Alpha - By Carmen/Dragon

First written: November 16, 2009 (Dragon:) (Alright, this part would take place shortly after Carmen has seen the disk [about Dragon's history] and returned it to Dragon, along with the computer erasure.) Dragon was not going to even bother trying to deny or conceal the obvious, she was worried. And why wouldn't she be? What she had just shown to someone could cause her to lose her freedom and her life. She wondered what was going through Carmen's head.. if it was good, bad or otherwise. On the other hand, Dragon could see that Carmen might be interested in some of Dragon's skills. Breathing underwater, her enhanced strength, her self-healing capabilities and her reflexes were all possible use to the international thief. But beyond all Dragon was worried... very worried. In her own way, Carmen understood the gravity of what she saw. For years she heard rumours from both outside and in. There were other cases of experimentation to this degree dotted in areas around Europe and ranging across camps in Russia and northern China. None were proven substantial, and most remained no more than myths. The reason she found this case so intriguing was because the subject, despite its instincts to likely avoid humans, made contact with her. In all logic, she was opposed to this; the right thing to do would be to sever any connection Dragon has with V.I.L.E. The amount of danger this girl harbored would only lead to unnecessary trouble for all who cross paths with her. Yet the other side of Carmen wanted to play. Despite all risks, it was tempting to own and control something superhuman, and to perhaps see where it might lead. The thief surrendered to her curiosity, as nearly always, and decidedly arrived at rendezvous. - - - - - The place she met Dragon was a ledge, overlooking a stunningly calm lake. Beyond nestled a private cabin, designed by a famously ingenious architect to be part on land and part floating in water. Its lights glowed in the night as the inhabitants, wealthy and undoubtedly powerful, exchanged pleasantries, sampling imported wine and food prepared by chefs with stars to their names. "It's a party," Carmen spoke from the darkness, gesturing to the lit cabin. Laughter and live music rose above its mirrored reflection. Sensing her companion's uncertainty, she brushed a finger as light assurance on the girl's chin, "Your secret's safe, there's nothing to worry about." Dragon stiffened slightly at the contact but quickly relaxed, it was not unwelcomed she just was not used to such mannerisms, and she found herself a little surprised that she didn't mind Carmen doing so. Her senses then picked up the sound of the party as Carmen had gestured that way. A party? Huh, that was a new word for her. Her eyes glanced back over at the cabin. "A... par-ty?" She asks tentatively, testing out the new word. "A party, yes," Carmen smirked, "It's where humans gather to be merry and pretend the world outside doesn't exist." Dragon blinked, a bit confused. "But the world does exist... that never changes." Party. She would put that on the list of things she would never understand about humans. The gathering centralised on the overland part of the structure. At exactly midnight, curators would gradually bring small groups of guests to the section over the lake for a viewing of a rare jade statuette from the Tang Dynasty. At this time, thick security guarded the treasure, but not from the lake. The guards placed the placid, dark waters as an imaginary natural wall. Some highly skilled burglars relied heavily on the shortcomings of their counterparts. However tonight Carmen had something else she may depend on. Laying a blueprint of the structure on the ground, the leader showed her new follower its relationship to the cabin below. A picture of the target followed, a stout, rather unspectacular Buddha carving in jadeite. Its beauty may only be seen, according to legend, by a righteous pair of eyes. Evidently, everyone claims to see it, much like the Emperor's new clothes or 'pop art'. "The safest entry and exit is by water," pointing out a vulnerable section of the deck, she continued, "nearly fifty people will be in the next room, make too much noise and it's over. I have my part to play as well," she put on a pair of elongated earrings and set her hat down on top of the blueprint, "Let's meet back here when we're both done." She nodded as she watched Carmen put on the earrings. Dragon had never seen a blueprint before, but she understood it from how well Carmen was explaining. "Do I have a time limit?" Dragon wanted to know this, it would greatly influence how fast or how slow she took the mission. The time was 10:40 p.m. "The doors open at midnight," Carmen pointed to specific doors on the blueprint, "guests will pour in, that's when your window closes." She stepped back to look