyone in this situation is untrustworthy? Obviously, both parties are trying to hide something. Maybe the Savrii had good reason to react this way, but they're certainly not a blameless party. There's clearly something they want kept from his team, if the solution was to render most of them unconscious.

To say they need to dig some more is an understatement. Jack frowns.]

Trouble is knowing where to start.

Every question needs an answer.

( Though Ana knew it would still be dificult to find answers to everything, and that knowing how to get those answers might also be difficult )

Finding out which is most pressing could be somewhere start.

Divide and conquer.

[With a conspiracy this big, it might behoove them both to split it up. The asteroid, the biohazard, the Savrii response to it, the Ingress itself--they've got their work cut out for them. There's a frown in Jack's voice, an indication that he's currently turning a course of action over in his head.]

We need to keep this under wraps, first off.

[This is the kind of thing that might get them in big trouble if they misstep.]

( There's a scoff, because hah you think she was planning on involving anyone else? Even their friends Ana wouldn't have told because of the danger, and the more people the know the more that it could spread )

And then talk out what we already know at home. Find out where the gaps fall.

( Other than everywhere, but getting everything shared and gathered together will give them a plan of where to pick at first )

[Jack, too, has thoughts that for now this is best kept small. There’s already something strange going on, but he doesn’t want to jump the gun and risk having the authorities (if they can even be called that) find out what they’re doing and put a stop to it before they can even begin.

Because, of course, he’s increasingly convinced that there’s something to hide, here.

Ana makes it clear that they should hold off on further discussion until they’re somewhere (relatively) secure, and Jack is inclined to agree. It gives him a moment to tell her something that he hasn’t had a chance to yet. He’s always right down to business, often at the detriment of everything else, so he reaches out and touches her on the shoulder.]

I’m glad you’re okay.

[His voice is rough as ever, but he means that sincerely.]

( The contact makes her look at him -- right at him, rather then around them as she walks, and Ana gives a small nod )

I am.

( She smiles, just a little, and appreciates it -- appreciates that he said it, rather than Ana simply knowing that he thinks it )

I wouldn't get into that much trouble. Not without letting you see it too.

( The good kind of trouble of course )

[He offers a laugh, but it’s a bit strained, if only because he knows how many unknowns there are at this moment in time. Jack is largely silent for the rest of the trip back to the farm, knowing that it’s more prudent to wait until they’re somewhere secure before they really get into the nitty-gritty of what happened. He tries to give himself monetary relief from his worries by reminding himself that yes, she’s all right. That despite his missteps on this particular mission, everyone’s made it back safe.

That means more to him than he can possibly voice. He settles for sitting close to her on the EN-Line, their shoulders brushing as if he needs the physical contact to be reminded that she’s still there.

He stays relatively quiet until they’re home, where he starts to divest himself of tactical gear. Someone less business-oriented might wait until he’s changed and comfortable to launch back into discussion, but Jack is still ready to go, his expression hardening as he stares at a fixed point on the kitchen table.]

The asteroid. You think the Savrii destroyed it?

They revoked our travel permissions. Perhaps their feelings on our travel to the asteroid were more than just about what we'd brought back.

( They were angry, though perhaps angrier with those on the asteroid than them.

As Jack starts shedding his gear Ana fills their kettle, getting out two cups and some tea as the water boils )

And if this is something they've done before then I would be less surprised.

( She's not going to be surprised even if they haven't done it before )

The Midway Hub.

[He remembers giving Ana the primer on it, and it's been on his mind more frequently nowadays, with all of this happening. It's something they have to keep mentioning--that he has to keep in the back of his mind, to remind him that the Savrii are not to be trusted.

They've killed before, and Jack certainly wouldn't put it past them to do it again.]

Everyone on it was dead. They were going to kill us too, for the Moira, until someone explained that we weren't the people who took it.

( She nods. Ana remembers his previous tale and is glad his mind is jumping to the same places as hers is )

They're very ready to kill. It's a wonder why they didn't anyway, and why everyone at Midway Hub was dead.

( That part she doesnt remember from the brochure )

They only let us go because they realized we weren’t the ones who stole the tech.

[The displacees on the Moira were, all things considered, just along for the ride. That’s what saved them in the end, though Jack can’t believe it wasn’t without some kind of catch.]

I’m surprised they believed us.

[Seeing that the Savrii have proven themselves to be fairly paranoid, especially when it comes to keeping their secrets or making sure outsiders are kept in the dark.]

It seems like a small distinction.

( But she's definitely very glad that Jack didn't die. Or the previous her. They might not have had these opportunities now )

It just means that we have to be careful now to not give them any reason to change their minds.

( Which could be difficult with the odd group brought here )

Yeah, I'm not sure how long that will last.

[He already feels like he's walking on eggshells--then again, he saw what happened on the Midway Hub. It has him thinking about how much of the population really knows what the Savrii are capable of. What he does know is that the natives here aren't exactly fond of their breed of transplant, and he imagines with this biohazardous episode, it's only going to get worse.]

I wonder how long until their patience runs out.

No doubt for some it already has.

( there had been more than a couple of incidents lately involving transplants. ana didn't believe that it would take too much more, unfortunately. they'd seen things go south before, they knew it was coming )

As long as we're prepared.

( they certainly would be but not everyone else )

Wouldn’t surprise me.

[They’re prepared of course—always waiting for the other shoe to drop. They’ve been through far too much to ever be anything else, and their go-bags are waiting back home, just in case. He imagines they might need them sooner rather than later, but the question is, where is there to go?]

I’ll check our supplies tonight.

[Nothing he hasn’t checked and double-checked over and over, but it’s something to do and it will put his mind at ease.]

( if only one of the other planets was a little more hospitable, or there was the possibility of transport, but neither of those options entailed them getting home. nothing did without the ingress and that didn't seem to be exact either. ana may have been sent back home once but she'd come back again, and this time she wasn't leaving without jack )

Let me know if there's anything missing. I need to go out and procure some other items.

I will.

[He’s nothing if not thorough, and their bags have been ready for a while. Still, if they’re preparing for the worst, it certainly can’t hurt to check. Refresh them if they need.]

What other items?

[Something he’s missed?]

( birthday presents, new eye patch-- she's got a whole list )

Nothing important. Though with our luck having more than enough would help.

( because something is coming )

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