ercookies | TDM 008: A WALK IN THE THEME PARK

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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.

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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.

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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.

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III. MISTLETOE

mistletoe

sensory deprivation

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N A V I G A T I O N

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The hug, this warm protective embrace. It's been so long, but it feels so right. This was Summer Rose. Her mom. She doesn't know what here is, but right now, all that matters is that she's with her mom again.

"Oh, gods... mom!" Ruby cried out, hugging the other woman tightly.

"I'm... I'm alright, but... but, you... how...?!" Ruby stammered out, unsure of what to say or how to say it.

For a moment, she's just completely wrapped up in holding her daughter. Though Summer doesn't have the thirteen-or-so years of loss and missing her dear one that Ruby (and the rest of the family, for that matter) does, she has been worried about her daughter basically since she arrived here and Qrow told her about everything.

"I... This is going to sound very, very strange, but this place isn't... exactly bound by Remnant's time." She pulls back just enough that she can look Ruby in the face.

"I'm from... about thirteen years earlier than you." That is to say, when she disappeared. Which explains "how?" quite nicely.

"You're from... the past?" Ruby said, surprised at that. "Then... I was only little when you..."

She rubbed her eyes dry. Despite her time in Prismatica, she still remembered the haunting words Salem told her back in Atlas.

"I'm not sure I want to leave you now..."

"Or you're from the future. Depends on how you look at it." A future she wasn't part of... and she really only had herself to blame.

Well, discounting Salem and her minions, of course, but she'd always known about them.

"I'm so sorry, Ruby. I... I never meant to leave you behind." Not that saying that changed anything, of course. "I've been longing to see you again every day... even if I didn't really want it to be here. Your father's going to panic, and Yang..."

Oh, she could just imagine Yang's reaction to her precious little sister being forced into the island's games.

"I... I know, mom, just... I missed you so much and...!"

Ruby tilted her head. It seemed that this world was something Summer didn't want her to be a part of. Did it really seem so odd? What was wrong with it?

"What's this place anyway?"

"I know, sweetheart, I know. I missed you too. More than anything."

Well, okay, her and Yang had been tied for a bit there, but Yang had shown up much earlier.

As for Ruby's question... "Well it doesn't really have a name, as far as I know. We just call it the island. And we're brought here to... help restore it, according to the one responsible. Which, as bizarre as this sounds, is a supercomputer that calls itself the Augur."

Right, just gonna stick with the parts of the explanation that hopefully won't freak her out too bad, for now at least.

“A... supercomputer?” Ruby said, tilting her head the other way. “That is... really odd. But, if have to help it, then it shouldn’t be too hard, right?”

I mean, what’s the worst that can happen?

"Well, that's where things get complicated. I wouldn't be against helping to restore this world... or any other, really. That sounds like a good way to spend my time and effort, actually."

And she rather expects Ruby'll probably feel the same way, even if she's mostly getting that from what others have told her about her own daughter.

"But they apparently can only harness one type of energy to do this. It's called Eros Energy, and we are supposed to generate it for them, by performing... certain acts."

And now she has to step away from Ruby, so she can show her what she means. She gestures at the scroll-like device they attached to Ruby's wrist when she arrived. "That device can show you what I mean... but I think we should wait a bit before you have a look at it. Get you more used to the place."

Delay, delay, delay. And maybe get Ruby inside and sitting down before she looks.

“Eros Energy?” Ruby asked. This was getting more and more complicated. She was directed to the device on her wrist before she was told to wait.

“Well... I guess I can wait a bit longer. Just... if it’s important, we should know sooner than later.”

She was still touchy over Ozpin and his hoop act

"I know, it's... all a little convoluted. The short explanation is they need us to go along with the acts they've outlined under the 'A5' app in that device."

Ruby shouldn't have any trouble figuring out how to get to that. It's honestly not all that different from using a scroll.

"It's just that the acts in question are..." And here, Summer comes across very different from Oz trying to hide something. Rather than cagey and trying to seem in control, she flushes. And well she might, considering what's in that app and that she's talking to her daughter.

Granted, she was always going to give Ruby The Talk one day, but this is skipping quite a few steps!

"Ah, I may as well stop drawing it out. They're intimate, Ruby. ... Physically so."

Yep. That was as awkward to say as she'd anticipated. If not more so.

Ruby stopped in her tracks. “Intimate? Physically intimate?!”

Her cheeks turned red as she rushed back up to Summer, her silver eyes wide. “Wh-why do we have to be intimate?! I-isn’t holding hands a better idea?!”

She’s already dealt with one world that loved this sort of thing and now this place?!

“I mean I haven’t thought of having a boyfriend or a girlfriend, I’m just getting along with my friends and even that has problems!”

"And now you see why I didn't want to tell you."

