thelegion | Audio | Screened to Kid Q and Brainy

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Audio | Screened to Kid Q and Brainy

[His tone is terse and sharp. He's not angry, but there's an intensity to it that just might bely fear if you're listening hard enough.]

I need to talk to you. Now.

One of the newest arrivals - he's from my world. His name's Locus, and he's unstable and extremely dangerous. He-

[There's a beat of hesitation, but they need context. Well, time to dig up this little horror show and put it on display.]

He and his partner committed planetary genocide for a paycheck. The only reason they didn't finish the job is because my team and I showed up, figured it out, and stopped them. We're lucky we all survived, and there are a lot of people that didn't. He's a threat.

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Do you have eyes on him at this moment?

No. He's on the observation deck as of fifteen seconds ago.

[They have to handle this carefully.]

Given our situation, we can't completely discount the possibility of allowing criminals and other dangerous individuals remain on the team, but that's only possible if they're capable of a measure of restraint and stability.

Given what you know of him, do you think it would be possible for him to adhere to our rules and laws for the duration of the fight against Chronoblivion? His arrest could always be secured before he re-enters your universe when everything's over.

That's just it - I don't know. He's not stable - from what I can tell, the war broke him, and his coping mechanisms are making it worse, and that's coming from me. [Wash can be terribly self-aware when he's trying to make a point.]

[But speaking of coping mechanisms...there's a few seconds of silence before he speaks up again.] He might be easier to handle here than he was on Chorus. Felix - his partner - isn't here to hold his leash; Locus might be looking for someone to replace him.

From what I know, Locus likes to think of himself as a soldier. He thinks that as long as he follows orders, the consequences aren't his fault. He's wrong, and I think some part of him knows that, and if you hammer that point enough you might get somewhere with him.

[He's thinking in terms of combat, because with Locus it's difficult not to.] Bottom line, I know he's not stable, but without Felix here I don't know what he'll do.

We can speak to him to see whether he's capable of following the rules, and refuse to let him on the team without a psychiatric assessment.

If he's capable of teamwork, we do have to consider allowing him on the team for the duration, but we can take measures to verify that he's stable enough to function under our rules and UP law -- and make the consequences of disobeying either very clear.

Book out the whole fucking day for that. Dr. Ryk'rr is going to have her hands full with him. [It comes out before he can stop it, but he is not apologizing for that one.]

[He's not happy with that assessment; then again, part of him knows that the only thing that would make him happy right now would be Locus' sudden disappearance, back to his dimension and - Wash hopes - his death. Seeing as that's probably not going to happen, he's going to have to suck it up and figure out a way to work around this. He's still not pleased, but his voices is as stable as he can manage.]

I have helmet cam footage from the past few years, including the war on Chorus and Locus' role in it. If you need it, it's yours.

Edited 2016-12-05 05:32 (UTC)

Send the most pertinent footage to me. I'll review it in the lab.

Even if we do accept his assistance, we don't have to do so without reservations, nor should we do it without contingency plans. There are ways we can offset the danger, such as pairing him on missions with individuals capable of incapacitating him if he attempts to commit a crime.

[While they're more than willing to give people chances, there's no reason they have to do so blindly.]

It'll take some time to sift through it.

[It's not a lie, exactly; it's definitely cover for the fact that he plans on confronting Locus himself to get a read on the situation.]

He didn't have powers before - no one from my dimension did. Do you know what he got when he arrived?

[It's a solid hour before Wash shows up at Brainy's lab - long enough for him to have had an ill-advised conversation with Locus and come out of it with conclusions of his own, for him to sift through months of footage to find the pertinent bits, and to decide just how much of the footage Locus sent him needs to be shown. Not much, as it turns out - there are some things that don't need to be shared.]

[He lets himself into the lab and removes his helmet.]

Do you have a minute?

Yes, certainly. In answer to your earlier question, Locus appears to have some minor enhancements to physique and possibly a cloaking ability.

