damned_institute | Day 64: Intercom, Evening

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Day 64: Intercom, Evening

When the cheery jingle sounded over the speakers, the Head Doctor could be heard humming a song that suspiciously sounded like pieces of "Superstar" from today's movie. Then, as if realizing people were listening, he abruptly cleared his throat.

"Good evening, patients!" he greeted after a quick recovery. "I do hope everyone had a pleasant day. And what better way to end things than with a scrumptious steak dinner? We'll be including fries on the side, as well as offering our usual assortment of water, milk, and juices. Of course, we also carry vegetarian options for those of you who don't eat meat. Enjoy!"

The intercom turned off, leaving the nurses to escort patients to their rooms.

((Please make all dinner threads under this post with your character's room number in the subject line. For updated roommate assignments, refer to the latest Lounge Post. Thanks!))

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Gren had spent the day keeping his head down, so to speak. After the previous night's events, he'd wanted to do his best just to forget. The situation at the institute kept getting worse, and as the days wore on, he found himself less and less able to summon up the desperate sort of optimism that usually kept him going.

He could tell he was slipping back into a place he did not want to be, but it was becoming harder to care. After all, hadn't things been better that way? A part of him certainly thought so.

But tonight, at least, he had a plan. He needed to get back down into that basement room and set the ring he'd smashed for that location. It would mean one last trek through the Sun Room at night, but after that, he'd gave a short cut. With that in mind, he settled in with his dinner, hoping there would be no nasty surprises this evening.

Edgar was surprisingly short with his nurse as she stopped him before the door to his room, checking the bandage on his head one more time. "I assure you that I am fine," he insisted, "and I'd be better if you'd leave me to collect my thoughts for the evening."

"Now don't you get fussy with me, Mr. March," she chided, turning him to check the back of his head. "I'm simply concerned for your health. It's my job, you know, and I'll not have you—"

"Passing out on your watch," Edgar finished, having heard that exact phrase several times that day already. "I appreciate your concern, milady, but I simply need a good night's rest, and I'll be the picture of perfect health." Though she didn't look as though she believed him, the nurse gave him a nod and left him to his own devices. The smile he wore disappeared the moment he entered the room- he had far too much on his mind to be worried about a bad knock to his head.

He set his tray on his desk, giving a nod to Gren. His roommate looked a little worse for wear, but not as sickly as some of the other patients, Locke included. That was one thing that worried him. "Glad to see you're in one piece after what happened last night."

"Yeah," he replied, looking his roommate over as he glanced up from his food. "I kept a low profile, and managed to avoid most of the fighting."

His army training had definitely come in handy last night. It probably helped that the monsters had been far more interested in the other patients than they had been in him, as well. "You okay?" He gestured a little to the bandage. He seemed okay, at least.

"Aside from a bad knock to the head, yes," he said, rubbing the side of his head at the gesture to the bandage. "I was only a seat away from one of the nurses when they changed. The girl next to me managed to duck in time. I wasn't quite as lucky."

He slid into his seat with a small sigh. "It could have been much worse, considering I don't remember the rest night after that. At least they apparently left me alone once I was unconscious."

Edited 2012-06-20 08:10 (UTC)

"Sorry to hear that," he replied. "But you might have been better off. It was pretty chaotic outside."

Which was putting it lightly. And then there was the matter of what had happened in the entryway... "It seems like they're not playing around anymore," he added after a moment. Yes, some of it was likely retaliation for the bus riot, but deep down, that felt like an excuse, more than anything else.

"So it seems," Edgar said, still rubbing his head. He had to agree with some of the injuries he'd seen and rumors he'd heard that perhaps he was one of the lucky ones by being knocked unconscious in the initial stages of the night; however, that meant he couldn't keep an eye on his allies and was made vulnerable to any creatures that would attack someone rendered completely helpless. At least the monsters seemed to spare patients who didn't fight back, though whether it was of their own volition or by Landel's orders was a question that went unanswered.

"What went on outside? I expect the area surrounding the institute is as safe as the grounds themselves." Which was to say not at all.

"About that," he agreed. "Maybe even less so. There were some sort of flying monsters out in force, in addition to the nurses. I didn't really hang around long enough to get a good look."

He'd felt a little bad about that--they were all stuck in this together after all--but he'd had no weapons, and no special abilities like some of the patients had. It had seemed the smartest course of action to get himself away from the fighting where no one would have to divert their energies to saving him if he got in over his head.

"I can't say I blame you," Edgar returned, his mind thinking along similar lines. While he had some form of military training, Edgar knew it was no good if Gren couldn't reach the creatures. Flying beasts were always tricky, and without a weapon or magic to bring them to the ground, it was just better to stay out of harm's way rather than staying for a losing battle. He'd be no good to anyone dead.

