DAY 54: GREENHOUSE (FOURTH SHIFT)

[deathandgin]

By the end of lunch, Alaric was still hungry and still stuck on the middle of a perfectly balanced scale, the only difference with the scale having a new, possibly unrelated third option: it was either some sort of conspiracy (obviously of the supernatural sort), he was actually crazy, or he’d just had the very bad luck of being kidnapped by

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[razing_phoenix]

While the day had gotten off to a bad start, things had actually picked up from there. All of his company had been good, from Anise to Okita and Claude to Ilia. The talk he'd had at lunch had been surprisingly laidback, which was probably a good thing. With the chaos of that morning followed by the roll call, he'd needed some time to just calm down.

However, the day didn't stop being out of the ordinary, as the intercom announcement turned out to be more of a conversation that the patients were allowed to eavesdrop on. Guy had noticed the awkward glances on the faces of the nurses when it had gone on, and it soon became clear that it had been a mistake that Landel hadn't been ready for.

Was it really possible that he'd be thrown out? Guy found it hard to believe; if anything, chances were there would just be some changes made to the protocols. He figured that was actually a bad thing for them, but it wasn't like they had any say in it in the first place.

That, at least, he was used to -- as sad as it was.

Heading into the greenhouse, Guy realized that he was actually in the mood to do some gardening work. It would be good to put his hands in the earth, to do something to make him feel grounded. He didn't know much about this planet even after being stuck here for a while and hearing stories from Claude and Ilia, but he felt that somehow this sort of tactile work would make him understand it better.

So, moving over to one of the planters, Guy grabbed a pair of gloves, slipped them on, and knelt down to start to work. While he knew there were a lot of other things he could be thinking about, he had his plans for the night set in stone and that was enough to put him at some sort of ease.

[For Sync.]

[ran_on_empty]

And that was when a slipper came into view just as its owner made an attempt to step on Guy's hand.

"It's almost like we just can't get away from each other," Sync sneered as he circled the swordsman. Unlike the rest of the populace who'd been shaken up to some degree, the God-General had found himself enjoying the chaos conducted by both the patients and the military. There were a few additions he'd rather do without, but it wasn't as if he was expecting perfection. He just wished he could've been close enough to frame any one of them to spend some time in solitary.

Sync briefly wondered what would be done to them now that they'd made a mess of things. Maybe Landel would actually find it in him to 'undo their progress'. Raise the walls? Throw out more monsters? Kill them all in their sleep and replace their corpses with replicas? It all seemed possible at this point.

But then the latest announcement raised an eyebrow. It was times like these that reminded the replica that Landel was still a living being, prone to moments of humiliation like the rest of them. However, he wasn't there to discuss the finer details with the bastard before him. No, Guy and his little group had made it obvious enough that they'd rather stay stuck here for the rest of their lives. But that was fine with him; he could use the company until he left them all behind.

"I hope you didn't lose anyone in that minor scuffle. That'd just make it too easy for me in the long run."

[razing_phoenix]

When there was suddenly someone's slipper in front of his face right as he was in the middle of working a seed into the soil, Guy's immediate reaction was to bat it away; it was more an instinct than anything, but the result was that some of the dirt was smeared on both the slipper and the attached ankle.

Not knowing who it was at first, Guy straightened up from his crouched position, preparing to apologize -- but that was when the voice cut in.

And he felt a sudden sense of both dread and frustration. For a while there he'd been hoping that Sync might have actually left this place. For all the times that Luke (and even Asch) had disappeared, this one pesky God-General just refused to do the same. Seeing how he'd been so set on dying before, it was kind of a shock. But more than that, it was a pain.

Tightening his jaw, Guy slowly stood up, knowing that any chance of getting more work done had just been ruined. He could have accused Sync of having a lot of nerve for coming to bother him even now, but there was no point in mentioning something that was already so obvious.

"You think any of my friends are going to go down so easily? Think again, Sync." He sighed, but kept his eye on the younger man, prepared in case Sync was planning anything fishy.

[ran_on_empty]

Sync didn't bother to step back when Guy rose from his spot, watching the blond amusedly while caring little about the dirt on his foot. It'd always taken longer to get under the swordsman's skin, but the latter's frustration was more gratifying than the rest. Sure, he enjoyed the quick flares from the hot-headed types, but it was always the ones he actually had to work for that he found most enjoyable.

"You give them too much credit." And was it the truth. Of course, today's events leaned more towards detaining them rather than going for the kill. Really, it'd be pathetic even for them if they fell from something like that. Sync's grin remained where it was, a clear sign to Guy that he was stuck with him for the rest of the shift. After all, that was how all their daytime encounters went, wasn't it?

