September 1st, 2020, New Haven USA


The X-Men were released less than twenty-four hours after they allowed themselves to be captured.  It was a decision born out of pragmatism; the X-Men just stopped not one, but two, terrorist attacks carried by the Mutant Brotherhood.  The powers that be didn’t like how things went down, but had no choice but grind their teeth and accept the fact that the X-Men were a necessary evil.  For now.

Having spent the night at a little bohemian hotel in New Haven (all expenses paid for by the US government), and following a hearty breakfast the following morning, Frank and Ana got into their taxi and drove back to the same government building in which they spent the previous day. Only now they arrived as guests of Valerie Cooper, rather than prisoners.
After passing through security and receiving their temporary id badges, they met with Valerie.  The young woman was dressed much more conservatively this time; a black a-line knee-length skirt over a dark hosiery, and a (bottomed up!) cerulean collared shirt.  She smiled, and greeted the two ‘hello’, but was clearly eager with getting their meeting started because she already started ushering them toward the conference room as they exchanged pleasantries

“Here we are” she waited for them to step inside, and take their seats, before going in herself and closing the door behind them.  Her laptop was already connected, her deck about ‘Freedom Force’ ready to go, but she wanted to give them the opportunity to settle in before she would take them through a one-hour presentation.

“I’m sure you must have many questions, and concerns, about the new agency.  Similarly, I have many questions and concerns about you; I must make sure I recruit the right people for this position.  Having super-powers isn’t nearly enough.  You’ll need to have the right psychological profile for this job; mentally stable, patriotic, dependable.  I can’t afford to have any loose cannons on this team”

Tank nodded, but said nothing at Valerie's description of their ideal candidate. He was pretty sure he qualified based on those criteria, but the decision ultimately wasn't his to make.

"Who else will be on this team?" he asked instead.

Valerie hesitates before answering, but eventually decides to disclose the information:

"Two others, presently.  One who goes by the name of 'Mistress', can exhale different types of gases.  The other is Fiona; a mutant with the ability to raise the dead, and kill with the touch of her hand" 

Ana Sofía takes a seat beside Frank, a gesture of unity in the new environment. She listens intently. "Those are good qualities," she replies to Valerie. "While I have many questions, many will surely be answered, and I'm bound to come up with more. So I'd be happy to let you ask away and say what you will first."

Upon hearing about Fiona Ana Sofía asks, "Raise the dead like Jesus? Or raise the dead like zombies?"

«Because what super-team is complete unless there's someone who can literally kill at a whim?» Tank thought, his mind open to Ana for this comment. He had barely trusted Zoey, and that had turned out pretty badly. Now he'd be teamed up with someone else who could do what she did: kill with impunity.

"And who's in charge?" he asked, putting that thought aside for the moment. There had been a distinct lack of leadership in the field during his outing with the X-Men, with Beast letting some of the others go haring down whatever path they chose. Serena, for one, had done only what Serena wanted (and shouldn't have been there in the first place). It had been a clusterfuck. "There's obviously got to be a clear chain of command to this."

“Subjects raised within minutes of their death retain ALL their memories, and some of their personality as well.  A week later results in significant degradation in both.  In either case, the reanimated obey Fiona’s command, so I would say her powers fall short of a truly divine miracle”   - zombies then

Valerie skipped a few slides in her presentation to reach the one about the chain of command:

“Freedom Force is a new agency inside the Department of Homeland Defense.  The department Director is the undersecretary of Homeland Security-”  the undersecretary being herself  “-reporting to the Secretary of Homeland Security, who is appointed by the President.  Douglas Price, a former SEAL and a US Navy Colonel, is Tactical Command, and all operatives are to follow his orders while on the field”
This message was last edited by the player at 15:31, Sun 25 Apr 2021.

OOC: As we haven't returned to the mansion and we were last arrested in our X-Men uniforms, are we still wearing those from yesterday, in which case we showed up from the lodging that way?

Ana Sofía replies to Frank, 'Yes, I'm paying attention to the recruitment, too.'
This message was last edited by the player at 15:10, Sat 24 Apr 2021.

You had more than enough time to buy some clothes

"I think I'd want to meet him before I say Yes or No on this," Tank said, referring to Colonel Price. "I'm treating this more as a job interview than anything else, and I'd like to get a feel for who my boss is going to be."

«I'd really love to get a feel for our co-workers, but I doubt that's likely,» he added to Ana Sofia. «So... are we doing this?»

"That can be arranged" Valerie readily agreed "Provided I am similarly satisfied with you.  Do you mind telling me a little bit about yourselves?" she started with a text-book interview question.  It was common, because it was a good starting point.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:17, Sun 25 Apr 2021.

Ana Sofía thinks to Frank, 'Probably, but let's find out as much as we can first.'

"Sure. How much life history do you want?" she replies to Valerie.

"And how much do you already have?" Tank added. He was still wearing his mask, although he'd had the opportunity to change into street clothes. He really disliked the thing, though, and would be just as glad to finally take it off. He mostly expected that Cooper and the rest of her department already knew who he was. "Because there isn't really that much to tell, in my case. Wouldn't want to bore you with things you already knew."

He pulled off the mask. Surprise! He was nobody special!

"Name is Frank Guberman," he said, looking for any spark of recognition in Ms. Cooper's eye to indicate that yes, she knew that.

Valerie’s ruby lips curled into a smile
“Pretend like I know nothing about you and give me the rundown. I don’t need your full life’s story – just the interesting bits" 
This message was last edited by the player at 19:05, Mon 26 Apr 2021.

