After visiting the eSports Pro at her tent, my sister and I decided to see if the others were in need of any help on their ends with setting up the pool party. While our only assignment was to help with decorations and setting up the theme for the party, it couldn't hurt to assist the others in their tasks as well, to make the process go by quicker. We were pretty much on a roll when it came to getting to know the other participants of the program so far, and while we're at it, we might as well try our luck again with a few of the others, given the need for some kind levity in this dour situation we've been trapped in.
"How're you holding up, sis?" I asked her, as we made our way back to the waterpark to reconvene with the others, "Are you hungry? Do you need me to get you a snack from the cafeteria or something?"
"N-No thanks, K-Kichi…" she shook her head in response, "I'm f-fine for now….but t-thanks for asking.."
"Alright, but don't hesitate to ask, Cherry," I looked at her worriedly, "We haven't had much to eat since breakfast this morning, so I was just making sure is all."
"Oh K-Kichi...you're too s-sweet," she nervously smiled at me, chuckling at my brotherly concern, "T-There's no n-n-need to be so o-overprotective of me..a-all the t-time."
"I'm sorry sis...call it a force of habit reflex," I scratched my cheek embarrassedly, "I've just been on edge lately with everything that's been going on is all, sorry to pressure you like that."
"It's f-fine...that's s-so like you a-anyways," she rolled her eyes at me, somewhat amused by my attempts to lighten the mood.
We continued chatting back and forth, walking to the waterpark casually before something stopped in us in our tracks. Something appeared out from nowhere, almost like an apparition of sorts, as it jumped in our faces and nearly frightened us to death.
"Agh!" Cherry jumped in place, almost slipping on her feet from the scare, "W-What's t-that!?"
"I d-don't know," I looked at her, scared as well, when I realized who it was soon after, "Oh...it's just you."
"Oh my my my, that's no way to greet your doting, magnanimous host now is it, you two~" an audibly annoying high pitched voice snickered, "I just came to check up on you both is all, how are you two fairing at this lovely carnival fair, hehehe~"
My sister nervously hugged herself, creeped out by the colorful bear's sudden appearance as the tiny animatronic playfully giggled and spun around like a demented ballerina, taking joy in watching us freak out like a bunch of headless chickens. Just when I thought this day couldn't get any worse, in came the bear, the one thing I didn't want to see again ever since he jumped me in the boys bathroom this morning. I furrowed my gaze at him, anxiously gripping my fists tightly before calming myself down and assuaging my sister's nerves by patting her back tenderly.
"What do you want?" I coldly asked the bear, a bit of contempt hidden in my voice, "Don't you have anything better to do than jump scaring people for no reason and laughing at them while they're down?"
"Oh dear look at you, since when did you become so sassy, Kichi baby," the bear chirped, the party hat rested on its messily painted dome, "I kind of like this version of you better! If anything it just means that I'm going to have even more fun watching you break down into tears like the sissy you are, hehehehe," the bear snidely commented, guffawing madly, "However, that's not the reason why I showed up."
"W-What are y-you doing h-here then?" Cherry asked him, shaking anxiously as she blinked her eyes frantically, "W-What's the o-occasion?"
"Oh it's nothing special, I just wanted to see the look of pure despair on you lazy ingrates faces after I presented my splendid motive video!" the bear cackled again like an evil witch, "Did the video trigger you two? Set off a nerve? Did it excite your primal instinct of survival? Come on, give me all the juicy, sizzling details!"
Watching the bear revel in our misery like some tyrannical monarch, only made me more nauseous than I was before. The raw spiteful words that spewed out of the risible bear's mouth made my skin crawl and my hairs stand on pointed ends. A part of me wanted to punt the bear into the next universe and watch him fly to the heavens, but another part of me restrained the urge to act upon that ephemeral desire. I knew aggravating the clearly volatile and potentially hostile bear would only lead to more headache and drama, so I held my ground and faced him head on with just my words to combat his wry threats.
"Are you serious right now," I scowled at the bear, keeping my rational side in check, "I don't see what you hope to gain by inciting us to doubt each other like this, especially to a bunch of random teenagers who have no connection to each other. What's your game, Monojoker?"
"I have absolutely no idea what you mean by that, Kichi dearie~" the bear smugly smiled, feigning ignorance but almost confident with his words, "I think you might be overthinking it a bit too much there, don't wanna have your noggin burst open like a stick of dynamite now, do we?"
"K-Kichi…" Cherry looked at me, sweating at my clearly agitated disposition, "Don't d-do anything y-you will regret l-later…"
"You should listen to your wimpy little sister," the bear snidely remarked, covering his mouth sinisterly, "I wouldn't try anything funny if I were you, unless you plan to murder someone that is, then I say go all out! Create a spectacular bloodbath for all I care, just know to make it intense and interesting for me!"
"I get it!" I snapped fiercely, fed up with his constant taunts, "Is that all you have to say, we have things to prepare, if you hadn't already noticed, so make it quick please."
"Oh dearie me, that's right! Thank you for reminding me you two," Monojoker smiled from ear to ear elfishly, "Please check your Monopads for a swell little surprise, I'd forgotten to mention it earlier, but better late than never in my books!"
Unconvinced of what the bear was babbling about, I heard a small pinging noise coming from my pocket. I pulled out the device, the Monopad, from inside and opened it up to the home screen, where I saw a small bell icon in the top right corner of the screen with a little red circle with the number one in the center of the blurb. I assumed it was some kind of notification or text, so I clicked on it, my sister watched what was on screen with me, as I noticed a little tab marked 'Rules' inside a little text box.
"What does this mean?" I asked curiously, confused by what it meant, "You're giving us a schedule to actually follow while we're here? What's the point and why even bother?"
"Not exactly, my lucky little boyo, these rules are vital for your daily carnival life here at the amusement park!" the bear twirled around some more, pointing to my Monopad in question, "Those rules are a mandatory guideline on how to act while here at my lovely little carnival, so I'd peruse the contents before doing anything stupid if I were you."
With not much choice in the matter, I opened up the 'Rules' tab and it took me to a different window. There was a bright multi colored backdrop of rainbow splats against a hideous shade of what can be described as a greenish puce color with something typed on it. There were words written on a small black backdrop with white lettering, with a big header reading 'Rules' in all caps and in a weirdly dripping typed font.
Ignoring the stylistic choices for a moment, I read through the specific rules the bear suggested everyone follow while we trapped here. They read as followed, almost like a set of instructions from a from a tool manual or something.
Rule 1: Carnival rejects, you guys, are allowed to roam and explore the carnival to your heart's desire. However, trying to leave through the main gate or any other secret escape route is expressly forbidden and will result in immediate punishment.
Rule 2: Night time runs from 8 PM to 8 AM each day. Sleeping anywhere other than the assigned tent area will result in immediate disciplinary action. The only exception to this rule, is if you are in someone else's tent, then go right ahead and doze away. Always remember to keep your legs crossed and tuck yourself in before that.
Rule 3: Violence of any kind towards me, Monojoker, will be dealt with right there and then on the spot severely, you only get one warning in the form of these rules. To make this rule fair I, Monojoker, vow to not harm or directly interfere with the participants in any way shape or form, especially in murder cases.
Rule 4: A participant who kills another participant whilst here is eligible for "rebirth", but will only be granted that status if they can outsmart the others in an upcoming class trial.
Rule 5: The person who killed another participant is called a 'blackened' and the innocent students are called the 'spotless'. Pretty simple terms, even an idiot would grasp that concept.
Rule 6: If the blackened is able to fool everyone in the class trial, then they alone will be allowed to achieve rebirth status and the remaining spotless students will all face punishment for their incorrect votes.
Rule 7: If the spotless students correctly identify the blackened, then only the blackened will receive punishment and the rest of the students continue living their communal lives at this forgotten carnival.
