Futuristic Dormant Hearts

[_Line 213]

Lucem

The effect of the strange ammunition within the weapon was a delayed one; though the creature took hold of both Alex and Modestine with its grip, its points of contact causing immense pain, as if the creature were attempting to rip their skin from their bodies. Yet before it could, its grip slackened, the thing ultimately unable to hold itself together as it both melted and disintegrated, some portions crumbling while other portions melted as its glowing portions flickered brightly before dying away; an odd mixture between the death of a creature, and the overloading of a machine.

Modestine, now with a renewed death-grip on her gun, forced herself to her feet despite the newfound pain in her ankle. There was very little there to be worried about--simply some redness, maybe pinprick wounds letting free droplets of red. Chest rising and falling, she stepped carefully toward the pooling, motionless mass, staring at a glinting, capsule-like item now embedded within the sludge. It was open, perhaps due to the impact, and the exterior coloration made it clear that it was the very same item that had been fired from Alex's weapon.

She swallowed, then moved to help Alex up, if he needed it. A light grimace, the edges of her lips tilted upward ever so slightly to denote many other emotions--surprise, relief, happiness, embarrassment, pride, and so many more--present as the boy returned to his feet, with or without her help. "If...if you're okay, then we have to keep moving," she eventually said, allowing for a moment of silence following the boy's potentially traumatic experience. "You're doing so well, Alex. You're doing very, very well, and your father would--" she stopped, swallowing her throat, before walking her words back a pace or two. "--When we see him, he's going to be very proud of you. Okay? His lab isn't too far away, and make sure that we don't get separated, alright? There could be more, and some of them could be trying to make their way outside."

 

[Entity.Eclypse]

A quick scan of the room immediately alerted Mochi to two different things, first thing was Hexa. Based on her appearance it was obvious that something had either upset her, and she felt like it was probably related to the doctors. After all Hexa hadn't seemed upset when they were leaving Trocaire, or maybe the other girl was a bit softer than she originally figured her to be. Either way she felt it her responsibility to check up on her, this would be delayed however when she heard the voice of a particular young male. Turning her head she locked onto the freakishly large male, what he was eating to make him that tall was beyond her and honestly she didn't think she'd want to know. Her focus resuscitated her from whatever rabbit-hole she'd dove down, now she had returned to her main goal and that was finding the second person she honestly cared for in this group of misfits.

Leaning forwards in her seat she continued to look towards Luka, her eyes beginning to train on him. His question wasn't anything unorthodox, or even something unexpected, and the response he'd been given was the same. She was less interested in that though, "I'd have to agree.. I mean it's not like they can use what I gave em anyway." She scoffed at the idea of it, the adults and their tangled manner of actions had their pros and cons sure. But regardless of how you sliced it, they were still hiding something, it wasn't just to keep it from those who had the experience that came with it.

With this she stood up and now held her box-cutter, about four clicks and it had extended to a decent length. She pointed it towards the literary leviathan, a rather dangerous appearance had taken her eyes, her head tilted slightly as she further examined him like this. "You're Luka right?" She didn't step towards him and instead opted to take a longer arc, directing her towards Hexa. She'd grown fond of the other female given the, bonding experience they had shared. But putting a little scare into people was never a bad thing, usually it made them realize who you were. Resting her thumb on a small knob she caused the blade to shrink and then expand once more, the metallic clicking serving only to draw attention to it. She quickly flipped the 'armed' box-cutter in her hand, surprisingly enough she had avoided cutting herself, "Hopefully ya kept my sister safe... it'd be a real shame if an injury came about. Don't you agree?" She spoke with venom, she wasn't intentionally singling out the boy... well she was, needless to say her 'big-sister' mode had kicked in.

From here she stood and awaited the next bit of information, she was a short distance between both of her goals so if either attempted to draw her in it was within the cards. She did want to try and help Hexa out, given that she was her partner and all... or at least she had been in the husk for a bit. She also wanted answers as to Hachi's whereabouts, Hexa was here so she could easily get to her co-pilot. However... to unlock her sisters whereabouts, she'd need the key from this colossus.

Interactions: CerpinTaxt (Pulled a Box-cutter on)
Mentions: Inactive User 002 (Moving Towards)​

 

[The One Eyed Bandit]

"C-Come on, that isn't funny..." No, probably not. This was Morgan he was talking to, after all. He'd come into this conversation thinking that the day's events might encourage him to stand on the straight a narrow a little... But it seemed that wasn't the case. He was just as vitriolic as ever. Truly irredeemable. His probably-lies aside, even his advice wasn't worth considering. Checking in on every room was definitely a bad idea. Those doors were probably closed for a reason, right?

And despite the rebellious-looking highlight in his hair, Jeremy was hardly in the pursuit of any more trouble than he was already in. Especially not with that part about 'genetic materials' hanging over his head.

"Anyway... If you're just going to make jokes like that, then I'm going to for help elsewh-" In the middle of his sentence, Jeremy felt something wrap around him and froze. Was this a genetic harvester? Morgan had said they'd only come for him if he tried to escape. Was it because he was asking questions? Had Mor-

Somewhere in the middle of his panicked thoughts, he realized that he wasn't wearing the noises of an orange-clad doctor dragging him off to be cut open, but Vic's voice instead. His first reaction, naturally, was to feel a wave of relief. She was okay. She hadn't been exiled, she wasn't being hauled off to rot in some prison, and she definitely wasn't in the middle of having her organs cut out to be used for some sort of unknowably menacing research.

Then, for the third time that day, Jeremy remembered that he was supposed to be angry.

"Come on, you guys!" Wriggling from between Vic's arms, Jeremy put on the best frown he had and paced away from the pair so he could address the both of them at once. "This is serious, you know? People, like, get exiled for this sort of thing, don't they? So could you please stop joking about it and take things seriously for a second?"

simj26
GasMaskie

 

[_Line 213]

The sound of muffled footsteps slowly rose to prominence over the children's ears, the gait of one of the supervising nurses quieted by the carpeted floor. The tablet tucked neatly in her arms threw a slight orange light upon her pale face and all-white garb, bringing forth a touch of intensity thanks to the revealed dimensions of her visage. Even so, she offered a smile, doing her best to offer some amount of comfort to the children despite the wariness just behind; seemingly, the toll of the day's events was not being paid solely by the pilots.

