[GRO] Guouli Pyrero - Teen

[Hivestuck]

The exterior of The Royal Alternian Punishment Pits was unassuming. The face of the building was large, wide, and nearly featureless. The back walls extended into one of the many cliffs of Busthind. The relatively lack of security measures beyond the building proper indicated the extent to which the complex drilled down into the mountain below. Despite the plain facade, the atmosphere surrounding the facility was heavy, oppressive, and cold.

The public lobby was white and shiny. The bright lighting felt like a harsh attempt at simulating an inviting atmosphere. The designated waiting space featured simple chairs in pristine rows on either side of a low table that was bolted to the floor. All of chairs were empty, save for the one occupied by the receptionist on the other side of a tall counter and an even taller pane of glass. Even sitting, she towered above her station. Her white-collar uniform did little to hide the steel cable muscles that twitched as she acknowledged the visiting trolls. Her lipsticked mouth wrestled briefly with an instinctive frown before righting itself in a welcoming smile.

"Welcome to The Royal Alternian Punishment Pits Visitation and Education Offices. How may I direct you?" Her voice reverberated oddly over the microphone that compensated the thick glass separating her from the rest of the lobby. The words were clearly scripted, but obviously not delivered very often.

Only Gl!tch~ and saihen may post in this thread. Quote the mule for NPC interactions, timeskips, and once the RP is complete.  

[Gl!tch~]

It had started as a simple gnawing at the back of his thinkpan. A thought here and there as he played video games. Or ate cereal. Or the empty moments when conversation lapsed. You couldn't forget an ancestor with a presence like Gangrene, especially after what he did to Leeroi.

Very sick, very twisted. Almost inspirational. And yet, when the masked face flashed in his mind, it didn't feel so good. Not like a difficult boss he hadn't grinded enough for to beat. Well, kind of like that. But worse. Eventually you killed those bosses. They were always right there waiting for it. This guy, though... He got away. He got away, and Guouli didn't do anything. Not a single dent. Couldn't reload the last save.

No. A greenblood made him feel like a bug. And he couldn't stomp the feeling out. Even Bloodfest was only a momentary distraction, and not even a good one. Guouli was, frankly, tired of feeling like s**t. And if Leeroi was more interested in his robotics bullshit, Guo would be happy to prove how much he was capable of on his own. Someone had to bother to follow up on the Gangrene case. An opportunity wouldn't fall in their lap again, that was for sure.
Though, having some muscle around was always good. And he was great for morale, and... Goddammit, if he wasted time on regret, he wouldn't get anything done.

It wasn't like he staked out completely on his own, anyway. That'd just be pathetic. No point in gathering assets if you weren't gonna use them. And what he had was pretty sweet.

Akkira: blind, but good for banter, and could talk to ghosts. Ghosts! Also she apparently knew how to work highbloods. So she had some charisma somewhere deep down when she wasn't being mouthy for a lowblood.

The MO was clear: scout for anything Gangrene had left behind. A royalist facility would have cleaned up the best they could, but if there were any major casualties, their souls might linger. Or something. Guo wasn't super sure how the ghost thing worked in actual practice. But he could hope there would be results. Obviously, since Akkira couldn't see, he'd have to make it clear when he could hear voices versus the ones only Akkira could. A sticking point, but they'd work it out.

They approached the building, though Guo slowed down the more he realized that, yes, this was it. It was the first time Guo gave the Punishment Pits a real good look. "Gotta admit, I was expecting a little more out of it. If you can hear screams of the damned, lemme know." Otherwise it wasn't much to write home about.

But even as he led Akkira inside, a present vibe sent chills up his arms. It might not be a lightning castle, but it was the place. Maximum security. Full of idiots who got caught, but the dangerous kind. Exciting.

He padded through the lobby, close enough to hear the greeting troll. Visitation and Education. Both. Both sounded up their alley.

