auroraexpress | The Twenty-Fifth Trial [Mirror]

Who: Heroes
When:Day 52, night
Where: near the Train

The rain falls harder, and the snake sneers at you as you exit the temples... Lightning strikes and the snake laughs like thunder... But that's all, the mocking laughter rings in your ears as the scenery shifts back to the normal Train area. Those who revive will do so near the Train as the winners and survivors reappear.

Ginger and Licorice double win for both surviving and targeting a Priest! For these teams they get 800 points.

Jasmine wins for surviving! They get 500 points.

Everyone on a winning team is revived and fully healed.

Everyone else... Is revived. And healed. However in whatever death wounds they received they have, instead of scars, white scales for their skin.

Smaller wounds will regenerate in a one to two days and will leave scales instead of scars unless healed otherwise.

All Kami remain hungry and able to shift to their monster form for the next day or so. Only meat will relieve this hunger.

Any Kami that were mad at the end of the game will retain a bit of mental instability for a day, in whatever form you prefer.

Priests, if they normally have powers, will find themselves somewhat weaker for a day.

It is not ICly known that these effects will wear off.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ He's still trying his very best not to feel or let Rean feel his feelings, keeping his voice carefully neutral.

Well. Rean has a right to answers. ]

Figured I'd get you before you were forced to eat someone against your will. You wouldn't have to live with that and it'd keep my team sane for a little longer.

I figured it was something like that.

Just wanted to hear it from me first, huh?

Yeah.

[He reaches up and pats Crow's head.]

Well, you're an idiot. But I appreciate the thought.

How are you holding up?

...You're really gonna just let it go that easily, aren't you?

[ It both is and isn't a surprise. ]

I don't know what else to say about it. Even if you weren't trying to spare me in your own backwards way, I'm one of the better options for that. It doesn't bother me nearly as much as it would most people.

I'm not going to say I'm thrilled about it, the whole premise of the thing is going to leave scars on everyone involved, but I won't have nightmares over it.

[Not least of which because he doesn't even sleep so he literally can't.]

I'm more worried about you and everyone else.

You don't sleep, you can't have nightmares.

[ He'll call Rean out for that one. ]

Anyway, I'm fine.

[ He is absolutely in no way fine. ]

I'm just sticking around to give anyone who wants to say anything a chance and then I'm gonna go take a walk.

You aren't fine.

[If we're calling each other out here.]

All the more reason for that walk. Maybe I'll take out a few monsters along the way, get out some stress relief.

...Fine. When you're done working that out come to Ginger.

[ There's a moment where Crow just stares at Rean. He... is definitely going to fail at all his attempts to block off and hold back his feelings there. There's a sharp spike of guilt, of shame and regret so strong it feels like it's burning a hole through his chest, that it's visible for everyone to see if they wanted it to.

He tries to put a lid back on it, but it's too late to take it back. ]

I'll... see you in the morning, then.

[ Because despite wondering if Rean might not be better off without him there, Crow is still selfish enough to take him up on that. ]

If you want to take that long.

[He'll give Crow some space to work himself out, but he's not going to let Crow run or hide forever, obviously. Not going to let Crow deal with all of it alone.]

[ Crow is pretty sure he deserves to deal with it alone? Like Rean, he killed you, it would be perfectly reasonable? But he also knows that's not the kind of person Rean is. ]

Yeah, it wouldn't hurt. I won't leave you waiting longer than that.

[ You can at least still count on him for that much.

He's planning on killing monsters until he's too exhausted to move, taking a nap on the beach, and then he'll hit up Ginger. ]

All right. If you get in trouble, call for me.

[He means it! He knows there's a lot Crow needs to think about but, that is that and this is this. If Crow needs help he'll always come.]

[ Crow reaches over to pat Rean's head once, briefly. ]

...You really are too kind for your own good, you know that?

[ He's not sure it's a compliment, but there's an exasperated fondness to it. ]