[lup buys a bigger staff! her spell slots have jumped from five to eight.
shinobu's gloves allow her a dexterity boost. with these gloves, she's able to grip onto any surface imaginable, including enemies, to move at her will.
joonghyuk's tattoo, when worn, will last for 15 minutes to intimidate the competition as he sees fit and knock them out of the games.
as the group head over to the grass where the crowd has gathered, they will find what appears to be a hedge maze. it's not as big as the one in the realm, but it does appear to be long, winding, and disorienting. the mc is standing outside of the entry points where the three remaining teams wait. taako glances at lup, seemingly staring just past her before looking away and continuing to chat with his teammates. the starblaster crew laughs together about their current victory, and the demon corp team stares at shinobu with dull, judgmental eyes before turning away.
the rules of the game are explained. each team must enter the maze, doing their best to hide from the shadows and stay in the sunlight. they will not be successful if their whole team does not exit the maze at the same time. they have to do their best to defeat any creature that catches up to them, but on occasion, familiar figments will pop up to startle them. accidentally eliminating any of these will lead to automatic disqualification.
without another moment, the whistle goes off and the teams enter the maze. the walls tower over joonghyuk by about double his height, so none of them can see beyond. as they make their way forward, the sun shines overhead, but it's quick to move, circling above them and consistently plunging them into the night where creatures appear to fight them. every now and then though, a familiar face of a deceased starlight guest will appear, their ghostly form watching and waiting for them to help or harm them.
[the look from taako - or the lack thereof, really, makes her heart sink. she continues to be much more quiet than before, just making little sounds of agreement or disagreement whenever they need to make a decision.
lup will help fight anything that comes along! she relies on her staff to help her hobble through the maze. and when the dead show up, whoever it is - she'll ask them for help. maybe emet-selch can lead them out of the maze, he's a tall asshole.]
[ truly wish shinobu wasn't so traumatized so she could be more adjusted and show more concern for lup's increasing quietness. the judgmental eyes from the demon corps do get to her, but she moves on.
she aims to try to get through the maze as fast as she can, sticking to the sunlight wherever she can. getting away from shadows seems like the right thematic thing to do, so she does that. she helps fight any creature with her handmedown sword, darting in and out and around is what she's best at with her fighting style.
she will buff the hell out of everyone. seeing the dead makes her pause, but she won't harm them. she wouldn't harm them just like she wouldn't harm the familiar figments.
if she needs to, if emet-selch can't help, she'll use her gloves to try and climb up the hedge walls and find the best route out. bitches cheat. ]
[ I’m glad you guys are all doing relatively okay as Joonghyuk is making some math meme plans on how he will kill this Hua Cheng if he has to. He takes note on both of their demeanors, then looks over to Taako.
Familiar.
Anyway, Joonghyuk will use the tattoo so that they can intimidate the initial waves of monsters. Items are only useful if you use them and he’d rather if Lup used her threesome dragons on a real threat.
Otherwise, he will cut through the monsters while leading ahead making sure they stay in the sunlight. Maybe he will try to cut through?? The hedges??? By Shinobu’s scouting and advice from her CHEATING? With cool combos? Wouldn’t it be funny if we burn down the hedges (no), just hacking for now.
The familiar figments will stay untouched even though he’s extremely paranoid, very touchy, but at the sight of some of the dead he loosens up. He won’t harm what won’t harm him. ]
[the thing about the maze is that it's also isolated. they can only hear themselves and nothing of what the rest of the team is doing. we are in speedrun mode on this particular round which means a couple of things. the three of them are able to fight and dodge any shadows that appear. emet-selch is a tall asshole, but he is not tall enough unfortunately. however, he does point them in the right direction where the sun appears to be setting.
shinobu's buffs help with the attacks against the shadows and with the defense that the shadows can do to harm them. however, when she finally uses her gloves she can in fact climb up the wall. she's able to stand on the hedge and see the entire overlay of the maze. she'll have to be careful, but she could in fact help lead them out this way.
