The clock strikes twelve. The gong of the grandfather clock in the foyer tolls out the time in slightly unnecessarily obnoxious loud noises. The ambiance of this old mansion demands respect, care, awe --
Okay, no, wait, why are you even in this stupid dusty house?
No reasons are forthcoming, because everyone knows that people just end up in places like this sometimes. That's just how the narrative device works. The hows and the whys don't matter -- all that matters is that you're all here, so you'd better get cracking and start exploring, because it's not like you can leave yet.
Or ever, maybe.
 Good day, sirs and madams. Might I interest you in a nice glass of blood...y mary?
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PHASE I [ 02 15 ] All you see is white. The crash of thunder hits your ears next, punctuated by the piercing pitch of white noise in the background. After a few blinks, your vision comes back to you. Oh good, glad that you’ve joined us in the land of the living. Unlike the nondescript corpse at your feet – it looks like… a butler? Oh dear. You’ve already killed Murder Suspect Number One in most situations. How terribly ironic.
After all, who could’ve killed him but you? You might not remember, but there is definitely a murder weapon in your hand. It’s probably a knife or a poisoned glass of wine or-
Wait, is that a toaster? A full on toaster? Or maybe it’s a taser. Maybe you bludgeoned this poor guy with an entire encyclopedia. Either way, it looks like your murder weapon is a little unconventional, whether it’s a stranger’s pair of underwear or a hair curler. Are you really supposed to believe you committed a murder with these? (Yes.)
That said in the next second the double doors will be opening up. It’s pretty clear you’re not alone. Think quick!
PHASE II [ 0600 ] Exploring more around the compound, you’ll find plenty of those tall, oil portraits of people hung around the walls. When you start walking, they’re all strangers. However by the time that you feel like you’re wandering around for an hour, two hours, they might start looking a little bit more… familiar? Mom? Is that you?
You don’t have time to think about that, though. You were clearly framed! You don't’ have a motive for killing some random NPC –
“Or do you?” a portrait will ask.
Oh. Holy shit. Well it’d just be rude to leave, right? Whether you stick around for conversation or not, you’ll find that was just the beginning. The portraits are going to start grilling you. Welcome to CERES Central’s Roast of You. What was your motive? Don’t you know you should respect the servants? How would you feel if you were caught like that? Careful turning your back on them though, because if you ignore them for too long, the subjects in the portraits may just reach out and snatch you to join them in their portrait world.
At that point, the only way to get out is to swap places with some other poor, unsuspecting soul wandering around.
PHASE III [ 1045 ] You know what makes me hungry? Murder.
What’s the point of making a mansion this big anyway? Who’s even here? Either way, whether you’re looking for the kitchen to make a fine post-homicide sandwich or just trying to escape, you’ll eventually make it to a stairwell. The most finicky stairwell ever. Is that a trail of bloody footprints leading up the steps? What? No. Stop it, just climb.
Or well – don’t climb too quickly now. The staircases apparently have a mind of their own, swapping from one doorway to another. You definitely haven’t seen this before. It would seem that these stairs might even be interested in keeping you in a circle forever, no concern for whether or not you’re hungry or, god forbid, need to use the restroom.
However the portraits in the stairwell will provide a little tip: “The stairs are gossips, you know. Why don’t you tell us a little something about yourself? Make it good!”
Weirdly enough, sound advice – that is, if you’re interested in shouting out your most embarrassing secrets into the void so a mansion can keep talking shit about you. Oh well. Your alternative is just being a stair golem. There are worse fates.
PHASE IV [ 1430 ] This hall is oddly quiet.
Well, until you hear it – the soft sniffles coming from down the hall, the broken sobs. It sounds like someone’s crying. For one reason or another, your footsteps take you forward – there’s really no point in going back now after all, right? Yet as you continue to walk… walk… walk… the crying becomes louder and louder. More desperate, more despaired. In time, it’s clear that this person is wailing, screaming, “How could this happen?!”
Within the span of a breath, all the lights in the hallway go out, leaving you in pitch black.
It occurs to you then that you hear a second set of steps. When did you stop walking? A cold chill runs down your spine and you find yourself running then, despite the fact that it feels like this pitch black hallway goes on forever. The other footsteps pick up, remind you that you’re not alone. No, certainly not.
