Chapter Text
“I must thank you again for allowing me to join your group, Jasper. I promise to help in any way I can!”
“Please, don’t fret over the need to prove yourself. I’m sure you’ll contribute to our efforts greatly.”
“Yeah, no need to worry yer head off! We kept Aurelius ‘round for this long, after all.”
“Wha- Hey! What was that for?”
“Aw, come on! You know I’m just teasin’!”
Aster smiled. It had been a long time since he had associated with a group like this. His work had left little free time in his schedule, and thus, past connections naturally drifted away. It was only natural that he accepted the offer to join the trio of astronomers, even if the group’s purpose was…a lot more grand than he expected.
Still, the opportunity to finally make use of his interest in astrology, along with being able to interact with (relatively) like-minded people, was enough to keep him content.
He was satisfied.
Well, almost satisfied.
Despite it all, however, there was one request that was gnawing at his mind, something that he couldn’t shake off.
“I do have one question before we start. Our goal is to find out as much as possible about a strange object in the sky, correct?”
“That is accurate. I assume there’s more to this question?”
With a quick, deep breath, Aster continued.
“May I see this phenomenon? It has been driving me mad with curiosity, and I…”
Aster stopped himself as the room went silent at his question. A feeling of unease filled his stomach as everyone stared at him, each differing reaction only adding to his growing discomfort. Aurelius showed confusion, as if shocked by the audacity to make a request like that. Beryl seemed to be holding her breath, bracing for the inevitable, explosive reaction.
Jasper’s, however, was the worst. He looked disgusted, betrayed, almost offended at the idea that the man before him even considered asking such a question.
“I…I cannot let you do that, I’m afraid.” Jasper eventually replied, a swirl of emotions in his voice.
“But, wouldn’t it be logical for me to see it in order to gain a better understanding of it? Why wouldn’t you want me to-”
Before Aster could continue his questions, Jasper pulled the golden mask from his face.
Though his face was mostly covered by the shadow from his hood, the several, red eyes lining his face were still clear as day. The piercing crimson dots only added to Aster’s immense unease, as well as a sudden feeling of sickness.
“Thankfully, this was the extent of the changes brought upon me from looking at The Visitor.” He explained. “Still, its effects are unpredictable, and I…”
There was a brief moment where Jasper paused. His gaze drifted away from Aster, looking towards something distant, something beyond that room. He quickly snapped back, however, and adjusted his words.
“And we cannot risk losing someone to it.”
With that, the mask was put back on, and Jasper walked to the door.
“I need a moment…please excuse me.”
The moment Jasper left, the silence was broken by Beryl.
“Don’t blame yerself for this, Aster,” she said, putting a hand on his shoulder. “You couldn’t have known ‘bout its effects, or what Jasper went through.”
Aster sighed, putting a hand to his head. He had gotten an answer, he now knew what was so dangerous about this phenomenon. Even if he could never be allowed to look at it, he should’ve been satisfied due to the circumstances.
But it only opened up thousands of new questions.
What determines the severity of the mutations? Does one need to view it directly? Is acknowledgement of the entity required for the effects to take hold? How do mutations vary? Are they truly random, or is there a pattern?
Even if he had a rough start with the group, he planned to stay with the astronomers. He needed to stay. He needed to find answers, even if it destroyed him.
Curiosity filled every cell of his body, and Aster planned to satiate it by any means necessary.
~
Roughly six days into the apocalypse, it was the middle of the night, and Aster didn’t feel the slightest bit tired.
There were a multitude of factors that could’ve been responsible for his lack of sleepiness. For one thing, while he was glad that he had gotten a turn to sleep on the couch (Sam had managed to negotiate getting his bed back, all he knew was that it involved a mattress), it was still a couch. To say that he missed his bed would be an understatement.
The sheer amount of people Sam had managed to fit in his apartment was another possible contributor. It all but guaranteed that there would always be the sound of someone breathing, shifting in their sleep, snoring, or whatever the other unearthly noises were. It also meant that he wouldn’t have a moment of privacy unless he were to leave the apartment, which had its own number of problems.
(Don’t even get him started on the weird, white-faced shadow thing in the corner!)
He could think of a number of other reasons; general anxiety, stress, his reliance on caffeine to make sure he stayed awake during the day, all were possible culprits.
Deep inside, however, Aster knew exactly what was keeping him up.
The concealed photo of The Visitor residing in his bag’s pocket.
Sam had given it to him about two days ago, providing no explanation as to where and how he got it. He was extremely grateful for it, more than he could properly express with words! It meant so much not just to him, but for the entire world. It was part of the key to saving millions of lives.
It was also an invitation to finally experience The Visitor’s effects firsthand.
