Police Matters (Open)

[Jeff Solaris]

Jeff was tired of those who wrecked his home. A couple of hours ago he had beaten down about 10 mercenaries. All of them needed medical care.  It was a good thing he packed a couple of Wazikashis, as well as his bow and arrow at home. His house needed complete renewal on the inside unfortunately. It meant Jeff was going to have to pay to have the house refurnished. The Mega Corporations had gone and pushed him to his absolute limits this time. His patience was at an end.  Approaching the police station in his truck, Jeff parked it near the police station legally. Getting out he opened his trunk which contained the 10 that he had tied up that had oh so recently attacked his home. Today he was putting an end to his problem. Knocking on the door, he entered the police station dragging the 10 behind him. Each needed medical care, but their wounds were not severe. 

"These 10 should be charged with the following crimes. Breaking and Entering. Assault with deadly weapons. Intent to kill.  Attempted murder.  Violating a no trespassing sign as well as a private property sign. I also suspect that one of the Mega Corporations or all of them are responsible for sending these men. This is the seventh group I've taken down this week."  

Jeff looked at the police officers on duty.  It was his hope they could handle this.  Jeff also had contingency plans could they not. There were likely black market arms dealers to set up more dangerous booby traps near the areas they kept trying to enter from. It was a last resort, but right now? Jeff was not feeling exactly merciful. 

"You are supposed to be protectors of the law. These men are violating the law. I believe you know what you have to do to them." 

[Saber]

The clerk running the reception desk at HQ blinked a few times, before paging on the overhead for a Captain Bale. After a quick phone call on the desk phone, a very old fashioned device for this time and age, and a few loud obscenities from the other end of the line as a result of the discussion, who could be heard as a female voice, the clerk hung the phone up and informed Jeff that the captain will be a moment.

Two minutes later, Kate, and several other officers entered the lobby, and Kate was not at all happy. She pointed to the mercs and addressed her subordinates "Alright you five, take this lot to lockup for interrogation. And as for you-" She pointed at Jeff before curling her finger, as if beckoning him "You and I need to have a little talk, this way."

Once she was sure Jeff was willing to come peacefully, she would lead him to an enclosed interrogation room, where she would have Jeff sit down in the chair facing the one sided window in the room. "I'll be back in a couple minutes, once I've confirmed the 'perps' you brought in are behaving. Sit there, and don't. Move. Punctuating her order for Jeff to stay in place, she left and locked Jeff in the room from the outside, with a standard physical key lock and a bolt lock for safe measure, not that it mattered, considering the door opened from inside the room.

She walked into the soundproofed observation room, where one of her more dedicated officers, Frank Jameson, was already watching Jeff's actions through the one sided mirror "Not like you to get so hostile with someone reporting a crime, Captain." Kate glared at Frank irritably after he made his comment "Spare me the small talk, Jameson. Baretta retrieve the security feed from the lobby involving this kid, and I want you to give me a positive ID on him as well." "Understood Kathryn, I'll have an ID for you in a few minutes. Sending video feed now."

Frank watched Kate give her orders and couldn't help but be curious ""If I may ask, Captain, why the ID?" "He reminds me of someone I knew from my earlier years on the force, and I don't want any word games with this kid while interrogating him."

[Jeff Solaris]

When he sat down in the enclosed interrogation room Jeff did not move. This perhaps was one of the worst ideas he had. Shrike would likely be razzing him for it if he got out of here in one piece. There were reasons he did not often venture outside his home except under the cover of darkness, or way early in the day.  Jeff also knew that his lawyer had been bribed by one of the Mega Corporations namely Pariah Tech, and possibly all of the others.  It irritated Jeff that he had to deal with such idiocy. Confining him somewhere where he could be picked off was a stupid move.  Granted he understood that they had all sorts of red tape to cut through which he also resented. When the feed was retrieved, the ID would reveal that he was Jeff Solaris. The only surviving heir to the Solaris Fortune and also a gray hat hacker of some degree who mainly used his hacking skills to support himself financially.  It also showed he was an amateur inventor of sorts. 

Jeff waited in the room. What would happen next? 

