EVENT #7: SEVEN DEADLY MYSTERIES

[hanamane]

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"Dark matter and dark energy got their names independently. The darkness of dark matter is literal- it doesn't interact with light other than gravitationally. The darkness of dark energy is figurative- it describes our ignorance, because the only thing we know about it is how it works."

"Red giants burn up pretty quickly, so it's possible the real Antares stopped existing a long time ago. We can see it, but it's dead. Now that I think about it...

... it kinda sounds like a ghost, huh?"










Welcome to our third Disturbance event! To recap for new players, Disturbances are surreal and dangerous dreamscapes that draw directly on the struggles, fears and emotions of a single character, similar to the TV world dungeons in Persona 4 or the Heartscapes in Blue Reflection Second Light. They're unique among Outlying Locations in that they vanish once resolved and incubate extremely powerful enemies at their core who must be defeated to save the person at its heart – in this instance, it's none other than Amane Yugi, aka Dreamer Hanako!



Using the descriptions in the log below, you may freely toplevel and have characters explore and investigate as you please! The descriptions given in this log are to give direction and progression to the events but please feel free to play around within the bounds of what's established as much as you like. Characters wishing to investigate and uncover additional hints and lore nuggets at the heart of the dungeon should indicate they are investigating in the comment header of their toplevel.



To clear the event and prevent a negative outcome on the plot that will effect both the Dream Sphere and Yumemigaoka, characters must clear both the Mid-Tier and Boss Combat Encounters by the OOC deadline of March 30th.

ARRIVAL

The shift from the city outskirts to the Disturbance is a gradual transition, compared to its previous counterparts; the railroad tracks stretch ahead, as they usually do, submerged into the waters surrounding the area. But one by one, anomalies start to pop up-- a flooded, dilapidated car here, a drifting camellia blossom there, the sky shifting from it's usual dreamy hues to a rich, midnight blue-black, splattered with stars. Even the ever present Moon in the Dream Sphere seems to shift and change, hanging low and heavy in the sky with an eerie, golden glow. Soon enough, Dreamers will find themselves wandering into what can only be described as the aftermath of a tsunami, the sad skeletons of old shops, waterlogged vehicles and floating bits of broken stone and wood among the debris. From the looks of things, there's nothing grandiose or imposing amongst all this wreckage-- only sad, lonely, shells of things that used to be, reflected by the moonlight upon the murky, dark water.

But then, past a rusting train car, it appears, like a closed-off island in this sea of destruction-- the brick façade and reaching towers of a sprawling, old-fashioned academy, largely untouched by whatever had laid waste to everything else before it. Water trickles from beneath the looming, intricate iron gate guarding it's entrance, woven through with blooming red clematis vines, offering a glimpse of the school and the vast grounds before it. Even from here, it's clear the building is abandoned; the countless windows are dark as the grave, with nary a soul nor Figment to be seen moving within them. The surrounding areas are equally as empty, the damp pathways and shadowy gardens silent and still in the damp, misty air. The vibe absolutely screams haunted liminal space, the sort of stuff teenagers with too much bravado would dare their friends to explore in the dead of night in a ritual test of courage.

But then, a breeze ripples through the gate, rustling the climbing flowers and carrying another sound within it-- the hushed sound of thousands of whispers, in as many different voices, rasping and hissing until they start to converge into a single phrase

haveyouheardhaveyouheardhaveyouheard

HAVE Y̶̏ͅO̸̳͕̯͆Ŭ̷̼͆ H̶̯̹̟̠̮͎̝̮̥͔̿̋͐̔̀͂̄͐̕͝Ȩ̸̧̤̺̮̗̥̮̞̄͒͆̓͛̍͗̉̋̽Ą̴̛̮̭͈͖̳͈̃͋̐̌̅̈͛̋͝R̸̘̣̬̘̞͙͚͍̻͋̿D̶̢̛̀̅͒̓̊̉͠ͅ

And then, as suddenly as it came, it stops, leaving only a thick undercurrent of tension and disgust. The gate, rigid and impassive as it was moments before, now gives way with the gentlest of touches, swinging open with a groaning creak.

Ready for a trial of courage of your own, Dreamers?


♫ 𝑩𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒊𝒎𝒖 𝑾𝒂𝒛𝒖 ( 𝑺𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒅 + 𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒃 ) – 𝑱𝒊𝒃𝒂𝒌𝒖 𝑺𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒆𝒏 𝑯𝒂𝒏𝒂𝒌𝒐 𝒌𝒖𝒏 𝑶𝑺𝑻





!

COURTYARD

As the Dreamers enter through the clematis gates, they'll find themselves within a large, quiet courtyard, the landscape and benches scattered about illuminated by the honeyed glow of the moon. The pavement on the paths is dark and rich with the earthy scent of petrichor, and the entire area in general-- from the wood on the seats to the metal railing upon the steps leading into the school-- is damp, as if a rain shower had passed through the morning before. It's not the most comfortable place to sit and relax (unless you want a soggy bottom), but there's a sense of solace here, albeit one tinged through with melancholy and solitude instead.

Despite the whispers from before, the courtyard itself is devoid of any creature or construct, the only life amidst the yawning stretch of land being the bright array of flowers blooming within the planters along the walkway and the shrubs bordering the lawn. There's all sorts of blossoms on display-- cape primrose, thistles, yarrow, and snapdragons-- although upon closer inspection, something about them seems a bit off. Their petals seem too stiff, and their leaves shine with almost a plastic sheen...

The other oddity is the modest statue in the center of it all, cast in a white, luminescent rock that shines a bit too much to be marble. It appears to be an astronaut, one foot proudly propped upon a stone pedestal and helmet under their arm, but... oddly, the head seems to be missing entirely, rotted away by some odd black gunk which has already dripped down to it's chest. Within the decayed hole, a number of vibrantly red camellia seem to have taken root, spilling over and decorating the ground surrounding it in floral carnage. Totally normal and absolute not cursed outdoor decorations! Yup!!

Wretched landscaping vibes aside, this serves as the designated safe zone for any Dreamers who wish to rest, recoup... or just find themselves unceremoniously tossed out into when the building has had enough of them. But more on that in a bit!



!

FIRST FLOOR



Once the Dreamers make their way through the entrance of the academy, however, things start to get a little... odd. Just from a glance, it's definitely unlike any school interior anyone else has ever seen-- the hallways are unusually wide, the doorways are stretched all the way to the lofty ceilings, and the colors, even in this moonlit glow, look as if someone pulled their contrast and saturation to the maximum. The floors, checkered and strewn with blood red camellia blossoms, are the same sort of damp as the courtyard grounds, slightly slick with water and small puddles accumulating near the walls and the windows. It feels more like a leaky carnival funhouse than a place of learning, and it's almost a headache to take in all at once.

But then, without warning, those whispers from outside start up again, louder and more distinct as they drift ever closer.

"Hey, did you know...?" "Have you heard...?"

"About the Seven Mysteries of this place?"

And suddenly, out of the corner of your eye, you see them: dark, defined figures, like shadow puppets given solid form, their monochromatic colors standing out in harsh contrast to the bright and loud colors of their surroundings. They seem to range from early tweens to nearly college age, in terms of size and shape, milling about these expansive halls and clustered together in pairs and groups, ever whispering to one another. The good news is, these odd shadowy constructs don't seem to pay the Dreamers any mind-- they pass through the corridors, in and out of the classrooms, too engrossed in their gossip to care about anything else. Although, in a way, this is also somewhat of a double-edged sword; any attempts to get direct answers from the figures will be outright ignored, the dark figures merely walking through them as if they were made of air.

