IC - Return to Glory

[Horicabu]

Music, should it please you.

- |:+:|-​

Man and Monster, Silver and Gold.

All that is will end, and death, it seems, is inevitable.

Glory. Glory to the Wheel.​

- |:+:| -​

These words echo time and time again through the darkness, bouncing off cold walls. You can't move. You've been here longer than you'd like to admit, bound in this tiny space. All you know are fuzzy images, memories that don't seem to belong to you. Vague pictures swirl in the emptiness. They are lit by something your eyes have never seen; light. You've waited here, wondering, thinking, maybe even dreaming.

But something is different. There are sounds coming through the walls; walls you never imagined had another side. Little creaks and groans surround you, as the little world you've come to know begins to loosen. Tiny cracks appear. Streaks of white rake across your skin. They hurt your eyes. You feel pain. The walls are relentless. They keep moving, loosening their embrace, and the white beams just get bigger and brighter. Your arm flops free.

Suddenly, in an explosion of radiance, the walls are gone and this blazing flame...this light, is all there is. Something rushes up, and you slam into it. That feeling of pain rocks your whole body. It's overwhelming; curling, writhing inside you. For the first time, you tense up, you move under your own power. You crumble up into a ball, squeeze your eyes shut.

Why can't the walls come back and keep you safe anymore? Why does the light you yearned for hurt so much? Why does anything hurt? You rock back and forth, just wishing it would all go away, and that the walls would come and swaddle you again.

And eventually, the pain does go away. Gathering strength, you open your eyes, and see.

...

The world has gotten much bigger. It's angular, flat. You know it to be a room. There's a plain you rest on, a floor, which buckles up into pipes, grates, and blocks of machinery that form intricate patterns over unfamiliar walls that surround you on three sides. The fourth side doesn't seem to end. Off in that direction, your little floor stops and a deep pit continues. Above the abyss, little pods hang haphazardly on metal struts as far as you can see. The rough shapes of a half-formed face adorn their front. Between them weave structures and conduits many times larger than you are, rising up and dipping down like serpents from a black, empty sea. That harsh white light filters down from something high above. It's silent; completely silent.

There's something off about the pods. Many are oddly shaped. They seem almost...broken. Enormous holes and fissures line most of the small, coffin-shaped cells. The vaguely human features hammered into the pods are distorted and skewed, ripped open and dripping with something red. Figures hang from some. One dangles from a single limb, swaying above nothingness. It limply falls out of sight, and a second later, a painful crash resounds through the facility as the body hits ground.

The room changes as though agitated by the disturbance. The light brightens suddenly and painfully, accompanied by the cacophonous roar of machines grinding to life. Through the painful glare, you see pods screeching along the ceiling. They stop in front of you, and open in unison. Everything goes quiet again.

Five figures drop before you, hitting the floor with dull thuds. They writhe and cough, unexpectedly introduced to this harsh, enormous, and bizarre world. No doubt they, too, wish for the sweet, painless darkness.

You can feel a bond between them. You have empathy and an understanding.

They need you, and you need them.

 

[NujabesLives!]

Music, should it please you.

- |:+:|-​

Man and Monster, Silver and Gold.

All that is will end, and death, it seems, is inevitable.

Glory. Glory to the Wheel.​

- |:+:| -​

These words echo time and time again through the darkness, bouncing off cold walls. You can't move. You've been here longer than you'd like to admit, bound in this tiny space. All you know are fuzzy images, memories that don't seem to belong to you. Vague pictures swirl in the emptiness. They are lit by something your eyes have never seen; light. You've waited here, wondering, thinking, maybe even dreaming.

But something is different. There are sounds coming through the walls; walls you never imagined had another side. Little creaks and groans surround you, as the little world you've come to know begins to loosen. Tiny cracks appear. Streaks of white rake across your skin. They hurt your eyes. You feel pain. The walls are relentless. They keep moving, loosening their embrace, and the white beams just get bigger and brighter. Your arm flops free.

