FFF: the RP

Nine
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"What, eh...what do you guys think we should do? Should we take the hatch out of here?"

Nine was sick of staying inside the tunnel already and she was equally sick of running into dead ends with hidden passages. The faster she got out the better it was for her temper. The obvious choice was to then go up the ladder that had appeared. It was another unknown situation and another unknown door for her to bust through. Rolling her eyes with the comfort of knowing it was hidden by her mask, Nine grabbed the rungs of the ladder and hoisted herself upwards, her heart beating louder as she climbed each step. Adrenaline was beginning to course through her vein. This was unlike the other door. She was depending on some dead old man's intel. For all Nine knew, it could be a trap with claymores stuck to the hatch. At the top, Nine paused for a second, a last minute check and to steady herself before she popped the hatch and jumped out.

Ah.... now that is a surprise.....

What stretched in front of Nine's eyes was a sky, tinted with an angry orange. Rather than being clear, a smog had congregated around the area, countless tall funnels contributing to the cloud. Nine stood on a railing-less balcony, 3x3m, high in the air. From what she could see, the hatch she had come out of was part of a giant concrete square of a building, so big that it towered high over what seemed like a city big foundry/ industrial district. Oil pump crickets bobbed its head in the distance and the occasional flame burst into the air from oil taps. Pipes ran everywhere with tanks, valves and machinery, but no human movements could be seen.

Well, the answer at the very least brought us into the open once more. How this place is any better is another question. However, i am used to such heights, but perhaps you two arent. In light of that, lets descend down the emergency steps to the ground. When we hit the ground, we will head towards that dome over there.

Nine pointed a large dome structure that was a little to the left of the center. It looked important, so Nine decided to go scout it out. To the right of them was a set of steel emergency staircase. They were very high up, but at least they would be on the ground and able to go somewhere. Nine went down first at a brisk pace and even then, took her several minutes to get to the floor. She was fine, but the boy came down a full minute and a half later than her and dropped to the ground, out of breath. The sounds of machinery squeaking and industrial noises was loud. It meant that the sound senses of Nine was reduced.

What do you think of this area... go the long way, skirting the sides, walk on top of the pipes and skyways, or cut straight through the middle on the only real path?

There were negatives for all the points. The skirting the edge part would take long and did not ensure safety. Just safer. The skywalks and pipes allowed them to have a clearer view of the tight areas of the pipes and machinery, which is like a maze while cutting straight across was the fastest, but made them stuck in the middle and was the most predictable path for people to take. This meant easier ambush points, as there was also multiple side paths that lead into the real pathway.


 
In what could only be considered the middle of nothing, Daren saw himself in a vast white area that seemed to have no walls, no ceiling, and no floor. Although there was no floor, he definitely could stand and walk. Not quite so sure of what was going on, Daren wasn't worried. There was something about this place that made him feel completely at home and peaceful. Regardless, he still wanted a way out. Walking would be a bit pointless, this obviously was a supernatural area. "Damn, the second time this happened. For fuck's sake, what the hell has been going on?"

As Daren said that, another voice rang back. So you don't know? Chills ran down his spine and fear struck his heart. He could see nobody, but the voice was definitely real. "What?" Daren couldn't quite hear what the voice said. But now aware of it, when it next spoke it was loud and clear. Oh come on, that's coming from the guy with the power of sound! This time it was so loud it left a ringing in his ears. "How come I can't see you?" Find out where I am first. Since you're kind of a noob, I'll tell you what to do, but I won't tell you how. Make a sound wave that can be deflected and listen for which direction it comes back from. that sure sounded simple, but how does he make a sound wave? Ah yes, great question. I'm using your head, boy, just remember that! Using my head? Just what does this psycho voice think he's talking about? You idiot, I'm talking about your brain, the noggin, yer thinker! Oh, so you mean you're in my head. That's re-assuring. But then again, if you are in my head, and you are telling me what to do, then it's safe to assume the power to make sound waves resides within my brain somehow? You're getting warmer boy, but still not very close.

So now he had to discover how to make a sound wave. Just great, time to do the impossible. Of course, he still had no idea what was going on, but his top priority for now was to get the hell out. Oh yeah, close your eyes, you'll see something wicked cool, just don't think yourself to death, you are sleeping after all. To not over-thinking was NOT one of Daren's strong points. In fact, most of the time he did over-think any situation. No matter, he shut is eyes and say a figure in all white clothes with a gray tail. Was this him? He wore rather loose clothes, it all fit Daren's style. But the strangest part was that it looked like Daren. Extending his arm forward, he reached to touch the figure, and upon hitting it, a ridiculously loud ringing came to Daren's ears. Oh shit, looks like time is up!

Opening his eyes, he could only see everything fade into black. Not knowing how long it had been, Daren then awoke where he had not fallen asleep. He had no memory of moving, so someone must have moved him instead. Could it have been the two boys from earlier? Either way, he had to get up, but the ringing sound was still there, and loud. Where he was, it was assumable that the sound could be heard by others. But there was also tremendous physical pain, making him thrash about. The pain was coming from his bones, and that wasn't normal. The sound also hurt his ears very badly, almost to the point he of all people wanted to go deaf.

OOC: I'm not trying to attract attention at all (sarcasm)
 
Their supplies put away for the indefinite time they would be here, Raiiku was finding it difficult to keep himself contained. As he began barricading the windows, he kept stealing glances at Gavin over his shoulder as the older one set about outfitting the door with several deadbolts pilfered from the neighboring apartments they had cleared.

It distracted him enough that he nearly smashed his finger with the hammer. Lucky for him it only grazed it. He knew now that he was too distracted. This was what he had dreamed of for them: to be alone without their parents or anyone else interfering with their lives. He had wanted them to be happy together. "Is it my fault we're here?" he whispered to the window in front of him.
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To be honest, Gavin was a touch annoyed. Since they had come here, Raiiku had gotten more clingy. He had always been independant but now... He sighed. It was this place. Danger was at every turn. It was no wonder that Raiiku wanted to hold onto him; he didn't want to lose the one he loved to whatever lurked here.

As he screwed in the metallic pieces to the deadbolts, he saw Raiiku behind him in the reflection. With the exception of Daren, they were alone in this place and he was knocked out with something powerful. He effectively had the place to himself.

