The notes covered the entirety of one wall, an apparently disorganized vertical pile of paper slips, each covered with something. Words. Scribbles. Sketches. To the untrained eye, it looked like a mess.

To Malodore, it was data. And it was the purest summation of its hopes.

The plague doctor looked at the wall, gaze narrowed as it held up pen and notebook. Only it could see the lines connecting data points, pulling the disparate facts together into a unified whole, though there were still gaps. Too many gaps. But fewer gaps than there had ever been before; the sharp ache in its stomach reminded it that a good chunk of the empirical data had been gained because it had witnessed Riley's death.

Focus. Data now. Emotions later.

I am strong enough. Focus.

........


Theory: that Insanity, as a substance, was related to both JOY and FEAR, as beings of both types had shown a vulnerability to it.
Further: that its source was rooted in FEAR, that it was, in fact, a type of FEAR in and of itself, though greatly changed from its original form.

It put one claw out and traced a line between two notes.


Fact: Insanity could not be caused by simple dissipation and reformation; otherwise, the entire population of Halloween would have degraded and been lost long ago, save a few fortunate and well-protected souls. But they were always warned about being 'killed' too rapidly and too often, weren't they? There had to be a reason.

Hypothesis: Insanity is the reason.

It tore a note free and moved it, sticking it up next to a sketch of her profile.


Theory: Insanity is created through severe disruption of FEAR-based beings.

One claw swished and crackled across notes, connecting this point of data to that one.


Further: this severe disruption renders the FEAR-based being unable to re-form properly, rendering it in a permanently dissipated state, appearing as mist or fog. The 'phoenix' apparition was, beyond doubt, caused by the disrupted FEAR of the murdered population of the Four Clans. So many beings forced to dissipate at once, highly traumatic-



Beyond the portal island now floating just bare feet above the water was a monstrous crater. The ocean simply poured endlessly downwards, already consuming the edges of the nearly one-hundred foot drop down..

...Four Islands that had been filled with colour, life, four islands that were now represented-

- By nothingness. The ocean churned and roared as it swallowed the islands, twisted gnarled and blasted edges into the beginnings of a dull grey.



-Theory! Insanity is severely disrupted FEAR unable to re-form properly into its component entities; thus, it manifests as fog, forming a highly fragmented 'gestalt' consciousness in the loosest possible sense.

Fact: That Calder heard the voices calling for 'home' in the Hunters' weaponization chamber - something that had actually happened, not just been a dream presented by the Death Clan.
Further: weaponization had been seen to fail; those captured during the Haunted House incident had attested to it. Fact: the 'failed experiments' had not re-formed as students.

Theory: damaged by the process, these 'failures' were unable to re-form, and became part of the mass of Insanity.



- there was no fog. No fog at all. Instead, all it saw were people. Ghosts, monsters, demons, undead, reapers... folk of Halloween Town, standing there where the fog had been, something about them deeply wrong in a way Malodore couldn't express, even if it had still possessed a mouth with which to speak. Had they been the one whose voices it had heard in the fog?

Shuddering - or, at least, feeling as though it would like to - the plague doctor focused itself as well, turning its attention in the same direction as the others. At least then it could be caught up in that single-minded stare, as if it were becoming part of a single organism...



-Fact: on the Hunter's Island they had all felt the Insanity; felt, upon dissipation, that they did not re-form but were taken into this gestalt. A strangely silent gestalt, at that time, but they were still affected via hallucination. Perhaps something had happened to produce that single-minded focus towards home.

Theory: Perhaps they had simply become more numerous.

Hypothesis: that the Hunters were to blame.

One fist clenched tightly before unfolding and reaching out to the notes once more.

Deep breath. Focus.


... Fact: the Insanity infection appears to progress in stages, observed in both FEAR and JOY specimens.

Observed: the initial stage involves hearing distant, indistinct voices; emotions are heightened, including feelings of paranoia and unease. No apparent physical alterations are present. This stage can be either temporary, or lead to...



There, sticking out just slightly on her shoulder, was one sliver of grey. Maybe that was all. That would be acceptable, it would give them enough time.

She reached behind her, and unzipped the dress, before peeling it forward until her upper body was clothed in nothing but her bra, and the sound of her breath inhaling was audible, as it sucked through her tentacles.

She was striped like a wildcat. Grey patches had met to become lines across her body, that wrapped around her sides like loving hands holding her in an embrace.



Its wings twitched and drew inwards; one could not operate on a memory, but how it wished to cut and cut until all the grey was flayed away; how it wished to scream at its past self, tell it to work faster conclude sooner, hold her tighter kiss her more-


-Observed: the secondary stage involves disruption of the flesh, marked by greying of the body and momentary flickers in eye coloration. The influence of the voices increase, with a particular focus on 'home' and fear of being taken from 'home'. Personal pronoun usage shifts from I to we.

Hypothesis: subject begins speaking as a representation of the Insanity gestalt, losing sense of self.

Its wings drew in around itself, a cage of bloodmetal, as it began to tremble; this was it, the part that hurt like knives to examine, even so forensically as this. Theory. Theory. THEORY-



Her eyes opened, and she pushed herself up to her feet. Riley's clothes were torn, and destroyed - the signs of Insanity were now visible to anyone who had the time to look, as they tore across her body, covered her torso, and invaded every appendage. For a moment, even her eyes flashed blue, as she glared, brokenly, at the two hunters who'd brought her down.