But he had to check with Akkira before they got to work. "You good?" he muttered to her. "Let me know if we need to hold hands or something so you're not bonking stuff all over the place."

saihen

 

[Blasphemoose]

When Guo had come to her to help with this reconnaissance mission, she was definitely on board really fast. She couldn't really express how excited she was to actually get to visit the 'pun pun pits', but her own excitement aside, she wanted to be at least some use in Guo's search for... revenge? Was it revenge or was it just some sort of thrill seeking? Either way, there they were at the pits.

She could hear a lot. She could hear some moaning and crying, but no screams, not yet. 'Jeez, this place sounds pretty grim with all the moaning and begging...' She thought as she tapped the ground with her new walking stick. "Not so much screams of the dammed, but there is a lot of begging, angry shouting and crying, I guess it must be ghosts if you can't hear it," They should definitely have brought some sort of ghost detection gear, made this like one of those ghost hunter shows she'd heard about. She'd definitely bring this up to him later.

Akkira kept close to her blueblood friend. "Since I've never been here before, it would be a good idea to hold hands, at least for a little bit," she scoffed a bit and waved her cane dismissively "I don't need it, but I'd feel less like I was going to lose you at any second," She said in an equally hushed mutter. Part of it was just gentle teasing, of course the other part of her statement is that she wanted Guo to remain close so that if anything happened, like a break out, then she could try to give him some quick cover. But, she would affirm, this was not paranoia, "But, yeah, I'm good for now, lets get this show on the road,"

Gl!tch~

 

[Gl!tch~]

"Isn't that basically what souls of the damned do?" Guo quipped, just because he always had to fire off a comment. He didn't, however, have anything to say when she brought up worries (real or not) about losing him. Maybe Akkira wouldn't worry at all, whatsoever, if she could, well, see. Because this wasn't the spooktacular thrill he was hoping for.

Guo took her free hand. He leaned in. "We're in a lobby. There are chairs and a receptionist. Real underwhelming. No real dungeon vibes, except for what you hear, I guess. But on the uh, living plane, they probably won't let us in anywhere real bad. That's kinda the point. The worst that could happen is if I forget to tell you I'm going to the bathroom. And now I'm gonna try to get us in."

With that, he went to get the attention of the receptionist, with the intent of bringing Akkira with him.

He approached the counter. Time to work some charm. "Hi there! We've never been here before, and obviously wouldn't want to do anything against the law, but would like to learn more about the Punishment Pits! The history and stuff. How would we go about doing that?" Guo put on his most winning smile.

Hivestuck

 

[Hivestuck]

The receptionist made no indication she heard the other trolls murmuring to each other, or if she did, she vehemently didn't care. Apathy aside, she watched them both carefully for a relevant response to her greeting.

Guouli came through for her. She glanced over his symbol and her eyebrows twitched in what might be interpreted as an approving manner. Given ample time to prepare a reaction, her response was prim and friendly.

"Of course! You've come to the right place. It's always nice to see the youth of Alternia take an interest in matters of law enforcement." Her gaze swept over Akkira briefly, but curiously before returning to Guouli. "If you are acquainted with a particular troll being held at this location, you may schedule a supervised meeting. However, we also offer generalized tours to those looking to learn more about the Alternian incarceration system. Am I correct in assuming you'd like to participate in the latter?"

Gl!tch~

saihen

 

[Blasphemoose]

Gl!tch~

Akira mostly listened. She thought Guo's wording could have been better, definitely could have made it more convincing, but what did she expect from someone who really didn't need to manipulate his surroundings on a night to night basis. He was inexperienced and besides, he probably soaked this up like a sponge.

Akira put on the biggest smile though, "Wow, an actual tour?" Off somewhere she heard some kind of whimpering and a whisper next to her head, but ignored it. It wasn't her time to shine yet. "I'd kinda like a tour, what do you say captain?" The redblood asked gently nudging her friend.  

[Gl!tch~]

'Matters of law enforcement'. Yeah, sure. He had to clamp his mouth shut over a very snide comment about how that fell apart in the Gangrene break-out. Sugar over vineger. Right. Not as fun, but he was here on business.

Akkira piped up next to him in the meantme. He couldn't help but raise a brow at her nudging. Still, the acting was better than the s**t Leeroi tried to pull in the past. "Y-e-s, that sounds like a...very informative experience! She's down, I'm down, let's do it! When do tours start?"

