bakerstreet | Darkest timeline

Darkest timeline

THE BAD ENDING MEME

You've chosen your path and it's led you to one of the worst possible ends. A bad ending you've averted in the past could be coming true after all, a possibility you've always feared could be happening now. It's game over.

bring it

▻ post with your character, make sure to note their name and series in the subject.

▻ taggers RNG it up.

▻ tag other people with the number you rolled and play on. or skip the rolling and do what you have in mind!

▻ have fun.

prompts

one｡ SURVIVORS -- you two are the only ones left, whether it be the result of the apocalypse, a fight with the final boss gone horribly wrong, or something equally tragic. now you're left to contemplate friends and loved ones lost, as well as which one of you may be next.

two｡ SICKNESS -- you are seriously ill. poisoning, virus, perhaps it's even mental; whatever the reason, you doubt time is on your side this time.

three｡ FORGOTTEN -- you're not sure how, but your memories are crumbling and the things you do recall are hazy and make you dizzy. can you even recognize the person in front of you anymore?

four｡ SEPARATED -- you can see them, hear them, but something's keeping you from being with them. perhaps you're placed in a room with impenetrable glass dividing you, or you're hiding in a phone booth downtown, calling them secretly.

five｡ MELLOWED -- you've been through things, you've loved and you've lost, and all of that's changed you. maybe you finally decided to give in to temptation, you could be addicted to a substance you know is destroying you, or you've simply lost the optimism you had as a youth.

six｡ ANTAGONIST -- you've flipped the coin. you had to do it; they might not be able to understand it, but you just can't forgive the things that have happened. the darkness has consumed you.

seven｡ FREE CHOICE -- combine any of the others, reroll, or make up your own bad ending. the choice is yours!

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[[I would love any of these, but I have ideas in mind for two (the Black Breath isn't healed as fully as needed) and six (corrupted either by the Ring or just by pure frustration into committing a coup) in particular!]]

[[Also happy to AU into other canons, although I don't promise to know them well.]]

(post-battle of london is the easy choice but open to other suggestions too. bring the angst.)

Option A) 1 + 3, set several years post-canon

[ Whenever Sasha looked up at the tall hill known as Sanctuary, images flash through her mind — of gold armors, of men and women standing by her side in battle, of a painting spanning the heavens crumbling, of the moon so large that she wondered if her feet had left the ground.

… Or it could just be the sun flashing in her eyes, and the heat making her see things. She resumes her path down Rodorio’s main road, basket of goods slung in one arm. She doesn’t quite look where she’s going quickly enough, that she might just bump into someone —]

* * *

Option B) Your roll :))

[He's already been through quite a number of these in canon but there is always room for more PAIN. Maul's not doing things right if his life isn't utterly miserable and full of sadness. Two, three, and four look especially good if you want to go that route.]

( When Eddie wakes up, he's not in a hospital. Or, his room looks like it could have been one if not for the glass window that separated him from the next room and the locked door that kept him from leaving. The foreboding that fills his body only worsens when he sees who occupies the bed in the adjacent room. )

Shit, Harrington? What the fuck!

( He bangs on the window to get Steve's attention before wondering if it's soundproof. Before he can get his answer, the locked door opens, and in rushes some scientist asshole wearing a white lab coat. Explains how they're being quarantined until they can confirm that exposure to the Upside Down isn't going to spread to everyone else, causing an epidemic of some extradimensional sickness.

Eddie feels his blood run cold. People who are familiar with that place. He retreats to his bed and nearly collapses. He might not be dead, but somehow, this feels worse. He looks over at the glass window and just hopes that Steve is okay. Those bat bites were no joke, and while Eddie got a few chunks of flesh torn off him, he knows Steve had been chewed up for longer.

"Your friend's going to be just fine." The man points to the intercom near the glass window. "Press that button to talk to him."

The scientist leaves, and Eddie wastes no time returning to the glass to peek at Steve's room. He looks asleep still, almost peaceful as if none of the horrors of the past week had affected him. His hand hovers over the call button on the intercom before deciding, fuck it, he has to get confirmation that Steve really is going to be okay and that these assholes aren't just bullshitting him. )

Steve? You awake?

[ Eddie's voice sounds tinny and far away, even in his sleep and Steve's mind wastes no time in telling him that there's something wrong. His eyes snap open and he groans a little as he pushes himself up in bed, finding himself somewhere that is very much not his house.

It takes him a moment, but he spots Eddie peering at him from the other side of a window and he gets to his feet, moving towards it. ] Eddie? Are you okay? Where are we?

