Quest: BOTR - Spotlight Cradle

[Orion]

As Orion heard the clink of the canister, his right hand darted into the drawer, withdrawing quickly with a few items clutched in hand. His left grabbed his weapon, and he spun, bringing it to a ready position against his opponents as the gas spread. He heard glass shattering as the grogginess began. He struggled against it as he saw dozens of men surrounding him, and one with a katana and a red tie, possibly the leader, stepped forward.


"Orion. You are charged with crimes against humanity. You are being taken to stand trial."

Orion grimaced at the man as he felt strength leaving him. Still, he had a second.

"You looking at me? Then you should be taking humanity to stand trial for what they have done to me."

And then darkness overtook him.

-----------------

Orion came to rather quickly, though he found himself inside a strange room. Desks, double doors, a closet... he flashed through his memory before putting a name to a place.

"Hospital. Not tied down, I still have my weapons, and I'm recovering... someone intervened? Regardless, that red tie bastard is going down for drugging me."

The room was dark, but as he didn't have his cloak, it was quickly illuminated by his glowing. One time it was useful. Orion did a mental check. Weapons, good, clothes, still there, unharmed, physical being, a little groggy, no injuries. Wait... that last one. Something did feel off. He focused again, struggling. Then he realized.

Shit. My QI has gone completely inactive instead of just dormant. Looks like I'll have to be more careful, my injuries aren't going to heal in a day like before. First thing first. Stand, explore, find a way out of here. The confines are too narrow for my liking, but no windows, so I need a way out of this hospital.

He came to a stand, bringing his halberd to bear as he turned through the room. Then he cautiously approached the doors on his right, and tentatively pushed them open with the spear tip, keeping a good distance away.

[Kyrie Blaze]

One of a few questions darting around Kiyr's brain was: how did they manage to follow her? For they must have been, with so many. Even if she cried out, not only were there not many places in the room for the sound to escape, but the rain would act as a great sound dampener. She took stock, noted the seemingly one difference, and even as she tried to disappear, her Qi slipped through her fingers like smoke. Clear blue eyes looked on, sharpening. A dart hit her neck as she recognized the accent, causing her to stumble to the side, and immediately collapse as her vision cut to black.




Consciousness returned with a vicious, spiking throb to her head. The blonde choked back a sound of pain and swallowed, slowly. Her headache cleared to something much more minor...which was completely unexpected. That wasn't how her body normally worked.

It was something to keep in mind but she couldn't fret over it. Main priorities were finding out where she was, what they were doing, if others were here, and get out. She would have just liked the 'get out' part, but that wouldn't solve anything.

Her items were put back on and tucked into her regular places, and where she was, gave a soft but quick breath to dislodge it. Anything on the floor? If not she would slowly stand - crouch, rather - and make her way towards the stairs, listening intently for the sounds of approach...or of someone already in the room.

Before actually making it to the stairs, however, Kyrie paused at the riding mower, or anything else available she could use as a concealed weapon.

She worked quickly, but moved quietly.

[Marcus Prasad]

Slowly conciousness leaked into a mind rendered empty by a savage attack until after what felt like hours, every corner of the mind filled with hated awakening, leaving a man laying with his back to a wall as his eyes fluttered and squinted. With a groan Marcus immediatly checked his extremities, wiggling his fingers and toes, clenching and subtly flexing his muscles ensuring his body wasn't broken or rendered paralyzed.

As his memories reorganized themselves into chronological order, Marcus went over the sequence of events that lead him to be in a room with four doors. He had to admit, whoever it was that jumped him, they sure as hell didn't fuck around. They knew exactly who and what they were dealing with. Normally this should worry the average person, unfortunatly for them, Marcus tended to have a trick or two stashed away up his sleeves. In fact he felt a strange surge of pride that they would consider him so dangerous and a certain admiration over how easily they captured him.

Now he knew what it felt like to get tagged like on the discovery channel.

If they were as proffesional as he assumed, then they would have camera of some sort to monitor him. Which meant they would know by now he was awake. No point pretending then, Marcus slowly and painfully rose to his feet and collected his kit which was sitting in a corner.

The Who's and Why's of this fucked up situation could wait. Right now the man had one thing in mind.

Surviving.

