[Nexus] Inside 35

[Reinholdt]

Warehouse

Uh-oh! Fight tiems!
...
Reinholdt doesn't want to fight. It wastes time!

He flies over to a wall, staying the height he is, to stick a small amount of C4 on the wall and then zoom away to try to take cover behind the boxes and blow it. His intention is to make a hole the junk golems can't reach and just leave that way.

[Devixer]

[Ruined Temple]

Boris, for a moment, looks very frustrated at the unpredictability of the tiles. And what's more, that awful, awful music kept playing.

Wait a minute...

Caught in a realization, the sniper moves to the church organ, and snatches up the sheet of music, thinking the notes might correspond with something.

[VampireRot]

[Abandoned Umbrella Factory]

Thirty? Darn. Merrak can't put that many to sleep with his crossbow in time. It's not a machine gun! Instead, he's going to have to... distract their attention. Too bad he's here alone. Oh well.

The drow loads the crossbow and holsters it so he can use it in a tight situation, then draws one of his knives. He then uses his drow sneakiness and dexterity to try to grab the penguin giving him the evil eye.

Er... So he can try to slit its throat, cut its stomach open, and toss its corpse to the far side of the room, then make a dash to the envelope. Hopefully the penguins are cannibalistic.

[The Alexandrian]

[FFFF -- Blue Zone]

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This wasn't good! Zero didn't know much about clothes and even less about what kind of clothes Valaira liked.

What sort of clothes would you like?

Zero asks, trying to sound like he had everything under control.

"Surprise me."

Valaira replies, not being helpful in the least.

-----

[No Hope Hospital]

Tom Godlark

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No Hope Hospital

Thomas narrows his eyes at wherever it is the voice sounds like it's coming from, trying to pierce the darkness with his shiny red cyborg eye and find this mysterious being's hiding place.

"I'm Tom Godlark, general physician at the Last Hope Hospital, and-" He hesitates, not sure if he should go back to the whole 'Magtok' thing, given the way Percilia reacted to it before. Even so, it's what the spooky voice man wants to hear, and he can always lie. Try to tell her he was just making stuff up to get the beast to leave them alone or something.

"And I used to be Lord Magtok. All I desire is to get out of this godsforsaken hospital alive, me and as many innocent people as can be saved from this abominable mess. I want to quit this job, I want to go home, I want to get some new job a few weeks later somewhere else, and I never want to see or hear from you or this place again." That sounds about right. Hopefully it's the answer the weird voice man wants, because this shadowy fellow doesn't sound like the sort to give very many second chances.

"If you don't start living life as it should be lived, I assure you that we will meet again under more hostile pretenses."

Tom may be able to espy the shade of a man as it light a cigarette a few feet in front of him.

"Start running."

The voice commands as natural sunlight light floods through a doorway dead ahead approximately a football field away.

---

Bellan

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No Hope Hospital

Bellan looks at the surgeon, horror and defeat and rage and suspicion in his gaze. "Why do you say these things?"

"If I don't say these things, nobody else will."

"Open your eyes."

The surgeon begins to wipe dust off of the shoulder areas of his suit. Wait. Suit? Wasn't he just wearing scrubs a minute ago.

The landscape begins to quake. The children vanish as suddenly as they appeared. In an instant, Bellan may find himself standing in front of an oak desk staffed by none other than Lawerence the psion.

"What are you willing to do to prevent all of this?"

---

Cal and Jacques

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No Hope Hospital

Cal quickly moves backwards from the grate, drawing a small explosive from his coat. He tosses the device into the grate, where it should explode after a few seconds, before dissolving into shadows and attempting to move under the door into the other chamber, likely re-materializing next to Jacques.

Yay, explosions! Lamentably, Cal will get no indication as to whether he was able to fry the tendril beastie, because it generates not a sound.

Cal and Jacques are now locked in the elevator control room.

Ding!

That's the sound of a mundane elevator door opening. Cal and Jacques should be hearing that right about...now.

