Zelda had checked her email early in the morning before work. Interestingly, the first email that popped up had come in that morning. It looked like an anonymous volunteer wanted to meet her on the other side of the rip to be a volunteer for her research. Zelda couldn't believe the luck she had - the individual had the power to amplify the X-Gene. That could be a breakthrough she needed for her research... If she can overcome that obstacle, the biggest obstacle left would be finding a way to mass produce them. Maybe she was getting close to something real? Maybe she could only hope. But going through the rip was a whole other story. She had the proper authority to do so - passport, authorization from the hospital, etc. She knew she had to be extra careful there - her digging in the dark webs were pretty clear that through the rip laid some pretty shady stuff, like SUPER.This wasn't an opportunity she could miss out on, though. She needed this volunteer to help her research - she might not ever find someone similar to her. 

The first thing she did was call the hospital and tell them she would be doing fieldwork today - that she would be across the rip meeting with some volunteers for her research. Her supervisor was enthused about the new volunteer. Of course, Zelda told him nothing about the volunteer besides what her X-Gene ability was. Granted, she actually didn't even know anything about the volunteer either. It would be a rare and amazing opportunity for Zelda. Next thing, of course, was how she did her hair & her outfit for the trip through the rip. She packed the materials she would need - syringes, vials, coolers & her cooler bag. Hopefully with her hospital clearance the rip officials will let her through with everything. She had been nervous about it ever since it opened but maybe this was part of the reason?

Zelda decided to take the subway system to the rip. There was no point in driving - who knew how long she might be there and parking was already terrible in New York City. When she arrived, she went through the security checkpoints, had her bags checked, showed her passport and hospital credentials, and finally was let through. It felt right like going through airport security. Gross. 

Going through the rip was... An interesting experience. It felt like her molecules had been ripped apart and stitched back together. But here she was, on the other side. Now it was time to find their rendezvous location - first, they were going to meet somewhere public. A nearby coffee shop seemed like a good place to Zelda, so she offered to meet the anonymous volunteer there at first. It was a safe bet. If something felt wrong, either one could both bail. If not, everything could go well and they could go to a couple abandoned rooms at the bottom of the hospital she worked at. Well, they were abandoned in her timeline, anyways. Hopefully they were in this one, too. And hopefully her hospital ID would also work in this one, too.

Once she arrived at the coffee shop, she ordered a black coffee & sat down. Now, it was time to wait. 

(OOC: Svetlana Sergeyeva )

Sveta would only get one shot at this.

It was, originally, not her idea. Definitely not. SUPER found out about the woman's research on their own (expanding their infrastructure of information beyond the rip), and they were definitely interested. Dr. Grey, however, was a smart one, and one of the rare ones that followed blind procedures and confidentiality to the T, which meant that her research was well protected and impossible to get to. Without bait, that is.
Sveta was that bait.

The whole idea of giving her blood to some blonde woman in a lab coat brought back traumatic memories. The other woman, Lori, had said she needed it for a good cause too, but given how strong her powers were, Sveta still worried that she had handed a nuke to some mutant supremacist that was just ticking away somewhere, waiting to cause mayhem. Was this case going to be the same? Again? Maybe history repeated itself.

Sveta would have flat out refused, consequences be damned... except, Dr. Grey was from across the rip.

This might be her only chance to get a message through.

She played coy, for a little. She finally pretended to give in with the conditions that it would be strictly a recon mission for her, go in, meet the doctor, go through the procedures, gather intel, maybe steal some records, get out. SUPER would have to do the rest. But she also insisted to go alone, to be less suspicious. She knew SUPER was keeping an eye on her, but at least she would get a chance, a slim chance, of an escape. Or a call for help.

The blonde walked up to the café, feeling like she was in the cross-fire of all the street view cameras around. She kept her shoulders squared, and smile on her face, as she approached the woman in red who fit their intel's description. She took a seat across the table from her.

"Zelda Grey?"

Zelda stared blankly ahead, occasionally taking a sip of her coffee. She really hoped this wasn't a bad idea - the dark web tended to tell her to this side of the rip as much as possible. This was the first time she had ever came to this side of the rip. It felt... Wrong. Like something wasn't right. She imagined most people felt that way when they weren't in their own timeline, though. 

