Nightshift 23 - Stairs Near Lobby 1

[blacksustenance.livejournal.com]

[Coming in from here]

So far so good.

The stairs to the second floor should be around here. So far they hadn't run into any of the locals here, which was both a good and bad thing: they didn't have to expend needless energy defending themselves, but, on the other hand, that also meant no food. Brock sighed, searching the walls for the door to the stairs, and tried to not focus on the fact that he was not only starving again for human food (apparently they were still recovering from last night), but he was also getting pretty hungry for some of the fresh, rather socially inacceptable meat that had a habit of walking on two legs.

It would be the first time that he could remember that he'd fed when he wasn't Venom. While it probably wasn't a far stretch to assume that the symbiote took his body on joyrides when he was asleep or unconscious, there still remained the fact that he didn't recall any incident where he'd killed with his bare hands, fed as Eddie Brock only.

The mental image of himself crouched over a corpse and going for the head was a bit nauseating, actually and he had to hurriedly focus on the walls before him, rearing up in the darkness and grainy in their eyes. Being back to near-human apparently made him somewhat squeamish again.

It's just a need like normal eating, Brock thought, echoing the reassurances of his Other. It's perfectly okay. We have as much a right to exist as everyone else.

The blond paused before the stairs, slightly comforted by this, and started up them, careful to watch his feet and feeling along the rails with one hand. Hopefully the Chapel was empty when they got there; Brock was all for feeding outside it, but it seemed wrong to profane that kind of ground with even their very honest needs. It just didn't feel right to pull that kind of shit in a holy place (while it didn't have any religious markers, Brock still felt it was special and deserved the proper respect).

Comments

[tartaros-avatar.livejournal.com]

[[From here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/94850.html?thread=5881218#t5881218)]]

Regardless of the potential dangers, Recluse felt much more at ease at night.

His night vision was as inhumanly acute as it had been when he first began to change. Allowed to re-adapt to the soothing darkness, they only became more sensitive. A well-placed observer might notice that his eyes sometimes seemed to dimly glow, with a spark that some before had described as the light of the devil.

He reached the stairs and stopped at the sight of another figure. No normal human would be going without light in this place. And it isn't a normal human, he thought as he recognized the man. Interesting.

Recluse followed the man up the stairs, almost silent on the steps. Almost- his leg was still a little slow, even with the pain numbed.

[blacksustenance.livejournal.com]

((Should we move the thread upstairs in a few posts?))

Brock was at the top of the stairs when he suddenly realized that there was someone else following them a few yards back. Turning, all too aware that this was a delayed reaction and that his Other should have sensed the presence before he did, he paused, watching the other patient. His own eyes had a slightly cloudy, white overtone thanks to his symbiote's gift of its own "eyes"; it was pretty damn weird to have more than just one pair of eyelids, but you got used to it when you also came to the realization that aliens did exist and were very interested in getting intimate.

At least it was dark and he had the excuse that he could just be a typical mutant. He hadn't ever thought that he'd actually be thankful to mutants for anything, but it gave him a get-out-free card that saved him from awkward explanations he didn't want to give.

Still, Brock wasn't sure if he was too happy that Richter was practically on his heels; while it wasn't his business where the metahuman went, he wanted to do what he needed away from prying eyes.

"Where you headed, Richter?" Brock asked, keeping his voice low once the other man was close enough to hear him. It occurred to them that they could try to take advantage of this man and try to hunt him, but the blond had to dismiss that immediately. He wasn't that hungry that he was going to try to take on a full grown man with unknown powers and cracked ribs.

[lighthearted]

[ From here. ]

Upon leaving his block of rooms, Sora felt like he could make his way to Kairi's room with his eyes closed. It was reassuring to know that he could find her so easily. While he wished he could trust her to take care of herself, he wanted to be there.

He'd left her alone for so long.

Once he saw the stairs (is that where they were planning to go tonight?), he swung a right and it wasn't long before he saw the door that would admit him to the female block. He didn't hesitate to enter.

[lighthearted]

[ To here. ]

[muted-flame.livejournal.com]

It wasn't long before Roy made it to the meeting point he'd set, though he wasn't surprised that he'd beaten Hawkeye there. Technically, the male block was closer. He doubted he would have to wait long before she showed up, so he planted himself in front of the stairway.

Admittedly, it was a little unnerving to be out in the middle of the hallway on his own, but he would be ready for anything that might try to attack him. He still had his lighter and his matches, though he was going to run out sooner or later...

He didn't want to think too much about that.

Feeling for the keyring and the three keys attached to it, he had to wonder which doors the two remaining keys opened. There was a very small possibility he wouldn't have to find out, if the entry room led him --

But no, it couldn't be that easy. Nonetheless, he had to investigate.

