PERIDOT

[dramatispersonae]

What do you believe in?

Comments

ROUND ONE

[dramatispersonae]

[ Reality twangs uncomfortably in the Ring around you, and next thing you know, you're standing with your teammates beneath an apple tree. No one else is anywhere to be seen.

Faith's voice sounds. ]

You believe in so many--

[ The crackling of paper, the turning of pages. ]

--so many things. Tell me, which of these would you pick to believe in? To save you and fulfill you.

[ Fourteen scrolls materialize around you, with words on them. Approach, and the words will echo in your head: ]

"Our team." "Ourselves and our ability to persist in being as such, as long as we live and breathe; our own reality." "Kindness." "Family, our own blood." "Bravery, determination, and adventure." "The little things in life." "Change and growth." "Being at the top." "Happy endings." "Justice." "Inner strength." "Friends and friendship." "Delicious pie." "Our own personal truths."

[ At the foot of the apple tree, a silver box appears. It can fit exactly three scrolls. ]

DISCUSS

[dramatispersonae]

Re: DISCUSS

[thisgoddelivers]

Hmph.

[sits down and crosses arms]

Re: DISCUSS

[crueltobekind]

Algae?

Re: DISCUSS

[thisgoddelivers]

What's this suppose to do? How is picking from these choices suppose to "save" us anyway?

Re: DISCUSS

[crueltobekind]

[ughhh rubbing the back of his neck to try to shake off the weird feeling of teleportation]

Our team is the obvious choice.

Re: DISCUSS

[swordhandled]

And an understandable one.

SUBMIT

[dramatispersonae]

Pick three of the ideals presented to you.

Re: SUBMIT

[crueltobekind]

[Dumps "Our team.", "Ourselves and our ability to persist in being as such, as long as we live and breathe; our own reality." and "Change and growth." into the silver box]

Re: SUBMIT

[dramatispersonae]

[ The box snaps shut. In the distance, there's a sound like faint thunder or the turning of pages--funny, aren't those very different sounds? For now, nothing else happens. ]

ROUND TWO

[dramatispersonae]

Explain to me why

explain to me why

[ Reality stutters around you. ]

you believe so much

you believe in each other

[ Crack. A break runs down the center of the world before you. ]

What have I believed in?

Who am I?

I am...not what the Story made me.

I am not virtuous. All I have is pain.

I can be bad.

[ Reality dissolves, and then you're back in the Ring... ]

ROUND THREE

[dramatispersonae]

[ Reality warps once more, and you're falling through warm rain to the distant sound of weeping.

You land on a small stone peninsula jutting out into a rising sea of tears. Amidst that sea are several huge glass cases, open-topped, so that when the waters reach those tops, they'll pour in and drown those captive in the cases.

Within the cases are several teams: Coral, Ruby, Citrine, Carnelian, Tiger's Eye, Emerald, Turquoise, Sapphire, Iolite, and Amethyst. Somehow, you can see and hear perfectly just what is happening to them right now.

At the tip of the stone jut sits a pile of silver tokens.

Sorrowful's voice sounds once more. ]

You chose well in your ideals, and they have saved you for now. Now, I give you a choice: will you save those trapped in the ocean of my mother's sorrow, or will you walk away as so many have done before?

Each of you may cast anywhere from one to five tokens into the sea. The more you cast, the greater punishment you will receive, but the greater the chance that the others will be saved.

Or, I suppose, you could simply leave.

[ In the distance, somewhere, there is still the sound of weeping. ]

DISCUSS

[dramatispersonae]

Re: DISCUSS

[swordhandled]

--!

Re: DISCUSS

[crueltobekind]

What kind of decision is this?!

[CORAL 8(]

Re: DISCUSS

[swordhandled]

One that was designed to be difficult.

Re: DISCUSS

[thisgoddelivers]

I'm getting kind of sick of these kind of games...

SUBMIT

[dramatispersonae]

[ All characters present should comment with how many tokens they're casting into the sea, or whether they're leaving. ]

Re: SUBMIT

[crueltobekind]

[Kaoru is casting five tokens in for himself]

Re: SUBMIT

[dramatispersonae]

The tokens sink into the sea of tears.

A voice echoes in your head. "Then let a devil claim a piece of your soul."

Overwhelming pain seizes you, like every nerve in your body is being submerged in boiling water. Though no one else can see it, you can see a clawed hand reaching for your heart. It sinks into your body and pulls--

--and something comes loose.

The pain ends, but something is missing. You are not yourself any longer. You are something incomplete and broken, with a tender and sore soul like a jaw with several teeth just pulled.

There is less color, somehow, in the world around you.

Re: SUBMIT

[thisgoddelivers]

[Throws in five]

Take it, but don't expect us doing this to appease you. We're doing this to help people.

Re: SUBMIT

[dramatispersonae]

The tokens sink into the sea of tears.

A voice echoes in your head. "Then let a devil claim a piece of your soul."

Overwhelming pain seizes you, like every nerve in your body is being submerged in boiling water. Though no one else can see it, you can see a clawed hand reaching for your heart. It sinks into your body and pulls--

--and something comes loose.

The pain ends, but something is missing. You are not yourself any longer. You are something incomplete and broken, with a tender and sore soul like a jaw with several teeth just pulled.

There is less color, somehow, in the world around you.

Re: SUBMIT

[swordhandled]

[ Iron is casting five tokens for himself ]

Re: SUBMIT

[dramatispersonae]

The tokens sink into the sea of tears.

A voice echoes in your head. "Then let a devil claim a piece of your soul."

Overwhelming pain seizes you, like every nerve in your body is being submerged in boiling water. Though no one else can see it, you can see a clawed hand reaching for your heart. It sinks into your body and pulls--

--and something comes loose.

The pain ends, but something is missing. You are not yourself any longer. You are something incomplete and broken, with a tender and sore soul like a jaw with several teeth just pulled.

There is less color, somehow, in the world around you.

IN THE END . . .

[dramatispersonae]

[ The weeping in the distance grows louder and louder as you attend to your terrible tasks, until finally, the voice of Handless Faith reaches you again. ]

Stop! I remember--

I remember--

I have learned of hope.

[ The voice of Kanata, formerly of Sterling, reaches you from somewhere far away, singing a song of hope.

You find yourself buoyed by the power of song, and your pain and your wounds heal. ]

[ Your surroundings shimmer and fade, returning you to the Ring... ]