03.11.3014: Therapeutic Distractions
Summary: Advent and Cyrielle find distraction in learning their connections, avoiding physical therapy.
Date: 05 12 2014
Related: None
Advent Cyrielle 


Willowtree Hospital, Landing, Imperius
The walls of the top hospital in Haven are painted in bright, pastel colors, presenting a calm, cool facade. Cleaning and nursing drones bustle down the hallways around human nurses and doctors, staying out of the way of their living counterparts. There are triage rooms meant to hold dozens of patients, two-person rooms for those with severe wounds or illnesses, and operating theaters filled with scanners, laser scalpels, and every sort of medical technology available to the people of Haven.
Tuesday, March 11 3014

The day has gone on as any other this time of year. It's cold even in Landing. There are few people in the rehab today. It's quiet while each person with their helper is working. On one of the benches doing chest presses without help is a thinner man built purely for speed. Advent is wearing track pants and a loose t-shirt. His hair is curled and everywhere. He doesn't have a helper yet but since he's barefoot, his metal food is rather obvious.

Though she's gone home to Beacon, Cyrielle still has rehab sessions at Landing as well. Mostly to make sure she's on track for recovery. The woman is finishing some walking practice between two parallel bars. She's attired in a light-fitting shirt and shorts. Clothing meant for working out; like as not, the locker room area of the rehabilitation facility of Willowtree is full of warmer winter attire.

After a last, struggling pass through the bars, placing weight fully on the cybernetic leg — gleaming white from the knee down, no synthskin yet — with each step, the Hollolas stops. She's panting lightly, sweat at her brow. She looks for a chair, but instead, the therapist working with her hands her a pair of specialized crutches that brace at the forearms.

Finally the help arrives and bows his head. "Lord Sir Advent, I'm sorry I'm late." The man doing bench presses puts the weights down and sits up. He has a warm expression on his face. "Don't apologize. Your time is just as important as mine. I found something to do." He waves his hand as he speaks warmly. The helper nods and then they get to working on the leg. Advent stands and easily walks towards the parallel bars but there is a whirling sound and he bounces on his metal leg before almost landing on his face. He's stopped by his help. "I don't get it." He goes limp in the other man's arms and he's put down on the floor. His leg is checked for malfunction carefully.

The crutches are finally taken, the specialized plastic supporting the young woman's slim frame easily. She, too, is not built at all for strength. Perhaps a quickness, in time, but she's certainly a smaller thing. Cyrielle begins to move from the bars as the other two begin to approach, but she stops upon seeing the trouble. There's a slight tilt of her head and she appears curious, to be certain… and yet, perhaps a bit reserved. Not wanting to intrude.

Advent stays with his cheeks squished against the ground waiting for a problem to be found. "Sir, it's fine." Advent's eyes close slowly. "It's in my head." He's helped up and he takes a wary step and winces. "That's new. I felt a pinch." He touches his thigh and grips the steel there. "Phantom pains. It happens when you've lost a limb." The Sauveur nods slowly before turning and then staring at Cyrielle as if he just noticed she was there. "Milady." He bows his head and grins warmly towards her. Another step and a stumble. He does an elegant spin around Cyrielle to avoid hitting her and stops his falls on the bars. "Well… That was embarrassing."

There's a glance to the cybernetic limb and Cyrielle's brow furrows. "I couldn't help but overhear…" Her own is white. Shining, new. The latest model- at least as of a month ago. "Do you not have feeling normally in your leg?" She leans back slightly on the crutches, trying to keep her balance. Obviously disused to it. "I'm… slowly getting mine. The nerves are taking time to interface with the synthetics."

Advent shakes his head slowly. "Not really. It's partially reconstructed. My leg and nerves were so damaged that they salvaged what they could and this is what I've got." It's titanium and not a new model yet recently installed. Meant for strength and longevity. "I have to work with a quarter of the nerves. The leg tries to interpret the rest but it's not always right." He pushes himself back up and limps towards her. "Doesn't help I went into battle a week after it was installed and was in the resort battle." He shakes his head and takes another step, whirling sounds coming from his leg.

