"Three, counting myself," Leon answered, his view being almost magnetically drawn to the intricate three-dimensional map on GM's laptop. How did such a thing work, anyway? Then again, it's not like that's the weirdest thing he had ever seen... "There's Rose, who was with me when you... Never mind that. Anyway, they other guy calls himself Euclid. He picked the lock on the door -- So no, you didn't leave the front door unlocked, by the way," he continued, then stopped for a second to overthink GM's request. Could he do this? Could he really betray Rose and Euclid to this guy? To talk to the GM was one thing, and could easily be excused, but to actually lead GM to them was quite a bigger step. Still, what choice did he have? He had to save himself. And this, this being had already proven that they stood no chance if they tried to resist him.
"Either way, I'll try," Leon said. "Like I said though, I have no idea where they are. I'm assuming they're both still inside the building, but..."
With that, Leon got out of the bed and walked over to the door to the hall, opening it ever so slowly as to make as little sound as possible. "Wouldn't want to wake them, right?," he whispered.

Rae had a pounding headache. instinctively she reached for her medication, which should have been sitting on the desk beside her, but when her hand found not a desk but floor, she opened her eyes, everything was kind of fuzzy, her glasses weren't on, where am i? she thought, running a hand through her hair "Mom? Dad?" nothing, the words almost seemed to echo, it was dark here, it had been a little after 2 o'clock moments ago when she hopped on to her computer, how much has time passed? Was i drugged? she looked around again, frightened, she could make out a wall not far away and so she pushed herself to her feet "hello?" she slowly walked over to the wall and put her hand on it, she saw a glint a few steps down the hall so she went to it and when she leaned down she felt the familiar cold metal of her glasses. grasping them tightly she smiled and pulled her hand back towards her "if only it wasn't so dark" she muttered, sliding them on, the room came into focus.

Rae was in fact in a hallway, it was eerily familiar but looked almost abandoned, but like work had been done on it recently, it was very odd.

She started down the hall carefully, looking out the windows she appeared to be somewhere on the 4th floor, as she noticed this fact the ground beneath her creaked dangerously and she fell to the floor beneath with a yell.

ow, ow, ow, she pulled herself to her feet, her glasses were still on amazingly, so was the purse she just realized she had.
"this is really dangerous" she said, looking around, she saw a stairway and hurried to it,
"at least i didn't hurt myself" she muttered as she stopped on the second floor, the place looked only more familiar. where am i?
she went to the window and could see a large sign down in the courtyard but just blackness past that, how weird
she went down the stairs again and headed for the courtyard, when she arrived she went to the sign.

she looked out at the blackness and saw something on the other side, a field of some kind, she looked at the sign and read out loud "the academy" ... it dawned on her suddenly "wait, ... no, it can't be ... i ... am i ... i'm inside ... no the academy doesn't exist, and if it did it was deleted when the guild went down ... what ... i don't understand ..."

looking across at the field again she saw movement "Hey!" nothing, she looked at the black stretch and took a deep breath "Hey!" ... finally she took a step forward into the black, an odd sensation came over her as she lost all feeling of familiarity, but she was alive so she set off at a run and soon came to the field.
the movement she had seen was in fact people "Hey!" she started towards them "can you help me? do you know where i am?"

"Hey!" a voice exclaimed from feet away, prompting Bellua to turn his head immediately. The irises of his eyes glew a dim shade between red and orange, illuminated by the fire had set up not but moments before. Rising to his feet, he stared in what he could only assume to be the direction from which the voice was coming. Moments passed before that same voice chimed again.

"Can you help me? Do you know where I am?"

An anomaly, Bellua thought. A flaw in the plan, cast into my hands. I'll have to adapt accordingly.

Turning to Callum, he walked over and nudged him lightly. "Rise," he stated, his voice gruff and tinged with the slightest hint of frustration. "We have company."

---

Euclid shifted in his spot, grumbling as he slept. An outside force was stirring him from his unconsciousness, but he was still too deep in his dreams to know exactly what it might be.

