ercookies | TDM 008: A WALK IN THE THEME PARK

Entry tags:

!tdm

TDM 008: A WALK IN THE THEME PARK

00. Arrival

This time, you come out of the water, the Nameless Island's own inherent energy drawing people in. It's like being suspended between realities and abruptly pushed from behind through a rift in dimensions. It may make you sick, or that might be the motion of the ocean, lifting you to the surface and carrying you to shore.

Waterlogged and covered in sand, new arrivals will be greeted by robots who welcome them with towels and bracelet devices. The A5 card is already loaded up. Feel free to explore the Island, though there isn’t much to see. Most of the buildings are abandoned and in dire need of repair, and beyond the city lingers a thick fog that obscures much of the wilderness from view. Wander too far into this fog, and you will find yourself mysteriously looping back to where you began, your memories of what you were doing and how you got there erased.

With that in mind, it may be wise to stake your claim on a rundown apartment, a tent on the beach, or a bed in the “comfortable” new barracks. Your inventory will be found a day later, wrapped up haphazardly and delivered to each person's makeshift home.

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

I. SIX FLAGELLANTS

Welcome, one and all, to a thrilling new location! Robots have worked tirelessly to build, from the ground up, what can only be recognizable as an amusement park. You are just in time for the grand opening of Six Flagellants: Great Advagtures!

The Ferris Wheel routinely stops when lovebirds reach the top, waiting for a kiss - or something more daring! - before it starts up again.

Robots warn of the scary Haunted House: a dark building with wall-to-wall creeps, and hot and cold running chills. Flickering ghosts roam the halls, and you may find an eerily realistic Headless Horseman -- who bids you, "Come closer. Give me head," while pointing to yours. Hey, get your mind out of the... Nevermind.

The Carousel is a two-story affair. Nude figures with familiar faces lounge about, waiting to be ridden, and closer inspection proves that they have the faces of your fellow islanders. Hop on your favorite person and take them for a spin!

There are even Bumper Cars, which have the interesting effect of making one feel more aroused with every bump and impact. (It's randomized each time, so don't try to guess based on car color!)

What should be a similar ride, the Teacups, has the robots' madness written all over it instead. They have misunderstood the gentle spin-cycles for dangerous, dizzying loop-the-loops across a wide track. Some would swear that the ride has a supernatural invocation for fear. Others are simply man enough to admit they're afraid.

Lastly, the Tunnel of Love is not what you expect. Although flavored lube and guides to cunnilingus are on each fleshy-log-shaped boat, the motion of the ocean is quite soothing, and there's a pleasant floral scent in the air that causes a light intoxication.

Don't forget to try the food! Similar to the Street Kiosks, there's a ton of faire food: cotton candy, corn dogs, and the like.

Mascot outfits are available and those who wear them will be rewarded generously with credits.

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

II. LIKE A FIREWORK

The next morning, you receive a message on your device: You are cordially invited to a celebration of skinship at the House of Worship. Please do not dress for the occasion.

If asked about it, the robots will confirm that is not a specific holiday, but a simple joyous event. If you pry, they may even say that the Old Ones often made merry and partook in the pleasures of the flesh - and so too should you.

For an hour, there will be food and drink - alcoholic and aphrodisiac. Then, at the designated time, once the sun has gone down, clothes will be shed and a revelry begun.

As fireworks explode overhead, the different colors send the naked senses reeling:

Red: You are amorous towards the people around you. Yours is a joyous celebration. The Auspicious Acts you offer are happy and lighthearted, full of kisses and sweet nothings.
Orange: You feel bold and adventurous, eager to try something - or someone - new. Your preferred Acts may be dangerous or exciting, perhaps with more than one person.
Yellow: You feel reverence when you watch the fireworks, reverence when you look at your fellow people. You feel blessed to be part of the celebration at the House of Worship, and you make the Acts you complete into Acts of worship. You are all about the spirit of generosity.
Green: You are not here to celebrate. Jealousy is your lot. Uncover a new side of yourself, full of bitterness and resentment, and try an Act that treads the fine line between light and dark.
Indigo: You are proud to celebrate! Those around you are lucky to bask in your presence. You have a newly-minted domineering attitude that makes itself known, and your Acts are likely to be something where you'll come out on top.
Violet: These fireworks make you feel unusual - the opposite of yourself. You are different in all that you want to do, preferring Auspicious Acts that you may not have thought twice about before.

