songerein | { halloween }

Entry tags:

{ halloween }

HALLOWEEN

Another Halloween has arrived in Reverein, and the Nightmare Troupe returns from their mysterious origins to help transform the carnival grounds to fit the season. They've added a new feature attraction: The Labyrinth, where everyone just runs around to fight spooky baddies for candy, prizes, and flex one's combat abilities in dreamotion. It's all in good fun, of course!

More details on everything can be found here. As a reminder, events double as our TDMs and information can be found here. Any outside characters participating in the log are canonly logged as appearing in Songerein in October and will remain in Songerein from the IC date of October 25th, just before the event ICly begins. TDM only characters can only thread within this log. Anyone who apps in and is accepted will have their character count October as their first time in the game without any disruption, so all content will carry over. Those who do not apply will disappear which should not seem too unusual, however players in game can choose to retcon and pretend a character was never there to begin with if it would be easier; or even think their presence was just a dream.

IMPORTANT! All outside characters MUST have "TDM" in their subject line, even if you might not app. This will help people differentiate those who are already in the game and those who are not.

TDM threads are required for samples. Refer to the Game Info for general information and feel free to toss any questions here. Reserves will open October 25th and Applications will open on November 1st. Our application cycles are bi-monthly so the next cycle after won't be until January.

TDM Toplevel Link Directory (click to view)

Bokurano - Jun Ushiro
Cookie Run Kingdom - Black Raisin Cookie
Dead by Daylight - Zarina Kassir
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves - Edgin Darvis
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves - Xenk Yendar
Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core - Genesis Rhapsodos
Final Fantasy XIV - Emet-Selch
Final Fantasy XIV - Hermes
Final Fantasy XV - Somnus Lucis Caelum
Full Metal Alchemist - Alphonse Elric
Genshin Impact - Ei
Genshin Impact - Nahida
Great Ace Attorney, The - Iris Wilson
Hey Arnold! - Helga G. Pataki
Hi-Fi Rush - Chai
Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword - Zelda
Noragami - Yato
Original - Astralin Turnont
Touhou - Maribel Hearn

We will request any thread submissions for certain prompts during AC and TDM threads will count. For more information, refer to the Game Notes.

I. CARNIVAL

II. LABYRINTH

COMMENTS

I. CARNIVAL

While the carnival grounds still have the standard fare of attractions themed up for Halloween, there are a few new ones popping up thanks to the Nightmare Troupe. Some are similar to what appeared last year, but with a different look to them. Some, perhaps, more terrifying than before.

A. Personalized Costumes. All throughout Reverein boutiques and tailors are in full swing to create costumes for those who wish to wear, either by renting or buying. However, for those who are a bit adverse, the fairy godmothers are out and about ready to employ their fashion magic to grant anyone and everyone a special Halloween costume, just for them! There might be the slight side effect that the wearer may behave like the costume itself, but it's just a temporary phase.

B. Vampring Frights. The vamprings are still out and about, nibbling on nightmares. But now they are also appearing outside of dreams, deciding that a bit of fear could make as good of a snack or meal as any other. Only the ones that are truly hungry will appear, so a little purple blob will bounce and latch onto any part of their target's body they can reach (though they particularly like the top of the head). Those who are bitten in this manner won't try to bite others, fortunately. Instead, they will become something like a "Vampring minion" and try to invoke fear and scare others. (For more information and use the original version of the Vampring, read here.)

C. Monster Swaps. Small monsters will roam the carnival grounds and will swap bodies with random people to go around pulling pranks and tricks in the person's body. The person is now trapped in the monster's body, but has access to the monster's trickster, spooky abilities as well (ie, players can make this up). To return to normal, they must find their original body and bite it. Otherwise, they will have to wait for the monster to get bored and return to switch them back.