"Not much interesting before I developed my powers," Frank said, tucking his mask into a pocket as he talked. Cooper probably just wanted to know his 'origin' story, and not about anything else Frank might have thought interesting. Not that there really was a lot of that. He should tell her about his bar mitzvah, maybe? No. Just the 'origin', thanks. "I was a chubby, geeky kid, who developed an interest in football as a way to communicate with my father, who's the ultimate football nut. Then I grew big and muscular, and actually played for my high school.

"I was scouted by Empire State University, full ride. Then they adopted the policy for testing for mutant genes, and wham. I was a mutant, and I was off the team. No football scholarship.

"I wasn't as strong as I am now, when that happened. A few months ago, I still couldn't believe I was a mutant. I thought it was just an amazing growth spurt. But since then I've grown a lot stronger. I mean a lot. Stronger every time I test myself, actually.

"And that's really all there is to know. I'm a super-strong geek."

"Well, then... Half of my family are Mexican-American from New Mexico before it was part of the United States, and another quarter are Mexican-American via immigration years ago. The other quarter of my family are Navajo. My great-grandfather was a code-talker in WWII. One grandfather immigrant was also in the US Army. My brother is currently with the US Army in Afghanistan. So my family has been here a long time and has served the country.

"I grew up in Albuquerque with three siblings, my parents, and some grandparents, speaking Spanish and Diné at home and English in school. I spent much of my time outside my studies reading, playing chess, and running. When I started having trouble with my powers developing I got accepted to the Xavier Institute. I finished high school there. Since high school I've been modeling and working on a degree in psychology at Columbia University.

"How's that as a summary?"

Valerie took some mental notes as she listened to them talk.   She was happy to learn that both Frank and Ana had a normal upbringing, and that their life (up until the point they discovered they were mutants) was beret of drama.  A good childhood was strongly correlated to healthy, well adjusted, adult life.  She knew it, because:

“A degree in psychology from Columbia?” she asked with some suspicion, wondering for a moment if Ana was playing her, particularly after she omitted the really interesting part about the nature of her gifts

“That’s what I’ve majored in as well.  I received my PHD from Columbia last year, in fact”
This message was last edited by the player at 18:03, Wed 28 Apr 2021.

"Yes, but I've only just finished freshman year. So I haven't gotten very far at all yet. It seemed fitting to help me understand my own mind and the thoughts of others that constantly flood me. Plus I seem to be a bit of a mother hen around the children, so developmental psychology might suit me. You'll have to give me some advice on which professors to try to take classes with, even if a PhD is a long way ahead of where I am."

"I’ll be happy to help in anyway I can.  I should tell you, however, that we intend to keep the both of you busy.  Judging by the increasing frequency of crises we’re facing we’ll be lucky if we can get a good night’s sleep in between saving the world”

She took a breather before moving on to address the elephant in the room

“There is something else we must discuss, before we go any further.  We do not currently have the means to safely confine mutants, save the measures you saw on the island” she quickly followed up and clarified before they got the wrong idea:

“The experiments were not sanctioned by the President.  She, and I, knew nothing about them.  All we were made aware of was that the prisoners were heavily sedated as part of their confinement.  It is the best we could come up; a temporary measure while our best minds are busy at work, searching for a way to nullify mutant powers”

“The inmates were all extremely dangerous – the majority of them were hardened criminals; murderers, rapists, terrorists.  The rest had no control of their powers, posing a danger to themselves and to others.  I’m telling you all of this because I want you to understand what you’re signing up for.  If you accept the offer to join Freedom Force, dangerous mutants you will apprehend will likely find themselves in a facility like the one on Nomans Land.  We simply don't have any other option”
This message was last edited by the player at 17:33, Thu 29 Apr 2021.

"Well, you might be able to help with a leave of absence, then. I don't want to give it up, but there are more important things."

She lets Valerie Cooper say her piece. "Sedation to the point required is reasonable. If a mutant's power is that out of control, that may well save their life as well as many others. If a criminal cannot be incarcerated otherwise, that is a more humane approach. So long are the experimentation on unwilling subjects stops. That I cannot abide."

“And neither can I.  The infirmary’s chief physician’s story is that they were performing an autopsy of a prisoner that has allegedly died from a drug overdose” she looked at frank, and back to Ana “And yes, I’m not buying it either.  We will get to the bottom of it, and make sure to implement measures to prevent it from happening again”

An idea suddenly occurred to her; one that would help speed things along:
“Oh!  If you can read minds, I could use your help with the interrogation ”
This message was last edited by the player at 12:44, Fri 30 Apr 2021.

"Sounds like the performance side of the job interview. I try not to as a general rule to avoid invading privacy. But like a policeman with a search warrant or in the midst of a crime, there are times when it's no longer an unethical invasion. It would help if I knew more about who is being interrogated and why. People have a lot of history, desires, etc. Otherwise it's like walking into a library and trying to find a particular book without knowing anything about the book."

Frank just settled back and followed the conversation. It stood to reason that there would be a lot more for Ana Sofia to explain about her powers than there was for Frank to explain about his. He was strong, period. 'Lift from the knees' would be about all he had to say on the subject.

"I will send you the full dossier as soon as I can.  In the meantime, unless there's something else you'd like to ask me, I propose to fly the two of you to our compound near DC, where we can complete your psychological evaluation, and give you the opportunity to meet with Douglas Price and the rest of Freedom Force"

"Sounds good to me. You, Frank?"

