(Log) Return to Castle Schwarzheim

From Megaman Mush Wiki

WHO: Alia, Alloy, Andruw Nisse, Axl, Cinnamon, Michael Eildath, Quiet Man, Sewa, Signas
WHAT: Signas returns to Castle Schwarzheim. But something is not quite right.
WHERE: Castle Schwarzheim!
WHEN: April 1st, 2221

Castle Schwarzheim - Portcullis

Built into the base of the southernmost tower of the castle, the portcullis and main gates are baroque structures that look untouched, wrought iron bars able to seal the castle off from any intruders. A wide stone bridge replaces the drawbridge one might expect, but there is a moat that sweeps around the castle.
The trained observer, however, might notice the modern touches given this ancient building. Gun emplacements are artfully hidden in the walls, and the space between main gate and portcullis can be sealed off and fired into from these places. The stone bridge is, in fact, a drawbridge still, the stone blocks of the bridge being the disappearing variety. Finally, an honor guard of mechaniloid soldiers, made to resemble ghostly Germanic knights, guards at all hours.
From the gates, the crest of the Schwarz family flies, as well as the emblems of the Mavericks Hunters, leaving no doubt whose castle this is.

What a beautiful evening. The moon is clear. The stars are bright (and /visible/, which is new!). Elsewhere, justice is being served. Elsewhere elsewhere, be-tentacled scientists are up to no good. Thrice elsewhere, a small child is wishing upon a star.

Here, on the outskirts of Castle Schwarzheim, a long-awaited homecoming is just about to begin.

Early warning systems are the first to pick up the hulking figure, lurching towards the Hunter base. Each step seems to take an eternity. Each gained meter a Herculean trial. Briefly, the moon illuminates the creature.

Signas.

The Great Apologist.

It's all but impossible to recognize the rogue Hunter. A torn brown cloak hangs in tatters over his armor, which seems to be held together by little more than sheer willpower. Scratches and scorch marks rest atop yet more scores and gouges. His armored greatcoat is hardly even black any more. Even his hat is bent and crumpled. One of his massive shoulders is missing entirely.

Even so, he is smiling. A look of pure, unmitigated joy lights up his ruined face. It is this uncharacteristic expression, more so than all the damage and grime, which casts the figure's identity into doubt. After all, when was the last time Signas smiled?

Finally, Signas lurches to a stop, just outside the stronghold's walls. He looks up, up, up. A hand raises, inch by inch, towards his head. And the Hunter salutes the castle.

[Radio: (A) H Chat] Bomb Man chuckles briefly "Don't worry mike. I know where to look, trust me on this one".
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Michael Eildath transmits, "It's habit. I know you do"
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Alloy transmits, "What the-"
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Alloy transmits, "/Signas/?"
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Signas transmits, "Hellooooooo Dream Castle Schwarzheim. I would like to come iiiiin."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Alia transmits, "Well well well. It's good to hear you again."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Prismatic Spider transmits, "Hello, Signas!"
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Magma Dragoon chuckles. "Indeed it is."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Alloy transmits, "Yeah...yeah, just a sec, I'll get the door!"
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Guts Man transmits, "Wait a minute, how do we really know it's you?"
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Alloy transmits, "Beeeecause it's his IFF code, he has our frequency, and...oh fine, I guess you're right...we'll meet you out there, Signas."

Michael Eildath has been waiting around for Signas to get back. Truth be told, Mike's more than a little worried about him, what with how reclusive he's been for the last few months. Alpha was certainly worried about him, and it would be a disservice to her memory to just let his return slide by without a little attention.

Having picked up Signas on the radio, Mike signals the castle defenses to allow him in, walking briskly towards the gate, eager to see the Hunter stick in the mud again, even if he is a little wigged out by his behavior.

[Radio: (A) H Chat] Bomb Man transmits, "Do you think you can get the civilians to safety dr spider. I think I can handle the bombs."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Signas transmits, "Ha ha ha. You are all so careful, I am so proud."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Guts Man transmits, "You're still lame."