"Young ones?" she offered following the clearing of her throat, mentally counting those that had assembled. It was an odd choice of wording, yet considering the coming-of-age ceremony that they were supposed to be coming home from right that moment, it was perhaps a more apt word to use than 'children,' or something similar. The nurse did her best to steel herself against their glances, more than aware that not all of them would be welcoming or friendly. Such was natural, considering where they now found themselves, and the treatment, however necessary, that had been visited upon them. "I hope that you're all feeling...well," she said, briefly glancing down to her tablet as her eyes scanned the surface. Once more, she turned her eyes to the group, counting through them before pursing her lips. Someone, perhaps multiple people, were missing, yet some of the others had figured that out for themselves mere moments prior.

Even so, there were things to be done.

Another awkward pause followed as the woman glanced upward to several members of the gathering in particular, as if matching them to particular segments of whatever was present on her tablet. Cain, Morgan, and Connor all seemingly received glances of mixed concern and wariness from her, before she once again turned her attention to the group as a whole. "My name is Carlisle Han, and I'm sure that you all have a lot of questions," she said, raising a hand to lightly push at some of her brown hair, "if you would not mind, I can bring you to someone who would be willing to answer as many of such questions as possible. That said, however, we've not much time, so I would appreciate it if you followed me if you are at all interested." With that, she turned briskly, hair whipping around behind her in a neat spiral as her footsteps began carrying her down the open, unguarded hallway.

 

[Coin]

"Sorry, I have to..." Ida muttered under her breath as she rudely excused herself from the others she had previously been conversing with. She sprung up from her seat and made a beeline for Morgan, Victoire, and Jeremy. From afar, it was hard to hear exactly what they were arguing about, but Ida knew that poor Jeremy couldn't keep Victoire from viciously mauling Morgan for long. Clearly Morgan had said something stupid, that much was obvious, and Ida couldn't help but feel somewhat responsible for her idiot co-pilot now.

There went her futile attempt at pretending not to care.

Ida grabbed a fistful of Morgan's sleeve and gave it a sharp yank to get him to stand down, like tugging on an over-excited dog's leash. She knew full well that she couldn't possibly raise her voice to a tone threatening enough to disarm the situation. Once she was sure that she had his attention, she scolded him quiet enough as not to draw attention away from the adult that had entered the commons, "Hey, idiot, you never know when to stop antagonizing people, do you?"

While Morgan was a complete imbecile most of the time, their shared experiences in Utsāha had at least softened Ida up to the idea that somehow they could be friends. At the very least, she could try to save him from being beat into a bloody pulp as thanks for comforting her while she cried.

As she attempted to pull Morgan away, her scowl of disapproval turned into that of one begged for forgiveness when she turned to Victoire and Jeremy, "I'm sorry, you two. Why don't we go with the doctor together and find out what's going on around here? I think it's only fair enough that we get to ask the questions now."

((Re: GasMaskie , The One Eyed Bandit , simj26 ))

 

[GasMaskie]

The young genius finally opened his eyes, convinced that he wouldn't get any more progress on the book he had selected when a nurse spoke up. He glanced briefly at the gorilla making noises and the puppy getting crushed in its arms before locking eyes briefly with the adult. There was something off about how she looked at him. Something to consider on the way there, he supposed. He felt a sharp pull from the other side of the seat and came face to face with the girl.

Morgan smiled softly. Even if she called him an idiot, it seemed from his auditory observations that she was still quite reserved among her peers. Was this the sort of comfort level that he had achieved with her by co-piloting a war machine with her? The boy couldn't help but be pulled along rather easily by her - there was no doubt that she was physically stronger than him. The gorilla was on another level, however. After another sharp tug, Morgan stood up from the seat - almost reluctantly being reined in by his one-time co-pilot.

An act of course, he was perfectly willing to abide by the girl's whims for the sake of future returns. If the idea that he could only be handled by her, others would be more likely to deal with her if they needed something from him. Furthermore, he could effectively use her as a mouthpiece in return. If others were unwilling to take his words at face value, they'd probably listen to her instead. There was, of course, no way that he'd stop antagonizing others. It was too much fun after all. But with that girl around, he'd probably be able to do so safely if she continued to apologize for him.

He covered his mouth with his free hand as he yawned. One glance down towards his sleeve and back towards her face. This sort of pairing afforded another benefit.

"That sounds like the best option. Though, if you wanted to hold hands, you could have just asked." Morgan brought his other arm up slightly. He could tease her as much as he wanted. It'd probably lead to some sort of painful reprisal at times, but he couldn't resist. His gaze followed the nurse's path down the hallway. On first glance, it looked unguarded and empty - he made a note to examine the passage carefully as they passed through it for surveillance equipment.

"Shall we be off then?"

(Re: Coin , The One Eyed Bandit , simj26 )

 

[QizPizza]

Kori "K.C." Chang
What seemed like forever passed as Kori sat in her room, restless. Everyday was questions, food, and checkups. The girl complied with all of their instructions and told them all she could. After all, they were the adults, weren't they? They couldn't have possibly known how to handle everything, but they sure as heck knew more than that a bunch of teenagers hopped up on emotions and hormones. As such, when she was called out of her room, she didn't have any second thoughts as she was led by a nurse to a circular room where all her classmates were already gathered. A nurse spoke to them.

"Young ones?...My name is Carlisle Han, and I'm sure that you all have a lot of questions. If you would not mind, I can bring you to someone who would be willing to answer as many of such questions as possible. That said, however, we've not much time, so I would appreciate it if you followed me if you are at all interested."

