WEEK 5

[umbralant]

WEEK 5

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Was what happened on Friday yet another tragedy in a string of them or just a complete shitshow? Well, regardless of which line of thought you subscribe to, the reality of it is that another three of your number are no longer in this realm with you. At least the remains of what had happened last week have been neatly cleaned up as always, even if that might not change what’s been etched in your memories. The drum set in the jazz bar remains busted though, because the masterminds aren't that generous. At least the tarot shop and boutique remain fine even if the vanished crystals and women's clothing aren't going to be restocked.

But either way, it’s a new week, and that means new locations to explore as the fog gives way to more of the city and its lamplit streets. The new moon waxes to half this week, appearing as a crescent moon for most of the week. It's far from optimistic, but maybe the brightening is a sign that this will be over soon...? Or maybe it just means the worst is yet to come, it's hard to say.

[[Welcome to Week 5! Note that new areas have been added, and can be found under the Week 5 tab on our Locations page. Once again, feel free to make top levels at your discretion, and remember to note it in your header if you plan on investigating any locations. You can also privately contact The Lady or Rembrandt.]]

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Comments

[pr159]

[ sorry for my dumb questions the extent of my familiarity with the insides of clock towers is that scene in the great mouse detective

So are we saying the black box thing looks like IT'S the motor, or like it's there in place of it? Or like there is a motor there and this is also a weird thing that's there ]

Hm... Let's not commit to grabbing anything just yet [ since it's electric wires?? ] but if we can get a closer look at it...

[umbralant]

[The black box thing is connected to a motor and the motor is part of the newer-looking mechanisms! So yes, it is another weird thing but the motor obviously has like a metal axle sticking out of it that connects to the clockwork.

Why are clocks so complicated.

Anyways, they can't easily get around to where the box is because there are basically gears on all sides of it! In theory, they could still technically reach it if they like... contorted their arms to reach between the gaps in the gears but that could ruin a couple of outfits (and arms) if they're not careful.]

[reanbeans]

[ ....Neeeever mind then. ]

It looks like this helps power the clock. Though just by looking at it, it doesn't really tell us enough.

[ The dead had wanted them to find out more about what did power it. But he didn't see how they could reach it from where they were standing. Nnngh. ]

...Unless we did something like carve a destructive path to open a way up. But, what do you think of our options?

[pr159]

[ Considering......... ]

I'm pretty sure I could reach it, actually. I'm just wondering how risky it would be to cut the wires.

[ Like, he's willing to help to an extent, but he definitely has a limit here. ]

[reanbeans]

[ Rean was kind of wary of Rideaux just cutting the wires because that sounded dangerous??

But, hmm. ]

...Maybe we can get Zangetsu to do some freezing, then?

[pr159]

I'm not sure that really sounds that much safer, or more effective. Now that we know there's electrical wiring involved, I can't say I'm thrilled by the idea of splashing water around.

Are we even supposed to be trying to take this thing?

[reanbeans]

...Well, I don't know if we are or not. But, it'd be nice if we could find a way to examine it more, so we have a little more to go on than 'well we found a black box inside the clocktower'.

[pr159]

I mean, I don't disagree. I think we can probably assume it's some sort of battery, at the very least, if it's powering the motor here.

[ sigh........ staring at these gears is just kind of pissing him off now ]

Anyway, if we do want to take it, or at least see what happens if we stop the clock, I could use a knife to sever the wire from what would hopefully be a reasonable distance if it turned out to be a trap of some sort.

[reanbeans]

Mm, yeah...

[ Likewise. Rean doubted going to town on them with a sword was going to help any, so he didn't even dare present the idea.

But on the other hand... ]

...I think that's a good idea. Let's see what happens when you do that, and keep as much distance as possible.

[ He'll begin to do that himself, just in case, but was ready for anything. Though, this was a better idea than cutting a wire up close, as far as he was concerned. ]

1/2

[pr159]

[ Takes a knife out.






.... ]

[pr159]

On second thought, you know what, let Zangetsu knock himself out with that ice idea.

[reanbeans]

[ ...Well.

That's fine as well. It's time to buckle up and bring out the big guns, folks. ]

...Right, I'll be right back with Zangetsu.

[ He'll go and fetch him. And buckets, because yeah. ]

[moonfang]

[SPEAK OF THE DEVIL. Or rather, go fetch the devil. A devil with buckets. They now have four buckets of water!! SUCCESS. Of note, aside from the bucket, he also has his really long katana with him]

Ah. What're all those wires about...?

[pr159]

It looks to be some sort of battery that's being used to power the motor that runs the clock. We'd like to get a closer look at it, but weren't certain whether cutting the wires would be wise at this point.

[reanbeans]

Yeah, so if you could maybe ice them and we'll go from there...?

[moonfang]

Hmmm... Hold on just a tic.

[Zangetsu takes his goggles out and puts them on, examining the wires as closely as he can. How much do they resemble the tripwires and traps in the hotel rooms?]

[umbralant]

[They don't resemble the tripwires at all! They look like regular, run-of-the-mill copper wires, like the kind with the colored insulator.]

[pr159]

Your thoughts?

[moonfang]

Ah... they don't really look much like the trap wires I saw in the hotel. But just in case... stand back.

[he thoughtfully strums the wires a bit, enough to pull on them but not enough to pull them out. If nothing happens, he'll grab one of his buckets and splash water on the whole shebang so everything is nice and wet. Then he touches the closest wire and tries his best to freeze the whole apparatus, gears and all]

[umbralant]

[It's a nice effort, but the gears and the motor are quite strong, and spread out as it is, the layer of water is quite thin; while Zangetsu does succeed in creating a coating of ice over the clockwork and part of the box, what's around the teeth of the gears gets crunched to bits easily. Whatever stationary bits will remain frosted over, but the gears will keep turning for now.]

[moonfang]

This ain't gonna work.

[Zangetsu grumbles, then turns to the others]

Can't we just pull the wires out?

[pr159]

[ ...yeah that seems about right. ]

I couldn't really tell from here how they were connected. It seems like that would probably end up amounting to the same thing as cutting them.

[moonfang]

Then why don't we just do that? I can use the rest of this water to make a protective wall in case somethin' weird happens, and you... you have Sanguis, right? Can't ya use that to cut or yank on the wires?

[pr159]

[ nnnghh ]

My original plan was to cut them and remove it, yes, but I wasn't sure if that was something we should really be attempting at this point without knowing more about why this clock is so important.

[ Which like, yes, finding that out is why they're doing this, but. ]

[moonfang]

Well... we're not gonna find out anything else by standing around flappin' our lips. But the dead did say something about why the Bitch would need a running clock... I think we need to make it stop.

... But, I ain't a plan guy. I'm just a sword.