theafflicted | 03.50 - week three, saturday

03.50 - week three, saturday

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:
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

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Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

What kind of doppelganger doesn't have the memories of the original?! The more recent the doppelganger is, the more memories it should have. Something that can't at least pretend to be the original for more than ten minutes cannot be called a doppelganger at all! Don't make Akutagawa Ryuunosuke cry, you fakers!!

[Is. Is he calling them both fakers now. Well, that's Tamamori's take on the matter, which you may or may not want to give any weight. That said, he sticks close to Shin and narrows his eyes at the current Phantom(s).]

It's black, right? The blood... Eurgh. Still, it's more foolproof than just listening to them talk all day.

[He has no standing to talk about talking all day.]

It's black.

[Probably an entirely unnecessary confirmation, but there you go Tamamori. Meanwhile, there's a fleeting glance at Phantone at the mention of the ghoul incident, but it's an easy enough gesture to miss because when the moment passes, he's right back to staring at Phantwom and the stake that's poised over their arm.]

...Roger that.

[There's something of a sigh in his voice as he steps away from Tamamori, who is now currently meatshieldless.]

If you don't want to watch this, you should turn away and cover your ears.

No one would be embarrassed by someone else's memories, even if they were a copy of a complete embarrassment-!

[Improbably(?) Tamamori has managed to hit an actual nerve. Phantone is distracted in his retreat in order to glare about this, which Phantwom joins in because there's no win condition to that bluff.

Being cornered is enough to get the double to move again, so he lunges for whoever is closest with the stake and... all of Phantom's completely nonthreatening lack of physical prowess.]

And I'm telling you, that's not how doppelgangers work!! Have you ever even dealt with one before?!

[Why are they even arguing about this, is a thought that absolutely does not even cross Tamamori's mind as he shoots this back. Definitely no thoughts, he's just here to... maybe... distract the Phantoms. That's clearly his role (no, he just wants to argue).

That said, he is definitely not the closest, but he scrambles back with a small yelp anyways and stays crouched; now facing the threat, he does have a knife. It smells strongly of onion. Don't ask.]

What kind of person turns away and covers their ears at a time like this?! What if you miss?!?

[Is he going to leave this to Shin? Absolutely. But he's also going to supervise the whole thing like a terrible murder nanny. In for a penny (he's not getting money for this), in for a pound (of doppelganger flesh I guess).]

[Truly, who needs a circus when the circus his happening right behind him--

In any case, as Phantone and Tamallama are busy arguing the intricacies of doppelgangerdom, Shin keeps his eyes on Phantwom and that lunge as he ignores the peanut gallery. It's not a difficult feat to avoid it, so he just narrowly sidesteps the whole thing before sweeping one foot under to trip Phantwom up, which Shin follows up by grabbing the back of his head to slam him face-first into the ground. The crack of bone against the floor is loud, with Tamamori getting a front-row seat to the whole nasty affair but Shin pays no mind as he looks at the writer while still holding Phantwom down.]

Let me borrow your knife.

[Unless Phantone wants to contribute to the knife pile if he has one, but it's not like Tamamori's using his right now, so.]

As if you've dealt with one outside of the confines of your feeble imagination--

[Sorry Shin, this sure is happening. Phantone pauses to wince at the resounding thwunk, but, better Phantwom than him. He backs up a little more for good measure, just in case Tamamori gets the bright idea of trying to draw blood from him first.

This is a little grotesque. But hey, it's mostly working according to plan(?). Phantone does, in fact, have a knife - what? he learned from last week's particular flavor of circus - but he draws it cautiously and makes no move to get closer. They can just establish which one is the doppelganger first please.]

I'll have you know I've dealt with at least five-- six-- or seven of 'em!! Anyway, it's probably more than you--

[The circus cartwheels ever onward, what are they even arguing about anymore -- granted, by this point Tamamori is literally doing this on autopilot while watching Phantwom with all the wariness in the world, since he's the one with the sharp object... for now.

There's a grimace when the doppelganger(?)'s face cracks in the dirt, because it's never pleasant to be witness to these things, but as long as he's not getting blood sprayed on him yet he'll... squint at Shin.]