[gun-fire.livejournal.com]

Riza's only delay had been the announcement of the radio. She hadn't been here long enough to decode whatever was in it, nor could she put together the history he seemed intent on telling them. She had to wonder why he was so cryptic if he did mean to help them.

She had some ideas concerning one or two of his clues, but that wasn't important right now, and it was likely the colonel had deciphered those and more if he'd been listening. Once the radio clicked off, she began moving again at a careful jog. The dim lighting was, unfortunately, as advantageous to her as it would be to whatever might be hiding in its shadows, but she made it out of the women's block and into the broader halls without incident. She took more care now that she was out in the open, listening in a crouch at the corner before casting a wary glance towards the stairwell.

Clear so far, or at least, there was no threat she could see. Crossing the corridor, she kept close to the far wall as she approached her commander.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, sir," she murmured once at his side. She had an idea of where the door in question was from here, but the distance she counted during the day was bound to be far longer by night.

[dancingdagger.livejournal.com]

[from here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/93696.html?thread=5863680#t5863680)]

As she quickly made her way to the sunroom, Penelo noticed the crowd that had gathered near a set of stairs. So, the second floor was also open. That, or they all simply decided to meet there. Normally, Penelo might have asked for directions or even if they could let her join, but she had a meeting planned herself. Hopefully, she and Kazuo would run into others. She didn't feel quite safe with just a two-person party, but first, there had to be a party to join, right? Right.

Assuming Kazuo even showed up. Penelo remembered how Larsa was delayed by monsters and shuddered. Would the same thing happen to her? To him? Maybe they should have picked a spot closer to their rooms instead of heading out all the way to the Sun Room, which seemed to be miles away now. Penelo made a mental note to do so before she planned any more meetings or such.

[dancingdagger.livejournal.com]

[from here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/98413.html)]

[still-free.livejournal.com]

Having steered as far away from the chapel as physically possible when given the choice, Mal had no idea where it was located. Somewhere upstairs was all he knew, and that wasn't much help. They had other goals in mind, anyway, and even if they had decided to go searching for the place (he didn't want to think about what sort of monster would be lurking there), there was a good chance another group of patients would have gotten there first.

He doubted there would be any sharing of the prize, either. Mal knew he would have wanted to keep the loot to himself. Sharing hadn't gotten him very far in life.

It was a short walk from their block to the stairs, and he stopped as they got closer to it. "Here, right?" He had no idea where else Javert would have meant, but best to make sure. He wouldn't want to be waiting for someone who would never show up because of a misunderstanding.

What was odd was the lack of other patients - he figured everyone would be rushing up the stairs to get to the chapel. Well, the lack of crowds was probably for the best.

[unmocked-lawr.livejournal.com]

Javert paused to flip open his journal and check the map he'd copied from the others that afternoon. A pause while he glanced from the map to his surroundings, then he snapped the journal shut and nodded.

"This should be it," he agreed. He settled back and leaned against the wall, as was his habit, waiting for Faust to arrive.

Still, he couldn't entirely ignore the radio's cryptic message. "The messages coming from this," he began, holding up the radio. "Are they trustworthy? The man behind them is clearly against the head doctor, but is he really trying to help the patients?"

[materianinja.livejournal.com]

Yuffie sprinted as quickly as she could from the female blocks over to the staircase. But once she was there, she couldn't quite remember if she was supposed to meet Aidou on the first floor or the second.

She glanced around at the others that were lingering near the staircase. Aidou wasn't here... Had she missed him? Had he not come yet? She frowned, hesitating. Where the heck was she supposed to go now?

[idolism]

_{[coming from here]}

If Yuffie had any idea Aidou would come sprinting out of the darkness after being leered at so closely (again!) by a human man, and come crashing into her, Aidou couldn’t tell. Really, he couldn’t even see her expression when he enfolded her into a hard hug. “Yuffie-chan! I’m so glad to see you!”

He was! He loved girls! It was his duty as Idol of the Night Class to shower girls with love!

[voiceless-rage.livejournal.com]

Halfway up the stairs, having already passed by several other people, Caim paused. He could hear voices upstairs, and one of them sounded almost familiar. The other, not so much, but still ... it meant it was someone he had spent more than half a minute with before. Possibly one of the people from earlier in the day ... one of the ones from last night?

He frowned and continued up the stairs. He'd find out when he got there, and if they wound up being an enemy, like last night had revealed ... he was armed.

Nothing was going to get the best of him now.