Suddenly, in an explosion of radiance, the walls are gone and this blazing flame...this light, is all there is. Something rushes up, and you slam into it. That feeling of pain rocks your whole body. It's overwhelming; curling, writhing inside you. For the first time, you tense up, you move under your own power. You crumble up into a ball, squeeze your eyes shut.

Why can't the walls come back and keep you safe anymore? Why does the light you yearned for hurt so much? Why does anything hurt? You rock back and forth, just wishing it would all go away, and that the walls would come and swaddle you again.

And eventually, the pain does go away. Gathering strength, you open your eyes, and see.

...

The world has gotten much bigger. It's angular, flat. You know it to be a room. There's a plain you rest on, a floor, which buckles up into pipes, grates, and blocks of machinery that form intricate patterns over unfamiliar walls that surround you on three sides. The fourth side doesn't seem to end. Off in that direction, your little floor stops and a deep pit continues. Above the abyss, little pods hang haphazardly on metal struts as far as you can see. The rough shapes of a half-formed face adorn their front. Between them weave structures and conduits many times larger than you are, rising up and dipping down like serpents from a black, empty sea. That harsh white light filters down from something high above. It's silent; completely silent.

There's something off about the pods. Many are oddly shaped. They seem almost...broken. Enormous holes and fissures line most of the small, coffin-shaped cells. The vaguely human features hammered into the pods are distorted and skewed, ripped open and dripping with something red. Figures hang from some. One dangles from a single limb, swaying above nothingness. It limply falls out of sight, and a second later, a painful crash resounds through the facility as the body hits ground.

The room changes as though agitated by the disturbance. The light brightens suddenly and painfully, accompanied by the cacophonous roar of machines grinding to life. Through the painful glare, you see pods screeching along the ceiling. They stop in front of you, and open in unison. Everything goes quiet again.

Five figures drop before you, hitting the floor with dull thuds. They writhe and cough, unexpectedly introduced to this harsh, enormous, and bizarre world. No doubt they, too, wish for the sweet, painless darkness.

You can feel a bond between them. You have empathy and an understanding.

They need you, and you need them.

Solitude was a terrible fate, for any being whether it be of this plane or not. One might even say it could drive a man to madness. Willow supposed she should have counted her blessings that she saw herself as nowhere close to a man then. Cold beads of a nervous sweat dribble down her forehead and slide down her cheeks. Her expression stone faced and seemingly uncaring of the predicament she found herself in. If there was something to be done, she wasn't quite sure what it was and how she could achieve it. At least not like this. Having all sense of control or bodily movement taken away from you severely limited whatever options she could take.

But while her physical efforts were impeded, her mental ones were not. Various thoughts of torture and murder inflicted upon those who had left her in such a state ran through her mind for what felt like every second of every waking moment. Her eyes half lidded didn't seem to carry the ferocity that surged within her thoughts, even at this very moment, she contemplated disembowelment and mutilation to severe degrees upon fate itself if it raised a hand against her.

All of this however was hidden away from prying eyes, and indeed the world itself by the mask that sat upon Willow's face. With black fabric coating the eyeholes and mouth, her expressions and thoughts were hers and hers alone. There was no one in this world she trusted enough to reveal her true face to. While the mask was greyish, similar in complexion to a corpse, the rest of Willow's attire was as pitch black as the space she found herself in.

At least until today, such was the case. The beams of light ran across Willow's body but she remained steadfast. Signs of weakness would only serve to bring about more pain. She had to be strong. As the pain ravaged her body, Willow felt somewhat of a strange and unexpected welcoming embrace around her midsection, as if attempting to shield her from whatever horrors lurked out beyond the walls.

As she opened her eyes, she made out her erstwhile savior.

