[ The fog gives away, and the floor rocks beneath you.
Where there was once an absence of light, there is suddenly crystal chandeliers. Glitz. Glamour. Cigarette smoke so thick that you might choke on it. The four of you sit at a table, the round kind with the pearly white table cloth. Around you, there is the clamor of forks and knives against fine china, flits of conversation that reach your ears. (For whatever reason, your table is empty. You haven't been served yet.) Whispers of 'which team do you favor' and 'certainly not that one' with less than subtle glances to where you all sit. Though as you glance at the other patrons, you may notice a few... oddities. Entirely golden eyeballs with no pupils. Small pairs of horns sprouting from their foreheads. Forked tongues and taloned hands. Though there are a few... human-seeming people about, always dressed better than the rest, best not make any assumptions.
And within you... a new, unfamiliar power lays dormant within each of your bodies. The feeling is still percolating. Not done cooking, if you would. You will understand what you are capable of soon enough.
In the center of your table, a beautiful, crisp envelope with its wax seal already broken. The note inside is simple:
To Our Honored Invited Guests, We are pleased that you have accepted our invitation to this year's Dark Tournament. You have our word that your loved ones will be safe and sound as long as you comply with our time-honored tournament rules.
Please elect a Team Captain and decide on your Team Name before we reach shore.
A simple ballpoint pen, some shoddy thing that's had one side already chewed on, is left on the table.
As you get acclimated, you may all begin to speak amongst yourselves. You do all remember and yourselves, and each other. However, your memories are fuzzy—recalling them deeply leads to little white-outs, like when you stand too quickly and get dizzy.
Basically, you can't share any details about the graveyard or death or whatever DON'T DOXX STUFF but you can chat. This is a safe(?) space. ]
[ each character may go on two small investigations each, explaining what they're doing to look around the environment or gather information and get one mod tag back. ]
[ Can he listen in on any particular table's conversations? What they're talking about, if they have any information on the supposed tournament, why we're apparently a shit team not worth their faith wow :/. ]
[ daan got the information so. can cloud do a tour of the room to find both its approximate size + any kind of exit, and if there is one see if he can confirm this boat life (can he get on deck and see where they are right now?)
if there isn't an obvious exit he can go through can he find windows ... to confirm boat life... ]
[I'm sorry he's uselessly wasting one of his chances to look for his and Cloud's swords. Are there any suspicious looking doors he can try to investigate? Or are they confiscated and on display somewhere? He does have 2% common sense so he's not going to get into a fistfight if someone tells him politely to knock it off but he also just does what he wants so he'll definitely start checking rooms if there are doors around.]
[ Aventurine would like to wander toward the kitchen area/anywhere the staff may be congregating. Can he overhear conversations? Would he be able to take aside a staff member who doesn't look too busy and ask them about this tournament, what it entails, who all these patrons are?
he's just a silly little guy who got a little too forgetful maybe he had too many drinks on this cruise oopsie. ]
[ well i am not on the bus or hiding from hei so cloud is looking around the other three with a frown on his face, trying to think of why this is weird. unfortunately if he thinks too hard on fuzzy details he gets a headache, which he thinks is normal, because that is actually something that happens to him regularly. the only thing you should all note is that he looks around wildly for his sword and makes his face when he can't find it:
>:(
but also alright fine dumped in a random scenario with some people he hasn't seen in a while, shit happens, let's FOCUS UP IMMEDIATELY AND ACCEPT OUR FATE: ]
Sounds like we're not shoe-ins for winning whatever a dark tournament is. [ he is so good at listening in on people's conversations. this is canon. he's looking at instructions and just going over things so he's picking up the piece of paper ] ...Think we're gonna have to play along, but we need to try to figure out what the hell this is.
