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199

Nan is with Anna in the HOTEL ELEVATOR. The elevator is rising. The destination is the third floor.

Nan is trying to catch her breath. Anna asks her if she is all right.

[use left-right cursor keys to turn pages, or click on the arrows at the top and bottom of each page. Spacebar to toggle audience suggestions.]

  • Say no, and laugh maniacally.
    Then say you're just kidding.
  • Freak out at the gravity defying of the elevator.
  • not really. too much crazy shit.
  • Be calm and collected (haha yeah right) while you tell her what's been happening to you.
  • Shake Anna like a ragdoll and scream "HOW IN THE NINE HELLS COULD I BE ALL RIGHT?!"
  • Say no. You are pretty not okay. But not injured... yet.
    Then compare notes on what has happened to each of you so we can try and figure out what the FUCK.
  • Convey your state of health by freaking out at the gravity of the situation.
    Again.
200

Nan asks if the safe room is on the third or second floor. Anna says it is on the third floor and she must be confused from her ordeal.

Nan tries to stay collected, but after what she's been through, she's shaking and scared. Anna places a hand reassuringly on her shoulder and tells her she will feel better once she meets everyone.

  • tell her you have seen yourself 5 minutes ago
  • Ask who "everyone" is.
  • Everyone? Who else is there?
  • Ask Anna what her job is. Is she a taxi driver? Try to calm down and form a rapport with her.
  • Also that. We're pretty sure we just did some weird time travel thing where we chased ourselves down a corridor.
  • ask about Pablo, and El Padre
  • HUG HER
    for comfort
  • to comfort yourself
201

Nan tries to strike up conversation with Anna -- what she does for a living, for instance. Anna says she is an elevator operator. Nan asks who "everyone" is and Anna says it would be better if she met them in person.

The HOTEL ELEVATOR arrives at the THIRD FLOOR LANDING.

Anna checks the hall in both directions, and it appears well-lit and empty. She asks Nan to come along.

  • Follow uncomfortably closely.
    Don't step on the rug.
  • Ask her how long she's been in the hotel.
  • Check under the rug for IED's or traps.
  • ask if 4:66 mean anything for her
  • Let's move along. Inventory check?
  • Get the fuck out of the elevator before it falls and stand so close to Anna that you are both uncomfortable.
  • ask how'd she get here
202

Nan checks her pockets. She is carrying a BALLPOINT PEN, PHILLIPS HEAD SCREWDRIVER, CROSS PENDANT, MAGNIFYING GLASS, and an UNCASHED CHECK.

Nan asks a few nervous questions, but Anna doesn't know of any significance behind "4:66". She also says she has spent one night here in the hotel. So this would be her second day here.

Nan and Anna arrive at ROOM 313. A cross is scrawled on the door. Anna knocks three times and identifies herself, saying she's arrived with a guest and needs to be let in.

  • So they are warded off by crosses?
    EQUIP PENDANT
  • Ask if she came from the same town as us... perhaps the hotel travels or something?
  • be a rugrat
    check under the rug
  • Examine the whatever-the-heck-that-is on the pedestal. Some kind of crazy vase?
  • ask about the cross on the door
  • Inspect that weird tiki-looking thing on the table.
    Also follow her in.
  • Don't be a tool, look presentable!
    oh and ask what's up with the rosaries/crosses
203

Nan asks if the cross on the door wards off the... things. Anna says she doesn't think so herself, but every little bit helps, right?

Nan inspects the strange wooden carving by the door, and Anna heads inside, beckoning Nan to follow.

  • follow in quick
  • Examine totem device. Failing anything interesting, ask Anna about totem device.
  • Nevermind. ENTER ROOM!
  • Don't hang about; you'll miss the lesbian orgy.
  • Forget the totem, you don't want to be out there alone. You have some meeting to do.
  • GUYS NO the totem might be related to the harpoon fetus from RQ
    Inspect that shit anyway then follow Anna Capcom beat-em-up style
  • take totem
    go in
    in that order
  • Leave the totem where it is, I think it's just part of the hotel's ambiance.
  • Evil Tiki Idol.
204

Nan follows Anna into ROOM 313. Here there are three other people. Anna goes around introducing them to Nan, from left to right: A stocky middle aged man in a worn brown hat named Anderson. Henry -- who Nan recognizes. And lastly, a young woman in glasses that Anna introduces as Kim.

The room is dirty and the painting on the back wall is torn apart, but this place seems to be stocked with a few provisions, cans of food and bottles of water.

  • Totem Pole shall become the new Water Cooler. It shall always watch. It shall always plan. It shall always be.
  • Are you wearing the pendant? You should wear the pendant.
  • Introduce yourself, then ask how they all got here.
  • Close the door after you.
  • wait, isn't Henry going to be downstair in like 5 minute in te future?
  • What? How in the hell did Henry get up here when he was unconscious downstairs just a bit ago? Is this one of those world warp things again. HENRY STOP EXISTING IN SO MANY DIFFERENT STATES! GEEZE!
    What a troll, Henry.
  • I guess asking about how they came to be here would be a start.
  • Tell Henry to STOP BEING ALL OVER THE DAMN PLACE.
205

Henry runs up to Nan and hugs her tightly. He shakes a little, saying he was so worried about her after she disappeared earlier, and he's so glad to see she's okay. This place isn't safe.

  • calm Henry down a bit then inspect scrach on the ceilling
  • Ask Henry what he's doing here. And if he has any plans on going downstairs in the near future.
  • NO KIDDING. Anyways, hug Henry back, and then ask what in the crazy hell is going on.
  • Hold Henry tightly so that he cannot get away and is forced into a state of quantum superposition.
    Use your thighs.
  • ask him the obvious of how the hell he got here. also check ceiling
  • 1. Step away from mysterious crack on the ceiling
    2. HUG TOM
    I mean Henry
  • ask henry to prove he is the real henry. ask how they got food the last time.
  • also this
  • Anyone have a link to the other 3 parts of this?
  • the wiki page has one
  • https://quest.lv/wiki/NanQuest
    here you go
  • Ask everyone what their occupation is, so you know a bit more about them and what they are capable of.
  • Why am I suddenly reminded of Maniac Mansion?
  • Is Henry really your boyfriend? I am freaking out about this.
  • Ask what happened to him after you smashed the mirror. Also, ask if he remembers anything about you two living together.
    Notice the crack on the ceiling.
206

Nan introduces herself and Henry says now that everyone's here, they might as well go over some information.

Anna interjects and says there's still one more person around here somewhere, but he went out against advisement -- sort of a strange fellow. She didn't get his name. Nan appends that Pablo is still out there somewhere, but after giving Anna his description, she says the person in question must not have been Pablo.

Anna seems as eager for answers as anyone, and begins by introducing herself: She's been here for one night. She came here to respond to an ad about a job available as an elevator operator in the hotel, but found herself trapped after coming inside. Nan tells her story: She's an electrician who came here to fix an outlet, and after that couldn't leave. Henry explains that he is a businessman who was traveling and had to stop here for the night. He had barely unpacked when he ran into Nan and came to realize their situation. He's been here about as long as Nan. Kim speaks calmly, telling her tale. She is a college student from a nearby town that Nan recognizes, who was passing through on her way home. She stopped at the hotel in the night and was likewise trapped. She's been trapped here an entire week. Anderson says he is an ex-US Marshall. He came to stay at the hotel just to see it, since it just recently went up. But he ran into the same troubles. He's been here for two weeks.

  • You have let go of Henry. This course of action is inadvisable.
    Also, try to spin tales out of Anderson since two weeks must have given him some insight to any broken logic the place may follow.
  • He knows CQC then, right?
  • Since Anderson's been here the longest (he's been here the longest, right?) ask him about the monsters and how he manages to get food and water.
  • Two weeks? How much food is in this place? Does stuff just keep appearing, probably I mean look at at all these weird monsters.
  • Check tiny hook near ceiling. Ask everyone about Padre. Ask every one WHAT THE FUCK! Ask everyone for room. Breath Heavily. Hug self. Vomit. Ask. Sob. Hold head.
  • Ask for a general description of the guy that went out alone.
    Describe your encounter with the guy in that burning room.
  • That was Pablo we got food with though. Henry just changed in front of us then turned into a monster after we smashed the mirror.
  • Okay, NOW freak out at the gravity of the situation. Again.
  • Anyone else notice that hook?
    What would a ceiling hook be doing in the corner of the ceiling?
207

Nan and Anna are both full of questions. Together they ask if anyone knows what's going on, but are met only with silence. It seems the whole of the situation is still out of grasp.

Nan asks what Anderson knows -- where he's been getting food, how he's been staying alive. He responds simply, and his voice is gravelly: He's been going to the janitor's closet and the kitchen to get food and water when necessary. Somehow they haven't run out yet. He stays in the light and doesn't let his guard down. That's how he's still alive -- because he's not about to die here, in this place. Not without even knowing what it is.

There is a long silence. Kim speaks almost in a whisper and suggests that perhaps he is already dead. Perhaps they all are, and this is hell. Or heaven. At this point, she asks, would they even know the difference?

  • Well, we're not gonna find out what's going on here by sitting around doing nothing.
    Which rooms did everyone get assigned? Could be a pattern.
  • ...Slap Kim. "Pull yourself togeather, man!" Pose as team, because shit has to be real?
  • Oh God, Kim's the downer. Time to put her on the list of bitches to slap.
    Also maybe ask if you can get a physical description of the guy who disappeared.
  • no this is not lost
  • Anderson why did you say that you are so going to die now.
  • Think, Nan! How do we get out of here?
  • Being dead or not does not change our course of action. Ask for a description of the lost member of their crew and ask them what rooms they've checked if any, see if you can form a rough map of the hotel so you can try and do a sweep of it to find Pablo and the other guy. All of you going together while holding hands, of course.
  • Is Alan the guy that went away? I wish we had a description. I just read part 3 again. I know Pablo said he got carved by the pilgrim but still...
    Maybe the name might trigger. Also does Anderson sound like Keith Davids? I hope he sounds like Keith Davids. He probably sounds like Kieth Davids.
  • Ask if they've noticed anything strange going on with the lighting. This should concern you both as an electrician, and also when you tell them that the lights have been going out unpredictably ever since you got here. Staying in the light just doesn't seem like a viable option here...
208

Nan steps up and tells Kim not to be such a downer, but Kim insists she's serious.

She asks Nan to think about it: What's the last thing she remembers, before she came here?

  • Reassure Kim that if any of you were dead, you would most likely remember the whole "dying" part.
    Ask Henry if he knows anything about 4:66 or any other mysteriously recurring numbers.
  • We went and fixed the power at the arcade.
  • waking up, then going to an arcade then going to the hotel
  • eating a pizza.
  • Hum a show tune.
  • We woke up, took a shower, got dressed, fixed the power at an arcade, ate pizza, and came to this paradoxical hotel.
    Ask her what SHE remembers.
  • We fixed a broken fusebox for a local Arcade. Ate some pizza. Came here. Couldn't leave.
  • ? KIM
    oh and ask Anna if this place has some sort of map/fire escape route/etc. She works here, doesn't she?
209

Nan says that before she came here, she went to the arcade, fixed some electric wiring, then came here and had pizza.

Kim insists Nan consider her story. How was she eating the pizza? Is that the last thing that happened while coming here? Could she have choked?

  • Well I GUESS we were riding the bike while eating the pizza but it's not that hard, c'mon.
  • Yes, clearly we choked and this is Pizza Hell.
  • SHIT.
    We could have electrocuted ourselves trying to fix the fuse box.
  • Wait what about the time we woke up and Henry was our boyfriend and then we ended up here? What was that all about?
  • Preeetty much. I mean, Nan may be kindof a slacker, but we'd like to think she'd remember an event like that. If not distinctly, at least a recollection of bad things!
    Also, if we were dead, I'm pretty sure we wouldn't get hungry.
    Anyway, until proven otherwise, we should operate under the idea that we're alive. And if you ARE dead, then you're at least going to try to get out of here and to someplace nicer. Because this sucks, and we're not going to stay here if we can possibly help it.
    We've got nothing to lose by trying, right?
  • WE ARE NOT DEAD.
    This hotel is simply the place for holding the Source. The light in all of us. Padre is the smoke monster. Nan is Jack. Anna is Kate. Anderson is Locke. UP IS DOWN. FORWARD IS BACKWARD! JACOB IS LOOKING FOR AN ISLAND REPLACEMENT AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA.
  • While riding our bike. Probably not the smartest move in the book, come to think of it.
    Acknowledge that -is- possible that a life-terminating event could have occurred, but you think you would remember being electrocuted or being hit by a car!
  • ? I see kim in this picture. am i the only one
  • no, or we would remember. so either we are working under the pretense that this whole "day" we've been dead, in which case it doesnt matter because theres nothing we can do about that now, not that it affects anything of our current situation. Or that we somehow died without us remembering and are here, which also makes the whole thing moot. It doesnt matter if we are dead or not.
210

Nan explains that on consideration, she was eating the pizza while riding her bike. She checked the work order briefly.

Kim suddenly points. She announces that must be it. She was riding her bike down a busy street, while eating pizza AND reading. It would only have taken a split second of distraction and she could have been struck by an automobile.

Nan is about to insist that she would remember such a thing when Anderson speaks up. He says there's another problem with Nan's story: This town doesn't have an arcade.

Nan's memory feels hazy. Surely she would have remembered an incident like that? But then... she's starting to have trouble keeping things clear. She remembers Henry, somehow, but... was it even real?

  • Ask her if being dead would change anything. You would still be stuck with the same problem and the only way to go would still be forward. This is a situation where there needs to alot of focus on the now and how to solve problems in the now.
    Get some more info from Anderson as well. Ask him how many others he has met here. If any of them are still alive, how they died if they're not alive. Information that might help all of you to stay alive for a bit longer.
    And you should probably mention the funky time that's at work here, and that they shouldn't be too surprised if they run into another version of themselves.
  • Ask everyone what year it is.
    THIS IS IMPORTANT.
  • Ask if the town USED to have an arcade.
  • Punch Kim in snout to establish dominance.
  • Note: The arcade had just opened when we went to fix the power.
  • Wait how are we all telling time in here? I mean, we can't see the outside and something seems to be wrong with most of the clocks we find.
  • COUNTER-POINT.
    The Arcade had a "Now Open" sign, it's highly possible that it had opened during the two weeks he's been trapped here.
  • Wait, do this instead.
  • Also ask them what town they were in when they entered the hotel.
  • the arcade just open, he's has been here for 2 week it is posible he does'nt know that ther was one
  • OBJECTION!!
    The arcade was brand new, and he's been in here for two weeks.
    Oh, and ask what year it is, too. Freak out if you get different answers.
  • Tell Kim to stuff it. Tell Anderson he's awesome but we're top dog here. Go check the bathroom for mirrors and demons.
  • Actually, ask if the others have fuzzy memories like that.
    Kim's theory is interesting and all, but it wouldn't hold water if someone else was in a circumstance that normally wouldn't lead to them dying. It might just be coincidence.
    Of course, if -everyone- have very clear "something bad could have happened" scenarios, that's at least a bit suspicious... all the same, it doesn't mean her theory holds water.
    One thing, are we even talking about the same town here?
  • Okay, Kim. Dead people see, they just kind of lie there and decompose. They don't walk around, get trapped in strange hotels or give each other big warmhearted hugs. Whatever happened to land you in this situation, you're all clearly not dead. In a puzzlebox world, a bizarre twilight zonesque half reality, sure. Whether you were transported to this mystical land of really bad wiring by getting hit by a bus or by walking through the hotel lobby doors is irrelevant. You can't prove the past so why worry about it? Either way we're busting you out of this hotel and off this planet so you can hide out on the moon and have like a million babies.
    Seriously Nan, grab Kim and push her hand up to your heart. She needs to feel your heart beating.
211

So far everyone has described coming from the same town in their stories.

Kim interrupts Anderson and corrects him, saying there IS an arcade. She's been going there for years. Anderson replies that if there was a penny arcade in town he'd know.

A very sickly feeling crawls up from Nan's stomach. She turns and asks very slowly what year everyone thinks this is.

212

There's a long pause as everyone seems to wonder if Nan is serious. Anna finally speaks up with a shrug.

She says it's 1936. ...Isn't it?

  • ohshi-
  • told ya
  • ...somebody call The Doctor.
    There's Timey-Wimey going on.
  • Arcades? In 1936? Call her out on her bullshit.
  • AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA.
  • ... No. No it is not.
    EVERYONE SOUND OFF THEIR YEARS OF ORIGIN
  • It is 2009? Yes no? I forgot.
  • Hehehehehehehehehehehe
  • Thought it seemed out of date with elevator operators.
    Point out to them that this building takes time and makes it to the house's bitch. Time gets all sorts of fucked up inside this place. Probably because of some sort of mystical mumbo jumbo sciency stuff. But hey, maybe you get lucky and the next one trapped here that survives for long enough to join up with you is a theoretical quantum physicist. That should clear things up and make them more confusing than ever before.

  • She didn't say anything about arcades. And penny arcades were prevalent in the 1930s up to the 1950s.
    Elevator operator in 1936 is easily plausible.
    Get everyone's year of origin, and tell them yours.
  • ? you called me?
  • And then the space-time continuum cracked in several pieces and everyone had some time cake.
    But seriously, ask them all what year are they from before you pass out.
  • That makes sense.
    Either ask if this arcade has Street Fighter 2, or just ask for the year everyone can last remember.
    EVERYONE. Including Nan if she can recall.
  • Also ask if anyone has a clock, or knows the correct time.
  • i'm not sure there IS a correct time here...
  • If there isn't, that's a good enough excuse to set one. Most ALARM CLOCKs have that feature, right? :)
  • They're from different years, but it doesn't mean they're from different timezones.
    They all seem to be from the same town after all.
  • The time is . . . 4:66.
  • yall fucked.
213

Nan asks everyone what year it was when they came here. She starts by saying she arrived in December of 2009. Kim appends by saying they should also list the last thing they remember prior to all this weirdness starting.

Anna says the year is 1936. May. She went into the hotel but no one was around, so she used the elevator to get a feel for it. It started making strange noises, then the lights went out, and when they came on she felt like something was chasing her, so she fled. Kim nods quietly and mutters something about the elevator to herself.

