new year, new you

[cancrymods]

It's been some time since the Executors made their way down to the Gula layer and while things have been quiet, that doesn't necessarily mean they haven't been busy. The snow that had been falling steadily for the past week or so has finally eased, even if a thick blanket of the stuff seems to remain in all the Layers you've travelled to. The ever present threat of an Authority has been mitigated somewhat by Gerda being... well, Gerda and though her intentions and the full scope of her motivations are still a mystery, she at least seems to be willing to assist the Executors so long as they do the same for her in turn.

All the errands they've been running have done a lot to help the Undercity – the kitchen is stocked, and the communal areas feel fuller and livelier. Music often rings out from the stage and all in all, things seem fuller and warmer here.

And yet, that quiet hunger continues to nip at you every moment you spend in Gula. Even if it weren't for the Gluttony Layer's effects, though, there would be answers aplenty to be hungering after – the mysterious butterfly accompanying Ariel, the question of Rei's lack of memories... and of course, the mystery girl who seems determined to see you all returned to mindless Specters once again.

Do you still believe you have what it takes to travel to the bottom of Purgatory and restore things to their natural order?

There's only one way to find out for sure.

[ ... And we're back! After our holiday break, the Gula chapter of Can Cry's metaplot is now continuing! Happy New Year, Executors - let's see what you make of it! ]

Comments

[mementomoritz]

[Without missing a beat:]

Quarantine Superbia.

[She seems... completely matter-of-fact about the whole thing, honestly.]

It's pretty ideal for the purpose- since it takes the form of a single campus instead of an entire city, the entire population is in a single, easily monitored and contained area. Living in dorm rooms should allow for subdivisions between affected and unaffected Specters if we can cordon off a particular hall.

It's the closest layer to Gula, too, so we're making the minimum possible change.

Ideally, I'd recommend finding anywhere from one to three volunteers to start with, Specters who seem stable enough to attempt travelling but are still noticeably experience symptoms. Explain the situation, get those of us currently based permanently in Superbia to arrange an empty dorm room as far away from the main part of campus as possible, move them in under the direct supervision of an Executor, and monitor them and everyone within a five hundred foot radius of their location for a minimum of one week.

[She's rattling this all off with the kind of brisk professionalism you'd expect from someone twice her age and carrying a clipboard.]

If there's no detectable contamination in Superbia's local population, allow them to mingle more under continued supervision and see if that persists. After another week, if the Gula Specters improve and the lack of contamination remains consistent, start bringing up more of them.

If there is evidence of contagion at any point, lock down the path from Superbia to the upper layers immediately and send all affected Specters back down to Gula as soon as you can do so without making contact with anyone unaffected.

[schardynfreude]

It's not a damned disease. [It's snapped, though the rest comes in rather calmly.]

Even should it become a problem, it's hardly going to be a problem for long. [For a given definition of long. You know. Since time weirdness.] When we fix the problem of the Cogs, then everything will flow as normal. In theory, Gula should eventually fix itself. And even if it doesn't, it would only be temporary.

The problem is going to be convincing people to go back up in the first place. Plenty of them seem absolutely aghast at the idea of leaving the Undercity.

[mementomoritz]

Almost certainly not, no! [Yeah, that brief upset just flew right by her.] Judging by the way we stop experiencing the effects as soon as we leave this layer, it's much more likely to be something environmental as opposed to an infectious agent.

I wonder if it's similar at all to radiation? Fallout from the breaking of the Cogs instead of the splitting of an atom, maybe...

[emberserker]

And with an eye to encouraging Spectres to indulge in their sins rather than allow them to overcome them and proceed... perhaps to lighten the load.