|
|
Post by Satra on Aug 24, 2011 17:00:38 GMT -5
It didn't take long for Andrei to recover himself and return to normal after regaining his composure (17). It certainly helped that the transition was a light one. His legs were now wet and slightly soapy from wringing out someone else's half clean laundry on himself. Oh well, it was better than the alternative. He shook off as much water from his legs as he could and moved forward, watching as Mer gave the corpse a once-over. Andrei didn't know, and he didn't want to know. He looked around nervously. No one seemed to care about his semi-transformation. Then again, it did happen RIGHT as his body was reacting to the blood. Could have been taken as part of that. He moved right on to help with navigating the stairs which... oh suits, that just didn't look right. And... Andrei sighed.
"H-hey!" he called out to them as he approached, "My wings weren't damaged. Why don't you come down and let me fly up? Probably safer, those stairs don't look terribly sound."
|
|
Dark
Five of Diamonds
Bladed Hare
You are not prepared.
Posts: 2,105
|
Post by Dark on Aug 24, 2011 19:48:41 GMT -5
Using Zeki as a ladder gave her a considerable boost, and balanced on his shoulders she could brush the dangling stairs with a paw. It was manageable, and while it would have been much easier if she had opposable thumbs, she made due with what she had, hooking her claws in and scrambling up. It was easy, with her strength still activated, but she beat her wings a few times to give herself a bit of extra leverage and take some of the strain off the rickety stairs.
“We didn’t have time to wait until you were done fucking around,” Senka hissed down at the boy--an adult he very well might be, but he was still a boy as far as Senka was concerned--and hauled herself up over the lip of the stairs. Senka hardly ever got angry, but Andrei was doing a fine job of rubbing her fur all the wrong ways. Then again, stupidity tended to wear her patience thin real quick. (And as time passed it was becoming less likely his particular flavor was simply an unfortunate side effect from hanging upside down too long; which would have been more easily forgivable).
Unwilling to remain on the gently swaying, creaking steps any longer than she had to, Senka lunged for the doorway and solid ground. She glanced through the doorway--an entrance hall from the looks of it: ‘a sagging, dirty-grey long hallway lined with three doors and some old pictures of landscapes‘ and at the very end, some fifty feet or so from where she stood, a door--and not seeing any immediate threat, turned back to her task.
Gripping a loop of rope tightly and bracing herself firmly in the door jam, Senka tossed the rest of the rope down to the group below.
“Alright, then. Zeki first,” she stated firmly, hoping she didn't have too much of a problem hauling him up. At least now that she was up here the stairs were practically a negligible issue.
|
|
|
|
Post by Bee on Aug 25, 2011 0:32:21 GMT -5
It seemed they might finally all be orienting themselves toward the same goal if Andrei's move in their direction were any indication, but Senka seemed irretrievably annoyed. Hopefully it was just a one-off outburst, because he felt a tamer version of the same frustrations; regardless, his peacekeeping instincts were kicking in. Be prepared at all times to be polite and conciliatory!
"Sure," he said, grabbing the rope. He sent an appraising look Andrei's way. However much Club strength Senka had--and it was certainly a lot more than Zeki's own tiny magical failure, judging by how well she showed that dresser who was boss--it couldn't hurt to have another person helping them up. Too bad, actually, that both Mercutio and Zeki himself were probably too big and awkward for a proper aerial escort; it would have been dreadfully convenient to just have Andrei whoosh them up. "Wanna help Senka pull us up?"
|
|
|
|
Post by Nathalia on Aug 25, 2011 17:41:30 GMT -5
Zeki can be pulled up safely, but just as he got his legs safely over the edge of the solid cement, the rest peeled away from the wall and fell!
Crashing to the floor and trapping Mer at the bottom.
With a sudden rumble, the entire basement sank about four inches!
Look out, Mer, you need some help and Andrei isn't strong enough to simply fly you up!
|
|
|
|
Post by Satra on Aug 25, 2011 23:17:33 GMT -5
Andrei felt a wave of rage. How dare this little peasant talk to him in such a manner! especially after he'd offered to be helpful?
"Oh, I'm sorry. My "fucking around" wouldn't have taken so long if I hadn't been blind sighted by a corpse that could have very well been a family member and blood that caused a nasty allergic reaction. By the way, thank you for your concern," he snapped. He would have flown and left them behind had not Mer been with them. Seriously. I just wanted to look and see why it was so compelling. It would have taken only seconds if... He shuddered, trying to shove down the memory and the bile trying to make its way up. The memory... he could recall every detail perfectly the more he tried to push it down. He looked up in time to see Zeki give him something of an apologetic look. A sudden look of guilt crossed his face. That reply... was most ungraceful. He flushed a little at the request for help. He did want to help, but now felt a little awkward being next to Senka. Oh well. Now was the time to get over it.
"Uhh, um, y-yes. Of course." He flew up to the ledge and grabbed the end of the rope, indicating he wished to help without the use of vocals. The smile at the success of bringing Zeki up faded quickly as a few chunks of cement fell and made the room sink further. His eyes went wide and he gasped before launching himself into the room. Flying above he called down.