Alia knows Signas has had a rough go of it.. but she was trapped by her own problems with the war in Iberia and elsewhere. By the time there was time for it again, Signas had vanished from the face of the Earth for a while. She surfaces now, looking a bit banged up herself, but on the mend, leaning against the exterior walls of the castle as one of the remaining satellites in the network tracks her younger brother's progress for her.

She looks tired. But this is the sort of thing that makes feeling tired sometimes worth it.

[Radio: (A) H Chat] Bomb Man transmits, "uh..Have we met?"
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Signas transmits, "We must have, or you would not be in my dream."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Bomb Man transmits, "Hooooooooookayyyyy."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Prismatic Spider transmits, "All right. I'll begin evacuation procedures."

Alloy was himself a prodigal son, so to speak, during Signas' absence. The hacker's return was not nearly as dramatic as this one, however. The porticullis rises, allowing Hunters to come out to meet Signas, and Alloy arrives shortly thereafter, pausing in the shadow of the ancient stonework to regard the looming figure. He looks like he's been through a fairly harsh flavour of hell.

He glances at Alia, leaning against the wall, to see how she's reacting to her brother's return.

[Radio: (A) H Chat] Bomb Man transmits, "Right-o. This guy might be kidding but I wouldn't trust it. He's a fricking maniac after all."

Signas has been long absent from Castle Schwarzheim. Cinnamon had lunch with him once or twice; she was worried, and Alpha had asked her to try talking to the elder Hunter. Lift his spirits a little. She wasn't sure if it worked; Cinnamon didn't want to press. She didn't /know/ him, not like she knew the other Hunters, and, well, it felt a little intrusive, honestly. But she had to try. Alpha asked.

Signas piped up yesterday out of nowhere and said he'd be coming back from his leave. Cinnamon spent the day going over the UN proceedings on the new charter, getting herself as up-to-date as possible, and then returned to the castle. Without an exact time, it feels like forever -- is Signas really coming back at all? He sounded pretty off-balance. Maybe he was lying, maybe...

But nope, it's true. Cinnamon exits the castle from some upper floor and barrels down the stairs in the manner of energetic youth everywhere as Mike opens the gate. She slows her rampage when she catches a glimpse of the rogue Hunters's state; he looks terrible.

Signas speaks into his radio for a while, eyes closed as he communes on the Hunter frequency. Once his eyes open, it takes a long moment for them to register the new arrivals. Slowly, they focus first on Michael, then on Alia.

"Oh hello Michael Eildath," he says cheerily. "And Alia! I should have known my older sister would meet me here in my dream." His joyous expression transmogrifies into one of overstated concern. "But you look so /tired/, Alia. Why would I imagine you as so tired?" The Diplomat contemplates this for a moment, before his attention is arrested by Alloy's stealthy arrival.

"Alloy, you are looking particularly blue today," he says by way of a compliment. The smile returns, directed at the amiable reploid. "So many to see me! What next, Cinnam-"

Of course, Cinnamon IS next. Signas turns, squinting briefly, then smiling again. "Ha ha ha. Of course! Because it is my dream, I can control what happens and who is here. Hello Cinnamon! You are looking ebullient as ever."

Signas then begins his disconcerting lurch again, heading towards the porticullis. "Thank you for opening the gate, I think I will go to see Rock now. I know he is dead in the real world, but in my wonderful dream it is Blues who is dead instead."

Michael Eildath bites his lip. He has /no/ idea how to approach this. He can't even conceptualize Signas kidding around... so... has he gone bonkers?

Mike shoots Alia, Alloy, and Cinnamon a triple helping of worried look.

[Radio: (A) H Chat] Zero transmits, "Mac took out Lumine after Loom took out that wacky Samedi guy... There other Irregulars or Yakuza still on board?"
[Radio: (C) A Chat] Mac transmits, "Where's the nearest UN controlled dock."

