Brighton Rock!

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And reality snaps...

Thick, black strands of magic held Sinclair fast, preventing him from getting close to Simon. The mage was nearing the end of his ritual, the words ringing out strong and clear. He raised the bloody knife over his head, the air starting to shimmer and hum with power. Fire erupted along the runes drawn on the blood stained floor. Walls of flame shot up all around. A hissing screech echoed in Sinclair's ear as the fire tore through the ropes of shadowy magic holding him, causing them to lose their grip. He took the opportunity and ripped himself free, drawing his guns and charging Simon down.

He hit the edge of the summoning circle just as the flames hit Simon. A brilliant white light burst out from where Simon stood in the centre, swallowing both men up, blinding Sinclair so that he could go no further. When the light cleared Sinclair was no longer in the summoning circle. For that matter he was no longer in the church...or even inside at all. Above him was a dull red sky (sunset or sunrise...he wasn't sure) and around him were tall, dirty buildings.

---

Brighton Pier

Almost...almost...almost... Timothy watched the carefully positioned metal claw descend down into the mass of cuddly toys. He didn't particularly want an angry looking chicken, but after spending more money than he should on all kinds of rubbish in this place it would be nice to actually walk out of here with something.

"Yes!" he said with the claw wrapped perfectly round the things almost spherical body and started hauling it upwards. At that moment, mingled in with all the excitement, there was a nauseating, almost painful jolt, in the pit of his stomach. This was promptly followed by the power to the pier abruptly going off. The lights all went off, the noise of a hundred different machines were silenced, and the claw carrying his prize froze, the fat red bird slipping through its grasp. "No!"

"Attention, this is a security announcement" the loudspeakers throughout the building crackled. "There has been a loss of power to the pier. For health and safety reasons we must ask that you leave the premises immediately. We are sure this is only temporary and the power will return shortly, but for now you must leave the pier."

Giving the machine a resentful glare Tim turned on his heel and joined the crowd heading back towards the beach. At least he hadn't been on one of the rides at the end of the pier.

Geoffrey sat in one of the striped beach chairs, his feet bare among the smooth rocks. He had rolled his trousers up around his ankle to wade in the water. He had changed his mind, however, and opted just to sit and watch the sun set...and the power fade from the pier. It sputtered, burned, faded, like a candle.
He looked behind him, the entire city seemed to be without lights. And in the setting sun, too...

Walking in the shadows of the alleyways as the sun began to set, Satomi sighed as she stood in the shadows and looked upwards to see the entirety of the lights go out with a blink as she watched on. Frowning slightly, she pushed her glasses up before stepping out of the alleyway and into the streets as the sun continued to set.

Sophia had fallen from the huge white horse... down and down and down! She closed her eyes and briefly opened them to see a big pool of water coming at her, she squinted her eyes shut and held her breath.

Really she had only fallen a relatively short distance, but it seemed like more with her eyes closed. She came up out of the water, spluttering and looked around in a panic. She didn't see the white horse anywhere... nor, thankfully, Volundr.

She didn't trust it yet though... he could be anywhere. She saw some people bringing little boats to what appeared to be the end of the pool... the lake? She couldn't tell. She opted to try and swim for the edge of it, crossed the street without even looking either way and ran... surprised to find herself on a pebbled beach. Swallowing hard, she looked around, frightened to be out in the open like this. So she started to run again, feet slipping over the unfamiliar terrain. On and on she ran, just trying to put as much distance between herself and where she had landed as soon as she could.

Eventually she came to a huge structure. A dock? It had a lot of lit up buildings on it, she watched the twinkling lights and listened to the noises, her stomach cramping as the sea breeze carried the smell of food toward her. Then it went dark and she couldn't help looking surprised, standing and staring at it.

((I'll have to write something for Aerona later. I have to get going home, might be on later for a bit, might not. ))

Max paused mid-step, looking around with mild disinterest when the city went dark. Well, this is annoying... He sighed, and dug around in his pockets until he found a flashlight. Convenient things, he supposed, though annoying. At least this model was plastic and waterproof. He couldn't recall just how many times he'd ruined something because he'd not bothered to empty his pockets before he decided to wash his clothing. (Not that he really needed to, but it helped to fit in with the other humans in the apartment building to be seen having his clothes washed. Also, the single girl in the apartment below washed her clothes every Friday and she thought he was very handsome.)

The truck had been battered but in good condition when it pulled into a public car-park. A slim blond teen in tight black jeans and a fisherman's knitted sweater two sizes too big slipped out of the cab. The kid grabbed a stuffed-full bag from the back and hurried away from the vehicle without looking back. As soon as he was far enough away, he spat thickly, once, twice.

There wasn't a store nearby to buy a drink, so something else would have to get rid of the bitter taste in his mouth. Well, the teen thought, might as well light up.

