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fandomweekly2026-04-25 09:30 pm
badly_knitted) wrote in fandomweekly2026-04-25 09:30 pm
Entry tags:
[#298] Baited Trap (The Fantastic Journey)
Theme Prompt: #298 – Disappearance
Title: Baited Trap
Fandom: The Fantastic Journey
Rating/Warnings: PG
Bonus: Yes.
Word Count: 1000
Summary: When Scott vanishes in the funhouse, the rest of the travellers split up to search for him.
Varian had to admit the slide in the funhouse was fun. Carnivals had gone out of fashion long before his time, so he’d never seen one except in pictures, never experienced a funhouse, and so far, it was… interesting. The slide had definitely been the highlight, but now they were at the bottom with no way back up, in a dark, enclosed space, and the darkness didn’t bother him, but something was nagging at his senses…
Then a door opened, and Scott, eager to see what came next, was through it before anyone could think to stop him, calling back to the others that it was a maze of mirrors.
“Hey, guys, see if you can find me!”
By the time they followed, the boy was gone, and yet, the so-called maze was nothing more than a small room with mirrors for walls, none of which appeared movable. And still something nagged at Varian’s senses, setting his nerves on edge. Something wasn’t right; they were supposed to be keeping Scott safe, and now he seemed to have simply vanished, which wasn’t possible. Not when the only way out was the door they’d entered by.
“It’s like he just disappeared into thin air,” Jonathan muttered, staring around the room, testing the nearest mirror and finding it firmly affixed in place.
Fred was unconcerned. “Folks, it's a funhouse. We find out how they did that shadow trick, we'll find the answer to Scott's disappearance.”
Only the shadow hadn’t been a trick, Varian knew that, even if the others were unwilling to take his word for it. How could he explain things to them that their senses couldn’t detect? He had a bad feeling about the place. The funhouse was no longer fun; they needed to find Scott, and leave, before anything worse happened.
Then Liana stepped close to a mirror and both floor and mirror revolved, whisking her out of sight before anyone could move. Fred was jubilant, the trick was revealed; all they had to do was follow and they’d find Scott.
Only they didn’t. Liana was waiting for them in the next room, where three doors led off in different directions. She thought they should split up, Jonathan thought it would be wiser to stay together, Varian just wanted to find Scott as quickly as possible. He was the group’s leader, their safety was his responsibility, and he’d managed to lose the youngest and most vulnerable of his companions. He wouldn’t be happy until Scott was safely back with them, so he agreed with Liana.
Fred took the Hall of Mysteries, believing Scott would have found that tempting. Varian led Liana through the door labelled with a question mark, leaving Jonathan the door marked This Way Out. Jonathan hadn’t wanted to explore the carnival in the first place, so he’d no doubt be safer outside, one less person for Varian to worry about. It seemed the most sensible option.
Hand-in-hand with Liana, Varian wandered through corridors, not sure where he was going, but focused on finding the missing boy. As they approached a tunnel, they heard groaning; it sounded like Scott, and releasing Liana’s hand, Varian ducked down and entered the tunnel. He was only a few steps into it, Liana right behind him, when it suddenly began to revolve, taking their feet out from under them. By the time Varian made it through and turned around, Liana was gone; she’d disappeared as completely as Scott had earlier. What was going on?
Varian was torn; it had only taken seconds to get through the tunnel, Liana couldn’t be far away, but if he went back for her, he’d be abandoning Scott, and it sounded like the boy might be hurt. Liana was strong and capable; she could take care of herself far better than Scott could. Decision made, Varian went to Scott’s aid.
He found the boy lying on the floor, just regaining consciousness. He wasn’t injured, but he was freezing cold, which was ridiculous. The temperature in the funhouse was quite comfortable. Something had happened, but even Scott had no idea what. He’d been having fun, and then… nothing, until Varian found him.
All Varian wanted by now was to round up the rest of their party, get out of the funhouse, and leave. He should have listened to Jonathan in the first place; they never should have come here, but… he’d been curious.
They found Fred, trapped in a room that was filling with smoke, and freed him, then split up again to look for Liana. Varian was glad that Jonathan must be safely outside by now, but that was the only positive aspect of the whole mess, and finding the way out was proving far harder than it should have been. No matter which corridor he and Scott took, they just seemed to be going round in circles, miles of corridors that didn’t seem to lead anywhere, and no exit to be seen, until a hidden door opened and the carnival barker showed them the way out. But Fred and Liana were still missing.
At least Jonathan was there, waiting, pleased to see them. He told them Fred and Liana had gone on ahead, which seemed a bit odd, tried to urge Varian to take Scott and go through to the next zone, promising to follow, but… Varian’s senses were screaming at him; something was very wrong.
