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From:

cantilevers

[He pushed himself to stand, gathering both of their tumblers in one hand and looked down at Jason. He did wonder about the streak; it reminded him a little of Silco though the one Jason had was far more dramatic.]

I know. He's a kid doing something stupid because he thinks it's right, or he's angry about something, or he's bored, or because he wants attention of someone. Teens aren't reasonable and thinking about consequences isn't their strong suit.

[He was reminded of Vi who took his kids on a job topside, blew up a building and led to the crack down across the Lanes. He doubted she had thought much of the consequences, but they had come knocking, and that was a decision that she would live with the rest of her life.

He walked away to fill their glasses, this time with more than before. He again telegraphed his movements so Jason could see he added nothing to their drinks before returning again to his seat. He set the one tumbler in front of Jason.]

But I do know this problem isn't over.

From:

leastdramatic

[Again, Jason carefully watches Vander’s movements as their glasses get refilled. He appreciates that civility is still being maintained.

He graciously takes his glass once it’s been refilled]

How so?

[Jason can hazard some guesses by what Vander means but he wants to hear it straight from him first]

From:

cantilevers

[He took a cursory sip of his to assure Jason that it was safe. Well safe enough anyway.

He regarded the younger man for a long quiet moment to debate if his timing was worthwhile. He decided that he had enough respect for Jason to want to give the other man a heads up.]

Silco is on the move. His playbook is probably what we discussed before. That Pandora's Box is now open for real and no closing it.

From:

leastdramatic

[Oh... This is going to get worse before it gets better then. Jason's expression darkens]

You're certain? Any mentions of a Dr. Jonathan Crane?

From:

cantilevers

[Vander huffed a noise of amusement, swirling his drink in its glass. He appreciated that Jason took the news seriously.]

He wouldn't be so obvious as to day outright. However, he dropped enough vague comments that I am certain they have made contact. Silco doesn't cook; he distributes and networks.

From:

leastdramatic

[Jason is absolutely taking it seriously. The timing of this the last thing any of them need]

Crane would cook. More than happy to and it wouldn't surprise me if he was already working on something before he and Silco called. Crane's also known as the Scarecrow so you might wanna keep your ears open to anything like that too.

From:

cantilevers

So it is likely safe to assume that they have some sort of venture planned. What they would concoct I don't know, but I assume it would not make Etraya better in the long term.

[This was all something they should have hoped to avoid, but whatever Silco was working on, he intended to keep tabs on it. He had already made mistakes while emotional not that long ago.]

From:

leastdramatic

[Jason nods]

It’s always bad news when Crane’s involved. Do we have a rough idea of what the timeline is?

From:

cantilevers

No details. It wasn't my primary concern at the time we were speaking.

[That had been in the thick of things with expecting Damian to make a move against Jinx. He had been considering his options on that more than anything else.]

Maybe look into your Crane guy and see what he is up to.

From:

leastdramatic

We will. We don't trust him to leave him alone. He's the type who doesn't like to gets his hands dirty unless he's sure the fight's already in his favor.

[Jason sips from his tumbler]

Shimmer and fear toxin sound like a hell of a combo.

From:

cantilevers

Neither does Silco. He prefers to operate in the shadows, but I expect he is looking to create disruptions.

[Maybe if there were a few groups on the look out, they could limit the amount of damage the two could create. It wasn't as if Silco or Jinx would listen to him. Well maybe Jinx.]

Overpowered fast healing people infected by fear? With the power some people have here; it would be a rough ride.

From:

leastdramatic

I know why Crane would want to do this but what does Silco have to gain from it? It’s not like we got a real economy here.

From:

cantilevers

That's why. There is not disparity or crime, so he'll create some.

[It was about control too.]

From:

leastdramatic

[Jason scoffs. Right. Some crime lords do what they do out of greed. Some believe they have a higher message to prove. Others are just sadists]

Figures. They really would be a match made in hell.

From:

cantilevers

[He shrugged his shoulders as if this was not the most bothersome news.]

Perhaps. Time will tell, but we should have contingencies just in case.

From:

leastdramatic

Agreed. Given what kind of work this’ll be, presumably, this is going to be underground and not easy to reach.

From:

cantilevers

Hmm, potentially. Shimmer was manufactured underground, but you'd know more about the other toxin. There are plenty of labs around these parts that they could operate from.

[Would it be secretive or would they simply find a way to manufacture quickly and then protect their assets?]

From:

leastdramatic

The tricky thing about fear toxin is that he can make it out of a wide range of ingredients.

[How fast Crane can whip it up is a question Jason doesn't really have an answer to]

If Crane already knows vigilantes from his world are also here, he'd want to take the most secretively lab to avoid detection.

From:

cantilevers

So you know the recipe for it then? Can we cut off sources of specific ingredients?

[However, that didn't change the fact that Aurora could willingly bring items in on request. They may only delay the inevitable.]

He knows. People like that cover their basis before they make a move.

From:

leastdramatic

Not unless we somehow convince Aurora not to do any of his requests.

[Jason's index finger traces the rim of his tumbler]

Might wanna consider rebreathers or gas masks soon.

From:

cantilevers

Has that been done before?

[He wasn't certain that even he had the skills to convince her not to trust someone to act in their own interests when this entire world was built to test how they would try (and maybe fail) to save their worlds. This could just be part of the plan on some level.

Yet, at the suggestion, he simply smiled secretively.]

I breathe trench air from the worst parts of the undercity. We should keep this quiet until we have solid evidence.

From:

leastdramatic

[Jason has little doubt on whether Vander is tough. One has to be when living in places like Zaun or Crime Alley. But whatever this trench air is, it's nothing compared to getting a dose of fear toxin]

My side will be monitoring. We've been monitoring since we realized he showed up. Is anyone else on your side aware of this?

Edited Date: 2025-06-23 02:51 am (UTC)

From:

cantilevers

[He did take the advice seriously, but he also expected that there were perhaps other modes of introduction of the toxin into the system. Perhaps that's where the pair would switch things up. Who knew. He would prepare accordingly.]

How many are on your side?

[He considered the question seriously, mulling it over. He sipped his whiskey.]

Potentially one other. Even if they aren't aware, I don't expect them to condone it anyway.

From:

leastdramatic

Enough of us.

[Jason's aware of how unhelpful the answer is but he still needs to play some things close to the chest]

Depending on how this goes, you'll probably find out soon enough. We're all gonna need to cooperate.

From:

cantilevers

Trust only goes so far. I understand.

[There was the need to protect their own, and yet, he expected there was more than that involved here. He watched Jason carefully to try to understand the other man a little more.]

It doesn't matter to me; I make my stand the same way regardless of anyone else from my world. If you all want to take lead, do so.