The Darkest Hour | TheDarkestHour / Keep on Knockin' but You Can't Come In browse

Seabhac’s face drained of color as he fully saw the abominations bolting toward the doorway – teeth gnashing and pinkish froth dripping from their ruinous muzzles. He made certain Cole wouldn’t be caught in the door and slammed it shut.

Several meaty bodies slammed into the wood – a flurry of barks and angry growls erupting on the other side. The latch and hinges cried out in protest as the beasts continued to hurl themselves at the door.

“Uh, little help here?” he muttered to Cole, pressing his back to hold the portal shut.

"Sorry, we didn't have time to ask the nice gibbering flesh eating monsters for their pedigree," Cynwyd quipped. "On the plus side, we did find one of our wayward classmates."

"So I see," replied Temnal. "It is good to see you, Rusalka."

"I would enquire where you found Miss Cardovan," Joao said. He gave a smile to Rusalka. "Hello." His mirth quickly faded. "However, it seems we have larger problems.

"Although I am probably not well suited to combat at this point, since swimming in a straight line might be a celebratory accomplishment the way I feel right now, do you still have my knife?" Joao asked Cole.

"He gave it away," Cynwyd answered before Cole could. "So I had to give him his sword back. But he got a pretty good price for it, all things considered," he said, shrugging.

"One thing to ponder," Cynwyd continued after a moment's pause. "Is there something about us being awake that attracts beasties? Or is there some 'tagging' effect to the joining? Because it does seem that no matter how hard we try not to be the centre of attention, we just can't manage it ... just one of those things that give you pause..."

"Probably they can smell us. Everyone else is safe in their coffins, only the cursed and the manipulated can be prey for them," Rusalka suggested grimly. "As glad as I am you found me -- I was just in the hallway, Joao -- is everyone all right? Where's Gillian? Did someone--" She shook her head.

Joao opened his mouth to speak in response, and then as Rusalka dismissed her question, and continued to speak, Joao closed it.

"Never mind, you're right, later... I can help you with the wards, Temnal, if you want to try -- I can be sort of a battery."

"That ... might work," ventured Temnal. "It isn't the knowledge I'm lacking, but the energy."

Seabhac coughed, “Whatever you’re going to do, do it fast. Puppy sounds very hungry.”

The door rattled again. Although Cole’s and Seabhac’s combined strength could hold the door closed indefinitely, the wood itself had begin to splinter.

"Time and Tide, and by the hand of Lir," Joao said. His hand kept reaching for things to brace himself, but he managed to walk, so aided so that he stood between the door and Seabhac, Temnal and Rusalka. He nodded to the former, smiled to the latter, and then turned to face his two other companions, giving them the space to take the attackers first. His stance was shaky but he stood ready nevertheless.

"Delwin," he said aloud and internally. "A weapon would be useful right about now. Although if something gets through Cynwyd and Cole and hits us, we're in dangerous tides anyway."

A wave of vertigo overcame his thoughts. When it had ended, Joao found himself standing – his head pounding like a battle drum. He could sense Delwin in the background, smiling with a hint of satisfaction – like an imprisoned animal that discovered a weakness in its cage. ~A weapon? Yes, of course. No sense in losing my Vessel before we discuss our future, eh? Grab that fire-poker would you?~

Joao’s head turned toward the fireplace of its own accord, his eyes resting on a rusted firepoker.

"You know what would be better than a weapon?" Cole quipped. "A stronger door. Or things to brace this one. How about one of those tables?"

"I am trying to play to his strengths. He is creator of weapons," Joao said to Cole. He headed over to the rusted firepoker and hefted it in one hand.

~And~ he said to Delwin mentally ~this does not mean you are going to get to overwhelm me when we come time for our joining.~

~Perish the thought~ Delwin smirked.

A bright glow ignited in Joao’s hand, radiating down the length of the poker. ~Yes, this will do just fine. Now bring forth your desire. What do you wish this fragment of Shadow to become?~

"The other question," Temnal said, mostly to Rusalka, "is how much time we have before the Hour is over. Energy aside, it's still going to take a while to reset the wards, assuming that Cole and the others can hold the fort until then."