Hivestuck

 

[Hivestuck]

The receptionist didn't even look in Akkira's direction as she spoke. Her response to Guouli, however, was quick, if not slightly clipped.

"Tours are upon request. Typically we would wait regular intervals for more interested parties to arrive in order to conserve time and trollpower." The receptionist's eyes flickered over the desolate waiting room. The woman visibly twitched.

"...Yeah, that isn't happening. Hop to it kiddies, we're gonna go look at some unfortunates." The receptionist stood with a grunt. For as tall as her position behind the desk was, the troll herself was much taller. The name tag adjacent to the symbol on her uniform read "Ammura Talion". Muffled keys jangled and a section of the counter dislodged. Ammura pushed her way out from behind the barrier, replacing the desk behind her.

The adult twirled her literal jailer's ring of keys on a finger. She led the way towards the heavy door at the back of the room. With more shuffling and a surprising amount of force, Ammura pulled the door open and held it for the kids.

The hallway beyond was plain. It was anticlimactically so for how severe the door appeared. Ammura's expression as she lead the pair down the corridor was equally nondescript.

"Don't expect the s**t I'm about to say to be accurate or very well rehearsed. We got half the staff we should right now and corporate executions officer's got me on temp duty." Ammura droned while turning the corner.

The hallways began to zig-zag, and soon stairs were thrown into the mix. The group was being led far below the main lobby. Ammura's pace was consistent, but swift despite her shiny heeled shoes. The definition of her calves looked fit to tear holes in her pantyhose. With all the staircases, it was hardly surprising.

"Look alive. We're about to enter our first real checkpoint. Any weapons on you?" She asked with a cutting expression. "...Nah. I'm just ******** with you. You didn't bring a rocket launcher; you can have whatever knives you got on your person. Won't make a lick of difference. You try and pull something on me: I toss you over the railing. You pull something on one of these animals? Well, you'll probably still get tossed over the railing, but points for trying, I guess."

Ammura pushed open the next door. Rather than another hallway or staircase, there was a room on the other side. One could describe it as "well-used," according to the bleached stains on the floor. The room was lined with heavy counters. Bolted to their surfaces were stacks of technical equipment. The least cryptic in design appeared to be used for scanning objects.

A couple heavily armored guards sat among the machines. They straightened upon seeing Ammura, who nodded at them.

"This room monitors everyone going in and out of the primary hall. Visitors, at least. We got a whole other system dedicated to scanning the intake and output of prisoners. If you're lucky, you won't be seeing that part." Ammura gestured loosely to the equipment. One of the guards was fiddling with a mechanical arm fitted with a camera lens. "Confiscating weapons is a waste of time in a facility like this. Anyone here could break a skull with their bare hands, much less their horns, prosthetics, improvised weaponry, or psychic powers. What this room is for is determining what we're dealing with and planning effectively."

The guard with the camera apparatus motioned to their partner. They stood from their seat and looked over the other's shoulder. The machine was pointed at Akkira.

"Metal detectors are an obvious example of what we're fitted with. We've also got equipment that picks up noteworthy chemical compounds, heat signatures, sound waves, and other such things. There are other scanning tools placed throughout the compound. This just happens to be the most direct usage."  

[Blasphemoose]

Gl!tch~

"Oh," Akkira was just a bit dismayed about the weapons thing and held up her walking stick. "Okay, look this doesn't count as a knife but it is a weapon," she held up her sword. "I mean, I guess a sword is sort of like a giant knife but not really." The only other thing she had was her headdress with it's healing properties. She wasn't sure if that was something that would get flagged or not but whatever.

The biggest problem though, was how they were going to interview anyone for any information on gangrene. It would also, probably, help if she could see what was going on instead of hearing it. "Hah, I guess I owe ya Guo, sure sounds like one hell of a place to be," Akkira refrained from speaking so that Guo could lead the mission.  

