damned_institute | DAY 23: BREAKFAST

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DAY 23: BREAKFAST

That hadn't felt like an entire night.

And his goddamn head hurt. Pounded, even. Enough that he wondered if he was going to end up playing another round of "Christen the nurse" this morning.

Maybe it was because he'd spent so much time and energy trying to find Nowe. That could be the reason behind both those problems. Just the thought of it made his stomach turn, made him want to fucking choke something.

Still, there was shit to do. He forced himself out of bed to put away his pens and the other leftovers from the adventures that didn't happen last night. He'd have to try to talk to Sora today, to see if they could just do tonight what they were going to do last night... and to see if the kid was doing alright.

...he just wished his head would stop hurting. That was probably the result of just how badly he'd overreached himself the previous morning.

The nurse that showed up to get him was cheerful. He grunted at her, listening to her with only half an ear until she mentioned all the excitement, about someone pretending to be a patient, all that crap that Landel had mentioned.

Renji gave her a narrow-eyed look. "Dr. Landel is a goddamn lying coward, and he's lying about that, too," he said. Whether it was true or not, there was only so much good cheer he could take on a shitty morning. "I hope he chokes on a cock." No matter how much venom he put in that statement, it wasn't enough.

Then he had to listen to a lecture about language and gratitude for the rest of the walk to the cafeteria, so maybe it wasn't worth it after all. She dragged him through the breakfast line, and he ended up with granola and toast and tea and a cinnamon roll, because not even a shitty fucking night could ruin his sweet tooth. Though that thing was looking a little too sweet.

The cafeteria was pretty much empty; he had his run of the place. He sat himself about as far from the doors as he could get, and proceeded to stare at his breakfast.

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Interesting. Returning from the dead wasn't all that rare- One of his lieutenants was technically dead. However, the heroes seemed to have the vast majority of the reanimations. That was part of what made his job so frustrating sometimes... "Do you know how long they were dead?"

As for the physical changes... Well, why not tell the boy. "I seem to be missing several limbs. No evidence of surgical removal, they are simply gone." Along with his skin color. And glowing eyes. And venom. And all his other powers...

...Recluse realized just how much he hated this place.

Haku shook his head and spread his hands. "The only time frame I've heard it two years." And it hurt to even think on that. Two years since his Master had fallen. Since he'd failed Him.

Several...limbs? That was interesting. Haku didn't find the fact that this man claimed to actually have had more limbs than he currently had, but that he'd had them taken away. "It's obvious why they would have taken them, but it is strange that there would be no marks... Perhaps they have far better medical skills than I previously thought...."

"In my world, two years is quite a long time after death for revival. Unless their spirit was bound by the manner of their death, it would most likely be impossible." And even if the soul had been bound to an object or idea, they would still be dead, with all the complications that came along with it. Ghost Widow was a prime example. But this sounded like a complete return...

"They have at least the same level of medical technology as my world. But from other factors, I would guess that they may in fact be superior in at least some capacities." The fact that the limbs had been removed so completely was worrying as well. There were hundreds of connective tissues and muscles that had spread throughout his torso to support the limbs, all near-invulnerable.

"In my world, death is a fairly stable thing..." There was always talk to certain techniques to raise the dead but Haku had never heard anything beyond rumors, so he didn't place much stock in such things. Maybe he should have paid more attention...

"I did some checking around and raided a medical room the night before last," he said. He wouldn't offer up information on what he'd taken, but the fact that he'd been there was easily found out if someone had taken the time to check. "I did not see anything capable of doing or even aiding in a procedure of that kind of complexity." He tilted his head. Obviously what they were seeing here on a nightly basis isn't an accurate assessment of this place's capabilities. He felt silly for not realizing it sooner.

"Differences between dimensions can be drastic." Arachnos had done quite a lot of research in this area. It had proven quite useful.

"Then it is most likely there for appearance's sake. Any incriminating aspects to this place are well hidden or currently sealed off in some manner." His guess would be in an underground area- it would minimize the chance of detection by outside observers, and could make it much more difficult for any intruders to escape. But that was how he'd set up the thing.

"That's assuming it's even located inside this facility," Haku said. It was almost as though they were using each other as a sounding board for ideas. It had been a while since Haku was able to have a serious and (somewhat) honest discussion with someone. It was refreshing.

"There is always the possibility of hiding the evidence in a remote location... or in plain sight." That was how Haku occasionally hid things, and he'd seen it used quite effectively in the past as well.

