Nightshift 34: M21-30 Hallway

[arrogantflame]

Wolfram had debated slowly as to whether or not he should go out for the night. He was still really worn out from the night before, Aidou was busy, he had no idea where anyone else was that he should be looking for, and quite honestly... staying in and sleeping was more than a little tempting. But his mind was troubled, and he felt a bit restless

Comments

Outside M23

[whiteychan]

Hitsugaya sighed as Landel made his little arrogant announcement. The same pointless drivel as always. Maybe he'd actuall won. Maybe Hitsugaya giving up was the victory Martin Landel really needed.

More likely, however, was that Dr. Martin Landel didn't care what Hitsugaya or anyone else did. None of it mattered, and the only threat to his control was Jill. Jill, a random voice on the radio who could just as easily be tugging at his strings. What good was there, trying to escape? Nothing they did affected anything in the slightest, and they were at the mercy of these beings. After a week and a half of making absolutely no progress that wasn't handed to them on a golden platter, the young captain was starting to feel discouraged.

Still, duty was duty, and he had a duty to these people. Maybe just working to protect others was good enough. Maybe giving other people hope helped even as he felt hopeless himself. They weren't going to escape by their own efforts, but maybe forcing others to not lose sight of hope made them ready for when they ~did~ have a chance at real escape.

Maybe that was what he needed to focus on.

Hitsugaya changed as usual, put on his sword as usual, and set up his impromptu sheath as usual. He stepped out into the hall and leaned against the wall, waiting patiently for Fowl and Hanatarou.

Re: Outside M23

[byname_bynature]

( From here!)

Artemis turned the corner, finishing his all-too familiar route to Hitsugaya's room. He could probably walk it blindfolded by now. He was dressed in his suit again, which lacked the burn marks that had put holes in it the night previous. His sword was strapped to his side as usual, and his coat hung loosely off his slight frame. Nothing out of the ordinary, everything as usual.

Mentally, he prepared himself for whatever Hitsugaya may be feeling. Rage? Depression? Resolve? He didn't know.

"Good evening, Captain," Artemis said tentatively. "Apologies for the wait."

Re: Outside M23

[whiteychan]

Hitsugaya glanced over at Fowl. "We're still waiting on Hanatarou," he said idly. "So you're not late."

And that was that. For the time being he kept his emotions bottled, as always. Despair or not, he wasn't about to let Fowl or anyone else see just how much he'd given up. It wasn't in him to admit defeat, and a part of him still refused to show it.

Damn if he didn't feel, for the second time in his life, like a complete failure. Thankfully repression did wonders for the soul.

Re: Outside M23

[byname_bynature]

"Ah, I see," Artemis said, not certain what to make of Hitsugaya's lack of reaction. Silence passed between them, and Artemis could almost feel the connection in their thoughts. They both knew they shouldn't be standing in this hallway again. Their feet had been on the ground outside the wall. It stood to reason that they should have escaped.

Artemis couldn't take the silence much longer. "Captain, about the wall..."

Re: Outside M23

[whiteychan]

Of all the things they could talk about, the wall was the last thing he wanted to discuss right now. "We don't need to talk about the wall," he said, cutting Fowl off. While he was diplomatic in the phrasing, there was a sharpness to his words that belied his true emotions. "We're going over again tonight."

Re: Outside M23

[byname_bynature]

"Again...?" Artemis couldn't stop his eyebrow from raising or his tone from sounding disbelieving. "Captain, with all due respect, we did that last night and we still... well, we're still here."

Re: Outside M23

[whiteychan]

Artemis' words and questioning couldn't help but get past the captain's walls. "And what the hell else would you have us do?" he snapped. "Obviously the basement's a wash, we aren't the only ones with keys, and you've seen how successful other people's efforts with their keys have been since not a damn thing has changed. Face it, Fowl, there's nothing we can do that Landel hasn't thought of. We're at his mercy, and the only person who can do anything about it is some faceless woman on the goddamn radio! Name one single thing we've done after so many nights here that's done an iota of good towards escaping."

He glanced to the side, away from Fowl and into the shadows that had become so familiar to him. There was probably something waiting not far off, lingering to pick off some poor prisoner in this damned place, probably someone who was new to the prison and didn't know what was going on. "So we can either wait for Jill to 'rescue' us, or we can throw ourselves at the wall day after day hoping that maybe something will crack, even though we all know well and good that it won't. But I won't give him the satisfaction of seeing me wait in that festering hole of a room."

Re: Outside M23

[byname_bynature]

Artemis listened to Hitsugaya, his mouth slightly agape. What was it with everyone around him suddenly losing hope? First he went down that path this morning, and then in the showers, and then Schuldig, and now Hitsugaya? Obviously there was something in the water causing this.

"With all due respect Captain, shut up," Artemis' eyebrows drew together and his eyes narrowed into what he hoped was an angry expression. He didn't have much practice defying Hitsugaya, but something needed to be done.

"You are the head of an organization vying to escape from this godforsaken hole--what would your team think if they knew you were spouting such garbage? They would disband! Everyone would fall into inaction and just wait until Jill came. And what if she doesn't? What if she fails as Alec Doyle did and we are trapped here for the rest of the time our sanity allows? Then everyone will think back and cite your weakness as the reason the entire division fell apart. But who knows, perhaps Vice Captain Abarai or Matsumoto-san or I will take over, and you can wait for Jill to come rescue us and continue to throw yourself against a brick wall. I, however, have made a promise to leave this place with the people I care about. I'm too brilliant to simply wait for something to happen. I thought you were smart enough to do the same."

