✦ WEEK ZERO: TRIAL

[streamy]

✦ WEEK 0, TRIAL: VICTIM ARCHETYPE

TRIAL

29

REMAINING

WUH-OH?

Rise and shine, superstars! It's a brand new day and a brand new opportunity to prove that you have what it takes to win this season's grand prize. Didn't manage to sleep well after yesterday's grisly discovery? A shame. But filming schedules are a cruel mistress, and they don't care to wait for the sleep deprived. As soon as the clock strikes 11:30AM, an announcement will play from the numerous loudspeakers hidden around the island:

THE REAL WAIFUS OF STREAMY VALLEY SEASON 11 RUNNER UP

All contestants, please report to Gold P. Beach. The next segment of this week's thrilling sudden elimination round is about to begin. I repeat, all contestants, please report to Gold P. Beach. The next segment of this week's thrilling sudden elimination round is about to begin.

... Hey, doesn't that voice sound familiar? Is this what they call a celebrity cameo? Huh. Ignore the announcement, and you'll soon find yourself accosted by the local mascots — namazu, loporrits and gestrals alike following after you and trying their damnedest to haul your ass to the beach. And if the pleading stare of these adorable(?) creatures is still not enough to get you moving, then worry not! Because at exactly 11:59AM, if you still haven't made your way over to the beach, a trap door will abruptly materialize under your feet and drop you right into the path leading up to the beach! Better stick your landing, or millions of viewers across the galaxies will watch you belly flop onto the ground. Embarrassing... The path leading up to the beach has been lined with torches, carving out a direct trail that leads right into the bowels of The Council — an old, abandoned ship that rests on the island's south shore. Whether it's the real deal or a fantastic piece of art from this season's set designers is anyone's guess, but you should probably avoid rubbing up against the rustier looking bits and bobs just in case. Inside the bowels of the rotting vessel, you'll see a circular area with enough benches for all of the remaining contestants to lounge about, and several long stone slabs that look a little less empty than usual. And while the sun shines bright above you during the daytime, you'll find that the torches surrounding the ship will soon become your only source of illumination once the sun sets and you are plunged into the murky darkness of the night. Well, with the sole exception of one torch that will remain unlit the entire time. At the far end sit three thrones with a rather peculiar display behind each one, and currently occupied by Live, Laugh and Love. A large LED display has been hung up behind them, which simply reads:

TIME REMAINING 09:00:00:00

As soon as it's officially 12:00PM, the LED display will begin to count down until it hits 00:00:00:00 at the very end of the trial. To the left of your hosts, there's a large beach cooler filled with all kinds of chilled drinks — from water bottles, to juice pouches and sodas, and, yes, even half bottles of wines and other alcoholic drinks. There's a plastic table nestled a couple of feet away, where the remains of the ship shield it from the sun, covered in a spread of sandwiches, baked goods, chips, dips, and what appears to be leftovers from yesterday's lunch and dinner. None of these items are fresh and most of them look like they came right out of a vending machine, but it's the thought that counts...? Welcome to your very first trial, superstars! Better get nice and comfy, because you're going to be here for a long, long while.

☰ VICTIM(S)

Will

☰ OOC NOTES

✦ It's trial time, baby! Over the course of the next nine hours, characters will have the opportunity to discuss, investigate and theorize about this week's murder. Characters will have time to examine the body of the victim and explore relevant locations. ✦ There will be a one hour tag break starting at 4PM EST/1PM PST. While players are allowed to keep tagging through the hour, all mod tags will pause and players are encouraged to take a break, eat and hydrate. ✦ The voting page is now unlocked! Please read through the post carefully for more information about how voting will work in this game. Note that voting is not mandatory in The Vine, and it is up to each character to decide if they wish to cast a vote before the end of the trial or not. ✦ Characters will be unable to leave The Council until the end of trial, as they will be blocked off by that same translucent barrier that prevents them from entering the currently locked segments of the island and a small gaggle of some very determined mascots. You wouldn't want to make them sad, right...? Exceptions will be made for the purpose of investigations, of course, where characters will be accompanied by an NPC escort.

🔗 FULL NAVIGATION

NPC QUESTIONS // NETWORK // VOTING // BODIES // EVIDENCE TURN-IN // EVIDENCE CHECK // INVESTIGATION REQUESTS // INVESTIGATIONS // LATEST FLATVIEW

Comments

[syncer]

[ He looks like he's going to blow up the island for a hot second before every light goes out of his eyes. Okay. ]

Again, fuck your corporate. [ Neutrally said. ] With this being a sudden elimination round, when does the round itself actually stop? Is it over after we find who's responsible? Or are we missing another part?

[streamy]

[ they feel you, bro. the helmet flickers with static for a second, but they don't say anything to the first bit. ]

Depends on what happens. You guys find the person, there's another part. You don't find them or don't vote, and we'll see.

[syncer]

And I suppose we don't get any sort of teaser to what the next part is? How's the voting thing work anyway?

[streamy]

Nope.

You either vote or you don't. If you don't vote, nobody gets in trouble. But... you gotta think about what the audience will think about that. Mixed bag.

[syncer]

[ He looks like he does not give a fuck about the audience either. ]

Cool, well, this isn't about them. This is about Will, and this is about finding out what happened to him for his sake. [ ... ] There's no punishment for people who don't actually vote?

[streamy]

[ a pause. ]

Yeah. It is. But remember you're being watched right now. [ more solemnly. and then: ] There's no punishment, no. You're not gonna get your hand chopped off or something.

[syncer]

[ ... he looks at his left hand like he wouldn't mind his hand getting chopped off, but it's fine. ]

... right. We're earning our keep here, and if we're not entertaining enough, they'll change the channel. Change the channel, lose the views. Lose the views, lose the funding. Lose the funding, lose the wishes. Something like that?

[ ... and he heaves a big sigh. ]

I'll be a monkey for the next couple of hours if that's what it takes. But one last question. What if we vote wrong?

[streamy]

[ they sort of like, reach out to him? and then drop their hand, like thinking better of it. ]

You're getting the hang of it, yeah. You're a smart guy, Junpei.

[ ... ]

Same as if you vote right. Whoever gets the most votes gets kicked out.

[syncer]

[ He sees the movement, eyes sharpening a bit but otherwise not reacting. That's something for later. He doesn't like being right about that, but he does seem to be calming down and reassessing his strategy. ]

Even if they aren't the culprit. So we really need to stay sharp and make sure we know what we're doing before locking in, or we're gonna have a much bigger mess to clean up.

[streamy]

[ they settle back in their chair. ]

Sounds about right. It's all up to you guys.

[syncer]

[ He's chewing his lip for a second like he wants to say something else, but he relents. ]

You available after this, or are you guys ghosting again?

[streamy]

You can find me and the others after, yeah. I know you want to hash shit out.

[syncer]

[ There's another jerky kind of nod. ]

I'll give you a call then.