5285/The Blurbly Open Debriefing

The Blurbly Open Debriefing
Date of Scene:	01 June 2017
Location:	Sector Zero - Space
Synopsis:	Debrief of the Blurb. Ends with a tantrum.
Cast of Characters:	Reaper, Sombra, Count Kord

---

Reaper has posed:
Getting Gaige to drink straight whiskey and burn her throat on Pandora was fun. Taking Sombra out on that same night so she could reveal Reaper's name was actually Gabe? More fun. Going to Moxxxi's and blowing a wad of stacks so that the Talon Agents and their potential could enjoy a traditional post-mission destress? Super fun.

Well, for some people. Reaper, being the joyless buzzkill he's become lately, has decided that the fun times have ended and its time for the dreaded DEBRIEF. That's right; Every mission, successful or not, gets torn apart and considered from all angles. Otherwise, how else could it be done better, or a scenario like it performed flawlessly next time? And so Sombra gets the general notification on her public schedule-
And the rest of the Concord as well, a small note in an otherwise unimportant day. Reaper - Debriefing - War Room. Available to all and any to input their ideas. Gabriel may have become a psychopathic, death obsessed edge lord, but beneath the Hot Topic and eye shadow he's still a soldier.

The room itself is already setup for this, darkened to near pitch black, with the glow of holographic images providing the only ambient light. Images of the Briar, in 'exploded' view for deck by deck analysis, with the 'mold' eating into its hull. The last known locations of deployed peoples, contractors, Fleet and researchers set as color coded dots. And floating slightly off to the side, eclipsing everything by pure size, is the cylindrical megacity/satellite known as CentCom. Only a portion of it shown, and that nearly flat because of sheer scale. Reaper is here, of course, feet at shoulder width apart, arms crossed, his sterile white mask turned towards the relevant mission data..

Sombra has posed:
    One good thing about these debriefings is that Reaper usually provides coffee for them so she doesn't yawn too much and risk annoying him without it being calculated into equation. And it would annoy him too much if she didn't show up, besides... it would be unprofessional. Sure, Sombra loves trolling and doing her own thing, but despite appearances she does actually care about this whole deal. It's only fun pulling Reaper's leg if it's in good humour and doesn't affect her plans.

    The latina hacker strolls into the war room, her eyes already on the screens. Perhaps it comes as no surprise when she reaches out her hand and 'hacks' the screens, not disturbing them, but rather copying them into smaller holovid screens that she pulls through the air so she has her own backup of the meeting data. "Heya Gabe." Her greeting is light and amiable as always, and she sits down at the table, pushing the screens aside before she leans forward to pour herself some of that delicious smelling coffee. "You missed the mission in Dorado the other day, you know..." she begins, a sly look on her face. Has he heard about it and how a certain soldier was there...? Perhaps she should give a debrief on that mission as well.

Count Kord has posed:
    Kord got the message, and simply shows up at the debriefing without much in the way of an entrance. If one isn't paying attention they might not even notice his arrival. He moves with a smooth, ground-clearing gait until he finds an adequete spot that makes it clear he's a guest while making his presence abundantly clear. He doesn't say a word, though a pair of ghostly blue eyes focus on Reaper through the hawk-like helmet for several seconds. The death imagery is very familiar to Kord, being from an area that worships a death god.

    The shadows in the room seem to sharpen, getting a deeper contrast as long as Kord is in the room. It's a little eerie, making the shadows cast by the holographic projector seem to swallow up any detail.

    His head swivels and he focuses on Sombra next. Just a few seconds to acknowledge her presence there.

    Man of few words, so far.

Reaper has posed:
Coffee indeed; Mayan Mocha, as always. Made for the latin taste, with a chocolate smoothness interrupted by spikes of spice. Because what good is sweet without heat? How, where, and when Reaper learned to make this is anyone's guess, or even why - he just does when it's debrief time. Perhaps it's like Sombra said, and it's all part of the grander strategem to keep people from yawning or slacking off. Yeah, that's gotta be it.