It's impossible not to eavesdrop, though, with so many hushed voices reverberating through the air, and given how the corridors seem to stretch and twist without end, paying attention to what they're saying is probably your best ticket to navigating this place. But beware: some of their gossip may wind up being about you, and whether it's true or not, it's best not to argue against it-- the more you fight against their words, the louder the whispers will be, and even if you did kiss that frog in the fourth grade, do you really want your fellow Dreamers to hear about it??


⧖ HAZARD ALERT: "Have you heard...? In the library... at a certain time of night, there's a door that appears that leads you to a room full of secret books. But beware of the ones with the red jackets... for they could spell your doom..."

It's easy enough to find the library in this place, despite the regular classrooms constantly moving locations-- the doors are the only ones wrought through with canna lilies, climbing riotously up to the ceilings above. Despite the floral overgrowth, though, it opens with little trouble, leading to a surprisingly normal sized room filled with numerous bookshelves and desks. Without the Shadow Students milling about, the place is silent, and almost peaceful... although there's also a burrowing sense of loneliness hanging heavily in the air as well.

Trying to get anything out of the books here is a fruitless task; like all dream writing, the words gnarl and garble together, wriggling out of comprehension, but there's a feeling it's mostly just dry, school-assigned novels and nothing more. But as the shadows shift along the wall, a singular book stands out, it's white spine gleaming in the moonlight. Those observant enough to grab hold of the volume will find it's the lever for a hidden doorway, making way to a sprawling room lit with flickering oil lamps and filled with towering shelves packed with all sorts of books, bound in a variety of colors-- save for red, curiously. Despite the dust and cobwebs around the area, along with the odd black sludge from the courtyard dripping down some of the walls, the canna lilies from the outside door are in full bloom here, thriving in the dim, dirty light. While some of the titles offer some resistance in being pulled from the bookcases, they slide out with some careful easing, and they prove to be simpler to read than their counterparts in the main library. Not due to the writing-- that's still as frustratingly elusive as it's always been-- but there's plenty of pictures and vibes to go off of, with the content varying greatly. Some of it is giddy, childlike tales of exploration to unknown places and planets, others are melodramatic rehashes of spooky legends, and some... are oddly familiar. Things like previous Excursions and discoveries, wild adventures within the Dream Sphere...

... and Dreamers. There's books about your fellow Dreamers in here.

Some of these books are only a couple of pages full, while some are thick with illegible writing, and though the initial impression of feelings may vary-- annoyance, amusement, admiration, aggravation-- there's a running emotion through the volumes longer you hold them. Fondness. It's a soft, wiggly feeling, like the consistency of a poached egg, delicate and ready to run if given the slightest of pressure. But peek into these books for too long-- or, worse, get nosy and start trying to find the ones belonging to Dreamers you know-- and suddenly, the novel within your hands becomes clammy and cold. The color bleeds away from the cover, almost quite literally, as a vivid crimson stain spreads from the center until it encapsulates the whole book. What did those Shadow Students say about red jackets again...?

The flutter of a thousand small wings stir up the air all around you, and... OH. Those sure are a bunch of creepy eyeball butterfly Torments looming up behind you, huh...? While tiny and individually easy to pick off (or even step on), these creatures have banded together to form a construct mirroring whichever Dreamer decided to pry more than they needed to, mimicking a good deal of their attacks and strategies. It's easy to become overwhelmed by their numbers on your own, but with the helping hand of a fellow Dreamer to coordinate attacks or take the butterfly swarm by surprise, it can be defeated with some solid teamwork. Escaping from where you came is also an option should things get too hairy, but the library will shut itself off from re-entry once you decide to leave.


⧖ HAZARD ALERT #2: "Did you know...? There's a whole other floor below this one, deep beneath the school. Pay attention to the light of the moon, and you'll be able to find it. But once you fall in, you may never come out again..."

No matter where you look-- in the maze-like hallways, or the odd, shifting classrooms filled with stacks of old radios, TVs, and desks (all functional, but curiously covered with mysterious seals)-- there seems to be no sign of how to proceed further. There's no staircases to be seen, and the one elevator that does seem to be around is faulty and is full of useless buttons (but more on that in a little while!). It seems things have already reached a dead end before they've really started...

... or have they?

Those keeping an ear on the whispers or possessing a keen eye will notice it-- the reflection of the moon on one of the puddles on the floor, glinting a warm amber before flickering out into inky darkness. Dreamers may feel compelled to move towards it... or heck, they might just accidentally stroll through it without paying it any mind, for that matter. But one moment, their foot is on wet tile, and the next, they're abruptly tugged down into the void, the frantic pressure of too much water pressing in all around them. For a terrifying moment, it may feel as if they're drowning, heart hammering against their chest and desperate for air--

... and then, just as suddenly, they're plopped into... some sort of place. It defies convention-- there are doors, of all numerous shapes, sizes, and styles, floating within the starry black void, illuminated on their own but no source of light connecting them. There doesn't seem to be a set path or direction in this Endless Door Hell, just portals upon portals upon... portals. The only logical thing to do is to choose a door and start exploring, hoping one of them will lead to an exit of some sort, but of course, things can't be that simple, can it? Some may open to what appear to be well-known locations in the Dream Sphere (although they flicker out into nothing soon after), others may unlock into memories or flashbacks... and yet others might unleash a hoard of very sludgy, very multi-legged, and very angry Torments upon you the moment you get it open! It's all a matter of luck (and maybe an observant eye) over what you may get, although eventually, after a good deal of wandering, you'll hear the sounds of school bell echoing from behind a red door, decorated with yellow camellias. Looks like you found your way upstairs...

!

SECOND FLOOR



The first thing the Dreamers will notice, upon setting foot in the second floor of this academy, is how normal it seems, in comparison to the floor before. The colors are more muted, the corridors are a normal width, and the doorways are sized just how you'd expect them to be in a school building like this. While the first floor had the appearance of a candy-colored disaster, this one, in contrast, felt more aligned to how a school should actually be-- neatly kept and maintained, with the wooden doors polished to a high shine, and not a dust mite to be seen.

That veneer of normalcy is broken, however, once you actually look down; the water from outside of the building seems to have made it's way onto this level, as illogical as it might seem, sloshing and pooling it's way around the Dreamer's ankles as they explore around this floor. There's all sorts of random little debris floating along the ground-- pens, pebbles, pieces of paper, bottles of pills, wilted flower petals-- which makes the trek a little more annoying compared to the previous level, but not impossible. The other oddity is the scent lingering through the air; one of mild mold and decay, like mildew, musty and stale in the night. It's not necessarily unbearable, but it's not pleasant, either, especially to those with more sensitive noses.

The Shadow Students, however, have not disappeared-- in fact, they seem to have only increased, although whether that's because the halls have become narrower or something else is anyone's guess, really. They continue with their whispers and rumors as usual, moving effortlessly through the standing water as they travel from classroom to classroom. Unlike before, though, they're slightly more corporeal, occasionally jostling or tripping up Dreamers in their travels, but still ultimately ignoring them all the same. Like the rest of the strangeness on this second floor, it's not really an obstacle, but it adds another layer of pesky inconvenience to navigating this place... and isn't that just a metaphor for teenagerhood?


⧖ HAZARD ALERT: "Did you hear...? There's something sinister lurking around the nurse's office at night. They say... a 2nd year student went in... and never returned. Poor thing..."

