Silicon 2025/08/15(Fri)14:15 No. 1112794 ID: bb3183
File 175529251049.png - (0.97MB , 1500x1000 , C01_10_F.png )

Fera: "W-what's wrong?! What happened?!"
Gladii: "Hnngghh- Krcckkrt..."
They draw a laborious breath. They're shaking. I hold their head, so they don't hit it again.

Fera: "No, no no nonono please! D-don't die!"
Gladii: "Anom- Errcchhh W- wa- hhhHHHhh"
They're grabbing my arm.
Gladii: "W-wall!"
Fera: "Wall?!"
Gladii: "Hhhh Aangghh P-pic- Pitch... Pitcher- Hhrrgk Wall!"
The shaking gets weaker over time. Is that good? Or are they dying?!
Fera: "A pitcher?!"
Gladii: "Pick! hhhHHHhh Shur! Grkkh"
Fera: "Picture! O-on the wall?!"
Gladii: "Mnggkkrr hhHhhh Y- es... F-fuck... ev- ever- hhHHHhhhck- -ing..."

I don't... I don't know what to do! I just... Kind of pat Gladii's head a little.

Fera: "Are you- A-are you gonna make it?"
Another series of tremors in their lungs. I'm not sure if they're hyperventilating or laughing. Either way, it's an ugly sound.
Gladii: "Hhhhh alw- hH -ways make it... Ngghh! Unf- unfor- hhHHhhh hhhhhh"
Fera: "Okay, okay, stop talking. Just breathe, okay?"

Gladii takes deep breaths. It sounds like each one takes tremendous effort. They're no longer shaking, but I sure am.

Fera: "I'm gonna... I'm gonna set you down, okay?"
There is no response.

Okay... okay. Let's make the most of this.
What do I do now? Maybe I should have a look at that camera and those bodies after all... But very carefully... VERY.

Ah. It's a "basilisk" image, not a creature. An image made to destroy the human mind via destructive cognitive patterns. That means... if you simply don't look at the wall, you'll be fine. I'm guessing that since Gladii didn't look directly at the entire thing (the mirror is small and wouldn't let her see the whole thing unless it's far down the corridor) must be why she's not dead. That, and the mirror would have distorted it a bit.
Your partially spraypainted goggles will probably work if you look at such a thing, as well...

UNFORTUNATELY, the camera taking images of people who look at the basilisk means that someone set this up on purpose. Maybe to research and refine the technique. A very nasty person is in here. At best, the basilisk is a "guard", something to screen unauthorized personnel.

Investigate what you can reach in this room, then either look at the floor while turning the corner, or outright cover your eyes with the blindfold and use your hands to find the picture on the wall. Take it down, or otherwise disable it. Then carefully peek around through the goggles to see if anything else is around. Maybe with only one eye to further limit exposure.

This thing seems pretty deadly! But if it's just a picture on a wall, and nothing has come out of this bunker... it shouldn't be able to move. That means time is on your side. Take a few breaths, and steady yourself before proceeding.

It looks like your partner also has a new card sticking out of them. You should probably take it, but be wary of looking directly at it. If it depicts the anomaly, it might be just as dangerous.

>>1112790
Oh good.
If something anomalous tries to make you look at it, you can now mace yourself as a last reso-
>>1112792
Shit.
>>1112794
Shit!
.
Basilisk image is a good term for it.
Ok.
Ok.
Recovery position for gladii.
And yeah, check the bodies out if you want, but you have had an example of what it does.
The camera is the most useful thing here.

If we accept the assumption theres someone on site recieving imagery, they may react to the camera being disabled in some way.
It is possible that the timing of the images is a long term observational method. A full stream of video would fill your recording medium quickly, but if live feedback wasnt important, then an image every so often would generate more managable amount of data and inform the viewer when it was time to come scrape up another involuntary subject for the autopsy table.

Is the timing on the camera noise consistant?

There may be other anomalies down here, but for now we have our primary target. Priority is neutralizing its means of attack; direct line of sight.

Our options are: cover the image, disrupt the image, or destroy the image. We don't know whether it will still function if part of it is missing, and we lack the means to destroy a whole wall, so lets focus on covering it.

We will have to be methodical about this, as we can't test any theories without dying if we are wrong. For example we must assume the image covers all four walls, floor and ceiling of the room.

Since it presumably can't move, take some time for Gladii to recover.

You need to 'refract' the image. If you can split it into parts, it might be contained without triggering any 'indestructible' properties.

The camera must have gone in before the basilisk, right? Otherwise it'd be too dangerous to install where it is.
And the camera must be new, otherwise David wouldn't have mentioned the sound.
So maybe the first couple came down here, spent 10 minutes setting up the camera, unrolled a poster with the image, and found out they got more than they bargained for.

I think your best best is to spray(-paint) and pray, but we should get Gladii to safety first, so she isn't lying there breathing in the fumes.

We should also block the camera or spray the lens. I just don't trust it. Maybe the basilisk is personalized somehow.

OK Gladii could have let you know that they always survive, if incredibly painfully, but water under the bridge. Take that card out, since you seem to be good at removing suffering that way, but don't look at it! It might have properties of the image on the wall.

