entrancelogs | [001] take these sunken eyes and learn to see [CLOSED]

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[001] take these sunken eyes and learn to see [CLOSED]

Who: Zulf, Aerith, Martha, Souji
Where: Zulf's room -- fifth floor, number 016.
When: Monday, April 8, very early morning.
Rating: PG-13 -- blood's involved. Also, mention of suicide.
Summary: Some of Zulf's wounds have opened up again and he's losing blood. Aerith, Martha and maybe Souji come to his aid.

Room 016 has transformed itself into a traditional Ura bedroom. There's an empty altar, covered in white cloth, wedged in a corner. The walls are all covered in tapestries. The bed is wooden, only a couple of inches off the ground and piled with blankets and pillows, all in colours and patterns that Zulf finds almost unbearably nostalgic. Loath to bleed on such finery and too weak to move in any case, he's lying on the floor by the wardrobe. Blood is soaking through his waistcoat, turning the muted orange a deep burgundy. His face is a blank mask. He is too tired and too weak to even moan.

His heart flutters in his chest, a bird beating against the mesh of its cage. Every breath he takes is laboured, painful. At least I'm not coughing up blood, he thinks, letting his eyes fall closed. At least--

The pain is, at least briefly, his whole world. He takes what he thinks might be one of his final breaths, deep and shuddering, and starts reciting, voice wavering, a prayer to the Lorn Mother.

This is not how he thought he'd die. He thought he would die in bed, surrounded by family, hailed as a hero in his obituaries. Later, he thought he'd die at the hands of his own people, on the cold marble of the Tarzal Terminals. He thought he would die falling off the Bastion, he thought he would die by his own hand.

He runs out of prayer and concentrates on breathing. In, out. In, out.

In.

Out.

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Thus far, this whole detour has been more or less par for the course. The only thing that's different about it is that the Doctor isn't at Martha's side, but the two of them haven't worked together in over a year now. She's used to working on her own these days, though back home she'd at least had UNIT'S support.

Either way, any worries she might have about her situation are shoved to the back of her mind as she races up the stairs of the mansion. She's eager to explore this whole place, but right now she only has one destination in mind, and it's the fifth floor.

She takes in some details on her way up, noticing that there are an awful lot of mirrors in this place. It's an odd detail, something that sticks in her mind because it's an aspect that makes the whole mansion feel the slightest bit off. It's the sort of detail that could have proved vital back when she'd been traveling with the Doctor, and that could easily remain the case now.

But later, she'll think about it later, after she's dealt with the injured man -- what had he said his name was, Zulf? Well, she can ask him just as soon as she's got him patched up.

It feels like ages, but she makes it to the fifth floor, slightly winded but still moving at a quick pace. All that running with the Doctor has certainly paid off. She locates the trail of blood quickly -- it's rather hard to miss, after all -- and then follows after it, one hand clenched tight in front of her chest. Her heart's practically beating out of it, but she lives for this kind of thing.

Aerith's never been one to sprint, but she manages to set a quick pace for herself to get to the fifth floor. She instinctively went into 'healer' mode, her focus on finding Zulf as quickly as she can. Thankfully, she'd been on the third floor, so she didn't have far to go before she finds herself on the fifth floor landing.

The trail of blood is obvious, and so is the woman who appears to be following it. Aerith, winded as she is, has to slow her pace a bit so she can catch her breath. She's never been a big runner, and now is no exception.

"Excuse me?" She calls out, only a few feet behind the woman. "Are you going to help Zulf, too?" Aerith doesn't recognize her, but that didn't mean she was new. There were plenty of people she hasn't had a chance to meet yet.

Souji arrives on the landing just seconds after Aerith, having come from a higher floor. He's not winded, used to running for long periods, but he still doesn't speak immediately, slowing his steps as he approaches the two women, neither of whom he recognizes. The blood is alarming and he avoids stepping on it. Slipping and falling on his face wouldn't exactly be helpful right now.

Not that he's certain he's actually going to be needed here, considering there are already two people intending, apparently, to render aid. He stays, though. If nothing else, he can probably lift and move a body on his own. He glances down the hall before moving down to room 016 without waiting for Martha's answer to Aerith. He'll let them talk before introducing himself into the situation more than he has already.

Zulf hears voices outside and it rouses him. He manages to sit up, ribs and stomach and back all protesting.

