[YAKUYOKE]

[detentionroom]

[You needed an escape.

For a moment– however brief, or however not– you longed to get away. Perhaps you envisioned a vacation upon sunny, beachy shores, palm trees at your back and seagulls floating in the air. Perhaps you envisioned nothing at all, and merely accepted that anywhere but here would do. Either way. . .?

You blink. . . and you wake up slouched on a school desk, arms folded with head resting between. You lift your gaze and realize that you've woken up in the middle of a classroom, seated in one of the. . . uh, very few functional desks that remain. The others have been broken into pieces, with legs and splinters of wood scattered across the floor. Deep claw marks decorate the walls, having gouged the sheetrock with jagged, violent gashes. The window curtains are closed, but they too have been torn and ripped to shreds, with holes showing a dark and unidentifiable landscape beyond the four walls which trap you.

And written on the blackboard, in large, white letters that seem to glow in the midst of the dim room lighting, is a warning]

DO NOT GIVE THEM YOUR NAME.

[. . . you are not alone]

[Each and every new arrival awakens dressed in a high school-issued track uniform. The design is up to the players, but each uniform is already color-coded to match the group at large. Somewhere on your body is a new marking: a mysterious floral design shaded the same color as your track uniform. It is glowing very gently. And in your pocket you feel. . . something warm. Further investigation reveals a tiny little omamri, tucked away in your outfit, for safe keeping. Huh! What a nice gift!]

[For now, the front door to the classroom is locked. No matter how hard you try– with physical prowess or otherwise– the door cannot be opened.]

[But hey! You can poke around the area, if you'd like! Maybe get to know your new classmates. . . ? Try not to panic. For now, everything is. . . calm]

Comments

[ARRIVAL MINGLE]

[detentionroom]

[cupidsammo]

[ After the initial moment of panic (that never actually subsides, because what tf), this stranger is... now pressed up against a wall, hands wringing together, the wings upon her back puffed up like a spooked bird. Her red eyes dart between everyone else in the room, but it doesn't appear as if she's about to address anyone aloud anytime soon yet. ]

[moonfeather]

[The winged-girl catches her eye first. Inevitable really, but something tells the older girl that she might not be of the same ilk. It doesn't take a genius to tell that the circumstances are totally awry. Waking up in a dilapidated room was already telling enough among other signs.

She cautiously approaches the younger girl first.]

Are you...? You don't know where we are do you? Do any of us know?

[poetaste]

[Tall and probably more than a decade aged out of the track uniform she's found herself wearing, she leaves the unsteady desk and approaches the blackboard, rapping her knuckles against the wall as she gets there before turning to look at the scared creature puffed up in the corner.

Sheesh, they're all kids.]

Hey, nice wings. I'd show you mine, but... [She tilts her forearm, showing off the complete lack of anything on her person that isn't the uniform.] It looks like I'm all out. Take a raincheck?

[praiseful]

[ As the haziness of waking fades and panic begins to take its place— and quickly— Nei abruptly rises from her seat, chair dragging ungracefully across the worn floors of the room only to pause when she realizes... She can stand. She looks surprised to be in a condition to do so in the first place, as she moves her body around carefully, tentatively, limb by limb. Opens and closes her fists.

And then slaps herself. Winces. ]

—Not a dream.

[tiebroken]

[ Mizi's already awake by the time Nei comes to, and thus, she watches her with careful, discerning eyes as she goes through the motions of standing and moving her body carefully, almost as if she's not supposed to be able to. It's not that she's suspicious of her personally, exactly... but her kneejerk instinct is to be wary of the other people — people, they're humans! — in the room. ]

...A dream? What do you mean?

[cupidsammo]

[ Well, now that it's obvious she can't really hide in plain sight anymore: ]

I— I thought it could be too, but it feels a little too real...

[moonfeather]

[She was giving herself a once over, unaccustomed to the uniform; it's nothing entirely new per se (the academy in Seregarde had given her experience), but the material and its style as as foreign as the room she's in.

Amazingly, there are pockets. And within it, she produces a strange trinket which she holds up to the dim lighting, frowning.]

Is this a talisman...? I've never seen this design before.

[praiseful]

[ Nei has taken to rummaging through the debris in search of anything that can pass as a weapon by now, and she glances over at Fiorella briefly while testing the weight of a broken table leg in her hand. ]

Yeah. An omamori. Probably best to keep it safe!

[hotaerosol]

What the--

[The shout starts off a little too high, cracks a little and then there's a screeching noise as someone in the classroom throws himself backward too hard from his desk. He doesn't fall over, but that's mostly because he stops the motion halfway through, flinching into himself.

