[closed] WE are so normal

[roedeer]

Who: Roe Deer + The Assembled Team (You Know Who You Are)
What: Resurrection Ritual
When: Mid-post battle of the Rat King
Where: One of M42's secret rooms
Warnings: Gore, rituals, Subaru is like an inch from death but our doctor will hold him down

---

this is where all of that situation goes. play out any scene to your heart's desire. if you need kim soleum for anything, he's your guy. sign him up coach.

Comments

waking up breaking out this is what it's like to be free

[dedicate]

[ at first, when the spell is finally cast, the only sign of its success is the subtle rise and fall of agent choi's chest.

give him some minutes though, and he'll eventually roll from his back onto his side—start coughing up a storm, including some red and black sludge onto the grimy tunnel floor. his head hurts. his body hurts. everything hurts. that's his first thought. it's only as that awareness is accepted as his reality that he has time to remember, vividly—

the taste of fresh blood on his tongue, the pain of his injuries, of subaru's injuries, the look on kim soleum's face as he was pushed out of the way, and then—

black.

silence.

stretching out endlessly until, within the depths of that darkness, he sees them: eyes. he hears its whispers, and feels its dread, looming heavy in the distance.

...

a bloodied hand comes up to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead. ]

[schietto]

[ Dante comes down to crouch next to Choi, pulling his handkerchief from inside his coat and silently offering it to the other man so that he can wipe his face with something clean rather than his own bloody hands.

Dante simply watches for a moment, looking as if he's staring through Choi at something unseen before he will finally close his eyes and exhale softly. It seems... okay? Choi is alive and moving without trouble, so it should be fine.

He nods politely to Choi now in greeting. His voice is soft in volume as he speaks briefly. ]

...Try not to make a habit of such things, Signor Choi.

[ he'll go to get to his feet without another word, particularly so he can be out of the way of the others that have been worried about him. ]

[dedicate]

[ the first face that agent choi looks up to see isn't one he had expected by any means. it was dante, wasn't it? that kid from earlier in the tunnels, though choi hadn't taken him for a doctor, and his expression now is deeply grave, as if searching for something that isn't what he's looking at with that gaze.

but while the relief, at least, is easy to read, he has to ask: ]

Make a habit of...

[ his voice is hoarse, but a strained grin begins to stretch across his features. it's something not quite happy, and more habitual than sincere—uncertain, but at the same time, suspicious of knowing. ]

What, exactly, if you don't mind me asking?

[schietto]

[ That's an unexpected response, but at the same time... why is it, really? Someone dying probably doesn't really understand that they passed. For the other, it's perhaps nothing more than getting knocked out and waking up like you've been hit by a train.

In fact, that makes perfect sense to Dante.

It's not really his place to explain to Choi what happened to him, though, right? That's something he needs to hear from his friends that have clearly been upset and worried over him as well as were part of the incident. Still, it would be rude not to answer, and so he just smiles a bit like he's ever so faintly amused. ]

Allowing me to return a favor to you so quickly, of course.

[ okay, but seriously: ] Your friends can explain to you better than I can.

[roedeer]

[ and he leaves. things seem a-ok. he's out of here. shuffles off. ]

[dedicate]

Grapes...

[ his voice comes softly, but clearly with great strain, still hoarse. ah—his neck really doesn't feel great, but more loudly this time: ]

Hey, Grapes. Don't tell me you're leaving already...

[roedeer]

[ agent choi knows better than anyone here that soleum will keep moving. it took him and seonghae having to agree that this was the right choice, that's the only reason. the only reason. ]

...

[ his steps do slowly come to a stop, the agent will see continue to see soleum's back. ]

I am. [ soleum's head hurts. ] I've done my part.

[ don't force him having to stay here and look at the poor condition agent choi is in, hasn't he done this song and dance already? ]

puts my paw on this. she need Not be acknowledged by anyone, but she's around.

