(IC) An Unceasing Hunger [Actual Cannibal Shia LaBeouf]

[Metastachydium]

Carine is happy to be rubbed and it shows: Jim's attempt at keeping her kind of warm puts a smile so grateful on her face that it almost sheds light. Still, sher mind begins to race: is Jim an empath or does she feel icky and cold to the touch? She doesn't want to feel icky and cold to the touch. She's not a deep sea mollusk, damn it!

These musings delay her answer a bit, but she ultimately gets around to considering the options Jim presented as well. Yeah, don't think we can go to town either. What I meant was, like, finding the closest road or something and hitching a ride. she explains, still smiling. I still don't know **** about this place though, so… I don't know. We can take a quick look at the Haunted House if you like. A sweater would be sweet. she mumbles, leaning forward to bump her head into Jim's chest just above his sternum. Just… Let's, like, make a break for it before he circles back around.

Spoiler: Carine

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Blood tokens: 4/5
Item: folding spade (equipped)
Other belongings: white one-shoulder T-shirt, light gray high ankle skinny jeans (now slightly redesigned), flat thong sandals, a dishtowel and half a roll of gauze, a horrible dilemma and some borrowed warmth

[MaltholLoth]

With Carine putting her face in his chest he's able to better rub her and the goosebumps are all more obvious. "The hitchhiking idea is good, but yet, let's make a dash for it now" he says, pulling back just slightly but bringing one hand down to take hold of hers, interlocking his fingers with hers. With a final look around, he gives a smile and nods his head towards the 'haunted house'.

Spoiler: Jim

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Blood tokens: 4
Item(s): multitool with torch, cabin kitchen knife, couple of alcoholic wipes, a door handle?
Dressed: Comfy waking boots, loose cargo trousers, loose t-shirt (tear near shoulder) and lightweight waterproof coat
Emotional/mental state: very hopeful, weary, sore, slightly smitten

[7LayerDipstick]

Chelsea carefully makes her way out of the room on her hands and knees, brushing aside any stray shards of glass or wood splinters. She crawls under the top half of the door hanging, shattered and cracked, off the single remaining hinge in the doorframe. Getting back to her feet, she hurries down the hall toward the breakroom and swings the door open to reveal a well-appointed seating area and kitchenette.
The room is lit with the same fluorescent glow as the hall, though Chelsea can see a few lights above the counters of the kitchenette that might provide a softer light if they were on. The counter starts near the middle of both the far and right wall of the nearly square room, and the two halves join in the corner where a sink sits embedded in the fake white marble surface. Cupboards occupy the space underneath the counter. The end of the counter on the far wall is capped with a simple standing refrigerator and freezer that has a severe dent in the lower door. On the counter next to the fridge is a microwave, and on the opposite end of the counter is an over-designed, high-tech, touch-screen, self-grinding coffee machine. At least, that's what Chelsea is pretty sure the device almost completely covered in sticky notes is.
In the middle of the room is a long, bare metal table surrounded on all sides by a variety of mismatched chairs, from metal folding chairs to a couple of armchairs that look too low for the table and even a rolling desk chair at the far end.
The walls are windowless but are covered on almost all sides by various posters and documents. The walls by the kitchenette have imperial-to-metric conversion tables and a poster covered in images of herbs. The left wall is covered in what looks like every promotional poster for the park from the last few decades, all arranged without any apparent sense of style. Directly to Chelsea's right, past the end of the counter, Chelsea can see an oversized calendar for the year with a flower motif and a lot of tiny writing on nearly every date.

Like most deep-sea mollusks, Carine and Jim's journey across the car park to the lodge entrance is relatively slow and uneventful. The only events of note are a series of small pops from the shattered and smoking remains of the truck sitting on the road and, as they reach a better angle, a view of the trio of skulls lined up across the entrance of the parking lot positioned to face the door to the lodge. All three skulls have streaks of sooty discoloration, and the one nearest the smoldering wreck has a visible crack running along the cranium.
As they approach the entrance to the foyer, the injured pair see that the right door has been knocked completely off its hinges, leaving the closing mechanism above to jut uselessly out of the doorframe. The door itself is devoid of its former glass, leaving just a metal rectangle with handles wedged in the small alcove that once held a pamphlet display before the remains of the door crushed it. The glass that litters the foyer floor looks to be the sort of tempered glass that produces less dangerous shrapnel when shattered, as the pieces all seem to be reasonably small and likely pose no threat unless someone were careless. The wooden double doors that lead into the lodge proper seem undamaged and unfazed by the destruction before it and are lit almost regally by a pair of warm lights illuminating the doors more than the rest of the space.

