Nightshift 34: M21-30 Hallway

[arrogantflame.livejournal.com]

Wolfram had debated slowly as to whether or not he should go out for the night. He was still really worn out from the night before, Aidou was busy, he had no idea where anyone else was that he should be looking for, and quite honestly... staying in and sleeping was more than a little tempting. But his mind was troubled, and he felt a bit restless at the same time. Maybe he could just explore the patient room hallways, see if he could figure something out from there.

Stepping out into the hallway, he carried nothing but his flashlight. The bat and his other possessions were kept inside, since he had no plans of going out too far.

It wasn't long before he found himself moving down what was becoming a familiar hallway.

[To here.]

Comments

[blacksustenance.livejournal.com]

[From M25]

"Arena" my ass.

Brock had seen some pretty weird shit in Landels, but he wasn't buying that threat. Fuck it, he'd risk mucking it with cougars or whatever if he could just get his freedom. But first, first there was Crane. Brock hadn't exactly said the words I promise to Luffy, but he'd thought them unconsciously and he owed it to both Luffy and himself to deal with Crane tonight before they got the hell out of here. Bears and cougars and what the hell ever aside. The blond headed toward the door, his symbiote's third eyelid snapping shut over his eyes in a white film, turning the world into a grainy, but still visible haze. Colors weren't so great, but it wasn't like he had to pick those out to get around.

His Other was in great shape after that meal. Eating that man's brain made it snap into place on him, the symbiote forming his clothes immediately instead of that second delay that could easily cost them. Perfect. Brock loved his Other, but he could feel it grow even more just staring down at that oily black claws. So good to him. They were meant to be together.

And tonight, after all these days, they could get back at Jonathan Crane. M80.

Brock opened the door and stepped outside. He had a good guess where M80 was and he couldn't keep Luffy waiting.

M26

[arrogantflame.livejournal.com]

[Back again from here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/421742.html?thread=34617966#t34622574).]

Wolfram frowned. This imaginary Yuuri was talkative. Usually his dreams were a lot more cooperative, and certainly didn't involve his fiance worrying over Murata, of all people. Maybe it really was...

He didn't bother knocking, dragging them back into his room. He knew it would be safe there, at least. He sat down on the edge of what had become his bed, pulling Yuuri along with him. His mind was still racing with thoughts, mostly confusion.

That was when he finally answered his questions. "No, I've been here three days. And why would Murata come with me when he was back on Earth with...?" You. Never supposed to see you again. Was this place really enough to bring them back together?

Re: M26

[mazoku-king.livejournal.com]

Yuuri matched Wolfram's frown when the blonde remained silent to his questions. His frown disappeared after he was pulled into the closest room and dragged over to the edge of the bed where Wolfram sat.

"Three days?!" The young Maou exclaimed loudly as he jumped back in surprise. He knew that he didn't have complete control over his ability to move between dimensions, but he didn't think he was that bad at it. "Ahh if I had a better control over my powers we wouldn't be in this mess." Clasping his hands together, Yuuri bowed his head as he sheepishly apologised. "Sorry Wolfram."

If he had arrived three days after Wolfram, then did that mean that the time of Murata's arrival was all messed up as well? That made sense in his mind, and he couldn't find any other way to explain their current situation.

Something wasn't right with what Wolfram had said though.

"Wait a minute… back on Earth?" Blinking when his mind picked it up, Yuuri looked at Wolfram in confusion as he asked. "Wolfram did you hit your head or something?" The Maou asked as he leaned in for a second time to scrutinise his fiancé carefully. There didn't appear to be anything wrong with the blonde, but he wasn't exactly the most observant person at times either.

"Murata was with me in Shin Makoku before we ended up here… or I did… with you…" By the end of the sentence, Yuuri pulled away from Wolfram and bought his hands up to his head to rub them through his hair in frustration. "Aaah this is all so confusing."

Re: M26

[arrogantflame.livejournal.com]

Wolfram sat silent for a moment, perfectly still. Then his fingers slowly clenched into a fist at his side before loosening again, and then he stared at Yuuri intently.

He reached up, touching Yuuri's face lightly with his fingers, brushing down the other boy's cheek. And then as he dropped his hand, he began trembling.

"You... Y-You're... sorry? For your powers?"

He sat there for a moment, breathing faster as he tried to comprehend. "No I did not hit my head... tonight," he added with a frown. "But apparently I must have, because you're here and not with your family, like I told you to stay! No... now you're stuck here too, and now I have to protect you from them and make sure we get out, and now you're worried about Murata of all people, you wimpy cheater!"

