He had fallen into fever, lost consciousness to pressure and heat, and in the process, Nigredo became unaware of the ongoing events. The absence of a roommate did not register. The promise to eat had become secondary in priority. There existed nothing else but to pass the evening in deep sleep, to undo the effects of a mild illness. Until nighttime came and Nigredo could--

"Just listen to me."

A man's tones, his face a familiar etch against his memory, flooded into the room. Nigredo separated himself from his condition long enough to draw out focus and did what had been stated. He listened. The realization came quickly, clicking in the moment Landel had made mention of monsters, but the boy found himself too far gone to care. The loss of volition was an unfortunate trait, but perhaps Nigredo had already lost his since birth.

Therefore, the child took the ramblings as any other. He placed the initial goal as key and dragged himself out of bed, grabbing firearm and holster in the same breath. It was a clumsy effort, but he supposed he couldn't be blamed. He had a fever, after all.

With nothing else, Nigredo exited the room.

[To here.]

The moment dear Landel-san announced that it was time for lunch, Erika wasted no time and headed straight for the Sun Room's bulletin board to check if there was any response to her message left for her dear friend. Predictably, there was nothing for her on the board, and the detective scowled as she realized she might have to write him off as a loss. She had lost a good number of potential allies in this place, but losing this one was a bit of a blow, if only because he had useful things on him. On the other hand, if he was gone, and that ring was still here...

Perhaps it was not a great loss, then. Still, Erika was mildly annoyed as she wandered away from the board and back towards a nearby couch. She was spending a lot of time in the Sun Room lately, which seemed to be a bit of a waste as she could have spent in going around the Institute. On the other hand, she had a sandwich here that was waiting to be consumed and after spending a week with little access to "real food", Erika was more then happy to enjoy her time spent eating.

Still, at some point she was going to have to manage her time a little more effectively. There was no reason why she couldn't multitask, so Erika kept her gaze on the door of the Sun Room so she could watch people filter in on their way to other rooms. She wouldn't get everyone, no, but perhaps she would find someone useful that she could bother for the rest of the shift. A familiar face, or maybe someone new. She'd decide on that eventually.

[ hau Seishin ready for round 2. /killed ]

Needless to say, her night was a bust.

It wasn't that Ramona was trying to turn it into an absolutely safe evening in which she got nothing done. A part of her wanted to test the limits of her abilities and see what she could actually do in this place, but outside of the absolute confirmation that subspace was no longer a go, she couldn't bring herself to go much farther. Scott's words hung over her heavily. The fact that he had made it clear that he was going to continue being as affectionate as possible wanted to remove any chance of her dealing with anyone. So, though she hit another hall, she turned back around and headed back to her room. Ramona was the type of person who sometimes preferred sulking with company, but that wasn't on the plate for the night. (And she didn't want to call it sulking, either.)

She wasn't certain when she fell asleep, but when she woke up, she was sure the people in charge here had some kind of fast-forward button that they could hit whenever they got bored. That was definitely not the entire night, nor had it been the night before. Sometimes night just ended. Of course, Ramona could appreciate the need for a scene change. This place was already running on enough lame clichés to last it a lifetime. Sometimes they need to return to the daytime status quo to hit reset.

That all said, she was getting the feeling that her own waking up process was a little boring. Ramona was glad that her hair was short now because it made her feel a lot less neurotic about the lack of allowed primping. She cast a glance in the direction of her roommate's bed before she plodded out after her nurse. The woman was kind looking, which, of course, meant that she was evil. Then again, anyone could be evil. Ramona just wanted everyone to be evil right now.

(Maybe she was still sulking.)

"We've noticed that you haven't been socializing as much, Sandra," the woman said while grabbing her attention, and it was as if Ramona finally clued in that a conversation was supposed to be happening. Great, she was fitting the bill for crazy on top of incredibly irritated already. The nurse was definitely evil. And maybe a bitch, with the way her fingers freed her shoulder and she stepped back, snorted softly, and gave a shake of her head. "It's always when you're new that it's hard," the nurse added. "And we can tell you're rebellious."

