As Alister takes a step towards the priest, a young man - pale, but handsome (Alex Higgens) - detaches himself from the group and heads over to the podium. Right behind him is another man, older and professional looking (Dr. Raymond Silver). Both step behind the podium, and in quiet voices try to quiet down the obviously agitated man.
"You're not living in curved space, and you don't even know it!" Alister continues to rant. "Do you know what happens to integers under pressure? Do you?" Alex calmly puts a hand on Alister's jacket, motioning him to move away from the funeral. The helpful duo begin to talk to him as well - their words are soothing and pitched low, and they seem to have a calming effect on Alister. Slowly, Alex and Raymond draw him away from the podium, and he begins to quiet down. Though Alex seems to have succeeded in helping out, he seems taken aback by something, and pauses for a moment before re-joining Alister and Dr. Silver. [This space reserved for Player Handout 2.0]
Dr. Silver takes a moment and flicks off the bug from Alister's neck. It lands a few feet away, with an audible thump that belies its small size. With a grimace, he puts the heel of his dress shoe firmly on the thing, and it makes a moist crunch sound. It indeed looked like a cockroach, and a large specimen at that.
Another man steps forward as well, attempting to calm the puzzled mourners (Randy Morrison). He is not a handsome man, by any means - but he moves with a grace that gives you the odd impression that he's dangerous in some way. When he speaks, his voice is frank and to the point. “Friends, I am sorry for this display from Mr. Alister. I am sure he did not mean to disrupt this solemn occasion. I am also sure he meant no disrespect to Mrs. Pickman, he was probably just upset about his mentor’s death, and did not know how to express himself. It seems that two of our fellow guests have taken Mr. Alister aside and are trying to comfort him. If there is anyone else who would like to speak, now is the time to do so.” No one seems to want to speak, and so Randy then walks over to Julia and begins to apologize. She is a little distraught, but understands - death can affect people many different ways. Another person goes to comfort Julia (Sam Hudson). He is a tall and well-built african-american man, with a youthful face and confident gait. He approaches Julia, and as she sees him she begins to cry and embrace him.
Randy, you grabbed the crumpled paper that Alister had left up at the podium. As you look down at it, you see it is a common piece of college-ruled notebook paper. But there is no eulogy written on it - instead, it is filled from margin to margin with numbers, formulas, and a mathematical mish-mash that makes your eyes hurt just looking at it. Virtually every available piece of white is taken up by the math. It is written in black ink with a shaky hand, though you cannot tell more without examining it further. You take a seat, and surreptitiously try to listen to what the two good Samaritans are saying to poor Alister. But the wind takes that moment to pick up, and drowns out their lowered voices.
The priest does his best to finish up the funeral, saying more meaningless words to a small crowd that stopped listening long ago. Alan's coffin begins to descend into the grave, and few can take their eyes off of the sight.
Quite a distance away, Alex and Dr. Silver begin to hear a 'stream of consciousness' type of monologue from Alister. Invariably it revolves around god or some type of obscure math subject. From integers to mandlebrots, Alister seems to weave a wall of words that is well-nigh unintelligible. You both notice that his suit is far more worn than you first thought, and exudes a particularly noisome stench. There are deep stains virtually everywhere that are only visible on his black suit up close as you are now. Dr. Silver, you notice that one stain, near his lower back, is rather large and reminds you of dried blood - but you cannot be sure.
As he prattles on - thankfully quietly - you both see something horrific. Something that makes Alex gag and cover his mouth. Cockroaches - from the size of ants to the size of your thumb - begin to boil out of his sleeves, shirt, and pants. Both of you step back for a moment in shock. Alister looks down at his body and arms, rippling with the bugs. "Ahhhhhh. My friendsss...." He begins to take deep, long sobs - even as the roaches skitter across his face, neck and hands.
Ewwww. At this time, only Dr. Silver and Alex see Alister's friends. What do you do, my friends?