[dollpin]

( while dull to the emotion of others, she's got enough awareness to her to be mindful at such a delicate junction. she won't interrupt, nor will she chime in.

but she does watch from her side of the room.

they've discussed whether or not this revival was even the right thing to consider if 'death' is a potential exit - but it would seem to be a risk worth taking if they're even going as far as to tap into forces they don't fully understand for it.

but still, judgement call aside, she knows enough to understand that this is not something freely done, so her vigil remains. all she knows is that there's a feeling like something is missing when she looks at him. subtle. new, small and now gone. it gives a sense of wrongness to a girl who does not understand.

she told him before, didn't she? that she thinks he'd prefer if she stood against him if she ever thought him a threat to their people. they're kind souls, they'd both agree. terribly so. and she will not burden their hearts with the choice should it ever comes to pass that he needs to be put back down. that sort of thing is just best handled by people like her, and contingencies for worst case must be considered even if unpleasant.

still, she'll smile if he ever happens to look this way since he seems fine for now! )

acknowledges her anyway

[dedicate]

[ a smile is enough. honestly, it's not that he can't tell that thoughtful expression that comes before it is a bit complicated, but far from bothered by the fact, it's almost refreshing to see. he can't help but think that with those sharp eyes of hers, levelled on him, she really would make a good agent.

but it's impossible to know for now. instead, as he catches that smile, he raises a hand—motions to wave her over. he'll even mouth the words, though speaking them loud enough for her to hear from over there is probably a bit too much for him right now. ]

ok now i have to know how this even ends before i can start the choi-subaru visit..... 😭

[dollpin]

( ?

she blinks like it's the first time she's done so in a beat, head tilting as she debates on something for another before casting a quick glance to the others and the doorway she's by before she finally peels herself away from her self-appointed post. it should be fine for now anyway..?

though it's funny. even if he knows not what her previous expression meant, people standing guard would usually to opt to do so from the outside, and their attention would not be fixed inwards like it is, set firmly on one figure.

and still, she wanders near. smile unfazed even when she feels that hidden knife thrum once in warning, then quiet just as quickly. a reaction she has never once seen fade until she's either gotten away from the threat or silenced it herself, but it's also still rather new to her.

so she does keep his things - his sword - in the periphery of her left eye. she'll purposefully stand on the correct side to ensure it even if she has to go out of her way to.

he's injured, yes, but she's also very well aware of just how scary he can be if he cares to be. )

Yes, Mister Agentt? If you're not feeling well, I can go grab the nice doctor if you promise not to throw up on either one of us.

( because that's a concern, too! )

— open

[roedeer]

[ it's a headache really, all of this, any of this. his condition is... decent, roe deer has never been the chatty type anyway. with the situation at hand, there are certain intervals where he makes himself known. it's nothing noteworthy, but even in his poor state will he keep up the guise of a stable man.

a) as your character walks within the elongated tunnel that leads to the room, kim soleum will meet them halfway. while he has no business moving about, ]

In case there are anymore Hosts around, we can walk together. Are you entering or leaving for something?

[ another possible scenario?

b) catch soleum leaning against a wall with a pack of cigarettes, he'll stare at them through his deer-like mask before slipping them into the pocket behind his jacket.

...tap, tap.

lifting his head, soleum will look around, and closing the distance between himself a corner will he turn and call out. ]

Excuse me?

[ to no one.

let your character find him talking to nothing but darkness. he is certainly so normal. ]

b.

[schietto]

[ yeah, what a fucking weirdo. Dante says nothing and pretends he didn't see it.

...Nah, actually he's just staring at the other and waiting to see what other normal things he manages to do. ]

[roedeer]

[ he's very normal.

...

he stands there like a very normal person, his hands slip into his pocket, and he continues staring out there. ]

[schietto]

[ okay. goes up to him now and taps him on the shoulder, then. ]

smacks u w a wildcard but you know what for

[dollpin]

( this hound heels, waiting. always waiting.

she knows she's of no use in terms of certain things. combat medicine can only do so much good when supplies are as low as they are and injuries are too severe. subaru will be in much better hands with the doctor, she knows, so she'll stay out the way. there's even less she can do for the dearly departed.

so her best application here would be to make sure they can work in peace, and so it shall be.

but her eye does linger on the one who insists on being there by them. the man she's never known to know how to stand idly by, watching over the dead and dying.

logically, though, does it even make sense to try this hard? let him suffer unnecessarily? death is one of the escape methods they've discussed, so would it not be more merciful to snuff out what little life is left here?

she's mulling over that the whole time they stabilize the little dove. they're working at it so hard, but she wonders if she ought to just do it for them. end it. spare them the trouble with a mercy kill she would not expect out of a doctor or the man who tries his best to save everyone. it would be cruel to make them do it, but at the same time..

...

mister employee must have a reason. she can trust in that.

so she does not speak up until after things have settled more. until she can get some semblance of privacy in a room like this. facing him, not the others, fingers laced behind her back and calm as an untouched lake. being this close to him feels strange now that she's thinking about it, like reality is somehow warped at it's edges. muddled, fraying, tumultuous, but it bothers her none.

her voice is softer than it normally it is. perhaps it'd be more reassuring if there was even the semblance of a tremble in it. )

Are you sure, Mister Roe Deer?