"Wow, it's been a while since someone thought I was a punk rocker. Don't worry. I can socialize," Ramona assured her as she hit the cafeteria. But it looked like she was one of the first arrivals.

Ramona decided she'd get the woman off her back by grabbing a tray of food and not sitting too far from it. At least people might stumble upon talking to her if she looked available enough.

(And hopefully, that someone wouldn't be Scott. Even though she highly doubted his ability to get out of bed, he seemed to acclimate to this place enough to make an appearance with his face and his smiles and his stupid "I love you"s.)

[for America]

Sora wasn't quite sure what to make of his talk with Doctor Facilier. The man hadn't revealed much about himself even as he'd asked all those questions, so it was hard to form an opinion. Sora could only hope that he had proved himself to be more than just a kid over the course of their conversation, though if not, then that was the doctor's loss, right? Sora figured that he was a pretty good resource in this place after having been stuck here for so long.

As for the note that he'd put up for the club, it had gotten a lot of responses already, which he was glad about. It meant that his friends were all safe and sound, and more than that, they wanted to keep working with him. He'd even gotten a few new people to sign up, counting Renji and the other person who had apparently been recruited by Soma. So while they had missed an important opening last night, Sora wasn't going to let that get him down.

Oddly enough, there was a slight change for today, which was that they weren't going to be eating lunch in the cafeteria. Sora stared down at the bagged lunch that was put into his hands. They were usually only given something like this when they went out to Doyleton, but...

If it meant that they would get to go somewhere else for the shift, then Sora wasn't about to complain. The problem was that he'd already been to these rooms so many times that nothing really struck him as exciting. They'd gone to the Game Room just yesterday, though, so in the end he picked out Arts and Crafts.

Figuring that he should get his meal out of the way first, Sora took a seat at a table and started to dig through his lunch. "Hey, grilled cheese!" Nothing to complain about there. Sora unwrapped the sandwich and took a bite. It felt weird to be eating in here, but he wasn't going to let that stop him.

[For Woody.]

Anise had been lying snug in bed, only vaguely aware that she was awake, when her rest was disturbed by the one sound in the world she'd never wanted to hear again.

"Good morning, everyone!"

The girl's eyes shot open and she immediately sat up straight. There was no doubt about it. That was the Head Doctor, that bastard, and he was back! Now that she was wide awake, Anise realized she was wearing the institute's old uniform again, and that the decorative items in her room had been left alone.

It was hard to contain her frustration at hearing the man run through the breakfast menu as if it were any other day, and she ended up throwing a pillow against a wall before pulling herself out of bed. Didn't Marc get a chance to kill that guy? What about the army? Landel had to have pulled some dirty trick to end up back in the Head Doctor's seat.

Seething was only going to get Anise so far, though, and she knew she'd have to go out and face the day. She wasn't surprised when a clueless nurse came to pick her up, though she wasn't any less annoyed that the hag was carrying on as if nothing had happened. At least she had Tokunaga back with her...

Finally, she reached the Cafeteria, where Anise instinctively moved to line up at the real-food counter... before realizing they weren't divided anymore. More importantly, though, the food looked and smelled not only edible, but delicious. Whatever happened yesterday seemed to be over, thank goodness. She loaded up a plate full of waffles topped with strawberries and made her way over to a seat.

There was a lot to think about, but she needed to take things one at a time. Since she'd gone all of yesterday with nothing to eat but candy and chocolate (something she may not have objected to if she were a little younger), getting some real food into her body was Priority Number One. And Priority Number Two was... oh! Luke had to be around somewhere. He promised he'd meet her that day, so she had to keep an eye out for him!

[for Luke]

[From here]

"It's this way," the assassin called out to his side, his eyes attempting to focus on the darkness before them. They had made it to the forest fast enough when he had been traveling with Sora, which meant it shouldn't be much an issue with someone as fast as Zanuff was. "Down and to the right."

Somehow, the area felt just as cold and empty as it had three nights ago. It wasn't empty. He wasn't that gullible to believe that--he could feel something here. But the darkness covered just enough of their surroundings to make it appear as nothing more than a desolate, snowy wasteland.

They couldn't stay out in the open for long. Which meant...

Nngh...

