9899/Return to the Triskelion

Return to the Triskelion
Date of Scene:	03 November 2019
Location:	Operations, The Triskelion
Synopsis:	Clint, Ward, and Liz bring Vi in to talk about the Hydra base she grew up as slave labor in. Clint gives Vi the best scones!
Cast of Characters:	Grant Ward, Vi, Hawkeye (Barton), Liz Sherman

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Grant Ward has posed:
It had been agreed that the subject known to SHIELD as VI would be handed over to the X-Men. There was no trying to keep her under SHIELD care, but they ceetainly had done some medical research before handing her over. However, Agent Grant Ward was not done with her. Whether or not he had requested this meeting on his own, or the order came from higher up, it did not matter. Vi was going to come back to the Triskelion for at least one meeting.

A SHIELD vehicle would have been sent to retrieve her, an umarked car to pick her up. Upon her arrival, she would have been escorted theouth the Trisk to the Operations room, going through various levels of card security and not left alone until she entered the selected room. There in the room sat Grant Ward and two of his fellow SHIELD Agents; Clint Barton and Liz Sherman. They all sat around a table with some snaks in them iddle of it, a pitcher of water and a small carafe of coffee, cream and sugar beside it.

A head nod was given to her escort and the door was closed behind her as Grant rose from his chair. "Thank you for coming. Please, make yourself comfortable. Help yourself to whatever you want." He gestures ot the things on the table. "I will allow my fellow Agents to introduce themselves. You already know me." He gestures to an empty chair.

Vi has posed:
Vi is brought in. She looks not too unlike how she did when she left, wearing a pair of jeans and boots, the same ones Lara Croft had bought her, and even the same sweatshirt with the SHIELD logo on it that was given to her at the Triskelion the day she met Grant Ward briefly. She's added another jacket overtop now the weather is even colder.

The nineteen year old girl was scrawny from barely eating while stowed away on the freighter. She's put a little weight back on since, looking healthier. The black metal Hydra case she had clung to before she no longer carries.

She comes into the room, glancing around it, body language showing only small amounts of apprehension. Vi turns to Grant as he greets her. "Hello," she says, giving a little raise of her hand and a finger wave. Having found that seems like a safe enough greeting at times she isn't sure if she should shake hands or not. Vi moves over to take a seat, and then looks towards the other agents there.

Hawkeye (Barton) has posed:
For a spy Clint Barton has a fairly recognizable face, it came with being an Avenger, but today there's no purple suit, or bow and arrow, just t-shirt, jeans and a SHIELD badge hung on a chain around his neck.

"Hey," Clint greets lifting his cup in salute. "I'm Clint," he says, no agent, no Barton, just Clint. "And between you me, defintely try the scones, seriously top stuff."

He nods to the snacks on the table.

Liz Sherman has posed:
Liz Sherman was just SHIELD adjacent. She still helped out though when it was needed. The woman with the black hair is seated and has a cigarette between her lips, because she's a tiny bit addicted to nictone. She's dressed in black jeans, a black t-shirt that's seen better days and a black jacket that looks just a threadbare. Her hair is down and her bangs hang over her eyes, desperate for a trim.

She doesn't like sitting much, but, her foot bounces up and down under the table, "I'm Liz." she offers to the girl as she sits up in her chair a bit. "I work with W.A.N.D and the B.P.R.D." she tells her. "Please get a snack, make yourself comfortable." she motions around. She doesn't offer a hand, for reasons unknown.

Grant Ward has posed:
As always, unless he is training, Ward is dressed in a full suit, white shirt and tie. It is a rarity when he is not. Introdcutions out of the way, Ward gets right doen to business, but not before trying to make her feel a bit more at ease. "I cannot even begin to say that I understand all that you have gone through and where your head is at right now. You world has been completely turned upside down, but I assure you in the end it will be for the best. He moves to pour himself a cup of coffee and leaves it black, raising it for a small sip. "But...you left before SHIELD was finished with what you could offer it." He does bnot move to sit, still standing.

"For the most part we have figured out what you are...with gaps that I am sure your new living arrangments are well suited to discover. However, I want to know more about the who and the where." His tone is calm, "Tell me more about this mine?"

Vi has posed:
Vi gives both Clint and Liz small nods of greeting, the gestures just a little timid, but not too bad. "Scones?" she repeats as if not familiar with the word. She looks towards the table and then to Clint in a questioning way. If he points out which are the scones to her, she'll pick one up to give it a try. "Mmm, that is good," she tells him, the older teen giving Clint a smile back in gratitude.

