damned_institute | Nightshift 31: Laundry Room (2nd Floor)

"Laundry," Kadaj replied immediately, giving Leon an amused look. "You're very enthusiastic, aren't you? It's almost cute." A bit like Loz, but Leon wasn't quite as... charming. Yes, that was the word. It wasn't a very accurate one, but calling Loz stupid when he hadn't seen his brother in weeks now didn't appeal to him that much. Charming was a much better description. Maybe using it would make him finally appear.

He wandered further into the room, locating the nearest laundry basket and beginning to sift through it. "Was there anything in particular you were hoping to find, or should I just let you know if I find anything out of the ordinary?" He paused, then amended, "Ordinary for Landel's, that is." He'd never found one of the famed radio prizes, after all, and with how little detail Jill had given them, it could be anything. How exciting.

[[from here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/339693.html?thread=27386093#t27386093)]]

He'd been on his way up to the other closets when the radio had clicked on. Most of the time, he'd have ignored it, though sometimes the banter between the head doctor and the rebel group could be entertaining. Most of the time he was nowhere near the places listed or he was a bit more concerned with things like staying alive than going on treasure hunts.

This time, however, the clue seemed to be about a room that was right down the hall. He wasn't hindered by something like a group this evening, so it was a simple thing to creep back down the hall and push the door open. He'd already seen a couple of patients go in. That boy, Leon, who'd said he might be able to work with the standard radios, and one he hadn't met, a young man with silver hair, a bit longer than his own.

"Evenin'" he greeted the others with a smile as he let himself in.

"Oh!" Leon glanced back to the door, surprised. "Mr. Ichimaru!" He'd never had the chance to talk to him again after they discussed altering his radio. It wasn't the right time to be discussing that now, though, and as much as having another person around would increase their chances of getting through a monster encounter, he wasn't exactly looking forward to sharing whatever they might find with another person.

But maybe Gin wasn't looking for what had been mentioned on the radio. Maybe he'd just wandered in on his own accord. Not likely. "So, what are you doing up here on your own?" He asked, innocently as he could.

Well, at least Leon was keeping himself entertained. Rolling his eyes at the boy and thoroughly ignoring this "Mr. Ichimaru" person, Kadaj continued searching, eventually overturning the basket and tossing it aside when, as he'd more or less expected, nothing more than clothes, clothes, and clothes was to be found. Nothing for it but to repeat the process, he supposed.

Restless as he was, though, he couldn't resist making one small shot at him. "You aren't going to introduce us, Leon?" he asked incredulously, moving to another basket and eying it with distaste. Did he really have to look through all these? He turned to face the pair instead, giving the boy a malevolent grin and adding, "Where are your manners?" This was much more fun than looking for some stupid prize.

Though he might keep a friendly smile on his lips, Gin was no fool. He knew what Leon was getting at, even with his seemingly innocent question. Of course, he'd still play along. Just like a game.

"'fraid I had no one t'go with me tonight," he said, smiling down at the boy. "But then I heard on th' radio..." He paused, gesturing to the device strapped to his waist. "Y'don't think it might be this place she was talkin' about, do ya?"

He scratched his head and gave the place a brief once-over. "'Course I could do t'find a way t'get these blood stains outta my coat," he admitted with a smirk, holding up a corner of the white captain's jacket that he wore over his shinigami robes. It was still dotted with Mion's blood from two nights before. Not that he particularly cared, but perhaps it would ease the tension in the air, just a little, to joke around. See if either of the boys had any sense of humor.

The other boy seemed to have a bit less tact than Leon though. "Ara~" he raised his head to glance at the pale-haired boy through his slitted, fox-like eyes. "Didn't realize there was company," he said innocently enough. "Ain't much for formality," he added, "but since y'asked, my name's Ichimaru Gin."

It hadn't escaped him just how diligently the boy was searching the room. Obviously they'd come expecting some kind of prize. Hopefully it would be something easy to split. He'd hate for things to get messy.

