Nightshift 22: 2nd floor, top of stairs by the medical reference library

[killing-suzie.livejournal.com]

(from here)

"I'll take your word for it," Jack said. "All I ate was the cake." And as cake went, it had been pretty good, he had to admit.

And then they were at the top of the stairs. He hugged the inside wall for a moment, before slowly easing out into the new hallway, listening for anything untoward.

So far, so good.

"Looks like we have three choices," he said quietly over his shoulder. "Left, right, or straight."

Comments

[traitors-smile.livejournal.com]

Any of the three paths would be like taking a shot in the dark. It could be useful, it could be a complete waste of time. He did like, however, that Captain Jack didn't mind letting him make some of the decisions. Lead or guard and now the direction. At least he could be fairly certain that the man wasn't leading him into a trap.

"Ara~," he said again, with a slight sigh. "Straight is as good a direction as any," he concluded. "'less you got a preference or know somethin' I don't." He was beginning to wonder if it was all just some elaborate hoax.

[killing-suzie.livejournal.com]

"I wish I did," Jack said. "It'd be nice if one of us knew what the hell was going on." But at least they were doing something about it.

He moved forward, still leading. As always, crossing the open space of the hall felt almost weightless; in these dark situations, that was the time when you were most open to attack. They made it across alright, though.

There was a door on the left side of the hall, just a little way in. Falling into habit, he signalled Gin to halt and keep watch (hopefully he understood the gesture) as he tried the doorknob. It was locked. But when he bent to examine the lock, it looked rather rusted and unstable. "Think we might be able to break this one," he muttered.

[ontheabyss.livejournal.com]

Lyta was used to being in a leadership position, and the girl was helping the kid get a move on. That was fine with her. She led the way up the stairs, frowning some at the half-eaten giant spider corpse that was at the top landing. What the hell had happened? The stench and the black, slick blood that stained the floor was testament to the fact that some battle was waged here, but what?

The spider made her think of the Shadows. That didn't improve her outlook any.

"Be careful," she called over her shoulder, eyes narrowing as she passed the beam of her light over the mess. It was sickening, like something out of a horror vid.

She realized then that one of their party was wounded and the other two were weaponless. Not a good position to be in.

"Let's try and be quick."

[hidden-queen.livejournal.com]

Padme stared at the alien corpse on the landing. It smelled awful!

With one hand, she covered her nose to try and shut out the stench, and with the other, she kept balance on the wall as she skirted around the body. She took care not to slip on the blood, although it was hard to stifle the wince at the thought of the blood soaking through the slippers. She swallowed, and forced herself to look at the boy and the woman, and not at the ground.

"How did this get in the building?" the Queen asked, making sure to keep her voice down.

[heavensequal.livejournal.com]

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

"No." The kid was whining already, and there was no one else around to deflect it onto this time, nor even a cigarette to make dealing with it easier. After so many months on the mission, Sanzo'd nearly forgotten what that was like to being the sole target of Goku's complete attention.

Well, or would have been if the monkey hadn't caught sight of the two grotesque shapes, all hair and limbs and multiple eyes. Sanzo slowed.

A set of oversized spiders. Somehow even uglier than the spider-youkai, which took some doing.

Sanzo wouldn't be much of a guardian if he couldn't tell what was running through Goku's mind right then. There was that very obvious glint in his eyes, and the way the monkey just somehow managed to lean forward towards fight, as if drawn to it.

"No. Absolutely not." With that, Sanzo grabbed Goku by the collar, and dragged him on. He hated to admit it but they were at a massive disadvantage here. The whole point now was to any unneceesary entanglements, not run willingly into them. "Keep moving."

[forgot-it-all.livejournal.com]

There were other people here and one of them was injured, but what really caught Ritsuka's attention was the giant spider corpse and the oil-like blood on the floor. He stopped short at the top of the stairs, eyes wide. Giant spiders? Were these the monsters everyone had been talking about? The smell was horrible and almost tangible, but at least it was dead...