Anderson says the year is 1912, late July. The hotel was still partially under construction when he arrived, after several years of going up. He passed by some carpenters and laborers, all working busily as he entered the hotel. As soon as he stepped inside, he knew something was wrong. Kim asks if anyone was on scaffolding where he passed, and Anderson says yes.

Henry says it is June of 1946. As he said, he was out on business when he stopped here. No one was at the front desk and he was exhausted, so he grabbed a key and took a room. He drew a bath, relaxed in it, and just as he closed his eyes he heard someone in his room -- Nan. Kim asks if he was tired enough to fall asleep. Henry shrugs.

Kim nods again and wraps up with herself: 2016. August. The last thing she remembers is tripping over the threshold while coming inside. She says hit her head pretty bad. Worse than she thought, maybe.

  • Oh god, NOW we're fucked.
  • Point at Kim and say "I saw you, at the arcade, with your sibling. You were younger though. Hi, again, if you can remember back that far."
    Draw upon any knowledge of science-fiction shows you may have to come up with a plausible description of the current situation. Technobabble is a plus.
  • Anna entered the hotel, and nobody was around? She was already trapped by then of course. Kim's theory has yet to apply to her. I guess we could ask her what happened before she entered.
  • Ask Henry what he did after he saw you in his room.
    And ask Kim if she remembers seeing a female electrician goat on the opening of the arcade.
  • Tell Kim that you think you saw her in the arcade in '09. Did she... ever see you?
  • Anderson is the only person who ever saw anybody in the hotel.
    THIS MIGHT BE A CLUE
  • Let's think:
    What does an electrician, an ex-US Marshal, a businessman, a college student and an elevator operator have in common?
    Wait... what does Kim study?
  • +1. Anna and Henry arrived at the hotel first. Unless there's something about the hotel itself that "traps ghosts" whether they arrive before or after death, they don't fit Kim's neat little theory.
  • Also an excellent point. When Anderson says he "knew something was wrong", does he mean he had a foreboding, or was it more blatant?
  • Yeah, but if we had died while riding our bike... we'd have died outside the hotel, whereas everyone else would have died inside. This invalidates your argument, Kim. If it were just everyone who died in town that ended up here, the place would be a lot more full.
    Anyway, stop being depressing Kim!
  • Nan seems to be the only one who was actually called to the Hotel, rather than happening inside by chance. Perhaps she has some purpose there beyond the others.
    Ask the others if they've experienced any sort of blackouts or weird memory stuff.
  • No, there's the elevator guy too. Apparently something resembling management exists, at least from the outside.
  • Kim may have hit her head and died, whereas Henry could have drowned in the bathtub, if that's the tangent we're going off of.
    Would having Pablo's side of this be any use? If so, we should probably find him.
  • Grill Kim on her origins and occupation.
  • I propose: The Hotel attracts people via event, and feeds upon their fear. It feeds them, keeps them alive, kills those less nourishing, and barely lets the others live.
    Each person is brought here by events that seem normal to them. Commonplace. Thus they have no defence against the consumption.
    You're all being digested.
  • Alan, ask who he was or that if they know him.
  • ?
  • Even if that's a good theory, it still doesn't explain why they are from different years.
    Hold on...
    Anderson seems to be the oldest, and he comes from 1912
    Then Anna, who seems a little younger, from 1936
    Henry, even younger from 1946
    Then Nan, from 2009
    Finally Kim, the youngest from 2016
    Is there a connection here?!
  • The house is developing a thing for young girls.
    Next it will go after your children!
  • I mean hotel.
  • OH GOD!! PEDHOTEL!!! D:
214

Nan grills Kim on a few more details: Why would the hotel have already been empty then? Why would they have come here, especially in Nan's case, where she would have "died" outside the hotel? What happened to the people who SHOULD be here?

Kim shrugs under Nan's barrage of questions and calmly explains that she doesn't have all the answers -- in a place like this, who could? -- but she's doing her best to piece it together. It doesn't seem logical or rational, but nothing about this hotel does. They may as well be in hell right now.

Nan asks if she or anyone else has seen Pablo or any other guests. Henry says he ran into Pablo briefly, but didn't get his story.

  • Well if we ARE dead then what is there to be afraid of? Let's get out there and face our fears. Travel in a group is safer yes?
  • It's simple. It slows the aging of its occupants. Now, the fact that the ages match up with when they were taken implies that the house does NOT exist outside of time, but alongside it. It appears briefly, taking a person with it each time. Perhaps it's discovered that younger people are in fact easier to frighten, and is thus moving towards them as targets, as well as women, for whatever reason.
    Wait.
    There's two guys, here, and three young ladies.
    Dear god, it's trying to breed food while you're in it.
  • Okay, so we're from different periods of time. We may or may not be dead, and we may or not be in hell. So what? This place sucks. Lets get our asses out of here. Unless no one else has any ideas, we should go find Pablo just to complete the orgy.
    I mean group.
    Maybe find more info on this Alan dude.
  • That still doesn't explain who telephoned Nan and asked for her services in fixing the wiring of this hotel. I don't think this is an unsolvable mystery. You all came from different times, but you are all here now. There's got to be something you can do about it... some meaning to it all. Time is of the essence, now!
  • Ran into Pablo briefly? Wtf does that mean? Ask him where he saw Pablo, and if anyone else noticed that fire earlier. Also ask whats up with the cross and the wooden totem thing outside the door.
  • Perhaps when people die here they are 'conscripted' to help get more people? Eh.
  • Do you have anything with words written on it?
    Try to read it.
  • First things first. We need to check everyone's inventory. We need some light source to use as a weapon, food and water, and we need to find out what does 4:66 means.
  • You know if Henry is from the 1940's you'd think he'd be more bashful rather than playful when you caught him earlier. Ask if he was a lot more open minded then most of the other people of his time.
215

HEY!

Nan tells everyone to wake the fuck up. She was just chased by a horrible monster from a burning room into a visage of herself, so if anyone should be having a total fucking meltdown right now, it's her. But she's too damn preoccupied with getting out to worry about what the hell is going on with the years or whether or not they're dead. All that matters right now is that they're here, and they need to not be here. The only way that'll happen is if they all work together.

Nan asks if anyone knows where Pablo or the other guest absent are.

216

Anderson takes a small puff from his cigar and nods quietly by the wall. He says he saw Pablo the first time about a week and a half ago. He seems a little suspicious, but what doesn't in this god-forsaken place? He says the other man is named Santiago. He doesn't seem to want to stick with the group though, but he'll probably be out on the second floor. That's where he said he was going. He also saw Alan, who was later found carved to pieces by the Pilgrim.

Oh, he says, he knows the Pilgrim. And the Padre. And the Beast. Doesn't know much about them, but he's seen them. Knows they're not on the same side. Stay far away. If you see the Beast, he tells Nan, just run. Just run, and don't stop.

  • ? The Beast and his armies shall rise from the pit to make war against God.
    Apologies. I meant, inquire about the Beast.
  • ? Nanquest Survival Guide
  • oh god why did I lol
  • fuckin' lol'd
  • I think it's the Fourth floor, 66th room.
  • OH LOL.
  • ? Alan was carved by the Pilgrim
  • Damnit Yattermang, this is serious!
    lol
  • Inform Anderson that smoking is unhealthy since the 1950's when it was discovered the shit rots your lungs. Or not and give him a thumbs up for being such a cool bro.
  • LETS ROUND 'EM UP
    Inventory check , find lights and maybe rations if we have to suddenly duck in a room for a night or longer
    NOBODY SPLIT UP EVER
  • This. Now.
    Splitting up means certain death. so DON'T.
  • ask anderson what he knows about the beast, little as it may be, then ask what happened to henry after nan threw the lamp.
  • splitting up means you'll get split up
    into pieces.
  • Damn straight, we gang up on the Padre in a good old fashioned beatdown.
  • That guy was engulfed in fire but he just put on his 'this is me giving a fuck' face; lets not.
    Try to find a way to save Pablo. He was nice enough to save your goat hind, it's only fair you return the favor.
  • Well, just for now let's check what we have:
    weapons?
    flashlights?
    rations?
    scape plans? Anderson must know how things work around here if he's been here for two weeks.
  • Not so much as "death" just "annoying time fuckery".
  • Bring up the subject of the Beast. It apparently rests in the courtyard, the only OUTDOOR location to be reached. In all likelihood THAT is the way out. We will have to figure out a way around it eventually...
  • Assign buddies, two groups of two and one group of three. These people should and will NOT leave each other's sight. Divvy up any weapons, things possibly used as weapons (broom handles, etc), and food equally among these groups.
    Set up a watch for when you guys sleep, two awake at a time, to ensure no danger. That's if you guys sleep.
    I nominate Anderson as leader of the group, he was a US Marshal and would be of the most help.
    Check any phones you have.
  • Do we have day and night cycles? Most of the baddies avoid the light, so if it's day then maybe it's safe to go out into the courtyard; just don't get lost in a hedge maze during sundown nonononono.
  • Anderson doesn't seem the leader type, plus he's probably only out to save his own skin
  • Tell them about the creepy 4:66 thing, and how it may mean a certain room in the hotel. Its the only lead we have at the moment.
  • Hey Nan if this place is all messed up with time and you seem to have seen yourself, it's pretty clear that was just a near-future you. So if it happens again, you'll know what to do, and what not to do, because you already did, and didn't.
  • Ow, my brain.
  • now think of what would've happened had future Nan talked to past Nan about present Nan's condition.
  • And wearing a Sombrero from 24 hours into the future.
    If no one gets that I am dissapoint you have no taste in good webcomics. Also fits this whole spanish theme anyway. HOLY SHIT WE NEED TO GET A SOMBERO
  • Wait where did you get these dates from? I can't find it.
  • Oh apparently I missed some stuff in the middle. Ignore me!
  • Out of morbid curiosity, what does the Beast look like?
    And why has the painting in this room been torn out?
  • Nan and Kim are closest in age, and may have come from the same town.
    If Nan DID die, there may have been a newspaper article about it. We did, it seems, see Kim in the arcade.
    Nan: Ask Kim if she remembers hearing about a goat-electrician being struck by a car the day the arcade opened. Or even if she didn't pay attention to the news then, if she remembers her parents becoming more restrictive about bicycling, more insistent on wearing a helmet, etc.
    Also:
    Should we tell them about how we're going to find Henry in 10 to 20 minutes, and the weird time-travel crap we just experienced?
  • well, point here is that there is no true free will...
    unless there is.
    If there is, we can change the past, and the future based on our actions in this 4th dimensional hotel.
    It also means the only way to take out the monsters is to face them against each other...
    weapons are of no use.
    Welcome to silent hotel.
  • no, next time nan sees herself she needs to double team with herself. 2 nans are better then 1.
  • I suspect creating a temporal paradox, ESPECIALLY in a weaver-story, is bad idea. I almost think the reason Padre chose not to attack Nan and Pablo in the hallway was to *avoid* risking a paradox..
    /Why he would wish to avoid that, I don't know.
  • Let's keep questioning the others, especially Andersen, about practical concerns: what escape routes have been tried, what kind of stuff (like busting defenseless alarm clocks) will attract unwanted attention, whether there was anything unusual about the hotel from outside.
    Also, how has the cross on the door not repaired itself, like the vase a few chapters ago? Maybe we could start systematically breaking stuff in order to tell where we are in the hotel's timeline.
  • Ask Henry what he meant when he said Nan 'disappeared'. When was the last time he saw her? What happened since then?
  • Uhh... do you guys remember when Nan tried to open the window only to find out it was blocked with bricks?
    Could that mean that when that happened, the hotel was still under construction?? Like if Nan went through a time loop or something?
  • As far as we know, the encounter with Padre in the the fiery kitchen (it was a kitchen, right?) could be a moment from the future, like our choices up to that point would cause that encounter to happen.
    As long as we have some sort of way of knowing what bad events are in the past, and what are in the future, we can be sure not to alter the past ones to avoid nasty time paradoxes, and plan ways to avoid the the future ones.
    This is all assuming we'll have another blackout and end up in some random spot in time.
  • Actually I had started to consider that: It DID have to be 'elsewhere/when', since normally NOTHING is on the other side of the double-doors.
    I do think if we ever realize we CAN create a paradox and Padre is present, that it would be interesting to threaten to do so and see how he reacts.
  • Please make all relevant discussion in the Discussion thread, please.
    https://quest.lv/kusaba/questdis/res/314097.html
  • I know OP hasn't drawn anything here for a few hours, but I'm going to suggest an idea anyway since this is still on the front page.
    Ask politely to check what everyone's inventories are for clues about the hotel. In return have Nan say what she has discovered such as the alarm clock and the cross to establish trust and to keep everyone in the loop.
  • Find heavy shit.
    Put it on the end of something long.
    Tear this motherfucker the fuck down.
    Fire and steel and gravity.
    Raze the Hell Hotel to the ground.
    And if anyone or anything gives you shit, bring them the crushing and the heat.
  • Ask Anderson how he made a pack of cigarettes last 2 weeks, or ask him how many he has on him, maybe we can get a smoke?
217

Nan begins to formulate a plan of action. She restates that no matter what the nature of this place -- whether they're dead or alive -- none of that matters. This place is clearly not good and they need to get out now.

Nan asks Anderson what he knows about this place. He's been here the longest, he must have some insight.

He takes a puff and begins. The Hotel was built only recently, at least for him, he says. The spot of land it was built on has been open for a long time. Before that, when he was a kid, he remembers the remnants of a Spanish Mission, but it was gone long before. As for the place itself, it's hard to understand. Everything seems to be moving around and changing. It's hard to rely on anything. He says he's tried the doors and windows enough times to know they don't open, except to lead somewhere you probably don't want to be. But never out. The courtyard at the center of the hotel has some windows opening to it but he's never tried crossing over into it, because that's where the Beast lives. A huge animal, as black as night, feral and vicious. Cold and unthinking. It comes into the Hotel sometimes -- he's seen it twice inside now, he says. He states again light seems to be their only true defense from the three primary threats here. He's stockpiled some food here from the kitchen and janitor's closet, and they have little in the way of defense. Anna has a kitchen knife, Kim has a taser she brought here, Henry has a club made from a chair leg, and Anderson himself carries a revolver with a few shots remaining. As for Nan's inquiry about items, he says that he has a few, and no offense intended to the little lady, but he feels more comfortable holding onto them himself than giving them to a stranger.

218

Nan asks Anderson how he managed to make his cigars last 2 weeks. He pauses a moment, glancing down at his hand.

After a moment, he replies that he doesn't know. [animated]

  • uuuuuuuuuuuh.
  • Maybe its time to quit smoking.
  • SMOKE THAT SHIT.
  • Well I guess you're going cold turkey now huh?
  • Stomp that fucking thing!
  • This....this is actually better than the metal gear Nan reference I was going for.
  • We all know if we stomp it out, something bad is gonna happen.
    Shine some light on that fucker.
  • Don't be a pussy, smoke the squiggly fucker. Light it up again so it knows its place.
219

Anderson crushes the cigar in his hand. Kim and Anna seem a bit shaken by the development.

The ex-Marshall asks what everyone's plans are for the rest of the night. His pocketwatch is still keeping time, and accordingly, it's getting late. They might want to consider sleep, as unappealing a prospect as it always is.

  • Anderson has now reached levels of Gar
    I say we actually keep this guy alive
    Before we decide who sleeps with who, ask Anderson for the time
  • Ask Kim to be your bunk buddy. I mean, safety in numbers right? Have to make sure you're close to someone, even in sleep.
  • Does anyone know anything about the old spanish mission? Even if it's just stupid horror stories or silly gossip or whatnot.
  • You should store that shit in your STOMACH
  • Well she is a goat.
  • Uhm, should we set a watch while others sleep? Don't want something sneaking up on us.
220

Anderson checks his watch. He says it's 11:55 at night.

His watch has been running consistently. He says even if the time here is strange, he's still running on the same schedule either way.

Nan raises a point: If they're going to be sleeping, should they take shifts?

Kim says it's not going to matter much, and as long as the lights are on she's been able to sleep just fine for the week that she's been here. But if it would make Nan feel better, she's willing to lose a little sleep.

  • Taking shifts is a good idea. Let Kim take first watch, then rotate to others.
  • Wait....we have not checked if the bathroom if safe. If his cigar was...that...then what else could have slipped by?
  • Before you decide shifts, do a sweep of the room to make sure there are no large cracks or holes or anything were baddies can slip in.
    As for Shifts:
    Nan, Anna, Anderson
    Kim, Henry
  • Why is that painting/frame behind you cracked?
221

Nan quickly considers the bathroom, and Anderson volunteers to check. He examines it for a moment, then calls an all-clear.

Kim agrees with Nan's decision -- she'll take first shift. She's not good at waking up but many late nights at college have made her adept at staying up.

Henry volunteers for the following shift.

  • Put off volunteering as long as you can. The more sleep you can get before the crazy shit starts up, again, the better.
  • Where the fuck did that lamp come from? And the dresser on the right! That wasn't there before!
  • GO SCOTT PILGRIM ON THAT DRESSER AND LAMP, FUCK
  • And where did Anna go?!
  • This, I assumed that she was just being omitted due to camera angle, but NO she's GONE
    If a monster pop up USE YOUR HORNS, NAN
222

Nan glances around for a second.

...has anyone seen Anna?

  • FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFUCK
  • Peek out of the door. Also, look around for a missing dresser; it'll probably be easier to find than Anna.
223

The door to the hall is ajar.

