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Post by Daniel Dreiberg on May 26, 2016 22:50:33 GMT -5
"Might be the only thing we can thank him for" Dan leaned his head against the tile floor and closed his eyes, kicking his feet in the water gently.
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Post by Adrian Veidt on May 26, 2016 23:26:59 GMT -5
"He lives around 23rd St now, near the Bugle," Adrian commented. "I've seen him a few times, at a distance. I can't say if he's ever seen me. I don't know what he would do if he did. He...'
Adrian pressed his lips together for a moment.
"I think he was Laurie's father, Dan."
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Post by Daniel Dreiberg on May 26, 2016 23:47:38 GMT -5
Dan rolled his head side to side, before rubbing his face and looked back to Adrian "That's awful, Christ" he rubbed his eyes and shook his head again.
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Post by Adrian Veidt on May 27, 2016 1:18:51 GMT -5
"There was nothing you could have done, Laurel," Uncle Nelson kept saying, limply patting her on the shoulder as she cried against Jon's chest. "There was just so much blood -all those people-" "Here," Ozymandias said, putting his hand on her shoulder. "Here's the post-exposure. It's going to hurt, but we have to be sure."
Laurie turned and glanced around at the others. Nite Owl, Captain Metropolis and Ozymandias were each missing a glove so that Ozymandias could inject a post-exposure packet into their wrists. Rorschach had made no such accommodation and was rubbing a tiny, barely exposed patch of pale, freckled neck where Ozymandias had insisted on injecting him anyway; the Comedian had growled that Ozymandias wasn't about to stick anything into him and swiped the packet to inject himself in the forearm.
Jon, immune and inhuman, looked mildly upset by something, but it might have been a trick of the angle, or the blur of her tears.
Laurie grit her teeth as Ozymandias pushed up the sleeve of her costume and pushed the packet needle into her vein. A few more tears squeezed out of her eyes.
"Ow-" "There, that's it. That's all it is. You were very brave." "Your mother will be so proud of you," Nelson added. "Once she's done screaming," Laurie retorted, trying to smile.
Ozymandias looked around the others.
"We're all going to have to shower," he announced, "and if you can't decontaminate your costume, burn it."
Rorschach made a disapproving sound, which made Nelly make a faintly offended one, while the Comedian sidled up toward Ozymandias and then pointedly pushed him aside to get to Laurie.
"You did good, kid. I wouldn'a had it in me to go in there like that." "You didn't," Laurie said, teasing in a shaky voice. "I'm a lot tougher than you." "Don't gimme that," the Comedian retorted, unmistakably fond. "It's just because you're a kid." "I'm sixteen," Laurie reminded him. "Yeah?"
The Comedian's smile faded a little.
"My point exactly. I did some real dumb shit when I was 16..."
Laurie grinned at him.
"Dumber than this?" "Way dumber," he said softly.
The Comedian turned away abruptly, squaring his shoulders as he did so and reaching for his lighter.
"Well, fellas, it's been a real good time, but-"
Laurie started coughing. The men in the room turned as one.
"Laurie-" Nelson began. "It's okay," Laurie gasped. "I think I'm just a little nauseous-"
She coughed again, harder this time, and with a thick gagging sound underlying it now. Ozymandias bolted back toward her.
"Laurie- oh, good God, someone call 911-"
Something purple-black and frothing slipped out of Laurie's mouth as she doubled over and fell to the ground. Her eyes had rolled back in her head and had begun to bleed.
"Don't you fucking touch her -" the Comedian roared, dropping his lighter as he rushed forward and forcing the already panicking Nelson to extinguish the flame. He grabbed Ozymandias by the shoulders and wrenched him back, and fell to his knees at Laurie's side.
"Laurel- come on, honey, don't do this-" "You have to let me do this! It's the only way we can save her-"
Ozymandias forced his way to the other side. Over the sound of Laurie's gurgling and choking he could hear Nite Owl trying to get through to the emergency operator and Nelson already beginning to sob.
"Don't touch her, I said, you fucking pansy-ass piece of-" "For once , will you shut your mouth and let me work -"
Ozymandias fished out another packet and slammed the needle into Laurie's convulsing chest. The Comedian released her, with an anguished sort of roaring sound, and stared up at Manhattan.