[ mouthing "team name" to himself like it's a curse ]
[ how long have you all been just sitting here? getting up and harassing other diners? dripping noodles on things? well it seems like the kitchen has finally decided that you also should get to eat. demons come in, grumbling about having to serve you, and place dishes upon the table for you to eat from family style.
coffee is served, freshly brewed. black. no milk. there is also water. it's a little salty.
extremely rare steak is the centerpiece of the dinner. it sits in a pool of blood, more blood than seems reasonable for a steak, but it's protein. it has a menacing aura, but are you gonna be scared of a piece of meat? not alpha behavior.
another dish is a ratatouille, which carries a delicious aroma, though you might find a stray... whisker? in its folds. anyway, your mouth waters at the scent of it. you think idly of your childhood when you look at it.
for dessert: red velvet cake looking upon it makes you think of a nice little tune that you don't recognize. alternatively a set of cupcakes with sprinkles, though if you look too long, it seems like... the sprinkles blink at you? what was that? it only lasts just a second, but the unnerving feeling remains.
[ your fun little dinner effects linger hehehoho. that said, your accommodations are pretty nice! once off the boat, feeling however you feel, you will be led to a swanky hotel. you're settled on the 4th floor, and each have your own room. for our DEMONS (aventurine and daan), they will find some additional belongings with them. in the funniest turn of events known to man, aventurine gets a sword. it's sharp. incredible. daan will find a collection of different demonic seeds (or some from funger if you want, lowe), along with a rose. he can put it in his pocket, or tuck it behind his ear, or uhhh eat it idk up to him.
in each of their rooms, they'll also find an egg! whoa! ALSO THIS PICTURE IS DECEIVING BUT I CAN'T FIND AN APPROPRIATE ONE. IT'S A LARGE EGG. THE SIZE OF A SMALL COUCH CUSHION. anyway it comes with a note: Be on your best behavior! Your spirit beast egg is about to hatch! Remember, it reflects the depths of your soul. If it's a benevolent creature, it can aid you. If it's been fueled by your negative traits, it will consume you—body and spirit.
so that's cool.
do you sleep through the night? or do your horrors persist?
one way or another, the sun rises. you have a few hours before your first match.
while in their rooms, they can find out the basics of the Dark Tournament(tm) from the tv broadcast or pamphlets. they will know most of it already from their investigations: a tournament held to provide carnage and entertainment for demons, funded by wealthy human investors (who have their own ties to assorted powerful demons). there is a team of invited guests every year who do not have to go through the preliminary battles, but this is the first year that there is a team that has humans. oh, that's you! each team is comprised of four individuals and they can decide how they want to fight each round (battle royale, or 1v1), but battles end either in death, incapacitation for 10 seconds, or being out of the open air fighting ring for 10 seconds.
they also get a costume change, because yu yu hakusho is a shounen that actually let their leads have different outfits. however, because it's vitally important, they'll find that somehow their clothes have all been either lovingly embroidered or bedazzled with THE NOOD DOODS across their shoulders on the back. like jerseys. or a bowling team. ]
[ hey cloud, how is the brain feeling today? so normal, i hope.
getting out of bed is a struggle today. what makes you think so? what goes through your head as you trudge through your preparations for your fight, sans your trusty sword?
where are you headed to today? the island has so much terrain to explore. mountains, forest, beach, caves, the few available buildings, or the arena itself ]
[ eventually, everyone has to head to the arena. probably. do they all take their different paths to get there? sure. some people wanted to haggle for cursed swords, some people don't have two fingers anymore. things happen. but they will be encouraged to either change into their battle clothes before or when they arrive at the arena, sporting their proud THE NOOD DOODS name emblazoned on the back. as they walk in, hearing only the jeers and shouts of demons who want their little nood team to be ripped to shreds, they'll see that the match will be starting soon.
on the large projector that shows the current scoreboard, they'll see the name of their opponents. Dr. Ichigaki Team.
[ as you all begin to head toward the stadium one by one, you can start to confer with each other here. when... most... if not all of you are here, the match will get started. try not to be too fashionably late ]
[ the stage for the dark tournament is simple. a stone fighting ring with no physical boundaries keeping people in or out. it probably still smells a little bit like blood and death. as the teams take the stage, they will be reminded of the general tournament rules to declare fights by this cute little fox girl announcer who joins them right in the ring. ]
Welcome back everyone to the Dark Tournament! I'm your host, your favorite girl who loves a bit of gore and dismemberment, Koto!! Let's do a quick refresher of the rules, shall we?
