InsaneJournal

Who: Rhodey, Natasha, Phil
What: Two spies use a fellow Avenger to get some information. Meeting Ross to get Kaiju intel.
When: April 30th, afternoon
Where: Department of Defense, Washington DC
Notes: contains a major easter egg for future plot.

Rhodey ought to feel bad about this, but he didn't. He'd been riding the split between the Secretary of Defense and the Avengers for a long time, but Thaddeus Ross wanted him firmly on the DOD side of the line, which was to say against the Avengers. And that was one thing Rhodey couldn't do. But he could play the game and meet with Ross while SHIELD used him to infiltrate DOD offices to get any information they could about what Ross was really up to.

He flashed his security badge at the guards, who let him and his 'junior officers' in without further inspection. Rhodey's rank might not be that significant, but he was something of a celebrity and sometimes that operated in his favor. As he turned to open the door into Ross' office suite, he winked at Nat.

Natasha and Phil were a step or two behind Rhodey as befit their status. Her outfit was appropriately bland and casual, gray pantsuit with a white nondescript blouse underneath the jacket. The black portfolio case had been scanned, opened, and rifled through as they’d gone through initial security. No exceptions.

She was a brunette for this. Her face hidden behind one of the synth masks as someone younger, working her way up through the ranks by being an aide for a celebrity. She arched an eyebrow, biting the inside corner of her lips to keep from smiling. She couldn’t lie. Sticking it to Ross like this was a bit fun. Coulson was probably rolling his eyes at them. He’d dealt with enough shenanigans back when he was her handler.

And yes, yes Phil was rolling his eyes at them. Inwardly, at least. Outwardly, he was completely focused. That much wasn’t a stretch for him by any stretch of the imagination; he’d spent enough years with SHIELD before, plus he’d been through enough since his resurrection, that his personality just sort of defaulted to “I can handle this.”

Whatever “this” was and however handling it had to be kind of varied, but that was Phil for you.

Which meant that this? Was staying on alert even hidden behind one of the synth masks. It was feeling -- and looking -- at ease in the suit he wore. It was paying attention to everything at the same time and thanking God that some skills always stayed sharp.

The interior of the Secretary of State's office was lavishly appointed, a busy place meant to hold meetings with prominent figures and foreign dignitaries. The main room wasn't where the bulk of the work was done, that happening in an interior office at the far end of the sitting room. Standing in the middle of that room was Thaddeus Ross, waiting for the group to show up.

He was as stone-faced as ever, not really looking forward to having to deal with the superhero problem again. Stark made yet another mess, and it was up to him to try to mop it up. Again.

Once the door opened, he nodded to Rhodey and formally greeted him with one hand held out for a firm handshake, "Colonel Rhodes. Always a pleasure. If your associates wait in here, we can head into my office."

Where he would no doubt close the door, for a stern lecturing about keeping certain people in line.

Here we go .... Rhodey had the easy part here, though. All he had to do was sit stonefaced through another Ross lecture, like he hadn't done that a hundred times before. Listened to Ross insult Tony and the Avengers like they hadn't saved the world in ways that Ross couldn't and didn't understand.

"Yes sir." He took his case--which had his reports in it, as opposed to whatever was hidden in the corners and crevices of Nat's case, which was probably more James Bond stuff than Rhodey wanted to know about, and followed Ross into the smaller office. "I think you've seen all my reports about the Avengers actions in Manhattan. I've included some follow-up from the scientists who performed the necropsies on the kaiju."

That was the point at which the door shut behind him and Ross, leaving Phil and Nat to get on with their own work.

Natasha exchanged a quick glance with Phil and then looked carefully around them. Ross’ secretary was nowhere to be seen. Likely doing paperwork for the esteemed general or something else equally important. Perfect. That gave her and Phil plenty of time to work and this room would suit their needs perfectly. She moved closer to the terminal, which was conveniently angled to give a view of anyone that might come into the office. She settled into the empty chair beside it, opened her briefcase, then made a show of pulling out some folders to work on while palming the discrete USB remote. She moved to hand some files over to Phil while using her other hand to insert the remote into a port along with placing a small disc on the underside of the computer itself. That would hopefully prevent their intrusion from being detected.

Inside the office, Ross sat behind his desk. It gave him a position of superiority against whoever was on the other side. This was the usual posturing of politicians or higher ups in the military. No one liked to present any signs of weakness, and everyone liked to save face whenever possible.

"So, Colonel. You're here to make nice after Stark's three ring circus circled around, and bit him on the ass." It was hard not to look smug about that. Ross didn't even bother hiding it, or his stance about the Accords. "I'm going to hear you out. Before that, I'm going to tell you that the eScape situation isn't going away either. Stark's finger pointing isn't going to get the heat off anyone running around unchecked, putting American lives in harm's way. It doesn't matter if he sends you. Or Thor. Or Banner, with a big green bow wrapped around him."