[voiceless-rage.livejournal.com]

((REPOSTED to add link))

[damn-legends.livejournal.com]

[[From here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/94850.html?thread=5908866#t5908866).]]

Sensing people, Snake pulled himself close to the wall, hugging it closely, blurring himself into the shadows. He could clearly hear people discussing their plans on the stairs. If that was the case, than there wouldn't be any danger of attracting monsters or unwanted conversation - everyone was clearly otherwise engaged, and he doubted people would be sitting around talking if there was a monster in the area.

Still moving silently due to force of habit, he worked his way up the stairs, taking care not to give the people around him more than an appraising glance to check for threat. He didn't have time to waste, and he wanted them to know it.

He'd have to play it mostly by ear from here, he realised, ascending the stairs. He barely knew the layout of the second floor.

Re: ((REPOSTED to add link))

[damn-legends.livejournal.com]

[[Skulking along here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/98560.html?thread=5959168#t5959168)]]

[dancingdagger.livejournal.com]

[from here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/98413.html?thread=5958765#t5958765)]

As they moved closer to the staircase, it seemed that there were less people here. In fact, it was far less crowded than before. She didn't anticipate coming back so soon, but the lack of people made Penelo feel uneasy. Well, they probably moved upstairs... or elsewhere.

"Here we are," She smiled to Kazuo, pushing open the door. The stairs crawled up to the abyss, but she could not hear anything that would suggest they were in danger. "Looks like the coast is clear..."

[devils-tactics.livejournal.com]

Kazuo nodded in agreement, listening closely to the sounds in case something was coming down towards them. He didn't hear anything, yet, but was on his guard in case he heard the skittering of roaches, or something else... Cautiously, he moved up the steps.

[part1of3.livejournal.com]

[From here! (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/94850.html?thread=5994882#t5994882)]

Ashton pulled the door open and turned to Xigbar as he entered the stairway. "If something comes at us? She's going to get somewhere safe, and I'm going to do whatever I have to do." He raised one of his long metal ladles and gestured with it, strangely full of aplomb. "You're free to help fight, too. And you grabbed pens, I see. Where are the scalpels from last night?" He'd pointed out the makeshift weapons as a friendly gesture.. surely Xigbar's pride wasn't overbearing enough that he'd refuse to use them.

And, almost as an afterthought but not quite, he looked down at the blonde he had in tow. "And hey, you doing okay?" She wasn't the healthiest-looking girl he'd ever seen; in fact, her small frame gave her the appearance of being downright frail. Landel's Institute wasn't such a big place, but the hallways were lengthy enough that someone who wasn't trained to run would probably find them troublesome, and Ashton tended to worry at least a little bit about his charges whether or not he was in a battle situation.

He fully expected to have to carry someone by the end of the night, whether it be Axel or Namine. Hopefully it wouldn't be Xigbar. Although he'd probably like that.. the pervert.

[angels-inflight.livejournal.com]

They were moving like the wind, quickly and without end. Of course, Naminé refused to show her tiredness. She could keep up. Besides, she was not the one in danger, so there was no excuse for her to complain about being tired. Naminé nodded, saving her breaths for running.

Naminé felt like pointing out that she could try to help too if they were attacked, but what could she really do? Naminé knew combat was simply not her strong point. It was perhaps because she was born from a Princess of Heart, but she had no offensive power. It somewhat disappointed her that she could not be of even more assitance.

Though, as they climbed the staircase, Naminé had to warn them of what she saw yesterday. Just in case.

"Be careful. I saw a dead spider here yesterday and it was not killed by a patient," She panted, trying to keep up the pace.

[somber-secret.livejournal.com]

(())

Following his own mental instructions, Hisoka turned left and began walking down the hallway, metal bar readied in case of attack. From behind him the boy wordlessly listened to Tsuzuki's idle chatter-- his attempt not to spontaneously combust from all the silence-- and Dias' response only to be reminded not that he forgot of the monsters that lurked at their destination.

Tonight would not be dull, that was for sure.

Yet with the monsters came another realization for the shinigami. The nurse had called him 'Alex' throughout the day and, like any front for crooked schemes, they'd try to make the image far more complete than it was... So wouldn't their files have also bear their "real" names as well?

Hisoka scowled as the corner came in sight. "Have either of you been called by a different name?"

[shiki-master.livejournal.com]

Near the sun room? That was the room he'd found Hisoka in last night... And as for guardians, did he mean people or monsters? Tsuzuki wasn't sure he wanted to fight other people again. Just tackling Hisoka last night was bad enough...

Tsuzuki would have asked, but Hisoka's question and the change of topic caught him off guard. "Umm, I think the nurse this morning was calling me 'Mr. Reeves' or something like that. I think she got me mixed up with someone else, you know?" He wondered if that's what Hisoka meant, but more importantly why he'd even brought it up...

