route_1065 | (no subject)

Who: Gorthan (

shakespearealien) and Dist the Rose (

ortion).
Where: Goldenrod Rocket labs.
When: After Gorthan comes back from his Celadon trip with Agnus.
Summary: Since saying "let's be friends" simply isn't befitting of an Upper Caste Evronian...
Rating: PG?
Log:

Working with Dist was an honor. Although Gorthan couldn't say that he knew the man too well, his insight and expertise were valuable to the Team's projects, and he knew that that kind of knowledge was hard to come across. Not to mention that he sincerely admired the man - his sense of style was definitely something, for one, and always a joy to look at. And then, Dist had found the ultimate solution to a certain problem of Agnus' that would invariably result in Gorthan having to tidy up his office.

Now the two of them had been working on a project of great magnitude, and coordination between them was vital. Even so... there was a bit of animosity between them. Gorthan was Dist's superior, and the Evronian blood in Gorthan's veins made sure that he kept reminding the other scientist of that. They had bickered on at least one occasion. To Gorthan, this was unacceptable - it was unacceptable professionally, because they were expected to work in perfect sync, and it was unacceptable at a personal level, because, let's face it, Gorthan needed friends.

This morning, Dist will find a single pink rose on his desk, with a note attached, written in neat letters.

But the sprout soon stopped growing and began to show signs of blossoming. The little prince, who had watched the development of an enormous bud, realized that some sort of miraculous apparition would emerge from it, but the flower continued her beauty preparations in the shelter of her green chamber, selecting her colors with the greatest care and dressing quite deliberately, adjusting her petals one by one. She had no desire to emerge all rumpled, like the poppies. She wished to appear only in the full radiance of her beauty. Oh yes, she was quite vain! And her mysterious adornment had lasted days and days. And then one morning, precisely at sunrise, she showed herself.
And after having labored so painstakingly, she yawned and said, "Ah! I'm hardly awake... Forgive me... I'm still all untidy..."
But the little prince couldn't contain his admiration.
"How lovely you are!"
"Aren't I?" the flower answered sweetly. "And I was born the same time as the sun..."
The little prince realized that she wasn't any too modest, but she was so dazzling!
"I believe it is breakfast time," she had soon added. "Would you be so kind as to tend to me?"
And the little prince, utterly abashed, having gone to look for a watering can, served the flower.

While Gorthan didn't know how much of a sensitive soul his colleague was, he hoped that, at the very least, his action would serve to put him in a good mood for the day.

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That gesture must have impacted Dist in the way Gorthan hoped, because when he arrived in his colleague's office to continue their work later that morning, he looked rather refreshed for the first time in well, he wasn't sure how long. The pink rose replaced the usual red one in his labcoat's breast pocket, all neatly trimmed to look nice in that particular spot.

He gingerly tapped his knuckles against the doorway of Gorthan's office. "Good morning, Gorthan. Another long day awaits us. Plenty of new discoveries to be made on this outbreak. I eagerly await all of it; how about you?" Even his voice was more chipper and proud than usual.

Well, flattery will get you everywhere with this one, it seems.

When Dist came in, Gorthan was standing with his back to the door, and, sensing the enthusiasm in his voice, he didn't need to turn and face Dist to know that the other scientist had found his small homage. Even so, he turned his head around and smiled at the other man, lowering his eyes to notice the rose. "Good morning, Rose... Ah, you found it. Good."

Even if the present had been anonymous, Gorthan would make sure to take credit for it. He began moving around the laboratory with unnatural slowness and carefulness, holding on to the furniture as if simply standing normally was not the best of options.

The truth was that Gorthan was injured, his loose-fitting clothes concealing a Horn Attack injury on his leg, obtained during a bad encounter with some Nidoran who thought him a threat to their territory. Aside from the pain, he didn't entirely mind it - it was just another reminder of how fragile, how fleeting, how ever-changing everything is.

"If we have enough time today, I would like to see what data we can collect on immunity to the mutations."

"I did. Thank you, Gorthan," he replied. Dist had a feeling it was Gorthan who left the gift, since he came off as a big literature fan when they first met. What brought the gesture on was something of a mystery to Dist though. They recently had a very heated debate, so perhaps it had something to do with that? Well, whatever the reason, he wasn't about to complain. Gorthan sure knew the right things to say, even in the form of prose. It was a very clever choice of words.

