damned_institute | Day 39: Music Room

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Day 39: Music Room

Lunch had been fruitful. Celes had chosen not to eat, but that was fine enough for her; she’d eaten plenty at breakfast and it was not very good manners to eat while discussing war (for Celes, it’d always given her a bit of a stomachache), or plotting. Especially if one was in mixed company. Her nurse escorted her to the Music room, citing that her ‘sister’ had suggested that musical therapy would be good for her. Celes rolled her eyes. This was no music room, with their ‘electronic’ instruments; where were the violas and the harpsichords and phonographs? She’d been past this room before, but had never been interested enough to go into it.

The general sat down at the keyboard, staring at the odd device before prodding the buttons with a nail. On, off, rumba, tango, Caribbean (what in the world was ‘Caribbean?’), little numbers that changed the tone. It was the first time Celes wished that there was a real instrument before her, instead of this ridiculous thing. Still, it didn’t stop her from curiously stringing notes together with one hand, and the only song she could bring to mind was the Aria di Mezzo Carattere.

How dreadfully delightful.

[for Adel~]

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It seemed as though he was missing something. From what he had been told, he had assumed that Asch and Luke defeated him together. However, that didn't seem to be quite the case. There had to be something important that he had forgotten when he was brought here, but asking for it was out of the question.

It was difficult to play the part with limited knowledge, but he'd manage somehow. "You have good reason to be angry with me, Asch, but now isn't the time for it. If we want to be free of this place, we'd have to cooperate." Van paused, considering. "Or do you believe that to be impossible?"

Asch's frown deepened. He was damning himself no matter what he said, really. He'd been thinking that Van might be useful in this situation, just a couple of hours ago. But now that he was standing here, mere feet away from the man himself, Asch wasn't sure he'd been doing anything but whining to himself.

And he hated Van, didn't he? There was so much he'd been lied to about. Van only cared about one thing, and he was wrong. Destroying the Score made sense to Asch - it always had. After all, he himself had been fated to be martyred or some such crap, long before he'd ever been born. Whether he liked Van or not, Van had saved him from that fate - and told him the truth of their world.

Well, some of the truth. He'd come to believe in the past year that almost nothing Van said was the entire truth. Van had told him that Guy hated him, but hadn't told the entire story. While Asch was still convinced Guy hated him, he now knew there was some of that he'd never grasped from Van's words alone.

The redhead still didn't look back at Van. Part of him couldn't bear to. He didn't want to see whatever disapproval he might be met with. He could take a lot of shit from a lot of people, but Van's disapproval was something he'd generally tried to avoid - even when they were no longer on good terms, or even really on the same side.

"I can't trust a word you say," he finally managed, sounding more sullen than he meant to.

This was frustrating. It seemed that nothing he could say would change Asch's mind, even after all he had done for him. Even if he had given him bad memories, surely Asch had to understand that it was for his own good. If only he could make him see that...

"Very well," Van replied, feigning vague hurt. "However, do know that whether or not you trust me, matters haven't changed. I wanted to allow you to be free from the Score, and I'll find a way to free you from this place as well."

Asch still didn't believe anything Van told him. And really, what use was he to Van, here and now? He didn't really know much about this place - although Van had no way of knowing that yet. But he wasn't a faker; if asked, he'd say what he felt like sharing. He wouldn't make up knowledge, especially not to impress Van.

Much as it would have galled him to admit, Van's words struck a chord with him. It was bullshit. It had to be. This was Van, after all. Van only cared about his own goals and ambitions.

But...

If Van could use him, couldn't he really do the same thing? Either way, they both intended to get out. And working with Guy wasn't going to get him anywhere. Guy hated him, for one. For two, they were...so distanced. They had been for a long time, but it was obvious to him after the conversation at breakfast.

"Do you...even know anything about this place?" Asch ventured.

"I know that we were brought here against our will and at least forty five people have left before us." Admittedly, that wasn't much especially since he didn't know the circumstances of those departures. However, what Luke said earlier had to be true. If there was a way in, then surely there had to be a way out.

"If it was possible for them to leave, then it should be possible for us to do the same as well."