Ritsuka clung to Seimei's hand, drawing closer to his side. "Right or left?"

[beloved-lives.livejournal.com]

Ugh. The smell made him glad that he hadn't eaten much. "Either way. I've never been to this floor." He shrugged and nodded toward the right. "That way. I suppose."

His eyes darted to the other people and edged around them. He didn't want to get involved with their troubles, lest Ritsuka be put in danger because of it.

[grosse-sklaven.livejournal.com]

((From here. (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/76874.html?thread=4550986#t4550986) ))

"I found a certain item while I was up here two nights ago," Adelheid gamely offered as he lead the way up the stairs, feeling more breathless than he should have been due to his bout of anemia. He thought about the medical kit fondly, wondering if the contents would have anything to help him. There was tylenol, which would dull the ache in his thigh, but other than that he couldn't remember. He'd have to ask Phoenix- he was certain the man would be okay, after running past the swarm with Edgeworth- if he couldn't take something. It would be something to hope for, anyway.

"Off to the left, in the Morgue; while it was a cache specifically left for us, I have to wonder if the rooms nearby might not also contain something worthwhile. The doors were locked, so I didn't check them at the start, but it would be worth investigating."

He ignored the spider skeleton, the stench, and the other patients, for the most part. None jumped out as someone he needed to speak with or pay attention to, and now that he had someone to help him with locked doors, he was eager to continue his explorations. Briefly turning to Kaylee and Jack, he asked, "Ready to continue?"

[damned-patients.livejournal.com]

"We'll just have to check them tonight. I'll get them open for us." Jack's tone was casual, some of his former relaxation and and ease returning. He was used to this sort of thing, but... this was different. But he was still clearly on alert, though now it was more that of a hunter than an escaped prisoner.

"And don't worry about Kaylee. We'll keep her safe. I've already got some experience there. The bathrooms here are infested." He tossed a small wink to Kaylee, gladly following along after Adelheid.

"I'm as ready as I'll ever be. Lead on, McDuff."

[killing-suzie.livejournal.com]

So far, so good. Jack swept the light across the floor, then up to the ceiling, just to make sure. He was decidedly pleased by the lack of living giant spiders. The dead one was a mess in the center of the hall. A stinking mess. He was glad that he'd always had a strong stomach. And glad that they'd apparently missed whatever had done that one in.

He hesitated for a moment, but there was no guarantee that they'd have any better luck if they switched to another hall. They might as well finish checking this one out first.

Keeping his steps even - and ready to flee back to the proven safety of the library if something else reared its ugly head - he started up the hall.

[traitors-smile.livejournal.com]

Gin was only a little surprised to see the Spider's corpse lying in the hall. He wasn't sure if he should be thankful for whatever person had killed it, or worried that they might be its next target. Gin followed behind, watching their backs and offering an occasional glance over his shoulder. He didn't see anything coming just yet or hear any nasty noises. It would be a lot easier to feel safe in this place with some kind of weapon in hand that wasn't just a pointed stick. He hated the lack of control and the weakness he felt.

He kept his voice low, "Looks like we're not th' only visitors sneakin' about. Maybe there's somethin' up here worth findin' afterall."

[empty-death.livejournal.com]

((Coming up from here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/76874.html?thread=4626506)))

Faust looked around. "It seems there are quite a few people up here too," he murmured casually. "I wonder what, exactly, is up here..."

((ooc: Just shoot me if I've messed up. And I'll delete... yes. ^^;;;;))

[unmocked-lawr.livejournal.com]

"We'll find out soon, won't we," said Javert bluntly, scanning the hall with the aid of his flashlight.

The second floor - or what he could see of it, at any rate - seemed a veritable maze to him. Almost directly ahead of them, however, was a door - and from the looks of it, someone had been there before. Javert moved a bit closer; within the room, he could see shelves of books. Well, it was a start.