The sound of chatter was suddenly interrupted by a low howl. A shape detached itself from the shadows, almost humanoid. Tall and hunched, it lurched towards the center of the room. Its head was canine in shape, the flesh rotting away from green-tinged muscle and bone. Its small yellow eyes were focused on the small group of intruders. Its body was thick and massive, humanlike but covered in tufts of brittle hair and mottled, diseased skin. It's great meatlike fists were balled. It seemed to be some gross offspring of a hellhound and a sasquatch...

And he should have figured. He really should have.

Leon stumbled back towards the door as the creature approached. "Big Brother Kadaj!" He shouted in warning, though he was sure it was unnecessary. He fell back to the child-like address from force of habit. Thoughts of whatever treasure might hiding in this room were almost forgotten as his whole body urged him to just flee.

But they'd gotten this far! Surely this was the right place if it was guarded? Then again, there were monsters everywhere.

He paused mid-retreat, pulling his book from his coat pocket with shaky hands and setting the mop with its makeshift sack to the floor. Trying to swing around a weapon he didn't know much about using in such close quarters would be nothing but trouble. Glancing back and forth between the two silver-haired men, he readied himself for whatever action they might take.

Any interest Kadaj might have had in the conversation fled the second he heard that howl. He let his bag drop to the floor, kicking it aside the instant it hit and drawing his gladius in the same movement. As confident as he was in his own abilities, fighting this thing and holding onto something that unwieldy wasn't something he felt like trying at the moment. Maybe later.

He neglected to attack the thing just yet, though, preferring instead to snort in amusement at Leon's fear and give the monster an appraising look. The fact that it hadn't pounced on one of them just yet was making him a little uneasy, but without his brothers around to test it for him, waiting to see what it was capable of seemed like the next best option.

... However, one thing needed to be cleared up before they could continue. "Do me a favor, Leon," he said, keeping a close eye on the thing all the while, "and never call me 'Big Brother Kadaj' again."

He'd expected as much. Gin didn't so much as flinch when he heard the creature's howl, only raised a curious eyebrow and glanced in its direction. It wasn't quite the same as the monster he'd seen on his second night here, but it was close. The last time he'd faced something similar, it'd taken a group of four trained fighters to get it anywhere near death. Even then, there'd been casualties. This time he had a knife and two children who... might be able to fight.

If they were as weak as they looked, at least it meant that any prize would be be his alone after the battle. Somehow he doubted luck would be in his favor, and when the older, silver haired boy drew his weapon, it only confirmed it.

Gin's knife was already drawn and ready while the youngest seemed to prepare his retreat. As much as he'd love the distraction the boy might cause the beast, perhaps it was for the best if he just left. He'd likely as not get in his way. Besides, there were many other ways to distract the beast...

Kadaj, he assumed the other boy's name from Leon's shocked squeal, appeared to be ready for the fight, though he wasn't brash enough to try an attack just yet. Since the child had shouted, the beast was most likely to come for him first and Gin just happened to be nearby. He sighed inwardly and pulled a bottle of stain remover from his bag before letting the rest drop gently to the floor. He didn't have time to waste in waiting for the creature to make the first move.

"Get down," he muttered under his breath to Leon.

With a short wind-up, he threw the bottle as hard as he could, aiming to his the beast square in the chest. No sooner had it left his fingers than he started gathering his kidou. He didn't dare do something even as simple as shakkahō, but as long as it contained a spark, that ought to be enough to ignite the bottle and send flaming liquid out to shower down and cover the beast. "Byakurai!" he said gruffly, sending out his kidou in a bolt of white lightning that shot toward the bottle and the creature. The sooner this was over with, the better.

The bottle hit the creature and it jerked back, though from surprise or pain, it was difficult to tell. It almost didn't notice the shot of lightning.

Almost.