a large group of monsters disperse when joonghyuk's tattoo activates, sword swinging and hacking at the hedges. they're pretty thick! he's able to make some headway and start cutting a hole like a cheater, but all it does is bring forth a few more monsters.
they're somewhere to the left of the exit point. they will need to be redirected, but shinobu can show them the way.
continuing their strategy of working together and blatantly cheating, they exit out of the maze mostly unharmed save for some scratches from the branches of the hedges themselves. the demon corp team exits their maze just before they do, and the S̴̹͝t̸̲̑a̸͙͊r̴͚͛l̴͙̅i̸͇̎g̴͍͑h̸̗̍t̶̯͌ team is already ahead as taako boasts about how he led all of them out with his brilliant plan and how they should listen to him more.
unfortunately, this leaves the starblaster team in the maze. magnus yells and attempts to punch through the hedges, making no headway as the maze around them begins to grow smaller and smaller. it squishes, bunching down, compacting itself bit by bit until it takes on the form of a small shrub. the starblaster crew is gone. only coins are left in their place.
the next challenge will begin in 15 minutes. unless they can think of a way to change that?]
she knows this isn't real, and she knows things are just fucking with her, but after the house - after the house, her walls are a bit unsteady. they all exit the maze, but she hears magnus behind her and she's weak, she can't help herself. lup turns back to the maze, trying to get back into it, but it closes, before she can make it there. she falters, and then drops down into a crouch and just watches as the maze grows smaller and smaller, and then... there are just coins.
she clutches her staff so hard her knuckles are white, looking pale and slightly ill. she can hear taako in the distance, and he won't even look at her, it's like he doesn't see her.
... she takes the coins, and she silently hands them to shinobu and joonghyuk. and then she goes to buy the cocaine? it's fine. she's not going to use it probably. she doesn't care, she'll just do the damn game.]
[ her expression twists as she watches lup turn back. Loss is loss, and the way it carves into you is singular. It's something they all know to their own degrees.
She takes the coin with the words, I'm sorry because what else can she say?
These games are killing everyone off, and it's hard to deny what will happen if they win.
Still, she buys the spiky shield because what else can they do? ]
[ Rip, Lup... Silent solidarity... It's a quiet sad time and he accepts the coins, even if they come from the corpses of Lup's friends. I think it would be funny to get greeting cards, so he will purchase those.
Anyway— ]
... We're going to end up competing with him.
[ Taako from TV. He doesn't say more, but he hopes that it gets her thinking on what she wants to do, if there's something she wants to change and maybe how. In the end, this is her ring and he can't really tell her what to do.
lup buys the cocaine, and she's given the choice to speed up to the last event with a guaranteed spot in the final two, though she won't know the consequences of doing so until the drug is ingested.
shinobu buys the spiked shield. it now acts as both an offensive and defensive weapon and her defense for the party boosts.
yjh buys the greeting cards. he is able to write a message and dictate the outcome of an event. however, like lup, he will not know the results until the word is written.
[the team that snorts together stays together, or so it seems. lup takes a hit from the bag of cocaine and soon the area around all three of them grows hazy. they find themselves almost feeling like they're free-falling again even as they're staying still, but the world spins quickly around them in a circle. the campus blurs, lights and sounds bleeding together. it's dizzying, jarring, and there's the slightest hint of nausea before everything comes to a grinding halt.
they find themselves in a basement.
behind them, a door begins to close, but inside they can see faintly glowing pink and green burs. team demon corps can be seen inside the dark room, bodies twisted in agony and bloodshot eyes, lips blue and fingers curled. the poisonous cloud begins to waft into the room with them, but the door slams shut.
the room is dark...and soon all three of them find themselves moving against their own will. shinobu and joonghyuk slam against the wall, pinned down by invisible binds. lup finds herself in a chair, disoriented as the lights plunge the room into darkness and they all temporarily pass out.
when the lights come up, they find themselves in the basement still. lup cannot see shinobu or joonghyuk behind her, but they can see that hua cheng and mikazuki are pinned to the wall just out of their reach. there's a chair next to lup's, and in it sits taako. each of them have a gun in their hand. an incinerator is at the other end of the room, darkened.
the mc is nowhere to be seen, but his voice speaks in a hushed whisper.]