[Saber]

A beeping could be heard from Kate's terminal as the video feed was uploaded to her temp files, just as Baretta returned from her data retrieval <We have a positive ID Kathryn. His name is Jeff Solaris, he's-> "Son of the late Mark and Elena Solaris…I knew I recognized him somehow…Baretta, send everything you have about Jeff to the printer in this room." <Understood.>

Frank watched Kate carefully, curious how she knew the witness "Friend of the family, Boss?" Kate looked at Frank briefly, before staring at her terminal while playing through the security feed, with a sign of great displeasure in how things went down in the lobby "…His parents used to work here for R&D, before someone issued false claims that his father had anger management issues that got him fired…They moved on to start their own business and had financial revenue that could have rivaled even the big four…Until they went against the law's on development and had their company shut down…That's all you need to know about them."

The printer finished printing out Jeff's profile, and Kate walked over to grab the papers, and gave them a quick look over. Her expression turned from irritable, to completely furious as she stuffed the papers into a manilla folder ((still used during interrogations, for easy access to files when needed)) and made her way back into the room.

Her face was more neutral than angry now, having given herself time to remove some of the anger from her face, but there was still a hint of irritability as she dropped the folder on her side of the table and took a seat across from Jeff. She gave him a quick glance before opening the folder and going to the first page "Jeff Solaris…I knew your parents when I started working for the force, I'm sorry for your loss."

She turned away from the papers and looked Jeff in the eye, her neutral face being too hard to read "So, do you want to wait for your lawyer, or are you willing to waive that right and tell me what happened tonight?"

[Jeff Solaris]

"I'll waive my right for the lawyer." said Jeff. "What happened tonight was likely another attempt by the big 4 to kill me. Again."  Jeff was not a very tolerant individual. Attempts on his life were one thing every now and then. However when it became a repeated problem Jeff did not want to deal with the madness.  "As for your apology for my loss thank you. Another reason I am here is to collect all of their inventions I am allowed to. For I believe there might be something on them that is the cause for me having to fight off mercenaries almost every night. Personally I am almost ready to pay some off duty police officers to deter any late night visits."  

Jeff was frustrated, and rightfully so.  Jeff knew he needed to do something about his problem. His survival depended on not having people coming at him to kill him nearly all the time. When that happened, it got very annoying very fast.  Looking at the file Jeff considered it. What did they have on him? It might be an interesting read. 

"Also, could I have a copy of your file on me? I want to know what exactly is in it." 

Pariah Tech and Securirex were two of the banes of his existence.  The other 2 Mega Corporations irritated him just as immensely. What he planned to do to them was not going to be pretty. It might even get him arrested if the police found out. Suffice to say those Mega Corporations would not be attacking him when he was done. At all. Sighing, Jeff asked. 

"Do you mind if I take out my laptop and link you to my secure feed of what happened earlier?" 

[Saber]

Kate leaned forward and looked at Jeff when he asked for the inventions his parents made, as well as a copy of his file. The fact that he had the courage to ask for his files, and for off-duty officers as his personal night watch, knowing what he was to the digital world, was a bit insulting to her role as a law enforcer. So, in response, she silently pulled out her terminal. But rather than give him access to her files, made sure the wireless was deactivated, before playing the security feed from the HQ lobby, both video, and audio, of Jeff's entire discussion with the receptionist, up to when she was called to bring the mercs to jail cells.

"The fact that you're asking me for things that even going against police procedures, I wouldn't give to someone who criticizes our jobs, is honestly amusing. I know all about you, Solaris. I know that you wasted your talents that your parents gave you with home schooling by becoming a gray-hat, that works against the system to get money from your parents' ever decreasing back accounts. I know you have purchased a truck load of archery equipment and all other kinds of odds and ends, like a sonic emitter that can jam machine circuits. I even know you have solar-triggered traps that can make your home even a squirrel's worst nightmare just for scavenging food for the winter." She closed the file and lifted it up as if testing him to see how willing he was to get those file "So you'll have to forgive me if I'm hesitant to cooperate with someone who thinks he's a vigilante who knows the ins and outs of the judicial system."

