Death Cast

01.3 | Grecia Bella Theatre

It's already night.

An eerily quiet concrete one-track side platform adorned the standard on-ground station, which stood desolately at midnight. The pale-blue incandescent bulbs surrounded with the buzzing of flies bathed the rusted metal benches on the dock in a sobering silence. Some benches are occupied by beggars, while others are occupied by late-night passengers, with pieces of torn newspapers, used crumpled paper cups, and dirt strewn across the hard ground.

People would have assumed it was an abandoned and haunted train station if it hadn't been for the flashing red neon lights and the presence of security officers roaming the area.

Jaerim and Noel had wanted to be reunited with their accompanying death officers and went ahead to leave the carriage. However, before they could take a step out, the hot-headed white-faced jester caught them. They were pulled inside the fright cabin and made to sit through a lecture. Surrounded by many people, the two Death Casts burrowed their heads down, hiding their faces that were both red from embarrassment. Who would've thought that they will be caught so early!

The Jester listed a lot of things.

They've done it again: wandered around without permission, disobeyed instructions, and failed to wear their assigned uniform. The two indignantly changed their clothes in front of the jester. The white-faced clown watched them with unblinking eyes, making sure that will button their shirts and buckle their belts tightly. They almost have to change their hairstyles and paint their faces with rogue if not from the sudden banging noises of someone causing ruckus.

With his temperament, how could the jester allow the trouble to go away like that?

Wearing a fuming face that should be red from rage, but due to the white paint covering his face, it only gave off a funny picture of a clown walking down the isle like an angry gorilla dressed in colorful clothes. The puffed up image really changed the situation comically.

The jester is ready to voice out his complaints but after seeing the person banging the objects around, the clown paused. The familiar face of the train attendant who matched his temperament showed up, arms crossed, like some landlord awaiting to the door to get the rent. Despite the freight cabin cramped with people, it was amazingly silent and all the crew are motionless.

They watched as the jester's expression changed from one of reprimanding them to one of being reprimanded, lavishing praise on the attendant in a manner that was simply greasy to the ears. This did not sit well with the attendant and lashed out. Jaerim doesn't know what happened between these two people, but he's sure the jester had done something to elicit such wild reaction from the attendant.

Noel tapped Jaerim on the shoulders and gestured him to leave. They used the commotion and hide behind the shadows to successfully leave the area.

The quiet station came alive with the arrival of the train. The passengers were in high spirits as they disembarked, chatting with their friends and planning where to spend the night. They were bombarded with the sounds of people pitching cargo and hotel services, enticing them to sign up for a subscription. Peddlers selling a variety of goods were also in the crowd, hawking their wares to draw in customers. The mood had shifted in an instant, as if the desolate scene from before had never existed.

Jaerim and Noel stood awkwardly on the corner. Their clothing, which had been imposed on them as a result of their ordeal with the ill-tempered jester, caused people to look at them strangely, most likely judging their taste. They tried changing to their former clothes but they could not find them. The jester must have known their plan beforehand so he hid them very well. They attempted to conceal their identities by donning masks. Unfortunately, grim reapers could always see beyond their disguise and they were eventually discovered.

Barron wore a taunting, cheeky grin as he bluntly scrutinized Jaerim's flamboyant clothing. The loosely draped blouse conforms to the young man's body in an elegant manner, eliciting a naive nobility that seem to had just came out to explore the world. High-waist black knee-length pants paired perfectly with the blouse, outlining his slim legs, adding a point of attractiveness in his appearance. Despite his short stature, he exuded a sense of pride and authority, highlighting an indifferent demeanor of someone high class.

Noel, who is sitting next to him, is not doing well either. It just so happens that his grim reaper enjoys taking pictures and uploading them to a social media site that is related to the underworld. Noel's appearance, which was no less impressive than Jaerim's, had become fodder for the grim reaper as they pressed the shutter button a hundred times per second to capture every detail. As Noel endured his ordeal, he kept his gaze fixed on Jaerim, who he hoped would come and rescue him.

Barron arched his brows when he noticed a hint of a camaraderie between the two people. He gave Jaerim an amused look.

"You really keep surprising me. I just told you to go out and play. You actually earned a friend."

Suspiciousness and paranoia were evident in people who are close to death. In particular, they'd keep a close eye on those in similar situations. No one dared to take the simulations lightly because no one knew if they were a collaborative test or not.

