The World Is A Broken Gear

Participants:

gillian4_icon.gif warren_icon.gif

Scene Title The World Is A Broken Gear
Synopsis And Skywalker sees the Force. Or something like that when Gillian and Warren meet by chance at an electronics store.
Date October 1, 2010

Electronics Store in Battery Park City


It's later in the afternoon when Warren shows up at a local electronics store. They don't have much, but they have the basics, and one of those basics is microwaves. There are only a few people browsing, but when he rolls up in his red 1969 Cobra Jet Mach 1, people hear the rumble of the muscle car's engine. When he walks in, he's wearing a black suit, jacket unbuttoned with his black tie flowing in front of his white buttoned up shirt. He looks around for a few moments, then calls over to the clerk. "I'll take all of your microwaves!"

The local electronics store in the Battery Park area of New York isn't used to big orders of this magnitude, but as soon as a man walks in with a suit and a nice car, all the clerks are at attention. Nice car and suit generally means money. Certainly more than the young woman with unnaturally red hair standing at the counter looking at a book of portable MP3 players. Gillian's life at the Garden has made her desire things she hasn't been able to have again, and music is what brought her here. But the words all your microwaves makes her look up in shock and stare over at him.

And the clerks are doing much the same. "All of them?" Not a request they're at all used to.

"Engineering project. Is there a way you could have them all delivered to a specific address? Shalegate Machine Factory in Red Hook." Warren requests, rarely getting to do things like this, he pulls out a Platinum card and sits it on the counter. He stares at Gillian for a moment, and there's a hint of guilt. In his head, he's only spent one day with Elle, so it's hard not to notice a beautiful woman. But he pulls his gaze away and clears his throat, nodding to the card. "Business expense."

"Of course, we'll have to charge you for the delivery as well," the clerk says hopefully, taking the Platnium card and seeing dollar signs in his eyes, most likely. Many of the clerks start moving around, a few going back into the stores, and one taking down the address that's given. This sell will likely pay their rent for a few months, so it's no wonder they're all running around like crazy now.

Meanwhile, Gillian closes the guide and laughs a bit. "I've never heard of people stocking up on microwaves for a factory before. Much less for a business expense, unless you're starting an apartment complex and want to furnish all the rooms with one." That'd make sense, but Factory doesn't quite. "I don't think I'll be getting my MP3 player today, though— they're running around trying to see how much they have in stock."

"I'll make it up to you. What's your name?" Warren offers a white gloved hand, his lips curling into a friendly smile. "I'm Warren Ray." But back on to the topic of making it up to her, "Name something, other than a computer of course, that you've always wished someone would build."

There's a hesitant moment, before Gillian responds, "Gwen— Gwen Chevalier." When her real identity is supposed to be dead, she has to make sure she remembers to use the new one that was crafted for her whenever possible. Even if it's a business man. "I've never really thought about that kind of thing, honestly. I guess— A generator could neat, maybe one that didn't need to run on gasoline? Especially after the winter that we had this year." And after living at the Garden with no power. "Are you some kind of inventor?"

"I've built generators before. I don't use gas, it's messy and expensive. I'm an engineer, but I guess I've invented things too." Warren reaches out to carefully take her hand, nodding his head to let her know it's alright. "I converted my car, a muscle car from the 60s, into using an electric power source."

"What does it use if it doesn't use gas?" Gillian asks, tilting her head to the side with interest. After all it isn't every day she meets someone who claims they engineer things that many people would consider impossible. Muscle car turned electric? Aren't all electric cars supposed to be tiny beer can cars?

While they talk, the credit card clears a quick credit limit check, and they're going through their computers making the sale based on computer inventory, while others double check to make sure it's up to date. Another man starts pulling the ones out front off the shelves.

"Trust me, it's pure electricity." Warren releases her hand when they get outside, and he walks to the hood of his car, pulling out a complex looking remote that seems to be a patchwork of buttons. One such button pops his hood all the way up, and he nods to the engine. It seems to be a normal muscle car engine in the middle, with a lot of modifications. All around the sides are heaps of gears and other strange parts one never sees in a car. It's like some incredibly complicated clock for an engine. "I built this myself."

"I meant for the generator you're offering me in exchange for missing out on an MP3 player unless I'm willing to wait til you're gone," Gillian says with a grin, moving along to look at the car. Cars were never her thing, really, but she had one motorcycle. "Actually, if you're this good with cars, how are you with motorcycles? I used to have one almost two years ago, but I haven't had another one since." The memory of that time, when she lost her motorcycle, causes something unexpected. A small loosening of the knot in the back of her head, and a small flow of energy that streaks out around her— and has somewhere to go.

