nextgenerationmarvel | They're Checking Out Your Savoir Faire ((Open to Quinn))

Quinn was glad to get out of the house and do some work. Tina was furious with him, as he expected, but he never expected her to be quite this angry. In all of the scenarios he'd run in his mind, she was angry at first, but came to understand his position.

That didn't seem to be happening now. He'd called Nika the following day to take the job in the hopes that the distance would help them.

He arrived at the cafe and sat down at her table.

"Good afternoon. How's it going?" he asked.

Nika had glanced up in time to see her newest employee come into the cafe. She looked back down to finish her paragraph, mark the page, and close the textbook labeled European Security.

"Good afternoon," she paused slightly. She was not sure which name she should use. Instead, she plowed on with the pleasantries. "It goes slowly, but slogging through coursework on a vacation would do that. Your day going well enough?"

"It's going." Quinn said. It was true enough but he didn't really want to talk about it.

"So, when do we get started? I could use a vacation myself." he said, relaxing slightly as the waitress noticed him. He ordered a green tea when she came over, not noting the approving look she gave him.

"Is it going to be just us working together or do we have anyone else?"

"We do have to do your assessments. Though I have some on the ground see how you do in a mission things. Leftovers from the European team." Nika shrugged. At least her mother had sent a couple files her way while Lisa worked on rounding up jobs for the team.

"It will be just us today. The others are on a different continent." She leaned over a bit to grab a couple files out of the satchel hanging on the back of her chair.

Quinn nodded.

"All right, so what's my first test?" he asked, watching her take out the files from her chair. He was already scanning the area to make sure that they weren't being watched intently.

Nika set the files on the table and pushed them over to Quinn. "A couple of bounties. To be taken alive. Last seen in separate parts of the Albanian mountains. Wanted criminals in the United Kingdom. Their capture should cover quite a few of the assessments I need to give."

She sat back in her chair and sipped on the tepid drink left in her cup.

Quinn takes a look at both files, making sure to commit the faces of the targets to memory and their last known whereabouts. The Albanian mountains was a good start and mountain ranges tended to be good hiding places for people who didn't want to be found.

"What's the time-frame on acquisition for these guys? Just want to make sure that I don't take too much time searching when it's time to bring them in." Quinn said.

Nika finished off her drink and set the empty cup carefully onto the table. She looked at Quinn levelly. Her mother had done in-the-field assessments. This would be the first one Nika was going into knowing what it was beforehand.

"How much time do you think you need from the information given?"

Quinn looked over the information, considering their current location.

"Sixteen hours to get from here to there if we leave immediately. I could be ready in an hour but securing transport could take another two. If I get there tomorrow morning and get searching, provided that they don't leave...ninety-six hours, give or take whatever security these guys have, provided that they haven't figured out they're on your radar and banded together for mutual survival." Quinn said.

It wasn't likely that either man knew about the other but he had to consider every possibility before discarding it.

"My stuff is already packed and ready to go at my place. I'd just need to get it and secure transportation."

Nika raised an eyebrow and then nodded as she considered his assessment. "You won't have to get transportation yourself. I can provide that."

She stretched and then grabbed her text book off the table. She grabbed her satchel off the back of her chair as well. "Flying should get us to our destination in an hour and a half or less. Once you have your things."

"All right, that works. Should I just head straight to the airport once I've got my stuff? Or do I give you a call to find out where the meeting point is?" he asked.

Nika reached into one of the small side pockets on her stachel. She pulled out a small card. She glanced it over before holding it out to him. Mostly to know which airstrip they were supposed to go to herself. She had five random ones listed on cards in that pocket.

"Go here. I'll meet you, and we'll get to your test in earnest." While he was going to grab his things, she would have the aircraft coming in from Symkaria land at the picked airfield.

Quinn headed home and he was glad that Tina was at the office when he arrived. He wanted to talk to her but he really didn't want to fight. He decided to write her a note.

