Week 8.

[trustfellows]

WEEK 8 Regardless of what you think of the most recent deaths, four more people have died this week. Milla Maxwell, Angel, Susan Ashworth, and Aligula are gone now, leaving you with about a quarter of your original number. Thirty-five down to twelve - this can't keep going for much longer, can it? Is there anything you can do? Saturday is given to regrouping and sleep; come Sunday morning, the clock chimes the hour at seven o'clock and there are no dead bodies to be found, so it can be assumed that all of you are safe for the time being. That said, you'll be feeling a little groggy when you wake up; it seems you've regained something that you didn't realize you'd lost... Unlike the previous weeks, however, it seems that either you've reached the end of the line or Jericho has decided to stop rewarding you for your effort; where there would usually be a stairwell to a new floor, you're met with nothing but solid wall. Perhaps it's distressing; perhaps it's a good sign. Only time will tell, and time isn't something you have a lot of around here. PARTICIPANTS REMAINING: 12

SUNDAY | MONDAY | TUESDAY | WEDNESDAY | THURSDAY
[OOC: Welcome to week eight of Trustfell! Feel free to make as many top levels as you'd like and tag out to other characters! This post is for all of your interactions this week... at least until the weekend. Don't forget to save those threads for coins and the activity check!

If you'd like to get in contact with the Coordinators, you can do so through private meetings with Hilda!]

Comments

[destage]

[It takes a couple seconds--a couple seconds of looking around the room, before her eyes seem to come across the first painting, and...that actually looks beautiful as hell, she has to admit. It's when she shifts to look at the wall shared with the ballroom, and...it takes Sayaka a couple of seconds. A couple seconds of staring at the array in front of her, looking at it with awe--

It's when she sees the crucible in the center, the one she recognizes almost instantly, that her eyes widen and her hand goes to her mouth in complete shock.

That's when the rest seems to fall into place. She sees Terra, she sees the Sun, she sees Earth, she sees...she traces over where the circle is with her hand, keeping it from touching the wall--despite knowing full well that it won't be there without the scope, that if she touches it it's not like it's going to mess itself up, but...

...Goddammit, she's tearing up, isn't she? She's smiling like hell and she's tearing up like a goddamn idiot. She removes the scope for a moment to wipe her eyes a bit, before putting it back on and just...rushing back upstairs to the library to grab the board, before rushing back down and tracing a small message out with it. She fully expects he won't see, sure, but it'll put her at ease if she at least tries, so...

Thank you for showing me. It's amazing.

...She'll probably spend some time here with her own notebook to draw the circle for herself, so she can have it as a physical reminder.]

[hesperos]

Well, cherish it, since it's the last time you're gonna get the drop on me.

[ Yuri doesn't mind too much, though, since he's pretty chill, and moves to lean against the wall. ]

[hesperos]

Oh yeah?

[ Yuri just leans back in his seat because at some point he definitely sat his ass down. He probably shouldn't be so confident, but he is dialing up that competitive spirit, so of course he's going to say something challenging. ]

That sounds good. You actually sound like you're used to playing a game like this pretty often.

[matchbreaker]

Doubt it! The only one who ever noticed me was Kirei.

[hesperos]

[ He snorts. ]

Well, now you've gotta try again sometime in the future so I can prove you wrong.

[matchbreaker]

With pleasure.

[ She smirks, baring fangs and with cat-like eyes. The competition is a little bit still, but still. ]

[notaccurate]

Variations on poker are quite common back home, especially when none of 'the guys' have money for betting. This is one of the tamer versions we came up with, as the owner of the bar got mad whenever we did strip poker.

[Yeah that's a thing from his past too.]

Of course, I always won, so it was never a problem for me.

[evilfrenzy]

[You know... The way Sayaka speaks when she responds surprises Rideaux a little bit. He supposes he didn't expect her to show the amount of concern that she is, in the way that she almost sounds mad about it too.

Then again, she did understand the competitive nature of his job more than anyone else here could.

He blankly stares at the back of his door, trying to find words of his own. His hand trembles a little bit on the doorknob.]

...Yeah. I know you can. [...] Thanks for understanding. I am still in the process of coming to terms with it, so...putting it into words is very difficult. I imagine you already know how that goes.

[evilfrenzy]

It certainly is. I've never felt better.

[He is absolutely here to be bitter, at least.]