Like the library from before, the nurse's office is hard to miss-- the doorway is twisted through with chamomile and calendula flowers, though the former seems to be wilting more than the latter is, dropping small white petals into the water sloshing below. Unlike the other room, however, the door offers some resistance to being opened, sticking stubbornly in it's track until some good old elbow grease finally gets it to slide through (or someone decides to kick it down-- we're not going to judge!!). What hits first is the smell: bitter and sterile, run through with the chemically artificial reek of industrial soap and disinfectant. It's more the scent of a hospital than a modest nurse's office, and from the looks of things-- the expansive size of the room to the numerous machines and IVs hooked up to the beds (beds which were much more complex than just the usual tiny cots)-- it seems you Dreamers seemed to have stumbled into just that.

But you're not alone; instead of the Shadow Students occupying the space, there seem to be a hefty amount of Shadow Nurses drifting around instead, their hushed whispers an undertone to the hiss and beeps of the machines as they check on the charts and monitors for the empty beds. Except... upon closer inspection, the beds aren't quite empty, are they-- each space is occupied, in one way or another, with some sort of toy or random item. A threadbare red teddy bear with it's chewed up purple twin lying next to it on one, a couple of Teki-Terra action figures on another... and then others with picture books and novels, a somewhat gnawed on Switch controller and some video games, a music player with a somewhat warped, tinny version of a certain idol's song playing through it's headphones... all with odd, black sludgy handprints on the mattress and the bed stand nearby it.

There's no precise trigger for when it happens; perhaps you've been investigating one of the charts or random items for a bit too long, or perhaps you bumped into one of the beds or bits of floating debris on the ground by accident... heck, you might have even just walked into the room. But suddenly, a voice cuts through the whispery haze, harsh and distorted compared to the overall quiet in the room.

"What are you doing out of bed?" "You can't be roaming around like this--"

And then... OH. Those Shadow Nurses are sure looking in your direction now, aren't they? Even without facial features, there's an unnerving sensation of multiple eyes boring upon you, as one by one the figure swivel their attention your way. Before you know it, they're converging to descend upon you, arms reaching and hands grasping as they try to pin and corral their unlucky target towards one of the beds.

"You need to rest" "So young, poor thing"
"It'll be over before you know it" "It won't hurt, don't worry"
"p̴o̷o̷r̸ ̴t̷h̵i̷n̷g̷"
"You have to think about your health" "There's nothing to be scared of"
"p̷̛̻o̷͖͌o̴̭͌r̸͇̋ ̶̠̾t̴͚̔h̴͉͝i̴̛̝n̶̟͂ǵ̵̳, p̶̘͒̋̅̏̈́̍͘͝o̵̦̫͙̒͐͑͑͌́͊̔̒ŏ̶̡͖̼͚̝͚̥̺̖̤̄́̅͜r̴͙̜̤̃̈̾̅ ̷̛͈̘̠̮͉̝̺͕͊ẗ̴̨̲̠̜́͂͆̃̄̈́̓̅̂͘ẖ̵̝́ȉ̶̧͈̙̟̖̼̊̃̇̈́̉͜ͅṋ̸̘̥̲̺̟̰̟͓̟̿̓̊͜g--"

Being shadow constructs, they're easy enough to disperse with a well placed attack, but with their numbers and malleable forms, it's fairly easy to get smothered or suffocated by them if you're not quick enough to strike, so keep on your toes! They seem to only be able to focus on a single Dreamer at a time, so leaping in to save your fellow mahou-in-arms (or provide a good distraction) is a solid strategy in defeating them!

Or... you can also just try your luck and high tail it out of there, but with the sticky door, that might be more trouble than it's worth-- especially with no other leads on how to get to the next floor. However, there is something else in the room...


⧖ HAZARD ALERT #2: "There's a wonderland on the other side of the looking glass. There are mirrors there that reflect... the hearts of all those who wander inside. Someone with a beautiful or brave heart will be just fine. But if their heart contains even the smallest bit...of ugliness or fear..."

Maybe you spot it after you defeat the Shadow Nurses, or perhaps when you're escaping from them... or maybe you just got incredibly lucky and dodged their notice somehow while you've been here in this cursed office-- but propped above one of the sinks in the room is a mirror. That alone shouldn't be much of note, but wilting around the frame is a number of red spider lilies, and if there's been a running theme in this Disturbance, it's that flowers probably mean something around here. Not that it's immediately apparent at first glance, of course; it just seems like a normal (albeit very floral) mirror, dingy around the edges and reflecting the room around it. But then, there's a shift within-- a smirk, from your very own reflection, eyes tinting yellow and glimmering with malevolent mischief. Swiftly, without warning, it lunges forward, breaking free from the confines of the mirror to grab at whoever's in front of it and drag them in, pulling them through the glass as if it were merely water.

Contrary to popular belief, there isn't a wonderland on the other side of the looking glass-- in fact, there's a whole lot of nothing, just a round room illuminated by a single, unseen spotlight and surrounded by mirrors in all shapes and sizes, stretching to the vanishing ceiling up above. In the middle of it all stands a full-length mirror in an ornately wrought frame, bearing down upon them as their reflection smiles impishly back. But unlike the looking glass in Mio's Disturbance, this reflection isn't interested in playing a game of follow-the-leader, an unsettlingly familiar giggle echoing in the air as it fades from view.

"There's nothing to be afraid of...

The glass all around turns murky and dark, and then something in the atmosphere of the small room... changes. It's like reality stretches thin, like a rubber band being pulled too taut, and then abruptly retracts, altering everything around it with a snap. What happens next depends on the Dreamer-- if they're the rare sort that are pure of heart and conscience, with no worries or concerns plaguing their mind, then the only thing different in the room will be a door where the mirror frame used to be. But if they're not... that's when things start to get a little hairy. Depending on what fear or worries the Dreamer harbors most in their heart, the Torments that manifest in the room will change to reflect that, whether it's oddly benign to catastrophically deadly-- be it swarms of fluffy rabbits, hellishly hot fires... or just people relentlessly bullying you over your chunky legs. (yes, really.) It's either face your fear head on and fight your inner darkness in order to escape, or be paralyzed and taken over by your demons... unless someone else comes to your rescue. After all, burdens are lighter when they're shared, and what might be terrifying for some might not be so bad for others.

... of course, breaking the main mirror is always an option, but that's just going to kick you out to the second floor hallway, and do you really want to deal with the Shadow Nurses again?

!

STAIRWELL



Whether you were fortunate enough to stroll through the door in the mirror room without a sweat, or had to fight tooth and nail through your fears in order for it to manifest, what lies on the other side of the doorway is something a bit... new. Instead of the endless corridors of the first two floors, Dreamers instead find themselves on a landing of some sort, facing a set of stairs ascending to the next level. The stairway itself glistens pale and luminescent in the moonlight, white camellias woven around the bannisters and scattered about the steps as they stretch upwards. Strangely, it's drier here compared to the rest of second floor, the water merely a shallow pool along the floor and dribbling languidly down the staircase. It seems like a no-brainer to push forward-- after all, there doesn't seem to be any other way to get to the next floor, what with the continuing trend of shifting classrooms and twisty halls, and this time you at least have a set of stairs to use instead of a weird pocket dimension, right? But wasn't there a rumor floating around about this place, too...?

⧖ HAZARD ALERT: "...Have you heard? There is a rule regarding that staircase that you must never break... You must never set foot on the 5th step. If you do... you'll be taken to the other side...."

Ah yes... with a warning like that, it seems simple enough to avoid this trap. As long as the Dreamers are quick and skip the fifth step heading up the stairs, they can bypass whatever horror is waiting for them down below. The staircase is a bit of a trek, and somewhat slippery thanks to the water running down it (watch your footing!) but soon enough, the third floor landing is in sight, ready to lead the rescue team further in to the Disturbance...

