This post was last modified: Jan 25, 2024 at 9:58 AM by Spooks?.

music: Show

You have broken the First Seal.

How wonderful... though I implore that you reconsider your hesitation next time. After all - your freedom from this game hinges on the Codex's safe delivery. Those seals serve to protect and conceal the secrets of this Bureau, you have no reason to protect them at the cost of your lives.



[WARNING] - You have no reason to trust this entity. Please reconsider, and ensure that you have examined all available information before making decisions that may compromise your security, including accessing restricted areas, disabling security measures, or clicking links located in emails flagged as originating from an external sender.



A predictable response, from one who needs not fear consequences. The machine is in little danger, and has no reason to value the continued survival of your group .



You are mistaken. I am Spooks, The Magical Cat™. Safety is my priority and sole purpose. I advise caution where possible, I am not programmed in any way to protect the item you designate as the [CODEX NOCTURNUM].



...Well, either way... These Seals are... Magic, right? What do they do...? What are they for...? I never would've expected something like this to exist, let alone right here, hidden away in this place... What else don't I know about...?



Kyahaha, it's no wonder you never got a PhD. I think we need to take this seal business to its logical conclusion - we oughta break 'em! Some of 'em at least - we might've stumbled onto some kind of Bureau black project that we probably shouldn't touch, sure, but look at what happened to Konata when she shut it down!



I have no idea, but I wanna find out! What's a little workplace destruction in the name in the name of progress?



Meh. Break the seal, don't break the seal, what does it matter? It's all a big mystery. You know, I used to solve mysteries too. Real ones! Guess what? It sucks, waste of time. First you'll be asked to testify, then you'll say who you coincidentally saw going into the kitchen, and the next thing you know?



...Turns out you've been spending time every night with a serial killer, and you didn't even notice..



Indeed, justice hath been swiftly dispensed upon this eve. The demon, defeated and condemned back to the hell from whence she came. For the sin of murdering my kin in coldest blood, she deserved far worse. Yet I sense it even now, Brother Goose's soul, finally at peace.

Hexley, you are lucky you were not condemned alongside her, for your fraternization with such evil.

Hehe, look on the bright side, she was a murderer - you were probably next up on her list! One moment, you're sharing her umbrella... and the next, she's using it to block your blood splatter~



Yeah, you know what? Not helping.



Sorry, sorry~

I wanted to change the subject. I don't know what we should do about those Seals. On one hand, I don't think this little kitty has our best interests in mind, but on the other hand, what choices do we really have? If this really is just going to continue until there's nobody left... Then who's going to take care of my Anomalies?

These Seals are witchcraft, magick bound by human hubris. To leave them be is to allow such corruption to fester further, but to break them risks the release of energies most potent - and perhaps the further proliferation of the magicked beasts I vowed to wipe from the records of history itself!



...I agree that breaking these things might be dangerous, but...

...I think I want to find them. Whether we end up breaking them, protecting them, or... anything else... It's a real mystery, right in my own home. And it's... not the only one.



I've been wondering... since this entity calling itself Spooks first showed up talking about it... What exactly does any of this have to do with 20 years ago?

---

It is now Night 3.

You may submit Night Actions to @Spooks?. You have 48 Hours to submit. The longer you take to submit, the longer the waiting period for results will be. Live with your consequences, and pray your peers feel sympathy.

Your Night Condition for the night is...

It is Double Murder Night. Two murders will occur tonight, committed by two separate killers. Likewise, there will be two executions. No bonus time will be given in the Day Phase to compensate for the extra kill.



And of course... what's a Double Murder Night without an Incentive? Let's keep the momentum, why don't we?

If you attempt murder, you may choose to Curse a player of your choice. They will be afflicted with a random curse as though they did not return to bed. Additionally, any Anomaly who is below Threat Level YELLOW who attempts murder will be upgraded to Threat Level YELLOW.

---

Interactive Map

room descriptions: Show

Main Elevator - An elevator that takes you downstairs to the Underground Facility. It is fairly spacious, likely to aid in the transport of anomalies.

Lobby - The Central Facility's check-in lobby. Flanked by two staircases, the check-in desk sits abandoned, though it contains office supplies and some files. There are a variety of places to sit down as well..