Silicon 2025/10/21(Tue)10:03 No. 1115386 ID: 04d06c
File 176106621655.png - (788.19KB , 1500x1000 , C01_11_A.png )

> Ah. It's a "basilisk" image, not a creature. An image made to destroy the human mind via destructive cognitive patterns. That means... if you simply don't look at the wall, you'll be fine. I'm guessing that since Gladii didn't look directly at the entire thing (the mirror is small and wouldn't let her see the whole thing unless it's far down the corridor) must be why she's not dead. That, and the mirror would have distorted it a bit.
> Your partially spraypainted goggles will probably work if you look at such a thing, as well...

You seem to know a lot about it! So it... destroys your brain just from looking at it? Will Gladii be okay?! I think they had a... a seizure or something. Maybe only partially looking at it only partially destroys your brain? That's still really bad. And they might also have a concussion or... or worse!
Ugh I should have insisted we take more precautions! I should have put my foot down!

> There may be other anomalies down here, but for now we have our primary target. Priority is neutralizing its means of attack; direct line of sight.

Oh come on, no! More? Please! I can barely handle one! How do you figure there might be more??

> This thing seems pretty deadly! But if it's just a picture on a wall, and nothing has come out of this bunker... it shouldn't be able to move. That means time is on your side. Take a few breaths, and steady yourself before proceeding.

Yeah okay. Yeah. You're right. Deep breaths. Deep breaths. We're gonna be okay.

> Our options are: cover the image, disrupt the image, or destroy the image. We don't know whether it will still function if part of it is missing, and we lack the means to destroy a whole wall, so lets focus on covering it.

Black spray paint should cover most anything, right? I brought this down here specifically for this purpose. I'll just have to somehow like... cover at least most of it without seeing what I'm doing. That's not impossible, I don't think. Just gotta find the damn thing.

> We will have to be methodical about this, as we can't test any theories without dying if we are wrong. For example we must assume the image covers all four walls, floor and ceiling of the room.

This strikes me as unlikely. I have seen little slivers of the wall, floor and ceiling of the next room and they look like sheer concrete to me.
But I get your meaning. There's no margin for error, so there's no thing such as overkill.

> You need to 'refract' the image. If you can split it into parts, it might be contained without triggering any 'indestructible' properties.

Also an interesting option. Depends on whether it's painted directly on the wall or just mounted on there, it might be possible to take it down and break it apart. But there's probably no harm in painting over it first all the same.

> OK Gladii could have let you know that they always survive, if incredibly painfully, but water under the bridge.

You think that's what they meant? Yeah if that's the case they really should have told me!

> Ok.
> Ok.
> Recovery position for gladii.

Right, that's uuuhh.. On their side, upper knee forward, hand under their head and face tilted to the floor, right? Yeah, I can do that.

I carefully extricate myself from Gladii, ensuring I set their head down gently.
Gladii does not resist as I arrange their limbs and roll them over on the side. In fact, they go along with the movements. They're not fully unconscious, I don't think.

Fera: "Don't move, okay? Just stay like this and breathe."
Gladii: "hhHHhh... Rgkhhh... Yes... hhHHhhh"

> Since it presumably can't move, take some time for Gladii to recover.

I really hope they will. There's a lot of blood. I... think that doesn't necessarily point to a lethal head injury, but it looks really awful.

Silicon 2025/10/21(Tue)10:03 No. 1115387 ID: 04d06c
File 176106622588.png - (815.27KB , 1500x1000 , C01_11_B.png )

> It looks like your partner also has a new card sticking out of them. You should probably take it, but be wary of looking directly at it. If it depicts the anomaly, it might be just as dangerous.

> Take that card out, since you seem to be good at removing suffering that way, but don't look at it! It might have properties of the image on the wall.

Sure enough there is another card sticking out of their chest. Should I really take it when they're in this state?
I decide that, since it didn't seem to cause David any harm, it should be fine here, maybe even helpful? So I tug on it until it comes free.
POP!
Gladii groans, but then resumes breathing as they had: very badly and loudly.
Hmm... How do I find out whether the card is safe to look at? For now I place it on the floor, face down.

> I think your best best is to spray(-paint) and pray, but we should get Gladii to safety first, so she isn't lying there breathing in the fumes.

Okay, how? The only exit is a ladder. Even if I recruited David I don't know how we'd get them out of here if they can't even at least stand. And I can't really call an ambulance, can I? The paramedics would have to come down here and that is demonstrably unsafe!
Let me know if you come up with a plan here because I'm stumped.

Silicon 2025/10/21(Tue)10:03 No. 1115388 ID: 04d06c
File 176106623329.png - (583.64KB , 1500x1000 , C01_11_C.png )

> UNFORTUNATELY, the camera taking images of people who look at the basilisk means that someone set this up on purpose. Maybe to research and refine the technique. A very nasty person is in here. At best, the basilisk is a "guard", something to screen unauthorized personnel.

> If we accept the assumption theres someone on site recieving imagery, they may react to the camera being disabled in some way.

Well, the camera has already taken several pictures of us. The cat's out of the box and very much alive. I guess there might be a ticking clock here after all. God damnit...

