Forieri di Tarocchi - Harbingers of Tarot

[TerraBooma]

Jackson wasn't sure how to feel about the VR simulation after everything was said and done. Sure it was impressive, but a part of him didn't want to get excited, because chances were he would never get to see it at home, with how expensive it was going to be. It was nice that his partner was excited however, Iphie would probably enjoy using it, as well as have actual access to it. Still, it was neat, and true VR seemed to be an exceptional invention, with who knows how many possibilities. Jackson started to leave with everyone else, but something had caught his eye. Jackson had managed to see the card fly through the air and actually get to someone, and he was curious as to who had gotten the memento. Walking up to Ezekiel, Jackson did his best to give him a good smile.

"Hey Man, saw you got the card, you know why?" Jackson was wondering what the point of giving out a card was if they were just for the demo...was it kind of for advertising? "I wonder if there's something special on it, some kind of...I dunno, exclusive demo only event thing. That sounds like something this company would do." Jackson chuckled. "Could be worth something soon, try and hold onto it man. I'm Jackson by the way, nice to meet you."

Jackson held out a hand to be shaken, and then regardless of Ezekiel's response continued speaking. "Anyway, I'm going to get some friends of mine...least I think they're friends, together so we can go talk about this stuff over dinner at the diner, you in?"



After speaking with Ezekiel, Jackson would go around to the others and invite them to the same event. Making friends and actually talking to people was something he wanted to do...it would be key to leaving older life behind. He hoped he could at least get a small group together, the food at the diner had been good at least. Well...by his standards anyway.

 

[Astoria]

The British girl was still engrossed with the simulation. She nodded and took in Dr. Magus' words, although she didn't put much stock in them; it was visionary PR talk, and as with all new technologies, it success would be yet to be seen. Regardless, she commended his enthusiasm. It was clear that the project encompassed much of his life's work, and he was likely the driving force behind making it work.

Iphigenia kept to herself for the rest of the VR experience. Being particularly judging and inquisitive of the created environment, she was one of the first to realize the slowly changing environment. She watched with a curious eye the decay of the foliage in the distance, creeping slowly towards their position. Being replaced by odd, almost twisted obsidian flowers, entire distant fields began to turn black. Perhaps they had triggered some scripted event or weather effect, somehow? While everybody saw the potential for games and holonovels, she was sure the demonstration was marketed simply as a static environment. How strange.

The wilting and transformation of the landscape continued to accelerate. With the increased rate came an odd whisper; it was faint that Iphie had to pause and consider what was said before the sound of frantic clapping interrupted her thoughts. The light around them quickly dimmed and was replaced by the fluorescent lighting of the laboratory. It was obvious that something had gone wrong and her host had confirmed so, but the rushed nature of his reaction gave her pause; it somehow seemed ominous, even if it was bugfixes or whatnot. On the other hand, she'd probably watched too many shows about VRMMOs where players became trapped.

As she moved to leave the cube, something clattered to the ground; it was the card originally handed to Iphie at the start of the simulation. Having turned the card into a golden staff, she'd forgot the card until now and reached down to pick up. Now out into the room, she inspected it under proper light, noting the circuit traces and thinness of the card. She was itching to take it apart to see how it worked. Oddly enough, she still had a metallic taste in her mouth and the card seemed to have a bite mark on it, providing some modest insight on how it worked. She chalked off the taste of metal to attempting to chow down on a pcb, but raised an eyebrow at Kent, who seemed to be picking a piece of the seed he had munched on earlier. Also odd.

If Dr. Magus was hiding a replicator in that cube of his, Iphigenia was going to think he traveled in from the future.

Iphie had many words to say, so when her partner suggested talking about the experiences over dinner, she was quick to accept.

 

[Doughguy]

Not doing much beyond trying to find a break in the simulation, and noting down Kent was a pessimist, Kaede spotted the odd colouring of the distant landscape fairly early alongside the others. Curious she approached the wall in that direction and placed her hand against it, feeling for any difference in the physical confine of the simulation. She watched it expand out from under her fingers as it seemed to devour the idyllic landscape. A though occurred to her and she stepped back from the wall, lifted her arm into the air, and threw the marble as hard as she could towards the blackened land. She doubted it would make the distance, but was more curious as to whether the marble bounced off the physical or went beyond it, forever trapped thereafter where she couldn't reach.

Two voices drifted through the air, carried by the soft breeze that had been ever present since the simulation started. She would have assumed it was another part of the presentation except Dr. Magus clapped his hand immediately and everything was shut down. She blinked her eyes rapidly as the lights changed and turned to the doctor as he spoke. At his words she second guessed her dismissal, maybe it was another part of the presentation, just one they weren't meant to see yet. Then why had whatever code word activated it been left running. Some name that Magus must have accidently muttered to trigger it.

With Magus leaving Kaede meant to follow when she spotted Iphie dropping her card. Scanning the floor Kaede spotted her own near the wall, probably where she'd dropped the blue or green and moved to pick it up. She wondered what would have happened if she'd thrown the card at someone by accident. And what would have happened if she'd thrown a marble at someone. Could the illusion prove real enough to stimulate the body into reacting like it really had been hurt? Pocketing the card she finally left the simulation room after Kent and Iphie. When Jackson invited her out to dinner with the group she accepted, sure the others would have plenty to discuss about their field trip.

