Arc 3: Canon Z-2: Traitors Among Us

[Zeich Yajuu]

Name: Arc 3: Canon Z-2: Traitors Among Us

Participants: 3 RPCs, Human World Dwellers Only. Classes 4-2 recommended. No reservations.

Location: Unknown

Difficulty Level: Medium-Hard

Setting: DE

Plotline:
While in Soul Society, the threat of rebellion runs rampant like a virus spreading among its inhabitants, something strange is happening in the World of the Living. Political leaders across the world are simply disappearing without a trace, only to reappear less than a week later. They show no memory of their disappearance, and indeed insist no such thing happened. But something has changed, something alarming. Each of the individuals who have disappeared has taken on a new creed. Whether or not they were spiritually aware before, they all now have knowledge of the spiritual world, and the Spirit King at the head of it. While their normal daily activities do not change, on the side many of them are leading rallies against the Spirit King, claiming that He had usurped the throne of an unknown individual known as the Martyr. While this activity is strictly under the radar, several organizations have caught wind of it, and are becoming alarmed at the frenzy that it is creating. Ordinary citizens by day may become vicious protesters in private. Normally the issue would be moot; what can normal people do against the lord of the spiritual cycle?

But then there's more to it. These organizations are becoming wide-spread, much like a cult. Thousands have already joined, and it seems like it may be tens of thousands soon enough. This odd fanaticism has been spreading like wildfire, and it has no specific demographic, affecting men and women of all ages and origins. There's no rhyme or reason to it, just that it is spreading at an alarmingly fast rate. While it seems like a harmless organization, something about it is strange, and thus, individuals are sent in or choose to go of their own will to investigate these leaders and what caused them to change. However, the story does not stop there.

These agents, sent out, all began to converge on the same point: each of these men who had “disappeared” had been abducted, and often, their immediate subordinates were behind them. Each subordinate responsible bore a unique tattoo, one of an upside-down cross entwined in thorns. This tattoo is a strong link to whatever may be behind these changes, and that is what the individuals aim to look further into. However, as they started drawing close to their target, one by one the searchers disappeared, captured in a number of ways. But one thing is the same about each disappearance; these individuals were heavily undercover, and there were few that would know of their actions. Yet each disappearance was precisely and meticulously planned, suggesting a traitor. You may not know who, but there is someone around you who betrayed you, and this has led to your capture.

Now, you awaken in a strange metal room, your head fuzzy and your body heavy, a single metal band on your wrist. All you know now is that you must escape by any means possible. Maybe you'll find your traitor along the way. Maybe you'll discover the answer you were searching for. But one thing is for certain: you must escape, or you will certainly die.

Estimated Enemy Strength: Class 4-1

Estimated Time Until Completion: 5-6 Pages

Starts: After the GM Post

Special Conditions:

• Immediately upon starting the thread, all participants wake up with a metal wristband attached around their left wrist. It looks like nothing more than a watch, but it has no clasps to hold it in place, the band completely solid and without breaks. This cannot be removed. Additionally, all stats are reduced to 50 (or lower, if they are below that), Releases cannot be used, and techniques cannot be used. Items also cannot be used. Basically, think average as average gets, at least at the start.
• Participants are given no more than a week between individual posts; if it is your turn in the turn order and it has been at least one week since the last post, then you will be given a strike. Three strikes, and you are removed from the canon.

[Zeich Yajuu]

Each of those captured wake up in their own small, dimly-lit room, large enough to maybe be an elevator car. Indeed, a door with a panel next to it is not far off, though pressing the buttons does nothing. Each realized that their body feels heavy, their head is still spinning, and above all, they feel as though they've been asleep for hours, their limbs and back stiff. Slowly the room comes into focus, and those captured start to be able to push themselves up onto their feet. After a few moments, thoughts become a bit more coherent, though the weighty feeling of their bodies doesn't seem to decrease, sort of like every muscle is still asleep and not fully functioning. It's a slow process, but slowly, each individual begins to recover from whatever had knocked them out.

Another look around reveals to the kidnapped that they are indeed in an elevator, stark metal boxes with little in the way of interior. The doors themselves are locked, and any attempt to open them is futile; perhaps it is the heavy feeling in their limbs, but even those individuals possessing amazing strength find themselves unable to make any progress. Mashing of the elevator buttons does nothing, and soon it's proven that there's nothing to do but wait for the moment. There's a screen above the elevator panel, almost like a small television, but it doesn't seem to function, and there's no knobs or handle to turn it on. After a few minutes, it's obvious that the individuals were left there to gain a sense of powerlessness, to realize that there was nothing they could do except wait for their captor's action.

In the meantime, one more thing becomes noticeable. On each participant's left arm was a small metal band wrapped all the way around the wrist, with a watch-like face at the top. It was no watch, though, unless it was 3 o'clock on the dot, as there was simply a large number “3” in the middle of the face in analog. Below that was the word “LOCK” with ten small boxes beneath it. The “watches” did not seem to come off at all; there was no visible clasp that could be undone, nor were there any signs of fastenings or some way to hold them together. The bands were simply solid, and no amount of effort would remove the watch from the wearer's wrist. Yet another symbol of futility, it seemed; but what did that 3 mean?

Fortunately there would not be much longer to contemplate questions. A click was heard, and those captured would see the screen above the elevator panel light up. On the screen, a symbol appeared; just like the tattoos that had been investigated, it was an upside-down cross with thorns wrapped around it, the symbol of the individual or organization that was the cause of the growing unrest in the world. A voice would follow a moment later, run through a voice masker to hide the identity of the individual on the other side. It was a harsh, mechanical sound as it spoke, the robotic voice clearly at odds with the almost playful tone that the speaker addressed them with.

“Greetings, participants, and welcome to my game!” A game? What sort of twisted game kidnapped its individuals and trapped them like so? “Oh, don't frown at me, children, we're just going to have a little fun! I'll even tell you who I am.” The sound of a clearing throat could be heard before the voice continued. “My name is Cross, and I am... sort of a recruiter. What do I recruit for? Why, I induct people into His faith, and teach them of the great one who gave his life for us so that we may be spared dark oblivion. He who is the True Soul King, instead of the Usurper that currently rests on the throne! Impure beings like all of you can simply refer to him as “the Martyr,” in respect for the sacrifice he made for you!”

It would be at this point that the prisoners would realize that they were not alone. Though they were trapped in individual rooms, Cross's use of the phrase “all of you” suggested that the recording was being sent to multiple individuals. It seemed that there were a number of prisoners in this place; information that might be useful another time. But there was little time to consider, as Cross started to speak once more. “I'm going to tell you a bit about this game, and then I'll be opening your doors so you can meet the other participants. How does that sound? Liberating? Exciting? I hope so! Free as a bird, and able to move around as you choose? Not quite! You'll be within my compound for the duration of this game, and until someone wins it, you all will remain here!”

“Now, the game is simple. Your goal, as participants, is to pass through this door!” The screen flashed, and a large door with a large “30” in bright white was visible. “Getting through is easy, too! All you need is the proper amount of points! If you look at your watch, you will see a number on there. Everyone want to tell me what their number is?” There was a brief pause, like a show waiting for input from a child audience. “That's right, it's three! Three is your lucky number today! Now, that is how many points you currently have. Your goal is to get up to thirty points to unlock the door shown in the picture here so that you may make your way to freedom! 'But wait, Cross,' you might ask, 'I only have a tenth of the points needed! Won't it take me a long time to get through the door? Not so, my friends! Because it's not just you who can contribute points. Any player may contribute points, and once the total contributed reaches thirty or higher, the door opens for a total duration of one minute. After that, it shuts, and it will Never. Ever. Open again.” Cross put particular emphasis on that final line.

“Now, you may ask, 'So Cross, how do I get points?' Well, that's easy too! I'll be explaining that in a few minutes though, once you've had chance to meet your fellow players. But let me leave you with a note of warning; this is not a game in which you will be friends. No, this is a game of betrayal, where only those willing to stoop to any length will survive for long. Keep that in mind as you exit the elevator, and you may yet make it to your freedom! So, any questions? And note that each individual is only hearing their own questions and answers; if you want to share information, you'll have to do so yourself! Anyway, one question each... go!” There was a silence then, and each individual would have a chance to ask a single question. Perhaps they wanted to know the purpose of why they had been kidnapped for this game, or maybe they wanted to ask about the rules. Nonetheless, they would have that chance, and they would have to make it count. A game of betrayal awaited them, and who knew what would come their way shortly?

