damned_institute | Day 64: Sun Room

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Day 64: Sun Room

This time, when Rita awakened, the drowsiness and disorientation cleared much faster than it had during the night. Being in a familiar room with traces of light helped with that. Instinctively, she tried to pull herself up, but the motion sent a piercing pain through her chest.

"Oh, Paige, let me help you!" a nurse cried from the doorway as she rushed to Rita's side. For once, Rita wasn't about to put up a fight, though she grumbled a bit as she was eased upright and to her feet. Her right arm was in a cast, which was kept immobilized in a sling. Wherever skin was visible, bruising could be found, and a particularly deep shade of blackish-blue could be seen peeking out from the edge of her shirt collar.

As they began to walk to the Sun Room, the nurse continued talking. "I hope you're not too disappointed at missing the field trip. But I have good news for you! The doctors say you'll be good as new in no time, so long as you take care and don't aggravate your injuries." The woman went on to list a number of activities the mage should avoid or ask for help with, as though Rita couldn't figure those things out for herself. Finally, they reached their destination and Rita was left in peace.

First things first: the bulletin. Since it was early in the day, there weren't many messages from patients yet. That was fine; it would mean her own message would be more visible. First, she needed to notify Taura of her situation, and then there were a few magic-related topics she wanted to inquire about...

Rita picked up a pen and a slip of paper, bent over one of the tables near the bulletin, and began to write... but the letters came out jerky and illegible.

"Dammit," she hissed, scrapping the paper and beginning again. Using only her non-dominant hand was more difficult than she imagined. This time, she wrote very slowly, taking care to write each stroke of each letter neatly. The result was still awkward-looking, but at least it was a readable start. She just needed to be patient... though that was a virtue Rita certainly lacked.

[Taura!]

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She wasn’t entirely sure if his sense of humor was evidence of a good mood or a really bad one. Rather than try and respond to his jokes, Tsubaki instead focused on the most important things--that he wasn’t showing signs of infection and had made it out of last night’s debacle in relatively good shape.

“That’s a relief! That you’re not sick, I mean. It seems like so many people are…” she said, giving a smile. From his notes on the Doyleton bulletin, he had sounded unharmed, but it was another thing entirely to see the truth in person. “I’ve met Soma-san before, she’s admirable. I’m glad to know you all got away. My group did, too. I’ve been lucky since the last time we talked.”

Her shoulder had been a bit stiff that morning, but it was nothing to write home about. She could live with bumps and bruises.

"It does seem to be quite the common illness," Loki said. Really, he also thought that he'd likely dodged that bullet because he had a much stronger constitution than mortals, but that wasn't something he'd be bringing up to Tsubaki.

Ah, the unrelenting optimistic cheer. He hadn't really missed this at all.

"Soma does quite well, all things considered." Loki considered if he should tell Tsubaki that Soma was one of the ill people, but decided against it for now.

"The illness does seem to be the most major of the problems we face at the moment."

The most major problem, right… Tsubaki agreed that the threat of the infected prisoners’ worsening symptoms took top priority over everything. Maybe that was harsh, considering the people they’d lost in last night’s scare, but that was reality. There was no time for mourning… or for sadness or loss. Or for worrying about her unresponsive friends. Or for worrying about her brother, who she was probably going to have to face later on in the afternoon.

There was really no time for anything besides getting past this latest hurdle.

“She seems to know a lot, so she’s probably a great choice to help you settle in,” replied Tsubaki. She let herself look away, back toward the bulletin. Actually, there was a large part of her that hoped someone like Lingormr would never have to settle in to the same extent she and Soma had. That he wouldn’t have endure half as much. Tsubaki wasn’t even one of the oldest prisoners, and already she felt like she was balanced precariously over a precipice and one misstep or moment of weak will would send her toppling into the void.

When she looked back, she said, “Anyway, did you come because of my offer? Do you still have ideas about how to deal with the illness?”

As she’d told Kurogane and Sora, she was a weapon. And weapons fulfilled their purpose, regardless of distractions.