"Sounds like a plan," Frank agreed.

"Here we are; Freedom Force HQ"

Valerie tapped against the helicopter’s window to draw their attention to the right

“The installation was originally owned by SHIELD” she had to raise he voice so they would have a chance to hear her over the spinning rotor blades: “- but was repurposed for Freedom Force exclusive use a few months back.  We needed a secluded place where our agents can train without endangering innocent civilians, yet a short distance away from Washington DC.  We don’t expect you to spend all your time here; Freedom Force is not a military unit.  But you should probably look for real-estate nearby".

She turned her head back to look at Ana and Frank who were sitting opposite of her, her eyes hidden behind the mirrored aviator sunglasses

“Beautiful, isn’t it?”

"It's really nice," Frank agreed, leaning over to get a better look. It certainly didn't look military. It looked more like a mansion that one might find cantilevered over the ocean in Northern California. "The mention of D.C. real estate brings me to wonder something that I really hadn't considered until now. D.C. is one of the most expensive cities in the country. What does this job pay?"

"2.5 million dollars per year" It sounded like a lot, but like she told the president when she negotiated the deal, the government paid more for Blackwater, and each member of Freedom Force was easily worth more than ten times as much as the private military company "You shouldn't have any problems finding a place"
This message was last edited by the player at 03:57, Mon 03 May 2021.

Ana Sofía looks at the view in amazement. She's been at Xavier's mansion, so something fantastic isn't all new, but it's a beautiful site on its own. "Wow!" Then she hears the salary response. "¡No manches!" Her jaw drops a bit, and it takes a moment to recover. At least she'd used the politer term in front of one of her new bosses.

Thinking about being paid for a job brings Ana Sofía's mind around to related things. "You mentioned public appearances. I think such visibility along with doing good could do more for relations than nearly anything else. Is there a PR team we'll be working with?"

"Wow. Talk about burying the lede," Frank said, mostly to himself, as Ana asked about PR specialists. Two and a half million dollars? That was a lot of hazard pay. Frank might not have been swayed to take the offer just because of the money, had he not already been interested. But still, it was eye-popping.

"I'm going to get myself a car that I can fit into." He was thinking out loud, spending money he didn't have yet. It was hard not to. He felt a little stupid and shallow for saying these things out loud — for even thinking them, really — but there were cartoon dollar signs in his eyes regardless. "Uh... ignore me."

"I can't even process it. That's more than all my extended family makes in many years. Gotta turn to something I can process. Sorry."

"It may sound like a lot, but considering each of you is the equivalent of an entire platoon, or a fighter jet, then the reality is that the government is actually SAVING money on Freedom Force.  At least, that’s the way I presented it to the President"

she smirks like the proverbial cat that swallowed the canary

"As for our PR team; I admit they can be a bit…demanding, but they’re all professionals.  You’ll come to rely on them, just as I have."

Valerie picked up her phone as they descended toward the helipad.  Her intention was to message Price to come out and greet them, but it turned out he was already waiting for them, having been alerted minutes ago by the not-so-subtle approach of the noisy chopper.

"I've never worked with a PR team," Frank said, and then rolled his eyes at how stupid that sounded out loud. "...but there are a lot of 'nevers' in this situation, so I guess that's not remotely surprising."

"I'm not saying it's unreasonable. And I am certainly appreciative. I'm just saying it's a scale above a scale unheard of in my family, so it's going to take me a while to wrap my mind around it."

Still looking out the window at the beautiful scene she asks, "Is that Colonel Price? Do we salute him? I don't have any idea what the protocol is."

“No, there’s no need to salute – we’re not in the army, and you aren’t soldiers.  Don’t refer to him as a Colonel either, though I wouldn’t go as far as to call him by his first name”

The chopper has landed, and Valerie waited for the rotors to stop spinning, and the engine to quiet down, before reaching toward the door and sliding it open.

“There” she graciously waited for the two of them to get off first, before doing so herself; she needed Frank to get out first, so she could reach out to his hand for assistance, not wanting to risk twisting her ankle disembarking off the chopper in her high heels.

Douglas Price was standing some twenty feet away from the chopper, munching on his cigar as he observed the two mutants.  He was dressed in plain clothes; a simple black shirt, and a pair of jeans.  Old habits die hard, however, and he could not let go of his handgun, holstered against his leather belt, and the combat knife, the handle of which was sticking out the side of his boot.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:49, Wed 05 May 2021.

Ana Sofía hops out of the helicopter with some eagerness, though she does duck overly low under its blades. Then she has to hold her hair out of her face as the whipping winds send it into a frenzy. She's still a little hesitant to fully stand up by the time she gets to Price, but he's taller than she is so she does so. She goes for southern and safe, and loud to overcome the background, "Hello, sir. It's good to meet you. I'm Ana Sofía Garcia Méndez."

Frank helped Ms. Cooper out of the helicopter, then turned to follow Ana Sofia over to where Colonel Price was standing. No, not Colonel, he reminded himself, taking Ms. Cooper's advice. Mister Price.

"Frank Guberman," he said to introduce himself, and stuck out a hand. "Also known as 'Tank'."

Douglas accepted the gesture and shook Frank's hand.  Although he was stronger in comparison to most men, his arm still felt like a wet noodle.  Had Frank not paid much attention, he could have easily yanked Price's arm right out of its socket, or pulverized every bone in the palm of his hand.

