Defying Expectations, Tuesday, Per 3

[glacial_queen]

"Sometimes you fail."

Karla looked over her class, assembled in the Danger Shop, and slowly shook her head. "That was one of the hardest lessons I ever had to learn. Sometimes you fail, and sometimes when you succeed, the cost is so high that it wasn't worth paying in the first place. For a lot of you, this is going to be a tough lesson to learn--especially here at Fandom. No matter how bad things get here, somehow it always works out in the end. When I was a student, all of reality collapsed. I lost friends, respected teachers, my home. My boyfriend snatched me up and threw me so that I'd escape the great onrushing Nothingness. I survived, but he was taken. I had to say goodbye to some of my best friends as they watched reality unravel before their eyes and then I had to go and add their name to the list of the fallen outside of the school gates." Her voice quavered for a moment; even years later, remembering the last days of the Nothingness hurt. "In the end, it was just a handful of us living in Special Collections--and yet, from that, we managed to jumpstart reality and bring everyone back. Fandom has been invaded, attacked, and changed countless times. Those of you who have been here for awhile likely know what I mean. Those of you who are new will find out. But in the end, we always come out on top."

She smiled wistfully for a moment. "But that's not what happens in the real world. In its own way, Fandom is a happy fantasy where there are very few long-lasting consequences for even the most horrifying events. Things aren't permanent here. On the one hand, that's a kindness. We all deserve a few years where the worst things will fade away, leaving little more then scars and nightmares. On the other hand, it makes going out into the real world so much harder. You go back to places where actions have lasting consequences and the dead don't come back to us on Monday morning with a relieved smile. When you leave Fandom, you will find yourself in positions where you will lose and those losses will haunt you. Even if you can make up for them, there's no going back to the way things were, the way you can here."

Looking at them, Karla tried to meet the eyes of every individual student. "Some of you will be able to escape whatever destinies you've been given. Some of you won't be so lucky. And some of you will try to fight every step of the way and still end up exactly where you said you didn't want to be. But losing doesn't have to be the end of things. It's how you lose and what you do afterwards that matter."

She paused for a chance for people to share their feelings, if anyone was so inclined, and then murmured a command. The classroom image dissolved and the students found themselves in a large building, filled with some kind of indoor tent city. It was filthy in here and it stank; too many people in one space and not enough facilities. People were dirty and dispirited, their faces pinched with hunger and tight with fear. Here and there voices were raised in anger, loud disputes over a bottle of water, a claim to space, the virtue of someone's mother. The floors and walls were made of dirty concrete and the windows were boarded up. Over the echoing din of people, moans could be heard from the outside. "You'll all be alone when the simulation starts," she said. "It's individualized to each one of you. If you make it to the end of the class period without becoming a leader, you win. Ready? Let's begin." And with that, she vanished, as did every other student, leaving each student seemingly alone in a warehouse full of people.

[Incredibly ridiculous amounts of OCD up! Apologies, I didn't expect it to take as long as it did!]

Comments

Sign In (11/04)

[glacial_queen]

Like you're suddenly in a zombie survival sim!

Re: Sign In (11/04)

[giveherahand]

Mara Jade

Listen to the Lecture

[glacial_queen]

A bright and cheerful topic today!

Re: Listen to the Lecture

[iceolatedqueen.livejournal.com]

Elsa wasn't entirely certain what to make of today's lecture.

Sometimes you fail.

She knew that. She knew that very well. And found herself wondering just what Karla was playing at. Or if defying her destiny would really be such a win, anyway.

Re: Listen to the Lecture

[notamascot]

Kaylin's head was down.

Jade. Steffi.

Jade. Steffi.

All the deaths she'd been responsible for.

Her whole life was a failure. All of it. She still didn't understand why the Hawklord had let her live and part of her still thought that at any time he might just change his mind. There was no way she could ever make up for it, but she'd be triple gods-damned if she didn't try to do whatever she could.

Feelings Share

[glacial_queen]

In case you wanted to unburden yourself about failure, fear, or Fandom.

Re: Feelings Share

[notamascot]

Had all of the hells frozen over?

No?

Then there was no way in any of them that Kaylin was about to share with the group.

No way.

She hadn't spoken of any of this to anyone. Not ever.

Inside The Warehouse

[glacial_queen]

This was once a big warehouse grocery store, like a Sam's Club or BJs. Some attempts have been made to make it defensible, but a lot of those defenses are haphazard and not maintained. There isn't much food left, trash is everywhere, and the aura inside the building is a mix of sullen anger, deprivation, and exhausted fear.

In short, a typical post-apocalyptic scene.

[Feel free to mod your surroundings, so long as it's suitably bleak, the unwanted lovechild of, say, Snowpiercer and Judge Dredd.]