The mask drops a bit as Sombra speaks, a faint creak of gauntlets as his grip on his own biceps tightens. The hooded head turning slightly, his voice - a reverberating, hoarse growl as if he were on the edge of a scream - rolling out. "My name is -Reaper-." It was an old argument. One that Sombra continually ignored - and one that Reaper continually pressed. Eventually he'd win. Or she'd die - of old age. One of those. And then he turns around completely, masked head lowering a bit more. Shame one can't see his facial expression, isn't it? "What -about- Dorado..?" He begins, a low snarl working its way from his throat.

And then someone else is here. And THEY wore a bird mask too? How dare they! Although his head turns slightly as the shadows around him deepen, wisps of smoke rising from his shoulders as if in response to an unseen threat. Or stress. Or.. maybe a slip in concentration? Without knowing what he is, it's hard to say how he reacts. Before a dark chuckle emerges from his growling voice, a faint nod to the Count as well. And then it's time to stalk to the otherside of the hologram, swiping his clawed gauntlets across the projection surface.

"We received a distress call at 0923 from zero sector; A ship affected by a biohazard, heavily damaged and already suffering loss of crew. It was close enough to a .. megacity structure that rescue operations could begin at once." The sterile white mask turns. "Their death would not have been an issue, save this particular vessel was run by three separate entities. Fleet, contracted through Paladins. Civilian contractors with nothing. And the Research Division, contracted through us." A snarl, the gauntlet swiping a few times over the projector. Various sections of the four deck ship - capped with a fifth 'Bridge' deck - highlight as he hunts the right setting. Finally, the first deck port side lights up.
"I made the decision to deploy when that came to light. There were other agents on the field as well.." He turns his head back to the projector, trying to pull up the agent files from the Paladins and the unknowns from the Watch. Stupid technology.

Sombra has posed:
    My, it appears that more Concord members than Arthur join them for these things. Sombra arches an eyebrow as he walks in, and when he looks at her, the hacker smiles and fingerwaves at him. "Hola~ Kind of you to join us, el Conde."

    By now Reaper should know that Sombra can and will refer to him that way, a nickname of his old identity. Snarl as much as he wants, but it looks like she's not exactly scared of it. So why does he press it like that? It's a fun thing to do, really. Nearly as fun as it is to feed him small info at first and see how he reacts. She's already sipping her coffee when he snarls for her to give more info on the the mission she went on by her own some days ago. "Relajate, I will give info on it. /After/ you are done with the mission you lead, of course. I wouldn't dream of interrupting you~!" she smiles, leaning back in her chair as she crosses one leg over the other.

    Okay, time to get started. Immediately quieting down, Sombra holds her coffee mug in her hands as she looks up at the screens, taking in the information that she already knows considering she's the one who got most of these blueprints and images for Reaper to begin with. When he's struggling with the agent files, she does raise one hand, and a purple file appears for Reaper to click on and interact with.

Count Kord has posed:
    The nickname given to Kord gets the man to affix Sombra with a withering stare that maintains for far longer than it should and in total silence. He only pries his gaze away because the actual debriefing is beginning. Just the subtlest displeasure with her overly familiar attitude when it's directed at him. The 'knightly' figure in red and black pays close attention to what's being said and tries... oh he tries to understand most of what is being said.

    It's also good he wears a mask, because the face he's making under it is not indicative of a man who knows what a megacity or a ship large enough to be run by three separate organizations is. He knows, after a minute, that he's looking at some kind of physical representation of it when he looks at the holographic projection.

    He crosses his own arms as he notes the interplay between Reaper and Sombra. He struggles with the tech, and she does something Kord can only equate to magic in order to help Reaper out. His eyes follow between the two of them carefully.

    Kord still hasn't much to say. He's clearly paying attention, though.

Reaper has posed:
It appears poor Sombra has -two- grimlords glaring at her. Reaper, for her comment about not wanting to interrupt him. He can't argue with it, which is the worse thing of all. And, of course, Kord himself. The Edge Lord then notices the purple button - of course it'd be purple, because it's a subtle reminder of just how much Talon, and by extension himself, depends on her talent. Another low growl of annoyance as the button is pressed, displaying the responders. Small squares showing images of their faces, with lines connecting those pictures to tiny colored dots.
For the Paladins? Shigure, the shipgirl. A massive, actual battleship that sidles up to the Briar, only for the holo representation of biohazard moss to extend tentacles and try to snare her. She disappears into a smaller dot, and slips inside.
For the Unknown, Alden the metal were-wolf looking thing, and a slim girl in a stolen EVA suit. With claws. X-23, although both are labeled 'Unknown Operators'.