Best hope that you find some assistance soon – otherwise it looks like the Butler Association is going to ignite some righteous vigilante justice on your ass.
BONUS [ why o'clock ] You’re in the grand ballroom now, ready to present your case. Armed with a cob pipe (don’t smoke inside, it’s rude), a detective hat, and a single spotlight aimed right at you, you now have to explain how you came to the conclusion about the True Killer that is Obviously Not You. Rather, it’ll just be the character of whoever tags into this prompt – yes, you are suddenly so very sure that they’re the ones who are the ultimate mastermind of this entire game and… you’re just going to have to bullshit the reason why even if you know virtually nothing about them. It’s a dog eat dog world out there, you know?
Sorry about that.
Should you actually provide enough of a compelling case or they take pity on you, having a villainous breakdown for the sake of the plot, you’ll be awarded with a coupon that’ll give you three free scoops at your local ice cream parlor! (Note: you must buy the first two scoops in order to qualify.) Of course, if you’re not able to nail them down as the killer, you are obviously the killer yourself (citation needed).
From there, you’ll be dragged off to face your punishment: for six grueling hours you will be tickled mercilessly.
[ Remember to apply proper warnings on threads with sensitive or inappropriate material and do let a mod know if your thread careens off into maiming or canoodling so we can lock the log. ] |
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Makoto Kino | Sailor Moon | Reserved
A flash of lightning wasn't enough to scare Makoto. She was, after all, the Senshi of Earth and Nature and had already died a time or two. (No, no one needed to know that.) The brightness was unexpected, however, but it soon passed. When she had her eyesight back, she spent a few minutes trying to figure out where she was. And how she'd gotten here—wherever here was.
Nothing looked like her apartment. In fact, this sort of reminded her of Professor Tomoe's house, the one where they rescued Hotaru from. In a way. But, mostly it just reminded her of a parlor in some old movie set in some old European countryside where something was bound to happen. The dusty, unkept room reeked of mildew, dirt, and that 'old house smell' that she just couldn't pin down exactly.
Everything felt off and her instinct for fight or flight checked heavily into fight. Just as she considered if she should transform into her senshi form or not, she raised her arm and an unfamiliar object weighed it down. Looking, Makoto saw a...dumb bell, black and heavy with shiny spots on it. What?
"Wait, where'd this come from? Where is this place? Hello, is anyone there?"
She went to take a step, before she realized that there was something on the floor in front of her. Not something. No, someone. A dead someone. The butler of this place from the uniform, with what appeared to be his head bashed in. Brutually. She was guessing at the gender, because the victim's face was gone. Just gone.
And, oh god, was that blood that shined so brightly on the dumb bell? Was she holding the murder weapon?
She didn't scream, but she did have to bite back the bile rising in her throat. This was worse that most of the victims she'd seen during the fights with the enemies that came after the princess and the Silver Imperium Crystal. Way worse. And the fear and disgust she felt just made her want to transform anyway, but that was dangerous without knowing exactly what was here—besides her and the dead body.
Carefully, she stepped around the body without actually looking at the victim's missing face and top of the skull. When Makoto cleared that, she set the dumb bell down like she was putting down a baby or handling a souffle before it settled. The coppery smell of blood hit her nose and she gagged, but somehow managed not to throw up.
"What do I do?" she asked between clinched teeth before putting her hand in her pocket. Her fingers grazed a scrap of cloth and she pulled it out, relieved to see her handkerchief. Without thinking, she wiped the handle of the murder weapon and got ready to leave. However, just as she was standing, the doors to the room flew open and someone else stepped into the entrance.
Phase III
Somehow, she found her way into the kitchen, but the sight of the dead body was still too much for the girl to consider food. The paintings in the hallways had talked and tried to snatch at her, and she'd only escaped them by running down the hall as fast as she could.
"This place is crazy." Her voice was breathless and wild. Her hair was falling out of its normal ponytail and parts of her school uniform where torn from grabby, painted fingers. She finally reached a set of stairs that decided to move every time she put her foot on the bottom. She'd been on this particular landing three times already and was getting tired of the old woman with the weird hat and the bird. She as she was about to try the stairs again, the painting stop tittering and offered some advice.
