1825/A Sinister Plot: The Time Between

A Sinister Plot: The Time Between
Date of Scene:	25 May 2020
Location:	Sinisters' Lab
Synopsis:	The captives get a chance to socialize and check on one another.
Cast of Characters:	Gabby Kinney, Emma Frost, Henry McCoy

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Gabby Kinney has posed:
Sometime after the reveleation of their newfound incarceration and the death of that poor girl at the hands of Sinister himself, the large iron doors at the back of the cells shunted open. Some were already asleep and thus didn't notice. Some hadn't been able to sleep at all. Curious, yet wary, Gabby slinks from her bed still carrying the blanket wrapped around herself like an oversized cloak that drags on the floor behind her as she pads along to the 'waiting room' which was as lame as it sounded.

At least there was more room here. Room to walk a little, room to stretch, and chairs and tables. Such as they were. She pauses by one of the folding chairs to regard it with a small sigh. "I hope they cleaned these if all of us are just given gowns. Too many butts," she mutters to herself.

Emma Frost has posed:
Bare feet pad down the narrow hallway, slowly. Carefully. There is a fresh pedicure on Emma's toes, and she can see the cheerful bright teal with a sparkling overcoat with every step. These toes should be in the sand on a tropical beach. But instead, they are slowly making their way down a cold corridor in some hellish hospital in some place Emma can't even imagine.

The unlocked door had been too tempting. She figured it might be a trap of some kind, but she had hoped... maybe Scott had unlocked it to allow her to escape. Maybe?

But when she reaches the end and the small waiting area with the cheap folding card tables and uncomfortable folding chairs, her heart falls a bit. Not an escape, then. But...

"Gabby." Emma looks torn. "You, too?"

Henry McCoy has posed:
It's doubtful they'd immediately recognize him. He's less muscular, though still in impressive shape. There's no blue fur, no yellow eyes, no fangs or claws. Perhaps if they noticed his oversized feet and hands? Still, Hank hadn't slept. He couldn't. He had sat, watching the pooled blood of the poor woman he couldn't save. When the door behind him clicked open, he approached it warily.

Padding quietly into the room, his heart sinks a bit. He had hoped it was a mind-trick from Sinister, that the others were captured. Hoped they were holograms or mental illusions. His hand strokes over his face. "How much do either of you know about our captor?" He asks, looking to Emma then Gabby. He clearly expects them to know him - so used to his unique appearance.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney turns to offer Emma a smile in spite of the situation. It was habit for her, and Emma had seemed so much more upset than even she was. Or at least more upset than she let on. Without a word she nods simply and steps over to the older woman to offer her a hug. It wasn't much. It wouldn't save them. It was just instinct to offer some kind of comfort... That was what she was good at. "Yeah, me too. It's okay. I'm used to this," she explains quietly. "We'll find a way out. We've got people looking for us, too," she reminds in an effort to keep her spirits up. Much as that could be done.

When Hank joins them she looks over at him half expecting to see the blue furred doctor. When she doesn't, she just looks confused. A few quiet moments are taken before she draws a conclusion, and gasps in shock, "Did they *shave* you?"

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma looks confused, and attempts to reach out with her mind to skim Hank... and is almost driven to tears when nothing comes to her mental command. She hugs Gabby back, patting the younger girl on her back. "I hope so," she murmurs.

She squints at Hank. He's acting familiar, as if they know... then Gabby mentions shaving. "...Doctor McCoy?" she stammers.

Henry McCoy has posed:
The doctor nods. "I don't know. Shaving doesn't really work on claws, though. So I would wager it has to do with these collars." A frown as a finger tugs at his with no affect. "Are either of you hurt?" He asks, looking them over for obvious injuries. "Do you know how you got here?" There are so many questions, so many things to puzzle out - and there is very little time.

As Gabby mentions people looking for them, Hank nods. "They are. They've done this before - found us. I was part of that team at one point." He offers with a slight smile. "We had to rescue Scott and Jean from this... person before."

Gabby Kinney has posed:
"Dang," is Gabby's response to Hank whe he explains the collars being the reason for his lack of beastliness. "I was hoping you'd still have the claws." An odd remark there, but then a weapon was a weapon. Her head ducks a moment with a frown of thought before she reaches out to take one of Emma's hands, if allowed. Oddly it's her manicure she's interested in. "Close enough," she murmurs quietly beneath her breath.

