Reality Loop 2 (3/4 Players Currently)

Reality Loop

So, once again, we enter the world of impossibilities within our very reality. We must shunt our original beliefs to the side in order to find that one happy ending within this reality, where things in a very peaceful place continually seem to- Go wrong. One can't truly say it is your job to fix this, as you yourself, are caught up in this trip of horror. You were hired for a large sum of money to come here, to act, and help film a movie. What else happens, one could say, is not your fault. Although, another could say it is. Things seem to appear from nowhere as things go on, intangible things that depict things past, things future, things impossible. What will you choose to believe? Will you believe at all?

But that is irrelevant. You must know the when, and where. Without these, you cannot discern the why, or how. So. Let us reveal these to you. The when is 2004. The month is the ninth out of the twelve months of the year. The specific day is the first of the particular month. The where- You have just made it to Sado Island, an island off Japan. There is a vivid history to this place, which we shall not discuss now. You must do your job, live your life, and hopefully- Find a Happy Ending.

You start out as an adolescent to middle aged male or female human, your history is not unrealistic, and you have two of the flaws below, and one of the merits listed. You begin your story in the town of Namake, a village between Kanai and Aikawa, where the residents are extremely few, but it's the perfect spot to reach your desired destinations for the filmtaking, not to mention having the cheapest rates, with its reputation for ghosts. You must retain life in order to bring this to a good end. Do anything you can to do so.

This is a Simple Map.

Flaws

Conceited
Superstitious
Gullible
Nervous
Wimpy
Hypochondriac
Sleepy
Stubborn
Unkempt
Greedy
Distracted
Klutzy
Distant
Awkward
Unstable
Mood-swinger
Traumatized
Self-centered
Transparent
Insensitive
Amoral
Treacherous
Lecherous
Oblivious
Slow
Unlearned
Forgetful
Unfriendly
Busy
Jealous
Alcoholic
Poor
Chronic Liar
Bad Reputation
Romantic
Lazy
Blamecaster
Condescending
Stressed
Ugly
Argumentative
Depressed
Phobia (Chosen)
Paranoid
Timid
Creepy
Complacent
Ambitious
Evasive
Busybody
Violent
Quitter
Criminal
Personal
Loud
Sloppy
Judgmental
Weak Immunity
Sinister
Relic
Homesick
Unlucky

Merits

Cool-headed
Popular
Logical
Tough
Intimidating
Friendly
Quick Learner
Sharp
Adept
Wealthy
Generous
Creative
Resourceful
Investigative
Lucky
Comforting
Scholarly
Patient
Good Reputation
Attractive
Experienced
Pitiable
Fast
Direct
Athlete
Careful
Photographic Memory
Actor
Trick Specialist
Loyal
Honest
Serious
Hard Working
Humble
Bounces Back
Pitiable
Immune
Chivalrous
Artistic
Responsible
Care-free
Eye for Detail
Stand-Out
Tactful
Content

Insanity

You must remain cautious. Be on your guard. Do not descend into paranoia. But you know none of this. How could you ever learn? --Be careful.
October 1, 2004

Today, you started filming. The area around is beautiful, the work, hardly work. Your lines seem to be that of a crazy person, as the movie seems to be a romantic adventure tragedy. Slightly stressful, are the demands of the director, who wants everything just right, but you get off slightly stressed but mostly happy. The island is your place to travel, the conditions just right for a day at the beach, or simply exploring. The inn will serve dinner at precisely 18:30, so be sure to get back there by then, though.

Please. Do not wait, begin. After four people have entered, the rest shall be thrown to the winds of fate.
Kyoshi stood in the inn, unable to relax quite yet. It had been two days, and he hadn't done that one important task he had to do. Not his work; he had already started on the script, although he would be supervising the acting to better choose the words to use in the Japanese Dub script. The Japanese language WAS subtle, after all, and while the actors WERE probably intelligent, it would be a distinct pain in the ass to teach an entire cast how to speak Japanese properly.

Ring, Ring, Ring. The phone in the lobby continued to ring, as Kyoshi looked out the window. Where the hell WAS she? Yukino was a Stay-at-home writer, for god's sake, and he was calling her CELL. The ringing stopped, and he heard her voice.