Finishing the last deadbolt, he stood up to set the thick wooden boards to criss-cross it and prevent the unwanted from coming in. Raiiku was still at the window, the hammer lying in his hand limply. Silently, Gavin came up behind Raiiku and wrapped his arms around him. "Something wrong?"

"It's...it's nothing..."

"Doesn't sound like nothing," Gavin answered, turning Raiiku to face him. Raiiku couldn't hold Gavin's eyes, looking at the carpeted floor instead. He was completely unprepared for what came next as Gavin crushed his lips against Raiiku's in what he thought was probably the most passionate kiss they had ever had.

"If you won't tell me now..." Gavin said with a smile, slowly pulling Raiiku towards the bedroom with Daren in it, seemingly having forgotten about the other resident.

They made ther way to the door, nearly kicking it in and losing Gavin's shirt and ripping Raiiku's down his chest in the journey. Raiiku found himself pinned against the wall with one of Gavin's hands to the right of his head and the other bringing him in closer for another kiss. HE closed his eyes as he revelled in it. 'Maybe it wasn't such a bad thing to be brought here. He has even more feeling now...'

Slowly he opened his eyes, looking into Gavin's for the first time since they had come back. Then out of the corner of his eye, he saw Daren thrashing on the bed. Quickly he broke away from Gavin and ran to Daren's side. Gavin followed his eyes and focused on Daren.

"Seizure or immense pain.." Gavin diagnosed quickly.

"Well what do we do?" Raiiku asked him.

"In the first case, we let him be, it will pass. In the second, we would need to give him some painkillers.. But theres no way to tell without more information. If we treat for seizure, he stays in pain. If we treat for pain, he may choke if its actually a seizure. The best we can do is wait."

Raiiku remained at Daren's side watching for anything that could be interpreted one way or the other.
 
Azzie looked on with alarm as Nine wordlessly strode forward and started climbing up the ladder towards the hatch in the ceiling. It must be nice to be so confident in oneself, thought Azzie wryly; either that, or Nine was just really anxious to get out of there. She couldn't blame her though; Az was starting to get rather claustrophobic too, and after a moment, decided to follow her up the ladder, hoping it wasn't a bad idea.

Ah.... now that is a surprise.....

Azzie heard Nine make a comment as she pushed open the hatch; she tried to look around the woman, and saw a glimpse of orange. Azzie frowned; the sky wasn't usually that color, but it was good to know that it was probably still daytime if that was the case. Wondering whether that was the only "surprise" Nine was talking about, she kept on until she got to the top of the ladder, which wasn't quite as effortless for her as it had seemed to be for Nine. Panting a little as she arrived at the top, Azzie poked her head up through the hatch, looked around, and realized that they were in some sort of industrial district, complete with smoke columns pouring out of large pipes, the impressive sounds of machinery clanking rhythmically as it operated, and a huge aura of smog blanketing the area. Nine had gotten out of the hatch, and seemed to be standing on a small platform barely even big enough for one person.

Well, the answer at the very least brought us into the open once more. How this place is any better is another question. However, i am used to such heights, but perhaps you two arent. In light of that, lets descend down the emergency steps to the ground. When we hit the ground, we will head towards that dome over there.

Azzie looked, and saw a huge dome in the distance, off a little to their left. Its appearance did give off the impression that it held some sort of significance; maybe that would be a good place to travel to next. She then looked to their right, and saw the top rails of an emergency staircase. Nine went over to it and started climbing down immediately, quickly disappearing from sight. Azzie hesitated for a second, then remembered that Ryu also needed to get out, and she pulled herself up and out as carefully as she could. Trying not to look down too much, she swung herself onto the staircase, and descended as quickly as she could, wanting to get it over with as fast as possible.

When they got to the bottom, Ryu was also out of breath. Azzie, bent over and panting on the new ground, was glad to see she wasn't the only one; he had collapsed right onto the ground next to her. Nine seemed to be perfectly fine though; she very quickly presented them with the different options they would have for choosing a path to the dome.

What do you think of this area... go the long way, skirting the sides, walk on top of the pipes and skyways, or cut straight through the middle on the only real path?

Good grief woman, thought Azzie, still catching her breath; we only just got to the ground. She thought about it for a moment though, realizing that they shouldn't stay in one place for too long if they could help it, and decided that a less straightforward path would probably be less hairy than going the most obvious way, if anything was lying in wait for them. "Um..." Azzie said finally, standing up straight once she'd caught her breath again and looked around a bit, "I vote for whichever path the bad guys would NOT be expecting us to take. If that's the long way, around the sides, then so be it, but I'd hate for us to walk into a trap. I mean, it's not like we're on a time schedule anyway, unless you count getting undercover before dark." She glanced up at the sky, and wondered if the orange meant the sun was starting to go down; she shuddered to think what sorts of nocturnal abominations might be lurking in the shadows at that point. "I dunno, what about you, Ryu?"
 
As the noise died down, so did the pain. It all started to vanish when Gavin and Raiiku came in. Taking a few deep and fast breaths, Daren sat up. There was only one thing on his mind. "Where is my guitar!?" He didn't see it in the room, but he easily could have been missing it, since he was almost in a state of panic. "I need to play something." He didn't know what it was, but there was a burning feeling in his fingertips that screamed to him. He had to play to null it, but he had no clue how he knew this, or if he was even right, but it was worth a shot. He could almost hear it in his head, it was a melody that he knew from somewhere, but he was unsure from where. But that was no surprise, someone like Daren listens to music all the time, you can't be expected to know every part of every song, or he'd have to forget other things to make room to remember those.

Usually he was nervous to play in front of other people, but it didn't matter right now.

OOC: Short post is short.
 
As soon as Daren sat up, Raiiku had pushed him back down onto the bed by the shoulders.

"You're not playing anything just yet. At least, not until we can figure out what just happened to you."

Gavin had seemingly disappeared from his spot against the wall. He returned from the front room with the guitar Daren had had on his back in his hand.

"Nice piece of work. Let him go Raiiku. If he wants to play, let him. I'd like to hear it," he said, handing the guitar to Daren once Raiiku had reluctantly stopped binding him.

Raiiku looked on with jealous eyes as Gavin took a seat next to the matresses to watch Daren. He moved over to sit next to Gavin, a fierce protective gleam in his eye to ward Daren off. Gavin sinply folded his arms and waited from Daren to play, making certain not to touch his wound; he didnt know what it was but plaing with it wouldn't help.
 
