[Rina]

Okay, Ringo's back to the manor where she's supposed to be....?

Something's not right...

"Wh- where's Ciel...?"

More importantly, why is the Piano...normal? Well, more normal. It's playing on its own, but it looks perfectly fine for the most part. Something isn't right at all. Ciel's nowhere to be found, and it's just this piano in the room. On top of that, the room isn't even old at all. It's solid, save for the suspicious water stains underneath the piano. Upon stepping in...

CLANG! IT SPOKE TO HER!

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"


"DON'T HURT ME! I'M ONLY LOOKING FOR A FRIEND!"

[Mari]

Music	Map	Status
	Basement First Floor Second Floor	(Everyone) An eldritch figure is stalking you from the darkness You feel something faintly clawing at your mind.

Rosalyn

How strange. Now corpse is to be seen. And one could be so sure they smelled death here too...

The sound of footsteps started up again, this time from behind Rosalyn. Something was making its way towards her! As usual, nothing could be seen. However, the footsteps stopped just in front of the secret passage Rosalyn had just entered. She was cornered! ...The secret passage door slammed shut without warning. By the looks of it, it wasn't intended to be opened from within. ...Rosalyn now appeared to be trapped in this tiny little room that had no rights existing. Now why would someone build a room like this into the house? What was the point of a hidden room that could only be opened from the outside? The sounds of footsteps could be heard walking away from outside, followed by another door opening and what sounded like footsteps traveling back down the upper hallway nearby.

---

Ringo

. . .

A long moment of silence followed Ringo's cry before the piano next spoke, almost as if the piano monster were giving thought to Ringo's request. However, after the moment passed the shattered floor tiles began to rise off the floor of their own accord.

"YOU... LEFT YOUR FRIEND... TO DIE!"

A broken floor tile is thrown at Ringo! It's not particularly deadly, but it will hurt if it hits her. The piano itself rises into the air, a twister of debris beginning to rotate around it. The doors close, so binding Ringo to her choice. The piano slowly floated closer to Ringo, threatening to strike her with any of the many pieces of debris now chaotically flying about the room. The only possible escape was the hole in the ceiling, from which the moonlight gently lit the room.

"SHE... IS MIIIIIINE NOW!!"
(Warning. Loud music. I recommend setting volume to 50% or below before playing.)

[Deleted]

As Rosalyn continued to look around in the small room, the newly created wall was quickly covered up, trapping Rosalyn in the room. "Oh no, i'm trapped, whatever shall I do?" Rosalyn said, knowing she was about to fall in a trap, but she didn't seem to care as she waited for the footsteps behind the wall to silence before trying her attempt to escape.

She took out a cherry from her bag, who looked very happy that Rosalyn was about to throw him to his doom. "Ready to go to the afterlife?" Rosalyn said to Cherry, who replied happily. "YEAH, THROW ME!" He said as Rosalyn threw the cherry towards a wall in an attempt to blow it up.


1mxrNpzvp_1d20+4(Rosalyn's suicidal cherry exploding on a wall.)

Cherry Bomb Deluxe cool down: Three turns1d20+4

[Rina]

"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP!"

Ringo ducked down low to avoid getting getting beaned by the flooring. After she ducked from harm's way she peeked her head up to notice the tornado of junk whipped up. She cannot fathom how terrified she is right now, but as it stands, her flight/fight response is on overdrive. She held out her hand out, using the Right-hand Rule and shot bolts of lightning in a feeble attempt to quell it. She may be in denial of what she's been told, but she can't let herself get defeated by the ghosts when she's all alone.

"D-DON'T HIDE CIEL AWAY FROM ME! S-S-S-S-SINE!"

[Mari]

Music	Map	Status
	Basement First Floor Second Floor	(Everyone) An eldritch figure is stalking you from the darkness You feel something faintly clawing at your mind.

Rosalyn

Geez Rosalyn. You're scarier than some of the ghosts in this place. Though, there was no denying the results. The house was quite frail, and a bomb going off was enough to seriously damage the wall. Rosalyn would be thrown back against the opposite wall rather violently, injuring her in the process. However, there was now a hole in the wall that Rosalyn could probably break through without too much effort expended simply by prying away at what remained of the nearby wood to widen the hole. Although Rosalyn was probably okay to continue on her mission, she might want to avoid putting herself in any situations that made her feel like she had to do that again, lest she not get quite so lucky next time. When the smoke cleared, a disembodied voice could be heard speaking to ... Rosalyn, perhaps? It sounded almost breathless, like a whisper on the wind.

"...What are you doing in here?"

---

Ringo

Several projectiles were shot from the air around Ringo, which admittedly helped her avoid getting struck. For a moment it didn't seem like her pleas were having any effect, the storm only intensifying around her as the piano lashed out in a chaotic rage. ...But then, the storm seemed to relent. In reality, the piano had just floated over to Ringo and she now laid in what could be compared to the eye of the storm. Dangerous projectiles were flying just past her, but never quite close enough to risk hurting her for the moment being. Bearing over Ringo, the piano almost seemed to watch her with its non-existent eyes. It then began to speak to Ringo again, in that awful chorus of piano strokes that just barely resembled human speech.

