Date: November 3rd, Afternoon
Weather: Mild; Warm
Location: Aomori Gakuen - Gym



At first, Aomori's janitor, Tachibana Masahiro saw the offer extended by the Student Council as unnecessary. His reasoning was sound: With years of experience under his shoulders and a muscular complexion that to this day can leave youngsters in awe, this was a job that did not escape his usual routine and could be completed without assistance. The end of the semester was right around the corner and for some, this was the last opportunity to spend time with those they cherished, tie loose ends and prepare for the future that awaited. Thus, it was a waste to stay here late and spend their precious time helping a grown man mop the floor and leave things in order. Soon, however, the tables turned: Kiyoko, backed by the rest of the student council as well as a few other students, insisted, claiming that the janitor was just as important as any of them and that they repay the attention that he had devoted them during their time together. Moved by this, Masahiro yielded and welcomed the help of the volunteers, leading to the current situation.

Looking around, it's not hard to spot the elephant in the room. For one, Sawaya Goro is not the kind of person you'd see at school during a time like this, lending a helping hand. This year, rumors related to the street gang he leads have only worsened his reputation within Aomori and further distanced himself from his peers. After being called to the headmaster's office last week, however, he's been doing his best to show good behavior within the school grounds. How much comes naturally and how much of it is an act is something nobody really knows, but what matters is that he is here under the supervision of the Student Council and, as long as they keep their attention on him, he won't even think of doing something stupid like leaving before the job is done. He's still as hostile as ever, though, rejecting any glances shot at him with a menacing leer.

Then there is Abe Kou, a fashionable delinquent who is an ant in comparison to Goro, but a delinquent as well. She's the closer thing you'll find to a bully amongst the female student body, an opportunist whose IQ as high as a mastermind, but still enough to know her way around things. Having probably nothing to do at home, she seems to be having a good time ordering one of the most innocent freshmen, Kumagai Arata, around. Poor Arata looks like he's carrying more cardboard boxes than his flaccid body can handle. Meanwhile, Kou is busy consuming the last of his juice box. Unlike Goro, she has no obligation to be here, so she can do things in 'her own way and at her own pace'.

Somewhere else, a few members of the Kendo Club work together to pile up and move plastic chairs back to the storage room. One of the most noteworthy figures within the club this year has been Minamoto Katsu. A exchange student who came as really blunt and rude at first, he was the one who suddenly barged into the Club Room shortly after his transferal and challenged each and every member to a match, not willing to drop his stance until satisfied. And boy, did he take the whole place by storm. Boasting an aggressive style that left other members baffled, he made quick work of a lot of them, including the club founder and captain. His win streak was only stopped by Amano Ayane, who somehow managed to outlast him during the last match of that day. Since then, it has remained clear that he'd be the one to pick the mantle after the third year members graduate.

The student council doesn't fall behind. Stepping down from the 'high-ground' their position grants them, they do their part alongside the rest of the students, operating as equals.

Looking at all of this with tear-filled eyes, Tachibana Masahiro cannot help but feel proud of all of 'his students'. Granted, he has never been more than a janitor in name, but he has seen their growth and that experience has also helped him evolve as a person. Feeling a sudden surge of energy and motivation, he channels it into his mop and joins the crew with a smile.

---

---

Kiyoko: "And that should be the last one. We made it, everyone!"


Saki: "And we finished waaaaaay ahead of time~ I betcha those at the main building aren't done yet."

Even in small places like Jitsuryoku-jima, school festivals tend to be huge. While a Gym this large would be more than enough to host similar events in the west, Japanese schools often employ the entire facility. A lot of students actually organized their own games and set their own stands, so even if the festival is over, it's not unreasonable to believe they'd be still packing their things. They certainly could not match the will-power and effectiveness of twenty-three people working in unison-!


Masahiro: "Everyone... Thank you. This is a cause for celebration. How about we all get some grub?"

As kindhearted as Masahiro is, however, there is simply no way he can invite so many people, not with a janitor's salary. Normally, that would be the case... But, culture festival offers quite a variety of delicious yet cheap choices everyone in the room can afford. Naturally, you ultimate convince the young adult to split the bill amongst yourself, much to dismay of a very small minority who wished the outcome to have been a tad different.

Tanimoto Orochi and Kamei Azume, both First Years, volunteer to go fetch the food. A few others raise their hands, as well. The idea is for the rest of the crew to form a round and then all talk together about stuff in the meantime. Maybe hear a few story or two from Tachibana, who never seems to run out of tales to tell.

However, as if to mock that premonition of a happy future, a single noise disrupts the gentle atmosphere, as if to mark the beginning of the end for normalcy.


Orochi: "Huh... It's closed?"

Unsure of whether he has used enough strength, and after confirming the look on Masahiro's face is one of genuine confusion, he pushes harder this time. And yet, the result is the same. The more moments that pass, the more everyone begins to lose their composure, and the possibility of being actually locked inside the gym actually begins to cook in some heads.

Fortunately, the Janitor is there and he's ready to defuse the situation in an instant. After all, what would a good Janitor be without a set of spare keys?


Masahiro: "Ah, my bad my bad, I must have locked it out of reflex."


Kou: "That's creepy. Please don't make that kind of jokes."

Of course, Masahiro did not mean that for real. Of course he never locked the door. There was no reason to. That said, putting his best air-head face and assuming the guilt is the best he can come up with to quickly erase the anxiety in everyone's faces.

*Rumble* *Rumble*

But Tachibana never makes it to the door.

Before they know it, everyone is struggling to keep their balance as the earth suddenly starts to violently shake.


Arata: "E-Eep! A-An Earthquake...?! at a time like this...?"

---

---

Ayane would be lying if she said that the Cultural Festival passed by just like any other - this one had a sense of foreboding to it. With it being her last year, it would be the last time she would have to give exhibition matches for the kendo club and staying late at school to prepare for the class's own stand. It was obvious that everyone felt the same way so they decided to go out with a blast by putting up a Haunted House that was guaranteed to be the best the school has and will ever offer. Or... well, so they wanted to advertise it. All the effort that went into the props and preparing the room to seem like a maze was worth it though. Ayane worked with the props - scaring people by having a doll drop in front of them is quite amusing.

Of course, she spent more time in the Kendo Club as per her deal with her classmates. It took precedence after all. Most of what they did was basically the same as they did every year - a couple of exhibition matches for people's amusement, a workshop for anyone interested and a small tea cafe for people's relaxation. Suffice to say, Ayane had made a lot of memories in her last Cultural Festival. Perhaps she should visit again in the future; if anything, to check on her underclassmen at the Kendo Club to see how they're holding up.

By the end of the Cultural Festival, Ayane and some of the Kendo Club members found themselves helping out Masahiro with clean-up. There were a bunch of others there - student council was present too and Mai was helping out on that side. Katsu was with her though which made it a lot easier. While she can't say that she was impressed with him when he first entered - his demand to challenge each member of the Club did not settle well with Ayane - she could say that she respects him a bit more now. The only reason she had managed to beat him during that time was because she outlasted him. Otherwise, he might have bruised both her and her confidence.

Among the students, Ayane was surprised to see both Goro and Kou - though the latter was more ordering a first year around rather than helping outright. Still, for some reason or another, they were here. Goro, she could probably think of a few reasons for. The rumors circulating around the school about his gang is less than ideal so he was likely being pushed into always being under the eyesight of the Student Council. Kou... Ayane will likely never know. Tearing her attention away from them, she went back to placing plastic chairs back to the storage area.

Once they finished, Ayane was fully intending to head back home. It was getting late and she had a couple of things to do for her family. However, when Masahiro had suggested buying food for everyone to eat and the fact that Kiyoko and Mai were both staying as well, Ayane had relented to her own internal argument and stayed. She gravitated towards the Student Council Preside and Vice-President. Two of the first years had volunteered to grab the food when the boy - Arata - couldn't pull open the door. A sense of unease washed over everyone but Masahiro lightened the mood by taking the blame of 'locking it out of habit'.