( what if we're just dragging them back from escaping? )

cw: suicide mention i know what you're here for

[roedeer]

[ are you sure, mister roe deer?

he has to make this chilling decision, doesn't he? not long before all of this was happening, he had been kidnapping individuals and pulling them into safe rooms. "safe" might have been beyond him, he couldn't even protect the people with him during this, and the outcome? one nearing death, another dead, and this to them is freedom. should he really make the decision to bring them back, this is their only chance, and soleum's mind is ripped to pieces all because he's not sure. yes, he is sure. this is what he wants. they have to do this. ]

In the "dream," I gave him a choice to die by our confirmed means. He didn't take it.

[ if it would end like this, then he should have tried harder, at this point he's thinking death by the pill is so much better than what happened here. a giant monster, reckless and imposing, their frightening strength that grew as time went on, the way their party fell at the seams. ]

The other... is too assimilated into this Disaster. I think of him as a Miss Goral situation.

[ it would be easy to kill them all, right, remove themselves from this disaster and return home. the doctor is weak, he couldn't do much against them with how easy it is to make him tremble. seonghae's quick, she can incapacitate him, and all she would have to do is snap the victim's neck or wait for him to succumb to injuries. then there's saheon, they'd have to get ahold of him as soleum is responsible for him too. how can he get into contact with something like a roach that's afraid of death? there's an idea, but it'd take some time, and he had already waved off guren with that cat that came from him.

...contamination has already set in for him.

this isn't about him, but he lifts his head to look at miss dolphin, a small, wry smile visible. even miss dolphin hasn't been inflicted by the disaster yet, she's still beautiful and serene as always.

they should die before that changes, shouldn't they?

he should be logical, not emotional, he should make the best decisions because it's all his fault. what's one more decision, it should work, right? ]

If we separate the soul from the body upon his revival, then rid him of the wrong pieces... we could try again, properly.

[ no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.

yes.

he knows.

he was told those brought back death would come back wrong, he knows, he knows.

should he really trust that unknown being? what if it's a ploy to keep them here to the whims of this higher being? ]

How would you want to die, Miss Dolphin?

[dollpin]

( she still really isn't sure why that is, but something about the air feels unsteady whenever he speaks. his voice is as calm as it ever has been, for as long as she's known it, but it feels as though something else trembles in its place as he explains his point of view. as he elucidates on parts of his thought process. she's listening with rapt attention, but it still doesn't feel quite right.

it makes her reach out, chasing yet another whim, grabbing hold of his hands like she thinks it might steady the ground beneath them even though it hasn't moved once. she doesn't do much with it beyond hold on, at least.

though she could've brought it up to her throat to make a point. he's asking her how she'd like to die, after all, and is the answer not already obvious? )

Same as last time. By your hand.

( he had the help of a pill back then, but she knows him strong enough to get the job done should it be required of him. he could've used the gun, but didn't. even in that situation he's the same gentle mascot she remembers him as. )

I don't mind however you decide to do it.

( if it's their way out, it doesn't really matter if it hurts. he knows she'll brush it off the moment they wake up. that's just the sort of person she is.

but now that that's settled..? )

But you know, we talked about that too. ( the agent, she means. ) He was the one who asked me if 'dying' is the way out when we found the time to discuss more about our situation.

brrrring ao3 gang paging doctor bashir

[sacral]

[ He is an inch from death, that's true.

But death is something he's brushed with often enough that he hovers just above its precipice, stubborn and often unwanted instinct anchoring him to his life. Once his last successful barrier collapsed in on itself, there was nothing else that could be done to change the outcome of this fight. His magic was in full rupture, he was already bleeding out; pain flowed through him in strange, tidal patterns:

— his, Choi's, his, Choi's —

And, in those final moments before a stunning dark overcame him, the hurt and the knowing of what was about to happen sharpened into a point, twisted, and simply...

...snapped.

After that, he's certain the world turned upside down. After that, he hadn't really cared which direction he faced in it. It's all movement and blotted, smearing noise until suddenly it isn't, the white-hot itch of blood loss the foremost impression in the whispering echo where he's certain his soul ought to be. Shock saturates his nerves; his fingers flex into something, but he can't grasp whatever it is. A person, a hand. Voices above. Sensation doesn't form right.

Whenever his breathing slows, sinks, or shallows, he doesn't fight for more. Life is clinging to him more than the other way around. ]

calling in code blue, about to rescue you with dr bashir's medicine!!!

