ic OVERTHROW in Freedom Hall!(IC)

[Ari]

GM

"Director Powers' offer does involve deputation, yes" Agent Anthea explained briskly "and thank you for joining us, Gabriel! We would like all of your assistance on a very delicate and dangerous mission. Please step this way." she said, leading the group of heroes up to the 23rd floor of the Federal Building and knocking on 'Stewart Bonham's office door, stepping in for a hasty conversation over the phone before ducking out, the only words caught by the assembled heroes being "...leaving Irons in. Thanks sir!" the trim woman shut the office door behind her, pocketing a small key after re-locking the door, and ushering the group to a battered and somewhat ill-smelling mens' restroom with a sign on its door declaring that it was "OUT OF ORDER", with a message in peeling paint to use the other restroom on the next floor instead. "Not glamorous, but this elevator is faster" she said by way of explanation, beckoning to the other agent who promptly put a slim rod on the wall next to the door. "Sound-dampener" he muttered to Gabriel and Young Britannia, who happened to be closest.

Forcing open one of the the stall doors the AEGIS agent tapped at a keypad behind the toilet, humming cheerfully to herself as the agonizingly-long passcode was entered, and the wall suddenly and serenely turned around to reveal a clean white chamber, with a ring of steel hand-holds at waist level. Stepping inside the vessel and making room for the heroes with some difficulty, the Agent punched the button labelled 'L2'. The doors closed to reveal that they bore the halves of a stern-faced painting of Director Harry Powers as Uncle Sam, pointing at everyone inside with the subtitle 'I want you to deactivate all communications devices not tuned to AEGIS frequencies past this point!'

With a sudden rush of movement, the descent began. "So, any questions?" the two agents asked in unison, their faces schooled into grim severity.

[Brown Dynamite]

With all the funding behind AEGIS, Omen couldn't help but wonder why anyone thought a men's restroom stall was a good place to hide elevator access. The less that could be said about the floor the better. "Well I was going to ask if we needed to get vaccinated after stepping inside. But I think I'll hold off on that while you two practice your 'this is serious business' face. Still I do have to wonder why we had to go over twenty flights of stairs to ride an elevator down."

The Director Powers poster was a nice touch. If dressing up every night hadn't turned off the idea of Halloween for him, Eric would have had the perfect costume idea for this year.

[KnightDisciple]

Gabriel frowned slightly at the mention of deputization.

"This deputization is short-term only, yes? I don't need something conflicting with my League membership."

He paused, shaking his head at the poster in amusement.

"Just what is it you think we can accomplish that your own agents cannot? Is this a matter of power, or of something else? Authority? Deniability?"

[Azuth65]

Silver Spider wished she could say this particular elevator's camouflage was the most disturbing one she had the experience of walking through. But that would have been a lie. However she did not wish to say anything to her compatriots as they shot downwards.

Before she could ask about the deputizing, Gabriel had aired the question himself as well as her follow up. "I'm rather curious about that myself. I'm sure the director will be able to answer that in full when we crowd into his office though," she said, resisting an urge to jump to the ceiling to get some elbow room.

[Raveled]

Starlight followed the AEGIS agents, noting the hidden elevator with some humor. The poster on the wall wasn't so amusing to her, and she suddenly wished she had a communication device so she could leave it on. "Is it really necessary for us to work as AEGIS agents during this," she asked. "We are all superheroes. Going after villains and criminals in our own time is what we do." She glanced around at the close confines of the elevator and the stony-faced agents. "I do no relish having to report to Director Powers, or being ordered around by other AEGIS agents."

[TheAbsurdist]

"I want a badge." And then gauging the reaction of others, displayed or not. Holding his hands up and looking surprised that everyone was resisting. "What? I have a trophy room. I would like a momento of this occasion. It is not like I am positive that AEGIS might have contracts with one of my holdings through several shell companies, or anything."

"Though as an Arab-American, I am not so comfortable with the government hauling me down to a secret base. Whatever, I already cancelled my tee-time for today. So let us, the Temporary Group of Random Heroes, or Te-Gra-Ha, solve your problem." And then he looked at the poster. "Really?... I mean seriously tax money is spent on that Photoshop job?" And then he started to laugh, loudly, leaning on a hand against the wall of the elevator. "I have a good PR firm on retainer, I will give you their number." Wiping his eye he chuckled a little bit more.