When the floor began to shake, Ayane quickly adjusted herself to keep herself standing but she had to spread her arms out to prevent falling over. She looked towards Kiyoko and Mai who were both struggling in keeping their balance as well and the ground suddenly looked very enticing to sit down on. Ren had warned them about any loose objects that might fall over and hurt them. Thankfully, they've managed to move most of them out of the way. "It will." Ayane agreed with Ren as she moved to keep both Mai and Kiyoko stable for the time being but found herself nearly falling over as well. "Just stay calm." She added though she imagined that kind of advice was already automatically given at times of crisis - but rarely followed.

The festival really wasn't Hideaki's cup of tea, not only was it too crowded it was expensive. Still he did try to enjoy himself as much as he could. Most of his money was spent at the comic/manga section of the improvised second hand book club hosted by the literature club. Honestly if it weren't for that Mai was in the kendo club he might have joined them instead, despite preferring comics over "real" books.

Speaking of Mai the only reason he had agreed to help clean up the gym was that both she and Katsu were there as well. He had hoped to get some private time with Mai since it was probably the last change he had to confess his feelings to her, though he doubted that she was unaware of them or felt the same way about him. Instead they all got the task to move the chairs. Seeing both Goro and Kou help out as well was an unwelcome surprise but at least neither of them bothered the kendo club members.

Things took a turn for the strange after Masahiro offered the students food and Orochi and the other student who offered to help couldn't exit the gym. Masahiro claimed that he probably locked the door by accident but Hideaki couldn't but briefly worry that someone locked them for some reason. Knowing that it was stupid and extremely unlikely to happen he didn't mention it.

Seconds later the earthquake hit and someone warned to stay away from things that could topple over, unnecessary advice in Hideaki's case as he moved to a clear area as soon as possible even if it was hard to walk. He trusted that everyone was smart to listen but still checked to see if anyone was in danger of having something fall on them just in case. Ayane's advice to stay calm was maybe the most obvious that could be given in such a case but always good te remember.

Hideaki suddenly realized that with the doors locked or blocked there was no guarantee they would be to leave the gym anytime and despite once again realizing he was no doubt worrying over nothing decided to make sure no one was likely to get hurt from a nasty fall. "If you don't trust yourself to stay standing it might be better to just lay or sit down rather than injure yourself falling." He was totally unaware that he had been fiddling with his necklace since the earthquake started

---

The Cultural Festival was a strange place for Nobu to be. He was under no obligation to attend, let alone stay back during the clean-up. It was true that the Computer Science Club had set up their own activity for the festival, one that Nobu himself took responsibility in organizing. He believed himself to be the most competent Second Year to take up the mantle for next year, so naturally he would display his talents in order to show that he could easily take charge of the club during the new year. None of the third years could argue with Nobu's idea either, as it fit into a Cultural Festival better than the annual LAN Party they hosted many times in the past...

Not like Nobu attended last year's event. Any game that can't be played on a smartphone isn't worth his time.

For this year, the Computer Science Club ran a Fortune Teller booth created utilizing advanced algorithms only a prodigy like Nobu could devise. In truth, it was made using portions of an artificial intelligence still in development that Nobu had spent developing in his quest to have a true "two-dimensional wife." Despite this, the Fortune Teller worked perfectly, and the idea itself was very popular to those who heard of it. It would have been a very popular event too if not for one fatal flaw: The club had set the booth to appear as if the Fortune Teller would reveal one's love fortune as if some sort of Compatibility Test. Instead, no matter what question was asked, it would only reveal one's date of death. Nobu thought that such information would only be fitting for the Cultural Festival, as it had represented the end of school for many of those who attended. Needless to say, after an initial wave of interests at the beginning of the festival, the Computer Science's booth was left mostly abandoned for much of event. Not like Nobu minded being left alone, anyway.

Once the festival had finished, Nobu had planned to go home right away if not for the coercion of the Student Council President. Nobu had only obliged to stay seeing as it would possibly be the last time Kiyoko tried meddling with him so that he could "get along" with others. Of course, being a man of his word, Nobu helped clean up in his own special way... that is, walking around the gymnasium and telling everyone what they were doing wrong. Seeing that his disciple Arata had also attended in the gymnasium cleanup, Nobu had intended to give him another lesson on ethics and hard work (read: have him carry the heavy stuff for him). Much to Nobu's dismay, he was beat to the punch by that witch. As much as he wished to save his disciple, Nobu did not want to get kicked in the takoyakis once again, avoiding eye contact with him whenever they had ran into each other during the cleanup.

At the mentioning of food, Nobu's stomach growled ever so softly. He didn't mind pitching in a hefty sum for the food since everyone had worked hard and, for the most part, followed his advice when it was given. However, as if following suit to Nobu's stomach, the earth itself began to shake...

... And much like many of the people in the gymnasium, Nobu began to panic on the inside.

Taking a deep breath, Nobu tried his best to remain calm. Keeping a poker face in tense situations was something Nobu was particularly skilled at. He quietly shuffled his backpack into his arms, cradling it to ensure the contents of it are kept safe. In an attempt to keep everyone calm, Nobu cleared his throat.


Nobu: "Don't worry, everyone. I checked the logs of my Accurate Augury Assimilator and not one of the dates were November 3rd."

It was the time of the Cultural festival again. Kyou helped out on the sides; he’d helped paint several props for the play his class has decided to do and was dragged to the Archery Club’s exhibition by the president, Kimura Toru. Kyou suspected he was there half because of his skill and half so Kimura was able to handle the horde of fangirls that showed up just to fawn over him. Kyou didn’t consider himself much of a distraction, but he supposed the archery club’s president had more experience with that sort of a thing. Kyou wasn’t even too bothered by it; all he had to do was concentrate on shooting the target. If people wanted to look and be impressed by that, that was on them. He didn’t notice when he was in his element in any case. It was then that he was informed by Toru that some of the students were volunteering to clean up the gym afterwards. When asked whether he would participate, Kyou agreed. Before that, however, he had time to enjoy the activities the students had prepared. He had some food, saw his class’s play, went to a café or two, and visited the Music club’s performance.

In the afternoon came the time for cleanup and there was a surprising number of people gathered in the gym to help out Tachibana. Kyou shrugged, deposited his school bag to the side, and went to help with carrying the chairs, boxes, trash, mopping the floor, and whatever other miscellaneous tasks presented themselves. He didn’t pay attention to other people except to move out of their way (he avoided Kou in particular) or go help if someone (except Kou) shouted that they needed an extra hand or two. Soon it was time to leave, and Kyou had just grabbed his bag to sneak out in front of the crowd when the idea of food was brought up. Well…he supposed he could stay for a while more. When two first years attempted to go outside to fetch the food, however, they found the room to be locked. That…That was odd. It had been opened when they came in, and there was no reason for Tachibana to lock it. At least he had a spare set of keys, but really, why were they locked in in the first place?

And then, as if to exponentially rise the misfortune they were in, an earthquake begun. Kyou paled, planting his legs on the ground as his eyes nervously darted around. He, he had to get to safety. They all did. However, trying to fit through the doorway in their situation would be unadvisable. Kyou swayed on his feet, noticing he was panting harshly. Rather than waiting to fall over, he simply crouched down, using a simple breathing technique while clenching and unclenching the stress ball in the pocket. In a few seconds, his mind was clear enough to assess the situation. People were already shouting advice, moving to safety, or helping others move. Kyou knew very well he had to stay away from anything that could fall on him, so he crawled carefully toward the centre of the gym – he also checked the ceiling so that he was as far away from any light fixtures that might detach from the shaking as he could.