The creature moved to dodge, too large and cumbersome to move out of the way completely. The scent of burning flesh and hair filled the room, and the monster howled in rage and pain as its shoulder was seared. Enraged, it lunged for Gin, meaty fists swinging to punch.

Gin told him to get down and Leon obliged, scurrying back a little bit more. But then the man went and tried to set the creature on fire in a room full of flammable materials. While he understood the desire to rid them of the creature by whatever means necessary, it wouldn't do them any good if the object they were searching for was destroyed in the flames - or if it hit something explosive and took them all out.

He was limited on what attack spells he could use to put out the fire as well. Deep Freeze was at a similar strength as Black Saber, which he could only manage once and hardly that. His best chance would be to go with something weak, his weakest spell being... Book already open, Leon began the short chant required for casting, yelling "!" at the end as he sent the spear of ice hurtling towards the creature's chest.

The usual lack of breath didn't come as expected, though the weariness did. And oddly enough, his throat was suddenly rather dry...

Had this been the time for it, Kadaj might have been impressed by the display of magic, but unfortunately, he didn't think taking the role of a spectator in this particular battle would have gone over very well with the other participants. What a shame.

Thinking fast, he darted to the thing's side, hopefully blocking it from escape from Leon's spell and slashing at its now unprotected side as it swung its fists at Ichimaru. If they'd been able to keep it stuck in the middle and on the defensive while they pulverized it with more spells, he would have gladly chosen that option, but since he doubted they'd be able to cast much more as time went on, he'd just have to hope they'd be able to corner and kill it before it got the chance to hurt any of them. Easier said than done.

His obnoxiously weak gigai was certainly a pain. If he actually cared much about the other two patients(a feat highly unlikely in and of itself) he might have cared a bit more about damage control. But having dealt with just this sort of thing before, drastic measures seemed to be best. He was NOT going to lose another knife to one of these damn beasties. That would just put a damper on his entire evening.

Unfortunately, he'd missed his target anyway. And even that pathetic little kidou spell was taking a toll on him. He ought to have been able to rattle off any number of kidou spells without so much as an incantation, but here... how troublesome.

At least the display had served as a distraction, however, it also directed the creature's rage all at him. Wonderful. He supposed if the other two got out of it alive, he could always take the noble route, people were a lot more willing to trust if they thought you'd put your life on the line for them, whether it was really the truth or not. At least the boys were bright enough to use the distraction to their advantage. Leon was casting some kind of spell and Kadaj had moved in closer, presumably for a strike with his sword.

He was ready to bolt long before the creature had finished his pained roar. It did him little good, but a tiny head start. At least the beast was slow as well as large. Moving among the rows of washing machines and laundry was simple for Gin, but not so for the large monster. He kept his knife drawn in case the thing got too close, but was content to stay as far from it's swinging fists as he could.

The beast's fists had quite a range, and the spear of ice that came towards it seemed to only increase it's rage. It raised a fist, the spear stabbing into its arm and wrenching forth a howl of pain. Once more its attention was turned, but the slice of blade in its side kept it from lunging at Leon.

Instead, it turned with all its force and swung a fist haphazardly at Kadaj, blood streaming down its side and from its wounded arm, splattering the walls and anyone close by as it moved.

Leon took a couple long, deep breaths to steady himself - grateful for the ability to do so but unsure why this spell didn't have the same effect as the others. All the same, he figured he had the energy for at least one more. Anything after that and he'd be useless. Mobility was necessary, especially with the way this creature was flailing about.

It was angry now, and would be harder to target. He needed to hit somewhere in the middle, something vital, in order to make this shot count. What energy he had left he'd need to save. He swallowed, trying to clear some of the dryness from his throat before trying again. Using Kadaj and Gin as shields was second nature. The back row was where he belonged.

"!" he cast again, aiming for the monster's torso and hoping for the best.

