Tower of Eternity - IC

[Eru]

M A X

---

"Is that offer for all of us?"

"Unless you're going to keep your pie-hole running, then sure." Max half-turned and squinted at the girl trailing behind, before slowing his pace. There was a newcomer approaching them, someone who Max felt to have bit of a commanding aura about her, though he could not quite describe the sensation.

"All of you! We need to leave, immediately. I don't know what that sound was but it's going to be hurtful I'm sure."

One of the other men nearby stepped forward to reply.

"Good, that dude over there's offered his place.
Just before you came actually. I think we're all pretty okay with getting the hell outta here!"

Things were getting complicated, and Max's head started to spin. He had to concentrate hard on staying calm, in order not to let the electric sparks creep from his fingers into Stanley's body.

The blue-haired girl from before didn't sound like she was enjoying this any more.

"Oh are you sure? Because I was just thinking we could hang around, have a fucking picnic, ya know? Seems like the best time for it.
I'm with Canuck here - it doesn't really matter where we end up, what matters is we aren't here now! We can argue the specific not here when we're....well...not here.
Just run, alright?"

Cursing, the girl took off. Max looked back at Pennie, who had gone silent, and then around at the group of these accursed undead. What to do?

Another girl in the vicinity spoke up, somewhat timidly and holding her hands against her head. But, Satele followed the new arrival, leaving the others with haste. In turn, Leah kicked up dust, following Belle and not so much as looking back at the trio. "Guess she's taken care of, then," Max mused quietly, turning back to face Pennie, and nearly self-inflicted a moderate case of whiplash as he looked to see why the earth suddenly had gastrointestinal issues.

The ground erupted, and from the crack came a creature as black as night. Leah could not stop herself from falling into it, and Max's eyebrows shot off his head when she instead fell through the beast. The creature looked half-man, half-snake, and for a moment the insane conspiracy theories about 'lizard-men' running the world passed through Max's mind. His hands gripped Stanley subconsciously, but he could not move, terrified at the beast in spite of himself. Run! Get away! Get to safety! His feet would not obey.

Leah's hands were shaking so much, the motion could be seen from here. She fired wildly at the shadow beast, but to no effect -- either it didn't hurt, or the beast didn't care, continuing to advance. The others who remained nearby fell into a total panic, and it was then that Stanley fully awoke. Grappling suddenly at Max's clothes, he nearly pulled all three of them to the ground, but Max kept upright with some effort, finally finding himself able to move again.

"Steady, steady there," Max tried to reassure the younger man, pulling him quickly up to his feet, still supporting him while facing down the oncoming beast. "We have to move, now! Scatter!" Despite this command to the group at large, Max tugged at the arms of both the people beside him, apparently determined to get this man a shield bowl of soup.

---

Interactions: @Starlighter @Astroblaze @RJS
Mentions: @The_J @Greenie @SkittlesAndSpike

 

[Astroblaze]

[fieldbox="Leah McCloyd, #22AAEE, solid"]

fright

#22AAEE Date: 3 days after the EMP
Time: late afternoon
Location: Philadelphia, PA—the Tower
Tags: Max (@Eru), plus everyone else at the Tower
Character Profile

Leah watched in dismay as her shot, sent wild by her unsteady grip, barely zinged past the creature's head, the monstrosity continuing its advance undeterred. While she was relieved that it had not turned back on her, it merely ignoring her did not help the others. She cast a quick glance to the gun. She had only five shots left before she would have to reload, and all her spare clips were blocks away in her backpack. Oh right, her backpack—she would need to remember to grab that before she left the area.

Glimpsing motion in the corner of her eye, she looked over to note that the man who had touched the tower had finally come to his senses, but if the way that he was hanging on the older man was any indication, he was far from able to carry himself at the moment.

"We have to move, now! Scatter!"

Leah was all for getting the heck away from this thing, but she just couldn't abandon them to this terror, especially since she seemed to be the only one carrying any sort of weapon.

"You guys get to the barricade!" she shouted past the creature. "I'll try and hold it off and meet you there!"