He knew the danger of it. Half the people surrounding him served as examples of what happened when someone sees it, and why he absolutely shouldn’t follow their footsteps. Even if they had retained their sanity, the mutation was permanent. Whatever transformation that would be brought upon him, no matter how nonfunctional or horrible, would be something he had to live with for the rest of his life.
And that was if he stayed sane. He could forget everything of his prior life, regress into non-sapience, or just flat-out go insane. His mind could be warped so severely that there would be no trace of the person he used to be, and he wouldn’t even know it.
By all means, he shouldn’t do it. To some degree, he didn’t want to do it. And, for a while, he resisted the urge to take just one quick peak. He could restrain himself.
Then he followed Sam into Edwin’s apartment, it was to meet with “a friend.” And then he found Edwin’s notes. He didn’t know Edwin very well, but the Edwin who wrote those notes might as well have been from a different person.
To Aster’s horror, those notes revealed exactly why he hadn’t seen Edwin during all of this. He had seen The Visitor, long before its arrival. He became something, lost his mind, seemingly, and…
Just the imagery conjured by those notes made him nauseous, much less the one remaining victim (that was the only word he could attribute to…her).
It should’ve only deterred him from his need to look. Edwin was just another horrific example of what could happen to him.
But, to his horror, it only furthered his curiosity.
Both Jasper and Edwin had seen The Visitor before it arrived, how come Jasper was able to keep his sanity? Plus, from what Sam described, Edwin’s mutation seemed to be related to his hobby of astronomy, so why was Jasper’s curse so minimal and generic in comparison? That wasn’t even getting into what Edwin had done to…the others. They hadn’t looked, but what Edwin had done to them should not have been survivable.
He needed to know the pattern. He needed to know the logic behind it all.
He needed to discover the truth.
And so, Aster was left tossing and turning on the couch, his mind refusing to shut off.
Eventually, he gave up on his current strategy of praying for the sweet release of sleep. Maybe there was some melatonin in the bathroom, that would hopefully help him. Surely Sam wouldn’t mind him taking advantage of it…
With a quiet groan, Aster lifted himself off the couch. Being careful not to accidently step on anyone, he made his way to the kitchen to grab a cup. Even if there wasn’t anything that could help him, he probably would have had a glass of water anyways. Might as well hydrate while he was still up.
Cup in hand, Aster turned to head to the bathroom-
And nearly had a heart attack when he saw Hellen standing directly behind him.
“Ghhhh???!!”
His attempts to stay quiet and not scream in horror were…less than flattering.
“You???! Don’t- you can’t just. MA’AM. Oh my lord…”
He struggled to find both his composure and the proper words for the situation. All the while, Hellen just stood there, staring down at him.
“You can’t just do something like that! You- you’re going to get attacked someday if you do that to the wrong person!”
“…You done?”
Sighing, Aster reluctantly continued.
“Yes. My apologies,” he said wearily. “I am…slightly on edge at the moment, and I presumed everyone else was asleep.”
He didn’t talk with Hellen often, and when he did, it was always an incredibly awkward experience. From her towering stature and build, to how the way she spoke was simultaneously blunt and vague, to how utterly ruthless she was in combat, it was as if she was specifically made to be as unsettling as possible.
To see her up at such an hour, though, gave him hope for finding some common connection between them.
“I see you are suffering from insomnia as well?”
She stared at him blankly for a moment.
“I don’t sleep. Physically can’t. Not anymore.”
…Oh.
Well, that was close enough in his book.
“Ah, I see.”
Another period of extremely uncomfortable silence between the two commenced as Aster filled his cup. The only noises to be heard was the running of water, the ticking of the clock, and the occasional sound from Leigh as she dreamed of god knows what.
“There’s no sleeping meds, by the way.”
For the second time that night, Aster jumped at the sudden reminder of Hellen’s presence. He briefly wondered how she knew his reasons for being up, but quickly realized that he had made it incredibly obvious that he was struggling with sleep.
“Great. Exquisite, even.”
More silence. It left plenty of room for the horrible curiosity to fill his brain again.
This time, it manifested as a single question.
“I apologize if this comes off as insensitive, but I wish to confirm a suspicion of mine. Have you looked outside, by chance?”
He almost immediately regretted saying it. Why would he let himself say such a thing? Did he really have such poor self-control over himself? How was Hellen going to react?
Before he could apologize, however, Hellen gave an answer.
“It was beautiful.”
That wasn’t the answer he expected. In fact, it wasn’t an answer he wanted in the slightest. It only fueled the horrid part of his mind that so badly wanted to look. After all, if Hellen had come out of her exposure looking relatively normal, then there was a chance that he would be mostly unaffected.
No. Don’t think that. Stop thinking about it.
The bag that held the photo was still set against the couch.
