Researching Allies

[Marta]

Marta had met Matias a couple of days ago, but she found she had trouble getting him out of her mind. It wasn’t attraction or anything, but the encounter had inspired hope in her that she was doing the right thing. That fighting the cartels was possible. She had left him with a couple of hints, and she smiled to herself as she wondered if he had figured any of it out.

Ricky had texted her and Elyse - he was gone for the night, so she was in Elyse’s room. It wasn’t a school night, so Marta had no qualms with staying up late. It also meant Elyse was working. He had the room to herself for awhile. Marta was still trying to figure out coding. She knew that writing code was the key to breaking Wicked’s file encryption. She just was having trouble putting the pieces together. She wasn’t so much book smart, so it was taking longer than she had expected. She’d get there eventually, but tonight she needed a break. 

Marta actually had quite a bit of money. She didn’t spend much, and had saved most of her allowances. She spent some time shopping for Christmas gifts. For most of the kids she got some nice treats to enjoy. She got something a little more special for Sterling, Nox, and Hayden. She’d already got gifts for Elyse and Ricky. Then the thought came that she should get something for Wicked. She put something in her cart and ordered it. She could get it to Sage somehow she believed. Sky would probably help, but she wanted to try to keep Sage from figuring out what it was. It was impossible to hide it from him - but she was hoping it was unimportant enough that he wouldn’t notice it. 

Then she opened her laptop to Sage’s app that gave her access to his collected information. She barely used it, and when she did, she was careful. She didn’t want to break Sage’s rules or abuse his friendship. But she had research to do. 

She searched for “Matias Amengual” in the search bar. She wasn’t searching for anything specific here, but he had spoken of his connection to the cartel - vaguely. She confirmed what she thought she knew. He wasn’t affiliated with them anymore. So yes - a potential ally. She then searched “El Tiburon” Matias had mentioned the cartel leader had died like no man thought they would - alone and cornered. 

Marta didn’t want to see the man’s demise, but she wanted to know what happened. She found camera images and recognized the place. He had hid with Nuevo León, as Matias had said. But there was a man’s face that she saw in the images. Not a customer and not a cartel member. She know the way those faces looked. This one was different. Marta zoomed in and searched to see if she could find a name to a face. It came up soon. 

Jay Carpenter. 

Marta found his file and began to skim. Was in the Legion Premiere - the name Jared Vanders was there too as a connection. They had fought together. Then another word - Dominion. He was a Dominion. A powerful man indeed. She would need to read his file and get the story. Maybe this Jay Carpenter was a potential ally.

[Marta]

Marta looked through Jay's file. He was a Marine and on a mission to Mexico killed El Tiburon. It had led to a discharge. He hadn't followed orders. There was something sad about that, and Marta felt her anger flare at it. He had done the right thing, but those in charge had decided he hadn't. He joined the Legion then - fought in Sierra Leone with Jared Vanders. She remembered him - he had talked to her about Batman. It was almost weird how so many people here were connected. Almost as if Nox had a sort of gravity himself.

Marta got to the bottom of the file. The file made references to his family that she didn't follow. Right now, she wanted to know about Jay. There it was - his contact. She could contact him, but what would she say - "hey - I hate the cartels too? Want to go have some cookies?" Besides that, that isn't why Sage had given her access to the database. She could look. She could also use pictures she found as evidence. Anymore than that, and she was abusing what Sage had given her.

Marta closed the file and the app, wondering why she felt so...useless. She felt so strongly about this, but she needed help. She couldn't go against them alone. The words that she had spoken to Matias came back to her. What can a thirteen year old girl do against the might of the cartels. Matias answer was there to - train, study, learn, prepare. Be patient. Marta understood that, but it didn't help those they were hurting now, and it didn't still the feeling inside of her that she had to act, and nothing could calm the feeling of empathy in her heart for the victims who she knew that during the very few times they could feel through their drug addled minds they felt fear and loneliness.