Rule 8: Once a murder occurs, a short investigation period will occur to which you all have a short allotted amount of time to gather evidence and clues before heading off to the class trial. All living carnival rejects will attend the aforementioned class trial and participation is compulsory, no questions asked!
Rule 9: Participants are allowed to kill a maximum of up to three rejects. Anything more than that, will result in immediate termination, because no one likes a greedy serial killer.
Rule 10: A body discovery announcement will play when three or more rejects discover a corpse for the very first time.
Rule 11: Further rules will be added to the Monopad if needed over the course of the passing carnival days.
"So these are your rules," I looked up from the device to the bear, who seemed to have passed out from us taking too long to read them individually, "What do you mean by punishment, exactly?"
"Well, hehehehe, let's call it a little trade secret for now, Kichi," the bear whispered schemingly, "I wouldn't want any of you worrying about that minute little detail. In time you'll figure that out sooner or later."
"W-What's a c-class trial? W-What do y-you mean b-by rebirth?" Cherry asked the bear, noting the rules pertaining to killing in particular, "Can y-you explain them, p-please?"
"Like I told your stupid brother, I want you all to be surprised for later!" Monojoker sniggered, putting his paw underneath his chin to scratch it, "As your esteemed host, I think it's only fitting if I leave you guys with some element of suspense. I mean, where's the fun in revealing all my secrets right off the bat?"
"You're not really helping your case either," I rolled my eyes at the bear, getting slightly ticked off, "Will that be all? We have some things to take care of for the upcoming party and we've lost enough time as is."
"Yes yes yes, don't get your lucky briefs in a wad, leprechaun boy," the bear mischievously retorted, "Anyways, I will see you two later, enjoy setting up your futile party, I can't wait to see it crash and burn, hahahahaha!"
With malicious intent spilling out of the bear's paint soaked mouth, he vanished from sight, not a trace left behind. It still piqued me how he was able to disappear so easily without having some kind of hidden passage located somewhere. The more I tried to wrap my brain around the ordeal, the more I was left confused and irritated, which is exactly what he wanted. The unapologetic nonchalance and the snickering started to get on my nerves, as I felt my head throb and I bit my gums, angrily trembling as I wanted to yell at the top of my lungs to express how furious I was at this terrible situation.
"K-K-Kichi….y-you're scaring me…" Cherry anxiously mumbled, her skin turning pale white.
"H-Huh...oh right, sorry Cherry…" I breathed in slowly, "Let's just go to the waterpark, I need to take my mind off of this."
My sister didn't say much in response, only opting for a simple apprehensive nod as we both continued our path to the waterpark. I'd almost forgotten why we were going there in the first place, after meeting Monojoker again and listening to him drone on. I couldn't help but feel so paranoid about the bear's words and what he was trying to do. The more he talked about us killing each other and even going so far as to transcribe rules for us to follow, it was honestly scary at how surreal it all felt. The more and more I lingered on the premise that this was all fake and not some prank gone wrong, made thinking straight an impossible task with all the questions running around in my head.
"W-We're here…." Cherry pointed to the waterpark, with a few of the other residents there as also. It seemed they were taking their roles seriously, well some of them for the most part.
"Wow...the others really are getting into this," I stared in awe, impressed but glad that everyone was getting along with each other decently, "It's almost weird, they're taking this ordeal too lightly for my liking."
"Y-You've noticed it t-too…" she trembled, walking alongside me, "G-Guess I'm n-not going c-crazy then.."
As my sister and I approached the water park, we took note of the people there, observing them casually as they interacted with one another in doing their specific duties.
Genki surprisingly was there giving out tasks, watching everyone and making sure they were doing their assigned task, as he instructed Jun and Aki to hang up a white banner that the digital artist made near the water park's entrance. The banner was decorated beautifully, with a seamless painting of blue and white ocean waves crashing against black rocks with orange starfishes resting on said rocks. There were yellow and red fishes swimming in the painted waters and green seaweed elegantly brushed onto the banner with minute details framed in the design. It almost looked like a professionally made portrait that you'd see in any museum, but that was to be expected from an Ultimate like Jun. Aki was elated to be helping everyone out, as she wiped some sweat from her forehead after helping the digital artist set up the banner and took a few steps down from the ladder she used to get up to the poles.
Shannon helped neaten up the food tables, while Shion and Asahi carried a bunch of trays covered in aluminum foil over to each one. The tea brewer and songwriter had covered all the food with plastic moderately sized covers, while the runner rolled up blue and green napkins in a fish shaped napkin holder alongside a clear round container with plastic white forks, knives and spoons. I guess we didn't have to worry about the food getting cold in that case. I could almost smell the intoxicating aroma waft into my nose as I walked past, it was a delightful sensation to know we would have freshly made food for our party. All three of them seemed content with their work, but soon went back to the outdoor kitchen by the cafeteria, tirelessly running back and forth carrying lots of food trays as it seemed they had their work cut out for them.
I also spotted a few of the others on the maintenance committee doing their jobs as well. Chris and Shiho were testing out the water attractions, making sure they were in working order as the survivalist jumped on the knight's shoulders and climbed up to one of the kiddie castle's ledges and began hanging there like a monkey, while Chris begged her to come down before she hurt herself. She ended up landing on top of him, before flipping around and landing on her feet like a cat, while the tragic knight nervously looked at the small girl with a concerned and fearful expression.
Galiana and Hotaru were both arguing and fighting with each other over something that I couldn't make out from afar. The arsonist seemed impatient as ever as she tried lighting one of her firecrackers, but not before the prosecutor doused it out with some water from one of the nearby attractions. It seemed that only made the arsonist even more mad than she was already, as she stormed off disappointedly, the prosecutor proudly smirking to herself as she confiscated the rest of the fireworks and stored them somewhere out of our line of sight. While she may be a bit weird, at least she was responsible, which helped allay my fears, even a little bit.
Lastly, I noticed Norio standing farthest from the group, resting his back against the pole as he removed the hood over his head, revealing his silvery grey hair that highlighted his stern golden furrowed eyes, watching everyone like a hawk. My sister and I also spied Banri, cheerfully hopping over to the vigilante, watching him from a distance and waiting to pounce on him like a starving lion to an unaware gazelle. It seemed that before he could attack the black clad vigilante, Norio had stepped out of the way, which then lead to Banri slamming face first into one of the metal poles and falling backwards. It didn't seem to phase him that much though, as he clapped his long sleeved hands together and trailed quietly behind the clearly agitated vigilante, who didn't seem amused by the mystery talented boy's unusually ever present enthusiasm and energy. He looked like a babysitter tired of keeping an eye on one of the children who wouldn't stop bugging him, poor guy he's fought criminals before, yet he can't handle being around someone like Banri. It was almost funny in a sense, but I stopped laughing as to avoid him spotting me and giving me another death glare.
"Looks like everyone seems to have everything handled on their ends," I chuckled, sweating at how organized and lively everything was, "I guess we were worried over nothing, heh."
"It's v-very impressive…" Cherry remarked happily, twirling her hair strands, "It's n-nice to s-s-see everyone getting along d-despite what h-happened….w-we're almost like one b-big happy family of s-sorts…"
"Heh, I guess you're right sis," I smiled confidently, looking at the amount of progress made so far.
"Why do I feel like we're forgetting something?" I curiously wondered, scoping out the waterpark, "Is it just me or wasn't there someone else who was supposed to be helping out with the maintenance and cleaning committee?"
"I'm n-not sure…" Cherry leaned against a nearby metal pole, "I t-think s- Wah!"
Before she could finish her sentence, Cherry slipped off the slightly wet pole and tripped backwards and into a nearby trash can. She hit her back against the can's metal frame, causing it to tumble over as the lid slid off and landed somewhere closeby, with some bits and pieces of garbage sprawled onto the dusty carnival grounds.
"Cherry!" I yelped, rushing to her side as I knelt down to her side, "Are you alright?!"
