Concealed//Lab Rats

The W.I.R.

Disclaimer: I don't own Lab Rats/Lab Rats: Elite Force.

~~

   Douglas had called everyone into the living room to tell them about the plan. "First off, me and Marcus successfully hacked into W.I.R. and the leader granted us access in."

   "That's awesome! We should've let Marcus take over ages ago!" Bree exclaimed with a smirk pointed directly at Chase.

   "Haha," Chase deadpanned.

   Marcus would've continued rubbing it in Chase's face, but Douglas abruptly continued, probably not wanting another fight to break out. "The plan is to send Marcus -- 'cause that's the only person they'll trust, Chase -- and have him try to figure out who all could be helping Roman and Riker. Any questions?"

   Oliver raised his hand. "Yeah, actually. So he's going to wander around aimlessly hoping he finds this person?"

   "Not exactly," Marcus answered.  "I know a lot of the people there, so I know which ones are robotics experts. Those are the ones I'll focus one."

   "That makes sense."

   Marcus looked at Douglas, who gave a slight nod as well. They were ready.

   Since Roman and Riker has a trapdoor leading right to W.I.R., that was how Marcus was going to get there. It wasn't the best of circumstances, but it was the only way he knew of -- W.I.R. was underground and you needed someone to guide you to the correct place. Even though Marcus and Douglas had been there plenty of times, it was still hard to navigate. Plus, entrances were constantly changing. Roman and Riker's trapdoor was his best bet.

   He listened carefully at the entrance to the subway. No sound of Roman and Riker. No sound at all, really. Which would've been suspicious had it not been for the fact that it was a subway that hadn't been in use for years. So he walked in -- quietly, because you can never be too careful, especially when dangerous shapeshifters are concerned -- and found the trapdoor. Still unguarded. Without a second thought, he jumped down.

   W.I.R. looked exactly the same. The walls were still rusty, there were still many escape opportunities, and it still looked like where you'd find a shady deal going on. To be fair, there were.

   Marcus looked around. A couple people were present, but they hurried on by. He knew, vaguely, where he was. It was one of the many hallways. He needed to come across someone he knew. From there, everything would become much easier. Because then, other people would be less wary of him. A necessity for undercover investigation. The most popular place to be -- meaning the place with the most people -- was a little north of where he was. It was where criminals met with potential sponsors, like Krane. The members of W.I.R. called it The Lounge. 

   "Marcus, is that you?" 

   Marcus spun around to see a grinning boy, around his age, with wavy blonde hair,  green eyes, and his famous blue glasses. "Gabe?"

   Gabe ran over to him. "I haven't seen you in forever, what happened?? I saw your dad on the news. Apparently he's with this team called the Elite Force."

   Marcus's acting skills kicked in and he groaned. "Yeah, I know. Don't remind me." 

   "Sorry. So, what happened?"

   "We were going after his brother -- you know about him -- and the building started collapsing. He just... left." Marcus averted his eyes, but he could still tell that Gabe completely bought it. But Gabe wasn't the person he was concerned about. It was everybody else.

   "I'm so sorry! So what brings you back here?"

   "Revenge." It felt strange on his tongue. Bitter. Maybe because this was how he'd actually felt not all that long ago.

   Gabe grinned. "I can help with that."

   "No, it's fine. I'd like to do it alone. Personal, ya know? I came here to get away from everything. I've got a place to stay, but I like seeing everyone."

   "Got'cha. Going to The Lounge?"

   "Yeah. You coming?"

   "Yep!"

   They both walked in relative silence. Marcus was okay with that -- it gave him time to think. Since he found Gabe, his job should be a lot easier. Everybody knew Gabe. If Gabe trusted him, everyone should.

   The Lounge was a total departure from the rest of the W.I.R. It was sleek, with white walls, lots of furniture, and could've been seen as fancy had it not been for the rough-looking criminals stained with blood, dirt, and who knows what else. 

   "Marcus Davenport." A man with neatly cut hair and Gabe's green eyes caught Marcus's attention. Gabe's dad, Clifton. 

   "Good to see you, Sir," Marcus replied. Since he'd been around Clifton a lot -- he'd been best friends with his son, after all -- he knew that Clifton appreciated good manners. Unlike the other criminals littering The Lounge, he was wearing a suit and looked fresh and clean. He was a sponsor.

   Clifton only gave a sharp nod before turning to Gabe. "Where were you? You were supposed to be back twenty minutes ago!"

   "Sorry, Dad. I ran into Marcus and we started talking-"

   "Not an excuse!"

   Marcus blocked out their conversation and looked around to see if he recognized anyone -- especially anyone who was a robotics expert. His eyes landed on a couple, but before he could talk to them, Gabe tapped him on the shoulder.

   "Come on, I gotta put this in Dad's office. We can talk on the way!" 

   Marcus reluctantly followed Gabe. While he was happy  to see his friend again, he'd been hoping to talk people who might be connected to Roman and Riker's androids. But he shook off the feeling and talked to Gabe.

   "It's been crazy around here recently," Gabe said. "The old leader died so we had to get a new one to replace her."

   Marcus changed his mind. This was valuable information. "Who'd everyone choose?"

   "My dad!"

   Marcus froze."Your dad? Clifton?"

   "Yeah! Great, huh? He's been a little stressed lately -- probably why he yelled at me -- but he's doing great! Plus, I get to do more important things, too!"

   "That's awesome, Gabe." It wasn't. Clifton had eyes in the back of his head -- Marcus was understanding why his codename was Eye, now -- if anyone could see through his act, it would be Clifton. And since he was going to be around Gabe quite a bit, there was only more of a chance he'd see through him.

   They arrived at Clifton's office. Gabe knelt down behind a desk and tried to put something in. He seemed to be having a difficult time figuring out where it went, so Marcus took the time to look around. As expected, the office was organized and proper, like Clifton himself. But something stood out. There was a piece of paper lying on the desk. He looked closer and almost gasped. 

   It was a commision to build androids for Roman and Riker.

   Before Gabe could catch him, he quietly put it in his pocket. This was exactly the kind of thing that would help! He needed to bring it to the others, and fast. The longer he stayed the greater the chance the piece of paper would be found on him.

   Gabe suddenly stood up. "Finally, I figured that out! Sorry for making you wait."

   "No, you're fine. Hey, I should probably go soon. I need to work on some inventions. I'll see ya later," Marcus said.

   "Oh, okay. Have fun! Beat the heck outta Douglas for me!"

   Marcus forced a grin. "I will."

   With that, he left, super speeding when he was out of sight.

~~

   If you're missing the team, don't worry! They should be in the next chapter. Also, what do you think of Gabe and Clifton? 

   Jesus loves y'all!

   BionicallyChristian out!