Episode 1 - Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch’intrate

[Mephistophilis]

After last Halloween Shirley just up and left. You never saw or heard from her again.

At least, not until last week.

Harry shares a letter he received, postmarked Minnesota. A letter addressed to Harry, and Darren, and Louis. A letter from Shirley.

Dear Harry, and Darren, and Louis

I'm sorry it has taken me so long to write to you. After what happened my parents wanted to get out of Northfield straight away. We moved back to stay with my mom's family.

I didn't know what to say. But I'm coming back to Northfield in a week's time. On Halloween. There's an old amusement park nearby, Funland, there's something I've got to do there. Something I've got to see. Something you've got to see. Meet me there. I'll explain everything.

Love from Shirley

As the founding member of The Mad Scientists' Club, Max is let in on the discussions between Harry, and Louis, and Darren. He's only moved to the school in the last six months and no one wants to tell him what went on back the Old Barnaker House. But he's up for exploring an old amusement park on Halloween, who wouldn't be? He doesn't catch the meaningful glances exchanged between the other three.

Charlie spends his time sitting alone, listening to his Walkman, writing in his notebook. But he often sits near Harry and the other Mad Scientists at lunch. Not with them, just near them. Occasionally listening in to their inane conversations. He doesn't want to hang out with these nerds but an abandoned amusement park, where else would a weirdo metalhead go on Halloween? Trick or treating?

None of you have heard of Funland. It seems to have closed down quite some time ago and Harry and Darren's parents seem strangely reluctant to talk about it.

-----



It's about 6.30pm. Darren and Harry have made their way to the outskirts of Funland, it's a few miles outside of Northfield. They're meeting Louis here. It's still light but the sun is getting very low in the sky and a light mist has started to gather between the trees. There's nothing obvious from the main road, but turning up a dirt track marked on an old map Harry has found, fading and half-vandalised billboards loom out of the mist. They're advertising Mr Fun's Funland and various rides, such as The Giddy Giggler and Mr Fun's Big Twister. A couple of the signs have been scrawled in spray paint, one of the more legible tags reads "Protect the Innocent" and another "Pedos Out!".

Charlie arrives a little after the others and follows at a distance.

In amongst the mud, and the weeds, and the dirt, there look like fresh tyre tracks

OOC:   Can you describe how your character got here. Are they in fancy dress? What did they tell their parents? What are they thinking?

[BoyBlunder78]

Darren got there on his bike,pure and simple. Things at home have been difficult since Ian...passed...the closeness he had with his parents is a thing of the past They miss their baby and part of them blame you for him sneaking out and not sending him back or bringing him back when you found him. This time of year is even harder, they didn't even notice he had left, so.ised to him living in his room. He's not wearing a costume, seeing such things as childish now, after everything that happened last year and knowing that monsters really exist, costumes and make believe has lost its appeal. He's wearing jeans, sneakers and dark blue t shirt with the Thundercats logo on a New York Mets baseball jacket and baseball cap with the Autobot insignia. He carries with him an electric torch, his baseball bat and scuffed baseball (Thunder mk2 and lightning) Ian's name crudely scratched into the bat and a weathered old Catchers mitt. He also has a piece of cheese....because...who doesn't love cheese?

Nodding towards Harry
"Hey! check this out. Looks like Shirley's already here". Looking up from the tracks he notices Charlie and Max." Hey Bruckner, Max you sure ya wanna be here?"

[Philulhu]

Notice stuff (60%) 1d100

Charlie sat and watched from a distance, aside the Walmart BMX bike his dad had bought him last Christmas. His face was painted black and white. His Aunt Deb was over visiting his dad. She’d insisted he couldn’t go out on Halloween without some kind of costume and so he now looked like a mini Gene Simmons. Well, an approximation of the Demon Lord, anyway!

He’d told his dad he was going out to meet friends and his dad was so enthralled by Deb’s latest family drama, that he hadn’t actually questioned that. A short while later, he found himself at the abandoned funfair, which seemed like a cool place to hang out on Halloween. Unfortunately, he wasn’t the only one to have that idea. He could see some recent tyre tracks, then someone hailed him from ahead.

He stared impassively for a moment, then said, ”Hey! What are you guys doing here?”

