| Type | Theme Park |
| Owner(s) | Rosko Bagaan |
| Featured in | Space Precinct |
Arcadia or the Palace of Dreams was an theme park located on the planet Altor-4. It was featured in "Space Precinct: Issue 2".
Overview[]
The amusement part was located east of Demeter City, in a desert wasteland. It was run by an alien director known as Rosko Bagaan, allowing guests to experience hyper-reality, simulated games experience via mentally.
History[]
Arcadia Free Trial Pass
Soon after it was constructed, the children of Demeter City's elite were invited via Flash Couriers to come to the wonderland that was Arcadia for a free trial of hyper reality. The children arrived in the hundreds for the experience that would change their lives.
Two weeks later, Captain Rexton Podly was secretly visited by his old Creon friend Randolph P. Sarrin, a prominent city councilor to tell him about the nefarious operation at Arcadia. Randolph's son had visited Arcadia, but had gone into withdrawal, becoming addicted to the hyper-reality games, pleading to go back to the theme park.
Randolph had approached Bagaan on what had happened to his son, only to be told that the receptors in his son's brain had been subtly altered and was now hopeless addicted to hyper-reality. He offered to deprogram Randolph's son, at a price. Bagaan told the councilor that a few days there will be a proposed bill to relax the gaming laws in Demeter City, which were restricting Bagaan's operations. Bagaan wanted Randolph to support the bill.
Randolph wanting his son to be returned to normal agreed to the price even if it meant being in the alien's pocket. However he soon learned that Bagaan could exert control over him threw his son, after the alien used only three word, "Bliss Awaits You," to turn his son into a zombie. It served as a warning to the councilor not to step out of line against him.
Soon the Creon learned that he was not only one being blackmailed by Bagaan, in fact half the politicians in Demeter City, businessmen, bankers and even cops, were in the same situation with Bagaan holding their children's well-being hostage.
Podly grew worried as his niece had received one of the complimentary passes to Arcadia. Randolph begged Podly to intervene and close down Arcadia. If nothing was done then Demeter City would be under the control of Bagaan. While the police captain normally would arrest such a scumbag, Bagaan was well outside the limits of the city, and thus outside his jurisdiction. He would need hard evidence to get a warrant to get inside Arcadia. And neither Randolph was willing to make a statement as it would damage his reputation.
Thus at the 88th Precinct Station House, Podly, held a media conference to express his concern over the threat of hyper-reality entertainment. The press immediately connected this to Arcadia, which they believed to be harmless. though were surprised when Podly informed them that he perceived the entertainment as a new form of drug. To support his claim, he revealed that he possessed incriminating evidence on a video tape that would prove the threat Arcadia posed. Podly then ended the conference.
The news was shown on various news media like Talk News, which was witnessed by Bagaan and his assistant. Bagaan was furious at the news, and planned to sue Podly for the slander, intent on seeing the police captain reduce as a traffic officer. Still he was concerned on the tape, though his assistant offered a solution, in the form of using Podly's niece, Ranna, as leverage as she was currently in one of the hyper cubicles at Arcadia.
Bagaan then contacted Podly demanding the confidential evidence. At first Podly refused to give him the tape, until he saw that his niece was next to Bagaan having undergone addiction to hyper-reality. Bagaan gave Podly the choice of choosing his family or career.
Podly not willing to risk his niece's life then took the tape with him, his theft of the tape witnessed by the robot Slomo. Slomo alerted the police staff of the violation and also the captain's reason for doing so. The precinct then traced Podly's vehicle and began to proceed to get a warrant for his arrest.
Podly brought the tape to Bagaan under guard, in exchange for Ranna. The damage to Ranna was not severe and she would recover. As for what would happen to the two of them, Bagaan held them at gunpoint, revealing that soon all of Demeter's leading citizens will be under his control. He only enticed the children to his park as his technology was only effective against children rather than adults.
The police from Demeter City though arrived under the ground to retrieve the video tape and arrest Podly. Bagaan not wanting to allow them entry order his security to attack, thus giving the police probably cause to use force to invade Arcadia.
Bagaan then ordered his subordinate Bulbo to kill Podly and his niece, however the alien refused to commit murder lest he would get life imprisonment. Podly was given his gun and his handcuffed Bagaan, handing him over the the Demeter police.
Before Podly could be arrested, he revealed that his arrest was part of a plan he, Ranna, Slomo concocted in order to get a warrant into Arcadia and stop Bagaan's operation. As for the tape, it did not contain any evidence at all but, some embarrassing footage from last year's police Christmas party.
Staff[]
- Rusko Bagaan - Director
- Bulbo - Henchmen