[WindStruck]

Chelsea closes the door a bit, leaving it slightly ajar exactly as before she entered the room. She then makes a beeline for the cupboards, opening them all.

If she could move everything from one of the storage spaces and cram that stuff into all the others, that would make room for her to get in herself. Heck, she figured a shelf wouldn't even get in her way. If there was a shelf it could probably be taken out and then put under all the stuff in another cupboard as well...

Spoiler: Chelsea

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Blood Tokens: 5
items: half a bikini
-excellent swimmer
-fairly dirty

[MaltholLoth]

The place had certainly seen its fair share of the carnage. Like his own mobile comfort blanket, he leads Carine by the hand to the doorway and keeping the knife before him, looks for any sign of trouble as he steps in.
The coast clear, moves towards the restaurant. After looking to make sure it appears clear says "I just thought, they may not be as warm but there was certainly t-shirts in here. Why don't you check what there is, I could do with something too if possible. I'll see if there's any food or drink about. Maybe even get you that coffee?"

Spoiler: Jim

Show

Blood tokens: 4
Item(s): multitool with torch, cabin kitchen knife, couple of alcoholic wipes, a door handle?
Dressed: Comfy waking boots, loose cargo trousers, loose t-shirt (tear near shoulder) and lightweight waterproof coat
Emotional/mental state: very hopeful, weary, sore, slightly smitten

[Metastachydium]

Holding onto Jim's hand (it feels warm and it feels good), Carine limps inside as well, her spade kinda-sorta ready, although unlike Jim, she's actively trying to avoid looking around too much, focusing mostly on the floor just ahead of their feet. Shia's been inside the lodge; that might mean gore (she'd sooner not see) and that might mean traps (which she wouldn't mind noticing this time around).

As Jim reveals his plans, she looks up at him, all hazy and puzzled. Already have a tee. she mutters, shifting closer to the man, showing no sign whatsoever of intending to let go of his hand. Besides, I'd rather you didn't wander off. Not even for my damn coffee.

Spoiler: Carine

Show

Blood tokens: 4/5
Item: folding spade (equipped)
Other belongings: white one-shoulder T-shirt, light gray high ankle skinny jeans (now slightly redesigned), flat thong sandals, a dishtowel and half a roll of gauze, a mild form of separation anxiety, Jim's hand

[MaltholLoth]

As he finds his hand still otherwise unavailable for his own use, but not bothered by the fact, he leads into the restaurant area.
"Ok, well, I was just thinking a few extra layers would be better than nothing. We can do that in a minute.. Just let's check for some refreshments yer. I guess we could see if there was anything left around in the staff room or locker room actually. I'm sure they wear coats at times so perhaps let's do that."

Spoiler: Jim

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Blood tokens: 4
Item(s): multitool with torch, cabin kitchen knife, couple of alcoholic wipes, a door handle?
Dressed: Comfy waking boots, loose cargo trousers, loose t-shirt (tear near shoulder) and lightweight waterproof coat, Carine's hand
Emotional/mental state: very hopeful, weary, sore, slightly smitten

[Metastachydium]

Carine gives Jim a few relieved and affirmative nods. Okay. she says. That's okay. Just let's not split up. The last time Jim left her behind to check the next freakin' room, Shia just popped into the scene ex nihilo pretty much immediately. She can do this with Jim. She can't do this without.

Spoiler: Carine

Show

Blood tokens: 4/5
Item: folding spade (equipped)
Other belongings: white one-shoulder T-shirt, light gray high ankle skinny jeans (now slightly redesigned), flat thong sandals, a dishtowel and half a roll of gauze, Jim's hand (still!)

