CARTOPHILIS

I see pictures of varied styles, catered to a varied type, of the tired and common folk, that stroll through the night and bleed through the morn.

They seem to have humor that brings a tear to my eye, a snicker or a laugh that is hardly ever dry, a setup that serves to further make me cry, humor based on my pain and my dreary life.

However, my friend, it is not always so sad, joy is infectious and there is fun to be had, while the pain fades, seldom etching on a new day, the good times flow smooth in a never-ending sort of way.

It is a sordid affair, to mock my circumstance, but mockery is something that lightens my load, for instance, a prose of procrastination, that is ever easy to relate to, can inspire a begrudging way of completing all that was due.

So, you see, it is a rather double edged sword, an emotional way of picking up the roast, and so we continue this cycle of shame, that makes us get up every day without fail.

Friend: No, not really.

She was born on the darkest night of the year. Not a sound could be heard and not a color to be seen. Pitch black engulfed the kingdom. That night a girl was born. A single baby girl who shattered the silence with a sharp shrill scream.

The girl grew up with the wilting of the leaves and the light autumn breeze. Swallows flew past as the winter arrived and left. A curious child, she would observe each shade of green and brown found in the forest, each tantalizing bite of a juicy ripe fruit and each little stitch made by her mother when sewing her clothes. Such a curious child was she that her mother and father decided to send her to the village school to learn much more than they could teach her.

The girl hummed with delight when told of the school. A place where all her curiosity could be sated, a place she had never been before. It was something new, something exciting.

So she went and she learnt. She learnt about the flowers and the birds, she learnt about the seasons and how they affected the ground and the fruit borne by the trees, and she learnt about letters and words and numbers and more.

And then, she grew much more throughout the years. Her hair grew longer and so did her limbs. Her mind grew sharper and her nature gentler. She soon noticed the children around her grow along with her, she saw them change and she saw them love.

She could not understand it.

Couples holding hands, walking side by side. Tender kisses underneath cool shades of tall oaks. Brighter smiles with just a laugh from the other. It was strange and untold to the girl, now a woman.

She had asked her mother and her father but, they had smiled and said that she would know when she too felt the warmth in her heart.

And yet, she felt cold inside.

Years passed and she had yet to find that warmth. It had only grown colder inside her when her parents had passed. She wondered if she was different, if she was simply wrong compared to all the right around her.

Then, one day, a troubadour knocked on her door. The man had seemed lost and had wanted the path to the next village. As the woman helped him, he thanked her with a favor.

"You seem to a curious one. I am one who has seen all that is there to see. I have seen lands of fire and smoke, lands of air, people that wield the power of song and curse with the power of hate. Ask me what it is you seek, and I shall tell you what you need."

The woman thought about the cold in her heart and the want to feel warmth instead. Hence, she told the man her one desire.

"Ah, I see.

The cold is there for one reason and one reason only.

You lack a heart and a heart is what you need."

So saying, he went on his way leaving behind a troubled young maid.

She wondered about his answer to her long awaited question. She hadn't had a heart and she needed to remedy that.

And so, she left on the next bright day to find a heart for her own like everyone else had. A heart that beat and filled her with warmth, a heart to love and loved by another, a heart to make life brighter than before.

CHAPTER 1 : TALKING DENTURES BIT OFF MORE THAN HE COULD CHEW

I was in a circus.

One moment I was putting on my VR headset and in the next, I had high-dived into a colourful circus tent. There was loud music playing all around me with a corny opening song, like the kind you'd find in kids cartoon shows. Nothing made sense. I tried to backtrack but kept blanking.

I DID NOT REMEMBER ANYTHING !!!!!

Not even my name !!!!

I started hyperventilating and backed into something, causing me to fall backwards. A series of 'oof' and 'ouch' and 'hey !' was heard behind me.

" WELL HELLO !!!! LOOKS LIKE WE HAVE A NEW MEMBER FOR THE DIGITAL CIRCUS !!", exclaimed a set of dentures with eyes ?????

He was dressed as a ringleader, sporting a red tuxedo with a black collar and bowtie. He was wearing a white undershirt with two red buttons on it, alongside white gloves and black leggings. Lacking most human features, his head consisted of a large jaw resembling a wind-up chattering teeth toy with pearly white teeth and red gums. His eyes, the left one with a green iris and the right one with a blue iris, were floating inside the jaw. To cap it off, he was wearing a black top hat and was holding a gold-tipped baton.

" Great, its a new member so we're gonna have to do the whole theme song again.", grumbled a purple knock off Bugs Bunny from behind.

He appeared to be a purple cartoon rabbit. long purple ears on top of his head, and his overall build is tall and slender. He had black eyes with square pupils, and his sclerae and teeth were both yellow. He was wearing light pink overalls and yellow gloves. His overalls had yellow buttons on them and also a single rectangular pocket on the front.

