amuze | TDM 01

Entry tags:

!modposts,
!tdm

TDM 01

WE DON'T

A quiet beep and a series of mechanical clicks draw you to consciousness once more, regardless of how you found yourself on the other side of dark weightlessness. You open your eyes to find yourself standing within the gates of a seemingly rundown amusement park, the forward motion of your feet suggesting you had just stepped through the turnstile directly behind you. A look backward also reveals a row of faceless, inky shadow figures, all seemingly waiting for you to move out of the way and allow them to enter after you.

Another beep, and should you choose to investigate, you will notice a small screened device embedded within the flesh of your left wrist (or elsewhere should that be impossible) The screen itself is dark with static aside from a bright red heart monitor that moves about in the top right corner. It's locked on that glitching, garbled visage, and doesn't respond to any taps or shakes of the wrist.

Floodlights click on from high above, providing a new source of lighting outside of the fiery sunset sky and revealing that this park may not have been as rundown and abandoned as it had first seemed. Off key music blares from somewhere unseen, loud enough to cause discomfort but not severe enough to rattle the teeth from your skull. Previously motionless figures suddenly begin to move, articulating and bending in uncanny ways as they wave and beckon you in towards the park. Their porcelain masks plaster on a cheerful demeanor despite the cracked and dirty state of the masks they wear. Stretched out across the promenade is a clearly handmade sign, the once-white cloth dirtied with years of dirt and grime. Even so, the words GRAND REOPENING! are a clear and stark contrast, painted in some dark liquid that oozes and drips onto the cobblestone below. Streamers and string lights drape haphazardly across the buildings and over the walkway, accompanied by several dozen sad balloons that seem to have lost the majority of their helium long ago.

In the distance looms the dark foreboding shape of a massive Ferris Wheel, standing motionless like a silent sentinel keeping watch over its dominion.

One of the masked dancing figures ripples its way towards you, shoving a pamphlet towards you with a hand that doesn't seem to possess any proper joints for the fingers to move the way they do. This close it's easier to spot that the dark void behind the eye holes seems to go on far too deep, and it isn't an illogical leap from there to come to the conclusion that perhaps there is nothing within this costume to pilot its movements. It moves and sways to the whims of unseen strings, playing the part of a puppet to another's command.

The offered pamphlet appears to be a map of the park's grounds, and whether or not you decide to take it the being soon thereafter slowly retreats back to its starting position. As it reaches its spot, the limbs of its body go slack and it slumps forward slightly, seemingly lifeless. A rippling wave of inactivity seems to roll through the other gathered figures, and one by one they all enter a state of identical deactivation. The music abruptly cuts off. The lighting from above flickers away with a loud electric hum, leaving only the light of the setting sun to guide you. Somewhere behind you, a shadowy figure slowly morphs to take on the form of the next park guest, and the whole routine will repeat itself in an endless loop the moment they gain consciousness the same way you yourself did.

Welcome to AMUZE ★ MENT AVENUE! The park is now yours to explore to your heart's content.

MAKE

The Ferris Wheel at the center of the park continues to play the part of a stone monolith, serving as a landmark to help you orient yourself as you wander the grounds. More of those masked beings seem to be everywhere you look, in various states of animation; some are sweeping the cobblestone walkways, while others seem to be in charge of concessions stands and game stalls that you pass along the way.

And on the subject of game stalls and food stands... You seem to have wandered into the area containing a surplus of both. A big aluminum sign hangs high above your head, spelling out the words PRIZE ALLEY! A central courtyard stands before you, containing a stone fountain depicting what appears to be a seal as it sprays muddy water out of the tip of its snout. The music has returned to this area, though it seems less bent on being overpowering and more content with being the soundtrack to your adventures.

