[IC] Masks

[Revans Exile]

Kimiko became extremely embarrassed knowing that others saw her lose control of herself like that. Dite stood up. "Yes I am Dite. This is extremely embarrassed lass is Kimiko. She doesn't speak much unless it is business or to me. Would you like one or two autographs?" Dite was curious if her powers would work on this special mask, she knew the Greek deity masks were not affected by each other, unless it was Zeus. Dite walked up behind Koharu. She flooded Koharu with pheromones. She altered the pitch of her voice, Koharu couldn't hear a difference but her brain would react to the difference. "Tell the other one how you feel. The two of you could have a great sex life together, if you need or want I could tutor you into having a phenomenal sex life. Just let me know." Dite returned to Kimiko and using her normal voice. "Shall we go find out where that elevator goes my sweet?" Dite grabbed Kimiko's hand and pulled her along. They entered the elevator and let fate have it's way with them.

[twave]

The subtle and not so subtle push from Dite was slightly unsettling. It reminded Them of of how the mask would manipulate their actions. Even so it sent chills down her spine and a blush to her cheeks. "Uhm, n-no thank you. I'm pretty sure he knows already... Also whatever you just did there, please don't do that again."

To say that the thought hadn't crossed both their minds would be a lie. Both were very aware of the other's feelings. It was hard not to be when they shared thoughts from time to time even when they didn't mean to. It made secrets hard to keep. Robert had felt the push as well, but having taken a back seat for the moment it wasn't as strong. "Damn what was that?" Shaking her head to clear it a bit Koharu was kind of embarrassed at letting her thoughts run away with what Dite suggested. "I don't know exactly. Her words are hypnotically persuasive somehow." With a slight smirk Robert nodded. "Yes I can see that." This prompted a rather hasty response from the girl. "Shut up! You're the one who wanted to wait." "I know, I know."

While they squabled in their head Koharu stepped into the elevator as well. She wasn't sure if she liked the idea of being in a closed space with Dite but there weren't many other options. Going back to the surface wasn't much of a choice. It was tough enough getting out this far to begin with. They probably wouldn't make the trip back with as tired as they were.

[shi12]

Nina was rather disappointed in what she had found; having discovered that the common area she had spotted was void of life. The only notable thing in the space was an elevator door...but she didn't know where it lead and the mask didn't feel the need to tell her. Other than that there were only a few chairs and a couch in the room, one of the chairs soon being occupied by the confused brunette. "Put the mask on deary. Everything will make be better if you do." the mask chimed. It wanted the reigns again, cold tendrils seeping into Nina's mind with that very motive in mind. She reluctantly lifted the metal to her face, giving in to the pull of its words. The moment the mask was on her visage things started to change. Her brown hair started to lighten and fade, stretching downward as it grew into a long mess of platinum blonde curls. The blue of her eyes went from blue to purple to a vibrant red and the tan of her skin turned to ivory. A chuckle escaped her lips. "See it wasn't that bad." Nina laughed, shifting in the chair where her feet were thrown over the back of the chair. She now was sitting upside down, her eyes fixed on the elevator that was humming with life. "We have company!" She chimes, the door opening with a ding to reveal three strangers. The woman tilted her head, though upside down, she was curious as to who these people were. "Hello!!" She cheered with a smile that could rival the mad hatter.

[Revans Exile]

During the elevator ride down, Dite snuggled up behind Kimiko. She nibbled on Kimiko's ear. "You want the same kind of relationship as the person in front of us don't you? There is nothing more intimate than sharing body and mind." Dite began to sway to the elevator music. Kimiko was lost in her feelings, eyes shut tight to block everything but Dite. When they reached their destination the elevator chimed. Dite stopped to Kimiko's chagrin. Dite pushed Kimiko out of the elevator. When Dite saw the upside down girl she cocked her head to the side. "You're an interesting one ain't ya?" She walks up behind her. She reached out to touch the girl's legs. Kimiko sat down in a chair opposite the upside down girl.

[twave]

Dite rubbed Koharu the wrong way. Just something about her was off putting. Maybe it was that she was so loose with her words and affection toward Kimiko. That kind of thing wouldn't be tolerated in her families home. Even if Dite was what Robert said it still didn't sit well with her. When the elevator opened she stepped out without really paying much attention to what was outside it. Hearing the voice of another she stopped and saw Nina sitting upside down. Her appearance was unusual. The skin was exceptionally pale and made her look almost sickly. The platinum blond hair matched well with the aforementioned feature. What stood out the most were the eyes, they were a powerful red color that popped in contrast with everything else. Nina was very much alive though, having a cheery demeanor on top of it. That was a much better reaction than the last encounter. "Hello there." Taking a look around They suddenly remembered that they were some place unknown. The modern look from the room above was consistent with the one above. So far there still no answers to anything. Their mask drew them here for some reason. Maybe the others here was a similar experience. "Do you know what this place is? I was drawn here... for some reason." Perhaps it was best not to mention the mask just yet.

