graveyard

[productions]

the theatre



You awaken in a darkened theatre.

In front of you is an enormous cinema screen. On it plays everything that's currently happening in the castle, accompanied by appropriate sound effects and background instrumentals when fitting. The seat you're sitting on is large and plush, and while there's many of them, there's enough room in the theatre for you to fully recline the seat into a comfortable bed if you wish. Under each seat is a sleeping mask and noise-cancelling headphones, in case you'd like to take a break from watching the show.

Follow the stairs up and you'll reach what should be the projection room. There are no projectors in here, however; it is simply a large and well-lit room above the main seating area, and a good place to hang out with your fellow eliminated contestants if shouting at each other across the aisles proves too much to handle.

If you leave the theatre through the door in the back, you'll find yourself in a hall. On one end is a concession stand. It's stocked with standard movie snacks - popcorn, candy and the like - but if you're feeling the urge for something else, you'll be able to find it stocked somewhere in the back. On the other end is a table with thirty wrapped bags and a placard reading 'A star for our stars! Please accept these lovely giftbags as a token of appreciation for your hard work, sponsored by [illegible smudge]'. Each bag has a tag bearing the name of someone in the mansion; you will only be able to open the bag with your name on it. As soon as you open it, any memories that have been taken from you, including those of the other people in the mansion that you may have forgotten, will be returned in their entirety. Within the bag are also objects from your home that you may want for your stay here, though you will find no weapons.

Past the hall is another door, this one wooden and seemingly decayed. If you go inside, you'll find a fairly simple, wooden room, that is empty except for a very large machine. It is difficult to tell what the machine is for; it has a touch screen that appears to be a control panel, as well as a large open space that seems to be part of the machine, but the machine is dead and won't turn on no matter what you do.

Still, at least you aren't alone here. You have your fellow players, as well as a few guests to keep you company.

Oh, and one more thing. At midnight following each execution, once all those who've died that week have woken up, a video will begin to play on screen.

Comments

[mightiswright]

[ This is literally a nightmare to hear right now. If he knew it was going to be like this, he wouldn't have involved Maya at all. ]

That's it then? Whether we die or live, we're trapped here. [ What could make this even worse... ] Were any of the incentives real?

[throe]

I think the people in those rooms they're holding hostage are, but I've never seen the incentives personally happen.

[ Rapture crosses her free arm, resting a hand in the crook of her elbow. ]

They're just really good at using people's weaknesses. That's how they get others to murder during the slower weeks.

[mightiswright]

[ There's a long pause. If she's been through all of this before, then... But his incentive was different from the ones rewarded at the end of the game.

Surely... ]

You had them too then? A mastermind and a group of people with... special incentives to kill.

[throe]

Astute as any good lawyer, I see.

[ Rapture smirks, but there's nothing in her voice that says she has something against him. ]

We had exactly that. You've got that and then some...

[mightiswright]

[ He's about to open his mouth to correct her on the 'lawyer' part, but then. ]

And then some? Are you saying there are others?

[throe]

A few of those people up there— [ She motions to the screen. ] —were previously killers with those 'special' incentives.

[mightiswright]

[ So... this is kind of like Kouha's thing then. Phoenix turns to gaze up at the screen with a scrutinizing look. ]

If they were previously, that means they were in your round too. Why were they brought back again? [ And why them? ]

[throe]

To shove it in our faces. It's not like the producers don't know that we're still alive. [ She gives a little shrugs. ] They just love to play mind games is all.

[ Something is supposed to go here after that statement... but instead it's just a slightly awkward pause. ]

[mightiswright]

[ That sure is an interesting alternative to an awkward pause... ]

... Which ones? [ And did they succeed...? ]

[throe]

[ In a brief second, she looks around, growing paranoid. For someone who was so confident just moments ago, it's like she's become a frightened child. Rapture tries to steel her reserve. ]

I don't know if I can tell you — it's already bad enough the showrunners of this thing already have it out for me!

[mightiswright]

What harm could me knowing do? Your game's already over, and we're both stuck here. We have to pass the time somehow.

[ By gossiping about designated killers clearly. ]

[throe]

You already saw what they did to their own kind! [ She motions to wherever Felicia is. Rapture looks irritated for a moment, then her expression softens. She's genuinely afraid. ] We've been trying to escape from them for ages... there's a lot of harm it could do.

