Better Left Forgotten

"Yeah," Mortal said, nodding, "Who wears a fedora when breaking into a dorm?"

"Guys, I'm telling you!" Gabe said, "Look, she even says it herself! This is exactly the thing I saw. I'm not going crazy, you have to believe me."

--

Sab frowned, "Even still, that doesn't mean it is okay! He was trying to help, remember. You saw something in our room before he even went in."

Noct quietly listened to the back and forth, trying to get a clearer picture of what happened to Sab and Aroma.

"Wait, wait, wait," Astarte broke in. "Can you please tell me exactly what happened with Roatha?"

HE continued to jog home, Hector telling Eduj that he could stay with them.

*They continue running, fear increasing their speed*
===
*Eve waits for the others inside*

*And so they all bust in the door.*

N"Well, let's not stay here, in case something breaks in."

T"Wait, but what about Roatha? What about the others?"
==========================
*Someone runs out from behind a car, clad all in black & wearing some kind of mask. They immediately grab Cameron by the shoulders & try to wrestle him to the ground. Meanwhile, the monster jumps on top of the car & glides towards Monu, doing the same to him.*
==========================
A"You're right...I feel horrible now."

*She reaches for Sab's hand as she tries to avoid Astarte's eyes.*

A"We were just going into our room. He was coming the other way. I said I saw something, & he offered to take a look. Sab & I were afraid that it was more of those guys, so we agreed. He went into our bathroom & then...it came out. That's when we rant to you...no, first we tried to get out of the building, but it seemed like it was always right in front of us. I took us to Noct's without thinking, & you were there for the rest. We...don't know what happened to Roatha. But...with the monster right there...I don't see how...how he could've...."

*Hector & Eduj soon arrive outside.*
=============================
S"Monsters aren't real, Gabe. It was just some asshole dressed in a black costume. Wearing a fedora."

Cameron:<What are you doing?>

*Cameron and Monu both struggle, Cameron punching the man in the stomach and Monu kicking at the monster*
===
<We can't save him if we don't save ourselves.>

"It looks more like a bowler hat actually," Mortal said.

"Quit just writing me off. If it was just a guy then why would she call it a... a..." She looks down at the message again, "'Shadow creature'? Listen, I know it sounds crazy, but this is exactly what I saw in the woods, there are other people who were talking about the same thing, and Noct even has the damn thing on video. What more do you want?"

--

Sab takes Aroma's hand quickly, and listens as she summarizes their ordeal.

Azuma: "He's not with the rest of you?"

OOC: Stop fucking teleporting.~Neo

"That wasn't your fault," Astarte said. "Roatha knew the risks and he did the right thing. If he hadn't gone in there you might both be... well, gone. We should call the administration and see if Roatha is still registered."
Astarte started and looked around when the door unlocked and opened up to let Hector and Eduj inside. Hector shut the door behind him and Eduj walked off into the kitchen. Hector nodded to the guests, Noctis in particular, "Uh, hello... have we met?"

T"No, he's gone missing. We actually thought you were missing, too."

N"Guys, it's right outside."
===========================
A"I'm Aroma. This is my girlfriend, Sab. And that's our friend Noctis."
===========================
S"Bowler hats are round on top. This is more like a fedora, or a short tophat. And she has a dark blot on video."
===========================
*Monu kicks empty air, & Cameron can barely get any force in his punch. The man knees him in the balls & then quickly forces him to the ground. He puts his left hand on his chest & rears back with his right, punching him right in the face. The monster manages to force Monu to the ground & jabs his neck with its thing. Monu quickly finds himself feeling faint & cold.*

"We've met briefly," Noctis said standing to shake his hand. "I'm a friend of Gabriel, the one who saw the monsters with you about a week or two back," Noct said, trying to gauge how he took her blunt statement, "Oh, and, uh, I've very recently began going out with Astarte. It would be rude to leave that out I suppose."

Sab just gives them a small wave while contemplating horrible what-ifs.

--

"Jesus Christ," Gabe said, "I can't believe this... I... I need a drink."

"Finally," Mortal said, "I thought we were just going to use the bar to lean on while we talked about monsters and dragons."

"Shut up, I don't want to talk about it anymore," Gabe said, "Believe what you want." She then asked the bartender for his strongest drink. Mortal just asked for whiskey.