"I t-think so...oww," she winced, rubbing her back softly, "I just s-slipped is a-a-all…I'm f-fine."
I helped her up to her feet, dusting off her back from the sandy ground as she fiddled with her sleeves and nervously looked back at the mess behind her. I then noticed that besides the fallen garbage on the floor, there was something else that also caught my attention. There was someone laying on the ground with some trash scattered on their body and a glum look plastered on their grime soaked face.
"Gabe? Is that you?" I asked, noticing him on the ground with a banana peel on his head and some destroyed decorations and glitter covering the back of his dark blue railwear, "What are you doing?"
"Aww man…" he sulked, getting up from his fallen state as the banana peel slid down the side of his cheek, "Just when I was getting comfortable….why does this always happen to me.."
The garbologist sighed tiredly, picking up the trash can that fell over, dusting off his clothes and removing the excess trash off of his overalls. He tried wiping the grime off of his person as it splashed onto the ground and made a rather audible splat noise. For someone who's a bit of a clean freak, he sure didn't mind the trash odor and grease on his body, almost as if he were used to it, which kind of made sense given his talent.
"Oh...it's y-you two," he turned to us, surprised but not shocked by our sudden presence, "Don't mind m-me, just….lazing around."
"I-Inside a t-t-trash can?" Cherry tilted her head in confusion, unsure of what he was saying, "W-What were y-you doing inside t-there?"
"I don't know..nothing much really," he shrugged his shoulders, sounding apathetic as he said that, "Just a little overwhelmed I suppose…"
"Really? By what exactly?" I asked him, curious also as to what he was talking about.
"Oh..um…" he hesitated to tell me, averting his gaze as he looked down at his feet, "It's nothing...you wouldn't understand…."
"Aren't you s-supposed t-to be h-helping with the c-cleaning?" my sister inquired, tugging at her cardigan sleeves.
"Yeah….I'm just feeling k-kind of meh right now..." he vaguely said, brushing out some trash grime from his messy light green hair, "I feel a b-bit uncomfortable at the moment...it's nothing really..."
I looked at the garbologist, ignoring the rest of the trash that fell off of his person as I started to feel bad for him. Call it a brotherly instinct, but he looked so gloomy and depressed that it just made me want to sit down with him and listen to him vent about his worries and troubles. While he was one of the more laidback and normal people here at the carnival, it felt strange to comment on his trash can loitering habit or probe him further on the topic, so I didn't bother with asking him again. I didn't really know how to approach talking to him, without making him feel wary, but if it worked with Ayano then it might work with him.
Should we hang out and talk with Gabriel?
[Yes, he looks like he needs a friend right now] / Nah, he smells kind of funky right now.
He doesn't seem to be much of a conversationalist, but that never stopped anyone before from making small talk. The garbologist finished rearranging the trash can, doing his best to pick up the rest of the trash from the ground, as he wiped some more sweat from his brow. He failed to notice the residue on his hand as it wiped along his face, but he didn't seem to care about it as he looked back at the two of us, almost perturbed, as if he thought we were spying on him or something like a bunch of creepy stalkers.
"Is there s-something on my face?" he asked, wiping his finger over his forehead to check for trash residue.
"No, nothing like that," I shook my head, "My sister and I wanted to know if you need any help with your party duties?"
"Y-Yeah...w-we're done on our side.." Cherry mumbled out, feeling sorry for him, "D-Do you any need help, G-Gabe?"
"You'd really go out of your way for someone like me…" he nervously rubbed his elbow up and down, "I mean, whatever floats your boat I suppose…Genki asked that I make sure the Roaring Ravine was cleaned up so…."
"Oh! You mean that tall water slide, right?" I asked, to which he nodded anxiously to, "We don't mind helping you out with that!"
"It l-looks kind of s-scary…" Cherry noticed how tall the structure was from afar, "But I-I'll do my b-b-best.."
"Are you two sure about this?" he wondered, still unsure if we were genuine about helping him, "I mean, you look like you have better things to do than hang out with someone like me…. someone lower than garbage."
He sure did have an inferiority complex, which made me feel even twice as bad for imposing our help onto him if anything. I couldn't really respond back to his statement without feeling terrible or wanting to reproach him for his depreciative comment, so I just nodded accordingly. He then walked ahead of us, my sister and I followed closely behind him as we tried our best to strike up an icebreaker, since I knew Gabe was not the type to be the conversation starter.
Ekichirou: So...do you have any hobbies or interests of any kind, Gabe?
Gabriel: Where did t-this come from? W-Why do you want to know?
Cherika: W-We're just c-c-curious is all….
Ekichirou: If we're to get to know each other for the remainder of our time here, I think starting off small like this really helps us get to know each better, despite the circumstances.
Gabriel: Oh...I see, w-well then. I'm not really t-that interesting...there's not really much that I like d-doing in my spare time, you'd find it boring either way…
Ekichirou: Hit me with it, we won't judge you.
Cherika: Y-Yeah…
Gabriel: You two are kind of odd...wanting to g-get to know more about someone as lame as me...but like I said, I don't have m-many hobbies. I do like reading books and cleaning things though...
Ekichirou: Heh, you don't say. From what we've seen so far, I'm surprised you haven't polished this place to a mirror's shine yet.
Gabriel: I guess...I don't really like it per se, I'd more so call it a second nature instinct if anything.
Cherika: W-What about your likes, w-what are y-your favorite things?
Gabriel: O-Oh uh...I uh, it's silly really. I like drinking cold beverages….ummm I also like trucks, like pickup trucks or monster trucks and I also like...air fresheners as well...
Ekichirou: Really, huh? I didn't know that, you really do like a lot of stuff related to your talent, don't you Gabe.
Gabriel: I s-suppose so….you probably think it's silly for me to have such strange interests in t-things like that...
Cherika: N-No way, t-those are p-pretty unique, they quite s-suit you actually, Gabe...
Gabriel: You really t-think so….you two are the f-first to say that. No one's ever said anything like that to me before….they've always s-said I was w-weird for liking t-that kind of stuff...
Ekichirou: Well we all have our own opinions on certain things, even our likes as well, yours just so happens to be different than most and there's nothing wrong with liking cleaning or anything related to it. If anything, I should be taking more pointers from you in that case, I wish I had your cleaning and work ethic.
Cherika: Mhm…Y-You've done a really g-great job s-so far...
Gabriel: Oh! I uh….I don't know w-what to say. It means a l-lot to me that you w-wanted to know more about me….I really appreciate it you two, thanks.
Gabriel Mudd's Profile Card: 1/5
Note: It seems the garbologist doesn't do cleaning just for his job alone, but he also considers it a personal hobby of his. He likes a lot of things related to cleaning products as well as his talent. I wonder why he wants to get rid of it so much, probably best to ask another time.
After that successful exchange, my sister, Gabe and I went over to the Roaring Ravine ride and arrived at the entrance. The ride itself was impressively tall, even upon further inspection and now that I was up close to it, I got a better idea of what it looked like.
The water slide had a wide brown wooden staircase with a red foam like surface on top of it to avoid moss absorption and to prevent people from slipping on the wood. It was entirely built with large, slightly rotted wooden beams, with a bunch of old white bullhorns attached to the wall columns, and a blue and green lattice patchwork roof above head at the top of the ride with a few plastic sea animals, such as a blue dolphin, purple octopus and red and yellow fishes, on top of the roof. There was a giant logo of the name 'Roaring Ravine' in bright, bold orange and blue colors with a black font and purple swirls around the logo. Lastly there was about three different slides in total, a red, green and yellow one, each one designed so that it looped and spiralled around the slide tower itself and there were a bunch of fake green palm trees scattered around the edges of the base's structure.
"I-It's s-so tall…I f-feel kinda f-faint," Cherry nervously remarked, daunted by the height of the ride, "Is it a-alright if I s-stay down h-here, K-Kichi...I'm having second thoughts…"
"Sure thing sis, you go on ahead and help the others," I nodded, observing her worried stance, "I don't want you to puke like last time."
