Kariya MatÅ (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
waiting_for_the_worms) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
mayfield_rpg2012-09-25 04:16 pm
waiting_for_the_worms) wrote in mayfield_rpg2012-09-25 04:16 pm
Entry tags:
4th Worm
[Well, Rin's party was mostly a success, except for the part where Kariya's last regain ended up getting opened after everyone had gone home. Small blessing that only Rin and Kariya's housemates were really around to see it happen, but the package was indeed full of the Crest Worms he had carried in his body at home, and they wasted no time at all re-infesting every inch of his flesh.
Although it's been a few days, there's just no getting used to this sort of thing, especially when it happens all at once like that. And unfortunately, there are obligations that Kariya has to fulfill or risk being droned. He'd skipped work on Friday to plan Rin's party, and again on Monday while he recovered. And while being droned would be a temporary reprieve, he doesn't want to worry anyone - least of all Rin.]
[Action; Mayfield Elementary School]
[Hey there, Mayfield's brightest young minds. Ready for your writing and spelling lessons today? You might be, but your teacher is clearly not. Mr. Matou has definitely seen better days. It's clearly still him, but his hair has turned stark white and his left eye is completely clouded over. His face is gaunt, as if he hasn't eaten in days, and in a few places it's even possible to see the veins bulging underneath his skin. He walks with a heavy limp, favoring the right side of his body as he slowly makes his way to the front of the room.]
Class--
[And there it is - another heavy coughing fit. It's sickly and wet sounding, and his entire body shudders with the effort. It lasts a few moments longer than is probably comfortable for anyone in the room, and it's a few moments later still that Kariya regains control of himself with a few deep breaths.]
...Open your books to page 32.
[Action; Mayfield Streets; early evening]
[Somehow, Kariya managed to make it through an entire day of teaching. That's two more days he'll be able to go without having to come into work before he's forced into it again. Maybe in that amount of time, he can find someone or something to help him with this little problem of his. He's not holding out much hope, but Mayfield has people with talents he could only have dreamed of back home. The real problem is finding someone, as he isn't exactly in the shape to be walking all over town. But he's got at least enough strength to shuffle around for a few hours since he doesn't have the added strain of maintaining Berserker's summoning on top of dealing with the worms trying to eat him from the inside out.
...Again, small blessings.]
[Action; Salvation Church; night]
[And perhaps subconsciously, Kariya ends up at the church. He knows Mayfield's church isn't full of Executors like Kirei Kotomine, but it's a familiar locale all the same. Maybe he stumbled in here because the church is where he was headed next at home before passing out in an alleyway and waking up in Mayfield. Who's to say, really. But whatever the reason, Kariya throws open the front doors to the church, staggering toward one of the pews in the back row before collapsing into it, his breath heavy and labored.]
Tch... damn... pushed it too far...
[He can barely move right now apart from the motion of his chest as he catches his breath. Even the task of walking around town takes its toll in his current state. And while there are definitely worse places to have to spend the night, somewhere inside Kariya is kicking himself again for being so weak and so useless.]
Although it's been a few days, there's just no getting used to this sort of thing, especially when it happens all at once like that. And unfortunately, there are obligations that Kariya has to fulfill or risk being droned. He'd skipped work on Friday to plan Rin's party, and again on Monday while he recovered. And while being droned would be a temporary reprieve, he doesn't want to worry anyone - least of all Rin.]
[Action; Mayfield Elementary School]
[Hey there, Mayfield's brightest young minds. Ready for your writing and spelling lessons today? You might be, but your teacher is clearly not. Mr. Matou has definitely seen better days. It's clearly still him, but his hair has turned stark white and his left eye is completely clouded over. His face is gaunt, as if he hasn't eaten in days, and in a few places it's even possible to see the veins bulging underneath his skin. He walks with a heavy limp, favoring the right side of his body as he slowly makes his way to the front of the room.]
Class--
[And there it is - another heavy coughing fit. It's sickly and wet sounding, and his entire body shudders with the effort. It lasts a few moments longer than is probably comfortable for anyone in the room, and it's a few moments later still that Kariya regains control of himself with a few deep breaths.]