Ignoring everything that had been going on, Daren took the guitar from Gavin. All he knew was that he had to play. Nothing else was important. At all.Taking a yellow nylon pick out of his pocket, he played the first thing that came to his mind, but this time not only was his guitar louder and overdriven as if in an amp, but there were more sounds than just a guitar. Drums, bass, even keyboard. It sounded as though an entire band were playing. (Link)

He was completely unaware of his surroundings, he hadn't even noticed Gavin or Raiiku on the bed next to him.

When he was completely finished with the song, he took a deep breath. Closing his eyes, he then said a bit nervously, "Why are both of you shirtless?" It was only slightly disturbing to him at first. The clothes could have been in the wash, so he quickly said, "Nevermind, not important." Setting his guitar down and leaning it against the bed, he continues to speak, "So who are you and where the hell am I?"
 
"Now that was....amazing," Gavin said, smiling at Daren. "Some skill you have there. How long have you been playing?"

At Daren's first question, Gavin looked down at his bare chest and over at Raiiku's ripped shirt.

"Yeah, not important now...unfortunately. If you recall, we had met on the streets. Unfortunately for the two that were with us, the three of you were knocked out by some sort of gas. It got to them first. We were able to get to you before you fell. We sought refuge here on the third story of this apartment. We didn't know how long you were going to be out of it so we started fortifying it and stockpiling goods."

"I wouldn't be yelling either," Raiiku added. "Even though we have a place, there have been things in the other rooms. I expect them to be the previous inhabitants. This one is clean though."

"Right. If you're going out, make sure you're armed, or at least with one of us. As for who we are, I'm Gavin and this is Raiiku," he said, looking at Raiiku with a loving look.
 
Nine

"I vote for whichever path the bad guys would NOT be expecting us to take. If that's the long way, around the sides, then so be it, but I'd hate for us to walk into a trap. I mean, it's not like we're on a time schedule anyway, unless you count getting undercover before dark."

Nine believed that what Azzie said was quite smart, expecially about the part about getting under cover before dark. She herself has no issues with darkness, but Azzie and Ryu were not accustomed to navigating in the dark at combat efficiency. She had torches they could borrow once more, but then, the lights would be a beacon to would be adversaries.

"I dunno, what about you, Ryu?"

Id suggest getting into the dome before sunset, though regardless, it seems improbable that we can. At our fastest, we might be 1/2 to maybe an hour into sunset before we could get there.

Yea.... id rather not walk around dark. I didnt like the train so id rather not have to be in he darkness once more.

Okay. We will take the skywalk route and pipes path. That way, we have a bit of speed and safety. I'll draw the attention to myself with a few lights. Won't be much use when there is light, but when we get into that hour darkness, it'll keep you guys away from their sights. You two will be walking a bit blind and at a reduced pace, but better tha dying no? He he he... *Ahem*

Nine said the last line in a semi conforting, semi joking way. Something she never did and she did not feel used to it or natural. After all, her guild always sent her alone on missions. Companionship was a rare thing to her. She had researched that jokes were a good way to ease tension, but failed to see the morbid nature of it might have skewed her intention.

We'll, ill lead off first. Come up after a 180 second count. i'll scout ahead for a path and be back.
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Ryu

Id suggest getting into the dome before sunset, though regardless, it seems improbable that we can. At our fastest, we might be 1/2 to maybe an hour into sunset before we could get there.

That was not good. ryu had a bad experience with dark and sort of tight places and this maze of pipes was just the thing. While still open overhead, the thick lattice of pipes turned the area into a maze and that alone did the trick. Add darkness to that and it was the train and tunnel all over again.

Yea.... id rather not walk around dark. I didnt like the train so id rather not have to be in he darkness once more.

Okay. We will take the skywalk route and pipes path. That way, we have a bit of speed and safety. I'll draw the attention to myself with a few lights. Won't be much use when there is light, but when we get into that hour darkness, it'll keep you guys away from their sights. You two will be walking a bit blind and at a reduced pace, but better tha dying no? He he he... *Ahem*

Nine's decision to walk along the top of the pipes eased his mind a bit. While then footing became an issue, at least it was more open and noit claustrophobic anymore. He could live with the slight danger if it let his heart relax a bit more. Ryu did notice a rather morbid attempt at humour by nine and seeing her unnatural smile and small laugh, he could tell she was not quite comfortable with making it.

We'll, ill lead off first. Come up after a 180 second count. i'll scout ahead for a path and be back.
​

And with that, Nine disappeared up the ladder and onto the thick, rusting, wide pipe, leaving Ryu and Azzie along for the first time after for a while.

Well... here we are.... out of the frying pan and into the fire. Whatcha think happened...? Like, how'd we get here? I mean, im from Japan, but this sure as hell doesn't look like anywhere i know thats near my house.

i know she probably has super hearing as well as an endless list of super feats, but she should be pretty far off, so i think we're safe to talk. So... what do you think of our newest... friend? I mean, What do you think of her. I mean, she is completely out of our world... or my world, in case you didn't come from Earth, both metaphorically and literally. what do you make of her?
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Id suggest getting into the dome before sunset, though regardless, it seems improbable that we can. At our fastest, we might be 1/2 to maybe an hour into sunset before we could get there.

Yea.... id rather not walk around dark. I didnt like the train so id rather not have to be in he darkness once more.

Okay. We will take the skywalk route and pipes path. That way, we have a bit of speed and safety. I'll draw the attention to myself with a few lights. Won't be much use when there is light, but when we get into that hour darkness, it'll keep you guys away from their sights. You two will be walking a bit blind and at a reduced pace, but better tha dying no? He he he... *Ahem*

Hmm. Azzie didn't honestly think the situation was funny, but she couldn't blame Nine for trying to lighten the mood. After all, they'd been pretty much on the run this whole time; there hadn't been much time for them to just sit and talk about non-survival-related things. Azzie was beginning to miss that aspect of being at home, even trivial things such as being able to make fun of that stupid travel commercial she'd seen the night before she'd arrived here.

We'll, ill lead off first. Come up after a 180 second count. i'll scout ahead for a path and be back.

