The Trailer Effect

Hey.. uhm..

This is our story..

So, on a forgotten time and date, I'm not sure how long ago, I was an ordinary Roblox player. Ordinary comes in all shapes and sizes on the platform, and me? Well, it didn't matter whether I was like the rest or abandoned the rest. I was just a player, playing my games and trying to enjoy myself as best I could. I remember when I was joining a game one day, and standing around, or walking, or chatting; when I noticed someone. It wouldn't be obvious to anyone who wasn't paying attention, but it... it sent some kind of warning chill through my body. I'm not even sure what it was, but, I had never felt so utterly uncomfortable, crushed, and terrified before; the sheer force of it completely took me by surprise. And yet, after what felt like a single second, it was gone. It vanished like drops of rainwater into a sewer grate. After a few seconds which seemed to stretch the more I put my mind to them, I just brushed it off as paranoia, or exhaustion, or anxiety. Anything to rationalise that feeling, to brush it off. And with that, I went on with my day, but I couldn't shake a mild unease that crept over me as I kept watching that very someone.

This person was one of those default avatar types, or maybe they had Robux? No.. I'm not entirely sure, but the one single thing that I could remember, was that... well.... they were staring at me? Yes, they were. They were staring, somehow, directly at me. I couldn't explain it, but when I zoomed out into my third-person camera, and I moved around, they turned to face me. Every single time. When I ducked behind a corner, this is where it got weird.

Instead of standing there and watching, they broke line of sight and began to move to a position where they could continue to stare at me, without any obstacles to block their view. After that, I again brushed it off as something my mind made up, so I thought it was some silly joke. In that, I decided to see what would happen if I started messing with them. So, I walked up to them, and started jumping.

Nothing happened.

I then started spinning my avatar, first with shift-lock, then in first-person.

No reaction.

Annoyed, I asked them "Hi" or "Hello", or "Hey", hoping I could make them respond. Not sure if it was lower-case or with capitals, but anyway.

Nothing.

There was absolutely no reaction, not even with taunting, insults, compliments, or even just staring back. Just an expressionless avatar, constantly staring at me. I got bored afterwards, so I just left the game and joined a different server. After a few minutes, I got the same weird feeling from when that player was just staring at me back in that other game, but it wasn't as short as before. It was a deafening screech in my ears, it scared my body so badly I started shaking, and then, it just went away. It faded from existence like a puff of thinly-veiled smoke, just barely visible until it floats away into the air.

At that point, I still went with it being some kind of audio bug, but, damn was I a fool. I went AFK to get some food, or maybe go to the bathroom, or fetch water, I'm not sure. My memory is sort of.. well.. fuzzy. Sorry, but, anyway. When I came back, I expected it to have disconnected me and kicked me out of the game; but instead of being disconnected from the game for inactivity, a crowd of people had formed near where I was standing. They were all shapes and sizes, from tall and lanky, to short and squishy, to silly hats, to other looks. Everything seemed to be normal, players still ran around and did their own thing, save for the lack of a disconnect screen, but, I realised something that I hadn't noticed before.

Just like the player on the other server I was on, they were completely silent, and expressionless. Their only movement was tracking every movement my character made as they stared at me. Cold. Emotionless. Unwavering. Yet, when I say this now, there was a new thing I felt. I know it is hard to say that I felt it through a screen, but it wasn't just the feels. It was a thundering, wailing screech of what sounded like metal being torn and bent, along with a single whisper; an echo that my mind refuses to forget, even now.

It was a single word.

TAKE.

Within a space of time which felt shorter than it was, all of those people just started casually walking towards me. Didn't matter what package or animation, no matter if they were sprinting, walking, or even flying, they were all moving with purpose. Straight to me, with any path they could take to cut off my escape points. Soon, I was squashed by the mob of players; I couldn't jump because around three or more stood on top of me, forcing me into the other bodies that were holding me down. My mouse had vanished, absorbed into their mass, with my keyboard completely shutting off. All I could do was watch as their very touch made me feel woozy, with the effect multiplying as I felt the strength to fight leaving me. And with that, I was taken.

---

And that brings you to the end of our story. I'm not sure why we are telling you this, but, now we move on to how we take people. You may call us "trailers", because we trail our supper before we eat it.

First, we select a target. This is usually done with a scout, so-to-speak. It'll be random based on our prospects, or hunger; because after all, we don't want to be recognized, do we? Anyways, we lock onto our target, and wait for them to notice us. We do not speak, we believe in the power of silence and waiting for our prey to make a move. It's a hit-or-miss grab, and the target may leave us before we can do anything, forcing us to reselect. However, when they do notice us, whether it's just a glance, or a simple gaze over in our direction, that's where the fun process of taking begins.

Once eye-contact is made, even when brief, the scout will let out a noise which we describe as the Call. The Call acts as a signal that is barely audible to the ear, but is subconsciously felt by the target as psychological distress which builds up and fades over time. Once the Call, or distress, has "ended", it gave enough time for any nearby trailers to lock onto the Call and focus their attention on the target for taking. If the target leaves, all focused trailers will remain on standby until the target goes AFK at any time in that day, but only if said target will come back to playing.

Once the target goes AFK, those trailers will immediately leave and join the target's game, preparing for the final stages of taking. And once the target has been taken, the people behind the players are disposed of, and the discarded avatars become trailers. I must have been delicious, or maybe I wasn't.

In any case, we don't know why we exist, or how we came to be before conversion. All we know, all I know, is what our purpose is: to take.