 

[Knight Aarant]

"Pontificates a lot, doesn't he?" Ezekiel commented to himself. He was beginning to lose interest in the demonstration, particularly how much Magus loved to overplay his idea of virtual reality. While impressed with what's been presented, the thought of something existing on a grander scale was beyond what Ezekiel could conceptualize. The thought brought up many questions, ones he felt might not be suitable to answer now. Such as the rules of a grand scale simulation, how many can occupy space at one time, how much will those participating be affected by the technology, and what's the reason for all of it? Making attempts at playing maker has to come with some reason, or some design philosophy that benefits more than the progenitor. Ezekiel was having a rough time trusting how innocent of a project this has to be. He shrugged off the suspicions for now, as the simulation was shut down for what Magus deemed a 'bug'. The cube collapsed and the simulation faded, Ezekiel was now only interested and retrieving his belongings and returning to his dorm room. As Magus departed, he gifted the disappointed attendees with cards similar to what the participants were given in the simulation. Ezekiel had received a card with a dagger resting in a pile of sand. Ezekiel studied the design, intrigued by what it could've given him had he joined the handful of students inside the simulation. "Does he think I'm the Prince of Persia?" Ezekiel said underneath his breath with an amused grin on his face. He almost stuffed the card into his pants pocket, until a curious onlooker had gotten his attention. The boy greeted him, commenting on receiving the card. Ezekiel was a little lost on why the boy was so keen on provoking conversation, but he wasn't against it. So he chose to respond. "Can't say I know. Special or not, it's just a sandy dagger. If I had participated, maybe I could've thrown sand in their eye. Hell, if it is some exclusive demo I don't have the tech to run this card on. I'm too poor for that, in fact you'd probably have a better idea than me on how all of this works." Ezekiel took another gaze at the card to see if there's any bar code, or some kind of magnetic strip. "Nothing.. So this is just some souvenir then." His gazing was interrupted by an offer for dinner. He was surprised to be included in something on the first day, but he knew it would be stupid to turn down the offer to socialize and find his place within his peers. "Um. Yeah. Sure. I've got nowhere to be."

 

[Tsu]

Arc 1 : Day 2: Evening

The life on campus was mildly barren. Over the course of the late afternoon and early evening, students began to gradually return to their homes. For many, it was without energy that they trudged along their ways. After all, it had been a long day for the majority of students who were forced into taxing hands-on experiences derived from a broad selection of professional specializations. Rest was on the mind of most, if not all students, and it could't have been better timed given the early morning that many would experience for their first official day of class. On the mailboxes posted outside of each dorm, a letter containing a map of the Academy and the inhabitant's schedule was provided for the convenience of their time. Furthermore, a formal greeting written by none other than Dr. Magus elaborated on the academic values that the institute held.

Welcome, Ladies and Gentlemen, both new arrivals and old friends.
Another year has blessed us with the dawn of innovation from each and every one of you.
You are a chosen student of Trinity Institute.
There is no higher honor.
Yet with great achievement comes great responsibility, Ladies and Gentlemen.
Each and every one of you have been chosen for the latent potential we have seen deep within yourself.
Trinity Institute does not make mistakes.
Your time is yours to use.
Be wise and see your future unfold; be wasteful and see your life untold.

Provost Dr. Richter Magus​

​

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
​

Across the campus, it wasn't long before the evening came to a close. Apart from the occasional owl who planned to enjoy the night, most students were long asleep when the hands of the clock reached the early morning hours. Furthermore, it was a safe assumption that none were out and about prior to the first day of class. As such, it remained a subtle phenomena which developed across campus; a delicate growth of flowers and thorns which slowly began overtaking any outlet of flora both indoors and out. That being said, such peculiarities were not contained solely within the confines of the environment; but rather, in and about the dorms as a whole. Giggles emanated from within the privacy of particular rooms. The laughter was audible enough to stir any light sleeper; however, for anyone deep in trance, the sounds were far from being heard. Instead, it was the curious mischief which began to rain upon the confines of the room. Black petals drifted from the ceiling and gently caressed that which they touched, yet such innocence was fleeting as immediately sharp pains akin to that of thorns began rupturing at any point of contact.* For a split second upon awakening, a view of the dorm was possible for all; a rain of black petals amongst a silhouette of twin figures.

*Kent is not included in the pain, simply petals.*​

[fieldbox="NIGHTMARE : Everyone but Kent, red, dashed"]The transition in environment was anything but smooth as a view of the dorm quickly dissolved into a literal mess of thorns. From nearly every angle, spikes enveloped each of the students who found themselves trapped in their embrace. To make matters worse, frigid rain rapidly plummeted from the darkened heavens which revealed nothing but the shadowy outline of a floating island topped by what appeared to be a towering cathedral. Back on the ground, the surroundings seemed entirely composed of flowering vines and thorns; however, upon extracting oneself from the immediate bramble, a somewhat spacious region existed with nothing but a deteriorating fountain of once ornate design. The area was rectangular in shape with the fountain existing directly in the center. In terms of boundaries, nothing more than bramble stretched along the length of each "wall"; effectively preventing any further movement apart from within its confines. In terms of appearances, each student was left with nothing more than the outfit on their body and any possessions that were immediately on their person prior to the shift in environment. That being said, on the ground near the origin of their arrival, a weathered card existed with a similar design to that which was given to them earlier in the day. Gone was any electronic aspect of the design; instead replaced by sturdy cloth of obvious antique origin.

"A game of life or death.
How exciting it will be~!
The player's name is Kent.
Can he save his peers, we'll see~!"