“Eeeuuuuuuucliiiiiid….” GM mused as he gently pushed the laptop out of the way with his foot, letting the name run through his mouth and mind. Sounded familiar, though he couldn’t imagine why. He chuckled a bit when Leon commented on how it would be best not to wake the other roleplayers. “Yeah, I guess that would be best.” He agreed, getting up from his position on the floor. “Let’s go meet those other roleplayers.” He grinned. “Work can wait. S’not like I need to redesign Rin right this minute.”

Ebil walked through the halls, looking into class rooms along the way. He didn't know what he was looking for, or what anyone else was looking for, he just wanted something to do. Walking through a building wasn't the most exciting thing in the world. He turned to ask Muse what they were looking for, but didn't see anyone.
Dag nabbit! he thought. He ran back down the halls in the direction he came from, looking around for some clue to where the others might be. He eventually ended up at the cafeteria. Sure enough, there Muse was, looking around at all the damage
"There you guys are!" he called. He walked over to them, but the floor, walls, even the ceiling flickered, as if the place was disappearing.
"What... Just... Happened?" he asked quietly.

((The reason it flickered is because the RP is actually dying :( ))

Rae was now close enough to see it was 2 men, one looked odd. that man stood up and walked to the other, nudging him, as he appeared to be asleep. the odd man said Rise, we have company
odd way of speaking, there's something off about him she thought
"Hello?" she said, approaching them very cautiously, she was close enough now she didn't have to yell. "I ... I ... I'm ..." i'm stuttering now, she stopped, cursing in her head, then chided herself, Calm Down!
she took a deep breath and another step forward "i'm lost, i don't know what's going on" she clasped her hands together "can you help me?"

Callum might of slept at that moment if it wasn't for the world being a cruel mistress. Perhaps he could just ignore it, these voice that he could hear. But Bellua decided that he had to "rise" Oh come one? I'm not that much of a bloody-.....wait a second, is that voice...human? Callum opened his eyes, and with a bit for a groan he stood up. With a bit of glare, Callum had realized that it was in fact A human. Oh great, I'm not alone. That's a relief But as soon as Callum realized that he also realized something else.

Callum turned his head to Bellua, "Umm...So, what are we going to do?" Of course Callum meant What does Bellua want to do, but maybe that would sound to...He didn't know. He just didn't want to say it.
He might be a bit happy, but he was wasn't at the same time. Because if there was one thing he was certain of.... This person is not going to be exactly safe

She started to speak. She stuttered a bit, Nervous? Must be Bellua, He makes me nervous as well.
"I'm lost, I don't know what's going on...Can you help me?" Callum tilted his head, he didn't know if he should talk. Then again, Bellua was as subtle as a brick wall. A brick wall covered in explosives....covered in ants...covered in brick covered explosives...."Ummm, Hello......I am.....Callum and this is-...." I'm just going to let Bellua take one for this very unstable half time team

"Bellua," the demon spoke, his reply curt. He wasted no time in turning around and proceeding to tend to the flames that were now starting to die. "As for where we are, I do not have the knowledge. However, there is someone I am looking for; my creator - a man named Euclid. I believe that he may be up there."

Raising his arm, Bellua pointed at the floating Academy that still seemed a mile or two away. "If so, I must pay him a visit. There is much to discuss. For now, we rest." He went silent, signs of breathing accentuated by the response of muscles in his back as he lowered his arm. The silence continued for several moments before he piped up again.

"And what of you? What brings you to this land? Matter of fact, what of you both?"

Might as well, he thought. A long period of silence makes conversation seem like a delight.

Rae listened to the 2 men as they introduced them selves and the one called Bellua turned away to tend the fire.
silence
Bellua then said "and what of you? what brings you to this land? matter of fact, what of both of you?"
Rae stopped to think about it "i don't actually know, i had just come home from a party and i was on the computer ... then i woke up at that school across that dark stretch there"
she looked backwards and could just barely see the school through the dark "it was practically collapsing under me, so when i saw you guys moving over here i came to see if you could help"
she realized she was still standing a few feet away from them so she cautiously approached "neither of you know where we are?"

Nautilus walked with the rest of the group, trying to be as ever-watching as humanly possible on the rest of the party after the Orber's disappearance; the party could not afford to lose another one. They stopped by a shattered window, which could be a surprise given that this was supposed to be a peaceful RP. "Perhaps there's another party of roleplayers who choose to break the windows instead of looking around for the front entrance?" he asked. The prospect of there being another party, however, will open up myriads of questions. Especially if that wolf was the first one that the other party met when they got lost, then one might expect the unexpected from the other party.