He couldn’t help the fear that the whole damn building would just collapse on them, however. All Kyou could do, however, was wait, breath in, hold, breathe out through the mouth, breathe in…out…squeeze the stress ball…release it…breathe…He stayed where he was, gaze fixed at a spot until he was stabilized. He then checked around to see how others were doing, but as far as he could see, everyone was with someone. Besides, he honestly couldn’t afford the energy to worry about others when he himself was barely holding together and not panicking. He told himself that earthquakes were fairly common, and that they simply had to wait it out. He would leave the saving of others…to others. All Kyou could do was sit there, wait, and watch the situation unfold as he clutched onto his bag with one hand and the stress-ball with the other.

"Ugh, I really wanted to skip out on cleaning today. Aomori and Isuzu are waiting for me at our usual meetup spot. Festivals always got to bring a Vassal down, huh?"

The less enthusiastic Sazae Yokoi had been cleaning her side of the building, of course while she finished earlier than the rest. She'd often come around to Abe Kou and challenge her station as a contest to see who gets to clean it faster, of course Kou just ignored her... prompting the chuuni girl to suddenly yell out moves by starting all her phrases with: "HISSATSU~!" and then speeding off to complete it. Fortunately for the delinquent, she enjoyed having a weirdo do her stuff for her at the very least.

She'd always jump between duties, often challenging their cleaning stations as contests because she was to finish early and head out to play with her middle school colleagues that didn't go "normie".

So far this school had treated her a fair bit compared to when she enrolled here last year. Now everyone's accepting of the fact that she has an Eighth Grader syndrome problem and either played along or just gave her a false lead to whatever quest she made up in her head. Then again it really isn't her place if no one wants to continue playing along with her, there's a lot of people to mess around for her.

...

The entire building had finished up and the janitor offered to get some grub for everybody. Sazae perked up at the mention of food but quickly remembered that she was already several minutes late to their meeting. Being one of the first to head for the door which suddenly closed on its own, she- like the others gave way for the Janitor to try and budge it open. What Sazae didn't expect next was the sudden rumbling of the ground, an earthquake!

"Sakusen kai shin! EARTHQUAKE PROTECTION!" The delirious girl would yell out loud, running to the nearest possible safety point during a rough quake. Japan's always had these and because of her optimism, she was always calm so long as the walls of the gymnasium don't suddenly collapse on top of that. A scary thought but she hoped it wouldn't happen.

She dove, she rolled right next to Amisaki Kyou, both hands on her hand as if it would protect her from the debris. She looked to the person next to him and just smiled, a mix of fear and enthusiasm, she believed it was going to end soon. It had to end soon right? It'd be bad if everything started falling apart.

Sacrificing one of her hands to "protect" Kyou, she put it over his hand and giggled. "Thank me later, mortal."

Date: November 3rd, Afternoon
Weather: Mild; Warm
Location: Aomori Gakuen - Gym

'This earthquake won't last forever, everyone just has to stay safe until it passes' is a comforting line of thought any common person would use at a time like this in order to remain calm and collected. In that sense, though all of you possess different backgrounds and personalities, your goal becomes ultimately one and the same.

---However.

The sanctuary that your gentle words have managed to create easily breaks apart as reality begins to work under mechanisms you are definitely not used to. Your world spins and, in the blink of an eye, the walls at the sides of the gym become the floor and the ceiling, respectively.


Everyone: "Uwaaahh-!!!"

Fortunately, you manage to land in a way that does not cause serious injury. That doesn't mean it doesn't come without pain. Most are left in a daze, unable to process what just happened. But your mind goes the extra mile and informs you of a very frightening fact: Had you been closer to the wall farthest from the door, the fall might have been lethal. You are in danger, and just now you're starting to grasp the severity of the situation you've being caught into. From this point onwards, you won't be allowed to catch a break.

Former words of caution have lost their meaning the moment gravity shifted, turning literally every piece of furniture into a deadly projectile. You and several others are forced to dodge in the nick of time to avoid being crushed under their weight. It's a good thing that you made an effort not to lose sight of these potential threats for too long. Human beings are slow, clumsy creatures who tend to freeze during situations like this one, and being on high-alert is what will ultimately assure your survival.

Sadly, life is set on shitting on you today, as indicated by another sudden and inexplicable shift in gravity. This time, the wall with the door on its far right becomes the new floor. Having been thrown against the right side wall before, this places you exactly above the door. Orochi and Azume, who were the closest to it at the time, aren't allowed even allowed to react and their bodies slam against it. Somehow, their combined weight is not enough to force it open, however, Instinctively understanding that landing there is not exactly safe, the rest makes a jump in order put themselves far enough from the deathtrap the entrance has become.


Masahiro: "Tch...! Everyone, jump... Now!"

---But.

Misfortune always strikes when one least expects it.

A makeshift weapon no one saw coming -A big speaker formerly hung to the wall next to the stage- crashes against the body of Onaga Mai, its weight enough to immediately throw her off balance and cancel her escape right then and there. It's bad... From that height...!!!

@DuthguyDriven by instinct, your body acts on its own, your hand reaching for the girl as her falling body passes right next to yours. Because it takes more courage out of you to make a jump that it would take the ordinary person, you are the only one person who can do anything to stop Mai's tragic descent. If this were cutscene taking straight one of those videogames you usually play, you'd be easily able to princess carry her out of danger without a sweat. That said, in real life, things don't look great for either of you. Case in point, your act of heroism does nothing to save the girl you like, and instead drags you down with her. Before you know it, your world is spinning faster than it did mere moments ago, when this whole thing began.

Your body slams against Azumi's, then Orochi and finally the door that leads outside the Gym. This chain reaction forces the door open and you break through the boundaries that separate normality from complete insanity. Desperate and aware that your fall will not stop unless you put an end to it or you crash against something in an unsightly way, you fight your fears and aim for the handle of the now open door.

---You miss.


Masahiro: "Amari... Onaga... Hold on..."

One of your hands is caught firmly by the Janitor's, while the other never let go of Mai. As more students join Tachibana to assist in pulling you up, you see the look in their faces. It's the only place where you can look, as looking down... Would not be a good idea. But... With these expressions its enough, you don't need to confirm.

Tanimoto Orochi and Kamei Azume, both first years, weren't as lucky as you two were...

Everyone's sanity -5

... Or were they?

Before anyone can even register what happened...







Player Characters: Ishikawa Goben & Sato Yui
Location: Aomori Gakuen (?) - Rooftop

When you come to your senses, you find yourself standing in a familiar yet strange place. It's nighttime... How long have you been here in the rooftop? And more importantly, when exactly did you come here? As if you had been suddenly forced awake from a deep trance, you try to piece back together the fragments of your memory, trying to account for the information you're missing. However, it's all for naught... It's all jumbled up. It's like the day after a wild party where you can't remember a thing. For you all know, you might have simply been transported here after the earthquake, but that's an explanation that's hard to come into term with easily.

A heavy silence fills the rooftop.

Tachibana Masahiro is seemingly the only one there besides the two of you, staring absentmindedly through a broken fence, his back facing in your direction. For the very first time in a long time, he feels... Distant. The spirit of optimism and perseverance has abandoned the shell that was the Janitor's body, leaving nothing but a lost human being. That's right, while you weren't exactly close to neither Tanimoto nor Kamei, Masahiro must have been, and after what happened during the earthquake... It wouldn't be strange for Tachibana, being the adult responsible for the whole group, to feel guilty of all that transpired, even if the forces that brought it up were beyond his control.


Masahiro: "What the hell..."

But his first words just leave you dumbfounded. Fortunately, all it takes to understand what he means is a peek through the same fence.

what lies past the school gate...




Masahiro: "... Just what the hell is going on-?!"

