The call had come from out of nowhere and the requested meeting was just as unexpected. Obviously with Mondragon Labs heart cloning technique being a headliner on news reports across the country. The only reason Luke could think of for the CEO of Mondragon Labs to be scheduling a meeting was for security reasons. After some brief research he became even more confused. It seemed that Mondragon Labs employed their own security personnel. While that wasn't strange for a company of its size it made the request for a meeting even more puzzling. Did they simply want a security consultation? Jacobs & Jacobs was becoming somewhat well known for its mutant employees that were able to test systems in a way that had never been widely used.

Luke had chosen to make use of one of the small conference rooms instead of his office for this particular meeting. While his office wasn't cramped by any means, it was still rather full of office furniture and necessary files. The meeting room would make a much more relaxed atmosphere for whatever the subject of this get together might be.

The room was well lit, being in one of the corner spaces meant that two of the walls were solid window. The outside was mirrored so that noone in another building could be looking in but those in the room could still look out. The only furniture, besides three healthy looking plants set in the outside corners of the room, was the medium sized conference table and charis. It was built to seat eight comfortably with more of an oval design than the standard rectangle. In the center of the table were two silver caraffe's, one with coffee and one with ice water. A platter of cheese and fruit danishes sat next to them along with several upturned glasses that simply waited to be put into use.

Luke sat in a chair that was toward the center of the far side of the table. He had never been one for being at the head and he most deffinately preferred to be near the refreshments. He was dressed casually in black loafers, charcoal gray pants, blue and white vertical striped shirt, and a burgundy tie. His sunglasses were settled firmly on his nose and remained in a relaxed position in his chair. Finally he heard the sound of his secretary greeting someone and then the door opened.

"Hello." Luke offered pleasantly as he rose to his feet, "I'm Luke Jacobs."

The secretary was very polite, very professional, and a woman. Slate took these three characteristics fore granted, to be honest: his primary experience with secretaries was with Lisa and Noin Mortman. Still, he thought he detected a hint of surprise when he replied to her question.

“Do you have an appointment?”

“Yes,” the blue-eyed teenager had replied. “I am Slate Swartz; the CEO of Mondragon Labs. I have a meeting with Mr. Jacobs.” Mr. Luke Jacobs, to be specific. Jacobs & Jacobs, perhaps, had more than one. Behind him, boxes of what appeared to be printer paper were being cleared out of the lobby’s side, under the watchful gaze of another Jacobs & Jacobs employee. A somewhat irate-looking one. Slate paid them little mind.

“Oh,” the secretary said. “I’ll send you right up.”

He was escorted by another employee, deeper across the polished floors; up an elevator, where a tastefully decorated hallway deposited him into the care of another secretary. Also polite, also professional, also a woman. Slate was introduced to her by his escort; hands were shaken, and a conference room door was opened for him.

>> "Hello. I'm Luke Jacobs."

The man was older than him by perhaps a decade; perhaps two or three, if you counted Slate’s age a different way. He had well kept brown hair and a professional air; he was seated towards the center of the table, in front of an assortment of light snacks. All in all, Luke Jacobs looked much better than he had at the brawl.

“Ah,” Slate said, blinking once in surprise. “I had not realized we’d met before. Good morning, Mr. Jacobs. I am Slate Swartz, of Mondragon Labs Medical. You’re looking well. How have you been?”

It did not occur to him that Luke might not likewise remember him. Unconscious men sometimes had such memory problems.

Luke paused as the young man approached. The voice was familiar but the words and phrasing were keeping him from identifying where he knew it from. As far as he could remember he had never met this person but as Slate Swartz approached Luke focused his sonar on the man's face. "Swartz, why is that so fam..." Luke thought to himself before the face suddenly cleared up and he found himself blurting out, "Calley?"

He could feel his muscles tensing and his feet automatically moving into a more defensive stance. His hands remained at his sides but it was quite obvious that he was anything but relaxed.

