♟ 001 ♟ In the Tower With Kariya

[vermicompost]

Characters: Kariya and OPEN
Setting: various
Format: either
Summary: Kariya's arrival in the Tower
Warnings: blood, possible body horror


Dormitories:
It's confusing, arriving here. This place, the letters, they're alarming. How could the world be destroyed? Where's Sakura? Where's Aoi? Kariya's heartbeat is accelerated, his breathing harsh and quick. His own agitation agitates the worms within him. In this state, it's difficult for him to walk, let alone make his way through an entirely new, strange environment, but he does his best. At times, he staggers and coughs, or stumbles to one side, disoriented. He has to pause to rest, more than once. Blood flecks his lips, gathering at the corners of his mouth and sliding down over his chin.

"Berserker, Berserker..." He calls out now and then as he goes, but no one comes to his call.


Cafeteria:
He managed to make his way down to the cafeteria. Sitting at the table, he gazes down at his oatmeal he was given, mournfully. He's not very hungry. He tries to eat it, but even just the plain oatmeal is difficult for him to choke down. It takes him a few tries, but he takes his time. When he pauses to cough, he wipes up the scattered bits of oatmeal flecking the table, a little embarrassed.


Infirmary:
The medical facility looks promising, but Kariya isn't sure if they have anything there he can use. He doesn't know if there's any medicine in existence that can help him. He'd like to try, but he doesn't want to risk disturbing the worms further. It's hard to say how they'll react to any stimulus. Much of his life has become a matter of worm management. He walks in slowly, quietly. "Hello, is anyone here?"


Meadow:
After wandering restlessly, at last Kariya settles himself, all but spent, exhausted from his wandering. He sinks down among the flowers with a sigh. When he focuses his gaze on the blooms, he feels more content, calmer than he was before. The flowers are lovely and fragrant, the petals soft and colorful. He just wants to rest a little while...

Comments

[vermicompost]

[He blinks, then does his best to return the bow.]

You're Ruler? It's nice to meet you, too. You're the Overseer, Saber said. I spoke to her.

[He still doesn't fully understand what happened to Saber, or why she's so angry with him.]

I do have something to ask you, if I can. I have to ask you for your protection, or Saber's going to kill me.

[In spite of everything, he doesn't want to die.]

[faithstaynight]

[... Ah. She'd like to say that she wasn't expecting that, but... Saber seemed so different, from how she saw her in the information the Grail gave her. But... who was this man to her, that she would downright threaten to kill him without the War hanging heavy over their heads?

Well. Now's not the time to mull over things like that. He's asking for her help. And she wasn't going to deny it at all.]

Of course. If you truly wish for it, then from this point on, you will be under my protection. It is... a bit difficult, to set up a safe sanctuary in a place such as this, but rest assured that if you call for me, I will be there. You can also come to me, if you wish; I mostly spend my time in the meadow on the twenty-fifth floor, the cafeteria on the bottom floor, the lounges on the fourth and thirty-eighth floor, or my room, number nineteen on the second dormitory level.

[vermicompost]

[He nods, still frightened, but relieved as well. Both feelings show plainly on his face. He coughs again, takes a moment to collect himself.]

Thank you, thank you so much. I'm so grateful. I do wish it, I don't have anything. I can't fight Saber alone. I don't understand why she's so angry.

[He'd thought he was certainly going to die. He can't die, for Sakura's sake.]

I'll find those places, so I know where they are. How do I call you?

[faithstaynight]

You do not need to thank me, monsieur. This is an important aspect of my duty, after all.

[She smiles.]

Just call my name. I assure you that I will hear you, no matter where you are.

[vermicompost]

I just call out for Ruler, that's all? Yes, I can do that.

[He returns her smile, feeling a little better now as he makes his way along the corridor, slowly but surely. Maybe the infirmary will even have something to help him.]

But I am grateful. I have to keep living, you see. It's important. There's someone I need to help. [He realizes he forgot to introduce himself.] I'm Kariya Matou.

[faithstaynight]

[Ah, so he's a Matou... well. That doesn't really mean anything if she doesn't know him that well, right?]

Doing whatever you can for someone else's sake... [She looks a bit impressed at that.] A truly noble goal. It's a pleasure to meet you, Kariya, and I wish you luck with your struggle.

[vermicompost]

That's why I'm fighting in the war, to save her. That's all that matters to me.

[When he focuses on Sakura, the war seems winnable, his goals achievable. He doesn't care what anyone else thinks.]

