WEEK SEVEN: MINGLE

[retellers]

WEEK SEVEN: MINGLE (21 remain) Rise and shine, gremlins. The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and it's the start of a new week. To the participants, yesterday's events may seem distant now—albeit not as distant as their life before this. Whether or not they notice, they will have lost a memory upon waking up. As usual, the participants will find that their lodgings have changed, and should anyone check their PHS, Chiron, Ochako, Soo-won, and Dorothy's profiles have been removed. They may also find that they have difficulty recalling complete details of the past weeks. Furthermore, it looks as though the rules have updated. Not everything is the same as the previous pattern, though. The barrier to the north is back up, and once more, what lies beyond is an empty field. In contrast, however, participants may notice that they can finally access a place they haven't been able to before... Additionally, it looks like the Leaders aren't around. No matter where the participants look, they're nowhere to be found. Should anyone try calling for them in the Planetarium, there will be no response—not even a message telling the participant that they're busy. Finally, everything around the participants begins to... glitch? Buildings may suddenly blink out of existence and then back in, random items like chairs or cups may suddenly distort even while they're being used, and looking at any particular thing for too long may give someone a headache. It's worse than it was that one week, though: participants will find that it's happening to themselves as well. Body parts might suddenly glitch out of existence then back in, and there will be a shot of pain when it occurs. It'll happen randomly, but it also seems to occur more often if they're touching something or another person.

NAVIGATION locations ₓ˚. statuses *+:｡ ic profiles :ₓo ic rules ･ﾟﾟ･｡ audience requests murder proposals ｡✧o private conversations ･ﾟo｡ curfew ･ﾟ✧ memories

Comments

[infreefall]

Mm, I'm okay. It was pretty quick for me, so it wasn't that bad. I didn't even feel anything.

[ she's just

assuming he means her death ]

[arcsplainist]

[ well. partly. but she speaks of it so casually Alphinaud can't help but go wide-eyed. ]

That— [ oh ] ... It is... a relief to hear you had not suffered, at the very least.

[infreefall]

[ smiling! ]

Yeah, I appreciated that part, too. But you know, last requests and all. We're back now, though, so - no more worrying about that stuff, okay? We just have to get through the rest so we can all go home.

[arcsplainist]

... If you insist, then I shall not. 'Tis a moment to celebrate, after all.

[infreefall]

Exactly!

[ another fist pump! celebrate, celebrate! ]

I know it's probably not over yet, but I'm glad to be back. And I'm glad that you made it to the end, too, Alphinaud.

[arcsplainist]

Well, I—am glad to be no worse for the wear, myself...

But I imagine we must both be exhausted. Your journey was not too rough, was it?

[infreefall]

[ she considers this. considers one specific thread.

and apparently brushes it off. ]

It wasn't the smoothest ride I've ever been on, but it could have been worse. It helped us get our memories back, at least, so I'm counting it as a win.

[arcsplainist]

Aye. We have all fought hard and well, and that is what matters most. Though we are not yet finished... I now have but only the utmost confidence we will fulfill our duty here.

[infreefall]

That's the spirit! With all of us here, that monster doesn't stand a chance!

[arcsplainist]

Hardly so. Or... I would like to say, but do we know what its strength is like...?

[infreefall]

Ah... no, I don't think we know much of anything about it, honestly. They were talking about it maybe being a computer virus on the other side, but none of us even know anything about hacking, so we'll be out of luck if that's what it is.

[ no one here seems to be THAT nerdy ]

[arcsplainist]

[ uhhhh ]

... Quite. I find myself becoming rather lost simply listening to such a simple explanation, if I must speak plain.

1/2

[infreefall]

[ softly: ] Oh, right, you're medieval.

[infreefall]

...Well, anyway! I'm sure we'll figure it out. I won't be able to show you what a TikTok is if we don't, so really there's no other option, is there?

[ priorities! ]

[arcsplainist]

[ HE HEARD THAT. (these ears are not for nothing!) ]

Given that I am still utterly baffled on whatever this "Tick Tock" could possibly be...

[ yes ]

[infreefall]

[ stop she adores him ]

It's just something people do for fun! Like... I don't know, a really short movie? [ wait ] Whiiiich I guess for you would be a play?

[arcsplainist]

I know of stageplays, aye. Are they called "movies" where you are from?

[infreefall]

Well, no, they're still a little different. But movies are like... recordings of plays, you could say? So you can watch the same version, with the same actors, over and over again as much as you want, even years after it was first made.

[arcsplainist]

Truly?

[ dang... if only the tvs in their rooms ever worked, he'd know this by now! ]

Where could you watch these? Surely you are not limited to a theatre, correct?

[infreefall]

Nope! You can go to the theaters if you want, but you can watch a movie anywhere there's a TV - or at least a DVD player.

...Oh. A DVD is what we record them on. Don't ask me to explain that one, though, I have no idea how it actually works. But we can set up a movie night sometime after this is over! I already told Yona-san we do one.

[arcsplainist]

I am quite curious to see how this works, so I would be more than happy to attend.

[infreefall]

Yes! I'll definitely make sure it happens - and we can make popcorn, and maybe even pizza if you guys still want to try it!

What kind of plays do you like, anyway? If we're doing this, I'm going to try to get something for everyone, or at least a few different choices.

[arcsplainist]

Hm... When it comes to plays, I confess I have not seen many. My homeland whence I grew up was not one for artistic pursuits, you see, but I mind not being surprised when the time comes to see a movie.