I spent about an hour crying laughing at all the eridian welcoming committee jokes...I had to make one of my own and this came to me as if in a vision :P
Template and original design by @justcakethanks . This entire concept is. Incredible. Thank you for sharing. :D
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I feel like some people don't know that the reason Sabo remembered Ace and Luffy is because of the specific wording in the article. Sakazuki is Akainu's name, but it's also the name of the ritual Ace, Sabo, and Luffy did to become brothers. It was the combination of these names (Ace, Luffy, Sakazuki) that allowed him to regain his memories. Whenever Sabo heard of Fire Fist Ace before, he had some level of familiarity toward the name. But it's the combination of these words, not the act of Ace dying, that breaks through his amnesia.
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for me, a corrupted ford would be evil not in his cruelty but in his apathy. he wouldn't revel in the party or violence or torture like bill and the henchmaniacs would. he wouldn't be using the new powers bill drip feeds him in order to remake reality his own.
he would care more about learning, about exploring, using his powers to change things not because he wants to change things but because he wants to study what he can do. bill would give him access to all the libraries in the multiverse and he would read and read and read. he would explore the wastelands to study the anomalies, he would sketch the strange ways objects and animals and humans have been twisted.
he would avoid people as he travels around gravity falls not because he feels sorry for the survivors, not because their pleas and gurgling cries or grotesque appearances make him feel guilt or shame or empathy. but because he doesn't want to be bothered while he works. he's made more uncomfortable trying to have conversations than by the content of said conversation.
he would still just be ford. wide eyed and eager and adventurous and socially awkward.
ford gave bill the world because he believed it was better off in bill's hands than in humanity's. and he was right! ford spent his entire career (maybe even his entire life!) trying to get people to see and understand that aliens and monsters and magic were real. and with bill in charge, now they know. everyone's eyes have been opened to the truth he has always seen. bill able to give ford this, something he never got for himself.
ford would be evil in that he just wouldn't care. the madness sliding off him like water off a duck's back. he's going to support whatever bill thinks is best, it just so happens that what bill thinks is best also aligns with what ford has always wanted: a world where humanity lives side by side with the strange and mysterious and grotesque and monstrous. ford doesn't see the humans as suffering, or he sees it as an unfortunate but inconsequential side effect. like how they all saw his suffering.
It's been stressful for the Director as he waited at the Professor's bedside. Morphine did some good work on this extremely frail man. Still, he was sleeping a bit long.
When the Director noticed him stirring, He waited… fidgeting in his seat while he waited for Wagner to fully wake up and understand his surroundings. And it did take him a slight while. Wagner's tired eyes settled at the Director quietly for the longest time...
...then groaned when it all came back to him. Waiting in front of the Director's office, got ambushed, starts vomiting blood everywhere like it's nobody's business. Man. It must be so embarrassing...
He sighed, pressing a palm to his eyes.
"What happened?" He croaked. "How long was I..."
[A while, don’t move, Dr. morphine says you need rest.] Replied the Director, informing the professor of the 'official' report. [You coughed up blood and passed out…]
...so that's the narrative.
Well, it's probably not a good idea to make enemies with Morphine (considering that doctor can rearrange his organs whenever they wanted). Instead, Wagner turned his head over to him, and nodded.
"That was about right... I was looking for you." The professor sighed. "The collapsing part, however, was... purely unplanned."
The Director went a little quiet at this.
[...Just visiting me shouldn’t have you coughing up blood…] His horns twisted a little.
"It shouldn't...." Wagner's eyes crinkled as he grimaced. "But I'm feeling fine now."
...
[Dr. Morphine manage to patch few things up that I couldn't… how are you feeling?]
"It's nothing too bad, but my chest scars really hurt. Probably the painkillers running out..."
[Do you need more pain medicine?] The Director rose from his seat as he'd go to peak at the IV pole nearby. Perhaps he could do something about that pain.
"And make me so loopy I can barely converse with you?" Wagner faux-snickered, trying to lighten the situation, paused, then immediately made a face. The kind where it looked like he's biting down a hiss. He even ached his back a little.
"....Mhhhhactually, I could use a small dose. It's getting distracting."
The Director would rise from his chair in response. Slowly, at the usual snail's pace. There's sounds of something happening in the background. Drawers being opened, items being searched. Wagner didn't know the Director knows a little or two about medicine... Or maybe it's because calling for a nurse (or god forbid Morphine) is a bit too much work?
Either or, Wagner appreciated him not adding more people in the room. It'll be too... awkward to talk.
"You... have been waiting long?"
The Director shook his head.
[I've been waiting since i found you admitted here. I got surprised when someone touched me from inside of you…]
He held his head, taking in the correct dose in the syringe. Tapping all the air bubbles out.
[it scared me…i thought you got severely wounded… The infection I placed in you is so weak in you it can barely give me signals of danger…]
He'd walk back towards the patient... finding Wagner following him with his eyes. He doesn't look angry anymore. Sleepy, yes. In pain, sure. But he had stopped looking at him like he was some sort of enemy of the state.
[I was surprised…you came to see me.] He went to give a small dose to the IV, turning the dial on the machine before letting go.
