#caelestisevent

The reason was simply, really. When Lorenzo picked out his outfit and donned on his Masquerade mask he didn’t bother to put on his sunglasses or even take his guide stick. So he seemed like any other person out there to those that didn’t know him. That posed as a channel for him to act normal since he didn’t want to go in with his guide stick and accidentally trip anyone. That didn’t mean that he found any joy in the act of politely telling people that he couldn’t see though. Still, Lorenzo went to the Sanctuary Hall right on time and he eased himself into the forming crowd. The selection of beverages were grand and he was more than happy to find that there was the option to mix liquor and blood- all of which were provided by the blood bank of course. 

For now he ordered himself a glass of wine. The blood would come later since he had fed recently, and it wasn’t like he was skittish within crowded areas either. He drank through the first glass rather quickly since the selection he had been given was quite good. 

Henry had gone through one to many drinks in the first hour of the ball and his thoughts were beginning to fog over. He’d flirted with several strangers and even spilled his drink all over the suit of one of them. He was cussed out and others had to practically hold the man back from attacking him. While Henry had been nervous about getting into a fight so soon into the night, the thought didn’t entirely scare him. But even in his mentally incapable state, the familiar knew he needed to slow down or he’d be getting himself in more trouble. He receded to a back corner of the hall where people went if they were done dancing. He definitely wasn't drunk enough to get on the dance floor. Or maybe he was. He’d had about 5 drinks in the span of 50 minutes.

A stranger had crowded into his space without Henry’s knowledge and he glanced up with half-lidded eyes when the man was within arms reach. Whether he was doing it on purpose, or accidentally, Henry didn’t mind the comforting heat. While sober, he probably would have told the guy to back off. “Come here often?” He slurred the words with a smile tugging at the corner of his lips, breath hot in between them. He couldn’t be bothered to figure out who the man was but he didn’t break eye contact- it was easier to look while intoxicated and hidden by a mask. 

Was he security detail for this ball? No, not even a little bit. Not whatsoever. Did that stop him from crossing his arms in front of him, picking out a corner of the room, and guarding it with all his life? It sure as hell did not. For Blue, it was easier to attend events with a large body of people if he didn’t technically attend at all. Who was going to bother a guy who appeared to be working? And since he was, in fact, a bouncer, he was good at looking the part. 

Yeah, he’d seen it coming.

That was a bit of an exaggeration, actually.  If someone had asked him two days ago whether the power would go out, he wouldn’t have been able to say.  But his dreams had been plagued by darkness and a bone-deep chill for almost two weeks now, so he’d quietly been buying flashlights, batteries, candles and matches for the last several days.  Again, that wasn’t to say that he’d actually known what was going to happen.  When the power shut off, he’d felt a thrill of panic run through him just like everyone else.  The lack of air hadn’t helped either.

What it did mean, however, was that he was now slightly better prepared than most people probably were.  Hence why instead of going to the hospital - which he didn’t even need to be psychic to know that it would be overrun with way more people than he ever wanted to deal with in his life - he was curled up in his apartment under three blankets, flashlight and book in hand, with a few candles providing extra lighting.  He fully planned on not moving for several hours, or even as long as it took for the power to come back on.

He hadn’t been expecting the loud knock that disrupted his concentration.  Lowering his book, Skylar frowned at the door.  For a few moments, he deliberated not answering at all, but then sighed and stood up, still wrapped in a blanket burrito.  He waddled his way towards the door, unlocking and opening it just enough to peer out at the person who’d knocked.  “If you want a reading, you’ve got a weird sense of timing for it.”

This was the immediate reaction as soon as his lab suddenly went pitch black. Ethan was in the middle of peering through a microscope into a specimen, specifically a piece of tissue from a dead husk - when the power cut off abruptly. However, what he muttered out loud was more to the fact this would mean everyone would be heading toward Alliance Medical, to his location, for supplies - and no doubt he would have to provide them this amongst other people that worked here. Thinking of the crowds of people he shuddered.

Ethan was used to the dark depths of the ocean, and his eyes were adjusted to that light more than the artificial light provided in the sanctuary, however it did take a few minutes for him to adjust. And in that time Ethan managed to knock over a glass vile that smashed. “OH BOY!” Ethan exclaimed. 

Eventually he fumbled into the emergency cabinet, taking out a flashlight and spare batteries along with a stash of extra capsules of manufactured souls and the medication they needed. Sure enough - he heard the voice of Hal speak, which did not reassure him in the slightest. He was going to get crushed before the night was through.

Ethan headed out into the main entrance where a glow of multiple flashlights beamed in his face and around the Alliance Medical. Backup generators were back on, which he was thankful for - because that would have meant most of his research destroyed. However, it was still submerged in an Abyss he was far too familiar of. All he needed was the feeling of the sea against his skin... breathing in the water into his gills... Ethan took a deep breath in. He missed it. His eyes closed, the walls around them tumbled inward and smashed - water flooded in and consumed everyone and suddenly he was free.

However, when he opened them again it was still the same as it was. Oxygen filled and filled with annoying flashlights and already he could see people crowding around the entrance.

Since everything had already been laid out for others to take, this probably meant he did not need to stay around long. When the crowd started to enter the hallway however, he felt his entire body freeze to the spot. Too many people. “Uh - if you’re looking for flash lights they’re over there,” he pointed across from him. “I think there’s first aid kits, maybe a few blankets too.” He looked down in his hands at the flash light, did he need it? What was he going to do? Some light reading in the dark? That was the only time he really needed it, he could see quite fine. He did however have some extra medication handy. “Look uh- here. You may need this.” Ethan handed a capsule, not his food source, but the one that kept them all from falling to the fate of husks.