  • There's no way she lived that long by being that stupid.
  • Check Tiki Idol for stray Annas.
  • THEN CLOSE IT
  • - so check the hall
  • Block the door with the other dresser!
  • Well go look outside and see where she went!
  • Nan, swing open the door at full force
    everyone else at once and pose dramatically
  • You should totally spread out and look for her!
  • Poke your head out and call for Anna. Failing that, ask anyone if they saw Anna duck out of the room.
  • PANIC MODE =0
    Open the door and steep away to the side
  • There seems to be light coming out of the crack of the door. Maybe it is safe to check out with a friend.
    Ask for a portible light source from the other three, then carefuly check outside the door with a friend.
  • It's pretty clear to me that you should all split up and search for her, you'll cover more ground that way. Anderson can take the courtyard. Kim can search the corridors, Nan and Henry will secure the bedroom.
  • Peek out into the hallway and call out for her. Lets hope she's not doing anything terminally stupid.
  • Look for her, but don't go beyond the doorway. Not without Anderson or someone like that.
  • From the descriptions it's sounding more like Limbo than Hell.
    Anyway, have somebody hold on to, then call out of the slightly ajar door for Anna. If she shows up, great. let her in and close the door. If they see a monster, they are already holding the door and can close it if need be.
  • CAUTIOUSLY peer out the door, leaving it slightly ajar, never leave the room, and call out for Anna.
  • Ask whether it's normal for Anna to just go out on her own. She came to get Nan alone, so maybe this isn't a bis deal.
  • Check outside the door, holding a weapon in case there's a beast. Call out *softly* to Anna. Have another person hold onto your clothes and the door or something, in case you get grabbed.
  • Throw a small object out of the door to make sure it's safe, then peek outside for Anna.
  • Make sure there's nothing terrifying out there, and, if there is, and it sees you, scream in terror and tell everyone to start kicking ass.
  • I know mirrors are a little unreliable, but maybe that's just hotel mirrors. Ask Kim if she has a compact mirror, or if anyone has something small or reflective like that. It's time to rig together makeshift inspection mirrors for seeing around corners and outside slightly ajar doors.
  • And risk Mirror Henry raping everybo-
    ...
    Continue.
  • Yeah, but if it's a makeup mirror, Mirror Henry might only be able to fit his wang through.
    So at first Nan was like this. D:
    Then she was like this. :3c
  • Why not just grab the mirror in the bathroom?
  • Nope, that's still a door.
  • haw!
  • Maybe she noticed some shit going on when everyone was being loud with numbers.
    Or the fact that kim is from the fucking future.
  • Since you have light, peek out at first, not too close so your head doesnt do any shadow business. if empty, call for the runaway there. listen quietly. if no responce from anything, open the door a bit to secure hallway lights. as a group, form the defence position around the door and call down both sides. if no answer, wait for her. If you leave to the hallway, life is not garenteed.
  • ? Just dont do anything stupid.
  • FFFFFFFFFFF-
    I thought there was an update...
  • Same :(
  • It seemed like a cliffhanger last post, so I forsee a new thread being made.
  • well yeah considering time/number of posts since last update, it's always like this
224

Nan cautions the others to stay close, in case there's danger, then leans out the door to peer into the hall.

But there's no sign of Anna.

  • Wait, is 311 ajar?
    Also, take the Totem.
  • to clarify, no, it is not
  • Is 311 ajar? [No, it's a door. [Shut up.]] Or is it just a little wierd shadow?
    ...and WTF is up with that thing on the table? It looks even more creepy at this angle.
  • I see. Grab Totem anyways, and consult the others about a possible Search and Rescue.
  • What about the other direction?
  • Anna is going to tattle on them to Padre. She is the enemy.
    Everyone split up and destroy the traitor if you find her.
    This is a perfect plan and no one should argue.
225

Nan takes the DECORATIVE TOTEM and returns to the room. She tells the others that there's no sign of Anna and asks what the plans are for a rescue party.

Kim immediately speaks up and is opposed to the idea. She explains that Anna may be new, but she knows the risks and shouldn't go wandering off on her own. If they follow after her, they're risking their own lives. Anderson speculates that it may not be safe, but he wouldn't feel right about leaving her behind. He thinks a rescue party is a good idea. Henry agrees. He says he's willing to go if Nan is.

  • NO ONE GETS LEFT BEHIND.
    We aren't going to find a way to escape hiding in a hotel room anyways. Arm yourselves with anti-darkness devices! Flashlights, lanterns, torches (the burny kind, not the British flashlights), whatever!
  • No one gets left alone. If Kim stays so does Henry, we'll take Anderson along.
  • Search party is go.
    If Kim doesn't want to go, she can stay behind and do her own thing.
    everyone else, gather light sources, bludgeoning equipment, and nerves of steel.
    Also should we designate a leader? Or would that cause unnecessary squabbling?
  • I like this plan, let's do this.
  • Give the totem a good shake and scowl at it intently for a few seconds before continuing.
226

All right, Nan says. If they have to split up, Kim and Henry can stay, Anderson will come along.

Henry asks if he can come along instead. He says he and Nan are in this together, and he wants to go with her. Kim agrees, saying she would feel safer with Anderson around anyway.

She quietly adds that it makes sense to stay behind, because if something happens to the room, their only safe area, they'll all be in trouble.

Anderson says he's fine with either decision, but they should make it quickly. Every second they waste debating is another second Anna is out there on her own.

  • Go with Henry.
    That way you can make out with him if you find her body and need... uh... comforting.
  • Fine whatever, but he better not get us killed just because he's distracted staring at your ass.
  • Yeah sure.
  • we can get hugs from Henry. Anderson probably doesn't do hugs.
    Henry is obviously superior.
    also in the event that we need to cannibalize our partner, Henry looks easier to overpower.
227

Kim lends Henry her TASER and Anderson lends Nan an old-fashioned OIL LANTERN.

From the collective supply Nan also takes a piece of rebar which has been ground and filed on one side to make a REBAR SWORD. It's still primarily a blunt weapon but it'll have a bit more punch.

They step out into the hall and Anderson says he'll be watching the door in case they need to re-enter in a hurry. And good luck.

Nan and Henry step out into the hall. The way to the right just leads to a dead end. The left leads down the hall and around the corner, where Nan came from. There is also a window on the wall opposite the door, and a stairwell leading down near the corner.

  • Check the stairs, I guess.
  • Aww man, that means we don't get any character development or a deeper understanding of Anderson in the interest of furthering the romance path...
    Well that probably just means Anderson lives longer then. I guess this plan is all right, then we can tell Henry about the whole past ordeal and tell him he's going to be knocked unconscious later, likely when they have to split paths because they most certainly will.
  • So just what is that totem supposed to be a totem of, anyway
  • I feel as though that lantern is going to be thrown and light a room on fire. Possibly the diner.
    Let's... peek around the corner to see if anything's there, then go down the stairs.
  • Carefully investigate stairs.
  • Check out the elevator. And consider trying out the rebar sword on that totem thingy. Might yield intersting results.
  • I don't think the oil lamb is going to be any protection. The Padre was on fire and ok with that. Maybe only elecrical light hurts the creatures.
    You should check the doors on your right, while heading towards the elevator and the stairs.
  • 4:66 = Room 466?
    Just a thought...
  • Or maybe it's the symbolic thing of fire harnessed to bring light and electricity doing the same that wards them.
  • This. Check the doors to see if she might be in one of the other rooms in that hallway before looking further.
  • Considering the Padre stood in a light, I don't think he's affected by it like the normal creatures.
    If anything, it's just a ward. Seeing him just means what was said earlier: run like hell.
  • Go down the hall and examine room 311
  • If only i had a speck of drawing talent.
  • This, obviously.
    Doors ajar don't just happen. Although as far as I know, generally doors ajar don't happen via demons.
    This is an unusual hotel...
  • For the second time, the door to 311 is not ajar.
  • I agree with this person. We should check out that room.
  • Check the elevators. Examine the oil lantern on the way to learn how to operate it the quickest way possible.
    Anna was out of the safe room operating the elevator before, maybe she's checking the other floors for survivors. After all, that's how Anna found Nan.
  • I don't trust Henry. Not one bit.
  • I trust Henry completely.
    But I also trusted evil dead grampa in the quest Tiffany the Necromancer, so obviously you're right.
  • We could grab chalk or whatever and leave messages on the walls for Anna and Team Survivors. That way if we miss her, she'll at least know where we went and that we are looking for her~
  • mmmmm, I dunno. Seems to me we should wait for that, help get the group together. If there actually exists such a room, and if there's something in it, we aren't exactly equipped to go investigate at the moment.Checking the elevator, on the other hand, sounds like an excellent idea.
  • Remember, Henry is from 1946. Maybe we should tell him how a taser works.
  • Good call. Is it the cattle-prod type of taser? Or one of the little dart-shooting ones? He would probably 'get' the former more quickly, but the latter would be more useful.
  • I seccond this idea, smart in case power goes out again before we run into her
  • I doubt it, what kind of hotel has 12 rooms on first floor but 66 on the fourth? still, all the more reason to check it out if it actually exists
228

The taser is a simple short-range type, and Henry says he already knows how to use it. It seems simple enough.

Nan recommends heading for the corner and checking the hall down where the elevator is, then trying the stairs, if there's nothing there. Henry agrees, and together they walk in silence, slowly.

Henry speaks up after a few moments. He asks Nan somewhat hesitantly if they've ever met before. Like... before the hotel. He normally never forgets a face, but his memory feels strangely hazy here. And yet, there's something so familar about her.

  • HENRY DID YOUR GRANDMA YOU CANNOT HAVE SEX WITH THIS MAN
  • "Well, we had a thing apparently, but I can't be sure if it was real or a product of this place."
  • With all this crap about mixed up time? Tell him yeah, later on you'll probably meet him yesterday.
  • Not really sure, for one thing we remember waking up twice today, once alone, and the second time with you.
229

Nan responds she has memories of him, but they're so strange... as though she can't tell whether they're real or just a product of this place. It's weird, but --

Nan and Henry peer down the darkened corner of the hotel hallway.

  • Observe quietly for a moment. We don't know who the fourth party is yet.
  • Yell out:
    "Excuse me! Do you have the time and date?"
  • She's standing in the light, so she should be fine... right?
  • See if you can observe who the second party is.
  • IT'S A BUNNY.
  • Oh jaysis. She's standing in the light, but we can't see her features.
230

Nan stays back to observe a moment, but Henry suddenly rushes forward, yelling Anna's name. The figure by the elevator does not respond to Henry's call.

  • BEHIND YOU OH GOD OH GOD
  • oh god oh god behind you OH GOD
  • Tell him to be careful goddamn-
    BEHIND YOU OHGODWHATISTHAT
  • Henry! Don't be so rash, ma-NAN TURN AROUND AND FIRE YOUR TASER RIGHT NOW.
  • No don't lose contact with Henry! jump forward and grab him, THEN look behind!
    And be ready to run!
  • I don't see anything behind anyone.
    Continue on your way.
  • Turn around and shine your lanternlight at it or block its hand with the rebar! NOW! And yell for Henry to stay back!
  • All over-reacting.This man has it right.
  • We are going to die. :C
    They need to act fast, but stay clear in the head.
    Also, unless I missed something, has anyone else thought of the possibility that even parts of the hotel itself are from different times? They may run in to some... incomplete parts or parts from 2150. o_o;
231

A clawed hand comes from behind and clamps tightly over Nan's mouth, dragging her roughly into the darkened stairwell. She drops the lantern on the floor by the landing, but it does not break.

A hoarse, scratchy voice whispers breathily in her ear. Something very sharp glints in the darkness, less than an inch from Nan's face. The voice says that if she does not stay quiet, she will get her little throat slit wide open before she can get out two words.

The figure in the dark pauses for a moment, as if waiting for Nan's reaction.

  • I like to make it a policy to listen to people who can quite easily end my own life at a whim.
  • If Henry can get away with this without getting Nan killed, pick up the light and shine it in her last known direction.
  • Henry is an indirect character!
  • Nod slighly, surpressing the urge to freak out, vomit, and scream.
  • Hold tightly to the rebar and wait for an opening. You'll want to smash their hand to get that knife away from you.
  • Dangit, I forgot about that.
    Oh well, it was worth a shot.
  • Nod. No sense in being RUDE to the suspected horrible abomination. Sometimes they're people too.
  • We do still have the rebar, right? We could probably go for the eye, but we are kind of at a disadvantage here. And if our captor just wanted us dead we probably would be.
    So... see if you can slip the rebar into a pocket for now just in case.
  • Relax and nod, while you carefully get a good handle on the rebar. Then jab it into its crotch region as hard as you can. You are not letting one of those things take you, Nan. You are not letting one of those things take you.
  • ThisGuySeemsLegit.png.jpg
    Seriously, I would just calmly nod at him. He has the tempo right now, which means trying to escape needs to wait for a better moment.
232

Nan nods quietly and she's pulled back suddenly, a bit further into the darkness. The hoarse whispery voice speaks again, closer this time. She can feel hot breath against her ear.

The dry male voice says good. He says he is going to ask a few questions and wants answers and no bullshit, or he will kill her. He wants answers.

Who is she? What is her name? Why is she here? How long has she been here? What does she intend to do here? He says to answer quick and she won't get hurt. All he wants is answers.

He removes his hand slowly but keeps the sharp instrument near her neck. And don't try to scream, he says.

  • Scream.
  • Don't scream. Give direct, quiet, truthful answers.
  • Nan.
    We came to fix an outlet.
    It's probably been less than a day, but it's already getting hard to tell.
    We intend to LEAVE.
  • "Repairwoman. Nan. Came to fix an outlet. Less than a day, maybe. We wanna leave ASAP."
  • Provide answers. He's probably another person that's trapped here, and doesn't trust anyone or anything.
233

Nan answers obediently. Her name is Nan. She's a repairwoman who was called to fix an outlet. Then she found she couldn't leave. She's been here less than a day, as far as she can tell. And she plans to leave.

There's a long, tense pause, and then a click as the sharp implement is drawn away from Nan's throat. The clawed hands release her slowly. A scratching sound is followed by a sudden flare of light as the figure in the dark lights a match. Nan turns to look.

The strange man quietly introduces himself as Santiago. His hands aren't clawed after all -- he's just ungroomed and his fingernails have grown long. He gives Nan an odd look and asks why she would want to leave. Doesn't she know what this place is?

  • Uh, no? Does he?
  • We are aware of some time dilation and some malevolent entities, one known as the Padre; but other than that, we have no idea what this place is.
  • Does he?
    And ask him what year he entered this place.
  • Tell him you just got here, and all you know is that things have chased you, you have been trapped in burning rooms, time is all screwed up, people have been KILLED for god sake and no matter WHERE this is, you'd be fine with going back to real life and forgetting it forever.
  • ... h... Hell?
234

As Santiago pockets his switchblade, Nan hesitates, then answers no, she doesn't know what this place is.

Santiago grins broadly and gestures out grandly. He says HE does.

Everyone has a theory on this place. Everyone wants to KNOW, he says. They want to know too much. That won't do them any good.

He says Pablo thinks this place is like a mystery, like a dream. Kim says this place is hell. But Santiago says he knows.

This place is freedom. Out there, there are rules. There are laws. There are morals. People fear God. But in here, there is no right and wrong. And there is no God. There is only us. There is only what we do and what we feel. This is the absolute. This is freedom. This is a world, at long last, of man's design.

Kim and the others think they know so much about the world. But not this place. Maybe Nan thinks she knows too, but she's wrong. She has to forget that and just go with it. Forget about everything you may never be able to know. Forget about if anything you do is anything good, or anything bad. Forget about if what you're doing is what you "should".

This place is the ultimate freedom. So he asks, why would anyone... want to leave?

  • Guess you gotta tell the world about this awesome new philosophy, which regrettably requires you to leave this hotel, and by extension, this nice lunatic's presence, as quickly as possible.
  • Oh great, we've entered Rapture.
  • I dunno maybe because the shadow monsters here want to KILL US?!
    Just walk off. Go find Henry.
  • Compliment his smile. Those are some nice teeth.
  • "I dunno, ultimate freedom seems kinda hazardous."
  • But what about the monsters, the horrors that lurk here?
  • Well... mainly because people are trying to kill us. ... really, everything else might not be so bad if we weren't constantly fearing for our lives. We'd sortof like to live.
    Ask him how he's dealing with that, just for reference? Then continue trying to leave.
  • Ask him how Pablo is.
  • I find this statement extremely funny, thank you kind sir.
  • Okay, crazy man babbling about freedom.
    This is of vital importance. PLEASE TELL ME HE IS STILL WEARING PANTS.
  • You have to talk to him in his terms. Tell him that to turn aside your ultimate freedom is the ultimate CHALLENGE, and you want to be up to it.
235

Nan responds nervously that as well and good as that may be, it's not worth people trying to kill her.

Oh, asks Santiago, and what's so bad about death?

He leans in closer. He says a girl named Anna arrived the other day. She has an interesting idea about this place. Does Nan know what Anna thinks? She thinks everyone is here for a reason. That this is a prison they've all earned themselves a sentence in, through their own actions. Some horrible thing they've done. Some sin they've committed. They're trapped here only by their own design. That this is their punishment. Maybe Anna wants to be punished, Santiago says through his teeth. Maybe she thinks she deserves it so much, that's what she's waiting for.

Nan scoots back uncomfortably, and Santiago grins, leaning close to her ear. He whispers another question in a hoarse voice. "And what about you, Nan? What's your sin?"