Zelda almost jumped when she saw an attractive blonde woman slide into a seat in front of her.

>> "Zelda Grey?"

This had to be the volunteer. Zelda nodded and gave her a warm smile, "Yes, I'm Zelda. How are you today, Brittney?" She smiled again. That was one of her primary security features - she did not want to know any information that could be used to identify them. She had already designated a code name for the blonde woman, 'Brittney Hoppings.' Hopefully the woman would catch on quickly. She seemed pretty smart, especially since she was able to reach over the rip. 

She leaned formed and whispered, "I have a few forms I will need you to fill out before we can get started - it's going to contain very personal information, please answer honestly." She reached into her bag and pulled a folder out. On the top, it was written:

Patient Volunteer, Research X9037135: Brittney Hoppings

Her form did go into several details - her code name had already been filled out on the form where it asked for name. The rest of the information was typical questions a medical form might ask - weight, height, sexual experiences, any diseases/chronic issues, parents disease history, etc.

The next form she needed a signature. She always brought 3 of the forms to make sure they signed their code name, not their real name. This was the 'You cannot tell anyone else regarding this research under any circumstances, you authorize Dr. Gray to take a sample of your blood, yatata.' 

The last form simply asked for her cell phone number, preferably a personal one. Underneath that, there was a few words about 'Data Breaches' etc. It was one last fail safe Zelda had built into her research - if an organization, individual, etc tried to steal any of her research, all volunteers would be notified via designated code words from an untraceable number somewhere in California. That way they know that the information has been breached & to take necessary steps to protect themselves. 

Usually, she could explain these rules and guidelines to individuals when they first meet out in a public place, away from people. She usually even asks them to cover their faces so she can't make out their details - but she was trying to be extra cautious, especially since she was in this alternative timeline. She couldn't say 'cover your face and use this fake name' in an email to her. There couldn't be any type of written records like that.

So, they had to be a little more risky but with different fail safes.

She gave another warm smile to the woman, "Would you like me to get you some coffee? Do you have any questions before we head to our destination?"

>>"Yes, I'm Zelda. How are you today, Brittney?"

Sveta was prepared to use a fake name, but being assigned one still jarred her enough that she drew a breath to protest. The look in the woman's eyes, both nervous and determined, stopped her in time, and she took her seat, playing along with the game. Brittney indeed. She could pull off a Brittney if she needed to. At a distance, anyway.

"I'm doing okay."

>>"I have a few forms I will need you to fill out before we can get started - it's going to contain very personal information, please answer honestly."

She definitely did not answer honestly. Height and weight, sure, one could not really play around with those, but as far as medical history and past experiences went... not that there was a point in this whole thing, anyway. She was just gonna play along until they were left in a more private place. And SUPER already had her actual information, or close to it. If her plan failed, and they got their hands on the woman's research, at least they did not find out any more.

>>"Would you like me to get you some coffee? Do you have any questions before we head to our destination?"

"No, I do not drink coffee" Sveta shook her head. "My powers are enough for that." she added with a smile. As for questions... she had many, but none appropriate for the moment. "I am curious about the project... but I know it is confidential. I am happy to play a part... Do we go somewhere else from here?"

Zelda stared the girl down before she seemed to catch on to the Brittney thing. It was something that usually took people by surprise. Everything in this timeline seemed... Wrong. The people ordering coffee, nothing seemed like it was right. The woman before her didn't give her nearly as many shivers as pretty much everyone else in this timeline. She shivered a little.Was it colder in this timeline?

>> "I'm doing okay."

Zelda gave her a reassuring smile. "That's good." They could have more conversation when they were in the basement of the hospital, away from crowds and public places. Any one of these people could have some type of bug on them, could be a creepy organization, could be this and that... Zelda was so paranoid and nearly all her instincts had been flaring since she entered this timeline. Zelda knew she didn't belong in this one and couldn't wait to get out.

Zelda collected her signed paperwork, put in her folder, and stashed it back inside her bag. 