"Gossip? About me?" She scratched at her face and thought a bit. "I think that Umino is cute, even with his thick glasses!"
Phase ???
[Pick your own adventure! I'm ready to roll with anything!]
phase iii
I didn't really need to know your type.
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A sort of cute guy.
That heard her say something about Umino-kun.
Strike her down, please.]I was told that the best way to get the stairs to work is to share something personal. I...It was just the first thing that popped into my head.
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I don't think it worked.
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Yeah, I guess not. I don't know what really to say that would convince the stairs to just... cooperate.
[It's a little frustrating, but she's willing to keep her cool unless provoked to be otherwise.]
How'd you get yours to work?
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...They want to know a lot about you. Things that are secrets, things that are bad... things you don't want to share with anyone. Once isn't enough.
[Maybe that'll be helpful enough for her to get free.]
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Phase I
Prieste- Hm. I mistook you for someone else.
[He probably should explain how he could mistake her for someone else through a door, but he didn't care enough. He glanced around the room for something that might be of more interest, and noticed the corpse. Took a moment to look from the corpse to the young woman and back a couple times, then seemingly shrugged it off.]
I would have expected someone to do that much damage to be heavier than you.
[And with his two sense put in, he turned to leave, but left the door open, assuming with her business done she'd follow. They always did.]
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She opened her mouth to say something about it all, but he left. And, well, honestly, he was the first person she'd seen. She didn't know where anything went or when she'd meet another person.]
Excuse me! I... You almost called me 'priestess' back there. [Because that was the most important part of that. Obviously.] And you said you mistook me for someone else.
Who?
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What is it to you?
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Makoto wasn't sure that him stopping and getting hostile over a simple question was good, but he was at least talking. If she could just keep him that way, things would go a whole lot smoother. Especially since it looked like she'd just murdered someone and this guy didn't even care.]
Uh... well, I have a friend. She's a priestess. And I'm really hoping that she's here. [Please be Rei-chan. Please be Rei-chan. Please be Rei-chan.] She and I have a lot in common.
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Well, he would risk it. If this one did turn out to be an enemy of Rei he'd just take care of matters himself before it became a problem.]
Her name is Rei, she is an ally of mine.
["ally" because "friend" is a hard non-manly word.]
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phase III
[ Don't mind Imanotsurugi on another set of nearby stairs, or to be more specific, the guard railing like a cat that has enough lives to not care about the height below; he's been messing with the staircases more for fun than getting anywhere fast. Actually, this staircase he's been on has been putting him on a lonely path, so stair-hopping time! Well, once he can get his to move a bit, the angle's not right. ]
Hm... I kept some of the gym clothes my grumpy jerk of a housemate left behind in the house. Sure, he only has stuff in varying shades of gray and black, but they're really comfy and easy to sleep in!
[ Bingo! Thank you canon update for making him a bit more
shamelesshonest about how much he misses the jerkface. The staircase swings around, and Imanotsurugi hops onto Makoto's staircase when it's in range without any trouble. What a weird boy, but he gives the tall lady a friendly wave hello. ]no subject
I don't have a crush on Umino! If anything, Motoki-san is way hotter than him on bad day. I mean, he's just not...
[She stops, realizing how much of herself she's revealing and how shallow she sounds.]
And why his gym clothes?
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Hehe, don't worry about me hearing it. It seems like a normal teenager thing to be embarrassed by thatstuff they like, but I guess stairs are fascinated by it? I wonder why...
[ They need a life. And maybe access to some equivalent of Buzzfeed. ]
Doudanuki-san really only wears that. I don't blame him, gym clothes are really comfy and completely acceptable to be oversized!
[ Doudanuki-san is a short man with manpride, Imano is just a little demonic peanut. ]
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Especially since her stairs swing towards the boy's direction, opposite of where they'd been aimed a moment before.]
Yeah, normal. [She lets out a soft, self-deprecating chuckle.] I guess the stairs thought that was worth more than the comment about Umino.
[Do stairs read? Hell, how do they hear?!]
I dunno. I mean, gym clothes are okay for gym class or working out, but I prefer cute dresses and things like that for everyday wear.
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Aren't they weird?