It looked like Jonathan, it even sounded like Jonathan, at first, and yet there was something… off about him. Chillingly, Varian realised that the entire runaround had been for one purpose, to separate them, and without thinking, he’d left Jonathan alone and defenceless, easy prey. Scott had been taken simply to bait the trap; Jonathan had been the target all along. What a fool he’d been!
He didn’t know where Fred and Liana were, could only hope they were safe, but they’d have to take care of themselves, because Jonathan was under Apollonius’ control, and Varian had to save him…
The End
Then a door opened, and Scott, eager to see what came next, was through it before anyone could think to stop him, calling back to the others that it was a maze of mirrors.
“Hey, guys, see if you can find me!”
By the time they followed, the boy was gone, and yet, the so-called maze was nothing more than a small room with mirrors for walls, none of which appeared movable. And still something nagged at Varian’s senses, setting his nerves on edge. Something wasn’t right; they were supposed to be keeping Scott safe, and now he seemed to have simply vanished, which wasn’t possible. Not when the only way out was the door they’d entered by.
“It’s like he just disappeared into thin air,” Jonathan muttered, staring around the room, testing the nearest mirror and finding it firmly affixed in place.
Fred was unconcerned. “Folks, it's a funhouse. We find out how they did that shadow trick, we'll find the answer to Scott's disappearance.”
Only the shadow hadn’t been a trick, Varian knew that, even if the others were unwilling to take his word for it. How could he explain things to them that their senses couldn’t detect? He had a bad feeling about the place. The funhouse was no longer fun; they needed to find Scott, and leave, before anything worse happened.
Then Liana stepped close to a mirror and both floor and mirror revolved, whisking her out of sight before anyone could move. Fred was jubilant, the trick was revealed; all they had to do was follow and they’d find Scott.
Only they didn’t. Liana was waiting for them in the next room, where three doors led off in different directions. She thought they should split up, Jonathan thought it would be wiser to stay together, Varian just wanted to find Scott as quickly as possible. He was the group’s leader, their safety was his responsibility, and he’d managed to lose the youngest and most vulnerable of his companions. He wouldn’t be happy until Scott was safely back with them, so he agreed with Liana.
Fred took the Hall of Mysteries, believing Scott would have found that tempting. Varian led Liana through the door labelled with a question mark, leaving Jonathan the door marked This Way Out. Jonathan hadn’t wanted to explore the carnival in the first place, so he’d no doubt be safer outside, one less person for Varian to worry about. It seemed the most sensible option.
Hand-in-hand with Liana, Varian wandered through corridors, not sure where he was going, but focused on finding the missing boy. As they approached a tunnel, they heard groaning; it sounded like Scott, and releasing Liana’s hand, Varian ducked down and entered the tunnel. He was only a few steps into it, Liana right behind him, when it suddenly began to revolve, taking their feet out from under them. By the time Varian made it through and turned around, Liana was gone; she’d disappeared as completely as Scott had earlier. What was going on?
Varian was torn; it had only taken seconds to get through the tunnel, Liana couldn’t be far away, but if he went back for her, he’d be abandoning Scott, and it sounded like the boy might be hurt. Liana was strong and capable; she could take care of herself far better than Scott could. Decision made, Varian went to Scott’s aid.
He found the boy lying on the floor, just regaining consciousness. He wasn’t injured, but he was freezing cold, which was ridiculous. The temperature in the funhouse was quite comfortable. Something had happened, but even Scott had no idea what. He’d been having fun, and then… nothing, until Varian found him.
All Varian wanted by now was to round up the rest of their party, get out of the funhouse, and leave. He should have listened to Jonathan in the first place; they never should have come here, but… he’d been curious.
They found Fred, trapped in a room that was filling with smoke, and freed him, then split up again to look for Liana. Varian was glad that Jonathan must be safely outside by now, but that was the only positive aspect of the whole mess, and finding the way out was proving far harder than it should have been. No matter which corridor he and Scott took, they just seemed to be going round in circles, miles of corridors that didn’t seem to lead anywhere, and no exit to be seen, until a hidden door opened and the carnival barker showed them the way out. But Fred and Liana were still missing.
At least Jonathan was there, waiting, pleased to see them. He told them Fred and Liana had gone on ahead, which seemed a bit odd, tried to urge Varian to take Scott and go through to the next zone, promising to follow, but… Varian’s senses were screaming at him; something was very wrong.
It looked like Jonathan, it even sounded like Jonathan, at first, and yet there was something… off about him. Chillingly, Varian realised that the entire runaround had been for one purpose, to separate them, and without thinking, he’d left Jonathan alone and defenceless, easy prey. Scott had been taken simply to bait the trap; Jonathan had been the target all along. What a fool he’d been!
He didn’t know where Fred and Liana were, could only hope they were safe, but they’d have to take care of themselves, because Jonathan was under Apollonius’ control, and Varian had to save him…
The End