Nightshift 24: Entry Room

[transgenix]

( coming from here.)

The hall was dark and quiet as Max led the way deeper into the building and away from the dorms. She could hear the faint murmur of voices coming from... somewhere, but couldn't quite pinpoint a location

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[muted_flame]

[ From here. ]

As usual, the Entry Room was crowded... And yet it looked like no one had actually gotten through the main door. He was one of the only people that had the key to it, then, though he was fairly certain another copy was floating around. Hopefully, he would be the first one to open the door and figure out where it led - for no other reason than he would have an advantage over the other patients, along with some bragging rights.

Then again, everyone in the room was going to see him open the door and would be able to follow them out, but there wasn't much he could do about that. He slowly trudged inside, glancing around cautiously. Was there no antagonist here? That was odd - usually there was something guarding the Entry Room.

Well, he wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Glancing back at the three who had come with him (would it turn out their help would not be needed?), he started toward the other side of the room where the door in question was located, ignoring the other patients there.

[haiiro_no_chou]

Rukia quickly got out of the way, surprised by Allen's sudden transformation. It reminded her a little of the powers hat some of the Arrancar possessed, how they could grow larger or change shape to become stronger. She couldn't help but stare for a moment, but soon recovered, taking up a position off to one side in case they were attacked from behind.

Then Valyn was conjuring up magic of his own, but this was more familiar to Rukia. While he hadn't needed an incantation, summoning fire was something she could do as well.

Between the two of them, she was sure they would be able to break through whatever was blocking the door. Yes even Allen's powerful hit hardly seemed to do anything. At the loud sound, Rukia glanced around, nervous that they might be attacked.

Looking at the Colonel, she couldn't quite hide her frown. "Not meant to, sir?" Did he mean to say that nothing they did mattered? That it was all up to those who controlled this place? It had certainly seemed that way on occasion, but Rukia refused to believe that.

[broken_exorcist]

When Allen saw the magic flames from the corner of his eye, he'd almost hoped it was Ravi summoning the flames of his giant hammer, but no such luck. He didn't know what good that kind of... power would do against the heavy door anyway.

"I'll handle it," he managed, when the man, er... elf? offered his assistance.

When his first hit had little effect, only some large dents, he made a fist and swung again. The noise was louder this time, with more force behind it. The door was sturdy, certainly, but how long did they really think it could stand up to that kind of damage? If he kept hitting it, they were sure to get through.

[damned_monsters]

Something was tired of the pitiful bashings of the weak little things on the other side of the door. Something was annoyed by all the unproductive banging. And something was quite, quite hungry.

The door was ripped from its hinges by claws as long as a man's hand.

There was enough time for those inside to catch the hurried impression of matted black fur, and ragged wings, and the TEETH.

It roared, the sound ancient, angry, and deafening.

The stench of rot rolled before it in a sickening wave.

[notmyfather]

"Ancestors!"

For the first time in the night, Valyn's expression changed. To an honest expression of fear and shock. When he caught a flash of whatever was on the other side of that door he felt a wave of fear he'd never felt before. Not even when he faced his father - as frightening as Dyran was, at least he had been familiar to the young elven lord. This wasn't. The sound, the reek... it took his mind back to the horror tales of the creatures of Evelon. he took a step back, what little color there was draining from his face.

Raising his hands, Valyn readied his fireball. Changing his mind at the last moment, he set the spell into his knife, coating the blade with flame. It wouldn't last more than a blow or two, but maybe it would do something....

[muted_flame]

When he felt the building shake a second time, Roy started to get nervous. He remembered how the building had reacted to being damaged in the past, and while he hadn't heard stories of anything of that sort happening recently, who was to say that he could completely write off that danger?

He had been about to order Allen to stop, and then divulge more of his thoughts to Rukia, but as expected...

The institute retaliated.

Pure instinct forced him to respond, quickly jumping further away from the door and the monster and falling into a combat position. "I warned you!" he barked, some irritation coming through in his tone. His hand was dipping into his pocket for his lighter within seconds.

[haiiro_no_chou]

Rukia had been off to the side, wary of an attack from behind, when the door Allen had been pummeling simply wasn't there anymore. In its place was a huge creature that she couldn't see very clearly, but the sound, and the smell told Rukia all she needed to know for the time being. She had a moment to be thankful that Renji had made her take his sword, and to hope that he wasn't in need of it right now, before she slipped it from the makeshift belt at her waist.

Taking a step toward the wall, she hoped to get a strike in before the creature - whatever it was - had gotten fully through the doorway. There was no sense in waiting around for it to get its bearings. Rukia shifted her stance to account for the Zabimaru-replica's weight, and darted forward, aiming a slash at the creature's huge clawed hand.

Hopefully the others had some combat experience that would come in handy.

