To Watch

[strangerpeople]

[All is quiet on this day. There is nothing here on the islands that will torment or spook the new residents at least for now. But the Composer with them is bored out of her damn mind. She thinks to look at her non functioning cellphone for some source of entertainment but when she turns it on, her eyes widen.]

Kami forfend...!

[And she runs through the circus, at first heading towards where the Strangers, Seven and the weird clown is staying. However, she keeps spotting them during her path...cellphones. They too also seem to be on and when she looks at the screen, she grabs it and runs to grab more. When she arrives back to the group, Yotsuyu's arms were full with phones and she feels like her legs are about to give in.]

Hey! You may want to look at these! I don't know how they got here or what is going on but we may get something out of it! Seven, check your phone too!

[If the person grabs one of the cellphones, they will be able to see a video feed with sound. Of what exactly...it's something to grab their attention. Time to see what happens.]

Comments

[dragonmouth]

...well.

That's rather worrying.

[FUCK]

[zackthekiller]

Yeah, ya think?!

[Sorry, he snapped a bit... Actually not sorry, this is a reasonable response.]

The fuck is with that sun?!

[dragonmouth]

...I don't know. Whatever it is, it's the it's only good either destroyed or with everyone here dragged as far as possible.

I'm not sure if whatever used to be Rika is there anymore.

[zackthekiller]

... You mean she's dead too?

[Look. The last two people who got the crystal thing were blown up afterwards.]

[dragonmouth]

Not in the literal sense, perhaps, but... dead inside, maybe.

[zackthekiller]

Huh? Don't people die if their insides stop working?

[dragonmouth]

...you've never encountered a metaphor in your life, have you.

[zackthekiller]

... Ugh, shut up.

[7_0_7]

She said Chaesun tried to hurt V, and that never happened! But if that sun brainwashed her to think it's V... that would explain some things. Hmm.

[zackthekiller]

[... Fuck it, he's gonna talk to Mr. Glasses here.]

Alright, who the hell are these people and how do you know them?

mystic messenger spoilers for the whole game

[7_0_7]

All of them are members of the RFA - Rika's Fundraising Association. They're 707's closest friends...

[yeah he's talking in third person, both in a quirky way and because Seven is a lot of people to him what with the parallel universe knowledge.]

... Well, not really Rika and V, anymore. Rika... she brainwashed my brother Saeran in her cult Mint Eye, and in most timelines V faked a suicide for her and covered for her for years. The one that went missing - the one they're from - is one of the only ones where I manage to get help for Saeran. But Saeran shot V, and Rika wasn't able to move or speak after that.

[he pauses, not sure whether he should include the detail or not, but... well, for reasons, it may be important, so fuck it.]

It's also the only timeline where MC is in love with me.

[boy, he sounds wistful and resigned at that.]

[zackthekiller]

[. . .] Uh...

That's a weird way of explaining, pal... [He has a billion questions but...]

What the fuck is wrong with that woman? And whadya mean by timelines?

[7_0_7]

Wish I knew. [to what the fuck is wrong with Rika, he means. Technically he could read her mind if he wanted to, but he's sure it wouldn't make him feel better, so.]

... a long time ago, I was in a murder shithole like the rest of you went through, designed to execute a lot of people to put them in The Reaper's Game. Long story short, I died and became an angel, which let me watch over my world as its protector. But a world is really composed of a bunch of parallel universes - calling it a timeline is really just kind of how I'm making sense of them. I'm good with data but it's a lot to keep track of and it's easier to follow them based on where things at the same time happen differently. Anyway, when it comes to the RFA, seems like the biggest differences always started when MC decided who she loved the most. It fascinates me how much she's able to change.

[But he's not sure what else to say about this while he's still focused on the phones. He'd kind of like to hear more about what she's doing, but the focus on Rika herself by the living is understandable here.]

[zackthekiller]

[... Zack is trying to understand, but the angel may as well be explaining Chaos Theory to a non-sentient dog.

At least he kind of gets alternate universes after being pulled through some of them.]

Ooookay...

[Looking at the phone sounds like a good idea...

... Is that shouting?]

Who the fuck...?

[7_0_7]

It's MC!

[Listen to the dokis coming forth from this man- but he tilts his head after that.]

Meatballs?

[...and now he's fretting. And yelling at the phone.]

Argh! This place is too dangerous for meatballs!! Get out of there, Chaesun!!

[dragonmouth]

[ ...when she starts going on about why they left, Tali feels just a little. Shall we say. Uncomfortable? ]

Do you think she's...

[7_0_7]

... The party was always important to her! She does her best. Ha ha ha!

[Sorry, he's trying to be in denial.

Although, now that he's looking closer.]

Wait... where are ... her eyes?

[dragonmouth]

...alright, but surely this wasn't the party you were talking about?!

[telecosmetic]

Wait, she's not supposed to look like that?

[zackthekiller]

. . .

[Whelp, this just went in a whole different direction.]

Okay, can someone tell me what the fuck this crap's about?!

[7_0_7]

I have no idea... Perdurance isn't what our party was called.

[dragonmouth]

...Kiita spoke of such things herself as well, during the few months I knew her. With us, it always seemed that the differences arose depending on which of the seven of us lived or died.

[7_0_7]

Ah... [this isn't a conversation he expected to have, honestly, so there's a slight pause before he leans into it.]

With us, that came after. Mint Eye sometimes had a bomb... [he gestures vaguely because there are a lot of other weird bad endings to try and explain but this one was the most common.]

What kind of situation made that the branch point, anyway? Russian roulette?

[he's fairly certain that isn't it, but.]

[dragonmouth]

...that's as good a question as any.

Those who knew the secrets of magic in my world often spoke of such branching points, but...unfortunately, I was never much of a mage.

[7_0_7]

That's fine. Some people are better off not knowing the secrets...