First! Teams may decide how they're going to fight each other, whether it's 1v1 fights or battle royale!
Second! A person will be deemed incapacitated if they do not get up from the ground in 10 counts, if they are outside the ring for 10 counts, or they're super duper dead!
Third.... that's it! That's all the rules! Fighters can bring their own weapons, powers, and blood thirst, and I hope they're packing a ton of the last one! Let's get started!! Teams, come on up and decide on your bracket!
[ from the other end of the ring, this guy starts waddling up. four figures linger by the shadows of the entrance behind him, currently unseen. the infamous dr. ichigaki himself smiles upon seeing the little linguini lads. ]
Let's have a good fight now, shall we, boys? How does a little battle royale sweep sound, hm? Four on four fighters all in the ring at once, and winner is determined by who's still standing at the end?
The penalty for The Nood Doods will now be delivered.
[ each of the demons holding onto the hostages in the arena walks forward.
pickles continues to growl and bark at the one holding onto him, interrupted only by a yelp as the demon roughly grabs at his already injured tail and pulls.
lenalee bleeds slowly as she's being brought forward, limping slightly from the pain but gritting her teeth through it. when she tries to free herself again, the demon takes its talons embedded into her back and twists sickeningly.
laudna is dragged along by the demon at her side, prompting her to scream bloody murder. her despair only grows as she tries to claw her way free, clawing at the demon, herself, anything that could try to get her away. they do not need to do much here, she's already causing her own damage.
topaz gets yanked forwardly roughly by the arm, numby nowhere in sight. do you think about how aventurine took her gun. that was good, thanks aventurine, that made his hostage thing way easier. when she tries to kick at the demon holding onto her, the hold on her arm tightens so hard that the cracking bones are audible.
in that same moment, the video project shifts. in four different panels, more faces, bound and gagged in chairs.
[ the choices are in. the demons laugh loudly, cruelly. every hostage brought into the arena freezes at the choices made. are the boys happy? choosing those lives in chairs, unconscious and unable to even know the sacrifice that was made for them. instead, the people who are awake have to be told to their faces that they aren't chosen.
pickles barks in confusion—before turning to a more betrayed whine? then, a moment later, a more understanding 'woof....' that's right. that's right. he's just a dog. maybe he wasn't a good enough dog. it's an unfair choice and there was no good decision to be made.
lenalee freezes—but only minutely, and only more briefly than the others. the fire in her gaze doesn't disappear. she doesn't need kanda to save her or choose her. this is what she told him to do—win, and keep going. she'll figure something out for herself. if they manage to lock eyes, if kanda can manage to look at her, she manages a small, barely perceptible nod. she accepts.
topaz looks shocked, eyes wide and momentarily fearful. no gun, no numby, no ally. forsaken for a furry that she doesn't even recognize. the outrage hits next like a bat, and she struggles against the demons who are holding her—this time trying to charge at aventurine. ] Hey! What happened to working together?! Was this your plan all along....?! Am I just another calculated risk to you?!
[ her voice shakes at the very end. she doesn't want to believe it. but what else is she supposed to think?
laudna—oh, laudna takes it worst of all. it's happening again. betrayed betrayed betrayed betrayed, always betrayed. when cloud makes his decision, she ends up laughing. broken, deranged, desperate. her nails sink into the demon and herself both, not that she has enough blood left to bleed. and yet, she just mumbles out: ] I knew it... I knew you didn't want to really help me after all...
[ the speakers make their announcement again. ]
The Nood Doods have made their decisions. The next match of the tournament will commence.
The Nood Doods versus The Leftovers.
