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Ollie steps off the bus in front of the Museum of Anthropology and Antiquity at about 10pm the day after the skatepark massacre. He's a wreck. Untouched hair, wrinkled clothes, unhealthy pallor and the classic ten-thousand yard stare of someone who's had the kind of night he'd had.
He trudges through the door, up to the front desk. His face frozen without expression, he mumbles to the receptionist. "Ollie for Dr. Primoria."
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Starling looks up from the usual tedium of paperwork he had in running the museum. People had no idea what a job it really was. He put on his biggest smile, when he saw Ollie, and leaned across the desk. "What's up, kiddo?"
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Ollie looks up into Starling's face, for the first time since he'd gotten there, and almost cringes at the huge smile. "I need to tell Tyria that I failed her task. I think she might already know that I did, but I need to tell her what happened, myself."
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Starling turns from a smile to a rather neutral face, and motions Ollie to follow him. "When we get to my office, tell me everything. Then we'll decide how to let Tyria know."
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Ollie simply nods and follows him to his office.
Once they arrive he basically drops his weight into the chair opposite Starling's desk. A moment of silence passes before Ollie speaks.
"Valkyrie drove Guy and me to my apartment where we hung out and I answered a few of their questions. I got a text message from Ghoster talking about zombies in the park. He and Logos had gone back out to Granite Park last night after we left the museum. I guess when they got there the park was swarming with zombies. I don't know. I never got to talk to them. I told Guy and Val to stay at the apartment, but they were determined to come, and for some stupid reason I let them. When we drove up to the skatepark it was chaos. Ghoster and Logos were in the skatepark, surrounded by zombies. Some of the things had pushed some bleachers in front of the gate, and then it started pouring rain. We had to crawl through the bleachers to get inside to get to Ghoster and Logos, but Logos had already been torn apart before we could even get to him. I killed one of the things, but there were so many of them. They overwhelmed Ghoster, tore him up really bad. We tried to get away. I picked Ghoster up, carried him back up the bleachers. I took my eyes off Guy for one minute..."
He pauses a minute rubbing his face, leaning forward. A moment later he continues.
"When I looked back... He must have slipped in the rain. They were on him so fast and... he was gone. I don't know what happened then, but things started going really badly. I couldn't make anything work, I could barely even keep my footing in the rain anymore. I ran away, but when I looked back Val was still trying to save Ghoster, even while they tore at him. She slipped and fell, and it looked like they had her. I turned and ran away. I left her there.."
That part was always hard to say.
"She lived anyway, it turns out, no thanks to me. Little firecracker. She was straight up with me when I saw her next. She doesn't want anything to do with me. Who can blame her."
He flops back in his seat, waiting for Starling's inevitable disgust with him.
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Starling just looks entirely blank as Ollie starts rambling off before he even gets the door closed. He leans against the door, making sure it's sealed entirely before he lets Ollie continue, and then takes a minute to process the entire thing.
"You realize of course, that this means you face the highest penalty as a member of the Consilium. Being that you are responsible for the deaths of three, and the abandonment of a fourth injured party, I have no other option but to turn you over to the Sentinel Joshua Morris for complete erasure."
Starling kept his face as grim and serious as possible as he spoke, his eyes never leaving Ollie's face.
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Now some emotion.
"I'm a survivor of a major incident. I went there with the intention of saving Ghoster and Logos. I told them the park was dangerous, and I told Ghoster not to go alone. I was told to teach Guy and Valkyrie, not protect them or confine them to my apartment. They made their own decisions, and as for that abandonment bit mages are still human. I'd never seen a fucking zombie before until last night, and I'm supposed to be able to face down a horde of them without panicking at pain of erasure, whatever the fuck that is."
He stands up abruptly, sliding the chair back harshly. He throws his hands up in exasperation.
"Fuck it. Call the fucking Sentinel."
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Starling just offers the slightest smirk at Ollie's reaction, before hitting the button on the intercom. "Tyria, sweetheart...I believe Ollie has something important to tell you in my office. I loosened him up a little for you."
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Ollie just stares at Starling while he hits the button and calls Tyria. Once the message has been sent he just shakes his head, pacing restlessly around the office. He can't tell what the hell's real right now. Now he just waits for Tyria.
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"Well, send him over, with a latte preferably," comes Tyria's voice in response.
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