tightsofmight (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
tightsofmight) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
damned_institute2011-04-29 11:07 am
tightsofmight) wrote in damned_institute2011-04-29 11:07 am
Day 56: Bus 1
Previously, on Peter Parker's Sucky Life:
Pain, pain, fourth wall bulldozing, fire and pain, and teeny useless swords.
Yeah, so Peter wasn't feeling so hot today. It was a marked improvement on waking up after getting shanked by Grell, but this was in no way a good morning. They had all made it through the basement trials and got their dinky rewards, but man did they pay a hefty price for it. All of them. (Scott and the others had to fight robot raptors? What the hell...) Peter rose from his bed oh so delicately and with much wincing, thanking whoever it was that carried them back to bed every night for putting him belly down on his mattress.
His back, oh god. Peter seethed and hissed and grunted in pain. It felt like it was scabbing over, and the bandages yanked at the tender skin with every minute muscle spasm, every move he made. Cripes. Better his back than his arms or legs, but still. It was going to make things so difficult if they got stuck in Doyleton all over again.
Brainy was so thoroughly wrapped in his blankets on the other side of the room that Peter couldn't make heads or tails of his current state. But he'd stayed in the whole night, right? He should be fine.
Sometimes he just needed extra convincing of that. Considering the guy's track record and all.
From the sounds of it, this Aguilar guy wasn't changing too much of the routine. Being field trip day, Peter had wondered how the new man in charge would handle it (or how General Lieutenant Burger would, apparently). If he planned on letting them out at all. The announcement squashed that theory, and so did the orderly tromping in with a second-hand change of clothes. The burly man passed him the goods without so much as a word, stomping right back outside to wait behind the door. Guess they weren't going in military gear.
...Orderly? Peter pushed the door open again after performing the hastiest change of clothes he could manage in his state, peering at the man. That guy was in an army uniform yesterday. He remembered him. His buzz cut was uneven and he had a pointy old mole on the back of his neck.
"Uh. Are you going incognito?"
He was suddenly on the end of such a pointed look Peter could swear he was talking to Nick Fury. If Nick Fury was white and still had both eyes. "...Right. Okay. Lead the way, hombre."
So undercover it was. The people of Doyleton didn't know this was a military operation. Briefly, he wondered what the advantages of revealing that to the townsfolk could be, but then he remembered how they'd all up and morphed into the living dead at sundown. Put to rest any usefulness they might have had. They were just puppets, the same as the rest of the creepy crawlies in this hellhole.
Though that did beg the question as to why you would have to hide your secrets from puppets in the first place.
He was bequeathed with the usual paper bag lunch and packet of coupons, though he was still surprised to find himself a $15 gift card in the mix. Intercom Dude wasn't kidding about that?
He had money?
...What would he even do with money in Doyleton? What was fifteen dollars and worth buying that wasn't a gourmet burger? Peter boggled at the card as he clambered onto the bus. He'd never gone through the town with any inclination to window shop, so he couldn't even say what was available. He might actually have to look around. Even something simple might be a big help.
The orderly-formerly-known-as-Private-Dwight followed him on tucked a pillow into his seat for him. "Sit down. And don't do anything stupid. You'll heal a lot faster if you don't agitate it."
Peter fidgeted, but quietly settled into the pillow. This was kind of awkward. "Um. Thank you. I deeply appreciate your concern." The man nodded, and was gone.
Peter was the only one on the bus so far. The emptiness was kind of creeping him out.
[Reserved for Harvey Dent. WHY AM I TOP POSTING EVERYTHING YOU JERKS.]
Pain, pain, fourth wall bulldozing, fire and pain, and teeny useless swords.
Yeah, so Peter wasn't feeling so hot today. It was a marked improvement on waking up after getting shanked by Grell, but this was in no way a good morning. They had all made it through the basement trials and got their dinky rewards, but man did they pay a hefty price for it. All of them. (Scott and the others had to fight robot raptors? What the hell...) Peter rose from his bed oh so delicately and with much wincing, thanking whoever it was that carried them back to bed every night for putting him belly down on his mattress.
His back, oh god. Peter seethed and hissed and grunted in pain. It felt like it was scabbing over, and the bandages yanked at the tender skin with every minute muscle spasm, every move he made. Cripes. Better his back than his arms or legs, but still. It was going to make things so difficult if they got stuck in Doyleton all over again.
Brainy was so thoroughly wrapped in his blankets on the other side of the room that Peter couldn't make heads or tails of his current state. But he'd stayed in the whole night, right? He should be fine.
Sometimes he just needed extra convincing of that. Considering the guy's track record and all.
From the sounds of it, this Aguilar guy wasn't changing too much of the routine. Being field trip day, Peter had wondered how the new man in charge would handle it (or how General Lieutenant Burger would, apparently). If he planned on letting them out at all. The announcement squashed that theory, and so did the orderly tromping in with a second-hand change of clothes. The burly man passed him the goods without so much as a word, stomping right back outside to wait behind the door. Guess they weren't going in military gear.
...Orderly? Peter pushed the door open again after performing the hastiest change of clothes he could manage in his state, peering at the man. That guy was in an army uniform yesterday. He remembered him. His buzz cut was uneven and he had a pointy old mole on the back of his neck.
"Uh. Are you going incognito?"
He was suddenly on the end of such a pointed look Peter could swear he was talking to Nick Fury. If Nick Fury was white and still had both eyes. "...Right. Okay. Lead the way, hombre."