Marta needed allies. She just didn't know how to recruit them or what to do with them. She was sure she could have two - Elyse and Ricky - if they didn't immediately say that it was dangerous and she should stop. Marta tapped the desk in silence as she pondered before finally deciding to tell them in their group text.

Ricky and Elyse - I've been feeling very strongly about something and feel a need to do something. It's not a want (although I do want it). I can't stop thinking about the cartels and how angry I am that they keep hurting people. I decided to do something about it. I hope you understand that this means a lot to me. I don't know where this will go beyond what I've already done. I hope you're not mad that I didn't tell you.

*attachment - Links to Oracle Posts

Marta sent the message and then put down her wallet as she grabbed her drawing pad and left Elyse's room. She couldn't bear the thought of getting messages telling her to stop. She closed the door quietly and headed down to the TV. She grabbed some milk from the fridge and popped some popcorn before putting it in a bowl. She turned on The Avengers movie - Nox had a catalog of most of the Marvel movies. She kept the volume low. People were probably sleeping. The movie was more background noise as she began to draw.

Drawing was therapeutic for her, and that's what she needed right now. Hayden had given her a task to draw a short comic - with new characters. She had done it, but it didn't seem right to share anymore. It had been a comic of Nox saving a cat from a tree. He had no power and when he got the cat out, he was stuck up there himself. It had been meant to be funny, but then his power went away, and it just seemed in bad taste to show it. She had the drawing in the back of her folder. She had shown no one.

That still meant she had to do Hayden's assignment. Nothing came to mind and she just drew following her instincts. The first picture showed her in a lake, the waves looking strangely like a wolf. In the image, she was barely holding her head above the water, struggling to keep from drowning. The second showed the same image, but with a hand offered to her. The third showed a different perspective, the man reaching for her; Nox. The last showed Marta on the shore with him, water dripping from her clothes, his hand comfortingly on her shoulder. Marta looked at it. It captured her feelings entirely.

Marta took out another page and began to write.

Nox,

The day you got hurt, you told me that I saved myself. That it hadn't been you that saved me. I hope it doesn't make you mad if I say I think you're wrong on that. I'm not trying to say that I did nothing as well. I worked hard and learned a lot. But that day when you trusted me - a girl you barely knew, with the most precious thing in your life - something happened then.

I had always felt close to drowning. The wolf had always been there, trying to pull me in. That day it became silent. That day, you stretched out your hand and pulled me from water. I couldn't have done that myself. I need that help. It's true - I reached for the hand offered, but had it not been there - well - I might be a very different person today than I am now.

I really hope you don't get mad at me. I just wanted to thank you, and hope you realize what a difference you made to me (and others).

Love,

Marta

Marta put the note and the drawing in her folder. The time to give them to Nox wasn't here yet. Maybe it would never be here, but she had gotten it out of her head. She put her folder back in her bag and sat back on the couch, pulling her knees close to her chest. She grabbed her bowl of popcorn and began to snack, watching the movie and trying hard not to feel so down.

[Marta]

Marta didn’t really watch the movie, she was deep in her own thoughts. For some reason, she was feeling low tonight, and she knew there was more to it than the anxiety of her mission. That was there. She was nervous to step out. She’d been given advice by Matias to prepare. That wasn’t bad advice. But there was more. She knew there was more. She knew she was afraid - not of the cartels - but of power.

Taking them on would give her power - at least if she was successful. Power could corrupt. The line between justice and revenge was a fine line, and justice was her goal. She was worried about her mission becoming corrupted and something she didn’t want it to be. She wanted to make a difference but was uncertain of what would happen if that wasn’t enough.

Marta stood and went upstairs to get her laptop. She needed more distraction. She grabbed the computer, noting her wallet had notifications on them. She grabbed it, but didn’t check the messages. She wasn’t ready for that yet.

Going back downstairs, she began to work on her code to sort through her checksum. She knew she was close to getting it. Close to unlocking whatever work Sage had given her. She flipped back and forth between her textbook and Sage’s document. Things were beginning to clear now. It was beginning to make sense. She didn’t know how long she worked as she lost track of time. Finally it was ready. She had a rudimentary script to sift through the checksum for her. She applied it to the document and it began to work, finding the relevant data. She checked it with what she had manually done. It had worked.