He glanced over at Faust and gestured toward the door with his flashlight. "Looks like that door's been forced open. Shall we try it?"

[angels-inflight.livejournal.com]

[from here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/76874.html?thread=4310090#t4310090)]

Luckily, there were some stairs right across from the girls, so Naminé lead them upwards. It was safe on the way up, but the moment Naminé pushed open the door, the smell of fresh blood and rotting flesh invaded her senses. The Nobody actually let go of the door, surprised at the sudden odor, but she grabbed the door and carefully re-opened it, hoping that whatever was on the other side was very far away.

It was a spider! Naminé remembered exactly what those wretched beasts look like, and she was about to shut the door and tell the other girls to run, except something was wrong with the image. Against her better judgement, Naminé cautiously swung open the door wider to get a better glimpse at the monster before them.

The spider was already dead. There were liberal amounts of blood on the floor, and it was laying still. Naminé could tell that it was dead also by the fact that it seemed to be missing patches of fur and legs. Someone either gruesomely killed it, or it was already fed upon.

"... That's what a monster looks like," Naminé said after a long silence on her part, a little dumbly. Obviously, they both could tell what it was, but she felt better hearing her own voice. The spider did not awaken. Yes, it was dead.

[notearthlogic.livejournal.com]

Wow, a real monster! Haruhi went past Naminé once the girl had opened the door fully, crouching down to examine the large spider up close. It was a pity that it was already dead, but Haruhi was sure she would see a live one at some point. She had to!

"Do all of them look like this--like spiders?" Haruhi really hoped not. Even monsters needed a little variety! It would definitely be more interesting that way.

She also wondered who had killed it. So, there were strong people here too? It was just like a horror movie! Good guys versus a bunch of evil monsters. A shiver of excitement went up Haruhi's spine to know that she was a part of it as well. It was a dream come true. In fact, Haruhi was just waiting to wake up and find out that was all it was, a dream. She frowned then and stood up. She really hoped that wouldn't be the case.

[forgot-it-all.livejournal.com]

Reaching the other side of the floor, Ritsuka tested the first door he came to and found that it too was locked. The fray downstairs was getting worse and he wanted away from it as soon as possible. He tested the next door to his left and found that it was also locked. Both locks seemed rusty and easily broken, but he turned to Seimei to decide which one to break first.

"Left or right?"

[beloved-lives.livejournal.com]

"It doesn't matter. We're not likely to find what we want on our first try." Seimei pointed out. "What we're doing is making a map of this place. If we get to what we want, all the better. If not... well, we keep trying."

With that, Seimei slammed the end of the flashlight down on the left-hand door's lock.

[braidless.livejournal.com]

((From here. (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/73147.html?thread=4486587#t4486587)))

Obi-Wan had only been to the second floor once since his arrival. That had been this morning when he was escorted to the chapel. It wasn't difficult to locate the stairs by any means. He did find it a little challenging to maneuver up the stairwell in a quiet, cautious manner while lugging a chair and a glowrod at the same time. But Obi-Wan made sure to take his time as he and Qui-Gon drew closer to the second floor.

It was better to move slowly if it meant they weren't going to get caught by something unsavory.

When the two Jedi finally reached the door leading to the second floor, the first thing Obi-Wan noticed was a terrible stench that heavily hung in the air. If his hands hadn't have been full, he might have clapped a hand over his nose. Thankfully, he didn't have weak gagging reflexes.

Still, that didn't account for what was on the other side of the door. Obi-Wan carefully cracked the door open, his senses carefully tuned to his surroundings. He didn't sense any sort of void lurking around, so he wasn't entirely worried about getting ambushed.

When he finally pushed the door open all the way, he was greeted by a stronger wave of the stench, blood smeared all over the floor, and a single, rotting spider corpse. Obi-Wan grimaced at the sight, and he swallowed hard as his gaze swept around the area to make sure there weren't any human bodies lying around.

