Season 1 / Akemi - “Gallery of Thorns” [The First Trial Projection]

Chula - Suzune

Suzune had been trying once more to read a romance book in the main hall when she heard the scuttling around outside. Concern sparked her attention first and foremost as she set the book down in her chair for later, breaking into a light jog into the hallway to see what was going on.

Oh… Oh! This was…! "Kuro-saaaaan~! Are you going to be ok?!" She shouted before quickly being shooed off by Ei. Ah, oogh, ok, uhhh… She glanced back and forth around the hall, seeing who else was arou-- oh! Wasn't that the guy who came into her own projection? She didn't actually know his name. For now, she held her tongue and click-clacked her way towards the courtroom in her heels.

Upon arriving, despite having sat in the chair herself, first, she still felt a prick of worry pressing into her chest like a needle as she saw Akemi sitting where she was. "Hey, is she going to be ok, I just, like-- Oh." Before long at all, gone was the room of tech, and instead before her was a beautiful museum hall, damaged, but gorgeous.

At first, she stood in awe, soaking in the beauty of the surroundings, like the brief shock from being caught oudoors in a sudden downpour. But Suzune, she liked the rain just as much as the sun. Her eyes fell upon the portraits first, damaged by the vines.

"It's…. beautiful. Wow….! Was this what my thingie was like?" She looked to Sylas, and… Oh! Who was this?

"Oh! Um! Hi, My name is Suzune Gikou, I don't think I've spoken to like, either of you yet personally! Sorry, it's a bit of an awkward time for introductions, but, it's so nice to meet you!"

Emmy | Akemi

Chula - Suzune

You approach the first of several portraits, framed in a simple, tasteful, yet durable walnut frame. Depicted, you see two adults and one child. The man appears calm, and while he is not displaying a bright smile, his eyes reflect a certain warmth that contrasts with the frigid air around you. He is well-dressed in a fine suit, with dark hair slicked back to give the look of a businessman.

The woman exudes a similar, yet stronger, warmth to the man. A gentle smile is spread across her face. She looks immaculate, dressed in a flowing, silky, flowery dress and an equally flowing shawl. Her long hair flows over her shoulder, neatly combed and shiny. Her wrists, neck, and hands are adorned in simple, coordinated jewelry, and she demonstrates a practiced sort of poise that feels almost like she is inviting you to join her.

Your eyes shift down to the child, who looks to be no older than 5 or 6. She is well-dressed, in a dress of similar color to that of the woman and perfectly sized jewelry to accent the outfit. She is seated between the two adults– the man's hand placed upon her shoulder and the woman's hand resting upon her arm. Her body language at least seems calm and comfortable, but the painting has been damaged right where her face should be, so you cannot tell for certain.

You see a few more group portraits of a similar nature spaced along the walls here. They are interspersed with some individual portraits. In each of these group portraits, the two adults warmly embrace and surround the child– whose face is always carved out of the image. On closer inspection, based on the child's age, the portraits seem to begin from a time when the child was an infant, but stop before she reaches her tween years.

Sylas Grey

This is all a bit much for Sylas, if he's being honest, but he just keeps getting himself into these situations whether he likes it or not. And the fact that it's Akemi - who, er, scares him, actually - getting her projection done doesn't help his state of mind either. But he wombles along, doing his best to cope with the circumstances until

Oh this is the most awkward introduction he's ever experienced.

Hi, I'm Sylas and I saw your weird psychological metaphor thing! Why did you dress me up like the dolls grandmas use to cover their spare toilet rolls?

No!!

"G'day, I'm Sylas! Sylas Grey. Nice t'meet you. Uh, your thingie was more……. it had more sheep in it. But maybe there's sheep in this one too?"

Better.

Anyway. He'll go touch one of the brambles. Does it hurt?

Emmy | Akemi

Sylas Grey

Ouch! The brambles are definitely sharp and painful to touch. Even a faint touch leaves a small bead of blood pooling on the tip of your finger.

Shiori Yoshida

After Nobuko's own encounter with the projection system firsthand, it was only a matter of time before the other half of the Yoshida sisters got to experience a projection as well. The idea of a machine manifesting a representation of one's inner mind felt absurd, practically sci-fi, but if her sister was to be believed, it was indeed a reality they were now facing as prisoners.

And so, when she overheard a nearby cellmate be taken away for said projection, Shiori felt compelled to follow, if only so she could bring back more information about the projection system and their fellow prisoners. Knowledge is power in a situation like this, after all.

As she enters the courtroom and witnesses the transformation of the space, only the slight raise of her eyebrows indicates any surprise she feels at the sight. And even then, she's more surprised by the sudden changing of the room than she is about the state of the gallery they've all found themselves in.

Speaking of those she's with, Shiori's gaze instinctually moves to Suzune as she speaks up. Indeed, Shiori hasn't had the chance to speak to her yet, at least not directly face to face, but she does remember having an encounter with the pink-haired man who's joined them. She turns in Suzune's direction, giving her a bow.