"That's quite a grip you got there, son" he said gruffly as he closed and opened his fist repeatedly to improve the blood circulation after the tight squeeze, that nearly left him disabled for life

"And its a pleasure to meet you as well, Ma'am"
This message was last edited by the player at 14:00, Thu 06 May 2021.

"Sorry, sir," Frank said, putting his hands behind his back where they'd do less harm. He hadn't thought he's squeezed that hard. "My strength keeps growing, so I literally don't know my own strength from one day to the next."

Ana Sofía offers her hand as well. "Don't worry, I'm normal strength."

"Should we talk somewhere quieter?" Ana Sofía asks loudly to be heard over the roar from the helicopter. She's clearly peaking around a bit while mostly paying attention to Douglas Price.

“Yes, go ahead and interview the hell out of each other. I’m going to need to make a couple of calls, and catch up with Fiona and Mistress.  I’ll see you all later”

Price cordially shook Ana’s hand with his right, while holding his still burning cigar with his left.

“Right,  Follow me”

The Helipad was a very short distance away from the back entrance, but the rotors were already winding down, enough for them to carry a conversation without raising their voices.

“Valery tells me you used to be X-Men” a straight shooter, Price started his interview before they stepped foot inside the HQ.  The statement was made as he pressed his thumb against the scanner to open the back door, but he did turn to face them for the follow up question, to better judge their response

“Why did you leave?”

"It's complicated," Frank said, not so much trying to dodge the question as he was trying to make sure her prefaced his answer to explain why it might be less than articulate. "But — for me — it basically boils down to: we were put in a situation where I didn't like the morality of the decisions being made. One of our leaders was basically able to fix a bad situation with a wave of his hand, but that would be too unethical for his tastes... and it left us in a bad spot with no way out."

He wasn't sure how much he should reveal about the X-Men. Even mentioning 'Professor X' could be revealing more than Price already knew about them.

"I mean, I get that sometimes there are no right answers, and that sometimes you just have to follow orders. But this was a situation with a right answer, and they left that option in the box. They never even considered it."

Ana Sofía listens to Frank and sighs. "Similar for me. I finished growing up looking up to them. But recent events have made it very clear to me a more distinct chain of command and being answerable to an authority are necessary. While our government makes mistakes, I believe in the USA strongly and that the government has been moving in the right direction. Meanwhile, as long as mutants act outside government, not only are they vigilantes, but they'll also forever perpetuate the us-versus-them situation that we see now. Freedom Force having public faces gives the country someone they can stand beside. We'll serve the common good of the USA, and the country as a whole will get to see that." She lets that sink in a little before continuing, "Being Native American and Mexican American I know people can view others poorly and don't change their opinions of others overnight. But we have to be out there, seen by many, if we want to make any progress. And on a personal note, my brother's in the army, deployed in Afghanistan; if I can be working on his side, all the better."

The interior of Freedom Force HQ couldn’t have been more different than the X-Mansion's.  Where the mansion was fashioned in Victorian style, brown, warm woods and old furniture, the HQ was a prime example of brutalist architecture; concrete walls in their natural gray, exposed steel beams, and functional furniture made of aluminum.  They did have an open pool though, right at the very center of building

“Yes, it’s a problem going into combat when you can’t trust your own commander”

The group passed a ‘no-smoking’ sign as they neared the meeting room. The sign was placed there by Valerie, and specifically because of Price.  Grunting, he put out his half-smoked cigar and tossed it into the bin.

“It is a privilege to have been born in this country, with freedoms other nations can only dream of” he agreed with Ana “And though these are trying times, we will prevail”

OOC: I’m letting you interact with Price because you mentioned you want to get to know him better when you talked with Valerie.  So ask your questions, and lead the conversation where you want to.  When you’re satisfied, I’ll move us forward

"Sir, while the gist of the program has been told to us, a lot of questions remain. We've been told the chain of command: you report to Ms. Cooper, the undersecretary of Homeland Security, who reports to the director, who is assigned by the president. But how do we relate to the FBI, the military, and others? Let's say we get involved in a situation the FBI is also involved in. Who is in charge, and how to do we coordinate? For example, do we have the authority to make arrests, or do we detain until they make arrests?"

She stops to hear responses before asking her next set of questions. "If we're operating in foreign lands, how are we operating? Can we be loaned to US allies? Will we be placed in war zones? Will there be covert missions somewhat akin to some special forces missions?"

Another respite before her next set. "When we're not on a mission nor doing a public appearance, how flexible is our time? I would assume we'll always be on call. But with the tracking, how much can we move about on our own, such as to visit family? And will there be doctors assigned to us, perhaps as part of the Washington DC VA Medical Center?"

Price closed the meeting door behind them, and waited for the two to choose their seats before taking the one opposite of them.  He leaned forward once Ana started talking, maintaining eye contact the entire time

"Freedom Force are Federal Agents with authority to enforce the law, and that includes detaining suspects and making arrests.    Regarding jurisdiction, the cabinet decided that Freedom Force has priority when dealing with supernatural threats.  It’s not like the FBI, DEA, ATF, or whatever other three letter acronym you want to throw in there, have the ability to apprehend the type of criminals we are dealing with anyhow, and likewise, we are not going to waste precious resources dealing with problems the other agencies are already equipped to handle.   In short – “ he tapped his fingers on the table “We should have no reason to get in each other way"

”Regarding your questions about operations abroad; the chain of command remains exactly the same.  But since Freedom Force is an arm of the department of Homeland defense,  we only get involved in covert operations outside the USA if persons of interest flee outside our borders, or we have intelligence that they are planning an imminent attack.   Involvement in armed conflicts is currently not a part of our charter”