Here we are in the final round of The Spell Games. Newcomers Fan Favorites have swept the competition...but do they have what it takes to make their choice?
The name of the game is Rushin' Ru-lette.
[the lights near the incinerator come on. taako and lup cannot see beyond what's in front of them, but as lup peers into the furnace, she will see harrow bound and gagged on the bottom. she cannot see who is in front of taako, and he cannot see harrow.]
In three minutes, the incinerator will turn on and the hostages inside will die. The door to the incinerator will only open with the sound of the revolver in your hand. Luckily, each revolver only has three bullets in it! So, you know. There's a 50/50 chance here.
If a trigger isn't pulled, the hostages inside will die. But if you shoot, you have a 50% chance of survival. Fastest draw in the west amongst the two of you.
[there's a pause. taako looks at lup, gun clutched in his hand and clearly unnerved even if he's trying not to show it to the other people in the room. he's cool. he's totally cool.]
...your time starts now.
[the four teammates on the wall can only watch, but they at least can speak.]
[well lup doesn't have time to unpack all that last round so that's great.
she doesn't want this gun, she doesn't - want this, she tries to struggle out of the chair, but there's no escape from it. and then she sees into the incinerator, and she gasps:] -- Harrow!
[harrow - harrow in the incinerator, and her brother in front of her, and an impossible choice. she drags in a breath, looking at taako. at her heart, her soul. the person she couldn't kill for, let alone try to kill at all. the guilt feels heavy, and she can't breathe. it's overwhelming, and she has to close her eyes, briefly. when she opens them, she looks at her brother. does he recognize her?
... and then she looks down at the gun. if a trigger isn't pulled, the hostage will die. but the the sound of the revolver will open the door. is there a third option here? shinobu and joonghyuk can likely see the cogs turning in her brain as she works through it, and then --
without any warning, she brings the gun up to her own head and tries to pull the trigger.]
[ Joonghyuk instantly starts to struggle, ignoring the fact he can see Mikazuki and Hua Cheng ahead, then the game of chance nearby. He doesn't even pay the incinerator mind despite knowing who's in there. It's a game... This is a trip. He can only trust that Shinobu and Lup are alive, that they are real.
But to see that Lup would choose death kicks of a storm. ]
You fool.
[ Unfortunately, Joonghyuk feels strongly on trampling over these precious memories to get Lup this far, only for her to choose death? It stings. He understands, deeply, but it still stings. It's already too late to advise or order. She has pulled the trigger, tried to, at least.
[struggling against the binds, shinobu and joonghyuk will find that the binds tighten almost painfully so, almost enough to snap the bones if they move too much.
lup pulls the trigger to her head.]
[a little banner comes out, but nothing else. there are still bullets in the gun. the clock is still counting down. two minutes left now. a ringing can be heard, but only lup will hear that same voice as before.]
""You have been given a responsibility to fulfill. But you must choose your path to pave the way back."
[taako looks at his gun, then at lup. distress is on his face. it isn't a choice he wants to make either, it seems. the voice continues in lup's head.]
"You must choose what is most important to you, and what you will cast aside. Make your choice."