He hugged himself tightly, curling up into a ball on the bed. None of this made sense, and he was so very confused.

[31st-of-china.livejournal.com]

[From M23]

Sanzo'd just finished changing into his robes, leaving the top pooled around his waist, when the intercom went off.

New arena? Trinkets?

It didn't help that both Landel and Jill and her predecessor were both irritatingly vague.

So Landel wasn't going to try and cover up what Jill'd been talking about. That would've shown some sign of weakness. Instead, he was going to spin it to his advantage, marking it less as a blow against him and now an extension of his powers.

Smart move, he thought. The question now was whether it was a bluff or not. Had he regained control?

They'd find out soon enough. However, tonight, he wasn't planning to go test that out: he still believed that the sutra was somewhere within these walls. There was still that way to the basement that they needed to find, and that meant heading for the kitchen.

[31st-of-china.livejournal.com]

[to here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/421626.html?thread=34785018#t34785018)]

Outside M23

[whiteychan.livejournal.com]

Hitsugaya sighed as Landel made his little arrogant announcement. The same pointless drivel as always. Maybe he'd actuall won. Maybe Hitsugaya giving up was the victory Martin Landel really needed.

More likely, however, was that Dr. Martin Landel didn't care what Hitsugaya or anyone else did. None of it mattered, and the only threat to his control was Jill. Jill, a random voice on the radio who could just as easily be tugging at his strings. What good was there, trying to escape? Nothing they did affected anything in the slightest, and they were at the mercy of these beings. After a week and a half of making absolutely no progress that wasn't handed to them on a golden platter, the young captain was starting to feel discouraged.

Still, duty was duty, and he had a duty to these people. Maybe just working to protect others was good enough. Maybe giving other people hope helped even as he felt hopeless himself. They weren't going to escape by their own efforts, but maybe forcing others to not lose sight of hope made them ready for when they ~did~ have a chance at real escape.

Maybe that was what he needed to focus on.

Hitsugaya changed as usual, put on his sword as usual, and set up his impromptu sheath as usual. He stepped out into the hall and leaned against the wall, waiting patiently for Fowl and Hanatarou.

Re: Outside M23

[byname-bynature.livejournal.com]

(From here! (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/424523.html?thread=34659659#t34659659))

Artemis turned the corner, finishing his all-too familiar route to Hitsugaya's room. He could probably walk it blindfolded by now. He was dressed in his suit again, which lacked the burn marks that had put holes in it the night previous. His sword was strapped to his side as usual, and his coat hung loosely off his slight frame. Nothing out of the ordinary, everything as usual.

Mentally, he prepared himself for whatever Hitsugaya may be feeling. Rage? Depression? Resolve? He didn't know.

"Good evening, Captain," Artemis said tentatively. "Apologies for the wait."

[notaleaf.livejournal.com]

So, uh. This was just. Creepy. And what the guay was he supposed to do now, anyway?

Wash pulled open the door hesitantly, but it was as pitch black out there as the edge of space, except for a few bobbling lights. Ohhh. Flashlights. That would make sense.

Wait. They had flashlights?

He started to rifle through the room. Journal, pens, and...there. He flicked it on and off experimentally. Measures taken to prevent banging into walls: check.

What were all those people doing out there? They didn't look like they were running away, which was somewhat surprising. Frankly, he kind of felt like running away, but he lacked a destination.

Maybe there was someone here who would be nice and help him out. He'd met only friendly people so far. That streak might keep up for awhile yet before he ran into a psycho, right?

[notaleaf.livejournal.com]

[here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/421742.html?thread=34652526#t34652526)]

[grosse-sklaven.livejournal.com]

Here they were, another round of nightshift exploration and, hopefully, work to be done. Adelheid sincerely hoped that he'd get his chance to do something, anyway; this new system seemed like it just might work, it all depended on how well he could keep track of time.

Regardless, for now, he stepped out of the room with Zuko's blade and a flashlight, his eyes narrowing as he glanced down the hallway. He should be going, but... perhaps he'd wait just a second for Edward first. After that he could run to Hattori in the bathroom.

[lost-metal.livejournal.com]

Ugh. Roommates. He hated sharing rooms with people. Hunny had been alright and he'd been Tamaki's friend, even Hiei he'd got used to, but this one? It just put the edge onto his temper, having to deal with Neil or whatever his name was. Damn bratty kid.

