Personification Life - IC Part VIII [open]

[Cerillium]

The blonde grabbed his shoulder. "That's just skippy! So what do we do now?"

The Celt in her still wanted to slice and dice and bash. Preferably in the altogether. A couple centuries of training and drilling said that wasn't a good idea. Bruises and cuts and burns hurt.

"We find them? We work a miracle of some kind? We stop this child from screaming because it's making my ears bleed?"

Hans rubbed his temples. "I wish we could just roll back the clock to before the Naked Fairy. I was having so much fun. We were going to get Dr. Pepper, remember?" Hans wasn't hero material. "I'm - I'm out of my element here."

[Swith Witherward]

A Ball pit? A damn Ball pit!?

That was the ultimate insult to Rachelle, who thought she'd outgrown the damn things around 4 or 5, but she was 7. How dare they be trapped here, for apparently no reason other than to get candy. Of course, this bravado came across as her bawling her eyes out, because being trapped made her think bad things, terrible things, things about her parents getting brutally murdered. Was she next in the line of Baines' to die?

No, she was a Nikanor, and she would live.

Sydney curled up in a corner. She was afraid to poof. Mommy got swatted out of existence that way, once upon a time. She suddenly realized she would have to use her wits... and she didn't have too many experiences to draw from. Daddy would power through the wall in a big mech suit, normally. Siduer would be the voice of reason, most of the time. But Sydney was really only a few months old, and she suddenly felt as helpless as an infant.

She burrowed down in the balls until she felt the bottom of the pit, and she cried.

[Galnius]

Michael took a little bit of time to figure out exactly what Sigtrygg was saying. "Oh me? I'm Michael. I met this guy who was almost a werewolf called Albert, a girl called Gio, and a weird person in a gas mask called Bones."

"Nice to meet you, Michael." Sigtrygg said in his heavily accented voice. He smiled brighter at the name of Giovenith. "Oh, Gio? She is a very good friend of mine! She is a bit odd, but very, very kind and nice."

"Yeah, she seemed okay to me. I didn't really see the strangeness compared to the rest of what has happened recently." He cracked his neck and shoulders. "Is there anywhere that I can do something? Fight clubs are generally interesting. I haven't sparred for a while."

[The BranRiech]

"Sydney, get up here." Rachelle squeaked.

Partly because the girl wanted to act brave for heer much younger friends, another part because she needed a friend to cry with. Already, her bright orange T-shirt was smeared with tears.

"Come on, please."

[New Aksarben]

"Nice to meet you, Michael." Sigtrygg said in his heavily accented voice. He smiled brighter at the name of Giovenith. "Oh, Gio? She is a very good friend of mine! She is a bit odd, but very, very kind and nice."

"Yeah, she seemed okay to me. I didn't really see the strangeness compared to the rest of what has happened recently." He cracked his neck and shoulders. "Is there anywhere that I can do something? Fight clubs are generally interesting. I haven't sparred for a while."

Sigtrygg tilted his head in confusion. "What is a fight club? If you want somewhere to fight, we could train. My hand-to-hand combat skills are a bit rusty. I specialize using my sword, or occasionally an ax. I was actually about to head into the backyard to train against some dummy-soldiers I built a while ago."

[Swith Witherward]

"Sydney, get up here." Rachelle squeaked.

Partly because the girl wanted to act brave for heer much younger friends, another part because she needed a friend to cry with. Already, her bright orange T-shirt was smeared with tears.

"Come on, please."

Sydney raised her head to look at Rachelle. "We need to get out. He works for my uncle. My uncle is crazy. He's so crazy the other gods are getting ready to kill him. And he won't show mercy to us."

Inspiration struck. "What if we crawled to the bottom and hid? He'd have to open the door to see where we went, right? We could try to run out? Maybe if we lay down on each side of the door and waiting for him to step in? But he moves in shadows, so I don't know what we'd do once we got out."

[Galnius]

"Yeah, she seemed okay to me. I didn't really see the strangeness compared to the rest of what has happened recently." He cracked his neck and shoulders. "Is there anywhere that I can do something? Fight clubs are generally interesting. I haven't sparred for a while."

Sigtrygg tilted his head in confusion. "What is a fight club? If you want somewhere to fight, we could train. My hand-to-hand combat skills are a bit rusty. I specialize using my sword, or occasionally an ax. I was actually about to head into the backyard to train against some dummy-soldiers I built a while ago."

"That'll do. Actually, that'll do just fine." Michael looked at the large Norseman. "So where and when do you come from?"

[The BranRiech]

"Where's the Calvary anyways?" Rachelle asked, wiping tears from her face with a frown. "You'd think that there'd be people looking for us. But yes, we need to get out. How would we get out when he opens the door though? Do we pull him into the pit and climb out? We could lock him in hear if we tried." She shrugged.

[Urran]

Blossom was once gain pounding on Jacob's door. No more Miss Nice vampire. He was eating whether he liked it or not.