She slapped the folder down in front of her again, placing her terminal on top of the file for added measure "Next time you want to ask someone for assistance, make sure you're not ridiculing her team for doing what they're meant to do, respond to emergency calls when we are called. Just showing up with ten thugs out of the blue, expecting us to know what the hell is going on, is not how we're able to perform effectively. Now, I'm going to hold my tongue long enough for you to plead your case however you want. Explain it verbally, give me security feed, I don't care. But I'm not giving you anything unless I believe you truly deserve it, much less if I can even get approval to release it, given the fact it goes against the protocols your parents agreed to follow when they became tech developers."

She leaned back and crossed her arms, folding one leg over the other while she got comfortable enough to pay attention to what Jeff had to say "Now start talking kid, tell me how this was so much more important than the OTHER attempts at your life that you couldn't just call us for support, and instead had to drive up here personally?"

[Jeff Solaris]

"Well normally none of them are bold enough to bring high powered explosives onto my property. As one of them did, I believed matters had gotten serious."  Jeff pulled out the key to his truck and handed it over to Kate and said. "Inside the trunk is a lead box.  Inside the box is the device they tried to use on my property which looked a lot like an explosive device. And since you cannot give me any of the technology, nor the information on my file I guess I should be on my way. After all, it is likely I'd best not remain here."  Jeff looked over at Kate, before checking something.  His Cosmo Link which was sort of a cell phone like device he had recently finished creating beeped. Jeff pulled it out and saw a text on it from Shrike.  Finally he pulled out his laptop out of his backpack. It showed that 15 had came. 10 of them were armed with blades and high tech laser weaponry which was illegal.  One of which had a faded symbol, perhaps a logo on it.  Two of them were carrying explosives and had been planning to blow his house sky high.  The bomb had enough power to level his property if not disarmed.  "With the recent attempt to bomb me, things have become serious. It must be something my parents made that brings those mercenaries. I don't know what it is. Perhaps if I did, I'd know how to stop any future arrivals. However Kate, as you knew my parents..."

Jeff pulled out a device. Going into one of his bank accounts he immediately asked. "When someone brings a bomb that can level your house completely and reduce you to a smoldering pile of ash it is more important than dealing with just 10 run of the mill thugs. Explosives have changed the game majorly." 

[Saber]

Kate pinched the bridge of her nose. This kid was just full of surprises "And you're just telling me about this bomb now?! Why wait until AFTER asking for your parents' equipment before telling me this? And Bringing the bomb that can level a building to a POLICE STATION? How foolish can you be!" Reactivating her wifi, she picked up her terminal to connect with her avatar "Baretta, have someone from the bomb squad come to the interrogation rooms and have the rest sent to the truck sitting outside HQ, we may have an explosive that could cause massive damage to the surrounding area that needs to be disarmed."

<Understood, I'll have them report to the front of HQ immediately.> Kate placed her terminal down again, glaring at Jeff irritably "…The only information I know about what your parents made that I can legally give you was that it involved trying to save your older brother's life. As for the mercs who you claim are attacking you for people who want this tech, I'm sure we can find a way to either get these criminals to talk, or give them a message to give to their employers that might make them readjust their methods to not involve you."

She stood up and walked around until she was standing a couple feet away, having secretly gestured for Frank to head for the entrance to the interrogation room which he did so not a minute later, and was waiting for them to step out, or to stop Jeff if he tried to run "As for you, you're not going anywhere tonight, Solaris. You're under arrest for the illegal purchase and possession of items not permitted for use by the public, for the illegal hacking of your parents' bank accounts, and regardless of unintentional or not, for endangering the public by bringing a goddamn bomb into a populated area." Her right hand rested on the grip of her taser, her other hand holding a pair of handcuffs "I can promise you your own cell, but you'll be staying here for a few days. And if you resist, I will personally guarantee you're only gonna be digging yourself into a hole you won't be getting out of. So what's it gonna be?"

[Jeff Solaris]

Jeff thought about it. One of his mistakes had been bringing the explosive device into the public area. Yet he had been sure to dismantle the device's explosive components to the best of his ability. In short said bomb would not explode unless it was practically rewired thanks to Jeff's efforts.  "Fine. I'll cooperate. "  Jeff then looked at his Cosmo Link and pushed a button on it. So his brother had been saved using some sort of experimental technology. Interesting. Perhaps later Jeff might work to find out what that technology was.  


