"Well, Sam, this time I'm taking you to a really famous fair around here," Eric said as he drove, with Sam sitting in the passenger seat beside him.
"The Joy Fair?" Sam asked, sounding a little curious because he thought he already knew that fair.
"Well, yeah… But this time the fair is different. They say they remodeled it," Eric replied while driving, eyes fixed on the road ahead.
"Hmm, okay, if that's how it is…" Sam said, not having much choice.
After a while, they finally arrived at the fair. They slowly made their way through the crowd and the other cars pulling into the big Joy Fair. In the background, classic carnival music was playing. A small wall surrounded the entire fair to keep out intruders, painted in the typical red-and-white colors.
As they entered, they passed through a parking lot full of other parked cars. In the distance, they could see the classic fair stalls — the kind where the vendor might end up scamming you.
"Wow, this looks fun, right, Sam?" Eric said as he parked the car. He put on his red cap, pulled out the keys, and got out, with Sam following right behind.
As they stepped out of the car, they just glanced at each other and kept walking toward the fair.
"Mmm, that smells amazing! Fair hot dogs!" Eric said, sniffing the air. The smell of hot dogs and homemade fair food was coming from not too far away.
"Yeah…" I said, looking at him out of the corner of my eye while staring at the new version of the fair. It looked bigger, more colorful, and way more crowded now. Sam thought as he watched the huge number of people around.
"Well, Sam, this time I'm taking you to eat at a new ice cream shop here at the fair. They say they have every kind of ice cream you can imagine," Eric said, looking at Sam and adjusting his plaid shirt as he scanned the area.
"That sounds perfect to me," Sam replied, and Eric smiled happily at his answer.
"Alright, no time to waste. Let's go!" Eric said, guiding Sam through the crowd toward the ice cream stand.
After walking past a lot of people and the entertainment area of the fair, they reached a section full of food stalls.
"Come on over! Come try the new pizza straight from Italy!" shouted a man wearing a giant pizza costume with a sign, standing in front of a pizza stand with a huge "Bartolomé" sign behind him.
"Think you can finish the new Mega Taco straight from Mexico? Come try it yourself!" called out a man in a green plaid shirt, white apron, and red tie, standing in front of his taquería stall.
I just stood there staring at the pizza stand… It was Italian, and they said the pizzas from that place were incredibly delicious.
Eric noticed how focused Sam was on the pizza stall.
"If you want, we can eat pizza first and then get ice cream," Eric said, stopping with the calm attitude you'd expect from him.
"Yes, please," Sam answered.
Right after that, Eric and Sam headed to the pizza stand called Bartolomé, where the man in the pizza costume greeted them.
"Hey, what can I get for you gentlemen?" the man in the pizza costume asked.
"For me and…" Eric looked at Sam, who was distracted watching the pizzas warming up in the giant oven while the staff kneaded dough and a chef with a mustache prepared other kinds of pizzas — probably the Italian one.
"My son and I would like to order one of your Italian pizzas, please," Eric said. The man quickly took down the order and led them to a table to wait for their pizza.
"Please, follow me," the man in the pizza costume said as he guided them to a table. Around them, a few other families were also enjoying their pizza.
They both sat down while Eric noticed Sam's interest in how the mustached chef was preparing the pizza.
"You really like pizza, huh?" Eric said, looking at Sam.
"Ah, yeah… I like pizza a lot," Sam replied, turning his attention back to Eric.
"I don't blame you. Pizza is delicious," Eric said, glancing at his watch before continuing, "But it's always good to try new things, right?" He watched the Italian pizza being prepared as the chef moved skillfully around the kitchen.
"Haha, yeah," Sam said, still watching the chef make the pizza. Then he looked at Eric and asked, "Hey, quick question."
"Yeah, what's up?" Eric said, focusing on Sam again.
"Besides this, afterward, what's that ice cream shop you mentioned like?"
"Oh, well, I haven't visited it yet, but from what I've heard in rumors and stuff, it's supposed to be really good. They have way too many ice cream flavors," Eric said, briefly looking at the drink menu on a sign.
"If you say so, I guess it is," Sam replied, half-thinking.
