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Post by Guide on Oct 19, 2015 22:44:34 GMT -5
There were a lot of times that Lucente questioned why she volunteered for this kind of thing. It wasn't the first year she'd done it, and as long as Jek was there to keep pressuring her into signing up again she doubted it would be the last. It was a good enough pay, but sometimes she had to wonder if it was worth the shame she felt donning this way too perky costume and skipping around decrepit settings each year. At least that was the good thing about this mask. No one ever had to know it was her, so she was spared the pain of anyone recognizing her. Not to say that the job couldn't be fun sometimes, but it was...embarassing, at times. To say the least of it. You'd think she would have gotten used to it by know, but it still pained her to read some of the lines they had scripted for her. Well, maybe she'd be better at it by next year.
At the moment she stood just outside of the mansion patio that led to the gardens, a flag clutched in her hands that read 'Haunted Tours' on it. They had five sign ups for this round of the tour, which was unfortunately the same amount that Jek had. She'd been hoping to beat him, but she supposed she'd have to go for quality of quantity instead. Next to her was a box of small earpieces, identical to the one that currently wrapped around her own ear underneath her mask. She didn't bother with the whole forced smile thing while people were still showing up. They'd get plenty of that once they were on the move. But when it seemed like all the members of their group had arrived, she placed the flag down, bringing a hand in front of her mouth as she cleared her throat."Ahem, I assume you're the five who have signed up for tonight's tour? If you're not, please let me know now before we get started. Otherwise, I'd like to formally welcome you this year's tour of the mansion. Sponsored of course by Haunted Tours-They're to die for." Speaking of death, she really wanted to kill whoever had come up with such an awful slogan for the company. "Before we begin, I'd like to ask each of you to grab one of the headsets located here at my side and place them on your ear. These will be vitally important for the full tour experience, and I will explain their use once we're inside. And...oh right. My name, for those of you who didn't look at in the flyers before I guess, is Lucente. That said, unless there are any questions we can get going. Speak now or forever hold your peace." This thread is for Gaia, Ellie, Dante, Kalax and Taylor ONLY. Each round will begin with the guide making a post, and there will be 48 hours between each guide post. If you have any questions, please send a PM to Rachael. DEADLINE: Wednesday, October 21 | 11:45PM [ EST ]
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Civilians
Spear of Cerberus
Posts: 109
Preferred Name: Varmun
Pronouns: He/Him
Character Profile: Character List
Character Name: Dante Vasari
Main Account: Isaac
Status: Active
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Post by Dante on Oct 20, 2015 16:01:08 GMT -5
"You sure you can't go on a tour?" asked Dante, a frown on his face as he looked to his big brother with sad blue eyes.
Isaac, looking relaxed with his hands in his pockets, walked alongside Dante, giving him only a straight but remorseful answer, "I'm gonna be doing shows all week, and I'm also working at the zoo. I'm not gonna have time."
Dante slouched so low that his blue and silver-trimmed mask slid down his nose. He pushed it back up with his whole hand before saying, "Come on, Isaac, it's our first year here with a little money to spend. Why do you have to work the whole time?"
"It's good money," Isaac said simply. His white mask made it hard to read his silver eyes, to see the regret he had, but he truly was sorry. "They're gonna pay me like I'm from the Middle Class. Seriously, it'll be worth it." Dante still drooped his shoulders and sighed, not happy with his brother's answer. He kept his head so low to the ground that he couldn't see how close he was getting to the haunted manor. It was only when Isaac patted his shoulder that Dante stopped. "Okay, how 'bout this: While I'm working the zoo, I'll eavesdrop on the puzzles and see if I can solve any. I'll tell you all about 'em when we get home, okay? I promise I'll try to have some fun this week."
Dante flashed his brother a smile, then felt Isaac clap a hand on his shoulder. "Have fun, Dante. Don't solve it too fast, alright?" With a grin and a wave, Isaac walked off toward the zoo, leaving Dante all alone in front of the mansion.
