One Room Death Game

[ItzToxie]

Vasya thought about telling Eugene to cut the shit.

It was hopeless. He was the only one who thought they’d stood a chance. For a second, he had Vasya on board.

Maybe, maybe for a moment he was right. But that entire time they had their chance to fight back, they all stood. They all watched.

Was Vasya really going to risk his life for these losers?

“You’re wasting your time.”

It was the closest thing to kindness he could give Eugene. Poor bastard was in way over his head.

“They took the pervert. Everyone else watched. They wanted to leave through the other door.”

He glared behind him.

“They used us as bait.”

[Deblod100]

To be fair, there was too much going on in one room and scene for Gerald to process the chaos completely.

Gerald thought that he saw one of the masked figures managed to end up from behind the group, but he was too busy trying to help the businessman, who was muttering someone's name. Ted? Businessman must be daydreaming, but he could be dazed from an injury.

There were gunshots going off. Loud as the alarms going off.

"They're aren't stopping until we stop!" Gerald yelled at him, trying to avoid those baton-welding henchmen that were trying to club them.

[MurderWeasel]

The masked figures continued to backpedal, but uncertainly, as if it took them a moment to realize what was happening and adjust, as if they were cautious in case of further attack. It was chaotic, delayed—an opening.

Whether or not it would be capitalized on remained to be seen.

---

Revolution! A number of the occupants of the room have decided to attempt to fight back. This disrupts the normal order of things, as Stagehands are dispatched to restore order. This state of affairs may open possibilities, but it may also be dangerous...

Go Out Swinging: The Stagehands are retreating, but for just a moment the chaos seems to be affecting them almost as much as the occupants of the room, and both ends of the righthand corridor lie open. One could potentially chase after them and continue the attack, though the results of this are hard to predict, and wouldn't be known to any who remain in the room...

[+] OOC

While Jimmy has successfully been snatched from under the collective noses of the remaining inhabitants of the room, the extraction of the Stagehands has been a little less clean, and a brief window of opportunity is open to capitalize and try to turn the tables.

Any character may charge after the retreating Stagehands, pressing the attack and following them to an unknown destination and destiny. Any character who makes this choice will be considered eliminated from the game, though not by either release or expulsion. This third option will lead to an ambiguous fate—the camera remains in the room, while any who leave charge off to glory or misfortune elsewhere.

To be less nebulous, this is an opportunity for an intentionally uncertain ending. Characters who continue the rebellion are probably in better shape than those who are expelled, but quite possibly worse off than those who are released. Exactly what happens to them will not be fully dealt with at this time, but it could be all sorts of stuff, including:

• Finding at least partial success, and managing to eventually make it outside.
• Getting captured by the Stagehands, and either held captive or inducted into their organization in some capacity.
• Actually dying in the fighting.
• Managing to rescue some or all of the expelled characters.
• Really most other reasonable stuff.

This list isn't me going "Teehee, you don't know what happens!" but rather offering a list of possibilities that you can choose from later. The big catch is, it's not gonna get played out directly—rather, what happens will be a mysterious off-screen event until/unless it's mentioned/alluded to in the second version.

So, yeah, this is an opportunity to go out on (more of) your own terms while building some sequel suspense.

That said, the window here is limited. Characters must act quickly, exiting within the next week (or maybe a day or two more, if I'm slow to update, but no promises). Characters cannot carry Medallions out of the room with them in this way—those will still make the door at the far end of the hall close, so you'll have to drop them in the room.

Once the exit window closes, normal rules resume, IC and OOC. Activity will be monitored more closely, and characters will again be subject to expulsion at the appointed times if left without a Medallion. And if the Stagehands have to pull someone out again, they'll probably come in more organized...

[Fiori]

"Th... They took... Pervert... Wh-whuh?" Eugene mumbled, still out of it as he tried to piece everything together.

