[center][h3]Nick Waller[/h3]
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As the others charged on and made a hole, Nick gladly took advantage of their kindness and ran on ahead, confident that they were sufficiently shocked out of their temporary stupors. And if they weren't, he [i]had[/i] chosen life after all. Say what you would about the morality of his actions, but at the end of the day the last thing Nick wanted was to die in this place, and he had a feeling he'd just get in the way if he did more than just try to help hold the door open. 

Which, for what it was worth, he did from the outside. Dakota was there with him, and Nick gave the other boy a nod as they strained to ease Barney's burden. It was good that the larger boy had started this thing, after all, since Nick had no earthly idea how the hell he would've managed to get this damn door open with how heavy it was. 

From his position, he had a good view of the others' escape. A slightly older-looking woman was practically dragging along the girl he'd encountered earlier during the cafeteria incident, so that was a bit of a load off his back. The other member of that incident came through as well, having spent a bit more time trying to avoid pain rather than barrel through like a mule. Which, given that his clothing was probably a lot less protective than Nick's or that other girl's jacket, made sense. 

As the whole of the group managed to escape, Nick let the door slam shut once Barney let go. He noticed the moment's pause for their savior, but Nick was still too hopped up on adrenaline to properly mourn her. Or celebrate her upcoming victory, he wasn't sure which. She didn't seem to hold the illusion that she'd be doing more than buying them time, though whether that was until her death or her own escape Nick hadn't quite caught. He hoped it was the latter, but going back to help was impossible. As was staying and helping. They were too out of their depth here. Those stork-looking freaks had shot frickin' laser beams from their frickin' wings! 

Taking a moment to breathe, Nick caught the conversation about the searchlight, and boy was he glad to confirm with his own eyes what had been said. That thing was completely out, spazzing around and blinking red now and then. They were safe from that fresh hell, at least, but this place was still crawling with guards. Whether they could transform into nightmare-beasts was a question Nick emphatically did [i]not[/i] want answered, to be frank. 

So, as the groups began splitting up, Nick decided to go with the injured but still kicking Vincent, and the empathetic and helpful Dakota. They had the power of Speed (in Nick), the power of Fuck You (in Vincent), and the power of Friendship(TM) (in Dakota). There was no way they'd lose! 

Unfortunately, almost immediately after deciding to follow them, Nick made a wrong turn while they were being chased and had to duck around a pen and quickly double back through using his patented technique to compress his body to the width of a household sponge (not quite literally, but it was honestly disturbing how much he managed to flatten himself as a way of squeezing out of the pen while the guards searched), managing to lose his tail in the chaos. 

Free of his chasers, Nick kept a low profile and jogged his tired ass over in the direction he'd seen Vincent and Dakota going, which seemed to be some kind of bar or rave club. Not his scene, frankly, but when in Mirror Dimension Rome, do as the Mirror Dimension Romans do.