"Soma does know quite a bit," Loki agreed. "But rather more importantly, she is my friend." He seemed to take the entire situation quite calmly, not batting an eyelash at the thought of settling in. Because really, this was still an improvement over his previous situation, an opportunity to start fresh and see what could be done.

He nodded. "Someone else I've spoken with on this matter thought there had been experiments of a sort conducted before, and there was a possibility of finding remnants of such things in the medical wing. While I can't say whether that's true or no, it's worth exploring the possibility. But it's a bit much ground for me to cover by myself."

The word “friend” made a tiny smile appear on Tsubaki’s lips. Somehow, hearing that word from someone else encouraged her resolve.

But the soft expression didn’t last for long. A sober curiosity crossed her face as the man explained what he’d learned. “Experiments to make people transform?” That was right, the weird drugs in the Infirmary had caused a lot of damage the night Landel had bribed people into taking them. And not all of it had been consensual, as she remembered.

Was it the same drug? Had that episode been a precursor to the current illness going around? Tsubaki realized Lingormr was right about it being a possibility.

“Yes, there were drugs there… The Head Doctor made it sound like he was testing their effects.” She frowned in thought. As far as she was concerned, Lingormr didn’t need to ask for her help in investigating the matter--she was already decided. “Of course I can help. If you have other leads, I can go look myself.”

Well, it was a relief to hear that story confirmed. "There are no guarantees it's the same sort of thing, or that we might find anything at all to begin with, but I think it a lead worth pursuing. The more data there are... well, I can't say it makes the chances better really, but it does make things slightly less impossible if it comes to us trying to craft our own sort of cure." He rubbed his chin. "Perhaps we could plan an effective search of that infirmary and the doctor's offices? I was attempting to look around myself two nights ago, but was roped into helping some newer people obtain medical supplies. With how quickly the disease progresses, it seems distraction was ill-advised on my part."

“Yes, that’s smart.”

It was! Tsubaki couldn’t say she was an expert on experimental drugs and their cures; in trying to figure something out to help the other prisoners, she hadn’t quite figured out where to start. But Lingormr’s calm approach made things seem more within reach and she found herself nodding.

“I’ve been in some of the doctor’s offices before to search for a computer, so it’s not totally unfamiliar to me,” she said. “Unfortunately, diversions like that tend to pop up all the time; it could be the Head Doctor’s planning one tonight to keep people from figuring out this sickness. But I don’t think we can wait, do you? Whatever’s going to happen… seems like it’s going to happen soon.”

Landel had said it would only take days to tell who was supposed to become a monster and who wasn’t. They were already on day three.

Loki accepted the compliment as if it was his due. He was, after all, the smartest person he knew. By a long shot.

"So that means there is no time to waste. Since it will take time to try to fiddle up some sort of cure if we find things even to begin with." Loki sighed. "So perhaps that ought to be the focus for tonight, and distractions will simply have to be overcome."

He rubbed his chin as he considered how best to handle this situation. He'd intended to give the Arts and Crafts nonsense another go since he'd had a useful enough conversation with Sora, but that seemed like a distraction in that case. Unless he were to convey to the boy what it was he intended to do. Though that also seemed like an unnecessary diversion.

Tsubaki nodded. This was the same kind of strategy she often set for herself--set the goal and push through the obstacles involved no matter the cost. It made sense to her, and she felt relief at seeing that there was someone else as determined to get to the bottom of Landel’s experiments as her.

“Right. Then I’ll go, for sure.”

Loki nodded. She'd agreed much more readily than he expected, which was nice. "Then perhaps we should meet this evening at the medical wing so that we can plan a more effective search?"

Really, very refreshing after always having to cajole and trick people in Asgard.

“Okay, let’s do it.”

With the symptoms progressing day-by-day, Tsubaki didn’t see much choice but to throw her hat into the arena and try to investigate Lingormr’s idea. She didn’t know if they were thinking in the right direction or even if they had a chance of success given how much of an impregnable fortress of secrets the Institute was, but she had to try. The slimmest chance was still a chance.

