strangerpeople: (pic#11762777)
The Fifteen Strangers Mods ([personal profile] strangerpeople) wrote in [community profile] 15strangers2017-12-22 08:14 am

FINAL TRIAL

FINAL TRIAL


[Soon after the final clue it found, the large set of double doors at the end of the hall finally open.

And beyond is what Nyaf-ya calls the Room of Reckoning. And this room is...]






[...rather impressive. Large, for certain. Maybe a bit too large for the space it would have to occupy beneath the mall, or to have light streaming from the windows, all things considered. But given everything else that the surviving strangers have encountered, this might not be the strangest thing with this situation overall.

There is a wooden throne at the top of the staircase, and at the bottom of the staircase are four large, comfortable-looking sitting pillows - one green, one orchid, one gold, and one pink. The red pillars surrounding the staircase are also decorated with markings that definitely don't look like they fit the aesthetic of the room.

There are also two low hot pot induction cooker tables in the great hall area before the staircase. One table has six spots, all with sitting pillows, each with a name written onto a paper placed carefully on a plate. When everyone sits at their place, they will find that the stove in the center is already heated and ready to go, and every imaginable ingredient for a proper barbecue and hot pot meal is available to them for cooking. A pitcher of their favorite drink is also next to each respective cup.

And, once everyone finds their place, their phone pings with a message.]


Once you've figured everything out, the Boss....wants to talk to you. She doesn't want to fight. Not this time. Please, take your time, but please be careful, ok? The rules of the Game are still in effect.

We're rooting for you. I know you'll find a way!


[So it's time, then. The objectives are simple in this trial.

It's time to finally answer the questions the Titled have about why they are here - and face the Masterminds behind the Game.

Good luck, Titled.]
incrediblystressedout: (learned new information about dammek)

[personal profile] incrediblystressedout 2017-12-23 04:57 am (UTC)(link)
It seems to me like not specifying it was a trick, but you've caught me here without legal representation.

Why is this the Game you chose to make, though? How is all this killing and dying supposed to help us help you fight this Noise stuff?
bendwiththewind: (Thinking)

[personal profile] bendwiththewind 2017-12-23 04:58 am (UTC)(link)
Tell me then: what have you learned?
incrediblystressedout: (no pistols and a wink)

[personal profile] incrediblystressedout 2017-12-23 05:07 am (UTC)(link)
I...

[Hm. That's a good question.]

Well, the answer you're probably looking for is there's always some way to motivate someone to hurt someone else. And yeah, that's true.

I've also learned that some people will support you no matter what, or how crazy your ideas are. That there's a lot of other people out there with bigger problems than mine that I want to help. That magic is real.

I guess I've learned a lot.
beguiledcard: (listen to every word he's speakin')

[personal profile] beguiledcard 2017-12-23 05:13 am (UTC)(link)
[ OKAY JOEY THAT IS SUCH A GOOD ANSWER IN HIS OPINION??

He's gonna just... move over next to her and rest a hand on her shoulder. ]


Exactly. No matter how big or how impossible something looks, none of us are giving up. We've all got each other's backs here.
comesaround: (▷ just let me go)

[personal profile] comesaround 2017-12-23 05:21 am (UTC)(link)
Couldn't have said it better myself. Gonna stand strong whether you like it or not.

[ A nod of his head follows that, smiling softly as he looked over to the two of them. Impressed with Joey's choice of words there. ]
incrediblystressedout: (something nice actually happened)

[personal profile] incrediblystressedout 2017-12-23 06:31 am (UTC)(link)
[Well now she's just blushing at all the approval.]
theirmagic: (147)

[personal profile] theirmagic 2017-12-23 05:10 am (UTC)(link)
I think each of us learned something different, but... for me?

That when pushed to the brink, people do really cruel and unforgiving things. But... by that same token... strife can forge people into something more than they otherwise would have been, together. We were hurt at every turn. We lost people we cared about. We lost Loewe to get into this place...

[ Chariot sounds firm in her belief, also sorry Joey if she's stealing your thunder but she's been wanting to shout at this woman for awhile. ]

Alone, you are weak. But together, you are stronger. If your will is strong enough, you can endure. And... if enough people believe, then maybe they can fight something impossible.

But I'm an idealist. I've made no attempt to hide it. I believe in my friends. Dead, alive.
scienceofmagic: (pic#11896164)

[personal profile] scienceofmagic 2017-12-23 05:23 am (UTC)(link)
...That beating yourself up over the things you regret won't solve anything. And I'm guessing I threw myself at this recklessly in an attempt to atone for my own actions. I have to forgive myself because others will do the brow-beating for me. And that... No matter what, I'll have support and that I won't have to fight alone anymore. I've met so many people here that, even though I betrayed them, they still consider me one of them. And I'm not going to let that go.

