fifth loop

[cancrymods]

SUPERBIA

On midnight of the seventh day, it happens again. Time rewinds itself back to the Executors' starting point, putting them right back at the beginning of the loop. This is now their fifth time experiencing the events of the Superbia loop. Some of the school's long hidden secrets are starting to come to light... but is it enough to bring them close to breaking the loop once and for all? Only time will tell. ... Hey, wait just a second...! Use this log to investigate during this seven day period and drop a comment down to the Investigation Request subheader if you'd like to explore. If you're continuing or building off of a previous loop's investigation results, please link to it in your comment. If you need a refresher on the loop mechanics, check out this post. Good luck, Executors.

Comments

[heir_to_ruin]

[Everyone shows up on the stairs and Ruin, who had been in the middle of researching something, -a book that is now going to be reshelved and it was fucking midnight he doesn't remember a page number- shouts a wordless, frustrated growl of a sound before dropping straight down onto the stairs.]

Dammit!

[Punching the stairs might not be a great idea but y'know it makes him feel better, don't judge.

Yeah he needs a few minutes to sulk, thanks guys.]

[alcahest]

Ruin?!

[ they're all disoriented right now, and she's not sure what's going on either, but Mona is immediately crouching down to catch Ruin by the wrist after that punch. ]

You'll hurt your hand...

[heir_to_ruin]

That's sort of the least of my worries right now, Mona.

[Another helpless frustrated snarl under his breath. Not at Mona, of course not, but just... the situation as a whole.]

[alcahest]

[ she understands, of course... but still, she pats his knuckles gently with her other hand. ]

The loop got shorter... It feels like we're running out of time.

[heir_to_ruin]

The number of times a loop happens is getting smaller as well as the length of the loops.

[He sort of sprawls back against the stairs and runs a hand through his hair.

Dammit.]

The month loop ran a hundred and nine times. The two week one only sixty nine.

It's probably because we're getting close to something.

[alcahest]

[ she was debating whether to sit down beside him properly or stand and offer him a hand up, but it looks like they're staying on the stairs, so sitting it is!! she folds her legs up to her chest and hugs her knees. ]

Yeah. But even though it's gotten to this point, I don't know what to do anymore... It feels like we keep hitting a dead end.

[heir_to_ruin]

I... might have some ideas?

[He just needs to stew for a bit to figure out what, exactly, they're learning here.]

Chess club at lunch again?

[alcahest]

[ Mona looks at him in silence for a moment, studying his face. ]

... You know— [ she beams. ] You're really reliable, Ruin.

[heir_to_ruin]

[He glances at her, mind immediately supplying that the only reliable thing he does is ruin but he tries not to focus on it too much. Not when Mona is smiling so cheerfully at him.

He doesn't deserve it.]

Uh... Thanks, Mona. Just... trying to help.

[alcahest]

[ she knows many of the others probably think of her as naïve; she's always the first to suggest a friendly approach with the Authority, after all, and with how badly that backfired with Esme... but she isn't a fool. it's obvious that Ruin doesn't accept her words, just as it's obvious that sometimes Ruin is— very sad.

she isn't someone who has managed to get close to Ruin. there aren't any meaningful words she can say to him as comfort, and it would only be insulting to force shallow platitudes on him when she doesn't understand him properly. the best that she can do for him is simple: sincerity, without falter. ]

When we make it out of this Layer, would you still be alright if Lion and I came up with some suggestions for a new name to call you by?

[etincelledefierte]

Hey. Ruin? Breathe with me. In through your nose, out through your mouth. Put a hand on your stomach, feel it go up and down. It’s going to sound dumb, but it’ll help you calm down.

[she’s trying her best]

[heir_to_ruin]

[He obediently pulls in a few deep breaths, though when he moves his hand it's to take hers and offer a reassuring squeeze instead of placing it on his stomach. Of course she's willing to come comfort him. She hasn't seen what he is yet.]

Sorry... I'm just... I was in the middle of something.

[etincelledefierte]

It’s okay.

[She’ll give his hand a squeeze.]

I think we all woke up a little - startled isn’t the right word, but it hasn’t been as unsettling the past few times we woke up.

[mementomoritz]

[Normally a fount of boundless cheer, Medic looks honestly a little exasperated by now, too.]

I'm going to have to redraw that entire diagram.

[She was in the middle of noting down some recent advances in her research. This time loop is impeding scientific progress and she is not okay with that.]

This has fascinating implications for the status and stability of the loop, but I still don't like it.