#mod october

106,without looking up: with your eyes

THE OTHER

🎪 The Other moves through the bustle of Hell Fest’s opening-night crowd with a familiar and predatory ease. The throng does not bother him. With his mask donned, he blends in seamlessly with the employees that prowl the park. Attendees part from his path as he approaches: some level him with bold looks while others duck behind friends with nervous titters. They do not matter to him. His attention has already been captured entirely.

🎵 You’re in the middle of another unsuccessful attempt to persuade your friends to go on into the more intense territories of Hell Fest without you when a strange instinct urges you to turn your head. Though you can’t see his eyes past the deformed mask concealing his features, you can feel the scare actor’s gaze fixed upon you as he slowly passes your group. One of your friends notices the silent exchange with a gleeful grin – “Okay, you’re definitely coming. No more arguments!” They loop an arm through yours to tug you into line; oblivious to the goosebumps covering the skin beneath your sleeves.

🎪 In a group of five being sorted into a two-seater ride, it’s no surprise to you when you’re left to sit in a car alone. You silently hope they’ll wait for you on the other side as you clamber into your seat and the safety bar is secured snugly over your lap. Unbeknownst to you, the masked actor from before follows your route with deliberate steps, hidden completely by the red lighting and fog that obscures your vision in the gloom.

🎵 When the ride grinds to a screeching halt and a pre-recorded message drawls an advisory to remain calmly seated, you sink down with a white-knuckled grip on the safety bar. “This can’t be happening...” You’d meant to sound irritated and brave, but your fear constricts your throat into an anxious pitch that destroys your façade. Your eyes dart around as emergency lights flash overhead, certain that an awful scare is just around the corner.

🎪 His intention had only been to crouch on the front of the car and loom over you for a proper examination of your character. Instead, he allows himself to entertain this curious fascination by turning the heat up a little higher — a reckless decision, a weakness . . . but one that he cannot resist. There is something different about you; something that tells him not to harm you like the rest. He reveals himself and strides toward you casually, illuminated by the pulsing red lights overhead.

🎵 Your first reaction when you see a figure approaching is relief – clearly, you’re finally being escorted off the malfunctioning ride. This quickly fades into unease as he releases the safety bar and climbs onto the bench beside you rather than allowing you to exit. You gasp and press yourself against your side of the car in a futile attempt to put as much space between the two of you as possible in the now-cramped confines. The lock snaps shut with a firm click.

🎪 You barely notice that the car has resumed its course along the track. Given the proximity you now hold with the stranger, you can begin to make out the vaguest details of his eyes as he watches you intently. Fear has restricted your voice, but The Other fills the silence with quiet humming of a rhyme you struggle to name. When the lights suddenly go out to pitch you into blind darkness, you feel warm fingers reach into your personal space to ghost across your cheek. His breath rasps softly behind his mask. You dare not move a muscle.

 Hey Everyone! Mods Cedo, Kallet, Defect, October and Rose here. We’re rising from the dead to open commissions for donations to organizations supporting Covid-19 relief and protesters. Following is commission info. 

035:is it working?

049:yes

035:what

049:wait n-

035:i know i know its bad for the environment