Nighshift 29: M101-M110 Hallway

[manhattan_red]

[from here]"Oh, this is inviting." A dark hallway and doors. It was like some sort of odd nightmare, but it felt too real for that. Brooklyn kept to the wall, not yet quite certain of his ability to balance well on these new feet, though he was adjusting well. The one night he'd spent human before was helping with this at least

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[heartofrevenge]

He had been aware of the other man (or was it a boy? He could barely tell in this light) before he had even spoken and frowned, running through a list of options in his head. He supposed he could shoot first and ask questions later, but his seishi power was quite strong and he could kill the man. What could would that do him, then, if he was in search of answers?

And what was this nonsense about a gauntlet, anyway? What would he know about what had happened to his possessions? Nakago certainly hadn't taken anything from anybody, much less a gauntlet; he wasn't a petty thief, after all. Perhaps this man's gauntlet had vanished in the same manner as his armor.

However, that was secondary and, also, irrelevant.

He considered himself fortunate that he had chosen not to rely on instinct and, instead, turned the strange torch back on once again and raised it so the beam it emitted aimed for the other's eyes. A much better plan, he decided. Blind them first as the light-stick's light was rather strong, pin them, get answers after.

Yes, a much better plan, indeed.

[mozenwrath]

The bright light was unexpected. Mozenrath cringed and stumbled backwards, holding his hands in front of him and cursing in his native tongue. What was THIS? It wasn't even a lethal magic by any stretch of the imagination, yet his eyes burned and he was seeing white spots.

"HOW DARE YOU!" He sputtered, deciding upon which arm to continue to shield his eyes with and which one to point threateningly. "I demand that you return my gauntlet to me this instant or I will be forced to hurt you!"

How? The details weren't important. He'd work that out later if the man still refused to acquiesce to his demand.

[heartofrevenge]

A faint smirk graced Nakago's face. He hadn't realized how strong the beam of light emitted by this torch truly was, and already it was proving to be incredibly effective. He would certainly have to keep that in mind for future reference.

Without a word, he sprung forward, using his free hand in an attempt to grab the other man's shoulder and force him against the wall, raising the torch-thing to illuminate the other man's face (but not enough to blind him again).

"I do not think you are in any position to be making demands here."

[mozenwrath]

And in one swift motion, Mozenrath was reminded (painfully) why it was he hated losing his gauntlet so much. Here he was, being held down by another man, and what could he do?

Complain.

"Let me go," he sneered, though his tone had a bit of a desperate tinge to it. "I will let you go upon your way if you tell me where my gauntlet is." He pursed his lips, considering something else. "And to whom do I owe its disappearence?"

[heartofrevenge]

Did the fool still think he had the upper hand? How amusing, he thought upon noting the smallest bit of desperation in the other man's voice. Another time, perhaps, Nakago would have enjoyed forcing the information from the lips of this rather...strange-looking man. He certainly didn't look like he was from any of the four countries Nakago was familiar with, or from the world of their priestesses, either, but perhaps the world of the priestesses was larger than he had thought.

Even so, keeping the other man like this wouldn't do, would it? He would never get any answers out of the man like this.

"I will let you go," Nakago began, blue eyes narrowing slightly, "if you tell me why I have been brought here."

[mozenwrath]

What? "How would I know?" spat the Sorcerer. "YOU'RE the one who kidnapped me!"

Unbelievable. This man appeared to be in the same boat he was (which explained the similiar outfit). So he probably didn't know anything about who was behind this, much less the location of his gauntlet. And where was Xerxes? That eel would never have left his side...

All things to ponder later. He was still being strong armed by the large blonde man. "Unhand me. I know nothing more than you," he said and attempted to pull free.

[heartofrevenge]

"I kidnapped no one." Let's see... there had been slaughtering others in cold blood, making a variety of demands, coming close to killing others, but... no. No kidnapping anywhere on that list.

If this man was telling the truth and he truly knew nothing about what was going on (and Nakago was inclined to believe this particular train of thought as the other had come up to him demanding where this gauntlet was, whatever that was), then the man was truly a waste of his time. If he was lying, then he was lying, but Nakago had more important things to worry about than wondering about some apparently useless man attempting to make demands of him.

He eyed the other man for a moment before finally pulling away from him. "Worthless."