Giggling voices eerily echoed throughout the downpour of rain; the words that they spoke only adding to the mystery of the situation. Apart from the rhyme, no further speech became evident for anyone to heard. Only the sound of soft laughter which never seemed to fade.
[/fieldbox]

[fieldbox="NIGHTMARE : Kent, red, dashed"] Unlike his peers on the ground, Kent was not trapped in a bramble of thorns and vines, but rather, comfortably resting upon a gentle bed of grass and flowers. The frigid rain seemed to originate from below his position which was peculiar given the low altitude that he existed above the ground. Were he to the walk to the edge of the island, a clear view of the maze below became painstakingly obvious in addition to the presence of his peers located in the largest region of the labyrinth. Furthermore, it was also obvious that his peers were not the only figures which resided in the maze. Were he to speak, Kent's voice would have simply become drowned in the torrent of rain; a shortcoming which gave the teen a single option on the isolated island...To move towards the cathedral whose doors were swung open. The interior of the building was highly ornate, yet nothing out of the ordinary given the Roman architecture which defined its design. Rows of pews stretched the distance of the interior and a large pipe organ encompassed the height of the back wall; however, rather than a pedestal where a priest might have stood, a drafting table existed with a sheet of vellum, pen, and inkwell. On the paper, a rectangular cross-section was pre-drawn towards the bottom edge of the paper. Along the center of each wall apart from the south, a smaller rectangular sub-section existed, partially-filled, with the notation for a door. Within the bounds of the region, four small circles existed amongst one larger...four peers standing among the fountain.
[/fieldbox]

 

[TerraBooma]

"What the hell is going on here!?" Jackson called out, screaming past the barrier of thorn and vine. He sighed, frustrated. He had been hoping for a good nights sleep, and he seemed to actually have been getting one until all hell seemed to break loose. He had barely managed to grab his knife from his bedside stand before the everything seemed to encase around him. Vines and thorns cutting at him and trapping him in place. He cursed, and after everything seemed to settle down, started to cut himself free, grimacing slightly whenever the thorns dug into him. Still, the teen stubbornly pushed on until he could escape, although...it seems he didn't have very much to escape too.


The bigger area was a relief, and he subconsciously took a deep breath and looked about, heart sinking a bit with the lack of area to escape in. He first set about cutting away at more of the brambles, put it seemed that whatever these brambles were made of, they were a lot thick then what had restrained him almost moments ago...Jackson sighed, and took another look at the fountain. Was this place some sort of prison? It was possible...the other possibility was the simulation had gotten a lot more in depth then anyone had realized, but the chances of that were slim, at least Jackson hoped so. That would be...weird, to say the least. Still, he had to figure a way out of this play...or wake up, if he was asleep.


Well, first things first, the fountain in front of him was all he had to work with, and a pain usually woke people up from dreams as the old wives tale used to go. Walking up, Jackson winced as he cut the tip of his finger, letting a drop of blood fall down into the fountain. Hopefully it'd help him out...but if not, he'd have to think up something else.

The last thing Jackson wanted to do was be stuck here after all, especially with the damn rain...which was starting to get on Jackson's nerves a bit, it was damn cold after all.

 

[Voltin]

Kent was in a drowse. He had been staying up late -- working on his own drafting before the first real day of school -- and so had awoke hunched over his table, a smudge of graphite smeared across his face. What stirred him had been giggling, yet his sleepy eyes were unable to find its source. Atop his head, had lain the gentle caress of petals, much like the one he had in Magus' simulation, earlier that day. A looked at one, grasped between his fingers and smiled. He was dreaming. That was it, as he slowly drifted back, only then catching a glimpse of the two silhouettes.

He awoke yet again, not long after, due to a slight chill that had worked its way through his pajamas. He sat up -- strange within itself, due to his previous hunched nature -- only to be met with a peculiar sight. He was on a small island, resting upon a bed of flowers and sod; the only noticeable features being its edges, and the cathedral resting at the opposite end from him. Kent figured this was a part the dream, though, as to why he was trying to figure as much out was beyond him.

He had inspected the former of these, finding a hedge maze below, sprinkled upon by a downpour of rain. He had seen the familiar figures of his classmates, and tried to call out to them, yet could not be heard. With not much else to do, he took off his slippers and, with the pencil that had been in his hand most of the night, wrote his name, and the word "above" before throwing them to the group below. Though, before he could see whether they would look or not, he simply walked away, towards the doors of the cathedral.

It was nothing special, in fact, Kent would have considered it quite ordinary were it not for his current circumstance. Romanesque architecture from somewhere around the 7th to 10th century... The inside being much the same; pews lining each row, and at the head... Well, it had been the first thing to take him by surprise with the building. It was a drafting table, similar to the one he was keeping in his dorm.

He took a seat, seeing little else to do, and found the desk to be already set. Looking over the implements, he picked up the pen, dipping it in the ink -- the very sensation of which giving him excited goosebumps -- and drew his own circle, around that of the smaller circle standing next to the fountain.

 

[Astoria]

After returning from dinner, Iphigenia had a great deal of work to do. Not fully moved into her room yet, she had a bit of preparation work cut out for her, with a selection of appliances and computer equipment yet to be unpacked from the moving boxes placed about her dorm. Without the aid of her trustworthy maid back at home, she spent much of her night setting things up the way she wanted to. Eventually falling asleep on her couch clutching a warm drink, she awoke, much disoriented, to the flash of petals and the darkened silhouettes of two figures. Her confusion was accentuated by the peculiar sounds of giggling in her locked room.

Clutching the metal thermos that had been on her lap, the purple-haired girl began to rise to investigate the source of the noise. As she did, obsidian petals began to float down from the ceiling. Beautiful and insidious, they made sharp contact on the little skin that Iphie showed. She was sent into another jarring moment, and before she could react further, found herself in a thicket of thorns, sharp edges painfully pressing against her clothes and skin. After some time and further pain, she was able to gingerly extricate herself with her hands and a utility knife Iphie had on her person that she was using to open boxes with.

