Kyriakos: OVERFLOW

[justichthys]

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[justichthys]

Of course there's blood, why wouldn't there be … [ Aoko breathes, grumbling quietly. She's already on edge from those sounds, let alone the physical signs that Something Is Here. ]

[ … claws against metal ]

[ she whips around, grip tightening into a cling on her staff. ]

Then let's go already!

[carptricks]

I'm going!

[SHOVES THE DOOR]

[. . .]

[it doesn't budge]

[SHOVES. . . AGAIN]

It's stuck!

[meanwhile, the scraping begins to get louder, and louder]

[justichthys]

Aren't you supposed to be good at this kind of thing?! Geez— [ Nervous, shifting on her feet, staff clutched close to her chest. ] Look for a … a release button, or something, there might be one somewhere! I've got you covered!

[carptricks]

I said it was stuck, not that I couldn't get it unstuck! Have some faith!

[he casts a wary glance down the hallway as he runs his hands over the door, then the frame next to it, searching, searching for a lock or a button or--]

[a hidden keypad]

[he flips the keypad open to reveal a series of numbers. or, he assumes they're numbers. they look more like weird squiggly shapes to him. alien numbers, man. he could probably disarm the keypad lock, but]

Okay, take a step back!

[as he draws his weapon from its holster, he thinks it's probably quicker and easier to blast their way through. for now]

[. . . the scraping noise is now accompanied by low gurgling]

[justichthys]

[ … WELL THAT'S ONE WAY TO DO IT, SURE. Aoko does as she's told, shifting from foot to foot anxiously and bringing her staff down into a ready, guarded position. ]

The noise is gonna give away our position completely … [ Not a complaint so much as a, yeah, that's a thing; she's okay with him doing what he has to do. SHE'D JUST RATHER NOT HAVE A HORDE OF ALIENS COME DOWN ON THEIR HEADS. ] But if we have no choice, we have no choice!

[carptricks]

I think our voices might've already done that. . .!

[levels the barrel of his laser gun at the keypad lock, takes aim, and--]

[there's a flash of red light and a bang as the lock bursts apart and sizzles into a thousand shattered pieces. sparks fly, and the gurgling sound from beyond the corridor suddenly turns into an alarmed, throaty noise]

[the door whooshes open]

Looks like we're welcome in here after all. . .! C'mon!

[he grasps at her wrist and yanks her inside the (currently pitch black) room]

[justichthys]

There's a big difference between a gun and our voices …! [ and she has been talking in a fierce whisper, thank you very muERK, grabbed and yanked! ]

[ She stumbles in after him ]

See! I don't think it even knew we were there!

[ … it sure is dark in here, uhm. What if she feels around for a lightswitch?! ]

[soulping]

[she finds a lightswitch on the wall (though it's more like a button than a switch), and the lights flicker on]

[bright lights. the kind of searing, fluorescent lights you'd find in a hospital. after creeping through the darkness for so long, it might take a moment for your eyesight to adjust.]

[but congratulations, you've found an infirmary. despite the blood spatters on the door outside, it seems pretty clean. . .? well, except for the stainless steel tray of sharp surgical tools. those are all covered in blood]

[there's another sliding door on the opposite end of the room. and although the one you came through slammed shut at your backs, from beyond it you can still hear the creature approaching, sharp toenails clicking against the floor at a faster pace than before]

[carptricks]

[curses lightly and immediately dives for a bed]

Under here!

[justichthys]

Are you joking?! [ Her voice is a fierce, whispered hiss. ] A monster's coming, and you want to hide under the bed?!

[ But she'll follow him anyway, because why wouldn't she follow his lead. ]

[carptricks]

It's an alien, not a monster! And I don't see you coming up with any better ideas!

[. . . besides, he's ducking behind the bed, not underneath it]

[justichthys]

It sounds like a monster right now!

[ HUFFS ]

[ But there she is, behind the bed. She's looking around already, fingers drumming against her weapon, trying to figure out what to do … ]

Do you think we could jam the door somehow?

[carptricks]

[maybe not jam it, but. . .]