--Instead of standing up he curls his legs up into the chair, blinking owlishly over his knees. Maybe it's kind of hard to take everything in for normal reasons and also because one of his eyes is covered by an eyepatch. He's also got other bandages. It's fine. He hasn't really noticed anything other than the. Classroom. And vaguely the people.

One hand drags roughly through his hair, getting momentarily tangled with the eyepatch.]

... It's quiet. [a little laugh] It's quiet.

[praiseful]

[ Though Nei had awoken with a start a little earlier, and though the initial panic has subsided somewhat, she still tenses up at that sudden shout and screeching of his chair against the floor. ]

It's... quiet? What are you talking about?

[moonfeather]

[His shout makes her jump and whip around to see the young man throw himself backward. He turns out fine, but she has to ask:]

Are you quite alright? None of us know where we are, but we're all fine. [Glances at his eyepatch.]

Mostly.

[cupidsammo]

[ With that loud screech comes an accompanying yelp; she's startled so badly that she fumbles backwards, nearly tripping over her own feet, but fortunately a frantic flap of her wings and a convenient grab of what's left of the curtain keeps her from totally falling over. After that awkward display, a hand goes over her chest as she takes in a few heavy pants. ]

Wh- wha... But that was a little loud!

[THE JOURNAL]

[detentionroom]

[Sitting atop one of the desks is a cute, softbound journal with purple hearts on the cover, inscribed with the following: "To all who enter here. . . we wish upon them protection from evil, so that all corruptive influences be banished from their hearts."]

[You may open it to read what is written inside]

[Alternatively: perhaps you'd prefer to examine the yearbook instead! It includes pictures and brief profiles of everyone on your team only. Isn't it fun to snoop??]

yearbook snooping!!

[tiebroken]

[ At first, when she awoke, she thought she might've been captured and put in prison... it's dawned on her now that that isn't the case; they're all just kidnappees who have no idea what's going on. It calms the worst of her nerves, but only marginally... in some ways, the devil she knows might be better than the one she doesn't.

Given the command on the chalkboard, though, she gravitates towards the book when she realizes they're records of a sort, thinking that if the words in front of them are true, she ought to erase any evidence of her own name. Imagine her surprise when the files say things like most likely to shoot someone. ]

..."School clubs?" [ WHATEVER THAT MEANS ] Are these assignments?

[poetaste]

Think of them more like...activities. It's something to do when you're all done with class; though...the school needs the funding, the personnel, and the space to run those things. Must have been a pretty rich academy once upon a time.

[She's leeeeaning over to look with little regard for keeping her distance. Get a load of those superlatives, huh?]

Have you ever attended school before? [She could easily be any of the older kids from Syndicate, the ones who never had a chance to go to class.]

[cupidsammo]

[ Curiously, she cautiously wanders over, though still manages a safe distance as she tries to peer down at the pages. ]

Assignments? ... Is there something about clubs written in that?

[ROUND ONE]

[detentionroom]

[A mere few minutes after you awaken. . . a soft, sing-song voice suddenly wafts through the PA system, crooning at you in gentle, encouraging tones]

Oh dear. . . you must be so confused. So lost! Such wayward children. . . I would like to help you. I can help you, if you'd give me the chance! Would you not like to go home. . . ? To fall asleep and re-awaken in the comfort of your own bed?

I can help you. Won't you please tell me who you are? Won't you please give me your names?

[The speakers go quiet, and any attempt to address the voice with questions or inquiries will be met with silence. But you have been given a choice]

[Whom do you oblige. . .?]

[DECISION]

[detentionroom]

[This is a team decision! You either give all of your names, or none of them. No halfsies! Please bear in mind the consequences of divulging names to game NPCs and know that obliging the voice will result in future consequences.]

[Please have your decisions submitted by Sunday, July 20 at 8:00 a.m. MT. Timezone conversions are in discord!]

i'm glad kia's not here. if these ever get unlocked kia don't look.

[poetaste]

[Huh. She listens with her arms crossed, tongue propping along under her back molars as she half-smirks.]

Words have a natural power in them; therefore, so do names. You might want to be careful what you give away.

[Still standing toward the front of the room (a position that seems comfortable to her), she flourishes her pointer finger toward the really obvious glowing writing on the chalkboard.]

What's in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other name, would smell as sweet. 'Tis but our names that are our enemies-- We are ourselves.

[moonfeather]

[The PA system and its following message didn't make her jump, what are you talking about? It certainly didn't make two tiny feathers fall from her head!!

The message aside, and the girl is gripping her fists by her side. And then she looks out the window.

Looks at her fist.

At the window again.]

... I probably shouldn't but...

[She coughs and turns to the group.]

If we agree not to give our names, it means we need to exercise caution in how we introduce ourselves.