Freed of her vaguely arboreal prison, she glanced about, trying to get her bearings. There was little in the immediate area besides more thorns, and curiously, an old decrepit fountain. In the distance was the ominous silhouette of a cathedral atop a floating island. Cold, icy rain poured down from above, soaking Iphigenia's modest indoor clothing to her skin. Clutching the only source of warm at the moment, she eyed and approached the fountain before her, looking irritable. Between the grey, depressing storm clouds, frigid rain, and crumbling masonry, it felt just like home in England.

By now, Iphigenia was in full possession of her mental faculties, and she was sure she was in a dream of some sort. The floating island and the decay that surrounded her were strikingly similar to her experience in the simulation earlier in the day, and being self-aware, had full confidence she was in a lucid dream of some manner. She'd always wanted to play around in such a dream, but there was little that she could do in this one, and it certainly was not pleasant. Looking down at her hands, she was surprised to be able to see them in full detail; it was said that the brain had a difficult time rendering the creases of the hand in dreams. She inspected the fountain. While it may have had a place in her family's home when it was in its prime, there was now little to note of the crumbing structure except as a basin for the droning rain to pool into. After pinching her cheek to little effect, she unscrewed the top and cup of the thermos she still held and poured a serving of tea into it. With little else to try, she splashed the warm liquid onto her face, in hopes of waking up, letting the drink run off into the fountain.

In the end, she only succeeded in getting her white button down more wet, and she eventually found herself doubling back to her starting point. Iphie was surprised to see a card with a familiar design on the ground there. Picking it up, she briefly studied the card, flipping it around and tracing its design with her fingers. As she did so, the earlier sounds from before returned once again, piercing the rain with ominous words before continuing on perpetually with disturbing laughter. Perturbed, there was little else she could do for moment besides sip her warm tea, and that was what Iphigenia did.

 

[Doughguy]

Something woke her. But she didn't have time to ponder on what. She saw petals falling from the roof and covering the dorm room. Two figures watched her. The world felt soft. Then pain tore through her sheets. She made to scream as her skin was torn apart but the world was torn away. It was replaced by thousands of thorns where the petals had once been and more where they had not. A downpour from the sky soaked her clothing through in an instant and chilled her to the bone. The pain of the thorns elicited a strangled gasp. Driven by adrenaline she fought through the brambles, using her training and slight frame to slip by what she could and escape its entangling grasp.

Kaede dropped to the ground and rolled back up to her feet, wincing as a hundred small cuts were aggravated by the motion. Looking down at her form nothing was too bad, the water swelled tank top had protected most of her torso. There was a long gash on her right side but it had only ripped her top open, the skin beneath was only lightly scratched. The loose shorts had done nothing by comparison. Her legs and arms were smeared in red blood and even once the rain washed it off they looked like patchwork stitching. Not a great way to start a dream, at least her clothing had survived mostly.

A few sentences of speech drifted through the rain. The voices from the simulation earlier? She recognized the name Kent from her class. What weird nightmare had her brain cooked up?

Turning her attention to the scene around her she saw there were two others already in the area, both standing near a decrepit fountain. From behind she recognized both as more of students she had been talking to over the past two days. Well they did say the human brain was incapable of making original faces for dreams and took them from people you knew. She only wished they were in their own pjs and not the clothes they had worn that day. She walked up behind the pair who had been silent so far, "So … any idea what's going on?" Hopefully the dream NPCs would have some knowledge.

 

[Tsu]

Arc 1 : Day 2 : Evening

[fieldbox="NIGHTMARE, red"]
The ink soaked paper brought about no effect for Kent who had brashly taken action given no understanding of his situation. Nonetheless, back in the maze, a sudden growth of vines began to sprout around the fountain; a curious occurrence given their birth was perfectly in line with the circle Kent had drawn. Overall, there was little danger for the four students stuck in the maze. Only the small, possible nuisance of becoming temporarily trapped behind a fragile veil of young vines. Regardless, none of this information was obvious to Kent. From his perspective, only ink upon paper was available for his interpretation. Thus from a third party perspective with knowledge on the event, the present situation was quite amusing...hopelessly so. Smooth laughter echoed from Kent's rear where a sudden figure was casually seated along the first row of pews. By any standards, he was easily well-dressed, but most notable was the line of cards floating mid-air. From their rear-facing design, it was obvious that they derived from a deck of tarot; however, unlike ordinary cards, these seemed to encompass a slight glow around their existence.

"Good day, child.
The fates have brought us together to determine the future that you hold.
You have been chosen worthy as a candidate for temperance, yet their corruption lies far deeper than the whimsical nature this game protrudes.
Your birth stems from a lineage of great architects, yet it is with sloppy construction that you present your honor upon that paper.
No matter, before we continue this discussion any further, it is time we unveil the will of the fates ."

Immediately, the cards began to shuffle themselves without stimuli from their owner. The process last for several seconds before three cards slowly extracted themselves from the bunch. As the man gazed upon their meaning, a curious expression encompassed his face, yet it was with a casual shrug that he flipped the faces for Kent to see. All cards contained an illustration of a phoenix followed by the declaration of Death.

"It seems this game is worth my time after all.
Three fates guide your humanity.
Three choices you must overcome.
Each guided by the inescapable grasp of Death.
For some, it will be quick to the light; for others, a long journey of black and white."

The close of the fortune was met with quick applause; an action that was performed while the man rose to his feet and seemingly reappeared on Kent's left side. Reaching over with his right index finger, the man began tracing an outline on the paper. Immediately, ink began to form the shape of the maze's walls; however, any knowledge within their perimeter was unknown apart from the, now, six circles at the origin.

"There is only one task for you to achieve.
Complete a design which reaches the goal state.
On each room, there are in-completed cross-sections for pathways to the next room.
Fill in that which you desire and widen your architecture.
There are no further requirements for your success.
Take heed though, you are playing with Temperance.
Balance is the key, lest you suffer the scales tipped.
Good luck, child."