...Open your books to page 32.
[Action; Mayfield Streets; early evening]
[Somehow, Kariya managed to make it through an entire day of teaching. That's two more days he'll be able to go without having to come into work before he's forced into it again. Maybe in that amount of time, he can find someone or something to help him with this little problem of his. He's not holding out much hope, but Mayfield has people with talents he could only have dreamed of back home. The real problem is finding someone, as he isn't exactly in the shape to be walking all over town. But he's got at least enough strength to shuffle around for a few hours since he doesn't have the added strain of maintaining Berserker's summoning on top of dealing with the worms trying to eat him from the inside out.
...Again, small blessings.]
[Action; Salvation Church; night]
[And perhaps subconsciously, Kariya ends up at the church. He knows Mayfield's church isn't full of Executors like Kirei Kotomine, but it's a familiar locale all the same. Maybe he stumbled in here because the church is where he was headed next at home before passing out in an alleyway and waking up in Mayfield. Who's to say, really. But whatever the reason, Kariya throws open the front doors to the church, staggering toward one of the pews in the back row before collapsing into it, his breath heavy and labored.]
Tch... damn... pushed it too far...
[He can barely move right now apart from the motion of his chest as he catches his breath. Even the task of walking around town takes its toll in his current state. And while there are definitely worse places to have to spend the night, somewhere inside Kariya is kicking himself again for being so weak and so useless.]
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Bazett said you might be able to do something about... all of this.
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...I may not be the only one. Regains can be traded at the Post Office, Matou-kun. Were you aware?
[She doesn't even need to ask, of course this would be a result of a package. In the end, pawning it off just might be the cleanest and quickest way, hence the most efficient solution. But the question is... Would he be willing?]
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[There's just too much risk involved. His house is mostly drones now - who's to say one of them couldn't find the package and open it first?]
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[That's provided that nothing else can be done about it, of course.
She reaches out a hand, looking at Kariya in the eye. She's not going to ask for permission, but the delay and open gesture should at least ease any possible sudden alarms - that is, if he was even aware enough to be on guard to begin with. All she's going to do is take up his limp wrist and press her fingers against his pulse. If he was well, he might feel something like a small tinge, but in his current condition, the wave just might pass under completely unnoticed. ...This is just a quick check, let's say.
...]
You've pushed this body far past reasonable limit. There are other ways, but you should know the difficulty, risks, and likely consequences, do you not?
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What's the difference at this point? If I do nothing, the worms will kill me and I'll be back again in a few days to get eaten alive all over again. If the treatment kills me, the same thing will happen. At least it's better than doing nothing at all. And I'd rather not have to live in fear of one of the drones in the house finding and opening the package while I'm not around if the town mails this back to me again.
[Sighing a bit, he grits his teeth.]
I've already been through hell once. If nothing else, it's taught me how to endure a lot of pain. I know what I'm getting myself into.
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(So this is what Sakura went through, too...)]
I can exorcise the worms, but your rate of survival will be low. There are also things I cannot heal, like the sight of your other eye, or nervous damage already sustained - not on so large a scale. That said, I'd like to know about any specifics of your condition. Are you aware, Matou-san, if the worms have been stringed to behave differently if they feel threatened, or start dying out? [Programmed to kill the host body if that happens, for one possible example.]
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I should probably warn you that they're capable of a form called the Blade Wing Worm - they'll come flying directly out of my body and try to attack whatever is threatening me. I've got some control over it, but the longer this goes on, the less I can force them to stay calm. And once they break loose, it's like trying to close a floodgate.
Tokiomi was able to defend against them with a fire magic barrier without even a scratch, though, so maybe we can get Rin to help. She should know his spells.
[It pains him to admit that last part, but Ciel's trying to help, and he wouldn't feel right not informing her of everything he knows about the worms.]
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[Her gaze is stern, but there is some form of peerless confidence beneath that. She can heal, yes, but Ciel's real specialization isn't in healing. A Burial Agent isn't employed for passive tasks.