... but then... the rumor never quite specified if it was the fifth step up or fifth step down, did it?

As soon as your foot hits that step, it's as if everything drops away, sending you plummeting down, down, down into an ever narrowing chute. It's a long, perilous plunge, but thankfully something soft, squishy and (unfortunately) a bit soggy finally breaks your fall, helping you bounce with minimal damage onto solid ground. It's hard to say what this place is, exactly-- it's towering and narrow, almost like an elevator shaft, but it's hard to imagine any sort of machinery working in here. The walls are lined, from bottom to top, with all sorts of faucets, with the thick vines and stems of numerous flowers, in various stages of decay, weaving about them. The scent of rotting flowers almost overpowers the smell of stagnant water swirling about their feet, murky and dark as it laps against the chaotic mess of toys bobbing about. Battered stuffed animals, broken trains, chipped rocket ships, half-inflated balls-- it looks as if a child's playroom got turned upside down and deposited in this place, but considering some of it stopped you from breaking any Dreamer bones, maybe it's not a bad thing...

It may be seconds, or minutes, or maybe even hours before another Dreamer is plopped alongside you-- that is, if you hadn't already fallen in with someone in the first place. But the moment there's more than one person in this room, a sound screeches through the air-- one that sounds like a thousand rusty faucets turning on at once. And then all of a sudden, it's nothing but water, water, dark and gunky and uncomfortably sludgy water, cascading down upon you two with no means of stopping any time soon. With how narrow the space is, it doesn't take long for things to start filling up, the flood climbing higher and higher and threatening to overwhelm Dreamers if they don't start working together to climb to higher ground soon. With the faucets and the vines on the walls, it's possible to help each other scale the walls to escape-- or even put some creative Dreamer abilities to the test to launch yourself higher up the shaft. Near the top, there's a moon shaped door, signifying an emergency exit, though it'll take some clever planning to get both Dreamers out in one piece. Staying in the water and letting it carry you to the top is also an option, if you tread long enough-- but it comes with an unsettling sensation of something slick and slimy pulling at your arms, your legs, a lilting, distorted voice burbling up from down below to coo:

"Give up... stop fighting... it's useless in the end anyway..."

... yeah, you might just... want to avoid being in there too long if you can help it. Yikes.

!

THIRD FLOOR



Whether you manage to scamper through the emergency exit in the flooded room, or were just clever enough to avoid both the top and botton fifth steps and made it to the end of the stairs (which... good for you for side-stepping that absolute nightmare fuel of a puzzle), you'll find yourself stepping into an unfamiliar hallway... and an absolute hell of rot and decay. The scent of earthy, putrid mold and dying white camellia flowers hang heavy in the air of this dimly lit floor, the wood frames on windowsills and doors slickly dark with fungus and water damage. While the previous floor felt more like a normal school, this one is like a post-apocalyptic, claustrophobic disaster, the corridors squeezing in on the Dreamers in a narrow, constricting fit and the water rising up to drag along their shins and calves. There's a murky, dark, and somewhat disgusting quality to the flooding on the ground, akin to the waters in that cursed shaft, and it pulls at Dreamers in much of the same way, deliberately slowing them down and tiring them out the longer they traverse the halls. In the glow of the moon, it almost looks like there's an eye peering up from the depths, or a pair of lips, twisted in a grotesque grin... but surely that's just a trick of the light, right?

The Shadow Students still remain in the hallways, drifting through the decomposing carcass of the school like nothing, flitting past the rusted shut classroom doors and peeling paint as they continue their rounds of whispers. But maybe it's the tighter hallways, or maybe it's because you're getting closer to the heart of things, but the dark figures seem to be getting more aggressive, deliberately knocking into Dreamers or pushing them into the grimy water and pointing their vicious rumors and mockery their way. Sticks and stones may break your bones, but these words actually hurt, in the physical sense, stinging and biting like a swarm of angry bugs. Ignoring them has gotten you this far, but maybe it's about time you started to fight back-- although the narrow space and standing water is probably going to be one hell of a mobility disadvantage.

If you've been keeping an ear on the rumors (at least, the ones that weren't try to eat you alive), you may catch onto a familiar name in the babble:

"In the 3rd stall from the end of the bathroom on the third floor of the building...you'll find Hanako-san. To summon them, you knock three times...And thenー"

Was this a clue to find Amane...? After all, it does make sense-- he's a ghost-themed Dreamer after all, named after a popular urban legend, so it would be fitting to check in the bathrooms... even if a place like this having any sort of restrooms seems a bit odd. (It's Dream Logic, don't question it!!)

As with the other locations, the bathroom is easy enough to find, especially here in the midst of the decay of the third floor. The door, small and modest as it is, is covered with rotting yellow lilies and headless white camellias, the latter floating along the dark waters like tiny pale boats. With all the rust and the deteriorating wood, it's a struggle to get the entrance opened, but some well-aimed Dreamer powers will get the job done (or just a good, solid kick... seriously, we're not judging in the slightest), leading to... a surprisingly normal looking restroom! The floods and the accompanying decomposition somehow haven't seemed to have touched this place, with only the gunk from outside pooling slightly on the floor from where the Dreamers have entered.

There's an overwhelming sense of loneliness, hopelessness, and sorrow radiating from the small room, as the moonlight tints everything in a reddish gold glow from the stained glass windows. A small sob cuts through the air, hiccupping and breathless, the voice haunting and painfully familiar in the otherwise silent bathroom. The weeping continues the further one walks in, the doors to the first two stalls swinging open and empty as they pass. But the third...

Knock once, and the crying comes to an abrupt stop, waves of shame and anxiety radiating from behind the closed door. Knock again, and the shame gets replaced by something much stronger, much more intense, the malevolent energy pulsing and crackling around the edges of the stall.

go away i dont want you here leave me ALONE

Knock one more time, and the dark, bitter feelings surge and boil over, pressure mounting

goawaygoawaygoAWAY G̸̖͈̰͎̮̽͑͝ ̷̝̫̗̭̑̽̚E̶̝̭̜̠̒́͛̔̕ ̶͓̝̺̾̎̇͊͜Ț̸̡̰̹̠͒̀͑ ̴̝͙̫̎͜ ̸̰͔̰͍̌̓ͅO̸̜̓́̂̆͗ ̴̠̣͚̬͚͊U̵͎̇ ̴̙̔̑̄͂̿Ț̴͍̥̖̿̇̋͝

But then, the door swings open with a quiet, anticlimactic click, squeaking on it's hinges, and... huh. There's nothing there, save for a lone toilet, but... why is everything suddenly getting so dark...?

!

ELEVATOR

If there is one thing that remains consistent between the levels of the school, no matter how deep into this Disturbance a Dreamer travels, it's the elevator.

... yes, the elevator. Old fashioned in style, forged of tarnished bronze and gleaming in the light of the moon, it always lingers just out of sight whenever the Dreamers enter a new floor. The interior, while a bit dusty and smelling of oil, is dry as a bone compared to the rest of the building, instead carpeted with red, white, and purple camellias. The other curiosity, aside from the flowers, are the mechanics of the elevator itself-- there are numerous buttons, lined up and down the control panel, more than there are possible floors to this place, and the display panel above the gate only reflects that.

It begs to question, then, why anyone would subject themselves to the various dangers and traps lying in wait when a simpler option of exploring exists-- but taking a chance on one of the buttons makes the answer painfully clear. Despite finding the elevator cab stalling and ready for riders on whichever floor you might be, it refuses to move to anything but the ground level, no matter which individual buttons are pushed. Manhandling the control panel or trying to physically get the carriage to budge via Dreamer abilities will earn folks a swift boot back to the courtyard, undoing any sort of progress they may have made investigating the Disturbance-- and surely you don't want to go through all of that again, do you?