"T-That was o-one time.." she sighed deeply, "S-Seriously, don't r-remind me again…"
"You coming, Ekichirou?" Gabe asked, already walking on ahead as I turned my attention to him.
"Be there in a sec," I told him, "You go on ahead."
With that, the garbologist climbed up the stairs as I looked back at my sister, who was still awestruck by the gigantic ride as a whole. Not only was she afraid of drowning, but heights were even more frightening to her and often made her queasy. I myself get a little anxious from time to time, but they've never really bothered me that much. Unlike other occasions, the only time she didn't feel upset was when we're on an airplane, strangely enough. However, noting the unsafe structure of the ride, I thought it best that I'd do this alone and let her take it easy for a while.
"I'll be right back sis," I smiled, waving to her as I climbed up the wooden staircase, keeping my hand on the wooden railing, "Be down before you know it!"
"B-Be careful…" she nervously shivered, tugging at the butterfly hairpin in her fringe, "Don't f-fall…."
As I climbed up the stairs of the water slide, I spotted my sister walking up the others, specifically Aki, Shion and surprisingly Ayano. While the former two were not unusual to see, given their tasks, the fact that the eSports Pro was helping decorate and organize the food for the party was a little weird given her recently depressed state of mind. I thought she might be putting on a brave front for the others as to not worry them, but oddly enough, she seemed relaxed around the others and seemed even more energetic once my sister showed up. The girls welcomed my sister's help with open arms, which was very heartwarming to see. It's rare for her to be so comfortable around a bunch of strangers like this, especially when it came to small groups of girls, normally she'd just keep to herself, but seeing her like this felt as if a weight had been lifted off of my shoulders almost, for once I felt like I didn't have to worry or hover over her like some helicopter sibling.
I had finally ascended the large structure, arriving to see Gabe already at work sanitizing the area with some rags and cleaning spray, as I took the time to scan the environment. It reminded me of one of those drop tower themed rides, the ones I used to see on TV ads or online when watching videos. That one ride where they would have you inside a chute and you'd drop down as you slid rapidly through thin tunnels with water gushing out everywhere and it'd almost feel like you were in a raging rapids situation. I'd never been on one before myself, but I imagine it must be some kind of adrenaline rush in that case.
There were about three different human sized water chutes; one red, one green and the other yellow, all lined up in the shape of a triangle with the red and green ones being near the end of the platform and the yellow one in the center of the two chutes. The floor was wooden and had a foam purple overlay on top, with some puddles of water with green moss forming along the side beams and old rotted wood present in some corners. There was an automatic timer of sorts on top of each chute, displaying a countdown of sorts with the number ten on the top, assuming that was the amount of time given before you'd be dropped down into the tubes. They even went as far as to add another slide to the ride, but it was a regular water slide with the words 'Chicken Chute' written in red letters above it, probably for those who had last minute thoughts on going through with the ride and opting for a safer way down.
Aside from the main gimmick of the ride, there were also a few other minute details that I noticed when perusing the ride itself. There was a square rules sign nailed to one of the moist wooden beams, with the faded blue letters smudged by either moss or rust from the metal platings etched into the sign. There was some kind of device, almost like an on and off switch in another corner of the ride, upon further inspection, there were three buttons that operated the rides itself. They were both protected by glass covers with nails screwed into each one but this time they were left open for maintenance and there were three signs; one above each button. The button on the left's sign said 'Water Control' which probably meant you could turn the water on and off if need be, the second one in the middle read 'Stop Timer' probably meant for those who wanted to stop the ride and get out before it was too late and the other one on the far right read 'Danger' in bright red letters.
While I was curious as to what that last button pertained to, I didn't pay it much mind as I noticed someone else walking up the stairs behind me. The clanky and rattling noises of metal coupled with a small set of footprints instantly told me who approached the top of the steps.
"Ooh lookie, it seems that mother nature has blessed us with gracious tidings from the lucky boy himself," a high pitched female voice greeted me, jumping on the platform and splashing against the moss ridden water.
"Greetings, sir Ekichirou," a male's voice, accompanied by clanking metal called out, "What brings you here to this steep waterfall attraction?"
"Oh! Hey there Chris, hi Shiho," I greeted the two as they arrived to the top, "Nothing special, just seeing if you three needed an extra set of hands is all, since I was already finished with my tasks for the party."
"While I appreciate your humble generosity, it's not needed, good sir," the tragic knight chuckled, putting his hand up to interject, "We've finished preparing for the party on our ends, all we need to do is check on this beastly ride before reporting to sir Genki of our findings and we have accomplished all of our duties!"
"It was so much fun, testing out all the rides and making a huge splash in each one!" Shiho chirped, giggling to herself playfully, "Mr. Tincanpanbrain over here has been assisting me in making sure these manmade rides are up to par. Although, I do not approve of using this kind of equipment myself, I'd much rather slide down an actual raging ravine like the ones in the jungle."
"I see...so why are you helping everyone out in that case?" I asked the survivalist, clearly confused by her lack of reasoning for hating manmade things.
"Silly little clover," she snickered, pushing back her pigtails behind her, "You shouldn't question the logic of the universe like that. Just because these slides produce water from manmade turbines, doesn't mean that nature hasn't gifted us humans with her body of water to celebrate our fun filled party! If anything, it's quite exciting! How amazing indeed!"
"T-That's an interesting way to look at it, I suppose…" I sweated, confused by her logic, but conceded anyway, "So what's the plan for this ride exactly?"
"Simple really," Chris jumped into the conversation, "All we have to do- lady Shiho?"
Before the knight could finish his sentence, Shiho boldly skipped ahead of him, knocking Gabe to the side as he spilled some cleaning fluid on the wooden railing nearby and jumped into one of the water slide chutes. I wanted to stop her, but she was too agile for me as she jumped around like a crazed monkey, pressed the button for the water control by the green tube and sat in place as the ride started to count down slowly.
I was amazed by how the ride was still functional, despite having been desolate and inoperable for quite a while. However, what made me even more surprised, was the fact that the water itself gushed rapidly out of the tubes above as an electronic voice of sorts, counted down the timer to the floor collapsing underneath the survivalist. The door to the chute was about to close, but not before Chris jumped in the way of it to try and stop her from falling into the slide prematurely.
"Lady Shiho please! Do not throw caution to the wind so lightly!" he yelled, reaching out his right hand to her as the glass door closed securely, crushing his fingers, "Agh! Owww!" he shouted loudly, wincing from the pain, "Curses be damned!".
"You're so funny, tincanpanbrain!" Shiho giggled, ignoring his concern as the timer above reached zero as the floor beneath her collapsed and water spilled below, "Bye Byeeeeeeeeeeee!"
The survivalist's voice faded into the water slides' chute as Chris' fingers were still wedged into the glass door. While the door itself had trouble closing, it kept on moving back and forth, only pressing against his fingers and cracking his knuckles even more and more, like some kind of medieval torture device.
"Oh crap!" I jumped to my feet, my adrenaline rushing in that brief moment, "Gabe, press the button, now!"
"O-Okay!" he flinched from the sudden shouting, jumping clumsily to his feet as he pressed the water control button to shut off the ride, "T-There…...wow that was s-scary…"
As the glass door opened up slowly, Chris recoiled backwards, his gloved hands slightly crushed and slightly bent. He pulled off his right metal glove with the other hand, revealing noticeable red bruises and some indentations in four of his fingers.
"Oh gosh! Are you alright, Chris?" I asked him, kneeling over to his side as he sat against the wooden beam, "Do you need any help?"
"Oh, tis nothing to fear, sir Ekichirou," he shook his head defiantly, some small tears rolling down the sides of his cheeks, "Wouldn't be the first time this has happened...oww….it stings a little.."