Instead of being overly shocked by Signas' slightly odd display, his elder sister looks up at him and smiles faintly, "It's been a long time," she says softly, "And a hard fight." She has the look of someone who has been extensivly repaired recently. Which means she probably got the everliving snot beaten out of her recently. "But we should compare your dreams and reality. Perhaps we can find some common ground?"

[Radio: (A) H Chat] Sing transmits, "No."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Sing transmits, "Cass caught a ride on Cyber Peacock."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Zero transmits, "Cass is riding Cyber?" Pause. "3...2..."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Sing transmits, "Don't go there, Zero."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Sing sounds like he means it.

Alloy /does/ look mildly worried. Signas is still doing the whole 'dream' thing and acting like he's spaced out. The hacker raises an eyebrow at Alia, and turns to Signas, switching his vision through different spectrums to sweep his body. He hasn't been, like, rigged with a bomb by Epsilon or anything, right? No...Epsilon wouldn't do that, but some of his subordinates would.

"Uhhh, yeah. Blue. THanks, Signas." is the only response he can manage to muster. /Teal/ is his primary colour.

[Radio: (A) H Chat] Zero transmits, "Sorry. Just trying to keep things light in a dark world."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Sing fehs.

Cinnamon, who works with crazy people all the time, looks only mildly concerned. She exchanges the glance with Mike, briefly, before reaching the bottom of the stairs and heading on over to join the little pack.

"I'm pretty sure it's not a dream," Cinnamon says, tugging at her hair briefly. "But, um, you wanna go get some ice cream? -- and get you fixed up and stuff too."

Signas looks puzzled by Alia's words. "Yes, it has been a long time," he replies a length. "What do you mean, compare my dream to reality? There is no comparison." He holds up a huge white hand, fingers loosely curled, and pulls back a finger for each point he makes. "In my dream, Blues is dead. There are no more zombies. The Ashfords are defeated. I can see the stars. Epsilon's Irregulars are a force for good." At this point he runs out of fingers, splays his hands, and sort of shrugs. The gesture is awkward for the current asymmetricality of his shoulders. "What is to compare?"

Alloy's scans will reveal nothing out of the ordinary, aside from a level of damage which would, in most circumstances, represent unconsciousness. No bombs. No Trojan Horse. No Trojans, even. "You are most welcome my friend," Signas replies, then pauses in his hobbling progress to regard Cinnamon. His eyes narrow. "Am I damaged?" he asks quietly. "I feel fine. I feel /great/." A pause. "You're not trying to trick me into eating /peanut brittle/, are you?"

Michael Eildath is nervously silent. Leader training never prepared him for this. Wait. He didn't have Leader training. Damn. "Signas? How long have you been out in the field?" He'll try the vaguely diplomatic approach.

Alia smiles faintly at this and pats Signas' arm reassuringly. He's definitely been out in the cold too long now. Hopefully a few days back in civilization will solve the matter. "We shall see what we shall see," she replies. This definitely reminds her of her own brif brush with SAN loss after dealing with that Colour Out Of Space.

Alloy stares. What the hell is Signas on? ...at least he's clean. So now it just remains to figure out what happened to him out there.

"...tell us, Signas. What happened before you went to sleep last?" he asks with some trepidation. Ice cream and fixing is a /good/ idea, though. Alloy gestures for Signas to come on in, they can talk while they walk. "No peanut brittle, no fear." he adds.

Cinnamon has never personally dealt with issues of sanity. Nope! Paragon of virtue, right here. Perfectly normal.

"No peanut brittle," Cinnamon promises, nodding in agreement with Alloy. None! No rocks, either. Signas probably needs some new teeth.

"C'mon in, let's get you cleaned up," Cinnamon goes on, taking a couple steps towards the castle's interior to lure everyone back inside. "It's too dark out here anyways."

