15strangers | (no subject)

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[The blight would not stop.

The world's leading experts have been trying to find a cure, to no avail. Th blight keeps changing, keeps foiling all attempts at being fully understood. It's almost sentient, or at least more sentient than any disease that's been encountered before. People fear the disease jumping from what's left of the grapes into other plants, into animals, or even humans.

You can only watch as entire economies and ecosystems collapse. You can only bury your head in your hands as your own business comes to its end. The destruction of the clusters of grapes has not simply destroyed the wine industry, either-other businesses are being destroyed by the plague. Food, transport, retail, nothing is untouched.

You look on your own vineyard, its yield almost entirely blackened and dead.

This can't keep going on.

-

A week has passed since everyone's arrival. No one has died, yet. But surely no one is holding their breath to see if they would survive this unscathed. They are veterans of the game, and they must know that whoever it is that is in charge demands their pound of flesh. The question is when it will happen.

It is the second week, after all-and when the second week of the game comes, death is not far behind. Not even when you wake up, feeling something different in your mind as you remember the truths you originally woke up with, deep in your mind. You feel...lighter, somehow, when you realize there is a change.

Even so, there are 15 strangers left in this place.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[She actually is a reasonably decent person to anyone not named Akira or Ren. But anyway, she takes a quick look around and finds a length of rope in weapons storage. Thankfully since it's nice and thick, she can just ignore the implications of rope as a weapon since she has more of an issue with thin cords. Looks like it's nice and long enough to reach up to a roof. She comes back with it and Grianos flies up with one end.]

I hope you can climb well because I couldn't find a ladder. If not, I can try to find Jonathan and see if he can help you down.

I think I can manage it! [Think is the keyword here, but first he's gotta attach this rope to something, he doesn't think a bird beak is going to be sufficient. He carefully reaches toward Grianos to try and get it from him.]

Here boy... [he just mumbles this on reflex, he's got a dog.]

[Lucky for Eric, Grianos has been around humans enough to have a decent amount of understanding of human language and actually understands the general idea of what Eric is asking even if he's not a dog. He flies a bit closer holding the rope and drops it near Eric.]

Well, at least you got the fact that he's male right.

[She'll explain about familiars once Eric is safely on solid ground again.]

[How convenient! Even if he ducked a little at being flied at, but now he has the rope]

Lucky guess, haha.

[He's shuffling around on the roof now. These Lustron homes all have a little chimney, so that's what he decides to tie a knot around. And tugging to make sure it's secure, and then making sure there's enough room to get down... good enough, probably.

His technique for doing so is very gym class, but at least he seems to have attended one.]

[Well he's doing better than Vita who has never attended a gym class because they don't have that in Sunday School, especially not in a remote village like hers that would only hold lessons rarely. Mostly the witches were taught by the Elder and their fellow witches.]

I'm just glad I did teach him commands that work without magic. He's actually my familiar.

Oh, really? Kind of like the power of the 'outcast' then, I guess.

[he got used to this when Farkas had it, although this could be something different-ish.]

A bit different. That power seems to summon a familiar, but ours stay with us for a long time and are created by our elder when we're young. Though since we lose our powers here, Grianos is more like a very well trained pet bird.

Oh, I get it. If he's been with you that long then he's practically family.

[And considering some of her family. Yeah, it's a lot like being family.]

Oh it doesn't even always take that long. Jonathan's family has gladly taken him in and spoiled him rotten. Still, I'm glad he can be useful even without powers.

Haha, right.

Well, thanks, Grianos!

[Grianos looks at Eric expectantly. You have food, right? Good food? Poor bird is not happy about the lack of sweets.]

He appreciates your thanks and I'm glad you got down safely. May I ask if the other items I saw were from the vending machine then?

Oh, yeah. I mean, I could always get more socks at the dressing room, so I had to at least give it a shot.

[...he actually does have some scones. might as well give a few to Grianos, not like he'd enjoy them much when they're all sandy]

[Grianos will still munch on them. He may be confused about things tasting yucky but won't refuse food.]

May I have the fan then? That's actually mine.

[eric chuckles, just watching the birdie eat scones. this is definitely a better use for them at the moment.]

I don't have any use for something like that, anyway.

[She'll pick it up and unfold it and wave it a bit to make sure it's not broken and is that glitter that just came out? Sorry Eric, she just got some blue glitter on your porch and herself.]

How did they even get the one I left at the Base? It's just an imitation of the one from home.

[She'll fold it back up and tuck it away though. While she did grab a bladed fan from the weapons storage, she'd much rather have the one she knows well and trained with, or similar enough to it in this case. That and she can think of some fun uses for the glitter.]

Huh, really? Well... at least it isn't microscopic still, right? Ahaha...

[it's a little annoying that his porch basically got glitterbombed but she helped him so he won't complain. there's gotta be a broom in the closet somewhere.]

[Tape probably would be better as she well knows.]

Well, neither am I. The glitter was just a special addition it got there and I was happy to be rid of it. It was constantly getting all over me.