week 4

[vicedirector]

seven vices week 4 28 players remaining ♫ monday - thursday Monday morning begins just like the rest, slow and uneasy. At 12pm, every television will go off with its usual bout of static, followed by a calm, albeit disinterested, voice. "Please gather in the hotel lobby within the next hour." That's all that it says before the televisions turn off. Anyone not in their rooms will hear the voice echoing around them as if through a speaker system, although there are (still) no speakers present. After hearing the motive, characters who choose to explore will find that the void around the town has retracted a bit, and there is now a police station to the far east of the chapel. On the chapel wall near the altar, black and white portraits of Youko, Zelos, and Morrigan have been hung up. Anyone looking for them will find that Youko's pink shoes and the fragments of Zelos's crystal are now gone. >Mingle? This is Week 4's mingle log, covering Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday. Investigations will go up on Friday. When posting toplevels, specify the time and location. If you plan on having any private conversations between characters, remember to let us know in the post linked below. More plot elements will be introduced this week. Mod comments will be occasionally distributed to open toplevels, accordingly. cast setting rulebook profiles private conversations

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[symbologic]

monday, 2pm, near the chapel [Faize + Bill joint prompt]
[Perhaps it's the giant, bright blue circles runic-looking symbols rotating in midair that catch your attention. Maybe it's the 10-foot spikes of rock that pop out of the ground for a few moments before retreating back into it, or the six icy shards that materialize from the air before being propelled into the ground a few feet away. Or perhaps it's the gleeful shouts of one Bill Cipher that does it. Whatever the case, if you've ever wondered what that symbology crap on Faize's profile is, now would be the time to find out.]

[It seems Faize's sword practice was a little interrupted today, as the two can be found just outside the chapel where he usually is at this time but his sword is sheathed at his hip. When not mid-demonstration, the two are just talking so it won't be hard to talk to either of them or even both at the same time. Though Faize looks oddly exhausted, despite the fact that he's done little more than stand in one spot and throw his arm out in front of him and yell an incantation. A fact which Bill seems not to notice, he's chipper and upbeat as ever. Perhaps even moreso because did you see that shit? Wowie!]

thursday, 6pm, laundry room
[Hey so...great thing about your wardrobe consisting almost entirely of sweater vests, sweaters, and dress pants is that you can wear them a couple of times before you need to wash them. The not so great thing is that, though these are fairly spacious closets/dressers, eventually you're going to start running out of clothes. And Faize has finally hit that point.]

[So come Thursday evening, he can be found in the laundry room, two of the washing machines loaded with an assortment of clothes (did he even separate them?? no) and intently staring at the back of a container of liquid fabric softener like he's expecting to find some kind of mystical spell written back there or something. How the everloving fuck do your primitive Earth laundry techniques work? He doesn't know.]

any day, 9am, school
[For some reason, Faize keeps making daily trips to the school. He never stays for more than an hour or so, just wandering both the interior and exterior of the building in an oddly purposeful sort of way. Almost like he's looking for something.]

[On Monday you might find him lingering for a little while in the classroom, staring silently at the floor where there should be bloodstains, but aren't.]

tuesday-thursday, 1-4pm, near the chapel
[Obligatory sword training prompt. Same time, same place as every week, just jabbing and slicing at thin air, occasionally throwing in a pivoted kick here and there. Does he ever get tired of doing this? Apparently the answer is no.]

wildcard
[Hit me with whatever.]

MONDAY oops

[princessantly]

[ It's hard not to notice such a ruckus (among other things) so yes, Alisha's heading on over to investigate. And... whoa okay yes, that's impressive?? ]

That's... symbology? It really is like seraphic artes...

[ ARE YOU A SERAPH, FAIZE-- but also a nod to Bill, hello triangle. ]

alisha > faize > bill wheeee

[symbologic]

[NO, HE'S REALLY NOT...HE'S JUST A NORMAL GUY, HE SWEARS.]

Yes. [A weak chuckle.] Something like this is what should happen when a symbol is cast, as opposed to what you saw back when we first arrived here.

[Which was a fat lot of nothing because duh he was going to try out the powerful shit first. But somebody had to go and LOCK THAT AWAY. Thanks, kidnappers.]

Is it really so similar to the abilities of the Seraphs you described, though?

[billarious]

Hey Curls! Isn't it amazing?