>> "No, I do not drink coffee. My powers are enough for that. I am curious about the project... but I know it is confidential. I am happy to play a part... Do we go somewhere else from here?"

Zelda smiled and nodded. Less money for her to have to spend - and she only had a little bit more in cash anyways . That would probably barely cover their cab ride to the hospital. Most people were curious about the project. It was something she would give them a brief explanation of, to appease their curiosity, and then she did her best to never have to contact them again. That is what she was hoped for today, as well. 

"We can talk more, but for now, please follow me." Her eyes made a paranoid look across the coffee shop before she stood up, motioning for Sveta to follow her. Once outside, she motioned down for a cab. She opened the door for Sveta to get in and then she got in. After about 15 minutes or so, they arrived at the hospital. "Please follow me carefully." She vaguely knew where the cameras were and how to get into the basement without being totally detected. Granted, there probably was a Dr. Gray here, too. After running into a couple of janitors, they arrived at the entrance to the abandoned rooms - and it looked like they still were. Whew.

"Alright," she mumbled, "We'll find out if my badge works in this timeline..." She waved it over the key card and about 2 seconds later, it blinked green. YES. She opened the door slowly - it was abandoned, right like in her timeline. Perfect. She flipped the light switch on and hurriedly rushed Sveta inside. 

>>"We can talk more, but for now, please follow me."

And that was it. Sveta was off, alone - or, rather, in the sole company of her intended target - to some unknown location. She had no doubt SUPER still had tabs on her, but from this point on, she had no idea what she was walking into. If the woman turned out to be some kind of a deranged Dr. Frankenstein... well, Sveta was not sure SUPER would come in on time to rescue her. Or at all.

They took a cap to the hospital. So far, so good. Hospitals had people, resources, phones...

>>"Please follow me carefully."

Dr. Grey's behavior told Sveta two things: One, that she knew where the cameras were and she was consciously avoiding them, and two, she was high strung. And possibly not supposed to be in the building at all.

>>"Alright. We'll find out if my badge works in this timeline..."

The answer was a green-lit yes. Sveta followed the woman into the room. This was as private as they were going to get.

"So... you are from the other side?"

Zelda chuckled quietly, "So there is a Dr. Gray on this side... Interesting." She was a big curious to see this Dr. Gray. Was she doing the same research? Clearly not, otherwise the blonde woman wouldn't have contacted her on the other side of the rip. She moved towards the back of the room and opened up a cabinet - there were still some old supplies down here, too. It was several bed sheet rolls that doctors put on examining tables. She shook it out and put it over a chair and motioned for Sveta to sit.

Zelda continued to stand, "There's no cameras in here, at least none that work. We just have to talk quietly." Everything else was the same, so it was safe to assume they weren't working here, either. She was speaking in a above whisper, but not quite loud enough to be talking normally. Odds are, no one would be down here. It was abandoned - the hospital had wanted to re-purpose it to expand it into more morgue space but they continued to have their funds diverted to other causes - like Zelda's research, for instance.

Zelda used the rest of the time to set up - she had to clean the dust off the floor and off the tables, sanitize it, and finally she got her syringes, vials out, the stickers with her name the label, . They had labels on them already. She was ready to go but wanted to answer any questions Sveta might have before she began to take her blood. 

"Okay, so all that's left is for me to take your blood. Do you have any questions or concerns?  Now is the time for us to talk. Oh, are you anemic?" She grabbed Sveta's folder and began to look through her paperwork. She pulled out a 12 ounce can of Coca-Cola and a bag of chips, just in case she felt dizzy or light headed during the process. Or if she was just thirsty or hungry. The soda and chips would help her body adjust to having a few vials of blood drawn.

>> "So... you are from the other side?"

She nodded, "I am. Have you ever been to my side of the rip?" She paused for a moment and muttered, "Thank God I am... This timeline gives me the creeps." 

>>"So there is a Dr. Gray on this side... Interesting... There's no cameras in here, at least none that work. We just have to talk quietly."