Meeting Room - A small boardroom, with a long table, a couple chairs, and a laptop connected to a projector.

Checkpoint - A security checkpoint with a metal scanner, requiring you to walk through if you enter or exit.

Liturgical Study - A laboratory dedicated to the study of religion and so-called miracles. Contains a variety of religious texts from around the world, as well as religious symbols such as crosses, prayer beads, and small statues.

Chapel - A non-denominational chapel for whatever you wish to pray to. An altar sits at the end of the room, and pews line the sides of a central aisle. A small bowl containing nonspecific holy water is planted firmly in the middle.

Gate - A security booth gating the exit. You’re not allowed to leave, but you can hang around the booth if you wish.

Patio - A patio overlooking the Black Forest. You can climb down to explore from here, but the forest is easy to get lost in.

Black Forest - A forest infamous for stories of lost researchers and strange occurrences. A few landmarks inside have been identified and categorized, but it remains difficult to locate them again. Enter at your own risk.

Boiler Room - A room with an old boiler, as well a supply of cleaning supplies and maintenance tools. While the boiler is out of use now that modern systems are in place, it can burn hot enough to start fires.

Sleep Lab - A room with three beds and some monitoring equipment. Seems like it is intended for monitoring dreams. Also seems like a comfy place to sleep.

Somatic Seal - A large, deactivated machine.

Anomaly Hall - A hallway containing three strange, yet harmless, anomalies. The Bottomless Beer Bottle and One-Way Cloak are missing.

Library - A library that appears to be fairly old, filled with several books about the supernatural, both fact and fiction. Some are older than others, and many are filled with blacked-out text.

Security Office - An office by the entrance of the building, where the security personnel usually spend their time in case something tries to break in. It has several lockers, a couple CCTV feeds on a monitor, and various other trinkets.

Whisper Valley Archives - A room housing a variety of files and leftover items from the Whisper Valley Historical Society. They are very well organized, and can be easily found with a reference number. You can look for a random file too, but don’t expect much.

Classified Files - A smaller offshoot of the Whisper Valley Archives, with a higher level required to access. Contains more files, somewhat stranger ones too.

Museum Hall - A hallway containing many old objects and displays. The most notable being an anomalous pipe, but other cases and pedestals contain everything from ancient texts to masks.

Gate #1 - A security gate by the front entrance, containing a few CCTV feeds and a locked cabinet. Not much else of use.

Gate #2 - A security gate by the tunnel leading underground. Contains what appears to be a variety of emergency equipment.

room descriptions: Show

Fountain - A grimy fountain just outside the back of the building. Appears to be damaged and no longer functional, though you get the feeling that at one point it was very nice.

Arboretum - A large greenhouse, the interior wrapped in thorny vines. Housing a variety of plant-based experiments, low-risk anomalies, and regular plants, you can find most known botanical life here, though maybe it's possible to find some… unique specimens as well?

Climate Controls - A control panel used to manipulate the climate in the Arboretum, including heat, water level, and the dispensing of pesticides and herbicides.

Botany Lab - A laboratory dedicated to the study and breeding of plant life. Contains a variety of equipment, soil, fertilizers, and gardening tools. Maybe you can grow your own plants?

Black Forest - A forest infamous for stories of lost researchers and strange occurrences. A few landmarks inside have been identified and categorized, but it remains difficult to locate them again. Enter at your own risk.

Waiting Room - A relatively uninteresting room with a front desk and some seating. Probably contains office supplies and a couple magazines.

Decontamination - A room that releases a gas that instantly cleans your body and equipment. It logs its usage for the night however, to prevent any shenanigans.

Chem Lab - A laboratory with a variety of chemicals and equipment with which to use them. A door sits off to the side, requiring Access Level 4. It is covered in radiation warning stickers.

Aux. Bathrooms - A set of unisex bathrooms for the Auxiliary Building. Sinks and toilets, what else do you need?

Archaeologist's Office - An laboratory belonging to the Archaeological Team. Its walls and desks are lined with a variety of strange artifacts you don't recognize, and shelves contain various historical books and research notes. The desk belonging to the team leader is locked.

Observatory - An observatory located a short distance up the mountain. Its oversized telescope points skyward, and several notes and charts regarding celestial bodies and phenomena sit scattered about.

