WEEK 10

[al2955]

the pygmalion. . . ONLINE CAPTAIN'S LOG: WEEK (10)

monday - thursday (18) survivors Sunday's trial was only mere hours ago, but you find yourself faced with a new week on The Pygmalion. When you awaken, you will find the ship restored to its previous state, all areas interfered with during the murder looking mostly the same as they did before. Along with this, it appears there are new areas opened on the ship. It seems you have more exploring to do. The robot in the cafeteria has prepared another breakfast of various foods. (OOC: Please submit your murder proposals by 9 PM EST Tuesday.) taken list profiles private conversations setting rulebook murder proposals ENTER COMMAND_

Comments

[antagonize]

C'mon. Have a little faith in me. I'm a gentleman. Always ask for consent before doing anything crazy.

[Sometimes, when a grown ass man asks you to detonate a mine on him, you have to take a step back and say yes. Stop blaming him for mistakes that were made??? Sheesh. Regardless — he gives a low whistle as they enter the room. This is... interesting.]

Nice digs. But I think they might have skipped out on spring cleaning.

[The desk is the first thing that catches his attention, and that's where he heads. He's wearing boots and gloves, so the broken glass doesn't worry him. Is there anything immediately apparent on the desk?]

[antietam]

Thanks Jessie. Wouldn't want to get mysteriously shoved onto a mine. [ He knows this is definitely not what happened but also. Let's just keep giving Jason shit.

While Jason covers the desk, Adam will try to locate the source of the smell, following it to where it's the strongest. He's only making a bit of a face. ]

This must be quarters for someone higher up. Wonder why the robots don't come in here.

[toprotecttheworld]

You shouldn't tell lies, Jason. He has no idea how to behave, does he?

[Well, Jessie's not going to investigate the glass...that's boring. She's just going to round the partition as well and see what they're all looking at before looking over at the shelves. If something doesn't catch her off-guard, that might be where she ends up.]

It's cooler in here, isn't it. If the robots aren't allowed up here, then why are we suddenly being invited here? Talk about creepy.

[al2955]

[ As Jason approaches the desk, he'll hear a distinct 'crunch' beneath his feet. It doesn't sound like glass. It's much squishier, and whatever he steps on is rather thick.

Luckily for Adam, this means he doesn't have to look for too long before finding the source of the smell, because Jason sure did just step on it. Looking down, they'll see a desiccated corpse — or at least, it used to be a corpse. Now all that's left is sticky wetness and bones. Jason ever so unceremoniously broke the corpse's wrist in his carelessness.

The temperature and isolated environment fortunately (or unfortunately) has preserved the body to a degree — its clothes are distinct and familiar. It is wearing the same jumpsuit the participants awoke in. Its other hand — the one Jason did not break — is outstretched onto the desk, as if whoever this once was died there, slumped over. There are still flecks of flesh lining certain orifices of its body, pale and purpled gristle around the eye sockets and nose. ]

[antagonize]

[Oh, shut up, meta tags. It's not like the dead person was going to use that wrist, anyway!!!

He'll take a step back, making sure not to break more of the bones, before... well. Getting all close and personal with it. If he's allowed to, he'll start to inspect this gross sight. Anything odd he can notice without using special tools? Or any way to tell how long, exactly, this person has been dead? Probably not, but might as well check.]

Oh, man. Look at this guy. Or gal. I don't know.

[Yeah. Time for Jessie and Adam to start yelling at him for breaking the corpse's wrist. And maybe stop him before he starts carefully checking under the jumpsuit to see what conclusions he can come to from the state of the bones.]

[antietam]

Christ, Jason. You really didn't think there'd be a body in here? [ Completely forgetting about blowing up Luke to a new reason to chide Jason for his horrible life choices.

He'll also crouch down to check on the body, focused more on the skull. He'll specifically check the teeth to see if they can tell them anything about the person's health or cause of death, and of course the bits of flesh that are still around. But he's suspecting... ]

So, poisoned? The glass and the position. [ Nope, he's not stopping Jason from stripping the corpse. It's a great idea. ]

[toprotecttheworld]

Jason!! Stop being careless! [She's going to hit him on the back for just carelessly walking into a corpse.] Ugh, at least now we know what that smell was, but I'm tired of finding these! And why is it wearing that atrocious outfit?

[Well, if they're going to play doctor with a corpse, Jessie finally gets to do what she wants to do. And she's going to loot some drawers. Talk to her, desk, show her all of your secrets! She'll just...ignore the body for now.

