Of Songs and Sleep

19:51	ShockwaveLover	A slow, haunting refrain breaks the silence of the Canadian night.
19:54	ShockwaveLover	Winding through the trees like a living thing, the music seems to hang in the still air much longer than one would expect, lingering as if reluctant to leave.
19:59	ShockwaveLover	Rich and heavy, every note resonates with a sense of history, each telling its own story, blending together in a tune that is at once alien, yet somehow...familiar.
20:00	Alivi	Eriko wakes up hearing something once again. She follows the noise. Is she able to?
20:03	ShockwaveLover	The tune gradually fades with every step, becoming more and more indistinct, until she has to question whether she in fact heard anything at all.
20:04	Alivi	Eriko sighs. She stops walking and wonders what it was.
20:05	ShockwaveLover	All that is audible is the occasional creak or groan as the building settles.
20:06	Alivi	Eriko feels uneasy. She doesn't think she remembers the building making these noises.
20:07	Alivi	She decides after this she probably wouldn't be able to sleep. She goes to the rec room.
20:07	ShockwaveLover	The hum of fluorescent lights are her only accompaniment.
20:08	Alivi	She opens her Harry Potter book and begins reading.
20:12	ShockwaveLover	As she reads, something intrudes on her solitude...something is not quite right...Eriko doesn't know how she knows, but she is not alone.
20:13	Alivi	She is getting more and more freaked out by this site...
20:14	Alivi	She places down her book and sighs.
20:14	ShockwaveLover	Barely audible above the soft whoosh of the air conditioning, at the edge of human perception, there is something else breathing with her.
20:17	Alivi	6df+8
20:17	Glacon	Alivi: 5 (6df+8=-, -, 0, +, -, -)
20:18	ShockwaveLover	Eriko notices a couch is out of place. Instead of facing the TV, it's been turned around.
20:20	Alivi	Eriko gets up and goes to look at the couch closer.
20:20	ShockwaveLover	In the perfectly clean and ordered rec room, it seems...odd.
20:21	Alivi	Eriko frowns.
20:21	ShockwaveLover	What's odder is that, despite walking, Eriko isn't getting any closer.
20:21	ShockwaveLover	In fact, if anything, she's getting further and further away.
20:22	Alivi	Eriko frowns more and she begins to start running to see if it allows her to get there.
20:23	ShockwaveLover	Agility, Eriko
20:23	ShockwaveLover	*Athletics
20:23	Alivi	6df+5
20:23	Glacon	Alivi: 6 (6df+5=+, -, 0, -, +, +)
20:24	ShockwaveLover	She seems to be making ground. After what feels like an eternity, the back of the couch is within reach.
20:24	Alivi	She reaches out with her hand and tries to grab hold.
20:26	ShockwaveLover	Her fingers pass through it like a ghost.
20:26	ShockwaveLover	Suddenlt, she's tired. So tired.
20:27	ShockwaveLover	Exhaustion sweeps over her.
20:27	ShockwaveLover	PDef
20:27	Alivi	6df+6
20:27	Glacon	Alivi: 5 (6df+6=-, +, +, -, -, 0)
20:30	ShockwaveLover	Try as she might, the perky little chemist can't stave off oblivion. Darkness fills her vision, and the last thing she sees is the couch start to twist and move, forming into something tall and humanoid...
20:31	ShockwaveLover	"Eriko!"
20:32	ShockwaveLover	A deep, booming voice penetrates the blackness.
20:33	Alivi	Eriko tries to see through the blackness. She follows the voice if she can.
20:33		*** Soulless quit (Connection reset by peer)
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20:34	ShockwaveLover	It's so hard to move. Like wading through molasses.
20:34	ShockwaveLover	"Eriko!"
20:36	Alivi	She still tries to follow, but she is beginning to wonder if she should just give up.
20:36	ShockwaveLover	MDef, Eriko
20:36	Alivi	6df+4
20:36	Glacon	Alivi: 5 (6df+4=0, +, -, -, +, +)
20:38	ShockwaveLover	A stabbing, brilliant beam of light penetrates the inky blackness, sending the shadows recoiling. Colour and feeling begin to return. She's being held in a vice-like grip.