"Dude seriously," Gabe looked at the knight, gathering his cleaning tools, "That looks painful….you should get it c-checked out."
"Tis alright, it will heal in time.." the knight gritted his teeth tightly, "You needn't concern yourselves with me."
"I'm still helping you up regardless," I protested, not falling for his feigned bravado, "Come on Gabe, help me carry him down to the steps."
"A-Alright…" the garbologist nervously nodded, kneeling down to assist the knight.
Despite not wanting the help, we insisted further and eventually the knight yielded and let us help him down the stairs. While it was just his fingers that were crushed, previously he'd injured his arm on the treadmill the other day, which made me think that he was prone to clumsiness if he's said he's used to stuff like that and it didn't phase him as much. I walked down ahead of the two, making sure that the knight didn't slip over and tumble forward as some of the others heard the commotion, as we made it to the bottom of the stairs. They all gathered closeby, taking note of the knight's fingers and all with looks of worry plastered on their faces.
"Oh my goodness, what happened here?" Shion rushed over to the knight's side, "Are you alright, Chris?"
"Yoooo...dude that looks gnarly," Ayano commented, cringing at the sight of the bruises, "What caused that?"
"Fear not everyone, this is but a mere accident," he rubbed his bruised fingers softly, "There's no need to fret!"
"What kind of accident was this?" Shannon inquired, eyeing the injury and frowning doubtfully, "How stupid and reckless do you have to be to get something like that?"
"I'm sure Mr. O'Donnell didn't intentionally do this to himself," Asahi approached the group, taking note of the knight's injury, "Let's not jump to conclusions here, Ms. Akahoshi."
"Ooh! You're fingers look like tiny little sausages!" Hotaru chimed in, a mischievous smile grew on her face, "That looks like it hurt, must have been fun to watch though. I should have went up there myself to witness firsthand."
"Why is that the first thing on your mind?" Gabe remarked, raising a concerned eyebrow at the arsonist, "Actually...n-nevermind."
"So what do we do?" Ayano asked, fiddling with her compression gloves, "Should we apply first aid or something?"
"Itsuki's busy at the moment, but do you want me to get some ice for your fingers, Chris?" Aki asked, feeling sorry for the knight.
"There's no need to be concerned with me everyone," he proudly insisted, despite his intense grunts, "I'm fi- oww.."
"Huh...maybe you should lie down…take a break," Jun suggested, getting a full view of everything from behind the crowd, "That seems to work….most of the time."
"No Jun, all he needs an ice pack for now," Shion responded, cupping his crushed fingers in her hands to inspect them, "We don't know if he's broken any fingers or not, so we need to wait on Itsuki first before bandaging anything."
"That's fair, but where should we wait for him?" I asked, jumping into the conversation, "Last I remember, he's busy looking for first aid supplies inside his tent."
"He can come to the cafeteria and wait there," Asahi said, fiddling with his shirt sleeves, turning to the knight, "You need to sit down and relax, I can make you some tea to alleviate your nerves in the meantime."
"I am thankful for your kind words everyone…" Chris smiled dumbly, "But may I ask, where is lady Shiho?"
I paused for a moment, initially forgetting how Chris sustained the injury, as I looked around for the survivalist. I hope she didn't end up hurting herself in the end or getting injured like he did.
"She's over here!" Norio called out to the group, "If you're looking for her, she's playing in the water…"
I turned to where the vigilante was and noticed the survivalist in question, goofing around in one of the slide chutes and splashing water around the place. Shiho didn't seem to care that Chris injured himself to try and save her, but instead continued happily throwing water everywhere, her clothes soaking wet and her hair matted down on her head and dripping water along sides of her face.
Banri noticed this and jumped into the water as well, splashing it everywhere like a happy go lucky toddler high on sugar. His black boots sloshed around in the water as he and the survivalist chased each other around playfully, ignoring the rest of us as we attended to the knight's injuries. The childlike wonder in their eyes was something to behold, it's almost as if the two of them were blissfully unaware or ignorant of the danger that enveloped the carnival. They simply kept chasing each other around the water park as they tried tagging the other and slipping in the pools of water while in fits of childish laughter.
"At least they seem to be h-having fun….if not poor timing o-on their part," Gabe sweatdropped nervously.
"Are we sure those two aren't secretly middle schoolers or something?" Shannon crossed her arms, perplexed by their innocence, "It might explain a lot actually…"
"Nevermind that," another voice, belonging to Genki inserted himself into the group chat, "Since you three have completed your duties, you can go on ahead and nurse your minor injury, Christopher."
"Bold words coming from the wizard of risks himself!" Galiana smirked, her cape absent from her body, probably to avoid getting it soaked from water, "I will take over any other loose ends for you, my fellow companion!"
"Thank you, lady Galiana…" Chris nodded to her weakly.
"Kukuku, I admire their tenacity and dauntless natures," the prosecutor chuckled at the two's antics, "They'd be the perfect assistants, if I were still practicing law!"
"Well then, we can always work with less variables I suppose…" Genki sighed, walking off with the prosecutor as the two of them went over to the other water slides to double check everything.
"What do we do now?" Jun sleepily asked, "I think…..I'm gonna go...rest in my tent.."
"I think for now, we should get you over to the cafeteria, Chris," I said, directing him to the exit, "Someone should let Itsuki know about this."
"I'm on it, be right back you guys," Ayano offered, leaving the waterpark to the EMT's tent.
"K-Kichi…" Cherika's voice popped up as I turned to where she was, standing far from the group close to the back, "Let me h-help…"
"Oh, sure thing sis," I nodded, watching her walk over to my side.
"You are too kind, lady Cherika," he smiled at her, another dumb grin surfaced on his face, "I am grateful for everyone's assistance, as much as it is a bit much."
With that all settled, everyone dispersed from the group. Shion, Asahi, my sister and I escorted the knight outside the waterpark as we walked over the outdoor cafeteria. It's strange how much stuff we got done in such little time, it was almost baffling how unified some of us were. I guess some of them were trying to put their minds off of the video from earlier, so this party was the perfect excuse for that and honestly, I kind of fell for it as well. I wanted nothing more than to put that horrid video out of my mind for as long as I could.
"S-So...how d-did you h-hurt yourself, C-Chris?" Cherry asked him, anxiously staring at his red, throbbing fingers.
"It's quite embarrassing to recount..." he stumbled on his words, afraid to tell her the real truth, "However you needn't be concerned with it, lady Cherika, I've fended off worse than this in the past!"
"That's no excuse to be so reckless and careless," Shion scolded him, huffing tiredly from all the running back and forth, "We know you're capable Chris, just don't act so rashly like that again, alright?"
"Yes lady Shion…" he defeatedly pouted, shrinking in shame along the way to the cafeteria.
I patted him on the back sympathetically, slowly feeling guilty for not stopping him in time from getting himself injured earlier. I suppose that helping him like this made up for that, but if he's said himself that he's not phased by the injury, then why am I worrying so much? Why am I acting as if it were my fault? I mulled it over as we arrived to the cafeteria, noticing that rest of the other participants there as well, sitting down and idly doing their own thing.
"Wait here, while I prep you some tea in the meantime," Asahi walked ahead to the kitchen, preparing a kettle with some water from the sink.
"I'll go ahead and try to find some ice cubes and a bucket," Shion worriedly remarked, going her separate way as my sister, Chris and I acknowledged her offer.
As we entered the outdoor cafeteria, I noticed that the five people there, noticed us as we entered, all with mixed looks on their faces. Tsukae, Hibiki, Chihaya, Daiko and Nashi were all sitting on separate tables, each one staring at us as we escorted the knight to a nearby empty table and seat.
The charmer and the jpop idol both sat on the same table with a bunch of black bags resting on top of the table, with some clothes sticking out from the top, I assumed they were the swimsuits that Genki mentioned earlier. The clown and the defense attorney were both lazily sitting around, Chihaya looking unimpressed as usual while fidgeting with her hair and Daiko raising an eyebrow at us as he looked on with a placid expression on his face. Nashi on the other hand sat at a different table, quietly mumbling something to himself as if he were in his own world as it were.