A quick headcount confirmed Vasya's claims. Some point in all the chaos, the bastards managed to make off with Jimmy. Did he get too close or something? Was there some other secret way in he didn't take into account?!?

W-wait... The grates... Oh for fucking shit's sake!

Truth be told, back when Eugene tried to muster everyone together, he didn't actually expect it to work. Much as he didn't want to admit it, he assumed that it'd end up with him standing alone, facing off against their kidnappers like Gary Cooper in High Noon. He didn't really have much of a plan, nor was he the kind of person suited for that kind of thing. He was just a tv executive. A corporate suit, one well past his prime at that. He never had a hope in hell at pulling this off, and he knew it. And yet he still cajoled everyone into thinking they had a fighting chance.

Was this it, then? Were they just going back to square one, waiting for the timer to run out so they can go through this all over again?

No.

No, fuck that. He was still standing, his heart was still beating. They still weren't out for the count just yet.

"No... It's not over yet" he grunted, looking Vasya dead in the eyes, before grabbing his chair and stumbling forwards.

"I've hosted birthday parties more hardcore than this. Survived recessions, budget cuts, pandemics..."

"I've looked Harvey Weinstein right between the eyes... And told him to go FUCK himself!"

"I ain't dying to a bunch of pyjama wearing, ninja wannabe nutjobs!"

He thought back to the phonecall he had before all this began, tears welling in his eyes. He couldn't afford to give up, it literally wasn't an option. He didn't want that to be the last conversation he ever had with his daughter.

"You hear me, you miserable CUNTS! I'M EUGENE FUCKING SCHAFFEEEER!!!" he roared, before charging forth into the void, chair raised high above his head.

[Dr Adjective]

Seconds passed.

Sure, there was plenty of noise. shouting, yelling, all sorts of banging and crashing, but one thing was conspicuously absent: pain. People sounded pissed, hopeful, aggressive, all sorts of things, but nobody sounded like they'd just been shot. Come to think of it... Charlotte uncovered her head, looked up. Yeah. She hadn't heard bullets hit anything, and as best she could see, there was no sign of damage to the ceiling or the wall behind her. So nobody was hit, no bullet holes from a warning shot? Blanks?

A part of her still wanted to believe the whole thing was fake. An elaborate psychological experiment. She didn't believe it, but the glimmer of hope that she might be proven wrong still shone somewhere in the back of her mind.

By the time Charlotte was done getting back to her feet, thing had changed. Someone was missing, she couldn't place exactly who, but it felt like a safe assumption that somehow the goons had gotten the guy they'd ostensibly come for. The ones that'd entered through the "danger" door were backpedalling, seemingly unsure of themselves. And most importantly, Eugene was finishing up his Leeroy Jenkins speech and going full tilt after them. Now, Charlotte herself didn't have quite the same laundry list of things she'd faced down in her life so far, but she certainly had a list, and she certainly didn't feel like dying in a dank basement either.

The goons had to have come in from somewhere, some kind of safe entry and exit that could be used. Another way out. Well, without any medallions to her name, one way out. Hadn't they already decided amongst themselves that they were done playing, that they were gonna fight their way out or die trying? Yeah. One way out.

Charlotte spared a look at Kevin, just for a moment. He seemed busy with Malachi. No time to linger.

With a soft "oh, fuck it," under her breath, the big girl picked up her own chair and ran in after Eugene.

[NoLife42069]

Desertion is punishable by death. It was the thought that ran through Kevin's mind, but only for a moment because he saw it. He saw the rat bastard he had tied up being dragged out. "DAMNIT!"

Then came the gunshot, and Eugene's speech... But none of that meant shit. The whole thing had failed, there wasn't a point.

He should have just stabbed Vasya in the throat and died.

But then Lotte grabbed her chair and charged after Eugene. "YOU DUMBASS WHAT ARE YOU!?" She disappeared into the abyss... Kevin heard his heartbeat in his ears. What were his options? Stay here and try to kill Vasya again? Try to survive like how The Director wanted? Or charge into an unknown battle, with the same odds...