It was with great hesitance and great annoyance that Venom found himself moving to grasp onto his company's wrist. "Hurry."

The world was awash in pink, singing exquisite notes that near shattered the ears, and Nigredo could merely shudder in the wake of another miracle. Hadn't the false tones of the eldest laid it out so clearly? The dilemma of the U.R.T.V. and their talents.

"You're gonna tell him about something that gives back your powers when that's what screwed you both up in the first place?"

'Screwed' up, yes. Powers had been the source of their initial conflict, and here, in an instant, they would return to him. Waveform would unlocked. Restraints would lifted. Energy filled from his toes to the very tips of his black hairs. He didn't think to consider the source because the child already knew: someone or something had destroyed that device. Wasn't the consequence simple, then? As expected from a specialized bioweapon, he had returned to full capacity. Perhaps everyone had. None, however, would regret the shift as much as he.

For lingering in the cracks of his heart lay a shadow, one rejected since the day of its discovery.

Would Albedo overlook it now? Fear would press for a negative, but Nigredo retained an edge of doubt. He had promised, hadn't he? And if the youngest would keep control, would skirt away from death, perhaps the failsafe could remain out of reach.

Maybe. He couldn't say with any amount of certainty, to analyze uninterrupted. Senses soon detected an age-old danger while his mind remembered two engagements. Ignoring Sync, Nigredo grabbed his duffel bag and rushed out into the hallway.

[To here.]

[From here.]

Did that just happen?

Peter slowed as he entered the safety of the outer hall (safety, really?), turning back to boggle at the door behind him. What - no. No way the cat monsters were that frail. Landel's did not work like that. Nothing was ever that easy here. They didn't get treated, they got tricked. Heart pounding, he checked the hall up and down. Once certain that he was alone, Peter pressed a shaking hand to the wall. Stick.

And it did.

His jaw did drop then. Peter was still for a moment. Switched off his flashlight and tied the pillowcase over his shoulder, then pressed both his hands to the wall. Then his feet. Then up further, rising up and up, then gravity flipped and he was staring down at the floor.

Oh my god.

Oh my god.

Was that the power the pink had granted him? The limits were off? Peter clung to the ceiling, the pillowcase settled on his stomach as he crawled upside down. His heart was beating. He was afraid. He was going to drop any minute. They were going to take it away. Or what if this was another challenge like the Coliseum? Something worse was in store because of this?

He almost stopped entirely. Then he thought of Jessica.

"No no no, she's gotta - maybe..."

Peter Parker was all but invisible in the pitch black hallway, crawling higher than most flashlights dared to venture as he found the exit.

[To here.]

Peter's lunch meeting with Tear had gone far better than he could have even expected. It was a good thing that he wasn't the sort of person who judged by age, seeing how the girl had proved herself to be very capable despite the fact that she was only a teenager. Not that Peter would ever admit it out loud, but Tear was a lot more mature than his own niece. He could only assume that Tear's circumstances had forced that onto her, though, which was the downside to the whole thing.

Or maybe it had something to do with her being a healer. She'd probably seen a lot of horrific things in her life already, things that some other people would never experience. Then again, Claire had seen her own body mutilated, so personality might have something to do with it too.

Either way, they had a basic plan. He was going to try and look into safe areas while Tear was going to work on their alliance with Search and Rescue. He wasn't too worried about the latter, but the former might be a pipe dream. Seeing how he had no interest in playing with beads and glitter, Peter chose to remain in the Sun Room.

It didn't take him long to draft up a message with his question, and once he'd posted it up (covering a few other replies in the process, but at the end of the day the board was low on real estate) he went ahead and found himself a seat. This way he could keep a careful eye on the replies that he got.

While he had already agreed to meet with Max tonight, Peter realized that the earliest this paramedic group could get going was the following night anyway. That was something to aim for, at least. Even if it was just him and Tear taking care of things at first, that was a start.

[For Haruno Sakura.]