She applied the code to unlock the file. There she had what she needed. Information to get through, tag, and categorize. It had a pay scale for her. One CCD dollar for every tag on a file. She assumed accuracy was important. She was happy she had figured it out. But not as happy as she should have been as she started to get to work tagging the first file.

[Marta]

Marta worked for a bit. She didn’t send Sage a message saying that she had gotten through. She was guessing he knew already or would soon find out. She wasn’t sure she wanted to talk to anyone right now. She still hadn’t checked her notifications on her wallet to see if Elyse or Ricky had responded.

Marta thought she knew what was wrong, but she still hadn’t checked this feeling in her gut that told her something was wrong she wasn’t dealing with yet. Her intuition was flaring. She had no idea what it was. She looked up and saw the movie still going. Loki was being questioned by Black Widow. She turned back to her screen to get to work.

It happened sometimes. She just felt - empty. Not sad - or angry - or anything. Just empty. Not the nothingness that Nox had. She loved Ricky and Elyse. They cared so much and would listen to anything, but sometimes she just wanted to talk to mom.

Mom.

The word hit her like a ton of bricks. Then she understood why she felt this way. She missed her mom and dad. It was getting close to Christmas and she wouldn’t be able to see them. She couldn’t talk to them. They were gone. Taken away like so many other things. She didn’t remember much. Some feelings - mostly. She didn’t even remember what they looked like. Maybe it had been the drugs. She didn’t know. But her instinct told her there was more. There was a reason why she was thinking of them today.

Marta finished her tag and closed the app. She went online and found and typed in the search - following her instinct - “Jose and Maria Gonzalez.” She didn’t even use Sage’s database. She didn’t know if she’d find anything, but she scrolled until she found an article in a Mexican Newspaper. Marta clicked it and was greeted with two faces and the headline “Couple Found Dead In Their Home” Marta looked at the pictures. The woman was pretty, and Marta could see herself in her face. Her smile was the same and the way her hair draped around her face. The man, handsome, had the same eyes. Mom and Dad. These were her parents. She didn’t read the article, but caught the date. Tomorrow it would have been two years. Two years ago her parents were murdered. Two years ago her life changed forever.

Marta stared at their pictures. Forgotten memories came back and they were mostly happy. She remembered her mom singing her songs when she was sick. She remembered the way her dad told stories. She remembered trips to the zoo and shopping. Then she couldn’t hold back the tears anymore. She put the laptop down and brought her feet up on the couch. Hugging her knees, she buried her face and began to sob. She felt a wet nose on her hand and began to pet Splash on the head as she grieved.

[Legione Sumus]

Emma Bennett

Liv had moved into another room downstairs. It was just her and Soph in their shared room now. And Sophia was sawing logs. It was quiet and Emma couldn't sleep. They had important things to talk to Nox about but no one wanted to bring it up. But it was important. They all wanted to live normal lives -- lives the should have lived with the Blackthorns but didn't. School, friends, a life outside of family and definitely not a burlseque club. Nox would understand he was trying to give them everything the should have including a big Christmas. Though no one ever had to the time to decorate.

Emma was tired of lying in bed and she was a little hungry, there had to be food downstairs -- something easy to warm up. Nox was never low on food -- and if he was Sky was on it and had a delivery the next day. They really wanted for nothing here. Except maybe alone time.

Emma wandered down stairs in her plaid pajamas. They were a gift from Liv and she'd been wearing them the night of the fire. It was the only thing she had from that life. It was all they all had from that life. They had new everything. New family, new clothes, new house. A totally new life. It was way better than before, but in some ways it was still the same, which is why they wanted to go to school like normal kids. Nothing wrong with the online school, it was great and they had lots of free time, but they didn't have friends, or school dances and they wanted to be normal.

