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

[unwittingking]

[He wishes they could just leave. Take that van and get the Hell out of here. But if there isn't anything they can do...]

I don't blame you. I'd want to see what's going on too.

Is...everyone there? In whatever afterlife you came from? Tali and Zack and Beatrice too?

[He needs to check.]

[whitemoontiger]

[ He blinked a bit before nodding. ]

Y-Yeah! I don't really see them a lot but they're there. Kinda hard to miss Zack since he's pretty loud and is always with Eliza.

[unwittingking]

Heh, yeah, I figured. Just wanted to check.

Is there...anything you need to know? About what's going on here? We've got some ideas, but...not sure how many are concrete.

[whitemoontiger]

Actually, I wouldn't mind if you can give a small rundown of what's going on here.

[ His shoulders fell a little, and he frowned slightly. ]

I might be able to help you out a bit with the extra information of what's been going on over where we are.

[unwittingking]

Alright, I'll tell you what I can.

Same thing as back on the train, except everyone here has gone through one like it. Mall, mansion, a base of some kind, a house in space, and some place that was like medieval times. Some of them got to bring their dead back. Others, like ours? Not so much.

Two hosts this time, both of them were apparently in one of these before too, and one of them I actually sort of recognize. Unlike the Conductor, though, I'm pretty sure they're brainwashed or mind-controlled or something. Either way, they're not really themselves.

We've been stuck in this place that looks like it's the 1950's or 60's. No idea why, but it just sort of...does.

The thing behind this may not actually have a name. The most we've gotten is calling the thing IT. Might be Pennywise if we're really unlucky. Got is from something in our dreams, I don't fully understand it.

There are two kids that are involved in this too. Charles and Meg. I don't know where either of them are, but if that vision meant anything, they're probably here somewhere, and they're probably in danger.

Also, don't trust the rat things. They're the worst genies and they're currently more or less planning on getting people in our worlds to make deals with them, and it'll eventually turn them into a murderous monster.

[He...thinks that's everything. Everything that the people who already died might not have told them, anyway. Hopefully it's useful?]

[whitemoontiger]

[ Atsushi nodded slowly, taking in everything the best he could, but it's the last part that got his attention the most, eyes widening a little. ]

You mean the Kyuubey's? They're where we are, too! One showed up not too long ago, and when one was attacked, two more showed up.

[ That was just so creepy. But since King shared, he figured he might as well share what information he can as well. ]

On our side, it's like... this dark void-like wasteland with bits and pieces of different places, including like... this old satellite, a store, a plane and some kinda high-school.

[ Atsushi gestured a bit, trying to explain everything the best he could but he didn't wanna get too long winded with all the explanations. ]

Not too long ago, this creepy little girl with blond hair and yellow eyes showed up and started making us do this thing called a Reaper's Game every week. Where she gives us these tasks to do and says if we don't do it in a certain amount of time, we'll be Erased.

[incendiarize]

[Charles. Meg. A girl fitting that description. Ohhh no...]

Rachel.

Charles is okay, King. I dunno about Meg. And IT isn't a wise penny or anything- I've seen IT and I know IT's true name.

[unwittingking]

You do?

[Well that's news to him too! Spill the details, Arthur!]

[incendiarize]

Yeah.... Charles told me. IT is part of a greater enemy, I think? And their "proper" name is the Echthroi.

[unwittingking]

Echthroi...

[He'd feel a shred of sympathy for the thing for having that as a name, if not for the obvious.]

Good to hear Charles is okay, but I have to ask, what about Meg? And...is there really more than IT?

[This is some good news, but it's also some concerning stuff to hear, and it raises some questions.]

[incendiarize]

I dunno, about Meg. I didn't get a chance to ask, and I didn't get a whole lot more information about IT. He had to send me back.

[Alas, he could only get so much.]

[unwittingking]

Alright. Get what you can, and don't get killed.

[Weird to steal that from a Cars movie, but it works here.]

You did what you could, so don't feel bad, okay?

[incendiarize]

He doesn't want me trying to reach him again, because it's not safe. But he said he'd try to send something.

[whitemoontiger]

Rachel? So... you know who she is??

[ That creepy girl sure as heck didn't look like a Rachel but hey what did he know? ]

You did? I suppose this IT thing is really scary, isn't it?

[incendiarize]

Yeah, she's the snake! She's-- She was in a murder mall with Charles and he told her too much and she's working with IT willingly and got BREW that way and she used that to go back in time in her own world and directly cause the events in the mansion!

[whitemoontiger]

W-What?! I didn't realize she was actually that powerful. I mean... not to that extent or anything.

[ He frowned a bit, though also looking thoughtful. ]

It makes me wonder now why she's been messing with us of the dead, putting us through those games of hers.

[incendiarize]

She must've been a witch, probably.... Not a witch like Emma or Eric, a witch like the spider-lady. Their souls are different.

....Charles didn't know what IT was doing with the dead, either.

[whitemoontiger]

I'd guess probably nothing good. Either way, we're all pretty tough so I'm sure we'll get through it and not cave in to whatever it is she wants from us.

[ He'd never met this guy before now but he seemed good enough, if not a bit worn down emotionally from what he could tell. ]

Same goes for you guys on this side. Don't give up.

[incendiarize]

....that's exactly what Charles said, too. "Probably nothing good" and "don't give up hope".

We can get through this.

[touchsensors]

Oyo!?

[HI GUESS WHO HASN'T BEEN AROUND FOR A REAPER'S GAME YET]

[whitemoontiger]

S-Sorry. I know you haven't been around long enough to know that and had to find out this way.

[touchsensors]

I don't want to die even more-lun!

[whitemoontiger]

The things she's had us doing aren't hard and as long as you find someone to pair up with, it's pretty easy. Nobody's died again because of it.

[ At least he's looking at things optimistically. ]

[touchsensors]

Don't say that like it's not a big deal-lun!

[whitemoontiger]

It is, but.. it's not like we can do much else other than fight back and win these games she puts on, right?