Continued from the previous chapter.
Content warning: Mentions of death. [Don't worry, it's temporary.]
As a small reminder: Emma = Enna [An elf],
Sarah = Sara [A fox girl demi-human],
and Sally = Esmerelda [or Essie for short, A human Princess]
Chapter 2 - 1-inch Fantasy life
The horses trotted along the gravel road, passing grassy fields as they hauled the carriage to its destination - a magnificent city, with high walls and the towers of a castle far beyond them. Why was this particular carriage headed there, you may wonder. Its occupants were looking forward to settling into their new home for the weekend. A castle at the far edge of the city, towering over small buildings designed in a cottage-core style. As it made its way to its destination of Elador, the Princess and her retainers looked out the window of the carriage, at the large enclosure they were in.
The enclosure itself was about the size of a football field, but more rounded, like a circle. Each side has a miniature city, big enough for the tiny people to live in, and at their scale it even looks real. Most of it is Venned, but some things like furniture and food are not. Each city has an architectural theme for the 4 main races. Humans have a castle and cottage-core medieval styled buildings. Elves have fake trees surrounding their city, which has a lot of arches and a ‘bended in with the trees’ style. Demi-humans, or beast-kin as they’re known at the event, had what might be considered a ‘poor’ city - boxed houses, very open market spaces, and not a lot of style. The Orcs had a fortress of black iron, and lots of evil looking spikes and bolts holding their city together. Each city also had an environmental theme. The human city was the opposite end of the enclosure to the Beast-kin city, with a gravel road connecting them. Their environment was ‘grassy plains’ themed. The gravel road had an offshoot that also led towards the black box at the edge of the enclosure between the Orc city and the Human city. The elves had an entire forest, fake of course, hiding their city away. While the orcs had sand in their part of the enclosure, at that scale it was like a desert. The walls of the enclosure were painted and shaped to look like a dense and dark giant forest, encircling all around. Except the desert portion, where it looked like rocky canyons.
There’s a large transparent cage covering the whole enclosure, to keep the birds out. It had an openable part by the Black box for regular sized staff members to enter for cleaning, or to put in and take out carriages and miniature creatures. Event goers had complained about “Roc’s” (giant fantasy birds) swooping down and stealing their friends, which is why they built the cage, having it be transparent also keeps it from being too immersion breaking. Insects are sometimes a problem, they’re still too small to cause harm, and flee from people despite them being Venned to an inch tall, but event goers sometimes mention “monster attacks” in reference to a spider nestling between their “house” and the “bakery” next door. The walls were “electrified with an enchantment” to keep the bugs out after that, basically a big bug zapper. Nobody is allowed to touch the walls surrounding the cities anymore as a result, so spies and assassins have to get more creative with their infiltrations and escapes. And due to earthworms causing problems, even the grass was fake. The entire enclosure would be covered in an obscenely large tarpaulin, for the months between each session. The park was big enough that they didn’t need to remove it. And since the cities themselves were Venned objects, only the enclosure itself needed to be cleaned between events. The cities were somewhat modular builds requiring buildings to be slotted in place like lego, however. And the furniture and food were real objects. There was a company that made tiny furniture for Venned humans, the V-LARP’s management had a field day with that.
So, you might wonder, ‘why the park if you’re just going to fake the environment anyway?’ - Two reasons. Firstly, the park would be quiet, closed for the weekend to regular visitors, while also being far enough from the main roads. It was a fairly large park after all. Then of course, being in a building causes the noises and vibrations from neighbors to be even worse and more noticeable at 1 inch scales. Plus, there weren’t many buildings big enough for what the event planners wanted, and the ones that were had terrible echoing due to the size. The second reason is that the air would be fresher. 3 days, or 50 hours really, of air-con at that scale is awful on your lungs, the dehydration is even worse, even if the damage would be temporary. Not to mention, this way they could have weather like rain and wind. The ‘monsoons’, due to the size of rain drops at that scale. It’s fun trying to survive those at 1 inch scale, especially if it starts pouring in the middle of a big front-line battle. The enclosure has drains and a slight curve, so rainwater can drain out, and if it gets too bad then ‘the gods can invoke a protective shield’ - the event management putting up the obscenely large tarp.
The carriage finally pulls up in-front of the city gates, the occupants home for the weekend. Just as the ‘magic lanterns’ (LEDs) turned on for the evening. A large clock tower beyond the gate read the current time, 8:34 pm. Enough time for the occupants of the carriage to grab an ale at the tavern, and settle into their rooms at the castle by midnight.
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“We’re here.” said the dark skinned, red haired, amber eyed princess to her two retainers.
“I’m so nervous…” replied the elegant, tan skinned, elf woman, with blue hair and red eyes.
”I’m…getting deja vu.” commented the fair skinned, green haired, brown eyed, demi-human woman, with fox ears and tail.
The three women giggled at Sara’s comment.
