Oscar had never met THEO BECKETT until he was notified by him to appear in Gavin's office. No reason was given, just a command without context. Oscar had half a mind to ignore the request, but then again if it were serious he would never hear the end of it from Gavin. And so Oscar appeared, being quite surprised to find himself being the first one to arrive--even before Gavin.

As Rowan Wrynn and Alexandra Briarwood appeared, Oscar began to feel uneasy. He should have been relieved to see them alright, but considering the fact that the mission they all took part in was a failure did not bode well.  "Either of you know what this is about?" He said at last, though he already knew the answer deep down. They were were likely given no context as well, which meant that he would just have to wait for Gavin to arrive.

When he did the underboss looked grave. He commanded them to sit, and Oscar's heart nearly shed itself trying to keep his blood pumping. Oscar indeed sat, trying to stay calm as Gavin addressed them. Yet from Gavin's words, he didn't quite know why they were there either. Oscar narrowed his eyes, waiting patiently for an explanation before even attempting to get sassy with his superior. 

Another summons. Another trip to the admin’s offices. Another Arceus damned day on this sub. Her blood boiled at the thought, hot enough to curl her fingers into fists, the painful sting of the nails digging into her palms is a strangely satisfying feeling. It reminded her she was awake and alive.

Lex is the last of the three to arrive. A cold, empty glare is all the greeting oscar clayton and Rowan Wrynn receive from her. It doesn’t stem from disdain, but from what their presence here implies. Maybe a little disdain, actually. The thief returns oscar clayton’s question with a peaked brow. Was he really that dense? The only thing stopping her from speaking out is his superiority. Lex was too intimate with the consequences to know what happened when she stepped out of line.

She doesn’t need to hold her tongue for long. Cillian Quinn’s entrance demands their attention. A sharp command to sit has her sinking into the closest chair. Gavin poses a similar question to Oscar’s. Lex waits for an answer, but it seemed Gavin didn’t know either. Interesting.

This is the first time she’s seen him since their . . . meeting. His piercing glare makes her skin crawl. She involuntarily rubs her wrists, staving off the haunting remnants of the Dhelmise’s Shadow Hold. The wounds are still fresh, fresh enough in her mind to point towards one painful realization, “This is still about the mole, isn’t it?” the words drip off her tongue like venom. There’s an obvious bitterness she holds towards the idea. It isn’t a huge leap for Lex to make considering she had the distinct pleasure of involuntarily holding the title not too long ago – and the mental scars to prove it. For some reason she doubts Gavin used the same techniques to ask her lovely partners about what happened. No, Lex got special treatment.

@consequences

Naturally, it's Alexandra Briarwood whose voice speaks loudest. Oscar is wise enough not to speak at all, and Rowan addresses him with nervous respect. So it is Briarwood that Gavin focuses on, eyes narrowed.

"I am asking you. Watch your tone."

Lugia's power provides a physical tell for his fury, fog that forms at the tips of his fingers and curls. He, too, remembers the lengths he'd gone to uncovered Alexandra's truth. He had believed her, in the end — still does. Yet that left two others whom he didn't want accused.

That Rowan Wrynn won't look at him is a blessing; his amber eyes speak of their shared heritage, inspire discomfort.

"What did — Beckett say to you?"

There's a stilted pause, as if he'd been about to refer to THEO BECKETT as something else, but he doesn't acknowledge it. His gaze shifts between each of them in turn for an answer, starting with oscar clayton.

Oscar knew of the mole, but he did not consider that being the reason he had been called here. The idea of being suspected of betrayal was as alien to him as space itself. He had not even fathomed the possibility, yet as his compatriots brought up the subject he slowly began to understand. Of course they would be the first suspects, they were the ones sent on the mission after all.


Oscar's expression did not change as Gavin looked to him, however once their eyes locked it would become clear that Oscar wasn't pleased. A tranquil fury lay behind his shaking pupils, which had constricted to be as small as pin points. He did not speak his message out loud, but surely Gavin would be able to understand. It was a mistake to question his loyalty.

Oscar answered the underboss's question, but said nothing more. "I was instructed to come here. He did not share anything else." 

Beneath the table her fingers curl back into fists. Of course Lex pissed him off, that seems to be her new found talent. It is one she regrets having formed but it feels almost second nature at this point, she has come to expect it from herself. Still, she leans back in her seat, withdrawing like a Mightyena being snapped at by the Alpha, and she finds her place.