A gamble.

Kevin smirked. He let out a mad cackle. He was back there at the roulette table, betting everything just so he could live. He thought about this entire game, how it made him feel alive. It made him look forward to the next few minutes. Kevin had become something of a better person here, not by much but...

Kevin tightens his grip on his makeshift weapon. What better way to die? "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!" Kevin laughed as he turned to the traitor. "You want to get out right? THEN MOVE YOUR ASS!!"

The fire inside Kevin was ignited, this is how he beat Vasya. Kevin would live when he didn’t. Besides, If Vasya followed there would be another opportunity to kill him.

With a bloody smile Kevin charged after Lotte and Eugene. This was a truly more honorable end than he deserved.

[ItzToxie]

Vasya watched as people began to run down the hallway. It was certain death.

He wasn’t stupid enough to run in there was he?

This whole thing; he waited at the doorway when they stormed in. He fought. He tried to kill. They weren’t just going to let him go. Even if the rules changed, even if he was allowed to hurt these pissants, he has no reason to believe they’d let him go.

Even bitchmade Kevin was going down the hall;

Vasya looked back at those who remained. Either way was certain death, but if he followed the others, that was more shields between him and death. He didn’t join this rebellion out of anything more than self-service, and in the end it was still the best option.


Hell; he might even kill two birds with one stone, or a certain junkie with one knife.

“Blyad…”

He wasn’t dying in this room. He walked towards the door with purpose, knife behind his back, and grim determination on his face.

Then, he ran.

He got his associate out. He got the daughter of the most important man of his life out. Now, it was time to get himself out.

Vasya was never a loser. He didn’t intend to start now.

[Deblod100]

Gerald overheard what businessman said. They got the guy who was tied up. Yet, the goons at the hallway looked like they were retreating.

It was funny. Gerald had the same thought as everyone else, but...

He knew something was amiss.

These guys were too well prepared for something. They had stab-proof vests. Masked faces that could withstand pepper spray. Of course, Gerald is still pocketing the pepper spray, but it wouldn't do good when the opponent's face is covered. Plus, they seem to have guns and clubs. Both things found in a prison.

Then, there was another thing that also irked him.

Autumn.

Was it the sake of love? Or concern for her safety.

If the cops did show up, things can be different. But they didn't release her. Nor did they release Nana. For Nana to Gerald, well... she did use him. He knew that, but why leave the pepper spray. Looking back on it now, Gerald did see that blank face of hers. Maybe behind it, there was a mind of someone who knew what to do. If she wanted to make it seem like Gerald was backstabbed, it could've been more obvious in a subtle way.

This was not the case.

He thought about it for a moment, but it was broken with businessman yelling. He apparently told Harvey Weinstein to fuck himself. Then, with the war cry of his name, Eugene, he charged into the goons.

"Wait, don-" Gerald called out, but then another person charged in after him. A tall woman. Gerald never got her name.

It wasn't until he saw the reactions of the loony and the Russian. Both were doing nothing but intimidating each other and everyone else. Yet, it seems like this moment of rebellion has united them to try to take them down. So they charged into the group as well.

Gerald gripped the chair in his hands. It can be simple. He can charge in. He can go out swinging and get his head bludgeoned like a champ. However, he was back on his train of thought.

Autumn wasn't on the right.

No. Gerald had his suspicions, but he needed to make a complete gamble.

There was Occam's Razor and then there was Autumn.

He had to make a choice. A large one.













He took a step back from the right door.

Gerald uses a razor, but not one that is simple.

He knew what he should do.

He had his plan. The kidnappers were currently at a disadvantage. The only way that Gerald can beat them is to act like he was playing their game, but he found himself clever enough to do what it takes to make sure that Autumn and anyone else who exited Stage Left got out alive.