If she could distract it just long enough for them to get away, that would be enough. She would just have to hope that she could run faster than this thing could, well, slither, probably. Steeling herself, she set her jaw determinedly and lifted the weapon again, aiming high just in case it was actually incorporeal. With a glance down the barrel, she cracked off a pair of shots into its back.[/fieldbox]

 

[RJS]

The creature let out a terrifying howl as the bullets thudded into its back, knocking it forwards with the momentum. A black mist began to seep from the sites of impact, though it rapidly dissipated as it spread into the air. There was a moment where it seemed as though they may have been saved from the threat, but then it pushed itself upright and charged forwards with a vicious hiss. Pennie was stood between it and the rest of the group, and before she could react an arm had snapped out and grabbed her, squeezing painfully tight. Small arcs of electricity danced across the creature's hand as she howled in pain. The beast, snarling at the irritation, flung her away towards the tower. Crashing heavily to the ground, Pennie was rendered unconscious by the impact.

As the creature turned its attention back to the horrified onlookers, another form seemed to...peel itself away from the tower. This creature took the form of a humanoid, though the proportions were all off. The right arm dragged along the floor, while the shortened left leg caused the creature to move with a lurching gait as it began to advance on Pennie's unconscious form. The surface of the tower now seemed to be writhing, as if a plethora of other creatures were trying to force their way out.

 

[RJS]

Hazel's blood had run cold when the beast had erupted from the earth. There was no way they stood a chance against it, not as these newly Deathless were at present. It would be a massacre, or worse, they would all be captured. The fear froze her in a moment of indecision and panic, as one tried shooting the beast to no great effect. It wasn't until one of them was grabbed and separated that she managed to snap back into action. The tower was writhing with life, and their chance of escape seemed slim as it was. As painful as it was to admit, they would have to leave one behind.

She ran to support the other side of the one who had touched the tower. "Which way to your apartment?" she yelled to the gruff individual who had offered, before setting off in the direction he indicated. "Come on, no time to stop or look back! Run!" she yelled, swallowing down feelings of guilt over the one left behind at the mercy of the creatures.

Her other two forms continued to guide the other two away from the tower, and closer to each other. She didn't know how far to go, and if they unified it would ease the strain on her mind somewhat. Belatedly, her heavily burdened mind processed the man's question. "They're being guided away, don't worry. Just keep moving. They'll be safe." She couldn't risk him heading towards the danger. It didn't take long for her third body to pop out of a nearby alleyway, and she dematerialised it, lessening the strain somewhat.

 

[Greenie]

"Oh f-" Sean didn't complete what he was going to say. There really wasn't any reason to; whatever profanity could have left his mouth wouldn't be able to truly express what he felt as he watched one of the woman from their half-baked group thrown against the tower. His hands curled into fists, his first instincts to go help her. However, the sight of the tower was terrifying, almost as it it was coming to life-

Not almost. He was practically bug-eyed, tears of fear escaping the corner of his eyes as he watched a creature form itself from the tower, or something. His mind was too much in shock to tell- at this point he didn't even realize his cheeks were wet and cold from the cooling tears.

The voice of the newcomer broke him out of his shock. The woman who had been caught was out of their reach- they had to leave. Sean didn't care which direction the apartment was in, as long as it wasn't here. The shock that had consumed him gave way to speed as he raced forward, away from the tower, following after the woman who yelled at them to run.

Meanwhile...​

Chani had no reason not to follow the woman leading her. If she had been left on her own accord, she would probably have been trampled by the crowd or eaten up by whatever had made that loud and frightening roar. Of course, seeing a double and then a third of the same woman caused her to believe the stress was finally addling her mind. She paused momentarily to rub her eyes, and by the time she let her hands drop, she saw there was one Hazel only

Her eyes caught sight of the man then. She blinked a moment before putting two and two together. Hoping the answer was indeed a four, she spoke up. "You're- you died too, didn't you? Like me?" ​

 

[Spekkun]

The sight of the creature was enough to put Satele on edge, sending chills to the very core of her soul, nearly enough to lock her in place. It was as if her legs, no her entire body were filled with ice. For a moment she doubted that any of it was real. There was no way that it could be, monsters weren't real. But when it grabbed Pennie, the cry of pain she released was enough to drag Satele out of her state of panic. That scream was real. Everything about this was real, there was no time to panic. Panic would only lead to death.

She'd already died once, she'd rather not see if it would stick this time. Not at the hands of something like that.

Her breathing ragged already, Satele started to move, following the mysterious woman. As she started to run, her gaze stayed on the creature, moving to the tower only once a second form of terror was birthed from the structure. She forced herself to look away from the scene and straight ahead, her mind focusing entirely on getting the hell away from the tower. She dug deep, pushing herself to run even harder and faster than she had on her way to the tower.