Cursing under his breath, Abel looked around hopefully. A slim black cigarette was tucked between his lips, caught between his teeth, and though his lighter sparked, there was no flame. Disgusted with the cheap make, the teen pitched the Bic down the nearest alleyway and looked around again. The dark did't bother him much, but he stuck close to his stuff anyway. But then -- oh! Glorious, maybe he luck wasn't completely shot. A guy a few years older was walking towards him, holding a dinky little torch.

"Hey, man," he said, hopeful and a touch muffled. He took the clove cigarette from his lips and shouldered his bulging dufflebag to hurry into the path of a passing ginger,

"Got a light?" he asked, smiling a little. He let a little hope bleed into his expression -- he really really needed a cigarette.

@ Beach

((Since I've managed to find one taken at the appropriate time of day...Tada! Brighton Pier at sunset. Well...some of it at least))

Tim decided to head down to the beach for a little while, see if the lights were going to come on again any time soon. Not that he was particularly enamoured of heading back in there to spend even more money. He thought he'd probably used up all his luck this evening in almost winning that toy, and it had still gone completely tits up.

Walking down the steps from the pier he kicked one of the pebbles along the beach as he reached them, watching it bounce over the other stones before it settled. Taking a few steps towards the waves he paused in surprise. There was a girl over there...dripping wet as if she'd just been swimming. But she was fully clothed...He knew Brighton had a reputation for being weird, but he didn't think it was that weird. Maybe she was drunk.

((But bed for me now. Yay for sleeeeeep))

Max stopped, frowning. "Are you talking to me?" he asked, checking over his shoulder just in case the human wasn't, in fact, speaking to him. There was no one behind him, however, so he turned forward again. Definitely speaking to me.

He sighed, the way he'd seen human business men do when they didn't want to deal with idiots, and patted his pockets slowly. "No. I do not have a light, other than this flashlight--" Wait, they call it a torch here, don't they? Stupid human slang, why must it be different? Flashlight in America, torch over here--can't they just use the same words for everything everywhere, like intelligent beings? "Now move. I have places to be and you are in my way."

((He's been living in America prior to his coming here for a few decades, thus his use of American slang/American English instead of British slang/use of English. /bad attempts at clever explanations for my Americanisms.
Also, he's anticipating the sun going down before the lights come back on and making it dark, thus the preemptive use of the flashlight. He'll put it away if the lights come on before the sun's fully down.))

Lorg stood from the snow. The tracks led toward the mountains, and the smell of brimstone was strongest in that direction. He walked that way, tracking the dragon that had attacked Riverwood. He would kill the beast that took his freinds life. The sun glinted off the snow, making him worry slightly. He'd better finish this soon. It had been a while since he'd fed, and soon the sun would begin to burn. He'd have to finish before nightall too, or his inner wolf would escape. Suddenly, the world turned black, and Lorg felt like he was falling. sight came back to him, and he found himslf in the middle of a town, filled with people walking around with swords and axes. Strange. He'd never seen this many people armed, even after the dragons returned. The Dovahkin stood and looked around.

((Ooh Brighton is pretty. Reminds me of one of the old buildings at one of the places at the New Jersey shore. Some areas there have a lot of Victorian stuff.))

((Not sure where Finn would be hanging out. What night of the week is it?)) Maybe he's at the Secret Door... I'll write him later.))

((is there anyone who has space for a few Yanks to crash? Otherwise, I'll have the girls staying with an NPC.))

Teagan and Mo were on Brighton Pier checking out the venues for possible gigs. There were a lot of places with live music, this was the hot spot in a town of hot spots. But they were also enjoying people watching and just getting to know the place.

There were in the UK couch surfing and playing gigs for the summer. Both had dreams of becoming rock stars, though Mo was sure they'd have to come to a parting of the ways at some point. Each already wanted to go in different directions musically, but for now they enjoyed playing with each other and compromising.

They had only arrived in Brighton the day before. They were scoping out the clubs with entertainment, finding out what sort of bands they were booking. Getting names of managers, taking to them right then and there if they could

((Argh. cat stepped on the mouse and submitted the post :( ))

They were out on the street when the lights flickered and went out. The sun was setting, so it wasn't full on dark yet. They stood and watched the sunset wondering what to do.

Abel felt himself prickle at the abrupt dismissal. His lip curled back and he straightened up from the comfortable slump he'd been in -- puffing up, as if to make himself look bigger and more of a threat. Typical Yank, he thought, churlish prick.

He stepped neatly to one side and dropped into a full, mocking bow -- though it might of been because of the weight of his bag more than anything.

"Of course," he said, posh as the newscasters, head bowed enough for his hair to hide his face, "Wouldn't want to keep you, sir." He wondered if he would get away with spitting on his shoes.

Juma was on the graveyard shift when all the lights went out, plunging the station into darkness in some rooms and red light the colour of bad blood in others. He sighed irritably when the lights went out, but no one evacuated the building herre, after two minutes the backup generator whirred into life with an almightly clunk that reverberated around the building and the lights came back on...and with them the phone started ringing. The beat cops would have to be out in force tonight in case people got restless and he had no doubt that firemen would be rescueing people trapped in lifts. It left him uneasy, he'd obviously been spending too much time with Jess dealing with monsters, but he couldn't remember the last time they'd had a powercut that hit the whole city like this.