[shi12]

Nina chuckled, remaining in her strange sitting position as the three entered the room. Her platinum curls were practically touching the ground, not that she minded… she was more interested in these interesting new strangers. “Interesting? Most call it insanity.” She chimed, barely paying the strange blonde a second glance. Instead her shimmering red eyes were fixed on the other woman, the one who had actually greeted her. For someone as old as the mask was manners were very important. The woman’s lips puckered, her eyes rolling to look up, or in her case down at the floor, as she thought over the question. “Your mask, that’s the reason dearie. This place here studies them and such…” she replies, pointing to the silver mask attached to her own face. “At least that’s about as much as I know, didn’t really pay attention.” She chuckles. Suddenly her eyes snap to the other woman, an eyebrow going up. “And what might you be up to? You know it’s not polite to touch someone without their permission, right girly??” she questioned, something dark seeping into her voice past the madness. The cheerful nature in her features was now gone, now she almost seemed ready for a killing spree. For a few moments Nina merely stared her down, awaiting a reply before another thought interrupted her current actions. Her mood suddenly brightened, the dangerous atmosphere that had been brimming just moments before disappearing with it. “Oh, I forgot to introduce myself! Forgive me for that blip in manners. The name’s Nina Simone, and you three might be?” she chuckled.

[pyroman]

His body turned only slightly once he felt yet another presence in the nearby area. Like the others, he was at least somewhat fearful of the visage of death mere feet away from them. The gas mask wearing woman that he had been speaking with held her gun casually, but still ready to strike if needed. "Fear not." He spoke out to the two of them. "Neither of you are dead, nor will be." His body twisted around to look into the shack. He was sure that the people he had seen earlier were already down in the Facility by now, and it would be best if the people up on the surface went down below as well. The reaper began to glide across the ground and into the seemingly abandoned shack. He stopped momentarily, and turned back around to look at them with the black portals to the void that served as his eyes. "Come along. There's much to explain." He then turned back around and walked inside before going down. As he reached the bottom of the basement, Reaper reverted back into the form of Penn, and waited at the doors of the elevator. With a sigh, he reminded himself that the one in the wheelchair wouldn't be able to go down the stairs. As much as he liked showing the new people around this certain way, he was going to have to use one of the other lifts to get him inside.

[Revans Exile]

Kimiko's timid nature turned 180, she slowly stood up. Kimiko slowly apporoached the crazy one, as she approached she slowly reached behind her back to grab the knife. Dite liked watching the sudden shifts from a timid mouse to ferocious lioness. Dite would have loved nothing more than to see Kimiko slit the crazy one's throat but she waved Kimiko away. "Dearie you are about to join a group of very select few." The pitch of her voice was modulated to add a since of domineering and malice.

[shi12]

In a flurry of moving limbs Nina scrambled upright, a clear pout on her lips. She was now sitting on her knees, her fingers clutching the back of the chair as she looked up at the blonde. "Oh my, I didn't mean to upset you dearie... No, no, no, I just don't particularly like when people touch me without my knowledge. The last individual who did that ended up with a broken arm.... Reflexes and all, war really changes you and old habits die hard." She pouted, looking like a kicked puppy. Nina chuckled, her downright cheery mood once again completely engulfing her. "I really am sorry dear, hope there's no more hard feelings. It would be quite sad if the only people I've met hated me.... " she added, her madness seeping away. The mask had its moments of clarity, and lucky for both it and Nina it knew when it was best not to make enemies. She smiled cheerily before letting herself fall back, her feet going over the arm rest and her head laying atop the other. Now she could once again see everyone.

[Voltus_Ventus]

Through out the entire event, Bart was plastered to the wall of the shack, panting but the more he listened to the grim reaper, the more he began to think that he might not kill him. Walking around the side of the dilapidated structure, he revealed himself to the sunlight that the wall was blocking. Squinting, he followed the reaper down, though waiting for him to reach the floor they were heading to, before noting the number down and pushing the corresponding button to that floor.  Whilst in the elevator, Bart slipped the mask on and instantly regretted it, all he could hear was shouting and arguing as Bartholemhew retook control of the body. Every soul in the mask was panicing or bickering about the reaper and the fact that Bart was stupid enough to get into the elevator but Bartholemhew stepped in before he could go brain deaf, "could you all please be quiet," he asked dryly, leaning against the elevator control planel by accident, "or I'll take this mask off and have that idiot Bart take the reins." a small 'hey!' of disapproval escaped his mouth as  Bart protested. After another moment of waiting, the elevator punted and the doors slid open with a smooth, 'whoosh'; he found himself looking into a rather shonkey looking waiting room filled with strangers, he gripped the cane handle firmly and walked to the opposite end of the room, away from the group of people and sat on a rather uncomfortable couch.

