Darkness Redux

[Nalia]

Ali stifled a grin as she shrugged out of her jacket where the was just a skin tight black sleeveless top, trusting her darker skin to protect her from the sun more than that heavy cotton would - though she worried about some of her paler companions. She knotted the arms of the garment around her waist and stood back up, surprised to find that her own face was reddening.

"Damn you, Ellis! Stop feeling embarrassed!"

"We...we should get moving," she said, shaking her head in a vain attempt to rid herself of her companion's confusing emotions. "I want all of you to let me know the second you feel as if the heat is getting to you. It wouldn't do to have you dropping from heat exhaustion before we even know what it is we have to accomplish here."

 

[Thor.]

Alemn gave a small satisfied nod at Ali's words and went back to surveying the land. There was really no indication whatsoever of which way to go. Even with his extensive experience surviving in similar situations...that had been somewhere familiar. Somewhere with landmarks. Right now it was just rolling hill after rolling hill of endless black sand. Or...almost endless.

His eyes caught on an area on the distance where it looked like the sand might have changed color. While that could have meant just about anything on this new world with new rules it was better than nothing at all.

"It looks like the desert. . .changes in that direction." he said turning back to the group who had, by now, mostly managed to get a hold of themselves. Penny still seemed pleased and this time he allowed himself to smile slightly. "It isn't much to go on at all but" he looked up at the blaring sun and back down to the black sand that absorbed it like a sponge "It's all we have to go on at the moment.


~~~~

Alistair watched with detatched disinterest at the destruction of the town around him. It wasn't that he didn't care about the human life around him being ripped to shreds. That was why he was there and he was more or less pleased that he was accomplishing his goal. And it wasn't that watching his new associate cleave his way through the populace wasn't pleasing in a new and exciting way. Alistair was simply tired of taking a passive role. He had been ordered, of course, not to attack these people himself and that left him with very little to do except watch everyone else do it.

The Prisoner, however, was truly remarkable to behold. He moved with lightning speed and unnatural agression. People fell before him like wheat. Alistair had no illusions that he could defeat the Prisoner if he decided to turn against him. That was why the Doctor had been so upset when Alistair had released him. But Alistair, unlike many of his compatriots, did not fear the Doctor.

A twisted form skittered down the small town's road dragging an unrecognizable body dehind it. The...thing had devolved into walking on it's hands and feet, the disease adapting it to shorten it's legs and strengthen it's arms. Other than that, and the ghostly pale and eerily veiny complexion this one remained mostly human. Alistair couldn't tell if that was more or less unsettling. He patted the thing on the head absently and sighed.

 

[Nalia]

Ali turned her eyes towards where Alemn had indicated, raising a hand to her brow to shield her eyes from the sun. She looked until she saw the slight color change in the distance, then returned Alemn's nod. "It's good enough for me, beats just standing around." She shouldered her pack and started to walk, talking as she went.

"I've a small amount of water in my bag, but I want to save it for as long as possible. And Penny? You really should, um...cover more skin that that. You'll burn until you're as pink as Ellis' face."

 

[Stavvy]

Ellis shot Ali another cold glare immediately following each quip. He calmed himself fully and just was sure to keep his eyes off of the woman. I shouldn't be like this. His thoughts were in vain, but he did his best to ignore them. He looked over to Sebastien, or whatever name he was currently hailing himself as. "Can you get higher to see exactly what it is we're going to?" A slight discoloring of sand is a pretty poor landmark.

He glanced back for the first time since arriving here, the white room was completely gone, not that he expected it to remain. How had the teleportation worked this time, he wondered. Could others see it, was it safe to simply deposit them there instead of them waking up? It was probably just some overly cautious thinking, though one could never be too sure.

 

[Thor.]

Penny shrugged as Ali tried to warn her about the effects of the sun on her very pale skin. They probably wouldn't be spending THAT much time on this world anyway. The Chosen would ride into town or wherever, blow up whatever the problem was and then ride out on a magical vortex to the White Room. She nodded to herself and a bit of her filthy hair ended up in her face. After further examination she realized that her entire body was cover in dirt grime and...blood. Definitely lots of blood. The rest of the Chosen weren't exactly sparkling but she looked like a dirty street urchin.

"I need a bath or something." She said absently trying to untangle her hair from where the blood matted it together. "As soon as possible."

Alemn snorted and allowed himself to smile in her direction. "Well you picked a terrible time to realize it." He said picking up a handful of sand and letting it drain back into the desert. "There's not likely to be a lot of water here if my experience is anything to go by." Which admittedly it might not be. He was assuming he knew this world because it reminded him of his own. But the truth could be far more complicated. Still he was the one who knew about surviving in a desert and until he had proof otherwise he was going to be the one leading.

Alemn adjusted his goggles and cleared his throat. "Ellis is probably right though. If you get a higher view there would probably be a lot less confusion."

 

[Candy Man]

