Donald
○ Though the power was back on in the Cradle, things hadn't stopped being weird.

□ The electrical sockets popped and crackled. Lights flickered near the computer lab, dimming and then outshining the sun in a random cycle. The air itself hung heavy with malevolent regrets, and betrayed souls; an amorphous darkness hung out in the far corner. Whispering to itself, not a single word that left its "Mouth" Was intelligible beyond the base recognition that yes, the Cradle's own phantom was speaking the King's language, and it was a fact that likely contributed to the lab being entirely empty at 3:30 on a Tuesday afternoon.

▪︎ The air hung heavy with the stench of television static, sulfur, and burnt rubber. Something was amiss. Something that could have drawn any curious souls in. After all, who could resist a good mystery?
Richard
Just a little busy today
Robert
*Sigma* Immediately *Smelled something burning and rushed toward the lab.* "Fuck, this better not be expensive-" *They opened the door - carefully, in case there was a full electrical fire in the room, but still with speed - and had a quick change of emotion when they saw what it really was. Anxiety turned to a mixture of dread and morbid curiosity as they entered and closed the door behind them.*

*The first thing they checked was to make sure that there was, in fact, no full fire, and as soon as that was confirmed they loaded up one of the computers in the lab, plugged in their flash drive, and stood up to face the darkness in the corner.* "So, what are you in for?"
Donald
○ Just as Sigma gazed into the void, the void gazed back.

□ Initially, its gaze was pinpricks of white. Dots in its "Face;" Needles in haystacks. They pierced directly through Sigma with their intensity, and the mass of the darkness itself shifted uncertainly, as if it expected to be harassed or attacked. It watched Sigma intently as they worked at the computer, and once addressed it moved back slightly.

▪︎The air itself hung heavy in the moment or two that followed. 

◇ Unfortunately for Sigma, the first utterances out of Armando's mouth were nigh unintelligible. Mere fragments of coherent speech, much of it was demolished by anguished screeches and a sound somewhere between a roar and a gurgle. Of course, though, a little was clear; **["YOU..."]** Its voice cleared up about halfway through its gurgling, greenish-white eyes forming where the pinpricks had been before. **["STAY BACK."]**
Robert
"Man, and people call *Me* The ghost in the machine." *Sigma sighed and stretched, then did as the distortion asked and took a step back.* "This is a pretty good place for you. Just don't destroy any of the computers, okay?" *They pulled up a document on the computer and started typing out some basic details about Armando.* "You're Armando, right? Heard a bit about you from some people. Thought you'd be more... Physical?"
Richard
◇ Armando didn't respond.

□ Instead, it simply continued to glare at Sigma, its jagged eyes piercing through their skin and seeing directly into their soul. Almost like a cornered animal it simply seemed to be looking for a way out, a chance to escape, to be left to its torment and turmoil in peace, yet no way out seemed to exist. Not a safe one, at least. Conflicted, it grumbled in a garbled mess for a few good moments as Sigma poked around at a nearby computer, almost as if it were debating with itself whether to open its "Mouth" Or not.

▪︎ Eventually the air itself shifted away from burnt plastic and the staticky moment right before a lightning strike towards something closer to a cold sauna.

■ **["WE WISH."]** Armando choked out, twin voices tearing each other asunder as it spoke to them. A few moments of garbled speech followed as it got its words together. **["WHY ARE YOU HERE. YOU. STAY AWAY. FOR YOUR OWN SAKE."]**
Robert
"Don't worry, I'm not coming closer." *Sigma comforted.* "You *Are* In a public area, though. Can't really blame people for entering." *They chuckled a bit and typed out a few further details - specifically noting the change in the air.* 

"You wanna go somewhere people don't go, I take it? Be alone for a bit? Maybe I can help you find somewhere. How do you get around? Traveling through electrical sockets, teleporting...?" *They looked up from the computer and to Armando, squinting a bit.*
Donald
**["IT IS NOT THE ENTERING."]** It growled back, albeit hesitantly. Its eyes also shifted slightly, from fierce wide-open wintergreen to a slightly more relaxed yet still intensely focused dull green, almost as if this stranger's continued attempts at assuring it that they meant no harm were getting somewhere. At the question it "Scoffed;" Hardly more than a percussive grumble. **["IT IS YOU FOOLS. YOU DON'T KNOW HOW TO LEAVE A SKELETON ALONE."]**

□ Barked out with the sort of franticness usually reserved for the desperate and panicked, it retreated a little further, crawling up the wall slightly like a cat backed into a corner. Its eyes didn't change, but the air did. It crackled fiercely at times yet fell serene and near-disorientingly quiet, like the non-stop flipping of a coin. As Sigma spoke Armando simply stared. **[gm note: rolling Perception here may glean new details. It would be B3 if you wish.]** It stared, and let out a noise that sounded faintly like a sob.

▪︎ Whatever it was, this thing was *Tortured.* Tortured and ready to combust at any time.