Turning his eyes back to the manor, Dante chewed his lower lip, starting to regret his decision. He looked back again, but Isaac was already gone, lost to a crowd of strangers. There was no one here he knew, no one to help him. Taking a deep breath, Dante pushed against the squeaky gate and headed into the garden. Near the manor door, he found a woman with flowing black hair and a mask that made her look like she had at least ten eyes. Dante approached and waved to her, but she just held a straight, unamused expression the entire time, which didn't help with Dante's nervousness.
Dante—who was the first to arrive—simply stood there and waited, mentally preparing himself for the puzzles that awaited him and the rest of the group. So long as he could help solve one puzzle—even just a little—he'd be happy.
When Lucente introduced herself and got things rolling, Dante remained quiet, not wanting to embarrass himself with a question. He just accepted the headset with a smile and plugged it in his ear, now waiting for the haunted tour to begin.
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Administrator
Bow of Cerberus
forever judging koko
Posts: 18
Preferred Name: Mama, Tsukiko, Beyonce
Pronouns: She, Her
Character Profile: http://r3dux.boards.net/thread/152/gaia
Character Name: Gaia
Main Account: This one yo
Status: Lurking
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Post by tsukikomumai on Oct 20, 2015 16:49:57 GMT -5
Haunted mansions. Something about haunted mansions always bothered Gaia for as long as she could remember. Maybe it was the fact that she grew up in her mother's large house with no one besides the workers and her mother for companionship. Maybe it was for the terrifying portraits and statues that decorated said house always watching her as she walked by with their judgmental eyes hovering above her.
Or maybe it was the fact that Gaia hated anything dealing with horror.
The concept of Persephone's Reign was one that Gaia always enjoyed. The decorations, the costumes, and the celebration of life were things that Gaia enjoyed. The celebrations were one of the few things that inspired her into her career path now.
But haunted houses were another issue all together.
Originally she wanted to sign up for the zoo, but while she was figured, a change of pace would be nice and maybe going to this thing would help her conquer her fears of her former home.
So here she was standing in front of the waiting area, in front of this towering mansion. The outside was beautiful, clearly inspired by architectures of the past found in books that could be found in the libraries with the modern tastes of the upper class. As she stared at its grandness, Gaia couldn't help but roll here eyes as she struggled to hold back a sneer.
Gods I hate this class area....
As she was in her thoughts, the guide arrived and the rest of the group, the elven eared woman gave a sigh and listened to the guide, Lucente, speaking in a quite monotone voice as she handed out ear pieces. You and me both, Lucente...you and me both....
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Will Punch Your Butthole
Posts: 114
Preferred Name: Donut
Pronouns: Her/She
Character Name: Ellie 'Evrika' Waters
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Post by Ellie on Oct 20, 2015 18:43:49 GMT -5
The mask itched her nose, no matter how hard she scratched. It was supposed to make her face look demonic when paired with the ghoulish, gaping mouth painted across the lower half of her face. A much more artistic paint job than her face typically saw, that was for sure. But at least it concealed who she was well enough. The last thing she needed was for someone important, or God forbid Lev, finding out she attended something as silly as a haunted house. She was supposed to be the serious one that could pound your face in, after all.
So what if she liked a good scare? She wasn't any less of a badass if the thought of ghosts and skeletons and sizes had the hairs standing on end on the back of her neck. So what if a wolf howl in the dark could send a chill down her back?
No one must ever know.
There were a few people waiting already by the time she arrived and it wasn't long before the guide started on her spiel. Ellie was only half listening, using the time instead to peer about. Her modified eye was off; with everyone wearing masks, the FRS was useless and seeing a hidden person's heat signature tended to ruin the fun. So she'd be running this half blind. But that added to the scare, she thought.
The mansion was something else. Architecture from a different time: it looked like it was built as a creepy throwback. Knowing this city, it probably was. She wondered what scares awaited them through those doors. Hopefully something good; there'd been some duds in previous years. Nothing was worse than a haunted house that produced zero scares.
She took the earpiece that was offered, slipping her hand under where her mask wrapped around her head to put it in her ear. She made a mental note to get a set for her and Lev before their next mission. Maybe she could even swipe some from their oh so invested guide before the end of all this.
