"N-Not a natural death? You mean...h-he was murdered?"

Odin let out a shrill scream and began to run away.

"I-I knew I couldn't trust any of you!"

Ennea barely blinked as she watched Cat collapse, before taking a look around and frowning slightly. "... How unfortunate. Well, rest in peace, Cool Cat! Your memory will live on with all of us!"

It didn't take a minute for a smile to return to her face. "... Unless that antidote for his trial wasn't administered correctly, this is certainly the work of one of us! And I'm very inclined to believe the latter is true. So what reason could anyone have to do this? He never did anything to any of us that I know of, so the motive must be deeper than that! Ah, it's a mystery, definitely a mystery! Very thrilling..."

"Did he drink any coffee?!" Albatross says as he dumps his straight out and frets around, hoping someone will tell him a way to be helpful.

"I think... It might be impossible to know anything." Silver frowned, keeping Cool Cat's corpse out of her sight.

"This place is too big, it'd be impossible to track down who was with him all day... On top of who of those people had the chance to even do something like this to him." Silver trembles a little as she speaks, though manages to keep it together, somehow...

"This... This isn't good..."

Golf upon seeing the body began to shake, and upon seeing Cool Cat's death stumbled to the ground and began to hyperventilate. Shakily he began moving his arm reaching for his walkie talkie. "Brother are you there? Brother? Brother!?" his voice cracked and he began to curl up on the ground.

For a minute or two he stayed curled up on the ground and mumbled to himself till finally he regain his composure and stood back up. "Ahh it seems I wasn't quite as prepaid for this possibility as I thought, I or any of us can not afford to lose our composure here...unfortunately we now now for sure death is a real possibility in this game and even more troubling someone here is potentially cool cats killer."

Golf proceeded to reach for his walkie talkie. "I am also disturbed as to why my brother isn't responding...I may have to assume the wor...huh....what do you mean you went to the bathroom and had left it so you wouldn't be heard! Just turn it off on your side when you don't want to be heard next time Idiot...I....I was worried you might have died too." Golf chuckled with tears in his eyes.

"T-the fuck..." Nova gasped hoarsely, her face pale and her right hand grasping at her chest. She panted a few times, then started coughing, so she quickly spit her gum out on the floor to avoid choking on it. "W-why would... why would this even happen... this doesn't... w-who would do this..." she muttered to herself as she tried to get her thoughts straight.

---

Crow’s voice rose above the commotion, remarkably controlled considering the circumstances.

“Yes, let your emotions out, but make it quick,” Crow said. “There’s no need to panic at the moment. Whoever this killer is, we surely outnumber them. If we work together and rationally discuss this, I believe we can root out the traitor...and ensure that this never happens again.”

She scanned the crowd, watching everyone’s faces with a calculating expression, seemingly evaluating them...

---

"Y-You say that, but how can you expect *any* of us to think rationally under these conditions?!" Odin snapped, hiding from behind cover. "Can't you like...use your bird to track someone's scent or something?"

Odin crawled out of cover. "W-Wait a minute, what happens to Cool Cat's code now..? Does his bracelet still work..? Are we trapped here forever, now? Maybe that's why someone targeted him..! Cause he completed a trial..!"

"U-umm..." Silver began to panic, fiddling with her hair and breathing heavily. "W-Wait, this is fine! He's only one number, right? We'll just get the other eleven, and go through all the possibilities! It'll only take like, um, ten guesses?"

"So long as he's only a single digit, it should be fine, yes. We just have to work harder from now on to not fail any more trials!" Ennea helpfully answered.

"Fuck, that's... You know, that might be the first smart thing you've ever said, Odin. Not just here, but in your life. Since he's dead, we don't have his number. Do they want to keep us here?"

Twist sighed and ran a hand through his long, brown hair.

"The fuck is whoever's in charge of this game after...?"

"W-What the fuck?! I'm *really* smart, actually," Odin huffed. "But, yes, I suppose as long as he's the only one dead, it wouldn't pose *too* much of an issue."

"The fact that one number is gone concerns me as well, for now its merely ten guesses, but even one more number we lose changes that measly ten to over a hundred guesses. and another concern I feel the need to bring up is assuming he obtained cool cats number how he learned about it."

"As such I feel the need to ask this to everyone, should we tell everyone our number? as you may or may not have guessed your number is essentially a lifeline for you in this game as without it none of us may escape. it is the only sure deterrent for any would be killer till he gained that info...barring the possibility the killer doesn't have any intention of escaping of course."

"I-I'm still against revealing the numbers..." Nova opined weakly. "I don't see a good reason to... i-if the killer doesn't care about escaping, knowing our numbers won't matter to them... b-but there's still a chance they DO want them... maybe they figured Cat's out somehow..."

