Devon hated it, but he couldn’t get around it. He called it their LIE. The lounge of the inner echelon was a secret chamber, nestled between floors and restricted to the IE’s membership and secret keeper. Here they had access to the entire facility, their collective intelligence, private records, and of course the group’s undisclosed plans. While Haven had the good interest of people in mind, acting for educational funds and minority rights, the plight of mutants and their needs were of leading importance to the inner echelon. They weren’t the c-level executives of Haven but they were a hidden leadership guiding efforts all the same.

At least it was democratic, but it was still their LIE.

“Aura is gone, but we had a few good conversations together. She needs help and I hope to give her that,” Devon sighed as he leaned back on his sofa portion. “We’ll see what comes of that, but I don’t know how or when she left Plum Island. I will note she didn’t kill anyone, not even the human staff,” he nodded again. “But we won’t dwell on her. That can remain a side concern for me and my attempts to aid her state of mind.”

Six arced sofas surrounded a central table, outfitted with computer terminals and holographic projection. Of course, it presently had some snacks and a few drinks, but at their need they could bring up a file for review, a person’s image to discuss, or maybe a web site. Whatever they needed, the lounge was outfitted to provide.

“I’ve got two bigger topics and I suppose I’ll start with the easier one: time. Something’s going on and no, I’m not blaming Noel, but I’ve lost some hours… I’ve heard others have to. As you saw this morning I’ve asked our concerned membership,” he gave an eye to Nate and Nat at the inference, “to investigate, compile examples, and see if they can find a mutant with knowledge or ability related to time. Someone or something is causing at least city wide impact.”

“I seriously hope the government isn’t using or abusing someone for who knows what, but I don’t know what to expect out of the white house anymore,” Devon’s tone cut sharply, far from the friendly voice he typically had. “I’ve started making inquiries with my political and business contacts."

Natalie rarely let herself get comfortable in a work situation since she felt that it threw her off her game, but it was hard not to get comfortable in the LIE. It was a spot exclusively used by the inner echelon, filled with comfortable seats, secret records, and, of course, alcohol. She was nestled in the corner of a couch with a glass of wine, flipping through a file. One of her legs was crossed over the other, and her wine glass was rested dangerously in her hand. She was being completely unprofessional, but she didn't actually feel bad about it.

Nor did she feel bad about drinking. She had paid the nanny to stay late, and she was going to get her money's worth. Every once and a while, she had to take a night off from mom duty and let loose for a while. Of course, Natalie's idea of letting loose was no sitting professionally, but it was a new experience for her.

"Aura was a bad lead. She would have only brought negative PR," Natalie pointed out dryly as she took another sip from her glass. She had never put much faith in the criminal mutant's reformation. As much as she often claimed that people could reform, she wasn't sure that she entirely believed it. That was part of the reason that, even though she had allowed him free access to Norah, she was still keeping Nate on a tight leash.

It was an intense conversation; one which Natalie should have been paying full attention to, but she wasn't. Instead, she was skimming files that seemed more interesting. It was occasionally too much to be expected to be fully on at work, home, and at Haven. Some things just didn't always make the cut.

At the mention of Noel, though, she looked up and narrowed her eyes. She did not care for Noel. She had worked to get her off, but throughout the experience, she had a strange, suspicious feeling in the back of her mind. As soon as she found out what the woman's powers were, she knew exactly why. That information only made Natalie like her less.

"I wouldn't totally rule out Noel," she disagreed curtly. She was, however, willing to entertain other thoughts. She wasn't that dense. "But yes, I have noticed strange things too. Noel probably couldn't get around that quickly. I can see if any of my contacts know anything."

The LIE. It was a silly nickname, but Nate found more humor in it than the others. Lying was what put Nate in prison. Rather, the truth put him in prison, but it was only as the result of a lifetime of lying. He had rehabilitated as he served a sentence of penance, and came to Devon to keep him on the straight and narrow. That, of course, led to a job and a title that was occasionally askew and broad, but he was still working toward the greater good. And he did that work in the Lounge of the Inner Echelon of Haven. Their cozy little LIE.

It was the three of them; Devon, Nate, and Natalie. Nate’s involvement with Haven got Nat looking into it, and with her personality, it was no surprise she forged a path into the “IE,” as they usually called themselves.

