week 1

[stagemanagers]

[Well, all escape attempts have failed thus far. None of you have seen the Phantom since his brief appearance on Sunday, or heard from him at all. It looks like, for the time being, you’re all going to be stuck here.

You're free to continue exploring your surroundings to your hearts' content. The only real restriction on your movements is that the kitchen is closed between the hours of 10 pm and 7 am. Better make sure to grab any midnight snacks you may want ahead of time. Also, remember to label any investigation toplevels!

The Merchandise Booth is now open for business as well! The Phantom hasn't deigned to explain how it works, but...well, some of you will start to find mysterious coins in your rooms, and the Booth's got a place to put coins. You'll figure it out.

Should you wish to engage more with your host, you're welcome to drop letters in the box office slot. There's no set way to converse verbally with him, and he's certainly not guaranteed to respond if you just yell at the walls - but that doesn't necessarily mean he isn't listening. Just something to keep in mind.

Enjoy your first week, everyone.]

Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday

(( OOC: This will be the last mod post for this week! Feel free to start submitting regains for any threads that aren't with the Phantom. Remember, song threads mean an extra coin! This is a peace week, so get all that CR while you can! ))

Comments

[justmeheere]

Kind of? Or, well, like. The kids can turn into animals and they're fighting a war.

[So not at all, really.]

[justmeheere]

No! I. I mean, if you showed me a dishwasher and I didn't, like, know what it was? I would probably, um. Probably try to put food in it too.

[He's not laughing at you, Jeremy. It's fine.]

[justmeheere]

[He has so much anxiety that there's no space for braincells in his head, ok.]

Oh! Yeah, that, uh. That sounds good. I guess I can just see, uh. Which ones don't make me want to [die.] vibrate into the sun.

[revelfree]

[With the hub-bub relating to new items, the meetings, and the sheer fact that Ariel has been spirited away from his home world, he's been feeling... a lot... of late. He lays relatively low for a few days, popping his head out here and there, greeting those that he comes across, but ultimately allowing himself time for contemplation.

The same cannot be said for Saturday. It's dangerously close to having been a week since they'd all been snatched away, and they're no closer to answers than they were at the beginning.

Between breakfast and lunch hours, Ariel is in the Kitchen. He has a new collection of chemicals, and he is carefully measuring each one out. He's wearing the protective equipment Stephen had fetched for him previously, and he's learned enough by now to turn the fan above the oven on, at least.

After some time fashioning a few more compounds, he returns to the lobby. There's a bowl of baking soda beside him, a large jug of water, and several rags created from the more atrocious clothes in the dressing room. He alternates different combinations on the hinges -- pouring them on, scratching down the reactions, and then dumping baking soda and water on both to clear the chemicals away and start anew.

Later in the afternoon, he retreats for a period of time. When he returns, there's a pile of papers in his hand, all of which are pinned above the Rules. The top is written in a delicate hand, a survey not unlike the one Riley put together.]

My fellow patrons,

At your earliest convenience, please fill out the information below and submit it to Room 8. I am testing a number of theories as to our entrapment, and would like to identify any further commonalities that our companions touched on. Your feedback is appreciated.

Profession:
Talents:
Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Enemies:
Important Connections (Societal, Political, etc)"
Missing Memories?:
Secrets?:
What do you feel makes you useful:

Your feedback is appreciated.

-Ariel

[With his work out of the way, Ariel eventually settles in the middle of the hall outside of his room. He's face to face with a light socket, squinting against the bright light. His hands are clad in the best (read: not great) pair of rubber gloves he could find in the costume shop. He has a pen and ink on the ground beside him, scratching out notes where he can.]

[justmeheere]

Yeah, uh. Not to. Not to dump problems on you or anything, but being constantly afraid I'm going to die is uh. A new one? Usually I'm just w-worried if I smell bad or something.

[Normal Problems vs Murdergame Problems]

[37773972]

[...he's just going to. hand his personally to Ariel if that's cool, in a closed envelope. Or at least slip it under the door, one of the two.]

It goes without saying this doesn't leave you any more than it has to. I trust your judgement.

Profession; Former Astronomy professor.
Talents; Teaching, basic sciences
Strengths; See above?
Weaknesses: [some scribbled out notes, unreadable] Drinking
Enemies: There's some people who may be after me. I don't know anything about them, though.
Important Connections (Societal, Political, etc); Tied in to above and below. I think my mentor was killed because of what he knew, and I think he tried to give it to me before he died. Is trying. We found a message from what seems to be the future, and that's the last thing I remember. It was a warning.
Secrets?: See above.
What do you feel makes you useful: I can probably help support the kids; some of them are close to the ages of some of my previous students. Other than that, it might be easier to say what I'm not useful at; fighting, espionage, or most of the other things I can think of that would get us out of here quickly.

[revelfree]

You don't have to deny me my weaknesses. We all have them, my friend. There's no shame in it.

[Relax, Jeremy, it's fine!]

[revelfree]

[There will be no hiding, Stephen. Ariel's door is open, and he's spotting you immediately.]

Ah, there you are. I was wondering if you would be by.

[He reaches out to take the envelope, but doesn't open it right away. He won't embarrass Stephen by scrutinizing the more intimate details of his life right in front of him.]

