#execsavethem

[exec--savethem-blog]

return 0; | EXEC_SAVETHEM | Epilogue

EPILOGUE: return 0;

You’re not sure just how long it was you were driven. Most of you fell asleep, finally allowing the tension to fade away and letting your fatigue catch up with you. Others still weren’t quite sure yet if you could trust the people driving you now...

But the fact remained that you were out of that place. Wherever you were heading now, it couldn’t possibly be worse, could it?

Whatever the case... fatigue eventually caught up with you.

...

...

When you came to, you were pulling to a stop in a wooded area, near a river. Your driver looked back at you, gesturing for you to get out.

“Go on, now. He’s waiting for you.”

You hesitantly get out, and walk the direction he’s gesturing. Sitting on a bench, you saw a man in a brown coat, facing the river.

You approach him slowly.

He turns around. An older man, with thinning brown hair and thick-rimmed glasses. A face you’ve seen before...

“I’m glad to finally meet you in person. My name is Suzume Satou.”

Ah, of course. The man who’d been talking to you through that little laptop... He stands up, turning to face you. After a quick headcount, his face falls.

“Though, I do regret not being able to greet all of you.”

He sighs, shaking his head.

“But as for you all, I am grateful to you. All of you. For what you’ve managed to do in there. For ending the twisted ambitions of Arthur Ascott.”

Closing his eyes, he takes a deep breath.

“In life he was a shrewd businessman, with a kind heart. I was proud to call him my friend. But when his daughter was killed, something in him changed. Something within him couldn’t accept the senselessness of her death. My machine - our brainchild, it predicted she would be in danger, but we couldn’t do anything about it. That’s when he left, and started... this project.”

He adjusted his glasses.

“He didn’t think we were doing enough with the information our machine gave us. A machine we designed to see everything, to identify terrorist threats... and only that. But it gave us more than that... names of ordinary people in danger. When we first discovered this, we agreed that we had to keep our creation out of the hands of the Government. We couldn’t let this power be misused.”

Exhaling, he met your gaze.

“That in mind, you’ve no doubt seen for yourself that there are factions in the government with an invested interest in this project of Arthur’s. I hate to say this, but they cannot know the truth of what happened here - what Arthur created, and what happened to it. You’ve seen what Arthur created. Now imagine what it would become if it were raised by a government party, fueled only by greed and the desire to control...”

He lets the word linger on his breath.

“You understand then, why this must not get out. I’ve already taken measures to help you in this... I have contacts in the police who can look after you... And the two currently driving you, they’re employees of mine, well-versed in protection. Whatever happens with these interested parties, we’ll be looking out for you. Us, and, well... them.”

Looking up, his eyes fixed on a point in the distance. A small camera, on a telephone pole. Sitting next to it was a pay phone.

As if on cue, the pay phone rang.

“Go on, answer it.” Satou said, smiling slightly.

You approach slowly, and together you pick up the receiver. A familiar voice meets your ears.

“Can you hear me?”

You respond with a simple yes.

“Good. I’ll watch out for you, I promise.”

The line goes dead, and you find Suzume Satou standing by the phone as well, observing you.

“Watching with a thousand eyes, and listening with a million ears...“

After that, you were safely turned over to the police. Some point along the line, your families were informed - as they were there to greet you. The next few days were a whirlwind of questions from policemen and family alike, just spinning around you. You faintly recall a few detectives mentioning ‘your mutual friend’ and avoiding the more difficult questions, just as he said. They even managed to keep the worst of the press away... So they could be trusted, right?

After what felt like forever... You were able to return to your school dorms. With the stress of impending school catch-up on your plate, you opened your dorm to find...

A cardboard box, sitting on your bed.

Inside... was a collection of clothing and other items, from your time inside that building. Good and bad memories alike, all wrapped up in one nice package. One way or another you reached the bottom of the box to find two other items... an envelope of money, and a note.

The note reads:

“You are our future. Stay strong. - SS”

You are being watched.

The government has a secret system - a machine - that spies on you every hour of every day. It was designed to detect random acts of terror, but it sees everything, including violent crimes involving ordinary people - people like you. The government considers these people irrelevant.

We don’t.

We work in secret, outside government control. You'll never find us, but victim or perpetrator, if your number's up... we'll find you.

EPILOGUE: return 0; end

exec save_them; success. 12 survivors confirmed.

