11/15 : a family meeting

[beathollow]

who: everyone
what: an info-sharing meeting
when: november 15th, so as to allow any potential late players to join in
where: show tunez stadium
warnings: ???

( it's a particularly ordinary morning when the mass text goes out: )

Please meet up at Show-Tunez Stadium at four pm. I believe it's about time we talk about some of the things we've learned, as well as catch everyone up. Thank you.

( and come that time, mafuyu sits not in her school uniform but... honestly, she's repurposed the gray variant of the dreaming ribbon jammies set she received into daytime wear. ribbon and all. she's sitting in the center of the stage with a notebook and pencil in hand, and there's a cluster of water bottles nearby- she didn't think that most of the food would be too good as meeting food.

as more people come to the stage, she inhales. )

Let's begin.

Comments

mafuyu's findings

[beathollow]

( when mafuyu finally speaks, she tries to be clear, so everyone can hear her... but she can't manifest that peppy, honor student energy. )

So... I've been taking notes since we got here. I thought it could be useful.

( the notebook she has is just a copy. the original, more like a diary, is still within her cabin. )

For those who don't know, I was one of the first to arrive here. According to the devices on our wrists, it was the beginning of August- that said, the last thing I remember back home was that it was late June.

Upon arrival, I was able to meet up with Kanade, who's also from my world. We make music together for an online group- she's the composer, and I am our mixer and lyricist. The other two of our group have shown no signs of being here, however.

Kanade can confirm I attempted to go through the mist- it was completely impassable. When I tried, everything went black and began to smell like chlorine. Eventually it felt like I was trying to move through gelatin and electricity... and then I was back at the gates. ... So, don't do that. It's very unpleasant.

( to say the least! )

After that, we went to see if the health station had anything. I don't know if anyone else has gone there yet, but it held a gurney and a bare desk. Some supplies are accessible- bandages and disinfectants, for instance- but pills are behind a locked door. ... There's also a drawer that looks like something out of a morgue. There were chips of cracked porcelain, dried blood and... claw marks in one of the drawers.

... Um... when I first was able to enter my cabin, I took the time to look at my backpack better. One of my notebooks was missing six pages- and throughout the evening, I found six paper dolls folded up- I assume it is my notebook paper. ... When unfolded... ( she doesn't want to do this. ) When unfolded, they read out "dance on your strings for us".

...

At the prize station, a few months ago, I bought a rabbit doll. When the Mask attending to it gave him to me, it looked as if it wanted nothing to do with him- like it didn't even want to touch him, even though he was tied up in a ribbon. ( a pause and then, grimacing: ) I don't know how to say this without sounding strange. He speaks to me sometimes- only twice thus far, but it is him. The first time was in early September- he said... "The puppet master's only concern is how well it can manipulate its marionettes." as I was falling asleep. The second, I'll get to shortly...

( mafuyu's going to pause now because she needs a fuckin water. just because she can talk above a whisper again doesn't mean all this talking is good for her. )

... For those who don't know, I was... kidnapped at the start of October. When I first arrived here, when I first went on It'z Quite the Large World, I saw something in the water once the lights cut out and the animatronics went silent- I saw grimy hands, pawing at the gondola. ... I had thought it was my mind playing tricks on me after a few weeks, so I went back in. When everything cut out again, I had begun to sing to myself for comfort since I was alone this time... but as I watched, it looked like the animatronics were asking for help. So I sang for them instead. ... When I had to stop, they didn't approve. They sang the song back at me almost viciously, while the hands I saw shook the gondola- so I sang for them until I physically couldn't. ( until she damaged her throat. ) That's the last thing I remember, before waking up floating in the lake three days later.

... Deadrabbit said that... "A seal was broken. You broke it. She's very... Happy... that you freed her." When I pressed further, he said "The Architect has built many walls upon the bones of we who came before. Prisons weaved of death, unmade by the breath of life. By the song of memory." and that I freed "Mother". ... I think that... it's my fault that the creatures in the lake were attacking. I'm sorry.

( she's quiet again, staring at her water bottle like it's going to help anything. it doesn't. stupid lousy piece of plastic. )

I tried to get answers from Corax as well. He couldn't tell me much- he said that of the people here, his leash is the longest, but there's still things he can't do or say. But... he was able to confirm something about my disappearance. When I came back, there were three pinpricks on my neck, in the shape of a triangle. It's... evidence that whatever it was that took me, it... ( here, she makes a face, even if she's not entirely aware of it. ) It isn't alive, and it fed from me. Corax says that I'm lucky to be alive.

( ... she really doesn't want to say what was drained, but she will if asked. )

... Oh, also... the candles from last month. I used the purple candle... and it granted me the ability to see ghosts. Most of them were congregated around the rides- except at night. They were watching us in the cabins then- that was the only time they were aware of us. ... On Halloween, during the masquerade, the ghosts were piloting the Masks.

