World Walker Park [Magical Amusement Park Base-Building]

Luka yawned as he created a printing press from nothing but scrap metal and wood. It was an Earthen style contraption, a famous design he once had the luxury of seeing in a museum. Did he cheat and use glyphs within the guts of the machine? Was it now more automated and required less physical labor? Yes to both. Did it still adhere to the principles of Gutenberg? Quite so.

"Interesting design," Stell Metus whispered, hand on his chin and eyes hidden behind a pair of dark-rimmed sunglasses.

"Not too far from the Chronicle's press, I hope," Luka said, mechanical parts floating through the air.

The language of this world was similar enough to the alphabets of Earth, but many of the common sounds were combined and written in shorthand. If Luka was learning the language for the first time—something he didn't have to do because Goddess Tippy injected the language directly into his mind—he would've found it confusing. A learning curve for sure, and luckily something he didn't have to deal with.

"Theirs is more industrial. Spools of paper, auto cutters, a non-stop printing cylinder and vat of ink."

Luka paused and reflected on his press. "I could change the design."

Stell shook his head and wandered closer. "This will be fine for the volume you were talking about."

That was true. The Sneerhome Chronicle had to service an entire city while World Walker Press only needed to provide papers to their guests. And since it was in-park-only news, the papers themselves would be shorter and more booklet-like.

"Let's get through the next few days as a trial run," Luka said. "Then before we open back up, we'll talk about what else you need, printing assistants, editing help, additional reporters, office supplies."

Stell hesitated. "Are you sure this is all alright? Did you have plans to open a press for the park at all?"

"Yes—and then no. Well, not really. The parks on Earth had brochures, little booklet map things, and hand-held directories about the attractions in the park…" Luka trailed off, a thought suddenly popping to mind. "In fact, without the internet, there's not going to be many ways for people to get updates about the park. Or the story."

Stell remembered 'the internet' from one of their first interviews and ignored it for the more interesting points. "The story?" he asked.

Luka looked up, shooing away ideas and more notes to write down for himself. "Every themed land, ride, and attraction all have some sort of storyline. Be it sailing the high seas for treasure or exploring an alien moon on the hunt for strange artifacts." He gestured at the press. "With that, we can write these ideas down for guests to read while waiting in line or what have you."

"Fictional stories, then? I'm not much of a fictionalist. I much prefer the biographical and informational."

Luka nodded along, expecting the response. "Know any good story tellers?"

"A few—"

"Contact them, see if they want a job. Commission at first, I'd say. We can talk about salary later on when we know more about what we're looking for."

Stell's jaw hinged slowly. "I don't think many will want to move here without the promise of a salary."

"Not a problem. That's a good thing about writing, right? It can all be done remotely." He turned back to the press. "Looks like we will need that printing assistant after all, in that case."

"Are you sure about this? We're talking about a small fortune getting things set up for the press."

Luka looked into his eyes through the tinted glass. "I think we're having a disconnect in this conversation. World Walker Park is wildly successful, so much more than any of us thought—and that's forgetting the fact that soon,most, if not all, of the gods have a stake in the park. If we ever start losing money—which, trust me, we won't unless something very bad happens—I suspect I'll wake up with gold coins under my pillow, courtesy of the gods."

There was also his artifact ring. Selling potions of reincarnation was not an option, but there were plenty of other rare potions people would happily buy at an extraordinary price. In fact, a potion shop was on his list of buildings to add to the next themed land.

Stell stared blankly at the man and decided to test his statements. "So, if I ask for wild fifteen-armed squid ink, you could get it for me? It's a special type of ink."

"Magical?" Luka asked.

"Very."

"Expensive?"

"Exactly so."

"What's it do?"

"The fifteen-armed squid is a rare monster that captures prey in the depths of the ocean by means of illusionary traps. They create glowing orbs of light, enthralling fish, crab, and whatnot. The squids then eat without the worry of actual hunting." Stell pointed at a test piece of paper Luka had used the press on. The word "LEO" was fitted firmly in the top corner of the pager. "If that was printed in wild fifteen-armed squid ink, an illusion of Leo would appear to anyone who read his name."

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Luka hummed in excitement. "How does that work? What about people who don't know Leo?"

"It's all up to the printer," Stell explained. "I, for example, could infuse the illusions I wanted into the words. There are, of course, limitations, but I doubt those would pertain here."

Luka didn't have to think long. "Alright, I'll get someone to order some."

Stell froze. "It's expensive."

He just shrugged. "Most things are."

"I don't think you understand—"

"Maybe we could get a wild fifteen-armed squid to move into the lake? Think any would want to live in the shadow of a fledgling world tree?"