[empty-death.livejournal.com]

((From here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/96460.html?view=6030284#t6030284).))

Faust looked up and down the hallway, wondering if he'd already missed Javert or if the other man had been held up somewhere.

Quite a few people roamed the halls tonight, he noted. That message he'd heard from some of the other patients' radios meant that many would probably be heading for a church or chapel. Many hospitals had a place for religious practice and/or prayer. Faust had seen many.

Of course, his own faith in a god had long since died.

He settled in for a wait.

[unmocked-lawr.livejournal.com]

Javert approached at a brisk pace, smiling briefly at the sight of Faust.

"My apologies for the wait. I'm afraid I didn't see you at first. Did you find anything important today?" He glanced over his shoulder, adding, "I invited my roommate to come with us tonight. I assumed it would be best to travel with more patients."

[never-learns.livejournal.com]

[To here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/94850.html?view=6053250#t6053250)]

Yohji followed Cliff quickly down the hallway totally not ogling his ass... no, not a bit and then switched position with him at the end of the corridor, taking point to lead them to the stairs. He paused at the bottom of them, glancing up as far as he can. He could hear people moving upstairs, he just hoped this wasn't the sound of an attack or anything.

He looked back at them. "This is where we head up," he said quietly. "Be careful. It's too easy a place to get attacked."

[repolarization.livejournal.com]

Ginji nodded but didn't seem so much afraid as determined.

He was ready. He didn't say anything else, though, as he didn't want to attract more attention than he needed to. He followed Yohji and Cliff soundlessly (or as soundlessly as he could manage anyway).

[sasuke-of-sound.livejournal.com]

To Sasuke's relief, it was a clear walk from the patients' block to the stairwell where he'd first met Yoshiaki.

For the first time since they'd left the room, he turned to look behind him, making sure that Lee -- well, it wasn't really Lee he was concerned about; no matter how bizarre, Lee was shinobi -- and Yoshiaki had kept up.

With a curt movement of his hand, he indicated that they were heading up these stairs, and then turned and started up himself.

He used more caution than in the patients' area -- Sasuke had watched the bulletin board, even if he hadn't bothered to contribute, and he'd noticed Rufus and Reno (among others he didn't recognize) discussing monsters encountered near the stairs on the bulletin board.

[faithful-dog.livejournal.com]

Naoe hadn't just kept up he was right behind Sasuke. His expression by then was entirely blank as was his mood. Everything was gone, the only thing that mattered was getting Takaya back.

He also knew of the dangers of going upstairs, but he had yet to encounter anything more dangerous than blinding darkness in this place as of yet. His number one concern was simply finding where they kept the patients for the torment that the Head Doctor had described.

[madvampireking.livejournal.com]

((Came from: here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/94356.html#comments).))

He saw the pair meet up with a young girl, discussing a few matters amongnst themsleves. This could be difficult, seeing as now he had not one, but two potential hazards to fight off when he finally decided to strike. Perhaps the Captain would understand, but the girl?

Alucard had a nagging suspicion that he would have to knock the girl out cold. He really, really didn't want to tear people apart so soon, and she was such a pretty, tasty young thing...

He saw Aidou look around, and he could've sworn the 'vampire' looked right at him before leaving. So the chase was on.

[madvampireking.livejournal.com]

((Went: here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/98560.html).))

[claire-ity.livejournal.com]

[from here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/93696.html?thread=6082304#t6082304)]

It certainly was different, walking alone. Claire tried not to jump at every shadow she saw - she was stronger than that. She couldn't afford to fall apart now.

She felt as though she'd taken a wrong turn, but breathed a sigh of relief as she came upon the second stairway. Not too bad - she was still on the right track. Straightening herself a bit, she made her way up.

[coolegoist.livejournal.com]

[From here. (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/94850.html?thread=5983106#t5983106)]

There were plenty of people moving around here, enough at least so that their group of five didn't stand out too much. Kyouya searched for his friends in the darkness and came up empty.

Perhaps they'd done the smart thing and stayed in their rooms where it was safe. Well, not Tamaki. Tamaki hardly ever did the smart thing.

There was nothing he could do about that, anyway. Kyouya distanced himself from wandering thoughts and concentrated on the present instead. While he couldn't fight, he was not about to become a liability for his companions either.

[per-ardua.livejournal.com]

"I imagine none of us has a map," Raine said, looking towards the top of the stairs. She didn't like that they couldn't see the head of the stairs from where they were; it would be too easy for something to be lying in wait just out of sight. She didn't even know how many flights of stairs were between them and the next floor; hardly unusual in strange locations, but she still found it unsettling here.

