Still Alive [Dark] [Finished]

[Bee]

Thalia came across the letter accidentally. She had just made herself breakfast--a delicious morning feast consisting of a peach milkshake, a leftover hunk of meat from last night's dinner, and a few slices of cheese coated in ranch dressing--and set it on the table when she spied her name on an envelope, mostly buried under the twelve tons of other shit that was usually sprawled over the table.

She was excited; she never got mail. Forgetting her breakfast entirely, she tore it open. It was written in perfect print, each letter even, each word perfectly spaced, almost too nice to have been written by a human hand.

Miss Thalia Eumeleia-D'Allesio,

You may not be aware of me, but I am aware of you. You come from a very distinguished line of scientists, and if my sources are to be believed, you are quite a credit to your line. Your exploits here are well-remembered. We here in Corvistowne love a good explosion! I have a pressing matter to discuss with you: we are running a complicated series of experiments here, and have need of every capable scientist we can find. There will be many exciting trials, many things exploding! If you are interested in participating, please come posthaste to 43928 Drazach Complex, Aspenwood District.

We hope to see you soon,
Mdm. Arborea Ronalda Chiana Hannah Irina Van Echovald.

"Mama!" she yelled, into the empty reaches of the house where Mama was no doubt lurking somewhere. "I'm going out! Don't wait up!"

[Dark]

"I'll be gone for a couple of weeks doing musicy things to make more money, so we can put some sauce on our noodles. I trust you can boil water for yourself. If anyone breaks in, break a table over their head. I think that's it. Love you." He paused, seeming to remember something. "You have mail on the table. Take care, honey. I'll be back soon."

Senka wasn't altogether surprised at the abrupt departure; he'd been making vague noise along that vein for weeks now, and the pantry was beginning to look rather lean. She smiled bemusedly at his retreating back before turning back to the harp she'd been tuning, "Sauce would be nice."

It was late evening when she stumbled into the kitchen, stomach protesting loudly at having forgotten lunch. And there it was, inconspicuous on the edge of the table, her name stark against the crisp white of the paper. Curious, she broke the seal and began to read.

Miss Senka,

Because of matters I cannot fully disclose I have not been able to previously contact you, but recent events have freed my hands. I have in my possession information that pertains to your biological ancestry. This information must be released to you in person. You can find my office in Corvistowne at 43928 Drazach Complex, Aspenwood District.

We hope to see you soon,
Mdm. Arborea Ronalda Chiana Hannah Irina Van Echovald.

There was no question of whether she would go.

[Bee]

It was funny to think that the last time she had gone to Corvistowne, she had been blindfolded and hauled along by a band of very inconsiderate kidnappers. The thought did not dampen her enthusiasm, however. She loved the region. Its decrepit architecture, its dirty streets, the little scavenger rodents rooting through overturned dumpsters; all of it sitting on top of a vast network of underground laboratories.

It looked just as neglected as the first time she had seen it; the surface was only sparsely populated by the residents. Finding a map to where the hell Aspenwood District was was easy enough, but finding the place proper was a bit of a problem, considering that the street signs came in three flavors: non-existent, wildly misleading, and defaced to the point of uselessness.

Eventually, she saw a small, cracked sign. Aspenwood District. It looked to be a few blocks of tall, closely packed buildings, like factories.

One of the factories had a helpful plaque: Drazach Complex. Fantastic! She had arrived.

[Dark]

Senka sat back on her haunches, considering the dilapidated warehouse with a huff of annoyance. It wasn't quite what she was expecting, though honestly she wasn't sure what she had expected. It certainly wasn't this. This did not look like the kind of place to learn the truth about her parents. Why here?

And the building itself was a complete bust. Broken windows, darkened doorways, vacant. The entire town. It was a miracle she'd even found the correct address.

Sheer. Blind. Luck.

She'd only ever heard rumors about Corvistowne, and it had been hard to wrap her head around the empty streets and defaced street signs. Even harder to except that people supposedly lived here. The only sign of life she'd seen had been the rodents, and--

Senka turned her attention back to the building and considered the flash of color she had seen. Had it been a person? A trick of light? Was it simply coincidence that it had disappeared into Drazach?

There was only one way to find out.

[Bee]

Thalia was in the process of happily marching into the building when it occurred to her--via violent collision--that the door was not in fact left open for her in a friendly welcoming gesture. She rubbed her throbbing nose and cursed bitterly at the door for a moment while she fiddled around for the handle. She was sure there was some way to train herself to see the damn things, but if there was, she had not yet mastered it. She just dealt with having an ability be permanently switched on. Usually by groping the air in front of her with her tentacles and carrying a lot of band-aids.

