❧ It's all fun and games...

[luministimods]

[if anyone is near the town square, they might just notice the cloud of gas begin to dissipate. moments after it's gone, all CATs and vidscreens turn on, showing the black and white image of the mayor, but the smile on his face doesn't even come close to reaching his tired eyes. in the background, one can hear this song playing faintly.]

Greetings, citizens of Luministi. I have a few announcements I'd like to make this lovely Saturday afternoon on behalf of our very own Verita. First of all, our other dear friend, Dr. Resarci, is still on a leave of absence after what seems to be a horrible, stubborn cold struck him sometime last week. And during his well-deserved vacation, even! Probably all for the best he was unavailable and missed former Deputy Drew's execution late last night. My condolences to the families of his victims as well as to his own. Let us observe a moment of silence for our lost citizens.

[he bows his head, the music in the background ceasing while a moment passes in silence. as he looks up again, the music resumes playing]

Secondly, it seems the strange fog that has been hanging about the town has finally decided to move on, and just in time too! Our very own Janus Theatre will be showing double features on its outside screen every night for the next week as part of the celebration of the opening of its new arcade wing. Might want to bundle up, though. I have been informed that we are expecting an unusual cold front to be coming in. Might even see some frost on those lawns in the early morning if we are lucky. Highly unusual for this time of year! Why, I cannot remember--

[in the middle of his speech about the weather, the transmission on only the new residents' CATs cuts out suddenly, leaving the vidscreens still broadcasting the Mayor's rather boring announcement. a moment later, however, a new transmission begins with the Mayor yet again--but something seems wrong, from the disheveled state of his normally perfectly coiffed hair to the buttons of his shirt left undone, even the dark circles under his eyes that are normally covered with a judicious application of make-up. he isn't looking at the camera, nor does he have his normal piece of music on. instead, his eyes are focused on just below the sightline of the camera.]

This is one step too far... I knew hiring him would be a risk, but now this?! [he covers his face with one hand] Oh my poor little girl... I never should have--no, I'll make this right somehow. I never thought it would go like this. This isn't what I wanted! [he clutches a ragdoll of sorts to his chest]

[he falls silent for a long moment, and when he speaks again, his voice is calm and evenly measured] We need to find him. We need to tell--[he notices the camera is on at last]--has that been recording this entire--

[the new transmission cuts out only to be replaced with yet another. a third, but brief, transmission begins, showing the flickering image of what appears to be a grab machine or rather, a whole row of them. a voice exactly like the one heard in the phone booth before its destruction speaks:]

Find it before it's too late.

[and finally, both transmissions cease altogether just as the Mayor is wishing everyone a great day.]


❧ Plot Details: It's all fun and games...

Hmm, something's rotten in the town of Luministi, it seems! But who are our Claudius and Polonius? Where are our Hamlet and Ophelia? Or is this simply another tragedy-in-the-making entirely? Another mystery to ponder, just like Resarci's continued absence in the town, but he isn't the only one now. Someone else is missing... And throughout the week, some of the old residents will start to dwindle away as well. The restaurants won't be as filled with patrons for example, but with the increasing amount of dolls and toys around in the stores, one would think there'd be more children about at least. But there is not a child in sight. Bicycles belonging to the old residents will remain exactly where they've been parked, but their owners won't be coming to retrieve them.

For now, though, the gas cloud has indeed gone away! New residents will begin to recover their sense of self within minutes, but they'll have one hell of a headache as their memories try to reconcile themselves. It must be noted that everyone will remember everything they said and did as their past selves. So if you said or did anything you might regret, well, you've got to handle the consequences now. Ah, the folly of youth...

But on a similar train of thought, as of the Mayor's announcement(s), any time you want to enter and exit a building in town (be it the library, town hall, any of the restaurants/shops, etc), you will be faced with a little game. A question or image will appear in front similar to the holograms usually broadcast by the CATs, and no matter how strong you are, you won't be able to open that door until you answer. What appears could be something simple like a number game where you answer maths questions, or perhaps two cards placed side-by-side and you have to guess which one is going to be higher--or lower--than the other. It could also be something like the shell game, or perhaps you'll have to play a hand of poker. You could very well be asked what number is the 198th decimal of pi. You could also be asked trivia questions, which may pertain to the town specifically but could be anything--and may or may not even apply to your universe.

The questions can be as hard or as easy as you'd like--but if you received a gift basket from the mayor after helping to solve the poison riddle, you'll find that you'll receive harder games to play, causing you to be more likely to suffer a penalty for a wrong answer. If you give a wrong answer or lose the game you're playing, the door you're trying to enter will remain closed and you'll have to try again until you get it right. But that isn't the real penalty.

And if that isn't enough, you'll have to play a little game to even get into your own homes, but any questions or riddles there will always revolve around your own personal data. Unlike in town, however, it won't let you know whether you're correct or not. The door will still open no matter what, but if you answer with a lie--yes, it can tell if you have--then you will incur the same penalty as you would elsewhere in town.

But what is this penalty, you might be asking! Well...with each wrong answer you give, the more you'll change into a doll version of yourself. The change won't cause any physical pain for the most part and could go by unnoticed at first. It could start small: a few strands of hair replaced with yarn or synthetic hair, loss of appetite because you'll have no stomach to feed--or you'll begin coughing up bits of fluff and have no idea why--even the loss of a few inches in height as you start to shrink. Your eyes might even become buttons, but you won't be able to tell immediately because your vision will remain. Anything could happen, really. Clothes will change as well so there won't be any naked dolls running around town. These changes will grow more severe as you lose at more games. For example, a character could eventually shrink to only 2-3 feet tall. A full transformation into a doll is possible, but you'll still be able to do things, though a doll body will limit how fast you can run/walk, how much you can lift, etc. You might even need help from those who aren't fully changed, especially if you go to the grab machines in that state.

The grab machines aren't hidden or anything, not by any means. The Mayor mentioned a new arcade wing in the Janus Theatre, and what a wing it is! It's so big and wonderful they had to transform the lower levels below the theatres into the new arcade just to accommodate everything. Any arcade game you can imagine is there, ranging from Pong to Skii Ball to air hockey, all the way up to fully immersive virtual reality chambers where spectators can watch your adventures on the outer screens. Like any arcade, the machines spit out redeemable tickets to win any number and caliber of prizes, but it's the grab machines that are the most important. Why? Because they contain the lost items stolen when the gas cloud first overtook everyone. The only way to get them back is to play. Any character who retrieves their item from the grab machine will get an extra bonus as well--their item will be released along with a golden coin embossed with a lion on one side and a sun on the other. Those characters who earned one of these coins during their first week in town will receive two coins when they win--the one they lost and a new one.

To play any game in the arcade, simply pay for it with your CAT. There are no coin slots or coin machines around. Just games and a prize station. Oh yes, and playing these games and losing holds the same penalty as it does if you fail trying to enter a building. Perhaps that's why there are so many abandoned bicycles near the theatre...

Oh, and just as a reminder, this is our last call for any applications! Applications close on August 28th!

As always, if you have any questions/comments/concerns, feel free to comment here!

Have fun~