Why am I not surprised he can turn invisible.

[It's a muttered comment - he's getting really tired of the Time Trapper's sense of humor. File it under Shit He Has To Deal With and move on.]

[He pulls a small drive out of his soft storage and offers it to Brainy.]

This is the highlights of my Chorus footage. It's...not pretty.

[Wash isn't much of a storyteller, but there's something of a narrative arc: his introduction as a force to be reckoned with, losing the battle in the canyon, snippets of the few months Wash spent with the Fed soldiers realizing that there might be something under Locus' powerhouse front, the revelation that Felix was his partner and they were trying to wipe out the entire planet, fight after fight after fight with Locus while Wash hammers away at Locus' defense mechanisms, at the line between being a soldier and being a monster, that killing me won't make you feel better - it'll just prove my point, watching a spaceship crash on top of Locus and Felix and surveying the rubble afterwards-]

[-and an incongruous piece of footage at the end. The angle is wrong, the voice is different, and Wash isn't there; this footage is from Locus' helmet cam. He throws down his gun, declares to Felix that he's done killing, that he's doing this for himself-]

[And the footage ends. It's maybe ten minutes long, but it's been a hell of a ten minutes. For now, Wash is quiet.]

[Brainy has the poker face to end all poker faces, so he sits in his floaty chair and watches it all without comment or much change in expression. The way his eyes occasionally flash a little wider or narrow in thought, and the occasional tweak of an eyebrow, are the only things that register that he's just...processing it all.]

[And also calculating risk. Thinking about possible outcomes.]

This provides some context, but not enough to truly illuminate his motivations and whether or not he's dedicated to changing.

[He looks thoughtful.]

Short of trying to make presumptions based on micro-expressions, we only have his word and actions.

[Which isn't much, for someone like him.]

My assessment -- which certainly isn't the only one we'll take into account -- is that with therapeutic intervention, and careful guidance, we may be able to direct him in ways that are helpful to our cause.

[He leans his elbows on the arms of his chair and steeples his fingers.]

With the caveat that dangerous or hostile behavior would lead to dismissal from the team and possible legal consequence.

[A pause.]

Although I do have a question: due to your position in the military and his status as a criminal, do you have any sort of legal mandate in your universe that would typically require you take him into custody?

[There's further footage Wash could provide, but that conversation with Santa is still horribly personal. He doesn't like Locus, but that doesn't mean it's his story to tell.]

Not really. I'm a soldier, and that's more military police work. I won't get that assignment unless someone up top has it in for me.

[And they might! Wow, is that ever a shitty possibility to consider. Future hypothetical problems - they're not worth thinking about now.]

That said, if they do catch him, they will kill him. Humanity just survived an alien genocide; they're not going to have any pity for a human taking part in another one.

[He takes a moment, considers his words, and sighs. He's actually fairly calm while speaking - it's a far cry from his earlier intensity and anger. Amazing what a single conversation can change.] For what it's worth, Felix was the driving force in their partnership. He was the charisma, the liar, the one who really enjoyed killing people who trusted him. Like I said, without him around, Locus might actually be more stable.

It wouldn't be the first time that a Legionnaire was guilty of criminal behavior or certain activities that others might find barbaric, before joining the team. None of them were guilty of something that severe, but gang leaders are gang leaders and black ops work is black ops work.

[Invisible Kid hadn't exactly laid his soul bare, even after they'd started dating in secret, but over the years, Brainy had gleaned a bit about the nature of some of the work he'd done. He hadn't been an assassin but he also hadn't questioned who was inside a building or do while blowing them up on orders to cover his tracks.]

We're also wholly aware of how certain external forces can damage ones mental health and drive them towards such heinous actions. [His voice goes a little soft as he finally shows a bit of emotion.] We lost a Legionnaire that way.

An extraordinarily kind and gentle one, at that.