"Hey there, Kyoshi!" She said, a smile in her voice. "How are you?" Kyoshi breathed out a sigh of relief.

"I'm doing fine, Yukino." He replied. Yukino. Gods, she was a lifesaver. He had known the girl since high school, through his school's Japanese club, and he had kept in touch with her since then. What luck, that she lived in the same city he did. "How are you and Tomoko?" A giggle.

"Oh, we're doing so well! Aren't we?" A pause.

"Oto-San?" Kyoshi gave a wide grin as he heard the most important thing in his life speak. He could envision the small girl, her long, smooth hair and her small eyes reminding him of Hiromi.

"Hello, Tomoko!" Kyoshi said, hiding a sigh of relief. "How is my darling little daughter?" Tomoko giggled.

"I'm doing well..." The conversation continued for a while, about school, Yukino's house ("It's way bigger than our's! She's really rich!"), homework ("So hard~"), and eventually...

"I miss you, Oto-san." Kyoshi nodded.

"I miss you too, honey. I'll be home soon, okay? Be good." His voice broke a little. "I love you, okay?"

"I love you too, dad. Bye~!" Click. Tomoko had hung up. Kyoshi stopped for a moment, sighed, and then hung up too. Well, he figured, time to go see some of the others. Maybe he could make some friends here.
Niles clopped out of his room and down the stairs of the inn, missing a step about halfways down but catching his grip on the solid railing. "D-damn... I don't think I drank last night," the man muttered, checking his watch half-heartedly. It never occured to him until his eyes had reached the lifeless face of his watch why the simple process of shifting his gaze to it was such a pain until it was actually there. "One of these days I'll get that fixed. I'm sure not paying for another..."

Finally making his way down, Niles smoothed out his hair with his hands, concious that he hadn't paid attention brushing it. He stopped at a window, glad at the chance to catch a reflection, and began methodically brushing it to the sides when he glanced back to catch a man talking on the phone. He was surprised to see anyone had checked in with him... it was true, however, that he'd arrived early and fallen flat asleep. It wasn't because the bed was comfortable, either: the lumpy matress had left terrible pains in his back. He'd been flat-out tired. In any case, Niles watched the older man out of the corner of his eye. "Huh... he looks pretty pleased with himself. I wonder if he's making it big in-" he started, when he suddenly stopped combing to slap himself in the forehead. "That's right," he muttered to himself. "Any random people like that around are likely to be here temporarily for that same movie. I guess he must be some kind of big shot in it, huh..."

Niles had two major habits: a twitching eyebrow and talking to himself. Both were running full force as he took the situation into consideration, or more specifically, how to avoid the situation. "Well, if I was going to introduce myself, the worst time is when he's obviously on the phone. Besides, we'll probably meet each other later on at work," he decided with a dry chuckle. "Maybe later, then," he finished, heading for the door while avoiding making eye contact.
((NPCing))

As Kyoshi hung up, a man emerged from the nearby coffee room, smiling at him in a sort of a laughing way. Niles had just missed being caught by the stranger's eye as he walked through the door. The slender looking man walked up, scratching his rough black hair in a kind of an irritated way. "I saw you hanging around the set earlier. Your name's Kyoshi, right? My name's Moritake," he laughed, keeping the taunting look in his eyes. "So you must be here for the shooting, right? Of the movie, I mean. That's good, y'know? Get work where you can find it, that's always been my principle," he spat, talking quickly.

Turning around and resting his hands on the wall behind his head, Moritake gave the new visitor a sly grin. "Say, what all have you heard about Sado Island? It's just a little island offa' the coast of Japan, so I'd say it couldn't have been much," he asked, then, not waiting for an answer, launched into another question. "What would you do if I were to tell you that you aren't safe here? What if I were to tell you that there's something supernatural in this place?" he asked, laughing as if he'd made a ridiculous joke. "Hey! Ghosts, man! Ghouls and spirits! Nah, you don't believe in any of that kind of stuff. Forget I mentioned that at all, heh," he snickered, sitting down in a chair and resting his hands on his knees. He seemed to have an odd way of moving constantly around the room, while talking and while silent.