"There you guys are!" Ebil said from a distance.

For a short span of time, Nautilus was relieved to see one of the missing party members coming back. However, as Ebil walked towards the party, the entire area blackened out for a while, or so Nautilus thought.

"What... Just... Happened?" Ebil asked quietly.

"Did you remember what we discussed near the tree?" Nautilus answered Ebil's question with another question. "Could it be right?" he ended. He felt a bit guilty to answer Ebil's single question with two questions, but he acknowledged the fact that questions will keep accumulating unless the roleplayers started figuring out the way the place, which was supposed to be built from the roleplayers' collective imagination, works.

"Yeah, I remember..." Ebil said slowly. Were they really going to disappear? If they were to disappear here, would they go back to reality, or would it be like dying? At least it would be painless. Or would it?
"I've also seen a strange lack of people, let alone characters. Surely everyone is still here. I don't think it's lasted long enough for an off-island plot to begin. And this is the cafeteria, the most popular RPing spot in the entire RP, and there's nobody here. I don't like this."

Leon left the room, holding the door open for GM to follow him into the hallway. Of course, the fact that it was in the middle of the night made walking around a lot harder, mostly due to it being very dark around. Seriously, did nobody ever hear of electricty or other forms of lighting in this place? This was supposed to be an incredibly advanced magical university/floating island, yet they had no provisions for people who want to go out late at night? That was just lame.
On the other hand, this same lack of lighting allowed them to see the now-obvious beams of light coming from rooms with another source of light than just windows. One of the two was GM's still-running laptop in the room Leon was sleeping in minutes later. The other came from a half-opened door down the hallway, oddly flickering and pulsating as if it was constantly changing. "Well, might as well start somewhere," he whispered to GM, gesturing towards the door in question. "If nothing else, it's obvious that someone has gone that way." Slowly he made his way towards the door, being careful to not bump into anything in the process. Upon reaching it, he quietly opened the door.

Muse paused as their surroundings flickered with darkness, blinking slowly to make sure things were stable before he continued. “Huh… that’s a little unusual.” He commented quietly to himself. “I think this RP is falling apart.” He informed the others. “Though RP’s don’t usually vanish into darkness like this. RP deaths used to be a lot… quieter. You’d never really notice them leave, and new one’s would take their place anyway. But now that Godmodder’s gone and screwed with this place, the whole balance of it all’s been thrown out of whack. Hence the void spots.” He glanced out the window, where stretches of black nothingness peppered the landscape beneath the Academy. “Thankfully though, we aren’t characters here, so we shouldn’t have much to worry about.” He reassured them. “After all, Nautilus here is already living proof that roleplayers aren’t subject to the same rules, since he and I both saw an RP get torn out from under us and replaced with void the last time we met GMod.” He explained. “Or at least… that’s what happened last time. The void’s kind of his domain – already completely volatile due to being a completely blank slate, but since it’s his fault it exists, he probably has the most control over it. We shouldn’t take its nature for granted…”

Bellua kept his back to the girl. He wasn't much for interaction unless it was absolutely necessary, so now that there was not one, but two people in his presence - it irked him greatly. While he could show it, he kept his restraint high. What use would they serve to his goal? He wasn't sure, but he was reluctant to dispatch them until he found who he was looking for. He could feel Rae getting closer to the clearing, feeling her presence only a few feet away, following by a question. "Neither of you know where we are?" she asked. The demon could sense her nervousness and it was all but driving him to kill. No, he had other plans, but for now, he had to answer the question. Can't let her feel ignored, he thought. If we shun her, that's one less scapegoat I'll have for the road ahead.

"This area is unknown to me," he replied, holding his hands to the fire. He didn't need the warmth, but it was a force of habit from earlier times in the Void. "From what I can see, there are patches of ground all over, separated and surrounded by the embracing darkness. My theory is that they're various worlds, sewn together in a less than perfect pattern. Maybe even dimensions. As for where from which they've come, I haven't the slightest inclination. I can only assume that the cloudborne island above us is not of this earth, but it is my destination. Where you choose to wander is of your own accord."