Event 1--Rations

[glacial_queen]

Food is getting very slim. There is no order or structure, so people are just taking what they want. Hoarding is rampant. So is hunger. Children are lying listless on their thin piles of blankets without the energy to play. Some people are starting to show signs of malnutrition.

A concerned group of people approach you. "Please," they say. "You'll be listened to! Obeyed! If you take command, you can make sure we all get enough to eat!"

If you agree to lead, you lose and the simulation ends. If you refuse to help, you can continue on. Your choice.

Re: Event 1--Rations (Interaction)

[glacial_queen]

[In case you'd like to have an NPC to discuss/debate/argue with]

Re: Event 1--Rations (Agree to Lead)

[glacial_queen]

You agree to be in charge. The simulation ends and you end up back in the classroom with your teacher and any other students who failed to win.

[Feel free to RP out how you would solve the rationing if you'd like, and/or talk to other people in this thread.]

Re: Event 1--Rations (Refuse)

[glacial_queen]

After you refuse to lead, riots break out over the remaining food. Much of it is trampled, lost, or ruined in the fighting. Desperation mounts and violence becomes commonplace as people try to get food at any cost.

But you can keep going!

[This thread for any reactions you's like]

Event 2--Violence

[glacial_queen]

Fights are becoming more and more common. Gangs and turf wars are breaking out. The weak are being preyed upon by the strong, and crime runs rampant.

Again, you are approached. "Enough people still respect you enough to calm down and listen! If you take charge, you can bring peace back--you can stop the gangs and the violence!"

Once more, you can choose to lose and agree to be in charge, or you can keep going.

Re: Event 2--Violence (Interaction)

[glacial_queen]

[Same basic setup as above]

Re: Event 2--Violence (Agree and Lose)

[glacial_queen]

You bring order back to the warehouse before the simulation dissolves

Re: Event 2--Violence (Refuse and Win)

[glacial_queen]

Anarchy develops. Screaming, crying, and the sounds of physical violence become commonplace things. People's eyes become haunted and restful sleep is a thing of the past.

But you can keep advancing!

Event 3--Plague

[glacial_queen]

Shockingly, with little food, less rest, and poor sanitation, people start getting sick. Really sick. There's the beginning of an outbreak on your hands.

"Please, won't you help us? With a bit of firm organization, you can keep this illness from getting out of hand!"

Re: Event 3--Plague (Interaction)

[glacial_queen]

[For all of your RP needs]

Re: Event 3--Plague (Lose)

[glacial_queen]

Is this the time you finally capitulate?

Re: Event 3--Plague (Win)

[glacial_queen]

You remain unmoved by their requests and keep to yourself. The plague moves quickly and the death toll is more than half of the survivors.

Event 4--Zombies

[glacial_queen]

With the remaining survivors still weak from illness, hunger, and crime, the zombies outside are finally able to pierce the warehouse's defenses. They shove their way through a door and stream inside looking to eat.

"Help us..." The words are soft. "You can still rally us together...maybe hold them off..."

Re: Event 4--Zombies (Interaction)

[glacial_queen]

[For any last bit of RP]

Back in the Classroom

[glacial_queen]

Once the last student leaves their simulation, Karla faces them. "So, to win today, you had to refuse to lead no matter what. Anyone manage to do that? I have some JGoB cupcakes if you did."

"So?" she continued. "What did you think? What happened in there for each of you? What made you choose whatever you did?"

Re: Back in the Classroom

[justwantedfriends]

"That sucked. Like, a lot," Kira said, frowning. "I wish there'd been a way to try to help the people without being in charge. Like, make someone else in charge but still help? But then we probably would have died too, and I guess that might have been part of the point but... it wasn't fun."

Talk to the TA

[glacial_queen]

Whenever she exits her sim

Re: Talk to the TA

[notamascot]

Kaylin was back extremely quickly, hardly more than a minute. And she had absolutely no idea how she could possibly ever consider letting children starve be a win.

But right now all she wanted to do was go and hide away for a very long time.

Talk to the Teacher

[glacial_queen]

Feel free to call her a sadist

Re: Talk to the Teacher

[iceolatedqueen.livejournal.com]

Elsa took a deep breath as she approached Karla after class.

"Was cruelty the point of this lesson?" She looked tired. She felt tired. "I'm afraid I don't understand how making it all the way through, watching all of those people suffer, could possibly be considered winning."

OOC

[glacial_queen]

Hopefully this all makes sense, but feel free to ping me if it doesn't! Also, roleplaying out your choices and your consequences in any thread is a-OK by me. I'll be onhand to offer NPCs if necessary!

Just to be clear, you only go to the next event if you refuse to lead the previous one. If you choose to lead in any of the previous sims, then your simulation has ended and you spend the rest of the time in the classroom.

Re: OOC

[pulseof_life]

It's probably wrong that I laughed at the fact that when I read the class I was all 'YES. SOMETHING YEUL CAN WIN!'

Winning is terrible here but omg. Omg Yeul has this down.