Enough to make my systems blow [.plot-fünf.]

The Labyrinth is as cold and still as death. Even those who normally cry out can sense the impending sense of the rules being changed. More people than usual have been freed from their cells, especially those testing new drugs granting them abilities.

For the most part, they drift about listlessly, silently. Occasionally, a quiet scuffle arises when two of the hype-heads cross paths. Whatever drug is in their system messes with their moral compass and they take each new encounter as a threat unless contained by a cage. Luckily for them, the cover of darkness usually means that they pass by each other without seeing anything.

Those who are not destined for the night's arena fights are contained in their cages. Many of them have been moved around for reasons unknown. Those who knew their cagemates or neighbors suddenly find themselves in strange company. All company is strange company, though, for who has not found themselves transformed by the fires of these circumstances?

Occasionally, the roars from the arena can be heard echoing distantly.



Meanwhile: snow falls silently on the abandoned farm. It is starting to cover the tracks recently made by feet and vehicles, and it masks the strange, foreboding scent that clings to the place.

    For all the exploring of the area Jason had done at night, this was an entirely new place to him.  The darkness was his second home, and boy was he grateful as ever for it.  It had become a simple task for Jason to bend the darkness around himself and conceal himself from view of the people here.  Something wasn't right here, "I pick a horrible night to go exploring." he reflected to himself, but his craving to know more about what was happening pushed him to search and explore more.

    As the snow falls around him the silence it makes is almost deafening, aside from the occasional sound made by those around him.  Jason was able to hide himself from sight, but there was nothing he could do about the tracks he was inevitably going to leave behind.  "What kind of nightmarish place have I walked into?" he questioned himself.

In the dead of winter-

The students sneaked out of the school under the cover of darkness. Snow falls lightly now, adding a veil to the night. While most of the students have arrived on their own, their destination is similar. Some of them have seen the teachers and know to avoid the barn.

With this in mind, the common goal is an outbuilding that has several sets of footprints in old snow now getting covered by the new snow. There aren't any regular sounds coming from it, but there is the odd, occasional sound of struggle.



|| Goal: Find the entrance to the labyrinth in the outbuilding. Don't die. ||

Felix was bundled up in his warmest clothing- the bite of the cold could still be felt through the different layers. And, because he had no idea what to expect, he had every single one of his enchanted items on his person. Well, maybe not all of them, since some of them were absolutely useless. He now wished he'd bespelled some of his clothes to generate heat.

He found himself crouching behind a bush near the outbuilding they'd staked out. The teachers all seemed to be near the barn. So no exploration over there or risk some kind of punishment. He didn't really care for that sort of thing. So here they were.

Felix's voice was soft and almost indistinct behind his scarf. He asked Tucker, "See anything? If the coast is clear, we'll go on inside." He turned a slightly different direction and told Olwen, "You too." He shoved a gloved hand into a pocket and palmed the object inside, just in case. These two weren't the company he anticipated, but they were better than nobody. Unlike so many students at Foresta, it wasn't like his ability could be pulled out at the drop of a hat.

"We need a plan, just in case things get hairy," he decided suddenly. "What should the abort mission code be?"

    Tucker remained withdrawn enough, a few paces back into the treeline, that he felt no risk of being seen even though he remained standing. He was not about to get too close to his allies, huddled behind some bushes. From here, he could see just fine, anyway.
    Thick snow had gathered through the night and small flakes persisted to drift down around the farm. Tracks were vanishing under the snow, no sign of foot prints. The instructors were far enough away that there would be little risk in being seen on approach to the building. Young, wild trees and bushes covered the property sporadically and would grant ample cover if necessary. For the amount of time they had been waiting, he felt reasonably certain no one would be waiting for them in those bushes. Their own treeline, as it curved away from the farm, hid no unknown figures as far as he could tell. He felt absolutely confident in his perceptive abilities.
    "It's clear. We stay low, we're okay."

    His own attire had not mixed much: a thick, gray long-sleeved sweater over Albion Hospital's dark green scrubs and some baggy tan cargos he had dug out of lost-and-found. Despite the cold of the snow, which was certainly frosting his feet into a numb pain, Tucker had opted to go without shoes. His own, likewise acquired from a bin of forgotten assortments, were not only a size too big, which made walking difficult, but also a flashy red.