[Deleted]

Vannan's eyes slowly opened up, his gaze was fogged and he felt as if he was waking up drunk. His entire body was sluggish. From what he could tell he was sitting down in a corner hugging the side of a cold metal wall to keep upright. “Oh god.... the hell did I do last night....”. Leaning his head back a bit he looked up to see that the roof of the place he was in was metal with a few lights shining down from above. Blinking his eyes repeatedly his vision started to clear up a bit more. His head was still foggy though, unable to form thoughts in his head.

He slumped his head back down to face the ground. “I need to get up off the ground.” Placing both hands on the ground he pushed up while pulling his legs towards him. As he slowly lifted himself up off the ground he noticed something on his wrist. At first he didn't pay too much attention to it, right now his main goal was to stand up and figure out where he was and what had happened. Finally standing up he was still in the corner using it to keep him from falling back down to the ground. Standing he felt a bit better, but he still felt groggy.

“Ok I’m up now where am I?” Looking around he saw that he was what looked to be a small metal elevator. Looking down he didn't see any blood on his clothing nor any signs of a fight. “Good I wasn't on a mission... so I guess it was just a party night.” His assumption that maybe he had partied too hard last night and ended up passing out here before he could get to where he was going was going to be shattered as he saw once more the metal band on his wrist. It was smooth and silver with the number three on it. As he moved his wrist he noticed that it didn't have a way to attach it to it's self. While he did like wearing rings and the necklace his sister gave him this silver metal band with a three on it wasn't to his taste at all. He gripped it with his hand and pulled on it, trying to remove it from his wrist, but it wouldn't budge at all.

Before too many questions could be asked a voice came on and started to speak, it was robotic and stated that they were going to take part in a game. A frown appeared on his face as he heard this. God damn it how many times am I going to be kidnapped or forced to play a game for someone's amusement. I swear this happens way too often. Last time I had to deal with fucking zombies.... He listened to everything the voice had to say and even scoffed at the little speech it said about how they had a true spirit king, all of this sounded a lot like the Vandenreich before the death of Der Kaiser, which made him feel sick. Here he was in a twisted game all because of someone was blindly following another false god.

The rules of the game weren't given however there was a clear message, if they messed up they would end up trapped here forever that wasn't exactly something he wanted to happen. What shocked him was that the voice was going to allow them to ask a question, Vannan had one in mind, one thing that had been bugging him since he woke up and learned about this game he was going to be forced to play. “What's the point of this game?” Vannan would listen to the answer and silently walk out of the elevator to see who awaited him. A smile was on his face and he appeared to be friendly towards everyone, but in the end he knew that he had one goal for this game and that was to get out alive.

SPOILER: Click to show

☣ [Stealth ] [2]
☣ [Archery] [2]
☣ [Acting] [2]
☣ [Sex] [2]
☣ [Focused Eye] [2]
☣ [Strength of will] [2]
☣ [Battle analysis] [2]

[Kazura Uzaki]

The last few months had gone by in a blur for Kazura. He had been caught up in a massive tabloid scandal. Paparazzi had accused him of being too buddy buddy with his chief of Security, apparently a huge no no for big business owners. Sure, the President of the United States could get away with actually being inside many of his staff members, but for just a hint of something between him and his staff, the pop culture industry exploded with outrage against Kazura. He had to work for months to sort through hate mail, press interviews, and other craziness just to clear his name. He even had to publicly fire Yoko, who had suggested the course of action in the first place. Even at the end, she had been loyal to him... She would be missed...

In the whirlwind following the loss of her great asset to the company, Kazura had to hire multiple contractors to finish her security installments, as well as a new chief of security and other underlings who were needed to do the job that just Yoko had been doing previously. In the process, he must have hired a traitor. A backstabber. A cultist. That was the only possible cause that the CEO could come up with for why his head was aching as he was stuck in this elevator. His mind was hazy, which sucked, because he felt so... human, again. He had risen to heights he never could have dreamed of, sharpened his mind to the point where he could analyze things in a heart beat... and now he had fallen back to what he had been before.

Had it all been just a dream?

The announcement of Cross had jolted him back to reality. The true reality. Yes, the last few years had happened. He was just under the spell of a madman. Or something. Definitely a cultist. This game that he had created was a game of betrayal. Kazura groaned inside. His conscience was just... too strong to betray someone in cold blood. But if he didn't... he would lose, and be stuck... wherever he was... forever. In an attempt to analyze what Cross said for clues, he waited patiently until the speech was over, trying to hold all of the words in his memory so he could chew on it for longer than it usually took. When he did get a chance to ask a question, he had to think for a moment what the best question would be. Cross had already stated that he was going to explain the point system in a moment, so that was off the table. Thus, there was only really one option that made sense.

"Is there only the one way out?"

SPOILER: Click to show

{Skills, because Stats don't matter apparently}

Abilities

• [Analysis] {2}
  
  
• [Learning] {2}
  
  
• [Strength of Will] {3}
  
  
• [Crafting/Forging] {3}
  
  
• [Krav Maga] {2}
  
  
• [Jujutsu] {2}
  
  
• [Stealth] {2}
  

Total SKP: 16

[Deleted]

It was like a dream, almost too good to actually be real. He sighed, resting his head atop his arm, being supported by the pillow underneath. His other arm wrapped around the body of the woman beside him, his skin against hers. He closed those tired eyes of his; a smile of contentment adorned his face. Her white hair hid most of the features of her face, save for that precious mouth of hers. The sounds of the beach were heard from the open patio door, their vacation together having just gotten underway. Soft sunlight streaked through the glass, illuminating them and the bed they lay upon. "It's quiet here, isn't it?" He asked, her answer coming to him from those lips. He smiled as he turned his head to face her, adjusting his position so that his formerly head supporting arm wrapped around the other portion of her body and pulling her into a tight hug. "I think...we can stay here for awhile. Together, just the two of us...what do you say?" He asked, closing his eyes with a smile as he dug his face into the top of her head. The scent of her hair filling his nostrils, as he felt an emotion he hadn't felt in such a long time.

But as he lay there, holding onto the woman he loved, he began to see brief flashed. Red and black, red and black, like a strobe light the images flashed behind his eye lids. Screams, wails, moans, and crying. Gnashing of teeth, pulling of skin. He heard their wails, their screams. The Africans screamed, their bodies torn apart by the growing abominations inside them. The gunfire, Pavels roars, the scream of jets, the song of the skull, the quake of the firebombing and the heat of the fire. The wound on his arm burned the place where he had been bitten, momentarily infected with that same plague before Pavel ripped the Saika apart. He grit his teeth, eyes being thrust open to free himself of the terrors. But what he saw was no escape.

The room set ablaze, the ocean outside was colored red as if blood. The screams were ever present, ripping into his head as if from everywhere. He looked down, attempting to find comfort in her, to escape this nightmare. As he reached down for her she rose like a striking cobra, that pale arm running him through from chest to back. The pain was real, excruciating. He grabbed at her arm, desperate to free himself and escape. But when he saw her face he froze. The face of the woman who had set down this path stared back at him. Her face burned with anger, with hatred, with the very flames of the pit themselves. She grinned, her cheeks stretching back as her head began to turn. Her body exploded open, transforming into the maw of some abomination. Flaps of meat and teeth opened up to a chasm within her, black chains shooting out from the very pit and piercing into his body. The hooked tips grabbed into his skin, the heated metal burning him with such pain that the man let out a cry. He felt a tug, small at first, only to pulled straight into the abominations maw. Her laughter, no, both of their laughter he heard followed by a voice. A voice he had heard many times before.

"YOU ARE OURS!!"

With a jump he awoke, kicking against the cold floor as he backed himself into a corner. Panting heavily, he noticed the fuzzy feeling in his head followed by the heaviness of his body. Calming down a bit he surveyed his surroundings and immediately almost began to panic again. He was in a room, that much he could tell, but it was a room he hadn't been in before. No, his last memory was....reviewing the information for a job related to Nevada. Where was he? His breathing slowed down, calmness replacing panic as he continued to survey the room. My body...I was drugged.." He concluded, recognizing the symptoms and looking over his exposed arms and feeling his neck for a puncture wound. He then noticed his attire, having been stripped of his suit and replaced with a gray tank top and sweat pants. No shoes, he noticed, but was instead given some sort of wrist wear. Whatever, that came next.