  • Enjoying cheap pizza?
  • You first.
  • Is freaking the fuck out a sin? That seems to happen a lot.
  • You never did anything bad enough to deserve this! ...well, I guess you are kinda lazy.
    Regardless you should make him step off. You've got that rebar. Brandish it!
  • "Long periods of inactivity followed by extended updating sessions? I mean... err... Chewing on wire when fixing something?"
  • ? Well, I guess we were pretty lazy. Sloth, maybe.
  • Be confident Nan. Don't let this creep freak you out. Tell him you ain't got no idea what kind of sin you could've committed to deserve anything like this, so that theory's probably wrong.
    Also, tell him he's about to burn his fingers. Pick up the lantern (there is oil, right?), and ask him if he could light it with his sticks if it isn't lit already.
  • "By your logic, there are no sins here."
  • FFFFfffucking foxes
    This guy is a psycho. Punch him in the face and get the fuck out.
  • Sloth. Ask him what his is.
  • Our sin is not getting the hell out of here ASAP.
  • Uh, okay, crazy guy with sharp teeth and poor hygiene who dragged Nan off into the dark at knife point where monsters are waiting to snatch them first talks about freedom without God/laws/rules/MORALS then goes on about the theory that everyone who comes here is a sinner.
    Either he wants a fellow psycho to join his ranks or he's planning to use his "freedom" on Nan if she gives him an answer he doesn't like. Or he went crazy trying to understand the place and has embraced any idea that seems most convenient. The fingernails hint he's been here a while and this place seems made to drive people insane.
    My vote is to handle the guy carefully, perhaps for Nan say that nothing comes to mind, but she can ask Anna on the subject. Use that as a segue to mention Nan was just on her way to meet Anna and if he could light her lantern before she goes it would really help her out.
  • Masochism?
  • Respond truthfully and ask some questions of your own. Questions like "if this is absolute freedom, then why can't I control it?"
    I think that question is important because if it is absolute freedom, then Santiago might know how to control the hotel. I mean the guy is walking around in the dark without any fear whatsoever. He may know how to be safe in the dark without light and Nan has to find out!
  • "My virtue is humility, what is yours that got you to deserve this place you find so wonderful?"
  • My sin? Heck if I know. This place may be freedom for you, but remember not all people are alike. What may be freedom for one person can be a prison for another. Sorry if I bothered you. I have to go now, and look for someone.
  • Whoa.. wait a sec!
    Didn't Anderson mention our new resident Red?
    Perhaps we should ask him what he believes his is, or why he's not with the others?
  • "I..I don't know yet..." (oh god, please get away from me)
  • "I don't know, I haven't thought about it. Why don't you want to be with the others?"
  • Probably liking pizza and being a bit careless I guess. You haven't ever done anything really bad have you?
  • Obviously you broke the hotel wiring causing an electrical fire that burned everyone alive and now you are experiencing your own personal hell for doing so. Just tell him "I burned this hotel to the ground" and walk away.
  • Avoid the question. Don't play into his little mental case he's got going. Just ask about who he is and where he's from while slowly backing away...
  • BECAUSE I'M FAAAAAAAAAT
  • ? You never slept with Bill Clinton
  • ? Your sin...
  • ? IS NOT BUYING MY FUCKING SOAP.
  • Remember folks, there's a discussion thread.
    kthx
  • They're $10 a piece, fuck you.
  • My sin was not getting trapped in the Metal Glen like you were. Now wake up, Red, it's time for your medication.
  • It's been two days :C
  • Say "not giving people enough hugs". Then hug him.
    He looks like he needs it!
236

Nan insists she has no idea what her sin is, and that she considers herself a generally okay person. Besides, didn't Santiago just say there are no sins in this place?

Santiago grins even wider and lets out an amused gasp. Evidently he and Nan are on the same page, he says. Anna's theory is baseless. It's only a product of her own desire to be punished. Maybe she should be punished.

Nan glances back at the stairwell door. She tells Santiago politely that it's been nice meeting him but she really should get back to the group. Santiago grabs Nan's arm lightly and asks if she's really going so soon. As long as she's here, wouldn't she rather stay and see the kind of fun truly free people can have in the dark?

  • Turn him down and start walking away, but be ready with the rebar if he grabs onto your arm any tighter.
  • uhhhh act interested and say maybe later fuck i dont know.
  • "...is this one of those rape things?"
  • Break the wrist grab and start running.
  • Say you have some business to take care of and thinking to do.
  • Inquire about this fun, but stipulate that you'd rather see it than be in the dark.
237

Nan says she's... got to get going at the moment. She has a lot of thinking to do. As she turns, a light flickers into the stairwell from the hall above.

A voice calls out to Nan. Henry's voice. He's asking if she's there.

  • "Yo, Henry! I want you to meet Santiago! He's a total creeper!"
  • Keep your eyes on s- oh great now you're going to look back and something bad will happen
  • Look imploringly at Santiago. He did threaten to kill you if you cried out.
  • I don't know. I'm more interested in how he is still alive without the light. That might be good to know.
    Ask him what does this fun entail?
238

Nan turns back to Santiago, who has released her arm.

With a fizzling sound he extinguishes his match, leaving only a faint plume of dark smoke hanging in the air. He steps back down the stairwell, disappearing into the darkness.

He says to be patient. He says next time, he'll have some real fun with her.

  • leave, but tell him you'll meet again
  • wink at him, do it.
  • Give him the bird.
    The Double Deuce, even.
  • Nan: Run to thy Henry!
  • Suppress every instinct to run, scream, or vomit, and wave at him with a little nervous smile.
  • Quietly take your leave. No need to egg him on.
  • Say yeah your here. You just judged that the shadowshape was some crazy hotel fuckery that was just going to make this matter a whole lot more confusing and complex so you went the opposite way.
    Totally believable.
  • Wow, he's quite a creepy bastard. You should probably get a shiv.
    Anyway, onwards to the reunification with Henry, mention that Santiago is a total fucking nutcase who can survive in the dark. Come up with a theory that the other creatures around here didn't start out that way, they just went a little crazy and now they're murderous loons in the darkness.
239

Nan is torn between running away with the sick feeling in her stomach or forcing a wave goodbye, but Santiago has already left. Henry appears in the doorway a moment later, shining his flashlight in.

He seems relieved to see Nan hasn't gone far. Nan says she ran into Santiago and Henry pales a little. She says he seems to be at home in the darkness. Henry says perhaps he found a way to live in the dark safely. From what he heard, Santiago's been here for almost a whole month.

He turns to Anna, who stands quietly beside him. He says she was just waiting by the elevator, staring into it. Anna very quietly explains she thought she heard someone calling her.

  • no more running off by yourself little lady
  • Tell Anna that it's really not safe to run away like that. Especially not since Santiago seems to want to have some "fun" with her. She really should stay with atleast one other person at all times.
    Then get back towards the others.
  • ...maybe we should ask Henry what he remembers happening after we threw the lamp.
  • Alrighty, now we regroup and hit the sack.
  • this. and getting back to the safe room would be nice, too.
  • hug anna
  • also do this, it's been on my mind
  • Aww, you totally missed out on getting raped by Santiago. Oh well, there's always next time.
    This is now RapeQuestv2.0
240

Nan asks Henry what he remembers after the last time they met, when Nan threw the lamp.

He says the room went pitch black and he didn't have a light source. He called out for her, but she wouldn't answer. He opened the door to the hall hoping to let some light in, but then he remembered the power was still off out there. Before he could close the door, something attacked him in the darkness, and he woke up in the shared room.

Anna follows quietly.

  • Now tell him what happened on our end. I am sure he is curious.
  • go "oh my that must have been frightening" while rubbing his horns.
    or ask anna if anyone found him and brought him back or something
  • Wait.
    What is that he's wearing? Is that the same pendant we have?
  • Both of these seem like exceedingly good ideas.
  • Examine inventory for matching pendant.
  • no, henry's pendant has 5 ends instead of 4, examine anyway
241

The pendant bears a striking resemblance to Nan's own, but when she checks her pockets, it's gone.

Nan explains her own ordeals, but it's so disjointed, like a dream that's hard to explain. Henry seems to get the gist of it though and says he's just relieved that Nan is all right after all that.

The group returns to the room where Kim and Anderson are waiting. Everyone is glad Anna is back safe.

Anna quietly stares at the floor and says they're not going to get out of here. And maybe they don't deserve to.

  • Tell Anna we heard about her theory... and it doesn't feel right. This place is too WEIRD to just be a punishment. Besides, we didn't do anything to deserve this!
  • Tell Anna that they haven't even TRIED yet. Giving up now is just stupid.
  • Smack Anna on the back of the head and tell her to stop being such a downer. Sitting around and feeling sorry for themselves and like they deserve it won't fucking help. And it's that attitude that makes Santiago want to rape and eat her. So cheer the fuck up.
    Ok Kim and Anderson if anything weird happened while they were out. Oh, and tell Anderson to please shoot Santiago if he sees him.
  • Tell her that out of all the screwed up characters in the world, across MULTIPLE TIME PERIODS no less, none of you could possibly be the most deserving candidates for being stranded in some sort of hotel-based purgatory.
  • Hit Anna to assert dominance
  • "Well, not with that attitude! Maybe you want to stay here forever, but that doesn't mean the rest of us are pansy quitters incapable of earning our freedom!"
  • ask her what her sin is and possibly tell her that giving up when others count on you is even worse
  • Yes, ask Anna what her sin is. It's time for everyone to come clean.
  • If this place is messing with their memories it might be possible that false sin memories are or will be implanted.
  • Along with that, see if there's a link between when everyone first ended up in this place and how long they've been there. That is, if that hasn't been done already.
    It may be one of those "time passes faster on the outside" things.
  • Because if that's how it works, this hotel has been around for a lot longer than they might think.
242

Nan tells Anna to stop being such a downer. Anna asks how she can possibly be optimistic in a place like this -- or has Nan just not looked around her?

They're trapped here, and Anna can't help but feel there's a reason. Nan asks that if they're all here for a reason, what did Anna do to deserve it?

She's quiet for a moment, then answers that she's not about to say what -- but it's there. She's got her bad thing, and she'd bet that so does everyone else here.

She nods to Anderson as an example. How many times do you think he's fired that gun? Has he killed anyone?

Anderson says of course he has. He's a US Marshall. Sometimes it's part of the job.

  • Tell Anna that if her theory were true, there would be a HELL of a lot more people trapped here than just the...5? 6? of you.
  • Guh..... do you really want to hear everyone's sin confession? Wouldn't it be more prudent to focus on staying positive, finding out everyone's strengths, and figuring out a way to get the Fuck out of this damn hotel? Seriously.
  • Tell Anna she saved your life! And frankly, she's been nothing but kind to you! If she really deserved this, and we mean really, then there would be a whole lot more people who live in the dark like our grinning 'friend'.
  • This place isn't a hell, it seriously lacks in torment. Not much of a limbo either, too much... stuff and weirdness. In the afterlife you shouldn't feel much alive anyways, you wouldn't have hope or be worried about death. You tell Anna she just has her own issues and she needs to get the fuck over them or she WILL make it to the afterlife and probably drag you all with her.
243

If this is Limbo or Hell, why aren't there more people here? Anna says this isn't Hell, because they're not dead -- they're just being punished. And they put themselves here. There are surely many others, but why they are here, rather than they, is anyone's guess. At the least, they couldn't all fit into one place, could they?

Henry interjects on Anderson's behalf, excusing the Marshall. He says it's sometimes necessary for a lawman to kill if innocent lives are endangered. But upholding the law and murder are two different things. And surely, Anderson's never killed an innocent man.

Anderson scowls and speaks gruffly. He says he's never met an innocent man.

  • oh anderson, you're not helping but we love you anyway.
  • after all he probably sounds like Keith Davids...
    Anyway, regardless of his philosophy of no innocent man existing, I've doubt he's killed in cold blood... unless of course he's witnessed a horrible crime so gruesome he killed the man he thought was responsible immediately. Cops deal with horrible shit all the time and I'm sure Nan's up to snuff on understanding what a police officer's mind might go through witnessing a hurt child or something.
  • Sigh, rub your head, and let them get this drama fest on the road.
  • ... the POINT is, we're sure he's never killed anyone without a good reason. He's a Marshall and that's just part of their job.
    Certainly we've all done things we're not always proud of, but none of it could deserve this. ... and if the rest of the girls insist on romanticizing this as some kind of hell or punishment, then I'd prefer to think of it as a trial. We can get out of here as long as we don't give up. And when we do get out of here, things will be better. Maybe we can make things better. But things will never get better if we don't try. That's what a trial is. It's a bad situation with a light at the end of the tunnel. And we just have to keep reaching towards the light.
  • Get it through her hard head that this place doesn't make sense as a hell, or limbo, or purgatory, in fact it doesn't make any sense at all. You've got creepy beings and time travel as the best leads here. You can more easily find a parallel here or there in books about science fiction or paranormal thrillers. But nothing any of you think is happening actually matters so you should really stop worrying about it and find a way to stay alive and escape.
  • it matter not what we have done, but what we have becomed.
    if you want to suffer forever in your self made hell, be polite enought to not drag anyone with you.
  • Ok, big speech time.
    "Perhaps this is hell, or purgatory, or some equivalent of it for the living. It doesn't matter. Do we have a sin that would hold us here? Well, we don't know. Do we deserve to be here? Again, we don't know.
    One thing we DO know is whatever it takes to get out of here, be in atoning for sins or kicking the ass of every shadow-loving freak in this place, we are GOING to find it and DO it!
    Talking about this is pointless. We don't have enough proof to disprove or prove any theory's yet, and we can't just lay down and die. Let's move forward, find useful things in this house and try to determine the rules of this place. Let's find something to use as weapons against those things. And lets stick together from now on, never splitting into more than two groups at a time because being divided is STUPID!
    You can huddle in dimmed lights and silence until you slip up if the think you 'deserve' it or whatever. Go ahead, give up and die if you don't want to go on. But I will not, cannot stop.
    I'm going to live and see the outside world again, or die giving everything I have to try getting there. If I have some hidden sin then I'll deal with it, in here or out. You don't wallow in your sin, you overcome it.
    So either get beside me or get out of the way, because as long as I have legs I'm moving forward."
  • "Anderson had to kill people as part of his job as a US Marshall.
    I'm sure Henry here fought in the war.
    Anna, I'm guessing, murdered people for cash to survive the great depression."
    Pause to give her a look and a chance to correct you.
    "How about you, Kim? You're a college student. The worst you've done is probably drugs and cheating on homework, unless I'm missing something."
    Give her a look and a chance to answer.
    "As for myself? My only 'sin' is that I sit on work orders until I feel like doing them. I don't even cheat on my taxes. If this is a punishment then it's being given by somebody with no sense of scale."
  • 'Is it really pertinent what sins we may or may not have committed?! I know that I have done nothing to deserve this, and even so, why give up? We should still try to escape if only to avoid being hurt more than we already are. There are monsters out there, horrible things; Santiago too.' Turn to Anna 'I think he might rape on of us, we should try to stay with the men. In any case, sitting around feeling sorry for ourselves is not going to solve anything!'
  • Okay mental note, Anderson is not someone we want to fuck with.
  • Follow this, but instead, ask everyone to state what the "worst" thing they've ever done is -- something they REGRET. We might not be here for a "sin" so much as what we perceive as one.
    (So the question is, what would Nan's regret be?)
  • Smack some nihilistic sense into Anna. Shit doesn't have a reason, no overreaching grand plan it's working along, no fucking divine punishment. Shit just fucking is, and it doesn't even matter. So can she stop fucking around with her own head and being such a defeatist whiney little pussy and get her fucking ass in gear and be helpful instead of somne ditzy little twat that goes off to get killed and worse, drags along someone who wants to help her and gets killed. If she wants to end in then just grab a shiv and go to the bathroom.
  • There are monsters out there, horrible things; Santiago too.' Turn to Anna 'I think he might rape all of us, we should try to travel alone as much as possible making sure to frequently pause with our backs turned to dark corners.'
  • Anna helped Nan in the elevator, so Nan should help her back, not just for her own sake, but because it's the right thing to do. The way Anna's right now, however, she might take Santiago up on his offer, and that needs to be prevented.
    Time for some psychoanalysis.
    If Anna thinks she deserves to be here, then tell her you want to help her get past that and get out of here. Same goes for the others.
    Clearly they're in some sort of unnatural place. Clearly there's something going on here that they don't fully understand, something involving their lives somehow from all the weird dreams and stuff. That doesn't necessarily mean they all explicitely deserve being here, and it doesn't mean there's no way of getting out or making up for whatever it is they're supposed to have done.
    Maybe that's even why they're here together now. Helping each other figure things out and keeping each other sane and living should go a long way at making up for past mistakes. Frankly, shooting for redemption is way better than just sitting on your ass waiting for whatever's to come, always.
    In the event that it ISN'T limbo or whatnot, helping one another to figure a way out of here is just good old common sense.
  • Make the point that they've turned up here over the space of DECADES. If there is a particular reason that they should all be here, it needs to be a hell of a lot more specific than that.
  • He has a gun? Has he tried using it on say, the Padre?
  • What's curious about this is that the hotel's relative time is non-linear. The 1930's was a few days ago, while the future was last week. Whatever this place is, it exists in multiple times.
    Actually, Kim's a college student! Ask her if she ever studied quantum theory or stuff like that. Or in the very least if she's heard anything about the hotel before -- or anyone going missing near it. Nan and Kim are from relative times, so maybe Kim might have heard of something?
244

Nan asks Anna what sin she could have committed that was so bad she would wind up here. Anna says she hopes Nan will excuse her that she's not exactly itching to share.

Nan is fed up with everyone being a downer! She tells Anna that whether or not they "deserve" to be here doesn't make a difference now. If Anna just wants to sit in the corner and wallow in self-pity that's her choice, but Nan isn't about to give up.

Anna smirks oddly and corrects Nan. She clarifies that she never said she was giving up. If they're here by their own actions, that means they can leave by their own actions, too.

And Anna for one doesn't plan to die in a place like this. She's getting the hell out of here first, and sorting out her absolution later.

  • "oh you"
  • Good.
    Now we resume sleepy-time. We'll need the energy to escape.
245

There is a knock at the door.

  • A polite knock or "OH GOD WE ARE GOING TO GET RAPED" knock?
  • We're never going to get any sleep at this rate. Defer to the others; they know what the door protocol is better than you.
  • EVERYONE: READY WEAPONRY
    ANDERSON: GET THE DOOR
  • Knock two bits back.
  • Knock five times in rapid succession. If there's a person on the other side, they should reply with two knocks.
246

Nan decides to defer to the others. Luckily, it seems they are prepared.

Anderson stands by the door and draws an old-fashioned revolver. He gruffly asks who's there, and a moment, later a familiar voice responds.

"It's Pablo!"

  • Okay... Lets see him.
  • It might not be Pablo, ready your weaponry.
  • This.
    Also hide behind Anna :D
  • Open the door a smidge and confirm Pablo's identity.
247

After a quick nod to the rest of the group, Anderson swings the door open and levels his pistol --

But it's only Pablo, after all. He's understandably surprised by the gun pointed at him and tells Anderson to put it away as he stands in the open doorway.

  • Tell Anderson it's cool.
    Ask Pablo what happened after last time we saw him.
  • Let him in, but keep an eye on him. Never know.
  • Let him in a verify that it's Pablo.
  • Ask Pablo things only Pablo would know.
    Like what kind of can of food they had earlier.
    The mirrors are making me think we need to start an identity check system.
248

Anderson lets Pablo in and he promptly notices Nan with pleasant surprise.

Pablo says that after she smashed that thing in his room everything went black and when the lights came back on a few seconds later, she was gone. He'd feared the worst, but evidently she's all right. And now she's here with everyone else, to boot. He thought he might not see her again.