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

III. MISTLETOE

mistletoe

sensory deprivation

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

N A V I G A T I O N

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Normally Caleb has absolutely no reason to be hanging around the beach. But it was about this time last month that he'd washed up here himself, and according to pretty much everyone, it's a pretty steady cycle. That first day on his own here had been absolute hell, so he figures that it is the least he can do to make sure none of his friends are turning up here confused and without any of their belongings without at least some guidance.

He's not even to the beach before he hears an all-too-familiar shout followed by--impact.

No surprises there. Relief and fondness mingle in equal measure with exasperation as Caleb breaks into a sprint, breaking through the treeline a moment later to stand atop one of the tall dunes at the edge of the beach. Sure enough, on the sand below taking a fighting stance is one of his closest friends.

"Beauregard!" he calls, already pulling components from the pouch at his side and beginning to cast. A moment later Beau will feel a familiar increase in speed as Haste takes effect. "It isn't going to hurt you!"

Well, it might now.

"Bwah?"

She hears Caleb's words but she also feels Caleb's magic in her bones, in her muscles, spurring her to move faster. The instinct here is to fight, land double the blows she usually would. But she also trusts Caleb, implicitly in matters like this, if not in all, and she actually, truly, believe it or not, knows better than to pick a fight she does not have to fight.

It's just that she believes fighting is the first way to take care of a problem, that's all.

So she uses his Haste to run, sprinting over the wind to his side. The robot pursues, but at a steadier, slower pace, perhaps more tired and annoyed than anything.

"But it's a-- a thing!" Beau protests, placing herself between the wizard and the approaching metal mass. "Things like to hurt us."

That's what we call Growth.

By the time Beau appears beside him, so fast now with doubled speed that it's almost disorienting to watch, Caleb is already taking several steps back, putting distance between himself and the robot--until Beau steps in front of him, automatic. Ugh, he's missed her.

"Correct. So let's not encourage this one."

The robots definitely remind him way too much of the happy fun ball golems, for sure, and they're unnerving even after living around them for a month, but he's never seen one of them act violently unprovoked.

"This way--I'll explain everything." He jerks his head in the direction he'd come, back along the path through the trees.

Growth. It's not just for plants. - Caduceus, probably.

Beau really, really hates being told not to encourage something, especially when that something is a fight or some other bad decision. She makes a grumbling noise of acquiescence under her breath, only to flinch and stick out a hand when the robot tosses something at her.

There's a bracelet in her hand now. Or something that looks like a bracelet. Maybe. Beau doesn't trust the look of it, but she holds onto it all the same.

Giving the robot one last look -- point to her eyes, point to it, point to her eyes -- she turns and moves to follow alongside Caleb.

"So, uh, short version first?"

Ah, the bracelet. Of course. Caleb takes one more quick glance between the robot and Beau, ensuring that neither of them are about to make any sudden movements, before he turns to start walking at a clipped pace. One Beau will have no trouble keeping pace with, especially Hasted. His nervous energy is palpable.

So, launching right into it, most relevant information first. "We've found ourselves in some sort of pocket dimension or demi-plane. It has been a month for me, and I have not discovered a way out yet. The being in charge here is called the Augur, and--"

Gods, they're really about to have this conversation, aren't they? He glances sideways at her face, then away again just as quickly. Awkward. Time to be as vague as possible.

"The...circumstances of our imprisonment are ridiculous, but I promise you I am not joking." Like Caleb could joke about this shit.

Pocket dimension or demi-plane. Right. Check. It's happened before, hasn't it? The Happy Fun Time Ball isn't just pretty to look at. But Beau at least remembers entering that dimension, rather than here where she's just... well, here.

The time dilation though. That makes her hold out an arm, not really stopping Caleb but knocking into him to make him keep pace with her and pay attention.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait. A month? A month here? How did you end up here and I didn't? Where's everyone else?"

And before he can fully answer that, she continues, "How do we defeat this Augur then?" Because that's the way to get home, right?

