Night 59: Staff Only Outdoor Patio

[stray_shinigami]

Renji stepped out onto the patio. It was nice to be out of the oppressive halls, but he didn't let his guard down. If it was a monster party, there'd likely be some nasty things outside

Comments

[bastard_sadi]

Daemon followed him out into the darkness, his movements sleek and predatory as his gaze searched the shadows, looking for any sign of movement. "Well, I was thinking attempting to break them might be a start," he answered, casting a glance sideways at Renji as he moved to peer over the wrought-iron fence. Down below, the Recreational Field and Courtyard seemed still and silent. Everything felt eerie, however, making him feel tense and wary. There were still things watching them, even here.

He glanced back at Renji again. "How much room do you need for.... whatever you needed room for? I don't think we should stay in one place for long out here.

[stray_shinigami]

Renji looked around the patio, his lip curling slightly. "Not enough room here," he said. He turned to one of the windows; without any warning, he dropped Zabimaru from his shoulder and slashed at the nearest window.

As he'd mostly expected, the blade bounced off. He let the sword snap back together and looked at Daemon. "Don't think the windows are going to work for us."

[bastard_sadi]

"That doesn't bode well for our chances to get into the third floor," Daemon commented. His voice was bland, but his eyes were cool as he surveyed the building in the darkness. "I don't know what this barrier is, but it's strong. Stronger than I thought possible. If this coats the entire building, we're not going to be able to break through it, even with your sword and my Jewels back. In which case, we should come up with a Plan B. It seems stupid to waste our powers on an impossible task when it might be the only chance we get."

[stray_shinigami]

"Well, we'll see when we get to the roof," Renji said. He was still of the opinion that it was worth trying with the big guns, but he also wasn't going to be surprised if it didn't work at that point. "I don't know... any big monsters you feel like killing? Any inmates that could do with a little liquifying? This would be the night to do it. If it's been four weeks, I got no fucking clue what's happening around here these gays." He grinned. "Other option is, could just go down to the basement if the third floor's not working out, I guess

[bastard_sadi]

Daemon snorted quietly and shook his head. "I'm tempted just to say all of them. The monsters at least. But we might as well explore our options while we have the ability. The roof, the boundaries, and then perhaps the basement?" he suggested.

There wasn't time for an answer because apparently they'd been discovered again. "Bats," he sighed in frustration. "They really are enjoying sending out fodder tonight, aren't they? There are more?" he asked, his gaze turning to the railing as he braced for more. Although he admitted to surprise. Usually there were bigger things outside than mere bats...

[stray_shinigami]

Renji nodded. "If going up isn't an option, can't hurt to try the other one and see if we get further there. I can do a quick run around to locate the boundaries after we check the roof."

He shrugged. "Dunno. When I've got Zabimaru, pretty much everything feels like fodder if it's not a big-ass Hollow." He grinned, head tilting slightly to the side. "And yeah, there are more coming."

As he spoke, more bats flew up over the balcony, heading straight for them. Renji tore another one out of the air with one whip of Zabimaru, splattering the creature across two of the picnic tables.

[bastard_sadi]

Three swooped down at Daemon and he was distracted for a moment by the smell, lifting his sleeve to cover his arm as he threw up a barrier. One bounced off it, sensing it too late to avoid it, but the other two swooped sharply to the side, disappearing into the darkness, though he doubted they were actually gone.

He'd give the fodder around here points for persistence, at least.

Spotting another pair of bats swooping in at him, he held up a hand again, tossing out another barrier that they avoided. Smart little bastards, but he'd been expecting the sharp turn and had tossed two more up to either side to box them in. The pair fell to the shiny pavement of the patio, their bodies twitching from the impact.

It was a pity he didn't have one of Lucivar's sticks at the moment. This could actually be fun.

[stray_shinigami]

Renji tracked the two that flew to the side; negligently he flipped Zabimaru after one, catching the bat and flipping it back. It rocketed into the wall nearest the door, where it became a bat-shaped blood splat.

He stepped a little closer to Daemon to give himself a better angle and cut another bat from the air. Most of it rained down on the patio, while its ears, strangely pristine, landed near the door like two falling leaves.

[bastard_sadi]

Daemon had caught sight of the end of that last attack an shot Renji a skeptical look, lips twitching in bemusement as he followed the path of the remains of the bat as they landed in front of the door.

"Getting a little fancy there, are we?" he retorted, his tone dry as he gave the Shinigami a Look.

[stray_shinigami]

"Shinigami work in mysterious ways," Renji intoned with mock seriousness. He flicked Zabimaru out again, and a bat splattered all over one of the umbrellas. "If you want, I can just go back to reducing everything to a fine red mist. Wouldn't want to disturb your delicate sensibilities."

[triplecrossing]

[From here.]

With any luck, Lydia thought as she stepped outside, she and Claude would be seen as fellow patients rather than part of the military force. That would rely on it being dark enough for the patients to not notice the different uniform, but Lydia could always cross her fingers and hope for the best there.

What they walked into turned out to be far different from what she'd expected, however. There were two patients on the patio, but there was also a whole swarm of bats attacking them. She paused for a moment, noting that there were a few corpses (or pieces of them, anyway) scattered across the area already. Were these two responsible for what they had seen back near the meeting room?

"We'll fight our way through," she said under her breath to Claude, glancing from the ongoing combat to the edge of the patio. That was all she needed to focus on right now. Sighing to herself, Lydia drew up her handgun and started forward.

[damned_soldiers]

Claude's concerns fell along similar threads of logic, a detail more evident when the door fell away and he recognized one of the forms in the dark. The man nearly groaned at the realization--sighed when he recalled Lydia's warning about chitchat. Here stood one who would undoubtedly narrow in on his identity and (former) association the instant Claude opened his mouth, and his charge had to caution him about chatting

[bastard_sadi]

"Mother Night

[stray_shinigami]

Renji spared a quick glance back at the door to see the two new people come through. "Ch. Guess I'll stop playing, then," he said. He snapped Zabimaru into three lightning fast cuts, ripping through the bats nearest him when he caught sight of the fire from the corner of his eye. While he pulled back the segments of Zabimaru, he took a few flash steps just to get him out of the way of any other bats. It also gave him a second to examine what was happening

[triplecrossing]

Claude's comment seemed strange, but Lydia decided to leave it unanswered. If he was trying to cover himself, then she would just have to accept that. They weren't required to stop and speak with anyone, though, even if it was someone who might have a bone to pick with the so-called Major Harrington

[damned_soldiers]

Explosions of this nature oft caught the eye, and here, he drew two sets. The flashier appeared as cautious as the more familiar, and both seemed ready to adjust the target of their aggression at a moment's notice. On another night, Claude might not have cared. He might have forced a confrontation for the sake of relieving boredom or worse, for the sake of contention itself. With Lydia, however, he couldn't afford to do as he wished.

Unfortunately, before the man could offer an answer to the question posed, Lydia spoke in his stead. Outlined the scenario with such poignancy and lack of dramatics that Claude had to suppress a groan. Dammit, Lydia. There went the chance for subtlety. The disappointment was easily read from his expression