Like fire, like hell fire

[npc_kun]

Characters: OPEN
Date/Time: After the fire.
Location: Everywhere
Rating: R
Summary: Survivors need to be found. Some of them won't make it. There's only one thing to do for them.

Comments

Up in housing

[jackofallcards]

It was kind of embarrassing, if he thought about it, to survive in that hideous suit while the world burned like Dante's inferno around him, only to be freed and killed almost in the same instant. Not that he was actually dead yet, but Jack had an instinct for this that he didn't want to examine too closely.

Right now he was just waiting to finish dying. No, he wanted to have a smoke, and then finish dying

[npc_kun]

Butterflies fluttered down into the space where Jack lay dying, their glowing wings almost sinister in appearance. They flowed in like a tide of black and purple and the crowd seemed to ripple, larger ones coming out of the uniform sea like generals at the front of an army. They didn't make a sound. Their master did, emerging from the wall as if he had always been in the room. He glanced around, his gold eyes searching like a predator seeking his prey

[jackofallcards]

The butterflies were too familiar, but Jack really couldn't exactly focus on them, at the moment. They weren't that important, in the grand scheme of things. And he had a really busy schedule to keep. For example dying was going to take up all his time. It was demanding work but someone had to do it.

Spade stepping through the wall did catch his attention. The bastard had to show up and interrupt him. Old coot. But that meant it was the boy then, that had died during the fire. "This place..." Jack half laughed, bitterly, ending it with a wet choking sound as blood welled in his mouth and down his chin. "That poor kid." If he'd had the energy for it, he would have been angry. But he just felt a bit bitter. Something was so familiar about the feeling, the tears, familiar enough to leave him cold and hollow feeling.

He watched Spade without much interest. The man was worse off than the last time they'd met, he could tell. It was the eyes, the tone of voice. Just... Things you notice, about yourself. Spade was so close to losing it,

[npc_kun]

"There are worse ways to go." He remarked, without any real interest in the subject. The moment they were dead there was nothing that could be done for them. They were no longer interesting. Spade ignored the dried tears on his face as he stepped ever closer. He adjusted his white gloves one more time, his shoes lightly clicking on the floor.

It was difficult to keep himself from smiling at the murder he was about to commit. It didn't matter it was himself - the thing in his head was all but screaming to let be free again. It clawed at his mind with unforgiving howls as he knelt down to press one hand against Jack's chest. "A damn shame, now watch closely lad."

With the precision of a doctor his hand was suddenly through Jack as if he didn't really exist. His hand closed around his heart as Spade leaned close to his ear. "Can you feel that? You're a rather calm one. That almost makes this boring." Finally his lips curved into a twisted smile. "We're chewed on, you know. It will get you in the end."

OPEN basically to anyone who wants to be found

[gundrifter]

The suit was finally gone, which meant he could move as freely as he wanted. It also meant that he was free to weep, but he hadn't done that yet. The time for it would come. Now there were survivors to be found and taken to medical, and he had to be careful and watch what he was doing; the suit wasn't there to protect him any more

[floating_bamboo]

He was hardly recognizable, all his hair burned away and clothes torn and blackened. Koi was lying on his stomach among the debris in the Marketplace, clutching something scorched and unidentifiable tightly to his chest. One arm was nothing more than charred bones, having taken the worst damage when he had been caught by an explosion.

Even though he was still alive, his breathing was nothing but gasps as he had more blood than air in his lungs. If he could hear Geranium, there was no way for him to answer.

[gundrifter]

Geranium crouched at the man's side, sickened by the smell of charred flesh but doing his best to ignore it as he laid a gentle hand on his back. He could feel the slight movement of breath beneath his hand, and after a moment he bent over and put his ear close to the man's back. There was a bubbling sound there when he breathed in, and he straightened with his mouth set in a grim line. That was a bad sign, but there were people with magic and great skills at medical. They were miracle workers, and it was still possible that a miracle could save this man.

"If you can hear me, I'm going to move you," Geranium told the man in a firm and reassuring voice. He felt anything but firm and reassuring, but he had always somehow managed to convince the people around him that he was okay when he wasn't in the slightest; that skill was aiding him now. "I'm going to take you to the medical clinic. You'll be fine once we get there, so just try to be still and hang on, okay? You're going to live

[floating_bamboo]

Koi could hear something, but everything was blurred and he couldn't see properly due to the lack of oxygen. Everything hurt badly and even more so when he was turned around, a choked scream leaving him together with more blood trickling from his mouth. They said fire and drowning were a terrible ways to go - and here he was, burned and drowning in his own blood.

What he had been holding on to with everything in his might was a child, but his attempt to save it from the explosion hadn't helped. There was nothing left but scorched remains, impossible to identify. Even so, Koi refused to let go, his remaining arm still holding on, even when he had been turned around.