Devon was running down the state of affairs, and Nate listened intently, sinking into one of the sofas. The Aura topic passed quickly, and from what Nate read in the reports, he was fine with that. She was a special case, and if anything, her deathless departure was a stark improvement from her rap sheet.

The concern over time was more pressing anyway. Something was off, and all too quickly, Noel’s name was in the mouths of the others. Nate knitted his brow, not particularly keen on his closest friend being put under question. Natalie was the mother of his child, but she also had a… rough introduction to Noel, if the memory-eater was to be believed. ”I’m pretty sure I would totally rule out Noel,” he shot back with curtness equaling the original statement. ”Unless we let Noel take field trips to the Mansion. We were having an hour-long staff meeting in the afternoon, and when it was over, kids were shuffling to their morning classes. Unless Noel’s gotten a big power boost to her range out of nowhere, I think that’s a dead end.”

Nate looked back to Natalie, sure she was going to be less than pleased with him, allowing him to share in the frustration she had for her bitey client. If questioning Nat so vocally was what it took to keep Noel from being scapegoated, he would deal with her attitude. ”We have boots on the ground, though, so to speak. That’s good; maybe we can figure out if these… whatevers… are happening in certain places more frequently.” If they wanted to solve the cause of the anomalies, (right, that was the word,) the best course of action was to locate a focal point.

The Inner Echelon wasn’t just about finding people to help lead the focused goals of the group’s subset mutant interests. It wasn’t the fact that these were influential, powerful, or intelligent people either. That they could shape minds and futures for individuals and cities wasn’t the key. It wasn’t the collaboration either.

It was the personalities, the dedication, the unity in action. They didn’t all have to agree; in fact, it was good they could disagree with one another. They didn’t have to know anything. Again, it was best they didn’t always. When you couldn’t trust the world to be black and white, when it had shades of gray that even ruined the governing leadership of the country and world, then you needed a group you could trust to put the goal ahead of the individual. While that unfortunately meant having to suffer some illegal means, questionable morals, and unfortunate means, there was an end they agreed upon. It wasn’t all secrets and lies, though this LIE made up for it.

Devon smiled as he watched Natalie; he could feel himself relaxing because she was. Natalie held herself to a stronger standard than nearly anyone he’d met. She’d pushed herself beyond her means, refused to accept what others imposed upon her, and had made an excellent life for herself and for her daughter. If she could have drink, relax, and come together for Haven’s interests than he could too.

Even Nate was willing to expose his opinions, contrary as they may be to his daughter’s mother’s. They had to be able to speak freely her as Natalie had about Aura. Maybe he and Devon hadn’t had the hang outs of video games or bar stops they’d imagined, but they’d continued to find ways to support Sanctuary while working encouragingly for Haven. Devon felt the IE needed more – and they had some prime candidates from their numbers – but he was proud it had started here with these two.

They were friends and leaders together.

“Right,” he nodded to Nate. “We can rule out Noel,” Devon said, nodding to Natalie. His tone had softened considerably in his reflection but he was still serious. “I had noted these disturbances before her capture or release to us. Also from some of the oddities I’ve seen or heard of it’s strange, let alone beyond her means unless she can implant memories.” He nodded again as if to affirm his statements.

“That doesn’t mean we can rule out other mutants of course. I’m hoping we’ll find the one responsible or at least one that knows something about it,” he picked up his lemon-lime soda, though he didn’t sip it. Instead he ran a finger around the rim of the glass, clearly in thought. “Meanwhile, I’d like to try and triangulate the locations, focus on a central point. Maybe we’ll find a government facility or a business’ private lab.”

Devon shrugged a shoulder and took a sip. Ah that’s right, he’d added a few splashes of vodka. Summer was always good for vodka and soda. He grinned, “And if nothing else, we’ll have the best record of events. I do consistently feel disturbances in the weather. I’ll see strange patterns or developments that were unexpected, but nothing extreme.” He set his glass down and sighed, “Yet, anyway. I did hear of hail that came out of a sunny sky but spring storms can be crazy.”

They were all sitting in their comfortable little LIE. It was too perfect, really. While they weren't necessarily hiding, they weren't exactly talking about the weather (other than Devon's weather). If someone walked in, there would definitely be questions asked of the supposedly straight-and-narrow leaders of Haven.

