Kirumi Tojo's Palace | The Ultimate Maid's Failures

[kandata]

By now everyone may be used to find themselves in bizarre locations, between going into palaces and visiting Nekyia. It might not come as a surprise that it has happened again.

What might come as a surprise, though...is how empty this place is.

All around you there's nothing more than a large, gray, featureless expanse. In the distance there seem to be bars, curving upwards to gather so, so high above you, possibly hundreds of miles above, so high it’s hard to distinguish.

It’s a cage. So unfathomably large. You could escape, were you to get to the edges of the cage, but...it would take forever. No matter how you look at it, you're trapped. The atmosphere is so...hopeless. Devoid of anything even remotely positive.

Not that you want to hang around for long, do you? After all, this is someone's palace. Not a place to stick around at. What to do, though?

It’s all so...empty. Silent. Featureless. A flat expanse of hard gray tiles.

Gather together, everyone. Gather and choose a direction. North, East, West, South. All directions look completely identical, but could it affect your time in this place, somehow? Probably not. But all treks start with the first step. Perhaps, if you get moving, you'll progress?

Comments

[kandata]

[In the span of a moment, things are turning pretty bad. McGillis is kind of burning up over there, and Yoon is in the clutches of an almost destroyed Monokuma, and those who aren't currently trying to get Yoon out of there are in pain. Ouch.

Yoon has his defense upped quite a bit, though! Nice! Sure helps when Monokuma bites onto Yoon more, getting anchored. The grin, twisted like Monokuma is, indicates this bear is very, very satisfied with how badly they're all doing...

...until Fray, Yi Sang, and Argenti intervene. From the bottom, Argenti attacks, unbalancing Monokuma, Yi Sang slashes the middle, breaking a lot of the fabric holding Monokuma together, and Fray hits the head. Monokuma's many teeth sink into Yoon for a moment longer, before his jaws are sliced open by blessed magic from Joshua.

For a moment Monokuma doesn't move...until finally, the bear slumps over: a bunch of fabric and cotton, lying there...

What would Monokuma say if he could speak now? Probably some taunt. Even on the verge of defeat, he would laugh, and insult, and try to turn the tables verbally. Now it couldn't do that much, thanks to Kainé. Nobody must miss his voice, really.

But Monokuma wasn't going to just let this end without a last word.

Hear it!

Since the roll was 11, the speed is not high. You have time to protect yourselves, one way or another, but better hurry up -- it won't be a small one!]

[prozaic]

THAT'S A BOMB!

[Now Shalem is actually yelling, because bombs are no joke.

Grabbing Yoon and getting out of dodge-- (18)]

[strawsandals]

T...thank you...!

[ He is so sore but he'll Diarama himself while Shalem has him covered. ]

[moodwrecker]

Crap!

[She has the sense to buff her defense for all it will do, because she is not running very quickly when trying to escape (4)]

[imperiosity]

[no one told him they were playing bombs today

In any case, he's definitely moving away now!! But does anyone remember that he still has the stripper pole strapped onto his back? Because he sure does, and he just yeets it at Monokuma in a half-assed attempt to disable the bomb????

This is going to cost him by getting a little blown up because avrae graced me with a 9.]

[emptyself]

[ soujuurou doesn’t seem fazed at first at the beeping. it’s annoying, but so is the alarm clock on his phone.

however, when shalem warns for the bomb, that sense of danger finally lights up in soujuurou. his experience with explosives is only when aoko blew up the house of mirrors, and he doesn’t know how much damage this can cause. but any damage is too much. he struggles to get himself off the floor and break into the best run that his broken body can do (7). ]

[finalmix]

[ joshua is a noodle but he is grabbing soujuurou and supporting him on the way out, and also casting a media on him for good measure just in case, even if Fray already hit him with a diarama. ]

Stay sharp, darling. Wouldn't want to lose you so near the end, hm?

[bloodweapon]

[Fray definitely knows what a bomb is and that sound is never a good one. At least it's not the weewoo of Garlean sirens? No, this is really not any better. He's casting Diarama on Soujuurou as he tries to get the fuck out of the way (10).]

[moonshaded]

["Oh crap," Kainé would say, but her expression actually says it all.

Remember those smashed-up podiums from when everyone refused to vote? She'll throw the debris from one of those up as cover, in the same direction as where McGillis carried the unconscious owner of this palace. But the materials used to build these things do look pretty thin, and her speed can only get her so far. With a 10, she will almost definitely at least be getting thrown back into a wall or another body or something.]