Oof, that's a solid arm. Taking the hint, Caleb slows down a little and concentrates on Beau, meets her eyes directly. Takes a deep breath. It's good that she's here. They can get to the bottom of this faster together than apart.

Tackling one of her questions at a time, though, and thankfully avoided the inevitable this is sex island part of the explanation for now.

"I don't think it is that simple. The Augur provides the means to live here, including food and shelter. We also may not be able to return to our own plane without its help." That's what he's gleaned so far, at least. But if it turns out all that's required is fucking it up, he'll be first in line beside her. "I have been trying to learn more, but there are not many resources."

The library is...mostly porn. Like, almost entirely smut.

"I have no memory of how I arrived." He shrugs. "I have assumed that the time discrepancy must be similar to the Happy Fun Ball. Fjord is here also, and--"

And this is where things get really tricky. Caleb's voice lowers a little, though it is only the two of them present. His gaze gets sharper as he readies himself for her reaction.

"And Mollymauk. Alive. Just as we remember him from before." As in not Lucien, which he's assuming (incorrectly) would mean something to her.

Beau listens. That's another one of her growth markers right there. She focuses on Caleb and lets him finish his sentences without interrupting him. Because Caleb usually comes to good points. Or fully fleshes out points that Beau feels the need to pick apart and argue with. Either way, she wants to hear him out before she goes flying off the handle.

The thing is though, much as her expression shifts from flat disbelief to disappointment and then to surprise, there's nothing but the last point that gets a response out of her.

She stares at him, silent, the breath knocked out of her by two syllables.

"Molly's here?"

This is why he and Beau work well together. They may butt heads at times, but they also communicate. Their system of listening and challenging by turns works more often than not.

Her reaction is about what he expected, because it was basically his reaction, too.

"Ja. I could not believe it until I saw him for myself." He definitely owes her a bit more background, here. "The Augur is incredibly powerful. It seems to be capable of transcending the linear flow of time when it entraps us here." Which, apart from being really interesting, is pretty ominous. "Mollymauk has no recollection of his death or the events leading up to it."

Can't be believed until seen? Yeah, sounds about right. Beau's hopeful, but it's a fragile hope that she holds deep in her chest. She's not keen on anyone seeing it, including Caleb, so she quickly hides her stunned and a little bit shattered expression with a deep frown of thoughtfulness.

"So, he's from before... then," she surmises. "Does he know us? Does Fjord?"

She pauses as something comes to her, something that she probably should have asked about before now. But it's been a very short conversation, to be fair, with a lot of meat on its bones.

"What do you remember?"

Caleb nods. "He knows us. From what I understand, he remembers most of the time he spent with us."

It hadn't even really occurred to him until she asks that Beau might be from another point herself. So far, Molly has been the only discrepancy. He matches her frown with one of his own.

"Both Fjord and I have the same memories. Eiselcross, after escaping from the giant ice worm. We had decided to head for the A2 excavation site to head off the Tomb Takers."

Beau nods her head in a yup, yup, keep going fashion, only to very quickly veer away into a no, nope, nein motion.

"Yeah, yup, no, uh uh, not even a little bit. Try Obann and just getting Yasha back."

Now it's an even deeper frown. "...oh. Scheisse."

Delving into his memory, putting himself back there, then thinking about everything that's occurred since--gods, he feels like he needs to take a seat.

"There has been...a lot. Since then."

"Yeah, you don't say."

It's not a question, just a dry comment to fill the moment. Beau has no idea how she feels about this exactly, but anger and loss and fear battle within her chest for dominance.

"Just, uh, tell me no one else died, yeah?"

Dutifully, Caleb tells her. "No one else has died." Except that's not technically true, is it? Quickly, he amends, "Not for longer than a minute, at least. Everyone is currently alive."

That could change easily, but Beau knows that very well already.

And because he remembers very well how concerning it had been at the time, he adds, "Yasha is doing much better these days."

Beau almost calls bullshit on him, because it seems too good to be true. But then he amends his statement and she nods, relieved. That sounds much more likely.

Her expression goes guarded for a split second, not sure if she's supposed to read something more into his words than what he's saying. If he's hinting at something.

"Good. I bet, without that asshole with a stranglehold around her brain."