"You know... This place.... It's actually pretty relaxing. I came here to relax.... Funny, right? Hoo ha ha hah!" he laughed, once again making it sound like he'd just rattled out an amazing joke. "I hope you'll be able to relax too. We mature folks gotta keep up with eachother, right?" he smirked, tilting his head back and cracking his neck irritably as he rose from his seat and moved to the coffee room.
Kyoshi was walking towards the beach, hoping to spend a bit of time looking at the sunset, when a thin man with messy, apparently itchy black hair walked up to him, speaking excitedly. "I saw you hanging around the set earlier." He said, "Your name's Kyoshi, right? My name's Moritake," He continued, and gave Kyoshi a strange look.

A wierdo, huh? Kyoshi thought, resisiting the urge to raise an eyebrow, They get all kinds in this place. Speaking, Kyoshi went with "You're right. It's a pleasure to meet you, Moritake-San.", in perfect Japanese. The man continued.

"So you must be here for the shooting, right? Of the movie, I mean. That's good, y'know? Get work where you can find it, that's always been my principle," Moritake spat off to the side, and continued with his verbal diarehha. "Say, what all have you heard about Sado Island? It's just a little island offa' the coast of Japan, so I'd say it couldn't have been much," Kyoshi was about to open his mouth and explain that he'd heard some rumors about ghosts and spirits, the usual sort of thing with these sort of places, but the man continued on his tirade. "What would you do if I were to tell you that you aren't safe here? What if I were to tell you that there's something supernatural in this place?"

Jesus, this man talks alot. Kyoshi thought, not even bothering to attempt a reply. It didn't matter, as there was barely a pause before Moritake continued with an easy laugh.

"Hey! Ghosts, man! Ghouls and spirits! Nah, you don't believe in any of that kind of stuff. Forget I mentioned that at all, heh," A snigger, and then a bit of silence, in which Kyoshi nodded, well, silently. This man definetly was a bit off, as he continued to move almost ceaslessly, as if he were posessed.

"You know..." Moritake said, even as he sat down with his hands beneath his knees, "This place.... It's actually pretty relaxing. I came here to relax.... Funny, right? Hoo ha ha hah!" Moritake exploded in laughter, as if he were told the best joke in the world. Almost as if he were faking such humor. "I hope you'll be able to relax too. We mature folks gotta keep up with eachother, right?" With that, Moritake stood, cracking his neck as he did, and walked off.

Kyoshi waited several moments before shaking his head. Man, that was wierd. he thought, before checking his cell phone. Still fourty-five minutes til dinner. Kyoshi sighed before walking towards the beach. Maybe he could catch the sunset before dinner.

Continuing along at a slow pace, but happy that he'd managed to avoid the creepy new acquaintance who he'd met at the door but had met with the other man instead, Niles gazed across the landscape set before him. "Huh... It's a shame I'm not any kind of artistic type..." he muttered, digging into a pocket. "I'm sure this must be quite inspiring to them..." Finally finding what he had been searching for, Niles drew out an almost spent pack of cheap cigarettes and a small metal lighter. He'd taken to smoking almost two years ago now, and as such he worked pretty quickly with them. He lit it within seconds, taking a deep initial draw. "Mmm... the ones they sell here aren't quite as good. Now that I think about it, I've only been here for a little while, though, and I'm already running low. I wonder if I'm heavier onto these things then I thought...?" Niles shook his head, though, putting his mind at rest. He'd only taken an interest in this habit when he decided he needed something else to do as a mature-looking adult than staring into space. He figured that if he did it while smoking, it would at least look like he was trying to savor it.

"Hmm... my folks, they never did approve of smoking..." Niles muttered, referring to his parents as 'folks' as he so often did now. "But, that was in the past. All that remains of them today is me, and the three wishes they had for me... Happy, Kind, Satisfied." Niles smirked, the cigarette hanging at the corner of his mouth. "Let's run through that checklist once more, now... Happy? Well," Niles decided with a shrug, "One could say I enjoy the simple things. Sitting here on the beach, simple part-time job and a decent cigarette, I guess one could say I'm enjoying myself. Kind?" Niles considered, shifting the cigarette's position on his lower lip. "... Well, I don't think I've been particularly un-kind to anybody recently. Bah, I'm saving that one for when I get a girl. Then I'll worry about being a nice guy. That last one, satisfied..." Niles finally reached the one he considered the most far-off. His face remained vacant as his mind raced with all of the possibilities that had been dashed behind him and the narrow, rocky road that lay ahead of him. He'd walked this road for a number of years now, and he didn't see a fork coming up any time soon. "... Heh. I'm working on that one."