[ each demon will move in sync then, taking a mound of flesh in their hands and then moving to press them against the backs of the hostages in the ring. familiar tendrils will grow out of these, reaching up their shoulders to embed into them.
it's like watching it from an outsider's perspective. incorporeal, like a ghost. his spirit egg is held between his palms, pulsing with his energy that's built up from this moment. it's about to hatch. he will know intrinsically one thing: he can use this egg's energy to bring himself back to life.
but his sister is holding him in her arms. she's telling him to run, to live on, to do whatever it takes to survive.
another choice is being presented in front of him.
he can use this egg to save his sister instead, giving up his own chance at revival.
over and over and over again, he remembers this place. meeting alma once, twice, however many times. it's like watching it from an outsider's perspective. incorporeal, like a ghost. his spirit egg is held between his palms, pulsing with his energy that's built up from this moment. it's about to hatch. he will know intrinsically one thing: he can use this egg's energy to bring himself back to life.
but alma is looking for escape. he's struggling to retain his sanity, to become someone free of all these experiments and torture.
another choice is being presented in front of kanda.
he can use this egg to save alma instead, giving him a chance of freedom while losing kanda's own chance at revival.
aventurine will feel the egg's spirit energy flow through him. it forces his heart to beat again. blood flows through his veins. he takes breath. however, he'll find that it changes him. he will experience a partially rewritten memory. instead of his sister urging him on to live, he'll remember her crying out that she wanted to go with him. she wanted to live, too, so that they could stay together. there was always someone who wanted to be at his side, and he chose himself over her. he keeps choosing himself over people. for a time, he will experience that feeling in sudden surges. selfishly choosing himself, and thinking of ways to make other people fall instead of him, no matter how much he adores them. but that's not him... is it?
kanda will also feel the egg's spirit energy flow through him. it's not the same as his regeneration exactly, but his corpse is animated yet again. his body is his to control. except he too will experience a partially rewritten memory. who... is alma? all that they've experienced together, all that kanda promised to stay with him—who was that again? the name will be a ghost on kanda's lips, gone most of the time, and when it returns to him, it's broken fragments of recollection. if you've forsaken someone once, might as well forget them, right? kanda will experience this spotty memory in other places with less frequency. lenalee. marie. lavi. in their place, his soul will crave to find others to slot into these empty voids where his family used to be.
the living choose their dead.
cloud lets the egg shatter and fall, and the world surges around him. a sudden blast that's able to save aerith, but in its place, a monster appears. this monster reflects the darkness in cloud's heart—whose face does it wear? whose memory does it wear? a vision will come to him—it's a future in which aerith lives, in which they get to be together, even though they must fight this new threat. but there is hope in it. it comes in flashes and fits, but maybe it'll be okay. that hope will carry cloud forward, an optimism burned into his chest, that just won't die. does it sound a little deranged at times? maybe. but it's hope.
daan lets the egg consume everything else around them. it does. it eats away at the shadows and the misery, leaving a path in which elise is alive. the monster that comes out of daan's egg is similarly a reflection of his soul—what shape does it take on? how horrifying is it? or is it a monster who wants to do good, but never quite finds the right shape of it? it eats and eats and eats and leaves daan with a vision: they're happy. he and elise are together, and happy. there are hands to hold daan in his worst moments, and they don't flinch away from his hardships. if they bleed, at least they bleed together. daan will experience this grounding sensation, and as such his sense of pain will be dulled. emotional, physical, mental—so very little can hurt him now.
light envelops them, and then darkness drapes over them abruptly. when you find your feet, you see something else entirely.
last housekeeping:
you all receive one non-weapon item from home
all effects, visions, and altered memories will end on saturday morning
keep all the injuries that you'd like. if you died from yours, then they can be present while being of less severity
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
an invitation.
Where there was once an absence of light, there is suddenly crystal chandeliers. Glitz. Glamour. Cigarette smoke so thick that you might choke on it. The four of you sit at a table, the round kind with the pearly white table cloth. Around you, there is the clamor of forks and knives against fine china, flits of conversation that reach your ears. (For whatever reason, your table is empty. You haven't been served yet.) Whispers of 'which team do you favor' and 'certainly not that one' with less than subtle glances to where you all sit. Though as you glance at the other patrons, you may notice a few... oddities. Entirely golden eyeballs with no pupils. Small pairs of horns sprouting from their foreheads. Forked tongues and taloned hands. Though there are a few... human-seeming people about, always dressed better than the rest, best not make any assumptions.
And within you... a new, unfamiliar power lays dormant within each of your bodies. The feeling is still percolating. Not done cooking, if you would. You will understand what you are capable of soon enough.