[BladeofOblivion]

[No Hope Hospital]

Jacques instinctively points his pistol inside the elevator, and more consciously checks if there happens to be anything that needs shooting inside it.

[Halae]

[Streets]

Feia isn't sure whether to be compliment or not by Tina's comment.
It implies a few things are going correctly, at least.

"A talk would be nice. The display is to assure you that I am willing to work beyond them, if necessary."

[Streets]

"Alright then, let's talk," Evan says crossing his arms and starting to look annoyed, "Should we do this in the middle of the street, or do you have somewhere you'd prefer to do this?"

[Murkus]

Streets

"Yeah. Talking's good. But not here." Tina says, beginning to think of Alice as reasonable again.

No Hope Hospital

"I'm not willing to do anything to prevent imaginary happenings. This whole hospital appears to be as such." Bellan clicks and frowns, looming over the tiny oaken desk. His composure is regaining strength. "Am I to assume you're the one behind this foolishness?"

[UncleWolf]

Underhive - Gladiator Brawl

The Elf sees his comrade in trouble, but doesn't give much thought to it as he steps forward quickly and swings his sharp blade, trying to sever this ork'z neck as well.

[DoomITP]

[FFFF -- Blue Zone]



"Surprise me."

Valaira replies, not being helpful in the least.

-----

[No Hope Hospital]

Tom Godlark



"If you don't start living life as it should be lived, I assure you that we will meet again under more hostile pretenses."

Tom may be able to espy the shade of a man as it light a cigarette a few feet in front of him.

"Start running."

The voice commands as natural sunlight light floods through a doorway dead ahead approximately a football field away.

---

Bellan



"If I don't say these things, nobody else will."

"Open your eyes."

The surgeon begins to wipe dust off of the shoulder areas of his suit. Wait. Suit? Wasn't he just wearing scrubs a minute ago.

The landscape begins to quake. The children vanish as suddenly as they appeared. In an instant, Bellan may find himself standing in front of an oak desk staffed by none other than Lawerence the psion.

"What are you willing to do to prevent all of this?"

---

Cal and Jacques



Yay, explosions! Lamentably, Cal will get no indication as to whether he was able to fry the tendril beastie, because it generates not a sound.

Cal and Jacques are now locked in the elevator control room.

Ding!

That's the sound of a mundane elevator door opening. Cal and Jacques should be hearing that right about...now.

Zero finished looking for clothes and is back at GLoG now.

[The Alexandrian]

[No Hope Hospital]

Bellan

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No Hope Hospital

"I'm not willing to do anything to prevent imaginary happenings. This whole hospital appears to be as such." Bellan clicks and frowns, looming over the tiny oaken desk. His composure is regaining strength. "Am I to assume you're the one behind this foolishness?"

"That would be an incorrect supposition, I'm afraid. I am not, as you say, 'the one behind this foolishness.' Furthermore, it was not foolishness, not until a few minutes ago when the resonator stepped down for unknown reasons, which caused the restoration of all that had been lost."

Lawerence stares up at Bellan without emotion. He taps his index fingers together and leans back in his chair.

---

Cal and Jacques

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[No Hope Hospital]

Jacques instinctively points his pistol inside the elevator, and more consciously checks if there happens to be anything that needs shooting inside it.

There is nothing inside the elevator at the moment, besides air, of course.

Air might not need shooting, but then again...

[Lord Magtok]

No Hope Hospital

'Magtok' glares at the shade, as if to say 'It's always the hard way with you things, isn't it?'. There's no time to actually say such a thing though, and he'll need every ounce of breath he can squeeze out of his lung for this long dash to the exit. It's a good thing he's used to running and screaming in terror, otherwise he might not have the stamina to handle this sort of mad sprint for survival.

[Murkus]

No Hope Hospital

"How much of this was real? Who are you? And how are you involved?" Bellan has a great many questions for someone who actually seems to have answers.

[ThirdEmperor]

No Hope Hospital

Seeing as they're in the control room, Cal will attempt to find the button that calls the elevator.