It's body was long and slender and it's arms were long and as black as a moonlit night. Although from a faraway glance, it may have seemed to be adorned in the same kind of black cloak as Willow, she could see that simply wasn't the case. It's body seemed to be composed of this billowing shadowy material, giving it the look of a haunting specter. As it kept one hand attached firmly around Willow's waist, the entity raised the other to it's elongated mouth and held it's index finger to the center of said mouth.

'Shush'

It was a gesture that anyone from the elderly to children could understand and Willow was no fool. Everything had been moving far too fast for her liking. Where had this creature come from and why did it resemble her to such a degree? Almost as if it could read the multitude of questions she no doubt had about it, the entity ran it's free hand down the side of Willow's mask before pointing back to itself. Willow wasn't blind and could see the obvious similarities and unless this thing was mocking her, that could only have meant one thing.

She had summoned it.

She couldn't quite explain it and this thing didn't seem like it'd be doing too much talking. Which meant that while one question had been solved, more and more potential ones rose up to take it's place. For now the creature pointed over in a direction that Willow hadn't thought prudent to gawk at. As she turned her head to do so, she'd have seen others laying on the ground before her. While the inklings of a connection ran through her thoughts, self preservation was there as well and as she struggled to her feet, it finally clicked to her what the creature was.

Glancing over her shoulder at what might have been an otherwise normal shadow, the shadow's trail stretched along the ground before curving upwards and what was that trail connected to? But none other than the ghostfaced figure who had attempted to shield her. So her shadow had somehow become this....thing?

As if attempting to hurry her along, the Shadow gestured with a sweeping motion towards the five fallen figures. Understandably cautious about all of this, Willow kept her wits about her as she approached the five and reached forward to nudge one of them with the tip of her sneaker.

 

[Geck0]

"Uhh..." One of the five whined, resting on their hands and knees with their head obscured by their hair. The blinding light made them want to curl up and vanish, but for now one would suffice to cover their eyes with their body to adjust. "I don't wanna wake uuuuuup." They murmured irritably, now slowly pounding their hand against the ground. A soft clinking noise emanated any time their closed fist hammered into the floor, before they suddenly realised they were not alone. "Buh!" Suddenly arching their back and raising their head, the whiner looked straight up at Willow with wide eyes. "Wh-oh, ughh.." Rolling onto his back, this one - Kyo - grumbled, breathing the stale air softly.

With his new position on his back, Kyo felt calmed by the coolness of the floor against his exposed neck, inhaling deeply through his mouth. He surveyed his surroundings, eyes half closed, until his gaze settled on the other four who dropped around him. One glowing so bright, the others glinting or glimmering like metal, the last barely illuminated by that of the others. His world was tinted pink by the glow of one of his companions and the thought crossed his mind of stowing that light for himself. "Is this hell..?"

 

[Pawnige]

Jameal lay in a heap on the cool floor, his mechanisms whirring to life after such a long time of disuse. Forcing himself up, the aspect lets out a small groan. His whole body ached, longing for the cradling darkness it had grown so accustomed to. Yet, as Jameal's head began to clear, there was a new sensation coursing through him. A burning curiosity, a need to know what this place was, and why he was here. The battered pods and mutilated corpses painting a morbid picture of, what he assumed, would have happened to him had he not awoken.

Moving to a squatted position, Jameal glances about his more immediate surroundings. Apparently there were four others within the room. He had gotten so caught up wondering why the hell he was even here, that he had missed the beings right in front of him. The aspect makes a mental note to be more vigilant in the future. "Is it? Is that possible?" He queries the whining figure on the floor. "It seems unlikely...How long have we been here?" Jam asks half to himself, as he stands, stretching out for the first time in his memory. The other three figures still lay in piles on the floor, one of them glowing with a pink aura. Jameal cocks his head to the side, not unlike a small bird, as he reaches out slowly and places a hand against the glowing figure's arm.

