[Close to the edge - could be a show of good faith, of a sort. Maybe.]
I'll be there.
---
Cloud does speak with Fred, and ultimately...she encourages him to give it a fair shake, even if she's worried about him going alone. He assures her it's fine, he can handle himself, and he believes it.
And if something goes wrong, well, the SOPD will be all over this place like ants on honey the second they check Cloud's texts via the surveillance network.
Cloud finds himself hoping it doesn't come to that, though.
He shows up a few minutes early, parking his hovercycle a block or so from the border and walking the rest of the way. He does have his taser on him, but not openly, and for once he's out of uniform. Don't want to alarm anyone or call attention to himself.
Steve, too, has gotten there early; the drugstore has gone out of business, but it's not boarded up and he managed to splice the wiring into the nearby breaker so the lights are on and it looks about as inviting as an abandoned building in the blackout block can. He's sitting on the counter, in full view of the door: A tall, muscular blonde with both arms covered in tattoos, flipping a ballpoint pen through his fingers as he waits.
He stops when he recognizes Cloud, though, and stays put where he is so as not to appear threatening.
"Hey. Thanks for agreeing to meet me."
He knows this can't have been easy. He knows it could still be a setup. But he's got contingencies, if it is, and he'd prefer to go into this offering trust, if he can.
"Don't thank me yet. Jury's still out on whether this was a good idea."
Cloud doesn't come far into the store - just enough to put his back to the wall by the door. Getting snuck up on while he's paying attention to this guy? No thanks.
"You already know who I am. You got something you want me to call you?" Because asking for his actual name is likely to be a futile effort, and Cloud wouldn't blame him for keeping it back.
Steve grins a little at that; "I can appreciate the healthy skepticism."
After all, it's a large part of the reason he called the guy here at all. If he hadn't seemed skeptical, he wouldn't be likely to turn on the police.
That grin stays put when the officer asks for a name - well, close enough - while clearly acknowledging it likely wouldn't be the real one. "You can call me Nomad," he says, which is more of an inside joke than anything, and won't mean anything - and, more importantly, won't show up on any official records anywhere. "For now," he adds, because he'd like to eventually get to a place where they could maybe exchange names.
"Look," he finally says. "I know how easy it is to get caught up in what you're doing. To think it's right, without questioning it. I just... I'd like people to think for themselves, a little more. And you seem like a guy who wants to do that. I just want to give you the chance."
For now. This guy - Nomad - seems way too...friendly. Not in a fake way, so much as he doesn't seem like the type to be involved in violent criminal things.
And maybe that's the point, but Cloud's still feeling this out.
His chin lifts slightly, his eyes narrow. "Already know how to think for myself, thanks." Who does this guy think he is, anyway?
Cloud watches him for a long moment, expression unchanging.
"Say I don't." Which is, of course, an admission, if one with the barest sliver of plausible deniability. A little bit of his suspicion fades. "What are you after? You already got that Interventionist out of there, and I'm not looking to follow up. So what else do you want?"
There's less hostility in his tone than the words themselves might suggest. He's treading lightly, but he's listening.
Admittedly, there's a little twitch of Steve's lips at that. He can't help it; his poker face isn't perfect, and this is already going the way he wants.
He's got hope. That's all he's ever needed to keep him going.
"I'm after more people that are willing to think for themselves. Honestly, that's all. The world is a better place when people don't just follow blindly. Especially when they have doubts."
And sure, yeah, maybe some of those people come over to the blackout blocks and help build up the community there. That would be great. But he knows that's a farther leap of faith than what this guy is going to be willing to take right now.
"I just want you to think. About what you see. What you like. And what you don't like about the way you're living." And making other people live.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
-> action!
I'll be there.
---
Cloud does speak with Fred, and ultimately...she encourages him to give it a fair shake, even if she's worried about him going alone. He assures her it's fine, he can handle himself, and he believes it.
And if something goes wrong, well, the SOPD will be all over this place like ants on honey the second they check Cloud's texts via the surveillance network.
Cloud finds himself hoping it doesn't come to that, though.
He shows up a few minutes early, parking his hovercycle a block or so from the border and walking the rest of the way. He does have his taser on him, but not openly, and for once he's out of uniform. Don't want to alarm anyone or call attention to himself.
no subject
He stops when he recognizes Cloud, though, and stays put where he is so as not to appear threatening.
"Hey. Thanks for agreeing to meet me."
He knows this can't have been easy. He knows it could still be a setup. But he's got contingencies, if it is, and he'd prefer to go into this offering trust, if he can.
no subject
Cloud doesn't come far into the store - just enough to put his back to the wall by the door. Getting snuck up on while he's paying attention to this guy? No thanks.
"You already know who I am. You got something you want me to call you?" Because asking for his actual name is likely to be a futile effort, and Cloud wouldn't blame him for keeping it back.
no subject
After all, it's a large part of the reason he called the guy here at all. If he hadn't seemed skeptical, he wouldn't be likely to turn on the police.
That grin stays put when the officer asks for a name - well, close enough - while clearly acknowledging it likely wouldn't be the real one. "You can call me Nomad," he says, which is more of an inside joke than anything, and won't mean anything - and, more importantly, won't show up on any official records anywhere. "For now," he adds, because he'd like to eventually get to a place where they could maybe exchange names.
"Look," he finally says. "I know how easy it is to get caught up in what you're doing. To think it's right, without questioning it. I just... I'd like people to think for themselves, a little more. And you seem like a guy who wants to do that. I just want to give you the chance."
no subject
And maybe that's the point, but Cloud's still feeling this out.
His chin lifts slightly, his eyes narrow. "Already know how to think for myself, thanks." Who does this guy think he is, anyway?
no subject
"Because I'm assuming that's why you don't like what's going on in the SOPD."
Yes, it's a big assumption. But he dares you to say he's wrong.
no subject
"Say I don't." Which is, of course, an admission, if one with the barest sliver of plausible deniability. A little bit of his suspicion fades. "What are you after? You already got that Interventionist out of there, and I'm not looking to follow up. So what else do you want?"
There's less hostility in his tone than the words themselves might suggest. He's treading lightly, but he's listening.
no subject
He's got hope. That's all he's ever needed to keep him going.
"I'm after more people that are willing to think for themselves. Honestly, that's all. The world is a better place when people don't just follow blindly. Especially when they have doubts."
And sure, yeah, maybe some of those people come over to the blackout blocks and help build up the community there. That would be great. But he knows that's a farther leap of faith than what this guy is going to be willing to take right now.
"I just want you to think. About what you see. What you like. And what you don't like about the way you're living." And making other people live.