Dr. Karzakoff raises an eyebrow at Laura's last question, but nods in affirmation.
"Indeed. As far as all non official documentation is concerned, her 'name' is Jacquelyn Eva Pierce-Roswell."
Her voice easily drops the inverted commas around the word 'name,' as if the concept of Patient X-1 having an individual identity were alien to her thoughts.
"You have anywhere from ten to thirty minutes before the sedative is flushed completely from her system, but patients often lapse immediately from sedative induced slumber to actual sleep, so your window could be as large as six to eight hours. As for the crate, we will remove it when we depart..."
She glances down at her watch, and smiles faintly.
"...which will be almost immediately."
Karzakoff turns to face the crate once more, waving a hand and drawing her compatriots to her side.
"Pierre? The girl, if you would be so kind."
As the Karzakoff sisters buzz around the crate, the tall man leans over the device, his long arms reaching in and withdrawing once more with the tubes and needles that so recently pumped chemicals into the precious cargo. Laying them carefully aside, he bends down once more, straining slightly as he picks up the motionless girl.
She drapes over his arms, a tiny thing, barely over five feet tall. Her black hair cascades from her lolling head, and her limbs hang limply in her sedative induced sleep. She is clearly of asian-america descent, and, while not what one would call traditionally beautiful, still attractive in a strange, almost alien way. Her entire build is one of compressed power: small, curved, lithe, athletic, and, even in slumber, coiled like a spring waiting to unwind.
Now, however, all that potential lies dormant as the man called Pierre carries her into the waiting assembly of scientists and hands her over to the men gathered there. His movements are careful, like those of a man holding an active bomb. He then retreats quickly, never taking his eyes off the girl.
With that, the three wheel the massive crate back up the ramp, and disappear inside. A minute later Dr. Karzakoff returns once more, holding a large can, which she passes off to Laura.
"Paint. Sky Blue. It'll go a long way towards keeping her in check. For the sake of the experiment, however, have her paint it herself. Without a brush. Remember: encourage her abilities whenever possible, but keep them concealed from the children at all cost."
She walks up the gangplank once more, pausing at the door itself to add an afterthought that has clearly been praying on her mind.
"If it becomes necessary to...well...we will understand."
With so much of that sentence left unsaid, Dr. Karzakoff vanishes into the hold, the door closing behind her. Minutes later, the ship slips once more into the mist, and fades from sight.