"Fringey…"
Summary: Sarah and her sisters see there's an even darker side to Dyad's little cloning-fest…
(Not sure about this one but while I await more details for "Nessun Dorma" I'll play round with this darker one and see how it goes. Afraid you'll have to consider this the Allison-Donnie-friendly corner of the OB multiverse. After all, she can't be veering toward insanity and he can't be a rat in every universe…)
Disclaimer: No copywrite infringement intended.
Part XXIII…
"Aldous…" Rachel nudged Leekie as he slept in the passenger seat of the car that had brought herself, him, Simon, and what was left of poor Olive the human drone to the retreat where Donnie and Allison Hendrix supposedly were striving to repair a few minor cracks in their marital happiness.
"Aldous!..." she shook him now…
Hmmn… He looked around, blinking…
"Aldous, we've been here the whole night…She hasn't come out, neither has Donnie…Donald…"
"Have we? My goodness…" he looked round again… "Must be that mountain air. Well…"
"Aldous…The body you had Simon dump on their rear porch is slowly rotting in that delightful early morning mountain air, if not being nibbled by various animals. Perhaps it's time we tried a more proactive approach?"
"Hmmn…You may be right. Simon? Wakee, wake…" Leekie grinned, rocking the driver/technician/amateur assassin gently.
"Uh…?" Simon groaned.
"Aldous? Are you planning to book rooms here or what?" Rachel frowned.
"Now, Rach…" he smiled. "I'm sorry if the night shift was a bit onerous…Say?" he looked…
"I sent Olive to wait with the body. You wanted to catch Allison off guard, didn't you?"
"Of course but…"
"I've been running her steadily, Aldous, this is just a five-minute break." She sighed, stretching a bit. "Look, she's over there." She pointed. Waving an arm, which, connected via the body suit caused the standing, slightly blank-faced Olive/"Allison" to wave from where it stood next to the sheet-covered body leaning against the cottage's rear door.
"Maybe we should just kick the door in and take them in bed?" she suggested.
"I was hoping for a scenario less likely to end in having to kill them before this operation even starts, dear." Leekie sighed.
"Well, we can't sit here all day and she and our little present can't stay propped out there all day." Rachel noted.
"Allison's sure to be out for her morning jog shortly…She's a creature of extreme habit." Leekie noted. "And I'd really like to see how you and Olive do impersonating her with Donnie."
"Well, I'm certainly cross and cranky enough right now to pass for Allison…" Rachel frowned, rubbing forehead.
"That's the spirit…" Leekie grinned. "Why don't you run through a quick test? To get the morning juices following…?"
Sigh…"Fine…" she concentrated, going into a bit of a fugue state…Outside, by the door, Olive suddenly looked around, eyeing the sheet-covered form at her side. Bending to lift sheet and peer under…
"Oh!" not audible but clear from her pasted look of horror, hand to mouth…Arms waving frantically a month later.
"What's that with the arms?" Leekie stared…
"Just stretching…She's a bit stiff, been there all night, you know?" Rachel noted, frowning. A frown appearing on Olive's face now. "And I can feel it…Besides, Allison's the frantic type…And the personification of restless leg syndrome, I'd say…"
"You felt the stiffness…Really? Good, good…Then the interphase is working well." He beamed.
"Meaning should I get shot as Olive later…?"
"No pain, no gain, dear heart…"
Shhhh…Rachel put up a hand…Olive matching her gesture…
"I hear something via Olive, from inside…I think one of them is up now…"
"That would Ally…She's the early riser." Leekie beamed. "Get ready…Simon? Black bag handy?"
"Right, Dr. Leekie…" Simon nodded…Pulling up bag and opening driver's side door quietly.
"Rachel? Has Olive got the syringe?"
"Right here…er, there.." she nodded…Indicating where Olive had pulled out a syringe with needle, displaying it in her right hand.
"Good thing most of us are right handed…" Rachel noted. "I couldn't handle trying to do left-handed on top of everything else."
"Would be interesting though…You know Irene and Jovita are left-handers…But we still haven't quite nailed down all the factors involved. Claire and I were debating this just the other night in bed…She goes with…What?"
Rachel eyed him… "You and Mother?…At night? In bed? Together?"
"Occasionally…Yeah." He shrugged. "We are married, dear."
"Yes…But I thought you and she never…Not since…Rather like Eleanor and Franklin…"
"Who's to say they never got together, once in a blue moon…No one had a microcamera watching their every move. As for your Mother and I, well…We have our moments of closeness and our moments of separation…As in every marriage."