***

    "Oh god, oh god, we're all going to die?" Adrian offered mockingly, approaching out of the forest ahead of his Emerald companion; as if Chase had not been the leader of the duo for their forest expedition. Adrian would never have found his way without him. Oblivious to a third in tow and ignoring Tucker entirely, Adrian pushed forward to the edge of the brush and stooped down low. Not exactly the stealthy sort, but he displayed some awareness to their situation by not simply standing out in the opening.

    "Hey Felix," He greeted the young man in a friendly tone while surveying the scene before them. This situation would be nothing to scoff at, and yet the only real reason for Adrian to be here would be to later say that he was a part of something. No one would call him a coward for not showing up. "Do we get code names, too?"

Having shifted into his cat form in the forest, hiding his clothes in a spot he would remember for later. Constantine's fur in his cat form almost blended into the snow as he padded lightly, if it hadn't been for the dark colors in his face then the young man would have been practically invisible. He had heard that the teachers had decided where the kidnapped students had been taken and the young man decided that since other students were curious enough to follow that he would do the same. The idea of danger didn't necessarily strike fear into the young man's heart, more so curiosity raged through him as he caught sight of Felix and Adrian. His small cat form silent besides the light crunching of snow as he came up behind them.

---

If it hadn't been for all the gossip going around the school about the discovery of the kidnapped students, Stella would have even bothered going out on such a cold night. Alas the need for information drove her and the young girl was walking through the forest, having spotted a few other students going in the same direction. In her pockets she had her cellphone in case she needed to record anything as well a notepad and pen in the other. It was as she walked and saw the others going out into the open that Stella spotted a familiar form, walking up toward Tucker the girl was dressed pristine as always. "You don't strike me as the adventurous type," she said to Tucker in a charming and sociable manner - having no mind of the serious situation happening in the abandoned farm.

To be truthful, Chase was surprised at himself that he actually carried out this little endeavor. He knew the risk involved in this, however with talk of something sinister occurring with disappearing students, he knew that he had to be one of the participants here. And, the fact that he hadn't traveled alone was yet another shocking indication that this meant business, despite the fact that Chase had been the one leading them with his uncanny, enhanced sense of smell. Although he recalled Adrian from the Power Training class, he decided that he appeared fairly powerful and intelligent, proving that he'd be of valuable help in something as tedious as this. Clad in a simple sweatshirt and jeans, it didn't seem as though the young man was incredibly irritated by the frigid climate. Especially to everyone else who was completely bundled up, he knew that he must appear out of place if anything.

As he normally would, Chase followed the most prominent scents of humans, even if they were muddled with the underlying smells of the forest and other opposing factors, however he prided himself with his ability to track others in this fashion. Adrian had requested his assistance fairly enough, and he'd already been planning to join the others, so it seemed irrational to deny his wishes. Quietly, Chase crept beside his Ruby cohort, pressing his weight into his thighs so that his steps were virtually silent. He recognized most of the other students from the Power Training course, however there were a select few that were unidentifiable. Still, since that didn't include him, he chose to ignore this trivial fact. An exasperated sigh slipped from his slightly parted jaws at Adrian's words of false panic, not wishing to even reenact that type of behavior in such a grim situation. He simply cast a nod of acknowledgement to Felix and Tucker, wishing only to engage in productive conversation. Unfortunately enough for him, the intrusive and blunt girl from before was also present, however Chase showed no sign of displeasure upon his features, for he would tolerate her as long as she kept herself even the slightest bit polite. The werecat was wrenched from his train of thought as the distant sound of pawsteps echoed against his eardrums, for his unnaturally acute sense of hearing picked up even the most minute of noises. His head whipped around to spot a cat, although its scent was achingly familiar. The young man's lucid, blue eyes locked upon the peculiar feline, speaking very quietly as not to attract any unwanted attention. "Has someone brought a pet to accompany us? His scent is rather familiar as well," he said, finishing his statement with an observation, before reverting his attention to the circumstances at hand, "In any case, does anyone have a theory as to what this place is or how we infiltrate it? It doesn't smell the least bit natural, and I don't know if anyone else can hear it, but outcries of some sort seem to emanate from inside it." Chase wanted to be sure to keep the students on task if anything, for idle small-talk would get them nowhere.

