999 ~First Nonary Game~ ((1x1 w/ Cinderfall and Sharubii))

[Cinderfall129]

Light jumped slightly at Aoi's sudden outburst, but still remained silent.

Akane blinked up at her brother, and glanced back at the others. One of them spoke up, "We don't know where we are! That's the thing!" He yelled back.

[Sharubii]

"What, then you're suggesting that we all were kidnapped?!" Aoi retorted, his mouth set in an expression that looked uncannily like a snarl. "What would anybody want with a bunch of snotty little kids, huh?!"

"Now, now. Watch your temper."

The voice caught Aoi completely off guard, especially because it was deep and definitely did not belong to a child. His words caught in his throat right before he was about to speak again, and he screwed up his eyebrows in bemusement. When he finally found his voice again, all he could manage was a small "What...?"

From somewhere behind the mass of children, a figure emerged, his arms out to his sides in a sign of peace. "Welcome, children," he said, "to my ship." He wore a long trench coat and a fedora, and had the look of a man in his 30's or 40's. "My name is Gentarou Hongou. I invited you here, so that you might be able to play the Nonary Game with me."

[Cinderfall129]

"What, then you're suggesting that we all were kidnapped?!" Aoi retorted, his mouth set in an expression that looked uncannily like a snarl. "What would anybody want with a bunch of snotty little kids, huh?!"

"Now, now. Watch your temper."

The voice caught Aoi completely off guard, especially because it was deep and definitely did not belong to a child. His words caught in his throat right before he was about to speak again, and he screwed up his eyebrows in bemusement. When he finally found his voice again, all he could manage was a small "What...?"

From somewhere behind the mass of children, a figure emerged, his arms out to his sides in a sign of peace. "Welcome, children," he said, "to my ship." He wore a long trench coat and a fedora, and had the look of a man in his 30's or 40's. "My name is Gentarou Hongou. I invited you here, so that you might be able to play the Nonary Game with me."

Light stiffened as he heard the voice, his blood turned ice-cold. He turned himself towards the voice, "What? What is the Nonary Game?"

Akane whimpered and hid behind Aoi, clutching his arm as she stared at the man. She watched as the the other kids turned their bodies to face him, each gaze had fear in their eyes. And they dared not to say a word as the man emerged from the shadows. "What is the Nonary Game?" She heard Light say in a quiet voice, but loud enough for Hongou to hear.

[Sharubii]

The pressure from Akane squeezing his arm nearly made Aoi flinch, but knowing that it would probably make his sister even more nervous, he stopped himself beyond a twitch and looked at her through the corner of his eyes. He wasn't sure if she was going to look over at him, but he smiled reassuringly nonetheless, and patted her hand.

Upon hearing Light's inquiry, though, he tore his attention away from her and set his eyes on Hongou, his mouth set into a grim line. I'd like to know, myself, he thought, though outwardly he stayed silent.

Hongou seemed pleased that Light had brought the question up, and grinned with sadistic pleasure. "It is a game," he said, clapping his hands together, "where you will put your life on the line."

At that, Aoi did flinch, but still kept his peace.

"But first," Hongou said emphatically, "here's a little history lesson for you children. On April 15th, 1912, the Titanic hit an iceberg and sank not long after. A hole was opened up in its hull, and before long water filled the entire craft." He stopped for a moment, and chuckled at some joke only he knew. "If you're smart enough, you'll have deduced that this ship has already started sinking. The difference in this is, I can control how much water comes out, and I can control when it really does sink."

"So what?" Aoi cried out, his teeth gritted.

Hongou stared at him for a moment, his eyes scanning the boy. "Patience," he said. "You'll have plenty of time to ask questions later. Probably, say, nine hours?"

His resulting grin chilled Aoi's blood.

[Cinderfall129]

Light froze, his blood turning into ice, "Wh-what?!" He opened his blind eyes in horror. He heard the other children talking in protest 'What? That's terrible!' 'Nine hours?! Until what?'