[Zefir]

[Ruined Temple]

Well at first Zefir starts reading since the other guy seem to search for an answer.

[The Alexandrian]

[No Hope Hospital]

Cal and Jacques

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No Hope Hospital

Seeing as they're in the control room, Cal will attempt to find the button that calls the elevator.

Jacques has already called the elevator. The button that calls the elevator might be that big, red, unmarked button wired into the center of the control panel!

---
Bellan

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No Hope Hospital

"How much of this was real? Who are you? And how are you involved?" Bellan has a great many questions for someone who actually seems to have answers.

"I'm the leader of Patronus, a cloistered, private organization currently devoted to liberating any group being exploited against their will."

"Everything you witnessed was real, up until a few minutes ago. At that point, it all just became an illusion. It is quite difficult to explain, really."

"We are here because I was here conducting business when everything went down the tubes. We wouldn't have gotten wind of it otherwise, which is a matter which is deeply troubling to me."

Lawerence responds in a blunt manner, evidently quite open to questioning.

---

Tom

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No Hope Hospital

'Magtok' glares at the shade, as if to say 'It's always the hard way with you things, isn't it?'. There's no time to actually say such a thing though, and he'll need every ounce of breath he can squeeze out of his lung for this long dash to the exit. It's a good thing he's used to running and screaming in terror, otherwise he might not have the stamina to handle this sort of mad sprint for survival.

As Tom sprints down the hall, the chamber dissolves into nothingness behind him.

Percilia trips and falls to the ground about 3/4 of the way to the exit.

Crunch!

She appears to have landed wrong and busted her knee. It is evident that Percilia will not be able to escape without Tom's assistance, but if Tom provides her with aid, he himself might not be able to abscond.

[Chaotic Bob]

[Streets]

Feia's smile acquires a hint of emotion to it, something calm.

"If you're concerned about being spontaneously disintegrated, perhaps a tavern where there are witnesses.
Somewhere where you feel comfortable allows for more open conversation."
Look at that, she's being reasonable again.
Flopping from murderous rage to overly sane conversationalist...
Hm.

[Halae]

[Streets]

Evan looks at Tina. He's not sure where the best place for this 'conversation' would be, so he's turning to her for help.

[ThirdEmperor]

Abandoned Umbrella Factory

The penguin lets out a startled squawk before it's throat is slit, and the other penguins turn to peer at the source of the noise. Needless to say, they are not pleased. As Merrak tosses the corpse to the ground, several of them gather around it, poking the carcass with their feet. "Quark? QUARK? Quark!" With much squawking, the various penguins conclude that their kin has been killed, turning to glare at Merrak as he snatches up the envelope. Which causes the door to slam shut and lock itself, revealing a pair of ice skates previously hidden behind the door. The penguins bare their teeth and advance towards the drow, who has just been cut off from escape.

Ruined Temple

The sheet music is for a rather basic bit of music that uses only three notes, but has a surprising amount of complexity. If Boris is good at identifying patterns, he should be able to tell each of the notes corresponds to one of the colors of tile, and that the music predicts the order in which the tiles swap by several seconds.

The letter Zefir took from the altar reads thusly:

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Ooh, so close, so very, very close. But not quite! You're looking for the tastiest infinity of all, hows that for a hint.

Warehouse

The C4 blows a hole in the wall, just as the junk golems finish forming and begin to move towards Reinholdt. He can probably spot the key hanging from one of the golems' neck, but he doesn't particularly need it anymore.

[Murkus]

No Hope Hospital

"So... it is over, then? Has anyone died?" Bellan is mostly concerned with the dead, dying or wounded, and it shows on his face. And he still doesn't understand fully.
Streets

"Why do you assume I'd be comfortable in a tav-- oh forget it. Yeah, a tavern's fine." Tina looks between Evan and Feia, still cranky.

