And the power of the people shall come to believe they do rule

[mickey-cops.livejournal.com]

((Continuing from this post.))

In the passageways beneath the park, where a group had gathered to break down a long-closed door, a laser beam was widening, and a broad circle began to blacken the surface of the wood, the locks melting and streaming down in shining rivulets, to puddle at the doorstep. The room was getting hot, now.

Outside, all at once, the rides all stopped. Animatronic figures jolted still; boats bumped each other confusedly; rollercoasters fell to the bottom of their tracks and did not continue up. The lights inside the buildings flickered off; the perpetual background noise of music and soundeffects went silent.

Below, the hole in the door began to crackle and spark around the edges, and for just a moment all the eyes trained on the door could see through it a fathomless darkness. An odd, organic silence filled the air; everyone's breathing and small movements were audible, but so too was a new absence of sound, as though the walls were all holding their breath.

And then the air around the door began to shimmer.

Comments

[hear-the-drums.livejournal.com]

The Master heard the Doctor's approach, the sound of the Rani being thrown off –thank Rassilon, there was no way you could have kept them both out at once–, and there was an instant relief in his head, like someone had drained a blood clot in one of those torturous human hospitals.

He let some of that extra emotion, the stuff taking up all that space next to the drums, filter into the Doctor's mind at the same time he gained access. It was like a rush over the edge of a waterfall, and he's suddenly hip deep in it, but he didn't go far; having all that freedom to move around in the Doctor's head was more tasking –(frightening)– than he was willing to admit, and he was starting to turn in on--

Oh. That was a new spin on it.

"Twelve point twenty-one."

[swordandchalice.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, yeah. Right here," Setsuna responded to Kira. Somehow, he wasn't surprised.

[a-lonely-god.livejournal.com]

The Doctor accepted the mess that poured over from the Master's mind without questioning, offing an unobtrusive mental hand when the Master floundered. His choice entirely, what (if anything) he wanted from it.

A soft snort, and no need to communicate -Easy. You'll have to do better than that.- any other way.

"Eight billion, six twenty five million, forty thousand, five hundred and six point six zero five zero four zero five two six eight."

[swordandchalice.livejournal.com]

Setsuna squeezed Kira's hand again when he saw them, but then felt sadness overcome him as he too pulled out. This was really it, huh? He stayed quiet though, still not letting go of Kira, and let Kira tell them.

[late-born-myth.livejournal.com]

"Well, then," said Psyche, in a calm and practical voice intended to steady everyone. (It had occasionally inspired her sisters to minor acts of violence, but generally people found it soothing.) "I think I know what to do next. But, er, I'll need my hands free."

She looked at the hole with a bit of a frown. "My guess is," she continued, "that it isn't any special virtue of mine that's holding this hole open. I mean, I'm certainly not doing anything special, here. It just doesn't want to close on me and cut off my arms. So it ought to work with anyone, really."

[swordandchalice.livejournal.com]

Setsuna understood well enough he let go of Kira's hand, but followed right beside him. "I'll help, Senpai," he offered in a soft voice. Then when he heard what Kira told Psyche something else finally dawned in that dense head of his.

"...Psyche...." He tried to give her a smile. "Me too. You were a great friend to me and helped me deal with one of the most complicated things I went through here. I'll miss you."

[late-born-myth.livejournal.com]

She looked between both of them, eyes wide and suddenly bright with tears, and taking her hands out of the opening, turned and kissed first Setsuna, softly on the cheek, and then Kira, on the lips and rather hard.

Then, stooping to the ground, she took from a fold of her cloak a little golden lamp, and flint and steel. As she struck them together, lighting the lamp, the tears spilled down her cheeks, but she didn't speak.

[mickey-cops.livejournal.com]

The door didn't appear to be reconstituting itself.

[caycep]

"Psyche..." Cayce began, and stopped.

She blinked. The hell. There were tears in her eyes.

[markoftherani]

A sharp retort died on the Rani's lips as they began to –that old game? she'd never been as good at it as they; she disliked it, in fact, for that very reason– exchange the numbers in the patterns that they seemed to know best.

She knew better, though, to ask what was going on. They'd tell her in time. –or not– Didn't mean she had to be gracious or patient about it. She folded her arms and waited.

[swordandchalice.livejournal.com]

Setsuna had been doing fine up until the kiss. Somehow, that made it all the more real. Cayce and Kira's reactions didn't help either; a strong reminder he would have to say goodbye to them all.