[Brown Dynamite]

Omen didn't think the matter needed that much dissecting over. Of course he also had no plans of sticking around AEGIS headquarters after the job was done. Deputitizing was just a way for the paperwork warriors to get a chance to shine and look accountable if things went right...or wrong. Splitting hairs on the red tape wasn't going to get anywhere. "Might want to shorten that to TGH, rolls of the tongue without sounding like a moustachio'd villain by the train tracks. Does sort of sound like a steroid so there's that." Speaking of phone calls, Erick would have to note to keep track of AEGIS after the stunt they pulled earlier with the texting. Being compromised is much less a luxury when bullets don't bounce off you.

[Tiffany Korta]

Agnus was always a little nervous around any kind of government organization, as the daughter of a pair of free spirits, she been bought up with a healthy distrust of these kind of things. Still there was a chance that people could be in trouble, so for now she’d trust the people. If she wasn’t happy after all she could always walk away.

She leaned in a whisper into Starlight ear, as she was the only one of the gathered heroes she officially knew. Plus she was a good friend, despite Agnus’s unerring ability to say exactly the wrong thing at the wrong time.

“Do you know much about AEGIS? I’ve been trying to keep my head down around organizations like this, I’m not even officially registered at the Ministry.â€

[Ari]

GM

"Sir, it took me several months of training to reach this level of poker face" Agent Silas said to Omen without a break in his smooth indifference "As for vaccinations, that restroom doesn't have anything dangerous in it, no need to worry. As for the length of this voyage" he went on, leaning against one wall "there are no routes below that level we could guarantee would be safe. This way in is easily the most secured. That and the Iceberg is pretty far down, this was the fastest of our options." he told the young vigilante with a nearly invisible smile. To Starlight he explained "We can provide intelligence and resources you don't have yet, giving you an edge in a fairly simple job. Reporting to us or following our orders is not thought to be too likely, all of you are clearly competent enough not to need nannying."

Meanwhile, agent Anthea was focusing on Gabriel and Asad. "No Gabriel, from what I have been told this shouldn't conflict with the Freedom League's goals or methods in any way. It is asked only for this one mission, and is wholly voluntary. We would handle this case ourselves but...it's as you said, the power we need to bring to bear is a little out of our league right now." she admitted with a pursed mouth "With your capabilities we can accomplish a mutual goal, and make sure justice is done for at least some of the evils OVERTHROW and its cronies have done recently." Asad's question caught her briefly off-guard, and a look crossed her eyes very reminiscent of one Ms. van Cleef might have had. With reluctance she said "We do provide badges, actually. Though they don't come with any monitoring or communications equipment, they work very well for for trophy rooms. Ask Francis at the desk, he gives them out."

Rubbing the bridge of her nose she considered his other question, and its follow-up offer. "Thanks, but we're fine with that sign as it is. Took me days to get the painting right, and copying it onto the door took more than a little finesse."

[Raveled]

Starlight reached over and gave Young Brittania's hand a squeeze, but didn't speak. She didn't trust AEGIS not to record everything they were saying.

She didn't shrug at the agent's words, but the movement of her eyebrows conveyed the same indifference. "If you wish to supply information regarding those who were behind these attacks," she said, "I will not turn the help down. But I do not understand why you felt the need to drag us down to your bunker to tell us these things. It does not engender trust."

[Ari]

GM

"The situation requires a thorough breakdown. The recent attack is part of it, but it's a pretty small part of the whole." Anthea told the golden-armored Grue politely "Down here we can also tell you all we know without fear of being overheard. Besides, it's not often that Director Powers invites people down here."

With a soft thud, the elevator landed, and the doors opened into a bright underground facility. The two agents leading the band into the secret headquarters of AEGIS, the Iceberg. From Athena's badge a voice said crisply "Ah good. You've arrived. Take them straight to the briefing room Agent Anthea." "Be right there, Director!" she answered promptly, leading the way further in, crossing a massive shield emblazoned on the floor.

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To be continued in....OVERTHROW of the Seas!