( DEPARTURE )

[abhoth]

SURVIVORS: 42 At 6:00 PM on the dot, everyone who has died during the ritual will awaken in their respective beds. Whole and unscathed, it would be far too easy to say that everything has been nothing but a fever dream. But the truth, as always, is far different from what the heart yearns for. For the first time in five weeks, night falls over the City of Yuggoth. The sun no longer hangs over your heads, its presence dark and oppressing. Instead, a soft, blue light shines down from the sky. It's not quite the moon, no. The Unclean's avatar is still visible in the sky, after all. But it's comforting. It's the promise of new beginnings, of newly forged bonds, and pacts that neither heaven nor hell are capable of tearing down. Does this singular moment in time make everything they've been through worth it? No, probably not. But this is the end. Their journey is over. Now it's time for forty-one (41) individuals to choose their destination, while one (1) is left behind. The unmarked room between the Kitchen (still wrecked — thanks, Tsurugi) and Laundry room is now open. Faceless men will be giving away baseball caps, pens, keychains and all the splendor of Yuggoth, as well as glossy photos taken throughout the ritual... for most, it will be a photo of their dead body and the manner in which they died. Yikes. A toy machine has also been left here, with a sign that reads TELEGRAM FUND: DEPOSIT YOUR CLUE TOKENS SO EVERYONE CAN CONTACT THEIR FRIENDS. THIS DOES NOT INCLUDE ANDERSEN, SO DON'T ASK. - ABIGAIL. Manning the Curio Shop won't be the only duties the faceless men have been relegated to, however. They'll be hunting down everyone but the new facilitator in order to give them a bus ticket. The destination and time of departure will be blank upon initially receiving it, but as soon as one thinks of where they want to go? Both fields will be filled in, and will be adjusted accordingly if anyone has a last minute change of heart. It seems like, in the end, it's up to the residents to decide whether to return home or to catch a ride with one of their new friends. Starting from 6:00 AM on Tuesday morning (a fact only discernible thanks to the Grandfather clocks, as the sun refuses to rise again), double decker buses will roll by the motel to pick residents up. There will be several buses, each one remaining at the entrance for fifteen minutes and the next one arriving after an hour long interval. Bus tickets will refuse to change after the first bus has arrived, so try not to be too indecisive lest you wish to remain in this realm or strike a deal with the Unclean. On the bright side, there are at least two to four days before everyone has returned home. May as well get those final goodbyes over with, right? It's a wrap, everyone! Thank you for the wild ride, and don't forget to check out the Love Meme and TL;CR Meme. You can use this post to thread out those last goodbyes. ( quick navigation ) ic rulebook | locations | statuses | room assignments private conversations | ic profiles | graveyard | full navigation

Comments

[disinterested]

[Girge doesn't know how to respond to that relieved look, so he's going to pretend it doesn't exist.

... Honestly, it scares him, and fear isn't an emotion he's known for a long time. If things don't get better between him and his father...

Still—]

Repayment for what, not throwing you over the railing when I should've?

And I'm going to be returning directly to the battlefield. Am I supposed to run around with a potted plant? Everyone's going to wonder where I got it, and I can't say I was brought to another realm to facilitate a murder ritual.

[disinterested]

... This isn't going to suddenly stab me, will it?

[But sure, he'll open it as Andersen requested.]

[disinterested]

... Don't tell me you had this prepared. [a beat] I'm almost disappointed you didn't get me something poisonous.

[He's kidding. Mostly, though, he's not sure why Andersen picked those, if there was any reason to begin with.]

[disinterested]

Are you expecting me to swallow these? Somehow, I don't think you gave me these to snack on.

[He notices that, Andersen!!]

I'm not moping. [...] Besides... I'm saying goodbye to you right now, aren't I?

[someone kill him now]

[disinterested]

... I don't know about that. [He pauses, before almost awkwardly:] You're the first person who bothered to prod.

[The first who bothered to get to know him, in other words.]

It seems fitting.

[disinterested]

... Now I really wish you'd given me something poisonous.

[disinterested]

I was thinking more that I'd shove it in your mouth.

[Also eww, small talk. He makes a bit of a face.]

... I don't think anyone's going to expect me to be personable.

[disinterested]

Andersen, you're forgetting I was thrown in prison for murder and assault. Everyone already knows I'm a psychotic sociopath.

[BUT FINE, LETTING HIMSELF BE PUSHED AGAIN.]

[disinterested]

All of the present Generals happen to be rather decent people, actually. Why do you think my being arrested and then released was such a big deal?

[...]

I'm not asking them for advice.

[Telling Andersen about his dad was awkward enough?? No one else needs to know.]

[disinterested]

Interior decoration tips for what?

[disinterested]

... Please don't remind me. I'd rather not think about the boring aspects of the job.

[Just!! let him fight!!!]

[disinterested]

I don't think he was thinking that far. He wasn't very smart, after all.

[... Ah. It's still strange, to think about the future he might have—something he gave up on a long time ago, when he realized that he'd lost all interest in life.

So this is what hope is like, huh?]

... Well, in any case, I have my work cut out for me before I can even reach that point. I do have a bad reputation, and only one person vouching for me, let alone in a way that doesn't invoke my father's name.

[And at this point, Girge refuses to use his father's influence to redeem himself. He'll fulfill his contract with Rygart using his own merit.]

[disinterested]

[At that, Girge smiles sadly, though he knows that, perhaps, the time for sadness has passed. For this, at least.]

... Aim not for perfection, huh? If only someone had told me that a long time ago.

[But maybe it's for the better that no one did, and that he turned out the way he has. It's why he didn't simply wish to be a different person; for all of his regrets and for all that he saw his life as pointless, he can't imagine being anyone else.

And this path has led him to the people he has now—Andersen included.]