> It is possible that the timing of the images is a long term observational method. A full stream of video would fill your recording medium quickly, but if live feedback wasnt important, then an image every so often would generate more managable amount of data and inform the viewer when it was time to come scrape up another involuntary subject for the autopsy table.

If that's the case, why are there two increasingly... ripe bodies here? Wouldn't you want to examine them fresh?

> Is the timing on the camera noise consistant?

Not at all. If anything I'd say it's noise activated? Hey you know what?
I clap my hands.

ka-chrrk

I think it's noise activated.

> The camera must have gone in before the basilisk, right? Otherwise it'd be too dangerous to install where it is.
>And the camera must be new, otherwise David wouldn't have mentioned the sound.
> So maybe the first couple came down here, spent 10 minutes setting up the camera, unrolled a poster with the image, and found out they got more than they bargained for.

Makes sense to me. Let's see what we can find...

Silicon 2025/10/21(Tue)10:04 No. 1115389 ID: 04d06c
File 176106624818.png - (614.47KB , 1500x1000 , C01_11_D.png )

> Investigate what you can reach in this room

> And yeah, check the bodies out if you want, but you have had an example of what it does.

I step over to the bodies, very careful to keep my back turned on the doorway. Feels like turning my back on a guy with a knife. Urgh. I better do this quick!
I spot the little hand mirror on the floor where Gladii dropped it. It's got some big nasty cracks in it. I put it in my pocket.
As I bend down to search the bodies the stench nearly overwhelms me and I need to supress a gag. I quickly fumble a tissue out of the little tissue pack and hold it over my nose and mouth. maybe that'll help a little.

Even so it takes me a little while to go through the dead guys' pockets. I need to take a couple breaks to step away and breathe.

Okay results:

sheriff:
He's slumped against the wall. As I root around in his pockets his head moves in ways that look unhealthy. Maybe his neck is broken? I'm not gonna check any further. Probably would have died even so.
- a handgun
- a wallet with a bit of cash and a bunch of useless trash.
- a badge
- a pack of chewing gum.
- a key ring (but no car keys)

other guy:
There's a bit of blood on the wall behind his head. Looks like he was pretty fit. He absolutely reeks at this distance blurrgghhh
- no wallet, no keys
- some breath mints
- a whole bunch of granola bars
- a couple condoms, how responsible!
- wireless earphones in a little box
- a swiss army knife
- a note

Silicon 2025/10/21(Tue)10:04 No. 1115390 ID: 04d06c
File 176106625852.png - (666.20KB , 1500x1000 , C01_11_E.png )

I retreat from the bodies once more and hold the note into the light so I can read it. Huh, there are some strange symbols on here.

Hey ,

says he wants me to go check something out and you
know how he gets when he doesn't get what he wants.
It's kinda out of the way though and I don't have a car.
Maybe you could take me?
I'll make it worth your while.
Call me!

-

> The camera is the most useful thing here.

I have a look at the camera. It seems to be screwed on to a little platform that's mounted to the ceiling. There is something hanging off of it that looks like a computer chip.
Hey here's an idea. I pull out the pocket knife and see what sorts of tools it has.
Bingo! A screwdriver!
I carefully take off the screw holding the camera and remove the thing from the mount.

ka-chrrk

Okay yeah the computer chip is wired right into the camera through a makeshift-looking hole in the casing.
Hmm... You guys seem pretty sure about not looking at anything that might depict the uh... basilisk, so I'm not sure whether I should check out the photos on the camera. Those would probably be very illuminating and I'm still relatively sure that the camera shouldn't have taken any pictures through that doorway the way it was mounted.
But I'll let you judge that.

> We should also block the camera or spray the lens. I just don't trust it. Maybe the basilisk is personalized somehow.

For now, I set the camera down on the floor, pointed directly at the empty wall.

ka-chrrk

Silicon 2025/10/21(Tue)10:04 No. 1115391 ID: 04d06c
File 176106627393.png - (362.16KB , 1500x1000 , C01_11_F.png )

> then either look at the floor while turning the corner, or outright cover your eyes with the blindfold and use your hands to find the picture on the wall. Take it down, or otherwise disable it. Then carefully peek around through the goggles to see if anything else is around. Maybe with only one eye to further limit exposure.

Okay, let's... Yeah.
I finagle the sleep mask underneath the goggles for double protection. Yup. Can't see shit like this.
I take the spray paint, awkwardly feel my way to the doorway and over the bodies. I step into the room beyond and with my hands outstretched I carefully walk forward until-

Silicon 2025/10/21(Tue)10:04 No. 1115392 ID: 04d06c
File 176106628661.png - (704.74KB , 1500x1000 , C01_11_G.png )

clack

I brush against something with my shoe. Something small and fairly light. I crouch and find the thing. A bit above fist-size... roughly box-shaped... Another camera? Much smaller. Without the large objective the other one has. I stick it in my pocket and-
Immediately trip on another one.
I feel around on the floor and... wouldn't you believe it, there's a third one!
I put away all three and continue on to the wall opposite the door.

