damned_institute | Day 73: Library (2nd shift)

Don't let them snoop? If Lloyd didn't already know the secret the library held, that would have practically been asking him to poke around as much as his nurse would let him. But since he did know about the trick to the secret door, he settled instead for searching for Kratos or Castiel. If he didn't find one of them this shift, he'd have to think about putting up a note on the bulletin, but considering what he wanted to talk to them about, it would probably be better if he kept it off the board and spoke to them in person.

"Here, why don't you settle down with a nice book, Nigel?" his nurse encouraged him as she guided him toward a chair. "Poor dear. I noticed you didn't eat anything for breakfast. Maybe you just need to get your mind off of whatever's tying your stomach in knots."

Lloyd made a face at that comment, unable to hold himself in check. "Maybe if the doctors gave me my Key Crest back it wouldn't be a problem."

His nurse sighed, shaking her head. "I thought you were making more progress than that, Nigel. Here," she said, handing him a book. "I'm sure a good book will help."

Lloyd grumbled, but accepted the book anyway, albeit reluctantly. He should have known better than to expect anything from his nurse. Rather than cracking the book open, though, Lloyd set it in his lap and watched the room. Surely one of his companions would come in soon...

[For Castiel.]

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"Yeah, I... yeah." What could she say to that? Korra frowned, watching Ed earnestly.

"What was that thing you did? How'd you move the floor like that?" It hadn't been earth, she was sure of it. She couldn't get her chi to move through it at all.

"I used alchemy. It can be used to turn one thing into another or make something be a different shape." He's going with the short version. He isn't sure how up to more complicated he's up too. Besides, Al's better at explaining this shit to people unfamiliar with it.

"Oh..." Korra wasn't going to pretend that she got it, but at this point, she didn't even care enough to ask.

"So... I'm glad you're okay, except for a couple o' bruises." And a headache... And maybe a burn or two... But Korra was trying to be optimistic, and she could tell that Ed could sometimes get closed off or even annoyed with too many questions.

"I feel like a walking bruise," Ed grumbled. "And knowing what I could have done to people if orders were a bit different isn't helping any."

He grimaced. He could have become the weapon that certain parties in the military were willing to try to turn him into, which wasn't a comfortable thought.

Korra sighed. What was this guy, the world's biggest pessimist? He just kept complaining. Not that she wasn't furious that they had done the same to her- violated her mind, made her believe she had to attack her friends... It gave her the chills, made her so angry...

But there was no point in a self pity party. Korra'd learned that the hard way.

"You'll feel better. Things seem to heal pretty quick here, anyway. And besides, everyone knows it wasn't your fault." There. Empathy, she told herself.

"Yeah, I noticed that an injury I got my first night here is already gone." Ed acknowledged. "Not even any scarring."

Not that he really expected there to be much. Probably just faint white lines at most, to join the many others like that he had.

"Yeah, it's... pretty weird." Korra frowned. What kind of power did they have? Was it really just crazy technology that she couldn't even conjure up in her own head? She huffed.

"Especially that the whole point of this place seems to be to either drive us crazy or kill us trying."

"I've kinda noticed that." He frowned. "I'm not sure what the point is though. It'd make more sense to kill us and be done with it instead of sending us through this rat race. Or in the case of people brought back to life for this, left dead."

"Yeah, I know. Maybe we're just like experiments..." It made her sick to her stomach to think of it that way, but...

"And they just get rid of us when they're done. However that may be."

Ed twitched. He had been trying not to think too hard about them being experiments. He didn't know how focusing on that too much would do him any good. The place was eating away at him enough as it was.

"Hopefully, they just send us back home." He didn't want to think about the alternative.

"Wishful thinking, at this point, but..." Korra scowled, her fingers picking idly at the books lined up on the shelves.

"I guess that's about all we've got, right?" She looked back up to Ed.

"I think so." Ed looked at the books. "Absolutely none of them are of any interest to me. Except one."

That one being the one they move to get to those moving stairs.

"Yeah, and it's not like they're gonna let us anywhere near that right now," Korra said with a bitter laugh. It'd be great to ambush him right now, if only her bending would work during the day.

"I swear, we should just knock out all the nurses and make a break for it." She rubbed her knuckles.

"Depending on how much people rely on their powers to help them fight, that may be more trouble than it's worth," he pointed out to Korra before the speaker came on.

When Landel was done, he stared in the direction his voice came from. "Did he really just say that?"

Korra snorted as the intercom clicked off.

"Hey, at least maybe this means he's starting to realize that he's not all powerful around here." Perhaps it was a good sign. Landel was getting flustered.

She was slightly doubtful, but... Korra could hope, at least. Optimism was all they had. And she had to keep it up for the people who'd been trapped here longer.

"Maybe." Ed scratched at the back of his neck absently. "I think I'm actually ready to eat. I wasn't really hungry this morning."

Due to, y'know, how he spent his night.

"Yeah, go for it." Korra nodded for the door. She sure didn't want to hold Ed up, especially after she'd beaten him up last night.

She was going to try and sneak upstairs. See how that would go.

"I guess I'll see you later," Ed said, getting out of his chair to go look for food.

Day 73: Library (2nd shift)

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