Natalie took another sip of her wine and continued to flip through a case file, not bothering to look at Nate. Yes, they were being amicable, but that didn't mean that she was going to blindly support everything that he did. Especially his choices in people (and pets) to spend time with. She didn't know what he saw in Noel, but clearly, he saw something if he was willing to stick his neck out for her.

Devon also seemed to have faith in the memory mancer, for whatever reason. Natalie simply raised an eyebrow quickly and flipped a page a little louder than usual. Yes, she knew that it probably wasn't the cause of whatever was going on, but both men were very quick to jump to her defense, clearly not accounting for the fact that the woman had BITTEN HER and tried to steal her memories. Natalie was very much not okay with that fact.

"Alright, we dig into this a little deeper; see where it takes us. Maybe it's a mutant doing it? Someone really strong?" Natalie tried to think of one mutant whose power could even start to rival what was going on in New York City. She could think of none. 

Natalie decided to get a little more formal in her approach to the meeting, so she lowered her wineglass and closed the file in front of her. "What's to say that we can even do anything about it if we find it, though? Most of our members are barely tactically trained. We might be looking at something completely out of our scope."

Was it possible to flip a page aggressively? Nate was pretty sure Natalie accomplished just that in the face of Noel’s exoneration. Maybe their first impression was rough, but there was no reason to hold a grudge and assume the worst. Devon trusted Noel enough to keep her around, and Nate vouched for her explicitly. Natalie would have to accept that Noel was going to be around, (assuming she did accept the offer to stay with Haven.)

The topic did move off the memorymancer and onto new possibilities. Devon had it right; just because it was not Noel, did not mean a mutant would not be at the center of the problem. ”It’s always a mutant, it seems,” Nate admitted in a grumble. Catastrophes lately seemed to be mutant-centric, which did little for the standing of their kind in society. ”If that is the case, we’ll definitely want to figure out if the problem is something or someone we could contain.” If they wanted a better world for mutants, sweeping a temporal mutant disturbance under the rug was right up their alley.

Strike that—temporal and atmospheric. Two mutants? One powerful mutant? Maybe Natalie had a point; the problem could be outside of their hands, if it was large enough. Haven was still growing and amassing power and membership. ”Nat is right. We might not have a solution. But we won’t know til we figure out what we’re dealing with.”

Looking over the initial reports provided by Devon, taking a sip of his scotch as he considered it. ”Members scouting for issues is a start. Maybe we compile police and news reports? Look for patterns? I might actually have a reporter friend I could reach out to, assuming she’s still around.” Some people, Nate cut ties with before going to prison, but he cut ties with his reporter friend long before that. As far as dangerous redheads went, she might have been a bad omen, but she was a good reporter and might have had her ear to the ground when it came to the news on the disturbances.

((OOC: Tagging Ranger for the mention.))

Devon grinned a bit wider at Natalie’s quirk of annoyance. She was an entertaining communicator; she didn’t need words to get her point across. She had body language and facial expression. For someone who could paint entire scenes, she often needed far less to tell her story. Devon had gotten a report from the lawyer about her first encounter with Noel; that hadn’t gone well…

He nodded while bouncing his head slightly from side to side at the question if the mutant was someone really strong. It was possible, but Devon doubted it. This felt more like a group of mutants and experimentation. It appeared Natalie had the same idea. She brought up a good point though: what would they, could they do about it?

Nate seemed to agree, but was more optimistic about the approach. He got the idea. Find what might be the source. Get what information we could. Devon nodded a few times, slowly. It was important to act from a place of knowledge and not take action too quickly. That would be sure to put them in a bad position, but it would take preparation and skill like Natalie suggested to make a difference.

>> ”Members scouting for issues is a start. Maybe we compile police and news reports? Look for patterns? I might actually have a reporter friend I could reach out to, assuming she’s still around.”

“Sure, have informational sources that have already started correlating it is a great benefit to us,” Devon nodded slowly. “We want to act, not react, and do so from a place of intelligence. I think you’re right though, Nat, about training” he nodded again. Then he lifted his chin, eyes practically sparkling, as he smiled wider. “And since you volunteered… Think you could get a training regimen organized? I’m sure Ranger and his troop could be leveraged. You set up some goals with him for everyone and then can report with us.