"Though how is a bow and arrow illegal for someone like me to own? Last time I checked it was not. Nor was a Wazikashi illegal for anyone to own." 

Jeff paused for a moment and thought about something. Every word he said, every statement would likely only dig himself a bigger grave.  "Shrike. Once they've gotten the bomb out of the truck you know what to do. Clean Slate Protocol."  Shrike nodded, before departing into the cyber space of the truck and unlocking the security on the trunk.  Shrike also took the liberty of disabling the sonic cannon the vehicle possessed permanently so it could not be used ever again. A new one would need to be built. Furthermore he also disabled the electronics of the truck. If Jeff got out, he would now have to walk home. After doing all that, Shrike left the area and went to Jeff's house's network to wait for him there. 

-Exit Shrike- 


Jeff then looked at Kate.  "When I get out, I won't be having any of you give me a ride home. I'll walk." 

[Saber]

"I was talking about that sonic emitter, smart-ass. And thanks for reminding me to add identity fraud to your list of crimes, because you wouldn't be able to buy that without being of legal age, and have a legal permit to own one, which also requires an ID." She snapped the handcuffs on Jeff's wrists, and removed his wrist terminal from Jeff's possession now that he was done giving his avatar orders. "Once you've served your three day mandate, you can have this back. Along with all the other things you have in your possession."

Then Jeff looked at Kate and the attitude in his response made a muscle in her eye twitch irritably, the strain of keeping from retaliating harshly doing a number on her blood pressure. She leaned in and gave him a menacing glare as she spoke "…If you had just kept your mouth shut that couple seconds earlier, I may have gone easy on you because I was friends with your parents…But you had to give me lip when I'm already in a bad mood…Just for that, I'll make sure you're only walking out of here with the clothes on your back, and we'll have a squad car deliver your toys to you when you call for them in your comfy little fortress…"

She stepped aside and waited for Jeff to get up and make his way to the door, before opening it to reveal Frank was waiting at the door for them. She nodded her head to Frank, signaling for Jeff to follow him. Kate gave Frank the terminal and started to turn toward the office section of HQ "Book him, Jameson. And I don't care if you have to cavity search him, he goes to his cell and leaves the building in three days with nothing but his clothes. Got it?" Jameson nodded in acknowledgement, holding Jeff by his upper arm and walking toward prison receiving, where personal belongings were kept in storage until prisoners did their time. Frank looked back long enough to see Kate storm around the corner "I see you got on the Captain's bad side, not the smartest thing to do kid. If there's one thing she's known for, it's her zero tolerance policy."

They entered the prisoner receiving room and Jameson removed the cuffs from Jeff's hands as the doors locked behind them. A balding man looking to be in his 50s looked up, "New criminal for lockup; Jeffrey Solaris, the Captain promised him his own private cell during his three day mandate." One guard entering from the prison wing to collect the newest resident "Please undress so we can record everything on your person for storage. You can get dressed again once you have cooperated."

((No need to get graphic, just do as told and list everything he has on him. A couple more posts then he gets his answers about who might be marking him for death and why. Include everything, even his garments))

[Jeff Solaris]

Defiance would get him into a heap of serious trouble, more so than he already was in. Jeff did not want that. Perhaps in lock up he could learn about some of the people who had made an attempt on his life and more importantly the WHY.  Why was a good question. Why were the Mega Corporations targeting a minor? Why did he have to clean his house of unwanted guests every day practically? With Shrike keeping his house on lock down mode 24/7 until he got out, things were going to change. A legal revenue source was going to be needed.  Jeff took off his wrist watch which also monitored his vitals and would send a signal to Shrike if he was incapacitated or damaged at all. Shrike in turn would send a signal to an ambulance. Furthermore he took off his ear bud which allowed Shrike to give him GPS positioning on himself, so that he would never get lost at all. Being lost was something he did not intend on doing any time soon. 