"I'm afraid I've never met someone named Slate, but you have a striking resemblance to Calley Swartz." Luke said in the most controled tone he could manage, "And since people don't change body language over night... are you related?"

There was no way, absolutely no possible way on earth that this could be Calley. Calley would never speak this properly and the body language wa all wrong. If this was Calley then Luke would have to give him serious credit for pulling it off. Did his shifting give him this sort of ability? Could he change his muscle tone to make his walk different? After the brawl at King Pharmaceuticals, Luke wasn't going to put anything outside the realm of possibilities. Calley was most deffinately one of the most powerful mutants, if not the most powerful mutant, that Luke had ever met. Had he come to finish what he started at the brawl? Was he here to talk and patch things up? What in the world was going on?!

>> "Calley?"

...Ah. Yes. The Kabal Leader stood impassively as his fellow company head tensed; the defensive stance he instinctively took on spoke well of his training. The man was a member of the X-Man, after all.

>> "I'm afraid I've never met someone named Slate, but you have a striking resemblance to Calley Swartz. And since people don't change body language over night... are you related?"

A striking resemblance, indeed. Slate made no particular move as he replied; Luke’s reaction to him was quite justified, and this would be a most unfortunate location for things to escalate. Particularly for him. Particularly since he did not have any defensive stances to fall back into, instinctive or not, despite the continued efforts of the Labs judo club.

“Calley is my brother, unfortunately. We are twins.” Also unfortunately. “I must apologize for his actions against you at King Pharmaceuticals. He...” Didn’t usually maul people? Wasn’t an immature brat? Slate started the sentence, but was not entirely certain how to finish it. Instead, he tried to redirect the topic.

“How are your injuries? I did my best, but I fear I am still learning the extent of my own abilities. You were... in quite poor shape. Were there any lasting effects?” It was more comfortable to speak of Luke’s healing than his mauling. Particularly since, if one wished to be technical, Caleb Swartz had done them both. ‘Twin brothers’, indeed.

Calley had a brother? That was information that came out of nowhere but since the other man seemed to be making no threatening moves, Luke began to relax. Slate Swartz spoke in a much more proper manner almost as if he'd been brought up in a completely different environment. Was this one of those cases you occasionally heard about on the news where twins were raised by completely different parents and then met later in life? Those cases were always interesting because of how many similarities remained even though the pair had never met. "I wonder if they both like the same type of food or colors or something like that." Luke pondered for a moment before wrenching his thoughts back to the meeting that was just now beginning.

"He's a good kid." Luke completed the sentence when Slate seemed to be at a loss for words, "Misguided yes, but still a good kid. He's not a killer no matter how hard he might try."

It was a silly statement, especially considering how close Luke had come to being killed but sometimes his blindness was as much emotional as it was physical. To admit that Calley could go from being a good guy that confessed his wrongs to Neena to a cold blooded killer was just to much for him.

Tilting his head, Luke suddenly felt curious as Slate mentioned his injuries. The Doc Prof hadn't healed him? "You're a healer?" Luke asked with obvious curiosity, "I uh, no, there were no lasting affects. I lost my sight replacement mutation for a week or so but eventually it came back."

Waving a hand toward the seat that would put Slate directly across the table from Luke, the blind man moved to once again sit down. "Thank you for your help. I woke up at the Xavier Mansion already healed and noone seemed to know who did it so I simply assumed it was the Doctor. Do you know how Calley is? I didn't really hold back on my part either. Were you able to help him?"

Business was what the meeting had originally been about but anyone that knew Luke Jacobs knew he valued people far more than anything else. Finding out about Calley most definately took precedent and then they would move on to whatever it was that had caused Slate to ask for this meeting.

>>"He's a good kid. Misguided yes, but still a good kid. He's not a killer no matter how hard he might try."

...Not a killer. Yes.

