Um… Daithi… those are kind of, um, ‘robust’ for strwas.
What?
[sub]whisper whisper[/sub]
Oh yeah. I forgot. We don’t usually do that when the calamari is involved. It’s not that it hadn’t occurred to us, understand; merely that it is somewhat… impractical, given the shapes of everyone concerned. And we speak as perople to whom four-dimesional non-euclidean geometry and footy handicapping are easily-handled subjects.
Hey, does anyone else get the feeling like… umm… this is sort of like restarting the “act” *after * climax was achieved?
Ummm, guys?
I can still wiggle the fingers on my left hand…
Hello?
Nah. The preceding events were just unusually-vigorous foreplay. 
:: Sunspace, dresed all in black, enters the room and goes over to Feydeau ::
[sub]Don’t worry, we’re going to get you out of here. [/sub]
:: he begoins untying Feydeau ::
[sub] There has been an administrative error. We only have a little time.[/sub]
:: He frees Feydeau. They move towards the side door, from which a strong smell of brine emanates ::
Yeah, I had kind of forgotten to take scale into account when I was ordering them. I guess I kind of figured that someone here would be able to whip up… oh, I don’t know… kind of an insertable TARDIS or something…
<watching via closed circuit monitor>
<tenting fingers evily>
Excellent…everying is going according to my plan…
re-enters, taps Hal upside the head You took my seat! :mad:
sits self on his lap instead, watches Sunspace in action
Hey! Who told you about my Evil Secret Overlord Chamber of Evil??
Ahh, heckwithit…you’re in here, might as well make yourself at home. Hey, wanna have some fun? Push that red button over there…watch how high those two jump. <evil grin, manic laughter>
pushes red button, :eek: How did you do that?
AAAIIIEEEEE!!!
:: Sunspace and Feydeau jump as a terrible scream echoes through the chamber they just left. In the room they have just entered, the smell of brine is intense. They stand on a concrete mezannine overlooking a large and deep pool of salt water, which occupies most of the room. A hoist and lifting equipment are suspended from the ceiling, and several large vats stand at one side. ::
:: Things move through the water. ::
I don’t want to know what that was we just heard. We’d better keep moving.
:: They move towards another door. ::
Fun, ain’t it? I picked up the console over at Megalomaniacs ‘R’ Us. Got a great deal on it…they installed it and everything. 'Course, I had to have the installers killed, since they obviously knew too much about the Evil Secret Overlord Chamber of Evil.
Now, if you really wanna have some fun with those two, try pulling that lever over there.
Ooh! Do they have a clearance section? 'Coz I’d love to be a small-time despot somewhere, but I have a joint checking account, and, well… Let’s just say Mrs. Lacha would prefer to conquer a small remote tropical island, but what fun is that, lording it over a bunch of wild pigs and savage Bristish schoolchildren?
Maybe I should wait until EatsCrayons holds a rummage sale after her world domination plans seemed to fizzle out and all…
What? You want me to stand on this large red “X” painted here on the floor? OK!
watches as Daithi plummets through the trapdoor, looks back at Hal
Where does that trapdoor lead t–?
sounds of screaming
:eek:
splash splash splash
AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
You don’t understand!
I’m made of sugar and I might melt!
Oh, wait - there’s a little island here. Whew.
Uhh… What’s that sound…?
peers into the gloom
:: Somewhere in the gloom, something begins singing ::
Mariah/
We call the squid Maraiiii-ah/
As we bow before her tentacular glooooryyyy/
And ask for her sacred sucker marrrrkssss…
:: Shocked into silence, Daithi Lacha peers around nervously. There is the sound of a door opening, and the far end of the room is suddenly illuminated. There is little to be seen except a large pool of water and the end of a polished stainless-steel chute projecting through the ceiling. ::
:: Two people enter the dim room. One looks at the other ::
Feydeau, did you hear singing?
:: The door suddenly closes, restoring the gloom. The singing begins again ::
:: All three human occupants of the room scream in unison. ::
on cue
AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!
So, what are we looking at, here? Esoteric Order of Dagon?
btw, nice literary use of Feydeau there; when he comes back, he can script himself, but until then…
AAAAHHHHHHH!!!
The singing! It hurts!!!
:: The three humans look around. There is no obvious source to the singing. but it continues. It grows louder. ::
Mariiiahh!!!/
The mighty squid Mariah!/
We promise obeisance and meaty treats/
To feed her slinky glory!
:: The water in the pool ripples in the dimness. ::
Does anyone have a light? We need to get out of here. Maybe we can get to the door.
:: Cautiously, the humans start to feel their way around the walls of the room. ::
Here - on my keyring - I have a tiny flashlight. The batteries aren’t the freshest, but…
a small blue light shines forth in the darkness
Oh! What’s that glittering over there? Looks like -
…
Hey! The light’s gone out! And where’s that draft coming from?
The singing grows louder
Er… Sunspace… is that your tentacle around my ankle?
:: Sunspace looks down. ::
That’s not a tentacle. It’s a …vine?
:: He looks at Daithi Lacha and Feydeau. Feydeau, however, looks wildly around the room and does not seem to be coherent. ::
Follow me!
:: Pulling Feydeau along, they move towards what is now revealed to be three doors in a row.
The vine, a thin exploratory tendril, is broken off Daithi’s ankle, but a second one quests in their direction, from the pallid vegetation protruding through the gap underneath the nearest door. The three have to step lively to avoid it. They make it to the second door, and cautiously listen at it. Then… ::