Participants:
| Scene Title | Making Contact |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Cardinal catches up with Brennan to get a meet and greet in with Liette. |
| Date | March 20, 2010 |
The inland of Staten Island changes dependent on the path you choose, but for the most, it can be described as containing desolate, sprawling suburbia ripped apart from the sudden overpopulation of Bomb survivor refugees, and the subsequent evacuation that took place nearly immediately after. Streets and blocks of houses emptied of families and taken over by squatters; the libraries, the schools, the churches all left behind and taken over by whoever is brave enough to claim it.
The cluster of civilization is namely controlled by a still developing crime population, a neighborhood known as the Rookery. A large portion of the island is taken over by a somewhat wild, unkempt rural landscape known as the Greenbelt, and most of everything, be it structure or vegetation, seems to be in a stay of slow death and decay. Graffiti stains brick walls, glass windows are broken and boarded, and plant life slowly tries to make a feeble reclamation of the land.
This is New York's forgotten borough, and it looks it.
Liette is sleeping, another day of entertaining, listening, teaching the young woman and carrying out Vincent's request to rehabilitate her and expose her to the world and temper her to it. Start introducing some sense of proper morality to the young woman. Brennan's not one used to being cooped up either like the young blonde and so he's outside, emerging from the treeline and to the shoreline, cup of coffee in hand and making to the frozen edges of the water so that he can spend some time just thinking. He's oblivious to another form of incorporeal company that isn't Vincent.
"Doctor Brennan, I presume." I presume…
It's a whispered, hollow voice that the doctor's heard before, lurking somewhere nearby - just out of sight, perhaps, behind a tree or hidden in a snowdrift.
This is the second time that he's heard that voice before and Brennan stiffen, feet coming to an abrupt stop and face flipping back from whence he came and then around him. "It's you again. Listen, I don't know who you are, and I'm not in the mood to play games with invisible people. Either show yourself, or I'll make you show yourself, whoever you are. And since you know my name, then I'm pretty sure that you know I can do that"
"I'm afraid that I can't do that. Quite literally… and I'm going to have to ask you /not/ to negate me, Doctor, because you'd kill me if you did. I was told to ask it as a favor for Peyton Whitney, if nothing else…" Nothing else… A shadow shifts, just out of view, Cardinal remaining wary, "…take it as a sign of good faith that I told you that, please. There isn't anything I can do to you. There's everything that you can do to me."
Peyton Whitney?
"What on earth does a socialite have to do with an incorporeal evolved who has somehow found me when no one else has found me" Brennan bites out and even though negation is as requested, turned off, he's still looking around. It's really unnerving talking to something you can't see. "How did you find me?" Me. Not us.
"She's a friend of mine… and I specialize in finding people, Doctor. People and information. I'm not working with Rebel, so you've no need to be afraid of that… they're quite insane, I'm afraid. And Catherine is… overzealous. I don't see eye to eye with either of them to be honest," whispers Cardinal, the tattered, trailing blackness of his shadowy form slipping out from behind a tree, spilling over a snowbank and into view, "I'm glad to see that you've gotten away from Jack at the very least… he was planning to use Liette to murder people." Murder people…
"Did Peyton help you find me?" Brennan's movements stop with the appearance of the shadow, stopping long enough to study him as he contrasts against the snow. Cardinal's not screaming in pain and being ripped from shadow so obviously, Brennan's not negating. "If she is, I'd like to respectfully demand that you stop. I removed us from the underground because enough time had passed that it wasn't smart to stay longer. I knew he was planning something, but not to do that" Murder people.
"What's your name?"
"I'd prefer that you not spread it around too much… but the name's Richard Cardinal."
The shadow flows, trails over the snow in fluttering patterns, as though constantly needing to remember itself and draw back within, ribbons of darkness stirring at its edges. "Jack is… a dangerous person. All I can say about him is thank God the crazy sonuvabitch doesn't have his power anymore. As much as I'd love to leave you alone here, I really do need to talk to the girl. That's all. Just talk. You seem to be fairly capable of keeping her safe and hidden for the time being, and I have to guess that she trusts you, so I don't see any particular reason to try and remove her from your care if you intend to continue acting as her guardian." Your care…
"You even contemplate removing her, I'll have no qualms about negating you. I will make this very clear. I care about doing what's right for he and until I'm told otherwise, she's stuck to me like glue. I have her best interests at hand. Not yours or anyone else's. Not some Technopath either." Brennan's hackles are raised. He didn't like that he didn't answer the question about Peyton. There's a brief thought about where the hell he should take the girl now since he'd been tracked but if he'd been using Peyton, then… well, no place was safe.
