HF: Lionel Only - only HFers allowed

[Laraqua]

Daniel merely nods. The warden's post isn't all that far away. The three dodge rubble and hissing incendiary bombs in their haste to get into shelter.



The Warden's Post is cramped with two female wardens with ear phones on busily speaking into a telephone and frantically working at a switchboard. Orders are belted here and there as news is passed on, relayed, reformed and passed along again.

[Mr. Handy]

I'm the one who found Jennifer and her arsenal from the future, thinks Lionel as he walks to the warden's post with the others. I'm going to be asked all sorts of awkward questions I don't have the answers for. I think I'd rather take a chance with Daniel and Anna. "Say," says Lionel to the other two. "I have a theory about the origin of the girl and her odd possessions. It might sound improbable, but nothing else makes sense, and as the great Sherlock Holmes said: when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth. Tell me, have either of you read H. G. Wells?"

[Laraqua]

Daniel tries in vain to get one of the girls' attention but is brushed aside in their efficiency. It is impressive watching the two work, not so much as flinching as bombs blew up all around them.



"Do go on," says Anna. "I am endlessly fascinated by H.G. Wells. Isn't a friend of your people, Daniel?"



Daniel seems pained. "Perhaps we shouldn't deal in first names. Second names are familiar and much more the done thing. My second name is Scott."

[Mr. Handy]

Lionel steers the conversation back on track, both to take some of the pressure off of Daniel and to further guide him and Anna in the direction he's heading. "I absolutely adore Wells, ma'am," says Lionel. "He is one of my favorite authors, a genius of the first order, and perhaps even a prophet. My favorite novel of his is The Time Machine. I read it frequently, and it got me thinking: is time travel possible? While we certainly lack the means in this day and age, surely in the future humanity could devise a way to do it. If so, then would not some of these people from the future be present at important times in history to observe the goings on? Times like ours, for instance." He lowers his voice. "Maybe this girl comes from the future. It would explain everything: her odd clothing, and her even odder weapons. A time traveler would of course carry weapons for personal protection, especially in time of war. But in spite of her knowledge of the future, she could not possibly anticipate where every single bomb would fall."

[Laraqua]

"I think he needs another cup of tea," says Anna, whispering in Daniel's ear.

Daniel just nodded.

"Look, sir," says Anna. "Perhaps you should take a seat in that corner over there. Air raid should be done with soon. They can't drop all their bombs down here. After that we'll take you to the hospital." She admires the rifle Daniel's holding. "That is a nice rifle, though."

[Mr. Handy]

"Well, it was just a theory," says Lionel with a shrug. "Still, would have been fascinating if it were true. That is quite a rifle, indeed. I'd imagine rifles in the future would be much like rifles today only much improved in every way, but no matter how fancy it is, it doesn't constitute proof. No, I suppose the only thing that could prove something like that would be some piece of technology that simply couldn't exist in this day and age." If I let that rifle out of my sight, thinks Lionel, I'll never see it again. Got to take a chance here. In for a penny, in for a pound. He looks down at Jennifer's belt. "Hmm. Well, this is certainly odd." He unhooks her mobile phone from the belt and makes a show of inspecting it. "We were so intrigued by the rifle that we didn't notice this little wonder. What do you suppose it could be? To me it looks like a telephone, only look how small it is, and no wires! Why, it could fit in your pocket. There's also no dial, but there are several tiny buttons." He activates the phone. "And they light up, too! But how? No light bulb could possibly fit inside. And see, it's got a miniature torch." He demonstrates its use. "There's also a tiny display up top, with the words 'NO CARRIER' written there." He presses the 1 button, and the digit appears in the display. "Amazing! When I press one of these buttons, the number appears in the display." When Daniel and Anna are watching, he presses the buttons 2 through 9 in turn to demonstrate how the numbers show up as he does. "This tiny gadget must have some impressive electronic components. It's much too small to contain even a single vacuum tube, but it would take thousands of them to make something this sophisticated work." He pauses for effect. "You don't think...?"

[Laraqua]

The telephonists look over and notice the mobile phone and for a moment they are distracted but they are professional women and go back to doing their duty.



"You don't think the Germans could possibly have anything like... No, it has to be some sort of gadget designed to inspire fear. To make us think they are far more powerful than they are."

OOC: Remember its music, calcular, SMS, games etc. functions. There's a lot to it. Take a look at Jennifer's kit in NPC list to see just what she had.