Silicon 2025/10/21(Tue)10:04 No. 1115393 ID: 04d06c
File 176106629661.png - (479.73KB , 1500x1000 , C01_11_H.png )

Eventually I reach it. It feels... different from the other walls in here. The others are pretty rough. This one is rather smooth. I begin running my hands over the wall in all directions, looking for some kind of frame, but I never find one. However, towards the left and the right the wall's texture gets coarser again. Hmm.

> I think your best best is to spray(-paint) and pray

I'm worried I might run out of paint if I just randomly spray the wall... So I refrain for now. I make my way back to the other room and get the blindfold off.

Silicon 2025/10/21(Tue)10:05 No. 1115394 ID: 04d06c
File 176106630683.png - (896.15KB , 1500x1000 , C01_11_I.png )

Sitting down by the ladder I pull out the smaller cameras. These are also digital, but they look super cheap. On a whim, I press the power button on the first one (with the screen turned away). Nothing. The little LED doesn't turn on or flash or anything. I try the second one. Also nothing. Hm.
Third time's the charm. I press the button on the third camera and for just an instant the LED glows red. Then there's a krrzzt, a whisp of smoke and that's it. Pressing the button more results in absolutely nothing.

All right where does that leave us? I get that you want me to spraypaint over the anomaly, but it's difficult for me to tell where excatly I need to spray and whether I'll have enough paint if I do it haphazardly... Maybe we can figure out a way to do this right...

We have a camera and we could look at the pictures. It's risky, I guess. But not that risky, I think.

And then there's a bunch more puzzling stuff that we found. I'm not sure what all that adds up to.

I've got a headache.

Gladii: "hhHh... h-ghHhh... hHHhh..."

Gladii is still breathing. So at least there's that.

>>1115394
Headache...
Stale air, poor ventilation and stinky bodies...
Yeah.
Thatd do it.
Eat mints. Might take the edge off.

Interesting note.
The symbols are new to us, but weve seen similar in the peanut gallery here.
When we first met you two but didnt know your names.
What this means is hard to quantify at this point.
Evidence of other agents? Other group using a similar sigil based identification system?

I think you may be right about needing to view the images on the camera.
Indecision is detrimental to gladii's health.
A more ruthless soul would test the camera images on an already exposed individual, but i dont think youre that kind of person, nor would the safety itd earn be worth the cost.
So, camera image examination.
Squient till your eyes are blurry or wear the goggles for the first glance. Seeing only part of the basilisk image may disable or impede it.
Perahps even use the note to obscure half of the image at a time to disrupt full exposure.

New resource found: the camera
It being sound activated means you could use it to take further around corner images if needed.

Im not sure what to make of the cheaper cameras.
What purpose they served or whether they were part of the original set up.

>>1115389
>loot! also different causes of death
Hey, that handgun is potentially useful now that we know more of what's going on.
...huh, everyone gets head/neck trauma from looking at the poster, but it's external damage? Maybe it doesn't work like we thought. It doesn't attack the brain, it's... like a telekinetic attack in response to being seen?

>>1115393
>smooth wall
That would be the poster. Though we're missing some information... Ask gladii if thinking about the poster hurts. If not, ask how big the poster was, and where on the wall it was exactly. From touch, it seems very big.

>>1115390
>camera pictures?
Yeah that one was pointed in a safe direction.

>>1115394
>headache
Oh great, does that mean even touching the thing counts as partial exposure? I hope not.
>not enough spray paint?
Hmm, maybe the convenience store has more? Alternatively we can get some gasoline and burn the thing. ...burning it seems like the safest option actually. You can take the sheriff's cash to pay for gas.

Idea! Not to be needlessly cruel, but Gladii is here, and alive. If we’re really wary of the photos, why not show them to her first? Putting yourself at risk first could lead to you BOTH being on the floor, which is kinda counterproductive. If Gladii has a reaction a second time, we know not to look. Plus, it’s honestly probably safe. Digital cameras don’t store every bit of light they capture. I’d be willing to bet that the lower resolution of the camera (compared to your eyes) is enough of a mosaic censor for the basilisk’s threat to be rendered ineffective.

>>1115401
Both on the floor is a better outcome than one of us dead.

...ah, I bet the other cameras are dead because they took pictures of the poster. The anomaly "killed" the cameras! This would very much confirm the working camera is safe to check.

Hmm, seems like the basilisk killed the cameras in the room. That would indicate that the other camera hasn't seen inside the room, as its still functioning. I say see whats on it, it seems reasonably safe.

as for fire, if its just painted on a concrete wall it won't be able to burn down. As we just saw with Gladii, if even a portion remains it will still hurt. scorching can't be trusted to be thorough.

>>1115403
Right, but it didn’t kill them! So they’d probably feel the same pain again, but still be fine

>>1115414
It's not just pain, it's physical injury.

The injuries don't have to mean that the basilisk doesn't affect the brain; If it works by triggering a suicidal response in the victim the kinds of injury would differ from each other.
It seems to go mostly for head trauma but that's maybe mostly because blunt force to the head is the fastest lane it pictures in that moment.

You felt the uninterruped wall without any framing, getting rougher to both sides; I'd guesstimate the picture is either painted or sprayed onto the wall, so checking for the smooth area can give you an idea of the dimensions it covers.
Spraypaint/tag it to anounce your claim of this territory to rival gangs (or disarm the basilisk i guess).
You could then shoot it with the shotgun for good measure to disrupt the surface its on, but this could involve shrapnel and injury. A pickaxe would be nice now.