Vi's expression might suggest she isn't familiar with W.A.N.D or the B.P.R.D., but she gives a little nod to Liz as if she's learned that's a good reaction to go with when she doesn't understand something.

Vi rests her hands in her lap as she sits at the table. "The mine? It's the worst place to work than the foundry. It's hard on people, and they usually choose the stronger men for it," she says softly. "I've never been inside of it. If you lose your parents, there's no one will spare food for you. So you have to take care of yourself. Kids don't last long on the work crews, so there are small bands of orphans who live by stealing what food we can. That's what my brother and I did," she says.

"So I've never been in the mine. But there's three different entrances. Big metal double doors, each. I think each leads to a different area. And there are tracks that they roll the rock out of in big carts, taking it to the foundry," she says.

Hawkeye (Barton) has posed:
When Vi asks which ones are scones, he points them out with a gesture of his coffee cup. "They're white chocolate rasberry," though he guesses those words don't mean a lot to her, though when she tries one and smiles Clint smiles back, with an amused "Right?"

The talk of the mines though dampens that amusement. "Horrible," he says, moving to take one of the chairs at the table across from Vi. "My brother and I had to fend for ourselves too, parents died in a crash," he confides. "So, bet you and him were all over the place, like you have to if you're scrounging for a living, you know what it was they were mining? Anything good?"

Liz Sherman has posed:
Liz gives a bit of a nod, her eyes taking in the file that's in her lap, but, she's a bit distracted it seems. Not that she lets it damper the goings on. She doesn't really know what to ask given it's not a paranormal situation really. "They're pastries, flour based most times." she tells Vi. There's a bit of a frown when she talks on having to fend for herself, knowing that all too well, but she doesn't mention it.

"Is your brother still at the camp?" she asks her.

Grant Ward has posed:
The story she tells does cause the usually stoic Grant Ward to show a hint of passion and emotion. I mean he is not all robotic...all the time. Another sip of the coffee is taken and he nods once, "So it was like a fenced in facility. Hundreds if not more living in a make shift shanty town of sorts..where the parents or the strong were sent to work the mine. Those unable to work or children were more or less left to fend for themselves." He shakes his head from side to side. "Simply terrible."

He walks over to a side table and picks up a small remote, clicking the button and a screen on the wall turns on, showing a picture that looks like an ariel view of what she speaks of. "Massive. These are the current photos we have of this facility. As you can see, it is exactly as she described it. "However, what pictures cannot shows us is what is inside." He shuffles through a few more photos. "This is a Hydra facility. This much is clear. Or at least owned and operated by Hydra. This is why there is cause to be concerned. We have no idea exactly what they are mining and the purpose for it. This much security and secrecy leads me to believe they are not pulling pyrite out of it."

He flips to another screen that has some dictated words. "This is all we have...sparse information that managed to survie an ocean bath." He sets the remote down and looks betwen them all, turning again to Vi. "Were you ever told or hear what was being mined or was inside?"

Vi has posed:
White chocolate raspberry. Vi just found something better than cake. The smile that Clint got back was a big one. "I've heard some of the people talk about iron. Ti... titanium? But they didn't really talk about it a lot where I could hear about it. Most of the talk were about the different foremen and guards. There were informants. Not a lot, but enough people didn't trust each other to talk much," Vi explains quietly.

Vi looks over to Liz, her expression saddening a little. "No. He disappeared when I was much younger. He went out one day and didn't come back," she says quietly. "The guards, if they caught one of us, someone who didn't help work..." she says, and trails off as she shakes her head, not verbalizing what would be done with them. "We had to pretend to be kids who worked. Not everyone was in the mines or foundry. People had to prepare food, repair things, we grew small amounts of our own food in the camp. Raised chickens.

Vi nods to what Grant said. "There are fences around it, two rings of them. Guard towers with guns. They usually just shoot if you go too near the fence. But some of the guards are nicer and would yell first. Thousands of people, everyone said, but I don't know how big."

The photos would show the facility is underneath camouflage netting for the most part to avoid being easily spotted from the air. But once Samuel Bean gave them the place to look, it was easy enough to find. Hidden away in a mountainous region, with three active volcanoes that put out enough ash that no one would try to live there, making it unlikely to be discovered.

Vi says, "They would load up crates mostly, send them away on trucks. I hid in one to escape. used my... my mutant power to cover myself. There were thousands of blocks of metal in it. And they took them to the ship, the one I hid in. I got out and hid in the ship until I saw land. Which is where the man with the shield and the woman with the wings found me." Captain America and Wasp.

