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

[vinesofregret]

There was a small, savage smile on Hakkai's face as he felt the warm wetness of fresh blood on his hands. A strike back in revenge - and then some. His satisfaction was cut short by the feeling of something colliding sharply with his legs, causing him to stumble backwards.

The shadowvines reacted to his anger, shooting out again to try and pin his attacker's legs to the ground.

[impudentsongbird]

The man was more solid than he looked. Had better balance. He stumbled but didn't fall even with Gabe's weight. But Gabe could smell blood, smell an injury other than the one he'd caused. The Archangel crouched and reared up, not enough to display his underside but enough for his paws, even velveted as they were, to lash out against his adversary's stomach and chest.

It was the smell of intent, more than anything, which alerted Gabe, but he couldn't tell from where that intent came. Not until he felt something whip around his back-paws and yank him off balance. With a hiss the Archangel twisted, lunging forward to try and knock the man over--or just exacerbate his wound--even as he fell.

He had to make this fast. The constraints of his form were rippling--not breaking, yet, but not as strong as they should be, and Gabriel knew he couldn't hold it forever.

[vinesofregret]

There were no claws this time, but there was weight, the huge animal pressing up against the wounds from the night before. He could feel pain blossom in his stomach and ribs, and he staggered backwards, falling against the wall even as his vines found purchase. His enemy was half on top of him, and he did his best to try and kick at it, more in angry retaliation than in a rational attempt at pulling himself free.

[impudentsongbird]

Between the kicks and the vines trying to drag him off, Gabe found it difficult to get up at all. He kicked out at the vines with a growl, letting his claws unsheathe in the hope the tendrils weren't vulnerable only to magic--or at least that maybe he could shake them off before they managed to do anything else.

His forepaws scrabbled, gained purchase, and he lifted himself up--but not far. Enough to take the weight off the man under him, enough to ease the pain of it, enough to put a paw warningly on his chest, but not let him reach Gabe's belly in turn.

[stop_the_rain]

[from here]

Something was all kinds of not right tonight. The fear that the delusions were taking him over again was strong, and 'Calder' was desperate to find a night nurse or orderly to explain what was going on...

Because there had to be a perfectly logical explanation. He was getting better. He was. He knew who he was, he knew what was real....

At least he thought he did, until he found himself in a more main hallway, facing a scene that was right out of a nightmare. Or one of his delusions.

Or possibly the Bible...what the fuck was going on?

"No..." he mumbled, instinct telling to back away from whatever vicious fight was taking place in the hallway. Real or not. He knew there were tricks the doctors had taught him, to help stave off the hallucinations, but he couldn't remember any of them. Fear had kicked in and he couldn't remember much of anything, when faced with the scene before him.

"No, no, no, this isn't real...."

[vinesofregret]

The vines writhed around, shifting as muscles flexed, but still holding on tight. That was all they could do, though - hold and try to pull the enemy backwards, off Hakkai.

Even the slight pressure on his chest was enough to make his ribs ache, and when trying to wiggle free proved unsuccessful, he settled for digging his own claws into the giant paw instead. He barely even took notice of the newcomer - his concentration was almost entirely on freeing himself, for the moment.

[impudentsongbird]

The steady pull on Gabe's hind-paws almost made him slip; only digging his claws into the floor kept him in place. Even then it was hard--his whole body strained, muscles quivering. The pain springing in his paw made the lion yelp, and then--

Someone new. Someone through the door, someone whose confusion and terror Gabe could smell.

Murphy!

The Archangel wasn't sure what did it. Whether it was the surprise of the interruption breaking his concentration, or just the way Landel had forced him into a human body. Either way, in that moment his unstable lion-shape reached the point it couldn't maintain itself and collapsed. The vines clung to human ankles and yanked him away with a suddenness that made Gabriel cry out.