"IS THAT... ALL... YOU WANT? HER?"
"WHAT... DOES SHE MEAN... TO YOU?"
"IF YOU... WANTED HER... WHY DID YOU... ABANDON?"
"WHY DID YOU... RETURN?"

...Weird. The piano seemed to genuinely want an explanation. One might find themselves questioning why this information would be important to a piano. Perhaps that would hold the key to stopping it from attacking Ringo, lest she find out where Ciel had gone.

[Deleted]

As Rosalyn threw the cherry bomb, the explosion caused her to hit her leg on the wall behind her, causing it to hurt for a few seconds. "Ow." Rosalyn said sounding like she doesn't care, she soon noticed the hole she made and walked towards it, trying to pry it so it can be bigger, as she did so a voice stopped her, asking her why she's here, Rosalyn looked around before speaking. "Oh hello, I was trapped in this room, that's why i'm here." Rosalyn said as she waited for the voice to reply again.

Kicking dust in the room while doing so.

"So...Want some ghost tea?"

Rosalyn Hollotus: 1%
Cherry Bomb Deluxe: Three Turns Remaining

[Rina]

"I-'MA-IM'MIM I DIIDNT MEANTWOOOH DO IDIDNT MEAN TO ABANDON HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEER! G-G-G-G-GHOSTS TT-T-T-T-TEHRUFYE ME! II-I-I'M JUST SCHKAAARED OF GHOSTS EVER SINCE I WAS LITTLLLLLLLLLLE! IT-T-T-T HAPPENED AEUTOMATIKULHY!"

She can hardly believe she's talking to a piano. On top of that, she can barely say anything remotely coherent at this point. If there was someone that could assure her that it's okay, she would likely calm down. At this point, she might just pass out from fear overload.

[Mari]

Music	Map	Status
	Basement First Floor Second Floor	(Everyone) An eldritch figure is stalking you from the darkness You feel something faintly clawing at your mind.

Rosalyn

Rosalyn does not receive a response. Was the ghost still here, or had it only been a trick of the imagination? Either way, she was free to continue exploring the house. It looked like the door on the opposite end of the hall was open, but she could just as readily try and enter any of the other rooms right now. The only door clearly not readily available for the opening was the master bedroom door, which now appeared boarded up. If one paid close attention, the boards were old and rotten, as if it had been boarded up this entire time.

---

Ringo

. . . There was a long moment of silence from the piano, and then the storm began to dissipate. The piano lowered back onto the ground and became still, the sounds of crashing tiles ending as quickly as they began. Then it was silent, at least for a moment. The piano began to speak again, this time using higher notes that seemed to take the thunderous edge off of its voice.

"...Before... we were... ghosts... we... were scared too."
"I had... A friend... They abandoned me... They... never returned."
"...I will... spare... your friend... She lives... barely."
"But once I do... I will be unable... to speak."
"There's... no escape... You... have to... free us."
"...We can't move on... It's the only... way... to survive."
"Help us... Gather... a key... from each floor... One... is in the garden."
"Take them... to... the attic... And beware... The spirits will... try and... take... you."

...Without another word, the piano's hood popped open. Ciel could be observed laying just inside the piano, barely conscious. Her hair had been wound up and strung up inside the piano, acting as makeshift piano strings. The scientist actually looked fine, if not completely and utterly exhausted. Her eyes flitted about as light graced them for the first time in several minutes, adjusting for a moment before locking onto Ringo. She spoke very softly yet urgently, without much strength behind her. "Help!"

[Deleted]

The ghost did not reply, to Rosalyn's disappointment, but at least she was able to escape now and head back to the hallway, Rosalyn advanced towards the door back to the hall and soon found herself there. "Ok, i'm back, now to defend myself in case something like this happens again." Rosalyn thought as she looked at the door to the storage room, she ran towards it and proceeded to open it.

"Ok room, what do you have?"


Rosalyn Hollotus: 1%

Cherry Bomb Deluxe: Two Turns Remaining

[Rina]

Did...did it stop attacking...?

Ringo breathed heavily to calm herslef once the storm has calmed down as well. She really needed a breather from all that fear, screaming, and deadly pianos trying to eat her. After the awkward silence lingered in the air, the piano spoke up again, but the tone was different. It seems more placid than before, as if her response put it at peace. She listened intently on their story, trying her best not to freak out.

Once it finished its piece, she approached the piano, Ciel tangled into its inner workings and attempting to carefully get her out.

"Ciel! Hang in there, I'll get you out!"

Though, now with a closer interaction with the piano ghost...she seems to have digested the story and learned about ghosts a little bit...

I somehow managed to calm the ghost down with my explanation...Do...do ghosts have reasons for staying in the coporeal world...? I thought they exist just to terrorize people.

[Mari]

Music	Map	Status
	Basement First Floor Second Floor	(Everyone) An eldritch figure is stalking you from the darkness You feel something faintly clawing at your mind.