[his fingers twitch near the trigger, uncertainly.]
she curses, viciously, wanting to throw the gun across the room. no, no, no. it's not about choosing death, it's about choosing other people. she has such a strange relationship with it, with dying over and over and over again, with never being truly dead. this would've been nothing, to throw her life away, because it's never meant anything in the first place. she jokes about it often. i'm invincible, you can't kill me in a way that matters, i will always come back - she's a lich. she's in between life and death every day of her life, but. she can't take the blow for him. not this time.
you've been given a responsibility. she drags in a breath, hands shaking.
none of this is real, she tells herself. taako isn't here, he's not part of this stupid game, he's somewhere else, he's being held somewhere else. i won't let you die, she told a weeping harrow, stroking through her hair gently. that is real. she promised. the two people against the wall, shinobu and joonghyuk - they're real. and she can't let them take the consequences if she loses this game, she can't be responsible for that many people's deaths. what they've done to get here can't be wasted.
but more than anything - she can't let taako be the one left behind.]
I love you. [she says, desperately, to taako, voice breaking.] I'm so sorry, Taako - I'm sorry I couldn't - I can't kill someone for you, not like this. I wasn't - I'm sorry.
[he never will be left behind, she thinks. he will always die first.
taako's fingers twitch, and she can't look at him, she - can't, but she does, because if she has to do this, she has to give him that. she has to look at him when she points the gun against his heart and pulls the trigger.]
[ there is an ache that resonates, but shinobu doesn't know why. This is something she doesn't think she should be allowed to witness, but there is nothing for her to do but watch, bound to the wall as she is.
It is heartbreaking, the choices they are forced to make. Heartrending, to hear the pain in lup's voice.
There are scars that can never fully go away. How much will they have to harm themselves in ways that can't be seen? ]
[ The only thing they can do is really watch from this wall they're tightly strapped to. He witnesses the scene, blood going cold unlike before where it boiled while his anger festered. Why do these murder games force them to suffer in front of an audience...? Can't they have the peace of solitude, where they can nurse their own wounds before they are ready to reach out to others?
Is this interesting to whoever's watching?
Closing his eyes, he takes in a deep breath. They have to stay strong and move forward. ]
[lup pulls the trigger, and the revolver goes off with a bang.
it isn't only taako that feels the pain of the gun. lup, too, feels the wound rip into her chest. it's not exactly a bullet wound, but it tears and it hurts and it bleeds sluggishly as the binds are undone for shinobu and joonghyuk, grooves dug into their skin. the room goes dark. harrow calls out for lup from the incinerator as the door opens, but when the lights come up everyone's gone.
it's the three of them, and a door of light against the opposite wall. outside, they hear the sound of a song playing. the music increases in volume as the door opens wider to reveal a stage.
a CONGRATULATIONS banner hangs above, and an audience cheers and claps for the new graduates. as they make their way onto the stage, a spotlight shines on them. looking out into the crowd, they see the rest of the teams, slowly clapping for them.
team dokja, burnt to a crisp, nothing more than ash and bones. team starblaster, broken and bent at terrifyingly unreal angles. team demon corps, blistered, bruised, and shriveled.
at the other end of the stage is a swirling portal, opening to the galaxy once more.
take a look at your alma mater, and gather anything else you may need...even if it is simply your wits and emotions.]
lup staggers onto the stage, and then sees the crowd, and then staggers off the stage to go throw up in the bushes. gross! sorry.
and then she just sits at the edge of the stage and bleeds, staring at the ground. i am sorry it's her turn to be useless this round. just throw her into the portal if you need to, do whatever, steal her coins. she did cocaine for that, can you believe it.]
[ lessons learned today: (don't) do drugs and drop out of school
shinobu rubs the grooves where she was bound, and her anger builds and builds the longer they are on the stage. how abominable they are to put them in the spotlight like this after what lup had to go through. how dare they consider this entertainment.
it makes her seethe.
she throws her shield at the spotlight, wherever it is if she can see it. they need to move on, but lup can have some time. she doesn't think it's right to make lup move so soon. she doesn't have any words to say because there are no right ones to say, especially since she doesn't remember the shared trauma. ]
[ Shinobu's slow descent to becoming Sasuke. Joonghyuk can't say much either, considering what they saw there is nothing to say. Nothing can heal a wound like that except time and acceptance. Even then, it will haunt the person to their grave.