Signas takes a moment to ponder Michael's query. "A... while?" he ventures, uncertainly. "I'm not, uh, I'm not sure. I was very angry so I went out to fight zombies." To Alloy, he frowns. "Well, let me see," he begins. Time passes. "I am not clear on that in my memory banks," he finally allows. "I think I have been asleep for a long time. Since... since Dr. Light and Dr. Wily died? Did that happen?" Signas is looking more and more confused. Nonetheless, he limps along behind Cinnamon as she enters the Castle, mumbling something under his breath as he goes. "This... this is a very strange dream."

Michael Eildath follows. "You definite earned a good night's sleep, Signas," Mike says with a reassuring smile, looking up at the much taller Signas. "And yes, that happened. They both passed, and much more besides. It's a long story, and it'll take a while."

For the moment, Alia falls silent, walking along with the others as they head back inside. She's still not entirely back at a hundred percent herself, quite yet, and needs some additional time to recouperate from her injuries during the Robot Master raid on that convoy. Perhaps she can find a moment to sit down and relax once more shortly.

[Radio: (A) H Chat] Bomb Man transmits, "The bombs were a fake it appears."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Prismatic Spider transmits, "What!?"
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Bomb Man transmits, "well I found one active but that appears to be it. He may have hidden other active bombs around, but I wouldn't be on it."

Alloy waits until Signas has passed by, falling in once he's passed and radioing the Deployment Center to close the porticullis again. "Right. Yeah. I think we better get Edward to look at you." he murmurs, still exchanging worried glances with everyone else.

Axl has arrived.
Alloy enters the Main Courtyard.
Alloy has left.
Cinnamon enters the Main Courtyard.
Cinnamon has left.
You enter the Main Courtyard.

Castle Schwarzheim - Main Courtyard

The stately courtyard of an ancient castle, there is no sign here that the structure had ever fallen on hard times. Stone walkways criss-cross the broad courtyard, lined by elegant rows of neatly-trimmed shrubbery. The towers that line the castle walls can be accessed from this central area, as well as the larger main hall set at the northern end of the courtyard.
The grass here is green and bright, and flowers grow year-round, carefully tended to by Roll and mechaniloid gardners. In fair weather, this is an excellent gathering place, chairs and tables set near a stand of trees for outdoors entertaining, and a small reflecting pool teeming with tiny fish. A horseshoe pitch and set of archery targets line the southern walls, hints of a less technological past.

Axl arrives from the Portcullis.
Axl has arrived.
Alia arrives from the Portcullis.
Alia has arrived.
Sewa arrives from the Launch Bay.
Sewa has arrived.

Alloy strikes Sewa with his When Boytoys attack.

"Stop," Signas says suddenly, suiting actions to words. He looks introspective. "You said Blues is dead and that I am not dreaming," he states in a voice that sounds ALMOST like his own. "What... what..." he trails off, struggling for words. His hands open and close, gesturing helplessly. "What /proof/ do you have that... that I am not... that this is..." his hands wave around at the castle, the people, the grounds. Everything. "Is... /this/?"

The Diplomat's beatific expression has disappeared, leaving him with a look of stern confusion. "I... am... /dreaming/!" he says confidently. Then: "Am I not?"

Michael Eildath arrives from the Portcullis.
Michael Eildath has arrived.

"Not.. it isn't a dream..." Alia says, perhaps a touch sadly. But for whom is she feeling sad? The memory of her half brothers? Everyone else? The teacher she thought she knew? Perhaps all of these and more besides. "Protoman is dead... But so is Rock." She pauses. "We have a new nephew, though, who carries his name." This is how she is handling the confusion over Copy Rock. He is not REALLY a failed ressurection attempt, or he does not seem to be such a thing to her. He is named for his creator's brother. Other possibilities, for the time being, she is not entertaining.

Michael Eildath shakes his head. "You're not dreaming. Blues is gone. Along with so many others." He doesn't mention Chroma, Poseidon, or especially Alpha. Now is not the time.