The last string of questions was particularly significant.   Price couldn’t tolerate any slackers in his outfit, and decided to lay down his expectations without sugarcoating them:

"Look – I’ll give it to you straight. This job is very demanding.  Before we can send you out on the field, we have to train you in the fundamentals of federal law, behavioral sciences, basic and advanced investigation techniques, counterterrorism and forensic sciences.  This can EASILY take half a year, under normal circumstances.  Necessity may interrupt that training, which only means you will have to work ten times harder to catch up.  Add to that public appearances, the time we spend meticulously planning for our operations… “ he shakes his head “I don’t expect you will have much free time at all in the next few years, at least not until we swell the ranks enough so we can rotate agents between missions”

Frank had been coming up with some questions of his own when Ana Sofia had streamed out a whole slew of her own. And they were better than anything Frank had been planning to ask. He just nodded along and listened to the answers.

"Actually, I have a question about our teammates," he said when Price was done. "Ana Sofia and I were almost-but-not-quite under arrest when this offer was made. How exactly did you come by the others? Is ours going to be the standard recruitment method?"

"Fiona came to our attention after she resurrected her father during his open casket funeral.  It was in the papers, if you recall.  Mistress turned the tables on would-be-burglars, and our intelligence community notified us after they picked it up in their routine scans of the police reports"

And more to the point:

"But if you're alluding whether or not we recruit agents under duress; then the answer would be a 'no'.  I need people I can depend on, and genuinely care about this country.   Anything else is only going to cause problems in the long run"
This message was last edited by the player at 12:22, Mon 10 May 2021.

"This all sounds good to me, training especially. I'm not someone who comes from any sort of police or martial arts background. Outside of working on a psychology degree my training is pretty far from what we'll need, so this upcoming training sounds very useful," replies Ana Sofía. "I still would like to hear about doctors, though. For myself, just knowing there are good doctors available if I'm putting my life at risk would be reassuring. But the doctors will need to be more than just good if they're to work on someone like Frank here if something somehow manages to really hurt him."

"I don't keep doctors on my payroll" Price almost seemed offended by the question
"We administer first aid, but if you get seriously hurt in the line of duty you will be evacuated to a hospital, same as any other government employee.  Your hospitalization costs will be covered by the agency in that case. There are also provisions for getting disabled, or killed, on the job.  Pensions, compensations.  It's all in your contract "

"This all sounds pretty reasonable," Frank said, appreciatively. It certainly seemed that the department was getting off the ground the right way. And it was good to know that his and Ana Sofia's recruitment were the exception, not the intended rule. "I guess all that's left to say is: I'm in."

"It still sounds good to me. I'm in as well." She turns to Valerie Cooper since Douglas Price seems to be on a different page than she is. "Can I assume we'll get contracts to read today? Is there some testing you need us to do before we are handed contracts?"

"Yes; there is the psychological evaluation, and I would like to get a better understanding of your abilities.  But there is no reason why we can't send you the contracts in lieu of that"

OOC: Valerie didn't accompany you to the meeting with Price.
Unless there is anything else, we will skip about a week forward in time

Over the next week Ana Sofía spends some time getting adjusted, both to her new surroundings and the new ways her mind has been touching things. She does whatever psychological evaluation is required. And, if he's up for doing the driving, she works along with Frank to find houses for the two of them.

OOC: Are we in VA or MD, or pretty much on their border?
This message was last edited by the player at 14:04, Wed 12 May 2021.

“This is Dr. Steven Adler”

Valerie slides the folder over to the other side of the table. The ink on their contracts was still wet, and here they were, sitting in the meeting room with the other members of Freedom Force, discussing their first assignment.

"Dr. Adler was the chief of medicine at Nomans Land.  He was the one who personally approved the experiments, and vivisection, of the mutant prisoners. "

The portrait attached with a paper clip to the binder looked like a kindly old uncle.  Grey hair.  Mustache.  Slightly pudgy, with a hint of a smile.  Not what your mind conjured up when you thought of a callous murderer.

We have him in custody.  The department of justice offered him a deal; life without parole instead of the death penalty, in exchange for information about his co-conspirators.  But despite the gravity of his situation and the overwhelming evidence against him, he remains uncooperative”

Valerie looks around the table.  Mistress, a heavyset woman, wearing heavy makeup, was sitting upright, listening intently to Valerie’s every word.  She was always dependable, Mistress.  Older, more settled in her mind.  Polite.    Fiona, on the other hand, was busy inspecting her black-colored fingernails, and though she pretended she wasn’t paying attention, Valerie knew her well enough to know that she did.

“Your mission is to interrogate Adler.  Find out everything he knows.  What you uncover may not be admissible in court, but it would still provide us with the opportunity to find real evidence we can use against his accomplices” 
This message was last edited by the player at 17:59, Thu 13 May 2021.

This was... unexpected.

Frank wasn't an interrogator. He had no training in anything remotely like that. Part of him still wanted to use a few 'enhanced interrogation' techniques that only super-strength could provide, but that felt like the wrong path to take. He didn't really think he had it in him to do anything like that, anyway. He was Tank, not Torquemada.

Besides, Ana Sofia was a telepath. She could probably skim information out of his brain without breaking a sweat.

"Well," he said to Ana Sofia, "Care to go dumpster-diving in Adler's skull?"