"I am here," he whispers, then clears his throat and tries again. "I am here! Do hurry."

He falls silent and lies back down, exhausted by the effort. His ribs hurt. His vision's going black. I will die here, he thinks. I will die here, on the floor, mere feet away from doctors. How undignified.

"Oh Lorn Mother," he begins again, mouthing the words with barely any breath behind them. "Accept your humble servant into your embrace--"

The voice from behind her slows Martha down, and she glances over her shoulder to see yet another unfamiliar face. She's not sure what to make of it at first. Maybe the stranger wants to know where the blood came from, or maybe --

When the other woman asks a question, it all clicks. Of course, if Martha had seen that broadcast, then it stands to reason that others did as well. Just how many people are trapped in this place? If there's a mansion that goes ten floors up ready to accommodate everyone, then it must be a fair number.

"I was, yeah," she explains, and in the next moment she hears approaching footsteps and spots someone else. All three of them are here to help? Well, it's encouraging if only because it means that some of those who are trapped here are the sort who look out for each other.

She hears a weak voice behind the door that the silver-haired boy is standing in front of (did he dye it? or maybe he's not human at all), and quickly rushes over. "Come on, we can talk later," she says as she opens it up. What Martha's expecting is a plain room, but it's actually already decorated. She registers that only briefly before focusing on Zulf, who's sprawled out on the floor, still bleeding steadily.

Without thinking, Martha rushes forward and grabs one of the pillows from his bed before she kneels down and pushes it tight against the wound. Add pressure, then she'll figure out how she's going to stitch him up when she has nothing in the way of supplies. "It's all right," she tells him, peering down into his paling face. "We're here."

Aerith nods, quick to follow the pair into the room. Though she's grown used to the rooms being so different depending on who's staying in them, she does a little bit of a double take at the decor.

Not that there's time to dally - she kneels on the other side of Zulf, a hand going to cup his cheek. The blood trickling out of his nose is troubling, and she focuses her magic for a moment to heal any injuries in his face and throat. There's a soft green glow as this happens, her eyes half closing as she concentrates. It's a little difficult to heal as quickly as she used to - she chalks this up to the lack of the Lifestream in the area - but she's still able to clear up the bags under his eyes, at least.

When finished with that, she glances over at the two she entered the room with, then looks down where the pillow it being held against the wound on his flank. "Are you both healers?" She asks as she gives Zulf a once over with her eyes, looking for any other injuries. It seems the most pressing is the one being covered by the other woman.

Normally, Souji would hesitate to use his powers in front of this many people. It seems like there isn't much of a choice, though. He stays standing a bit behind Martha, nodding in response to Aerith's question before reaching out to grab a slowly spinning blue card out of the air in front of him.

"Ishtar." He says the goddess's name quietly, and she appears in front of him, asymmetric horns haloing her head. With a serene look, she waves and arm and a warm, pink-gold light falls over the entire group, though Zulf is the only one in need of healing.

As his Persona fades back out of sight, Souji looks at Zulf closely, trying to gauge the success of his spell. It seems to have different levels of efficacy, depending on the individual and the injuries in question. If nothing else, it should stop any hemorrhaging at least.

Edited 2013-04-09 18:51 (UTC)

The pain subsides, slowly, and Zulf's head clears a little. It no longer hurts to breathe. He gently pushes Martha's hand away and sits up, rubbing his eyes, smearing blood from his sleeves over his pallid face. He's not altogether healed -- some minor wounds remain -- but there is no more internal damage. He does still look awful, his clothes blood-soaked and clearly recently (inexpertly) patched up.

"Thank you," he says. He's too tired to question exactly what happened, though he does look quizzically at Souji -- his Persona's appearance startled Zulf.

"I am very much in your debt," he tells his rescuers, quietly.

Before Martha can try to find a makeshift needle and thread, something to redo Zulf's sutures, the other two people who followed her in here make short work of the injuries. As the green glow blossoms near Zulf's throat, Martha blinks and pulls away, staring over at the woman responsible with a startled look on her face.

And it doesn't end there, as the boy with the silver hair does something even more remarkable, summoning some sort of presence to his aid to take care of the rest. Martha tilts her head up as the pink light falls around them, not quite sure what to say.

"Well, I..." She looks back to Zulf as he thanks them. "Looks like I wasn't needed after all. I'm not a healer," she explains to the other woman, "just a doctor. Though -- Zulf, was it? Would you mind showing me the wound on your side? We should wrap it up with fresh bandages at least."