[beautifulknight]

[ Well, first of all, Yoon being freed and the same for Soujuurou means there's only one person still in distress (besides all of them on account of a bomb being about to go off)

So, Argenti is getting really concerned about McGillis being on fire over there! So he throws another Dia on McGillis so he doesn't die or something! But doesn't have anything in his repertoire to put the flames out at the moment. Especially since there's also a bomb about to go off.

With people being too slow to run and simultaneously on fire, he has to hope that will be enough for the moment and so the red head yells something no one wants to hear anyone say: ]

I shall take care of the bomb!

...Please someone see to McGillis if they can.

[ If they can't, Argenti will try to check himself after this.

Before anyone can so much as complain, the Knight of Beauty runs forward - all at the same time Aaron tosses the stripper pole at it - perfect! Argenti suddenly places a great deal of power behind this Psiodyne, which may or may not have a spear swinging in afterwards to compensate for any lingering weight.

But, perhaps surprising of all is this:

...That it is a successful gambit! The entire thing smashes straight out one of the windows (14) — ]

1/3

[kandata]

[By the time Argenti does his gamble, the beeping was getting faster and faster. The explosion is imminent!

When Monokuma's enormous form is thrown against a window, it collides, shattering the windows, and vanishes out of sight for...half a second or so. Argenti threw it out just in time. Everyone is spared from the worst since there's a thick wall between the explosion and them all...but there are windows.

The windows explode inwards. That might be the cause of some of the injuries your bad rolls received, because that's a lot of glass flying all over the place!

...but it's all over. You have defeated Monokuma. The bear is gone. Is it dead?

...........

Well it sure isn't appearing right now again!]

2/3

[kandata]

[All around the walls gain cracks. The explosion seems to have made it all unstable.

Not too far from you, where McGillis had tossed her, a girl stands up shakily. She looks extremely roughed up, bruised to hell and back because really, Monokuma was not kind with her during this fight. She stares at everyone, dumbfounded and silent.

She's just...silent. She opens her mouth for a moment, but no words come out]

3/3 END

[kandata]

[...and she just falls apart.

The walls of the trial room break, falling apart. This girl just stands there, crying, and she can't bring herself to stop. The palace is breaking, and what's beyond, still is gray because yeah, things sure aren't fixed for her.

If anything, it's as if everything she knew has been destroyed, and that's just...extremely overwhelming. Everything has crumbled apart.

Monokuma did exactly what he said he would. Kirumi Tojo is dead. There's this girl left. Whether she even keeps the name and the profession or not, well, who knows.

Whether something new can grow from here or not, well, it depends on her, doesn't it?

Time to leave. But for the time being, she just...is going to need a lot of rest]

[emptyself]

[ soujuurou looks at the girl crying and feels like his chest is being squeezed.

he’ll sit down next to her, as comfortable as he can be with whatever injuries he sustained. ]

You don’t have to continue being Kirumi Tojo if you don’t want to be. If you want to be, that’s fine too.

[ he’ll stretch out a hand to her. ]

But no matter what you choose, I still would like to be your friend.

[kandata]

I do not know what I will do...even thinking about my name is painful right now.

[Did they get around to giving her some well planned and justified name that would fit their plan somehow? Or did she really end up getting a random name someone thought up on the spot just to fill up a file? She's not sure which one would be the lesser evil here]

...but thanks. I am at a total loss right now, so I do not know how to respond, but I do appreciate you being here...

[She really sounds so uncertain. Not to the hesitant extent of that girl who wanted to join a killing game, but still, she's not sure of what to do now]

[beautifulknight]

[ So, he was definitely near the windows when that happened and was probably realistically blown back from that, though raised a hand/arm to cover his face from being pelted by glass. He lands on his back, inelegantly, though immediately rises.

His immediate concern is to check in on everyone. He will help to put out any remaining fires if needed (literally), but if that isn't necessary, he will hurry immediately to Kirumi, and also reach out to gently place a hand on her shoulder, if she will accept it. ]

...We are here for you.

No matter what happens - even after this has ended, we shall be with you.

[ Argenti's words are gentle; he looks the opposite of elegant right now but that doesn't matter much. Not one of them do, after all. ]

[bloodweapon]

[The immediate concern is taking care of the ones who were badly injured, either in the battle or by the blast, but after those injuries are taken care of and discussions have been had, Fray approaches Argenti. There's a look in his eyes that isn't immediately recognizable - a mix of emotions, certainly, after everything today has brought - before he decides to forego words entirely and pull Argenti into an embrace. It doesn't matter that the others can see, and he can die of embarrassment later; right now he just wants to make sure Argenti's safe.

...And yeah, here's another Diarama for you too.]

[prozaic]

[Shalem is just going to put Yoon down and help this girl up to her feet.]

