02-10-2018, 03:36 PM
War was an inevitable consequence of humanity, and peace -- true peace -- little beyond a beautiful ideal. Worth fighting for, perhaps, but still a Sisyphean dream. She did not think Evelyn could truly be so naive; not in order to stand as highly as she did in American politics, and so as much as the disclosure made Natalie want to smirk and say something deeply divisive, she only listened; let the words wash over her as any normal young woman might, eyes tugged up like they soaked into her soul. It surprised her, given Nicholas Trano's outspoken opinions about the self-titled dictator of the CCD, that she was so willing to take Brandon at his word -- particularly when the promise was so deeply flawed. Natalie wanted to shake her. The woman sounded utterly deluded.
Instead she only nodded like there was comfort in the words; as if she truly did believe them. But her gaze dipped once more to the rim of her glass, the hint of concern still on her brow, like she wanted to speak but could not quite capture the words. It was a stark contrast to the eloquence of her speech before, utterly intentional. After a moment of apparently troubled indecision, she spoke. "I'm not sure this is my place to say, but ... you know what's happening in Africa, and I imagine you must know Jacques Danjou of Legion Premiere is here in Moscow.
"Last night one of his men was taken into the Custody's care -- and promptly disappeared from public records. The last time I saw him he had just discovered what he is -- one of us, and he sounded terrified of it. Channelers are registering everyday, but they aren't going missing.
"When I asked, Ascendancy--"
she didn't pause over the world, much as she wanted to imbue a bite of sarcasm; she would play whatever game she needed to if it gave her plea a hint of honey "-- told me he has him here. To train him, though he wouldn't let me see him. Why the secrecy? What would he want with a soldier if he's all but promised disarmament? And an American solider, at that, not even a Custody citizen."
Not a question she truly anticipated an answer to; or at least not one she would enjoy hearing if Evelyn chose now to unsheathe her claws in Brandon's defence. The accusation was subtle, but it was there, and she did not expect Evelyn to absorb it easily -- least of all because it suggested Brandon had lied to her. But it was phrased innocently enough -- still seeking the reassurance Evelyn seemed so keen to bestow, whilst planting dark seeds of doubt at Brandon's theft of her countryman. She did not mention the Facility, deliberately skirting away from explicitly breaking Brandon's confidence. He said himself he had not told the representative; he was unlikely to take kindly to even this much interference, she knew that. But if Evelyn led herself to the conclusions? Hardly Natalie's fault; Brandon was the one who had pushed her in Evelyn's very direction in the first place.
And if her proposal was going to have any impact at all, she needed all the facts.
Natalie's voice softened, taking away the sting of blame in the same moment she aimed for Evelyn's good heart. "Jay Carpenter saved my life. I can't not know what's happened to him."
The words whispered off quiet and with the trust of confidence. If Evelyn perceived a starry-eyed girl in that confession, it didn't much matter; in fact she did not care what the other woman deigned of her reasons at all, so long as she was swept up in them enough to take her under wing and unite this cause naturally with her own. Evelyn had little true authority in the CCD, but Natalie had not come here believing she could free Jay from the snare. She came here for the light Evelyn could shed, if she were but pointed in the right direction.
She dipped her eyes, as if embarrassed, and straightened in her chair. The brief glimpse of vulnerability faded. "It's not why I'm here; forgive me. I came to offer whatever assistance I can, if you have any need of it. Ascendancy was right, we have similar views in this."
Edited by Natalie Grey, Feb 10 2018, 06:57 PM.
Instead she only nodded like there was comfort in the words; as if she truly did believe them. But her gaze dipped once more to the rim of her glass, the hint of concern still on her brow, like she wanted to speak but could not quite capture the words. It was a stark contrast to the eloquence of her speech before, utterly intentional. After a moment of apparently troubled indecision, she spoke. "I'm not sure this is my place to say, but ... you know what's happening in Africa, and I imagine you must know Jacques Danjou of Legion Premiere is here in Moscow.
"Last night one of his men was taken into the Custody's care -- and promptly disappeared from public records. The last time I saw him he had just discovered what he is -- one of us, and he sounded terrified of it. Channelers are registering everyday, but they aren't going missing.
"When I asked, Ascendancy--"
she didn't pause over the world, much as she wanted to imbue a bite of sarcasm; she would play whatever game she needed to if it gave her plea a hint of honey "-- told me he has him here. To train him, though he wouldn't let me see him. Why the secrecy? What would he want with a soldier if he's all but promised disarmament? And an American solider, at that, not even a Custody citizen."
Not a question she truly anticipated an answer to; or at least not one she would enjoy hearing if Evelyn chose now to unsheathe her claws in Brandon's defence. The accusation was subtle, but it was there, and she did not expect Evelyn to absorb it easily -- least of all because it suggested Brandon had lied to her. But it was phrased innocently enough -- still seeking the reassurance Evelyn seemed so keen to bestow, whilst planting dark seeds of doubt at Brandon's theft of her countryman. She did not mention the Facility, deliberately skirting away from explicitly breaking Brandon's confidence. He said himself he had not told the representative; he was unlikely to take kindly to even this much interference, she knew that. But if Evelyn led herself to the conclusions? Hardly Natalie's fault; Brandon was the one who had pushed her in Evelyn's very direction in the first place.
And if her proposal was going to have any impact at all, she needed all the facts.
Natalie's voice softened, taking away the sting of blame in the same moment she aimed for Evelyn's good heart. "Jay Carpenter saved my life. I can't not know what's happened to him."
The words whispered off quiet and with the trust of confidence. If Evelyn perceived a starry-eyed girl in that confession, it didn't much matter; in fact she did not care what the other woman deigned of her reasons at all, so long as she was swept up in them enough to take her under wing and unite this cause naturally with her own. Evelyn had little true authority in the CCD, but Natalie had not come here believing she could free Jay from the snare. She came here for the light Evelyn could shed, if she were but pointed in the right direction.
She dipped her eyes, as if embarrassed, and straightened in her chair. The brief glimpse of vulnerability faded. "It's not why I'm here; forgive me. I came to offer whatever assistance I can, if you have any need of it. Ascendancy was right, we have similar views in this."
Edited by Natalie Grey, Feb 10 2018, 06:57 PM.