20:38	Alivi	Eriko tries to get out of said vice like grip as well as shutting her eyes against the light. "Stop!"
20:40	ShockwaveLover	The beam disappears, and a face swims into view. Blue eyes, surrounded by swathes of white, brown and black.
20:42	Alivi	Eriko begins to try to see it clearer. The light isnt so harsh now, but she is still very very very confused.
20:43	ShockwaveLover	Something presses against her lips, hard and cold. Liquid slops into her mouth.
20:44	Alivi	She tries to push whatever it is away and tries to spit whatever it is out.
20:47	ShockwaveLover	Things are getting clearer. "Jesus christ, 'Riko. You alright?"
20:47	Alivi	"Duncan?"
20:48	ShockwaveLover	"Bloody hell, you gave me a scare. What are you doing up at this hour?"
20:48	Alivi	"What happened?"
20:49	ShockwaveLover	The face forms into the familiar visage of the Australian agent, standing over her. He has facepaint on for some reason. She's lying on a couch.
20:50	Alivi	Eriko sighs and tries to sit up. Her head is spinning trying to comprehend what just happened
20:50	ShockwaveLover	"I was hoping you could tell me. I was dozing on the couch, when you ran into it, and then fell on the floor."
20:50	Alivi	"That……is….what?"
20:52	Alivi	"It looked weird… and so I tried to look but I couldn't get close it kept getting farther away..."
20:53	ShockwaveLover	Duncan lowers the glass of water in his right hand. A torch dangles in his left. "You ran into the couch like you were training for the 100m sprint, then just lay there."
20:53	Alivi	"I don't remember this..."
20:54	ShockwaveLover	"Gave me a scare."
20:54	ShockwaveLover	He looks quite concerned.
20:55	Alivi	"My hand went through it..."
20:56	ShockwaveLover	"Well, I can tell you that it's quite solid." He raps the top of the couch.
20:56	ShockwaveLover	"How've you been sleeping lately?"
20:56	Alivi	"I don't know..."
20:57	Alivi	"I thought…better…"
20:57	ShockwaveLover	"This isn't usually when you're up."
20:58	Alivi	"I heard something… it woke me up..."
20:59	ShockwaveLover	"Oh? What'd you hear?"
20:59	ShockwaveLover	He offers her the water.
20:59	Alivi	"Strange music..."
20:59	Alivi	She takes it, she is shaking a bit.
21:00	ShockwaveLover	"Must've been some music. You were white as a ghost when I found you."
21:01	Alivi	"I couldn't find it…"
21:01	Alivi	"it stopped and the building was weird… something was wrong..."
21:02	ShockwaveLover	He rubs his chin. "You were probably sleepwalking. Happens, when you're stressed. If it makes you feel any better, I was dreaming about music as well."
21:02	ShockwaveLover	"Can't remember what the tune was, but it made me want to cry."
21:03	Alivi	"It was sad music…."
21:03	Alivi	"A-and I don't sleepwalk!"
21:03	ShockwaveLover	"Well, you got all the way from your room to here, and you sure as heck weren't awake when I found you."
21:04	Alivi	"I was awake..."
21:05	Alivi	"I remember I woke up in my room..."
21:06	Alivi	"Or…I thought…" she seems less sure as this goes on.
21:07	ShockwaveLover	He looks sympathetic. "Don't worry about it. Water under the bridge. You want to head back to your room?"
21:12	Alivi	Eriko shakes her head. She is frowning.
21:14	ShockwaveLover	"What's wrong?"
21:15	Alivi	"I still do not understand… I just…" She touches the couch.
21:16	ShockwaveLover	It is reassuringly corporeal.
21:17	Alivi	Eriko still seems unsure.
21:17	ShockwaveLover	"You just had a bad dream, is all."
21:18	Alivi	"I'm sorry for waking you."
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21:19	ShockwaveLover	"Don't sweat it. It's nearly time I was up, anyhow. Though I'm sad I didn't get to hear how the song ended." He shrugs. "Oh well. Always tomorrow night."