Preferably long enough to
A) Escape
and
B) Tear a strip off whoever was behind all of this.


Marcus would begin by checking the doors to see if they were locked, more to give his body something to do while his brain calculated and planned.

[David B.]

Kazuya Hikari:

As Kazuya lit the flame, he would see a man, in his mid forties, sleeping. The faint glow of his flame would be enough to light the tattered clothes and haggard face- he was dressed as a Barker soldier. He was not currently aware of himself.

If Kazuya came closer, the mans eyes were shoot open and he would flip off the gurney he was laying on, crying out as he hit the floor. He would scoot backward, not opening his eyes, and speaking as though muffled: Obviously, he was not able to form words.

Delilah Black:

Delilah would easily catch and cut the slower individual, who would cry out and hit the ground. The others kept ahead of her for a bit, before they rounded a corner ahead of her. As she would round the corner. She would see the boys all fanned out in front of her, before what seemed to be an army of men, dressed in suits, wearing gas masks. The girl was in the arms of one of those men, being carried away. The leader that had been holding her was on the ground, his head a few feet away.

If Delilah tried to turn to run, she would find herself surrounded by men as well, fanned out, almost imperceptible in the dark. Gas would begin to flow up around her and them, and even if she tried to hold her breath, she would feel it burning into her skin. But she would only begin to feel groggy.

The four boys each fell of the blades of men in the line in front of them, collapsing to the ground without ado. The man with a red tie stepped forward, Delilah would begin to slump to the ground, but not yet feel night take her.

If at any point she called for help or tried to use her mic, she would find her throat tightened, unable to get out a sound. The man in red would crouch.

"We watched you, unsure of your guilt. But you have given us the evidence required."

He would take the mic from her body and crush it.

"Delilah Black. You are charged with crimes against humanity. You are to be taken for trial."

Night would slam around her.

***************************************

Delilah would wake to rain hitting her in the face. Lightning would thunder out around her. If she sat up, she would notice herself on a roof- a very large roof. One the size of several city blocks. Near her is a hatch, which has a lock on it.

All her weapons are on her person, her mic is gone. She has a slight headache, and strangely cannot feel her Qi. Lightning cracks above her, and off in the distance, she notices a lump, unmoving, the only raised object on the seemingly flat roof.

If she looks off the edge, she will notice a heavy fog surrounding the building, and she cannot see the ground. She sees the faint outline of trees shooting skyward, but they seem unnaturally large, and have no indication of the distance to the ground.

Jack:

Jack's hand brushes up against something, causing it to roll a little. It feels hard, metallic. He can hear a thump coming from above him, though it only happens twice, like someone is moving furniture.

Phoenix:

You take five steps, before hearing a sloshing sound, like a waterfall. The water near your feet seems to move faster, though you can still see nothing.

Reira:

IV: Inside the bag is Saline, simple fluids.

Desk: You open the desk, and notice several folders. Most full of text, but when you look at the paper, you can't read the garbled characters. Inside of the desk, on the large right drawer, is a scanner, used for faxing documents or pulling them into the computer.

Computer: Turning on the computer was simple. It bleeps to life, and has a black background with text on the left stating: "Enter Command". Next to it is a flashing cursor.

If you decide to leave the computer and any attempts with it, you will hear nothing from the other side of the door. Upon exiting, you will find a hallway, with several stethoscopes on the ground, as well as a few doctors outfits. As you begin to move, you notice the walls to your left have windows, though everything outside is covered in fog and they are barred. To your right, you may pass several rooms. Otherwise, in the far distance (Close to a mile in length), you can see the end of the hallway, where a light flickers repeatedly, though from this distance, it may be hard to see.

Orion:

On the ground, near the door, one of the doctors coats seems to shift, and there is apparently a form in it.

If Orion ignores the moving coat, The door doesn't make a sound, and is well oiled. The lights on the other side work fine, and you hear nothing coming from the hall.

Kiyr:

While searching the room, Kiyr notices a little breathing from a beam behind the mower, followed by a little whine. Tied to the post is a dog, golden retriever. He seems unharmed. Laying next to him is a key, though it is chewed up.