[ This has the lab written all over it, but as far as he knew they could care less about the average residents of Hawkins. There was no reason for them to be here, unless El and Will were in a worse situation.

Eddie looks more than a little freaked out, which is saying a lot, considering what they’ve been through recently. ] What’s going on?

( Eddie splays his hand on the glass when Steve appears. He wishes he could reach through and pull Steve into his arms, just as reassurance that this is real and he isn't hallucinating everything. As it stands, all of this feels like one never-ending nightmare. )

Something about a quarantine? Guess all that time spent in the Upside Down contaminated us, or maybe it was the bats, hell if I know.

( If it were just exposure to the Upside Down, wouldn't Robin and Nancy be here? He almost hopes it's just the two of them if for no other reason than he trusts Nancy would be enough of a badass to get them out of here. )

Are you okay? Your bites, they're not...I mean, you're okay, right? Like, not infected or some shit?

Shit. [ He's never been great with words, but that's the only one that sums up their current predicament. Of course going upside down without any kind of protection would come back to bite them in the ass. Of course having a pound of flesh ripped off of them by demon bats wouldn't be the end of it. Steve reaches up to press his hand against his side. He's sore and he can feel the pull of stitches he doesn't remember getting, but it's not any worse than it had been before. He gives Eddie a small shrug.] I feel okay. Are you?

[ Eddie had gotten it a lot worse than Steve, all things considered. He was more concerned for him if the bites meant they were in trouble. ] You haven't developed super sonic hearing or claws or anything, have you?

[ He tries to make it sound light, but even the idea of being locked up somewhere at the mercy of the lab makes his skin crawl. It's too much like the Russians.]

( Eddie regrets laughing at Steve's question almost immediately. He feels a sharp pain radiating outwards from his abdomen from the tug of his stitches. He winces, placing a hand there to put pressure on the still-healing wound as if that would do anything to counteract it. )

I feel like I've been run over by a truck. But all things considered, it could be worse, I guess. ( He rolls his eyes, but the grin on his face doesn't quite reach the eyes. He's scared. All of his bravado from earlier in their mission to rid the world of Vecna has been crammed into a cage, and after what he endured, he's not sure he'll ever want to reaccess it. )

But to answer your question, no. Hands are still hands, with completely average hearing ability. ( He wiggles his fingers in front of the glass as proof. )

[ For a moment it feels like he's looking into a mirror instead of a window, except on the other side is Eddie holding his side like Steve is. They're both not in great shape, which means staging an escape is going to be tricky. Not to mention the video camera recording them in the corner of the room means they're probably being monitored.

Steve swallows, wincing slightly in sympathy. He gets the hit-by-a-truck feeling a little all too well.] At least they have real doctors here. [ Or at least, he hopes so. That probably means decent pain killers, even if those aren't going to do them any favors if they want to stay sharp.]

Damn. [ He says in mock disappointment, giving Eddie a small smile. Steve reaches out and presses his hand against the glass when Eddie wiggles his fingers, wishing he could touch him. Feel his warmth.] Well, as far as I know, we don't have any super powers, so they'll probably get bored of us pretty fast. A few NDAs and we'll be out of here in no time. [ He can hear the doubt in his own voice. He immediately wishes he'd tried harder, for Eddie's sake.]

( Eddie wishes he could believe Steve. For how short Eddie's involvement has been, plus his distrust of the establishment, he can't help but feel some kind of boding dread on the horizon. If these people need to cover everything up, it would be all too easy to get rid of Steve and Eddie and say they didn't survive because of the Upside Down.

He stares at Steve's fingers on the glass and longs for that barrier to disappear. Eddie can't remember the last time he connected with someone physically, and even if it's Steve fucking Harrington, god, he wants so bad, just as a reminder that he's alive and this isn't one big fucked up eternity of nothingness. )

I hope so. I'm gonna go stir crazy within a day if I can't get my hands on a guitar. ( He flashes Steve a weak smile before leaning his forehead against the glass and closing his eyes. ) Why do you think they aren't letting us bunk up together? I mean, if we're both possibly infected with the same shit, right?

[ Steve laughs, the sound echoing weirdly in the vacuum of his containment room. He shrugs, trying not to look bothered by Eddie's logic. It doesn't make sense to seperate them, considering if one of them is screwed, they both are. ] Don't know.

[ He's just glad he was out for the stitches. He really, really hates needles and the idea of anyone coming at him with one makes his skin crawl. He wishes he could do more to make Eddie feel better about the situation, but he has no idea what's going on. He wishes Nance or even Dustin was here, if only because they'd probably be smart enough to know more, though he's grateful they aren't.] Worst case scenario we turn into a bat version of Goldblum in the Fly, right?

