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Characters: Rufus Shinra and You.
Setting: Dormitory Floors, Cafeteria, Infirmary, Random Location.
Format: Starting with action then will follow
Summary: Rufus wakes up in the tower and starts analyzing the situation. He will be using his wheelchair all along and covering most of his face with a white sheet for the time being.
Warning: None. Well he is a politician of sort. You should always be wary of politicians.

Dormitory Floors
[ Rufus Shinra is still not sure what to make of the two letters he had read- On one hand if anything the end of Gaia is plausible, it's not far-fetched to imagine Sephiroth winning or some catastrophe happening. On the other hand, if such a cataclysm indeed happened the idea he alone survived was laughable at best.

So the truth probably lies elsewhere. Whatever, he'll find in time...

And lo, you will find a new resident of the tower going through the dormitory floors and headed for the elevator. Maybe unusual for a new resident, this one is currently sitting in a wheelchair and covered by a white sheet. He appears to be going around with ease in his wheelchair, so he probably has been stuck in it for a long time before his arrival. ]

Cafeteria (Floor One)
[ Directly out of the Elevator, Rufus goes and is served his oatmeal. Well, quality food is quite obviously not this tower's administrators most immediate worry. Whatsoever no possible comparison with the food he ate at the Shinra Building back in the times or more recently at Healen. Hmpf. That's a real shame.

Still, he'll eat it quickly and properly. After all the treatments he went through as of late, he's eaten worse before. ]

Infirmary (Floor Two)
[ Rufus will be stopping by the infirmary to see if they have his medicine- A modified stimulant used as a pain-killer for Geostigma. Ever since he woke up in this place the Geostigma has not bothered him, as if it was now in a dormant state... But you could never be too careful. ]

Random Location (Day Two Only)
[ On his second day in the tower, the President will go through various floors-- The safe ones only of course, such as the lodge, the libraries or even the meadow. Still in his wheelchair, sometimes he'll observe things around but won't stay for long at once place. ]

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[A red haired man he may not recognize quite at first was at the door to 1-01, about to knock. He was looking for Xion to ask her what she thought of the new look, and for other reasons, too. He was dressed up in his Turk suit, freshly pressed and wrinkle-free. Miracle of miracles, he was wearing his tie, properly tied and his suit jacket zipped up.

What was really amazing was his hair. It was neat and tied back like he usually had it, but all the spikes were gone.]

Hey, Xion? [That voice though, that was pure Reno.] You there?

Edited 2013-01-05 23:30 (UTC)

[Aching joints and a dull, throbbing ache in the center of her core from her incident with Sephiroth earlier had not ebbed over the past several days, forcing Elena to carefully navigate the halls to the infirmary. It was of the up-most importance to keep the incident quiet, lest certain individuals catch wind of it.

Digging through one of the med-kids for a bottle of aspirin, her attention immediately goes to the doorway at the sound of it opening, her right hand moving to the holstered firearm beneath her left shoulder. Given her luck, it wasn't going to be a friendly who came through the doorway.]

[ Well, he still had an idea of who it may be, he simply wasn't sure until he heard the voice. Well well, seeing Reno did not surprise him all that much. As he himself was here, the Turk being here was something plausible. Seeing the Turk wearing the suit as it was meant to be was more of a shock though. Intriguing...

Reno may hear the noise of the wheelchair near of him. If he was to turn, he probably wouldn't recognize who it was under the sheet. ]

... I see you are keeping busy.

[ However, similarly Rufus' calm voice was unmistakable. ]

[Turning, Reno was confused for a moment by the figure in white riding around in a wheelchair, but his heart dropped to right about where the cafeteria existed, some forty odd floors below them.]

B... Boss?

[ Well, it depends of what she hears by friendly. Her employers can be both friendly and terribly unfriendly depending on how you look at things. Either way, he would soon enter in.

Unlike Reno if Elena came from the right point in time, she'd immediately recognize the man in the wheelchair. He stopped when he spotted Elena and her hand over her holstered firearm- Careful. Something probably happened lately or this place was just that dangerous. Probably the later. ]

I hope you do not intend on killing me.

[ Said before he headed to a shelf. ]

Hmpf.

[ Well Reno appeared much more surprised. Rufus didn't nod but his wheelchair stopped right in its track. ]

You look as though you've just seen a ghost.

