Summary:Mari and Gabby go look for hints on Gabby's background. Log Info:Storyteller: None |
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After her eventful weekend, Mari had asked Gabrielle to introduce her to the friends who had found her in the Disaster Zone and get them to show the two women where Gabby had been found.
They'd been led to the building that's looming in front of them. It was once tall, judging the steel and cement skeleton that towers above them. Now it's just a crumbling wreck, a taciturn monument to the battle that was waged here some years ago.
The rubble is piled deep and some of it has been shifted to reveal the area where Gabrielle was found. Mari is moving carefully over the rubble, moving bits and pieces as she does, looking for clues. "Be careful shifting things, Gabrielle. You never know what we might dislodge."
The ex-model is still sporting the grazes and bruises from her run in on Friday. They're extensive and not easily missed - it looks like she's gone several rounds with a prize fighter at least.
"Found anything yet?"
When Mari reminds Gabrielle to be careful moving things, the effervescent woman beams a smile her way. "I've lived here as long as I can remember, and being careful when moving things is one of the top survival tips." Not that Gabrielle has to worry as much as most people, she can just bring up her tractor beam and hold things until she can get out of the way.
Indeed, it's that bright purple aura that surrounds her now as she moves through the air as though it were water, and gravity is merely a suggestion. "Yeeeeah, I think so." Gabby slides to the side a bit, hovering over an area that's got fairly large areas splashed with brownish-red. Months old, the rains have washed away some areas but enough was sheltered to leave some of it intact. Blood. But old. Not years old, that it might have occurred when the building came tumbling down during the attack, but definitely months old by now.
The news from Detective Grayson has been troubling for Gabrielle, something Mari would notice by the occasionally quiet, almost brooding moments she'll find Gabrille in. Still far less than anyone would really worry about, but a definite deviation from her usual demeanor.
"I know you did, I'm just being careful." Mari offers a smile and moves carefully to where Gabrielle is looking. "Hmmm. This isn't new but I wouldn't say this was from when you were found though. It's newer than that."
It makes Mari frown as she looks on it. She's noticed Gabrielles demeanour but for the time being, she's left the young woman to own thoughts. That might change though. "Is there something under this, Gabrielle? Look …" Gabrille can see the edge of a piece of metal. Not rusty but weathered and battered, meaning it's probably some alloy that doesn't rust or rusts incredibly slowly.
She'll need to shift the rubble but when she does she'll find an opening that leads to what would have been the basement or sublevel of the building.
As they work to clear the section, Mari casts a glance to Gabrielle "Did you want to discuss what the Detective told us, Gabrielle?"
Gabrielle Doe projects her aura out to help Mari shift the rubble and keep it held in place, slowly and carefully. Digging through rubble just like this is one of the things she was able to help the other Zonies with the most, and so she has a lot of practice at this particular application of her power. Someone else might have just blasted away, but Gabrielle's approach is much more careful. Methodical. One of those things at odds with her occasionally child-like innocence.
The mention of Detective Grayson's news though, that brings the raincloud's rolling in. "I believe he's doing his best and what he says is true I just…" She looks over to Mari, features etched with worry. "I just don't *feel* like that's *me*!" And yet, she has the track marks on her arms from drug addiction, even if they're old and that certainly fits in with Grayson's story.
Gabrielle's usual attire in the Zone usually had her arms covered, so they weren't visible, but living with Mari, the older woman would have seen them. Gabrielle doesn't seem to recognize them as anything other than old scars, shrugging and saying she's always had them when asked.
Mari notes the discrepancies in Gabrielles behaviours. The child like innocence and yet seeming competence in many things. It's hard to get a lie past Mari - she just channels one of her spirits and uses the sense of smell and hearing to detect changes in body chemistry and physiology.
She recognises the track marks on Gabby's arms and they've drawn more than enough frowns however, they are old and faded and people do reform.
Mari herself believes Gabrielle. Not just because she wants to. It would take a consumate liar to trick Mari for any ongoing period of time. "I know, Gabrielle. For what it's worth, I don't think the Detective is wrong. You are this Violet person, but you are no longer the woman they have on record. Trauma can change a person, we know that." Change them this much? It's not unheard of, just exceedingly rare. "What do you think? Tell me your thoughts, maybe something will come free for you."
Mari rarely pushes Gabrielle and she won't now, if the young woman wants to drop it.
With the rubble moved, Gabrielle can that piece of metal was possibly quite tall, 7' to 8' tall easily and it looks like it was curved. With the hole revealed, they can both see the underground section. The concrete walls and floors have survived the depridations from above, though there is some rubble on the ground directly under the hole. As Mari shines a torch into the hole and moves it around, the light reflects off something. More metal?
"Shall we go in?" It should be safe.
Once in the hole, Gabrielle will see that this looks like another lab facility. Different to the one they found a few weeks ago but it might be jogging some memories for her.
R
Gabrielle Doe looks over at Mari, and her blue eyes swim with shadows and troubles. "But… how could I be *that* different? I mean, just because I don't remember any of that… isn't the heart of a person the same?" Her manner just seems to droop. Shoulders sagging and hovering a bare inch off the ground.
At least the glimpse into the area below is cause for distraction and the blonde woman nods, floating down through the entrance and shifting her halo to white and dialing it up a bit to flood the room with light.
"I think… It seems a little familiar? I remember crawling out of the darkness when I first woke up." Like being born anew from the destruction.
