Event: Quarantine

[animusmods]

Characters: any characters trapped in rooms during the event
Setting: dormitory level rooms
Format: any
Summary: An unexpected series of explosions has trapped residents in the dorm rooms with no power and no way to get out. Try to communicate with the outside, deal with being stuck in a small room with other people... Deal with the really strange things that seem to be happening, too.
Warnings: typical Animus horror event warnings

[There are several more explosions, and the sound of things falling and crumbling outside. The dorm rooms themselves don't collapse or cave in, but the furniture and trunks and nightstands may be rattled and knocked about. Eventually, the lights flicker and go out entirely, leaving everyone in the dark. There are small red emergency lights lining the floors, but they don't seem to have come on all the way, and flicker on and off eerily.

After maybe twenty minutes everything falls silent. However, if you try the door, you'll find you can't get out...]

Comments

[puppy_lancer]

...If anyone takes only a half-dose, it shouldn't be any of you.

[Lancer looks down at his syringe. It's obvious what he's thinking.]

again ignore glowing red eyes

[swordofzero]

No. [Suzaku steps up to Diarmuid stubornly, being a brother knight goes both ways you know] No one is forgoing Collar liquid. Did you not hear what Ruana said that time, it is a very bad fate to lose your soul here, and the liquid protects our souls as far as we can find out.

[irreverence]

Is that it? Hmm...

[Well in that case.]

I will personally beat you into the next millennium if you so much as keep thinking about it.

[Asagi doesn't know and doesn't care what 'testing' they're talking about, but what she does know is-]

Besides, if someone's going to go comatose, it probably shouldn't be the strongest people in here. That's stupid.

[puppy_lancer]

Alright, fine.

[He sighs.]

I still don't need this till the end of the week.

[oathshackledbird]

But--

[Diarmuid signs and then throws up his hands. He doesn't mind risking himself. After all, even if things go terribly wrong, he hasn't died that often here. He can handle it. Better than his brother who has died too many times so far, and since it is his idea, better than Karna who shouldn't have to risk himself on a risky plan that isn't his own.

However, with the whole room against it so strongly, how can he keep arguing?]

But if I don't do it, no one does. Is that clear? It was my idea. I wouldn't want anyone else risking it.

Besides, if we are looking at this in terms of strength, we all know I'm the weakest servant in the room.

[There is bitterness in that. Someone's feeling very useless right now. Don't mind him. He just hates not being able to do anything to help everyone who is trapped here.]

[fionnuisce]

[Waver frowned, hand almost immediately delivering a slap upside Diarmuid's head. He'd probably break his hand long before actually hurting the knight even if he was trying, but this was meant more to call attention to a stupid comment than actually injure.]

No one's doing it, if I have to hold them down and stab them in the fucking neck myself. And you, stop that. I don't give a damn about power scales and whatever, so knock that shit off.

[He did not look impressed, to say the least.]

[puppy_lancer]

No.

[Lancer's answer is definite.]

You shouldn't risk yourself, bro. Not when you need to protect Waver.

And you're far from weak.

[miseris_socios]

[Ken's listened to this quietly, and pushes himself up.]

I... ah. I have a lot of skills but...

[He taps his yellow collar.]

[irreverence]

Why is it always a battle to see who can be the most altruistic?

[Asagi huffs, because really- she doesn't see the point in anyone being so sacrificial for an off chance at... something.

Whatever the hell they're up to with collar fluid, there will be other chances.]

Hey, Professor- if it comes down to holding them down to do it, I'll help.

[fionnuisce]

I don't actually think it'll come to that. Will it? [Looking pointedly at Cu Chulainn because boy aren't you arguably the dumbest motherfucker in the room. Sighing, he turned to Ken with a notably calmer tone to his voice.]

If you're not up to doing it yourself, I'll take care of it.

[miseris_socios]

... Thanks.

[He tenses up a little, but nods.]

I... need it soon, so... I might as well go first. Go ahead.

[He'll just close his eyes and duck his head against his knees, don't mind him.]

[swordofzero]

[Suzaku frowned at Diarmuid, because he didn't like him calling himself weak.] If the others do not inject you I will. [Because after all those endless lectures he gave Suzaku about looking after himself... Once Ken speaks Suzaku nods as well] I will need mine today, but I can inject myself.

[fionnuisce]

Whatever you say. [He shrugged at Suzaku's statement, relieved he wasn't the only one that could handle syringes properly. Waver picked up the needle with Ken's name on it and knelt down next to him, giving his best attempt at a reassuring smile. (Given the pressing circumstances, it was kind of lacking.)]

You know, I used to hate needles when I was a teenager. [He sighed, making an effort to distract Ken by talking.] Substituted chicken blood in every magic ritual that called for it. Which I suppose worked well enough, but it was a ridiculous hassle to find chickens on short notice sometimes. [It was probably best to just get this over with quickly, so Waver injected Ken in the arm as cautiously as possible. At least he seemed to have had a lot of practice with that kind of thing.] Eventually I just learned to get over it when I was about twenty.