Ever perceptive, Dist took notice of Gorthan's odd movements. He squinted, wondering what could be up with that, since he had never seen him move like that. However, he decided not to bring it up, since there was no reason to. Instead, he focused on what Gorthan said.

"I agree. I also find it strange how some are avoiding them," the scientist mused as he continued to watch Gorthan move about, "we never had a case of immunity in our test subjects."

Gorthan sighed, genuinely sad more than frustrated. "As I told you, there was much that could have been made just perfect, and was not, due to a lack of time..."

He found his chair, and fell limply on it, heaving a relieved sigh, as if he had wanted nothing else. The injury was still fresh, from just the night before, and it was hurting like hell.

"If that story interests you, Rose, I could get you a copy of the book. How do you like it so far?"

Edited 2012-07-20 19:20 (UTC)

"And I still agree," Dist reminded, now a few feet away from Gorthan, "I would also have liked to look into dual types for our subjects at some point. Though perhaps we may not be too late for that." The topic of two powers was brought up in Dist's last post, and he had been mulling over that ever since. Why hadn't anyone affected by the radiation received two powers by chance? But that was something to be looked at in the future.

Again, he quirked a brow at his colleague, growing increasingly suspicious that something was up with him. Did the continued use of his powers have some effect on him? While Dist pondered that some more, he answered Gorthan's question. "Oh, it is literature of this world? I would be delighted to finish it if you can find a copy of it. From what you left for me, I quite liked it."

Now that his leg did not bother him as much, Gorthan smiled, a little defiantly.

"You were so suspicious of the potential health consequences of our experiments, and yet your wish is to take them to the next level? While I admire your attitude, does it not strike you as contradictory?"

He briefly mused that taking everything to the next level, regardless of limitations and side effects, used to be exactly the way he operated. Now, after several experiences, at least two of which involved the Duck Avenger, he was much more careful.

"I fear that this world's version of the book will have a few minor differences from the book I came to be familiar with... mostly in the names of the animals. Even so, Rose, I hope you will find it as enjoyable as I do."

Enjoyable, of course, being an understatement, as it was the book Gorthan wanted to be reading when he passed away.

Dist figured that question would come up, and just like before, he wondered how he could word his intentions other than simply, "I'm not the one facing the health consequences, therefore it doesn't matter."

... Actually, he just decided to go with something along those lines. He already explained this to Gorthan before, so he reiterates it. "Gorthan, we have been over this in the past. As long as the subject is willing and is aware of the health concerns, I will be happy to perform an experiment."

In other words, the fact that there are health concerns doesn't really matter to him. Taking things to the next level is indeed the way he operates. Gorthan would simply have to accept that or at least deal with it because Dist didn't have any intention of changing.

There was much Gorthan had to object to what Dist said, but the truth was that he couldn't. And it was not just a matter of remaining loyal to Team Rocket - there was the fact that the narcissistic scientist before him was a mirror in which Gorthan saw his former self. All of his misconceptions, all of his mistakes... were also Gorthan's.

Gorthan's smile faded, and his voice was slow and grave.

"You remind me of someone, Rose. Myself."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Dist replied, obviously a bit agitated now. He wasn't sure what to make of that statement. He didn't think of himself anything like Gorthan. Their beliefs had clashed several times already, so for Gorthan to claim that they are similar hardly made sense to him.

"My younger self, that is." Gorthan specified, his expression unperturbed by Dist's irritation.

"There are several questions I keep asking myself now that I did not then. Unfortunately, my schedule has not changed accordingly, and time remains a rare commodity. I do not doubt that you will keep being more efficient than me." And while he did not smile or give any of other indication that he was trying to please Dist, that was a definite compliment.

Edited 2012-07-29 21:36 (UTC)

It was, and yet it seemed like an odd time to give one. At first, Dist assumed that Gorthan was comparing him to his younger self in a negative way, as if Dist reminded him of a time in his life that he had bettered himself from. In his experience, that was usually how these comparisons went. But then that compliment came out of left field.

"You consistently question my methods and beliefs, then go on to say that I am more efficient than you," he pointed out, squinting at Gorthan in the process. Then, surprisingly, he laughed. "Gorthan, I simply do not understand you."

Yes, it took him that long to come to that conclusion.