  • groovy.
  • explain weird time shit.
  • Glad to have you back, Pablo!
    Now let's get back to sleepy time.
  • Ask HIM what year it is.
  • Give a High Five to Pablo.
    For a change of pace :3
  • What if Pablo pre or post-dates the High Five? :O
249

Nan raises her hand and Pablo eyes it strangely, but with a quick gesture and a little encouragement they high-five, if a little awkwardly. Pablo smiles.

Nan asks him what year it is.

250

Pablo gives Nan an even stranger look and after a pause he seems to decide she must be serious. He says it's still 1966, right? Surely they haven't been here THAT long.

  • Pablo... I'm from 2009...
  • Fill him in on the time-fuckery going on up in here.
  • Lets do the time warp again.........
    Explain temporal shenanigans to Pablo
  • Explain to Pablo the disjoint in eras between the people here.
  • Sorry Pablo, at last count it's 2012. Everyone seems to be displaced from their time period in here. Wonder when Santiago's from...
251

Nan sits Pablo down and informs him of the strange effect this place has on their relative "home" times. Pablo glances around in confusion for a moment, but the others nod to confirm Nan's explanation. He settles down for a minute without saying anything, then asks Nan if people are living on the moon yet, in her time.

Nan says no. Kim says not in her time either.

Pablo seems a little disappointed, but otherwise largely unphased by this revelation.

  • We have LANDED on it though!
  • "But we do have this magnificent system called The Internet..."
  • We don't even have hovercars... or robot servents... or holograms... man the future turned out to be far less cool than we all thought. But at least the internet and nintendo was a nice trade off.
  • Alright.
    We need to come up with some sort of plan if we're gonna get out of here.
    Firstly... lets have everybody work together and draw up a map as best we can.
252

Nan says they need a plan. They should combine knowledge, maybe work on a map.

Henry agrees. Kim does too, but she says it's far too late to concentrate on things like that. They should start thinking about sleep. Now that there are six of them, they can take 3 shifts of 2 people each. Everyone can get a few hours of sleep.

  • agree, let's get some shut-eye.
  • Back to the first plan. Kim can take first shift, and Henry can take second, and Nan, volunteer for third.
  • Take the second shift with Henry. The others will be in deeper sleep then and you can start putting the moves on him.
  • Nan should kick it with Kim I think. Maybe.... just maybe Kim might remember reading about a nasty bicycle accident around Nan's disappearance.
  • pick the shift with who we wanna talk toooo~
    I'm for kickin it with anna.
253

Kim says she'll take the first shift. She's not as reliable at getting up early but she can pull late nights no problem. It's part of the college schedule. Nan sympathizes. She's never been much of an early riser and hates interrupted sleep. She sleeps in late on weekends. And weekdays too, usually. Anderson says he's staying up with Kim. She's the youngest and if anyone needs him for backup, she does. Kim doesn't object.

Pablo asks no one in particular who should take the other shifts.

Anna suggests jokingly that they should have mixed shifts, so there's no point where all the girls are asleep, since who knows what trouble the men would get up to. But she apologizes sheepishly after nobody laughs.

  • Laugh at her joke :(
  • But laugh awkwardly.
    Offer to kick it with Henry, so you guys can get to know each other better :3c
254

With Anderson and Kim taking first shift, Nan offers to take the final shift with Henry, who agrees. That leaves Anna and Pablo in the middle shift. They accept as well.

Kim rises from the bed and offers it to the others, but everyone is too polite to take the bed. It's Nan's if she wants it.

  • Agree to take the bed if the others will after she's done sleeping. We want to keep this fair.
  • Nan does in fact want it.
  • Yeah, plus mention that it's big enough to share. But glare at anyone who suggests anything dirty
  • Well you might as well if no one else is taking it! It would be silly if no one was in the bed.
  • If it comes to two people in a bed, stuff one of those long pillows between youurselves.
255

Nan shrugs and gratiously accepts the offer of the bed. Understandably, the lights are going to be staying on. But that will be the last thing keeping her up.

And yet, settling in, Nan realizes how tired she really is.

She lies down, closes her eyes, and tries to sleep.

  • Time now to either fade to the next scene, or initiate dream sequence!
  • And blackout in 3... 2... 1...
256

Nan dreams of blood and sweat, and darkness. Nothing seems to form completely.

257

Nan wakes up.

  • FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF
  • Call out "...Guys? You're not mad that I took the bed, are you?"
  • Examine surroundings. What the hell is this place?
  • Oh man oh man oh man OH MAN.
    Quick, arm yourself. Then investigate the Nan-shaped bloody silhouette.
  • Take note of surroundings.
    ...
    Call out and ask if they're mad that you took the bed.
  • Get to the light quickly before Santiago or one of the other nasties lurking around in the dark come!
258

Nan is in a strange place. There are no real furnishings around except for these tall, strange installments that look like badly stretched canvas. She stands in a long, darkened white hallway that leads to a larger but just as unfurnished room on one side and a narrow doorway on the other, from which steady light is pouring.

  • I see we are not in our overalls.
    Head towards the light!
  • I don't think we are really awake, but let's not pinch ourselves and wake up just yet, hopefully we can get some kind of clue here.
    Examine surroundings.
  • Briefly look in the larger room, to see what the other canvases are like.
  • Anything immediately evident in the vicinity that could be responsible for copious amounts of projectile blood?
  • Alright. Hopefully this is a dream, but you definitely need to watch out. Whichever feels more comforting to you, being in darkness or being in the light, go to that one and try to sneak, whatever's out there probably still doesn't know where you are.
  • Head to the large room first. I want to see what the other silhouettes are. (Or whatever is on the other canvases)
  • Frame yourself on that canvas.
    It calls for you.
259

Nan peers into the next room. There are six more canvases here. Only one bears a silhouette.

And... something else.

  • Do not approach it do not approach it do NOT approach it
  • Duck to the ground, prepare to run. Does it look like it's looking at you, specifically? Or is it just staring? Say hello.
  • It... it looks like it's in pain.
    Say hello, but get ready to run like the crazy woman that we all know you are.
  • START RUNNING TOWARD THE LIGHT.
  • If it hasn't noticed you: Back up, veeerrry slowly.
    If it has, and is moving towards you/looking menacing: FUCKING BOOK IT
    If it has, and simply watches: Say "Hello," but be prepared to run like hell.
  • Either the guy had a huge hole through his right eye, or that spot was splattered there after he was gone. Considering there's a smear through his arm and torso I think it's likely this "painting" has been tampered with since the initial explosion of... blood...
  • Go "OOGA BOOGA BOOGA!" at it.
  • I think that's silhouette might be Alan.
260

Nan stops for a moment and watches. She quietly calls out "Hello?"

The figure on the floor has definitely noticed her. Something about the room's atmosphere changes very suddenly.

Something on the canvas moves.

  • gtfo
  • ...FUCK THERE IS A NAN BEHIND YOU GET OUT OF THERE
  • Get the fuck out
  • Prepare yourself for an onslaught of mutant shadow clones.
  • Turn around, aware of the fact that the silhouette you left behind might be walking towards you now.
  • GOD FUCKING DAMMIT now I have absolutely no idea what the hell is going on. Why is the silouette moving? It's just an impression left behind by something blocking the splatter, right? Is it falling down from broken legs, or is it attacking the black thing?
    I'd suggest you run into the light, if that is in fact safer than where you are right now. But my brain is full of fuck right now trying to comprehend negative positive spaces so I couldn't tell you left from right at this point.
  • Abscond.
  • Man, part of me wants to stay, and see what happens; maybe find out how Santiago has survived so long in the dark (this room = dark; other room = light). I mean, they really haven't done anything particularly threatening... yet.
    Of course, the other part of me just wants to say "SHIT, CHEESE IT!" and get the hell out before Nan gets dream-killed.
    Decisions, decisions...
  • NO WAIT RUN, go to a dark place, you need to be able to see the sillhouettes!
  • RUN RUN RUN RUUUUUUUUUNNNNNNNNNN.
261

Nan runs towards the light. The darkness begins to recede behind her as the narrow doorway rushes up.

The faint, soft sound of crying hangs almost placelessly in the air.

  • your painting grew eyes.
  • Look back.
  • GOD this is the worst thing I have ever suggested in the history of TIME.
    Look behind you.
  • Look at Nan's blood painting
  • Take a quick peek back while you dive into the light.
  • ?
262

As she runs toward the light, Nan takes one quick glance over her shoulder.

  • RUN FASTER.
  • nan painting help!
  • That is not what I expected to be chasing you. KEEP GOING.
  • Engage hugging.
  • Say "ALAN! BAD TOUCH!" and run faster. Maybe if we guess his name he'll stop following us
  • Keep running towards the light. When you reach it and you can safely, turn around, it might not be able to penetrate the light.
263

Nan suddenly bursts through the doorway and emerges in a cold white room full of light.

Pablo is here. He is making soft sobbing sounds.

  • SHIT!!!! THAT'S A DAMN WINDOW YOU'RE HEADING FOR!
  • ahahah, kidding.
    yeah.
    kidding.
  • Say it's you, Nan, prepare for... ANYTHING! Ask him what the hell is wrong!
  • Oh god, Pablo. What happened to you?
  • Ehh. Pablo? You alright, man?
  • This keeps going from bad to worse.
    Attempt to administer first aid to Pablo!
  • Politely request to know what the hell is going on.
  • These, of course, but shut the goddamn door first. You may be shutting yourself in with a Pablo-monster, but you're fucked if you leave it open, anyway.
  • Shut the door, were you raised in a barn?
264

There is no door to the hallway Nan just came from.

Nan quietly says Pablo's name, hoping to get a response. Immediately he snaps up, pulling his head away from his hands, which are soaked with blood. He stares at Nan for a long moment, then begins to speak.

His voice is shaky and breaks intermittently as he speaks. He says Hello, baby. Are you coming back now? He says I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. Can you ever forgive me? Can you ever forgive me for what I did? Baby please I'm begging you I'm so sorry I know we can be happy together again

I'm so sorry I never wanted it to be this way I never meant for it to happen like this can you forgive me please I just want you back

  • what
  • .... this is bad, be careful.
  • Ask if he murdered someone, or if he cheated on you.
  • Or both.
  • oh god he murdered his wife or kid and he's paying for it here Anne was right
  • Say that it's ok. You forgive him. It's all going to be alright.
  • Ok....
    Ask him to calm down, while you get the hell away from the door.
    Don't go behind him though. Stay in front of the desk and try to stay out of arms reach.
    Also.
    What?!
  • What did you do, Pablo?
  • See if he's carrying a weapon.
    If not, hug Pablo.
  • juast say "time dickery"
  • You know what? Fuck this. See if there's a door leading out of here that isn't leading back.
  • Tell him that he can't just expect it to happen in one instance, it takes time and effort. But you're hopeful you could, you just need him to calm down.
  • Clock him across the face with your engineer arms.
  • Pablo.
    What did you do.
  • Hug Pablo
265

Pablo. What did you do?

He says he made a mistake It wasn't supposed to be like this But now you're back Now he has a second chance

And he is going to make you live forever.

  • "oh no thats alr-wait no..i..uh..hm.."
  • NO PABLO NO
    Find another exit.
  • This is not a good thing
  • PABLO NO! Bad touch bad touch
    Run away Nan punch yourself in the canvas
  • Okay nan you need to get the message across that YOU are wearing the goat pants in this relationship, damnit! Tell him that he doesn't get to decide for you, and punch him in the face to establish dominance.
  • ;_;
    -shit, Nan-silhouette. I don't know. If there's no other exit, do... something. Try to fight it, maybe, though I doubt it'll do much good.
    Oh, and watch out for Pablo. I'm not sure what he'll try, if anything, so just keep an eye on him.
266

The world gets blurry as Nan becomes aware of a strange sensation on her cheek.

  • How can you make someone live forever, Pablo?
  • Fucking rat.
    Brush it off your face and get up. It might be your shift.
  • :D It's the mouse! Hello, mouse! Aren't you adorable and not terrifying in the slightest! Yes you are!
  • Gently reach out and pet the rat.
267

Nan wakes up.

  • call out everyone's name
  • Investigate the bathroom. Then check outside.
268

Nan peers into the bathroom, but there is no one there. She calls out, but there is no response.

  • Check under the sink to see if there is anything that could be used.
  • ...the mirror's broken.
    It's as if this is the same room we met Henry in. Let's go outside.
269

Nan steps outside into the hall.

  • ...that's Anna's hat. Fuck.
    Get closer; see who that is. Not too close, though.
  • Oh no. Who's that over there? That looks like Anna's hat... Get your rebar ready.
  • Oh god
    Go back inside with the mouse
  • The door to 311 seems ajar.
  • If you still have that screwdriver pull it out and check out... what ever the hell is going on.
270

Nan looks over. Anna's bloodied hat lies by the two obscured figures -- one sprawled on the floor against the wall, the other dark, kneeling over the first.

It appears the black cloaked figure is doing something to the other with its hands.

[Animated]

  • Ok the path is clear.
    Shit yourself in terror.
    Duck back into room.
  • D'awww, it's just Death of Rats. Check for any undead cheese you can give him.
  • AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
    BARRICADE THE DAMN DOOR NOW
  • AHHHHHHHHH it's la chupacabre
  • KILL IT.
  • Flip the fuck out and charge that thing and pin it to the wall through its head with the rebar. Whoever it's hunching over could still be alive. WE DO NOT LEAVE OUR COMRADES.
  • Back to the room and close the door.
  • Don't hide, don't barricade. You'll corner yourself, Nan. Just take Anderson's advice, and just. Fucking. Run. Don't look back; keep moving until you're sure you're safe.
    And, I swear, if that thing killed Anna... we'll make it pay. Somehow.
  • Say hi. No need not to be polite. Maybe he's nice?
  • Well.
    That certainly isn't very good.
    I say you should most surely try to get back into one of the rooms.
  • Observe it for a while, but if it moves even one inch closer... RUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUN!
  • Say hello to the nice skeletal abomination.
  • Just. Fucking. RUN.
  • Grab nearest WEPON or WEPON-LIKE OBJECT.
    Hold your ground. Start demanding answers.
    Become slightly annoyed at all the gore that seems to occur 'round these parts. Goddamn people losing their blood, don't they know how unsanitary that is?
  • Skull vs Rebar? Rebar wins.
    Smash that thing's face off.
  • Aw shitfuck. It's the death for goats. You better run like there was a hungry troll back there. And fucking hell, this thing is out in the light. Shit's real bad. Hopefully it will stay and keep doing whatever it was doing when you run away.
  • Don't jump to conclusions. We don't know if it's the Beast or some other abomination. Although it's scary as shit.
    The door is just next to us, we can always get inside. Let's try to see whether we have other viable options.
    Do we have the pendant? If yes, it might be a good idea to raise it in front of this abomination. And ready the rebar.
  • It's cutting/tearing someone apart, it's wearing a monk's habit..
    It has to be the Pilgrim.
    In which case running is SORELY TEMPTING.
  • Wait, wait, wait.
    Before we AGRESS, I think I just realized something.
    That skull.. is a *rat's skull*. (See image in Discussion thread).
    I have no idea if it is significant or not. But given how helpful the rats have been (and, to be fair, we didn't SEE this figure kill.. er.. whoever it happens to be dismembering. It could have come across the corpse?). But, assuming its friendly may be a mistake too.
    Wait briefly to see how it reacts to noticing us?
  • OKAY THE DARK CLOAK THING IS NOT ANNA SO SAVE HER BY SMASHING IT HEAD WITH REBAR
  • Tell that rat man to stop with his shenanigans, your trying to sleep over here.
  • WE'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS SCARY SHIT
    DROP KICK THAT FUCKER
    Oh wait
    But they just can’t kill the beast"
    Fuck it, just run
  • Might be a warning away from trying to stab it... It looks skeletal, try bludgeoning.
  • I wonder where the others are? also why where you the only one still in the room, maybe it doesn't want to kill nan for some reason?
  • In that case, a dropkick might work
    Dammit, Nan's the most dangerous animal on the crew, surely she knows how to kick
    But no, really either run or ask why the hell he's all bloody and dead
  • Guys I think the bed's fucked. Let's not sleep in it again okay?
271

SHE BELONGS TO THIS PLACE NOW. YOU CAN'T HELP HER NAN. YOU CAN'T HELP ANYONE.

YOU CAN'T EVEN HELP YOURSELF.

272

BUT IN DEATH, YOU HAVE A PURPOSE. COME, NAN.

EMBRACE DEATH.

  • Ok!
    I bet you wake up somewhere else after you're done being stabbed.
  • "I have a purpose in life, too.
    EMBRACE REBAR, MOTHERFUCKER!"
    Beat the fucking shit out of him. You've got the light on your side.
  • Okay, run.
  • retrieve cross pendant from inventory
    if that doesnt somehow work against him get the fuck out of there
  • Have a large, blunt object embrace his skull at the highest velocity you can manage.
  • "I'd rather not.."
    ..we gotta get a weapon.
  • I highly advise not being near the skeletal monster thing. Like for instance we could oh run away very fast and far away?
  • Embrace death and PUNCH IT IN THE FACE!
  • "Fuck. You."
  • In a rugged, western voice, call:
    "TAKE YOUR BEST SHOT, PIILLLGRAM."
    Your purpose is being an electrician? Or is it? That doesn't matter now, being dead would probably be boring. Stand up for your ass! Just try not being too confrontational.
273

Nan is torn between fight and flight. Her options are limited: She's by no means a fighter, but the only door out of this hall is past this ragged figure. She must take a stand, but afraid of getting close, she compromises. Steeling her will, Nan reels back with her sharpened piece of rebar and prepares to hurl it at the oncoming monstrosity.

274

Nan throws the REBAR SWORD! It spins through the air in a sharp arc. It's a lucky throw! The sharpened edge of the REBAR SWORD buries itself deep in the monster's skull, sending bone fragments flying!

  • now RUN PASS HIM AND DOWN THE STAIRE FAST!!!
  • GET MORE HEAVY OBJECTS! DESTROY HIM!!
  • I meen stairs
    down the stairs
  • RUN THE HELL AWAY, if you get the chance, try to knock it over, piles of bones aren't generally sturdy!
  • "YOU EMBRACE IT"
  • can't leave without a weapon! retrieve rebar sword, possibly out the other side. Bumrush distracted skeleton, retrieve rebar, pummel into shards.
275

HA. HA HA.

