Week 3

[airlockedmods]

[It takes a disturbingly short amount of time for the status quo to be restored. PAL still makes the morning and night time announcements through the PIP on each Champion's arm, and still the Champion unitards are freshly laundered and re-hung each morning in their closets.

There's a new floor to explore, a perverse reward for a trial well done.]

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday



[ooc: Don't forget to to turn in your AC for week 2 and submit your threads for the Benefactors!]

Comments

[tacomeme]

Mistook? Did they look similar then? A mind game by the one running it?

Considering Kip and Cece, I wouldn't be surprised if there are others dragged into this 'show' either against their will or under false pretenses. From what I talked about with Kip, even if he ignores it, I'm pretty sure the last 'seasons' were all killed as well. The amount of victims might be... staggering.

[misanthropicprinciple]

Uh--

I... yeah. I agree with you about others being dragged into this without our knowledge. I mean, there's nothing stopping them, as far as we know.

But you're wrong about the second corpse, at least partially. We mistook the body because it fucking exploded and we only had clothes to go by.

[tacomeme]

Oh... yeah, that'd do it.

[Look at him over thinking it]

[misanthropicprinciple]

It was important, though--that we would have recognized him, but the killer didn't. That's how we caught him. He couldn't recognize faces, so... the mastermind set him up to kill everyone they wanted revenge on.

I don't know if we can make out any kind of pattern to the deaths here, but it's worth keeping in mind as we try to solve this.

[tacomeme]

True. A good 'show' has a plot line. Theming. I'd expect they'd try to lean any deaths one way or the other. Say, hmm... someone confesses their love to someone, then dies. That gets an emotional reaction way more then a random death.

It's all for the 'ratings' is what Kip told me. Audience approval. Money. The better show we put on, the better for them. I... wouldn't be surprised if PAL gave us a taste of our abilities knowing some of us had a lack of control. A tearful forced execution of someone that did nothing wrong...

[He bares his teeth and looks about to either retch or hit someone]

[misanthropicprinciple]

It's not just a show, though. It's also an experiment.

An experiment is meant to test a hypothesis--something the tester assumes is true and wants to prove through rigorous trial. Larimer focusing on the entertainment aspect is one thing, but I don't know if it's the whole story.

[tacomeme]

But what could it prove? Certainly there's more then enough history to tell them that people get desperate and kill when forced in terrifying circumstances. That's been true as long as there's been humans.

Wars and desperate people are what moves countries.

[misanthropicprinciple]

...

So does love. If you listen to the stories, anyway.

[Sure, Junpei. "If" you listen. Uh-huh.]

Maybe that's what they're testing. Which of those is stronger--desperation, or the human need to connect.

[tacomeme]

There's not always a difference.

[But they're not here to discuss the nature of man, though Takumi would be happy to do so for hours under better circumstances.]

That might be the case, Kip told me about a group called, and don't laugh, the Dick Elders... they controlled at least his realm and controlled everyone's ability to even touch until recently. If that's been the case for a long time, they might not really fully understand such things anymore.

[misanthropicprinciple]

...

You can't tell me his planet was ruled by the Dick Elders and not let me laugh, Hoshido. I will combust. It will be murder.

[tacomeme]

They are elders who are dicks, but also elders OF dicks. I checked.

[said so deadpan he HAS to be joking. Right?]

[misanthropicprinciple]

You think that has to do with the penis spaceship I got?

[tacomeme]

... you got one too? I wonder if anything else here is like that...

I mean, we are in a dome...

[he kinda...cups his chest to illustrate his point]

[misanthropicprinciple]

FfPFFFF!

[Junpei covers his mouth with one hand to avoid spraying the Prince of Hoshido with stale coffee, then slowly lowers his head to the table, barely stifling his laughter.]

Noooo, I didn't... now everything else here's gonna look like something raunchy! I'm an impressionable pattern-finding detective, why would you do this to me?

[tacomeme]

Well, I guess now you're cursed to see such things wherever you go. Try not to thank me too much.

[misanthropicprinciple]

[Takumi is a prince. Takumi is a soldier. Takumi can kick his ass.

None of these things stop Junpei from grinning and reaching over to ruffle the hell out of his anime samurai-boy hair.]

Oh yeah? Maybe I keep seeing dicks and asses here because I'm surrounded by them. What do you make of that theory, huh?

[tacomeme]

[Takumi turns a lovely shade of pink and swats at his hands, but doesn't seem too displeased]

I wouldn't know, what with the huge ass in front of me blocking the view.

[misanthropicprinciple]

[He backs off, snickering, and this time he is definitely just shooting the shit, because he doesn't accompany this with a flirtatious pose or anything.]

Hoshido, I am the view. Do you need your eyes checked, archer boy?

[tacomeme]

Hardly. Even if you discounted all the beautiful women here you STILL wouldn't win.

[misanthropicprinciple]

Oh, let us not discount the beautiful women.

[Ohhhh no, is this going where it could be going? Junpei lowers his voice conspiratorially.]

Sooooo. Who's your type?

[tacomeme]

I'm not answering that.

[Party pooper, though he's bright red]

[misanthropicprinciple]

Come on, I'm not going to tell anyone. Do you want me to try to guess?

[DOn'T PLAY THIS GAME WITH A DETECTIVE]

[tacomeme]

[He puffs his cheeks slightly, annoyed]

Sure, go for it. It's not like I care.

[misanthropicprinciple]

[Hand comes to chin. Junpei thinks for a few seconds, then says:]

Finn.

[tacomeme]

Wh-what?! No!

[His eyes go wide and he looks about to burst into flame]

I mean, I guess he beats you, since he's a solider and isn't a drunk hobo, but-

[...look, Takumi may be Champion Tactician but he can't hide his reactions to... anything ever]