WEE͠K ̸́4͝

[strangerpeople]

W҉͘E͜͠͝E̕K̡̛͡ ̡͟4̸

[The blight is all-consuming.

Within days dozens are confirmed infected, and you and your unexpected new scientist friend find yourselves trying to work on a cure. If not a cure, a stopgap of some kind. Anything to prevent this thing from destroying everything. It's hard work. It's not going very well. Really, it feels like with every step forward, you're taking ten steps back. Discouraging is an understatement, to say the least.

A week passes, and the death toll rises. It's really starting to look bleak. You constantly second-guess yourself, and even get into a fistfight with your new ally one night. It's getting to the point where you are working on fumes.

Then, unexpectedly, you get a phone call. It's been a long night, and the sun is beginning to rise above the mountains, when it happens.

You and the scientist are not the only ones looking for a cure. In fact, there are at least a dozen others-and they think they may be close to a breakthrough.

But-and you can't believe you're hearing this, after all of the failure you'd experienced throughout this blight-they need your help.]


---


[To say that the end of last week sucked would be an understatement. To say that no one knows what this week will bring is not even in question. Yet even as you wake, you feel a cloud lift from your mind, as one of the truths you've been living with since the beginning has suddenly changed.]




[But is it possible to abide by this new truth? The Hosts, and IT beyond, seem intent on making that impossible. And the rat...well. Obviously the rat's not an ally. Let's not kid ourselves.

There's only one way to find out if more deaths can truly be prevented-and that's to keep going, and hoping that the new floor that has opened up will offer something in the way of an opportunity.

In the meantime.


There are 11 strangers left in this place.]

Comments

[poorlovefool]

I just... wanted to see if there's people we know...

[Eric sighs, his hands tightening into fists.]

...He made it pretty easy to imagine what they'd do to me. If she's there, I want to know.

[katzenpfote]

[Caleb sighs, shoulders slumping as his voice softens.]

... If they are there, it might be better if you don't look.

[poorlovefool]

They... they're only clones, aren't they?

[katzenpfote]

That doesn't mean it wouldn't be easy to feel an emotional attachment to it and want to free it.

[poorlovefool]

Wait...! But you said they're monsters!

[illusionarymelody]

A clone is an exact duplicate. What that was isn't a clone, it was warped and definitely no longer a person. You should consider it dangerous and do not open those up. They should be strong enough to enclose the beings as long as no one releases them.

[relieable]

[he almost wants to jump out of his seat here and... jazz hands at Vita? because... yeah, clones are copies. this... other thing sounds scary!

he's got a bias about clones all right]

So we shouldn't open the... thing... Got it.

[poorlovefool]

[Eric makes eye contact with Osomatsu for a glance, wondering what he knows.]

Hmph... I never said I was going to open it anyway. I have eyes, you know.

[relieable]

[when their eyes meet, Osomatsu gulps and looks away quickly]

With all we've got goin' on right now, a weird thing like people-who-aren't-people-anymore is, like, the last thing we wanna deal with. Yanno? D-do we really want monsters chasing after us like in some movie?

[poorlovefool]

No. No we don't.

[they already used their Scooby Doo reference earlier]

[relieable]

[it's funny because he was totally thinking Scooby-Doo, and a monster chasing the whole lot of them through different doors]

...We could always go check it out, but we probably shouldn't do it alone.

[poorlovefool]

So do you wanna look too?

[Aha. That could be what that look of his meant, but... who knows!!]

[relieable]

...Honestly? Yeah. I do. It's scary but I think if a group of us go, maybe we can find out more information.

[poorlovefool]

Count me in then. I... I wonder if we can stop an execution that way.

[relieable]

[a small grin in Eric's direction now]

We can check it out tomorrow, maybe.

[unless the others think it's a bad idea. it probably is, letting the two squishy guys go]

[poorlovefool]

Works for me!

[well at least Osomatsu can turn into a scythe. Eric's out of luck if shit goes wrong though, maybe he better bring his crossbow just in case.]

[illusionarymelody]

[Hey, she doesn't mind clones. Altina and Millium are adorable and definitely their own unique people to her.]

At least not until we know more.