over the girl who called herself Dragon. Something seemed oddly incomplete. Averse to her superiority, Dragon lacked purpose, comparable to a strong foundation built to support something yet to come. For a fleeting moment, Carmen felt pity. A part of her wondered what the missing piece could be, yet the thought led nowhere and she refocused. "You should also know," she began to recite a safety precaution all of V.I.L.E. understood, "If I'm not here when you arrive, don't wait for me, and don't look for me. Go somewhere safe; leave the rest to our backup team." Optimistically, she wished Dragon good luck and parted. Carmen would be entering the party through the front door, under a variant identity Dragon gave a partly growled grunt as she nodded her head in affirmation. She looked around the area for a second, memorizing it, then took off in a run jumping out over the ledge and diving into the waters below. She started swimming, her eyes opening a moment after the gills on her neck breathed to life. Staying under the surface she made way over to where the house was. The noise from the other side causing the sound, though muffled, to travel through the dark water acting as a beacon for the submerged female. Her eye could see where she was going, but it was always nice to have a second aid. She didn't have much time, and it took her little over fifteen minutes. But slowly she poked her head above the surface near the deck. True to Carmen's words, there weren't any guards but lots of noise coming from the other room. Dragon would have to move fast. Carefully pulling herself up onto the deck she used a claw to unlatch the mechanism that held the door and squeezed through. Recalling the blueprint in her mind's eye, Dragon stealthily made her way to the room it was kept in. She was near silent, never making any noise that would be heard by the guards near the doors leading to the room. Finally making it to where her prey was kept she stopped a moment at the door, looking at the statue itself from there. Her crimson coloured eyes assessing the room it was held in. No doubt there would be traps. Her eyes narrowed. She now had less than an hour. While Dragon swam, Carmen got into a car, changed into an evening gown, and arrived at the front door of the cabin on the lake. A man came out to greet her, his hair peppered gray and he wore the type of wrinkles that came from smiling too much rather than stress. She kissed his cheek and he ushered her inside. Playing a role, she let him be her guide as he explained his creation over a pair of spirited, dreamy eyes. The master explained how he calculated the width of the windows, making walls seemed invisible, how he added soft curves here and support there, and how he envisioned the fog rising against the lake and swallowing the cabin at dawn. Party guests followed his every word. The architect's present inamorata listened, but only partially. Her eyes darted frequently to the room over the lake. The area currently closed to visitors, and the one Dragon should now be in, was a study connected to a large bedroom. Carmen had seen it in the daytime. Books covered much of its high walls, and a large desk stood in the corner. Tonight, at its centre would stand a wooden platform supporting the jade Buddha. The clock was ticking, but food was only now being served, it seems the party may extend longer than scheduled; all the more suitable. Dragon looked about the room... the statue was pretty small, but as she got closer to it, her heightened senses picked up a high pitched electronic signal. There was a sensor underneath the statue. She had to be fast.. really fast. If she tripped that sensor she'd take it and run. She could feel the seconds ticking down. Then suddenly, Dragon's ears detected another sound, a click whenever the sensor reset. She waited... until her instincts told her was the right moment. She'd defaulted back to them... her ears counting out the intervals for when the sensor reset... beep... beep...beep...click beep...beep...beep...click...beep...beep.beep cli-NOW! Grabbing the statue, she listened, her breath held. beep...beep...beep...click... beep...beep...beep...click... releasing the held breath Dragon smirked turned and headed out. Almost as silently as she came. She had the statue, she got back into the water and started swimming. Now all she had to do was meet back up with Alpha. Surfacing slightly Dragon looked up at the moon. She'd done it... and with 25 minutes to spare before midnight. Going back under she silently mused to herself, that had been decent for a rush job, and though it took the longest amount of time, waiting for the right moment on that sensor had been the best thing to do. She really didn't want to know what kind of alarms the place had. Carmen watched the party settle down as waiters served the first course. Outside, she