[Reinholdt]

Warehouse

The C4 blows a hole in the wall, just as the junk golems finish forming and begin to move towards Reinholdt. He can probably spot the key hanging from one of the golems' neck, but he doesn't particularly need it anymore.

Reinholdt flies through the hole and heads towards the pie factory. He believes his initial impressions were correct, and he just confused numbers for words. Clever puzzle, being all tricksy like that.

[Zefir]

[Faith Car]

"I think you should thank him this shadow splitting got me quiet confused."

He really sounds odd by saying that it's hard to be the real and the copy in the same moment.

"Oh and you shouldn't forget to meet the necromancer."

Ruined Temple

I read it you firs said Fade^^.

"Oh man it's a Zonk again."

Zefir looks up at the organ. Hmm if I destroy this I may not come across this canyon, but it would be better here.

[The Alexandrian]

[No Hope Hospital]

Bellan

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No Hope Hospital

"So... it is over, then? Has anyone died?" Bellan is mostly concerned with the dead, dying or wounded, and it shows on his face. And he still doesn't understand fully.

"The total number of casualties, both civilian and military, stands at a grand total of zero at the moment."

"But it is far from over."

"There are many individuals in this world capable of acting as resonators. If they activate, we must be ready."

Lawerence asserts, tapping his right foot against the black, tile floor rhythmically.

[Devixer]

[Ruined Temple]

Boris does indeed notice the link between the music notes and the tiles, and almost slaps himself for not noticing earlier. He turns towards Zefir. "What does the letter say?"

[Gullara]

[Slums - An Alley]

Rose's favorite bunch of vigilante monster hunters is there as well.
The vampire is basically an Undesirable #1 among the Hunters of Inside and now it seems someone else has got into a fight with her. A perfect opportunity.
Rose will find a crossbow bolt fly at her from behind her. If the turns around, she will see a red-headed woman wearing a longcoat and hefting a crossbow - the one she's met before. Other Hunters are nowhere in sight, but undoubtedly getting close - they didn't have a lot of time to prepare, so the attack is rushed.

Slums Alley (closed fight with Rose, Vino, and the Hunters. Please check in OOC thread before jumping in)

The hunters will have to go through the wind wall to get into the alley. Not insurpassable, but it may blow off hats, glasses, or any other loose items. It's pretty strong. Rose will not have to go through the wind wall to get to Vino. It's designed to keep her from escaping, not to be a bar between the two of them.

The enchanted seeds should start to sprout and grow into her undead flesh, seeking her heart, and looking for even the tiniest openings in the bone casing to grow through in order to reach it. Of course that's a slow attack - minutes, rather than seconds - but if it works, she'll eventually have many tiny stakes of hawthorn root embedded in her heart.


"Don't you think we need some candlelight first, Rosie?" Vino says, in a cool tone. Since she's conveniently below him, he takes out a vial of oil, lights the wick, and drops it to try and hit her. Flaming garlic oil.

Luckily for Rose, the crossbow bolt goes wide thanks to the wind and strikes the wall beside her. And now burning oil too. She throws herself to the side and rapidly turns into a bat. She's now flying right at Vino. He'll have a moment to react however. I'm sure she'd reply to his quip if she wasn't a bat.

[VampireRot]

[Abandoned Umbrella Factory]

Merrak glares accusingly at the birds.

"You're not supposed to be that smart."

He looks at the ice skates, but dismisses that idea. Drow don't have ice skating classes, so while he understands how it should work he still has no clue how to do it. And he's not going to risk learning with carnivorous penguins.

So it's time for plan C! Merrak fishes around in a pocket or pouch and pulls out a small flask of orange liquid. Which he then chucks at the largest group of penguins. It's alchemist's fire! When the glass flask breaks on impact, the liquid will burst into flames while splashing everywhere!

Merrak doesn't bother to watch to see how this helps, and he goes to dash toward the other door that leads to the rest of the factory, if it's still open. The dextrous drow has no problem running on the ice. And if any penguins get in his way, he'll slash 'em with his sword or smash 'em with his mace.