Well, at least she had fulfilled her daily quota of humiliation. Thank the goddesses above that no one had seen.

She pushed the door open and stepped inside. It was still dimly lit and crowded with extremely-strange equipment, dusty and cobwebby like it hadn't been touched in years. The floor was littered with all manner of detritus. She smiled. Nice atmosphere, this place had.

No sign of any people, though, Miss Van Echovald or otherwise. Just a table in a nearby corner, illuminated by a small lamp, with a neatly-written note. Please come to the first lower level, accessible via a stairway in the southwest corner of the room. Thank you.

Lower levels! Labs! Exactly what she was hoping for.

[Dark]

Senka considered the interior of the warehouse warily; the dull, flickering overheads cast barely any light into the murky gloom and there was no telling what could be lurking in the shadows in the company of little scurrying paws.

She'd seen the flash of color again.

Stiffening her spin--Uncle Ezra hadn't raised a coward, after all, and she was fairly confident in her ability to defend herself against any attackers--she headed towards the brightest light. A desk, a lamp, a note.

Please come to the first lower level, accessible via a stairway in the southwest corner of the room. Thank you.

Rumors of insane Corvistownes and diabolical experiments conducted in underground laboratories came to forefront; Senka crossed the warehouse floor before she could fully consider the implications, and eased into the stairwell. The lighting was even worse, and she squinted into the gloom over the railing. There. Someone--something--was moving down there.

Shivering--in anticipation? fear?--Senka quietly descended the stairs in pursuit.

[Bee]

The stairs had led to a somewhat wide corridor, with grimy cement walls and a cracked floor. As the other room had been dim, it was not difficult for her eyes to adjust to a slightly gloomier shade of darkness, though she did feel about with her tentacles to make sure she wasn't on a collision course with a surprise door.

She hoped she would arrive somewhere soon; this wandering about in the dark was filling her with a horribly building sense of anticipation. She wanted to see the other scientists and begin working on whatever mysterious project she had been summoned to work on.

Finally, the space opened up. A room. A big one.

Thalia felt forward. No door. She stepped tentatively into the room.

A light flared to life, and Thalia squinted against the intensity of the sudden brightness. Another. Then another. Thalia's eyes followed the sequence of illumination.

It looked to be some kind of...hub. Control room. Very interesting.

[Dark]

Senka was almost to the bottom of the stairwell when bright light flooded in from the open doorway. Momentarily blinded, she stumbled down the last several steps and probably would have gone ass-over-teakettle if there had been more than three steps left between her and the landing. Quickly regaining her composure--and her eyesight--she peered cautiously into the room.

The room appeared to be come sort of control room, industrial floodlights throwing into stark relief the cold gleam of technology that lined the walls. Senka felt a little shiver run up her spine, and turned her attention to the room's occupant.

Though her coloring suggested mixed parentage, there was little doubt the girl was Corvistowne at heart; the tentacles, the riot of colors, and the strange hair screamed 'mad scientist.' Was this the woman who had written Senka's letter?

She slipped quietly into the room, clearing her throat, "Madam Arborea?"

[Bee]

Thalia blinked, taking a moment to both accept the reality that she was not alone in the room (how had this young woman sneaked up on her? Well, Thalia was rather oblivious to outside forces when she had a goal in mind) and process the question. Was this newcomer talking to her? Apparently she was. Thalia shook her head rapidly.

"Oh no. I'm looking for Madam Van Echovald too. Did you get...a letter?"

Even as she spoke, her eyes wandered away from the girl--a Corvie, that was certain, but her breed was a little less obvious, though her face looked mousy--and back to the impressive room. She had never seen machinery like this before. It looked far more complex than basic factory equipment.

She started noticing the multiple speakers only a fraction of a second before they emitted a voice.

"Welcome. I am happy to see you have both arrived safely. I am Madam Arborea Van Echovald."

Thalia was perplexed. Did the good madam not want them to see her?

[Dark]

Senka frowned as she was assessed and just as quickly dismissed by the vibrant girl-creature in front of her. It was odd that the girl would mention a letter--could the girl have some sort of connection to Senka's biological parents? Not a sister, surely. Regardless, the girl didn't seem to have any more idea of what was going on than Senka, and that in and of itself was oddly reassuring. Whatever the girl's connection, they were in this together. The madam had a lot to account for.

The intercom system was unexpected and Senka jumped, hating herself for being so skittish. Another time she might have admired the sound system. The entire situation was entirely too fishy, though, and a plethora of questions pushed any thought of acoustics from her mind.

She considered the relevant questions, chose one, "Pray tell. Why exactly are we here? And don't give me the same hogswash that was in my letter."