In the arms of the ocean, so deep and so cold

[oceantier]

Who: Lapis Lazuli and the residents/staff of Virgo Entertainment
What: After Lapis discovers that it was Virgo Entertainment who kidnapped Steven, she attacks the building late at night. More description here.
When: Wednesday, March 2, about one in the morning
Where: Virgo Entertaiment. Note: Lapis will be attacking from deep within the ocean, so she will not be visible.
Warnings: Blind rage. Property damage. Possibly sharks.


His hand in hers still haunts her mind. She can still feel the shadow of them throughout the day, the small weight of his fingers laced in hers, locked together, tight with the pressure of her own.

Worse, she can feel them yanked away, breaking from hers.

The sound of him crying out reverberates in her head, echoing, echoing, loud, louder, louder. She wants to press her hands to her ears, crouch, wait until it fades . . . There's no relief, and the weight of it pounds against her skull in dull and unrelenting rhythm: He's gone, and she's broken her word.

He's sick, he's in danger, and she's broken her word.

There is no relief.

***

The attack comes suddenly, brutally on Wednesday night as the ocean outside of Virgo Entertainment grows restless. The water rolls, it surges, it rocks, it builds, it moans . . . Like great hands thrusting forward, snatching at the earth, a little higher each time . . .

Until suddenly, it's on par with the building itself.

The noise alone may be enough to wake the residents of the building; the water lashes into the building structure. Windows explode in showers of glass, and the water pours in, eager and fast as it can. Wave after wave smites the structure from every angle, at every window they can reach, shattering the glass and sweeping inward with the glee of eager children. The impacts boom against the structure itself, shuddering through the metal and upward even into the very penthouses. There's no danger; the metal will hold. But the sound is horrible, and it continues, on and on and on, as the waves continue to moan and roll and crash, tearing through the very earth outside the building in their wake.

Residents or staff entering the lowest floor may find it immersed in 2-3 feet of water, complete with specimens -- various fish, masses of kelp . . . and if one is unlucky, very likely a shark. Water continues to wash in, easily able to swipe someone off their feet. Caution is recommended.

The sky is clear, and there is no visible cause for the lashing of the waters -- not even a completely specific origin point.



ooc: Feel free to post threads to this log of your characters reacting, investigating, etc. Lapis is under the ocean and a ways out, so would not readily be accessible or visible. (But hey, there's always the ghost of Edna theory, if you're into that kind of thing.)

Comments

[sponsorigami]

Ivan was about to spend some time meditating on the ocean shore, trying to will more memories to come forth to help him learn more about his real self. (He's stuck with it; he might as well try for more puzzle pieces.) However as he walks out of the front door, he's greeted by not only a bodyguard but by a humongous wall of water.

There's no time to even attempt to move out of the way. Ivan gets slapped in the face with a fish. (And it's a miracle his sakura tinted shades aren't broken by the impact.) The bodyguard gets hit harder with something larger, but Ivan doesn't look back. He's scrambling for higher ground.

[inversekeyblade]

Later..

That was one hell of a nap! Not quite a full 8 hours to be considered a legitimate sleep session, but close enough. Sipping on that liquor, one drink turning into a few, makes napping throughout anytime of the day or night pretty easy. Waking up with a headache is to be expected though. And that's what's happening right now with Roxas here.

It's his own fault, really. But man, if he could go back and do something different.. he probably wouldn't. Once he deems himself appropriate for public viewing (clothes, hair, shoes) he's on his way out of the building. Downstairs he goes, to the main lobby that he's so used to seeing before passing through the doors to the outside.

Except instead of dry carpet, the fabric beneath his feet feel.. squishy. Actually, the floor looks damp. And everything is wet. There's even what looks like aquatic plants hanging on some of the light fixtures and furniture. What the..

..is this Virgo Entertainment? Did he wake up in some weird underwater world now? This is too much to handle with a slight throb persisting in the front of his head. Instead of finding out the fun way, he'll ask the closest resident, easy to tell by spotting someone not cleaning up, what was going on.

Here's someone who looks like he knows what's going on. And not just because he's soaking wet also with what looks like a red smack on his face in the shape of a fish. "Hey.. what, what happened here?"

