Starstruck

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Tomorrow was another day...tonight, she would head home, but not before sending an encrypted message to her best agent, Agent Rosalyn. She instructed her to contact Victor Jaramillo and arrange to personally deliver all intel on the traitor to Legion's office. Clarisa also suggested she ask Lady Gwenivere to accompany her for safety's sake.

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((While I'm waiting for instructions from Victor on visiting Legion to deliver the intel...here are some pics:

Matamoros
Clarisa
Clarisa In Action

))

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He gave a slight bow, "Until we meet again, which I'm sure will be very soon..." and exited the office room.

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Clarisa noded respectfully as Victor left her office. She stepped outside its threshold to watch Victor board the elevator. Jane looked up from her computer screen with anticipation. "How did it go Ms. Feynman?"

"Well enough Jane, well enough. In this town circumstances can change at the drop of a hat though, so I won't celebrate just yet." Clarisa winked at Jane and started to return to her office.

"Uh...Ms. Feynman? The board has been waiting for your report, don't forget." Jane pointed an index figure at the ceiling. "They are waiting for you to deliver it personally."

"Oh Damn" She thought, then said outloud, "Of course, I'll head right up. I trust you gave them some plausible excuse why I was delayed?".

Jane said reassuringly, "Yes indeed, if there is one thing I've learned working for you, it's how to keep the executives at bay." Jane's turn to wink.

"Thank you." Clarisa said as she turned on her heels toward the elevator. "Remind me to give you another raise."

Jane returned to her work on the computer and smiled to herself.

Clarisa's journey up the elevator was spent mentally composing her report. She drew a deep breath as she entered the board room. Somehow she had to keep the truth from the board, yet calm their fears about Legion. They had to still be allowed access to Physiks. This was going to take some business finesse. "Good evening gentlemen..." She began to spin the story and managed to emphasize and exaggerate, advantages Physiks had gained in this scirmish. The executives slowly started to come around and by the end of the meeting they were patting each other on the back. No doubt they would go home tonight believing they were kings of Paragon City. Clarisa hoped when she got to their level, that she would not be so easily fooled. To guard against that she would have to keep her mind and her claws sharp.

Tomorrow was another day...tonight, she would head home, but not before sending an encrypted message to her best agent, Agent Rosalyn. She instructed her to contact Victor Jaramillo and arrange to personally deliver all intel on the traitor to Legion's office. Clarisa also suggested she ask Lady Gwenivere to accompany her for safety's sake.

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The next morning, Agent Rosalyn sent two voice messages. One to Victor and one to Lady Gwen, as Clarisa had instructed. She patroled Steel Canyon as she waited for their replies.

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(continueally adjusting spider arms while on cell phone)
"Can you hear me now? Can you hear me now? Can you hear me now? DAMMIT!"

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Oooo ... I hate that commercial /e cringe

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Victor flashed a rare grin and placed his arms into the 'at ease' position. "In the meantime, consider my offers. I know you want power, you cannot deny it. I see it in your eyes. I can promise you that, but the data...I'll get back to you on that. I'm sure that if I pull a few strings, call a few friends, I can have much, if not all, of the data in your hands within the week." Victor extended his hand forward for a shake. "So, on those conditions do we have a deal?" Pausing for a moment he added, "You know, it would be very beneficial, for you especially, to quit thinking of me as an enemy and start thinking of me as an ally..."

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She nodded to concede the verbal match to Victor. "I would like nothing more than to call you ally. It's not my habit to let my guard down around a competitor. I will work on it." she said with a blink and curt smile.

"I graciously accept your offers and appreciate your efforts to provide the data. I give you my word that this arrangement stays between us. Although, you must know the data itself is meant for Ms. Parker. Only in her hands, can it come to fruition. I can refrain from informing her until the data arrives, if you like."

In the background Clarisa had called up a cost estimate to restore the lab. Now she walked over to the printer to retrieve it for Victor.

"Here's the cost of repairing the damage. I will ask for nothing extra. Regarding the traitor though, who will you assign to start working on that? Or do we have the pleasure of your continued company?".