could see the vague trail of a swimmer on the lake's surface. That must be Dragon, and with impressive time to spare. Dinner continued, undisturbed. The architect was enjoying himself, speaking much of the statue from the Tang Dynasty. He had acquired it from worlds far off through years of searching and travelling. Carmen smiled; legends are always drawn to legendary things. A note awaited Dragon at the ledge on top of Carmen's hat: "Come back to the cabin with the statue, I'll meet you on the deck. -CS." While Carmen waited for the note to be read and for Dragon to return, a henchman in the car stood by. The cabin had been thoroughly wired. When the leader gave her signal, a blackout would follow. Dragon blinked, read the note again then tilted her head to the side. "Aro?" She had just taken the statue... now she was to bring it back? "Ah well.." Dragon grinned a bit, sighing only the slightest, taking the hat. Turning and once more taking off from the ledge into the waters below, she swam back towards the dock... though the hat would be wet, Dragon wanted to return it to it's owner. At five after midnight, fifteen minutes to get there, fifteen minutes to get back, Dragon's eyes peeked above the waters, looking for her Alpha. As they served the second course, Carmen performed a signal, leaning over to her Architect and whispering praise into his ears. He smiled proudly. A waiter, upon seeing that, walked outside to put his tray against one of the glass doors. Seeing the trigger in position, the driver radioed a disguised member of the curator team who was in position near the generator. Within seconds, the power was out. Guests gasped, and the party fell to excited whispers. The dinner's string quartet, after a brief pause, continued to play another song. "Monsieur, do you have candles?" The waiter without a tray asked the Architect. "I'll get them from the bedroom," Carmen replied then turn to the waiter, "make sure the chefs can still use the gas stoves?" The staff nodded and promptly left. The architect quickly grabbed her arm, whispering, "Lock the door once you are in, Morya, I don't want the guests to see the Buddha yet." Carmen, his Morya, smiled reassuringly. She left the party and entered the silent study, locking the door behind her. Books rested on top of the pedestal that once held the statuette, and in the distance, the lake seemed quieter at midnight. She stepped out and onto the deck, standing inches from the water. Upon hearing her steps out onto the dock Dragon silently surfaced... yes, though not in her traditional wear that was indeed her Alpha. Slowly Dragon moved to the side and then lifted herself up onto the deck, just enough aways from Carmen that she wouldn't get the female wet. Dragon stood, the statue in one hand, and a wet red hat in the other. Resisting, and it was extremely hard, the urge to shake herself off Dragon put her attention on Carmen, holding out the statue towards the incognito female. Biting her tongue as she did so. Right now was not the time for questions, not with Alpha undercover and the room full of guests right beside them. The silently melancholy way Dragon surfaced and presented the hat along with the statuette gave Carmen a slight chill, one that she justified as caused by the night's air. Adeptly, she took both objects in her hands. "Good girl," she leaned over and pressed a light smile on Dragon's forehead, "Thank you." Having timed the swimmer, V.I.L.E.'s leader was impressed, almost elated, by the girl's speed. "Head back to rendezvous; I'll be with you soon." Walking inside, she removed the books and placed the Buddha carefully on its pedestal. As a fitting gesture, she also left her wet red hat covering the jade. The job was done, and a quiet boat came to pick her up. When the boss was safe from view, the boat radioed the car, and the electricity returned to the cabin. Each V.I.L.E. member dissipated, except for the one playing the waiter, who remained to make sure things ended smoothly. Dragon gave a very small soft whine at the imprinted smile and words of praise. Inside she was grinning, if she had her tail, it probably would have twitched with the urge to wag. Nodding, she waited until Carmen had gone inside and then got back into the water. Heading back towards the meeting point for the second time that night. Though she swam a bit slower this time, she wasn't in a rush and honestly she wanted to enjoy the water just a little bit. Once she made it to the shore, Dragon smirked. Time for a bit of fun. She crouched low then jumped up, grabbing onto a tree branch she swung herself through the air landing on another, using it as a springboard and doing a somersault in the air landing in a crouch on the ledge. Letting her weight fall forward she now stood on all fours, her spine curving to match. Dragon took in a deep