"I'm very good with a motorcycle. When my new prosthetic arm is finished, I'll be able to ride one again." There's no sign that Warren even has a prosthetic arm, really, since he seems to move the fingers on both gloved hands as he closes the hood. "But this generator, it'd all depend on what it's fo—" He's taken off guard by the energy that flows into him, his eyes flushing with a mercurial reflective silver. He looks around, then seems to just stand there. "I… see… so much… incredible." He's looking around now, even after his flush of inspiration, just taking everything in. "The world is a broken gear…"

"Oh shit," Gillian says out loud, clamping down on the flow of energy and probably making that very disorienting. "If you're related to Edward Ray, I'm just gonna hope I die or something, cause you'd think I'd fucking learn," she mutters under her breath, but loud enough that she can probably be heard. "Keep the make-up gift, and forget you met me. Please." Cause all it'd taken was a touch on Edward Ray's hand and he'd said something similar, and then proceeded to try to bend the world to get what he wanted out of it, no matter the expense.

Warren blinks his eyes, which still stay very silvery, then shakes his head and reaches out to reassure her with a touch to her shoulder. "Everything was clear for a moment. Problems in designs I couldn't work out, I could see them all. And everything, the streets, the buildings… it all seemed like a part of a giant damaged machine. It was… like a religious experience. Did you do it?" Though after asking all of this, his look is one of surprise when it registers what she's just said. "My estranged father, Edward Ray. You know him? I've only met him once, and it's a very hazy memory."

"Greaaaat, I showed you God. If you tell anyone ever that I did, you'll never see it again, you got that?" Gillian says, waving a finger at him and silently wishing she'd never let that tiny knot come undone. All she'd done was think on a moment nearly two years ago. And she caused something she helped cause again. Again. Always comes down to her ability, the damnable thing. "Forget you owe me anything and just promise me you won't mention this to anyone. Okay?"

"Well you didn't show me God, but everything felt so clear. And I didn't know it was you until you said something." Warren moves his finger up and lightly taps her nose. "Don't give yourself away. But I don't have any reason to tell anyone anything, it's not my secret to tell."

"I only said anything cause I was angry at myself," Gillian says with a wrinkling of her nose, but she pulls back a bit from his touch, and looks frustrated. After all, the slip ups may be few and far between, but they seem to happen when she least expects it. Playing dumb would have been better. But— "You're different than your estranged father in keeping secrets, then." Cause it being a secret hadn't stopped Mr. Edward Ray from announcing to an auditorium full of people what her name and ability was before the operation to stop Vanguard. "I'm glad you saw something cool, but… I should go. And you should make sure you get your card back."

"I don't know my father, I'm not my father." Warren steps in front of her for a moment, raising his hands to place them on the sides of her arms for a moment, as if to tell her to wait. Then reaches into his pocket and pulls out a piece of paper. "Here, take my number. Is there a chance we could talk again? Maybe meet up somewhere. I'd… like to know what you know about my father, and I'll tell you about me. Then maybe I can learn about you too?"

The piece of paper is taken, flipped over in her hands a few times, and then tucked away somewhere. "I'm going on a trip soon, and I'm not entirely sure when I'll be back, but once I am— I'll give you a call and we can meet up somewhere and talk." Gillian says, not sure the man would like half the things she could say about his dad— if it's the same Edward Ray. Surely there's more than one in the world. What are the odds? Then again, it's pretty good in her life. "You don't happen to build giant robot crabs, right?" There's a pause. "I'm just asking to be sure, I don't want one."

Warren's eyes widen a bit, as if she's just said something that has some truth to it. "I think I need to know you a little better before we start discussing giant robot crabs. But… no, I didn't build it." He raises his left hand, then removes his white leather glove and reveals a robotic hand, crafted for aesthetics with the little joints and gears being visible under the little cracks in the thin bronze shell. "But I think we have things to discuss."

"So you're a real life Luke Skywalker," Gillian says quietly, looking down at his robotic hand, and wondering if his father had something to do with it getting cut off. It wouldn't at all surprise her, especially Evil From The Future Edward Ray. "Yeah, I'll give you a call Skywalker and we'll talk. Even if it's just about Electric Muscle Cars," she says, waving toward the car as she begins to back up, the defused sunlight causing the red in her hair to shine.

"Well I do have an electrically charged sword at home." Warren laughs, shaking his head as he starts walking back into the store. "I'll see you again, and I'll work on that generator once my project is finished."

"Be careful you don't shrink your balls by playing with too many microwaves, Skywalker," Gillian says even raising her voice a little before she turns around and begins to walk off more quickly, a dimpled smile visible on her cheeks before only her hair is visible.


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