Him, hinting? Beauregard, would he ever?

Caleb nods silently in agreement for a moment, a little distant. "Difficult to move on from something like that," he murmurs. "But she is learning."

That distance is gone quickly though as he focuses intently on Beau. There's a wry curve to his lips, more a grimace than a smile. "To be honest, I don't know where to begin, with this place or with all that has happened. What feels most pressing for you, Beauregard?"

Beau doesn't know how difficult it was, could be. She's only just seen the freedom, not the fall out. But in her mind, she can't imagine it being difficult. She herself would just run mentally in the other direction and not dwell on it, as much as possible. But that's her youthful insistence on her own invincibility talking.

All the same, she frowns at Caleb at first, wondering if he's now insinuating that Yasha isn't the strongest of them, then lets it drop.

"This place," she answers. "I can figure out the rest later, or go back to where-- when I'm supposed to and just live like that. How do we leave?"

He has to sigh. That's the big question, isn't it? "If I had figured that out, I would not be here."

Caleb starts to walk again as he talks. The wooded path will open soon onto a larger road, and from there they'll turn toward the house he, Fjord, and Mollymauk have been living in, recently renovated by his request.

"The Augur brought us here, and it seems like it can also return us. But the circumstances for that are unclear," he explains, clearly more than a little frustrated by not having the answers himself after a month. "It has objectives for us, but there is no evidence that completing them will get you sent back."

"You might have just been waiting for me," Beau counters, with a straight face but obviously playing. "You know, as the cornerstone to your genius plan of escape."

She follows along, keeping an ear and an eye out, not trusting their surroundings a bit even if Caleb says he's been here for a while. But she listens as she scans the forest off the path.

"Objectives? So, like, quests? Are they terrible, like bring me sacrifices or something reasonable like bring me oranges?"

Caleb smiles faintly. Honestly, maybe she is the key to an escape plan. He wouldn't discount it. "Somewhere in between oranges and sacrifices, usually," he says, a little too mild to mean anything good.

Would it be worse to try talking to her about this, or to leave her to figure it out herself? He knows which he would prefer, even if it is awkward, but Beauregard...well, probably best to meet in the middle.

"Just, ah, fiddle around with that thing a bit. It will show you." He gestures with an open hand toward the bracelet the robot had tossed to her. "To warn you, it is definitely not what you are expecting. A lot more...personal."

Beau frowns at his initial response. Woof, that can't be anything good. At least it's not blood, but... so much could be covered by that range. And Caleb would not be cagey like that unless it were something different.

Still frowning, this time with curiosity, Beau does begin to fiddle with the bracelet. There are a lot of buttons, but everything seems to make rough sense to her. Until it mentions an A5 Card.

She taps and reads. "Blindfolds, piercing, orgasm--"

Her eyes go wide at Caleb. "What the shit is this?"

Very flatly: "This is your to-do list on sex island. Courtesy of our captor."

His grimace and the stiff set of his shoulders probably conveys just how uncomfortable he still is with that, despite the matter-of-fact way he's talking.

"Supposedly this is how the energy I mentioned is generated. At the very least, the Augur directly rewards those who complete items from their personal cards."

Beau just stares at him, refusing to look away until he amends his statement and tells her what's really going on. Because this cannot be the honest to gods truth.

She's heard of making monkeys dance but never making them fuck.

There's a few moments of silence and then: "....Rewards how?"

Look, Beau, he hates it too, but he's definitely pretty serious, even as he shrugs with faux-nonchalance. "Whatever you need, it seems. Food, items from home, better living conditions, the return of magical abilities."

It's the last one, of course, that Caleb is most clearly hung up on. "I arrived here missing many of my spell components. All of the rarer ones. I cannot even be certain what spells I will be able to perform when or if I get them back." With an edge of bitterness, he adds, "Though I should be grateful, as Fjord has had everything taken from him."

(no subject)

flurry_of_beaus - 2021-01-05 19:44 (UTC) - Expand

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

TDM 008: A WALK IN THE THEME PARK

00. Arrival

I. SIX FLAGELLANTS

II. LIKE A FIREWORK

III. MISTLETOE

when i tell you i screamed--

i'm here to please ;)

bless u

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

(no subject)