---

Player Characters: Amari Hideaki & Sazae Yokoi & Tanaka Amélie
Location: Shopping District (?) - Mazonix



Slowly picking yourselves up from the floor, it takes a moment to pinpoint your exact location. After all, while there is no structure as big and grand in the island as the great Mazonix Shopping Centre, numerous signs of vandalism have turned the place into a shadow of its former glory. Windows have become no more than glass shards scattered over ceramic tiles, and whatever is left of the displays is worn out or in complete disarray. From a glance, nothing, not even clothes is salvageable. If you had to guess, you'd say the place has fallen victim of multiple raids. That said, that image does not match with the memories you have of Mazonix. Just what on Earth happened...?

Perhaps the question can be answered by the strange lights that float aimlessly through the corridors. As a human being, while cautious, you are naturally curious to know what they are supposed to be. Approaching an orb as big as the palm of the hand reveals that they do in fact emit heat. That's probably the reason why the place remains warm at this time of the night (?) when the glass ceiling is no more. However, should you draw your body too close to it, you wouldn't get burned. Much like a ghostly entity, they would pass through you, inflicting no harm as they do so. Together with the bluish hue the world has adopted, it almost feels as if you've been assimilated into a star-filled night-sky.

@Seirei No HaiJust as you manage to recover, you become aware of Natsumi's presence, who seemingly happened to 'land' fairly close to you. Though the two of you can be called best friends, your personalities differ greatly, Natsumi being both a coward (in a cute way) and and introvert, while you were, well... You. Right now, she looks rather lost, perhaps desperate for guidance. Before you know it, the girl catches you in an embrace.


Natsumi: *sob* "I am so glad you are safe, Yoko-chan..." *sob* "... But, what are we going to do now?"

A tough question to answer, all things considered.

@VertigoKimura Toru, seemingly the last member of your small group, helps you get back on your feet and politely returns your bag with your belongings, that he found not far from there. Toru has been a guy that's been hard to interact with during your time at school, mostly because his prodigy student image didn't seem to allow him much free time. When it comes to sports, he is someone who values focus and growth over adrenaline, as evidenced by his choice of joining the archery club. He's... Overall a good guy, and a good amount of girls seem to find him attractive for one reason or another, but you can't say you know him very well. As such, it's hard to get a reading on him, figure out what thoughts lie underneath that poker face of his.


Toru: "If this place is truly Mazonix, then we should avoid wandering too far off from each other. It was built as a 'maze' to keep customers inside, hence the name."

@DuthguyThere is not a trace of Mai. All that remains is the nostalgic feeling of your hand having briefly held hers...

---

Player Characters: Tsuchihana Ren & Amano Ayane & Amisaki Kyou
Location: Location Unknown - Parking lot (?)



The Student Council President, Osaki Kiyoko, is the first to act. Having been somehow able to cling to her phone after all that's transpired, she uses its screen to banish part of the darkness that has fallen into the room, enough for you to be able to see each other. Following her example, all of you do the same and eventually find out that Kumagai Arata is the final member of your stranded group. But perhaps what draws your attention the most are the mobile devices themselves. All that's displayed on the screen is the color white. It's so bright that it can be used as a flashlight, so that's useful, but it has come at the cost of all its other functions. It cannot be used to call your friends and it does not respond to any of your commands. You aren't even sure if it will run out of battery or not. Once you've 'accidentally' turned it on, it can't even be turned off.


Kiyoko: "Everyone, are you alright? Has any of you sustained injuries of note?"

Being born a leader, and a kind one at that, it's no surprise that, again, the silver haired girl snatches the initiative to get the group moving. Even in this situation and after all that you've seen and experienced in the past minutes, she can remain calm and collected. But make no mistake: This girl is far from being a robot. If anything, it takes an extraordinary amount of effort for her not to fall on her knees right there after the loss of Kamei and Tanimoto. But... For the sake of those she can still protect, she has to keep moving forward. That's just who Osaki Kiyoko is, someone who always puts others before herself.

After everyone is able to confirm that, besides of the few scratches and bruises that are to be expected given the incident at the gym, everyone can move, the group decides that its best to investigate and search the place for clues that may help you figure out your exact location. The first conclusion that one can grasp with no more than a glance is that you aren't at ground level. You are standing at what appears to be an underground parking lot. It may belong to a shopping centre or another facility of similar size (because its huge), but it goes without saying that you don't ever recall ever being here before. Though there are a few vehicles parked here and there, most of them have suffered damage beyond repair, as if they've participated in some kind crash or accident. Those that managed to remain in one piece simply lack a key and, with the way electronic devices work here, it is safe to say that any start-up trick taken straight from TV shows won't help you get one running.

Each of you begin to explore in a different direction, but you agree beforehand to never get too far from each other. In this way, anyone could keep tabs on someone else at all times by searching for their phone light. Most of you fail to find someone of interest, however, Kumagai finds the price.


Arata: "Uh, Guys! Over here, I think I've found something-!"

You all rush to the boy's location and soon find out what he means.

There is an ambulance parked there. Could this be the parking lot of a hospital? Regardless, it appears it's in good shape. Further investigation reveals that there is no one on the driver's seat and both of its front doors are locked. The backdoor however has been left slightly ajar, as if waiting for you to open it.

Weighting your options, you-

---

Player Characters: Date Nobu
Location: Outskirts - Jitsuryoku-hima's Cemetery (?)



Some people like to throw themselves over the grass, relax and watch the night sky, waiting for a shooting star to show itself and grant them a wish. And what a better place to go sightseeing than a graveyard, right? For circumstances that still remain unclear, you've awakened in an strange location, gazing at blurry eldritch skies and with the not-so-subtle hunch that quite a few hours have gone by after today's earthquake. But the most outstanding fact has to be your position: Laid on the ground with your head resting on something rather comfortable, you find yourself inexplicably content. That is, until the realization that whatever you at some point turned into your pillow feels warm, smells clean and makes tiny movements from time to time. To put it in words that anyone may understand: Your head is resting over something that's alive. And what a surprise is it to find, once you fully come back to your senses, that the name for the species you are looking for is 'human being', one that without a shadow of a doubt... Is a female.


Chikako: "..."

Even after you somehow manage to escape 'her clutches', Murai's reaction is rather lacking. She watches you silently with curious eyes, maybe even wondering why you would consider resting on a girl's lap such a crime. Scanning your surroundings, you are unable to find a trace of any other student that was with you at the gym. Fate has been cruel enough to leave you stuck in a graveyard at night with one of the school weirdos. Isn't this girl in the occult club? OMG, she actually is. For all you know, she might have kidnapped you right after you lost consciousness and now you are here to perform some sort of bloody love ritual.

It's rather dark, but with your phone you should be able to find your way through the grave-stones. Mind you, while you somehow managed to keep your belonging close (and intact-!), neither of them seem to respond to any command. Their screen just emits a pure white light that can be used as a makeshift flashlight. Your attention is eventually drawn towards one random grave-stone. It's only natural... After all, the date it displays is not something an ordinary man would overlook. The name has been crossed out and most of the stone has fallen into decay, to the point where it wouldn't be incorrect that this place represents whatever is left of the graveyard, rather than a graveyard proper.



Well, that's encouraging. Someone who was born at least thirty years 'into the future' lies here. This has got to be some kind of joke...


Chikako: "... Bread?"

Looks like Chikako has some 'food' to spare. Still kneeled down on the ground, she reaches out with her hand, offering a portion of Japanese bread with the same expression she has shown the entire time thus far. Naturally, by this point, you have made an effort to remain at a prudent distance, so if you wish to retrieve it, you'll need to come closer...

---

Nobu was sure he was dead. As soon as the world fell apart, Nobu knew this was just his mind breaking down under the belief that this was the end of his current life. Succumbing to this fate, Nobu held onto his backpack tightly as he silently chanted a mantra... or at least, what he thought was a mantra.