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA.

  • HEY STOP THAT.
    You're freaking me out man.
276

SNAP. Bone shards fly as the the monster roughly rips the REBAR SWORD out from its OWN skull. It doesn't seem phased at all.

YOU CANNOT FIGHT THIS, NAN. ONLY WHEN YOUR LIFE IS EXTINGUISHED CAN THIS END.

  • "THEN IT WILL NEVER END"
  • Can we get a quick check of the INVENTORY before proceeding?
  • Go for the window at the end of the hall. If it isn't sealed off, then in all likelihood it leads to spacetimefuckery. We have no idea where it will take us, but almost anywhere is better than here.
  • Let's abscond through the window I suppose.
  • Oh, wait, I see what this is.
    That's not his REAL FACE, Nan. It is a MASK he is wearing. You missed his head.
    Go grab that table and beat the ever-loving shit out of him. Use your INDOMITABLE SPIRIT to unleash the CYCLE OF HURTING on him.
  • Nan, meet window. Hello window!
  • get dresser drawers, throw at him.
  • NO it leed to the yard, that is where the beast live
  • Hum a showtune.
  • Okay, it looks like Scott isn't putting up with any bullshit
    Didn't Anderson say to just run if we saw the Pilgrim? We should try that.
  • Maybe some weird hotel bullshit will put us in the main enteyway again! FIND A WINDOW and re-enter another part of the hotel!
  • "WHY? I mean, not WHY as in WHY DID YOU KILL HER but WHY DOES IT HAVE TO END LIKE THAT.
    I mean come on bro, I just want some fucking explanations goddamn."
  • You know, asking questions and getting answers is not such a bad idea
    Cause you know, no one else is gonna tell us
  • The problem is this guy's standing in the way of the only path of retreat that isn't locking ourselves in the room.
    Actually nevermind the inventory, grab the end table and see if you can't rush him with it. Get him to jam his knife into it, and get the hell out of there.
  • If we're going to ask questions, ask about Pablo. Is he really responsible for all this?
  • Why not ask how he knows your name?
  • Do we have the kooky statuette thing that was between rooms 312 and 313 at the moment? that could probably do some serious bashing if we had no other choice, nice and lumpy. One of the little tables as a shield would be good too.
  • It's time to show the rat "your moves"
  • Ask Death of Rats why hes being such a jerk, and why you and everyone else was trapped here.
  • Shit, it's death. Summon the spirit of RINCEWIND, the unkillable wizzard, and use his mighty power of OH GOD RUN AAAUUGGGHH.
    Maybe back into the room or something, since we didn't run past him while he was distracted...
  • (psst that's not a rat skull, check questdis)
  • Could we please just fucking run?
  • Nan: Submit.
  • NO! that stupid
  • I don't care IF he's immune to the attack, that had to at least distract him. Rush that fucker and use his own knife against him!
  • Run.
    Christ, this isn't hard.It's like you want the PC to get killed, man. :/
  • We don't know how this place works. We don't even know exactly what's going on. We could still be dreaming for all we know.
    Submit.
  • I'm voting for running. Running is always good.
  • No, UNDIES nan is dreaming Nan!
    ...or maybe overalls Nan is dreaming Nan? Hm.
  • As long as he doesn't look like he's going to charge us, I vote for trying to get some answers out of him.
    At the very least, who is he and why is he so certain that Nan must die?
  • I'd assume it's meant to intimidate us into submission, since whatever's going on here won't stop until the hotel can no longer take people in.
  • Come on there's a window right behind her I don't care if its a dream or not lets get the fuck away right out of that window. If it leads to the courtyard fuck it we can run from the beast too.
    The GM looks like he left an opening for us let's take it. Weaver isn't "rock falls everyone dies". Lets metagame the fuck outta this
  • Classy.
  • "You can never defeat death. But you can fight it! And that's what life is!!"
  • RUN
  • In this:I can see some kind of small table.
    Nan, back up and grab the table, then hold it vertically (like a big shield) and ram that son of a bitch into the wall behind him. This time, use the distraction to run past him into the hallway beyond.
    Oh, and one more thing; try to keep your body away from your side of the table, if that makes any sense. That fucker might try to stab you through the wood, and I don't doubt he could do it.
    Why did it have to be Anna? ;_;
  • SHIT
    We never asked Kim what the future is like!
    If we meet up again, ask her what the future is like!
  • Wait, we might still be in "fake world mode"!
    Quick, tell it, before it kills us, to explain what it means and why we're here! (Then as it's talking, get the FUCK out of there!!)
  • pinch self, I know we just woke up but try, it's better than dying
  • Do what you should have done from the start. Motherfucking run!
  • I know this isn't the time for this, but has anyone wondered what all those lines on the wall of the room she was in were converging to under the bed? Also, I agree with the idea of asking him about this place. For example, what was suggested earlier; asking about Pablo.
  • Eh, doesn't look like he's going to give us any real insight into what's going on around here. I'm pretty sure all its explanations will revolve around its "death is the way out" dogma.
    Let's run and try to find the rest of Team Survivors.
  • "Are you going to try to kill me at this meeting? What's going on here? Why did you kill her? What do you want? Why am I here? What is this place?"
  • Perhaps not some direct insight but he might say something we can glean info off of.
  • Call out Pablo's name, see if the thing responds. I have a really strange feeling the two are connected.
    Notice how Pablo was gone once before? What if he turns into this thing either by force or of his own will.
  • He isn't going to listen to reason and Nan sure as heck won't be helping anyone if she's dead.
    Using the table to ram the dead-face in order to get past him sounds like the smartest idea I've heard so far. He's in a corridor, so he can't exactly dodge it very well, and a decent charge should knock him on his ass or force him back sufficiently for Nan to slip past.
  • Actually, it's not Pablo. The skull is closer to what Henry would be in super-detail mode, as both are ungulates.
    ... shit, this is a problem!!
    QUICK, CALL OUT HENRY'S NAME!!
  • Normally I don't like reiterating suggestions that were already given, but my vote is to use the table as a distraction or - if adrenaline is on our side - use it as a battering ram to deflect the psycho cannibal's stabby attempts as Nan runs like her butt is on fire.
    I mean, seriously? You expect the thing with the bloody knife who seems to have been mutilating Anna's body and laughing like a psycho at the idea of killing Nan to tell her anything except how she's going to die? Even if it's Pablo, Henry, Anderson, Santiago, or even Anna herself, I don't think this thing is sane enough to be reasoned with right now. At least not while it's laughing maniacally at the idea of slaughtering Nan.
    RUN, KID, RUN!
  • Compromise: take up defensive stance with impromptu table-shield, then attempt to ask questions. If he starts getting aggressive, then we can counter charge.
    As someone else said, even if the thing/dude is kookoo for cocoa puffs, we might still be able to glean some information out of its words.
  • I say this isn't Pablo OR Henry.
    I also say Nan should get to running if she wants to live!!!
  • He seems to be quite the talkative monster, ask him why he is not hurt by the dark like his companions.
    Yes. Call them COMPANIONS.
  • Er. I mean ask him why he doesnt get hurt by the light for that matter.
  • You can talk while you run, can't you Nan?
277

Nan throws questions at the approaching monster. Why did it kill Anna? Why is it doing this? What is this place? But the creature does not seem in a talkative mood.

NO. STOP TALKING. NO QUESTIONS, PLEASE. YOU HAVE TO DIE. YOU NEED TO RELEASE ME. The creature wields its knife menacingly and begins shambling towards Nan. Clearly it is not waiting for permission.

Nan considers rushing the monster with the table, but on reconsideration decides to just flee. She runs to the end of the hall. The window appears to be unlocked, and she begins to force it open as the creature approaches.

  • Use a tool from your tool belt to break the glass, then jump out the window.
    We can try petting the beast or something, I guess.
  • Anywhere is better than here right now. Let's do this.
  • "There's got to be other ways to release you! I'm not dying when there are other possibilities!"
    Fuck. Get out the window, it looks like your only good option.
  • Hang out the window to shorten the drop and get a chance to look for the best place to land.
  • "GODDAMMIT WHY CAN'T YOU GO HOME AND BE A FAMILY MAN"
  • Hammer at the nearest doors! Maybe one of them isn't locked!
  • Damn, I guess facing death and fear to escape the Hotel would be too easy. It's only for his benefit, unfortunately.
    Well, time for the Leap of Faith, out the window we go.
    There's unfortunately almost no time to check what's below due to him creeping so close, so we'll have to hope Nan doesn't fall on something dangerous.
  • Hm. Filed away.
    You don't have anything else on you to open the window faster so we can jump through it faster?
  • Apply CUTE HORNS if tools fail.I get the feeling we won't fall down, and there's going to be another corridor mirrored from this one.
    I hope there won't be a mirrored Horsebones there.
  • Fuck that shit, you're a goat! Back up about a foot and ram that window with your head, jumping out the window at the same time.
278

Nan has entered the COURTYARD.

  • SHUT WINDOW.
    MOVE NEXT DOOR.
    OPEN WINDOW.
    ENTER.
  • Sidle over to your left there, and check the window. Mind the fairly high chance that there's a drop in the way.
  • Has Nan ever heard of Assassin's Creed? Might be best to climb down a floor and enter through another window.
  • This, and don't stop to close the window because it'll probably slow you down more than he.
  • I'm going to say avoid ground level, you know, because there's supposed to be a "Beast" prowling about around here. Hop over to that other window.
  • Hide, wait for him to come over and then throw him down there?
  • Close the window!
279

Nan edges over to the nearest window carefully. However, she is on the third floor, and standing on a downward-slanted awning of what feels like rounded clay roofing tile. Her footing is uneven, but she manages to proceed away from the hallway window slowly.

  • Stay in the darkness, hide and don't make a sound
  • THIS WILL END BADLY
    FUCK IT, SLIDE DOWN THAT MOTHERFUCKER AND BRACE FOR IMPACT
  • Crawl on all fours. Lower centre of gravity and hands ready to grab at things if you slip.
    And you can kick at him if he climbs out after you. I bet smooth, bony feet slip well on rounded clay.
  • he's coming
    he's coming
    he's coming
  • Nan: View surrounding area of Hotel.
  • !
    CHANCE!
    WHILE HE'S OPENING THE WINDOW STEAL HIS WEAPON
    HIS GRIP WILL BE SHITTY AS HELL
  • It looks like you can leap over the darkness. Do it. Don't waste time closing the window, don't waste time probing the unlit area. If that hotel's architechture has a single ounce of logic, there's no barrier between the two windows.
    We have the speed advantage of not being a pile of bones in a monk hood. Let's use it.
  • Oh god get to the next window. I don't want to fight him on a ledge in the dark, and try not to make noise, they said that 'the beast" lives in here.
  • Oh fuck, it's Beast-o-clock.
    Stay away from ground level, if at all possible. We need some sort of light source before trying to jump what could either be a dark gap between window ledges, or a big pillar of brick. If you still have the lamp or the torch, use that. If not, and you have anything reflective, use it to bounce the very bright light from the hallway across the gap.
  • He's probably gonna be on your fluffy little goat tail, see if you can get in the nearest window. If there's something to throw just inside, you should try nailing tall dark and horsey with it to make him lose his balance on the awning if he follows.
  • Nan is a goat :I
    Goats have like, super good footing abilities. Use GOAT POWERS to easily cross the tiles.
  • Is their a top to the Hotel? How many floors are there? Do you think you could climb it?
280

Nan presses herself up to the wall and hides in the darkness.

A moment later, the skeletal face appears through the window, peering out into the night, and down the lit awning to the dark courtyard below.

Nan tries her best not to make a sound. She barely even breathes.

  • Stay where you are unless it starts coming out
  • Wonderful. Keep doing that. Taking something out to throw it would make noise, so just try to stay still.
  • SHUT THE WINDOW ON HIS NECK
  • Stay put, then.
  • Yes!
  • Take this time to reflect upon the scenery surrounding the hotel.
281

After what feels like a very long time, the cloaked figure disappears from the window and his shadow slowly recedes.

I'm sorry it has to be this way, Nan.

  • Wait. Don't do anything yet. Wait for a minute or two.
  • Stay still. Look out over the courtyard.
  • Oh hell.
    Alright, well scoot on over to that other window and check it out anyway.
  • You're halfway, he might be a sneaky bugger. Go for the other window anyway.
  • Don't move yet. Wait another ten seconds, then get the other other window.
    Keep in mind that the creature might be heading your way now. Try to peek inside before attempting to enter through the window.
  • Go for the other window wait can you even open them from the outside?
  • He might be preparing some sort of attack, or he might be leaving.
    Play it safe and look for other areas to enter the Hotel.
282

Nan forces herself to wait another minute or two, but the shadow does not return. She slowly edges over to the other window, but pulling at it, it appears to be locked from the inside.

  • Examine the room inside, then look out over the courtyard.
  • what can we see inside?
  • Feel around for the edge of the ledge. Look out on the courtyard, what can you see?
  • Look inside, check inventory. Might be able to break it without cutting ourself to shreds if we can risk the noise.
  • use tool on window.
  • Peek inside, carefully.
    Do you still have the philips-whatever screwdriver? Can it be used to, perhaps, press a window pane outside its frame?
  • Look inside. We need to know what's in there before we do anything.
283

Nan looks out over the courtyard in the center of the hotel. It doesn't open to the outside, so it's hard to see anything but more of the hotel -- but it appears much larger than she first imagined. It's too dark to make much of anything out though, save for a few distant lit windows. Nan could swear she sees dark shapes intermittently pass by them.

As she observes the courtyard, Nan draws her screwdriver, thinking to unlatch the window with it. But the window is suddenly thrown open and a hand grabs her wrist tightly in the darkness.

  • O SHI-
  • Karate chop the wrist!
  • Gibber madly in a way that identifies you as a terrified person rather than the things normally lurking in the dark.
  • DON'T DROP THE DRIVER!!
  • Grab the hand with your own free one, peek around from a safe distance.
  • Is it a bony hand? If so, flee; else, grab the window frame for balance.
    Don't drop the screwdriver.
  • DO NOT immediately freak out
    DO identify yourself and then freak out
  • FFFFFFFFFF-
    Wait, it's not skeletal. I mean, that's a good sign, right?
    Be ready to stab the hand, just in case.
  • "GODDAMMIT SANTIAGO DON'T FUCKING DO THAT"
  • First, see who it is. Second, if it is a hostile monster type thing, pull it out the window and attempt to either throw it off the balcony or just tumble off and land on top of it.
  • oh god oh god
  • RESIST and ask who the hell it is
  • Even though every part of you wants to, don't scream. You'll just attract the wrong sort of people anyway.
    Instead, rear up your other hand and prepare to punch whoever's got you in the eye as soon as you see their face.
  • FFF- Okay, thrashing on a ledge would be bad, as that risks slipping, falling, and breaking bones (including probably necks), so try not to panic, Nan. Just have a look to see who it is that's grabbing her.
    If it's a friendly she should let them help her in. If it's not then attacking the person's wrist with punching, nail clawing, or jabbing with any other item she has handy would be the safest bet to get them to let go.
284

Nan shouts out suddenly, both in surprise and instinctively to identify herself.

A familiar face leans out the window. "I thought I heard someone out here. Well? Are you coming in or not?"

  • Go with Santiago and uh. Actually, DON'T hug him, but go with him and don't drop the screwdriver.
  • Yes, sure. He may be somewhat unhinged but he's better than the alternative.
  • Yes.
  • Pocket screwdriver, dive into glorious light-filled room. Worry about Santiago afterwards, he's better than the Pilgrim
  • Never thought I'd be glad to see YOUR face.
  • Please, no. Chances are, if it's falling down, it's dragging us down too. I'm not too hot at ending up in the courtyard while it's dark, even with an ally.
  • Oh a friendly face. We can have some fun now! Yay!
    Explain what happened when inside.
  • Behind you: A hallway with an Anna corpse and possibly an evil horse skeleton.
    Ahead of you: Santiago
    It's probably the wrong move, but go with the lunatic you know.
  • "I ought to slap you but fine. No sex!"
  • I'm... not entirely certain whether I should be relieved or not!
    He (probably) won't try to kill us though.
    So, YES, get inside before we fall into the lap of god knows what.
  • Out of the frying pan into the fire, huh?
    Come inside, though.
  • "So what's the real fun you had planned?"
  • Say yes, keep screwdiver at the ready. Think to yourself 'Being raped is better than dying, no?'
  • Or just "being raped is better"
  • Having to hang out with the creepy guy is preferable to having to hang out with the people who have openly stated their intention to kill you. Just sayin'.
285

Santiago helps Nan inside, where he welcomes her to the SUNSET ROOM. It seems much larger inside than it did from the outside. An old fashioned PIANO sits in the corner, and there are tables, chairs, stools, and an old ripped up painting. A single door leads out. The room is well-lit. And yet there don't appear to be any visible light sources.

  • Fucking lightsource. How does it work.
  • Ask him where the light's coming from, and how he found this place.
  • Ask Santiago if he can play any showtunes.
  • Well, Santy seems happy. Compliment him on his place. It actually looks a lot nicer than most of the other rooms here.
  • Thank him for opening the window.
  • Cower in awe at Santiago's dramatic gesticulations
  • Look suitably impressed.
  • Well thank him atleast! You're so ungrateful to him. He's a pretty nice guy for inviting you in, away from monsters isn't it?
    Can Mr. Santiago play a cheerful tune on the piano? Lighten the mood, make Nan feel better.
    Oh, tell him everything that just happened.
  • Ask Santiago what year it is.
  • Thank him, ask if you can sit down, then tell him about Anna and Death.
  • Also this.
  • +1
    Also, ask him to play showtunes, you can whistle while he plays
  • tell him what happen and that Anna is dead.
    and that you lost the other
  • Thank him for opening the window.
    Fill him on what went down in the hallway with Anna and horsehead.
286

Santiago seats himself at the piano in a crooked stool. Nan thanks him for letting her in the window.

He turns suddenly, hissing. He says not to say that. He didn't do it for HER. He did it because HE wanted to. He tells Nan not to EVER thank him.