"Haha, cheer up, kid," Eric laughed and then asked, "Want a drink?"
"Oh, sure," Sam said, accepting the offer.
"Although I have to admit, we're making a weird food combination," Eric said as he pulled out his wallet and raised his hand to get the attention of the man in the pizza costume.
"Yeah… it's weird because, look, pizza first and then ice cream," Sam said with a small laugh.
"Well, whatever. We might as well enjoy the day to the fullest," Eric replied. Just then, the man in the pizza costume arrived with a pizza in hand.
"What can I get for you, good sir!" the guy said as he placed the pizza on the table and cut it into 8 slices with a pizza cutter.
"Well, I'd like a soda," Eric said, then looked at me. "What soda do you want?"
"I guess a Coke," Sam answered.
"Good choice," the man in the pizza costume said. He walked away and came back with a 2-liter bottle of Coca-Cola.
"Thanks. How much is everything?" Eric asked, already holding his wallet ready.
"Well, the total comes to… 4 dollars," the man in the pizza costume replied.
"Oh, okay. Here you go," Eric said as he paid. The man took the money and thanked them: "Thank you very much for choosing Bartolomé Pizzas." Then he went off to serve more new customers.
"I told you they scammed me with those cookies that day," Sam said while eating a slice of pizza.
"Yeah… they really ripped you off," Eric replied as he poured the soda into the glasses the man had brought earlier.
"Plus, look — for a box of cookies and… compare that box with this huge pizza!" Sam said, finally noticing how big the pizza they were served actually was.
"Haha, you're right about that. Well, stop thinking about the cookie box and let's just enjoy the pizza," Eric said. Sam agreed, and both of them started devouring the pizza.
...
"Well, we'll be back," a man said, saying goodbye to Ethan and his family as they left with his wife and daughter in their RV, heading toward the forest for a hike nearby.
"Bye, Mr. and Mrs. Parri," Ethan and his family said as they watched the Parri family head off on their trip…
"Bye, Ethan," said the girl with shiny black hair and casual clothes from the door of the RV.
"Bye, Sophia," Ethan replied with a warm smile. They had been friends since they were little kids… so close that sometimes they even had sleepovers (since they lived nearby). They had basically grown up together and were both 14 years old.
"I'm going to miss them," Ethan's dad said. He was a tall, elegant man but dressed casually. Then he added, "Now, without Marcus, who am I going to do my barbecues with?" as he waved goodbye.
"Haha, same. I'm going to miss Elvia," Ethan's mom said, laughing lightly but clearly a bit sad because her friend was leaving.
...
Gunshots
Soldiers were running through an underground base while a strange black mist spread everywhere. Some soldiers started shooting at others.
In the reactor room… there were no longer any scientists or the general — only the silence of the destroyed portal.
On the other side of a door, the general and more soldiers watched through a glass viewport as chaos broke out: the soldiers were killing each other.
"General, what do we do? The situation is serious," one soldier said while his squad behind him watched the scene, and others did the same from farther away.
Out of nowhere, the same black mist began seeping in through a vent at the bottom of the wall.
"Evacuate," the general ordered, looking down at the floor. Then she shouted again, "Evacuate now!"
Everyone started moving, rushing to the military vehicles and helicopters.
The mist was spreading faster across the area. Some vehicles were already exiting through a rear courtyard as giant gates opened. The wind was strong, but the blizzard was worse… There was heavy blowing snow, but they still managed to get out.
The general was already in a vehicle with a group of soldiers, driving away from the base and moving through the snowy terrain.
In the distance, gunshots rang out for the unlucky soldiers who didn't make it out in time.
"Idiots," the general muttered, simply looking straight ahead, ignoring the chaos unfolding behind them.
Inside the base…
Gunshots
A group of soldiers managed to get into a vehicle during the shootout and sped out at full speed, following the group ahead of them.
In the distance, large armored metal walls could be seen, along with empty guard turrets… They had probably escaped too, while the massive gate threatened to close.
"Full speed, soldier!" the commander shouted to the driver while his squad sat in the back watching the chaos.
"We have to get out no matter what…" the commander said finally as he looked toward the exit.