♬~51st Melody
[Action//Off the Network]
[Ikuto didn't know it yet, but he was running out of time. All of the City, jailed or not, was talking on the Network about what the deities had in store for the prison, and that was a good enough reason for him to try and get out as soon as possible.]
[He hated being locked up; he couldn't go anywhere and he hadn't seen anyone except for that one very rude and unhelpful security guard. But Ikuto knew that there were other people nearby; he could hear them screaming at certain intervals. From what he'd learned on the Network, this place made punishments to fit the criminal, whether they were innocent or not. If he hadn't had Yoru to talk to, it might have worked on him too; being locked in a cell, alone, not knowing if the guards were truly just ignoring him or he would be the next one to be tortured would probably have not been good for his mind. The ticking wouldn't have helped either.]
[However, breaking out of the prison was harder than he had originally thought. Even though the guards were basically ignoring him, there didn't seem to be any way out of the cell. Originally, the door had been made of standard metal bars, but by the next morning (as though the prison itself sensed a weak point) was now solid concrete, with an extremely small barred window near the top that Ikuto could barely fit his hand through. There did seem to be one option, though. There was a large crack where the wall didn't quite meet the heavy door, and through some brainstorming, Yoru and Ikuto decided that there might be a way to pry it open. Yesterday, Ikuto had been in no shape to use Character Change; today, though, he thought he might be able to use it long enough to pry the door open.]
[As he transformed, the drain on his strength started and his head started pounding again. Ikuto realized that he probably had even less time than he had thought. Wrenching his claws into the side of the door, Ikuto pulled with all his strength, slightly worried that they would snap under the strain. However, after a moment, the the concrete door slid open, giving him just enough room to squeeze out.]
[Yoru went first, as a lookout. It seemed like the guards really were ignoring him after all, since there was no one in the hall. Nevertheless, Ikuto moved as quietly as he could down the hall, Yoru floating silently in front of him. They continued on in this way for a while, until suddenly footsteps that sounded eerily similar to the guard's from before echoed towards them around a corner. In silent panic, they rushed towards the nearest door, throwing it open--]
[And found themselves in a completely different place.]
[Ikuto glanced back towards where they came; there wasn't any sign of a door at all, just a solid wall. He decided not to question it. All that mattered was if they had really found a way out of the prison or had accidentally gone even deeper inside. Yoru had already gone ahead, peering out into the darkness, as Ikuto followed slowly, not sure if there was anything waiting out there for them.]
[Unfortunately, they really should have been watching their backs.]
[Something slightly larger than a man, jumped at Ikuto from behind, knocking him to the ground and making his head split with pain again. Kicking the figure away as soon as he got the chance, Ikuto looked up and saw the all-too-familiar mask of the gestapo leering down at him once more. He jumped backwards before the stronger opponent could pin him to the ground again, and started running in the opposite direction, Yoru close behind.]
[Here, things began to get fuzzy. Ikuto felt like there was a weight on his back as he ran; not an unbearable one, but it was there nevertheless. It felt familiar, like something that he had been missing for a while. Figures jumped from the shadows, trying to grab him, but they weren't the Gestapo anymore; in fact, they looked exactly like the guards from Easter...]
[Where am I? His head pounded, the things around him were changing. Instead of a dark, shadowy place, he was outside of Easter, running through that alleyway... Then the weight... It had to be the violin.]
[Had he gone back somehow? Was running through that place somehow a doorway out of the City? He was right back where it had started. I could just leave it behind, and then none of that has to happen...]
[But something wasn't right. Ikuto didn't remember how he had left the City before. And he hadn't remembered anything about it until he had come back. It had to be some kind of rule... It would be too easy to avoid everything if he had the memory of it when he came back.]
[He heard Yoru shout, and the memory dissolved around him. There was a ladder in front of them, leading up out of the darkness. He realized that this place must be the Underground; he hadn't left at all. But how much of it was hallucination and how much was real? The weight on his back remained as he climbed up the ladder. Maybe this was his punishment--to face what he had done, regardless of how his regret hardly allowed him to think about it.]
[The exit lead them out somewhere near Xanadu. Ikuto wasn't much of a stargazer, but he'd never been happier to see the night sky. Exhausted, he was happy enough to just lie on the ground and stare straight up, back inside this expanded prison.]
[A few minutes later, the explosion of the prison sounded across the City.]
[Audio]
I... got out.
We made it, nya!
