Sleuth // Shirogane Naoto (白鐘 直斗) (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
genderbinary) wrote2012-09-16 05:30 pm
genderbinary) wrote2012-09-16 05:30 pm
Entry tags:
HEART GAME WRITE-UP
Game went here!
Since my preparation notes were so huge to begin with I'm just going to c&p them with additional notes on what changes were made. Overall it went very well for my first! The big concept of this game was that everything is hidden in plain sight--the True Heart was right there at the beginning, the players just needed to build it. I think this concept worked a lot better than I had anticipated, which is in large part what made the game successful. Thank you once again to everyone who played in it. ♥
Now, onto notes!
Naoto’s heart game
Intro
You find yourself falling through a black abyss, the air cold around you, although not bitingly so. Just as your eyes begin to adjust to the darkness on every side, you’re dropped through a chute and tossed out into a brightly-lit area...
For your listening pleasure: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAqYfe6YYOc
Main Hub – Header 1
At first glance it seems as though the area you’ve landed in is the interior of a clock tower, or something like it. The walls are exceedingly tall and lined with cogs and gears, apertures and wires—some big, some small. What’s most noticeable is how they’re all turning or shifting, some working in tandem with others, some moving independently. The ground is expansive and circular, with more gears twisting and turning underneath your feet, although it’s all protected by some kind of clear plexiglass. Behind you is the chute you came in through, and in the middle of the area is what appears to be a metallic manikin… or part of one, anyway. It’s missing some parts. There are four doors on the wall side opposite you, each circular in nature. Aside from the occasional creaking from the walls, everything is completely silent.
~
The chute leads up into darkness, and it doesn’t look like you can climb through it. If you fly up or sth it just leads to darkness and I boot you out of my heart because you’re dumb.
~
The vaguely-feminine manikin is being held up on a kind of pedestal. It’s missing its left leg and right arm, and it has holes that appear to be carved out of where its eye sockets would be. There’s also a heart-shaped hole in the middle of its chest. If you look inside, you’ll see that it’s not hollow—it’s filled to the brim with different colored wires connecting everything, but they look like they’ve been ripped in places. It sparks occasionally where the wires have been ripped. It also appears that someone has written with black marker on the manikin, labeling the areas where body parts would be normally (“brain”, “stomach”, “ankle”, “lungs”, etc.) and wrote MISSING in capital letters with arrows pointing at the missing parts.
The manikin is cold to the touch, but appears to be quietly humming with some kind of energy.
~
You can’t see anything past the gears except darkness.
~
The floor and the walls are impenetrable and seem quite sturdy.
~
The four doors on the far side appear to be made of marble, and are labeled “Clutter”, “Tools”, “References”, and “Management”. The door on that last one has police tape bearing the word CAUTION across it.
The manikin was the key to the True Heart, and it needed all parts replaced to unlock it.
Clutter (Police Station)
The doorway leads you down a long, dark hallway into a brightly-lit room with checkered floors. It looks very much like a typical police station; there are a few long desks with uncomfortable-looking office chairs next to them, along with filing cabinets and papers strewn about everywhere. An old television set sits on top of one of the filing cabinets. Some telephones lay strewn about, ringing endlessly both on and off their hooks. There’s a small lobby to your left, with a few chairs and things. On the wall to your right is a large signboard, and next to it is what looks like an interrogation room (the windows are all foggy). However, you can hear someone in there, yelling in anger.
The alternate title for this area is STRESS: DOS AND DON’TS. This area represents feelings of isolation, as well as achievement.
~
The signboard says:
ATTENTION CONVICTS
THERE IS NO
Talking, humming, mumbling, singing, groaning, spitting, chewing, lying, sneezing, coughing, sleeping, drinking, eating, crying, or thinking allowed.
AND PLEASE REMEMBER
Act your age.
--the department. The board can be removed/destroyed and doing so will ease some of Naoto’s rigidity and how she always gets down on herself.
~
The television shows a montage of these memories: http://genderbinary.dreamwidth.org/5055.html
~
The paper is one of these forms - http://www.bureauofcommunication.com/ and there are several addressed to members of Tiger’s Eye, expressing remorse for past incidents.
~
If you pick up the telephone/answer it: Triggers this memory: http://genderbinary.dreamwidth.org/5669.html
~
The lobby has four chairs surrounding a low coffee table, and a bench with a coffee maker. The chairs are all oddly flesh-colored, however. Upon further inspection, it appears that the legs of the chair are… well, legs.
~
You can make coffee and drink it, and doing so triggers this memory: http://genderbinary.dreamwidth.org/3882.html
~
The door is unlocked. The room inside is occupied but otherwise small and nondescript; it appears to be an interrogation room, with white walls and a single light bulb hanging from the ceiling.
Naoto is in here, however, and she turns swiftly to see who’s interrupted her tirade. You’ll notice something is quite different about her right away. Although she’s dressed androgynously as usual, with a simple white shirt and dark slacks, her left pant leg seems to be missing, exposing a metallic leg that moves with a strange, mechanical noise as she turns. She gives you a tired, exasperated look.
“Excuse me, I’m in the middle of an interrogation at the moment.”
--not actually in an interrogation, just pretending because she wants to feel important/useful
--will give her leg away easily, especially if you can convince her to sit down—she seems very tired
--leans on the wall a lot, expressing irritation at the leg
--feels terribly inadequate
CHANGES MADE:
+ Beatrice listened to the phone conversation and spoke about Nanako, which boosted Naoto’s perception that Beatrice is not as evil as she pretends to be. She spoke at length with Naoto about new perspectives and not taking on burdens by herself. This provided a significant boost in Naoto’s confidence as well as her feelings of camaraderie towards Beatrice. She also filled out one of the forms, which gave Naoto the perception that she can relax and it is okay, and that she should also do this with Beatrice.
+ Both Beatrice and Raven made Naoto think she was ~kakkoii~ after watching her television montage, which... makes Naoto think she is kind of ~kakkoii~
+ Raven took Naoto’s leg and replaced it, which gave Naoto the courage to relax for a moment and get out of the interrogation room. This added the perception of Raven that he is someone Naoto can feel relaxed around, and also boosted his reliability. He also de-cluttered things a bit, which made Naoto feel more aware of how hard she is on herself.
+ Naoto did not exactly rest, but she switched to doing something mundane and easy (filling out papers), which lessened Naoto’s generally disgruntled feelings towards doing simple things instead of throwing science at the wall and hoping it sticks.
+ Ed took one of the forms away, which made Naoto feel a little less like she has to apologize for everything. He watched the tv montage which associated him with CRIME-SOLVING but he also drank the coffee so Naoto also thinks maybe he’s as disgruntled as she is.
+ Ferris watched the montage which associated her with CRIME-SOLVING and wrote “It’s fine” on the form expressing apology towards her for the swordfight, which made Naoto feel a little closer to Ferris in general. Finally, she took some of the apology forms addressed to Sieh, which made Naoto feel less guilty about being so awkward around him all the time.
Tools (Aather)
The doorway leads you down a long, dark hallway into what appears to be a replication of the Ring in Three’s Cove. There’s a wide-screen HD television in the middle with a remote sitting atop it. There are several paths to take: to the right is a small pathway leading to a cabin; next to it is another path that seems to lead into a very dark swamp; to the left is a path that leads into a hedge maze; and next to that is a path that leads into a street.
~
The remote has a power button, 12 buttons in a different team color, a volume control, and a mute button. The teams missing are Tiger’s Eye and Peridot.