In the center of your table, a beautiful, crisp envelope with its wax seal already broken. The note inside is simple:
To Our Honored Invited Guests,
We are pleased that you have accepted our invitation to this year's Dark Tournament. You have our word that your loved ones will be safe and sound as long as you comply with our time-honored tournament rules.
Please elect a Team Captain and decide on your Team Name before we reach shore.
A simple ballpoint pen, some shoddy thing that's had one side already chewed on, is left on the table.
As you get acclimated, you may all begin to speak amongst yourselves. You do all remember and yourselves, and each other. However, your memories are fuzzy—recalling them deeply leads to little white-outs, like when you stand too quickly and get dizzy.
Basically, you can't share any details about the graveyard or death or whatever DON'T DOXX STUFF but you can chat. This is a safe(?) space. ]
investigations.
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if there isn't an obvious exit he can go through can he find windows ... to confirm boat life... ]
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he's just a silly little guy who got a little too forgetful maybe he had too many drinks on this cruise oopsie. ]
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>:(
but also alright fine dumped in a random scenario with some people he hasn't seen in a while, shit happens, let's FOCUS UP IMMEDIATELY AND ACCEPT OUR FATE: ]
Sounds like we're not shoe-ins for winning whatever a dark tournament is. [ he is so good at listening in on people's conversations. this is canon. he's looking at instructions and just going over things so he's picking up the piece of paper ] ...Think we're gonna have to play along, but we need to try to figure out what the hell this is.
[ mouthing "team name" to himself like it's a curse ]
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dinner is served!
coffee is served, freshly brewed. black. no milk. there is also water. it's a little salty.
extremely rare steak is the centerpiece of the dinner. it sits in a pool of blood, more blood than seems reasonable for a steak, but it's protein. it has a menacing aura, but are you gonna be scared of a piece of meat? not alpha behavior.
another dish is a ratatouille, which carries a delicious aroma, though you might find a stray... whisker? in its folds. anyway, your mouth waters at the scent of it. you think idly of your childhood when you look at it.
for dessert: red velvet cake looking upon it makes you think of a nice little tune that you don't recognize. alternatively a set of cupcakes with sprinkles, though if you look too long, it seems like... the sprinkles blink at you? what was that? it only lasts just a second, but the unnerving feeling remains.
on the side, caviar. what is it?
what do you eat? list everything! ]
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land ho
in each of their rooms, they'll also find an egg! whoa! ALSO THIS PICTURE IS DECEIVING BUT I CAN'T FIND AN APPROPRIATE ONE. IT'S A LARGE EGG. THE SIZE OF A SMALL COUCH CUSHION. anyway it comes with a note: Be on your best behavior! Your spirit beast egg is about to hatch! Remember, it reflects the depths of your soul. If it's a benevolent creature, it can aid you. If it's been fueled by your negative traits, it will consume you—body and spirit.
so that's cool.
do you sleep through the night? or do your horrors persist?
one way or another, the sun rises. you have a few hours before your first match.
while in their rooms, they can find out the basics of the Dark Tournament(tm) from the tv broadcast or pamphlets. they will know most of it already from their investigations: a tournament held to provide carnage and entertainment for demons, funded by wealthy human investors (who have their own ties to assorted powerful demons). there is a team of invited guests every year who do not have to go through the preliminary battles, but this is the first year that there is a team that has humans. oh, that's you! each team is comprised of four individuals and they can decide how they want to fight each round (battle royale, or 1v1), but battles end either in death, incapacitation for 10 seconds, or being out of the open air fighting ring for 10 seconds.
they also get a costume change, because yu yu hakusho is a shounen that actually let their leads have different outfits. however, because it's vitally important, they'll find that somehow their clothes have all been either lovingly embroidered or bedazzled with THE NOOD DOODS across their shoulders on the back. like jerseys. or a bowling team. ]
AVENTURINE
hope you don't have a headache from your new implant, oops. how are you feeling? what did you dream of?
the hotel room phone is ringing. do you answer? ]
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CLOUD
getting out of bed is a struggle today. what makes you think so? what goes through your head as you trudge through your preparations for your fight, sans your trusty sword?
