WEEK FIVE

[whimsicalism]

WEEK FIVE

There's one thing that belongs in Closetland: Monsters.

It was a monster that brought the students here to begin with, and it's a monster who controls their lives now. By now, some have even accused their classmates of turning into--or always being--monsters themselves.

The academy is just as cold as it was last week, autumn air seeping in through the unfriendly architecture and the artificial light seeming darker than before. The occasionally cloud of purple fog snakes through the hallways at ground level, a constant reminder of the new presence haunting the school and her role in the past five weeks of torment. Now that Kakuya is back in a body of her own making, the music room is silent, though the rooms and halls of the Academy themselves occasionally fill with a low, haunting flute melody. With the school's new overlord already wishing her ill, Nanami's already deflating power and free roam capabilities are more or less completely limited as well: She's just one more toy in the box.

The stairwell has opened into another new floor. Upon closer inspection, it seems to be the uppermost one. This is the top of Ira Academy, and while it likely bears some new answers and some new locations to try and find a solution to your plight, is there anything that can heal some of the rifts that formed from the accusations thrown at the last trial? Still, if you don't find answers, then you'll be here playing this eternal deadly game.

Is the devil you know better than the devil you don't?

Sunday | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday
Regains | AC | IC Profiles | Locations | Mystery Information | Sheep Contact | Nanami Contact | Kakuya Contact

OOC NOTES

Welcome to Week 4! Nanami has joined the party! She no longer has office hours but still be contacted privately, as can Kakuya, who is no longer stuck in the music room. New locations are now open, and some minor adjustments have been made to the IC profiles and rules. Please hit the mods with a ping in Discord and put INVESTIGATE in your subject line if you're interested in exploring a new location. The SHEEP are still taggable, though you may find them in a...different mood.

You now have a week to make sure your AC in for last week and to start collecting AC for this week. Remember to submit your regains, and sign up for a spot exploring this week's mystery if you want to!

Comments

[whimsicalism]

[The voices don't answer. Why don't you join them? You want to return home, don't you? They seem to ask. It's been so long... please, come back to them. It's not safe.]

[romancing]

Huh? You guys hear your moms?

[ she seems confused at the idea ]

I mean, it kind of sounds like my sister, but my sister can't sing, so it's probably not her! I guess she does want me to come home...

[lets_dewey_it]

...Yes. _{[His hand keeps instinctively reaching for the axe as he steps in front of the group.]} Whatever it is, I don't trust it one bit...

[copycut]

That proves it, then. It's an illusion, and we're all just hearing what we want to hear. Dewey, stand back and let me take point.

[violence_ensues]

Yeah, it can't be my mommy.

[Adorabat gets a nailbat out, continuing to fly along with only one wing.]

Y'all think it's coming from the pool?

[whimsicalism]

[When you get to the final floor... that does seem to be the case. The pool room calls to you. Things seem calm in there but there's something glowing in the pool.]

[romancing]

Oooooooh.

[ Koishi respects the line order if nothing else. She very much wants to jump into the room and poke the glowing light but some of the others wanted to get in ahead of her, so!! She's just going to vibrate in excitement behind them. ]

[lets_dewey_it]

_{[Dewey gladly let Kuro go ahead, but he is pulling the axe out now because oh boy! There's something in there!]}

[copycut]

[ Great! Kuro does in fact take point, then! She steps into the pool room ahead of everyone else, a short blade held in each hand, and— ]

We know the game you're playing, so cut the crap and show us your true face!

[ If nothing immediately appears, she'll continue walking toward the water itself. ]

[violence_ensues]

YEAH! SHOW US!

[Adorabat is close behind Kuro, ready to fight! ...But also...]

Kuro, the water might try to hurt you like the blood did to us when this happened to me last time.

[whimsicalism]

[There's something in the water. Not hands or the faces of the damned but... there's a palace deep within the water: covered in coral and gold. It looks very tempting even if you know that it's probably unsafe.

It's going to take a lot of will to not jump in.]