I've got two:

1) "You want fries with that?"

2) "Do you like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain?..."

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"Alright," Victor said, taking a deep breath, "I can have Legion assume full responsibility for the disaster. You will be absolved of all wrong doing that anyone tries to place on you. Considering your success, I'm sure you have many rivals who would try to use this against you. I will halt that outright. Also, Legion's funding 'contributions' to Physiks will be tripled. Legion will also replace all of the equipment that was destroyed, compensate all staff that have been 'emotionally damaged,' and settle all lawsuits on behalf of Physiks. To put it simply, we will pay for everything and then some."

Victor's eyes shifted from side to side and he leaned towards Clarisa. "I also know that you want more power over this company. Make no mistake, a woman of your calibur deserves it." His eyes shifted around again. "I can personally see to it you shoot straight to the top. With Legion's help you can increase your power over the board exponentially."

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As he was saying this, Clarisa was thinking. "Right, I had a feeling Legion would try to buy their way out of this. It's clever on his part, trying to use my ego to distract me." She supressed a grin. She liked how Victor Jaramillo operated...what a versatile agent, too bad he wasn't on her side.

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Victor shifted his stance, stepping slightly to her side, as if to make absolutely sure no one could hear but Clarisa. "Besides, you will NEED my help with a traitor among you..."

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She walked around the desk so that it was no longer between her and Victor. Gently, she let her arms uncross in a non-hostile manner. She keeps it in the back of her mind that the inverse-square law applies here...the intensity of an assassin's aggressive reaction is inversely proportional to the square of the distance between a potential target and the assassin. In other words, don't get close and if you do, approach in non-threatening manner, because every step is increasingly more dangerous.

Clarisa got as close as she dared and one centimeter closer. She cocked her head to one side wihtout breaking eye contact and said, "I appreciate Legion's gesture and concern for my position. And you are correct, of course, Physik's does still NEED your help, however....", She blinked and shifted her line of sight to break eye contact. Then she paused to assess his receptiveness. He appeared just as calm and collected as a moment ago, was she successful at putting him on edge?

She continued, "...however, I would like one more small token." Again she paused and backed off two centimeters, body language for backing down. "I want all the data you found in the Crey cryo lab regarding Statesman and other hero projects, unabridged."

"Please don't try to deny that you cleaned out Crey's data repositories. I don't need any more proof of this, than *I* would have done it. I assume it is within your power to grant this insignificant request." She lowered her gaze and picked up her PDA, hoping to further defuse the threat level. "I can transmit the encryption keys to your Physiks account now if you like." With a glint in her eye and a light smile, she allowed herself a look at his face for some sign of expression.

((Basically, Clarisa is assuming that there is some data on the shielding technology in the huge glut of data that Legion extracted. She wants to provide it to Kashaye to speed up her time to results...the ROI would be phenomenal. She also doesn't want Legion to corner the market on that info since they have access to Kashaye's current research. Knowledge is power my friends!))

(( My apologies, it was too late to edit the name by the time I found it. Wish they would lengthen that. The correct name is Victor Jaramillo...I'll be sure to use the right one in the future.))

"Ms. Feynman....Victor Matamoros to see you in your office. It's urgent, or I would schedule a meeting later. Lady Gwenivere has done a wonderful job securing the area while they are here." said Jane over the intercom.

Is the day ever done? Thought Clarisa as she put on her spare suit and smoothed the wrinkles in the mirror on the back of her office-side lavatory door.

She took a moment more to think about what may transpire over the next few minutes. "Legion is sending over their best man, to what? Negotiate? To apologize...no not that I'm sure. Hmmm....", her forehead wrinkled and she tied her hair into the signature ponytail.

"Ah, to find the traitor! I see, they've finally figured out we have a traitor here and that could mean trouble for both of us. Should I act like I don't know? Or should I pretend I just found out. Yes, I think I'll mention that I just uncovered some evidence during this battle that confidential information is being leaked to Crey (and who knows who else)."