[Mr. Handy]

"We could ask you the same question," says Harry. He also rode here on his bicycle, having told his parents that he was going to hang out with his friends for Halloween. He just didn't mention where they were going. He's wearing a costume consisting of Lt. Commander Data's uniform from Star Trek: The Next Generation, with a phaser and a scientific tricorder attached to his belt. While he knows the Data is derivative of Spock, he does like the android. He is curious what Shirley intends to show them. During his time in the hospital, he lost his ability to utilize the power of his mind to manipulate reality, and he wonders if he'll have the opportunity to recover it.

Notice Stuff (43% skill) outside the amusement park:
d%

[Philulhu]

Charlie shrugged. ”It’s somewhere to go,” he replied.

He was still sat astride his BMX, in two minds whether to join them or find somewhere else to hang out. Not that anywhere else had the same vibe as the deserted Funland in front of him.

[Snapper]

1d%FF40%

Hard success.

Max arrived on his ten-speed and cautiously pushed his glasses back up his nose, looking dubiously at the alleged fun park. He waited for the others.

When everyone had gathered, he cleared his throat, trying to hide his nervousness. He still felt like the new kid. "Umm, did everyone notice those tyre tracks? Someone here before us?"

He pulled out his notebook. "I did some digging at the library and found an article about this place. Kinda gross. I wrote it down verbatim, I'll read it to you."

Northfield Chronicle
July 8, 1980
The shocking allegations against Funland employee Donald LeMann (35), who has been accused of molesting a child at Funland Amusement Park have led to three more victims coming forward.

The oldest of these claims LeMann fondled her in 1976 when she was 13 years old.

Ina Matthews, spokesman for Funland, said, 'The accusations against LeMann are nothing more than a desperate cash-grab. The simple fact that these charges are being levied against the company and not the former employee is all the proof anyone needs. We take safety as the utmost priority, and to have our reputation and brand tied to these charges is nothing short of slanderous. We are working with the police, providing both employee records and secutiry video to prove Mister LeMann was not working on the days in question.'

[Philulhu]

”Is that why you’re here?” asked Charlie, still a few yards away from the group. He wheeled his bike forward a couple of rotations. ”Looking for some creep who fondles kids? Why wouldn’t the police just him lock up?”

[Mr. Handy]

"That's not why we're here," says Harry. "This all happened years ago. I found another article about it." He shows the others a photocopy he had made:

Northfield Gazette
July 29, 1980
The body of Kyle Stemmons (12) was discovered in a shallow grave Wednesday after police searched the area where Heather Murphy said Donald MeMann led her when he attempted to rape her last August. Murphy, who was 11 at the time, said LeMann coaxed her away from Funland Amusement Park under the pretense she had won a prize to see the 'secret ride.'

Stemmons disappeared in 1974, shortly after his family had visited Funland. The previous body, a young male, has yet to be identified. Police are currently searching the area for more remains of missing children. LeMann was employed at Funland Amusement Park from 1970 to 1979. As of today, six accusers have come forward, claiming LeMann had molested them.

Ina Matthews, spokesman for Funland said, 'We are devastated at this horrific tragedy, and are working with police to the best of our ability. However, Mister Le Mann was no longer employed by the park on the day of Heather's attack, having been terminated two days prior. Furthermore, no evidence has been found showing the victims being abducted from the park itself. The accusations that Funland is somehow responsible or covering for these terrible crimes are unequivocally false.'

[BoyBlunder78]

"Some sick bastards in this world alright......Harry and myseld are here ro meet a couple of friends dunno why here.Maybe because where else would you go on Halloween.Judging by the rracks one of 'em is here..." Darren says,one hand nervously fidgeting in his pocket.

[Philulhu]

”So where’s LeMann now?” asked Charlie. ”Still doing time, I expect?”

”Hey, did you know John Wayne Gacy got himself stabbed in prison? Henry Brisbon - the I-57 killer did it with a wire shank. P’raps someone’s gonna catch up with LeMann the same way.”

[BoyBlunder78]

Looking at Charlie, Darren tilts his head? "Woah!...like a serial killer deathmatch? Cool."

[Mephistophilis]

The four of them have slowly made their way up the muddy track, keeping an uncertain distance from each other but remaining close enough to see everyone through the thickening mist. After a few hundred yards they come to a metal wire gate that half blocks the road but is practically hanging off its hinges and leaves enough room for even a fairly large car to get by.