Before they could throw him, before he could hit the wall or be sent down the corridor, or simply before the man on the floor could attack anew, the Archangel yanked himself into a second shape, one the vines would never be able to catch--a small moth, brown and dusky, fluttering through the air toward Murphy.

[stop_the_rain]

Confusion and terror were about all the man was feeling, at this point. All he'd wanted was a night orderly...

"I..." He backed away, shaking his head. Not real, not real, not real...

But it seemed so real. Vibrant and true and there to every single one of his senses. His rational mind couldn't assert the idea that it was just a hallucination, a mad delusion brought on by a sickness of the mind and heart...

"I'm not..." He didn't even know what he was trying to say. He backed into the wall, eyes darting back and forth in animal fear. He was sweating heavily. He knew he should run but his legs were made of stone. He could barely even manage words and the thundering of his own heart was deafening.

[vinesofregret]

And just like that, his prey had changed forms and flitted away. He could see the movement of the moth, but just barely, and even enraged as he was, he knew he had no real hope of catching it with his vines or chi blast.

But at least the weight was off his chest now, and he pulled up himself upright, using the wall as support. His focus turned to the other person now here - the one he could practically smell fear radiating off of. Perhaps the evening wouldn't be a total waste.

He smiled, and sent his vines out towards his new catch.

[impudentsongbird]

The moth was more stifling than Gabe remembered. It wasn't without its own senses, but Gabriel was so used to being able to use his own to supplement them that it took him a few precious seconds to adjust to that overwhelming black-out of anything else.

He felt the movement of the air around him. He heard the sound of frightened babbling through the vibrations in his wings, though he didn't bother to take the time to translate it.

But it was the heat which directed him. Not light, but the ultraviolet hues he could see of the two others in the room--one a normal human temperature and the other ... the other edged with blue. Warmer than a human ought to be. On a dime the moth turned and swept toward Hakkai; Hoping he wasn't too late, Gabriel shunted the moth-form aside and materialised right in front of his foe. Too quick for tiredness to register, the Archangel slammed his hands to the demon's chest and enforced upon Hakkai all the lack of desire for violence, the want to walk away from this peacefully, with which Gabriel was graced.

Without stopping to consider if it had worked or not (please, he prayed silently, please let it have worked) Gabe whirled and then staggered with the sudden tiredness of changing shapes so quickly all at once. He caught himself a moment later and ran for Murphy, intending to yank the man down the corridor and into the T-junction the main hallways created. They couldn't afford to get trapped in the patient's block.

[stop_the_rain]

In his current condition, there was nothing Murphy could do but go when the...man? - he himself wasn't sure, but he wasn't sure of anything at the moment - grabbed him was to go where he was tugged. His mind had decided it was about time to toss in the towel, and pure instinct was the only thing driving him.

Instinct said that running the fuck away was a very good idea. But as his legs needed a prompting, it took that grab at his arm to get him moving. Awkwardly, and with stumbling feet and jerky breaths, but he was moving.

These were just delusions? Really?

He didn't have an answer for himself. Best to concentrate on running and not pissing himself.

[vinesofregret]

There was another sharp stab of pain at that sudden push, cracked ribs and bruises protesting the sudden pressure - and then the oddest feeling overcame Hakkai. The cold, sullen rage he'd been feeling drained away. There was not any thought of why he'd been acting the way he had, or questions of self - just a feeling of sudden peace and contentment.

For a few brief, dazed moments, he looking unseeing at the two men who'd been before him.

[impudentsongbird]

For a heart-stopping moment Gabriel thought Murphy was going to fall, and the Archangel automatically half-turned to try and prevent that eventuality. Then the man caught himself, moving more smoothly now--not dazed. At least, not as dazed.

Something about the look of stark terror on his face made Gabriel's stomach lurch unpleasantly, but he didn't dare stop. His little trick had worked--the man with which he'd fought wasn't following, didn't follow, as Gabriel pulled Murphy around the corner and into the next corridor.

[to here.]