And as if to add things even worse, there's another Hunter that comes out of the Triage Center, rubbing an eye and just staring on ahead blandly. He JUST got up and the field go from the medics to leave medical care from the last battle, and what he see entering are a bunch of people with...a strangely familiar shape. He decides to wander over, increasingly curious and sobering up, until he notices who they are all gathering around to. "...Signas?"

Cinnamon glances over at Signas, briefly, and wonders.

Very carefully, while Alia and Mike are still talking, Cinnamon reaches over, middle finger curled down and braced against the inside of her thumb.

She flicks one of Signas's chest gems. Hard.

Sewa has a screwdriver hidden behind one f her ears, and she is humming a little melody. She seems to be in determinedly high spirits, almost as if someone created clone double of her ex boyfriend without his memories but an appearance that was very similar to his or something.

She spots Signas and a whole bunch of people, and blinks twice. "Gosh, what's up everybody?"

[Radio: (A) H Chat] Prismatic Spider coughs. "Thanks, Bomb Man."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Bomb Man transmits, "No problem doctoc spider. (munch munch) Shame he got away though."

Andruw Nisse has arrived.

Signas shakes his head. "No. That does not make sense," he replies. "I can't, I can't, I can't... NNGH." Signas stumbles, and it's a long ways to fall. Fortunately, he manages to arrest his downwards progress against the wall, sliding more slowly down into a seated position. Which basically just puts him at eye level with the others. And his eyes are more than a little wild.

"I have the most /precise/ CPU of /any reploid alive/!" he shouts suddenly, digging both hands into the floor of the castle. "I WOULD KNOW IF I WAS DREAMING." The eyes look up, locking on to Axl. "AHA! You believe me, don't you? This is a dream! I am dreaming and when I wake up everything will be TERRIBLE again and you will all say 'Signas go outside to the press! Signas explain why we had to blow up a power plant! Signas apologise for us! Signas! Apologise! GOOD BOY SIGNAS! NOW EXPLAIN WHY BLUES COMMITTED GENOCIDE HA HA HA YOU CANNOT. SIGNAS YOU ARE TO LAUGH.'"

Signas reaches up and grips his head between his great white hands. "NNNGH! COMPUTE! THINK! DECIDE! APOLOGISE!" Fingers drag their way down the sides of his face, peeling synthetic skin as they go. "Protoman cannot be dead because if Protoman is dead then I do not have to apologise and if I do not have to apologise then WHAT AM I?!"

"Um," Sewa sounds startled, "A rational reploid with an appropriate amount of self confidence?" She cowers a little, but only a little. She hugs a little dog plush doll that she has retroactively been carrying with her.

"You are you," Alia says simply as she pauses, waiting for Signas to settle down. A week or two ago, perhaps, she would not have been able to say something like that. She then considers the riddle of Protoman for a moment before she says, "And Blues was a dick." Which is, perhaps, the most undiplomatic thing she has ever said about Blues in living memory.

Andruw Nisse finally makes it down to the party. As it were. As a new member of the Hunters' diplomatic team, he has nothing but respect for Signas, who is, in a matter of speaking, his boss - and infinitely preferable to Isaac. Finally, the opportunity to meet the titan of the...

Andruw lifts a finger, opening his mouth in a probably overly cheerful greeting, only to see Signas having a breakdown. His finger drops and his mouth hangs open for a moment before he seizes upon the appropriate thing to say, raising his voice so that he may be heard across the distance: "Someone with a much easier job!"

Michael Eildath backs up. He wonders what there is to say... and Feste says it for him. That man just earned his paycheck.

Well, at least it got /something/ out of him.

Cinnamon flinches as Signas slams up against the wall and then slides back down again -- and before she can even move to help him up or ask anything, he explodes into shouting. And it's true! This is what he's been frustrated over for months, and it's been getting worse and worse. What can she say?

She doesn't have to worry about it because other people say it for her. Cinnamon flashes a grateful look to Sewa and Alia and Feste -- Andruw, whatever he wants to go by now -- and does the smart thing, which is to keep her mouth /shut/ this time.