It was a blessing that Geranium had been the one to find him, because Koi was a tall man and would have been difficult to lift for others. He didn't weigh much, however, which made it a bit easier. Koi didn't have the strenght to scream again when he was lifted, the pain too strong and his consciousness slipping.

OPEN- sad Robodoggy looks for his buddy all over :(

[handy_psychic]

Bridge had told Logan to stay put til everything was clear. Normally he would have disobeyed this and went with him, even if he had to be sneaky sneaky- but the strange suit he'd found himself encased in had left him no choice. He was left to flail his legs, whimper, make all kinds of loud noises, but this suit would NOT budge. He could tell that Cat was in a similar predicament, as he was hissing, spitting, rolling all around

Section 2

[subject_e0057]

When the fire had died away as swiftly as it had come, taking the bulky, metallic suits with it, the section was almost unnaturally quiet. No more birds chirped up in the tree, and there was a sudden stillness that only lasted a moment. There was time enough to check the surviving journals, find any information, and for Gundam to write a quick note before the structure around them had begun to let out agonizing groans.

The supports splintered and flinched with snapping sounds, the wood rendered brittle like a spent match. How long had they had to react? The scene replayed in his mind. The splintering noises, creaking, and suddenly everything came down around them, going black. He might have lost consciousness once or twice, but in the thick darkness under the debris and rubble, how could he tell?

He had called out to Gundam- he must have been close, he could practically feel him-- No. He could feel him, somewhere, but he wasn't in any shape to start heaving off bits of wood and roof and whatever else.

"Calm down," Praise's voice

[codename_potato]

Gundam wasn't sure where his journal had gone when the roof collapsed. That was the least of his worries. His first concern was Raise. The other man was still alive, he knew it with a sense he couldn't define, but that gave him comfort. Raise was alive, but in distress

[felinemystique]

Bastet hadn't wasted any time in getting to Gundam's place after replying to him in the journals. However, even her speed wasn't enough, as she skidded to a halt by the remains of what had once been a house

[subject_e0057]

His brows came together at the external-internal voice agreeing with him to be calm. As used to hearing voices as it was, it was still a bizarre feeling. "Okay," He murmured, nodding carefully. Movement from above caught his attention, though, the debris shifting- and Bastet's voice.

"Bastet," He responded quietly, lifting his chest up from the ground as best he could with the one good hand. His voice was still thick, and the movement caused a blinding pain to shoot through his side, stomach contracting as he coughed again.

"I told you to fucking calm down." Praise snapped the words angrily. "I'm not letting you get us killed like this."

He quieted as she tended to Gundam- so he hadn't been that far. Something akin of relief came over him as he saw his friend. So he had been close. The stillness of the other man, though, was distressing. He remained quiet, watching Gundam and Bastet.

Praise swore in the back of their mind. "That won't end well," He growled out. "...If need be, I'm taking over. I don't need you getting worked up

OPEN/Establishing position

[stonyfaced]

The city was so quiet

Re: OPEN/Establishing position

[ice_echani]

Handmaiden recognized Stoneface by his walk. Not by his appearance... he was covered in blood, bruised, looking as though he had been through the worst a body could endure while surviving. And she had no doubt that had been exactly what had happened. She swallowed--Blood dead, she had read those words on the journals. Had he witnessed it? She was not about to ask... she would not like to recount the deaths she had seen

[stonyfaced]

Stoneface whirled around when he heard a voice, eyes rolling in attempts to find the survivor, then they snapped onto Handmaiden.

"Handmaiden," he said, and said nothing else for a moment, busy assessing her for any damage. The woman was dutiful if nothing else, and he didn't doubt that she would continue working long after she should have stopped, much like many other guards. She didn't look good. She didn't look bad, either, and for now, selfishly, he was just happy she was alive.

He needed more reliable people alive and with him, after all, not perished on the ground or broken beyond repair. "You're still alive. Good."

When she asked about survivors, Stoneface glanced down at the ground, at the debris and those piled beneath. He shook his head. "Not as many as I'd hoped," he admitted, studying her face. "How about you?"

This was the most emotion he had ever seen flash across her features, and although it wasn't surprising, it was jarring. He nodded at her. "Walk with me," he said. "We'll search together."

[ice_echani]

When Stoneface focused on her, it hit Handmaiden--darkness. Rage. She could see it in the edges of how he moved as well. But it was not... not... free. It was restrained, as though there was a cage inside of him. How was he doing it? The darkness was so strong, it swirled, ready to drag at her feet. She gritted her teeth. There was no giving into it; she could not.

"I have found some who are alive. Many dead." She turned to walk alongside Stoneface. "I can... sense the survivors," she said. "But there is so much death. So much pain. Edensphere is wounded." Handmaiden was not paying much attention to what she was saying... she knew the words were true as she said them, though truthfully she did not think there were any that were sufficient to describe this situation. Dead... dead... like holes in the ground. A survivor? She turned and headed for another pile of debris quickly, hoping that the flicker of life would not fall into another pit before they reached it.