... And then Nobu's eyes opened once again to a starlit sky and a feeling of eternal bliss.


Nobu: "... I see, the realm of the devas is truly marvelous."

Nobu would close his eyes again to calm himself down from the horrors of death, before opening them once again only to see what his head was actually resting on.

With a look of absolute terror on his face, Nobu sprung up, his hands raised in some sort of defensive stance. When he realized that the thing he was laying on was a fellow student however, his stance quickly faltered as he crossed his arms, only frowning. Despite being the only two in the general vicinity, her presence indicated one of two things:

1.) They both had accumulated enough bad karma to become hungry ghosts, which Nobu doubts as he believes himself to be above even a saint.

or 2.) They were both still alive. Just... not at school anymore.


Nobu: "..."

Having nothing else to say to Chikako, Nobu began to gather his belongings. While he was annoyed that neither his phone or his laptop worked properly, he was at least glad they still worked. They just needed to find their way back to civilization to get them fixed, perhaps. As Nobu closed his laptop to stuff it back into his bag, he would notice the light shining on one of the tombstones.


Nobu: "... 137 days? The year '2047?'"

As he began to contemplate the mathematical significance of either word, he was suddenly offered bread by that thing. Instinctively, Nobu's hand was cocked back, as if he were about to slap the bread away from him; No way he would get drugged by this girl! Before his hand would strike the menacing mass of dough however, an epiphany suddenly struck the offended youth. Taking the bread (while staying as far as his arms could allow him to) while refraining from taking a bite just yet, Nobu began to speak.


Nobu: "You're from the Occult Club, right? Very well... I may consider taking part in whatever profane ritual you have in store for me if you can assure me of two things: One, that I will remain a virgin until marriage; Two, if I may at least keep one of my kidneys; And three, if you can explain to me what you know of any weird paranormal significance behind '137 days', and the year 2047."

Those are four things...

@heroic2019 @Seirei No Hai@Vertigo


Just as Hideaki started to worry about the walls of the gym collapsing something actually stranger happened and gravity shifted around or something. From what he could tell no one had gotten seriously injured but he wasn't too relieved about that cause if it happened once it could easily happen again. Taking care not too look down he kept playing with his necklace. "Careful it might happen agai..."

He didn't even have time finish his thought before some other pressing concern presented itself. The sound of heavy objects hitting the floor (wall) made clear what was going on. He forced himself to look down so he had time to dodge anything coming his way and to stop playing with his necklace so that he had both hands free.

But fortunately and unfortunately he didn't have to worry about falling objects for long as gravity shifted once more. The fact that they were technically a lot higher up now almost sent him in a panic. "No no no no. Please let this be a dream." He didn't register it when Masahiro told everyone to jump.

Seeing Mai fall however was a whole different story. Without thinking thinking Hideaki tried to to grab her hand and succeeded, only to realize immediately afterwards that that was unlikely to improve the situation. As he got dragged down with her he lost it completely and started screaming, certain that they were both gonna fall to their doom. And to make matters worse he hit both a female student and Orochi.

For a brief second he actually though it was all over when they hit the door but it gave way under their combined weight in an instant, meaning that it was likely to be over in a totally different manner. He pressed his eyes shut so that he at least wouldn't have to see whatever it was they would end up hitting and was surprised when he noticed they had stopped falling and someone had grabbed his hand. Curiosity overtook him and he opened his eyes to see the janitor and a bunch of students trying to pull them up, though seeing the looks on their faces didn't actually help him calm down, especially since from what he could he tell he was only holding up Mai's weight. "God no."

The next thing Hideaki knew everything turned blue but at least he was on the ground again. On the other hand Mai was nowhere to be seen. He forced someone to get up and realized he was in the mall, along with several other students. Out of the group the only one he even slightly knew was the chuuni. Doing his best to hide the fact his pants were wet after that fall he approached them and found out they were apparently in Mazonix. Despite Hideaki wanting to find Mai he was still a bit too daze by everything that happened say anything when the male student suggested that they stick together, which was frankly quite good advice. He simply sat down trying to calm down, frantically rubbing his necklace with the hand he had reached for his crush with earlier.

---

---

Kyou had just barely calmed down from the unexpected earthquake onset, when the Chuunibyou that the whole school at least knew of dove and rolled right next to him. She put a palm over his left hand, and smiled up at him. Kyou jerked his whole body away from her, completely bewildered by her familiarity to a stranger. “W-What?” he stuttered out, but she just giggled at him and said something about how he ought to thank her later. Kyou would have said more, but then the world stopped making sense, the whole reality as they knew it shifting into something incomprehensible.

One moment, they were comfortably on the floor, the next, everything tilted, and they were collectively sliding down to what had been a wall before. Kyou shrieked, scrabbling at the floor-now-wall, attempting to slow his descent as he best could, but his fall was inevitable. He managed to land in a roll that thankfully didn’t dislocate, sprain, or break anything, though it did leave him heavily bruised. The fingers on his left hand were all bloody and scraped up from having clawed at the wooden floor/wall. He’d disentangled his right hand from his pocket only just before he landed, so even though it'd helped him roll safely to the floor, it wasn't as damaged as his left one. His bag fell close to him, and Kyou carefully put it over a shoulder, gaze darting left and right fearfully, mind racing to catch up to the events. He was panting too fast, and as a reminder to himself to restrict and regulate his breathing, Kyou put his face-mask on with trembling fingers.

There was another shift, and Kyou stumbled, though he jumped over the door on Masahiro’s cue, avoiding squishing the two first years and falling out into who-knows-what. He could only tremble wide-eyed, however, as he saw a speaker crashing against a female student. A male student attempted rescuing her, but they were just both sent careening into towards the door – and the first years. The door opened, and the first two years fell through. Kyou screamed. When he next opened his eyes – his lids now sticky from tears, his cheeks wet, and his nose running – he saw the janitor had managed to hold onto the male student and the boy was still holding onto the girl. Kyou shivered, averted his gaze, and hugged himself tightly, clutching the school bag to him. How could something like this have happened?!

Kyou was unable to contemplate anything else, his mounting panic ending in a flash of white, his mind going blank. He was knocked unconscious.


The next time his eyes opened, all Kyou saw were…cars? One blink later, everything went black, and he just stared into the darkness for a moment, not yet quite grasping what was going on. He wiped at his face, removing the dry tear-tracks, but left the face-mask on for the moment, despite the insides being slightly icky from his snot. Kyou shivered in remembrance of the cause of his previous crying. Then Osaki, the student council president, blinded him with her phone light, and revealed that he was no there alone. Oh, thank God. Even if I’m crazy or something, at least I’m not by myself…and the President! So reliable… Reassured by her presence, Kyou first patted his right pocket, finding his stress-ball undisturbed, which loosened the tight knot of anxiety gripping him just a tad more. He was able to breathe calmly now, so removed the face-mask and stored it back in his bag, then rifled through it for his phone. Kyou found it, and was able to turn it on, however besides the blinding light, there was nothing on the screen. He fiddled with the device some more, but all Kyou figured out was that it couldn’t be turned back off, and its single remaining use was as a flashlight, all its other functions inaccessible. There was even no battery display.

With his visibility restored, Kyou looked from face to face, trying to place the students he was with as he best could. There was, of course, the President; there was no one in the school that could claim to not know of her. There was a first year he was unfamiliar with, though he felt like he’d at least seen him around…And the remaining two were third years. First was Amano Ayane, whom he knew of because she was the one rumored to have stopped the transfer student Minamoto’s win streak in the kendo club. The second one was Tsuchihana Ren, one of the many people that hung around Hase Saki, his only friend – who unfortunately was not there. Kyou could only hope she was still alive, elsewhere. As for their own location, the surroundings indicated they were in some sort of an underground parking lot, apparently abandoned.