breath then threw back her head letting out a perfect, bone chilling howl of victory. A beastly sound echoed against the night as the heist ended. Carmen wore her coat, in that infamous shade of red, over her dress; the gown's slender outlines were made for warm nights laced with wine rather than nights out among rarely trodden wilderness. She kept her hair up, knowing they were better off this way for the time being. "Well done," once at the viewpoint, Carmen greeted Dragon then walked to the edge, casting her glance below. On the pebbled shore just under the ledge, a black truck arrived to secure her escape boat for transport. The house on the lake, now lit in its entirety, was busy with all the seriousness that accompanied fear. Any untrained observer would guess something happened, but the thief's experienced eyes saw a wider spectrum. Party guests were leaving, while cars blaring lights and sirens approached the cabin. Among them was an ambulance, which was questionable. From her vantage, she could see no one hurt. Scanning for the architect, she found him well, pacing about the house and showing officers around. Curiosity once again planted a seed and Carmen made a note to satisfy that later... now, another matter awaited. "For future reference," she spoke in a tone glazed with business, "how do I pay you?"  Obviously, deposit boxes were out of the question. Dragon blinked. "I get paid?" She... wasn't used to the concept. Dragon's meek reaction to compensation indicated that she was not at V.I.L.E. with the same intent as much of its existing members. At the same time, this hinted of an ulterior motive and Carmen, fearing a misunderstanding, tried a different approach. "Everyone with me gets compensation," she said, "If it's not currency you want, there must be something else?" Dragon slowly let her hand fall to her side. Compensation? Was it really mandatory? "Alpha... I didn't join V.I.L.E. for money. I... I don't want payment. I'm in this for the fun of it. The challenge. And... to learn." She looked back to her Alpha. "It's a little obvious that I couldn't last if I was forced to live as a human." Dragon breathed out sharply... she didn't even know if she was making sense. "I guess, that I want you to always be here, and... and to forgive me if I get a bit violent." Dragon growled a bit to cover a small whine of frustration. This really, wasn't coming out how she wanted. "Just... don't abandon me." She half whispered looking at the thief for a moment before looking away once again. Carmen tilted her head slightly at Dragon's series of words. It was almost touching. More strangely, of all the DNA manipulations that created this unfortunate being, they were unable to switch off her emotions. She was lonely, in need of companionship, and while a natural seeker like Carmen could see such things, the thief was no better at quelling them. Perhaps her promises would be empty in the end. "I won't abandon you," she casted her verdict, "but I need to make it clear that what I do for you and what you do for me is notwithstanding. In this business, we cannot afford to owe each other anything. "Stay with me and you'll find I'm rather agreeable." She ended that with a smile. Not everyone would say she knew how to be comforting. Dragon grinned widely at Carmen's words. "I consider my payment the fun I have on the job. You don't owe me anything after a heist Alpha. You won't ever need to do anything for me." Dragon wasn't really sure how to put to words what she meant. so she figured she'd show it over time. Satisfied for now, Carmen gave a light, expressive grin. It was getting late and much needed to be done. "Vic will be your primary contact," she spoke while handing Dragon a carbonised steel wristband. "This is a basic communicator, it's waterproof and the battery should last three years. Admittedly, I don't like to leave something like this for scanners, but with your lifestyle, it's a fitting compromise. "When Vic calls, it should flash blue, like so," Carmen pressed a button on a separate keypad and a light on the thin stainless steel cuff blinked. "Reply by pressing the light," a small click indicated the action and the light glowed a solid blue, in turn, a beep sounded on Carmen's keypad. "That will tell Vic you're ready to receive his message. It works in reverse as well, should you need assistance." Taking Dragon's left hand, the woman in red looked over the girl's claws. Finding them intriguing, she presently studied their shape before locking the wristband to its new owner. "Come on, I'll take you home," walking, she gestured for her company to follow. They would part ways then, but she would make sure Vic remained in touch. It was advantageous to keep Dragon as close to her as possible by level of contacts, and Vincent--as unlikely a leader as he was--always took good care of agents.