Saturday meeting/afterparty?

[overconfidant]

[Everything happens so fucking much. Akira, unlike some, is actually still functioning through all this disaster.

For now.

God, he made a mess of this. He really is Moriarty's, isn't he?

He spreads the word to have a meeting at the studio since all the surveillance is turned off there for the moment. Including to the people that remained at the house, when he goes back to collect food and drinks. Leftovers, mostly. Curry and tacos and tempura and whatever else.

The studio is a mess but he just sets up as best he can among the debris. He picks a pile to perch on with a sigh.]

I know everyone's tired and generally fucked up in one way or another but we don't know how long we have before Mission Control or someone else makes a move. We probably have a lot to discuss.

...it'll be up to all of you if you want me involved in that after I say my piece. I intended to warn you all beforehand but... I ended up missing the meeting the other day.

Short version, some of this disaster is my fault. Longer version, I decided Nora had a point about using the death that had to happen anyway. So I staged a confrontation for the camera in Dazai's office and offered him my services in exchange for my own safety. I knew the Foundation would buy it. I thought I could help cover for his lapses better.

He asked me to sabotage today's game.

And I did.

Comments

[iblistriggered]

....

What, exactly, did you do.

[allmyfriendsaredead]

[Saki is exhausted.

Physically. Emotionally. She's just tired. And so, when he springs that bombshell, all she can do is stare.]

...What?

[resortghosts]

[ So, hey, there's a red and black prinny here, listening? It just finally made it further out of the debris.

Annnnnd as soon as it hears the latter part of those words? It stops.

It's... very intently listening. ]

[darkova]

Ah, so that's where the marks on your neck came from. I'll admit I assumed they were from... someone else.

[eldritcheyes]

....

[Leo just wanted to rest, but this is important. He has his left arm in a makeshift sling, and he still looks unpleasantly pale. He really should eat something but he doesn't have the stomach for it.

At Akira's words, he hunches over with his good hand pressed to his face. He doesn't even have tears left, he's so goddamned tired.]

[overconfidant]

The marks on my neck came from me. He faked choking me for the cameras but he was barely touching my neck, the idiot. I had to find an off camera spot and make sure they bruised in the right places.

[darkova]

You did a convincing enough job. I'd almost wonder if you've choked yourself before, but your love life isn't my business.

So, our Host had someone specific he wanted dead, or someone he specifically wanted to live?

[houndumb]

[Yeah, he's not at the meeting exactly but he's definitely somewhere further out and he can hear your shit with his demon hearing. Why the hell is his name coming up, it just makes him grind his teeth because he has a feeling he doesn't actually want to hear this and he's this close to just walking out again the way he did with Doezai but.

You have him still for another few moments.]

[overconfidant]

A health problem? Spidey sense?

I never thought those were right answers, internet or no internet.

Say the wrong things, don't say the right ones.

[iblistriggered]

.... well good thing you suck at sabotage, then. As long as you weren't responsible for Alcor's decision to go supernova, it doesn't really matter to me.

[eldritcheyes]

No, Silver.

[Leo sounds so dead.]

He wanted more bullets in that gun. That's what he did.

[odasaku]

Alright.

[ he doesn’t even have it in him to be angry anymore. he’s tired and sipping from his thermos full of coffee/whiskey. ]

[darkova]

Of course he did. Akira is certainly clever enough that he should have been giving us nearly as many points as Inaba.

[iblistriggered]

....

[without warning, Silver unleashes a powerful psychic blast, aiming to slam Akira against the nearest piece of rubble]

[odasaku]

He was asked to sabotage the game to make sure people would die.

[eldritcheyes]

....

[The Eyes crack open slightly, not active, just unnerving as they fix on Akira.]

Was it worth it? Killing more of our friends, selling your soul to the Foundation?

[overconfidant]

I've got a lot of experience with being hurt.

I think he mainly wanted to make sure he hit his quota. If we'd nailed all those questions, he'd have been fucked.

[allmyfriendsaredead]

But-

[Twice now, she's heard the explanation, and yet her mind is so slow in trying to piece it together. They needed more deaths. So he sabotaged them to get that. But, but, but...

Eventually, it clicks, her weary brain making the correct connections. Her voice goes quiet.]

Atsushi...

[The reason he died... was because of this...?]

[darkova]

Oh, I assume so! All of you, and myself, reminding him of how he had to play his role... and now you all become enraged when he does!! You realize, all of you, that those Agents in the tunnels would likely be at our doorstep right now if not for 'Dazai'? He may have killed our friends but he also may have just saved all of our lives.

[houndumb]

[And then suddenly Nora is there -- but he isn't only just arriving -- he unleashed his magic en route, Ignis Magia - Scorching Cyclone, because there's no trajectory to this spell. It's just a column of incinerating flame; if Akira doesn't want to be incinerated he better have A. Good Fire resistance, B. The ability to move out of the range of fire or Silver's blast radius or C. Some other kind of protection.

If he moves, though, Nora is moving too. He's tracking, moving faster than probably most people have seen him move unless they've really gotten down into the bloody SCP trenches with him. His spear is out and aimed for Akira.

Also? Both his eyes are gold and there's a hint of some kind of crest on his forehead. Judging by the crazy movements of magic aura happening, This Is Bad.]

[prayerwheel]

[ Azura comes to this "meeting" but stays silent for most of it, just sitting and icing her aching head. ]

...I suppose it really us that hard for all of us to just work together. How foolish of me for hoping otherwise.

[prayerwheel]

[ ...hi, Leo. You weren't even talking to her, but Azura hears this and freezes, dropping her ice pack. ]

What...what did you just say?

[overconfidant]

[Akira sees him, but he doesn't say anything to him. Doesn't try to defend what he did. He just looks at the prinny for a long moment before looking away.

It's funny, though. There's only one person who knows what Akira looks like when he's feeling regret.]

[resortghosts]

[ So, about all of that...

... This Prinny is yelling: ]

Heat Riser!

[ Have a smol buff, Akira, even if he isn't going to be talking to you.

... and around the time Nora is drawing spear? This prinny is just laughing. ]

Sure, Nora... go ahead and prove the Foundation right. Great job.

[odasaku]

It was random.

[ that’s the truth of it. three bullets out of six slots... had dazai spun it a little less or a little more, the results would’ve been different. and, had akira sabotaged it further— ]

It could’ve been even worse.