It was a very curious feeling, hearing the man complete his sentence; hearing him complete it in that particular way, with all due caring in his voice. It was... hard to place, really. Calley was not a killer, no. The man really did know his brother, to say that. Calley was no killer, because Slate seemed to have taken that potential with him when they split. Was this what it felt like, to be slapped in the face? He simply stood there, his expression not particularly different than it had been a moment before. At least he felt shame about the subject, now: this was, perhaps, a sign that he was growing. And he had founded his Inner Circle. Perhaps he would not kill quite so many people, now. At least, not without asking his advisors, first.

>> "You're a healer? I uh, no, there were no lasting affects. I lost my sight replacement mutation for a week or so but eventually it came back."

“That is good to hear,” the teenager said, pushing a smile onto his lips.

>> "Thank you for your help. I woke up at the Xavier Mansion already healed and noone seemed to know who did it so I simply assumed it was the Doctor. Do you know how Calley is? I didn't really hold back on my part either. Were you able to help him?"

Ah. What an interesting question. It implied that Slate tried to help Calley. From where he had stood, it had seemed that his other half was still breathing. That... had been enough for him, truly.

“...I’m afraid we have grown somewhat estranged, lately.” He answered, somewhat awkwardly. As the man moved to take a seat, so did he: he chose the one directly across the table. “I believe he is doing well.” He had heard no reports to the contrary. There had been no calls from the police or the morgue, for instance.

“So your own mutation compensates for your blindness?” Slate asked, by way of unsubtly changing the topic. Mr. Jacobs was also capable small-scale elephant killings, from what Slate had witnessed from the sidelines.

"Yes. I was born blind and my ability manifested itself when I was a teenager." Luke replied as he reached over and refilled his own water glass before selecting the danish that appeared to be one of the most moist. There were other good options but this one seemed to carry his sonar quite well which hopefully meant it wasn't dried out yet. "It's a sixth sense that covers a full 360 degrees."

After setting the danish down on his plate, Luke lifted his sunglass covered eyes to look in Slate's direction. "Did your brother ever happen to mention how we met? He's actually the one that first took me over to the mansion. Even notified me when there was going to be a meeting over there." Turning his attention back down to the cherry and cheese danish Luke lifted it with one hand and poised it near his mouth. "It was strange to see him on the other side after all of that. I guess I just wish I knew his reasoning."

The pastry was just the right balance of flakiness and doughiness with the cheese cutting the sweetness of the fruit perfectly. On any other day Luke would have spent that moment savoring the flavors but today it was more like chalk in his mouth. Swallowing his bite he set the rest of the danish back on his plate, appetite momentarily gone.

"But I'm sure you didn't set up this meeting so we could discuss your brother." Luke said, his voice taking on a bit more of a business like tone mixed with just a tinge of curiosity, "What is it that I can do for you?"

>> "Did your brother ever happen to mention how we met? He's actually the one that first took me over to the mansion. Even notified me when there was going to be a meeting over there."

The memories sounded familiar to Slate, like the echo in a room where furniture one stood.

>> "It was strange to see him on the other side after all of that. I guess I just wish I knew his reasoning."

He selected a danish as well: one with a dark red filling and white stripes of frosting. He had seen the little pastries before, but he could not recall having eaten one. They put a very subtle smell in the air, of bread and fruit. This particular one gave him something to look at while he spoke.

“I can assure you, the Calley you first met and the one on those steps was the same person.” Slate lightly took one of the napkins, as well, as a plate. “Perhaps more honest, if anything. I would not worry about him, if I were you: he will take care of himself.”

Slate took a tentative bite of the danish. ...Oh my.

>> "But I'm sure you didn't set up this meeting so we could discuss your brother. What is it that I can do for you?"

It was really quite good. The breading was not unlike a croissant in texture, though the taste differed somewhat—it seemed more plain, perhaps, so as not to contend with the raspberry filling. Tart. Like jam, but a bit more solid—and significantly more sugared. It was really quite good.