Tina,

I love you. I need you to know that above all else. I'm sorry I hurt you. I'm going away for a few days so that you can think. I will call you as soon as I'm on my way home.

Quinn

He grabbed his pack out of the closet and his rifle case and headed out the door after saying goodbye to Grumpy.

Quinn arrived at the airfield per the card and looked for Nika.

Nika was standing next to one of her mother's old Silver Swans on the airstrip. While the silver stealth jet was not the top of the line for SSI, it would suit their purposes currently. Also, this would give Nika a chance to see how it works and if she could finagle it away from her mother.

She had her hands stuffed in her pants pockets when she spotted Quinn. She waved him over.

Quinn made his way over to Nika with his bags and whistled as he saw the jet. SHIELD's stuff was good, but this was sleek and very easy on the eyes.

"I'm ready to go when you are, Boss Lady." Quinn grinned.

"My gear is already loaded in the Silver Swan. Until we have certification for flight, we'll have to use a former SBS man as the pilot." Nika was going to gloss over that the pilot was her combat instructor. It felt a bit too much like a babysitter to her.

She nodded to the jet after looking at the bags he was carrying. "Go ahead and get settled in. Then you can tell me what armaments you're using."

"Got it." Quinn said, and got on the plane.

Once they were settled, he answered her.

"I have a Barrett .50 caliber rifle as well as a Glock .45 and I'm extremely accurate with both. Your file probably tells you that I'm a mutant. I've got a couple of skills that help me with my aim." Quinn told her.

"I also have several throwing knives I use when I'm trying to not to do lethal damage." he said.

Nika settled into one of the slightly plush chairs as the gang plank raised and the pilot prepared for take-off. She hummed slightly as she considered Quinn's armaments and skills.

"A sharpshooter better than me. Now there's a challenge." She smiled slightly. She would also not mention the last sniper person on her team had quit the company because of her. Well, her and his own attitudes about corporate confidentiality.

"Any special designs on your throwing knives?" She mostly asked because her mother had her own distinctive knives, and then there was her adopted "brother" of sorts with his own throwing knives. She almost wondered if thrown pointiness was gathering around her.

"No, no special designs. My previous training taught me to avoid that sort of thing because that's how you get people like SHIELD, and now us, I guess, put on your trail." Quinn said.

"You're a markswoman, huh? Nice. I thought you were more of the point-woman type, but it's cool seeing someone with multiple talents." he said.

"Well, once your business with SHIELD clears up, you can work with Felicity or our fabrication department if you want something with your own signature style." Provided he would still want to be a mercenary at that point, but Nika thought the allure of the gray areas and a company that gave second chances brought loyalty. Provided she, herself, did not manage to scare this marksman away.

"While my sister will be your field team leader, I will be a part of the team as well. Mother wants me to learn every facet of the business. She and Dad trained me from an early age in hand-to-hand combat, swordsmanship, marksmanship, and gymnastics." She puffed out a breath and raised her eyebrows. "That makes me sound more tired than I am."

"We'll see how this goes. If we can help each other out, then we can discuss a longer partnership." Quinn said. Veronika seemed cool so far but he didn't want to commit to anything yet.

He nodded as she talked about how her parents trained her for this life and laughed a bit.

"Tired? No. At least your parents agreed with your choice, though. My old man was against me joining SHIELD from the moment it came up. Mom taught me some things here and there but Dad and I had a big blowout right before I left for training. Haven't spoken to him since." Quinn said sadly. He felt bad about that but he knew his father wouldn't understand.

Clint Barton was one of the most stubborn people on Earth and everyone knew it, especially Mom. Mom was even more stubborn than Dad, though.

Quinn came by his determination honestly, it was said.

Nika shrugged. "You get paid on a per mission basis. So however long you wish to stay is up to you."

She didn't mind the caution. She would take cautious people on her team. It balanced out the impervious bulls like Fin.