Of course Kori was interested in having her questions answered. This entire situation was absolutely insane. She looked around the room to see if anyone took the offer. Vic, Jeremy, Ida, and Morgan already took up the offer. Kori looked over at Otto and stared at him to see if he would make a move. She chose to make the first move and walk up to him. As she did, she looked for Alex, the other person she was with right before everything went crazy. Her efforts were wasted, as her friend was nowhere in sight. Where was Alex? Did he survive the battle? What if they had accidentally stepped on him or the monster ate him up? "Otto, do you know where Alex is? He went missing after he fell off the Shēnqíng."

Interacting: Hextremus

 

[Lucem]

Maybe it was because of the shock that he didn't have much of a reaction. If not for that, it was possible that he'd be screaming his lungs out. From the moment that the creature grabbed him, he'd been experiencing the worst pain of his life. With clenched teeth, he struggled against the overwhelming discomfort, feeling as if his skin would be torn from his body at any moment. Then, in an instant, the pain was gone, along with his assailant's body. It was now nothing more than a pool of gray, crumbling around the cerulean light at its center.

He had done it. As the rising of his chest finally slowed after multiple heavy breaths, he gazed at the aftermath of his decision. The creature tried to kill him and Modestine, coming dangerously close to doing so. Before that, however, he shot it. For the first time, he had taken a life, even if it was a monster. Whether for better or worse, he didn't have the luxury of reflecting on that. In that situation, it was simply kill or be killed. For now, he'd have to leave it at that.

As he attempted to compose himself, Modestine's voice cleared away the remainder of any distracting thoughts. While she tried to help him stand, Alex simply shook his head, offering the woman a smile as he rose to his feet. "I'm fine. Thank you." He wasn't. Even if the worst of it was over, the pain still lingered. The redness of his irritated skin blended with the small trails of blood that escaped unseen wounds. Despite that, however, he'd do his best to convince Modestine that he was okay. He didn't want to make her worry about him.

Compared to powering through what was left of the burning sensation, maintaining his smile in front of Modestine as she mentioned his father was much harder. Rather than her praise, most of his attention was focused on what she had to say afterwards. It didn't matter if his father was proud of him or not. It was extremely unlikely that he'd feel anything. He wasn't capable of feeling any sort of affection or concern for anyone else, and he didn't need it. Not from him, at least.

For the moment, Alex tried his best to put away all thoughts and feelings about his father. Not only to maintain his focus and prevent Modestine from worrying, but to deal with the internal conflict that had been brewing ever since the woman mentioned that he was working in this building. For years, he had rejected anything positive about his father, the very thought of him being unpleasant. He was the model of everything he didn't want to be. However, he was aware that he might be criticizing a dead man now. He didn't wish death on anyone. That went without saying. With that in mind, there was now a guilt and worry that came along with the resentment he still held for the man.

Right now, there were more important things to be worried about. Modestine mentioned that there might be more creatures roaming the building, potentially trying to get outside. The thought of that kept him focused and alert. If any of them managed to escape, people would be in danger. If he could help it, he wouldn't let that happen. He didn't want anyone to experience the same pain he did, or something even worse. Although, he had already failed in that regard.

"Just one second." Before leaving for their next destination, Alex took a knee, setting the gun down in front of Modestine. Kneeling, he now had a better look at her injury. It was small, but the guilt he felt was great. It was impossible for him to know that there would be a delay before the round took effect, but he still felt responsible. If he had pulled the trigger a second sooner, maybe she wouldn't have been hurt.

Reaching into his pocket, Alex removed his knife and brought out the blade that was tucked inside. He felt bad about ruining his uniform as he cut away at one of the sleeves, but the shirt was already in pretty had shape. With the strip of cloth in hand, he gently wiped away the blood before wrapping it around Modestine's ankle. It may not have helped much, but he felt like he had to do something. Besides, in a lab filled with chemicals and strange monsters, walking around with an open wound could be dangerous.

"Alright. Let's go."

_Line 213

 

[Hextremus]

Otto's attention was diverted from the woman addressing the gathered children by his partner finally making her reappearance. Kori approached him and questioned him about Alex. Frustration flickered in his mind before it was quickly snuffed out; the only physical sign of that moment of frustration he displayed was his right hand curling into a tight fist for a brief second before relaxing again. He looked up at Kori and shook his head.

"I questioned a doctor during my questioning. It seems that even the adults don't know where Alex is."

He sighed quietly and slowly shook his head before rising to his feet, beginning to follow the woman at a leisurely pace. Otto wasn't one for asking questions, but it would be interesting to listen to the answers to the questions posed by the other students. He glanced back at Kori as he walked.

"Come on, we should get some answers. Maybe one of the higher ups knows what happened to Alex."

His eyes darkened for a fraction of a second before returning to their normal blank disinterest.

[Interaction w/ QizPizza ]

 

[Aridis]

Tessa was still so confused.

It all started with loud noises in the Valley, and movement of the Husks--which was so cool. But now, she was being questioned alongside so many other children. The interrogations seemed to last for hours and hours on end. With most of the questions, she had no idea how to answer them. They were all about the Husks, and what had happened in the Valley. Everything that she had seen, done, or heard, she was forced to tell. But, Tessa was left in the dark about most of what was happening. When she didn't know the answer to something or was uncertain, she just fell quiet; something that was rather unusual for the normally eccentric girl.

Perhaps her silence was the reason why she was continuously questioned. After all, it seemed like all the important details were completely lost to her. Or, perhaps they thought that she was hiding something. Only minimal information was obtained from the teenager.

Since the last time that she had been interrogated, Tessa had fallen completely silent. She had followed doctors and staff when they called for her and had gone where they said without question. The girl had almost completely shut down. Not because she was traumatized, but because she was trying to wrap her head around everything that had happened. There was so much to take in... And so much more to learn.

It was all so exciting and confusing. And frustrating... Definitely frustrating. She had nothing to do with the ordeal, aside from being in the area. So why was she here? And since she was here, why wasn't anyone filling her in on every little detail? The situation seemed a bit too important for her to just stay in the dark.