Arbok, meanwhile, just sort of hisses at Jason again. Whoops.]

[al2955]

[ Typically, it would take about a month for a body to do this. Her digested itself, and there are no organs remaining that Jason can find. However, bodies composing on an airborne, sterilized ship can get precarious. As such, it could have been here for anywhere between one and three months. Her teeth, in particular, are in tact. There is no indication that this corpse starved or died of thirst.

On the table, Jessie will find a couple things. One is a glass bottle, red in color, with a long neck. It's wine. The bottle is empty, though. Within the drawers is another small vial. It's also empty. Other than that, there's some knickknacks around. There's a book, a CD, and a couple other things that are probably considered artifacts by now. Nothing particularly valuable, however. ]

[antagonize]

There's a corpse in e— ow! Fuck you! [This went from Teen to Toddler real fast. But anyway—] As I was saying before I was so rudely assaulted, there's a corpse in every room. Does it matter if this one has a broken wrist now?

[He's found too many corpses by now and he's all out of shits to give if this is someone he's never met before. This is... hm. Anywhere between one or two months means she could have been alive a mere month before they woke up in the pods, just as it could mean she was alive during the first month of this "game".]

... Our mystery person could have been dead for anywhere between one and three months. We're in an airborne, sterilized environment. That shakes up the decomposition process. [He's saying all of this casually. He's far too used to dealing with corpses.] Not enough fleshy bits to tell if poison was the cause of death, either. No organs. Nothing.

[Aside from that nasty, sticky wetness. He's rubbing some of it between his thumb and index finger, considering, and then taking a look at the jumpsuit again. It's the same exact one they all woke up wearing, right? No noticeable differences? Mysterious stains? Messages written in blood that say "Rhys did it"?]

[antietam]

Yeah, it does. First, it's rude. Second, the way the bones in the wrist are deteriorated or not can suggest the type of work they once did. [ He may know very little about corpses, but searching for ancient kings does come with a little bit of skeleton knowledge. At least, what they mean for the historical conditions they lived in.

But wait, Jason is saying something actually useful here. ] One to three months? Like, the amount of time we've been here? [ So that's disturbing. He'll look to Jessie. ]

Find anything strange?

[toprotecttheworld]

Yes, Jason, it's rude. Honestly, if it weren't for adults like Adam and myself, you'd have probably walked all over this body.

[She's going to call Adam an adult just in an attempt to irk Jason even more, because this is indeed the toddler power hour. She listens to his assessment of the body. It's not a surprise. The sterile environment thing makes sense, the numbers involved just aren't things she could have precisely figured out like Jason had.

While she's over by the desk, Jessie calls Arbok over, squatting and then looking over her shoulder at Adam.]

You wanted to know if poison was involved, right? I found a strange vial, so let's see if Arbok knows anything. Arbok, are either of these poisoned?

[Okay, Mods, since Arbok is literally made out of poison somewhere in those eleven feet of purple, what will happen if he sniffs the bottle and the vial? If Jessie sniffs them herself after, what will happen? Hopefully, she won't have to.]

[al2955]

[ You're gross Jason. There's no stains or messages to discern, but the suit does have a little patch on the chest area. It has the symbol found elsewhere on the ship, and, in an arc around the insignia, says 'admiral'.

Arbok will probably recognize the smell. It's not like his poison, but there definitely used to be virulent liquid in the vial. The smell has decayed too much for Jessie to really pick up anything by sniffing it though. ]

[antagonize]

Ha ha ha. You're hilarious. Have you ever considered switching careers and becoming a comedian?

[Whatever, Jessie!! He's turning to Adam again, since he did bring up a good question.]

Almost exactly the amount of time we've been here. Could have been dead for nearly a month by the time we woke up, or... Not. Possibly, whoever this is, was alive and kicking during the first month of this game. There's no way to tell. [And both alternatives are concerning, really. If this person was dead before they woke up, then someone killed them. That, or it was suicide. It doesn't look like starvation or thirst was the cause of death after all.

But once he spots the word "admiral" around the insignia, he's furrowing his brows and tapping the spot to draw Adam's attention to it.]

Look here. It says admiral. [Which is important enough on its own, but...] Remember that Furry Passing patch last week? There was a second message. It was signed by Admiral Sonya Perkins, Captain of the Pygmalion.

[So, if he's correct about this, it looks like the captain went down before the ship. And to Jessie:]

Did Arbok pick up any traces of poison?

