Early in the morning, Lip was shaken awake as the sound of a running motor hummed faintly outside. Barely able to open her eyes, she stretched herself across the bed before stumbling out of it - she tossed on her clothes, grabbed her bag, and walked downstairs. Heejin came running up and nearly bumped into her, "Almost forgot my ID!" Lip quickly checked her bag for her own, thankfully stashed in her pocket from the night before. She went over to the kitchen, where a half dozen water bottles had been arranged, and grabbed one before finding an open seat in the van.

    The next hour or two was filled with laughter and songs played on the speaker. Heejin took the wheel while the rest sat in the back. Lip had her earphones with her rap playlist, but she found herself taking them out more and more to join in with the fun. At some point, someone had gotten a bag of large marshmallows and pulled everyone into a game of "Chubby Bunny." They had all gone about 6 rounds in a circle, and at this point Hyunjin's mouth had ballooned. Her cheeks were slowly moving around, trying to make room but the image her face was making doomed everyone to fail of laughter.

    With eyes wide open, she squeezed out, "... Chuffy Funny..." Haseul, entirely fixed on Hyunjin to try and throw her off, let out a muffled squeal and leaned back in laughter. Lip began laughing as she saw it happen, taking in how ridiculous they looked when things weren't tense. Hyunjin looked around in validation, thumbs up, before picking up the bag on her lap and passing it to Haseul - immediately, her face displayed a mixture of disappointment and utter fear. Rather than putting the next one in , she picked one up and merely stared at it, almost pleading to it that she survive just one more round. Jinsoul, apparently dissatisfied, took a hold of Haseul's wrist and shoved it in anyway.

    Shocked, Haseul turned to look her in the face and shot it back out, bouncing the marshmallow off her forehead. The van erupted in hysterics, Lip completely taking up her two seats as she lay faceup, waves building up in her chest and tears coming to her eyes. Behind her seat, "Are you kidding me? I was gonna do it!"

~ ~ ~

    In due time, Lip noticed signs for the park parking lots, and she felt herself get excited. After navigating various stop signs and a line of cars crawling forward, someone in a vest directed their car to a large open parking lot, soon to fill. As Heejin slowly inserted the van into its place and put it into park, the van lurched forward and the engine died down. The feeling that they were heading to school came up briefly, the familiar noise as they shuffled out of their seats, but as Lip stepped out into the sunlight, towering structures in bright colors came into her view. The air was nice, and the sky shone blue with two or three miniscule clouds in the distance.

    "Wow, that got cramped," Hyunjin muttered in front of her.

    "Alright, girls, if you'll follow me," Heejin called out, locking the van with a honk and walking towards the front entrance in the distance.

~ ~ ~

    The following hours were filled with new excitement and joyous rides. The snacks had been pulled out and they all carried different flavored drinks throughout the park. As the sun began to beat down in the early afternoon, all the refreshments became more enticing, impossible to completely ignore. At every corner, new entertainment called out to them in shops, music, and shows. Though Lip thought of ViVi often, she firmly resolved to have enough fun for the both of them.

    Later in the afternoon, they reached the anticipated ride of the park: The Cage. Lip had only been on rides as a kid, so the ride had the potential to be more extreme than she was probably prepared for. Though Heejin and Haseul stayed back to watch over the bags, Lip decided to experience it for herself.

    "Hyunjin said she'll go again with me once you all get off," Heejin reassured.

    "Well, alright… Haseul, you're not going?"

    She scratched the back of her neck. "I've had experiences with seizures before, so I'd rather not risk it."

    Suddenly a bit burdened, Lip hesitated before finishing her drink and tossing it in the trash bin. She joined the line with the others, slowly gaining her mood back until the anticipation had captured her yet again.

~ ~ ~

    Once they had passed the winding walkways, their spot in line had reached an archway into a large rock-shaped building, and the sounds of mechanical jittering and heaving filtered out of the room.

    "Sounds like we're getting close," Jinsoul muttered, the noise of the crowd dying down as they came into sight of the ride. Soon, the line crawled forward and the girls completely entered the shadow. In front of them, at the far edge of the room were the gates, divided into 10 different rows. Sounds of the jungle, upbeat drumming, and a mess of incoherent chanting sounded out from the speakers, a bit jarring to the ears as it blared just above the entrance. In 4 more movements through the traffic, they sorted themselves into the lines. Lip took the second row with Hyunjin, Jinsoul up front.

    The coaster train arrived, and the group in front left through the opening gates into their cars, the girls taking their spot as the gates closed in front. After the park employees secured the harnesses over their laps, one made a signal with his hands and the train suddenly jumped forward, only to slow and descend into darkness. The opening was masked in fog seeping out of sprayers, obscuring whatever lies beyond. Behind her, Hyunjin massaged her shoulders, a mixture of pain and comfort now present in her. Looking back, she made a teasing smile.

