Field Mission 5: Il Prigioniero, Part 2

[balancemod]

Once you sacrifice something here, you don't get it back. NAVIGATION Click here for the RNG thread! 1. THE MANAGER'S CHALLENGE A. MEET THE BOSS Once upon a time, there was a man, a woman, and a little boy. They were a family. They loved each other very much. Once upon a time, there was a monster, a protector, and a dreamer. They never asked to be a family. One by one, they fell under the pressures of each other. There are always layers to any story. There are at least two sides to any reality. When a man kills his wife with no consequences, what is the end of the story? Will the universe allow such an unhappy ending? Or are there forces that drag it on long past its natural span? With a single act of resistance, four Reclaimers have Remembered and thereby broken the cycle of the Night Show. But this isn't the end. This is barely the middle. Because the Wonderland you've seen so far is a layer of new pink skin over an ugly infection, one that goes deeper than anything the Bureau has seen so far. You can see what's underneath, now, as the theme park is whipped away in an implosion of void-space to show you . . . Emptiness. A space that is no space, blank and white in all directions. Free of gravity, every Reclaimer in the park — and, shockingly, Angus McDonald — is held in place with hands cupped and outstretched in front of them, all facing the same way. They cannot move. They cannot speak. They are the audience. Before them stands a man. Slim, tall, nondescript. He wears a bow-tie with a pattern of Rolands on it. And he is smiling. "Welcome to my Wonderland! My name is Adrian Morgenstern, and I am the Manager. It's a pleasure to meet you. Each and every one of you have had a very interesting effect on my Wonderland in my absence. Some more than others, and at greater cost to yourselves — but I encourage individual choice in Wonderland, and ownership of personal consequences. Suffering is a part of life. It builds character. "So, I am proud of you. So proud, in fact, that I've decided to bring you all backstage. You kept trying to see behind the curtain, didn't you? You'll really enjoy it. There is a great deal to do, so much to explore, and so many games to play. Every second you breathe in Wonderland is a game with stratospheric stakes. You're very brave to take the risk. "And to make things more interesting, I have set up a very special game for you little detectives, who so love to stick their noses into strange secret corners. I challenge you to a Scavenger Hunt. You accept, because you have no choice. Here is what you must gather: "The vacant bodies of Leonardo da Vinci, Minato Arisato, and Henrik Merryweather. The people who have been lured here after your carelessness shattered their livelihood. Have you located them all already? Or did you miss a few? Ten lost little elves, misled and apprehended. And, lastly— "My son. Bring me my son. Bring Niel to me, and I will give you the Compact." There's a crack in the facade. A literal crack; something in the structure of his face is off suddenly, like something has fractured and slid. One cheekbone higher than the other, a hairline fracture underneath his eye. You blink, and it's fixed. His smile is wide, but his face is whole. Suddenly, in each Reclaimer's outstretched hands (and in Angus's), there is a single three-sided die. On each side is written a word: BODY, MIND, or SPIRIT. "Don't lose these, now! These are your cheat codes. If you find yourself struggling with the scavenger hunt and in need of a little help, you can play a little game of chance to give Wonderland something of yours. It won't take anything that will kill you, don't worry. But it will take things that matter, and it won't give them back. "One more thing, and then I'll let you go. I've given you some cheats, but in order to keep you from finishing the game too quickly, I'm taking something away, too. Everyone, please take good care of yourselves while you're here. You're all precious cargo. And there's no healing in Wonderland." He winks. And blinks out of existence. And suddenly, the nonspace you occupied is gone, and you are Somewhere Else. Back to top 2. WONDERLAND, UNDER THE SKIN B. THE ILLUSION COMES DOWN CW: Emetophobia, body horror, reality caving in on itself For a short time after Adrian leaves, everything is as it should be. Wonderland is Wonderland, but quiet and still aside from the background music. After a few breaths, heartbeats slowing, the music warps and bends like rotting wood, going further and further off key until it grinds. Clangs once, loudly, down to your bones, and halts. The world freezes in absolute silence. Then. A sizzling noise. Burning paper. The illusion starts to die. To your left, the floor peels up like it's made of paper, mist, waving like a mirage before your eyes. Colorful red velvet floors reveal dark green and glowing violet moss and fungus. Gold tile floors give way to ebony wood, gone rock solid in atrophy. Disease. A small black vine reaches from the floor towards you, towards Life, but withers and hardens before your eyes. You need to leave. To your right, a wall bleeds. Is it actually blood? Sap? The color seems to run away from your eyes - goldredwhiteyellowblackblackblack - covered with an iridescent sheen, an oil slick, pouring out and up and towards in ways that burn your eyes and soul. You need to leave. All around you, the Wonderland you've come to know burns like shadows in sunlight, or sunlight to shadow. The ceiling and walls and everything morphs to the inside of some unfathomably large tree. Roots and branches and gouged out holes, forming paths of the most non-ecludian sort. Some... things out of sight climb up and down in the darkness, looking for purchase, escape, travel. Far too many limbs, or none at all. You need to LEAVE. Not yet. You want to help. You need to help. You grab the nearest non-reclaimer - an elf, a visitor, someone - and they are both far too light and far too heavy. Stiff like wood in your hands. Their skin is gray, ashen, black veins in porcelain skin. Eyes gone solid black, they try to say something, but all that