suitedreams | WEEK ZERO: MINGLE

W̴͍̎E̴̝̊E̸͚͝K̸͕̿ ZERO: MINGLE

(35 ḡ̴̻u̷͌͜ê̴̯s̶̢͑t̵̻͝s̴̡̐ ̴c̴h̴e̶c̴k̷e̶d̸ ̶i̴n̴)

Needless to say, marble isn't exactly the most comfortable surface to sleep on. Do you even remember falling asleep? Maybe not, but the moment your eyes flutter open and the lingering stardust fades, you come into consciousness with the distinct feeling that your dreams were very important.

You vaguely remember a shadowed hand, the pen and the scroll in its grip as the terms and conditions glow softly before you. You can't quite remember the details, the words blurring and fading fasting the longer you try, but you come to a conclusion rather quickly:

-Someone you care about is in trouble and their life is now your responsibility.
-You have signed a contract to provide entertainment to the Host in exchange for their safe return.

Your other memories begin to settle now that you're more awake. You remember that this isn't the first time you've been swept away for a game by someone else's design. You remember what those games entailed, too, but as the pieces click together you get the sense that murdering everyone around you isn't a solution. It won't get your hostage back sooner. It will only end tragically for everyone involved.

So instead, perhaps it's time to take in your surroundings. Where the hell even are you now? The marble floor of the lobby is still cool to the touch, and the front desk is before you with several keys on hooks against the wall. Each of them includes a keychain with two small, clear star-shaped crystals embedded at the bottom. Too bad you can't seem to remove the keys just yet! Guest accommodations aren't quite ready.

Ah, right. About that. You aren't alone! After all, what's the fun in playing a game by yourself? Should one try to actually count the keys hanging on the wall, you'll find there are 35 in total. You can also learn more about them should you look at the leather-bound book bolted to the front desk. Though some of them may look a bit different, seeing how everyone gathered in the lobby is dressed to the nines. What happened to your other clothing? Worry not. You do want to be presentable at the front desk, don't you?

Speaking of the front desk, while you aren't able to retrieve your keys or even leave the ground floor right now, you will find small gift boxes scattered around the desk as a complementary gift for each guest. Inside these boxes, you will find:

-A flask. Those of legal drinking age will find it filled with a sweet wine, and those underage will find juice of some kind.
-A shaving kit
- A single aspirin
-A keychain
-A condolence card
-A sheet of temporary tattoos
-A small bag of jerky
-A compact mirror with a cute pattern on the outer casing

No other items are on your person even if you were holding onto them prior to your arrival. Perhaps the bellhop has already taken your luggage for you?

But despite the front desk hosting a small cluster of bells, ringing them doesn't seem to draw the attention of anyone. The bells cannot be removed from the desk, but the hotel staff appears to be occupied with other tasks.

It looks as though you're on your own for now until maintenance is finished. But it's just like the first time, isn't it? Get to know the other guests, start asking questions, and settle in for your stay.

You can check-out any time you like, but you can never leave...

N̸A̵V̴I̶G̶A̶T̴I̴O̸N̷.̷

█ LOCATIONS █ STATUSES █ PROFILES █ AUDIENCES
█ REPORTING █ PRIVATE CONVOS █ MURDER

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[as he keeps watching this happen]

Is that cathartic, at least?

…

[ DING ]

Less than I was hoping.

[gives him a sympathetic look]

Yeah, that's about what I thought. It was worth a try, though.

[ siiiiiiiiiiggggh. ]

Now it's just starting to annoy me as well. [ so..... he stops. ]

[squinting at the bell]

Maybe we can come back to it in a few days and see if it magically summons someone at that point. Or maybe it's one of those things we'll have to wait until the very end to use. Who knows?

If it was wait until the very end it'd be about seven floors up and behind a complicated final trial. There could be cannibal clams involved.

[he's about to answer until the cannibal clams, but then he pauses instead.]

Do... Do I want to know? I probably don't want to know, do I.

Cannibal clams is pretty self explanatory, I think.

[another pause.]

...You know, I was kind of wondering how it fit into the big picture, but on the small scale I do think I understand well enough to have no further questions. So. Moving on!

I'm not sure I know how they fit into the big picture other than "potentially threatening and trying to kill us", so. Moving on indeed.

Cannibal clams just happen sometimes, I guess.

[he's learning so many lessons today]

Preferable if they don't.

So, cannibal clams aside, this sort of situation isn't bold and new for you then.

[he nods.]

Yeah. Well, the part where I'm here... Actually, voluntarily isn't the exact word I'd use. [he is under duress!!] But, the whole contract thing is new. Last time I just showed up without agreeing to anything and then I was stuck there for a few months.

... [ hm. ] Oh, so you were kidnapped last time?

We signed up for a reason, initially. But it ended up being more than I think any of us expected. This time though, all coercion all the way down. I'm not so impressed.

Yeah. It was pretty annoying. We all got roped into a lot of nonsense out of nowhere.

[but anyways.]

Honestly, I'm kind of expecting this to be way more complicated than it seems at first glance, too. The whole hostage and entertainment thing is... I mean, it sounds really sketchy to you, too, right?

... It's been sketchy in every iteration, apparently. But this one they decided the whole thing wasn't personal enough.

Yeah. I get the feeling it's a lot more complicated than they explained, too... That's usually the way these things go, right?

[frowning.]

I expect the sponsors of this would find simple and easy-to-follow boring, and that doesn't make for good entertainment.

[ rich people. ]

[he thinks that over for a moment.]

You're guessing that there's a lot of people involved, then?

Or however many it takes to fund and run a hotel this fancy. Things like this are usually a group venture, or... I would assume.

I suppose it could be one very rich, very bored and very lonely person looking for a good time however.

[after another moment of thought, he just sighs.]

Funny. I kind of hate both of those options equally.

Oh, I never said they were good options.

Yeah. Just, you know. Stating my distaste for anyone who's listening and cares.

[which he's guessing is a very small number. et tu, hidden hotel staff...]

Shout it right at the ceiling, make sure they can't feign being deaf.

I feel like if I start yelling it's going to be really tempting not to stop.

(no subject)

ashenvaliant - 2022-06-04 21:16 (UTC) - Expand