The snow starts to fall harder and the wind rises. The building ahead of them gives off an odd aura- there is a void beyond it, despite the tracks. Those with the ability to sense more than the average human would sense a significant... absence. Mental waves silenced. Sounds muffled.

The building itself is small, with a corrugated tin roof. The walls are whitewashed, or had been, a long time ago. It appears to be made of cement blocks and it does not match the original style of the barn. The door is new.

And locked.



---

Felix sneezed and sighed. He reached into a pocket and pulled out a bottle of pills and popped two immediately, dry-swallowing them with a wince. Felix looked at the cat and sighed, recognizing Constantine from the first time he'd seen him in the dining hall. "Hello, Constantine. Adrian. Chase.... Stella-what on Earth are you wearing? Didn't you get the memo? Yes, Adrian, we get codenames. You're Spitfire. I'll be Gadget. Olwen is Buo. Constantine, you can pick your ow-ow" Another sneeze.

This one actually kind of hurt. "Okay. Well, I better stay as far away from some of our group members until the allergy meds kick in. You lot can decide the rest of the codenames. I don't care." With that, he straightened and emerged from behind the bush- they'd given the all-clear, right?

Olwen Lithisi

We are sentenced to die the day we are born

   Olwen sat cross legged next to the two guys whom she had found herself following after reading ones (Felix's) thoughts on accident. She really wasn't prepared for sitting out in the cold so her attire was very thin. In fact, she had been walking back to her dorm after showing around a new kid. She rubbed her hands up and down her arms slowly, shivering a bit from the coldness. 

    As she sat with them, she saw shadows come closer and noticed that they were students who had also heard about the kidnappings and wanted in. As watched them and saw two shape shifters appear. Yet none of these students were familiar with her so she felt a bit out of place now. 

    Olwen struggled to hold back her irritation as she heard the guys every thought. But that wasn't the only thing she heard. Owl could hear the faintest whisper of the people who she and Iris had seen in the coffee shop. 

    Owl turned to the people around her and spoke softly, "I can hear the kidnappers thoughts, but they're too far away to really hear anything." She peered around the bush and saw no one, her right hand lingered on her sword. Buo (AKA Owl) stood up and got a good look at the building where the strange sounds were coming from. "Are we ready to find a way into this place now? If someone gets in our way I can send them away with my powers." 

     As Jason aimlessly wandered trying to figure out what he had found, he happened to come upon a group of what looked to be students.  There was what seemed to be a decent number of them. Jason decided to cautiously approach them, for all he knew this could be an illusion or some sort of trap.  Jason ensure he stepped lightly and quietly, but that did little to muffle the crunching of the snow as he crept closer.  As Jason got closer 2 faces seemed familiar, the first was a guy named Felix, who's powers he still did not know.  The second was a girl he had also met during the winter ball that worked for the news paper that Felix had told off.  Jason kept himself still hidden in the shroud of the shadows invisible to the naked eye.

    "Quiet an unlikely pairing I see here." Jason mockingly said aloud, "Last time I saw you Felix, you and Ms. rumor hunter here didn't seem to friendly."  Jason paused and waited for a reaction to see if they were the real deal or if they were some sort of magical trap.  "So what brings all of you out here this late at night?"  Jason patiently waited for their answer, it wasn't very often he encountered other students during his nightly wandering, but a group of this size there must have been something going on he had missed recently.

    Tucker half smiled on notice of Stella, the expression lost beneath his mask. In a way, he was happy to see her, though he worried she did not enter the situation with much consideration or forethought. Not that even he knew what was coming. His eyes focused forward with seriousness, "Just concerned."
    At Chase's voice, Tucker turned to see for himself, spotting the inconspicuous feline. Sharp senses for him to notice that. "It'll be useful for distractions or checking if things are safe," He suggested, looking over the group as they each had their own commentary to add.