There are external forces that can drive even the kindest people to places you'd never expect, until they've completely lost whoever they were and whoever they might otherwise have become without those forces influencing them.

[He raises his eyebrows slightly.]

Whether someone can come back from that. Well. That is the question --

[A pause.]

And the hope.

[Which is what they're supposed to give people, and something they're supposed to hold onto.]

Your opinion has changed. Already. After talking to him. I can tell.

You believe it, don't you. That he hopes to change. Or you want to.

Edited 2017-01-08 08:35 (UTC)

[There's a lot to unpack there, and even more that Wash needs to shake off. Coming back from being an insane, violent wreck- well, isn't that just his whole fucking life. He's pretty sure that's not what Brainy's talking about, but damned if it doesn't resonate anyway.]

[So he swallows past that particular lump in his throat and carries on.]

[He's not surprised Brainy figured out he talked with Locus - his including Locus' own helmetcam footage is a dead giveaway even if the change in his demeanor isn't, and it's an insult to everyone involved to even think that either of those would slip past Brainy.]

He took the oath. [It's simple, and a hell of a lot calmer than he was earlier.] I know that's not necessarily an indication of intent - I mean, we have Reaper, for God's sake - but the Locus I spent months fighting wouldn't have taken it at all without a reason.

[He takes a breath and thinks through his words. It's odd how much he's come to trust Brainy since he arrived - it's partially a willingness to trust the people in charge that Freelancer hadn't quite managed to kill and partially the knowledge that Brainy has seen his weaknesses and hasn't used them against him. (Yet, says his paranoia, present as ever but a little easier to ignore now.) He wouldn't say this to many other people, but, well. It's context, and it's trust.]

Look, a few years ago, I was close to where he is. Not genocidal, or anywhere near it, but still pretty fucked up. I got a second chance that I didn't deserve, and it's the only reason I'm still here. This might be his, and if he wants to take it - if he actually intends to change - then I don't think I can be the one to ruin it for him.

[He doesn't like talking about the parallels between Locus' history and his own, namely because Locus has spent a good amount of time trying to use them to justify genocide, but that doesn't mean that they're not there, or that he can continue to ignore them without consequence.]

I don't trust him - I don't think he can be trusted right now, and I think if the wrong people get their hands on him he'll be worse than ever - but that doesn't mean there's not a chance, and we need all the help we can get.

[Brainy nods.]

Kid Quantum ultimately has the final word, but my formal assessment will be that we should defer to your judgment in the matter. You actually have experience with him, enough to have some measure of his character. Legion World is at least well-equipped to provide mental health services to help him with his issues -- and we can make that a requirement of his Legion membership.

If you're wrong and he's being deceitful, or he does lapse in judgment, it's still better that someone like him is kept close. Then the Legion will be there if it happens.

[A pause.]

But I hope you're right about his sincerity. The team has historically provided a second chance for quite a few Legionnaires, and has been a source of direction for those of us that were aimless or completely lacking in anything resembling a moral compass.

[He breathes in and lets it out through his nose in a self-mocking snort.]

Myself included.

[It's only fair, after Wash has volunteered something and made himself a little vulnerable, that he offer something back, and meet him halfway.]

I believe a common human colloquialism for the state many of us were in before we joined the team is "hot mess."

Brainy, the last decade of my life has been a string of assholes I shouldn't have trusted but did. If I'm wrong, we can just throw it on the pile.

[Turns out Wash is really bitter about continually being betrayed by people who were supposed to help him. He's got good reason for being as paranoid as he is.]

[He snorts at Brainy's description - it's as close to a laugh as he gets nowadays. Now that's a phrase he never thought he'd hear Brainy say.]

I told you about my team back home, didn't I? If anything, they're proof that if you stick the right combination of hot messes together, you can get shit done.

[Legion of Hot Messes. They should really change the name.]

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Audio | Screened to Kid Q and Brainy

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