 

[Inactive User 002]

Hexa was glad that everyone else seemed to be okay. She sat down just enjoying the sound of the others just chatting amongst themselves. It was nice not to be the centre of attention with adults asking her all sorts of questions. It was hard to tell but some seemed to be bickering amongst themselves which wasn't good if they needed to escape. She had seen Mochi though didn't want to talk to her as she was still a bit annoyed with her. If they talked Hexa would probably let out I told you we so or I told you something bad was going to happen. However she still liked the girl and didn't want to ruin a potential new friendship.

When the woman arrived saying she would take them to someone with answers Hexa immediately stood by the woman tapping her foot impatiently. It was at this moment she saw Kori and she was overcome with joy knowing her friend was here. However she was overcome by worry hearing that Alex was missing. I mean she didn't like him as much as Kori, but she was his friend even if they were only friends due to Kori being his friend.

 

[_Line 213]

Modestine did her best not to let the wound affect her, clenching her jaw lightly as Alex moved to wrap it. Even so, her facade had faded dramatically; there was little need to pretend that everything was alright, at that point. Alex wasn't an idiot, and as of the ceremony that morning, he wasn't even truly a child anymore.

Things weren't okay. Modestine couldn't tell that lie anymore. All that she could do was hold out for the possibility that perhaps, perhaps, everything would manage to right itself against all current odds.

It took a bit of effort for the woman to start up again; if any more of those creatures were lurking in the halls, her injury would likely impact her ability to shoot properly. Even so, she kept a firm grip on her weapon despite her limp, doing her best to lead by example as the two once more made their way through the underground complex. The facility once more returned to a deafening sort of silence, the dead atmosphere more befitting for a tomb or some sort of ancient ruin than it was for any sort of modern-day research facility. The lack of sun, the lack of knowledge of what was happening to the others, the complete isolation from the outside world--it all made it feel as if the duo were lost in time, stuck in some sort of weird, ruined place of stasis.

"Your father's portion of the facility is attuned to a biological lock," Modestine eventually said, breaking the silence as she leaned against a wall, "that's...part of the reason why I needed you to come with me, besides wanting to make sure that you were safe." She pursed her lips lightly. "I just--we need to make sure that he's alright." She carefully turned to look around a nearby corner, letting out a sigh of relief as she noted a clear hallway before them. At the end were a series of heavy-duty shutters, likely blocking what was once a more attractive entryway. With the locale on lockdown, however, the only way to get the shutters open likely had to do with the electronic pad on the right side.

Yet, Modestine did not start for the doorway right away, instead looking back to Alex as she watched him carefully. "Alex, I--I know that you must have a lot of questions. Once we get inside, we can talk, I promise. How are you feeling? Is everything alright? I...it pains me to simply drag you along like this, please talk to me."

---​

The hallway beyond the gathering hall appeared empty save for those that chose to follow the nurse, individual rooms branching off into curving subsections, illuminated by light flowing in through windows offering vantages of closed-off rooms. There was something confusing about the buildling's purpose; it was far too clinical and pleasingly-designed to be any sort of hard detention center, yet at the same time lacked the patients and ordinary equipment that one might expect from some sort of treatment center.

To an extent, at least during the trip, it appeared to lack just about anybody; the doctors that had been overseeing the children mere moments ago were nowhere to be found, and there was seemingly nothing stopping any of the children from seemingly wandering down just about any hallway they so pleased.

Were they trusted, or were they simply being watched?

The path charted by the nurse eventually led to a span between two individual portions of the building, the elevated walkway exposing the facility as a bright white place atop one of the forested mountains, looking down upon valleys on both sides. Pines, maples, and other foliage wrapped their way down the various slopes, coating everything as far as the eye could see with the same shade of green, tinted ever so slightly by the dying remnants of the sun's last light. Column was nowhere to be found; even the blinking lights of its radio tower remained out of sight.

At the end of the walkway, the nurse came to a stop, positioning herself just shy and to the side of the automatic door that marked the beginning of the second, smaller portion of the facility. Within was a single room, an expansive yet surprisingly empty office, populated by a single man at the far end. The papers that had once been occupying his attention were set down upon the desk, and his hands folded before him in respectful idleness.

Whomever the man was, he had aged with surprising grace, a few wrinkles and the beginning of greying hairs being the most prominent markers of his late-middle-aged status.

"You must be the children I've heard so much about," he said, his voice warm, nearly sweet in a way, "I'm sure that you have a lot you want to talk about."

 

[Soviet Panda]

Connor followed the nurse without saying a word. He had so many questions, well, two really. What was going on and where were they? He figured the second one would be the easiest one to answer, or the one he'd get an answer that he liked. The first question might get an answer, but it might be one he doesn't like and/or doesn't understand. The glance he had gotten from the nurse did not go unnoticed by him, so maybe he should ask what that was about. Then again, they probably wouldn't give him an answer for that one. No, stick with the original two, don't go pushing your luck.

By the time they reached the man's office, Connor had recovered his tough guy persona. And that only meant that he was standing up straight, chin up, and arms crossed. This man was hiding something, that much was obvious, to Connor at least. "Yeah, what was that thing in the forest? Where are we? Why are we here? Where's Column?" Well, that was certainly more than the original two he had come up with, but once he got started they just sort of kept coming.

 

[dwif]

Seb followed behind the group. Each of the other children seemed to be concerned with their own issues, and he didn't feel now would be the time to get involved with emotions running high. The hallways went on and on, but was uncomfortably quiet. Nobody walked the halls and the rooms that they passed seemed to be unoccupied. What was this build built for? It seemed too big for something that put up without anyone's knowledge, the government had to be involved somehow.

As the group passed over the walkway linking the two sections of the building Seb stopped. He looked out across the wilderness, the same sort of environment they were fighting in not long ago. But this seemed serene. Nothing artificial broke the green that stretched out far beyond them. Nothing artificial? How far away were they taken from their homes? He searched for any sign of Column or civilization, but his search came up empty. He had no idea where they were taken. Is this why nobody cared about where they went in this complex? If anyone did manage to escape, where would they go? How long would they last in the wilderness alone? The only option that they had was to cooperate with whoever was keeping them here, because at least they were keeping them alive and safe.