Run. Run. Run. That was the only word cycling through her mind, repeating itself over and over. Her eyes were focused on the two ahead of her, trusting them to be her guide. She didn't care where she was going, only that she got away from here and that she didn't trip over her feet as she fled.

 

[Joan]

fright

Layen Carsen
Interactions: Hazel (@The_J), Chani (@Greenie)

---

It took the woman a few moments to reply, but her answer only raised more questions. "Guided away? How do you know that? Who even are you?" Despite his questions, he kept pace with her, and it was only a few moments before another couple girls popped out of a nearby alleyway. He glanced their direction, blinked, and looked back at the woman leading him. One of the women looked exactly like her. When he looked back towards the newcomers, she was turning to dust.

"That...that answers most of my questions, actually," he murmured under his breath, just loud enough for the remaining Hazel to hear. "So that means..." He trailed off as the other woman peered at him before asking a question of her own.

"Yeah...yeah, I did. Shot right here." He put a hand over his stomach, nodding at Chani. "You?"

 

[Eru]

M A X

---

"You guys get to the barricade!
I'll try and hold it off and meet you there!"

The girl fired twice, and Max turned away quickly. He heard the cries of the beast, but he had no time to listen. "Come on! We need to go!"

Max was focused on supporting Stanley's weight, and suddenly realized he was in this alone. Where had Pennie gone? Gripping the younger man by his shirt, Max looked around, his heart sinking faster than ever before. He saw the girl's torso crushed in the beast's grasp, and he watched helplessly as she soared through the air, to crash and crumple. This beast now faced this pitiable entourage, while in the distance, the tower itself seemed to pulsate with unearthly cries.

Horror-stricken at the turn of events, Max was startled by the girl who now dashed past.

"Which way to your apartment?"

It was enough to snap him awake again, and he mumbled, dragging Stanley again, "Four blocks dead ahead, this byway. We'll never make it..."

"Come on, no time to stop or look back! Run!"

For all her muster, this girl didn't seem quite so composed in the end, herself. Still, direction was better than its antithesis, and Max did what he could to up his pace, with the girl now helping to support Stanley. The prospect of being electrified again was decidedly not tantalizing.

What a day. What a lovely day.

---

@RJS, @Starlighter

 

[Astroblaze]

[fieldbox="Leah McCloyd, #22AAEE, solid"]

fright

#22AAEE Date: 3 days after the EMP
Time: late afternoon
Location: Philadelphia, PA—the Tower
Tags: Tower group, Max (@Eru), Stanley (@Starlighter)
Character Profile

Well, the horror had stumbled and seemed to be sort of bleeding, at least for a moment, so it could be injured. Maybe a shot to the head would be more effective if she could actually hit it this time. She would have to make it count in any case: she only had three bullets left.

Then the monster lunged forward, snatching up the young girl who had been helping the man who touched the tower in its massive claws. Leah froze in horror as she let out an agonized shriek, brilliant white sparks seeming to fly from her body before the creature hurled her toward the tower with a snarl. She hit the structure with a sickening thud and crumpled to the pavement as a creature somehow even more hideous and demonic than the first seemed to peel itself away from the obsidian spire, its horridly asymmetrical form looming over her limp body.

"Which way to your apartment?"

"Four blocks dead ahead, this byway. We'll never make it..."

"Come on, no time to stop or look back! Run!"

As the group bolted for the barricade, following the older man's directions and the newcomer's lead, Leah reluctantly realized that she was right: if any of the group tried to save the girl, they'd just be endangering themselves. Poor girl—she didn't deserve to die like this. Cracking off another shot into the back of the snake-demon's head, Leah turned and chased after the others, glancing nervously over her shoulder at the two monstrosities behind them.[/fieldbox]

 

[Starlighter]

@Eru @The_J

---

Stanley watched with wide, horror stricken eyes as a gruesome scene played out before him, while he leaned helplessly on the support of a stranger, powerless to take action or even to flee. Pennie let out a soul crushing cry of pain as the creature clamped down on her, and a senseless cry escaped him.

