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[thirtybits]

Characters: Judas and open
Setting: room 1-10, cafeteria, cathedral, floor 63, floor 12
Format: Starting action but I can match
Summary: Usual newbie stuff

Room 1-10

[After reading the letters set by his bed in confusion, Judas sits up to look around the room. It looks like the other beds are occupied, and the trunk at the foot of his bed is clearly meant for him. He opens it, rifling through to find wine, bread and a familiar suit and set of robes. Definitely a good idea to change. It's hot, his robes would be lighter, although they might be a bit conspicuous in public, and he doesn't want to draw attention. In the end the heat wins out and he changes quickly to leave the room. But first, he has to check if he knows these other people, if anyone from his world was saved. Of course, that means standing over the other beds to scrutinise those sleeping in them.]


Cafeteria

[He knows he should eat the oatmeal, before he forgets, but he really doesn't feel like it. So with a book from the library in front of him, he pokes at the mess in the bowl. Wasting it would be wrong, but if he's not hungry, forcing himself to eat it is also a waste. Maybe he should just give it to someone else?]


Cathedral

[After hearing the faint mumbling of some sort of mass while passing by earlier, Judas returns to the cathedral floor, this time with wine and bread. He saw no one and nothing there, so at the least he could go to listen, and hold his own private communion. He kneels at the altar and bows his head in prayer. For the safety of the world he's left.]


Floor Sixty-Three

[Fishing is a thing Judas likes and would be glad to do. Suddenly falling into a vast expanse of water with fish he doesn't even recognise and is very worried may eat him is not. He struggles against the tide, but his waterlogged robes pull him down, and all he can do is call for help, though he's not so sure anyone will hear him, or care.]


Floor Twelve

[Judas stops dead when he reaches this floor. He wants to believe what seems to be happening all around him is a camera trick, or an animation, maybe something from a movie. But as he watches, it keeps happening, with clearly different worlds each time. If it's a trick, it's terribly elaborate, and as the truth begins to dawn on him, all he can do is weep. Not only the demise of his own world, but so many more. All those people, all their efforts, destroyed in an instant, is too much for him to bear. Especially in knowing somehow he was saved.]

Comments

[sicharia]

If you do look, at least you'll be prepared. I was taken by surprise, myself.

[thirtybits]

...What did it show you, if you don't mind my asking?

[sicharia]

The home where my late husband and I lived together.

[thirtybits]

...I'm sorry. That must have been difficult.

[sicharia]

Mm. It was...startling, at the time.

[And she's even less inclined to go back there, after the recent "gift" she received from the admins.]

Thank you for your concern, anyway.

[thirtybits]

Someone like you shouldn't have to deal with this place...

[sicharia]

You don't need to worry about me. I might not look it, but I've dealt with some awful things in my work for the Church. There are others that deserve to be spared this far more than me.

[thirtybits]

Even so, you're a good person, and must have paid more than your fair share of any dues...

[sicharia]

I've made my share of mistakes. Bad ones.

[Killed people.]

There are children here, though. Can you imagine? It's really just awful.

[thirtybits]

...They would subject even children to this?

[sicharia]

[She nods grimly.]

As I said, it's awful.

[But. But!!]

...Ah, I think this is the floor.

[thirtybits]

[Judas looks around, his face brightening as he smiles.]

This is beautiful...I didn't know something like this could exist here...

[sicharia]

[She smiles as he brightens, pleased that he appreciates it, and especially after his reaction to the projection room.]

Mm, isn't it? There are a few floors here that are nicer than the others, at least in their beauty. [Though she has another bad memory associated with this floor, so she avoids it more often than not. As another thought occurs to her, her own smile dims somewhat.] Ah, but... Mm...

[...Should she tell him about the "glamour"?]

[thirtybits]

...Hm? What is it? Is something wrong?

[sicharia]

Ah, it's just— The truth is—

[Abruptly, she blurts out:]

All of this is an illusion. This whole place is.

[It would be wrong to intentionally keep that from him, she decides.]

[thirtybits]

--What sort of illusion? Some sort of...shared hallucination?

[sicharia]

I guess you could think of it that way. To be honest, I don't understand how it works myself. [She shakes her head slightly, as if apologizing for her lack of expertise.] It's— Do you know what a hologram is?

[thirtybits]

Oh, yes!

[He seems to perk up at that. Technology is exciting!]

I've never seen one outside movies though.

[sicharia]

[This...is oddly endearing, so despite the seriousness of the subject, her own mood lifts slightly.]

Mm, well, neither have I, but I think it's more like that than anything... It all looks and feels real, but really, this isn't anything but an empty metal room. Our...bodies are similar. They look real right now, but in reality, they aren't.

[...]

Would you mind telling me a little about what it's like where you come from? If you know about things like movies and holograms, then...

[thirtybits]

[He nods his understanding before trying to think of a good way to describe what exactly is going on at home.]

Ah, well, Jesus allowed me to leave Hell just recently, and he's been living in Japan - it's 2012 now. ...Buddha too, they're roommates...and I was left with Peter and Andrew.

[He bites his lip, fidgeting.]

I'm not supposed to be anywhere without their supervision, actually. I just hope they won't be upset.

[sicharia]

[. . .]

[Somehow, this is far odder to her than what she was expecting, and considering that her frame of reference involves summoning famous heroes to battle to the death...]

Ah, I, um... I see. W-well, I'm sure they wouldn't be upset! This isn't exactly your fault, after all. Extenuating circumstances.

[That he's from about two decades in the future from her perspective hasn't even occurred to her yet.]

[thirtybits]

[No one's prepared for religious figures hanging out in an apartment together, it's not surprising...]

Still, though, I could be making them worry right now...

[sicharia]

[Honestly, she isn't sure if things work like that, but then she isn't really sure how these things work at all, seeing as she refuses to believe that her world is destroyed.]

Well... There's really no point in worrying about that right now. You can't know for sure, and either way, it's not really relevant to your situation right now. You should focus on the problems at hand.

[thirtybits]

I don't know, I'll need to tell them something if I manage to go back, I think that's relevant...

[Suddenly he's much more worried about being scolded than anything.]

[sicharia]

I guess this does sound a little unbelievable...