Twisted Wonderland

Overblot Explanation

The captured boys sit in what appears to be a conference room. It's brightly lit with blue lights and sleek, modern furniture lines the room. On one wall, a massive screen takes up almost the entire wall. The air is uneasy as the boys wait in silence. They're now dressed in gray pants and long sleeved shirts. A black band is around their necks.

The door slides open and Idia struts in with Ortho hovering behind him. Vil immediately stands and glares at the flamed haired boy.

"Excuse me, Idia. What was THAT? I'm a world-class model, you know. I'm very particular about what comes into contact with my skin. You expect me to accept a SPRAY DOWN from a glorified garden hose?" Vil waves a hand indignantly. "And you didn't even provide moisturizer! Moisturizing after cleansing your face is the MOST crucial step in maintaining a beautiful complexion."

Jamil sighs. He leans back into his chair with folded arms. "Now I know what it's like to be a car going through a car wash."

"And what it's like to be a set of sheets in a dryer." Riddle agrees.

Leona growls. "It was bad enough that thing went in my mouth, but it even washed inside my ears. I'm still squicked out from that."

"I normally prize efficiency above all else..." Azul cringes. "But I've officially decided that no matter how busy I get, I will never start using an automated bathing machine."

Ortho tilts his head quizzically. "Really? All the staff love it. They say it makes showers take no time at all!"

Leona scoffs. "That's not even the worst of it. It's this stinkin' collar."

Riddle brings a hand to his neck. "These chokers appear to have the same effect as my signature spell. I've been trying to muster up some magic for a little while now, but I've come up empty."

"Sorry about that." Ortho bows his head slightly. "We have to make people wear those to ensure accurate data collection."

Idia whips his head to Riddle. "Wait, Riddle, you've been trying to use magic? Can't take my eyes off you for a second." Idia rolls his eyes. "Anyway, now that we've decontaminated you of any microorganisms you might've brought in, I'd like to show you a little welcome video for Styx."

Vil quirks an eye. "A welcome video?"

"Please turn your attention to the screen." Idia holds out a remote and the screen flashes on.

It only shows words as someone narrates. "Audio and video recording of footage shown within this facility is prohibited by law. If you begin to feel ill during the video, please notify staff at once."

The screen goes black and Idia hits a button on the remote. "And that's the movie. Thanks for watching."

Vil scoffs. "That was a rather cheaply-made promo video."

"Well, if you want the tl;dr version..." Idia sighs. "Magic is a fancy miracle power with lots of unknowns, and Styx makes sure people use it safely. They've been researching blot since the olden days, like when people wrote on clay tablets and stuff."

"If you wish to learn more about Styx, we have a two-and-a-half-hour documentary!" Ortho says excitedly. "Would you like me to play it?"

"I'm good, thanks." Jamil places a hand to his chin. "So, Styx has been researching blot since ancient times. And we're all overblotters."

"Yeah, I'm startin' to get the picture here." Leona glances to Idia. "So. What horrific experiments does the acting director have in store for us?"

Idia chuckles. "I'm glad you asked! To start with, I'm gonna strap you all to chairs so you can't move, and examine you with a brunch of probes. That way I can score some sweet data on the correlation between stress and blot accumulation."