[7LayerDipstick]

Spoiler: Original Lodge Description

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Chelsea remembers how the lodge looked when she was there earlier today. The small information desk just off to the right of the entrance where the young man had greeted her when she entered. The display model just opposite the desk on the left showed a lovingly crafted scale version of the park that the sign claimed was topographically accurate. The large, open room with the ceiling towering effortlessly three stories above her head. Thanks to the massive window covering the back wall and looking out over the evergreen landscape, the room seemed so much more spacious. It was bright and cheery, with comfortable seats scattered throughout the room, most clustered around either the window or the stone fireplace that dominated the center of the room with its chimney reaching high up into the ceiling. Even with as few people as there were, the space felt well-loved.
Embedded in the left wall was the restaurant where she had a bite to eat, where the seating spilled out into the rest of the room, where she overheard the trio of men discussing their mountain hiking plans over paper cups of coffee and maps that spilled over the edges of the table.
Over to her right was the entrance to the exhibits showcasing the different environments and wildlife that observant hikers could find in the park. She remembered seeing a young boy peering into one of the displays with unbridled curiosity as an older woman in a park ranger uniform explained something about the contents.
Near that showcase, slightly further down the wall, was a door marked as "Employees Only," and opposite that door back by the restaurant was a hall leading to the restrooms, an elevator to the second floor, and an entrance to the kitchen.
On either side of the room, just past both of those, were stairs leading up to a balcony which provided a much better view out the window with a row of seats for a relaxing viewing experience. That balcony wrapped around the sides of the room, leading into hallways to the seating rooms. Smaller rooms with fireplaces for the colder months and equally exquisite views. If Chelsea remembered correctly, one of those rooms had a small bar, though she couldn't recall which in that brief moment between remembering and opening the door.
Immediately, Chelsea can see that the lodge has become a disaster. Chairs are overturned, and some have their insides torn out as if by claws. The stairs on the right have several steps completely missing, with the wood splintered and lying in a pile on the ground. Off to her right, her eyes are drawn to a pool of blood congealed on the surface of the information desk. Further right, the doors to the nature exhibits are closed but clearly cracked. To her left, the shutters to the restaurant counter have been brought halfway down but are jammed at an angle in the tracks, and the seating area appears to have had a vortex pass through. The fireplace in the center of the room seems intact, though there does seem to be a splatter of blood on the stone chimney about fifteen feet off the ground. In fact, looking around again, Chelsea can see several bloody areas, but she can't see any signs of a body or even a piece of a body.

Carine and Jim traipse through the foyer as best they are able and enter the lodge proper. The space seems much the same as when Chelsea examined it, save for it being much darker. Five of the lights hanging from the ceiling are dimly lit, providing a slight illumination to the area, though fine details are lost to the incomplete light.
They make their way past the damaged display and toward the disarrayed tangle of tables and chairs that make up the former seating arrangement for the restaurant. Carine especially must mind her step over and around the toppled furniture as they pick their way through the mess of metal legs. However, it is Jim who finds his foot snagging the leg of one of the tables just as they exit the clutter of a former dining space. It causes him to stagger slightly, though not enough to risk his balance. It does cause just enough movement to dislodge a precariously perched chair and send it clattering to the ground behind them.
The quiet, previously only broken occasionally by the pair's words, now seems insistent on remaining broken, as before the sound of falling furniture ceases, a string of expletives pierces the air in a voice almost similar to Jim's, save for a shriller, harsher tone to the speech.
"... You better be back to eat me, you demon-beast! I'm not long before an aneurysm takes me out, and I will exert all my will to ensure I start putrefying like a lobst- wait, two of you? You two aren't that freak at all. There are more of you alive in here? I can't see good. Is one of you that lady Shia went after? How'd you escape?"
Jim and Carine can see, hanging by his leg from a rope and barely lit by one of the active lights, a man in a Forest Ranger's uniform with his arms dangling down toward the ground and his head tracking the pair as his body slowly rotates back and forth.
In the time between walking toward the restaurant and this man's shouting, Jim did notice that 'coffee' was listed on the menu and saw a display board behind the counter that, while cut off by the partially closed shutters, does seem to have some clothes listed as being for sale.