The man's final words were spoken in a cheerful tone, yet an underlying darkness remained an obvious tip towards the warning he concluded. Regardless, nothing more came from the man who subsequently vanished as easily as he had appeared; only the sound of childish giggling replacing what once was a calm, peaceful atmosphere.
[/fieldbox]

 

[Voltin]

Kent's gaze drifted up, upon the laughter from the pews. It was an impeccably dressed man. Where he came from and who he was were not thoughts Kent could come up with; instead something barely akin to surprise settled on his face. The more pressing issue was how the man snuck into the cathedral without his footsteps resounding through the nearly empty building. There was also his floating cards; more tarot, though such designs likely stemmed from their increasing importance in his day-to-day life.

The man began to speak -- slight annoyance from the word "child" sparking Kent's otherwise neutral emotions -- speak about fate. Again, more tarot, something about the card he and Daniel had chosen just the other day for their assignment. Kent didn't like it; the man had been against the designation from the very beginning since his partner had brought it up.

Then, the man man had prattled on about his heritage... or something. It just left Kent confused; his father an accountant and his mother a physicist. And he knew nothing in his genealogy relating him to fellow architects. Though, this seemed to weigh little into the actual purpose of him being there, as his cards began to shuffle without any direct force from their owner, three had separated themselves from the rest. Death. That was what they foretold, according to the man. (Though Kent was almost certain tarot decks didn't hold copies like that.) Again, though, a reference to a card he had once held with black and white. It was beginning to become uncanny that this really was a dream, though the supernatural still seemed too far a stretch for him.

The man then adjusted his positioning next to the seated Kent with a clap. It had happened within the blink of an eye, as to have startled the man. The unknown figure, somehow, with his finger drew more rooms, and what Kent could only guess to be doors. More instruction followed, before Kent was suddenly left alone, realizing he had been kept rapt and un-answering while in the presence of the strange man.

With nothing much else to do, Kent began to alter the designs to his liking. There was a mention of moderation... balance... a theme which he noticed to be on the paper, and a design he figured he would keep in line with. Looking at his finished work he couldn't help but stare in hopes that something might change. Curious. Since when did he believe ink on paper could move on its own?

 

[Tsu]

Arc 1: Day 2: Evening

[fieldbox="NIGHTMARE, red"]
The response from Kent's ink was immediate. On the side walls of the contained room, vines began unraveling themselves into the shape of an arched doorway. Beyond both openings was a narrow walkway comprised of encasing vines on every side apart from a north-facing archway which led into another narrow hall. It was at the end of this second walkway that an arch led into what appeared to be another enclosed room. As the maze reshaped and a path became evident, the sounds of giggles faded from the background; instead replaced by a smooth voice which spoke from the top of the crumbling fountain.

"Good day, children.
It seems all who were chosen have successfully stepped into the realm of the Fates.
From the youth in the sky, hope has been delivered in the form of Death.
Three fates guide your humanity.
Three choices you must overcome.
Each guided by the inescapable grasp of Death.
For some, it will be quick to the light; for others, a long journey of black and white."

Similar to his previous appearance, the source of the voice was a well-dressed figure with a set of tarot cards slowly orbiting his existence. Each card was once again illustrated with a flaming phoenix and tagged by a declaration of Death. On his face, an amused smile encompassed his expression as he laid his eyes upon each student in no particular order. Regardless, it was upon Jackson's self that he concluded his observations and remained gazing with a curious twinkle in the corner of his eye. A small moment passed unchanged from before; however, the man soon shrugged before seemingly vanishing from the top of the fountain. Immediately, he reappeared under the left archway where he began speaking once more.

"Your only task is to reach the goal as directed by the youth above.
It will not be easy given the corruption of this garden, yet my master has faith in your success.
There are no further requirements for the conclusion of this game.
Take heed though, you are playing with Temperance.
Balance is the key, lest you suffer the scales tipped.
Good luck, children."

The man's final words were spoken with a hint of ominous warning amidst his usual passive tone, and immediately after conclusion, he seemingly vanished without return. As a whole, nothing much had changed; the frigid rain continued to pour, the maze remained as oppressive as before, and the man's instructions were the farthest thing from clear. Nonetheless, only two paths existed for the students to take. Regardless of which one was taken, both would lead to the same room and a surprising shift in environment. Not only was the second room nearly twice the size of the first, the ground was covered in brown, withered grass, and the walls were made from dense bushes of lush green. Situated on either end of the room were two wooden gallows fit with a noose and soaked from the constant rain which enveloped the room. In the center, two petite figures, clad by shadows, were huddled against each other; the sounds of sobbing coming from one and the sound of giggling coming from the other. Enveloping the entirety of the room, a faint, yet audible sound of a roaring mob could be heard alongside of occasional crackles from torches and whips.[/fieldbox]

 

[TerraBooma]

"I uh...got no clue." Jackson sighed, responding to Kaede's question. Which was the truth. Jackson was never really much of the thinking type in school, he preferred to work his problems out one step at a time...forsight was far from his strength. The teen had moved away from the fountain after his blood had appeared to have no effect. He'd returned to the same spot he had cut before, and was slowly but surely cutting away at the vines with his knife. He wasn't making much progress...but it did make him feel better. Jackson had no clue what was causing this to happen, but as long as he took things in stride, they'd be fine...right? He looked over to his two gathered classmates. "We had all eaten together...does that mean something? I suppose Kent would be here though." It was then that Jackson noticed a sandal on the ground, not far from where he stood. Which was...concerning, to say the least. Jackson walked over to it and picked it up, frowning in the process. How did it even get here?


