March 2007, Breakthrough

[ellectrical]

If X's training room of giant alien bug things did one thing, it helped clear Elle's mind again. She was, after all, less preoccupied with forcing more practice out of herself, and more focused on hoping giant alien bugs never came to her world.

And, well, sorting through masses of data to find what's missing.

When it comes down to it, it's really about a lucky break she uncovers in the shipping schedules at a facility near Cork, Ireland, and a logged incident at the port. The cargo listed as missing (and expensive cargo at that), the crate forced open. It's reported as a burglary, but a glance at the remaining contents – that is, a broken metal chain – is enough to tell her otherwise.

(The lucky break comes in the fact that she doesn't exactly bother to do a lot more searching after finding this one unusual incident.)

Her father's back in his office when she unlocks the door. He doesn't look up when she enters, apparently engrossed in an open file folder on his desk. Elle casts a glance at the contents – mostly newspaper clippings: a couple in Spanish with large headlines, a photo she recognizes as of the murdered Kaito Nakamura – before she returns her gaze to her father. He finally meets it when she rests her left hand on his desk and leans over, pretending to try to read over his shoulder.

"Can I help you, dear?" he asks, a note of sarcasm in the last word as he closes the folder. Elle answers by putting the laptop she's carrying in her right hand on the desk, on top of the file he'd previously been looking through, and opening it in front of him.

"I found him."

There's a lot of pride her voice, but she doesn't smile. She has to wait for that.

He blinks up at her, but doesn't say anything before looking down at the screen. The clicks and clatter on the keyboard are quiet, but it still somehow pounds against her head, making her want to twitch, as the sound of the precisely moving hands of the grandfather clock in the corner does. Her expression is neutral and doesn't change, but her hands press against his desk, flattening on the wood. She knows he hates it when she does that, but it doesn't make her stop.

"All right," he says, finally, closing the laptop screen and meeting her eyes. "You'll go. Alone. I want this done quickly and quietly before there's any more damage."

He looks down before adding, "Good work."

It makes Elle smile.

She keeps it as she picks up the computer again, but she waits a moment before leaving. Her father opens the file again, and doesn't make any attempt to shield the contents from her. This time, she notices a name on a report mostly hidden by Nakamura's photo. Her eyes fall on it curiously, and she uses one finger to tug it out from underneath the others.

It's a casualty report.

"She went out of contact, so we looked into it."

Elle doesn't move, and doesn't look at him.

– then I may be your job soon enough –

"Elle?"

She looks back at her father, moving her hand away. Her face is blank, and she can't think of what he'll –

"You have an assignment."









After one step back, and another, she's smiling again. It's not in her eyes.

"Right, Daddy."