Guts Over Fear ◇ NIKITA

Back in the Fire

Alys was young, at least in her Division years, when Operation Falling Ash took place. It was the first mission she was allowed to oversee in Ops. It was the day she realized just what Pecry and Amanda were capable of.
Having Owen guide her through the rubble of that very same building just made her mind flood with those horrible images. "I was part of the Strike Team that burned it down," he informed.

"I was in Operations that night," Alys replied, needing no explaination for what happened here. It wasn't sprinkling, but the rain around them was still fairly light, enough to start sticking her hair to her head. She paused when Owen drew a gun, pointing it through a doorway as he carefully stepped forward. Following his stare, Alys looked through a tattered patch of wall left behind. "Nikita?" she softly called.

At the sound of Alys' voice, both Nikita and Michael snapped around, Michael mimicking Owen's cautious stance with a gun raised. Alys slowly stepped forward and Nikita was quick to close the distance, wrapping Alys in a hug she was hesitant to return. "What are you doing here?" Nikita asked as she pulled back.

Alys went to answer but Owen got the words out before she could. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Answer the question," Michael ordered. Alys rolled her eyes, standing close to Nikita as Michael and Owen started playing 'Who's bigger?'

"I know about this place because I was on the Strike Team that burned it down," Owen offered. "Now answer my question."

"I quarterbacked the Op," Michael explained. Alys remembered, it was the day their friendship changed from mutually beneficial to welcome to the real world, where you have no friends. If it wasn't for how he managed to pull Alys from the lowest ranking Recruit up with some of the highest, he probably wouldn't have started training the other Recruits years later.

"So you saw that kid on the news, you came to track down the survivor." Alys shifted her footing, Owen had shown her the footage, it wasn't the reason they were here, but both the P9 and regimen systems originated in the mind of Dr. Joseph Mars.

"There were no survivors," Alys mumbled, remembering each confirmed kill in her ear, right along side the screaming. She hadn't been looking at anyone as she spoke, but she raised her eyes as Owen lowered his gun, Michael soon following his actions.

"Owen, what survivor?" Nikita questioned.

"The guy that invented the program, Joseph Mars, I saved his life." Of course, otherwise his name wouldn't be on regimen draftwork years and years later. "Percy ordered me to extract Mars, but he didnt want anyone to know. That's why everyone else had to die." Alys closed her eyes, picturing the flames around the building and unable to stop the visualization otherwise. "Mars knew that stimulating certain parts of the brain would improve focus, the senses. So Percy had him create something to give Division agents an edge," he continued.

"The regimen," Alys sighed, opening up her eyes again as she focused on the pitter patter of the rain around them.

"How low is your supply?" Nikita asked instantly.

"It's getting low." Even with the stuff he'd left at Alys' and recollected before they left, he had a month's worth, maybe a few weeks more.

"Want to warn us before you turn into the Tasmanian devil again?" Michael checked, a smidgeon of humor to his voice.

"I find Mars, I find my way off it. Alys offered to help with that." Her head turned a fraction when Nikita smoothed her fingers over the back of Alys' hand, she could practically hear her say, 'Good, you'll need her,' despite not saying a word. "Before the attack on the senator yesterday, I didn't even know if the guy was still alive. Last time I saw him, he was trying to take his research with him, but there was no time," Owen explained, moving towards a specific spot.

Crouching down, he moved a dirty, old tile, revealing a floor safe. More specifically an empty floor safe. "Looks like he made the time to come back for it," Nikita pointed out.

◇

Alys followed the waiters with her eyes, seeing when their rounds would intersect her path. "You clean up nice," Owen spoke beside her. The heels she wore put them at eye level, and though she could see his eyes on her, she refused to look at him more than just the corner of her eye. "It's the first time I've seen you look like a girl."

She couldn't help the twitch that pulled on her lips, but she kept her smirk restrained. "Owen," she softly breathed, now meeting his eyes, "you'll have to work on your complimenting skills."

"Keep an eye out for people on cell phones, I'm guessing that's how Mars activates his Sleepers," Michael informed as Alys stepped forward, taking a glass of dark wine from a passing waiter before taking off herself. She took a slow drink as she scanned the room, she didn't want to think about Owen, she wanted to divert as much focus possible to the task at hand.

"I think I got him," Nikita chimed in her ear. As Alys turned to look where Nikita was, a vaguely attractive man stood in her path, distracting her from what else Nikita had said.

"What's a beautiful woman like you doing alone in this place?" he asked, sizing her up. Taking a drink to conceal her initial irritation, she just barely caught a, 'False alarm' before lowering the drink.

"What is it that makes you think I'm alone?" she asked with a small smirk. See, Owen, this is why I don't always look like a girl. As if he could hear her thoughts, said blonde walked up to the pair.

"There you are, you said you were getting a drink," Owen sighed, eying the civilian cautiously.

"Mission accomplished," she chuckled, linking their arms and pulling him away. "Thank you," she mumbled before taking another drink of her wine.

"Anytime," Owen softly replied, unlinking their arms and running his hand over her back before moving to search the room on his own again.

"Purple dress, she's headed towards the senator. Hurry," Nikita informed. With a quick glance, Alys could see the brunette was distracted by Alex, who'd made a sudden appearance with what looked to be a cane. Alys then started walking towards the senator, setting down her glass as she prepared to intercept the redhead carrying a gun with a blank expression.

Alys' path was crowded with people, so by the time she reached the Sleeper, she'd raised the gun. Before she could act, Alex tackled the senator to bring him to the ground and Nikita had disarmed the Sleeper and knocked her unconcious, her limp body falling back into the blonde's arms. "I got her," Alys nodded.

Owen was quick to take the Sleeper from the girl's grasp, lifting her bridal style out of the convention with Alys on his heels, Michael and Nikita quick to follow.