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rainbowfic2012-12-25 01:35 am
shadowsong26) wrote in rainbowfic2012-12-25 01:35 am
Red #1, Ivory #2, Snow White #5
Name: shadowsong26
Story: Scars
'Verse: Lux
Colors: Red #1. blood red, Ivory #2. Son, can you play me a memory?, Snow White #5. hedge of thorns
Supplies and Materials: photography, oils, chalk, novelty beads (weird workday), glitter
Word Count: 580
Rating: R
Characters: Dr. Kevin Lobell, Simon Gilboa
Warnings: Evidence of extensive past self-harm and at least one suicide attempt, amnesia, treating people as lab rats
Notes: Constructive criticism welcome, as always. This takes place just after The Wanderer
Dr. Kevin Lobell was on Red Sky's payroll for a number of reasons, but figuring out what was causing a vagabond's amnesia wasn't something he typically saw. Nevertheless, he had a damn good facility, with some of the best imaging tech available, and when his superiors--or the head of security--said to look at a vagabond's head, he did what he was told.
His attention to the case, however, grew less and less grudging as scan after scan showed nothing wrong. No evidence of concussion, spontaneous aneurysm, tumors...nothing that he could find. He wasn't a neurologist, but the brain scans looked more or less completely normal.
The amnesia, however, was genuine. Larry James himself had said there was no chance the vagabond was lying. With no brain damage, that likely meant drugs of some kind. His tox screen came up clear, but long-term drug use, especially with some of the modern designer drugs--though of course one couldn't forget the classics--could do serious damage. Lobell would have to look for track marks.
And that was where things got...complex.
The vagabond hesitated, but rolled up his sleeves when asked. Lobell hadn't been able to hold back a startled gasp--even after years working as a paramilitary group's on-site medic--at the delicate network of scars, tracing up and down. Most, judging by the length, angle, and approximate depth, were likely self-inflicted. And the vagabond was just as shocked to see them as Lobell.
No track marks, though.
Lobell took pictures of the scars, then had the vagabond strip so he could do a more thorough examination. More scars on his legs. No ID tattoo, but that only meant he'd never been military or government. Not many countries required civilians to have them, and the UK wasn't one of them. Still, someone might recognize the scars.
Especially the one on his neck.
That one drew his attention the most. It was the only one that wasn't made by a knife. A ligature mark, rough and wide, going up behind his ears. The vagabond had either been strangled from behind by someone much taller than he was, hanged, or had hanged himself. Judging by the other scars...
Well.
The vagabond grew more and more alarmed as the evidence of the hell he'd put his own body through came more and more to light. After Lobell had documented it all, he let the vagabond redressed and considered. Most likely, this was an already-very-disturbed man, who had faced some sort of psychological trauma that even his usual...coping mechanisms couldn't see him through. The scar on his neck was old, so either he hadn't tried this time or he'd poisoned himself and botched it, using something that had already passed through his system and didn't require injection. Either way, the vagabond was more a danger to himself than anyone employed by Red Sky. Lobell didn't have much to go on, with psych cases--not his area of expertise, but he sometimes had to deal with it. Risk of treating black ops soldiers, after all.
Perhaps James and the others would let him keep the vagabond. Even if he didn't get any information useful to his current work, it had been a long time since he'd published anything in any of the medical journals. An amnesiac like this only came along once in a lifetime, or so Lobell guessed.
Yes. He'd try to keep him. One way or another, studying the vagabond and his roadmap of scars would pay off.
Story: Scars
'Verse: Lux
Colors: Red #1. blood red, Ivory #2. Son, can you play me a memory?, Snow White #5. hedge of thorns
Supplies and Materials: photography, oils, chalk, novelty beads (weird workday), glitter
Word Count: 580
Rating: R
Characters: Dr. Kevin Lobell, Simon Gilboa
Warnings: Evidence of extensive past self-harm and at least one suicide attempt, amnesia, treating people as lab rats
Notes: Constructive criticism welcome, as always. This takes place just after The Wanderer
Dr. Kevin Lobell was on Red Sky's payroll for a number of reasons, but figuring out what was causing a vagabond's amnesia wasn't something he typically saw. Nevertheless, he had a damn good facility, with some of the best imaging tech available, and when his superiors--or the head of security--said to look at a vagabond's head, he did what he was told.
His attention to the case, however, grew less and less grudging as scan after scan showed nothing wrong. No evidence of concussion, spontaneous aneurysm, tumors...nothing that he could find. He wasn't a neurologist, but the brain scans looked more or less completely normal.
The amnesia, however, was genuine. Larry James himself had said there was no chance the vagabond was lying. With no brain damage, that likely meant drugs of some kind. His tox screen came up clear, but long-term drug use, especially with some of the modern designer drugs--though of course one couldn't forget the classics--could do serious damage. Lobell would have to look for track marks.
And that was where things got...complex.
The vagabond hesitated, but rolled up his sleeves when asked. Lobell hadn't been able to hold back a startled gasp--even after years working as a paramilitary group's on-site medic--at the delicate network of scars, tracing up and down. Most, judging by the length, angle, and approximate depth, were likely self-inflicted. And the vagabond was just as shocked to see them as Lobell.
No track marks, though.
Lobell took pictures of the scars, then had the vagabond strip so he could do a more thorough examination. More scars on his legs. No ID tattoo, but that only meant he'd never been military or government. Not many countries required civilians to have them, and the UK wasn't one of them. Still, someone might recognize the scars.
Especially the one on his neck.
That one drew his attention the most. It was the only one that wasn't made by a knife. A ligature mark, rough and wide, going up behind his ears. The vagabond had either been strangled from behind by someone much taller than he was, hanged, or had hanged himself. Judging by the other scars...
Well.
The vagabond grew more and more alarmed as the evidence of the hell he'd put his own body through came more and more to light. After Lobell had documented it all, he let the vagabond redressed and considered. Most likely, this was an already-very-disturbed man, who had faced some sort of psychological trauma that even his usual...coping mechanisms couldn't see him through. The scar on his neck was old, so either he hadn't tried this time or he'd poisoned himself and botched it, using something that had already passed through his system and didn't require injection. Either way, the vagabond was more a danger to himself than anyone employed by Red Sky. Lobell didn't have much to go on, with psych cases--not his area of expertise, but he sometimes had to deal with it. Risk of treating black ops soldiers, after all.
Perhaps James and the others would let him keep the vagabond. Even if he didn't get any information useful to his current work, it had been a long time since he'd published anything in any of the medical journals. An amnesiac like this only came along once in a lifetime, or so Lobell guessed.
Yes. He'd try to keep him. One way or another, studying the vagabond and his roadmap of scars would pay off.
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I'll get to Simon's origins, I promise ^^
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I like how Lobell just thinks of him as "the vagabond," even though one of the only things they know about Simon is his name. Creepy and deatched.
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...short answer: Yes, he died and came back. Long answer: I have a Simon saturation planned that should explain some of what's going on with him.
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Lobell isn't supposed to be likeable/sympathetic, at least? Lux (to some extent) and Mariko and her family are, as is Simon, but Michaela is too far removed from humanity for that, I think, and a lot of the side characters aren't.