His thoughts preoccupied, Jackson didn't notice the weird guy who had appeared out of thin air. When he did, he was on guard, prepared to defend himself if needed. It turned out however, that it was unnecessary, as skeptical as Jackson was, they hadn't been openly attacked...well, not yet anyway. Sighing slightly, he looked to the others. "I'm...not sure what we should do, but not playing this guy's game probably won't go well for us...might as well play by his rules. Not that they make sense. Hope in the form of death? What the hell does that even mean? And Youth in the sky? Is there someone up there?" Jackson let out a frustrated grumble. None of it was coming together.


"Let's just get moving...c'mon." Leading the group forward, Jackson went down the left path, holding the knife low, trying not to be threatening, but to have it ready at the same time. He didn't want to be caught off guard after all. When he saw the two figures however, he dropped it, puzzled. Giggling and...sobbing? And what was that in the distance? Some kind of shouting..."The hell is going on in this place?" He muttered, mostly to himself, before giving a helpless glance towards the others.

"Uh...hello? Are you guys okay?"

 

[Astoria]

It was a little while yet before Iphigenia realized that she was not alone in her dream. She became aware of several other figures together in the enclosed space with her. Oddly enough, they were familiar; the people before her were new classmates in university with her, and her partner was even there. For a few minutes, she paid them little mind; it seemed, subconsciously, that her mind was really fixating on some recent events if she was imagining the faces of people she'd only met a couple days ago.

Only when she was actively addressed by the image of her partner did Iphie give much of a reaction, sarcastically quipping to dream Jackson. "Unless the food was so bad that I'm dead and you're dead and we're all in purgatory awaiting judgement, I'd like to maintain that this is just a miserable dream on the account of the lovely English weather." Having made her voice heard, she once again drifted away, wondering what kind of cruel nightmare would put her in a torrent of frigid winter rain. Things got far weirder, however, as the vined walls began to shift and turn, untwisting themselves to reveal an arched walkway on the flanking sides of the enclosure. With the addition of a vaguely patronizing voice from a silly figure now atop the fountain, the dream was approaching the territory of psychedelic trip rather than nightmare.

Iphigenia seemed to take much of this with a grain of salt, but seeing as it was something so entirely different in her life, she decided to humor it. Jackson had already pressed on ahead, large knife in hand and looking pretty thug-like dripping wet. "So many riddles lately," she offered noncommittally. She was far from unobservant, however, and took in the atmosphere as they traversed through the leftmost path. As was the transition from the dorm to the fountain area, walking through to the other side was just as jarring; it was truly like stepping into a Star Trek esque holonovel. She made a passing note of the decay of the ground and the foliaged walls, but found her attention drawn to the pair of gallows, affixed with nooses ready for a hanging. It was not difficult to see who would be the decorations to be strung up on the wooden scaffolding; in the center of the room stood two small figures, the sounds of crying and giggling from one another giving an odd contrast to the scenario presented before her.

Picking up and pocketing the weapon that Jackson had dropped, she found herself vaguely amused by what was presented to her. After all, the jubilant reactions of the opposing figure were more than curious. If it was not jester-like, then it was some deviant fantasy. In the end, though, Iphigenia found herself instinctively disassociating herself from Jackson and slowly moving away as he began to speak aloud. Dream or not, Iphie was not going to bumble into a very public execution.

 

[Doughguy]

Her dream classmates seemed to be as ignorant of the situation as Kaede was. Jackson went about trying to cut his way out of the area while questioning how they got there. In response dream Iphie displayed some self-awareness and pointed out they were in a dream. Kaede decided to approach the fountain, the only thing that broke the landscape. Despite its appearance it was filled with water though a leak was causing liquid to slowly dribble out. The rain more than made up for the spillage.

The sound of moving vegetation took her attention and she turned her head to see the doorways appearing on either side of the room. Another sound caused her to turn back to the fountain, seeing a figure appear atop of it out of thin air. His gaze passed over them all as he spoke before he teleported to one of the new openings to continue his speech. And then he was gone. One line stuck with Kaede about this speech. Hope had been delivered in the form of death. What the hell had she taken before she fell asleep?

Pondering the riddle he had given them she followed the others down one of the passages and into the next room. It was a bit different. The walls and the floor clashed oddly with the sudden change from green to brown vegetation. Rather grimly there were two gallows on either sides of the room ready to accept a victim. Seeing two people in the centre it was clear this was the first choice that the figure had spoken of. Sounds echoed from out in the distance. The sound of a mob coming for justice or, more likely, anger fuelled vengeance.

As Jackson called out to the pair Kaede walked over to the left side gallows which was closer to the group. The giggling unnerved her and she kept an eye on the pair in the middle. People who were laughing as they went to their death had a plan or had no cares. She gave the moose rope a tug, testing the solidity of the structure. She wasn't sure why, but she knew the two gallows had to be important here.

 

[Tsu]

​

[fieldbox="NIGHTMARE - Kaede's Timer: Two Sequences Remaining, red"]As a whole, the maze and its inhabitants seemed indifferent towards the arrival of the students. Jackson's inquiries were quickly lost to the wind and rain as the shadowy pair exhibited no response of heed or acknowledgement. The gristly scene of tears, laughter, and shouts continued in a seemingly repetitive fashion; at least until Kaede placed a hand on the gallows. Immediately, the withered grove sprung to life; vines rapidly shot from the ground around her position and entangled the girl from her neckline down. Were they cut, new vines would have quickly replaced the damaged; ultimately preventing the escape of their victim. Entirely at the whim of the vines, the newly formed chrysalis was dragged onto the platform of the gallows where the noose seemingly sprung to life and wrapped itself around Kaede's exposed neck. Given the situation, attempts of struggling against the vines might have seemed like a logical choice of action; however, from Kaede's perspective, the environment was no longer what it once was. Gone was the frigid rain; gone was withered maze and vines; instead it was all replaced by a curtain of darkness illuminated by a wave of countless torches. Standing before her presence were the archaic appearance of villagers and farmers who were each shouting from the top of their lungs. Given the level of uproar, individual words melded into an incomprehensible cacophony, yet with or without understanding, their sentiment was blatantly clear...A public execution.