[He pulled the needle out, shrugging. That was quite possibly a legitimate attempt at being tactful and nice to someone.]

Sorry if that hurt at all. Are you alright?

[miseris_socios]

It's less that. It's more that the people I look at as family were used as experiments when they were kids - and I've been through a few Jason surgeries myself.

[He looks up a little, blinking slowly and relaying some information to Chidori.]

I'm okay - ow.

[He tries to lift his head further, but drops it to his knees again.]

Head hurts. ... Kind of dizzy.

[He feels inside himself for Dike, and his face pales.]

... It shuts off powers, too.

[swordofzero]

[Suzaku just nodded back and took the needle, leaving Waver to look after Ken as he injected himself. The dizziness came straight away and he stumbled, reaching out towards a wall to try and stop himself falling.]

[oathshackledbird]

[Waver's slap hadn't hurt Diarmuid so much as it had startled him and cleared the frustration from his mind enough that he is embarrassed when he realizes he actually said what he did out loud. As a result, he stays quiet as the conversation switches direction. He is about to comment on Ken's side effects when he notices Suzaku stumble.

In the blink of an eye, he is at his friend's side, moving to help him. Once Suzaku is steadied, he gives Waver a hard look. His words are sharp, perhaps sharper than he intends, but there are side effects and then there is power loss.]

Do you still think all of us taking our shots is such a good idea? How can we protect each other if we are sick and our powers are gone?

[fionnuisce]

...Well, fuck.

[Waver shook his head, twirling the empty syringe between two fingers once or twice as he thought.]

I wonder if this is some sort of emergency variation of the usual fluid. I'd theorize there must be some reserves in case of freak situations like this, and I'd follow with assuming the reserves aren't quite the same as the normal supply.

And yes, Diarmuid, I absolutely do. The solution is that we just don't take them all at once like idiots now that we know the side effects. Simple.

[you seem very intent on this, derry. you bet your hookerboots he's gonna be watching you like a fucking hawk.]

[irreverence]

Depending how long it lasts, it might have been a good idea he did it first, honestly.

[Asagi frowns, considering.]

I mean granted, you guys aren't due for collar checkups until much later than us but... if the power-loss is temporary, scheduling them so we're not left completely defenseless is probably a good idea.

[She looks between Waver and the Lancers for a moment before frowning again.]

So it looks like no one gets to try and skip out unless it's life-threatening that they not be powerless suddenly. And even then, better that than comatose where you'd just be a liability.

[miseris_socios]

[Ken laughs a little before looking up a tiny bit.]

Chidori told me to tell you guys to 'keep out of trouble'. And also that if you guys don't listen then hitting you works along with yelling at you.

I'm not sure which room she's in, but she sounds okay.

[Oh right. He should explain.]

She has a mind link... thing.

[puppy_lancer]

[Lancer raises an eyebrow at Ken, but doesn't comment otherwise.]

I think I'll hold off injections until you two get your powers back. In the meantime...

[He looks over at Diarmuid.]

...Your turn, Bro.

[oathshackledbird]

Can you still warn her about the side effects of the shots, Ken? Or is the link dead now that your powers are gone? It might not hurt to let others know.

[At the moment, Diarmuid's not really thinking about the fact that the information might cause others not to take their shots. What he is worried about is people getting hurt because they take them and aren't prepared for just how strong the side effects will be.

He might be stupidly self-sacrificing, but others getting hurt is not something he's okay with.]

And I'm not due for my shot until the end of the week, brother. I am not taking it now. There is no sense in it.

[fionnuisce]

Like hell you aren't.

[god could he look more disapproving.]

I know you well enough to know when you're thinking about something stupid.

[irreverence]

No, he's right.

[Asagi pipes in again, looking as if she's running some kind of figures in her head.]

If he's going to insist he's the weakest, then fine. Strongest should go next- along with you, professor. That way, we're not always down two capable people all at once.

[A slight shrug and she adds-]

Presuming, of course, that powers disappearing is just a temporary side-effect.

[puppy_lancer]

[If Diarmuid wasn't counted among them, then the strongest people were either Lancer himself or Karna. And then there's one other problem...]

Don't think we can do that quite yet. If either of us...

[A glance at Karna.]

...lost our powers, we'd have to keep up our bodies like the rest of you. And this water is limited.

[He looks back at Diarmuid.]

So, Bro, you do it first, and then I'll do it once there's more supplies or something.

[oathshackledbird]

The limited supplies is just one reason why I shouldn't go yet! The longer we wait, the more there will be for the others.

[Diarmuid nods toward Ken and Suzaku.]

We already see there are some pretty strong side effects. Who is to say they won't be worse if we take the shots on a day that isn't our assigned day? While varying when we take them is a good idea, I worry it just might make things worse.

[He's not even arguing so that he can have time to figure out how to hide his needle to save it for research at this point. Diarmuid is worried about people being hurt.]