Luke had spoken. Ah. The words... were somewhat delayed in registering. Slate hurriedly swallowed, and set the little pastry down.

“As CEOs—more specifically, as CEOs who publically accept their X-gene, and who lead fairly successful companies—I think we have the potential to do much good.” The danish lured his stomach from its napkin resting spot, but he firmly kept his eyes upon Mr. Jacobs. “As I am sure you are aware, many mutants are discriminated against in the workplace, and in hiring. It is a problem that will only grow worse as the mutant population itself continues growing.”

“What I would like to propose,” Slate concluded, “is an alliance of businesses—those lead both by mutants and humans, who have pledged publically to not discriminate based upon genetics—or on anything else. Would you be interested in joining such an alliance?” And in helping to found it, for that matter.

Slate might turn out to be the ultimate business man and a wonderful CEO but he was definitely lacking when it came to the brotherly love department. His comment about not worrying about Calley earned a slight raise of Luke's eyebrow but other than that he held his reaction in check. Now that the younger man was being directed toward the business side of the conversation it was time to pay close attention.

Taking another bite of his danish, Luke chewed slowly and thoughtfully as he considered Slate's explanation. An alliance or coalition of companies that joined together in a public pledge for fairness and non-discriminatory practices was definitely tempting. It was the way that Luke believe all companies should be run and perhaps if he, Slate, and several others made that first step they could inspire others to join them. That was the ultimate goal in what the X-Men were trying to do wasn't it? Promote peaceful co-existence between humans and mutants? An opportunity like this would do as much good if not even more than all of the missions that Luke had participated in and heard about thus far.

"Some people say that mutants are the next step in evolution. The species that will wipe out humans and take control of the planet." Luke said quietly one he had swallowed his bite of food, "They compare us to animals that fight and tear into each other for almost no reason over things like food and territorial rights. Perhaps they're right about some people but I prefer to think that we are above the animals. We can reason and have moral beliefs that hold us in check. There's no reason for one species to always wipe out the other. If its possible to co-exist peacefully then I think that's what we need to do."

Nodding slowly Luke's lips spread into a small smile. Yes, this was the right decision. "I'd be honored to be a part of this alliance. Do you have any other companies in mind for us to approach?"

>> "Some people say that mutants are the next step in evolution. The species that will wipe out humans and take control of the planet."

Slate held his own peace as Luke picked this inopportune moment to chew. Where was his man’s own opinion, on that subject? Simply because he was an X-Man did not guarantee he was on the other side of the debate; Slate had known certain X-Men who most certainly were not.

>> "They compare us to animals that fight and tear into each other for almost no reason over things like food and territorial rights. Perhaps they're right about some people but I prefer to think that we are above the animals. We can reason and have moral beliefs that hold us in check. There's no reason for one species to always wipe out the other. If it’s possible to co-exist peacefully then I think that's what we need to do."

Something in Slate’s stomach relaxed; he lifted his own danish, and took another bite. (It was, again, delicious.)

>> "I'd be honored to be a part of this alliance. Do you have any other companies in mind for us to approach?"

Slate’s smile answered the man’s own. “An acquaintance of mine will soon be opening a medical clinic for both mutants and humans; I believe he would join us. Additionally, there has been a bookstore in the news recently for promoting a human and mutant ‘safe zone’—the Full Circle, I believe. I would like to contact its owner; it seems quite likely she would be of a similar mindset. Aside from that... Do any companies come to your mind?”

"I actually know the owner of the Full Circle book store. I'm sure that Ms. Altair would be very tempted by the offer." Luke replied with a slight smile. There was no reason to mention that he was an investor in her enterprise and there was no reason to explain to Slate that he and Ghost were actually friends. No, Ghost was trying to build up a respectable life under the name of Vega Altair and he wasn't going to take that away from her. Besides, how often did a person really get the chance to reinvent themselves like that?