" What is going on ???!!!! Who are you peop.....anima.......denture.......things??!!!!"

" WE ARE THE MEMBERS OF THE AMAZING DIGITAL CIRCUS, OF COURSE ! ", The dentures said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

" MY NAME IS CAINE ! WHAT IS YOURS MY DEAR ? "

" I don't really know.....Why can't I REMEMBER anything ???!!!!"

" WELL.....I EXPECTED THAT. YOU SEE, NO ONE WHO COMES HERE REMEMBERS ANYTHING. YOUR MINDS ARE THE ONE THING I CANNOT CONTROL."

" Wha....I don't understand ? What's going on ?? I want my memories back ! I want to go home....wherever that is. I know its not this place, that's for sure !!!"

" THERE IS NO WAY BACK, YOU KNOW. YOU PUT ON YOUR HEADSET, NOW YOUR ETERNITY IS THIS !!!". Saying that, the smartly dressed set of dentures proceeded to wave at everything before me, including the zany characters that I didn't pay much attention to earlier on account of me losing my mind !!!

" That was the vaguest answer I've ever heard. You didn't tell me anything that I wanted to know."

" WHATEVER YOU WANT TO SAY, YOU'LL HAVE TO WAIT BECAUSE I'M NOT HAVING A CONVERSATION WHERE I DON'T KNOW THE OTHER'S NAME."

" I thought I told you, CAINE. I don't remember jack s%*!......What the...."

" YOU CANNOT CURSE HERE, MY DEAR. ALSO, IF YOU DO NOT REMEMBER YOUR NAME I CAN GIVE YOU A NEW ONE!!"

Suddenly, a giant 5-letter slot machine appeared out of thin air right next to Caine. Quickly, Caine pulled the handle and five letters appeared on each of its slot : M Y R R H.

" Myrrh....?"

" MYRRH !! THAT'S WHAT WE WILL CALL YOU FROM NOW ON ! "

" So, now will you properly address my questions, Caine....?" I was so fu#@*ng p!$$ed that my voice was dripping with sarcasm and venom. But, I had to keep it under control. Clearly, Caine was the only one with actual answers in this place, as he seemed to look like the one in charge. He was literally dressed as a ringmaster, in a circus !

" YES, BUT FIRST......YOU NEED A TOUR OF THE CIRCUS!!!!"

"Yeah, a tour.......what ! NO! I want answers, not a bloody tour ! " Not even a second after, the scenery changed as Caine, his weird pet bubble and I hovered in the landscape of the digital circus. I could see the whole of the digital landscape, with the circus tent I fell in, behind me in gaudy shades of red and yellow.

" THIS IS THE TENT, WHERE YOUR LIVING QUARTERS ARE" he said, pointing to the tent we just came from.

'Yeah, no doy....', I thought.

" AND HERE WE HAVE THE GROUNDS. DROWN IN THE DIGITAL LAKE OR ENJOY IN RIDERY AT THE DIGITAL CARNIVAL. YOUR CHOICE, ITS A COSMIC BUFFET."

" That was a nice tour and all but, you still haven't told me who or what exactly you are ! How do I get out of here ? I want to go home. I want my memories back!!!"

" I TOLD YOU. I AM CAINE - CREATIVE ARTIFICIAL NETWORKING ENTITY. AND, AS I TOLD YOU BEFORE, YOU CANNOT GO BACK. WHEN YOU PUT ON THAT HEADSET, YOU KIND OF SEALED YOUR FATE. SORRY, NOTHING I CAN DO ABOUT IT. BUT, DO NOT WORRY. I WILL TRY MY BEST TO MAKE THIS THE BEST HOME YOU HAVE EVER HAD !!!"

This couldn't be happening. I was stuck in a weird digital hellscape, imprisoned by an AI warden without anyway to go back.........wait......how did he know about the headset ? Sure, digital worlds need a VR appliance to set foot in but, a headset ?

Headsets weren't even in fashion anymore.......wait. How did I know that but not my own name?!

I guess I really am Myrrh.....for now.

"How did you know that it was a headsAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!"

Right in the middle of my sentence, Caine had zoomed us back in the tent at lightning speed which had seriously done me in. I would never ever get used to that.

" WELL, I GUESS I WILL GO NOW ! DON'T WAIT UP !"

" Wait ! "

He was gone, just like that, in a literal pop.

As I took in that information, that he could teleport along with summoning random objects in and out of existence, I saw a crowd of zany characters surround me.

" Uh, Hi ? "

" Well hello ! My name is Ragatha. You name is Myrrh right ? Did I pronounce it right ?", a tall redhead rag doll came up putting her hand forward.

Oh! I was supposed to shake it. I got hold of her squishy cotton filled hand and shook it.

" And.....and I'm Kinger. Pleased to meet you, Myrrh. ", another tall character, who looked like a giant chess piece with a crown on top.....oh ! a king. Kinger. How.....creative.

