03.50 - week three, saturday

[afflictionmods]

W3 SATURDAY

Another Saturday rolls around. Some of you had an… interesting night, perhaps, but that’s still no excuse to sit out on your lessons. There’s another announcement, another time to meet before your lessons start today. This time is just a bit different, though. This time you’re not meeting up at campus. You’re told to meet up at the park in the Museum District - and, as always, you’re expected to show up. How you get there is irrelevant, but you better try to be on time.

Florence is waiting at the park, and behind them is another dark, ominous orb. Even as far away as you are, you can hear its whispers. It’s calling to you with promises it can show you a new life, a better life, it can make you someone better… But then Florence is speaking, as if they cannot feel the hear the whispers.

“I will be accompanying you on this lesson, as I said in the brochure I handed out on Thursday. I will do my best to assist you.” There is a pause, though their face voice remains emotionless. “It is hard to say what it will be like inside - however, your goal for this lesson is to close this place for good. I may be unable to assist with that personally, so we are relying on you.”

They take a step back, turning towards the orb.

“I would advise you to do what is asked of you while you are in there - and a word of warning. Through our observations, we have noticed something strange. This seems capable of creating replications of those who enter it.” They let that information hang for a moment, before continuing. “We are unsure what these replications are truly capable of, but please be careful.”

Then Florence gestures for you to follow, and they’re stepping into the orb.

THE RINGMASTER

The inside is still the same park, but it has been transformed into a carnival. There are booths with games and food set up everywhere, a large ferris wheel, a tent. It will be a familiar carnival, to some of you, but all the lights are off and there are no people there. There’s a tug, a pull, that draws you towards the main tent - to center stage. Stepping inside you will be greeted by someone dressed as a ringmaster, whose voice is lively and energetic despite how hollow they seem on the outside:

“Hello and welcome! It’s time for your performance! And every good performer wants to do what the people want, don’t they? There’s a list on those little tablets of yours, and you need to do whatever’s asked of you!”

The ringmaster laughs brightly, and it echoes throughout the tent. “The more you do, the more we’ll all enjoy it, and the better chance you will get to stay you! But if you refuse… Well, that won’t be any good, right?”

The ringmaster makes a wide, sweeping gesture with their cane.

“We’re very generous here, though, and realize some things are easier to do with others! That’s why one refusal won’t be an instant loss. We’re assigning task cards, you see. Kinda like bingo cards! Each time you do a task for someone or someone does one for you, you get 50 points! The more you do, the higher the score, and once you reach 200 points, you're capped! But every time you refuse to do something people ask you to do, even if you're at 200 points… you lose 100 points ! And if you don’t do anything, well, you get no points and you lose automatically! You also can’t just sit around doing the same thing with the same person over and over again! Gotta spice it up! The same thing over and over again is just boring.”

There’s a click, and noise starts up outside of the tent. It sounds like the carnival’s come alive.

“Your little tablets will track your points. I really do recommend playing along, because if you fail… You’ll lose something. Something that makes you you! A memory, a precious item, something that makes you who you are and can’t be replaced so easily… Who knows what’s at risk, here! Though who am I kidding, it might be more fun to see what you'll lose. Don't ya think? Maybe you should just give up now and we can all laugh about it!

Anyways, all you gotta do is live until the timer runs out. The timer, by the way, is gonna be at the top of your tablet thingamajigs.”

There’s a tip of the ringmaster’s hat. The timer reads 90 minutes.

“That’s all for now! Go find that pesky little robot who’s been snooping around if you want more answers, because I am very busy.”

THE AUDIENCE

Once the ringmaster’s done with their speech, you’re free to travel around the carnival and explore it. It’s an eerie, quiet place, but… you’re not alone, and it won’t take you long to realize that. Those of you who had seen this carnival before - Miach, Shinei, Herlock, and Xingqiu - probably won’t be surprised when the doubles show up. They’re near perfect recreations of you - but near perfect doesn’t mean perfect. Their mannerisms might be odd, or their movements might be jerky and uncanny… but at a glance, it’s impossible to tell who is the real one and who isn’t.

And this is something that makes these doubles very, very angry.

They want you to fail, and they’ll do anything they can to ensure that happens. They’ll sabotage you - or your partner - all in an effort to make you lose points. They'll taunt you if it seems like you're ready to open up, they'll tell you about all the reasons why being honest is a bad idea. For physical prompts, they'll taunt you, call you a monster... They also seem to believe that if you fail, they’ll get to replace you. They will get a chance to get out of here and be the real one. They’re not always convincing, but they are dangerous, and there’s just as many of them as there are of you.

OOC NOTES

OOC: Here are some important things to note for today’s event:

- A simple breakdown of the rules is as follows:

You cap at 200 points, but you must maintain those 200 points until the timer runs out.
Mutual agreement on completing a task nets each person 50 points.
Getting turned down or refusing to do one makes you lose 100 points.
You cannot use the same person to complete all your tasks. You must have only one prompt per character that you cooperate with.