Azzie watched with a slight qualm of vertigo as Nine ascended the ladder that went up the side of a huge rusty pipe. When she'd suggested an indirect path, she'd kind of been hoping for something a little less...in the air. However, she figured that if they were to be seen by any enemies, there were probably less of them that could follow them on the pipes than on the ground. Of course, they couldn't stay on the pipes forever either; they had to get into the dome at some point, and even if the lattice extended all the way there, they were bound to have to climb down from it at some point.

Ryu relieved Azzie's increasingly troubled thought process by speaking up on a different subject.

Well... here we are.... out of the frying pan and into the fire. Whatcha think happened...? Like, how'd we get here? I mean, im from Japan, but this sure as hell doesn't look like anywhere i know thats near my house.

Azzie didn't have any idea either. "Oh man, I really don't know," she answered honestly, shrugging her shoulders. "I fell asleep on the couch at home, and next thing I knew I was here. I've kind of just been hoping that this has all been a really bad dream." She smirked; she realized she was doing the same thing that Nine had just done. "If it's not that though," she said more seriously, "then either we've all died and this is the next world, or somehow we got sucked into some sort of strange dimensional portal thing. Who knows though. Maybe I've just watched too much sci-fi."

i know she probably has super hearing as well as an endless list of super feats, but she should be pretty far off, so i think we're safe to talk. So... what do you think of our newest... friend? I mean, What do you think of her. I mean, she is completely out of our world... or my world, in case you didn't come from Earth, both metaphorically and literally. what do you make of her?

"Oh, I am from Earth, don't worry," chuckled Azzie, "despite what some people back home liked to say about me. But as far as she's concerned," Azzie nodded at Nine, "I really don't know. She seems cool, but I can't ever help feeling like people who just show up like that, out of the blue, might be up to something. I mean, not to sound negative, but she could just be working for some sort of enemy, and trying to lure us into a trap or something by gaining our trust." She hesitated; a chill went down her spine as she realized that the same could just as easily be true about Ryu. It was definitely a much further stretch in his case, given all the things they'd been through together, but she still had to keep that thought in the back of her head, even though she felt like if there was anyone there that she could trust right now, it was him. She liked to think that she could trust him; so far, he did seem like a nice person.

Azzie folded her arms, realized that she should have been counting the time since Nine had left, and then realized that 180 seconds was equal to three minutes; that hadn't quite passed yet. She figured she should keep up the conversation; just standing there waiting was making her uncomfortable. "I dunno, what do you think of her, Ryu? Or about this place, and how we got here?"
 
Ryu

Oh man, I really don't know. I fell asleep on the couch at home, and next thing I knew I was here. I've kind of just been hoping that this has all been a really bad dream. If it's not that though, then either we've all died and this is the next world, or somehow we got sucked into some sort of strange dimensional portal thing. Who knows though. Maybe I've just watched too much sci-fi."

Ryu felt a bit better that he had someone that could empathize with him. They both fell into this realm after they fell asleep and they both knew they were well over their heads in this place. It was good to have a comrade of sort.
"Oh, I am from Earth, don't worry, despite what some people back home liked to say about me. But as far as she's concerned, I really don't know. She seems cool, but I can't ever help feeling like people who just show up like that, out of the blue, might be up to something. I mean, not to sound negative, but she could just be working for some sort of enemy, and trying to lure us into a trap or something by gaining our trust.

Azzie had a point. Nine appeared from nowhere at their worst of moments and somehow asserted herself in their group. Even if she was not out to get them, there was still something that bugged Ryu about Nine.

I dunno, what do you think of her, Ryu? Or about this place, and how we got here?"

Well, one things straight, i sure as hell hope you're wrong about the death thing. I don't want this to turn into another Gantz. I might wshoot myself if i still had that gun if it was. In anycase, as sad as it may, it might be a mix. We might be unconcsious in the real world and we are in some sort of surival world... which is not much better besides the point that we can go back alive.

Ryu paused for a bit to gather his thoughts on nine. His mind was mixed up in regards to the mysterious woman.

As for Nine...that's hard to say... On one thing, on the surface, she's a damn asset. i really don''t think that she is from Earth. No where in anywhere have i heard of anything similar to a Sky Hunter besides class names in RPGs. Plus, did you see what she did when she jumped into the train? Five bullets right up close and you did not see the fight with the damn bat. All that carnage and without a sweat.

He shot words out like a machine gun before he realised he needed a breath. Another pause and Ryu calmed a bit.

I'm not even sure if she is human, We have never seen her face... its always covered in a mask, and i dont quite trust that sort of behaviour, but i guess i can give her the benefit of the doubt. if worse comes to worse, i guess i can divert her while you flee. After all... i did choose to believe her...

By the way,,, i was curious,,, but i was wondering,.. was it just me or did you see Yumi's gun getting swallowed by the ground? I mean, first, Yumi disappears, then you, then my gun and almost me.... you think something mystical or occult is happening here?

OOC: Reply short if you want, Ill have nine come back after your next post Kate
​
 
Well, one things straight, i sure as hell hope you're wrong about the death thing. I don't want this to turn into another Gantz. I might wshoot myself if i still had that gun if it was. In anycase, as sad as it may, it might be a mix. We might be unconcsious in the real world and we are in some sort of surival world... which is not much better besides the point that we can go back alive.

As for Nine...that's hard to say... On one thing, on the surface, she's a damn asset. i really don''t think that she is from Earth. No where in anywhere have i heard of anything similar to a Sky Hunter besides class names in RPGs. Plus, did you see what she did when she jumped into the train? Five bullets right up close and you did not see the fight with the damn bat. All that carnage and without a sweat.

Ryu was talking somewhat quickly; it seemed to Azzie like maybe he was a bit nervous. Or, perhaps impressed; Azzie was certainly impressed by Nine's air of eternal preparedness and courage, and the idea that she might be from somewhere other than Earth was quite fascinating in itself. It would definitely prove that humans weren't alone anymore in the universe...though, if they were still alive and ever got home, she doubted anyone would believe their story. Ryu paused, then spoke up again.

I'm not even sure if she is human, We have never seen her face... its always covered in a mask, and i dont quite trust that sort of behaviour, but i guess i can give her the benefit of the doubt. if worse comes to worse, i guess i can divert her while you flee. After all... i did choose to believe her...

