towerofanimus | never let me sleep

[There's a sharp inhale of breath and the rustling of covers as Ryoji suddenly sits up, shocked awake by the-that wasn't a dream, was it? It must have been real-memory. He was down in the admin floors again... he can't remember where exactly, but that doesn't really matter. What does matter is he lost control of his body (again, why does this keep happening to him? It's getting really hard to know what part of him can't be changed and twisted by Nyx or Sephiroth or the admins or anyone else) and that he saw things. Monsters in the corner of his vision, laughing at him and screaming in his face. They appeared to be similar to the Shadows in his world, but he couldn't be sure. He never got a good look at them, and considering how shaken up he was, he wasn't sure he wanted to.

He looks around the room, trying to make sure everyone is still asleep. He doesn't want to wake them with this. Maybe he'll tell someone in the morning... As easy as it would be to just quietly ask if someone's awake, he can't find the words. He'll just stay awake then. He doesn't really need the sleep.

He swings his legs around so he's sitting on the side of the bed, looking up at the ceiling and trying to think through what that experience meant.]

[While Ryoji was dwelling on his experience, Edgeworth suddenly woke from his ‘sleep’ with a terrified gasp. Riki’s room… he was there…and he…

Wait, where was he? Was he back in his own dormitory? And his own bed?
The man sighed in relief. It was just a dream, a terrible one, but a dream all the same.

Breathing heavily, he prosecutor ran a hand through his hair. While doing so, he realised that sweat was pouring down his head. Wow, that nightmare really frightened him. It was not surprising, really. His body, his actions and his voice - he could not control any of them! Thank goodness it was not real…

He should get back to sleep. The last thing Edgeworth wanted was Dia, Ryoji or Cu waking up and worrying about him. Little did he realise that someone was already awake…]

[And at about this same time, Cu Chulainn himself wakes up, gasping, gagging, and coughing.]

Dammit...

[That had been a crazy nightmare. Most of his dreams circled around his memories, good and bad. But this nightmare was new. He had dreamed, in vivid detail, of Jason using him as some sort of stress relief. His hand goes to scratch at his chest, only to find that the shirt he's wearing is hard from being caked in dried blood.]

W-what the...

[Because he had never been assigned a job, Diarmuid is the only one in the room who doesn't start awake. In fact, the only reason he wakes up at all is because his senses pick up on all of his roommates waking up at once and he knows that can't be a good thing.

It doesn't help that he can hear his brother swearing not far away. His eyes shoot open, though he doesn't immediately blot upright in bed. Aside form his roommates' various stirrings, he doesn't hear anything else that indicates danger which is puzzling. Why else would they all wake up at once?]

What is it? Is something wrong?

Bro?

[Cu Chulainn feels a mix of relief and embarrassment as he sees his brother waking up next to him.]

I-I'm fine!

[Even if his shirt is covered in blood, whatever wounds had been there were by now healed up.]

Forgive me if you don't sound very fine...

[Diarmuid rolls over to look at his brother and is shocked to see the blood, though he does note it's not fresh.]

Are you really okay?

[He looks back over his shoulder toward Ryoji and Edgeworth.]

Are either of you hurt? What's going on?

I-I'm fine, too. I'm not hurt...

[Ryoji looks around at his roommates, and eventually decides that he shouldn't hide the truth. Diarmuid wouldn't allow that to happen anyways.]

I just... I woke up in the admin floors not too long ago, and I couldn't control my body. I think I'm okay now...

[But he has to admit that whole encounter made him more than a little paranoid. He resists the urge to just throw the covers over his head and hide, in case those... things come out.]

[Edgeworth would have insisted that he was fine had Ryoji's words not completely caught him off guard.]

Gnnnnrk!

[Ryoji was.....in the administrator floors? And could not control his body? So that dream was....

Oh god, it wasn't a dream, it was actually real! Edgeworth was really in the administrator levels, being controlled somehow.

That, and the conversation between Diarmuid and Cu suggested that the latter was hurt somehow, suggested that perhaps Edgeworth and Ryoji were not the only two people in the administrator floors.

Unfortunately, Ryoji, no matter how paranoid you are, a certain lawyer is not going to leave you alone until you spill your guts out.] R-Ryoji, is this true?! You were actually in the administrator's quarters? [Edgeworth sounds pretty angry - maybe a little forcefully so, as if he is trying to hide the fact that something has terrified him as well.]

...The administrator floors?

[Cu Chulainn stares at Ryoji. It sounds so much like his own experience.]

What did they look like? Was Jason there?