---

"Ah, but it's quite the dilemma, isn't it? Saying your number certainly makes you uniquely expendable, but not saying it could very well doom everyone else!" Ennea laughed. "A bit of a trolley problem, as much as that one's a little played out, isn't it?"

"Oh, not that I'm pressuring anyone here to reveal their number. I can't speak for everyone here, but I'd be happiest if you made this decision out of your own volition! There's no real wrong answer."

Now (mostly) terrified of the prospect of a killer in their midst, the remaining players scrambled to complete the final puzzles, obtain the key and get out of the Joy area.



The players pushed and shoved in their haste to get back to the Oubliette. Everyone was shouting and screaming, some in shock and horror, some demanding answers, some just trying to call for order. They were cut off by the robot's distinctly piercing yell of "SHUT IT! SHUT UP! SILENCE! QUIET! CEEEEEEEEEASE!!!"

[Oubliette theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Um39Yj0lT4k]

There were a few moments of taut silence, before the robot continued, "The Witch has claimed their first victim. I will explain everything shortly, but first let's pay our respects to dearly departed Player 6." It then proceeded to give a short account about the victim. Its natural posture and gloomy aura made it look almost like it was reading a eulogy.


The robot was silent for a few moments, but before anyone could process what they'd just heard about Cool Cat, it abruptly moved on and screamed, "SO, THE WITCH IS HUNTING YOU! OH NO! It seems I'd better explain what's going on here. You see, one of you... IS THE WITCH!" It paused for dramatic effect. "The Witch will CONTINUE TO HUNT YOU ALL until none remain! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

[Robot theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6GD9uZq5kQ]

Unsurprisingly this only caused the situation to devolve into chaos again. The robot kept screeching commands to try and regain control, but was unsuccessful until it went with "YOU WILL ALL DIE IN 30 MINUTES!" That caught people's attention.

"Yes, thank you. You really don't have time for all this shouting, you know. Those bracelets aren't just YOUR BEST FRIENDS, they're also set to inject you with a lethal poison every two hours! By my count, you have just over 30 minutes until the first scheduled injection. HALF AN HOUR! BARELY ENOUGH TIME TO DO MY HAIR!" This announcement was met with a bone-chilling silence as the players all contemplated their bracelets with a newfound horror. They could imagine it all too well: barely a few millimetres from their skin, a needle lay primed with some kind of terrible poison, ready to strike.

"Worry not, dashing test subjects: you can avoid this AWFUL, DREADFUL FATE! The bracelets are BLOODTHIRSTY, BUT WILL BE SATIATED WITH JUST ONE DEATH! If you all direct your FORTHCOMING DOOM towards a single player, only that player will be executed. Have a look at your bracelets again, if you would." The players did so, desperate, and found that the previously-locked app was now openable. It was a voting app, very similar to the door one, but this version displayed a grid of player numbers instead of door names. The 6 was greyed out.

"Yes, if a majority of you vote for a single player, only that player will DIE! If you fail to reach a majority in time, the bracelets will unfortunately have to kill each and every one of you. SO VERY SAD! However, this system is really a blessing in disguise, you know! After all, this is a BRILLIANT opportunity to kill the Witch before they can kill anyone else! YEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSS!! Oh, I should mention that, just as with the doors, all votes are public. You can see on your bracelets what each other player has already voted for."

The explanation spurred some frantic discussion as the players all dealt with the news in their own ways. Someone soon pointed out a further complication however: judging by the security footage they'd found, their captors had been dragged into the game too. No doubt they would be working together against everyone else. The robot agreed. "Oh yes! Please, allow me to lay down the facts for you all.

"Among the 12 of you, 7 are 'innocent'. I HEREBY DUB THEE the Prey faction! Poor little players, hunted down by the MEAN, SCARY WOLVES!! The 3 people who brought you here are the Scientists, creators of the GREAT EXPERIMENT that is the Nonary Game! Then that leaves us with the last 2: THE KILLERS! THEY WANT NOTHING MORE THAN YOUR BLOOD, JUST LIKE THE BRACELETS!! I should mention that, while the Scientists would have originally known who all of you were, their Soporil β injections will have muddled their memories. I'm sure they remembered each other - THEY'RE BEST FRIENDS AFTER ALL - but I highly doubt they remember who the Witch is. Additionally, I think you will find it VERY DIFFICULT to deduce who these evil 5 are based on outward appearances alone. They all have reasons to LIE AND CHEAT AND DECEIVE. They could really be anyone! EXCEPT ME!! YOU CAN TRUST ME! I'M ADORABLE, REMEMBER!!!"