Finally, Reaper and Sombra, both in a shuttle. The playout goes fairly smooth; The zoom-in on the ship itself, which gives it almost a castle like appearance. Four decks, ladders and staircases and a central elevator, with the top most fifth 'bridge' deck being half as large. Mold eats through the fourth deck and partial third, sectioning. The dots move back and forth, the Unknowns in the third and second aft, the Paladin in second fore, and the Concord in the first deck. There's even a moment of playback when Sombra convinces the foolish other agents that Research is infected and they should help gather everyone to a central point for Concord to 'rescue'. It was a lie, but it meant other Agents prioritized Concord's rescue of R&D over everyone else.
AT the end, the ship explodes. Because the shipgirl blew it up, while Sombra and Reaper fly off with a load of R&D personnel. Other agents rescue their own various and sundry crew.

".. Final interaction was the full .. -death-.. of the Briar, and the Biohazard. Our primary objective was complete, although we failed to harvest a sample of the biohazard for Concord use." Growls Reaper, finally stepping away from the projector. And then turning that white mask from one to the other.

"Now... how could it have been done.. -better-?"

Sombra has posed:
    Is this Reaper's long lost cousin or something? Sombra's friendly expression turns to one of amusement, and she doesn't seem the least bit intimidated. "I already know you're not mute, so why not say something? After he's done, that is," Sombra says to Count Kord. Of course she's read up on the members of the Concord, as well as many other Elites that caught her interest.

    It's easy to notice how Kord watches her and Reaper, and it strikes her that people might be showing up to these meetings to get to know the two Talon agents. Not an unwise thing, as you often learn a lot more about people meeting them face to face. And well, Kord doesn't seem like a people person. Seriously, what is it with these edgy people around her?

    The mission hadn't been too hard, and lying to the other Elites had been an easy task. A big sip of coffee is taken just as Reaper asks what could have been better... "Well, obviously we could have gotten a sample of the mold. I didn't have anything to store it in however, and it would have been a severe risk it would have eaten into /my/ tech," Sombra admits with a frown. No thank you, she doesn't want mold in her brain or her spine. "If that had happened I would have been unable to complete our primary objective. On that matter... what were /you/ doing while I was up interfacing with the ship and making sure the other Elites could gather up the researchers for us?" she asks, honestly curious.

Count Kord has posed:
    Kord watches the display play out the events, simulated based on the information given. He's entranced, really, because nothing of this tech level exists in his world. It can't even be emulated with magic. He observes the events as they play, and takes note of all of the varied positions of the entities therein. He turns his head to regard Reaper when he mentions that they couldn't gather any of the biohazard, and makes a soft rumbly noise that is his first sound since he got here. He didn't even make footsteps. When he speaks up, his voice is vaguely Romanian as well as calm and deep. More... Smooth Dracula than one might expect.

    "It could have been part of the deception, if that was a secondary goal. Convincing them that the Concord wants a sample to use our abundant resources on researching ways to fight the mold. Not a complete lie, it just avoids explaining the full intent."

    He then points out, "If I was present, there is a chance I could have retrieved a sample without the other parties present noticing. I am adept at moving undetected in a battlefield, but I am working with the conditions presented to me."

    He turns his head to regard Sombra. He shuffles his feet somewhat and breathes a long sigh, somewhat muffled through that mask of his. He isn't as growly as Reaper, of course. "Must you treat me with misplaced familiarity? I have a title, and a name," he says, as if he is already considering the idea that she'll just ignore that altogether. He's probably not going to be as stubborn as Reaper is with his own name.

Reaper has posed:
"Delivering death."