Slowly getting to his feet, Zack realized that this wasn't a room he was standing in per say. Rather, considering the shape of the doors before him Zack came to the conclusion this was an elevator. Was he currently being suspended? Why was he here? Wasn't Xcutions escaping training done with? He placed one hand over his eye, focusing his vision for a moment as...something just didn't feel quite right. Was his vision always this low quality? No, normally it was much sharper. Hearing, scents, even touching his skin felt off. Taking a shaky step forward and resting a hand on the wall, Zack noticed the lack of sword shaped charm that was always worn on his wrist. Morgans charm! What had happened to it?

With a scowl he stepped forward and pressed himself into the door, trying to dig his fingers between the crack and pull them open. With a grunt and two pulls, he pushed back from the door. Either he wasn't as strong as he thought, or that elevator was locked. Whatever, Zack had other methods to escape. Following a look at his hand, the Assassin quickly placed his palm against the cool metal. Focusing, he commanded the souls of the door to open themselves. After a moment of unresponsiveness, he pressed his palm in again and tried once more. Same results. Something was wrong. Pulling his hand back and looking up he noticed the screen over the door, and finally looked down at the watch on his wrist. Three? what did it mean?

The audible click, though, caught his attention and prompted him to turn his gaze towards the illuminated screen. It was then that the symbol appeared one that Zack memorized instantly. “Greetings, participants, and welcome to my game!” Oh fuck off Jigsaw. “Oh, don't frown at me, children, we're just going to have a little fun! I'll even tell you who I am.” James Wan is going to sue somebody. “My name is Cross, and I am... sort of a recruiter. What do I recruit for? Why, I induct people into His faith, and teach them of the great one who gave his life for us so that we may be spared dark oblivion. He who is the True Soul King, instead of the Usurper that currently rests on the throne! Impure beings like all of you can simply refer to him as “the Martyr,” in respect for the sacrifice he made for you!”

Zack narrowed his eyes, taking in the information. “Now, the game is simple. Your goal, as participants, is to pass through this door!” The screen flashed, the number "30" appearing on it. Zack blinked, looking from his watch to the screen. “Getting through is easy, too! All you need is the proper amount of points! If you look at your watch, you will see a number on there. Everyone want to tell me what their number is?” You had to be kidding. Zack quietly listened to the rest of Cross's dialogue, inspecting the watch on his arm and finding no way of getting the device on or off. If only he had Sting. " Any player may contribute points, and once the total contributed reaches thirty or higher, the door opens for a total duration of one minute. After that, it shuts, and it will Never. Ever. Open again.” Cross put particular emphasis on that final line.

“Now, you may ask, 'So Cross, how do I get points?' Well, that's easy too! I'll be explaining that in a few minutes though, once you've had chance to meet your fellow players. But let me leave you with a note of warning; this is not a game in which you will be friends. No, this is a game of betrayal, where only those willing to stoop to any length will survive for long." That made Zack pause for a second, those dark gray eyes narrowing just slightly. Anyway, one question each... go!” Zack remained crouched there, hand on the watch as the option was presented. One question, huh? This Cross had managed to not only catch Zack on the wrong side of the bed, but also managed to irritate him by playing out a scene in one of Zacks most hated movies. Dark gray eyes locked onto the screen, a scowl painted across Zacks features. Slowly standing up, barefoot against the cold steel below him, Zack asked his question.

"You understand I'm going to kill you, right?"

SPOILER: Click to show

{Skills}

Skills

• [Stealth] {3}
  
  
• [Weapons: Knives] {2}
  
  
• [Weapons: Firearms] {3}
  
  
• [Movement] {2}
  
  
• [Acting] {2}
  
  
• [Calm Mind] {2}
  
  
• [Battle Analysis] {3}
  
  

Total SKP: 17

[Zeich Yajuu]

Three participants had asked questions, and three answers would quickly be given. The first answer would be for Vannan, who had asked a simple and straightforward question: “What is the point of this game?” Of course, the others were asking their questions too, but Vannan had no way of knowing that. He would only know what was going on inside of his box for the moment. Fortunately, Cross was more than eager to answer, almost childish in his response. “Oh, what a lovely question, sir! Wonderful, wonderful indeed! I'm so glad you asked! The point of this game is simple: to display to each of you the worth—or rather, the lack thereof—of your companions, and to highlight humanity's greatest trait: its willingness to betray one another! Why do people betray one another? Because you are human! To sin, to err, to betray is human, hahaha!”

Kazura's answer would be next, though it would come about thirty seconds after the man asked his question. Was there a delay because Cross was hiding something, or because he was replying to someone else? Truth be told, he was talking to Vannan at the moment, but there was no way of knowing it. Instead, Kazura would have to wait patiently for his answer, likely even wondering if one would come. Fortunately, it did, though the reply was rather short. “Nope!” Well, it was straightforward at least; it seemed that the only way out was the 30-point door, though whether that would truly be an escape or not was a question to be had later. For now, it seemed as though the captives would have to play the game.

That short answer was followed up by a similar one, though this answer was for Zack, the image on the screen chasing to an almost adorably cartoonish fox sticking his tongue out at the grumpy assassin. “Nyaaaaah~” It seemed as though Cross was completely unfazed by Zack's threat, and was more than happy to return it with his usual childishness. Threats would get nowhere; they would have to act, rather than talk. And given the assassin's personality right now, he would likely be more than happy to act. A game of betrayal would likely be right up his ally.

“Well now, time's up, participants!” Cross's voice would pop up again, cheerful as ever. “I'm gonna open up your rooms now, and you'll be free to step outside and meet one another! Be sure to play nice, act friendly, and remember: each and every one of you will betray one another by the end of this game! Have fun!” The speaker cut out, and with a slow hum, the elevator doors would begin to open. The room beyond was moderately lit, but not enough to cause anyone to avert their eyes. Indeed, all of them would be able to get a view of their confines before the doors were all the way open, and they would get a better look around once they stepped outside the elevator.

Well, what they had thought was an elevator, at least. Indeed, each of the rooms that each of them, along with five others, had exited looked like an elevator car, but there was one problem; they were just sitting in the middle of an enormous room, not attached to any cables or set into a shaft to rise or descend. They were mock elevators, nothing more. The room that they sat in was massive; the ceiling had to be at least a hundred feet up, and to walk from one end of the room to the other would take at least a few minutes. A small building could easily be kept in the empty space, with room to spare. Their “elevators” were sitting at one end of the room, and at the far end of the room was an enormous barred door. Two more doors sat off to their right, both with no apparent handle or knob on them, but an electronic screen sat to either side of them. Perhaps they were the way forward?

“Stop!” Even as the captives stepped out of their rooms, Cross's voice piped up again. “I decided that I want to make introductions! It's the host's job, or something like that!” Suddenly, the door behind Vannan shut, and everyone would turn to look at the man. “Ah good, you all aren't too simple to pay attention to who I'm talking about! This fellow here is Vannan Harper, and let me tell you, his personality is just plain nuclear!” Cross giggled to himself as the next door closed, this time behind a tall, sturdily-built man wearing a pair of black glasses over his eyes. He was the only one who had not looked around, and seemed relatively unfazed. “This guy here is called Reyard, and you see... well, I guess you don't, do you, Reyard?” So, the man was blind; that would explain the glasses.

The next door shut behind a younger woman, maybe eighteen years old. She was dressed very modestly, and was fiddling with a cross necklace between her hands even as she looked around, clearly very nervous. “Oh come now, Sister Beatrice, no need to be shy! Your precious Soul King is watching over you, isn't he?” Clearly she was a nun or similar, and part of the Spiritual Sect, a fairly well-known religion throughout the spiritual world. They were devoted to the Soul King, treating him much like Christians view their own God. But more on that would have to wait; the next door was closing, and this one was Kazura's. “Kazura Uzaki, CEO of Uzaki Enterprises and quite skilled in craftsmanship; sadly, I don't think you can invent a solution to escape this game, sir!”