"Nooooo!" With a vicious snarl it hurled her away like nothing, and honed in on those who remained. He stared back into that horrible, grotesque face, and couldn't look away. This was it - he was about to die again. Except this time, he was terrified. There would be no escape in being torn to shreds by a hideous nightmare, just pain, and -

All of a sudden, the woman with the apparent intent of retrieving their little tower gawking party had filled the gap, helping to keep him on his feet in place of the woman who was now most likely dead.

Then it hit, like a punch to the stomach. Someone was dead because of what he'd done.

His insides did a flip-flop, and he stared at nothing, letting the determined strangers on either side of him keep him upright and moving. Why were they helping him and not her? Someone needed to go back, someone had to save her….

Almost without realizing it, Stanley started making use of what strength he had to fight back against his two helpers, but it was a futile attempt that amounted to little more than a bit of squirming. "We can't leave her," he mumbled, craning his neck around to look back at the tower, where another creature had manifested and now bent over Pennie's still form. "It's not… we can't…. We have to…."

His wide, dazed eyes wandered back and forth between his two human crutches. "Four blocks…? What if it follows us to your apartment, man?" The moment he said it, he regretted asking. Better to just focus on putting one foot in front of the other. Yeah. Best to just keep moving.

 

[Applo]

Sarah Pendleton

---

From her vantage point atop a burnt-out van, Sarah had been able to see most of what had happened. When an explosion of flames engulfing part of the roadblock tipped the mob over the edge and turned simmer anger and fear into out and out chaos, she had done nothing more than sit down on the flame charred metal, kick her feet against the side and take swig from the bottle in her hand. Her vantage point was far enough to the back of the crowd that the people around her were mostly here to drink and occasionally shout insults at the guards rather than actually cause trouble.

Sarah had no interest in joining the fray below her. She wanted to know what the fuck was going on with this strange construct that had appeared overnight and whether it was connected to the...strangeness of the last few days. That didn't mean however that she was going to risk getting trampled by the crowd or arrested and deported for the knowledge. Besides she'd heard the rumours and the whispers about people who had gone to investigate the tower, never to be seen again. Wasn't it movie logic one-o-one that you should never be the first to investigate a strange a mysterious object if you also don't want to die a strange and painful death.

That last thought treacherously caused Sarah's chain of thought to switch onto tracks that had become rather well worn over the last few days. That was something else she had heard whispers about. In this case however, Sarah really wished she hadn't.

As she took a swing of booze in an attempt to drown out the thought crashing through her mind, Sarah suddenly noticed that a few people had managed to use the confusion of what was quickly becoming a full-blown riot to slip past the soldiers. After standing up provided little improvement to her view of what was going on, Sarah tried using the zoom on her phone's camera only to be met by a bunch of blurred pixels where the small group who were now gathered at the bottom of the tower were.

She was about to dejectedly sit down again when an ear-splitting roar that rang out over the noise of the crowd dragged her attention back to the tower. She noticed that the people who only moments earlier had been approaching the obelisk now seemed to running back towards the barricade. It took a split second for a plan to form in her mind, she needed to know what those people had discovered and if she didn't act quickly she might lose track and their knowledge. After taking one last swig of her drink, she pushed herself of the side of the van and landed amongst the now thinning crowd. Ignoring the yells of surprise and anger she began to force herself through the crowd. She had to get to the barricade as quickly as she could.​

---

 

[RJS]

As the serpent beast slithered menacingly towards the group, it seemed to close in all too quickly. Escape was rapidly seeming impossible with the weight of Stanley slowing the group down. Leah's shot had flown wide of the head, and soon it was hovering above them, towering over the terrified cluster. Suddenly, a shout split the air. "OI! Why don't you leave them alone?" On the far side of the beast, Belle stood calling to the creature. As she continued to shout, the beast seemed obviously confused. It swayed between her and the group, its movements now lacking their smooth menace. "You heard me dipshit! Fuck off back to the tower!" Belle started to shift towards the group, as the beast began to slowly turn and slither back. After a few seconds, it began to turn back, only to swivel back around following another "Fuck off!" from Belle. She turned to the rest. "For some reason...it's actually listening to me. Never actually expected that to work! Don't know how long for though, so we should get going."

The group hastily left the square, leaving Pennie to the mercy of the two creatures. The misshapen one had picked her up, and as it walked back into the wall of the tower her body passed through it, as if moving through a curtain of liquid. That was the last anyone saw of her, and no trace was ever found.