D. Carnival Fare. Here are a few of the general games and attractions available for carnival goers to enjoy.

🔫 Zombie Shooter. Ride through a rickety car through a building and shoot the "zombies" that pop up with bright green paintball guns. While most are cardboard, there are a few volunteers that dress for the occasion. Don't mind their pain as they get hit, they're fine.
👻 Spooky Stories. Instead of a fire, there is a boiling cauldron set up where people can gather around and try to conjure up their spookiest story. The steam over the cauldron will change and twist to try and illustrate the story as it goes, and should it proof particularly scary, a manifestation of the terror will crawl out of it to terrorize everyone for a little bit before disappearing.
🍏 Poisoned Apples. Special caramel covered green apples are handed out throughout the carnival. One bite will inflict one or more of the following effects: floating, dizzy, sugar rush, creepy, frightful. (Players are free to be creative and come up with additional effects!)
🧹 Broom Carousel. The horses have been replaced with different styles of witch brooms, letting everyone have a safe experience of flying on a broom. Until the brooms suddenly fly out of the carousel and into the carnival. Hang on or stop that broom!
🎃 Pumpkin Carving Challenge. Pumpkins can be found all over the grounds, and there is a challenge to carve them with dreamotion and light a special candle in them. Doing so will bring the pumpkin to life and behave like whatever expression or drawing carved on them. Whether they behave nicely is a different matter. Blowing out the candle will stop the pumpkin.

E. House of Mirrors. The House of Mirrors will have new mirrors installed that have new special effects…many making everyone inside feel not quite themselves.

🎭 Jekyll and Hyde. A black framed mirror where the opposite version of the viewer appears to taunt them.
💅 Narcissism. A gold framed mirror where one will see the best version of themselves and will stand stuck in front of it admiring themselves. They will need to be forcibly dragged away…else they may get stuck on the mirror.
🛌 Dream or Nightmare? A silver framed mirror that will reflect either a good dream or a nightmare that's on the viewer's mind. It will be a strong image, so strong that the viewer may be tempted to dreamwalk into the mirror, either to be a part of it or to destroy it. Some help may be required to help them either accomplish their goal or pull them out.
🪞 Mirror Version. Sometimes, a "mirror version" of the viewer may reach out to switch places, trapping the original inside the mirror while the mirror version goes out to cause some chaos. The trapped person can only traverse through mirrors, and can only be freed if the mirrored version is shoved back into any mirror. One way to tell a mirror version apart is that they will randomly reflect things off their body.

F. Haunted Ryokan. A haunted Japanese styled inn is the theme for this year's "haunted house." On the outside, it looks invitingly eerie, with life-sized traditional Japanese dolls as their hosts and guides. They hope their new patrons will enjoy their stay…forever.

🏮 Peony Lantern. At first a beautiful woman will appear holding a lantern and take a person's hand to lead them through the narrow halls lit by floating lanterns. But whenever they pass under a lantern, the woman's form changes into a skeleton. Once they are noticed, they will screech and chase them through the hallways and rooms to the next location, but if left alone it will quietly lead them without issue.
🛁 Bathhouse. Somehow they get to the bathing area where the steam rises thick around them. Without warning a ghostly figure of a long-haired drowned woman will crawl out and chase with a bloody knife. Fish spirits will also fly out to impede them, but they could be used to smack the woman instead. Should someone slip in the water, they'll feel hands grab at them, trying to pull them under…
🪦 Graveyard. Past the courtyard is a graveyard where all manner of Japanese inspired ghosts and demons roam. A special paper talisman is available, and once powered with positive dreamotion it will create a shikigami that will help ward off and defend against the ghosts. But it must have constant dreamotion poured into it, so should it ever go out, the ghosts and demons will suddenly rush into chase.
🐕 Shiba Statues. Should anyone be having a truly terrible time, special little shiba inu statues will trot in to dispel the "evils" and give the visitor some much needed comfort and respite. They will even guide them to the exit if needed. Those who manage to pass through on their own will also meet the shiba inu statues and have a chance to play with them as if in congratulations.

