damned_institute | Nightshift 30: M31-M40 Hallway

[M39]

Being dragged away from ZEX mid-conversation was something of a mixed blessing. On the upside, it meant that Zelnick would have at least few minutes to regain emotional balance before spending the whole night with the guy....

Well, perhaps it was more of a mixed curse. Normally Zelnick didn't begrudge allies their oddities, but ZEX had this amazing ability to jump straight from normal conversation to oh-god-awkward innuendo-laden flirting, and Zelnick couldn't do much but hope that he'd keep away from the latter.

In any case, he paid closer attention to where they took him, this time, not just his room number, and he realized he was actually really close to Yuber's room. Wasn't that convenient?

Once he was in his room, he started to get ready for the night; skillet, knife, pestle, all loaded into the apple basket that had wound up in his closet, along with a couple pens and the radio (hadn't Yuber said it spilled hints at night?). This meant he couldn't take all the apples with him, so Zelnick wrapped them in one of the extra shirts and left them in the corner of the closet. All that was left was to get the flashlight, which he found under his pillow like he did last night.

Then the intercom clicked on.

So that was their lord and master, in this place? After spending the first night confused and the first day hearing the voice of the Head Nurse, he found that the guy sounded pretty sane, until he admitted to killing someone. "The man on the radio--" did he mean whoever was on the other side of the little antique, sending out hints? And the method of death sounded... frighteningly personal.

He unloaded the skillet from the basket and held on to it as the doors unlocked, and sat at his desk to wait for ZEX.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Lucivar swallowed, her words sending a chill up his spine. She made it, this place, sound like some sort of beast that ate everything he held dear. "But I can feel them," Lucivar said, not bothering to realize he was talking to someone who most likely wouldn't be able to give him a straight answer. "My wings, my jewels - I can feel them but I can't touch them. Shouldn't they be gone if they've taken everything?"

River stopped somewhere in the middle of the room, her back to Lucivar as she let the weight of what needed to be said hang draped across her shoulders for a moment's time before responding.

"Sometimes, when something's taken from you, you can still feel it there. In the hole they left behind. It's a bit and a piece, and it's always you, but it's lost. Buried. Inside of you. Not where it should be." She stopped abruptly, shaking her head. "I can't- not making sense. I don't. I-"

Silence again. Abrupt silence. She'd lost her way, and it was too dark tonight to even see the stars.

"I... I think I remember where. Somewhere. A trail of breadcrumbs."

Lucivar sighed, sitting down on the bed. "Don't strain yourself," he said, grumbling a bit. "There aren't any answers here. I keep looking and either I get a needle in my arm, threatened to have my face meet the floor or speak with girls who are broken. I don't know what to expect anymore. All I know is I have to get out. I can't stay here forever like some caged animal. I did it for centuries and I'll be damned to be made to do it again."

He was venting, he knew that, but the girl seemed nice enough even if she didn't quite talk sense. It was just nice to have someone listen without always reminding him to leash his temper.

River trotted over to the bed, taking a seat next to him. She couldn't remember still, not just yet, but the road to Grandmother's house would open again when the dust cleared. He sounded just like a part of her always felt, and she was young, her life a flash in the pan, but she knew something of it.

"Kept me in a cage too. Not here. In the Black. Somewhere can't remember, not ever, but..." She sighed, her voice faltering. "Went on forever. Just like this place." Of course, it wasn't long before her tone changed, lifting along with her head as she piped up again after only a brief pause.

"They're fighting, aren't they? Sloppy form, no doubt." River laughed, heaving a somewhat exaggerated sigh. "Why she came to talk with you. Couldn't bare the sight of it."

He glanced over at the girl trying to judge her motives. He didn't trust many women considering most of the women in his life before a few years prior had all been determined to enslave him, bend him to their will and use him to breed. Women could humilate where no man ever could but he didn't sense the same maliciousness in any of River's actions. She was a bit of a kindred spirit as she talked of being caged. They had that in common which was unfortunate.

"Who is fighting?" Lucivar asked, raising an eyebrow.

River shot him a look, clearly indicating that he should have known. She couldn't see it at her current position on the road, but that didn't mean that she couldn't remember it. Boys were so stubborn.

"Want to go see?" she asked innocently, a smile creeping on her face despite the clouds that shrouded it.

See? A fight? It was only tempting if he'd be allowed to join in and work out some of this bottled frustration.

"Seeing as I've nothing better to do then sit in my room all night, yes, I would like to go see a fight," Lucivar smiled at her.

It wouldn't be so hard after all, then. She could remember her way to Daemon's room, at least. The smile having found her again in the midst of the rain, River popped up to her feet, grabbing Lucivar's hand and making to tug him along behind her.

"Down the hall, thirteen spaces to the right and ten seconds to count them~"

Nightshift 30: M31-M40 Hallway

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject