event: portal seven | the void

[mayfield_mods]

The final portal doesn't seem to be a portal at all. It's a glitch hole.

Located on the lawn of the library is a hole much like the ones that have plagued every new location for the past week. As with them, it hurts your eyes to look at too long, but even if you should muscle past the pain and stare straight into it, you can make out nothing on the other side. Nothing, save for a shifting, twitching, swirling void.

Unlike the portals, which were vertically placed like doorways, the hole at the Library is strewn across the lawn: if you want to enter it, you're going to have to jump. Of course, there's no guarantee it will even lead anywhere. Touching the hole or sticking your arm in doesn't have any effect: you'll pull your arm out unharmed. As far as jumping in completely goes, those who jump in disappear from sight. As long as you're on the Mayfield side, there's no way to tell what lies beyond the hole.

There's only one way to find out.

[ooc: Feel free to roleplay up to the point your characters jump in, assuming they do. A single group subthread will be created in a few hours revealing what happens on the other side.]

Comments

[werejew]

Whoa, Luke, chill. [Though she still has the pulsating heart in her hand for absolutely no reason whatsoever, Annie decides that the best thing to do is to try to pick the boy up bodily, her free arm around his waist.] Easy, tiger. You killed it.

[truffulacide]

[yeesh, what a mess. this time, Once-ler's characteristic prissiness shines through when he starts pulling his axe out of the corpse, giving a tiny, disgusted squeal when his efforts are met with wet squelching. think of something else. how about that sword cane? that was pretty neat. if they get out of here, he's going to have to ask Eddie where he got that. by "ask", he of course means "nag incessantly".

- aw, crap. he forgot about Luke!]

What's wrong? Is he o -

[he trails off the moment he turns around and catches sight of another drone standing against wall of the bubble, watching them. it doesn't say a word nor does it make any move to enter (yet), but she doesn't have to. Once-ler already knows what she'll say; her voice is just one of many in the void. he stares back at her, frozen in place.

aside from the lack of eyes, Roxy looks the same way Once-ler remembers her looking the last time he saw her before she was droned.]

Roxy...?

[questionauthority]

[Edward hasn't noticed Roxy just yet, but he's at Luke's side in an instant, glaring daggers at Annie before smacking that heart right out of her hand. It falls like an apple and rolls along on the ground, leaving a bloody trail behind it.

He hisses at her in a hushed snarl.]

He doesn't need your help.

[Never mind the fact that she just saved the boy's life. You'll have to excuse the Riddler; he's still pretty bitter about how things went down within the first hour.

He places a strong hand on Luke's shoulder, in part to try and tug him out of Annie's grip and in part to give him a short squeeze. Snap out of it, kiddo.]

Luke. It's over.

[hintcoinplz]

[Luke is breathing pretty hard, still shaking with rage and still fully prepared to fight. He twitches violently at the hand on his shoulder.]

Ngh!

[The adrenaline that was coursing through him a moment ago starts to subside, and his head starts to clear. His head still feels fuzzy and his shoulder hurts. As soon as he can think again, he spots the dead drone before noticing how much blood he's covered in.

...Did he...?]

W-what...hnn...

[What happened?]

[werejew]

He obviously fucking does, dude, considering how fucking useless you are. [Yeah, guess who's not letting go of the kid. He's safer with her. These two, they're useless, but she can keep him safe. She can get him out of here, the both of them. leave the other two behind they're just slowing you down they're wastes of time humans

... Oh, wait, something's going on with Once-ler. Somebody should probably care about that.] What is this, a fucking reunion special? Axe the bitch.

[truffulacide]

[Once-ler's off in his own little world. Annie's words are just as indistinct and muddled as the noises Luke is making, drowned out by the ever-growing buzzing in his head, insectile and sly. he continues to stare at the figure, blankly watching her press her hands against the bubble's wall, feeling and squeezing and pushing her way through.

the worst part? going by his horrified expression alone, it's very likely that this is his first time seeing her droned. the last time he spoke to her was after their return from the carnival. anything could have happened since then, but she was just fine when he saw her. no reason to suspect anything off. no reason to believe she wasn't okay.

at least she wasn't alone. another drone emerges from the void to join her, and for all Once-ler knows, it could very well be Jake but he can't tell. he's past that point and sincerely past the threshold of terror when she lunges right at him with her teeth bared.

he's knocked off his feet before he even has a chance to scream.]