As this information sunk in, one of the players pointed out a discrepancy: the robot had said there were two Killers. "Ah, yes! I hope, by now, you have some understanding of what happened in here earlier? ONE OF YOU ATTACKED ME! BROKE ME! FOREVER CHANGED ME, OBJECTIVELY FOR THE WORST! I like to call this person the Hacker. It seems the Hacker infiltrated this place to aid the Witch, meaning the two are aligned in their goals. I'm quite sure the Hacker will resort to murder if need be, which puts them squarely in the Killers faction.

"ONE LAST THING! Some of you here have very special talents! It wouldn't be fair if I didn't explain them for those... less fortunate. I can't tell you what factions these talents belong to, but I'm sure it will be enough to be get on by! HERE, LET ME GIVE YOU A CONVENIENT SUMMARY OF EVERYTHING I'VE SAID FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE!!"


With all that said, there was nothing for it but to discuss who needed to die. It was a horrifying prospect, yet also the only way anyone could hope to get through the Game alive. An uneasy atmosphere weighed down on them all. Who could they trust?

[Discussion theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNlSC5qoZXQ]

Last edited by KamiPanda on Sat Jul 03, 2021 11:31 pm, edited 1 time in total.

"...So we have to choose someone to kill tonight..? H-Huh?"

Odin stammered, backing away from the others.

"W-Wait! Please! Don't pick me! You want money..? I'll give you all money if you just spare me tonight! I promise I'm not an evil traitor! You guys gotta trust me!"

Odin began to foam at the mouth, the prospect of a potential death getting to his head.

"I know..! How about I start the discussion..? We gotta kill scientists and killers, right? Well, there's one very obvious scientist amongst us right now!"

He pointed at Ennea, getting the train rolling BECAUSE SOMEONE HAS TO.

"Remember all the talk we had about numbers and what not..? Who better to know that information than a scientist herself?!"

"I'm not so sure..." Silver shook her head. "Though honestly? I feel like we should focus more on the people w-who can actually.. kill us... Especially considering that, um, one of those Scientists were already taken out..."

Silver gripped her hat and pulled it down a little, trying to hide her eyes to avoid eye contact with any of the other players.

"But... Like the Robot said, some of us have some sort of special skills? It might be bad to put a target over your head, but I don't know how to feel about picking someone at random..."

"Ahaha! Very astute, Odin! Still wrong, though. I am a mathematician, yes, but with no relation to this game aside from being a victim of it." she answered. "If I were one of those scientists, I'd have known to keep my mouth shut about these numbers! Cat certainly didn't let slip any hints for us."

"I-I guess that's true, a scientist wouldn't reveal their identity so easily," Odin agreed. "Well then, I don't know..! I'm reluctant to call on anyone with an ability to reveal themselves. After all, it's not guaranteed that they're aligned with us."

Odin pointed rudely at Ennea. "Well, if you aren't a scientist, do you have any sort of role?!"

"None at all, I'm afraid! I'm vanilla as vanilla can be, and a prey at that." Ennea smiled. "Aha, I suppose in a pinch that makes me more expendable, huh? What a pragmatic way of thinking, Odin!"

Golf shook his head in disagreement. "Not necessarily true, as the scientists all have a hand in the creation of this game correct? as such it would be unsurprising to say the least to provide players with info to gain peoples trust and to get them moving in playing said game."

"...T-That was not my intention!!" Odin stammered, kneeling on the floor. "Please don't vote for me because of that..! I promise, when we get out of here, I'll write you a medium-sized check!"

"So we... have to kill someone within the next 30 minutes if we don't want everyone to die. Great, just what I needed in life. I always wished to be part of some twisted experiment!" Twist sighed, dragging a hand along his face.

"Okay, so... with Cool Cat, or Drake, dead, that leaves two scientists, two witches, and seven 'prey.' Love the name, guys, thanks for that. Ugh... Regardless, Silver is right. Focusing on the Witch and Hacker would probably be in our best interest, seeing as to how they can kill us."

"T-this is.... heavily concerning", Uno muttered. They had calmed down a bit once they returned, though their face still seemed quite pale as they considered their situation. "Right now... we need to vote for who the killers could be. These scientists may also pose a problem to us in the long run, but for now the killers possess more power together. If we take one down, then their communication is severed. We can eliminate more people based on that. As to how to do that though, that is quite troublesome... Role revealing would be risky, and wouldn't even reveal anything alignment-wise- unless you would happen to be a Seer, of course. The only other potential information we may have alignment-wise is the Middleman and whatever vanilla Prey they have uncovered. Of course, it's understandable as to why people would want to stay silent on this, it would paint a huge target on their backs if they came out like that, but... Now would be a good time to eliminate suspects, if any. Things might get problematic if we lynch an innocent, for example." He explained.