"I thought she was angry at you."
"We still talk…We work together…Common interests even if circumstances have acted to push us apart to some extent…And we still love you and your sisters, dear heart, in our own ways. So, once in a while, we find a shared desire for closeness again. I hope you don't think your mother's disabilities bother me?" he eyed.
"And to see what each of you might spill under such 'circumstances'?"…Shrewd look which Olive's face matched.
"I like to hope such moments are sacred…" he eyed her. "But I suppose sometimes we do learn a thing or two about what each of us is up to in our lives. Rachel, I'm sensing you're disappointed. I'm sorry if we're neither a conventional couple nor contentedly broken apart. We are what we are…"
"Hardly matters to me…" she said, quietly…
"Really…" he smiled, as she frowned. He glancing to see Olive frowning as well…Simon now standing next to her, nod toward Leekie.
"Hope our jogger comes out soon, I'm getting hungry." Rachel noted.
"Just make sure Simon checks that injection…Don't go puncturing an artery or a lung…He can do it if you have coordination trouble. I don't want Ally hurt, you know."
"Excuse me?" Rachel stared. "I'll…Well, Olive…Will be sleeping with her husband and if things don't go smoothly we'll be once again testing without consent and may well end up killing her. And you say you don't want her hurt?"
"If it can be practically avoided, dear. With luck, Allison will never know and simply believe a normal, if rather forgetably hectic day passed. You know do no harm if possible is always my rule with your sisters."
"Excepting when we start to falter…" she eyed him. "You're a regular Hippocrates, Father…"
"Are you suddenly swinging to your mother's pov, Rachel?" cool stare.
"Just a statement of fact, Father…I accept that Helena was a necessary evil and a mercy compared to what would be my sisters' fate…Some of theirs, at least."
"If things could be different…I've always said…To you and to your mother…" he noted…
"I've never disagreed, Aldous. Whatever Mother's objections, I see no better alternative…" faint smile. "After all, it must be done and better blood than a stranger…And there's little else can be done with Helena but let her use her talents and her unfortunate schizophrenia in the service of her sisters."
"Sad that Mother disagrees…The bone between us for years…" he sighed. "I've never been happy with the idea of sacrificing our subjects, but I can't see the benefit of leaving those who can't be helped to suffer till death."
"I think Mother regrets the instrument more than the procedure itself…" Rachel nodded.
"As do I…As do I…" Leekie shook his head. "But it gives Helena reason for existence, some grounding…"
"And provides a wonderful demonstration of our military potential at peak." Rachel smiled thinly. "As will our little demo here…" she noted.
"We are a military project, fundamentally…And while I regret that, both your mother and I accepted it as a cruel necessity. And our backers expect to witness a military application. As for Helena, it's heartbreaking, but given she is already too flawed for other purposes, at least this way she's been our prime demo and the rest of you can lead relatively normal lives and, as you say, if some of you cannot be helped at least we can bring closure with family rather than impersonally…And relatively painlessly."
"Pity she won't be around when I'm 100…The way you put it, I might prefer to avail myself of her services then."
"I wouldn't rule it out, dear." Leekie smiled thinly…Rachel eyeing him.
"Tell me there isn't another…?" she stared.
"Like Helena?...Thankfully, no." he shook his head. "Don't forget Olive, dear…" he glanced toward the cottage. "Ally may be coming out…Any…"
"Donnie…" Rachel, brightly…He looked to see where Olive/Allison was smiling at a befuddled Donnie in pyjamas at the open rear door, staring at her… "Just thought I'd get rid of some trash."
….
LA, FBI facility…
"Come on, Sheldon…" Leonard frowned as Sarah grinned at Cosima and Delphine…
Boy does not like havin' to give a girl credit…
"Oh, fine…Penny managed to flip a few switches…" Sheldon shrugged.
"Sheldon…" Amy frowned. "Penny slipped into a lab at CalTech and is successfully operating a rather crucial and complex piece of hardware…If you were the one doing that we'd never hear the end of it."
"Never hear the end of my pointing out my talents were being wasted on something Wolowitz could be doing…" he frowned back.
"Sheldon!" Bernadette glared.
"Folks? Could we focus here?" Howard cut in… "Though first…Thanks, sweetie." He beamed at Bernadette. "Now, we have a possible initial fix on our subject…Why don't we try to figure out where our little roboclone is right now? Before she kills more people?" he eyed Sarah's and Cosima's sighs…
No offense intended, ladies…He hastily noted.