That 'sudden' outbreak stuns Axl, leaving him lifting a finger with his eyes bursting wide for a few seconds. That's when he notices his wide, wild crazy eyes. "Uh..." he begins to say, eyes flicking to the others a bit. Is that what Signas has been gone over all thoses months? Blues' dickery? Seems likely. "Yeah, he was." He says after Alia. Poor Signas...he never imagined to see him like /that/.

"Whoa, whoa, hold on Signas!" Alloy says, stepping over to grab one of Signas' hands before he tears his whole damn face off. "You're...uhhh...yeah." he trails off as other people start offering suggestions. Andruw's is particularly good, if inappropriate. "Signas, you're very much awake. Here, lookit the flame." he says, remembering something that worked on Cossack the last time he went into a psychotic...something.

The hacker reaches into a pocket for a lighter, holding it up in front of Signas' face and lighting it, creating a flickering flame. Look at the flame, Signas. Focus on the flame.

Signas goes silent, lowering his head down to his knees. As everyone chimes in with the same set of information, the wildness begins to drain out of his eyes. His hands fall back to the ground, limp. "I see," he says, the words slightly muffled by his knees. He turns his head slightly to regard the flame. It dances in his eyes, which seem almost dull. "I see," he repeats. "I am awake."

Signas does not move once he has reached this decision.

"I am awake and the world has changed." He begins to recite, in a monotone. "Datum: Blues is dead. Datum: Rock is dead. Datum: Dr. Light is dead. Datum: Dr. Wily is dead. Datum: The Ashfords are dead." There is a barely-perceptible pause. "Blues... is dead." A slightly longer pause.

"Oh my."

Ever so slowly, Signas pushes himself back up the wall, until he is in a reasonable facsimile of standing. "Very well. I have analysed the data and reached several conclusions." His eyes are clear, sharp in his damaged face. His mouth has a slight downwards curve at the corners. Signas looks down at the tattered cloak and, with a look of vague distaste, tears it off, tossing it away. "I am Signas. I am a Hunter. I am a Diplomat. And yet, this has brought me nothing but misery. For years. YEARS." He shoves himself roughtly off the wall, tottering for a moment before he gains his balance. Signas straightens, as much as he can considering the shape he's in, and winces only slightly as he clasps his hands behind his back. "I do not plan to be miserable any more," he says, with steel in his voice. "I am a Diplomat and I am a strategist and I am a soldier and I am a Hunter. I am not a joke. I am not a punching bag." His eyes harden, the last vestiges of uncertainty dispelled. In its place: Signas. Stern eyes survey the gathered Hunters. "From this day forth, you will make your OWN apologies."

Signas turns towards Michael. "I will be returning to active duty now, Mr. Eildath," he says, raising his hand to salute his superior officer. But as he holds the salute, it begins to dip. Drastically. The saluting hand slides down to his nose, then his chin. More observant individuals may notice that his arm is, in fact, falling off. A final cable snaps, and it crashes to the ground in a castrophany of metallic clanging.

Signas remains stoic. "Once my injuries are repaired, I suppose."

Andruw Nisse stands nearby, looking happy and helpful. "I can still do quite a lot of apologizing!" he offers cheerfully. "I mean, so long as you don't mind." He laughs disarmingly.

Quiet Man arrives from the Grand Hall. Quiet Man has arrived.

Michael Eildath returns the salute in crisp military fashion...

And winces as Signas's arm falls off. "Yeah. You're welcome to return... when you're all in one piece." He gawks at the fallen arm for a moment or so, and then smiles.

"And I won't ask you to apologize for us. The days when we had to sit and be constantly embarassed by the actions of our own are over. So long as I'm in command, there'll be responsibility and accountability."

...and the vague hope he won't have to force either of these on Blaze Heatnix or Sol Salamander...

The elder sister of Signas reaches down and picks up his arm where it fell down, "Yes. Repairs are probably a good idea," she remarks. She then regards the arm. "Roll put a lot of effort into designing this arm, you big goof."

