"Into the Flood Again"
Know me broken by my master Teach thee on child of love hereafter Into the flood again Same old trip is what back then So I made a big mistake Try to see it once my way ~ "Would?", Alice in Chains Paige's Place March 23, 2008 1700 hours Paige answered the door, happy to see Gray standing there. She stepped back to invite him in. "Take a ride with me to Safehouse 2?" he asked without entering. "Yeah, sure, what's up?" Paige asked, immediately on edge with Gray's transparent attempt to mask that something was wrong. "Nothing, I need you to do something for me," he answered evenly. Paige watched him for a moment. "Ok, let me grab a jacket." He nodded and she retreated into her bedroom grabbing her jacket and tucking her weapon into the back band of her jeans. A girl couldn't be too prepared, could she? "Ok, let's go," she said locking the door and following Gray to his car. The ride to SH2 (Safehouse 2) took only about 15 minutes with the little bit of traffic and Gray kept the music up and conversation light. Paige knew something was wrong and consciously cast her gaze at the mirrors to see if they were being followed. As far as she could tell, they weren't. Gray parked the car outside the two story brown building and she noted there were other cars there and a motorcycle. Not so unusual, she thought, others leased space in this building as well. "What do you need me to do?" Paige asked playfully as they climbed the stairs. The elevator was operational but it was quicker to just take the stairs. Gray hesitated, "I have something...I need you to look at." Paige shrugged and waited patiently as he entered the security codes that opened the door. He held it open for her and she walked into the dark interior. SH2 was basically the entire second floor of the building with its own entrances and exits at either end. It was for the most part an open area of desks, computers, phones, and weapon cabinets. At the far end of the building was to be the medical part, to which Paige had voiced it should be the other way around, in case someone was severely injured they could save precious minutes travel time. That, and not get blood all over the place. It had, she assumed, been taken into consideration since boxes of medical equipment were now stacked in the side she stood in now. She looked about taking in what she could of the dark area waiting for Gray to give her further instructions on what he needed from her. Although SH2 did not have a medical staff just yet, the two other times she had been here there had at least been a couple people. Now, it was empty. "Quiet here tonight," she commented easily smiling back at him. He balked for a moment, "yeah, I've got duty tonight." But he didn't return her smile. She heard, before turning, needing only a moment to place the easy gait of her former antagonist. "Michael," she breathed easily, smiling just the slightest bit, "funny meeting you here." "Paige," he said evenly, nodding his head to her as he got closer. She shifted her weight slightly, ready for him to do anything as her heart rate steadily increased. "Good to see you up and about after what happened in Germany." (get out) "Yes," he replied in his usual monotone voice. There was silence for a moment as Michael stopped about 5 yards in front of her and Gray moved to the side but still in her view. "What's this all about, Gray?" she asked never taking her eyes off of Michael (get out quickly). Her attention so focused on Michael she did not hear the one approach her from behind. She felt the weapon pointed at her back and her gun being slid out of its hiding place. She whirled on the intruder taking a moment to place the familiar face that had invaded her apartment over the past week...Joshua. He lowered his weapon as she stared hatefully at him. "What do you want?" "We need you to do something for us," he said flatly with no hint of the former friendliness she had become used to. So he too, apparently, could morph into an all business mode when needed. "No," she said shaking her head and mentally gauging the distance to the door. "I don't work for you anymore." "Don't make this difficult. Do as we ask and you can go," he replied flatly. She studied him as her mind worked already visualizing reaching the door and turning the latch, not entering the code so they would have to or the alarms would sound. But who would come? Nobody was here. "Paige," Joshua bade for her attention. He knew what she was thinking...so did Michael. She heard Michael's movement behind her and she instantly turned to bolt. A few steps and she had reached the door feeling Joshua's heavy body and Michael's lighter but still effective enough body, slam into her. They dragged her away from the door and down to the ground grabbing her wrists after she swung and connected with Michael's face. She felt the prick in her arm and the swiftness of her muscles settling. "Jesus Christ, Josh," Gray shouted angrily, "don't hurt her." "She's fine," Joshua stated to Gray, "just calming her down." "What do you want from me," she groaned under their weight and hands (always these hands). "A mild sedative Paige, nothing more," Joshua whispered in her ear as they struggled to keep her down until the full effect of the drug wore in. The drug wasn't potent, by any means, just enough to 'take the edge off' as they say. She wouldn't be able to run or fight them but she would be able to function, and she supposed, given the circumstances, that was better than being totally drugged out and waking up in god knows what predicament. "You said she would do it...not this," Gray said angrily as he moved closer. Michael stood up, putting himself between Gray and them, "this isn't an SIA matter." The fear gripped her then, "Joshua, please don't take me back there," she whispered to him. "We're not taking you back, we just need you to do something. C'mon, get up," he replied helping her to her wobbly feet. She glanced at Gray who was obviously very angry but held in check by Michael's ominous presence. They took her into the medical section and sat her down tying her wrists to a chair. "Is that really necessary?" Gray hissed at the two men. Paige watched as Michael shot Joshua a look, one she knew well. He wanted Gray out of there. Joshua just shook his head in return and went to speak with Gray. She knew then that Michael indeed answered to Joshua and she took a small perverse pleasure in that notion. She couldn't hear what they spoke about as her attention was riveted on Michael who poked at a laptop. He moved his hand to his ear, "Birkoff," he said