damned_institute | Night 60: Grand Ballroom

[From here]

As they descended the stairs, Scott's eyes darted away from the marble doors on the ballroom's south side. He couldn't help looking back up at Indy as his head turned, almost as if to make sure the man wasn't secretly a ghost that would disappear on them at any moment. ...Then again, if he was a ghost, wasn't turning around supposed to make Indy disappear anyway? Or was that the wrong type of ghost? Either way, Scott didn't look back for long, assuring himself that they weren't going to lose the adventurer again.

As his gaze moved back down, however, the black doors on the opposite side of the ballroom didn't inspire much more confidence. They didn't have any of the ornate imagery that the other doors had. Instead, they formed solid, heavy black slabs in the wall, like twin monoliths, or those creepy "SOUND ONLY" things from that one anime Envy liked.

He gripped Senna's sword and slipped his flashlight into his pocket as the party reached the bottom of the stairs, facing the ominous doors. Scott's mouth was getting dry again as flashes of that other night played in his head. "Well. Here we are," he said. Even at a volume just above a whisper, his voice seemed to fill the space.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"What now. Knock?" He walked up to a Dungeons & Dragons version of fire doors, and held up his pipe. "You called for a plumber?" he asked, rapping out a quick tattoo on the doors.

It swung open, just a crack. Well, shit. He'd been going for humor, not volunteering to be the bait through the doors. This was a job for a superhero. One with actual super powers, not just an inability to leave well enough alone.

He pulled the door open enough to step through anyway.

[to here]

> Rose: Descend

Two sets of doors did, indeed, remain. The dark, ominous portals overseeing the nearest wall stood Stygian sentry duty, impenetrable ramparts. Their small company would have to seek its fortune elsewhere.

There were two graven doors at the other end of the room, gleaming in torchlight. Two small openings beckoned, but Rose did not retrieve the items. Not yet.

"It seems we have everything necessary." She contemplated the doors as she waited for everyone else to catch up, and someone to explain it to Gamzee. "The decoration is rather beautiful, if altogether too optimistic. We should be ready for a fight."

Out of habit, Gamzee attempted to flip out his clubs when Rose mentioned a fight, only to remember that he didn't have them in this place. (The night before had been an exception.) Undaunted, he instead pulled out his clown horn, holding it in one hand as though it was equally as dangerous. It wasn't, but surely it was better than holding nothing.

"So we're stickin' them shiny motherfuckers all up in their shape-patterns on the door there, right?" Despite the image he normally gave, Gamzee didn't actually miss everything. Just many things. And he had an odd tendency to pay attention when you least expected it.

It helped that he'd gotten lost in staring at this place before.

Seishin may have had various expectations regarding the basement, but he wouldn't have expected a ballroom to be hidden under the walk-in fridge. Disregarding its strange location, it looked completely out-of-place in comparison with the rest of the institute.

Out-of-place, yet the former priest had rarely seen a room so impressive, almost overwhelming. The large room was entirely made out of marble, with a chandelier hanging in its dome-shaped ceiling. Indeed, there were four doors -- two brown ones with ornate carvings of angels and demons, and a black one that looked rather plain in comparison.

The final one, the one they appeared to be headed for, was made of white marble with images of celebrating angles upon its surface. There were indentations for two items. Seishin quietly studied them as he neared the others, finding himself agreeing with Rose-chan. The sword and the shield appeared to serve as the keys for these doors, which on its own was probably telling enough. He shifted the hold on his hatchet, though he knew he probably wouldn't be able to do much no matter what came up.

"That would seem to be the idea, yes," Seishin commented quietly.

Even knowing a fight was likely in their future didn't put Ilia at ease. She stood at the ready, determination hardening her features in a mask over her anxiety. She had to get a grip. If she was had been heading to the Demon World back on Roak with the intent to fight Asmodeus then she could take on anything beyond this door.

"Be prepared for possible sea monsters," she muttered under her breath. Claude, Anise and Guy had at least managed to impart a little of their basement adventures to her.

Ilia didn't have to add more to the obvious. The shield and sword would definitely fit in the indentions. Tightening her fists at her sides, she waited for Rose to carry on with her duties as sword and shield bearer.

Sea monsters? Rose was tempted to inquire, but there was something more enticing beckoning. Two little niches, in which the shield and sword fit perfectly.

The door swung open, and the hall beyond gaped open like a giant seadwelling monster's mouth. How exactly a sea creature would be attached to the bottom of a basement ballroom was unclear, but if it was, it was hanging like the world's biggest fucking lamprey off the tile in front of them.

The trinkets appeared to have served their purpose, and would not be dislodged while the door stood open. Rose held her candle out in front of her and stepped into the inky darkness.

> Rose: Open second door

[from here (http://damned.livejournal.com/1222601.html?thread=81956041#t81956041)]

"...whoa." Niikura stared up in awe as he emerged into a gigantic ballroom. Who'd have thought they'd have something like this hiding underground? It was...well, just like he'd thought, it was awesome. But what was it for? Did Landel really hold events and stuff down here? He couldn't see all the guests trekking through the cafeteria and into the fridge at the back in their finery, but eh. This was supposed to be a mental institute. That meant everything that ever happened here had to be tinged with some kind of crazy.

He nearly tried to test out to the acoustics by yelling, but stopped short as he realized as that the other group was still there, and that this was an embarrassing situation that he could avoid. Instead, he turned back to Shiina and Mike. "Pretty cool, huh?" Niikura asked with a smug grin on his face.

The trap door had been too easy to find, really. It was actually disappointing. Mike wouldn't have minded searching for the trap door to keep his skills sharp. Not that this place really gave him much opportunity to use them, besides fighting. He was going to get rusty at this rate.

Mike followed Niikura down the ladder, careful to keep distance between him and his companions. It was a hard to go down the ladder with one arm in a body he still wasn't used to, but he managed to keep his balance and not fall to his death. That certainly would have been embarrassing.

The ballroom was the last thing he was expecting. It should've been some dark smelly sewer or maybe even a cave. Instead, he found himself gawking a little at the scenery. It for a moment almost reminded him of the old lair with its high ceilings, but it was gone a few moments later. That life was over. This was his life now.

"Yeah," Mike grunted, glancing to Niikura. "Is it just me, or is this place absolutely nuts? Who the heck puts a ballroom underground?"

Night 60: Grand Ballroom

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