towerofanimus | The Doctor is [Having a Meltdown]

Entry tags:

The Doctor is [Having a Meltdown]

Characters: Dr. Richtofen and whatever unlucky soul wanders by.
Setting: Room 2-02
Format: Action
Summary: Richtofen ran away from all the action on the network due to some rather... debilitating conditions. He tries to make a log of what happened as quickly as possible, despite his ailment.
Warnings: Swearing, possible threat of a very unstable Richtofen attacking your character (he won't hurt them unless you give me permission though), general craziness.

[Anyone wandering around the second floor will hear a German-accented voice talking loudly enough to be heard all the way down the halls.]

Log entry five- log fo- log number five three seven zero three seven I FORGET WHAT FUCKING NUMBER IT IS!

[Richtofen's screaming into his tape recorder, pacing up and down his dorm. The door's slung wide open and some items from his trunk are scattered around the room, a product of his haste. His hat is askew, and he's holding his head in one hand, the tape recorder in the other.]

I don't know what day it is. It's November. It's Novem- SHUT UP! [He doesn't seem to have said that in response to anyone in particular. He takes a shaky breath to try and steady himself.] That woman was on the network today. We talked to her. She said- She said a great many things about this world, this Tower. I'm still-

[His eye twitches violently, and he stops in his tracks, rubbing the butt of his palm over his temple in small circular motions.]

I'm still- [His voice got a little bit high-pitched, but he rectifies that quickly.] -trying to discover more information about that little boy. But this Ruana woman is maddeningly cryptic, and it is so hard to think of proper questions to ask when the voices are screaming so loudly!

[He heaves a shaky sigh and plops onto his bed. Both of his hands, including the one holding the tape recorder, support his head, his elbows resting on his knees. His voice has gotten softer.]

The voices are screaming so loudly...

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You could at least try. Just seeing a psychologist isn't going to hurt you. It's not like they're going to rip your head off.

[Tohko bit her lip at the crazed laughing. Her weak hand gripped her right in an attempt to calm herself, but she stayed put.]

You can do a little bit in this Tower..I guess it depends on what they wanted you to do. Killing or hurting people would be terrible, for instance. Plus..even if you did what they asked, they're just going to come up with more demands and wants for you to do. It's-possibly-an endless cycle, if you're doing what they say.

Rip mein head off? [He laughed.] Killing people is terrible? [And again, even harder, he threw his head back and allowed his shoulders to shake with the force of his cackling.

After a moment, he calmed down, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye. He shook his head, a hint of humor remaining in his voice, though mostly, he just sounded tired.]

Death is death. It's all the same whether you die naturally or if you're killed, so why worry? [He shrugged, smiling so cheerfully you'd think he's just won an Olympic gold medal.] Everyone has to die, so I might as well help!

[He broke down into another fit of laughter, this one clearly less sane than the last few.]

Everyone has to die... Well, unless you're here, I guess! Then you just come back, again and again and again! [His voice did that "way too high-pitched" thing again, in a way that made him sound sickeningly sweet.]

HA! Isn't that funny? [The last part came out in a hiss, and his smile all at once turned to a glare.]

[Even though the guy's laughing was rather creepy, Tohko was not going to give up and run. Even if she was a bit scared.]

Yes, killing people is terrible. In a natural death, there's almost nothing you can do to prevent it. You usually just have to accept it and move on. But with murder, you're taking a person before the natural death gets them. You could murder a genius-to-be and not even realize it.

[And Tohko then realized that she was probably talking to a crazed murderer. However..even if he was a murderer, she couldn't just leave him here. She'd help him out and then run away. But not before.

Although..it didn't sound like he liked the idea of dying over and over again, never truly finding rest. She smiled a little, reminded of another friend.]

Not really..in a place like this, it's convenient, but in the normal world, it would cause a lot of problems and cause a lot of anguish. Pardon my asking..but do you wish to find eternal rest? Do you want to die and stay dead?

[Richtofen crossed his arms, looking rather bored and unimpressed with Tohko's argument.]