comes out is a spew of thick black tar - leaking from their eyes, ears, nose, vomit, cracks in their joints and once-flesh. The amorphous Black they just expelled pulses, then skitters down between the wood at your feet. You look at your skin. Your veins are too dark. Visible. Present. A weight builds in your heart, The Reclaimers (and Angus) can still move, bolt for what was once a cascade of colors, lights and joy. Now it's a gaping maw, jagged edges like splintered teeth around a hole like a cavity, sap like pus seeping out of the edges. The once-elevator now-branches bring you back to Shadowdale, covered in a charcoal smog that seems to smile at you from every angle. C. THE CAVALRY ARRIVES Lucretia, after receiving Sans' text about the current state of affairs within Wonderland, is faced with a decision that only she could make. Years ago, she came upon this place and lost decades of her life, all in an attempt to stop the mechanations of this horrific landscape. Her biggest failure, a thorn in her pride, she assembled the Bureau of Balance not long after her visit in order to take down places like this. People or things who obtain a power they should not have. She doesn't know why Wonderland is the way that it is, she can only guess that the Grand Relic has corrupted the World Tree down to its core. But more than that, more than the years she put onto her life for a wager of chess, more than the meticulous, maddening obsession she has with destroying every single one of these objects that threaten the world- her Reclaimers are here. Her Reclaimers. Against the judgment of most of her advisers and Moon Base employees, she grits her teeth and holds tight to her staff. Carey, Killian, and Lucretia descend upon the forests of the Cormanthor region. It takes them far, far too long to make it through the wilds. The forest can sense when someone is coming to destroy it, and thus, sends everything it can against them. Enchantment after enchantment gets flung their way, but she knows better. She's seen Wonderland before and she reckons that no one has ever visited this place twice. Arriving in Shadowdale, she looks up to see Yggdrasil in its sad, sorry state. Clasping her staff in place, finally here, she is resplendent in her detestation of this unholy place. A few of you might be there at the base of the tree when Wonderland transforms into its hellscape, and you might see her approaching, purposeful, as if every step is one of reclamation and poise. Angus McDonald looks upon her and tilts his head, trying to figure out what exactly it is that's going on. Lucretia warmly smiles at him. "Hello, Angus. I've heard much about you." "Ma'am?" But her attention is turned to another little boy, terrified otherwise. His face is darkened, sickly colors rooting through his veins and showing up against a pale skin. Niel. Ah, she remembers him, too. Her face gives no sign of anger, of fear, or resentment. "Don't worry, Niel. We'll free you from that monster." She doesn't renege on her promises. Lucretia slams her white oak staff on the ground and in an instant, a flash of brilliant luminescence fills all of Shadowdale, expelling the darkness that lingers around the corners of the sleeping town. She erects a magic dome from the center of her origin, expanding out from her as she concentrates on her magic. Lucretia's gifted in the arcane herself, you see, and a giant Globe of Invulnerability spell now blocks entrance nor exit from this zone. And for the first time in centuries, Shadowdale sees sunlight. Carey and Killian flank her. She needs to concentrate on this spell in order to keep it active, and they're there to stop anyone who thinks about getting in her way. D. NEW RULES OF WONDERLAND It's a zero-sum game here that Adrian is wagering. Lucretia didn't bring Dr. Tank down to Shadowdale for a very specific reason; an expert chess player herself, she always thinks in terms of move by move encounters. She figures that the rules would change quickly once the Reclaimers had figured out what was behind the curtain, so to speak. There's no way that Wonderland would allow healing or restoration of a body within its confines. She aims to cut this place off from the outside world. To quarantine it away from escape and cage it inward like an animal. No, Dr. Tank would be useless here, and if anything... dangerous, to put their chief of medical staff here in the middle of the mission. And thus, no one can come in or out of the area once she's erected the barrier. Returning to base is no longer an option for the remainder of the mission, including any and all facilities provided by its administration: Bender's food, Fantasy Costco, items you may have left behind, etc. Those of you who have opted out of the horror plot for the month will most likely be spending your time in Shadowdale for the next two weeks, providing back up and support to Lucretia. The work you do out here is equally as important as the work that needs to be done on the inside. Whereas the forest was quiet and still before, it seems to have taken on a new life of its own, now that it senses the Source of its life deeply threatened. Killian takes command from here on out. Anyone not willing to go up to Wonderland needs to stay down here and stop the encroaching darkness from attacking. And she means that, literally. As you look around the outskirts of town, the dome extending well beyond the vantage point you can see, there are creatures, made of darkness, dripping a deeply red sap that sparkles in the newfound texture of light Lucretia's spell provides. One bounds forward from the edge of a building, four legs crawling and made of pure shadow, and attempts to make an attack towards the Director. Carey cuts it down as it splits into two and vanquishes into a dark dust. "What the hell are these ugly gods-damned things?!" Some of you might've noticed it before in your rolls, but in the light provided by Lucretia's spell, there's no denying it. Negativity forms a dark cloud straight from Carey's mouth, as her eyes go wide at the sight of it. The monster at her feet, now a cloud of dust, seems to feed on it as it reassembles