Not to mention cleaning up all this blood... But first things first, she's going to need to find some bandages. For now, she might just need to tear his bedsheets into strips and use those. Martha feels bad for making a mess of his room, but there's not much else to work with at the moment.

Aerith's familiar with magic that includes summoning - though not really in the manner that she just witnessed - so she isn't too surprised. At least she knows she's not the only one in this mansion who can heal.

She looks back at Zulf, smiling. "It looks like we all got here just in time." Any longer and who knows what state he would be in. Leaning back on her heels, she watches the other woman for a moment. Aerith's had her fair share of dealings with doctors, but this one didn't give off any bad vibes like the ones from home. Then again, not many people could give off wrong feelings quite like Hojo.

At the mention of bandages, Souji glances around the room, then goes to the closet and retrieves some, along with antiseptic wipes. He brings them to Martha and crouches down as well, out of the way. He just...feels like a giant, being the only one standing up here.

"Were you in that shape when you got here?" He addresses Zulf, a little worried he might have gotten into some kind of altercation when he arrived. His worry doesn't exactly come through in his tone or his expression, though.

Zulf tries not to stare at the closet. Staring is very rude, after all, and Zulf's mindful of his manners, even when he's just been rescued from the brink of death.

"Yes," he says."I was ..." he pauses, not wanting to either offend or scare "indisposed. There was ..." another thoughtful pause. "An altercation."

As if being able to heal someone with a bit of light and summoning some presence from the beyond wasn't enough, the silver-haired boy pulls bandages and sterilizing wipes out of the closet just like that. Martha blinks and fumbles to take the items from him before laying them out in front of her on the floor. "Does every closet in this place come equipped with first aid supplies?" That's hardly normal, and she wouldn't have even thought to look in the closet.

Zulf doesn't seem to want to say too much on what happened to him, and Martha doesn't see a need to press him too hard on it. Whatever happened, he's out of that situation now. This place is probably not entirely safe, but he's at least out of harm's way for the moment.

Gingerly, she leans forward and starts to lift up his shirt to see the state that his side is in. "Thank you, you two," she says to the others, though her gaze remains steady on her patient. "Not sure I would have managed without you. Can I ask who you all are?" There hadn't been much time for introductions before, of course.

And once she gets their names, she definitely plans to ask all about what just happened, how they had done that.

"The closets will give you almost anything you want," Aerith explains as she watches the woman examine Zulf's side. "I think there are a few exceptions, but if you approach it with something you want in mind, it'll be there when you open the doors."

It had amazed Aerith the first time she'd tried it, even if she had known what to expect. Not a whole lot can prepare someone for a tiny room to just give you things.

Aerith nods, glancing up at the boy who'd used what she could only assume was a summon. She hasn't met him just yet, but it's nice to know she's not the only one with healing powers in this place. "My name is Aerith." She looks back at the woman, smiling.

"Seta Souji." Souji rests a hand on his hip, slouching a bit as he stands nearby. He's relieved that Zulf's problem wasn't encountered in Wonderland--though he'd rather it hadn't happened at all, of course--and that helps him relax into the conversation a little. "I'm glad I could help."

Zulf puts a hand over his heart and bows, to the best of his ability. It looks silly. He's a little flustered by Martha -- a woman, one he does not know! -- examining his side like that, but tries to quiet his mind by telling himself that it's all right if she's a doctor.

It doesn't help his embarrassment much. He's blushing, faintly.

If Martha notices that Zulf is uncomfortable, she doesn't show any sign of it. She knows that people can get flustered when they're being examined, and she's found that the best thing to do is carry on as if nothing's wrong to put them at ease. She starts to peel away the old bandages there, coated with the red-brown of dried blood, and then unwraps the new roll that they retrieved from the closet.

The closet, which can supposedly give you whatever you want, if you wish for it. That's almost unbelievable, but she's not about to question it when she just saw it with her own eyes. She can test it later, when she finds a room she can claim as her own. "Well, that should come in handy. Thanks.

"And I'm Martha," she says by way of introduction as she leans forward and starts to wipe at what's left of Zulf's wound with one of the antiseptic wipes. "Sorry, it's gonna sting," she says under her breath.

