[ It's something easy for him to default to — this business of asking people about themselves, of being amiable. Konstantin is accustomed to conversation; he's been well-groomed for it. He knows how to make people feel comfortable. How to fill in the awkward spaces of silence with bright smiles and questions about one's life, and when one comes out of a conversation with Konstantin, one feels good about it.
But there's something else to it. A curiosity that isn't only part of a comfortable mask, isn't just that place he has to default to so that he can keep himself together or else he'll lose himself completely in this moment after a crash to Earth and the realisation that something horrible has happened to him.
It's the first truly human moment he's had since that crash, since waking in a hospital room with his insides shuddering. It's the first human to ask questions to. (Is this man a human at all, he wonders?) If he isn't, then at least in this moment, Vasiliy Yegorovich feels like one. And perhaps it is very nice to hear a human speaking to him about their life. A small space in time in which Konstantin doesn't feel so alone. ]
Pah! Never mind medals, I'd say you've certainly been doing something direct to help. [ He smiles again with something almost a little playful as he carefully lifts the basin in his lap, and then makes a face. ] It's good you were here to greet me when I woke up. I'm sure everyone appreciates you helping me not to be sick all over myself. I know I—
[ He's interrupted by a sudden knock to the door — if it could even be called that. It's no one asking for entry; as soon as the thud sounds, the door opens in one swift movement, and two men come into the small room all at once, with the heavy thud of boots. All are dressed in military uniform, guns held firm. A third man enters next, introduces himself as the Colonel, and asks Commander Veshnyakov to come with them. He never looks at Vasiliy, only to Konstantin, and it's quite clear this is an order, not a request. He's informed that the military's doctors will see to him now, and he will be moved to a different facility.
There isn't even time to speak to Vasiliy again. Konstantin manages to glance over his shoulder at the younger man as he's ushered from the room, confused, dizzy. He asks the Colonel about Averchenko, and receives no answer.
They take him somewhere new, with bolted doors and armed guards, and he is subjected to test upon test. Hours pass by, and finally he's put in a holding area — the best they have to offer, Commander, they say. There is a separate sleeping room (one that can be walled off from the rest of the area at the touch of a button), a small table with two chairs, and little else. It is a large cage, but a cage nonetheless. He's informed that this is all normal, that they are trying to understand what went wrong with re-entry to Earth, that they want to make sure he fully recovers before they release him. They'll handle everything else.
A few days go by. He is subjected to more tests, and sleeps through the night, and wakes. His frustration grows, and the doctors (and scientists, he remarks; he is being observed by scientists) grow frustrated too, by his apparent lack of memory. One morning the stiff-backed Rigel comes to question him, and Konstantin feels a small surge of joy that he manages to rattle the man who leaves, complaining about him. But the sensation is short-lived, and he goes to sit back down on his bed for some time, staring down at the cold white floor. That's when he hears the door to his enclosure open again and looks up, expecting another scientist, or perhaps to be taken back to the medical rooms for more examinations.
What he sees is something completely unexpected, two guards leading in another man. The EMT from before. .....What? Konstantin's brows lift as he stands from the bed and moves to approach, face shifting into a rare display of genuine confusion as the man is ushered in and the door is then closed behind him. ]
no subject
But there's something else to it. A curiosity that isn't only part of a comfortable mask, isn't just that place he has to default to so that he can keep himself together or else he'll lose himself completely in this moment after a crash to Earth and the realisation that something horrible has happened to him.
It's the first truly human moment he's had since that crash, since waking in a hospital room with his insides shuddering. It's the first human to ask questions to. (Is this man a human at all, he wonders?) If he isn't, then at least in this moment, Vasiliy Yegorovich feels like one. And perhaps it is very nice to hear a human speaking to him about their life. A small space in time in which Konstantin doesn't feel so alone. ]
Pah! Never mind medals, I'd say you've certainly been doing something direct to help. [ He smiles again with something almost a little playful as he carefully lifts the basin in his lap, and then makes a face. ] It's good you were here to greet me when I woke up. I'm sure everyone appreciates you helping me not to be sick all over myself. I know I—
[ He's interrupted by a sudden knock to the door — if it could even be called that. It's no one asking for entry; as soon as the thud sounds, the door opens in one swift movement, and two men come into the small room all at once, with the heavy thud of boots. All are dressed in military uniform, guns held firm. A third man enters next, introduces himself as the Colonel, and asks Commander Veshnyakov to come with them. He never looks at Vasiliy, only to Konstantin, and it's quite clear this is an order, not a request. He's informed that the military's doctors will see to him now, and he will be moved to a different facility.
There isn't even time to speak to Vasiliy again. Konstantin manages to glance over his shoulder at the younger man as he's ushered from the room, confused, dizzy. He asks the Colonel about Averchenko, and receives no answer.
They take him somewhere new, with bolted doors and armed guards, and he is subjected to test upon test. Hours pass by, and finally he's put in a holding area — the best they have to offer, Commander, they say. There is a separate sleeping room (one that can be walled off from the rest of the area at the touch of a button), a small table with two chairs, and little else. It is a large cage, but a cage nonetheless. He's informed that this is all normal, that they are trying to understand what went wrong with re-entry to Earth, that they want to make sure he fully recovers before they release him. They'll handle everything else.
A few days go by. He is subjected to more tests, and sleeps through the night, and wakes. His frustration grows, and the doctors (and scientists, he remarks; he is being observed by scientists) grow frustrated too, by his apparent lack of memory. One morning the stiff-backed Rigel comes to question him, and Konstantin feels a small surge of joy that he manages to rattle the man who leaves, complaining about him. But the sensation is short-lived, and he goes to sit back down on his bed for some time, staring down at the cold white floor. That's when he hears the door to his enclosure open again and looks up, expecting another scientist, or perhaps to be taken back to the medical rooms for more examinations.
What he sees is something completely unexpected, two guards leading in another man. The EMT from before. .....What? Konstantin's brows lift as he stands from the bed and moves to approach, face shifting into a rare display of genuine confusion as the man is ushered in and the door is then closed behind him. ]
Vasiliy Yegorovich? What.....