What do you mean the administrative floors? The only way we get down there is if we break in and that has never gone particularly we...

[But that wasn't true was it? After all, hadn't Suzaku...

Diarmuid shakes his head and sits up, refocusing on his brother.]

Forgive me from shifting from the very interesting topic at hand, but why are you covered in blood? We can talk about the administrative floors once I know you aren't hurt.

[Yes, forgive him if he isn't so willing to accept Cu Chulainn is okay since he's got blood staining his shirt...]

Really, I'm okay.

[He pulls off the bloodied shirt, showing that while blood is smeared around his chest, there are no injuries.]

Guess I must have healed up between getting stabbed and coming back here. Or something like that.

H-hang on a moment, Lancer.....you said 'between getting stabbed and coming back here'. What did you mean by that?

Or rather, where were you exactly when you got received your injury and why? [Ryoji mentioned being in the administrator levels, Edgeworth seemingly was there himself, the way Cu reacted to Ryoji's statement, the fact that he was injured and that he mentioned Jason...

Yep, none of this sounds good...]

[Diarmuid holds up a hand after Edgeworth speaks, hoping to stop everyone from talking for a moment.]

It sounds like everyone has had something strange happen to them tonight except me. Yes, even you Edgeworth. I heard you make some kind of startled sound when you woke. Lets talk about this in order if we can. It will work better that way and there is less chance of being confused or missing something.

[He looks over toward Ryoji. Since the boy had been the first to say something, it seemed only right that he talk first.]

You said you 'woke up' on the administrative floors, right? You...would not be the first person to tell me that happened to them lately, so please don't be afraid to tell us what you remember. Even if it seemed like a dream...it is likely real as terrifying as that may seem.

[Ryoji fidgets, a little uncomfortable that he has to describe what happened, but he understands that he isn't going to get away with not saying anything.]

I seemed to just become conscious in this hallway. I was cleaning the floors there, and people were walking past... most of them were just workers, but I think there were a few residents too. I could hear... I don't know what they were, but there were these things screaming and laughing at me. They were looking at me, and sometimes they tried to grab me, but they never did.

I couldn't see what they were well enough. I couldn't control any part of my body. I couldn't even move my head. They looked like shadows, but I'm really not sure.

[He exhales slowly and shakes his head.]

But it wasn't bad. I didn't get hurt.

[Ryoji is much more worried about what Edgeworth and Lancer experienced, rather than the strange, vaguely unsettling vision of his own.]

[Lancer makes a frustrated noise and touches his chest again.]

I was on the administrator floors. Just like you guys. I guess it was Jason's lab room since I was wiping up monster blood. Jason was arguing with Riki about fourteen missing somethings. And then he stabbed me as stress relief. What an ass.

[Lancer looks over at Ryoji and Edgeworth.]

And yeah, I couldn't control anything. I just stood still.

[He looks over at Diarmuid.]

And you're the only one who didn't get dragged down there, Bro?

It seems like that might be the case...

[Diarmuid looks toward Edgeworth.]

Unless some other reason than remembering being in the administrative levels is what woke you so suddenly Edgeworth? If all of you were down there, why not me as well?

For the record....this is the not first I have heard of this kind of thing. I talked to another last night who said he also woke up doing work on the administrative levels...

[There is something else about his brother's recounting that Diarmuid doesn't comment on right away and that is the reason for Jason's anger. 14 missing items. Add that to the voice recording that had been posted to the Network where Jason and Zo had been talking and Jason had been so upset about about how the boycott had messed up his collar checks, and there really can be only one conclusion drawn.

In addition to the three containers of collar fluid Diarmuid knows about, there are 11 others out there somewhere and Jason is really not happy about it. That means that there must be something they can find if they can only get the right tools together to study the fluid.

Diarmuid glaces toward Edgeworth again and wonders if he will come to the same conclusion, since he too knows about the containers. Diarmuid has no way of knowing if Ryoji or his brother know.]

[Edgeworth was right. Cu was in the administrative levels and had been hurt by Jason. The prosecutor cannot help but wince a little when Cu tells his story. Edgeworth and Cu may not exactly get along but that does not stop the former from disgusted by what happened to the latter. Jason really is a monster...

Ryoji's story is not exactly pleasant to listen to either. Even though he was seemingly not hurt, the boy could not do anything to stop those shadows. He was lucky that they managed not to harm him. Not only that but after listening to Ryoji and thinking of his own experiences in the administrative floors, Edgeworth was doubting even more that Ryoji had intended to hurt him in April.

