productions | the theatre

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 mansion, 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.

There are no other doors in the hall save for the one leading back into the theatre room. There are also no windows; it is impossible to tell where you are and what is going on in the outside world. Any attempts to break out will fail. So in the meantime, why not sit back and enjoy the show?

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.

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[Bernkastel awakens with the terror of a lost child--for just that instant, she might even look pitiable, ignoring her actions. She hisses claws exactly like a cat might, puffed out and defensive, because minutes and hours and days and weeks and months over and over and over and it was just like that time, that abyss she clawed her way out of so many years ago, and now she was back, now she was back, or had she never left, had she never left, had she gone mad, was She disemboweling her even now--

But she wakes up, and she realizes she is somewhere else, and she looks around like a wild animal before she realizes she's in a theater.

Cautiously, she looks around, as if expecting to be pulled back into hell at any moment.]

Welcome to the afterlife. Tacky decor and all.

Tea?

[Lydia sits across from Bernkastel on one of the chairs.]

[Bernkastel starts obviously, looking at Lydia, tail puffed out behind her.]

--You.

[It's not really that surprising, but she's still gathering her thoughts and trying to calm down.]

Me.

It's like showing up to a dance and your former BFF is wearing the same dress.

[Then in one swift motion, Lydia steps off the chair and grabs one of the noise canceling headphones, stretches out the cord and moves to wrap it around Bernkastel's neck. She hopes to take advantage of the other girl's state after death.]

[She's too frazzled to react in time--part of her mind blossoms with embarrassment while the rest reacts on instinct, attempting to dig her nails into Lydia's arms and claw them.]

[Lydia doesn't even seem to notice the claws. Or even care. She's trapped in a unstoppable fury that she's never felt before.

With all her might, she shoves Bernkastel over and on to the ground, twisting the cord tight and holding it taught above her. The blood from her arms drips down.]

Hurts like a bitch doesn't? I still have the bruises on my neck from when someone tried to kill me that way. At least it would have been quick.

[Bernkastel grabs for the cord around her neck now even as she kicks at the other girl. She won't waste any breath she has in her lungs right now on speaking, but the startled fury is obvious enough. Bernkastel isn't especially used to being caught out like this.]

Not quick. But quicker.

Too bad it would be completely illogical to be able to die in the afterlife. Sort of undermines the whole thing. Or maybe you'd just come back. Or just keep living and never reach the point of death.

[Lydia lets out a slow exhale. She's not a killer. She's not going to kill Bernkastel even if she could, but there's a sick pleasure in watching her suffer.]

Convince me not to test my hypothesis.

[She does not beg. She will not beg. Her pride is too high even with terror nipping at her heels. Instead she changes, blinks into her cat form, and leaves Lydia strangling a tiny animal as Bernkastel tries to squirm out of the cord.]

Bitch!

[Lydia snarls and releases the tension. She's not a killer. And definitely not a cat killer. She grabs a kettle of tea, cold by now, and pours it over the animal's mouth and nose before shoving the tea bag into her face.]

I was alive the entire time. You knew. You didn't care!

[All the fur on Bernkastel's body is puffed up, though she's choking on tea--cold tea, which is somehow even more humiliating--and gathering up her breath too much to do much more than hiss a little. Clawing at Lydia's hand with nails sharper than her other form's, she attempts to dart away and under the chairs to get a little distance.]

[Lydia yells in pain and slaps the cat before letting pulling back and letting Bernkastel go free and hide if she must.]

[Bernkastel sulks away from Lydia for a little while, skulking about as a cat and exploring the theater away from its only other apparent occupant. It's not until she discovers her bag and retrieves her memories and proper outfit that she returns as a humanoid.]

Are you finished?

[Lydia looks up from her spot on the chair.]

Hm. For now.

If I get another urge to kill you, I'll let you know.

[Bernkastel makes a small, annoyed sort of noise before sitting down rather far from the girl, though not so far she can't talk if she wishes.]

There may be more answers above the game board than on it, so don't get too distracted.

This is distinctly "below" the game board. Not above.

[She inhales and looks up at the screen.]

We have a role to play. I'm sure. Not going to let us off that easy.

Of course. Places like this are popular in these sorts of games. [At least this is more of Bernkastel's style, nowadays, although she's still frustratingly low on ability here.] As with everything here, I suppose we'll have to wait for our hosts.

the theatre

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