 

[Raffia Kiryuin]

All she really knew was the inky darkness and the warmth that surrounded her for what felt like an eternity since the beginning of time itself. But all good things must come to an end as the darkness was replaced by light and the gentle warmth suddenly evaporated. She didn't want it to end just yet but her determination to see the outside world that she was aware of drove her to crack open her eyes. The light was almost unbearable but it wasn't just the light of from the world but there was allot of her own. "ow my eyes..." She murmured as a pink glow illuminated her surroundings yet when she tried to move her body didn't listen and fell out of the pod. The expected impact with the ground never came as she body just floated there several inches above the hard surface.

The noises and voices of others hit her ears, spurred up by something new she gathered up her will to move. Wanting to stand up she tried but her feet never touched the cold surface. "Nggg come on..." No matter how hard she tried it seemed like her whole being refused to touch it. For now giving it a rest she floated upright and looked at the place more closely. She saw gray and allot of it, painted in places with red still dripping from mutilated corpses. Others were there and looked alive.

 

[TatlTails]

For all she knew, the world was nothing but an endless lullaby. A whisper of song just at the edge of her consciousness, the lyrics on the tip of her tongue but never quite clear enough to repeat. She was swimming in silence, with only her lullaby to keep her company.

This existence was interrupted by a harsh symphony of sensation, white light blinding innocent eyes and streaks of pain flaring across a body that had never known such things. Sounds, real sounds assaulted her ears, and it all ended with a thud. All of the sensations were still there, but now there was a focal point. Ground. She didn't really know how she knew the word, but there were a lot of things she seemed to know without experiences to link them to. That probably meant she needed to get experiences, or maybe that she'd forgotten experiences she'd already had?

This was confusing, thinking too much about questions she had no answers to. It was frankly a silly way to be spending her time, especially when there were so many issues she could address. Like, her location. A rusted metal tunnel, with... oh dear, so many gory sights. Any one of them could have been her... Okay let's not think about that thought either. Go with the flow, just keep moving along...

There were some living beings here. Thank goodness, there was something other than death in this place. Some of them looked like death, though, if there was a way to personify the concept without making it as bloody as their surroundings. Some of the others were blue, or pink, or any number of other colors and shapes. They made her finally wonder what she looked like, even if she couldn't see herself as well as she could the rest of the world (was this even the world?)

She was green. Her hair was, at least, as much of it as she could see. Clothes were white and gold, rather gorgeous if her opinion had any merit. Attached to the crook of her arm was an odd device, mostly cylindrical in shape and connected to a thick wire that extended into some unseen hole inside her elbow. That was something she was not ready to examine any further than she had to, so she let the object be and returned her attention to the other living beings around her.

They had to be as confused, and frankly scared, as she was right now. Nothing about this place felt safe, or like anyone should be familiar with it, and the other people didn't seem to be any more comfortable than she was. But no one looked like they had taken a side against anyone yet, so maybe they could be friendly? ...Only one way to find out.

"Hello?"

 

[Azathoth]

Circuits sparked, power flowed throigt their channels to the right places and synthetic muscles, immitations of a humans own system began to move. The power flowed into the 'brain' of the construct, and it slowly regained it's consciousness. As it awoke and sat up, images flooded into its mind, blueprints, schematics, the desire to create, not just the things it had just seen but new things, things not yet made or things long forgotten, all those images had created something within the construct, a spark of creativity.
The construct looked around, the decrepit area it was in, the others that had awoken. It saw those who hadn't made it, and he felt sad about it, what a waste of life.
He looked to those around him, at the others that had awoken, those that were left. He went to stand, but stumbled as his synthetic muscles hadnt yet fully activated, years of lack of use had made them stiff.

 

[Horicabu]

Some ambiance, should it please you.

- |:+:|-
​

Besides the Aspect's voices, there was nothing to be heard in this vast, seemingly empty place. The sound echoed deep into the facility. Drains and vents lapped it up, carrying the sweet noise far and wide this self-contained world.

