evocation | (no subject)

[ Hey now, tiny stranger, stay calm. ]

Ma'am -- Kyna. You need to come with us. It's not stupidity, it's caution.

[Kyna is incapable of staying calm, at least not now, when she's worked her ass off to get here and no one will even tell her anything about Wash. She rolls her eyes.]

I don't have any weapons.

Then just let us confirm that, and we can bring you to holding to speak with General Kimball and Doctor Grey.

[ Pretty much everything about this soldier's tone and body language is placating, trying to soothe her so she'll comply. He reaches out towards her, gesturing for her to lift her arms for a search. ]

I assure you I am a gentleman.

[Unfortunately, Kyna is still on edge. Logically, she knows it makes sense for them to vet her before letting her wander through their base, but she's exhausted, and she's so close to seeing Wash after so long. She shoots the soldier a look.]

I wasn't worried about you not being a gentleman until you said that.

[But she raises her arms.]

[ Whoops? He does look apologetic, though, and the search is thorough but polite. They ask her to remove her boots, and when she leans down to unzip them her necklaces slip free of her shirt collar... the dog tags jingle and catch Andersmith's attention. He reaches out and lifts them up for examination. ]

Miss Kyna? Where did you get these?

[Kyna tenses when he reaches for the dog tags, then gently tries to tug them back.]

Wash gave them to me.

[ He doesn't keep hold of them, not wanting a tug of war, but uh. They definitely want to verify that these are real, since Wash was brought in wearing an identical set. This doesn't make much sense. ]

We're going to have to verify that. Please remove them?

[There are a million reasons why she's not going to do that, mainly because if they kick her out or she has to go back home, she won't have any way to get back without those dog tags. Besides, they're the only piece of Wash she has left. She hasn't taken them off since leaving Hadriel.]

No. You can verify them while they're still on me.

[ The soldiers look to one another, then back to the tiny angry woman before them. She's currently cooperating... maybe they should just let Kimball handle this?

The stretch between her refusal and Andersmith's response is tense, but he winds up just gesturing towards the door. ]

This way, please.

[ They lead her through the halls of the base, into an elevator to holding downstairs where she's left to wait. The cell is surprisingly low-tech, metal bars and a cot against the wall. She isn't left to wait for long. Only a few minutes later, two more armored figures move in, flanked by lesser security. Kyna's likely familiar enough seeing past armor at this point to recognize that they're both women, who hold themselves confidently. The general's armor is the color of desert sand with blue trim, and her voice is calm and authoritative. ]

Kyna, is it? My name is Vanessa Kimball, and this is Doctor Emily Grey. I've been told you've been cooperative so far, thank you for that. But we have a few questions for you, if you don't mind.

[It doesn't matter how long Kyna is left to wait—she paces anyway, half considers just teleporting out of the cell before deciding that would make everything a million times worse. By the time Kimball and Dr. Grey show up, she's practically vibrating with impatience.]

Okay, fine. Then can I see Wash?

[ Doctor Grey pipes up on her own, stepping closer to the bars to peer at Kyna -- she's noticed the ears. ]

Wash, hmm? That's awfully familiar. Where did you get these modifications done? They're spectacular.

[ Vanessa sighs, the sound barely audible through her helmet. Emily plz, they have bigger issues to address than the woman's physical appearance. ]

We'll discuss that possibility. Right now you need to tell us how and why you arrived on Chorus, and specifically on base. All transit is strictly monitored and you're unarmored, unsupplied, and not in any database we have access to. If you'd used a teleportation grenade without protection, you wouldn't be standing right now. So please, if you could explain.

[ Doctor Grey finally looks back at Kimball, shaking her head. She sounds excited about all this, honestly, her voice chipper and curious. ]

That was no teleportation, General. [ Back to Kyna. ] We've seen the surveillance footage -- fascinating stuff! Just pop, there you were!

[Kyna is starting to look a bit deer in the headlights, because she knows there's no way she's going to be able to explain it, and if she says "magic", they'll think she's crazy and never let her near Wash. She could lie. Maybe she should lie. What would Tucker say?]

It's, um. It was teleportation, just... not a grenade. New tech or whatever, you know?

[Except she's not nearly as smooth as Tucker. Whoops.]

[ The women spare each other a glance -- even without seeing their faces it's very obvious they're unconvinced. ]

New tech "or whatever" seems unlikely. How and why, please?

[Yeah, she can't bullshit that.]

Uh... I could just show you?

Yes, please!

[ At that, Kimball's calm seems to slip a little, and she speaks to Doctor Grey sharply. ]

Emily, slow down. Kyna, what exactly is this new technology?

It just lets me teleport? I'm not like, an engineer or whatever.

[God, she is so bad at this. Suddenly she desperately wishes Tucker was here.]

We didn't find any such devices on you. And you haven't explained why you're on Chorus or searching for Agent Washington. Practical demonstrations can wait a moment.

[ Emily's shoulders drop as if she's disappointed at that, but she doesn't push the general. She's curious about this too, after all. ]

[Damn it. She doesn't know how to explain this either.]

We, um... We met a while ago, and I promised I'd come find him as soon as I could.

[ Now, Kimball sounds actively wary. Because... no? She was personally responsible for the Reds and Blues' privacy and only told one person where they were. She might not know exactly what they've been up to since Dylan Andrews found them, but it's extremely unlikely that Kyna could have met Wash in the past two weeks. Especially since she's most definitely a civilian. But one thing at a time. ]

How did you know he was here?

Ugh, God. Look, nothing I'm going to tell you is going to make any sense, and you're going to think I'm lying, so can you just go ask him already?

[Unless he doesn't remember her at all, in which case she has much, much bigger issues.]

[ The women share another look, and Kimball seems to be getting understandably frustrated with these antics, so Grey takes over. And she's just going to spit it out. ]

We can't, sweetie. Agent Washington was brought to Chorus two days ago severely injured, and has been in the ICU post-op. He's still heavily sedated. I'm sure you can understand why General Kimball is concerned?

[ Kimball is concerned, and nods slightly to confirm that. ]

This already doesn't make any sense, so you might as well explain. Or we're going to have to hold you indefinitely.

[Kyna is fairly certain her heart stops. Suddenly she doesn't give a shit about whether or not they try to hold her indefinitely.]

He's what? Is he okay? What happened?

[ That alarm seems genuine, but Kimball has been fooled by good actors before. She lifts a hand to indicate that Kyna needs to stay calm. ]

I don't have a report of the incident yet -- we haven't been able to contact the Reds and Blues. He's stable, Doctor Grey here is our best surgeon and oversaw the procedure herself. But if you want to see him we need to be sure you're not a threat.

[Unfortunately, Kimball is going to discover that "calm" isn't something Kyna is great at. She covers her face with her hands, breathing shaky.]

Oh, God. What does stable mean? Like, fine or not going to die in the next two seconds?

[ That's... very convincing, but still. Kimball glances to Emily, gives her a slight nod to explain. ]

Stable means he's not getting worse right now. I repaired the physical trauma and his vitals are surprisingly strong but his airway was compromised for an extended period. There may be neurological damage from the reduced oxygen but he's a tough cookie. I've seen him bounce back from worse than a pesky bullet before. We just have to wait for him to wake up, now.