First, he cuts down the Congratulations banner. Second, he's going to see if he can... Ugh. He wanted to have Lup drink some of the healing potion, but she now is vomit-y. The banner will be used to wipe her a bit before forcing her to sip. ]
We can have another break. Outside.
[ Because maybe lingering on the graduation stage will further deteriorate Lup's sanity. He can corral them through the swirling portal, then they can rest before heading to the last ring. ]
[shinobu throws her shield, and it boomerangs around into the spotlight and causes it to shatter like stars before returning to her. joonghyuk grabs for the banner, an oily-slick sort of texture but he's able to use it to wipe lup's face and give her a sip of the potion. it heals her burns a bit, and it slows down the bleeding on her chest.
outside they go.
into the swirling portal, they find themselves floating in that starry galaxy high above with the white ring looming in the distance. they have all of the items they bought in the red ring, along with additional coins and a few healing and magic items left.
they have time to vibe. but as they do, all three of them hear a voice again.]
"Once dreams take you, you must let them guide you. Power sleeps within you. You must awaken it."
[but is this a dream? it unfortunately feels very real in the moment, doesn't it? take your time to regroup. the ring isn't going anywhere.]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
guestservices) wrote2022-07-17 07:06 pm
no subject
shinobu's gloves allow her a dexterity boost. with these gloves, she's able to grip onto any surface imaginable, including enemies, to move at her will.
joonghyuk's tattoo, when worn, will last for 15 minutes to intimidate the competition as he sees fit and knock them out of the games.
as the group head over to the grass where the crowd has gathered, they will find what appears to be a hedge maze. it's not as big as the one in the realm, but it does appear to be long, winding, and disorienting. the mc is standing outside of the entry points where the three remaining teams wait. taako glances at lup, seemingly staring just past her before looking away and continuing to chat with his teammates. the starblaster crew laughs together about their current victory, and the demon corp team stares at shinobu with dull, judgmental eyes before turning away.
the rules of the game are explained. each team must enter the maze, doing their best to hide from the shadows and stay in the sunlight. they will not be successful if their whole team does not exit the maze at the same time. they have to do their best to defeat any creature that catches up to them, but on occasion, familiar figments will pop up to startle them. accidentally eliminating any of these will lead to automatic disqualification.
without another moment, the whistle goes off and the teams enter the maze. the walls tower over joonghyuk by about double his height, so none of them can see beyond. as they make their way forward, the sun shines overhead, but it's quick to move, circling above them and consistently plunging them into the night where creatures appear to fight them. every now and then though, a familiar face of a deceased starlight guest will appear, their ghostly form watching and waiting for them to help or harm them.
what course of actions will you take?]
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lup will help fight anything that comes along! she relies on her staff to help her hobble through the maze. and when the dead show up, whoever it is - she'll ask them for help. maybe emet-selch can lead them out of the maze, he's a tall asshole.]
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she aims to try to get through the maze as fast as she can, sticking to the sunlight wherever she can. getting away from shadows seems like the right thematic thing to do, so she does that. she helps fight any creature with her handmedown sword, darting in and out and around is what she's best at with her fighting style.
she will buff the hell out of everyone. seeing the dead makes her pause, but she won't harm them. she wouldn't harm them just like she wouldn't harm the familiar figments.
if she needs to, if emet-selch can't help, she'll use her gloves to try and climb up the hedge walls and find the best route out. bitches cheat. ]
no subject
Familiar.
Anyway, Joonghyuk will use the tattoo so that they can intimidate the initial waves of monsters. Items are only useful if you use them and he’d rather if Lup used her threesome dragons on a real threat.
Otherwise, he will cut through the monsters while leading ahead making sure they stay in the sunlight. Maybe he will try to cut through?? The hedges??? By Shinobu’s scouting and advice from her CHEATING? With cool combos? Wouldn’t it be funny if we burn down the hedges (no), just hacking for now.
