damned_institute | Day 36: Intercom, Evening

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Day 36: Intercom, Evening

The intercom's jingle rang out and the somewhat uninhibited movement that was going on between the main activity rooms halted as the Head Doctor made one of his usual announcements.

"Good evening everyone, and I'm very pleased to see so many of you in such high spirits after meeting with your loved ones! However, like with all good things, it can't last forever, so I ask now for nurses to escort our patients in the waiting rooms and in the main areas back to their rooms, where they will be treated with a special Sunday... steak! That's right: today, we'll be serving juicy, delicious steak with fries and cooked vegetables on the side – simple enough for everyone to like and good enough for everyone to thoroughly enjoy! (Our patients with specialized diets will receive their alternate meals, of course.) Our usual beverages are available, and for dessert, we'll be serving warm slices of apple pie.

"After all, patients, t's always wonderful to see all of you cooperating with the staff even when given so much freedom, so I'd like to personally thank and congratulate all of you for helping us, your family, and more importantly, yourselves. Hopefully, we can help you to a speedy recovery so that you can see your loved ones more often, but first... dinner! I hope to speak with you all again soon."

The intercom clicked off.

[ All room threads go in response to this post; please post your character's room number as the subject line of the initial post. Thank you!

On an added note, just wanted to clarify to players of characters who are canonly vegetarians and the like that you get to decide (within reasonable and realistic limits) what kind of diet your character gets from the staff. :3 ]

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The only one that ZEX really wanted to talk to was the Captain, who he hoped might finally settle the situation one way or the other, although in a way he was almost frightened of what the outcome might be. He wasn't sure what he'd do if it turned out the entire thing had been a lie, his whole life the elaborate fiction of a pathetic coward.

He still couldn't find the energy to move, but he considered whether or not he should at least try to engage in conversation. Maybe whoever it was would have some insight... it took him a few moments to realize that it must have been his roommate.

What else did he have to lose? ZEX spoke quietly. "Were you human before you came here?"

Whatever has happened to him is clearly distressing, Kunzite thought, watching as Zex lay motionless at his desk, nothing at all like the boisterous youth who spoke so...freely with him a few nights previous. If it is related to those 'visitors' that the other patients were receiving...what could have happened? It's best not to pry unless he wishes to divulge information, however; clearly his emotions are not things to be trifled with right now.

The question that came at him was odd, to say the least. Nevertheless, the swordsman had heard rumblings that some of the patients believed themselves to be different organisms. It would not surprise him to know that these 'doctors' had managed to take non-human entities and place them in humanoid bodies somehow, for the Dark Kingdom itself was quite adept at hiding youma in human form.

"Human?" Kunzite smirked. Reflecting for a brief moment, the swordsman was overcome with a sense of deja vu, as if he'd answered this question once before, but nevertheless proceeded with his response. "In a manner of speaking, yes...in my former life I was an ancestor to humanity, but was reborn as 'modern' man while maintaining my sense of self. I do not feel as if I have been changed significantly from my original body. How about yourself?"

"I see," ZEX said quietly. He considered lifting his head to look at his roommate, but found it too difficult and stayed where he was. All motivation he had was gone... he wasn't sure if this was an unexpected behavior of human bodies or not, but he could barely muster the energy to give it much consideration.

"I was... a VUX. A species native to Beta Luyten. We are very different from humans. I am an Admiral, a military genius," ZEX said carefully, as if weighing each word, and his voice was even. After a few seconds, he tried to move and ended up only letting his pen fall from his hand. His voice did not change in tone. "Or... I am not."

In a way, that summed up his dilemma, although it did gloss over almost every detail.

"Military!" Kunzite exclaimed. I knew it...I HAVE had a similar conversation with this individual before. I should humor him, however; an entity of his stature should not be tarnished by the pettiness of depression, and if speaking to him will lift him out of this, then so be it. "I, too, am military, of sorts; in my former life, I was the commander of the Shitennou, an elite four-man squadron of the armies of Earth." Military genius? Kunzite would hardly call himself that, but he DID have a certain prowess for the position.

