Day 55: Courtyard [2nd Shift]

[sheepwood]

After what seemed like an eternity of being amused, irritable, bored, in pain, in excruciating pain, and any combination of those, Guybrush was met by the same soldier who had led him to the cafeteria. He wasn't offered a trip to the Sun Room to check the bulletin board, but didn't push for it anyway. That would have been more walking, and moving

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[herr_inspektor]

Lunge couldn't say that he'd particularly contributed to the new state of the cafeteria, but it was a relief nonetheless when they were released back into the hallway. Those officers- he had a feeling they would be seeing a lot more of them over the coming days, as the executors of Aguilar's will. Assuming they lasted several days at all, of course. Who, he found himself wondering, would they run into at night? The nurses had changed into monsters, or so he'd heard, but what about the soldiers? Did they change as well? Did they need to, with the weaponry at their disposal?

Out to the courtyard next, the schedule reminded him. The soldier who had brought him down for breakfast appeared to hand him a leather jacket- good quality, typical military issue, 'O. Jung' embroidered near the collar- and take him through the Sun Room. Food for thought: if all pretense had been dropped, why were they still using their false names? Was that the ultimate aim? For them to emerge into their new persona, freshly hardened from their experiences? But couldn't they do that via brainwashing?

Hmm.

The cold outside came as a welcome break from the hustle inside; not quite so cold as any German winter, but still enough so that it distracted him from the gnawing hunger in his stomach that he'd been trying to ignore. Snow, too. Lunge couldn't help but feel faintly nostalgic at that, in way he couldn't entirely place- he couldn't attach any immediate memory to it, so it must have come from before he started keeping his database.

Someone else didn't seem to mind the cold, either. Cupping his hands together, he approached the place where Venom sat without his jacket, eyes closed. Hopefully the man wouldn't mind a little company. "Meditating, Venom?"

[anemptydecapo]

"Yes." It was an easy answer. He'd only spoken to the man in what amounted to two times, but Venom had no trouble placing the voice without looking up. "Good morning, inspector," he responded, voice neither confirming or denying how good it might have actually been. The only emotion detectable behind that hair was simple acceptance of the presence near him.

For a moment, his mind wandered to the memory of their last discussion and the awkward swerve it had taken into personal territory (although, to be fair, "personal territory" may have been a biased look back on what was in actuality an innocent question, but that biased side of himself refused to see it as anything other than too personal to discuss). Rather than focus on that, he pushed it away. They'd never discussed the situation surrounding that note and that was far more important than any discomfort the assassin may hold. With the thought cleared from his head, the assassin moved a hand that had been placed on his knee to gesture to the ground in front of him, signaling for the man to sit. Mr. Lunge was more intelligent than most, leaving Venom with no reason to push him away.

Although it wasn't entirely a sure thing that the man would actually sit down in the snow as well. It just never crossed the Guild Head's mind that he wouldn't.

"Was there something you wished to speak about?" He still hadn't bothered opening his eyes.

[herr_inspektor]

The reaction wasn't entirely welcoming or encouraging, but that it wasn't an outright refusal to speak with him was reason enough to stay; given Venom's previous apathy Lunge had already decided that there was no point in expecting any sort of enthusiasm at his presence. That, and it was likely that the man was still trying to focus, even if a conversation had been initiated.

Nonetheless, there were some lines that even he had to draw. Venom might have made to suggest that he sat down, but somehow the thought of sitting in the middle of the snow, light though it was, didn't exactly appeal. Lunge made to shake his head, then remembered that Venom hadn't open his eyes and spoke instead. "I'll stand, if it's all the same to you."

As for what it was that he wanted- well. Nothing specifically, but the man had struck him as intelligent enough to consider worth speaking to over the events of the last couple of days. The fact that he seemed to know Bella had nothing to do with it.

There was no point in lying, at any rate. "Nothing in particular. I was just curious about your take on all of this." He didn't bother gesturing or expanding on 'this'; he trusted the man would understand what he was referring to. "It makes one wonder what they've done with Jill. I haven't heard Nurse Lydia at all today."

[anemptydecapo]

At the denial, Venom finally opened his eyes, peering up at the man from under his bangs. Of course, the assassin had chosen to brave the cold by sitting on his jacket rather than the snow, but... As if his acknowledgment had been all it was waiting for, the sudden chill seeping through his long-sleeved shirt was enough to force the smallest shiver out of him. Like everything else, it was swallowed back down--he'd trained in more extreme conditions than this. If Lunge would not join him on the ground, that was fine.