Quiet Man walks casually into the courtyard, and stops. He thought that was Signas' voice. The Overlord approaches those gathered, his optics lingering on the fallen arm for a few moments. There is a curt nod to Signas.

"Sorry?" Sewa quivers. "I can. Uh. Get that?" She gestures to the arm, "Or do you want to, uh." She trails off for a moment, "Something...?"

She is pretty unsettled. She inches towards the fallen arm. "Good as new?"

Cinnamon flinches again.

"Um, maybe the ice cream can wait," she is forced to admit.

The younger brother of Signas, Axl, stares at the arm falling off. He ponders, idly, that if he was under that, he WOULD have been squished by that. Not a pleasant thought.

"Welcome back around, Signas. That's the spirit!"

Click.

Alloy steps back as Signas stands up, his brows scrunching as he stares at the self-declared diplomat. And Hunter. "...right." Clang, there goes his arm. "Good to see you're back with us." He hesitates. Alloy has certainly done his share of things to cause Signas grief, but he feels he knows Signas' pain, his helplessness in a world gone mad. Well, Signas seems to be handling his own problem well enough.

"Yes sir. Thank you sir," Signas replies. "I appreciate your dedication to decorum." If his face wasn't mostly in tatters, he might be blushing slightly as Alia picks up his fallen arm. "I appreciate you giving me... a hand... Alia," he says, face carefully expressionless. "There is much to do. Hello Quiet Man, it is good to see you."

Signas nods to Sewa. "It would appear that I am in need of extensive repairs," he says neutrally. "Apparently zombies have sharp claws and teeth. And yes, Axl, Alloy. Things are much more clear now than they have been in quite some time. Thank you for your assistance in this matter." He looks up. "Thank you all for your assistance and understanding. I assure you that I will not be... incapacitated in such a manner again. Andruw, I will be happy to assist you with your duties when it is required. Your task is a difficult one, but you will perform it more ably than I."

Andruw Nisse grins, even if there isn't a whole lot immediately applicable to grin about. He just likes to smile. And this seems like a good occasion for smiling. He holds his hand out and then thinks better of it. "If you had a free hand, I'd shake it," he says to Signas. "Not to worry! And give yourself a little more credit. This is a team effort, being too much for any one person." He waves his hand dismissively. "I look forward to the challenge, but also to the benefit of your superior experience."

For the moment, Terrible Robot Killbeast Strength will handle Signas' arm. Alia has very little difficulty holding it up and bracing it against her shoulder. She doesn't have a great deal to say, though her expression is one of faint bemusement, since Signas is back.. and apparently feeling better now.

Michael Eildath snickers at the comment to Alia, stepping back to clear out of everyone's way. For once, Mike /doesn't/ need to be in medbay, and he aims to keep it that way. "Well, at least you won't have to worry about zombies for a while. We think they're all dead." He takes a deep breath, suddenly realizing that he /can/ without wearing a breath mask. God, the last two months sucked.

"Y, yeah." Sewa says...but the zombies were all dead for weeks. "You've been injured for that long?" She fidgets a little,and coughs into her fist. "Um... Should we take you to the uh... medical...?" She's still a little shellshocked. Especially with how Signas is acting now.

"Place's free," Axl says, thursting a thumb in the triage center's direction. "I mean, I just got off the damn bed, y'know?"

"Yes," Cinnamon replies to Sewa in lieu of Signas saying anything. Because he is going straight to medbay or by gosh Cinnamon is going to /drag/ him there. Although they may have to anyways. Get ahold of yourself, Signas! You're falling all to pieces!

"We're glad to have you back," Cinnamon says to Signas, quietly, and takes a couple steps towards the medbay in an attempt to further urge the party onwards. There's probably some more discussion to have before Signas is /really/ back, but that can wait until he's fixed.