He caught up with the rest of the group before being ushered into a spacious office. A man waited for them within and greeted them with a sickeningly fake greeting. Seb didn't recognise the man, he hadn't seen him around Column. So what did he have to do with them? Before he could ask any questions Connor jumped in, blurting out the questions that must have been on everybody's minds. HE waited for him to finish before stepping forward. Gesturing to Connor he spoke up "He covered most of the questions, but I have a couple more. Who are you? Do our families know we're here? And the last one, you obviously aren't going to kill us otherwise you would have done it by now, so why take us and keep us here against our will?

Mentioned:
Soviet Panda

 

[CerpinTaxt]

Ida rose a good point, but that just make Luka more concerned. Something wrong with them? Like..a disease? Did piloting Husks lead to cancer or something? Luka didn't much time to think over what everyone had said as he heard the sound of clicking coming from nearby. He rose his head up, spotting Mochi with a box-cutter. Pointed at him, no less. "Um..yes? I'm Luka. Why are you..pointing that at me?" His posture changed, taking on a more defensive position as he watched her intently.

She seemed concerned about her sister, but that didn't mean she had to point a scary looking knife at him. She flipped the knife around, surprising Luka when she managed to not cut herself in the process. "I um..I don't know what happened to Hachi. When we all got 'detained', me and her were split up. She was okay when we parted ways!" Goodness, Luka was awful at reassuring people. He slowly stood up from his chair, taking a few cautious steps away from Mochi as she stood aside what he assumed to be her friend. He nearly bumped into the other furniture as well. "I don't know where she is now. I..guess she's still being questioned? Please don't hurt me."

He really didn't want more injuries. He froze in place as he heard one of the nurses enter the common room, calling everyone's attention. He turned to face the woman, listening as she gave them the possibility of getting some answers. All they had to do was follow her lead. A chance to get away from the scary girl with the knife, and a possibility of getting some of his questions answered sounded like a wonderful combination. He followed the small group of other kids who in turn were following the nurse.

--

The hallways were so horribly lonely. Completely empty, like an abandoned building or a school whose students had been released for the day. The only sounds Luka could focus on were the sounds of his footsteps and the footsteps of the others. Part of him want to break off from the others, to wander the rest of the facility and sate his curiosity; but that was such a foolish idea. He might end up becoming lost within the hallways or worse; get in trouble with the staff.

The nurse stopped at one of the doors, opening to reveal..someone. Luka wasn't sure who they were, but they seemed rather nice. The others were already blasting questions his way, but Luka only had one come to mind. He had to wait for an opening, a brief window of silence. "What are these tests you've been doing on us for?" He abruptly blurted out. He really wanted to know, and it's not like anyone else had asked. "Are you testing for something?"

_Line 213 Entity.Eclypse

 

[Lucem]

He was the son of Adam Kain. That's the only reason he was here. Alex had a feeling that was the case, but things finally became clear. Modestine didn't need him. She needed his blood. He was just a human key, only needed to open the door that potentially led to his father. For that purpose alone, he was led here. The current situation was much different from other times in the past, but a part of him recognized that his father's existence still managed to affect his own life.

Alex said nothing as they continued the journey to the lab. He only wondered what sort of relationship Modestine had with his father. She was clearly worried about him. Her words and actions made it obvious. Of course, it was natural to be worried about someone she knew, especially when their life was in danger. However, his father had changed a lot over the years. Alex just couldn't picture him having a positive interaction with anyone these days. Were things different with his coworkers?

When Modestine stopped moving, Alex came to a halt behind her, giving his attention to the shutters directly ahead of them. Aside from the security doors, an electronic pad was the only thing in sight. It must've been the lock that she mentioned earlier. With only one option available, Alex moved to fulfill his purpose for being here, but stopped when Modestine remained still, simply watching him until she finally spoke.

Alex listened to her words carefully, paying attention to her expression and the tone of her voice. She promised that they would finally be able to talk once the two of them were inside. While he still intended on trying to get answers for the many questions that filled his mind, he was more concerned with how Modestine was feeling. She asked about him, but he was worried about how much stress the woman was under. Not only did she have to worry about his father and the many creatures that could be roaming the building, but she also had to look after him.

"I'm fine." Smiling as best as he could, Alex held up his sleeveless arm, speaking with a small touch of laughter in his voice. "Just a little chilly." Despite what he said, the blood flowing through his injured arm kept him warm. He wasn't fine, but telling her that wouldn't benefit anyone. It was better to just put up a front and try to ease her worries. Right now, he could only smile and try to make things a little better. Along with opening the shutters, that's all he was good for.

Continuing toward the lock, Alex took a breath as he tightened his grip around the gun. It was possible that more of the same creatures from earlier were on the other side. He still didn't have much experience, but at the very least, he'd be ready this time. Preparing himself for the worst, Alex pressed his hand against the pad. Even if they didn't act like it anymore, this thing proved that he and his father were still family.

_Line 213

 

[GasMaskie]

The pale boy's mind swirled as he followed behind the nurse. While it was tempting to explore or persuade someone else to do so in his stead, he desired immediate answers. As he kept in step with the rest of the group, he noted the design of the building. Perhaps they had intended to create a stress-free environment? If he had to hazard a guess, he'd call himself a lab rat being forced to run a maze right now. Perhaps once night arrived, he'd be able to discern the North Star and work from there to figure out just how to get back to Column.

When the group came face to face with the old man at the desk, he had his doubts about his demeanor. Far too saccharine for his tastes. He collected his thoughts as another boy asked his questions. Then that soft-lipped Seb spoke up. Basic questions, along with some acknowledgement that their captors had the chance to end their lives long before this meeting. He glanced over to Ida and studied her face. From prior behavior, she didn't seem the sort to speak up. If anything, she only really seemed to snap if he was involved. With that in mind, Morgan was the next to speak up.