[Swith Witherward]

Tipper woke up and stretched against Volturius, who was spooning behind her. It was toasty warm under his wings. She knew they helped him cool down in some fashion, perhaps dispelling body heat or else the capillaries basked in the cooler temperature of the air and cooled down his blood. She wasn't too certain. What she was certain of was that they contained his scent. She stroked the membrane between two of the long finger bones and shivered in pleasure. She loved Snuggy's wings.

Their clothing had been in their room upon their return, not that they had any use for it. Instead, they'd basked in a little celebration all their own before falling to sleep exhausted from their efforts. The little cultist wasn't sure what time of day it was. It was getting more and more difficult for her to gauge it, especially as the warm sunlight that trickled through their window seemed to vanish earlier and earlier each night. She wondered if this was normal.

She closed her eyes and gave the Noise Marines some thought. Their presence had triggered memories in her. She tried to chase those thoughts down afterwards but to no avail... whatever the experiences were, they were lost to her.

The little cultist rolled over in Volturius' embrace and playfully nipped at his pectoral muscle with her strange teeth.

--

Sydney shrugged. "Maybe they don't know we're gone, Rachelle? Maybe Hans didn't tell no one? He's a real nice guy, for a Nazi, but he's crazy like all the other cultists. Maybe he'll be glad I'm gone so he don't have to watch me no more?"

She sat up and drew her knees to her chin, resting her head on them. "We're not strong enough to pull Toshi in. He's got the strength of his daemon. And, most of all, I think he can use shadows like the other cultists. I don't know much about them. I don't know anything about Uncle Ogoti's daemons. Except the Khan'gurani'i... those are kinda cute and playful."

[New Aksarben]

Blossom was once gain pounding on Jacob's door. No more Miss Nice vampire. He was eating whether he liked it or not.

"What?" Jacob shouted from under the covers of his bed. He turned away from the door again, hoping it wasn't Albert. He didn't want to fight, or really see, his brother again for a while. Otherwise the gap between them might become even wider. And he didn't think his nation could withstand another vicious civil war. He had felt the glimmerings of the tension of a possible one during their fight earlier. And he was feeling very weak from that. He hadn't felt that for the longest time, not since he and Albert had last fought openly. And it scared him quite a bit.

---

"I came from the Kingdom of Finland from around the year 950 in the Frankish calender. I was brought here by strange-lizards that live next to Building." Sigtrygg responded with a smile, "Why do you ask, Michael?"

[Urran]

Blossom twisted the doorknob and walked in with a steaming hot bowl of chicken noodle soup. "You are going to eat this even if I have to shove every last spoonfull down your throat." She hissed and walked over to his bed. "This isn't healthy Jacob"

[The BranRiech]

"Then is there really no way to escape? Because you're making it out that if we do manage to get him to open the door, he'll just force us to stay in here, and I'm assuming that means he's really powerful?" Rachelle wondered, all the funny terminology was nearly lost on her. She knew how to work a wrench, not talk about mythology.

[New Aksarben]

Blossom twisted the doorknob and walked in with a steaming hot bowl of chicken noodle soup. "You are going to eat this even if I have to shove every last spoonfull down your throat." She hissed and walked over to his bed. "This isn't healthy Jacob"

"What isn't healthy? Trying to recover from a near civil war in peace and quiet?" He asked from under the covers, his ears, which were still uncovered, drooping against the covers above his head. "I could feel my nation approaching civil war, and managing to pull back from that abyss at the last moment thanks to a great senator......" He sounded very depressed, and for various causes.

[Galnius]

Blossom was once gain pounding on Jacob's door. No more Miss Nice vampire. He was eating whether he liked it or not.

"What?" Jacob shouted from under the covers of his bed. He turned away from the door again, hoping it wasn't Albert. He didn't want to fight, or really see, his brother again for a while. Otherwise the gap between them might become even wider. And he didn't think his nation could withstand another vicious civil war. He had felt the glimmerings of the tension of a possible one during their fight earlier. And he was feeling very weak from that. He hadn't felt that for the longest time, not since he and Albert had last fought openly. And it scared him quite a bit.

---

"I came from the Kingdom of Finland from around the year 950 in the Frankish calender. I was brought here by strange-lizards that live next to Building." Sigtrygg responded with a smile, "Why do you ask, Michael?"

"No real reason. I was just curious. It seems everyone comes from such interesting places. So, how do we get to these training areas?" He pulled a granola bar out of his bag (because there is no reason for those to go with the clothes as they were not in them) and began eating it.

[Swith Witherward]

"Then is there really no way to escape? Because you're making it out that if we do manage to get him to open the door, he'll just force us to stay in here, and I'm assuming that means he's really powerful?" Rachelle wondered, all the funny terminology was nearly lost on her. She knew how to work a wrench, not talk about mythology.

"There's always a way to escape. Uncle Levi once told me... or was it Mr. Klaus?... anyway, a prisoner's first duty is to escape. Just give name, rank and cereal number, too. I don't have a rank and I only eat Cheerios, so he'll have to accept that."

