xp_logs | ... and a deal for Laurie

Laurie finds out what is waiting for her...

It was not too uncomfortable...

Yes, the door was locked and the window barred, but there was a bed with blankets and sheets, a table and chair and behind a door facilities to relieve and wash herself. It could have been far worse...

She could have been dying.

Laurie remembered the last time her mutant abilities had been taken from her, and this was different - there wasn't the exhaustion, or the pain, they were simply gone. It had to be the device currently attached to her body but she wasn't about to attempt removal. It did make her wish Forge were here, or perhaps Scott - someone who had an idea about machinery.

For the moment at least she had a window to look out of, it gave her a physical reference of sorts and at night she'd be able to see the stars. She would at least be able to tell what hemisphere she was in, and perhaps make a vague reference to what part of the world.

There was a rattle at the door - the sound of unlocking - and then, incredibly, a polite knock and a pause before the door opened. "Pardon me, Ms. Collins," came a deep, resonating voice. The accent was hard to place, seemingly an amalgam of several different places, and the man himself was tall and impeccably dressed, polite smile very white against his dark skin. "I do hope I am not interrupting you in anything. I was hoping for a brief word with you."

"You're very polite for a kidnapper."

Laurie moved into the centre of the room, her arms folded squarely across her chest as she eyed the man with a touch of anger.

"What exactly is it you want?"

"Not the term I would use for myself, but I suppose circumstances are against me." He walked in, closing the door behind him. "I am Archduke Rudolph von Habsburg, of Ksavia. I do apologise for the inconvenience, Ms. Collins, but you have posed me rather a difficult quandary with your sudden appearance. I am here to determine if it is a problem we can solve."

"And just what exact form might this solution take?"

Laurie relaxed her stance, her body moving unconsciously into a ready posture from which to better fight, or move depending on what was to eventuate. She had no illusions, a pleasant voice and urbane manner had hidden many monsters over the years, and she was far from being fooled by politeness.

He noticed her change in posture, but it amused him more than anything. A mouse preparing to combat a lion. "Not violence, if that is what you are preparing yourself for, Ms. Collins. Rather, an exchange of services. You help me, and in return, both you and Ms. Abbott may return home. Nothing more."

"What is my guarantee that any help I give you would be reciprocated with such an outcome? Would it not be more likely that you would see usefulness in keeping us for just a little bit longer were I to prove a valuable addition?"

Laurie was not a fool, whatever reason they'd had to take Hope, she had been a surprise edition. She was somewhat surprised they hadn't just killed her, but perhaps they were holding her hostage for Hope's continued support. She was young, and used to a life of following the rules of what seemed an overbearing parental figure from what she could decipher.

She hoped that whatever they were currently filling her head with, Hope was able to see it for the falsehoods it inevitably was. Those who would seek to control people rarely had world peace and rainbows in mind.

"Our project would have little future if it depended solely on the services of one person, no matter how talented, Miss Collins," the Archduke replied smoothly, with perhaps a touch of a sneer in his voice. Enough to let Laurie know what he thought of her attempts at matching wits. "And I am a man of my word, despite what you might think. If I say you and Miss Abbott will be released, it will happen."

"What exactly is it you want of me?"

Laurie ignored the implied sneer, she'd met people who had far more ability to cut with a well placed word. Emma and Marie-Ange would have this blowhard for lunch.

He went back to the door and opened it, speaking to someone on the other side for a moment. Then he returned with a thick file - a medical file, to judge from the X-ray envelope that was attached to it. "This is the data we have on the transplantation of organs in energy projectors," he began. "We have accounted for most of the usual rejection issues, but for some reason, we are still encountering problems. To begin, I want you to provide what insight you can into the problem - we suspect it is biochemical, which I believe is your area of expertise."

"How long do I have, and what resources am I to be given?"

It wasn't that Laurie couldn't solve their problem, it was that it would take time and research, and some struggle with her own conscience to do so.

"You will have the time and resources you will need. And if you succeed, well, we shall see what happens next." He smiled thinly. "I will keep Ms. Abbott appraised of your progress. I am sure she will be most interested in your success."

He dropped the file on the bed, bowed slightly in Laurie's direction, and left, the door closing - and locking - behind him.

Laurie took a moment to run her hand over the cover of the file, wondering how Hope was doing and hoping that she hadn't given up on her finding a way out for them. She couldn't be sure what Rudolph would use this information for, nothing good but she couldn't fake this. Any ideas she put forward would no doubt be tested to see if they worked, and if she failed then she had no chance of getting herself and Hope out of this place.

Taking a deep breath to steady herself she opened the file and got to work.