[ She'll smile. And then, finally, she'll bring it up. ]

...You heard me when I was in your room, right? After the memory. ...I don't expect an answer. But I hope I gave you something to think about, with all of my actions in this game. Believing in yourself with all your heart is everyone's magic, after all.
Edited 2017-12-23 05:25 (UTC)
cyclicalconcept: (um...awe...some...erm)

[personal profile] cyclicalconcept 2017-12-23 04:58 am (UTC)(link)
[SHE JUST IS OVER HERE


LOOKING LEFT AND RIGHT


YEAH THIS DOESN'T SOUND FAMILIAR]
incrediblystressedout: (thrill 'em with daylight)

[personal profile] incrediblystressedout 2017-12-23 06:33 am (UTC)(link)
...now that I think about it, how did you get involved in all of this? It really doesn't seem like your style, now that we've met face-to-face.
cyclicalconcept: (I am awesome...ly confused)

[personal profile] cyclicalconcept 2017-12-23 06:59 am (UTC)(link)
Ah it's...complicated.

[She admittedly looks reluctant to explain. Because it's Joey.]

Are you sure you want to know?
incrediblystressedout: (learned new information about dammek)

[personal profile] incrediblystressedout 2017-12-23 07:03 am (UTC)(link)
Listen...I might be getting volunteered for the same thing, or a role very close to it. You look about my age, and sound like the kind of girl I've wanted to be like since I discovered cartoons. I think I need to know.
cyclicalconcept: (♕ a portal to awesome)

1/6

[personal profile] cyclicalconcept 2017-12-23 07:05 am (UTC)(link)
...All right.

[A deep breath. Then, a sharp headache that only lasts a second, and--]
cyclicalconcept: (♐ you must remember your awesome!)

[personal profile] cyclicalconcept 2017-12-23 07:05 am (UTC)(link)
"Madoka Kaname.

Make a contract with me, and become a magical girl!"


[The cat is saved. The cute black cat named Amy. And now, Madoka can use her bright Soul Gem to fight the creatures that curse human kind with negative feelings: the Witches. And the greatest Witch is the rotating monster known as Walpurgisnacht.

There is only one month to prepare. She does so with her newest fellow magical girl, fighting abominations beyond imagination within their labyrinths. She even meets a new student at her school: Homura Akemi.

Then Walpurginacht came. Madoka fought. She died to destroy the greatest Witch in the world.

That should have been the end of her story.]
cyclicalconcept: (♐ this is your awesome despair)

[personal profile] cyclicalconcept 2017-12-23 07:06 am (UTC)(link)
[But something happens that changes everything.

Homura Akemi makes a wish.]


"I want to redo my meeting with Madoka Kaname. But this time, instead of her protecting me, I want to protect her!"

[The month repeats. Madoka has still contracted, but this time, Homura is there to help her with her powers. They defeat Walpurgisnacht...and Madoka lives.

But this time...her Soul Gem turns black and changes. Her body dies, but her soul...fulfills its real purpose.

A magical girl doesn't just fight Witches, after all.

No.


They become - and are - the very thing which fills the world with curses...]
Edited 2017-12-23 07:06 (UTC)
cyclicalconcept: (THAT IS SO NOT AWESOME)

[personal profile] cyclicalconcept 2017-12-23 07:07 am (UTC)(link)
[...the month repeats as Homura goes back again.

Homura tries to warn the girls, now numbering five. She is not believed. The girls learn the truth, eventually, and one goes mad, killing all but two. Madoka is forced to end her life.

Walpurgisnacht is defeated, and Madoka is starting to turn into a Witch. She saved Homura, and is ended.

The month repeats. This time, Homura manages to prevent Madoka from contracting. She saves Amy. But then, Madoka eventually contracts. She becomes the Witch.

The month repeats. This time, Madoka contracts to save a girl from being killed by a Witch and dies in battle. The month repeats. Madoka contracts to save another girl from becoming a Witch. The month repeats.

Its an abnormal month, as another magical girl realizes the threat Madoka represents - the Witch Madoka becomes is taller than a building. She doesn't contract. But the girl kills Madoka. The month repeats.