[The BranRiech]

"Rachelle B. Nikanor, Mechanic in training, uh, no serial number, but you eat Cheerios? My grandma read the serials in the newspaper before I was adopted, I think that counts." Rachelle shrugged, both children getting the "Serial number" Idea wrong.

[New Aksarben]

"What?" Jacob shouted from under the covers of his bed. He turned away from the door again, hoping it wasn't Albert. He didn't want to fight, or really see, his brother again for a while. Otherwise the gap between them might become even wider. And he didn't think his nation could withstand another vicious civil war. He had felt the glimmerings of the tension of a possible one during their fight earlier. And he was feeling very weak from that. He hadn't felt that for the longest time, not since he and Albert had last fought openly. And it scared him quite a bit.

---

"I came from the Kingdom of Finland from around the year 950 in the Frankish calender. I was brought here by strange-lizards that live next to Building." Sigtrygg responded with a smile, "Why do you ask, Michael?"

"No real reason. I was just curious. It seems everyone comes from such interesting places. So, how do we get to these training areas?" He pulled a granola bar out of his bag (because there is no reason for those to go with the clothes as they were not in them) and began eating it.

"There is really no training area. I just set up some logs in a small clearing in the woods." Sig responded, heading for the stairwell with a gesture that told Mike to follow along.

[Swith Witherward]

"Rachelle B. Nikanor, Mechanic in training, uh, no serial number, but you eat Cheerios? My grandma read the serials in the newspaper before I was adopted, I think that counts." Rachelle shrugged, both children getting the "Serial number" Idea wrong.

"Sydney Pranati Thriller, mati, Cheerios. Only it's Sydney Pranatimati Thriller, because what we are is part of our name. But don't call Siduer, Siduermatu. He hates it. Okay, so we got that part."

It was nonsense talk, the kind little children do to pass the time while they wait for their watercolor paintings to dry, but it helped Sydney feel better. She smiled at Rachelle.

"I have an idea. Why don't I turn us into one of these balls? Toshi will see we're gone and maybe come in here to look. Then he'll leave, but there's no reason to shut the door because he'll think we've already left. Then, we turn into some small animal and run away while he's off being angry. What do you think? We can hide under the balls to make him think we're gone. Right by the door."

[The BranRiech]

"But if we're just balls, how will we turn back? I mean, aren't they inanimate objects?" Rachelle asked, not seeing the idea as her father had. "I suppose my middle name is a B, because it was my old last name, Baines. And Dad's teaching me some things about building stuff. He let me take the toaster apart too." She grinned.

"Hey, if it's out best option, then do it."

[Swith Witherward]

"But if we're just balls, how will we turn back? I mean, aren't they inanimate objects?" Rachelle asked, not seeing the idea as her father had. "I suppose my middle name is a B, because it was my old last name, Baines. And Dad's teaching me some things about building stuff. He let me take the toaster apart too." She grinned.

"Hey, if it's out best option, then do it."

"I'll turn us back. Well, I'll turn us into mice and we can run away. OH! I can just turn us into mice now..."

And the gears in her mind began to spin. She had a thought... it was there... it was almost... a whole... plan... and it went away. Sydney was still too young to think belong what she was eating for breakfast.

"Naw, I'll turn us into balls. If he sees mice, he'll know we were just pretending. But if he sees just plastic balls?"

[The BranRiech]

"Balls it is, hope he doesn't know how many are usually in here. Is there a way that we could replace some of them? You could make two of them disappear, and we could take their place, right? Just spitballing here." The girl shrugged, fine with the idea, as it was better than anything she could come up with.

[Swith Witherward]

"Balls it is, hope he doesn't know how many are usually in here. Is there a way that we could replace some of them? You could make two of them disappear, and we could take their place, right? Just spitballing here." The girl shrugged, fine with the idea, as it was better than anything she could come up with.

"What if destroying them sets off an alarm? Every time I destroy something in the playroom, the alarm goes off."

Sydney moved her head to indicate the ugly clown bobbing at them. "And I swear to heaven that thing is watching us. Maybe I'm just being a pair o' noid."

[Galnius]

"No real reason. I was just curious. It seems everyone comes from such interesting places. So, how do we get to these training areas?" He pulled a granola bar out of his bag (because there is no reason for those to go with the clothes as they were not in them) and began eating it.

"There is really no training area. I just set up some logs in a small clearing in the woods." Sig responded, heading for the stairwell with a gesture that told Mike to follow along.

Mike rolled his shoulders and prepared for training. He gladly obliged. Finally, something of his speed. Perhaps he could get those logs to move at him....

[The BranRiech]

"Pair of noids? I doubt it. But what other options do we have?" Rachelle asked. "Yeah, no replacing them then, maybe he's not watching now, he probably assumes we're hopelessly trapped in here."

She was looking full of ideas, but didn't have any formulated yet.