"Mm. It wasn't so much a choice as an upbringing. I am Silver Sable's only biological child. I have more expectations put on me than my half-siblings in that regard. Even if they say I'm spoiled." She rolled her eyes. Then she smirked slightly before sobering her countenance. "I'm sorry to hear about your rift with your father. The one story Mother likes to tell of him makes him an interesting yet slightly bullheaded character."

"Yeah, Dad's had some adventures and he's a pretty passionate guy. That's a gentle way to put it." Quinn said.

"I'm an only child myself. Um...how many siblings do you have?" he asked.

"'Some adventures.' That's a bit of an understatement itself." Nika chuckled. She started unzipped her jacket to get more comfortable, revealing the tactical corset she was wearing underneath.

"I have two half siblings and an interesting adopted brother on my Dad's side. You'll meet Lisa soon enough, my brothers... possibly never. They're busy in Japan."

"I've never been to Japan. I know a few people who have, though. It was one of my assignment choices when I made it into SHIELD. So was Madripoor." Quinn said.

"I've been a few times. Nagano is lovely mountain country. My brothers are a part of a different family's business. It keeps them busy." Mostly dealing with the Hand, but her family business dealt with HYDRA. Nika couldn't really quibble about it.

"What countries outside the the U.S. have you been to?"

"I've been to London, Germany and Italy so far. I want to check out France in the future. My girlfriend and I talked about it but I don't know if she's going to want to go now. I'll iron that out one way or the other pretty soon." Quinn said.

"I wanted to see Tokyo, too. It looks so busy and I like places like that with a lot of things to do and see." he said.

"Well, you may get Tokyo yet. Along with jobs in the Americas, we will occasionally get jobs in Asia that Mother cannot cover for whatever reasons." Nika glanced toward the cockpit and then out the window. The cloudy patches were not helping her estimation of where they were. She shrugged and pulled a hard case out from under her seat. She brought the case up onto her lap.

"How is your girlfriend taking the revelations you're giving her?" the Symkarian asked as she popped the clasps on the case.

Quinn liked the idea of seeing Tokyo. He'd get to cross it off the list and maybe, if Tina forgave him, they could go back together.

"She didn't take it well the other night. She said I lied to her, which I did. But I felt it was for her own good. She didn't agree with that." he said.

"When you get into this life, you understand that most people aren't going to understand what you do because of how the media portrays government organizations and mercenaries." he said.

"I grew up in a country that loves its mercenaries. Mostly because its mercenaries fund the economy more than our exports of sheep and keeps the peace with the neighboring Latveria." She shrugged. Nika was only bothered by negativity when it came from her employees.

"The rest of the world can bite their preconceptions. I have similar sentiments about how 'people' think about transdimensional aliens and mutants."

She pulled out a rifle stock to a Henry Arms AR-7, an unloaded Sig Sauer P226, and an unloaded Glock G17. She set the empty guns and rifle stock on a small table by her elbow.

Quinn looked at the guns in question and whistled appreciatively. Those were not cheap pieces of hardware. Most people he knew would kill to get even one of them, much less all three.

"Hey, I don't agree too much with people's perceptions about mutants and others. I think if people learned to chill out a bit, we'd have less Doctor Dooms in the world. But that's just my opinion." Quinn said.

"What's it like living near Doctor Doom? I've heard some stories about the guy and none of them are good but I guess he has to be doing something right if his people let him stay in power." he said.

Nika pulled out the clips for the Sig Sauer and Glock. She set one by each gun and put the spares into pouches looped into her clothing. She glanced at Quinn when he whistled at her hardware.

"If you pass your tests, we'll outfit you with top-of-the-line hardware. I'll have requisition forms available. Our tech can also make custom things." She quirked an eyebrow at having less Dr. Dooms. She was aware most of the world, in general, were afraid or despised him. She had a different view on him considering the long-standing respect between Doom and her mother.

"Peaceful and quiet for the most part," Nika answered with a shrug. "Except when superheroes go next door to thwart something or other. It stays that way while mother has her yearly peace accord dinners with Dr. von Doom."