You want me to go over there now? [he's already nevertheless started inching forward, reaching into his clothes to take out... a very mutilated onion wrapped in cloth, is he planning to brain Phantwom with it in case of emergency, nobody knows] H-Hurry up, at least stretch out your hand--

[And then Phantone pulls a knife, does he really need to be doing this knife delivery personally.]

[Y'all. Well, he wishes he could be surprised that the two of them were reluctant to get too close to someone who tried to impale them with a tent spike, but it's a little inconvenient when he wants to finish Phantwom off quickly. So he will heed Tamamori's words and reach out with a hand. Whether it's the onion knife or the un-onion (union?) knife doesn't matter much to him as long as one of them donates their weapon here, but since it looks like llamaboy is slightly more willing to throw himself in the line of fire he'll lean forward to retrieve the blade.

(There's a part of him that silently apologizes to Phantwom for the onion smell though.)

As he lifts Phantwom's head slightly and peeks under at his face, it's probably pretty apparent there's a broken nose they're dealing with already, so no stabbing tests needed.]

It's black.

[He's just going to look back at the peanut gallery to confirm they're okay with watching this whole murder in front of their salad. Maybe Phantwom also has some last words, who knows?!]

[Phantone relaxes his guard a little bit, lowering the unonionized knife when it becomes apparent he's not likely to be stabbed. In this specific moment, for these particular crimes. He gives both Tamamori and the doppelganger a glare, which Shin is exempt from because he really doesn't want to risk ticking off the guy doing a murder for him.]

As I said from the beginning. It was a poor impersonation. If you would?

[Honestly, how many people here has he lunged at with sharp objects unprovoked?? Still zero, that's how many. Phantone folds his arms, but Phantwom appreciates the chance for a final oneliner, so:]

I'm as real as you are! No farewell for me?

[If Phantone knew the cutthroat gesture he would be making it now. Look at this guy. He's at least twice as intolerable as brand-name Phantom.]

J-Just because you were right this once...!

[He still sounds like he wants to argue more, but there are (for once) more important things happening within arm's reach, which is way too much reach -- Tamamori hastily lets go of the knife under the inauspicious auspices of Phantom's (real) glare.

For the moment he concentrates on scrambling backwards again as fast as he can, keeping away from both parties with sharp objects. Really, he should have just walked backwards out of this thread immediately but them's the bingo breaks. He mutters something about having to get a new knife.]

... It was your mistake for being a bad doppelganger for this guy, but we'll send you off to the afterlife quickly, so don't bother struggling.

[Heeee probably meant that to be some sort of sendoff, clapping his hands together briefly, but it just sounds like he's venting on Phantwom. Poor thing. There's a quick nod at Shin... might as well get this over with.]

[Well, at least they're both committed to seeing it through?! There's a slight grimace at Phantwom's words though, like they've struck a nerve somewhere. And while the knife is held steady at the doppelganger's neck, Shin doesn't rush to finish him off despite hearing Phantone and Tamamori loud and clear.]

...If that's the case, you shouldn't have chased a shadow to begin with. The fact that you're so fixated on replacing us means you can't see yourselves as anything more than copies to begin with.

[Despite the words, his voice comes out gentle and quiet, as if they're intended for Phantwom's ears alone.]

But... I won't forget that you were here.

[And without further ado, he drives the knife into the carotid artery.]

[As offhand as Phantom has been about the idea up to this point, all emotion drains from his face at Shin's choice of eulogies. He watches impassively as black goop pours from the wound - better that it's less human? who can say - before he finally tears his gaze away and puts away his own knife. Confirming the points on his tablet, he gives Shin a little nod.]

Neatly done. If you have a task as well, I'll give my cooperation in exchange.

[And for Tamamori just... the longest look. Did this loud man do anything? According to the tablet accounting, probably yes, but that's beside the point.

Possibly both he and Shin need a comedy routine now though, so that's not. Nothing.]

...And I suppose I can listen to your elaborate fabrications later. You did provide the knife.

[Teamwork???]

[The first thing he thinks is that man, he is glad he got out of spray range.

And Tamamori is much too preoccupied with that and his misfortunate knife; Phantom and Shin both going quiet goes very nearly unnoticed, despite all the gloom and doom and dead doppelgangers. There is the most grievous grimace at the mess; but he's come this far not because he'll pause at such things, but because he'll look first and foremost at where they get him.

