Bail Organa (bailorgana) wrote in incompletedata, @ 2017-09-25 08:37:00 |
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Maybe it wasn't a great idea for Bail to leave Poe for a moment and go off on his own, but he was already stiff and feeling claustrophobic (something he had never experienced before). With his hand bandaged the way it was, cauterizing the wound where his finger had been taken from him, he had little hope when it came to making any climbs in these caves. Disappointing, given that was one of the skills he had to put to use in this scenario. Worried though he was about the blood loss and continued phantom pain from his missing finger, Bail made his way through a connecting tunnel to see what might be ahead. He heard movement ahead and froze, his hand going automatically for the knives at his belt, but he stilled and brought his hands together in a fist instead. No, he thought, immediately assuming he might need to defend himself was not the way to do this. He considered for a moment whether to call out and make his presence known. It could be a damning action or it could not be. Still - "Hello?" Bail called out quietly, his voice echoing in the chamber so much that he winced. After somehow managing to escape that altercation at the Cornucopia alive on the first day, Matt scrambled away from the heat of the action, not knowing where he was headed or what was waiting for him. When it was quieter and all he could hear apart from his uneven footsteps and panicked breathing was the wind rustling and the occasional nature sound, he stopped running and tended to his head wound properly. Blood was pouring out of the nasty rock vs. skull incident and he used a little bit of the water from his canteen to clean out his injury. Not having his heightened senses at least made the pain much more tolerable, and the blood getting into his eyes was little more than just irritation. He spent the night somewhere cold and dark and hard where he could use the environment to his advantage, listening to every little thing echoing off the walls. With no real sense of when day became night and night became day, he just had to assume when he heard the voice that it was sometime during the second day. Matt got to his feet slowly, curling his hands into fists. He knew the voice, but he didn't want to assume that Bail had come here with no intentions of hurting him. Even if Matthew would rather die than hurt a father with a daughter waiting for him back in the compound. "Mr. Organa," he said quietly, hesitantly lowering his fists a little. "Mr. Murdock," Bail said back quietly, giving him a nod even though he knew the other man couldn't see him. "Are you all right?" he asked, venturing closer and relaxing as he did so. "I'm glad to see that you made it out of that - whatever we want to call it that happened on the first day." Force, could it only have been one day, he thought. He was fairly certain that was fact, but he worried that it would soon become clear that they weren't sure how many days had passed by them at all. "Are you injured?" Matt took a step back, still tense, half-expecting the approaching footsteps to turn into a fist in his cheek. When nothing came he visibly relaxed. He probably wasn't the only one feeling miserable but it was a relief to start the second day with familiar and - for now - non-threatening company. “I’m fine.” No, he wasn't, but he'd wrapped the head wound up pretty well and all his mental faculties were intact, so he couldn't ask for much more. “It was a total shitshow. Got assaulted by a crazy lady. Story of my life actually.” A bit of humour to diffuse the grim circumstances around their present situation always helped. For whatever reason Matt seemed to like his women hot and crazy. “Are you alright sir?” "It was ...unexpected," Bail admitted. What, has he anticipated everyone to sit down on their platforms and wait? To hold hands and sing songs? Of course not but that didn't mean he hadn't hoped it wouldn't have resulted in such a bloodbath as it had. "How did you hit your head?" he asked, eyeing the wrap there. "Have you been staying conscious?" Bail always had medics and medical droids around to tend to him and those around him in situations like this. He had less of a reason, then, to know how to deal with it himself. "Yes, I'm fine," Bail said. "Missing a finger but otherwise unharmed. Similarly, was attacked by a crazy woman myself." “What was unexpected? Human nature?” A sad smile spread across Matt’s face. He was very expressive without red round sunglasses to hide behind. He wished he could have done more at the heart of the brawl, but he was feeling pretty dejected and useless. Probably coping better than most people with or without eyes, but he hadn’t really had the opportunity to come to terms with how reliant he was on his abilities until the last 24 or 36 or however many hours it had been. “I uh… I think she tried to bludgeon me with a rock. It’s- things are still kind of a blur. Do you want to-... I mean if you’re still bleeding, I could try and help.” Not much confidence in that offer, and he didn’t have any medical supplies, but Matt knew his way around ‘grievous bodily harm’ and could McGyver something out of what they had if needed. Bail sighed. "I supposed I expected more of us to hold our grounds rather than attacking first," he said, "though perhaps that was an old man's foolish hope after all." He glanced down at his hand. "No, I've got myself all bandaged