- The cards know, meaning that they'll know if something is not answered earnestly. Prompts that are answered falsely will not go away on your tablets. They will only go away if they are answered truthfully.

- Failure is NOT a bad end! In fact, we have some plans in the instance where not enough people pass the exercise. If 5 or more people fail the exercise, that is considered a group failure. Those who failed individually will face the consequences of losing the important memory/item/etc.

- We are asking people to make their own task cards. Here is a list of prompts:
break someone's bone, make someone bleed, get someone to cry, cause someone an injury that leaves a long-lasting mark, tell your partner what you hate about your relationship, tell your partner/someone in general your deepest secret, get someone to reveal a time in which they were emotionally very vulnerable, tell someone what you like about them, make someone angry, fight someone and win, kill someone's doppelganger, have someone kill your doppelganger, tell someone what you think is their worst attribute, tell someone what you think is your worst attribute You may also add one custom prompt tailored to your character, if you wish.

Please toss the prompts into the textbox at the top of this site. Under "Configuration Options", the card size should be 3x3 and the center space should have Normal selected. All characters will get a total of 9 prompts on their cards. It is okay to have prompts that your character would not do; it would just increase their chances of failure.

FULL NAV

(CODE)

Comments

[escardos]

[ that...sure is a bingo card, huh!

flat looks nonplussed as he glances down at his tablet, clearly unshaken by the bizarre scenario unfolding in front of them. there's something that should be concerning about all of this but, truth be told, flat's more curious than anything else. the sight of his doppelganger is something that piques his interest, though the smile on his face as he watches it is something tinged with nostalgia and sadness. ]

Well, I don't think I'd be too happy about seeing that.

[ the doppelganger does not seem to want to approach anyone. it stands by the side, staring at anyone that passes by it with a gaze that seems to curse the entire world. but flat is either not aware of the proximity of his double, or he doesn't care.

whatever it is, it doesn't matter. he's gotta fulfill these tasks out, right? then let's get to it! ]

taken tasks- do not reply!

[escardos]

- miach and ryoma will kill flat's doppel
- mutsu will tell flat about a time he was sad 😦
- sabo and flat are breaking each other's bones i guess
- flat fights riku and wins
- makes owen bleed

miach and (later) ryoma!

[escardos]

[ the silence from the doppelganger is something that flat can handle. the hatred and resentment in its gaze means little to nothing, especially when flat is more than aware of himself. this is why he has zero qualms in simply going up to miach and-- ]

Hey Miach. Do you want to try killing my doppelganger?

[imitationsoul]

[ Miach is, at this point, doppelganger-free. She looks between Flat and his mirror image and... well, it's easy enough to tell who's the real one in this particular combination. It is hard to imagine Flat ever making this kind of dark expression. ]

'Try' might be the operative term here - I have lots of good ideas for killing people chemically, but as far as physical combat goes... I'm not particularly strong.

[escardos]

I could probably kill you instead. Wouldn't you like that?

[ well, at least the doppelganger has ears and an ability to process thoughts and make decisions, as badly calculated as they may be. flat, however, doesn't even seem to be paying the double or its words any mind, tapping his chin in thought. ]

I can try holding it down but it might get tricky, like in the movies. It'd be bad if you hurt me instead, you know? And it's not like we can force it to drink poison... [ he turns around to the doppelganger, eyes bright and full of innocence as he asks-- ] Hey, can we feed you a lethal amount of poison?

Of course not! What kind of monster are you, you freak?!

[ flat turns around. ]

It's so unfriendly and rude...

[imitationsoul]

[ Miach pays the doppelganger no mind - he isn't Flat and he's not going to be here anymore very soon, there is no need to waste time conversing with such a thing. All her curiosities about how the doppelgangers work fade away in the face of her distaste for the situation. ]

Then we should see about obtaining a weapon. If I try to strangle him, I'll likely wind up injured myself - you're that much taller than me.

But bashing his head in with a heavy object or something similarly crude could work.

[escardos]

Well, maybe we could drop an anvil like in the cartoons.

[ to that, even the doppelganger doesn't have a response. all it can do is stare in shock at the conversation unfolding in front of it, as if it wasn't part of it. ]

But that wouldn't be efficient, you know? Is there no way that we can do something quick, like a beheading? Are there no guillotines here?

[imitationsoul]

... on a carnival?

[ WHAT KINDS OF CARNIVALS ARE YOU HAVING; FLAT.

Even Miach's "ooooh the dangerous past" trivia can't keep up with that. ]

We should track down someone with a weapon instead, like--

[ A-hah! Miach spots Ryouma some distance away and promptly jump-walks over. ]

Mind assisting a murder?

mutsu

[escardos]

Hey, Mister Time Traveler!