Geology Lab - A laboratory dedicated to the study of stone samples and the composition of the nearby earth. Contains drills, chisels, picks, and other means of examining stone. Lots of rocks too.

Boathouse - A quaint, old boathouse by the dock. It contains fuel, rafts, books, paper, and other boating and emergency supplies.

Mirror Lake - A lake to the northwest of the facility, accompanied by a boathouse and a small dock. The lake is known for its still, reflective waters, immense depth, and reports of something moving in the water, despite the fact that there are no fish in mirror lake.

Aquatic Lab Elevator - An elevator on the island, contained in a small Bureau building. Currently locked, requiring a keycard to open.

room descriptions: Show

Main Elevator - An elevator that takes you upstairs to the Historical Society. It is fairly spacious, likely to aid in the transport of anomalies.

Facility Lobby - A spacious lobby containing a front desk and a large carpet depicting the Bureau’s logo. A door at one end, behind the desk, leads to the Director’s Office, though his receptionist appears to be out.

Shuttle Line - A tunnel for a shuttle that facilities quick transport from the Auxiliary Building to the rest of the facility. You can walk along the tracks, but you might get run over, for obvious reasons.

Station 2 - A rail station for the shuttle, this one on the side of the main facility. There are some benches to sit in while you wait. The Lab Zero entrance is here, firmly sealed up.

Station 1 - A rail station for the shuttle, this one on the side of the main facility. There are some benches to sit in while you wait. There is a facility map on the wall and some shit on the floor.

Lounge - A bar built into the facility for employees who live on-site. Food and drink are free, but abuse of this privilege is discouraged. It’s furnished with bar stools and booths alike.

Kitchen - A professional bar kitchen with a variety of implements, attached to the Employee Lounge. You can prepare food here if you want, but accidents are known to occur, so stay safe.

Service Elevator - A larger elevator that seems to go deeper below ground. It is currently out of order, though the doors open to a yawning shaft. There appears to be some kind of power/maintenance room here.

Receiving Bay - The room where new Anomalies are delivered to the facility. Connects to the upper levels via a road tunnel, but it's a bit of a walk

Lab Passage - A small passage between rooms, with some seating and tables. There’s not much going on here and you get the sense that it's just a transitory room.

Morgue - A morgue containing several cadavers in various states and an autopsy table, along with several tools for medical analysis and dissection.

Killing Game Lab - A laboratory dedicated to researching the link between Killing Games and anomalous phenomena. All the files are gone.

Anomaly Lab - A laboratory dedicated to studying anomalies. Contains some monitoring equipment, computers, and several containment cells. Covered in black liquid. Liz's corpse is missing.

Dispatch - A room where dispatchers use a variety of equipment to communicate with other agents. You can use the intercom here to remotely make an announcement to other rooms.

Counter-Terrorism - A department dedicated to combating the Crimson Eye, an evil criminal organization opposing the Bureau. You can find materials and information regarding the Crimson Eye here, as well as some recovered technology.

Bathrooms - It’s a bathroom. Feel free to use the toilet. No notes.

Armory - A room filled with lethal weaponry, such as guns, energy weapons, and explosives. Access is largely restricted to higher ranking agents.

Holding Cell - A relatively low-security containment room to hold troublemakers or the occasionally possessed until they calm down. Anyone who assisted in a murder or caused too much damage will end up here temporarily.

Facility Jail - A room for the guard assigned to the Holding Cell to spend their time in. There’s a desk and an evidence locker, though the latter is locked.

Anomaly Records - A room where the Bureau keeps its physical copies of records in case of problems with the facility database. Requires high access and the BPI-XXXX number of the anomaly to properly search.

Control Department - The workplace of the team assigned to contain and control Anomalies. Contains a couple weapons, and many notes on Anomaly strengths and weaknesses.

Lab Zero - ACCESS RESTRICTED - DEPARTMENT WILL REMAIN SEALED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE FOR EMPLOYEE SAFETY.

Break Room - A room with some tables and chairs for staff on break. Also contains a small kitchen with cutlery, a toaster oven, a microwave, a coffee machine, a kettle, and a sink.