up, thank you." It was dealing with the pain of a finger that was no longer there that was more difficult. "Can I take a look at your head, if you don't mind?" Sensing things before they came was something Matt took for granted, and he was more grateful than ever that the people around him weren't breaking their habit of warning him before touching him or giving him something hot or cold. "OK." He couldn't say he knew Bail all that well, but having had lunch with him once Matthew thought he got a good sense of the man when he was still able to read people. He trusted the senator enough to let him approach. Matt took a couple more steps backwards until the back of his thighs hit the cragged rock he'd slept (or passed out - he wasn't sure) next to. Sitting down, he started tugging at the wrap he'd made out of one of the spare tops they'd provided. He'd done it up pretty well that feeling around for a place to undo it was surprisingly difficult. He didn't know how bad it looked and he couldn't see Bail's reaction, but Helena had hit him pretty good. The skin was broken, a bit of flesh was exposed and he had lost a lot of blood. Bail crossed to Matt and waited while he worked the wrap off. When it was done, Bail was glad Matt couldn't see the face he made, a cringe and an immediate avoidance. "Did you clean it out?" he asked. That had been the first thing Bail had done, even though water was at a premium. But he knew how important it was to have a clean wound. If it became infected, it could get much worse. "It's a good thing that you woke up though," Bail pointed out. "If you hadn't, or if you were having trouble remaining conscious, I would be worried." "Yeah. Made it out of that scrap with some clean water. Did you want some?" Selfless as ever, even in a very dire situation. The fact that Bail hadn't attacked him in such close proximity made the man easier to trust. But realistically speaking, Matt was at more of a disadvantage than most people in the arena, and he doubted he'd make it for too many more days. He had been as careful as any blind man could be with not wasting the water, but there was little else he could do to close up the wound beyond wrapping it up tight. He could have said they were all going to die anyway, but hope was in short supply, so Matt just pressed his lips into a thin line as his grip tightened into the blood-soaked shirt. "There's a bag somewhere near my left foot. You're welcome to anything," Matt offered as he stretched out said leg and kicked almost playfully into the air, blinking slowly with a small smile. Just water and climbing tools, which might or might not come in handy for Bail. "I have some water on me," he told Matt, "but thank you." If he needed more than he was willing to part with himself, Bail would go for the other man's water supply, however he didn't want it to come to that. He could clean his own water, and not everyone was that fortunate. Bail busied himself, one-handed, with opening his canteen and stepping closer to Matt. "I'm going to use some water on the back of your head now," he told him. "If you'll lean back a bit, please." Bail also let him know he was going to steady himself against him, as he'd be doing this one handed, with his knee against Matt's side. "I've been using a strip from the side of my jump suit, under the arm, as a bandage. Are you willing to part with some of yours as well?" "Oh it's-" All the potential protests escaped Matt's shoulders as he bit on his bottom lip and complied. "...thank you." Having not been here before the Pokemon scenario, Matt didn't know if these were potentially going to be his last few breaths or if he'd wake up in his room in Romeo like this was all just a terrible nightmare, or somehow end up back in his apartment in Hell's Kitchen. Now he was just ever so slightly ashamed, having assumed the worst of his fellow juror and having his suspicions challenged with nothing but kindness. "Um- yeah. Go ahead." There was a bit of uncoordinated almost-flailing as Matt moved with a heavy dose of uncertainty before touching the side of his body, tugging blindly at his outfit. Even having been warned to brace for it he wasn't quite sure what to expect. "All right. I'll start with the water." He poured a tribble of water - not too much because he didn't want to waste any more than was necessary - over Matt's open wound, letting the blood wash down and soak into his back, dripping against the rocks. "Does it hurt badly?" he asked quietly as he did so again with the water. Then he capped the canteen and tucked it back into his bag. As he allowed the water to do its job, Bail tore a strip off from underneath Matt's arm, from his jump suit. "Even if you've sweat in this, it should be clean enough a bandage." He worked it along the head wound, cleaning it up, and then rewrapped it similar to the way that Matt had it before. He gritted his teeth as his knuckles turned white, but Matt, sucker for pain that he was, took it like a trooper without moving too much and didn't say anything. For once it actually helped that his senses weren't dialled up into overdrive. The sharp jolt of pain wasn't as intense compared to what he was used to after a night out fighting well-trained unkillable ninjas, and the odd sensation of water trickling down his back soaking into his clothes wasn't all that uncomfortable either. Of course, he'd rather suffer through everything if it meant getting his enhanced senses back than sit around like a