back into its form. What the actual fuck. Back to top 3. A TASTE OF GOOD SUFFERING E. REEDS GROWING OUT OF MY FINGERTIPS The Wonderland the Reclaimers and Angus find themselves in now looks nothing like the Wonderland they left behind. The feel of it is similar, except that the creeping dread has officially crept. It's here now, fully-formed and breathing down the back of every single neck. What was whispered before is screamed now: Wonderland is here to hurt you. The fun it seeks is not for you, but fuel for something else, something you haven't found yet. Nonetheless, you're here to feed it. And so, you begin to realize, is Yggdrasil. The naturally-minded among you begin to realize it with sickening certainty: the roots, the veins, the stiffness and the ever-present tarlike substance stem from the sickness of the World Tree. Wonderland, and all of you, are within Yggdrasil's rot now — and as much as it tries to reject this magic, the insidious power of the Compact has taken over too far. The tree is dying. Inside of it as you are, you can practically feel it. The entire place is a warren, structured like the tree it's draining the life out of. From the central trunk, the central locations that used to be Squares slide off from the main body in long, twisting branches that turn in nonsensical directions before abruptly coming to a halt. Each Square exists in uncomfortable parody here — or maybe the original was the cruel joke, because the purpose of Wonderland is suffering. At any turn in your path through the channels of Wonderland, you'll be swimming through darkness creeping in on all sides. No light can penetrate past your periphery, with very few exceptions; you are a moving lantern in this blackness, functioning on faith that whatever comes at you, a mystery until the last moment, will be something you can handle. Stumble into Battle Square and find yourself face-to-face with a monster of vicious intelligence and amorphous shape, delighted to cut you to ribbons over a period of hours while telling you every secret shame you've ever harbored. In Event Square, a knot midway up the endless trunk, time goes taffy-sticky as you trip through loops of memory blasted on every wall, loud and confusing and overwhelming, going on for what seems like forever. There's more, of course — more discrete spaces than you could even see in Wonderland. Any manner of horror you can consider can be found here, as vast as Yggdrasil itself. One or two places, though, will be particularly easy to recognize — and difficult to escape. F. THIS IS NOT FOR YOU Sometimes, investigation gives us little tips and tricks for solving the next stage of the puzzle. For example: Michael found a map to the mirror maze, back in the first iteration of Wonderland. But unfortunately, sometimes the setting also cheats. Ghost Square is still here — but maps aren't going to do you any good. Enter this section of Wonderland and the door behind you doesn't exist anymore. It doesn't pop out of existence; it just isn't, like it never was, like maybe you imagined it in the first place. A hallway, apparently manmade, stretches out in front of you, dark and cold. It appears to be approximately 60 feet long. The walls are black. When you reach out to touch them, they are freezing to the touch and too smooth to be natural, not shiny enough to be polished, too hard to be plant matter. You have no idea what they are, but touching them saps the warmth out of you, so you stop. You keep walking, a halo of light around you but stretching no further than a few feet in any direction. You walk for 60 feet. The hallway keeps going. It hasn't gotten longer, but it hasn't gotten shorter, either. It keeps going. It keeps going. You continue until your feet hurt or you get sick of this bullshit, whichever comes first, and then you turn back the way you came. Maybe you think you'll see a door, or maybe you're not thinking very clearly anymore. Back the way you came, there is a staircase. It wasn't there before. You certainly didn't pass it. It spirals down into the depths. It could be a story deep or a hundred. You have no way to know. You turn back towards the direction you originally walked, and there is only a wall. It's the spiral staircase or it's nothing. You go down. As you descend, it gets colder. Colder and darker, and the darkness and cold press against you, creep under your skin and make you shake. The halo of light around you begins to dim the deeper you go. If you go deep enough, it will be hard to tell what's light and what's your imagination. Because really, honestly? The longer you stay in this place, the more you begin to think you're hearing things. Whispers just beyond your ability to decipher. A soft laugh, like that of a child or someone trying to stay quiet. And if you stop, or rest, or feel something negative — anger, frustration, sorrow, despair, it doesn't matter, because a black fog drifts out from between your lips. And in the distance, something roars. Just a little bit closer every time. Every once in a while, as you descend the staircase, you will pass a mirror with a red X taped near the top. Sometimes you'll see yourself in it. Sometimes you'll see something worse. When you get right down to it, what you get out of the world has a lot to do with what you put in — so we hope you're staying positive, or you might see something really nasty. G. THE SONG BEYOND THE SONG The aftermath of MARIA's destruction, the Area That Was Once The Night Show is a blasted husk. More than anywhere else, the walls ooze Yggdrasil's lifeblood from where something... was. Something large used to be chained here. Open gashes and empty sockets line the walls and floor. A large root knotted like a spine shoots through the very center of the room, a support pillar, entwined into the ceiling and floor and Everything of this cavern. Growths like tumors rise from the floor - what was once gambling tables look more like grasping hands. A few curl into themselves, knocked over, shattered to splinters in the wake of what was once there. Maria is gone. She is free. There is a sob. Small. Weak. Mortal. At the base of the pillar, half-absorbed