He paused before his next question. "Was it just the nurses who changed?"

"As far as I saw, yeah, that was it." But he could guess why Edgar was probably asking... it was hard to forget all those less than welcomed announcements involving the state of the patient population's health and what was in store for them. Gren had been trying to ignore all that as much as possible. He wasn't about to get caught up in some sort of witch hunt or whatever it was the man in charge seemed to have in mind.

"Everyone else seemed to be okay, aside from having to fight for their lives, anyway," he added with a grim sort of smile.

"Good."

And that was good news... for the moment, anyway. He pulled his bag from his closet, pushing a few things inside; he left it mostly empty, as he wasn't entirely sure of the plans for the evening. There was never any knowing, truly- not when Landel always had a surprise or two up his sleeve. He knew that he was meeting Ryuuzaki- along with their mutual friend, which he assumed meant Nina. He couldn't be sure of the connection between the two of them or why Ryuuzaki had invited her along so soon. Perhaps he knew her from his world, or he saw some potential in her. Either way, it wasn't like him to invite someone without a good reason.

Worry crossed him, coloring his features minutely. As much as he knew he needed to keep his word and make the meeting, he couldn't help but wonder if he ought to be looking after Locke that night. It was true that his friend was perfectly capable of looking after himself, but with the infection and each bit of news about it becoming more and more ominous as the days went on, he couldn't help the concern that nagged at him. Tomorrow, he told himself. He'd get a hold of him then. For all he knew, Landel's cryptic messages weren't just a bluff to start a witch hunt. Ultimately, he needed to be prepared in the event the worst came to pass.

"I've got to say that all this talk of this... infection is wearing on me," he admitted, knowing he needed to get some of the weight off his chest.

"They're pushing that pretty hard, aren't they?" He agreed. And 'pushing' seemed like the right word. There was nothing subtle about the psychological warfare going on there, which honestly made Gren wonder why they were doing it at all. Were they that afraid of the institute's prisoners working in unison that they had to play their hand so obviously?

"I'm not buying it. Whatever's going on, they clearly caused it, so pointing fingers at each other over it is pointless." If it truly became a matter of life or death, well. He'd see how things shook out, in that case. But for the time being, he wasn't about to take part in the games the head doctor was clearly trying to play.

"Agreed..." Edgar said, pausing in his work to glance over his shoulder. "Though I'm not sure all of the patients will feel the same way. It's hard enough getting people to work together when we're all being held captive as it is. I can't help but wonder what will happen if Landel isn't bluffing, and if some of us really are becoming monsters. Worse yet would be if our friends are afflicted..."

He sighed, knowing he was perhaps sharing too much, but he trusted Gren- the man had saved his life, after all. He was the private sort, but they were ultimately on the same side. At least he wasn't likely to share the information. He knew he held the same kind of confidenc for Ryuuzaki, but there were times he wasn't willing to divulge everything to the man, especially when it came to his friends. They were not just resources to be used, as Edgar felt Ryuuzaki saw people at times. He certainly acted like it.

"There are a few people who are probably only looking out for themselves, yeah." That was the unfortunate nature of people in general. Not everyone was interested in being much of a team player, though he personally found it foolish in situations like these.

"I don't know," he admitted, running a hand though his hair in frustration. "We do what we have to, I guess. It depends on if it's permanent or not." He wasn't that close to many people, and he hoped it wasn't something he would have to worry about, but he'd do whatever he had to if that situation arose.

Edgar tried swallowing a bite of his dinner, but found it wouldn't settle in his stomach; the thought of one of his closest friends permanently becoming a monster had worn on him. It had crossed his mind enough already, but to hear it aloud made it much more real somehow.

"Do what we have to do..." he repeated with a sigh. He never liked the sound of that, but knew Gren was right. Worse was that if he didn't do something in the event Locke was transformed into a beast, he'd be doing them both a disservice, especially if his friend lost his mind as the nurses did and attacked someone. Locke wouldn't stand for innocents to be hurt, and neither would he.

Do what they had to do. Sometimes, there was no way to make the best of a bad situation. There was only the unfortunate position of controlling the damage as best as one could.

"I suppose we'll see," Edgar said quietly, his tone taking a turn for the grim.

"For what it's worth, I hope it all turns out for the best," he replied. He could tell by Edgar's demeanor that this was about more than just the overarching issue of patients being infected with something against their will. It was more personal than that, and he could only hope that whoever it was that his roommate was worrying about would be okay. He knew how hard it would be for him in that position, and could only consider himself fortunate that he wasn't forced to deal with it directly.

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Day 64: Intercom, Evening

M16

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