Chelsea hastily pulls open all the cupboards, finding that the doors are paired together, each one in a pair opening to the same space behind the facade. Most of the cabinets are almost completely empty save for some empty plastic containers, collections of dust, or, in one case, a stack of seven cookbooks that look about fifty years old. Unfortunately, each space has a single shelf that spans the whole length accessed by the two doors, except for the area directly to the left of the sink. It seems as if the shelf was removed to provide more space for dozens and dozens of containers of dry oats. Every container is sealed and stacked neatly in this dedicated oat storage area, and Chelsea grabs armfuls of them and begins cramming them haphazardly into other cupboards.
As Chelsea relocates the pile of oats to every cupboard except that one, two things occur. First, she hears the now familiar shouts of the hanged man out in the main hall, now mostly muffled by the multiple doorways, though the cries quickly fade away after only a few seconds. Second, she notices that some of the oat containers seem heavier than the others and that all of them are at least ten years past their listed expiration date.

[MaltholLoth]

Feeling at first like a sneaky little ninja, he gets over confident and when he falls over the final table and the noise ensures he no longer feels that. If he hadn't already come to a crouch from the trip, he would certainly have done something similar in expectation of a clip round the back of the head from Carine.
As the voice suddenly shouts down, Jim recoils a couple of pages in shock. "C**p in 'ell! Did you have to scare us like that!" he exclaims.

"No we're dead... Oh course we're alive!" His frightened state bringing out the sarcasm in him. He lets out a sigh of frustration as he tries to regain a sense of calm.

Spoiler: Jim

Show

Blood tokens: 4
Item(s): multitool with torch, cabin kitchen knife, couple of alcoholic wipes, a door handle?
Dressed: Comfy waking boots, loose cargo trousers, loose t-shirt (tear near shoulder) and lightweight waterproof coat, Carine's hand
Emotional/mental state: surprised, weary, sore, slightly smitten

[Metastachydium]

With a startled cry and a hiss of pain, Carine, dragged downwards by the sudden force of Jim, khm, adjusting his stance, lands on her bad leg. And Jim. But the latter doesn't bother her half as much. The **** are you doing up… she begins to join Jim in chewing out the hanger as she tries to straighten her injured limb when the ranger guy's words finally hit her straight on the head. Wwait. There's another chick in here?

Spoiler: Carine

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Blood tokens: 4/5
Item: folding spade (equipped)
Other belongings: white one-shoulder T-shirt, light gray high ankle skinny jeans (now slightly redesigned), flat thong sandals, a dishtowel and half a roll of gauze, Jim's hand, a sudden clarity

[MaltholLoth]

Jim tried to help Carine back to her feet from underneath her. Not the easiest job in their tangled injured way, but she's not that heavy and he can think of far worse people to be tangled with right now. Jim clicks on the woman he means, "Red hair... Possibly wet looking? That must be the one who came for help... But we saw him leave a few minutes ago and she came here she's ago... Oh... Monkey nuts!". After a moment of reflection on the situation he realises something else.. "I don't think I can reach to help you but... Is there a ladder or something about?"

Spoiler: Jim

Show

Blood tokens: 4
Item(s): multitool with torch, cabin kitchen knife, couple of alcoholic wipes, a door handle?
Dressed: Comfy waking boots, loose cargo trousers, loose t-shirt (tear near shoulder) and lightweight waterproof coat, Carine shaped pillow
Emotional/mental state: apologetic, weary, sore, hopeful for the guy but sad for the loss of a woman trying to help

[Metastachydium]

Huh? Carine doesn't quite see Jim's point about the Lady of the Lake at first (and being busy (in theory) helping (but probably really just hindering) Jim resurface from under her), but Oh. Oh. she gets around to getting it. It's not a nice feeling.