[He's just so blown away by this. Granted he had unlimited powers before, and this is kind of nothing compared to what he can do. But at the same time, all the symbols and light show? It's so cool.]

[princessantly]

It is, yes. [ SHE'S JUST SETTLED FOR THIS NICKNAME... it could be worse. ]

... Er, to both questions. But the element used in an arte depends on the Seraph in question. Mikleo is a Water Seraph, so he'd be able to do something along the lines of that ice, while Edna is Earth, so something more like stalagmites. Most of my elemental artes were sealed, however.

THURSDAY..... you say laundry im on the way

[stupidly]

[It's like he can sense people struggling with laundry from a mile away...]

—Faize? [Putting his basket down on the ground! It's pretty full, because he does his own laundry but also Break's too, dammit.]

bless u gilbert. help this poor, confused space child

[symbologic]

Hm? [Looks up from the fabric softener, which is still not making any more sense now than it did when he started reading the label. It doesn't say anything about cleaning the clothes... Is he supposed to put soap in the machine to make it work?] Ah, good evening, Gilbert. I am a little surprised to see someone else in here at this hour, but I cannot say I am disappointed.

[He's strugglin. This is too ye olde for a guy who comes from a race who managed space travel thousands of years ago. They probably have like laundry zappers or self-cleaning clothes or something.]

he'll do his best....

[stupidly]

Good evening. [A little nod!] Er— I usually do the laundry a little later... I'm just running late this week, myself. [Considering it's DEATH NIGHT and all, he'd rather not be out, but alas. That said--]

...Have you used these before?

[He can sense it. The air of confusion...]

he's a good student...promise....

[symbologic]

[Look, death night is clearly the best night to do laundry? Look how empty it is in here. You can have your pick of machines! Also it's still really early for murder. Everyone waits till the dead of night. Toooooootally safe. Faize is definitely not going to run Gilbert through with his sword or anything.]

No, I have not. These machines are...very different, compared to what we have on Eldar. I understand the basic principle, of course! [Except for the part where clothes apparently needs to be sorted. The care instructions on the clothing tags are apparently the most complex symbology he's ever encountered or something.] But I am a bit perplexed as to...what the next step is. I've never heard of any of any of these chemicals before.

[And uh...two of them were used to murder a girl just the other week. SO, not the best introduction he could have had.]

monday, school-!

[dereban]

They sure cleaned this area up really good... [ And really quickly, too. ]

[symbologic]

Mm...they did. For there to be no signs whatsoever is... [He frowns slightly.] astounding, really. Almost unbelievable.

But I suppose, given what happens to our rooms if not for the "do not disturb" signs... Perhaps it's to be expected.

[dereban]

Yeah, it's definitely not something that I'd expect. [ She shrugs. ] But then again, I'm not too familiar with whatever this whole thing is.

Magic or whatever.

[ Vague hand gestures at everything. ]

[symbologic]

Mm...I am not sure that I would call it "magic" myself. Rather, it's almost as though this town has a certain...base state that it will always attempt to return to, no matter our collective actions upon it.

[He's sensing time bullshit and he's not sure he likes it. Because it isn't the logical, straightforward kind of time bullshit that goes with things like warp travel.]

tuesday afternoon

[crazily]

[ As Faize is practicing his swordsmanship, Break is out for a leisurely walk for fresh air. He prefers to stay closer to the hotel since it's a little more familiar for him, but even he gets cabin fever too. Though as he nears the chapel, his gait slows, and it instead turns into a smile of interest and amusement. He stops a short distance away, then speaks up with his eyes closed. It helps him concentrate on the sounds better, since he can at least create a picture in his mind of how Faize moves in his practice. ]

Ahh, that's right... You had swordsmanship listed as a skill, didn't you~?

[ How does Break know it's Faize without seeing him? That's a good question. ]

[symbologic]

[While he's normally a pretty focused guy, apparently that focus multiplies to an alarming degree when he's training. Faize didn't even hear Break until he spoke. But it's enough to get him to stop and turn to face the man, lowering his sword to his side.]

[Faize isn't exactly the quietest when he trains though so he's just assuming Break must have recognized his voice. Though...that doesn't explain why he's apparently walking around with his eyes closed? wtf dude. You're gonna trip and probably die, knowing murder town.]

Yes. I have been training with the sword for some time now. Though I'm sure it is no time at all compared to the the rest of you with sword skills. [Seriously, basically all of you except for Zelos are like super old immortals or whatever. Or straight up a sword. HE IS THE ODD ONE OUT.]