I'm going to win. [He limps his way along.] But I don't have much time... Do you really think something in the infirmary might help?

[His lifespan is limited, and as far as he knows, once he dies in the tower, it's permanent.]

[faithstaynight]

To be honest, I'm not too sure. I'm not a healer, and there is much about the medicines used here I do not know. You will have to look for yourself and see if there's anything that might help.

... Alternatively, there is a device in the libraries that you may use to contact other residents. Perhaps you could ask for assistance from one of them.

[vermicompost]

It's not just a physical ailment. It's magecraft. The medicines might not be able to do anything, or they could make things worse. So I don't know what to try. I'm not a healer, either. I don't know much about medicine at all.

[Only the bare basics that anyone might know.

He nods. He hadn't thought to try asking others, and he's a little hesitant to do so, considering the mixed reception he's received. But if he didn't have to meet them face to face...] A device? Maybe--I will ask.

[faithstaynight]

Magecraft? [A curse, perhaps? That's worrying. She won't ask him about it; the fact that he didn't go into any kind of detail right away must mean that he's not to keen on talking about whatever's ailing him, and she'll respect that.]

If nothing there can cure you, perhaps you can at least find something to dull the pain a bit.

[vermicompost]

Yes, it's... [He's not sure how to describe it to an outsider, or if he wants to, owing to the worms' nature.] Not something that can be undone. Not by any means I know. I would like that, to make it hurt a little less.

[It's not as if Zouken had allowed him any medicine, and he's been in near-constant pain for the last year or so.]

What do you know about this place, Ruler? Do you know why we've been brought here? [If anyone might know more, it might be someone with a role like hers.]

[faithstaynight]

[She looks a bit troubled at the question. She should know the answer; providing guidance is a skill she likes to think she's good at. But... she shakes her head.]

I do not. The administrators say that they brought us here because our worlds were destroyed, but I don't believe that one single bit. [She then frowns.] Perhaps they're trying to study us. It certainly would be a good explanation for why they would put such a widely different group of people in such an odd environment.

[vermicompost]

I don't believe it either. Our worlds can't be destroyed.

[He won't believe for a minute that the people he cares about aren't there anymore. It's not something he's willing to contemplate.]

An experiment... yes, that makes more sense. I can see that. It seems that way, with the collars and the dorms, and the way we're all put together here.

[Not that it's pleasant to contemplate.]

That's an awful thing to do.

[faithstaynight]

[She doesn't look all that happy to be thinking such things, if the hint of disgust on her face is anything to go by.]

"Awful" does not seem like the right word. "Monstrous", perhaps. To toy with the lives and minds of countless people like they are... [She shakes her head.] Disgusting.

[vermicompost]

It is monstrous. That's the word for it. It's cruel, and it's wrong.

[The tower and its administrators already remind him of the Matou family.

He speaks his next words in a rush, emphatic, his breathing growing quicker and hoarser.]

If there's anything I can do to help, I will. To help the others here. I'd like to. No one should have to--to suffer like that.

[faithstaynight]

I will keep that in mind, and be sure to contact you should I need assistance. [She offers him a smile, trying to keep calm following his sudden heated words. If she gets worked up or calls him out on it, that'll probably just get him worked even more.] There is a group still in the process of being formed, focusing on helping the other residents whenever trouble arises. If you'd like, I could inform you when I receive new information, and perhaps you might be interested in joining us.

[vermicompost]

Thank you.

[It calms him somewhat, the thought that he might be able to be involved, to do something about these horrors.]

I'd like that. You can tell me. If there's a group trying to help, I want to be part of it.

[faithstaynight]

All right. I will be sure to keep my ears open for the next bit of news.

[Ah, but...] If... you would like to keep a lookout on your own as well, there might be mentions of it on the network. I admit, I do not check those devices anywhere near as often as some of the other residents do, so I may very well miss something.

[She'd rather tell him to look for himself then to direct him straight to Zelda... she's not sure if her friend has managed to relieve some of the stress she's been put under, so until she can be positive, she won't point any newbies in her direction just yet.]

[vermicompost]

On the network--oh, that's right, the devices you mentioned. I'll look for them, then.

[Somehow, he does feel better, at that.]

I don't know what I can do, but I'll do my best. And if I can help you... I will.

[He's gone from asking help to offering it, but he doesn't seem to think it odd that he's offering to help a Servant who's far more powerful than he'll ever be, when he can barely walk. He might not be the most clear thinker, but he means well.]