Night 68: Main Hallway, 1-Center

[madeinthehrl]

[from here]

It was still early in the night from the looks of it--the main hallway was totally clear as they moved toward the Sun Room. It was true the route they were taking was normally guarded, but there was no guarantee the rec field wasn't, and with a group this large, they would stand a better chance at breaking through anything that might await them.

She glanced back at the group. "If there's someone in the Sun Room, try to focus on disabling the attacker and running. I don't want to get held up in a pointless fight."

Comments

[doctor_voodoo]

Meanwhile, the Bokor's magical intuition prickled at the back of his mind, a soft warning which subtly trailed down his spine in the form of a foreboding shiver. It then grew further in Facilier's consciousness, a sensation akin to a brief whiff of a memory-laden fragrance but on a spiritual level. A couple steps forward and that psychic kinesthesia swiftly approached Facilier's Shadow. Sensing the encroaching spirit, the doppelganger was the first to look over its flattened shoulder towards the incoming presence, yet it barely had a chance to mimic the expression of a surprised gasp before the dark intruder took hold of its ethereal limbs.

The moment his Shadow was touched, Facilier was fully alerted to the new presence when he felt the same restrictive physical pressures as his Shadow was experiencing. Instantly, the Bokor was reminded of the shadowy vines which Hakkai had used on him the night he transformed. That chilling thought sent an explosion of adrenaline inside the doctor's heart. No..! He shouldn't be feeling this again, Hakkai was supposed to be dead! Facilier saw the monstrous boy collapse in his own pool of blood! Surely Hakkai had not returned from the dead to haunt him?!

Eyes wide and teeth clenched in a frightened grimace, Facilier snapped his head around to confront his attacker and raised his cane in defense. "Who--" was all the Bokor could utter at the inexplicable sight of the black mass growing over his Shadow's body. As his Shadow began to struggle against the unearthly hands, Facilier turned to fully face the anomaly, frozen with terrorized confusion as he stared at the lightless being. He could partially recognize the magical flavor of his attacker, it was different from Hakkai, yet it felt too close to home when it came to Facilier's own spiritual alignment... It smelled of death and festering rage.

"Just who do you think you are, spirit?!" Facilier demanded, his deep voice bellowed strongly against the horror that clenched tightly into his heart. He kept his eyes fixed on the formless stranger, his fingers digging deep into his cane, wary of how to strike such a phantasmal target. "Get your paws off my Shadow this instant! Don't y'all know who you're dealing with?!"

Despite his threat, Facilier couldn't tell who -- or what -- he was up against just yet; but he was The Shadow Man after all, he had to assert his authority and gain the upper hand before things got too hairy...

[deathrattling]

If there had ever been hearing within the capacity of this spirit, it was long gone. There was only the overwhelming sensation of hatred, a rage borne of blood and betrayal, something that comprehended nothing more than a lust for vengeance and a need to revisit the horror, again and again. To relive it in a space saturated with it: to ensnare whomever entered that space into the same furious grief.

On the wall, the dark strands only multiplied. Even as Facilier spoke, useless and fruitless, the black holding onto his Shadow thickened until a loop descended from the ceiling, winding around the Shadow's neck. It stayed there for a moment -- almost friendly, touch light, soft -- and then it jerked upward.

And it pulled, lifting the Shadow up the wall, tightening around its own dark neck until there was no gap of light between it and Shadow.

[doctor_voodoo]

Adding to his growing terror, Facilier found that his words had fallen upon deaf ears -- if the spirit even had ears in the first place! He could only grit his teeth and fruitlessly pull away from the invisible clutches upon himself and his Shadow.

The sickening ambiance of the spirit grew thick along the walls, giving off waves of emotional pollution which Facilier's supernatural empathy picked up on more than he could stand. Such ethereal radiation caused both doctor and Shadow to recoil, almost sharing the same despair and jealousy that was being forced upon them. The bokor was unable to tell exactly what kind of spirit this entity was, but he was most certain that it was a very angry sort.

"I SAID LET GO--!!" Facilier commanded once more as both he and his mimic fought hard against the coiling darkness. There seemed to be no way to reason with this creature, it was all but a hateful mass of bodiless grief, raging and unstoppable in its mindless pursuit of death. Facilier had to think fast out of this but he had very limited cards to play with. The only thing he could catch on in that fevered moment was how it somewhat resembled some of the Loa back in New Orleans. Those beings seemed unstoppable too, but they had a weakness...

Snarling, Facilier shifted his grip on his flashlight, nearly dropping it in his panic, and fumbled for the on/off switch. He could see the new tendrils dropping down above his Shadow; feel its threatening caress on both of their necks... Facilier knew this was now or never and switched the light on at his attacker. A second later and Facilier felt the ghostly touch around his throat squeeze into a deathly noose.

"NO--!"

Gasping, Facilier felt his feet leave the ground and his legs kicked about in an uncontrollable reflex for survival. Within the midst of his panic, Facilier dropped his cane but managed to keep a death grip of his own upon his flashlight. As his only weapon clattered to the ground, Facilier instinctively clutched into his strangled neck with his free hand and struck out at his attacker with his flashlight in a frenzied attempt to free himself.