◆ **["WISH. WE JUST. . ."]** It fell silent for a few moments, eyes dull in shade yet frantic in its hunt for an escape. **["NO. NO... CLOSER TO WORMHOLES."]** It clarified, twin voices once linked up now echoing out quite differently. **["DARKNESS IS OUR MEDIUM. TRAPPED LIKE THIS. WE FORGET HOW SUNLIGHT FEELS."]**

▪︎ Its eyes narrowed and fixated themselves on Sigma's hands. Curious, yet with a certain restrained fury. Weird.

★ **["WHAT ARE YOU TYPING."]**
Robert
*Sigma glanced back to the screen, then looked back at Armando.* "Stuff about you. Just notes. I'd do it for everyone but most of the time I don't have a computer when I meet them." *They took a moment to consider whether or not Armando posed a threat to their writing - specifically wondering, if they did anything to the computer, would it also destroy the flash drive? They chose to just address it.* "If you're considering destroying the computer or anything, you should know I've already memorized everything on here and everything on my flash drive. You'd just be causing unnecessary damage." *They typed another line.* "And this is all for my personal reference, anyway. There's nobody I'd care to tell this to."

*Sigma stepped back in case Armando did try to do anything to the computer (specifically hoping that it wouldn't end in an explosion or a fire) and then took a moment to consider Armando's words. The powers people had here at the cradle were interesting, to say the least, but none of them quite compared to Armando in Sigma's mind.* "So are you not able to go outside at *All*?"
Donald
☆ [Last Reply for the night. Scene will continue tomorrow. Props to Elliott for help with dialogue, lol.]

◆ **["IT'S A FOOL'S ERRAND."]** It yelled back. **["NOTHING OF THIS IS FOR YOU. YOU ENDANGER YOURSELF AND YOUR LIFE."]**

□ Once again the eyes shifted slightly, and with this shift came a bit of a spectrum. Greenish greys mingled with the kind of vivacious blues only seen in Caribbean tourism photography, infrequently alternating between the former and the latter. Mostly Armando simply seemed to be defensive, trying to push Sigma away, but if Sigma stared into its "Face" They'd begin to see two souls interlaced like drama masks. Neither were clear – rather more like impressions of faces through fogged windows – but they'd be able to at least *Perceive* Two faces, one with its mouth cut into a deranged grin with wide eyes, and the other looked absolutely dejected, with sorrowful eyesockets and a deep frown. These faces mingled and alternated, occasionally dissolving into mush before splitting apart again.

▪︎ This Rorschach visual kept up as it opened its mouth.

◆ **["WE CANNOT, IT'S-..."]** Peculiarly, its voice suddenly dropped in intensity and volume. **["It's been this way. Ever since we got sealed."]**
Robert
*Sigma shrugged at the first response; they answered it by writing a couple more things down, then did a page break and continued their notes.*

*Upon hearing the final words, Sigma stopped in their tracks and stood back up to full height, looking dead into Armando's faces.* "...Sealed." *Sigma wrote down the one word on a line of its own.* "You know... Most of us are trying to figure out what happened to you. Trying to figure out how to help you." *They said.* "We went looking for some files based on the things... You sent, I believe, unless there's something else in the system. We - or at least I - want to help.

"You say sealed. You choose that word intentionally. If there's anything you know that will help..." *Sigma trailed off. They left the document alone, the text cursor blinking on the screen as they fell into silence.*
Donald
◆ **["Yeah. Sealed."]** The spot spoke back, its now-blue eyes fixed directly on Sigma. A second pair of eyes leered on from behind, fierce verdant ovals blazing with the fury of a house fire and about as much trust as a feral cat in the hands of a particularly stupid child. **["It was meant to be a temporary fix. But... You can tell things didn't go how we expected."]**

□ *Expected.* Even with every word out of Armando's mouth being deliberately chosen and mulled over in its throat, that one word might have stuck out. However, it didn't linger on the word for very long, and instead shifted around a little bit in its dark corner, the air around it popping and cracking like pig skins under a broiler yet stinking of nothing but burnt rubber and the weirdly mismatched smell of fresh-brewed orange pekoe tea. Armando could be heard grumbling to itself for a couple of moments, and then it opened its mouth once more.

◆ **["You say you found files. Are any of them to do with a Hayley LaFontaine...?"]** It asked. **["She..."]**
Robert
"Yes." *Sigma bent down again and wrote a few more things - highlighting specifically the word "Expected" As it once again seemed deliberate in his mind.* "We looked through the library for a bit. Most of the files were damaged by water and time, but it was there. And in surprisingly good shape." *Sigma roused his mind and scanned it for the memories of the file he had read on Moru's phone, splitting those of Hayley from those of the others.* **[Going to roll for the Prepared bonus in
Richard
Fuck sakes lmao, yeah]
Donald
◆ **["HER."]** At the mere confirmation of that one specific file being found, the kinder blue eyes were forcibly shoved away, wrathful swaths of greens and reds replacing it. **["SHE PROMISED US WE'D BE SAFE. SHE-... She Tried."]**

□ Retreating a little further back, the shadowy mass that the Cradle's befuddled, fascinated, or outright terrified residents – a glance in any direction would turn out a salad of the three – slunk ever further up the wall. Like sand piled against a barricade on the beach it leaned inwards, wide base and furious eyes glancing all about. The scent of burning rubber was joined by solder wisps and cigarette smoke left to stale in a hot car for a week, and the next few moments were a rather tense mish-mash of eyes and murmurs as Sigma looked at their phone.