Thankfully, his attention is drawn to Rowan Wrynn and oscar clayton. When he questions them, her suspicion that he had yet to accuse them of being the mole is strengthened. It makes her angrier, a visible tremble in her shoulders from the tension of her holding herself back. What was so damn special about these two? oscar clayton she could understand considering his track record, but the new guy, Rowan Wrynn? She didn’t see any reason to trust him more than her.

Lex keeps her eyes diverted, focused on the table rather than the others. She isn’t spoken to, so she silently stews in her resentment.

@consequences

[attr="class","beck"]tension leaks through closed doors, practically suffocates the hallway, but it's as expected as the four presences in the office ahead. he drags an unwilling soul, grip tight over their binds. soon, the door opens to glares.

"good. you're all here."

the person in binds is tossed into the center of the room, deserted, isolated, left to be picked apart. he takes a step forward, following, and meets merlino's eyes.

"i found your rat."

[attr="class","noodles"]Cillian Quinn oscar clayton Alexandra Briarwood Rowan Wrynn @aoi

"I suppose we will."

And Gavin sits, directing the cold energy of his glare toward the door. Though mistrust coils like a serpent in his stomach, he will not put the cart before the horse. Whichever one was the mole, Theo would tell him.

When the door finally opens, a bound and gagged figure thrown to the floor, there is a long and uncomfortable silence. Gavin, still seated, meets the pale blue eyes of the former admin with bold amber, clear threat. He gets up, slow.

"Good."

He rolls his neck to the side as if to work stiff muscles. His hand clasps THEO BECKETT's shoulder in a gesture that could, to the untrained eye, be misconstrued as approving. There's a lightness to his touch that might fool the man himself.

"I'm sure there was no intention to imply that one of you had been the mole." Though he does not look at them, it is the other three whom he addresses: Alexandra Briarwood, Rowan Wrynn, oscar clayton. Gavin's hand slides behind the back of Beckett's neck with the speed of a viper's strike. He squeezes, hard, nails digging deep into tender flesh. "Right, Beckett?"

He doesn't spare their mole so much as a disgusted look. Not yet.

His hand retracts, and now it is the gaze that pins. Once more, Gavin addresses his team. "But it's not me you've wronged. Tell me." He looks between his three Rockets in turn. He is deadly serious. "What would you like me to do to him?"

Behind Theo, the door locks.

[attr="class","beck"]praise never comes that easily — theo of all people knows this. so when he feels merlino's hand on his shoulder, he tenses out of instinct, knowing that whatever this is, it isn't simple praise. the sudden pressure digging into his flesh only confirms it.

"right."

when the question is posed, theo looks to the three. he doesn't recognize any of them, and though they hold some level of power over him in the moment, he cares little for them.

his gaze remains fixed on merlino, defiance simmering, but he understands his place now.

[attr="class","noodles"]Cillian Quinn oscar clayton Alexandra Briarwood Rowan Wrynn @aoi

THEO BECKETT enters the room with a dominance Lex isn’t expecting. She’s never seen the guy, let alone met him and the way he casually tosses the prisoner on the floor makes her recoil within but her amber eyes still shoot a piercing glare his way until he speaks.

I found your rat.

Lex immediately shoots out of her seat, the chair violently scrapes against the floor from the momentum of the sudden movement. It’s an involuntary reaction, one fueled by a deep seeded need for revenge that Theo just ignited into a raging flame. It burns hot in the eyes that latch on to the woman’s figure as she struggles on the floor. Squirming like the little worthless worm she is. The thief doesn’t speak, she lets the rage burn.

Capture. Interrogation. Torture. And the spiral into a darkness she didn’t want to be consumed by all began at the Cave of Origin. Lex had desperately been searching for someone else to blame while everyone pointed cold fingers at her. Vengeance is intoxicating.

Gavin addresses them, asking what he should do to Theo. Lex looks from Gavin to Theo. The crease in her brows is telling of her confusion, “I don’t give two shits about him,” a flat, unapologetic tone. All she sees is red. Cillian Quinn probably wouldn’t like it, but her emotions were getting the best of her. The redhead’s gaze flashes back to @aoi, in case it already wasn’t clear where her focus was. Lex had already been accused by Gavin, anyway. When she got the invite, she didn’t assume it was for the same reason. She didn’t know Theo, she didn’t care about Theo. But there was a subtle hint of admiration for bringing them the rat that would hopefully bring her some semblance of peace in the aftermath of their revenge.

@consequences