Nor is realizing (owing to Jim, yet again) that she's been ignoring the plight of a fellow victim to inquire about another that might not even need their help (or anyone's, really) anymore. As Jim puts both of them back on their feet, she turns the face the ranger with a guilty little grimace on her face. Yeah. That. she mumbles, a little louder than usual for the hanger's benefit. What Jim said. Waving her spade hand feebly before her face, she adds an equally garbled Sorry. Lost a lot of blood.

Spoiler: Carine

Show

Blood tokens: 4/5
Item: folding spade (equipped)
Other belongings: white one-shoulder T-shirt, light gray high ankle skinny jeans (now slightly redesigned), flat thong sandals, a dishtowel and half a roll of gauze, Jim's hand, some further sudden clarities

[WindStruck]

It was a little disheartening to see the shelf in the way of all the cabinets, but when she opened the last cabinet next to the sink, Chelsea hit the jackpot! ..of oats. Apparently, lots and lots of packages of oats here. It was kind of a weird setup, but it all could easily be changed seeing as all the other cabinets were practically empty.

There was something strange about the packages. Outdated, and some heavier than others. What, was some guy hiding gold in them or something?? At this rate Chelsea really didn't care. And as she heard the sounds of the man yelling from the main lobby again, her heart started beating faster.

Oh no, oh no, oh no!

Calm down, just finish this!

Chelsea was almost done relocating the the oats. She took a few less containers at a time, but moved very quickly, trying to put all the rest of the containers somewhere else. If the cannibal guy caught her now, she wasn't going to get away!

When all the packages are relocated, she closes all the cabinet doors (except the ones near the sink) climbs in, and then tries to close that one from the inside.

Spoiler: Chelsea

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Blood Tokens: 5
items: half a bikini
-excellent swimmer
-fairly dirty

[7LayerDipstick]

Chelsea rushes, stuffing oats containers haphazardly into the surrounding cabinets. Thanks to the lack of organization, her work is hindered by the extra space each container claims. She fills three cupboards with the strange oats before the shelf-less cupboard is empty. With the area clear, Chelsea closes all the other doors and crawls into the enclosed space. The task is far from comfortable, and she catches herself on the edge of the wooden frame several times in her haste.
Nonetheless, she curls her frightened body into the cupboard and begins fumbling with the doors, trying to pull them closed from within. She successfully closes the door near her legs by reaching out the other opening and pushing it, but the same trick has no chance on the remaining entry. Chelsea can grip the door by wrapping her fingers around the edge and pulling, leaving a small opening when she extracts her fingers from the gap. Trying to swing the door, so its momentum closes it entirely is unreliable. The few times she tries, it only results in the door bouncing slightly open again. Inside the door, the only thing available that might provide any grip is a small lip about two inches from the edge, but the surface is maybe a millimeter wide, and all Chelsea's attempts to grip the tiny space are thwarted by her own hands pushing the door away.

The figure hanging from the ceiling groans as he bends, reaching for his bound leg. After a moment of fruitless struggle, he drops back down with a huff and resumes gazing at Jim and Carine, his head needing to compensate more for the added rotation the escape attempt created.
"Uhhhh, yeah, red hair, lotta dirt. That freak followed her into the employee area, I think. I was yelling, not paying... uhh, ladders are in the employee area. _{Need'em to change the lights}," he explains, his words sounding more and more strained until they trail off into unfocused muttering.

[MaltholLoth]

With his initial fear and annoyance fading, the dangling man seeming the more pressing issue, he takes hold of Carine's fingers in a gentle hold "I'm sorry, I think you're coffee is going to have to wait. Let's get him down, he may be able to make sense of the machine anyway. Back in as moment fella
". He fights hard to resist saying 'hang in there' but a smile crosses his face at the thought.

Nudging Carine with his elbow, he leads the way through the tables and chairs back to the hallway to pick the staff area door. As they pass through the doors from the restaurant, he feels the silence is too empty. Thinking to fill it before it gets to their minds he tries making some small talk. "What do you do for a living?"