[ He means it as a joke, but the thought sends a shudder through him anyway and he has to lean against the glass to steady himself.] We'll figure it out, Eddie. I promise.

( Eddie makes a face at that. That is not the kind of mental image he wants to be thinking about right now. ) Wait. Is that, like, a serious possibility? You know more about these guys than I do.

( He feels a sense of dread wash over him as he looks around for anything that might be able to help spring them loose. The room is quite empty, though, and the only exit doesn't have a handle on the inside of the room. Guess they're both locked in until someone takes pity on them. It doesn't really bode well for either of them. )

You know, I almost believe you, ( Eddie breathes out, trying to focus on fighting back the panic that he can feel building in.

Panic that is only made worse when a horrible alarm sound starts going off. The only upside is that whatever system triggered the alarm also unlocked the doors to their rooms. )

Whoa. Did we do that?

I hope not. [ It's probably not that comforting, all things considered, but it's all Steve has to give him at the moment. Still, Steve's expression shifts into concern as he watches Eddie on the other side of the window. He can't put his finger on what, but he sees something behind his eyes shift.

Before he can say anything though, an alarm sounds, horribly loud and Steve jumps back from the window in surprise. It reminds him too much of the Russian bunker and he expects soldiers to start filing in with their guns raised. However, after a few seconds nothing happens except for their doors opening on their own.

It could be a trap. Or, it could be their only way out. He hits the glass with his palm. ] Eddie! Eddie? We've got to get out of here, okay? [ He moves for the door, slipping through and immediately going for Eddie's door.

The other boy hasn't moved and Steve grabs him by the shoulders. ] Eddie, come on!

( It's shock that has Eddie rooted firmly in place. Shock and the realization that if he leaves the confines of this room, they might be facing whatever danger it is that set the alarms off in the first place.

However, danger might come for them if they stay put, and if there's only one exit, they could be cornered quickly.

So when Steve comes into his room and nearly shakes his shoulders to snap him out of it, Eddie blinks rapidly, a determined look forming on his face. )

Okay, yeah, let's get the fuck out of here. ( Eddie looks down at their current state of undress, donning only hospital gowns. ) And, uh, maybe if we happen across a change of clothes while we're at it?

Yeah! [ Steve squeezes his shoulder and pushes it gently to move, stepping up behind him. He's not sure if he should be in the front in case anything comes their way or behind Eddie to keep him moving. He's right about the clothes though. They're not going to get very far in a pair of hospital gowns.

Eddie seems to hesitate once they're out of the room and Steve decides he should take the lead, even if he has no idea where they are or where they're going or what they should be running from. He spots a door with an Exit sign over it and moves towards it. ] This way!

[ It leads into a breakroom with lockers and a table in the middle that has seemingly been abandoned in a hurry. There are overturned chairs and a spilled coffee cup with it's contents lying in a cold puddle in the middle of the table. Steve moves to the lockers, trying to open the nearest ones, giving a small shout of excitement when he finds some clothes. He pulls out a sweatshirt and some kind of protective pants that are neon orange before tossing them towards Eddie and moving to the next locker.]

( It's a damn good thing Steve is here to keep Eddie on track. The sounds and flashing lights are distracting, not to mention frightening. He would have tried to hide until it stopped and likely would have gotten cornered. Now, at least, he may have a chance.

Eddie follows Steve, looking relieved as soon as Steve brandishes a change of clothes. It's not much, but it's certainly better than trying to run with his junk practically hanging out. He takes the clothes Steve tossed at him and doesn't bother trying to find a cover for privacy as he pulls the pants on and ditches the hospital gown for the sweatshirt. )

Okay, now I'm feeling a little more heroic, ( Eddie teases, shooting Steve what he hopes is a teasing smile amidst the fear that's still trying to take hold of him. )

[ Steve's jaw tightens involuntarily as he pulls out a pair of clothes for himself and looks over at Eddie. ] Don't be a hero, man. We just want to get out of here.

[ He pulls on the clothes as quickly as he can, his gown getting caught on his hair momentarily as he tries to pull it over. Whoever had tied the back of the gown for him had made it tight. When he finally manages to get it free he pulls the sweatshirt over his head and that's when the letters actually register. Hawkins Lab.]

