Nightshift 38: West Wing, South Hall 2-B

[secret_orchard]

[from here]

As he turned the corner, Armand hesitated again. This was a long hall, and he couldn't yet see the far end. He faltered, slowing up and suddenly wanting to hide behind TK. But he managed to keep his voice steady.

"Can you explain to us--to me actually--why you seem to think you're such a terrible person? I need to know, you see, before I

Comments

[janus_006]

The question took him a little by surprise. Armand genuinely thought that he was made of bunnies and rainbows, didn't he? Usually, he wasn't in the habit of telling people his life story, but he had to tell Armand something. Or he could be the Cat Who Walked By Himself and refuse, and leave.

He wasn't stupid - he knew that going it alone in this place was a recipe for disaster. Why not go the whole hog? Everyone knew his name here already. "I stole a superweapon with the sole intent to destroy Britain's economy, which would in turn destroy the world's economy, because those bastards killed my parents." An oversimplification, perhaps, but also a minor lie. "And I've killed I don't know how many people in cold blood, and on the tenuous justification of 'because my bosses said so'. If that doesn't taint me, I don't know what does." He crossed his arms. "Is soul-baring time over? Can I go back to being a bastard now?"

[loyal_soldier]

TK kept walking, his face a very practiced blank. He was getting better at being practical, not ideological in this place, but... This didn't make things any easier. All that stuff put together immediately said 'Rebel' to him. He just gritted his teeth and tried to ignore it.

[damned_monsters]

What was it with the patients these days? Were they no longer afraid of the things that went bump in the night? It was silly of them not to be wary when it came to the night here. The night was dangerous regardless of what they'd heard. The night was deadly, no matter their skills.

From ahead in the hall came the creaking of a door, even though no door was open. And then from behind, the same sound - as if someone unseen had just passed them.

For a long time, no other noises were heard and then - she giggled right next to Armand's ear. There was no outline to be seen, nothing but her voice as she laughed and began to pull the air from around him.

[Kaze]

[reanalyze]

Citan listned carefully, his expression turning to a thoughtful frown. How interesting. He'd known men like this - he supposed he was one, in a way. He had certainly killed many people, though not simply because the Emperor ordered him to.

"Soldiers cannot question or go against their commands," he finally said, lightly. This man could well be dangerous man, but he could also be a useful man. Citan was going to say more on the subject when the noise caught his attention.

"What in the world...?" he managed, glancing about but seeing nothing.

[youlackmascara]

[from here]

Itachi turned down the same hallway from a few nights ago. The one where he had accomplished nothing useful.

"I've tried those two doors on the left; they don't lead anywhere of use." His voice betrayed the slightest hint of irritation. "We'll have to try further up." He couldn't see any other doors yet, just a bare stretch of hallway fading into darkness. He could hear a couple people in front of them, but they seemed just to be talking. And laughing. Why would someone be doing such things as laughing when they should be focused on a mission? It was no concern of his, however; they would simply pass the others.

[not_rly_fai]

He heard the laughter too, though it wasn't until they were further down the hall that he saw a group of men. Strange laughter for men to have, but who was he to judge? There was a door on the left they hadn't tried yet and a door up ahead. He hadn't been down this way personally, so the rooms were just as much a mystery to him.

The nearest one was first, the door to the left rather than the one straight ahead, and Yuuhi reached over to open it, but the doorknob wouldn't budge. "Locked," he reported.

[damned_monsters]

From the other side of the door, the sound of nails scraping down the surface was heard. Something was in there and it knew Itachi and Fai were there. It couldn't reach them though, not yet, and soon the sound faded along with a scurry of inhuman footsteps into the darkness.

[Kaze - feel free to continue, nothing is happening beyond this]

[floraltempest]

From the sounds that issued from inside the room, or whatever it was on the other side of the door, it was probably a good thing the door was locked tight. MOMO edged closer to the two men and looked warily at the door, before turning to try and see further down the hall.

"The last time I went this way, we had to break down the doors in order to get anywhere," she said. "I'm not sure which door we need to go through, but chances are we'll have to force our way through."

[jokers_wildcard]

[from here]

"...But," she continued, her tone getting noticeably more peeved as she spoke. "They never keep 'em in labs in the buildin'. Not healthy, they guess."