Azzie frowned at the last part; she didn't feel like it was his fault if they ended up being betrayed by Nine. Only Nine herself could claim that responsibility; and besides, it wasn't like she, Azzie, had absolutely had to follow the two of them. She wasn't about to argue with him right now though; if anything happened, she'd do whatever she could to make sure Ryu got away safely too. They couldn't exactly talk about it too much at the moment anyway, she figured, without being overheard by Nine; the woman could come back at any second now.

By the way,,, i was curious,,, but i was wondering,.. was it just me or did you see Yumi's gun getting swallowed by the ground? I mean, first, Yumi disappears, then you, then my gun and almost me.... you think something mystical or occult is happening here?

Azzie had seen the odd occurrence with Yumi's gun. "Yeah, a lot of that stuff was really weird. I mean, I didn't disappear completely, I just ended up somewhere else, but I'd like to think that the same thing happened to Yumi, and that maybe we'll find her again at some point. And," she smirked, "it wouldn't hurt to have the gun back either, just so that no one else ends up with it if nothing else."
 
OOC: Im going to timeskip o the dark. Btw, lets just say we gav u the torches back
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Ryu

"Yeah, a lot of that stuff was really weird. I mean, I didn't disappear completely, I just ended up somewhere else, but I'd like to think that the same thing happened to Yumi, and that maybe we'll find her again at some point. And, it wouldn't hurt to have the gun back either, just so that no one else ends up with it if nothing else."

On cue, at exactly 3 minutes, Nine poked her head over the top of the ladder she scaled up minute ago. Apparently, it was safe, otherwise she would be in a much more hurried mood.

The pipings ahead seem relatively cleared, but still keep your wis and footing about. Do not relax until we hit the dome. There, we can rest for the day.

Well, upsy daisy... Let's get going then.

Nine had already moved along to make room as Ryu climbed up the metal rings to the top. It wasn't too high up, but the 4 meter drop would definitely hurt, and that is at the lower section of the pipes. What wwas even more concerning is that with out his gun, Ryu has lost ranged attack option. Only thing left was to hope the enemy didnt have it either.

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OOC: Here we go!

TIME SKIP
Nine

The group had been walkig along the pipe for a while now. Luckily, in a sense, they were not attacked whilst it was bright. At the very least, they had the cover of darkness. the sun was already just a dull glow on the horizon. Nine activated the light globes she used inside the train, which lit her up like a christmas tree. If there was to be stray fire or attacks, at least it'd be in her general direction.

Watch your footing and watch for my signals.

he landscape was lit up with hernight visions sight, but there were still many darkspots around. Her eyes were registering movements in the shadows, but were so small that itcould have been wind picking up leaves or trash.

28 minutes into their walk, the ambient lights from the dome had a dull glow that lit up the area a bit better. At the very least, it was possible for the other two to walk with more light. It was then, just a few more hundred meters till the dome that they came pouring out.

Small mechanical balls with three arms came gushing out from the shadows, converging on the trio. Even worse, from behind them, landing on the pipe they were on, was a giant mechanical beast. Its legs crushed the rusting pipe and let out an oddly animalistic cry.

Run for the dome!

Nine motioned for the two to begin running as she pulled her pistol out and began tapping away at the balls, but there was just too many. Instead, she took out her sword and usd it as a blunt weapon to bat away t those converging at them. Ryu similarly, used his sword as a bat as he ran.
​
 
Azzie glanced up at the piping overhead as Nine returned, right on schedule.

The pipings ahead seem relatively cleared, but still keep your wis and footing about. Do not relax until we hit the dome. There, we can rest for the day.

Well, upsy daisy... Let's get going then.

Ryu ascended the ladder to the top, where Nine made room for him to get onto the piping. Not wanting to fall behind even for one second, Azzie hurried up after him, shakily found her balance, and scooted along the lattice, trying to juggle the flashlight she'd gotten back and her sword as she tried to use her arms for balance somewhat. It was extremely awkward; she had no idea how she was going to do this, but she had to try. She just hoped the others wouldn't go too much faster than her.

--TIME SKIP--

The sun was almost down, and Nine's illuminated form had led them across the pipework for quite a while now. Azzie was feeling quite discombobulated at this point, and would have been ready for a rest about two minutes after she'd started.

Watch your footing and watch for my signals.

They were nearing the dome, their goal destination, and its lighting was starting to make their way a bit easier. They'd had no unexpected visitors along the way though, and it was starting to make Azzie nervous; it made her wonder whether there might be something nasty lurking within the dome itself. She took a look around; though they were enjoying the most light they'd seen in a while, she couldn't help feeling anxious to get out of it--if she could see her hand in front of her face, someone or something else might be able to see it as well.

Just then, a swarm of metallic orbs flew out of the shadows, and headed straight for the three of them. The things had three mechanical arms sticking out of them, and they were fast; Azzie wondered if it might be some sort of security system for the dome. She didn't have much time to think about it though, for a second enemy materialized that was even worse: a huge mechanical monster, looking like something out of Star Wars, clunked down onto the pipe behind them, bellowing an unusual roar-like sound and crumpling the pipe up where it stood.

Run for the dome!

Nine didn't have to say it twice. There was no other way they could go anyway; the jump down was too far, so Azzie followed after Nine and Ryu as fast as she could, trying to fend off the orb things with her rapier and flashlight as she went. She almost dropped the light; she started to lose her balance as she recovered it, but she still managed to hang on. She just hoped they would be able to get to the dome soon, and that the menaces wouldn't follow them in there.
 
Nine

Both of her chain blades were out and spinning at a lethal velocity. The monomolecular blades easily diced away at the limbs of any ball that got too close. There were so many though. Nine danced along the pipe, her blades flying around in intricate circles and movements. After glow lines appeared as Nine kicked the revs up another notch, causing the blade to glow an ice blue. Sparks flew whenever it bit into metal. There were just too many.

Nergh.... Tsubame Gaeshi!

Nine reversed the grip of her left hand blade into a defensive hold while with one of her blade of her right, she pulled back for an across the chest swing. In an instant, Nine dashed forward and in a low crouch, swung the right blade low then up. From the edge, a ice blue crescent shot out, slicing through the balls in front of her for several meters before the crescent shot bounced up exponentially, sending more tumbling off the pipe. Her right hand blade now was a machete until its molecular recharged. That was where her left blade came in. The technique bought them some time, but that was all they needed. They couldn't face the giant robot behind them, which was crushing the path that they took just mere seconds ago. The balls were annoying as hell as well. However, the dome up front from the pipe had a double metal door opened. There was a short three meter gap they had to leap before they reached the door that was just as high off the ground as the pipe. If they managed to get in there, the balls would not be able to follow and the mechanical monster would not be able to get in due to size. They would have to jump for it.