[He'd had a suspicion, but it's another thing to know that they're still using this damn facility, even after everything that had happened here. It doesn't help him trust any of the probable lies, they've been told by the government to date. Including the fact that he's supposedly safe as long as he keeps his mouth shut. The sirens are still blaring and the emergency lights flashing as he moves to the next door. There's a glass square in it, but he can't see anything but an empty hallway beyond it. He really wishes he had some kind of weapon, but there's nothing in the breakroom that's going to do much good. He looks back at Eddie.] Ready?

( Eddie sighs in response but decides it's not worth it to try and argue that he only meant it in the sense of being able to make a heroic escape. He has absolutely no plans of being a hero after what they've been through. Fuck that. He's just making sure he and Steve get out of here alive. Or, since Eddie isn't going to try and kid himself, it's much more likely that Steve will make sure they get out of here alive.

He frowns as he looks down at his outfit. It's not much, but it'll be light enough for him to run through the facility to the exit. He just has to hope that whatever caused the facility to shut down is something you can run from. He has no illusions of being able to fight nearly as well as his NPC's in his Dungeons & Dragons campaigns. )

As ready as I'll ever be. Let's get the fuck out of here.

Okay. [ Steve counts to three and pushes the door open, choosing to go to the left and away from the rooms they just came from. He pushes through a pair of double doors and a long hallway with flickering lights lays ahead of them. The sirens are starting to give him a headache and he just wants to get back home, to his own room, his own bed.

He glances over his shoulder to make sure Eddie's keeping up and then sprints down the hallway, coming to a stop in front of an elevator. He reaches out and presses the down button, hoping that no one suddenly rounds a corner and runs into them. Though, there's also the chance that when the elevator opens, they'll be faced with a box full of scientists. He should've waited before hitting the button. Shit.

The elevator is coming up from the ground floor and he watches the floors light up as it gets nearer. He looks around wildly, feeling each ding of the elevator as it gets closer. ] Do you see the stairs?

( So far, so good. Steve either seems to know where he's going or at least he makes it look like he does. That's enough for Eddie to feel confident with following him.

Except they're at the elevator, waiting for it to come to their floor, and Steve is looking for the stairs. ) Uh...what? ( Eddie blinks as he looks around the hallway to see if he could catch a glimpse of a stairwell or an exit sign. )

Could that be it? It's an emergency exit, but if the alarms are already blaring... They won't get any louder, will they?

( He waits for Steve to make the call, though. If there aren't any stairs on the other side of the emergency exit, then there's a good chance they'll end up running into whatever caused the alarm to go off in the first place. )

We just need to make sure it's empty. [ Steve says, grabbing Eddie's sweatshirt and pulling him towards the exit sign. He's right, the sirens can't get any louder and they're already going off, so it's not like they'd be adding to them if they opened a door they shouldn't have.

Steve pulls Eddie into the stairwell, for a moment remembering Eddie pressing him up against the wall with a broken glass to his throat. Their positions are reversed now, but Eddie looks about as freaked out as Steve had felt in that moment. Steve forces himself to relax his grip on him, smoothing out his sweatshirt. ] Sorry, I should've thought about it before I hit the button.

[ He glances through the small panel of glass that peers out into the hallway they just exited as the doors ding. He can't see the elevator clearly from their location, but he can see a scientist stumble along the wall a moment later, leaving a bloody streak behind him on the pristine white wall. He's been nearly bitten in half by something.] Holy shit! [ Steve breathes, feeling his stomach sink as the alarms suddenly take on a more menacing meaning.

He watches as the body twitches in a full body shudder before it's dragged out of sight.
Steve looks back at Eddie.] The lab, it's under attack.

( Eddie would have assured Steve that he didn't hold that against him - quick thinking isn't Eddie's forte either, at least outside of the context of Dungeons & Dragons. He's quick to improvise plan B's and C's when the party chooses an unexpected path, but this? Planning while amid actual danger? No, fuck that.

He reaches to grasp Steve's shoulder in a squeeze of solidarity, but as his hand lands on its target, the gruesome scene unfolds before Eddie's eyes. Instead of a squeeze of solidarity, Steve ends up with a vice grip with Eddie's hand digging into muscle. )

Um. What the fuck is that?! ( Eddie hisses as he can't take his eyes off the mess. ) Steve? What the fuck? What do we do? ( If the lab is under attack...now that makes their escape plan a lot more challenging. )

I don't know. [ That's not entirely true. He's seen something capable of biting a man in half, he just doesn't want to believe that the lab would be stupid enough to let one of them get free. He turns back to meet Eddie's eyes and the fear there is something he knows all too well. At least Eddie will have an idea of what they're dealing with without Steve having to go into too much detail.