So undercover it was. The people of Doyleton didn't know this was a military operation. Briefly, he wondered what the advantages of revealing that to the townsfolk could be, but then he remembered how they'd all up and morphed into the living dead at sundown. Put to rest any usefulness they might have had. They were just puppets, the same as the rest of the creepy crawlies in this hellhole.
Though that did beg the question as to why you would have to hide your secrets from puppets in the first place.
He was bequeathed with the usual paper bag lunch and packet of coupons, though he was still surprised to find himself a $15 gift card in the mix. Intercom Dude wasn't kidding about that?
He had money?
...What would he even do with money in Doyleton? What was fifteen dollars and worth buying that wasn't a gourmet burger? Peter boggled at the card as he clambered onto the bus. He'd never gone through the town with any inclination to window shop, so he couldn't even say what was available. He might actually have to look around. Even something simple might be a big help.
The orderly-formerly-known-as-Private-Dwight followed him on tucked a pillow into his seat for him. "Sit down. And don't do anything stupid. You'll heal a lot faster if you don't agitate it."
Peter fidgeted, but quietly settled into the pillow. This was kind of awkward. "Um. Thank you. I deeply appreciate your concern." The man nodded, and was gone.
Peter was the only one on the bus so far. The emptiness was kind of creeping him out.
[Reserved for Harvey Dent. WHY AM I TOP POSTING EVERYTHING YOU JERKS.]
no subject
Letting that subject drop as abruptly as it was brought up, she focused instead on his questions. Unfortunately, there really wasn't an easy way to answer them.
"No one remembers getting here, and... no one's been able to get home, from what I've heard," she answered, her gaze lowering to her own knees as she shared the gloomy facts. "The only people who leave are the people they let out; the people they managed to brainwash into thinking they're someone else." There were also the people who died, but... this conversation was dark enough without mentioning that.
Hope's last question was one that gave Anise pause, however, and she looked back to him with a confused look. Someone dangerous? Did he meet someone like that last night? Or... was he talking about himself? Looking at him now, though, Anise had a hard time imagining anything about Hope being dangerous. After a long pause, she finally asked, "What do you mean, dangerous?"
no subject
Not that he was sure he wanted to go back. Going back would just be going to a swift execution. But the chance of being able to do something and make the last of his days seem worthwhile was there. He still had to take revenge for his mother's death. Even if that was the only thing he would be able to do before he was caught by Psicom.
He wasn't sure what she meant by brainwashing, either, but at least it seemed like some way out. Enough to perk his interest, anyway. A way out of the hospital might not mean a way home, but it could be a start. Better than staying in the dark, anyway. He... didn't like that darkness.
"Couldn't anyone just... pretend to believe them?" He asked, tilting his head. "And then just... find a way home once they're out of the hospital?"
no subject
She bit her lip a little, knowing that that probably wasn't something Hope wanted to hear. It was probably part of their experiments; watching weird, foreign illnesses as they got worse. It was disgusting, but that was the kind of people their captors were.
"As for pretending to believe them, I've been trying that for weeks and they still don't buy it, boooo," Anise groaned, pouting a little. She was sure that she was a convincing actress, so maybe they had some way of knowing for sure who still had their identities.
But Anise didn't want to give only bad news, so she quickly followed up with something a little more upbeat. "Anyway, all you can really do is rely on the friends you make here. Like me!" She grinned in a way that she hoped was reassuring. "You can come to me for anything, okay?"
no subject
"Thanks." There was a duck of his head as he said that, some sheepishness that still managed to be retained through this experience and journey. He hadn't been appreciative enough of Vanille's optimism and warmth, relying instead on Lightning to help him and-- now he regretted that. She may not have seemed as strong, but at least she was willing to pull him along and make sure he didn't get left alone.
And now, with that cheeriness seemed reflected in Anise, and his own fumbling in this place, he was more than glad for what seemed almost like... a second chance. Choose to listen to the person who made it sound like it would be okay.
no subject
As Anise looked in Hope's direction, though, she realized she could see buildings through the window beside him. Leaning closer to get a better look, she announced, "Oh, look! We're here!" Doyleton looked different from how she remembered it, with glistening snow covering the rooftops and icicles hanging from every ledge. It was kind of pretty, actually.
Unfortunately, reaching the town meant there wasn't much time left to talk, so Anise figured this was a good time to let Hope know how to contact her. "There's a bulletin board back at the institute that people use for keeping in touch with each other. If you need a favor or if you just want to talk, all you have to do is leave a note with my name on it."
But they were in Doyleton now, so that method wasn't going to work today. They still had options, though, didn't they? "Oh, and there's another bulletin by the grocer in town here. I'll keep an eye on that one too." Maybe he wouldn't even want to rely on a stranger like her, but it was still good for him to have someone he could come to if he wanted to. Nobody should be alone in a place like this, Anise thought.
notifs hfdjksfhskd
Snow. He tried not to associate the name and just pressing a hand against the window in wonderment at the flakes falling from the sky. It took a moment before he was broken from his reverie, looking back as she talked about the bulletin boards. That was good to know-- without phones and such, it would have been hard to find anything. At the very least, there was that.
"Okay. I'll... look for that." And he would, or at least try to find it. Something like that might be able to tell him more about the place he had ended up in. A hesitation, even as he watched people get herded off the bus. "Thank you."
no subject
"I'll always be around, so don't be a stranger!" she reminded him one last time before a "nurse" shouted for patients to keep moving, and she had no choice but to move ahead to the exit. All she could do now was hope that he'd be okay.