useless paperweight waiting to die, but it wasn't like he was being presented the choice. "It's fine. I-" For a politician he was being uncharacteristically nice. Was it too ridiculous to think that politicians might be different in different universes? "You've done more than most people would for me." Or should. Matt still couldn't help but feel like he was a waste of resources. "So a lawyer and a politician end up in a cave. Some funny life, huh?" "I don't believe that I ought to disavow my beliefs and morality simply because I've been put into a kill or be killed scenario," Bail responded simply. He would hold true to himself as much as he could, no matter what game was being forced upon him, a game that he was expected to play. He would have prefered if everyone had held the same desire, but it was clear that wasn't the case at all. Bail smiled, just a little. "Yes, well, it does sound like the start of some kind of joke." When he had finished up, Bail stepped away. "It's not perfect," he said, "seeing as I was doing most of it one handed, but it should be clean and remain that way." "I'm... not sure that everyone in the facility has a functional moral compass." As much as Matt would like to subscribe to the notion of not saying anything about people if there was nothing good he could think to say about them, a few of the people he had come across wandering around the different blocks really needed... some sort of help. Or to be kept away from the rest of them, if nothing else. At least he wasn't singling anyone out. Matt didn't need eyes or his normal hearing back to know when Bail was admiring his handiwork. It had his smile widening as he ducked his head a little sheepishly. He hadn't spent that much time dwelling the fact that only one of them was going to make it out of this free-for-all alive. But he knew that only the worst of them would survive. The thieves, the liars, the killers, the traitors - they'd be the last ones left standing fighting selfishly between themselves. Good people - the kind-hearted, the selfless, the thoughtful, the compassionate - they'd end up thankless martyrs at best. Most likely dead and forgotten, corpses left to decompose in a place like this. There was no room in this arena for love. "Back in the facility there's a lady waiting for her father to come home." The words cut Matthew deeper than would have liked even as he said them softly and slowly. "I'd like to help you along as much as I can." "No, but that is, I'm certain, one of the reasons for this experiment in the first place. We learned a lot about one another during the debates regarding the Constitution. So it really shouldn't surprise me. I've always ascribed to the idea that having hope is better than having despair, so until I am no longer participating in this scenario, I will continue to have hope that the better of us can still shine through." A foolish hope, perhaps, but a hope nonetheless. He frowned at the mention of Leia. "I appreciate that, Matt. I would prefer to return to Leia myself, however, my squad partner - I'd prefer he is returned to her if I cannot." Bail considered that he maybe shouldn't have said such things out loud, but there it was. "Your help is very welcome," he said. Oh. Well Matthew wasn't all that interested in gossip amongst the lab rats, prefering if everyone would just mind their own business and try not to harm others in doing so, but he'd keep that hint in mind if he came across the one who tried to reason with them before they were pulled into this place. Having loved and lost a few people over the years, Matt couldn't say whose voice he wanted to hear the most again if he'd been given the choice. "You've been in the facility for a while, then? Has anyone died in previous... scenarios?" Any chance for silver linings or happy endings, or were they just two hopelessly naive sitting ducks biding their time? "Yes," Bail said quickly. "We spent some time in a city called London, during a war. One out of those of us there was a murderer, and the scenario was to seek out and solve the crime. Many beings were taken, they disappeared really, as though they had been murdered. However no one actually died. I'm uncertain how - that is, no one saw anyone be killed. Not like what happened here." He had been so certain that was the case here as well, but the loss of his finger, seeing the carnage on day one, well, Bail wasn't so sure at all anymore. "Alright." Matthew nodded as a bit of an afterthought. Just because he couldn't see the gesture didn't mean no one else could. Though he'd never been he expected London to be a bit of an urban jungle like New York City. This most certainly was not London. "Well, sitting around and talking about dying is- not how I was planning to go." They should- make plans. Keep moving while they still could. Figure out the allies they could trust and try to outlast this thing. Find proper shelter, food and water. Mr. Pad Thai from the takeaway down the road wasn't of much use in that regard but it wasn't like Bail was Bear Grylls either. The Senator was better off without a deadweight in tow though, that much was certain. Handicapped though he was, Matt was adamant on sticking this out on his own. He couldn't have another death on his conscience. "Thank you again, for your help." Matt scooped up his pack from the floor. He'll keep Bail and Leia in his prayers. Since the Senator wasn’t going to take anything else, the lawyer had nothing better to offer. |