"Let me cut to the chase. Those Husks haven't moved for generations of others who entered their cockpits. I assume that's why we're being kept here. But what I want to know is, why is that possible? What makes us suitable pilots? I'd ask more about the nature of the Husks and how they're related to that creature that appeared, but that can wait for another time."

( _Line 213 )

(Mentioned: Coin Soviet Panda dwif )

 

[simj26]

Cain“ You worry too much, Jeremy. ” Cain folded her hands across her chest tilted her head in amusement. Sometimes, his down-to-earth approach was welcome. It provided her with the grounding she needed, a safe spot to land if she ever flew too high on Icarus’ wings. That having been said, on other occasions, it was purely unnecessary. That wasn’t to say she didn't appreciate his sentiments. On the contrary, it made her want to just hug him even more. Still, she needed to knock some sense into his pessimism, if one could call it that. “ After a stunt like that, getting rid of a monster that was on the gates of our Colony? Exile? That’s just silly. As weird as things might get, I don't think the Mayor would be that unthankful. ” Or so she hoped. Things were making too much and too little sense at the same time. She’ll sort it out when more information was present. It was just too soon to draw any conclusions.

And as such, she chose to take a backseat to the proceedings. Physically, she was still there, but she withdrew herself from the conversations, watching the other kids as they followed the nurse. She noted that, as they walked, the halls were devoid of people. The sheer extent of the building would mean at least one staff running around, but her experience spoke otherwise. She furrowed her brow as they made their way onto a walkway. Column’s fairly noticeable radio tower was nowhere to be seen. Heck, even Column was missing. This was perhaps one of the few times that she was unnerved. Where were they?

She thought to leave the talking to the other kids first when an aging man emerged from the doorway they arrived at. She had her questions, but it was better that everyone did their squawking first. Besides, Jeremy was better off handling conversations, and she was better off handling ‘conversations’.

 

[_Line 213]

The panel beeped, and with a quiet hiss, the metal gate slid upward, revealing a simple set of glass doors. In sharp contrast with the rest of the facility, the space beyond was nearly pristine, save for a few rolling chairs that seemed as if they had been hastily pushed away some time prior. Modestine, having kept close to Alex as he approached the terminal, pushed open the nearest door with a light nod, holding it open to ensure the boy made his way inside.

Here, the clinical nature of the facility was truly laid bare, the blankness of the beginning of the maze's inner sanctum serving, at that point, as a time-capsule for the rest of the facility. Computers sat on desks along one wall, monitoring now-decommissioned systems, lockers filled with working gear lined another, and on the opposite end of the room sat a heavy door, unmistakably the beginning of some sort of airlock. However, Modestine showed no real interest in reliving the recent past, instead striding intently over to a waiting security terminal as she went to work. Before she could delve all that deeply into her operations, however, a crackle, followed by a voice, came over the intercom.

"...I don't know who you are, or how you got in here, but you need to leave," came a croaked, barely there voice, something that had undertaken a journey beyond suffering and back again.

Modestine looked up, wide-eyed at the voice. "Adam? Adam it's me, it's Modestine!"

"Modestine," the voice repeated, as if it were trying to put a face to the name, "how did you get in here?"

"I'm..." The woman glanced back, pursing her lips at her young accompaniment for a moment, before looking up toward the speakers again. "I'm here with Alex," she confessed, "we're here to get you out of here."

"You brought Alex?" Were the man on the other end of the intercom healthier, his voice might have sound properly incensed, yet as things stood, he could only muster the barest of indications. "The two of you need to leave. Immediately. The halls beyond the entrance are gassed--"

"--What?! Why would you gas the only exit?"

"This conversation is over, Modestine."

The woman opened her mouth, as if moving to speak, yet no words came as she stared at the speaker above her. Slowly, she closed her mouth, and looked to the boy. "Alex...can you get through to your father, please?"

---​

The man motioned for the children to gather closer to his desk, should they choose to, leaning forward lightly as he listened to their questions in turn. "Column is a short ways off, by car," he began, briefly gesturing to the window behind him, "this facility sits in neutral ground between two Colonies; it was built for research, initially, but we eventually began moving more and more operations elsewhere." Of course, exactly where that elsewhere was, as well as what was done there, were going to remain completely unmentioned. "Your parents are aware that you're safe and that you've been taken in. We've also gone ahead and recovered as many of your belongings as we could, though you'll have to understand that there were some...losses, considering the commotion."

Here, he paused, pulling one of the papers toward him as he looked them over. "The tests are just a more advanced variation of the standard checkups you're accustomed to receiving in Column. Ensuring physical and genetic integrity, testing for exposure to harmful radiation. As I'm sure you can imagine, the machines that you activated require quite a lot of energy to operate." He set the sheet down lightly, face-down, before clasping his hands together with a light smile. "We've brought you here because we, too, have questions, though not ones either of us can answer alone. Between us and you, we can figure out why the Husks have decided to move, and we can keep Column and the other colonies safe." With that, he reached for another page, this time pushing it forward as an offering to the group of children.

"What you fought is what is known as an Artificial Biological Entity. Collections of microscale machines working together to create large-scale combatants. I know it's not exactly what you were told in history class, but..." He tapped a finger twice on the page, the paper partially composed of summarized specifications and images, almost entirely of gigantic, lumbering beings, "...These were what pushed humanity to its breaking point in the middle of the war. It's a point of contention these days which former country created them, but we've received word from other Colonies that they've been increasingly active since the earlier incident."

 

[Coin]

As she and her classmates were lead through the labyrinth of sanitized hallways, Ida elected to walk beside Morgan. It wasn't necessarily because she liked being in his presence, but being trapped in a massive mind-melding murder machine for the better part of an afternoon certainly made her more comfortable around him compared to the others. At the very least, Ida had someone to share the blame with if she was inevitably in trouble. It was Morgan's idea to get inside the Husk after all.

