lostcarnival | ⇨ ATLANTIS

Who: Everyone!
When: The morning of D44 and onward.
Where: The ocean realm of Atlantis.
What: The carnival abruptly arrives at an underwater realm, and everyone is transfigured into merpeople just as suddenly.
Warnings: Body horror, I guess.

THE CITY OF ATLANTIS↴

The visit starts without much warning, but at least there is a full week of free time before performances start. In the meantime, your characters will be given ample opportunity to adjust their acts for an underwater audience, get used to their new fishy appendages, or just spend the whole time enjoying the sights and sounds of Atlantis city. King Triton will not be immediately seen, but it's possible to gain an audience with him if you get in contact with the ambassadors of the kingdom. Just, make sure that you're not wasting his time. He's a lot less patient with nonsense than the Ringmaster is.

► FISH FRIDAY: You fell asleep, whether or not that's something you usually do, and the next morning you wake up as one of the merfolk. A few last additions may grow in after you're awake, but for the most part everyone will have a method of swimming and a method of breathing underwater transfigured into them upon waking. Don't worry about your belongings - everything is waterproofed, and technology will work the same underwater as it does above it. That doesn't mean there won't be plenty to get used to, though.

► GREAT BLUE YONDER: The ocean realm where Atlantis resides is enormous, and the depths seem to be unending. Despite the fact that there doesn't seem to be any surface, sun glimmers all the way down to the ocean floor. Atlanteans use creatures like whales and dolphins as rides and beasts of burden, and they can be seen swimming in and out of the city as constantly as roadways filed with cars in earth civilization. Beyond that, there's everything you would expect to see on the ocean floor here - huge reefs of coral, both familiar and exotic, enormous ocean plants, deep ocean trenches, and all kinds of weird critters living in them. There are a mix of mythical and standard ocean creatures, and are likely a combined populations of many oceans worth of beings.

► THE ATLANTEAN MARKET: The Atlantean market (aka the "merket") is a long trench between rows of buildings in the middle of the city, lit with bio-luminescent plants and rocks, and filled with all kinds of weird mer stuff that you can buy. There are a great many individual booths, mostly with hand crafted wares and objects that have been salvaged from various sunken ships. The Ringmaster has already traded a large number of goods to the merfolk here, and has taken the profit to award each worker with 100 Atlantean Gold to spend as they please. One gold is worth roughly five USA dollars, for a comparison of how much that is. There is a top level set up below in which characters can make their purchases, and you can also handwave the purchase of random common, necessary items (food, drink, etc) at your convenience.

► TREASURE HUNTING: Right now, the only major salvage areas are a few left over sunken ships that have mostly been picked over by the merfolk. However, you are welcome to head over to them and explore, and see if fortune smiles on you when it comes to finding anything that hasn't been taken yet. The current options are three similar looking brigantine that all probably came from the same world. Merfolk do not seem to consider them to be anything extraordinary, though magical items and gold have allegedly been found within them. Whether or not anything is left, is the real question.

► LIMELIGHTING: Merfolk are curious and generally socially forward, as a species. This mean that they find the carnival's workers to be a fascinating novelty, and also are unafraid to make that fascination obvious. Given the opportunity, merfolk will demand your character's attention for bombardments of questions and for general socializing, especially if they are particularly unusual for some reason. Don't be surprised if you get invited to stay at total stranger's houses, or dragged off to a merfolk bar to surprise party with their friends. They'll let you say no, reluctantly, but they will also be pleased as punch to get up in your gill.

It's also possible to make some money, this way, if you're willing to do street performances, or are willing to sell your "skills" in a more private environment. Yes, there are opportunities to become a fish hooker if you are so inclined. Merfolk may also offer money to take you as arm candy to various public events, escort style. They don't consider this to be a particularly socially inappropriate thing to do, either.