"What the fuck happened to your fingers?" the clown questioned the knight, a slightly disgusted look was plastered on her face, "Did you trip and slam them into a fucking brick wall or something, tinman?"
"Lady Chihaya...your concern is appreciated," he gasped, surprised by her sudden empathy, "It's a first from you."
"Oh how cute, you think I give a shit about your stupid well being," she chuckled cynically, brushing back her dyed red hair, "You really are that fucking dumb, aren't you."
"Now now, there's no need to be so catty about it, Chi Chi," Hibiki reproached the clown, a disappointed frown emerged from his face, "Maybe he just got his fingers stuck in somewhere he shouldn't~ Is the goody two shoes in shining armor secretly a rugged bad boy underneath?"
"What a rather weird and inapropos thing to say," Daiko rolled his eyes, unamused by the idol's witty remarks, "He probably got it from a maintenance mishap, I'm assuming."
"You hit the nail on the head there, Daiko," I smirked at his pseudo wry comment, "He got it while inspecting one of the water slides earlier. We're not sure if his fingers are broken or not though."
"Did you check it first?" Tsukae sleepily blinked, adding her two cents to the conversation, "I mean...that would probably be what I'd do...not like I ever had any injury like that before."
"That m-makes sense…." Cherika anxiously looked at the knight's fingers, "A-Are they b-broken, Chris?"
"Haha, no they aren't," he boasted confidently, continuing his brave front, "It's nothing compared to the grand adventures, I've been on!"
"I highly doubt that…" the charmer sleepily remarked, grabbing one of the clothing bags from nearby, "I'm going to go head off to my tent now…"
"As will I," Hibiki said, the two of them rising from their seats, "I need to make one more last minute preparation for my swimsuit as well. I'm going to be turning so many heads, you won't be able to take your eyes off me for a second, darlings," he winked at everyone before leaving.
"How charmingly uncouth…." Daiko mumbled to himself, brushing back his forest green hair.
As the two of them departed, it was just the seven of us left. The clown grumpily rested her head on the table and pretended to sleep, while the attorney kept to himself the entire time, staring aimlessly at the sky above with his hands his pockets, almost bored to death if anything. The soothsayer, on the other hand, hadn't said much ever since we arrived to the cafeteria. I assumed he was in the middle of meditating or reciting some kind prayer to himself, since he hadn't noticed the commotion, but his body language suggested something else entirely different.
It was then that Shion arrived back to the cafeteria, carrying a metal bucket with some ice cubes inside. It seemed rather heavy for her to be lifting all by herself, but she didn't seem to mind as she rested it on the table next to the three of us.
"Sorry for the wait," she humbly apologised, "I had a hard time finding something to carry the ice in."
"Your generous service is not without honor, lady Shion," Chris thanked her, "I am in your debt."
"In the meantime, we've prepared a small dinner for tonight," Shion wiped some sweat from her forehead, yawning as she announced it, "Please, help yourself anytime and if you need any assistance with plating your food, Chris, don't be stranger."
"Thanks, Shion," I gave her a big thumbs up, smiling contently, "You deserve some rest for all the hard work you've done for the party."
"Y-Yeah...the f-food smells really good t-too.." Cherika commented, sniffing the delicious aroma of freshly cooked food, "C-Compliments to the c-chef…"
"Why thank, Ms. Yoshirenku," the tea brewer overheard us talking, "It's a little family secret recipe, I pride myself on my home cooking after all!" he triumphantly huffed, bearing a smile on his face as he fiddled with his red bow tie.
Asahi grabbed the boiling kettle from the stove, poured the hot water into one of the styrofoam cups from nearby and placed a tea bag inside and let it brew for a few minutes, "Your tea is ready, I'd recommend letting it sit for a few minutes before consuming it."
"Thank you, sir Asahi," the knight rested his fingers inside the bucket of ice, "Ahhh….much better…"
As the tea brewer and songwriter continued chatting with each other over dinner, my sister and I were left by ourselves with Chris, who was still nursing his swollen arm since the other night. The look of gratitude on his face said it all, he needed more help than he originally lead us to believe. Due to the awkward silence of the moment, I decided that now would be a good time to get to know him a little better. Aside from his very valiant and knightly persona he exuded, I wanted to get to know more about him, maybe even get to know why he acts the way he does by sharing small talk between the three of us. It's a little weird to be doing this now, but better late than never I suppose.
Should we get to know Christopher?
[Yes, he seems like he has something on his mind] / No, what would we talk about
"Are you sure you're okay?" I asked the tragic knight, his hand still drenched and resting inside the ice bucket.
"Verily! I couldn't be better, this is nothing but a mere scratch on my armor," he smiled confidently, baring with the pain, "You two needn't fret over me, I'm perfectly able to fend off this temporary malady!"
"U-Uh…o-okay," Cherika mumbled, bemused by the knight's response, "I s-see..."
Well this just got ten times awkward really fast, might as well strike while the iron is hot, no pun intended.
Ekichirou: So Chris, do you have any hobbies or interests outside of being a knight?
Christopher: Of course I do! I am astonished that you are curious as to my personal leisures. Truly you two are a captivating and inquisitive duo!
Cherika: I g-guess….N-No one's ever said t-that to us before…
Christopher: I'd imagine so, hahaha! But as for my hobbies, I like eating a lot of tough foods like apples or meat as to maintain my figure. I also fancy a relaxing massage from time to time, sometimes while listening to jazz music as to help soothe my nerves.
Ekichirou: Wow, that certainly took me for a loop, never expected to hear that from you, Chris.
Christopher: Well, when one is always out serving his royal majesty, there aren't many opportunities to indulge in such pleasures, aside from the occasional holiday.
Cherika: T-That sounds kind of n-nice….must b-be fun..
Ekichirou: I'll bet. So tell me Chris, what exactly do you do as a knight? Or more so, do you have any hobbies that are related to your talent?
Christopher: Forsooth sir Ekichirou, I do like to partake in the noble art of jousting for her Majesty's honor. I take pride in my skills, despite the constant ailments and frequent wounds…
Cherika: S-Sounds rough…do y-you like to do a-anything else?
Christopher: But of course! I do love exercising, fantasy themed games and most of all crafting swords and shields with my master. He's taught me everything about crafting and metalwork, although I do have a few minor incidents with yon metal hammer and mine fingers…
Ekichirou: Oh, that's cool. I mean it sucks that you get into dangerous situations so often, but it's good to know you enjoy your work.
Christopher: Enjoy it? It is but my duty as a knight to fulfill these simple tasks, sir Ekichirou! A good knight in training must always be prepared and have all the necessary components on hand in cases of emergency.
Cherika: I d-didn't know that….s-sounds like y-you take good care of y-your equipment t-then..
Christopher: O-Oh uh, I sure doth clean them every so often and prevent them from rusting. I always take heed of my master's advice to always be prepared and never falter in anything I do.
Ekichirou: I see you're passionate about it as well. Good for you, Chris, I do have to wonder about your mishaps with luck and such, was it always this bad?
Christopher: Oh uhm...Methinks it's better saved for another morrow, good sir. I'd rather not delve into it further right now.
Cherika: It's a-alright….it's not our business a-anyway…
Ekichirou: Still, I appreciate the small talk Chris. I learned so much today and this was even more interesting, thanks.
Christopher: Consider it payment for aiding me, sir and lady Yoshirenku. I feel humbled in allaying my concerns and entrusting you two with my personal interests. If anything, it is I who should be thanking the two of you.
Cherika: Hehehe….
Ekichirou: No problem dude, anytime.