[antietam]

[ Adam smiles over at Jessie because, wow, finally someone who considers him an adult? He appreciates it. And that soon ends when Jason points out the word admiral. ]

So that's her. She seemed otherwise healthy, judging by her teeth, so... I don't think it's a stretch to assume unnatural causes here. I wonder if she's the one who woke us up. [ He's going to shake his head, then stand up and look around for anything else that might seem pertinent in the room. ]

[toprotecttheworld]

Chaw! Chawbawk!

[Arbok doesn't really make any gestures, but moves a little excitedly. She stands back up, affectionately rubbing him on the head. He looks really happy for the attention!]

For your information, Jason Todd, I could be anything I want to be, I'm good at everything, especially comedy. [And she's humble, too.] But Adam was right and Arbok confirmed it.

[But most importantly, Adam isn't going to get a chance to look around the room because suddenly he's being dragged away from Jason so she can whisper something in his ear.

Arbok will move between them and Jason so he doesn't think about following.]

[antagonize]

[Well. This sure is happening right in front of him. He won't even bother to be mad because this is exactly the type of behavior he expects from Jessie. If it's something relevant to them all, he'll find out one way or another. Hopefully. If not, well. Fuck Jessie.

Jason will take this time to look around this area of the room in case there's anything else of interest, but if there isn't... He stops in front of the corpse again, frowning. Thinking. Considering.]

... Hey, Alice. If you can hear me, did you know this was here?

[This being the desiccated corpse, which he'll be gesturing at in case the AI can see him right now.]

[al2955]

[ Radio silence. Jason's request begets no reply. Is even Alice ignoring him? ]

[antietam]

[ The conversation doesn't last long, just a few sentences from them both at most, and was almost definitely about Jason given the way Adam smiles sheepishly at him. He pauses to hear from the AI, but when nothing comes, he posits: ]

Is she not around in here? Since it's the admiral's room, I wonder... [ He'll motion for them to come outside and try again. ]

[toprotecttheworld]

[Yep, Jessie is going to look at Jason like she wants to laugh and then looks away. Definitely just gossip, nothing to see here.

But now that they mention it...]

Is there even one of those statues in here? Can Alice be called from the room?

[She'll look for one first, and then she'll follow Adam outside. Arbok stays with the corpse at her request.]

[antagonize]

Does she need the statues to be heard? She's spoken to us before in rooms that didn't have one.

[But, hm. It could be what Adam said. The admiral's room could be off-limits to the AI, which... would explain a lot. Even for a program, it's weird to leave a corpse to rot for over a month.

Once they set foot outside the room, he'll walk a couple yards away from the door and try again.]

Hey, Alice! [No need to shout like the AI is deaf, Jason.] Can you hear us on this floor?

[al2955]

[ There isn't a statue in the admiral's room, Jessie will note.

It's quiet for a moment, but eventually, Alice's voice does come. It's much more muffled than usual, though. ]

Hello, Jason. No need to yell.

[antagonize]

I'm yelling because you couldn't hear us from the inside of the C.Q..

[Which... he's assuming stands for "Captain's Quarters" at this point. He shoots a quick glance at Jessie and Adam before he proceeds, unsure of whether this will be news to the AI or not.]

We found a corpse. Looks about three months old at most, and— [here we go.] We have reason to believe it's the captain of this ship. Did you know about this?

[If they bad end everything, he blames Jessie.]

[al2955]

[ There is silence for a long minute.

Then comes white noise. It's loud, ear piercing. After a minute or so of that, music plays. Alice speaks over it. ]

I see. Despite my logical deductions, I had thought.. I do not know. An error. Perhaps it was an error. Are you sure that she is dead? Can you confirm it with certainty? You could have made an oversight. You may not be aware, but there are times when a human's pulse will stop, but they remain yet alive.

[antietam]

[ Oh. Oh no. Is this the end? Does this music mean they're all dying? Bye friends. ]

Um. Well. She can't really have a pulse anymore. She's... been there for a while. No human can survive like that.

[toprotecttheworld]

Alice, she was poisoned. Arbok confirmed it, and it looks like she might have been the one to poison herself.

[She's not the only one thinking it, right? But Jessie's tone is stern to override Alice's apparent confusion.]

Not only that, but she's rotting, and Jason stepped all over her bones like a Rhydon. I'll take a picture with a tablet if I have to, but wake up. What happened? Why are you letting us up to this level?