Another blast of elements took Dolly away from the group, then saw Cry and Take scatter. Slay figured those two had the right idea, at this point. Either CrypticMan had studied up and decided how to make a truly convincing illusion of a navi attempting to jackout but being blocked and deleted instead, or this was a real, dangerous situation.
"You're the one who belongs in here being judged, if that's really what's happening... not us," Slay responded to the voice of CrypticMan, but it was more an observation of the irony of the situation than a cry for justice. What was almost as disturbing as being lured into this trap by CrypticMan (assuming that's who was really speaking) was LightningMan's reaction to all of it. "... I'm beginning to think you're the kind of navi that killing isn't too foreign to... and not the fake kind that I do," Slay accused her ally, narrowing her beady HeelNavi eyes. "But I'll bet you've never been deleted before, yourself... And daring to go into that... for what? I don't know if you're really that amused with his game or if you're just afraid of being emasculated, but I've come to the realization that we all should have jacked out a long time ago," she muttered, turning her eyes back to WoodBug now. LightningMan was a lost cause, but maybe there was still some way she could get through to the other navi and make sure he got to safety. It was clear now that being careful with the rules wasn't enough to save anybody here.
"WoodBug... If you're saying that you've already been buzzed twice, you need to jack out now. I can only figure those buzzes are connected to being judged and executed," she informed her ally, who she now had pegged as surprisingly more sane than LightningMan. "Reactions!" she scoffed at CrypticMan, remembering his words. "If you were really interested in reactions, there would be no need to execute anyone from the former test group like you're doing; you could just make it all pretend the whole way through. You're a sadist torture-junky from a C horror movie, like the worst ones I've played in before... All that matters is you watching other people squirm, but dressing it up like you're learning something from it is what really gives you a woody," Slay offered the tester. "You're not even using the scientific method... You're supposed to do one test at a time and keep things elemental to eliminate the bias of extraneous factors or whatever... You don't recycle your test group for a second experiment while you're still doing the first experiment using another two groups together. But like I said, you aren't really interested in the reactions from a scientific standpoint... It's more of, uh, a jacking off thing, if I'm reading it right."
As much as Slay wanted to help WoodBug and also to see CrypticMan get his comeuppance, there was also still a self-preservation instinct at work. If she felt another buzz at her lower back, she was prepared to try a jack-out herself. "And you, LightningMan... I don't know how this suddenly became variety hour for everyone to show off their crazy side, but uh, now is seriously not the time for it. I'm sure you've got a fascinating past and all that, but right now, I don't want to know about it any more than you want to know about my filmography. Let's jack out, then we can talk about your dark, sordid past all you want," she reassured him. "You too, WoodBug... I don't care about the experiment any more. Whoever is behind it all is not someone I want to meet..."
The Twisted Crypt Testing Space
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Ah, the dull response of 'you know what you did'. LightningMan shrugged; he would've been more disappointed if he hadn't been expecting it. "Oh come now, could you possibly give a more trite answer?" He would've proceeded, but a shock interrupted him. He'd better be right about it not being real, or else things were going to get...painful. But eh, even if he did deleted, Roderick was skilled enough to bring him back. Though he had heard stories about those that did so, and that the Navis in question were never 100% right...but ah well. He was hardly 100% right as it stood.
Speaking of hardly right, the Navi closest to being a HeelNavi amongst the group looked over at Slay, who was griping. He listened, but just shook his head. "Tch...Slay, Slay, Slay. Let's say that you're right, and he just really likes watching our reactions. Do you honestly think saying all that is doing anything besides giving him exactly what he wants?" Seriously, she was playing right into his hands, despite being an 'expert'. Very disappointing. Especially as she accused him of being anything less than a proper member of society. Now where would she get an idea like that from? "What sordid past? I'm just amused by how he's doing the test. Is that a crime?" He knew what a crime looked like, and this was most definitely not it.
Tweedlecry and Tweedletake chimed in, asking more questions that were super obvious, and getting equally obvious answers. "That's not exactly a stunner. A regular Navi's gonna feel guilt over that situation, and it'll gnaw into them as it dawns on them that the cycle could repeat itself on them. Only a psychopath wouldn't be affected by it." Speaking from experience, anyway. "Seriously, if that's the kind of data you're getting, you might as well just drop the whole experiment schtick."
That said, the next part made him snicker. "Hah! What a bunch of idiots. Makes some of the Navis that were in this group look like geniuses." Why yes, he did glance to his side as he said that, what of it?
...And then the secretarial Navi got 'deleted'. Most were freaked out, and two certain Navis hit their breaking point, but the electrical Navi didn't bat an eye, unlike the one in front of him. "You know, you're trusting your eyes too much at this point. Yes, it looks like that one guy, his SP, and Funbags all got offed. But think about how they were done. The lightning strike. The burning. The freezing. At different points in all three, we all lost sight of the Navi in question. Considering CrypticMan would like nothing better than to make us react, doesn't it strike you as odd that we've yet to witness the exact moment of so-called death with any of them?" Of course, he had the added benefit of knowing that, if CrypticMan knew his true identity, he was essentially untouchable. No one enjoyed dealing with angry terrorist organizations, especially when their sole focus was shifted to destroying you.
Speaking of hardly right, the Navi closest to being a HeelNavi amongst the group looked over at Slay, who was griping. He listened, but just shook his head. "Tch...Slay, Slay, Slay. Let's say that you're right, and he just really likes watching our reactions. Do you honestly think saying all that is doing anything besides giving him exactly what he wants?" Seriously, she was playing right into his hands, despite being an 'expert'. Very disappointing. Especially as she accused him of being anything less than a proper member of society. Now where would she get an idea like that from? "What sordid past? I'm just amused by how he's doing the test. Is that a crime?" He knew what a crime looked like, and this was most definitely not it.
Tweedlecry and Tweedletake chimed in, asking more questions that were super obvious, and getting equally obvious answers. "That's not exactly a stunner. A regular Navi's gonna feel guilt over that situation, and it'll gnaw into them as it dawns on them that the cycle could repeat itself on them. Only a psychopath wouldn't be affected by it." Speaking from experience, anyway. "Seriously, if that's the kind of data you're getting, you might as well just drop the whole experiment schtick."
That said, the next part made him snicker. "Hah! What a bunch of idiots. Makes some of the Navis that were in this group look like geniuses." Why yes, he did glance to his side as he said that, what of it?