    Before Lip expected it, the next car made its way in, clicking to a stop and releasing its passengers. The gate in front of her opened and her legs brought her up to the car. As she stepped into the far seat and sat down, her hands and felt the tough, worn material she'd often see in outdoor playgrounds - over the years, it msut have grown smooth, though the last passenger had warmed her back. This time, when the employees left their corners to lock the bars into place, she felt a new fear, though she realized it was naturally because of the ride. Ensuring again that it won't pop open, she released her hands from the bar, now resting her forearms across it and calmed herself.

    Looking up, Lip watched one particular staff member pace back and forth, yet giving a calm expression. He looked up, finding the booth, and gave the signal. She grabbed the bar again, the train jumping again before driving them into the mist. In a wincing fashion, she reduced her eyesight to narrow slits, her skin breathed on by thousands of piercing cold droplets causing her whole body to shake in her seat.

    Next to her, Hyunjin let out a loud hoot in response, making eye contact with Lip and laughing it off.

    "That's freezing cold," she remarked.

    Ahead, they entered a tunnel filled with light - the scene painted before them was that of a poor town, buildings on either side of a river splitting it into two, the coaster car gliding across the water. On either side sat shops with dusty, flickering neon tubes - various tarps were plastered over areas, and sheets of metal acted as the shingles of a roof for some. An old motor scooter was parked on the edge, with the potential to fall in from a gust of wind. Signs stood outside each shop, displaying cutouts of shoes, bananas, sunglasses, and other various items. Though the sound of a bustling crowd filled the room, not a person outside of the car was to be seen. Ahead, albeit on some electronic display, loomed mountains covered in trees, their edges overlapping each other like shoelaces until they faded away into smoke.

    The car cornered to their right, pulling itself through an opening into the low wall on the edge of their sidewalk, descending into darkness again. Here, in the complete black, entered a high pitched whirring of bugs, many birds and their calls echoing out, and the gentle splash of the water in a small current. The car had sped up into another scene, a dimmer blue as the river opened into a lake, more forest and mountains appearing onto a shore ahead to their right. The clouds and sky were painted a faint metallic blue, that of aluminum foil or the rims of a sports car. A low drumming began to fill the space, though an electronic hum accompanied each hit. Electronic music faded in along with it, beginning to build. As they traversed it, the car began to sway from side to side, regaining its energy as a roller coaster. In front of them loomed another village, though now that of a fishing village, nothing beyond wood and stone. The car increased again and Jinsoul whooped, her hands raising in the air for a brief moment.

    Another jump forward and the roller coaster was destined to crash straight through it at this pace, about 5 bus lengths away. At the very cusp of a wooden pier, Lip spotted a circular hole into the floor, the tracks descending into it. The music had built to a roar and the coaster hoisted them just above the water, still rocketing forward before plunging into the deep.

    Flashes filled their vision as the cars tore through the void in sharp curves, shaking their whole bodies as they raced through loops and flips. The crowd screamed in ecstasy, at the mercy of the metal beast. The flashes became more regular, even distinguishable now as images of monstrous, tribe people alive in dance, their bodies coated in what appeared to be chalk, or powder. The music boomed throughout, syncing with the changing gravity and dancing. In one last swoop, cold air smacked them as they shot out into daylight.

    Around them, jungle bloomed and mechanical animals made threatening gestures, but their car had slowed to another crawl. The music had changed now, a droning rumble of bongo drums and rhythmic clicking. Looking over at Jinsoul ahead of her, Lip flinched, as her whole face had been coated in that same powder. Lip wiped at her own face, and the rest of them followed as they noticed.

    The crunch of leaves emanated underneath them, and Lip waited for the next drop. The beat continued to rise, and she spotted where the tracks made a turn ahead of them. Through the speakers, a voice came through, narrative and warm, "We all used to live in the city as well. But we no longer have access to who we were. We decided to let go of our tainted nature." The car made its turn, closing in on the drop. "There is something else I want to tell you: If you want to stay here, you must do the wysoccan ceremony and face yourself. There is only one way to do it." The car lifted them up again.

    "Can you do it?"

    They shot into the darkness, though now red lights scattered throughout the hanger tinged the whole structure. As jeers filled Lip's ears again, every upcoming twist and turn sat there, waiting to be encountered - first a horseshoe, then a loop, then a steep dive farther down, locked into a barrel roll until they flew through the halls upside down. All the while, her heart felt as if it had been lifted into , thrashing and burning through the ride.

    Twisting right-side-up, they curled around and flew through a bright opening, air gracing their bodies as the park came into view. The coaster slowed and they turned towards the ride's hanger, where the next line waited their turn.

    Jinsoul looked back. "Madness. Straight madness."