Marcus:

Trying the handle on each of the doors shows that three of the four are unlocked. One is locked, with a key hold. Pulling or damaging the door will appear fruitile. Laying on the ground next to the door is a severed hand, with a pool of blood under it. It's a left hand, with a ring on the marriage finger. If marcus turns the hand over, he will notice some images etched on the top of ring.

[Kazuya Hikari]

His brows immediately furrowing at seeing a man, roughly in his mid forties he estimated, sleeping in front of him, thanks to the flames he lit, Kazuya would study the man's face and clothing. Haggard, and tattered clothes, his eyes would narrow at the man's clothing. Barker's soldiers clothing. Moving closer, he would not back down as the man's eyes suddenly shot open, flipping off the gurney he had been lying on and crying out as he hit the floor.

Kazuya watching the man carefully as he scooted backwards, his eyes shut tight, and spoke as though muffled. It was quite obvious the man could not form words. Instead of moving forward, Kazuya would continue to keep his distance, hopefully indicating to the man he meant no harm, and would look around the room, trying to find a pen and paper, even scraps would do, while using his scanner to read the power level of the man, and perhaps the power levels of anyone outside of the room.

"Can you write? Nod once for yes, shake your head for no."

[Delilah A. Black]

The slower man was easy to catch and even easier to dispatch. She didn't want anyone flanking her as she ran past, potentially getting an advantage over her. He had been kicking the girl as well; he was just as guilty as the man who carried her, in Delilahs eyes.

The others, though, were harder to keep up with. As she followed then around a corner, she saw before her a wall of men, all wearing suits (which was fucking weird as shit) fanned out in front of her wearing gas masks. She paid them no mind, continuing her hurried pace forward, looking at the now decapiated head of the man who had taken the girl...who was now being carried out if the area. She pushed herself, bloody knives shimmering as she closed in on the wall of people, ready to cut her way to the kidnapped girl.

Gas erupted around her and, alarmed, she jumped back. Looking behind her, there was another row of men in similar gear, gas pouring out from where they stood as well. Her head started to feel heavy and anger coursed through her at the idea this had been a trap.

Groggy, she pressed herself forward as much as she could, snarling as she approached the line of people who had originally stopped her.

If Delilah tried to turn to run, she would find herself surrounded by men as well, fanned out, almost imperceptible in the dark. Gas would begin to flow up around her and them, and even if she tried to hold her breath, she would feel it burning into her skin. But she would only begin to feel groggy. It burned her lungs and skin. Made her feel so tired. Like all the pain would go away if she would just let sleep take her.

"No..." her body unwilling to respond, one of her knees gave out before she could reach the line. Her head was spinning. Clumsily, Delilah reached a hand to touch her ear piece, only to find her tongue a dead weight in her mouth and her throat tight. She watched as the four men who had taken the girl were killed as brutally as their leader, trying not to breathe. The scenery was starting to slip in and out of focus.

A man with a red tie stepped forward as her second and third attempts to get to her feet failed. She snarled up at him, unable to do anything else. As he crouched, the hand gripping her tanto would shoot forward in an attempt to stab him in the stomach. If she missed, the momentum would simply carry her forward and she would sprawl there on the ground, twitching as the gas worked through her system. Even then, she would still force herself to struggle upright to no avail.

"We watched you, unsure of your guilt. But you have given us the evidence required."

She watched, unable to stop him as he pulled the blue-tooth from her ear and crushed it. She growled up at him hatefully, a spark of fear threading it's way through her body.

"Delilah Black. You are charged with crimes against humanity. You are to be taken for trial."

She would reach up for his throat as blackness entered her vision and took her, down into its depths.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*

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.....[/color]!!!!![/i][/color]

Delilah's eyes opened with a snap and she was on her feet within seconds, hands on her knives as adrenaline scorched through her veins, sure that she was in danger. Then she stumbled for a moment as the last dregs of the gas that had been pumped into her system reminded her of what had transpired. Her breath came hard and fast through her lips as she sucked in the clean air, trying to calm the pattering of her heart while she shivered in the rain.

She took a mental check of herself first and foremost, to see if she had been manhandled in any way she might not have liked, looking for any signs of contact the men may have used to mark her. She also checked her pockets for any clues someone may have slipped her. Once she had these things assured she would relax a little (only a little; she found she could not reach her Qi and this gave her another spike of fear), looking around at her surroundings.