quietly. She felt the sudden sadness of hearing Birkoff's name and knowing now that he was still confined to the Section. On the other hand...at least he was still alive. Michael moved then opening a small box and pulling out what appeared to Paige to be some sort of head gear, visor or something, that he connected to the laptop. And what did he intend to do with that? Michael looked up at her, then moved to her intending to place said head gear on her head. "I won't cooperate," she mumbled flatly pulling futilely at her wrist ties. Joshua moved to stand in front of her. "We just need you to memorize some data for us, that's it." "No, I don't want any of your shit in my head," she mumbled back to him. "You don't have much of a choice," he answered. "You can't make me," she said though she knew very well they could. Hell, weren't they proving that little fact already? He placed his hands on her arms, leaning into her, so his face was so close she could see the tiny flecks of gold scattered amid the pools of blue that were his eyes. "Oh, yes, we can," he said softly, flatly. "We've got very potent drugs at our disposal if you would like to try it that way." "If I'm drugged up I can't memorize anything," she replied in a challenging tone. He smiled wickedly at her then leaned in brushing his cheek, slightly laced with stubble, against hers, and whispered in her ear, "its called passive memorization." 'Yeah, that's what's it was called alright' she thought as she fought down every urge to spit in his face. "Bastard," she hissed at him. He smirked at her before standing up and turning to Michael, "do it." Her eyes flicked to Michael and the head gear. He fitted it to her head speaking to her softly, "the visor will detect your eye movement, if you close them for more than 45 seconds a small static shock will be sent to your temples to open them." She scoffed at him, "just like old times, right Michael?" referring to what had occurred some time ago in an all white room, something she had yet to get retribution for. He was silent as the darkness of the visor closed over her eyes, which in response she shut. She heard the movement around her though the visors remained dark. "Open your eyes, Paige," Michael said quietly. Into the flood again, she went, same old shit it was back then, thrust back into her role as a Level 2 Field Op with her team leader demanding something of her. She saw then the soft blue light in her periphery, the two dark squares directly in front of her. "Birkoff," Michael said again, "we're ready, load the data." So data it would be, she thought, as the two screens lit up with code that imprinted itself permanently into her brain as a picture through no will of her own. The data moved quickly then as she took some time to consciously memorize it. She grew bored in a few minutes and resorted to analyzing this code. She attempted to source it but it was strange and new to her. There was nothing in her vast neurological databanks with which to cross reference, match, or otherwise identify it. What then...could it be? She continued her attempts to identify the code, to find anything that would hint at what it was, but she could not. Perhaps in time she would, but not now, not this night. She settled back then, after an hour she judged, leaning her head back and slumping in the already uncomfortable chair, waiting out however long it would take them to finish using her. She grasped at the little conversation around her as the hours wore on. Her head had started thumping quite some time ago when she lost track of time and she finally had to even abandon the ritualistic recital she used to ease it. Her eyes were heavy and the first few static shocks started coming to her temples as she inadvertently attempted to doze off, attempted to escape from them. They didn't hurt, meant more to remind then to injure. Within that time when the static had started so did the conversations. It was 'too much' Gray had argued. Only to be rebuked by those that had seen her do this before and knew the capacity with which she could withstand. She still, however, believed they were pushing her limits after six straight hours. They knew it too, as she could hear the doubt in Joshua's scarce words, and sense it, confirmed, in Michael's silence. Then the pacing started. She didn't know who but only guessed it could be Gray, uncomfortably witnessing for the first time the harsh brutality of the Section. It was not too long afterwards the transmissions stopped. It was a sudden thrust into darkness as the code disappeared from her view drawing a sigh of relief from herself and the others in the room. The headgear had been lifted as they looked anxiously at her. "Paige?" Joshua asked her gently, the kind tone back in his voice that she had become used to. She closed her eyes, the onslaught of the thumping in full effect, and let her head lean back against the chair yet again. "Head," she groaned out not even sure if the wincing she felt made it to her facial muscles. "Give her something," Gray attempted his authority again. "No," Joshua said quietly, while he gently removed the bands that held her wrists, "she may not have gotten the last hour." 'Go to hell' her mind shot back though her mouth did not move. "She'll need a few days rest," Michael said matter of factly. "Oh, and now I'm down an Agent for a few days?" Gray responded clearly pissed off. Joshua lifted her gently out of the chair on to a bed, "I cleared this with Rebecca, she knows what's going on," he said with an authoritative tone Paige had never heard before. His power in the room was made clear with that one statement. And Rebecca knew? So the SIA still caved under Oversight's flexing muscle? "I need to get back to the city," Gray said, "I'll take her with me." "She needs to sleep first," Michael interceded. "I'll stay here with her for a bit then take her back to her apartment," Joshua said, "Gray, you go back to the city and check in with Rebecca." "And then?" Gray asked. "I'll stay with her for a few days. She still needs to be tested," Joshua replied. "Tested?" Gray asked. "We've embedded images into the data she'll need to recall so we can gauge how much information she actually retained," Michael said. "You think of everything, don't you?" Gray said contemptuously. "Alright, enough," Joshua said clearly agitated. "Go back to the city, Gray. Michael, I'll call you in a few hours." With that, Paige assumed, they had left and she allowed herself to finally sleep, finally escape the data that still flicked in her mind, and the pain associated with it. Return