[Gl!tch~]

Unfortunates. Guo was tempted to mouth the word in glee. Dumb idiots who got themselves caught, more like it. A max security place doing tours after a screw-up was admittedly kinda badass. He had to respect them for that much.

Even as they continued on, Guo tugging Akkira by the hand, the place didn't look like a horror game. He knew it was dumb to hope, but he wanted the full aesthetic so bad. A boy could dream.

He froze up at the checkpoint, especially at the weapons question. s**t. He sure was carrying a knife or two. Guo was still a little off-put after Ammura let them off the hook, and had to shake it off. She was good. Still, a threat tempted him to punch her just because she told him not to. Business. Business! They were on business. There were probably plenty of others in the world he could jump at for goading him like he couldn't leave a mark.

It helped Guouli to ground himself by rolling his eyes while Akkira blabbed about her sword. "Tell her you're a redblood while you're at it." He wasn't sure if Akkira was serious or playing up her position or what. "It's definitely a hell of a place where they probably got everything about us pinned, down to the kind of fabric we're wearing."

He pointed at the camera and looked at Ammura. "So, Miss Talion, the thing you're pointing at my friend here, is that just for security footage or is it doing the scans you talked about?" Or: Kiri can't tell you're doing that s**t and it's kind of sneaky of you to not let her know, a*****e.

Hivestuck

 

[Hivestuck]

Ammura was all but tapping her foot in terms of how ready she appeared to move on. She raised her eyebrows upon being addressed by Guouli, but her eyes stayed half-lidded. The guards behind the machine paid the children no mind. The machine made a series of soft clicks. Ammura looked over at her coworkers.

"Both. It's a security measure that scans for subtle disturbances in the atmosphere caused by trolls with abnormally prominent brainwaves. It detects psychic powers." Ammura nodded to the two guards.

The guard that had been leaning over the other returned to a normal, if not casual, standing position. They were wearing a full face mask's worth of eye and respiratory protection, but seemed tickled by the idea of participating in the tour. The sitting guard continued to fiddle with whatever data was being presented on the opposite side of the scanner.

"Everyone's thinkpan generates waves when it, well, thinks. The frequencies of those waves correspond with different levels of consciousness--wakefulness, sleep, meditation, fear, et cetera. Some trolls produce more powerful waves that are capable of interacting with the environment. It's kind of like echolocation if you think about it. Except sometimes it's not just picking up sensory information. Sometimes it's starting fires." The guard cast another glance over at what the other had typed on a nearby monitor.

"Looks like our little lady here has particularly strong low-frequency waves. What's that... Theta..? I'd guess whatever you're capable of happens primarily on a subconscious level. Possibly empathetic in nature?"

Ammura cut in before the other troll could continue much longer. "It's not gonna tell us whether or not you can shoot laser beams outta your teeth, but it can give us an idea whether or not someone is predisposed to active or passive abilities. Let us know if extra body armor is required."

Ammura cast the guards another pointed look. Without missing a beat, the second guard reached across the counter and flipped a switch. The sound of an enormous deadbolt unlocking thudded behind the door into the next room.

Gl!tch~

saihen

 

[Gl!tch~]

Guo listened with a little more interest than he'd otherwise admit. Powers were, at the end of the night, pretty freaking rad. Even if they were for things he couldn't see, like Akkira's. Irony.

He let go of Akkira's hand and folded his arms nonchalantly behind his head. They got her pegged pretty quick. But nothing specific. I swear to god, Kiri, don't blow it now. These people didn't need to know what she could do.

"Last time I checked she couldn't shoot laser beams. Good thing, too. Blind girl lasers would be the worst. I think we're cool. Right, Kiri?"

saihen

Your friend is an a**, Akkira

 

[Blasphemoose]

Gl!tch~

Akkira was starting to get this impression that she was being somewhat targeted. Not by an actual system, she didn't know what was going on until Guo said something. Actually, now she was starting to feel a bit like they were specifically treating her differently from how they were treating Guo. She wanted to pipe up about it, but kept her mouth shut.