Finally he was done and had handed over all his possessions. The few scant pieces of tech Jeff had were handed over.  It was all Jeff had with him tech wise so far other than his terminal.  Jeff wouldn't ask for any of his possessions back.  Crime was a problem that needed to be stopped. If he learned who the crook was who had ordered the attacks on him and his parents, well Jeff was not going to be in the best of moods at all. And if he happened to catch the crook? Suffice to say the crook would have financial problems in addition to a lot of pain.  Jeff also took off his jacket which was a specially designed fabric he had worked on, a sort of combination of Kevlar and Nomex that was lighter than both, but more durable. His boots which were steel toed were also taken off. The fingerless gloves that had small barbs on the knuckles were also removed by him, and handed over.  Once he had handed over everything including the tanktop and jeans he wore, he redressed in the tank top and jeans. One of the items he handed over was a PDA he had repurposed into a sort of remote for his yard of death. 

It easily was going to be a 10 mile walk from here, about 2 days worth of walking if he paced himself. Of course if he wanted to tire himself out, he could get it all done in one day. He'd never ask for his possessions back. They had been seen including the prototype. Any attempt to sell them would now end in a miserable failure.  This meant he had to build entirely new devices in order to sell well anything basically because it could be viewed as illegal to market bootleg devices that had already been discovered by Law Enforcement. 

"I believe that is everything." 

Jeff now waited for them to lead him to his cell. Over the next 3 days he planned on getting information. Perhaps some of the criminals might know....something. 

[Saber]

The old man behind the desk took note of everything, even the terminal that was handed over to him by Frank. After everything was recorded, Jeff was given a prison uniform to wear before taking a mugshot picture with his criminal ID number, and was then escorted into a small room by the guard. The room sealed itself shut, and then began to shoot out jets of a smoky white gas, before a digital voice in the room said [decontamination, complete, please proceed through the next room]

A door opened in front of Jeff and the guard was waiting for him on the other side, nightstick in hand and holding a ring of keys and a keycard in his other hand. Silently, he nudged Jeff towards a cell on the back wall, which was conveniently enough, right next to the mercs who tried to bomb him. The rest of the cells were bustling with chaos, the entire block echoing the words "fresh meat…fresh meat…" Jeff was placed in his private cell, with nothing but a bed, a leaky sink with a bar of soap, and a toilet with what looked to be poor quality tissue paper. The door closed behind him and it was effectively locked shut. Afterwards, the guard exited and was out of view.

A few seconds passed before the sound of a door opening and closing could be heard. A couple hours later, just before lights out, the door opened again. Echoing footsteps could be heard in the room, with a lot of booing, hooting and hissing, before Frank was standing in front of Jeff's cell "Sorry for the harsh treatment, kid, but this is what happens to people who go against the legal system. Defending yourself is alright, but taking the law into your own hands? Not the smartest thing to do, Mr. vigilante bomb killer. It's a good thing you cut the right wires on that thing or your whole house would have gone up along with some of the neighborhood, being trained by former officers of the law really can be a bonus sometimes."

He cleared his throat and got himself back on track "Alright, back on topic. I'm just going to give you a quick rundown of what you've missed out on so far; the banks and our team of white hats have found and traced your illegal financial transactions from your parents bank accounts. Since this is a violation of the legal contract signed by you and your legal guardians, all of their finances have been seized and moved to a drive that you won't have further access to upon your release from jail. Talk is also happening between the bank, NPD, and politicians to see if your illegal ways are really worthy of their billions of dollars in credits being released to you in three years.

"Furthermore, your current falsified online ID has been confiscated and all marketing companies you have done business with have been alerted of your actual age, resulting in a minor 250 credit fine and warnings to them for not double checking their fraud detection systems. So the most you can do is buy an M rated game now with your legally registered license. Your truck has also been impounded, and will require a 150 credit release fee. I hate to sugarcoat things, so basically, you're screwed if you don't find a way out of losing everything but the house you live in. And word to the wise, I wouldn't attempt illegal marketing, you'll just find yourself in here for even longer next time."