Christopher O'Donnell's Profile Card: 1/5
Note: It seems that his passion for fantasy games, working out and knights in general sparked his passion to become the ones he idolized so much. He knows how to craft weapons as he said, but why is he called the Ultimate Tragic Knight and not the Ultimate Knight. I'll have to ask him another time.
After that conversation, Asahi grabbed the styrofoam cup with tea from the counter and placed it next to the tragic knight. The brew itself was a rich brown color and smelt of something synonymous to cinnamon or lemon, it was a very intoxicating aroma that wafted in the air. Chris grabbed the cup with his left hand, blowing on it slowly as he took a few sips, burning his tongue soon after that, as my sister and I giggled at his little slip up. He seemed displeased, but kept a proud smile as he continued drinking it.
It felt nice to just sit down and casually talk to someone like this. It's been a while since my sister and I have had a civilized conversation with people our age. Getting to know the others here at the carnival was the first step into finding a way out of this place and as for after that, I wasn't too sure. Despite what the rules said, I had hoped that whatever the bear was talking about was nothing but a cruel joke gone too far. Then again, given how adamant and serious he's been and how snide he's acted towards us, I was worried that if we didn't do something soon, then everything will start to worsen with each passing day
"So what's on the menu tonight guys?" I asked Shion and Asahi, hearing my stomach grumble.
"Well it's nothing special, we tried our best with the ingredients we procured," Shion turned to us, fixing the blue clip in her hair, "We've reheated the soups and crumbled some of the funnel cakes and sprinkled them with chocolate from the fountain."
"I see...but at least we have something to eat at least," I sighed tiredly, rubbing my eyes groggily.
"As much as I prefer not to eat carnival food for dinner, I've managed to make something with the resources on hand," Asahi interjected, carrying two bowls of an orange yellowish soup and some chocolate covered funnel cake on the large plate, "I hope you two like pumpkin herbal soup, it's all I could muster up for the time being."
"T-Thank you, A-Asahi and S-Shion," Cherry nervously smiled, grabbing a piece of chocolate funnel cake and nibbling on it slowly.
"You didn't have to serve us like this, but thanks," I nodded my head, surprised by their sudden hospitality.
"It's the least we could do to reward you for helping with the party preparations," the tea brewer smiled, touching the gold chain around his neck, "Think nothing of it, Mr. and Ms. Yoshirenku."
"Still...I hope the food doesn't get cold overnight…" Shion whispered to herself, munching on some leftover dango from earlier this morning, "I wonder if there's a portable microwave somewhere…"
As the two of them cleaned up the kitchen, I grabbed a nearby plastic spoon and took a few sips of the soup, blowing on it as the sweet tangy smell lingered in my nose. I tasted the sample and felt all my taste buds explode with a burst of flavor. The herbs complimented the pumpkin's juicy sweetness and there were no chunks or pumpkin guts floating inside the soup, which only perfected the overall presentation of the soup itself. It was as if I were inside a five star restaurant, everything about it was sublime.
"Oh my goodness, this amazing!" I remarked, taking a few more spoonfuls and gulping them down rapidly.
"Y-Yeah! S-So creamy….it w-warms my tummy," Cherry giggled, her cheeks flushed red from the soup, "It's the perfect t-temperature too…"
"Just make sure not to choke on it, alright sis?" I looked at her, taking too many spoonfuls at once.
"I know…" she half heartedly replied, resting her spoon to the side and eating more funnel cake.
"I see you two are having a grand time," a familiar wispy greeted us, "That is most pleasant indeed."
I rested my spoon to the side, noticing who had called out to us and saw the soothsayer standing closeby. He almost freaked me out, given his rather sudden appearance, since I knew he was sitting on the opposite table not too long ago. His uneven cut purple hair dangled against his back as his pale skin contrasted with the evening sky's hue.
"Oh evening, Nashi," I greeted him, "Yes we are, we had lots of fun today, right sis?"
"Mhm…" she nodded meekly, looking at the soothsayer with an uneasy stare, "A-Are you f-feeling alright, N-Nashi?"
"Hmm? Oh, I'm fine thanks for asking," he softly smiled, his eye cover masking his overall expression, "I've just been fraught with random premonitions lately is all."
"Oh? What are they about?" I asked, intrigued by what he meant, "Is it bad news? Or good news?"
"I can't say, the wheel of fate has already been spun," he mysteriously said in a somber tone, "We cannot change the inevitable, only watch as misfortune plagues us."
And we get even more cryptic riddles thrown our way. I knew Nashi didn't mean any harm, but from the way he presented himself and talked, almost felt as if he knew what was about to come. I mean it's his talent, but something about him just felt, so off to me for some reason.
"What the fuck are you even talking about, you crazy fraud!" Chihaya barked, grumpily woken up from her brief nap, "God you losers fucking talk too much, can you keep your traps shut please."
"Well if you're so bothered by us talking, then why don't you head back to your tent and rest," I snidely retorted, annoyed by the clown's off handed remark, "You should also apologize to Nashi as well."
"Now now, that's quite alright," he frowned, still keeping a calm tone of voice. "She's entitled to her opinions, I wouldn't want to stoke the devil's fires, if I were you."
"I don't need to hear any of your shitty lectures, leprechaun," she snapped, standing up from her chair, "Whatever, have fun sitting on your asses and doing each others' hair and nails, pansies."
With that, the clown stormed out of the cafeteria and proceeded to head back to the tents area. While her sudden outburst was rattling, it didn't seem to compare to what Nashi had said. His words were foreboding and ominous, but I couldn't help but feel dubious about his claims. Call me superstitious, but I didn't want to believe any of this was real, in fact I wanted to put it out of mind the best I could.
"I see you don't believe me, that is fine," Nashi calmly said, having read my thoughts somehow, "It's but a mere vision, it can be altered in time."
"Hmph, that's certainly an odd thing to say so abruptly," Chris looked at the soothsayer, perplexed by his words, "But there is no need to fear, once my injuries heal, I will be able to protect all of us!"
"I sure hope you are right about that…" Nashi softly spoke, heading back to his table.
"Are you sure that's something you can do in your current state?" Daiko, who had been silent this entire time, remarked astutely, "I mean, I doubt anything would happen, but I'd say to keep your nose out of the bear's business for now."
"You sound as if you have an idea of what's going on, Daiko," I inquisitively noted, taking in his rather mellow demeanor, "Is there something you want to say?"
"Not really," he shrugged indifferently, "I'm just saying why place our faith in a blind future that may or may not come true is all. Why should I have to worry about some predetermined fate that could be a lie for all I know?"
Before I could ask what he meant by those words, a loud sound resonated over the carnival intercom system. A ghastly carnival tune began playing as one of the TV's nearby turned on. A clear image of Monojoker was on screen, showing him in his little office, sitting in his red leather chair and sipping on his fruity drink.
DING DONG DING DONG
"Ahem, it is now 8 PM," the crudely designed bear cheerfully announced, "It is now officially nighttime, so drop what your doing and it's off to bed for all of you. I hope you lovely rejects have pleasant dreams tonight, I know I will~ pupupupupupu!"
The TV then turned off automatically, as the eerie music stopped playing and everyone looked at each other with mixed expressions. I turned immediately to my sister, who was anxiously holding her soup spoon, resting it inside the half finished bowl of pumpkin soup, too nervous to finish the rest.
It was then that I noticed the environment around me and saw that the sky grew darker as time went on. The rich orangey pink shades of light had slowly dissipated and dusk inched its way slowly into the light, coloring the sky like a painter with wide brush strokes. The velvet purples and the midnight blues creeped in as the gloomy grey clouds parted ways to expose a bright half moon. They said that time flies when you're having fun, but I didn't think they meant that literally in any sense of the word.
"Well it's been a long day for everyone, we'd best be on our way back to our tents," I stretched out wide, sleepily yawning loudly, "Let's go Cherry, thanks for the meal!"