[Revans Exile]

Dite noticed Charon and some others came down the elevator. "Char baby came to join the party? Party hasn't really started yet. Lack of food and entertainment you see, but you were never one to socialize bit of a stick in the mud, always on duty ferrying people to the afterlife across the Styx." Dite sat down in a chair across from the crazy girl and pulled Kimiko into her lap. "Char baby, what is this place and why was I summoned here?" Dite began to rub Kimiko's cheek affectionately.

[pyroman]

Seeing Dite again, Penn waved at the woman and pulled out his phone. He tapped and slid his finger across the screen several times before a low rumbling could be heard. Of course, nothing could be seen by anyone underground, but the parapalegic man above ground would have seen a large square of ground rise up to reveal a platform. The lift that Pendleton had activated led to the garage, which wasn't far from where he and the others were. Finally deciding to reply to Dite's comments, Penn put his phone away and looked at her, taking a glance at his mask just before. "I can't truly explain why you were summoned here." he told her, but hoped that the others were listening as well. "I found this place several years ago in my masked form, the form Dite here knows as Charon. I know him as the Reaper, but that's besides the point. Me and him have a close relationship, and I'm pretty in control when I have the mask on. Like you all, I had a feeling, or wandering thought about coming to this place. I'm still not entirely sure about it's significance and relation to the masks, but I can tell you that there is something binding both fantasy and technology within these masks, and deeper underground than I have dug, could be a beacon of some sort that is attracting the masks."

[Traitor]

Not quite sold on the idea of following the grim reaper underground, Charlotte hesitated for a moment. Going through some sort of inner monologue no less, picking apart the reasons why it would most likely not be dangerous. It was a weird thing to happen to her, as normally fear wasn't part of her masked-up periods at all. And though fear still wasn't quite the right word to describe what kept her, it came close. It felt as though a small part of her was in awe of what lied ahead, and while the stronger part could easily force her down those stairs, it decided to ease the process by listing all the logical reasons why she'd already be dead if death truly was after her. The nervous tapping of her foot let small swirls of smoke depart from the cloud at her feet. After what felt like an eternity, the girl with the gas mask approached the shed. A fleeting look to the side was made, to ensure that her vehicle and luggage wasn't autonomously escaping, then she stepped into the surprisingly cool shadows of the building. Due to the less windy conditions inside and her slightly excited mood, it didn't take long until a noticeable trail of smoke marked her path through the small interior. Unlike the reaper, she didn't feel the other presence here, and so she simply moved deeper into the complex until she found an elevator, oddly out of place. "Here goes nothing.", she muttered to herself when the doors slid open seconds later and she followed the same path the other visitors went. During the trip down the elevator cabin almost entirely filled with her smoke-emission, giving her a momentary advantage over what might welcome her on the other side and most importantly: confidence. Gripping the pistol tighter and with both hands, she waited, waited. A small chime the harbinger of her arrival and the doors opened. During the time it took the wall of smoke to fall out of the elevator, she scanned the room, analysed that there was no immediate threat present, and let the handgun disappear before anyone could lay eyes on it. Misfit in this little cheery get-together, the oppressive figure stepped out of the elevator, her heavy, sand-crusted boots palpably damaging the modern interior of the room. For some reason, the high-tech scenery below that forsaken shed didn't phase her as much, likely because the encounter with Penn set the standard for surprises relatively high. The only sound coming from her was her breath, heavy and audible through the mask as she took details about the people present. Trying to discern who of them was the reaper, too.

[Revans Exile]

Dite looked at Reaper inquisitively. "The masks that came to be known as the Greek deities had what some might refer to as rules, two in fact. The first was once we bonded we never allowed the mask to be taken off. The second was to never allow the host to have control while the mask was on. I don't know who you are but you are definitely not Charon." Dite's attitude changed completely. She didn't like being fooled. She lifted Kimiko up off her lap. Dite also grabs the knife that Kimiko had.

[pyroman]

Upon seeing the knife that Dite now held, Penn took a small step back and gripped his mask tightly. He was unaware that Dite would react this way, and had a small thought about other reaper masks for different pantheons. However, a resonating feeling from the mask settled those thoughts. His mask was the Only reaper mask. He was Charon, Death, Grim, all to most of the figures that represented death and taking souls to the other side. He even represented some of the faces of death that people believed to be female, like Śmierć and Hel. "Dite." Penn told her, his hands slowly moving up to put the mask back on. "I didn't disagree with you earlier when you called both me and the mask Charon because that is a part of who we are. We represent all sorts of visions of death and reapers." He took a glance at the knife and back to the woman. "Please, just put the knife down before things get messy."

