GRAVEYARD aka the locked basement LOL

[protoshepherd]

[ You're dead. Either you were ousted and seemed as an ally of the Bad Badger, or the actual allies of the Bad Badger actually got to you.

You remember dying. If you were already dead prior to this whole game... well, you're alive again.

Your death may have been terrible. Poison, being stabbed multiple times, blunt trauma to the head, hanged... whatever. You can still feel the pain.

But... Where are you? You see white walls around you. You're in a hospital...? You're in a room, but there's no one else but you and a man in a blue costume. He doesn't want to reveal his real head, so he hides behind a mask. A badger wearing a blue jester's hat.

And... another person? Has that other person been there all along?

Then you remember being in a mansion. Was that all a dream? You try to figure it out on your own, but you can't seem to come up with an answer. If by any chance you look into the badger's empty black eyes, you might feel like you're being taken to a completely different place. It's as if you can see the mansion again. You can see the people talking, but if you try to call out, nothing happens. They can't hear you.

You avert your gaze from the badger, and those images disappear.

There's so much happening. Pain, and this crazy badger.

You, on the other hand, aren't wearing a blue costume. You have a white dress on, with an opening at the back. That was definitely not what you were wearing... or was it?

You have so many questions. But at least you're not alone. Someone can answer those questions for you. ]

--

[ NOTE Your characters will be able to see the events happening in the game while in the graveyard as long as they're looking at the Proto Badger. They cannot participate in any of the polls, or try to converse with anybody that isn't in this room. ]

Comments

[talldarkbitter]

[ Armando awakens with a hoarse noise of pain, due to the fact his chest feels like it's on fire; like someone had replaced his heart with a ball of flame and it was cracking his sternum, lapping up his throat, leaking through his ribs. At the same time, it felt heavy, like something had been wedged...

Oh.

Knowing what happened didn't stop him from reaching up and clutching his chest, thumping it a fist because it didn't seem like there was still a knife to be removed. As a coffee enthusiast, let's just say it's not his first heartburn rodeo.

Nor is it the first time he's woken up in a hospital gown. So wait, is he dead or not? Either way... ]

I'm glad it's over.

[murimurimuri]

If that's the case, then the rest of us have some very bad news for you...

[talldarkbitter]

[ He reaches up, thumbing his temples behind the mask. ]

I'm still not dead?

[murimurimuri]

You tell me. Do you feel dead?

[talldarkbitter]

I feel killed.

[ But... he's had that before. ]

[murimurimuri]

That's not necessarily the same thing.

[cardboard_journalism]

Kaaaahk.

I got news for you: it's not over!

[talldarkbitter]

Who are you?

[cardboard_journalism]

Don't be cute! You know who I am! You saw my "dead" body!

[talldarkbitter]

[ In fact, he carried her body off to its final resting place, or so it seemed at the time. It was the least he could do. One corner of his mouth twitches tellingly. ]

Aren't we dead?

[cardboard_journalism]

No!

Well, in terms of the 'game', yes, we're dead.

But we're not dead!! Kahk-kahk.

[doubledefense]

[ this time, she's right beside him when he wakes up ]


Well, not quite.

[talldarkbitter]

[ The phantom knife in his heart was bad enough without feeling like it was skipping a beat.

He reaches out for her hand. ]

...I usually ask for the bad news first.

[doubledefense]

[ her fingers curl around his carefully, remembering how bloody they were- just a few hours ago ]

I'm not really sure where to start with the bad news.

[feytality]

[Now he can finally cry. Again.]

[Anyway, there's a Fey on his other side, too, when he wakes up!]

Well... the worst is over, I think....

[talldarkbitter]

[ So that explains the burning sensations. He had hoped he'd see them again. ]

Are you sure? Your kind of thinking is often pretty dangerous.

[ Didn't he see you trying to clamber into the badger suit? ]

[feytality]

Well, what can I say... I live on the edge.

[It was a perfectly legit plan, okay. (No it wasn't!!)]

There's no pressure to off anyone over here. Just some weirdos and no real bathrooms...

[turnaboutcoupons]

[Meanwhile, Palaeno is seated against a wall, shuffling coupons like he's playing with a stack of cards. There really isn't much else to do in this place and the more he keeps himself busy, the faster time will pass.

When Godot speaks, he throws a glance the man's way, but doesn't reply. What is there to say? The situation's turning more unfortunate by the day and it's still far from "over". All the more reason to keep himself occupied, really.]

[talldarkbitter]

[ That's alright, because as it turns out, there are plenty of candidates to tell him what's going on, or else skirt around it. Eventually he has time to wander.

When he does, he's not terribly interested in being far from the girls, but he'll still come and see Palaeno. ]

Solitaire?

[turnaboutcoupons]

[What's up fellow poisoned-with-coffee victim? Not that Palaeno knows about that. As far as he can tell, the visor is a very strange fashion statement.

He glances up at Godot with a bit of a forced smile. Somewhere between being 'murdered' and having to do his business in a smelly box, he stopped being intimidated by shady would-be convicts.]

Nothing quite so interesting. It's hard to make a game out of discounts.

[talldarkbitter]

[ Godot could tell him that prison was a lot nicer than this place, anyway, unless you were talking solitary confinement. He's not trying to intimidate the other man this time around - they're both already 'dead', after all. ]

Discounts?

[ He knows about as much about Palaeno as the man does about him. ]

[turnaboutcoupons]

[Ah! Well, then.]

They're coupons to promote the Cohdopian embassy. The tourism industry is Babahl's primary source of revenue and now that the two countries have been reunited into one principality, we hope to give Allebahst a more welcoming reputation as well.

[He shuffles the coupons again, then chooses one at random and holds it up for Godot to see. 15% off Babahlese ink (Terms and conditions of the standard Cohdopian export law may apply).]

[shacklebreaker]

[Need a hand up there, fellow fallen warrior?]

Our demise was overdue, but it came for us in the end.

[talldarkbitter]

[ Coming from you? Yeah, alright. Once he's on his feet, Armando spares a small touch to the elbow of the arm that helped him up before letting go. Thanks falls kind of short of what he's feeling. ]

I was starting to think we might be cursed.

[ The vote was overturned the first time they were ousted - with Aura and Ray set as their opposition during this recent one, he was concerned Simon might have to lose someone too. ]

Four down, one to go. Should we start placing bets?

[shacklebreaker]

[Once Armando's on his feet, Blackquill offers a brief nod of acknowledgement. Little more needs to be said.]

The only thing I'm willing to bet on is the girl following behind us, that all this might finally end.