Night 47: North of the Institute

[hat_einen_vogel]

[From here]

It hadn't been the most graceful landing, but at least Prussia had landed on his feet without injury; a twisted ankle right now would not have been the best thing for his escape.

He picked up the torch from where it had landed, and took a moment to check out what lay ahead of him. The land was unfamiliar to him—even in the dark he would have recognized in an instant if it had been German land—and provided little clue as to which direction would be best to travel in. There were no paths, no roads on this side of the hospital or the side around the corner.

He decided to move along the wall for now, and started heading east. He'd see if there was anything compelling in that direction—some landmark he might recognize or a road or anything—and decide where to go from there.

Comments

[darwinism]

[ From here. ]

Sylar let out a breath of relief and looked back to the wall as he dusted off his knees.

"Can you get over on your own?" he called back, making sure his voice carried his utmost concern. Inwardly, he wondered if he shouldn't just make a run for it and ditch the moron.

[scarletspeedstr.livejournal.com]

"So now that part's done, where do you think we should go?" Wally asked, still panting a little from the run, but recovering, like always, much faster than anyone else would. "I mean, I've never been out here before, so there could be anything this way."

[darwinism]

Sylar's idea to test Wally's current power had apparently been a wise one: just after Wally's halfhearted confirmation, Sylar heard something like a crack of electricity, and within seconds, saw Wally clinging to the top of the wall.

Huh. It was a shame that Sylar had missed seeing what the hell the guy's power was about, but that didn't stop him from smiling up at Wally as he came over the wall and dropped down to his feet. Sylar moved to clap a supportive hand on his "friends'" shoulder and smile down at him, though his eyes were truly focused on his surroundings rather than his company. He'd been on the bus to Doyleton a couple of times now, but he'd never gotten a view of the Institute's surroundings on foot; although dark, the light of the moon gave enough illumination that he could tell the terrain was uneven, varied, and full of foliage and trees just a ways from the Institute.

Lots of things to explore. Maybe nothing useful would come of it, but at least it was something new.

"Not sure," Sylar replied to Wally, patting his shoulder one last time before taking a few steps away from him. He narrowed his eyes, feeling invigorated by the outside, feeling powerful, in control, alive. A grin snaked out from his mouth to his cheeks as he gazed out at the scenery.

"I guess we're just going to have to find out."

[scarletspeedstr.livejournal.com]

[aslgjahoaslgh FAIL WILL STOP NOW, I PROMISE.]

Wally grinned back, a flicker of a smile before he was also scanning the Institute's surrounds. The uneven footing could end up being a problem if he had to make a run for it for any reason. Turning an ankle at high speed not only hurt a lot, but could result in him losing his footing and crashing into something else. Or worse outcomes if he had to carry Zack for any reason while he was running. Plus he wasn't sure how well the Institute's footwear would hold up to superspeed. Probably not very; at least the boots in his costume had been specially made for that kind of thing.

Still, if he was careful, he should be fine. Maybe have to switch to his costume, or at least the boots from it, but otherwise okay.

He followed Zack forward, looking around the area with interest still. "Yeah, I guess so. It should be fun at any rate, right?" Not really waiting for an answer, he took a final look at the trees a distance away before catching up fully and meeting the other man's gaze. "Think I should scout around to be safe or should we just pick a direction and go?"

[darwinism]

[ S'ok, bb. ♥ I had stuff due, so sorry for my slowness tooo. ;; ]

Sylar's smirk was gone by the time he turned to face Wally again, replaced by a frown of thoughtful concern. He rubbed gingerly at the line of shallow wounds down his side, as if trying to reinforce to Wally just how terribly helpless 'Zack' would be without the generous help of his friend.

"Not sure," he murmured, glancing over Wally's shoulder at the foliage and then back to his face again. He smiled wryly. "I won't be much good on my own, though, so maybe we shouldn't split up. The stragglers are always the first to die, right?"

And they were. Sylar knew this from the experience of the hunt: the small ones were the easiest – those so out of tune with their abilities that they refused to use them even in defense against a predator. While Sylar had learned how to use the one ability he had, he now realized that he could only get off one shot each nightshift; it wasn't worth wasting if he could keep his meat shield as a defense instead. Even if scouting would be a big help, there'd be no guarantee of Wally's return, which meant that he wasn't about to risk it.

"Maybe..." Sylar continued, gesturing northwards, "we should just keep going this way?"

[scarletspeedstr.livejournal.com]

[We can be team fail together, bb~ ♥]

The comment about stragglers got a snort of suppressed laughter from Wally, though he also had to admit Zack had a point. Splitting up worked a lot better when everyone had powers or other skills that meant they could take care of themselves. But with how Wally's powers were, and whatever Zack had left to him at the moment, sticking together would probably work better. At least in theory.

"This way seems as good as any other," he agreed. "And it's better than getting indecisive about it, right?" At least he liked to think it was. But then just getting out and doing something was good enough for him, at the moment.

Flicking his flashlight around the area again just to make sure they weren't in danger of being attacked or anything, Wally led the way in the direction Zack had indicated.

"So anyway," he asked as they walked, something from earlier clearly still on his mind. "What can you do in this place? I mean, if you don't mind that is."

[darwinism]

Sylar had dealt with enough indecision from people here to last him a lifetime, so he nodded vigorously in response to Wally's confirmation and began to walk steadily behind him. Sylar, too, kept his flashlight up, clicking it on and swinging it back and forth across their field of vision, even though it still didn't afford them much knowledge of where the hell they were going. Still, even if they did come across something dangerous, he at least found comfort in the fact that Wally would be here to take the brunt of the damage – maybe even voluntarily.

That's right. The only variables in these circumstances came from the outside, because Sylar already had complete control over everything Wally felt about 'Zack.' After all, what kind of soulless monster wouldn't do as much as they could to save their dear friend when everyone else they knew here had already vanished? Even the question that Wally asked was an expected one, and Sylar smiled faintly from behind Wally's back as they continued their trek.

"I guess it's only fair that I tell you, right?" he said with a wry laugh. "It's... kind of hard to explain. I can see how things work – like clocks, appliances, machines, and sometimes, if I study a person hard enough, I can figure out how to do... the same special things that they can."

He paused, then continued: "It's... really hit-or-miss here, though. So far, I've only been able to pick up one power – um, electricity. Just one charge of it per night." He sighed, sounding truly morose. "Pretty pathetic, right?"

[scarletspeedstr.livejournal.com]

"Really?" Wally asked, his attention split between the area around them and Zack. Maybe a little dangerous, but what the other man was saying was pretty interesting; in fact it was more difficult not to give Zack his complete attention. "You can do that for anyone with powers? That's really something."

He smiled hugely, all simple, open honesty, and continued. "I mean, I love my speed, can't imagine what it would be like without it, but something like that... It's really amazing." The smile faded out slowly. "Guess it has to bite that it's been limited that far though. But!"

He dropped back and slung an arm around Zack's shoulders. "One charge a night is still something, right? I mean, if you save it for something you need, it could make all the difference and hey-" He tilted his head to catch the man's eye, a sudden idea making him smile even more than before. "You could try picking up my power! I mean, if you wanted. It's something, right? And I don't mind at all."