In response to Frank Ana Sofía says, "Sounds like a good plan. It's unlikely he can hide what he knows very well. Apt choice of terms there, too."<Blue> Then she turns back to Valerie and says, <Blue>"How far away is he being held? If the trip will take a little while, I can read through the information on him during the trip."

"He's in Washington, and he isn't going anywhere.  You can take your time.  Price; give me a call once your team is ready"

"Will do" Price picked up the binder and started flipping through the pages.  He would read the file more thoroughly later, but wanted to skim through it in case something interesting catches his eye.  Nothing does.  Adler's CV was impressive, but there was nothing suspicious about it .  Graduated from Yale medical school. Specialized in internal medicine.  Worked in Mt. Sinai before being offered the government job.  Married.  Children, grandchildren.

Price handed the folder over to Ana with a nod

"See if it helps you any.  Valerie; I assume we are also working through the 'regular' channels? His phone records, bank accounts, known associates..."

"The Feds are working that angle.  I'll let you know once they have something, assuming they will be willing to share"
This message was last edited by the player at 13:46, Fri 14 May 2021.

Ana Sofía take the file Price hands her. "Thanks. Any sort of familiarity with him can be helpful... I suppose the big question on approach is if we want to have someone doing a police-style interrogation for real while I search. That might get him to focus on things, even if focusing on things he wants to hide. That might act as a sort of beacon for me. I would also give me an alternative of being able to nudge him to cooperate in case somehow his memories are hard to get to."

"I'm sure I can help with that," Frank agreed. He was something of an imposing figure, after all. "We can play 'Good Cop, Big Scary Cop'."

"Fine.  We interrogate him, you sit on the other side of the one-way mirror and listen in.  If there's anything in particular you would like us to ask; we'll be listening on the ear-coms" Price laid out the plan

"Mistress, if the new approach doesn't work, we will go with our usual routine"

The pudgy woman answered with a smile directed toward her new teammate
"Oh, I hope that won't be necessary.  I'm looking forward to seeing you at work, Windtalker"
This message was last edited by the player at 12:39, Sat 15 May 2021.

"You have a usual routine?" Frank asked, curious. He didn't think the Freedom Force had been around that long. "What's that?"

"Hopefully it will be subtle enough you won't even see me at work. I've got to read his file so I know him better that just this atrocity he's committed." Ana Sofía does listen for the reply to Frank's question. Barring other stuff, she'll be focusing on the file.

"Mistress can breath out a cloud of hallucinogenic gas" Price answered in her stead  "It loosen tongues, but it is not one hundred percent reliable"

"I imagine it's not admissible, either," Frank added. He wasn't entirely opposed to the use of the gas, especially if there were no long-term effects, but it was technically unconstitutional. It was the same reason why the police didn't conduct interrogations under sodium pentothal. "How do we get around the Bill of Rights?"

For that matter, telepathic interrogation was probably illegal, too. Same reason. But Frank wasn't entirely sure he had a problem with that, either, as long as Ana Sofia wasn't actively tearing chunks out of the guy's mind.

"Seems like a bad way for a patriotic super-team to get their start."

"It's not that Narcoanalysis is unconstitutional, but it has been ruled out to have no legal validity by the Supreme Court.  Judges have approved the use of drugs during investigations since that ruling; in the JFK assassination, and in a handful of very recent cases, even though any confession made under the influence is still inadmissible"

Valerie said matter-of-factly

"Anyways; all our interrogations are sanctioned by the court.  It is not a LEGAL issue.
On a personal note; yes, I might have had more reservations about the use of gas, or telepathy -  if our doctor hasn't callously butchered a few mutants, a crime we have more than enough evidence to indict him for"
This message was last edited by the player at 17:58, Mon 17 May 2021.

Price pulled a cigar from his jacket and tapped it twice against the table.  He could really use a smoke break just about now.

"Yea. The mother &*^$# has it coming, and Miss Cooper is going to make sure we have a judge's approval" he said hoarsely "Lets go read the file, see if there's anything interesting in it.  I want us ready for the interrogation in twenty-four hours"

Ana Sofía reads and shares anything interesting she finds.

(OOC: Should we jump ahead to the interrogation?)

Frank couldn't help but note Ms. Cooper's emphasis on it not being a LEGAL issue... suggesting that it was instead a MORAL issue. But Frank was surprisingly okay on that front, as the doctor in question had brought this upon himself. And Ms. Cooper's very next statement confirmed that they were like-minded on the issue.

There really wasn't anything left to discuss, so Frank just kept his mouth shut and nodded.

Dr Adler was kept at DC Central, a detention facility not far from Capitol Hill.  The clay-colored, brick-of-a-building looked rather innocuous.  In truth, the institute has been cited multiple times for failing to comply with the most basic sanitary requirements.  This became painfully evident once they stepped through security.  Moldy walls, cracked windows barely hanging in rusted frames, stale air.  And that was just the impression walking down the hall toward the interrogation rooms.   One could only imagine how the actual cells looked like!
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:29, Thu 20 May 2021.

Waiting for them just outside the room was a posh man in a dark suit. He swapped the hand holding his briefcase once they approached, so he could offer his right hand for a shake:

“Eric Collier.  Adler’s attorney”
His eyebrows furrowed as he looked upon them.  ‘Who the fuck are you?’ is what he thought to himself, but what he actually said was far more polite:

“You’re with the Feds?”
This message was last edited by the player at 14:32, Thu 20 May 2021.