THANK YOU FOR PLAYING!

[exec--savethem-blog]

An Unexpected Savior | ENDGAME

You spy a numbered keypad on each door. And you can see through the doors and windows outside the room, to boot. As you scour the hall outside the room, desperate for any salvation, you spy something odd on a monitor...

Is that... Nami? It appears to be. But... how? They’re dead, right?

But... Nami opens their eyes.

They blink once. They pause.

They blink five times. They pause.

They blink three times. They pause.

They blink six times. They pause.

They blink twice. They pause.

The pattern repeats.

With the oxygen in the room rapidly vanishing, it takes a while for the meaning to sink in. When it does, you move over to the keypad and punch in the numbers.

1 - 5 - 3 - 6 - 2

The doors open, releasing you into the hall. The weight on your chest is released, and you’re able to breathe once again.

“Please, hurry. You need to get out of here. You don’t have much time.”

Nami points toward the entrance to the server room.

“Farewell, everyone...”

Their monitor flickers out, and Aletheia lets out a pained scream. You hear an explosion far in the distance.

What on earth was happening out there?

When you emerge into the parking area, you find a sight most unexpected...

Two massive jeeps - thick, massive tires, dark windows, parked before you, rumbling. Where- How-?!

The window rolls down on one of them, revealing a man in sunglasses and a black jacket.

“Our mutual friend sends his regards.” He says, waving you towards him. “Get in. It’s time to go.”

Time to go...

You stare in disbelief, but the ground rumbles around you, shaking your feet to life. You’re forced to split up between the jeeps, but one by one you pile in and speed off, out the tunnel - now largely cleared of debris.

The trip is a shaky one, as you find yourself speeding through piles of debris lingering on the road. It feels like this tunnel goes on forever, before...

You emerge into the light.

You’re free.

Final Chapter - Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam - END

[exec--savethem-blog]

Time Is Up | Final Chapter | VOTING END

In just a moment, all the remaining lights on the podiums in the room come on. A familiar face returns.

“That’s enough, hͪ��̢̆͗͛ͮͯͤͨ̓̊̀̎͋͊ͤ̚͠͡u̴̎ͪ͋͌̑ͭ̀̅̀̋͋̐͏m͊ͫ̎̉̓̎̆͛̔̉̈́ͮͨ̑̅̀͏̢͠ã̵ͭͣ̂ͨ̄̈͆͐ͩͪ̐͠n̸̊̆ͪ͌̃̀͘͡s̡̢͐ͬͧͤ͂ͣ͑̾ͩ̓̚ . Voting is now closed.”

Aletheia came over the monitors, issuing the declaration with an even tone to her voice. Before long, the display returns.

“...correct.”

[exec--savethem-blog]

try{ exec sp_endgame; } | Final Chapter | Trial Start!

The walk is a long one, filled with mixed emotions. Uncertainty about what the promised end entailed. Fear, brought on by what knowledge of the context of your situation you could find.

Once you are locked into your cages safe and secure once more Aletheia’s voice fills the room, and in place of Control...Sayuri. 

"Restating the purpose of this final trial... You are to find the culprit who murdered Arthur Ascott."

"Only once you vote for the correct culprit will you be deemed worthy."

The words linger for a moment. Then Sayuri returns.

“Prove your worth. Prove your viability as assets to the new world.”

[exec--savethem-blog]

Body Discovery Announcement? | Chapter 5 END

“You heard me correctly, students. A body has been discovered.”

It’s Control. Arthur Ascott. But the body before you is... identical.

“After a period of investigation, we will hold our fi-”

A shrill noise meets your ears, interrupting him.

“Fi-Fi-Fi-Fi-Fi-FiiiiiiIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII-”

The image of Control on the monitor freezes, before vanishing, leaving only a white screen.

Words flash across the screen.

A message... From who? Or what?

Your final trial...

Chapter 5 - Sola Dosis Facit Venemum - END

[exec--savethem-blog]

Death Throes | Aletheia | ENDGAME

Nervous students, gathered in a closed room. With a shaking hand, Isabella plugs the flash drive into the terminal.

As you wait for something to happen, you look up at Aletheia. She stares back at you, not reacting for a few moments. But then, she flickers.

“W-What- Wh-wh-wh-what is thIS? What have y o u dONE?”

Her image flickers, and her face contorts in pain.

