>Cautiously Talk to the Jar Thing?

"Dinea" speaks in a tired, weary tone with an accent you can't precisely place, not that it would really have any earthly meaning either way. you gather from the buzzers that she's a jar full of leeches, which would weird you out if you hadn't just befriended a woman made completely out of bugs, though you are DEFINITELY not a fan of things that want your blood, including the little monster you recognize in the birdcage.

FERN:

Um, no...the Hospital is definitely "not well," from what I understand.

DINEA:

Whoever is your friend, Villis?

WILLIS:

This is F-

FERN:

Frannie, I'm uh, helping out at the maternity ward.

Do you remember anything before you were, um, "de-murdered?"

DINEA:

A state of emergency quarantine....interzonal travel discontinued to and from the Hospital...interference in our functionality by indeterminate entities...I am afraid these are but vague impressions, fadink quickly as my parameters re-synchronize vith vhat remains of our dear zone. Ironic, that by vay of beink restored to my vorkplace I only lose coherency. It should not be many layers before I forget that I was ever gone, and much of vhat vas ever wrong...

FERN:

Yeah...that seems to be going around. I think I was just talking with another coworker of yours; she's actually staying out of the Hospital for now.

DINEA:

Very vise decision of her, whomever she may be!

WILLIS:

It's miss Magdolene! She's gonna help fix everything!!

DINEA:

Ahhhh, of course, she is alvays a clever one. Pity that my memory of her, too, is deterioratink as ve speak. Do tell her I vish her luck, both in this and her, ah, other endeavor.

Actually, how is your mother doink, Villis?

FERN:

-She's working very hard on the big, uh, issue right now. Willis has also been a very big help to me, haven't you, Willis?

WILLIS:

Huh? Oh yeah! YEAH!!! WE SPLODED A DOLPHIN AND I HELPED!!!

DINEA:

Vonderful! Not so vonderful that you vould encounter a dolphin, of course, but its vanquishink is certainly cause for celebration. You are growink up so rapidly, Villis.

FERN:

Can you still remember anything else, Dinea? Before you forget?

DINEA:

Let me think...mmmm...AH!

I believe ve had deduced there vas a medical vard too many.

FERN:

A...a medical ward too many?

DINEA:

Mmmmmm...yes...ve could not determine vich, but the number of vards vas incongruent vith the Hospital's innermost branch layers, indicating that at least one vas an anomalous presence.

FERN:

...What are all the different wards here, actually? Can you remember that right?

DINEA:

I feel that I vill not recall much longer, indicating to me that several vards may be missink, degeneratink or conglomeratink as ve speak, but...

Our core vards should be General, Surgical, Maternity and Pediatrics, Psychiatric, Veterinary, Inorganic and...

WORMS!!! WWWORRRRRRRRRRMS!!!

h

...Our secondary vards are Dental, Optometry, Cardiology, Dermatology, Proctology, Osteology and Urology.

Vich ones are now missing, I am not quite sure in my current state, and vich is the unnatural addition...I cannot even imagine!

FERN:

Uhhhhhhh...I think I might have an inkling. What about you, Willis?

WILLIS:

Iunno...they all smell right ta me!

DINEA:

Speakink of my fadink memory, "Frannie," I am afraid I must varn you of somethink.

FERN:

I think I know.

Magdolene said she might be dangerous to me if she reconnects to the hospital.

DINEA:

Indeed. I can see that you are tryink to help, but I know that you are not who you say, and I am afraid I vill present an existential hazard to your vell-being vithin another two layers.

FERN:

I understand. I'm sorry for barging in, and I'll get out of here soon.

DINEA:

Oh dear, no, don't apologize! You followed Villis out of fear for his safety, and I am sure you are a vonderful voman. Medical staff, however, do not pose the threat to him that they pose to yourself, and I vould strongly reccomend you allow him to investigate facilities such as my own before you place yourself in unnecessary danger, especially as the deterioration of our function continues to spread.

FERN:

You're right...he did go through Phage's office for me, though Phage was kind of... trapped in a box at the time.

DINEA:

Again!? HHHAH!

FERN:

Yeah, it was pretty funny. Guy seems like kind of a goof.

DINEA:

You do not know the half of it, dahhlink! The stories ve could share!!! ...Assumink ve come out of all this, of course.

FERN:

Of course. Maybe we can all catch up someday...or...somelayer, or whatever.

I guess I'd really better hurry along, just to be on the safe side.