“That puts Nate into reaching out to his contact, I reaching out to mine, and Natalie getting a training program started through Ranger and his company. I’ll be pushing everyone for any details they find on their own, of course, and I'll make sure they get disseminated to we three so we can all be on top of that information,” Devon gave a quick nod. He gave a short sigh and picked up his drink.

“Unless we’ve anything else on that, I have another topic,” he said before taking a long sip.

In the very least, Nate was supporting her argument that they were out of their depth. He had opposed her on the whole Noel thing, which while she understood his loyalty, was completely unfounded and had irked her. Yes, it was good to have an opposing opinion at all times, but not when the opposing opinion was absolutely and completely biased.

"We work from the background until we have a better idea of what we're looking at," Natalie agreed. There was absolutely no need to jump the gun when they had plenty of time figure things out. That was, at least, assuming that the weird happenings weren’t about to issue in something much worse…

Of course Nate had a female reporter friend. It seemed to be that he had endless piles of female friends that he was going to parade in front of her daughter. That was not to say that Natalie was jealous or had any kind of problem with it, of course. Her face remained impassive as she nodded with the points that he made.

>>“And since you volunteered… Think you could get a training regimen organized? I’m sure Ranger and his troop could be leveraged. You set up some goals with him for everyone and then can report with us.”

”I volunteered, did I?” Natalie scoffed. She did not remember volunteering to do a thing like that. She was a high-up lawyer who already worked insane hours, and adding IE meetings and time for Norah and Nate to interact was already a lot. Her plate was full; no, it was overflowing, and he still wanted her to take on more. ”I’d like to see that in writing,” she muttered under her breath and closed the file on her lap.

”I will do the training,” she began, having already settled into the idea despite her opposition, ”on the condition that it will have to work around my schedule, not anyone else’s. I have commitments that need to be kept.” Norah would not suffer because of Natalie’s inability to say no to other things that ate her time.

Natalie then leaned back in her chair and motioned for Devon to continue down whatever rabbit hole he had on the docket next.

Devon had proven himself to be a good friend for Nate. He was around for guidance and advice, he helped give the ex-con a renewed sense of purpose, and he had his back with the relocation from the Mansion to Haven. He had yet to give Nate a reason to distrust him, which was rare. He also brought Natalie into the Inner Echelon, so there was still the chance he was secretly trying to punish him.

It was likely Devon would have hesitated to bring both of them into the fold if he truly understood the tension he was going to have to put up with. When Norah was not around, there was something sparking between the two of them, putting them at odds and everyone in the area at risk. To his credit, Devon was handling the two like the mediator he was, and the three of them together made up a highly intelligent council. Maybe he was just comfortable with high-risk, high-reward scenarios.

The idea of reaching out to Maxine was well-received by The Founder, and The Magician was unreadable, which was better than “rolling her eyes,” which was what he anticipated. Nate’s role was easy compared to Natalie, who accidentally volunteered herself in establishing a training program. For a passing second, Nate tried to picture Natalie teaching Havenites combat. He stifled a chuckle with another sip of scotch.

Natalie would only be the organizer, of course. They had a working situation with The Ranger, as he liked to be called. ”I’m sure once everything’s organized, Ranger and his people will handle most of the heavy lifting.” Nate’s interactions with the man were limited, but he was one of the more useful assets they had in their contact book.

With training and the anomalies sorted out, Devon evidently had another matter for them to move onto. Nate shook his head, not looking to say too much and sign himself up for a task, like Nat did. ”Nothing on my end. What’s the next order of business?” Did they not have secretaries who could have drafted up an itinerary? Then again, they would not have the clearance to look at what they were typing up.

>> "We work from the background until we have a better idea of what we're looking at,"

Devon nodded, “Precisely.” They were learned, educated, and they encouraged such throughout the organization. The LIE would be no different there.

>> ”I volunteered, did I?” Natalie scoffed. “…I’d like to see that in writing.”

Devon chuckled and shrugged, but nodded.

>> ”I will do the training … on the condition that it will have to work around my schedule, not anyone else’s. I have commitments that need to be kept.”

“You’re management,” Devon said the words with a matter-of-fact tone, as if she already knew that. He hoped so. Natalie had the air that’d she’d always been a leader, a manager. “Assign goals, delegate, review progress, demand results. I’m sure Ranger will enjoy the assignment you provide. Who could tell you no?” he grinned.

>> ”I’m sure once everything’s organized, Ranger and his people will handle most of the heavy lifting.” Nate offered.

