Nightshift 35: Disciplinary Therapy Corridor

[themotherreborn.livejournal.com]

(from here)

Eileen was sobbing and muttering incoherently when the doctor thrust her out into the hallway. Her arm was still bleeding, but she was paying it no mind. She could barely feel it, in the state she was in now. She stumbled, her body wracked with strange tremors that seemed to move in time to the pulsating violet veins that stretched across her body.

It was just like the nightmare again, she realized, her legs akimbo as she groped for the wall to try and make her way down the unfamiliar hallway, frightened and unable to get her thoughts about her. Blood dripped from her open wounds to the floor, reminding her (in some dim, still functioning part of her mind) of the water dripping in the nightmare hospital.

The other nightmare hospital.

What the doctor had told her rang in her mind through it all.

There was no one to save her this time.

Comments

[winged_moon]

[coming from here]

Once the door was open he could hear sounds in the darkness beyond - the movement of someone, or something. Yukito paused uncertainly in the doorway, clinging to the frame for balance as he listened.

Don't stand there. The light from behind you - makes you a target.

His eyes widened at the silent whisper, and for a moment he wondered if perhaps he should go back inside. Was it wiser to stay in there, to await the morning, when he'd find himself back in his room again (though not safe, nowhere was safe), but a brief glance backward lit upon the empty table and he shuddered. No. Best to leave, no matter what he might find outside.

He awkwardly shuffled over to the side, allowing the door to close behind him with a soft click, but paused there, resting in a tired lean against the wall. Listening. What manner of creature might he find here, here where he was alone and unarmed and without even his flashlight? But...those sounded like sobs, there in the darkness. Were there others who had been brought here, like he was? Could he help them?

As he tried to take a step forward, though, Yukito staggered and slumped back against the wall again. Too weak. Too foggy. Couldn't think.

Could only hope that whatever it was, it wasn't entirely hostile.

[themotherreborn.livejournal.com]

Eileen heard movement down the hall. She stumbled forward, hand on the wall, leaving streaks of blood.

"Who...who's there?" she called, her footfalls heavy and irregular. Maybe it was some creature, coming to finish her as the doctor promised, but maybe.... Maybe it was someone who could help her.

"Is anyone...is anyone there?" Her voice sounded harsh and strange to her own ears - a product of the possession curse that wracked her body.

[winged_moon]

It sounded like a human voice, and one in distress. Yukito couldn't just ignore that, though it took a moment to fight down the uncharacteristic wariness and distrust that gave him pause. He tried to speak, but his voice cracked and died in his dry mouth.

He cautiously straightened up, one hand firmly planted against the wall for support, as he cleared his throat and tried again. "I'm...here," he managed, the words weak and a little slurred. "Yu...Yukito. I'm Yukito." A hesitant step brought him closer to the sound of the voice, his free hand outstretched in search of anything around him other than the wall he clung to.

[themotherreborn.livejournal.com]

Oh thank God!

"Eileen..." she offered in return, trying to make out a shape in the darkness. "Eileen Galvin...." the words trailed off into unintelligible, guttural sounds. She didn't even know what she was saying, but she understood, in a way. Old words. Dangerous words.

"Please..." she went on, her own bloodstained held out in return, groping for this savior who had appeared from nowhere.

[winged_moon]

"Are you...another patient here?" Each step was an effort, but from the sounds of the other's movement, she wasn't in much better shape. Yukito strained to reach out to her, drawing back for a second's hesitation when her speech changed for a moment. What was that?

He shook his head once, lightly, and regretted it at the wash of dizziness. It was probably nothing. Or if she'd been through something like he had, she was likely distraught, it was no surprise she'd be less than coherent.

For a second he thought his fingertips brushed against something, and he gasped lightly, trying to find it again. He didn't know what he could do to help her, but it was somehow comforting to know that there was another person with him in the oppressive darkness.

[themotherreborn.livejournal.com]

"I am!" Eileen thought she felt a brush of fingers against hers and lunged forward, desperate for human contact. "They...I was in a little room..."

And they'd done horrible things to her.

"Where are we?"

[winged_moon]

There, it hadn't been his imagination! Yukito gasped again as the woman suddenly stumbled into him, startled even though he'd halfway been expecting it. "I don't know, I was..."

He cut himself off there, realizing as his hand brushed her arm that it was slick with warm liquid. "Blood? Are you...you're hurt?" She needed help, help that he couldn't give her, especially not here where he couldn't see anything. But how to get out?

[themotherreborn.livejournal.com]

"He cut me," Eileen said, sobbing again, but this time with relief. She wasn't alone. No matter what happened now, she wasn't alone.

"He kept cutting me. My arm...it's okay. I don't even feel it."

[el-lolly-eat.livejournal.com]

From here. (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/465257.html)

L kept one hand to the wall as he walked. Hopefully no one would notice him passing through. He could hear the voices of others, but he didn’t see them very clearly in the dark.

