5228/Even the Moon is No Escape.

Even the Moon is No Escape.
Date of Scene:	17 February 2021
Location:	The Moon
Synopsis:	Carol discovers that Colette's doppelganger is a meddler too, but at least this time it's her own life she's meddling with. Kind of. Look, doppelgangers. It's confusing.
Cast of Characters:	Colette O'Connail, Carol Danvers

---

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    SHIELD receives a lot of odd tips and messages, and employ a small army of people to filter through them to determine if they're worth following up. Very often the messages end up in the trash. Sometimes they get looked into. Sometimes they get pushed up the ladder. Some messages are not even immediately understandable, and these can be annoying, as they may contain something useful or may be a real waste of time. When a message is in some kind of code or cypher, it tends to get looked at by some smart and often frustrated people who have their time wasted more often than not, but have to go through the process anyway.

    When the cypher team determines that some of the message is written in Kree numerals and contains Carol's name, there's a very obvious place for that message to get passed on, because you don't mess around when someone's writing things in Kree numerals.

    It takes a little bit of SHIELD cypher team ingenuity to figure out the message, but largely because it's not actually a cypher, it's lunar co-ordinates, and a time and date. The co-ordinates point to a rather basic Russian moon base, erected somewhat hurredly not far from the Watchtower, which has been unoccupied since it was constructed, and was probably intended to be more of a political message than a practical lunar base. It does however have four smallish rooms, a substantial oxygen supply and atmospheric recycling facilities, and an assortment of equipment undoubtedly intended to be used for monitoring activities at the Watchtower should Russia deem it necessary to spend the money putting Cosmonauts up on the moon to do so.

    Visiting the base will find it has not been as unoccupied as it should have been, though by the looks of it not by Russian cosmonauts. There are empty food containers, including several from American fast food outlets, some blankets, and a few books and newspapers. If the base was on Earth it would look as if some homeless person had been taking advantage of it, but that seems rather unlikely. The lights and air system are switched on, so someone has been there recently, but the base is, at the specified time, apparently unoccupied.

Carol Danvers has posed:
To be honest, Carol is really one of a very small handful of people who even speak or understand Kree in SHIELD.

Almost all of them are assigned to SWORD, which is pretty much not even talked about in regular SHIELD.

The use of her regular old name and Kree numerals definitely does get flagged and routed for her review. She assigns some SWORD Analysts to take a look at it, because honestly this stuff makes people's day. Sure she could have probably run it through the Kree computer in her suit but why deprive analysts of their jobs with automation.

The fact that the lunar coordinates are for the Russian 'Moon Base' actually makes her shake her head. "Right then.... " she sighs lightly then smiles to the Analysts and heads to the roof of the Triskelion. <'Control, headed up to the Moon to check out a suspicious message from the Kremlin's snarky dumpster fire moon base. If the Moon blows up have Nat go kick someone in the balls in Moscow.'>

Which they probably won't do.

Probably.

Still Carol transforms her civvies into her Captain Marvel gear on the way up and by the time she hits the roof and snaps off that message she is already halfway to orbit. Blazing a trail towards the moon with haste.

Once at the base she lets herself in and starts to kick around the place examing it quietly. Her hand held up scanning even as she kicks an empty food container. "Well.. someone has been up here."

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    "Yeah, that would have been me," a voice says. There wasn't anyone there a moment ago, but now there is. Carol's cosmic senses don't pick up any suggestion of a threat, but her more terrestrial sense of hearing might be enough to give her a sinking feeling, because she recognizes the voice, and it's Trouble.

    Only it probably isn't. It certainly sounds like Colette and it has the same features, but she doesn't look quite the same. Her hair isn't blonde, but then bleach does grow out. Colette always dresses rather expensively, but this Colette is dressed rather casually in jeans and a sweatshirt that don't look like a great deal of money was spent in obtaining them. The body language and tone of voice is distinctly different - not much of Colette's confident swagger here. This one looks a touch haggard and she speaks more softly.