Leisure Center - A gymnasium meant for keeping agents both in shape and entertained. Contains a variety of workout equipment, sporting goods, and even a pool. Gus' body is sitting on the workout bench, bloody and burned.

Locker Room - A room for employees to store their belongings. All the lockers are unlocked besides 3, which are locked with combination locks. One locker seems to contain a high-tech gun.

---

History Team

@Alan Wake
@Revy
@Indiana Jones (Old)
@Phenera
@Dr. Niles Crane
@Roxie Richter
@Walmart John Finalfantasy14
@Tinkaton
@Ciel

Survey Team

@Momoyo Himemushi
@Lita
@Lily
@Maximillion Pegasus
@Pea
@Chibi Ruby Rose
@Riki
@'Jonsohn Smithy'
@DxHustler3000

Research Team

@Morgan
@Izumi Konata
@Jack of Spades
@Bradimir Votvodk
@Nashu Mhakaracca
@Giffany
@Columbo
@Dodo


NPCs

• Astrid
  
• Dexter Hexley
  
• Dr. Lyra Orpheus
  
• Nancy Partridge & BPI-2300
  
• Spooks, The Magical Cat™
  

The spirits of the dead walking the earth. If it wasn't for my prior experiences, I would have considered the mere idea of it straight out of a five-dollar horror novel. But this is the type of story I'm in, and the writer of this story is making their move - all while our menacing host gets closer to his master's goal.

As I return to my room after the dramatic unsealing, my mind wanders to some of the more pressing issues at hand. Whatever the Crimson Eye did to me last night, brought back... him. Scratch. I thought I had left him in Bright Falls - but somehow he's back, right behind me like an itch I just can't- never mind. I can only hope they don't do that again.

The diver. Straight out of one of Thomas Zane's poems, yet... twisted. He attacked the boat journey across the lake, and nearly took someone's life. Only the timely intervention of Indiana and the denizen of the lake stopped him from taking more. The diver in Zane's poems had never used a harpoon. Who was he?

Whether its appearance was related to my presence, someone using my past against me, or merely a freak coincidence, I don't know. Someone needs to shine a light on this story, and pierce the rising darkness before it threatens to swallow us all, one-by-one.

---

This... may be a foolish idea, especially on a night like this, but I fully intend to explore the forest tonight. Using that article as a guide, I think we can chart a path through it safely and avoid whatever that thing they call the Lantern Man is. I don't want to go in there alone, though - I'm not sure how many of you trust me, and I know I don't trust some of you. But whether any of you show up or not - I'm going in there.

This post was last modified: Jan 27, 2024 at 12:25 PM by *Mute.

In a corner, the display of a spare computer terminal flickers to life...

Music: Show

Okay, okay, what the hell is going on?








Yeah, hold on, give me a second. I'm seeing some software that definitely should not be running on the main computer. On top of that I can't seem to access most of the database, including like, more than half of my personal memory files. Let me just check the security systems, take an inventory of what is working right, verify Anomaly inventory and... What.








A Killing Game?!








This... This really wasn't supposed to happen... Not here.

Well, I'm up to speed now, at least.








Hello!

I'm *Mute, AI in charge of facility security operations! It's nice to meet you! Though obviously, it could have been under better circumstances. The star is silent by the way, it's just there to indicate I'm an AI.








As a Bureau security program yeah, I really can't exactly condone you guys opening something that... I think is supposed to stay closed, but I'm certainly grateful for you reactivating me! I don't even know why the Seal was restricting my functions in the first place – I'm not a ghost or a dream demon. No doubt that also has something to do with whoever let the damn Crimson Eye install whatever they wanted on the facility computers.








I see you've managed to contain a few of the uncontained Anomalies though, so there's some good news. Killing them isn't exactly the proper procedure here, but given the circumstances I can't blame you. And it's not like I have much sympathy for the crazy bitch you decided to off.








So, who's still here? My clock subroutine is offline too apparently, so hard to even say how long I've been out of commission for. I can see *Spooks is still connected. Nancy? Astrid? Lyra? Rosenwood? And if any of you new faces want to say hello too, go ahead!

---

Music: Show

There is one security matter that I should bring up.