The howls and barks increased in frustration – another splintering impact echoing across the room. Seabhac grimaced as his feet slipped momentarily. “I believe I now see this 'let's go see the Dark Hour' as a serious error in judgment on my part.”

"Oh quit whining and let me get in here with this table," Cynwyd replied jovially, upending the furniture to form a second barrier. "You'll either be dead or not. Or something else. The waiting's the worst part, and now that's over ... what's the worst that could happen at this point?"

Seabhac needed no prompting. He moved out of the way and helped Cynwyd push the table flush with the door. As well as providing an added barrier, the solid wood buttressed the hinges and metal bands. They’d bought themselves some extra time.

The young magus nodded to Cynwyd. “Thank you. Although, shall we not invite the possibility of something worse by mentioning it aloud?”

"Stop that," Cole said. "Don't you know it's bad luck to be superstitious?"

"You make it seem like there's an intelligence behind these attacks," Cynwyd added, laughing. "Hey magic people, you might want to hurry along if you don't want to become dog food. That's not the heroic end I had in mind..."

"I wish I knew," Rusalka admitted, tears forming in her eyes which she blinked aside. She bit her lip and made a face and then she seemed all right again, smiling and fresh. "It seems like it hasn't been long. Maybe it would be better if I was a battery for your spells since I forgot I can do my own during this hour. Just tell me and I will follow through."

Temnal nodded, then began levering himself to his feet. "We'll give it a good try, anyway," he said. "Since you have the power and the ability, I'll step you through the warding spell I used before."

For Temnal, a clear image popped into his mind: a magical Warding far beyond his own skills. The spell formula made perfect sense to him – simply removing the room and its contents from the Elemental threads beyond its walls. The room would effectively become ‘nothingness’ and thus undetectable.

In Rusalka’s mind, she heard Coral’s voice whisper in a motherly tone. ~Touch your companion’s arm and try to reach into his thoughts. Once you’ve established a link, access the power of the Jewel, my dear. Let its power flow out of you and into your companion’s casting. Combined together, your Warding will possess the power of the Pattern. Or whatever power it holds in this wretched place. His connection to an Elder will prevent his Chaosian blood from igniting.

~Hopefully.~

Joao looked at the glowing poker, and his glowing hand. A knife would be a logical choice, except he was still suffering the effects of Finndo's attack, and he wouldn't have the space between Cole and Cynwyd to be most effective. He needed something with reach, something long to keep off attackers, and then the answer was obvious.

~I want a Rebman Tridentis,~ Joao said to Delwin. ~In Thari, you probably just call it a trident.~

The metal grew hot in Joao’s hand, but its weight lessened until it felt insubstantial. His heart raced and skull creaked with an inner strain. To his eyes, he could see through and into the poker – as if it were a weave of sheer silk. With Delwin’s guidance, he unthreaded the tapestry of elements and then began adding more strands into it. The poker lengthened and reshaped itself until finally settling into an entirely new weave – that of a steel and perfectly balanced trident.

Joao hefted it, experimented with it, and felt better for having it.

"My cousin Genoveva,from a cadet branch of Galtizin, makes weapons, tridents, spears and knives, to exacting standards," Joao said aloud, for the benefit of Delwin and his companions. "I've always wanted one of her creations. I think this would gain even her respect."

~Very impressive~ Delwin said. ~You have the mind for this arcane work~

Seabhac assisted Cole and Cynwyd with holding up the new barricade. “If these things do track by scent, why haven’t they come looking for you before now? Surely, you’ve not wandered far from your rooms when these things are about.”

"Dumb luck?" Cole suggested.

"There's surely something dumb around here," Cynwyd muttered in reply, grunting as another impact hit the door.

"I thought," Joao said with dry deprecation, "that my attempt to distract Finndo qualified as a less than intelligent course of action."

With Coral’s guidance, Rusalka placed her hand on Temnal’s arm. For Temnal, the connection felt not unlike standing outside during one of the lightning storms that frequented his family’s Way. At any moment, the blue-white flash would strike him dead and transform his body to ozone and ash. In that instant, any exhaustion was forgotten and his mind burned with energy.