"Do something. Do something -" "I can't," Manhattan said softly. "It's too late." "What do you mean, it's too late-"
Ozymandias pulled out another packet and injected her again. There was more red starting to seep out from below her skirt, pooling around her on the floor.
"Laurie- come on, Laurie, you can do this-"
Laurie let out a little sob sound. Her hands clenched and unclenched, and her head fell limply to the side.
For a moment, there was silence.
"Fuck," the Comedian said finally. "Aw, fuck -"
Ozymandias grit his teeth and grabbed one of the spent packets, squeezing it to try to push out the last of the antitoxin, and began injecting her with it again and again with a desperate, slamming motion. The Comedian staggered out of the room.
"Wake up- come on -" "Stop," a hoarse, muffled voice interjected, as a hand seized his wrist. "Dead already."
Ozymandias stared up at the owner of the hand. It was Rorschach.
Ozymandias looked from Rorschach to Nite Owl, who was across the room and visibly shaking. For a moment, it didn't seem impossible that he, too, would start convulsing and bleeding-
But all he did was pull off his mask to reveal an ordinary, agonized, handsome face, young, surmounted by a sweat-dampened puff of dark curls and rapidly tear-streaked.
There was a harsh sob from a room away, where the Comedian had retreated. It was an almost frightening sound, both unexpected and wrenching from a man like him. Rorschach, too, was beginning to sniffle.
Ozymandias reached up and stuck his bare fingers around the edge of his mask until he had broken the spirit-gum seal. He pulled it down and flung it on the floor.
He was pale, and bright-eyed with tears, unless that was just the athletic eyeblack he had smeared over them, but he was unmistakably Adrian Veidt, the young self-made billionaire who had worked with GeneCo to develop the post-exposure emergency cure.*** "I think he must have been the one to call Ms. Jupiter," Adrian said. "She didn't look at him, didn't talk to him once she had come. She slapped me, and then she fell on me in tears. I remember she was drunk at the funeral reception. Schexnayder gave her hell for it, and I took that as my cue to leave. Blake was at the funeral, but I doubt he was invited." He leaned against the edge of the pool. "Do you know the oddest part?"
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Post by Daniel Dreiberg on May 27, 2016 1:29:51 GMT -5
Dan pressed his fingers in to his eyes, pushing back the memories of his youth "Whats that?"
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Post by Adrian Veidt on May 27, 2016 1:32:15 GMT -5
"He taught Nina how to handle a gun."
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Post by Daniel Dreiberg on May 27, 2016 1:35:39 GMT -5
Dan turned to look at Adrian with a puzzled look "6 degrees and what not" he sighed "Christ."
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Post by Adrian Veidt on May 27, 2016 1:48:22 GMT -5
"Moreover, I suppose even Blake has moral limits," Adrian mused. "I hardly believe he didn't guess who Nina was. The man's a genius, even if hardly anyone will admit it, let alone Blake. And for that matter, you didn't hear it from me."
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Post by Daniel Dreiberg on May 27, 2016 1:52:09 GMT -5
"I spent enough time with him to be in accordance with that conclusion" Dan sighed.
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Post by Adrian Veidt on May 27, 2016 1:57:48 GMT -5
"Oh, God, that's right. How did that even happen-"
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Post by Daniel Dreiberg on May 27, 2016 2:11:38 GMT -5
Dan shook his head "Good question" he laughed a little, but it was mostly sad "I was still full of hope and optimism then, partnering with Blake was the end of that."
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Post by Adrian Veidt on May 27, 2016 2:14:26 GMT -5
"Well. I suppose I have that cynicism to thank for your being here in my pool," Adrian said wryly.
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Post by Daniel Dreiberg on May 27, 2016 2:21:28 GMT -5
"Oh tell me you don't miss the boy scout" he saluted with a wink, but it was obvious he was being light about it. Blake was a heavy subject and the new information didn't lighten his story any more.
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Post by Adrian Veidt on May 27, 2016 2:36:35 GMT -5
"You actually said 'gosh' when we first met. I'm not particularly nostalgic."
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Post by Daniel Dreiberg on May 27, 2016 2:41:15 GMT -5
"Gee Mr. Veidt, I was just trying to be polite."
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