Pressing the Coral button shows a looping scene of Kit and Ginshu mid-sentence.
“--Tantei-san. Even when the results seem unfavorable.”
“--a little more even now, knowing that, isn't it?”
Pressing the Ruby button shows a looping scene of Nahadoth, looking pensive and ethereal, as Nahas are wont to do.
“--careful you don't hurt yourself worse.”
Pressing the Jasper button shows a looping scene of Eve, smiling.
“--you must really want whatever it is, huh.”
Pressing the Citrine button shows a looping scene of Riku, glancing over his shoulder mid-sentence.
“--kind of frustration can lead you to a dark place.”
Pressing the Carnelian button shows a very brief flash of white, and then the TV turns itself off.
Pressing the Heliodor button shows a looping scene of Mia looking flustered but determined, and Jason looking smug, mid-sentence.
“--that's what a defender is supposed to be!”
“--requires logic. So, it’s cute.”
Pressing the Emerald button shows a looping scene of Battler, mid-sentence.
“--either that or just give up and let her win.”
Pressing the Turquoise button shows a looping scene of Tsunami, nodding and looking serious.
“--want to get caught, so they don't have to choose to kill people.”
Pressing the Sapphire button shows a looping scene of Red, looking at the camera but there’s no sound.
“…if you know that … it's a step towards compromise…”
Pressing the Iolite button shows a looping scene of Spitfire, Jaina, and Vincent. Spitfire and Jaina look serious, but both nod in agreement. Vincent smiles and twirls a white chess pawn between his fingertips.
“--someone I'm interested in knowing more about.”
“--seem a little more personal than symbols.”
“--you'll forget to enjoy the peace while it lasts.”
Pressing the Amethyst button shows a looping scene of Teito and Kagari, smiling and looking a little sheepish.
“--must have an interesting story behind it, if it's important to you.”
“--you're not. The only person here—? With that… sort of secret.”
Pressing the Kunzite button shows a looping scene of Kira, smiling slyly—followed by a screen that simply says TO BE CONTINUED.
“--now I kind of want to see their face when you do. It must be amazing.”
Pressing the Sterling button shows a looping scene of Lloyd and Mako, mid-sentence.
“--don't get hurt if you can help it.”
“--me in the game the other day. Thanks.”
Pressing the Onyx button shows static.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Ventus and Toboe turned down the volume on Heliodor, which both lessened Mia’s impact on her and cooled some of her rage at Jason for being a douche.
The TE cabin
The path leads to a cabin that’s very obviously a replication of the Tiger’s Eye cabin in Three’s Cove, with some small changes. On the front door is a painting of a wolf howling at the moon… only the moon is in the shape of a pie. Actually, it looks pretty solidly like a pie. You hear some faint scratching sounds coming from inside.
~
You remove the pie and take a bite. The crust is flaky and delicious, but for some reason the filling tastes like dango. Eating the dango pie gives you strength boosts.
~
As you open the door, it becomes quickly apparent what the scratching sound is—it’s a kitty!! Well, a rather large one, about the size of a small panther, with a sleek dark coat (though it isn’t black?). It looks up at you with bright, metallic eyes that swivel in their sockets.
“Oh, it’s you.”
The voice is definitely Naoto’s.
--Naoto can’t see very well with the eyes, wants them off. Batting at them a lot
--wants to help a lot, needs to feel like she belongs
--became a cat in this area because she can’t see, better to smell and sense things in animal form (her fur is navy blue)
--sad, a bit skittish, and ultimately represents Naoto’s feelings of displacement in TE and how they war with her desire to be of use to everyone
This area represents Naoto’s feelings of belonging, as well as her feelings of inadequacy.
~
The room looks mostly like the same cabin from Three’s realm, except there are large bubbles floating above each person’s bed. The bubbles are filled with different-colored smoke, and occasionally a flash of lightning will strike out… but it all seems contained. In the middle of the room near the floor is a trio of smaller bubbles, each one Tiger’s Eye yellow, that slowly encircle each other.
~
The bubble above Raven’s bed is dark purple, slightly cloudy with wind but no lightning. Touching it gives you a sense of comfort, but it is mingled with concern. It seems to respond to your touch, urging you somehow.
The bubble above Mitchell’s bed is grey, very cloudy and thundering. Touching it gives you a sudden sharp sense of indignation, which then quiets into a sense of calm, and solidarity. It seems to respond to your touch, urging you somehow.
The bubble above Ferris’s bed is bright green, clear but somehow raining. Touching it gives you a sense of fondness and trust, but there’s some exasperation mixed in there. It seems to respond to your touch, urging you somehow.
The bubble above Josh’s bed is orange and clear. Touching it gives you a strong sense of friendship, but behind it there is… disappointment? It seems to respond to your touch, urging you somehow.
The bubble above Toboe’s bed is gold, slightly cloudy. Touching it gives you a sense of exuberance and genuine love, but with a sense of worry. It seems to respond to your touch, urging you somehow.
The bubble above Sieh’s bed is black, very cloudy, with both thunder and lightning. Touching it gives you a very strong, very immediate sense of hopeconfusionlovelustprotectionneeddesirestrengthfearsafe. It seems to respond to your touch, urging you somehow.
The bubble above Naoto’s bed is a mix of all the other colors in the room, swirling in a cloudy mess. However, this bubble seems much more malleable than the others, and it respond to your touch, urging you somehow.
The bubbles can be broken or moved around, but they’ll always come back to the places they started at. Touching them alters their properties so long as you focus on what energy needs to change. Focusing on peace while touching Sieh’s, for example, will calm the storm.
Naoto’s bubble will respond and shift when other bubbles are altered. (The bubble above Naoto’s bed also seems to change.)
The three bubbles at the center are Lark, Valiant, and Dusk. Touching any of them nets you a strong sense of pride, comfort, and trust. They can’t be moved.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Jason took the cat’s eyes and replaced them, which gave a +1 to Naoto’s perception of him as someone who wants to help others but can’t handle the aftermath.
+ Ventus hugged and petted each bubble and calmed their turbulent weather, which lessened Naoto’s negative feelings towards them and strengthened the positive. It also added a boost towards Naoto’s perception of Ventus as a very huggy guy, and someone who is easy to take comfort in from his petting of the cat.
+ Toboe moved the three TE-colored bubbles closer to Naoto’s bed, which strengthened her pride and feelings of family towards Tiger’s Eye.
+ Toboe also snuggled each of the bubbles, calming turbulent weather and lessened Naoto’s negative feelings towards each member of TE and strengthened the positive. He was affectionate towards the cat, which boosted Naoto’s affection towards him in return.
+ Basically it was a hugfest in the TE cabin and Naoto has major dere for her team members now.
The Swamp
The path to the swamp is dark, musty, and lined with trees. As you approach, you’ll notice two things: a rowboat resting on the shore, and a small stone figure sitting on a rock in the middle of the water. There are fireflies flitting about, giving light to the area… but it’s still very dim.
You can get in the rowboat or swim across, and the water will not hurt you. However, doing so will attract the fireflies to you, and if they touch you, it triggers this memory:
Suddenly, a memory of being impaled alive on dozens and dozens of sharp spikes in an enclosed space and dying horribly hits you very strongly.
This area is full of guilt and self-loathing, and is probably the most dangerous area in the heart aside from the room with Shadow Naoto in it.
~
As you approach the statue, you see several fireflies have formed a circle at its base, lighting it up so you can see clearly. The statue is carved in the shape of a young girl, only about a foot tall.
