A graveyard.

This, in and of itself, is not unsettling. It is neither the first not the last time he'll set foot among the dead, and in spite of the efforts gone through to ensure realism, he is not particularly disturbed. It offers a feeling of melancholy, instead, a remembrance for lives lost during the Darkest Day.

He reads names and epitaphs, faltering only when he comes across a tombstone bearing his own name.

Or, well, that of the pretender. Gavin Merlino.

The grave is open to the sky, and when he peers into its depths he finds... nothing. Not coffin nor skeleton, no trace of his existence beyond a name etched into stone. Was it awaiting his imminent demise, or playing on some other fear? The fear he'll be forgotten, no legacy but for a weathered rock in a sea of so many others.

Don't overthink it.

Was the cry of birds getting closer, or was that all in his head?

Mee_sbaL
30 RESOLVE

Not open to interaction yet; he'd need to be alone to be unsettled for this round.

notes

He can't shake the nerves that settle like cobwebs, perhaps due to the all-too-real threat of death outside of this Halloween game. The world was ending. What if it really did?

I don't want to die.

Scowling at the thought of his own weakness, Gavin jumps into the open grave of his own accord. He half expects the floor to fall away and plunge him into the ocean's abyss, but that doesn't happen. It's only hard-packed earth and an overwhelming sense of loneliness. His only company comes in the forms of the insects that crawl among the dirt.

"Fuck this," he mutters to himself, and starts to climb back out.

HN|X8xia
20 RESOLVE

Not open to interaction yet; he'd need to be alone to be unsettled for this round.

JUMPSCARE!

[break]



The ground beneath and around you begins to shake. The distant cawing begins to intensify, and the wails of nearby mourners twist into horrific howls. Suddenly hands begin to erupt from the earth, clawing decayed appendages grasping for anything within reach! Don't get caught![break][break]

• Roll at least one winning number: You avoid a cluster of hands, but one grabs you before you can properly escape! Failures do not count toward Resolve for this round only. In your next post, describe escaping the hand's clutches. Roll once instead of three times, a failure will cost 40 Resolve.
• Roll at least two winning numbers: You escape the frenzy unharmed! Gain 10 Resolve. Failures do not affect Resolve for this round only.
• Roll all losing numbers: The hands latch onto you and pull you into the soft earth; you are eliminated!

[break][break]

Cillian Quinn Tempest Quinn Martín del Mar

Those who do not post by 11/6 11:59 CST will be eliminated!

As easy as it had been to jump into the open grave, it proves far more difficult to climb out. Dirt cakes beneath his fingernails as he struggles for purchase, slipping back down. Then something brushes up against his calf.

He's not easily spooked, but the sight of hands pushing up through the dirt and attempting to grab him was at the very least unsettling.

He kicks out at the hand closest to him and attempts to step back, maneuvering with some difficulty in the small space.

paQpbDJD
30 RESOLVE

Open to interaction!

notes

ELIMINATION!

[break]


Trapped within your own grave, there was nowhere to turn to escape the hands of your fellow buried. Thousands of rotting fingers grasp at you from every direction, dragging you further and further into the ground. The force of their rapid emergence begins to dislodge the dirt around you, and soon you are buried alive with your captors.

Tempest Quinn has been eliminated!

The new deadline is 11/10 11:59PM cst!

Gavin hears Martín del Mar before he sees him, turning around.

"Martín?"

There had been a possibility of encountering others, he recalls as much from the waiver, but after stepping into the isolated graveyard he'd abandoned that information entirely to focus on his surroundings.

He squints, suspicious.

"You're not a Zorua, are you?" A laugh. He's pretty sure Zorua couldn't talk, and he didn't see a Chatot anywhere. "Mind giving me a hand? Preferably not one that's rotting at the wrist?"

Hands still grasp at his ankles, and he gives another one a spirited kick.

"Jumped down here expecting to find something and it's not so easy to jump back out."

He could manage, with time, but it'd be easier with an assist.

QELNkEwB
30 RESOLVE

Open to interaction!

notes

THEY FEED!

[break]

As you escape the grasp of the writhing hands, a new threat reveals itself. Corvisquire begin to land in clumps, pecking at the hands to consume their rotting flesh. Their numbers gradually increase, until an entire murder lands to feed on the hands. While carrion birds at heart, a hungry Corvisquire cannot tell the difference between a cadaver and a still living organism. Soon birds begin to go for you, swooping in as they try to secure a fresher meal. How do you defend yourself?

• Fight them off: Beat back the birds with an improvised weapon or whirling fists. Beware the resulting marks of battle--Lose 20 Resolve but skip rolling for this round only.
• Run away, flailing your arms wildly: An amusing display, but it is more reliable than simply outrunning them. Lose 10 Resolve, roll only once instead of three times for this round only.
• Outrun them and hide: These creatures can fly, yet you believe you can out run them? AND conceal yourself? A bold move. Roll three as normal. Rolling more than one failure will result in a dire consequence.

Cillian Quinn Martín del Mar

The deadline is 11/10 11:59PM cst!

A dry laugh escapes him at Mars' humour, and he takes the hand that's offered to him. He climbs out of the pit with the aid of his fellow underboss and swipes irritably at dirt that's marred his tailored pants.

"If he doesn't want them destroyed, he shouldn't have let me in," Gavin drawls, smirking.

Gavin likes Corviknight. They're the sigil of his ancient house, a staple of the Quinn Rookery, but he'd grown to love them regardless of his family ties due to the birds that would rest on his windowsill at night.

He's decidedly less enthused when they're trying to eat him.

Because this is Gavin, he can't lose dignity by running away with arms flailing. So, in a display of true arrogance, he decides that he must OUTSMART these notoriously intelligent birds.

"Good luck," he grins to Martín del Mar, then bolts in search of somewhere to HIDE.

3gEQH6Nz
20 RESOLVE

Open to interaction!