[Quickly, Reno shook his head and gathered his scattered braincells, because whoa, that bombed his brain real bad.]

W-... [Deep breath, calm down.] When did you get in, sir?

Today. Two hours ago to be exact, at least as far as I am aware.

[ He did not say one more word, for now. It was obvious enough that reno had spent a much longer time in this tower than Rufus. ]

Two hours... then you'll need to be briefed on this place and what happened.

[He looked serious, much too serious for Reno, even Future Reno.]

I'm... I'm acting Director right now, sir. I guess the most important thing to know is that this place is sort of an "safe zone" between alternate realities or universes. The people running this place claim to be saving at least one person per universe. So far, I've seen no evidence that they're lying.

[What was it the others said about Rufus in the future, before?]

Second most important is because of that, people get here from different timelines. Third, if you're going to eat anything, you have to eat the oatmeal they serve in the cafeteria first.

[In this place, most sounds aren't exactly friendly, be it the sound of an opening door, a body tumbling down the stairs. And, given the last few days, Elena was on ultra-high alert.

Where Reno might have paused, Elena immediately recognized the white clothed figure in the wheelchair, giving an audible gasp in surprise. Of all the people she had expected to see in this place, of all the people who should not have to experience the horrors of the Tower, he sat at the top of the list of both.]

S-sir!

[Her hand moves quickly away from the firearm, looking horribly guilty for even considering pulling her gun, and moved towards him.]

No, sir. I just...I didn't expect to see you coming through the door. How long have you been here? [And, noticing that he was heading towards a shelf, she motioned to the various items available.] What can I get for you, sir?

[Yu always stuck to cooking whenever there were ingredients available. However, he couldn't help but notice when someone new (quite literally) rolled in. He paused for a moment, before deciding to approach him. ...Ah, the oatmeal. He does not miss how terrible it tastes at all.]

Just arrive, huh. [Nope, not even a real question. Just something to break any potential awkward silence, and an invitation to ask for the usual "welcome to helltower" knowledge dump.]

[While moving some books around, Tohko noticed a boy in a wheelchair scooting about and watching everything. Not one to just leave a person alone, Tohko approached him.]

Good morning! Need help finding anything?

Siira wasn't wearing her suit today. After having arrived with only two, she wasn't going to wear them frequently enough to ruin them. Instead she was dressed in a pair of plain slacks, a tee-shirt with the name of the bar she ran with Gun and Shotgun, a pair of sneakers and her gloves and bangle. All that would really be recognizable was the ShinRa Alpha bangle but he'd have to get close to recognize it. Surely after so many years, Rufus wouldn't recognize the obscenely long curtain of dark hair this Turk had sported.

And she was walking right towards him. At first Siira didn't worry about the man in the wheelchair. Strange as it was (she'd never seen anyone with a wheelchair before but knew there were areas with a wheelchair accessible ramp), this entire tower was stranger yet. And she walked with an air of knowing it, almost passing the man by but stopping abruptly when she spared a glance towards him. Eyes landing on his hand where too much flesh was exposed.

"Geostigma."

[Idrial does not eat in the cafeteria herself and she hasn't done so since her first meal of oatmeal there. In fact, she had been advised by a number of friends who were here in the Tower too to hunt for her own food whenever possible and she was planning to stick to that strategy.

Today she is wandering around the cafeteria however but not for any particular reason except for interaction with people. She has figured out that at this time of the month a number of new people tend to arrive in the Tower and these new people are always to be found eating oatmeal in the cafeteria. It is something that unfortunately has to be done after all. Seeing an unfamiliar face sitting by himself she walks over to the table and gestures a hand to a space on the bench beside him.]

Greetings. May I take this seat?

[ Rufus does not say a word at Reno being acting director, pretty logical in the case Tseng is not here. He raises an eyebrow at the "safe zone between alternate realities or universes" bit though, not that Reno can see it. That's as dubious as it can get, but Reno is a Turk and way too serious looking at the moment.

Well, until he gets confirmation or not of this, he'll act as though everything Reno just said is as logical as it can get. ]

I see.

[ Surprisingly calm considering all what Reno just told him. ]

Who else from the Planet is here and what's the current situation?

[ The wheelchair stops in its tracks once Elena is done speaking and Rufus nods. Well if there was a doubt that was Elena, none remained now. That was clearly the ~~rookie~~ Turk he remembered. ]

My Geostigma medicine.