Similar to before, Kaede was hoisted by the noose around her neck; however, rather than held by the embrace of vines, a wooden stool at her feet now provided the support for her life. Were she capable of managing a calm disposition despite the stress of the situation, several curious observations might have become obvious. First, at the gallows on her left, an unrelated figure was similarly hoisted by the noose; tears rushing down her face, and desperate pleas of innocence shouting from her lungs. Next, a faint silhouette of Kaede's peers were visible at their position of the "maze" in relation to the environment and gallows. Finally, any words spoken by herself or her peers were audible for everyone to hear, albeit in slight competition with the ruckus of the crowd.

Regardless, the calls and shouts soon died down with the arrival of an ornately dressed priest who slowly waded through the villagers and made his way to the front of the crowd. There, he raised a hand as a signal for absolute silence before opening his mouth and speaking towards the two victims.

"I will begin the prayer for your souls in hope that the Lord might bestow mercy.
Upon amen, you will be given a final chance to defend your honor.
Sway the hearts of this crowd and freedom shall be yours.
Else succumb to justice and atone for your sins.
Prayer Begins here...
....
...
It's long
...."

Back from the perspective of the students who remained in the maze, Kaede's entanglement wasn't the only change to occur. The figures on the ground faded from existence; only for one to appear hoisted and laughing from the noose of the second gallows. In addition, the incessant shouting from the background mob to silence as their voice was replaced by the faint muttering of a priest's prayer.
[/fieldbox]

[fieldbox="NIGHTMARE - Voltin, red"]
The events of the maze were unknown to Kent whose only source of information was the movement of circles along the paper. That being said, at the moment Kaede sparked change below, the bells of the cathedral began to ring; their sound echoing in and throughout the cathedral and the realm. The bells lasted for ten rounds before their sound was replaced with the soft whispering of two familiar voices.

"The story of our end.
Innocence was ours to keep.
Our wounds have yet to mend.
Failed justice leaves us to weep.
Our memories left untold.
Uncover them if you will.
To save your friend left cold.
A path you shall fulfill."

Immediately upon the the conclusion of their rhyme, a phenomena began to occur on the paper. At the location of the center room, an origami construction began to seemingly rise until it depicted a scene of two gallows with a paper doll in the image of Kaede hanging from one.


[/fieldbox]

Notes:

1. Only Kaede sees and hears the new environment.
2. The bells were heard by everyone.

 

[Voltin]

Kent held an abstract fascination as the blobs on the paper moved along the pathways he had opened. If this wasn't a dream, and it was beginning to feel too lucid for it not to be, there really must have been some magic involved.

Or, as the familiar voices he had remembered from earlier resounded their eerie poem throughout his work space, still trapped in the simulation. What a joy that would be, the man thought dully to himself. Then, the paper began to move again; differently from last time. It rose, and displayed a haunting scene. Twin gallows, and the recognizable visage of his younger classmate Kaede. Suddenly, his situation felt even a little more real.

His heart skipped a beat at the sight, and his mind was unexpectedly worked into a fury. It went back to the poem he had just heard, and even earlier, the strange man's advice. Balance. That was the key. Looking back at the map, Kaede hung from the left, yet the right was set empty. It seemed logical that the missing person would be held on their side of the symmetrical maze, so he opened a pathway to both the rooms of the east, hoping the other blobs would split up in their search for the missing person.

This was crazy, he thought. Like some puzzle of soup cans... Yet, he was playing along. Why? He didn't know. Perhaps it was the surreal-ness of it all. Perhaps he really was dreaming after all, but that wouldn't explain why he felt in perfect control of his actions. With a grimace, Kent resigned himself to the weirdness of the situation and starred at the paper to see what would happen next.

 

[Tsu]

[fieldbox="NIGHTMARE, red"]

Similar to before, Kent's pen brought about change in the maze. Without consideration for the recent set of events, a new path rapidly began to form from the right-most wall of the room. The corridors which followed the new archway were similar in design from the previous experiences; however, rather than a single path, a crossroad existed with both north and south facing directions. The southern room was much smaller than the previous rooms, and its interior was unlike the rest of the maze. Rather than vine and brush, logs of oak lined every wall with the inclusion of a ceiling which shielded the room from the constant rainfall. Overall, the area was cast under a light veil of darkness, yet even in the dim light, written sheets of white paper were still visible across its floor. Upon closer inspection of the room, everything was in utter chaos; furniture toppled and flung in random directions, torn sheets of paper spread all throughout the interior, and what appeared to be stains of blood dried near the center of the room. In the opposite direction, the northern room was once again unique in nature. Not only was it the largest room potentially visited by the students, it was composed of charred ruins from a building once was. Partially crumbled walls provided enclosure for the room while along the ground, rows of crumbled pews existed among numerous piles of ash and dust. Towards the north-most wall, a large, rusted bell laid dormant alongside of a shattered drafting table which had obviously been crushed by the collapse of the bell. Partially hidden under the rubble of splinters and ash was a heavily charred paper depicting a draft of the very maze the students were within. The entire left half of the draft was burnt to dust; however, most notable was the surviving design found in the center room; a white swan with a silver ring looped along the length of its lower beak.​

[/fieldbox]

Notes:
1) If you go south and want to inquire about the sheets of paper, do so. I'm lazy to type it.