Price looked at the outstretched hand, but didn’t offer his own
“No – we’re from a different agency” he could have at least given him a name – if not ‘Freedom Force’, then at least his own, but he didn’t feel particularly generous.
“Your client is here?”

“Yes”  Eric was obviously taken aback by Price's contempt.  This was hardly necessary!  “They already brought him in from his cell.  But you are wasting your time.  We’re not going to answer any questions”
This message was last edited by the player at 18:05, Thu 20 May 2021.

"We'd like to ask them anyway," Frank said, his arms folded across his massive chest. "Maybe we'll get lucky and Doctor Adler will cooperate."

“Suit yourself” Though he has no reason to suspect Price would go so far as to assault him, he still feels rather uncomfortable turning his back on him.  He waits till the doors to the room are opened by the guards, and for Price and Frank to walk in first, before following them inside.

Despite the fact that he was in an orange jumpsuit, and that he was shackled to the floor, Dr. Adler managed a smug look of superiority
“Good afternoon, officers” he seems almost elated to see his visitors “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

 As Frank and Price find their seats opposite the prisoner, Ana, Mistress, and Fiona settle down in the adjacent room and watch the interrogation unfold through the security monitors.  The feed is a bit grainy, but the sound quality is pretty damn good.   They observe Eric Collier waving at the camera before he sits down next to Dr. Adler and taking out his cellphone so he can record the entire interrogation.



OOC: Ana - you can communicate with Frank/Price though their cellphone earbuds, if needed

This message was last edited by the player at 19:52, Mon 24 May 2021.

Frank Sat opposite the doctor. The flimsy aluminum folding chair groaned under his weight, but held. Frank rested his forearms heavily on the table in front of him.

"I only have one question for you, Doctor," he said. He leaned in just a little bit. "It's a simple one, too.

"Why?"

"You're a bit young for a Federal Agent" the doctor completely ignored Frank's question "And you don't look like the type either" he smiled at Price
"Who, exactly, are you?"

Ana Sofía focuses on Adler's mind, starting with a search for who gave him the order, who is his benefactor. She's trying to get the jump on Adler's impression of the two interrogators.


10:07, Today: Ana Sofia Garcia Mendez rolled 4,3 using 2d10,2d8 with rolls of 3,1,2,1.  Telephathy on Adler.

Oh, wow! The dice roller has placed some serious protection on Adler's mind!!!
I don't think a 5 total with a d4 effect is going to cut it.

And the doom pool gets a d12. Ugh.

"I'm sorry," Frank said in a tone that implied that he was anything but sorry. "But that's not how this works. You want us to answer your questions, you're going to have to answer ours.

"It's a simple question. We've got all the evidence we need to stick you in a deep, dark hole for the rest of your life. We're only looking for context at this point. So I'll ask you again: Why?"

The doctor looked at his lawyer, and back at Frank

"I see no reason why I should be helping you, if the best I can look for is a being locked up for the rest of my life.  Not that it would matter, one way or the other.  There's nothing you can offer me that would get me talking"

OOC: No need for a roll.  The offer Adler got was treatment for his son, who is suffering from terminal cancer.  The benefactor is Dr. Bernard Karasu, a senior executive in Essex; one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:15, Tue 25 May 2021.

"Well, if you cooperate, maybe the hole we stick you in isn't so deep or dark as all that. Maybe you even get to see the sun once in a while." He looked over at the attorney, who'd remained silent thus far. "You didn't explain to him how this works?"

«Did we get anything?» he asked Ana Sofia.

Ana Sofía relays the bit about Adler's son and Dr. Bernard Karasu at Essex. 'Maybe you can get him to roll on Karasu. Or maybe convince him you work for Karasu and are happy he won't be talking with others. That had been my thought: subtly hint you're working for Karasu and promise him his son will still be helped if he makes sure we (for Karasu) know what loose ends need tidying up.'

"Tempting, but no" he remained adamant, and Frank knew exactly why now.  His son's life was not only more precious to him than those of the mutant inmates, but also his own.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:58, Wed 26 May 2021.

"How about new dentures?" Price didn't really mean to make real on his threat.  It sure was fun to contemplate it, however.

"Forget it.  Maybe sociliazing in the yard with the rest of the prisoners will make you change your mind.  But if not" he shrugged, and stood up

"-lets go Agent Guberman.  It's a waste of time"
This message was last edited by the player at 18:44, Wed 26 May 2021.

"It would seem that way," Frank said, getting up. The chair squeaked in relief as he took his nearly three hundred pound bulk off of it. "He probably couldn't tell us anything about Essex anyway."

The name-drop was intended to surprise Adler, and see what thoughts popped to the surface for Ana Sofia to skim off of his mind. Maybe it wouldn't be anything useful, maybe it would.

The doctor's smile faded from his face the second Frank mentioned 'Essex'.

"How did you know?" he asked suspiciously.  The conversation he had with Karasu was private.  There was no way for Frank to have known about their agreement, not unless…
"You're one of them!"

OOC: Adler doesn’t know much about Essex; it is a pharmaceutical company, one of the largest in the world, privately owned. You could do your own research later.

Bingo. That one had gotten through Adler's air of superiority and skewered him good.

"Now, Doctor Adler," he said, still standing, halfway to the door, "if I was one of them, I wouldn't have asked you why. I would know all about your son, and Dr. Karasu."

He was denying being one of them while simultaneously convincing Adler that he was. Convinced or confused, Adler would probably be off his guard from now on.