The place had definitely seen better days. Svetlana looked around as Dr. Grey got busy preparing the room for the research work, and noted with some relief that she was really careful about setting everything up properly. The woman had to be more than a little bit of a control freak, but in this case, that was definitely a plus. Not just because it made the procedure safer, but also because she probably had a hair trigger for suspicious things. That was what Sveta was gambling on.

They were not on camera, but they were far from private. Sveta suspected SUPER had something on her work phone that allowed them to listen in.

>>"Okay, so all that's left is for me to take your blood. Do you have any questions or concerns? Now is the time for us to talk. Oh, are you anemic?"

"No... not dat I know of."

She had been fine, the last time her blood was taken. Physically, anyway.
She asked if Dr. Grey was from the other side, even if it was very much obvious by now.

>>"I am. Have you ever been to my side of the rip? Thank God I am... This timeline gives me the creeps."

"You get used to it I think" Sveta noted, hoping that the doctor would catch what she was saying "So... what is it dat you do in this project? It's that... you know what my power is. I want to make sure it is not used for... anything bad."

Zelda continued to get things set up. She dusted off a stool and pulled it over next to Sveta. They had some time it seemed and she was a bit curious about this timeline anyways. She pulled out a box of latex free gloves & some hand sanitizer from her bag. After she sanitized her hands, she put the gloves on.

>> "You get used to it I think. So... what is it dat you do in this project? It's that... you know what my power is. I want to make sure it is not used for... anything bad."

Zelda was already a paranoid freak. And it didn't help that literally every single one of her senses were telling her to get the h*ll out of this timeline. Eve worse, they were literally in an abandoned basement of a hospital in another universe. Timeline, whatever. Zelda sighed. But Sveta's comment immediately made Zelda's eyebrow arch. It gave her chills for some reason - or maybe she already had them? In either case, what did she mean she she got used to it? Zelda's mind quickly tried to piece the puzzle together. As a doctor, Zelda was trained to understand those 'hidden messages.' A kid, woman, or even a man, might have been victims of abuse and can't say something flatly without fear of reprisal. This probably wasn't that bad, though. Right? It either meant she was from the other side of the rip - and for some reason staying in this one? Or had she met someone else from across the rip that had similar feelings upon being in this timeline? 

Zelda contemplated her next words very carefully, "Do you have any family around here?" Zelda had noted her accent, "Where are you originally from?" She had wrote it down on the form, but Zelda was trying to analyze her voice, to catch any clues about what the heck was going on. Hopefully, the woman would catch on to what she meant by 'Here.' As in, this timeline. If she said no, it would mean she's from the other timeline. Granted, that was a pretty vague question. Hmmm... But that still would leave out why she was here...? Why did she make Zelda come to this timeline? Upon that realization, Zelda definitely got chills. Something wasn't right and it wasn't just because this timeline is a freaky. Or maybe she was just being extra paranoid. Either way, Zelda had to take a couple breaths to calm herself down. In either case, since Sveta was being passive, she decided it would be best not to go into too much details. They were relatively safe in the basement - no one could see or hear them. Zelda checked the door one more time, just to make sure it was locked. 

"It's to help develop medicinal properties for humans and mutants, for diseases like cancer, and wounds caused by gunshots or stab wounds, that kinda thing." She smiled, "Nothing evil." She paused, thinking for a moment, her eyes locking on Sveta's, "It's crazy how some people will go so far to do something... Evil. But, you know, as a doctor, I'm trained to help anyone and everyone to the best of our abilities, especially if their in a medically difficult situation. Or in a difficult situation in other circumstances, like child abuse, spouse abuse, etc." If the girl was in trouble, hopefully she knew that Zelda would help her. If not, it didn't matter & the woman hopefully knew she was not doing any type of harm to anyone with her research. 

>>"Do you have any family around here? Where are you originally from?"

The woman seemed to be catching on. She checked the door again, which told Sveta she was nervous, but did not do much for safety once the enemy was already within the room... it was strange to think of herself that way, and yet Sveta could not fight back the profound feeling of guilt over the whole thing.