Game stalls litter the area, all begging for you to give them a shot. The one closest to you in particular seems to draw the eye in a way you can't quite understand, and closer examination reveals that the goal of this one seems to be to break a stack of plates with the bucket of baseballs on the stall counter. Another masked figure stands at attention at this stall, waving at you as you approach and motioning to the row of bagged goldfish that sits along the countertop. They all seem to be in excellent condition, and should you find that you cannot resist the urge to try to win yourself a new pet, you may discover that the plates shatter to pieces regardless of the skill behind your aim.

Congratulations!

Winning your new scaled companion doesn't seem to be without its drawbacks, however, as the masked figure promptly reaches behind the counter and hefts a huge ten gallon tank up and onto the surface in front of you, thunking it down with enough force to slosh around the water inside it.

You didn't think you were going to keep that fish in a tiny little bowl, did you? Of course not. You were entirely aware of how inhumane such living conditions are, after all. Please enjoy lugging this aquarium about with you for the remainder of your stay; it's even fully cycled and equipped with an automatic filtration system, courtesy of The Entity.

DREAMZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

The sun hasn't seemed to move at all in the time you've spent here, giving you no indication of just how long you've loitered. Ancient looking animals lope about the carousel before you, and beyond that stands the tall shape of a large multicolored tent.

A sign above the open entrance flaps reads CIRQUE ILLUME, the painted-on C a glaring contrast to the rest of the letters, which are carved in wood and bolted on. The flaps of the tent itself are open, though it doesn't appear like anyone is inside. Rows of bleachers line the inside of the tent, facing and surrounding a central raised platform that seems to be the main stage area. Above your head, trapeze bars hang lifelessly, suspended by ropes and scaffoldings that don't quite seem capable of supporting any weight.

The main stage is vacant of any furnishings, and the overhead spotlights are dark and shuttered. You get the distinct feeling that you shouldn't be snooping about in here, though whether that deters you from doing just that is entirely up to your discretion.

ooc

Feel free to have your character wander about the various park attractions as you see fit! Everywhere listed on the locations page is currently available, with the only exception being the Hi-RiZe, which is undergoing maintenance for the duration of this TDM.

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I'm glad to see you, too.

[Tsugumi rests her cheek happily against Coco's head as she's embraced so enthusiastically, eyes closed for a moment as she lets some of the tension in her shoulders release. The situation might be rather scary and unknown, but having a friend along for the ride makes things infinitely easier.]

Yes-- same as you, I suppose. I've encountered a few people here and there that seem to be in the same predicament.

O-Oh, I see!

[ Zenitsu watches and copies the motions pretty well, rolling the ball up the ramp! The ball doesn't make it into the center hole, but it's certainly a try. ]

Like that, right?

[She will not be letting go of Tsugumi's hands any time soon. Coco may be used to going it relatively alone and sneaking around, but a familiar face in this place is worth holding on to, especially when it's one you haven't been able to see much of for the past three years.

She does sober a bit, though.]

Yeah, it's like, totez weird. Did you try going back out? You just get all turned around and kicked back out here.

Yes. I tried to venture out further early on, to much the same end...

[She frowns, her fingers curling within Coco's grasp, fingernails digging into her own palms in a light but persistent pressure.]

I don't have even a single theory as to what's happening, yet. Do you?

[To that, Coco only shakes her head, her wings drooping a little in tandem.]

It certainly isn't Shibuya... And I don't think we're anywhere in Shinjuku, either. Unless this is part of the rebuilding effort, and we simply can't leave until it's finished.

[Which doesn't make sense, but! What does she know about rebuilding dead districts? Besides, everything seems to be in... well. It's not Japanese. It's really eerie English.]

It's also very strange that the sky has remained in its lovely shade of sunset for so long. I know I've been wandering about for at least an hour or so.

No, there's nothing like this in Shinjuku... I can't think of a single place where this could've been hiding, especially one that I wouldn't have known about. Not to mention... we haven't even figured out how to begin fixing what happened in Shinjuku.

[At the latter remark, she hums in agreement, brows scrunched a bit.]

It definitely should've been dark by now. Something's not right.

... it's kind of eerie.