With the agreement that they wouldn’t stray too far from each other, and could use their mobile phones' lights to seek out each other, Kyou joined the search for…something; anything. If they could only find a clue! He stood up on shaky legs, and made his way to the nearest car. He was focusing intently on his task, because the alternative was thinking about…everything else. His breath quickened as his traitorous mind strayed to the first two years’ fall, the whole unusual situation he found himself in, the possibility that he’d been driven insane…He shoved a hand into the pocket, squeezing the stress-ball as if his life depended on it. Oh, give it a rest Kyou, if you can think…you can act. Besides, as long as I’m not by myself… He shuddered, and began inspecting the car. It was wrecked, and none of the doors could be opened. Nor could be its trunk or hood. Kyou glanced around to check that at least one phone light besides his own could be seen before moving to the next one. The door of this one could be opened, but the insides contained nothing of use.

His fruitless search was finally over when the first year called out to them, and Kyou gladly made his way over. There was an ambulance, in much better shape than most of the cars Kyou had seen. While the front doors were locked, the back one was ajar. Kyou stood at a distance, gazing at the ominous opening suspiciously. No other car he’d seen had its doors simply opened. So what was the deal with this one? The only way to find out would be to open it, but…he was rather reluctant to do so. What if there was a corpse? It was an old, abandoned ambulance, so it was possible…right? But wouldn’t that smell badly enough that they could tell? That was it what they said in all those movies after all…Shaking off the paranoia and reminding himself that their search had gone alright so far, Kyou took a single step closer, then stopped. “Let’s just be careful,” he suggested, his voice trembling lightly. While urging caution was a half-decent advice, Kyou certainly wasn't helping the situation much given how he just stood there and watched, the phone held in his left hand hanging uselessly by his side.

---

---

Yokoi must be seeing things, for an earthquake to just... twist, bend and turn the walls and floors by breaking the laws of Physics. This lead her to the conclusion that something must have hit her head and that this was some lucid dream she was experiencing. It was only when the environment began changing that she blinked for a quick second, body on the ground as the quake weakens...

...eventually she found herself at the town's shopping district... there's a handful of students around and Amisaki Kyou, a guy she sees often in the classroom when walking wasn't beside her, instead it was a worrying Natsumi that took his place, clutching onto her hand and sobbing. She pat herself all over, see if there was any sort of bleeding.

Chest? Okay.

Arms? Not broken.

Legs? Not cut off! Huzzah!

Head? Not... bleeding... huh.

These things ran through her head, it must've been some early PTSD kicking in when a strong earthquake hit? Nah it couldn't be. Whatever the details were, what once she was inside a gym building found herself in a new place with an odd atmosphere as if the weird alien hue wasn't enough. What's important was everyone is here safe and hopefully unharmed.

"Hm-hm. Don't worry Natsumi, we were probably knocked unconscious by debris and someone pulled us out here." A headpat to calm the girl and hopefully the bluff helps her as well even if there's no sign of any emergency vehicles nearby. She stands up (with Natsumi's help) and made sure to fix up her glasses tilted upwards. Her eyes scouting out the group they have, excluding the shy girl.

Hideaki, the active-looking on. @Duthguy

Toru, the grumpy one. @heroic2019

and the Saberface foreigner-looking girl, Tanaka. @Vertigo

Whatever this messed up reality was, Ayane couldn't comprehend what happened as gravity seemingly shifted for no apparent reason and they were falling down to the wall which was now going to be their new floor. She was sliding down the floor before slamming onto the floor. Thankfully, she and the others had landed safely enough but there was no doubt that it would have been lethal under certain circumstances - this... this didn't make any sense. It can't be. But the objects they had packed up from earlier were now falling towards them. Quickly recovering and getting out of the way, the loud thuds that followed the deadly projectiles woke her up. It was very much real and that meant that she could die at any moment and she had to avoid that.

Before she could even catch her breath, there was another shift of gravity and they were now heading straight for the door. Hearing Masahiro's order to jump before they all slammed into the door and open it to... whatever is beyond after all of that, Ayane managed to leap at the order and safely land. She could only hope for everyone else's safety. She whipped her head to the side to see if they all made it safely. They did not. She watched as Mai and Hideaki was taken down with a speaker and slamming into the two first years and the doors opened.

"Mai! Hideaki!"

The two first years had slipped through the doors and into the void below. Shit. Thankfully, Mai and Hideaki were caught by Masahiro. Scrambling to get her friends and fellow clubmates to safety, she began trying to help Masahiro with pulling them up. They can't fall through. She could only pray for the first two years to be...

Before she could think of anything else, everything just blacked out.



She was lying down for some reason. That was not what she remembered doing the last time she was awake. She lolled her head to the side and saw cars. Cars? Inside the gym? Her vision went black for a moment and she let out a groan. She laid there for another moment. When she heard shuffling, she knew she had to get up. She had to. Ayane forced herself to stand up and looked around.

Yep. This was definitely not their gym.

When Kiyoko had looked around using her phone and it was surprisingly bright enough to actually help them in this area, Ayane grabbed her own phone and turned it on. She quickly turned it away as soon as she pressed the power button. She brought one hand up to rub her eyes and she grumbled something under her breath. Looking at the screen, it was just pure white. Well. Shit. She looked up to Kiyoko who was now going around and checking everyone for injuries. Ever the responsible one, Kiyoko was. Though she could imagine that she was just as disoriented and devasted from what happened earlier as everyone else was.

But they needed to focus on themselves for now. She looked around to her current companions. So of course there was herself and Kiyoko, then there was Amisaki Kyou - the kid from the archery club if she remembered correctly. Then Tsuchihana Ren, a fellow third year who was in the Track and Field. She was more acquainted with Ren's teammate Saki who wasn't here. And the last one was a first year... Kuma... Kumagai. Right. Him.

With everyone relatively fine, they began to explore around. It was some sort of underground car park filled with destroyed cars or just useless cars in general. There was nothing of interest in them as far as Ayane could see. The first car's door didn't even budge and the second did but there was nothing inside. Unfortunately. She couldn't drive but Kiyoko could and maybe a car would be able to help them a bit. Still, no key. No nothing. No one else seemed to be around aside from them too. Ayane almost strayed out of the group's way when Kumagai had called out that he found something. Ayane hummed to herself as she made another sweep around the area she had checked for a quick second before congregating with the group.

It was an ambulance. Looking at the others, she nodded at them and went towards the front door. No one was inside. She tried the door only to find it locked. She looked over to the others who were going to check the back door. "Nothing up here." She called out.

Player Characters: Date Nobu
Location: Outskirts - Jitsuryoku-hima's Cemetery (?)

It is because of this line of thinking that you are considered to be a weirdo, a black sheep amongst the members of your class. Whereas the normal human being would have either allowed themselves to be frightened by the implications of the date inscribed on the gravestone or pretended it was no more than a joke or perhaps a mistake, you went straight to the numbers and their supposed meaning, creating a connection that, to the untrained eyes, would never exist. Regardless of whether you are a genius or a complete idiot, it goes without saying that the words that escaped your mouth moments ago would do no good to your image. Or, at least, that should have been the case if the one kneeling in front of you was a normal person. And Murai Chikako is anything but. After all, there is hardly any mundane in the island who holds as much knowledge of the supernatural without being directly affiliated with it.

"..."

The girl does not reply, but her face manifests slight signs of irritation. The meaning behind the number one hundred and thirty seven is not exactly easy to explain when one does not have a specific topic to relate it to. Its a magical number not just associated with mysticism but science and religion as well. While someone like Sazae Yokoi would have been able to elaborate on it plenty (maybe making things up along the way), Chikako is not as talkative. It looks like she will not give you the answers you seek, at least not until you can somehow narrow down your search. Hell, that's what you can assume given the circumstances. Though the girl does not utter a single word, you are pretty sure she's not mute, so she must have a reason to keep her mouth shut.