"Come here …" Mari gestures to Gabrielle when they drop into the hole and wraps her arm around her shoulder, giving the younger woman a squeeze. "The human mind is a strange thing, Gabrielle. No one knows for certain how it works. You were traumatised and we don't know what happened." The dark skinned woman stops for a moment before going on "The important thing is you aren't that woman *now* and unless you're telling you want to be her again, I think that's all that matters. Don't you?"
"Does it now?" With Gabrielle's aura, Mari turns her torch off and lets it drop by the strap from her wrist. "Take a look around, lets see what we can find."
There's a groove on the floor beneath them. Like something sharp and heavy was dragged across it. That groove leads to the far end of the area where there's a big silver pod on the far end of the area. It's got to be 7' to 8' tall and the metal looks similar to that piece they saw above. There's room next to it for another pod and the ground is discoloured like something stood there.
When Gabrielle looks, the 'door' on the pod is ajar and with a bit of effort can be opened further.
Mari, meanwhile, is looking at the computer terminal and cabinets on the other side of the area. "Another lab. What is it with all the crazy science out here?" beat "What have you gto there?"
Gabrielle Doe leans into the comfort that Mari offers, and then shakes her head as the older woman 'asks' if she wants to be that woman again. "But what if I remember things and I'm really like that?" Certainly, it puts a damper on the whole 'finding your past' bit.
As Gabrielle looks around, she picks up things here and there that catch her interest. Shiny things seem to do that especially, like she's some sort of magpie. When she finds the groove in the floor, she follows along above it, bobbing along curiously until she gets to the pod. "I found a uh. Thing." Sometimes, not having a lot of background knowledge is just a pain.
The white light shifts to purple as Gabrielle changes her halo so she can see about gently prying the pod open. "A cocoon?" Like for butterflies!
"You mean what if you really *were* like that?" Mari asks mildly "What if it was? You're not like that now and you don't want to be, that's all that matters."
The door slides open on the pod with a grating sound, like nails down a chalk board. Inside is a husk of woman, the skin dried and papery, the hair wispy. A bit like a mummy - without the bandages.
Gabrielle will also note that the setup down here seems cobbled together. Not that the equipment itself is bad, but mismatched and the way cables are run between things seem haphazard.
Meanwhile, Mari is flicking through the files. "Uh, Gabrielle, don't open th—-" too late.
Gabrielle Doe gives a small squeak as the woman is revealed, flying backwards and bumping into one of the desks and rattling the contents there but aside from being surprised, she doesn't seem too freaked out about it. Honestly, it's not the first time she's uncovered a body while poking around in the remnants of the Disaster Zone.
"It's uh… it's a lady." Gabrielle drifts a bit closer again, the color of her light shifting once more so she can get a better look. "She looks really old. Like, she's been dead a long time, not like… old-old."
See, if Gabby were actually a child, she would have said 'not old like you'.
Mari is already beside Gabby as she opens that door, a couple of files in hand. When Gabrielle doesn't freak, she lets out a small breath. "She does … look at this." Mari holds one of the file to Gabby.
"This … they were creating a drug here, I think. Something called Heat. They were using drug addicts and street rats to make it." Gabrielle can read all this. She can also see the reference to an *exotic catalytic agent* to develop the narcotic and addictive effect. "She was one of their subjects I think."
"Some sort of hallucinogen perhaps? This file mentions people having visions, being able to 'see the rainbow'. Looks like the sideeffects weren't nice though." There might an idea of who this was but Mari looks around as Gabrielle inspects that file. "This was a storage area, I think. According to what this file says, the main testing was done above."
And that's been destroyed.
In the file that Gabrielle has, which isn't exactly scientifically written, is the notation:
Catalyst: veH0TH.
That must be the chemical they were using, right?
Gabrielle Doe slowly drifts down until her feet touch the floor as she turns her concentration to the file that Mari hands her. While a lot of the technical items will go right over Gabby's head, she can still look through for things that stand out.
Chemistry is definitely not on the list of things that Gabby knows, but that word sticks in her head. Her fingers trace over it before she looks over at Mari. "What's a veHoth?" when Mari looks over, Gabby will point it out on the page to her.
"I haven't heard of a drug called that… And a lot of folks here like their hallucinations." Gabrielle notes. At the mention of 'rainbow' though, her hand moves up to touch that vibrant shock of her own hair.
"I don't know Gabrielle." Mari says quietly, watching as the young woman touches her hair. Mari can't help but do the same, smoothing it reassuringly. "It's not a chemical that I'm familiar but I'm no scientist. I'm a model come business owner who can throw a punch."
"But it looks like it was a rare substance they were using to make the drug here. There's references to drawing it from the host. I … don't like the sound of that."
In a way, Mari's trying to keep this light. This has something to do with Gabrielle, she's sure - the young woman had been found above, after all. "Does any of this look familiar?" she asks, flipping through another file "They had several people here and …. look …"
The page that she opens has a photo they're familiar with. Violet Harpers cold hard face peers out from the page.
Seeing Violet's face, her own face, staring back at her is just the cherry on the top of his terrible, creepy space.
Setting the file down, Gabrielle wraps her arms around herself and shivers. "I don't like any of this." She says, turning to look longingly towards the hole where the light filters down from the world above. Looking back to Mari, her voice is very small. "Can we go now?"
Wrapping her arm about Gabrielle, Mari directs the woman back towards the computers. "We can in a moment, let's get what we can though."
In the back of the cabinet there's some fabric folded. When Gabrielle touches it, the material shimmers and changes making Mari blink. The files, the drive from the computer and that fabric are all stowed in Mari's backpack.
It's still a little while before they make the surface again.