Of course, what she really wanted was that monster list; it wasted too much time, energy, and most of all magic when they didn't know what they were facing or how to defeat it. If they had any idle time tonight, she'd see what the people in this group knew.

[no-side-effects.livejournal.com]

[[From here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/94850.html?thread=6105730#t6105730)]]

Wesker could see perfectly in the darkness, even with his sunglasses, so it was no issue to avoid people he did not wish to waste his time with. There would be plenty of time for conversation and gathering allies during the day that he didn't want to waste time introducing himself to people during the night.

After last night, he much preferred to not have anyone bump into him, or to bump into anyone else. A quick pause at the base of the stairs to check for ambush before he made his way up, calmly but quickly.

[no-side-effects.livejournal.com]

[[Going here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/98560.html#comments)]]

[itneverwas.livejournal.com]

[[ from here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/94697.html) ]]

Xemnas followed Saïx through the darkness as he led the way to one of the staircases. His orange eyes scanned the darkness thoroughly for a possible ambush, but none ever came. They passed several groups of unfamiliar faces in the hallways, but none of them were of interest. The Superior had no interest of dragging strangers along for the ride, after all.

Finally, the stairs came into view. He paused, looking up as he tried to determine who or what could be waiting for them on the second floor

[rage8.livejournal.com]

Saïx sensed the Superior halt briefly behind him, stopping a moment to gaze up into the darkness as well. He peered intently, narrowing his eyes and surpressing a snarl that might've come had he not be so utterly in control. If anything, Xemnas' appearance had aided him in controlling the rage that this institution seemed to be encouraging somehow.

"I have not been to the second floor," he admitted. "New ground should be covered. Shall I continue?" Permission. Only asked of one being. It was why he so oftened scoffed at the demands issued by the elders; there was one member that he answered to, and one member that he truly respected.

[heavensequal.livejournal.com]

[lighthearted]

[ From here. ]

Having walked right by the stairs earlier in the night to get to the female block (Sora was getting sick of moving around in circles, so it was good that they were finally heading up), it was simple to find them again.

Once he was at the foot of the stairs, he spun on his heel to make sure the two women were still following him. Besides, he wanted to show off.

"There! Pretty easy, huh?"

[haiiro-no-chou.livejournal.com]

Rukia made note of where the stairs were in relation to where they had been so far. The institute looked so different at night that it was easy to get disoriented. The stairs didn't exactly look inviting, but Rukia certainly wasn't deterred.

Rukia offered Sora a small smile, nodding.

[141point12.livejournal.com]

[From here. (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/92537.html?thread=5899129#t5899129)]

Otacon all but ran from the patient block, far from the creepy flying dragons and past a half-naked man who may or may not have been another monster. There were a few people here — sane-looking people — so he stopped, bracing himself against a wall to catch his breath.

No time to dawdle. Too much of the night had been wasted already. Otacon automatically glanced in the direction of the stairs.

"After all, there's no guarantee the first floor's any safer, right?" he asked himself, and wondered if he was seriously considering venturing up by himself.

[141point12.livejournal.com]

[To here. (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/98560.html?thread=6265856#t6265856)]

[traitors-smile.livejournal.com]

[from here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/94850.html?thread=6225794#t6225794)]

He snuck away from the main crowd back in the halls and found himself heading in the same direction he'd gone last night. As far as he could tell, the lower floor was mostly for daytime use and while it likely had its share of things to find and use, he was a little more curious about the things he hadn't seen just yet.

He tried checking the spirit threads again, only to have that pounding headache return. The other shinigami had been here, Ran most recently, but as far as he knew, they weren't any threat at the moment. Jack seemed to have had the same idea. They'd made a good enough team the night before and it would be a pity to neglect a possible ally.

[traitors-smile.livejournal.com]

To here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/98086.html)

[angels-inflight.livejournal.com]

[from here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/94850.html?thread=6274946#t6274946)]

A quick sweep of the area revealed nothing out of the ordinary. Naminé briefly considered moving upstairs to see if Manah had relocated Snake somewhere closer, but she didn't think that the child would have been that forgiving. Ashton and Axel probably would have run into him as well...

"I guess he's not here," Naminé said. She frowned and looked at Luxord, motioning him to follow her to the Sun Room. It was odd to be the one leading Luxord and not the other way around, but Naminé knew it was because she was the one looking for Snake. The Gambler was just along for the ride, and she was quite grateful for his company.

[moved here (http://community.livejournal.com/landels_damned/98413.html)]

[zerstorung.livejournal.com]