Even so, what was there to hear it? This place was lifeless. No beasts prowled the shadows, no insects scuttled across the walls. But something was moving. It didn't have legs, nor even a body. It had a single, enormous eye, and one blinking light to show it was online. A black protuberance felt the sound waves ruffle its surface. A security camera whirred to life, and covertly watched these noisy, odd beings. It focused with curiosity, an inhuman viewer behind the lenses baffled by the Aspect's appearance. For now, however, it kept quiet.

None of the newly freed Aspects had care to notice, except maybe Jameal.

 

[Pawnige]

Taking his hand away, Jameal stood and looked over his new companions. A subtle pulling coaxed his mind, the feeling akin to when you're alone yet know something is there. He could feel his senses spread beyond his body and cascade into the room, Jameal could feel his companions presences beyond just sight. Taking a breath and focusing on the feeling, he ushered it further. There was something else, something watching. "We're....not alone here..." Jameal says softly as he turns his head to the direction of the sensation. "Something is out there." He says to nobody in particular.

 

[Geck0]

Sighing, the handsome one with blue hair sat up, facing away from Willow and staring into the darkness that made up the apparent majority of their environment. Wall behind, walls to the side, void, to the front. "That's needlessly vague." Kyo murmured. After gazing into the void (and probably it gazing back) he tilted his head back to face the ceiling again, now actually caring to take in what was above them. Hmm, none of those corpses seemed to have any valuables...that's upsetting. "Well something killed those above us, perhaps that's what's watching us now - and it's now on it's way to rend our bodies and minds." A macabre thought but absolutely possible given the complete lack of any frame of reference the small party had at their disposal.

"Hm, itchy." Kyo rubbed his eyes with his hands, quietly grumbling as he did so. His first thought was to inspect his environment, but the longer he remained aware of the yawning darkness out in front of him the less he desired remaining here. Like a sailor in a boat is completely nonchalant about the deep ocean below and the horrors that lay within who was then knocked into the ocean and thus made painfully aware of the likelihood of being swallowed by some leviathan, Kyo's encroaching horror as he realized his entire duration in the silent womb was much less safe than he previously believed, threatened to overtake him, as a dull panic set in. "Smell that?" He asked. The fact he even knew what smell was, was laudable. But now, he wished that darkness would be illuminated, he wanted to see if whatever was observing them was not viewing them from the darkness in that tunnel, only able to see he and his companions thanks to the glow of their levitating sister.

"Everybody, let's quickly introduce ourselves." Kyo suddenly announced out loud, a feeble attempt to partially replace the panic with socialization. "First, I'll be Kyo, so call me that." He stated quickly, affirming the name he desired to be referred to by. A pseudonym, perhaps, but in the absence of "a true name" a pseudonym would be just as good as any.

 

[TatlTails]

The living beings didn't exactly say hello back, but they did begin to speak, so she was satisfied. Voices were certainly more pleasant to hear than the quiet creaks and groans of rusted metal. The blue one seemed the most confident of the bunch, at least based on first impressions. He was speaking more than the others, at the very least. He even mentioned names, giving his (Kyo) and... not quite asking, but declaring that everyone else should exchange theirs as well. Not a bad idea, if only she knew her name...

Jacqueline.

That was the first thing to come to mind when thinking of 'her name', so that probably meant it was the correct choice. She wasn't complaining, it was a rather lovely name. She just wished this knowledge felt a little more like it belonged to her rather than it being fed into her empty mind and splashing against the walls. Perhaps that feeling would lessen in time, or it would be explained, but for now there wasn't much she could do about it. So she took her name, held it close, and brought it back to the present with her.

The newly-named Jacqueline decided then to make the effort to stand, and use her voice for the second time. "Hello," She repeated, before glancing around at the others in the room. "Everyone. My name is Jacqueline. I don't suppose any of us knows much about what's going on, do we...?"

 

[NujabesLives!]

