Shadow Slave Cinema (reaction fanfic)

Chapter 5 - 5: A serious of unfortunatate events

'A Spiteful Disciple'

The words flashed before Rain's eyes as she stood rooted in her seat. Calmly, she looked to her left and right, before lifting the collar of her shirt and pulling it over her face. Slowly her hands moved up, until they firmly planted over her mouth and eyes. Pushing with all her might as they decompressed against her face, forcing any air out.

Then she screamed, although what sounded to others was only an audible stifle.

'I'M DOOMED, DOOMED, DOOMED! WHAT IS THE DEAL WITH THIS DAMN SCREEN, DOES IT HATE ME OR SOMETHING!??!'

Rain was shrieking both internally and externally. Although the statements did not clarify anything, she already knew what one of them meant. Who wouldn't know in her position?

Clearly it was referring to her and Master.

The damn thing was selling her out to everyone!

'Why even reveal my identity!? There's nothing special about me in this room full of protagonists, I'm a freaking Mundane and the only one here at that!' she wailed internally.

She lifted her face out of her shirt, dragging her palms down, pulling at her eyelids.

"What would it even show? Failed hunts? Getting trolled by Master? Face-planting into the snow like a moron?" she grumbled.

She immediately halted her actions, as her eye violently twitched, her mouth opening in disbelief,

'H-How far would t-this thing go? I-Is there any limit to what it could show…even possibly…a scene....where I'm BATHING!?!' she silently screamed, in utter denial.

She gulped nervously,

"N-No…surely it wouldn't. B-But it is a God…a-and such things are definitely trivial in their eyes…"

Her stomach dropped, an impossibly sickeningly deep feeling seemingly dragging her body down. Although she violently disagreed with the possibility, a silent voice whispered in the corner of her mind, teasing her at the horror that some image of her might flash the entire audience, and worst of all, her idol Nephis.

Her hands shot up as she smacked her cheeks, aiming to calm herself.

"C-Come on now….let's think! Panic is the unspoken killer! There's still two statements that have been presented, and by the laws of probability, it's 100% impossible for everyone to unanimously agree on one of the two" she muttered like a maniac, her eyes twinkling with a flame of hope.

She leaned forward, taking a shaky gasp of air,

"Y-Yeah…YEAH! Master has been confirmed to be clearly connected to Weaver who deals with Fate…and one of the statements has "Fated" smack dab in the middle of it! Everyone will definitely be eager to choose it! A-Also…Master hasn't been stated in any way to have a disciple, so the statement remains completely ambiguous." she silently rambled with increasing speed,

A smile of self-delusion slowly growing on her face,

'YES! Everyone will definitely want to pick a statement with a clear direction! As long as nobody knows about my identity, then I'm safe!' she exclaimed in silent victory, as she leaned back, closing her eyes to control her breathing.

Her chest began to slow in rhythm, before abruptly halting, as Rain violently jolted up with wide eyes,

'As long as nobody knows….as long as nobody knows….as long as nobody knows' the statement echoing in her mind like a spiteful parasite.

Her hands shook as she slowly turned around, her eyes passing over people in the second row, before stopping, landing on one person.

That person was Mordret,

As her gaze glided up to his face, she froze at what she saw, as her entire body visibly paled in color.

Mordret was leaning back, his hands clasped together as he rhythmically twiddled his thumbs…as he looked….directly at her. His eyes gleamed like two hungry beasts, as his mouth contorted into mocking shape.

His lips slowly opened, as they moved, silently forming words.

Rain's legs shook.The silence was too much. Mordret had said nothing, but what he had mouthed had already been directly transmissioned to her mind.

"You can't hide…"

All life drained from her face, as her body went limp, slinking back into her seat like a puddle of jelly. One moment was all it took, and yet eye bags could almost be seen under her eyes. She blankly stared at the screen, before closing her eyes and clasping her hands and bringing them to her face.

Rain wasn't a religious person, but praying seemed like her only viable option.

And praying was what she was going to do.

Hell, she was willing to sell her soul if they answered her plea, whether it be an Angel or a Daemon who responded.

"Gods…Daemons…anyone….I don't care who you are, but if you answer my cry I swear on my soul in two worlds, I'll dedicate the rest of my life to you, and even build a shrine." she solemnly lamented, visible tears of defeat started to swell on her eyes.

As Rain prayed in silence, Ananke watched from the seat next to her, her face a mix of confusion and concern. She sighed before leaning back.

"It seems you do have secrets child…." she whispered.

**************

Cassie looked at the screen in silence, holding her breath.

'A Fated reunion…'

This was it.

This was what she had been looking for, what the strings have Fate had reacted to, she could feel it in every fibre of her body. Her intuition screamed that this was the answer she had been

Nephis slowly turned around, only to find gazes of suspicion and spite trained on her and Cassie.