The first symbol on the letter seems likean alchemical symbol (maybe air or fire, not sure right now), so either your organisation could have different symbolisms for seperate departmens or you have a rival organisation on your hand (which would be another good reason for marking your territory via cross-tag).

Keep monitoring your headache. If it gets worse the air is maybe too bad for long-time exposure, in which case you and especially Gladii should get out of there, they are pretty close to the ground and in bad shape, I'd doubt the air down there is any better.

...also, can you stick your cards into other things than people?

Okay, yeah, I agree with some of the other peanuts here on the following:
1. The other cameras must be dead from directly "seeing" the picture
2. The basilisk is probably a mural of sorts, hence why the surface is smooth there
3. Your headache is probably from the exposure to the scents down here

Which would mean that checking out the working camera should be safe. It was angled away from the picture.

The note is interesting. It seems like it was written by the goth woman to the athlete. The text implied that by the time both of them arrived, the Medusa Mural was already HERE.

It also sounds like it may have been a trap, either for goth lady or for athelete. If we take goth lady at her word, the trap was set for her, and athlete only got caught in the crossfire. But I have my doubts... "I'll make it worth your while" sounds like she knew she had some emotional sway over athlete and leveraged it to get him here. Which makes it especially notable that HE died, while SHE got out.

He may have been a test subject.

Also, the officer's equipment feels weird now. Spraypaint and tarp... why? Did he have an idea of what he'd find here?

The blanket or the curtain might be able to cover a lerger part of the mural than the paint alone, but the other peanuts are right - even only partially blacking out the mural might already help a lot!

Do we have anything that might be able to hold the curtain up? Perhaps whatever the camera was mounted on?

This also seems less like a clean organization like Gladii and you are part of, and more like... maybe something cult-adjacent? Or a ragtag gang of supernatural hunters.

>>1115426

That officer *must* have been trying to cover it up! Maybe the tarp can help cover it more than just the spray paint?

The pictures on the working camera would be good to look at first.

It doesn't have to be a mural. It could be a poster glued directly to the wall.

Oh right and if Gladii has external wounds we should probably administer first aid?

Silicon 2025/11/10(Mon)09:35 No. 1116695 ID: 6d3a6d
File 176279610933.png - (955.24KB , 1500x1000 , C01_12_A.png )

> Headache...
> Stale air, poor ventilation and stinky bodies...
> Yeah.
> Thatd do it.
> Eat mints. Might take the edge off.

That's probably what it is. Don't have any mints and the chewing gum I found on a corpse is not particularly appetizing. I think I'll live.

> Keep monitoring your headache. If it gets worse the air is maybe too bad for long-time exposure, in which case you and especially Gladii should get out of there, they are pretty close to the ground and in bad shape, I'd doubt the air down there is any better.

I still don't have any concrete plan how I'd even get Gladii out. I think even if I got David to help that would be quite difficult. I'm open for suggestions!

> Oh right and if Gladii has external wounds we should probably administer first aid?

... Shoot, you're right! Why didn't I think of that sooner?!
I grab the first aid kit and find a roll of gauze and scissors. There's not much I can do about a potential skull fracture or concussion, but I can at least staunch the bleeding.

Fera: "Hey, Gladii, I'll put a bandage on your head, okay?"
Gladii: "gghhkk... If... hhhh... you must..."

Very gingerly, I lift their head and get to wrapping. I'm not great at this.

Gladii: "hhHHhh... Fffera? hhkkhh..."
Fera: "Hmm?"
Gladii: "Don't... hHHhhh... ever... call me Gladys. ghhkh hHHh..."
Fera: "Uh... Okay."

So they're at least somewhat lucid.

> Interesting note.
> The symbols are new to us, but weve seen similar in the peanut gallery here.
> When we first met you two but didnt know your names.
> What this means is hard to quantify at this point.
> Evidence of other agents? Other group using a similar sigil based identification system?

That is interesting.

> The first symbol on the letter seems likean alchemical symbol (maybe air or fire, not sure right now), so either your organisation could have different symbolisms for seperate departmens or you have a rival organisation on your hand (which would be another good reason for marking your territory via cross-tag).

I'll try asking Gladii.

Fera: "I found some strange symbols. The Peanut Gallery is suggesting they might be for other agents, or another organization..."
Gladii: "Ghhkh... What?"
Fera: "Are there agents that use alchemical symbols rather than tarot suits?"
Gladii: "No... hhHhhh... All suits... Rgkhhh... Me- Media..."
Fera: "media?"
Gladii: "Hhhh... hhHHhhh..."

Hmm...


> The note is interesting. It seems like it was written by the goth woman to the athlete. The text implied that by the time both of them arrived, the Medusa Mural was already HERE.
> It also sounds like it may have been a trap, either for goth lady or for athelete. If we take goth lady at her word, the trap was set for her, and athlete only got caught in the crossfire. But I have my doubts... "I'll make it worth your while" sounds like she knew she had some emotional sway over athlete and leveraged it to get him here. Which makes it especially notable that HE died, while SHE got out.
> He may have been a test subject.

