[2-5] The Carnival

[Gin Yatreg]

"Oh god..." Gin said aloud.  He pulled the collar of his shirt over his nose in an attempt to block out the smell. He begrudgingly stepped into the trailer and made his way across the body filled floor, taking great care to avoid stepping on a corpse, and arrived at the door to the next trailer. Gin motioned for Remilia to follow, however she shook her head in refusal, plugging her nose and signalling that she would wait in the first trailer. Gin rolled his eyes and opened the door, feeling a rush of fresh air hit him. 

Gin slowly walked through the accordion connector, expecting to be thrown off his feet again just like the first time. Thankfully, nothing happened this time around. Though still cautious, Gin put his ear to the door to listen for anything that may be on the other side. He held his breath, trying to be as quiet as possible so he could hear the slightest noise on the other side. Still nothing. He reached for the handle, and began to open the door.  Once it was half open, Gin laid himself flat against the accordion wall, trying to get a peek around the corner. After he saw that the half of the trailer he cold see was free of life, he kicked the door open and dived inside facing the other half of the trailer intent on being ready for a fight. But alas, the rest of the trailer was empty as well. Gin's muscles relaxed, and he let out a huge sigh of relief as he righted himself. 

The third trailer, unlike the first two bedroom trailers, was furnished to be a mobile office. A large desk sat at the end of the trailer, which was decorated with file cabinets, bookcases, and some furniture for guests. On the desk was a lone and tattered journal, its binding beginning to tear. Gin picked it up, "This might tell us a few things," he thought. He braved the second trailer once more and re-entered the original trailer, thankful that he didn't have to walk through that again. He looked to his right and saw Remilia resting in a leather recliner chair. 

"So, you find anything?" she asked.

"Yup, a journal. It should tell us what happened," he said. 

"Well let's hear it," Remilia said, sitting upright in her chair. 

Gin sat down in a chair across from her and opened the journal in his lap, flipping through pages until he found an entry worth reading. "Ah, here's something..." he said as he began to read the passage out loud.

"July 2, 20XX. 

I don't believe this! My carnival suddenly found itself in a completely different location than it was before! Just after we opened for the day and guests had trickled in, a huge storm suddenly hit us. However it only lasted for a few minutes! MINUTES! By the time it was over, we noticed a lot more trees around us than before. It had to be something in the storm, its the only thing I can think of! However we're stuck here now, and we have guests to take care of. I'll see if our chefs can cook up something for everyone to eat."

Flipping further ahead, Gin stopped at an entry three months later.

"October 2, 20XX.

Our supplies are starting to run thin, the midget suggested we eat the clowns for food. "No one would care if we ate the clowns, they scare people anyways!" he told me.  Of course I berated him for even saying such a thing, but he was adamant about us finding a new source of nutrition. Thankfully this forest has no shortage of animals, and I have arranged some hunting parties to head into the forest and bring us back food. I pray we can survive without going after each other throats."

"October 15, 20XX.

While prepping on of the hunting parties, some rude person was laughing at me the whole time. No one would admit it, nor acknowledge the laughter, but I know it was one of them. How dare they, it was me who led us this far without much conflict. I DESERVE more respect than that."

"Laughter? Like what I heard before the attack?" Gin thought.

"October 20, 20XX.

I hear that damn laugh everywhere I go, it won't stop. Others have assured me there is no laughter, but they LIE. They're laughing with whomever it is behind my back, I know they are. I am the leader of this group of misfits, it was ME who has kept them alive, and this is how they treat me?! Perhaps I'll just give them smaller portions of food from now on..."

"October 23, 20XX.

It's strange, I've felt stronger than I usually do. I've also found myself to be more athletic. Is it from all this time in the wilderness? It usually takes more effort to be fit does it not? Whatever caused this, I can't complain. Now I can intimidate the others more. That god damn laugh is still happening, even as I write this I hear it. I'm going to find that person, and that laughter is going to stop. I even snuck a knife from the kitchen trailers to get it done."

"October 27, 20XX.

IT. WON'T. STOP."

"October 30, 20XX.

IT ENDS TONIGHT."

"October 31, 20XX.

