mayfield_rpg | event: portal seven

Entry tags:

!event

event: portal seven | the void

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.]

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[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.]

[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!!

[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!

[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.]

[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.]

[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.]

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.

[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.]

Edited 2012-09-14 04:10 (UTC)

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

[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?!

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!

[she's right, of course. he fought a little at a carnival, but it was nothing like this; nothing at all like this. with some effort, Once-ler's face twists into a vicious grimace.]

Why? Because I’m not like you? Because I'm not a stupid, heartless psycho who only thinks about herself? Wow, call the cops!

[his voice still has that high, frantic quality about it, but it somehow seems more...grounded. more steady. as mad as she's getting him, she's also unconsciously helping him by keeping the conversation - the snapping - steady because it gives him something real to dwell on. he's pulling himself up without realizing it.]

You don't even have a foot to stand on. I guess it really does take one to know one.

[he smiles. it's the closest he'll ever come to looking like his mother.]

Loser.

I'm a loser? Really? You don't... You don't even know what the fuck you're dealing with here! [She glares at him, and at Eddie, fangs bared, eyes narrow and yellowish.] I could fucking tear you all to fucking pieces if I felt like it, easy! Don't you fucking get it, human? I can fucking kill you!

[The voice, softly insistent, is growing louder in her mind, and she finds herself repeating its words with more ease than she would admit.] Humans, you're just fucking sheep, you're cows, you're-- you're fucking pigs! Call me a loser again, pig. I'll tear your fucking heart out.

[hurts, doesn't it? against his better judgment, he can't help but feel a rush of sadistic pride knowing that he's cut her.]

Can't take what you dish out, huh? And people say I have a chip on my shoulder.

[he barks a laugh that quickly dissolves into a strained, pained hiss, a fresh trickle of blood blooming from his wound. maybe he shouldn't even bother dressing it.]

You wanna be a killer, you wanna prove the Major right? Fine. I won't stop you. [he sweeps his bloody arms out.] I don’t… I don’t have anything waiting for me back home. I don't even have a home anymore. Sure as heck won’t have anything left for me here when the rest of my friends disappear either.

[his lips, tightly pressed together, wibble just for a split second before his expression steels itself and his eyes narrow, glaring defiantly at her.]

...I don't even care anymore. So if you wanna kill me, get to the back of the line before those guys behind us beat you to it. Otherwise?

Shut. Up.

[Her muscles tense, her pupils constrict, and it seems for a moment that something is going to happen... But, it doesn't. She just pauses for a second, staring at him with wide, darkened eyes. The voice is gone; it's left her. She can't remember the last time someone's spoken to her this way. She's not even sure anyone ever has.

God, she wants him dead.

She hurls Luke at the Once-ler and storms off.]

[?????]

[WHY

IS THERE

A BOY

FLYING RIGHT AT HIS FACE

really wasn't expecting that. this is gonna hurt, isn't it. this is really gonna hurt.]

[Meanwhile, Luke was wincing and trying to squirm out of Annie's grip while the fight was taking place.]

B-both of you please-

[But before he can finish, he's hurtled like a football in the Once-ler's direction. He crashes into the other man with a startled yelp, attempting and failing to find something to grab onto and just crashes right into the Once-ler. It's not enough to knock him out, but he's definitely seeing stars.]

[For once, Edward had done a perfectly reasonable thing during that little argument: keep his own mouth shut. But it doesn't stay shut for long. In fact, it drops wide open the moment that Annie decides it would be appropriate to use Luke as a projectile weapon.

He skids to a halt, making to help the two of them up. First Luke, seeing as he's at the top of the pile.]

Luke, are you---

[He cuts himself off when he realizes that Annie isn't sticking around for much longer. He calls out after her, indignantly:]

Where the hell do you think you're going?!

Away from you cocksuckers, that's where I'm fucking going!

[there's a size five foot-shaped imprint on his face, he just knows it. he doesn't know which to start babying - his face or his neck - but given how the latter seems to be in the process of gushing blood, it would be best to get that covered.]

Let her go.

[no big loss, he wants to add but he has enough common sense to bite his tongue. lucidity is flooding back to him slowly but surely; painful as that was, getting beaned upside the head with a twelve year old was sobering enough to knock the crazy out of him.

if only he could do something about the stars. and the transparent doubles of Luke and Eddie that keep wobbling and fading in and out of his vision.

oh well.

Once-ler reaches up at the Thneed he's been wearing around his neck like a scarf and draws it up a little higher so that it covers the wound completely, flinching as he ties it tighter. it'll have to do for now until they find something better.]

[Luke would say something, but he's just kind of stumbling around once he gets on his feet again. Why does everyone look so blurry?

He's muttering to himself too.]

She threw me. She actually threw me!

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event: portal seven | the void

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