The fire was starting to die rapidly, despite the amount of grass he used to kindle its flame. My abilities have waned, he pondered. This may prove to be an obstacle in the future. If I don't practice, I may be defenseless should my task prove to be too much.

Rae realized the man was on edge 'is that my fault?' she wondered, so she forced herself to calm down, taking a deep breath. she walked calmly forward just a little more and looked between the 2 men, they were very different.

"i don't wish to intrude but since, i'm on my own..." the thought scared her calm away from a bit but she took a second and forced herself to calm down again "do you mind if i stay with you until i figure out what to do?" she brushed a little dirt off her shirt. "i won't get in your way, i promise, i ..." she looked down "i don't want to be on my own"

"Got it, won't take its nature for granted. So let me get this strait, if this place just suddenly turned into a black mass, I won't die, or I will die? Just making sure." Ebil asked. He rose his shoe and looked under it as if he was expecting the part underneath would start turning into nothingness.

((I'm really sorry for the teeny post, its just been four days since I posted last, and I needed to get something out no matter what size.))

“Shouldn’t be too hard to find everyone.” GM commented as he followed Leon out of the bedroom, standing alongside him in the hallway. “I mean, it’s just a dorm room. It’s not very big, at least by my recollection.” He spoke, not exactly keeping his voice down to a whisper. As he wandered the dorm ahead of Leon, he soon found Rose asleep on the couch. “Ahhh there’s one! But I already remember meeting her… where’s this Euclid fellow?”

---

Muse sighed. “Well, see, that’s my concern.” He told Ebil. “It didn’t kill anyone last time, so if we knew this thing stayed constant, then we’d have our answer.” He tried to explain. “But… we don’t know that it’ll stay constant, so I can’t say 100% for sure.” He told them worriedly. “I wanna say you’ll be fine if this place falls apart, but, really we can’t let our guard down. We should all stay close, just in case things start to get weird…”

Rose blinked, the sound of voices stirring her. She opened her eyes slowly and stretched, straightening from her horizontal position on the couch. "Leon? Is that you?" She asked sheepishly as she turned around. She stopped, staring.

W...Why is he here?

Her brows furrowed as she stared at GM. She glanced around, looking for Euclid at the mention of his name. She looked down at the floor and sure enough, there he was, still sleeping soundly on the floor.

Great... Leon's laying in bed, practically dead, Euclid's sleeping like a rock and the guy trying to kill us is just... standing in the hallway.

"Hi..." She managed, a sour expression on her face. She'd already accepted the fact she might die here and screaming at GM obviously wasn't going to help. They always did say trying to confuse you're opponent was the best way to get the upper hand.

Nautilus listened to the conversation, which had been an interesting topic to follow. He didn't actively join the conversation, however, knowing that he would only be adding more questions by asking them and reducing answers by countering them. When Muse told the party to stay close, Nautilus put his left hand on Ebil's shoulder, ensuring that he would not get lost. Not alone, at least.

From that point on, throughout the walk, Nautilus had been looking around, trying to look for the fastest escape route, and trying to ensure that the route in his head would always be clear of obstacles. However, he never looked at what were in his front and his head hit a sign that was put at a typical human eye's height. "Don't worry guys, I'm fine," Nautilus said while holding his head in pain, "Unless the sign tells us that an obstacle at our head height will come".

"Do what you wish," spat Bellua, already back to tending to the dying flame. Placing piles of grass one atop the other, then drawing another sigil in the hopes of stoking what was left of the warmth, the demon grew quiet. He still wasn't used to the first tagalong, let alone prepared for a second. It peeved him. "Do not expect to sleep long if you stay," he added, turning back to shoot a condemning gaze to the girl. "When I wake, I leave - with or without you, so get some rest while you can.

---

The voices were much closer now, and they were enough to shake Euclid from his sleep. Half-dazed and disoriented, he shifted from his spot against the couch as he tried to focus his blurry vision enough to make out the shapes in front of him. Soon, there was clarity and, even more so, dread as he stared the Godmodder in the eyes.

"Oh, fu--" he started, jumping from the ground and moving to the corner of the room furthest from what he assumed would be their death. Having nothing to defend himself with, he grabbed a couch pillow and held it in front of his body, knowing it wouldn't save him, but almost hoping it would.