You can ask general questions about this setting over on the event post. There are top levels below for buying Atlantean merch, and also for making dolla dolla, if your character is inclined to try.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"True," Yuuri admitted with a chuckle. "Don't let me stop you, then!" Not that he expected her to let him do that; if he'd learned anything about Miko since meeting her it was that she didn't let anything get in the way of what she wanted. It was something he kind of admired about her, even if it made him worry.

...Great. What has he done.

"Just make sure you take someone with you! There could be sharks or something else waiting inside the wrecks!" He's seen Disney movies, okay.

"Don't worry, I won't!" Look, she can't pass up a chance like that.

She laughs, waving him off. "I'll be fine! You just worry too much, I can handle a few sharks."

"I don't think any of us can handle a few sharks, Miko," Yuuri said firmly, frowning at her now as he starts to fall into that parental mode that he tended to get into around people like Yurio. "What if they aren't normal sharks??"

For a moment, Miko's expression drops into a pout. Why do people always try to act like they're her parents or something?? She doesn't get it.

~~It's because you need parenting, Miko.~~

"It'll be fine. Unless these sharks are, like, immune to punching or something."

You are a walking disaster sometimes, Miko. Yuuri hasn't even known you that long and he's picking up on how much trouble you can get yourself into without even trying.

"Punch--Miko! You can't just expect to punch a shark and for everything to be okay!" Does that even work? Is punching sharks a thing??

Miko just--just no. No.

"I totally can! I made a deal with the Ringmaster and everything, I'm even more awesome at punching now."

It'll sure BE a thing if Miko has anything to say about it.

Hold up.

"You made a deal with the ringmaster?" Yuuri repeated, staring at Miko like she had grown a second head. "What--why? What deal?"

She sighs as if he'd just asked something ridiculous, then ticks off each question on her fingers as she answers.

"Yes, because I didn't want to end up bored out of my mind back home, and to be able to fight better so I could deal with giant robots and stuff. In that order."

"...Fight..giant..robots."

Okay you've totally lost him now, Miko. Way to go.

"Yep! Would've been good to be able to do that better back home, but it's not like I'm not gonna get any use out of it here. Punching is kinda universal. Or inter-universal, I guess!"

Very helpful, Miko, that's gonna clear up a lot.

Yuuri just stares for a second, mouthing opening and closing a few times before he just sort of..deflates. Better to just accept what she's saying. It wasn't the strangest thing he'd experienced.

"Why are you fighting giant robots, though? Did they..invade your home or something?" God this was weird to ask.

"Uuh... kinda. The bad ones - the Decepticons, 'cuz that's not totally obvious or anything - were tryin' to invade Earth, so some other kids and I teamed up with the Autobots - those were the good guys - to stop them and finish up the whole... centuries-long-war deal they had going on. It was pretty cool!"

You know, there's almost definitely a few different ways she could have eased him into this without jumping right in, but... it's a little late for that now, even if she could have thought of it.

Wait.

"Decepticons?" Yuuri repeated, looking surprised. "Wait, you mean like that bird Starscream?" A beat. "He's really a giant robot??"

Now it's all coming together.

"Ugh, yeah, him." She makes a face, like the very mention of Starscream's name brought a gross smell with it.

"Starscream was one of the worst ones. I mean, not by much, 'cuz they were pretty much all jerks, but that guy is a serious piece of work. At least now he's tiny, so he can't try and stomp on people with his dumb stiletto feet or anything."

The idea that Starscream with his bad attitude and manipulative personality was actually a giant robot...

"I'm really, really glad that he got turned into a bird," Yuuri said sincerely, looking mildly terrified. Thank God for the Ringmaster, in this case. "There aren't any other Decepticons here--in the Carnival I mean--are there?"

"Same here. He's way more manageable like this." Murderous intent is a little less concerning when it's coming from a bird.

She frowns, crossing her arms as she thinks it over. "I don't think so. I haven't run into any, and it sounds like Starscream hasn't either, since he asked me if I'd seen any around. He might be the only Cybertronian here... unless the others are, like, mice or something now."

⇨ ATLANTIS

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