...And then the secretarial Navi got 'deleted'. Most were freaked out, and two certain Navis hit their breaking point, but the electrical Navi didn't bat an eye, unlike the one in front of him. "You know, you're trusting your eyes too much at this point. Yes, it looks like that one guy, his SP, and Funbags all got offed. But think about how they were done. The lightning strike. The burning. The freezing. At different points in all three, we all lost sight of the Navi in question. Considering CrypticMan would like nothing better than to make us react, doesn't it strike you as odd that we've yet to witness the exact moment of so-called death with any of them?" Of course, he had the added benefit of knowing that, if CrypticMan knew his true identity, he was essentially untouchable. No one enjoyed dealing with angry terrorist organizations, especially when their sole focus was shifted to destroying you.
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Like 'Boltman', it seemed as though their tester was, to a certain extent, less interested in navis who played it cool. It would be up to others to decide whether his assessment of the whole play being a trick was accurate or not; visual slight of hand was surely possible for the earlier departures, but aside from some slight light refraction in the ice, a casual viewer might find it hard to accept that there had been room for a switch, with Dolly. If so, it would have needed to have been precise to a blink. He didn't respond directly to the lightning navi's casual explanation, although one could also suppose that fell in line with his earlier invitation for the testers to attempt to influence one another. Instead, he chose to jump back to the some-time terrorist's first remarks with a chuckle.
"Well to be frank, I don't think I need to explain the crimes any further than that, number six... but you are all Heels after all; I suppose I should expect you to each be a little dimmer than before. Oh well." On reflection his earlier answer might make more sense if it were taken less as a 'You know what you did', and more as an 'I already told you', but either way it seemed like more of a side issue at this stage.
"Don't worry, number one, I don't take the insults personally. Just more data, really; it's fun to learn what makes another navi tick, or stop ticking... don't you think?" Briefly, the voice took on slightly earnest, tired sound that may or may not have been entirely put on... it was hard to guess. "I fear you misunderstand though. It has been pretend all the way through. haven't I been telling you as such every step of the way? The three of you are in no danger at all, no-one is being harmed in any of these experiments, like I promised from the start. It's not my job to influence what you think; I can only tell you the facts. You might be right about scientific method, if I were a human researcher, number one, but I'm a navigator, and a very complex one. I like to multi-task and I can monitor so many different things at once it might surprise you. No fear of contaminating variables along any of the specific lines I've chosen to account for and observe. I am enjoying this particular test group, though. It's been fascinating."
In response to Slay's plea that they all simply get out right away, the heel on the same side of the table as her looked between each of the remaining two others slowly, then shook his head. Somehow the low, gravely voice still managed to sound distant in the same way WoodBug often had to date.
"Wind blows the leaves and they whisper their tales to each other. Egos grow and branches fall, but the leaves whisper. Leaves wither... they burn and freeze, mould and drown, tear and char... but still leaves whisper. The egos do not separate. Not yet." His eyes darted across to 'BoltMan', in front of him. "One leaf curled inside another, curled inside another again. If one layer burns away, do the rest grow scars? Does the branch just grow another leaf?" His head tilted to the side as he watched.
It seemed like there wasn't much time for them to answer, however. After only a few more seconds, Slay would feel a second dull buzz, but before she had a chance to jack out in a timely fashion, the lights went down suddenly and the three were dropped back into darkness.
"And there we have it. All finished. Thankyou for participating in this test. Hold tight and we'll get you cleaned up and off to a quick debriefing, then get you paid for your time and on your way." The voice was all charm and smiles. A moment later each of Slay and LightningMan would feel themselves in something akin to free-fall. It wasn't quite a floating sensation, because it felt like they were dropping rapidly, but nor did it feel exactly like falling either. The total blackness seemed like a more complete void than simply a lack of lights, but it only lasted a few moments.
When Slay's vision cleared and other senses returned, she'd find herself looking very much herself again, in a small chamber bathed in a soft tan light. It looked rather like a simple interview room; square and featureless, with only two seats in it and no doors. One seat was clearly for Slay herself, and it was of an abstract ergonomic design, with a moderate amount of cushioning. The other was currently occupied by a navi that looked in part like a mass of long, very flexible, fluid arms, each bearing hands with farm more fingers than they really ought to have. The core of his body was mostly human, or so it seemed, but was comprised of equal parts delicate circuitry, more robust mechanics, and humanoid flesh. The skin that was visible was a shade of deep blue, shot through with pulsing circuit lights. The sheer number of extra limbs he seemed to possess did a good job of obscuring his main body, forming something of a cloak about him while his head was completely shrouded in a simple peaked hood that seemed to blend into his shoulders. While the features of his face were hidden, his eyes shone out eerily from the hood; they were mostly green, but had scrolling lines of data flicking up them in a constant string that would be impossible to read, and they shifted and coloured frequently with an almost kaleidoscopic wash through the colour spectrum before settling back to green. He looked up from his hood towards Slay, various limbs settling casually about his main body as he did, and his eyes swirled.
"So, Miss Slay. The test is concluded. Did you complete the other objective I gave you? Do you have any other comments you'd like to add?" From the shadow of the hood, it was impossible to see whether he was grinning or not, but the voice certainly sounded like he was.
Somewhere else, LightningMan found himself in a more or less identical room, facing the same CrypticMan who watched him with the fingers on his two main arms steepled in front of himself.
"'BoltMan'. All done. As promised, I didn't bother to look into your background any further, and one name on a research sheet is more or less the same as another. Did you do as I asked? Do you have any other comments you'd like to add?" The swirling colours of his eyes danced, as though he was well aware how unimpressed the lightning navi had been by the whole game.
In another location, yet another CrypticMan looked across the tiny interview room at the strange-speaking WoodBug, then ruefully shook his head.
"Should I even bother with you, I wonder? you don't even know what you're saying half the time, do you? And yet the insight! I'd just love to keep you..." Opposite him, WoodBug tilted his head this way and that.
"The vines run all through the forest, touching every tree." Cryptic sighed.
"Indeed..."
"Well to be frank, I don't think I need to explain the crimes any further than that, number six... but you are all Heels after all; I suppose I should expect you to each be a little dimmer than before. Oh well." On reflection his earlier answer might make more sense if it were taken less as a 'You know what you did', and more as an 'I already told you', but either way it seemed like more of a side issue at this stage.