There weren't. It looked like whoever killed the creature had managed to get away.

Obi-Wan knew they needed to be on their guard. If there was a dead spider here, it would stand to reason there were more creatures lurking about.

[qui-gonjinn.livejournal.com]

Following after Obi-Wan, and trying to get used to the idea of the chair he lugged with him as a weapon, the smell assaulted his senses as his former apprentice opened the door. It wasn't quite enough to force him to cover his nose and try to filter it out, but it was certainly getting there. Blood and entrails were splattered across the floor, worked its way up to the walls and he wouldn't have been surprised it some had managed to get its way on the ceiling. It took a long moment to recognize the corpse on the floor was a similar breed to that spider they'd seen earlier.

Something had torn it apart.

Probably wouldn't be a good idea to stick in the area, not if something had mauled through a spider that easily. Blood also tended to attract other...unsavory creatures, and he didn't care to see just what kind of carrion eaters Earth had.

[prisonerofdeath.livejournal.com]

[[From here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/77997.html?view=4725165)]]

He paused at the top of the stairs again when he encountered the body of... a large spider.

Someone else had taken care of the monster at the top of the stairs.

Fox shifted the sword in his left hand and brought a hand up to feel the injuries in his shoulder. There was a strange, tingling, itching sensation going through them now, and his left arm was beginning to get tired. He moved the katana over to his right hand to hold onto it until he needed to fight. He was good enough with his right hand to use it in most fights, and Fox wanted to give his left a rest.

[prisonerofdeath.livejournal.com]

[[Going here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/80760.html)]]

[grosse-sklaven.livejournal.com]

((From here. (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/82691.html) ))

Whew... the stairs were in sight. This was a good thing. The monster had also seemed to not following him, which was another good thing. Now he had a moment to rest and regain his bearings... and to finish recovering from his battle with that electricity-spewing creature.

To do that required him prying his other hand off of the spear, which required more than a little agony; he stifled a shout of pain as his palm was nearly ripped off, blood dripping from both hands now and the torture of those electrical burns- in addition to the pain of having to use his ki so recklessly- not abating in the least. He needed... he needed someone who could help him with his wounds. Adelheid knew that he couldn't hold on for too long, nor could he survive another monster attack.

But even still, it would take him a moment to catch his breath and decide where to go. Hopefully the cool walls would ease some of the burn as he considered his options.

[faithful-frost.livejournal.com]

((From below (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/78135.html?thread=4843831#t4843831). Hopw you don't mind... ^^;;;; ))

Haku followed for a short time until the smell of blood caught his attention. Taking in the sight of the tall blond man, Haku noted a few things rapidly. One: this man was obviously injured and weak; two: he would be unable to fight back should anything attack him; three: he had a weapon.

Now, Haku wouldn't dream of taking away someone's weapon (he couldn't speak for his Master), but he could at least find out where and how he got it... and attend to his wounds at the same time.

Information in exchange for medical aid. Seemed fair to him. He made a soft sound to alert Zabuza-san to his change in direction and then moved over to the blond.

"I can help you," he said softly, making certain he sounded as non-threatening as possible. "Are you willing to accept my aid?" He wouldn't waste supplies on a man that didn't want his assistance...

[faithful-frost.livejournal.com]

((Coming from here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/77997.html?thread=4687789#t4687789).))

Haku smiled slightly when his Master turned to look at him and bowed his head. He was still keeping watch over their backs though, and this was evident in his posture and the way he had his head tilted.

He followed Zabuza-san. He would follow him anywhere.

[be-my-tool.livejournal.com]

Zabuza didn't smile back, of course, but it made him feel... strange... to see Haku's smile. He grumbled to himself and turned to look back forward.

There were people here, but they weren't people that he knew and he didn't really care at the moment anyway.

"Which way do you suggest we go, boy?" he asked, managing to sound like he might not go the way that Haku said, despite the fact that he would do whatever Haku suggested.