[sponsorigami]

"I have no idea..." Ivan says. He's completely drenched from head to toe, and he's trying to see if he phone is salvageable or if he needs to replace it. There goes a chunk of his paycheck and time trying to bring his new phone back up to his likes.

Although, that's nothing compared to the damage the ground floor museums have gone through. "I was just walking out the front door when the water just came rushing in from all sides. I've never seen waves like that before."

[inversekeyblade]

Having to replace your phone would suck. Roxas does not envy that task, as it looks like this guy is about to embark on the way he's trying to revive what is probably a dead device.

"Did someone piss off Poseidon? Things like this don't just happen, you know?" As far as he's aware, they don't, anyway.

[sponsorigami]

"Again, I don't have an idea. If this place is this messed up, then the outside must be just as messed up." Ivan's brows knit as he tries to get a glance beyond the water soaked walls, but where they are at blocks his view. He lowers his phone and gives up on it for now. "... Have you seen what the areas around here look like?"

[inversekeyblade]

Shaking his head, "Nah, I just woke up. You'd think all the noise that must've caused this would've ended my nap early, huh?"

Actually.. why didn't all that supposed noise wake him up earlier? Oh, yeah, passed out.

"Can't imagine it's any better, but knowing the luck of this place lately, we probably got the worst of it. Oh.." Why be so rude, Roxas? Greet! "I should introduce myself.. I'm Roxas. I don't think I've seen you here before?"

[sponsorigami]

Maybe Ivan should go up a few floors to one of the cafes and look out the windows. He didn't hear anything about a storm, and something this big would have been everywhere. Something supernatural?

... In which case, maybe he shouldn't be around here for another reason; he's still watching his back from his involvement in Stella's rescue. "I'm Ivan from Flowers Over Bones. Um, can we go back higher? I want to get away from here."

[inversekeyblade]

Did he say Ivan? Wasn't that the name of the person Luce wanted him to meet and greet with? Maybe this extreme episode of water damage gone wrong had served a purpose after all. "Sure.. seeing seaweed and fish remains on the furniture is kind of freaking me out."

He likes the sea and all, but that just isn't right. Roxas will be nice here and open the elevator for the two, pressing the button once, twice, three times... eleven times until it opens. "So.. by chance, you in a band with Luce?"

[sponsorigami]

He gives a curt nod to Roxas for the gesture and works on wringing more of the water from his clothes. Hopefully someone on an upper, dryer level will give him a towel. Ivan does take note of Roxas pressing the elevator button so much. Impatient or nervous for some reason?

"Yeah, she's one of the co-leads of the band."

[inversekeyblade]

Definitely impatient; this headache isn't going away any faster with the elevator taking as many seconds as it is to get down here.

"Ah.. yeah, I spoke with her before. She mentioned you briefly a little while ago. After something.. bad happened. I think." He wasn't one hundred on that, but everything about that interaction told of someone being overly cautious for some reason that wasn't good.

"Now you add this to the mix.. maybe we're built on an Indian Burial Ground." This might be shamelessly blunt, "Did something happen to you around then too?"

[sponsorigami]

"I'm... afraid you're going to have to be more specific." Ivan laughs uneasily. He's been involved in far too many weird and dangerous happenings to be able to pick one out that fits the time frame of "a little while ago."

Ancient burial ground might not be that far off given the ghost situation, but they aren't around anymore. Hopefully. Hopefully, they are all free.

[inversekeyblade]

"It was a few weeks ago, tops. I remember walking into one of the community areas of the tower here, and Luce was there looking.. sad." He didn't like seeing that. More so, he didn't like not being able to help much.

The elevator door swings open with a light ding and Roxas steps inside, waiting for Ivan prior to pressing a button for a higher floor. This time he won't mash it. "That's when she mentioned you. Any thing like that sound familiar?"

[sponsorigami]

"Ah. That.... Y-Yeah... " Ivan bites his lip, and his eyes dart around to see who else may hear. But the elevator doors opening provides more privacy. He enters and presses the button to close the doors without checking if there is anyone who would have liked to get on as well.