Her head cocked very harshly to one side, and her entire body moved with an awkward, almost broken gait. Something was very, very wrong.

...She was whispering something. Something almost inaudible. Something about just wanting to go home.

Riley's attacks were staggered, and random. She barely managed to wrap a tentacle around Leon's waist before it was pushed away. Her other tentacles snapped above her head, twisting and turning as if they couldn't figure out where their opponent was. And always, always her eyes kept flashing from the solid white to a swirled, delicate blue.



THEORY! Third stage prompted by dissipating too many times/damaged reassembly + traumatic external factors?
Observed: Eye color shift, erratic behavior increases-



Around Famine's portal, a strange, thick fog appeared, swirling with indistinct whispers. At first it seemed...disturbing, but relatively harmless. Then two, painfully brilliant blue orbs appeared within it. They were round at first, but they flattened into thin, angry slits, as the fog began to condense around them into a vaguely humanoid form. The last, crumbling vestiges of the creature once known as Riley stepped out from the fog and scanned the area, searching for something. Anything. Everything.

"Mia cara, please-" It cried out with all the force it possessed, falling to its knees. There was a tremendous sense of pressure, battering against it. It could find no trace of her soft, welcoming embrace in the white wall before it, stealing her shape. It couldn't think, couldn't move-

"Take me with you - don't leave me alone!! Please-"



-upon dissipating and re-forming, the subject's body increases in size and decreases in stability (hypothesis: to attempt to embody the entirety of the Insanity gestalt), resulting in a composite creature with a massive size/power increase, but the original entity is stretched to their limit and is not in control-



Every step looked like it hurt. She stumbled, but she did not fall. She kept walking, through the tumult of hunters fighting students, ignoring all of the chaos around her. She walked right through them, but her steps were slowing, as if they were getting heavier. Finally, she reached her destination, through sheer force of will. There was a splash of red on the floor, nearly unconscious from being killed over, and over again. Riley reached down, gathered Malodore up in her arms, and slowly, ever so slowly, her tentacles started to wrap around it, too.




-(but control loss is NOT permanent, both subjects to date were able to regain control and some semblance of self near the end)-

Vision blurred again. Tears. Damn them! It was trying to- the data- it had no time for this, this weakness- focus, damn you, focus-


FACT! after the third stage concludes (with sufficient damage to body?) the original entity's body calcifies-



Her movements became slower, and slower, until it was clear why she was slowing down. Her legs had already turned to stone from the moment she'd made it to the plague doctor, and now, her arms were hard and solid as well. Her tentacles writhed, slower, slower.. and then they, too, stopped.

The crackle of stone creeped up her neck, even as she dipped her head down and pressed it against Malodore's forehead, her eyes flashing blue just once before they closed, and turned to stone as well.

It felt her skin against it, her warmth wild and fluctuating. Her voice, a breath in its mind. Her embrace-

With a sigh, Malodore wrapped its arms around her, the stone creaking slightly as it settled. It was dimly aware of the others shouting, being drawn away, but it was safe here in her arms, held forever, safe and cherished and-



Its wings rasped as it shuddered. Writing. Focus.


-unknown what happens to the original entity.



It couldn't... couldn't imagine Riley like that, a single spark drowned in a sea of maddened minds.

Was she one of the voices calling Ashford towards home?

For a moment it ached, wishing that it could take the grey into itself, just in case it could hear her voice.



... Hypothesis...

It heaved a breath. Blinked through the tears.
Focused.


Question: What causes a permanent as opposed to a temporary infection?
-> Subject 1 (Riley): hypothesis - infection set in during time of extreme damage when attacked by Caelius
-> Subject 2 (Jericho): hypothesis - infection spread via mind-link to Riley??
-> Subject 3 (Ashford): ???

Too many question marks, damn you, too many.


-> Subject Prime (Red): hypothesis - that her FEAR was destabilized through bond with Hunter weapon

No emotional attachment other than superficial. Clinical examination possible.


Question: what causes lingering effects, 'permanence'?
Fact: Island, Haunted House incident, Christmas incident had no lingering effects-
-> Theory: sheer amount of Insanity released on the Isles, due to Hunter genocide, overwhelmed and damaged surrounding populace to an as yet unheard of extent.

Safe, this. Safer. Calm. Focus.
The notes were starting to thin; the metaphorical threads, stretched and indistinct. Logic breaking down. Need more data.


Question: is it communicable through other means?

Fact: immunity is possible.
Hypothesis: so is a cure.

......

Its notebook was full of writing. Its mind was ordered. Structured. Its heart ached, and its body felt as if it had been punched in the gut, mask streaked with tears. If only it had done this sooner. If only. If only. It clutched the notebook to its chest like a precious jewel.

Now it had something real, something concrete. It had a framework. It had something to flesh out. It had a real, concrete path. It had ideas for experiments, concepts coming within its grasp. Just a little further. Only a little further, and it would know.

Her sacrifice would not be in vain.