The next to be introduced, surprisingly, was a child of perhaps thirteen years old. It was a young boy, yet despite his age, he seemed more interested in his surroundings than scared. Perhaps it was just the way of youth to be more adaptable to the situation, but it was still strange to see a child here. “This game has no minimum age, so I thought I would invite Iian Hearthen to join us and add a little youth to the group! His enthusiasm will be contagious, I hope!” Next behind him was a mysterious woman, one who wore a skin-tight leather suit from head to toe, but her face was covered in an unusual mask. It was a headpiece that reached from chin to the top of her head, leaving her face partially exposed. A glass visor covered her eyes, opaque to all looking at it, and her mouth was covered over by a metal band that wrapped around from one cheek to the other. A few locks of dark black hair trailed down her face, as well. “An enigma of unknown age, name, or personality, the mysterious A!” A single letter was the only designation the woman was given; one had to wonder at her purpose there.

The seventh door let out another individual dressed very similarly to A, though he was clearly masculine. Taller and sturdier than his companion, this new arrival was only a bit shorter than Reyard was, and just as heavily built, with broad shoulders and a muscular frame. His suit was less leather and more metal, however, seeming almost like armor despite its form-fitting nature. “We have our beginnings in A, now here's our enigmatic end; you may call him Z! At least, that's what I'm going to call him.” Z was another unusual prospect in that his name was but a single letter; who were these two people? They could ask in a moment, however, as the final door shut behind Zack. “And here we have the cool, calculated, and deadly assassin... Mr. Grumpypants! You all can call him that, really. I love to see him scowl.” Clearly Cross was having his fun after being threatened earlier.

“We have eight participants now, and each of you will get to meet one another in just a moment! But first, more rules! Yes, yes, groan, but games have rules, and you'll have to hear them eventually anyway! Besides, this is about points; I'm sure you all want to know about those, yes?” Suddenly all attention was on Cross's words; after all, they would have to figure out how to increase their points if they wanted to earn their freedom! “Ladies and gentlemen, please turn your attention to the podium rising from the ground, if you would.” Indeed, a short distance off, a small podium was rising up from an opening in the floor. On the podium was a flat screen with a single digital button on it marked “Touch Here to Start.”

“This here is the Betrayal Machine! Fancy name, isn't it?” Cross continued as the group started to approach, explaining how things worked. “Here is where bestest friends will be made... and bitterest betrayals. How exciting, right? For example's sake we'll have a quick fake vote. Iian, if you would step forward and press the button, you certainly seem to have a lot of enthusiam!” Without missing a beat, the young boy stepped up and pressed the button on the screen, causing the words to fade out and be replaced by two more: “Trust” and “Betray.” Suddenly, they were all reminded that this was a game of betrayal; was this where their choice to do so would be made?

“Here we have a very simple game. You will be partnered up with one of the random individuals you have met here today for a various challenge. Before the challenge starts, you will each be allowed to vote. “What does this vote do”, you might ask? Well, it's simple; voting earns you points! But it's a competition too, and this is where I expect many of you to betray one another. Let me explain briefly. If both players pick “Trust,” then they'll be the bestest of friends and both earn two points. Everyone is happy, and we move forward towards our goal. However, if one player picks “Trust” and the other picks “Betray,” that's where things get interesting! The traitor earns a grand total of four points, while the betrayed loses two! That means the traitors are one step closer to escaping, and the pitiful fool who trusted them will be left two steps behind. And finally, if both pick “Betray,” then you're both dirty traitors and deserve one another! That's why you'll get no points, and be stuck here with them for another round!”

The rules seemed pretty simple; two trusting individuals could move ahead steadily, while a sly traitor could jump ahead in leaps and bounds. There had to be some trust, however, or no one would get anywhere, as two traitors would find themselves in a stalemate. As the group was left to ponder, Cross spoke up again. “Oh Iian, would you demonstrate for me again? We're going to do a practice vote for everyone's sake, so please, pick an answer! And don't worry, you can trust me!” With that, Iian quickly reached up and, without hesitation, pushed the “Betray” button. The screen seemed to be loading for a moment before it revealed two answers, side by side. The display read as follows: “CROSS: Trust (-2) | IIAN: Betray (+4).” It seemed that the kid was more than happy to play this game for the points, going straight for both the best and worst-case scenario, depending on which side of the fence one was on.

“Oh dear, and I thought I was going to be able to trust you, Iian! That's a pity, such a pity...” Cross sounded mockingly dejected, but quickly perked back up. “And now, if everyone would turn their eyes to Iian's bracelet...” Everyone would turn to see the “watch” on Iian's wrist now showed a new number: 7. The points from the “practice” vote had been added, and now the boy had a distinct advantage on each of them, with seven points towards the goal. If anyone did the math, then they would find their new scores would total 28 points; just shy of the goal of 30. Were they really already so close, or was this just another part of the game to trick them?

“Now, there's more to this game, like when your points reach zero, but we'll worry about that later, after the first challenge. I just have one more thing for all of you, and that's simple: prizes!” The screen would give a beep before changing to a new screen, and ten options would be revealed, along with a number next to them. “Release” was listed as the first option, with a 9 next to it, while below that was “Techniques 1-10” and “Techniques 11-20” with a 7 next to each. Finally, below that were seven more choices, each listed with a 5 next to them: “Strength”, “Speed”, “Reiatsu Strength”, “Spiritual Pressure”, “Senses”, “Instinct”, and “Energy Sensory.” Obviously this related to their diminished abilities, but how? “By spending points equal to the number next to an option, you can remove the lock that your bracelet puts on that parameter. You can unlock any spiritual abilities you have, and I can assure you, you all have them; special techniques, or even various statistics that determine how strong, fast, or perceptive you are! Sounds like a nice prize, right?” So, they would have to spend “points” to get their abilities back. Seemed simple enough, except that it would put them several steps backwards from escape.

“Alright, enough tutorials; I'll explain zero points at the next voting area. For now, however, you all must go vote! Your voting partners are randomized, so you do not know who you will be betraying... yet! But you will know in due time, don't you worry! Now, each of you go to the sides of the room. If you look, eight podiums have risen up around the room, all far enough away that you can't see each other vote. You will get to vote, earn or lose points, and then you will have a chance to make your first purchase. Of course, you're welcome to stockpile your points, but as the challenges get harder, you may regret that! Now, go vote, and let the game of betrayal begin!”

The group moved quickly, splitting into various directions; A and Z went to the same wall, while Iian and Reyard went separately towards a second and third. Beatrice went to the fourth wall, leaving the three remaining individuals to pick the side that they went to vote on. After voting, they would likely get a minute or two to talk to the person nearby, perhaps gather information or learn a bit more about them. So, which would they choose to vote at? The blind Reyard seemed calm despite everything, perhaps proving that he was a rational man. Yet Iian was an unusual figure, taking to this game pretty well; how would he react upon questioning? Finally, there was Sister Beatrice, the nervous-looking young nun; she could certainly use some comfort. But they would have to pick and, in turn, would have to vote. What would they do? It would be up to them to decide whether or not they would be the traitors in this game.

((OOC: Voting Time! Players, please include your vote at the end of your post, spoilered if you would. I'm going to trust you all to not look at each other's votes, especially if you end up playing against one another; half the fun comes from playing this straight. That includes after the votes; gotta make the experience feel real! Anyway, reactions, vote, purchase, and talk to the person nearby if you'd like!))

[Deleted]

Cross's answer made him sick, to him this whole thing was a game and their lives were for his amusement..... Vannan was about ready to throw up at the thought of this. After a brief moment the doors opened and Vannan stepped out to look around and see who else was here. Taking a look around he didn't see anyone that he knew from where he was standing, but then again the room was rather large and there were a few people he couldn't make out from his position. Good... no one I know.... I won't have to worry about saving them just myself and take care of Cross once this whole thing is over. At least I won't have to hear his annoying voice for a while.

Vannan had hoped that at the very least Cross would be silent while everyone spoke to one another, but that was shattered the moment Cross spoke again and the door behind him slammed down. It seemed like he was going to make the introductions himself and he was the first one to be introduced. What really bothered him was the last bit that Cross said. Nuclear... that was the theme of his power, but how did this man know that? He had never used anything past his plasma bolts against someone so there shouldn't be anyone that knew this. It appeared that Cross would be more of a hassle then he originally thought. Still he was thankful that he didn't know anyone here it made things easier.