where are you headed to today? the island has so much terrain to explore. mountains, forest, beach, caves, the few available buildings, or the arena itself ]
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DAAN
there's just so many options to choose from. what seeds draw his eye? what's on his mind?
from his windowsill, he may notice a strange rustle in the woods. as if he's being beckoned. does he follow? ]
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KANDA
he has a spirit sword at least
where is he off to today, having a completely normal one? there's probably a few great spots to meditate around now ]
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match start
on the large projector that shows the current scoreboard, they'll see the name of their opponents. Dr. Ichigaki Team.
ready for bloodshed? ]
pre-match
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the nood doods vs. dr. ichigaki team
Welcome back everyone to the Dark Tournament! I'm your host, your favorite girl who loves a bit of gore and dismemberment, Koto!! Let's do a quick refresher of the rules, shall we?
First! Teams may decide how they're going to fight each other, whether it's 1v1 fights or battle royale!
Second! A person will be deemed incapacitated if they do not get up from the ground in 10 counts, if they are outside the ring for 10 counts, or they're super duper dead!
Third.... that's it! That's all the rules! Fighters can bring their own weapons, powers, and blood thirst, and I hope they're packing a ton of the last one! Let's get started!! Teams, come on up and decide on your bracket!
[ from the other end of the ring, this guy starts waddling up. four figures linger by the shadows of the entrance behind him, currently unseen. the infamous dr. ichigaki himself smiles upon seeing the little linguini lads. ]
Let's have a good fight now, shall we, boys? How does a little battle royale sweep sound, hm? Four on four fighters all in the ring at once, and winner is determined by who's still standing at the end?
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match end
[ each of the demons holding onto the hostages in the arena walks forward.
pickles continues to growl and bark at the one holding onto him, interrupted only by a yelp as the demon roughly grabs at his already injured tail and pulls.
lenalee bleeds slowly as she's being brought forward, limping slightly from the pain but gritting her teeth through it. when she tries to free herself again, the demon takes its talons embedded into her back and twists sickeningly.
laudna is dragged along by the demon at her side, prompting her to scream bloody murder. her despair only grows as she tries to claw her way free, clawing at the demon, herself, anything that could try to get her away. they do not need to do much here, she's already causing her own damage.
topaz gets yanked forwardly roughly by the arm, numby nowhere in sight. do you think about how aventurine took her gun. that was good, thanks aventurine, that made his hostage thing way easier. when she tries to kick at the demon holding onto her, the hold on her arm tightens so hard that the cracking bones are audible.
in that same moment, the video project shifts. in four different panels, more faces, bound and gagged in chairs.
a girl. a redhead. a dead man. a tiefling. ]
You were kind enough to meet with more individuals here that you seem partial to, alongside your captured hostages.
Choose who dies.
chatter
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choices
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match...? start
pickles barks in confusion—before turning to a more betrayed whine? then, a moment later, a more understanding 'woof....' that's right. that's right. he's just a dog. maybe he wasn't a good enough dog. it's an unfair choice and there was no good decision to be made.
lenalee freezes—but only minutely, and only more briefly than the others. the fire in her gaze doesn't disappear. she doesn't need kanda to save her or choose her. this is what she told him to do—win, and keep going. she'll figure something out for herself. if they manage to lock eyes, if kanda can manage to look at her, she manages a small, barely perceptible nod. she accepts.
topaz looks shocked, eyes wide and momentarily fearful. no gun, no numby, no ally. forsaken for a furry that she doesn't even recognize. the outrage hits next like a bat, and she struggles against the demons who are holding her—this time trying to charge at aventurine. ] Hey! What happened to working together?! Was this your plan all along....?! Am I just another calculated risk to you?!
[ her voice shakes at the very end. she doesn't want to believe it. but what else is she supposed to think?
laudna—oh, laudna takes it worst of all. it's happening again. betrayed betrayed betrayed betrayed, always betrayed. when cloud makes his decision, she ends up laughing. broken, deranged, desperate. her nails sink into the demon and herself both, not that she has enough blood left to bleed. and yet, she just mumbles out: ] I knew it... I knew you didn't want to really help me after all...
[ the speakers make their announcement again. ]
The Nood Doods have made their decisions. The next match of the tournament will commence.
