Kyriakos: OVERFLOW

[justichthys]

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[soulping]

[Aoko's staff cracks against the baby alien's head just as its blade pierces her stomach]

[well]

["pierces"]

[the pain from the blow is more akin to what she might feel if something scratched her torso: a minor sting, and nothing more. it's accompanied by the corners of her vision flashing red, though that only lasts for a second or two. meanwhile, the baby alien glitches out and disappears, predictably leaving the number 50 behind]

Fifty points to player two.

[Aoko may also find that her stomach is bleeding a little bit, but the injury is only a small scrape. her HP meter reports 80% of her HP remains]

[carptricks]

[AND AT THE SAME TIME]

Wh--

[Aoko shoves Kaito out of the way before he can even process what's happening, and the force of the push sends him stumbling to the side. he catches his balance quickly and pivots on his heel just in time to see the flash of the baby alien's blade, hear the crack of metal against alien skull, and experience the sensation of his heart leaping into his throat]

Aoko--!

[stupid, stupid, stupid, why weren't you paying attention?! you got too cocky! as the alien baby disappears in the blink of an eye, his hand darts out to grab at Aoko's arm, concern written all over his expression]

Oi! Are you okay?!

[justichthys]

[ Ah, that … … … … ]

[ That didn't hurt nearly as much as she'd been expecting. ]

[ Aoko blinks hard, her hands pressed against the wound. The red flash in her vision was alarming to say the least, and the faint burn of pain she feels suggests that she is, indeed, bleeding—but it feels like it's no worse than a scratch. ]

I'm … fine?

[carptricks]

Fine?! You were just--

[IMMEDIATELY EXAMINES HER. . . stomach. . .?]

-- stabbed?

[no. gaping wounds?? cue confusion]

[justichthys]

[ She has to move her hands first, to let him get to the 'wound', but she does so readily. ]

My, uhm ... my vision flashed red for a second, and my HP gauge has dropped down to eighty percent.

[carptricks]

. . .

[huh]

I s'pose we owe Iota some credit.

[he glances over at the welded door to find that the rest of the baby aliens are still suck at the crack. w-whew. it was just a single stray]

[justichthys]

She doesn't ... seem like she's a bad person at all. She's just. Uhm. [ w-waves a hand ] She really is just like a kid, in some ways.

[ she glances over as well, shifting edgily ]

We should probably get out of here.

[carptricks]

You definitely don't need to tell me twice.

[and with that, he beeline towards the exit. though not without giving one last glance at her torso, just in case]

[justichthys]

[ it's just a scratch, no gaping wounds over here! ]

So, uhm. [ Hurrying along with him, staying close. ] Those health bars we brought along—should I try one now, to see how much they heal, or should we hold off?

[carptricks]

[pokes his head out of the infirmary and back into the dark hallway. he glances left and right, before quietly stealing across said hallway to the door on the opposite side. this one is labeled MESS HALL]

I'd wait until you're at 50% health or lower before taking one of those. I doubt there's anything around here that can take out 80% of your hit points in one blow.

[justichthys]

Kaito! [ HISSSSS. ] You can't say things like that! Now we're gonna run straight into a boss battle.

[carptricks]

What? S'true! In video games bosses only kill you in one hit if you're not leveled up enough.

[ah the mess hall is locked too. this time there are no aliens scraping down the hallway towards them, so Kaito pulls out the lock picks he yoinked earlier and tries to pry the keypad box open]

[justichthys]

For all we know, we might be under-leveled! Don't tell me you've forgotten what happens in some of those games—you know, when you can access high level areas when you're still just starting out if you get lucky? [ or incredibly unlucky, depending on how easy it is to backthread. ]

[ While he's focused on that, she'll guard his back, staff up, wary. ]

[carptricks]

[the keypad cover pops open with ease, revealing a series of brown and green wires underneath]

If you're that worried about it, eat a sandwich.

[justichthys]

You're really not concerned at all? Geez ... no wonder it takes you so long to get anywhere in games.

[ RIBBING HIM ALL DAY EVERY DAY ]

[carptricks]

Long? What the heck! I'm not that inefficient.

[GRUMPS and snaps a few wires with the wire cutter that came with the lock pick tools. the keypad beeps, and the door whooshes open]

This is me reading the atmosphere and making decisions based on the game difficulty so far.

[justichthys]

Less efficient than me! You're too cocky. [ and she is a paragon of video game virtue, clearly. CLEARLY. ]

When we run straight into trouble, I'm blaming you for all of it.

[ she shifts, peeking cautiously around the edge of the now open door. ]

[carptricks]

More efficient than someone who wastes hours getting lost in puzzle dungeons!

[and JUST TO PROVE HIS POINT, he spins around and sticks his tongue out at her, before stepping into the Mess Hall. . .]

[soulping]

[the Mess Hall looks like. . . well. a cafeteria! only there are no tables and chairs for people to sit at. the room is wide, open and lined with chrome, with a few colorful squiggly symbol lining the walls. the same alien language Aoko saw on the medicine bottles earlier, perhaps?]

[on the right is a standard-looking cafeteria line where food is presumably served, complete with a plastic guard to shield the food. it's impossible to tell what the line currently has available to eat, but. . .]

[the foulest of stenches is drifting from that direction. whatever it is, it can't be delicious to humans]

[there's a door on the opposite side of the room]

[justichthys]

Oh, shut up! I found some cool stuff while I was looking around! [ "Cool" is debatable, really. ]

[ When Kaito steps inside, Aoko grabs the back of his jacket. Her nose wrinkles at the smell, but what really bothers her is how open the place is … it feels too empty. Too exposed. ]

[carptricks]

Define "cool"--

[he begins snarkily, but then the smell hits him in the face like a brick. he recoils and wrinkles his nose, his hand shooting to cover his face with his palm]

Eugh. The hell is that?

[despite the casual grumpiness in his words, Aoko may find that his shoulders are pretty darn tense as well. she's not the only one bothered by the open room]

[justichthys]

I'm not sure I want to find out.

[ Speaking through her teeth, because eugh she feels like if she opens her mouth properly she might start gagging. ]

[ Peers around him cautiously, looking between the food counter and the door. ]

... but if I had to guess, I'd say that's probably where the next puzzle piece is.

[carptricks]

Which means we'll probably have to find out.

[he keeps his feet planted firmly on the ground, unmoving. also his voice is all nasally 'cause he's covering his nose]

This is even worse than the walking swiss army knife, geez. . .

[justichthys]

[ Aoko's all for not moving. They. They can move in a minute, once they've had a chance to get used to the awful, horrific stench. ]

… You can go first this time.

[carptricks]

Not feeling so brave all of a sudden, huh.

[he teases with a snort, which he immediately regrets because the smell nearly sends him into a coughing fit]

[but once the coughs die down, he moves forward towards the cafeteria line. slowly. carefully. cautiously]