This left him feeling dizzy, more than he remembered, and he leaned back against the doorframe as he tried to keep everything in focus. His head pounded, and he was suddenly and abnormally thirsty. Water-type spell, he realized. It's dehydrated me. Casting another one then, even if he thought he had the energy, was definitely out of the question.

One of the many disadvantages a sword like the gladius was that it was very, very short. Kadaj had grown more or less accustomed to it by this point, but that didn't change the fact that using a short sword against a creature with a very long reach was incredibly stupid unless you had the reflexes to back it up. His reflexes were perfectly fine, of course, but the fact that they were suited to a blade with an entirely different length than the one he was now wielding was, in a word, unhelpful.

Being smaller and faster than the creature did help, but while that gave him enough mobility to ensure he wouldn't be killed by that monstrous fist (he hoped), he wasn't able to get out of the way in time. Kadaj was sent flying into a nearby dryer with a sickening crack, and although he'd tried lashing out at the thing's arm at the last minute, the explosion of pain he'd felt when he'd been hit put checking to see if he'd managed to injure it completely out of his mind. Right now, he'd be lucky if he remembered to breathe, much less check on how the battle was going.

He managed to steer clear of the wildly swinging fists, but the blood spattered his robes, adding more stains to his white jacket. He hardly noticed.

It wasn't easy, analyzing an opponent while in the midst of battle, but it was made all the more difficult with the darkness, the small space, and the unreliable allies he was fighting alongside. Leon was almost spent, Kadaj was going to be dead in a few moments if one of those giant fists caught him again, which left him with the all-important job of actually doing something.

The only way this beast was going down was if they actually hit something vital. The last few blows they'd struck did little more than annoy the beast. While it was distracted with Kadaj, Gin made the split second decision to begin his own attack. He just hoped this gigai would be able to move fast enough. He could use flashstep, he'd seen the others do it in the night time before, but he had a feeling it wouldn't do him any good if he didn't get far enough away.

As quickly as he could, he rushed the creature, keeping his knife close to his body and ready to strike as soon as the target was near enough. He jumped up at its back, digging in with his heels, left hand gripping the disgusting matted hair to keep his balance as he brought the knife ever close, aiming to avoid the sharp teeth and instead hit the soft flesh of its throat. One well-place blow might be enough. And if it wasn't...

A smirk crossed his lips as images of Jack's lifeless body hitting the ground replayed in his mind. Where was the fun without a few risks?

The assault was too much. The creature was powerful, but slow. Gin's knife found its throat, and it yowled like a thing possessed. It lurched backwards, twisting and flailing with its fists, perhaps in one final attempt to do the silver haired man injury....

Kadaj was down and Gin was on the monster. Leon took a couple more pointless swallows before moving towards the first on shaky feet. If his arrogant companion stayed where he was, he could still be in danger from their flailing enemy. As he arrived at the man's side, he checked the scene over quickly. Kadaj could have taken some severe damage to his ribs, so moving him should be a careful procedure, but there was only so much Leon could do.

He didn't bother to ask the prone man for permission before moving to slip his hands under the other's armpits so he could drag him back towards the exit and out of harm's way.

While Kadaj really, really would have preferred being warned if not asked ahead of time just so that he'd know to brace himself, he appreciated Leon's concern. That didn't change the fact that being dragged like that hurt, though, and with breathing already proving to be difficult, the last thing he needed was something that would make that vital task even harder. Just his luck.

The fight for air became a fight to remain conscious, and through eyes that had been reduced to mere slits from both pain and the force of his glare, he tried turning his head to catch a glimpse of Leon just so that he could express nonverbally to the boy how stupid trying to move him like this was. Leon may not have had any other options, but that didn't mean Kadaj had to be happy about it.

Whether it was reflex or the creature actually had a little bit of intelligence, its last ditch efforts at an attack weren't quite as easy to dodge as the others had been from afar. He gave the knife an extra twist before he jerked it from the beast's neck, blood spraying everywhere from the artery that had been cut. He ignored it, more or less. The flailing was the important part. Now was the time for escape, though it wasn't exactly easy given the small quarters.