I...take it you can relate, Tarrlok?

[evilfrenzy]

Believe me, I know.

[He was hoping he wouldn't run into anyone for that reason. But what's done is done.]

I did come down here for some food, so water to go with it is probably a good idea, yes.

[sleepytimegal]

Oh, I dunno. It just seems like...we'd have to spend a lot of time in the same place for it.

[ you'd be??? okay with that??? ]

[sleepytimegal]

Not just...back home...

[matchbreaker]

And...?

[sleepytimegal]

I just... Would wanna make sure you're comfortable with that.

[matchbreaker]

[ Elda...

Exhales and closes her eyes. ]

Alex. You know that love isn't finite, right?

[sleepytimegal]

O-of course I do. I'm not expecting...like, Sayaka to have to choose between us or something like that.

[matchbreaker]

And you can also understand what I say when I say a family's love is unconditional.

[sleepytimegal]

Um... Yeah, of course.

[ What's she getting at...? ]

[matchbreaker]

Good. I'm glad I don't need to educate two stupid girls.

[ At least on that front. She sighs once more, and hangs her head a little, her eyes still closed. ]

[evilfrenzy]

[Rideaux nods to Yuri's question, though he isn't looking at him for the time being. His gaze is fixed on wall across from them.]

...Yes. [He...doesn't quite want to just drop the big bombshell on Yuri, so he figures he owes a story first.] Do you recall everything I said about that test thus far?

[He'll wait for Yuri's confirmation before continuing. And the more he talks, the more tense he seems to get. He stumbles over his words every so often, overall struggling with talking about it. Whatever he dreamed about shook him very badly.]

I've told you about the test itself, but I left out the more specific details about how fractured dimensions are created and the nature of completing the test. In order for us to complete the test set by the primordial spirits, we must locate five waymarkers to bring us to the realm of one of those spirits, Origin. We were given the power of the Chromatus to assist us in eliminating fractured dimensions as well as finding these waymarkers.

However, the Chromatus has a catch. [...here's the first bombshell:] It slowly kills us over time, essentially. After so much use, a Chromatus user turns into a catalyst for another fractured dimension. That is how they have grown in numbers- Chromatus users from all dimensions turning into catalysts. Naturally, with that knowledge, we would hope to use this ability sparingly. But because of various complications, all of the waymarkers can only be found in fractured dimensions. We have had no choice but to constantly use the Chromatus to keep the number of fracture dimensions down while also hunting down the waymarkers.

[...the last bit is where he's going to struggle the most, so he hopes Yuri can bear with him.]

Julius and I... We were in a particularly precarious situation in addition to the threat caused by our Chromatus ability. When all of the waymarkers are gathered, one last task is necessary to reach the Land of Canaan: the sacrifice of a Chromatus user to create a soul bridge to Canaan. When we were taken in by the CEO of Spirius Corporation, we were put on a course to compete with one another so we would not be chosen for this task.

[He hunches over so he can hide his face in his hands.]

After everything I did to remain useful, after so many years of faithful service, I... He still chose me.

[sleepytimegal]

[ Alex should probably take offense to that but she's still lost. ]

You're not... ...You can't be talking about...me... I... I thought I'm not...good enough for her.

[bloodbiter]

[She nods.]

I assume most forms of combat would be useful for performing such an action. Would you like to compete?

[matchbreaker]

I'm not talking about you. [ Let's not get that twisted, you're not her family. ] I'm talking to you, and I'm telling you that I was right. [ That Sayaka doesn't understand love as Elda means it. Certainly not the unconditional kind. ] I, just the other night, had to explain to that stupid girl how it hurts me every time she goes on about what she deserves or doesn't deserve. How, if she's going to claim me as a mother, it feels like my failing.

[ The woman pulls her legs up, curling into more of a ball. ]

If I had to educate you on that front too... I might just scream. I'm far too tired for that.

[ . . . There's more to be said. But she leaves it there as she searches for the words. ]

[bloodbiter]

I know that. But... What if the alternative is for this to continue?

[sleepytimegal]

[ Okay, well, that's better. For a moment, she thought maybe-- ...

She never knows if a conversation with Elda is going to remain light or careen into this territory. Honestly, she...should expect the second.

She doesn't speak up loudly; whenever talking with Elda, it's like...walking on eggshells. ] ...I don't know what that has to do with what we were talking about before.