Asch considered for a minute. He had no idea about the people who'd left, other than the apparent fact that he himself had been here before. The thought was still more than a little disconcerting, and he decided not to think about that just now.

He sighed, finally, and pushed his hair out of his face. It was getting pretty damned annoying to have to keep doing that, but it wouldn't stay back on its own.

"I...heard about some people who make weapons," he offered, testing the waters. He really didn't know if he wanted to work with Van - or even if he could. Van was one of the people he had loved most in the world - and one of the people he hated most in the world. He couldn't quite decide which emotion would be easier to process. He'd certainly never expected to see the Commandant again, after all.

Ah, now Asch was offering some useful information to him. He was still willing to aid him, even if just in a small way. That was more than good enough, there was still a chance that Asch would finally see reason and return to his side. Finding himself in this place may ultimately work in his favor.

"They found a way to make weapons here? I assume that they do so without the supervision of the faculty here, correct?"

Asch nodded, slowly. "The...the faculty aren't around at night. Well, maybe they are, but I haven't heard about that. There's apparently monsters. I didn't see any, but I have several confirmed sightings of them. I have no reason not to believe them, really. There's..." he took a breath, thinking of how to continue, "They brainwash some patients at night and pit them against the rest of us. We met one such girl last night. She had a very strange weapon, but we were able to reason with her."

To his own ears, he sounded like any other soldier giving a report, and was disgusted with himself. Old habits died hard, maybe. He hadn't told the whole story - just the condensed version - and he still hadn't said everything he knew. He could not trust Van, he knew that. He kept reminding himself of it.

It was kind of easy, though, to want to. Even though he knew better, Van had this way of talking. He hadn't followed the Commandant for so long for absolutely no reason, after all.

He'd have to be careful.

"So I see," was Van's simple reply. What Asch said had matched the stories he'd heard from Luke and Naoto, only with the addition of the God-General having actual experience with the matter. Perhaps there was some validity to the delusions after all.

"Can you tell me how they make their weapons and where they find the materials? Or is that simply another oddity of the nights here?"

Asch raised an eyebrow. "You don't believe me, do you?" he asked. The Commandant seemed to be...skeptical, maybe. He supposed he might have been the same way himself, if he hadn't gone out with Mello and them the night before. But he was also, well...he was dead. For some reason, Van didn't seem to be remembering or acknowledging that. Although wasn't Van also dead? If he'd fought the replica...

He knew that Van had lost, because of what Guy had said. He had to have. But the man didn't seem to be perturbed by that loss. Asch felt like there was something he was missing, here, but he couldn't put his finger on what.

"I don't exactly know," he admitted. "Some people called 'alchemists' make them, if you bring them metal. I'm not sure where to get metal. I'm going to try to find out; the only weapon I have at the moment is a sorry excuse."

Van could usually tell when Asch was lying and it was obvious that that wasn't the case now. If only because Asch typically made sure his lies were somewhat believable. After all Asch wouldn't come up with ridiculous stories unless there was some sort of truth in them. Even if facts were distorted along the way, he could at least trust Asch to act in a fairly predictable fashion. At least, most of the time.

"I believe you, Asch. Though I'm sure you understand that it's rather, hard to accept when you haven't seen it with your own eyes."

Asch already had a weapon, and it wouldn't be difficult to believe that others in the institute have acquired some as well. Which would put Van in a serious disadvantage, something he had quickly grown tired of.

"The metal itself can easily be found if you're willing to look. I would like to know how to contact the 'alchemists' though. They may have other skills that could aid us as well."

"It seems like a bunch of bullshit, I know," Asch said, bluntly. He sighed, and fidgeted with the sleeve of his stupid grey shirt for a minute before looking back up at Van.

"Last night I heard stories about giant insects, I saw someone get shot in the arm and start growing flowers, and I...uh, I spent some time with a man that claims to be some sort of creature that lives in space, trapped in a human body. I think I believe him."

If he kept talking, he didn't have to think as much, so he continued. "This place is apparently a planet called 'Earth'. There's no Score here, no fonons.

"You contact the alchemists on the bulletin board. They have notes up there. I don't know how often they can check, or how they get back to you. But for now, I'm going to go acquire some metal. M...Van. Do you want..."