The familiar figments will stay untouched even though he’s extremely paranoid, very touchy, but at the sight of some of the dead he loosens up. He won’t harm what won’t harm him. ]
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shinobu's buffs help with the attacks against the shadows and with the defense that the shadows can do to harm them. however, when she finally uses her gloves she can in fact climb up the wall. she's able to stand on the hedge and see the entire overlay of the maze. she'll have to be careful, but she could in fact help lead them out this way.
a large group of monsters disperse when joonghyuk's tattoo activates, sword swinging and hacking at the hedges. they're pretty thick! he's able to make some headway and start cutting a hole like a cheater, but all it does is bring forth a few more monsters.
they're somewhere to the left of the exit point. they will need to be redirected, but shinobu can show them the way.
continuing their strategy of working together and blatantly cheating, they exit out of the maze mostly unharmed save for some scratches from the branches of the hedges themselves. the demon corp team exits their maze just before they do, and the S̴̹͝t̸̲̑a̸͙͊r̴͚͛l̴͙̅i̸͇̎g̴͍͑h̸̗̍t̶̯͌ team is already ahead as taako boasts about how he led all of them out with his brilliant plan and how they should listen to him more.
unfortunately, this leaves the starblaster team in the maze. magnus yells and attempts to punch through the hedges, making no headway as the maze around them begins to grow smaller and smaller. it squishes, bunching down, compacting itself bit by bit until it takes on the form of a small shrub. the starblaster crew is gone. only coins are left in their place.
the next challenge will begin in 15 minutes. unless they can think of a way to change that?]
no subject
she knows this isn't real, and she knows things are just fucking with her, but after the house - after the house, her walls are a bit unsteady. they all exit the maze, but she hears magnus behind her and she's weak, she can't help herself. lup turns back to the maze, trying to get back into it, but it closes, before she can make it there. she falters, and then drops down into a crouch and just watches as the maze grows smaller and smaller, and then... there are just coins.
she clutches her staff so hard her knuckles are white, looking pale and slightly ill. she can hear taako in the distance, and he won't even look at her, it's like he doesn't see her.
... she takes the coins, and she silently hands them to shinobu and joonghyuk. and then she goes to buy the cocaine? it's fine. she's not going to use it probably. she doesn't care, she'll just do the damn game.]
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She takes the coin with the words, I'm sorry because what else can she say?
These games are killing everyone off, and it's hard to deny what will happen if they win.
Still, she buys the spiky shield because what else can they do? ]
no subject
Anyway— ]
... We're going to end up competing with him.
[ Taako from TV. He doesn't say more, but he hopes that it gets her thinking on what she wants to do, if there's something she wants to change and maybe how. In the end, this is her ring and he can't really tell her what to do.
Next gaem? ]
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you have a choice here.
lup buys the cocaine, and she's given the choice to speed up to the last event with a guaranteed spot in the final two, though she won't know the consequences of doing so until the drug is ingested.
shinobu buys the spiked shield. it now acts as both an offensive and defensive weapon and her defense for the party boosts.
yjh buys the greeting cards. he is able to write a message and dictate the outcome of an event. however, like lup, he will not know the results until the word is written.
do they still proceed to the third game?]
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i hope she gets poisoned]
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To the last game ]
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To the game!! ]
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they find themselves in a basement.
behind them, a door begins to close, but inside they can see faintly glowing pink and green burs. team demon corps can be seen inside the dark room, bodies twisted in agony and bloodshot eyes, lips blue and fingers curled. the poisonous cloud begins to waft into the room with them, but the door slams shut.
the room is dark...and soon all three of them find themselves moving against their own will. shinobu and joonghyuk slam against the wall, pinned down by invisible binds. lup finds herself in a chair, disoriented as the lights plunge the room into darkness and they all temporarily pass out.
when the lights come up, they find themselves in the basement still. lup cannot see shinobu or joonghyuk behind her, but they can see that hua cheng and mikazuki are pinned to the wall just out of their reach. there's a chair next to lup's, and in it sits taako. each of them have a gun in their hand. an incinerator is at the other end of the room, darkened.
the mc is nowhere to be seen, but his voice speaks in a hushed whisper.]