“Right. Exactly,” Devon smiled. He then set down his glass and leaned toward the table-console. With a few choice selections on the embedded glass display, a visual earthen globe appeared above the table in the HUD provided by holographic light. While holding his phone, Devon gestured and it began to zoom in. Within moments it showed the New York City metro area with various buildings and areas highlighted. Some even had symbols and indicators of notes.

Haven’s symbol shown clearly over their building Central Park adjacent. Another Haven H was farther south, the border of Red Hook and Brooklyn. Devon appeared to tap it and the map zoomed in further. “Sanctuary. We may not control it, but I want us to continue to support it. It’s important to me that the community continues to benefit from it and that it remain a safe, neutral space for those requiring shelter and safety. We can’t invite all into Haven, after all, and if we care about mutant rights, needs, and finding a safe haven for everyone…”

“Max, Nate, Darkshift, myself… we all volunteer there in varied shifts and that will continue. But if you review our file on Calcifer, you’ll recall how we met. I’ve got a new portfolio for you both,” Tempest turned, grabbing two red folders and then sliding them across the glass to both of his fellow members. “Whoever hired Calcifer also seemingly organized a gang against Sanctuary back during Christmas. They also tried to get small time,” he smirked, “Crooks to bust in and rob various apartments nearby. That’s when I met X-Men’s Alchemist, Officer Cafas Johnson. There were a few arson attempts too. Every time, mutants were used and every time they were either trying to make a bad name for mutants or testing the neighborhood.”

Devon reclined his head and inhaled deeply, the faint light of the HUD sparkling in his blue eyes. “I thought possibly a mob family might be involved, but intel I gained from the Russians and some of Sanctuary’s less-savory, oft-working residents have pointed me to the perpetrators of these activities. There’s an enterprising criminal organization of like-minded individuals throughout Brooklyn that thought they might sweep in for control of the area with the Order gone. Paint the mutants poorly enough, threaten the neighborhood and watch all the good we’ve set up with Sanctuary, as well as the center itself, fall while this group solidifies their control.”

Bobbing his phone in the air twice a number of red dots popped up across Brooklyn, forming a small network near the subway, the dock, and a few businesses. “Well Haven will remove their network, destroy their resources, and make clear that mutants aren’t their pawns to be played with,” Devon said with a firm nod. “With the information we have we can finalize a series of plans and send agents to handle as best befits the blueprint we provide, likely a couple of members to a mission.”

Devon’s brow narrowed, “I would see the threat to Sanctuary, its mutants, and the neighborhood ended and those behind it either scurrying away like the rats they are or stopped outright as befits the need. Our choice in agents can be determined by that plan and need.” He smiled almost cheerfully, leaned in to grab his glass and took a long sip.

“Questions?”

The Ranger would do the heavy lifting. That was promising, at least. As much as Natalie enjoyed working out, she didn't particularly care to use her limited knowledge of fight training to teach a bunch of hopeful members. That wasn't her style. She made illusions and then left people to their own business, whatever that might be.

Natalie took the file that she'd been handed and began to flip through it, listening attentively to what Devon was explaining. She'd heard rumours of a group trying to come up to fill the void left by the Order. Of course, she didn't pay very much attention to them when it wasn't her business or problem, but now that it was, she made a mental note to keep her ear to the ground for any more of such talk. It was amazing the kinds of things that you could figure out when you knew the right kind of people.

This really wasn't Natalie's normal area of expertise, though. Usually, she dealt with things once they were already somewhere along the legal track. Once people had been blamed and the dust had cleared. She dealt with the aftermath, not normally with plans. It was strange to get a glimpse of the other side. Still, she was willing to do what needed to be done in order to ensure that the streets of New York stayed safe. Well, as safe as they had been before, anyway.

>>“Questions?”

"Yes," Natalie nodded, flipping to the next page in her file. "Do we know what kinds of forces they have up their sleeves? Are we trying to build a S.W.A.T. team or a non-threatening group that could reason with them?"

She wasn't about to send a group of powerful mutants into a situation that called for good communications skills, nor was she going to send in a team that would have their necks snapped if greeted by someone much more powerful. They needed to figure out what exactly it was they were going up against before they finalized any plans.