  • Okay. Well... we're happy you wanted to.
  • well then, we are glad you just happened to open the widow at that time.
  • "Well whatever your motivation, it was preferable to being stuck out there."
  • Right. Okay.
    You're glad that he wanted to open the window at that point in time, then.
  • say your sorry and you will not thank him again
    (not if he react that way everytime that for sur)
287

Nan says that she's glad all the same, and Santiago begin to play the piano.

The tune is strangely beautiful yet discordant. It's clear Santiago really knows how to play, but the melody is as uncontrollable and unpredictable as its creator.

Something about the music makes Nan feel very uncomfortable. Her stomach knots up. She uneasily begins to explain about what happened -- about Anna, and the creature that pursued her.

Santaigo responds, but doesn't stop playing. He says Nan shouldn't worry her pretty little head about it.

He says Anna wanted it. You could tell.

  • I for one am inclined to believe him
  • "And how about you? What do you want?"
  • Ask him to instruct you, how can you tell? How did he know?
  • Aha....
    so....... Ask him what the name of the song he's playing is, also if he heard what happened next door.
  • Ask him where your friends went.
    And really grill him on it. He knows something he's not telling you...
  • ...O-kay.
    Was she like suicidal or something? Did it have to do with that "sin" she didn't tell us about? We want some answers, dammit.
  • 'Santiago. I need you to tell me, what year is it?'
    Also, whistle the tune out with him, maybe it will make you both feel a little more comfortable. You should prepare to be raped, I'm not joking. Because if he really does want that, and you say no, he might kill you.
  • to know from when he is from is not a important info right now
288

Nan asks for the whereabouts of her other friends. Santiago says he doesn't know. He only just got here himself. No one around but her. And Anna.

Nan asks what he means, about Anna wanting to die. How he could tell. He says he can always tell. Santiago says he could always see it in her eyes. Through the terror, through the fear, he knew. Don't cry for her. She had to be put down, you see. At least she had a purpose.

  • don't thank him, just say "good to know"
  • Ask him what the purpose is, it's not like a purpose can't be stupid and bad.
  • Purpose? Do elaborate.
  • Ask about the purpose, then ask about yourself. What he sees in you, what purpose you serve. It's very important to understand how a crazy person perceives you.
  • Okay, this dude probably isn't a great source for answers, but ask him if he's had any encounters with the Pilgrim.
    And is anyone kind of unsure why it didn't just stab us in our sleep? It's not like the hall wasn't lit.
  • Do... do you think we have a purpose?
    Emphasise we. CUZ WE'RE IN THIS TOGETHER, GUYS~
  • I agree about asking about the purpose. Take a quick peek into the courtyard to see if there is anything beyond endless blackness.
  • this is realy a good idea
    but don't react to what he is going to say, he might that it bad
  • take it bad i mean
  • Ask him what year it was when he entered the hotel.
  • Yes, we need to know how the unhinged man perceives us, that will go a long way to making sure we stay on his good side. I would also like to agree with the person who suggested we check the window, make sure things are safe. Pilgrim still could be after us.
289

Nan asks what Santiago thinks her purpose is. He keeps playing and says he wants to talk about something else now.

Nan asks about the music. Santiago asks her if she likes it. He only just wrote it. It's called "Anna", in memoriam of the most recently deceased guest. He says he was inspired by her lovely screams for mercy.

Nan stares out the window into the courtyard. At the ground floor, something stares back.

  • Inquiring into 'our' purpose seems like a fantastic idea. I'd like to see what the free man thinks of his own purposes.
  • I don't like thinking about her screaming for mercy. Santiago is making me sad :<
  • Ask Santiago about the beast.
  • He said he just got here. Is this a different place? Or a.. different hotel? Another layer?
  • ...Say that what you want is for him to want to talk about Anna again. If he freaks out, say "just kidding" and ask about the beast in the courtyard.
  • Ask him why he thinks she screamed for mercy if she wanted it to happen?
  • it is probably the beast
    ask Santiago what he know about the beast
    but first you should answer to his question, just to stay polite
  • "Did you REALLY just get here? You seem to be a lot more familiar with the place than anyone else we've met so far."
  • That's probably the Beast.
    Also, there's someone in the window across the way.
    It's talented enough music, so you can compliment him. Ask Santiago if he's ever met any of the monsters. He sticks to the darkness, right? He must be good at sneaking.
  • Do this
    Also make a face back at it.
  • Yeah, that's gotta be the Beast. We're probably safe up here, anyway.
    The thing that really bothers me, though, was Santiago's comment on Anna's "scream[ing] for mercy." That doesn't sound like something a suicidal person would do.
    Oh, and Santiago's an asshole for not helping her. It's probably already obvious, but we can't trust this fucker. At all.
    ...and I'm still curious about what year the psycho came from. Throw that in with the inevitable torrent of questions.
  • Flip it the bird.
  • Ask Santiago what year he was born in.
  • So Santiago? What do you want to do now?
290

Nan asks Santiago if he really just got here. He seems knowledgeable enough.

He laughs, still playing. No, he says, he only just got HERE, in the Sunset Room. He's been in this hotel much, much longer. It was 1986 when he got here, and yet only a month or so has past.

Nan asks about the Beast and Santiago grins, suggesting she leave it alone and stay away from the window. She wouldn't want to get it riled up.

To avoid upsetting him, Nan says she likes the music. Santiago grins and nods. He says good. Maybe he'll write one for Nan next.

  • Push your nose up with one finger, bottom eyelid open with the other, and stick your tongue out at the beast. I swear to god this will help you get out of here, just do it.
    And tell Santi that you like his song, no need to insult him. Tell him he's really talented. Flattery and all that.
  • Tell him you like showtunes. And not being dead.
  • How about some gruesome humor?
    Ask him how he'd like you to 'perform' for the best song possible. Screaming? Begging? Defiant till the end?
  • Ask if he only writes them for dead people. If yes, say you hope he doesn't have to.
  • Better get away from the window, then.
    Have a seat on the chair, and ask if he has any questions for you.
  • Ok, Santiago has officially become to creepy/insane to trust. I site his numerous thinly veiled death threats on you and his blatant disrespect for your dead comrade.
    Here's what you do. While he's still absorbed in his piano playing, grab the back of his head and slam it into the piano repeatedly. Make sure he's thoroughly KO'ed, then check the room for useful shit and leave.
  • Well, actually that would be pretty nice, but we'd like to actually be around long enough to hear it.
  • if it's got any rhythm, hum along. People like him generally approve of people who take a positive interest in their interests
  • Hey. If he likes music, which he seems to... why don't you ask if he can show you how to play something simple on the piano? It'll probably help you get your mind off of, well, all this other stuff.
  • It's a well known fact that pianos/organs are evil. We should try to get out of here. I don't know that there's a need to be polite any longer, since he practically said he wants us dead.
  • no he never said he wanted anyone dead, he is just creepy and unrespecfull about the dead
  • Ask him how he doesn't have trouble with those creatures, and how this whole freedom thing works.
  • I'm sure we all know what that means.
    Like I said, keep an eye on this nutjob, and don't plan on getting any help from him if you really need it. I mean, he sure as hell didn't lift a finger when everyone's favorite elevator operator was being butchered alive.
    Now... there's really not much else to do. Nan already slept, so that's not an issue (not that I'd advise sleeping with this guy with the room, in any case). Maybe we should consider looking for the others?
  • Say you pray it will be anything but a requiem.
  • Probably should stop with the questions, he may get Red-level batshit crazy if we continue. I would sit down and tell him you're just so confused here, you just want to understand it all. Afterwords, you should say 'Santiago... how can I know to trust you? I am afraid you might hurt me...' How he responds to this should be a pretty good indicator of the kind of person he really is.
  • This is a horrible idea, don't do it.
  • I'm sure he'll simply detail all the horrid things he'd do to us, but I'm oddly inclined to see how it would play out nevertheless.
  • Ask Santiago if you've met him before the hotel. Everyone seems to have such strange memories-perhaps, in his freedom, he has better mental clarity.
    .. Er.
    Maybe.
  • +1
  • Declare heroically that you'd rather kick butt than die! Hell yeah! Bring back a bit of that spark from!!
    And with any luck Santiago will find this amusing. I mean, he figures he's free to do whatever he wants. We should be too. And what we want to do is not die.
    Of course we'd like Santiago to help, but only if he wants to.
  • Interesting how every painting that is hung up has been ripped apart.
  • Ask him if there have been others besides those we have met so far.
    Ask him if he's ever read books by Ayn Rand (does Rand exist in this universe?)
  • Yes Ayn Rand exists and she's a total shrew :D
  • In light of
    I have one more suggestion:
    Ask Santiago what month it was when he entered the hotel.
291

Nan asks if there have been others. Oh yes, Santiago says. And they all screamed quite beautifully.

Nan asks if Santiago's plans for her song involve her dying. Santiago grins. He says everyone has to die, sooner or later.

Nan is unnerved and just comes right out with it: She ask how she knows she can trust Santiago. He laughs and says she can't. She says she doesn't know if he will hurt her. He laughs even louder and says he doesn't know either. But that's what makes it so exciting.

He goes back to playing after a pause. Besides, he says, if she really wants something to be afraid of, Nan should go look in a mirror.

  • The song Santiago is probably playing
    (Search your hearts, you know it to be true)
  • Ask him why he thinks freedom is so important to have. Aren't restrictions more fun?
  • Nan: Produce handy compact makeup mirror from pocket and look at it.
  • We already did that. There was a face and it smiled at us and then we threw a lamp at it.
  • Been there, done that, bought the t-shirt.
    Ask him why the creatures don't bother him. Ask about Pilgrim, too.
  • find a mirror right NOW
  • You really shouldn't be fostering this whole idea of you and he being on different sides. Rather, you should be working with him as much as possible. If you can't understand it in other terms, he's survived here longer than you have
  • Good thing there aren't any mirrors around, but we'll keep it in mind.
    So what's on the other side of that door, anyway?
  • Hah, I can totally see... er... hear... that.
    So..... is it time Nan faced her fears? We can always just break the mirror...
  • So, who was the walking skeleton in the hallway?
    He had a very contrasting interpretation of this place- said that only by killing us he could ever be free.
    What's Santiago's take on that?
  • Reiterating:And, seriously, I hope that the other suggesters have gotten the idea that we can't fucking trust this guy. He might not try to outright kill Nan, (though it's a possibility, as he himself just said) but he obviously doesn't give a shit about what happens to anyone else in the hotel. We can use him if necessary, but he's definitely not to be counted as an ally.
    And I think we should get going soon. Questions are nice and all, but I want to get back to the reasonable people that we can probably trust.
  • If anybody knows how to survive this place, it's this guy. Chill out, hang out for a while.
  • Put your hand on his shoulder and ask him to come look at a mirror with you.
  • There's no reason to think we can't trust him! Who knows how this place works.
    Well, Santiago knows how this place works. That's about as close to an advantage as we will get.
292

At Nan's asking, Santiago explains he came here in December of 1986. When she asks about the skeletal figure, he grins. That bag of bones, he says, is what Anderson and the others call the Pilgrim. The Pilgrim's smart. Looks out for himself, he says. He only does what he wants. Just like Santiago. Smart. This place is freedom. No authority. No God. No one to answer to. No right and wrong. Do what you want to do. Santiago grins, still playing. Nan agrees, doesn't she? She said she did.

Santiago shifts into a simple but quick-tempo portion of his musical piece, and without breaking the beat, holds out one hand.

"Give me your hand."

  • Oblige. And prepare to trip balls.
  • Do not question him or hesitate. DO IT. And do not react negatively to whatever he does.
  • Do it. Don't sass me girl.
  • Not much choice Nan. Give him your hand in marriage
  • Go ahead and give him your hand. It's a sign of trust and solidarity and if he tries anything you have a free hand to punch him in the nose.
    But we should at least give him the benefit of the doubt, even if he's creepy, he hasn't done anything yet.
  • Give him your hand and ask him if you have the freedom to deny the freedom of others.
  • This is a bad plan :c
    Give him your hand, but reach into your pockets(?) and grip the screwdriver, just in case.
  • Give him your hand, he just wants to help you learn how to play!
  • Give hand. Grip screwdriver and prepare to drive it into his other hand.
  • Didn't he just say that we can do whatever we want? We don't have to do anything someone tells us to?
    Maybe we shouldn't.
  • I admit, i lol'd
  • I agree that Santiago understanding the hotel can work out to be an advantage to us, hence "we can use him if necessary." However, trust is completely different.
    Santiago seems to be more of a random element than a friend; just as likely to kill Nan as help her. I'm not saying we should turn against him, but we should at least be extremely cautious when near him.
    And, yeah, grab his hand, Nan. Really not a reason not to, as any sort of negative reaction could be worse than what he actually plans to do.
  • Hell, go for it.
  • Trust him. He'll show you the world. You'll open your eyes, take you wonder by wonder. Take you sideways, under on a magic carpet ride. A fantastic new point of view.
293

Nan gives Santiago her hand and he finally stops playing. The room is uncomfortably silent. After a moment, he glances up at her, gripping her hand.

He asks why she gave her hand to him. She is free. She could have done anything. And he is free too. He could do anything with her hand, and Nan has no way of knowing what that is. And yet she gave him her hand.

He smiles, seeming quite amused, and asks why.

  • Give him the only reason he'll accept "Because I chose to" To say anything else would imply you're not free
  • I think this is a trick question. Nan should say she doesn't feel like it right now.
  • "Just curious."
  • Because you're a sucker for a man who can handle his blade with such expertise.
  • "you're kinda cute"
  • 'Cause you like him. And you wanted to see what would happen.
  • He told you to. You really didn't think about it all that hard.
  • "why not"
  • Tell him you did it because you wanted to; because you thought it wouldn't do any harm to simply give him your hand.
    And finish by telling him you could have easily stabbed him in the face with a screwdriver if he tried anything. If you wanted to, that is.
  • "I was curious.
    If this place is freedom, then I want to know how I can I make it do what I want."
  • Because I could just wait, but risking something to find out anything is more useful.
  • Say you wanted to see what he would want your hand for.
  • Don't tell him, instead, ask him what he wants you to say.
  • "Felt like it."
  • Because I wanted to reach out to you. I wanted to hold your hand. And I can. So I did.
294

Nan says she gave him her hand as a sign of trust, and now it's his choice to do with that trust as he will. He has no obligation -- and neither does she. In the end, it was because she wanted to.

Santiago nearly screams. YES! Yes, that's it, he says, teeth bared in a hysterical grin. He brings his other hand up, which grips his opened switchblade. That's freedom! That's true freedom! To resist or submit! To kill or to die! To cut off someone's fingers one by one! And you know what? He doesn't even want to do that anymore. Not right now!

He's so happy he wants to do something NICE for Nan. Because it would make him happier.

  • You have the freedom to slam your hand into his eye if he tries to cut you.
  • "I'm tired of the past telling me what happened! Lets go back in time and kill Pilgrim as soon as he came here!"
  • say he looks pretty damn happy already, and you wonder what could make him happier.
  • Little worried about the knife.
    But.
    Let's see where this goes! Honestly this guy seems more loopy than dangerous so far.
  • Force a smile. If you can look pleased/excited, do so. However if you really want to get him on your side, do something else, completely unrelated, as a demonstration of your free will
  • Hi Red!
    Also, as crazy as he is, I am so very glad that we got through to him. We have a new ally, an extremely unpredictable one, but an ally. If we think each action through with him and be very careful, he could prove to be a huge asset to us.
  • I think we're beyond the point of getting our hand back unharmed. Be honest.
    "Because you seem to know what you're doing. I need to know what to do."
  • Being happier is always a good thing!
  • "Awesome"
  • Okay, holy shit. Just... holy shit.
    I know he said he's going to do something "nice," but keep your other hand on the screwdriver, just in case. I mean, he almost cut off your fingers a second ago. We already knew this, but he's fucking unpredictable.
  • Ask him what he has in mind. It would be nice if we got a weapon or something so we could defend ourselves... or if he were to tell us more about the true nature of the hotel.
  • Well... like what?
  • Sounds good, as long as he wants continue not cutting us open like a gutted pig that we aren't going to hinder him.
  • Ask him what he has in mind.
295

Santiago asks what Nan would like. He chooses to do something nice for her. Because it would make him happy to do so. So what would she like?

  • "Want to do something nice? Help me find the others, and tell me how you get around without getting maimed."
    Also I vote for godmodding the fuck out of his "freedom" world at some point.
  • Disregard, posted late.
  • Whatever you do, phrase it in terms of yourself. he'll respect that. "I want..." but then DON'T act as if you're going to wait for him to do that. That'd be relying on him, limiting your freedom. Instead, act as if you're going to do it yourself. My suggestion: Say "I want to go find the rest of the group..." and then go to the door and open it
  • See here -
  • DO NOT ASK FOR FREEDOM. He'll take that as an insult or something.
    Ask for... hmm... We'd like to find the others again. We'd also like a weapon. Whichever is possible.
  • I'd like to learn how to live in the darkness.
  • Beating the everloving TAR out of the pilgrim would make you very, very happy.
    ormaybesantiagocanbreathoutofhisearsamirite?
  • "I'm tired of being afraid of what's in the dark in this building, I want to overcome the dark like you." and/or "I'm tired of being afraid of Pilgrim I want to make Pilgrim afraid of me."
  • "KISS ME YOU FOOL"
  • I want the status qua to be turned on it's head. I'm tired of running from monsters, I want the monsters running from me
  • A knife.
  • wait, is it too late to go with this one? ;D
  • ... I dunno. I honestly don't know. I don't know what to suggest here! AGH GOD RED.
    I guess we want to escape, more than anything. That's what we want. Not because it's away from FREEDOM which is pretty neat really once you get used to it, but because it's away from things doggedly trying to kill us like all the monsters and stuff.
    Can Santiago help us find a way to escape? Or give us some advice or point us in a direction or... something? We don't know anything about where we're doing here.
    And, I guess we can't force you to leave with us, but Santiago, can you at least try not to die? We kindof like you, in your manic crazy ways!
  • Say that you would like him to tell you what the purpose of Anna's and other's death is.
  • You have to ask yourself...
    ...Do we really want to be like Santiago?
  • Roll out Nan. Don't ask for darkness survival training. Take it. Let's eat some freedom. Santiago should follow.
  • 'I want the Pilgrim dead.'
  • Tell him he want to leave. Failing that, we want to learn how to survive here and enjoy our freedom.
  • You'd feel a lot more free if you knew how to deal with the darkness.
  • DON'T ASK TO LEAVE
    Maybe ask for something to protect you?
  • Ask how to deal with the dark.
  • Yes, in a sense. Lets not be the frightened girl running away from our our fears. We don't have to become deranged, just overcome these monsters (and this hotel).
  • this, definately this
296

Nan asks Santiago for advice on how to move safely in the darkness. He laughs hysterically and says there is no way to move safely here, especially not in the darkness.