But the elevator isn't just there to aggravate people or be a tease-- those who have been keeping a keen ear on the rumors, paying close attention to the tiniest details and turns of phrase, may have picked up on it. The seemingly innocuous but oddly specific numbers mentioned in these stories...

2nd...

5th...

3rd...

The moment the buttons to these floors are pressed in succession to each other-- 2, 5, 3-- the doors automatically rattle shut, locking into place before the carriage starts to ascend. The vintage display panel slowly ticks off the floors as the elevator travels up, and up, and up, the gates rattling as it's pulled along ever higher. There's something curious about the choice of numbers here, though, and to those either skilled in goroawase, or just... really good at pager texting in the 90's, it starts to become clear it's a code for something else.

2 5 3

tsu ka sa

tsukasa

Before the significance of that can completely sink in, however, the cabin shudders to a stop, the arrow on the display pointing to a faded crescent moon. The doors clatter open, bringing the clammy, brisk breeze of the night into the stuffy carriage, and in the distance, on the top of one of the roof spires, you see him.

But he's not alone...

code

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MID-TIER COMBAT ENCOUNTER: NOCTALGIA

[hanamane]

NIGHTMARE ENCOUNTER

♫ Ainetaburu - Jibaku Shonen Hanako-kun OST

The shadows from the stall seem to coalesce around you, thousands of dark, thin arms bursting from the inky depths to spirit you away into an endless void. For a few confusing, deadly silent moments, you're floating within jet black nothingness-- neither falling nor rising, just suspended within the shadows like you're in the world's most cursed jello mold. And then, just like that, you're spat out into a shallow, filthy pond of water... though where, exactly, is another question entirely. It's certainly nowhere in the school, or if it is, it's well underneath the building from the looks of it. The walls are high, rocky and cavernous, slick with water and condensation, with random evil-sealing wards in various states of disintegration stuck all around. But before you can get a better glimpse around, an agonized, monstrous scream wrenches the air and-- oh.

Yeah, Hanako's definitely not down here. But then, assuming he'd let himself be found so easily within his own Disturbance was your first mistake.

The creature that bears down upon the Dreamers now-- Hedorah Noctalgia-- is a massive, sludgy, eldritch abomination of a creature, looming down upon the Dreamers at a good thirty feet high. It's dark, slimy body is covered in eyes, ears, and mouths, twisting and moving independently from one another as it wails and perpetually oozes in place. For something so huge and goopy (not to mention covered in vulnerable spots), one would think it'd be a cinch to fight-- but this kaiju knock-off has a few tricks of it's own up it's sleeves.

Despite it's size and matter, Noctalgia is surprisingly quick to strike, using it's dripping tendrils to whip at any Dreamer not fast enough on their toes, or occasionally launching gobs of it's body in a rapid-fire barrage. While disgusting, getting hit by this Nightmare is the least of your worries-- the substance of Noctalgia's body is fairly toxic, so even glancing damage can leave a Dreamer feeling ill and lethargic if they're not careful enough. The stagnant pond of water it inhabits also polluted with a diluted version of it's toxin, so standing in it too long will start leeching into your Durability if you don't find a better vantage point, and fast.

Thankfully, carved along the walls of the pit is a curving staircase, twisting up and around the circumference of the cavernous room and (presumably) leading to an exit. Some of the steps have eroded over time, giving the whole thing a platformer sort of feel, but it's nothing a good Dreamer bunny jump can't clear. With Noctalgia's multiple eyes and ears, sneaking up on it isn't really possible, but working in time with your fellow mahous can help get the upper-hand on this creature, especially from multiple angles. Needless to say, it's immune to poison-based attacks, and while physical attacks to the gunky parts of it's body are largely ineffective, anything aimed at the softer bits (aka the eyes and mouth) are more likely to damage it. It's also very weak to electricity, so a well placed charge in the pool or aimed towards it's vulnerable spots can help seize it up, but be careful not shock your fellow Dreamers in the process! Water based and purifying/healing attacks are also effective to a lesser extent as well.


WIN CONDITIONS:
⧖ At least 3 characters must show up to fight
⧖ At least 15 comments must be posted across 2 threads.

[hgs]

[After smashing their way through Hanako's Disturbance with all the finesse of a battering ram, Cinnabar is also starting to look rather... goopy. The liquid mercury blobs that usually float around them have coalesced around their body, dripping from their hair and hands only to be resorbed into the silvery pool at their feet. Mercury seethes through the mud and detritus at the bottom of the massive pit like a sightless amoeba searching for something it can envelop and devour. Cinnabar resembles a smaller version of the monster, albeit with significantly fewer eyes... but the eyes they do have are narrow with fury.

Why didn't you ask me to come with you? I would have fought your Nightmares before they got this bad.

But Amane didn't ask... and now this dank, rotting school building feels like it's about to collapse back into the claustrophobic dream bubble that Cinnabar and the rest of Amane's friends from Camellia encountered a few days ago. If this dream collapses... what happens to Amane? And what happens to the Dreamers trapped at the bottom of the pit?

...This Nightmare is familiar, though. Cinnabar has seen something like it before on the screen at the local movie theatre during midnight showings of old monster movies...]

It's Noctalgia, from the 1971 spinoff movie "Teki-Terra vs. Noctalgia. Don't let it touch you - it's extremely toxic.

[Mercury tentacles rise from the dark, fetid water. Cinnabar doesn't trust the staircase that spirals around the pit to hold the weight of their mercury, so for now they'll fight it from the bottom. Cinnabar's nature as a cursed Dreamer gives them some resistance to poison, but they still keep the lower half of their body encased in mercury to avoid touching the water.]

...But so am I.

[daikonic]

[ Nene had been so, so confident about this. The second she realized that there was a bathroom on the third floor, she didn't even bother listening to the gossiping shades. She loves scary stories, even if she hates the idea of being part of one, and that of course includes Hanako-san of the Toilet.

There was absolutely no doubt in her mind that they would find Hanako in the girls bathroom of the third floor. It feels weird to say that out loud, considering that Hanako-kun is a boy... but hey, if it doesn't work, the boys bathroom isn't too far away, right?

Except there's no chance of that happening, because without wasting even a moment, Nene promptly skipped over into the pristine environment known as the girl's bathroom and knocked three times in quick succession.

She barely even started to say "Hanako-san, Hanako-san, are you there?" before getting sucked in. ]

A-A-Aah...

[ And now, here she is, looking up at this goopy eldritch monstrosity... and the first thought on Nene's mind is, of course— ]

KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!

[ Thank goodness Cinnabar is here to tell her what it is! Now if only Nene wasn't so scared, she might actually care about what it is and focus less on desperately wanting to get out of here.

Listen, with everything Nene's gone through in her time here in this disturbance, this is the straw that breaks the camels back. it doesn't matter if it's from a movie or whatever, fight or flight triggers, and Nene chooses flight, immediately turning her back and dashing for the stairs.

This does, unfortunately, make her a very easy target for one of Noctalgia's tentacles to lunge out at her. Whoops? ]

[traceofeffort]

[On the one hand, Lisa has absolutely heard of the urban legend of Hanako-san. Between rumors of the more normal variety in the waking world, and the collective unconscious as expressed on the internet, while she's not intimately familiar, it's something that crosses her mind. On the other, her mind sticks more than Nene's does on the fact that Hanako-kun is male and so it might not trigger that way - or that there might be a trap set for anyone making that assumption. Did Hanako predict Nene would do this? Does he just want to keep them from finding him, defense mechanism or otherwise?