Tears formed, and before he could sob, he buried his face away in Kira's shoulder, though made sure he wasn't getting in the way of keeping the door open.

[hear-the-drums.livejournal.com]

"Two million, two hundred and twenty-two thousand two hundred and forty one point one four two repeating." There. Feast on that one.

It was obviously helping. The Master opened his eyes and looked over at the Doctor with an exhausted expression. "TARDIS," he said, and though the inflection didn't suggest it, it was a sort of a question. He hoped they would both go along with it.

The Doctor's TARDIS had developed something of an affinity for him. –sort of terrifying, considering what he had done to her, but then she was every bit as (no, don't say that word)– Her energy would help.

[a-lonely-god.livejournal.com]

Oh. Oh that one was bloody good. So not fair.

"TARDIS," he agreed with a disgruntled expression, and glanced at the Rani to include her in the question/invitation. -he needs a nine and a six to complete the next pattern, he knows that straight off, but it's actually the ones that make this a really tricky puzzle, and if he could just...-

"Nine..." he started. "Nine... nine thousand and-" no. "Nine hundred twenty six thousand, nine hundred forty one point one four nine six two nine. Ha!"

He started off in the direction of Toon Town, picking his way a little more carefully than usually necessary, in the dark.

[always-confuzed.livejournal.com]

John clenched his teeth behind a relaxed mouth, determined to keep himself vaguely in check. Funny what you'd do when you felt the Doctor had handed off a job to you.

"You'll be fine, Wings." He offered her one of his smiles, the kind that meant much more than any simple smile should. "Just be careful. For all of us."

She was one of the first people he had met here. He just wouldn't be able to fully comprehend something going wrong.

[late-born-myth.livejournal.com]

She met both Cayce and John's eyes for a moment, love, hope, and regret written plain on her face. She ducked her head, and attended to her work. The lamp lit, Psyche rose to her feet, disregarding the tears falling on her own face and everyone else's. She would step through the door, and see

- no, wait, not yet, not when she was still holding the connection open between herself and those above.

She paused for a moment, then extended the arm holding the lamp through the opening.

It cast a warm and golden light. Not far - a few feet, at best, and the flickering flame at the spout seemed terribly small in comparison to the darkness. But it was something.

"Cayce," she said, turning back, her arm still extended through the door. "Will you look again?"

[a-lonely-god.livejournal.com]

Tharseo,* Psyche, the Doctor murmured to her as she went to the door. "And if you do get home, put in a good word with your husband for me, eh?"


((*Ancient Greek word meaning "have courage," or "take heart"))

[markoftherani]

"Ninety-seven," the Rani retorted, which was her sort of lateral thinking at its best. Or worst, depending on how you looked at it.

As they set off in the dark, she followed them –exactly why was something she was not about to admit to anyone, least of all herself, but it had something to do with the darkness and the fear that she never acknowledged–. After a moment, there was an annoyed snort; she raised her braceleted arm and flicked a switch. A pale white light illuminated their path.

[caycep]

Cayce nodded, not trusting her voice just now, and leaned forward to look into the hole.

[mickey-cops.livejournal.com]

The lamp and Psyche's arm were fully visible. The light didn't illuminate any walls or, for that matter, ground, but it stretched out like a halo that enveloped Cayce as well as Psyche, extending out to about arm's length.

[caycep]

"I can see you," Cayce said. "I can see you and your lamp.". Pause. "How?"

[late-born-myth.livejournal.com]

"Well," said Psyche, with a wobbly smile. "This is what it's for, you see."

She looked around at all the rest of her friends and fellow prisoners in the room. "So. Who will go with me, and who will stay to hold the door?"

[average-adam.livejournal.com]

"I'll keep it open," Adam volunteered quietly.

[swordandchalice.livejournal.com]

"Adam...." Setsuna peeked out from Kira's shoulder and looked at him with worry. "You'll follow when everyone's out, won't you? But...it kinda sucks to think of you left here alone keeping the door open. I know I don't mind staying here with Senpai until it's done. Then we could at least keep each other company and say good-bye to everyone."

[average-adam.livejournal.com]

"Dun't worry 'bout me," he said with a faint smile, touched by Setsuna's gesture. "You go on ahead and I'll make sure everythin' happens that's s'posed to."

[swordandchalice.livejournal.com]

"You stayed with me, though," Setsuna tried to stubbornly argue. "Why can't we just stay with you?"