Clearly, this other man wasn't going to give Nakago the information he needed, and he had limited options as to where he went from here. He didn't dare turn away from this strange man (one only exposed their back to a corpse, after all), instead aiming the light-stick up one side of the hallway and down the other.

Now, where should he go from here?

[mozenwrath]

Mozenrath dusted off his shoulders and moved a lock of hair from his face. This not being in his own clothing was going to grate on his nerves quickly. Nakago had let him go, which he was grateful for, but his arm was throbbing, a reminder of what the gauntlet had done in days past.

He needed to get it back.

Standing next to Nakago, he folded his arms and followed the beam of light. "Right. Which way is it to an exit, then?"

[heartofrevenge]

Nakago paused, turning the torch-thing in the other man's direction, an eyebrow quirking upwards at this. Nowhere had he said the other man could come along with him, had he?

Perhaps it would be useful in the long run. He had no idea where anything was, after all, and if this was some clever ruse, it would be an easy way to keep an eye on the other.

"Did I give you the impression I required companionship?" he asked, although it sounded more like a statement as opposed to the question it was meant to be.

[mozenwrath]

Mozenrath rolled his eyes. "I didn't say I was going with you. I asked you where the exit was. I am going to go there and you can go...where ever it is you're going."

Except Mozenrath knew he could not, WOULD not leave without his gauntlet. He had worked too hard and come too far to simply throw that power away. He would find it again (he always found it, even with Aladdin took it from him or buried it in the desert) and he would make the ones who stole it rue they day they ever set foot in his kingdom to abduct him.

[heartofrevenge]

This stranger was certainly a smart one, Nakago would at least give him that. However, he thought too highly of himself.

"And yet, out of the two of us standing here at this very moment, I am the one with the light," he pointed out, temporarily flicking it upwards so it would just briefly hit the other man's eyes before turning it down the hallway once again. "That alone would cause someone to follow me. And besides..."

He turned away from the other man after eventually settling upon continuing his former journey down towards the left.

"How do you expect to get your precious gauntlet back if you can't even find your way there?"

Of course, he didn't particularly care what the other man wanted or where his precious gauntlet was, for that matter. But if the other was so firmly convinced Nakago had taken it from him as Nakago suspected he was, the other man would follow as long as that possibility was still there.

[mozenwrath]

Mozenrath pouted slightly. It was true; the other man did have that light stick which would come in handy. Wandering around in the dark only worked out so well and Mozenrath was in enough throbbing pain on a daily basis to want to add to it. But to follow someone else? The double meaning made him grimace. "Follow you? I have no desire to follow you. True, it is to my advantage to stay with you for the time being, as you have said, but I do not intend to follow anyone ever."

The gauntlet comment stung. Glaring, the Arab waved a hand dramatically. "I will find my gauntlet and I will kill whoever comes between it and me! I have no patience for anyone who would take my gauntlet." He found he could not stress his ownership enough. The gauntlet and its magics were his; he could not bear the thought of someone else claiming it for their own.

[heartofrevenge]

Truth be told, Nakago was incredibly amused. He had thought the double meaning in his words would have gone over the other man's head, but, no, it seemed as though he had actually managed to grasp it. Excellent. For now, he would ignore the continued complaints of not having his gauntlet, whatever that was. Perhaps their continued association with each other would eventually yield this gauntlet or more information other than the fact that it belonged to this stranger, at which point Nakago could decide if the thing was even worth his time.

"If you simply wish to remain close to the light, you are free to do so," Nakago pointed out as he began to walk off, the rest of his statement tossed casually over his shoulder, "but have enough sense to keep up."

[mozenwrath]

Had circumstances been different, Mozenrath might have been equally amused. As it was. the loss of his gauntlet meant a drop in in mirth. He didn't enjoy the way the other man lorded his light over him (though not having one himself, he had no choice but to allow it) and muttered another string of curses under his breath. If he had enough sense to keep up? Who did this man think he was?

"Don't worry about me," Mozenrath snapped. "I am more than capable of keeping pace with the likes of you." Whoever he was.

[heartofrevenge]

"Excellent."

Nakago was beginning to have the feeling that this stranger was going to be more of a hindrance than a help to him, but he would simply have to tolerate such things for now. What else was he to do when put into a strange place such as this? Besides, for all he knew, the other man might have his uses.

Before he knew it, he was at the end of the hallway and at the entrance to another.

[to here]