08-24-2016, 09:12 PM
Evelyn paused for a moment before she answered his question. She had a bit of a reputation as an airhead, given her vlogging and cutesy appearance. However, she did her best to be crafty and playing politics for the past year and a half had taught her a thing or two. She'd gone into this meeting well prepared and Nick's remarks about Ascendancy were quite public. She'd seen the video of him decrying Brandon's godhood. His exact words were something like 'he's a human being just like any of us'. Evie had a feeling that Trano wouldn't respond too positively to the real reason she bowed her head. He seemed adamant that their gift was worldly, rather than the blessing it truly was. Well, she didn't need to be the one to argue with him about it.
"It's difficult to access the power, to surrender myself to it fully."
Her poker face had been tried and tested in her brief career as a politician. Evelyn had no doubt that a skilled agent like Nick would know she wasn't the whole truth, but hopefully he wouldn't care enough to spend too much time pondering her real motivations. "I have to center myself before I can open to the power, lest it sweep me away."
"I get it, it took me a while to figure it out,"
He leaned back in the chair. "Let's get some drinks over here, Evie. How's it been since the last time we talked?"
Evelyn couldn't help but quirk an eyebrow at Nick's smirk as she flagged the server over. The last time they'd talked had been when she'd called him at the private number she'd obtained from his mother, when she'd asked him for his help wrestling the primary battle from the incumbent Democrat. Evie allowed a smirk to form on her own face. "I've done pretty well actually. Won my election, tripled my vlog following, got myself onto a prestigious subcommittee on the Committee for Foreign Affairs..."
There was no denying that she may not have even won the primary if it hadn't been for Nick's intervention, but she had plenty of accomplishments on her own merits as well, and wasn't embarrassed that she'd needed help kick starting her career.
The waiter didn't take long thankfully. The man passed unknowingly through her bubble of power, offering them suggestions about drinks and specials. With her more friendly smile, Evie said: "We'll just start off with two White Russians please."
"White Russian?"
He chuckles. "Reminds me of when you were sixteen."
The first time she'd gotten drunk had been with her best friend Maddie, and her best friend's older brother: Trano. The girls had been sixteen years old, and Nick a soldier on leave. Evelyn had been curious about alcohol but never tried it before. Her first taste had been the White Russian Nick had mixed for her. Evie wasn't too proud to use any advantage she had. Trano had helped her in the first place because of their past (though he probably thought she'd have lost the General Election, to be fair). Trano was here right now because of their past. There was obviously some sentiment there and she would take any help that she could get.
"Of course. I was counting on that."
Trano was smart enough to know that her choice of drinks was intentional, so there was no point in hiding it.
The smile on her face faded and she leaned forward. "Secretary Trano, you have a lot on your plate right now, so let me cut right to the chase. I mentioned that I'm on a prestigious subcommittee in the House Foreign Affairs... well specifically it's the CCD Subcommittee, and today we had an emergency meeting."
She relaxed back in her chair, satisfied that she had the man's attention. "Congress is freaked out about Brandon."
Evelyn remembered that Nick hadn't referred to him as Ascendancy. Her word choice was very carefully crafted. "They already feared his power, and that was before they knew that he was... well, powered."
Her mouth twisted into a wry grin. "They're sending a small diplomatic delegation to Moscow, to discuss why he kept such vital information from us..."
Evelyn waved a hand dismissively. "It's posturing of course, dick measuring. They want to have better idea of what he's capable of, and whether or not he's planning on using his power against us. There's going to be one delegate from the House CCD Subcommittee. I want to be that delegate."
She paused to let Nick digest all the information. In the break, their server came back with their drinks. Evie picked it up and toasted her companion silently. "As the Secretary of Powers, it would be appropriate for you to make recommendations regarding the matter of how our Government will respond to Brandon's declaration of power. We have our differences politically speaking."
Evie laughed wryly. They both knew that was putting it lightly. "But we do have two things that we agree on. You want powered individuals to be treated with all the rights and respect a citizen of the United States deserves. As the first and only openly powered Member of Congress, we would be working quite closely to get your legislative agenda passed."
Evie didn't need to insult Nick by stating the obvious. Evelyn had the largest social media following of any government official except the President and Nick himself. She was already a media darling before revealing her abilities. Trano had an enormous media presence, of course, but the people who followed his sites and the people who followed her were very different audiences. With her help, he could reach a platform who would otherwise reflexively turn their noses up at a 'conservative quack'. Additionally, with partisanship an eternal problem, having an ally across the isle was nothing to scoff at.
"And I'm concerned for powered people everywhere, not just here. Which brings me to my second point. Nikolai Brandon is dangerous, extremely so."
Evie's expression sobered. "You and I have differences of opinion for how to best protect America's interests from him. I think that diplomacy will work best while you want us to prepare for war. Regardless, we both want to protect America from his greed. Those diplomats are going to walk into a situation for which they cannot possibly be prepared. They have no idea what Brandon is capable of, not like you and I do. They are going to go into that meeting with him distracted by awe of his powers, or fear.
"You said today that Brandon is a human just like us. Unfortunately I think you know as well as I do how hard it is for non-powered people to avoid falling into the trap of thinking of us as more than humans. I won't have that problem. When the American Delegation goes to Moscow to speak with Brandon about his power, and about how that changes our relationship with CCD, there should be someone there who knows about that power, and who won't be afraid to see him as the mortal that he is."