Granted, letting Ruby carry on in ignorance wouldn't have been any better, but seriously. That is one hell of a bandage to tear off, and honestly trying to do it any slower would have just been worse.

"I know, Ruby, I know. If I could do anything to get in between this and you, make no mistake I'd do so instantly." Seriously. Not cool doing things like this to her girl, Nameless Island. And Augur.

"The only good news I have for you is that as far as I'm aware, there's no sort of time limit. We're rewarded for participating, but not penalized for avoiding doing so." So yeah, she can just... not. Forever. That's a solution, right?

Just don't let Ruby ask how she's been dealing with it.

"So... I can just avoid it, huh?" Ruby said, calming down enough to understand that little bit.

"Well... I guess that's better than nothing." she shrugged. "Maybe by that time something can be found out?"

Because boy it'll be hard to not deal with all of this!

"As long as you're careful... and the island doesn't decide to do something clever." And oh, did the island like getting clever when it came to getting the hapless inhabitants in bed together.

But with any luck, her little huntress would be able to outsmart it.

"As for finding another way around this... well, we can only hope." Though even Summer isn't all that optimistic about their chances, and that's saying something. She won't say that to Ruby, though.

"Well, with that out of the way-" For now at least, "Come on dear. I'll show you where your father and I are staying."

"Dad's here, too?" Ruby said, surprised at that. Oh, thank goodness for sudden subject changes. "Is Zwei here, too?"

On second thought...

"He is. As is your sister. And I know they'll be overjoyed to see you." If... worried. For the same reason as she is.

But that's a name she doesn't recognize. Summer blinks in confusion as she tries to puzzle out who Ruby could mean. "Zwei? Sorry dear, I... don't think I know who that is."

"Zwei's our puppy. He's a corgi. He's such a good boy!" Ruby said, chipperly melting at each word. She hadn't seen him since she left to go find Cinder all that time ago!

"A puppy? Hmm, I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Tai always wanted a dog. He must have picked him up after..."

There's a long pause, then a little shrug of her shoulders.

"After. Unfortunately it doesn't look like he came with."

Too bad, really. A pet would actually be kinda nice.

"Aw... oh, well." Ruby said, letting out a small sigh. At least she had the rest of her family. "Right now, I think... getting home is for the best. And see if my other friends are here."

"Oh, right! A few of them are. Your Uncle Qrow's here with us, living with one of James's men, Clover... Which I know might be a little awkward because your teammate Blake explained things to me."

Fortunately Clover wasn't James, but still, she felt it best for her little Rosebud to be forearmed.

"Your partner Weiss is also here, making your whole team. A friend of Blake's named Ilia, as well... Oz was here for a while, but I think he's left. The home he took over seemed vacant last I checked."

Which, frankly, was a good thing. Ozpin being around had just been horribly awkward.

Edited 2020-12-19 03:53 (UTC)

Ruby pondered over all of that. Qrow was here, that's good. She hadn't seen him since they split up in Atlas. And Clover... yeah, that's not good at all. Last she remembered, Ace Ops was still after their head.

Weiss and Blake were here, so that meant Team RWBY was together here. Good, very good! Ilia... that was one of Blake's friends from her home. Maybe she'll get to know her more.

The fact that she said Ozpin and not Oscar concerned her a bit. Did he come from another time like she did? But, since he's gone, that's kinda moot.

"That's a lot of people. I'm glad everyone's here, though. Anyone else?"

"This place does really seem to like Remnant. But, yes, there is one more person... it's just that from what she's told me, hearing she's here might be as much of a shock to you as seeing me was."

Which might give away who she's talking about already... but then again, it might not. Summer isn't quite sure how many friends Ruby has lost by this point.

And oh, that's a pretty awful thought to contemplate.

"Her name is Pyrrha."

"...Pyrrha...?"

Ruby stops in her tracks again, stunned at the name. She shouldn't be shocked, seeing as she's looking at Summer right now, and yet...

She saw her die. That's how her powers awoken...

"She's... she's here...?" she stammered. "Does... does she hate me?"

She's certain she might hold some sort of resentment for not saving her. Part of her was certain Jaune did...

Okay, the first part of that response she was more or less expecting. That's why she left Pyrrha for last, so Ruby would have a chance to absorb this.

But that question? Summer's eyes widen in shock, and no small amount of horror.

"Hate you? She... implied you were close friends when I spoke to her. Why do you think she would hate you, dearheart?"

Why would anyone?

"I... I couldn't save her..." Ruby sobbed out, covering her eyes. She kept up that facade of being happy and heroic for so long that hearing Pyrrha was alive just caused her to break down. "I was too slow to get to her before that... that woman killed her...!"

She dropped to her knees at that. It she didn't let that show that it hurt her for so long that now, she just had to let it go.

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waswrongtoo - 2020-12-19 05:09 (UTC) - Expand

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