[mightiswright]

[ Just the way she reacts is enough to pique Phoenix's curiosity about the identity of the previous group members. And her reaction might also have gotten him to lay off normally, but at this point, after the events of the past few days, he can't see anything ahead of them but this room. And it's not enough. ]

We're already trapped here, with no way out. They turned on their own hostess, only to put her here with the rest of us. Even now, being frightened of them is the harm we're doing to ourselves.

[ Being afraid to act... being afraid to investigate, it's all just part of still being under this game's thumb. Even in death. ]

[throe]

[ Something in that statement makes Rapture slam her drink down and stand up as her hands ball into fists. ]

You haven't beaten the game just to find out that 'returning home' means being stuck here for three years fighting every single day for your life! You obviously care about Maya — but what if she wasn't here? What if you played the entire game thinking you'd go back to see the people you care about and then—!

[ For the first time in a long while, she manages to become to emotional to speak. Her throat feels tight, but there aren't any signs of tears. Rapture slumps into the chair as the glass tips over and falls onto the floor. Her eyes fall to the ground. ]

I spent my entire life searching for them — for him. We were always meant to be together. I fought for the both of them and they... didn't even give me a chance to tell them goodbye.

[mightiswright]

[ His is a different story entirely from hers. Ever since the beginning, Phoenix had been preparing himself for the worst. That he'd be killed, that he would kill and be executed, that the promise of returning home was an empty one. So from the beginning, he's put his energy more into protecting the ones he cares about than returning to them.

But now. Now is like a glimmer of hope, and he latches onto it. ]

There's nothing I would love more for if Maya wasn't here. If she was at home, safe and sound, without having to go through any of this.

[ He still doesn't quite understand how all of this is happening, how they can be 'dead', but still here. She said she survived to the end... ] If we're still here, that means there's still something we can do. They might not have given any of us a chance to say goodbye or return home, but that doesn't mean we can't find a way for ourselves. Your life's not over yet... Or have you given up on finding the ones you spent so long fighting for?

[throe]

No — of course I haven't! [ She buries her head in her hands. ] Maybe I have... I can't live without them... without Riot, but how?

[ The energy leaves her, her shoulders slumping. Would this be easier if she was a killer? If she was killed? Survival and life has only granted her to be without Riot and Minx... without Rory and Ingrid. This isn't six months of homelessness, clinging to the only two people she's ever truly cared about. This is the mundane life she's been trying to be rid of.

Everything's worthless, she's worthless. She needs them and there's no question about it. ]

How are we going to get back if this just keeps happening? If it's been happening.

[mightiswright]

[ How? That's a good question. ]

We're going to find a way. All of us. [ He doesn't feel half as confident as he sounds, but when the only other choice is just accepting their fates... well, he was never one to sit around when there's investigating to be done. ]

But I need to know more first. About your game, how it ended, and the people who were in it.

[ The identity of the previous killer group is still nagging at him though, because once his curiosity is on, it's hard to turn off. He nods toward the screen. ] Which of our contestants are alumni from your game's secret group?

[throe]

What have I got to lose...? [ Her hands settle on the armrests and she says it without an ounce of amusement. There's a long pause, like she's not going to answer his question... and then. ]

Kaoru. Kaoru and Spain.

[ If the producers end her life here, then she hopes that the Stingers will know what she did to fight for them and she hopes they think it's worth it. That's all that matters to her right now. ]

[mightiswright]

[ It doesn't seem like lightning's going to come out and strike her, which is a relief. (Unless he's just jinxed it...)

Spain, fine, maybe he'd even understand why Phoenix did what he did. Kaoru... ]

Kaoru? Don't tell me he ran someone down with a ground plane.

[throe]

He was a lot different than you know now. For the longest time, he fooled a lot of people — except those who obviously knew he wasn't who he seemed, like yours truly.

He poisoned someone, hoped they would attack someone else so they could be framed, it was a really convoluted trial.

[mightiswright]

[ His bemusement fades as she explains. That was surprising... a surprise muted by thoughts of 'of course he was hiding something'. Because he seems to have a habit of meeting people who seem mild-mannered but are capable of murder. ]

What happened to him after that? It sounds like he was caught.

[throe]

He was executed and ended up here. We eventually caught the Mastermind, but it wasn't over after that. [ A grim expression falls onto her features. ]

The rest of us... after we figured out what was going on. We saved twelve people from this place. Kaoru was one of them...

[mightiswright]

[ Saved him, only for him to end up right back in. That's some kind of irony. ]

But you're still here, after everything. Did anyone make it home?

[throe]

At this point... not even a spell could get any of us home.

[mightiswright]

Is that what you've been doing here for so long? Trying to cast spells to get home?