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Posts: 11
Preferred Name: Mist
Character Profile: Hub
Character Name: Taylor
Main Account: Riley
Status: Lurking
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Post by Taylor on Oct 21, 2015 16:28:44 GMT -5
It was that time of the year again! Dark streets and cold gusts of wind bringing a certain eeriness to it all were it not for the many colourful decorations. Taylor couldn’t help, but grin widely as she took photos left and right. A lantern here, some great masks there, it almost made her forget this was the first time she’d be celebrating alone.
But what’s done is done and she wasn’t one to dwell on the bad stuff for too long. Her parents had each other and her new baby brother and she simply had to make the best of it. So what better way to start Persephone’s Reign than to sign up on a haunted tour? …which she was running late to!
Looking at one of the nearby digital clocks, Taylor clicked her camera back to its pocket state and hung it around her neck then she took off in a sprint. The house luckily wasn’t too far and was easily recognizably being huge, old and immensely eerie and all. Too bad she’d procrastinated for so long, that house was really worth some shots! For what she had no idea, maybe a framed photo for her dorm?
From the looks of it most people were already there and before joining them she quickly pulled her mask over her face. It was a feathery thing, way too bright – pink and yellow – and probably not scary at all, but its brightness concealed the glow of her eyes. The last thing she wanted was to scare people…or did she?
Joining the group slightly out of breath, Taylor silently listened to their guide while letting her eyes wander around. One girl was wearing a super creepy mask, she had to ask for a picture later! Then again their guide also looked awesome. Heck I’ll just ask for a group picture when we’re done, ended up being her plan of action.
When asked to take one of the earpieces, she finally recognized the white haired boy and waved enthusiastically at him. Then stopped and wondered if he’d even remembered her especially with the mask.
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Posts: 7
Preferred Name: kenny
Main Account: Kendra
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Post by kalax on Oct 21, 2015 22:02:46 GMT -5
Ah, fashionably late as per usual.
There wasn't much reason to seem like an overachiever when it came to the silly little activities Novus set up year in and year out. Dealing with a mansion was also far less... dirty, to say the least.
'You need a break, go have some fun.' Really, a haunted house wasn't exactly the fun that he had in mind. It was just so hard to turn down Kristopher when he had that precious little pout on his face. It wouldn't last long one he returned to his office.
Kalax was the last to arrive, and it never bothered him. It simply meant everyone could turn to look at his fantastic suit and beautiful hair that had been specially pulled back to allow the flashy white mask to be seen more fully. Costumes were all well and good, but he knew a nicely cut suit flattered so much more than something baggy and unfashionable. That just wouldn't do.
"Quite the quiet crowd, aren't we?" He shrugged and raised a delicate brow to the others around him, taking note of each of their features. One in particular caught his eye, though he made no moves closer while hooking the ear piece into place.
"Well then. Shall we?" No reason to delay. He had other things to do. |
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Post by Guide on Oct 22, 2015 3:02:14 GMT -5
Not exactly a talkative bunch, were they? Well, she wasn't exactly going to complain. Less chances for her to make a fool out of herself. Hopefully. "Alright, I'm going to take your exuberant silence to mean you're ready, so let's head inside. If at any point during the tour you feel as if you are too scared and need to leave, please let me know and I will do my best to find an exit for you at a timely manner. However, before you ask me I recommend clinging to another one of your fellow tour mates for a bit first to see if that helps the fear subside at all. Wouldn't want you to miss out on the tour of a lifetime, after all. Now if you'll all follow me." Lucente turned smartly on her heel, leading the group around the side of the mansion and through the few lavish partygoers milling about in the gardens. As they kept walking, the bright lights began to dim, a thin fog settling around them and the stones under their feet slowly becoming more and more uneven and sparse. She clicked a small button on the side of her mask, a thin shield covering the entrance to this area. Well, this whole area was sanctioned off for the tour, so they didn't want anyone from the party wandering in on accident.
Eventually, they reached a pair of heavy irons doors inlaid in a stone wall, moss growing around their edges and mysterious red stains coloring the metal unevenly. "If any of you would like to turn back..." She laughed a bit to herself. Was that dramatic enough? They'd made her do it twenty times in the mirror during training before they'd deemed it acceptable. "Well, I'm afraid it's far too late now." The guide placed both hands on the doors, pushing them open slowly and deliberately, the metal screeching as she did so. They swung open to reveal a large entrance hall, the ceiling towering 30 feet above them with a mostly demolished chandelier barely hanging on from a metal fixation. The remains of a grand staircase lay in front of them, but they appeared to have long since collapsed into a pile of rubble on the floor, spreading dust and debris over the entire hall.