    "Spitfire, huh? Nice," The Ruby youth grinned with delight, pondering on how the rumor had spread. Sure, the fire would have been noticeable, but he had kept his involvement discreet. Still, it was a powerful nickname, and Spitfire would be sure to embrace it.

    Tucker remained quiet for a time, observing the small talk and collecting information. Small hints about their powers. Personas. Capabilities. Limitations. "You two," He started, indicating Chase and Olwen, "Have a wider range of perception than the rest of us." A short pause, a simple thought. There's too many of us.

    "We should split into two groups." He began again, decisive in his tone, "We go in together and keep track of one another as teams.
    We need scouts; those who can move without being noticed.
    And fighters; whoever can protect the group.
    Leaders should be-"

    "Oh, I see. You trying to pull rank, Plague?" Spitfire interrupted, attributing a harsh, yet familiar nickname to the boy without previous predilection.

    "Adrian, Felix, or Chase," Tucker finished, avoiding a glare. "I'll be support," He took a moment to lock eyes with Estelle, "Stella and I will notice details. Point things out."

    Spitfire aimed to mock the supposed uselessness of such a suggestion, but he had just been nominated as a potential leader. Foolhardy to return such an offer with derision, he held his tongue.

    Sensing there might be some hidden reluctance to elect Adrian because of his outburst, Tucker added, "We need people who are quick witted, practical, and observant to lead. Your jobs will be to hold your teams together." And, as to answer the floating question, "We still don't know what we're going into."
    But we should move quickly.

Chase spotted Constantine rather quickly, the young man not being completely surprised since Constantine could sense that Chase was of a feline type as well. Making sure not to be in the way of anyone's feet (unlike many normal house cats), Constantine listened to the group conversation going on around him. Everyone seemed to be so excited about going into this and all Constantine wanted was to find out what happened to his brother and see if he was even being held here or not. The idea of splitting the group seemed good enough to him and it struck the boy as ironic that a real life situation like this was allowing more teamwork than when some of the people here had been forced together as a group in the power training class.

---

It was exciting for Stella to see the interactions between all of her fellow classmates, every little word they said Stella couldn't help but feel the need to write it down. Instead the girl decided to leave it to memory. At the presence of a voice that belonged to someone that she hadn't bothered to notice before - she gave an odd look in the direction of where the voice was coming from before turning her attention to Tucker and Adrian. It was obvious that she paid more attention to some people compared to others. The sound of Felix chastising her completely flew over the girls head, "You can't fault me for looking good." She said to Felix in a rather quick shot sort of manner.

The brief disagreement between Tucker and Adrian had Stella completely agreeing with Tucker. "He's right, separating is a pretty good idea. We're too noticeable as we are right now." Hearing Olwen speak about hearing voices already had the girl guessing what her power was. "She should be one of the leaders." Stella said quite obviously pointed at Olwen, looking around at the rest of the group to see what they were planning.

---

She moved with careful precision, noting the group of students a couple dozen yards away from her and making for the building. She wasn't here for them after all, her motivation for being her had to do with something else completely. She had lost someone, the memory of him making her grit her teeth as she finally reached the opposite side of the building that the students had been on. Reaching underneath her black hoodie, the woman pulled out a small object - drawing some dirt and small leaves from it and making a circle in her hands. Laying the circle of earth against the wall in front of her, she then jerked her hand in attempt to make a whole in the building - having harden the earth in her hands. The action proved useless though, the mysterious figure deciding to look for a door instead. As she moved her face was hidden by her hood, her jeans clinging to her legs as well.

Instinctively, Chase edged away from Felix at his sneezing, a bit irritated with his ability for having distanced himself farther away from people than he already was. Did he really need one more element to drive others to avoid him? Nonetheless, he didn't speak as codenames were given out. To be truthful, he didn't desire one himself, and wouldn't suggest one unless it was plastered upon him. The girl labeled as 'Buo', stated that she could hear others' thoughts, Chase's brows lofted in inquisition. So, like him, as Tucker so eloquently put it, they both had heightened senses to feeling others' presences, even if it was through two separate mediums. His attention was grasped by a voice that seemed to emanate from a set position, but no person was physically there to occupy said space. It thoroughly baffled his inner beast, but Chase's rational side was able to prevail that a gifted student was behind it. However, he didn't want to be the one to have to explain everything to the male-sounding, disembodied voice. It should've been obvious that something was occurring to the students, what with Chase's observations that people had been reacting in a rather frenzied manner to students being kidnapped. Anyone would, really.