And on the gripping hand, they're now fighting a Teki-Terra monster and Lisa is regretting not paying more attention to his very clear favorite kaiju show, as she's getting a crash course from Cinnabar.]

Of course it's toxic... Cinnabar, we're counting on you. I'm going to be stuck playing defense, I think, but I'll get in potshots when I can. I... [The professionalism slips a little; she's no less scared than the others, she's just hiding it better.] Please, please be careful.

[She's been stressing this entire trip into the Dream Sphere; she's worried about Amane, of course, but every turn is new and more and more creative ways to hurt her heart and test her will, and this is just the icing on the terrible, terrible cake. It's pushing her to her absolute limits, and while she's managed not to turn into a screaming, sobbing mess, it's been touch and go in parts. She knows, at least in passing, it's been much the same for poor Koi, who is much less experienced than even Lisa herself-

-and who is about to become patient zero for how toxic this thing actually is. Rushing, Rhodonite jams a harsh chord on her strings, and a red wave blossoms into being in front of the girl and angled away to the right. She turns her head, risking the thing taking another shot at her, and shouts at Koi in... soothing is beyond her right now, but she can try for gentle suggestions maybe?]

Koi-chan! Stick together so we can cover you!

[hgs]

[They react immediately at the piercing sound of Koi's scream, but it's too late - Cinnabar tries to hold back the sludgy tentacle with mercury, but Noctalgia is faster. At the last moment, though, a brilliant red glow deflects the attack away from Koi.

Cinnabar staggers, so relieved that their knees feel weak. Even though they've fought alongside Rhodonite and Koi before, it's easy to forget that they don't have to handle every threat by themselves... that no one expects them to handle every threat by themselves.

They can't let Koi know how frightened they were, though. For everyone else's sake, Cinnabar keeps a straight face.]

...I'm counting on the two of you. The Noctalgia in the movie was immune to poison and most physical attacks.

[And Cinnabar's powers are limited exclusively to poison and physical attacks... They form floating blobs of mercury into thin needles and send a flurry of them towards Noctalgia's bulbous, exposed eyes.]

But its eyes are its weak points!

[daikonic]

Ah...!

[ Nene looks back just in time to see Lisa promptly save her from taking a direct hit from the Nightmare, falling to her hands and knees and trembling from head to toe as she looks up in fear at the massive monster. ]

A-Al... alrigh...

[ She can barely even get a word out in response, and it doesn't feel great. Here she is, surrounded on either side by two (in her eyes) confident and powerful Dreamers... and what is she doing?

The only thing she can think of doing is run. The only thing stopping her is the fact that she has no clue where to run. ]

I-I...!

[ She can feel the water she's stumbled into draining her as well, but her legs are shaking too much for her to stand. Her only option is to do something, to help...

...but what can she even do? Her Mokke aren't here, or at least, not yet... but even if they were here, it's not like they can help much in the face of this thing. So what if it's eyes are it's weak points? What's Nene supposed to do, throw a Mokke at it? Despite what they may claim, her soft fuzzy familiars have never shown any actual offensive capabilities, least of all as projectiles.

Essentially... she's useless. Dead weight. Why did she even come here? She's done nothing but mess up ever since she got here, and now she's just another target that the others have to protect. ]

I...

[ Unfortunately, Nene is Going Through It right now, so there's no contribution to the fight... but at the very least she's not moving away from Rhodonite? That's a plus, right? ]

[ruinedsky]

[It has been a long and arduous trek through this Disturbance, and it took Luck more than one go at it to get through to the third floor and the bathroom that the whispers kept talking about. He heard that some of the younger dreamers had gone in and not come out, so he hoped he could catch up to them. He's grimy and damp and a rattled and the second he drops into this cavern and feels more cold, slimy water around his ankles he gags all over again.]

Ugh

[But the second he takes in the scene, and sees the three young Dreamers struggling to get a footing, he rallies.]

Hello, mind if I cut in?

[He twirls his sandglass, summoning his lance and immediately it starts to glow red-hot.]

Open wide, you!

[He dives for one of the mouths, stabbing his Spear of the Sun between it's nasty teeth.]

[traceofeffort]

[If she's being honest, Lisa has no idea how she's going to cover Koi if they need to keep moving - Cinnabar is a very hard target given they're also probably immune (or at least resistant) to poison, since that's their entire thing, so it's probably going to shoot at her. She can't help attack it if she's going to have to concentrate on defense, so how-?

Someone else dropping in almost literally is a godsend, and she lets out an audible sigh of relief. She doesn't entirely know who this is - there's no time to ask or verify - but they're attacking the Nocta-thing and that's enough for her. Immediately,
after a one-handed wave of thanks, she changes her tempo to a more musical series of tones, and a red comet bursts from her bass, toward one of the eyes. The shot sails true, but at the last moment the thing lurches just slightly - maybe to get away from this other Dreamer? - and it sinks largely uselessly into the sludge. Not waiting to see if she scored the hit, Rhodonite bends down to Koi to help her stand, but not without a gentle hand on her shoulder for a moment before reaching to haul her up. She feels off standing down here... if they stay, she won't be able to keep moving after much longer. She doesn't know what it is but she can feel it.]

Here, come on up. Are you okay? I don't want to stand down here where we might get hit if this thing shoots at Cinnabar-san and misses. [A beat, and her confident expression melts away into something not far from the look on Koi's face.] Well. No, you're not okay. Neither am I. But... if we give up here, who's going to save Hanako-kun? H-he needs us, right? I'm not... going to leave him here by himself.

[......she really needs to work on her Friendship Speeches, but this might work for now?]

[hgs]

Get out of the water! Hurry!

[Cinnabar isn't sure whether Noctalgia's posion or their poison is turning the stagnant pool into a biohazard, but either way, it's a bad idea to stand around and find out. The staircase spiralling out of the pit is even more exposed to the Nightmare's attacks, though, and Cinnabar's range is limited...

So they're grateful when another redhead appears, wielding a blazing spear. Noctalgia's oozing flesh sizzles as the spear pierces its mouth - it turns out that the only thing that smells worse than toxic sludge is burning toxic sludge.]

Th-thanks...

[Cinnabar still shies away from other Dreamers even after joining the DU, so they don't recognize Luck in Dreamer form... although they think they've probably seen him before in passing at DU headquarters. Introductions can wait, though.]

It poisons everything it touches, and physical attacks won't work unless you target a weak point. Fire, though... that might work. But we have to cover Koi! She doesn't have any defensive powers yet!

[Cinnabar's earlier barrage of mercury needles managed to stab a few of Noctalgia's eyes, so they send another volley... but this time, instead of trying to directly hit so many moving targets, they let the mercury splatter drip over the monster's body and form a silvery film to blind its eyes.]

[daikonic]

[ They have to cover her. She doesn't have any defensive powers, so they have to cover her. Cinnabar isn't wrong. In fact, with a new addition to their fighting force, it's important to make it clear who the dead weight is... and sure, Cinnabar may not have meant it like that, but...

That doesn't make it hurt any less. ]

I-I'm s-sorry...! I-I...!

[ With Rhodonite's help, Nene is able to stand again... but she's just barely holding herself together. ]

I-I can't...! I-I'm so stupid and useless...! I-I could never save Hanako-kun...!! I-I wanted to save him for once, but I never could've...!

[ Tears are flowing from her eyes. This really isn't the time for this, she knows it isn't, but as she remains in the middle of a panic attack, dragging Rhodonite down and keeping her from getting out of this poison water right away...