[fyeonly.livejournal.com]

(from here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/465075.html?thread=38166451#t38184371))

Inside the hallway, Naomi immediately noticed a group of three people. None of which were L. Obviously they were the other victims of the night experiments. She felt badly she couldn't stop and offer help but...

It would compromise their goal. And there were three of them, at least one of them who looked to be capable. They'd...probably be fine. Hopefully Matsuda would understand.

Then her flashlight passed over L, finally, on his own - unsurprisingly - and making his way down the hallway.

She took in a quick mental catalog and noticed no immediate physical injuries. Thank God. Now...how the hell to approach him without...well...spooking him, so to speak?

[showtime-matsu.livejournal.com]

Matsuda followed along behind her, noticing the small group near the door. Had they been stuck here, too? They were all limping along together. He really wanted to go help them, but...well, Naomi was continuing on, and they had someone else they needed to go check on first.

He glanced back to find her flashlight passing over L. He didn't really seem to be hurt, but who knew what they'd done? He didn't know why she wasn't going right over, though. Maybe she was trying to figure out how to do it without freaking him out?

"H-hey, Ryuga?" he called out softly, hoping that was gentle enough.

[el-lolly-eat.livejournal.com]

L took a couple steps back and shielded his eyes when the light fell on him. He considered running, but it was too late now, Naomi and Matsuda had spotted him. Even if he did try to flee there was nowhere to go and there was a chance they would follow. L’s earlier hopes of making it back to his room without anyone knowing he had been taken were gone. He had no chance of making up a lie to explain where he had been tonight.

He looked down towards the floor, worried that his expression might betray his loss of emotional control. “You shouldn’t have come.” He said quietly, his voice betraying his frustration, “It is dangerous here. What if you had died or gotten hurt?” It was his fault. He should have told them to stay where they were if they ever encountered such a situation.

[fyeonly.livejournal.com]

"Getting hurt is kind of what happens around here," Naomi responded, blandly. She didn't comment on the notes of emotion in L's voice - now wasn't the time, and it probably never would be. But she noted it, and it worried her. What the hell had they done to him?

She knew, logically, that she'd probably never have the answer to that.

"Besides, we have as much chance getting hurt anywhere else as we do here," she went on, her tone casual and honest. "If we weren't here, we'd just be somewhere else. And we're fine, as you can see."

[showtime-matsu.livejournal.com]

Naomi certainly hadn't seemed fine, but Matsuda wasn't about to speak up about that in front of L. The emotion in the detective's voice had flown right over his, since he had honed in more on the words.

He...hadn't wanted their help? But there hadn't really been anything that they'd been able to do to prevent it, so the least they could do was help him get back. Right? Everyone needed help at one point or another, genius detectives included.

"But it's just as dangerous for you," Matsuda protested, walking a bit closer. "We're fine, really."

[el-lolly-eat.livejournal.com]

You didn’t get hurt when you stayed in your room where it was safe, but he didn’t point that out. He couldn’t expect Naomi and Matsuda to listen.

“Yes.” He answered both of them, still not looking up. If they said they were fine they probably were. This was a reassuring sign that they would do okay without him. Not that he had been very helpful to them before, but as things were L couldn’t work with them anymore. He’d just end up killing them.

He started moving towards the door to the main hall, not wanting to talk anymore tonight if he could prevent it. All he wanted was to get back to his room.

[fyeonly.livejournal.com]

Well, that was that. It was obvious that L wasn't going to say anything more, and that was fine.

Except there was one more thing.

"Hey," Naomi called, trying very hard not to limp as she moved towards L. "I've got something for you." She reached into her pocket and pulled out the bag of mixed hard candies.

"I was dropping it off tonight, but I may as well just give it to you now."

Maybe it would cheer him up a little.

[forgot-it-all.livejournal.com]

[here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/469819.html?thread=38231099#t38231099)]

The smell of blood was overpowering and Ritsuka reeled when he entered this room. The group in the other hall had seemed worse for wear and now there were three people in this one that had another who was hurt. This place was a torture chamber.

Soubi was here somewhere.

Ritsuka couldn't feel him anymore, but he knew this had to be the place. The smell of blood was too much for him and he hit the wall, covering his mouth and nose with one hand. It smelled too much like the day he found Seimei's body, the burnt flesh and the horribleness and the black and the blood and the gas and--

He felt faint and he felt like he was going to throw up, but he pushed the urge down for now. Not now. He swallowed hard and swung the flashlight around the room, trying to avoid the other group in his search. Where were the rescue groups? Didn't there used to be people who would come up here and help those taken? Were the unfortunate souls forgotten now in the excitement to get outside? Despicable. Pushing forward into the room, he started to head for the first of the doors.

[mizuhomaiden.livejournal.com]

"Hey! Don't go running off to be monster food," Sheena caleld after Ritsuka, finally catching up to him. She had a very bad feeling in the pit of her stomach as she entered the corridor, cards at the ready just in case. Her eyes focused on teh three in the hallway for a moment before determining they weren't a threat, then she focused on the hallway itself.