I don't see the difference. All this talk of murder being unnatural is silly - if I murder a person, they had no future anyway. [He snorted, as if the mere thought of one of his victims going on to have a life was amusing.] Their destiny was to be killed by me, end of story, danke, gute Nacht. Nobody can be a more impressive genius than I, anyway.

[That next question seemed to amuse Richtofen even more.]

Oh please, that is the exact opposite of what I want. When I kill someone, I want them to stay dead, that's all. [He scowled and ran the back of his hand over his forehead. He muttered:] Shut up, shut up... [But the interruption didn't last long, and he went babbling on.] I like the idea of never dying, myself. It is fitting for a god.

[Crank that ego up to 11, Richtofen, my boy.]

How can you be so sure? I don't think you're the one who get's to decide who has a future, what destiny people have, or what future they're going to have.

[Tohko picked up on this guy's massive ego.]

There's always someone better than you, sir. There's someone better than me, better than you, better than the Admins..there's always someone better.

[Tohko looked a bit worried when the voices started to bother him again, but thankfully, the moment passed quickly.]

I see..I'm not a huge fan of the idea of getting immortality, but..I don't think you're a god. You're probably a capable doctor who needs some help, but I don't think you're a god.

[Richtofen listened to all of that with a scowl on his face. He regarded Tohko like one would look at a particularly disgusting insect, an insect that needed to be squashed at the first opportunity.]

Child... [His voice came out slow and measured.] ...Do you want to die?

[Tohko noticed the look on his face and bit her lip. She was scared..but if push came to shove, she would run away. She wouldn't let this guy kill her. And then, later, she'd sneak some Tylenol under his pillow to help with any headaches his voices might cause.]

Not really. Not right now. I have friends I want to be with, a universe I promised to help with, and a friend that I promised to be a temporary anchor for.

[She hated admitting that she was only a temporary anchor, but it was the truth. When you dealt with immortal men, you were going to part from them, even if you had promised to be their anchor. Be it next week or ten years from then, they would eventually have to part, and Tohko wouldn't be able to help him anymore.]

..I also have a universe to go back to and family and friends that I want to see. And a person to apologize to. I don't really want to die just quite yet.

[Richtofen listened with his fingers steepled in front of him and his lips pursed. Not exactly the picture of a considerate confidant, this one.]

Ah, wunderbar. Then, the doctor would suggest that you- [Here, he starts to shout.] -stop making me angry!

[And Tohko didn't think he would be the sort of person to bring troubles to. However, she didn't see any reason to lie about her reasons for staying alive. She jumped a little at his shouting, but she didn't run away. Mentally, she prepared to though.]

Gah! I'm terribly sorry..I didn't know that those things annoyed you!

[..While she still held her views on him, it was best to apologize and not get murdered right now. If that happened, she wouldn't be able to help anyone out for awhile. Who would help this guy? He was a murderer..but he still had some sort of psychological disorder.]

Of course it annoys me when you talk to me as if I am some idiotic little braindead patient! I am nobody's patient! Do you hear me?!

[He took a step forward, one eye twitching. The voices were beginning to stir again, chiding him left and right for letting Tokho live so long, for letting her say that he wasn't a god, that he wasn't allowed to decide who lives and who dies. They told him he needed to stop accepting his fate in the Tower, because that would only lead him to become a lowly test subject, when he was supposed to be the one calling the shots. They hissed and screamed and groaned so loudly that Richtofen had to cover both ears, and even then, they didn't get any quieter.]

Shut up, shut up, shut up!

I-I'm not talking to you like you're a patient or anything like that! I'm talking to you like I would talk to a friend who's in trouble! And I hear you perfectly well!

[Tohko saw that the voices were bothering him again. She wasn't quite sure what to do..she had never dealt with a person with schizophrenia, and dealing with it in real life was much harder than dealing with it in books.]

It'll be alright! They'll shut up in a minute! Just ignore them. You'll be alright.

[It was difficult to hear Tohko through his hands and over the sound of the voices. It almost sounded like they were underwater, and everything was bulging and rippling and it was hard to even hear himself think. He paced back and forth, moving one of his hands to his forehead. He wanted to shut his eyes because the light was just so bright, but he didn't want to take his eyes off of Tohko, the voices warned him not to.]