"Don't worry, number one, I don't take the insults personally. Just more data, really; it's fun to learn what makes another navi tick, or stop ticking... don't you think?" Briefly, the voice took on slightly earnest, tired sound that may or may not have been entirely put on... it was hard to guess. "I fear you misunderstand though. It has been pretend all the way through. haven't I been telling you as such every step of the way? The three of you are in no danger at all, no-one is being harmed in any of these experiments, like I promised from the start. It's not my job to influence what you think; I can only tell you the facts. You might be right about scientific method, if I were a human researcher, number one, but I'm a navigator, and a very complex one. I like to multi-task and I can monitor so many different things at once it might surprise you. No fear of contaminating variables along any of the specific lines I've chosen to account for and observe. I am enjoying this particular test group, though. It's been fascinating."
In response to Slay's plea that they all simply get out right away, the heel on the same side of the table as her looked between each of the remaining two others slowly, then shook his head. Somehow the low, gravely voice still managed to sound distant in the same way WoodBug often had to date.
"Wind blows the leaves and they whisper their tales to each other. Egos grow and branches fall, but the leaves whisper. Leaves wither... they burn and freeze, mould and drown, tear and char... but still leaves whisper. The egos do not separate. Not yet." His eyes darted across to 'BoltMan', in front of him. "One leaf curled inside another, curled inside another again. If one layer burns away, do the rest grow scars? Does the branch just grow another leaf?" His head tilted to the side as he watched.
It seemed like there wasn't much time for them to answer, however. After only a few more seconds, Slay would feel a second dull buzz, but before she had a chance to jack out in a timely fashion, the lights went down suddenly and the three were dropped back into darkness.
"And there we have it. All finished. Thankyou for participating in this test. Hold tight and we'll get you cleaned up and off to a quick debriefing, then get you paid for your time and on your way." The voice was all charm and smiles. A moment later each of Slay and LightningMan would feel themselves in something akin to free-fall. It wasn't quite a floating sensation, because it felt like they were dropping rapidly, but nor did it feel exactly like falling either. The total blackness seemed like a more complete void than simply a lack of lights, but it only lasted a few moments.
When Slay's vision cleared and other senses returned, she'd find herself looking very much herself again, in a small chamber bathed in a soft tan light. It looked rather like a simple interview room; square and featureless, with only two seats in it and no doors. One seat was clearly for Slay herself, and it was of an abstract ergonomic design, with a moderate amount of cushioning. The other was currently occupied by a navi that looked in part like a mass of long, very flexible, fluid arms, each bearing hands with farm more fingers than they really ought to have. The core of his body was mostly human, or so it seemed, but was comprised of equal parts delicate circuitry, more robust mechanics, and humanoid flesh. The skin that was visible was a shade of deep blue, shot through with pulsing circuit lights. The sheer number of extra limbs he seemed to possess did a good job of obscuring his main body, forming something of a cloak about him while his head was completely shrouded in a simple peaked hood that seemed to blend into his shoulders. While the features of his face were hidden, his eyes shone out eerily from the hood; they were mostly green, but had scrolling lines of data flicking up them in a constant string that would be impossible to read, and they shifted and coloured frequently with an almost kaleidoscopic wash through the colour spectrum before settling back to green. He looked up from his hood towards Slay, various limbs settling casually about his main body as he did, and his eyes swirled.
"So, Miss Slay. The test is concluded. Did you complete the other objective I gave you? Do you have any other comments you'd like to add?" From the shadow of the hood, it was impossible to see whether he was grinning or not, but the voice certainly sounded like he was.
Somewhere else, LightningMan found himself in a more or less identical room, facing the same CrypticMan who watched him with the fingers on his two main arms steepled in front of himself.
"'BoltMan'. All done. As promised, I didn't bother to look into your background any further, and one name on a research sheet is more or less the same as another. Did you do as I asked? Do you have any other comments you'd like to add?" The swirling colours of his eyes danced, as though he was well aware how unimpressed the lightning navi had been by the whole game.
In another location, yet another CrypticMan looked across the tiny interview room at the strange-speaking WoodBug, then ruefully shook his head.
"Should I even bother with you, I wonder? you don't even know what you're saying half the time, do you? And yet the insight! I'd just love to keep you..." Opposite him, WoodBug tilted his head this way and that.
"The vines run all through the forest, touching every tree." Cryptic sighed.
"Indeed..."
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"You're probably right about giving him what he wants... but this is one situation where acting isn't really going to help anything either. Well, it would help if you did it a little. It may not be a crime to be amused by how this experiment is being conducted, but I think it's indisputably in pretty bad taste, regardless..." Slay murmured quietly, casting a leery glance sideways towards her supposed ally. After the events that followed, she had more heated words than those for him. "See the results of their death? I smelled them!" she responded, growing a bit indignant. "How much more graphically do you want to see a navi die than witnessing their jack-out mechanism fail? That's a bit they don't even put in the movies, usually."
Tired of arguing about all of the wonderful reasons she shouldn't be horrified by all of the things she'd seen, she turned to speaking to their host again, although unfortunately about the same topic. "Isn't that nice... that you're so fascinated. Small constructive criticism, though: just telling me this is 'pretend' over and over again doesn't exactly make me feel safe," she responded, sounding at least as exasperated as he did. "No matter who I hear it from," she continued, casting another glance over to LightningMan. Slay had been ready to jack out and part of her almost wish she'd gotten to; she wanted revenge, but deep down, she wouldn't mind a chance to get away from all of this and tell someone on the outside what had happened. She desperately needed someone who wasn't entertained by the idea of casual murder (or otherwise spoke in leaf metaphors) to converse with.
There was no time to say anything else; she was quickly swept into the next room. Slay met another figure there, presumably the last she'd encounter on her outing today, and definitely the one she least wanted to present with a business card, as well as his look might fit one of her movies. She squinted at the man across the room from her and drew her lips into a tight frown. "What... are you saying? You're really asking if I completed the task I gave you? You were listening to us the whole time... Surely you already know?" she asked, thumbing the edge of her knife out of habit while keeping her dark eyes locked on the one she assumed to be CrypticMan. Right now, she knew that knife was little better than a movie prop; without Gordon's communication, she'd be able to do very little in the way of actually attacking him. Still, there was definitely an urge to introduce the villain to the more traditional killing method of a good old-fashioned stabbing.