That's a disturbing thought.

> This also seems less like a clean organization like Gladii and you are part of, and more like... maybe something cult-adjacent? Or a ragtag gang of supernatural hunters.

Yeah and apparently they're killing one another.

> Also, the officer's equipment feels weird now. Spraypaint and tarp... why? Did he have an idea of what he'd find here?

> That officer *must* have been trying to cover it up! Maybe the tarp can help cover it more than just the spray paint?

That suggests he would have had to know the thing was dangerous to look at. But if that had been so, why did he look at it and die?

Silicon 2025/11/10(Mon)09:35 No. 1116696 ID: 6d3a6d
File 176279612490.png - (957.71KB , 1500x1000 , C01_12_B.png )

> I think you may be right about needing to view the images on the camera.
> Indecision is detrimental to gladii's health.
> A more ruthless soul would test the camera images on an already exposed individual, but i dont think youre that kind of person, nor would the safety itd earn be worth the cost.

Y-yeah, that's... No I already feel bad for letting them go first.

> Idea! Not to be needlessly cruel, but Gladii is here, and alive. If we’re really wary of the photos, why not show them to her first? Putting yourself at risk first could lead to you BOTH being on the floor, which is kinda counterproductive. If Gladii has a reaction a second time, we know not to look. Plus, it’s honestly probably safe. Digital cameras don’t store every bit of light they capture. I’d be willing to bet that the lower resolution of the camera (compared to your eyes) is enough of a mosaic censor for the basilisk’s threat to be rendered ineffective.

> Both on the floor is a better outcome than one of us dead.

> Right, but it didn’t kill them! So they’d probably feel the same pain again, but still be fine

> It's not just pain, it's physical injury.

I see the logic there. Really, I do. But I'm not going to intentionally expose Gladii to even more harm. Not unless I really really have to. Let's explore alternatives first.

> So, camera image examination.
> Squient till your eyes are blurry or wear the goggles for the first glance. Seeing only part of the basilisk image may disable or impede it.
> Perahps even use the note to obscure half of the image at a time to disrupt full exposure.

Oh that's clever, yeah. I'll do this as safely as possible.

> Yeah that one was pointed in a safe direction.

> The pictures on the working camera would be good to look at first.

Glad we agree.

> ...ah, I bet the other cameras are dead because they took pictures of the poster. The anomaly "killed" the cameras! This would very much confirm the working camera is safe to check.

> Hmm, seems like the basilisk killed the cameras in the room. That would indicate that the other camera hasn't seen inside the room, as its still functioning. I say see whats on it, it seems reasonably safe.

...

Huh? Wait. Are you saying the Basilisk doesn't just kill people, it also kills cameras? That's. Really weird. I mean images that kill people are already weird! But cameras aren't even alive and...

Okay, you know what? I'm just gonna accept this for now. The cameras are dead, after all. I'll take this as a sign that the large camera is largely safe.

> New resource found: the camera
> It being sound activated means you could use it to take further around corner images if needed.

Oh and given what else we just figured out, we could perhaps also use it to check if the Basilisk is still a danger.

Gladii: "Ow! ghHHh Careful..."
Fera: "Sorry."

Silicon 2025/11/10(Mon)09:35 No. 1116697 ID: 6d3a6d
File 176279613477.png - (958.38KB , 1500x1000 , C01_12_C.png )

> ...huh, everyone gets head/neck trauma from looking at the poster, but it's external damage? Maybe it doesn't work like we thought. It doesn't attack the brain, it's... like a telekinetic attack in response to being seen?

> The injuries don't have to mean that the basilisk doesn't affect the brain; If it works by triggering a suicidal response in the victim the kinds of injury would differ from each other.
> It seems to go mostly for head trauma but that's maybe mostly because blunt force to the head is the fastest lane it pictures in that moment.

It seemed to me that Gladii simply... seized up and slammed their head into the wall. And more generally, I imagine that if you're standing up and you suddenly have a seizure like that, you're liable to fall over without being able to protect your head and... well... get badly injured.
In fact! If Gladii hadn't fallen towards me, I probably wouldn't have caught them and they could have really cracked their head open.

> smooth wall
> That would be the poster. Though we're missing some information... Ask gladii if thinking about the poster hurts. If not, ask how big the poster was, and where on the wall it was exactly. From touch, it seems very big.

Fera: "Gladii, uhm... Does thinking about the poster hurt?"
Gladii: "Ghhkkhh.. Ack! hhHHhhh... Y-... yes..."
Fera: "Nevermind, then."
Gladii: "Ask. hHhhh..."
Fera: "No, forget about it. Think of something else."
Gladii: "hHHhghk... Ask!"
Fera: "No! Enough already!"
Gladii: "Just... finish it... hhhHHHhhhh..."

> You felt the uninterruped wall without any framing, getting rougher to both sides; I'd guesstimate the picture is either painted or sprayed onto the wall, so checking for the smooth area can give you an idea of the dimensions it covers.

> It doesn't have to be a mural. It could be a poster glued directly to the wall.

If it's a poster it's glued very firmly to the wall. I didn't feel the surface shifting under my hands at all. I couldn't feel any edge. Could be a mural. It's possible.