...But now that he's brought it up, it'll make her quickly consider the option of forcing the worms out of his body to assume an offensive form by the parasites' own will.]
How much strain does it impose on you when the Blade Wing Worms are summoned? As in, how much prana is consumed during the process? Also, how do they relate to you once they are outside? Do they keep relying on you for support, acting as an extension of you and your prana, or do they become completely independent, like how hair and fingernails relate to the human body?
[It's not worth it if attempting to bait them all out at once burns the host out - which she'd assume would be the likely outcome, but no harm in asking. If they only exclusively feed on Kariya while inside and function separately without requiring further backup when outside, then that'd be good to know and can come in use later under different plans. Hence the hair and nail analogy: they're grown from it, but the body wouldn't be affected if these were to be cut. It'd be a viable way to ensure that nothing is left after performing a primary purge, for one. At any rate, not exhausting the host body past death is just as important as in getting rid of the worms as a whole, so she'll take any tidbit of info that she can get.]
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I'll be on guard for either case. ...You likely already know this, but provided that complete removal is successful, you will be unable to perform thaumaturgy ever again.
[She does remember the time he asked about Servants, so...
Putting that there as a final reminder. She's already got the course of action mostly planned out: set down a purifying circle, and try to purge the body with a powerful sacrament in one go. Leftovers - if any, will be drawn out forcefully and eliminated manually. As for the rest... It'll depend on him.]
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[Kariya's fists clench atop his legs, knuckles going even whiter as the veins in his hands bulge and pulse ever so slightly.]
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Understood. I'll be taking you to a place where you may rest for a bit, then go make the necessary preparations before we begin for good. Are you ready?
[She stretches out a hand. It's an idle gesture by itself, but she is ready to carry him to the back. Into a 'blessed' room, so to speak; the grounds have been consecrated to suppress demonic influences, so it should render the worms in Kariya's body less active. The space has been set up over a year ago, but it was treated as an ordinary room because such a need never cropped up... until now, that is.
Figures that it's always good to be prepared, hm.]
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[Kariya's going to need that help to make it to the back room, so he'll gladly take it, slowly making his way with Ciel. It's a little hard on him at first passing through the threshold, as the worms seem to immediately sense that something is up and push back, but he's able to stumble inside after a moment or so.]
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The trip won't take more than a few minutes. Even without the worms in his body, Kariya might note a sense of serenity inside the white room once they step in and the light switch is flipped on. Simply furnished with a bed, a nightstand, a table and chair by the wall, and a dresser, it really is completely ordinary otherwise. She'll be gingerly helping him settle down on the bed, and that done, step away.]
Will you be okay here for a minute, Matou-san?
[kind of a pointless question, she knows, but... Might as well ask now. She'll definitely hurry though, once she goes back out to get what she needs.]
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I'll be all right.
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I'll be right back.
[And with that, she'll be stepping out for a short few minutes to get a few things. Including holy water - yes, it's a reagent, a clean change of clothing for Kariya later just in case, her roll of Burial Cloth because you never know, and other things of the sort. Kariya might be able to hold his own, nothing really ought to happen inside a consecrated room, but that won't stop her from ordering Seven to keep watch also. If something serious needs to be taken care of, might as well be thorough.
She'll return with everything put inside and wrapped up by a blanket. Setting that aside on the table, she turns back to give the crippled man a final and thorough full-body glance.
...]
May I begin, Matou-san?
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...Ready when you are. Just relax, right?
1/2
She'll saunter back to the bedside, and give a soft but sincere smile of reassurance.]
Yes. It'll be okay, Matou-san.
[He might be blind in one eye, but the other one can still see, and all she needed to cast Suggestion through her Mystic Eyes is a single glance. Kariya Matou might be a magus and possesses more magical resistance than an ordinary human, but this isn't imposing an order. ...It's offering a quiet prayer of peace, for the soul that has no doubt already been weathered through so much.]
2/2
He won't feel anything yet - in fact, the best case scenario would be that he may be close to losing consciousness and falling into a sleepless dream because of her spell. If not, just having him in a calm state of mind is good enough. Just a bit more, now...]
