THE BUST (Open)

Sim waited anxiously. More anxiously before, when she was in reach of a raging dragon. She was presented with something of a moral dilemma. She was honorbound to respect this land's authority, but she had also made a vow to this girl. In the end, she knew what she would have to do. She could not let someone suffer like she had. Even if it meant throwing away her honor and becoming a fugitive, she knew there was only one choice to make.

Fortunately, the human woman made a compassionate choice. Putting herself at risk no doubt, and her strength of character did not go unnoticed by Sim. She gave a nod to show she understood the situation. Sim put her hands down and followed the woman as she led them to an empty warehouse. "You have made an honorable decision human. I will aid however I am able." she remarked in an odd, lilting accent.

Inside the warehouse office Sim looked over the unconscious girl. "I am no healer, such magicks take centuries of dedicated study." She said in a flat tone "but from what I can tell she suffers from no serious injuries. If she truly shares the blood of a dragon, she is likely much less frail than she would appear." She hovered a clawed finger over the girl's skin as she examined it in detail. With her short stature, she did not even need to kneel to examine her closely. "This poor girl..." She quietly muttered to no one in particular. "Yours is truly a fearsome race." She then looked back to the human woman. "She is not in immediate danger, but she is in poor health. She has definitely not seen proper nourishment or sanitation in some time. She will need nourishment when she wakes, though for now the most I'm qualified to do is clean her wounds." As she spoke she looked around the office, hoping to find something to sanitize her rashes and infections. She took a moment to look back at the girl, her heart overflowing with a mix of sadness and rage. She wanted desperately to take leave of this place at once and hunt down those responsible, but she was no avenger. She was a guardian, and she couldn't let her emotions control her. "Though, it is not her physicals scars that worry me...I know all too well how damaging such treatment can be to the mind and soul."

There was a temptation within Jade telling her to run now while the federal agent was busy with the dragon meta, but her mind told her that it was a cowardly thing to do, to abandon one conscious and one unconscious Meta Human to God knows what. Besides, she was quite sure that with her luck, she would walk right into the agents that were out searching for her. So, she decided to follow the two into the warehouse, and not quite trusting the agent and her card, created a crystalline formation to bar the door against forced entry from the outside. Jade did a quick reconnaissance of the immediate room and then came back to the table on which the dragon girl was laid. The Vietnamese woman could not help but wince at the sight of the wounds upon the seemingly young girl. Her Meta Human companion began to speak, but Jade paid no heed, her mind was preoccupied on other things. One of which was the FBI agent that stood in the room with them.

From her excursions out beyond her zone of comfort, Jade knew that the tide was against the Meta Human, and that the act set before the U.N. would pass in a sweeping vote- not that they didn’t deserve it. It was simply… frightening, the way people would form together to destroy something which they feared beyond doubt. And as such, that made the agent before her a minority. She was willing to deceive her allies to assist an injured girl, a Meta Human one at that. A slight furrow appeared in her brow. Was this just a scheme though? Was the federal agent going to use the Meta Humans to fix her prisoner and then call in her squad to capture all three?

Jade’s eyes wandered around the room while trying to keep her focus on the agent all the while. She tried to gauge how long it would take for the FBI to break down one of her crystal constructs if she really put her mind into a creation. With that thought, the woman’s eyes trailed to her creation blocking the door. That would keep them occupied a while, but have feds ever used the door in Hollywood films? That meant… the windows! But alas, if they were going to come crashing in through the windows, it would more than likely mean that the entire premises was surrounded. If they were arrested she would go without a fight and hope that the court of law would find her innocent of any charges. But then again, all of this was mere speculation, and she was still not yet sure of the agents true intentions.

The holographic screens followed Ellie, floating mid-air some distance from her face. She peered out the windows, instinctively stepping away from the searchlights.

“I found nothing on the database on you, Miss... Sim. Are you in this country illegally? For how long have you been here? Have you applied for a green card for citizenship?” Ellie disliked undocumented individuals. Her parents taught her at an early age that a few pieces of paper and a few polite words were far more effective than living one’s life on the run.

“Jade Tren. Attorney Jade Tren... This is convenient. She can use your help.” Ellie brought up Jade’s files next, looking through her affairs with the DMV, the National Association of Lawyers, and other organizations. As she spoke, she bothered to look away from her screens, and saw the expression on their faces, how they distrusted her still.

Ellie realized how impersonal she was acting. She looked at the crystals that Jade had erected on the door; then she looked at the girl. This was the first instance she actually stopped, and looked at the person she was supposed to help. Ellie decided to talk, rather than tell them what to do.

“I’ll speak plainly, as our time is limited. I am Elisheva Wong, with the CIA. Officially I am here as a consultant for the FBI on the human trafficking case. But...” Ellie looked at the girl. There have been many times the agent had taken her cases personally, ensuring the people she rescues were placed in good homes. But this was her first case that involved a Meta human... and that meant she’d have to hand her over to Dominus. She didn’t want to risk it.

“...But this girl is in a very delicate situation. Dominus has been granted too many powers too soon, and they are already hell-bent on enforcing laws that have not yet been passed, technically. Laws that I would be bound to uphold.” She went over to the girl, placing a hand on her forehead and slowly coaxed her to drink.

“Before we come up with any plans, I’ll answer any questions or concerns you might have. We still have several minutes. And the girl needs to catch her breath. I was thinking we contact a paramedic...”

Ellie found herself pausing as the girl stirred, her eyelids opening slightly, looking about at the women around her. She was too weak to get up, but it seemed she could speak now, albeit in Chinese.

“Water... water...” She whispered, first in a weak mandarin then in a thick accented english. Ellie let the girl drink the enhanced water, to help her re-hydrate. The agent’s focused, cold and driven personality seemed to give, once the girl finally responded to their treatment. It seemed she could speak now, at least.

Sim responded to Ellie's questioning with a curious look. "Card citizenship?" She asked with a cocked eyebrow. "I am afraid I am unfamiliar. I am an alien in both your country and your world. I was taken from my world, unfortunately with no way to return. When I arrived in your lands it was bloody, crippled, and on the edge of death." She looked towards the still unconscious girl. "..so I fully understand what darkness some of your people are capable of." She looked back to Ellie. "I apologize if I have offended any customs, if I have overstepped any laws or traditions it was only out of ignorance. I imagine though, there will be better times than this to rectify such a situation."

Sim folded her arms as Ellie continued talking. How ironic, here she was with two humans and she could do nothing they couldn't for the girl now that the immediate danger had passed. It seemed that her role on earth often ended up being more about the power behind her fists than anything else. Was it simply a necessity in this violence and evil plagued world? Or had she lost sight of something? She spoke again, answering Ellie's question. "these are your lands, and you know them better than I. You have shown yourself to be an individual worthy of trust, and I will assist you in any decision you make. So long as I can make sure the girl is safe, that is-"

As Sim spoke the girl stirred. Sim remained silent. She had no way to know if she would remember their brief encounter, or the promise Sim had made her. Not that it mattered to Sim, she would keep her promise regardless.