WEEK SIX

[killerwaves]

WEEK SIX

16 Vacationers

Throughout your time on the island, there's been a steady rhythm; the murders, the trials, the executions, the clean-up afterwards that leave just up remnants for you to remember what was lost. This Monday morning though, things are different. The debris and any biohazards are cleared, but no effort has been made to repair the games at the arcade, or to restock the chemicals and damaged equipment at the laboratory.

Odd.

If you cast your eyes to the sky, you'll also notice that the distortion is also lingering—there's certainly less of it at least, a haze still lingering over the go-karts, one whirlpool lingering out in the sea. It could be worse, surely.

Though there's no new locations for you to take your mind off of all these oddities either. In fact, looking at your device to access the resort map area and scrolling past Kakapo's Nest triggers an error.

There’s one more, slightly more eclectic change: the kittybots, instead of having cute kitty ears and faces, are now without exception round-headed. This would make them look like ordinary robots, but their heads actually now look like a bowl of fish swimming, which occasionally form up into expressions. A change of pace for everything, it seems.

!

WEATHER ALERT:

Bulletin:
The current barometric pressure is 29.90 inHg, and is expected to steadily decline over the coming days. Rain and storms are likely in the latter half of the week.

(( OOC: Welcome to endgame week everyone. We'll be running an endgame investigation Friday during our typical investigation timeslot, and Saturday will be endgame proper.

This week your admins can be contacted Monday and Tuesday only, after that they'll be incommunicado. ))

MONDAY • TUESDAY • WEDNESDAY • THURSDAY

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Comments

[chosenwang]

[ turns out Wang Lu's theory of russian roulette with drinks wasn't so far fetched and he hates it ]

I don't know, it sounds like you're a complete twit to me. What is it supposed to do? Amplify powers?

[necrotiem]

The opposite!

[She laughs, because she never considered it, even once, not after the others.]

As if we couldn't take his throat out with our teeth because he thought he tamed us.

[chosenwang]

Ah. He was going on some stupid tirade about powers with Kanon's case. Was he jealous? That's pretty midboss of him.

[chrysaline]

[ Medea is having the most annoying day of her life right now, but this gets her to laugh in earnest. Thank you, Waltaquin. ]

Ah... I think I see what she saw in us after all. No one ever did accuse me of being beloved by god.

[ Get her her sword again and she'll show that powers have nothing to do with it! ]

[necrotiem]

[If no one has gathered it back up by now, Waltaquin will resume stewardship of the sword like she had last week. Luckily stewardship really does seem to be all she has in mind, even if the thing is sharp enough to get blood from a tree.]

Just a m̷̢͒o̷͚̓ṋ̷̌s̴̝͗t̶̰̚e̶͗ͅr̵̺̔ that gorges itself on power... [Blood is the only language understood by meat.]

Magic or not, Medea, we share a language! I don't think even you can deny it! Next time, I'll give you the gift.

[chrysaline]

Oh...? I'm touched. Why don't you tell her that I'd like a chance for us to meet again. In quieter circumstances.

[ Really, it's so hard to get quality time like this. This time, she's the one who reaches out for Waltaquin, pausing with her fingertips hovering over her cheek to see if she'll allow it. ]

If I'm a monster, I won't apologize for being what I was made. I hope we'll speak again.

[necrotiem]

[Her head is throbbing; it's the side that hurts the worst.

She leans into it anyway.]

I can't make any promises. [If the serum works, if she turns into nothing but meat by the end, if her heart is devoured, if she lets down Medea in a way Psyche will not, if she cares about doing any of these things - No promises.]

Shall I give the gift to you this time?

[chrysaline]

[ Ah, as she more than half-expected. She cups Waltaquin's cheek lightly before stroking her fingers back through her hair. Fascinating. ]

I have no use for promises. After all... neither can I. If that drug works as he intends, who can say if we'll meet again? At least resolve my curiosity for now.

[necrotiem]

I knew you'd û̶̩n̸̰̊d̶̲͝e̵̲͐r̵͎̃ṣ̴̍ţ̴̈́ã̴̟n̵̩̈d̵̳̽. [Medea is too short. Even having only caught glimpses of her real self, it is not quite right. But n̵̥͝ỏ̷͎ ̵͍̓o̴̲͝n̴̩̈́e̶̱͘ is really in a body that holds them right, everyone is being kept in a box that shouldn't contain them. Her head feels like that, pounding with what is to feel and be billions of things. All the violence and horrors.

Waltaquin leans along the slant of Medea's palm, bends the distance that shouldn't exist because she is the wrong height, and kisses her.

As she does so, she pushes the sword back into Medea's free hand. She has one more thing to say, so hopefully she sticks around at least that long.

Herself or Medea? Who could say.]

[chrysaline]

[ The kiss doesn't surprise her in the least. The hilt of the sword being pressed into her palm... does, somehow. She curls her fingers around it in reflex, ignoring the twinge to her injured arm; her expression turns inwards, thoughtful.