( ....... and that seems to be it, unless an older thread unveils something new! yaaaay! mafuyu's sitting the fuck down now and drinking more water, oof ouchie her throat. )

[songsearching]

[ Kanade basically almost half lives in here, as she does her music in the stadium so she's pretty much already here even before the aforementioned time, staying real close to Mafuyu - she's been extremely concerned over her ever since last month's disappearance and basically attaches herself to the other girl.

People paying attention will see that as she's not clinging to Mafuyu that she's standing near her own synthesizer, using it like a table to take notes.

When she speaks up, it's loud enough for everyone to hear, but still soft. ]

I can at least confirm a lot of what Mafuyu said in relation to me. I was actually a little curious about what everyone else found in their cabins, since it seems that they're...

[ She's quiet. She can feel something unsettling in the pit of her stomach. Of course, Kanade will try to continue; if Mafuyu can be strong enough, then she, as the group leader of Niigo (not that she feels like it right now) can, too- ]

Comparing both mine and Mafuyu's. They almost seem to be... intentionally targeting us, but... I want to be sure that we're right, first.

[starsmoothie]

[The note about the letter is what's more interesting to Noah, and he instinctively reaches to his deck to pull out some cards.]

I didn't find anything weird in my cabin like you did, but my tarot cards are different from what they were originally. My cards are all celestial themed, you know? Like, Scorpio has a picture of the constellation on it. [He holds that particular card out to be inspected by anyone who wants to inspect it.] But Columba, Aquarius, Cetus, and Pavo are missing their constellations.

[He holds those cards out for everyone to see:

- COLUMBA depicts a rook tugging a worm from the ground with its beak, oblivious to the hungry cat that stalks forth from the shadows in the background
- AQUARIUS depicts a dove, flying above the ocean as her feathers cascade down to float upon the waves
- CETUS depicts a raven's skull, blood dripping from the eye-sockets to form a large crimson puddle in the shape of a whale
- PAVO shows an image of the Hi-RiZe against a blue, midday sky.]

Pavo in particular concerns me. The others are... upsetting, I guess, but not... as bad. Maybe. Kinda.

[beathollow]

( oh. hm.

that's concerning. )

... What does Pavo represent, exactly?

[starsmoothie]

It's... uh.

It's probably the most unpleasant card you can pull in a reading. [Noah's expression darkens.] When upright, it represents upheaval, unavoidable change, trauma, disaster, loss, tragedy... et cetera. Reversed, it signifies that someone is trying to avoid all of that — that they know it's coming but regardless of their actions, it will happen anyway, and usually worse than it would if one were to let Fate take its course.

hey it's ya boi noah ebalon

[starsmoothie]

[Noah waits until Mafuyu's discussion finishes to bring up his points. None of them are written down, so hopefully Mafuyu is prepared to take notes for him because uhhh—]

Couple things.

One, I died. Surprise surprise. [A comment he makes sarcastically, even if he sounds... depressed about it, while trying to force his usual cheer.] Good news: We come back if we die. Bad news: We come back if we die. I don't know how or why, though. I normally come back if I die — it's a long story — but the device that brings me back malfunctioned on the second go-around. I woke up in my cabin the next day.

...

So that was weird. Anyway! [Quick, dissociate—] Second thing... well. Second to fourth things...

Corax said that the thing in charge of the park doesn't like the night sky. I showed him my magic, and he said to keep it indoors. [Noah has not been doing that.] Then, he said that the thing in charge has a couple names — he couldn't tell me specifically what. "The Park Owner" or "The Proprietor" were apparently what it was called with the... last people that were here. Corax calls it "Big Boss Upstairs", Zenaida calls it "Boss".

He said that the "previous lot" are still here... in sort of uncertain terms, I guess. That I haven't looked hard enough because I didn't see anyone who looked like us. When I asked if they were the Masks, he was silent long enough to make me think that was true. Then, he told me that looking into the implication wouldn't be safe. Then...

Corax said if I looked into it, if I was lucky, I'd end up going missing. If I was unlucky, I'd be "favoured". And at that, he tapped his skull. Which... makes me think Corax was favoured, you know? And maybe that's not the outcome he wants for the rest of us.

I guess that's the second through sixth things, but that's beside the point.

[songsearching]

You died?

[ Kanade sounds expaserated, or at least, as much as she honestly can given her soft speaking voice.

Sorry, she's too much in shock to deal with the rest of this, give her a moment, maybe two- ]

[starsmoothie]

Huh? Oh, yeah, I drowned in the lake!

[NOAH PLEASE THIS IS NOT SOMETHING TO SOUND ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT—]

Twice, technically!

[songsearching]

That's...

[ Kanade trails off, looking a little pale. ]

That's not good. Please don't do that again.

[beathollow]

( at the mention of his drowning, mafuyu reaches over and squeezes his hand a little again for a brief moment before letting go.

...

favoured, though... ... no, she doesn't think this is a time for theories about entities they know nothing about. )

He did say he has more freedom than the others.

[starsmoothie]

Uh-huh. I have to wonder if he's one of the old park-goers from before us... or maybe several groups of people before us. You know?