"Something happen to me. Did you hear or see anything strange around then?" Ivan decides that is a good starting point. He needs to figure out what Roxas experienced when Arpegius looked for volunteers to help save his sister.

[inversekeyblade]

The truth about that is "No. Nothing. Wait--"

Okay, there's no way these things can possibly be related, but there was one odd occurrence that stuck out more than anything, if something even did. "There's no way this can mean anything, I could've been tired and delusional, but when I was listening to music on my headphones one night there was something unusual about the sound. The track was instrumental but I swear I heard a voice. I don't remember well what it was saying."

It's difficult to think back that far and recall a specific detail like that. It was late, but there was something unusual about what he heard. Tapping on the wall to the elevator, mimicking the beat of the track that night, he tries to go back enough to get that one detail.

They're almost at their destination. The number indicating the floor level on the display above them slows, that inevitable ding about to play. Just as it does, right before the door opens, "..help her?"

[sponsorigami]

"Yes. What if... what if I told you I heard things like that too?" The door dings, and Ivan steps out, looking both ways as if he's crossing the street. No one is around. "Virgo's haunted in a way, so your burial ground idea isn't... that far off. Things have been moved. Lights and technology flickers. Voices are heard but only sometimes understandable..."

Belief in the ghosts will go a long way. Ivan has had so many ghost related experience in past few months, so he's fairly positive that ghosts have a hand in everything that has been happening. Either they are the agents of an event or the label is trying to do something to them.

[giglio_madonna]

When the waves had started to rise up in the distance, Luce had already started to worry. A quick headcount had made sure everyone else was safe... besides Ivan. And she's triple checked to make sure that he's not pulling one of his ninja acts.

Hurrying down to the bottom floor, it doesn't take long for her to spot the poor ninja... right in time to see him get hit by a fish.

Oh dear.

Ignoring what would probably be comical any other time, she tries to wave him over. "Ivan!"

[sponsorigami]

"Luce!" Ivan abandons the direct he was going in and goes over to her. Another wave rushes through the door, now broken and shattered. There's more than just the fish in the waters now. Remains of the museum float by, ebbing back and forth as the waves going in and out. "What's going on?"

[giglio_madonna]

That's a question she'd love to have answered herself. Taking Ivan's hand once he's close enough, she starts wading through the water to the emergency stairs. This doesn't seem like the time to risk the stairs. "I don't know. It can't be a storm, because the skies are clear as crystal and the wind is nowhere near bad enough for this kind of destruction."

[sponsorigami]

He's more than happy to let her lead him to safety. Part of his head is still reeling at the idea that he just got hit in the face with a fish. "Can it be a tsunami? Those can happen without a storm right?"

But even as he says that, he knows that this kind of crazy with how the water is hitting the building isn't caused by a natural occurrence. "Is the city okay?"

[giglio_madonna]

If only she was a professional in the weather and not music. Luce has no idea if tsunamis can do that. For now, however, she just keeps leading him upwards.

"Let's go up to the second floor and see if we can get a good view. Hopefully the waves won't be that high."

[sponsorigami]

"Okay." He continues following her as they go up the stairs. It's probably a really good thing they cleared out the area quickly because with all the wreckage, some power cables had to have been severed. The waters could be electric.

[giglio_madonna]

Slipping out onto the second floor, Luce makes her way through to the windows without a moment to waste. The sight she sees makes her take in a sharp breath. "My goodness..."

It's quite a sight, terrifying and amazing both.

[sponsorigami]

Swirling, slashing waters hit the walls and windows with loud pounds. But in between the waves, Ivan sees the stars, a clear night sky. He stands in silence as he watches the water seemingly arc in midair and turn towards the building.

[giglio_madonna]

Luce's idea of "normal" might be taking a bit of a turn these days, but she can definitely say that's not it. Tugging at Ivan's arm again, she nods to the stairway.

"I think we might be safer on higher ground. The building certainly seems like it's built to last, but the windows don't."

[sponsorigami]

"The building's too tall for the water to reach the penthouse." ... Right? He hopes that's the case, but he doesn't have much to go on. He forces himself to run faster, feeling the cold ocean water seep into his bones.