"Mer?!" He was alright, but this room was not sound. The rope! Both of them were Clubs, right? Andrei knew he couldn't carry Mer all on his own. With a swift motion, he swooped back to grab an end of the make shift rope, making sure they had the other end before throwing it out to his nephew. He clung to the wall, Bat claws digging into the uneven surface to stay close to Mer, should anything happen.
|
|
|
|
Post by carcinoGeneticist on Aug 26, 2011 14:58:21 GMT -5
Through his investigation, Mercutio was dimly aware of an argument rising around him. It was starting to wear on his nerves and set his teeth on edge, though the only outward sign he gave to this was the sudden lashing of his too-long tail. The poor bastard in the machine wasn't anyone he recognized, a simple fact that let the Coyote breathe just a little more easily. Dead family was never something he liked to consider. Later, when they'd gotten out of here, he might ask someone - Grandma, perhaps, either of them.
For now, he would focus back on the more immediate matter of getting out of this seeming death-trap. He re-entered the conversation just in time to hear Andrei and Senka start getting onto it, and a low growl started to bubble out of him.
"We don't have time to be a bunch of twats to each other, either. Keep it together until we're out of this, then you can bitchslap each other to your heart's content." His words were strongly contrasted with the tone in which he spoke them. Behind him, his shadow seemed to grow behind him, swelling to a tremendous size, its borders quivering. The situation quickly improved, however. He was happy to see that Andrei stepped down somewhat and gave him a small smile, thankful for the small favors of civility and Zeki's freedom from the pit.
It was a short-lived sort of happiness, though. A startled and frightened yelp escaped him as he struggled to regain his footing, ears pinning themselves back. He looked up at those above him, splay-legged across the floor and breathing heavily, his mind switching almost entirely to fight-or-flight. He snatched up the rope as soon as it reached him, taking care to wrap as much of it around his paws as he could. "Please, hurry," he begged, wide-eyes looking from Senka to Zeki and back to his uncle.
These mutations all radiate an aura of calm indifference.
|
|
|
|
Post by Nathalia on Aug 26, 2011 18:19:34 GMT -5
Mer made it about halfway up before the rope began to dissolve on him! Try to help him get up and move on out, guys!
|
|
|
|
Post by Satra on Aug 26, 2011 18:58:37 GMT -5
Andrei kept an eye on things. What else could he do? He'd likely just be in the way of the two Clubs doing the heavy lifting. Besides, this place needed to be watched. He needed to be there for Mer should he fall. He couldn't carry him, but he could at least soften his fall.
A sudden wave of panic coursed through him as the makeshift rope began to disintegrate. DISINTEGRATE?! Andrei launched himself off his place on the wall and flew up to Mer. Trying very hard to find a middle ground between firm but gentle, he grasped Mer on the ribs under the armpits and used his flight to lighten the load and quicken the ascent. (Rolled 10) His claws bite the skin a little more than Andrei had intended, but considering there was no blood drawn and Andrei's distracting worry, it wasn't bad. There might be some sore claw indents left, though.
"I got you," he said as calmly as he could manage.
|
|
|
|
Post by Bee on Aug 27, 2011 1:12:31 GMT -5
They had some measure of success pulling Mer up before the rope began to crumble under this paws. Zeki's immediately impulses were conflicting; he wanted to both tug the rope up as fast as he could and try to get hold of Mer with his own hands, and what he ended up doing was pulling back (because Senka could still hold the rope) and then springing forward in a remarkably short span of time, hoping maybe Mer were close enough to grab. But none of that ended up mattering; Andrei was swifter than he, and put his wings to good use, grabbing the young man and securing him from an ungraceful tumble. He didn't appear too heavy to lift after all. Maybe it was the adrenaline.
His own had kicked into a spike and didn't settle until Andrei and Mercutio did. He wheezed out a nervous exhalation, unaware that he had been holding his breath.
"You all right?" he asked Mer, somewhat timorously.
|
|
|
|
Post by carcinoGeneticist on Aug 27, 2011 1:25:54 GMT -5
There was no real time to panic. As he felt the cloth, strained by weight and magic, begin to come apart in his paws, adrenaline surged through Mercutio. He hauled himself up the rope as quickly as he could manage considering his body's significant disadvantage when it came to such a maneuver (11). Once, his paw slipped and he felt his stomach lurch, knowing that any second now the ground would come rushing up to meet him and give him a welcoming gift of broken limbs, but at that moment strong bat-claws gripped him and steadied him.
Without even a moment to catch his breath the Coyote was back to struggling up the rope. With Andrei supporting some of his weight and Senka pulling on the other end of the rope, he finally managed to scramble up the edge, gladly accepting any help Zeki would give him.
Panting heavily, he looked up at Zeki and nodded, entire body trembling. "Yes. Fine." If he was brief, it was only because he lacked the air required for more eloquence. He glanced beyond the Raccoon, eyes meeting Senka's for a moment, and bobbed his head. "...Thank you. Let's get out of this hellhole."
|
|