[It's not the same kind of unsettling feeling that she got, hanging out in Shinjuku with Neku. That place had been stifling and silent at the same time, the spirits of the anguished dead stuck in limbo and unable to escape.

This is different. It's like when a storm is approaching, but the wind hasn't kicked up, and the air feels heavy. Like something is waiting to happen.

She doesn't like it.]

You haven't seen any, like, actual people working here, have you? Just those creepy puppet people?

[Gary notices this nervous tick, but doesn't point it out. She's probably flustered and maybe a little embarrassed - no need to point out something that could make her feel those things even worse. He stays on-topic.]

Nope! [His smile turns slightly manic, in a way that suggests he would very much like to have the answer to this question and is frustrated that he doesn't.] But I intend to figure that out. It's my job, y'know? I'm an investigative reporter, I do a weird piece like this once every other week, easy.

[...No he doesn't. Well, not this weird, anyway. But Gary's hoping the boost of confidence will be infectious.]

Noah Ebalon. Nice to meet you.

[It's probably fine to leave the empty tank. In fact, it looks like the staff member is taking it, so Noah shrugs and leaves it at that. Now comes the fun task of hoisting his own tank, and luckily he's a strong dude despite appearances.

He's gonna put this in a secure location. He knows of one, in fact, just gotta make the walk.]

Funny thing about all this is, [he says conversationally,] I just left one amusement park and now I'm in this one. The other amusement park wasn't handing fish out, though.

[ Mizuki really has no reason to be following, but he’s maybe more akin to a lost dog than a jellyfish, trying to figure out what he’s doing because… this is sure strange, isn’t it! Being someplace new, somewhere new, not knowing any faces… Scary. ]

Did you? It’s been… a long time since I’ve been to one of these. If you’ve come from one, though, it must mean you like them, right??

Huh? Yeah! Would you not? Is that weird?

[Is Noah... weird? Oh well!]

Riding stuff is more fun with others, and no one I know seems to be here, so... [Help this kicked puppy of a man out.]

[Man, this guy is super not okay.]

I can do that. You need something sweet, but are you allergic to any foods? [This is an important, serious question. If Azul wants to have excuses and eat food about it, Noah's not going to poison the fucking guy.] I saw that they have milkshakes!

[Strawberry specifically. That's loaded with sugar.]

...you wanna come with me?

You're just saying that! C'mon, I'm pretty great, but I'm not that cool.

[Noah's ego! Please! It's getting so big, which is a terrible thing! He dismissively waves a hand about, like maybe it will brush away the compliment. It does not.

Also, stop psychoanalyzing him? What the fuck.]

...you're really nice. [girls are so cool]

[Oh this guy has hella anxiety. It reminds Noah of when Noah was little, all anxious and screamy all the time... sigh, he's so cool now. Or that's what he thinks, anyway.

He walks over to Zenitsu and holds his own wrist up, with the embedded ~~fitbit~~ device on display.]

Mine won't come off either. It's kinda cool, if a bit freaky. It shows the time and stuff, and you can type on it. It reminds me of Nasod tech.

Well... it's kind of complicated. Me and some... some companions I just met, [they're friends, but Noah's always hesitant with that word, just because they really only just met some time ago,] we were investigating an incident with the demon army. The amusement park was run by former members of that army, if you can believe it.

I'd never been to one before. [He kicks a stray pebble in the path a bit bashfully.] I walked around the park with this little kid named Laby. She's the sort to punch your lights out if you mess around with her.

[Laby definitely punched a demon's lights out in this essay I w—]

Demon army…? [ Weird. ] So, um, sorry for asking, but what are you, exactly?

[ It's impolite to ask, but Mizuki has a feeling he's going to say something that isn't the usual for him! Call it a hunch. Also maybe the fact that he's not eating his goldfish, and that's a little weird of him, honestly. Oh, and the fact that he drops "demon army" like it's a totally normal thing to have. Though, Sarkaz are pretty marginalized on Terra, for sure, but there's too much war as it is, that a whole damn species coming together to start another one is kind of unheard of at this point in time… ]

And, have you wanted to go to one, then?