"You do understand that they're not going to help your son, don't you? You got caught. They want deniability, and that means burying all ties to you. If you're lucky, they'll just pretend they've never heard of you.

"If not, they'll probably try to have you both killed.

"Anyway, I should be going."

The doctor blinked.  He didn’t answer Frank, nor stop him from leaving.   Caught in a very real case of cognitive dissonance, his mind decided to simply ignore the new information until he could sort it out.

OOC: barring the use of ‘mind control’, this is the most you can get out of the doctor at the present moment.  Ana?

Seeing the road block, Ana Sofía attempts to nudge Adler in a helpful direction. 'That means they're coming for your son. The only way to save him from Dr. Karasu is to work with Agent Guberman.'

Willpower d10
Mind Control d8
Psych d8
Enthralling Mind d6, +1 step effect die

08:05, Today: Ana Sofia Garcia Mendez rolled 5,2,1,3 using d10,d8,d8,d6 with rolls of 5,2,1,3.  Nudging Adler.

That's a d8 for the doom pool, and Ana Sofía is up to 3 PP.

Total of 8 with an d10 effect die after it's stepped up.

Beads of sweat formed over Dr. Adler’s brow as he fought the sudden urge to tell Frank everything he wanted to know.  It was like trying to avoid itching a rash.  He knew eventually he would cave in, but he tried to hold on for as long as he could until the truth finally spilled out of his dry mouth:

"Thomas. Pancreatic cancer" *gasp*  "3% survival rate" *gasp*  "Dr. Karasu from Essex contacted me.  Asked…DNA samples.  Treatment.  "

Collier’s eyes widened with suprise:

"Steven!!!  Stop!" He grasped the man’s forearm, trying to shake some sense into the man "at least wait to hear what they have to offer!"

Ana Sofía thinks to Frank, 'Work with him. Let him see a way out for his son. The push will work better the less he fights it.'

Frank turned and sat back down, which the chair found less than delightful. It threatened to quit on him, but held.

«I don't know what we can do for the guy,» Frank replied to Ana Sofia. He didn't want to outright lie to a grieving parent, even if he was this century's Doctor Mengele.

"I'm really sorry," he said, honestly. "But I doubt Doctor Karasu is likely to help you now that you've been caught. Your son's best chance for treatment is for you to work with us now. There are experimental treatment studies going on all the time. A phone call or two from Homeland Security ought to be able to get your son into one of those."

Adler breaks down.  He takes off his spectacles and pinches the bridge of his nose, his eyes closed

“Yes” he said hoarsely “Yes.  I’ll tell you everything.  Everything you want to know”

Price stopped to light up a cigarette as soon as they were out of the prison.  Something about seeing Dr. Adler spill his guts after being mentally dominated was more unnerving than seeing actual soldiers spill their actual guts.   He pushed that thought out of his mind for now, because there was something else that has been bothering him ever since they found out who Dr. Adler was working for

“Say” he inhaled, and puffed the smoke sideways

“What do you think the odds are that the son of the chief of medicine, at the only mutant prison in the united states, comes down with a case of incurable cancer?  It’s all so convenient, as far as Essex are concerned”
This message was last edited by the player at 13:05, Mon 31 May 2021.

"Well, did the son have cancer first, or did the doctor get placed there first? It's convenient in different ways. If the doctor was already placed there, the son could have been given the cancer by a mutant, or maybe the son is being poisoned and the diagnoses are faked to get the doctor to comply. If the doctor wasn't there yet, maybe someone manipulated things to get him there once they knew he was under their control; maybe they were working several doctors and chose only after they got control of one."

"It should be pretty easy to establish a timeline once we look up the dates that Adler was employed at the prison versus when his son was diagnosed," Frank said. He wasn't entirely sure it mattered if Essex had groomed one particular man or just went after the guy who was in the role they needed to get under their control. Either way, Adler was the result. "I'm just glad we managed to break him."

“I don’t know if we can use his confession at court or not.  Or rather, if we should”  Seeing that the Dr. Adler only broke down under the powers of Ana.  He was pretty sure Dr. Adler’s lawyer would say the entire confession was implanted into his client’s mind, if they ever disclosed that fact that they bamboozle him.  Luckily, he didn’t have to contend with these types of moral questions.  Let the legal team, and Valery, worry about that.

“But yes, We have enough information to hand over to the Feds.  Lets see what they come up with, and we can take it from there”
This message was last edited by the player at 16:11, Tue 01 June 2021.

"I did check Essex out, while you were interrogating him"   Mistress chirped in
"Fifth largest pharmaceutical company in the world. One hundred and twenty thousand employees in twenty-seven countries.  Headquarters is in London.  Undisclosed profits, since the company is privately owned by the Essex family, ever since its incorporation in the late 19th century"

She turned her phone's screen at them, so they could see what she was looking at

"- It’s all on Wikipedia"

"That's huge," Frank grumbled. There could be bad actors or factions within the organization to which the people at the top were oblivious... or the corruption could be top-down. There was virtually no way of knowing. "At least we have one name to start with, though. We need to investigate this 'Karasu' person."

"Yes" Price agreed with Frank, on both accounts  "It's clear we're going to need outside help for this.  I'll tell Valerie to contact the Feds.  Start looking into Karasu, see what they can find..."

OOC: I think we can conclude the scene here (unless there is something else you want to ask). Karasu turns out to be of English nationality, which puts him out of the reach of Freedom Force.  It would take weeks and months before the US reaches out to English authorities, and even longer than that until they complete their own investigation and arrest him.