"Yes, of course. We are a team," Signas says, more to himself than to Andruw. He nods, somewhat distracted. "It is good to hear that they have been defeated," he says, in reference to the zombie situation. "They were... unpleasant." Turning towards the Triage Center, he begins to make his way inside. "Yes, I have been in the field for quite some time, it appears. Months, now that I have synchronised my internal chronometer. Most disturbing."

Signas shoots a stern glance towards Axl as the younger Cainbot speaks. "The /dang/ bed, Axl. We must set an example, and foul language is hardly exemplary, regardless of what Clint Eastwood might have thought."

His expression shifts a few degrees towards a smile. "It is... good to be back," he replies, then limps his way into medical.

The Blonde Bomber follows after her brother. She will at very least see to it that he is in the hands of medical staff and being worked on before she returns to the rest of the castle proper. She's had her run in there, the medics don't want her back in there for a WEEK unless she's a head in a box.

You enter the Triage Center.

Castle Schwarzheim - Triage Center

The western tower of Castle Schwarzheim has been taken over by the medical and science teams of the Maverick Hunters, and while it seems austere on the outside, inside it little resembles the castle it rests in, save for the smooth stone floors.
While technically designated as a triage center, the medical facilities of the Hunters are some of the best in the world, able to treat humans, reploids, and everything in between. Most injuries are treated in a clean and modern operating center, with multiple tables and lots of space for equipment and medical personnel, though there are several sealed off intensive care and clean rooms for serious or dangerous injuries.

Michael Eildath arrives from the Main Courtyard.
Michael Eildath has arrived.
Alloy arrives from the Main Courtyard.
Alloy has arrived.
Cinnamon arrives from the Main Courtyard.
Cinnamon has arrived.
Alia arrives from the Main Courtyard.
Alia has arrived.
Sewa arrives from the Main Courtyard.
Sewa has arrived.

"Hehe." Sewa says, "It's great you came back. Not that...I was around for you leaving, but I think a lot of people missed you!" Boy, Sewa thinks, that's awkward. She follows EVERYBODY ELSE for the MedBay, though she already has her kit out--but one might think it'll take a bigger kit than what Sewa has on her to fix Signas--but these people...ARE WRONG!

Andruw Nisse arrives from the Main Courtyard.
Andruw Nisse has arrived.

Michael Eildath can't help but grin at the correction of Axl's pottymouth. Of course, Mike has no ground to stand on where that is concerned.

[Radio: (A) H Chat] Blaze Heatnix suddenly transmits furiously, "Those ***** ******* ****** got her."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Signas transmits, "If only the profanity filter worked as well in the real world."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Blaze Heatnix is not in a very good mood. "Shut the /hell/ up, Signas."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Signas transmits, "Hmm."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Signas transmits, "No."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Signas transmits, "Perhaps you would like to explain who got whom."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Blaze Heatnix transmits, "Those ******* Ouroborus ******* took off with Berkana."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Signas transmits, "Ah. That is... troublesome."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Sewa transmits, "I'm sorry to hear that, are you gonna be okay?"
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Blaze Heatnix's voice is starting to crack. "/No/ I'm not ******* okay. Those ****** are going to hardcode her, and, and..."

"Thank you, Sewa," Signas replies, pulling himself onto a table. "I am sure they did." This is a lie, but a benign one. No need to disillision the cheery medic just yet. "I am afraid I must rest. I have been awake for a long time now." He lies back, grunting softly as he does. Sounds that should not come from a healthy reploid's body emit from him with alarming frequency. After a moment, his eyes close.

[Radio: (A) H Chat] Blaze Heatnix transmits, "It was all like some kind of ******* twisted game to her."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Sewa transmits, "Well I know you're not, I mean... eventually. If you want something to drink I can make you something."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Sewa transmits, "I mean I know what it's like so if you want to chat! I hope it turns out okay."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Signas transmits, "We will find her, Blaze Heatnix. And when we do, you will lead the charge to bring her to justice."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Blaze Heatnix transmits, "/Damn/ right I will--I'm going to break her so hard that Hi-Max feels it."
[Radio: (A) H Chat] Sewa transmits, "Golly."