05 - week five

[afflictionmods]

WEEK FIVE

Come Sunday morning, the portals around Estelline fade away, but not all of the oddities hanging around disappear so quickly. The recreations of your dreams and memories are still around, ever changing and shifting. Whatever it is that brought these things here hasn’t ended, not yet.

You don’t have time to worry about all of that, though, even if you know you should exercise caution once two of you found yourselves on the bad end of a monster’s claws. The course still isn’t over, though, even if the portals changed lesson plans. Everything continues on, with new places to explore as the fog pushes back once again. This week still feels a little more like what you’re familiar with, though, after Saturday’s lack of lessons.

...For now.


SETTING TRACKER

SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY

SAGE / FLORENCE / LORELEI

CYOA SIGNUPS
Due Saturday at 8pm EST

FULL NAV

(CODE)

Comments

[imitationsoul]

[ Miach hums, sounding very pleased despite the fact that she hasn't done anything. ]

Looks like. This is the first time we get to interact with a flesh and blood employee after all.

Some leverage for us - or at least a means to see how ruthless they are willing to be.

[unsinksyourship]

I'm not really seeing much ruthlessness here...

[Kind of doubtfully observing the hogtying and the completely one-sided kidnapping all going on here; that said, he's got his hands tucked behind his back and looks for all the world like a guy at a street performance or something.]

If they're that shady, maybe they're the type who can just throw away their employees? Or-- [evaluating the noodliness of their target] --he's a paperwork pusher. I could see it.

[Trust him, he's an expert at paper pushing.]

[herlocksholmes]

It's the tragedy of middle management!

[unsinksyourship]

Is that what it is?? I've never dealt with middle management-- [because he's a consummate mooch] --so I wouldn't know.

But I'll put that down on my list of jobs to never try for.

[Don't ask how many jobs he's actually had.]

[herlocksholmes]

A good life decision, Mr. Mizumori.

[Spare yourself the horror of middle management!]

[imitationsoul]

If that is the case, then we will at least have learned not to bother with hostages in the future and shoot straight for the top instead.

If that opportunity ever arises - but if this were a classically structured story, it would.

[ IF THIS WERE A MOVIE LIKE AND/OR UNLIKE JIM SHROK... ]

[unsinksyourship]

All of this would be easier if we could just drag Lorelei out of wherever she's hiding.

[By himself, Tamamori is not much of a threat unless you really push him -- and he's been pushed a very, very decent amount this week, but still -- but in a mob? With muscle on his side and a clearly-defined enemy(ish)? It becomes a matter of where he'll stop.]

The classic structure would mean we'd need to wait for the course to go wrong somehow, or for those running it to make a mistake. But, isn't this just the latter choice? [he tilts his head at the man getting cornered] If there's a shortcut, take it! No one ever got anywhere in life taking the long way.

[imitationsoul]

[ That makes her laugh a little. ]

They did use to say that without risk there would be no reward. I'm with you on this, certainly.

The more we upset their plans, the more we force them to adjust and the more they adjust, the likelier they are to slip up further. We are quite fortunate to have such a clear opponent, a real overlord with a headquarters. That is easy to blow up, when the time comes.

[herlocksholmes]

The use of that substance will make this far easier than it would be otherwise. Were it not for that, perhaps some old-fashioned blackmailing would have been necessary.

[Which would involve figuring out something to blackmail with but Sholmes is pretty sure he would have been able to do that, haha]

[imitationsoul]

Or torture.

I am neither advocating for it nor disavowing it in this context. Merely pointing out the option.

[kaientai]

This is the first time we get to interact with a flesh and blood employee and... this is what's happening? This could be a test too, you know.

[ he definitely doesn't agree with what goes on around here but he still wouldn't have made this his first option. ]

[imitationsoul]

You are actually concerned with getting a passing grade here, even when the benefit of it is largely unclear to us?

[ LAME.

Like, in her world Miach was best in her class, but she at least liked learning... ]

[kaientai]

Not really. I'm more concerned with retaliation. They're watching us go from simple talk to—... well, this.

[imitationsoul]

Frankly, I'd rather deal with retaliation than have to complete any more of this course.

[kaientai]

I'd agree with you if we weren't all connected to someone else. I don't care what happens to me, but not if it meant something happened to Mutsu. I'll endure whatever I have to if means we both come out of this together.

[ a pause. ]

I'd do that for anyone here, really.

[imitationsoul]

I wouldn't.

[ Prompt reply from Miss Violence-is-a-Human-Right. ]

You were all strangers to me - and the majority of you remain just that.

[ She likes a few people at least...? ]

[kaientai]

Well, clearly more people agree with you than me. I hope you're right.

[ he's not kidding. he would really love it if he's wrong this time. ]

These people put our memories out there on display like an amusement park, so let's hope they don't get any more creative, mm?

[undertakings]

Even if it were a test, I'm not sure what they could do to us at this point. We're getting results for the Instructor, and this person isn't covered by the university's rules.

[kaientai]

Torture us? Kill us? Show us whatever that vague threat they've been holding over our heads since the beginning actually is? What makes you think what's happened is the only thing that can happen? The only thing that person's done is their job and I've never seen anyone respond to force with anything other than more force.

[undertakings]

Torturing and killing us at this point would defeat the point of the exercise, and I doubt they value this man's life enough to do that. If they cared that about that, they wouldn't have him in with no protection or back-up.

[kaientai]

[ he sighs because he's tired. but he's patient enough to explain. ]

These people can get into our heads. They can make you do things whether or not you want to and they've bound us together so we can feel what happens to other people. They don't have to kill us or torture us for real, they only have to make us believe that that's what's happening. Why would you want to keep giving them ideas and ammunition to use?

[ he could also shut up himself but whatever. ]

[undertakings]

I think you're giving them too much credit. [...] May I ask what you think the purpose of this exercise is?

[This probably sounds like a non sequitur, but.]

[kaientai]

I would rather think about it too hard and have wasted my time than have not thought it through enough and made a mistake. I'm not sure what this exercise is for. Maybe they're only telling us it has one because they need us to believe something. Maybe they thought they had to do it like this because we wouldn't agree otherwise.

It could be they're actually telling us the truth and genuinely believe that what they're doing is right. He did say that they like the organic reactions they get by dropping people into this without giving them a choice.

[undertakings]

I see.

I don't think you're wrong to want a more cautious approach. But I don't think the Instructor or her assistant control what happens to us when we're drawn into those phenomena. I think they are actually trying to get rid of them, using us.

[afflictionmods]

[Hm.]

R-really?

[He definitely seems surprised by that.]

Has it... been successful?