I2: For Science and Scooby Snacks

[Alex Maurell]

Slowly the door to the ruined cafeteria swung open. Truly it shouldn't have been open this time of night but he wouldn't blame kitchen staff for not caring, given the mess they were left with. It really was all over the place, on the walls and floor. Like a food bomb had gone off. Still, perhaps he could find some clues to the events that were happening around here. For science reasons of course.

Using some of what looked like eggs from the wall as material, he created a small swarm of insects, "Alright, full sweep, make note of anything unusual." He may not have a smartphone but thankfully the slide-phone he did have allowed him to make voice recordings for notes. "Dining Hall, source of the latest of the weird event around campus. Three other students who were witnesses, said there were something akin to mutated moles present who escaped underground toward the see. This event appeared to be a prank. Using bugs to sweep the dining hall, will move on to the kitchen next." He paused the recorder and walked around slowly, looking for anything that stood out.

(Open to all)

[Narrator]

The bugs...were freaking out.

A little bit. Nothing too major, and nothing Alex couldn't get under control, but something apparently smelled off, and it wasn't the rotten eggs.

[Alex Maurell]

Well that was interesting...

He paused in his steps, eyes slipping closed as he tried to focus on the scent, refocus the insects to their task. What was off about it? Burnt, sweet, sulfur, ozone perhaps? He also tried to narrow down where the scent was strongest.

[Narrator]

It might be a cop-out, but it was different in an entirely different way.

To put it in terms of a metaphor, it would be like biting into a steak only to have it taste like cheesecake. There's nothing bad about the taste of cheesecake, but it doesn't belong there.

Similarly, whatever it was the bugs were sensing wasn't wrong in the sense that it was bad. It just...didn't make sense in context. Something that had been here just was off. An intense feeling of not belonging there.

[Alex Maurell]

He opened his eyes, frowning at his inability to pinpoint exactly seemed off about the smell. Still he hit the record button on his phone to make note, "Note, the insects found the a scent that was off in the dining hall. It made them go nuts for a little while. But I was unable to figure out what was the scent or it's point of origin." He paused again, putting the strange scent aside to see if their were any other physical clues he could pick up on.

[Narrator]

Physically, he could inspect the traps that had sent pies at peoples faces.

Mechanically, they were quite simple--almost like primitive forest snares. The intriguing thing is that it required bending and re-shaping of metal, and there were no obvious marks of tools or other things to ACCOMPLISH the bending. There should be some kind of marking or SOMETHING where whatever it was bent and twisted the silverware and other kitchen appliances, but it was lacking toolmarks of any kind.

A similar situation was with the crossed-wiring that rigged everything up to one light switch to turn on all the kitchen appliances. There should have been SOME kind of work done to do that extensive of a rewiring--it would require tearing up floorboards and removing wall panels to really get everything rewired. Yet there was no evidence of THAT, either. The wiring had been re-wired, but there was no sense as to how.

Somehow, something--or someone--had managed to make quite dramatic changes to things without tools.

[Alex Maurell]

He noted this down in the recording, adding, "Perhaps telekinetic or perhaps have the ability to bend electronic or metal to their will. It was a group of five so they could have had any number of abilities, definitely mutants though. Giant mutated moles...I'm beginning to doubt it."

He made his way toward the back of the kitchen, looking for the escape route the others had been talking about.

[Narrator]

There was a tunnel, like a big mole tunnel, headed out from the kitchen through the quad. It stopped being visible at one of the larger trees on campus.

[Alex Maurell]

"Well it wasn't a lie, they really did tunnel out of here." He went back for more material, letting the insects dissolve into dust while he created a couple of rats. He'd let them scout out the tunnel, see exactly how big it was. Man-sized or just big for moles.

[Narrator]

It was definitely larger than average sized for moles. It also got deeper as it went, going out FAR longer than the tree on the quad.

[Alex Maurell]

He followed from the outside, half sight dedicated to tunnel beneath him. It was dark, probably not the best idea but he was too curious to give up yet. As he walked he noted in the recording, "Mole's escape route found. Not big enough for me to go in but Pick and Pocket are following it. Feels like it goes deep, will follow on the outside until I can't."

[Narrator]

The path apparently continued, heading out towards the ocean and lighthouse.

The rats slowed as they approached the lighthouse proper.

[Alex Maurell]

Interesting, he had seen some people enter the lighthouse before but he wasn't entirely sure what it was used for. Wasn't used in the usual way he knew that.

He focused on the rats as he approached the lighthouse, wondering what was slowing them down.

[Narrator]

Hard to tell--there was some weird FORCE pushing them backwards. A strong wind?

[Alex Maurell]

"Hmm...Let's see..." He stood above the tunnel, stamping his foot to see how deep it was. A couple things could happen if it was close enough to the surface. One his foot could go straight through to the tunnel, the sound may carry through to the rats below, or the vibrations might carry to the rats. Either way, he wanted to dig down and see if he could relieve the pressure of the wind or force by creating another hole for it to go through.

[Narrator]

The tunnel was deep. Definitely wasn't caving in from just stomping on it--he'd have to dig.

[Alex Maurell]

He sighed, never was easy now was it. He knelt over the spot and began digging, tearing up grass and dirt. Thankfully the soil wasn't too tough so he didn't have to go looking for any tools just yet. He had the rats begin digging upward, meet him half way.

[Narrator]

...strange. He was right over the rats. And the rats were right under him. Why weren't....

...why weren't the tunnels connecting? That's not how three-dimensional space works.

[Alex Maurell]

The more this went on the more concerned he became. He had the rats keep digging upward while he tried spots right and left of the first hole.

All the while his brain was racing to figure out the problem. He could feel it, he knew they were right below him but perhaps it was the same as the smell from earlier. Something was off about the area. This time it might not of have been scent but...the directions. He had a feeling it had everything to do with the force the rats were feeling. He might just have to abandon this idea before he tears up all of the grass.

[Will Stanton]

If Alex had the rats go back a little ways, they could re-connect, and THERE digging would reveal the tunnel proper, and two rather concerned rats. The further he dug FROM the lighthouse, the easier it would be to access the tunnel.

Closer to the lighthouse, but from another direction, a couple figures walked up.

"Not sure yet," the swarthy, non-Will one said, staring at the lighthouse as he approached it, "But it might just be leading me here."

((figured I'd combine the exploration and puzzling threads, as Alex has evidence and Sean has knowledge. And Will was there, too! ))

[Alex Maurell]

Finally finding a spot where they could reconnect was strange, but it proved a point nonetheless. Something very, very weird was going on. Like quantum physics, never been known by man sort of weird.

Rats perched on his shoulders, Alex wiped the dirt from his hands with a sigh before he noticed a couple of people approaching. At least one of them he recognized, "Hey Will. What's up?"

(Cool! Are we continuing here or on the other thread? )

[Will Stanton]

((Let's go in the other thread for sake of ease))