[crazily]

[ Break waves his hand (...Or really, more like sleeve, since his coat his quite oversized for him) in Faize's direction, and it seems to be an unspoken apology for interrupting. But for what's actually said, he just laughs, then shrugs. ]

Ahhh, don't discredit yourself so quickly! I'm hardly as spry as I used to be, and time, is... Well.

[ Another laugh, though this one comes as a shrug. ]

It's complicated for me anyways~. I'm still a normal man, though just one with unusual circumstances~.

Tuesday, early afternoon

[dhaosu]

[ Following a discussion, Dhaos had finally neared the chapel, and simply turned his attention to the other male, noticing the sword-play practice. ]

...Do you do this daily or perhaps is this a day for training all around?

[ He had seen someone doing something similar earlier, after all. ]

[symbologic]

[Fortunately, a backflip at just the right time means that Faize catches sight of Dhaos before he either a) gets startled by suddenly being addressed or b) has a tragic sword accident that ends in a dead body. Neither would be good.]

[He straightens up, sword remaining in his left hand but at his side instead of being returned to its sheathe.]

Every day that I am able! [So...Monday through Thursday. Save for last week where he skipped two days due to a terrible case of the sads.] Daily training is key to improving and maintaining one's skills. Though my routine has been a bit...disrupted here. I've had to start compensating for lost time.

[dhaosu]

[ Try not to start the trial early, Faize.

Dhaos briefly wonders how the other can be so energetic. He feels like the exact opposite. ]

I see... how practical, as long as you are not pushing too hard. Perhaps from time to time you should even have a sparring partner of sorts.

[ He'd suggest himself, but he doesn't have a blade and he is not sure if the other does hand to hand, considering. ]

monday ofc

[billarious]

I gotta say Hazelwood, that Earth one is probably my favorite so far. Don't you have three though?

[Sorry, you're getting tired? He had no idea.]

[symbologic]

[Even if the ground seals itself up seamlessly when the spike retreats, it still leaves evidence behind. Little rocks scattered here and there. Is that why it's your favorite, Bill? The rocks.]

Yes. Earth Glaive, Ice Needles, and Shadow Needles: my most basic symbols in each of the elements I am capable of using. [Ugh. Give him a minute though.] Just...allow me a moment and I can show you the last one.

[billarious]

[Well that and can you imagine what that'd do to someone standing over top of it?]

Shadow Needles? That sounds like it's probably the best of the three, even if I'm pretty partial to Earth Glaive. Take your time, it's not like I'm going anywhere!

wednesday, near the end

[minogame]

( It's not that Urashima's been watching for a long time but he has been watching for awhile. He's a sword spirit so it's only natural he'd be curious about other swords and styles and this is one he's never seen before. Ah, is this a western sword style? He wonders and he watches qith quiet fascination the entire time, not wanting to disturb Faize's training. Whenever Faize finishes, Urashima will give a small round of applause and start to skip over towards Faize, )

That was amazing!

[symbologic]

[It's pretty close to one of Earth's European fencing styles, but not quite exactly the same. Pretty sure kicks, back/front flips, and side rolls through mid-air aren't typically used in fencing. But apparently such moves are fair game on Eldar. And of course Faize has to practice those just as much as he does blade movements. Gotta stay limber and all!]

[What a good audience though. Faize didn't even realize he was there. His focus goes through the roof when it comes to swordplay, apparently. Does anything matter outside of his blade? Nope. Sure doesn't. So he looks momentarily shocked to hear applause as he sheathes his sword before turning to face Urashima. He looks oddly sheepish at the compliment. Probably because being complimented by a literal sword is kind of a huge deal for a swordsman.]

Thank you, Urashima. That means a lot, coming from one such as yourself. Have you been watching long?

[minogame]

( He's only a good audience because Faize isn't one of his brothers... Urashima would be all over screaming fight fight fight if Nagasone or Hachisuka were fighting right now (but ideally not against each other). )

Hm? ( He doesn't get what Faize means by "coming from yourself." As far as Urashima is concerned, even a basic fencing style would be cool and new to him. He's never seen it anything like it before and it's really fascinating to watch. And while he can remark on Japanese sword styles, he's hardly an authority here. ) Uh... maybe twenty minutes? I only saw the end.

Is that how everyone fights back home? I've never seen a style like that before.