into the plant matter of Yggdrasil is Stylosa. Black roots creep up through her arms, chest, face. Her tears are tinged black, but the eyes are still hers. One arm reaches out. She whispers 'please help, it hurt̷̟͂s̶͕̓ ̵̻͂ĩ̸̺t̸͔͐ ̴͙̍ḧ̷̜́ù̸̘r̶̢̓t̶́͜s̸̫͒ ̸͑ͅî̶̺Ṱ̴̿ ̵̠̃H̷̙͊U̸̻̒R̶̯͛T̸͓͠S̸̢͌`- The world goes static, right then wrong then right again, and the original Wonderland surrounds you. Silent - for a second. An explosion of color and canned applause comes from behind you. What was once a stage opens once more. There is the Henrik some of you were searching for, skin plaster, eyes matte black, a rigor mortis smile across his face. His voice booms out of speakers that aren't there. "Welcome, one and all, as we embark on this, our first night! To the new and improved Night Show, with one hundred percent more audience participation!!! Guaranteed to keep you rooted to your seats, haha!" Confetti falls from nowhere, more false cheers from an invisible audience. He bows, stiff and chipped as a wind-up toy. It gives you a chance to angle your gaze to where there used to be an exit. It is there no longer. Doors appear and disappear in wrong places. Chandeliers swap between designs. The new Show is still trying to acclimate itself. "Now, I know some of you have had a bad time here before, but please romaine calm. We-" And then Da Vinci's Body, appearing from nowhere, the same black eyes and battered smile, smacks him upside the head. A slapstick comedy in all the worst ways. "That one doesn't work! We're in an ash tree!" "No, we're in a cactus!" "Ahahaha! Oh, Henrik, you know I'm a succa for your jokes!" Both them and the invisible audience crack out into raucous laughter, doing matching poses like they're both on the cover of Vogue magazine. They whisper something to each other and 'Da Vinci' runs off stage to prepare. "Tonight, in celebration, we'll be holding our first ever... talent show!!! Our main acts are just boooring now. You know what I mean? Look at this mess-" A hand waves out, and Minato unfolds up from the floor, harp welded into his hands, painted and decorated and held in place with pipes and wire. 'Da Vinci' waves her arms, unveiling the elaborate music box. His hands play against his will, plinking out the sad notes to a certain Velvet Room theme. He gets left alone in tired silence for a bit before a note goes off key. 'Da Vinci' yanks his face into the same smile, freezing it in place. TODAY IS A JOYOUS DAY, we are all so very HAPPY, and the eyes of 'Minato' go black. The room is filled with cheers and rainbows, an excited irish jig played out by their wind-up stage musician. 'Henrik' doesn't wander the room, choosing instead to make sure the background music keeps going. The statues and paintings once lining the walls bend before your eyes - reforming into memories from your home, replays of your failures, but all done up in catchy pop-art style and played for hilarity. Rather than Marias, all newcomers are visited by a black-eyed ghoul wearing a human skin. They hand out drinks and paperwork, what would you like to participate with in our talent show? The winner not only gets a job but- One wish from the Compact. Surely that's way more interesting than trying to get out, right? Back to top 4. OOC In order to keep to our goal of providing the most personalized Wonderland experience for all of you, we're setting a limit of 1 RNG attempt per character this log. Additionally, please be aware that while some mundane rolls will have standard-level DCs, many rolls, including those with the potential to uncover plot information, will be high-risk high-reward and will have a very high DC along with steep penalties for failure. As always, we will let you know of this before we roll, and you have the option to decline any roll at any time. If you would like to gain a bonus of +2 on any given roll, those who have opted in to horror content may make the choice to sacrifice something of body, mind, or spirit. We will determine your sacrifice based on your horror homework. It is up to you whether this sacrifice is for the duration of the mission or a permanent sacrifice. As an additional reminder, there is no healing in Wonderland. To a few of you, this will be even more detrimental than usual. To those of you who went too far with your debts or your choices, who have lost your very Selves to Wonderland. A list: ○ Michael ○ Kaede Akamatsu ○ Minato Arisato ○ Akira Kurusu ○ Guido Mista ○ Ryuji Sakamoto ○ Leonardo da Vinci ○ Willard H. Wright Despite Lucretia's spell, the Light won't effect you guys. Over the course of part 2 you'll find you're slowly falling prey to what hit everyone else in wonderland. Your skin will turn pale, your veins will turn dark, you'll start vomiting viscous Abyss that occasionally comes to life, and eventually your eyes will turn black and you will Petrify. Should you as a player not want to play out the vomiting part, it can be exchanged with breathing out black mist. Whichever's cool with your school guys. The speed/intensity of this change and all of its symptoms is also up to you. There are two exceptions. Da Vinci, while she is still a Roland, will simply start going rotten, seams growing old and fur collapsing away. Constant Mending will mitigate this, but she's on a timer to get her body back now. Willard will find that as the hardening of the glass continues, it will start to lose all color and begin to crack in places. These cracks will leak the same tar infecting the other players. Minato, despite being a Music Box right now, is still in his physical body and is not an exception. On a more general note, we encourage you to make your own mini-horrorscapes in this setting! The entirety of Wonderland is available to dark-side, with the exception of what we've already laid out for Ghost & Wonder Squares. Improvise and make a mess. Just make sure to tag anything warning-worthy. Anything on the OOC post is fair game, and if there's something you'd like to try, please don't hesitate to let us know on the RNG thread. Should you have any questions, please direct them to the OOC post linked above. Back to top blurb code by photosynthesis