There's a slight cringe from Cyrielle, but a slight dip of the head as well. "That's why they had to take mine at the knee," she glances down to the leg, where rather than flesh there are seams where the knee hinges. It's still a smooth, fluid motion and yet… "My ankle was too damaged to replace just it." She leans in against the crutches and moves forward a few paces, closer to the Knight. "The resort?" Her eyes lower, darkening. "I… was there as well. It was why I decided to have my leg fixed."

Advent winces at her knee. "It looks good still." He points. He lifts his shirt slightly showing how far up his goes. It's well up over the hip. He tings the hip before putting his shirt down. "I am sorry that happened to you." He shakes his head and sighs quietly. "I went in through the back with a squad of men. Our Knight Commander basically told us to split up and being as there were only a few of us, we all decided to stick together. We all got in and out alive but he was so mad that we didn't listen to him." He shakes his head again and takes a wobbly step. "I thought it best to protect each other. We were trying to find the hostages… I was trying to find my sister."

There's a flinch of sympathy, seeing how far it goes. "I put it off for seven years," Cyrielle admits quietly. She listens to his explanation, head tilting a bit. "I was… inside when the initial explosions hit. I led a small group out…" Her face falls. "That's why I decided to get this done. A few of them got hurt. I… I feel that if I was more capable, no one would have gotten hurt. I was leading us. I was at the front of the line…" She shudders slightly and swallows. "I… hope you found your sister."

Advent shakes his head and sighs. "That's a long time." He looks down to his leg. "I waited… a month maybe. I tried to use a cane. Tried therapy. Tried a lot. I ended up… finding out I'd never ride again unless I got this thing." He knocks on it. A loud ting vibrates it. "I can ride again." The smile is so happy. Then he turns more somber. "Lyr made it out but I didn't know that when I had a arrow in my chest and a sword having almost hacked off my arm." He brings his hand up and rubs his shoulder. "I might not be mighty but I'm durable." He attempts to bend his knee. "No one died though right? So you did good."

"I kept thinking it'd get better," Cyrielle says with a slow shrug. "More time. More training. More…" She exhales at length and glances towards the ceiling. Sure, it's putting off therapy, but… it's a therapy of a different kind, perhaps. The trainers can do all they will, but they can't really empathize with the recovering people they work with. "No one died, no… Not of those I was helping out. Others…? Yes."

There is a lingering moment before Cyrielle's brow furrows. "Lyr? As in… Lyrienne?"

Advent nods slowly. "I knew I wasn't going to get better when my leg started to develop necrosis. Had I waited, I'd be dead." He takes another step towards the bars and winces. He nods. "All got out on my end too. There was this one man though… We found him dead and torn apart. Awful. He was alive when they tore his limbs off." The curly hair is brushed back and he nods. "Yeah. Lyr's my baby sister. She was pregnant at the time…that's how I found out. Cedric whispered that Lyr was in there and she was pregnant. Great way to find out. Tell the older brother his sister and future nephews or neices are in danger. That wouldn't clear my head from distraction at all."

"Lyrienne is… my mentor. We're both Awakened." Cyrielle looks a bit more flustered now. "I… I was distracted by one of the Hostiles on us when the other managed to hit her. She's assured me it was just her shoulder and everything was fine, but… I still haven't forgiven myself." One hand flexes on the crutches. "I was right there, in front of them. I put my hands on them when I attacked them. But they just… they went past me to the others. They knew I was protecting them and they went after them anyway." She frowns, brow furrowing. "I see all that about how they're… claiming to be human. At least that one is. But it's a dark, terrible kind of person that would do that."

Advent frowns and takes a breath. "She is kind of my mentor too. Helped me…figure stuff out. My dreams." A shiver runs over his spine. "Milady… I would do that in battle. As an honorable man, I'd not attack helpless things but I would spread out my attack to multiple opponents to widen my damage ratio. You have a weapon and are out to hurt me, you will fail. I protect my family, milady, yet I could not save her. You did. That is a testament to your strength. Forgive yourself, for she surely has already forgiven you."

"She has," Cyrielle affirms, drawing in a slow breath. She shakes her head slightly, "I just… I can't. They weren't armed, the others. Yes, she is Awakened, as was the other woman who they attacked, but…" She swallows and straightens slightly. "It just wasn't right, for a pregnant woman, of a Paramount, to be injured so. And a noble of another Paramount. I'm of a mere vassal." She turns slightly, "Pardon me, m'Lord. I… I need to get something to eat."

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