Karde let out a long sigh. He hadn't had enough time to relax , and now he was entirely out of his element. His world mixed dark and light, whereas here these two would ever touch. To make matters worse, there was no solid ground to stand on. He knew enough to see that survival would be more important here than comfort. His coat was double breasted, past his waist, heavy, layered, and too much for the hot sun. What does it matter any more what he had inside of it? With little flourish he dropped it down to the ground, his breastplate joining it. He would be much cooler in his black pinstripe shirt, and the red and gold vest covering it. The familiar weight of his black bracers was reassuring, even if the glaring sun made their glow all but gone.

Alemn, the real survivalist out of them all, had apparently taken charge. If you get a higher view there will probably be lot less confusion. Karde needed no more reminders that he was standing in a short and soft hole, instead of his city. Karde smiled at him "Well our group didn't gain a man half-bird in my absence, did it?"

--------------------------------

Sotrec flapped his coat to air himself as he stepped from the sand to the city's edge. He let a large and short breath, a condensed fog forming for only a moment. "Hot one. Sandy one." He took a quick look around him, clicking his tongue. Turmoil was near, but not around him. The din rose with screams and clattering of steel. Dust and smoke rose from every building. He put his hands on his hips, tongue in cheek. with one hand, he pushed his scarlet hair behind one pointed ear. "Loud..."

A naked and deformed creature clumsily walked along the street just by. It looked human enough. Sotrec stepped once and was by it's side. He could see it's pain.

He whipped his coat behind his stooping legs, getting close to it. Confused, the thing turned to him, head tilted. Sotrec held out his hand, "what's wrong little nasty? Scared? Hungry? Alone?" It gave him an apprehensive sniff before he firmly grabbed it by the top of it's head. "Sick?" The beast hardly let out less than a squeak as it's entire body froze it in it's place, a horrified statue of ice. Sotrec's smile grew by inches when he stood back up. He thrust his hands into his pants and turned sharply away from the poor thing. "and people call me merciless." He stepped on what was once the creature's hand as he walked away.

 

[Thor.]

Alemn nodded at the information conveyed to him by Sebastian and began to walk towards the brown sand on the horizon. "Well if we head for the ruins deeper in this black sand there's a good chance all we'll find is a bunch of hollowed out buildings. Which will, admittedly provide shelter but I'm still a lot more worried about the possibility of us dying of thirst before that becomes a problem. So we should probably head towards the town. If Sebastian says it looks inhabited then we might be able to get a few supplies from them before we starve or pass out or die."

 

[I am Mr. T]

It was better than nothing. It was true that if they ended up going the wrong way, they could very well end up dying in the middle of the desert. But that was a very likely to happen if they stayed where they were. Hector thought best to follow Alemn. He tightened his bandanna and proceeded in the direction Alemn had started walking

 

[Thor.]

Penny hummed to herself and skipped across the dunes behind Almen and Hector sending puffs of black sand up with her footsteps. There was a certain thoughtfulness to her humming as she followed the two men through the new strange world. Troubling thoughts tugged at the edges of her brain. She ignored them as best she could by focusing on the place around her. The vast expanse of rolling black sand wasn't much to look at though.

So Penny began to softly sing an old song. A song she had known since she was a child. The lullaby was comforting to her and her voice was surprisingly smooth and even as she hit the lilting notes. A small smile played on Penny's lips.

 

[Stavvy]

The desert was a strange thing, Ellis had found in his journeys, it is both a haven and a death sentence. It all depended on if you could keep your wits about you. If you were smart, you'd find water. You'd find shelter and you'd trust very few. The less you trust, the less can slit your throat for supplies - the less that also need supplies. If you weren't so smart, or unlucky, the desert would finish you off in a matter of a day or two. It wasn't a pretty thing though, he had picked the body of an unlucky outcast more than once.

He scanned the skies for any sign of rain but not a cloud was to be found. He wasn't sure when the last rain was, but the next could take literal weeks to come if they were lucky. Hopefully that town will have a resevoir, most places aren't keen on selling their water though, and we've not the currency to barter. They'd probably have to take the water by force, and if it came to that, who knows. He didn't want to do it, but his line of work didn't permit him the luxury of choice. "I hope he's right then." Ellis said to the wind as he walked over another dune.

 

[Nalia]

Ali watched everyone begin to walk with a satisfied nod, having decided to take up the rear - it would be far simpler for her to keep an eye on her companions that way. Now, if one of them stumbled or faltered she would know, without having to constantly look behind her to check on everyone. Though she too knew plenty about survival in this desert climate, Alesia found herself deferring to Alemn's judgement - which she was actually quite okay with. Ali knew she wasn't a leader. But there was still one area where she had responsibility and that she would take charge of without hesitation, and that was the well-being of her companions. So the warrior-healer followed behind, keeping an eye on her friends for even the slightest sign of heat-sickness.

She smiled to herself slightly, in a sad way, as she listened to Penny's softly sung tune - wondering, not for the first time, what sorrows were hidden behind her thoughts.

 

[Thor.]

The Prisoner laid with his back against the remains of a building he had destroyed. A small building, with a small family, small beds with small toys laid lovingly across the neatly tucked blankets. His stomach turned. He kept his eyes fixed on the packed dirt of the main road beneath him. He couldn’t bear to take in the destruction, couldn’t stand the thought of more abandoned toys and tiny empty beds.

Alistair sat down next the Prisoner and frowned, patting the bloody man on the back. He offered no words of advice. He simply sat there and understood. The howls of the deformed combined with the moans of dying and underscored their silence.