    "Hello Captain Danvers," she says, pulling a chair out and taking a seat. "No, I'm not the Colette you know," she confirms. "Yes, I came heree through a portal. No, I didn't lure you here to murder you, and I have no intention of murdering anyone or taking anyone's place or any of that stuff. I just want to talk, and I believe it will be mutually beneficial. I have some useful information. Is that okay?"

Carol Danvers has posed:
The inward sigh when she hears the voice. Trouble. I mean honestly the girl's codename in her SHIELD file is The Meddler not Trouble. Because seriously Colette O'Connail both has a file with SWORD and is a Meddler in others affairs.

Carol turns pivoting to look over at this Colette and blinks once. "Huh." she notes as she studies the young woman. It is pretty clear from her expression she has realized that this isn't the Colette she is use to dealing with, even before she admits it.

"Well. One, if you had intended to murder me I would know it and probably would have blasted you through the moon base into a lunar orbit." she frowns though studying her quietly now. "Two, I'm always fine talking though I will note it will be pretty hard to believe your not evil or crazy."

Pause.

"All things considered you know."

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    "Really, Captain Danvers. Just because I come from a universe full of evil and crazy people, you assume I must be the same. That's stereotyping." Colette smirks slightly. Apparently the two Colettes aren't all that far apart.

    "I'm not under the influence of Zhed'Zhud'Ger'Uth. Never was." She bites her lip and looks out of the rather murky window across the gray lunar landscape. "My opposite number in this universe apparently considers you a friend, but I have no idea how much you know about her. Or how much she resembles me. But I have a rather powerful psychic shield. She probably has too, because as far as I can discover our universes are really pretty similar beyond the fact that four decades ago my Earth was attacked by a monster and wrecked. Your Earth is a paradise by comparison. I'm not surprised so many people from my world wish to live in yours instead."

    "There are differences," she says with a small nod of her head, looking back to Carol. "You, for example. But mostly similarities. There are things I know from my universe which are true here too, and which I suspect you don't know. I invited you here because I wanted to discuss the possibility of trade. Like I said I'm not here to take anyone's place, but I'm not exactly resource-rich here in your universe. Only one thing that confuses me is who I would be trading with, exactly. I mean there is information that would be valuable to your SHIELD. There is also information that would be valuable to the Kree Empire."

    Colette takes a deep breath and gestures with a hand towards Carol. "I mean you're wearing what looks very like a Starforce uniform, and you can read Kree. Yet as far as I have been able to determine, there is no official relationship between Earth and the Kree empire in your universe. Or basically... any public information about the Kree at all. So maybe you're a Kree agent, and honestly that's none of my business except that it changes the nature of a potential trade, you know?"

Carol Danvers has posed:
Carol wanders over and puts her back to one of the walls, leaning against one of the built in tables as she studies this Colette. Her arms crossing as she studies an Alternative Universe version of the The Meddler.

"Well I am flattered she considers me a friend. Lord knows she did enough truth testing trying to make sure I was trustworthy so I guess I passed." amusement really there.

"Also, I know a lot about her. I'm also not going to confirm or deny anything about her to her doppleganger from an insane dimension." pause "That said a powerful psychic shield could theoritically manage to stop ZZGU from messing with someone. That or suitably powerful magic."

"As for me not being the same here or there, it doesn't surprise me and others have confirmed as much. With the ZZGU incident happening there before I joined the Air Force there is little to no chance I would be who I am today."

"Also your are remarkably like your doppleganger. She accused me of being a Kree Spy or Agent too." a slow shake of her head. "I'm human... or well mostly. I work for SHIELD. I am a member of the Avengers and the Justice League." pause "I also kick the Kree's ass on a regular basis when they get out of line or try something stupid like trying to take me prisoner. As for the uniform.. I am a bit nostalgic though I made it my own." she gestures and something happens. The very different color and other subtle notes uniform changes on a molecular level through cosmic energy manipulation into a pair of jeans, a bomber jacket, and an AC/DC concert t-shirt.

"As for who you are trading with I suppose my Mercenary new friend. SHIELD and Captain Marvel. If what you have is worth the trade."