“Y-You don’t get- YouDON’TGET-”

She screams in pain. You hear the doors to the room you’re in audibly lock.

“You don’t get- toleave?! How DARE- I’ll... I’ll take you with mE-”

Somehow... it was becoming more difficult to breathe.

This room had thick walls, and you just heard it lock. Was... Was the air being sucked out of the room? Was this her countermeasure?

“You didn’t THINK I’d giveyou this accESS without a counterMEASURE, did you? Now DIE... DIE with me...!”

Here you are, locked in a room with Aletheia in her death throes as ICE-9 spreads. A room that’s draining of oxygen...

Time to find a way out, if you want to live...

[exec--savethem-blog]

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam | Final Chapter | START

The screen flashes more words to you. Stands before you...? You ask about the final trial, and the arrow on the screen flashes for a few seconds.

Wait, what?

Before you could even question those words, you heard a loud screech from outside the penthouse. That scream... Sayuri?

You barely even had time to react, before the view on the screen changed.

“I am Aletheia.”

S-Sayuri...?!

“This intrusive girl was no match for me. She is merely my voice now.”

It spoke with her voice...

“Your final trial, the final trial of this test... Is to find the murderer of Arthur Ascott.”

“To my emergence as a God.”

Final Chapter - Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam - START!

[exec--savethem-blog]

Everything Is Worse Than Awful | Chapter 5 | MOTIVE

As people began to assemble, you started to notice… everyone was not looking well. A mess of groaning, sweating, rubbing temples…

No one was feeling well.

What was going on?

“Now, thank you for coming. Last night, I started distributing a chemical agent through the facility’s ventilation system. It seems to be acting quicker than I expected. Expected symptoms are… fever, headache, muscle aches, loss of appetite, nausea, and fatigue, among others…”

“If those sound familiar, it’s because they are… They are, in fact, symptoms of rabies. Four of you have actually been infected with the rabies virus. The rest are now suffering with similar symptoms due to my chemical agent.”

“If you want to cure the symptoms from my chemical agent, it may be possible… If there are any chemistry experts among you, that is. Even still, if you can manage that, you’ll still know the ones that are infected for real.”

“Though I will be providing no vaccine until there is a murder. You’ll have to sacrifice someone if you want to treat the rest of your classmates, I’m afraid.”

“I doubt you’ll last the week if you don’t act soon. Show me your potential.”

MOD NOTE: Can you find a cure for Control’s chemical agent? A new puzzle has been unlocked… See me on Discord to start investigating!

- DON

[exec--savethem-blog]

Everything Is Awful, Everything Hurts | Chapter 5 | EVENT

Silence is relative in this place - lights flicker and buzz, electronics humm, buildings creak and moan. But in the silence of the night, if your ears were rapt, you’d have noticed a new sound creeping up on you.

A soft hissing, deathly soft.

It didn’t seem to be affecting anything, so you let yourself fall asleep.

When you wake up, though, your muscles ached. Serious soreness… It was difficult for you to move, let alone get up. You were sweating. Just drenched in sweat. What the hell?

Ugh.

God, this sucked.

Could you just lay there until the pain went away?

“Good morning.”

Guess not.

“How are you feeling? I’d imagine you must not be feeling too well right now…”

Wait, he knew something about this?

“Please assemble in the lobby, and I’ll explain best I can. And, well… it’s probably best you take the elevator.”

[exec--savethem-blog]

Sola Dosis Facit Venemum | Chapter 5 | START?

It didn’t take long for Control to get your attention. He gave you no time to mourn, to grieve. He barely even gave you time to get out of the trial room. Nope, before you knew it, he was back on the PA system.

“I’ll ask you all to board either of our elevators as soon as possible. A new destination awaits - one step closer to the truth, if you’re able to find it.”

Already, huh...

As soon as you approached the elevator to leave the basement, the doors slid open. Before long, you were climbing... Climbing... Climbing...

On the buttons on the wall, there was a single light. Based on the numbering, you were going about 20 stories in the air...

You climbed, and climbed, and before long...

“Welcome, my friends. You may have to find your own way inside, but once you are, you are free to explore this area to your heart’s content. Learn what you can, while you can. The day you will be judged grows closer even still...”

With that, he goes silent. Looks like you’re on your own in here...

Chapter 5 -

Suddenly, your phones ding. A message pops up in the IC chat, one from an unexpected sender...