*Monu grits his teeth and tries to shove the monster off him. Cameron tries to duck under the punch, then tries to knee the man in the groin. Both start shouting for help, trying to be as loud as possible*
===
<Which means we should probably be going!>

Hector shook her hand, looking only slightly taken aback by the statement about monsters. However his eyebrows raised considerably when she mentioned Astarte. He looked at Astarte, who had turned pink but smiled, and then back to Noctis with a slight smile of his own. Eduj came back out of the kitchen with two bottles of water, passing one to Hector.
"This is my friend Eduj, and I'm Astarte's brother Hector," Hector said. "Nice to meet you all. But from the looks of things this isn't the happiest of meetings. You were attacked by the Shadow, I'm told."

L"Good Lord, what is that?!"

T"We'll explain later, just run!"

*And so they run for the elevator, hoping the others have the good sense to follow.*
=========================
A"It's horrible."
=========================
*He begins pouring those.*

S"I want whatever she's been drinking."

*Senthose points to Gabe.*
=========================
*They again accomplish nothing. Smashing his fist against the road doesn't phase the man. Instead, he starts strangling Cameron with both hands. Monu gets to the point where he can't get his limbs to move.*

*Cameron starts struggling wildly, grabbing at the man's head. Monu can't do anything but lay there and yell for help*
===
*Eve does indeed follow close behind Thiera and Lilith*

Mortal raises her glass, "A toast to monsters?"

"I'm not in the mood, Mortal," Gabe said, taking her drink, a particularly strong vodka, and downing it, then coughing, "Jesus, what is this?"

Mortal takes a sip of Gabe's drink, "Oh, I think that might be Devil Springs. Good stuff."

--

Sab nods in agreement with Aroma, "Absolutely horrible..."

Noct give a wave to Eduj, then sits back down, "You're right, it certainly isn't a pleasant get together. One more of your friends went missing, Roatha, and we have a monster chasing us."

"Missing? Hm, have you...?" Hector turned to Astarte, who was already trying to contact the college administration by phone. He turned back to Noctis. "But the monster, or monsters rather, aren't news to us. Have you been filled in on the recent history?"
Eduj sat down on the edge of the couch.

Azuma: "Then let's go."

The two begin to make their way to the elevator.

*The mask, as it turns out, is sewn onto his shirt & will not easily come off. He lets up the pressure on Cameron's neck, but continues brutalizing him, backhanding him with his fist.
===============================
*Senthose clinks glasses with Mortal, because he is an asshole. He then downs it with a gulp.*

"It tastes like yak piss."
===============================
A"I meant the monster itself. How can something like that even be real? It's just too awful for words."

Recording<Our office hours are Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 9 PM.>
===============================
*They are now inside of the elevator as it's going up. Euryale has her arm around Taiyo, & Lilith around Thiera.*

T"I guess we can go back to my room for now. The others will just have to look for Roatha, as well as Tirea."

*She begins sending Cameron & Hector a message.*

Thiera: We're stuck inside of the dorms, can you keep an eye out for Roatha while you search for Tirea?

Taiyo puts an arm around Euryale, shivering.

Azuma looks at Lilith, unaware of who she is.

Azuma: "Great time to meet new people."

OOC: It'd actually be flavorless, since, well... vodka.

"I didn't know you were such a light weight, Senthose," Mortal said.

Gabe frowns and downs the rest of her glass, the coughs again, "I'll take a glass of OJ now..."

"Why didn't you just order a screwdriver?" Mortal asked.

"It obviously wasn't a rational decision, Mortal!"

--

Noct nodded, "Yeah, we have the whole story. That is why I said 'another' of your friends went missing."

"Well, things really are getting grimmer," Hector said, taking the last free seat. "A girl from the trip has just been hospitalized, apparently having been found in a basement with severe blood loss. Her parents were found unconscious in their home. Now the people around us who weren't even on the trip are being dragged into it."
Hector took out his phone as it vibrated and read the message. He replied, Tirea is in hospital. Severe blood loss. Cameron and Monu heading there now. How are you stuck?

T"This is my sister, Lilith."

*The elevator doors open. They catch a glimpse of a menacing figure lurching towards them, but realize that it's just the janitor mopping.*
=============================
We were chased by the white beast and had to take shelter. Last we knew, it was waiting right outside of the dorm lobby.
=============================
S"This is fun. I'm starting to wonder if I should have taken my chances with the creepy midget."

Azuma: "Nice to meet you."

"Creepy midget?" Mortal asked.

Gabe looked over, interested as well.

--

"No luck with the school?" Noct asked Astarte.

*Cameron raises an arm to block the blow and then grabs both of the man's ears. He begins to twist them in opposite directions, then knees the man in the stomach*
===
*Eve exits then waits for the rest of the group*