Day 43: Chapel

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And just like that, the disorienting feeling of blacking out just to wake up in an unfamiliar bed came again. Alkaid had wondered if it would - everything about last night had been different, all the way from the zombies to the eerie emptiness of the Institute to the strange broadcast at the end of the night. Had the Head Doctor been shot? Damn, someone had gotten to it before her. And who was the voice at the end there? It was like she'd been allowed access to some kind of strange mystery that she could not understand, one that had been going on for a long time before she had arrived and would be going on for quite a while in the future, after she was gone. Had these strange sets of circumstances been bugs in this place's programming? Who could say?

The morning's intercom greeting was strange, as well. Federal training whatsit? It didn't seem like this happened very often, from the sound of it, but so much had happened since the last day she remembered that the former Demon Palace Emperor was ready to take pretty much anything at face value.

The room she woke up in was still empty. Wondering where to stick the half-cracked bat that she'd picked up last night, she shoved it under the mattress hastily when she heard footsteps in the hall.

The stupid nurse was the same as ever, though. Some things never changed. "Ahh, good morning, Eileen. It's so nice to see you awake."

Alkaid rolled her eyes at the nurse's chuckle, and shook her head. She didn't care that the NPC thought it was nice, she just wanted to see the rest of the institute already.. see what had changed! "Yeah, it's fantastic. Whatever! Just take me where I'm going and be done with it!"

It was just then that she realized that she was not wanting to devour the flesh of the nurse in front of her. And that the pain on her arm had kind of abated - she couldn't see through the thick bandages they had covered her arm with, but she wondered if her skin was still rotting off like a zombie. Had they somehow cured her infection overnight? Or was the nurse not human, like Alkaid had always thought?

There was only one thing for it: she had to go somewhere else.

"Chapel, sun room, or cafeteria, then?"

"Does it look like I care?"

The nurse sighed, then started walking Alkaid down the hall, up the stairs, and down another hall to the chapel. No one here yet, huh? That was weird. She couldn't imagine that no one else'd show up, but who could say? This place had been turned on its ass.

The chapel was empty so far, and kind of nondescript. She shooed the nurse away, and stood in the middle of the space between the pews, standing akimbo. What would happen today? What would she learn about herself... her situation? How long had she been sleeping? Was she really still going freaking undead, or had that been somehow taken care of?

All this would come to light really soon. She hoped. Geez, too many mysteries!!

[unwittingly awaiting Haseo]

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The young girl pulled back as she listened to his response. He was a strange kid. He didn't seem much older than she was, yet his tone seemed to carry a maturity and seriousness beyond his age, almost as if he had seen things that no child should see. Then again, she was now in that sort of situation. Would she change too? It was only day three, but how much would she change a week or a month from now?

"Yeah, I'm okay," Sakura responded, looking downward in thought. "I was able to find my brother and his friend before it got too bad. I think it took everyone by surprise though." She stole a glance back at the boy, who was still icing his eyes. Even though it looked like he couldn't see, she still felt awkward staring at someone with an injury and did her best to avoid giving off the idea that she was simply gawking.

[falseblack]

Brother produced an odd pressure at the back of his throat, much like bile rising to the tip of his tongue. In that instant, he remembered everything, from the morning's unabashed guilt to the afternoon's contained fear. Too much range, not enough time. Not appropriate either, given the girl next to him.

And Nigredo attempted to ignore it all. She probably wouldn't appreciate the cynical take on her comment. "Glad to hear it." A strain tightened across his lips. "I was with my brothers, too." Who were unaccounted for in the variant's mind. They should, however, be all right, if their history of resilience meant anything.

He trailed off suddenly before speaking again. "I'm Nigredo."

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Sakura looked at Nigredo with a tilt of the head before looking away in thought. Despite Nigredo trying to hide it, the young girl was still able to notice a change in the boy's demeanor following her last remark. She wasn't sure exactly what she had said to set it off, but she made a mental note to try and be more careful nonetheless.

Once Nigredo had introduced himself, Sakura turned back to him and smiled. "It's nice to meet you. I'm Sakura." Even if he couldn't see her, it only seemed natural for Sakura to smile back. She hadn't met anyone her age except the red-haired boy two days ago, so this meeting brought her a new sense of comfort, particularly because she could see she wasn't alone.

"Have you been here for a while?" she asked, hoping to continue the conversation.

[falseblack]

Sakura? Sakura. A miraculously cruel coincidence, but Nigredo wasn't sure. He could not dismiss the possibility in this setting, even if... The child pulled his forehead an inch away from the ice pack.

And promptly slumped back as fragments akin to glass filled the entirety of his sinuses. Nigredo fidgeted and sighed in defeat. This was apparently fate's way of telling him she wasn't the same. "Nice to meet you, too," he muttered instead. Hopefully, Sakura remained oblivious to that hesitation.

"Not long," he continued, secretly glad for the subject change. "Only a few days. How about you?"

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As Nigredo tried to move away from the ice pack and returned in pain, Sakura extended her arms out in an attempt to help Nigredo reposition himself by the ice pack. "Are you okay? You shouldn't try and move too much in your state," she said by reflex in her sweet, caring voice.

She waited until Nigredo had resettled before continuing the conversation. "I just arrived two days ago on Friday," she answered, looking away in thought. "And so much has happened in those two days. I've never seen so many monsters and terrors before..." The nurse sitting on the other side of Nigredo frowned, causing Sakura to change the direction of the conversation. "But I'm sure we'll be all right."

[falseblack]

Sakura, much like the Sakura he once knew, was kind. This fact filled and stretched his chest with an odd form of unease. It was really too bad Nigredo couldn't spare a look, if only to confirm a separate identity. "Yeah, I'm fine," came the assurance. "Sorry if I'm worrying you."

A stretch of silence passed between them as Nigredo processed the girl's answer. He figured she had more to talk about on the matter, if not for the caretaker beside them. As usual, the boy went along with the hint. "Hopefully. At least it is peaceful in the daytime."