Two factors aggravated the Oracle Knight more easily than any other, more so if the source came from herself. To Tear's great embarrassment, she held the burden of both, and when she awoke, the girl knew she had fallen into her worst nightmare. One did not fail to complete their primary objective without consequences. One felt such consequences quite poignantly when they could not get beyond their meeting point
( ... )
Before Guy had even settled properly into the chair that he had picked out, he found that he had a certain someone rushing up to him almost urgently. Guy glanced up to take in Tear's concerned expression as his own mimicked it almost immediately.
He didn't know if something had happened last night, with Luke, but if it turned out that either Tear or Luke had gone through something unpleasant because Guy had left them to their own devices, then he wouldn't be able to forgive himself. He wasn't Luke's babysitter anymore and he had never been Tear's -- generally, the girl could take care of herself perfectly well -- but that didn't stop Guy's protective instincts from kicking in during a time like this.
"Of course I do, Tear," he said, quickly motioning to the armchair next to his. With the space between the two pieces of furniture, his phobia wasn't likely to be triggered. "What happened?"
For a fleeting instance, Tear wondered if Guy had another commitment. It wouldn't be an unusual case; from what she had observed, everyone (including the soldier) made their business appointments during the day. Given the nature of her approach, however, Tear wasn't quite willing to let the topic go for more than 24 hours. Hopefully, the young man would have some time for her later today, if not at this moment.
When Guy gestured to the seat, she gave an inaudible sigh and moved to sit. She took care not to appear alarmed or panicked. Nothing terrible had happened on their end, after all, but sometimes, her determination often crossed a line. Consideration was needed.
"Thank you," said Tear. "First of all, Luke and I are all right. We managed to keep our group safe last night." She paused for a second to gather her thoughts. "But I've been concerned about today. Landel is back in control, correct?"
It seemed that Tear had guessed at what his mind would have immediately jumped to, since her first order of business was to let him know that nothing bad had happened to her and Luke last night. She didn't offer any more details than that, though, which meant that Guy would have to go back to it and ask questions wonce her original issue had been resolved
( ... )
It was as she had feared, albeit there were still some mysteries left to uncover. The reappearance and disappearance of powers had yet to be explained, for one. The reemergence of Martin Landel and the lack of military personnel, for another. Tear recalled what Marc had said about the nature of the Head Doctor and his abilities, and she wondered if the sequence of events could be attributed to the truth behind who the man truly was.
She swallowed the temptation to press a hand to her forehead, focusing instead on another facet. "I see. Do you know how we got our powers back in the first place?" Tear questioned. A part of her had a hypothesis. If the source of their restraints had a physical form, it had likely broken apart the night before. That would explain the military's Code Red.
Still, it would be wise to hear Guy out first. He knew more about the institute and could provide a better picture.
Tear was asking all of the right questions, though that was hardly a surprise. She had always had a very sharp mind, and one that was trained to think like a soldier. Guy's own methods were somewhat different from hers, but the two of them had hardly ever clashed
( ... )
Logic had her expecting some sort of expansion. Tear, however, hadn't foreseen the specific reference to a device, and instantly, her attention increased tenfold. "A device?" she echoed, shock apparent on her face. "Did he mention how it looked, or where it might be located?" If Claude's knowledge held an ounce of truth, it might be to everyone's benefit to look into.
Although, when one considered the details, it had yet to explain the Head Doctor. The easiest answer would be that he played a part in restoring the system, or the man had blackmailed the military into departing. But something did not seem right.
The soldier stared down at her lap thoughtfully. It wasn't time to bring up her meeting with Marc, but once she did, Tear would have to ask for Guy's opinion.
As was only to be expected, Tear ended up asking for further clarification on the device. Unfortunately, Guy was pretty sure that there wasn't anything more to be said there, as frustrating as it was. He sighed for a moment, glancing around for a sign of Claude before returning his attention to Tear.
