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Post by darkhairedangel on Oct 19, 2005 15:25:32 GMT
Rev vented like there was no tomorrow, aiming and shooting with a vengeance. She was just a little frustrated after this mornings work, and so she opted out of eating lunch, for this. Otherwise, she might just go mad with these annoyances.
She wasn't bad, for someone who had only been shooting for a year, and it wasn't that she loved guns, she really didn't like them. Not much at all, but when it came to letting off steam, it was the only thing next to a good massage, that made her stop being remotely homicidal. Still, she'd have to go back and face the stupidity. Rev remembered that she really must wash her hands, it was contagious, after all.
She leaned against the wall and sighed locking her gun for a bit, taking a breath, calming the pounding of her heart. It was nice to have this, to relax a little.
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Post by Eric on Oct 27, 2005 10:19:08 GMT
It was the only place that Eric didn't actually smoke in the building. And it wasn't just because of all the no smoking signs. It had more to do with the idea that well, lets face it. Cigarettes and live ammunition wasn't a good combintation, really. He sat up in the gallery, watching all the little prospective shooters plinking away at sheets of paper.
Now, he knew the little missy in booth five hadn't done much training. Oh, she'd done the basics, but she'd never actually fired a weapon at anyone, or ever actually shot someone for that matter. She was aiming too hard as it were. And she used it more as a stress relief rather than as actual training. Which Eric failed to comprehend. It wasn't physical, so it didn't take your mind off anything. It was loud, the impact of the sound alone like a hard physical blow, espically during busy lunch hour.
He tossed the half eaten mini-packet of frosties in the bin and glanced down at his file on the empty chair next to him. Reverence Zalman. Reverence. Who the *hell* called their wean Reverence? I mean, really, what was the point? The poor kid must've had the rip taken something out of her awful. Tongue flickered over his lips. Well, she was the person he'd been told to ask about the whole Maxwell Conner barely showing up on camera incident the other day.
He didn't want to know why, he knew why. Max had either got into the system and messed with it, or he had some sort of EM pulse thingy in his pocket, and that was something which Eric wanted to know about too. How could he have got one? Was it possible to make one out of scraps, was it possible to...He trailed off and let out a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose and padding on down to the booths. It was when she was reloading he tapped her on the shoulder with the brown folder with her details in it.
" Zalman?" He couldn't bring himself to say Reverence. it was such a daft name. "Can I speak to you for a few minutes?"
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Post by darkhairedangel on Oct 29, 2005 13:14:21 GMT
She swept the dark ponytail over her shoulder and nodded, gaze sweeping over him questioningly. Eric didn't normally call on her, let alone in the firing booths. It was certainly an intriguing situation. None the less, she dropped the urge to try and guess, and went out of the noisy area to the hall.
Reverence. It had been entirely her mother's idea, the most absurd one of all. A woman who helped murder men in their beds, and she wanted her child to have a more "religious" name. She'd told Rev of course, but Rev, had only laughed at her. That was at age ten.
"You can call me Rev, my name gotta be annoying, I know." She said in an understanding and weary tone, wondering just what he wanted.
She tugged at her loose blouse, hanging over the thin shirt beneath, allowing herself to cool, such casual clothing was common for her, not too flashy or trendy, she could careless for that. And honestly no one cared what type of clothing she wore, so long as she kept her stuff working and flowing.
"So what do you need?" She leaned against the wall and looked at him carefully.
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Post by Eric on Oct 30, 2005 13:20:50 GMT
Eric gave her a long look. The look said something he would never say. It said "I'll stick with Zaleman." Rev was something a car did. He eyed her file a little and then looked at her. Offered her a bit of a smile as one fellow worker to another.
"Right. This recent dealy with Maxwell Conner breaking into the computer factory. Now, I know that particular area of the Observance Network isn't your department, but I've asked everyone this question and they've all come up bloody stumped."
In fact, he'd only asked a couple of the boys down at admin that had set up his computer in the office and at home. He liked them, they were funny, although a little too pale from not getting out enough had had real weak handshakes. He assumed anyone who dealt with computers would have weak, wet handshakes. So he didn't bother extending his hand to Zaleman. Besides, one doesn't shake the hands of ladies, they're supposed to...Do something else instead. Eric drew a blank at that.
So did his face, as that thought crossed his mind, but with a visable shake of his head to dislodge *that* train of thought, he pulled a few crumpled pictures out his pocket. Photo shots. From more Observance cameras. Folding them out on a nearby shelf, he tried to smooth out all the shots.
