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"Wait!"
"Don't worry partner, I got this."
She sprinted off confidently, jauntily even.
Jax tried to summon his normal smirk, but something pushed it back down. The hall was eerily silent, no trace left behind from the earlier scuffle other than Zooble's trashed door.
Looking up across from him, he noticed Kaufmo's door. A red 'X' had been plastered over his face.
He tore his gaze away, staring in the direction Pomni had gone, when his eyes met those of an old friend.
The red 'X' over Ribbit's face glared just as much as his eyes pierced straight into Jax's soul.
I'm too close to her.
The thought shot through him like one of Zooble's bullets had done just seconds before.
With a scoff and a swallow, pushing away the barrage of memories, he followed his partner....
"Hey you, wake up."
"...Huh?" Opening his eyes proved to be a struggle. Every minuscule blink bombarded his senses with oversaturated light and color.
"Give him a second," a woman's voice chided. "He only just got here."
"At least I'm not the greenie any more," a third voice interjected.
"Yeah, no." The first voice again. "That only worked with me. Ya know, 'cause I'm green. "
By this point, the newcomer's eyes had adjusted to the lights and sound. He sat up, taking in his unfamiliar surroundings.
The light came from both nowhere and everywhere, leaving no room for shadows, and the acrylic colors reminded him of a kid's cartoon. Even the characters studying him curiously looked like they belonged in some sort of slice-of-life videogame.
"Ah, gross." He lifted his hands to take off that stupid-looking headset with the stupid-looking game that...
"What the heck?" He leapt to his feet, patting down every inch of himself. "Where's the fricking headset?
"Well, about that," the woman said. Her description, in short, was a carrot-topped rag doll.
"Ugh, don't sugar coat it. It takes longer that way." The first voice belong to a walking frog. "Listen kid, the headset doesn't come off, we've all tried. Yes, we are stuck here. No, there isn't some magical exit, we've all looked for it. Did I miss anything?"
"Pretty sure you covered it,' said the clown, the third member of the group.
Before he could choke out any sort of discernible word, a fourth, discordant voice materialized along with a floating set of teeth. "A new member!?" It/he/whatever exclaimed. "Time for the tour!"
"Wait-wait, what?"
Approximately thirty seconds later, the newcomer and floating jaw-ringmaster-thing were back in the newly defined "circus." The welcoming committee, also gained a new member in their absence: a life size chess piece.
"Alrighty, now that that's done, you need a name!"
The stranger blinked. "But I already have a name, it's... holy-. What's my name? Why can't I remember it?"
"Ha ha, silly, no one can remember their name. That's why you need one!"
"Um... okay..." He looked around the room for inspiration. Finding none, he turned his attention to himself. His overalls were... pink, his skin/fur...purple? God, what is this??? He had... bunny ears and a tail!?
What fun, he thought sourly. I look just as stupid as the rest of them.
Bunny, what could he do with that? Well, there are "bunny-rabbits" and "jack-rabbits..." "Jax."
"Well, Jax, welllllcome to the Amazing Digital Circus! Stay tuned for your first state-of-the-art adventure!" The screaming...thing zipped away.
"Do I want to know?"
"Eh, you'll figure it out." The frog held out his hand. "I'm Ribbit, by the way. Kaufmo is the clown, Ragatha, the doll, and the giant chess piece is Kinger.
Jax took his hand. "Jax."
Ribbit smirked. "I know. Come on, Newbie; let's get you up to speed before that adventure starts."
Jax and Pomni sauntered up to the now defenseless Zooble, guns pointed straight for them.
"Well, [Boink], guys." They held up a censored finger up on all for of their hands. "See you on the other side."
When they were gone, Pomni laughed like a triumphant little kid. "We did it! We make a great team!"
The hug came unexpectedly, for both of them, but not unpleasantly. Until...
NO! He pushed her away, taking himself off-guard, staring at his hands like they were foreign to him. With bated breath, he battled off another barrage of memories. He was too close....
"I dare you to try and pop Bubble," Ribbit challenged.
"Ugh, finally. I've been waiting for this opportunity!" Jax spotted bubble high above where the trio of himself, Ribbit, and Kaufmo were seated. It was floating, seemingly without a care in the world, conveniently over a clear climbing path.
The thrill of the act was nothing compared to the deafening sound that came with it. As soon as he touched Bubble, it popped with the crack of a whip, startling him so he fell.
As soon as he hit the ground, he heard the sound of his friends cackling at his demise. "Ha ha, yes it's all very funny." Being fictional in a sense, there was no chance that he was really hurt, but man was it humiliating.
"Bubble always makes a different sound every time we-" Kaufmo couldn't even finish the thought, he was laughing too hard. "One time--when Ribbit did it--it started making Vine sounds!"
Jax broke into a grin. "Oh? Which one was that?"
"The one with the chickens or ducks or whatever," Ribbit answered. "I was never really into that stuff."
"Correction, Vine didn't exist yet."
"Dude, how long have you been here?"
"Not that long!"
The group dissolved into laughter over everything and nothing. Jax couldn't remember a time he had been happier.
Pomni and Jax entered the tent lobby along with a crowd of NPCs. Neither wanted to be there, that much was true, but neither had much of a choice.
They met up with Ragatha in the lobby. She and Pomni conversed about... something. He wasn't really paying attention. He was too focused...
"Hold on, let me get this straight. You aren't a bloodthirsty evil robot thing?"
"That would be correct," the robot replied hotly. "Every adventurer, or scientist, or whatever you people call yourselves always make assumptions. It's getting really old."