These two people, really, are walking in a thin thread.

Jaerim thickened his skin and turned his back on the teasing looks. He surveyed the area to get a sense of the surroundings. When he met Noel and the timid bomber on the carriage, he realized he wasn't the only one who entered the simulation. His suspicions were confirmed when he discovered a few people with maple marks on their bodies mingling among the crowd.

When he decided to explore the train, Barron had already abandoned him. So, he has now taken on the role of a member of a group of performers. Noel and Jaerim have re-joined the crew to help with the prop transfer to an old bus. Before long, the vehicle was off and running.

There is a lot of rough driving ahead of them. Jaerim was forced to bear the pain while laying on his back with his legs crossed in front of him. The bus owned terrible seats. With such thin padding, the hard metal foundation beneath is easily discernible. It was also crowded because of all the props, which made it difficult to get around. There are not enough places to sit upright.

Jaerim turned his head around to check his friend when he found Noel sleeping so soundly. The young guy has been seated on the most uncomfortable position he had seen yet the person did not feel any bothered at all. Nothing can wake this person up, not even the jostling of the bus, which nearly had everyone bouncing to their feet. Jaerim looked at the person with envy.

Some people indeed owned a unique talent, ah. This Noel seems to have possess such kind.

He decided to leave Noel for the meantime and looked outside the window to observe the surroundings. The bus had been treading an unpaved ground so he was guessing they are going somewhere in the outskirts. The road has been dark after they leave the station so he wasn't able to determine the way. The only thing he could recognize is the outstretched field of swaying long grass.

The ride lasted for almost an hour. Jaerim is slowly getting used with the bumpy ride and is about to get asleep when he caught sight of a bright light. The darkness brought by the night made the area prominent that marked the dwellings of humans.

The bus entered a lively town. He could tell it's already midnight but night business are still bustling as ever. Noel winced up in a sudden trance, found Jaerim looking at the window , and noticed the sudden change of scenery. He groggily straightened his posture up, wiping the drool on the corner of his mouth. He then joined Jaerim on the window, watching the festivities.

Their eyes darted from here to there, interest painted on their eyes. The town depicting an ancient set-up is something they had only seen on the movies. These two people had lived on the same technological generation so seeing such piece is surely a novelty.

A certain restaurant with a low terrace dining caught their attention - of course, if it is not the grim reapers who brought them here was dining in first class, they would have just ignored it.

Barron even waved his hand to recognize their existence.

The bus stopped in front of a small plaza. It was in a dead end corner, enclosed by various establishments congregated in close knit marble-walled buildings. The store shops were already close for the day but a few of them still have their lights on. A certain shop with an elevated display rack covered by a clear glass window exhibited a mannequin with female features wearing a floral dress with a puffed out skirt.

Many of the crew commented about the design of the clothes that were clearly good and very refreshing to the eye. One of the female staff even claimed to buy it once they're done with their performance. Jaerim also gave the shop a thumbs up, but his attention was more focused on the advertisement signs plastered on the the lower part of the walls.

It is all about the opening of a grand theatre that will have free accomodations and no entrance fee for five days. Anyone should come together with their family to watch the greatest performances of the invited renowned dance troupes all over the world. Nobody should miss it.

Jaerim squinted his eyes and read the advertisement many times. Then, he looked at himself, to Noel beside him, to the peculiar staff dressed randomly, and the white-faced jester walking up front. All of these people are part of a renowned dance troupe? They don't look like it at all!

The troupe carried their stuff towards the end of the alley where a huge marquee with words "THEATRE" buzzed from electricity, flashing with the brightest red and blue neon lights.The power of the light is bright enough to illuminate the entire street. It stuck out like a sore thumb in the middle of old age cluster of establishments.

Noel has been curiously looking around without leaving Jaerim's side. Jaerim caught him smelling the air.

"What is it?" Jaerim saw Noel's face scrunching.

"Can't you smell it?"

"Smell what?"

Jaerim followed Noel's action and sniffed the air.

"Err... smells bad?," Jaerim guessed, smelling animal marking in the air. "Probably from animals?"

"No, not that," Noel shook his head. "It smells like something is burning."

Jaerim could not really smell it. Also, it's already night. Someone had probably light out some candles for the night. Noel no longer insisted for the smell that he could only sense and followed the crew inside the building.