Touching it triggers this memory: http://genderbinary.dreamwidth.org/7613.html
The statue can be lifted—it’s small enough—but doing so triggers the fireflies to attack you.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Jason went in here, rowed the bow to the statue, and was attacked by the fireflies. This boosts Naoto’s perception of him as a person who can handle a great amount of pain and shoulders burdens by himself frequently.
+ He also removed the Nanako statue, which nets him like a zillion points in Naoto’s perception of him as a strong person.
+ Doing so lessened Naoto’s feelings of guilt and anguish over Nanako’s death by a lot. She is past the mourning stage now.
The Peridot maze
The hedge maze seems very similar to the one in Wonderland, but the hedges are a lighter shade of green and instead of grass the ground is lined with a rug of deep burgundy. At the entrance is a sign that reads:
JUST KEEP GOING RIGHT
This area represents ingenuity, intrigue, curiosity, and inspiration.
~
Once you reach the center of the maze, the carpet ends to reveal a set of three large pillars surrounding another television with a remote on top of above it. However, instead of marble these pillars seem to be made out of clockwork similar to what you saw in the first area—but with springs and levers and buttons and various doodads that you can clearly touch.
The remote has a power button, a mute button, and a volume control, as well as numbers 1-4.
The 1 button shows this memory: http://aather.dreamwidth.org/469052.html?thread=351880252#cmt351880252
The 2 button shows this memory: http://aather.dreamwidth.org/509968.html?thread=396524816#cmt396524816
The 3 button shows this memory: http://aather.dreamwidth.org/563458.html?thread=446048770#cmt446048770
The 4 button shows a montage memory; a series of gatherings with Tiger’s Eye and Peridot—either at a team meeting, working on the forge, participating in a game, or Naoto calmly observing Josh and Ventus.
~
The pillars are all mostly identical; there’s a gear mechanism with a wind-up lever attached to it, buttons with wires connected to… something… and a series of light bulbs strung up at the tops of the pillars.
~
Pressing the buttons and winding the levers turn on the lights in the area, and…
A small item about the size and shape of a compass suddenly drops down in the middle of the pillars, right in front of the television. It looks to be a small meter with a pull-out antenna and a dial measuring between 1 and 10. Right above the dial is written a single word: DARKNESS.
Currently it is resting calmly just barely above 1. The Darkness meter indicates areas of the Heart that pose a danger.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Mako pulled one of the levers, which boosted Naoto’s curiosity and associated him with new projects.
+ Beatrice and Raven watched all the channels in here, which boosted Naoto’s friendship feelings with Peridot and willingness to go to them when seeking friends outside of TE. They also pressed buttons and fiddled with doohickeys, which boosted Naoto’s love for mysteries and puzzles and her ingenuity. They also unlocked the Darkness meter, which gives them both the perception that they’re good at problem-solving.
The Guardian Park
The street leads you to a park, with several tall trees and a small pink pavilion nearby. It’s bright and sunny here, though not overbearingly so. There are a couple of people at the picnic table, one sitting down and one leaning over their shoulder. Both of them appear to be young men; one has short, light grey hair in a bowlcut, dressed in a school uniform. The other is dressed similarly, except he probably seems a tad more familiar. They’re both looking through what look to be a set of cards.
The one standing looks up. “Oh hey, it’s you guys.”
The one sitting glances up as well. “Hi. You want one?”
--Kanji and Yuu are Naoto’s feelings of home and feelings of belonging
--they are also guardians! If you have screwed anything up in Naoto’s heart they can tell; they exist not as manifestations of protection but as people in Naoto’s life she looks up to when it comes to her emotional experiences
This area is where feelings of home and comfort belong; the things and people Naoto takes comfort in all reside here.
~
1.Narukami gives you one of the cards. As you take it, you experience this memory.
2.Narukami gives you one of the cards. As you take it, you experience this memory.
~
The trees appear to be some kind of oak, tall and extremely climbable.
As you climb, you feel a sudden rush—like a strong, cool breeze running over your face and through your hair, exhilarating and freeing. You find it’s very easy to scale the tree, as though you could leap from branch to branch easily. It isn’t very long until you reach the top… the view is vast, overlooking a small rural town surrounded by mountains with a river running through the south end. At the very summit of the tree is a small patch of flowers. Examine?
Actually, as you look closer, it appears that the flowers aren’t flowers at all—they’re light pink gemstones in the shape of chrysanthemums, all hanging from a stem.
As you touch it, you trigger a memory. http://aather.dreamwidth.org/403582.html?thread=291643262#cmt291643262
The gems can be picked from the tree, and will result in dampening of those memories and their impact unless you do something special like move them to the swamp or whatnot. The Kunzite/home area is very much a LOOK AND DON’T TOUCH kind of place but who is gonna listen to me I’m just narration. Kanji will give you dead-eye if you come down the tree with it. Possibly he’ll headbutt you.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Both Toboe and Ventus made friendly with Kanji and Yuu, which gave boosts to Naoto’s perception of them as strong and reliable. They both saw the memories in the cards, which made Naoto feel a little more like people can understand her.
+ Mako spoke to Kanji and Yuu and gave Naoto the perception that he’s a bit clueless sometimes, but good-hearted.
+ Jason brought the Nanako statue here, which brought Naoto’s feelings towards Nanako and Narukami into a state of comfort, familiarity, and stability.
+ However Kanji also sensed the eyes on Jason’s person which triggered guardian-mode, and gave a +1 boost to Naoto’s perception of Jason as someone who does things inefficiently.
References (Classroom)
The doorway leads you down a long, dark hallway into a brightly-lit classroom. There are rows of desks, several bookshelves lining the walls, a chalkboard with writing on it, a safe, and a projector pointing at a screen at the front of the room.
Naoto is standing in front of the chalkboard with her back to you, occasionally writing on it and then erasing. You’ll notice something is different about her right away. Although she’s dressed androgynously as usual, in a simple high school boy’s uniform, her right sleeve seems to be missing, exposing a metallic arm that moves with a strange, mechanical noise as she writes.
However, she doesn’t seem to notice you.
This area has BLATANT FRUSTRATION written all over it, as well as embarrassment and shame. It also houses confidence.
~
If you touch the desks, a textbook appears on top of it. It has HISTORY in big letters on the front. Read?
The text is written like a children’s book, detailing several consecutive events from this memory.
Reading the entire thing nets you points and gives you a vitality boost.
~
The projector is on, and cycling through some slides. There’s an image of a young girl in a hospital bed, an older man in a hospital gown yelling at a medical intern, the same man lying on the ground in the middle of the street after what looks like a nasty car accident, and another man with a very unsettling smile.
The projector can be turned off, and will ease some of Naoto’s troubles on the case in general, especially wrt Adachi.
~
The bookshelves don’t contain any books at all, actually. There are some soda bottles, some mandarin oranges, some medical charts, various anatomically-correct dolls, a candle and a box of matches, a cellphone, a lemon-battery, and a small box labeled EVIDENCE.
These are stat-boosters. The soda and the oranges give you HP boosts, reading the medical charts give you SP boosts, the dolls give you defense boosts, the candle gives you a strength boost, the cellphone gives you a luck boost, and the lemon-battery gives you a dexterity boost.
The box contains about half a dozen plastic eyeballs, all in the same familiar shade of dark grey.
~
The safe is sitting in the corner of the classroom near the chalkboard, black and fairly small. Instead of a padlock or a keypad, there’s a touchscreen.