Run and jump at the end of the pipe! Aim for the door opening!

Nine was already covering the rear of the two for them to jump. They would have to close the door once she jumped as she would be holding off the balls.

Go!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ryu

On command, Ryu ran like hell. He saw the gap and the door she was talking about and it was a bit of a jump. The distance was all that separated him from safety. It was one of the biggest gamble of his life. Miss and he plunges 4 or so meters to the ground and get swarmed, potentially torn apart by those balls.

Here goes nothing! DORRRRYAAAAA!

Despite the situation, Ryu had to admit the feeling of danger (extreme in this case) and the feeling of vertigo at the height of his jump, the rush of the edge of the door opening was thrilling. His heart jumped at his throat as he hung on the edge, clawing his way to the platform inside. His ears throbbed as he moved aside for the others, his hand outstretched in case the others needed some help.


​



​
 
The next few minutes were something of a blur. Nine running ahead, her scary-looking blades tearing into the metallic orbs with every sweep, unleashing sparks everywhere; the blades even starting to glow blue at one point. Ryu following behind her, trying to bat away the strange orbs with his katana as he ran. And then poor Azzie in the rear, panting, making awkward swats at the orbs, and trying to ignore the trembling of the pipe behind her as the great monster crushed it in its fervent attempt to pursue them.

Nergh.... Tsubame Gaeshi!

Azzie glanced up at Nine just in time to see a huge blue crescent-shaped flash of energy hit a large number of the spheres; judging by Nine's posture, it looked as though she was the one who had created it. The blast took out an impressive number of the foes, and travelled quite a way before flying up into the air and getting more of them. Azzie beat away another orb within her own radius, and frowned; how was that possible? She had heard from Ryu that Nine had exhibited impressive fighting abilities within the train carriage, but...this? It was almost like magic or something.

Run and jump at the end of the pipe! Aim for the door opening!

It was all happening so quickly. Azzie hadn't even seen a door opening; she glanced through the mess of the remaining orb swarm, and saw what Nine was talking about: a metallic double door stood open on the side of the dome, allowing them entry if they could reach it. As Azzie drew closer to it, though, she realized that the pipe they were on ended about nine or ten feet short of the building's orifice; they would have to jump the distance. Azzie gulped; she hated long jumps, she had never done well with them in school...

Go!

As Nine took over the rear, and made room for them to get past her, Ryu ran ahead of her and Azzie, and jumped across the chasm.

Here goes nothing! DORRRRYAAAAA!

Before Azzie could blink, he was on the other side, hanging onto the bottom edge of the opening. He managed to pull himself up, and then got out of the way, holding his hand out as though to offer help to her and Nine. Azzie, chuckling wryly at the thought of Nine needing help, didn't really have time to argue about it; figuring it was only a matter of time before something in this strange universe killed her anyway, she took a deep breath, backed up a little bit, then charged forward as best she could and leapt across the great gap in the piping.

"UGH!"

She missed the ledge by just six inches; however, there was a thin lateral crack in the dome's side right below it, which looked like a natural seam in the architecture, and she found her fingers digging into that instead. With a huge amount of effort, she pulled herself up into the doorway, her flashlight half hanging out of her jacket pocket, her sword tucked into her belt loop on the other side. She scrambled to pull her feet up with the rest of her body, onto the dome's interior floor, and gratefully pulled on Ryu's hand to bring herself to her feet. "Thanks," she panted, then made room for Nine to come in whenever she was ready, hoping she would make it quick.
 
Nine

The two had cleared the jump, but was a close shave. Nonetheless, there was no need to hold the enemy back. All was left was to pass through the entrance herself and they would be safe inside. The molecules inside her blades have recharged up when Nine turned and ran for the door. Most likely sensing what she was going to do, the giant mech lifted its gigantic feet and stomped at Nine. With its noisy movements, the Mech had no chance in hell to have gotten Nine. What it did do was cause the entire pipe to collapse into an upward slanting ramp. Double timing up the pipe, Nine was not worried and just as she performed a routine jump, Nine was given a sudden shock as she felt something wrap around her leg.

Upon glancing to the rear, her right leg was wrapped with some form of optical cable that had wind out of the giant Mech's nose. Quickly, Nine sliced the cable in two and with quick calculation, she should have just enough momentum to get to the ledge when she received yet another surprise. This one was gut dropping however. Masses of balls had launched itself at her from all angle and latched onto her clothes. The combined weight of these minions caused her to drop just short of the ledge, plummeting her to the floor.

Damnation! Close the door! I'll be fine! If i am not inside within 6 hrs, flee at first light!

What she managed to get out was considerably a lot, but just as she said light, Nine had fallen towards the floor, lost in the darkness of the pipes and shadows with only the noise of moving mechanical limbs filling the air.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ryu

Ryu can only watch in shock as Nine succumbed to the mechanical enemies and he could not do a single thing. It was in slow motion as he saw Nine begin to fall short of the ledge with all these black balls grabbing onto the young woman and only managed to hear her last words when she faded from sight and disappeared onto the floor, at least two stories down.

SHIT! NINE! NIIIINE!

He could not see anything but the flurrying movements of many limbed balls, black on black. Not even the telltale glow of her eye holes from her mask, nor the blades was visible. Ryu was determined to keep searching when black balls began throwing themselves at the door, using the same path they took.

Damnit!

There was no choice. Nine said she would be okay, so she would be. Ryu grabbed the door and with all his might, slid it shut with a resounding gong as the metals hit each other. Much softer was sliding pins and clicks inside the door itself, which meant that it locked itself automatically. They were safe, but their friend was stuck outside. The noise suddenly fell silent as both Ryu and Azzie sat there.

Tch.... damnit....

Ryu looked around. They were in some sort of stadium, but by the looks of it, abandoned for quite a while. Where they sat, was on a higher level than the second floor, but from what they could see, it was pretty clear. There was no enemies as to speak of, so they could wait the 6 hours that Nine asked of them. Electricity was still running, but there was a thin layer of dust on the seats.