Hawkeye (Barton) has posed:
Since the scones are a big hit, Clint slides the plate toward Vi, "Whatever you don't eat, take home with you," he offers with genuine warmth.

Though it dims a little at the news of her brother. "Sorry to hear that, my brother's missing too," though it was more on the run missing than dead still it was another thread to build rapport with. "So, iron and titanium, how often do the trucks leave the camp and do they bring anything with them when they return." He was sussing out potential ingress and egress points.

Liz Sherman has posed:
Liz gives a bit of an understanding look when Vi states that her brother had disappeared, "There might be hope still for that. I lost my brother when I was young." she admits. "Wouldn't really want anyone else to deal with that." she frowns. What she doesn't say is that she accidentally killed her brother. She'd definitely not be winning any Sainthoods!

She is more of a listener than a talker at the end of the day, but she is making some notes. "Wonder what they are using it for." she murmurs to herself.

Grant Ward has posed:
Grant looks between his two fellow SHIELD employees and nods, almost giving confirmation to their own inquiries. Another sip of the coffee is taken and he moves to sit on the edge of the table, the coffee set on his leg. "These are all very valid questions. What are they producing, how often is it leaving and what are they using it for. It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that much security it is something they do not wish to have anyone know about. WHo knows? WHat they are mining may require certain technology to harvest it."

His eyes settle on Vi once more, a comforting glance to the young woman. "Do you know their shipping frequency? It would be far easier intially to hijack one of their ships before heading into the facility itself." He looks about the room for opinions."

Vi has posed:
Vi says of what the foundry produces, "I think there is more than just those two. The crates are marked differently, but I don't know what is in each. I'm not even sure what they were in the crate I hit in," she says.

Vi gives them the information on the trucks. It seems like it's about every two weeks though sometimes sooner or later. She'd never known about the ship before, the trucks drove a long time before her crate was offloaded onto it. "When shipments are longer, sometimes they get pretty harsh on people that it took so long," Vi says in a small voice that suggests just how harsh she means.

"They bring in some things. Some of the food, bags of it for making bread and stew, as we can't grow enough to support the town," Vi says. "There are helicopters that come in sometimes. There are some separate buildings in another area. That's where the lab is they held me in after they caught me using... using my power," she says quietly.

Vi looks between the three SHIELD agents. "So you spend your time, trying to stop people like... like Hydra?" she asks. "Is that what SHIELD is then?"

Hawkeye (Barton) has posed:
Clint catches Ward's nod and returns it, clearly on the same page. So shipments coming in and out, rough idea of the layout...what else did they need to know...

"Are the guards always the same? Do they live with you at the camp all the time or do they rotate out and new ones come in?" Again seeking openings, times when there would be confusion and they might be able to slip in and infiltrate.

Vi's question gets a nod. "Yeah, pretty much. Especially Hydra, they're not our favourite people."

Liz Sherman has posed:
Liz focuses her attention on Vi as they talk and there's a bit of a nod to her, "I work with SHIELD in a specific role, but I go out with them when it's needed." she admits to Vi. "My focus is supernatural threats mainly. Demons, monsters, ghost, that sort of stuff." she adds.

When Clint asks questions about times and things she's ready to take notes on when things happen if the teenager knows those things.

Grant Ward has posed:
They were baragging her with a lot of questions, but they were questions they sought answers to. However, Grant felt it best to check in with her. "I know this is a lot. If this is too muchm please let us know. You have no idea how much of a vlauable asset you are to us right now." He takes another sip of the coffee and then offers a genune smile. "I will give you a chance to answer their questions before I bombard you with any more." He pours her a glass of water and slides it to her.

Vi has posed:
Vi takes the glass of water with a grateful look before looking back to Clint. "The guards change sometimes. The helicopters come every few weeks. Sometimes new ones come and others, I assume they leave on them. Maybe they leave on the trucks though, I'm not sure. Not all at once, there are too many guards. But you get used to their faces. A few can be nice. Not many, but some. One gave me chocolate once. I didn't know what it was until I had it again at the school," she confirms.

Vi looks from one agent to another, and looks kind of thoughtful. "Miss Grey took me to her home. Where she grew up," she says. Some of them may know who she means, or not, but Vi is too lost in where she's going to explain unless someone asks. "Her father, he's a teacher, asked if I wanted to be a teacher too," Vi says.

She takes a sip of her water. "I've never thought about... becoming something. There never was something to become. You just stayed alive. That's all there ever was. But it's different here," Vi says. She looks down at the glass she's holding, resting it down near her lap. "I think I'd like to help people like you do. I'd like to see the rest of Echo freed. And... help others that need it like I did."