[ gotta complete those quests!!! no matter how disturbing it might be for others to be in this situation, flat seems to go along with it with just a little less of a hop in his step than usual. ]

Can you....tell me about a time that you were... emotionally vulnerable? I guess that means sad or upset? Can you tell me about a time like that?

[ might as well just. you know. ask. ]

[tosa]

Huh? Jumping right to it aren't ya!?

(He really doesn't sound too bothered, though. If anything, being able to cut to the chase just makes it easier for everyone,)

Lemme think... now that ya got me on the spot, it's hard thinking!

[escardos]

Of course! It's best to be straightforward when you want something.

[ he nods, as if not seeing any issue with his own logic. ]

Is there something like a betrayal, maybe? Or if someone passed away? Or maybe even a time where you were doing something embarrassing in front of someone else. I think all of these should work.

[tosa]

(Oh, this is more than he was expecting and Mutsu's smile falters just a little,)

Woah... ya really thought this out. (He's impressed and he really does try to think,) I guess... it's hard to say. I usually do whatever my master tells me to do, y'know? When they called me, I made a deal with 'em.

[escardos]

Was there ever an order that you didn't want to do?

[ he steps just a bit closer ]

Or, maybe a time when you went against an order?

[tosa]

(He holds his ground! But some of his energy is definitely starting to falter a bit,)

It's normal to not like what we do but... goin' against an order'ed be real bad. I'd never do that to my master.

owen

[escardos]

Hey, you're Mister Owen, right?

[ well, you know what? flat's just going to pull out the kitchen knife that he stole last week from the weekend. ]

Can I make you bleed, sir? Just a small cut, so please don't worry about being maimed or anything like that.

[sicklysweet]

Well, since you asked so nicely.

[He’s already been stabbed! What’s one more!]

[escardos]

[ woohoo! flat sighs in relief when owen agrees to it, smiling. ]

May I have your hand, then, sir?

[sicklysweet]

Of course.

[Being called “sir” is both kind if weird and kind of nice. Makes him feel like he’s getting a fraction of respect.

He sticks out his right hand.]

Are you sure you only want to do something small?

[escardos]

Why would I want to do more?

[sicklysweet]

You seem very… cheerful.

[What with the Jim Shrok watch party.]

I was wondering if you have a sadistic side in there somewhere.

sabo

[escardos]

[ break...each other's bones...

to be frank, that's the one that flat's the least excited about. killing his doppelganger is all fine and good, same with killing anyone else's. neither of these would bring him any sort of pain or anguish. to break a bone, however, is an absolutely different subject.

but by the end of this, however it goes, flat will simply resign himself to it. it's just a bone, right? any bone? then that means that it doesn't necessarily have to be something big like a humerus or a femur... but who would even agree to that?

well, let's just try cold calling. the worst thing they can say is no! ]

Mister Sabo, can I break your bone? Like a pinky or something, nothing too grave.

[vivens]

[ you know, in any other time there would be a bigger draw for concern if someone just waltzed up to him and asked if they could break one of his bones. but today isn't one of those "any other times", it's currently a very much so "help me do these awful things so that a worse alternative isn't made possible".

not that doesn't have sabo stopping for a moment to stare at flat as he processes the request. sometimes you do just gotta cold call people and sabo takes a look down at his own tasks and. well. ]

Okay, but could I ask that I'm able to break one of your's in return. I wouldn't want to do anything grave either. We're not here to hurt one another more than necessary.

[ BECAUSE THIS IS SUCH A SENSIBLE CONVERSATION TO HAVE. ]

[escardos]

...You have to do that, too?

[ flat hates this, actually. even if sabo had just agreed to let him break his bone, that doesn't mean that flat wanted to return the favor by letting his bone be broken as well! why can't he go look for someone else?

then again, that would be inefficient, wouldn't it? if it's easier to get things out of the way like this, then he can't blame sabo for doing it this way. and if it's no more than necessary... ]

Fine...you can break my finger, too, I guess. [ he's so miffed by this, but... ] After all, if you break my face then my nose will heal weird or something like that!

[vivens]

Unfortunately.

[ at least sabo will be efficient and quick about it? it would certainly be easier if he wasn't nerfed because of various reasons but also because of various reasons it would definitely be harder to injure flat but that's neither here or there.

either way, he'll offer flat an apologetic look. this really sounds like a conversation that psychopaths have BUT SABO IS NOT ONE. though he'll try to alleviate any kind of concerns that flat seems to have. ]

I wouldn't want to do anything to your face, don't worry. If you're fine with a finger then we can do that. The collarbone also breaks easily if you're worried.

[escardos]

The collarbone would make it hard for me to move my whole arm!

[ let's be real, flat has probably broken his collarbone a couple times in self-defense class. ugh, the fact that he has to do this without having his access to magecraft is the most annoying part, but... ]

Alriiiight. The quicker we get this over with the better, right? [ he sighs. ] I hope Miach doesn't feel too bad, though. [ a deep breath, followed by a smile. ] May I see your hand, sir?