Clinch River: Minutes Count

Natasha followed Liltotto's direction by the book, standing beside Shirohime to maintain a measure of protection and play the role of safety net. Of course, there wasn't as if she could do much anyway, given the visual obstruction of a large furball creature of Lilotto's own making, blocking the pathway behind them. She couldn't quite agree with Liltotto seeking the peaceful approach here but she wasn't in a position to act given the situation.

Nat was commonly the type of woman who erred on the side of caution and shooting first and asking questions later was well within her line of principles. She welcomed the peaceful approach as much as anybody - hell, fancied herself as somethin' of a pacifist if it was up to her but trying to reason with anything in a place like this? Nah. Something didn't sit right with her about the plan. Ah well. It was in the golden-haired woman's hands now. Whatever was going on in the front, she'd probably be able to handle it.

"I'll follow yer lead, then, Lil. Knowin you', you can probably handle it yerself anyway. That said, don't get too chummy. I get ya' tryin' to take the reasonable approach but nothin' here feels like it has a mind adherin' to logic, least not enough to socialize, I reckon'."

Her eyes widened when she realized that she was not, in fact, dealing with an invisible beast, but rather a submerged one, having very little faith that being grabbed by that thing would just result in a trip. She'd probably be dragged into some inescapable water realm of nonsense, something she absolutely did not want to deal with any day.

It wanted something to grab? Fine. She would stab the end of her rapier down in the hand's path, immediately backing away and hoping it would reflexively grab and yank that down instead, "Hey, cool, that darkness didn't eat you, G? Right behind you!"

Dispelling the beast she created to block the path, she would rush into the darkness with everyone else, but didn't bolt terribly far ahead, "Fuck that, fuck that, absolutely fuck that noise.."

As the hand grabbed at Liltotto's rapier, it did indeed pull it into the apparent depths of its faint little puddles, suggesting a far more concerning creature than otherwise might have been assumed. As the squad moved into the inky blackness on the other side of the hall, it was almost peaceful within, were it not for the almost oppressive, inky black darkness that filled the place, cutting back on much of one's typical spiritual senses.

But, then, a faint light lit up, seemingly quite a few strides away from any of the Vandenreich members. It was either distant or quite small, but it was certainly there, a tiny beacon in this shadowy darkness. Perhaps that only made it that much more forboding, then, that it didn't seem to make much of anything more visible.

And as they stood in that apparent void of light, faint tapping could be heard echoing through the walls, as if both in the same room as them and coming from far outside of it. A clicking, or, perhaps more accurately, a scuttling sort of noise.

Judging by Liltotto's swift return to the rest of the group, Natasha surmised that whatever the golden-haired woman tried to reason with did not accept her peace offering. It was to be expected, of course, but the blue-eyed sharpshooter praised her for the effort nevertheless. As she thought, there truly was no action other than to avoid and eliminate any obstacles in their path. Always worth a shot, though.

These alien creations, seemingly wrought from the otherworldly energy source emanating from this place, were, as she surmised, a incomprehensible mystery, one that filled her with a sense of unease. For a moment, she wondered. What would occur if they came into contact with it? Natasha shook her head. She didn't want to imagine anything grim on their mission. Therefore, only the positives and completing their objective were at the forefront of her mind. And so, falling in line with the group, Natasha would follow the group's pace as she maintained her position alongside Shirohime.

Even amidst the darkness, the woman kept her eyes peeled with her weapons positioned in her hands, ready to fire at anything that might rear it's head in the overwhelming darkness. Azure eyes could perceive a light in the clearing, and yet the sharpshooter's ears could hear a scuttling noise that felt almost eerie, far from the familiar sound of footsteps.

Would it be another creature on the horizon? She wasn't going to wait to find out and so, pulling Shirohime to her side so she wouldn't lose track of the woman - An action taken merely for the sake of knowing that she was keeping pace with everyone else - Natasha would charge towards the faint light, right behind Giselle.

She hated this blackness, the icky surrounding environment which would be unnerving if not for her own stoicism maybe if she was a younger form of herself she might've cowered or been overly trepid about the situation. No, far more concerned with everyone around her moreso than herself and while that was the case to a degree she remained quiet next to Natasha while trying to pierce the darkness with her own sight to no avail.

How unfortunate but ultimately proving to be just another obstacle for them and the goal of success.

Shirohime did however trust in their own autonomy and ability to decide their own priorities at the moment though, taking the Quincy that was hovering next to her the white witch began to lead her towards the light with Giselle. The floating array of spheres that hovered around her on guard and while she did consider whether or not her own powers could potentially make a dent in the darkness around them she decided to avoid testing that theory unless pushed.

It was her own life-force that was being burned to initiate them, and the cost of such a risk was not something she wanted to gamble on. The people close to her wouldn't appreicate it if she threw away her remaining time for such an uncertainty.

As the Vandenreich's operatives moved through the darkness, it seemed as though little was changing. The light did not appear to get any closer, and the sound of scuttling did not quiet one iota. However, eventually that single spot of light had gone out. Not with any flicker, or with a fade, but simply all at once.

For a moment, there was darkness. But it was soon replaced by one more light, then two, and soon there were dozens surrounding them. Beside them, above them, even on the floor below. They went out once, all in unison, and then returned, all at once.

But the room still did not brighten even the slightest bit.

The faint light, which appeared to be a path towards something, had vanished entirely--as if it never was. Natasha paused momentarily, observing her surroundings with diligent eyes, remaining diligently beside Shirohime. Even one hint of salvation seemed to be little more than an illusion by now. Oh well. She hadn't particularly expected things would be easy. Sticking together and remaining as a group seemed to be the most optimal strategy at this point. Lights would appear all around them from every conceivable direction, only to disappear, in unison, the very next movement. It almost felt as if they were being toyed with. The unending noise of scuttling and now an odd lightshow. Were the two connected, somehow? Or was there something else at play? Natasha would slowly resume her stride, holding her spirit weapons at the ready as she looked to the others.