And if they couldn’t stop the illness right way, there was always the next step, which was containing it…

She paused, unsure if she should voice the question on her tongue. Discussing problems with other prisoners had helped her in the past to open her eyes to new possibilities and make new connections, but when it was her foreboding driving her thoughts she didn’t know if it was fair to lay that burden on a man she had only just met. He had to be just as lost as she was--as they all were, really.

“I know you’ve only been here a few days, but… what do you think will happen when the illness reaches its peak? How much worse could the symptoms get?” They were less questions that required answers and more musings. People were already showing signs of weakness. How much more could they take?

Loki nodded. Well, that was his evening taken care of. But it was one more step in the web he was laying out. The more people were indebted to him, the better. His position still felt far more precarious than he liked.

The question got a raised eyebrow. Loki leaned forward slightly, clasping his hands in front of him. "I would like to give you some sort of comforting answer, but I think it more useful for us to be pragmatic. Thus, we must assume that it will progress, and that it will get worse. Much worse. So far we've only seen the symptoms of illness, but the head doctor has made it quite plain that his aim is to bring about a monstrous transformation in those afflicted. We must assume that he will be successful."

It would have been nice to pretend Landel didn’t have the upper hand and be comforted by confident answers, but Tsubaki knew she wouldn’t believe it any more than Lingormor would allow it. She nodded, giving him a smile to show she appreciated the honesty. Yes. Assassins knew how to be pragmatic. And she wasn’t naïve--she knew what Landel was capable of.

If Black☆Star had been there, he would’ve scoffed at pragmatism and shouted the ceiling down with his assurances. But Black☆Star wasn’t there. Professor Stein wasn’t there. None of the meisters were there.

It was just her. And she wasn’t so strong that she could change the world at her whim.

Her voice when she spoke was even softer than usual. “Yes… yes, I know. But physically changing people’s bodies… that couldn’t possibly happen during daylight hours. It would ruin the hospital’s illusion for it to happen during the day. I don’t know if that’s a good or bad thing.”

He actually found it a bit surprising that Tsubaki did seem to appreciate the honesty. He hadn't thought such a normally cheery girl would want to turn head on into a harsh possibility.

Perhaps he'd underestimated her, which was an interesting thought all its own. But more than anything, that just called for continued observation.

"There are creatures that can switch forms at will, or compelled to do so by some outside stimulus. I'd think that would be the sort of case. Thus, night would be the time to truly worry over, and they might appear perfectly normal during the day." Loki leaned one elbow against the arm of the chair, chin propped in his hand as he thought. "Or alternatively, should they begin to transform, they might be made to disappear. That certainly happens often enough in this place."

“Like… shape shifting?” The first thing she thought of were people like Free and Blair, and even demon weapons like herself, but more likely that kind of shifting would be closer to how the staff transformed at night. Suddenly and brutally and in pain.

She nodded then, not wanting Lingormr to feel as if he needed to guide her through the idea. He seemed smart and well-informed, someone whose ideas could be relied upon, but she had to remember that he had no more clue about Landel’s powers than any of the other prisoners did. The rules were so different in this world; half the time nothing seemed to work as it should.

But the idea that Landel would deliberately snatch the sick people up from under their noses made her shiver internally. “You really think he would take them away?” Lingormr was right, though, people vanishing was nothing new. She could only imagine what the Head Doctor would do to the infected if wanted to get them out of the public eye. Monitor them, like he did during his experiments. Or even… do with them whatever he did with the hospital’s other monsters. Get them ready for nightshift, maybe. To hunt other prisoners.

“We have to do everything to stop it from reaching that point…” Things are bad enough already! she thought, a sudden flash of anger making her words to herself fall like whip cracks. There was now way he could just replenish his monster ranks but treating people like recyclable goods! A month’s worth of frustration boiled under her skin until she folded her fingers in her lap and made it go away.

Better to use her feelings to fuel their mission that night.

Loki nodded. "Something like, I should think. As what we saw occur last night. Evidence shows that it happens, and quite seamlessly."