As they hurried out, Hazel caught sight of another person heading towards the square. Following the screech of the beast and the riot, most people had headed as quickly as they could in the other direction. There was something familiar about the way she seemed to look past those near her to the tower, and Hazel could only think of one reason for someone to be headed towards such potential danger - the same drive that had brought the rest. "Not that way. Come with us, I'll explain soon enough!" She grabbed the girl's arm and tried to steer her towards the offered apartment.

---

The group arrived exhausted and drained both physically and emotionally. The beast seemed to have left them alone, and they had encountered nothing but deserted streets on their journey. Those few people they had met had been bundling possessions into cars, clearly eager to be anywhere but here. The apartment offered some measure of flimsy security for the time being, a chance to rest, to recover, and to come to terms with what had happened.

 

[Astroblaze]

[fieldbox="Leah McCloyd, #22AAEE, solid"]

fright

#22AAEE Date: 3 days after the EMP
Time: late afternoon
Location: Philadelphia, PA—Max's apartment
Tags: yeet the gang's all here
Character Profile

As they fled from the tower, Leah had recalled her bag just in time and split off from the group, dashing the couple blocks to the construction rubble where she had stashed it. Searching hastily through the debris, she was immensely relieved to find it right where she had left it, coated in concrete dust but otherwise undisturbed and unharmed. The bag and all the tools and materials stored within it formed a sort of anchor now, something reassuringly mundane and familiar amid all the chaos that had cropped up without warning. With the pack securely slung over her shoulders, she hastened to rejoin the rest of the group.

As they all hurried into the older man's apartment, Leah practically collapsed on the floor against a wall in a clumsy crosslegged position, legs aching from exertion as she leaned back against the wall with a sigh of relief, dropping her bag beside her as she gave her heart a moment to return to a more normal rhythm. Once she had caught her breath, she opened her eyes, casting an observant glance around the room and noting the most recent addition to the group.

"So, uh, now that there's no immediate threat on our lives," she spoke up, leaning forward and resting her arms on her legs, "introductions are probably in order? I'm Leah," she added, gesturing to herself. "Also—" she leaned over, rifling through a pocket of her bag— "if anyone's hungry after all that, I have granola bars and trail mix." She held up a pack of the former to emphasize.[/fieldbox]

 

[Spekkun]

Despite being away from the tower and the terrible creatures that had killed one of them, and threatened to kill another, Satele still felt like she was in their presence. She wasn't quite able to shake the black cloud of fear enveloping her mind, though being away from the immediate danger was helping it dissipate. She leaned her back against the apartment wall, panting as she tried to recollect herself both physically and mentally.

At least I've done my exercise for the day.

The thought wasn't meant to make her laugh or anything, just meant to be lighthearted enough to help her take the reigns of her mind and emotion once more. She even began rolling her shoulders, as if she was rolling the fear and dread down her back. "I'm...Satele." She replied to Leah between breaths. She couldn't help the slight croak to her voice, a result of her mouth and throat being dry. "Thank you...but no thank you." She replied, her head shaking. The offer was nice enough but the food sounded too dry for her. It was funny though, and maybe a good thing, that the first thing said was a name and food. "Just need some water right now."

Satele slid against the wall, landing on her butt and sitting comfortably. Now that her legs were resting and her breathing was, once again, returning to normal, as were her thoughts, she surveyed the room. Everyone from the tower was here, a new person even. The only person that wasn't was the woman who'd been taken into the tower. The thought put a frown on Satele's face, she felt terrible for having to leave her behind but there wasn't anything any of them could have done to save her. She was holding onto some sort of hope for the girl, despite the nagging thoughts in the corner of her mind that there was none for her. Satele had died once and come back, maybe she could too?

"...What do we do now?" She asked the group of people in general, but Hazel in specific. A sudden question sure, she didn't even wait to get their names yet, but she didn't like being without a plan of action and she doubted any plan she came up with right now would be great, except maybe to flee the state. But running could only get you so far. At least this woman had taken control of the situation before and, as far as she was concerned, she held the reigns now as well.