"No, he didn't know anything about that. All he knew was that it existed, which is why it's kind of a shaky source. They may have just planted that thought in his head to confuse us, you know?" Guy wanted to believe that it was a real lead, but even if it was something they could trust, it didn't give them a whole lot to go on.
"Still, it's something to keep in mind," he finished with a shrug, knowing that it would be foolish to discount anything that they came across here. Information was hard enough to find as it was.
It was a long shot--she honestly should have seen a lack in details. Nevertheless, Guy's response proved disappointing, and Tear couldn't quite hold back a frown. Of course, any information leak would be kept to the bare minimum. One step forward was not three steps. Guy, however, had a point. As minimal as that one step was, it was forward momentum. They could do something with the knowledge, as small as it happened to be.
The Melodist gave a nod. "We'll have to visit that another time," she agreed, before leveling a look at the man. "Actually, moving away from this subject, about what I wanted to tell you yesterday..." She paused, her memory settling to the other night.
"A couple of patients and I decided to track down the man behind the radio broadcasts," explained Tear. "We found him hiding in the ruined town to the north. Marc gave us some insight into Dr. Landel's abilities."
As it turned out, Tear was the one who seemed to have the more useful information. Guy hadn't expected her to suddenly mention that she had met up with Marc, and he was shocked that she had managed to keep that to herself for this long. He knew that it hadn't been purposeful; there probably just hadn't been a good time to discuss it until now.
Still, Tear somehow managed to downplay the whole thing. If it had been Luke, Guy imagined he would have been bursting with excitement over that kind of progress.
Guy;s first instinct was to ask how Tear had even found the radio man, he Guy realized that Marc had made a broadcast a few nights back and had hinted that he was out there. Still, it was shocking that someone who was still as new as Tear had been able to make it all the way out there. "Who were you traveling with? And what did he tell you?" Those seemed like the most pressing questions at the moment.
The expression on Guy's face gave away his lack of expectancy. Tear felt a margin of guilt regarding her timing, but she supposed now was still as good a time as any. Rather than apologizing for the delay (which was unnecessary), she opted to continue. Their time was limited, and it would be best to give as much as she could without wasting time on what should have been done
( ... )
Neither of those names stood out to Guy, though that wasn't so shocking. While he'd been here for some time now, patients cycled in and out of this place so often that it would have been impossible for him to get to know everyone. It wasn't like he'd been going out and trying either, though. Either way, he was just going to have to assume that Tear had made sure that the other patients were trustworthy before she'd gone traveling with them
( ... )
Guy's query would normally stump a person. His point was clear in its meaning: if the Head Doctor was the source of their captivity, Aguilar wouldn't have easily let the man go. If Landel caused the abnormalities in themselves and their environment, the military would have found it more beneficial to keep him. Tear, however, found the answer almost too easily--thanks to Marc, her own observations, basic reasoning, and Claude's account of a device.
She furrowed her eyebrows, pursed her lips once, and then gave her answer, "The military must have developed technology to replicate his powers, likely without his knowledge. I was there when they relieved him of his position; there was no hesitation in letting the man go. Almost as if--" They had been expecting him to fall. Her expression should have revealed the sentiment; if not, she would say it in her next words
( ... )
Tear's explanation was something that Guy should have thought of first, honestly. He'd had the answer all along, taking into account that device that Claude had mentioned. Besides, wasn't technology usually the first thing that his mind jumped to? As much as Guy praised those sorts of developments, though, this was clearly a situation in which it was being used for evil.