Clarisa started to walk into her office where he was waiting and allowed herself one more musing. "I don't intend to make this easy on Victor though...Legion has cost me at least two years in my climb to CEO...and this battle has ruined my best suit."

Out loud she said, "To what do I owe this visit Matamoros.", as she stood behind her desk arms crossed. Body language for, You are no longer a trusted ally".

LOL...this question comes up AT LEAST once a month. I totally agree with you about the search feature though, so don't think I'm complaining at your question.

Here's a link to the thread you need

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But first things first. Gwen had shown her worth to Clarisa directly, and it was past time to pop the question.

"Clarisa... I have a favor to ask. And perhaps you'll see it as a benefit too. I'd like to have Lady Gwenivere brought on board as a security consultant, assigned to my project, to replace these Legion goons. She can manage security here, and also provide intel on Crey goings-on as part of her heroine missions. I think she'd fit in exceptionally well."

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For only the third time in her life, Clarisa smiled a genuine, caring smile. She looked directly at Lady Gwenivere, extended a hand, and said, "The job is yours Lady Gwenivere, if you would grace us with your acceptance." Clarisa was very impressed with her healing abilities and willingness to stand close in battle. She would not soon forget how good a mentor Lady Gwen had been these past few days.

Scanning the lab area and seeing the piles of scrap metal and broken equipment, she then said, "Looks like we got some work to do here. What do you need Ms. Parker?". It was hard to surpress a rising anger towards Legion. Their indiscretion was going to make life very difficult for her with the board and her objective of routing out the company traitor may not come to fruition. First things first though, must maintain order!

Physiks headquarters was a bit of a shambles. The building wasn't physically damaged, but the orderly shuffle of suited men and women in and out of the lobby had been replaced by several armed guards and heroes.

Clarisa spoke over the team channel and asked everyone to meet back at the lab. The battle reports had indicated that Legion was dealing with Crey, be it in an unothordox manner. Security chiefs had started retreating from the scirmishes. No need for valuable Physiks resources to be squandered. The tide had changed and not in Crey's favor. That was good enough. Physiks had no desire to takeover Crey in a hand-to-hand war. Best bleed them dry in the corporate arena. That thought always brought a smile to Clarisa's face.

She looked around to see who had made it back to the lab.

It's my opinion that's its all who you meet. There are RP'ers on every server. I RP most on Guardian, but I know of folks on Champion, Justice, and Pinnacle...and of course Virtue. But don't feel like you have to limit yourself. Select a server where you get a good connection (depends on where you live) and when you meet people in these forums and in-game let them know you RP.

((Maybe they are all playing CoV too. ))

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"Hang on! We just need to keep these jokers busy! If they keep sending their top talent at us, our two flank teams will be able to take out that C&C transmitter and their entire command structure in Steel collapses!"


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Clarisa nodded and found renewed energy in the hope that they would be able to strike at the heart of the conflict. Each team pressed forward, steadily and methodically. Crey were falling before their feet and dissappearing to the Zig. They were making progress! But man, Clarisa's arms were getting sore. If she survived this, she'd be hurting tomorrow. Nevertheless, she was glad to have this team working with her. Who would have believed all these non-corporate people could coordinate every move, every attack and be successful. For some reason, she assumed heroes's were victorious on their individual talents alone. She now had a greater understanding. However, things were happening so fast, that she didnt' have time to dwell on it. When the battle was over she would...well, nevermind that, just keep slashing! She said to herself quietly. Keep slashing! Swoosh, swoosh.

Clarisa fought her way to Kashaye. Between slashes and swipes of oncoming foes, she asked "What can we do to gain the advantage here? We can't keep going like this for too long without a break...even with our talented heroes providing endurance.". She flashed a smile in conclusion and kept on fighting.

((Forgive my absence. Between work and CoV this week, I am tapped out. I would like to wrap up this "war" in some itneresting way. Feel free to put on your thinking caps and write in some cool ending if you like. Nothing good is coming to me. I suspect Matamoros would be a likely candidate...anything up Legion's sleeve?))