While the others moved to catch their bearings, one still stood in silence. Thoughts running through her head and asking the same question over and over. 'Why' Why had she gained such a follower and in the form of her own shadow no less? Intentionally sounding out the others as much as she could to sort out her thoughts, she ran a hand up the side of her mask, able to feel the smoothness of the latex fabric and the course roughness of the leather straps that held the mask in place.

The Shadow that it seemed had become some what of a quasi guardian to her loomed over the woman's shoulder. It's body mass seeming to constantly shift and distort as if it's entire structure was going to come tumbling down at any moment. If Willow had been a psychologist she might have assumed that had something to do with her psyche but she didn't have the expertise or experience to think that necessarily deep. Reaching out with it's 'hands', the Shadow placed them atop Willow's shoulders as if to give her some degree of comfort to try and cope with everything that had seemingly happened so fast.

The touch was appreciated even if it still sent a chill up her spine. The sensation felt cold to the touch as if being gently embraced by someone who'd just come in from the cold. Fitting for one who looked and whisked itself along with the mannerisms of a wandering ghost. As she went to gently clasp the hand, she caught out of the corner of her eye of some of the Shadow's fingers on the grasped hand disspiate into a sort of black smoke. Likely the creature reforming itself before Willow could get a good grip just to mess with her. At least it had somewhat of a sense of humor.

Still, the smoke like substance that quickly vanished away as the fingers reformed and welcomed Willow's return of affection sent an idea spiraling through Willow's head. The smoke moved freely and went as it pleased. It couldn't be contained or restrained and that kind of thinking was something Willow could get behind. To live a life doing as you pleased and not letting yourself be dragged down. She wondered if that'd be a life worth living and it was that moment, something clicked with her.

Pulling her hand away from the Shadow, Willow turned to look up at it as it loomed over her. It's face was a warped mimicry of the mask she wore, it's mouth elongated and trapped in a screaming expression. Perhaps representing the potential anguish Willow might suffer through? To want to scream forever. Managing a small smile behind her mask, she moved her hand upwards and waved it through the Shadow's head. Just as she had expected, the creature's head gave way to her touch and seemingly 'split' with the top of it's head disconnecting from the bottom with only a few smoky strands still connecting them. But as her hand finished passing through, they reconnected and the creature looked on as if nothing had happened whatsoever.

It seemed the Shadow lacked the capacity for speech and she supposed she could understand that. The way it's face looked, she gathered that was the entire point behind the design. For it to protect her and have it's potentially differing opinions from Willow's but it'd never be able to voice them. Because it's face would remain the same as it always did.

What a shitty fate.

Still, she felt better thanks to the Shadow's affectionate gestures and as the others went around introducing themselves, Willow found the determination to finally speak up. Her voice surprisingly deep and behind it was a heavy atmosphere that helped to serve that Willow wouldn't let herself be pushed around by anybody.

"The name's Willow. I'd say it's a pleasure but it could just as easily be hell."​

 

[Raffia Kiryuin]

FLoating upright for a moment she seemed to loose her balance and fell backwards yet never touched the ground. she found that very strange...why was her body rejecting it so desperately. Even in her memories she could feel the gentle at times rather aggressive pressure as as her body seemed to try and move away from those walls that gave her warmth.

Laying like that, floating above ground she looked at the blue haired one which made her tilt her head a little Was that a guy or a girl? watching Kyo for a bit she listened to his introduction. At least the name helped her a little bit she could now place a solid guess at Kyo being a guy.

Finally floating upright once more she spoke up with confidence. "I don't understand even half of what is going on...i don't even understand why my body refuses to touch the ground or walls But one thing i do understand. It is nice seeing other living beings around." As she spoke she didn't even understand how she knew how to speak to begin with but thats a question for later. When it came to calling out her name she was about to say it when a memory that was not of her own floated up to the surface. She could remember a computer screen with the name Ranou printed on it. Thinking it was way better than her own idea she resumed talking. "Since we are all exchanging names you may call me Ranou." For now she kept it to a neutral tone as she did not know what their intentions were and as such she kept herself vary of the rest.