Comes the simple answer from Reaper to Sombra's question, before he taps on the first deck - rewinding the video to show his dot. Flitting back and forth from fore to aft, slipping along maintenance shafts. Far faster than he really should be able too, considering the 'intrusions' from the mold that cut maintenance into pieces - smoke form, right? "And seeing if I could drive the mold to the lower decks - where the other agents were. Their .. accidental death ... could only be our strength, in future conflicts. Afterwards, gathering the Researchers and leading them to our aft connection." Camera zoom, showing Reaper dragging the emergency closet full of oxygen masks. Trailed by nervous researchers. A silent conflict with Shigure the Shipgirl and her followers of Fleet crew, making way. The conflict, whatever it is, is argument only, although one can only see Shigure's mouth moving. Reaper wears a mask, after all. And there's Sombra, coming from off screen with her own flock!
Camera pans back out. "I tried to capture the mold. It tried to devour me." A dark chuckle. "So I devoured its essenced in return."

A swipe of the claw, panning back out. Reaper considers the map as Count Kord speaks, tilting his head aside for a moment. "Skill.. or supernatural ability?" He asks of Kord's ability to move undetected. And then points to the R&D section on the first deck.
"Mm. The R&D section could have been detached, had we time to clear whatever obstructions were keeping it attached to second deck. Let it drift clear. This would give us both our sample and our contracted rescue. It would mean the death of everything else on the first deck... " Claws creak as they tighten. "Not an issue."

"Approach from a different deck than first and aft?"

Count Kord has posed:
    Kord makes an emotive gesture with one of his own claw-adorned gauntlets, beginning his explanation of his stealth, "Both. I learned how to hide from predators in the dark forests of my homeland, due to my... inability to gather my own tamed beasts to protect myself in my youth." Kord just admitted he's a bad trainer. Probably not hard to imagine, he gives off a weird vibe even to normal people. "I learned to supplement that with my magical strengths later on, and I have had this armor and cape crafted so that it does not produce noise as I move. I bend the shadows to my will. I work best at night... naturally."

    "My flight is also as silent as a distant ghost."

    As for the rest of the suggestions, Kord leaves no further input for now. He recrosses his arms and gives the readout more scrutiny while he tries to think of some way to contribute. He is not familiar with vehicles of this size or the combat parameters therein, so his ability to participate is clearly limited.

Sombra has posed:
    Ah, of course. Sombra chuckles at that answer, shaking her head just slightly. Oh Reaper. "No wonder I couldn't see you down there... the cameras were all taken over by the mold. Should have known," she muses and leans forward in her seat, taking her mug in both hands and sipping it somewhat loudly. Aaah, tasty. "Let's hope the mold doesn't give you indigestion." Or whatever Reaper gets whenever he eats bad souls.

    The way Sombra uses tech might appear to be magic to most people, with how quickly she works with it, lights appearing in mid air with a single motion of her hand. Perhaps it's a good thing that she seems curious when Kord speaks up. Reaper asks a good question indeed, and Sombra remains quiet as she pulls up Kord's file, looking over it before she flicks it over to Reaper. Here you go, buddy. It's only when Kord speaks directly to her that she speaks up again, one split eyebrow arching. "But I do refer to you by title, El Conde." Count in Spanish should translate well enough thanks to the translation effect. "If I act familiar, it's because I am familiar with you. You will get familiar with me in time too, don't worry," she smiles, then turns her attention back to Reaper. "Isn't that so?" Even if she doesn't say it, he should hear the unsaid nickname she has for him.

    "It's good with more stealthy agents, isn't it? Maybe we should work together sometime," she asides to Kord.

    As for their approach on the ship the other day... "Eh, I doubt I would have been as effective in an area with a lot of mold. Unlike you I can't change my physical form. I would have been slower, and possibly a liability."

Reaper has posed:
"I am the Angel of Death; I do not -get- indigestion."

The masked face turns a bit towards Sombra as she mentions just how well she knows him. A low, annoyed growl ripples through him, but otherwise he doesn't deny it. After all, she's avoided using THAT name so far. It's a step in the right direction. And then his attention shifts to Kord, the faint creak of armaments as he shifts his weight from one leg to another.
"Naturally." He snarls. Although, honestly, can he do anything but snarl? "Are you capable of.. incorporeal movement as well?" To demonstrate what precisely he means - the Reaper suddenly dissolves. A figure of salt dipped in water, particles of dark smoke flowing smoothly over and around the projector - causing the image to flicker as if covered in a sudden dust storm - before reforming in front of it. In precisely the same posture as he was before. One arm drops, the other clawed gauntlet reaching up to snag the proffered square of data as Sombra sends it his way. Mask turns. Tilts. And then claws squeezed closed, letting the square pixelated into nothingness.
Memorized.