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She gestured... and the man slowed to a stop, seemingly out of breath, as a brilliant blue field emanated out from him, recharging everyone in close proximity. ((Transference - level 26 Kinetic ability - bleeds a significant amount of a foe's endurance off and recharges End on any ally within range)). He brought his sleeve to his mouth to call in for help... but didn't have time to say much, because Kate and Makavell decided to get into the scrap at that point.

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Clarisa saw Kate and Makavell starting their attacks. She looked quickly and noticed a Cyro Tank standing dangerously close to their marks. Thanks to Speed Boost, she was able to reach the tank before he had time to wheel around and target his attackers. To "distract" the tank and his nearby minions, she lept up in air and spun, one arm held high claws extended and the other positioned down into the middle of the spin for balance. SWIPE!

The sound of metal against metal and a few sparks indicated the strike was successful. All nearby foes were now gunning for Clarisa. For a brief moment, she felt less than powerful...where was Gwen? Ahhh...there she was! A fierce blast had knocked her momentarily out of range, but she quickly jumped to her feet like an acrobat and engaged the enemy yet again. Clarisa nodded to her in appreciation. This team was geling well, but the sheer number of Crey were intimidating. Clarisa clawed her way to Kashaye, hoping to get a break in the fighting and plan their next steps.

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As one, the assembled strike force activated their various travel powers and started moving toward Gimry Ridge, where Crey had set up a command and control station to coordinate their forces against Legion.

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((I hope someone has Recall Friend because Clarisa Feynman is only lvl 9...LOL))

While enroute, Clarisa handed out communication devices to the "team" and requested that they use channel Tango ((hehehe...T for Team)).

Clarisa surveyed the landscape as they traveled. Crey forces were battlling Legion in small groups. Physiks's forces where intermixed when Legion's numbers were reduced. Even though they had a common foe, they did not seem to be working together with a unified plan. It was clear to Clarisa that THIS team needs to work together to be successful.

"Ok Team, I'd like to put Soulll Trainnn in charge of our tactical maneuvers. It's important that we work as a focused force, lest we be divided and conquered." ((passing the star))." A purple glow surrounded Clarisa as she activated her super reflexes and prepared for Kashaye's assesment and tactical direction.

((When Matamoros has time, he can join us or run a separate team but talk to use on "friends" channel. I definitely understand how hard it is to keep up with all the happenings in this thread, so don't feel pressured to write. It needs to stay fun and enjoyable. Other writers who do write often, need to leave openings for other heroes. Thanks! /end public service announcement.))

((Let the games begin!))

Outside the Physiks building in the Northern point of Steel Canyon, a fire began. Whether it was the result of cross-fire between Legion and Crey or if it was purposely set from within remained unknown. Some heroes had even responded, grabbing estinguishers from the Fire Chief and helping dowse the flames.

Everyone in Physiks employ who was able to respond was called to the main HQ or to key branch locations. DEFEND ONLY was the order.

Clarisa cursed loudly and uncharacteristically lost her composure. "What the ---- is going on? How can we be expected to 'Defend Only'!" She shouted to the heroes within earshot.

"Let's head to the largest concentration of Crey forces and shut them down!" She unsheathed her claws in one swift motion and looked around to see who was with her.

((Before I contribute more to the story, I need to ask Mataromos a question...In your last post you said:

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Casualties were mounting, the lion's share being suffered by Legion. Forces were scrambling back and forth between the Legion compound and Physiks as they received conflicting orders. Panic had gripped the neck of Legion's chain-of-command, and snapped it. Crey was nearly upon both Legion and Physiks. Countess Crey was probably having a field day. 'Killing two birds with one stone...'