"Ah, it seems our way of continuing forth has been demolished. What a terrible shame...Well, we'll think of something, won't we? But before we do, I should tell you about these earpieces you picked up. As I'm sure you're aware, there is currently another tour being led at the Zoo by an overly optimistic guide. Unfortunate as they may be with their guide, the fact of the matter is that we will not be able to complete our tour today without their help. Likewise, they will be unable to finish without our cooperation. As such, these headsets will allow you to communicate with them after every challenge you complete. However, it wouldn't be a challenge if we let you spill everything to them, now would it? As such, you are each only allowed to send one sentence at a time about the information you have gained to a select member of the other team. If you check your NUIP display, I have given you all the list of names on the other side. The exchange can be done like so.""Unfortunately, I will not be able to know his reply until the completion of the next challenge. You, however, do not get the same luxury. You are only allowed to contact each member of the other team once. The next round, you will have to choose someone else. So choose your words and information wisely. For now, though. I suggest that you send a simple greeting to try and test the system out. Once you complete this challenge, you will receive the greetings they have sent to you. The information you receive from the other team will be private, so it is up to you whether you share it with your teammates or not. That being said, let us begin. As I've said before...we are tragically stuck here with no staircase. Our way forward is there." Lucente raised her arm, gesturing to an intact landing around 30 feet above them to the right where the stairs would have lead. A door was visible from here, though it was closed. "I do have the key, and I will open the door once everyone has reached that landing. I recommend you work together. Loners don't generally last long in horror situations, you know? If you have any questions, feel free to ask. But I can't guarantee I'll give you any answers. I wish you the best of luck." Lucente smiled politely, going to sit on one of the larger pieces of debris with one leg crossed over the other. Well, it would be interesting to see how they dealt with this task. The first challenge was usually a pretty good indicator of the dynamic for the rest of the evening.This post is rather text heavy as we try to explain the system of this thread, but further posts will hopefully have less exposition. Your challenge for this round is to reach the the landing that is 30 feet high on the wall as a group. You are allowed to use any materials in the room to accomplish this task, and it must be completed before my next post as guide. The room has, of course, the large chunks of debris, various spider webs lingering around the corners, several desks, and one vase of flowers. If your characters choose to search the desks, they will find five sticks of magic. One Plant, one Water, one Acid, one Earth, and one Lightning. They may each use one if they so choose or save them for later. One of the walls underneath the landing is vaguely sticky, but anyone who attempts to climb it will find rotting hands bursting out of the wall which will try to grab them and hold them against the wall. There is no set solution to this particular puzzle, the only condition is that you must all help each other to reach the goal before I make my next post. If you have any questions about what you are allowed to do or how different elements of the room will react, please message me and I will answer as quickly as possible.
Also, an explanation of the earpieces. During each post, you are allowed to send once sentence to a member of the opposite thread, and after this round you will receive one sentence each round to. Who you can send to is first come first serve. I'll just write this out in an example since it's easier than explaining.
Say Dante posts first, he has the choice to send a message to Levenin, Uriel, Athena, Eco, or Flynn this round. He chooses Uriel.
If Kalax posts second, he can only send to Levenin, Athena, Eco or Flynn. He chooses Flynn. An whoever posts after can only send to Levenin, Athena, or Eco. Etc etc.
Next round, Dante can't message Uriel. He chooses Levenin. Round after that he can't message Uriel or Levenin. So your choices narrow down until you have messaged everyone, at which point we'll reset. If you're at all confused about this, please pm me and I will try to clarify more. Please format your messages in the way that Lucente did above to Jek. Note that your teammates can hear what you say to the other team, but will not know what you receive from the other team.Due to a small hiccup, we're going to be changing deadlines to PST from now on, sorry for the confusion. If you have any questions, please send a PM to Rachael.