Huge. She was in an open area of some sort with the sky breaking above her, pouring as if the heavens themselves had been torn asunder. Light flashed as lightning broke through the clouds illuminating her surroundings. There was a hatch on her left, with a lock holding the door in place. Not far from that was a lump, so conspicuous on the flat of...wherever she was. She needed to figure that out first.

Tilting her face skyward, Delilah would try to decipher if it was day or night and which direction was North. She would walk forward until she found the edge of the flat space and stared out at the nothing before her.

That is, she saw nothing...well, almost nothing. There was fog and the tops of trees. She couldn't see how far down the building went, but she if she couldn't see the bottom, she wasn't about to risk a potentially lethal drop. Not without her Qi at any rate.

Delilah would stand there for a moment, trying to hazard a guess as to where she was. North, maybe. West most likely. The mountains, or the cusp of them. It would explain why the trees seemed so large. But why was this building out here? Who had built this or, more likely, who had claimed it as their own? And who were the people in the suits who had captured her and brought her here? Where had they taken the girl and why had they lured her there? How had they known her name? How many other names did they know?

How was she going to get off this damn roof?

She let out a long slow breath as she realized her predicament. Feeling for the direction of the wind, she had but one hope, hoping her voice would carry to the ears of the Storm Dragon. Delilah wasn't sure his Qi could even do that or if he would be able to even hear her voice, but it was worth a shot. If they knew her name, they might well know of his. She would speak into the wind, with nothing more than hope spurring her on.

"David...if you can hear me, I've been taken. I don't know where I am. But if you hear this, I must warn you that you are in danger. If you hear this, you might be my only hope of getting out of here alive."

Not even remotely certain that would work, Delilah figured that her next best bet was the lock on the hatch. She would walk back, stooping by the door and examining the lock, trying to see if she would be able to break it in her hands or if she would require the assistance of her knives. Once this was determined, she would leave the hatch for the moment, walking over to the lump on the roof to examine it.

[Jack]

Jack found the canister on the floor before mapping the area inside his head. He started by finding thendoor and then moved back to a starting point. After a sort while he had an idea of the size of the room.

Placing the canister on the ground he noticed it rolled down toward the door. Smirking he stood up found a corner and relieved himself of his weight, by sitting in the corner of the room.

[Reira Ling]

Enter Command.

Reira hovers over the keyboard typing in the respective "/" command code to track the time and location first. Then, onward to any 'My Documents' or files that were most recently accessed. She had some programming knowledge, but very limited so anything beyond basic programming she would have no luck. Other than that, she'll make her way out the room unless anything weird happens.

Reira would cautiously head down the hall. She'd eye the doctor coats and check the pockets for anything that could be informative or of use. Next, she'll look to the right and methodologically check the rooms for any sounds before opening it slightly to see what they have to offer.

Flickering lights is scary...so she'll chill out by these sketchy rooms to make sure she won't get ambushed somehow...

[Phoenix]

OoC: Sorry about the delay, I've PM'd David about it, hopefully he forgives me!


His left foot sloshed through the thin covering of water on the floor, the sound of water echoed around this dark place. Pausing for a moment, Phoenix turned around, trying to ascertain just how far he'd walked... It couldn't have been more than several steps, however, both in front and behind him were pitch black. He raised his hand in front of his face, but could barely see its outline. His sight was seemingly useless at this stage.

Unbidden thoughts rushed through his head, this hardly seemed the place for a trial for crimes against humanity and whoever had brought him here obviously had a somewhat warped view of justice. Continuing forward, forcing step after step through the heavy darkness, the sound of his own footsteps was slowly being drowned out by a more threatening sound. The water under his feet seemed to press against the back of his heel more so than the front. There was clearly a current, one that was growing in strength. Combined with the growing sound of rushing water, all evidence pointed to either a whirlpool or waterfall. Hesitating for a moment, he slowly began walking in the same direction, all the while listening intently for any changes in the sound of the water, dragging his fingers gingerly along the wall closest to him and keenly focusing his eyes, all in an attempt to pierce the veil of darkness. For in a situation like this, any knowledge was power.