[romancing]

[ TOO BAD KOISHI HAS ABSOLUTELY NONE OF THAT BECAUSE HER BRAIN-TO-BODY FILTER IS COMPLETELY BROKEN

She goes to jump right in. Rip. ]

[lets_dewey_it]

DAMMIT, KOISHI, NO!! _{[He's only jumping in to try and get her out now!]}

[copycut]

Hey, hold on—

[ Okay, Koishi's a lost cause. Dewey... shouldn't have done that, but there wasn't really time to come up with a game plan for this situation. She drops one of her swords and dives after Dewey; she manages to grab his ankle before he's completely submerged, and where she crouches at the edge of the pool, just beyond the water, she calls out: ]

Dewey, grab hold of her! Adorabat, hold onto me and don't let go!

[ Hopefully, with the strength of three people, they can haul Koishi back. ]

[violence_ensues]

[Adorabat stared into the water as Koishi dived in. She began headed toward it as Dewey dived in. But the moment Kuro directed those moments, her attention snapped back into place-]

[-and managed not to dive into the water. "Adorabat, hold onto me and don't let go!" were the only words she caught, everything else was ignored. She tosses the nailbat to the side, away from the pool and grasps Kuro with a wing, keeping hold of Kuro.

Wow, this is a little heavy... Adorabat will hole with ALL! HER! STRENGTH!]

[whimsicalism]

[Everything seems to happen as soon as Koishi and Dewey hit the water. The voices sound very happy. Many hands seem to grab them and tug them deeper into the pool. It's not impossible to win this but it'll be tough.]

[romancing]

[ Oh! Everyone else is coming, too! Koishi lets Dewey grab her and doesn't resist, but she's reaching out for the hands at the same time.

She's entirely single-minded at the moment. She has to see what these voices and hands want. But...she can't breathe underwater, right...? And the others jumped in after her... ]

[lets_dewey_it]

_{[Oh. Oh this is bad. He is grabbing on tight but holy shit there are hands grabbing both him and Koishi. He is holding on to the eye tendril as hard as he can, trying not to scream underwater.]}

[copycut]

[ Kuro feels the draw of the hands beneath the water, and the hand still grasping one of her blades casts it aside. It skids across the poolside tile as she wraps both her hands around Dewey's leg, as tight as she can. Maybe at least she can keep the two of them from being drawn even deeper down.

But—she knows they can't win like this. If they try to just hold on, all of them will be pulled down and drown. She digs her heels in to the tile she's crouched above; as much as she can, she heaves her weight back, putting with all the strength she can muster into her body as she tries to yank Dewey back above the surface of the water. If she can feel herself making headway against the undertow, she might even begin to rise up from her squatted posture. ]

[violence_ensues]

[Adorabat tries holding in as best as she can. ...At least, until she thinks she feels Kuro try and pull back, then she shifts from just holding to pulling. Fucking, this is heavy!]

rrrrrr... come... on... COME... ON...!

[whimsicalism]

[Slowly, slowly... it takes a few moments but it seems that the hands lose their grip as they yell out in chorus as both Koishi and Dewey are slowly dragged back to safety.

The voices seem really sad.]

[romancing]

[ Koishi mostly remains dead weight until her head pops above the water, and she sort of-maybe-snaps to her senses.

Oh. Oh, she should not be down here. Even if she still wants to find out what the voices want...

She grabs onto the edge of the pool and assists in hoisting herself out, sprawling on her knees and staring into the depths of the water. Her knuckles turn white gripping the concrete, and boy does she really want to go back in. But hearing everyone sputtering up water, coughing, the dripping of everyone's clothes on the ground, it's enough to make the tiny voice in her head go don't. ]

They want us to come back...they're sad, now...

[lets_dewey_it]

Well, whoever they are, they're not family nor friends and that is not home!

[copycut]

[ As the hands start to lose their grip, Kuro starts to rise up to her feet to put more distance between herself and the water. He legs tremble as she holds on, but eventually, she's able to take labored steps away from the edge of the pool.

It's only when Koishi emerges from the edge of the water that she lets her knees buckle. She collapses gracelessly onto the tile, hands aching from how tight she had been gripping onto poor Dewey's leg, and she takes several deep breaths. ]

Nngh... I know I said I wanted to find a way to Kakuriyo, but...

[ She pushes herself up again. She begins to circle around the edge of the pool—first to reclaim her discarded weapons, and then to again peer inside its waters. Is there anything unusual still visible inside? ]

[violence_ensues]

[Adorabat continues to PULL with all her might, She's never done anything this strenuous for this long and her wing is quickly getting tired. Finally, with a final push of effort, both Koishi and Dewey have been saved. Adorabat flops to the ground, wings splayed out, and begins heavily panting.]