[Murkus]

[No Hope Hospital]

Bellan

"The total number of casualties, both civilian and military, stands at a grand total of zero at the moment."

"But it is far from over."

"There are many individuals in this world capable of acting as resonators. If they activate, we must be ready."

Lawerence asserts, tapping his right foot against the black, tile floor rhythmically.

"So the rift has been closed? But these resonators... they could potentially cause further chaos?" Bellan's still assuming it was a rift between worlds that caused this madness. He looks relieved to hear that no one was killed, despite all the horrific happenings. "I assume you'll be looking for them."

[Morty]

[Slums - An Alley]

The Hunter - referred to henceforth as the Judge - swears as her bolt is deflected. She's also quickly joined by two other Imbued. One of them - an Avenger - is a powerfully built, bearded man dressed quite like a member of a motorbike gang. He's hefting a fire axe and there's a shotgun slung over his back. The other - an Innocent - is a scrawny, short man with a goatee and greasy hair, both black, wearing worn, stained clothes. He's holding a propane torch and has several bottles sticking out of a bag he's carrying. They all run towards the building, not as affected as the wind as they should be.

[Lord Magtok]

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[No Hope Hospital]

As Tom sprints down the hall, the chamber dissolves into nothingness behind him.

Percilia trips and falls to the ground about 3/4 of the way to the exit.

Crunch!

She appears to have landed wrong and busted her knee. It is evident that Percilia will not be able to escape without Tom's assistance, but if Tom provides her with aid, he himself might not be able to abscond.

No Hope Hospital

Going back for her is all very wonderful, in theory. It sounds heroic and noble, the right thing to do, and a daring act of selflessness that any fellow with a single moral bone in their body would attempt in a heartbeat. I mean, if he runs through that exit alone, he might as well put on the purple robe and go right back to hating on elves, because there's nothing else standing between him and Magtok if he goes right back to putting his own life first.

In practice, however, an empty abyss stalking after him as he rushes out of a horrific nightmare hospital is goddamn motherfudging scary. One could hardly fault the good doctor if he looked back and decided the chances of them both plunging to their deaths was far too high, and decided to abandon her and forget ahead on his own. I mean, she's probably just an NPC, right? Not even a Nexus NPC, but some generic vanilla outsider from another world. Nobody would mourn Percilia; nothing would be lost if she were to be taken away from this world. A Thomas Godlark is something valuable, something precious, but a Percilia? Completely insignificant. As the Good Book once said, Cura te ipsum.

In spite of everything, Doctor Thomas Godlark stops, turns around, and reaches out to pick her up off the ground. The world has enough Magtoks as is, anyway.

[ThirdEmperor]

Abandoned Umbrella Factory

Boom! The vial of alchemist's fire explodes, frying several penguins and setting another one on fire. Unfortunately, it also melts the ice around it, and the fire itself is quickly extinguished. The rest of the penguins give chase to poor Merrak, leaping onto their stomachs and sliding across the ice after him.He's got a bit of a head start though, and it takes time for killer penguins to build up speed, so he manages to reach the door before the killer penguins reach him.

Unfortunately, the door is frozen pretty much solid, and unless Merrak is superstrong or has more fire available, it'll take him more time than he has to break the ice. Even more unfortunately, the door above him opens at this exact moment, and out falls another penguin, quite likely landing right on top of Merrak. The penguin, being robotic, weighs almost two hundred pounds. The good news in all this terrible, terrible misfortune is that the robo-penguin also has the key on a chain that's bolted to it's neck.

Poor, poor Merrak. He drew the short straw.

Ruined Temple

The music continues to play. If Boris bothers checking, he'll see that the hymn is three fifths over by now. Wonder what happens when the music stops?

[Reinholdt]

But Merrak gets to play with penguins! That's always a good thing!

Reinholdt wants PIE!
Ok, not really. He'd be kind of wary about eating things from a dead man.
>>

[Traveling]

Reinholdt continues flying to the pie factory?