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whelp sorry this took a while
A soft white glow forms within the room. She uses French for her spells, but when it comes to Sacraments, Latin worked best in conjunction with the words of God. It is so that she'll begin to quietly chant the Rite of Baptism. This one miracle that any operative of the Holy Church may learn has the purpose of returning any human body to its original, natural state, though the effectiveness depends on both the subject's condition, and the performer's faith. In this case, the goal is to purge Kariya's body of the worms. While the Rite of Baptism cannot heal dead tissues, it should be able to cleanse his being and keep him alive with what he has left. They're also operating in a calm and controlled environment, so even if Kariya's vitals start dropping after the worms are exterminated, Ciel should be able to follow it up with the Rite of Anointing of the Sick and bring him back to stable levels. She can attempt to prescribe ways to cope with what remains of him - or circumvent the physical failings, even, once he's got some rest and recovers later.
Whether it'll be painful for him or not, that she cannot say. More deployed for physical confrontation on direct extermination missions, Ciel rarely had to perform such rites, though she was educated on the how. At any rate, the glow of the light will gradually intensify, up until it's submerged Kariya's entire body by the time that Ciel's stopped her recital. The purge however isn't slow: the moment she finishes, the Sacrament comes fully into effect to systematically raze any unnatural 'outsider' within his body, that being every single worm hosted beneath his skin, within his flesh, blood, and organs. The process won't last for more than a few brief seconds, and by the time everything's faded back, hopefully he's endured okay...
Ciel will stay vigilant, either way. She's still holding close the possibility, that his body might react negatively or shift into a critical condition once/after the worms are being removed.]
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By the time the ritual finishes, there are maybe a dozen 'cocoons' that have forced their way out of various orifices lying around the bed on the floor of the room - the vessels of those lucky few Crest Worms that managed to escape their host before being cleansed, waiting to hatch into Blade Wing form.
Meanwhile, Kariya's breathing has become somewhat ragged, resembling the pattern he'd exhibited earlier in the night when he came stumbling through the doors to the church. He's still asleep, but clutching desperately at his chest and groaning loudly as he continues to gasp for air.]
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So be it, it's not like these posed any significant threat to begin with. Without so much as glancing down, she takes two steps towards the bed. One hand is now clutching onto three newly-summoned Keys, the other one is empty but starting to crackle with the faintest spark of lightning. If she can provoke the parasites to attack all at once, then she can get rid of them all at once too. Verifying Kariya's health is priority, but it won't take any longer than a few seconds to dispose of the remaining worms she's going to have to face anyhow. So if it's in the way, might as well - as long as she works quickly.
Still, no sense wasting even an instant. The summoned Keys are flung while she advances to take out three bulging cocoons in the back, and just as swiftly, a new set of blades is materialized to take the previous ones' place. She'd repeat the gesture if she had time, but if the worms are hatching and closing in now, then she'll be putting up a barrier of electricity and shift her body to slash through any that comes in close range. Her reflexes should be more than enough, to destroy any that manages to survive the jolt of lightning first. ...Unless any behaves irregularly, or manages to make through somehow nevertheless?]
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That out of the way, she closes the remaining distance between them without further delay. Extending an outstretched hand, she lays an open palm on Kariya's chest as she proceeds to get a better reading of his body and administer clerical aid - as well as a small jolt of electricity composed of mana, her only way to pass onto him a small amount of her own reserves in order to assist with recovery. He might end up coughing (out) more, but that's cleaning up his lungs of any clogging fluid after any freshly injured tissue has been mended shut. The shock itself is comparable to electrotherapy, in part to ensure the nerves and organs are transmitting/receiving/functioning properly, in part to spread the magical energy so that the body would better soak up healing. With this his condition should, in theory, stabilize.
So she'll just continue doing that: keep watch over him, while continuing to maintain the Healing rite. Not going to risk another jolt, though. The move shouldn't cause any damage even on a body like his, but no need to risk overloading the senses either there. Any shift in his condition should be easily observable now, so she'll just wait and be on the lookout for any irregular response.]
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