There were a lot of additional comments Slay would like to make, certainly, but LightningMan's words still stung her a bit: despite what she'd said, she was growing very irritated at her propensity to give CrypticMan everything he wanted. The worst part was knowing that even if she shut her mouth and stayed quiet, that was just another reaction, and he'd likely glean all kinds of useful data from it. "If it's all fake, I just have... questions... Where did the others end up?" she asked, placing both hands onto the table, although one still held her knife under its palm. "Are they really back with their operators? Can you... show me, somehow? I don't know what the heck I'm doing here or what to believe... but as frustrated as I am, I'd feel at least a little better knowing I'm wrong and you didn't actually delete those navis," she murmured. "You're lying about something. Not everything you say can be true. You keep telling me nobody's been harmed, but you also told us one of the test groups that killed, right? One statement or the other has to be false... You stated those as past events, not theory..."
Tired of arguing about all of the wonderful reasons she shouldn't be horrified by all of the things she'd seen, she turned to speaking to their host again, although unfortunately about the same topic. "Isn't that nice... that you're so fascinated. Small constructive criticism, though: just telling me this is 'pretend' over and over again doesn't exactly make me feel safe," she responded, sounding at least as exasperated as he did. "No matter who I hear it from," she continued, casting another glance over to LightningMan. Slay had been ready to jack out and part of her almost wish she'd gotten to; she wanted revenge, but deep down, she wouldn't mind a chance to get away from all of this and tell someone on the outside what had happened. She desperately needed someone who wasn't entertained by the idea of casual murder (or otherwise spoke in leaf metaphors) to converse with.
There was no time to say anything else; she was quickly swept into the next room. Slay met another figure there, presumably the last she'd encounter on her outing today, and definitely the one she least wanted to present with a business card, as well as his look might fit one of her movies. She squinted at the man across the room from her and drew her lips into a tight frown. "What... are you saying? You're really asking if I completed the task I gave you? You were listening to us the whole time... Surely you already know?" she asked, thumbing the edge of her knife out of habit while keeping her dark eyes locked on the one she assumed to be CrypticMan. Right now, she knew that knife was little better than a movie prop; without Gordon's communication, she'd be able to do very little in the way of actually attacking him. Still, there was definitely an urge to introduce the villain to the more traditional killing method of a good old-fashioned stabbing.
There were a lot of additional comments Slay would like to make, certainly, but LightningMan's words still stung her a bit: despite what she'd said, she was growing very irritated at her propensity to give CrypticMan everything he wanted. The worst part was knowing that even if she shut her mouth and stayed quiet, that was just another reaction, and he'd likely glean all kinds of useful data from it. "If it's all fake, I just have... questions... Where did the others end up?" she asked, placing both hands onto the table, although one still held her knife under its palm. "Are they really back with their operators? Can you... show me, somehow? I don't know what the heck I'm doing here or what to believe... but as frustrated as I am, I'd feel at least a little better knowing I'm wrong and you didn't actually delete those navis," she murmured. "You're lying about something. Not everything you say can be true. You keep telling me nobody's been harmed, but you also told us one of the test groups that killed, right? One statement or the other has to be false... You stated those as past events, not theory..."
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LightningMan shook his head at Slay's responses. It seemed her operator had rubbed off on her, after all. A shame, that. "Ah, but did you actually see that? Yes, Funbags's 'deletion' only works with a split second light refraction off of the ice...it'd be impossible, for a human. But it's hardly beyond a Navi to pull it off. You're telling me that, beyond the shadow of a doubt, it really happened? Because I'm not seeing it." CrypticMan proceeded to make a remark about HeelNavis, that would've given him an annoyed look if he had his usual face. "Hey now, I've met some sharp HeelNavis...but I see your point. I guess it'd make sense for your little test if we all matched up with the earlier ones."
After some...words from the least coherent of the remaining group, the electrical Navi found himself falling in darkness, and winding up in a brand new room by himself. He took a moment to look over the Navi in front of him, but it was clear he was less than impressed at what he saw. Before speaking, he made sure his appearance was his normal one, swtiching back if needed. "Well, I would highly recommend it stay that way...I'd say your research might hit a snag if it didn't. But anyway, for your question, those Take and Cry idiots are in a relationship, but no one else is currently. Easy." He took a moment to think, then continued. "Oh, you might wanna make sure Slay knows for sure this was all staged. You never know, one day she might end up working with some bleeding heart actor with enough influence to be a thorn in your side, if he caught wind of you. ...Now, I trust my reward is forthcoming?"
After some...words from the least coherent of the remaining group, the electrical Navi found himself falling in darkness, and winding up in a brand new room by himself. He took a moment to look over the Navi in front of him, but it was clear he was less than impressed at what he saw. Before speaking, he made sure his appearance was his normal one, swtiching back if needed. "Well, I would highly recommend it stay that way...I'd say your research might hit a snag if it didn't. But anyway, for your question, those Take and Cry idiots are in a relationship, but no one else is currently. Easy." He took a moment to think, then continued. "Oh, you might wanna make sure Slay knows for sure this was all staged. You never know, one day she might end up working with some bleeding heart actor with enough influence to be a thorn in your side, if he caught wind of you. ...Now, I trust my reward is forthcoming?"
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Across from her, the sense that CrypticMan was smiling in the shadows of his hood was only getting clearer, in Slay's audience room. He steepled his fingers for a moment, then settled the arms down again. the myriad of other thin limbs shifted restlessly; down near the floor, two of the many-fingered hands on the end of each tendril began to aimlessly thumb-wrestle with one another.
"Everything might be true, everything might be a lie, miss Slay. Perhaps I meant only to say 'those who had killed', in the sense internal to the test; if you had all decided to simple out one person in your first test, you would all have been in the category of testers who killed, as well, after all." He lifted one of his main arms and held the hand palm up, out to the side. "Perhaps the heels you saw were other test subjects, just a little further along... and maybe you were killing them, or not.... Maybe the heels you saw were exactly as I told you: deletion-row criminals, dead navis walking anyway, while the final test was only meant to look similar, to unnerve people?" He raised his other hand to the other side. "Maybe they were all actors, and maybe yourself, WoodBug and mister, ah, 'BoltMan', were the only real participants in this entire test? Who knows? Well... I know, and knowledge is power, miss Slay." He finally got back to her actual questions with a shake of his hooded head; the eerie data scroll filtering past his glowing eyes was still the only properly visible feature underneath it, but he continued to sound amused.
"Confidentiality being what it is, I can't give you details of the other testers. I can assure you that they are safe, but you won't buy that, will you? Belief is a powerful tool, Slay. It is amazing what people will do, or hold themselves back from doing, based purely on what they 'Know' to be the case." The emphasis on the word was clear in his voice. "Whether it is the truth or not." She had leaned forward on the table now, but the hood just tilted to the side.