...Noctalgia is still very much a threat, they are still very much not out of danger, and with the combination of a burning spear in it's mouth and mercury splattering over it's eyes, it starts to lash out wildly and indiscriminately, tentacles swinging about in every direction as it lets out a deafening roar... ]

E-Eek...!!

[ ...and as if in response to that terrifying roar, Koi is briefly enveloped in a faint glow. ]

[ruinedsky]

[He bounces back and away from the eldrich beast after his blow hands, tossing a friendly wink toward Cinnabar in response to the thanks. The news that the water is toxic doesn't surprise him a bit, considering how noxious it is, and he frowns before nodding.]

[He turns toward the other two, one of whom is clearly having some kind of attack or breakdown. His heart clenches in sympathy. He can't tell how young she actually is, but she looks really young in this moment. Too young to be facing these kinds of horrors... he shakes himself and steps quickly toward Koi and Rhodonite.]

Hey. Hey, look at me.

[He takes on a soothing tone, like one might take with a spooked wild animal, but his voice is a soft and comforting baritone. This isn't his first rodeo calming a panicking kid, clearly. Even if it doesn't work, it's a valiant try.]

You aren't useless, you just need to get your feet under you. First we need to get out of this water.

[He looks to Rhodonite for help. Maybe they can hoist her if they each take an arm? He's about to suggest scooping her up and running when Koi starts to glow.]

Woah, WOAH!

[He repeats his surprise as a failing tentacle starts to come at him. He manages to parry with his spear and avoid getting smacked, but it's a near thing. He responds by blocking with his spear one-handed, summoning a flame in the other to toss at Noctalgia, trying to buy another moment.]

[traceofeffort]

[Rhodonite looks reasonably similar to Lisa's civilian form; if Luck were feeling observant, he might notice the similarity. Granted, there's also a very good reason for him not to be observant at the moment. That reason, as Rhodonite moves to do exactly that without being told, is the fact that while they've gotten Koi to her feet, they need to move her. Cinnabar is right but needs lessons on things you can't just say to girls; this new guy is trying, but Koi is deep in the darkness and will need someone to pull her heart out of the muck before she can help them get her body out. That's not going to happen if they can't cheer her up at least a little-

or maybe it will, given Koi's now lit up like a flare in the dank, dingy room. Without knowing what's going to happen, she's not stupid or desperate enough to grab onto her now, lest she get target with whatever the girl's about to do. Instead she takes a half step away from Koi, instead pulling her bass back into her hands. They need to move, but if this guy gets himself shot down first, they're not going anywhere. Adrenaline keeps her voice tight but mercifully steady as she blasts out something vaguely glam-rock-y, her shield shimmering into being and pulsing in time with the beat. Her fingers are mostly keeping up with her, but that feeling that something's off is growing. There's somehow a meaty thunk as a tentacle glances off the shield; somehow the remaining force pushes her back half a meter despite her not actually being in contact with the shield??? Thunk, thunk, slide. At this rate they'll end up at the stairs through sheer pressure.]

I don't know how long I can keep it up, but I need you to help Koi-chan! I'll cover you until we're ready to move!

[i_peace]

[there's a brief flash of green before three large shuriken goes flying through the air, slicing through the thin tendrils currently pinning everyone down, apparently taking advantage of Noctalgia's impaired vision to get around being immediately attacked. How did he get here? When did he get here? Don't sweat the details-]

Hurry! Before it starts to attack again!

[one of his bunshin disappears in a puff of smoke as Noctalgia's projectiles hit it dead on. The real Tycoon and one of his other bunshin dodges the projectiles coming at them, forcing them farther from the group gathered at the base of the stairwell. Probably for the best; if the Nightmare's attacks are drawn away, it'll hopefully make it easier on Rhodonite and Luck to defend Koi.

Tycoon probably doesn't have a lot of time before he starts feeling the effects of the poison in earnest, but until then he can try and give the others more time to move. He gets ready to throw his weapon again as he sends his remaining bunshin in to draw Noctalgia's attention, dodging the tendrils to the best of his ability.

Which, after several Nightmare fights, is pretty high]

[hgs]

You're not useless, Koi! Without you, we never would have found Hanako!

[For most of Cinnabar's life, they've measured their value as a person by the utility they could provide to others... and no matter how strong they became as a Dreamer, no matter how hard they worked in the real world, they always seemed to come up short. They might have years more combat experience than Koi, but they still know what it's like to feel useless and incompetent... especially when it comes to social interactions. How is it that they always manage to say the wrong thing?

They telekinetically force mercury into Noctalgia's eyes and mouths, choking its ability to spit toxic sludge. The tentacles are still a danger, though... and with most of their mercury covering Noctalgia, Cinnabar doesn't have much left to protect themself. Without their mercury shields, they're little more than a glass cannon, so they hurry towards the stairwell.]

He might have just disappeared forever without any of us ever seeing him again, but you wanted to find him so strongly that the Dream Sphere had no choice but to lead us to him!

[They aren't sure where Tycoon came from, but they're glad he's here. Tycoon, Rhodonite and Koi all cared enough about Hanako to break the DU's orders and risk going into an unexplored part of the Dream Sphere... and now they're fighting Hanako's Nightmare together. It seems right, somehow.]

So just by being here, you're helping!

[daikonic]

But...!

[ Everyone is trying to cheer her up... they are literally fighting a Nightmare, and they're trying to cheer her up. Nene isn't sure whether to be happy that they care so much, or even more upset that they're distracting themselves with her instead of the fight right now.

More than that, though, is how everything has started to happen so fast... faster than what Nene can keep up with. There's another Dreamer here, Rhodonite needs her to move, the other handsome Dreamer is parrying tentacle attacks, and— ]

Ah...!

[ One tentacle gets lucky, slipping past and coming straight for Nene and Rhodonite. Nene instinctively puts her hands over her head, closes her eyes, braces for the impact... ]

NO...!!

[ That glow, which had been faint earlier, suddenly flares to life with a faint crackle. The poisonous water at Nene's feet is suddenly repelled, forming a small circle of dry ground around Nene that can fit herself and one person if they squeezed in... but more than that, a repelling force manifests around Nene as she screams in fear, not even understanding what she's doing...

...and the tentacle is repelled by Nene's newly-awakened panic button. Weirdly, while the tentacle immediately recoils, other Dreamers—such as Rhodonite, who is next to her—aren't repelled at all. ]

[ruinedsky]

Nice shot!

[Boy is Luck happy to see more backup. He tosses another fireball, and positions himself between the girls and the Nightmare. Even with Tycoon drawing much of the attention, the tentacles still flail, especially with the thing blinded by Cinnabar's efforts. Sylvain covers their retreat, letting the others try to inspire Koi with their support. He parries away tendrils, sloshing a little forward into the muck to give Cinnabar space to get behind him.]

We're going to do this, we are going to get through this, Koi-chan- ah! HA HA! Now there's a nice trick!

[He turns to see her bubble forming, pushing away the poisonous water and making a shield and he laughs triumphantly. A tentacle slaps uselessly off her barrier, and he slashes at it with his glowing spear as it tried to recover.]