"I can't recall anything. I know I was in the city. Past that... Nothing. Somehow the memories are gone." That answers that question at last. A slow, deep breath is taken as she shifts her blanket around her to bare part of her arm. "Emma," she whispers, "Hard as you can, dig your fingers into my arm, okay? I need to check something."

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma frowns at Gabby, and does, though... to be honest, it's not much of a pinch. Not really from lack of trying, Gabby would be able to reason, but because, bluntly, Emma isn't exactly... a physical adept.

While she does that, she frowns. "I don't know how I got here either. The last thing I recall is being on the way to the airport to meet Alex. For our trip." She releases Gabby's arm. "And then I woke up..." she swallows, not finishing that. They all woke up here.

Henry McCoy has posed:
He sorts out what Gabby is after, watching with interest. "I just recall Warren's party." He looks to Emma, trying to acertain her state of being. "Then I was here." The man offers, watching the experiment closely. "I'm serious about not telling him anything. He's... a brilliant sociopath. He's on par with my understanding of genetics, if not better." A growl of irritation.

"He collects mutants and experiments, collecting data and tissue with no concern for the people he harms." He whispers.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney gives a little nod toward Emma when the pinch occurs. Sure it wasn't much but it was enough to tell her what she needed to know. Lightly patting Emma's arm she steps away again tugging her blanket around her more. It wasn't that she was concerned about what little she was wearing so much as she was trying to keep her body temprature up as much as possible. Plus, it was kind of comforting being wrapped in a blanket. Even a terrible one.

"Yeah. The lab I grew up in was arguably much nicer." A little thoughtful frown comes as she considers before asking, "Is that how he has Scott here?"

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma shivers, thinking of the cold unfeeling expression on the face of her lover's older brother as that poor girl had been killed in front of them. "So he took Scott again?" she asks. "And he's a telepath. That... doctor. He spoke to me in my mind." She looks away, discomfited. "Do you think he's controlling him?"

Henry McCoy has posed:
If he had hackles still, they'd be up. "That'd have to be the case." He says, quietly. "Scott would never ... he... he couldn't." The man frowns. "There are too many unknowns, at this time. The thing we can do is focus on the now and staying alive. He has no qualms about killing or torturing, there is no question of that." Henry mutters.

A look to Gabby, then back to Emma. "This will not be easy, but we will get through this. I will make sure we do. And when our friends come, they will make sure this guy doesn't do this again."

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney glances down to her arm quietly a moment before looking back to Hank again with a small nod. "We're not entirely without a trick or two," she reminds him, quietly, though without the sense of confidence one might have if they knew it was a sure win. It was a small thing, really, but if she could use it to their advantage... At least it was something to give hope with if nothing else. Emma's words are what disturbs her. "He's a telepath? I don't know how to block against that." Her nose crinkles with a little frown.

"If I'm lucky I can see your cells from the outer room. I may need you guys to give me a signal so I know when to scream. If I can't see everything they're doing..." Nor feel it. It would be hard to fake being in pain otherwise.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma frowns, but nods slightly to Gabby. "We'll see what we can do. I haven't... really tried looking out at the other cells." She hadn't really wanted to know, to be honest. "But yes. I may not be able to use my own powers right now, but I KNOW what it feels like to be teeped at." She shudders. It had been a helpless feeling, having him in her mind without her being able to do anything to defend it. She looks to Henry. "You're right." She brightens a little. "Alex WILL come for me," she says with assuredness. But after a moment, her face falls, and a bit of horror touches it.

"Oh no. No no no no... this is... this is my fault. It's him, I recognize his face. I did this."

Henry McCoy has posed:
The man nods to Gabby. "I'll signal you. You have to believe in the pain - he is a telepath." He says, remembering every nuance he can about their captor. "I've had some training in avoiding telepathy and such, but I don't know if it will withstand against him." He's honest about this - eyes going to Emma as she starts breaking down.

"Emma... this isn't your fault. I promise. You did nothing wrong and no one is here because of any action you took. This is all on Essex."

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney flashes Hank a smile of thanks at his offer to help. The rest is taken very seriously though as she considers it. How to believe in the pain. She'd have to dig deep for memories of when she still could feel pain on that, but... She was great at pretending and believing things. Right? Hopefully. She's already turning over scenarios in her mind when Emma starts to go into that mindset.

"Hey, hey. Don't. That's what abusers do, you know. They try to make you believe it's your fault that they're shitty. It's not. It's not your fault. Dr. McCoy said he's been doing this for a very long time, too, so that's before you got involved, too."