"What? So like, you were scanning me for powers or something?" She was thankful Guo had said something or she could have seriously slipped up. "Well, I don't know, If you say so?" Empathetic in nature? So they could tell that much but not what exactly, "I don't know, I haven't noticed anything... like I can't make fire appear or anything like that, are you sure that thing is working right?" she let a broad grin cross her face and laughed.

"Yeah, I'm good to go if you are, these guys are pretty funny though," She tilted her head just a little bit, "Damn, I mean come on powers on top of being blind?" Akkira let out a chittering laugh. Mostly she was trying to play up that she was stupid and unaware, though she was perfectly aware. " Sounds like a plot from a movie or a game,"  

[Gl!tch~]

Okay, now Akkira was just starting to shoot her mouth off a little. "I'm sure state of the art tech wouldn't screw up." Or, you're still a redblood, dial it back a little, maybe. To be fair, guo would love to hae a good time ragging on these people. But maybe not when they had work to do? Yeah?

Still, he had to smile at her last comment. Okay. He could banter with that. "I mean we're basically in a movie. The one with the serial killer advisor? s**t, did I remember to tell you that one was in a max security prison? Cuz it was. Anyway, I'm guessing we won't get to talk anyone behind bars while we're here. Might be a little too intense. Anyway." He looked at the door that was on its way to being unlocked.

"I'm guessing we go there next?"

Hivestuck

 

[Hivestuck]

Ammura looked as put-off as ever, but her expression was now less annoyed and more... perhaps "confused" was too strong of a word. Regardless, she didn't appear familiar with how to deal with Akkira's particular brand of dialog. If it wasn't already apparent, the pair's tour guide was on loan from a very, very different department. She blinked slowly and directed the group's attention to the next hall. It was much shorter and far more fortified than the previous architecture. The thick steel frame looked more at home on a ship than a building. The hallway terminated at a mechanical door that was already in the process of unlocking remotely.

"Funny you should say that," Ammura commented in a tone that indicated she didn't find it even a little funny. Her heeled shoes clattered against the metal floor. The door finished sliding open in time for her to walk through without slowing. "Watch your step and stay away from the gates. The walkways are wide for a reason. The bars are too close for wandering arms, but you never know what stunts some of these bent-panned jester stains are willing to pull."


The Punishment Pits were known as such for a reason. The mouth of the hall emptied into a literal cavern. Specifically, Ammura had walked out onto a platform. It was one, continuous stretch of grated metal that ran, seemingly endlessly, in both directions. It spiraled up and down the hollow tower within the mountainside. Rows of dim fluorescent wall lights flicked on in time with the group's approach, and off with their departure. The echo of distant voices was the only indication of just how large the space was.

The walkways were lined with tall, sturdy handrails. Opposite them, were cells. The enclosures were walled off with the bars Ammura had mentioned moments earlier. They were metal, but dark, and with an odd sheen indicative of some material other than steel. The cells themselves were uneven, but approximately rectangular in shape. They appeared to have been carved directly into the walls of the cave.

Most of the cells were dark, though some had small personal lights illuminating the trolls within. The cells were bare save for the basest of ablution amenities and a couple recuperacoons. The recuperacoons were hardly even that. They more closely resembled moist cots for how thin and shallow they were. Most were occupied, regardless--likely for lack of anything more engaging to do.

Ammura led the tour down the incline of the path. She stayed true to her own advice and walked at the far edge of the platform. She made no motion to look into any of the cells, despite actively talking about them. She dryly explained the history of the Punishment Pits, the dimensions of the cells, the types of crimes one would commit to be delegated to the various levels. The trolls in the immediate surroundings were revealed to be small-time, with transient sentences. Low aggression. Weak powers. Accidental offenses, or ones that just weren't particularly well thought-out.

Almost every visible troll was a lowblood.

Most trolls avoided eye-contact with the tour group. Some stared intently as an attempt to intimidate, or perhaps win sympathy. Even the smallest inmates looked aged. Haggard. The cheap, inconsistent lighting didn't help. Ammura passed them by without comment.

"...Obviously, the lower the level, the more heinous the crime. Couple dozen flights of stairs are as cheap as security measures come..." Ammura droned on.

Gl!tch~

saihen