chikaidestroyer | ∞ 83: A chronicle of life and death [action]

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∞ 83: A chronicle of life and death [action]

[What a wonderful afternoon. The sun is shining, the sky has cleared up, and the ground is drying after two days of rain. And Albert is around the village today, weaving through the streets and between houses and even to the edges of the forest.

Little do people know that Albert received a beautiful flower last night, and he happened to smell it. When he awoke up the morning, getting out of his room proved to be an ... arduous battle. And getting out the front door? Well, he had at least discovered what a doorknob was by then.

He has a vague, wondrous look on his face as he looks at swaying tree branches and flowers he would have otherwise ignored. His hair is in slight disarray, as if he had rolled out of bed and fought his way through a bedroom door. His clothes are in a similar state, and notably the same as the ones he had been wearing last night.

This isn't strange at all.

He will be wandering around for the entire afternoon. Attempts to talk to or capture the 6'1" strategist will be bizarre. ...And he won't be returned home until sunset or so.]

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That's why it took me a year and a half to get him here. I guess he feels trapped or something when you do that, and he doesn't like it. [Caesar shakes his head.] But, uh, what's this about a suspicion?

[When he is released, Albert takes a moment to calm down. It's shocking how quickly his expression returns to that placidly content look, and he wanders over to the cabinet.]

[Raine watches Albert wander over to the cabinet before responding to Caesar's question.] ... Yes. A man named Ginko has been making a few announcements - warnings about Mushi, which seems to be a parasite of sorts from his world, among other things, and they seem to be invisible, or take forms that may not be distinguished from something else.

I didn't want to jump to conclusions... but given this behavior, Albert may have come into contact with it somehow.

[Caesar looks at her for a moment when she mentions this Mushi business, but he turns to watch Albert again as he speaks. He didn't really care how it happened. He was more concerned with something else.] So what is it doing to him?

[If left alone for too long, Albert will probably wander off into the dining room after he loses interest in the cabinet.]

I... don't know. [She doesn't feel comfortable with leaving Albert unattended in that state, so she moves after him to keep at least one eye on him while talking to Caesar.] He seems very... childlike, right now, except he has no interest in people, only surroundings that are catching his interest.

We're going to have to get in contact with Ginko. He said there were different types of effects, but he's the one who can take care of them.

I've gathered that much. [Caesar's tone is obviously impatient, but he doesn't mean it to be rude. As long as he can see them from where he's standing, Caesar won't move, but he's having a really hard time keeping still.] Hurry up and talk to this guy, then. I... really don't like this, Miss Raine.

[While Raine goes off to retrieve her journal and contact Ginko, Albert will continue to ... wander around the house. By the time the sun has completely set, Albert has slowed down considerably and taken to sitting down in the living room.

Some coaxing would have led to him drinking and even eating a little. The distant and content look hasn't changed even as it's obvious that his actions are slowing down, like he's just a little tired.]

Edited 2010-06-17 02:22 (UTC)

[It's easier to keep an eye on him now that he's slowed down. Now it's just the waiting, waiting for a response, and hovering to check on Albert's state. There are two cups of tea sitting out, but she's hardly touched hers.

He's not the only Silverberg present. Raine's attention occasionally will flicker back to Caesar as well.]

... Did he tell you about what he was working on?

[Caesar's just sitting around. He normally wouldn't mind sitting there in silence, but he didn't feel well. The fact that Albert had calmed down now, even just a little, wasn't reassuring at all. He shakes his head slightly when Raine asks him.]

No. We haven't spoken in a while.

[Albert idly eats some crackers, staring off into space. It's almost as if he's waiting.]

[It's not reassuring, it's worrying. But if he is childlike, then perhaps it's just a sign that he's been too active and needs a nap? And there's the fever to consider as well. Her eyes move back toward him, sitting near her, even though she's speaking to Caesar.]

... He has some details about the upcoming draft.

I see. It's about time. [Caesar doesn't sound too interested, but that's nothing short of the usual. He still feels anxious.] Anything I should know about?

[He reaches over to pick up another cracker from the plate, completely oblivious to whatever it is that Raine and Caesar are talking about. Not much longer...]

Your name was on the partial list. [Still watching him. She should be able to do something, not just sit here.]

Hah. I see that I am indeed rather lucky. [But actually, he could break something. That was not what he wanted to hear right now.] Do we know when?

[Rather abruptly, Albert freezes in his seat. The half-eaten cracker falls from fingers that no longer have the strength to hold it. His skin wrinkles as his muscles seem to degenerate, stretched taut at his wrists and the angles of his face. The wine-red color of his hair washes out to white, beginning at the roots and ending at the hairtips.

What little light there had been in the strategist's vacant gaze fades, and he sways before tipping out of his chair and falling to the floor.

It all happens in less than half a minute.]

[Any reply that Raine was going to give to Caesar is abruptly lost in a strangled cry as Albert literally seems to wither away before her eyes.

It all feels a lot longer than less than half a minute. She needs to move. She needs to force herself to his side before shock can set in. She can't let shock set in.

She drops to her knees at his side.]

[On the other hand, it happens way too fast for Caesar. It happened so fast that it didn't feel as if he had any control over what he was doing. It wasn't until his brother hit the floor that it would occur to Caesar what happened, but he immediately stood up and ran to stand at Albert's other side.]

H-hey! Are you... Are you okay?

[It's only after the initial clamor that Albert's belabored breaths may be audible. His eyes remain shut, and that content look on his face seems to have followed him into his current state. He appears too old, too frail for the few signs of life he still shows.]

[Still a pulse. Still breathing. But this is wrong. All of this is wrong.

She finds herself casting without thinking. It's better to have tried than not try at all, and perhaps - just that hope there-] Recover!

[Meanwhile, Caesar is... absolutely terrified. He doesn't know what to do. There's nothing he can do. Raine's already casting magic, so he can't even yell at her and tell her what to do, and it wasn't like he could tell this Ginko person to hurry the hell up, either. Caesar drops to a knee, but all he can do is watch, and even that isn't something he wants to do. That can't be his brother. No way.]

Albert, if you- I swear, you better not...

[But somehow, it hurts to speak, and he doesn't even know what he's trying to say in the first place.]

[The magic falls upon Albert's body, giving him that supernatural glow for only a moment before fading with no visible improvement. He continues with those weak breaths for several moments.

And then he stops breathing altogether.]

Edited 2010-06-17 04:48 (UTC)

No- [--

Still moving in that automatic way, Raine somehow manages to reach in her pocket and find the unicorn horn. Quickly, undoing the wraps of the rag it was in, the horn glows faintly as she clutches it close and starts casting, again It's hard to concentrate. She pushes.]

Resurrection!

You- you idiot! [Caesar moves to grab a hold of Albert's shirt, but he hardly touches it before backing off when he notices that he's stopped breathing. He's stopped breathing.

That's all Caesar can think of. He can't say anything, and he can't do anything, and... He's scared, but he can't look away, and he doesn't want to look at Raine, almost as if he thought doing so would confirm what he thought.

This wasn't fair.]