Midpoint Mods ([personal profile] midpointmods) wrote in [community profile] midpointsaloon2020-05-08 08:33 pm

Welcome To Your Life (Jailbreak Mingle)

You find yourself in jail. An old-fashioned, dusty jail: three cells wide, six foot to a side and below ground level, judging from the tiny barred window half a foot from the ceiling, that looks out onto a flat expanse. Shimmering heat waves are already starting to form, the sun already burning hot, but your cell is comfortably cool and dry.

And empty. The only things in your cell are a sturdy plank bench, chained to the wall like a hammock, a solid-looking pillow and a hairy blanket sitting thereon. Any items you might have had on your person are sitting on the wall opposite your cell, nearly four feet away from the iron bars holding you: propped up on wooden shelves, hanging from thick metal hooks, or sitting on the floor if the item is particularly large.

Outside the occasional jangle of leather and metal, and the occasional chuffing breigh suggests that there must be horses outside, but otherwise the area is silent. Before too long, though, there's the sound of footsteps and jangling keys echoing from upstairs, getting louder and clearer as someone makes their way down to you...

I. Sooey Jail

The view from the windows drops off quite suddenly, about a mile past the bare scrubland bushes and occasional screeching roadrunner. In the distance, a plume of smoke is the only sign of a freight train rushing along its tracks, until the faint echo of its whistle hits the ear. While Inara Serra will likely be entirely unimpressed by the lacking cell, Daylight vis Lornlit will find it's far too small for him. Bucky Barnes is near silent as he dismounts outside.

II. Southern Point

The walls of the cells here are distinctly discoloured to nearly five feet high, an ugly brown with black mold growing in the cracks around the benches and corners of the room. The air is musty and damp, in sharp contrast to the hot, dry wind that blows in through the windows. Quicksword Irene will find her ever-present claymore on the wrong side of the bars, but Hajime Aikawa has company behind his - Ryo has come along, too. The sound of Fuwa tying his horse up is interrupted by a sharp yelp of annoyance.

III. Mountain Hole

The windows are cast in shade in these morning hours, which makes the cells distinctly cooler than the glimpses of clear blue sky and rolling heat waves suggest. Fully grown trees with needle-like leaves are visible outside, and the keen might just hear the echo of a chugging train. Taako will no doubt find the scene familiar; Yoda as well, if less sandy than some oft complained about; Jiro Azuma is undoubtedly the most confused here. Rocket and Groot can be heard outside, approaching and bickering.

IV. Dead Man's Doorstep

The higher the sun rises, the warmer it gets in the cells; even before midday it's unspeakably stuffy, and the hot breeze carries light waves of sand into the cells. The sound of ropes creaking, gentle and intermittent, under the strain of something heavy echoes through the cells, adding a disconcerting background noise to the already alarming context. Jo Harvelle will find sand in her hair; Sara Lance finds it everywhere else. Outside, Misty Day and Sam Wilson tie their horses together, and brace for their new teammates.

III. Mountain Hole

[personal profile] cicadashell 2020-05-08 10:37 pm (UTC)(link)
[Jiro doesn't know what to make of this place at first. He's never seen an old American Western, and the jail cell looks very different than what he imagined a prison owned by the Bureau would. Yet, that's where he assumes he is. He doesn't recognize the landscape out that tiny window whatsoever. It's just sand and pointy weird trees.]

Where the fuck is this?

[Attempts at just ripping the cell door don't work, nor do smashing through the walls. That hurt, even. Throughout his assessment of the cell, he's talking to himself, or not, but it looks like it.]

Don't fucking nap now! Piece of shit cat.

[He kicks the cell door one last time, and then slides down to sit on the floor until there's someone of authority coming in for him to yell at.]
quitsmiling: (Default)

[personal profile] quitsmiling 2020-05-09 01:09 am (UTC)(link)
Upstairs, the bickering that can be heard sounds something like this:

"Yeah, I know. I heard you the first time, Groot. And the time before that."

"I am Groot."

"Saying it again is not gonna change my mind. Leave it alone. Geez. See what the mission's gonna be this time, will ya? I'll check on the poor saps downstairs."