"So? Care to explain what all that was and why you're wasting our precious resources?" Beastmaster snarled, clicking her tongue in agitation.

"Indeed, that was quite a selfish spectacle, now we only have one question left" Cormac echoed, disappointment clear in his tone.

Nephis remained silent.

They were right. What she and Cassie did was completely in the wrong. In this situation, they had their emotions get the best of them and wasted valuable resources that were vital to getting out of this situation. There was no excuse, and there was nothing she could say which would justify their actions.

A rare glint of fear appeared on Nephis's eye's.

She needed help.

Quickly, she turned to Ananke for aid, but the lady could only lower her gaze and she gave an apologetic smiled. Nephis twitched as she began to look over the crowd. Most avoided her gaze or held it with clear spite. But she didn't deter, continuing until she locked eyes with Julius.

If there was anyone who could help them, it was him.

And although it pained her heart to drag him into this, there truly was none else.

She held her gaze as he met hers, his eyes unfathomably deep, hiding years of knowledge and dedication. They looked at each for a few seconds, before he closed his eyes, clearly considering the situation. Then he took a deep sigh, as he opened them and shot her a small smile of sympathy before standing up.

"I think we should save the second option for the next viewing" he lamented, as he adjusted his glasses.

"Why? Are you defending them?" Morgan snarled, as the Valor Saints turned towards him.

Julius held her gaze as he took of his glasses and wiped them, before putting them back on, dawning a smile.

"Morgan of Valor, are you familiar with the Monty Hall Theorey?" he said in a curious tone,

Morgans eyes narrowed,

"I am not familiar with this Monty Hall…. which suggests they were an insignificant warrior if their name has not reached my ears", she said in a low tone.

Julius stood still as he blinked,

"Well he wasn't a warrior, but something far better…a prominent radio-host you uneducated brat" he mumbled under his breath

"WHAT?" Morgan roared, her patience running thin.

Julius shook his head and smiled, "Never matter his origin, my point is, he was involved in a particular event which suits are own, which has it's own little theory, that was VERY important for winning" he cooed in a leading tone,

"How does it work?" Gilead questioned as he leaned forward,

"Glad you asked! The theory is focused on probability, and it explains why in a situation where you have to choose between options, it is mathematically proven that to take a different choice after one option is revealed, increases your overall odds of choosing the correct option" Julius enthusiastically dronned as he paused to look around.

He was only met with blank stares.

He sighed, as he rephrased his words, "In other words, it is beneficial to keep the current choice as we happen to know that it is a winner and will get better results by choosing between it and another, after the next viewing" he worded slowly, allowing the info to seep into the barbaric brains of the spectators who only knew how to fight,

Everyone remained in silence, contemplating the statement. It was indeed enticing whether it would be beneficial to save the second option, especially after learning that mathematically it was proven to yield "better" results, although a few were stumped in contemplation about how some "viewing" could be better than another. However, they were troubled whether they should let the enticing revelation get the better of them or hold spite and refuse it at the behest of the cohort not gaining what they secretly knew. Eyes twitched as different scenarios ran through their minds.

Julius remained standing as mutters sounded around him, a confident smile on his face.

Confident it was, as he needed to hide the blatant lie he had just told.

Anyone with even a slightly decent knowledge of math would have realised and called him out for phrasing the mechanics behind the theory wrong. However, he had taken a risky gamble.

A gamble that the only thing on the minds of the Saints, was violence, scheming and gaining power…..NOT a slightly polished mathematical education.

And it seemed his gamble had somewhat paid off, as some could clearly be seen having favor in the method. The only two who weren't in contemplation were Rain and Saint Cormac.

Cormac had been alive for a long time, and thus had a full education before the Nightmare Spell descended, so he was well aware that what Julius said was a blatant bluff. But he was willing to let it slide, as he secretly believed in Changing Star's cohort, more than any of the corrupt clans and legacies. He met eyes with Julius, as he gave a quick nod before looking away.

The only one left was Rain, and unfortunately she was out of the loop, a puzzled look on her face.

'Hang on….isn't he completely wrong? Isn't it suppose to be the other way round, I watched this in class!' she mumbled in realization, a spark of pride igniting in her body at the prospect of using what she had learned in school, outside of the classroom.

A stupid grin crept her face, as she turned, preparing to correct the old fart on his silly mistake.

However, before she could open her mouth, she found that same old fart, staring right at her. His gaze was so serious and strained, Rain felt like she was a child about to get yelled at by her parents for doing something wrong. She stood silent as she held his gaze, neither moving.

Julius rapidly blinked as he tilted his head left and right, beckoning her to look around.