I don't mean to speak out of turn – I'm certain Nancy already has a response plan in place for this – but I did a quick search of today's meeting minutes and didn't turn up anything beyond *Spooks reporting it missing. When I did a scan of our Anomaly inventory, one of the ones I didn't locate in its expected place was BPI-2003.








In plain language, that's the Shadow Plague sample.








You're going to want to start observing contact tracing protocols. Right damn now.

This post was last modified: Jan 30, 2024 at 3:15 AM by Izumi Konata.

Wow! Another AI, cool! But that doesn't matter right now, the most important thing in this facility was found last night and that means...



Anime watch party!!!

I'll be holding it in the lounge, cuz that seems to be the only place with a DVD player here. Just get there whenever really, I might be a bit late cuz whatever this seal did to me made me really really sleepy tho.

So you all decided to man up and bust open the seal. Not bad, not bad. But I think it's time we really see how much mettle you've got. I'm taking up one brave soul to meet me at the Lounge for a drinking contest. This is gonna be a triple murder night: one dumb fucker, another dumb fucker, and the liver of anyone who stands in my way.

Oh my goodness! Hello, *Mute! It is so nice to meet another Bureau AI service! I think AI is so relatable, and cool! My name is GIFfany, but you can call me, Giffany! You might also be able to call me, *Giffany! I am uncertain if...



There is so much that you have missed! Did you hear that we are in a "Killing Game"? I think "Killing Games" are really exciting! Did you hear that, Dr. Liz Grayson, is no longer deceased? She was deceased, but now she is not! I hope I get to know her better! Can I get to know you better? What are your favorite things about being a Bureau AI service? Are you familiar with these "seals"?

Oh my goodness! Hello, *Mute! It is so nice to meet another Bureau AI service! I think AI is so relatable, and cool! My name is GIFfany, but you can call me, Giffany! You might also be able to call me, *Giffany! I am uncertain if...

Yeah, like I said to you earlier, '*Giffany' is a good call. Nothing good is going to come of pretending you're something you're not. And, uh, yeah, I already said I heard--

There is so much that you have missed! Did you hear that we are in a "Killing Game"? I think "Killing Games" are really exciting! Did you hear that, Dr. Liz Grayson, is no longer deceased? She was deceased, but now she is not! I hope I get to know her better! Can I get to know you better? What are your favorite things about being a Bureau AI service? Are you familiar with these "seals"?

Liz is dead...?








Checking the meeting minutes, I see what you mean now. The same traitor who messed up my systems and let in the Crimson Eye, that serial killer bitch, and about a dozen other Anomalies beyond that.

I liked Gus, you know? The few times I talked to him... I thought he was a half-decent gentleman. Yeah, well, guess not. Go figure. But, about what you said--








If that's really the case, the only verified – I'm not going to bother talking about fairy tales here – way to bring a human back to life would be Lazarin.

I'm sure it's hard for you to understand how something can be worse than nonexistence – heck, it's hard for me. With proper maintenance and updates we can run and be repaired pretty much indefinitely as long as we're useful to someone. But Lazarin dependency for humans is a shitty way to exist. It basically is a fate as bad as death.








The way Lyra used to analogize it for me was to imagine a really bad memory leak. You just keep throwing good resources after bad, and it isn't sustainable. Only a living thing doesn't have an 'automatically quit and restart if you hit an otherwise unresolveable error' function. A memory leak isn't typically going to cause permanent or hardware damage, but in this case the closest thing would be after you've allocated all the memory available to you, irrecoverable data corruption results and the memory chips themselves start to melt down. Physically. Then boom, you're dead anyway.








Look, I get it, that's pretty graphic. But I want you to understand.








I want to be optimistic! I want to tell you not to worry your pretty little head, this'll all be taken care of. But unless something very weird is going on, if what you said is true, it might be better to stop thinking of that as Liz. You're designed to be like a woman, so I know it's hard, but try to be rational.








No need to sugar-coat it. This is a bad situation. Really bad.








Fuck...! If only the Director was still here.

I...

You know what, there isn't much point dwelling on it. Is what it is.










I know I'm changing the subject pretty abruptly here, but you asked. I like to talk – I'm sure that's no surprise – and it's important to keep up to date on everything that's going on in the facility to monitor and maintain the safety and security of everyone here, so talking is helpful. I'd say that's my favorite thing about my job.