"None taken…" Cosima shrugged… "And I think you're right…Just 'roboclone'? Could we not go there?"
"Agreed…" Sarah noted firmly.
"Sorry. The engineer in me kicking in…" Howard, apologetically…
"Yeah, I'm sure the tech is ass-kickin'…" Sarah sighed. "But she was one of us…Or coulda been if the bastards hadn't deliberately messed with her brain…God only knows what else they did to some of us."
"I don't even like to think about it…" Cosima shook her head, Delphine patting her shoulder. "But, why is she so north? What's up that way, Leekie might be interested in?" she eyed a map Leonard had put up.
"Good place to hide…" Sheldon noted, staring at map… "Lots of trees and woodsy things…Forests are good that way. I don't like forests…They scare me and they're full of all the things I spend my life trying to stay away from…But they're good to hide in. If you don't get a rash or get eaten. Amy, no forests." Nervous look to her….
"It's laid down in the Relationship Agreement, Sheldon." Amy nodded.
"So you think they're concealing the lady there?" Broyles eyed the map… "Maybe Leekie and some of the others not at Dyad today are there with her, testing her?"
"Are you sure Leekie's not at Dyad?" Sarah stared.
"We have a team there right now, going through the place. Only Rachel Duncan seems to be available, the rest of the senior staff took advantage of the legal injunction against further activity to take a few days off…No doubt trying to regroup to face charges."
"What I would give to be there…" Howard sighed.
"I mean…I could probably find out a thing or two…" he noted hastily to the stares, particularly Cosima's and Sarah's…
"Oddly enough, Mr. Wolowitz…" Broyles smiled, "We do have an Agent Wolowitz on site there…"
"Uncle Howie is at Dyad?" Howard stared.
"Your uncle the FBI guy?" Raj asked… "Hey, nice…Say, maybe he could bring us a…"
Sarah, Cosima, Delphine…Frowning at him…
"…Statement from that modern Auchwitz testifying to the horrors." He finished, a bit lamely.
"Can we get a closer pinpointing of the location?" Broyles asked.
"We'll need a little more time with the next transmission…" Leonard noted. "We should get more soon…"
"Assuming Penny doesn't break the receiver at her end…" Sheldon reflected.
"Hmmn…" Sarah looked the map over… "You know this isn't that far from where Donnie's holdin' the fort, retreatwise…" she noted to Cosima. "You suppose we could risk breakin' radio silence and ask him to have a look round?"
"Sarah…" Cosima, wry look. "If Ally ever heard we'd done something like that, she'd freak and blow her cover…Be on the first plane. She only went along with Donnie doing the retreat thing 'cause she figured it would be safe, more or less."
"Oh, don't underestimate our latest Beth…" Sarah grinned. "Ally'd understand…Especially if she don't know till it's all over and Don's safely back at home."
"If we can get a closer approximation and it's in range of where Hendrix is…" Broyles noted… "It could be helpful if he could investigate."
"Eh?" Sarah nodded to Cosima who shook head.
"Poor Ally will have our heads, Sarah. Even if Donnie's not hurt. And if he is…We'll have another Helena, with Beth's gun and some new cop skills hunting us down."
"Oh…Please. She'll be pissed, then she'll be glad we trusted him with something like this. Hey, she's takin' risks, right? And marriage is sharin'…"
"Fine…So long as this is clearly your idea and not mine." Cosima frowned.
"So you have an uncle in the FBI?" Sarah eyed Howard.
"My namesake uncle, actually…We're very alike, actually…He's just a bit more of a short Fox Mulder."
"No offense but that seems hard to believe…" she noted, grinning a bit at Bernadette's "why, pray tell?" glare…
"Believe me, everyone in my family says it with exactly the same mixture of startle and disbelief." He nodded, grinning back.
"Penny?" Leonard spoke into his cell… "Can you increase the receiver's signal reception amplitude? The blue knob, turn it to the right, slowly. Great." He beamed.
"A chimp could do the same, you know." Sheldon frowned to Amy. "And would fit in better at the lab…"
"Say…?" Sarah stared as Leonard paused in frowning at Sheldon to put a new marker pin on the map…
"Whoa…" Cosima blinked.
"What?" Leonard eyed them.
"I think we better call Donnie…" Sarah noted… "Right now."
"Dude…She really is gonna hunt us down…" Cosima stared.