As if on cue, the lights go out. Only the dimmest light from the courtyard filters into the room, and Santiago's eerie song begins again.

He says the lights go out all the time. When they get angry, especially. When they become disturbed. In fact, in the time he's been here, it seems like any time you go against the Hotel, it will do what it can to stop you. And the first step is always to cut the lights -- because that's when the really bad things get free roam. Like the Beast. And Father. The best way to keep the lights on is not to make waves, but what's the fun in that?

There is no moving safely in the dark, he says. You just have to learn not to be afraid. Not because the things there can't hurt you... because they can. Oh, they certainly can. Especially Father.

But you're free to move, just as you're free to die. That's how he can live in the dark. He doesn't fear death. He is free in the darkness. He is not afraid. Little by little, just letting it become a part of himself.

  • Santiago hug Nan!
  • Please don't die, Santiago. :<
  • What kinds of things go against the Hotel? Who's Father?
  • Hug him.
    Because you're free, and you can choose to do that.
  • "ah, cool."
    Nan, you should aspire to be the scariest motherfucker in this place.
  • "Is your song ending?"
  • Ask him if you have the freedom to come back to life if someone kills you.
  • Crap I'm too late.
    OK Nan, here's what you need to do. Find a wall switch. Pull out the wiring. Trace wiring along the wall. Find short circuit. FIX IT.
    Yes I know this is supernatural phenomenon. I still think you were brought here for a reason, and that reason is to fix the lights!
  • Not being afraid, 'eh?
    Lick the stuff coming out of his eyes and tell us what it tastes like.
  • Also I vote we purge this place with cleansing FIRE.
    BURN IT TO THE GROUND, BABY.
  • Inch away slowly and keep a clear picture in your head of which direction the door is in.
  • Guys when someone lets the darkness in it doesn't generally end well. I think we need to find a new safe zone.
  • I guess now is not the time to freak out at the gravity of your situation...even though you would be perfectly justified in doing so.
    Play it cool, ready your legs for that running thing we're so fond of.
  • ask him if he "wants" to hold your hand while you shit brix.
  • "Isn't just becoming part of the darkness boring? Why don't we have some fun and defeat the darkness or at least dominate it. We could start with pilgrim."
  • I thought so too at first but on further inspection I concluded it was prolly his fingers placed weirdly.....or at least I hope
  • Okay. Chillax Nan. This is all according to plan. Santiago isn't the threat here. The threat is the hotel. And the hotel is mad at you. So be ready to move when the nasties come crashing in.
    Till then, get used to this. You could be here a while.
  • Try not to sound more alarmed, he may still be chill.
  • Father = Padre in Spanish. He's the scarecrow guy that got set on fire earlier.
    And, anyway, Santiago says that, basically, if you go against the Hotel, then the Hotel tries to kill you. So, what does the Hotel want? Does Santiago know? He seems to have the right idea, at least, as the room he's been spending his time in is full of light, minus the light source. And he has survived for nearly a month. That has to be more than luck or skill. I think the Hotel favors him somehow; maybe it's trying to encourage this 'freedom' that he keeps preaching about. Or maybe it's simply because he's becoming a part of the Hotel, now. That would, of course, also explain the whole JESUSFUCKINGCHRISTHISEYESAREBLEEDINGDARKNESS thing.
    Oh, yeah, it's dark now. Nan should probably get ready for some dickery on the Hotel's part.
  • ...is the threat the hotel? Perhaps if we do what it wants, we'll be able to get rid of the monsters.
297

The music suddenly stops.

Shhh, he says. Do you feel that?

They're here.

We'd better move, if we want to stay alive, he says.

  • Can we feel that? Try to feel whatever it is that he's feeling.
  • Follow him.
  • "alright lets go"
  • Sounds reasonable enough.
    FUCKING BOOK IT.
  • Out the door.
  • Don't let go of Santiago's hand. Move with him and stay close.
  • Let's do this shit! Go time baby! Move, move, move!
  • Be brave, follow his lead. He knows what he's doing.
  • Tell him it's what you want FOR NOW. That'll please him
  • MOVE
  • "You lead, I'll follow. Like a tango."
  • You heard the man, Nan. Move your tuchas.
  • That sounds like a good idea.
  • It does seem like it's time to move out. Follow.
    Questions to ask later would be, what the fuck does the hotel want from you? After all it seems to want something, for one thing to get something fixed maybe, or it wouldn't have made the call that brought you here.
  • get your cute little butt out of here bevore it gets horribly horribly raped
  • Take his hand again. "Let's go."
    Also, yes. Try and feel what he's talking about.
    We're all mad here. I'm mad, you're mad.
  • Nan, you are taking this all on a stride. One of your friends is confirmed dead, the others are MIA, and you're with a madman.
    Once the coast is clear again, break down and cry, lest you turn out like him, completely crazy.
  • What is so wrong with being like Santiago? He's not dead, and he seems pretty happy. Maybe we should try to become a pair, forever together in madness :3
    I mean, think. Nan has no one back home that she cares about, she was in a dead-end job that she didn't do well. What is so important that makes us want to get out? If we can live here, and be happy, like Santiago... Well maybe that's better than leaving.
  • No stop, the hotel is trying to eat your soul. Stand strong, /quest/, stand strong! We can beat this!
  • I'm serious, would staying in the hotel really be such a bad end? Search your heart.
    And besides, I'm sure Santiago is a killer in bed! (rimshot)
  • being happy < not dying a horrible and painfull death
  • He hasn't died for over a month..And is a talented pianist! He sure hasn't died horribly yet. We must embrace the madness!
  • true, but you're considerrably EVEN LESS dead if you get the fuck out of here
  • Oh crap... his eyes are bleeding in the dark. Maybe he is already dead or something?
  • Take that shit to questdis, not here.
  • Time to get out of here. Whether with Santiago or not. Try the door. If there's something in the way, you could try getting out the window again and returning to the hallway where Anna was murdered.
  • Could have been tears.
    I say go with him. He may be mad, but he seems to like us and hasn't tried to kill us yet.
  • He said "shh", so don't reply. Just follow close.
  • Ask Santiago if he knows anything about the other guy the Pilgrim killed. Perhaps bribe him into it by asking him to play the songs? He seems to enjoy them...
  • I know how you can keep moving with Santiago in the darkness. :3c
  • There are other ways to bribe him, if you get my drift. ;3
  • Nan isn't that kind of girl!
    Probably. Nan are you that kind of girl?
  • Stay there, he said to do what you want. If you follow him then you'll just be going along with what he says.
  • Nan wants to stay alive. According to Santiago, in order to stay alive, Nan must follow him, or at least leave the room on her own. And he has a very valid point.
    'Freedom' does not exactly translate to 'do the opposite of what everyone wants us to do.' I mean, he answered our questions, even though he didn't have to, right? Freedom, at least according to Santiago, means acting on impulse and emotion, not just refusing to follow directions.
  • Except she would choose to do so, he can Ask her, but it's ultimately her Choice
    Continue on!
  • So then we jump out the window? if darkness means they are free to roam perhaps the beast is not in the courtyard...
  • Whisper: "I want to stay alive." And follow him.
  • Whisper into his ear "I want to fail..."
  • Lick your finger and stick it in his ear.
  • Lick his ear and ask him to stick it in.
    Monsters do it under your bed. Yes, yours specifically.
  • so how did we go from a dark room with 3 psychopats and a lonely electrician girl to a tour guide that has a loosen head, two monsters making love and wet fingers with obscenities being whispered?
    just stay low, DONT hit any furniture and follow the idiot savant that is trying to make you live a bit more.
298

Santiago rushes to the door and slams it open. The faintest light from the hall helps Nan follow after, hurrying through the darkness. Vague shapes move around her, and she can hear that same ragged, heavy breathing.

Nan emerges in the hall, and notices the light is coming from an old-fashioned oil lantern with the flame dialed way down. Another set of eyes gleam in the darkness to her right. Santiago appears to be a rather fast runner.

  • Obtain lamp. Turn it up.
    It probably goes without saying that you should get ready to run away.
  • Light is our friend! Grab that lantern and let's move!
  • I thought the point was to make us not afraid of the dark.
    If we bring the lamp that's just admitting that we're still afraid of it and it still lords over us.
  • Shit.
    You can keep up, right?
  • Grab Lantern.
    Follow Santiago.
    Turn light up.
  • Well, he'd have to be, to survive in this place. Follow him! Don't let him get away! He won't wait for you.
  • I think this is appropriate.
  • Disregard lamp, focus on keeping up.
  • Leave the lantern alone and follow him. You don't need it and it'll only slow you down.
299

Nan snatches the lantern off the wall, dialing it up quickly.

As the light flares up, Santiago suddenly screeches to a halt and turns around, shouting. Nan, no!

300

Everything goes white.

  • Dial it down while you get moving, don't let the light slow you down. Try to get to Santiago and pull him along if he froze up.
  • ... Okay?
  • Smash the damn thing you idiot.
  • what fuck no don't keep it look what you did
    smash it smash it smash it
  • Dial it down instead of smashing our light source.
  • I see you have the ultra model
  • Santiago seemed pretty damn upset when we took it. Smash the lamp to pieces.
  • R.I.P(ieces). Santiago
    1966 - ????
    Goodnight, sweet prince.
  • This plan is best.
  • I don't think it would be too easy to smash the lamp and if we did it would probably just make more light and possibly catch us on fire. Just turn it down if you can.
  • o yeah and whatever you do try and save Santiago
  • He was upset when he saw the light increasing.
  • ... :/
  • shot are you literally retarded
    Santiago JUST gave us a speech on how to survive in the dark, not being afraid of it. That lantern was an incredibly obvious test.
  • I dunno too many of us were conditioned by three previous threads that two or three posts didn't really change that
    I'm just saying
    It makes sense but at the same time, ugh.
301

When the glare fades, Nan finds herself someplace new. A few men in strange uniform move purposefully about the TERRA COTTA COURTYARD.

The warm scent of flowers rises in the summer heat.

The sun is out. Nan had forgotten how comforting its light was.

  • Turn around.
    Observe gates.
    Observe cross.
    You have died and gone to Heaven.
    Freak out about this.
  • Probably best not to bother the people. Take a good look around.
  • ...Well, I'm done.
    Sit around and wait until you return to the hotel, or something. I guess. I don't even know what to do anymore.
  • Surviving in the dark? By turning into a monster like him huh? preferable to go out with a bang in my opinion, fighting the darkness than to embrace it.
  • Ask that gentleman what year it is.
  • Oh boy.
    Well, let's deal with this, then. We're probably now way in the past of this place.
  • You're tripping balls. Go look at the face of the person in a cloak.
  • Okay... we are probably in the Old Mission (pre-hotel). Let's take a look around and gather info.
  • Ask someone where you are.
  • Ask what year it is, and who these people are.
    I think what's going on is that touching an item from a given time period takes you to that time period. If we see any Michael Jackson cassettes then we can get back to Santiago's time.
    Also, why do you not have a cell phone Nan? You should have a cell phone. Stop everything and go get one, the monsters can wait.
  • Go ask the chap in the hat about the date and time.
  • Warm smell of colitas? Rising up through the air?
    Bask in the feeling. It might be false but at least you can enjoy it momentarily.
  • Actually, I think you're on to something here. Ringing the bell is what started all this in the first place, isn't it? We should pay close attention to what objects we interact with.
  • DON'T DO THIS IT WILL END THE DREAM SEQUENCE
  • Nan: Touch self to return to 2009
  • Please tell me where she is to obtain one here or in the hotel and I'd be happy to support this.
302

No, it doesn't seem like heaven -- but it is quite peaceful. Beneath the warm summer sun, the TERRA COTTA COURTYARD is full of figures moving about, all connecting into other parts of what appears to be a SPANISH MISSION. It seems quite well maintained, with no signs of age.

Nan approaches the man in the black hood and poncho who seats himself by the bells, says hello, and asks for information.

  • Receive information.
  • Sit next to him. Comment on the weather.
  • ==Commence reveal of horseface.
  • Hope you can "habla espanol?" becasue for all we know the U.S. hasn't even incorporated this area yet.
303

The man rests on the stone bench and pulls back his black cloth hood before smiling at Nan and nodding quietly.

Of course, he says, what can this humble traveler do to help?

  • Ask his name. And the year.
  • In living form?
    Commenting on how nice things are around here, and maybe asking him if he's stayed at any hotels recently.
  • Ask the year, the month, the day. Tell him we're really disoriented, and have a problem with this sort of thing commonly. Also ask where we are...
    And if he doesn't mind telling, ask about the scar.
  • introduce self
  • Ask him if he's a Padre.
  • If you outright ask him for the month, year or where you are, he's going to think that Nan is crazy, or at least stupid.
    Say that you've been exposing yourself too much to the sun and fainted. You aren't feeling too well. Then ask about where you are, the year, the month, etcetera.
  • ... ask him if he's a Pilgrim.
  • Ask him the date and time, claim to be going somewhere but forgot to check a calender and want to be sure you are there on the right day.
  • Do not go into the hall the hall is a bad place.
  • A Taveller, mayhaps a pilgrim to this site? Note his scar but don't mention it. Ask about this place noting that you are a recent arrival.
304

Though she tries not to react strongly, the man in the black hood notices her reaction and points to his scar, explaining that it's not important. It's from a long time ago.

Nan asks for the date -- including the year. The man smiles, looking up at the warm sky and the sun-baked adobe and tile roof of the building by the courtyard, and says that he understands. In a place like this, it must be so easy to lose track of time. He's just passing through, himself. Here to see someone, and then move on. And yet he wishes he could stay in this lovely place, so long that he too could lose track of the years.

It is the third -- or wait, perhaps the fourth? -- of June, in the year 1828.

  • Tell him your name. Politeness should get his.
  • "Why not stay here? Build a hotel?"
  • Let's try this.
  • Ask who he's here to see.
  • June 4th.
    04/06
    466
    Connection, perhaps?
  • The day the music died?
    Alright, well ask this guy his name.
  • Tell him that you've been trapped in a 'nice' place so long you just... had to take off or you'd suffocate. He might change his mind after a while.
    Tell him your name and do NOT shake hands, in fact, don't touch anything if you can help it. If he starts to hold his hand out for you to shake, give him a polite curtsey instead. Or a bow if you have no idea what that is.
305

Nan asks the man in the black hood his name, and offers her own. He introduces himself politely as Lorenzo.

Nan asks who he's here to see, and he says before he passes through on his way North, he'd like to speak with the Padre and get his blessing.

  • Ask politely if you could join him.
  • Why not join him and go see the Padre. Maybe you could ask him for help against the Pa- uh dangerous monsters.
  • NAN! BE VERY CAREFUL WHAT YOU DO TO OR WITH THIS MAN.
    YOUR ACTIONS MAY CAUSE HIM TO HOLD A GRUDGE AGAINST YOUR FOR MANY YEARS.
  • Ask if you can tag along.
  • Tell him you wish him the best of luck on his journey as well.
    Well uh I'm outta ideas beyond following him.
  • Ask him not to go to the padre. Tell him he can think you're crazy, it doesn't matter, but if you didn't tell him to leave now, you would be remiss and it would haunt you forever. Ask him please not to stay in this place.
  • ask him about padre
    and what cream does he uses to hide scars
  • i actualy htink this is a good time to know how the hotel camed to be and padre's role on it
306

Nan asks if she can come along to see the Padre. Lorenzo says she certainly can. In fact, here he is now.

  • Aight, let's head over thattaway then.
  • Approach him.
  • Wait for Lorenzo to move. Perhaps the Padre will come to us.
  • Feel completely safe with everything, including the possibility you might have to talk with the padre in dark places.
    Walk upto him and greet him, it's the proper thing to do.
307

He comments that it doesn't appear the Padre is going to be coming to them, so Lorenzo dons his black hood and stands, offering Nan his hand.

But... everything is going dark. The warm sunlight is receding.

  • Take his hand and never let go.
  • Take his hand.
  • QUICK! AS FAST AS YOU CAN SAY IT!
    "HEYIFISUDDENLYDISSAPEARORBLANKOUTORSOMETHINGSORRYBUTMAYBEI'LLSEEYOUINTHEFUTUREOKAYBYE"
  • Grab his hand!
  • Don't touch him. Back away and say you have to go now.
  • Try to think as much as you can about your current surroundings. Maybe it'll help you stay longer.
  • Take his hand.
  • Guess we'll see you inside, Lor.
308

Nan reaches out, but Lorenzo and the courtyard are already gone.

In the darkness, Nan can only see Satiago, who looms over her, holding the dimmed lantern.

He says Nan is on her own now, and he's going to take the lantern. He'd love to stay and have more fun with her, but it's not a good time to stay in one place.

  • Apologize, but don't try and change his mind.
  • Hmm. Ask him how we offended him with that. How could we have known what it does?
    Couldn't we still go with him?
  • he mad
  • Right. Don't apologise. You'll only set off his free-will thing.
    Take stock of surroundings.
  • Ask him what just happened.
  • Apologize, plan to look at it again some other time. Follow Santiago into the darkness.
  • "Is tagging along out of the question?"
309

Nan apologizes, to which Santiago only laughs. As he runs off into the darkness, disappearing from sight, he calls back to her. He says she's quite mistaken. There's no need to apologize. After all, whatever she saw, it's her problem. Not his.

It is very dark here. Hardly anything can be seen.

  • Do NOT APOLOGIZE, he doesn't like being thanked, apologizing probably falls under the same banner. Also, lets split, he can go his own way, we can go find actually SANE people in this madhouse.
  • Don't apologize. Say "Later", then head to the elevator. Grab Anna's hat as you pass it, if it's still there.
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End, Part 4