He was still snarling under his breath when he walked out of his room, dressed in his normal clothes, red coat flaring out behind him. He was going to kill Envy tonight. He didn't doubt that Winry had gone to the library to meet that person claiming to be her father, but Ed also had very strong suspicions about who had actually posted it. Envy would die and then Tamaki and Winry would be safe.

M28

[atoyboxworld.livejournal.com]

Although Near highly doubted that with the patient population being as dense as it was, Landel would target out a single individual for torment, he equally doubted the possibility that Mello would see it that way. The man's announcements were perfect for striking every nerve of Mello's ego, meaning he would be even more on edge when he arrived at M34 for his appointment.

In a way, it made Near feel sorry for this Omi person. He was the unfortunate loser in tonight's lottery, it seemed.

But Near wasn't the type to focus on that, especially when he felt similar irritation due to the Head Doctor's announcement. Supreme power, calling them all his pets? This man was no better than Kira in the end, a crazy mass murderer, sadistic torturer, and little more. Perhaps next he would go about declaring himself the god of the new world, though it would seem he didn't have the support Kira had. Then again, Near hadn't been able to access the internet, so there was no way to tell.

Regardless, he could only wait so long to get started. It was important that he be inside Omi's room when Mello arrived, or the man would be likely to simply never head down the hall. No, that contact needed to be made to force Mello to come along for the night. His talents would be useful, provided they were properly utilized. So Near slid out of his chair, saying nothing to his roommate as he got the flashlight from the same place as the one he had found earlier, along with batteries to run it. Additionally, Near took the radio from it's place in the drawer, and made note to transcribe the announcements later on. He wouldn't need the hard copy, and there might be nothing to it in the end, but any evidence was important, often for later consideration.

It was how he had found Mikami Teru, after all.

Without bidding his roommate goodbye, Near headed out of the room, shining his flashlight down the hall, and pocketing the radio so he could twirl his hair as he went.

Re: M28

[atoyboxworld.livejournal.com]

[To here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/423535.html?thread=34665839#t34665839)]

[youlackmascara.livejournal.com]

Hopefully tonight would be as productive as last night. Itachi grabbed his flashlight and the bag of items he had hid under his bed before heading out to M13. It couldn't be hard to find; the room numbers must make logical sense.

Landel had mentioned Special Counseling happening again tonight -- in fact, he had himself given an important insight into the process. Chemicals, then, not some sort of mind-control technique. But why did the chemical effect only last one night, and how could they be sure to time it so exactly? Perhaps he could glean some information from tonight's victims come morning. Or perhaps he would run into one of them tonight, and prove to himself that he had not become so weak. . . which would only inconvenience him. As would running into Sasuke, not that Itachi gave that possibility any consideration. He would never waste his time like that.

[youlackmascara.livejournal.com]

[notmyfather.livejournal.com]

Valyn couldn't quell the feelings of disquiet and unrest he felt as he headed out for the night. Even though he was only going to spend the night with Shadow...

He didn't know how much longer he could take his cousin being like this. Despite assurances that Shadow was still in there, still himself somewhere under it all....

Fretting and fussing over it wasn't going to do him any good. Valyn didn't bother getting changed, just conjured a mage light and headed into the hallway, not wanting to hold up Shana and Keman anymore than he already had.

(to here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/424817.html?thread=34680433#t34680433))

Outside of M30

[brightlyshine.livejournal.com]

Elena smirked to herself in satisfaction as she looked up at the room number in front of her. Number thirty, which happened to be the very first door in this area. Tseng would have been proud of her navigational skills. And assuming that Reno didn't accidentally tell her the wrong number, he should be here. Perhaps she'd get a few more answers than what he'd told her earlier in the day.

Checking the hallways one last time to make sure that she hadn't been followed, she knocked twice on the door, waiting for an answer.

M30

[offduty.livejournal.com]

Reno was twirling his pipe idly as he waited for either his partner or the rookie to show up, and while he'd expected Rude to get there sooner, Elena had apparently made it first.

Maybe Rude was still tetchy and taking his sweet time. Heh. Either way, Rude didn't knock--not when it came to Reno--so it was either Elena or a complete stranger.

He shifted, but didn't move from his spot on the bed. Mostly because he didn't want to get up, but also because standing in front of a door made him way too easy of a target to get his face bashed in by a good shove.

"S'open."

[hangenki.livejournal.com]

Kaoru had left his room so he could keep an eye on who was coming and going. He didn't want anyone to see him using the comm, so he sat on the floor and held it close to his face. For a moment he just sat their like that. He felt like crap. every part of him inside and out ached. And he felt like he was going to puke out his empty stomach at any moment. But until he had a better plan, he was going to have to get used to it.