Here we are in the final round of The Spell Games. Newcomers Fan Favorites have swept the competition...but do they have what it takes to make their choice?
The name of the game is Rushin' Ru-lette.
[the lights near the incinerator come on. taako and lup cannot see beyond what's in front of them, but as lup peers into the furnace, she will see harrow bound and gagged on the bottom. she cannot see who is in front of taako, and he cannot see harrow.]
In three minutes, the incinerator will turn on and the hostages inside will die. The door to the incinerator will only open with the sound of the revolver in your hand. Luckily, each revolver only has three bullets in it! So, you know. There's a 50/50 chance here.
If a trigger isn't pulled, the hostages inside will die. But if you shoot, you have a 50% chance of survival. Fastest draw in the west amongst the two of you.
[there's a pause. taako looks at lup, gun clutched in his hand and clearly unnerved even if he's trying not to show it to the other people in the room. he's cool. he's totally cool.]
...your time starts now.
[the four teammates on the wall can only watch, but they at least can speak.]
cw: suicide attempt
she doesn't want this gun, she doesn't - want this, she tries to struggle out of the chair, but there's no escape from it. and then she sees into the incinerator, and she gasps:] -- Harrow!
[harrow - harrow in the incinerator, and her brother in front of her, and an impossible choice. she drags in a breath, looking at taako. at her heart, her soul. the person she couldn't kill for, let alone try to kill at all. the guilt feels heavy, and she can't breathe. it's overwhelming, and she has to close her eyes, briefly. when she opens them, she looks at her brother. does he recognize her?
... and then she looks down at the gun. if a trigger isn't pulled, the hostage will die. but the the sound of the revolver will open the door. is there a third option here? shinobu and joonghyuk can likely see the cogs turning in her brain as she works through it, and then --
without any warning, she brings the gun up to her own head and tries to pull the trigger.]
no subject
She watches as lup despairs, and her heart sinks. It is a terrible choice, and her eyes widen in alarm as lup brings the gun up to her head. ]
Lup, no! They would want you to live! Think about them!
[ she struggles against the invisible binds.
A small terrible part of her thinks, you did not send one of my most important people to die only to choose death yourself. ]
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But to see that Lup would choose death kicks of a storm. ]
You fool.
[ Unfortunately, Joonghyuk feels strongly on trampling over these precious memories to get Lup this far, only for her to choose death? It stings. He understands, deeply, but it still stings. It's already too late to advise or order. She has pulled the trigger, tried to, at least.
What is the result? ]
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lup pulls the trigger to her head.]
[a little banner comes out, but nothing else. there are still bullets in the gun. the clock is still counting down. two minutes left now. a ringing can be heard, but only lup will hear that same voice as before.]
""You have been given a responsibility to fulfill. But you must choose your path to pave the way back."
[taako looks at his gun, then at lup. distress is on his face. it isn't a choice he wants to make either, it seems. the voice continues in lup's head.]
"You must choose what is most important to you, and what you will cast aside. Make your choice."
[his fingers twitch near the trigger, uncertainly.]
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she curses, viciously, wanting to throw the gun across the room. no, no, no. it's not about choosing death, it's about choosing other people. she has such a strange relationship with it, with dying over and over and over again, with never being truly dead. this would've been nothing, to throw her life away, because it's never meant anything in the first place. she jokes about it often. i'm invincible, you can't kill me in a way that matters, i will always come back - she's a lich. she's in between life and death every day of her life, but. she can't take the blow for him. not this time.
you've been given a responsibility. she drags in a breath, hands shaking.
none of this is real, she tells herself. taako isn't here, he's not part of this stupid game, he's somewhere else, he's being held somewhere else. i won't let you die, she told a weeping harrow, stroking through her hair gently. that is real. she promised. the two people against the wall, shinobu and joonghyuk - they're real. and she can't let them take the consequences if she loses this game, she can't be responsible for that many people's deaths. what they've done to get here can't be wasted.
but more than anything - she can't let taako be the one left behind.]