Ida wasn't really surprised at the bombardment of questions that her classmates asked right off that bat. She was equally as unimpressed with the nameless adult's answers. She felt as if she already knew the answers to those questions in the back of her mind, and the adult addressing them only confirmed her suspicions. However, Ida did regret not paying more attention during her history classes. It was easy to be lied to, when she lacked empathy towards the subject to begin with. At no point in her life had she questioned the cause of her existence in Column, and how the world around her had come to be before her. Then again, did anybody in her class? Her eyes scanned her peers among her, and couldn't possibly imagine any of them having the curiosity or drive, save for maybe Morgan on a quiet day.

Initially, Ida planned to let the others do the talking, while she soaked in the information as she was used to already. However, something was grating on her thoughts. If something like the Artificial Biological Entities did exist, and they were the threat to the continuation of human life like the adult had mentioned -- what role did a bunch of delinquent teenagers have in the big picture? Ida bit her lower lip, carefully choosing her words and tone. She uncrossed the defensive posture her arms had formed in front of her to raise her hand slightly to get the adult's attention.

"Excuse me, sir," Ida began, then let her hand droop back down once she had the floor. "I have a question. I don't quite understand why you're telling all of this to us. Sure, we managed to kill one of those things earlier, but does that really warrant our involvement? Surely the colony guards have some sort of... other measure to use against them that doesn't include us -- we are just teenagers after all. Why are you letting us know the truth if we aren't responsible for addressing the threat in the first place?"

((Re: _Line 213 ))

 

[Cosmos]

Pain- A throbbing sensation had echoed through the small girls head as some large thrashing movement at the end of the battle knocked her completely out of it, if not from her body's already weak condition over stressed, maybe she shoud've listened to that doctor more carefully….

'Did I-…. fail you again?…. big-…. sis….' her minds words left a saddened and strained smile on her face as her vision faded black and her pale body fell limply to the floor, pink eyes closed off from the world.
___________________________

Waking up a gentle buzzing filled her ears as her eyes slowly slit and pulled themselves open, watery ducts trying to clear with blinking as the sterile white ceiling came into view and her head moved to the side in confusion, an IV stuck into her arm and dressed in some sort of hospital gown. Just what had happened- Her eyes widened as her mind rushed with memories, but most of all the disappointment and guilt of that last moment, she'd failed again, she couldn't last it all out, she didn't even know if Michi was okay?… Wait- was she?!

Quickly the girl sat up asking a little in the bed in panic, wincing as her head ached from strange thoughts reminiscent in her mind and the sensation you get after laying down for far too long. yanking out the IV with a light wince she glanced around the small what she could only assume as a medical bay who knows where, stumbling forwards lightly before regaining the more awake feeling in her legs she smiled a little more confidently and pushed open the door, stepping out and into the halls with curiosity and hesitation, feeling her hands against it lightly as she moved onwards looking around growing ever more nervous as she bit her lip, just where was she, where was Mochi? Was she here to?

It was then her ears picked up a certain distant hiss of a yell form a certain direction, her eyes lit up as she rushed forewards down the halls until she came to a stop panting in the doorway of a now empty room, empty of all except one person.

"MOCHI!" she practically yelled with every inch of her lungs, flinging herself forwards and into the girl, luckily missing the box cutter she was all to used to dodging the girl wielding and wrapped arms tightly around the others back, closing her eyes and pushing her face into the others shoulder, the sightly smaller height difference seeming so huge when you took into consideration their differing personalities.

"I-I missed…. you so much I-I was so scared I…. I failied- I couldn't…. I couldn't stay awake till the end I couldn't-…. I couldn't destroy that thing for you… I though you were hurt o-or!-… worse-…." she stuttered out between tears streaming down her pale cheeks, she always was easy to cry, ever since a child.

Interactions- Mochi ( Entity.Eclypse )​

 

[Entity.Eclypse]

Mochi's vision carefully locked onto Luka, his movements reminded her of a weakened animal. The first word that came to mind, Pitiful, nothing more and nothing less than that. She smirked with a rather evil appearance when he began to move, though it wasn't like he'd have seen it. After that she could hear his footsteps along with the rest of the group as they moved away. Clicking her tongue she stood there still, "With an attitude like that, I might as well have trusted my sister with a slug." she sighed with obvious irritation towards the male. Having her box cutter out like this was, reassuring to say the least. It meant if any of those doctors came back to question her and didn't accept the answers again, well.. needless to say they'd have a bad time.

From here she gazed over her shoulder and down the hall where the others had disappeared from, she couldn't hear them anymore... a blessing perhaps? Instead their chatter had been replaced by the sound of, footsteps. It was probably just a doctor coming back again, or maybe nurse sent to fetch her. Either way she couldn't be bothered to give either the time of day. The footsteps seemed to hasten, quickly approaching her location. So she turned to look and see what had appeared, a blank appearance on her face as she awaited whatever was arriving.

This expression was quickly replaced with one of astonishment as a form, not unlike her own, stood within the door-frame. Her arms went still for a moment as her sister enveloped her fully, the sudden jar sent her a few steps backwards but her footing was restored before they could fall. She could feel a dampness beginning to take the shoulder of her jacket, thankfully the darker coloration would hide the tear-stains this was known from past experience. One hand wrapped around Hachi's form while the other closing and then replacing her box cutter to her jacket pocket. "H-Hachi calm down. Calm down... " She spoke softly as the other hand joined to hold the twin.

"Don't apologize to me for something you couldn't control... we both know what that kind of thing does to you. The strain those things put on you... it's unreal..." She rubbed her siblings back for a moment to try and calm the other. This wasn't unusual to spot from the two of them, when they were children it had been this way... and even now it was the same. Mochi smiled a little bit in reminiscence, then she came back to the matter at hand. "I've told you before though... I'll be fine. I'm more worried about you... did the doctors do anything to you? I mean.. they obviously changed you into another outfit." She kept her volume lower not wanting to cause her sister to freak out or anything.

She leaned her head upon Hachi's, trying to comfort her sibling a little bit, "Also... I think you guys are the ones that stopped it. It got weakened from the rest of us... but I think your husk killed whatever that monster was.... I didn't hear you on the comms though and..." the twin-tailed girls voice trembled for a moment, "I feared the worst... and then you weren't in the common room with everyone else, so I tried to find answers.... i-i'm just glad to see you're alright now." She choked up towards the end but quickly attempted to force herself into remaining calm.