21:19	Alivi	"You heard music too..."
21:19		*** CHolt joined #farrecon
21:20	ShockwaveLover	"I'm always hearing music. I'm a musical guy."
21:20	Alivi	Eriko shrugs.
21:20	ShockwaveLover	"I doubt we were hearing the same stuff. That'd be pretty unlikely."
21:20	Roget	Ralph walks into rec, holding a clipboard.
21:21	CHolt	Crom walks into rec, holding a cuppa coffeee.
21:21	ShockwaveLover	They walk into each other.
21:21	Alivi	"I guess..."
21:21	ShockwaveLover	"Even for this place."
21:22	ShockwaveLover	"Crazy as it is." He grins.
21:22	Alivi	Eriko tries to smile but she still seems worried.
21:22	Roget	Ralph waves to Duncan and Eriko. "Hullo."
21:23	Alivi	Eriko looks up and sees Ralph. "Hi..."
21:24		*** Faminepulse quit (Client exited)
21:24	Alivi	She seems uncomfortable.
21:24	Roget	"You alright Eriko?"
21:25	ShockwaveLover	"G'day Ralph. Crom."
21:27	CHolt	"'ello Duncan, how are you?"
21:29	ShockwaveLover	"Still alive, so I can't complain. Yourself?"
21:29	Roget	"Much the same. Anything interesting going on?"
21:30	CHolt	"The same, pretty much. Nothing interesting going on."
21:30	Alivi	Eriko just nods.
21:31	ShockwaveLover	"I just bumped into Eriko. Or rather, she bumped into me."
21:31	Alivi	Eriko glances at Duncan.
21:31	Roget	"What'dya mean by that?"
21:32	ShockwaveLover	"Exactly what I said."
21:32	Roget	"I see..."
21:33	Alivi	Eriko sighs.
21:34	ShockwaveLover	"What brings you two here?"
21:34	CHolt	"Refilling my cup. Sometimes I wonder if I'm addicted to caffene."
21:34	Roget	"I wanted a place to do work with less sick people."
21:35	ShockwaveLover	"You could argue there's something wrong with all of us working here."
21:35	CHolt	"Yes, there is."
21:36	CHolt	"Has anyone here heard of synthol?"
21:36	Alivi	"No..."
21:37	ShockwaveLover	"Doesn't ring a bell."
21:37	CHolt	"Its a shortened term for "synthetic alcohol". Its this new invention some biochemists have been developing."
21:38	ShockwaveLover	"Great. Wonder what skips they found to make that..."
21:39	Alivi	"Oh…."
21:39	CHolt	"Basically, what it is is water, flavoring if needed, and a special cocktail of neurotransmitters that affect the reward pathway in the brain. The end result is a pleasureable feeling similar to that of eating a tasty meal, but without any intoxication."
21:39	Alivi	"Uh huh…."
21:40	Roget	Ralph checks his watch, and heads out of rec. "Gotta check on a patient, make sure he takes his meds."
21:40	Roget	and just like that, he leaves
21:40		*** Roget left #farrecon
21:42	Alivi	Eriko looks at Duncan again, as if she is checking to make sure he is really there.
21:42	ShockwaveLover	"Give me good old fashioned alcohol any day."
21:43	ShockwaveLover	If he isn't there, then her eyes and ears are doing a masterful job of deceiving her.
21:45	ShockwaveLover	Answers, however, continue to elude her.
21:45	Alivi	She still tries to touch his arm. Just to be sure cause you know the couch did it.
21:47	ShockwaveLover	Her fingers meet his skin, and for a brief moment, the song flows again. But just for a moment. Then it's gone, like it was never there.
21:47	Alivi	Eriko seems very very very very shocked.
21:48	ShockwaveLover	Duncan looks around at her. "Huh?"
21:48	ShockwaveLover	He doesn't know why he's being poked.
21:49	Alivi	"The music."
21:49	ShockwaveLover	"What music?"
21:49	Alivi	"I heard it again.
21:49	Alivi	"
21:50	ShockwaveLover	The other man cocks his head and listens.
