Participants:
| Scene Title | We Are PARIAH |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | After her rescue, Gillian is taken to an abandoned building and left for the night, only to get her explaination in the early hours of morning. The explaination may not be as factual as it seems. |
| Date | October 28, 2008 |
Once home to dozens of working-class families, this building has long ago been officially evacuated and condemned after it was partially gutted by a fire. The brick exterior is covered with layer upon layer of graffiti, the windows are boarded, and some sections of the roof are less than sound. The fire took hold on the fourth floor and expanded upward. Below that, many of the apartments are still intact.
The rain had to cease eventually, and with it, the effects of the night have as well. It was a worrying night, but Ethan was finally able to leave Gillian, after bandaging her up and seeing to it that her every need was filled. That is of course for answering her questions. Those would come in the morning. Gillian was set up in a small room. The walls aren't much to look at but the floor has been scrubbed vigorously. Anything that could be done to make the place more homey has been done. A mattress is set against the wall, with clean sheets, a clean blanket and pillow. By the bed is a bottle of watter, a bottle of IB Profin (just in case), and a towel folded up.
The door sags against the wall, some of the hinges loose. Sunlight creeps through the boarded up windows. The morning has just begun, and on the other side of the door shuffling can be heard. A banging here, a curse word there and the sounds of footsteps grow louder and louder until the door opens and… In slides Ethan with a tray full of goodies. A glass of orange juice, a plate with scrambled eggs and a few slices of bacon on it, an apple and a muffin also accompany the ensemble. The full frame of the man fills the doorway as the man looks down at the woman. "I hope you slept well.." Comes the cockney accent. "And I also hope you like eggs." The Wolf walks over to the woman slowly, going to a knee to set the tray down in front of her mattress.
Staying the night in stage places generally doesn't end up quite this well. Then again, Gillian wouldn't claim this is the most ideal of endings to a night either. Her hair is messed up, from being soaked and then drying while she laid down, and the make up had been completely washed away by the rain and subsequent cleaning up. A bandage around her stomach near her ribs is visible through the hole in her top, and her bag its nearby, with just a few personal belongings. She wakes up at the banging, still bleery eyed when the man fills the doorway, but she sits up, hand shifting to the bandage. "Eggs are fine," she comments. A glance is made at her watch and then she says, "I'm going to need to leave in a couple hours. I have work today."
"If you think that is the best idea, Gillian." Ethan says softly, pushing the tray in front of her. Standing he goes to walk outside the room. In a few more moments he returns with a fold up chair and another tray. "Do you mind if I eat with you?" The Wolf asks gently, looking down to her. Assuming her answer is yes, he places the chair down and then takes a seat and places the tray on his lap. The food is clean, as well as the utensils. That can't be said about the whole of this place though. "If you think those dogs won't find you at the library where you work.." Ethan gives a bit of a shrug as he gets a fork full of eggs and brings it to his mouth. "I will bow to your wisdom."
In the same doorway that Ethan emerged from appears Amato, looking much as he did when he first encountered Gillian weeks ago. He is missing his tie, and the sleeves of his dress shirt are rolled up, however. He sips a mug of coffee, smiling gently at Ethan and Gillian. "Wasn't there a thing in the paper earlier this month about an attack there, Michael?" Amato takes another sip before looking at the girl, his face full of concern. "You shouldn't underestimate the lengths to which those men will go."
"I don't even know who they are," Gillian responds, looking frustrated at the situation. "Or what they even wanted with me." With a fork of eggs stuck into her mouth, she looks up at the newcomer in the room… and suddenly jumps back, leaving the plate behind on the floor. Her eyes are widened and she pulls the fork out of her mouth, quickly swallowing said eggs, only to brandish the fork as if it were some kind of weapon. "I remember you. How do you people know about me? What do you want? And who the hell was that? They were not the same guys who showed up at the library. They were normal."
Frowning at Amato's entrance, he sighs quietly at Gillian's entrance. "Sidney. You need to give her some room." Ethan reprimands gently, before returning his attention to Gillian. "I am going to answer all your questions Gillian, but let me tell you some things before I do. You are safe here. Whatever decisions you decide to make, my people and I will do whatever we can to protect you." The man assures her. "As long as you let us, we will protect you. But we have no power over you Gillian. If you want to leave, we will not keep you here. We provide a safe haven for you, only if you want it." Ethan says to the woman, taking another fork full of eggs. "Gillian, this is my associate Sidney. He is like you, an Evolved. He may seem a little strange, but he is a good man." He raises his hands to her, "Now please, calm down, eat, and I will answer all of your questions."
Rather than speak, 'Sidney' looks humbly down at his coffee as he shrinks an inch or two back into the other room. He doesn't add to what his compatriot says, but he hardly needs to. Amato simply does his best to look apologetic and harmless as he drinks from his mug.
The accusing fork lowers a bit, but Gillian looks away from the man whose hand she shook once and then back at the other. "Fine. Answer the questions then. But I'm not like him." she adds, pointing the fork at Sidney' as she moves back to settle in front of the plate once again. She casts a glance between the two carefully, but decides to focus mostly on the one who brought the breakfast, and who's doing most of the talking. "Why do I need to be protected? Who were those guys?" she asks, so that he can answer, lifting up her plate and beginning to work on her eggs once again, though looking more at them than the food.