"I guess if there was a device to hold back our powers, they could have figured out ways to do the memory loss and brainwashing too," he mused. Maybe that was why the military had only decided to show up recently. They had allowed Landel to handle things with his own abilities while taking that time to learn how to do it without him
( ... )
The Melodist nodded, in agreement with the two statements Guy put forth. "They intend to keep some margin of control, at least, if we go by Aguilar's last announcement," she added. It wasn't particularly positive to their already precarious position, but as known previously, anything was progress. They had something to go off of, provided that the military did not change its ways and the information she had garnered was accurate. Although it was typical to doubt a man who came from the world they were trying to escape, Tear had instinct enough to know Marc had been honest
( ... )
His last announcement? If Aguilar had had any parting words for them, then Guy hadn't heard them, likely due to the fact that he'd been underground with Claude and Anise. They hadn't bothered to put the intercoms all the way down there, apparently. Guy wanted to ask about that, but he'd need to deal with Tear's comments first
( ... )
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He didn't know if something had happened last night, with Luke, but if it turned out that either Tear or Luke had gone through something unpleasant because Guy had left them to their own devices, then he wouldn't be able to forgive himself. He wasn't Luke's babysitter anymore and he had never been Tear's -- generally, the girl could take care of herself perfectly well -- but that didn't stop Guy's protective instincts from kicking in during a time like this.
"Of course I do, Tear," he said, quickly motioning to the armchair next to his. With the space between the two pieces of furniture, his phobia wasn't likely to be triggered. "What happened?"
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When Guy gestured to the seat, she gave an inaudible sigh and moved to sit. She took care not to appear alarmed or panicked. Nothing terrible had happened on their end, after all, but sometimes, her determination often crossed a line. Consideration was needed.
"Thank you," said Tear. "First of all, Luke and I are all right. We managed to keep our group safe last night." She paused for a second to gather her thoughts. "But I've been concerned about today. Landel is back in control, correct?"
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She swallowed the temptation to press a hand to her forehead, focusing instead on another facet. "I see. Do you know how we got our powers back in the first place?" Tear questioned. A part of her had a hypothesis. If the source of their restraints had a physical form, it had likely broken apart the night before. That would explain the military's Code Red.
Still, it would be wise to hear Guy out first. He knew more about the institute and could provide a better picture.
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Although, when one considered the details, it had yet to explain the Head Doctor. The easiest answer would be that he played a part in restoring the system, or the man had blackmailed the military into departing. But something did not seem right.
The soldier stared down at her lap thoughtfully. It wasn't time to bring up her meeting with Marc, but once she did, Tear would have to ask for Guy's opinion.
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"No, he didn't know anything about that. All he knew was that it existed, which is why it's kind of a shaky source. They may have just planted that thought in his head to confuse us, you know?" Guy wanted to believe that it was a real lead, but even if it was something they could trust, it didn't give them a whole lot to go on.
"Still, it's something to keep in mind," he finished with a shrug, knowing that it would be foolish to discount anything that they came across here. Information was hard enough to find as it was.
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The Melodist gave a nod. "We'll have to visit that another time," she agreed, before leveling a look at the man. "Actually, moving away from this subject, about what I wanted to tell you yesterday..." She paused, her memory settling to the other night.
"A couple of patients and I decided to track down the man behind the radio broadcasts," explained Tear. "We found him hiding in the ruined town to the north. Marc gave us some insight into Dr. Landel's abilities."
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Still, Tear somehow managed to downplay the whole thing. If it had been Luke, Guy imagined he would have been bursting with excitement over that kind of progress.
Guy;s first instinct was to ask how Tear had even found the radio man, he Guy realized that Marc had made a broadcast a few nights back and had hinted that he was out there. Still, it was shocking that someone who was still as new as Tear had been able to make it all the way out there. "Who were you traveling with? And what did he tell you?" Those seemed like the most pressing questions at the moment.
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She furrowed her eyebrows, pursed her lips once, and then gave her answer, "The military must have developed technology to replicate his powers, likely without his knowledge. I was there when they relieved him of his position; there was no hesitation in letting the man go. Almost as if--" They had been expecting him to fall. Her expression should have revealed the sentiment; if not, she would say it in her next words ( ... )
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"I guess if there was a device to hold back our powers, they could have figured out ways to do the memory loss and brainwashing too," he mused. Maybe that was why the military had only decided to show up recently. They had allowed Landel to handle things with his own abilities while taking that time to learn how to do it without him ( ... )
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