damned_institute | Day 24: Intercom, Dinner

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Day 24: Intercom, Dinner

The intercom jingle rang out both inside and outside the institute on speakers loud enough to broadcast clearly across the recreational field.

"It's been a busy day, hasn't it? Well, fortunately for all of us, it's nearly over, and we can all look forward to some rejuvenating shut-eye--that is, after dinner, of course."

The Head Doctor chuckled.

"Supper for tonight is going to consist of individual servings of chicken pot pie, with mashed potatoes and peas as sides. You may ask your nurse about the usual selection of drinks, and... Oh! Some of you might find that you have some new guests in your rooms belonging to... Group 5, I believe...? Please see to it that our new patients spend their first night at Landel's Institute as peacefully as possible!"

He paused, then added:

"Oh, and Nurse Hondor? Could you please report to my office? Thank you."

The intercom clicked off.

[ OOC: Remember how dinner shift works--everyone posts to this post with individual threads for each room. New characters waking up during this shift will do so in their respective threads, though if your roommate's player is unable to play with you during your intro, feel free to work something out so that your roommate is taking a nap or something. XD; ]

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Protoman noticed his roommate finally awoke... and then growled. That showed either confusion or frustration, and both would most likely be at the nature of this place.

"Hello, my name is Protoman. Do you know where you are?"

Asch's attention turned to Protoman as soon as he spoke. While he wasn't one who typically enjoyed conversation with random people-- or most anyone, actually-- maybe he would shed some light on this whole mess.

"...No," he replied after a moment. "But I take it I'm not on Eldrant anymore." Or even Auldrant, for that matter. The room didn't look anything like any of the facilities he had seen; it was far too plain. Not to mention, the clothing was just plain insulting... "So if you know, then you better tell me where the hell I am."

Well, this one is aggressive....aggressive can be good.

"Well, I'll tell you what I heard. I verified it by a number of people, so it is either a case of mass hysteria or the truth. This is a mental institution for humans. During the day they say we are somebody we aren't and that our lives before this were hallucinations. During the night monsters roam the halls."

He wondered if his roommate would take this at face value or if he would need to verify the data himself.

"I have never heard of Eldrant before, so I can't tell you whether or not this place exists there."

The God-General stared silenly at his roommate, seemingly trying to take in the little bit of information he had just heard. If the explanation hadn't sounded familiar in a way, he might've spared a few seconds to laugh at how far-fetched it sounded. But rather than feeling even the slightest bit amused by it, he found himself seething.

I knew I shouldn't have left it to that damned replica! Of course, there was no way to confirm whether or not his assumption was correct, but it was easier to turn the blame on someone. If he was correct about it, something had to be done with the originals. And a 'mental institution' certainly was creative.

"So our lives were nothing-- nothing but the hallucinations of an insane person, huh? I have to give him credit," Asch began in a low tone, cradling one arm against his chest while his free hand gripped tightly to the sheets of the bed. "This is a lot more creative than simply killing everyone."

"Well that's what the people here would have us believe. I tend to find it counterproductive to assume I am unable to correctly analyze reality. Now, I've told you my name. What is yours?"

Protoman needed data in order to accurately assess the situation, and trading names tended to put humans at ease and break psychological barriers on information sharing.

"Asch," came the reply. He wasn't fond of formalities, but considering he was beginning to get some information, even if it wasn't anything he was glad to hear, it was probably best to go along with it. "You can call me Asch." He didn't see any need to state his title as a God-General of the Oracle Knights (or would it be former?) at the moment.

Nodding his head towards the door, he continued, "So, if this is some kind of mental institution, do they keep us locked in these rooms or what?"

"Yes, we are mostly prisoners. Nurses come and move us from activity to activity. I haven't tried breaking free yet...because this isn't my true body. I can't leave here without first finding my true shell. If you wish to escape though I will assist in any way I can."

His roommate seemed capable, and an alliance may prove useful later. The only reason Protoman could figure someone would ask about locks, is if they wanted to leave. Leaving would require discerning the nature of this place and it's operators, which would help Protoman acquire data needed to find his true body.

So, when they weren't in their rooms, they were escorted by nurses? If they were anything like nurses he was used to seeing, that shouldn't pose too much of a problem. But first he would need to find out just how one was supposed to get out of there. And, though he knew he capable enough to go without it, Asch preferred to have his sword and the rest of his equipment first. Finding those would take priority.

For the moment, however, there was something else that caught his attention. "Your true shell? Not your true body? What the hell's that supposed to mean?"

Maybe I should write this down once and hand it to people so I don't need to keep repeating myself...no humans would find that rude...

"Well I was created by 2 men, Dr. Light and Dr. Wily. I am a robot, an artificial human. It used to be more obvious, but this body I woke up in seems to be designed more closely to following human standards."