"Take you, for example... you are a woman of strong emotions, underneath an exterior that is schooled to often give off the exact opposite; you trust your own senses, and are quick to form an opinion based on what they tell you, rather than blindly accepting the words of others when they don't line up. You will seek reason to back up or change your conviction, but the conviction forms first and influences your actions. You do not accept the mandate of common society, and find it easy to question; easy even to believe that something is amiss when our common, real-life sensibilities will try to tell us it surely cannot be. That willingness to question leads you to uncertainty, though, and often that uncertainty will stay your hand, and prevent you from acting when your deeper feelings tell you that you should." At the end of the impromptu personality assessment, CrypticMan chuckled, shaking his hood slightly with mirth, then snapped his gaze back up to her again, serious.
In a sudden movement, his head moved forward; it wasn't the normal action of a navi sitting up or leaning in, but quite literally his head darted forward, moving more or less independently of the rest of his body while his neck stretched out to accommodate. It came forward until it was eye to eye with Slay, very nearly touching, on her side of the table, and if she leaned back at all, it would follow.
"And how do you feel now? You hold that knife like you want to use it, but you don't." After a moment, CrypticMan's body seemed to catch on to the fact that the head had gone elsewhere, and it rushed to catch up. It was a peculiar effect; beginning at the neck, it returned to its original length and distribution, but seemingly anchored to the head rather than the rest of the body, and the body was pulled along after it in one continuous flow of motion. He didn't move through the table, but by the same token it turned out to be no impediment due to the way his body moved, until it settled into 'normal' place again beneath the hood, now standing on Slay's side of the table and uncomfortable close to her. This close she could see his face more clearly beneath the hood, though it was unremarkable; the same bluish skin with circuit lighting made up plain facial features, though his amused grin was broad enough to show neat teeth.
"Do you want to stab me Slay? Would it make you feel better? You grip that knife, but you don't lash out... Is it because, despite what you believe about me, despite how strongly your reason tells you it is true, you still question yourself, and so stay your own hand, because you don't know exactly what will happen if you do it, and you are afraid? It all comes back to knowledge in the end, Slay." The moment of intensity remained for several more seconds before CrypticMan relaxed again, settling back to sit in the edge of the table now and folding his main arms over his chest. Provided Slay hadn't actually opted to stab him with her knife, his voice softened and resumed a less intense, more friendly tone.
"So yes... I am asking how you fared with your little task. I may know the answers, but I don't know how you would give them to me, from your perspective. Just give me whatever answers you've got... though really you technically only need to give me your answers for yourself, BoltMan and WoodBug..." Of course, if Slay did end up stabbing him at some point, his reaction would likely be somewhat different.
----
Elsewhere, a less emotional interview was taking place; less emotional and more... 'battle of haughty superiority'. CrypticMan seemed amused.
"This is the part where I might normally make an assurance of falsehood... or I might make a veiled suggestion of lethal truth... but there would be no point in doing either with you, would there? You have already decided on your truth, after all." He shrugged and many of his extra tendril-like limbs shrugged along with his actual shoulders. "Slay may believe whatever she wishes to, just as you do; I can make assurances, but I will prove nothing, to anyone. A part of this little game has been for those who make it to the end to explore themselves, as well as each other, and they may take away from it whatever they like. Some will take away more than others, but what their own truth is is up to them." Here he tilted his hood, eye colours swirling brightly through a spectrum before settling again, and he gestured with an open palm towards 'BoltMan'
"Take you, for example... you are a man of strong conviction, certainty of reason and surety of your own belief and knowledge. I would not be surprised if you didn't consider yourself to have any 'beliefs' at all... because that implies not knowing for certain. You simply 'Know'. You form your convictions based on reason, and are swift to disregard the apparent evidence of your senses when your reason speaks against them. When you have a conviction, it becomes your truth, and your intellect will work hard to find the truth that explains why your conviction is right, changing it or modifying what you know as truth only as a last resort. You find it easy to disregard the mandate of common society, because you do not see it as applying to you; you are above that, and you know more than them anyway. You rarely hesitate in acting, and even though this has likely led you to a wrong action or two in the past, you don't think of them as such, because you know that even if an action you make leads you an unfavourable outcome, you will still be in superior enough a position to make the most and best of it. The greatest cause of false steps for you, however, comes from the same source: you implicitly trust that the mandate of common society does, in fact, hold for everyone else, but because you know that all the everyday, common plebs are beneath you, you have a tendency to assume that because you walk about the rules of common society, no-one else does." One eye winked under the hood.
"And right now, I wager you're disregarding that cute little personality assessment as tosh, no? Maybe I just like to throw navis into rooms together and watch them murder each other, for no greater reason than because I told them to, when any of them were free to leave at any point." There was another mirthful chuckle. "So let's get down to the business end of things then, since that's what you're here for. Answers are acceptable, participation was full, everything is in order, really. Full marks, 'BoltMan', I'm glad to pay you for your time. Here you are." One of the tendril hands extended to place what looked like a miniaturised mystery data crystal on the table between them. It was the same blue as CrypticMan's skin, and was probably just the custom visual appearance of his standard data packets. If he claimed and opened the packet, he'd find it to contain data for three separate chips, one of which was partitioned off as being 'bonus' of some sort.
((LightningMan offered payment of ThunderBeam1, RemotePlug1 and MaruBlaster1, bonus included))
"And as always... as you were in the beginning, and will always be, you're free to jack out whenever you want to. I hope you enjoyed your time in the crypt, 'BoltMan'." Cryptic's eyes flared through their rainbow of colours again as he spoke, no question as to whether he was grinning under his hood now. Still, payment was being rendered and LightningMan was free to go, if he wanted. He had no indication about any of the other testers, slay include,d but presumably they would be able to hook up after they got out, and exchange notes then, if indeed, Slay got out.