[questionauthority]

[Useless?! Edward's eyes narrow, but before he can make the mistake of telling off a very violent werewolf brat, Annie brings his attention back to the Once-ler. To the droned girl that slowly passes through the barrier, staring straight at him.

It seems the Once-ler's got at least one or two demons of his own to face. And this one looks to be just as violent.

This is twice now that the Once-ler's saved his life. He can't leave him behind.

Damn it all, as much as he distrusts Annie Goldstein, especially with Luke's safety...]

Go! Keep moving! We'll catch up!

[Without waiting for a reply---he doubts the reply from Annie would be especially respectful anyway---he charges back to the Once-ler's aid.

The crook of his question-mark cane makes its way around Roxy's neck, and he wastes no time in yanking back.]

[hintcoinplz]

[While still disoriented and in pain, Luke's eyes widen when he sees Edward and Once-ler being left behind with the drones. Any confusion he had about the violent blackout he just had are pushed aside as he tries to call out to them, squirming wildly in Annie's grip.]

N-no, don't! Don't leave!

[werejew]

They'll be fine! [She doesn't know that. In fact, she's rather sure of the opposite. But the voice in her mind, calm and lightly accented, makes her turn sharply, running at a full sprint to keep up with the bubble. Too slow, lose the kid. She holds Luke hard enough to bruise. Pack instinct is starting to take over.]

Fuckfuckfuckfuck-- kid, is your shoulder okay? Fuck, you're bleeding, humans don't have important shit there, do they?!

[truffulacide]

[at first, there's nothing - no pain, no anger, not even fear. he's practically nose to nose with Roxy, but it's only when he realizes that there's two dark sockets where her eyes should be that the horror comes rushing back with the force of a train. he kicks his legs back, trying to shake her off to no avail. she's much smaller than him and much too quick, clawing the air in front of his face with hungry abandon.

what happened, Ro'? I thought we were friends. I made you a scarf, didn't I?

the thought is the first lucid one to break through the haze of whispering voices, the first truly conscious one, seconds before a wave of hot pain surges over him when her fingernails sink into the side of his neck, scratching and cutting and dragging and no no no nonono -

- and she's being pulled back, or rather flung off, all thanks to Eddie and his cane. Once-ler's hands immediately fly to his bleeding neck, trying to staunch the flow, chest heaving in sick, scared shudders as he tries to scootch backwards in an effort to put distance between them.]

[questionauthority]

[Question: Why is the Once-ler like an old collar button?

Answer: Because they both choke. And had Eddie choked back when that Dark Knight impostor was still a threat, he'd surely be dead by now. This little monster... she isn't a girl. Not anymore. Which means that he can't afford to hold anything back.

He drags the drone girl off the Once-ler and sends her tumbling back down to the ground just a few steps away.

And before either the Once-ler or his little demon friend can even utter a syllable of protest, before Eddie can second-guess himself, he whips his cane back and strikes her hard in the temple. Then he strikes her once more for good measure. And after a violent convulsion or two, she stops moving altogether.

Splashes of scarlet trickle along the golden question-mark handle as he takes a heavy breath to calm himself. Then he rushes back to the Once-ler, hurriedly offering a hand to pull him back up to his feet.]

Come on. Come on. We have to keep moving.

[hintcoinplz]

[Further on ahead of the group, Luke watches the fight, mentally urging the two to hurry up. His vision blurs for a moment, before trying to shake it off. Not now. He couldn't afford to be weak now. And he's survived much worse, so he had to keep it together.

He'll look up at the girl carrying him with a pleading look.]

A-Annie, we have to go back for them.

[werejew]

They're fine! [She doesn't look at him, just stares straight ahead, eyebrows furrowed.] They'll catch up, promise! No turning back!