So he silently listened to the other people that Cross would introduce, at first it didn't seem too bad, a blind man. It was sad that he was forced to be in this situation, but he had to worry about himself, then he heard Cross introduce a nun, his attention was drawn to her and he saw her, she was young and looked afraid.... Fuck.... now there's one person here that I can't just leave.... then he heard a name he knew Kazura... God damn it..... really.... him... here? There's at least one person I can count on having my back, but also one more that I need to help out of here.... this is getting harder... With the next introduction Vannan was even more pissed off at Cross. A fucking kid Cross... How could you bring a little kid here into all of this. You're a fucking monster. That makes three people.... three people I have to help get out of here and there are even more to be introduced. The last three people he didn't know or care about two of them seemed to be a pair for some odd reason so they had one another to watch out for and the last guy based on the introduction Cross gave him he could take care of himself and he either had an attribute problem or Cross liked to mess with him. Either way Vannan knew that at the moment there were three other people here that he wanted to save, the rest if they made it, it would be great, but he wasn't going to risk his own life to save them.

While the kid was picked to show the example he didn't looked too fazed by it, from what Vannan could tell the kid was rather calm about this whole thing. Something was off... something didn't feel right and then something Cross said struck him as off “Oh Iian, would you demonstrate for me again?” Either Cross is asking the kid to help him again or... or this kid had played this game before... Vannan didn't like the fact that the last idea could be true. If it was then what was Cross up to putting in someone who had played this game before... what's his end goal here... Though Vannan had to laugh a bit as the kid betrayed Cross and got some points. Still Vannan knew how he was going to vote this round.

Still there was another surprise a reward system and in it there were things to get back. For now he knew that it wasn't worth investing his points into getting his powers back. Escaping this place was his only goal so he wasn't too interested in it, though he did manage to see that the costs were rather high and he assumed that it was meant to keep them here longer so they would continue to play the game. Still once the time came to vote Vannan pressed his choice and left heading towards Sister Beatrice. While he would of gone towards Iian, the kid was too calm something was off about him and right now Vannan didn't want to get to close to the kid. As he approached Beatrice he smiled at her and placed a hand over her trembling ones in a calm, soothing voice he tried to calm her down. “Relax, I've been in worse binds before, well get out of here alive I promise you, I'll save everyone here.”

SPOILER: Click to show

Betray

[Kazura Uzaki]

So... no other escape. If Kazura was feeling more like himself, and not so... slow... to understand, then he would probably have something to retort, but as it was, he was feeling... so... hindered. As he dragged his weak and sluggish body out through the elevator door that had been opened for him, he tried to take in the massive room. He saw a few other fake elevator cars, a couple doors (probably all locked), and some other people standing around. Cross began to make introductions, shutting the elevator door of the person he was talking about as he moved through the 8 victim's introductions. Kazura recognized Vannan and Zack, but he was too busy trying and failing to piece together opinions on the 5 unknown entities and the rules to the game to try and make small talk right now.

So... Two buttons, Betray and Trust. If everyone pushes Trust, everyone gets two points, which raises the net points in the group up by four each time. If anyone pushes Betray, the net points in the group stagnates. Either they both push Betray and neither get points or one pushes Trust and the net points only go up by 2. Which... isn't terribly bad. They needed to have 30 points by the time they got to the end, but they had important things to spend points on. Kazura knew that he needed his instincts back as. soon. as. possible. It was killing him, working at nearly ten percent brain power. Without really thinking, he stumbled to one of the open buttons, as if in a drunken haze, and mashed the button he felt was most important to getting his brain power back.

Sliding to the ground next to the podium, he just sat there, hoping for a favorable result. He didn't have the willpower to get up and talk to people, and he doubted that they would come talk to him. He looked like hell, looked weak and useless, and felt like all of those too. If he were them, he wouldn't really bothering spending a ton of effort in getting to know. He felt like... he was back to his life before he accidentally invented the Spirit Goggles and got a glimpse of a world, hidden to his eyes, that was ever present and incredibly dangerous. Since that time, he had grown in stature and wisdom, growing in fame and infamy. And now... he was laid low by this bracelet... And the Traitor in his office...

SPOILER: Click to show

TRUST

[Deleted]

Eyes narrowing at the childish response, Zack should have realized that was going to happen. In fact, why hadn't he realized it? He placed a hand on his head, rubbing it slightly as he felt his thoughts coming together far more slowly than they usually did. Could it be? He hadn't considered the possibility that his mental speed had been diminished as well. Regardless, he had more important things to be focusing on right now. He blinked slowly as the doors before him slid open. Cautiously stepping out, Zack froze for a moment when he heard Crosses voice demand not only him, but everyone else, to stop. The assassin scowled at the statement that Cross wanted to make introductions, signaling who he was talking about by closing the door behind the individual. Jensen scanned the room as he listened, noting its size and height and beginning to wonder where he could be. The answers of "underground" and "island" came to mind. It wasn't until Cross said one name in particular that Zack took real notice, dark gray eyes noting the CEO across the room.

So, it wasn't just him. Cross seemed to have gone after anybody with any sort of notable fame. But why Uzaki? If he had the opportunity he would speak to the CEO. Other than him, though, Zack took note of Vannan Harper. The young man might not know it, but he was actually a rather known individual in Xcutions network of information. That sort of happened when you become responsible for the destruction of an oil rig. A child, a girl, a blind man, Zack made mental notes about each of them. He was suspicious of them all, giving none of them the benefit of the doubt. Actually, that was untrue. Zack had reason to believe Uzaki wouldn't have kidnapped himself. After scratching Kazura off the list of potential suspects the assassins eyes glanced towards both A and Z. Those eyes of his, cold like those of a shark, studied both of them as well as he could given the distance. Those two were a pair he was going to need to keep an eye on.

But then it was his turn. The assassin turned his head slightly when his door shut, not giving any displayable emotion or action to Crosses teasing. He wouldn't let the immaturity get to him again. But, what Cross had just said about Zack would have some effects. If what Cross said was a true, this being a game centered on trust and betrayal, then Zacks profession being outed like that already put him in a bad position. Sure, they might be willing to trust him if Zack confessed to simply being in the military, but the word "assassin" was a lot like shouting shark. He was disadvantaged now. With a sigh the man stepped back, hiding in what little darkness existed as he leaned against his former prisons door, continuing to listen to Cross prattle on about the game.

The rules were interesting, and if this was a cable tv show then Zack might have been willing to watch it. The explanations were clear and precise, leaving not much room for questions that needed to be answered. The wrist wear was explained, something that should have been expected honestly. However, it also begged the question of how much Cross actually knew about his players. Those cold eyes gazed at the watch, especially at the button for "Release". The assassin already had a game plan in mind, but he was going to need to accumulate at least fourteen points.

When it came time for them to push the buttons, Zack wandered towards whichever one was left. His body felt heavy, his legs like lead, and his mind felt like he was experiencing a painless hangover. Smells, sights, sounds, everything was weaker. Was this what being a normal human felt like? He had forgotten it. Approaching the podium he pressed the safer of the two options, not giving much of a damn whoever the other person was. He would wait to see the results and move forward from there.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoils}
Betray

[Zeich Yajuu]

Each of the participants went to the wall of their choosing, some of them because they had an interest in they spoke to, others because they just picked what was left over. Nonetheless, each approached their panels, and made their choices. Once they had done so, there was a change to their screen, and the panels now read “Voting Complete. Please wait for the results.” They had a minute or two before they'd see what would happen, and in this time, the various groups had a moment to talk. The first was Vannan and Beatrice, and of the four pairings, they seemed to be the most pleasant. Vannan had promised to protect Beatrice and get as many people out of Cross's game as he could, and Beatrice had only smiled, a look of relief on her face. The young woman had shown that she was terrified, unsure of how to act in this situation, and only the Quincy's promise seemed to put her at ease. She was still pale-faced, and her hands still trembled slightly, but she could force a smile at least.

Kazura and his companion spoke little, mostly because the entrepreneur was so dazed by his slowed cognitive speed that he hardly noticed events around him. It was highly unlikely that Reyard knew that the man nearby was plagued by his own lack of mental capabilities due to his lack of sight, yet despite that he seemed to give Kazura an almost sympathetic glance before leaving the man be, respecting his discomfort. The two of them said nothing as they input their decisions, for better or worse, and when the vote was over Reynard simply waited, turning towards the approximate center of the room before waiting patiently.

Finally, there was Zack and Iian. They were an unusual pairing; Zack had been more than happy to quickly head towards the panel to make his decision, but Iian hovered nearby. The kid was annoyingly cheery, and eager to speak with his older companion; since Cross had revealed Zack to be an assassin, Iian seemed almost thrilled, chattering quickly as he followed the Zack about. “Are you really an assassin? Have you killed people before? How many? Do their heads explode, like in video games? Is blood really that messy? What's your favorite way to kill people?” These were just a handful of the questions the kid seemed eager to ask, and the pestering only paused when Iian ran over to a panel to make his own decision; Zack scarcely had time to make his own decision before the child was back, asking questions all over again. It would certainly be an annoying few minutes.