Spoiler: Jim

Show

Blood tokens: 4
Item(s): multitool with torch, cabin kitchen knife, couple of alcoholic wipes, a door handle?
Dressed: Comfy waking boots, loose cargo trousers, loose t-shirt (tear near shoulder) and lightweight waterproof coat, Carine's hand which his thumb strokes
Emotional/mental state: perceptive, weary, sore, hopeful for the guy but sad for the loss of a woman trying to help

[WindStruck]

Chelsea frowns, growing a bit more panicked and frustrated with each attempt at closing the cabinet door.

Thankfully she comes up with an idea however. After running a hand through her hair, she gets a loose strand. Then, holding each end of the hair, she wraps it around the corner of the cabinet and slowly pulls. If anything, should she be able to utilize both hands and pull this off, the gap between the cabinet doors and their enclosure should only be about 'hair width'!

Spoiler: Chelsea

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Blood Tokens: 5
items: half a bikini
-excellent swimmer
-fairly dirty

[Metastachydium]

How exactly they are going to lug a ladder about, let alone climb it is nothing Carine cares to think too much about right now, whereas whining over the pesky circumstances that keep her from getting the Substance that her brain craves would feel an odd thing to do. Insensitive too. She ultimately ends up going with an innocent grimace, an idle stare and a mumbled 'Kay. Let's make haste, though. My brain's back to prioritizing conscious deliberation and it's scary.

♣

Jim's sudden question comes as a surprise, but it still makes her kind of proud. It's so out-of-place that it must have been a spontaneous verbal action; it's too bad that he still overrelies on the staples of polite conversation, but he's trying and that's sweet. Pretending I still deserve that scholarship, mostly. Student loans creep me out. she answers, bumping her head against the man's shoulder as they walk. Prolly gonna drop out, though. Turns out, sociology is quantitative as ****. she muses idly. You?

Spoiler: Carine

Show

Blood tokens: 4/5
Item: folding spade (equipped)
Other belongings: white one-shoulder T-shirt, light gray high ankle skinny jeans (now slightly redesigned), flat thong sandals, a dishtowel and half a roll of gauze, Jim's hand and a few reasons to feel proud of him

[MaltholLoth]

Lets out a small 'ha' of amusement as she says about student loans. "Yer, they're no fun that's for sure. Mine's still hanging over my head now. Only give up on learning if you don't want to make use of it and don't enjoy it. Learning something can't be taken away by anyone. No matter how poor you end up. Still, to me it's clear you have more than a couple of braincells up in that pretty little head of yours. As for me, just your boring old guy sat in front of a computer, churning through reports and keeping the company happy so long as the data looks good. Not very glamorous. What will you do if you don't continue with it? Were you hoping to do some... socio related profession?" He offers a quick smile back just before they enter the 'staff only' area so he can focus on what's before him in the room.

Spoiler: Jim

Show

Blood tokens: 4
Item(s): multitool with torch, cabin kitchen knife, couple of alcoholic wipes, a door handle?
Dressed: Comfy waking boots, loose cargo trousers, loose t-shirt (tear near shoulder) and lightweight waterproof coat, Carine's hand which his thumb strokes
Emotional/mental state: perceptive, weary, sore, hopeful for the guy but sad for the loss of a woman trying to help (currently forgotten about in favour of...) mixed emotional thoughts of his academic past and current career

[Metastachydium]

Happy as she is that Jim's just stated he thinks her little head is pretty and filled with properly functioning neurons and glial cells, his question gives her some pause. Dunno. Haven't planned so far ahead. she mutters with a shrug. Partly on purpose too. Transferring the iniative and all that. she adds with conviction. Might just jump ship, on the short run. Anthropology or communication sound fun, if I can cough up the tutelage fees. She purses her lips for a second before going on. You could try something kinda like that too, you know. It's not like you're really that old. she remarks inching closer to the man as they proceed down the hallway, her hip briefly brushing against his thigh. What was your degree again? IT?

