[Maverick Hunters Headquarters]

Rika walks in from the infirmary, looking rather concerned. "Signas, is it alright if I talk to you?" She brushes a strand of blonde hair out of blue eyes, thus giving her a semblance of description.

Signas blinks, standing from whatever activity he was busying himself with. "Certainly, but.. do I know you?"

Rika sighs. "Probably not. I'm Rika, of the Medical Unit. We mostly handle our own affairs, but this matter concerns you as well..."

A spark of recognition crosses Signas's face. "Oh, yes, what's the problem?"

Rika says 'One of your Hunters - Saiko or something - came in for a checkup... and... He's infected with the Maverick Virus.'

Signas furrows his brow, looking alarmed. "He assured me he was cured.. are you absolutely sure he's infected?"

Rika nods. "Completely sure. It's dominanted a lot of his systems."

Signas boggles in incomprehension. "Did you notice any actual symptoms, though?"

Rika shakes his head. "He seemed normal when he was asking for the checkup, but we didn't spend much time talking to him... If it's any consolation, he didn't try to stab anyone."

Rika says 'He's still powered down, so if you'd like we could move him straight to the holding cell... Or would you like to talk to him first?'

Signas says 'Ah, I think I would like to talk to him, actually.'

Rika nods and starts for the infirmary. "I'll go wake him up." She turns and heads through the door...

Seikou walks out of the infirmary, looking rather cheery. "Konnichiwa, Sigunasu-sama!"

Signas nods. "Hi." He looks around for anyone else in the room, who may be eavesdropping. :O "Lieutenant, I have a concern."

Seikou blinks, looking rather confused. "What is it?"

Thankfully, the good General sees no one, though Variance seems to be oddly out of sight, considering he's currently off-duty...

Signas grasps Seikou's shoulder, maybe a tad firmly, just in case. "I've just been informed that you are.. infected with the Maverick virus. That it's infected most of your systems, even."

Seikou looks rather shocked. "But... But I would swear I'm cured! I haven't felt anything in ages!"


Seikou says (OOC) 'Note: SEIKOU IS LYING THROUGH HIS TEETH'


Signas shakes his head. "Whether it affects you or not, I'm sure you realize that being a carrier makes you a threat to everyone here, including myself."

Seikou closes his eyes and lowers his head. "...Hai..."

Signas nods for a moment. "And it pains me to say, I'm going to have to force you to step down from your position in the Maverick Hunters."

Seikou's eyes widen considerably and he looks rather desperate now. "You... You can't do that, Sigunasu-sama! Hunting is my life!"

Somewhere in a general westerly direction, a faint sound can be heard, almost as if someone had started to say something but cut themselves off before they said it. (Read: Variance just went 'WTF?!')

Signas shakes his head. "I don't have a choice, Seikou. Merely being here makes you a threat to everyone, you have to understand."

Seikou closes his eyes again. "...Very well... I... I'm sorry to have put you at risk..." He sighs and starts for the door.

Suddenly, the door to the break room slides open, a rather distraught-looking Variance emerging from the room behind him. "Well, then, I suppose you'll have to force me to step down with him."

Signas begins to turn away, this twangs at his heartstrings as well, then snaps back around. "How long have you been eavesdropping?"

Seikou says 'Vari-sama... don't...'

Variance stands almost perfectly neutral, his expression and tone of his eyes saying everything that's needed. "The whole time." He seems to disregard Seikou's plea, though a quick flitter of a regretful glance in his direction might direct its target otherwise.

You say 'If you were to scan me for traces of the Virus, protocol would force you to let me go, just as you're doing now.'

Signas looks straight at Variance. "I simply /can't/ have someone in our ranks whom we /know/ is infected."

Seikou stays silent, merely watching the conversation...

Signas says 'You know as well as anyone that there's no reliable cure, either. He's a danger to have around, whether he actually goes Maverick or not!"'

Variance maintains his stoic air of solidarity, keeping unwavering eye contact as Signas does the same. "I understand that... And I suppose there's no need to hide the fact that I've known about the infection longer than I should have."

Signas twitches visibly, caught completely off-guard.

You say 'Also, pleading to give him a second chance would be redundant... There's no logical argument I can make in his favor, but I can admit to my own affliction easily enough.'

Signas sputters. "/WHAT/? For how long?"

Signas looks visibly upset, even angry, a rarity. "I.. Who.. Is there anyone /else/ who's been infected that I don't know about?"

Variance voices his reply in a cold, deathly calm tone. "Five months. And there isn't, to my knowledge."

Signas sighs deeply, forcing himself to calm down. "The two of you are the best Hunters I have. But, you've both got to leave. Now. I can't, won't let you stay, now that I know."

Seikou looks deeply disraught. "You can't kick Vari-sama out too! I won't let you!"

Signas turns to Seikou, addressing him for the first time in several minutes. "You say that like I have a choice!"

Variance maintains his gaze on Signas for a moment longer, just long enough to practically drill his current mix of conviction and regret into the other's mind before he starts walking towards the door. Not a word comes from him; he didn't need to say anything more. The truth was out, there was nothing left to do.

Seikou looks like he's going to speak again, but finally just falls silent, opening the door. Before he exits, he pulls the Hunter insignia from his shoulderplate and lets it fall to the ground...

Signas stares after them with the same sort of regret, before all but falling into a chair, wondering '..what now? My organization is falling apart in front of me.'.

Variance stops just before he crosses the doorway, not needing to look to Signas to make his intention known. "You can continue leading the Hunters in this phyrric war against the Mavericks, but just know that there's something bigger going on; much bigger than simply two factions opposing one another."

You say 'I don't know what it is, but it's there.'

Variance finally departs, though possibly waiting to remove his insignia until after he's out of Signas' sight so as not to look ungrateful or anything of the sort...