Chikako: "Predictions indicate that A.I. will be able to fully blend in with humans by 2047"

---All of a sudden.

Your schoolmate says something strange in a manner that defies the laws of her usual self. Chikako is quiet and usually limits herself to using only a couple of words to communicate. This time, however, she has spoken an entire sentence as if she had been reading a headline from a newspaper article. Perhaps what's more intriguing is that it has nothing to do with the paranormal, per se. Creating an A.I. with said capabilities is something humanity will do, eventually. It might take thirty years, it might take a hundred, but if technology is allowed to advance without brakes, then the time will come. If that's the case, then why...? Is this girl even sane...? Instead of giving you the answers to the questions you saw desire, though, the world goes ahead and rewards your intellectual efforts with the worst encounter possible.

"Heh, I knew waiting near one of the spawn points wouldn't be a bad idea. Newbies always bring goodies with them."

The figure of a man emerges from the shadows and from a distance you can already tell that he means trouble. Your attention is immediately drawn to the dirty clothes he's wearing and then towards the knife in his hand. A homeless man... That is seemingly about to rob you.

"Okay kid, put everything -Food, electronics, whatever- on your bag and hand it over. Do it and I promise I'll hurt neither you nor the princess over there"

At first glance, there is nothing that separates this man from the ordinary criminal you'd see on the streets from time to time and the words he speak do little to indicate otherwise. That said, the moment he takes a step closer, your opinion changes.

Though he's clearly making an effort not to show it, he looks desperate.

Who knows what he may do if you don't do as he says.

---

Player Characters: Tsuchihana Ren & Amano Ayane & Amisaki Kyou
Location: Location Unknown - Parking lot (?)

@KyuuzenChanelling all the courage you can muster, you decide it will be your job to check what lies on the other side of the ambulance's back door. While there is no reason to believe it'll be anything bad, a feeling of dread washes over you as you reach for its handle. The reality you once knew is no more and you've seen it collapse with your own eyes. Your mind knows this and intends to take advantage of it, luring your thoughts towards an image of the worst case scenario. It hurts to admit it, but even if you aren't as expressive about this sort of thing, it wouldn't be a mistake to say that you're as scared as Arata is. Eventually, you take a deep breath and open it, relaying on the rest of your teammates to provide illumination.

Inside you find no human nor creature, but several signs of life. Used blankets, spare (possibly expired) food and a notebook. Though it initially defies your past notion of common sense, it appears that someone has been using this ambulance as their second home. In the end, your findings aren't exactly as useful to your cause as you would have expected, but urged to find some clues, you venture into the ambulance itself. Ignoring expendable items, you go straight for the notebook. Invading someone else's privacy is not really your cup of tea, but perhaps it would shed some light on what's going on. The moment your hand touches the notebook...

A strange feeling to the touch informs you that something is not right and you immediately pull back your hand to safety, startling everyone else in the process. Though it's a small quantity, your hand now has blood in it, and it's fresh. Whoever lives there must have left, injured, only a few minutes before your arrival, otherwise the blood would have been dry.

Worried, the Student Council President asks you to join them outside and you are urged to obey. You leave everything as is and get out of the ambulance. As soon as you do, the girl recklessly dives into the vehicle herself. Being confident and brave like few others, there's not stopping Kiyoko when she's like this. She comes back a few seconds later with the notebook in hand. It looks like she used a sheet to wipe off the crimson substance.

You all gather to read its contents under the combined light of your cellphones. Turns out the notebooks is pretty much a diary and is organized in several entries, a lot of which are illegible or have been outright torn off.

• I don't know where I am. I am scared... And I cannot seem to be able to contact anyone. Oh God, the skies... What the hell is this place?
• I've been doing my best to get by on my own. It's always dark, it's always night. I'm beginning to lose track of how much time has passed since I woke up inside this building.
• Finally, I came across a group of survivors. Apparently, they arrived here long before I did and they are being kind enough to show me the ropes. According to them, this 'world' is called 'The Land of Shadows'. Creepy, huh?
• I want to leave, but they say it’s a bad idea. It’s okay, though, I know someone who can help me.
• Seeing a barricade has been erected at the entrance, I came down to the parking lot looking for another way out, but there's none, damn it-! That kid lied to me!
• Hahaha-! It looks they can't come down here. I guess I've found a safe-zone of sorts. So long as I stay down here... They can't hurt me.
• I heard their screams today and I did n-o-t-h-i-n-g~! Screams of fear, screams of pain, screams of agony! They got what they deserved and it was a bliss!

Everyone's sanity -1

Evidence suggest that the author’s mental health will only continue to deteriorate from that point forward. You figure it's for the best to leave it there...

---

Player Characters: Amari Hideaki & Sazae Yokoi & Tanaka Amélie
Location: Shopping District (?) - Mazonix

With Amélie acting as the vanguard, the group quietly moves through the expansive halls of the Shopping Mall. The more you walk, however, the more disturbing changes in your surroundings you manage to detect. At first it's the occasional barricade at the entrance of a shop, which is something your mind can overlook given the amount of riots that appear to have taken place, but when your eyes catch claw and bite marks on one wall and designs drawn in what appears to be blood in another, you have to pause and consider whether you are headed in the right direction.

@Seirei No Hai Out of curiosity, you leave Natsumi's side for a moment and decide to approach one of these drawings. The reason for doing so is simple: Without a shadow of a doubt, this has to be a magic circle-! The outer layer contains words written in a language you cannot understand, most likely ancient hebrew. But what draws your attention the most is the drawing contained within the circle. At first glance, it looks like a regular circle with a fancy design, perhaps an attempt to despict a hurricane. However, close inspection reveals the real message. It's dragon -or a lizard- chasing after its own tail with the intent of eating it. Now that's definitely familiar. Isn't that the symbol for-?

---Ugh... You are forced to take a couple steps back. Not by an invisible force, but rather the horrible stench that comes from it. Was this really drawn using blood? It almost seems surreal. You'd need a considerable amount to be able to create such an elaborate design, let alone repeat it all over the place.

... You decide not to delve on the thought for too long.

@DuthguyDoing your best to remain calm despite the madness that seems to surround you, you make a honest effort to stay clear from any suspicious marking or logos. As the group's advance comes to a halt, you claim an empty bench and use the time to practice some stress-relief exercises in order to remain calm. Right next to it is one of those tube-fashioned trash bins. There is a sticky note attached to it. It reads: 'use only during an emergency'. You are left puzzled by the meaning behind the message.

@VertigoYou venture a little ahead and reach a crossroad. If your memory serves you right and assuming everything is the same, a turn to the right and a walk of about a hundred meters should take the group straight to the exit. For an island so small, Mazonix sure is huge.

---Ah.

Your body moves before you can even process it. Normally, you'd be eager to meet new people, but instinctively understanding the danger of being approached by a number of shady invididuals wearing dark robes, your legs quickly throw you out of their field of vision just in time. Following your example, Toru silently does the same. Unfortunately, the rest of the group isn't as nimble.

@Seirei No Hai@DuthguyThey've taken notice of you.

Without saying a word, two cultists begin to advance towards the group, while the rest (two other people) decide to remain stationary.

Fear takes over. It's strange but you can hear the sound of your heart beating. Its rhythm increases the moment a bloody hood emerges from under one of the men's sleeves.

---

Nobu: "AI? Interesting."

Nobu never cared about what others thought of him. Well, he did, but he tells himself he doesn't all the time. It didn't matter if his fellows believed him to be just as weird as the girl standing near him as long as he, himself was right. At this time, however, it frustrated Nobu that he wasn't able to determine the significance behind those two specific numbers he spotted by chance. There was no way someone would leave their grave quote as "137 days" without any significance behind that specific number, much less someone who was supposedly born in 2047. There had to be a logical solution behind why his eyes met such a peculiar gravestone, and more importantly, why there's no death date...