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    Colette smiles a little, but it's a weary sort of a smile. "I suppose she would have. She'd recognize things as much as I would, and it's important to know what you're dealing with. Because I don't know nearly enough about her yet, I don't know whether she'd care if you were a Kree agent though. So you did deny something about her to me already, even if you didn't intend to."

    She gets up and walks over to cabinet, opening it up to pull out a stack of handwritten papers. "I lied. I don't have anything to trade, because I'm going to give you this, whether you give me anything in return for it or not. From the sounds of it you're not that close to my opposite number here after all, so maybe you can be persuaded to reveal a little more of what you know about her to me, if I can persuade you my intentions are good. Because that's the main reason I came her."

    She hands the stack of papers over to Carol before sitting down again. A glance at a few sheets will quickly indicate that it is at least ostensibly copious notes on perhaps thirty people that have come through the portals from the other universe, and what they have been doing in this one. "Case fourteen is going to be the tricky one. She's a shape shifter. As far as I have been able to find out from public records her opposite number in your universe died from birth complications, but for all I know that's a cover story. The rest are mundane."

    "Not everyone in my universe was a victim of Zhed'Zhud'Ger'Uth, Captain Danvers. Some of us resisted. More than you might think. I was one of them. When your people ended that threat in my universe I crossed over here to help out a little with the overspill from my universe that has arrived here. But mainly because knowing there was another, different, version of myself in your universe was worrying to me. I know who I am, but I don't know who /she/ is. But I know what I might have been. What I used to be."

Carol Danvers has posed:
Agent Danvers shrugs lightly as she studies Colette. "I figure it is a bit fair honestly. Your doppleganger probably owes me from the amount of sass and questioning if I am a Kree agent."

She cants her head a little bit to the side as she watches the cabinet be opened and all of those hand written papers pull out. "I know what you are. I know how to find our version of you when I need to. I know a good deal about her. Still not sure about revealing anything about her to you. Though I could probably arrange for you two to meet without anyone doing anything stupid."

She reaches out to accept the stack of papers from Dopple-Trouble.

She flips through the files quietly. "Shapeshifters, I swear."

After skimming a bit she looks up and frowns. "Colette is ... interesting. Why do you think she might have turned out wrong enough for you to cross dimensions just to find out?"

Yeah so Carol isn't Nat or Bobbi but she is trained in spycraft. She just prefers to blow up problems or punch them. She is totally trying to shake more intel out of this Colette about other Colette.

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    "I could arrange to meet her easily enough myself," Colette says, chewing her lip thoughtfully. "I've been studying her a while. That's what lead on to you. Looking through her contacts on her phone. Revealing my presence to her would make it harder to determine... what I need to determine. Honestly I'm hoping I can persuade you that it's in everyone's interests you don't let her know you met me, though I arranged this meeting because I felt I could afford to take the risk at this point."

    With a soft sigh she's back on her feet and over to another cabinet, where she pulls out a couple of cans of cola "She's not what I feared she might be, at least. But I don't know enough yet. She might have turned out wrong, because I might have, except that I was born into a very specific environment that allowed me to develop in a certain way, and that environment doesn't exist on your Earth."

    "My life is an experiment performed by what I was before I was born. One that could have gone either way, really. In my case that experiment went the right way. In her case... I'm not sure it went either way. It's confusing. She seems to have a number of... well, people like you, amongst her contacts. Why is she so involved with The Titans but not a member? It raises my suspicions. On the other hand she seems to genuinely care about you and Terry and Kian, and that's a positive sign. So I really don't know. I don't know how much she remembers either... or how much of what she has remembered you are aware of. " Doppel-Colette holds out one of the cans, offering it to Carol. "But I mean the mere fact that we are standing here on the moon and I have neither a space suit nor a space ship probably hints at why I think she could be a concern if she didn't turn out right. Would you expect the Colette you know to be able to get to the Moon?"

    Apparently Colette knows perfectly well that Carol is trying to shake out that intelligence, and hasn't exactly given up the idea of a trade after all - what she's revealing is more tantalizing than useful, but it does seem to come with the offer of like for like.

Carol Danvers has posed:
"Well this is complicated. Also when did you manage to get her phone?" she doesn't really care to be honest, it is just interesting as a point of data that she is stalking her dopple-here so closely.