The touchscreen lights up when you touch it. Some letters appear, as well as a small virtual keyboard.
RBFQTBDJJILAIBDQLMRYIREIILKIR
This is a keyword vigenere cipher. The keyword is “detective” and it reads, “This challenge has not yet been met”. This is Naoto’s theoretical Persona, lying dormant and unconnected to her Shadow, more of a potential power than anything.
The safe swings open, and as it does there’s a sudden shimmer of light, although it seems that the interior of the safe is dark—it’s accompanied by the feeling that you are being watched, and an inhuman(?) voice inside your head: not time yet.
The safe swings shut, and the light from the touchpad fades.
~
Naoto looks to be in deep concentration, drawing an anatomical diagram of the female body on the chalkboard that’s extremely incorrect, and then stepping back to examine it. Unsatisfied, she keeps erasing various parts she’s drawn and labeling them differently. Occasionally she will scratch at her mechanical arm, rolling her shoulder.
--this Naoto is extremely focused and distracted by her project, only answering vague questions
--would like a new arm yes thank you, she can’t draw anything properly with it (explains the weird placements on the figure)
--nearly impossible to draw her away, representing Naoto’s constant frustration with her body
The diagram shows the placements for breasts and uterus on the figure’s shoulders, arms for legs and vice versa, and six tonsils on each hand instead of fingers.
~
If you alter the diagram on the chalkboard or attempt to write/erase it, the writing suddenly erases itself and begins to draw a rendition of this scene, with narration written at the bottom: http://genderbinary.dreamwidth.org/4813.html
And Naoto will warn you against that. However, you can still write what you like. If you help Naoto out in labeling things correctly it will ease her frustration by a LOT.
Note: This Naoto is also her sexuality! Explains the massive frustration, doesn’t it. You don’t really get access to this aspect of her unless you help in all other ways first (replacing arm, relabeling things, etc.) and then it’s just a matter of… talking to her.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Jason wrote a message on the chalkboard: “arms aren't legs, the rest of that crap doesn't matter”, which reduced some of her frustration regarding her body. He also took away the arm but it was never replaced, so while that helped solve the overall puzzle, the Naoto in this area still feels frustrated when it comes to her own limitations, so it was like one step forward, two steps back. He does come out of this section with a +1 to Naoto’s overall feelings toward him because he was helpful with the doll and also turned off the projector.
+ Beatrice offered to strip, and Naoto’s tense feelings towards nudity in general were reduced. Beatrice did not open the safe but made a valiant effort, so Naoto now thinks that Beatrice might enjoy more puzzles of that nature.
+ Raven spoke to Naoto briefly about replacing her arm, which means Naoto may be slightly more likely to go to him when she’s having issues with her body. He did turn the projector back on, but then turned it off again, so no change there.
+ Ferris unlocked sexuality so fast it was hilarious. Naoto now finds the idea of topping and being aggressively straight-forward re: sex somewhat more appealing. She also thinks Ferris is kind of a sex fiend.
Management (Laboratory)
The doorway leads you down a long, dark hallway into a brightly-lit room resembling a laboratory or a medical room, of the exceedingly shady sort. There’s a sickly green hue to everything, bright liquids splattering the floor and walls and a few large drill-like devices that look like they could eviscerate you cleanly. On a table lie some hacksaws, scalpels, clamps, surgical gloves, and an orbitoclast. The exam room lights are focused on an operating table in the middle of the floor.
Lying on the operating table is a mechanical torso, but were it not for the clearly visible wired interior similar to the manikin, it would look entirely human. There’s someone bent over it, drilling something into place with the loud whirrrrrr of an electric screwdriver. Their long, oversized white lab coat trails onto the floor behind them.
This room is Naoto’s feelings of otherness and self-reflection. It is also SCIENCE.
~
The figure in the lab coat suddenly lifts themselves up and throws both hands into the air, letting out a yell of triumph that echoes all throughout the room.
“Eureka! We’re so close to finishing it, once and for all!”
Sure does sound like Naoto!
~
She turns to face you, and it’s clear that this is Naoto… of an odd sort. The lab coat is ill-fitting, but what’s really striking is how the entire left half of her body is unmistakably robotic; mechanical eye whirring in its socket, shiny metal covering her face and neck disappearing down past her shirt collar, lipless mouth showing only teeth made of some kind of synthetic material. When she moves, she makes loud, grinding noises of metal against metal. An occasional spark pops out from behind her ear.
Both her human eye and her robotic eye are entirely yellow, and she is grinning wide, far wider than Naoto ever does.
--THIS IS SHADOW NAOTO as she exists at present. She differs slightly from canon in that she’s more intense, more manic, and more trigger-happy as a result of Naoto’s constant internalizing ever since she arrived in Aather.
--Doesn’t exhibit the PLEASE DON’T LEAVE ME aspect, either.
--Intensely creepy and a little self-destructive
--Exhibits anger more than anything else
--Darkness level reads: 10.
--A boss fight can be triggered here but it’s only if you’re specifically antagonistic. Almost got triggered by Mako but he avoided that.
~
The torso on the operating table is female, nude, and mostly human-looking… except for the sunken heart-shaped hole in the middle of the chest that’s filled with metal, and the pair of arms that look like they’re made out of plastic.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Ed gave his protection charm from Nimue to the scientist in exchange for taking the metal heart to the manikin, but did not return the heart as promised. The charm will remain there as a precious item to Naoto, and will provide both a strength and a protection boost to her Shadow.
+ She also now knows the basic tenets of alchemy.
+ Mako did not endear himself to the scientist, which gives Naoto a perception of him that he’s rather reckless, and added a +1 anger boost.
+ Sieh managed to speak with the scientist for a bit and didn’t anger her more than usual, which did two things: added a +1 derision towards childish antics, and added a +1 sulking boost.
True Heart
The wires from the manikin’s interior curl outwards to grab onto the missing limb and attach it.
The arms from the torso in the Laboratory will not fit on the manikin, those are for the Naoto in References.
~
As all missing pieces are brought together, the manikin moves, stiffly and making grinding, creaking noises—but doesn’t appear to be broken. It steps down from the pedestal and as it does, a large hole appears below it, leading down into darkness. The manikin swings its legs over the edge, and jumps down.
~
You jump in, and very quickly you’re sliding down a hollow chute. (Keep your hands and feet close to your body at all times until the ride is over) You’re moving very fast, and the wind is harsh enough to sting your eyes. There’s a light at the end but you can’t quite make it out until—
Well, at least there’s something soft for you to land on, because you’re getting tossed. Feels like pillows?
~
It is pillows! You’re on a bed, or rather a nest, in the corner of what looks like a well-maintained tree house, with designed spaces for a work area, a kitchen, a bedroom, a bathroom, and a living area. It looks very cozy! There’s a gentle, cool breeze wafting through the windows, and you can see a few tree branches that have grown into the structure. The work space is large and full of materials, and the manikin is standing near it.
It slowly turns towards you, and in a bright flash of light, the metallic limbs fall away and transform into Naoto, taller and more androgynous than before. Zie smiles at you, warm and solid.
“Thank you. I’m glad you all could make it.”
--Zie is taller than Naoto normally is, dressed in her detective uniform, with yellow stripes on zir outfit
--Zie exudes confidence, curiosity, eagerness, and openness
--You can’t tell if Naoto is a man or a woman, and if you try to tell, you get the immediate sense that it really doesn’t matter.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Everyone who got to the True Heart got a +10 friendship boost.