His initial answer was a shrug. "If it serves his purposes, I have little doubt he'd happily dispose of any one of us. This is a situation wholly outside our control, when it comes to that."

Another nod. "Well, we will do our best."

The truth was bleak. How did someone so flippant about people’s health and happiness wind up in such a position of power? She didn’t like to think about their situation in such a hopeless way, but it wasn’t like she could argue the point.

Still, acknowledging their odds and becoming resigned to them were two different things, in her opinion. Letting people like Landel have their way without fighting back wasn’t an option.

She gave the man beside her a smile. “Hey, have more confidence than that. I promise, I’ll do everything I’m able to protect you tonight and help figure something out. You can count on me.”

Loki laughed. "I have confidence enough in what I can control - my intellect and what skills I possess." And of course, he could always, always count on the stupidity of others.

But he gave Tsubaki a charming enough smile. "I know that I can count on you to see to the safety of my sad carcass."

“That’s…”

Actually, that was rather morbid, despite knowing Lingormr was only joking. He is joking, right?

“That’s… kind of a dreary image, but…” she continued, unsure of what to say in response. “You should have more faith! Things aren’t that bad, and there’re more things out there that you can believe in. And I don’t think you’re like that at all! Not at all.”

Loki couldn't help the very undignified giggle that escaped him at the look on Tsubaki's face. He hid his grin (rather ineffectively) behind one hand. "Yes, of course. You're too kind."

He'd always admittedly had an odd sense of humor, but that only just made things funnier in his opinion. That's how it had always worked with Thor as well. At least until he'd started to want to insert pointy things into Thor's kidneys.

She wasn’t sure she understood the humor, but if it was enough to make the man laugh, it didn’t much matter if she found it funny herself. It was rare to hear other people laughing--too rare. Until that moment, Tsubaki hadn’t realized how much she missed the sound of it.

Landel’s laughter didn’t count; his was usually attached to a threat of some kind.

“Huh, I’m not really… but thank you?”

Someone who could smile like that couldn’t be as pessimistic as his earlier comment had made him seem. Likewise, Lingormor seemed like a fairly composed person, but there were obviously other sides to him besides just the one. The thought made her smile a little.

Loki shook his head, still grinning. Far kinder than she knew, really, which was what made her so easy to deal with.

"Too much time spent alone and making jokes for my own benefit. That's where the oddity comes from," he said, chuckling again. "I'll try not to disturb you overmuch in the future."

Tsubaki had to shake her head as well, because she was probably in part to blame for misunderstandings. She wouldn’t have been surprised if Black☆Star had stunted her sense of humor forever.

“No, no, it’s okay, you’re not bothering me at all. It’s good to hear someone laugh. Besides, there are people out there who come up with much, much worse jokes, anyway.”

Lingormr didn’t even come close to rivaling some of the oddballs she’d met before--including her own partner.

"How dreadful," Loki said, laughing again. "Can you tell me who they are, so I might avoid them?"

Because really, he liked a good joke far more than the next person. But only if it was good. Otherwise, he just found them tiresome, and he'd had his fill of laughing at things he didn't actually think were funny in Odin's court.

“Oh, don’t worry, it’s no one from here!” Which was a good thing for more than one reason, Tsubaki supposed. Now and then, she imagined how Black☆Star would take to meeting some of her acquaintances--and by extension, how badly he would annoy and mystify them. It amused her to think about.

She wasn’t sure if Lingormr and Black☆Star would get along… Her partner held strong to his skills, too, but intellect? Intellect wasn’t exactly a priority, and their senses of humor would probably clash…

Tsubaki could just hear Black☆Star shouting about leaving Lingormr’s “sad carcass” behind if he couldn’t keep up, and suspected they probably wouldn’t.

“But I think there are probably more than a few unfunny people here, too,” she went on. The observation was close enough to an insult to make her smile a bit coyly. It wasn’t like she was intentionally singling anyone out, though she remembered plenty of people who had rather bad senses of humor. That sort of stuff was better kept to oneself, however.

Day 64: Sun Room

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