In either case, knowing that the smooth stuff is the basilisk is helpful. Makes it easier to tell where to apply the paint.

> not enough spray paint?
> Hmm, maybe the convenience store has more? Alternatively we can get some gasoline and burn the thing. ...burning it seems like the safest option actually. You can take the sheriff's cash to pay for gas.

> Spraypaint/tag it to anounce your claim of this territory to rival gangs (or disarm the basilisk i guess).
> You could then shoot it with the shotgun for good measure to disrupt the surface its on, but this could involve shrapnel and injury. A pickaxe would be nice now.

> The blanket or the curtain might be able to cover a lerger part of the mural than the paint alone, but the other peanuts are right - even only partially blacking out the mural might already help a lot!
> Do we have anything that might be able to hold the curtain up? Perhaps whatever the camera was mounted on?

Understanding that I can probably feel out the exact edges of the thing makes me a lot more confident in the spraypaint plan. If the paint does run out, I'll check the convenience store.
Covering the basilisk with the curtain is difficult. I don't think I have the tools to mount that in there. Plus: A curtain can potentially be removed. I'd prefer neutralizing this thing for good.
I'll... reserve the fire and shotgun options for the case that the spraypaint doesn't work.

Silicon 2025/11/10(Mon)09:35 No. 1116698 ID: 6d3a6d
File 176279614833.png - (622.98KB , 1500x1000 , C01_12_D.png )

Well, Gladii's head bandage is done. It's not amazing work, but it should hold. And it'll staunch the bleeding.

Fera: "There, all done."
Gladii: "hhhHhhhHhh... Thanks..."

That sounded mildly sarcastic, but I'm never sure with Gladii. Is it deadpan or is it just flat delivery?

I gently lower Gladii back down into the recovery position. It's time to check out some photographs!

Silicon 2025/11/10(Mon)09:36 No. 1116699 ID: 6d3a6d
File 176279616097.png - (1.11MB , 1500x1000 , C01_12_E.png )

After lowering the goggles back over my eyes, I pick up the camera, careful to avoid looking directly at the screen. I find the button that switches it into view photos mode. Then I hold the note over the screen and turn the camera to look at it. I slowly slide the note sideways until I can see... a photograph of a bare concrete wall.

That makes sense of course. I did place it down facing the wall.

I place the note back on the screen and move to the previous photograph. Then I repeat the previous process to find... Another blank wall.

I do this until I find a different photo. Look at that handsome devil!

And I repeat this some more. There are, predictably, several pictures of Gladii and me.

I get a bit impatient and I know where the camera was pointing the whole entire time we were in there, so I start flicking through the photos without the whole note-obscuring trick until I'm past the picture showing us coming in.

It takes a little while of slowly, carefully flipping through a lot of near-identical pictures, but eventually there's a change! Look at that! It's the Sheriff!

There aren't many pictures with him. Him about to look around the corner, him looking at the corpse from a distance, him climbing down. There is no picture of the moment of his death.

Following this there are a lot of pictures with just the one dead guy in them. I impatiently flick through them until she appears: There she is: the mysterious survivor. Climbing down. No wait, I'm looking at this backwards. She's climbing out. Obviously.

This is it. My heart beats faster. My hands are a bit clammy. This is where it gets interesting. And potentially harrowing. Let's... Let's see...

Silicon 2025/11/10(Mon)09:36 No. 1116700 ID: 6d3a6d
File 176279617010.png - (0.96MB , 1500x1000 , C01_12_F.png )

I go through the next couple pictures slowly, carefully. Always slowly unveiling each one with the note.

Here she is... rifling through the dead guy's pockets? Maybe she needed the car keys. Or maybe it was something else she was after.

Hm. Here she is cowering in the corner. Is it horror? Guilt?

Here she is crawling around on all fours. Her hand is hovering just above the dead guy's leg. Mhmm...

Woah! Is that... The very moment of death? That's disturbing to think about. I mean obviously we know that he died, but... Seeing it like this is very morbid. I look closer anyway. He appears to be having some sort of seizure. Much like Gladii did. And then he fell.
The mystery woman is pouring water on her face. Is she washing out the pepper spray?

Next one. She's crouched down, hands on her face. The athlete is offering her the water. So I guess this is just after she got hit by the mace?

Silicon 2025/11/10(Mon)09:36 No. 1116701 ID: 6d3a6d
File 176279617937.png - (0.98MB , 1500x1000 , C01_12_G.png )

She... she did in fact pepperspray herself. Wow.
There aren't many more pictures of these two. They arrive and then there's just the empty bunker.

Well. This tells us one thing at least: They didn't make the basilisk. And they didn't set up the camera.

But then who did?

Silicon 2025/11/10(Mon)09:36 No. 1116702 ID: 6d3a6d
File 176279618790.png - (1.02MB , 1500x1000 , C01_12_H.png )

I flip through a lot of empty pictures. It is agonizing. But then, suddenly, the whole atmosphere shifts. Someone is climbing out and they have some kind of light source casting the basement in a warm glow.