Spoiler: Carine

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Blood tokens: 4/5
Item: folding spade (equipped)
Other belongings: white one-shoulder T-shirt, light gray high ankle skinny jeans (now slightly redesigned), flat thong sandals, a dishtowel and half a roll of gauze, Jim's hand

[MaltholLoth]

"Kind of you to think so, but I think with the cost, and such I won't be doing so any time soon. As to the degree... That was not IT, even if it would have made sense from my job, but also why I'm only in the position in on now... It was actually Pharmacology and neuroscience, but let's not go there!" he smiles and gives her a wink. As they approach the first door, he gives the offer to Carine "Room number one... Hmm canteen?" as he does so he moves her hand behind her that he can return the hip bounce but pulls her a little more than expected and they bump into the wall with his back against it. "Uumph! Oww!" he let's out as the pain of his chest resonates out once more.

Spoiler: Jim

Show

Blood tokens: 4
Item(s): multitool with torch, cabin kitchen knife, couple of alcoholic wipes, a door handle?
Dressed: Comfy waking boots, loose cargo trousers, loose t-shirt (tear near shoulder) and lightweight waterproof coat, Carine's hand which his thumb strokes
Emotional/mental state: perceptive, weary, sore, hopeful for the guy but sad for the loss of a woman trying to help (currently forgotten about in favour of...) mixed emotional thoughts of his academic past and current career

[Metastachydium]

Huh. Jim's got quite the hidden depths to him, that one's for sure. She stares at the man with her mouth hanging slightly open. She's impressed enough to even miss the word canteen, promising as it may sound. But… But… Neuro-****ing-science? That's way coo… Thump. Carine doesn't get to finish the sentence, or, for that matter, its last word as Jim bumps into the wall and she herself into Jim. Hey. Falling over and stuff's my shtick. she mutters with a faint giggle, before catching herself pressing the wind out of the man's chest. Ouch. Sorry. she adds with a wince, pulling back just enough to give said cavity some space.

Spoiler: Carine

Show

Blood tokens: 4/5
Item: folding spade (equipped)
Other belongings: white one-shoulder T-shirt, light gray high ankle skinny jeans (now slightly redesigned), flat thong sandals, a dishtowel and half a roll of gauze, Jim's hand, some shock, awe and light embarrassment

[MaltholLoth]

He gives a fleeting smile at Carine's comment about her being the clumsy one. As she pulls back, he gives a sigh of relief as he tries to force back the pain. "Don't worry, my fault. Shall we try in here, guessing they may have some first aid bits around right? Fingers crossed someone with pain relief medication so happened to leave a full box around.".

Spoiler: Jim

Show

Blood tokens: 4
Item(s): multitool with torch, cabin kitchen knife, couple of alcoholic wipes, a door handle?
Dressed: Comfy waking boots, loose cargo trousers, loose t-shirt (tear near shoulder) and lightweight waterproof coat, Carine's hand which his thumb strokes
Emotional/mental state: weary, temporarily more sore, hopeful for the guy but sad for the loss of a woman trying to help (currently forgotten about in favour of...) dealing with pain

[Metastachydium]

Carine tilts her head to a side and looks up at Jim with eyes narrowed in an onvious feat of intense concentration. Dumb question: she begins cautiously. didn't we, like, find painkillers back in the cabin thing? She then suddenly shuts her eyes all tight and her face starts growing pinkish again. ****. Please tell me I didn't eat all of those!

Spoiler: Carine

Show

Blood tokens: 4/5
Item: folding spade (equipped)
Other belongings: white one-shoulder T-shirt, light gray high ankle skinny jeans (now slightly redesigned), flat thong sandals, a dishtowel and half a roll of gauze, Jim's hand, some suddenly not so light embarrassment

[MaltholLoth]

"I quite forgot about those. That being said, I thought you had them..."

[Metastachydium]

Carine emits a sound somewhere between a whimper and a groan. She could split her own head in two with that spade of hers right now. **** me. she hisses with obvious indignation. Skinnies for girls don't come with actual pockets. she explains, more exaspearted than irate. So ****ing sorry, Jim. Didn't mean to screw you over, you gotta believe me. she jabbers staring at the man as apologetically as it gets, the corners of her mouth curling downwards and her grasp on his hand tightening reflexively as if in fear of losing hold of it.