The trees that surround the road are dense conifers, and a soupy fog hangs between the trees, enhancing the sense of a heavy presence pressing in around them. The light is getting dim as the sun sets and the mist gets denser the further they walk along the track. Eventually they arrive at what must be some kind of parking lot. The concrete is weed choked, cracked and crumbling. There are a number of cars left here of various ages, but they seem to have been abandoned and some are little more than rusted wrecks. The newest is a white Buick station wagon that seems relatively intact and looks like it might be the vehicle that made the tracks they saw further back down the road. There is a chain link fence that must mark the border of the park, and behind that you can see the struts of a surprisingly impressive rollercoaster.

Something nags at you, then you look closer. The station wagon doesn't have any wing mirrors, someone seems to have pulled them off. And then you look at the other cars, none of them have wing mirrors. Not even the rusting wrecks.

OOC:   It's getting dark. Maybe 30mins left of daylight. Anyone got flashlights?

[BoyBlunder78]

Darren has a flash light.
He doesn't see anything but a load of old, beat up cars.

[Snapper]

1d%FF40%

Success.

Max looked a bit nervous but turned analytical to calm his jitters.

"The changes between those two newspaper articles are interesting. Funland went from denial to this LeMann was no longer employed by us. It doesn't seem to have helped them, though."

"And what was that about a previous body? Not this kid Stemmons. The previous body, a young male, has yet to be identified. The article wasn't well written. Or we're missing data."

Max pulled out his flashlight and wandered over to the Buick station-wagon, shining the light into it. "Why are all the wing mirrors on all of these vehicles missing?"

[Mr. Handy]

"Because someone pulled off the mirrors," says Harry. "We are missing a lot of data. Three weeks passed between those articles. But we can interpolate. Obviously they found two bodies, but the other one hadn't been identified yet."

Notice Stuff roll (43% skill) in the parking lot:
d%

[Philulhu]

Notice stuff (60%) 1d100

Charlie didn’t think to bring a flashlight but he’ll try a luck roll to see he’s got lights on his BMX (if that’s OK?)

Luck (75%) 1d100

’Data? Who is this dork?!’ Charlie thought to himself as he examined the cars more closely.

He had an idea and he cupped his hands against the glass of one of the cars, trying to get a look inside. Was the driver’s mirror gone too?

[Snapper]

"Err, I guess I'm wondering where the second body was found then? And when?"

"And why the wing mirrors have all been pulled off?"

Max sounded a bit hesitant after the response to his previous comments, but at the same time stubbornly determined to keep asking questions.

[BoyBlunder78]

Darren looks around all the cars."Do all these cars have missing mirrors?" Feeling a shiver down his spine as he rembers back a year when mirrors brought nothing to trouble. Looking towards Harry "Maybe no mirrors is a good thing...."

[Mephistophilis]

Max shines his flashlight through the driver's window of the Buick. Illuminating the interior of the car he can see that there is some kind of orange scarf or shawl on the passenger seat, it's scattering the light and it takes him a moment to realise it is covered in shards of glass that have come from the passenger side window which has been smashed. The rear view mirror has also been removed.

Looking into another, rather more rusted car, Charlie notes that there is a broken window on that vehicle too, and no rear view mirror.

Darren paces around the cars and finds that none of the ones he looks at have wing mirrors. As he walks about the parking lot, something on the floor catches his attention. It's a bright red colour, like blood.



Walking over and crouching down to get a closer look he sees it is the rubbery fragments of a burst balloon.

-----

There's still no sign of Louis or Shirley. The wind seems to be picking up a bit and the chain link fence creaks as it sways. Funnily enough the mist doesn't seem to disperse. If anything it's getting thicker and it is hard to see anything through the fence except the struts of the rollercoaster. Even the tracks above are becoming more difficult to make out through the greyness.

[Philulhu]

”Why’s that?” asked Charlie, still looking through the car window.

”You think it’s vampires, don’tcha?” He shook his head. ”I’m not saying there aren’t people out there who drink blood and practice cannibalism, but Stoker’s vampires with the teeth and turning into mist? Well, they flat out don’t exist.”