[truffulacide]

[something inside him screams -

("Oh, Oncie, look what he's doin' to your little friend! Are you just gonna let him kill her? You're an even bigger failure than I thought.")

- to turn away and he does just that, hastily tilting his aching head to the side and snapping his eyes closed. the one thing he can't block out are the sounds of the drone's skull caving in, and for those scant seconds, they're worse, much, much worse, than anything the void can throw at him. the voices fade in and out of his consciousness, but that sound...

he's going to hear it forever. he just knows it.

another splatter of blood hits him, this time on the side of his face, and it's impossible not to shriek but he's sure the sound is swallowed up by the louder ones in front of him. in an effort to shut every last horrible thing out, he pulls his legs up and covers both ears with his hands, waiting for everything to be over. the warm pulsating throb in his neck is the only thing that keeps him from shutting down entirely, growing hotter and hotter with each shaky heave of his chest.

when he finally opens his eyes, Edward's hand is shoved straight in his face and it's met with a blank, uncomprehending stare that travels up the other man's arm until it finally reaches his face. Once-ler looks like he's about to cry.

it doesn't change even when he grabs onto Eddie's hand, his free one blindly reaching around for his fallen axe when he's hauled to his feet.]

[questionauthority]

[That's right. Get up. You may look like a complete mess right now, Once-ler, but at least you're getting up. That's something.

Edward shifts his focus from the man in front of him to the barrier right behind them, drawing nearer and nearer. Then, for a split-second, his eyes flicker to the corpse of the girl just a few feet away. He swallows, does his best to ignore the pit in his stomach that's just unexplainably formed. Briefly, his thoughts return to the terrors they'd all faced last Thanksgiving, to a sick little girl that had looked to him for the answers. Then he forces those memories out of his mind.

She's gone. As was the drone. What's done is done, and had to be done.

His attention returns to the Once-ler, and once the beanpole's back on his feet? It's time to run.

Just hang on, Luke. They'll be joining you again soon.]

[hintcoinplz]

[Luke never takes his eyes off them as they move. Trying to get Annie to slow down and wait for them was out of the question, and he doubts she'll put him down right now if he asked.

Come on, hurry up. A little faster and you can make it.

As distracted as he is, he hears a voice calling to him somewhere in the void. The voice of a Russian woman he remembered all to well - Roshian, his previous Mayfield mother.

Luke. Don't leave me here, Luke. We can finally be together, да?

Luke grits his teeth, holding back tears as he hears her voice ringing in his ears. He covers his ears, closes his eyes, and tries to block out the pain in his shoulder and the chaos going on around them. Please be over soon, please.

He calls out desperately to the other members of their group, his voice hard to hear over the chaos of the void.]

H-hurry up! Just hurry up!!

[werejew]

[For the first time, Annie actually glances over her shoulder-- well, what do you fucking know, they're not dead. And are actually trying to catch up. Who would've fucking guessed. She's alright with that; the more people on their side, the easier she can protect the pup. Child. Luke. Fuck. Whatever.]

Hurry it up, motherfuckers, I'm not fucking waiting for you!

[truffulacide]

[the first steps are the hardest because those are the ones Once-ler stumbles on. how fortunate that they aren't being chased right now; it would've been the perfect opportunity for someone to jump on him and finish the job that Roxy the drone started.

the blood is flowing freely now down his neck in little trails, but it's irrelevant. it can always be cleaned off and, if it was fatal, he wouldn't even be breathing much less running. all he knows is that it must not have nicked a major artery. that's good enough for him.

his mother's voice keeps shrieking inside his head, ordering him to go back, but the further and further they run, the fainter it gets. by the time they get closer to Annie and Luke, it's almost gone entirely.

if he's happy for that silver lining, he doesn't show it. he isn't showing much of anything right now.]

[questionauthority]

[Run. That's all you can do, isn't it, Nigma? Run. Like the coward that you are.

Edward grits his teeth, though he doesn't slow down. Get out of his head, Crane. He can hear the bastard taunting him now, probing him like always.

What is it that you fear, Edward Nigma?