Me? Oh, I'm human.

[Noah thinks for a moment, and then—]

Can you sense my spirit pact? Is that why you're asking? That's not me, but that's someone else. He's... ah... He's not here with me. I don't know how.

[Unhelpfully, Noah doesn't explain what a spirit pact is, because he assumes that the nature of Mizuki's question means he already knows.]

But, I really hadn't thought of ever going to an amusement park before that. I just barely got out of, uh... mage's college, I guess you could call it, so I didn't really have much free time.

[ Mizuki just stares in some silence for a moment before he finally deems to speak up. Things like "humanity" and "humane" exist as words on Terra. But "human" is new. Or maybe it isn't? Mizuki doesn't know for sure. He was never very good at keeping up with that sort of stuff. And now he's going on about spirit pacts??? What's happening… ]

Um… sorry, I'm not sure I follow any of that. You're a human, you said? [ Beat. ] And you have someone else with you, but not…?

[ ???? ]

--Ah! ...Eh?

[ Zenitsu jumps with a start when Noah arrives, seemingly caught off-guard due to how in his own head he was. ]

D-Don't sneak up on me like that!

[ Noah didn't sneak up on him- Zenitsu's just very jumpy. He carefully looks at his wrist monitor before looking back up at the others'.

I'm sorry, Noah, this guys from the Taisho Era and also uses birds to send letters. He's not gonna know anything about fancy robot gear. ]

Type? Like a typewriter? What's a Nasod?

...I don't usually go on amusement park rides with strangers whose name I don't know.

[ Her words come off as dry and brutally honest. Even if she's a shut-in by nature, she still knows how to handle human interaction.

To an extent. ]

What the-

[ Is that a fish tank?! Is that a cute girl moving said tank? Yes to both! ]

Where'd that come from?! Do you need help with it?

Ahhh, sorry, I know it's hard to follow. You know about spirits, right? Ghosts and faeries and things like that? Basically, my friend is a spirit. He usually takes the form of my sword, but I don't have that right now.

[How the fuck does Noah lose an entire person? He literally just had Clamor with him. At that statement, he frowns and chews on his lower lip for a moment, brow knit, before the cheer comes back full-force.]

Anyway, we have a pact. We can fuse together and become one if we want to — it's pretty cool! I can feel Clamor's presence through the spirit pact, but I can sense that he's not anywhere in this park. It... uh... feels like he's lost somewhere outside of it.

[Anxiety™.]

I didn't sneak up on you. I walked up to you from the front.

[Bruh.]

Type, like... here. [Noah holds his wrist out again, this time letting the embedded device face skywards, and then brings up the network and shows the keyboard. He's not intimately familiar with typing, really, but he's spent enough time around Some Fucking Nerd back home that he kind of gets the gist of it. Whatever he presses, though, isn't sent. Thank god.] It's like writing but electronic! My friend back home would lose his mind over this.

[Add when Noah gets back like: What do you mean you had a whole computer embedded in your wrist hello]

Nasods are these neat, fancy robots! I don't know much about them, 'cause my mentor was more into magitech which is a different school entirely, but one of the girls I know is a Nasod. She's pretty cool. [Eve has no emotions but that's okay she's still cool.]

It's Noah! Noah Ebalon.

[A beat, and he follows that up with,] Now we're not strangers entirely, so we can go have fun!

[Surely this is a good idea.]

Edited 2022-08-15 22:15 (UTC)

[ Mizuki has an elder god in his head, is that similar? Not that he knows it’s there, but still. He can be #relatable. Maybe. ]

I’m sorry you lost your partner. [ Having your partner as your sword sounds like that one dating game where you dated your weapons— ] I’m sure he’s okay wherever he is, though. Maybe um… I can help you find him later?

Edited 2022-08-14 20:31 (UTC)

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Page 12 of 17

TDM 01

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A!

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Buttercups

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