"Mm. Point. And the mold altered immunities too quickly for anything but an overwhelming blast to be effective - as this.. Shigure.. demonstrated. A chemical distribution to blanket and corner the mold for isolation?"

Count Kord has posed:
    Kord seems to take particular offense to Sombra's contradiction, as might be gathered from his firm tone. Yet he is not angry, it's just a little more emphasis. "You are not familiar with me, and it is unlikely you ever will be. And just the same, you are only a fellow soldier to me." Seems pretty confident and definitive. As usual, people with masks don't really appreciate that kind of implication.

    "I am unable to do that," he tells Reaper, "I... am envious of that ability. It would..." He trails off and his head turns as if he's hearing something in the room that's otherwise inaudible. Sombra might know, and it'd be in his file: Yveltal, his worshipped god, has a direct line to his head.

    "It would be of great use to me," he continues as normal, as if the interruption wasn't anything important. "Maybe it is an aspect I have yet to master. As old as I am, there are still mysteries to uncover." He doesn't /sound/ that old, but his age on-record is his late 50s, which is /super/ old for a medieval-type world like the one he comes from.

Sombra has posed:
    In contrast to Reaper and Kord Sombra appears to be all relaxed about this entire deal, though she can't help but roll her eyes. "Seriously, you guys are so tense. You need to relax with the edgy deal, it's not like I'm going to hug you or anything, so stop worrying. We're coworkers." And she even leans over towards him, smiling. "I'm used to dealing with Gabe here, so..." It's not like it's new to her.

    Another mug of coffee is poured, and the hacker drinks some more. "I'm not sure how easy it would be to contain that. Maybe we should get somebody who's better at getting samples in the field while the rest of us focus on our different skills?"

Reaper has posed:
So the Count and the Reaper are almost the same age as well; At least, if one goes by the Count's physical apperance and Gabriel's birth certificate. Somewhere along the line, there must've been a horrible brush between the worlds. That, or a developer got lazy. There's no telling what Gabe looks like now; An old guy with grey skin and a receeding hairline? Something that slipped through a crack in the world from the outer darkness? Precisely the same as he was when he 'woke from the grave'? A rotting ghoul? Third eye? No telling, and the mask's screws on his forehead show that getting answers will probably involve some hardware and the ability to hold him down. Somehow. A faint grunt of acknowledgement that their powers of 'Darkness' was similar but not at all the same. For example, Reaper couldn't fly, his incorporeal form hugging close to the ground.

Probably.

And then Sombra speaks, taking more of the mayan mochan for herself. The Reaper doesn't seem to mind, his arms crossed again. But this time, his finger-claws are clicking a steady stacato as he considers the problem of how to do it better. Although he does spare an annoyed, low growl for their resident hacker at her use of his name.
"Sombraaaaaa..!" He snarls down low, drawing out the last syllable before snapping it off like he was biting someone's finger. A hiss of air from the mask, before he settles back on the problem at hand.
"Deployment was immediate. There was no time to call in anyone who wasn't already on the scene. So.. if we have time to prepare, bring someone from the Minds. Someone with access and experience in a lab. Or fool the other agents into doing our collection for us, to spare our resources and exhaust theirs. Otherwise, secondary priorities are just that - secondary." Arms swing down again, swiping across the projection. A flickering of tiny holographic boxes pouring downwards showing as the session is being saved.

"We'll need more information on the two unknowns. They were not the usual tipos." Mask turns again, for Sombra. "That's on you." Finally, he turns complete, arms crossed once more. Mask lifts. ".. Count Kord." He begins, using the other guy's full name. Edge respects Edge, man. "Final thoughts?"