“Okay, we still have some time, want to visit the tavern on our way to the castle?” said Esmerelda, the princess, climbing out of the carriage with the help of a handsome armored knight - their driver.
“I dunno…I’ve never been to a regular pub- I mean tavern, before…” The elf came out next, her flowing white robe adding to her ethereal beauty.
“It’ll be fine Enna. Essie and I are here for you.” the scruffy clothes of the beast-kin rustled as she made her way out of the carriage. “Gotta say, I’m excited to finally be able to cut loose.”
The three women began walking through the gates of the city of Elador, of the Kingdom of Elador. Inside, other people (mostly humans) were quietly moving about, setting up for the next two days. One of the buildings was making a lot of noise, however. The LED lights from inside it, shadowed by figures of people inside. In contrast to the darkening surroundings as the sunset was ending. The three women approached the tavern.
“Welcome, ladies!” cheered the barkeep, wearing the same grey robes as the priest at the black box. He was sporting coppery skin and a well trimmed white beard. He was not old, but had some wrinkles at the edges of his red eyes. “Oh! If it ain’t the Princess! Yer usual?” He said in a light Scottish accent, as he began pouring from a bottle into a wooden mug, something red and sweet smelling.
“Thank you, Gregorius.” Essie sat at the bar counter, in her usual spot.
“Please, Princess, ‘Greg’ is fine.” he winked and expertly slid the mug of wine across the counter towards her. And she caught it, as she had done so many times before. “New retainers?”
“Ah yes, this is Enna, and Sara.”
Enna and Sara both stepped forward. It was clear that Enna liked what she saw, and was shrinking into herself from embarrassment. Sara seemed more interested in the various bottles behind the barkeep in question, however. Sara sat down eagerly, and Greg slid another mug of the wine across the table to her.
“I-i-i’m Em- i mean, I’m Enna, sir.” she stuttered, unable to meet the rugged man’s gaze. She was a fan of angels, and this man reminded her of how some depict the heavenly king version of Jesus. More than that though, she liked his accent and the older rugged look.
Essie eyed her friend with a wry smirk. “Down girl. He’s married.”
“S-s-sorry, you’re very um…your wife is lucky…” she stammered, her face was as red as the wine vintage on the counter. She clumsily took a seat next to Essie.
Greg laughed “Aye! She sure is!”
The girls spent time chatting to Greg about goings on they would likely need to know. They had played it in character as “rumors”, which had Greg and Esmerelda impressed. Enna and Sara also got the whole brief on the assassin story Essie was hiding before. Essie had two other retainers before. They were holding court with the other nobles, when an Elven assassin squad, three of them, crashed the party. Esmerelda was a proficient front-lines fighter before she was a princess, so she was able to handle one of the assassins with her daggers. The two retainers hadn’t been as experienced though, and the thing ended with one escaped assassin and two dead ones. There was a heartbreaking role-play as the princess’ retainers died in her arms, and the noble court sent their own retainers to hunt the escaping assassin. Interestingly the assassin had fled, not to the elven kingdom (which would’ve sparked a war with the elves), no they had fled to the orc kingdom.
“Oh my goodness, were you okay after all that?” asked Enna, concern etched on her face as she put an arm around Essie.
“Oh yeah, I mean, you know…” she winked softly, so Enna got the message. It’s just role-play, and the people who died are still alive - playing new characters probably. “I had a whole month to get over it too, which helps. But I really liked those two…”
“So you’re saying we could be facing assassins?” asked Sara, looking grim.
“Maybe? Assassination attempts are hard to set up, this would be too soon for another so it should be safe.” Essie shrugged.
“But one of them got away…and I’m not sure I could fight…” Enna looked nervous.
“Bah. I for one am itching to use my spear. Darn thing keeps bumping into stuff, by the way.” Sara grumpily adjusted the spear on her back.
Greg piped up, with a serious tone. “Ah’d say it’s mare likely than ye think, if the orcs are involved. Stay on yer guard, and look after each-other.”
The three girls looked at each-other with varying degrees of excitement and anxiety, they nodded. After that, they stuck around discussing things like the name of the other kingdoms. Essie and Greg laid it out for them very simply. The Elven kingdom was ‘Ingrassia’, the beast-kin kingdom was ‘Peliharaan’ or just ‘Peli’, the Orc kingdom was ‘Stormveil’, and the Human kingdom, where they are now, is ‘Elador’. After a fun tidbit from Greg that ‘Peliharaan’ means ‘Pet’ in Indonesian, the 10 o’clock bell rang through the laughter of the tavern.
Greg stood up tall and bellowed out “Alright ye drunkards! Closin’ time!” And the tavern patrons began shuffling, or drunkenly hobbling, to the exit.
“Thanks for the booze, Sir Gregorius.”
“Ye and yer friends are welcome back anytime, Lady Esmerelda.”
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The girls walked through the city towards the castle, other people disappearing into the various buildings that would serve as homes or apartments. A few were clearly couples looking for some fun in their new fantasy bodies. That got Enna blushing, while Sara and Essie teased her about it.