We are not friends. [He grit his teeth.] Don't talk to me as if you know me, child! Don't - urgh, shut up - don't make the mistake of thinking I need your help!

[Tohko sighed.]

I didn't say we were. I just said that's how I'm speaking to you. It's how I talk to most everyone, if I find them needing help. And I may not know you very well, but you could try and help me understand you.

And my name isn't child. I'm Tohko Amano, the book girl..and I don't think I'm making a mistake. Everyone needs some help sometimes. You may not need my help, but you'll need someone's if you want to get rid of those voices.

Edited 2012-11-25 09:05 (UTC)

Really?

[Richtofen stopped, spinning on his heel and striding slowly toward Tohko.]

Well, I am Doctor Richtofen, the greatest scientist in the world, und I do not need anybody's help. The voices are loud und they grate on me and make it hard to think, but they are leading me toward greater power, greater happiness!

[When he finally stopped, he loomed a mere foot or so away from Tohko, glowering at her in disdain.]

I have experimented on people younger than you. I've killed them, and I've strung up their remains for their friends and families to see. If you think for even a teeny-tiny little second that I won't do the same to you, you do not know me at all.

[As Richtofen walked toward her, Tohko quickly spoke. She didn't think anything good was about to happen..]

Nice to meet you, Doctor Richtofen. How are you so sure of that? If those voices are hurting you and causing you to scream, then maybe they just want you to suffer. Even if you don't realize it.

[Tohko bit her lip at his words and his glowering. She was scared..but she had met Wilhelm. She could deal with the mentioning of experiments and torture. After all, she was in last month's horrible experiment. She could deal with this.]

...Why would you do something like that? For fun? For the greater glory?

[Tohko then sighed, trying to calm down. She also moved a foot away from the Doctor.]

...You're right, I don't know much about you..but I now know a little bit. And why would you kill me for all to see here? I'll just come back to life, and I don't see how I've offended you. If I have, I am sorry.

Gah! It's pointless to try to explain something like the voices to you. Not that I'd want to, anyway. But...

[He smiled.]

I killed them because it was fun, und because I could. Nothing brings me greater joy than hearing a person's frightened plea before I take their life.

[He pulled his combat knife out of its sheath and twirled it around, then caught it expertly by the handle.]

If I were to kill you right now, I would do it because it would make me happy. Und the voices, for that matter. But the beauty of this place... [He tapped the flat of the blade against his gloved palm.] ...is that I can do it again, und again, und again!

[Tohko thought as she slowly inched her way toward the door. Should she fight this guy? She had her knives..but she didn't want to kill another person. Three was enough. No more. She wouldn't kill if she could help it.]

...I see. While it would make you and your voices happy, I would prefer it if you didn't kill me. As I've told you, I have things to do, friends to be with, and people to help. I'd rather you didn't kill me. However..if you're into murder, how about you read some good murder mysteries? I'm sure you might enjoy them.

[Tohko was now near the open door. She got ready to run.]

I'm terribly sorry, but I've got to run to that library. It's my job, and I am a book girl. However..take some Tylenol later. That may help with whatever headaches your voices give you.

[And with that, Tohko was running out of there, up the stairs as fast as she could.]

Wait, where are you going?! I haven't killed you yet! [Honestly, some people could be so rude.

Richtofen quickly weighed his options. On the one hand, the voices were urging him to run run run and get her, to stab her all over until she drowned in her own blood. But on the other hand, he had never finished his log, and the events of the day left him weary and aching, and going outside his room meant the possibility of running into those troublesome powerful people who had annoyingly pure sets of morals and a desire to protect the weak. They would probably all be extra dead-set against the whole "killing" thing after the network incident, too, and Richtofen didn't feel like risking his own death just to kill a stupid girl.

He rushed up to the doorway and looked out just in time to see one last flash of Tohko's hair and clothes before she disappeared.]

You make things so difficult for me! Oh, fuck it.

[He flopped down onto the ground, resting his back against the doorframe. Looking resigned, he gave a flick of his wrist, intending to lodge his knife in the floor.

It didn't work. The dumb thing just bounced off, hurting his wrist in the process.]

Verdammt!

[Today is not his day, all right?]

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The Doctor is [Having a Meltdown]

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