Day 18

[pandatrash]

[Only 13 remain, and the killing night is coming.]

[The tablet has a few things it would like to tell you:

1. Since the snitch already let the cat out of the bag, we'll confirm that Akira Kurusu's prize will be granted at the end of the game. He had a special deal because we thought it would be hilarious if he killed somebody (we were right)! So when all this is over, we'll bring everybody back to life and send them wherever they ask to go.

2. But, hmm, we didn't really mention how we'd bring them back, did we? Or in what state? Or how many legs they would have? Might still be worth your while to live to the end! Just sayin'!

3. Also, that sweet deal is no longer up for grabs: If you want your carrot, you have to kill AND you have to avoid the following execution.

4. But don't worry! We'll remove sticks for anyone who kills OR dies OR makes six friends, without further conditions. We're so generous!

((Trust Sheets - 1/23, 6pm PST
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ANNOUNCEMENT))

Comments

[blueeyeswaifudragon]

[wow, he is not even the biggest jerk, thank the god cards yugi can't see him now]

There's a lot of them. You've got to think in three dimensions.

[do you??? he seems happy enough to be working on it though (until puzzledad beats him at puzzling)]

[maege]

[truly, he could be worse. mae even thinks he's pretty okay, as a matter of fact.]

There's a lot to it, huh. Even if it's just matching—You match each, uh, vic...tim... each person to a weapon and...cause of...death...

[why]

Right?

[...]

Man, some of these are just mean.

[ACTUALLY NO THIS IS KINDA STRESSFUL!!!]

[blueeyeswaifudragon]

Par for the course for this place. ...If you aren't up for it, no one's making you push yourself.

[maege]

No, but if I sit around doing nothing I'm probably going to go completely insane? So, [gestures at her tablet] this. Anyway, wouldn't wanna waste all your hard work getting this up and running, either!

[blueeyeswaifudragon]

Fair enough. Not much point in going completely insane right at the end when you could've had a good two weeks of crazy by now.

[maege]

[she laughs, but it's in a snorted, why-are-we-like-this why-is-anything-like-this kind of way.]

Right? It is waaaay too late for me to change up my shtick. "Tiny loud psycho" is the kinda niche you have to go for from the start or not at all.

[blueeyeswaifudragon]

I think the quiet, calculating psycho role is already taken, too. It's a tough market out there for these types of positions and we might need some more prep to break into it.

[maege]

[kind of pinches the bridge of her nose and wheezes in what is mayyyybe (maeybe) a laugh?? she can't decide if that is the pinnacle of gallows humor or if she's just completely fucking miserable]

Yeah, gods, that's— [okay maybe a little closer to the latter, actually, but she was the dipshit who went along with it so] —yeah, we're at and past our psycho quota. Gonna have to stick with our current personality traits like "annoying" and "good at button-pressing," the two of us.

[blueeyeswaifudragon]

[have you ever considered crushing someone's dreams. or children's card games, either is just the thing to put a smile on someone's face]

I'm not--

[well, no, actually he is both of those things. but he sniffs, mock(?) insulted]

...I prefer "passionate" and "well-coiffed," myself.

[maege]

[she actually chuckles at that, and waves her hand kind of vaguely dismissively??]

Haha, "annoying" was me, you're fine— [presses a hand to her chest] Really, do I look like the kinda girl who knows how to press buttons? That one's your character trait.

[kinda looks him up and down, judging just how well-coiffed he is]

I'll give that to you if you add "spiny" to the list.

[blueeyeswaifudragon]

I'm pretty sure you can handle a button or two. Sometimes, it's harder not to press buttons. It's often comorbid with the 'annoying' trait.

[from the tone of his voice he is being tongue-in-cheek. though he is not sure what to make of this last]

...Spiny?

[maege]

If I were good at pressing buttons, I can't imagine ever holding myself back. Maybe before we're done here I'll be annoying enough to really be helpful on the button-pressing front.

