Welcome, Participants

[mockmods]

Good morning, Participants. The time is now 7:30 AM.

[Where were you before this? Doesn’t matter, you’re here now, in an unfamiliar bed, surrounded by unfamiliar people, with a slightly-too-cheerful automated voiced chiming over a PA system to wake you up. Your pockets are empty, save for an unfamiliar smartphone type of device that comes alive under your touch, displaying, among other things, a map, a series of profiles, and a list of rules.]

It is understood that you may have questions; please be patient, and gather back in the Common Room in one hour. The Assistant will be present at this time to answer your questions. In the meantime, please feel free to explore the Facility at your leisure.

[The doors to the dorm areas are freely open from the inside, though you’ll find that it takes your electronic id to regain entry once you’ve left. Otherwise, it’s as the voice says, and you’ve got an hour to explore your new surroundings and get to know your fellow kidnappees.]

[Welcome to the Facility.]

Comments

[scratchitti]

...so are you the GM then?

[in4apounding]

No, I'm the Assistant. Because I'm here to Assist you all. And the Researcher. But you can call me Penny! ...What's a GM.

[scratchitti]

Penny. Huh. Cute.

It stands for Game Master.

[in4apounding]

Oh gosh, thank you! Neku is a very nice name too, Mister Neku.

[Genuinely flattered.]

And no, definitely not a game master. I don't really have time for games, unfortunately.

[scratchitti]

Uh... thanks.

So you're not the one that made those profiles either.

[Aka she doesn't know about the Game and all this has nothing to do with him just getting shot]

[in4apounding]

Oh no, the Researcher made your profiles. Or- someone working with him, maybe? I'm fairly certain he's the only other one here, but he could've had outside help. But no, not me.

[scratchitti]

Got it. Any clue how I'm not dead?

[Blunt and to the point: it's on his profile, after all, no point hiding it]

[mightdoriya]

[...Izuku is just going to lean over to Neku and stage whisper.] I thought that was a misprint?

[scratchitti]

[Whispered back]

I wish. This is my... second time? Maybe third, I dunno if the middle one counted or not.

[mightdoriya]

Then...h-how did you come back all those other times? [Are you a zombie Neku, is that what you're saying]

[scratchitti]

[ Thankfully he just explained... some of it to Michael]

It's complicated.

[mightdoriya]

That...really sounds complicated, yeah. [Poor Neku.]

[in4apounding]

...The Researcher has access to VERY advanced medical technologies and magic.

[aragona]

[He's an Ordo, Sonia is sticking to that theory.]

[scratchitti]

... so I didn't bleed out yet. Thanks, I guess?

[in4apounding]

You're very welcome!

[eudaimonikos]

Usually a timeline thing, in my experience.

[nobody even asked you]

[scratchitti]

Eh?

I mean, I got shot but sounds like this Researcher guy grabbed me before I actually died.

[eudaimonikos]

Your profile says "formerly dead". Unless that means you just died for a few seconds and were resuscitated, but I've never really seen how that counts.

[scratchitti]

Oh. That.

Look, normally I wouldn't talk about this, but this place kinda outted me so I don't really have a choice. It's right- I used to be dead. I was dead for three weeks. I won my way back to life.

[eudaimonikos]

Yeah, I wouldn't normally tell everyone I was a demon either, but here we are. No biggie, though, I did that for my human friends too.

[scratchitti]

I mean, I wish I could say a demon is the weirdest thing I've heard.

[eudaimonikos]

Your afterlife sounds a little friendlier than the one I'm used to, honestly. There's a whole system for letting humans maybe go back?

[scratchitti]

Yeah. Though it's hard as hell, and my Game was... weird. Usually, you only get a week to win, and I had to do it three times. Most Players are Erased in the first day or two. So it's not like people are coming back all the time.

[eudaimonikos]

That would make things a little weird.

Still, at least you get a shot. And if you lose, it's just...what, oblivion?