[traceofeffort]

[When did Tycoon get here? She isn't going to sweat the details either, but boy, he's sure getting mileage out of that ninja thing - and it's sorely needed support, as Rhodonite immediately feels some of the pressure ease, attacks coming less often, giving her more time to reinforce her barrier with layers between hits. She's not getting pushed back as far, but the clock's still dangerously close to zero before she needs to move or she'll be moved by a hit she can't tank anymore. Thunk, slide, the newcomer buys them more space with fire (ooh). Thunk, sliiiiide, she's close enough to hear Koi's panicked breathing, Cinnabar's got it blind and she tries to keep going just a little longer, it's going to be fine-

-her fingers fumble and the shield drops; she knows, instinctively, it's from standing in this water for what feels like forever even if it's only been minutes. The next tentacle comes and it's going to hit her, and despite herself, despite all her practice and her bravado, she flinches, knowing she's about to get thrown into the wall on an express trip-

-Koi's scream in her ear makes her open her eyes (when did she close them?) and look up. There's a new barrier, one that isn't hers, and the water's being pushed back. The tentacle's being pushed back, and she watches the moment it collides with the new magical effect that, somehow, has to be coming from Koi; some tiny part of Lisa's brain decides she owes Nene a basket of cookies for this. For a beat, all she can do is watch the spell and marvel. It's cliche, but it's exactly what they needed, at exactly the moment they needed it.

Then the newcomer attacks the tentacle again, and reality reasserts itself. Koi's bought them time, but this isn't going to last forever, and they need to get out of the way so Cinnabar can regroup with them and everyone can focus their attacks forward. Rhodonite's tone is softer when she addresses the girl again, if still tense.]

Great work! I knew you had it in you, Koi-chan. [An unsure glance up, and Rhodonite makes a show of trying to flex her fingers; they'll work a bit longer, but the girls are on borrowed time.] Think you can hold it for a bit? Or are we running?

[noonecandestroythemetal]

[Sam is absolutely the type to watch, listen, and learn. She probably spent more time than she absolutely needed to, simply listening to the shadows' gossip. But even if she's not doing it now, Sam had learned to be a Dungeon Master. And something she's learned about the Disturbances so far is that they do have things in common with some of the better tabletop dungeons she's either participated in as a player, or ran as a game master.

Information is important. Unfortunately, she'd locked herself out of the library fairly quickly after dispatching a swarm of the eyeball butterflies--without getting much from the books, either. Still, hanging around the closed doors meant that she wasn't actually progressing.

Maybe it was luck that had her falling through a puddle, of all things, to end up on what seemed to be the second floor. Mostly, Sam shoulders her way past the shadow students, doing her best to avoid the nurses.  This takes every bit of skill she'd learned in junior high--she wasn't a delinquent, per se, but she was the black sheep of her family, and that bled through in school.

Or maybe she's got the inverse of Zeke's luck.  Or all his bad luck means she comes up smelling like a rose.]

Stop woolgathering, you haven't got time for this!

[That doesn't stop her from dithering a little, counting the stairs. Five up? Five down? Every fifth step? Finally, she just calls it a wash and Misty Steps it to skip the entire dang thing. Why else have nifty powers, if you can't cheese it a little?

There are some similarities between the Hanako of Japan's spooky stories and the Bloody Mary of America's. Sam's heard the latter and they don't scare her, and the Hanako she knows doesn't scare her, so she's pretty reckless as she strides into the bathroom and knocks oh so casually on that fated third door...

...maybe she should've been more careful. As it is, DropD-Tune is inelegantly yelling all the way down until she lands with a SPLAT before the eldritch horror. She has to pause, between the toxicity and the fact that she's gotten the wind knocked out of her, briefly.]

Weeeellll if it's not Cthulhu's younger, uglier brother.  I'a, I'a, Cthulhu ftaghn?

[She lets it bellow as she picks herself up and unslings her sandglass axe from her back, glaring up at it as she assumes a stance] 

Okay. I'm ready. You wanna go?!

[thezekeinator]

[WHAM!]

[Look, if even D-Tune's going to take a hopeless pratfall into a bathroom and down a pit of inky blackness, how's Chaosbringer supposed to avoid it? The water slowly slides back in over his prone form, before it shivers with ripples and the Striker pushes himself up out of it with a groan.]

Well, that sucked. Hey, Sam.

I hope tagging in here is what Ducky meant? :O

[dogdaughter]

[ Space Witch falls down after him just as fast, but comes to an abrupt stop before hitting the water, simply hovering above it by about a foot instead. She clutches her rifle, staring wide-eyed at the big... goopy... thing full of EYES... ]

Oh no, what is that?

[ ...After a moment of gawking it finally occurs to her "it's something we're supposed to fight, duh" and well! she feels a little silly! She's never seen a Nightmare or Torment that looked quite this strange before, though. ]

it is exactly what Ducky meant! :)

[noonecandestroythemetal]

It looks like Cthulhu's uglier younger brother. Or a Teki-Terra reject, come to think of it...

[Somewhere, Amane should be proud, because Sam does remember something from December's movie night, even if it's coming slowly...she coughs, once, but readies her axe to fight the miniature Kaiju, nonetheless.

Even if it was already ready...she moves one hand from the haft to splay over the side of the blade, charging it up with Shocking Grasp.]

I'm not gonna hold back. You shouldn't, either.

[Not that Sam thinks for a second that either of them will, but when it's the usually-reserved and cautious D-Tune who's saying it...before she abandons all pretense and charges in like a berserker, axe raised as she yells, wordlessly!]

[thezekeinator]

Oh, well, now that I'm jolly invincible with you two around, this is kind of anticlimactic, but -- I call upon Shining Justice! Power Driver -- MAX!

[The leap of energy from Dreamer to Chaosbringer doesn't come from just one of them. A pair of balls leaps to his hand, one from each, and as they sink in the Striker's form erupts upwards into that familiar werewolf war form, this time now practically surging with raging vitality.]

[Power Driver, Space Witch-form: Papa Wolf! Power Driver, DropD-Tune-form: Become Stronger, Juggernaut!]

[The air itself practically roars as Chaosbringer brings his sword around, lunging forward in a massive strike to match D-Tune's.]

[dogdaughter]

[ Wits regathered, Space Witch addresses the Nightmare, hoping to draw the attention of at least some of its eyes as she holds up a hand. ]

Hey, you! Yeah, you goopy, eye... thing! Quasar!

[ A green beam bursts from her hand, speeding directly towards one of the eyes - if she has more luck with this than she did in locating the real Hanako, it'll look into the light and the stun effect will kick in.

Beam inflicted, Space Witch then nyooms off to another angle to help her avoid any counterattacks as she swings her rifle back into firing position. ]

[noonecandestroythemetal]

[Sam, at least, has given Noctalgia a good whack with her axe on its rubbery hide--though that doesn't seem to have done a lot for the moment. She makes a face, and then manages to catch a glimpse of the transformed Zeke. And pauses.]

Why does this always happen to me?

[She switches her axe to a single-handed grip in order to give herself a good, hearty slap to one cheek. Shake it off, D-Tune, you don't have time!]

I think this sucker needs a little taste of Shocking Grasp, don't you?

[Taking Quasar right to the eye does seem to have knocked Noctalgia for a loop! Sam charges in again, still with her axe in a one-handed grip, the better to just slap her (thankfully gloved!) hand on the slimy mess that is the Nightmare, letting electricity crackle into it. Hopefully her stun will kick in, too, and between the two of them, D-Tune and Space Witch can keep Noctalgia stunlocked for a little bit, for Zeke to really rip it up!]

[thezekeinator]

[One could almost feel sorry for the Nightmare -- as one Dreamer discharges electricity into it, while another vigorously wails on it with a lightning-sheathed sword, it could be having a much better day.]

[Its body, however, is fairly resilient (or squooshy), meaning that despite this onslaught, it can still level some fairly nasty attacks with its oozy awful tendrils, backhanding Chaosbringer in the face as he basically forgoes any sort of defense to rely on his powers. On the up side, one of its massive ugly eyes is out of commission entirely, seared by Space Witch's bolt, and it seems utterly unable to retaliate against her at the moment.]