[37773972]

[wow just let him leave you to it in peace, huh? It wasn't awkward or anything writing all that]

I figured it was important if you made a sign. Better be an example, right?

[37773972]

[god, you remind him so much of a couple of his old students. Not many of them were nervous wrecks, but College Can Be Hard!]

I've heard lavender is supposed to help?

[revelfree]

[Listen Stephen if you need a hug just say so.]

It is appreciated. I can only hope that they will be inspired by your efforts. And not put off by the intrusion.

[37773972]

[bro]

Well, you're asking quite a lot. People don't always like listing their weaknesses. Or secrets.

[revelfree]

I know. I had my doubts in making the request but... I would not do so if I did not think it strictly necessary.

[37773972]

[...]

You think someone's going to try and use them against us?

[madgiganticfeelings]

[It isn't long that Ariel's out in the hall before Christine is skipping up to him, smiling a little shyly as she passes over her completed survey. It's probably not surprising when he opens it up.]

Profession: Student, hopeful actress
Talents: Drama, singing, poetry analysis. I usually have a pretty good report card?
Strengths: Empathy, optimism, enthusiasm
Weaknesses: I've been called overemotional by some people, and I know I'm not the best with social cues. :c
Enemies: I don't have any in particular. I just don't like mean people!
Important Connections (Societal, Political, etc.): Not sure about this one? My parents are accountants, but that doesn't exactly come with a lot of connections!
Missing Memories?: I do know about these things called Super Quantum something something Processors. SQUIPs for short. A kid at my drama camp had one and he had to go to a mental hospital. According to my pamphlet, I might have one, but I don't remember getting it, or deactivating it.
What do you feel makes you useful: Still figuring this one out. If you need someone to cheer you on, I hope that's me? Oh, I know a ton about the Phantom of the Opera and basically any performance ever done on Broadway, so I guess that might be useful if more people like the Phantom show up?

[revelfree]

We are meant to kill one another, yes? What better way than to exploit that which he believes makes us weak.

[37773972]

[He lets out a breath. It's still...difficult wrapping his head around that, but. May as well prep for the worst.]

If he wanted me to do that, he should have found me a year ago.

[Would he have killed someone?...probably not. But that was probably his most desperate.]

[holyspit]

[Yeah this is not potentially a trap at all, for sure. Ariel will find it slid under his door at some point.]

Profession: Crystal Gem, Beach Summer Fun Buddy, Coach, Wrestler, Big Donut Cashier (temporarily)
Talents: Music, Helping, Healing, Gardening
Strengths: I'm really good at playing the ukulele!
Weaknesses: I don't think my magic's been working right since we got here
Enemies: the Diamonds don't really like me but I don't actually want to fight them Kevin
Important Connections (Societal, Political, etc): the Gems, Sadie, Lars, my Dad, Onion, the Cool Kids, Mayor Dewey (he's not actually Mayor anymore), Mayor Nanefua- [this part actually kind of goes on for a while, this is basically everyone Steven knows]

Missing Memories?: I don't think so? The program got my age wrong, though.
Secrets?: I slept with MC Bear-Bear until I was thirteen.
What do you feel makes you useful: Helping people!

[revelfree]

[Bro...]

Would it be... untoward to ask what happened a year ago?

[revelfree]

[Ariel takes a moment to read over Christine's writing. The lower he goes on the page, the more he begins to frown.]

I certainly hope you know that we find you to be plenty useful. You were the one that uncovered these secret passageways. We know more than we did on Sunday because of you.

[37773972]

[He's quiet for a second, seeming to think, then, quietly;]

It was the start of a really rough spot. I'm still trying to pull myself out of the hole.

[Maddie's death, Elizabeth...it's clear he doesn't want to get in to further detail, shrugging as he changes the subject]

People in grief can do crazy things, is the point. Why not get them at their most...upset?

[redjoker]

[Jonny's handwriting is the same messy, you-might-need-to-squint-for-it-to-be-legible scrawl it was at Riley's meeting.]

Profession: Space Pirate
Talents: Shooting, a wide variety of crimes including and not limited to a whole lot of murder
Strengths: Immortality
Weaknesses: No
Enemies: Cops
Important Connections (Societal, Political, etc): The crew Nah
Missing Memories?: None that I can tell.
Secrets?: Wouldn't be secrets if I told, would they, mate?
What do you feel makes you useful: I think the "I am literally incapable of dying" thing racks up there.

[revelfree]

Of course. [There's still a note of concern on his face, but Ariel doesn't press.]

And what better way to begin that process than to lock them away from most anyone they know. Throw a handful of references to that which makes them uneasy, to what makes them doubt the safety of their own minds, and watch them tear each other apart.

[isawallflower]

[ She's about to field the where-do-you-come-from question, but she stops a moment. ]

Really...? Wow. It's kind of common, I...didn't expect that.

[justmeheere]

Profession: Student
Talents: Excellent hand-eye coordination
Strengths: Resourcefulness, understanding of technology
Weaknesses: Anxiety, depression, generalized uselessness
Enemies: Rich Goranski
Important Connections (Societal, Political, etc): N/A
Missing Memories?: Yes
Secrets?: Everyone has secrets.
What do you feel makes you useful: A general willingness to follow instructions