Notes

Rantaro woke up with the lingering pain of a (literally) killer headache, the aftereffects of being bashed over the head and sent to wherever the hell he was, only made worse by the bright light shining from above and a feminine voice that called out:

"A guest has entered the store! Welcome to IKEA, Rantaro Amami! Please locate the nearest employee to help you find your way around the store!"

Now, Rantaro had been to IKEA before. They weren't very common in Japan, but in the West there were quite a few. He had never really stayed in one place long enough to settle down himself, but he had helped some friends along the way as well as occasionally popping in to grab a few bits and bobs, and meatballs.

This– this was not an IKEA.

Although light was coming from the ceiling, he couldn't see the ceiling, just brightness coming down like some strange, furniture-store version of heaven. And when he stood and peered out of the bedroom showroom he was in, he saw that the showrooms went on forever– there were different variants of bedrooms that appeared in patterns, but there was no end in sight, in any direction.

He decided that he might as well explore– find some food and water, maybe some people to tell him what this place was and how he got here. Sitting here sure wasn't going to do him any favors, not when he had no idea if anyone was going to try and look for him.

He walked down the aisle cautiously, keeping his eyes sharp as his headache died down. He found that he was quite thirsty now, though. He would have to look for a water source, as well as some food. It didn't look like he was leaving this place any time soon.

He saw movement to his left, and turned around. It was a person, bald and wearing the IKEA uniform.

"Excuse me!" He called out, jogging towards them.

They turned, and he stopped dead in his tracks when he saw their face. No eyes, no nose, no mouth– just smooth skin sculpted into the shape of a face.

"Can I help you?"

Rantaro felt horror rise inside of him as a voice came from it– there was no movement of its face, the sound just came from it.

"Can I help you?" It repeated.

"I-" He choked on his words. "What?"

"Can I help you?" It said again. Always with the exact same tone and cadence. There was something about a faceless creature staring at him without eyes and speaking to him without a mouth that was so fundamentally wrong that it shook Rantaro to his core.

"Can I help you?" It asked once more. This time, he managed to snap out of it long enough to ask it a question.

"Where are we?"

"Aisle-" Its voice became distorted, a staticky roar that made his hands fly to his ears before it finally stopped. "The bedroom section."

"Right." He said weakly. "Where's the exit?"

The creature– what the intercom was referencing when it said employee, he assumed– stared blankly at him.

"Where's the exit?" He asked again.

"There is no exit." It said finally. "Enjoy your stay at IKEA."