Comments

[balancemod]

The gnome amulet bonus would've worked at tracking Henrik's body down, had it escaped into the tree. But he didn't. It's just being a waste of space in Shadowdale right now. Now that they're standing right in front of the proper Henrik, the amulet still gives nothing off.

But upon discussion, none of this actually requires a dice roll. Have some freebies!

- The Rolands have no idea how you can help. Do they even want help? ...Well. Yes. But generally Henrik and all the others are just really depressed. You'be sad too if you were stuck in this ugly bear suit.

- There are definitely enough pieces to make a few whole Rolands, but it's hard to say which piece goes to which Roland.

- Shuichi's investigation skills yield that the Rolands are in pieces. At the same time, they're not really in pain. Or as much pain as they should be for the state they're in. His detective flex can pick up that it might be part of the grand enchantment effect here. Less moving their souls out and more just moving their awareness.

- Divine Sense picks up on one Celestial, both extremely far yet incredibly close, with most of it standing right where Maya is. It doesn't pick up anything else. Nick Junior finds only Roland bits. Through him, Maya can hear the sound of something making noises from far off down the tracks. Like, really far. If they're quiet enough, it won't come back.

- Grouping the last two together: nothing pops out of nowhere to stop them from gathering what Roland bits they can reach for, but it's contingent on what Nick Junior spotted. Be fast and quiet and they can get all the objects needed to open their own build-a-bear franchise. Getting them out might pose a problem, though.

[balancemod]

Hi there! Before we continue with this follow-up roll, we’d like to clarify a few things regarding your team’s strategy here.

○ Crowley’s use of Force Distrust has the potential for negative consequences on the elves in the event of a low roll. You’re all probably aware of this already, but since we’re mentioning other things anyway, we figured we might as well bring this up too!

○ Does Aziraphale have Oath, Ceremony, or some other path action that would allow him an empathic connection to Crowley? If not, he would not be able to sense Crowley’s actions, emotions, or thoughts.

○ Similarly, Sanctuary as an action applies to the caster and extends to a 10-foot diameter around the caster. It also can only be cast in one location at a time. As such, Aziraphale would be able to cast on himself and Michael and Battler, but not on the train.

○ Success on this roll has a DC of 18. Success does not guarantee that all party members will be saved. Should the roll not succeed, more party members may die than if Eleanor made the trolley problem choice offered by Wonderland. We want to be very clear about this before going forward.

Please get back to us with any questions or changes! Once your plans are finalized, we’ll go ahead with this roll.