He stopped again. Was he really doing this? Was he really going to ask Van to come with him? And he'd almost slipped into a habit he thought he'd killed, and called him Master.

Damnit, I should just leave.

Van listened to intently, watching Asch's expression. A lot of what he said was new, such as people growing flowers within themselves and space creatures masquerading as human beings. If this had come from anyone else, Van would've thought him insane, but this was Asch. If Asch were to suddenly lose his mind, surely he would've noticed something before they were all brought to this place.

The institute had to have some sort of effect, whether it forced delusions on the patients or brought delusions to life that much was clearly obvious.

Then Asch trailed off and Van raised a brow. If Asch was going to ask what he thought he did...

Van smiled, almost genuine. "I'd like to go with you."

Asch's mouth twitched. This couldn't be a good idea. It really, really couldn't. This was the man he hated more than anyone else, the man who he'd vowed to kill, even if he had to die to do it. In the end, of course, he'd failed to succeed, but that wasn't the point at the moment.

It still bothered him slightly that Van hadn't mentioned that at all. He had to have realized, didn't he? It would have been obvious, after all...

Oh, whatever.

Asch knew better than to believe that smile, but part of him wanted to. It was better to choose the evil he knew over the evil he didn't, wasn't it? At least for now.

"All right. I contacted Zex - the man I told you about - earlier today. It may be better to move in groups. Zex was an admiral before he retired, in his own world. He seems to have good enough judgment for the most part." Asch knew it sounded like he'd lost his mind. Listening to the words out loud made him feel pretty cracked. He stopped for a minute, thinking of what he wanted to say next.

He didn't mention Zex's...affinity for humans. He wasn't sure he wanted to be in that situation again, but his other choice was to ask Mello if he could tag along. And really, he wasn't convinced that Mello wouldn't do something else that was stupid. That left Zex and Teisel, until he'd made other allies. He wasn't exactly the most trusting person, however. And he sure as hell wasn't going to ask Guy. He couldn't bring himself to.

"Anyway. He and the other man that I met, Teisel, seem to have an idea of where to get some metal. If we can collect enough, then we'll eventually be able to obtain real weapons. But if there really are monsters, then I don't want to go out with just you and I unarmed."

Asch's discomfort didn't go unnoticed, but Van knew better than to point it out. If Asch was willing to help him now, then he would be a fool to say anything that could cause him to change his mind.

"Very well. Once the nightshift begins, where should I meet you and your-" Van paused a moment, considering which word to use. "Your allies?" Hopefully they would have some sort of usefulness, even if they did believe themselves to be space creatures.

"I have to contact Zex again and ask him where to meet. But I'm in room M3. I guess you could just...come there. I...have a map. I'll make you a copy if you want."

So that was it, then. Even if Van ended up not liking the allies Asch had chosen, it didn't matter. The sooner they got out of here, the better. If they did it together, he could live with that. He knew Van would use him to his full advantage; the least he could do was return the favor. Once they got out of here, nothing said he had to stay with the Commandant, anyway.

He wasn't sure that they could really go home, since they were both dead. But he decided he'd cross that bridge when they got there.

Room M3...If Van remembered correctly, he had woken up in a room labeled M16. It would be simple enough to find Asch there, he'll simply have to remember to check the room numbers when it's time to ushered back into his own so he wouldn't waste any time going the wrong way.

"I'll like to meet you there. If you can prepare a copy of a map, I would like that as well. Once everything is in order, we'll go and meet Zex in whatever location you arrange." Van paused a moment, realizing that he must of sounded like he was giving orders. Old habits died hard, it seemed.

Relaxing, he gave Asch a smile. "I appreciate your help, Asch. Thank you."

"It shouldn't be too much of a problem," he said. He figured he could ask Mello for another scalpel. The idea of the Commandant using such a thing to fight with was almost laughable, but it was better to have something than nothing.

"We'll meet Zex at his room, M66. After we collect the metal, I agreed to help him investigate the doors leading to the third floor. Hopefully we'll find something better to use to defend ourselves against monsters. I also don't think we'll be able to negotiate if we find any brainwashed patients; we got lucky last night but I doubt we'll be so lucky again."