“Excuse me, I…need a moment to myself.”
He quickly maneuvered around the woman and back to the living room. His robes, glasses, amulet, and bag were hastily equipped, all while Hellen watched silently.
“I would prefer it if you didn't bring this interaction up with anyone else.” Aster requested, moving to the door.
Just as he reached for the handle, he paused.
“However…if I’m not back by morning, then please don’t hesitate to inform them of my departure.”
Hellen gave an affirmative grunt, before directing her attention elsewhere.
And with that, Aster left the apartment.
~
The hallway of floor two was empty, yet familiar. He had used the area as a hide-out for the first few days, as it lacked any hostile Witnesses. It was far from preferable, and Sam’s apartment was most definitely an upgrade, but it had its advantages.
The lack of anyone that could possibly be affected by the photograph was one such positive.
Sitting himself against the wall, Aster took off his bag and began to rummage through it. He was never good at organizing, not even the apocalypse could change that, but he made an exception for the offering. There was a small pocket on the inside of his bag, something he never bothered using before.
Inside that pocket, the concealed photo was placed.
Despite the circumstance saying otherwise, he wasn’t stupid. He knew that he was carrying what was essentially a portable cognitohazard. So, he had prepared a small envelope for when he attained the picture, and marked the side that it was facing for good measure.
The mark in question, a little star, seemed to taunt him as he faced it. His hands trembled, whether it was out of anticipation or fear, he couldn’t tell.
Aster shut his eyes tightly, undid the flap, and took the photograph out.
All he had to do now was open his eyes. That was all it took. There was nothing that was stopping him anymore.
…
Why wasn’t he doing anything? Why was he hesitating? He had the perfect opportunity to find an answer to this madness, quite literally right in his fingertips. Was he truly such a coward that he was willing to throw all of this away?
No. He was being reasonable. He shouldn’t be here in the first place. Put the photograph back in the envelope, and head back to Sam’s apartment. Forget this ever happened. This isn’t the answer.
But what if he was lucky? The possible curses were practically endless, which left a good chance that he would get afflicted with something that was at least manageable.
Stop. Stop this. You won’t get lucky. How would he explain it to the rest of apartment 33’s residents? How would he explain it to Jasper?
Forget that. He was smart. He could figure it out.
Just.
Open.
Your.
“EYAAH???!!”
Aster jolted forward as something bit him, hitting him with a sharp pain.
There’s something on his hand. There was something on his hand. It felt like a bug, some sort of centipede. No, not a regular bug. The fingers and teeth felt far too much like a human’s.
Looking down, some sort of finger-worm thing had crawled up to him, and was now firmly chomping his hand.
With another embarrassing screech (one that hopefully no one was awake to hear), he tore the creature off his hand and threw it to the floor. A few of its teeth had stayed embedded in his skin. He could only hope that his gloves would make them easier to remove, and prevent a potential infection.
The worm wasn’t given any chance to move before it was stomped on. Again and again, Aster crushed the thing until it turned into an unrecognizable mush. And just to make sure it stayed dead, the final stomp was followed by a twist of the foot, leaving nothing but a red stain on the ground.
Despite the minimal physical activity, the ordeal left the astronomer out of breath. Perhaps it was due to the adrenaline wearing off? Or maybe his athletic abilities were more lacking than he thought.
Thankfully, the teeth stuck in his skin were easily removed, and had caused minimal damage. He was otherwise unharmed, and the photograph-
The photograph!
Panic immediately flooded through him. He had dropped the photograph at some point like an idiot. For all he knew, it could have been snatched away by another worm thing, or somehow gotten torn up. Worst of all, however, it could be facing upwards, and he wouldn’t know until it was too late.
Frantically, he looked all around him, and to his luck, the photograph hadn’t gone far. It was also facedown, to which he let out a sigh of relief.
For just a moment, as Aster returned the offering to the envelope, everything was okay. He was alive, he still had the photograph, there was no one around to witness the embarrassing scuffle, he…
He hadn’t.
Looked.
He didn’t look at the photo.
…Did he?
“Oh lord, nononono…ooooh what have I done…”
When he got bit, he clearly remembered his eyes snapping open, it was only natural that he saw the contents of the photo.
He saw it, most definitely. Yet, he couldn’t recall exactly what he had seen. If he did indeed see it, then it must have only been for a split second.
Aster’s stomach churned as he steadied himself against the wall. Had he looked? He couldn’t tell, it could very well go either way.
Breathe, Aster, just breathe. You didn’t see it. You are okay.
No amount of self-reassurance could quell the fear in his heart, he was well aware of that. So many emotions swirled in him all at once, fear, guilt, curiosity, anticipation…
…Hunger. Weariness. A strange fluttering sensation in his chest and stomach. A mix of dizziness and…euphoria? Something was definitely wrong. Feelings that shouldn’t be felt simultaneously were rushing through him. Was this a symptom of his inevitable transformation?