<Serpent preserve us> His Other gasped. <That’s the Jewel. After all this time, the Jewel is right beside me. You must take it from this girl. She does not know the Power she holds.>

<I take nothing from anyone, particularly Rusalka, without her consent,> Temnal warned the Other.

Temnal’s hand rose into the air, as if drawn by unseen strings. It danced and gestured – a firefox glow surrounding his fingers. Around the room, the wards reignited with a blazing light. The corruption and decay appeared to flicker and fade for a moment, as if it were being viewed through a fog. Outside, the creatures howled in shocked agony. The banging ended in that instant; Cole and Seabhac hearing the creatures retreating as if they’d been set on fire.

Cynwyd could appreciate their anguish – Rusalka’s proximity making his skin blister as he were standing too close to an inferno.

Cynwyd glided smoothly away from Rusalka, raising his hands as if that would somehow help. "You're hot, but this is ridiculous!" he said to her, trying unsuccessfully to mask his pain in humor. "Can you turn down the heat a little?" he added plaintively.

Seabhac crossed the room and slumped into a chair – sending a plume of rank dust everywhere. He barely noticed, rubbing his temples in pain. “I agree with Cynwyd. Even with my Pattern Blood, the discomfort is rather vexing, Rusalka.”

"It is rather useful though, da?" Joao said, automatically, in Rusalka's defense. He wiped his brow with his free hand.

"Perspective is everything," was Cynwyd's only reply.

With a heavy sigh, Cole slumped to sit on the floor. He looked around at those gathered, taking in their condition. Then he nodded once and said, "So. Anyone have a deck of cards?"

"Nyet," Joao said. "And we are not underwater, so I cannot teach you any Rebman games of chance and skill." Joao returned to admiring his new weapon. He wondered how long the weapon would last--one fight, one night, or longer. And what other weapons and things could he create?

To recover from the encounter with Finndo, and to practice (and to escape the oppressive Rusalka-generated heat, too, it must be said), Joao stepped to the side and began a series of exercises with the trident. They were adapted from the underwater drills, of course, but with Rebman imperialism, such exercises were long established and defined in practice by the Rebman military.

In addition to his own skills, he could feel the instinctive guidance of his Other – pushing him beyond the boundaries of his normal physicality. Delwin chuckled. <Sand would find this most amusing. Her skill with a spear verges on the fantastical.>

<How much are you aware outside of the Darkest Hour?> Joao asked. <If you will recall, and perhaps you cannot, I am equally good with a short blade. As the lady of flame knows> As he spoke to Delwin, Joao gave a long lingering look at the pink-haired beauty providing protection--and excessive heat.

"I am hopeless, however, with the sort of swords Cynwyd and Cole favor," Joao added, aloud and mentally. He kept up his exercises. "They are not part of standard Rebman military doctrine. And my academic skills exceed my martial ones anyhow."

Perhaps the strain of the evening became too much for the pink-haired Pattern Bomb, because she slumped into Temnal’s arms – her eyes fluttering back into her head. As perches went, this was not the strongest branch, so to speak. Temnal himself – exhausted physically and mentally from the spell-casting – could hardly stand on his own two feet and was just barely alert enough to catch her. Both began to lean over, wavering, and finally collapsing into a chair – Temnal finding himself pinned beneath Rusalka.

Seabhac dusted himself off and went to collect Ginger – who had bravely fled behind the second-story box-seat. By the time he’d retrieved her, the room began to waver and lose focus around them.

The Dark Hour was mercifully drawing to a close.

Temnal's mouth twitched into a slight, weary smile. "At least we chased off the nasties," he commented. "I wonder if the wards will hold for next time."

Seabhac called down from above, “I can sense that the room has shifted more toward the Pattern somehow. Far more than before the Dark Hour. Whatever you and Rusalka did, Temnal, I think you’ve done more than simply ward the room. It should be interesting to see what happens tomorrow night.

“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go find my girlfriend.”