With the pain medicine kicking in, Wagner feels himself relax almost immediately. He can stop straining now. It's very distracting.
Watching Wagner relax, The Director felt himself relax. Gosh… That was worrying. This entire scenario has been worrying from top to bottom. This human was going to make his hair even whiter. Maybe he’d end up looking like Morgane.
...
[...so did you need something from me?]
Now that they're face to face like this, Wagner is… unsure what to say. He finds it hard to admit something he hid away so deeply all along. How do you even begin to explain your fears to someone? How do you exactly tell them in detail why you did what you did? Or apologize? He's never done that before.
…
"The gist of it is I… I want to set our differences." He mumbled. Wagner's face turned away a little. Saying all of this is…. really embarrassing for him. The heart monitor's pretty much sold him off.
"I know I told you to stay away, but…. at the end of it, I understand why you did what you did. And- and I was going to write a letter to make it a little less awkward," He rolled his eyes, a little sarcasm in his voice. "But I guess getting myself bedridden is fine too."
Thanks, body. Thanks, Morphine.
The entity, on the other hand, would muse the though peacefully before he'd hear the heart monitor pick up a little. Huh? What was it now? He would do his best to focus on the conversation, trying to ignore the monitor that beeped faster and faster.
[Please… try to calm down…] A fret of a request, a horn peeking at the heartrate monitor. He then slouched a little, a silent sigh.
[I…usually ask for permission before infecting others. Your incident was just…]
...
[I didn’t want to lose you….]
This human was just so frail… The Director doesn't know if currently he is able to take care of him in the current state of that Infection is in. It's... too weak. Too watered down to do anything meaningful but being a pacemaker. Wagner said he'd be fine, but how 'fine' is he even? What he said and how his body moved is different.
[Which…might be best if I ask now... May I properly infect you?]
His question was slow. Soft. To be as harmless as he could. To make himself small.
[So that I can prevent you from falling more ill…]
…And as a response, the heartrate monitor goes faster, even when Wagner looks very calm on the outside. He made a slight face, eyes gazed away as if thinking.
May I properly infect you?
Well, Wagner's he's already infected anyway. He can't deny that there are perks that came with it. Furthermore, taking it out at the moment can't bode well. It did keep him stable for a while. A full infection might have been able to solve all his sickness in the blink of an eye.
On the other hand, there is a lot of risks attached to an infection. That's why where was a handbook about it he had to study before he came here. About how it works, about the Director... and how how FEN will react accordingly against it. He also knows he can't be the only mole around here.
But most importantly... he couldn't fully trust the Director. Not yet. How would he know if the Director weren't just being nice for the sake of luring people in, just like what the reports say? What does 'properly infected' even entail? Would he become a thrall? Would he start spreading infection like the corpses in the Director's true chamber? Would he lose his sense of self at some point...
...to just become a puppet to a different master?
The heartrate spiked a moment, but overtime it would lower.
"I thought what I have right now was enough…?" He asked, that nervous smile on his face.
Ahh… it's climbing higher. The Director shifted uncomfortably. Just the mention of it made it worse.
[N…never mind, we can talk about it another time.]
He raised a hand, a motion attempting to calm the Professor down. He's sick. He shouldn't be distressed.
[...For now just rest.] The blue parasite horns pressed against each other as he shrimped a bit more.
D'oh… Why was he so bad with humans… But it's not just humans. The entities were hesitant as well. No one likes being infected by him. Even this body took a bit to infect. The Director's insides twisted in a sorrow that has long welled up...
But he quickly composed himself. That feeling was slowly pushed down with a breath.
[Right now, the infection only helps at the level of a... hmm…a pacemaker?] he explained. [It's a very underdeveloped worm; a very diluted version of what I am. I made it so it’d respect everything you wanted… It doesn’t listen, it wont watch. It functions at its smallest capability. And the...]
He moved his hands slowly over his face.
[And the... the… visual part… Your eyes, I mean... usually is kind of chosen... dependent? On the infected.]
…The Director would notice the heartrate monitor calming down when he backed off his advances. Explaining how it works seem to help, too. Wagner hadn't heard him mention anything about mind control.... he wondered of Director left that out on purpose.
Wagner raised an eyebrow. How the infection manifests depends on the host? Huh. It could be a subconscious thing. But he appreciated that it does the bare minimum. Being surveyed is… still scary to him.
"I didn't really feel it in me at all." Wagner mused quietly. "Honestly all these times I had it, I never saw anything different besides my eyes."
[They manifest in different ways in different people.] Director continued. [They're usually more hidden in those infected... But my case is quite.... different.]
He raised his hand to his horn.
[I read that colors in the animal kingdom are usually threats of not to eat me..I wonder why I show off so... blazingly…] The director rambled off, deep in thought.
"You're scary to animals. I don't think your kind is supposed to infect them." Wagner added a musing of his own. "But your colors are highly pleasing to humans, at least in my opinion."
...
"Maybe you're made to be alluring to beings with sentience and high cognitive thinking?"
The Director looked surprised. He lowered his hand to his lap, the same horn lifted to peak at him. He never thought of himself that way. Though, he did find others touching his horns a lot.
