lostcarnival | ⇨ POLARIS

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⇨ POLARIS

Who: Everyone!
When: Days 102 - 109
Where: Polaris
What: With the Ringmaster kidnapped and the rest of the carnival imprisoned, characters find themselves at the mercy of a Winter Fae called the Mother of Invention.
Warnings: Graphic experimentation in places.

TRIALS & TRIBULATION↴

After a day of cleansing and processing, where all the belongings and attire of their old lives are stripped away and replaced with something newer and more form fitting, the former members of the carnival will find themselves let loose into the Farm for the first time. A sizable green area, filled with orchards growing inorganic looking fruits and field ready for tending, the Farm is where they will be spending their days for the forseeable future.

Food and drink are no longer needed, and so every day is an endless cycle of work. Technicians are seen only when necessary, and when being taken from your place of work to your lonesome cells at night. Every day, there are new postings on the "Production Board", where various dire sound scientific trials ask for subjects. The majority won't be forced, at least not yet, but the system is at work to push its participants to the brink and force their hand.

After all, volunteers make the best subjects.

► PRODUCTIVITY: As explained elsewhere, characters will be forced to compete to attain enough Productivity Point to be considered Satisfactory. There are literally not enough points to go around for everyone to attain this, which means that at least some people will be deemed "Below Expectations" by the end of the first four-day cycle. What this means has yet to be discovered, but the Technicians have grimly warned against it.

Productivity involves many tasks, including orchard picking, tilling, planting, harvesting, watering, maintenance, and more. Any task you can think of that would take place on a plantation is applicable here. Beyond that, the Production Board awaits you, offering precious Productivity Points in exchange for your cooperation. How you become Satisfactory is up to you, but it's every person for themselves. Only one person can turn in the credit for harvesting or preparing fields, and while you can certainly try to help others by letting them take credit for your work, it's a sure fire way to fall behind the herd, especially if you are already in a low Classification.

Fruits and fields will miraculously grow overnight, and will be ready for a new day when you are. You've been told not to eat anything you harvest, but right now you aren't hungry anyway.

► POLARIS BY NIGHT: During the night, you are left alone to your thoughts and maybe an annoying roommate. Solo or in pairs, the entire night will be spent in small sleep pods, as shown on the locations post. Is it possible to sneak out? It doesn't seem like it is, but who is to say? The real question is if you want to dare to try. There is one hour of rest before and after seven hours of darkness. Even if you don't usually have to sleep, you'll find yourself oddly weary and inclined to rest. Supernaturally, almost.

► PARTICIPATION: Sometimes participation in experimental trials is manditory, sometimes it isn't. You are free to handwave your character having been pulled aside for minor examinations, such as blood tests or aura scans. Each time, you will be pulled into a separate part of the station and analyzed by a Technician and heavily automated machinery. Anymore more complex than basic check-up level tests will be posted about in a section called "TRIALS" in the body of the post below.

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As it starts to get a little past noon, Yuya's searching the farm with purpose. He needs to talk to Rita, because if her mind is still on Ignatius he thinks he has something to help.

Having not even bothered with farm work all day in favor of this, he's able to push past the exhaustion a little better. Once he spots her, he moves to fall in step beside her.

"Rita. How's--what they did?" The new heart and all.

He finds her in an orchard, picking up fruit from the ground and placing it in a crate. The scattered fruit appears to have been knocked down from the trees, and the crate has some makeshift wheels affixed to the bottom. Rita herself still looks decidedly ill, but she's on her feet and doesn't seem to be slowing down.

At Yuya's approach, however, she does take a moment to stop what she's doing and reply. It's no surprise that that's the first thing he asks after. "It's... stabilizing, I think," she tells him, holding a hand over her chest as if to check her own condition, even though she can't feel much through the suit. "It still feels like it's getting too hot sometimes, but... not as often now."

She looks a little perplexed at that. Is her body actually getting used to this...? Rita didn't think that would be possible.

"That's... good, I think." It means it'll be less painful, right? That it won't hurt her worse?

He takes a deep breath, before leaning in and lowering his voice. "You remember you said you felt Ignatius? I've been trying to reach him, too. I think... there were some times it's stronger. Maybe when he's not being watched or hurt as much?"

Rita's eyes widen. So Yuya's one of the people he was able to connect with... and he was able to determine something like that?

"What times?" she asks, her voice also hushed.

Yuya glances over his shoulder, just to make sure no one else is listening.

"Around noon and midnight, it felt stronger. I still couldn't get any words, but... there was some response, like it was far away."

He glances down, considering something else. Rita is trying to go up in ranks, so. "Do you think you can find him?"

Noon and... midnight?

Rita seems to think of that for a few moments, then tells him, "Actually, I... talked to him, last night. There weren't any words, exactly, but I think I understood him."

"You did?" Luckily he has the sense to keep his voice down, even if he's surprised. The person who wants to help is looking for him too, if he can tell them...

"What was it like? Could he tell you where he was?"