"Uh-huh..." Not that the idea was entirely unheard of; considering what he knew was possible. But why would they bother giving someone a new body? That was the part Asch had difficulty understanding.

"Anyway, you say you haven't tried escaping from here because you want to find your other body first. I'd rather have my things before getting out of here, as well. Do you have any idea where they'd be keeping the things they took from us?"

Well, he either has robots where he's from or he thinks I'm insane. Since I have no proof I am not insane, I'll have to keep my data accurate so that the possibility I am sane rises.

"No, I don't have that information, although I have contacted someone named R. Hood who desires a return to his previous form. Cooperation seems the most beneficial situation."

Wonderful... Asch crossed his arms, hearing that Protoman didn't know where they could find their stuff. But still, at least he had provided him with some information. He had worked with less before.

"What? You're not the only one who was given a new body?" the God-General asked, raising an eyebrow slightly. Although, that could've been somewhat good news. Things such as robotic bodies, and whatever kind of body this 'R. Hood' had before hand, shouldn't be too hard to find. "Well, if the people here are wasting time giving people new bodies, it shouldn't be too hard finding where they keep everything. It's not exactly easy to hide things like that." Not that he knew what the facility looked like outside of the room he was currently stuck in.

"As for cooperation... I suppose that'd be for the best." Though that didn't mean he was happy about the idea.

"There seems to be a misunderstanding. Time was not wasted in separating me from my body, and others from theirs. The most likely reason is to disorient us and weaken us. For example, while in this body, My strength is incredibly decreased, and I am unable to teleport or use my plasma cannon. From what I heard, most people are weakened in some manner in this place..."

Now that he more fully processed this data, Protoman wondered if weakening the prisoners was done because those who held him captive were afraid of the prisoners' combined powers, or if they wanted to eliminate all hope...

For a moment, Asch merely stared as his roommate, taken aback by that last comment. Finally, he turned his head away and gave a short, forced laugh-- though it ended up sounding more like a cough. "Wait... wait just a goddamn minute! As if taking our weapons and sticking us in these ridiculous clothes wasn't enough-- now they supposedly have a way of weakening people here? Is that what you're saying?!"

He shook his head before turning his attention back to Protoman. "This had better not be some kind of twisted joke. Because if I find out you're just making shit up, finding your 'real body' will be the least of your problems. You got that?"

Protoman shrugged at his roommate's outburst.

"I have no way to verify that, since any powers I had were connected to my body, but others have told me they lost their powers upon waking up here. I don't have enough data to give you a true analysis of power loss due to this area, however, it would make sense. Besides, if they let us retain our powers, it would only mean they don't fear them."

Protoman paused to look at his roommate.

"I assume you normally have supernatural powers? Could you test them to see if they remain?"

While he wouldn't call his abilities 'supernatural', Asch chose not to comment about that. Instead, he decided to play along-- at least for the moment. "Fine. But what I said still stands; remember that."

That said, he stood up. And, after moving away from the bed, he extended an arm, concentrating for a few seconds before a glow of red energy appeared around his hand. The energy then expelled into a small blast; too small to damage anything in the room since he hadn't targeted anything close to him.

The God-General put a hand to his head afterwards, feeling dizzy once more. "What the... hell?!" He closed his eyes and took a few steps back so he could use his bed to steady himself again. That had never happened before... He had used far more powerful artes, sometimes several in a row, and it had never had that sort of effect on him. Also, even low-leveled artes such as the one he had just used, were never that weak. That was just plain humiliating.

Once the dizziness had faded, though a mild fatigue lingered, he turned to look at Protoman once more. "...I guess you weren't lying... Tch..."

Protoman moved his food aside and went to his roommate.

"Are you injured? Do you need assistance?"

He had never seen anything like that from a human. He wondered if his roommate was a robot as well...If so why did he have the ability to use his powers where Protoman did not? Wouldn't the owners have switched his body as well?

After seeing that Asch wasn't in any clear danger, he needed to gather data.

"What do you call that ability? What is its capabilities?"

If he hadn't been preoccupied with wondering how someone could weaken him that much, he might've given his roommate an odd luck once he asked more about the ability. After all, people often knew about Fonic Artes, even if they couldn't use them themself.

"It's a Fonic Arte called Raging Blast. It's normally useful since it can be used to knock someone down and give you an advantage. Though that little demonstration was pitiful.." To think that the Oracle Knights' God-General Asch the Bloody couldn't even use a low-leveled arte to its full capability... He was just glad that no one of importance had been there to witness it.

An art... that implies that it is not technology-based, rather that it is a natural skill...

Apparently Protoman's information was correct humans with extraordinary powers would have them weakened here. The fact that humans could even have powers like these was new data that could prove useful.

"It seems like a technique not to be used lightly in here. It appeared to drain a lot of your energy."

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Day 24: Intercom, Dinner

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