"R-Right behind you…" she tiredly blinked, rubbing her baggy eyes, "T-Thank you for t-the meal…"
"Good night you two," Shion smiled contently, waving to us, "Sleep well."
"Don't let the bed bugs bite, you two," Asahi playfully commented, winking at us as he waved us goodnight.
We stood up from the table, leaving our dishes behind as the songwriter and tea brewer went to clean it up. I then noticed the soothsayer and defense attorney looking at each other, almost wary of the others' intentions. While they both seemed very calm and rational in their own ways, I couldn't help but feel slightly cautious when in their presence, almost as if something was nagging at me not to trust either of them. I'd probably chalk it up to my usual paranoia, but my gut instincts were telling me something else entirely, almost as if my line of thinking was too naive or too unsuspecting of others, given the situation.
As we walked back to our tents, I kept on looking down at the ground, constantly thinking of all the things that could go wrong at the upcoming party. Call me skeptical, but I had this inkling of suspicion that something bad was going to happen, I don't know what exactly. The thought of us having to kill each other for the bear's sick entertainment, watching our family members get killed like hunted animals in the wild and the overwhelming pressure of being in a hostage situation, it was beyond intense.
"K-Kichi...w-what are you t-thinking right now?" my sister asked, her eyes trembling as she noticed my shaken state, "A-Are you w-worried about t-the party t-too?"
"Huh? Oh k-kind of…" I scratched the back of my head nervously, "I just can't shake this awful feeling…..that something bad is going to happen."
"R-Really? Y-You too…" she trailed off, fiddling with her butterfly hair clip, "I g-guess this what they c-c-call twins intuition…"
"Heh, you actually believe in that nonsense, sis," I chuckled at her, ruffling her hair, "Don't worry about it, I'm just overthinking things as usual."
"I h-hope so t-too…" she smiled warmly, pink blush forming on her face as we arrived at our tent.
We entered inside, hoping to get some rest before noticing something on my bed. It was neatly wrapped present box, with green wrapping paper and white ribbon attached to the top of it. My sister headed over to her side of the tent, and after a few minutes came back with a present wrapped in red wrapping paper and a black ribbon on top of hers.
"Let me open it, Cherry," I warned her, placing both presents on my bed, "Please don't be a bomb…"
I grabbed the fabric scissors from the sewing kit my sister received and cut open the ribbon to both boxes, recoiling back instinctively as the ribbon undid itself. I looked at my sister anxiously, staring at the boxes as I opened up the green one first, closing my eyes as I removed the top of it. To my surprise, it wasn't anything lethal or dangerous, but quite the opposite.
"A-Are these p-pajamas?" Cherry curiously wondered, nervously approaching hers and opening the top of the present, "W-Why do w-we need these?"
Unsure of how to respond, I peered inside the box, taking out the articles of clothing and tossing the box to the side as I unfolded the clothes. It appeared that whoever left this present, most likely Monojoker, gave us sleepwear to wear while at night.
I received a light blue T-shirt with a picture of a some green clovers and red and silver horseshoes dancing around a pot gold in the center of the shirt. I also got a pair of green sleeping shorts with a small black insignia on the bottom hem and a white and red sleeping mask with Monojoker's face etched on the design.
I scoffed at the design, tossing the clothes back on my bed and rested the sleeping mask to the side table next to my bed, annoyed that the bear was mocking us. I then looked over to my sister, who wasn't as perturbed as I was, but more so bewildered if anything.
She got a baggy long sleeved red and black shirt with a picture of a black cat hanging from a tree on the front. Her pajama pants were long and had a faint ombre red and black hue; the red near the top and the black by her ankles with white outlined butterflies embroidered on the fabric. Lastly she received a pair of fuzzy black cat slippers and a sleeping mask that was the same as mine.
"W-What do w-we do with these, K-Kichi?" Cherry wondered, pressing the soft clothes against her body.
"I guess they're meant to be pajamas," I raised an eyebrow, eyeing my shirt and shorts, "Well as much as I have my doubts about this, it beats sleeping in our old smelly clothes, that's for sure."
"I s-suppose...I'm g-going to put mine on…" she hugged her pajamas close to her person, "G-Good night, Kichi…"
"Night Cherry, remember, I'm always closeby," I winked to her, "If you ever have nightmares, feel free to sleep on my bed and I'll sleep on the floor."
"T-Thanks…" she giggled, leaving to her side of the tent as the lights in our tent dimmed.
I groggily disrobed, sloppily leaving my old clothes on the floor and changing into the new clothes presented to us. The clothes smelt lovely, like fresh cut flowers and they felt warm and cozy as if they were pulled out straight from the dryer. The soothing warmth lulled me to sleep as I plopped directly on my bed, closing my eyes instantly as my mind drifted off into dreamland.
I felt comfortable knowing we had some plan of attack for tomorrow. I just couldn't shake the gnawing sensation that something was going to happen, for better or for worse. My body felt heavy like a weight as my consciousness slowly drifted off.
I never want this tranquil feeling to go away…..I needed it….otherwise I might go insane...
A/N: Hello Hello Hello everyone, welcome back to another monthly update of this long awaited story, did you miss me? I know I know, you're probably wondering. Oh my goodness, he's made another chapter, all in the span of one month! Call the FBI, this is unprecedented and new territory for us!
To answer your questions, yes I am sane, but this time it's an exception to the rule. Since I've been taking ten million years just to get to the meat of this story, I figured why not make the next FTE chapter while I'm at and post it so you guys have something to keep you busy in the meantime. I figured why not get the FTE's out of the way, so I can focus on my other story and get to the motive for that one as well.
I know you've all been anticipating the release of this chapter, I have to, but I'm sorry if it came out so suddenly and all that good jazz. I've been on easter vacation for these past few weeks and I've had too much time on my hands to make this next chapter. I've also been preoccupied with family related outings as well as dealing with my anxiety and depression over this short period. I wanted to destress and vent so I decided to finish this chapter and then get my brain focused on working on my second story's first motive and FTE's for that one as well.
I want to have them both done at the same time, that way I can catch up with my first story and hopefully, I will be able to start that project again sometime soon, when I'm feeling better. I've been putting these chapters off due to mental stress and family related issues, but no longer.
That aside, what did you guys think of this FTE chapter, I know the filler has to come but it will get good I promise. To the creators of Gabriel and Christopher, I hope I did their free time events justice I hope you liked what I did for them. I had a bit of trouble formulating how to finish this chapter, but in the end I was able to manage what I got. If you have any complaints of suggestions, feel free to ask me in the PM's and I will change it ASAP.
Before I go, I would like to once again plug some stories. As of this posting, these stories need OC and I hope that they catch your fancy. Here are all the shameless plugs X3.
Danganronpa: Remnants Of My Heart - shameless fourth SYOC plug.
Danganronpa: The Pitiful Plague Called Ignorance - by RioA, she's an amazing writer and I stand by her work.
Danganronpa: Final Flight - by Shirasaur, they're in the middle of submissions and they're deadline is not yet decided, so be sure to check them out.
Desperatio est Colosseum - by tobi-is-an-artist-too, they're making a new SYOC and they need some submissions so be sure to send her some good ones.
Fogbound Castaways - by Sharkeye, as of this posting, her deadline is closing soon, so be sure to send her an OC if you're interested.
Other than that, I have nothing left to report, I hope you all enjoyed this little chapter. I had fun making it, despite how much hell it put me through, but I hope it's alright. As of right now I will postpone making another LR chapter as to focus on SWBC and get started on that story's motive as soon as I can.
The next chapter might be the one where we find our first death OwO, so be sure to keep an eye out on that you all X3.
I hope you all have a wonderful day, night, holiday or whatever it is you're celebrating and happy easter to whom it may concern, I hope you all had a wonderful easter and I wish you all the best in the coming months. The carnival wishes you a despairing happy holidays X3.
Happy reading my fellow readers, authors and otaku alike, I hope you all have a wonderful week, bye bye!