hadriel | first puzzle; voice + text.

[Beyond quit giving network-wide addresses long before he ended up here, but - someone needs to be the voice of reason, apparently, and he is something of an expert on death.]

Those of you who have been buried alive - please listen closely. You have a very limited supply of oxygen to work with, and it would be in your best interest to conserve it as long as you can. Stop talking.

[He's already counted two other broadcasts from people who seem to have been buried; he can only imagine there are more that haven't been open to the entire network.]

If you must communicate, do so by texting. Otherwise, lie still and try not to breathe until you're rescued.

[He pauses for a moment, weighing whether what else he wants to say will ultimately be helpful. He decides it is, and continues:]

You may find it a comfort to know that if you do happen to die before anyone reaches you, it's unlikely you will remain dead. However, death by asphyxiation is supposed to be quite unpleasant, so it's best to avoid the experience if you can.

[He sighs. He doesn't know this from experience, exactly; while he has died twice, it happened quickly both times. A prolonged exposure to death is torturous, and he finds the back of his neck prickling with anger over it. It doesn't take a genius intellect to deduce that Fear is behind this, or what he aims to gain from it.]

Those of us who've not been buried - has anyone made anything resembling a strategic plan for rescue efforts, or is everyone running amok with shovels in hand and hoping for the best?

[Shortly after this exchange with Chris, Beyond sends out an additional message via text:]

If you've been buried, please refrain from starting fires with matches or a lighter. At best, you'll only expend your oxygen supply that much faster. Use your phone for light if necessary.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Here? Is that why you're still alive?

No. I was in Los Angeles the first time I died, then I was taken to a ship out in space. I was there for a few months before I was killed.

You were... in space? Were there a lot of aliens in your world or something?

No, my world was ordinary.

[Except for shinigami, and their notebooks that brought death.]

I was taken to the Barge by someone who called himself the Admiral. He had ideas about controlling lives, not unlike these so-called gods here.

I was also somewhere else before this. A town called Harborview, where we were meant to be sacrifices. I guess that sort of thing is less uncommon than I would expect it to be.

Did you escape?

I wouldn't say that. I was killed, and then I woke up here. This place isn't much of an escape. What sort of sacrifices were you expected to be?

No, I guess this is just a different kind of prison.

They said there were gods they were trying to keep from waking, and our sacrifices were meant for that. But really, who knows.

One might think gods would be able to look after themselves without the need to involve us.

You would think, but that doesn't seem to be the case anywhere.

They hardly seem worthy of that designation.

What would you call them instead?

Tyrants. Children at play with power simply because they have it and they can.

Poetic, but I'm not sure it's accurate. They seem to have goals beyond just playing with us. We're tools, rather than toys.

Call us tools or toys, but the end result is the same. We're still being toyed with.

I think there are people who want to do something about that.

Yes? What do you know?

Nothing, really.

[Especially not on the network, where anyone could see. Though that hasn't really stopped anyone else.]

If you ask around, though, you might find someone.

That's awfully vague. Are you speculating, or do you have actual evidence?

Speculating based on what I've seen others say. I'm not involved myself.

Who is involved?

I don't know, and if I did, I wouldn't say here where anyone could see.

That's not terribly helpful.

Sorry, I can't be very helpful on this.

I suppose there's nothing to be done about it.

No. Good luck with your efforts, though.