"I'm gonna be surprised if Landel doesn't have anything in store for us tonight because of this. With how his streak has been it makes me wonder just how many fresh ideas he has left."

[razing_phoenix]

It was simple enough for Sync to respond with that sort of comment, but in the end Guy knew it didn't mean a thing. His friends were stronger than someone like Sync could ever understand, so he wasn't going to let his empty words get to him. He ignored it instead, figuring that a lack of response was probably the thing that would bother the God-General the most.

What was more surprising, however, was how the bastard suddenly tried to start up a conversation with him about the current string of events. Usually their talks were nothing more than shooting insults back and forth at each other, so it was unexpected.

That didn't mean that Guy wanted to play along, though. "What's your point? If you think that it's the perfect time for an ambush, then just forget it." It was possible that Sync had seen the notes he'd left for Tear on the bulletin before she'd removed them, but Guy wasn't going to ask directly just in case he hadn't. That was more or less the last thing they needed. They were finally making plans together, so for Sync to screw all that up would pretty much be the worst outcome.

[ran_on_empty]

"Don't flatter yourself," Sync sneered at Guy's pathetic attempt at a retort. "I know you love the attention, but I'm not going to waste my time on any of you when I've got more important things to deal with."

That didn't stop them from being convenient pawns when he needed a few extra pairs of unwilling hands, but he doubted the branch of 'work' he was interested in coincided with the rest of their explorations. Still, maybe it would've been good to make note of any progress in case he was ever in the mood to intercept them just for the hell of it. It'd take a bit of work with limited resources, but none of that was impossible for him if he ever chose to make the effort.

"Of course, if we just so happen to be in the same spot then I might give into temptation after all."

[razing_phoenix]

While Guy found it hard to believe that Sync was really doing anything all that important with his time, it did bring up an interesting question. When the God-General wasn't trying to get in their way, what did he do? He no longer had Van's guidance or even the goal of creating a new world, so did he work on finding a way out or had he decided to make the institute his own personal playground?

Not that Guy planned to ask. The second that he started conversing with Sync normally, he was likely to regret it. There was just no way he could allow himself to do that with his murderer.

At least Sync didn't know about his memory loss; hopefully he could keep it that way. He doubted that the Albiore would come up in conversation, after all.

"In that case, I'll have to hope for that," he said calmly as he worked his foot against the soil. "I'd actually be armed this time." While he said it almost casually, the threat was still clear in his tone.

[ran_on_empty]

Was that a threat?

In a way, the statement was almost intriguing. So Guy finally got a weapon? It must've came from one of those sorry saps who resorted to becoming slaves of their own work. He wasn't sure why anyone would ever be tempted to perform the same mind numbing job night after night when it wasn't likely they'd get anything more than a baseless thanks and an empty promise for compensation. Of course, it wasn't as if he felt sorry for them; they could rot in their rooms for his sake.

But it was pretty convenient that they'd sacrifice themselves for the 'greater good'. If anything, Sync wasn't the only one guilty for using other people.

"Good. You'd just be too easy otherwise." The God-General chuckled at that, idly kicking some dirt towards Guy's own pants. "Maybe you'll do me a favor and actually get the job right."

[razing_phoenix]

When the dirt was kicked, Guy only frowned, tempted to try and wipe it off and yet knowing that that would count as giving the God-General what he wanted. So he kept his emotions in check, knowing that he would be able to change soon enough. Still, he'd dirtied the other's clothes as an accident; it was a shame that he wasn't childish enough to do it more deliberately now.

There was something to be said for being above petty tactics, though.

But there Sync went, implying that he wanted to die again. "You know, for someone who's trying so hard to get killed, you really do fight for your life pretty well."

He was sure that the other would know what he was referring to. If Sync really wanted to die as much as he claimed to, he would have let himself lose during that coliseum fight. Unless it was a point of pride, but that didn't really make sense either.

[ran_on_empty]

At some point Sync figured that this had become a necessity for their conversations, and along with that came the predictable retorts from both sides. Of course, there was more of a point to it aside from testing the waters to see if the same old tricks still worked, even if that itself was pretty fun. In a way it was a constant reminder to himself of his own progress, that despite his obvious goals it wasn't at all simple to achieve. He wanted not just death, but to make sure he stayed dead, and by now he'd come to realize that this hellhole wasn't here to provide him that.