Also, there's only one set of footfalls up there, making the floorboards creak, so one might wonder who exactly is talking to whom.
unofficial_ambassador: (Default)

I.

[personal profile] unofficial_ambassador 2020-05-09 01:12 am (UTC)(link)
[Okay, not good. Waking up in an unknown place is never desirable, but waking up in an unknown cell so soon after hiring an assassin to take out a popular public figure is certainly suggestive of a few things that Inara doesn't particularly care for.

She's wearing the plain sundress she arrived in, which is in itself strange since she's clearly been searched and her hidden knife, as well as all of her hairpins, have been removed. Don't prisons typically have uniforms? Maybe jails are different. She's never really had to know this sort of thing. There's a large... thing in another of the cells, but she can't tell from here what it is. It looks like a big pile of brightly coloured scrap metal.

She would sit, but the blanket honestly looks like she might catch a disease if she touches it, so she stands at the centre of the cell, trying to seem calm about all of this.]


Hello? Is anyone there?

[personal profile] cicadashell 2020-05-09 01:24 am (UTC)(link)
[Jiro doesn't recognize the name, or possibly rank, of Groot. Is it even a word? At this point, he's still sticking to his Bureau theory because they(?) are talking about missions. But if that conversation can be heard from down here, he's going to scream at them while they're on their way down.]

WHAT THE FUCK'S GOING ON HERE!?

[He's not happy.]
chalicejoker: (About to Fight)

II

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2020-05-09 01:32 am (UTC)(link)
Hajime's not exactly a fan of these accommodations. What's worse, is that while he doesn't exactly miss not having the Network constantly chattering away in his head, he does miss being able to quietly and privately use that psychic connection to talk to Ryo, because without it, well.

"Hajime! Hajime, I can't get out!" The little mantis (if a foot tall could be considered little for a mantis) isn't particularly alarmed, just very curious. He's also scurried out of Hajime's reach and is walking around upside-down on the ceiling as he chatters in his childlike voice. "Is very interesting! Can't open door back to Liminal to get out that way, either!"

"Keep it down!" Hajime's now standing on the plank that passes for a bed, trying to grab at Ryo. "Not until we know what's going on!"

"Maybe is magic jail!"

Hajime can't help himself. "For what?"

They're going to carry on like this, just a little too loudly, until someone stops them.
ragingwolf: (don't hate yourself man)

[personal profile] ragingwolf 2020-05-09 02:01 am (UTC)(link)
"No, magic jail is about right."

The voice is male, even but amused, and the source quickly steps out from the stairway and into the main jail area. He's wearing a thick black coat with a fur-lined hood, over a white shirt and black slacks despite the oppressive heat outside, and is lazily swinging a large metal ring in one hand, on which several keys jangle happily. "If you have any kind of magic, you're not going to be able to get out of it."
chalicejoker: (Cross)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2020-05-09 02:08 am (UTC)(link)
The only thing that suggests magic might be involved (outside of Ryo's everything) is the neat stack of cards (not even a full deck, just the suit of Hearts) outside of Hajime's cell.

Hajime can't say he was expecting someone to just walk on in like that, but the appearance of a strange with keys has him on his feet and very focused on those keys. "Who are you?"

Ryo nimbly hops from the ceiling to atop Hajime's head. "Man with keys! Can let us out!"
youwillbe: (It's not easy being green)

III MOuntain Hole

[personal profile] youwillbe 2020-05-09 02:14 am (UTC)(link)
[There's not much variety to Yoda's days, normally. That's to be expected when being a hermit, after all. This is the most variety he's had in quite a while.]

The swamp this is not...

[It doesn't take long for him to notice what meager possessions he has on the other wall. And hold up a hand trying to summon them.]
worthallthis: (Default)

[personal profile] worthallthis 2020-05-09 02:25 am (UTC)(link)
[There is in fact someone there. Soldat doesn't shout back down, though: they give their horse a little pat, sigh to themselves, and pace into the room above the jail to find the keys. There's footsteps, an odd gait that's heavier on the left side, carefully loud enough to make enough noise for the people below to hear them. They pause just inside, as Soldat flips open the folder of intel for a glance, then continue.