---

"Oof...I don't like that word...lynch," Odin shuddered. "It sounds like *lunch...* like we're the *lunch...* like the prey, *are* the lunch!"

Odin began to shake some more, getting progressively more anxious.

"D-damn it, damn it, damn it..." Nova swallowed and ran her hand though her hair, panic clear in her eyes. "I knew it... This is really happening, isn't it...

"H-hang on, I'll be right back!" she shouted to the group as she bolted off to the Joy room again. A minute later she came running back, dragging one of the office chairs behind her. She quickly sat down, pulled her left leg up into her lap, and rolled her pant leg back, revealing the number 9 bracelet wrapped around her ankle. After fiddling around with it until she found and opened her voting app, she looked up to the others.

"A-alright, let's do this. Did I, uh, miss anything?"

---

"You wanna vote already?!"

"Huh? No! N-no, of course not!" she sputtered. "I'm just, like, making sure nobody's sneaking votes in early!"

---

"That's the tricky part..." Silver frowned. "We have nothing to go off of. All we can hope is that someone who has knowledge speaks up and leads us towards something... But they could very well not even know anything. Worse yet, the people with the power to gain knowledge, like the detective, could be one of the Killers or Scientists... What a cruel joke."

"O-Oh... uh, alright."

Odin blushed for some reason and revealed his voting app in turn.

"I-I'll do the same..."

Golf began what to the others as per normal was a one sided discussion with the static playing from his walkie talkie.

"I feel the best place to start gathering any info is with the only 2 real sources of info we have had in this game so far, the trials that have happened and how everyone reacted to the death of cool cat."

"So as we all know Cool cat, silver and Albatross are the only ones to have done there's at the moment." golf began to write down notes on an app in the bracelet.


Each trial seems to test the players skills to a life threatening degree. as such we should conclude the possibility what natural skills and talents each of us has and how it could potentially fit or aid the killers or scientist factions."

Now with that out of the way, onto the other topic.


"Ultimately this info isn't much and may have little impact on who actually did anything or who is apart of which faction but none the less its something amongst the little we have to work with at the moment."

"So what does that tell us?"

Odin crossed his arms indignantly. "A-And I didn't *scream* and *run.* I let out a distressed noise and walked with a brisk pace away from danger. Not in the cowardly way you described me as!"

“This might be just what we need,” Crow mumbled. “A perfect means of fighting back, and no excuse not to use it.”

Crow practically forced seeds down Ash’s throat as she thought deeply about the situation. The bird pecked at her hand, not feeling hungry, but she continued to ignore it.

“I agree that the Killers should be our top priorities at the moment,” Crow said. “The scientists pose far less of a threat, especially with one of their number already gone. They can be dealt with once we’re not in danger of being picked off one by one.”

“In any case, I’m not sure what the next course of action should be. While I have people I’m suspicious of, I’d rather not accuse people without any legitimate reason. If all else fails, we can always dispatch some of the quieter people in the group, as those with something to hide are more likely to clam up.”

---

TV-Head tries their best to blend into a wall. Their digital face conveys a sense of confidence that inside they are not feeling. For a full minute after the announcement they feel nothing but dread.

“Right so let’s all pile on then! Probably Crow is a safe choice! Lots of knowledge to be gained from that death!” They explain, waving their arms.

"N-Now this is a random accusation..!" Odin yelped. He seemed a little surprised and hesitant to jump on the accusation train. "What kind of 'knowledge' do you think we can get from blindly shooting Crow?!"

“Same as anyone else. As long as nobody knows anything, all our choices are the same in value!” TV-Head cries robotically. “If we kill her, then we learn who or what she is!”

"Then why don't we just lynch you?!" Odin retorted. "Surely there are ways we can discuss this instead of a blind shot-in-the-dark!"

Odin crossed his arms, averting his gaze from the others. "I-I just think there are better ways to spend our vote, that's all."

"With how forceful TV-Head is being at the moment, it certainly makes them seem quite suspicious at this moment", Uno noted. "There is a chance they are doing this on purpose as some sort of ruse, yet what would they gain if they were lynched? It seems peculiar to me. With that being said, I do believe we have more knowledge to gain from voting for them rather than Crow. Though this is only if we have to resort to a random vote at all..."

---

Ash screeched at the TV-wearing figure. It jumped up and down in its cage, flapping its winds madly and butting its head against the cage’s door.

“You see, this is precisely the outcome I’ve wished to avoid,” Crow said. “You’ve been acting far too suspiciously to be throwing out accusations like this. So suspiciously, in fact, that I have my doubts that you’re actually one of our targets...but I wouldn’t exactly be crying if we had to lose you.”

---