Questions/comments? I only went over the basic stuff so if you want more in-depth explanations feel free to ask. o/
Since my preparation notes were so huge to begin with I'm just going to c&p them with additional notes on what changes were made. Overall it went very well for my first! The big concept of this game was that everything is hidden in plain sight--the True Heart was right there at the beginning, the players just needed to build it. I think this concept worked a lot better than I had anticipated, which is in large part what made the game successful. Thank you once again to everyone who played in it. ♥
Now, onto notes!
Intro
You find yourself falling through a black abyss, the air cold around you, although not bitingly so. Just as your eyes begin to adjust to the darkness on every side, you’re dropped through a chute and tossed out into a brightly-lit area...
For your listening pleasure: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAqYfe6YYOc
Main Hub – Header 1
At first glance it seems as though the area you’ve landed in is the interior of a clock tower, or something like it. The walls are exceedingly tall and lined with cogs and gears, apertures and wires—some big, some small. What’s most noticeable is how they’re all turning or shifting, some working in tandem with others, some moving independently. The ground is expansive and circular, with more gears twisting and turning underneath your feet, although it’s all protected by some kind of clear plexiglass. Behind you is the chute you came in through, and in the middle of the area is what appears to be a metallic manikin… or part of one, anyway. It’s missing some parts. There are four doors on the wall side opposite you, each circular in nature. Aside from the occasional creaking from the walls, everything is completely silent.
~
The chute leads up into darkness, and it doesn’t look like you can climb through it. If you fly up or sth it just leads to darkness and I boot you out of my heart because you’re dumb.
~
The vaguely-feminine manikin is being held up on a kind of pedestal. It’s missing its left leg and right arm, and it has holes that appear to be carved out of where its eye sockets would be. There’s also a heart-shaped hole in the middle of its chest. If you look inside, you’ll see that it’s not hollow—it’s filled to the brim with different colored wires connecting everything, but they look like they’ve been ripped in places. It sparks occasionally where the wires have been ripped. It also appears that someone has written with black marker on the manikin, labeling the areas where body parts would be normally (“brain”, “stomach”, “ankle”, “lungs”, etc.) and wrote MISSING in capital letters with arrows pointing at the missing parts.
The manikin is cold to the touch, but appears to be quietly humming with some kind of energy.
~
You can’t see anything past the gears except darkness.
~
The floor and the walls are impenetrable and seem quite sturdy.
~
The four doors on the far side appear to be made of marble, and are labeled “Clutter”, “Tools”, “References”, and “Management”. The door on that last one has police tape bearing the word CAUTION across it.
The manikin was the key to the True Heart, and it needed all parts replaced to unlock it.
Clutter (Police Station)
The doorway leads you down a long, dark hallway into a brightly-lit room with checkered floors. It looks very much like a typical police station; there are a few long desks with uncomfortable-looking office chairs next to them, along with filing cabinets and papers strewn about everywhere. An old television set sits on top of one of the filing cabinets. Some telephones lay strewn about, ringing endlessly both on and off their hooks. There’s a small lobby to your left, with a few chairs and things. On the wall to your right is a large signboard, and next to it is what looks like an interrogation room (the windows are all foggy). However, you can hear someone in there, yelling in anger.
The alternate title for this area is STRESS: DOS AND DON’TS. This area represents feelings of isolation, as well as achievement.
~
The signboard says:
THERE IS NO
Talking, humming, mumbling, singing, groaning, spitting, chewing, lying, sneezing, coughing, sleeping, drinking, eating, crying, or thinking allowed.
AND PLEASE REMEMBER
Act your age.
--the department.
~
The television shows a montage of these memories: http://genderbinary.dreamwidth.org/5055.html
~
The paper is one of these forms - http://www.bureauofcommunication.com/ and there are several addressed to members of Tiger’s Eye, expressing remorse for past incidents.
~
If you pick up the telephone/answer it: Triggers this memory: http://genderbinary.dreamwidth.org/5669.html
~
The lobby has four chairs surrounding a low coffee table, and a bench with a coffee maker. The chairs are all oddly flesh-colored, however. Upon further inspection, it appears that the legs of the chair are… well, legs.
~
You can make coffee and drink it, and doing so triggers this memory: http://genderbinary.dreamwidth.org/3882.html
~
The door is unlocked. The room inside is occupied but otherwise small and nondescript; it appears to be an interrogation room, with white walls and a single light bulb hanging from the ceiling.
Naoto is in here, however, and she turns swiftly to see who’s interrupted her tirade. You’ll notice something is quite different about her right away. Although she’s dressed androgynously as usual, with a simple white shirt and dark slacks, her left pant leg seems to be missing, exposing a metallic leg that moves with a strange, mechanical noise as she turns. She gives you a tired, exasperated look.
“Excuse me, I’m in the middle of an interrogation at the moment.”
--not actually in an interrogation, just pretending because she wants to feel important/useful
--will give her leg away easily, especially if you can convince her to sit down—she seems very tired
--leans on the wall a lot, expressing irritation at the leg
--feels terribly inadequate
CHANGES MADE:
+ Beatrice listened to the phone conversation and spoke about Nanako, which boosted Naoto’s perception that Beatrice is not as evil as she pretends to be. She spoke at length with Naoto about new perspectives and not taking on burdens by herself. This provided a significant boost in Naoto’s confidence as well as her feelings of camaraderie towards Beatrice. She also filled out one of the forms, which gave Naoto the perception that she can relax and it is okay, and that she should also do this with Beatrice.
+ Both Beatrice and Raven made Naoto think she was ~kakkoii~ after watching her television montage, which... makes Naoto think she is kind of ~kakkoii~
+ Raven took Naoto’s leg and replaced it, which gave Naoto the courage to relax for a moment and get out of the interrogation room. This added the perception of Raven that he is someone Naoto can feel relaxed around, and also boosted his reliability. He also de-cluttered things a bit, which made Naoto feel more aware of how hard she is on herself.
+ Naoto did not exactly rest, but she switched to doing something mundane and easy (filling out papers), which lessened Naoto’s generally disgruntled feelings towards doing simple things instead of throwing science at the wall and hoping it sticks.
+ Ed took one of the forms away, which made Naoto feel a little less like she has to apologize for everything. He watched the tv montage which associated him with CRIME-SOLVING but he also drank the coffee so Naoto also thinks maybe he’s as disgruntled as she is.
+ Ferris watched the montage which associated her with CRIME-SOLVING and wrote “It’s fine” on the form expressing apology towards her for the swordfight, which made Naoto feel a little closer to Ferris in general. Finally, she took some of the apology forms addressed to Sieh, which made Naoto feel less guilty about being so awkward around him all the time.
Tools (Aather)
The doorway leads you down a long, dark hallway into what appears to be a replication of the Ring in Three’s Cove. There’s a wide-screen HD television in the middle with a remote sitting atop it. There are several paths to take: to the right is a small pathway leading to a cabin; next to it is another path that seems to lead into a very dark swamp; to the left is a path that leads into a hedge maze; and next to that is a path that leads into a street.
~
The remote has a power button, 12 buttons in a different team color, a volume control, and a mute button. The teams missing are Tiger’s Eye and Peridot.
Pressing the Coral button shows a looping scene of Kit and Ginshu mid-sentence.
“--Tantei-san. Even when the results seem unfavorable.”
“--a little more even now, knowing that, isn't it?”
Pressing the Ruby button shows a looping scene of Nahadoth, looking pensive and ethereal, as Nahas are wont to do.