"My family is from Russia." she offered, explaining the accent. Innocent bit of detail, obvious too, but any detail might help if the doctor got away to take a message. Of course, that was dependent on how well she did the job SUPER told her to do.

>>"It's to help develop medicinal properties for humans and mutants, for diseases like cancer, and wounds caused by gunshots or stab wounds, that kinda thing. Nothing evil."

"Sounds... nice." Sveta noted. Innocent. No large-scale mad scientist stuff. That was good. Maybe SUPER was less interested in stab wounds.

>>"It's crazy how some people will go so far to do something... Evil. But, you know, as a doctor, I'm trained to help anyone and everyone to the best of our abilities, especially if their in a medically difficult situation. Or in a difficult situation in other circumstances, like child abuse, spouse abuse, etc."

Boy, the woman did not only take the hint, she freaking tripped all over it! Sveta gave her a long hard look, and a soothing gesture with one hand. Chill out, lady, or we're both done. She took her purse out, placing it on the table casually, allowing it to fold a little bit open, and reveal her cell phone. If SUPER was listening in, they were doing so through the phone. Or some mutant, but in that case, they were already *****.

"Well I am happy to help a project dat helps other people. And I really appreciate how careful you are with privacy. Do you keep all your subjects anonymous? Even from yourself?"

Say yes. You are less useful that way.

>> "My family is from Russia."

Zelda nodded. Vague, but her question was vague too; that wasn't too surprising. Sveta still didn't say they were from here though. Although, after Sveta mentioned Russia, she definitely realized that her accent was Russian. Zelda was a bit curious about the woman's back story - how did she end up in New York City? Better yet, how did she end up on this side of the rip?

 Zelda nodded, "Yep, hopefully something will turn out good." She had no idea if any of her experiments would work and really, it was all hinging on Sveta's X-Gene and her ability to replicate it alongside other X-Genes. Over the next couple weeks, Zelda had a pretty intensive research schedule just for this research. It really was perfect time to get the samples. 

After Zelda's little outburst, her suspicions were pretty much confirmed. She knew not to doubt her intuition. She should have stayed on her side of the rip. Zelda watched carefully as Sveta took her purse and folded it open to reveal her cell phone. Zelda stared at the cell phone for a minute. She knew what it meant but she was a bit surprised. That phone was bugged. Every single thing they had said to each other was being recorded or listened too. Why did Sveta show her this, though? She felt guilty about having to do this? Or maybe she was trapped here? Or maybe this was part of their tricks. She had read all the conspiracies on the internet, so it wasn't too hard to connect the pieces. The only agency she could really think of that would want to find her information & would send an undercover agent too would be SUPER. The only other one would be the Syndicate, but she felt like they probably operated in different ways. 

Her mind raced with what to do next. They needed to communicate but they couldn't speak.

>>  "Well I am happy to help a project dat helps other people. And I really appreciate how careful you are with privacy. Do you keep all your subjects anonymous? Even from yourself?"

She nodded, "Yes. All my volunteers are anonymous. I don't even see their faces." That was partially true - she saw some of their faces, just not most of them. She saw Doc Prof and a few others, but that wasn't something that needed to be said loudly.

"Oh, I need to set up a table here so I can put the syringes and vials here. I have a hunch your right arm is going to be easier for us to draw the blood than the left one. I'll also need your arm to lay across the table." There was already a table to the left of Sveta but she had already cleaned it off. Zelda moved over and pulled a new table over - one that was covered in dust. It was a good thing they came to this abandoned place - and even better that it was so dusty. She wrote, with the tip of her nail:

R u in danger?

She had to make it quick. Now, she needed to stall some more so Sveta could get what she needed wrote down into the dust. She paused, "Let me switch my gloves... They're a bit dusty now." She took them off and put some new ones on and then 'accidentally' knocked a couple of the vials off the table. "Oh, sh*t," she muttered, hopefully just loud enough for her phone to pick it up. "My nerves are a bit jumpy, like I said earlier, this timeline gives me the creeps. No offense, or anything, it'd probably be the same if you were on my side of the rip," she semi-joked. She shrugged and began digging into her bag, "I know I brought some extra." She had, but she was stalling as much as possible. 

