WEEK 5

[grimgrinningghosts]

[It's been a month now, and even more people keep dying. Even more, one of the beloved (if.... very weird) guests killed two people just because it was "funny", and while there seems to be other people they don't seem too interested in helping out or even being seen.

This week a new land opens to the public which, depending on the last trial might be a blessing or a curse.]

17 Guests Remain

[SATURDAY SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY]

Comments

investigation?

[candymancan]

[What's a man to do when the Love Of His Life[tm] betrays him by despising his unintentional association with a cat and mouse? Especially when the Love Of His Life[tm] proceeds to get executed in a grim yet cartoonish manner?

Investigate the weed dispensary, that's what he should do. And so, Wonka will be found at the new land, examining the paraphernalia, the theater, and the snacks. He's not really looking for anything in particular- he's really just trying to keep himself occupied now that he doesn't have someone frequently available to bounce jokes off of.

After a while, he settles down in the theater, curiously watching whatever's on. The curiosity only grows whenever it changes from cartoons to Alfred Hitchcock.]

What does Hitchcock have to do with this place, anyway?

dispensary

[grimgrinningghosts]

[There’s a shady curtain at the back of the store. It appears to be covering up the entrance to some backroom.]

Re: dispensary

[candymancan]

[owo??

Wonka peers behind the curtain without a second thought- not only is he a nosy bastard, but given the small number of employees here, there's a good chance that whatever's behind this curtain could involve King Dice.

And, yes, one of Wonka's highest priorities in life is "finding new ways to hassle King Dice".]

[grimgrinningghosts]

[Two things!

The first being a wall of shelves, lined with boxes of edibles. Weed-infused barbecue sauce? You got it.

The other, maybe a little less important, is that the other wall is practically taken up by what appears to be a demonic, voodoo-esque altar. It seems...someone was worshipping here.]

[candymancan]

[Why do i feel like "weed infused barbecue sauce" is something from that fucking netflix cooking show

Anyway.

Wonka is absolutely gonna wander over try to get a better look at this alter. Is there anything on it? Any weird, cryptic languages he can't decipher? Odd talismans?

... People lurking in the room that he hasn't noticed yet?]

[grimgrinningghosts]

[Quite a few talismans hanging up! As well as a few pieces of what appear to be Greek art.

In fact, pinned to the altar are numerous artistic depictions of what appears to be Hades. At least, that’s what you can assume from the darker clothing and the skulls. His form is a bit unfamiliar, though, and skews a bit closer to what people would think of when they think about Satan-esque imagery.

The flaming blue hair and skin, for one thing.]

[ilovepuppies]

[If Wonka listens closely, he might hear the faint screaming of a teenage girl in the distance.]

[candymancan]

[Lepo i thought this was nondisney, you liars

How does Wonka know it's Hades, though, and not like. Thanatos, Greek god of Death. Or Pluto, the Roman form of Hades. Or multiple other death gods throughout the centuries. Do the images have any of the symbols and attributes traditionally associated with Hades? There's the obvious ones, like the three headed dog Cerberus, the Helm of Darkness, the presence of Persephone, the presence of a screech owl, pomegranates, keys, his throne, the cornucopia, his chariot...

Just going by your brief description of a blue figure with blue fire hair, neither of which are traits traditionally applicable to Hades, there is no way for Wonka, in character, to recognize this as Hades, unless he has happened to have seen a single movie made by a certain animation company, which loosely adapted Greek mythos, sacrificing much of the traditional imagery, making many of the gods and goddesses unidentifiable to the viewer without the context of knowing about the movie itself and, preferably, having at least a brief understanding of classical mythology. This is because the movie only briefly glosses over the gods and goddesses themselves, aside from Zeus and Hades, who only have a vague connection to their classical selves.

In essence, the only way that Wonka could recognize these artistic interpretations of Hades, as Hades, is if he has seen an animated movie from 1997, well past the time that Charlie and The Chocolate Factory is traditionally set. The only way around this is if one of these drawings/paintings happens to say "HADES" at the bottom in large, bright red, Impact font, with a massive arrow pointing directly at the image of Hades. There is no other option.

Nevertheless,]

Why are people worshiping a Greek god in a weed dispensary...?

[grimgrinningghosts]

[You know what. I can’t argue with this. Theres a red arrow pointing at Hades to label him as such.

There are also some candles attached to the altar, spewing out smoke. Someone was here recently.]

[candymancan]

[Thank you for putting up with my stupid bullshit tags. you're so valid.

Can Wonka hear anyone/anything in the adjacent room[s]? Aside from the distant shrieking of a young teenager girl that he's just going to ignore for right now since it seems unimportant.

Also, what do the talismans look like?]

[grimgrinningghosts]

[He can’t, oddly enough.

The tailsmans look something like this. In that style, at least.]

[candymancan]

[:supereyes:

Wonka's just. Gonna take one of them, if he can. Surely nothing bad could come of that.

What else in the room is of interest?]

[grimgrinningghosts]

[He can!

Nothing at the moment, no!]

[candymancan]

[ok Cool! Wonka leaves the way he came, the talisman in his hands.

Now comes the question- will Wonka actually be useful and tell someone about this, or be a dick and say absolutely fuck all?

... Normally, it'd be the latter, but even Wonka can tell this is important to them being trapped here. So.]

Theater

[in4apounding]

[Penny's kind of been here a while, on the basis that she can actually use this place instead of staring at a bunch of stuff she can't actually imbibe, smoke, or ingest. She's seen a couple of the Hitchcock segments by now.]

He's kind of creepy? ...Like, a different kind of creepy than Mister Swackhammer or Mister King Dice, but maybe the kind of creepy Mister Swackhammer wishes he could be?

[candymancan]

Ehhh. I don't think that's quite it. I feel it's more likely they chose Hitchcock to symbolize... something. Or maybe reference something?

Or for a stupid, shitty joke. All of those are good options.

[in4apounding]

Maybe? It doesn't seem cruel enough to be their idea of a joke, but I don't think I'll ever completely understand how they think.

[candymancan]

The joke doesn't have to be cruel- as long as it's funny to them, that's what matters. Especially if it appears surreal and confusing to us.

[in4apounding]

Maybe, but it sure seems like cruelty has been a part of everything else they've thought is funny. ...Maybe we're just- missing some context or something?

[candymancan]

Missing context sounds about right to me. Of course, who knows if we'll ever discover that context.

[in4apounding]

I suppose we could just ask, but- I'm not sure I want to understand their humor that badly. If we could even trust any answers we got.

[candymancan]

Mhm. Better to just wait it out and see if further context is revealed over time.

[in4apounding]

I'll pay close attention to see if there's any context for a large, creepy narrator man.

[Sorry Rod.]

Hopefully it's not actually important.

[candymancan]

Any potential clue as to how and why we're trapped here is worth something, even if it's obscure.

[in4apounding]

I still think there must be people besides King Dice working for Mister Swackhammer. Or he was lying a lot more than usual when he said he wasn't expecting us, after we got here. Those profiles had to come from somewhere.