The next photo is quite the smoking gun! Or smoking camera, eh? Look at that! Who is that? They're wearing a raincoat, some very large goggles and a mask. There is an open bag and, zooming into the picture reveals that it's got spray cans in it. We have our culprit!
But most importantly, they're taking a photo of the room with the basilisk in it! The camera is spitting smoke!

They must have some kind of lamp mounted on their head? Unfortunately it's out of frame. The culprit isn't in the next photo at all.

But the one after that has them shaking a can of paint. They're holding a couple of thin plasticy-looking thingies with geometric holes in them in their hand.

According to the camera's counter, there is exactly one more picture on here.

It takes all of my self-control to put the note over the screen instead of just flipping to the final image.

Silicon 2025/11/10(Mon)09:36 No. 1116703 ID: 6d3a6d
File 176279619702.png - (846.04KB , 1500x1000 , C01_12_I.png )

...

Silicon 2025/11/10(Mon)09:36 No. 1116704 ID: 6d3a6d
File 176279620611.png - (542.53KB , 1500x1000 , C01_12_J.png )

What even is that? A halo?

...

Silicon 2025/11/10(Mon)09:36 No. 1116705 ID: 6d3a6d
File 176279621491.png - (542.06KB , 1500x1000 , C01_12_K.png )

> ...also, can you stick your cards into other things than people?

Oh uh... Let's see.
I push it into the blanket. It doesn't sink in any further than normal. I try the medkit, I try the wall. Nothing.

So I don't know if it doesn't work with any non-people objects, but it doesn't work with these.

>>1116703

More importantly! Well actually not all that importantly. But if FOR SOME REASON you needed to look at the basilisk without spraypainting over it, check out that visor. Shattered, with distorted eyes. If you use that photo to replicate that visor, it's probably protection against the basilisk!

> thin plasticy-looking thingies with geometric holes
could those be stencils for the killer sigil? perhaps each one holds a portion of the pattern so they can be safely handled, and only when combined do they kill.

If so this would indicate that the deadly image may be a series of smaller images. May be the effect is stronger with more of them. It would explain why Gladii got hurt even with the small area the mirror would have shown.

Those goggles, they seem to act as a filter, fracturing the images so they don't fully connect all at once.
Whoever that guy was, they're either a skilled artist or filled with processing power.

Maybe you can do something like that. Put on cracked goggles filled with water, anything that lets you see in fragments.

>>1116703
Fancy goggles! Alright that confirms that scrambling the image works.
Also very interesting that the basilisk was created via spraypaint and stencils. I'd have thought it would require more fine detail than that. The halo implies an anomalous individual created the thing, though...

I kindof want to keep this camera, so that we can give it to our superiors as evidence of a secondary target... if we can get some disposable cameras from the gas station we can use those to confirm the anomaly is disabled once we sparypaint over it. Make sure to get at least two, so you can use one to confirm the basilisk normally destroys cameras.

>>1116701
Hmm. Looks like she meant to pepperspray the guy, but didn't mean to get him killed. Her hovering over his leg was probably because she was checking if he was dead, and once she realized that she went into the corner in shock. Then she took his stuff, because... I dunno. Considering they used symbols instead of names, maybe it was to remove any evidence of their organization... but she left the note behind? Maybe she just didn't find the note, or didn't expect him to still be carrying it.

>>1116699
Unusual that the sheriff died without making noise, but it seems the other pictures were taken when the victims collided with walls. ...oh, he shined a flashlight on it. I'm guessing that with more light, the effect is more powerful, so it killed him differently.

Go get some cameras, use one to confirm the effect, tag over the graffiti, then use one or two more cameras to confirm it's safe to observe.

Daww.
You stick your tongue out when you concentrate.
Adorable.

>>1116701
I think she was trying to pepperspray that guy and got herself.
Understandable.
Given him helping immediately, i suspect he was just a dumbass with no idea of how itd look getting flirty after taking someone to a dark, creepy spot.
Oh, hey.
He had mints in his pocket. Help yourself.
Cant have too much deadguy on them.

>>1116712
Agreed.
Fracturing the... lines maybe?
That indicates Its definately a rune or sigil or word of power that activates on... what exactly?
Its not a mind as cameras may be smart these days but not that smart.
The only shared trait between humans and cameras would be the eye and the camera both have a lens.
Unless thats too specific a trigger and whatever rules govern this specific weirdery are vague enough to cover anything which can behold it.
Sorry.
Probably not relevant.
Do like to figure things out.

... say. Fera.
Do your cards work on dead bodies?
Science and easily distracted minds demand answers!

I really don't think we need to experiment with goggles. Simply spraypainting it with closed eyes should be fine.

Also of note: despite the fact you're wearing those partially-spraypainted goggles, we can see the photos clearly.

>>1116726

Probably activates on being copied or reproduced. Reproduced in your eyes and brain, reproduced on film. I'll bet money that concrete wall took some damage when the angel(?) spray painted the pattern on it.

HEY! WE STILL HAVE THE REQUISITION FORM! REQUISITION A BASILISK GRAFFITI NEUTRALIZER! OR A GLADII-FULLY-HEALER!

Oh, yeah, we can requisition something to heal Gladii for sure. I think spraypaint is enough to neutralize the graffiti, although... to *really* kill it, we need some paint thinner.