When Diarmuid asks his question to Edgeworth, Edgeworth pauses for a moment to gather his thoughts. As loathe as he is to talk about his experience, concealing it could very well hinder his way to gather more information about what was going on.

The prosecutor takes a deep breath and tries to speak with as much calmness and dignity as possible, although one probably can tell that he is not exactly unaffected by the incident either, as he has a habit of grabbing his arm when trying to keep his emotions in check.]

....I suppose there is little point in hiding it. Yes, I was in the administrative levels, just like Ryoji and Lancer.

I was delivering a message from Jason to Riki. As to what the message was about, I was unable to find out - I only became conscious when I was standing in front of the door to Riki's room and the message came in the form of some film.

The door opened and I entered the room. It appeared to be some sort of hi-tech room, with various computers and machines. I could not get a proper look at them for, well.....obvious reasons [i.e. Being unable to control his own body. Edgeworth hesitates for a second, gripping his arm even more tightly before continuing.]. Riki addressed me by my network ID and told me to state my business. I informed him of the message and handed it over. I remember that Riki sent a few of the screens scattering across the room while I was doing so.

I gave him the message and left. Regrettably, I cannot you any more as that was when I lost consciousness.

I suppose the message could be something to do with the missing......'somethings'. [Edgeworth does not say what as he would rather not let on that he had taken one of the liquids in the sauna area in case a retrieval unit comes in.] However, I did not see any evidence of that. That person you talked to though, Diarmuid....what did he witness, if you don't mind me asking?

Edited 2013-07-30 15:56 (UTC)

[Ryoji's eyes widen at the mention of missing objects. He may not have been there when the collar fluid was stolen, but he heard enough of it from Yukiko. She'd already died once because of that mission, and if the administrators track down who took part in it...

Ryoji glances over at Edgeworth.]

If the administrators know about them, then we could be in for a lot of trouble... If we get more information, though, we could be prepared.

Edited 2013-07-30 18:26 (UTC)

I have information on both things...

[Diarmuid's voice is low and he motions for Edgeworth and Ryoji to come closer so he won't have to speak loud enough for whatever might be spying on them in the room to hear.]

First, my friend. He came to talk to me last night as I mentioned. He said that he remembers waking up on the administrative floors working just like the rest of you. He was mopping and could hear Jason, Zo, and Riki talking behind him. Apparently, Jason was yelling at Zo for his lack of control over us. Riki stepped up to defend Zo stating there were always off months. While it wasn't stated directly, my friend assumed Riki was referring to the months when Dax was in control before his death.

That is all my friend heard, unfortunately. He lost consciousness shortly after that, but he also mentioned previously having been able to move around when it seemed like everyone else was frozen in place. Those outside of their rooms had some kind of shield around them and the computer terminals were flashing a message about 'Time Suspension" being active. The monsters could still move though...

[Diarmuid expression and voice suddenly become grimmer and sadder.]

Someone died trying to protect me a few nights ago. She said that I was just standing in the middle of Floor 100 with one of those shields around me. I couldn't be moved and I didn't seem to notice when she spoke to me or touched me.

[He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath forcing himself not to start crying as memories of Sola-Ui dying in his arms flash across his mind.]

Lets...start with that. We can talk about the 14 missing things after...

[Lancer puts an arm around his brother's shoulders to comfort him.]

Time suspension? You mean they're fucking with the clocks? Having some time when they can move but we can't?

[To Diarmuid.] I see..... you have my sympathies. That must have been a terrible thing to witness. [And that's all he's going to say on the matter. He sees no reason to make Diarmuid more miserable by making him dwell on it further. What's more important is what the time suspension thing exactly was.]

Time suspension? Hmm.....I don't recall witnessing that message on the network. I suppose I must have been in bed during that time.

Edited 2013-07-31 13:07 (UTC)

Thank you. I can't change what happened, but I can do my best to make sure her death wasn't in vain. We need to pool all the information we can on this so we can figure out what exactly is going on.

[He looks toward his brother and then nods.]

From what I have heard, it seems the Time Suspension is probably exactly as you are describing. Time where they can do whatever they need to without us being aware or getting in the way. In addition to it happening nightly--and since this is three nights in a row something has happened I can only assume it does happen nightly and has happened nightly for how long--I can't help but wonder if it hasn't been used at other times as well. For example, remember when the Tower gained so many floors while we only lost an hour of time? There is no way so many floors--even if they are only rooms with film in them--could have been added in only an hour.

But that leaves the question of why we lost any time at all. Unless, they can only suspend time for a certain amount of time each day...

never let me sleep

28th, sometime late at night/early in the morning

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tagging in really quick since Cu is next to Dia

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