Week 7

[grimgrinningghosts]

[Well this is all starting to feel incredibly routine. After being trapped here for a month and a half with no sign of rescue, maybe you have just resigned to the idea that you'll never leave this place and that people will keep dying until none of you're are left.

Truthfully, I can't even pretend to make an optimistic about any of this. it's a dark and horrid world you all live in.

There are no new floors today. It seems you finally have access to the whole mansion.

15 people remain]

[SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY]

[Don't forget to fill out this week's Activity Check!]

Comments

[hasit]

[It might be dark, but when Freddie pauses like that, her eye is drawn downward, and she feels the blood drain out of her face.

She's following, and she's got a hand on Freddie's shoulder. Just in case. It's dark enough that getting separated is a real fear, here.]

[nachosquire]

[I warned you.


Following the small trail of blood will lead them to an even bigger puddle of it, pooled around someone laying on the ground. Of course, the person being Marco-- but it looks like he's seen better days.

The entire left side of his body looks as though it's been ripped off of him, save for his face. His right arm is bent at an awkward angle as if it's been broken, and his face is covered in scratches all over. There's something off about how his body was mangled, though. The tears almost look like teeth marks, like someone just took a huge bite right out of him.

He's also notably not wearing his hoodie, but Hiro's. That's not important I just wanted to let r down one last time.

Either way, Marco Diaz is most certainly dead.]

[faciliheir]

[. . .

real villains don't real villains don't real villains don't]

... W... We need to get back inside. Now.

[hasit]

[Oh, god.

Leia's heart plummets to the bottom of her stomach, and seeing those teeth marks...all that blood...

Instinct kicks in, and she bends down, blood or no, to lift Marco's shoulders.]

Grab his feet. We're not leaving him out here.

[faciliheir]

[she does so, but...]

If what got him comes after us, though... We need to save ourselves.

[and even though that just sounds like a normal selfish thing she'd say, she usually doesn't sound so agonized when she says it.]

[hasit]

I'm not leaving him. Move.

[That fierceness is back in Leia's voice as she starts them back the way we came, Marco's limp head propped against her shoulder. They just need to get out of this awful darkness, away from the clawing whispers that are starting to get into her head.]

[faciliheir]

[MOVING MOVING VERY FAST god she's like a noodle person this is very difficult for her. and it's even more difficult to run when you're looking over your shoulder for the bunch of demons looking to drag you off. GOD WHICH DIRECTION IS EVEN--

oh.]

Your man is calling you! [RUN TOWARDS THAT]

[hasit]

[Leia's head jerks up, half-panic and half-relief, at the sound of Stan's voice yelling her name, and with her blood thundering in her temples she urges the two (three?) of them toward that sound, half-running, half-stumbling.]

[faciliheir]

[and the bass keeps runnin runnin and runnin runnin OH GOOD. the door.

hi everyone we're home.]

[hasit]

[fergie ferg lemme love you—

They make it to the doorstep, meeting Stan before he can make it two steps away from the house, and Leia just sort of collapses to her knees, Marco's head lolling left and right.]

Get inside. All of you.

[She just. Needs a second.]

[not_over_yet]

oh dear god.

[ THIS? IS NOT WHAT HE EXPECTED?? FROM SHADOWS?? ]

[faciliheir]

[well, don't need to tell her twice.

once inside, Freddie just kinda. slumps against the wall to the floor. and tries to catch her breath again.]

[not_over_yet]

[ Still HIGHLY ALARMED here, quick check Freddie still has all her limbs and isn't actively being mauled by invisible whatever NEVER DO THAT AGAIN. ]

[faciliheir]

[shes fine

physically]

[not_over_yet]

[ Oh hell. He doesn't know how to address emotional distress, and he's vaguely remembering Freddie not wanting hers to be acknowledged, but like HELL is he ignoring it, not this time, and aghh.

Wringing hands, not going anywhere. ]

[faciliheir]

[it takes her a few minutes of mentally repeating mantras to semi-successfully swallow her emotions.

then, she stands. she has blood on her clothes. this is fine.]

I need to be alone for a little while. [and yet as she's walking away she's. very clearly not walking towards her room???]

[not_over_yet]

[ Oh, well, obviously the polite thing to do would be to--haHA yeah like he actually gives a damn about politeness. Follows. He's not gonna try talking or anything, but unless she heads straight to Ariel's room and stays there he is not leaving. Fite him.

No really, the only things that will convince him to let her be are leaving her with Ariel or himself being knocked out cold. ]

[faciliheir]

[so she's heading to the bar.]

[stanbyme]

There you are! Holy- what in the hell-

[hey friends he hasn’t sounded this panicked since Mabel was invisible. Stan’s at Leia’s side, bracing Marco’s body before he can even realize what he’s doing.]

You too, Starshine, come on.

[hasit]

[Arms shaking, Leia lets Stan take Marco from her, and god, there's blood all over her, all down the front of her cloak—

She manages to stumble to her feet and inside, somehow, waiting only long enough for Stan to get Marco inside before she slams the door firmly shut.]

Nobody goes out there again. Nobody.

[stanbyme]

[When he’s inside and the door is shut and everyone is safe and in sight, Stan slouches against the shut door... and looks down at what he’s holding.

To an untrained eye, there’s no visible reaction. But anyone who knows him can practically hear the internal screaming.]

We gotta- do something, keep the other kids from seeing... Damn it, he was- [His voice is shaking and his t-shirt is soaking through with blood and he’s holding a dead kid only a couple years older than Dipper, and on autopilot he pushes himself off the wall and heads toward the personal quarters.]

[hasit]

[Leia's tired as shit from carrying most of a very tall teenage boy all the way out of those shadows, but she's not done yet, she can't be done yet. They have shit to do.]

His room. [Her voice is wavering dangerously but she's doing her best to keep it from breaking.] We'll...lay him out.

[Get him cleaned up. From there...she's not really sure. The same thing will happen to him as happens to everyone else, she can only assume.]

[stanbyme]

[For one of the rare times in his life, Stan Pines is speechless. He barely acknowledges Leia next to him, focused on keeping his eyes straight ahead and not looking down.

The only indication he gives that he hears her is following her direction to which room is Marco’s.]

...Go grab the shower curtain from his bathroom and throw it over the bed. We dunno, maybe that dick won’t clean all the way to the mattress and we don’t need anybody looking at a halo of blood left behind.

[hasit]

[She nods, silent, and as soon as they get back to Marco's room she marches into the bathroom and rips down the curtain, spreading it over his bed quickly so Stan can lay him down. Her hands are full-on shaking now, and she should look away from Marco's bloodied and mutilated body but she can't.]

...His sweater. It's Hiro's.

[pinkflip]

[ So. When the return there's something there that Freddie or Leia probably didn't notice before. Namely because it has glowing red eyes and sports a panicked yell.

Leaning against the desk, in a knitted...sheath--the one who made it would call it a sword shirt--is Saba, the sword Kim gave to Marco when she died. ]

Oh, no...! No, Zordon forbid-- I told him to stay!

[ It's impossible for a sword to cry, but. Boy it sure sounds like this one wants to. ]