“--careful you don't hurt yourself worse.”
Pressing the Jasper button shows a looping scene of Eve, smiling.
“--you must really want whatever it is, huh.”
Pressing the Citrine button shows a looping scene of Riku, glancing over his shoulder mid-sentence.
“--kind of frustration can lead you to a dark place.”
Pressing the Carnelian button shows a very brief flash of white, and then the TV turns itself off.
Pressing the Heliodor button shows a looping scene of Mia looking flustered but determined, and Jason looking smug, mid-sentence.
“--that's what a defender is supposed to be!”
“--requires logic. So, it’s cute.”
Pressing the Emerald button shows a looping scene of Battler, mid-sentence.
“--either that or just give up and let her win.”
Pressing the Turquoise button shows a looping scene of Tsunami, nodding and looking serious.
“--want to get caught, so they don't have to choose to kill people.”
Pressing the Sapphire button shows a looping scene of Red, looking at the camera but there’s no sound.
“…if you know that … it's a step towards compromise…”
Pressing the Iolite button shows a looping scene of Spitfire, Jaina, and Vincent. Spitfire and Jaina look serious, but both nod in agreement. Vincent smiles and twirls a white chess pawn between his fingertips.
“--someone I'm interested in knowing more about.”
“--seem a little more personal than symbols.”
“--you'll forget to enjoy the peace while it lasts.”
Pressing the Amethyst button shows a looping scene of Teito and Kagari, smiling and looking a little sheepish.
“--must have an interesting story behind it, if it's important to you.”
“--you're not. The only person here—? With that… sort of secret.”
Pressing the Kunzite button shows a looping scene of Kira, smiling slyly—followed by a screen that simply says TO BE CONTINUED.
“--now I kind of want to see their face when you do. It must be amazing.”
Pressing the Sterling button shows a looping scene of Lloyd and Mako, mid-sentence.
“--don't get hurt if you can help it.”
“--me in the game the other day. Thanks.”
Pressing the Onyx button shows static.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Ventus and Toboe turned down the volume on Heliodor, which both lessened Mia’s impact on her and cooled some of her rage at Jason for being a douche.
The TE cabin
The path leads to a cabin that’s very obviously a replication of the Tiger’s Eye cabin in Three’s Cove, with some small changes. On the front door is a painting of a wolf howling at the moon… only the moon is in the shape of a pie. Actually, it looks pretty solidly like a pie. You hear some faint scratching sounds coming from inside.
~
You remove the pie and take a bite. The crust is flaky and delicious, but for some reason the filling tastes like dango. Eating the dango pie gives you strength boosts.
~
As you open the door, it becomes quickly apparent what the scratching sound is—it’s a kitty!! Well, a rather large one, about the size of a small panther, with a sleek dark coat (though it isn’t black?). It looks up at you with bright, metallic eyes that swivel in their sockets.
“Oh, it’s you.”
The voice is definitely Naoto’s.
--Naoto can’t see very well with the eyes, wants them off. Batting at them a lot
--wants to help a lot, needs to feel like she belongs
--became a cat in this area because she can’t see, better to smell and sense things in animal form (her fur is navy blue)
--sad, a bit skittish, and ultimately represents Naoto’s feelings of displacement in TE and how they war with her desire to be of use to everyone
This area represents Naoto’s feelings of belonging, as well as her feelings of inadequacy.
~
The room looks mostly like the same cabin from Three’s realm, except there are large bubbles floating above each person’s bed. The bubbles are filled with different-colored smoke, and occasionally a flash of lightning will strike out… but it all seems contained. In the middle of the room near the floor is a trio of smaller bubbles, each one Tiger’s Eye yellow, that slowly encircle each other.
~
The bubble above Raven’s bed is dark purple, slightly cloudy with wind but no lightning. Touching it gives you a sense of comfort, but it is mingled with concern. It seems to respond to your touch, urging you somehow.
The bubble above Mitchell’s bed is grey, very cloudy and thundering. Touching it gives you a sudden sharp sense of indignation, which then quiets into a sense of calm, and solidarity. It seems to respond to your touch, urging you somehow.
The bubble above Ferris’s bed is bright green, clear but somehow raining. Touching it gives you a sense of fondness and trust, but there’s some exasperation mixed in there. It seems to respond to your touch, urging you somehow.
The bubble above Josh’s bed is orange and clear. Touching it gives you a strong sense of friendship, but behind it there is… disappointment? It seems to respond to your touch, urging you somehow.
The bubble above Toboe’s bed is gold, slightly cloudy. Touching it gives you a sense of exuberance and genuine love, but with a sense of worry. It seems to respond to your touch, urging you somehow.
The bubble above Sieh’s bed is black, very cloudy, with both thunder and lightning. Touching it gives you a very strong, very immediate sense of hopeconfusionlovelustprotectionneeddesirestrengthfearsafe. It seems to respond to your touch, urging you somehow.
The bubble above Naoto’s bed is a mix of all the other colors in the room, swirling in a cloudy mess. However, this bubble seems much more malleable than the others, and it respond to your touch, urging you somehow.
The bubbles can be broken or moved around, but they’ll always come back to the places they started at. Touching them alters their properties so long as you focus on what energy needs to change. Focusing on peace while touching Sieh’s, for example, will calm the storm.
Naoto’s bubble will respond and shift when other bubbles are altered. (The bubble above Naoto’s bed also seems to change.)
The three bubbles at the center are Lark, Valiant, and Dusk. Touching any of them nets you a strong sense of pride, comfort, and trust. They can’t be moved.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Jason took the cat’s eyes and replaced them, which gave a +1 to Naoto’s perception of him as someone who wants to help others but can’t handle the aftermath.
+ Ventus hugged and petted each bubble and calmed their turbulent weather, which lessened Naoto’s negative feelings towards them and strengthened the positive. It also added a boost towards Naoto’s perception of Ventus as a very huggy guy, and someone who is easy to take comfort in from his petting of the cat.
+ Toboe moved the three TE-colored bubbles closer to Naoto’s bed, which strengthened her pride and feelings of family towards Tiger’s Eye.
+ Toboe also snuggled each of the bubbles, calming turbulent weather and lessened Naoto’s negative feelings towards each member of TE and strengthened the positive. He was affectionate towards the cat, which boosted Naoto’s affection towards him in return.
+ Basically it was a hugfest in the TE cabin and Naoto has major dere for her team members now.
The Swamp
The path to the swamp is dark, musty, and lined with trees. As you approach, you’ll notice two things: a rowboat resting on the shore, and a small stone figure sitting on a rock in the middle of the water. There are fireflies flitting about, giving light to the area… but it’s still very dim.
You can get in the rowboat or swim across, and the water will not hurt you. However, doing so will attract the fireflies to you, and if they touch you, it triggers this memory:
Suddenly, a memory of being impaled alive on dozens and dozens of sharp spikes in an enclosed space and dying horribly hits you very strongly.
This area is full of guilt and self-loathing, and is probably the most dangerous area in the heart aside from the room with Shadow Naoto in it.
~
As you approach the statue, you see several fireflies have formed a circle at its base, lighting it up so you can see clearly. The statue is carved in the shape of a young girl, only about a foot tall.
Touching it triggers this memory: http://genderbinary.dreamwidth.org/7613.html
The statue can be lifted—it’s small enough—but doing so triggers the fireflies to attack you.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Jason went in here, rowed the bow to the statue, and was attacked by the fireflies. This boosts Naoto’s perception of him as a person who can handle a great amount of pain and shoulders burdens by himself frequently.