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Civilians
Spear of Cerberus
Posts: 109
Preferred Name: Varmun
Pronouns: He/Him
Character Profile: Character List
Character Name: Dante Vasari
Main Account: Isaac
Status: Active
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Post by Dante on Oct 22, 2015 9:47:26 GMT -5
Something blurred in the side of Dante's view, almost obscured by his own mask. When he looked over, he saw a monstrous face that made him jump. His eyes flared open at the gaping, twisted mouth of the full-sized mask on one girl's face. He calmed down, however, when he saw another girl waving to him. At first, Dante quirked his brow beneath his mask, staring at the girl and her long braided hair. It took far too long for him to realize who it was, but when he finally did, he waved to Taylor vigorously. His mask only wrapped around his eyes and covered a bit of his cheeks, so she could see his big smile, but he couldn't say anything to her as Lucente soon spoke up and started the tour.
Dante followed Lucente and the rest of the group, his stomach twisting harder and harder the further they walked. The garden had started off beautiful, but it slowly became foggy and run down. Lucente's laughter and her comment about turning back made Dante gulp. What was he in for inside this mansion?
He did his absolute best to pay attention to Lucente as she explained the rules and how to use the headsets. Dante had to fight back a gasp when he heard that the two tour teams would have to work together, that the success of one relied on the skills of the other. Dante prayed that no one would hear his heart banging against his chest. It would be bad enough if he failed his own team. Now he had to worry about failing the Zoo team, too?
Dante rubbed his arm and tried to calm down. Once Lucente was finished speaking and let the team get to work, Dante touched his headset and looked at the list of names in his NUIP. He chose his first person purely on a whim, and he said:
"Sorry, was that more than one sentence?" he asked Lucente, hoping he hadn't broken a rule by accident. Thank god his mask covered a bit of his blushing cheeks.
With his greeting out of the way, Dante took a moment to collect himself as he looked over the puzzle. The landing was pretty high up—too high for a human ladder. There was a bunch of junk lying around that could maybe be stacked up to make a set of stairs. That seemed like a good idea, but what if it collapsed? What if those desks weren't sturdy enough? And could anyone really build that high? The desks would get too heavy to lift after a certain height, right?
An idea then popped into Dante's head when he saw the wall beneath the landing. The wallpaper was peeling off, and Dante could see bits of glue underneath. A smile stretched across his face. He knew what he could do.
"Hey guys," he said to the team. "I'm gonna see if I can get up on the landing. Then if you guys build a platform, it won't have to be as tall, because I can help pull people up." There was confidence in his voice, and he gave everyone a grin before he turned toward the wall and crouched down, hands on the floor in a runner's pose. After taking a deep breath to steady himself, Dante sprinted for the wall, charging forward, the wood floor creaking beneath his sneakers. When he neared the wall, he raised one leg high and tried to run straight up. Isaac had taught Dante a little parkour, and he managed to climb up the tacky wall for a couple of steps before he kicked off and soured backwards to try and catch the landing's edge.
But something wrapped around Dante's leg and stopped him dead in the air. "H-huh?" The world swept in front of Dante. His body fell backwards, swinging down until he was upside-down with his back against the wall. His head hit the wall, leaving him dazed for just a moment.
The drywall cracked once, twice, three times, then more and more. Dante looked around to see decaying, discolored hands bursting through the wall and grabbing at his arms, legs, and stomach. He screamed as the cold, hard fingers gripped down on him, pinning him against the wall. "Ahhhh! Guys! Guys! Help me! Help me, help me, help me, help meeeee!" He struggled against the hands, terrified and trembling from head to toe.
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Administrator
Bow of Cerberus
forever judging koko
Posts: 18
Preferred Name: Mama, Tsukiko, Beyonce
Pronouns: She, Her
Character Profile: http://r3dux.boards.net/thread/152/gaia
Character Name: Gaia
Main Account: This one yo
Status: Lurking
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Post by tsukikomumai on Oct 23, 2015 0:39:44 GMT -5
When the tour was ready to go, the started by going through the gardens. This part of the house, Gaia could appreciate and she could feel flower buds bloom from the feeling of being at home. A smile crossed her lips for a brief moment as she took in the beauty before the tour stopped in front of moss covered doors. "I suppose there is no turning back...." Gaia sighed before the doors open and they all stepped inside.