▪︎ The blue poked through a little, surrounded by the malevolent wrath of the binary system's supernova.

◆ **["Sorry. Hopefully one day we'll be able to explain this right. Just... Get out, kid. You aren't safe. Promise."]**
Robert
"You need a safe place to stay. This... Probably isn't it, since it's so public," *Sigma said, leaning in to the computer,* "So you should probably find a better place. If you're interested, I keep my room cold and dark because I have computer stuff set up. It's a double dorm and I'm the only one in it so I could put up a little divider and give you privacy if you wanted it. Whether or not you wanna take me up is up to you, but once the people who take care of the lab catch wind you're in here, they probably won't be too happy.

"Oh, and I'm not really worried about you hurting me. You don't seem like you're gonna lash out like a cornered animal. Even if you do look like one right now. *Sigma grinned to himself.* "What, you have the powers of some of the other people who have... Touched you? If I'm not scared of them, I'm not gonna be scared of you."

*Sigma took a moment to bring forth the memories of the file he had seen, all of the information he had memorized about Hayley LaFontaine. He placed his hand to the screen and tapped it twice, and in a moment began using his power, CTRL+V, to transfer said memories to the screen. He needed to put it onto the flash drive, anyway, so this was a good time.*

**[I figure a roll for CTRL+V is in order, especially given this is pertaining to event information. So just lmk when]**
Donald
◆ **["I wish it- IF ONLY IT WERE THAT SIMPLE."]** It snarled back, the sheer fury within winning out over the peaceful free agent that seemed to be rummaging around inside. **["YOU DO NOT KNOW WHAT WE ARE CAPABLE OF. LEAVE THE DEAD ALONE."]**

□ At this point Armando – or, rather, one of the entities comprising it – seemed totally done with the line of inquiry. Peculiar to be hung up on such a name, perhaps, but details weren't exactly its strong suit. It almost seemed hurt at the mention of the name, and fell into a wrathful silence, stewing like a kettle cooker bomb primed to explode any second and only occasionally looking at Sigma.

▪︎ Sigma, however, would find that the interference from Armando's power siphoning nullified any attempts to transfer this information. It'd feel as if it were stuck at their fingertips, like pimples just below the surface, primed to burst yet never gifted freedom.

◇ Needless to say, it wasn't a good time for anyone. Sigma would need to navigate carefully from here on out.
Robert
"Right." *Sigma stepped back, putting both hands up in a sign that he wasn't going to continue or do anything.* "Thought I'd offer. Apologies for prying." *Sigma exhaled slowly.* 

"Permission to at least save the file that I have already? Or if not, at least eject my flash drive?" *He asked Armando, moving a hand to the mouse.*
Donald
◆ **["LEAVE. THE DEAD. ALONE."]** Armando replied after a couple of tense moments, voice warbling with anger and the terror of twin voices ripping each other to shreds. **["LEAVE THEM A-... Just get out. Please. You really aren't safe."]**

□ One last flash of blue spoke the words, then was swept up into the nebulous storms of greys and blacks and greens and reds as if they were hurricanes over Fort Lauderdale at Christmas. With it came a lot of crackling and popping and the same acrid putrid scent that seemed to follow it around in its miserable torment, and before Sigma knew it Armando raced past them, so fast it was barely a blur. As it raced past though something formed out of the darkness: a head, on its back, looking towards Sigma with sunken eyesockets. It was only there for a second, dissipating like smoke afterwards, and Armando peeled off entirely afterwards, leaving Sigma to deal with the aftermath.

▪︎ It smelled like shit in the computer lab. Several computers had been more or less destroyed from the inside out. But they'd gained something: knowledge. Maybe that'd be enough to sate their curiosity.
Robert
"Shit." *Was all that Sigma said for a moment as Armando left. The silence that followed was deafening, until Sigma's thoughts broke it up - at least for him. "God, they're gonna make me fix all this, aren't they? Man, and they know I did tech repair, so they're going to expect me to be able to do it well and do it cheap..."*

*Sigma sat down in the chair in front of the computer he had been using, the monitor a mess but still functional enough that he could save the file to his flash drive and eject it without corrupting the data. Assuming Armando's escape hadn't corrupted it already. As Sigma finished his work, he walked out of the lab and pulled out one of his phones out, calling a contact.*

"Hey, mom? Yeah, I might need some extra parts."