Everyone is dead. The laughter won't stop. But now, I think I'm beginning to understand it. It tells me things. 

It tells me it will stop if I do what it says. I want to be free. I'll do anything."

Gin turned the page, and found it to be blank. Skimming through the rest of the journal, he found it to be empty as well. "Guess that was the last entry..." he said. 

"Well, we know what we're dealing with now," Remilia said.

"Yeah... But now we gotta take care of him or he'll kill us too." Gin asked.

Remilia stood up and grabbed an umbrella she found in the closet. "Let's get this over with." she said.

~~~

"Well, this is a surprise," Remilia said.

"No way this guy did it all himself," Gin yelled.

Once they had exited the trailers and ventured back into the carnival, the duo found that the entire place had received a dramatic makeover. Bodies were strewn up in awkward positions, some taking places behind booths, while others posed in ways attendees would be. In one booth close by, Gin saw the corpse of a popcorn vendor handing a bucket full of bloody teeth to a patron sewed together with mismatched parts. It was worse than the inside of the trailer, albeit the open atmosphere meant it didn't smell as bad.

"Well, we should at least get moving. Whatever's helping him has probably told him we're in the open," Remilia said as she rested the handle of her umbrella against her shoulder. 

Gin nodded, and looked down at his map to decide the best destination for their inevitable fight. 

"The Ferris Wheel, let's go there." Remilia said, already walking off. 

Gin shrugged and dropped the map, they didn't exactly need it to find their way to the Ferris Wheel. The finale of this nightmare was coming.

~~~

As the two walked through the rain, the feeling of isolation slowly took hold on them. Posed bodies littered the area everywhere they went, no matter how obscure the route was. Nothing was alive here, they knew that. Still, they never let their guard down, knowing that if they did it could be the end of them. Shadows danced in the corner of their ever dimming vision, noises with no source, and a laugh that even Remilia could hear now.  Finally, they arrived at the Ferris Wheel in all its rusted glory. 

"Now what?" Gin asked.

As if on cue, the sound of metal scraping metal filled the air. The lights turned on, music began to play through what speakers would still receive a signal, and a shadow stepped into the light. The figure stopped just before the light could illuminate him, and fell to the floor. The light above revealed it to be one of the many corpse puppets, much to the confusion of the duo. Before either of them could say anything, a blur flew out of the shadows, which struck Gin in the arm and tore a piece off of Remilia's dress. Gin gripped his arm in pain, blood mixed with the rain trickled down his arm and dripped to the ground. 

"Dammit!" he cried out.

"Focus! Here he comes again!" Remilia shouted.

The two jumped out of the way as the man charged them once more, thankfully missing this time. Remilia attempts a swipe at the man, narrowly missing as he quickly flees back into the shadows. 

"No way we can hit him like this, we gotta slow him down." Gin said.

"Tell me something I haven't figured out yet. " Remilia replied, waiting for her chance to use another card.

The man charged from the shadows behind them, aiming for Remilia. Without thinking, Gin pushed Remilia out of the way, and felt something sharp penetrate his gut. It felt as if time had come to a stop, Gin looked down and saw the knife from the journal embedded deep in his chest. He felt angry, not at the man, but at himself for letting this happen. He was going to die and leave Remilia to fight the man by herself. He felt the rage build within himself, higher and higher until it overflowed from his body. His eyes turned pure yellow, skin grew hard as rock, claws formed over his fingers, and an orange shield fist formed over his right hand. 

Using Tier 1 Transformation: Mutation -  1 SP - Remaining SP:  1/2

Gin grabbed hold of the man, keeping his grip tight so the man couldn't get away, "If whoever is fucking with us is watching, you'd better pay close attention to what happens next; because when we find the others, we're coming for you to do the same thing." Gin said. He then punches the man with his Reversal Fist, letting go as it connects. Gin staggered back and fell to the ground, as he sat back up, he yelled to Remilia, "I screwed up his senses, finish him off now Remilia!"

As his compatriot took reigns of the fight, Gin pulled the knife from his chest and revealed the medi-gel he bought from the vendor before the flight. 

Using Medi-Gel on stab wound to stop bleeding. x1