[roedeer]

[ he's made a very huge mistake, the lack of control in the fight and having nothing he could actually do to help them. it is unfortunate, especially when the outcome is nothing but shock value after shock value. agent choi dying, subaru close to death himself, and the smell of blood is everywhere.

soleum's hand comes to the man's wrist, two fingers pressed against in search of a pulse, anything. he leans in close to the victim's face, subaru's slight breathing barely making it pass his lips. he lingers on the land of the living, and soleum lingers above staring down where thoughts go back and forth between what has he wrought and how he decides that subaru isn't allowed to die.

i won't let you.

...

there was no other choice, this is why he's here now. the doctor will remember the man, "roe deer" he called himself, and what he has is someone in need of the man's talents. soleum speaks politely, as always, the circumstances causes his insides to rattle, but he has to ignore it all. ]

Whatever you need, I'll get it to you.

[ be it through the people he has with him now, or just by pushing himself, but the doctor seems capable enough in terms of wanting to offer his practices that soleum doubts it— he's seen the doctor's willingness to rush into danger. ]

He needs your help.

[ what subaru needs isn't anything soleum can say for him, but he's making the decision on his own. he chooses to keep him alive rather than let him die, even if it is the escape method, it wouldn't work with someone so assimilated with this ghost story. he has to stay in the realm of the living, well, if they call this living. ]

Re: calling in code blue, about to rescue you with dr bashir's medicine!!!

[licencetoheal]

[There is a part of him that wants to rebel against the request, given how he'd met this "Roe Deer." That part of him is silenced almost immediately by every other instinct he has.]

[Someone needs his help. That's all that matters. He follows and races over to the fallen man.]

[Julian immediately gets to work.]

I don't have a plasma infusion unit, any plasma packs, or any cannulae to arrange for a direction donation from a blood donor. The best I can do is stop the hemorrhaging.

[He has to hope if he stops the blood loss, if they can keep him warm to prevent shock, and flat so his brain gets blood flow, that it'll be enough. Fortunately, he does genuinely know what he's doing. Sorry about your clothes, Subaru, they're getting cut out of the way in any places that need treatment.]

[For the more shallow wounds, he ties off tight pressure bandages. For the deeper ones, he packs bandages in the wounds before tying off pressure bandages around them. It's tight. Not enough to cut off circulation but probably painful.]

[Unfortunately necessary. If you had no way of replacing fluid volume you had to aggressively treat the hemorrhages.]

He's going to need these replaced with sterile bandages the second someone can get their hands on them. And a broad spectrum antibiotic. We're worrying about the blood loss now, but if he survives it, he'll need to worry about infection later.

[He feels around his bruised ribs, palpating to try to figure out the level of bruising, holding an ear to his chest in lieu of a stethoscope. He taps in quite a few places, trying to hear how hollow the sound is or isn't, listens for rales or wheezing.]

I don't think there's any internal bleeding but I'd need imaging to be sure. Doesn't sound like he has a pneumothorax. Ribs may be broken but I don't think he has a punctured lung.

[Wrapping ribs was an archaic practice so he didn't bother with it. Instead he ran back over to the supplies they'd gathered for someone's long jacket and came back to wrap him with it.]

Keep him flat for as long as you can to make sure his brain gets blood flow and keep him warm to avoid shock. When we get out of here, he'll need the bandages replaced for something sterile and need those antibiotics. Stitches would be ideal, if an autosuture isn't available. If there's not the right equipment or supplies out there to restore fluid volume intravenously, re-hydrating him will be important. Something with electrolytes. Only do it when he's awake enough to swallow, so he doesn't aspirate it.

[It's really all he can do, giving him enough care to let him cling desperately to life.]

I'm sorry, I wish there was more I could do. But I don't even have what I'd need to give sutures.

let's start with this (boy with a cat at the door, whoever wants to jump in)

[demoon]

( Time stretches and rubberbands back, but Guren wastes no time in his journey to find the one man capable of fixing things. With the guidance of a helpful shadowy cat, he keeps his metal rod in one hand, ready to burn and cauterize his way through whatever stray hosts wander far enough from the rat king to block his way to the surface. They'd been given the direction, and all that was left to do was do it, right? Not a second thought, not a worry about consequence. He'd been there before. He'd just been there.

And so his fist meets the front of a door that he's been directed to rather firmly, an insistent pounding that doesn't give in even as his mind wavers. Succumbence has been sinking its claws into him gradually, but the signs are subtle, and he's not the focus, right now. It's an emergency, and he's here on a mission.