What do we do now.... do we wait?

Ryu could hear the hum of a vending machine several meters away and before Azzie could answer, he stood up, pressed a few buttons before bashing the glass to pieces and retrieved several packs of chips. Ryu returned and threw several at Azzie before he dropped himself back down and began to eat.





​
 
(OOC: Ha, I was just thinking we should probably get some food XD)

Azzie watched anxiously as Nine started to run along the pipe towards them. The huge mech suddenly pounded the pipe behind her, and caused it to angle upwards towards the building's door, making a more direct path for Nine. However, just as she started to jump off the end, a cable of some sort whipped out of the mech and caught her by the ankle. Azzie made a surprised noise in her throat; but Nine recovered from it by swiftly cutting the cable. A swarm of metallic orbs found her next, however, and attached themselves to her clothing while she was mid-jump, pulling her down into the treacherous space between the end of the pipe and the open door.

Damnation! Close the door! I'll be fine! If i am not inside within 6 hrs, flee at first light!

SHIT! NINE! NIIIINE!

"NINE!"

Azzie shrieked; she hurried to the ledge next to Ryu, and scanned the chasm with her eyes frantically, but she could see no sign of their partner. The orbs filled the gap like a swarm of bugs, and soon started to come up towards Azzie and Ryu as well.

Damnit!

Azzie jumped back instinctively; she didn't want to deal with any more of these things. Before she could think, Ryu quickly pulled the heavy metal door shut with a loud clang, and various metallic locking sounds ensued; it was obviously some sort of high-tech door. The noise from outside was lost instantly, but the resulting silence was anything but relaxing.

Tch.... damnit....

Azzie looked at Ryu with concern; they were alone again. Just as she had started to trust Nine, the woman had been ripped away from them--Nine, the most able-bodied traveler amongst them. If she could be taken out by this world, then there could hardly be any hope for Azzie or Ryu. Azzie sighed, and glanced around at their new location, wondering how soon it would be before something nasty dropped from the high ceiling rafters and tried to kill them.

They were in a large indoor stadium, reminiscent of a hockey rink, or the huge concert auditorium near her home in the real world. They were on an upper level, so that they could look down into lower seats and the middle of the arena, and there was enough electric light still running that they could see that they were most likely alone for the moment. The ceiling was quite far away, and full of criscrossed metal beams; it would be a great place for monsters to hide, but as she stared up into them, she couldn't see anything so far that looked threatening or unnatural. Azzie glanced over at Ryu again as he posed the same question that was on her mind.

What do we do now.... do we wait?

Before Azzie could answer, Ryu suddenly went over to a vending machine a short distance away, played around with the buttons, then smashed the glass front of it and removed a large number of snack bags. When he returned, he tossed some of them at Azzie; they looked to be regular old chips, just like any of the popular brands back home. Wondering whether it was safe to eat them, Azzie looked up just in time to see Ryu sitting down, opening them up, and eating them; too late, she thought. "Um...thanks," she said weakly, and turned her eyes from him back down to the bag of chips in her hand.

She turned the package over thoughtfully in her hands; she was too tired to try to read all the ingredients. "I suppose there's no reason to think these are bad. That food laid out on the tables back there was creepy, but...I think if someone had planted these here just for us, you wouldn't have had to smash the machine open for us to get to them." She tore the bag open, and pulled out a chip; it didn't look moldy or anything, so she popped it in her mouth, and instantly had a craving for more of them. Within about a minute the whole bag was gone, and she reached for another one, not wanting to stop until they were all devoured. Chips never made her very full, but at least it was something to eat; they hadn't had anything at all for the entire day. She was thirsty though, and the salt only made it worse; she stopped in the middle of her second bag, and looked up, wondering if there might be a water fountain somewhere in the vicinity.

"You know," she said thoughtfully, standing up so that she could take a better look in all directions, "if I'd known I was going to end up in a place like this, I would've come more prepared. I would've brought some dip." She turned and looked in the other direction, rubbing the back of her neck. "If we can though, we should find a water fountain, or some bottled water would be even better, so we can carry it with us. And if this place happens to have a gift shop, we should definitely look for some sort of bag or backpack we can use to carry some food with us whenever we find it. It's a long shot, but they might have something like that here. But we can't go without eating or drinking, we're going to need something every day, at least once or twice a day. And..." she said with a wry smirk, "one of these days, we're going to have to sleep. Maybe in shifts or something, but..." She sighed again, and ran a hand through her severely tangled hair. "In any case, I'm gonna go try to find a water fountain just for right now. Do you want to come with me?"
 
Ryu
​

"Um...thanks,"

Ryu slumped down besides Azzie and chomped through his own packets of chips. Basic necessity pushed what had just happened to Nine out of his head, but as he begins to feel less hungry, the wandering thoughts returned. Even though it was dark at the time, the swarming black robots mobbing over Nine made him feel revolted. They were like cockroaches, crawling all over the place. Had they managed to get inside, Ryu did not think he had the metal strength to have not snapped and broken.

"You know,"if I'd known I was going to end up in a place like this, I would've come more prepared. I would've brought some dip. If we can though, we should find a water fountain, or some bottled water would be even better, so we can carry it with us. And if this place happens to have a gift shop, we should definitely look for some sort of bag or backpack we can use to carry some food with us whenever we find it. It's a long shot, but they might have something like that here. But we can't go without eating or drinking, we're going to need something every day, at least once or twice a day. And..."

Yea... it is a bit dry

one of these days, we're going to have to sleep. Maybe in shifts or something, but...In any case, I'm gonna go try to find a water fountain just for right now. Do you want to come with me?"

Now that Azzie had mentioned it, not only was his throat burning from the salt on the chips and exertion from the day, his eyelids was becoming heavy and all four of his limbs were beginning to burn. Not only had thirst caught up, but fatigue has also.

Well... Nine did say we have a six hour waiting window, so i guess we can sleep for a few hours each. And seeing as this is a stadium, with electricity to boot, im sure there must be SOME water around. Lets see if we can find any food stands or the stores.

Ryu stood, stretched out and shook off the tiredness that had crept up when he was seated.

Well, if you dont mind, lead the way.
 
