Brianna & Ronald

[Laraqua]

Brianna awakens, feeling groggy, though the pain in her face has subsided dramatically. The world is pure darkness. Her wrists and ankles are still bound but the rope has come somewhat loose. A piece of paper is held in her hand, pushed up behind her back.

[trixie]

Brianna awakens, startled, and looks confused and shocked. She gasps as she realizes that she's been bound. Thank goodness her pain has subsided, though. The ropes have started to hurt her wrists, however, primarily her one burned wrist, and she winces as she lays on the ground. She sits up, wriggling to get the ropes loose, and tries to pull her torso through the binding on her arms. As she does, she accidently kicks Ronald, hears him grunt, and realizes for the first time he's there.

"Ronald!" she whispers. "Ronald is that you??!"

[DSIGFUSS]

Ronald sits quietly on the only balcony seat in an old theatre hall. The walls are ornately carved and decorated. The stains suggest the building itself is old and decrepit. There is an old man sitting beside him, chewing his lip and grumbling grumpily to himself about the production. Ronald looks out into the dark theatre and sees movement in the rows of seats on the ground floor. Shadows of the audience flicker in and out of the main body of darkness. Shadows of wolves and pigs, all laughing at nothing in particular. Some, it seems, are simply carrying on polite conversation with each other. Some appear human but warped in an an all too familiar way.

Ronald looks at the stage curtains. Giant red velvet monstrosities, stretching all the way to the ceiling, 30 ft above the floor. The stage curtains almost seem alive and drip with blood and fur.

"The Show's about to begin!"

Says the old man sitting next to him in a very familiar voice

"We should get out while we still can!" Heh Heh Heh!

Ronald finds himself chuckling uncontrolably.

Nobody would buy the tickets. Heh Heh Heh!

Just then, a spotlight appears on the front stage curtains. The crowd roars to life. In the darkness, it looks like the audience is tearing each other appart in a frenzy of mahem and laughter.

Ronald cringes but continues chuckling.

I wonder if they'll refund us at the gate?

The old man sitting next to him replies.

I wonder if they can afford a gate? Heh! Heh! Heh!

The curtains part and and the crowd goes silent. Standing in the center of the stage wearing a showman's flat top hat, is a thin scrawny looking frog.

"I'm Kermit the Frog and welcome to the Muppet show. Our guest tonight... Brianna. yaaaaaaaaaay!"

A spotlight shines on a side curtain off to the side of the theatre. Brianna, completely healed, wearing a shiny pink dress and ribbons in her hair, takes a bow. The crowd loves her.

Ronald looks down at the audience. All puppets. Pig puppets and cow puppets and wolf puppets all laughing hysterically and patting each other on the back and throwing popcorn everywhere. He recognizes the crazy old man sitting beside him making fun of the show too. He's from the Muppet show too. Ronald looks down at his hands and sees only those of a puppet. He's still wearing the same clothes he had on in the hospital, but everything was smaller and made of cheap fabric.

My god! I'm a puppet.

Suddenly, Gonzo stands up and pulls out a flamethrower. He sets Brianna ablaze and turns to the audience and nods his head up and down, laughing maniacally. Brianna screams in pain as she burns. The audience roars its approval.

Ronald can't help himself.

That was a pretty dress.

The old man chuckles.

Yeah, pretty flammable. Heh Heh Heh!

You could say she was on fire. Heh Heh Heh!

Ronald continues to watch Brianna burn and run screaming all over the theatre, catching other puppets on fire in her wake.

Kermit waves his tiny frog arms in the air like a derranged cheerleader.

"OK! OK! Settle down folks. I'd like to introduce our next act."

Just then, Brianna runs screaming past Kermit on stage, her entire body a flaming inferno.

"Ahem, Scooter? Would somebody please put out that little girl."

"Sure thing boss," replies Scooter

Scooter chases Brianna around the stage with a fire extinguisher and the audience goes wild.

The old man puppet looks at Ronald and winks.

I'd like to put that little girl out!

Jesus thinks Ronald, but helplessly chuckles back and responds with his own witty remark.

Me too. Put her out on her ass! In the dumpster! Heh! Heh! Heh!

Ronald can't believe what he just said. Tears stream down his face as he watches Brianna burn and then collapse motionless on the stage. Scooter sprays her down with the fire extinguisher and then drags her off stage.

The audience settles down as Kermit introduces the next act, waving his hands frantically, like a deranged cheerleader.

"Ladies and Gentleman! Mickey and the Janitors. Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!"

The red curtain opens to Mickey the Mouth standing center stage, with a line of puppets behind him, all dressed like janitors and holding mops. The janitors start to dance around in unison as Mickey sings.



Rub Dub I was mopping in the tub. All up on a Saturday night. Blood Blood... there was blood in the tub and I was thinking everthing was all right..........

Ronald watches in horror as the act continues. He turns to the old man and throws pun after pun at him, unable to stop himself.

These guys are all washed up! I could mop the floor with em! They're all wet. They should clean up they're act. heh! heh! heh!