***

The news about the park's temporary closure spread through the rides and attractions, was discussed in the queues and debated in the dining areas. Every guest had a theory of what came next, why it was happening now, and what special deals they thought they could eke out of the World Walker if they complained directly to him.

By this point, it was no secret the families who traveled far to visit the park were getting compensation—a free ticket for any future date and travel expenses paid if the teleportation hub was up and running. In other words, a refund and an apology token. Some people tried to take advantage of this, seeking Luka or other prominent park employees.

Luckily, Goddess Tippy had their backs.

"No, this one's lying," she whispered in their ears just as often as she whispered, "Family of four, they need to reschedule and receive some tokens."

Getting through everyone was tedious and time-consuming, but all in all a painless process. Most were understanding and those who weren't stopped their complaining the moment Tippy spoke in their ears—what she said, Luka had no idea. Nor did he want to.

The end of the day found Luka exhausted, however. Luckily, he had company to be exhausted with.

"This sucks," Eve muttered, staring out at the moon-reflecting lake.

"Really? I quite like it," he replied, gnawing on a shred of jerky Ren made earlier in the day. He wasn't quite sure what kind of meat it was, only that it was good. Luka pulled a questionnaire from his pocket and began to fill it out. "Maybe a little metal-y."

Eve's face scrunched and she turned to look at him. "What—oh, no. Ren's food is good. That wasn't what I was talking about. And that's just the taste of liver, metal-y."

Luka started at the jerky, suddenly not hungry. "Can't say I like liver." He tossed it to a sleeping Leo—who instinctually woke up and snagged the meat from the air. "What sucks?"

"That we only really get to spend time together alone at night."

"We both work during the day."

She gave a limp shrug. "Maybe we can take a day or two off a month together."

"A month?" Luka asked, tone jovial and with a smile. "I was thinking a week!"

Eve mimicked his smile before suddenly turning and staring at the grass. "I—I like you, but not that much. A few days off a week specifically for dates would get tiring, fast."

"You like me, huh?"

"That's what you got from my statements?"

Luka impishly held out his hand to her. "Yeah."

She took it firmly. "Good."

They laid back and stared at the stars. God Neb must have been watching as the stars moved and breathed, drawing closer and twinkling with such beauty the night sky and moon glared with jealousy.

"A few days off a month," Luka mumbled mainly to himself. "That sounds like an almost healthy number of days off for the level of stress our jobs bring."

"Your job, mostly. I just tell people to keep their hands and arms inside the ride vehicle at all times."

Luka rolled to his side. "You do a lot more than that."

"Yeah—like forcing you to eat lunch," she said mirthfully.

"Sometimes I forget, okay?"

Eve faced him, both on their sides and staring into one another's eyes. "A few days a month," she reaffirmed.

"Specifically for dates."

"Know where you want to take me?"

"Not at all." Luka pointed at himself. "Alien, remember. I know Emberwood Village and Sneerhome—that's literally it."

"And you've only been to Sneerhome like four times, too." Eve sighed loud and playfully exasperated. "I suppose I'll have to come up with all the date ideas."

"I could just ask Franky—"

"Don't you dare! I've talked to Alex about their dates and Franky's idea of having a fun time is heading over to Sneerhome's meat markets and buying up anything he doesn't recognize! Alex said her armored guards smelled like mince for days!"

Luka laughed long and hard. And like a beacon, his giggles drew the attention of a vagrant.

"Are you two coming?" Vale asked from a nearby bush. Leo jolted awake and growled—some watch dog. "We're all ready to play and I want to practice for that tournament coming up." She held up a deck of moonlit cards.

Luka and Eve shared a glance. "A few more minutes."

Vale sighed, loudly. "This isn't going to become a regular thing, right? I mean ditching us to stare at the stars occasionally is one thing, but this is three nights in a row. Franky, Alex, and Annie keep making annoying jokes about you two and Vlad and I are getting sick of it."

Luke frowned. "Vlad and you?"

"Me because I'm me."

"Makes sense."

"And Vlad because Annie keeps bringing up their early dating life, trying to embarrass him."

"That… makes sense as well…" Luka turned to Eve and gave a shrug. "What do you say we go bail out my son in law and then gang up on Franky, Alex, and Annie in cards?"

Eve leaned forward and kissed him on the nose. "Sounds like a plan."

"No, it doesn't!" Vale snapped. "There's no 'teaming' in Storyline Hyper Selection Infinite Magical Draw."

Luka turned back. "What?"

"'Cards,'" Eve said, "she means 'cards.'"