[ROUND TWO]

[detentionroom]

[Your refusal is met with silence. Complete and utter silence. Then the PA system begins to crackle with white noise. It starts off soft, but grows louder with each passing second. The noise scrambles your thoughts. Makes you anxious. Sends your heart thrumming wildly against your ribs as you begin to break out in a cold sweat.]

Ehehe. . . oh. . . so you refuse my assistance, do you. . .? I see. . . I see. I see! I see I see I see I sEE I SEE i sEe i sEE I SEE I SEE I̴̼̜͇͕̦̦̻̅͑̈́̊̑̒͗̍͊̈́̕ͅ ̸̧̪͖͚̳̙̪̦͎̙̩̮̂̍̚͜͝S̷̢̢̢̢͇͕̗̰͍͉̗͚̙̙̲̼̱̓́̍͊͘͝Ȩ̸͙̭̀͑Ḙ̷̢͕̎͂̈́ ̸͕̖̻̳̲̖̻͙̠͛ͅI̸̡̫̗̮̠͈͈̠̗̰̺̓̊̊͝ ̸̡̝͉̟̦̹̫̙̭̫͎̀̆͜ͅS̵̩̤̠̈̋̌͊̊͒̊̒̆̚͘͠E̷͈͍̺͎̹̯̍̽̾̉Ḛ̸̛͉̺̦̤̦͎̞̀̀͂̂̇̉̽͊̔̀̑̍̕ͅ ̶̡̛̮̞̜̹͚̘̮̰̮͕̈́̉͛͝ͅȊ̷̧̡̱̭̥͉̞̣̗͎̩̼̠́͜ ̵̮̅̀͋̽̓S̶̰̳͖̮̯̖̖͍͕̍̂́̇̃͐̉͆̿̿͒̕̚͜͠Ȇ̷͉̅̑E̴̢̘̠̺͕̔̉̓̎̕͜͜ ̴̢̥͓͍̾̂̀̂̿̂͠Ỉ̶̢͕̺̤͕͚̝̐̒̾̏̏̏̚ͅ ̸̡̪͇͚̝̘̝͕̦͇̆̆͒̎̇͒́̆̈́̋S̷̛̝̼̫̫̈́̿͌̑̒̒͊̾̇̈̏̈́͝͝E̴̟̟̫̣̩̩̰̳͎̬̯͕̱̣͛͋̉̃̈́͋̋͛̈́͛̒̈́̕͜E̴̢̨̗̜͍̜̝̥̽̀̀̅̃̋͗̄́̽–


[-- the voice and the white noise suddenly and abruptly stop, just as the lights around you go out, plunging you all into complete and utter blackness]

[They flicker on a second later, now tinted a deep, blood red, painting the entire room in shades of scarlet. Where there was nothing before there are now hundreds of thin. . . strings? Long stretches of wire? They cling to the corners of the room like spiderwebs, and are draped across the desks and blackboard like ominous stringy curtains. Some even dangle from the ceiling, perfectly within reach, if you have the inclination to touch!]

[From some of those wires hang porcelain dolls, strung up by various limbs. . . and sometimes their necks. Each one is dressed in a tattered kimono, and their faces are cracked or– in some cases– outright shattered. Even more dolls are seated against the walls, some positioned upright while others have fallen over.]

[The window curtains have been pulled open. An ominous shadow looms in the distance. A single bell tolls.]

[Something is coming]

[INSTRUCTIONS]

[detentionroom]

[The words on the blackboard– DO NOT GIVE THEM YOUR NAME-- have been replaced with something new: FIND THE KEY]

[There are seven places where you may search for the key:

1) Underneath a spaghetti-like pile of string in a corner
2) Inside a cracked doll's face
3) Inside a cubby hole stuffed with shoes
4) Behind a broken wall clock
5) Underneath the teacher's podium
6) Inside the supply closet
7) The dangling strings from the ceiling]

[You may search a total of three times. Characters may poke at places not included in the list above, but they will not find anything of note (though they may find something spooky)! If the key is not found after three attempts. . . well. . .]

[. . . good luck!]

[OOC NOTES: I FORGOT TO CW FOR SPIDERS (NO PICTURES JUST WORDS), IF YOU ARE ARACHNOPHOBIC PLEASE LET ME KNOW WHEN YOU SUBMIT AND I WILL BE KIND!!]

[Please also note that the character who submits the search will be the one doing it ICly! I need to know this for. Reasons.]

[DISCUSSION]

[detentionroom]

[DECISION]

[detentionroom]

[you can submit all three decisions here! NOT AT ONCE, THOUGH. please wait for a response to the previous search before submitting a new one!]