[Kyrie Blaze]

The whimpers easily drew Kyrie's attention, and she slipped around the mower, lifting and placing her feet carefully. A dog. Perhaps not a puppy anymore, and how old she couldn't be sure, but from a visual inspection the pooch didn't seem to be hurt.

She crooned soothingly as she extended a hand for the dog to sniff, slowly moving to grab the key with her other hand and tuck it into her vest, just out of sight. If the poor dog was friendly she would move in closer and inspect around to see if it was tied to anything that would trip off an alarm.

If all systems were green and the dog was friendly and there seemed to be no trip wires, Kyrie would gently free the dog and shush it so he or she didn't get to excited, straining her ears to listen all the while. She was, understandably, distinctly uneasy.

While she hoped that the dog wouldn't hinder her...there was no way she could leave the poor thing behind. At one point in a life that felt like centuries ago, she had rescued a dog from Seattle's shelter. Carlian was a memory that was still fresh in her mind, along with her family.

She couldn't be cruel. She couldn't abandon the animal.

"...shhh, little one, shhh..."

If all managed to be said and done, she looked at the dog and then at the shadowed stairs, both up and down...deciding which way she should go, using both ears and eyes. Faint lights or sounds coming from anywhere? Even directions that weren't from that area?

[Marcus Prasad]

The hand was disconcerting to say the least. Coupled that with the unlocked doors and Marcus was beginning to believe this wasn't so much an interrogation room, as it was a bizzare funhouse, a thought that caused his lips to press into a scowl. He did NOT like to be played with. Not knowing what else to do with the hand, Marcus unsheathed His Fang, all six inches of sharpened steel poised above the hand. Swiftly Marcus severed the ring finger and slipped the ring off, his hands blessedly gloved for such grizzly work.

'Waste not, Want not.'

Giving the ring a good looking over, Marcus deposited the trinket into the breast pocket of his jacket and began opening each unlocked door in turn by enough of a crack to peek through and see what was on the other side.

[David B.]

Kazuya Hikari:

The man nodded, but looked around. There were no pencils or paper to write with in this location. He opened his mouth and pointed inside- his tongue was cut off at the base. He closed his mouth again, before looking around himself before returning his gaze to Kazuya.

Delilah Black:

Speaking into the wind, Delilah's voice seemed to carry, drifting off into the sky.

Bending and examining the lock, she notices that around the metal top, a thick layer of rust can be seen. If she applies the right amount of leverage, it may break.

As Delilah approaches the lump, It rolls over- It's the girl she had tried to save earlier. She is barely conscious, and has some facial bruising and dried blood. She is covered by a blanket and groans, but is otherwise unmolested.

[[Dragon territory- David paused, tilting his ear. He was catching the wisps of a voice, the call. But for some reason, it wasn't quite riding on the wind. It was like… he couldn't explain it. He set down the board he was using to try and rebuilt a wall that had fallen, before telling August he would return in a few hours- he needed to check on Delilah. Taking to the sky, he would fly off into the storm.]]

Jack:

As he toys with the cylinder, his thumb brushes the cap. It pops off easily, and a flame leaps from the end- it's a flare. There seems to be a lock on his door, and hanging on the walls? Hundreds of Keys. Most have a deep red mark on them, like someone wiped something on the thicker end. There would probably be fifteen that did not have the mark- someone must have spent a lot of time on this. If Jack still sat down in the corner, he would find it difficult, as there would be a pile of bones there. Written on the floor near the body were the words "No mark", also in a deep red color.

Phoenix:

As phoenix continued forward, he would find himself slipping- as the noise he heard was, in fact, a waterfall. As Phoenix would fall over the side, he would be simulating a ride at a watermark- turns, twists. He would be shot out of the end of the tube into a pile of algae and muck. It would be pitch dark, save for the low glow of a fire coming from the top of the stairs. If he listened closely, he could hear a whining noise, followed by a female voice shushing it.

Should Phoenix move to the top of the stairs, he would see a small blonde and a dog, standing by a tractor, inspecting the area at the top of another set of stairs. There would be a boiler, with an open flame under it which was producing the small glow. He could notice a small dragon patch on her clothing, and she is covered in weapons.