So he'd have to work for it now? That was fine; it wasn't like he wasn't used to working like a dog. All that mattered was that it was all clear to him now.

"It's not as fun to just lie there and take it," Sync responded coolly, making it sound as if Guy was a complete idiot for even bringing that up. "How much of a sap would you have to be to want to die like that?"

[razing_phoenix]

It figured that Sync would get caught up in semantics or have some technicality to explain things. Guy sighed, crossing his arms over his chest and shaking his head. "I wouldn't know, since I don't want to die at all." He'd fought for his life in that match and had still paid for it. Granted, he'd been at a disadvantage, but it was still rather pathetic that he hadn't been able to win against someone who was actively wishing for death.

Either way, this topic of conversation could go nowhere good, as Guy could easily see the God-General taking the chance to remark on his lack of skill or how easy he'd been to kill. If they started going down that road, then he wouldn't necessarily be able to control his anger.

So he decided to try to reroute things. "Why are you here, anyway? Did you actually have something you wanted to ask me, or is this your normal routine of bothering me for no reason?" Honestly, didn't Sync have something better to do with his time?

[ran_on_empty]

"Would you believe me if I said you were just unlucky?" Really, it was almost pleasantly surprising how often they stumbled across each other without really trying. It certainly made his job easier when it actually mattered, and made his days more entertaining when it didn't.

"But no, even if I actually had something in mind you'd just dismiss it like always. Are you just that bitter?" They weren't going to get anything done with that mindset. So what if Guy ended up dying because of his own faults? And what if Claude and the others were too weak to really defend themselves against advances? They should know better than to take his presence lightly.

"Some day you'll regret it."

[razing_phoenix]

"And here I thought maybe you were gone for good," Guy returned just as quickly. He wasn't one to take shots at others, usually, but seeing how Sync had killed him? He wasn't exactly inclined to hold back. "I guess you were just busy." He doubted that Sync would elaborate on what he'd been doing with his time, but he could always make a thinly-veiled attempt to find out.

Then again, if it didn't involved sabotaging his friends it wasn't as if he cared that much. But he would rather keep the subject on Sync than himself at this point.

It was true that he was bitter about what had happened, but Guy also felt that he had good reason to be. He also doubted that he would ever come to regret it, but he was used to Sync's empty threats. "I don't need to rely on you for that sort of thing when I have more than enough friends here." Even if Sync didn't think they were worth anything, Guy certainly did.

[ran_on_empty]

"You could say that."

Of course, he wasn't going to elaborate on his plans. In fact, he never intended to, but with the way their conversation was going it wasn't as if there was ever a chance. Still, even the replica might be tempted if the blond was ever willing, though that was as simple as getting Guy to admit that his friends were as useless as he was.

"Right right. And that seems to be working for you just fine." Of course, he could only assume that Guy was smart enough to know that was hardly a compliment. Really, if they were any good then why was he still here? And did he think that using his 'friends' as padding would help him when it actually mattered? In Sync's mind Guy was just setting himself up for disaster, finding the swordsman far too dependent on those around him. He was sure he'd live to regret that once he found himself on his own.

[razing_phoenix]

As he'd guessed, Sync wasn't saying any more than he wanted to. Guy didn't mind that, however. The less they discussed their own lives here, the better. He'd really have preferred it if he didn't have to interact with the God-General at all, but Sync clearly wasn't intending to let him off so easily. But if they had to talk, he'd rather keep it to empty insults. At least that way no important information was exchanged.

While he could tell that Sync thought he'd accomplished nothing during his time here, Guy considered survival an important goal on its own. (Granted, he hadn't done so well in that category either, but he was going to ignore that for now.) "I have to point out that you haven't been doing much better. I don't know what your methods are, but they obviously aren't working so well."

That was the case for just about anyone here, though. They'd made it all the way through the basement and all it had gotten them was a load of grief. Guy knew that that was likely to be the case no matter what they tried, but he couldn't just give up either.

[ran_on_empty]

"Oh, I don't know. It could just be because I don't want to give up the privilege of seeing every one one of you." Even if he'd been rather lax with his 'rounds' lately. He'd have to make sure to pay the rest of them a visit whenever they crossed his path, and given their numbers that wouldn't take long at all once he tried.

But what then? The same old thing he always had to deal with? They all needed to stop being so predictable if they ever hoped to have a chance in driving him off. He honestly doubted they were capable of something so simple, but they might actually achieve in surprising him one of these days.

"But if you're interested in ever finding out then, by all means, you're free to join me," Sync grinned, the suggestion sounding more like a challenge with that tone.