THE THIRD INVESTIGATION

[strangerpeople]

THE THIRD INVESTIGATION

[It is very early. Very, very early. It's still night, even. Most are probably still asleep.

They will not be asleep for long.

Not after the screaming suddenly starts coming from the voices outside their doors, if they are in the apartment car, in their rooms.]

Oh god oh god oh god-

B____R! FOOT IN MY MOUTH INDEED!

[And certainly not after the big

BOOM

That suddenly rocks the train. There is screeching, moaning, and a flash of great darkness. Everyone, for a moment, is blinded by blackness. There are shouts and screams that echo, no matter where one is. Smoke and begins to fill the hall of the apartment car.

Whatever has happened-it's bad. It's very bad.

And the darkness is starting to clear up...]

Comments

[higanbana]

[Good fucking morning. Jesus Christ.

There's no way in hell Ris can sleep through that, so she blindly grabs for her cloth eyepatch and starts strapping that over her right eye as she stumbles toward the apartment car.

Mind that her depth perception isn't great when there's actually light, much less stumbling through pitch darkness, but does Ris care? No. Not when there are people in that car she cares about!

So. What's going on? Can she even tell?]

[katzenpfote]

[He immediately gathers up his animals and heads out, staying low and heading out - oh. The darkness is clearing. He panicked for nothing... maybe.]

[What does he see?]

[eternaldivide]

[ That screaming nearly woke Mithos up instantly since he was just about to go to sleep when it started. Mithos works his way to his door in the blackness to stumble out. Wandering the darkness isn't something all that new to him...

The smoke makes him cough, but is there anything in the hallway when the darkness starts to clear up? ]

[otherworldlyking]

[ What the hell just happened? There goes sleeping.

He's coming out of his room then hallway if he can make it that far and taking a look around, especially since the darkness started to clear up. ]

[strangerpeople]

[Smoke and darkness. The lights are flickering, but not in an electrical sense. More like someone simply snuffed them out, and they only just found their means of lighting up again.]

[strangerpeople]

[The apartment car is...fine, aside from the sudden, strange darkness. Smoke is creeping in the halls, but.

The apartment car is not the epicenter of what has happened. Indeed, as she looks and the light starts to trickle back on, she will see the smoke and dust billowing from the dining car.]

[strangerpeople]

[Smoke and dust and darkness. And people popping out wondering what the hell just happened.]

[higanbana]

[Okay, awesome. She'll go check that out in a minute. For the time being, she has other priorities.]

[katzenpfote]

[Fortunately, Caleb is well accustomed to seeing through smoke and fire.]

What’s going on? Who is there?!

[His voice is firm and authoritative.]

[charmingheroine]

[Who spent the previous night sitting vigil and trying to remember prayers this place seems to have torn out of her head? This girl.

So she's dressed, at least, when she careens out of her room. Was either of those voices one she'd know by now?]

[higanbana]

[Like this girl, who just came into the apartment car! Behold the bedhead.

She's immediately beelining toward Mithos, sighing in relief once she's near him.]

Oh, thank goodness, you're all right... do you have any idea what happened, or...?

[eternaldivide]

[ Bedhead or not he's glad she's safe! Cue relief on his end as well. ]

I-I don't know. Just the voices before the blast, then darkness, and then all this smoke. But I'm glad you're safe ... The smoke must be coming from somewhere, where should we go...?

[strangerpeople]

[The smoke is coming from the direction of the dining car.]

[higanbana]

I think it's coming from the dining car.

Do we go towards it, or...?

[strangerpeople]

[The voices sounded like members of the rat crew. They are not here, though.]

[technicolourdifficulties]

[This is not the rudest awakening RGB has ever had. If he had to rate it, it probably wouldn't make top five even. No, what really makes this one notable is that instead of fleeing the sound of danger, he goes towards it.

There are people he needs to make sure are alright.]

[strangerpeople]

[No one's there, anymore, so wherever they are, it's not the apartment car.]

[otherworldlyking]

[ Time to head there then! ]

[eternaldivide]

We... We should figure out what's happening, right? Whatever is happening, it'll be fine if we're together.

[ Better than ... discovering things by themselves right? ]

[strangerpeople]

[As he enters, the dining care is-

There's cracked windows. Broken tables. Dust. A beam on the floor. Glass everywhere.

And, nearby, someone moans.]

[dragonmouth]

[The last thing she remembers was a bunch of broken glass and dust before everything was just a blur. She's clutching her midsection, a wadded-up bundle of cloth held to it as tight as she can manage, but the damn thing is already soaked in blood.

She stumbles forth before falling down again.]

Who...

[higanbana]

...Mm. [She just gives a single nod in agreement.]

Let's do this, then.

[Looks like this duo's heading for the dining car!]

[charmingheroine]

[Well, that's... all of this is worrying, but that old saying about sinking ships comes to mind.

But nevermind that. Was that loud noise so loud it couldn't be determined where it came from, or was it off in a specific direction? The narration was on mobile, and just saw about the dining car, and does this smoke smell of burnt flour?]

[katzenpfote]

[It’s coming from the dining car? Heading there now!]

[otherworldlyking]

[ ...he is not a medical professional but... ]

...Don't move around so much.

[ He doesn't want another trial so...does it look like trying to cover the wound will do any good? ]