His tone was more formal than he meant, probably in response to taking orders. He didn't have a huge issue with them, really. Besides, he'd been taking orders from Van for years.

He was surprised by the thanks, however, and it showed on his face.

"You don't have to thank me," he said, feeling awkward. "I'm only asking you because two heads are better than one."

Van nodded, still smiling. It was hard not to, now that it seemed that Asch was finally on his side once more. Even if their 'truce' would only last until they escape this place, there was still a chance that he could make Asch understand what he was trying to do. Van knew better than to let this opportunity go to waste.

"Very well. Regardless, we are helping each other with a common goal. A thank you is the least I could do."

Then he stopped, frowning slightly. "Have you seen anyone else from Auldrant here? Surely we can't be the only ones." Hopefully Asch didn't find that he already spoke with the replica. That wouldn't go over well at all.

Asch was still uneasy about the whole affair, but he let it go for now. They were really just using each other, but that was better than Van using him and him not realizing it. He knew he'd have to tread carefully, but he could manage that. Van had never treated him as an enemy, even though he had certainly treated Van that way. It probably wouldn't change now, so he figured their truce could last at least for awhile.

He opened his mouth to say something, then stopped. He decided to ignore the thank you for now, and answer the question instead.

"I ran into Guy at breakfast and Sync at lunch. I heard that some of that replica's friends are here, but I've yet to see them. Did you see anyone else here?"

He didn't mention that both he and that dreck had allegedly been here before. He had no memory of it, and didn't want to admit something like that in front of Van.

So he had met Guy already, though Van hadn't heard of Sync being in this place. Van would have to find him as soon as possible. The more allies he could gather in this place, the better.

"I thought I had spotted the replica earlier but I wasn't able to confirm it. If he's here as well..." Van hesitated a moment, wanting to be careful not to trap himself in a lie. "I want you to try and minimize conflict. We can't afford to fight them here, not until we learn more of this place. Do you understand?"

Asch bristled visibly at that. It made sense, if what Guy had told him earlier was true. If they'd disappeared from here together, then logic said they'd both be here now. He still wasn't sure how he felt about the replica. It was easy to hate him, to be mad at him. But that was no longer all he felt, not since the last time he'd seen him. That did not mean he wanted to run into him, though. As far as he was concerned, they were better off apart.

This 'order' galled him more than the previous one. He hated being told how to act. He'd always hated it, ever since he was a child. And what right did Van have, now, to tell him anything like that?

"To hell with avoiding conflict," he said, irritated. "I'm not the one everyone hates, remember? Maybe you should take your own advice."

Van frowned deeply. Perhaps he had gone a bit far to assume that Asch needed to be told that at all. However, the response he got didn't please Van at all.

"I have no intentions of having any conflicts here. If those that hate me attempt to start anything, I will deal with that myself." Van gave him a glare. "I only ask you do the same, before you jeopardize your chance to escape and find yourself in a solitary cell."

Not that that seemed to be an actual problem here, but it was unlikely that Asch knew that.

Asch crossed his arms again. "It's nothing I can't handle," he said, obviously still perturbed by the whole thing. It was obvious that they were still on shaky ground. Regardless of how Van viewed him, how he viewed Van just couldn't change. And taking pointless orders was no longer his job - and was no longer in his best interest.

After a minute, he sighed and looked back up at the Commandant.

"I'm not going to go hunt down that dreck and pick a fight with him, if that's what you're so worried about." Of course, he had every intention of talking to the replica later, even if he had to wait until after night fell, but there was no point in sharing that information with Van.

Van'd barely been in this place a day and already he was having trouble maintaining his calm. Usually such a thing came easily to him, but it was difficult to do so now that everything seemed to be working against him. And here he had thought that he was making progress with Asch...

Everything he said to him from here on would have to be carefully determined. He can't risk losing Asch again now, not when he'd need him to overthrow the Score.

"Very well," Van answered, keeping his voice low and calm. "It's doubtful that the replica will try to start anything himself, so hopefully I won't hear of anything happening between you."

Day 39: Music Room

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