After that, she waited until Sveta could finish her message. They didn't have much more time to waste. Once Sveta was done, she had her plastic rubber band like material to slow the blood circulation from around her right arm. "Alright, this might be a bit uncomfortable." She also began to dab the crease in her elbow with alcoholic swabs. They didn't have time to keep talking and she was sure the agency that she was representing was getting suspicious at this point. 

>>"Yes. All my volunteers are anonymous. I don't even see their faces."

Good. That was good. Even if SUPER got to her, they would have a hell of a time tracking down her subjects. And now that she had been warned, she might just have enough time to warn them too, before the agents showed up at their door.
Zelda looked even more alarmed when Sveta gave her a hint of what was going on. The poor woman had been high strung to begin with, and now her worries were proven to be true. It was not paranoia if they were really out to get you. Fortunately, if someone was that anxious all the time, they had probably already played out situations like this in their mind multiple times. Zelda got to work.

>>"Oh, I need to set up a table here so I can put the syringes and vials here. I have a hunch your right arm is going to be easier for us to draw the blood than the left one. I'll also need your arm to lay across the table."

She brought another table over, one still covered in dust. Sveta realized what she was doing.

R u in danger?

Sveta was not sure for a moment how to answer. She was not in immediate danger, depending on how one defined it. She was an asset to SUPER.

>>"Let me switch my gloves... They're a bit dusty now... Oh, sh*t. My nerves are a bit jumpy, like I said earlier, this timeline gives me the creeps. No offense, or anything, it'd probably be the same if you were on my side of the rip. I know I brought some extra."

Well, she had to give it to the woman, at least she sounded realistic. A little bit too much, even.

"It is okay. Dis side is not that different at all. People are people everywhere. It is not a world full of evil twins or anything." Sveta chuckled a little. Listening in, SUPER likely heard her doing her job, trying to calm the woman enough to get information out of her. Like a good agent. Meanwhile, she used her finger to write on the table.

SUPER
Kidnapped
Phone

>>"Alright, this might be a bit uncomfortable."

"It's okay" she repeated in a calming voice "So... tell me more about your research? Am I helping to cure cancer?"

Lie. Lie a lot.

Zelda was a bit surprised that all the conspiracies were turning out to be right and very real. It's a good thing she didn't accept that anti-anxiety medication when she was offered it all those years ago.

Zelda paused from prepping the womans arm for the blood draw as she talked. 

>>"It is okay. Dis side is not that different at all. People are people everywhere. It is not a world full of evil twins or anything."

She smiled and nodded, "That's true. I am making big assumptions. I'm sure everyone is still people. I think it's just because I know I don't belong here, you know?" 

She glanced towards the table. Holy sh*t. They were real, very real. And this poor woman was kidnapped. Unless she was lying, of course, which could be possible. There really wasn't a reason to not trust her. SUPER is wanting more information about her research and she tipped her off. She needed to enact extra counter measures once she got back into the office. Maybe she needed to shut it down while she still could. But she had so much work and this could be the breakthrough she was looking for. Ugh. She had time, at least. 

Phone? She glanced towards Sveta's cell phone on the table but she knew it couldn't have been that one - she was wanting Zelda's phone. Try to get a message across? She nodded slowly and walked back over, "I just want to check some of the information you put on your form before I begin to draw the blood. Sorry, this is taking a little bit longer than usual." She grabbed her phone out of her bag and brought it back and gave it to Sveta's free hand. She made sure it was unlocked and turned off her locks while Sveta had it. She could turn them back on once she was done looking at it anyways. 

"I'm going to start taking some blood samples now." While she did her message, she began to draw blood from her right arm. One vial, 2 vial, 3 vial. That was enough. She slipped off the rubber band thing and took the needle out. She then put a small cotton swab on it and taped it over. She didn't say anything, though, at least not yet. For all they know, she could still be drawing blood. She honestly wasn't even sure if she was going to keep them at this point - maybe it would be better to destroy it and the rest of her research...

>> ""So... tell me more about your research? Am I helping to cure cancer?"