I love you. [she says, desperately, to taako, voice breaking.] I'm so sorry, Taako - I'm sorry I couldn't - I can't kill someone for you, not like this. I wasn't - I'm sorry.
[he never will be left behind, she thinks. he will always die first.
taako's fingers twitch, and she can't look at him, she - can't, but she does, because if she has to do this, she has to give him that. she has to look at him when she points the gun against his heart and pulls the trigger.]
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It is heartbreaking, the choices they are forced to make. Heartrending, to hear the pain in lup's voice.
There are scars that can never fully go away. How much will they have to harm themselves in ways that can't be seen? ]
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Is this interesting to whoever's watching?
Closing his eyes, he takes in a deep breath. They have to stay strong and move forward. ]
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it isn't only taako that feels the pain of the gun. lup, too, feels the wound rip into her chest. it's not exactly a bullet wound, but it tears and it hurts and it bleeds sluggishly as the binds are undone for shinobu and joonghyuk, grooves dug into their skin. the room goes dark. harrow calls out for lup from the incinerator as the door opens, but when the lights come up everyone's gone.
it's the three of them, and a door of light against the opposite wall. outside, they hear the sound of a song playing. the music increases in volume as the door opens wider to reveal a stage.
a CONGRATULATIONS banner hangs above, and an audience cheers and claps for the new graduates. as they make their way onto the stage, a spotlight shines on them. looking out into the crowd, they see the rest of the teams, slowly clapping for them.
team dokja, burnt to a crisp, nothing more than ash and bones.
team starblaster, broken and bent at terrifyingly unreal angles.
team demon corps, blistered, bruised, and shriveled.
at the other end of the stage is a swirling portal, opening to the galaxy once more.
take a look at your alma mater, and gather anything else you may need...even if it is simply your wits and emotions.]
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lup staggers onto the stage, and then sees the crowd, and then staggers off the stage to go throw up in the bushes. gross! sorry.
and then she just sits at the edge of the stage and bleeds, staring at the ground. i am sorry it's her turn to be useless this round. just throw her into the portal if you need to, do whatever, steal her coins. she did cocaine for that, can you believe it.]
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shinobu rubs the grooves where she was bound, and her anger builds and builds the longer they are on the stage. how abominable they are to put them in the spotlight like this after what lup had to go through. how dare they consider this entertainment.
it makes her seethe.
she throws her shield at the spotlight, wherever it is if she can see it. they need to move on, but lup can have some time. she doesn't think it's right to make lup move so soon. she doesn't have any words to say because there are no right ones to say, especially since she doesn't remember the shared trauma. ]
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First, he cuts down the Congratulations banner. Second, he's going to see if he can... Ugh. He wanted to have Lup drink some of the healing potion, but she now is vomit-y. The banner will be used to wipe her a bit before forcing her to sip. ]
We can have another break. Outside.
[ Because maybe lingering on the graduation stage will further deteriorate Lup's sanity. He can corral them through the swirling portal, then they can rest before heading to the last ring. ]
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outside they go.
into the swirling portal, they find themselves floating in that starry galaxy high above with the white ring looming in the distance. they have all of the items they bought in the red ring, along with additional coins and a few healing and magic items left.
they have time to vibe. but as they do, all three of them hear a voice again.]
"Once dreams take you, you must let them guide you. Power sleeps within you. You must awaken it."
[but is this a dream? it unfortunately feels very real in the moment, doesn't it? take your time to regroup. the ring isn't going anywhere.]
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