((OOC: An extremely long action post describing his escape is under the cut. ^_^))
[Ikuto didn't know it yet, but he was running out of time. All of the City, jailed or not, was talking on the Network about what the deities had in store for the prison, and that was a good enough reason for him to try and get out as soon as possible.]
[He hated being locked up; he couldn't go anywhere and he hadn't seen anyone except for that one very rude and unhelpful security guard. But Ikuto knew that there were other people nearby; he could hear them screaming at certain intervals. From what he'd learned on the Network, this place made punishments to fit the criminal, whether they were innocent or not. If he hadn't had Yoru to talk to, it might have worked on him too; being locked in a cell, alone, not knowing if the guards were truly just ignoring him or he would be the next one to be tortured would probably have not been good for his mind. The ticking wouldn't have helped either.]
[However, breaking out of the prison was harder than he had originally thought. Even though the guards were basically ignoring him, there didn't seem to be any way out of the cell. Originally, the door had been made of standard metal bars, but by the next morning (as though the prison itself sensed a weak point) was now solid concrete, with an extremely small barred window near the top that Ikuto could barely fit his hand through. There did seem to be one option, though. There was a large crack where the wall didn't quite meet the heavy door, and through some brainstorming, Yoru and Ikuto decided that there might be a way to pry it open. Yesterday, Ikuto had been in no shape to use Character Change; today, though, he thought he might be able to use it long enough to pry the door open.]
[As he transformed, the drain on his strength started and his head started pounding again. Ikuto realized that he probably had even less time than he had thought. Wrenching his claws into the side of the door, Ikuto pulled with all his strength, slightly worried that they would snap under the strain. However, after a moment, the the concrete door slid open, giving him just enough room to squeeze out.]
[Yoru went first, as a lookout. It seemed like the guards really were ignoring him after all, since there was no one in the hall. Nevertheless, Ikuto moved as quietly as he could down the hall, Yoru floating silently in front of him. They continued on in this way for a while, until suddenly footsteps that sounded eerily similar to the guard's from before echoed towards them around a corner. In silent panic, they rushed towards the nearest door, throwing it open--]
[And found themselves in a completely different place.]
[Ikuto glanced back towards where they came; there wasn't any sign of a door at all, just a solid wall. He decided not to question it. All that mattered was if they had really found a way out of the prison or had accidentally gone even deeper inside. Yoru had already gone ahead, peering out into the darkness, as Ikuto followed slowly, not sure if there was anything waiting out there for them.]
[Unfortunately, they really should have been watching their backs.]
[Something slightly larger than a man, jumped at Ikuto from behind, knocking him to the ground and making his head split with pain again. Kicking the figure away as soon as he got the chance, Ikuto looked up and saw the all-too-familiar mask of the gestapo leering down at him once more. He jumped backwards before the stronger opponent could pin him to the ground again, and started running in the opposite direction, Yoru close behind.]
[Here, things began to get fuzzy. Ikuto felt like there was a weight on his back as he ran; not an unbearable one, but it was there nevertheless. It felt familiar, like something that he had been missing for a while. Figures jumped from the shadows, trying to grab him, but they weren't the Gestapo anymore; in fact, they looked exactly like the guards from Easter...]
[Where am I? His head pounded, the things around him were changing. Instead of a dark, shadowy place, he was outside of Easter, running through that alleyway... Then the weight... It had to be the violin.]
[Had he gone back somehow? Was running through that place somehow a doorway out of the City? He was right back where it had started. I could just leave it behind, and then none of that has to happen...]
[But something wasn't right. Ikuto didn't remember how he had left the City before. And he hadn't remembered anything about it until he had come back. It had to be some kind of rule... It would be too easy to avoid everything if he had the memory of it when he came back.]
[He heard Yoru shout, and the memory dissolved around him. There was a ladder in front of them, leading up out of the darkness. He realized that this place must be the Underground; he hadn't left at all. But how much of it was hallucination and how much was real? The weight on his back remained as he climbed up the ladder. Maybe this was his punishment--to face what he had done, regardless of how his regret hardly allowed him to think about it.]
[The exit lead them out somewhere near Xanadu. Ikuto wasn't much of a stargazer, but he'd never been happier to see the night sky. Exhausted, he was happy enough to just lie on the ground and stare straight up, back inside this expanded prison.]
[A few minutes later, the explosion of the prison sounded across the City.]
[Audio]
I... got out.
We made it, nya!
((OOC: An extremely long action post describing his escape is under the cut. ^_^))