But finally, a beep registered on the screens, and new print appeared: “Please turn towards the center of the room, where the results will be posted.” It seemed that despite the secret nature of their decisions, they were going to be publicly outed. Was there another purpose to this? Was it an attempt to spread discord, or simply Cross's way of having fun? It almost didn't seem worth it to keep their decisions secret, but there was little time to dwell on that now; the results were appearing on a holographic screen that had risen up over the example panel, the one that Cross had used to show them how the game worked. It was a simple blue image, and at first it was blank, but soon text appeared across it, revealing their various decisions.


[Vannan] [Betray (+4)] [(7) Points Total] || Versus || [Beatrice] [Trust (-2)] [(1) Point Total]

[Kazura] [Trust (+2)] [(5) Points Total] || Versus || [Reynard] [Trust (+2)] [(5) Points Total]

[(A)] [Trust (+2)] [(5) Points Total] || Versus || [(Z)] [Trust (+2)] [(5) Points Total]

[Zack] [Betray (+0)] [(3) Points Total] || Versus || [Iian] [Betray (+0)] [(7) Points Total]


And then, as the decisions and their effects settled in to the various players, their watches beeped, indicating the changes in values, which would match those listed on the screen. And, as if to rub in the decisions made, Cross decided at that moment to speak up, reading the results aloud. “Well, well, well... let's see... Beatrice was a sucker to trust Vannan, who betrayed her for extra points and sent her on her way to loserdom, just like the traitor he is. Kazura and Reynard were fuzzy-wuzzy besty-westies, and gained some points each. A and Z made two ends meet, and thus they too earned some points each. And finally, Zack and Iian are both stinkers who can't trust anyone, and get nothing for their paranoia. So sorry!”

Reynard would give Kazura a friendly pat on the shoulder without speaking, his actions speaking his approval as loudly as any words, while A and Z looked completely unfazed. Beatrice, however, was the first to react audibly, and it was obvious that it was going to be a poor reaction. The young woman's eyes were filled with tears, and her face was as white as a sheet. Her body shook uncontrollably, and she stepped back, away from Vannan, as she spoke with a voice almost as shaky as she was. “You... you... how could you...” Tears rolled down her cheeks as she tried to put an accusing edge on her tone, but all she did was let out more of her fear. “G-get us all... out of here... huh? Y-you were just in it... for yourself!” More tears followed, and she collapsed to her knees, still shaking in terror. After all, the man she had thought she would be able to trust had just betrayed her for some extra points; how else was she to react?

Iian, on the other hand, seemed more disgruntled than angry. “Hey now, mister assassin!” He spoke loudly, and that title would cause Beatrice to flinch, and even Reynard looked a bit uncomfortable. A and Z were as emotionless as ever. “You were supposed to pick trust! How could you doubt a kid like me; we're supposed to be all nice and innocent and stuff, right?” Iian shook his head, still frowning. “I wanted to get my powers back! I could have had a lot more fun with this game if I had them! But it's all your fault I don't.” With a sigh, the boy turned his back on Zack. “And I thought you were cool, too.”

Now that the reactions were out of the way, Cross spoke up again. “If you are all done? I have to explain the fun part of this game: challenges! That's right, after all of this, you have to go through a challenge! You'll get to pick one of seven doors, and have to complete the challenge behind it, to move on to the next voting round! And the challenges get harder the longer you take to complete this game! Best part? The '30' door is only available after five challenges are complete!” It seemed that they were not yet out of the woods, and in fact had quite a ways to go. “Now, if you would... partners, step forward, and head towards the doors at the far end of the room! If you're not sure who your partner is, check the results again; it's not that hard to figure out! Oh, and only one pair per door, please.”

A loud grinding sound, like that of gears, filled the room, and the far wall began to rise up, revealing the doors spoken of. There were seven of them, and each was marked with a different sign. From right to left, they read: [STR (50)], [SPD (50)], [RS (50)], [SP (50)], [SEN (50)], [INS (50)], and [ES (50)]. Each of them likely represented one of the parameters listed on the panels from before, though the purpose of the value listed next to them was unknown. Was it some kind of measure of their abilities? Either way, two of them had the ability to purchase one of their parameters, and Iian quickly did so, running to the sample panel and pressing a button. A beep was heard as his watch indicated the change in points, and then nothing. Something had been unlocked... but what?

Now, each of them had a choice as to which room they would go through; Kazura and Reynard were a pair, and as allies they were both fairly agreeable to another; Reynard gave his companion a nod, allowing Kazura to pick the door they went through. Zack and Iian would be another pair, and Iian was studying the doors intently. A and Z waited patiently, as if curious to see what the others picked, and Beatrice was so quiet and refused to move anywhere near Vannan, leaving the Quincy to make his own decision. They would have to make their decisions to move forward; but who knew what lay behind each? What challenges would they have to pass in order to get to the next vote? Only time would tell.

((OOC: This round has no posting order, and doors will be first come, first serve! One pair per door, so if one gets picked, then you'll have to get another! Once this round of posts are done, it will determine the new posting order, and this will repeat with each challenge room.))

[Kazura Uzaki]

Kazura was starting to slowly acclimate to the lower processing power and was pleased that his seemingly blind partner was trusting enough in him to not betray him right from the get go. The fullbringer would have expected the man, in potential desperation for an edge in Senses or some other stat that he uses to make up for his blindness, to have betrayed him for the chance at that. Even now, as Kazura saw that he could get his mind back, he hesitated. The words of Cross replayed in the back of his head, over and over, as if the dregs of his Analysis skills were still working on overdrive to compensate for the lack of mental processing speed.

I'll explain zero points at the next voting area..................................Zero points....

....................................Zero....


His instincts were important to him, but not that important that he was willing to risk hitting zero points for it. With a sigh, he refrained from pushing the button that would restore his shackled mind, and instead turned to Reynard, who had trusted him enough to grant them both some points. "If we all stick through this together, we can better prepare for each challenge to come. My mind may be reduced, but I still think we should go through the instinct door. I think that together we can handle what challenge it has for us." Whether or not Reynard agreed was up to him, but he definitely seemed like he would follow Kazura through the door.

While waiting for the other groups to make their decision, the fullbringer took a moment to stare at the board and take it all in. He was getting used to thinking like a regular person again, and while it wasn't so slow that he felt mentally handicapped, he still cursed his lack of processing speed. The haze he was in was starting to become more clear, though, so he took a moment to gather up his thoughts on the competition, for that's really what it had turned out to be. Most of the group was trusting of each other, at least initially, especially A and Z who seemed connected somehow. The kid seemed to grab for the points every time, since there was less of a risk in pushing Betray.

Kazura had, regrettably, come to figure that out this time. While pushing trust could gain or lose you points, pushing betray could never lose you points, only be significantly in your favor at the cost of making the voting partner suffer. Zack, the assassin, could have easily figured this out and read the kid, pushing Betray only to save himself from losing points rather than as a chance to gain points as fast as he could. On the other hand... it was Zack, whom Kazura had become acquainted with multiple times. The Uzaki wasn't entirely positive that the assassin wasn't pushing Betray for his own benefit.

Vannan, on the other hand, surprised him immensely. The Quincy, despite his Knight like protector qualities for his sister chose to betray the Sister and push her to but a single point. Now she would have to Betray someone just to get to 5 points, and from there she would still have to get more points in order to stay above zero but restore something that was sealed. She would be a dangerous partner next round because of Vannan's actions. He probably scarred her for the rest of the game, if not her life. But that's exactly what Cross wanted... It wasn't a game of betrayal for nothing. Kazura would have to watch his back, especially since he didn't know more than half of these "contestants" personally, and the ones he did know were capable of surprising him immensely.

His long moment of analysis completed, Kazura once again turned to Reynard. "Ready to head off?"

((tl;dr, instinct door))

[Deleted]

Betrayal, that was the whole point of this game, yet he didn't find it any easier when he saw his name there and the one he betrayed. Yes it was a horrible thing to do, but he had his reasons. He didn't expect the others to understand, nor would he bother trying to defend his actions to them, not till the end of everything. Looking over at what everyone else had picked he smiled. It seemed that most people generally trusted one another and didn't want to harm someone else. Say for Zack and Iian, two people he didn't trust. Though given the choices they all made and how they were paired up with it seemed like Cross was picking the matches after they had voted.

