Bastion Sebastian Steele

Your little, ahem, accident in Sinna's garage aside, the trip to the base was uneventful. When you arrived, you were directed to the squad's barracks. You passed a pair of suits hanging around outside, near the barracks, keeping an eye on it but keeping their distances. They turned inscrutable gazes on you as you walked past them towards it.

When you got to the barracks, the squad (all six of the operatives, and the other five PEs) was already gathered together in the little mess room, seated around the table, on which was a roughly three-quarters clear tray of doughnuts and three pots - two empty and one nearly so - of coffee. There was a strong vibe of tension in the room. Tension and anger. A few of them were speaking quietly with one another. There was a twelfth person there as well, a pretty, auburn-haired young woman in a very nice suit (quite a bit nicer than the suits you passed outside, as it happens), who was sitting at the head of the table, an expensive-looking briefcase resting against her chair.

"There he is!" Sinna said a bit bombastically as you entered, and the tension in the room lifted a little bit, the squad giving you a chorus of greeting and a bit of friendly ribbing about not having been around much since leave had started. The soldiers were pretty much just as enthusiastic about it as the PEs. While in general the operatives were on friendly-enough terms with each other's PEs, you had gained a bit of popularity among the soldiers after taking out Sinna's technopathically-controlled suit.

While the greetings went on, the stranger stood up and walked over to offer you a handshake. "Mr. Steele, I take it. Thank you for joining us," she said in a friendly, professionally polite voice, with maybe just a hint of reproach. It was like, she didn't actually say the word finally, but you kinda knew it was there. "If you'll take a seat, we can get started. I'm here to represent your squad in this investigation."

"My name is Patty Abel."

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MWaP, please let me know Bastion's current emotional state. If he's trying to conceal or suppress his emotions at the moment, you can avoid doing so with a DC 20 Deception check. This is a Permanent Senses power, so it's not inherently noticeable without power detection.

(And yes this happens whether or not he accepts the handshake).


Declan and Sean

"I would imagine so. I haven't gotten into the details of the investigation personally, but I would assume that information is available and can see no reason for them not to share it." There was a slightly conspiratorial edge in her tone, as if to append "if they know what's good for them" to the end of that statement. It was probably a safe bet that if the IIN were less than forthcoming or cooperative with you, a word to General McAllen might go a long way towards clearing up any such hassles. "When I mentioned to Travers that I intended to contact you he didn't seem particularly enthused, but he didn't object. I don't think he'll have a problem with you specifically, more than the expected problem any general would have with knowing that the soldiers under their watch need to be investigated in the first place."