~~~

Penny stopped singing abruptly. A column of smoke rose from the horizon. She’d have missed it if not for the vast emptiness of the desert around them. She frowned and skipped ahead towards Alemn, nearly falling over once with a misplaced step and leaning hard on Karde as she attempted to stay upright.

Wordlessly she pointed to the horizon.

[FONT=&quot]Alemn followed her finger.

”Shit” [/FONT]

 

[Stavvy]

The Doctor, where would he be? Would he be here at all? He would, he's at least partially the cause of all of this. The reason why these people are sick and the reason why the people back on that other world were in such sad shapes. He found himself stopped as Penny halted midsong and mid-stride. A line of thick black smoke rose from the horizon, the sign of death. "We can't stay here, we have to see if whoever did this is still there. Hurry." He said as he took off in a sprint.

 

[Nalia]

Ali started running as well, though perhaps with less vigor than Ellis took off with. Kristine had told them all that this disease pretty much made people go insane. She was also aware that, depending on the kind of society that this world has, fire could have been purposefully set to the homes of the sick - likely with them still inside - by fearful survivors. Or it could simply be desert bandits, sacking the town out of greed or as a demonstration of power. Or, the part of her brain getting used to being a chosen reasoned, the fires could have a much less mundane explanation. It can't have been coincidence that they were here at this point in time. As her mind considered this possibility, Ali's pace quickened considerably.

As she drew closer to the burning town, Ali pulled a long strip of cloth from one of her many pockets and began wrapping it around the lower half of her head, effectively covering her mouth and nose, all while hardly breaking her stride. They still had no clue how this disease spread, and until they did she intended to be cautious. Ellis was covered, Ali finding herself glad that she couldn't see his face for once. She intended to direct the others to follow suit when they caught up.

 

[Thor.]