Training for the Havenites sounded like it would be paramount soon enough, with Devon explaining Sanctuary’s struggles. As the months passed, Nate had less time to devote to volunteer-work with his new list of tasks and responsibilities, but he did still find windows of time to put in hours at Sanctuary. It was encouraged by Devon when Nate was released, but it was a good reminder of why he chose to work with Haven in the first place. Mutants with challenges and obstacles and no resources, all down on their luck and needing the smallest touches of normalcy in their lives.

Knowing someone was trying to muscle their way in and exploit Sanctuary was unsettling. Devon wanted the intrusive criminal element removed, and Nate had no objections. Haven was their base of operations, but Sanctuary was, thanks to Devon, an ideal.

And Nate was learning what new-found-morals he was willing to compromise to defend an ideal. ”I… might have contacts to reach out to on this front, too,” he mentioned, almost hesitantly. ”Less… savory contacts. But those are the types who might have a better idea of who is involved with this racket.” He looked to Devon, curious about his opinion. As his therapist, it would be counterproductive to have Nate reach out to elements from his criminal past. As a friend and colleague on the Inner Echelon… well, the goal was to do what had to be done, right?

Nate watched Natalie as her gears were turning, incorporating the news into her newest assignment. There was something to be said about the woman; her mind was sharp and always working. The situation had to call for a certain tool, and she knew better than to go at a lock with a hammer, or a nail with a key.

Their membership and resources were still growing, so another question seemed natural. ”Are we going to be dealing with this matter totally in house, or incorporating outside help? You mentioned your interactions with Alchemist, and I still work at the Mansion. Should we be keeping the X-Men in the know on what to look out for?” He was sure Devon would not want to give them the whole rundown, but having them as semi-informed backup could shore up any numbers issues they ran into.

((OOC: Tagging Noel and Calcifer for mention ))

>> "Yes," Natalie nodded, flipping to the next page in her file. "Do we know what kinds of forces they have up their sleeves? Are we
trying to build a S.W.A.T. team or a non-threatening group that could reason with them?"

“I don’t expect diplomacy to be an option,” Devon shook his head. “A few items will require less combative needs like some focus from the state, public safety reviews on a location or two. Other locations have armed individuals and they count a few mutants amongst them. I’ve got some details on the few we know about, including the gravity manipulator I’ve run into. You’ll find their summarized force details at the back of the portfolio but each has a file on reference as well,” he nodded, gesturing to the system. He started typing on his cell phone and surveillance photos, a few police photos, and other details came up in a tiled organization of their personnel.

>> ”I… might have contacts to reach out to on this front, too,” he mentioned, almost hesitantly. ”Less… savory contacts. But those are the types who might have a better idea of who is involved with this racket.”

Devon grimaced slightly, tilting his head before quickly shaking it. “I’d rather you avoid them, both for your sake and we don’t want anyone tipped off. You never know who might have run with whom, a friend, or even an interest in who pays better,” he said with a frown. “I believe we know enough. There may be a few humans, and maybe another mutant or two involved that haven’t been spotted or noted, but I’d surprised if it’s more than a handful total.

>> ”Are we going to be dealing with this matter totally in house, or incorporating outside help? You mentioned your interactions with Alchemist, and I still work at the Mansion. Should we be keeping the X-Men in the know on what to look out for?”

“In house,” Devon nodded once, curtly. “Many of these operate out of legitimate businesses or covers that would limit their ability to act now. Additionally, we’d be hard pressed to explain where some of this information came from. We may find some mutants are being forced to act against their will and I’d like to remove them without compromising their public lives. We’ll save reaching out to the X-Men for specific, likely larger, or more dangerous missions. This organization’s mutant talent is pretty limited. For large destruction they had to black mail and hire out, as was the case of Calcifer.”

He lifted his phone hand and swept through the air as another window switched to the front of the personnel profiles. It again listed the various locations. “Based on the expectation of the location and what’s contained or done within we can reach out to our membership for their specific talents. There’s a diner for example that is something we can tip the mayor’s office to. There’s a relay center that’s masking as a call center that might be good for Noel to stop in at, for example.”

Diplomacy was not going to be an option, which Natalie had anticipated to some degree. If they were a gang, then it wasn’t like they could expect them to want to sit down and have a talk over a glass of sherry. Still, it had been a question worth asking. She sat still for much of the discussion that followed, listening carefully as Devon began to explain logistics and courses of action.

