Night 60: Chapel
[Bursting in from here; m-u effects have now worn off.]
Good thing the chapel doors were already wide open, otherwise the panicking prosecutor might have collided with them on his desperate sprinting spree. As it was, he nearly fell over trying to stop himself once he actually got into the chapel.
"Kay!?"
... Where...what?
Byrne stood there at the ( Read more... )
Good thing the chapel doors were already wide open, otherwise the panicking prosecutor might have collided with them on his desperate sprinting spree. As it was, he nearly fell over trying to stop himself once he actually got into the chapel.
"Kay!?"
... Where...what?
Byrne stood there at the ( Read more... )
Then Byrne screamed his daughter's name. For one terrifying moment Badd almost thought he too could see Kay in the shadows of the hallway. How could she be back here, had they finally recaptured her? But nothing was there, and when Byrne broke into a run Badd realized what was going on.
Leave it to Landel to twist the knife.
"Byrne, get back here!" Badd charged after him in a panic, his paper cutter dragging behind him. "She's not there, Byrne, it's not safe!" If he decided to follow her off the balcony Badd wasn't sure he'd be able to reach him before he fell.
Thankfully he ran to the chapel instead. Badd pursued him, slamming the heavy door behind him in an attempt to make sure his partner wouldn't be able to take flight again.
"She's not there. She's gone, she's safe. Byrne." His voice was soft and slow, despite his anxiety. He knew how much it hurt to lose control of your own mind, and how much more it must hurt seeing your daughter only to lose her again.
The chapel itself looked horrific in the dim light, with the fountain spewing what could easily be mistake for blood. But Badd had eyes only for Byrne, who seemed to be coming back to himself. Slowly the ex-detective approached him and laid a gentle hand on his shoulder.
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Oh god, this was so embarrassing. And worrisome, too. Why did that happen? Had he been slipped some kind of drug earlier and it was only now taking effect? Whatever the cause, this made the second time he'd fallen for an illusion of his daughter, which only added insult to injury. Fool him once, shame on them, but fool him twice and it was shame on him.
So naturally, the best way to tend to this wound was to avoid the issue at all costs. Hide behind a smile and act like it was no problem. "I'm sorry. I guess I'm letting this place get to me too much or something." Byrne chuckled, tugging on his scarf nervously. "Well, we're here now, aren't we? Let's get to it, then."
It was a plea for Badd to drop this subject immediately. They were supposed to be investigating here, not--not worrying about him. He could think about this later and worry more if it happened again - or worse, happened to Badd for some reason. For now, it was only an embarrassment.
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"So," he said, as if nothing untoward had occurred. Monster fountain. Guessing that's not here during the day." He moved to approach it but kept his hands away. Who knew what that thing might turn into, or what was protecting it?
...was that blood coming out of the fountain?
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"Who knows, maybe they practice some weird religion around here." Since Badd was investigating the creepy red fountain already, Byrne would look at other things in the meantime. Like the pews. Perhaps there were some useful clues he could pick out here. ...Or maybe there was nothing but general hymnal books, but whatever, at least he knew that now.
"Doesn't look like there's anything else that's unusual, though," he commented, still looking around. That made the fountain a bit more creepy, didn't it? Byrne would keep looking.
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But Byrne might have caught on to something there. If there was any motivation that made people do completely bizarre things for no reason except the one that existed in their head, it was religion. "This is probably a shot in the monster-infested dark, but what if this whole thing's got an evil cult behind it?" It sounded very horror-movie-esque, but then again so did the entire concept of this place.
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---Woah woah woah. Wait. Taking this one step further in his head here. The vision he'd seen of Kay in a white dress. She looked like an angel - that was religious-ish. So maybe, maybe, this chapel was to blame for that vision? ...Somehow? Perhaps it was trying to lead him in here on purpose? Maybe Badd would know?
But aaugh, this would mean bringing the subject back up and not ignoring it like Byrne had hoped they could do the rest of the night. Ughhh. Though it wasn't like he had much of a choice otherwise. If they stayed on this theory, Badd needed all the facts, right?
Damnit. "I-I know this might sound crazy," he started uncertainly, walking over to the pulpit as he spoke (he'd investigate that next), "but do you think--possibly--this chapel might somehow cause hallucinations? Like religious themed ones. Or something." That could have been asked in a number of better ways, but oh well.
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"Entirely possible. At this point I wouldn't rule out magic, Satan, and little pixies as possibilities. Nothing here makes sense, I figure our best bet is to just look for its weaknesses and run with it." Denying the impossible had, thus far, just brought him pain and humiliation.
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That still didn't answer the question of 'how', though. How exactly would hallucinations be possible if they came from this place rather than drugs? It wasn't a matter of simple curiosity; if Byrne knew what caused him to see his daughter, then he could fight against that power more easily. Whether that be magic, Satan, or little pixies, he wanted to know.
Magic. To think a week ago he labeled that word and anyone who used it as crazy, and now he and his partner were coming up with theories on how it might be the cause of a vision. This place and the things it did to the people in it...
"You really think magic could be in play here?" asked Byrne as he took a good look around the pulpit - which ultimately didn't look like it was anything unusual for a church. So the fountain was the only thing 'off' in here. Huh. "I was thinking that maybe what I saw was meant to lead us here for some reason, but..." Ah, he'd let Badd finish that thought for him.
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