Then there's the metallic clatter of something that could conceivably be large iron keys on a ring.]
quitsmiling: (Default)

[personal profile] quitsmiling 2020-05-09 02:27 am (UTC)(link)
[Good luck with that, Yoda. All magic-- including the connection to the Force-- is nullified by that jail cell you're sitting in. Nothing so much as twitches.

A furry... person? ... about the same size as Yoda himself comes bounding down the steps.]

Well, that's new. Somebody not four times my size.
quitsmiling: (teeth)

[personal profile] quitsmiling 2020-05-09 02:31 am (UTC)(link)
There's a pause upstairs, and then the first voice yells back down: "Don't be an a-hole or I won't tell ya!"

Then the second voice, deeper and more gravelly, says in a scolding tone, "I am Groot."

"Oh shut up, Groot." And there's a thump upstairs, and then a clatter of what could probably be keys.
vigilanteclub: (do what)

IV. Dead Man's Doorstep

[personal profile] vigilanteclub 2020-05-09 02:34 am (UTC)(link)
This isn't the first time Sara's woken up in jail. It isn't even the first time she's woken up in jail without clear recollection of how she got there. The fact that probing her memory for what she might have done in the very recent past to wind up in a jail cell with what feels like half a desert clinging to her skin turns up nothing but a blank expanse instead of the patchwork of blurred images she'd associate with a really fun night or a moderately bad concussion, though? That's disquieting.

She pushes herself up to a sitting position on the hard bench, frowning in apparent confusion as she studies the cell and the jail beyond. Everything about it - the wood-and-metal construction, the heat, the sand, the dull creak of what the corner of her mind steeped in dubious-quality movies as a child immediately labels a laden gallows - screams gold rush prison, but even leaving aside the troubling amnesia, there's something off about it.

It's her gear, she decides, the knives clearly visible - if out of immediate reach - on the shelves facing her cell. Details like chain of custody might have been a little nebulous during the time period this building appears to be emulating, but leaving a prisoner's weapons where a desperate lunge might reach them the moment someone opens the cell door? That happens in video games, in movies, in novels, not in real life. It reeks of a set-up.

"What," she says, grimacing a little at the dry rasp of her voice and leathery stickiness of her tongue, "the hell. Gideon?"

She's not expecting an answer. The absence of a familiar voice in her ear is still disappointing.

[personal profile] cicadashell 2020-05-09 02:39 am (UTC)(link)
"FUCK YOU!"

There's a pause and some muttering, one-sided conversation about what Groot could mean. No conclusion is reached.
unofficial_ambassador: (Default)

[personal profile] unofficial_ambassador 2020-05-09 03:07 am (UTC)(link)
[The silence coupled with the obvious footsteps is perhaps not as comforting as it's meant to be. Many of Inara’s old clients (as well as her current lover) had been prisoners in the war, and she's heard enough to know how this sort of thing works. Whoever is up there wants to build up anticipation before stomping down the stairs to jab her with a cattle prod.

She doesn't want to seem overly affected or jittery and she's already called out once, so Inara just waits.]
ragingwolf: (you know what)

[personal profile] ragingwolf 2020-05-09 03:17 am (UTC)(link)
"Isamu Fuwa." He's walking over now, and giving the deck of cards a very curious look. Of all the things to have brought with them, why that...? "I work for A.I.M.S., but I doubt you've heard of it. No-one else here has."

He comes up to the cell, and leans an arm - the one not holding the keys - against the cell. "So who are you two?"
youwillbe: (Default)

[personal profile] youwillbe 2020-05-09 03:18 am (UTC)(link)
[He doesn't recognize this species, but it's a big galaxy]

Matter little does size.
chalicejoker: (Suspicious)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2020-05-09 03:34 am (UTC)(link)
"Can't say we have, no." Hajime's gaze is following those keys as he tries very hard not to think about something he's sensing...somewhere...nearby. He's got to get out of here, if only to deal with...