Repeat. Homura is forced to reset after Madoka contracts. Repeat. The Witch is now taller than Everest. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat...]
cyclicalconcept: (♕ awesome runes of awesome)

[personal profile] cyclicalconcept 2017-12-23 07:08 am (UTC)(link)
"Congratulations, Homura Akemi. You have just created the most powerful Witch in the universe!"

[Karma now surrounds Madoka like fog. Universes depend on her wishing or not wishing, now. In this timeline, she could become a god if she so chose.

And despite Homura's efforts, she makes her wish.]


"I wish I had a power to erase Witches before they're born. Every single Witch from the past, present and future, everywhere!"

[Instantly, it happens. Madoka's wish is so powerful, so hopeful, that every girl who ever became a magical girl finds themselves visited by Madoka. Famous people, unknown people - all magical girls around Joey's age, like Madoka. All of their despair was taken in by what Madoka created.

Even Madoka's Witch, a being so powerful it could wipe out the universe. This new creation takes it away as well - and erases Madoka from known reality. Instead, there is a new layer of reality, a new concept, which shoulders this despair with supreme hope, beyond the physical universe. A place where magical girls are taken to heaven when their magic runs out.

This being is a Law.

And Madoka is forgotten...]
Edited 2017-12-23 07:11 (UTC)
cyclicalconcept: (♕ awesomely non-existent)

6/6

[personal profile] cyclicalconcept 2017-12-23 07:10 am (UTC)(link)
[...but Homura remembers. And begins to doubt. And the creatures that made the contract learn about the possibility of Witches.

Madoka tries to save Homura from her despair. Concocts a plan to personally go to Homura in her time of need. And, when she is saved from her Witch, she comes to conduct Homura personally into heaven...

and then Homura grabs her hands.]


"I finally...have you."

[Reality cracks. She cracks. She begs Homura to let go, but she just...holds...on...until finally.

She splits. Her hands disappear, for they were Madoka's hands, and Madoka is now in Homura's arms. All of Homura's curses suddenly pulse forward, enveloping the field, the world, the universe. Until everything is covered in a barrier.

All except the goddess created by the wish. She drifts as she feels her core in Homura's grip, suppressed and unable to reunite with her. The pieces of her that had gone down to help Homura are also trapped. She can only watch, now...and do nothing, for Homura's power comes from something she claims is stronger than all the hope in the universe. Keeping her out.

She has lost her hands. Her heart. Her purpose.

She is alone.

That loneliness still pervades as Joey finds herself back in the room, no time having passed.]
Edited 2017-12-23 07:13 (UTC)
incrediblystressedout: (i just saw the early 3D render of myself)

[personal profile] incrediblystressedout 2017-12-23 07:32 am (UTC)(link)
...

...

How...are you...

[She shakes her head. How she looks is one thing, but there's no icon for how she's feeling. Let's reach into the future of an alternate universe and borrow one from that aunt she's never met. There we go.]

How do you still exist after that?
beguiledcard: (mask of steel)

[personal profile] beguiledcard 2017-12-23 09:18 am (UTC)(link)
[ That's certainly a... reassuring reaction. ]

... I want to know as well, if you don't mind sharing with another person.

[ SHE LOOKS SO YOUNG, BUT SEEMS SO SAD??? He's genuinely concerned about her.

at least this wouldn't require six new comments ]
cyclicalconcept: (♐ this is your awesome despair)

[personal profile] cyclicalconcept 2017-12-23 06:50 pm (UTC)(link)
.....................


All right...

[The memories are now in Akira's head.]
beguiledcard: (er...)

[personal profile] beguiledcard 2017-12-23 08:07 pm (UTC)(link)
[ ... The sure is some open horror flashing onto his face for a moment, because...

Can he second Joey's question...? ]


You're officially the strongest person I know.
cyclicalconcept: (my awesome ring)

[personal profile] cyclicalconcept 2017-12-23 08:11 pm (UTC)(link)
Ah...that wasn't me. That was Madoka...
beguiledcard: (on a target like a missle)

[personal profile] beguiledcard 2017-12-23 11:49 pm (UTC)(link)
I mean that you're carrying that with you, and yet... you're still going. And, in spite of everything, you still seem to care about us...

[ He doesn't know Madoka. Well, technically, he doesn't know this girl, either? He just wants to try making a point. ]

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incrediblystressedout: (thrill 'em with daylight)

[personal profile] incrediblystressedout 2017-12-24 06:35 am (UTC)(link)
Maybe you're not Madoka, but you're still...part of her?

This whole souls-being-physical-and-divisible thing is really new to me, but it seems like you're parts of that girl-turned-god in your memories, and suffering just as much as any other part of her right now.

[Or something.]

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