event: portal three | the sky

[mayfield_mods]

The third portal is not what you expect.

It's found in the middle of the Greased Lightning auto garage in the center of one of the building's walls. The drone workers in the garage don't look at or speak of it, but they seem to be avoiding its presence.

From what you can see in the garage, the portal opens up into what seems like the interior of a train's carriage, or first-class seating on an airline. You can see down what seems to be a large, impossibly miles-long aisle, with floors and seats made of luxurious red carpeting. From where you're standing, you can see the arms and legs of the people sitting in those seats, and in some cases the backs of their heads. They're all very well-dressed, and seem pretty lively, although you can't hear anything from this side of the portal.

Upon stepping through, other than the same tingle felt by the other portals, a few other sensations may hit you. The first, and most jarring, is the sense of vertigo caused by suddenly being hundreds of feet above sea level. If your ears pop, that would be why. The second is the smell of delicious food wafting into your nostrils; the supper trolley must be getting close.

The third, and a little less pleasant, is a faint buzzing in the back of your head that will be more than a little familiar to anybody who visited the carnival. Glancing around the cabin, you may notice the same holes that littered the sky back at the carnival: pockets of pure nothing, each about the size of a dinner plate, are scattered here and there across the aisle. Looking at them for more than a few seconds hurts your eyes as well as your mind.

It is while glancing around the cabin that you may notice two things. The first is the windows of the cabin, outside of which you can see the surroundings of your vehicle. It's neither a train nor an airplane: it's a blimp, bigger than any you've ever seen. Above your window you can see the bottom of the great balloon your cabin is attached to. Below, you can see the ocean, and ahead on the horizon, land. It seems the airship you're aboard is headed straight for a large metropolis on the coastline.

The second thing you might notice, now that you're close enough to see them, is the fact that none of your fellow passengers have faces. Their bodies are moving, shifting positions and gesticulating as if they're talking to each other, but no noise emerges from the patch of skin where their mouths would have been. The same goes for everyone occupying the seats down the aisle, which stretches further than you can see. Even when you poke and prod at them, the faceless passengers don't seem to notice your presence- yet.

Comments

[demonhunting]

Yeah, don't know what happened either. But we can't stay here, the blimp's going to crash.

[Which is obvious, actually. He shoots another one that's starting to get close to them, but he knows that if this keeps up, he's going to run out of bullets.]

[allwehad]

Probably don't have a whole lot of time.

[Thankfully, her magic is mostly limitless.

She's familiar enough with guns, though, to know that he probably doesn't have a whole lot of ammunition left.]

If I clear a path for you, you think you can get some of the others out?

[demonhunting]

Yeah. You?

[He can handle himself, even without a gun, but honestly, he's pretty sure his odds would be a lot better if he can still shoot the drones from a distance than have to get close to stab them.

But Margot? Doesn't have a gun, or a knife. Just magic, which is probably enough for her, but he does worry.]

[allwehad]

[Margot seems to be taking care of herself just fine. She's got some cuts and scrapes (and will have some magnificent bruising later), oozing blue blood, but on the whole is in one piece.

When another of the drones approaches, she elbows it in the face, backing it up with more wind power and letting it crackle with electricity.]

I'll follow you with stragglers.

[demonhunting]

[The blue blood's a bit unsettling, but then she's on his side, and they're both bruised and cut and scraped up pretty well. So he nods.]

Good. [He swings the knife, cutting one drone's throat before using its body as a shield to block another's attack and pushing both away.] Come on.

[allwehad]

[Well that's effective! Grotesque, but effective.

She stays close, zapping at any drones that get close enough on her side. At least they don't seem to be thinking about the attacks -- it's almost easy.

It's too bad she doesn't see the one sneaking up on her blind spot.]

[demonhunting]

[Hey, he's a hunter, he's used to grotesque.

But he does notice the one drone sneaking up on her blind spot.]

Margot!

[There's only a few bullets left, and he's got to make every one count, so he doesn't hesitate before shooting the drone in the head.]

[allwehad]

[She knew she should have traded in the missing eye for something more useful.

Before the drone is killed, it manages to dig a knife pretty deep into her shoulder. Margot yells and lets out some pretty colourful curse words, reaching around to group for the weapon embedded into her back.]

[demonhunting]

[Sam's quick to rush to her aid, doing his best to keep the other drones off their backs. They've got to get to the portal, fast.]

Don't pull it out, just--come on!

[Shit, shit shitshit--of all the times to be caught off-guard without that makeshift medical kit he assembled.]

[allwehad]

[If she weren't used to crap like this, she'd probably be crying right now. As it is, Margot manages to grit her teeth enough to look annoyed through the pain, but she leaves the knife where it is.]

I'm going to fucking burn this whole saints damned town to the ground.

We gotta get out of here. Now.

[demonhunting]

On it.

[It's with a grim sort of determination that he clears a path for them through the killer mob, firing at and stabbing as many as he can. Still, as experienced as he is, there's always something that might get past his defenses.

Such as this one drone with a table leg.]

[allwehad]

[Margot's still helping, though there is definitely less force to her wind attacks.

She manages to spot this drone (on the good side, this time).]

Sam! Right!

[With a snarl, she shoots a bolt at it, electricity crackling.]

[demonhunting]

[He turns round, ducks the leg as the bolt comes at the drone, then stabs it in the chest as it's reeling from the shock. Dammit, he's got to keep his guard up more often.

Still, they're close to getting away from this mob now. Good thing, because he's out of bullets, and he's brandishing his knife instead.]

Keep moving, I'll cover you. Go!

[allwehad]

[There's a split second where she hesitates. He just has a knife, but the portal is so close...]

You fucking idiot, you're gonna get yourself killed!

[Mustering up the strength, she blasts the area ahead of them with wind, knocking back some of the drones before darting forward towards the portal, injured arm hugging close to her side.]

[demonhunting]

I've faced worse. [Not more. But if he goes down, then at least he goes down fighting.

That's a big "if", though. One with a high chance of actually happening, but an "if" nonetheless. And anyway, he'll be following right behind her, fighting off any drone that tries to get in the way.

Unfortunately, knives are for close-range fighting, and as it just so happens, one of the drones also has a knife, and takes the opportunity to sink it into his shoulder just before he stabs it in the chest.]

[allwehad]

[Now they're both human pincushions!

She's ahead of him, pushing past drones with wind as a buffer. So close, so close...

Margot glances back to make sure Sam is still there only to watch him get stabbed.]

Sam!

[demonhunting]

I'm fine! [No, he isn't.] Just--go! I'll be right behind you!

[allwehad]

[Margot looks at the portal.

She looks at him.

She looks at the portal again.

Dammit all. He helped her, there's no way in hell she's going to leave him behind, even if that means death. Either way, she'd rather die fighting than running like a coward and turns heel to head back toward Sam, taking a couple more minor injuries along the way.]

Bullshit! We both go or not at all.

[demonhunting]

[He's silent for a moment, then stabs another drone in the neck and nods.]

Fine. [Moving to stick close to her, the knife in hand.]