"Yes. A control facility could be quite remote. But some portions of the last night time message of the Head Doctor make me doubt it." He was a little amazed he was actually conversing with someone and not becoming overly irritated by it. People hadn't started calling him 'Recluse' without reason, after all...

"He is a liar, but he was threatened by the incursion last night, to the point where he was much more likely to inadvertently reveal the truth." It was a standard problem a lot of supervillains fell prey to... They didn't have much self esteem, apparently. "He challenged this 'Alec' to meet face-to-face at the Head Office. That still could be remote, but there was mention of a woman who is affected in a simalar way to the nurses you encountered. I would think that such changes only occur within a localized area under Landel's control. And..."

Recluse smirked. "The man sounds highly insecure. He needs to prove his superiority, and remind himself of it. What better way than to keep his office within the walls of this place? It's rather like... I don't suppose you've heard of the Roman Empire? During their reign, they considered their capital to be the the one place of strength, culture and nobility encircled by the dangerous, uncivilized, 'heathen' lands which were completely under their control." Recluse was very nearly monologuing. He had to get over that habit.

Haku nodded. That did make sense. "Yes, I do recall there being some items during his .... speech, that were quite revealing." Haku frowned in thought. "From his words, I would also assume that about his character." It didn't change the fact that they were all his prisoners. "I'm curious about this 'Alec' person...."

He tilted his head and reached up to tuck his hair behind. "That does sound familiar to me, though the name doesn't ring any bells." Roman Empire? "But that sounds like a very good analogy for this place. What happened to the Empire?"

"And its all the more reason to keep causing trouble for the dear doctor. If you succeed, you can make him look like a fool. If you fail or have to retreat, it can make him overconfident. There's very little middle ground with people like him." Especially at this stage. Recluse had worked quite hard to remove such flaws form himself. He hadn't succeeded yet, but he'd never admit it.

"I am also curious about the man. I've run into many schisms like this, but details can be crucial." Like with his own split with Marcus. Nothing would ever get him to trust that man again.

"The Empire's boarders grew too wide, and the rulers too complacent, too used to their power. They had been the world's greatest military power for centuries, but they were unable to fend off the 'barbaric' invaders." A highly simplified version of events, but he wasn't giving a history lesson.

"I don't believe in a middle ground when it comes to an enemy," Haku said, smiling slightly. To him, one either was the winner or they were dead. That he had died proved to him that he was a failure. But perhaps this was his chance for redemption.

"I don't know that I would trust him without knowing absolutely everything I could about him..." He sighed. "But it would seem, based on what I've seen on the message board, others do not share this sentiment."

He laughed softly. "It would seem to me then that Dr. Landel could take a lesson from that history."

"Good. Too many are passive enough to believe in half-measures or submission." And the rest could just be manipulated, anyway.

"They are eager for what seems to be a way out. A certain combination of desperation and stupidity leads to that." Emphasis on the stupidity. It was amazing what people would believe, if they wanted to see things that way.

"Few ever do. Their loss." His gain. "Landel seems extremely similar to many that I've dealt with. None of them ever seem to learn."

"It worries me to know that so many people are so desperate..." Haku didn't have that kind of problem. He had died. There was no reason for him to worry about escape since he wasn't certain he'd be alive if he did manage to escape. He had similar concerns over his Master.

"And while that is their own problem, their blind trust can be a problem later on..." He sighed and pushed away his plate. He wasn't very hungry any longer.

"Learning from past events is something that hardly anyone takes into account any more..."

"They wish for a benevolent authority figure, and they think they have found one. At this point, he has not adequately shown himself to be anything beyond a manipulative demagogue. He may be less immediately dangerous than Landel, but personally, I do not give anyone my trust without proof to satisfy my suspicions." Recluse had a very low opinion of everyone besides himself.

"I doubt it has ever been a highly accepted practice. Too many humans are fond of immediate rewards without any thought to the consequence." It was almost depressing, but it was what made running a government easier than some would think.

Haku leaned forward and rested his arms on the table, half-blind gaze sliding over the people in the room. A fight had broken out, but appeared to be under some sort of control now, nobody he really worried about was making a fuss (though he was glad to see the blond man from the previous night appeared to be, if not healed, at least okay) and he returned his attention to the man beside him.

"I sincerely doubt I would trust anyone here I did not know and know well," Haku finally said after considering the room. "Desperation and a desire for comfort are no excuse for idiocy. But there is no reasoning against human nature."