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance, ma'am. My name is Shiori Yoshida, at your service." It sounds like a phrase she's repeated hundreds of times, quite literally because she has. Standing back up straight, she raises a single eyebrow at Sylas' words. So he'd seen Suzune's projection, huh? Her eyes scan the room silently, expression as serious as ever.

"I do not see any sheep in the vicinity. I do not know why there would be any in this sort of location." But then again, the thorny brambles everywhere are unusual for a gallery to have anyway. Searching for normalcy, her gaze settles on the floral arrangements present in the gallery. The chauffeur does like a good flower arrangement.

Emmy | Akemi

Shiori Yoshida

Set atop white podiums, you marvel at the large and intricate vases containing an extensively arranged bouquets of flowers. The bouquets consist mainly of purple orchids, tulips, and zinnia. On closer inspection, the only real flowers here are the Zinnia. The other flowers are made of silk.

Chula - Suzune

"Oh, it's wonderful to meet you, Sylas-san, Yoshida-san!! Sheep, huh? Woowww…. That actually sounds super nice! I've always wanted to like, pet a sheep! They seem so soft… But I was born a city girl, hehe~" Sheep! That's interesting. "Maybe there are paintings of some here further in? No way to know but to find ou-- Ack! Honey, let me just…." She trotted over to Sylas and started examining his finger without touching. "I didn't know these things could like… hurt. Oh gosh… Hold on a second, I didn't…" she tapped her pockets. Empty! Right, all of her things were missing when she got here, so the usual box of band-aids she'd keep in her purse was nowhere to be found.

"Jeeze… I'll just have to start carrying band-aids again. I hope they have some in the warehouse… Here. Use this!" She unties her ribbon from her hair to tie it into a cute little bandage around his injured finger. It was fine, she could ask for a new one.

Suzune looks at the large painting again. "I wonder…" Suzune removes the painting from the wall briefly, and if nothing is behind it, she'll gently put it back! While she's at it, she checks for an artist's signature anywhere on the piece. She's not a fan of art destruction, so this is best done as gently as possible.

Emmy | Akemi

Chula - Suzune

The large family portrait comes off the wall with ease. All she sees behind it are some small bramble vines pressing their way out through the wall. There does not appear to be any sort of artist signature on these.

Sylas Grey

"Oh! Aw, cheers. I better be more careful, aye?"

He seems genuinely grateful for the ribbon, and takes care not to touch any more of the brambles while he looks around. Curious… Not that he knew a damn thing about art, or metaphors, or art that works as metaphors. Maybe he wasn't the best person to put in this simulation? Augh, well… he better try and pull his weight somehow…

Right. Okay. That looks like a good start. He's going to go inspect the hallway choked with thorns, although he's certainly not going to TOUCH it. What's going on over here? Can he see through the thorns at all?

Emmy | Akemi

Sylas Grey

Unlike the other hallway, which has a clear walking path through, this hallway is choked with thorns and bramble which make the prospect of exploring beyond it a daunting one. You can see a small area further down the hall where the hazards seem to wane, but there is a wall of surefire pain awaiting should you attempt to navigate your way through. Several doors line this hallway as well, but the tangled vines create what appears to be an impassable barrier to these doors.

Shiori Yoshida

Seeing Sylas get pricked, Shiori instinctually steps forward to help, but then Suzune beats her to the punch, so she steps back. Probably for the best anyway considering Shiori doesn't have any bandages on hand. The best she could've done was probably rip off some of her elongated tie, but that would've gotten rid of the loop at the end of it, and part of her feels like that's supposed to stay on.

She steps to Sylas' side to look down the same hallway he is, silently noting the brambly obstructions. Trying to go down that route at the moment seemed tricky, but maybe with enough searching, they could find something to clear them. But in the meantime..

"Perhaps we are meant to avoid the thorns." Her gaze turns to the hallway that presents a clearer path. Anything of note that she can see in that direction?

Emmy | Akemi

Shiori Yoshida

Unlike the other immediately visible hallway, this space has only a few brambles protruding from the walls and winding along the sides of the walkway. So long as you keep to the middle and watch your step, it's unlikely you will have any issues with thorns. This area is decorated in a similar manner to the main foyer, but with a few gilded accents here and there which somewhat garishly contrast with the otherwise simple white florals of the space. It looks like there is an area further down the hall that you can explore, if you are finished looking at the portraits.

Chula - Suzune

"Yep! But if anything else happens, just let me know, ok! I can figure something out." She's glad, at least, that he'll be cautious.

