Episode 1 - Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch’intrate

[Mephistophilis]

Poking a can of Coke with the tip of his shoe, Charlie finds it strangely lighter than he was expecting and it sort of crunches and deforms at his press, as if it was made of polystyrene, although the colours remain quite vivid so the design hasn't been painted on.

[Mr. Handy]

"No, that rat was smooshed," says Harry. "The way we were sealed in here doesn't make any scientific sense. Why should we expect anything else here to compute?"

[Snapper]

Experimentally, Max gently crushed a can of coke under his foot. "What's happened to the cans of soft drink?"

[CrackheadC.]

Dirk sighs with relief as he drops the beam back down when the rat skitters off. "Well whether it should have been dead or not, it looked alive to me and nothing should feel trapped like that" Dirk says with a melancholic tinge to his voice.

Dirk joins the others exploring the collapsed concession stand, maybe there was a cash register with a bit of money left in it?

Pre-emptive Notice Stuff looking around the kiosk for a register or anything else interesting. Vs 60%
1d100

[Mephistophilis]

Placing his weight onto a can of Tab, Max feels it crunch under his foot. The can doesn't really feel like it is full of liquid, it's more like crushing a styrofoam cup. But when he removes his foot the can is uniformly crushed, like it would be if he'd stamped on a metal can. Weird.

Rooting around under the awning and collapsed posts Dirk can't find any cash register or money. Still, it was worth a try.

[Philulhu]

Charlie frowned. That was odd, and not a little disturbing. It was if the can wasn’t made of metal, after all. Perhaps it was just for display, but them why go to the time and effort of making something you could buy for fifty cents anyway?

He stood up and looked around. ”Anyone find anything?” he asked.

[Mr. Handy]

"These soda cans," says Harry. "They're not behaving as you would expect. They must all be empty. They've probably been here for years. If they'd leaked, there would be dried soda where they were found."

[Snapper]

"This fun park hasn't been shut down that long, has it? That police thing was happening in 1980, only seven years ago, and the place was open then."

Max knelt down and picked up the can he had flattened, trying to bend and twist it, tear it apart even. "How strange. Is that what happens to seven year old cans of soda?"

Is the can phenomenon in the realms of any skill roll that Max could make?

Max will try a pre-emptive Science Class roll to guess what normally happens to seven year old cans of soda.

1d%L60%

Hard success.

[BoyBlunder78]

Only half listening to the conversation, something about squishy cans Darren shines his torch towards what e presumes is the ride next to the stall, walking slowly towards it, stopping halfway. Hey! Anyone remember which ride this is supposed to be?" He calls out to everyone.

[Mephistophilis]

He's not completely sure, but Max thinks old cans of soda just lose their fizz. They don't deform like this. Maybe a few get punctured or leak along the seams so the drink dribbles out, or they get bacteria inside so they might swell up with gas. But he's pretty sure they don't do this. Picking up the flat can of Tab, he tries to twist it and it flexes then tears across the flat portion. Inside is just a uniform grey colour, there's no liquid. He crumbles off lumps from the can. It really is a bit like styrofoam, maybe a bit denser. The more he interacts with the can the more convinced he is that it isn't any sort of drinks can at all, it's more like a stage prop. Maybe they had a few fake cans on display?

-----

Advancing into the mist, Darren shines his flashlight at the vague shape that casts a shadow in the gloomy fog. As he gets nearer he can make out the tenuous outline of some kind of ride. Directly in front of him he can just about discern something, a flash of colour...a face begins to reveal itself, emerging from the thick tendrils of fog. A giant clownface like the one at the entrance, grinning at him. Then another, and another.



It's a rusting tilt-a-whirl ride and all the cars have clown faces moulded and painted onto the front. And all the cars are pointed towards him, like they've gathered together to silently stare, whisps of mist hanging heavily between them. The painted faces all have the eyes scratched off, leaving dark, empty holes.

Now he can make out the domed canopy over the ride, and written along the edge it says The Giddy Giggler. But Darren can't see anything to laugh about.

[Snapper]

"I had this Lego gas station station - ah - a few years ago, and the shop in the gas station had these tiny drink bottles and magazines and stuff like that in it. That's what this can makes me think of. It's not real, it's pretend, like a prop in a school play."

"But why would a fun park need prop soda cans? Why not just have real ones you could actually sell?"

[Mr. Handy]

"There's a lot about this place that doesn't seem real," says Harry. "A lot of what we're seeing is an illusion. The place was open in 1980 when the police were investigating, but it probably closed down soon after that. I've never heard of it until recently."

I had that same LEGO gas station, and many other sets.

[Philulhu]

”So what was this?” asked Charlie, trying to understand what was going on. ”Hey, do you think it was some kind of film set?”

[Mr. Handy]

"I don't think so," says Harry, "but it's definitely cheap and fake. Someone has gone to some trouble to restore this place to a semblance of what it used to be."

[Snapper]

Lego is just one of the brilliant things in life. Pure genius.

"Maybe this is a trap? The soda cans, everything, it's like a fish lure but to get people into the park. I don't know. I think I have a Swamp Thing comic with a plot like that."

"What's Darren found? Great heavens, I can see more clown heads, just what we don't need." Max wandered over to where Darren was.

[Mr. Handy]

"Yeah, it's like something out of an episode of Star Trek," says Harry, following him.

[Philulhu]

”So you’re saying it’s a TV set, rather than film?” Charlie asked Harry, confused by his train of thought.

[BoyBlunder78]

All these clown faces sent a shiver down his spine. His torchlight creating elongated shadows in the distance giving the appearance of figures watching him. Darren walks around the ride looking for the control booth.

[Mephistophilis]

Edging around the outside of the Giddy Giggler Darren you keep the freakish clown faced cars in view. Their scratched out eyes continue to stare straight ahead, away from him. As he moves around the ride he can see that the paint is blistered and peeling. Metal structures rusted and corroded. The wooden platform where the cars sit seems rotten and in places the surface has splintered through altogether. There's an unpleasant smell cutting through the mist, like urine.

About a third of the way round the structure Darren sees a sort of alcove rather than a full control booth. Inside there's an elaborate control panel that doesn't quite match with the rest of the deteriorating structure.



It seems to be made of a combination of wood, metal, and plastic components but Darren can't figure out why it needs so many buttons and dials. It's very colourful but there's no power to it as far as he can see.

There's some labels on the dials and buttons. But you can't understand them. It's not even in the English alphabet. It looks like Hebrew or Sanskrit or something.

[BoyBlunder78]

Oh.....bother.....