Still, he'll give the macabre tableau a moment while he checks his tablet; moment over.]

... Goes to show what you know! My elaborate fabrications are nowhere near as poor as this, and the least you could do is understand that, as a creator of sorts.

[Dusting himself off, he cautiously approaches Shin but hesitates to retrieve the Goop Knife. Also, Shin, did you know that you're now more than half doppelganger juice.]

Besides, first of all we should find a place to clean all this off. I'm certainly not carrying this around this way.

[It's fine, all the doppelganger juice will just make him more sad I guess!! What's the difference at this point. In any case, as focused as he was on Phantwom, he doesn't notice Phantom's reaction to that send off. He is a little slow to stand up, but when he does, his eyes and demeanor are as composed as ever as he responds to Phantom.]

It's fine, I should have enough.

[No need to risk losing any points this far into the game. As for Tamamori... right, the knife is a mess at this point, huh. Are there even actual washrooms around here?]

I don't know if we can leave this area, but I remember seeing an attraction with a large tank of water.

[It's a dunk tank. He means a dunk tank.]

"Of sorts"? I actually create things-

[Thanks Tamamori, something to bicker about does in fact make Phantom (now the one and only*) feel marginally less depressed. He folds his arms over his chest as he looks at both of them. He's not covered in any gunk thanks to pushing all the dirty work on others. But maybe he has an obligation to accompany this circus field trip regardless, to vaguely repay the effort in return.

Like... keep a watch for doppelganger ambushes and scream really loudly, or something.]

Fine. You can lead the way, then.

[Somewhere where they're not standing over Phantwom's body sounds good right about now anyway, thanks.]

Hmmm. So long as it's clean water, it'll do. Now we just have to prevent you from being mistaken for a doppelganger on the way, so don't go running off!

[The other problem with doppelganger juice is just being mistaken for a doppelganger, obviously?? He's a problem-solver, also Shin is clearly the type to go pelting off into the distance willy-nilly with no warning. #realisticscenariopreparation

The dunk tank is about to become the gunk tank, also, but that's neither here nor there.

Since Phantom is taking screaming duty, Tamamori can take... ARE WE THERE YET duty. In the meantime, the bickering bracket calls.]

You create material things -- things that are temporary! Meanwhile, I create ideas, fantasies, dreams -- and they say ideas are the ones that last forever.

[There's no way anyone will be able to catch them off guard now, what with the Phantom-Tamamori screaming combo* warning system in place. But wow Tamamori, how are they supposed to embody the true JRPG spirit if they don't randomly run everywhere!! He's the party leader now, he makes the rules!!!

*look i'm pretty sure it wouldn't be hard to go from are we there yet duty to this

Okay no fine, they'll walk like normal people, and Shin will even make a half-hearted attempt to wipe off the doppelganger juice from his face to make it look less like he just literally murdered someone. And since Phantom and Tamamori are content to just argue about... something, he'll just keep an eye out for any other dangers lurking in their corner of clowntown.

Either way, they'll get there at some point, which is when Shin will stop and turn to look back at Phantom and Tamamori with tablet in hand.]

Can one of you hold this?

[As funny as it would be for him to break his tablet again, electrocution is probably no bueno in backtagland so this will have to do. ...Also the tablet is almost certainly gunky now too but whatever, it's fine.]

I assure you, I can create ideas as well. And what ideas of yours have sprung from thin air? Of course the material objects influence them. So you could consider invention inherently the root of other forms of creativity.

[Take that, Tamamori! Is this absolutely pointless discussion not great for party morale? Phantom (now bard class) is nobly doing his part.

He's looking a little less pale too, so clearly, so is Tamamori. And they even manage to arrive at their destination intact, without needing to invoke the dual mystic arte of Phantom and Tamamori synchronized screaming.

When Shin asks, Phantom steps forward automatically to take the tablet (yay! electronics!) before he notices the Gunk. He grimaces a little at getting it on his fingers, but this too is getting tallied in his mind towards what he may or may not owe Shin.]

...I doubt it's ideal for its functionality to get substances like this on it.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

03.50 - week three, saturday

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cw: murder, neck wounds

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