"Everything might be true, everything might be a lie, miss Slay. Perhaps I meant only to say 'those who had killed', in the sense internal to the test; if you had all decided to simple out one person in your first test, you would all have been in the category of testers who killed, as well, after all." He lifted one of his main arms and held the hand palm up, out to the side. "Perhaps the heels you saw were other test subjects, just a little further along... and maybe you were killing them, or not.... Maybe the heels you saw were exactly as I told you: deletion-row criminals, dead navis walking anyway, while the final test was only meant to look similar, to unnerve people?" He raised his other hand to the other side. "Maybe they were all actors, and maybe yourself, WoodBug and mister, ah, 'BoltMan', were the only real participants in this entire test? Who knows? Well... I know, and knowledge is power, miss Slay." He finally got back to her actual questions with a shake of his hooded head; the eerie data scroll filtering past his glowing eyes was still the only properly visible feature underneath it, but he continued to sound amused.
"Confidentiality being what it is, I can't give you details of the other testers. I can assure you that they are safe, but you won't buy that, will you? Belief is a powerful tool, Slay. It is amazing what people will do, or hold themselves back from doing, based purely on what they 'Know' to be the case." The emphasis on the word was clear in his voice. "Whether it is the truth or not." She had leaned forward on the table now, but the hood just tilted to the side.
"Take you, for example... you are a woman of strong emotions, underneath an exterior that is schooled to often give off the exact opposite; you trust your own senses, and are quick to form an opinion based on what they tell you, rather than blindly accepting the words of others when they don't line up. You will seek reason to back up or change your conviction, but the conviction forms first and influences your actions. You do not accept the mandate of common society, and find it easy to question; easy even to believe that something is amiss when our common, real-life sensibilities will try to tell us it surely cannot be. That willingness to question leads you to uncertainty, though, and often that uncertainty will stay your hand, and prevent you from acting when your deeper feelings tell you that you should." At the end of the impromptu personality assessment, CrypticMan chuckled, shaking his hood slightly with mirth, then snapped his gaze back up to her again, serious.
In a sudden movement, his head moved forward; it wasn't the normal action of a navi sitting up or leaning in, but quite literally his head darted forward, moving more or less independently of the rest of his body while his neck stretched out to accommodate. It came forward until it was eye to eye with Slay, very nearly touching, on her side of the table, and if she leaned back at all, it would follow.
"And how do you feel now? You hold that knife like you want to use it, but you don't." After a moment, CrypticMan's body seemed to catch on to the fact that the head had gone elsewhere, and it rushed to catch up. It was a peculiar effect; beginning at the neck, it returned to its original length and distribution, but seemingly anchored to the head rather than the rest of the body, and the body was pulled along after it in one continuous flow of motion. He didn't move through the table, but by the same token it turned out to be no impediment due to the way his body moved, until it settled into 'normal' place again beneath the hood, now standing on Slay's side of the table and uncomfortable close to her. This close she could see his face more clearly beneath the hood, though it was unremarkable; the same bluish skin with circuit lighting made up plain facial features, though his amused grin was broad enough to show neat teeth.
"Do you want to stab me Slay? Would it make you feel better? You grip that knife, but you don't lash out... Is it because, despite what you believe about me, despite how strongly your reason tells you it is true, you still question yourself, and so stay your own hand, because you don't know exactly what will happen if you do it, and you are afraid? It all comes back to knowledge in the end, Slay." The moment of intensity remained for several more seconds before CrypticMan relaxed again, settling back to sit in the edge of the table now and folding his main arms over his chest. Provided Slay hadn't actually opted to stab him with her knife, his voice softened and resumed a less intense, more friendly tone.
"So yes... I am asking how you fared with your little task. I may know the answers, but I don't know how you would give them to me, from your perspective. Just give me whatever answers you've got... though really you technically only need to give me your answers for yourself, BoltMan and WoodBug..." Of course, if Slay did end up stabbing him at some point, his reaction would likely be somewhat different.
----
Elsewhere, a less emotional interview was taking place; less emotional and more... 'battle of haughty superiority'. CrypticMan seemed amused.
"This is the part where I might normally make an assurance of falsehood... or I might make a veiled suggestion of lethal truth... but there would be no point in doing either with you, would there? You have already decided on your truth, after all." He shrugged and many of his extra tendril-like limbs shrugged along with his actual shoulders. "Slay may believe whatever she wishes to, just as you do; I can make assurances, but I will prove nothing, to anyone. A part of this little game has been for those who make it to the end to explore themselves, as well as each other, and they may take away from it whatever they like. Some will take away more than others, but what their own truth is is up to them." Here he tilted his hood, eye colours swirling brightly through a spectrum before settling again, and he gestured with an open palm towards 'BoltMan'
"Take you, for example... you are a man of strong conviction, certainty of reason and surety of your own belief and knowledge. I would not be surprised if you didn't consider yourself to have any 'beliefs' at all... because that implies not knowing for certain. You simply 'Know'. You form your convictions based on reason, and are swift to disregard the apparent evidence of your senses when your reason speaks against them. When you have a conviction, it becomes your truth, and your intellect will work hard to find the truth that explains why your conviction is right, changing it or modifying what you know as truth only as a last resort. You find it easy to disregard the mandate of common society, because you do not see it as applying to you; you are above that, and you know more than them anyway. You rarely hesitate in acting, and even though this has likely led you to a wrong action or two in the past, you don't think of them as such, because you know that even if an action you make leads you an unfavourable outcome, you will still be in superior enough a position to make the most and best of it. The greatest cause of false steps for you, however, comes from the same source: you implicitly trust that the mandate of common society does, in fact, hold for everyone else, but because you know that all the everyday, common plebs are beneath you, you have a tendency to assume that because you walk about the rules of common society, no-one else does." One eye winked under the hood.
"And right now, I wager you're disregarding that cute little personality assessment as tosh, no? Maybe I just like to throw navis into rooms together and watch them murder each other, for no greater reason than because I told them to, when any of them were free to leave at any point." There was another mirthful chuckle. "So let's get down to the business end of things then, since that's what you're here for. Answers are acceptable, participation was full, everything is in order, really. Full marks, 'BoltMan', I'm glad to pay you for your time. Here you are." One of the tendril hands extended to place what looked like a miniaturised mystery data crystal on the table between them. It was the same blue as CrypticMan's skin, and was probably just the custom visual appearance of his standard data packets. If he claimed and opened the packet, he'd find it to contain data for three separate chips, one of which was partitioned off as being 'bonus' of some sort.
((LightningMan offered payment of ThunderBeam1, RemotePlug1 and MaruBlaster1, bonus included))
"And as always... as you were in the beginning, and will always be, you're free to jack out whenever you want to. I hope you enjoyed your time in the crypt, 'BoltMan'." Cryptic's eyes flared through their rainbow of colours again as he spoke, no question as to whether he was grinning under his hood now. Still, payment was being rendered and LightningMan was free to go, if he wanted. He had no indication about any of the other testers, slay include,d but presumably they would be able to hook up after they got out, and exchange notes then, if indeed, Slay got out.
