[Ezio had been out to get coffee when the news was out that Desmond was awake and responsive. Ezio was relieved, but he didn't push to get to see him. Kate would want to be with him first, and Kaylee and Clay too, no doubt. Perhaps Altair would stop in. He just didn't want to come and overwhelm Desmond while he was unwell, so he let the others have their visits first. Instead, he made his way to speak to the doctor to find out Desmond's condition.
When finally things seemed to have calmed down, he headed in to see his descendent. Pausing at the door, his hood up over his head, he smiled lightly to himself. For however wounded he was, seeing Desmond awake was a relief and he hesitated for a moment before he approached, standing near the bed and settling his hand on Desmond's good arm.] It's good to see you, nipote.
[ While Ezio has been busying himself, Desmond caught up with all the others that came to visit him so far. Now, he's just sitting in his room staring at his arm. It's bandaged tightly, and when he tries to move his fingers, pain shoots right up into his head. No amount of morphine is going to stop the sting on that one. The Spark of Life, the Altar, Juno. Desmond doesn't regret his choice at all. It'll take time for Juno to even begin taking over humanity, and the Assassins know. They'll stop her - even if they have to get the Templars in on it.
At the sound of Ezio's voice, Desmond looks up. For some reason he's surprised to see Ezio still there. He smiles fondly, holding up his bandaged arm in some form of greeting. ]
Still hanging around here, gramps? I thought you would of moved on. [ Then again, Desmond has no idea how long he's been gone. For him? Almost two months. ]
You disappearing on us for a week is not enough to get rid of me. [He chuckles lightly and grabs a chair, pulling it to the bed and sitting down with a small noise at the comfort, his hood pushed back soon enough.]
The doctors were not sure what you burned yourself on. Care to enlighten me?
October 31st to December 21st. [ It's close enough for two months to count as two months. Shut up.
Desmond chuckles a little. It's a tired, old sounding one. ] More like the altar itself... it's what stopped the solar flare. I just needed to get it started. [ He looks down at his hand again.The Spark. He's pretty sure it's not his genetics, maybe something Clay did too. ]
Merda, that is a lot of time. And you arrived here on the 21st... [They must have done so much back in their universe, during the time Desmond was home. He wishes he could have been there for him, but it was an impossibility no matter how it was spun.]
And touching it is what burned you. [A statement, not a question. He gets where this is going.] How... bad was it, really, Desmond?
I did? [ Desmond gives a small and sad laugh. ] Figures.
Yeah. [ He can't even curl his hand. This is going to be rough. Desmond pauses and looks up at his ancestor. He can't bring himself to say "Yeah, I saved the world and died doing it. I know you lose all your family, so hey, at least I am like the pattern!" ] What, me? Or the end of the world?
There wasn't an end of the world. We stopped it. [ He stopped it. ] The alter triggered whatever shield it was that protected the planet from the flare. Right in the nick of time too.
It seems like that's all I was ever meant to do. [ Desmond sighs. He doesn't regret the choice. Just, being in Mandalus? He sees all the things he won't be able to share back on Earth... he won't get to go home. To see his mom. To tell her he loves her and he's sorry he was such an asshole. ]
What did the doctors say about my condition? [ Because he's pretty sure "dead" doesn't count in Mandalus. ]
[Ezio reaches to put his hand on Desmond's shoulder, giving him a fond smile.] You may have completed what you were destined for, but do not take lightly all the lives you touched and changed, nipote. You have made an impact, a good impact, on all of us and that matters.
[He shook his head faintly, taking his hand back to gesture with it as he spoke.] Eh, something technical about burns and damage. They said you will recover, and that you'll need... ah, treatment of some kind to your skin.
I'm pretty sure that I've probably done more life touching here than back home. [ He gives a shrug with a bit of a smirk. What, like he's going to make it easy for Ezio! ] The important thing is that they're safe. No solar flare roasting the Earth this time around.
[ He groans. Great. ] Yeah, it... charred my hand pretty good. Not that I remember most of it. Just pain and the conversation between Minerva and Juno before hand. [ He talked to both of them, Grandpa. Best last day of his life ever. ]
Merda, you are still a brat. [He'd throttle you if he wasn't relieved to see you awake and alive.] Si, si, that is the important thing.
[Ezio wrinkles his nose up at the very idea of experiencing that.] I can imagine how entertaining their conversation was. [He eyes his descendent and sighs a little. He has to ask, even if he knows he'll hate the answer and the question will feel foreign and strange on his tongue, as strange as speaking English even feels some days.] Did it... did the damage kill you, Desmond?
You didn't think that was going to change in two months, did you? [ At least he's still a smartass. Come on. ]
Considering it was Minerva telling me to let the planet roast and Juno telling me to save it? [ At the question, Desmond meets his gaze. He's not able to say it - to admit it. He lowers his gaze. ] ...probably.
When finally things seemed to have calmed down, he headed in to see his descendent. Pausing at the door, his hood up over his head, he smiled lightly to himself. For however wounded he was, seeing Desmond awake was a relief and he hesitated for a moment before he approached, standing near the bed and settling his hand on Desmond's good arm.] It's good to see you, nipote.
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At the sound of Ezio's voice, Desmond looks up. For some reason he's surprised to see Ezio still there. He smiles fondly, holding up his bandaged arm in some form of greeting. ]
Still hanging around here, gramps? I thought you would of moved on. [ Then again, Desmond has no idea how long he's been gone. For him? Almost two months. ]
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The doctors were not sure what you burned yourself on. Care to enlighten me?
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I'm pretty sure the doctors here wouldn't know anything about an altar inside the Grand Temple.
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Ah? Then it was something with this altar that burned you?
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Desmond chuckles a little. It's a tired, old sounding one. ] More like the altar itself... it's what stopped the solar flare. I just needed to get it started. [ He looks down at his hand again.The Spark. He's pretty sure it's not his genetics, maybe something Clay did too. ]
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And touching it is what burned you. [A statement, not a question. He gets where this is going.] How... bad was it, really, Desmond?
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Yeah. [ He can't even curl his hand. This is going to be rough. Desmond pauses and looks up at his ancestor. He can't bring himself to say "Yeah, I saved the world and died doing it. I know you lose all your family, so hey, at least I am like the pattern!" ] What, me? Or the end of the world?
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Both. Your health, here and at home... and how the end of the world looked.
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There wasn't an end of the world. We stopped it. [ He stopped it. ] The alter triggered whatever shield it was that protected the planet from the flare. Right in the nick of time too.
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And your health? How bad was the damage at home?
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What did the doctors say about my condition? [ Because he's pretty sure "dead" doesn't count in Mandalus. ]
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[He shook his head faintly, taking his hand back to gesture with it as he spoke.] Eh, something technical about burns and damage. They said you will recover, and that you'll need... ah, treatment of some kind to your skin.
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[ He groans. Great. ] Yeah, it... charred my hand pretty good. Not that I remember most of it. Just pain and the conversation between Minerva and Juno before hand. [ He talked to both of them, Grandpa. Best last day of his life ever. ]
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[Ezio wrinkles his nose up at the very idea of experiencing that.] I can imagine how entertaining their conversation was. [He eyes his descendent and sighs a little. He has to ask, even if he knows he'll hate the answer and the question will feel foreign and strange on his tongue, as strange as speaking English even feels some days.] Did it... did the damage kill you, Desmond?
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Considering it was Minerva telling me to let the planet roast and Juno telling me to save it? [ At the question, Desmond meets his gaze. He's not able to say it - to admit it. He lowers his gaze. ] ...probably.
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