"Tell me of your exploits. You seem to be a bit uncertain of your stature and renown, but I am of the opinion that one should not be humble when it comes to his accomplishments. Relish in your victories, and joy in your genius if that is what you have!"

"Mmm." ZEX listened, trying to extricate himself from darker thoughts without much success. He'd never heard of a Shitennou, but a lot of Earth was still unknown to him... if this person had been reincarnated, as they'd mentioned, then it could have taken place many years in Earth's past. Did that sound any more insane than his story?

ZEX wasn't sure if he could find the motivation, but he tried. He dug back into his memories (if they were memories), and began, quietly and without much emotion or energy. "I led my species' forces during the War against the Alliance of Free Stars, 2119... or was it 2126? It ended in 2134, either way." The fact he couldn't recall the exact dates did not help his current mood. He struggled for a moment, then tried to think of something more tangible. "My tactics are still used by my people today... Fortress Square, Dynamic Triangle, they were my creations." ZEX sighed deeply, feeling heavier than ever. His voice changed in tone, a bit strained. "I'm sure you've never heard of them. They may have never existed."

"Just because I've not heard of these techniques does not mean they do not exist," Kunzite started; a bit too eager, perhaps, but he was not willing to let a fellow soldier - one apparently so renown and decorated - be brought down by the lies fed to him by this place. Though he sensed that he was encroaching on delicate matter, the swordsman chose to charge forward, hoping to pressure his roommate for more information.

"You...you were not like this a few nights ago. Though a bit forward...you were boastful of your military accomplishments, as well you should have been. Now..." Kunzite paused, quickly standing up and walking over to the door; he could not hear any sounds outside, suggesting that their conversation would not be privy to the curious ears of the staff. "What have they done to you, Zex? Speak...for I know of their devilry all too well."

Normally ZEX would have leveraged someone's concern over him into a deeper relationship, to build upon their favorable feelings towards him, used it to his advantage, but instead he barely registered it.

ZEX didn't say anything for a few moments, planning out his words. He spoke slowly. "The only proof I have that my memories are real is that I believe that they are. I am human, now... there is no proof now that I was anything else, or that anything else I believe about myself is true. It is subjective... reality is not subjective."

ZEX still didn't move, and he closed his eyes. "I had a visitor today." Perhaps that would be enough of an explanation... he already felt drained.

For the first time in a while, Kunzite chuckled. Not the smarmy laugh of someone who had gained verbal or physical superiority over another, but a surprised, almost pleased laugh. Zex's situation - the confused memories, the new body, the disbelief in self - was quite familiar to Kunzite, and if he was to have ONE victory today, perhaps it would be in pulling this military commander up by his bootstraps and relieving his misery.

"When I was reborn in my world...it was into a new life, one where, initially, I did not know of my past. Slowly but surely memories of the past crept back into my life, and at first, it was startling, at times terrifying. Yet I KNEW I could not dismiss them, for they felt too real to be fabrications. It was through great providence that I was once again restored to my true self, and the shell that held me back was abolished forever." Kunzite made sure to gloss over the source of the 'great providence', seeing as he sought to oust her as undeserving of the Great Leader's power. "All we have here is our memories; hundreds of 'patients' cannot be wrong."

The swordsman was practically beaming at this point; yet something in Zex's demeanor suggested that the words were as empty as the youth's stare. Kunzite watched as Zex's ennui worsened, helped in no way by mention of 'visitors', the very thing Kunzite had overhead just moments ago. More fabrications from Landel, no doubt, but it was all too evident that Zex was in no mood to discuss the matter further.

"Memories of your real life coming back to you..." ZEX's voice strained and caught, and his shoulders tensed. "Convinced of the reality of your life until memories of your real life came back to you." A harsh breath, and the tension left ZEX in a shuddering wave. While previously speaking without any emotion, now a real touch of despair entered his voice. "Oh no, no, no..."

He finally moved somewhat, raising his arms to cover his lowered head. "It can't be real, I can't be that person... that can't be what's real, it can't. That can't be my real life, human all this time, I can't..."

ZEX trailed off, trying not to think of each perfect explanation for his "delusions", and the human body that supported the idea of madness.

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Day 36: Intercom, Evening

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