 

[RJS]

Belle​

Belle, courtesy of her regular gym sessions, was in better shape than some of the others, but she seemed oddly exhausted following their run. She'd felt the exhaustion set in as she started shouting at the creature...come to think of it, why had it listened to her? Why had it left them alone when it had them in its clutches? Lots of questions, no answers. Not yet. Sweating from the effort, she pulled her sweater up over her head. As she did, the vest top she wore underneath was pulled up sightly, revealing a toned midriff, and part of a circular tattoo on her lower back. Tugging the top down with little evident embarrassment, Belle's face twisted at Leah's offer. "Granola bars and trail mix? Fuck's sake, we nearly died out there and you're treating this like the most boring Girl Scout camp. Anyone got any booze? Name's Belle, by the way, since I suspect we're better off stuck together for now,"She cast a sour eye at Leah, "regardless of my preferences."

Anything further she was going to say was interrupted by a knock at the door. Peering through the spyhole, Belle swore audibly before opening the door. Hazel and another two people walked in, before the version of Hazel that had come in with them seemed to waver and vanish. "Alright, now I need some booze and some fucking answers," she spun to glare at Hazel, "So somebody had better start talking. Fast."

 

[Greenie]

"What the hell, I'll take a granola bar." Sean barely finished his grumbling as he reached over and grabbed a bar, happy to have something other to think of than what they had just escaped from. Tearing the wrapper open, he took a bite before following Leah and Satele's lead and simply settling down on the floor, leaning against the wall as he sat cross-legged. It was comfortable, in fact he preferred the ground over sitting on a chair.

Even as he ate, he glanced around at the others before looking to the door Belle had just opened. His eyes widened in surprise when he caught sight of the girl he had seen earlier. A sigh of relief left him as he spoke. "I was wondering where you'd gone off to! Sean by the way, Sean Tucker."

"Chani... and sorry about that. I got lost in the crowd." The younger woman looked at everybody in the apartment, noticing that Hazel was already there. So I wasn't imagining it. And if she was here with these people then... They all must've died like me and him. Him of course was the man she had been following Hazel with.

Unsure of what more to say or do in general, Chani quickly walked passed the others to the nearest corner of the room she could find. At least that way there was nothing able to sneak up behind here. And then she waited. Because goodness gracious, she wanted some answers as well.

Sean had been following her with his eyes, but he looked over to Belle when she spoke again. "Yeah, I think everyone here needs answers. But how the bloody hell should we know what the frick's going on?" He cast a glance at Hazel. "Well, you maybe. Never thought I'd see a Naruto kage bunshin move in real life. If someone's got answers, it's you."

​

@The_J @RJS

 

[Eru]

M A X

---

As everyone tumbled through the door to his competitively-located uptown apartment, Max strode straight for the microwave, catching up a bug-out bag he'd been keeping available since this week took a turn for the supernatural. In the bag were rations, a first-aid kit, and various tools that might prove useful, should running become a necessity. But for the moment, Max's concern was with a measure of soup, "obtained" from an overrun convenience store earlier in the week. He poured the soup into a bowl, shoved it into the microwave, and set phasers for 'food' while the ragtag bunch tried to make themselves comfortable.

Max could hear them all talking in the next room over, and so he took a moment to try and gather his composure. The soup began to boil, the microwave dinged, and dinner for one was served, though by a waiter much grittier than even a bed & breakfast would employ. Max passed the bowl to Stanley; with any luck, this would raise his vigor before an hour had passed. In Max's other hand was a pair of plastic water bottles, and he passed one to Satele, one to Sean, having overheard the conversation and noted the granola bars.

Surveying the group at large, Max took a better look at them all. Thankfully, nobody was in worse condition than breathlessness, and none of them appeared to be couch potatoes. If they would have to run, the chances seemed decent. The blue-haired girl scoffed at the granola, and Max realized that he truly did not have the resources to put anyone up for long. Raiding, perhaps, would become a necessity before long. But before that... the underlying question gnawed at Max's mind again. Why were they here?

Before he could attempt to answer himself, there was a knock at the door. The informal leader of the group, as Max had come to recognize her, opened it at once and without much regard for the landlord's prerogative, leaving Max to simply hmmph quietly. But when the newcomers had filtered in, and one existing guest had simply dissipated into thin air, Max found himself agreeing mightily with Belle's words.

The one called Hazel would appear to have the strangest powers yet. Max stood up to block her from moving further inside. "Where d'you think you're going? Answer the question. And after that, if and only if I'm satisfied, we're going to have another little chat. About logistics."