The threats of a third party reminded Nobu of the dangers concerning the situation he found himself in.


Nobu: "... Spawn point? What?"

The stranger stepped forward, procuring a knife while threatening Nobu for all his things. It was moments like these where Nobu couldn't help but scream... the vagrant wasn't even holding his knife right! If he's against multiple opponents, he should keep the knife by his hip so that he may use the extra momentum in his sweeping strikes! Nobu was sure that's how it worked, keeping himself distracted by how incorrect their potential robber's stance is so that he wouldn't piss himself from the very real fact that there's a man holding him at knife point. Taking a deep breath and biting his tongue, Nobu slowly started to shuffle his bag to his front, keeping eye contact with his assailant while slowly shuffling towards Chikako, making sure she was close enough in case he needed to push her in the way pull her out and run.


Nobu: "... L-look, just stay back and I'll get my stuff in my bag. I'm holding sensitive electronics and they'll break if you make me drop them."

Despite the calm look on his face, Nobu was physically shaking. He slowly wore his backpack backwards- or was it forwards, in this case?-, opening it as he began to look inside. He started with placing the bread in the bag before a realization hit him: Nobu was in a hostage situation. The use of hostages is to create leverage for the aggressor so that his demands may be met...

... and the best way to resolve a hostage situation is to eliminate the hostage.

Nobu quickly moved the bread near his mouth, opening it as if he were threatening to eat it. He quickly glanced at Chikako as if telling her to follow his lead, before giving a very angry (and very scared) glare at the robber's direction.


Nobu: "Not so fast! What you really want is food, right? Well this is the last piece of food we have! Take another step towards either of us and I will eat it! Having the rest of our stuff will mean nothing if you die of starvation now, huh? Leave us be however, and I'll give you the bread and... you know what? You can have my school jacket for free too! Sounds like a good deal... right?"

It wasn't a smart idea, but Nobu isn't the smartest person, either. Worst case scenario would be that the man decides to attack Chikako. She's far more useful alive than dead, and more importantly... Nobu actually didn't want to be alone. He didn't want to think about the notion of one of his classmates dying in front of his eyes because of something he did or didn't do... for one, it would prove his Accurate Augury Assimilator wrong. No, Chikako dying was something that he needed to avoid at all costs.

The next worst thing would be if the hobo charged him instead. Nobu was wearing his backpack in a way where the front of his torso would be mostly protected, which gave him ample protection against any stabs from the largest portion of his body. Of course, this also meant Nobu's laptop would get stabbed, and...

Okay, that can't happen, either.

@heroic2019 @Seirei No Hai@Vertigo


During their entire trek through the not quite empty mall Hideaki forced himself to stay calm, knowing all too well that if he broke down a little he would break down all the way. If that happened he would be totally dependent on the the others and he refused to let that happen. He did his best not to see the transparent people or claw and bite marks everywhere. He really wished that he could convince himself it was all a dream but that would just be a different kind of breakdown so he suppressed that as well. Despite everything though he was glad that either the others didn't notice he had wet his pants during the fall or at least didn't point it out.

Eventually Hideaki got to take a break on a bench and pointedly ignored the strange circle made of what he really hoped was red paint. The chuunin on the other hand seemed curious about it and given how strange both it and their situation were he couldn't blame her. Still he knew he was on edge and took slow deep breaths as he looked around.

Naturally he noticed the trashcan and the note and his curiosity almost got the better of him. "No, I really don't want to know." Unfortunately it didn't seem like he could ignore it for very long as four bizarre humanoid monsters showed up. Two of the monsters approached him and the chuuni and Hideaki's first thought was to run away, abandoning her to her fate. As he got ready to run though he saw the faces of Orochi and the female student, both of whom were dead thanks to him and decided he refused to let anyone die. He also realized that Katsu probably would try to fight back and made his decision. Shaking in fear he let go of his pendant and reached into the trashcan, looking for whatever was in there.

@heroic2019 @Seirei No Hai@Vertigo


Hideaki didn't know what he was expecting to find but a gun wasn't it. He was surprised how heavy it was and wondered if the weight meant it was loaded or not. He didn't spend too much wondering though as he had weird robed humanoid monsters to deal with. After fiddling with the gun around he hoped he had managed to take the safety off cause whoever dropped it would be extremely stupid otherwise.

Not wanting to hit chuuni-chan he aimed at the approaching creature the farthest away from her. "Stop or I will shoot!" He really hoped they would listen cause he had absolutely zero desire to actually pull the trigger. The fact that the noise might attract more creatures was actually the least of concerns but if he felt like he had to fire the gun he would.

---

---

Kyou gasped quietly at the author’s diary entries, but very carefully and purposefully focused his mind on the pertinent information. The…person…mentioned other survivors, the fact that this place was called the Land of Shadows, and a barricade. There was also the stuff about ‘them’ and how the parking lot they were in was a safe zone. Not so safe with that psycho running around, Kyou thought uncharitably, though even considering being confronted with someone or something that actively desired to harm them was- No, no, never mind that, Kyou, we just have to focus on getting out and, and see what’s around, maybe find out if there are other sane people around. With a shaky inhale, Kyou focused on his breathing and centered his mind.

A minute passed, and, having gathered his courage (or perhaps it was desperation), Kyou spoke up. “P-President, please put that diary back? We- I think we should probably get away from here,” he whispered, cautious now that he knew an insane person might be lurking nearby. “Let’s try not to attract that person’s attention, though,” he continued speaking in an undertone. “You can lead us, right, president?” he asked plaintively, gaze darting around fearfully. The five of them were really so noticeable, if he thought about them. For one, they were near the author’s home, and for another, they hadn’t been quiet up until now, and their mobile phones radiated like a beacon in the otherwise dark parking lot.

Kyou bit his lip, his heart starting to beat loudly yet again, and frantically gestured to the others, indicating to be mindful of their presence. He wasn’t sure his flailing was getting the point across, so he added: “Light and sound. Dangerous,” in a quiet mutter. His own phone was still in his left hand, kept pointed down and to the side. Kyou inched closer to Kiyoko, hoping she would assent to leading them out of there. He clutched his bag close to his body with his right arm, stuffing his palm into his jacket’s pocket to clamp onto his stress-ball for reassurance. “President,” he whispered quietly, but with urgency. However, he did not feel comfortable with actually ordering her around, so he kept his quiet after that, though he kept looking around, barely keeping the discomfort at bay.

---

---

From the girl's perspective, it looked like a bunch of thugs running at her with hooks, the hoods veiling the monstrosity underneath. Just as she gripped tightly to Natsumi's hand, she noticed Hideaki digging by the conveniently placed trash cans just next to him... only to pull out a gun?

...a gun...?

...in the trash?! WHAT ARE THE ODDS?! THAT'S AN SSR PULL!

With a confident smirk of her own she takes out a gun as well, one that looks a little bit similar to Hideaki's with a white tint although from the way she held it, it was very obviously the model gun she keeps around at school and only uses it as an improv tool during school plays.

Much to her delusions, she also believes Hideaki's gun is a model gun. Both barrels staring down at the pursuing cultists while she covers one of her eyes with a red contact lens- gripping the side of her cheek with the most cheesy laugh one would hear from an anime.

"Kukuku..." she would say before dramatically the hand covering her eye, the red glow from one of her contacts shining (somehow) in the night sky. "You fools have fallen right into our trap. Stop now or forever have your knee caps blown to bits."

She only hoped that they stopped at some point in the confusion or at least be intimidated at her super real, totally not-fake weapon that she bought from a discount store in Akihabara that one week on Summer Vacation.

@heroic2019 @Duthguy @Vertigo