Frank turned to leave and waved to Jeff "Just wanted to make sure you know all of the details about your situation, kid. But I'm sure a smart and clever hacker like you can figure something out. sleep well, if you can." He left from view and the door opened and shut again, right as the announcement for lights out, and the overhead lights being turned off. The mercs across from Jeff were all laughing quietly at Jeff's situation, amused that he was just as screwed as they were right now.

[Jeff Solaris]

Indeed essentially he was in trouble. This would cut his resources. Nothing would be left for him at all. Probably it would be a good idea to cease all activities, online and otherwise when he got out. Of course learning who was attacking him was essential. A question rang through his head. His parents had saved his brother. Yet how had they done so? The device they had used resulted in the shut down of their company, so it must be some sort of illegal technological device. When Frank was gone Jeff realized something. He might have to do permanently without the money. 

Looking at one of the mercenaries he asked. "I have a question for you. What is the device you are after that causes several visits?" 

Jeff was not messing around.  Tonight, and for the next 48 hours he would not sleep at all.  For one it was not a wise idea to sleep here. If one of them broke out of the cell they could likely attempt to kill and Jeff had no intention of dying at the hands of these mercenaries.  Completing some of the inventions of his parents might be the only way to ensure his financial survival.  Property taxes were one of the main problems he had to deal with. There was also the matter of electricity, running water and many other things such as internet and food.  A deal with the Captain was actually his best bet and would not result in his arrest per say, in the near future.  Jeff waited for the mercenary to reply. 

[Saber]

One of the mercs looked at Jeff and smirked "So now you're being the talkative type huh? Sorry kiddo, but we just meet with a guy in a hooded coat, and he slides us a paycheck and instructions. He hasn't told us about any device…Though he did tell us to look for a strange looking helmet when we made sure you were dead."

The merc leaned against the bars of his cell and kept staring at Jeff with cold, emotionless eyes "Even if I knew what the hell our employer wants from you, I doubt telling you would be worth anything to you because at the end of it all, you're just a punk kid who's been marked for death. Unless our payroll is cut, or we get orders to stop, we're just gonna keep coming after you until the moment your blood stops pumping."

The merc walked back to his bunk and laid down on the top, while his medically treated accomplice was resting in the bottom bunk "And you better pray we don't turn this into a personal matter, because then a cut in our pay won't make a difference. One way or another, we'll want you dead…Remember that when you get shipped out of here in three days, kid…"

[Jeff Solaris]

So it was some sort of helmet. Piecing the ideas together Jeff thought of something. His parents had mentioned a theory that the brain could be uploaded into the digital world. Had they perfected it? Made it more than a theory? If so, that probably was what the mercenaries were looking for.  Yet how could such a device exist? Wait. It likely was in police custody.  "News Flash. I've checked every inch of my house from top to bottom. There is NO strange looking helmet there. So your attempts to come after me are pointless, because the device you are likely looking for is not there."  And if they turned into a personal matter Jeff would have a lot to worry about.  A deal with the Police was now his only way to survive. 


Jeff then asked a nearby police officer. "Tomorrow could I talk to Kate? I've got a potential deal to offer." 

Jeff knew he could not allow himself to be brought into problems like this. His property had been checked 5 times by him from top to bottom. And that was before he had weaponized the property. The device was not there, could not be there, and likely had to be in the custody of the police. Thus he had to check their storage facility, get the device, get the mercenaries off his back and save his life. 

The deal would be that he would work for the police as a technology consultant. Yes. That could work. It would give him access to their resources. With their resources he could learn why exactly he had mercenaries to deal with every day. 

[Saber]

"Yeah, like I'm gonna listen to the words of a brat who's on my&nbsp;hit list…But I think I'll give you some benefit of the doubt, and give another of my crew a call to figure out what my employers will say about it. Just remember to sleep with one eye open, kid, you aint out of the woods yet." The merc closed his eyes and ignored everything else that Jeff had to say for the rest of the night, only caring about figuring out why his men were being taken out by some punk kid with a batman complex.

The following morning, Jeff was back in the interrogation room, still in his prison suit and still in handcuffs. Kate walked into the room and took her seat across from Jeff, giving Jeff a no-nonsense glare as she crossed her arms and got comfortable "Alright, Solaris, what's this all about?"