Ronald looks over at the old man puppet who chuckles away. His mouth opens so wide, it splits at the seams, shooting stuffing all over Ronald's lap. Then a human hand bursts from the old man puppet's mouth and begins to strangle Ronald. The old man's chest bursts as stuffing flies in all directions. To Ronald's shock and surprise, Louie's head emerges from the puppet, continuing to strangle Ronald with a vice like grip. Louie lifts Ronald into the air as he climbs out of the torn and shredded puppet and chuckles slowly.

Heh............. Heh.................. Heh!

Your up next Ronald! says Louie. Break a leg!

Louie throws Ronald off the balcony into the crowd of thrashing puppets, all calling for his blood. Ronald screams in terror as he plummets to the ground, only to wake at Brianna's feet. Startled and confused, he looks around.

Brianna? Where are we? Where's Louie?

Ronald can't decide which nightmare is worse.

[Laraqua]

Ronald finds himself similarly loosely bound. It is almost as though his shoelaces were tied together rather then that they were bound together. His hands also, have some flexibility in movement. His head hurts and he is on some sort of sandy floor. The air smells musty.

Both Brianna and Ronald have a blanket to cover them and a hot water bottle sits beneath their backs, protecting them from the cold chill.

Brianna's squirming knocks something hard that rolls away and hits something else with a dull clack. The paper is lost from her hand.

(Dex x 4 to escape - multiple attempts allowed unless you tighten the bindings with a 96 or above)

[trixie]

Brianna effortlessly pulls out of the bindings, and sits up. She feels around in the dark. Wasn't there a piece of paper in my hand? She feels for a few moments with an open hand to where she was sitting, looking for it.

"Ronald?" she whispers, "are you there? Do you want me to untie you?" she says it as quietly as she can for him to still hear her.

[Laraqua]

Brianna finds the neatly folded piece of paper. She also finds a series of large, cylindrical objects stacked only a few feet from her.

[trixie]

"Louie's a big meany!" Brianna whipsers in reply to Ronald's question. "He's not here I don't think. He punched you in the back of the head with a gun, Ronald!"

Brianna holds tight to the piece of paper and unfolds it. Of course she can't read it though, as it's pitch black. "Did you get to keep your flashlight?" she asks Ronald, then starts feeling around in the dark to see what those big metal things are.

[Laraqua]

The cylinders are large, heavy and are wrapped with paper. The top of the stack - about three high - has a set of circular grooves. When she knocks it with her knuckle, it mades a heavy metallic thunk, as though full of something. Above the cylinders is a smooth, rectangular shape that follows the walls - shelving?

Ronald finds no flashlight on him though he has his wallet with him. As he moves, something slips off his chest and down his shirt. Something small and metal. Some sort of bell?

[DSIGFUSS]

Sorry Kiddo! No torch here.

Ronald frees himself as well. He holds the bell in his hands, feeling by sight.

Janitor!

Don't worry about Louie now sweety.

Ronald unties all his bindings and then inspects the cylinders.

Stay close Brianna and whispers only OK?

[O.C. Does Ronald still have his backpack? His puppet? His bird Edgar? His Banjo?]

[trixie]

Brianna puts the paper inside the band of her thick woollen stockings, then starts to crawl on her hands and knees, pausing to put one hand out in front of her every so often, to feel for the wall. Once she finds it, she starts to crawl along the perimeter, hoping to find the doorway.

"Ok, Ronald, I'll whisper only. But I really want to get away from Louie. Do you want to come with me?"

[Laraqua]

The walls are lined with shelving containing heavy bags of paper, packets of oddly shaped items and more of the cylinders of varying sizes but always the same shapes. Brianna makes it to the corner and starts feeling around the next wall when she bangs her head hard against a piece of wood that swings gently away. Reaching out to grasp it, she finds its a ladder with rope sides and wood planks for stepping on.

[DSIGFUSS]

Ronald get up and follows Brianna.

OK, but be really quiet.

He reaches for the cylinders and feels around for a lid of some description. Ronald whispers out to Brianna through the darkness.

Brianna, are you OK?

[Laraqua]

The 'lid' is sunken in a millimeter or two from the rest of it. These cylinders can't be opened. Feeling up her finds several jars with lids that could be unscrewed.

[DSIGFUSS]

Ronald is starting to breathe heavily now.

Don't lose it in front of the kid. Don't you dare....

He opens the jar, shaking nervously.

Damn you Louie!

[Laraqua]

The jar is now open. A slightly sweet smell permeates the air but it's too faint to be identifiable.

[trixie]

Brianna pulls gently on the ladder to see if it will hold weight. She stands, and if it doesn't cave, she puts her first foot on it.

"Ronald! I think I found something!" she says in a hushed tone.

[Laraqua]

The ladder holds.

[trixie]

Brianna climbs, foot over foot, holding on tight. Swinging madly in the dark is a disturbing feeling, however, so she goes slowly.

"Ronald.....you coming???"

[Laraqua]

Her hands brushes wood barely a few feet up. It seems to be some sort of trapdoor. The role ladder is wedged in the gap, holding the trapdoor partially open.

[trixie]

Brianna takes a moment to talk to herself quietly. The voice inside her head is usually the reasonable one.

"So, if this comes up someplace scary, and I'm trying to escape....there might be people standing near it guarding it. Hmm..." she whispers.

She pushes very, very gently on it so that it will hopefully open just a crack, and sticks her head very close to the crack so that she can see what is above.