II. LABYRINTH

A big structure now occupies the area just beyond the Fairgrounds. Towering stone walls hide complex pathways inside, and it turns out its express purpose is not to get people lost, but for a little bit of exploration. There is no entrance/exit, just a special circular teleportation pad that will take them inside and there is no end goal. It's not difficult to get out once inside, but the winding paths encourage visitors to check behind corners for treats because there's a lot of treats AND tricks!

A. Halloween Creatures. The labyrinth is populated with silly creatures held together by ~~craft glue and duct tape~~ both dreamotion and nightmare. These creatures will attack on sight, but subdue them and reap the rewards: candy and silly toys! It's all for fun, after all.

🦴 Skeletons. Their bones are made of rubber and most physical attacks will bounce off them. Have to get in close to blast with dreamotion!
🕷 Glow-In-The-Dark Plastic Spiders. Will shoot sticky licorice webbing that will trip up and trap any caught in it. Have to eat through it to get out, and the flavor could either be red or black.
🔺 Candy Corn Golems. Chuck giant pieces of candy corn that are delicious, but hurt! Golems will melt under intense heat.

B. Mysterious Doors. Sometimes, you may find a door at one of the dead ends. Knock, and most of the time a kindly old lady (where did she come from? Don't worry about it–) will present you with special trick-or-treat bags. The other times, a swarm of genuinely sinister nightmare creatures will come pouring out. Oops! Try again next time! Here are some of the items the old lady will give and their effects (they can be taken home after the event):

🧙 Witch's Hat. The hat will automatically fly on top of the person's head and will allow them to cast silly hexes of misfortune on their targets.
🧹 Witch's Broom. Can fly at fast speeds for a few minutes at a time. Only goes up to three feet in the air.
🤓 Plastic Fangs. These fangs will fit themselves in the person's mouth and will allow them to bite any candy corn golem or sticky spider licorice webbing with ease. And normal foods, too.
🕸 Spray Can of Licorice Webbing. Releases a spray of licorice webbing similar to the ones used by the plastic spiders.
🧻 Roll of Toilet Paper. Exactly as it says.
🍫 Nougat Center. A delicious treat that will temporarily boost one's ~~stats~~ dreamotion abilities.

C. Beware of Steve. If you're very unlucky, you may hear an ominous clatter in the distance... The low rumble of a revving chainsaw... Those who spend lots of time in the labyrinth will know soon enough–those are noises that mean you need to run. Because STEVE, THE 20-FOOT-TALL CHAINSAW-WIELDING SKELETON, takes no hostages, and he's out for blood!!! He will continue chasing people until fought, and anything goes with this foe. While dreamotion attacks will work, using the items given by the old lady in the doors will inflict greater damage. Anyone who is "killed" by Steve will be knocked out of the Labyrinth unharmed.

D. Grand High Viscount of Candy Corn. On the other end of giant "horrors" is a giant golem made of candy corn with a large top hat that may appear out of one of the doors. Its main attack, besides trying to punch and pummel, is spewing sticky candy goop that will trap anyone caught in it. It'll wear off, but until then, any caught in it will at first feel very energetic and attack more quickly before becoming sluggish and unable to do much, as if they suffered an extreme sugar crash.

I. CARNIVAL

II. LABYRINTH

COMMENTS

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Now you decide to show up?

[If Wanderer is perhaps a bit testier than he might otherwise be with Nahida...look. It's been a few months for him, he's been having a time, and the only archon around he even sort of likes is Venti (he barely knows Zhongli, after all). So to see Nahida here now...well, yeah. He's annoyed. Even if it isn't her fault.]

Aren't dreams supposed to be your domain?

[ Now if that isn't a familiar voice. She hadn't expected to meet another being of Teyvat here, in a world that didn't belong to Teyvat, but it wasn't unwelcome.

She gives the Wanderer a cheerful smile, unperturbed by his grumpiness. ]

Hello to you too! I'm happy to see you as well.