She keeps skimming files as she listens.

"Your life being one big experiment is diffently a mood I can relate to Alt-Colette." she looks up though listening closer now. "I don't think she trusts herself with the Titans. She was instrumental in getting them back together but .. she doesn't seem to trust herself getting close to anyone to be honest."

She holds out a hand declining the drink though. Nothing personal in her expression but she won't be imbiding anything even if her seventh sense tells her the situation isn't about to mess her up.

"Actually yeah I think Colette probably could get to the moon based on what I know about her to be honest. I also know you are trying to pump me for information about your doppleganger from our reality by fishing through all this information about her. Your giving me just enough to encourage me to give you information about her back."

Her hands spread. "So how about you lay it out. What about her worries you so much that you would cross dimensions if you are part of the resistance in your home timeline. What would make you take these risks out of the goodness or worry of your heart ... what is it you aren't that you think she might be."

A shrug.

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    'Alt-Colette' gives the slightest of shrugs before returning the spare can of cola to the cabinet and opening her own. "If I can get to the moon, getting into someone's apartment while they are sleeping isn't exactly a challenge," she replies. She sits in thoughtful silence for a few moments before taking a sip of the cola.

    "You trust her, sort of," she concludes after a little while, staring into space. "Terry does too. That's promising, anyway. You know I wondered if you or he were... you know." She gives a slightly embarrassed grin. "If there was something between you and her. It's hard to tell from a limited set of communications. But people are much more open here, aren't they? It's not like where I'm from. It's not like my life. I've spoken to people in the few weeks I have been here more than I have spoken to anyone in the previous four years."

    The doppelganger blinks a few times and takes another drink before turning to look back to Carol. "I guess a sense of responsibility. I mean she's /me/, kind of. So if she's a problem, she's /my/ problem. What I am not that she might be is utterly amoral. Because I used to be, a few centuries back. Then I accidentally developed morals, and the experiment was creating a body for myself and being born on a world as a child to develop into a person who could determine which side of that equation was the correct one. I'm not sure it was a logical experiment -- I think I tricked myself. It's the old nature versus nurture thing. I have two natures, so I used nurture as an arbiter. My nurture was highly moralistic. I don't think hers has been."

Carol Danvers has posed:
"Well, despite constant crisis and alien invasions.... this world is just pretty fundementally different than your dimension." she considers that.

"I'm not surpised you have had more interaction with people. They are free here. Free will that is. They aren't driven mad either. I honestly get why so many are coming here. It doesn't make it safe though for us to allow them to be here until they are healed though... and probably not then. It would be better to make your world better and let everyone have a clean start somehow than open the flood gates." she sighs though.

"She .. may be prone to many things. I do not think our Colette is amoral or immoral though. She does genuinely seem to care about others."

Honestly some of this is news to Carol. The two natures. Experiment. This isn't quite the whole Martian line that she got from the other Colette. Yes it wasn't a straight forward I am a martian but. This is some new thing sto think about.

"How do you plan to make sure she isn't a monster?"

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    "The people of my world are our burden, not yours." The response is rapid and surprisingly heart-felt. "What your world has done for ours already is a debt we can never repay. Although we had a resistance, there were very few of us who could have ever got close enough to make a difference. We might never have been rid of Zhed'Zhud'Ger'Uth without the help your world gave. They should not be here."

    DoppelColette lapses into silence a while. "Your world is a paradise, Captain Danvers. But I intend to return when I have done what I can here. My Earth needs to be rebuilt. My coming here is..." she gestures to the pile of notes on other doppelgangers. "My own small way of returning some part of the debt. With what I can do to help with those, and with... myself."

    She stares down a the can in her hands for a few moments before taking another sip. "This /is/ my plan. Observing her. Finding out information from people who know her. This interaction between us has told me more about who she is than your words have. Most of it is reassuring, but it bothers me that she has not chosen to be... well, more like me, I guess. Or like you. When there are crises even in paradise -- why doesn't she help out? She could."