[M96]

Military with an agenda was no different than a maniac with an agenda, and though he could appreciate the straightforward approach, Nigredo was hardly in the mood to give the words another try. Value was a virtue fast becoming tiresome, and tonight, he had resolved to focus on the trip downward instead of dwelling on matters too close to his heart. The audience proved undeserving to poke holes at a crumbling wall, after all. They were, in their own little niggling ways, repulsive to the point of intolerance; it was for this reason that Nigredo could stop with the charades. If he wished to control a situation beyond his liking, it would be best to abandon himself in the process.

Abandon Nigredo did in propriety and mood, albeit he remained unaffected when it came to obligations. The dark-haired child had promised his brother in twofold: to keep himself alive and from further harm. Desires aside, he intended to keep his word. Even if circumstances ended in the same, he didn't want to say that he failed to try. Preparation for the basement, therefore, came a bit more thoroughly this time, which came easier as the pain on his leg lightened and use of the limb increased without the aid of a wheelchair. The boy chose to don on his full uniform from the Yuriev Institute as the clothing served as a better cushion and insulation for his injuries. He then strapped the handgun to the holster at his back, making no effort to conceal it from his roommate. Better to leave all avenues open and show he had no intention of inciting violence.

For now, at least.

The ring with the empty crevice slid into his middle finger, and the boy wandered toward to the entrance, limping once in the process. He gritted his teeth and straightened the injured leg, before crossing his arms over his chest to indicate that he was ready. Perhaps Nigredo could afford to drag his feet a little in this venture, but an agreement was an agreement. And he would rather this be over quickly.

There was only so much knitting one small girl could do by herself. This quantity was far from exhausted in one short afternoon, but there was an entire Institute to explore, and time a more precious commodity than yarn.

Rose took her leave, and darted out through the gathering shadows in the Sun Room to the open courtyard beyond.

It was still winter. This had not ceased to be the case since the last time she had been outside. It was also empty, save for the guards flanking the building's every orifice. They didn't seem to get nervous unless she neared the wall, so she stopped trying that after a few minutes. Unfortunately, aside from provoking the guards, there didn't seem to be much to do out here in the daytime.

Rather than admit defeat, she found a promising snowdrift, and toppled back into it. There, rather than windmilling her arms and legs like a useless angel, she pressed them down in sinuous curves, then lifted them straight up, and repeated the process several times before rising up. Hm. The result was still rather humanoid in nature, even after adding eyes to what had once been a torso.

The vines by the wall were more suited to the task than human limbs. She tugged a few outliers free from their snowy prison, and stacked them in a pile. Then she gathered up a handful of snow and started rolling it.

[Alle?]

Somehow, he'd managed to eat all of his food, and grudgingly, Niikura had to admit that he felt a lot better after brunch. That pink stuff tasted like crap, but it did its job, which was to keep him alive. Still...what did he have to do around here to get some food, short of raiding the kitchen at night? Not that he couldn't do that, it was just that he liked to reserve his evenings for more productive things...

...food was productive.

Niikura growled under his breath and shook his head. He really needed something to take his mind off things right now before he started daydreaming about burgers or something. Maybe a nap or...a movie sounded nice. He'd seen the suggestion box at the board, but hadn't really been in the right state of mind to answer it, too caught up with some other conversations. But really, the more he thought about it, the better it sounded. Alright then, off to the Sun Room--

--or not. The soldier pushed him straight through toward one of the lobbies, calmly explaining that today, he had a visitor. The news was so stunning that Niikura couldn't find it in himself to complain until he was already sitting down in one of the chairs by himself - at which point, it was kind of useless to complain.

A visitor, huh? Had Hazama or Takasugi or someone figured out where he was? He wouldn't put it past them, although he would've liked it more if they'd managed to swoop down for the rescue a little earlier - like, say, a whole week earlier. Other than that, he couldn't think of anyone who'd actually take out the effort to visit him. Some cop? A classmate? This was almost getting nerve-wracking. Niikura's foot tapped as he stared anxiously at the door. Who was it going to be...?

Edgar's charming company had raised Anise's spirits enough that not even the Head Doctor's voice could bring them back down. Besides, she was feeling pretty sure that Landel wasn't actually around. To begin with, it wouldn't make sense, and secondly, his announcements sounded suspiciously like ones she'd already heard before. While Anise wasn't very familiar with Earth technology, she'd seen the little devices in the Music Room that could play recordings of people's voices. This had to be something like that.