Sheena was no stranger to blood, but that didn't mean she liked it. It'd taken her a long time to get past her own minor gag reflex from such levels of blood after her failure at the Tower of Lightning back when she was about Ritsuka's age. Several doors were already open...

The summoner came up next to Ritsuka and stayed close. She wasn't entirely sure the boy wasn't going to feint and she wanted to be there to catch him in case he did. Soubi... Where are you?

[forgot-it-all.livejournal.com]

The first door was already open, and so was the second. A quick scan with the flashlight into both rooms revealed blood and a table and nothing more. The third one was open and that explained the four people Ritsuka had seen in the halls so far. But where the hell were the rescue parties? The boy seethed at the idea that these poor people were being left by themselves. That stupid Arts and Crafts Club used to come up here to help people, but they'd all but abandoned this crew. Why?

Only one door was still closed and Ritsuka started pulling desperately at the knob only to find it wouldn't budge. Soubi had to be inside. Putting his ear to the door, he was frustrated to learn that he couldn't hear a damn thing. Monster food or not, he needed to get to Soubi. Pounding his fists against the door, Ritsuka shouted, "Soubi! If you're in there, say something! Soubi!" No reply and Ritsuka turned to Sheena. "Can you break down the door?"

[mizuhomaiden.livejournal.com]

"... I can try," Sheena replied, a little hesitant. She knew she couldn't kick the door down because her exsphere wasn't working but she could possibly blow the door open. "But you need to stand back on the other side of the hallway."

The guardian moved before the door, in the middle of the hall with one card in hand, and she focused her breathing, calming herself down. Taking a quick glance to make sure Ritsuka was out of the way, she threw the card at the door. It sailed like a dart and she formed several seals rapidly with her hands, channeling her mana into the card.

Pyre Seal.

Just before the card reached the door, it suddenly split into many. The small cloud of cards swirled at the door and exploded upon contact. Again, the blast wasn't even half as big as it normally was and Sheena frowned. When the air cleared, the door remained standing despite the carbon coating on its outside.

"Damnit."

[forgot-it-all.livejournal.com]

Ritsuka had just made it to the other side of the hall when Sheena let loose her spell. The cards exploded and Ritsuka threw his arms up to cover his face from the resulting smoke. When he looked again, though, he cursed under his breath at the sight of the door still standing, no worse for wear.

How were they going to get inside if the door couldn't be broken down? Soubi could be dying in there and he couldn't - they couldn't do a thing! Panic started to cloud Ritsuka's judgment and he ran forward again, banging the metal end of the flashlight against the door handle even though it wouldn't budge. He couldn't let Soubi die. He couldn't lose someone else to this place!

[mizuhomaiden.livejournal.com]

"H-hey, Ritsuka," Sheena said, trying to ignore the wavering in her own voice. "That's not going to open it. It'll just end up breaking your light. Umm... we need to stop and... think for a moment."

That meant Sheena needed to think fast. Did Raine tell her anything about these experiment things? Answer - no. Damnit! Okay, okay... what else could she do? If her pyre seal wasn't enough, she could try a demon seal. She had an uneasy feeling about using it though, since it was so new and it blew up in her face half the time normally. She could... Wait a minute!

She was Mizuho!

"Hold on," Sheena stated, moving up next to Ritsuka and moving to put her hand on the light to stop him. "Let me get a good look at that lock. I might be able to disable it."

[forgot-it-all.livejournal.com]

Logically, he knew that panicking wasn't the thing to do. He knew that he had to step back and think and do the smart thing. He knew all that and yet he didn't care. The thought of losing Soubi was crushing him and it wasn't until Sheena put her hand on the light that he stopped banging it against the door handle. He tried to pull at the door again, but he still couldn't get it open.

Failure, like everything else he'd tried to do here. He promised to protect Seimei. He promised to take Alfons back with him. He promised to do so many things and he couldn't do a damn thing, other than calm down and step aside.

Lowering the flashlight, Ritsuka backed away and stared at the door. He knew Soubi was in there and he tried calling out to him, letting him know that they were coming. Don't give up. I won't ever forgive you if you give up. That's an order. "Do it."

[youlackmascara.livejournal.com]

Itachi surveyed the hallway as he stepped through. A bunch of doors. It was very possible something was hidden behind them, or why bother to lock the door? Most of the doors he had encountered in the Institute were open at night. Perhaps some of the Institute's secrets lay here.

It only occurred to him a moment later that hastily deflecting Jiraiya's queries made it seem as if he were hiding something, too.

[toadally4boobs.livejournal.com]

Itachi's suspicions were only given more credit as Jiraiya didn't press any further, seeming content with that answer. He had gotten the Uchiha defensive. That was as good of an answer as he was going to get.

Jiraiya instead surveyed the corridor, frowning a little. Many, many locked doors. He sighed, wishing he had tools to lock pick them properly. But it also seemed like they were getting somewhere. That was good, at least.

[I'm all for continuing this, but we should probably discuss what they found, too. XD Sorry for how long it took to reply, but I wasn't sure how exactly to answer.]