Haunted House GP

[londoncallingmods]

 The house doesn't exist, that's the first thing anyone who might find themselves inside it would want to know. Now, you might ask how one could find themselves inside something that doesn't exist, but you'd honestly be better off asking yourself how you could leave something that doesn't exist. After all, ideas and concepts can't be burnt or broken, and you can't breakdown a door that's not there- Or was there and then decided to be somewhere else for a while...

 

You wake in a house though, a house that doesn't exist. A house that defies the laws of reality. There are corridors that go on for days, rooms full of nightmares, and millions of doors that lead you anywhere but out. Trapped inside with you are dozens of other people, all searching for an exit, or an explanation.

 

Behind every door you'll find your darkest fears, maybe even memories you've tried to forget, or secrets you never wanted to share... 

 

(OTA! Here is your first of two Halloween gps! This one is, of course, set in the haunted house where your pup can run into anything you can dream up! Deadly traps! Spooky monsters! An existential crises! Top level your pups waking up or running into danger, and then go ahead and tag other players! Since this is all magic-y and spooky don't worry too much about time lines and who bumped into who first. Only rule is that your pup can't escape until November 1st! Have fun! Also, because there are two GPs going up this week, both are open to new top levels for two whole weeks! And, of course, you can keep tagging long after that if you want. :D I'll post reminders daily on slack.)

Comments

[hardertohide]

"You'd willingly turn your back on information?" Dutch insisted, completely nonplussed. She'd thought they were a lot more alike than this, for all that she hadn't really liked the thought.

[quartermaster_q]

Q was silent for a long moment, then sighed heavily.

"No," he admitted. "If I were the kind to turn a blind eye, I suppose I'd have never dug up Torchwood in the first place."

[hardertohide]

"Right," Dutch nodded, as if this confirmed something she'd known all along. "So. Aliens. What kind?" Were they talking little green men or completely different, non-humanoid lifeforms, here?

[quartermaster_q]

"I've only seen the one- But my understanding is there are many different sorts," Q replied.

[hardertohide]

Because things couldn't ever be simple. "What was the one you saw like, then?" Dutch asked curiously. This was making the time pass, if nothing else. And if she focused hard enough on her curiosity, maybe she could manage to ignore the panic growing deep inside her with every minute that ticked off the countdown.

[quartermaster_q]

"...Vicious," Q replied. "All teeth and dark eyes. It had been captured though. It was in a cage. ...I didn't linger long after that. Didn't much fancy winding up in a cage myself," he added, making it clear he didn't trust Torchwood an inch.

[hardertohide]

That message was received, loud and clear. "And they're the ones covering it up?" Dutch asked, eyebrows raised.

[quartermaster_q]

"They do what they're told- But I've no idea who gives the orders. ...I can tell you it's not coming from any branch of government I work with though," Q replied.

[hardertohide]

"That's insane," Dutch stated with a shake of her head. She was definitely looking into them. Definitely. "Do they only do aliens? Is there a different unit for the supernatural?"

[quartermaster_q]

"I don't know," Q confessed, shaking his head.

[hardertohide]

"I don't understand how they could keep all this under wraps," Dutch stated, leaning back against the wall and staring at the countdown.

Right, no, staring at anything but the countdown.

[quartermaster_q]

Q glanced at the countdown again, then shrugged. "It's remarkable. ...And terrifying."

[hardertohide]

"It's unacceptable, too," Dutch added, rubbing at her temple with one hand.

[quartermaster_q]

"Is it?" Q asked. "Is the world any safer if everyone knows?"

[hardertohide]

"You wouldn't want to turn your back on knowledge, but you want to keep it from everyone else," Dutch challenged, eyebrows raised.

[quartermaster_q]

"I want people to be safe. Sometimes ignorance is a blessing. ...And not everyone can be trusted with the truth," Q argued. "Trust me, I'm all for empowering the people, but- Not everyone is like us. Not everyone can handle it."

[hardertohide]

"Better leave them to get drained by a vamper in a back alley, sure," Dutch replied pointedly.

[quartermaster_q]

"I'm not saying it's ideal," Q assured her quietly. "I'm saying I don't believe it's a secret kept maliciously."

Wrapping his arms around himself, it was clear he was in no mood to squabble over right and wrong, and his gaze drifted once more to the tower that held Bond.

"It doesn't matter anyway."

[hardertohide]

Dutch leaned her head back against the wall, eyes closed, playing with one of her rings. "What doesn't matter is whether their intentions are good."

What didn't matter was that each minute took them closer to death.

[quartermaster_q]

"Dutch, I don't know what that timer is counting down to- Or if my lover is really dead- But on the off chance that this is all real- Could we, perhaps, not spend the last few moments of our lives bickering?" Q asked quietly, looking tired and worn down.

"Please," he added softly.

[hardertohide]

"I can't just - wait it out," Dutch stated, opening her eyes and pushing up to her feet. "There's gotta be a back door." She was headed for her laptop again. "Something we can use." If they were going to die, she wasn't going to spend her last few moments doing anything but trying to fight it.

[quartermaster_q]

Q made no move to help- Honestly, if this was real, he wasn't sure he had a reason to live. Not without Bond.

"We've tried everything," he sighed. "What more is there to try?"

[hardertohide]

"I know you're a genius, Q, but if you think we've tried everything, you're also an idiot," Dutch stated distractedly. She reached into her bag to pull out her second laptop, and started it up as well. There was never a problem without a solution; the only question was whether she could find it before the countdown reached zero.

She was an idiot as well, for having lost precious time giving in to hopelessness.

[quartermaster_q]

Q said nothing to that at first, taking his glasses off and looking at them.

"This is my fault. You shouldn't be here. If we do survive this, I promise I'll not bother you again. Bad luck seems to follow me around," he sighed, slowly getting to his feet and making his way over.

"I suppose we could try and jam the signal- If it's broadcasting one. It looked hard wired though, directly into the wall. I suppose we could try cutting off the power also- If it's truly hard-wired it could be sharing power with the building."

[hardertohide]

Dutch liked this much better than the pity party he'd started off with. "I like that plan. Let's see if there's a way to make it happen."