21:51	ShockwaveLover	Nothing. The only sound to be heard is the soft hiss of the air conditioning, and breathing.
21:51	ShockwaveLover	"I can't hear anything."
21:51	Alivi	"It was there..."
21:52	ShockwaveLover	Duncan looks very concerned. "I really think you better go back to bed, 'Riko."
21:52	Alivi	"It really was Duncan… I heard it..."
21:52	ShockwaveLover	"Crom, can you hear anything?"
21:53	CHolt	Crom looks up. "Nope. How long has Eriko been up?"
21:53	Alivi	"I was sleeping then the music woke me up!"
21:53	ShockwaveLover	"No idea. She's been here for about 20 minutes, that I know of."
21:54	Alivi	"I was sleeping before!"
21:54	CHolt	Crom faces Eriko. "I'm going to conduct a couple of tests. They may sound stupid, but they are necessary. Ok?"
21:54	Alivi	"There doesn't have to be tests!"
21:54	Alivi	"I really was awake!"
21:55	CHolt	Crom sighs. "What are you hearing then."
21:55	Alivi	"I was hearing this music..."
21:55	Alivi	"It isnt there… it went away quickly this time.
21:55	Alivi	"
21:56	CHolt	"What kind of music?"
22:02	Alivi	"Slow…. sad music… it… I can't….say in English."
22:02	CHolt	"Ok, I can tell you right now you aren't being haunted by John Lennon's ghost." Crom attempts making a lame joke.
22:03	CHolt	"What language was it in? Could you understand it?"
22:03	Alivi	"It didn;t have a language… just notes..."
22:03	Alivi	Eriko rubs her arms.
22:03	CHolt	"Just a sad sound, then?"
22:04	ShockwaveLover	"Sounds like you've been watching too many romantic films."
22:04	Alivi	"I haven't seen movie since Western Spaghetti..."
22:05	CHolt	"Duncan, what do you think?"
22:06	ShockwaveLover	The other man shrugs. "Sounds like stress, combined with a disturbed sleep routine. Take a few days to get back on your feet."
22:07	CHolt	"I agree."
22:07	Alivi	"I'm already on medical leave for stress! I've been doing better and sleeping better I really have! You have to beileve me it was really there!"
22:08	ShockwaveLover	Duncan holds his up in supplication. "I believe you /think/ you heard something. But both of us were sitting here, and we didn't hear any music."
22:08	CHolt	"Eriko, what room are you in?"
22:09	Alivi	"It was in here too! I heard it I touched your arm cause I wasn't sure… and it was there then it went away again!"
22:09	ShockwaveLover	A faintly disturbed expression crosses his face for half an instant, barely percievable.
22:10	CHolt	Crom has a look of this:
22:11	ShockwaveLover	"Well, I can't tell you anything more than what I know. And all I know is, you poked me, then started talking about music again."
22:11	CHolt	"Eriko, are you hearing it anywhere, or mostly just your room?"
22:12	Alivi	"I heard it in my room it woke me up, and I came to follow it and when I was in the hallways it faded… and so I came to rec room to read since I couldn't sleep again. And I didn't hear it again until just now!" She is getting more and more upset.
22:19	Alivi	"It was real..."
22:20	CHolt	"Show us where you first heard it."
22:20	Alivi	Eriko sighs.
22:21	Alivi	She gets up and goes to the door. She waits for Crom to follow.
22:21	CHolt	Crom motions for Duncan to follow as well.
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22:23	CHolt	Crom follows Eriko.
22:23	Alivi	Eriko leads Crom to her room.
22:24		*** Mr_Wilt quit (Client exited)
22:24	ShockwaveLover	Duncan follows at the end of the procession.
22:26	CHolt	"Alright, Eriko, where'd you hear it in your room?"
22:27	Alivi	'I was sleeping in there I woke up came out here. Then I walked down hallway." She walks as she says this and stops at the place where she lost the music, "Then it faded."
22:28	CHolt	"Hmm..."
22:28	CHolt	"Have you noticed anything unusual recently, apart from the music?"