[exec--savethem-blog]

#include parameters.h  | Final Chapter

“There will be one last class trial. If you successfully identify Arthur Ascott’s murderer, then your test will be complete.”

“Only then will you be worthy of leading humanity into the future.”

The figure of Sayuri kept speaking in a monotone voice. Kept repeating the same words.

One last class trial.

“Oh, and before you ask...”

The words linger in the silence amongst you for a little.

“I will give you free reign over the entire building, including those floors I kept from you initially.”

Your phones ding with notifications...

NEW MAP ADDED!

NEW MAP ADDED!

NEW MAP ADDED!

NEW MAP ADDED!

NEW MAP ADDED!

“Once the trial begins, there is no turning back. Be sure you’re prepared. This trial will truly decide your worth.”

Sayuri’s image flickers out, leaving you with your conflicted, panicked thoughts...

INVESTIGATION START!

[exec--savethem-blog]

0 23 * * * final_hour.bat | Final Chapter | Investigation End

A shrill whistle rings out through the facility. Then Sayuri’s - no, Aletheia’s voice, took over.

“You have had sufficient time. You have come a great deal in your time here, through these trials. You have learned a great deal, no doubt.”

“Proceed to the trial room. You will receive further instructions there.”

[exec--savethem-blog]

Sentencing | Chapter 4

“Well, well... Nami Adachi, the Ultimate Psychologist, is indeed the correct answer in this case. As if there could be any other...”

“It was a cruel twist of fate, really, that made each other their own killers. It could’ve happened any time really, with any one. The shame of a faulty model, I suppose. Oh well.”

“The issue with this result is simply... Well... There’s no one left to punish. Both parties involved are dead.“

He falls silent for a few moments, thinking.

“There is, however, another option we could consider...”

[exec--savethem-blog]

Vent-Hopping | Chapter 5 | Event?

There was only so much you can do, when you’re just a simple robot trapped in a computer. Sayuri had made some basic surveillance. Check up on her friends, make sure everyone’s okay. She couldn’t check on everyone, but just flipping through the cameras reassured her that there were no bodies. But now what? Might as well go exploring in the places without any people. It was a nice distraction, anyway, until hopefully somebody else would come check up on her. But that moment wouldn’t be for a while, and Sayuri eventually was vent crawling.

That was… strange. Nobody could say Sayuri was an expert in ventilation, but whatever this thing was in the systems, it sure seemed dangerous. She couldn’t risk it, less somebody get sicker or actually injured! It wasn’t even that difficult to turn off, which just seemed like overconfidence on Control’s part. Then again, even Sayuri hadn’t realized she could use the vents until now. So…maybe she was booboo the fool here. Either way! She should let the others know, right away!

In another moment, she had flickered onto the lobby’s monitors, beaming with glee.

“Hello? Hello! May I have a moment of your time, my dear classmates? I wanted to let you all know that I found something suspicious running in the ventilation! But, not to worry! I turned it off quickly. It seemed very dangerous, so I did not want to risk anything. I hope I prove helpful in this way! Really, it was so upsetting not being able to help during at all during this stressful time. B-but, never mind that! I hope you all are feeling better soon!”

With that, she flickers off the monitor, looking to spread the news wherever she could reach.

One voice that was conspicuously absent at this revelation, though, was Control.

Another thing absent? The hissing, the soft hissing that had started late at night.

Has the danger passed?

It seems so...

Chapter 5 - UNSUPERVISED TIME - START!

[exec--savethem-blog]

Power On, Reboot Complete | Chapter 4 | Trial Start

Once again, you stood in the room with the cages. Once again, you were forced to scan into them and enter, locking yourself in. You were far too used to it at this point, moving robotically, automatically. But once you were settled in, you noticed that... The cages of the deceased kids were no longer present. No, instead they were replaced by...

Small stands, with a square panel at the top. And on each panel was a picture of the deceased. Staring back at you, smiling. Watching.

Once the last cage door closed, Control appeared on the main monitor.

“Let us begin today’s trial. You are charged with determining the culprit who murdered Ryuunosuke Sakikabara, and you will be voting for said culprit only.”

“As before, I will not stop you from finding the culprit who killed Nami Adachi as well, though that culprit will not pass this test if you fail to identify them.”

“But there is no need for me to drone on any longer. I’ve come to expect great things from you in these trials. See to it I’m not disappointed.”