She chuckled, "That is what every doctor hopes to aspire too. Will this be any different than the millions of other failed experiments? Probably not." 

>>"That's true. I am making big assumptions. I'm sure everyone is still people. I think it's just because I know I don't belong here, you know?"

Neither you nor I. Sveta frowned and nodded. The whole thing was off, and anyone listening in closely would probably hear it too. Or maybe it was just her anxiety, making her believe the little charade the two of them put up was glaringly obvious, even with sound only. But she was in too deep now to stop what she had started.

>>"I just want to check some of the information you put on your form before I begin to draw the blood. Sorry, this is taking a little bit longer than usual."

"I am sure I filled it in right." Sveta noted as she got the phone. It was a lifeline, a chance at getting out. She frantically typed in the only number she could summon up - Noel's. She only had time for a short message, but she typed it as fast as she could, and prayed for the best. She was close to the rip. Maybe it would go through?...

>>"I'm going to start taking some blood samples now."

She actually did it too. Not that it mattered. Sveta was screwed either way, some blood was not going to change that. She asked about the research, though, since she still needed to sound like she was doing her job.

>>"That is what every doctor hopes to aspire too. Will this be any different than the millions of other failed experiments? Probably not."

"You know, I read somewhere dat a lot of inventions happen accidentally while someone is researching something else." she noted with a smile "Maybe you will find something equally important. I bet you have met all kinds of fascinating mutations already..."

Maybe they were being too... Suspicious. On the other hand, Zelda was a paranoid freak. It was something she freely admitted to to just about anyone who asked. She was up-tight, she had little to no social media presence, she had alarm systems built into her home with cameras over it. She was in general an entire conspiracy theorist. It shouldn't be too surprising if her nerves were extra jumpy & she was acting strange in a whole new timeline.

Zelda chuckled, "That's what all the patients say. Next thing you know, they're in anaphylactic shock shock due to some allergy they didn't list - like Latex." It was like drugs. They never would list if they were on some type of illegal drug, despite the fact that as a doctor, we do not report them to the authorities. It really interfered with their ability to do their job.

Zelda eyed the phone as she took Sveta's blood. She was going to keep one vial, just to get the X-Gene sliced into a virus. It would be extremely hard for anyone to track the X-Gene back to her, then. Then she was going to destroy the samples. Maybe all of her samples - after all, she did have most of the X-Genes sliced into some type of virus by this point. It would be a setback to not have the supply anymore, but it would be the safest bet.

She had no idea if the message would get out since they were in a different timeline. But, it would be saved onto her phone, and a large exclamation point will show up beside the message saying the message failed. She could simply resend it once she got back into her timeline. Hopefully, Sveta knew she would do that. That was under the presumption she even made it back into her timeline.

>> "You know, I read somewhere dat a lot of inventions happen accidentally while someone is researching something else. Maybe you will find something equally important. I bet you have met all kinds of fascinating mutations already..."

Once she completed the blood sample, she wrote on the dust on the table as she answered Sveta's comment to make sure it didn't seem weird:

The message will save on my phone, I'll send it once I get back. Put it in the notes app, if you want to be sure.

"That is very true. Most great researchers never realize they find something until they have that 'eureka moment.' We'll see if it happens to me or not. I appreciate the optimism, though." The next part of her comment was totally a SUPER question - they were interested in her subjects, too. That couldn't be good, at all. "Actually, most of them are fakes - they pretend they have something, believing they'll get some type of compensation for volunteering. But this is exactly that - volunteering. No compensation." That was a complete lie. Well, except for the compensation part. They would only get compensated if the research is used to create a commercial product - there was no reward for volunteering, though.

And she had tons of interested mutants. Most of them had had hinted at some type of family member that was going through some illness they believed she might be able to help with if her research passed muster. Of course, it would take years for any product she creates to be commercially available but at least people in future generations will have access to it.

Of course, all of her research was looking less likely now. She began to move the blood samples into the storage coolers she brought along. "We're pretty much done here, let me pack up and then I'll escort you out of the building." Packing up, of course, also meant wiping their communications off the dusty table & putting the furniture back in its original place.