22:29	CHolt	"Or is the music the only anomalous thing you've had going on in your life recently?"
22:30	Alivi	"I mean… the building was creaking a bit… but that was it. I havent had anything else bad… or a-ano…anomalis..."
22:31	CHolt	"Are you sure?"
22:33	CHolt	"If so, I think you've just been overworked and not getting enough rest."
22:33	Alivi	"I really heard it!"
22:35	ShockwaveLover	"Go back to bed, 'Riko. Get some sleep."
22:35	ShockwaveLover	Duncan yawns.
22:36	CHolt	"It was probably someone just listening to music or watching some TV in their room, nothing to get excited about."
22:36	Alivi	"Duncan you have to believe me…."
22:39	ShockwaveLover	He looks at her helplessly. "I didn't hear anything, Eriko. I'm sorry."
22:39	Alivi	Eriko sighs.
22:39	CHolt	"I'm sorry Eriko."
22:41	Alivi	She doesn't say anything just walks back to her room and goes in, resisting the urge to slam the door.
22:41	ShockwaveLover	Duncan looks up for a second, as if listening for something.
22:42	ShockwaveLover	Then he shakes his head, and heads back to the rec room.
22:42	CHolt	Crom tries, but fails to hear, any music.
22:42	Alivi	Eriko lies on her bed. She is more than freaked out.
22:42	Alivi	She wonders if she will ever hear the music again.
22:43	CHolt	"Hey, Duncan." Crom runs up and tries to talk in a low voice. "What do you make of this?"
22:44	ShockwaveLover	Duncan sighs. "I don't know. I was asleep in the rec room when she ran full tilt into my couch. Looked to be fast asleep. Then she starts talking about hearing music..."
22:45	ShockwaveLover	"I hope it's just stress."
22:46	Alivi	Eriko tries to go back to sleep.
22:46	CHolt	Crom continues talking low. "I'd have her talk with Renee and see Ralph. See what they think first. Personally, I think she's suffering from an overload of stress. With some luck, a good medical leave for a few months should return her more or less normal."
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22:48	CHolt	Crom sighs for a little. " I don't want to think about the possibility that she isn't going slightly crazy and that the music is real."
22:48	CHolt	"That could mean way to much, considered where we work."
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22:49	ShockwaveLover	"Yeah...I was dreaming about music, too. When she woke me up."
22:50	CHolt	"Oh, you were? What kind?"
22:51	ShockwaveLover	"I dunno. Can't really remember. You know how you hear a song that you haven't heard in years?"
22:51	CHolt	"Yes?"
22:52	ShockwaveLover	"It was like that, except I could have sworn I'd never heard it before in my life."
22:52	CHolt	"Is it a real song? Did it make sense?"
22:55	ShockwaveLover	His face crinkles as he concentrates. "No...I can't remember anything else about it. I got woken up before I could hear the end of it."
22:56	ShockwaveLover	"Kinda sad, really. I woulda liked to have played it on my harmonica."
22:56	CHolt	"Oh.... can you tell me anything about it, or just was that it was a song you've never heard?"
22:56	CHolt	Crom's face crinkles as he describes the song. "Someone better be playing a prank on us."
22:57	ShockwaveLover	"Just one of those things your brain dreams up. I'd been working on writing a song before I went to sleep."
22:58	ShockwaveLover	"Don't sweat it, mate. Not everything is an SCP."
22:58	ShockwaveLover	He gives a reassuring grin.
22:58	CHolt	"True. I get quite jumpy at different stuff though."
22:58	CHolt	Crom shudders. "Nothing like seeing an invisible hand raise up a knife and almost kill your cousin."
22:59	ShockwaveLover	"Ain't that the truth." Duncan pats him on the back. "Anyway mate, I reckon I'm going to head back to sleep. Catch you later."
23:00	CHolt	"Night Duncan. I'll be sleeping as well."
23:01	CHolt	"Or attempting to sleep at least, if we do have a new music skip." Cromwell smiles.
23:01	ShockwaveLover	"Don't tempt fate." Duncan disappears into the rec room.
23:02	CHolt	Crom walks back to his room.