Hawkeye (Barton) has posed:
As Vi answers Clint shoots a look to Liz to make sure she's got things down, then, off Grant's cue, he nods. "Thanks, Vi, that really helps."

As to her future, "Yeah, that must be a huge difference, having a future to think about, well," he looks over at Grant, "I think you can definitely help us free the rest of the folks at Echo, with your intel if nothing else."

Liz Sherman has posed:
Liz gives Clint a thumbs up when he shoots her a look, she was getting everything down. She takes a drag from her cigarette, turning away from the rest at the table to blow the smoke out. She wasn't rude! But smoking was horrible for most.

"I don't have any questions. But, I can tell you from personal experience that having a family of sorts to look forward to working with or to help with things is good to have. I know it's hard now, but, things will get better as time passes." she tells her.

Grant Ward has posed:
Another sip of the coffee is taken, this one a bit longer, the cup lowered to the table slowly. Rising from the table Grants places his hands in his pockets and looks to Vi directly. "You have been a very valuable assett to us young lady. Very valuable. You have provided information we never would have had without you. In doing so, you have helped those you were forced to leave behind. However, there is so much we do not know still, and because of that...SHIELD is going to get those answers. We will assemble a team to figure out what they are shipping, where it is going and what is it being used for."

He paces around the table a bit, finding himself behind the young woman and looking at Clint and Liz. His had goes to rest on Vi's shoulder. "The last question I have for you is this. Do you want to be a part of it? By no means are you obligated to do so and you do not have to decide right now." He takes his hand off her shoulder and steps around to look at her now. "However, please know that your assistance would be invaluable." He slides a card down on the table in front of her. "Call. Anytime."

Vi has posed:
What Vi hears from Clint seems to leave her hopeful. "I know I'm pretty dumb about a lot of things out here. But I'm trying to learn," she tells them. She almost starts to mention how she's learning to read, but Vi has noticed everyone here knows how to read. Maybe it wouldn't impress them as much as it would have her friends amongst the orphaned urchins back in Echo.

"And I'm learning to use my mutant power too," she says hopefully. VI looks to Clint as he asks her if she'd like to be involved. "I would really like to help. The people there deserve to be freed," she says. "They are too afraid to try. They would be gunned down. And anyone trying to organize would be betrayed before long, either by an informer, or someone worried they were being tested by one."

Vi takes the card and smiles to the three agents. "I will. And anything I can do to help, I'd like to," she says.

Hawkeye (Barton) has posed:
Clint grins at the thumbsup but shakes his head amusedly at the smoking, well if Fury could get away with it, he supposed Liz could too.

There's a smile for the bit about the writing from Vi, sure it wasn't as impressive to him as the folks in the camp but it's still good to see her embrace it. "You're not dumb, you were a victim of people who wanted you to be that way, sounds like, Jean was it? Sounds like you've got some good teachers."

As for helping? He nods, "The society in places like that is built to keep rebelion from spreading it's as much a part of the prison as the walls and guards, but I think with your info," he glances to the others. "We can free them from the outside."

Liz Sherman has posed:
Liz stands, closing the binder that she'd been making notes with. "If you should need anything, please reach out. Even if it's just to ask questions about something you want to learn or something you are having trouble with." she offers the younger woman.

"I am still trying to get my powers fully under control. SHIELD and the others I've worked with have helped with that. Xavier's is also a very good place." she agrees with Clint's words about Jean. But with that she's prepared to follow people out and not overwhelm the girl.

Grant Ward has posed:
Ward move to lift the rmeote and turns off the screen, setting it down again and then moves to address the room. "Well, I think we are in a good place. Liz, Clint...I would appreciate your assistance in this mission. We can meet to fifure out the details, but I think we should begin with an interception of a shipment to see what we are dealing with and perhaos discover why it is being shipped. The issue would be, it would be much easier to apprehend it on the sea, but we could discover the recipient if we were to follow the delivery truck once tranfered." He shrugs once. "I suspect we can discuss it in the next few days."

One last sip is taken. "Young lady feel free to stay here as long as you wish. If you wish something more substantial we can show you to our food court. Don't have the meatloaf. When you are ready to return to the school, simply let..." He calls out. "Agent Williamson..." The door opens and an Agent steps in. "Agent Williamson...see to it our guest has what she needs and is returned to the school when she wishes."

The man nods and holds the door open for her. "Right this way Miss..." And with that the meeting is adjourned.