It wasn't long before Anise was escorted to the Cafeteria, and then to the section where edible food was being served. As she filled her plate with waffles, fruit, and sausages, she looked to the other side of the counter with a look of sympathy. It was hard to enjoy her own meals while knowing what the other patients had to suffer through.

She wasn't about to refuse her meals just out of guilt, though. Anise needed her strength for tonight. There was still a bit of a nervous twist in her stomach whenever she thought about what could happen down in the basement... but she wasn't going to back down. Not after promising her friends they'd go together.

With her tray in hand, Anise seated herself at an empty table in the middle of the room. She preferred to have company while eating, but it looked like she was one of the first patients there, so there was no one to sit with. Maybe if she minded her manners and tried to look her cutest, she'd attract someone handsome! Holding her utensils delicately, she began to cut her waffles into smaller pieces.

[For Battler.]

All things considered, last shift had been pretty low key. After this morning's disaster, though, that was perfectly fine by Claude. Some fresh air and a chance to make sure Guy and Okita were all right weren't things to take for granted. It was also good to have a fairly normal, conversation with Guy that didn't slip off into awkward territory. Having Okita there as a sort of buffer probably made things a bit easier in that regard. Claude was confident that things would smooth about between them fairly soon -- if they hadn't already, even.

After checking the bulletin and making some notes of his own, Claude walked alongside his nurse into the cafeteria. As far as he could tell, the soldiers hasn't cleared out any since their arrival this morning. Not only that, but Landel didn't sound too happy about what happened. Was he going to get into trouble for the food fight?

Not that he had any sympathy for the Head Doctor, of course. That bastard deserved every bad thing that ever happened to him, and then some. On the other hand, it did make Claude wonder what would become of the captives if someone even harsher stepped in to take his place...

Was that even possible? Then again, Claude had to consider that no one even used tear gas the last time a riot happened. Had this morning's response been someone else's idea?

As hard as it was to sit and wait for things to pan out, Claude knew that ultimately time would tell what was going to happen. Thankfully, he had a lunch appointment to keep him occupied. After collecting his tray of food, Claude took a seat at one of the tables. It looked like he was one of the first people here, which gave him an opportunity to notice just how much better the room looked than after breakfast. He couldn't imagine how many people had been asked to clean things up. Really, it was a wonder they hadn't just made the patients do it themselves as punishment.

Well, regardless of all that, he needed to wait for that Mordio person to show up now, right? Claude kept an eye on the cafeteria entrance, although he suddenly remembered that the patient had never given a description of themselves. Hopefully Claude's own description would be distinct enough for Mordio to find him.

[For Rita!]

For once, HK was working very hard to hide a giddy facial expression as he met his nurse at the door. He'd already hidden his scalpels in his clothing. The wonderful, sharp implements of doom would be needed today. “Statement: Despite my reticence towards all processed meat and plant products, I am experiencing intolerable levels of hunger,” he informed his nurse. “I require an especially large meal.”

It was the easiest and best excuse to load his food tray with several of these 'inglish muffin sandwiches', and two glasses of white milk. He then found a table strategically located in the center of the refueling area, and waited. He needed the room as full as possible before the Evil Plan could begin.

[Free, but planning doom upon all.]

[from here]

Indy banked to the right as soon as they got outside, ready to scale the wall into the courtyard. He didn't see anything suspicious on the field--but then, the threats in here never did make themselves apparent until it was too late to avoid them. You'd've thought a guy with a giant blade would be more obvious.

He began the usual process of securing his flashlight and machete once they were a few yards away. When they reached the wall, then, his hands were free, leaving him ready to start the climb.

[from here]

"Going to deliver..." Brook sung, words coming and going through the most comforting of his hummed tunes. Really, the cane made all the difference. Before he'd only been able to hum to alleviate his fears of traveling alone. Now though, he had a weapon. An untested one, yet still a weapon. And one much better than a lead pipe or, and even he would admit to it, the weapons that Archer used to create. This one from Leon felt the most similar to his own one, from back home. Maybe he'd even be able to use it in the same way.