It suddenly hit Aster that he felt giddy. After so long, countless sleepless nights, he was finally getting a firsthand example of The Visitor’s effects. He would finally get closer to some semblance of an answer!
A giggle slipped from his throat. It was happening, it was really, truly happening! This wouldn’t be all for nothing, he could help so many lives with the information gained from this experience! He would be praised, and loved, and respected, and-
His hand slapped his mouth shut the moment he realized what he was doing. He was laughing, cackling like a madman, and somehow didn’t notice.
Oh god, he really was going insane.
The offering. He needed to get the photograph somewhere safe, to someone of sane mind. But where was it guaranteed to be kept safe and sound, and who was the right person?
His legs worked on autopilot as he headed towards and into the stairwell. Not upstairs. Not Sam. Too risky, too much fighting that was done each day. Jasper was briefly considered, but the thought of pitifully crawling up to him, admitting his fault and begging for forgiveness? It made Aster sick. Beryl was much too far away, he would be a fleshy, dissolving mush by the time he got to her (that was, if he did indeed see it, which he didn’t).
Aurelius. He could trust Aurelius to keep it safe. He barely left that little storage room of his, he would be safe.
He practically burst through the entrance to the first floor. It had a much more confusing structure compared to the rest of the building, as he learned from his last visit, but he had made sure to memorize the route to Aurelius’ base. All he needed to do was turn right at the first chance, and…
This was an entirely different area.
To his left, he could see the elevator, and on the other side, he could just barely make out the area where he started.
It was also at this moment that he noticed how tired he suddenly was. Maybe he was simply delirious and hallucinating. If he kept walking forward, surely he’d reach his destination eventually.
So, Aster carried on, looking to the right every now and then to make sure he didn’t end up passing the desired door.
His panic, temporarily buried by his frustration, quickly revived the moment he found himself back at the stairwell.
“Oh for the love of…!”
Labyrinthine. That was the only word he could use to describe the state of the first floor as he ran aimlessly through the halls.
As if being completely lost wasn’t enough, his mind grew more weary with each step. He wanted so, so desperately to lay down and sleep. The already confusing hallways seemed to distort before his eyes, only leaving him more dizzy and lost.
“Where is it…where is he?”
Hunger. Sleepiness. Confusion. Hunger. Panic. Regret. Hunger. Too much happening. He needed to lay down. A quick rest couldn’t hurt, right? Just a quick moment to shut his eyes, that’s all.
Before he knew it,
he
was
falling
down.
He caught himself before he fell on his face, thankfully. That would have been bad, very terrible.
He felt much better now, so much more awake. In fact, he felt more aware than he ever had before. His mind felt so free.
Just as he was going to lift himself back up, he paused. It felt so much better to crawl, so much more natural. It was better on his limbs, yes.
Hunger. It gnawed at his very being. He wanted it to stop. He needed to make it stop.
He wandered the halls, but they no longer felt like a maze. In fact, everything seemed so much brighter, it made so much sense now. How was he able to live before? How could he ever go back from this?
A hallway of doors. Someone was up ahead. No, that wasn’t a human, at least, not anymore. A body frayed apart into worm-like appendages, each ending with a grasping hand.
It turned towards him. All that remained of its head was a mangled face. No sapience behind those eyes, only animalistic instinct as it rushed in his direction.
Far from perfect, but it would have to do for now.
With each of his hands, he held the beast in place. It thrashed and struggled, but its efforts were futile.
Just like that, he put the creature to sleep. It was like second nature.
Right in his grasp, he could see its dreams. Not in perfect clarity, but with a message clear enough for him to put into words.
Reproduce. Spread. Infect. Control. Spawn. Infest.
He held the limp body in his hands,
and
devoured
it
and its dreams
whole.
Ecstasy. That was the only word he could use. Pure bliss. For a creature of such low intelligence, it had a wonderful tasting dream. Meaty, salty, just a hint of spice. A true delicacy.
Even if it wasn’t the most favorable option, it was enough for now. There was no reason to stay on this horrid floor.
He effortlessly navigated the labyrinth, to the stairwell, and ascended upwards. He couldn’t go back to the third floor, terrible things would happen. Terrible, awful things.
The familiarity of the second floor’s halls called to him. Yes, that was perfect. It was safe, and definitely has enough room for him to fit in.
It was left just as he remembered it, bloody stain and all. He curled up into himself, putting his bag under his head as a makeshift pillow. It reminded him of when this all started, when he could only hope nothing would attack him.
He didn’t have that worry now. He could rest now.
Peacefully, he fell into a dreamless sleep.