In the meantime, she had some more paintings to look at doesn't she? Suzune definitely eyed a few things from afar, taking notes and memorizing things. Plus, she needed to keep an eye out for something sharp to cut bramble back with. And the only thing she'd seen THUS far is maybe a shard if she broke a flower vase, and that still wasn't quite an ideal solution. "We could always cut the thorns down if we get the, like, tools to! That would at least be safer." Such a tight hallway. There was no way someone Sylas's height could get through there unscathed.

That said, Suzune placed her hands on her hips and checked out the remaining individual portraits! "Do you think the child here is Kuro-san? Or, um, supposed to be!"

Emmy | Akemi

Chula - Suzune

You can see four figures portrayed in these individual frames. The first is the man depicted in the family portraits. In the solo image, he stands proudly in an organized office space, surrounded by tall, densely packed bookshelves. He looks proud, accomplished, and distinguished. Atop his desk is a vase of yellow poppies. The name plate on the bottom of the frame reads: Akiko Kuro.

Next, you see the portrait of the woman found in these scenes. She stands in a space that looks much like an art studio, with drips of paint on the floors and walls, a shelf of supplies set behind a half-finished easel. She holds a paintbrush firmly, posed in front of her easel with her head turned just enough to glance back toward the camera with a content smile. The painting, though unfinished, seems to contain a figure surrounded by orange orchids. The name plate at the bottom of this frame reads: Saki Kuro.

The third individual is not seen in any of the family portraits. Given his appearance, it seems he could have some relation to the prominent man on display in the other images. This man appears younger, with an easygoing expression on his face. He is just as well-dressed as the others, standing in an opulent room with a vast collection of art and artifacts around him. This portrait's frame is gilded and adorned with ornately carved embellishments that make it seem almost like a portrait of royalty. The name plate at the bottom of the frame reads: Jiro Kuro.

The fourth individual pictured is the child. There are several images of this child in a colorful room. Most of these images are damaged beyond recognition. The most you can make out is that the child has an eager, excited body language as she engages with some sort of prop. Most of these details have been destroyed. The only image that remains intact depicts a face that is familiar to you: Akemi, perhaps as a teenager, standing in a simple museum-like room similar to that of the man in the gilded frame. She is dressed just about as well as in any other portrait. Her body language in this portrait mirrors how you've come to see her during your time here– rigid, composed, with a hardened and joyless expression. You see some brambles, similar to those around the front doorknob, wrapped firmly around the frame of this piece and even piercing the canvas in some areas. The name plate at the base of these portraits reads: Akemi Kuro.

Sylas Grey

"Whoa…"

Sylas has wandered back to look at the portraits. His insightful commentary:

"Do you think she's got a rich family? Rich people are weird as hell. This explains everything." No it does not.

"Anyway, I don't think we can get through the thorny hallway unless we find an axe or somethin'. I mean, I guess I could crawl through, but that would just be real nasty for everyone involved,"

Shiori Yoshida

Shiori's frown ever so slightly deepens as she overhears Sylas' comment. "Rich people can be weird, yes." She would certainly know with all the rich clients she's worked for.

She nods in agreement with the notion of needing tools to get through the brambled hallway, then steps up closer to the portraits to examine the frame holding the one labeled for Jiro, gloved fingers coming to rest on it to trace the embellishments. How come this frame is the only gilded one?

Emmy | Akemi

Shiori Yoshida

The surface of this gilded frame, and the picture itself, are cold, it feels almost like touching the inside wall of a freezer. If you attempt to move the painting, you find it firmly affixed to the wall with very little give compared to the other portraits. You feel the edge of the frame, as you contemplate this, and find a key tucked away and kept safely out of view. You may as well take it with you. Perhaps with enough force the frame could be removed, but likely at the cost of the portrait's integrity. Is it worth the risk?

Shiori Yoshida

Shiori blinks blankly as she feels the key under the frame. This could likely be useful to have, but getting it out from under the frame may be a hassle. The frame certainly doesn't feel like it'll come off easily. She glances over to the other two. "There is a key here. Shall I retrieve it?"

Sylas Grey

"Oh hell yeah. Get that thing. You never turn down a free mystery key."

Chula - Suzune

Suzune spends some time glancing at all of the paintings in thought, when something suddenly clicks. "OH!! I think, I think I've seen the Kuro name used for museum halls before! Like the ones named after influential art people or named after people who donate to museums. It's not an uncommon last name, so like, it didn't hit me until now." She paused. "Ummm… I don't know if that's useful here, though. Just something I recalled." Rich, probably. but she was hardly one to throw bricks from glass houses. Probably for the best for her to not discuss her wealth if this was the 'fuck the rich' crowd, though.

"A key…? Yeah!! Absolutely! We might be able to find, like, a safe or something somewhere. We haven't checked behind ALL the paintings yet, after all." She wanted to check one more thing before they left, though. What colors are the flowers in the bouquets? Like each flower individually.

Emmy | Akemi

Chula - Suzune

The flowers consist of purple tulips, purple orchids, and pinkish zinnia.