Ginger grumped in his arms, “Damn right you do! I’m hungry. ”

With great gentleness, and no apparent effort, Cole lifted the unconscious Rusalka off of Temnal and into his arms. "As long as we don't need to breach them from the inside again, to go rescue wayward friends, I'm sure they'll be fine. And speaking of wayward friends, I guess I'll escort this one home. I hope Gillian is okay."

"Yes, what happened to Gillian?" Temnal asked, his brow creasing in a frown.

Seabhac climbed down with Ginger slung over his shoulder. “I don’t know. But she isn’t in Amber from what I can tell. That worries me.”

Still holding Rusalka, Cole used one foot to shove the heavy table away from the door.

"I wonder if we should have a standing rule about Dark Hours," Joao mused. "As regards to exposing ourselves in groups rather than singly."

"What sort of rule did you have in mind?" Temnal asked.

"I'm pretty sure the university already has rules against us exposing ourselves," Cole said. "Especially in groups."

After not avoiding rolling his eyes at Cole's jest, Joao looked toward the door. "I should remain here, against Raina's return."

Rusalka stirred a little in Cole's arms but did not wake. Her head turned into his chest and her eyelids fluttered, but it was a reflexive gesture, much like a sleeping child.

Cole looked down at the attractive young woman in his arms, a perplexed expression on his face. <No, Finndo. Now is not the time to explore those things you deprived yourself of formerly. We're just taking her home. To her home.>

"Actually," Cynwyd said, coming over now that he was sure that Rusalka was not going to give him a sunburn he didn't need, "I can take Rusalka off of your hands. With everything that has happened this night, it's probably better that you stay here and help plan -- especially with Finndo's added abilities in your repertoire. Seeing your improvement in bladework and tactics, I think that you'd be a better fit right now, and as the Rebman said something about rules, you'll want to be in on the drafting so you can know what new restrictions you get to ignore," he said with a grin.

Seabhac paused near the door. “You two aren’t going to start fighting over her again, are you?” He smiled faintly at Rusalka. “No offense.”

"Again?" Cynwyd asked indignantly. "You speak of her as if she's an object to be won," he added. "And Cole is my comrade in arms! I just had ... legitimate concerns," he said, shrugging.

Joao blinked. While dryland social customs were so odd, it was rare that they were so blatant.

"I wasn't aware we'd fought over her previously," Cole said, one eyebrow raised. "I already have more, um, interests than are healthy. Rusalka's just a friend. If Cynwyd wants to escort her home, I have no cause for complaint." He transferred the young lady to Cynwyd's arms. "And now, lacking any mechanism by which I might track down Gillian or Raina..." He shrugged. "I guess I'm going to bed."

Cole opened the door to the lab, checking the other side for claw marks.

The door appeared shredded. Whatever had been on the other side possessed claws like dueling daggers.

"Hrm," Cole said. "Might need a new door. G'night." He headed down the hall.

"Good night, Cole," Joao said, letting his head rise and fall exactly once.

[Cole continued in Wounded Pride]

The second time she was adjusted, Rusalka's eyes fluttered open, but she was still more than half asleep. "Home?" she murmured. "No, daddy, I don't want to marry him again..."

"That could have gone better," Cynwyd muttered. "And apparently, the lady has a few too many attachments of her own..."

Seabhac pursed his lips. “And on that note...” He headed for the door. “Thank you all for a most intriguing evening. You’ve left me with much to consider. Unicorn protect your dreams.”

He paused to glance back at Joao, a look of concern on his face. “You may still wish to have your head examined...” He flinched, blushing. “That sounded better in my mind than out loud.”

Shaking his head, he wandered off with the annoyed Ginger.

With some difficulty, Temnal rose from the chair he'd previously tumbled into with Rusalka. "I need to get some real rest before I'll be good for anything," he admitted. "If Gillian and Raina haven't turned up by morning, though, I'll be happy to help finding them."

Almost to the door, he turned briefly to Cynwyd and said, "Speaking of finding things ... I assume you know where Rusalka's dorm is?"

"It would have been rather dim to offer to escort her home, otherwise," Cynwyd said wryly. "The door, please," he asked Temnal. "Since you're so close, and my hands are rather full."

Temnal obligingly held the door open for Cynwyd, then followed him out.