As he was nominated to be one of the leaders for this expedition, the werecat shook his head in dismissal. He wouldn't be a wise option if the traits Tucker had listed were required. "Although I agree that separating would be a wise decision, I would not qualify to lead anyone. Adrian and Felix, you two appear to be the most suitable choice out of the three of us," Chase stated simply, rising up a little bit as not to be quite as crouched down as before, "And, if this girl and I both are capable of sensing others before anyone else, I recommend that we both enter a different group, so that we can equally contribute our abilities to the two assemblages." The young man knew better than to instruct those around him as though he were a delegated leader, so instead he phrased it more as a suggestion than anything. He only shrugged in response to the rather irritatingly blunt girl from before, since she desired that the other perceptive girl be a leader. Seeing that he didn't have a preference as to who lead him, he remained silent, all up until his calculative eyes detected movement in the distance. Sometimes, he had to be grateful for his feline eyes, for viewing objects in the darkness wasn't as difficult as it was for most humans. A figure, cloaked in a hood and jeans, seemed to be doing something indiscernible to Chase as he watched them. His jawline hardened as he observed the motions of the stranger's hands in an almost circular motion, but nothing extraordinary occurred. He wasn't quite sure what he was expecting, however that didn't change the fact that he assumed something would transpire. Nonetheless, the unfamiliar figure appeared to give up on that endeavor and move towards another side of the wall. He kept himself lower to the ground then, speaking in a soft tone, "Did anyone else see that?" Chase wanted to be sure that his eyes weren't getting the best of him, or that the beast was influencing some sort of hallucination.

Felix's eyebrows shot up. "Just because I'm opinionated does not make me a good leader." He had his own ideas about all of this 'separating into groups' thing. In fact, he was dead set against it. However, it seemed like he'd be outvoted even if he said something. He shook his head at Jason. "As happy as I am to see you, please keep the unhelpful commentary to yourself. No, I don't approve of nosiness for the sake of public gossip-mongering. That does not mean I can't work alongside her."

He was getting a little annoyed- they were here to explore, not chat. It was taking too long. Finally, he just strode up to the door, ignoring the mysterious figure, and withdrawing a bit of metal from an inside pocket of his coat after trying the door. He muttered under his breath about teams and unnecessary planning time. The coast had been clear; they needed to take this window of opportunity. He shoved the bit of metal into the lock and turned it slowly. As he turned it, he closed his eyes and murmured a slightly different phrase than the ones he had been muttering before.

The door swung open, revealing a pick-black stairway. He gestured at it with a grin and explained simply, "Skeleton key. Let's go. I don't care what group I'm in. I'm not a tactically good choice for any position. Just put me wherever and I'll look out for the people around me. Warning: if things get hairy, I'm skedaddling."

---

Once the group reaches the foot of the stairs, the void will clear and certain things will come to light. The stairs themselves will disappear entirely- not to be found even if the party looks for them. There are random lights, but most are out of service or broken.

Screams can be heard, as well as the roar of sound from the arena, somewhere behind some walls. Footsteps in the dark come and go- the place is a maze. Better have breadcrumbs.

Olwen Lithisi

We are sentenced to die the day we are born

Olwen rubbed her hands together in a futile attempt to warm herself up, the cold was finally getting to her. As she stared at her frozen fingers, she saw someone point at her and say that she should be some sort of leader. Before she spoke up, one of the guys started towards the building and began fiddling with the lock on the door.

Not wasting any time, she hurried after him and watched him slowly pop the door open. Owl looked at him (not his eyes of course) and decided to stay close to him. She looked past Felix and into the building, her ears hearing the sound of screams and the thoughts of the two strange people from the coffee house. Olwen placed her fingers tightly around the hilt of her sword and stepped inside.

It was horribly lit and the occasional light would flicker. Olwen saw no one tough she heard their soft foot steps coming from an unknown source. She turned back at the ground and hoped they wouldn't be too far behind.