Akane looked up at Aoi, who was smiling reassuringly at her, that made the young girl relax a little. Though she was still nervous and terrified, especially when Hongou gave his blood-chilling smile. Nine hours...nine hours to escape? The thought made Akane shiver in sheer terror.

[Sharubii]

Hongou put his hands up, gesturing for silence. "Now, now," he said in a voice as smooth as silk, "quiet down, or I won't continue." When the general chatter died down to be replaced by a silence heavier than stone, the man nodded. Sliding his hands into his trencher's pockets, he picked up the thread of his 'story'.

"You all have a brother or sister, correct? Well, they're all across the ocean and in the United States, somewhere in the Nevada Desert. The building they're in is called Building Q, and it is an exact replica of this ship, all the way down to the individual items in each room."

But my sister's right here, Aoi wanted to say, but thought better of it. That would surely get them in trouble.

"I assure you all that they're safe," Hongou continued when a couple of the children began to wail. "But it is you who are not." His grin was spreading now, his expression gone beyond maniacal. "Your job is to escape this ship within nine hours. But you're not going to do it alone. You see, I've selected you and your siblings because you all have a profound potential to be able to tap into the morphogenetic field. You're all children, so you might not understand the full explanation, but here is the short version:

"There are two types of people when it comes to morphic fieldsets. They are the transmitter and the receiver. Your siblings in Building Q are the transmitters -- they will go through the building to solve the puzzles, and transmit the answers to you. You, on the other hand, will get their transmissions and use them to solve the puzzles on your end. Do you understand?"

[Cinderfall129]

What?! Clover's in an building, identical to this one?! Light widened his eyes, solving puzzles? With a 'Morphogenetic Field?' What was this man talking about? But, Light nodded nonetheless.

Akane widened her eyes, B-But, my brothers' right here! She screamed in her mind, but she kept quiet, because Aoi was. What's a Morphic fieldset? Akane tilted her head, And we solve puzzles? This man is weird...and creepy...She shivered slightly.

[Sharubii]

It was eerily silent. As Hongou seemed to be waiting for a response from at least one person, Aoi nodded and said, "Y-yeah, I think so." In truth, he didn't really get any of what the man was saying, but he wasn't about to prolong the group's interaction with him.

Hongou bobbed his chin in response. "Good. Now, an explanation on how to play the game."

Finally, Aoi thought sourly.

"On your left wrist, you will find a red watch with a number on it. That number will be a key part in determining how you go through the Nonary Game. Throughout this ship, you will find doors painted with red numbers. For simplicity's sake, we will call them the Numbered Doors." With a smirk, Hongou circumvented the group of children and started down the staircase, flicking a finger towards him. "Come, let me show you."

[Cinderfall129]

What? How to play the game? Light shuddered slightly, but continued listening. A watch on my wrist, huh... Light felt his left arm, sure enough, the thing that was on his wrist from when he woke up was still attached to him. So that's what it is... I wonder what number I am. He thought bluntly, sighing.

Akane blinked, and looked at her left arm as Hongou said 'On your left wrist.' The watch was there, a light green '5' beamed at her. She glanced at her brother's wrist as well, and he had one on too, she just couldn't see the number he had. Akane watched as Hongou started down the stairs, beckoning the children with his hand.

[Sharubii]

(( ;A; Poor Snake ))

Aoi hesitated for a moment before following Hongou, unwilling to let himself be led into a trap. But since he didn't know where the hell he was, nor did he know what the hell was going on, he had little choice but to go along with the man's devices for now. As he started down the staircase, he took the time to look at his left wrist. There the watch was, stark red against his pale skin. It had a brightly glowing '3' on it in an LED display. Three... I wonder what number Akane is, he thought wanly.

When Hongou reached the bottom of the steps, he turned around and stood there, waiting for the entire group to catch up. "Hurry, now," he called, "unless you want less than nine hours to escape."