Kyriakos: OVERFLOW

[justichthys]

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[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]

[justichthys]

[ There has to be something in here … something they can use that'll let them escape without having to fight. Aoko takes a few cautious steps further into the room, trying (rather desperately) to ignore the sound of the alien trying to tear its way through solid metal to get at them. ]

[ Air vents, maintenance shafts, access panels … there's got to be something! She calls up the map as she searches, fiddling with it to see if she can't get it to zoom in on the hatchery. ]

[carptricks]

[she can, though the hatchery map is still pretty rudimentary. it only details what is in the room-- the incubators, the glass cylinders, the stainless steel tables of chemistry equipment, the door they came through. . . wait, huh. a secret compartment, too small to be a true passageway, hidden behind the right wall?]

[when Kaito's frantic search of the tables reveals nothing, he pushes away and lets out a small curse. the door bends underneath the alien's blows, and there's the distinct chance that it might break sooner than anticipated]

Any luck, Aoko?!

[he focuses his attention on the door know, hand shooting towards the laser gun at his waist]

You might need to handle the key and the escape!

[justichthys]

There's something behind this wall! [ She calls back, breathless with nerves. ] I can … [ She runs her fingers over it, looking for seams in the metal, or secret switches or anything that might show her how to get at whatever's back there. ]

I'll see what I can do, just hold them off for a couple of minutes!

[carptricks]

[no seams, no secret switches. but if she raps her knuckles against the metal, she'll find that it feels strangely hallow and fragile]

[just like the door, which is now being shredded into two by the salad shooter alien. the squeal of the blade on metal is deafening, but Kaito's reaction is quick. he draws his weapon, levels it carefully at the alien's feet, and fires before the creature can step one foot into the room. there's a flash of red light and a hiss of displeasure as the alien rears back, still mostly unharmed but now deterred. oh and, of course, the smell of smoke caused by the now scorched floor begins to seep through the area]

Only a couple of minutes? Tch, easy!

[the commotion is causing the baby aliens to stir in their cylinders]

[justichthys]

[ She trusts Kaito at her back. Knows he's got her covered, and that she doesn't have to keep glancing over her shoulder at him. … still kind of hard to resist the urge to glance at the sound of stirring baby aliens, but she manages it. Somehow. ]

[ And with a deep breath, she takes a step back, and slams the butt of her staff with every ounce of strength she has right at the metal. ]

[carptricks]

[her staff tears clean through the hallow metal spot, though not without resistance. once she manages to clear away the rest of the metallic sheet that covers the hidden compartment, she'll find what looks to be a small, platinum. . . 3D puzzle piece? it's difficult to tell what kind of shape it is supposed to make just from one piece, though]

[meanwhile Kaito is also dutifully ignoring the stirring babies, his full attention focused on the bladed alien at the door. the creature ducks its head and snarls, but Kaito's gaze remains steady and unflinching]

[when the salad shooter jerks forward with inhuman speed, it's elbow blade extended, he's ready. he ducks smoothly underneath the weapon, which winds up only slicing off a few minuscule hairs from the top of his head. raises the barrel of his laser gun at the alien's stomach. . .]

[and fires]

[justichthys]

[ Puzzle pieces … oh, great. That means they're going to have even more things to find before they can reach their objective. Aoko grabs the piece carefully, and turns around just as—oh. ]

[ Kaito shot it. ]

… Hey. [ She speaks up, after a beat of silence. It's not real. ] You okay?