Rosalyn

Rosalyn enters the storage room only to be greeted with a new barrage of stimuli. At the back of the room appeared to be an old air conditioning unit that rattled in an unhealthy manner, as if it were a washing machine in mid-load. More worrying however were the shadow creatures at the edges of Rosalyn's vision. They seemed emboldened when she stepped into the room and one could begin to pick out their monsterous shapes before they retreated. An aching in Rosalyn's head would give way to a moistened feeling in her ear. If she chose to investigated, she would find that her ears were bleeding a bit. Either Rosalyn had just uncovered the source of all of these shadow creatures or she was about to die. Possbly both. What will she do? The rest of the room was unremarkable. It looked like it had been used to store various blankets, extra toiletries and cleaning supplies. Basically, what you'd expect in a storage closet.

---

Ringo

It wasn't too difficult to get Ciel out now that the piano was apparently inert, but it was tedious. This gave Ringo plenty of time to think about what she'd just learned. Apparently not every ghost in the house was manevolent! What could be forcing them to manifest here, though? As she worked, Ciel seemed to calm down a bit. She still seemed rather tired, but she now relaxed. She was very still, mostly because her hair was pulled taut and it would probably hurt if she tugged on it.

"

Hehe... You saved my life again. Thank you, Ringo. ...It tried to tell me you abandoned me, but I knew you wouldn't do that. It must've been really hard to summon the courage to face such a frightening spirit. . . . I'm lucky to have you as a partner.

"

Ciel waited patiently until her hair was free before she sat up and abruptly reached out to hug Ringo rather clingily. She laughed somewhat nervously for a long moment, apparently overjoyed to be reunited with the other. One could only imagine what she had been through, so the momentary hysterics were probably very cathartic for her.

[Deleted]

Rosalyn looked into the small storage room that she just opened and noticed some figures at the edge of her vision, once she turned towards them she felt her ear bleeding and checked to see if they were, and to her shock, there was blood on her finger, but at least she knows why she could be getting these headaches now. "No way i'm dying just after uncovering the possible truth!" Rosalyn said to the figures as she grabbed the cleaning supplies and threw it at the shapes before slamming the door to the storage room shut after her, breathing heavily.

"I might have pissed them off."


Rosalyn Hollotus: 1%
Cherry Bomb Deluxe: One turn remaining

[Rina]

"And that's the last lock!"

Ringo eventually got the last part of hair out of the workings and freed Ciel from the piano's structure. The moment she did, she was quickly met with an embrace, relieved Ciel isn't angry at her for acting out of crippling fear. Ringo was surprised from how sudden it was, but she didn't resist. Having this little moment was rather relaxing, knowing that she's alright and not...well...one of them. The very moment she let go though...

*WHUMP!*

Ringo collapsed to the ground, exhausted. The poor girl's suffering a bit of a heavy case of adrenaline crash. She'll live, but she's going to need to recollect herself after all that running and screaming. The very fact she has a tiny bit of a clue on how ghosts behave saved her from straight up passing out.

"Ahahaha...glad to...see that...you're still okay. I... I just need a moment..."

[Mari]

Music	Map	Status
	Basement First Floor Second Floor	(Everyone) An eldritch figure is stalking you from the darkness You feel something faintly clawing at your mind.

Rosalyn

Rosalyn is..! ...She's able to escape, actually. The moment she closes the door, the pain in her head lessens slightly. Oddly enough, nothing happens from there. Apparently whatever was in there couldn't escape. This time, there was no curiously open doors to bait Rosalyn into entering them. However, if she looked around she would find that every door except the way to the attic was unlocked. Hopefully whatever place she chose next wouldn't try and kill her. The poor woman was clearly having enough of a bad day already. On the bright side, she was technically exploring the house at a very rapid rate.

---

Ringo

Ciel scrambled in alarm to try and catch Ringo upon realizing she was falling, however she was too slow and winced as the other hit the floor. Thinking hard on what to do, she decided to sit down next to Ringo and produced a little bottle. It contained a green tea solution to keep oneself hydrated and give one a small boost of energy on an extended trip. Since this was turning into on adventure, she was grateful she'd brought it along. Uncapping the bottle, she would offer the drink to Ringo as she spoke by holding out.

"

That's alright. I could use a moment too. The good news is that we know where to search next. It seems like these spirits might actually be on our side--Well, some of them. Maybe if we try to communicate with them, we can find out where the other keys are. ...Are you going to be okay, Ringo? This all seems like a lot, and I don't mean to ask so much of you...

"

[Deleted]

Rosalyn was surprised that she actually escaped. "Wow, I was lucky." She thought to herself as she left the storage room and began to look around again, she saw the unlocked door to the bathroom and decided to investigate there, Rosalyn walked towards the bathroom and opened the door to it, entering soon after.

"Ok Bathroom, let's hope this room doesn't try and kill me like the others."


Rosalyn Hollotus: 1%
Rosalyn can now use the Cherry Bomb Deluxe again!