...no. It can't be another Undead. Can it?

"I'm Hajime Aikawa." Hajime gives Fuwa a curt nod at that, and he gestures to the mantis that's had to hop to his shoulder at the nod. "This is Ryo."

"Pleased to meet you!" Ryo says happily, because of course he is.
ragingwolf: (i WILL fight you)

[personal profile] ragingwolf 2020-05-09 03:47 am (UTC)(link)
Fuwa raises an eyebrow at Hajime - it's interesting to him, that there's another Japanese-sounding man already - but his gaze quickly turns down to Ryo.

"Huh. I suppose that explains why there's only one horse out there," he muses, kneeling down to look at the bug. "What are you supposed to be?"
chalicejoker: (Standard Expression)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2020-05-09 03:50 am (UTC)(link)
"Am Hajime's Spirit Companion!" Ryo says proudly. "From Questing Country! Is magical land of wishes and dreams and adventures!"

"...I've been traveling a lot." Hajime's less enthused about everything, really.

Ryo tilts his head to one side, an odd gesture for a mantis. "Horse? Need horses?" He bounces up and down a little. "No problem! Can turn into a pony! Big pony!" But still a pony.
ragingwolf: (you know what)

[personal profile] ragingwolf 2020-05-09 03:53 am (UTC)(link)
Ryo's entire spiel gets a confused stare out of Fuwa. "...right."

But he's standing up again, and going through the keys to find the correct one for this jail. There's six of them on his ring, none labelled. "I suppose that means you've done this sort of thing before, huh? Getting dragged into some weird place, forced to fight for entertainment?"
worthallthis: (sad 2)

[personal profile] worthallthis 2020-05-09 03:56 am (UTC)(link)
[Finally the owner of the footsteps comes down, holding the guessed-at key ring. It's a broad, long-haired man in dusty jeans, combat boots, and a cowboy hat-- with a metal arm. There's a rifle slung over one shoulder.

They meet Inara's eyes briefly before focusing down on the lock to her cell. Just a fleeting moment of eye contact, that's all they ever really do, anyway. They haven't even looked in the other cell yet.]

I'll let you out. Sorry about all this.
chalicejoker: (Perplexed)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2020-05-09 03:57 am (UTC)(link)
Hajime's expression sours. "You could say that, yeah. Is it too early for me to be swearing I'm going to take down whoever's responsible for this?" And his gaze flicks over Fuwa like he's sizing up the other man, trying to decide if he'll have to fight him or not.

"Hajime's a good fighter!" Ryo offers. "Best of the best! Very fierce! Fights like mantis!" He pauses. "Angry, angry mantis."
quitsmiling: (ew)

switching to prose, makes it easier to handle Groot; you don't have to tho

[personal profile] quitsmiling 2020-05-09 04:00 am (UTC)(link)
"Uh huh." Rocket looks vaguely skeptical. "Tell that to all the humies out there." He jerks a tiny clawed thumb at the stairs up, though probably not at Groot, who is clumping down after him finally, as he is clearly not human.

Groot is also definitely more than four times their size. Ever seen a sentient plant before, Yoda? "I am Groot," he rumbles.

"That's Groot," Rocket clarifies... possibly unnecessarily... "and I'm Rocket. You gonna get up to any funny business if I let you out?"
unofficial_ambassador: (Default)

[personal profile] unofficial_ambassador 2020-05-09 04:02 am (UTC)(link)
[The wall of aloofness that Inara had created to defend herself dissolves almost immediately. There's not a single thing about this man that's what she'd expected in this situation in looks, words or actions. She takes a step backward.]

Why?
quitsmiling: (ew)

[personal profile] quitsmiling 2020-05-09 04:02 am (UTC)(link)
The person (?) who comes down the stairs a moment later is... a raccoon. He scampers down on all fours, but he's wearing clothing, and has a ring of keys as big as his head in one tiny little clawed hand.

"In your dreams, humie. I'm the guy who's gonna let you out, so maybe try not being a complete idiot, all right?"

Yep, the raccoon is the one talking. He stands up at the base of the stairs and dangles the keys tauntingly.

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