>>”Are we going to be dealing with this matter totally in house, or incorporating outside help? You mentioned your interactions with Alchemist, and I still work at the Mansion. Should we be keeping the X-Men in the know on what to look out for?”

Ugh. The X-Men. They were a faction of idiots in tights that were stupid enough to believe that they would be able to do anything by staying above everything else and only associating themselves with the purest of sorts (she wasn’t surprised that Nate’s stint with them hadn’t gone far). They were misguided pseudo-celebrities that needed a dose of reality, and Natalie couldn’t understand why Devon wanted to associate with them. It seemed beneath what they were building.

Thankfully, he was smart enough not to get them involved in something small and below the radar. Haven was still new and developing, and the last thing that they needed was to get the press involved in something like that. Because God knew, where the X-Men went, the press followed. There were even forums where people discussed their personal lives (not that Natalie had looked at those. Ever. Definitely not.), and one of them was even a movie star.

”We don’t want the X-Men in on something like this,” Natalie reiterated. ”They make stupid, foolish moves, and the last thing that we need is for someone to decide to look into Haven because someone followed Cold Steel around with their mePhone.”

>>“Based on the expectation of the location and what’s contained or done within we can reach out to our membership for their specific talents. There’s a diner for example that is something we can tip the mayor’s office to. There’s a relay center that’s masking as a call center that might be good for Noel to stop in at, for example.”

Ugh. Noel. Devon was still making up reasons for her to be ‘useful’ to them. It all sounded like a load of bull**** to Natalie, though. She was a useless woman, plain and simple.

”I have contacts that can tip the mayor off without anyone ever knowing that Haven was involved in something as shady as this,” Natalie offered. ”There’s no need for someone associated with Haven to show their face on this one.” Noel needed to stay inside where she belonged.

As expected, they were dealing with a problem that was not open to being reasoned with. Some criminal organizations understood the importance of working out deals and understandings, but those options were not often on the table alongside a hostile criminal takeover. It was good, at least, that not every issue was going to require combat. Haven was not an organization he wanted to put into gang wars, fighting in the streets. When they had threats, they would handle them tactically. With proper planning and application, force was a tool to end problem, not draw them out.

Nate’s offer to reach out to old criminal contacts was rejected, and while part of the reason was to preserve Nate’s name and progress, Devon’s other points were sound. Criminals had to be used carefully for information, because information was valuable in the underworld of New York. Some people had no code, and would just as soon give information to both sides of a conflict. The news of Nate reaching out for intelligence, especially if he was tied back to Haven itself, would be valuable for their enemies.

Haven did a lot of great things for Nate, but he also realized it put him back in the position of having enemies. He could handle that, but it felt like a possible backslide on his rehabilitation process.

”As a former criminal, I feel like I should be offended by the lack of trust,” Nate joked, before quickly adding, ”But you’re right. Best to stay above board.”

They were dealing with an organization using legitimate businesses as fronts, which kept the X-Men from being helpful allies. They were good people, regardless of Natalie’s strong feelings against them, but they also operated on the up-and-up recently. Working alongside the NYPD, their hands would be tied dealing with a group hiding in plain sight. The next time a giant mutant beast rampaged through the city, they would be Nate’s first call, but Haven was better suited to oppose an organization that hid just outside of the police’s reach.

Nate watched the business and hotspots that they could start addressing, making mental notes of the locations and details listed alongside them. Devon had ideas on how to handle case-by-case situations, but Natalie was quick to object. Of course, the objection quickly followed the mention of Noel again, proving she was ready to oppose any idea that incorporated the memorymancer.

Fortunately, Nate was around to be an advocate with some objectivity. ”Try as we like, some of these situations call for our involvement. The mayor’s office can check into some of these locations, but they won’t be able to turn everything up if these guys are smart. They can only probe so far; we can go further. And Noel has experience in this line of work that she’s regaining access to now.” It was hard to tell where Noel was in her recovery, but she was miles ahead of where she was when she bit Natalie. ”We have unique strengths in our organization, and we can’t ignore them by being petty.”

Nate turned his focus back to Devon, because Natalie was trying his patience. ”Do we have anyone serving as a point of contact yet? To coordinate and communicate assignments to the members involved?” The moment the question left his lips, he had a flashback to Natalie’s comments on the need for team training and how well that went for her.