A full body shiver moves through him under the weight of Eddie's hand digging into his shoulder. ] I think it's a demogorgon...

[ He wishes Nancy were here. He thinks she'd know what to do. Even Jonathan would be a welcome sight at the moment. All Steve knows is the terror that fills him at the memory of the monster. He looks at the stairs. Up or down? Up or down?

He grab's Eddie's shirt again and pushes him towards the stairs.] Up! We've got to get out of here!

A...demogorgon? ( Eddie knows the Dungeons & Dragons version, which would have been terrifying enough, but he knows the kids have a habit of naming these creatures after what they know. The Mind Flayer, Vecna, demogorgons. He's just glad it's not actually the prince of all demons they're dealing with. )

Okay, okay, you don't have to tell me twice, Harrington! ( Eddie quickly follows Steve, pushing the fear billowing in his veins deep down into the darkest chasm to be dealt with later. For now, he needs to focus all his energy on keeping up with Steve. )

Steve! ( Eddie hisses. ) I'm not as fast as you! ( He winces as he sees how many stairs they'll have to climb. Physical exertion is not his friend, but he's not about to let a few flights of stairs be the reason he becomes food for a demogorgon. )

Sorry, sorry! [ Steve pivots on one of the stairs and moves down to Eddie, moving behind him so that he can flank him. He can't help but reach out and put a hand on Eddie's back as if it might help him move faster somehow. He knows Eddie's in a lot worse shape than he is and probably shouldn't be climbing a flight of stairs right now. ] Next door you come to, take a right!

[ They can't keep climbing upwards, but Steve has no idea what floor they're on or how many they are from the entrance of the building, or how many locked doors there are between them and there. For Hawkins' sake, he hopes there are many, for their sake, he hopes they have a fighting chance.

He hears the door below them slam open and a screech that's haunted his nightmares and he pushes Eddie a little more forcefully. ] Go, go, go!

( It doesn’t take long for Eddie to reach a door. He doesn’t like being up in front, but it is probably better for Steve to be flanking right now when it feels like danger is licking at their feet. He turns right, trying to swallow down his fear as he rushes through it, hopeful that they won’t meet a fate worse than death. )

Steve! ( Eddie cries out as he hears that door slam. How on earth is Steve still going? How is he not paralyzed by fear? It’s a damn good thing Steve is here, or Eddie would never be able to get through this alone.

Tears sting Eddie’s eyes, which he tries to rub away to no avail, as a new stream simply replaces them. He just wants to see Wayne again and tell him he loves him, that he’s always been more of a dad to him than his own flesh and blood ever was. He wishes he had more time to tell Steve just how much he feels for him. But there is no time to think; there’s barely enough time to act. )

I’m going, I’m going, ( Eddie says, mostly to reassure himself that he is still moving even though he wants to collapse into a heap right now. ) Where to?

I'm right here. [ His voice sounds shaky to his own ears, but at least he gets out the words as he crowds in the door behind Eddie and pulls it shut. Unless demogorgans have gained the ability to open door handles, they should have a few minutes. He's more concerned about the possibility of it just smashing through it.

Steve takes in the long hallway in front of them, lights blinking erratically and for a moment he's taken back to the Byers living room, cheerful christmas lights twinkling as his worst nightmares came to life. His breath is coming fast and shallow and his heart feels like it might beat out of his chest, but he just keeps pushing Eddie forward blindly, not sure how to answer.

They pass a door and he reaches for the door handle desperately. It's locked. Fuck. ] Try all the doors. We need to find something to burn it with. [ It's only as he looks over at Eddie in his panic that he realizes there are tear streaks on his face. Steve stops abruptly, balling eddie's shirt up in his fist to hold him still. ] What is it? Are you okay? Are you hurting? Shit, Eddie. I'm so sorry.

Edited 2024-12-06 23:00 (UTC)

[Love flipping the script, Both Standard and Future-Past Flavors available!]

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Darkest timeline

Éowyn | Lord of the Rings | OTA

integra hellsing / hellsing

Athena (Sasha) | Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas | OTA

(Darth) Maul | Star Wars

bix caleen || andor || ota

Steve Harrington | Stranger Things

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Nancy Wheeler | Stranger Things

Kafka 🕷️ Honkai: Star Rail 🕷️ OTA

Liu Qingge | Scum Villain's Self-Saving System | ota

Morgan || Fire Emblem 13 || OTA

saber alter | fate/ (ota)

Revy | Black Lagoon | OTA