How odd that this near-stranger would recall Heli to mind when the deepest reflection is of Medea herself. And how fitting, that this woman who somehow seems to see her would be giving her what she needs one more time. She kisses back like a benediction and a farewell. After all — it's certainly true that they may never meet again. ]

Perhaps you give me too much credit. But I will hear you. Is that enough?

[necrotiem]

[Xiao is going to lose himself soon, since everything is happening so much and all at once. The time for talking is over.

Their attention will need to be there, though things are slipping down the back of her spin like they're unbuttoning her. What she feels isn't love, probably, but she thinks of it. Someone loved someone else. Someone ripped the core out of the earth because they loved it so. Someone's love was the nuclear death of the universe.]

Maybe. I'm not one for small satisfaction. [hungry and hungry and hungry and ḣ̴̻̓̈͝u̷͓̼̗̍ͅn̶̡̯̤̘̾̄̑g̷͙͘ȓ̵̨̼͖̄̒̀y̶̰̤̾ ̶̛̪̰̣̌ͅa̷̡͉͗ͅņ̷͖̎̄̂d̷̡͖̞̓̿͝ hungry]

One day you're going to really let her down. Ĵ̸͎û̷̘s̸̲͌t̴͉͐ ̶̜̈́l̴̻͐i̵̘͝k̷̊͜e̸͎͋ ̸̯̓I̸̛̤ ̵̪͆ḫ̵͊a̶͙̓v̷̜̊e̸͓̿. I think she will forgive you, though. What good fortune.

[Waltaquin's almost manic voice still manages a little fondness, a little teasing. She hugs her. That's for both of them.]

[butcherspice]

Opposite, actually. Once it kicks in, she shouldn't be able to use her powers at all. Would be better if it kicked in right away without the stutters in between, but I can't be picky.

[chosenwang]

Why would you want to eliminate people's powers in a place like this? I thought you would have had some braincells in there with how you approach cases but turns out I missed the mark. [ Clicking his tongue. ] It's a shame I overlooked and overestimated you.

[butcherspice]

It ain't about here. Honestly, I didn't care much about which one of you did what with your powers long as I made sure this worked.

It's about what's outside of here. I got bigger fish to cut the heads off of back home.

[chosenwang]

So you didn't care about what you did to us here so long as you got to take back a souvenir to use against... heroes? Sounds like you have an inflated sense of your own significance to play with people lives like that. Let me guess... people with powers stole your girlfriend or ran over your dog back at home? Maybe they killed someone you loved?

[idologue]

[ Shooting Wang Lu a sharp look here. Don't play with fire when the fight just died down because that's a bad topic. ]

[dupiety]

[No, no, let him cook. This is an interrogation.]

[idologue]

[ Look, maybe it is a little hypocritical of her to not want Wang Lu to prod into Billy's trauma after what she said to Beel.

But also please, this feels like a situation where people might start stabbing each other!! ]

[dupiety]

[Eh, interrogations get physical sometimes.]

[microtransactions]

[ it's fine, they have probably enough people waiting in the wings to break up anything really bad.

the question is whether they will! ★ ]

[chosenwang]

[ Sorry he's just very disappointed because this is one of the biggest cliches ever and he hates himself for overlooking it ]

[butcherspice]

[Billy's expression darkens at one particular suggestion Wang Lu gives. He doesn't confirm either way. (Also his dog is completely fine and the best dog ever fuck you) ]

Someone plays god with your own life, you get even. Plenty of folks just like me who've been stomped on and left to bleed on the curb. I'm just one of the people trying to settle the score.

[chosenwang]

By playing god with the lives here? Looks like you aren't very difference from the ones who stomped on you and left you to bleed.

I'm not going to settle the score. I will even let you hit me and cry all you want without lifting a finger to retaliate, but if you touch them again I will smash your balls. [ He won't kill him. He won't dirty his sword on someone so sad ]

[butcherspice]

[The glare on his face gets more severe, not breaking eye contact. Wang Lu's sanctimonious holier-than-thou assertion that he won't seek revenge is utter bullshit, and Billy knows it right away from that last statement.]

You're ain't much different from me yourself--I wouldn't have a head right now if either of those two ended up like Xiao, I figure. [His gaze turns to the other, surviving Xiao being contained.] Good chunk of you ain't no different. You'd take it if someone gave you an opportunity you'd been waiting for back when this whole thing started.

[chosenwang]

[ Smashing balls can be healed to be smashed again another time. Playing god and experimenting with others all for revenge? Not something he would ever do and not something remotely comparable ]

I can sit here and tell you that I wouldn't have picked the same path, no matter what they held over me or lies they spun for me. I'd rather inject myself. But I know it's pointless to argue with those who can't see anything beyond their own narrow point of view. We both led different lives, in different worlds, and in different paths. You won't believe what I have to say no matter what.

[ He's had to argue countless times in the past with those who decided one thing or another about Wang Lu's character. ]