"Hey, Kaoru? You there?" (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/424523.html?thread=35051851#t35051851)

"Yeah, can't talk much. I'm just on my way now, ok?" he whispered loudly.

[hangenki.livejournal.com]

"How far away are you? Want me to meet you?"

Good the comms were working a bit better tonight.

"Not far. Let's meet in the corridor. Are you alone?"

M21

[dawning-dreams.livejournal.com]

Well, that'd been a mindfuck. Wash had left before Cid had taken the chance to talk to him some more, but that didn't change the whirling thoughts that the man had left in his wake. Another pilot? A spaceship pilot? Possibly from another place where space travel was something normal? Not only was it insane to Cid's concept of flight and technology, but it was also way too coincidental for his comfort. It made him feel like these roomie pairings were being planned out with stuff like this in mind, maybe by the Head Doctor for "observation" purposes or some other insidious plot. He wondered if the white-haired guy, his first roomie, had been a pilot too.

Still, the space travel aspect was exciting and disappointing at the same time, and Cid found himself having to sit on his bed and mull over the whole thing before he felt up to the task of braving hell again. Not that it scared him, exactly, but hey, his nose was finally starting to feel decent again and he wasn't too keen on rushing off to get his ass torn up again.

On top of that, Cid hadn't had a chance to check the bulletin board for whatever plans that had been made by the Gaians for this nightshift. Great: when it finally looked like things were coming together, he missed it all due to that lethargy or whatever.

Grumbling to himself, Cid grabbed his flashlight and the lawnmower blade that Cloud had given him a few days before. He clicked it on and began heading down the hall.

[ To here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/421742.html?thread=35098734#t35098734). ]

M29

[toadally4boobs.livejournal.com]

Jiraiya was busy looking through his half of the room for anything that would help him this coming "nightshift". Under his pillow, oddly, there was a flashlight--it looked durable enough, and he'd need it to see in the dark (he hoped that Naruto, too, also had a flashlight to bring with him). It could be used as a weapon in an emergency, but Jiraiya was hoping to somehow find better ones. If weapons couldn't be found, then maybe it would be possible to fashion his own....

It'd be so much easier if he had gone to jail, if even just once. Jiraiya knew that prisoners could fashion a weapon from practically anything, even something as mundane as a toothbrush. Useful against a human, but against the "monsters"... Yes, it would be much better to find weapons.

He also found batteries for his flashlight--two sets--and placed them on the bed. Besides that went the radio he found. There was a key ring--useless for now, although it made him curious--and a journal, which quickly went to the pile in case he needed to make notes. In a desk drawer was a large roll of pens, and he put five of those onto the pile. They were possible weapons, although probably not too terribly useful... yet.

All in all, the flashlight seemed his best weapon, which disturbed him. He didn't have access to his usual laundry list of abilities, so he'd have to make do with his fists and whatever else he could find. Jiraiya contemplated breaking some of his furniture to make a weapons, but didn't; who knew how the staff would react to that, come morning, and he couldn't afford to be in trouble already. He had to be there for his student.

In the meantime, the announcment came on and the lights went out. Jiraiya frowned, flipping on his flashlight for a moment to finish his search. Damn.

Letting out a long sigh, Jiraiya looked for something to put his items in, and eventually pulled the case off his pillow before stuffing everything into it. He walked to the door, opening it, and peered down the hall. He flipped off his flashlight--to conserve the batteries as much as prevent others from seeing the beam of light, letting his eyes adjust to the dark before he moved outside. Jiraiya noticed things here and there as he walked down the hall, which looked far more sinister in the darkness.

All he could do was hope that he'd find Naruto safely.

[To here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/421742.html?thread=35298158#t35298158).]

[mazoku-king.livejournal.com]

[From here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/421742.html?thread=35405934#t35405934)]

"It looks like our rooms are near each other." Yuuri casually commented on as he marched down the familiar hallway.

[arrogantflame.livejournal.com]

"Are they? Do you remember the number you came out of?"

A vague description of being close by wasn't quite good enough in this place. Wolfram knew that if he had to ever go looking for Yuuri, he'd prefer not to have to knock on every door in the area until he found the right one. Just thinking about that was tiring.

He still wasn't completely sure that the shock of finding him here had warn off. But that was a matter he'd have to deal with privately later. For now he didn't want Yuuri out of his sight. He grabbed the other boy's hand, half because he needed to steady his feet, and half because he needed the reminder that the person next to him was real.

At least his door was just a few feet away now.