Even while working, she returns her attention to Aerith and Souji. "Would you mind if I ask what you two did before? How you healed him like that? I've never seen anything like it."

Aerith watches Martha work, tilting her head to the side to get a better look. Though she's able to heal, it doesn't hurt to learn other methods. There's no telling what could happen in the future.

At Martha's question, she blinks, turning her attention back to the doctor. "I'm able to cast healing magic. It's something that runs in my family." Which is probably the best answer to give without going into her entire ancestry, which seems to be what people were always curious about when she was younger.

Souji is at the closet again, getting some cleaning supplies to get started on the blood on the floor. He speaks over his shoulder.

"I used one of my Personas. They're usually used for fighting, though."

Zulf tries to keep stoic as Martha tends his wound. He only winces once and makes no noise at all.

He's a little overwhelmed by what's happening -- he's never witnessed magic before directly, being a diplomat and not a Mancer. He's suddenly bursting with questions, but figures they can wait 'til a more opportune time.

Except one.

"This is a rather indelicate question and you should feel free to not reply," he says. "However, am I right in assuming that you are ... shall we say ... not from the same place as I am?"

He hopes they're foreigners. He suspects he is wrong.

If Aerith's magic (and it's odd to realize that magic is something that exists, because the only time Martha's ever encountered it, it's been a kind of technology) is based on her ancestry, then that must mean she's not completely human. It would be rude to ask too many more questions, so Martha only nods and then focuses on Souji.

"A Persona? What is that?" She's never heard of it, but it seems like he definitely relied on help from some kind of being to aid with the healing process.

Martha finishes up with bandaging Zulf, making sure that they're tight enough to give him support without being painful, and then she pulls back, lowering his shirt back down. "There you go! And... that probably is the case, yeah. I'm from Earth, if that helps."

Having grown used to the idea that everyone is pulled from different places, Aerith gives Zulf a sympathetic smile. She remembers her astonishment when she learned that they were all from different planets and universes, so she also knows how overwhelming it can be.

"I'm from a planet called Gaia," Aerith explains, folding her hands in her lap. For the most part, everyone she knows just called it The Planet, the only one they have to even worry about. Except now her horizons have been expanded and she actually knows the name of her home, so it really wouldn't help to say 'I'm from The Planet', would it?

Souji doesn't look up at first from the two bottles of cleaner he's holding, reading their labels curiously. Blood is such a hard thing to wash out, even from hard surfaces. He does hesitate, though, because Personas are such...private things, on so many levels.

"It's a part of my soul." Just one of many, many parts. He does look up to address Zulf's question, though. "I'm also from Earth, though it might not be the same one."

"Oh," Zulf says. "I am not from the places you hail from. This is most peculiar. I did not think such things possible. You'll have to forgive me, it will take me some time to adjust."

Edited 2013-04-15 07:16 (UTC)

Something from his soul? If that's the case, then Martha can only imagine that Souji isn't completely human, either. Between Aerith, Souji, and Loki, she's already run into quite the varied bunch of people. Souji claims he's from Earth, but maybe not the same Earth. It's true that Martha's never heard of Personas, but it could all be dependent on what time he's from as well. She wants to ask more questions, but he doesn't seem that eager to answer them.

"It does take some adjusting, yeah," she says in response to Zulf. "For now, though, you just worry about getting some rest. Do you need some help to the bed?"

It would be a good idea to clean the blood out of the floor, not to mention all of it out in the hallway, but Martha wants to make sure that Zulf gets sorted out first.

Aerith's been watching Souji with a somewhat surprised look on her face. His summ-Persona she reminds herself - was actually a part of his soul. She's actually curious about that, but knows this isn't the time to ask him more about how it works.

She looks between Martha and Zulf, then down at the blood on the floor. "If we can get him in the bed, I'll clean up the floor." She looks thoughtful as she takes in Zulf's state. "Maybe we should pull some new clothes out of the closet, too." It can't be comfortable to be dressed in clothes that are caked in blood.

Souji finally decides on a bottle of cleaner. Armed with that and a handful of rags, he smiles at Aerith.

"I'll take care of the floor." The Mansion would probably clean up on its own if they left it alone long enough, but the smell of blood doesn't exactly make for a restful atmosphere.

He busies himself wiping up the blood, spraying it with the cleaner and then scrubbing it with the rags in his other hand.

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[001] take these sunken eyes and learn to see [CLOSED]

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