Rain silently nodded in confusion as she slowly turned her head, catching different people muttering among themselves, as realization dawned on her.

'Oh.'

'Oh..'

'OH!'

A smile crept on Rain's face as she realized that what he had said, and the effect it was having on the people around her.

'She was being saved! Everyone would want to pick the second option now…and then there was a chance that if her option was saved…it still wouldn't be picked!' she silently cheered as she took in the sight with delight, looking around delusional smile.

And delusional it was, as she had got it completely wrong, and in fact….it was the first choice which would be selected while the other was saved. But Rain was not in the right of mind, her thoughts still rushed afer her earlier panic.

Julius took note of the sight as his face now held a look of remorse,

"I'm sorry child…but you'll have to lose your secret first" he whispered, similarly having observed Rain's body language earlier like Ananke.

The crowd momentarily came back to attention, as a figure stood up,

"I think it's a great idea!" Rain enthusiastically chimmed, throwing a triumphant glance at Mordret, only for him….to return it.

Rain immediately became confused,

"Doesn't he want my identity to be revealed…. why isn't he arguing against my point? She mumbled,

"Indeed it seems like the most suitable course of action" Daeron echoed,

Song rose in protest,

"This doesn't change the fact that they will gain hidden information while we are left in the dark!" Beastmaster angrily retorted.

Daeron paused, as he cast his gaze onto the first row, meeting Nephis's eyes and holding her gaze. Neither back down as they both looked at each other in silence, before Daeron slowly exhaled for a few seconds, before turning back.

"Yes they will gain more, but we will also gain more….with negotiations, we may ask them to reveal what they have discovered after the viewing…..is that right?" he finished while side-eyeing Nephis.

"We will do the best to our knowledge" she calmly replied.

Cassie looked alarmed, as she opened her mouth to object, but was silenced by an hand that landed on her shoulder.

"This is our best option" Nephis whispered,

Cassie stood in silence, as the whole room awaited her answer

"Ok…" she defiantly whispered.

Ananke rose and clapped her hands,

"Right! Now we shall proceed with the first option, and save the second for the next viewing. Following that, Saint Tyrs and Roan will summon their daughter, and we can proceed whether we select the saved option or choose the latter" she calmly stated.

Heads nodded silently, although some were more lenient and stiff then others.

"W-What if something changes after this viewing that affects what happens next?" Luster quietly stammered, earning him a few looks he shrunk from.

"Good call!" Noctis laughed as he leaned back, seemingly enjoying every moment of what should be an intense moment.

Julius rose once again,

"Any in objection of using our last question to ask whether any known or unknown changes will take place after the viewing?" he politely exclaimed

Some mouths opened to disagree, but the words all died on their lips as they quietly closed them, clearly tired and eager to push things along.

"Great! Dear screen, will any changes known or unknown, to our current knowledge after this viewing take place?", he said with a smile

The screen blinked

[No]

"Then let's move things along, we've taken quite a while!" he jokingly exclaimed.

Valor and Song still held animosity towards the selection, but the favors were held against them, so they couldn't object. If this was a situation in the real world, violence and blood would be everywhere, but here it was different.

"Fine, proceed" they both dejectingly replied,

Julius turned to face the screen once again, "We would like to select A Spiteful Disciple, and then save A Fated reunion for the next viewing." he slowly worded, careful not to mistakenly say something that would change the outcome.

The air finally softened, seemingly relaxed that a conclusion had been met.

One person, however, was currently quite the opposite, with a look of fear and realization.

"WAIT! NO! THE OTHER ONE! NOT THE FIRST OPTION, THE SECOND!" She wailed internally, having finally realised what had happened.

But it was too late, as the screen began to change, color blooming once again, forming a new image.

"WAIT!" a yell exclaimed from the crowd, causing people to turn

Rain almost cried tears of joy at the revelation that someone seemed to help her.

"Uumm… I would also like some popcorn" Windflower awkwardly stated, a sheepish look on her face, a bucket soon manifesting as Daeron looked at her with a look of amusement.

Rain's mouth hung open.

'ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!?!' She screamed internally as loud as she could, as the image finally formed.

Rain slumped and grabbed her knees, panting heavily.

She could feel a trickle of foreign essence seeping into her soul, and a river of adrenaline coursing through her blood.

Eyes slowly moved, as they planted themselve on Rain from all directions, a mixture of curiosity and rage.

Mordret had to cover his mouth, to prevent himself from laughing out loud again.

Rain remained still, a simple defeated smile on her face.

"Just kill me" she whispered.

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Quite the filler chapter i'd say, but I think it's necessary to grow the development and keep it accurate, which my main goal is.

Heh, technically this whole fic is a filler, since it's a reaction story :)

Shoutout to my old math teacher who made lessons fun and reminded me of Monty Hall's game theory

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