+ He also removed the Nanako statue, which nets him like a zillion points in Naoto’s perception of him as a strong person.
+ Doing so lessened Naoto’s feelings of guilt and anguish over Nanako’s death by a lot. She is past the mourning stage now.
The Peridot maze
The hedge maze seems very similar to the one in Wonderland, but the hedges are a lighter shade of green and instead of grass the ground is lined with a rug of deep burgundy. At the entrance is a sign that reads:
This area represents ingenuity, intrigue, curiosity, and inspiration.
~
Once you reach the center of the maze, the carpet ends to reveal a set of three large pillars surrounding another television with a remote on top of above it. However, instead of marble these pillars seem to be made out of clockwork similar to what you saw in the first area—but with springs and levers and buttons and various doodads that you can clearly touch.
The remote has a power button, a mute button, and a volume control, as well as numbers 1-4.
The 1 button shows this memory: http://aather.dreamwidth.org/469052.html?thread=351880252#cmt351880252
The 2 button shows this memory: http://aather.dreamwidth.org/509968.html?thread=396524816#cmt396524816
The 3 button shows this memory: http://aather.dreamwidth.org/563458.html?thread=446048770#cmt446048770
The 4 button shows a montage memory; a series of gatherings with Tiger’s Eye and Peridot—either at a team meeting, working on the forge, participating in a game, or Naoto calmly observing Josh and Ventus.
~
The pillars are all mostly identical; there’s a gear mechanism with a wind-up lever attached to it, buttons with wires connected to… something… and a series of light bulbs strung up at the tops of the pillars.
~
Pressing the buttons and winding the levers turn on the lights in the area, and…
A small item about the size and shape of a compass suddenly drops down in the middle of the pillars, right in front of the television. It looks to be a small meter with a pull-out antenna and a dial measuring between 1 and 10. Right above the dial is written a single word: DARKNESS.
Currently it is resting calmly just barely above 1. The Darkness meter indicates areas of the Heart that pose a danger.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Mako pulled one of the levers, which boosted Naoto’s curiosity and associated him with new projects.
+ Beatrice and Raven watched all the channels in here, which boosted Naoto’s friendship feelings with Peridot and willingness to go to them when seeking friends outside of TE. They also pressed buttons and fiddled with doohickeys, which boosted Naoto’s love for mysteries and puzzles and her ingenuity. They also unlocked the Darkness meter, which gives them both the perception that they’re good at problem-solving.
The Guardian Park
The street leads you to a park, with several tall trees and a small pink pavilion nearby. It’s bright and sunny here, though not overbearingly so. There are a couple of people at the picnic table, one sitting down and one leaning over their shoulder. Both of them appear to be young men; one has short, light grey hair in a bowlcut, dressed in a school uniform. The other is dressed similarly, except he probably seems a tad more familiar. They’re both looking through what look to be a set of cards.
The one standing looks up. “Oh hey, it’s you guys.”
The one sitting glances up as well. “Hi. You want one?”
--Kanji and Yuu are Naoto’s feelings of home and feelings of belonging
--they are also guardians! If you have screwed anything up in Naoto’s heart they can tell; they exist not as manifestations of protection but as people in Naoto’s life she looks up to when it comes to her emotional experiences
This area is where feelings of home and comfort belong; the things and people Naoto takes comfort in all reside here.
~
1.Narukami gives you one of the cards. As you take it, you experience this memory.
2.Narukami gives you one of the cards. As you take it, you experience this memory.
~
The trees appear to be some kind of oak, tall and extremely climbable.
As you climb, you feel a sudden rush—like a strong, cool breeze running over your face and through your hair, exhilarating and freeing. You find it’s very easy to scale the tree, as though you could leap from branch to branch easily. It isn’t very long until you reach the top… the view is vast, overlooking a small rural town surrounded by mountains with a river running through the south end. At the very summit of the tree is a small patch of flowers. Examine?
Actually, as you look closer, it appears that the flowers aren’t flowers at all—they’re light pink gemstones in the shape of chrysanthemums, all hanging from a stem.
As you touch it, you trigger a memory. http://aather.dreamwidth.org/403582.html?thread=291643262#cmt291643262
The gems can be picked from the tree, and will result in dampening of those memories and their impact unless you do something special like move them to the swamp or whatnot. The Kunzite/home area is very much a LOOK AND DON’T TOUCH kind of place but who is gonna listen to me I’m just narration. Kanji will give you dead-eye if you come down the tree with it. Possibly he’ll headbutt you.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Both Toboe and Ventus made friendly with Kanji and Yuu, which gave boosts to Naoto’s perception of them as strong and reliable. They both saw the memories in the cards, which made Naoto feel a little more like people can understand her.
+ Mako spoke to Kanji and Yuu and gave Naoto the perception that he’s a bit clueless sometimes, but good-hearted.
+ Jason brought the Nanako statue here, which brought Naoto’s feelings towards Nanako and Narukami into a state of comfort, familiarity, and stability.
+ However Kanji also sensed the eyes on Jason’s person which triggered guardian-mode, and gave a +1 boost to Naoto’s perception of Jason as someone who does things inefficiently.
References (Classroom)
The doorway leads you down a long, dark hallway into a brightly-lit classroom. There are rows of desks, several bookshelves lining the walls, a chalkboard with writing on it, a safe, and a projector pointing at a screen at the front of the room.
Naoto is standing in front of the chalkboard with her back to you, occasionally writing on it and then erasing. You’ll notice something is different about her right away. Although she’s dressed androgynously as usual, in a simple high school boy’s uniform, her right sleeve seems to be missing, exposing a metallic arm that moves with a strange, mechanical noise as she writes.
However, she doesn’t seem to notice you.
This area has BLATANT FRUSTRATION written all over it, as well as embarrassment and shame. It also houses confidence.
~
If you touch the desks, a textbook appears on top of it. It has HISTORY in big letters on the front. Read?
The text is written like a children’s book, detailing several consecutive events from this memory.
Reading the entire thing nets you points and gives you a vitality boost.
~
The projector is on, and cycling through some slides. There’s an image of a young girl in a hospital bed, an older man in a hospital gown yelling at a medical intern, the same man lying on the ground in the middle of the street after what looks like a nasty car accident, and another man with a very unsettling smile.
The projector can be turned off, and will ease some of Naoto’s troubles on the case in general, especially wrt Adachi.
~
The bookshelves don’t contain any books at all, actually. There are some soda bottles, some mandarin oranges, some medical charts, various anatomically-correct dolls, a candle and a box of matches, a cellphone, a lemon-battery, and a small box labeled EVIDENCE.
These are stat-boosters. The soda and the oranges give you HP boosts, reading the medical charts give you SP boosts, the dolls give you defense boosts, the candle gives you a strength boost, the cellphone gives you a luck boost, and the lemon-battery gives you a dexterity boost.
The box contains about half a dozen plastic eyeballs, all in the same familiar shade of dark grey.
~
The safe is sitting in the corner of the classroom near the chalkboard, black and fairly small. Instead of a padlock or a keypad, there’s a touchscreen.
The touchscreen lights up when you touch it. Some letters appear, as well as a small virtual keyboard.
This is a keyword vigenere cipher. The keyword is “detective” and it reads, “This challenge has not yet been met”. This is Naoto’s theoretical Persona, lying dormant and unconnected to her Shadow, more of a potential power than anything.