" Yeah, I don't give a @#$& who you are. I am going to my room and doing....stuff. Peace out."

The character in question resembled a Mix and Match toy. Their head was a hot pink isosceles triangle, albeit tilted. Their right eye had a swirled black iris and yellow sclera with a bubblegum pink coloured eyelid and a mint-green zigzag left antennae. Their left eye had a black iris with white/creme colour sclera and a pale purple eyelid with 3 thin black eyelashes under it.

They had a black and white striped Y for the other antennae, as well as 2 completely different coloured arms (one was zigzagged and the other was straight). They also had a bean-shaped yellow and orange polka-dot body. Additionally, the top of their body had various sockets for appendages to be attached to with their head being attached to the top socket with a magenta neck.

Their right arm was on their middle right socket being straight and orange ending with a yellow glove while their left arm was on their top most left socket being exaggeratingly long having a red squiggly segment with pink joint featuring the rest of their arm being yellow and ending with a red crab-like claw.

They had a turquoise moon with a flamingo pink wing as either a sleeve or an accessory being on their top most right socket. Nothing is on the middle left socket of their body.

The bottom most sockets of their body were occupied by both their legs.

Their right leg had a squiggly green segment with the bottom having a purple joint and ended with an orange curl making up the bottom part of their leg. Their left leg was completely straight being blue and ended with a matching shoe.

" That was Zooble. Don't take her words to heart, she means well." Ragatha tried assuring me when the purple bunny cut in.

" And I am Jax. Pleased to meet ya, fresh meat."

Fresh meat ? that felt, not good....

" Jax ! stop scaring her. She's confused enough as it is. It would be helpful if you were nicer to her. Remember what happened to Pomni ?

" Jesus ! I was just joking. Why'd you have to take away what little joy I have left, Rags ? "

" Pomni ? Is that the mask person's name.....?" I glanced at the crying figure in the corner clutching a broken mask. She appeared to be made up of five candy red ribbons that formed a humanoid shape. Her face was a white porcelain mask with black eyes and mouth. Her body consisted of the main mass of the ribbons that curled, making a spring shape that spiralled six times and four straight and smooth ribbons that represented the arms and legs.

" Oh no, that's Gangle. Looks like she got her happy face broken again.....", Ragatha replied.

" Pomni was one of the wackos who arrived here, just like you.", Jax replied in a casual tone.

" Was.....?"

" She...uh, abstracted.", Ragatha replied softly. She was trembling a bit, like she might cry. She had so far seemed like the most stable person in this nightmare and yet, she looked like she might have a nervous breakdown.

" What do you mean by 'abstracted' ?"

" It means, that she went cuckoo crazy and lost her form completely. She lost herself, kinda like a glitchy zombie. It was dangerous for us to be around her so she was dumped in the basement by Caine. Happened a couple of years ago. No biggie. I mean it only a matter of time cause she was going crazy from the moment she arrived. Shortest time ever.", Jax narrated in such a way that felt like he was talking about the weather and not a lost friend. It was appalling.

" Jax ! Don't.......just.....don't. I have to go. Please show Myrrh her room."

" Like hell I will ! "

" Jax.....please.", Ragatha's pleading tone seemed to soften Jax up.

" Fine. But you owe me." He called out to her as she ran outside to some corner of the limited digital space Caine had shown her.

'Huh, I guess he does have some humanity intact......'

"So.....How much do you really know about the digital circus, Jax ?"

" I thought Caine gave you the whole tour. There's nothing more than that."

" He didn't tell me everything."

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(Reader is kinda an oc - like has a name and set appearance cause I dont like the y/n and e/c stuff. This fic is in third person pov unlike my tadc fic. I havent posted this fic yet cause i wanted to get some chapters done and i wanted it beta read this time....)

PROLOUGE

It was a bright summer morning in the park, kids playing on the swings, parents chatting by the benches and a few dogs being walked and pet. A truly peaceful day for a certain moody young individual who needed a break from her dark and depressing apartment and her soul crushing dead end job.

The black-haired grungy woman sat on an empty bench sporting a simple dark blue T-shirt and jeans. She took a deep breath and melted on the bench, a warm sleepy feeling overpowering her senses. She sank further into the bench and closed her eyes and then, opened them to see only darkness.

No benches, no people, no park nothing. There was nothing but pitch-black emptiness, even the bench she had been sitting on had disappeared. Vanished without a trace, as she got up from the pitch-black floor with surprise.

Maybe she had fallen asleep. Yes! That had to be it. It was just a dream that she would wake up from in three, two, one….

“Hello, Myrrh.”

A deep rich baritone voice, as smooth as butter, greeted her name. She had stared at the void and eventually it had greeted her.

She started sweating. It felt real. The voice, the place, it all felt so real.

“It’s a lovely day. Birds are singing, flowers are blooming. On days like these, people like you should be burning in hell.”

My reader insert fic of TADC !!!