The accusing fork lowers a bit, but Gillian looks away from the man whose hand she shook once and then back at the other. "Fine. Answer the questions then. But I'm not like him." she adds, pointing the fork at Sidney' as she moves back to settle in front of the plate once again. She casts a glance between the two carefully, but decides to focus mostly on the one who brought the breakfast, and who's doing most of the talking. "Why do I need to be protected? Who were those guys?" she asks, so that he can answer, lifting up her plate and beginning to work on her eggs once again, though looking more at them than the food.
"A company that works closely with Homeland Security. They are no the government. A secret arm of the government." Ethan says softly, explaining to her. "They operate in secrecy. They take who they pose as a threat to the rest of society and.. take care of them. Unregistered Evolved individuals, or those who they deem too powerful." The man shrugs. "They are either killed or.. never seen again. We have seen many Evolved dissappear. Or, we've seen cases of them being released back into the world.. but completely changed. Brainwashed to be used as instruments for their uses." Ethan explains, he then gives Amato a harsh look. "What did you do to her to make such a bad impression?" He asks, he doesn't wait for an answer and returns his attention to Gillian. "They deem you a threat Gillian, and they will likely try again. I'm not sure if their intention was to kill or to capture.. but.." He points to the cut on her rib. "Obviously they intended harm."
Amato shrugs, continuing to look wounded as he shirks behind the doorframe. "I shook her hand. Just like I shook /your/ hand, when we first met Michael. Just like I shake /everyone's/ hand." Amato shakes his head before hiding his frown behind the mug once more.
"A company," Gillian repeats slowly, not sounding as if she really understands. She does glance down at her plate for a long moment as the explaination continues, and it does not look as if she likes what she's hearing. "I'm not dangerous, and I'm not…" she starts to protest again, but then she goes silent, frowning. A piece of bacon is picked up from the plate and bit into, chewed up. She's not looking pleased. She's thinking, quite a bit. It's the question to the other man that draws her eyes back up, looking at him. She snorts audibly. "He touched my hand and did something." There's a vague term there showing she has no idea what that something is. "But I don't know who to trust here. Are you working against the government or this— not-government agency? Cause it's pretty obvious you didn't stumble upon it by accident."
Ethan sets the plate down, taking a look at Amato he then returns his gaze to Gillian. "Our friend Sidney, can see things Gillian. Upon touch. He can know everything about a person. That is one of the ways we know about you Gillian. Through Sidney's gift. " Ethan explains, "I'm sorry if he frightened you." The man says with a bit of a smile trying to sooth her. Her next question gives him pause. "Now I must admit Gillian, our reasons in putting so much time into finding and protecting you is not entirely heroic. Certainly we would like to protect everyone, but their resources are nigh unlimited, ours are not. We work against whoever tries to repress humanity's rights. We fight against those who try to bring down people who are simply born different. People who are not dangerous.. You." Ethan says, making eye contact with her.
"We have you here, because we need your help Gillian. We're desperately hoping you will champion our cause. We believe we can make a difference, and I know we have for some, but we need to save more. And for that.. We need you."
"I'm not a hero," Gillian says, but she does glance up at them for a moment, looking over at the man who touched her, and apparently knows things about her, rather uncomfortably. "I do want to go home," she clarifies, putting her fork down and leaving her breakfast with what she's finished so far, even glancing toward her bag, almost as if she might take her things and go home now. "But what do you want from me exactly?"
"Spread the word," Amato says as he peers around the door frame. "The more people we can protect, the more we can get to help us fight back against this oppression, the better. But we have to be careful. You never know who is working for this organization - they don't wear badges like the government."
"I'm not a hero either." Ethan quickly says, looking to Sidney. "And either is he. We aren't heroes. We are ordinary people who have been forced into extraordinary situations. We are forced to adapt. We are forced to deal with what the world has given us. The world has made America an unsafe place to live. For people like you and Sidney, soon, none of you will be able to walk the streets safely. Pausing he gives her a sad look. "Honestly I wish you would stay with us. But if you want to go home, I understand that. But I do ask you to take every precaution, do not go out alone, keep all the doors locked, stay alert." Then he pauses. He allows Sidney to talk and nods, confirming his statement. "You can think about it Gillian, mull it over take some time. But I want you to consider finding people to join our ranks. We will train you, we will guide you every step of the way, and we will do whatever is in our power to guarantee your safety." Ethan pauses taking the last piece of bacon off his plate. Placing it in his mouth he goes to stand. Once he swallows he looks down at the woman. "I will show you how to communicate with us, and if and when you are ready let us know if you want to cooperate. You will join our organization. We.." Pausing he points to the grafitti on the wall, many of it saying 'fortis et liber' "Are Pariah."
 October 28th: Fingerpainted Memories |
Previously in this storyline… Next in this storyline… |
 October 28th: Stranger Than... |