"I'll put out some feelers with my business contacts. I can't think of anyone right off the top of my head but I'm sure there are plenty of sympathetic individuals if we can just find them. And of course it'll help once the alliance is announced pubicly. People that we hadn't even considerd will start approaching with the desire to join."

It was a standard part of any sort of conglomeration of businesses and while Luke had never participated himself, he had spoken with those who had. The key to this apparent alliance was that it wasn't being formed to benefit its parent companies. No, it was being formed in order to help that masses of employable mutants that were just looking for an opportunity.

"Would you prefer for me to contact Ms. Altair alone or would you like come along with me?" Luke asked as he returned to focusing on the first step toward his new objective, "Whichever you prefer will be fine with me."

>> "I actually know the owner of the Full Circle book store. I'm sure that Ms. Altair would be very tempted by the offer.”

Slate blinked over his Danish (which had, at some point, found its way to his mouth again). That was quite fortuitous. He swallowed hastily. “Excellent. From all that I have heard, she would be a perfect member.” Even more so than Mondragon Labs and Jacobs & Jacobs Security: Ms. Altair’s store, after all, had quite literally been founded upon the principles about which they now spoke.

>> "...Would you prefer for me to contact Ms. Altair alone or would you like come along with me? Whichever you prefer will be fine with me."

“I would be interested in being introduced to her, if you have the time. She sounds like a very interesting woman.” The teenager replied. “Would you care to set up the meeting for us, then?”

"I think I can arrange a meeting." Luke replied with a smile, "Should I just contact you at Mondragon Labs when the arrangements are made?"

Ghost was a good woman and Luke knew she would love an opportunity like this. He would deffinately have to forwarn her about Slate's appearance so that she didn't go on the defensive like he had but hopefully she would be as accepting and tolerant of Slate as she seemed to be of everyone else.

Focusing on the idea of the meeting itself, Luke's mind raced through the mental schedule he tried to keep. He had meetings the rest of the day and some important things going on the next day but after that he was free for at least a little while. Hopefully that would be enough warning for Ghost so that they could arrange a get together. "I'll probably try to get us all together within the next two or three days." Luke offered, his attention refocusing on Slate with his own danish all but forgotten on the plate in front of him, "Would you like to invite your aquaintance to the meeting as well? Then we could make the offer to both of them at the same time."

>> "I think I can arrange a meeting. Should I just contact you at Mondragon Labs when the arrangements are made?"

This meeting—somewhat rocky start aside—had gone very well. Better than he could have hoped, in fact. “That would be quite appreciated, yes. Thank you, Mr. Jacobs.”

>> "I'll probably try to get us all together within the next two or three days. Would you like to invite your acquaintance to the meeting as well? Then we could make the offer to both of them at the same time."

“Yes,” Slate agreed, “I believe I will. It would be good for all of us to meet each other.” He took another nibble of his Danish, then sat up somewhat straighter, and attempted to chew and swallow more quickly than usual. A brief cough later, he suggested: “My acquaintance is actually holding the grand opening of his business, soon. Would you be interested in attending? Perhaps you could invite Ms. Altair, as well.”

((ooc: Meeting place and time suggested by Sebby, if all parties find it convenient. ))

"I'll see about contacting Ms. Altair and inviting her to the event. I'm sure she'll be glad to attend the opening of a medical clinic." Luke replied with a broad smile. This was deffinately something that would be right up Ghost's alley and he couldn't wait to invite her. Not only would she be asked to join a group of businesses with pro-mutant hiring policies but she's be attending the opening of a clinic that would help injured people. How could she possibly say no?

"I'll keep sounding out some of my business associates to see if anyone else is interesting and I'll let you know. Thank you very much for thinking of my company so quickly."

It was a good feeling to finally be in a time of his life when things were going well. His abilities were back, his relationship with Raina was on track, and his plans for contacting the Sanctuary was moving quite smoothly. Now with Slate as a potential ally Luke was beginning to wonder if anything could go wrong. At least for now it seemed like he was walking on easy street.

((OOC: Works for me!))