Welcome to Gaia! ::

No one will look for Nate here. No one will see him here. It is the perfect place to make this necessary phone call. He flips out his cellular phone and waits through the rings. It's one of those nifty personalized phones, black with an orange-lighted-face that glows against his cheek when it's hoisted to his ear.

"Doctor.... I hope I didn't reach you at an awkward time, but I am in dire need of your assistance..." He closes over the mouthpiece and looks side-to-side. Not seeing anyone else there, he continues. "I am sending you a package---a large package. Please see it its security and confidentiality. I will arrive tomorrow to give you details. A friend and I found it...."

Nick begins to wonder if it's just his luck that he always happens to stumble in on Nate's dirty dealings. Surely the boy isn't as bad as he looks right now.

And this really disturbs him.

"Yes, yes, I know it's alive..... Well, it looks human, but...... No, do not let it wake up. It's got an Arcane Gift---that could not have been given to it by the Gods..... restrain it... keep it safe, and keep your men safe from it. I swear, it can drain the very life out of your body."

Nate paces, then his eyes dart up and in the direction of the sound.

"I'll call you back....be discreet, this stays between you and I and the people who already know about it.....it's a danger to the public until we can figure out what it is....and ....and I insist that you not be cruel to it."

He closes the phone to the doctor's protests, and leans against the wall, shaking.

He hears Nick's voice, and his eyes roll closed. This is exactly what he didn't want to happen. It's not that he doesn't trust Nick--it's that he doesn't want to involve good people in such terrible business. He pushes off from the wall, and walks a few paces in Nick's direction.

He doesn't look angry. He doesn't try to con-talk the farmer into believing he heard something other than he heard. He just looks down at the ground, and says, "In a way, I'm glad you heard. I hate secrets, Nick. But, this one I was keeping because I thought it was the right thing to do."

He looks up, for a long time, his eyes settled on Nick's. He looks like he's had a bit of an idea.

"Your Gift... if I recall, has it something to do with the eyes of the dead?"

"I have then, Nick, something very important to ask of you. My father uncovered some skeletons---2000 year old specimens, fused together in volcanic ash to trap something inside. The thing inside... he looks human, but he is too powerful to touch, and doesn't act rational. Perhaps seeing into the eyes of the ones that died wrapped around him could give us some insight into what he actually is...."

And he pauses, and shifts his feet.

"I hate to get you involved. It's not safe..."

"Of course. Do you need help?"

"No no! I wasn't suggesting... that you were old or anything!"

He realizes that Nick is about his father's age, and feels suddenly like a school kid.

He toughens his voice a bit, to compensate. "We'll be driving to the Labs.. I'll pull the car around."

(I got to go for now, see you later tonight, I hope.))