TSW 23: John and Artyom Talk.

9:02:38 PM - IcePickLobotomy: There's a knock on your door.
9:03:14 PM - JohnH: "Yes?"
9:03:29 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "John, do you have a moment?" It's Artyom
9:04:17 PM - JohnH: you hear the bed creak as John shoots towards the door
9:04:27 PM - JohnH: "Yes, of course."
9:05:35 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "Mind if I come in?"
9:06:36 PM - JohnH: "Yes come in!" John motions inside
9:07:06 PM - IcePickLobotomy: He steps inside, still wearing a flour stained apron over his tank top and shorts. "I wanted to talk to you about Arina for a moment."
9:07:23 PM * JohnH hesitates for a moment "Yes? What about her?"
9:09:02 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "I know that you are. . . interested in her," He holds up his hands "Which is fine, you are a young man, she is a pretty girl, these are how these things should be yes? But I simply wanted you to know that she has been having a very hard time recently. I do not wish to tell you how to conduct yourself, but I cannot imagine you would want to hurt her, so I simply wanted you to know that she...
9:09:04 PM - IcePickLobotomy: ...is in need of a friend. If you should become more than that. ." He shrugs "That is between the two of you."
9:11:49 PM * JohnH stammers "What makes you think I am interested in her." It wasn't a question
9:13:03 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "Way you look at her, your body language when she's around. Little things. You learn how to read a man in a fight, then you know how to read a man in life as well."
9:13:27 PM - JohnH: "...oh."
9:13:50 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "Do not worry, I will not spread it around."
9:14:06 PM - JohnH: "Well of course I would put her best interests in mind. As a squadmate first, then as a friend...or more, I suppose."
9:14:29 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "All I asked is that you keep her situation in mind."
9:15:18 PM - JohnH: "Of course."
9:18:49 PM * JohnH waits for a minute "Was that all you needed?"
9:19:20 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "No, I wanted to ask how you were doing as well."
9:20:06 PM - JohnH: "Good I suppose. A bit stressed out."
9:20:33 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "A lot of that going around. I am here to listen if you want to talk about it."
9:21:09 PM - JohnH: "Nothing much to talk about. Just the daily struggle of waiting to defend this city again. And hoping that none of your squadmates die."
9:21:35 PM - IcePickLobotomy: He nods gravely "I can sympathize with that."
9:22:03 PM - JohnH: "My dad has spoken very highly of you."
9:22:51 PM - IcePickLobotomy: He nods "And I speak highly of your father as well."
9:23:10 PM - JohnH: "That reminds me. He told you me to ask you about seattle?"
9:24:00 PM - IcePickLobotomy: Artyom stiffens a moment before taking a long meditative breath "I see. What did he want to ask me about?"
9:25:43 PM - JohnH: "I'm not sure. But he said I should ask you. Something I might be interested in hearing, I suppose."
9:26:37 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "One moment. This is not a conversation I wish to have without a drink." He steps out of the room and returns with a bottle of vodka and a pair of shotglasses. He pours a measure into each one. "So, where to start. . . How much do you know?"
9:27:55 PM - JohnH: "I know you two worked together to fight the Red Death."
9:28:53 PM - JohnH: "And uh...thats prettymuch it."
9:29:42 PM - IcePickLobotomy: [ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaTOVbxI-zI ] ". . . John, do you have any idea why your Father told you to ask me about this?"
9:30:40 PM - JohnH: "Not really, no."
9:35:06 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "It's a message to me. A old code phrase me and him made a while back."
9:35:33 PM * JohnH 's eyes go wide
9:37:27 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "There was a. . . secret society. They were responsible for the plague. Powerful men who sought to rule the world from the shadows, using the plague to destabilize the established order. Your father disagreed with the notion, and we fought them during the plague years. Seattle is where we orchestrated a internal purge of what would become METI and Section 0. We always wondered if we'd...
9:37:28 PM - IcePickLobotomy: ...actually gotten them all."
9:37:58 PM - JohnH: "I'm guessing you havent?"
9:39:05 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "They kept their identities secret, their money and influence hidden. We knew we weren't going to get them all, but we thought we'd gotten enough to stop them. And more importantly that we'd purged METI of them. But, guess your father has reason to think that's no longer the case."
9:41:40 PM - JohnH: "I see."
9:41:55 PM * JohnH pauses for a second "Any ideas who it might be?"
9:42:50 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "Could be anyone, though if your father is worried then Command may even be compromised. If not then then some of the higher ranked Section staff. We'll have to be careful, we can't afford to tip them off."
9:43:23 PM - JohnH: "Of course...Then tell me, Artyom. Who /can/ we trust?"
9:44:15 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "You, me. . . Arina." He drums his fingers "your father. I know a few people from the bad old days who I can trust as well."
9:44:32 PM - JohnH: "Walker?"
9:45:39 PM - IcePickLobotomy: He shakes his head "I'd like to think so, but not until we make sure first. She was brought in from Tactical after METI formed."
9:46:03 PM - JohnH: "And what decides who we trust?"
9:47:24 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "They need to be useful, they cannot be working for the enemy, or easily swayed, blackmailed, or turned."
9:47:51 PM - JohnH: "Well sure, but how can we tell if someone is..uhh..working for the enemy?"
9:48:08 PM - JohnH: "Or better yet. Who is the enemy?"
9:49:25 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "The former. . well that's what we had spooks for. The later, it's either SEELE, the group from before, or a new one. This. . . is not going to be easy."
9:49:53 PM - JohnH: "Let me know what I can do."
9:50:43 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "Do not offer help so freely John. There's no backing down from this once you get involved, you'll spend the rest of your life looking over your shoulder."
9:51:25 PM - JohnH: "Then let me know if you need help and I will make the decision when the time comes. How does that sound?"
9:51:43 PM - JohnH: "Do they monitor the phones, here? Can I speak freely with my father?"
9:52:23 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "Give me three days and I'll have the bugs and cameras removed."
9:52:40 PM - JohnH: "Sounds good. Let me know when I can talk to my dad, I have some questions for him"
9:52:59 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "I'm sure you do."
9:55:21 PM - IcePickLobotomy: "I'm going to go serve the cake. You have a few more minutes before I do." Artyom gives you a brief wave and exits the room.
9:56:40 PM * JohnH waves to artyoms back