[ducks his head low to see if the bed legs have wheels (they do). he lets out a breath and leans his shoulder against the frame]

What about blocking it? Help me push!

[THE ALARMED GURGLING NOISES ARE JUST OUTSIDE THE DOOR]

[justichthys]

[ gosh Kaito you can totally jam these kind of doors by shooting something in all of the movies! Except shooting the lock in this case caused it to open, so maybe not … SO. Aoko just nods quickly, and starts pushing! ]

[soulping]

[yeah that is the only reason he didn't try shooting the door again. . . ]

[either way, they push! the bed rolls quickly across the linoleum floor and races towards the door. and just in time too, for the door slides open to reveal ONE OF THESE]

[who lets out a surprise squawk as the bed slams right into its stomach and sends it flying back out into the dark hallway with a crash]

[carptricks]

[. . .]

[. . .]

. . . close enough!

[justichthys]

Eek!!

… S-Sorry!

[ did aoko just apologize to the alien thing YES SHE DID ]

Uhm, Kaito, I think we should— [ gestures?! to the opposite door?! ]

[carptricks]

Did you just--

[okay no that's not important]

Yup! I think we should! Let's go!

[bolting for the opposite door seems to be a wise idea, because that sure is the sound of one angry salad shooter ripping a mattress to pieces with a loud snarl]

[justichthys]

What?! It's a reflex, Bakaito!

[ yes of course she's taking the time to bicker, but that's only because bickering doesn't slow her down at all. when he bolts, she's right on his heels. ]

Are we going through the same way as last time?

[ maYBE NEXT TIME LET'S NOT DRAW ATTENTION TO OURSELVES, OKAY, WE COULD HAVE AVOIDED ALL OF THIS ]

[carptricks]

Only if it's locked!

[LOOK. LOOK. WE WERE IN A HURRY. IT WAS THE EASIEST WAY IN]

[thankfully, the door they approach (which is labeled HATCHERY) is not locked. it whooshes open quickly, allowing them to escape into yet another dark room]

[justichthys]

[ YOU'RE FUCKIN' KAITOU KID IT WOULD'VE TAKEN YOU TEN SECONDS ]

[ Immediately trying to hit the lights! ]

[carptricks]

[ALIEN KEYPAD LOCKS ARE NOT THAT EASY TO DISARM GDMIT]

[as she searches for the button that turns on the lights, Kaito whirls around to search for a lock. any lock. thankfully, he finds another button on the wall next to the door that is conveniently labeled LOCK. he slams that with his palm just as she hits the lights]

[soulping]

[. . . the lights come on just as strong as they were in the infirmary, to reveal what looks to be a laboratory of sorts. there are stainless steel tables covered in chemistry equipment, everything from beakers to bunsen burners to test tubes to burets]

[off to the right is a large, rectangular incubator with a window on the front. and inside the incubator are rows upon rows. . . of eggs]

[and lining the back wall of the hatchery are large, glass cylinders filled with a light green liquid. sleeping inside those cylinders are a dozen or so baby salad shooter aliens, just like the one they barely escaped]

[oh. speaking of that alien, it slams against the now locked door with a loud THUMP and quite a few angry shrieks]

[justichthys]

[ MAYBE WE SHOULD HAVE WAITED TO CHECK WHAT'S ACTUALLY IN HERE BEFORE LOCKING OURSELVES … in … oh ]

R-Right, uhm ... [ this is pinging her in uncomfortably familiar ways, and her words speed up ]

Kaito, you look for the key, and I'll see if there's an escape route that isn't on the map. We need to hurry, I'm not sure how long that door will hold it!

[carptricks]

[when Kaito whirls around to take in the scene, his own hackles raise as well. not only is this uncomfortably familiar, but their escape options are much, much more limited than last time]

[the alien beyond the door shrieks yet again, and the sound of its razor-sharp blades slicing against the door is almost like nails on a chalkboard to the ears. Kaito winces, before he takes a deep breath and nods]

. . . right.

[since this is a futuristic alien base, he gets the feeling the "key" he's looking for here isn't a normal padlock-and-metal-key combination. nevertheless, he begins his search on the chemistry tables, poking through the equipment in search of something key. . . like]