What was more interesting was the direction the inspector immediately went. Venom half tilted his head at the thought before he felt his bangs shifting out of his eyes and immediately corrected it. "To be honest? I prefer the change." He shrugged his shoulders and he looked to the armed individuals lurking around the area. "If I am to be imprisoned, I would rather they show their intentions than put on a production about whole thing. It's much more to the point, now." Not that it was wise to compliment your captors, but as the man usually playing that role, some credit needed to given where it was due.

Landel really must have had a change of heart once this "Eagle" showed his face. It was interesting.

And on the subject of Ms. Thayer. "If Lydia had been held by Landel all this time, the easiest explanation is that she's become another victim of Next-Wave." It could have been considered callus, how easily he said those words. But it was only something else to accept. "There isn't much we can do for her, at this rate."

[herr_inspektor]

Not that Lunge doubted his ability to concentrate, but even Venom had to open his eyes once they started speaking properly. It was, after all, an interesting topic; equally interesting was the way the man had refused to let his hair fall out of his eyes, even after that involuntary head-tilt. That certainly fitted in with his profile thus far. The eyes were the windows to the soul and goodness only knew what else, and with only a little of his shield left it was likely important to the man to keep them as hidden as possible.

Venom's answer drew a faint smile from the inspector. "I'd noticed that, yes. It makes it far easier to gage their intentions when they aren't pretending to care. That is, assuming this isn't an equally elaborate cover-up." The faintly ridiculous tone to his voice meant their was little reason for him to give an opinion on that theory, at least- though perhaps that was just wistful thinking on his part. It was easy to be seduced by the thought of the answer being so very close. "On a technical level, though, I suppose I can appreciate that their methods are at least more effective."

It was interesting, though, that Venom had assumed he was suggesting that they help her. He hadn't had the man down for the heroic sort, but given Bella's rescue perhaps he simply hadn't accounted for it. "Oh, I'm not so worried about what can be done for her," he answered, the smile remaining. "I'm wondering if she had anything to do with this, or where they might be keeping her; she was allegedly a traitor to Landel, yes, but then she hardly sounded entirely opposed to the takeover last time she spoke."

[anemptydecapo]

He nodded his head in agreement to the detective's words, mouth forming a still line as he remained seated. This couldn't have been a cover--they'd already spent too much time and resources covering their original purpose, the one they were fully displaying now. Landel had done everything in his power to put on a cheery smile for everyone, to tease at night and coo his little 'children' in the morning, and the idea that even this was just a facade of his was giving the man far too much credit. Power he may have had at his disposal, but Venom very much doubted the man could plan his way out of a cardboard box without it. From what he'd seen, the man was a slave to his emotions and therefore weak.

It really did make the cleaner, more to-the-point stance this "Eagle" had far more admirable.

"It wouldn't be unusual if she were related to the new management," he said easily, thinking back on the discussion with Edward days before. "Landel went out of his way to kill his old partner, but not the double-agent who had been betraying him longer... He wanted to keep her quiet and on his side for a reason." Though he still couldn't fathom as to why. Why keep her prisoner when she was a liability? Why not kill her as well? The Guild Head brought a hand to his chin as he thought--

Wait.

"Takeover," Venom echoed, eyebrows visibly raising under those bangs. "You're sure this is permanent?" What did he miss when he was asleep?

[herr_inspektor]

That was very true; Doyle was dead, but Thayer had suffered torture before being returned to her position in Lydia. Clearly she had some sort of knowledge, or use to them. "Perhaps he hoped she would have information on the revolutionary group?" he suggested, but even that sounded fairly weak. "One has to wonder whether or not Aguilar knows that she's a double-agent. He didn't seem to be monitoring the Institute all that closely before arriving here."

Though that did beg the question, were Aguilar's forces aware of Marc's presence? He'd definitely broadcasted last night so they surely must have known that he was here, but even so they hadn't made any real effort to block it out. Did they simply not see him as a threat? Or were they, true to fashion, keeping their cards close to their chest and going about eliminating the man in private?

But there was, as it turned out, something rather more immediate to explain. Lunge tilted his head at Venom in a rare show of expression, surprised. "You weren't present for yesterday's inspection? Aguilar's forces turned up to check for progress, and ultimately decided to take matters into their own hands. I saw Landel being forcibly ejected from the Sun Room with my own eyes- with the emphasis on forcibly." Then, an even rarer expression: a genuine smile. "Would you like the details?"