Mentions: Cosmos (Hachi)​

 

[Cosmos]

Hachi continued to stand there enveloped in the hug for as long as she could before pulling back a little with a saddened smile and teary closed eyes, lifting an arm off the others back and rubbing at her eyes with her hospital clothing vigorously as her breaths still stuttered, clearly trying to put on a brave face despite the obvious distress. Her breaths continued to stutter as she desperately tried to stop the tears streaming down her cheeks, 'why do I always- have to be such- such a crybaby….' she thought to herself with a slight giggle escaping her lips as she removed the arm and opened her pink eyes slowly, staring over at the strangely similar image in front of her, despite all their differences the resemblance in it's most basic form was hard to deny.

"I-I'm fine I'm just- gl-glad your- ok-okay sis-…." she stuttered, trying to calm her breathing as she shook her head, "They didn't do anything I know of, it's okay I just- passed out l-like usual!- I'm such a crybaby after all-" it was here she cut off and eyes widened with surprise, "W-Wait-" she stumbled over her whisper, "W-We landed the finishing bl-blow?…." she said, her smile brightening up a little more genuinely, had she actually done it? Had her and Luka really taken that thing down and really, saved people?…. Her mind raced all over the place.

'Sis! Wait up! W-Wait up I'm behind! Wait for me! P-Please!-…..' the memories of back then flew into her mind, Mochi running ahead through the gardens or fields with others as she struggled to keep up behind, the shadow she always chased the fingertips of.

'I can try harder- I can do better to!' the sleepless nights she'd spent trying to study just to get near her sisters effortless scores, the colds she'd caught gardening outside in the rain, the days she spent all alone because she didn't want to disturb the other, the chores she'd done to make up for her messes, was it really paying off- just…. a little? For the first time in so long, she felt like she'd won something, like she'd really come ahead.

So why…. Could she feel a tear running down her cheek? Guilt?- she closed her eyes once again smile quivering onto her face, what right did she have to be happy about this…. No. She didn't need to win anything…. She was fine with being the shadow forever…. always coming second as long as…. As long as Mochi was alright.

Entity.Eclypse

 

[dwif]

The man answered the questions that were fired at him, but the answers he provided still seemed lacking somehow. It was almost as if he was giving the bare minimum and expecting everything the group knew in return. This one sided exchange of information bother Seb, after all they had done they were just being used as another tool for whoever this man or group were.

He quickly moved onto the topic of what the creature they fought was. Seb didn't care for the specifics, and it just seemed like another ploy to try and distract them from the fact that they were being used. Seb began to grind his teeth out of frustration as the "history lesson" continued on, waiting for another chance to get some satisfactory answers. If being civil got no answers he would have to resort to different methods. Sure he hated to stand out in these sorts of situations, but he hated being taken from his home and held against his will a whole lot more.

Before he could start with his second round of questioning, someone else spoke up asking why they were needed at all. This seemed like a good point to jump on to Seb so he spoke up "If I've been following up until now, and stop me if I'm wrong, the reason they're telling us this is because we did more in the short time we were down in that valley than they have in years of research. I'll be the first to admit it, I'm not the brightest. But did you guys even think of going into the cockpits? That all we did. And if there is more to it, then the key component in all of this is us. Without us your research isn't going to go anywhere is it? In short you need us to figure this out. We can all leave right now leaving you with nothing, or you can stop giving these half-assed answers and give us the full picture and we can consider helping." He stopped himself, hoping that this may have hit a nerve with the man. With his part done for now he fell back into the group to let the others have their say on the matter.

 

[_Line 213]

The man waited patiently, aging eyes flicking between those that spoke as he took their responses with measured, practiced, nearly fatherly concern; even when there were opportunities to speak up or to otherwise interject, the man merely waited for his turn, ensuring that the children had said all that they cared to before moving to respond. "The main reason why we need you, above all else, is that from what little information we still have on the machines, they tend to be very...stubborn, let's say, when it comes to their pilots. This isn't to say that they're picky so much as...well. Once they open up to you, they don't appreciate replacements." He pursed his lips lightly, glancing down at the sheets on his desk for a long, silent moment. "As I'm sure you might have noticed, the machines have minds of their own to an extent. I suppose that you could consider losing both pilots at the same time to be somewhat similar to losing two personal friends."

Then, his gaze flicked back to the children as a whole. "That having been said, I'm not going to say that we're going to force you," he said, his expression still strangely parental despite the gravity of his tone, "but so far, we have very minimal measures when it comes to dealing with the Entities as things are; what we do have is, as I'm sure you could imagine, nowhere near as effective as the machines you've brought online. Column--your home--as well as my own colony, and the colonies of many others, will likely be in danger before long, even if it turns out that there are other machines out there waiting to be activated. Six-hundred years isn't exactly kind on technology; it's something of a miracle that there were so many functional ones in one place, even if most in the valley were still in ruins. If they're going to be used--whether that's by you, or by others--then they're going to need heavy servicing. If you're up for the task, we'll need you to bring the machines to one of the original combat docks in the area. If--and this is a big if--we can restore some of the databanks there, then we can share some of that information with you."

The man kept his inner thoughts remarkably veiled; whether or not he was dodging the questions he didn't want to answer, or simply didn't know as much about the situation as one might want to think was completely up in the air. "In all honesty, I wish I had more to reveal to you. As I mentioned before, I'm something of a local representative, not a colony leader. One of the first things that you'll all learn about the adult world before long is that there are a lot of things that are best kept in the minds of only a few people." Indeed, the man showed not a bit of resentment when it came to being kept in the dark, though time would tell whether or not he felt the children should feel just as complacent. "I understand that this is a large burden on you children, and I don't mean to place it upon you casually. Yet, we must move quickly--and if you are at all willing, I would rather we move sooner as opposed to later. From what I've gathered from the reports I've been given, a few have launched the hypothesis that the Entities will have something of an interest in the servicing sites as well."