night one; hunters

[gamehead]

Through the night, the wind howls and a blizzard rages, but everyone is safe and warm locked inside their cabins. Everyone, that is, except you. At 11 PM precisely, the door from your bedroom to the outside world creaks open. If you were sleeping, you will find yourself stir to the sound.

Outside, despite the sounds of a blizzard and the whiteout blocking the views from your window, the world is still and calm. The ground and trees are blanketed in thick snow, but no snow is falling and the wind is no longer blowing.

You find yourself drawn out into the snow, unable to feel tired or cold despite the freezing temperature and the late hour. It is impossible to resist the call you feel to journey out into the dark woods, past the old graveyard, to where the trees meet the cliffs and caves at the edge of the mountains.

Here, you and fourteen others gather. There is a feeling in the air as though you are being watched, but besides the other visitors, you're all alone. For now, you don't know what has brought you here, but you can't bring yourselves to leave.

((OOC: Just a note on how threads with Critter will work! There will be several 'stages' to Critter's explanations, which I'll be accomplishing by posting various subthreads. You can tag into any stage assuming your character has heard the rest, or you can tag earlier on and we can thread until you reach the next stage.

So, for example, in Critter's arrival, when you reach the point of needing to know the rules, your conversation progresses to the next subthread directly below the arrival. You can then reply to that subthread to continue the conversation if you want. I may stall on replying to you if your reply is getting to a subthread I don't want to post quite so quickly.

I know this is confusing, but this is so I can thread with all of you as much as you want without having to get into weird thread orders and so everyone hears all the relevant info.))

Comments

decide

[gamehead]

[Once you've finished reading the special rules, and had time to discuss this among yourself, Critter waits, as though expecting a decision.]

Will you hunt?

((OOC: Please only answer 'Yes' or 'No' in this thread. Understand that if your character answers 'No' they will honestly be killed, so if they need extra incentive, reply to the special rules thread with their hesitation and Critter can give them some.

You have until 5 PM EST tomorrow to reply; if your character has not replied by then, we will be handwaving a Yes vote from them. This isn't an official vote but please reply if you can.))

[manofiron]

[ He's read the special rules and he's seen the demonstrations. A discussion isn't necessary; he's always made up his own mind and he'll do so here as well. He's not really sure that he buys it, it seems to easy, but he sure as hell doesn't want Pepper involved in this. And if what he's being told is true, if death is so easily erased, then he's going to be there to ensure that that's how it all plays out.

Better the blood on his already stained hands than on those of an innocent. ]

Yes.

[unadorned]

[She'll live far longer than any of them, and with time she'll forget. She doesn't have the same depth of conscience to be haunted by this--or so Prussia tells herself.]

Yes.

[goddamnphonies]

[It could be Phoebe.

His mind was really made up the second Critter said that.]

Yes.

[tsunneverset]

[He doesn't know if the creature is telling the truth about bringing everyone back should they win, and he doesn't care. He has citizens currently trapped in this town and America as well - if killing a few other people is what it takes to keep them safe, it's not even a question for him.]

Yes.

[yajackass]

[It was on her mind the entire time, since she was told that it was damn near mandatory. Kill, or be killed. Say no, and someone else will take your place.

Damn it.]

Yes.

[bloodofgrima]

[Robin has asked her questions and thought over it from as many angles as she could. The fact of the matter is, as a tactician, Robin has always had to weigh lives against one another... and as cold as it may sound, when weighed against those who trusted their lives to her hands, others always lose. And if she has to kill people to save them...

The detached tactician in her has made its decision.]

Yes.

[notyetlost]

Yes.

[They could vote. Poland just wouldn't vote for prey he liked. But if it was unavoidable... well at the end when they won everyone could be revived again.

The hunters had to win, it was as simple as that.]

[brainteaser]

[This is familiar, isn't it? Trapped in another strange little town, caught in another dangerous game. But the Riddler is no stranger to games of life and death. He excels at staying one step ahead of his opponents. And he does love a good challenge...

But there's far more at stake here than himself. He hasn't lost sight of that, of them. He can't guarantee their safety forever, but if he doesn't take part in this, then they could very well take his place. He won't allow Ema or Luke to compromise themselves, not when he's crossed that line plenty of times before. That's why it has to be him.

All right, Critter. He'll play your little game. And you know what?

He'll win.]

Yes.

[purethingsonly]

[Ada knew early on what her choice would be. She had faced the thought of killing others before for Vincent's sake, and he had denied to let her fight with him. She wanted to be able to protect others... she wanted that strength and... now? The chance came that she could steel her will, with the idea of failure meaning death to strengthen her resolve.]

Yes.

[agentx13]

[ Come on, Sharon. Can't do any good if you're dead. She crosses her arms. Dead girls can't save anyone, and Steve is still out there. ]

Fine.

Yes.

[terryplz]

[...

He didn't want this. Killing, even with the promise of people returning upon victory, was still killing. It was still a betrayal of everything he knew. Everything he promised after the death of his parents.

...But there is one thing he wanted to know. The truth. Why this was happening. And the only way to do that was to stay alive. No matter how much he wants to drop dead at this very moment. And if he can figure out the truth, then he can at least ensure that this Critter never has the chance to do something so heinous again.]

Yes.

[His tone is harsh and bitter. He won't hunt. He will survive.]

[rebut]

[ Congratulations, you are now way up there with Monobear on the list "People Naegi Actually Despises" in just one night!

Frankly, he doesn't trust that demonstration at all, but if someone had to be forced into this, better him than Maizono, Kirigiri, Asahina, Oowada and even Fukawa... He'd rather die playing the game than let anyone coerce them into killing again. They should have been done with this when they left Hope's Peak, regardless of their alive or dead status. Therefore, he really had no choice but to say an extremely reluctant "yes" and try to find a way for everyone to escape the game after that. ]

.........Yes.

[ If worse comes to worst, however, as scary and dreadful as the thought feels (hello understatement), there was always Oogami's example to copy... ]

[graffitis]

[ Play, kill, and the dead have a second chance when it's all over -- provided the rules are kept to. He can manage it. This is not quite the Game he knows; the risks are different, the secrets are more fragile, and he is too much in the dark. It's been a very long time since he played anything but the role of observer; he nudges the players along, guides the killing, he doesn't commit it.

But he understands necessity and he understands betrayal for the greater good. He'll be clean and smart about it, and, if he can, watch over the ones he sees potential in. It's a game to be played defensively, a game of anticipating roles; the kind of gambling he lives on. Even knowing who he'll have to see killed-- because Beat and Joshua are not here among them now--

The answer still comes easy. ]

Yes.