"He don't have much footage on Conner..." He said, coversationally. "All we ever get is him up to something. Its like the camera's don't register him when he'd just plain moving around the city. Probably not in the city 99% of the time, but thats beside the point. *everything* we have on him is fuzzy. Everything. Now, greg down at admin reckons he uses a sort of EMP genererator... You know, to jam the signals. But that would knock out the entire thing, and besides they're generally a little bit bigger than that. If Conner wanted not to be seen, he'd knock out the camera's completely. But then that would be too obvious so he leave them running so we don't notice the flaw until he's done what he'd done...*but* he always makes his face slighty...out of shot, out of focus so we can't see exactly what he'd doing, only that he'd doing something. He's scrambling the signal. Any ideas how?"
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Post by darkhairedangel on Oct 30, 2005 14:21:33 GMT
"Well, the EMP generator might be on the right track..."
She began, clearly thinking as she spoke. Her chance to do something against Max? Wonderful. She was absolutely glad to help. But how he did this, this mixing of the camera signals, the waves- well that was a mystery in and of itself. Clearly she wracked her brain for anything that might go along with an EMP generator. Computers she knew, camera's well, were another story.
"Well the micro sizing the tech required to jumble the camera's visual waves would be easy, getting the tech to jumble the camera's visual waves, would not." She said surely. "He'd definantly have to get some sort of wave generator that specifically would target the camera's own visual mechanics, causing things to distort, depending on the frequency of the waves being emitted from the device. I wouldn't put it past him to already know exactly how the security camera's function. " A small frown crossed her face. "Still, he'd have to be able to get the micro technology to make a handheld device, and to make the handheld device would be harder than getting the technology." Her frown deepened, clearly she had a problem with the security around the technology departments. Around all the hardware and such. "So either Max, has been doing his research, or he has someone working for him. I'm likely to believe the first."
She took a breath, that came, almost with a small sigh. Looking off, with a sort of distant gaze, clearly recalling something that no one else could.
"The only way to fix that, would be to completely rework the camera's visual workings, so that the waves were different. But that'd be wishing for a miracle in hell if you ask me. They'd have to re-do every camera. Of course you could always change the visuals waves when they enter the system, so that they might be clearer. But that would require round the clock surveillance and someone who knows the codes to do it. Even then, the picture would only improve by a tenth."
She looked at the pictures with an interest.
"Digital enhancing wouldn't help these much. No, he's probably not only jumbling the waves, he's changing them. sending in others before the camera's transfer. Conner just thinks of everything, doesn't he." There was almost something resentful about her tone. Like she was annoyed by the fact, that she couldn't figure out more than that. Even though, the camera's weren't under her belt, as a skill.
No optimism here, she knew the cold truth, and she wasn't going to flee from it. Maxwell Conner, had evaded her grasp, again.
"The best I can say is," One small ray of hope in her voice. "Is you can either take months and put out a whole new system of security visual, which he'll inevitably figure out-" She held out her hand, confidence in its grasp, a strength, most men would be afraid of. Sure, you usually didn't shake a guy's hand, there was usually- Well this was just business, right? "Or you can get a damn good covert ops person, and pray like hell, that Maxwell doesn't figure them out. Or we're all fucked."
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Post by Eric on Oct 30, 2005 14:38:06 GMT
As she went into technical jargon his face glazed over. He only knew one thing. That Maxwell *had* done his research, and that he did have someone working for him. Himself, it was all the bastard needed. He trailed off, and as she stuck out her hand he turned away, eyeing the pictures before stabbing one of Conner's faces somewhat nastily.
"Ok. First off, can I get that in english?" He sighed, lifting up his pictures and ramming them back in his pocket. "All I've got is that he's got some sort of device that screws up the pictures. That he shouldn't be able to obtain or make, but he has. Gotcha. Secondly. No, I'm not authorised to overhaul the system. Thirdly, I'm not sending anyone in covert ops. Max *would* figure them out, hell, he'd probably know them. What isn't known about Max is that... well."
He trailed off, eyes fixing onto Zaleman. It didn't matter if she told anyone, because it was all there on record. She could go and have a look at it is she wanted, so what was the harm? Wasn't like there was a big "classified" anywhere on Maxwell's file. Eric bit the bullet and went for it.
"Conner was trained and taught by the DPS. He knows the organisation inside out. He came the top of *everything* he was assigned to. He never completed his training, but he was only a week away from it when he...left. Keep that in mind. He knows everything you know, probably more."
Left. It was the wrong word. Gone fucking mental was more like. It had been scary that day...But Eric ignored it. He didn't want to know, and he tried to forget. Right now he had to concentrate on damage control. How much could they use Conner's talents against him?
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Post by darkhairedangel on Oct 30, 2005 16:47:48 GMT
"You mean, when he tucked tail and made a nest somewhere to plot his revenge." She said coolly, shoving her hands into her pockets, looking up at the ceiling.
Revenge against what, Rev had never figured out. What did he have against something so good, maybe he'd gone nuts, or something like that. She'd always thought, even as kids, he was a bit well, odd. Like she'd been normal, but you know, there were varying degrees.