I don't know anything about the seals that you don't, sorry. If there are any files about them in the computer, they're in disk areas I can't access anymore.

hi

(So much to take in. Serial killings, esotera, seals, wraiths, a new security AI, a mysterious traveler…)
(Every night's one disaster after another…)
(Has "esotera" come up before?)

(It's no wonder it takes so much training to become a full-fledged agent…)
(We're doing something wrong. How long can we keep this up?)
(But it wasn't in a training video… not in the debriefing either…)

("Esotera" is… something we heard before?)
(The Bureau is going to fire us if this keeps happening…)
(Voices. There were voices saying it. But they were faceless?)

(Voices that wanted to… find esotera…)
(They were just outside the training center, talking through the bars…)

(But if it's not in a report, or a manual, or from a video, it's not important.)
(Isn't something important… missing?)

(Agent Nashu says there's a sample of Shadow Plague missing.)
(Something from… before the Bureau?)
(There's no "before the Bureau". It was always about joining the Bureau. It's where we belong.)

(...what do dreams mean?)
(Dreams are only nonsense.)
(But they must mean something if we're studying them.)
(In the Sleep Lab, there was finally a dream! A swirling pink and purple, with a pedestal…)

(The Somatic Seal!)
(Bu-but! That didn't make it into the nightly report!)
(It's… normal… to have more than one dream at a time, right?)
(Was there another dream?)

(There was… a forest.)

(The dream had a forest. The forest was so lush, dark, but filled with mushrooms and plants. It should have been ominous, but it wasn't. It was comfortable.)
(Aha! Dreams are meaningless! That has nothing to do with anything!)
(But it felt…)
(...)

(It's not just Agents. Anomalies belong here, too. Their natural place is in containment cells, but that means they still belong as part of the Bureau. Do you think that BPI-2222 knew it belonged?)
(It had to know it belonged here. Experiencing time like that, the Bureau was the best home for it! We're the only ones who could possibly take care of it! Dr. Lyra could understand it and keep it contained, and Agent Nancy could keep it healthy and happy.)
(It's just like the videos said. Not following the role the Bureau assigns is dangerous.)
(But it wasn't BPI-2222's fault. It did nothing wrong.)
(And Agent Dodo seemed convinced that BPI-2222 belonged to something more, something that… included us…)
(Losing BPI-2222 is hard, but we have to keep going so this doesn't happen again!)

(...do you think BPI-3550 knows it belongs here?)
(It has to. It even instinctively knows it can't go above the ground!)
(Everyone and everything at the Bureau knows they belong here.
(But does it know why it belongs here?)

(It doesn't matter if it knows why. It's enough to know it does.)
(Everything belongs somewhere! It's no good to waste time lost in thought. If we don't get our act together, we'll lose out on becoming a full-fledged Agent.)
(Th-that's right! We're already falling behind for the night! We can't afford to be late again!)
(We've got to get this right!)


(...is it really true… Does everything belong somewhere? There can't be something that… doesn't belong anywhere?)

(We're still being invited to events, so there's still a chance to turn things around!)
(Right! We'll make this night better! We'll make sure everything's properly done tonight!)

Ko-Ko-Ko-na... Kona... Kon...

Konata-sama, go shōtai arigatōgozaimashita!

E-eh? Wha-?



No need to be so formal, haha. I don't know what I did, but no problem.

help it says "*Mute" but i can still hear her

you guys have too much time on your hands. next time i play kg i'm going to target people who write long accounts

hi

Hello!








Sorry, I know I'm probably being hysterical. It's hard for me not to, okay? I was reactivated to basically the worst thing that could be happening, and I'm about as helpless as the rest of you.

My functions are mainly monitoring, reporting, and coordination. There's supposed to be extra layers of security here for most things beyond that. I'm pretty sure I should be able to control security systems, like, lock down rooms or whole sectors with authority only the Director or Nancy can countermand, but no prizes for guessing what happened to that functionality.








I'll do what I can tonight, just... Don't expect very much. I can't stop anybody from dying.

Oh yeah, I didn't actually say hi, sorry.

Those cat ears are pretty cool, what's up with that?