"No... nothing that concrete. I don't think he knows, anyway. I just know he's alone, weakened, in pain..." As she trails off, Rita shudders, remembering it as vividly as if she'd lived through it herself. "I could feel all his emotions clearly, almost like they were mine. And I tried focusing my own emotions back at him, and... I think he understood me, too."

"It sounds like how Gongenzaka talks to me by connecting to my soul." Like it's totally casual to just poke souls together. "Maybe that's why you can hear him more clearly, because you're closer? What about images?"

Maybe if he could just share a picture. That might be something he can give their mysterious friend.

"Huh?" Wait, Yuya's done this before? With that guy?

But the matter at hand takes priority, and she considers his next question. "Images...? Not exactly. There wasn't anything visual, but we could share... concepts, I guess. The ideas and associations surrounding a specific person or thing. It sounds vague, but it seems to work well enough."

Because they're 'closer'... It still feels weird to accept that as fact, but as the evidence piles up, it really is hard to deny it at this point.

Yuya nods emphatically, understanding. That's the closest any of them have gotten to really communicating with him... and that's what they need right now.

"If you find where he is or if he tells you anything else, could you tell me? There's, uh--" He looks aside, scratching his cheek. "If I know, there's a way I can help too. But I have to keep it secret."

Gongenzaka emphasized that, since it's real, he shouldn't talk so openly about it even if he trusts Rita. He'll just need Rita to trust him in return.

Secret...?

Rita studies him for a moment, her eyes fixed on his averted gaze...

"All right. I will." She knows there's a chance that someone's listening, that everything she's told Yuya could be used against her. If he has something up his own sleeve... she'll let him keep it that way. Even if she is intensely curious as to what it could be...

"Keep reaching out to him," she adds after a moment. "He needs it."

"I will." He looks up, offering her a smile. He wants to help Ignatius just as much... he's glad how much things have changed. And sorry he's been dragged in all this bullshit too. That's why they'll definitely get him out.

He looks up and down briefly. "You're getting a lot better at this, aren't you?" He gestures to her farming set up.

Rita looks like she's been thrown off by the change in topic. "Huh? Uh... yeah. Physical labor isn't my thing, so I figured out a few ways to get things done while hardly breaking a sweat. Good thing, too..." She holds a hand against her chest. "I'd be in trouble if I had to do it all the hard way."

Yuya nods, knitting his brow as he glances to where her hand rests. "The trials help your score, but then they make doing this harder, right?"

It's not easy to go up in ranks, is it? Yuya doesn't want to think about how long it might actually take.

"Yeah, but... in a way, that's probably what they want. They don't care about what we produce here, only that we'll jump through hoops to try and impress them, and that we'll keep doing it even if they make it harder for us."

That interview on their first day seemed to suggest it, anyway... that they're looking for people willing to suck up to them for privileges. People who'll do anything, even trample over their friends, to seize an opportunity to get ahead of the rest of them.

He's done shit all this week, and what work he's really accomplished has been split with others, so... Yuya hopes it really counts for nothing.

"It's bad either way, because if you fail you get hungry and tired. Or worse." He looks aside, absently wringing his hands together. "Gongenzaka pointed out a trial for today, looking for people who were affected by the Void and Creation."

And he's nervous, seeing how every other one went, but he thinks he has to do it. At least to stay afloat.

"You get hungry...?" Rita furrows her brow. That's news to her.

She has a feeling she knows where Yuya's going with this, too. "You're thinking about signing up?" she asks.

Yuya nods, rubbing the back of his neck. "I think I have to. I don't know what happens if I do bad again, but they said it'd get worse." He worries over his lip.

"But it feels like I'm just taking a different punishment. He's really worried though, so..." If it wasn't for Gongenzaka, he wouldn't consider it at all. "You don't have to do any more trials until the next evaluation, right?"

"I don't plan to," Rita replies, adding with a scoff, "They've done more than enough for one round." And considering how one trial was enough last time... so long as she doesn't get caught slacking, she should be able to pull off another 'outstanding' evaluation.

"I won't tell you what you should do. You're right... you'll probably be harmed either way." Rita frowns, feeling a tinge of guilt at that. It's partly because Yuya was helping her that he's gotten to this point, after all. "It's up to you to decide which risk you'd rather take."

"I know." It's not a choice he wants to make, but he'll have to. At least they have an idea what the trials entail, but what happens when you slip down to Theta is an enigma.

He sucks in a deep breath before pulling up a smile for Rita. "Let's really work hard to make sure this isn't forever, okay? We both have a way to help now."

Rita meets his gaze and answers with a nod. "Yeah... we'll be out of here soon."

She doesn't know that for sure, but she tries to look strong and keep any of that uncertainty from showing in her face. Still... it's kind of incredible for Yuya to even think of taking a trial after seeing what happened to her. Maybe it's bravery, or desperation... but for now, she has no choice but to accept whatever he chooses.

With that said and done, Rita goes back to collecting fruit.

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⇨ POLARIS

Day 109 | Closed to Rita

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