[Jeff Solaris]

Jeff looked at Kate, as he had been considering this for a bit.  Jeff then finally said to her. 

"Upon analysis of my situation, and the realization I have no legal credits at my disposal other than some money from when I was younger that I have not yet spent, I have come to the conclusion that I must get a job. Since I am good with technology, logically the job that best suits me would be as a consultant for the police department, that is if you'll have me. I could also help do some of the field work." 

Jeff was not going to play all of his cards yet. Kate did not need to know that he knew that his brother was his avatar.  Neurovirtualization was a science that in theory could work. His parents had also made more avatars than Shrike. In the past it had taken them far longer, weeks and sometimes months to complete those. Shrike had been done in 5 days flat. Logically it had to be his brother that was his avatar, James was Shrike. It was all there is to it. Still he tried not to reveal his knowledge and keep an about face.

 

[Saber]

Kate raised an eyebrow when Jeff asked to work for the NPD as a consultant, curious how he thought he had any place akin for a job in law enforcement when he had recently been going against it "You want to be a consultant for the NPD? How exactly would you be consulting us hmm? And what makes you think we even need a consultant in the first place?" If Jeff was going to try and get a job in her territory, she was going to put him through the ringer before she even considered it. "I'm also curious why you would want to do field work? I can't exactly trust a criminal to work under me after just being arrested and living a great deal of his life leaving my men with messes to clean up. So give me one good reason why I should hire a criminal in a field that he was arrested for making a living going against." True to Franks's comments about her, she was definitely known for her zero tolerance. If Jeff wanted to get anything out of the deal plea, he was going to have to try and talk his way into Kate's good graces.

[Jeff Solaris]

Jeff then looked at Kate. There was one reason, and one reason only that she should hire him as a consultant. As to what he'd be consulting on, well their technology of course. They needed the help, and potentially it would give him more stuff to do in his lab at home. "Why I'd be helping you with your technology of course."  Jeff then paused for a moment, his smile turning into a grimace.  For he had realized something. Likely the 'hooded man' belonged to one of the Mega Corporations or something. They had always wanted the technology of his parents. Wait. A motive for the death of his parents. Their scientific developments were the reason his parents had been attacked.  "And as to why you'd hire me on the field, well you've seen how ingenious I am with weapons.  Plus I do happen to have a bit of intel on who exactly hired the mercenaries, it isn't much mind you but it is still going to be useful Kate. And if that isn't enough, I have a third reason. But I won't tell you that with the hand cuffs on." 

Jeff waited. The ball was now in Kate's court. She could take his offer, or refuse. If she removed the handcuffs, he'd tell her about his suspicion that the hit men who took out his parents were connected to the Mega Corporations.  It was an idea that had been finalized by his talk with the mercenaries. Later he'd try to bribe them to go away. 10,000 creds were all he had left, so about half that 5,000 creds could be a sufficient bribe to give him a few weeks to prepare.  He needed time to work on some new defenses anyway. 

[Saber]

Kate's brows furrowed when Jeff called her by that short name. She hated it when people addressed her as such, the only reason she tolerated it when Jake called her that was because of her respect for his dedication to the force when he was needed. Jeff was being arrogant with his replies as always, but she had to admit she was curious about what his third reason was. Getting to her feet, she walked over and used the key to remove the cuffs. But before she unlocked them, she stood over Jeff with an authoritarian glare "One. Never address me as 'Kate' ever again. You are to address me as Captain Bale, or Kathryn, but only if I'm in a good mood. Two. After you give me your third reason, if I deem it worthy enough to consider having you as an asset to the NPD, I will give you my terms. Whether you agree or disagree is of little consequence, because some of them are non-negotiable for anyone in your situation. Are we clear Solaris?"

She made sure that she got a confirmation from Jeff before un-cuffing his wrists and making her way back around the table "Jameson, retrieve Jeff Solaris' terminal from his prison locker, but place a wifi lock only I can authorize for removal before bringing it in. If he's willing to work with us, I think we can trust him enough to keep his terminal on hand." She sat down and crossed her legs, arms resting on the armrests of the chair "Alright, let's hear this third reason, and it better be good if it requires you being un-cuffed."