The choice was made for him when it swung backward, leaving him little room between the massive wall of flesh and the actual wall of the room. He tried to let go in time, to dodge out of the way, but the gigai's reflexes were nowhere near those of a former shinigami captain. He gave a pained hiss as it slammed into his side, his ribs making an unfamiliar cracking sound.

Gin dropped to the floor in a crouch, trying to duck under the flailing fists, and took no time in darting away from the creature. Injured as he was, Gin wasn't going to take any more chances. He noted, with some small amount of pleasure, that the two boys were already leaving. As long as the creature died quickly, he might even be able to claim a prize for himself.

The creature fell to the floor, twitching its last, and died.

There was no indication of anything other than the monster within the room.

Leaving? No, Leon had come here for a purpose. If there was a chance they could search for what they'd all come and fought to find, then he was going to take it. Having moved Kadaj just beyond what he thought the creature's arms would reach, the mage watched the end of the fight between it and Gin with his hands on his knees and the occasional black spot across his vision from the effort of dragging the "older" boy's body.

As the creature fell and remained down, Leon straightened himself up. He didn't move from that spot at first, fearing it might rise again. "Mr. Ichimaru? Are you okay?" he asked. His dry throat caused everything he said to come out terribly hoarse, and trying to clear it did nothing.

Slowly and ever so cautiously, the boy made his way towards the fallen beast. Morbid curiosity bade him get a better look while it wasn't trying to kill them and he found his flashlight, running it across the body while the beam wavered in his trembling grip.

Finally, there was silence. Good. Even better was the fact that he could breathe again, if shallowly, and once he was reasonably sure the effort wouldn't leave him pathetically gasping for air again, he very carefully tried lifting himself into a position that might grant him a better view of what the other two were so fascinated by.

He regretted this decision almost immediately, however, and mentally cursing the now fallen thing, he slowly crumpled onto his side and curled up slightly, his breathing growing labored now and eventually devolving into racking coughs. Yes, that definitely hadn't been a good idea, but at least he now knew what he shouldn't do if he wanted to spend the rest of this evening pleasantly. He should have guessed.

He cut quite the figure, tall and lanky, still dressed in the robes of a death god, and spattered with blood, none of it his own. His left shoulder throbbed painfully and he knew he might have broken some ribs as well, at the very least there'd been some hairline fractures. Great. And what did he have to show for it? Absolutely nothing.

Gin flicked some of the blood from his knife before wiping it off on a stray piece of laundry and replacing it in the makeshift sheath on his belt. Next order of business was retrieving the bottle of stain remover and the bag he'd dropped before the fight began, all while looking here and there around the room for this item that they were supposed to receive. "M' a little worse for th' wear, but I think I'll be alright. That was some handy spell castin' you did for us. How's y'friend?"

Leon glanced back at Kadaj, worried about how he'd curled up like that. And coughing as well... Hopefully morning wasn't too long away and Landel's would work its healing magic. "He took a pretty hard blow to the ribs," he answered. "The monster's fists are-"

The mage paused. In flicking his light back towards the creature on the floor, it had reflected off the window into one of the dryers. More importantly, it had reflected off something in one of the dryers. In a flash, Leon was scurrying towards it, hopping right over the dead monster and stumbling the last few steps. Throwing the door open, he couldn't help but blink and stare at what he saw. Well, was his first coherent thought, that's not really safe to keep in there, is it?

It was a sword. A pretty one too, and Leon wished then that he could actually wield one properly. Kadaj certainly could, and Gin was definitely a fighter, so the chances of him getting to keep it seemed very slim. Still, didn't Claude need a proper weapon? He picked it up and turned back towards the other two.

Nightshift 31: Laundry Room (2nd Floor)

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