Her piece said, Evelyn leaned back in her chair and took a sip of her drink. She had countless arguments and counterarguments prepared if necessary, but first she'd have to hear how her old friend responded.
"It's difficult to access the power, to surrender myself to it fully."
Her poker face had been tried and tested in her brief career as a politician. Evelyn had no doubt that a skilled agent like Nick would know she wasn't the whole truth, but hopefully he wouldn't care enough to spend too much time pondering her real motivations. "I have to center myself before I can open to the power, lest it sweep me away."
"I get it, it took me a while to figure it out,"
He leaned back in the chair. "Let's get some drinks over here, Evie. How's it been since the last time we talked?"
Evelyn couldn't help but quirk an eyebrow at Nick's smirk as she flagged the server over. The last time they'd talked had been when she'd called him at the private number she'd obtained from his mother, when she'd asked him for his help wrestling the primary battle from the incumbent Democrat. Evie allowed a smirk to form on her own face. "I've done pretty well actually. Won my election, tripled my vlog following, got myself onto a prestigious subcommittee on the Committee for Foreign Affairs..."
There was no denying that she may not have even won the primary if it hadn't been for Nick's intervention, but she had plenty of accomplishments on her own merits as well, and wasn't embarrassed that she'd needed help kick starting her career.
The waiter didn't take long thankfully. The man passed unknowingly through her bubble of power, offering them suggestions about drinks and specials. With her more friendly smile, Evie said: "We'll just start off with two White Russians please."
"White Russian?"
He chuckles. "Reminds me of when you were sixteen."
The first time she'd gotten drunk had been with her best friend Maddie, and her best friend's older brother: Trano. The girls had been sixteen years old, and Nick a soldier on leave. Evelyn had been curious about alcohol but never tried it before. Her first taste had been the White Russian Nick had mixed for her. Evie wasn't too proud to use any advantage she had. Trano had helped her in the first place because of their past (though he probably thought she'd have lost the General Election, to be fair). Trano was here right now because of their past. There was obviously some sentiment there and she would take any help that she could get.
"Of course. I was counting on that."
Trano was smart enough to know that her choice of drinks was intentional, so there was no point in hiding it.
The smile on her face faded and she leaned forward. "Secretary Trano, you have a lot on your plate right now, so let me cut right to the chase. I mentioned that I'm on a prestigious subcommittee in the House Foreign Affairs... well specifically it's the CCD Subcommittee, and today we had an emergency meeting."
She relaxed back in her chair, satisfied that she had the man's attention. "Congress is freaked out about Brandon."
Evelyn remembered that Nick hadn't referred to him as Ascendancy. Her word choice was very carefully crafted. "They already feared his power, and that was before they knew that he was... well, powered."
Her mouth twisted into a wry grin. "They're sending a small diplomatic delegation to Moscow, to discuss why he kept such vital information from us..."
Evelyn waved a hand dismissively. "It's posturing of course, dick measuring. They want to have better idea of what he's capable of, and whether or not he's planning on using his power against us. There's going to be one delegate from the House CCD Subcommittee. I want to be that delegate."
She paused to let Nick digest all the information. In the break, their server came back with their drinks. Evie picked it up and toasted her companion silently. "As the Secretary of Powers, it would be appropriate for you to make recommendations regarding the matter of how our Government will respond to Brandon's declaration of power. We have our differences politically speaking."
Evie laughed wryly. They both knew that was putting it lightly. "But we do have two things that we agree on. You want powered individuals to be treated with all the rights and respect a citizen of the United States deserves. As the first and only openly powered Member of Congress, we would be working quite closely to get your legislative agenda passed."
Evie didn't need to insult Nick by stating the obvious. Evelyn had the largest social media following of any government official except the President and Nick himself. She was already a media darling before revealing her abilities. Trano had an enormous media presence, of course, but the people who followed his sites and the people who followed her were very different audiences. With her help, he could reach a platform who would otherwise reflexively turn their noses up at a 'conservative quack'. Additionally, with partisanship an eternal problem, having an ally across the isle was nothing to scoff at.
"And I'm concerned for powered people everywhere, not just here. Which brings me to my second point. Nikolai Brandon is dangerous, extremely so."
Evie's expression sobered. "You and I have differences of opinion for how to best protect America's interests from him. I think that diplomacy will work best while you want us to prepare for war. Regardless, we both want to protect America from his greed. Those diplomats are going to walk into a situation for which they cannot possibly be prepared. They have no idea what Brandon is capable of, not like you and I do. They are going to go into that meeting with him distracted by awe of his powers, or fear.
"You said today that Brandon is a human just like us. Unfortunately I think you know as well as I do how hard it is for non-powered people to avoid falling into the trap of thinking of us as more than humans. I won't have that problem. When the American Delegation goes to Moscow to speak with Brandon about his power, and about how that changes our relationship with CCD, there should be someone there who knows about that power, and who won't be afraid to see him as the mortal that he is."
Her piece said, Evelyn leaned back in her chair and took a sip of her drink. She had countless arguments and counterarguments prepared if necessary, but first she'd have to hear how her old friend responded.