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Slay nodded in quiet acknowledgement of the fact that CrypticMan may or may not be full of crap, a possibility that she'd long been aware of. "You're right about all that. There's more important things in life than just knowing everything, though. The way I see it, you're like a hoarder, collecting stuff and doing nothing with it," she murmured, crossing her arms judgmentally. "Although, that's just me assuming. I have a hard time thinking that you're making anybody's life better by researching how I react to people I like being blasted to smithereens in close vicinity." CrypticMan continued to lay it all out there, reaffirming the fact that she had no idea whether her new acquaintances were alright or not and that he was a big jerk. That he had no respect for personal space was not surprising, as tact did not appear to be high on his list of priorities.
"Ha. For all of your knowledge, you're wrong about that," she murmured through clenched teeth, gripping her fingers harder around her knife in a way that made it fortunate that she chose to wear heavy leather gloves. "I'm wishing I'd thought to bring my chainsaw." That joke/threat aside, she didn't want to stab CrypticMan... partially because violence wouldn't help, but mostly because she would put odds at 95-5 that CrypticMan wouldn't act the way he did if it was so simple to just reach out and stab him in the glowing blue face. She'd make a comment on how he'd be pretty great in a horror movie, but she felt like that strongly implied meeting him again in the future, which she hoped never to do. Once he retracted his... self... she raised an eyebrow, seeing that he was still going on about the gossipy mission he'd given her early on. "I wish you'd be like... enraged if I didn't tell you the answers you want, but you'd probably just go, 'oh, that's an interesting response,' and smile about it. So I'll tell you so I can... uh... leave," she murmured, although she was still trying to think up some way to get him to tell her what had really happened to the other navis.
"BoltMan doesn't care about sexual intimacy," she began. "You said earlier that we can only truly believe what we have evidence for; well, to that end, I imagine it's probably impossible that he'd care for other people intimately, when he doesn't uh... really care for people. Dolly's bisexual or at least, that's what she said. Cry likes his wife... Take likes her husband, so their preferences are obvious. I have no idea about WoodBug. I'm guessing VerteFee is interested in girls... or... was," she murmured, casting her eyes downward in a look that was genuinely depressed rather than just looking naturally gloomy. "That's all. I'm sure there's all kinds of things you can do with your new knowledge of how people react to their friends dying and what kind of boys and girls they liked before they died."
"Ha. For all of your knowledge, you're wrong about that," she murmured through clenched teeth, gripping her fingers harder around her knife in a way that made it fortunate that she chose to wear heavy leather gloves. "I'm wishing I'd thought to bring my chainsaw." That joke/threat aside, she didn't want to stab CrypticMan... partially because violence wouldn't help, but mostly because she would put odds at 95-5 that CrypticMan wouldn't act the way he did if it was so simple to just reach out and stab him in the glowing blue face. She'd make a comment on how he'd be pretty great in a horror movie, but she felt like that strongly implied meeting him again in the future, which she hoped never to do. Once he retracted his... self... she raised an eyebrow, seeing that he was still going on about the gossipy mission he'd given her early on. "I wish you'd be like... enraged if I didn't tell you the answers you want, but you'd probably just go, 'oh, that's an interesting response,' and smile about it. So I'll tell you so I can... uh... leave," she murmured, although she was still trying to think up some way to get him to tell her what had really happened to the other navis.
"BoltMan doesn't care about sexual intimacy," she began. "You said earlier that we can only truly believe what we have evidence for; well, to that end, I imagine it's probably impossible that he'd care for other people intimately, when he doesn't uh... really care for people. Dolly's bisexual or at least, that's what she said. Cry likes his wife... Take likes her husband, so their preferences are obvious. I have no idea about WoodBug. I'm guessing VerteFee is interested in girls... or... was," she murmured, casting her eyes downward in a look that was genuinely depressed rather than just looking naturally gloomy. "That's all. I'm sure there's all kinds of things you can do with your new knowledge of how people react to their friends dying and what kind of boys and girls they liked before they died."
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The soft chuckle returned as Slay gave her answers. Cryptic's eyes swirled beneath his hood then his attention shifted again. This time, two of his auxiliary hands darted around to one side of Slay then came back up to press fingertips against her shoulders, vaguely massaging. As before, it was several seconds before the rest of his body caught on tot he fact, and slid after the hands to realign behind her. This put his head close behind her, though not quite as invasively close as his first stare-down had been. The fingertips massaged slowly, unless Slay pulled herself free or sought to get away from him; if she did, the creepy navi didn't follow.
"You use strong words, Slay... but no actions. You feel like you ought to be wreaking bloody vengeance upon me, but you do nothing... As I said. Think on that, miss Slay. Judge me however you want, and leave here believing whatever you want to believe... Maybe think about how you feel accepting my payment for your time, too..." Another of the tendril hands circled around her this one holding out a small blue data crystal that looked more or less like a miniature mystery data. "Consider maybe that the only thing stopping you from taking revenge upon me, now, is yourself, and your own uncertainty, just as the only thing that led navi to kill navi earlier, when they might just have easily have gone home, was knowledge, or the lack of it, and the words of a complete stranger... Here is your reward, miss Slay. I'll overlook the fact that you didn't give me an answer for yourself, because you've been fun."
If Slay accepted and opened the data reward, she'd find it contained a tidy 6500 zenny, with a small portion of it partitioned as 'bonus'. CrypticMan withdrew, with his disconcerting mode of transit, to the far side of the desk again, then put one of his main arms over his chest, inclining his hood to her.
"As you always have been from the beginning, you are free to jack out at any time. Enjoy the rest of your life, Slay. I'll see you again." The eyes swirled through their rainbow spectrum again and this time his small laugh was enough to make anyone's skin creep just a little.
((Slay offered 6500z as payment, bonus included))
"You use strong words, Slay... but no actions. You feel like you ought to be wreaking bloody vengeance upon me, but you do nothing... As I said. Think on that, miss Slay. Judge me however you want, and leave here believing whatever you want to believe... Maybe think about how you feel accepting my payment for your time, too..." Another of the tendril hands circled around her this one holding out a small blue data crystal that looked more or less like a miniature mystery data. "Consider maybe that the only thing stopping you from taking revenge upon me, now, is yourself, and your own uncertainty, just as the only thing that led navi to kill navi earlier, when they might just have easily have gone home, was knowledge, or the lack of it, and the words of a complete stranger... Here is your reward, miss Slay. I'll overlook the fact that you didn't give me an answer for yourself, because you've been fun."
