[open] Locked within a room of memory, locked up away with no light of day

[powerdealer]

Seth sits in his bed, back against the wall, facing the door.

This is not his current room. No trace of the sleek, clean style he favours. No decorations, no furniture at all except for the bed. The walls are brick and stone, the floor dirty cement, the air musty and heavy, with just a hint of smell from the sewers coming from the toilet in the corner. There's a constricting feeling of anxiety and dread, his attentions focused on the heavy, bolted door.

There used to be books and writing equipment at least, but they took that away before they returned him here. They even took away his nice blanket. It's funny the simple things you get attached to when there's nothing else.

Any moment now, he knows, one of the rebels will come through that door and discipline him. Tell him he'll do as they say, or else. He wonders what it is he did this time. There's been quite a few times over the more than three months they kept him here that he didn't want to do what they told him to.

He's had this dream before. He doesn't quite know it's a dream yet, but it'll soon come to him. And while it's not a nightmare that makes him wake with a start and a strangled scream, it's the sort that weighs heavily on him the entire following day, like a weight on his chest, making it hard to breathe, making any small room feel like a trap.

The door opens, and someone steps in, the door closing heavily behind them.

[This is a recurring dream for Seth, so he can have a different visitor on different nights. If you tag in, merely pick a date.]

Comments

June 12

[bluesuit_handy]

Who can resist a mysterious locked door? This one's a doozy, too; all it needs is a little barred window to look like something out of a dungeon. Andrew has no trouble with the lock from the outside, for which he's a bit pleased with himself.

"...Ah," he says when he sees the contents of the room. "So not just like a dungeon, then. Good to know. I'm Andrew, and you are?"

[powerdealer]

Seth tenses when the door opens, but it is not a threatening figure who comes through. Not one who even looks like they should be here, and what they say seems to confirm it.

"Seth," he answers curtly, not moving from the spot. He's got his legs drawn up defensively, and he definitely looks worse for wear at the moment, but he's alert, eyes fixed on Andrew.

[bluesuit_handy]

Andrew nods. "Not bad," he says, passing judgment on the name. "And why are you here, Seth? And where is here? And more importantly, would you like to go? I think I'd like to go."

[powerdealer]

This isn't how it's supposed to go... He remains unmoving for a few moments longer, wondering who the hell this person is, how he got in here without knowing the answer to either of the first two questions.

And then he springs to his feet, probably a bit too fast, as he feels a touch lightheaded immediately afterwards. Starving him out for a little while when he misbehaves is also an effective method.

"Go where?"

[bluesuit_handy]

The question earns an extravagant shrug in reply. "Anywhere we want," says Andrew. "I like IHOP, myself. Pancakes any hour of the day, can't beat that."

He might have food on the brain and a craving for maple. Just maybe.

[powerdealer]

Seth takes a step forward, then stops. "And how do you intend to get there? Specifically, past the guards and outside the base?" Cause if he could just 'go to IHOP', maybe he would've done so already? Or did Andrew miss the 'dungeon' bit?

[bluesuit_handy]

Andrew gives the question the serious consideration it is due. "Run, I should think," he decides. "What sort of base is it, anyway? Can't say I've seen this one before."

[powerdealer]

"The rebels. And what do you intend to do if they shoot us?" Just, you know, to make sure he's got this whole 'running' thing planned out. Since he obviously hasn't. How did he even get here? Is he a prisoner, like him? It might explain the apparent mental imbalance.

[bluesuit_handy]

"Very few people will actually shoot you when they can just point guns at you and bark demands," Andrew points out. "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it. Now, are you going to come or are you going to stay in here with your bed and your smelly toilet?"

June 13

[jennifer_strange]

There's something comforting about dreams of being back in Zambini Towers. By this point, the mere fact that she's there ought to be a pretty huge hint that she's asleep, and she should be better at recognizing dreams as a rule. But she doesn't want it to be a dream, so she doesn't think about it. Nor does it strike her as odd that the Quarkbeast by her side isn't technically the one she lost. It's still her Beast, so what does it matter?

This, however, is definitely not her bedroom, and she gives the interior a brief frown before turning to look back the way she came - just in time for a heavy door to slam in her face. She skips back a step with a disapproving tut. Wizards, honestly. Where do they get off messing about with her room? And does no one ever think of the paperwork?

"Quark," says the Beast, and Jennifer glances down at it. It's pointing insistently across the room, and she follows its claw to the strange man sitting on - is that her bed? What have they done to it? Truth be told, it doesn't look all that uncomfortable, but it's the principle of the thing. You don't just go and switch up the acting manager's furniture without warning.

Jennifer huffs out a sigh and gives the man an assessing look. "Who are you, and what are you doing here?"

[powerdealer]

No, this is all wrong too. Who's she -- and what the hell is that? And why is it pointing at him? He doesn't move when the young woman's eyes fix on him.

"Seth. I've always been here," he answers, and it might as well be true. "And you?"

[jennifer_strange]

That can't be right. She's never seen him in the towers before, and it's her business to know everyone here.

"Jennifer Strange. I'm the acting manager here." She folds her arms, frown deepening. "When did you really arrive?"

[powerdealer]

"I dunno, few months ago," he answers, too tired to be contrary. "I think you're in the wrong place."

Why can't people just leave him alone? Why is she bothering him if she doesn't even know who he is? He doesn't think the rebels have anything called an 'acting manager'. It doesn't sound like the right kind of structure. And he's not sure where specifically 'here' is supposed to indicate.

[jennifer_strange]

One of them certainly is. Jennifer turns back to the door and gives the handle a brief, frustrated jiggle when it proves to be locked. This is ridiculous. The wizards here don't prank her anymore - they save that for Tiger - and this is all a bit too real to be an accident.