With a cat. Dirty and scuffed and covered in dried blood, only some of it his own. )

hi cat here

[roedeer]

[ too much light, and the cat forces itself between guren's arm— it's body shrinking enough to allow it the opportunity to hide. slow and sluggish, it's breaking down where that tangible form becomes nothing but air in a sense. if it's not the main body, it's the tail, if it's not the tail, it's an ear, and if not that then it's an extra limb created from the deconstruction of the cat in his arms.

it never makes a sound, lifeless, empty, but it struggles as it lifts a paw in direction of the door. the paw has a black steam-like gas that lifts up from the tips that slowly starts to unravel.

the shadow trembles in guren's arms, it stares, it freezes, and in places where blood meets shadows will the substance splatter onto the ground or coat the boy's hands or clothes. being unable to keep a physical form, the cat's body disappears in odd spots where the blood that cannot has to go somewhere. like a magic trick, pull the cloth from under the glass plates and cups and they'll slide and fall where desired. the desire? guren.

it flattens, it shrinks then it swells as various emotions and lack of control decides its fate.

carrying this cat too could be a plague, the mental strain that comes with it, the owner's own body temporarily breaking down. the failure, the succumbence, the feline sometimes glitching in motion where it moves and then pauses, its paw ending up somewhere else without moving in a complete arc.

the cat uses one back leg, it lazily pats the foot once or twice against guren's chest to make sure it has those. then, even the cat's own back limbs unravel and disappear like smoke. no pain, no nothing, the creature remains in place using guren's support to stay in his arms. ]

[schietto]

[ Dante opens the door, if only because everyone else is busy. This is a hotel, so Guren will see a few other people in the background discussing and staring at an apparent hole in the wall and a car in the lobby that is most likely the culprit of said hole.

there are actually quite a few host body parts lying around inside the hotel, too, like it was its own little tunnel warzone, too, what a mess (but no one seems to be injured.) Dante himself, however, doesn't seem bothered. Or more precisely, he's never seen this place without a hole in the wall and they are in a post-apocalyptic city, so holes in building walls seems pretty acceptable to him. and hosts? whole or part scattered around aren't really much different from them being in the tunnels underground, and even then, in pieces is definitely an improvement.

he blinks, recognizing Guren as someone who was stuck below with him and looks a bit concerned at the state he's in (damn, what happened to you?) he also recognizes the soupy cat that he gave his switchblade to before he left (it looks like it's in worse shape than he saw it last, poor thing, but then again maybe it's because it's not in the shadows...?) still, he's not for small talk and can read a situation well enough to know this isn't a casual visit. he'll step back to let Guren come in, though, since Dante has no reason to assume that he's here for him. it does take him a moment, but he'll finally ask: ]

... Can I help you...both?

[ the delay isn't because he doesn't want to be polite, it's just he's a rich boy that doesn't usually answer doors, nevermind know how to greet someone at one. ]

during the ritual (open)

[panzana]

[Nicola moves quietly through the edge of the ritual space, careful not to cross any lines he shouldn't. At some point during the waiting—because that's all any of them can do now—he produces a small stash of bottled water and protein bars from his bag, distributing them with the same calm efficiency he brings to everything else.]

Here. [He murmurs, pressing a bottle and a protein bar into waiting (or perhaps unsuspecting) hands.] Staying upright and clear-headed matters right now.

[Between gestures, his gaze drifts back to Dante again and again, sharp with concern despite the composed exterior. He offers steadiness to the others because someone has to, and because it keeps his attention from lingering too long on the possibility that this may take more out of Dante than anyone expects.]

pounces on this w both paws finally

[dollpin]

( similarly, it's just one of those things she does not have a true role in, so she'd rather just keep an eye out and keep from getting in their way instead.

which is why it's more on the unsuspecting side when she gets handed a bottle and a bar, blinking owlishly at the gesture before finally recognizing what it is she's been given and brightening up. between thinking about some things, as well as picking apart all of the new things that's happening in her brain space - it's a bit busy! )

Thank youu.

( quieter as well, as to be unobtrusive.

water is the thing she goes for first, though, twisting off the cap and downing a good solid half of it in one go before shaking it off like it's the best thing she's had in hours. phew!

hmm.. how to thank this one.. )

I'll make sure nothing happens to him, if you're worried.

( her eyes follow where his is set, and from there she looks back to the object of their necromancer's attention, where her focus has been. )

At least in the ways we can control, like if Mister Agent ends up unstable ( or becomes something else, ) coming back.