With that, Niles fell backward to lie on the sand, continuing to smoke as he scanned the sky in melancholy disinterest.
Kawazoe Tsubasa yawned as he came out of the inn. He looked around him, the island seemed so peaceful, it hardly seemed like a place for ghosts. But then again, someone could probably mistake him for one for his role in the movie, dinner was about to be served and he just saw two people walk towards the beach. He had his trenchcoat off, so maybe he could relax a little before dinner. He wasn't busy at the moment, but he knew that being on time for dinner would be his next appointment.
So, Kawazoe walked to the beach, but almost tripped as he also almost bumped into Niles.
"Ah! Sorry!" Kawazoe apologized, stepping back from the smoking co-worker.
"...Almost out," Niles muttered, notifying nobody in particular that the cigarette had become a stub as he had lain half-asleep on the beach. Slowly, he happened to turn his head, when suddenly a sneaker came crashing down right where his nose had been had he been given a second more. His gaping mouth allowed the ashen cigarette to fall from his lips to the sand.

"Ah! Oh, er..." Niles started, sitting up to look at the stranger. He couldn't hide that he was a bit shaken, having been jarred violently from the dream-like state by the man, who hadn't made any sound in approaching. "Yeah, nevermind, don't worry about it..." he muttered, deciding it might be a good idea to stand up now. "Heh, with nobody else around here, I guess you wouldn't exactly be looking for a guy lying in the middle of the beach... ah!" Niles noted, cracking a lopsided smile, "So, if you're here, you must be with the movie team, right? My name's Niles Crenshaw... I got work in the production as a sort of part-time job." Despite his introduction, Niles didn't extend a hand to the stranger, instead placing his right hand behind his head to rub the back of his neck.
"Kawazoe Tsubasa," Kawazoe said, introducing himself. "Nice meeting you," he said bowing politely.
"So, what role are you in the movie?" Kawazoe asked seriously. He seemed to burn his gaze, well if his eyes were showing, as he had sunglasses on, into Niles.
Niles took the initiative to try and meet eyes with Kawazoe, which turned out to be a mistake as Niles got a severe case of eyebrow twitching as the two locked gazes. Struggling to keep eye contact in light of the intensity of the man's blue-eyed stare, he eventually allowed his line of vision to fall to the sand below. "Ah... I'm nothing big. You see, this'll really be my first time acting, nonetheless on the big screen, and I didn't really shoot for any major role. Like I said, this is just a part-time job, unless it turns out to be something I really enjoy. Even then, I might not be able to continue with my limited drama credentials... I was really lucky they let me in on this one, heh," Niles continued, still rubbing the back of his head habitually. He again allowed his eyes to venture toward Kawazoe's face, but before even reaching his face lost the willpower and allowed himself to turn his head and talk into the air vacantly. "The part I have is nothing big... I'm just gonna be playing a one-liner character, a very minor one with little character I'll be forced to stick to. What about you?" he finished, turning toward Niles since he had to address him directly now but still applying a cheerful squint for safety.
"Oh me, um, I got the role for the 'Mysterious enigma,'" Kawazoe said, lightening his gaze and scratching the back of his head. "You know, the guy who kind of pops out of nowhere, seems to know everything, provides information, disappears mysteriously, only to appear again at some critical moment?" Kawazoe explained, long-winedly
"Aheh, fitting," Niles mumbled under his breath, more as a personal comment than anything else. "Er, but, I didn't see you around much earlier. I imagine, though, that if that's your role," Niles commented, happy to have drawn a connection and to finally meet the new acquaintance on eye level, in spite of his own twitching eyebrow, "then you wouldn't be on much in the early scenes. You hang around until the character needs... I don't know... a world-shaking epiphany or something, right? I guess people'll remember your character no matter how the movie ends up, eh?" Niles added with a laugh. He couldn't help but call to mind a movie in which the world was destroyed. All of the trailers for the sci-fi blockbuster would feature one scene of some bartender making a comment to the hero, who gave a snappy reply. Of course, in the actual movie, that was the bartender's only line at all... this would be the type of character Niles would portray. The corner of his mouth twitched nearly in time with his eyebrow as he dryly chuckled at the thought. It would be pretty much the easiest money he'd earned in his life.
((NPCing))

