Afterburn (Connor x Reader - Connor POV)

Thousand Yard Stare

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1. Thanks for reading my work! If you're enjoying it so far, please leave a vote and/or a comment on your way out (even if we talk in the server) <3 I LOVE hearing your feedback, and it helps me get a new fic like this off the ground!
2. See next chapter (the guide) for an update schedule/more info on the fic that mirrors this one.
3. Have a great week!

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Elena clasped her fingers, leaning on her elbows. Line by line, she scanned the contents of each offering brought to her by Connor and Liera. One was the folder from North; new and perfectly held together by a decorative fastener. The other was also a folder, though the front of it was stamped with a rugged DPD crest – its edges worn, a rubber band holding it shut. There was a method to the madness inside as clips held pictures and notes in place. Connor found it humorous how each folder accurately represented the women who'd turned them in. One poised, appearing perfectly manicured, and the other, a meticulous mess. He was unable to get a good view of any of their contents, however, so he studied Elena instead, fascinated by how she managed to look both calm and unnerved at the same time.

She leaned back in her chair, drumming on the pages sprawled out in front of her. She looked to her right, her expressions drifting from one to another like the snow outside. She let out a long, drawn-out sigh.

"Isn't it ironic how the further our technology evolves, the more archaic our means of data transfer become?" She absent-mindedly thumbed at the parcels, "Folders. Paper. Polaroids. Things I never expected to depend on in the year 2038. But, as they say, 'paper trails can't be breached.'" She snickered, "This one even has handwritten notes..."

Poetic as it was, Connor wasn't in the mood to reminisce. 

"Did Specialist Lastimosa mention anything about the missing CyberLife personnel?" He asked, ever mission-oriented, "I was hoping she would be able to verify North's claims."

Elena's mouth lifted at the corners, "What a peculiar question..."

"I don't understand how that question would be 'peculiar.' It seems quite relevant to the task at hand. Aren't you alarmed by the speculations?"

"Of course I am." She spat, "Phoenix's greatest adversaries are missing, and they might be collaborating under federal protection. That would undoubtedly complicate things for us." She tilted her face, eyeing him up from a different angle, "What I meant was, you seem quite unfazed by the events that took place early this morning."

"You mean with Markus and Eloise?"

"Yes. That is what I am referring to."

He was tired of talking, and eager to act. The sooner this conversation was over, the sooner he could return to the field and join the hunt. Elena's mixture of emotions threw him off, and he wasn't sure what to say in order to end the meeting as quickly as possible.

"Eloise was assisting Amanda, and Markus was assisting Eloise in that endeavor." He decided to stick with the truth and choked down the anger it invoked, "They've been handled." His throat constricted, and his voice lowered, "Neither of them deserve a second thought, or another second of our time. I suggest we stay focused on the matter at hand."

She huffed, nodding in a manner that indicated she'd been unexpectedly surprised, "You do well in the face of adversity. A trait of a worthy associate."

"You already knew that, or you wouldn't have recruited me." His patience was running low, "Did Specialist Lastimosa's report verify North's claims, or not?"

"Partially." She seemed irritated at his lack of willingness to engage in further discussion, "Her notes confirmed that Dr. Seymor was interrogated en route to Central Station, and that Dr. Kamski was interrogated on site. She also confirmed that they were both released into Special Agent Perkins' custody after the fact. No word on Dr. Graff, however." She turned in her chair, "Officer Thorn?"