[beathollow]

It would make sense. ... Or maybe he worked for the park before it became... this.

[capreelcious]

I wanna fight the Boss guy.

[ Okay, Floyd. ]

[starsmoothie]

Good luck! Those monsters roaming around are troublesome enough as it is, you know? I can't imagine fighting the actual boss guy.

[Like, he can, but the hand-boys are hard enough to kill already... so...............]

[beathollow]

... I wonder... they leave in the morning, right? What if... we tried to trap one? Maybe we could learn about them.

kanade's findings

[songsearching]

[ Kanade's awful at public speaking.

Her voice isn't loud and while she can project her voice in a song, when it comes to conversational things, that isn't the case. While she's sticking close to Mafuyu, she's also right behind her synthesizer that she'd regained.

It's only when it goes back to being quiet that she tries to bring back people's attention with some music - it's enough to fill the silence but not so noisy that it overwhelms her voice. ]

... Hello. Mafuyu already introduced me a little, but I might as well reintroduce myself. My name is Yoisaki Kanade, the composer for Nightcord at 25:00.

Mafuyu already mentioned what she found in her cabin, so I'll... [ She pauses, feeling herself hesitate, but presses forward. ] The floor was covered in pawprints of what seemed to be a small dog of sorts. And there was also an IV bag with the words "YOUR FAULT" written across it.

As for other things... the other thing that's important is that... did anyone else go through the black mirror in the, ah... Houze of Reflection? When I went inside, it was like - going through another dimension.

[ Like the SEKAI. ]

I found a blank sheet of music with the words "Your Song" written on it - it was in the same handwriting as the IV bag.

Oh. And I guess there is one more thing. I just got this coin. [ She takes out a coin, from her jersey pocket, showing it off to everyone. ] I don't know what it's supposed to be used for, but... I have it now.

[beathollow]

... I also... went through the black mirror. It was an abandoned hospital, with a doctor's coat and nurse's scrubs- both looked as if they would fit me perfectly, and... there was an ID that seemed to have my name.

A mirror with writing on it asked me- it asked me who I was, and if I was happy here.

[starsmoothie]

I went through a black mirror, too! [Noah, ever-eager to overshare, raises his hand like he's in class again.] When I did, I found... ah, it was a forest with these white flowers in it.

[His tone gets a bit more sombre. Those white flowers were Harque's favourite, after all.]

It was a full moon, and that's also where I found some pieces of Clamor — the sundial being the biggest one. [...] Clamor is my sword, for people who haven't met him yet.

no real findings but some observations and questions (?)

[arsenist]

[Akira has been quiet in the middle of his time paradox as he listens to the experiences of others, unable to help a noise every once in a while when something leaves even him surprised or unsettled; not much shakes him in general, even the strangeness in his own life, but some of these things are pretty concerning and upsetting. All of it gets carefully absorbed and filed away, creating a bigger picture of just what kind of situation they're trapped in.

It isn't a good one. Not even with Arsène at his apparent disposal.

Not having his glasses honestly makes him want to talk in front of everyone just a little bit less, but the lack of them is also why he has reason to speak up at all. He waits for a lull in the more important topics, and then he'll softly clear his throat and speak up.]

I haven't been here as long, so I don't really have much in the way of useful information, but... I was wondering if anyone got a good glimpse of the creature in the lake? Or noticed any objects coming out of the lake covered in blood?

[As he speaks up, he grabs the tooth that's been resting in his pocket. Does he forget that it's in there and nick himself on it when he's fiddling with his hands?

...

Don't worry about that part!]

After I'd been in the park for a few hours, I found my glasses I dropped in the water on the ground, but bloody and with this tooth lodged into the frame.

[songsearching]

I haven't, myself [ as of this point in time ] although can you... see without your glasses?

[ Might as well ask. ]

[arsenist]

[He thinks about lying for all of two seconds before letting out a breath, sheepishly fiddling with the hair in front of his eyes.]

...No, they're just for show. [He does kind of need them in one way, but saying that could invite questions that would leave him feeling exposed.] I wish I still had them, but I'll get by without them.

i'm so sorry

[starsmoothie]

Me! I got a great look at it!

[No sir you did not—]

It dragged me under the water and drowned me with its thousands of hands.

[No other information can be provided at this time please leave a message after the beep]

crying don't be sorry I love him

[arsenist]

[Well. That's got him sitting up in alarm, alright.]

...You were being serious, then, about dying. [Not a lot shakes Akira, so it's a pretty big deal that he looks visibly shaken.] Did you wake up in the water with it as well?

[Ever so subtly, a shiver goes through him. If he hadn't been fast enough to swim, would Akira have also...]

[beathollow]

No, but... I've seen shadows that look like the goldfish in the lake. They all went missing somehow from our tanks.

[arsenist]

[That makes his eyebrows furrow, not much but enough to be visually noticeable. If they're gone, doesn't that mean...]

Does anybody else have access to the tanks? Maybe someone that could slip over to them and remove the fish during the night, for example.