---

@The_J

 

[Starlighter]

---

Once past the the threshold, Stanley mustered enough energy to wriggle free of his supporters. He shot each of them a long, intense look and a quick nod. "Thanks; you guys really didn't have to do that, and I appreciate it. I guess this means I kinda owe you one."

He stumbled over to the couch and collapsed onto it. A few of the others had opted to take up seats on the floor, so he felt no guilt in lying back and taking up the whole two-seater. His heart was still pounding, pumping adrenaline through his veins despite the fact that the danger had passed. Scowling, he laced his hands behind his head to hide his faintly trembling fingers. He still felt drained, exhausted in a way that felt empty and strange. How long is it gonna take to go away? I suppose I got what I deserved, anyway.

He closed his eyes, hoping to obscure the pained look on his face. There was no denying it - everything that had gone wrong could be blamed directly on the actions he had chosen to take. If not for pushing the crowd over the edge into a full blown riot, chances were no one would have made it past the barricade to the tower. And if no one had made it past, he never would have had the chance to touch it…. And if he hadn't done that, no monsters would have chased them down; an innocent, courageous girl wouldn't have died a horrific death. Beyond that, who even knew how many people might have been hurt in the riot itself?

Days earlier, he'd been done with life, right up until death noped out and chucked him back. Maybe this was his penance for taking the easy way out - the burden of knowing that he couldn't die, and as long as he kept living, others would pay the price for his existence.

Stanley was startled out of his brooding to find their host offering him a bowl of soup. He vaguely recalled some comment being made about soup earlier, and the realization that it had been followed through almost made him crack a smile. "Thank you." He sat up and accepted it with a rigid nod, breathing deep in an effort to steady his shaking hands. A few drops escaped the bowl, stinging his skin. He hissed quietly and adjusted to balance it on his knee instead.

He took a hesitant sip, using it as an excuse to avoid making eye contact with anyone. For now, he was more than happy to sit back and observe while the others bombarded the woman who seemed responsible for bringing them all together.

 

[Astroblaze]

[fieldbox="Leah McCloyd, #2AE, solid"]

fright

#2AE Date: 3 days after the EMP
Time: late afternoon
Location: Philadelphia, PA—Max's apartment
Tags: Belle (@RJS), Hazel (@The_J), Stanley (@Starlighter)
Character Profile

Leah frowned at Belle's rudely sarcastic retort, muttering "I never attended Girl Scouts..." Besides, she was just trying to help in any way she knew how: they had all just gone through a horrific fright and a serious workout, and she knew from experience that food was great for assisting recovery from both. The older-looking man, Max, seemed to agree with her as he had momentarily disappeared into the kitchen area, apparently to go through with his earlier suggestion of soup for the still-recovering man, Stanley.

The young woman cast a glance around the room, mentally connecting faces with the names given them before settling on the one called Hazel, who had established herself as the de facto leader. Everyone certainly seemed to be in agreement about targeting her with their questions and suspicions, and Leah figured that she would add her own quiet voice to the mix.

"Yeah, from your attitude about all this you seem to have some sort of insider information. What's your deal, anyway?"

Shortly after she spoke, she turned a mildly concerned glance to Stanley, who still seemed a bit pale and was clearly shaking as he quietly sipped at the steaming bowl of soup that Max had passed to him.[/fieldbox]

 

[Joan]

fright

Layen Carsen
Interactions: Nobody in particular

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After Layen and Chani had spoken, Hazel guided them along at a brisk pace. Before too long, they reached an apartment building, and Hazel led them up the stairs to a door on the second floor. She knocked, and Layen heard a curse from the other side before the door opened. Layen spotted another version of Hazel moments before that one vanished, and he let out a small sigh.

Chani immediately made her way into the apartment, having apparently spotted somebody she recognized, and Layen moved quietly to the side, away from the door. He took in the small group that seemed to all be in some state of breathlessness, including the blue-haired girl he had seen shove past the barricade. That's what she meant when she said they were being escorted away, I guess. So all these people were at the tower...I wonder if they all died, too?

A gruff older man confronted the remaining Hazel, and others had questions for her, apparently. He let them be and set his backpack on the floor before leaning against the wall and crossing his arms in front of him. He hadn't been able to get any answers from the woman, at least not directly, but maybe she would relent now that they weren't running from something and multiple people seemed to be asking the same questions. For now, he was content staying where he was and remaining quiet until somebody inevitably addressed him.