(OOC: Hope I did this right in the way you were thinking of :hmmm:)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Well... Nine did say we have a six hour waiting window, so i guess we can sleep for a few hours each. And seeing as this is a stadium, with electricity to boot, im sure there must be SOME water around. Lets see if we can find any food stands or the stores.

Azzie was glad to hear Ryu agree with her; she was extremely thirsty and exhausted, and she was sure the terror of their situation was the only thing that had kept her awake all this time. The relative inertia and calmness of their current situation, compared to what they'd just been through, was actually making her feel like falling asleep right there, so she was relieved to see Ryu get up right away, stretch, and act like he was ready to go.
Well, if you dont mind, lead the way.

Azzie nodded. "Alright." She made sure she had her sword within reach should she need it, and looked around once more. "Well...we can go left, or right...I guess let's go right," she decided on a whim; it was hard to tell whether there was anything useful in either direction.

She started leading them in the direction she'd designated, trying to analyze all the potential hiding spots for enemies. The walkway they were on, which went around the outside of the actual stadium seats in the center, had a few doorways along the outside wall, which she presumed led to other parts of this building. If this was like most stadiums in her world, those other areas should have some sort of memorabilia vendors, food and drink stands, and even bathrooms. However, they also most likely featured more doors to the outside world, and any manner of enemy could burst through there and attack them at any time. So...unless they could somehow find the things they needed along their current walkway, they might very well have to risk that.

Out of the items they needed to find, water was on Azzie's mind the most, especially after having eaten those chips. She kept scanning the wall for signs of a water fountain or beverage vending machine as she walked...and, after a few minutes, finally spotted both, within a short distance of each other. She hurried over to them, and looked back and forth between them, trying to decide which would be more likely to have potable water. The fountain on the wall, just sitting there beckoning her...it would be so easy to just push the button and drink from it; but for some reason, the idea of drinking something that had come out of this place's pipes seemed kind of unsettling to her. She looked over at the water bottles in the vending machine, which were perfectly sealed, but realized they could be extremely old, having been sitting there for who knew how long. And even though they were refrigerated, they might still have something growing in them by now, or chemicals leaching out from the plastic into the water....

Figuring she was just being paranoid, however, she decided bottles would be the best to drink from right now, and they would need them eventually anyway for carrying water with them. Not thrilled with the idea of punching the glass, she withdrew her rapier, turned it around so the pommel was facing the glass, and smashed it against the vending machine until the glass broke. She then put her sword away, reached in, and pulled out two water bottles, whose labels she didn't recognize. She handed one bottle to Ryu, and immediately opened the other one and drank from it swiftly, having seen no date on the bottle and not really caring now that she had it in her hand. The water tasted fine, and she drank half of it before she even came up for air.

"Uhhh, that tastes so good," she muttered, and drank the rest of it all in one sitting. She threw the empty bottle aside, and nodded at Ryu again. "Alright, let's go find something to carry this in, and maybe some more food that's not as salty," she said resolutely, pointing towards the nearest door which she thought might lead to a vendor area.

Azzie led the way through the doorway, and saw that she had been right; there was another long walkway here that was lined with various abandoned booths, along with a bathroom not too far away. She wasn't really interested in that right now, but she did see a vendor booth not far off that had a bunch of T-shirts on display, with logos that she'd never seen before. Thinking there might be other useful objects there, she hurried over, and scanned the table and racks of goods for some sign of a backpack, purse, or shoulder bag. Finally, she found a few satchel-style shoulder bags, and grabbed two, handing one to Ryu and slinging the strap of the other one onto herself, across her chest at a diagonal. Satisfied with the way it fit, she glanced over the rest of the vendor's inventory, and saw that in addition to T-shirts, there were also a bunch of hooded fleece jackets. While creeping through eerie places and running for her life all day, Azzie hadn't paid much attention to the outside temperature, but she realized it might be a good idea to pick up something that would keep them warm, so she grabbed one of the jackets and tied it around her waist, in a way that it wouldn't obscure access to her sword. She handed a second jacket to Ryu, just in case he wanted one as well; he didn't seem to be dressed all that warmly either. "Here, just in case you want one of these," she offered.
Finally, Azzie went over to the nearest vending machine she saw, smashed the glass with her rapier pommel once more, and snatched up a bunch of cookie packets, candy bars, cheese puffs, trail mix pouches, and individually-wrapped pastries. It certainly wasn't the most healthy food, and it might not give them a great amount of energy or nutrition, but it seemed to be the best they could do; the last fresh food they'd seen, back on those tables, had been creepy, so she didn't really want to go looking for any more fresh food sitting out anywhere. She handed a bunch of the assorted snacks to Ryu, and threw the rest of them in her satchel, trying to leave enough room for a few water bottles as well.

Once they'd gotten enough snacks, Azzie led the way back to the interior room with the stadium seats, and the water vending machine. There were other drinks in there too, which looked like sodas, but water was probably the healthiest thing when they were on limited resources. She did see a few small cans in the bottom of the machine that looked like energy drinks, though, so in addition to gathering water bottles, she also threw two of these drinks into her sack, to save for emergencies. She ended up having the bag half filled with snacks, and half filled with drinks, which she thought was a good mix; and she handed a bunch of water to Ryu as well, offering to grab him the other drinks if he wanted them also.

When they were finally done collecting resources, Azzie led them back to the area near the door they'd jumped through earlier, and sat down. She figured they should probably stay close to the last place Nine had seen them, in case she really was able to meet up with them again six hours from now. Azzie realized that they should probably start their sleeping shifts now, if they were going to get any decent amount of rest before Nine got there; and having seen no monsters or enemies so far, even in the vendor hallway, this spot seemed like a good place to try to sleep. Azzie would have loved more than anything to just crash right there on the floor right away and take the first shift; however, she knew Ryu must be tired too, and she would feel bad taking it away from him, especially since he'd had to spend more time dealing with that creature on the subway train earlier than she had. Also, Azzie knew that right before she'd ended up in this world, she'd been sleeping for a while; however, Ryu might not have been--he could have been awake for a long time before he even got to this world, and in that case he would need the rest a lot more. Figuring three hours wasn't all that long, she finally pulled a small bag of cookies from her pack to keep her occupied, and started opening it up. "Ryu, you take the first sleeping shift now," she offered. "I want to stay up and see how good these cookies are." She checked her watch, and set an alarm for three hours away, just in case she started to doze off. "I'll wake you up in three hours."
 
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