As they continued in the dim lighting, they made their way to a ballroom with a broken stair case. Lucente continued her speaking and Gaia's eyes started shifting to a dark green to a decaying gray. I can't tell if she likes doing this and this is for show or she is really hating life right now. Gaia stared at the tour as she continued her speech. Apparently the ear pieces were connected to those on the other tour, the one that Athena was on. While the rest were sending their messages Gaia took her time to send one to her student and wish her luck during the tour.
With that out of the way Gaia stared through her silver feathered and jeweled mask for anything that could help with their passing. She made her way to a desk and shuffled through the contents and found several sticks of magic, one had essence of plant. She picked it up and looked it over wondering if it would be of help before deciding to tuck it into one of her dress folds for later. She could use it on her hair to length it and create vines but the problem would be she had to already be up there to help the others so for now it would be best to look around some more.
As she walked around to survey the area the young man with white hair mentioned about climbing up the landing. She turned to watch what he was going to do and was amazed by his athleticism (a good talent that would be a nice fit with her guide) and he almost made the landing but then as quickly as a blink, hands shot forward and grabbed a hold of him.
"Oh dear. Darling hold on we are coming!" Gaia picked up the hem of her dress and quickly made her way over to the boy as her eyes shifted from the darkening grey to ruby red. When she got over to him she glanced around for anything she could find to help and laid her eyes on some discarded pieces of wood. She tucked her dress to the hands wouldn't grab hold of anything and then picked up the piece of wood and made her way back to him.
"Sorry if I hit you." Gaia muttered before she started smacking at the hands to weaken their hold. She mainly paid attention to the ones gripping clothes cause she could always yank him from the hands holding his ankles when she sees an opportunity to do so. "When I say so grab my hair and I will yank you back okay?" Gaia commanded and shifted her hair so most was in her face but she could still see where she was hitting. "Now!" Hopefully that will be enough to free him.
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Will Punch Your Butthole
Posts: 114
Preferred Name: Donut
Pronouns: Her/She
Character Name: Ellie 'Evrika' Waters
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Post by Ellie on Oct 24, 2015 22:49:53 GMT -5
Ellie did her best not to grin when she saw the way one of her teammates visibly flinched at the sight of her. Made her more confident in her choice of mask and face paint. If her vigilante work taught her anything it was that a spark of fear for you in your partners was a great thing to have.
A sense of dread filled her though when she pulled up the list of names of the other party, eyes immediately spotting a certain name. Levenin. Shit. How many other people in this city had that weird ass name? Oh, fuck, he was doing something potentially dangerous by himself. That never boded well for anyone involved.
And, shit, he could see her name. Could he see her last name? She was instantly thankful to have a pretty common name. Maybe he wouldn't figure it was her. She could disguise her voice when it came time to message him. Yeah. He must never know she was here. Never.
With a sigh, she selected a name at random.
That should add a bit of fun to their challenge.
Once the message was sent, she took stock of their surroundings. The desks looked sturdy enough to support some weight...she was strong enough to probably heft someone up there. Maybe the tallest person and then they could help pull up everyone else up. A few jumps and maybe someone could catch her, haul her up.
She was about to suggest this idea when one of her teammates ran at the wall. Parkour had never been much of a talent of hers; too much finesse needed. What little grace she had was best used for fighting and, in a past life, dancing. Not so much for wall running or leaping over shit. She was much more for just barreling her way through, but she actually admired people that could do it.
Though whatever impression the kid was leaving was pretty swiftly wiped out when he was snagged by the rotten hands. And god, was that smell real or just something they were pumping in here? She moved over to help when the one girl started going to town on the hands with a plank of wood. She got an arm around the kid's waist, tugging until, with the girl's help, they went falling backwards.
"Fuuuuuuck, get off!" she huffed, trying to shove him off. Once she was freed from him, she stood again and brushed herself off. "You okay, kid?" she held out a hand to help him up. No sense being too mean, at least the kid tried.
She looked back at the desks, frowning. "Listen, does anyone have any other ideas? Cause I'm thinking of stacking a few of those and, you know....climbing up and tossing some of you to the edge? Not the most artistic but it's an idea."
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