[broken_exorcist]

The invocation was taking a toll on Allen as he had been pounding the door, but finally, the real enemy had appeared. He had to hold on. If they could get past this one obstacle, they'd be in the clear! Everyone seemed apprehensive, but it didn't look much different from the Akuma he'd faced before. They came in many different forms: winged, claws, teeth, guns, smelly, hairy... Though it didn't register this time. His cursed eye still glowed red in the darkness, but it was because of the nearby shinigami, not the monster in front of them.

Strange. Allen had only a moment to think as the creature bellowed loudly. The claws didn't phase him. His own claw was much larger, though he only had one. He had to hope it would last long enough to defeat the creature. He coughed once and tasted blood, not a good sign. He would have to be quick.

Not yet, just a little longer. You have to keep going!He caught Rukia's movement from the corner of his eye and made room for it, his own massive claw aiming for the creature's body. The

[damned_monsters]

The monster filled the doorway; nothing would be able to slip past. It went for the most obvious victim first; Allen. As the boy tumbled down, one paw came swiping down, toward the boy's head in a blow intended to crush his skull.

Only Rukia's lunge saved the boy, as immobilized as he was with pain. The sword flashed in the dim light; it struck true. The monster snarled. Impossibly fast, it reversed its blow, paw striking Rukia claws first. The sword sank deeply into its flesh, but the monster didn't seem to care; it snapped its paw around and flung Rukia at the wall as if she weighed nothing.

As soon as Rukia was out of its way, its attention fixed on Allen again, claws slicing down toward his unprotected back.

[notmyfather]

Valyn ignored Mustang's griping - did the man think they wouldn't be attacked? or the door would be unguarded on another night? - and lifted his hands, hoping for a clear shot. He winced when Rukia was flung, training and instinct rousing him to act quickly to protect a female.

It over-rided even his fear.

Without saying a word, he narrowed his eyes and raised the knife, crouching to leap at the creature and slice at the paw that came down for Allen, hoping the flames or the blade would at least damage the thing, if one was useless. He was hardly thinking now, acting purely out of some chivalrous conditioning that said women were weak and valuable and needed protection at all costs - even the cost of male elven life, if it came to it.

But iff he ended up dying here, Valyn was going to be very upset.

[muted_flame]

This was probably the closest he had seen to a chimera in this place thus far. Roy wouldn't be surprised if it had come about by similar means. In fact, the monsters of Landel's could have been transported from countless worlds, the same as the patients. It was a possibility he would have liked to consider if he'd had the time.

It was better that no one answered him - instead, everyone got to work, though Rukia was flung out of the way within seconds. When the creature's arm came down again, Roy moved without thinking. Usually, he wasn't a close-range fighter, but something had happened to Allen, and it reminded him far too much of an alchemical rebound

[haiiro_no_chou]

The creature was faster than Rukia had expected, but at least she had distracted it enough to buy Allen some time. Probably not much time, but maybe enough to keep him from becoming one with the floor. An instant after she felt Renji's katana bite into the monster's clawed foot, the claws were coming at her

[broken_exorcist]

Allen knew he had to move. If he didn't move, something, whatever it was, was going to grind him into the floor and it would be very, very unpleasant. His body, however, seemed unwilling to help him. He tried to press himself up from the floor, and watched in wide-eyed worry as Rukia was flung across the room

[damned_monsters]

Valyn's blade grazed the monster's paw; it had been watching for an attack similar to Rukia's. For a moment the fire caught and smoldered; the monsters snarled, the sound becoming another deafening roar. The stench, this time of rotten flesh cooking, was overwhelming. It pulled its paw back, then brought it swiping around, razor claws extended, to give Valyn the same treatment that it had given Rukia.

Roy hadn't caused it pain; Roy was more of annoyance than anything else. He was positioned rather helpfully.

The monster closed its jaws around Roy's arm.

[hajike_tobiume]

((from above thread))

Momo darted out of the file room doorway after having observed the monster for a few moments. She stayed low to the ground and thought quickly. She had an idea of something that might work.

As she crossed the room, passing by the injured Rukia, Momo held her hand out.

"Kuchiki! The katana!"

Normally, Momo wouldn't have asked another shinigami for the use of their weapon, but in this circumstance, considering the weapon in question was not Rukia's zanpakuto, the vice captain deemed it neccessary. Especially since it was obvious her fellow shinigami was unable to properly weild it with her injuries.

Momo did not slow her movements, expecting Rukia to toss her the sword once she finished the kido she was conjuring. This shinigami did not want to be immediately detected as a threat to the monster.

[notmyfather]

Valyn twisted, trying to bring the knife up to deflect the blow. But the flames on his blade winked out, the spell fading. He felt claws on his flesh, slicing open the flesh of his arm. Hot blood spilled across his skin, and his mind registered that there was pain. Cuts and wounds that bled or bruised were still new to him.

"This thing is too strong!" he called out, a strange shiver of pain shooting through him as he switched the knife to his unwounded hand. He was rapidly running out of options - improvisation wasn't one of Valyn's strong points. But he gripped the sword in his left hand and aimed it for the creature's chest, trying to ignore the blood dripping from his arm.

He could fix it in the morning.