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Should we take that to mean that Crey is visibly attacking Physiks? Or is Crey eliminating Legion knowing that leaves Physiks vunerable? Also, I'm not sure if Crey was triggered by a particular event? I thought the chaos in the lab was triggered by Eddy's armor, so this Crey attack is from the larger storyline of Crey sniffing around Physiks earlier. Maybe Crey took advantage of the incident in the lab which distracted Legion to attack them? I'm asking here rather than PM in case others want to know too. ))

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(( Wow... a lot can happen while you are at work... ))

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((Whew...I hear ya...I'm gone for a few hours and the sky starts falling...lol))

Admist all the confusion and chaos, Clarisa stood back and observed. She had faith that the armor wouldn't be pierced, and guessed that Kashaye would be safe enough. But Mallory was a different matter. New to learning her powers, she must not have been able to keep her shield up. For that, Clarisa was geniunely sorry she had let this hand play out.

She immediately hit the "panic" button on her access card. It sealed the room shut and chilled the interior temperature to an uncomfortable level. Then a gas hissed out. No ill effects save a headache would be felt but she winced. It would dull everyones senses and make them slow to react. This method was reverse-engineered from another hero...a friend of hers. In any event, she had no choice ...she needed to get the situation in this room under control.

Then she grabbed a first aid kit and made her way to Mallory and Eddy as fast as the gas would allow.

Clarisa shouted to Kashaye over her shoulder, "We should expect incoming (meaning Legion)!"

((Oops sorry I thought you were going to have Kashaye go to help Clover. I must have gotten confused. ))

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" Ms.Feynman, Hello! Sorry to bother you any more, But I also forget to tell you earlier I am an inventor...of sorts, and have something I made you may find interesting.

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Clarisa was about to step onto the elevator when Eddy found her.

"Mr. Ramirez, I am very interested in promoting innovation, so an inventor like yourself is welcome here at Physiks. " She touched his arm lightly. "Please walk with me, I'm on my way to visit another bright star, Kashaye Parker. You two should meet, she may need help in her lab."

Walking and talking, she said "Are you any good at re-engineering? You know, ...in case we found any technology that we hadn't developed? All on the up-and-up, of course." The practiced smile of a business person spread across her face.

Just then a Legion agent text messaged her about some information going to Soulll Trainnn on a person named Clover. Clarisa quicked her pace and Eddy kept up with her. When she arrived at the door to the lab and entered, she asked, "How can I help?"

((One more post If anyone wants to take in game pictures together or even just do a few missions. I have Clarisa on Virtue. I will create another one of her on Victory. Feel free to add me to your global friends list since I mostly play on Guardian, you'll have to call me over to the other servers when you want to get together...my global handle is @starstuck. This isn't mandatory, just a fun idea that ProfessorBlues proposed that I thought was good idea.))

No sooner had everyone exited the boardroom, when helicopters could be heard above the building and men from Legion started flooding the lobby.

"Get me Victor or one of his lackey's on the phone now!" Clarisa bellowed. She wasn't yelling at her long time secretary, Jane, directly, but she was very agitated at the problem this "invasion" presented. After all, she just convinced the board to work with Legion and now it looked like they were implementing martial law.

"Here Ms. Feynman. " Jane handed the handset to her. "Victor is unavailable, but I have a colleague of his on the phone."

Clarisa took a moment to calm down and soften her voice, but her eyes still blazed with anger. In a silky voice she said, "Hello, thank you for taking this call during what must be a busy time for you." She paused, again to keep her voice steady. "Please tell Victor, I was able to arrange access for your agents under the agreement he and I have made. I do however have one request....even though it's necessary to maintain order, it is also important NOT to affect day-to-day operations here. I NEED your agents to blend in and do their work covertly. That means, no loud helicopters, no black Humvees with suited agents pouring out. And NO visible guns. " She accidently let her voice slip into a lower tone.

"Is that understood?" Clarisa hoped she hadn't sounded to accusing, but since she had done her best to keep her anger in check, it would have to do.

While she waited for an answer, Clarisa hit the mute button on the phone and said to Jane. "Please ring Kashaye and when you have her on the line, transfer it to my cellphone. She may be busy so it could take a few times of trying." Jane nodded and started dialing on the other phone.

((Note: I'm not really upset, I'm just RP'ing it for Clarisa because she doesn't want anything to jepordize her overall plan.))