Count Kord has posed:
    Kord has a strange response to Sombra. "'Edgy deal'?" For whatever reason, that utterly confounds him. It isn't some kind of switch he can turn off. He turns his attention back to the display of holographic information when it finally gets swiped away for archival. His eyes search for the source of this strange contraption's power, and he even tilts back to get a look at the whole display and any wires or such that might be run across the floor.

    "The strange beast is named Alden. He assisted in repelling an attack on my lands by the... abominations that I have spent much of my life hunting," he explains, "Alden's priorities are in helping those who ask for it, in the manner of a mercenary or a storybook hero. If he was present it is likely he was called there to assist, maybe from the civilian group mentioned earlier." He doesn't seem to /disapprove/ of Alden, though, based on his tone, and continues, "He is able to transform to meet his combat needs. The other I have never seen before."

Sombra has posed:
    It's a thing she's gotten used to, really. The fact that Reaper literally growls her name is met with a blank look, and the hacker cants her head, making her hair bounce against her shoulder. "You really need to relajate." Another coffee sip, and she sighs, leaning back in her seat more. But she does nod. "The wolf is a digital creature called Alden..." she confirms what Kord said. "And I think I overheard the girl call herself X-23 when I was in Dorado some days ago." Hacking radio channels is pretty fun after all.

    "Speaking of which, your friend Jack was in Dorado at the time and was interfering with some old friends of mine." Friends. Right. What mattered is that she could use him to her purposes at the time.

    Count Kord earns a snort, and Sombra points between the two men. "You two obviously shop at the same place and listen to the same dreary music. The internet calls you two edgy."

Reaper has posed:
"I did not have direct contact with her beyond the comms - so I do not know how she managed to seal off a section of bulkhead for her own miniature life boat."
Begins Reaper, with a faint rumble in his throat. "But I intend to find out."

Which is when Sombra supplies the requisited information. "X-23? ... Curious. Is it human or another wind-up toy?" He begins. And then Sombra switches subjects. At this point the low lights in the 'War Room' are starting to flicker back to life as the holograph dies, the entire session nearly complete in its recording. Including the input from those present.
Which is when Sombra says that name. One can tell, because the steady and subtle motion of Reaper - the tapping foot, the shifting shoulders, the tilt of his mask - suddenly halt. And the voice that comes from that mask is colder than the grave from which he was booted.

"...No. No one survives. Especially not -HIM-." He doesn't growl or snarl, which is probably the worse thing about it. It almost sounds -normal-, save for the dark reverberation. Which is when he starts to growl, pulling twin shotguns from ... thin air? Smoke rising from shoulders and cowl as he disintegrates once more, flowing out of the room in all directions. Vent, door, whatever cracks he can find.

And the projector beeps as it finishes. WELP! Story time over?
Story time over.

Sombra has posed:
    "Oh, she's human from what I can tell. I do need to dig more to get proper info on her though..." Sombra offers with a casual shrug.

    The mood in the room changes when Reaper hears that name, and even Sombra narrows her eyes before she raises her hand and begins typing in the air on the purple hexagons that appear. "He survived," is all she says as she types in some commands... and two images appear. One of Jack Morrison from when he was the commander of Overwatch. And an image from a security camera. Soldier 76, face mostly hidden, holding a large man in a suit hostage it appears. There's no denying it, the two are the same. That much Reaper should be able to tell immediately. Just as Sombra is about to start her own debrief, it appears that Reaper isn't up for more meetings. Then again, she can handly blame him for wanting to hunt down his former coworker. She blinks, then sighs and lets the screen dissolve just like how Reaper himself turns into smoke. "Well, it was useless keeping this info from him anyway." If she had hidden it, then he would have gotten pissed off at her for not telling him.

    "He does this now and then, don't worry," she asides to Count Kord. "Glad you could show up." With that she rises to her feet, then pours herself the rest of the coffee and turns to head out.

Count Kord has posed:
    Kord observes as Reaper has a Moment, the antiquated warrior following some of the mist that comes from Reaper's ability to turn incorporeal with his eyes. He rumbles thoughtfully at the sight of it, and then he's just there with Sombra in the war room. "And he seemed so guarded before," Kord observes as he turns to leave, since that sort of reaction is indicative of a very personal emotional complexity that Kord isn't entirely aware of.