[ Is he talking about teenagers or the stairs (or both)? Details, details. If she wants to go to the new landing at the sop of the step, Makoto can go right ahead, Imanotsurugi's walking up step by step. ]
He's a guy who's got swordfighting on his simple brain at all times and no taste, hence the gray. [ A pause. ] I bet a tall lady like you would look nice in dresses though!
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Phase III
Cute? Umino? Usagi isn't quite sure what to say to that. But of course, more importantly, after she gets over the initial pang of familiarity at hearing that name, hearing that particular voice again, Usagi whirls around. All but lighting up at the sight of her friend.
"Mako-chan!"
There's relief there, of course, and joy, because she has dearly missed her senshi. Makoto being the only one not previously present while the other four were all here at once prior. She can't help but to dash forward, approaching with her arms wide and trying and probably failing to entirely keep the threatening tears at bay as her hair trails behind her.
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Not that it wasn't already.
"Usagi-chan?! When did you get here?"
She didn't know exactly where here really was, but it wasn't Earth, and it certainly wasn't Tokyo (or NeoTokyo for that matter.) And despite her confusion, she caught her best friend in the whole world and hugged her tightly. "Are you okay?"
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"I got here...a while ago now. To Cerealia. Rei-chan is here too. Ami-chan and Minako-chan were, but they...they're with the Nexus Code now." Which hurts, having those rooms as a reminder, moreso for Rei considering her relationship with V-chan. Her expression falls for a moment, before she finally pulls back slightly, forcing herself to smile.
"But now Mako-chan is here! You can meet Hiro-kun and everyone I've made friends with!" Usagi, no. This is not an excuse to immediately start planning some sort of party.
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"Huh. Wh-what? I just saw you all like... yesterday. Literally. We were leaving Ami-chan's house after studying. And what's this Nexus Code stuff?" She stops talking, her mind slowly catching up to her mouth. "Wait. Wait. Do you mean all that stuff they said was true?! That V-Babe and Ami-chan and everyone else are gone?"
Give her a moment before you plan a party. This is major!
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"Time is...weird here." To say the least. That much, Usagi will easily admit, and that hopefully takes care of Makoto's initial confusion. Let alone that this could well be another case of Usagi not recalling nearly so much as her senshi. She's more prepared for that potential case now, more than she was when she first got here at least.
"But we're not sure how the Nexus Code works exactly, to help bring them back ourselves, or send them back home. Not yet anyway. But I guess you could say it's like they're saved or something? They aren't here with us, in the ViVid or Cerealia, but they aren't home either? Someone else would probably explain this stuff better than I can, you know I'm not that good with technology to help that much with something like this. Even if I might ask Hiro-kun about it."
She probably should have paid more attention when Ami tried helping and explaining on technology and all that, but it's never exactly been Usagi's strong point, gaming aside, really. She can barely figure managing a computer, let alone all of this.
"But Ami-chan and Minako-chan were here. When I first arrived. We were all staying together, and you were the only one we were waiting for, but now you are here...."
Oh. There's the waterworks Makoto's probably been expecting since she heard Usagi's voice.
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III
And catches what she said. That's kind of cute. She probably didn't mean for anyone else to hear it, but it's a little late for that now. He climbs the last few stairs behind her with a little chuckle, not unkindly.]
Are they gonna let you go for that? Could be worse, right?
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And, then she realizes that the stairs haven't budged one bit.]
No, but I can't really see how it could be worse than it is now.
[She's not serious, but her pride has just taken a major hit.]
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[He sure hates to see a cute girl down. And she is; she's kinda tall for him, but she's still freakin' gorgeous, and that little speck of embarrassment looks cute on her, too. He waves his hand, placating.]
You're new, huh? I'd remember if I ever saw a girl like you before! Anyway, I hate to break it to you, but CERES is all about embarrassing us.
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[Hey, at least she's not like over six feet tall? Of course, she does kinda tower over most of her other friends, but that's not the point. They're short. Not her fault.
The flush on her cheeks grows a little as he continues to look at her and she gets an even better look at him. Yep, definitely cute.]
Yeah, I'm new, I guess. CERES is the group of people responsible for dragging us here, right? I didn't really get a lot of what that meeting was about before.
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