[balancemod]

So. Here’s the thing.

Look at this from Niel’s perspective. There aren’t many Reclaimers he dislikes! Most of the people in this party are people he’s spoken to before and likes a lot. Kokichi and Honoka especially are trusted friends. It’s not that he doesn’t want to talk to you—

But there are seven people walking up to him. Seven people, even if two are hanging back — and they’ve got his journal with them. Niel’s eyes go wide as soon as he catches sight of it. His skin, already sallow and veined with tar, goes even more ashen. When Kokichi starts to talk, he opens his mouth to respond, but nothing comes out. Not because he doesn’t want to speak, but because he can’t. Because he can hear his heart pounding in his ears. Because it feels like something’s squeezing big hands around his lungs.

This isn’t the most scared he’s been in his life, but it’s not a great day. That much you can tell for free.

Niel disappears. Not in a puff of smoke or in the midst of a loud noise; the only sensation to the gathered party is a gentle suction from the space he was occupying, as though air is rushing to fill in the space he’s just vacated. There’s no sign of where he went, but he sure as hell isn’t here anymore.

For the sake of transparency, we’ll tell you this much: the party will get one more chance to speak with Niel about this. Seven on one isn’t going to fly, so choose wisely who will be sent after him; we suggest a maximum of two for confronting this scared kid. We’re going to give you finding him as a freebie, but the actual roll for speaking to him, with a maximum of two in the party, will be DC of 18.

[balancemod]

+2 for Dumb Ways to Die!

Except you don't need it. Or rather, it doesn't do shit, because Mystery of Death doesn't do shit. Not because it doesn't work — it does, even Ghost!Mia is certain of this — but because there's no Death to commune with.

This body, though its soul may be elsewhere, is certainly not dead.

[balancemod]

Wow, that's a lot of genki.

The way we opted to do this is that everyone in the ooc thread who listed a concrete memory worked as a +1 for your roll. And considering you rolled a 10, you should be thanking everyone who shared their happiest moments with each other. For a grand total of a +10 bonus-

That's a 20 baby!!!!

At first, there's no reaction. You're all just standing in front of a tree and hoping for the best. But little by little, there's the sound of cracking. A few of the burnt roots start to curl away and disappear. Monsters nearby dissolve into a mist. Those of the dead or petrifying variety may find their constant pain just... lifts. The corruption is still in effect, but the pain and suffering just. Leafs.

On the inside of the tree, there's still spatial distortion, still nightmares come to life, but the entire place shrinks. The impossible geometry ceases. Monsters that were once infinite abominations have reverted to the broken branches they were previously, or just dissolve in mist. In the wake of such positivity, the poison in Yggdrasil gives way. It is still dying, yes, but it lives for the first time in a very, very long time.

This means nothing to your team as of yet, and won't for a bit longer, but this will definitely help you out during the call to arms. Good job Lieutenant Genki Sayori. You have been promoted to General.

[unrecovered]

That moment when you teamwork a little too hard

This is why you guys limit CTAs to like four people per group, isn't it

Logistical question! Can we still use Wash's roll for this even if he isn't one of the two?

[balancemod]

Yes, that's fine as long as everybody agrees to it! Just make sure to note it in your final response so we know.

[hxppythxughts]

✧*｡٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و✧*｡

Thank you so much, benevolent mods & merciful dice gods!!! SALUTES

ouch

[eudaimonikos]

[It's true that he didn't really intend to escalate the situation quite that much, but Michael's far from upset over it. He claps a hand over his mouth to choke back a delighted laugh, and instead has the presence of mind to dub in a laugh track. Everybody likes to see people get hurt, right? This is just like America's Funniest Home Videos!

The ghostly laughter of an invisible audience echoes through the hall, louder and more mocking than the sitcom standard. Clear does not stop and wait, but she calls back as she goes:]

You were supposed to die too, you hypocri -

[She shrieks, and then a rushing boom like a massive tree falling cuts both her and the laughter off.

There's no more sounds after that.]

[rockymountaindie]

[ He's coughing, smoke in his lungs making his eyes water. He's almost stumbling along, heading in the direction of her voice, trying to ignore the laughter. He's desperate--


And then it's all silent. ]

Clear? ...Clear!! [ Run. He takes off running again, coughing and stumbling. Idiot. Fucking idiot, toward the boom. But he can't do anything but think about her, whether she's real or not. His mind's mixed up and sick but he can't turn it off, how important she is to him. ]

[noblegarnet]

I'm pretty good at remembering things, yeah.

[He watches Alex with some curiosity, though he still looks more tired than anything. Having another Reclaimer to focus on helps to keep his mind off more personal things.]

That's good to hear. [...] "Beaky", though?