[with certainty:] Spiny. [pinches and tugs at one of his dumb arm belts??] You're like a porcupine, I swear I'm worried I'm gonna scratch myself on your outfit.

[blueeyeswaifudragon]

The buttons here tend to be connected to something terrible but that's never stopped anyone before.

[which still works on both the mental and physical types of buttons...]

[anyway, he needs those straps to...keep his sleeves up? I...guess???]

...Usually people don't come close enough that it's a legitimate problem.

[maege]

I got a proposal for you, and it's that this is why. [flicks the belt, and pulls her finger back in mock harm, putting her knuckle in her mouth as if it's been wounded, but of course there's a wicked glint in her eye even as she tries to look as if she's been TERRIBLY HURT]

[blueeyeswaifudragon]

Darn, you figured out my deepest secret. Now I'll have to switch to sweatpants and burlap sacks.

[maege]

You know, I feel like there's probably something in between that and living like the human version of a defense fortress? Just saying.

[blueeyeswaifudragon]

--It's not defensive, it's thematic.

[he says, defensively]

Anyway, who cares, what's the difference?

[maege]

Sorry, is the theme "defending my castle from an invading army"? I've seen a lot of castles with that exact look, pal, and you'd fit riiight in.

[blueeyeswaifudragon]

I prefer for people to know what they're getting into if they dare to cross me. Invasions repelled, attackers crushed with the power of a dragon's Burst Stream. So yes, I'll take the compliment.

[maege]

...

Melodrama aside, there's nothing about the phrase "dragon's burst stream" that I like.

[blueeyeswaifudragon]

[!?]

It's the Blue-Eyes White Dragon's most powerful breath attack. It's a pity there's nothing here to cobble into a hologram projector; I tweaked the animations myself to be extra-impressive.

[maege]

I'm sure that's very cool but besides the fact that I know what dragons are and what the color blue is, I understood more or less none of what you just said.

[blueeyeswaifudragon]

[HELLO MA'AM LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT HOMESTUCK YUGIOH]

[seriously though he looks stricken, how could she have gone through puberty and not known about children's card games. you poor soul, he should've done a powerpoint presentation on this two weeks ago. he carefully and lovingly pulls out his deck and of course his dragons are right on top, due to the Heart of the Cards (that he does not believe in) or possibly just bad shuffling, so he flips one out and shows it without letting it go]

...This is the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. It's one of the most powerful cards in the game Duel Monsters. There are only three of them playable in the whole world, and they're mine.

I didn't create the Duel Monsters game, but my company produces state-of-the-art accessories to play it. Play on a Duel Deck with SolidVision technology, the character on each card appears in real life. ...Technically they're just holograms--a three-dimensional image created by bending light--but they look and sound like they're right there with you. The gen 2 disks are going to be even better, we've added AR to display stats and life points while you're on the field, and added a ton of safeguards to prevent fake or stolen cards or tournament records, and it glows and stuff. The public reveal was supposed to be in a couple days, but...

[his enthusiasm trails off]

[maege]

[may the fell god offer her the strength to endure this and may the earth mother offer her the patience to temper it enough that she does not run her sword through him where he stands (sits)

but, uh, she does listen through the whole spiel, and looks appropriately awed about the card (which she does, honestly, think is cool; dragons are neat, and also literally gods where she comes from). she gives him a moment once he's done to make sure he is done and the first thing out of this bitch's fucking mouth is]

Wow, you're a dork.

[FUCKING THANKS]

Wow. I. I only figured out how electricity works like four days ago so I am not about to lie to you about how much I actually understood about that, but—Man.

[buuut she grins and claps him on the back, friendly and sincere]

So things wrap up tomorrow, and you get to start your first day outta hell off right with a big party over this super cool thing you worked your butt off for!

[blueeyeswaifudragon]

["dork," how dare, that's his insult for Yugi and the geek squad??? (though he DID get kinda carried away with his explanation, even though the development cycle on this has been a good 18 months and it looks totally sweet and glows in the dark and if he could only show her she would understand???)]

[but. that's a real nice save.]