[ congrats! ryuki has managed to partially activate it!
the cube grows much larger, suddenly, large enough to reach up to rita's neck. And it's covered in green circuitry patterns, albeit not glowing.
meanwhile, rita will feel somewhat suspicious of the giant cube, and will instead feel herself getting drawn to the giant portal in the wall...which appears only to her to be open now. ]
[ When that cube expands, Rita jumps back with a start, giving it a distinctly sketched-out look. Yeah, okay. She's not touching that.
Besides, that portal is looking a lot more interesting. She starts walking over towards it... and glances back at the others, wondering why it hasn't gotten their attention. It's pretty damn conspicuous!
She comes up close to the portal, so close she can almost touch it, and stares into it. Can she see anything through it?
If not, she'll try extending a hand towards it, experimentally. ]
[ Hanako says this with the utmost confidence. He knows because he's seen it, because he's hung up all his hopes on it being real. ]
I don't really understand these papers, but I know that—- Rita?
[ She was hovering RIGHT here, where'd she get off to? He takes a quick look around before abandoning Ryuki to follow her towards the suspicious portal on the other side of the room, head forgetting but hands still itching to grab her if the portal suddenly sucks her inside or something. ]
[ well to the boys the portal is still closed so all rita is doing is staring at some giant metal doors
but for rita, nothing other than the green swirl is visible to her from here. when she puts her hand into the portal, she will find that it feels...comfortable. natural. and she has the sudden sense that the answers they want are beyond the portal, rather than in the lab.
also don't worry ryuki the cube isn't glowing right now, the image was just for circuitry pattern ref. ]
[ The Rita is here for scale I think. Only she's not, because she's going through this portal.
Well. She'll stop and look back to the others, first, meeting their eyes so she doesn't just vanish while they're looking at other things. She points to the wall that she's about to go through.
And then she steps through the portal. It didn't burn her or chew up her hand or anything, so... it's worth giving this a shot. ]
U-um, well, she pointed and looked at us before walking in, so I think she knows what she's doing.
[ She clearly signaled to them beforehand so it wasn't like... she just fell into the wall. He hopes she knows what she's doing. Please stay away from the hookers Rita you are our only real high-school age person.
Ryuki will come over to the wall and inspect it though, just to follow up on Rita and make sure she wasn't actually being like 'look at this wall you stupid nerds' and he's not just ignoring her about it. ]
[ nothing of note on this wall other than the giant shut portal! but nothing appears to be malfunctioning or out of place with it. There is a keypad, but it is shut off. ]
It really would've been a good time for laser eyes.
[ God fucking damn it. Of course the one week he DOESN'T have laser eyes is the one time he actually finds a valid use-case for them. Christ, what is his life.
I guess he's still lacking his outer jacket because it burned in the fire so have a fistful of delightfully soft orange sweater.
Well, is there anything else they can find in this room. He's going to pick up one of the ghost tasers and maybe keep it with him just in case. ANYTHING ELSE ABOUT THIS CUBE. Any operating controls for the big ominous thingamajig over their heads. ]
[ That orange sweater's going to get anxiously stretched out at this rate, because Hanako keeps a hold of it while at the same time reaching to the other side of him to poke at the keyboard, the cube, anything he can get his grubby little paws on, nothing bad will happen to him because he's got Ryuki here ]
[ nothing about the cube is immediately apparent, and there don't appear to be controls for the doomsday device over their heads. There are, however, some instructions for the cube amid all that paper on the lab bench where they first found the cube in its baby form! ]
[ Reading's for chumps. Hanako goes to fiddle with the ray lasers while Ryuki does responsible adult things. If they can get these working, they won't have to bother getting the door open the normal way. ]
[ the rays are all currently disconnected! there are wires, but they're all unplugged and very jumbled.
as for the instructions, they mention a NEURAL TEMPORAL REVERSAL capability. To preserve and reverse effects of trauma and even the trauma itself, all users must stand next to the cube, and press a hidden button on the top, recessed into one of the circles formed by the circuitry. ]
[ It's not like they killed Rita. Okay, yes, maybe it was their fault, but it's not like... it's not...
It's not. ]
...the dead are dead, and you can't take that back. You don't even know how this thing works, or if it will work. Would you throw your life away for such slim a chance?
[ It's their fault, for eating Nasty Burger, and then not leaving a five-star review on Yelp. ]
...
[ His life doesn't mean shit, Hanako, when all he does is cause trouble and hurt people. If it was going to be this way, he should've been the one to die twelve years ago. If he can't fix it when given the chance... ]
And what am I going to do... just move on from it and forget that it never happened? Like I don't have any responsibility anymore?