If Slay accepted and opened the data reward, she'd find it contained a tidy 6500 zenny, with a small portion of it partitioned as 'bonus'. CrypticMan withdrew, with his disconcerting mode of transit, to the far side of the desk again, then put one of his main arms over his chest, inclining his hood to her.
"As you always have been from the beginning, you are free to jack out at any time. Enjoy the rest of your life, Slay. I'll see you again." The eyes swirled through their rainbow spectrum again and this time his small laugh was enough to make anyone's skin creep just a little.
((Slay offered 6500
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Slay wasn't really a person who reacted well to being touched to begin with, so being touched in such an intimate way by someone who she thoroughly hated really rubbed her the wrong way, pun intended. A shiver ran down each arm and her spine; she was very, very close to reflexively stabbing him now, but managed to abstain. She didn't turn around to face him because she felt that being rubbed while looking at him would be even more repulsive, but she wasn't entirely certain of her ability to break the contact. "Just because I'm an actor doesn't mean I have to act, CrypticMan. I play a murderer, but I'm not a murderer. A real murderer is a despicable person..." she responded. "Stop acting like you're the only one that can think. I'll live with not killing you, just like I'll live with taking your money," she further offered. "You know... you're the kind of person who thinks you're a lot smarter than you really are. One of these days, you're going to realize how precious life is... and I wouldn't mind if that's a painful lesson for you. Sorry, I'm being melodramatic like something out of a crappy movie... But it's the truth. If navis were meant as uh... vessels and receptacles... for knowledge, we'd never have been given bodies, minds, and feelings... well, most of us were given feelings, anyway. Anyways, I'm done."
She took that moment to rise from the table and attempt jack out. Assuming it worked, she'd spend the return to Gordon thinking to herself that maybe Gordon's being inept at horror wasn't such a bad thing... the other side of the spectrum was worse.
((Jacking out))
She took that moment to rise from the table and attempt jack out. Assuming it worked, she'd spend the return to Gordon thinking to herself that maybe Gordon's being inept at horror wasn't such a bad thing... the other side of the spectrum was worse.
((Jacking out))
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...Prove nothing? 'Little game'? What kind of scientist was this guy? Not the kind he was familiar with...at least he didn't call him 'LightningDude'. "Whatever, have it your way. Though, let's hope that it really is a matter of you choosing not to prove it...if you actually couldn't, you'd be a pretty terrible scientist."
He then proceeded to get a personality analysis. He chuckled, as it was clearly done without knowing a certain key fact about him. "...I see. Believe it or not, I actually found that somewhat interesting. It never hurts to know how others perceive you. And the majority of it is probably true...but there's one part that's so blatantly false it's actually kinda funny." ...But he saw no reason to share what part that was, or why. It'd be begging CrypticMan to look more into him, and neither of them would care for that end result.
The appearance of a data packet, however, was an end result he could get behind. He wasted little time in accessing it, and investigating the contents. ThunderBeam, very useful. RemotePlug, not quite as useful, but still decent, and it was pretty rare. MaruBlaster...dumb name, but there were worse chips. Not a bad haul for jumping through a couple of hoops. "Oh, enjoyment is a strong word...but rest assured, it wasn't a waste of my time. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go save a certain someone from a horror far worse than anything you conjured up." With chip data in tow, LightningMan turned into a yellow beam of light, and attempted to exit the Net. Though, he'd be genuinely surprised if there was any impediments to that.
He then proceeded to get a personality analysis. He chuckled, as it was clearly done without knowing a certain key fact about him. "...I see. Believe it or not, I actually found that somewhat interesting. It never hurts to know how others perceive you. And the majority of it is probably true...but there's one part that's so blatantly false it's actually kinda funny." ...But he saw no reason to share what part that was, or why. It'd be begging CrypticMan to look more into him, and neither of them would care for that end result.
The appearance of a data packet, however, was an end result he could get behind. He wasted little time in accessing it, and investigating the contents. ThunderBeam, very useful. RemotePlug, not quite as useful, but still decent, and it was pretty rare. MaruBlaster...dumb name, but there were worse chips. Not a bad haul for jumping through a couple of hoops. "Oh, enjoyment is a strong word...but rest assured, it wasn't a waste of my time. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go save a certain someone from a horror far worse than anything you conjured up." With chip data in tow, LightningMan turned into a yellow beam of light, and attempted to exit the Net. Though, he'd be genuinely surprised if there was any impediments to that.
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Content to let 'BoltMan' have his last word, Cryptic merely inclined his head in a small gesture of politeness before the other navi jacked out - as promised there was no impediment to this, however, upon returning to the PET Lightning man, if it was something he checked up on, would find that the link they'd first taken to get to the crypt had decayed, and there seemed no immediate way to trace it back or to return, if he had wanted to for any reason.
((FXP is as follows, players make take whichever they wish and leave any others as desired:
Slay and LightningMan get 12 mutual FXP.
In addition, LightningMan gets: 5 FPX for CrypticMan, 2 FXP for Cocoa, 1 FXP for CriesLikeAGirl, 2 FXP for TakesItLikeAMan, 3 FXP for WoodBug, 1 FXP for DollyHeart and 1 FXP for VerteFée.
In addition, Slay gets: 6 FPX for CrypticMan, 3 FXP for Cocoa, 3 FXP for CriesLikeAGirl, 3 FXP for TakesItLikeAMan, 5 FXP for WoodBug, 1 FXP for DollyHeart and 7 FXP for VerteFée.))
((FXP is as follows, players make take whichever they wish and leave any others as desired:
Slay and LightningMan get 12 mutual FXP.
In addition, LightningMan gets: 5 FPX for CrypticMan, 2 FXP for Cocoa, 1 FXP for CriesLikeAGirl, 2 FXP for TakesItLikeAMan, 3 FXP for WoodBug, 1 FXP for DollyHeart and 1 FXP for VerteFée.
In addition, Slay gets: 6 FPX for CrypticMan, 3 FXP for Cocoa, 3 FXP for CriesLikeAGirl, 3 FXP for TakesItLikeAMan, 5 FXP for WoodBug, 1 FXP for DollyHeart and 7 FXP for VerteFée.))