It's not easy to be freed from a script, isn't it? Mm, I know the feeling. But you've had much less time under it. I shall be a listening ear if you need it.

Or... a helping hand with the piano. [Implying he can teach her if she wants to learn.

But that's all he has to say. It's time to leave, and he's just not bothering with stealth anymore.]

[bloodweapon]

[It's a hollow victory today. They saved her, yes, but at the cost of her identity. No matter what, it's going to be exceptionally difficult for her to take those first few steps forward, knowing the truth about her past. There's nothing any of them can truly do to help, because no one has been in this exact situation.

And yet the others reach out to her, trying to do what they can to help, and for once, Fray is no exception. First he casts a Diarama on her before kneeling beside her.]

We'll need to leave soon. [His eyes flick to the crumbling walls, the slow shattering of this world.] I can carry you if you cannot walk.

[Addressing the more practical issue first, because whether she's Kirumi Tojo or not, that much still remains important.]

I cannot say I fully understand what you are going through, but I too have found myself with questions about who and what I am. Should you need someone to talk to, I will always listen. You are not alone - all of us are here for you.

[moodwrecker]

[The defense boost was a great idea, it turns out, because she's pretty much unscathed after covering her face from the glass. While she does take a moment to check on the others, it doesn't take her long at all to come find the girl once known as Kirumi.]

Ki-

[...No. That's not her name. Not really.]

...Hey.

[destage]

[It's over.

...It's really only just begun, but for now, this part is done. Sayaka's shaking, shuddering, all of it's too much.

But she can stuff it away for now. Someone needs help, and Sayaka rushes to the artist formerly known as Kirumi.]

Hey--will you let us help you up? We should probably get out of here. It's not safe.

[imperiosity]

[The way this ended was certainly a lot less triumphant than he'd hoped -- for all that it was satisfying to lay into that bear that had been torturing the girl in front of them, it feels like a hollow victory when he sees the tears start falling. There's no easy resolution for what lies ahead, but what happens next has to be her decision and he nor anyone else can make that for her.

And normally, he'd be content to sit back while the others say their inspirational lines, but the palace is swiftly collapsing and he's not keen on having all of this being done in vain. As such, he steps in front of her -- dozens of new cuts and all -- to get her attention as much as possible.]

Hey. We're getting you out of here. Can you move?

[moonshaded]

[Like Fray says, they can't stay forever. There's a real world to get back to, and it'll probably feel like a really hostile place.

She doesn't do crowds and will wait for this one to ease a little once they're in a safer spot before she actually says anything. Probably not many people feel like celebrating after this one.]

Hey. Guess we're meeting. [Like she's introducing herself, not approaching as someone who's been playing a cryptid with their shared room while she sleeps in a weird tree somewhere.] No more crying, okay? You just got here. [She's got plenty to cry about, though; Kainé won't actually really try to stop her.]

You don't need me to be your tour guide, [there are more altruistic people to do that...] but I'll get you to your dorm when you wanna go.

[Whether the girl goes back with her as offered or comes later, she'll find that the room has been very hastily tidied - by a normal, frankly somewhat lazy person, and not an ultimate anything.]

[idealitas]

[ It's over. Beaten up, sliced, exhausted... But he and everyone is in one piece after all that.

Almost everyone. He cannot say that this young woman came out of this whole thing unscathed. Her manufactured identity and personality have fallen apart. Dead like the Nick bracket text says. But there's still something left, and she isn't beyond saving if she can cry. It means there's an awareness to everything that has transpired, even what she has lost. This sort of thing, from he knows as the edges of research he didn't want to touch, would usually be irreversible. The base has to die... But it didn't here.

It still aches to hear and see the sobbing, the anguish she must feel must be terrible. But Yi Sang is relieved that she is with them and offers her a smile. ]

It's nice to meet you, Miss. Or welcome back. It matters not.

[ Whatever she wants to do, how she wants to act from her on... It's all her choice. ]

[vogelfrei]

[ There she is - the girl who once was Kirumi Tojo.

McGillis can't begrudge her the tears. It's hard to imagine a level of ego destruction as great as what she just experienced. She'd been so torn up about her country, her duties... All of it illusions, given to her in an act of cruel mockery to what her original wishes might have been.

Though he himself is still feeling worse for wear thanks to the burns suffered, McGillis approaches 'Kirumi' with some determination. They need to get out of her, and she shouldn't have to make that walk on her own.

Unless she resists, McGillis is going to scoop the girl up into his arms in a princess carry. It's gentle in a way that some might not have expected from him. Suddenly, it's as if he's soothing a child. ]

Let's get you home. Everything else can come after.