amuze | 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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

M-My friends!

[She did wonder if they were so here and she just hadn't run into them. Rin had a tendency of making a big splash wherever he went, especially if it was somewhere creepy like this... And Yukio would know what to do!

He's probably already have a plan on how to get out!]

But... Maybe.

[Shiemi frowned a bit, looking back towards the staff and continuing to you with her sleeve. They gave her the creeps.]

They feel more like puppets... But I guess they could be possessed...

I think the clothes are... empty.

( she didn't see anything in the eye holes- just a pitch-black void.

relatable, honestly. )

Still. It's a little reassuring to know not everyone is entirely out of their depths here!

( which means she's the perfect volunteer for this next idea: )

The ferris wheel's been bothering me for a while now. Would you care to check it out with me?

S-Sure!

[This is how you make friends, right?]

It's been bothering me too, so...

[She walks closer to Mafuyu and looks out towards the Ferris Wheel. It really did just tower everything.]

I'd be happy to!

( towering over everything, but unmoving... how ominous, truly. mafuyu gives the other girl a glance, and then sets off with little warning. unfortunately, she's just like this.

but with how empty the park is, it's at least an easier walk than in most cases. the distance is nothing, though mafuyu does eye the stage when they pass by it. )

I wonder if this was once a real park, and not... whatever it is now.

[She followed after Mafuyu, looking around the area nervously. She toyed with the ends of her sleeves in hopes that it would give her something to do instead of just overthinking things.]

Where... Is this, anyway... Obviously a park, but...

[It's not somewhere she's ever been to before or even heard of. It just felt off. Not that waking up here with no memory of how she got here was normal.]

I'm not sure. I've never seen anything about a park like this before...

( not that she actually looked into them often. or ever. she actually isn't too fond of them! )

... The mist is impassable, so we've only got what we can access here to work with. But if we were brought here, there must be a way out.

Y-Yeah! That’s true!

[She had to stop being so gloom and doom about the situation. Sure, she was scared and didn’t know anyone here, but at least she’s met some really nice people and is making friends! So she wasn’t completely alone.]

I’m sure we can find out way out of here!

( mafuyu smiles softly and nods before closing the distance between them and the ferris wheel. it's still, not even swaying slightly in the breeze, and when she approaches the cabin it doesn't open at all. ... but... )

... Is that... a bed inside?

[She presses closer to Mafuyu, pushing up on her tip toes so she can look inside better.]

It... It is! A-And a... desk? Are these... rooms?

Something like it. But... why?

( after a moment, mafuyu tries to pry the door open- the handle doesn't budge. there's actual windows as well. upsetting.

it feels like a ring of bird cages, almost.

a rather dark expression flashes across her face for a moment- )

... So we're intended to stay.

[That… wasn’t something she was overly thrilled to hear. She stepped up to reach for the bars, trying her best to look into the cart.]

I…

[The last thing she wanted to do was stay here, but she doubted that Mafuyu wanted to hear her whine and complain about it. There was no point in doing that, either. It wasn’t going to change their situation.]

Temporarily… A-At least we won’t have to sleep on the ground!

[She tries to laugh, mostly because if she didn’t she’d probably start crying and she didn’t want to seem like a cry baby in front of her new friend.]

( it's a very small blessing, minuscule in the grand scheme of things... and yet, it's all they can get.

mafuyu glances at the other girl beside her, sees how her lip quivers for a moment. hears that strained laugh. and when she speaks, it's softly. )

... It's okay to cry. I think this is a sort of situation that warrants a few tears. I won't tell anyone.

[Shiemi stared at the other girl for a moment, a smile crossing her face though it didn't stop the tears from prickling at the edges of her vision. A part of her expected Mafuyu to roll her eyes, or reprimand her for being a crybaby, but... it was nice to be able to cry.

Even if it wouldn't solve anything, sometimes crying was important.]

T-Thanks...

[She took a deep breath, letting some of the tears fall before she was scrubbing at her cheek.]

I-I do wonder... how we're all suppose to get inside...

( mafuyu isn't entirely sure what to do in this scenario, despite having encouraged it- so there she stands pointedly looking at the cabin instead before trying to pry the door open... uselessly, at that. )

I don't know. Maybe... whoever brought us here will let us in?

[Taking a few steps back, Shiemi tilts her head back in an attempt to see the top of the Ferris wheel. It was... higher than she had been anticipating, even though one could see this thing from just about anywhere in this place.]

Maybe. [She rubs her cheeks again. Now she just feels tired.] The thought of a bed is nice though. A-And a place to put the fish.

... I don't even know how I'm going to get a proper fish tank over here.

( it boggles the mind, truly. but that's another thing- )

... Isn't it strange that we're being given entire fish tanks?

Yes!

[Shiemi turned to look at Mafuyu again, eyes wide.]

T-They usually give little goldfish in baggies at carnivals and places like this, b-but not a whole... f-fish tank! That's... excessive, I think.

The baggies are unsafe for the fish. ... Whoever's behind this must take aquatic animal care very seriously.

( i mean, she's right but is that really the conclusion to draw- )

TDM 01

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