[ He sighed. Normally the tower should have some of it as the infirmary is supplied with what people need to live- Hopefully. Especially since Sephiroth lurks somewhere in the tower. ]

I have been here for less than a day. Much like Reno I see you have been here for much longer.

Indeed.

[ Rufus stopped eating when the young man addressed him and directed his stare toward him for a second. Rufus' face was noticeably less covered as he was eating so Yu may see the bandages covering his forehead and left eye. ]

I have been told this oatmeal is an unavoidable part of the welcome committee. And the most distasteful so far.

[ Rufus turns and looks at the girl when she addresses him- And shakes his head slowly. ]

Good morning young lady. Thank you, but I am simply familiarizing myself with my new environment.

Oh yes, he probably wouldn't recognize her immediately, he'd have to face her to-- Much time had passed, even more so considering where she went from. Even though the Shinra Alpha bangle gave a noticeable hint that this person had to be a Shinra employee, or at least someone who once was. The wheelchair stopped right as he heard the mention of the accursed disease.

"An accurate observation."

He looked down at his hand before slowly turning to her. No possible doubts now, with that voice and that face it had to be the martial arts expert from the Turks. Well, ex-Turk is probably more appropriate as she knows of Geostigma.

"It has been a long time."

Greetings.

[ Rufus nods to the woman who just addressed him. She probably could see him smile as his sheet would be lowered a bit during meal time so he can eat properly.

He then waved to the bench besides him and nodded. ]

You may, of course.

Me, Elena, Siira, Cloud, Sephiroth, and Hojo. The situation seems to be stable, but I have someone keeping an eye on Hojo. Sephiroth causes trouble now and then... he's from after Meteor, I think. Cloud's watching him.

[He's not going to tell him about the rookies, not yet anyway. Or the wedding, because that would just be awkward right now.]

Boss, there's more than just them out here that's dangerous. Don't tell anyone who you are or that you know me and the other Turks if they seem too interested in you. Don't trust anyone.

[Tohko smiled and nodded.]

Ah, alright then! If you're new to the Tower, I could tell you everything I know. That way, you'll know what you're up against!

The voice was familiar, it answered any questions she had in regards to his identity as well. It changed very little though, her opinion of ShinRa had never been very high since Zirconiade and even after he had started working with the WRO openly during the Lifestream resurrections.

"I saw enough of it up north a few years ago. And it hasn't been nearly as long as it has been for you."

Half a year since she was last in the tower, a month before that was the mission to Corel. She'd seen him around that time, when Tseng had called her about it.

[At that moment the door that Reno had knocked on a few minutes earlier opened, and behind it stood Xion. She looked slightly disheveled, only just now settling her coat properly on her shoulders, and her hair still hung a little damp around her face. She hadn't expected the knock right when she had.]

Sorry I took so long, I was just-

[And then she froze, her eyes wide and mouth hanging slightly open as she realized that Reno was not alone and was actually talking to someone. Someone she'd never seen before. If she hadn't already spoken she might've been tempted to walk back in her room and shut the door so as not to interrupt but... it was a little late for that now.

Still, she couldn't help but shift backwards towards the door she'd just opened ever so slightly, nervous about this new person she didn't recognize.]

Sephiroth and Hojo...

[ Elena and Siira are good news of course, whereas Cloud can be useful. Sephiroth though is obviously dangerous, especially considering the package he got and Hojo is barely any better. Some people should learn to stay dead, for the best of the world.

However, Reno's suggestion would have Rufus suppress a laugh. As if Rufus trusted anyone aside from the Turks in the first place. He wasn't about to trust anyone in the tower for sure. ]

I had no intention of doing so, Reno. Nevertheless, we--

[ Rufus stopped when Xion interrupted and looked at her. Probably the person Reno was calling earlier. What drew his attention of course was the Turk pin, he'd never seen that one amongst the Turks before. Well. Better let Reno do the introductions. ]

[ He smiled slightly and nodded. ]

I would be glad if you could do so. My name is Rufus.

"I believe we all saw too much of this terrible disease."

Well, she was a Turk so he still got a pretty high opinion of her. Besides he was going to need her if he as to organize the Turks down the line. Thankfully he'd been informed by Reno of the things he had to expect so this didn't surprise him half as much as it should

"When was the last time you saw me?"