Unless you're not human anymore... "They are no excuse. But they are not to be excused themselves." The longer he lived, the more he hated that sort of talk.

He tore a page out of the journal he had found in his desk and started folding creases into the paper, almost absentmindedly. "I awoke too late yesterday to see Landel's speech in the chapel. Were you present for that event?"

Haku blinked. A welcome, if abrupt shift in topic. "I was...."

This was also information that could be taken from anywhere, so there was no need to try to withhold something.

"I was, however, at least smart enough to not approach him like some of my more zealous peers..."

He eyed the paper, wondering if Stefan was practicing origami.

"What did he look like? And what happened to the more 'zealous' in attendance?" Recluse made quick, precise folds in the page. It was difficult paper to work with, but he hardly seemed to be paying attention to the work. The model only had 71 steps, after all.

Haku thought about that for a moment. "He was .... fake. His entire being was false. He appeared to be the type of person that anyone who wasn't paying attention might think he was kind." Haku shrugged.

"He's fairly nondescript," he went on after pausing a moment to think. "And many of the people there were upset enough to attempt to attack him." Haku personally felt that to be the stupidest thing anyone could have done.

Oh. That type. The description was distinctly lacking in actual details, but it was enough for now.

"Obviously, the attacks failed. What stopped them?" The page was now folded to just under an 1/8th of its original size, but it didn't bear much resemblance to anything, yet.

Haku tilted his head a he watched the paper folding. "The Head Doctor did. Why would he be willing to show himself without appropriate security after all?" He shifted in his chair and glanced up at the room again. Where was Zabuza-san?

"The people that managed to get past the orderlies and nurses were all stopped by something unseen. Eventually, everyone was 'calmed' and he gave a short speech." He hadn't liked that looking back on it. Had he known he'd be one of the people getting a "visitor" that day he might have been more inclined to pay attention...

A force field? It wasn't really surprising, actually. Recluse folded the sides of his little creation into thirds before rearranging the layers of paper to gain access to twelve paired points. "They posted a transcript on the bulletin. The speech was full of lies. Not very convincing ones, considering the circumstances."

He watched the boy out of the corner of his eye. "Looking for someone?"

Haku nodded. "Yes, I saw that. It was just as false when listening to it as well." He hadn't thought he would ever hear anything so blatantly untrue again, but there it was.

Haku smiled and laughed behind a hand. "I'm sorry. I hope it doesn't seem like I'm not paying attention to you though." He was being obvious, and he wasn't terribly worried about Zabuza-san's health, but if he'd gotten angry and tried to fight against the nurses.... again.... He tried not to dwell on that and smiled warmly at Stefan.

"The whole speech was beyond egocentric. I believe he basically proclaimed himself god at the start of it." Not the best way to put a room full of prisoners at ease.

"Not a problem." People generally started looking for ways to escape to a safe distance as soon as they saw him anyway. "I have no reason to be offended." He sat his finished origami model (http://pics.livejournal.com/tartaros_avatar/pic/00008esa/g10) on the table- due to the small page that it had been folded from, it was only an inch long.

((The actual model isn't that small- I'm not as skilled as my character >>;;))

Haku shook his head. "I've got enough issues dealing with the people I know and their egos." He sighed. "Ah well. Another one won't kill me." Again.

Haku didn't think he'd be seeing his Master for a while. The man had probably gotten into trouble. The idea bothered Haku, but deep down he knew Zabuza-san had to learn. He wouldn't, but maybe this lesson in 'Don't Attack People During The Day' would help calm him do-..... no. No it wouldn't. Damn.

"I don't think I'll see who I'm looking for this shift," Haku said aloud. "He's probably gotten into trouble. First thing in the morning too." He sounded almost like a chiding teacher.

He turned to look at the tiny scorpion. "Wow." He looked up at Stefan and his warm, happy smile lit up his whole face. "You're very talented."

"I have the same problem. Fortunately, none of them seem to have made their way to this place." ...But killing Marcus would be so much more simple here. Oh well.

"Understandable, but unwise. Although, I must admit I was tempted to put my nurse's head through the wall this morning." She just had to be the most gods damned cheerful thing in existence, didn't she... And no, he did not appreciate being told to 'be a good boy.' Honestly, if he had to listen to that for more than a few days, he was going to end up belonging in a mental institution.

"Thanks." He placed the model in front of Haku. "You can have it if you want, I have no compelling reason to keep it."

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faithful-frost.livejournal.com - 2007-04-08 05:21 (UTC) - Expand

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