Re: Outside M23

[mitase]

[From here]

Hanatarou paced down the hallway, reading the door numbers aloud to himself as he went in the vain hope that hearing his own voice would be comforting. It might have worked, too, had it not been for the fact that he could hear his voice shaking a little with nerves that he couldn't hide. It did, however, distract him sufficiently that it took him a minute to realize he could hear other people talking - including Hitsugaya-taichou. And the captain didn't sound happy. Again. (Or still.)

The healer hesitated, clutching flashlight and pillowcase-bag to his chest for several long moments before he finally worked up the courage to continue forward. He paused just barely within comfortable speaking distance of them, glancing between Hitsugaya-taichou and the stranger (presumably "Artemis Fowl"), then cautiously offered, "U-um, I could...come back l-later...?"

Re: Outside M23

[whiteychan]

Hitsugaya scowled as Artemis rebuked him. He did not often get rebuked, and usually only by those who later turned out to be his enemies. "And nobody needs to know or hear about it," he said. "I'm not going to deprive anyone of their hope at getting out of here, but after last night..." He sighed, his features softening. "We were this close, Fowl. And it turns out we weren't anywhere further than where we began. If you're so damn brilliant, you tell me. What the hell is left that we haven't tried? Keep searching for what the key goes to until Landel or Jill decide to unlock it anyway? Try to unlock the secrets of the basement only to find out it just leads to another room full of puzzles and tricks? Get outside only to find taller walls?"

Once again his expression returned to the firey gaze of an angry shinigami, as he spotted Hanatarou approaching. He wasn't about to let the other shinigami see him like this. He had his pride to look out for, after all.

"Just one second, Hanatarou," he said to the other shinigami, then grabbed Artemis and pulled him into the room. He spoke quietly, making sure the shinigami woudln't overhear. "This is my issue, and I'm going to deal with it. I don't want the others overhearing...I won't be responsible for their despair, damnit. So if you have an idea of what to do tonight that's better than trying for the outside again, out with it now. If not, let's see if there's anything outside that can help us more than what's in here."

Re: Outside M23

[byname_bynature]

Artemis let Hitsugaya drag him into the next room when the third member of the team approached. My, their party had gathered rather quickly, hadn't they? But there was still some lose ends to take care of. So he was grateful when Hitsugaya took him into the room to finish the discussion. He flashed an apologetic look back at Hanatarou and followed the Captain.

"Well, at least you have one thing straight," Artemis said with a small trademark smirk. "But I still believe that this self-defeating attitude of yours could use an upgrade. And really, what were you expecting, Captain? The only steps I can think of that lead to escape are 'find Martin Landel' and 'dispose of Martin Landel'. He must be somewhere inside this building, which is why I believe going outside is useless. However, Jill is outside. How does she stay outside is the better question. If we could find Jill and discuss this with her, perhaps we could get some answers that would lead us closer to either remaining outside, or finding Landel.

"With so much new ground to cover, there are infinite possibilities," Artemis' young eyes sparked with intrigue and the promise of new information. The thought hadn't occurred to him until now that finding Jill might be the key to escape. "We'll need to move fast. Think you can handle it?"

Re: Outside M23

[mitase]

As the pair moved into the room to talk, Hanatarou breathed out a sigh and slouched against the wall, ready to wait as long as they needed him to. He was good at that kind of thing, after all. But here he'd just arrived and had apparently already annoyed Hitsugaya-taichou? Maybe the captain was just disappointed that he'd been saddled with the healer for the night.

Hanatarou idly scuffed one foot against the floor, wondering if he dared ask if there were any real healer's supplies around. They'd be useful, if there were as many monsters and monster-related injuries as people had claimed...but he wasn't sure it was a good idea to risk the captain's temper any more.

Re: Outside M23

[whiteychan]

Hitsugaya was stunned at Artemis' idea. It wasn't much to go on, but it seemed a better chance than anything else they'd attempted here. Find Jill. Find out how to stay out. It was brilliant. "Damnit, Fowl," he said. "Maybe you are a genious. Let's get moving."

He stepped back out into the hallway, glancing back at Hanatarou. "Alright," he said. "Mission tonight is to make it over the wall. We have to move fast if we want to cover any ground, the nights vary in length so we don't know how much time we have. As soon as we're over the wall, we head north. We don't engage if it's possible to avoid, you look to me for all your orders. Your major goal is going to be to keep us up. This is your first night, so be careful about the reiatsu you spend. It's painful here and you won't be as effective as you were in soul society. You can ask questions along the way. Now, is there anything you need before we go?"

Re: Outside M23

[byname_bynature]

Artemis laughed when Hitsugaya acknowledged that he was brilliant. "Why thank you Captain. I thought you'd never say it." He followed the captain back into the hallway, grinning away.

"You must be Hanatarou-san," Artemis said, striding over to the cowering young man and extending his hand. "Artemis Fowl the second, a pleasure. Apparently you and the Captain are from the same world?"

Re: Outside M23

[mitase]

"Ah, I...um." Hanatarou blinked several times as he tried to take in the abrupt set of orders. He thought that his questions about his powers had been answered - kind of - but now he had a new worry. 'Keeping up' generally proved to be a challenge for him, but he'd do his best. He just held up the pillowcase and hesitantly replied, "I don't have my bag, or any supplies, b-but, um, I have some cloth for...er...bandages."

The extended hand he eyed for a moment before realizing he was supposed to take it, and rather belatedly reached out in return. "Y-yes, um. I'm, we're...yes." Hanatarou managed a weak smile. "Nice to meet you."

Re: Outside M23

[whiteychan]

"That should be fine," Hitsugaya said. "We'll send some teams for medical supplies tomorrow night. I'm sure the clinic could use some extras supplies as well. Let's move."

And without waiting for confirmation from either Hanatarou or Artemis, he set out into the hallway, relying on the flashlights of the other prisoners to see for the time being.

[to here]