The safe swings open, and as it does there’s a sudden shimmer of light, although it seems that the interior of the safe is dark—it’s accompanied by the feeling that you are being watched, and an inhuman(?) voice inside your head: not time yet.
The safe swings shut, and the light from the touchpad fades.
~
Naoto looks to be in deep concentration, drawing an anatomical diagram of the female body on the chalkboard that’s extremely incorrect, and then stepping back to examine it. Unsatisfied, she keeps erasing various parts she’s drawn and labeling them differently. Occasionally she will scratch at her mechanical arm, rolling her shoulder.
--this Naoto is extremely focused and distracted by her project, only answering vague questions
--would like a new arm yes thank you, she can’t draw anything properly with it (explains the weird placements on the figure)
--nearly impossible to draw her away, representing Naoto’s constant frustration with her body
The diagram shows the placements for breasts and uterus on the figure’s shoulders, arms for legs and vice versa, and six tonsils on each hand instead of fingers.
~
If you alter the diagram on the chalkboard or attempt to write/erase it, the writing suddenly erases itself and begins to draw a rendition of this scene, with narration written at the bottom: http://genderbinary.dreamwidth.org/4813.html
And Naoto will warn you against that. However, you can still write what you like. If you help Naoto out in labeling things correctly it will ease her frustration by a LOT.
Note: This Naoto is also her sexuality! Explains the massive frustration, doesn’t it. You don’t really get access to this aspect of her unless you help in all other ways first (replacing arm, relabeling things, etc.) and then it’s just a matter of… talking to her.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Jason wrote a message on the chalkboard: “arms aren't legs, the rest of that crap doesn't matter”, which reduced some of her frustration regarding her body. He also took away the arm but it was never replaced, so while that helped solve the overall puzzle, the Naoto in this area still feels frustrated when it comes to her own limitations, so it was like one step forward, two steps back. He does come out of this section with a +1 to Naoto’s overall feelings toward him because he was helpful with the doll and also turned off the projector.
+ Beatrice offered to strip, and Naoto’s tense feelings towards nudity in general were reduced. Beatrice did not open the safe but made a valiant effort, so Naoto now thinks that Beatrice might enjoy more puzzles of that nature.
+ Raven spoke to Naoto briefly about replacing her arm, which means Naoto may be slightly more likely to go to him when she’s having issues with her body. He did turn the projector back on, but then turned it off again, so no change there.
+ Ferris unlocked sexuality so fast it was hilarious. Naoto now finds the idea of topping and being aggressively straight-forward re: sex somewhat more appealing. She also thinks Ferris is kind of a sex fiend.
Management (Laboratory)
The doorway leads you down a long, dark hallway into a brightly-lit room resembling a laboratory or a medical room, of the exceedingly shady sort. There’s a sickly green hue to everything, bright liquids splattering the floor and walls and a few large drill-like devices that look like they could eviscerate you cleanly. On a table lie some hacksaws, scalpels, clamps, surgical gloves, and an orbitoclast. The exam room lights are focused on an operating table in the middle of the floor.
Lying on the operating table is a mechanical torso, but were it not for the clearly visible wired interior similar to the manikin, it would look entirely human. There’s someone bent over it, drilling something into place with the loud whirrrrrr of an electric screwdriver. Their long, oversized white lab coat trails onto the floor behind them.
This room is Naoto’s feelings of otherness and self-reflection. It is also SCIENCE.
~
The figure in the lab coat suddenly lifts themselves up and throws both hands into the air, letting out a yell of triumph that echoes all throughout the room.
“Eureka! We’re so close to finishing it, once and for all!”
Sure does sound like Naoto!
~
She turns to face you, and it’s clear that this is Naoto… of an odd sort. The lab coat is ill-fitting, but what’s really striking is how the entire left half of her body is unmistakably robotic; mechanical eye whirring in its socket, shiny metal covering her face and neck disappearing down past her shirt collar, lipless mouth showing only teeth made of some kind of synthetic material. When she moves, she makes loud, grinding noises of metal against metal. An occasional spark pops out from behind her ear.
Both her human eye and her robotic eye are entirely yellow, and she is grinning wide, far wider than Naoto ever does.
--THIS IS SHADOW NAOTO as she exists at present. She differs slightly from canon in that she’s more intense, more manic, and more trigger-happy as a result of Naoto’s constant internalizing ever since she arrived in Aather.
--Doesn’t exhibit the PLEASE DON’T LEAVE ME aspect, either.
--Intensely creepy and a little self-destructive
--Exhibits anger more than anything else
--Darkness level reads: 10.
--A boss fight can be triggered here but it’s only if you’re specifically antagonistic. Almost got triggered by Mako but he avoided that.
~
The torso on the operating table is female, nude, and mostly human-looking… except for the sunken heart-shaped hole in the middle of the chest that’s filled with metal, and the pair of arms that look like they’re made out of plastic.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Ed gave his protection charm from Nimue to the scientist in exchange for taking the metal heart to the manikin, but did not return the heart as promised. The charm will remain there as a precious item to Naoto, and will provide both a strength and a protection boost to her Shadow.
+ She also now knows the basic tenets of alchemy.
+ Mako did not endear himself to the scientist, which gives Naoto a perception of him that he’s rather reckless, and added a +1 anger boost.
+ Sieh managed to speak with the scientist for a bit and didn’t anger her more than usual, which did two things: added a +1 derision towards childish antics, and added a +1 sulking boost.
True Heart
The wires from the manikin’s interior curl outwards to grab onto the missing limb and attach it.
The arms from the torso in the Laboratory will not fit on the manikin, those are for the Naoto in References.
~
As all missing pieces are brought together, the manikin moves, stiffly and making grinding, creaking noises—but doesn’t appear to be broken. It steps down from the pedestal and as it does, a large hole appears below it, leading down into darkness. The manikin swings its legs over the edge, and jumps down.
~
You jump in, and very quickly you’re sliding down a hollow chute. (Keep your hands and feet close to your body at all times until the ride is over) You’re moving very fast, and the wind is harsh enough to sting your eyes. There’s a light at the end but you can’t quite make it out until—
Well, at least there’s something soft for you to land on, because you’re getting tossed. Feels like pillows?
~
It is pillows! You’re on a bed, or rather a nest, in the corner of what looks like a well-maintained tree house, with designed spaces for a work area, a kitchen, a bedroom, a bathroom, and a living area. It looks very cozy! There’s a gentle, cool breeze wafting through the windows, and you can see a few tree branches that have grown into the structure. The work space is large and full of materials, and the manikin is standing near it.
It slowly turns towards you, and in a bright flash of light, the metallic limbs fall away and transform into Naoto, taller and more androgynous than before. Zie smiles at you, warm and solid.
“Thank you. I’m glad you all could make it.”
--Zie is taller than Naoto normally is, dressed in her detective uniform, with yellow stripes on zir outfit
--Zie exudes confidence, curiosity, eagerness, and openness
--You can’t tell if Naoto is a man or a woman, and if you try to tell, you get the immediate sense that it really doesn’t matter.
CHANGES MADE:
+ Everyone who got to the True Heart got a +10 friendship boost.
Questions/comments? I only went over the basic stuff so if you want more in-depth explanations feel free to ask. o/
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Good... job... Beatrice......
ANYWAY THIS HEART WAS GREAT <3
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BUT NO
thank you for playing ♥
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tottemo kakkoii desu
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It was a super fun game ty so much for running it <3!
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thank you for being super coolio ♥