"You folks seem to be entertaining each other quite nicely!" smirked a thin man with long, feminine blond hair and a receding hairline, walking up slowly toward Niles and his new companion. The man strutted to the side of the two, extending his hand to each and grabbing their right hands one at a time, shaking them forcefully. "Bishougi Nenkei. I'm an actor on the set, in case you two were unaware. Brought here for some minor acting roles, perhaps?" he asked, not directly implying that his role was more important, but certainly suggesting it. The man's mannerisms were really quite annoying in general, and the two already desperately wished to know why he had approached them and how they were to make him go away.
Tch! Niles thought to himself, casting his eyes to the sand again. This pretty boy's one of those young-actor types, in the lead role I imagine. Why can't these people ever be satisfied...? "You're going to be the one rolling in the dough later," he muttered, now under his breath, "Do you really need ego feed on top of that?"

Niles cast his eyes lazily back up to the newcomer, his gaze resting on his forcefully grasped hand rather than the new acquaintance's face. "Ah yes, Mr. Nenkei, it's a pleasure. I'm Niles Crenshaw, and this is Kawazoe Subaru," he incorrectly introduced his new friend, priding himself in successfully recalling the name to mind. "I don't know about him, but yeah, I have a very minor role on the set. So small," he went on, rubbing the back of his head and grinning, "That we might not even ever meet each other on set, until that certain scene I'm in comes up!" He hoped that by mentioning how small his part was, he could divert Bishougi's attention to Kawazoe and get off the hook himself while the big stars talked.
"Kawazoe Tsubasa," Kawazoe corrected, putting emphasis on his last name for effect as he shook Nekei's hand. "So, think dinner's starting yet? Oh wait! Look at that!" Kawazoe exclaimed pointing towards the sun. It was setting, quite beautifully in fact. He stood there for a while, appreciating the sunfall.
"Oh, Tsubasa? Ha, I've never heard of you," the actor laughed, shrugging and blatantly lying through his teeth. "At any rate, you're certainly right. It feels like no time's passed at all, but we really should get back to the hotel," he smiled, flipping his hair and moving back towards the establishment. He presumably intended the other two to follow him. "So, you two don't have any questions for me, do you? I do really know my way around stardom, you know. I can answer any questions for you that you might have!" he flaunted, still not turning as he moved.
"Tsubasa, ah yeah, my bad," Niles muttered in response as Kawazoe turned to take note of the setting sun. Niles watched it as well, though not with the same enthusiasm his new friend took it in. Vacantly, the man reached into his pocket and drew out a new cigarette. He was aware that this was as close as he might ever come to having any romantic reaction to a sunset. The thought didn't really bother him, though: he had decided long ago that the people who had time for romantics either had a gift to make them less distracting or too much free time to devote to them. The smoke rising from the cigarette's tip drifted into the sky to mingle with the already darkening sky.

Casually acknowledging Bishougi's intent to have them follow, Niles turned and placed his hands from his sides into his pockets. He let out a small sigh, indicative of his displeasure at being asked whether he wanted to know more about acting when he'd just finished saying he'd taken it up part-time. "Stardom? Huh... so," he spoke, placing both arms behind his head casually, "how much do you rake in on this? Is it like they picture, with the big bucks and fame coming easy, or does it snowball over time somehow?" He thought he might ask if Bishougi'd ever had to work at anything with manual labor or technical skill, anything farther than born talent, but he decided to hold his tongue.
Kawazoe sighed as the sun set, and headed back to the hotel as well. Hoping that dinner would be waiting for them when they arrived. Though he would probably have to endure Bishougi's rants of his fame for another hour or two.