Felicity Thompson was already at Quinn and Nika's destination point, waiting patiently. She was, as always, dressed for adventure in a very practical non-literal catsuit, armed with gadgets galore.

She smiled as she saw the Silver Swan jet approach, briefly musing over the idea of creating something similarly themed but in black for herself.

Not that she'd ever use it much, but hey. Private jet.

Granted, that's not what she was here for. Today, they were checking out the new kid. Nika because, well, she was Nika, and Felicity so that she could figure out what gadgets would best suit the newbie.

Nika carefully loaded her pistols once the jet came in for a smooth landing. She nodded to the pilot when he looked back at them.

"Well, Mr. Barton, I could have just let you come and hunt down these men on your own. It would have let me know you have some sort of skills, but what I need to see is exactly what skills and how you work on a team. Actually, Lisa needs to know that being the field team leader, but I get to be her proxy." She stood and started loading her gear onto her person. She glanced at the door as it opened and the stairs lowered.

"Let's go capture some bounties, shall we?"

Quinn grabbed his gear and nodded at Nika. He was expecting that she might have him handle this alone but the change in plans didn't bother him. So long as he and the others could work together he would handle whatever came his way.

He followed Nika down the stairs and nodded to her and the new person.

"I'm ready when you two are. Let's do this." he said.

"Awfully chipper to get started, isn't he?" Felicity said lightly. She eyed the Barton boy carefully before nodding at Nika. "He looks, capable enough, at least. Kind of has that whole Jason Bourne thing going on in the looks department. I approve. So far."

Nika quirked an eyebrow at Felicity but made no other outward comment. She adjusted her gear for better warmth.

"Felicity Thompson, Quinn Barton," she introduced. She gestured vaguely with the AR-7 stock. "Lead on, Mr. Quinn. Felicity and I will follow."

Which wasn't typical Nika behavior, but she was trying to be good at this whole field assessment thing.

While Nika introduced him, Quinn was busy putting together his rifle. If either of them watched him as he did so, they would notice that he literally put together in about eight seconds as his hands moved swiftly and fully from part to part until it was assembled. He loaded it with a magazine of non-lethal ammo and was ready to lead by the time Nika told him to do so.

He took a moment to remember the last known location of their quarry and lead them in that direction. Unless the guy had been airlifted out, chances were that he was still there.

"If I see anything, I'll try to warn you in advance...but I've got really good eyesight so if I warn you and you don't see anything, just be prepared." he directed.

Felicity deftly slipped her stylized cat mask - complete with attached white-blonde wig - over her own honey-blonde hair and nodded. She touched her mask in a spot near the right eye and started recording everything that was happening through her lenses.

"Eyes like a hawk, I got it," she quipped.

Edited 2013-02-09 02:23 (UTC)

Nika raised an eyebrow at the quick assembly. It would beat her time when she pulled the parts of her rifle out of the stock. Though her bullets were of the lethal variety.

"So noted," she commented. She glanced at Felicity and saw the mask.

"Eyes on the recruit." It was a polite reminder for the tech. Nika also decided to take up the rear so Felicity would have an unobstructed view.

Quinn led his teammates into the hills, keeping his eyes open for any soldiers. It was about an hour or two into the hike when Quinn heard something on one of the higher hills above them. He held up his hand to mention that they should stop.

He pointed upward and tapped his wrist twice to indicate that there was someone above them, maybe a few years ahead.

He hoped they would understand his hand signals.

Well, he certainly wasn't asking either of them to put a bracelet on it.

Felicity paused and looked up trying to follow Quinn's line of sight.

Nika hadn't been on a long hike in awhile. She managed to keep up but there was a small ache from being out of practice. Also, there was a pebble in her left boot.

When Quinn stopped and signaled, the Symkarian figured the pointing was an indicator someone was up there. She quietly pulled the parts of her rifle out of the stock and assembled them. She wasn't as quick as Quinn, but she managed to get her rifle together.

They're Checking Out Your Savoir Faire ((Open to Quinn))

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