Reira:

As you enter the command, a message appears:

"Please insert correct documentation to begin decoding. For help, use the "Manual" command."

This message has a flashing cursor next to it for continued typing.

((Gonna discontinue hallway path until we fully desert the computer attempts))

Orion:

You awake, safely back in the room you were taken from. The windows are fixed, and there seems to be no indication of the assault.

(Orion Exits)

Kiyr:

Kiyr easily frees the dog, and no traps are noticeable. The dog sniffs her hand and licks in gently before sniffing the key, as though eagerly wanting to bite on it more.

Once she puts it out of sight, the dog lets out a long whine, but goes silent as she shushes him.

At the top of the stairs, you can hear some footsteps, and thudding noises, but they are faint, as though someone is moving furniture.

Marcus:

The ring has a large sapphire in the center, though it is flat. On the sapphire is a cross. Above it, on the band, are the words "Our father in heaven" and below it says "Hallowed be thy name"

As you open the Door 1, you notice a small hallway that turns around the corner to the right. Lights are on the ceiling, and there is no other indication of what is around.

As you open door 2, you notice a small room, like an attic. There is dust covering everything, and in the far corner, there is a hatch on the ceiling. Rain could be heard pattering against it.

Door number three leads downstairs, toward a brightly lit opening. You can see nothing else beyond it.

[Kazuya Hikari]

With the fact the man could not speak safely established, as indicated by the man opening his mouth and pointing to his tongue, which had been cut off at the base, and no writing utensils or paper as far as the eye could see, extinguishing the flame on his right hand, Kazuya had an idea, and would hold his hand out flat to the man, his palm facing upwards.

"Here, write on my hand. Who are you? Do you know where we are, or who did that to you?"

All the while, his scanner would be running, calculating the man's power level, as well as anyone else that could possibly be in the vicinity.

[Delilah A. Black]

Her pace quickened into a sprint as her low-light vision caught the bruised, battered face of the girl, a gasp escaping her lips. She would drop beside the girl instantly, looking her over quickly to see that she was okay. Relatively assured, Delilah felt a surge of relief, duty and...anger. It wasn't enough that these people had left the First Crow on a roof in the middle of a storm, but the injured girl they had taken as well?!

She grit her teeth as heat spread from the back of her mind to put a minute amount of fog in her mind, and was again jarred by not being able to touch her Qi. Usually when she got angry, it activated of it's own accord. She had become accustomed to the cool metal slithering, balm-like, over her skin. Realizing again that it was gone, she felt a thrill of fear. She needed answers.

But first, the girl.

She put a light hand on the girl's face, smiling down at her, "I'm Delilah, from the Crows. I'm going to keep you safe and get you out of here. Just hang on, okay?"

Delilah lifted the girl easily in her arms and carried her over to the hatch in the roof before setting her down gently to attend to the lock. She thought about it for a moment, took both her sheathed knives off her belt and wedged them like a triangle between the latch and the roof beneath her so that the lock was sticking straight up, pinned in place. She lashed her foot forward, slamming the tip of her steel toe boot straight into the lock to bust it open. It might take a few tries (and a couple of resets), but given her leverage, she was sure it would work. If not, what was stopping her from snapping the hinges on the door instead, or breaking through the door itself? The possibilities were endless, and if the first attempt didn't succeed, she would try these other options.

If/once the door was open, Delilah would put her knives back on her belt, but not before drawing her tanto and hacking off a lock of hair. For David, so he could follow (if he came, such a slim chance that even was). She laid it on the roof in an arrow shape, as if to indicate where she had gone. Once this was done, she would pick up the girl again, soothing her with her voice as she whispered assurances and cradled the younger woman against her. Then, she would drop down into the hole from the roof and into whatever room lay beneath her.

[Jack]

Jack kicked the bones out of the way and proceeded to sit down as he stared around the room and looked at all the keys. "Well fuck" he mumbled at last as he curled up and placed his forehead down on his arms which were resting on his knees.

No Mark? What the fuck does that mean. Dammit Phoenix where are you?. He was a fighter not a problem solver so where was his companion to solve the problems for him. All Jack could do is sigh, sit down and relax. Eventually the answer would present itself to him, in the mean time patience would be his friend.

OOC: >.< I will not play your game David xD