[ The second question prompts a more mischievous look from the Archon. ]

You never sent me an invitation to this dream. I would have come immediately had I known something so wondrous existed.

[ Grumpy or not, she enjoyed teasing the Wanderer every so often. ]

Edited 2023-10-16 23:45 (UTC)

[If he were the sort of person to be introspective about this sort of thing, he would suddenly realize why he doesn't really mind it when people just brush past his grumpiness.

But he's not, at least not right now, so he just frowns more.]

I tried. Are you sure you just didn't miss it?

[ She's certain he'll realize one day, even if it's not now. Either way, that he's deigned to banter back means he's not truly upset, even if he did appear to be grumpier than usual.

She hums thoughtfully, a cheeky smile still on her face. ]

Perhaps it got lost in transit?

[ The smile morphs into a gentler one as she drops the banter to look at him more carefully. He seemed a little different than what she remembered, and his first words to her implied he'd been here for much longer. ]

Has this dream been treating you well?

[He shrugs, not meeting her gaze.]

Most people leave me alone here. I've been in worse places. Have you spoken to anyone else since you got here?

[ She bends over a little, trying to catch the Wanderer's gaze with her curious, but gentle one. He was reticent to speak, but that was alright. She was patient. ]

Oh, that's a shame. I had hoped you would make friends here.

[ Because you definitely need some, buddy. And there was no Akademiya that she could force him to attend for socialization. At least, none that she'd observed so far. Perhaps there was another social hub in this dream world? She would have to look into it. ]

You were quick to find me. I only had enough time to understand some aspects of this dream.

[She says that and Wanderer...maybe goes a little pink? But he's not saying anything about any hypothetical friends he's made or not made. Absolutely not.]

What do you need to know?

[ Oh? Oh?? Well, that was an interesting reaction to her comment. She'd expected a scathing dismissal of the idea, but this?

There's a knowing curl to her lips, but she doesn't prod the issue. There will be time later, she's certain. ]

So far, I only know that this dream has no host and doesn't seem to originate from Teyvat.

[ She holds out a hand and allows a flicker of Dendro energy to appear, manipulating it gently. ]

And that the energy of this place appears to be replicating what we know of our own abilities. Though this looks like Dendro energy, it is not. If I had to make analogy, it's similar to a drawing. Depicted by a person, rather than governed by the laws of the world. It acts how we expect it to, and the world reacts how we would expect it to, yet it is not the real thing.

[ She lets go of the Dendro energy and looks curiously at the Wanderer. ]

What have you discovered of this place?

Other than what you just mentioned? Not much. The realm here is constantly under attack from nightmares or similar. People can fall asleep here and wake up with different memories than they had before, and people come and go at random. Some people want to stay here, and are looking for ways to do that.

[A beat.]

You missed the Traveler, but Barbatos and Morax are here.

[ She hums in thought as she takes in the information provided. Normally, nightmares were not something of concern to a dreamer, other than the unpleasant emotions they usually brought to the surface, but perhaps it was different in this dream. Given how structured and rigid this dream world was, she would not be surprised if they could cause real damage to individuals, but that was only a hypothesis so far.

She could not query Irminsul to understand the nature of this place, as it was not a space that existed within Teyvat, so she would have to approach this world like the scholars of the Akademiya do. Research, formulating hypotheses, and testing.

The thought of it sent a small rush of excitement through her. ]

I see. As far as I can tell, our activities in our own world haven't been interrupted, so staying in this dream wouldn't be a detriment to our lives in reality.

[ So similar to Moseis's dreamscape, and yet so unalike. ]

Barbatos and Morax are...?

[ She trails off, eyes wide in surprise. She had intended to invite the Archons to a meeting one day, to reacquaint herself with them, but she hadn't anticipated meeting them here. But perhaps now was the best time, as she wouldn't have had time to step away from her duties for years, perhaps even decades.