[Agate flies over to land on his shoulders as if on cue, watching the other two placidly from her new perch. Ferran certainly picks his familiars for their looks as much as their usefulness...]

[rockymountaindie]

[ Oops, uhhh. Alex grimaces in embarrassment and looks away for a moment, while Beaky, hearing her name, caws cheerfully. ]

Yeeeah, she, uh... Blame Maya.

[noblegarnet]

[Aww. Ferran smiles a little at the raven, probably the first time he's done that in... a bit.]

I get it. Mista named my first familiar... and now he won't answer to anything else.

[He was trying to go with a theme, but Butter just stuck. He doesn't know that it's entirely grown on him yet, but that's how it is.]

[noblegarnet]

Really, so the two of you didn't run in head-first into selling your souls? What did you think signing something here would do? Contracts have power!

[The magic falls short of affecting him, and he knows an enchantment spell when he sees one now. It serves to make him even more angry, shaking her once with his teeth grit, and his eyes blaze red: thaumaturgy.]

And then when the inevitable happened, Blake was the one punished for it. And you're just fine with that?!

[petsthedog]

[....ah. This has never happened to him in his life. How do you react to someone showing you cute pictures of their family...even magic has not given him a script for this.]

Y...yeah. She's cute.

[petsthedog]

[Yeah he's not going to finish all the water. That's just asking for a cramp or getting nauseous. But he does down a good few gulps before he hands it back to her.]

Thanks.

[A Shinji unaffected by Wonderland would probably just leave it at that. But reaching out to people is easier when you're not trapped in a loop of aggressively hating yourself. And so:]

How're you holdin' up? You look like you could use a breather yourself.

[petsthedog]

[This entire business with the tree has been an exhausting endeavor at best, and Absolute Bullshit at worst. With Arisato resting in Shadowdale, he's had little to do but go back in the tree for anyone else who might be contending with shadow monsters or other such problems, and every time he goes there's a new flavor of crap to deal with.

The ground falls away from him and the way space twists around him reminds him powerfully of a hidden 25th hour, a time that should not Be except it's more than that, it's a nothingness that asserts itself as reality, and the tide is too powerful to fight so he just

lets

go



and wakes up on a plush velvet seat?

He sits up slowly, rubbing at his eyes. It's a beautiful theater, really, and maybe another person could appreciate it, but Shinjiro's expression sours immediately.]

--Oh you got to be kiddin' me.

[This is some Horse Baloney, Lion!!!]

[noblegarnet]

[That mist could be a danger later, but for now he doesn't want to think about theories or risks.]

I don't know.

[This time, when she uncovers her mouth, he does take her hand, even if it's threaded through with black branches for veins. His eyes gloss over a little, but he keeps his voice steady for the moment.]

I didn't think you were coming back. [He doesn't say that he was debating on whether to freeze her to keep her preserved for revival later; it's probably best to keep those thoughts to himself, as dark as they are. His voice lowers to a murmur when he continues, staring at her hand.]

... I'm glad you did.

[dialetheism]

[ It's super horse baloney!! And they hate it!!

Or that's what they would say, if they could get sound past the frozen lump in their throat. All they can focus on is the cool feeling of metal around each wrist - and the bracer, lovely, that means they can't message anyone, this is getting better and better - and the rustle that means there's a similar situation around their ankles.

Same as last time. Enough slack to move a little, not enough to escape. Great. ]

Ah... that's...

[ Somewhere in the distance - nearer to the stage? - lights begin to flicker to life. The room seems to expand, growing larger. Distant whispers echo in far-off balconies. ]

Oh, not again.

[ Well, at least that answers who's memory-horror-whatever this is. ]

Re: 1

[ryuji]

[It entirely goes to say that Ryuji has no freaking clue what an anchoring event is supposed to look like. This place just kind of sucks, in general, and that's a vast understatement of the traumatic experiences everyone's been having so far.

He just wants to go home.

And, of course, to kick whoever made this place right square in the nads.

"Ryuji Sakamoto, we have three eligible bachelors behind the screen who are ready to meet you. And heeeeere they are!"

He can't make out who the host is supposed to be, like every time he takes a glance over, it's just a blurry sort of figure. From the other side of the curtain dividing him and the contestants, he doesn't see it- but they're all mannequins. And the entire crowd is cheering them on just like they're real, living beings.]

This is bullshit!

[Thick black fog emanates out from his mouth and is absorbed somewhere nebulously elsewhere.

And yet, he sees Sans, slowly making his way towards the stage.

Thank god.]

[ryuji]

[The pitch in sound that Ryuji feels, deep down in his stomach, at the acknowledgement of a girl screaming rattles him straight down to the core. Even in his trapped state, he still feels the need to protect everyone other than himself. He holds out on the idea that if he gets to the center of the maze, this place will let him back into his actual self and not this weird, barely corporeal form that he knows isn't his real body.