This hallway was very long. It went all the way down beyond her flashlight's range. However, she knew all they had to do was keep walking down this hallway until they reached a door all the way at the end. The rest of the doors here... She couldn't remember what was in them. She hadn't gone as far as to memorize the map. It probably wasn't anything important for the moment.

Harley hesitated for a second before continuing. "Actually, I asked someone 'bout the lab here. They said somethin' about lots of people gettin' their pets taken to the lab. Told me some might even be used as hostages."

The thought of anyone holding her darling little babies as hostages, keeping them in cages, probably no food... ARGH! It made her blood boil!

[longlivetehking]

"I suppose there are many things in this place that are not healthy." Scar answered dryly.

Their pets, hmmm? He had heard some things here and there about humans keeping animals as a pet, but he really didn't see why Landel would keep said pets here. Unless it was indeed for taking hostages, but that didn't quite make sense. Why keep hostages without telling the patients? Keeping them in secret defeated their purpose.

Most of the monsters he had read about were an animal in one way or another. The king wondered if this 'testing lab' had something to do with the monsters. It'd be interesting to look into, at the very least.

"This is the first time I hear something about animals kept in this facility, however." he commented. Of course, there was no saying how reliable Harley's sources actually were. "But we'll need to reach it first."

[oftemptation]

The idea turned Endrance's stomach a bit. The idea of Mia - the small, fragile one, or the one who had been his dear, dear friend - being kept in a place like this was enough to spark some anger in his normally placid facade. He moved a few steps in front of Harley, darting his light sideways before moving toward the door at the end of the hallway.

"Such a thing as that...it's far too cruel." There was that cold tone to his voice again. "They're meant to be our friends...or barring that, in their natural worlds...a place like this isn't meant for them."

He strode forward quickly, without bothering to ask whether this was the correct way to go or not, and tried to push open the door. It didn't open at first. He let out a small, frustrated sigh, then aimed his flashlight and swung it hard at the lock. It broke apart enough so that he could remove it, then motioned to the others to follow.

[to here]

[no_side_effects]

[From here]

Tonight, Wesker was glad that other patients had preceded him to the lab. It would mean he wouldn't have to slow down long enough to bust the locks himself. That sort of delay would be very costly right now. It was just a shame there was nothing he could use to jam the door and delay Leon.

However, he wasn't going to be picky about whatever fortune lady luck offered him tonight. Wesker continued his sprint down the hallway. While this little run hadn't been enough to exhaust him, a sprint like this just before a fight wasn't ideal. Very little about this situation was ideal, though. He thought he could feel the wounds on his chest closing. The sprint and accompanying increase in heart rate was not helpful in preventing blood loss, but it looked as though the bleeding on his arm had slowed.

[officer_leon]

Leon briefly lost sight of Wesker, and he slowed, looking around. He drew in a few deep breaths, apparently smelling the air. The tentacles on his back continued to writhe and lengthen, each one approaching three feet. Suddenly Leon looked down the hall, and broke into a run. The labs. Of course.

[no_side_effects]

Wesker didn't bother to look back to check to see if Leon was following. The sounds of pursuit were a good enough indication in the otherwise quiet halls.

However, the sound of Leon chasing him really didn't tell him much about how the mutation was progressing while they ran. Wesker would just have to wait till they reached their destination to see.

[Going here]

[yin_yang_fox]

[from here]

The locked door at the end of the hall had already been opened. It was somewhat of a relief. Rebreaking the same locks every night had a tendency to bruise. And other than that? Was highly irritating. If she wanted an example of not making progress, that was it.

[toadally4boobs]

Jiraiya merely raised an eyebrow back at Renamon and grinned. He was focused on doing his part of the mission, although "his part" would probably change as needed. Renamon didn't seem like the one for small talk while she was focused, so Jiraiya didn't bother with attempting to initiate it. The silence between them was comfortable, or so it felt to him.

They came to a door already opened, its lock broken. While that made it easier for them, it also meant that it could be an effort to get them to let down their guard, even just slightly. Jiraiya tense a little, fairly certain that Renamon could read what he was thinking by movement alone.

So what if he was being a bit paranoid? It was better paranoid than dead.

[yin_yang_fox]

She sighed obviously and shook her head, teasing the man slightly. He was indeed like a child sometimes. Though his obvious caution was amusing. She herself, was completely on alert, but the man being watchful in an empty hall was interesting.

She moved on.

[to here]