[Mr. Handy]

[OOC: Thanks, I was already drooling over the list last night. ]



"This looks far too complex for anything the Krauts could come up with," says Lionel. "Or the Yanks, for that matter. Anyway, all the text is in English. Hmm...I wonder what else this clever gadget can do?" He presses a button, which clears the display. He presses 1, and the number appears in the display. Then he presses the + button and the 2 button, and the number 2 appears, replacing the number 1. At last he presses the = button, and the number 3 appears. "I didn't press the 3 button. Perhaps...it added the two numbers? Well, there's one way to find out." This time he adds the numbers 1234 and 4321, producing the total 5555. "Yes, that's correct. But how can it calculate sums so quickly?" Then he tries multiplying 37 by 33, producing 1221. He pauses to verify the result in his mind. "Correct again." He turns the cell phone around in his hand so that the built-in digital camera points at his face, then takes a picture. His face appears on the little screen, and when he turns it around again and sees his face there he blinks in feigned surprise. "My word! It's a camera, too?" He takes another picture, this time of Daniel and Anna, and shows it to them. "Incredible! It can do so much, and yet it's so small. Is there anything it can't do?" He presses the menu button, and various options appear on the screen. He points at one of them. "Games, eh? That sounds like jolly good fun." By using the keypad, he selects the option and activates it, and a scrollable list of games appears. "What odd sounding games. Sid Meier's Civilization III? Let's see what that is. Must be American, since they spell it with a Zed and not an S." He starts the game, and the introductory movie plays on the screen, showing the construction of a massive tower that gradually progresses from ancient times, through the Middle Ages, the industrial era, and then the modern age. Then it fades and the main menu appears on the screen with various options. "Absolutely fascinating."

[Laraqua]

Daniel tries to snatch it away. "This, uh, we'd better, uh... Who'd we better get this to? Downing Street? Should we try and get it to Downing Street?"

[Mr. Handy]

Lionel holds onto the phone. "Downing Street?" he says. "I seriously doubt they'd let us inside, and if this originates where I think it does, even our best boffins wouldn't be able to make another one." He selects Credits from the main menu, and a list of names of people who worked on the game scrolls up the screen while music plays softly. "Perhaps my theory wasn't so far-fetched after all. If this is indeed from the future, we need to proceed very carefully. You don't really think Jennifer came back in time all by herself, do you? It stands to reason that a young girl would not travel back to a dangerous time alone and unchaperoned, no matter how heavily armed she may have been. No, there must be another...visitor. Maybe even more than one. And they'll be looking for her." He points at the screen when a copyright notice scrolls by. "Look there: the copyright symbol, and the year 2001. Great Scott, it really is true! The 21st century..." He looks at Anna and Daniel. "If there are others like our girl, we could perhaps identify them by their unusual garb, and they would most likely be carrying gadgets just like this one, don't you think?"

[Laraqua]

Anna takes three steps back and raises her gun to point at Lionel's chest. "Oh, I see what you're trying to get at. Saying you're her chaperone! Well what do you suggest we do about this?"

[Mr. Handy]

"Easy there, ma'am," says Lionel, raising his hands slowly. "I assure you, I mean you no harm. I do have a suggestion, as a matter of fact. Before I make it: do you believe, as I do, that Jennifer is indeed from a future time?"

[Laraqua]

"I believe you think you are."

[Mr. Handy]

"I never said that," says Lionel. "We were talking about Jennifer. Do you believe she is from another time, or do you perhaps have an alternative explanation for her?"

[Laraqua]

"Didn't you say it? I thought you did. Look, what do you think should be done then, huh?"

[Mr. Handy]

"I think we need to look for Jennifer's companions," says Lionel, "and quickly. With every minute that passes, our chances of finding them decrease. If we wait here too long or take the time to try to find someone in authority and convince them, they may disappear forever. If they are searching for her, they would be somewhere near where we found her body: perhaps among the dead, perhaps taken to a nearby shelter, or perhaps they were wounded and taken to the hospital. Now that we know what to look for, we should be able to pick them out. If we do find them alive...I suggest we speak with the utmost diplomacy. Pointing guns at them could end badly for all concerned. These people haven't actually done anything as far as we know."

[Laraqua]

"I'm getting the feeling that he's telling the truth about the others," says Daniel. "Look, you keep the gun on him. I'll, er, empty out his pockets. Then when we got everything together, we go looking for these other people of his."

[Mr. Handy]

Lionel looks outraged and indignant. "Empty his pockets?!" he repeats. "When have I ever treated either of you with anything but dignity and respect? We're all on the same side here. I'm an upstanding citizen, and a doctor, yet you treat me like a common criminal!" He looks to Anna, speaking in a lighthearted tone. "If you don't mind, would you please aim that pistol somewhere else? I've been injured enough already today, don't you think?"

[Laraqua]

"A doctor and an upstanding citizen," says Anna, her eyes widening. "Oh, of course, and with your accent, you're from the good people of the West End, right?"

[Mr. Handy]

"Ma'am, I was born and raised in London," says Lionel. "Both of you have seen my, if I may be so bold, not inconsiderable medical skills for yourselves. We are wasting precious time arguing. Just think what Jennifer could have told us if she had survived. Her friends could be bleeding to death as we speak."