"Nobody expects the eScape problem to go away, sir. I know there are still efforts to find out who sabotaged the software. Because anyone who could get past Stark security presents a real problem for anyone else relying on software security. If, for instance, this was a trial run to get into the banking system, we should all talk to the Fed and Treasury." Rhodey said. Better to start by buttering Ross up and letting him feel important. It would let the holding action last longer. "I'm aware that would be your position, sir, but I thought I should bring it to your attention. Someone with that kind of skill, if they want money--or something else--would be a serious threat to our national security."

"We're aware. If it wasn't for Stark anyway, a backdoor like that wouldn't have been made such a huge mess for everyone. I'm surprised he hasn't blown himself up by now." Ross sat back and stared for what felt like an eternity, but was really only thirty seconds. A very uncomfortable thirty seconds. "The CIA is already working on it. Interpol's department of cyber crime was alerted. The eScape issue is months old by now. I think we both know that Stark's conspiracy theories about Godzilla is why you're here. He's caused a lot of problems."

Ross wasn't elaborating on those problems. He was used to posturing. He was also used to seeing others posturing in front of him. He didn't get to be Secretary of State from lack of awareness or by not recognizing a diversion tactic when he saw one. There were questions he wanted answered too, but he was of the opinion that things should be handled internally. Of course, the higher ups wanted to save face during election cycles, wherever possible. And the government was very good at cover ups.

"If you have any intel related to that event, Rhodes, I'd like it handed over. Preferably without force." He smiled, but it was forced. Too tense to be friendly. "That might look very bad for a bunch of renegade superheroes in this country. Mainly the ones that keep making messes in public."

"I don't know any renegades, sir," Rhodey said and reminded himself he was buying time. "All I know are the public ones. But I've reminded everyone at Stark--which is technically not in my brief, but I have enough connections that I can get people to listen--that any information about the eScape hackers needs to be turned over to the national security apparatus." Which was the truth, and it carried through in Rhodey's tone.

He continued, "Nor am I aware of any conspiracy theories about Godzilla. But with all due respect, I fought one of those things they're calling the kaiju, and I don't know what it was, but it wasn't natural. If someone is making those things, they're a threat to the United States and we need to find out who and how. Our country needs to be prepared to defend our people. Or else the citizenry really will embrace whoever defends them, whether it's a hero who has the good of this country in mind or a--renegade."

"Our military is making sure we can meet any of these threats with extreme force. I'd be really happy if that included renegades too. Particularly any renegades trying to undermine the federal government."

It was about to become apparent that someone (Tony Stark) wasn't answering someone else's (Ross') phone calls. The older man spoke very slowly, so the following was clearly understood.

"The official stance from above is the kaiju issue is an internal affair," Ross told Rhodey, "When you return to New York, use your connections to get certain 'people' to listen. Tell him not to withhold any details, because we're looking into leads. The last thing we want is any of you handling anything by yourselves. Not if it's a cyber crime. Not if it's a monster the size of a skyscraper. Not even to save the President's puppy. Because, if the Sokovia Accords hadn't been declared unconstitutional, we'd have measures in place to work together. Unconstitutional doesn't mean acting unchecked won't have repercussions."

Ross held up an index finger, pointed up toward the ceiling. "One time. One false move. That's all it takes. That clear?"

Because Rhodey was a professional and Ross was a superior officer, he did not roll his eyes like a bored teenager. But just because Rhodey was a grown adult man didn't mean the urge wasn't there. Ross was waiting for Tony to overstep, but Tony (and Rhodey) were waiting for him to do the same. Rhodey only hoped that Ross screwed up first.

"Yes, sir," Rhodey said. "I'll tell the Avengers you said so." He did not say again or any of the other things that he wanted to say to Ross. Just remembered that his job here was to keep Ross busy while Phil and Nat pulled the information they needed out of Ross's computer.

It wasn't like they were Avengers. (Well, okay, Nat was, sometimes.) They were working for SHIELD.

"You do that." Ross stared at him and relaxed, as much as he could ever relax...which was not much. A barely perceptible droop of the shoulders, the pinched expression lessening so the lines around his eyes were less pronounced.

"You got a better head on your shoulders than most of those so-called superheroes do, Rhodes. I hope they listen to you." He tapped a finger on a holopad on his desk, bringing up his itinerary. At the top of that list were the words: Genosha Pact. "I have to make some calls. Unless there's something else you want to say, I'll look forward to your next visit."

Rhodey noted that: it was something he'd want to investigate, or pass to Fury and Tony. "No sir. Thank you, sir." He rose, saluted, and moved to the door, adding, "I'll do my best," hoping that Nat and Phil would hear the cue to be back in place.

The sound of chairs moving and voices getting closer to the door were Natasha’s cue. Phil had been keeping a lookout for anyone that wandered by the office. Luckily no one had and the secretary’s errand had managed to keep her away the whole time. She glanced down at the watch she was wearing and the little indicator on it confirmed the upload was complete. She pulled the device from the USB port and then retrieved the small disc, leaving no trace of their presence. The briefcase was closed and back at her side as she and Phil rose in unison to greet Rhodey coming through the door.


Rhodey wore a stern expression, which was easier to manage than a smile plastered on his face after listening to Ross. "Let's be on our way," he told Nat and Phil, and led them out, hoping they'd managed to get something useful. Somebody ought to get something useful out of that. He certainly hadn't.