[Reno turned slightly and saw Xion, hiding a tiny cringe. Well. Let's hope Rufus didn't see the pin.]

Boss, this is Xion, a friend of mine.

[Friend indeed. It was probably a lot more than that since she wore the Turk pin. He gave her a look like "I'll tell you everything later" as best as he could.]

[Hojo is hovering near a certain section of books in the library, going through the volumes there with an expression of what might be called irritation on his face.

The Tower being what it is, however, he's always alert. As such, he's not completely distracted, and he turns as he senses the wheelchair's passage. He regards both wheelchair and the sheet-covered man with a kind of bored curiosity. He idly wonders what his ailment is, and whether he'd be capable of curing it.

There is a certain– familiarity he notes, so he looks closer. He smiles.]

Hm. You aren't looking well.

[Tohko nodded again as she thought and prepared to give her usual infodump.]

Well, it's nice to meet you, Rufus. I'm Tohko Amano, the book girl.

As for this Tower, it's called Animus. As far as I know, four people run it: Dax, who is a humane person, Jason, who loves to experiment and torture the residents, Riki, a secretive fellow who manages the records, and Ruana, a childish immortal woman with strange powers. She sees her experiments as nothing more than fun games. They will lie to you, so take everything they say with a grain of salt.

If you haven't been to the cafeteria yet, make sure you eat the oatmeal when you do. I know it tastes terrible, but if you don't eat it, you'll throw up whatever else you try to eat. However, you can add things to it to improve the taste, and you can eat whatever you want afterwards.

Monsters roam the Tower at night. If you don't know how to fight, you had better learn how or just keep to the dorm floors at night.

[Tohko then nodded to herself.]

And that's about it!

[Xion looked from Rufus to Reno, eyes a little wide still. She caught that look though, and even if she didn't quite understand it, she got the jist. Don't ask questions now.

Instead, she nods briefly to let him know she understood, then turns back to Rufus to nod politely as well, holding her hands nervously behind her. Reno had mentioned "boss," which... meant he was the Turks' leader? Someone that they should respect, regardless...]

"Depends. Before I came here, a couple hours. Give or take. Then the admins sent me back to what's left of Gaia and I just finished spending a six month long vacation there."

She'd argue until she was blue in the face that she was an ex-Turk. That being recalled to duty, as far as she was concerned, didn't make her a Turk again. That she had followed Tseng's and Veld orders out of respect and a sense of duty to her friends and Gaia. All of this goes unsaid though and will stay unsaid.

"It's been years since I saw an outbreak of Geostigma."

[ Rufus remains silent a moment before smiling to the girl. ]

... Well it is a pleasure meeting you, young lady.

[ Then he slightly turns his head to Reno. Sorry don't think he did not notice Xion's pin. ]

However, I was not aware we were recruiting Reno.

[There's a terrible gut-wrenching feeling in her stomach, a unspoken battle going on within her mind. While she does recognize him, as any Turk would have during the Geostigma infection that ran rampant during the planet, she couldn't decide if she wanted to know from when he was pulled. The thought that he did not recover from the infection a to horrible future to imagine.]

The medicine? [It had never occurred to her that such specialized medicine would exist in the Tower. Granted, she'd not come across a situation where the idea would have come to mind.] Let me see if I can find it for you, sir.

[Eyes move over the counters and shelves, looking for the familiar bottle that had been created and used to help maintain and manage the progression of the Geostigma. Hands move and pick up various bottles, inspecting further. At the mention of Reno, her attention moves back to Rufus with a little nod.]

About six months, give or take. Reno has been here for much longer. I'm glad we crossed paths as soon as we did, sir. There is a lot of information that you'd need to get caught up to speed. Am I right to assume Reno has filled you in on most of it?

[[ooc: Don't know if you want her to find the bottle or not. Just let me know!]

[Cringe! Well, there goes that about doing a meeting.]

Well, sir, there's many things you're not aware of yet... I'd rather discuss them in private.

[To Xion, he might have been more formal sounding than he usually is. He was never this formal with Elena or Shion, not even with the other Turks when they had been there.]

Or as private as this place can get. I recruited Xion because she fought well and has potential for a good assault field agent.

[The smile is actually quite comforting as she approaches him. She has had very different interactions with various members of the Tower. Some of the newly arrived people are definitely not as friendly as he is being right now. Most don't want to be bothered in the slightest and only want to...try and figure out why they ended up here in the first place.