Vannan turned his back to Beatrice as she called out his actions and fell to the ground crying. He didn't want to see her crying, he knew what he did was wrong and seeing her reaction to his actions made it harder for him to defend it in his own mind. He took a deep breath as she cried and tried to put on a stern face as he stepped towards the sample panel after Iian made his choice and ran off. Below there were the options to restore his stats. To him there were only two options to pick from, his reiatsu strength or his spiritual pressure. Both had their advantage to unlock right now and both had their drawbacks at the same time. He stood there looking wondering which one to unlock.

Reiatsu strength, it's my strongest stat and by far would make it easier to go through the reiatsu strength door, but it's kinda pointless if I can't use my arrows or techniques. At the same time if I do unlock this I could wait till later on to unlock my reiatsu. On the other hand if I unlock my spiritual pressure I could slowly recover my own reiatsu with my cross and be ready for what ever happens if I need it, but again no techniques or arrows makes it useless. I guess there is only one choice then. He pressed the button to unlock his reiatsu strength. His points dropped down to 2 and he felt his strength return to his body.

With his strength now back he looked back at Beatrice on the ground shaking in fear of his actions. Slowly he stepped towards her, taking long strides with each step watching the way the others looked at him. Right now he was the villain and the poor nun was a victim, if that's what they all believed then he would play the part. Half way in between Beatrice and the sample panel he stopped. He took in a deep breath before speaking, his voice was loud enough for everyone to hear what he had to say clearly. “Don't judge, just because you didn't have the balls to do what I did. This game is about survival not making friends.” With this he knew that he had cemented his place as the villain of this game, he hoped that his act would encourage the others to work together to beat him instead of betraying one another.

Without missing a beat he walked back to Beatrice and extended his hand to her. “Let's go.” He flared his own reiatsu around him creating a toxic green aura around his entire body. It clung and hanged around him as if it was a green mist. Extending out his hand to the nun he would wait a few moments to see if she would take his hand or not. If she did he would put on a charming smile and help her off the ground. As he helped her up he would whisper into her ear “I'll get you out of here alive.” If she believed his words or not would be up to her. However if she didn't take his hand he would grab her and drag her up off the ground without saying a thing to her. Either way it happened he would bring her to the front of the reiatsu strength door noting that Kazura picked the door with instinct.


(OOC: RS now back at 600, picking the reiatsu strength door)

[Deleted]

This was getting worse for him, wasn't it? Annoyingly, Zack had been paired with the child, Iian, who was obviously far too excitable for Zacks taste. He pestered the irritated assassins with questions he had no intent to answer. He was busy paying attention to everyone, as well as his surroundings, studying them with his lowered mental processing abilities and trying to piece things together. And finally the results were displayed. Raising his head to view them, Zack memorized the number of points each person had. He wasn't fazed by his own outcome, having picked Betray as the smarter of the two. It really was the safest anyways. Zack had no understanding about whoever his partner was, and to pick Betray would have either amounted in gaining points or simply remaining at a standstill. He was only slightly surprised that Iian picked betray, giving Zack a better idea of who he was working with.

But then Iian decided to speak out. He shouted out Zacks occupation once again causing two of the other participants to react with discomfort, something Jensen picked up on but decided to not respond to. His tired eyes looked down on Iian as the kid continued his rant, saying a few things that caught the assassins attention. Even with his lowered mental processing speed, he was still capable of his analyzing an individual and understanding them. “You were supposed to pick trust! How could you doubt a kid like me; we're supposed to be all nice and innocent and stuff, right?” That right there was Zacks first clue that Iian was more of a shitkid than he thought. He had believed that he could use his being a child as an advantage against Zack. Iian had no idea how badly that plan would go. Being a child didn't matter to Zack, a target was a target. However, what was said next was something Zack was going to need to address.

But it seemed that Cross had other plans, so keeping his mouth shut he listened to what Cross began prattling on about. So it was time to begin the challenges and he learned that the exit door would only open up after five challenges were completed. It was then that the doors revealed themselves, and from a quick observation Zack actually understood what they meant. He noticed Iian had begun to move, and watched as the kid pushed a button on the contraption. The assassins eyes narrowed just slightly as he noticed which one he had pressed. Looking at the child, Zack mentally sighed, knowing that he was going to have to get the kid on his side one way or another. But since he was a kid that shouldn't be too hard, though he was still going to keep an eye on him.

As everyone began to move on though, Zack hung back. "Iian." Zack called out just loud enough for the kid to hear. If the youngster gave him his attention, then the assassin would casually make his way over to him, stopping once only a few feet away. "You said something about your release being able to make the game more fun earlier, so does that mean you're a Fullbringer?" Zack asked, with a hint of acted curiosity. He did want to know what Iians release was, as the information could be useful. The assassin didn't know what sort of challenges laid ahead, and it was even entirely possible he was going to have to fight with the child. But, if he could get some information then he would feel better. If push did come to shove, then Zack was ready to kill.

If Iian chose to answer though, Zack would go ahead and show the kid a little more responsibility. "So. Which door do you think we should go through?" He asked, inspecting the doors. The Quincy was already on the move with his partner, choosing the Reiatsu Strength door and leaving the other Stats untouched. Looking between them, he noticed there was a lack of Healing Expertise, or the two Auras, but that honestly just made sense. The Energy Sensory door, on the other hand, caught his eye. A stat that he had no skills in was something he wanted to avoid. "Don't pick the ES door." He muttered to Iian, trying to choose which one was best. He didn't want to touch the Sensory doors, so he felt the best one to pick would either be Strength or Speed.

[Zeich Yajuu]

((OOC: Posting order is still loose until otherwise noted.))

The challenges were picked as each group stepped forward, deciding on their next path. Kazura and Reynard would be going through the Instinct door, which would likely be a test of their reaction speed and quick thinking, while Vannan practically dragged Beatrice over towards the Reiatsu Strength door. A and Z looked at each other before deciding on the Speed door, leaving Zack and Iian to make their choice. A quick glance would show the general condition of the parties as well; Kazura still looked dazed, but Reynard had a confident hand on the man's shoulder to keep him steady as well as providing himself a means of moving forward despite his blindness. Beatrice was quiet, her face almost deathly pale, and she was completely limp in Vannan's arms as the Quincy was practically forced to drag her across the room. A and Z, as always, looked unchanged.

As the others started towards their doors, Zack held Iian back a moment to talk with him. His first question was one that could potentially be vital to their escape as he questioned the child about his Release. But upon being asked if he was a Fullbringer, Iian just gave a broad, mischievous smile, and answered with what was perhaps the most unhelpful answer that he could think of at the moment. “Maaaaaaaaaaybe~” It seemed that Iian still wasn't taking things seriously, and he was just going to be difficult. It wasn't hard to figure out that the kid was in the game for himself, and wanted to win, consequences be damned. Hell, it was possible that Iian didn't even think that there were long-term consequences. Could the kid really be that naive?

And then it came time for them to pick their door. And wouldn't you know it, Iian decided that their challenge was to be the Energy Sensory door. If asked why, the kid would just grin at Zack. “Because you told me not to! It's more fun this way, and it's totally payback for not scoring me more points.” Iian wouldn't even give Zack time to stop him as he made his way to the door, laying his hand on the handle and locking their choice in. Despite his nonexistent ability to sense energy, Zack was stuck going into a challenge that depended on it. Perhaps Iian had unlocked his Energy Sensory, and had planned to go through that door for an easy challenge, or perhaps he had chosen to do so simply for the reasons he stated. Either way, the kid started forward, leading the way, and Zack had no choice but to follow.

Finally, the four groups were separated, heading through their doors. Each door lead to a small lift that went downwards further. Kazura's ride was relatively short, while Vannan's seemed to last forever, and Zack's was somewhere closer to the middle. Once their elevators arrived at the new floor, they would open to reveal a single room with three doors and a holographic projector inside. Each projector displayed the individual team results; Kazura would see the results of the challenge between himself and Reynard as “Kazura (Trust) || Reynard (Trust)” and beneath that would be the words “Proceed forward through the Team Challenge door.” Indeed, the door in front of them would open if they approached it, while the other doors were completely unresponsive. It seemed that there was only one way forward.