Spoiler: Carine

Show

Blood tokens: 4/5
Item: folding spade (equipped)
Other belongings: white one-shoulder T-shirt, light gray high ankle skinny jeans (now slightly redesigned), flat thong sandals, a dishtowel and half a roll of gauze, Jim's hand, no pockets, an unhealthy dose of self-hatred

[MaltholLoth]

As she jabbers on, he would have brought up his other hand to rest a finger on her lips but with the knife in it, that didn't seem like a good plan. There was another way, but, right now there was a little bit too much annoyance which he tried to snort away. "Gladly, but right now let's... Let's just see if we can score lucky a second time" he gives another strong expiratory breath from his nose, "Besides, you weren't to know.". A slow blink, and he turns to the door.

Spoiler: Jim

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Blood tokens: 4
Item(s): multitool with torch, cabin kitchen knife, couple of alcoholic wipes, a door handle?
Dressed: Comfy waking boots, loose cargo trousers, loose t-shirt (tear near shoulder) and lightweight waterproof coat, Carine's hand
Emotional/mental state: weary, temporarily more sore, hopeful for the guy but sad for the loss of a woman trying to help (currently forgotten about in favour of...) dealing with pain, small amount of annoyance.

[7LayerDipstick]

Chelsea combs through her hair and grabs the first loose strand that comes free. Looping it around the corner, she tugs, and, just as planned, the door slowly comes to as close to fully closed as is possible, leaving her in near pitch darkness. Her only light is the tiniest sliver of brownish light making its way between the frame and the door.
And just in time, it seems, as Chelsea hears the door out in the hall open followed by... voices. Two voices, one male and the other female, and neither of them sounds like Shia, though the male voice sounds a bit like the voice of the man hanging from the ceiling. She can't make out any of the words, but it sounds like a normal conversation. The voices approach the door to the employee lounge when they are interrupted by sounds of pain and some apologetic tones.

As the duo make their way out of the forest of toppled dining space and begin casual conversation, they still hear the ambient mutterings of the man, which are lost to the air save for a few pieces. "... and... tomb... dev... honey... going..."
They continue uneventfully through the unlocked Employees Only door and to the door marked "Break Room". After they both recover from the loss of balance and Jim recenters himself regarding the pain that is almost certainly a broken rib, they face the door and see that it is slightly ajar with the same bright fluorescent light of the hall visible through the crack.

[MaltholLoth]

Another mess of a room great, and no sign of a ladder. "Well I don't see a ladder to help that guy out, but by the looks of things, you've got jackpot! I'll check the fridge and units for some pain relief if you want to get yourself that brew? I think we've already spent too long in this place. I would rather that freak doesn't come back but if you get some go go juice in you, at least that'll help out." he says as he heads towards the fridge freezer.

Spoiler: Jim

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Blood tokens: 4
Item(s): multitool with torch, cabin kitchen knife, couple of alcoholic wipes, a door handle?
Dressed: Comfy waking boots, loose cargo trousers, loose t-shirt (tear near shoulder) and lightweight waterproof coat
Emotional/mental state: weary, temporarily more sore, concerned about time for the guy but sad for the loss of the woman

[Metastachydium]

Damn. Jim's probably pissed and merely too nice a fellow to show it. And worse yet, she did this to herself, and of course Jim all on her own. "You weren't to know" is hardly a real excuse: a deadly creep is on the loose for ****'s sake, getting hurt some more was all but guaranteed. And once she screwed it up big time, she absolutely had to bring up the subject and give Jim false hope. She feels like something cold's creeping between the two of them and she's powerless to stop it. Even as Jim's hand slips free of hers, she can't quite muster the strength (be it physical or mental) to push back. Instead, she mutters a timid Okay. and obediently starts limping towards the Machine. She needs it more than ever anyway.

Though she can't shake the feeling that something really bad (perhaps even Shia-level bad) is about to happen, she begins fiddling with the coffeemaker, partly to keep her mind and hands busy. She has ample experience with a wide array of makes and models. This one thing should work out all right. She's sure of that much.

Spoiler: Carine

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Blood tokens: 4/5
Item: folding spade (equipped)
Other belongings: white one-shoulder T-shirt, light gray high ankle skinny jeans (now slightly redesigned), flat thong sandals, a dishtowel and half a roll of gauze, her shame