"You're not the first to come hunting after her and I doubt you'll be the last. So why don't you tell me what it is that you want to talk with her about and I'll tell you whether she might be able to answer any of your questions. Because truth be told, I'd like her to not absorb your ability anytime soon"
"She's a mimic?" A startled whisper from the shadows… apparently, he doesn't know everything. "Damn. No wonder Rebel wants her… everyone would, if they knew. Try to keep that quiet, Doctor. And you don't have to threaten me either, I just said that I had no intentions of doing that," Cardinal states with a hint of irritation at the last, "I swear to God, nobody ever listens when I talk. And since all I can do is talk, you have no idea how frustrating that is." Frustrating…
"I have three children. You'd be surprised how much of an idea I do have of that" He points out. "So the question is then, Mr. Cardinal, what do you want with her. What do you think she possesses in the way of information that you want that you were combing tunnels and now chasing me out here to Staten Island?" He shifts in his spot, finally lifting the cup to his lips.
A whispered chuckle answers that, "Maybe you do know, then…" There's a silent pause as the darkness of Cardinal gathers itself, "…I need to know more about the place she comes from. There are… terrible things going on there, Doctor Brennan. I suspect that the man whose works I'm trying to complete is there as well, in one of those… sensory deprivation tubes." Edward…
If cardinal is looking for a reaction there's just the look and study of man vs shadow. "Two days. Come alone. This spot. If I don't like it, or if she starts getting upset, it ends. What you get out of her, good luck. Because she's tight lipped and there's a great deal she's not allowed to tell" Brennan instructs.
"It's a deal…" A deal… The shadow pauses, and then Richard whispers, "…I doubt you have an active phone out here, what with Rebel, but do you have access to a phone at all, in an emergency?"
"No. But I have my ways of getting help if I need to Mr. Cardinal. Any technology can lead Rebel to us and given that he's already offered to do harm to my family, technology of any digital kind or kind that will lead him to here, is not welcome. I've worked hard to keep him from finding her."
Which, speaking of. "In exchange, I want information on Rebel. Any information that you have, hard copy. I want to know who's decided to screw up my life"
"Everyone keeps asking me that," admits Cardinal, a rueful whisper, "I don't have any information on Rebel. We have occasional dealings, and I know roughly what he's trying to accomplish - or can theorize, anyway - but I don't know anything about Rebel himself. Herself. Itself. Rebel could be anyone, to be entirely honest." Honest…
"Hence Mr. Cardinal, I said anything that you have on him, or her, or whatever the gender ends up being" Brennan points out.
"I'll see what I can do. Getting you hardcopy out here may be difficult, of course…" A dry admission from Cardinal, "…what with the weather, after all." The weather…
"You found me here and are here yourself, I'm pretty sure Mr. Cardinal that you can carry some paper out here too" Brennan points out.
"When I said that I couldn't show myself, Doctor, I meant so quite literally. There was an… accident," Cardinal hisses out, "My body is, to all intents and purposes, dead. I cannot turn my power off. I was being quite… honest when I said that all I can do is talk." Talk…
Well silly Richard, how is Brennan supposed to know that. Now there's a reaction and it's the physician staring at him. Well. That does complicate and yet… simplify things so much. "She won't be able to help you fix that. She doesn't have healing anymore" Complicates getting hard copies. "Drop them off at this business" he rattles off the address of his office. "Attention Dr. Brennan. I'll get it. Anything you have about Rebel, and I'd be grateful if it's anything that you know about Liette and where she comes from those around her. Might help me find out things too"
"I don't think that healing could help me any, Doctor, but thank you for the thought… anyway. Perhaps she might have an idea of how I could be… repaired… but that's secondary to stopping what they're doing. Those men…" Men… A silent moment, and then Cardinal asks, "…are you sure that you want to know about those scientists, Doctor? It may require you to… have a bit of an open mind about certain things." Things…
"I see you've been talking with Dr. Chesterfield" Brennan says sharply.
"Catherine is a zealot," Cardinal replies firmly, "And as all zealots, she doesn't… consider whether or not the things she says sound completely insane. She also tends to… veer the truth towards her purposes at times. I prefer dealing more honestly with people, but I won't lie to you, Doctor. Some of it's a bit unbelievable." Unbelievable…
"Sometimes, Mr. Cardinal. I just don't want to know. Sometimes in this world, Ignorance is bliss. In the rare contact I have had with Ms. Chesterfield, has been to, as you said, not listen to my words and steamroll on right forward. I accept that some of what she and others have said might be true, but sometimes.. a conspiracy is a conspiracy. That I'm asking for what I asked you for. Take that as you will whether I'm open minded, or close minded, I don't care." Brennan shrugs, turning as if to start walking down the shore.
"I'll drop off what I can, then… I'll see you in two days, Doctor," Cardinal whispers, the darkness slithering away, "Thank you for listening." Listening…
"You're welcome Mr. Cardinal" He calls out, becoming just a dark smudge on the world and the skyline much like Cardinal is.