 

[Horicabu]

Some Ambiance, should it please you.

- |:+:| -
​

As the Aspects conversed, seemingly unaware or ignoring their watcher, a creature in the wires mulled over its newfound companions. It watched them carefully through the camera, lens dilating and focusing on each one with a delicate eye for detail, almost as though in disbelief of what it was seeing. Finally, the watcher decided to announce its presence personally.

The facility's intercom crackled as it whirred to life after an unknown time of disuse. An odd, warped voice boomed through the empty passages, even more distorted by the unwelcoming architecture.

I should have known this would happen. Your kind are like flies. Swat one, and three more appear in its place. Even the Wheel couldn't stomp you all out.

I must say, I'm disappointed there aren't more of you. Not that I should be on your side, that is. Frankly, I'm not sure I am. But that's beside the point.

In case you're curious, I'm an angel. I would be with you in person, but I'm trapped in the computer. This facility is designed to capture spirits.

I already know your names, obviously. I want to give you a hand if you're willing to help me.

Carry my server with you, and I'll guide you out of this facility.

On the wall opposite the drop into nothing, several cracked panels slid over one another, and behind them, a heavy, multistage door opened. Beyond it loomed a half-lit chamber, leading straight forward to stairs headed upwards. On one side, there was a paneled wall. On the other, darkness. The stale scent of rust and decay tainted the air, drifting in from this monstrous structure's bowels.

 

[Geck0]

Kyo immediately gave up on having everybody introduce themselves - only two of them hadn't anyway; instead attempting to find the source of the noise but quickly giving up on that also. "Hmm, why would an angel want to help? Are you not the one who destroyed all these pods?" He demanded rhetorically. He actually didn't really care whether or not the angel killed those others and he doubted it did anyway, given that it didn't appear to have any way to do so. "Yeah, we'll help - ya dumb bird." The blue-haired Aspect grumbled, already on his way towards the doorway and beyond. "Come on, friends, we've got an angel to 'save'." He gestured with one hand for them to follow as he made for the stairs, his gorgeous arms and legs glinting in the low light environment.

This place was shaping up to be more unnerving the longer the group remained, and the macabre scent of rust exacerbated that further. He pondered as he walked if the angel was aware of his - and perhaps his group's - intent to leave due to these negative environmental factors, and was abusing them in order to lead them to a trap of some kind, either to have them killed or worse. Well, if that was the intention, he was sure death would just be like the long darkness, but without end. The darkness was comforting though, so perhaps that wouldn't be so bad...even though it still filled him with a sense of dread.

 

[TatlTails]

Whoa whoa whoa, wait a minute. So much happened in a short amount of time, it was too much to process in an instant. First of all, a disembodied voice began echoing through the chamber, promising some sort of freedom despite making its feelings towards this group clear. Secondly, it was an angel. Jacqueline barely knew what an angel was, but she knew that at some point they had committed literal genocide, sent humanity into extinction, and greatly disliked... whatever she was. Or rather, they were, since there was more than one person here. These people weren't humans, whatever those were (or had been), but they definitely weren't angels.

And thirdly, the blue-haired sparkly boy named Kyo had decided- for the entirety of the group mind you, not just himself- to aid this angel with no further information given. And he was already walking away, expecting everyone else to follow.

"Hold on a moment!" Jacqueline blurted out, unable to stop herself. But she couldn't manage to get her feet to move before her mouth did, so if this boy wanted her to follow him then goshdarnit she was going to speak up first! "Kyo. How are you so sure we can trust this... angel? No offense, Mr. Angel, but these aren't exactly the most friendly terms we're meeting on. Is it really the best choice to walk into this blindly? Especially when we all still know so little, about the situation and each other..."