Alistair stood in the now blazing town with a detached sense of disinterest. Most of the people were dead or infected now. The Chosen were late, but that didn't surprise him, really all they were was a group of kids. He laughed to himself. Not that he looked any older than they probably did. But he was...much older.

Alistair perked up as he saw two forms running straight for the town, like big heroes. The chosen then. Well better late than never. Alistair turned around and nodded to the Prisoner. The Prisoner looked up at the approaching Chosen and felt his blood beginning to boil. He took off towards them at a dead sprint. Tattered clothes pulled tight against him and whipping in the wind from supernatural speed. A roar tore itself from his lips and echoed across the vast emptiness of the desert.

 

[Stavvy]

The wind picked up towards the town, sand shifting around - changing the ever different landscape. It was a horrid sound, one that sounded more akin to a monster rather than a human. The roar brought a chill to his spine and sent a pain through his head until he blocked it out. What in the world was that? Ellis heard the approach before even his trained eyes could see the stranger. A person was running towards them, and quickly. Quicker than he had ever seen a man run, this couldn't be a man. He wasn't sure what it was, but it was probably another experiment from the kind Doctor. Ellis really couldn't wait until he could make the man beg for his life. It was the least he deserved.

The man was coming, faster and faster. Ellis readied his sword and drew two knives. He wasn't sure if he'd be able to hit the target, and wasting the knives he had wasn't high on his list of good ideas. "There's something coming from the town. Prepare yourself."

 

[Nalia]

"I saw."Ali said through gritted teeth - the suffering in the air was palpable to her. No matter how many war zones she saw, such wanton destruction never became easy for her to handle - and her ability only added another edge to the equation. Their pain was her own. Working to calm herself, somehow Ali made the subconscious decision to channel that. She felt their pain inside her growing until it was almost unbearable, and then something snapped, and it became something else. Anger. The air around her was practically charged with it, a sort of righteousness that fueled her and shielded her.

Keeping her eyes trained on the figure coming towards them impossibly fast, she slung her rifle off her shoulder and loosened the combat knife on her belt, then sent out an answering shout of her own. A challenge, of sorts. A grim smile danced on the young doctor's face.

 

[Thor.]

The bullet whistled through the air and The Prisoner heard more than felt it enter his shoulder, pushing it back and causing him to stumble in the deep sand. He regained his footing and roared once more, bloodlust overpowering pain. Blood poured from the wound, quickly soaking his tattered clothing and becoming thick and sticky in the hot dry air.

The Prisoner gather speed again and rushed the woman standing defiant in front of him. Even in his state of mind he respected her, he could feel his emotions echoed back to him. A kindred spirit maybe... In the back of his mind he felt a small amount of compassion for her, his life was not something he would wish on anyone else.

The closer he got to the woman the more intensity he could feel from her. It made him grimace and he struck out with his scythe. The energy disappeared. He cocked his head in confusion, then leapt at her. It must have been sort of magic he thought, kicking at her chest. Mourning Glory severed magic, and the feeling was gone. These opponents were more than met the eye.

 

[Stavvy]

Ellis watched as the man quickly recovered from Ali's attack and was quickly advancing once more. It didn't seem to phase him at all, a trait that he had only seen a few times before. Typically when a man was too drunk for his own good or had found his own with another. This man seemed to be neither, and that was unsettling. He swung his scythe out and then leaped into the air, aiming a kick at her chest.

Without realizing it, Ellis had already moved in front of the girl, shielding her. He raised an arm with a knife held in his hand pointed down. He absorbed the blow and pushed the man off, away from the two of them. "Careful, Ali. You can't let him knock you down. He's fast and will end it quickly if given the chance." He warned, knowing that she probably realized the same by now. He moved to the right of her, still between the man and her but giving her enough room to see as well.

 

[Thor.]

The Prisoner landed in a puff of sand and rushed forward again. He discounted the cloaked person after the woman's impressive display. He would not make that mistake again. Either way he was pleased with the exchange. One benefit of the bloodlust is that he never tired. A blocked attack was a victory for him. Eventually they would tire. He would not. He lurched forward once more, swinging his scythe downward like an axe.