    She looks thoughtfully up at Carol. "It suited me that you consider yourself secure, that I'm not a threat to you. That makes you more open. When you said that if you thought you were in danger you would have blasted me into orbit, that wouldn't have helped. I've been killed a few times before and it's an inconvenience, but it only slows me down. I don't think you knew that about her, and it probably suits her in the same way. Be careful of her, Captain Danvers. If she's not who you think she is, she's dangerous."

Carol Danvers has posed:
Carol inclines her head. "I'm not everything people assume I am either Dopple-Colette... man I need a name or call sign for you if we are going to be having an interaction."

A light sigh. "Regardless. I know I am not in danger here with you. It is very complicated. The fact that you and she are something very hard to fight or kill. Well that is interesting. It still doesn't mean I am over confident dealing with either of you."

A shrug. "She doesn't mean me any harm or pose a danger to me. Even if she is dangerous. Does that follow?"

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    DoppelColette blinks at Carol a few times and looks away. "This must be pretty awkward for you," she says quietly. "I apologize for that. If I didn't think it was important, I wouldn't have... We don't need to speak again, after this. If I obtain more information on other Leapers I will provide it to SHIELD anonymously.

    She looks back again, and gives a brief nod of her head. "It is reassuring that you feel that way about her. You said -- that she cares about people. Perhaps she has not recovered as much of her capability as I have, and that is why she doesn't help more directly. Maybe that will come in time, as she wakes up more. That has its own dangers though."

    "It's hard to know if I am... if some of this is wishful thinking. Because I want her to be... good." She gives a half-smile that seems almost shy - an expression quite alien to Carol's knowledge of the other Colette. "I'd like that. To know there was a version of me living in your paradise world who was happy. Who had friends she cares about and who care about her."

    "Thank you," Doppel-Colette says. She downs the rest of her can and puts it down, before standing up. "I am not sure it was the right thing to do to tell you as much as I have if she has chosen not to, but it felt like the amount I have imparted was prudent. You have reassured me about her, and about yourself. I don't think I need to occupy your time any longer. Oh... I won't be coming back here, so please don't waste any resources monitoring it."

Carol Danvers has posed:
"She is ... honestly she seems afraid of meddling or interacting with people too much. I think she is worried about herself if I had to put a finger on it. I'd say that caution is a good sign, though it would be better if she had more friends or got closer to people I think. I'm not sure she is happy but I think she is trying."

She sighs and straightens up as well now studyingf Colette. "I do not mind if you reach out again or take more of my time. I'll hand these over to analysts. We can chase this down and do some verifying of your intentions. No offense but... my people like to verify things."

She gestures around her. "I don't mind not coming back here, the Russians are just flexing to snub their nose at the League so my stopping by is probably infurtiating them. Especially with the food containers strewn about. Will be a mystery for them to puzzle over."

"I should probably get back. But yeah reach out if you think there is a risk or if you have more of these files." indicates what she is holding.

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    Alt-Colette takes a quick, guilty look at the mess she has left here over the last few weeks. "Yeah, I guess I better be back at least once to clean up. Maybe I'll just leave that other can of cola as a thank-you and to add a little mystery to their lives."

    She looks back to Carol with a grin, but drops the grin quite suddenly as if she felt guilty about that in some obscure way too. "Uh... well you have my research. I think by verifying that you will be able to verify my intentions. These are the ones I'm certain of - they came through the same portal I used. I intend to track down some more - there appears to be a kind of underground with a number of the Leapers from my world staying in contact with each other. If I can get an 'in' for that, I should be able to provide more names..."

    Colette's words drift off, and she chews her lip nervously. "Captain Danvers... Carol... thank you. Talking with you has been reassuring. If it helps to reassure you in turn, I have already promised to Terry O'Neil that I will not take any action towards my opposite number without his agreement." She opens her hands and spreads her arms wide. "I extend that promise to you, too."

    There is, suddenly, movement in the room - though it is not objects moving but rather shadows. The shadows lengthen as if the light casting them were moving down in the sky, but rather than lengthening in the same direction, they all move inwards towards Colette, pooling about her feet. "Good-bye, Captain Danvers," she says, taking a half step forwards and disappearing.