There was soft sounds coming from the living room, someone else was up. Probably Liam. Emma was oddly surprised to see Marta, though once she realized the girl was crying, she felt bad. She didn't know if she should go upstairs, or go about her business. But that's not what Nox would do. He'd sit down and just be there. So that's what Emma did, she went over to the couch and sat down, not too close but not far away either. "Hey. If you wanna talk, or just cry on my shoulder you can." Emma sat back and rested against the back of the couch and was just there. Her own issues seeming further away than moments before. Marta was family even if she didn't live here.

[Marta]

She was so lost in her thoughts that Marta hadn’t smelled Emma approaching, but she felt the older girl’s presence as she sat down. She didn’t know Emma very well, but she knew Emma to be kind. It had been Emma who had commented on her her drawing when she had first met the group. It had been very encouraging even if Marta hadn’t mentioned it. She probably should.

Marta looked up and realized she need to talk about this, but she needed to calm down a little first. She moved a little, grabbing the laptop and handing it gently to Emma, so she could see what was wrong while Marta centered herself. She took Emma’s offer of a shoulder to cry on literally and moved closer, resting her head on Emma’s shoulder, her eyes lock on the two pictures. Splash followed, staying seated on the floor, but keeping herself within Marta’s reach. Marta’s hand rested on the wolf’s head, stroking gently.

Marta was worried about talking. The kids here had their own problems. She sometimes felt guilty about talking about her own. She knew Elyse struggled with that too. Her psychologist had always told her she needed to stop comparing her problems to others. She was allowed to be upset, and right now she needed to be.

Marta’s breath hitched and she began to speak softly. ”It was two years ago. I had forgotten. I didn’t even remember what they looked like until I saw this. I…I… Marta couldn’t find the words. There was more there, but she was processing a lot that should have been processed two years ago.

[Legione Sumus]

Emma Bennet

Marta took her literally which was fine with Emma, it was always good to know someone felt comfortable enough for physical contact especially knowing what she and her brothers and sisters did before this. Nox had always invited all of them into his physical space, he liked to have a hug and cuddle while lying around the house -- not that he did that often. He encouraged all of them to be close. And now that he was different it was even more important -- at least that's what Hayden told them. Keep him close he said.

Emma kept everyone close. They all wanted to be normal. They had lots to live for now. And while it was a lot different here, and the rules were different but not any less strict, but not in a confining way -- a caring way.

Emma put her arm around Marta's shoulder. "I'm sorry for your loss. I know how you feel, though I wasn't very old when I lost my parents." She didn't really know the ins and outs of it, she'd been three. She barely remembered their faces. And then there was a handful of foster homes and families before the Blackthorns took her in. It had been great finding that home you knew they wouldn't kick you out from, but it wasn't a loving home. But she'd met her brothers and sisters there and that's what mattered. And now they all lived with Nox -- he'd saved them. "It's okay to cry now. You are safe. We all got you."

[Marta]

The arm around her shoulder was comforting and Marta moved in a little closer. She felt very clingy right now, but knew the fosters tended to be okay with physical touch. Marta didn't mind the touch so much as long as she trusted who was doing the touching. She let herself cry a little bit longer. She had known Emma had lost her parents too. It was hard.

"I'm sorry you lost your parents too," Marta said finally.

She felt safe in Emma's arms. Really any of them could have been here and she would of felt safe. But she was glad it was Emma who came down. It was probably better that one of the older girls had been the one to talk to her now. Ara and Gen probably wouldn't understand, and had it been Noah or Jackson, she probably would have been confused (especially if it had been Jackson). Liam would have been helpful and understanding though.

Marta took a deep breath and let it out. "When they were killed...I was taken right away and sold. After that - they got me addicted right away. I.... Marta's voice trailed off. "After Ricky got me out, I just didn't think about it so much. Like I knew they were gone, but I didn't at the same time. I knew they were...dead...but I couldn't..." she didn't know what words to say. "It hurts right now...so bad...worse than it has ever hurt before. What does it mean, Emma? What's happening?" Her voice became a whisper. "I miss them."