"Look, you seem to clearly understand what I said, nice to know you're not stupid. But the basic gist is, waist effort to try to out do him," She thought clearly that, that could most certainly not be done. "send in a spy, like that won't work to his advantage." She looked back at him, with a surprisingly, very determined look in her gaze, despite the weariness in her voice. "Or you can try to catch him in the act, but he'll be anticipating that. Well he probably will anyhow."
Options, seemed very limited.
"So there's no news on where he goes when he's not here?"
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Post by Eric on Oct 30, 2005 22:58:01 GMT
He shook his head, sounding distant, distracted. "No. For Conner it's not about revenge. I think he's incapable of feeling emotion. Well. Perhaps the satisfaction of well executed shot. It's never been about revenge."
He told me so himself. I asked him. He answered me. Of course, Eric didn't tell anyone about that because that should've gone into a report but Eric hadn't put it in because...well, lets face it. Maybe a small tiny part of him wanted Conner to be right. For Conner to succeed, for the DPS to be the bad guys and Stoneage the good.
He listened to her muse. He'd been working this for the last year before the "threat grew". And the truth be told, Eric was no further along in his investigations than he was a year ago, beside the fact that he was a little more doubtful in his own ablities, a little more...certain about Maxwell's.
"He goes into ruins." He said softly. "And the reason he goes into the ruins is because he knows we don't have the resources to dig it all it. He knows we can't stake him out. And that he knows we've all forgotten the lay of the land... But he hasn't. Lets face it, three quarters of the people here are computer techs and pen-pushers, and the other quarter is split into tiny sections. We're lucky if we got even an eighth, even a fuckin' sixteenth of folks in here with half decent field experience. And Maxwell is ruthless. He'd be able to pick off half of our sixteenth without them even knowing he was in the area. You're right. Our only chance is catching him in the act. But that involves figuring out what he's...-- " Eric trailed off and blinked.
It was a so simple. it was like being smacked in the face with a wet banana leaf. His eyes widened a little and focused in on Zaleman. Use your resources.
"Can you...Can you tell me*exactly* what it was Maxwell stole from the computer labs? I know he blew it up and everything...but there must've been something there that would've been useful to someone who is trying to destroy everything as we know it. Must've been. Maybe some new experimental data storeage thing...or..a new computer software that would make it harder for him to pass through our nets. There must've been something. It wasn't a high profile bombing, and it didn't damage any land marks. It was a take out explosion, it's the quickest way to cover evidence."
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Post by darkhairedangel on Nov 1, 2005 2:15:53 GMT
She had been watching his expression change and a smile crossed her face. Rev, had been waiting for this request, since the blast had first come.
A tiny nod accompanied a steady voice. "I can certainly tell you, its not something that the DPS wants on the streets. As far as I can tell, its not even supposed to be duplicated for filing purpose. Other than that, I'm not supposed to know much more but-" There was always a but involved, wasn't there. "Listen, between you and me, cause you don't seem the kind to stick by the book, but the tech Conner got, its dangerous in his hands. I don't know, well- exactly what it was, but I do know, that from what my superiors were arguing over, it could give him plenty of access in all the wrong places, if he knows what he's doing, and he does."
She looked him over for any changes in his face, his eyes, you learned to do that, at an early age, just so you knew if someone was lieing to you or not. She wanted to know, how he would react, it would help answer, a lot of her own questions.
"Look, I can't tell you anything else, I don't know myself. But between the two of us, I can get into the now blocked site, and I might be able, to have a better idea then. Even you might be able to tell. Imagining off the top of my head though, I can't go any further."
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Post by Eric on Nov 1, 2005 10:59:50 GMT
"No." Was Eric's immediate answer. "If the site's been blocked off, it's jail time for you if you get into it. And they'd trace you, it's the way the proxy is set up here."
She was right, Eric used the side doors and exploited loop holes a lot. Hell, he was half tempted to head out into the ruins and simply *wait* until Max turned up on his ass like he always did, and just simply ask the bugger. Max liked to play games. And one of the rules of the game was getting cryptic answers to his questions - but always getting an answer. The temptation was pretty big, but it was likely Tai would follow him. Or Zaleman.
And if anyone else was there...well. To Max that was breaking a rule of the game. Eric turned around, frowning at something in distance, or perhaps just inside his head. Arms folded over his chest, and a long sigh fell down. "If your superiors know, then I've got clearence to make them tell me. And if they don't, I've got clearence to make them give you access to the site. Everything Stoneage or Maxwell Conner related is, technically, my responsiblity. Thanks Zaleman...I'll get back to you when I've got one t'other."
Eric gave her a nod, and moved off. There was times to use the book, and times when you didn't. This time Eric was going to wave it at some people and whack them over the head with it if they didn't give him what he wanted.
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