 

[Doughguy]

The shift in environment was quite sudden and disconcerting, especially with the new situation Kaede found herself in. Gone was the emptiness of the room, now in its place was a roaring crowd. She felt the rough rope of the noose around her neck and, despite the knowledge she was in a dream, she swallowed nervously. It felt very solid and real. A bit disconcerting. Now the crowd was up close it also looked far more dangerous than before. At least she was out of the rain now.

Looking around she saw the other gallows was also occupied, another girl with brown hair who was distraught. She could also see faint outlines of her dream NPCs where they had been standing before she had touched the noose. They were moving as well, not rigid, which mean they were still existing in the other room. Except for the two people in the middle who had disappeared. If the crowd here was what they had been hearing before, then that meant she should still be able to talk to them. At least she hoped so.

A man pushed his way through the crowd and gave a short explanation. So she was pretty much at the Salem trials, that was not good. At least she had some silence now they were in prayer. She tested the bonds on her wrists, tight, but she could maybe wriggle out of them with some aid from her teeth. She could always sit back and wait for the NPCs to do something too. It was odd, that the choice was so difficult to make. The realness of the dream was beginning to disturb her.

If she was on trial for being a witch calling out to the others certainly wouldn't help her cause. She couldn't defend herself without knowing what was actually happening though. She began working on the bindings, pushing her wrists apart to squeeze as much space out of them as possible. Just in case. As she did this she leaned towards the crying girl. "Hey, listen." she tried to keep her voice low so it would be hard for the priest to hear over his own voice, "We only have one chance here. So I need you to calm down, and talk to me." Dammit she couldn't ask the girl anything with the priest nearby. Hopefully the words would pass on a similar message to her peers.

They were playing with Temperance the man had said. And balance was key. Well she needed it to stay atop the stool. She looked at the girl again and swallowed deeply. If one died did the other need to as well to keep the balance? Her hands moved a bit faster trying to weaken the bonds as much as she could.

 

[TerraBooma]

Jackson was confused for at first, mostly with the lack of response. The two figures seemed more than content, or distraught, to ignore him. The Teen's pleas and offerings of assistance had fallen on seemingly deaf ears that seemed a bit preoccupied with laughter and sobbing respectively. He let out a frustrated sigh, before turning back to the group to ask for help. Even if it was a dream, Iphie and Kaede seemed like smart enough people. As he started speaking however, Kaede was reaching for the noose. The gallows themselves had Jackson on edge, execution wasn't something he had ever been a fan of, even without his darker pasta as a bias. Touching something designed for killing in a world that seemed out to get them...seemed to have too many possible downsides, so he called out. "Hey Kaede, wai-"

Unfortunately, his words reached his friend too late, and Kaede was quickly wrapped up in Vines and thorns, seemingly hanging in the noose...Jackson gulped as he ran up to the gallows himself, hoping his new friend wasn't being strangled to death by rope and vine. Fortunately, she wasn't quite hanging yet, whatever the vines were doing, they were supporting her from dying. Which was good. For a Dream...Jackson frowned. "This is one fucked up dream...I'd have woken up from most nightmares by now." He shook his head, concentrating on trying to free Kaede. Knife dropped earlier, Jackson didn't have much of an option, and tried to physically break the vines, much to no avail. Cursing, he stepped back and gave Iphie a helpless shrug. "These things are tough...and if they're anything like the other vines, I don't think cutting's an option either." Fortunately for the stumped Jackson, the maze sprung to life again, revealing new paths...and possibly new hints. Cautiously stepping back, Jackson gave a firm nod to Kaede.

"Hey, sit tight and try not to panic, we'll get you out of this somehow...there's gotta be some new info, or a lever or something to break this stuff. We'll figure something out...and soon, too." He stepped back, looking towards the new hall. "Iphie, c'mon. We gotta figure out what the hell's going on here..." Something was starting to eat at Jackson, a dark thought he wasn't wanting to face just yet, but the thought was eating at him. As he walked away with Iphie, darting towards the new area, he spoke out loud to her. "Hey Iphie...do you think your Dreaming? I do...can two people think that at the same time in dreams? Something's going on here...but if this was a nightmare, wouldn't I have woken up?"

After saying that, Jackson cursed as he saw the path split in two. "Looks like we're going to have to split up...we probably don't have much time if she's in the gallows." Separating from Iphie, Jackson ran down to a destroyed room and a pile of papers in the middle. The whole room was in chaos, and from the bloodstain, it looks like whoever had been here before hadn't done too well. After a search of the room revealing less than he was hoping for, Jackson knelt down to the floor, eyes widening as he began to read the diary in front of him.


He didn't understand much, but he knew it was going to be important. The Diary mentioned a few names, Yin Ji, Yang Zu...as well as some kind of priest. It was hard to tell who was writing the thing, but the writing was mostly feminine, with hints of a boyish side when the point of view almost shift. Whoever was writing the Diary/Letters loved the other dearly it seemed, and they had grown closer after a tragedy to boot.

The tragedy is what gave Jackson pause, a fatherly figure named Dunwald who seemed to be an architect, who had designed both a Cathedral and planned to design a garden of sorts...Jackson peered out of the room and up at the Cathedral island. That was an...eerie connection. Jackson read the documents as he walked, doing his best to protect them from the weather while delving into their secrets. There was mention of a swan...but that didn't make much sense, it was supposedly finished by Li Jing, and when it was completed happiness was more than apparent in the letters. But what the hell would a Swan do for them now? Puzzled, Jackson turned to meet back with Iphie, but everything then went to shit. His Main exit was now cut off by vines and thorns. A new path was open...but he was stuck.

Protecting the documents as best he could, Jackson forced himself down the new path, on the search for answers, and a way back.