Jax scoffed. "Okay, he's officially boring."
"Jax," Ragatha chided. "We just invaded his home."
"So? It's not like we had any say about what we're supposed to do here."
"I say we draw a mustache on him," Kaufmo offered. "It's non-violent, and it's funny."
"Eh, maybe. Ribbit, what do you say."
"Honestly, it's whatever."
Jax turned around to face his friend. "Whatever? But you have the best ideas!"
Ribbit looked back at him. "So? Use Kaufmo's. Mine are [Boink] today."
Suspicious, the rabbit squinted at him, as though searching for something. Whatever it was he was looking for, he didn't find it, so he turned back to problem at hand. "I need a sharpie."
"Yo, what was that earlier?"
Ribbit paused while opening the door to his room. He thought, shrugged, then said. "I guess I'm just tired today."
"We're digital," Jax reminded him. "We don't get tired."
"Not physically, maybe, but don't even try to deny this is getting monotonous," Ribbit snapped. Then he sighed. "It's not a big deal, I just need a few minutes."
Jax watched his friend disappear behind the door. There had definitely been days he felt like doing the same. "I'll see you at that stupid bonfire tonight, right?" he called through the door.
"You bet," was the only reply.
Ribbit came to the fire. He acted like himself. There was absolutely nothing to worry about.
The Favorite Character Awards ceremony started with a spectacle only capable of Caine. Only appreciated by him, too.... probably.
Jax had decided not to sit with the others. He just couldn't bring himself to do it. He didn't feel right. So he stationed himself in the back, surrounded by identical NPCs, wishing it would end faster.
The longer it went, the more restless he got. Shifting in his seat brought no relief, nor did any other tick he could think of. The gaze of the NPCs, which were completely focused on their creator, seemed to bore into him; he couldn't shake that feeling that every move he made was judged.
He let his head fall into his hands, leg jumping furiously, breath coming fast. I need to get out of here. The doors couldn't have been farther away. He lurched toward them, through them, to the bathroom.
The sink kept him upright. Somehow, he was able to turn the water on.
He just. Couldn't. Get. Him. Out.
"...You okay in there?"
He stood in front of Ribbit's door, fist raised idly to knock again if his friend didn't respond.
"I'm fine, Jax," came the gruff reply. "I'm just tired of Caine's games."
That much he could understand. "Kaufmo and I are planning a prank on Kinger, if you're interested."
There was groan. "Not right now. Go away."
The response was very un-Ribbit-like in Jax's eyes, but he accepted it and left anyway, thinking maybe he was doing some solo scheming. There would be some epic payback in store for him then.
The same exchange happened the next day, and the next, to the point where everyone was checking up on him every chance they got. Eventually, he just stopped responding.
"That sounds like a common sign that someone's abstracting!" Caine said cheerfully when they asked him about it. "That... would not be a good thing."
Ragatha laughed nervously. "It's probably... not that... right?"
Caine considered it. He held so still for so long that Jax began to think he was buffering. "You're right, it's probably nothing! Anyway, for today's adventure-"
"Hold on, what exactly is abstracting?" Jax interrupted. "No one's done that since I've been here."
"Abstracting is when you lose yourself," Caine explained. "No one knows why it happens, but signs that point to it include: unsteady temperament, self-isolation, obsession, and so many more signs of mania!"
"Rrriiiight. I'll keep that in mind."
The ringmaster continued his introduction to the day's adventure, too focused on his own theatrics to notice Jax slip away. As soon as he was sure no one had seen him, he took off running to Ribbit's room.
"You better be in there," he muttered to angrily himself. He should have known something was wrong. Their friendship had been too full for one to simply push the other away. He had been distant lately, not making as many jokes, leaving the creativity of the pranks to him and Kaufmo. The Signs had been right in front of him.
Jax's fist reached the door before his feet stopped moving. He fell into it, pounding with all his strength. "You better open this door! I will break it down!"
There was no reply from inside, only the eerie silence of the hall filled with Jax's own labored breathing. He beat the door again, trying the knob with his left hand. Soon, he resorted to kicking at the lock. With every impact, he prayed that the mechanism would buckle. "God [Shick] it! Open Up!"
Finally, the lock splintered, allowing him to wrench it open and behold what was inside. The creature he saw made his insides twist in ways that weren't natural. A black, glitching, monster held the place his friend had sat many times. The creature towered over him, focusing its many eyes on him.
"Ribbit?"
It studied him intently before charging.
Jax didn't think twice before slamming the door and barricading it. "CAINE! HELP!"
"Jax! There you are. Did you really think you could skip out on this little adventure? I made it with you in mind!"
"Not now," the rabbit ground out. "Ribbit's gone!"
"Oh, tut tut." Caine snapped his fingers like he was summoning a waiter at a gala. Suddenly, Jax was on the far side of the hall, watching him lower his friend into a hole in the ground. "It looks like it's time for the cellar."
"Wait, wait! Can't you fix him?"
"Oh Jax, you can't bring someone who had abstracted back! It's just not possible!" He laughed a little to prove how silly the question was. The hole sealed itself, cutting whatever was left of Ribbit from the land of the living.
Jax barely heard anything that Caine said next. It was like he was...numb, almost. Philosophical was never a word to describe him, or anyone else in this hellhole, but Ribbit was a thinker. He was human. And his emotions got the best of him.
When his breathing steadied, he brought his head up to look in the mirror.
"God, you look stupid."
He couldn't let any of this bother him. They were all characters now; impervious to everything but emotional trauma. Things could only get worse from here.