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma shakes her head. "You don't understand. I broke a... block. He had in Alex's mind. He told me then, when I broke the block... it was some sort of telepathic warning... that he would come for me." She crosses her arms, shivering with cold and shaking a little in fear. "I laughed it off at the time. But..."

She looks at Gabby. "Maybe he has. But what if I did draw his attention on everyone?"

Henry McCoy has posed:
The doctor shakes his head. "I don't think so, Emma. There is no direct connection between all of us, not specifically. We are all mutants, we know of each other - but you aren't... on the X-Men." He says, quietly. "The others are students, save Roberto." He scratches at his chin. "He came for us for who we were, or because we were somewhere he could get us. The fact that our friends aren't all here, says that."

A slight sad smile. "This isn't your fault that all this happened. You have to understand that, or he will twist that knife in your mind to get what he wants."

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney looks a little perplexed at that as she considers how to respond Thankfully it's Hank who has the proper response. A quick nod of agreement comes, and she pats Emma's arm again consolingly. "What he said. Besides, it sounds like he set a trap to begin with. No idea who would set it off, but it means he always meant to come back and all. Plus..." She shrugs a bit with a sigh. "Given who my dad is and how often he's been experimented on, I think my entire family is considered 'great experiment material.'"

Emma Frost has posed:
Nodding slowly, Emma looks to Hank. "I will try and think of it that way," she agrees tacitly. She looks at Gabby with a frown. "Why would anyone think that about you?" Or anyone.

Henry McCoy has posed:
Hank isn't going to spill the beans for Gabby, that's her story to tell. "Yes, he is a cunning ambusher. He got Scott and Jean before." There's a frown. "I... can't recall if they were in the same predicment exactly." His mind is jumbled after all.

"We will just need to ride this out. I know how fast our jet is, and I know Charles can find us the world over." He smiles. "We just need to be ready to make our move when the time comes."

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney blinks at Emma a single time or two before a slow, broad smile spreads over her face. "Because, Emma, we heal. We heal very quickly. And," she adds more to the fact with a shrug, "Because there's a lot of nutjobs out there like this guy. At least the labs I grew up in were about actual experimentation and not this... Stuff. I mean. It was still bad." A hand lifts to scratch at one of the scars by her eye recalling. "But we'd get anything from medicine to other things tried on us. Sometimes even makeup. Some of that 'not tested on humans' stuff is because it was tested on clones."

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma frowns. Deeply. "You heal, so people hurt you because they can?" That's actually nauseating to Emma. Or maybe shes feeling sick because between what happened last night, the lack of any food beside some bread and a half an apple....

She should be at an all inclusive resort right now, curled up in bed with Alex. Not in some psychopath's bad remake of Saw.

Henry McCoy has posed:
Another nod from Hank. "There are too many unscrupulous scientists in the world." He grumbles. He looks over his hands, still in shock that he looks... human. A sigh, the man shaking off the daydreaming. He blinked, paling a moment. "We need to ... forget as much as we can from our past. Friends, anyone we may care about. He'll use those thoughts against us." Frantically, in his mind, he tries packing away thoughts of Gotham.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
"Essentially. The recovery time for trying new things is always a long time, but if you do it to someone that can heal... Luckily they didn't know I could at Alchemax. We were supposed to, but it didn't work out with the others." Gabby grows momentarily quiet as she recalls. "TV shows. Remember old TV shows. Pretend you're in them," Gabby suggests to... both of them, really. "Anything to distract you from the here and now. And Emma, try to bite off your fingernails. Gives them less to work with." Whatever THAT means.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma looks horrified at the idea of biting off her nails. "What? Why would I even need to--" Theres a sudden alarm, red lights blinking and the blaring of angry noises. Emma's eyes widen and she cringes from the sound.

They will be hearing that a lot over the next several days in their cells. This alarm.

Henry McCoy has posed:
Covers his ears. "Get to your rooms - I doubt he'll be gentle about persuading us." He says, nodding to them both. "Sitcoms. Anything with humor. Embrace it." He says, before padding back to his cell. For now.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney gives a glance toward Emma with a small cringe at the explanation she'd have to give. The alarms were almost a saving grace though she does jolt a little from the jarring noise. A quick breath is drawn and let out, along with the explanation of, "So they don't have as much leverage to pull them off of you. Also--Eat anything they give you. Got to keep up our strength. You can eat an apple core, too, it's safe," she assures as she nods to the pair and heads to the cell again.