Something's keeping him here, and he just... he just wants to get out. But even as he has those thoughts, Wonderland whispers doubts into his heart, that no matter how far he tries to wriggle free, he's still going to be here.

It's like wandering the Astral plane again.]

Blake! Shit, I.

Yeah, man, it's really me. God, I'm so.

[He looks like he might actually cry at any moment.]

I'm so happy to see you.

Wait, you're real too, right? Prove it. What's that song we sang in the desert?

[The one they both agreed

Never Happened.]

[ryuji]

[There's something just wrong about all of this, about this place, about how he ended up lost on a road that leads to nowhere, and yet, Wonderland took a look into his head and put him here. It knew how much Ryuji needed some form of guidance in his life, some shred of hope to cling onto that there's a better tomorrow or a direction, or a locale that him and his friends can head to where there's an end in sight. And it perverted that thought. This road stretches for millions of miles, and even Jack Kerouac would feel nauseated looking at this.

Speaking of nauseated, Ryuji is startled to see Kaede, but it's a vile feeling that pits deep in his stomach as his negativity starts to bubble forward from deep within him. That feeling that she's here isn't one of happiness- no, it's actually terror.

He knows that whatever's happening might hurt her and that?

That's worse than the black liquid oozing from his lips.]

Sh--- Kaede, ste...urgh... Get away from me!

[His stomach feels on fire as he starts clearing out the contents of all the darkness inside him, literally. He clutches his stomach and bends, white eyes clenching shut as that black sap expels outward from him.]

[gotyourbach]

[Her spell only seems to make him angrier, and now she's getting upset. There's a part of her, a darker part that's been there since Vista Virs that whispers teach him a lesson. She'll address his arguments when he's not shaking her around. For now, she grits her teeth, remembering all the lessons Akechi and Blake herself had taught her about fighting, about getting free when she can't rely on her magic.]

I said back off!

[And she drives her knee into his groin as hard as she can.]

[coolranchbaby]

After MORE deliberation, we decided to edit and take Wonderland up on their auspicious offer. Mostly.

Eleanor will use Message to have Battler direct the train toward her group. She is still going to use Vicious Mockery on the nightmare as it barrels toward her to call out Adrian and say "fuck you and the horse you rode in on, you wife and child-beating bastard, we're gonna save the shit out of these people and take down Wonderland and there's nothing you can do about it!"

Crowley will use his miracle(+Force Distrust if that’s what it takes to get it done) to free himself and jump clear of the tracks. As far as Aziraphale sensing the use of Force Distrust, that was made because part of the description for the action is that those with strong ties to the divine (like an angel) can snitch out when it gets used.

We will say that Crowley convinced Aziraphale to cast Ceremony on the two of them before the party split, as part of his continuing, 6000-year mission to keep Aziraphale safe from harm in spite of the angel's best efforts to walk straight into it. The Ceremony spell has the double benefit of a) allowing Aziraphale to sense Crowley's Force Distrust (assuming just Being An Angel isn't enough to sense it) and cast Sanctuary on himself and his party, and b) split damage between the two, hopefully helping to save Crowley from the train. To clarify Aziraphale's Sanctuary cast, we were under the impression that since he and the others are tied to the Nightmare's back, the 10 foot diameter would encompass both them and at least part of it.

Aziraphale and Crowley are both going to roll their die for a total of +4 to help Crowley get off of the tracks, in addition to the damage-splitting factor of Ceremony, and they have no preference for what kind of effect or penalty as long as it’s non-permanent and will go away at the end of the mission. Michael is also using his +2 die in a desperate "Help Eleanor" hail Mary pass, because while we acknowledge that someone has to die as a consequence of our previous roll, Michael himself has no such meta knowledge. We'll leave it up to the mods whether to use Eleanor's roll for this whole thing with a +6, or whether to use Eleanor's (+2) and Crowley's (+4), since the mods would know better than we if there's even a reason to roll for Eleanor's choice by itself.

[gambolshroud]

[She hates that they even need to ask one another such a question, but this place— it's given them every reason to doubt not only each other, but themselves. Nothing here can be trusted, regardless of how badly she wants to be able to trust in her friends.]

It's me. As much as any of us are ourselves here.

[It really is relative in its own way, isn't it?

But he asks for proof— and as much as it pains her to recall, she knows that's the best way for both of them to confirm. They hadn't breathed a word of it to anyone, and while she doesn't doubt this place could pull whatever it wanted from their memories, she exhales slowly.

Probably the best way to be sure.]

I don't— know the name of it, [what's Grease] but it was about being the one that I— you know.

[You Know.]