Only with skin this time.

He knew he'd be slower if anything came across him, but he could always run if needed. And could it ever be needed in this place! But again, he wasn't going to go seek out trouble. That was Luffy's job, and Zoro's as well given the swordsman's track record. He got into trouble just by traveling!

"I wonder if he's gotten lost again..." the musician muttered thoughtfully before returning to his wordy humming, "... but if you just hold on, the morning sun will rise..."

[gone here]

It seemed sleep was a world away, and what might have mattered in objectivity failed to move Nigredo. Martin Landel was unreachable, his nightly "additions" a consequence of the place itself. It wasn't that the boy didn't care-- No, wait. He honestly was apathetic, but he supposed the emotion would shift if they would inject more permanence into their little events. As it was, he could only wait until this Eagle presented itself.

Waiting, however, usually meant rest, and rest wouldn't come. Even the pretense of unconsciousness failed to occur; he was locked in a state that refused stagnation.

Nigredo worried, concern seeping in the most unlikely of ways. And if honesty was a capability, it would admit to brothers. He wouldn't watch them anymore--that role had ended days prior--and Rubedo and Albedo perhaps would never seek him out in light of their new issues. But one refused to registered on the link. Did for a temporary hour and then vanished before his mental eyes. The fact was a discomfort. Tinged, in fact, with panic. Nigredo remembered well what occurred last time, and though this proved to be of another nature, it wasn't easily ignored.

Therefore, the boy slid away from his bed, reached into the closet for his solitary weapon, and--

--tripped over his feet. It was not a terribly monumental lack of grace, but it was enough propel his good arm to the wall, fingers slamming against the plaster. Something gave under the impact. Something crunched under his ear.

And the world faded away.

[Fail teleport to here.]

Naruto was glad he'd managed to make it through a whole day, for once. AND he still had the kunai Sakura had given him a couple nights ago. That meant all he had to do was find her, or Sasuke, or someone he could trust, and they could try this again.

Okay, okay, so it was kind of annoying that they weren't really getting anywhere. But it couldn't be that way forever, right?

[to here]

[from here]

It was a race. A fight against patience and a Song's call. Still, the sedation's dredges churned through him. Two close at hand had a potent effect--much like the night that they were left in that town, and the morning after. Rubedo had came then. Came for them like something out of place, and wasn't that so ironic afterwards--when Albedo knew what he knew now? How many times would a twin appear to abandon him to harshly? How many times would Rubedo make promises only to break them--tear them to pieces like he did Albedo--in the perfectly precise way of those who knew how to break you down because they knew you so perfectly.

Was that how Rubedo had killed him? Or had Albedo forced him to it? His twin wouldn't say before, and asking now was too much like dead blood rotting in veins--he no longer cared, no longer needed to know how easily it was for his twin to rip him asunder. How joyous Rubedo must have been. If that night was any hint, his twin hated him with a passion to rival man's hatred toward god. And wasn't it the same. This. In ways it was the same. An existence meted out, for what it's worth, and then you were simply trapped in it. Trapped in it and stuck stagnant where you were, bound by that other, unless you forced your hatred forward to strike down the other.

To kill god? It seemed too quaint to entertain.

Be it that he woke as the last shift was ending, Albedo had been escorted to the cafeteria early. He took what was offered without a word, sat in the back without a sound, and sipped at the water put in front of him politely; a hand curled around the cup lightly, fingers loose. Eyes burned into the entrance--for Nigredo or Rubedo, either would suffice. The doubt that his twin would come to him was faulty--to ignore them for a week and then vanish as if they were nothing spoke of only distain, whatever Nigredo chose to believe. The eldest of them hated them both. This was truth. The only truth that Rubedo had shown Albedo, in thought, word, action, and deed, in the two weeks that they had shared here.

So Rubedo was to kill him. Well. Never say Albedo accepted his destiny. Yes, he would die by his twin's hand. But first he would rip Rubedo's throat out, claw out his eyes and press them into his beloved's mouth--see the lies you spew--lift his tenderly beating heart for all to see and then crush it.

This, Rubedo, is what you've done to me.

[...for the twin.]