The Nood Doods versus The Leftovers.
[ each demon will move in sync then, taking a mound of flesh in their hands and then moving to press them against the backs of the hostages in the ring. familiar tendrils will grow out of these, reaching up their shoulders to embed into them.
live with your choices. ]
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He's immediately dashing over to try and get that flesh mound off of her before it can do any damage. Surely this will work and go well.]
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death...?
aventurine
it's like watching it from an outsider's perspective. incorporeal, like a ghost. his spirit egg is held between his palms, pulsing with his energy that's built up from this moment. it's about to hatch. he will know intrinsically one thing: he can use this egg's energy to bring himself back to life.
but his sister is holding him in her arms. she's telling him to run, to live on, to do whatever it takes to survive.
another choice is being presented in front of him.
he can use this egg to save his sister instead, giving up his own chance at revival.
who does he choose? ]
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kanda
over and over and over again, he remembers this place. meeting alma once, twice, however many times. it's like watching it from an outsider's perspective. incorporeal, like a ghost. his spirit egg is held between his palms, pulsing with his energy that's built up from this moment. it's about to hatch. he will know intrinsically one thing: he can use this egg's energy to bring himself back to life.
but alma is looking for escape. he's struggling to retain his sanity, to become someone free of all these experiments and torture.
another choice is being presented in front of kanda.
he can use this egg to save alma instead, giving him a chance of freedom while losing kanda's own chance at revival.
who does he choose? ]
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end
the dead seek to return.
aventurine will feel the egg's spirit energy flow through him. it forces his heart to beat again. blood flows through his veins. he takes breath. however, he'll find that it changes him. he will experience a partially rewritten memory. instead of his sister urging him on to live, he'll remember her crying out that she wanted to go with him. she wanted to live, too, so that they could stay together. there was always someone who wanted to be at his side, and he chose himself over her. he keeps choosing himself over people. for a time, he will experience that feeling in sudden surges. selfishly choosing himself, and thinking of ways to make other people fall instead of him, no matter how much he adores them. but that's not him... is it?
kanda will also feel the egg's spirit energy flow through him. it's not the same as his regeneration exactly, but his corpse is animated yet again. his body is his to control. except he too will experience a partially rewritten memory. who... is alma? all that they've experienced together, all that kanda promised to stay with him—who was that again? the name will be a ghost on kanda's lips, gone most of the time, and when it returns to him, it's broken fragments of recollection. if you've forsaken someone once, might as well forget them, right? kanda will experience this spotty memory in other places with less frequency. lenalee. marie. lavi. in their place, his soul will crave to find others to slot into these empty voids where his family used to be.
the living choose their dead.
cloud lets the egg shatter and fall, and the world surges around him. a sudden blast that's able to save aerith, but in its place, a monster appears. this monster reflects the darkness in cloud's heart—whose face does it wear? whose memory does it wear? a vision will come to him—it's a future in which aerith lives, in which they get to be together, even though they must fight this new threat. but there is hope in it. it comes in flashes and fits, but maybe it'll be okay. that hope will carry cloud forward, an optimism burned into his chest, that just won't die. does it sound a little deranged at times? maybe. but it's hope.
daan lets the egg consume everything else around them. it does. it eats away at the shadows and the misery, leaving a path in which elise is alive. the monster that comes out of daan's egg is similarly a reflection of his soul—what shape does it take on? how horrifying is it? or is it a monster who wants to do good, but never quite finds the right shape of it? it eats and eats and eats and leaves daan with a vision: they're happy. he and elise are together, and happy. there are hands to hold daan in his worst moments, and they don't flinch away from his hardships. if they bleed, at least they bleed together. daan will experience this grounding sensation, and as such his sense of pain will be dulled. emotional, physical, mental—so very little can hurt him now.
light envelops them, and then darkness drapes over them abruptly. when you find your feet, you see something else entirely.
last housekeeping:
- you all receive one non-weapon item from home
- all effects, visions, and altered memories will end on saturday morning
- keep all the injuries that you'd like. if you died from yours, then they can be present while being of less severity
- keep your clothes, my nood doods
two time winners woohoo ♥ ]