***

Jessica had gotten of work earlier in the day and picked Mei up as usual, heading down to the pier as a treat, and just like everyone else they'd been herded off the pier when the lights went out. It was absolutely uncanny seeing the pier without lights when normally it was the bright gaudy lights that marked Brighton as well Brighton. She headed down for the beach with Mei, wondering if she could slip into the secret door yet to say hello to Rochelle while they were here but their were too many people on the beach waiting for the pier to start up again they might be seen, so instead she wondered down to the waters edge with her daughter and the two of them started skipping stones.

Geoffrey noticed the woman and her young daughter skipping stones across the water. He smiled, enjoying the scene of parent-child interaction. Being an academic, he didn't see too much of it, he was often cooped up inside libraries. He had no children of his own, and for some reason or other had not been deemed an appropriate adoptive parent.
He sighed, and stayed in his chair, watching the sun sink lower.

Wandering the streets, her eyes constantly moving as she followed the movements of the humans that remained on the darkening streets. Satomi soon reached a parking lot as she followed the flow of humans before it soon trickled to a halt. Two men stood in the lot, one carrying a flashlight. Satomi watched from the shadows in amusement as the younger one bowed down his lip curled back as he seemed to contemplate something.

Max started to go by, before he paused. Something about the human's blond hair... "What's your name?" he asked abruptly, "It's not something stupid, right?" he added. Because if it is, then I'm going to change my mind immediately. "And are you nearly as scrawny as you look?"

Abel straightened up and tensed, his muscles ready for fight-or-flight, with or without the pack on his back weighing him down. Was this creep coming onto him? Because seriously, what the fuck. What the actual fuck.

"....Abel," he said slowly, eyeing Max like he was going to pull a kinfe and go to town at any moment. It didn't even occur to him to lie -- most people thought it was a fake name anyway, so what was the harm? "And I'm not scrawny, fuck you. I'm scrappy."

@ Darkfeather

((Just wondering where Lorg is right now. Did you mean to have him on the University campus outside the city or in the middle of Brighton? Either way there wouldn't be too many folk wandering about with weapons and he would probably notice they looked fake, being an experienced fighter and all))

A few people in Lorg's immediate vicinity gave him a distinctly odd look. He hadn't been there a moment ago. They'd have noticed someone dressed so strangely...Many of them just shook their heads and walked on. He had to have been there and they'd somehow just missed him. Because people didn't just randomly appear. It was impossible.

---

@ Jeze

((Mo and Tig can be crashing with Tim's sister if you like. Or with Grace since Tim's sister is very much taking a back seat but she's an actual character to be used))

---

@ Dark Mysterious Alleyways

This place was unlike anywhere Sinclair had ever been before. On the surface it looked much like any other city back alley. Buildings either side, a generous layer of rubbish scattered across the ground, a little light filtering down from street lights where the alley mouth met a main thoroughfare. But...the light was brighter than any he'd ever seen and completely alien in nature. The rubbish was of a material he'd never seen, bottles made of something other than glass and flimsy things that looked like brightly coloured metallic paper. It was beyond strange.

He had to find out where he was. Then he had to try and find out if Simon was here too and finish the job he'd started. He picked a direction and set off, hoping to hear voices or spot some sort of sign he could use to work things out. It didn't take him too long. A little way ahead, conveniently round a corner, he overheard a group of men talking. In English of all things, but both with a heavy accent. Irish he thought one was...the other he couldn't place at all.

He thought it best to just hang around behind his wall and listen a little more before doing anything. Just in case...

@ Saf

All Grace could do was thank her lucky stars she'd finished her paper work before the power blew. The time it took the generator to kick back in would have been more than enough to completely trash everything she'd been working on this far. She really needed to remember to properly save things as she went along. You'd think University would have drilled that into her head, but apparently not.

Waiting for something, anything, to happen, she was presently attempting to make a paper crane following an online origami guide. It was deadly boring.

"Hallelujah!" she said when the phone finally rang. "D.C Ransom," she said pleasantly into the mouth piece. As the person on the other end spoke she frowned. "I see...someone will be right over." She hung up and tilted her chair back, looking into Juma's office. "Oh Boss! Phone call from the hospital. A John Doe has been brought in looking like someone's set him on fire. Doctors very much suspect foul play."

Max laughed. "Oh, I like that. You're definitely scrawny, Abel was it?" He reached out and plucked the backpack from the boy's person. "This way then, Abel. From the looks of things, you don't have somewhere to sleep and I've decided that I like you. I'll let you sleep on my nice couch for a few days. It probably won't be long, though. Unless you start to bore me. Then I might kick you out. Who knows." He glanced over his shoulder at him, walking away. "Come along now."