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(( the following character is being written in by me, after a fellow SG member read this thread and said, "I want in!" I said she'd have to write her own parts... but she asked me to write them... Ok Gwen, if you trust me that much...))

http://img294.imageshack.us/my.php?i...60226012gh.jpg

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((Welcome new heroes! I'm glad this story thread has caught your interest. We're having a good time in here. Sorry I have been away for a bit. Work is giving me some trouble, but honestly, I am excited about writing here and now I just have to keep up!))

After Clarisa dealt with the man who's car got crushed by Mallory's defensive mechanism, she was out $50,000. She had asked the young gentleman who alerted the authorities to come to a PR program on how citizens can make a difference. She wanted him to be one of the guest speakers explaining how he was able to think quickly and get help during an emergency. ((This is a lead in for Eddy Ramirez, written by Makavell, if he wants it...no need to Roleplay the PR event if you just want to jump in to the action, but this gives you a reason to hang around Physiks.))

Buzz Buzz Her cellphone was reminding her of an appointment. She reached into her suit jacket pocket and pulled it out to read. "Damn, it's time for that board meeting already! I'd rather follow what's going on here. Ah well, I'm sure Kashaye can handle it". She thought to herself.

<<Fade to black...next scene...the Physiks Boardroom>>
A hush fell over the boardroom. The long, polished table gleemed and reflected the faces of the Physiks executives and board members. At the far end, a man with a deep voice spoke up.

"Ms. Feynman, the offer you are proposing presents a great risk. A joint venture with Legion would give them more power over our dealings than is acceptable. What ROI (return on investment) could possibly warrent the risk?". The CEO leaned forward as if straining to hear her reply.

In typical Clarisa style, she was walking about the room and approached the CEO to answer. "Mr. Allendale, your concern is valid. I would suggest to you that the advantage we would gain over Crey would be substantial and the influx of cash would remedy our current defecit." She glanced over at the CFO who shrunk back in her seat a bit. "Good", she thought,"I won't be getting any resistance from her because she's avoiding answering for the losses."

From the opposite end of the room, a board member spoke up in a tinny voice, "But Ms. Feynman, we can't always take enormous risk to satisfy our internal problems. In fact, it's obvious that you may be underestimating the risk due to your involvement with the Hero PR program." The other members nodded and some turned to whisper to each other. She knew they were commenting on the cost of her physical enhancements that enable her to work with Paragon's heroes.

Yet another executive added his opinion. "I agree, the risk does not produce enough gain to agree to Legion's offer. Allowing Legion agents, who we all know are corporate spies, to enter our facilities and share our knowledge about Crey in exchange for mere funding to R&D projects that may produce no advantage over Crey, is ridiculus.

The din of the room increased. Clarisa realized she was losing control of the situation, but she had anticipated this outcome.

"Ladies, gentlemen, and others, please don't think me a fool. Why WOULD I present this offer to you if there wasn't a greater threat before us." She paused and scanned the room. They stopped their side conversations at the words "greater threat" and listened intently.

"What exactly IS that threat you speak of." Retorted the CEO.

Clarisa took her place at the opposite end of the long table. She sat in the tall leather chair and leaned back interlacing her fingers as if to keep her claws from bursting forth. "There is a spy among us. Someone in the company is working this company apart from within. We have not been able to determine who or how many, but certainly Legion will be able to."

Sternly, the shocked CEO asked, "Does Legion know about this?"

Clarisa felt the tide changing in her favor. "No of course not, but they will soon because they are not fools either. I'd rather let them discover the evidence and do their own investigation independent of any Physiks involvement. Think of Legion as an anitbody searching out a bacterial infection, normal cells cannot do they work of anitbodies. We need them to discover and erradicate what they find. If we don't do this, and deal with it on our own, we leave ourselves open for a corporate takeover, which is much worse than the risk of giving Legion access to our R&D." Reassuringly, she added, " Naturally, I will be monitoring them the entire time."

Outside the board room, dozens of jammers were setup...radio jammers, IR jammers, visual jammers, and most importantly, mental wave jammers. No one would be able to hear the conversation that took place in that room.