[Revans Exile]

"Conartists don't disagree with being called names that don't belong to them either. Yet again you proved you are not Charon, with the Greek deity masks there is no we, there is only the mask. The mask takes over completely it surpresses the weak, useless human host. If I were to remove the mask right now the host would collapse to the floor and never do one single thing for the rest of it's life. There is only one person for the lack of a better term, we may represnet more than one diety over the centuries but at the core there is absolutely no change." She stood up. "Assuming I was willing to entertain the notion that you might be Charon, then tell me what happened to Hercules, I was there that day spare absolutely no detail. One wrong word, I promise you things will not get messy it will turn into a blood bath." She flipped the blade so that it pointed down. "I have also been several war dieties in my lifetime, I am not some poor helpless woman. I have lost track of how many men I have slaughtered over the centuries."

[twave]

Things were getting way beyond what Koharu or Robert knew how to handle. Dite and Kimiko seemed to be going off the deep end with her threats and behavior. And Nina was clearly off in ways herself. What was wrong with all these people? The only one that even slightly seemed normal was Penn who spoke about the masks. Moving toward the elevator it opened and smoke poured out to reveal a woman in a gas mask. Koharu had had enough and let Robert take the reigns for a while. Along with the relinquished control came the shapeshifting. They shifted forms from Koharu's to Robert's and he looked around at them all. "Could you guys maybe cool it or something. You're scaring Koharu." This was directed more to the others than the one producing smoke, even though there was some concern with that as well.

[pyroman]

"How long have you had your mask?" Penn suddenly asked. It was obvious that Dite was starting to annoy him, and it seemed as if she didn't grasp the concept of the masks like he did. He was not versed in Greek mythology, and Reaper did not remember every little detail of every soul he sent to the afterlife. Despite this, the mask resonated once against with bits and pieces of the death of the demigod. Nessus, a ferryman centaur, was the cause of his death. Hercules' wife was persuaded by the dying centaur to take some of his blood and use it as a love potion on Hercules. Instead, in her time of need, the blood did not act as a love potion, but a deadly toxin. "Just how long have you been in possession of it?" He asked her once more. While not entirely the same, Penn and Reaper were once two completely separate entities. Reaper held complete control once the mask was put on, the Penn regained full control of his body when it was taken off. There was never anything between the two of them about never taking the mask off. The more he used the mask, and the longer he had it, the line between the two separate entities slowly began to blur. Penn became more Dutiful, and by now had complete control over the Reaper form and identity. To an amazing extent, even the powers of the reaper began to seep into Penn's normal form. Penn held the mask out in front of him for all to see. Suddenly, it was engulfed and black flames. As the flames subsided, the mask was no longer in his possession. Unfortunately, without the mask worn, that was the extent of that certain ability. He could only call upon and call away the mask, and nothing else. If he ever wanted to access the umbraspace, it would take quite a toll on his human body. Even now, with that simple parlor trick, Penn was slightly exhausted and the man panted as he regained the energy he lost. He was sure though that the more and more he used the mask, the less it would toll on his human form. Penn looked at Dity sternly and fiercely, the personalty of the mask seeping into him just a little more. "Whoever put on that mask originally is most likely long gone. Go ahead and cut me into pieces. I'll ferry myself into the afterlife with no problems. You, on the other hand, as well as everyone else here, will only get further away from the answer to the question on everyone's mind: why are we here?"

[Revans Exile]

"In charge for two years six weeks five hours twelve minutes and thirty-three seconds give or take. Every host ceases to live once I or any of the other Greek deity masks takes control. They become nothing more than a soulless husk. I have been through two dozen hosts none of them but this one felt drawn to this place, which leads me to believe you are responsible. So start talking charlatan. No more games death boy."

[Traitor]

Charlotte's train of thought was promptly interrupted by the escalating conflict, but at least it spared her the riddling about who was the face of death. Again, not quite what she had expected. An old, evil-looking bald man with a ridiculous beard would have been a better fit, she thought, but at least he wasn't some quirky tiny girl. That would have been reallyfrightening. She made her assumptions about how much a bullet could do to death himself and from the conversation going on, the smug, noisy bitch was probably on his level... but it was just too tempting to get out the old Grach. On the other hand, she kind of couldn't care less about the ensuing violence and the reaper was more than likely not someone you could stab anyway. She simply stood in front of the elevator motionlessly, waiting for things to unfold until the reaper took his mask off and put it away somehow. That decidedly tipped the scales as he probably wasn't quite as impenetrable in this state. In the matter of a second she tensed, held her handgun pointed at Dite. "Nice temper you have there missy. Maybe settle down a bit, you're scaring the kids." She didn't make the effort to threaten Dite verbally, as the gun was quite unmistakable already. All of this happening at once didn't leave her enough time to ponder the fact that they probably all had some sort of mask similar to her own, but the realization had rooted in the back of her mind by now.