Do you fear the possibility of your death yet again? Or do you fear your past may catch up to you? You may claim to be a better man now, but that doesn't change the things you've done. You'll never change.]

Shut up. Shut up!

[He does his best to drown out the sound of Crane's ear-splitting laughter in the back of his head. But something manages to cut through all of that.

The sound of Luke's voice.

And if that weren't enough, the sound of Annie's lovely screech is a helpful diversion as well.]

You've made your point clear, Ms. Goldstein!

[That's right, Edward. Better to focus on the voices of the people in front of you than those that are no longer with you.

It takes some doing---he really needs more consistent exercise---but eventually, the Riddler is able to catch up to Luke and Annie, barely managing to match their pace.]

[hintcoinplz]

[Luke would be relieved to see that they've caught up with them, but his eyes are still closed and his ears still covered. It doesn't do much against the voice tugging at him, pleading with him to join her so that they can be together again, accusing him why he did nothing to stop his former family from succumbing to droning.

Part of his mind is telling him to be strong, that none of it is real. The less rational part is telling him to jump in and to end it now. Luckily he's a little more stronger then to go diving out of the bubble, but his heart hurts so much.

Through the pain - both physical and mental - Luke opens one eye, expecting to see the hateful, judging look of his previous Mayfield mother. Instead, he sees Edward and the Once-ler right in front of him. Not dead, not giving him looks of hatred, but alive.]

[werejew]

Took you two nerds fucking long enough. [Annie isn't slowing down, even though she can clearly see the men struggling. She isn't letting go of Luke, either.]

Good fucking job not getting killed by a zombie bitch. You're doing fucking great so far.

[truffulacide]

[Once-ler's reached the point where he's starting to get dizzy, nausea spiking in the pit of his stomach with each step he takes. he swallows hard, trying to force his sickness back down, but that just makes his throat and neck hurt even more. his face feels flush. he must look an absolute wreck.

keep going. keep going. remember that song? whatever happened to that?

he was doing so good just by holding that tune. it didn't hold every voice back, but it worked well enough. a catchy, unnecessarily annoying jingle. unmemorable in the grand scheme of things, but perfect for selling Thneeds and warding off phantom voices. if he starts again now, then maybe, maybe -

("Oh, would you knock that off, Oncie? It didn't work the first time, it won't work now. Mama always said, you ought to know when to quit while you're ahead.")

no. not again.

Once-ler's breathing begins to hitch, then pick up again. he finds Luke's gaze and holds it briefly, very briefly, before Annie begins to speak.

("Horrible friend. Worthless son. What are you even good for, Oncie?")

shut up. shut up, shut up. just for once, couldn't she be nice?

("Nothing. Nothing, nothing, nothing, nothing -")]

Shut up shut up SHUT UP! You don't know ANYTHING!

[it's not like his normal tone at all; it's so much more strained.

worse yet, he doesn't even know who he's talking to. Annie and his mother sound too similar.]

[werejew]

The fuck did you just say to me? [Annie visibly bristles and turns sharply, her grip on Luke increasing to rather uncomfortable levels.]

[truffulacide]

[similarly, Once-ler looks to be in real pain; not just physically, but also emotionally as the hissing inside his head grows to near unmanageable levels. Annie's comments are just adding fuel to the fire.

("Just come on out now, don't make it any harder on yourself. No one would notice.")

you can't miss what you don't notice.]

You don’t know anything! You don’t even know her n - [his breath hitches.] What right do you have to talk about her when you don’t even know her name?!

[not that it even matters in a place like this...and he knows it. deep down, he knows that monster wasn't Roxy just as well as he should know that the drawling, saccharine voice contaminating his thoughts isn't really his mother.]

Why are you so mean?!

[werejew]

Who gives a fuck what her fucking name is! They're not even real people; they're just really fucked-up drones that this weird-ass place turned into fucking monsters! Get a fucking grip! God.

... Mean? Why the fuck am I mean? [There's a harsh edge to her laughter.] Why the fuck are you such a pussy? You can't handle some fucking curse words and insults, and you think you can handle all this shit? [She gestures to void, the monsters, the blood covering them all.] You're a fucking loser!