 

[Horicabu]

There was a brief moment of static before the warped voice spoke again.

'Friendly terms.' The angel chuckled. It was an odd sound, bringing to mind tinkling bells. Do you think we are friends? You and I are in need of each other, that is all.

Do you really not understand the difference between us? Have you no memories? The angel paused, thinking. Its voice took on a sardonic tone. I suppose it's not important. Please take your time. Discuss the terms and conditions if you wish. It may not be in your best interest, but it certainly is in mine.

 

[NujabesLives!]

"...!"

Although before the 'Angel' had started to speak, the Shadow's composition was constantly shifting and rearranging itself. As if it struggled to keep itself a cohesive being. But that all flipped once the voice identified itself as an angel. The shadow's body began to shake and writhe as if surging with a muted fury. It's desire was to keep Willow safe from harm and although it lacked the ability to speak or communicate efficiently with Willow or the others, the current course of action didn't seem to be sitting well with it at all.

Running a gloved hand over the back of the shadow's head, Willow whispered sweet nothings to try and ease it's anger. How quick it was to jump to blind and unbridled fury once again reminded Willow of herself. Of the person she might be and might act like if she were to strip off the costume she wore. To let her companion, saddled to her as it was, lose itself in it's anger it'd be of no use to her. As the shadow's form eventually began to settle back into it's usual vicious like composition, Willow decided now was as good a time as any to give her two cents on the matter.

"I say we assist if it means we can get out of here."

A raised index fingers clearly showed that wasn't the end of her take on this though.

"I'll do everything within my power to make you suffer if you double cross us. That's not a promise. It's a guarantee. I suggest you heed it."

​

 

[Pawnige]

Jameal turns around to face his companions, giving a quick shake of his head to clear it. So many questions, such a strange place, plus a disembodied and haunting voice of a being who claimed to be an angel? All curiosity of the situation overwhelmed him, and even made him almost blank out for a few moments as the group introduced themselves and discussed options. Scratching his head with a spindly finger, Jameal's interest is caught by the one who called it's self 'Willow'. "Such a bold statement~" He has cocking his head at willow. "I would like some answers and a way out of here though, so...my vote is we help it for the time being...."

Pausing, Jameal looks around between the faces and realizes he never introduced himself. If his mettle face had blood it would have blushed heavily as he droops it slightly and says. "I-I'm Jameal by the way....But you can call me Jam if you like~"

 

[Horicabu]

Some ambience, should it please you.

-|:+:|-​

If we're done bickering, then I suppose it's time to leave. The angel said. Since you all seem rather dazed, I'll stop being feisty and make it abundantly clear for you where to go.

Without warning, a buzzer blared as unseen mechanisms burst into life. Several panels wobbled and vibrated as tiny doors snapped open on their surface, and a series of holographic images buzzed into the air in front of everybody's faces. After a few loading screens, a shimmering white model rose from a flat plane, showing what could be assumed the entire facility.

The model changed several times as the angel scrolled through various systems of wiring, drainage, and ventilation, until it settled on a thankfully simple series of rooms and tunnels labelled 'SOUL conduits.' One familiarly shaped room turned orange. From there, a route turned blue, leading to an emergency vent on the side of a tower.

In case you don't remember, you're looking at a three dimensional map. The orange part is this very room. I'll get us out via the SOUL conduits. They are marked in blue.

Before we go, let me give you a word of warning: you'll need to navigate some very unpleasantly sized tunnels. There are far less rigorous ways of exiting the facility, but I'd rather not go there, for both of our sakes. The normal routes are...hazardous.

I'm going to shut down the display system, but I'll give you a portable hard drive that's got the route on it.

With that, the holograms clicked off and a small rectangle shot out from the wall, clattering over the floor. Down the newly revealed hallway, one of the panels on the left lit up, and roughly ground forward, carrying with it a mess of tubing and wires. Between the sunken plastic tubes laid a grate, covering a shaft about a meter across.