The room ahead was interesting; it was a perfectly cubical room, ten feet high, ten feet wide, and ten feet long. A light lit up in the center of the room, displaying a circle in the center with two sets of shoe prints, likely a sign for them to stand there and begin their challenge. It was barely big enough for the two of them to stand in. Once they did so, two small devices that looked almost like guns from a carnival game were lowered from the ceilings, allowing the participants to carry them. Squeezing the trigger would release a beam of light like a laser pointer, one that did no damage on the environment. It seemed like their game was some sort of target practice? If it was based on their Instinct, however, it would probably be increasingly fast-paced, and they would have to use their reaction time to deal with it.

Indeed, a chime sounded, and a mechanical voice echoed through their room, definitely robotic rather than Cross's masked voice. “The party will now be assailed by target bots. They must defend themselves with the laser rifles given. If a bot is hit by a laser, it will immediately fall to the ground. If a bot enters the circle, there will be a penalty as it attacks you. Your goal is to survive for five minutes. Please note that the challenge will get more difficult as time passes. The game ends when five minutes passes, or both participants die.” Suddenly, the game grew that much darker as death was offered as a penalty; they couldn't afford to lose!

There wasn't time to waste, however, as a loud screeching sound filled the room. From the ceiling, through openings that were revealed by tiles sliding back, metallic bat-like creatures swooped down and made their way towards the two standing in the center. Kazura would probably realize the disadvantage that Reynard was at, lacking sight; he would be particularly vulnerable as he tried to defend himself. Kazura would have to work to help defend his partner, but he only had his limited mental speed to work with; bats would be coming from every direction, so Kazura would be forced to not only use what he could see, but what he could feel with the sort of “sixth sense” that his Instinct gave him, the ability to detect when something came within his personal space. Whether or not he would be fast enough was the question, especially given that each of the “bats” had large and very sharp dagger-like teeth. They would have to act quickly.

((OOC: Bats will be coming at you for the next 5 minutes. They start at 25 speed, and this increases by 25 per minute passed. So 25 to start, then 50 at one minute, 75 at two, 100 at three, and 125 for the last. Start shooting!))

-------------------------------

Vannan, on the other hand, would have a different display. Though it showed the same results, with him betraying Beatrice, the line beneath stated “Vannan will proceed left through the Traitor's Door, while Beatrice will proceed right through the Betrayed Door.” If Vannan or Beatrice attempted to approach the wrong door, it would slam shut and remain shut until they got far enough away. It seemed that they would be separated here, going their own ways; traitor and betrayed wouldn't be working well together anyway. Beatrice wouldn't say anything, and certainly wouldn't respond to Vannan as she made the way through to her challenge, leaving the Quincy go head into his own door.

Entering his new room, Vannan would find himself in a new chamber. Straight ahead of him was a door marked “100,” but also a small panel in the wall with “550” written across it. Neither of them would open, no matter how much energy Vannan put into trying, so he would have to contend with the rest of the room. To his right from the entrance, there was a large open area with a large number of targets, marked with numbers. The larger the number, the smaller the target, and there were ten targets: 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, and 100. On a rack before him was a laser rifle similar to that in the room that Kazura was in, projecting a small beam with which to “hit” the targets. When picked up, a display on it would read “600.” What that number meant, Vannan would have no idea, but he would notice that if he let go of the gun, the display would go to “0.”

It seemed that this was his challenge for the round, and that he would have to do something with the gun in order to proceed through the door. Well, guns were for shooting, so it was worth a shot... pun intended.

-------------------------------

Finally, Zack and Iian had their own display as well. With both of them being betrayers, none of the three doors would open, and the second line stated something unusual: “Do Not Proceed; Go Backwards.” The elevator door would open easily enough for them, but what good would it do for them to go back to the first room? They had to proceed forward to get to the “30” door; did Cross intend to cheat them of victory, or had they stepped into yet another section of the rules he had conveniently forgotten to mention? Iian didn't seem too upset, though he did seem surprised, as though he had remembered something, and that was further supplemented by a small outburst from him. “Oh right, I forgot about this! The rules said something about a Traitor's Fortune game... it was on your rule sheet too, right?” An odd statement; Zack would not remember receiving any copy of the rules.

Before Zack could ask him any questions, Iian was digging through his pockets, as if looking for something, before pulling out a small folded piece of paper with a short set of printed rules listed in it. Scanning through the sections, the kid finally found what he was looking for, and read it aloud. “If both partners choose to betray one another, however, they will not proceed forward; they must go back to the previous room and play the Traitor's Fortune game. This will be a challenge based on the room chosen, but the two traitors will compete against one another. They may bet any amount of points up to the maximum they possess, with the winner taking the entire pot.” Nodding to himself as if to confirm his memories, Iian tucked it back into his pocket. If Zack did a cursory check of his own pockets, he would find nothing out of the ordinary; it seemed that only Iian had a copy. What was going on here?

Well, it seemed that they would have to go back and find out what lay in store for them with the “Traitor's Fortune” game. Riding the elevator back up, they would arrive in their original room, but this time, the panel in the center had been replaced by two screens facing away from one another, with places for the two of them to stand on either side. Iian would immediately head over to the screens, ready to play the game, leaving Zack to follow at his own pace. Eventually they would find themselves facing a screen that simply stated “Memory.” If it was anything like the popular child's game, Zack would simply have to listen to a series of sounds and press the buttons listed on the screen in the order presented. But it was likely that it would not be that easy; after all, the door they had gone through was “Energy Sensory,” something Zack lacked; it was likely that the “sounds” for this game would be Reiatsu-based, meaning that he would be hard pressed to keep up, short of blind guessing.

Once both of them were in place, a smaller window popped up with a query: “Bet Amount: ?” Trying to close it or input 0 would give an error message; it seemed that Zack would be forced to bet at least one point. With the door that had been picked, it would likely be a point lost, and it would be best to go for a minimum amount to reduce his losses. Indeed, once he input his amount, Iian already seemed to be concentrating, and within twenty seconds he was putting in a sequence of commands. How would Zack react? Would he have a way of countering this disadvantaged game, or would he be forced to give up a point? He would have to think quickly.

[Kazura Uzaki]

The CEO and his Blind companion made their way at an average pace towards the door, but every movement felt sluggish to Kazura. He had no idea how his partner was feeling, so he thought he'd try some chit chat. "So you at least trust me a little, though I am potentially a stranger to you. Do you know how you came to be in this place?" They continued to move on through the Instinct door and down an elevator just a short ways. The two emerged into another plain room, from where they only had once choice. They went through the door together, Reynard's hand still on Kazura's back for guidance. Once there, the Uzaki's heart sunk.

This was just great... Kazura had led his team into a challenge where Instinct was important, yes, but also so was the ability to see... Kazura picked up his laser gun, preparing for the worst. "I seem to have made an error in judgement. If you just fire randomly, you're sure to hit a few. Meanwhile, let me see if I can't make this a little easier for us..." Acting as quickly as his hazy brain would allow, Kazura began to snipe at the slow moving bats. While they were moving slowly now, they wouldn't always be doing so, so he needed a plan. The only way he could make this easier was by improving the chances that his partner's random firing would hit something.

Letting a bat get far too close to the circle for comfort, Kazura tried to take it down so that it would land just outside the circle, where he would attempt to kick it into pieces. He tried to break off a couple of the bat's dagger like metal teeth, or really any part of the machine that was made of metal. If he did succeed in getting the teeth, he'd use the sharp edge to tear off a piece of his clothing, while also focusing on hitting the slow moving bats. If he didn't do this now, he'd never get the chance again if the enemies increased in speed too much. Attempting to bind the cloth around the barrel of his team mate's gun, Kazura wanted to put the daggers to good use by making a prism.

He attempted to make the points of the dagger touch where the laser beam would hit, so that it would scatter in a shotgun pattern as Reynard held the trigger down. Hopefully that would improve Reynard's ability to hit some of the bats. Kazura was impeccably good at Crafting, which hadn't appeared to be sealed by the wristwatch, so he hoped to complete this task as quickly as possible, before the first minute was up, so that the bats didn't get too quick for him to handle while being distracted. Obviously, this was incredibly dangerous as Kazura's reaction times had slowed to only human levels. It helped that the bats were moving at a snail's pace, but beyond that, there was no part of this challenge that could be going in his favor. He could only hope to rely on his own shooting and his ally's hopefully successfully augmented weapon.