She bows her head in thanks and sits down beside him.]

Thank you, Sir. [A pause] You have only just arrived in this Tower?

[ He nods back to Elena and wait while she searches. ]

Yes he has and I would appreciate all the information you can give me.

[ Reno had told him a lot and honestly, nobody would believe what Reno said. But he was a Turk and considering their predicament, this honestly was maybe a fairly logical explanation. As logical as it could get in such a place. ]

As... unbelievable most of what Reno told me is, I can only assume his information are correct.

((OOC: Yep, I think! The infirmary is supposed to have the medicines people need to live.))

[ When she is done with her tale, Rufus nods slowly as an answer, thoughtful. ]

I see...

[ They will lie heh. He had figured that by himself but if Reno's source were known to be such liars, he'd have to take with a grain f salt what he'd been told earlier. At least he was done with the Oatmeal already. ]

Well thank you Tohko, this was certainly informative.

"So what Reno told me about the timelines is true. Where I come from, geostigma is at its peak..."

That was all pretty bad news. Six month vacation on what's left of Gaia? he had hoped Reno was wrong, but as she was a urk as well... He'd sigh and shake his head slowly.

"Well, I suppose you confirm that the lifestream left Gaia."

You're welcome.

[ Probably that Rufus has the chance to have people loyal to him in this tower, some he would trust his life with. That and after all he went through and his near-depth experience, he has an even better grasp on himself. ]

I have indeed. A few hours ago only

[ Oh if anyone would be capable to heal geostigma, aside from the Ancients that would be Hojo. He stops in his track literally when he hears the voice- Reno told him he was here but he did not expect to meet the man so soon. ]

Thank you for the concern but I believe I'll be alright.

[ Spoken calmly yet he does not look at Hojo just yet. ]

Death does not appear to be interested in our kind.

[At that, Tohko smiled.]

Oh, no problem! I'm always happy to help out. Is there anything else you want to know about this Tower? Or need help with?

[Xion's face turns slightly pink and she looks down and away. She's not used to people really treating her with any kind of formality or respect.

However he gaze darts up again at Reno's words, widening in surprise. All in all he's acting so different from how she's used to... it's almost startling, and she's never heard him give that reason for giving her a pin before.

Was he doing like he'd done with Ganon? Bluffing? Well... she should probably... not give it away if he is. She nods in agreement.]

"And I'm from when the Lifestream was resurrecting the dead. And not people we would have wanted."

You know. Hojo, Sephiroth, the Remnants. People like that, plus a few desirables like Zack and Aerith. And Siira would insist that it's ex-Turk until she was blue in the face.

"I can and it is. I traveled all the way down to where Mideel had been and there's nothing."

I had the same thoughts when I first arrived. It only took a week or two before I experienced things that confirmed what I had been told.

[Returning her attention to the shelves, Elena continued her search for the requested medicine. Various bottles were quickly scanned, and when she was about ready to give up - because really, what was the likelihood of such specialized medicine in the Tower - she found it. Eyes widened, hands reaching out to snatch up the container and read over the familiar label.]

I think I found it, sir. [She spoke, removing the shocked look to one of pleased success before turning to show him the illusive medicine. Walking over to hand him the container, she gave the bottle a little shake, feeling its weight.] Might last you about a month, depending on the frequency you need to take them.

As for Reno's initial report, if I can fill in any gaps that he might have, I will. Just let me know where you'd prefer that I start, sir.

That sums it up rather nicely.

[He noticed, and was slightly concerned, so he'll likely ask about it soon enough.]

Though there have been worse, depending on the month we arrive on by this tower's calendar.

Will you? I wonder.

[Hojo doesn't seem to have any opinion (or concern) about the matter, one way or another. However, as he's near Rufus, his idle curiosity is growing into something more than casual. He can sense something. Something unexpected.]

Our kind? And what kind is that? Death has little meaning for me, personally, but I am a great scientist. [And so modest, also.]

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[01] || [Open]

Dorm 1

Infirmary

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Cafeteria /breaks the castmate trend

Third Floor

hallway - day two

Cafeteria

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I was told now was a good time so here I am

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Library, day two

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Aah, sorry for the hyper late >.<

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Sorry this took so long guys.

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I'm sorry for also being late!