Nightshift 21 - Stairwell at Lobby/Dr Offices/Medwing

[theheirshinra]

If there was one thing Rufus Shinra had had enough of, it was Landel’s twisted monsters. Blood was drying to a tacky mess across his back, the two strikes the woman with the hot iron had gotten at him enough to make him regret fully going upstairs. At least it was a learning experience in that he knew better now. Going upstairs meant taking at

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[thebloodyacacia]

screeeech thump

screeeech thump

screeeech thump

There was hardly any time for Rufus to look around before Pyramid Head appeared, looming out of the darkness of the hallway leading straight ahead, his sword clutched in his right hand and his helmet pointed straight ahead.

Straight at Rufus.

[theheirshinra]

For the first few seconds, Rufus couldn't move. His first night at Landel's he had met this creature along with Reno and the others who had encountered him in the cafeteria. That night he had been uninjured. Tonight he was already torn up and bloodied. His mind blanked staring at the thing that came out of the darkness. A slow step was taken backwards, his mind still not catching up with him yet.

I already faced that thing upstairs. I already dealt with that. More? There's more here?

His gaze slid down to the sword. That was what finally woke him up like cold water thrown.

"Damn it."

Rufus turned for the stairs, starting up them. Getting past it wasn't an option.

[thebloodyacacia]

Maybe he 'saw' Rufus, somehow, through the solid rusted metal of his mask. Maybe he tasted or smelled him with that flickering tongue-like thing that was darting in and out of the slit in the right side of the mask. Or maybe he heard him, heard that soft whisper in the dark and those footsteps making their way up the first stairs. Regardless of how, Pyramid Head knew Rufus was there, and he struck.

screeeeeee

He hefted the knife up into the air and brought it crashing down on the stairs - not on top of Rufus (was it a blessing, or was he doing it on purpose?) but missing the man by the matter of a foot or less, the blade gouging into the stairs and clattering back off what it couldn't cut into.

[theheirshinra]

Everyone in Landel's was treated to a sound that had never been heard on Gaia. When he heard that whistle of the descending sword behind him, Rufus screamed. Dropping to the stairs, he tried to cover his head, seeing in the mind's eyes his father's corpse with Sephiroth's blade pinning him to the wood beneath. After meeting Pyramid Head that first night, Rufus had developed a fear of the thing, it symbolizing all that was wrong with this insane place.

It picked up those men that night and tossed them like dolls, its skin was on fire and it kept coming.

That terror pushed his mind into working. It was either that or die. Rolling onto his back, Rufus' mind tried to stutter again and go blank when he saw the creature's tongue or whatever it was.

That's not normal... that can't be skin it's wearing...

Kicking out, he tried to push the creature's helmeted head, remembering something about them trying to overbalance it that night. Maybe that would buy him time unless it lifted that blade again.

[stray_shinigami]

(from hereThey reached the stairs without further problems. Renji didn't have any trouble finding them, since they'd used them the previous night. He slowed to a halt at the bottom of the stairs, though, squinting against the darkness. Something was not quite right

[soul_defender]

Quick to notice the tell-tale signs of destruction as well, Ichigo could only wince as he saw the deep, craggy sections of the drywall torn away, imagining just what sort of horror was responsible. Out of the creatures he had encountered so far, there only seemed to be one monster fresh in his mind with that kind of physical power, and Ichigo did not want to run into it again.

"I hope they didn't have too much fun..." Ichigo muttered, nearly stepping in a small pool of the blackened fluid. Taking up a more defensive position towards the rear, Ichigo constantly peered back over his shoulders; it was his experience that these nightly encounters more often came from the rear, where he would be in a perfect position to intercept.

"I think I know what did all this." he added, keeping his voice calm and low. "If it is what I think it is, we're going to have to make a quick retreat. Unless one of you is hiding a lot of power, we just can't fight it."

[not_a_savior]

Nowe stepped up behind Renji and Ichigo, his blue eyes widening as he spotted the black stuff all over the floor. His hands clapped to his face, covering his nose.

"Aw, it stinks..." he said, slightly muffled behind his hands. He stepped forward, carefully hopping over the pools of the stuff and moved over to the hole in the wall, peering into it, and then looking up the stairs, trying to catch a glimpse of whatever horrid creature (or human) had done this. There was nothing. He turned and looked over his shoulder at Ichigo.

"What do you mean, 'what you think it is'? Have you meet this... whatever it is?"

[scintillatingly]

Keeping close behind Renji, Sora was not delayed and smelling and seeing the leftovers of some sort of destruction. He was also careful to mind where he was stepping. He hadn't seen this sort of gore since his earlier days at the institute. He remembered that wall that used to bleed endlessly.

He didn't need to be reminded to be quiet. The air was full of tension and for the first time in a while, he was almost scared. He'd never had to worry before - the Heartless were monsters he was used to and could usually get rid of without much trouble, but in this place...

Nowe had asked the question he'd had swimming around in his head, so he kept quiet and waited for Kurosaki to answer. Hopefully he could at least prepare them for what was to come.