...If you don't want to, it's okay. I don't want to drag you into trouble either. I know it's dangerous.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
[ what about saving Rita? no, clearly none of this would have happened if they knew the test answers ]
no subject
the cube grows much larger, suddenly, large enough to reach up to rita's neck. And it's covered in green circuitry patterns, albeit not glowing.
meanwhile, rita will feel somewhat suspicious of the giant cube, and will instead feel herself getting drawn to the giant portal in the wall...which appears only to her to be open now. ]
no subject
[ Even as the green cube starts glowing all ominous-like. Yikes. ]
Um. I-I'm going to put this down.
[ BECAUSE IT'S MCLARGE NOW. ]
Do you see anything that could help us understand this, Hanako?... Rita?
no subject
Besides, that portal is looking a lot more interesting. She starts walking over towards it... and glances back at the others, wondering why it hasn't gotten their attention. It's pretty damn conspicuous!
She comes up close to the portal, so close she can almost touch it, and stares into it. Can she see anything through it?
If not, she'll try extending a hand towards it, experimentally. ]
no subject
[ Hanako says this with the utmost confidence. He knows because he's seen it, because he's hung up all his hopes on it being real. ]
I don't really understand these papers, but I know that—- Rita?
[ She was hovering RIGHT here, where'd she get off to? He takes a quick look around before abandoning Ryuki to follow her towards the suspicious portal on the other side of the room, head forgetting but hands still itching to grab her if the portal suddenly sucks her inside or something. ]
no subject
but for rita, nothing other than the green swirl is visible to her from here. when she puts her hand into the portal, she will find that it feels...comfortable. natural. and she has the sudden sense that the answers they want are beyond the portal, rather than in the lab.
also don't worry ryuki the cube isn't glowing right now, the image was just for circuitry pattern ref. ]
no subject
no subject
Well. She'll stop and look back to the others, first, meeting their eyes so she doesn't just vanish while they're looking at other things. She points to the wall that she's about to go through.
And then she steps through the portal. It didn't burn her or chew up her hand or anything, so... it's worth giving this a shot. ]
no subject
whips his head around ]
Ryuki!!
[ like he has all the answers ]
no subject
Meanwhile, the boys are still in the lab with the big ol' cube. ]
no subject
[ She clearly signaled to them beforehand so it wasn't like... she just fell into the wall. He hopes she knows what she's doing. Please stay away from the hookers Rita you are our only real high-school age person.
Ryuki will come over to the wall and inspect it though, just to follow up on Rita and make sure she wasn't actually being like 'look at this wall you stupid nerds' and he's not just ignoring her about it. ]
no subject
Hanako hovers behind Ryuki, fist clenching the back of Ryuki's shirt as an anchor to keep them together. ]
Now would've been a good time for laser eyes...
[ Alas.
Looking around, is there any keypad or other conspicuous thing that might open the door for them? ]
no subject
no subject
It really would've been a good time for laser eyes.
[ God fucking damn it. Of course the one week he DOESN'T have laser eyes is the one time he actually finds a valid use-case for them. Christ, what is his life.
I guess he's still lacking his outer jacket because it burned in the fire so have a fistful of delightfully soft orange sweater.
Well, is there anything else they can find in this room. He's going to pick up one of the ghost tasers and maybe keep it with him just in case. ANYTHING ELSE ABOUT THIS CUBE. Any operating controls for the big ominous thingamajig over their heads. ]
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
as for the instructions, they mention a NEURAL TEMPORAL REVERSAL capability. To preserve and reverse effects of trauma and even the trauma itself, all users must stand next to the cube, and press a hidden button on the top, recessed into one of the circles formed by the circuitry. ]
no subject
Hey, Hanako? I guess if we stand together and hit a button on top of this, we can undo what we did.
no subject
[ the trauma's important, it's what makes him him ]
no subject
no subject
We can fix it. We can not screw up this time and not kill Rita.
no subject
It's not. ]
...the dead are dead, and you can't take that back. You don't even know how this thing works, or if it will work. Would you throw your life away for such slim a chance?
no subject
...
[ His life doesn't mean shit, Hanako, when all he does is cause trouble and hurt people. If it was going to be this way, he should've been the one to die twelve years ago. If he can't fix it when given the chance... ]
And what am I going to do... just move on from it and forget that it never happened? Like I don't have any responsibility anymore?
...If you don't want to, it's okay. I don't want to drag you into trouble either. I know it's dangerous.
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)