[Like the gummy worm? The candy?] He asked, wondering if that's what Wagner meant.
"…like a gummy… hehe-" Wagner shook a little as he chuckled, them grimaced. "Ow. Ow…"
…
"…well…" he looked up to the ceiling. "Human eyes are drawn to movement and bright colors. It's why people marvel at brightly colored mushrooms and pretty birds and butterflies of many colors. We enjoy seeing something colorful… even if usually it means warning or caution in nature."
"It's why packaging and snacks and logos are made with certain choices of colors, usually bright. Maybe… you are brightly colored and eye catching because you're trying to attract certain creatures but repel others your kind isn't targeting…?"
…
"It's just a theory though."
[So you…find me alluring?]
The Director questioned his horns wiggled a little at that. It's the first time he's heard from a human. Or at least, the first in a very long time.
Wagner blinked, and shifts almost so quickly it looks like a jolt.
"I-I mean…! You do look attractive?" He quickly reworded it. Or… attempted to. "Objectively attractive. I…I think? I think the horns are a lovely touch?"
…ahem.
"People mostly avoid you because they know what you can do… but personally I think you look much more 'normal' than the entities I've seen… if that makes sense."
Compliment after compliment. Director felt all nice and warm inside. Its not like Wagner wanted anything from him too, so these were genuine. But when he said something about the other entities...
[They are nice looking too, even when they aren't humanlike. But they are very wonderful.] There's a huff in that telepathic voice of his. [My friends are wonderful.]
He seemed… pushy about this subject. Like, yes my friends are pretty! Don't you say that about them. Wagner's mouth curled up at the corners slightly at that.
"Hey, I'm not saying they're ugly looking… they're just unconventional for most humans. But since you talk so highly of them, I will stop teasing your friends-"
That sudden feeling again. A soft cough, and a grimace. It's one of those small fits that came out of nowhere, and god does the stitches hurt when he started coughing, even though lightly.
"O-ow…" he mumbled after it's over. "Sorry… I didn't tear any stitches right?"
Worry came back to the director. His earlier play turned into his hands raising over Wagner and looking at him quietly. From the patient, at the monitors, and back at him.
[No, your stitches are fine..." He answered once he checked the lack of blood on the bandages and hospital gown. [But… you should rest… this is bad… I thought...]
He looked down and hesitated.
[....I don't understand. How are you not well? Are you sure you don't need a full infection? You won't wheeze like you are now…]
Another question met with another hesitation. Again… so many risks he has to calculate that the painkillers won't allow. It's not just the painkiller... But if he said no, how would the Director take it? He took it badly last time. At worse, he'd force the infection again. His case is unique. There's no data for this.
...
Director can see Wagner averting his gaze. He opened his mouth, as if to say something, but paused and sighed before he finally replied:
"...Like I said, I need more time and space to think." He answered softly. "I'll give you a better answer next time... But let's just... leave that here right now... okay?"
The Director seemed to think it over. Mulling those words over and over again before his arms lower and he would nod.
[Okay.]
...
[Do you want me to stay here? Or will you... be okay resting on your own?] He asked to double check on him.
"You're a busy man… Are you sure you have time to look after me?"
[My secretary can help me keep track of things,] He answered as he tried to ease Wagner's worries. [But if you feel fine, I can go.]
Wagner hesitated momentarily. What he want, huh...
"…you know… not a lot of people visit me by the bedside often." The Professor shifted in his bed. "I'm a little awkward about it… but would you stay until I fall asleep?"
...
[I can do that, yes.]
The Director said as he went to adjust his chair, adjusting to a comfier position. This way, he could make sure he rests properly, right?
[I'll stay till you're asleep.]
Wagner nodded and lets out a soft 'danke schon.' 'The Professor also adjusted himself (the best he can) so he could rest a little better. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath.
And after a moment, his breath evened out. And it seems like he's back to sleep.
...
The Director watched in silence. He observed carefully, checked the monitor time and time again. He made a few mental notes his expression hidden by his horns.
After a while, the man would slowly got up from his seat. A sigh through his nose. He stared at Wagner. When did humans become this fragile. He knew he was sick but he didn't think it was this bad. The stars in his body barely flickered.
Why does he want to…suffer so much like this? He looked so pale, like before, even on deaths door…
His hand raised over Wagner, moving towards his chest...
...
...and grabbed something: the blanket. The hand would bring up the fabric to cover Wagner more… he looked cold and small so... this should help.
With his work done, the Director took a step back, then another. Looking over him again before turning to head out. The door slide open then closed.
…
…As the footsteps echo away from the hallway, Wagner's eyes flutter open, looking at the door. He didn't do anything. The Director didn't jump the chance.
What a dilemma. The Director just proved over and over again that he has integrity and self control. On the other hand, he's so... pushy. Wagner wasn't sure if it's because he truly does care, or hungry to infect... or both.
Morals against instinct, and vice versa.
….After some deliberation, the professor decided he needed more time to sort everything out. Like all mathematical problems, they can approached with different ways to find the solution. He is determined to find an answer.
He's a mathematician. This is his job. The solution should rear its head one of these days. He just... needs more data in order to start the formulation.