She turns back to Seth while the Quarkbeast begins to snuffle around the little room. "Where would you say we are?"

[powerdealer]

Seth watches her a bit curiously - is she locked in, now? He's going to be extra cranky if he's getting a roommate. Or, well, suppose that depends on what she's like, but he's not really positively inclined for company at the moment. Especially one that has a... rather disturbing pet. Good thing his feet are already off the floor.

"Deep in the rebel base," he answers. "New York," he then adds, in case even that is in question.

[jennifer_strange]

It's an uncomfortable mental shift from pre-rift Zambini Towers to post-rift New York, and she winces as memories of the past few months reassert themselves. Damn. And she's in the rebel base, no less. How she got here is less pressing than how to get out. Pity she doesn't have Exhorbitus.

"Well, I think it's time we left." She taps a fingertip against the metal latch thoughtfully, then looks down at the Beast. "Hey, boy. Who wants a snack?"

The Quarkbeast looks up sharply, then opens its mouth and lets out an eager, "Quark!"

"You want a snack?" she confirms, dropping into a crouch as the Beast trots over. She scoops the creature up into her arms and holds it up to the doorknob. "There it is!"

It might not be magnesium, but at least it's metal. The Quarkbeast sniffs at the latch for a moment, gives it an exploratory lick, and then starts chomping away at it with sudden verve. Jennifer has to turn her head and shut her eyes against the splinters of wood that go flying every which way. Inside a minute, there's nothing but a ragged, slightly slobbery hole where the doorknob used to be.

"Good boy," Jennifer coos before setting the Beast back down and gingerly reaching through the hole to trip the latch from the outside. The door swings inward as she withdraws her hand, and she looks over her shoulder at Seth. "Coming?"

[powerdealer]

Seth watches curiously, then flinches and jumps when the creature starts eating his door. It's a more than a little frightening sight. (Imagine how short process the beast could do with him.)

He's still frozen in spot the girl addresses him, and it takes him a moment to realise he needs to respond. He doesn't answer verbally, though, just suddenly jumps to his feet. He approaches her (and the beast) a bit more warily, however. There's absolutely no desire to stay here, but he doesn't know whether to trust her, nor does he want to be on the wrong side from her.

June 29/30

[johnny_truant]

He doesn't know where he is, only that it's a bad place. The sense of it, practically a smell, seeps from the concrete floors and the cracked walls and the dimly lit ceiling. This is a trap, but has it been set for him? He doesn't feel afraid, just - uneasy.

There's a door at the end of the hall. He steps toward it, knowing it's locked before he even tries the handle. He knows his way around a locked door, for better or for worse. He presses his hand against it, shifts the deadbolt around, and pushes it open.

It's a cell. Musty and horrible. He doesn't want to step inside, irrationally afraid that he won't be able to get out again. He stands at the threshold, looking at the man on the bed. It's a man he knows.

"Seth?" He steps forward, just a little.

[powerdealer]

Seth looks up at the sound of his name.

Oh no. "Johnny." He sits up straighter, suddenly scared. What's he doing here? Has he been captured? He wants to yell at him to leave, run, save himself before it's too late!

An even worse thought occurs to him then. What if he's here by choice? What if he's part of it?

"What are you doing here?!" he asks, moving to the edge of the bed, looking like he's about to flee, or possibly come at Johnny.

[johnny_truant]

"Whoa, whoa!" Johnny raises his hands, trying to calm Seth down before he does any of those things. But he's hindered by his own inability to answer the question posed. What is he doing here? Where is here, anyway?

"Are you okay?" Johnny inches closer, leaving his confusion behind for a moment.

[powerdealer]

"Peachy," he replies, in lieu of a proper answer. He's currently not sure if he should be afraid of Johnny, or for him. Probably both.

And perhaps because he is subconsciously aware that Johnny knows about the drugs, some of that is seeping into his dream tonight. And perhaps his worry about Gabe is making the nightmare worse than usual. Like a weird mix of withdrawal symptoms and the effects of some of the other stuff they tried him on, making it hard to think rationally, amping up his anxiety.

A closer look at Seth would probably reveal signs of mistreatment, besides the various marks from injections (easily visible with him wearing a t-shirt). Bruised wrists from fighting while strapped down. Rings around his eyes from insomnia. A cut on his cheekbone he doesn't remember how he got. That happened more than once.

[johnny_truant]

"Jesus," murmurs Johnny, taking him in a bit more closely. "You look like shit."

He comes a little closer now, leaving the threshold and the door open behind him. "What the hell happened to you?"

[powerdealer]

Seth gives a short, humourless laugh. "I've been doing the good work," he answers, in a way that shows he doesn't really believe, but he's been told it so many times. "Ridding our beautiful city of the evil that threaten to overcome us."

It's not entirely clear if he's lost it or if he's being sarcastic.

[johnny_truant]

"What?" Johnny feels knocked off center by this bizarre response, and a little scared by it. What is that supposed to mean? How long has this been going on?

He comes close and crouches down, bringing himself nearer to eye level. He's not sure how with-it Seth is right now, and wants to be sure he's getting through. "I can get you out of here," he says. "I can take you home." He reaches out for one of Seth's hands. "Okay?"

[powerdealer]

Seth sits back a bit when Johnny comes closer, watching him distrustfully.

"Right," he answers, unconvinced. He's not sure where 'home' even is anymore, nor does he know how Johnny would manage it, or if he even believes that's Johnny's real intention. There is something in him that tells him he should trust Johnny, though. But he doesn't act on it, just looks down at Johnny's hand, then back at his face.