“A-anyway, how does everyone know where they live anyway?” asked Enna in a desperate attempt to change the subject.
“Actually, that is a good question.” admitted Sara.
“Ah, I forgot. Normally you get given a card with a miniature map of the city and a red dot with a number, marking where you live.” The cards weren’t Venned, as details like that got messed up. The machines couldn’t do text or art for some reason. Instead the cards were made by people after they were Venned, so the cards had always been tiny from the start.
“Oh no, did we forget?”
“Oh no! Nothing like that, it just works differently for us.”
“Because you’re a princess?”
“And you two are my Retainers, yes. There’s only one place for us, so until I lose the role, or you two stop being my retainers, we won’t need cards.”
“Ohh.” acknowledged Sara and Enna at the same time.
They entered the castle, the inside of which looked more like a mansion than a medieval castle. Essie saw their disappointment at the lack of traditional stone walls and a long empty throne room, and said it’s to keep each castle unique. She mentioned that the Elven kingdom castle was probably more like what they were expecting. In the lobby a few well dressed people were chatting and heading off to various doors down the halls. Essie explained that all the nobility lived in the castle, but that there was one part reserved for the princess. She led her friends up the stairs and to a set of double doors by the balcony overlooking the lobby. The balcony sported a large backed chair, a throne, sitting on a half circular part of the balcony, and flanked by red curtains. She grinned, and opened up the double doors behind the throne, revealing a large living space with furniture, a furnace (LED powered unfortunately), and several doors to either side. One of the doors revealed a lavish bedroom with a double bed, the princess’ room no doubt. The other was slightly less lavish, and featured two single beds - the retainers room. The last one was a bathroom, and thanks to miniature Venned plumbing, actually worked. The girls looked forward to their morning showers.
“No fair, you get the big bed!” exclaimed Sara.
“I earned it, believe me.” chuckled Essie.
“C’mon Sara, we get to hang out without her teasing us, isn’t that fun?” Enna shot Essie a cheeky look.
“Why I never!” Essie feigned a shocked gasp “I should have thee hanged for thine insolence!”
Sara and Enna giggled and Essie joined them. The girls chatted some more, Essie explaining the do’s and don’ts of role-play. No mentioning of your life outside the game, but you can change parts of it to make a backstory if you want. Use in-game terms when possible. Even if you know someone outside the game; if your character wouldn’t know their character, then you have to pretend you don’t know them. Play into your role as best as you can. And if you see a grey robed person around, they are a priest and you can ask them questions if there’s anything you don’t understand. If you die, don’t fret, you are free to rejoin as a new character when the staff revive you at the Venn Machine.
“Ah it’s getting late. We’ll meet in this room in the morning. For now, get some rest.” Essie rose to her feet and made her way to the master bedroom.
“Okay! Goodnight!” Sara said cheerfully, dragging the very exhausted Enna with her to the retainers room.
Enna slumped face first into her bed, in her underclothes. Her elegant robe neatly folded and packed away into the wooden chest at the base of her bed. Sara had done the same with her clothes, and her fox tail wagged with excitement.
“Jeez, I’m too excited, I don’t think I can sleep.” said Sara, surprised at how she was able to deal with having a tail. She seemed to know exactly how to get comfortable despite having the appendage. She knew this was the Venn Machine’s doing. Her brother said as much after spending a week as a cat - when you’re in an inhuman body, it just feels natural. “Having a tail is so cool!”
“Mmm…” groaned an exhausted Enna into her pillow, her hair sprawled across her back, making her look like a blue rug.
“Tired huh? You did good today, told you there was nothing to worry about.”
“Mhm…”
“Backstories though, we should probably come up with them tonight…”
Enna rolled lazily to her side to free her mouth from the pillow. ”…Yeah. I think I can do something with my real life. Work it in somehow. Like Sally said…”
“You mean, like Esmerelda said.” Sara corrected. “And yeah, I think I’m gonna take a different route… I thought about working my backstory into yours, but if you’re doing the real life adaptation, it wouldn’t work.”
“Mmm, how come?” Enna yawned.
“Just can’t figure out how to adapt ‘Boring office work’ into fantasy terms…”
“What about ‘scribe’ or something...?” Enna breathed out and closed her eyes.
“I mean sure, but I kinda want this character to be cool, and a little edgy. Oh! Maybe I could have a past where I used to be an Orc prisoner, and the princess saved me, and made me her new retainer.” She rambled enthusiastically. “Yeah! I think I’ll go with that! What do you think? ...Enna?”
There was no response from the sleeping elf.
“Oh…” Sara smiled softly and silently pulled the quilt over Enna, covering her. She quietly slipped into her own bed. ”…Sweet dreams.” she yawned and conked out almost as fast as Enna had.
Most people were out like a light, as the actual lights went out. Everyone, including the three girls, were too deep in sleep to hear the midnight bell, tolling the end of Friday night, and the start of the Saturday. When the real action would begin.
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