Night 67: West Wing, South Hall 1-A

[asteroidbelt]

[from here]

Shuffling along the wall would make too much noise, so Ryusei walked normally along this hall. He was worried, but with the exits at the two ends, he'd see someone coming long before they saw him. He could always duck past, but— He'd deal with that if it came up. For now, he had to think about where he would go from here. Routine said the cafeteria, but logic dictated otherwise; there was no point to going there. How about the front door? That— That was an option, wasn't it?

... It...wasn't a good one.

... He'd made it without mishap. Next.

[to here]

Comments

[complicatedliar]

[From here]

Once out into the larger hall, Loki dropped his invisibility and turned his flashlight on.

Feeling exceedingly cheerful, he set off toward the medical wing. He'd used up most of his medical supplies and needed more.

[ever_loyal_dog]

[from here]

Soushi stumbled out into the main hall with less than his usual grace. His powers had been sealed, there were some kind of monsters on the loose, some of them likely his friends, and he hadn't even a clue as to where to start. The markings on the body didn't appear to be anything the residents of Ayakashi were capable of; the attacks had been vicious, wild-looking. It was a chill reminder of Inukami and what he'd done to Karuta. Was this too, his work? He'd barely managed against the Wolf in their last fight, now, in this weakened state, did he even have a chance?

The halls were still nearly empty; were these the only patients who dared to leave their rooms? Soushi saw another light click on, up ahead, then start moving toward the rooms they'd been in earlier today. Would it be easier to go alone? Or to find a group? Information, Ryuugamine had said, was all they had to barter with here. If that was the case, the more people he found, the more information he could gather. He followed quietly, clicking off his own light as he went.

[complicatedliar]

Loki had already heard another person come out into the hall, and the fact that whoever it was tried to be quiet was suspicious indeed.

He walked down toward the end of the hall, listening, then paused there. He slowly turned, flashlight moving to reveal who was behind him. His other hand slipped to the waistband of his pants, ready to take up one of the little daggers.

[ever_loyal_dog]

Soushi cursed inwardly as the footsteps in front of him paused. Had he been found out already? What if the patient was less than willing to allow him to join in? What if he were a threat? He had no sword, no power, no anything to fight back.

Not so different from where he'd started, he thought with a bit of regret. He'd managed to escape that prison, but not without manipulating the people around him, using them, and himself as little more than tools to an end.

His power hadn't worked before, so it came as something of a surprise when it did this time, more or less a reflexive action. An adult was easy to shrug off, abandon, attack, but taking the form of a child? Not many could easily do such things to something that appeared to be so innocent.

The light hit him, revealing not a full-grown-adult of 23, but a child, little more than ten at best. His large eyes looked up in surprise and small hands held out in front of him as if to defend himself.

"I'm sorry!" he choked out, eyes already half-full of tears as he tottered forward a few steps more. "There was- There's a man back there, he was- There's so much blood and... and..."

[complicatedliar]

There was something very wrong about this. He could practically smell it. For one, a child wouldn't have been so quiet... the steps had been too far apart. And it felt wrong, in the dim recesses of the magic he'd been all but cut off from.

But he also couldn't put his finger on it. That was even more annoying.

Well. Time would tell with observation. He'd heard enough about the monsters that sometimes walked the hall that he knew better than to trust anything.

So for now he would play along. "A man?" he asked. "Is someone hurt?" Oh, he knew, but crafted his expression in to one of quite genuine concern. "Take me to him, I know some first aid."

[ever_loyal_dog]

He managed to keep from breathing a sigh of relief when the man began showing signs of concern, but fidgeted with the now-too-large-flashlight in his small hands as he sent frightened glances back toward the doorway he'd come from.

Hurt? He felt a pang of guilt for troubling the man. The poor soul down that hallway wasn't going to be getting up anytime soon. And he could hardly inflict a sight like that on a complete stranger.

"No," he planted his feet, shaking his head at the request, eyes downcast. "He wasn't moving. Something tore him up and-"

He took the time to swallow back the childish fear. Not his own, of course, but he had to attempt to be convincing. Any child in such a place would be scared out of his wits at such a sight. "What if it's still out there?"

[complicatedliar]

Oh, how good of the child to give him an excuse to not immediately revisit his own handiwork.

Loki hesitated. "Hm... that..." he looked down at his hands. "I am unfortunately not much of a warrior at all. Perhaps best to steer clear. Though..." He closed one hand into a fist, resting it in his other. "That leaves everyone else in quite a bit of danger, does it not..."

However, that was not a decision one could put on a child. "I suppose you had best stay with me for now. Perhaps out in the hall we shall find someone who is of a more martial bent."

He eyed the little boy suspiciously again, though. Well, nothing for it but to be prepared.

[ever_loyal_dog]

Warrior or not, Soushi wasn't interested in strength so much as getting a better idea of the layout of this building and exploring it with someone who at least had some direction in mind. That this man wasn't willing to let a child wander alone in a place that could tear apart men several times his size spoke well for him. He still felt somewhat guilty deceiving his new friend, but Soushi pushed that aside. Whatever would get him closer to Ririchiyo, that was what mattered.

He chanced a second glance back the way he'd come, as though it might reveal what sort of monster had slaughtered the unknown man in his hallway. It didn't, but at least the still-living man in front of him had a point. Whatever had done it, it was likely still out there and just as big a danger to all the rest.

"It's okay?" he asked, relief filling the child's voice as he took another step toward the stranger. "I won't get in the way. And even if- if we run into the thing that killed that man, then... we can just run away. It's okay to run away sometimes."

"I'm Soushi," he added, stopping short to look up at the rather tall stranger. If he weren't a child, they might've stood eye-to-eye. "The nurse said it's not, but I'm sure it's Soushi."

[complicatedliar]

It was all right to run away indeed. Had the child been an adult, it would be even more all right, since Loki was certain he could run faster than most and leave any erstwhile companions behind as a distraction. But a child, he would not abandon so easily.

"Yes, running seems to be the better choice here. I haven't any weapons of which to speak." And, he supposed, if this child wasn't some sort of trick, he could use an extra set of hands to carry things from the medical wing. "But I'm only to do rather boring things tonight, be warned. I am nearly out of medical supplies for first aid of certain types."

He nodded. "Soushi then, well met. My name is Lingormr."

[ever_loyal_dog]

No weapons? That was a shame. Soushi gripped his flashlight with both hands, as if the thing might make a half-decent club. Hardly. Maybe if he threw it? Even so, as long as they didn't run into any monsters, they'd be alright. He was fairly sure he could hold his own even then. And if they were just other humans like- well, like this one with the strange name, then he wouldn't be too terribly worried.

"I don't mind if it's boring," Soushi fidgeted, taking another step away from the bloodied hallway. "I don't wanna be alone."

Medical supplies weren't high on his list, but knowing where they were could come in useful in the future.

"It's nice to meet you Lingo-... Lin... -san," he made a couple of attempts at the foreign name before trailing off. He'd been no slouch in his language courses, but the man's name was still pretty slippery. If he were a bit more sure of himself, he might've attempted some kind of adorable nickname instead, but he wasn't sure if it would come off as endearing or obnoxious.

"Sorry, I'm not very good at... can you say it one more time?" he asked as he followed along.

[to here]