thefoundation | WEEK 4 MINGLE

WEEK 4

The weekend that just passed was....frankly, a lot. Yet despite all odds, you somehow pulled out a win from the jaws of utter defeat. As you wake up feeling tired but happy, the speakers crackle to life with the voice of The Lady.

"Attention, Guests. This week, The game is temporarily suspended. This week, there will be no mafia kill. Take a break for your hard work."

And...indeed, it seems like this is a peace week. The Staff, after the disappearance of The Captain, are acting worse than they did last week - not only is there the blankness and the stuttering, but sometimes they even get orders wrong, with potentially hazardous results. Asking the Staff for things has become more dangerous and unreliable, but at least you meals are still good. Speaking of, The Chef has put a sign up on the door, reading "DO NOT TAKE KNIVES WITHOUT ASKING FIRST!! THAT MEANS YOU!!" written in big, angry letters. The resort also seems to be gearing up for Christmas - there are lights and trees scattered around the place, as well as mistletoe for couples to get their public displays of affection on. There's also some other holiday decorations around, for Kwanzaa and....something else you definitely have never seen before. The thing....wriggles, and you don't want to be around it for long.

The weather is still nothing, except for the courtyard, which is still pleasantly snowy. There is still music playing in the halls, and the cover songs continue with some low-key music for the week.

On Monday morning, another memory is returned to everyone. Are you getting closer to the truth of this place, maybe? It's hard to say.

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Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

You do realize that I was killed by one of those "literal monsters", right?

But have you ever considered that they're being forced to 'play the game' as much as the rest of us are and aren't exactly doing this simply for sport?

Cool, cool. Being forced to murder is still murder.

[She crosses her arms, an irritated expression on her face.]

Look, you can argue with me all you want, but I'm done with people trying to say that they were just trying to follow orders or whatever. Orders have gotten people killed, as they have here. That doesn't mean it's right.

"Cool motive, still murder."

Yeah, I get it. I don't think it's right, either - whether they're being forced or not. Nevertheless, focusing on the monsters and ending both of their lives? I don't think that's what is going to get us all out of here safely.

Don't get me wrong: I don't condone murder; I want them to stop. But that doesn't necessarily mean that you can shove all the blame on the monsters because you want an excuse for all the crap going wrong in this place.

I'm not trying to say that they're the only reason behind everything that's going wrong.

[She grits her teeth, her voice a low growl. It's clear that this conversation is touching on a few sensitive points.]

Hell, that doesn't mean I can't condone the monsters alongside of the organization that forced us to participate in this as well.

[There is actually a long pause between this reply and the next one.]

You don't have to. And I'm not going to force you to change your mind.

But I think that we might have to at least cooperate with them so that we can all get out of here. If you want to find out how to exorcise them? Fine. I'm not going to stop you.

[Ripley can't help but scoff.]

Fine. I'm not against cooperation if it means we'll survive. But that doesn't mean I'm going to forgive them for what they've done.

Fair enough.

I've been thinking about this, and... I still don't trust the monsters, Ripley-san, I get that. But what would you call the executions we've been doing? Medic-san and Flat-san? What if we hadn't been able to exorcise the Barghest this week?

[She's not arguing, but it's been bugging her for a bit.]

I'm not saying those weren't wrong, either.

[She rubs her face, suddenly looking exhausted.] Hell, I'm not saying I've never done anything wrong in my life. Saying that one thing is bad doesn't mean I'm immediately exempt from doing anything wrong.

[Her thoughts flash back to seeing Dallas and Brett, strung up by the alien in the lower decks. Her finger on the trigger of the flamethrower as the sweltering heat built up around her. The weak, croaking voice of Dallas, begging her to kill him.

She closes her eyes, trying to control her breathing.]

I’m not saying you’re wrong, Ripley-san.

[Blue Angel’s voice wasn’t argumentative in the first place, but she softens it further.

She’s kind of figured out how to connect with those her age, but she’s still working out how to approach many of the adults. She’s figured out that a hand on the shoulder is a good idea for the likes of Akira and Minato, but she has no idea how to reach out or do a dialogue here. The things that make Ripley admirable also make her hard to work with.

Still. She’ll try.]

I’m saying that we might need to consider different solutions. It might not be about what’s wrong or right, especially while we’re trapped in this game. It might be about how many of us can live, and who’s really telling the truth. I think we need to figure that out, first of all.

[She appreciates the effort, nonetheless. Aoi's doing a lot better than several other people at this meeting, right now. She pinches the bridge of her nose, trying to divert her thoughts into something more productive, like talking. Instead of getting lost in hands choking around her neck, sparking and garbled screeching noises, wires and coolant being spat everywhere--

Stop. No. You can't lose it in front of everyone else right now. You can't. Don't think about it don't think about it don't think--]

Right. You're right, it's just--there's so much to focus on, and--

[She falls silent, rubbing her face and staring at the ground intensely.]

Ripley-san... Are you okay?

[She really doesn’t come from a time or a place or a background where PTSD is common, or at least people hide it away in the dark, so she really has little experience dealing with or recognizing the symptoms. She does manage to get that there is something wrong, though, and moves in a little closer, hovering and unsure. If there’s no response to that, she will... try a hand on her arm??

Hopefully that’s not too startling.]

I think it might be a good idea to try this again later. Everyone’s still pretty worked up because of the Outsider.

[She herself is no exception, but she’s had time to sort things through and possibly played way too much Duel Monsters to clear her head.]

[Ripley doesn't respond at first, but visibly flinches when Aoi makes contact with her.]

Right--Right. Later. I'm fine.

[She gives Aoi a shaky smile, though she looks very distracted right now. Then again, that whole thing happens later.]

[Well, Ripley is definitely not fine, but she's not going to argue the point -- she'll just watch carefully, and frown to herself. Maybe make a note to try this again later, at some point, but for now she'll leave this to the... ghosts? Or something?]

can people pelase stop usign my death to to jsutify other things becuasde this has hapepned twice now :/

[And Medic's genuinely worried about Ripley right now.]

I’m not trying to justify anything, Medic-san. But I understand.

[She’s also doing her best! And gets the feeling she needs to approach most of this later. She’s not sure, though — these meetings are good for information, but they’re just not that great at herding people.]

WEEK 4 MINGLE

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