There's a small beat of silence, and then her ever-curious eyes turn towards the Wanderer. ]

You've met them?

I met Morax once. Barbatos--Venti--has taken a liking to me, so I know more about him than I do the other.

So you have made friends after all.

[ The knowing smile widens, morphs into a teasing one. From what little she knows of the Anemo Archon, she thinks he'll be a good influence on the Wanderer. And the way he words it...

She abruptly turns, setting off at a slow pace, glancing at the Wanderer to beckon him to join her on a leisurely walk. They've been standing in the same spot for a while now, and she wants to explore. ]

Tell me. What's he like?

We're not friends.

[They are absolutely some kind of friends. But if Nahida wants to walk, he'll walk with her.]

He's a wine-soaked bard who refuses to sleep in a bed.

Edited 2023-10-17 03:32 (UTC)

[ You can keep denying it sir, but your following comment is very damning. He would definitely know the sleeping habits of someone who is definitely not his friend, hm?

Nahida makes no effort to hide her amusement. ]

Is that so? Where does he like to sleep then?

[He hates her.]

Trees.

[ And yet he still accompanies her. Is he in the habit of keeping people he hates who are definitely not his friends as company?

This time, she can't keep the teasing tone out of her reply. ]

And do you often see him sleeping in the trees?

[Nahida is his boss, this is different!

But oh, the glare he shoots her at that question.]

He likes the trees near my house.

[ True enough. But she likes to think they have a closer relationship than that of a boss and her underling. He was perhaps one of the few people she could speak candidly to, about almost anything, including Irminsul. His was a presence she valued dearly, and she'd made certain that he knew, even if the sincere feelings embarrassed him.

Of course, it doesn't stop her from continuing to tease him. ]

Presumably because of your presence nearby?

[ She almost giggles, but holds back. She won't needle him too much. She didn't want him running off in a huff and leaving her alone in this world, after all.

Instead, she changes the topic. ]

Tell me more about this world. Other than the nightmares, are there any pressing concerns the inhabitants must deal with? Is there a governing body in this dream? What other interesting individuals have you met here?

[Wanderer starts to explain what he's learned of the area. No real governing body, as far as he's been able to tell, just a lot of communal nonsense and things like that. No economy, just barter, and there's been a few new cities and regions and people showing up and how he frankly doesn't see why they matter, but they do so whatever.

He explains about some of the places he's seen (mostly food places, and the bookstore, and he mentions he's gotten into mystery novels now), and some of the people he's spoken to (most of them idiots).]

There's an Inazuman detective here who's attached himself to me, as well.

[ Interesting. She nods periodically as she listens to the Wanderer's report, drawing hypotheses from the information. She wasn't yet sure if food was required for sustenance here, but it seemed shelter was of no issue. At the very least, there didn't seem to be a lack of resources or outer threats that would require the people of this dream world to organize into a well-governed community. Essentially, it was a world quite removed from the daily toils of reality. A dream paradise.

When the Wanderer's report turned to the connections he's made, she puts away her thoughts about the dream world and focuses on his words. This was very important, after all. ]

It sounds like you're enjoying yourself very much.

[ She's truly happy for him. After everything he's experienced in his life, a reprieve like this would do him well. She could already see that some of his edges were being sanded off, and he was becoming mellower. ]

Do you like this world?

[If she ever were to point that out, he would snap. Even if she is correct.

At her question, though, he shrugs.]

It's a world. I wouldn't say I like it or that I'm enjoying it, I'm just here.

[ She hums thoughtfully at the answer. It was one she expected. For all that he was getting better, some things were still too soon. He had a long way to go before he would be happy living in a reality that had treated him so cruelly. Even this dream world, so far removed from Teyvat, was still not a place he seemed comfortable existing in. ]

And now I am here with you.

[ She'd like to think her presence brought him some comfort. Even if not, at least she was a familiar face.]

And now you're here.

[And, honestly? He missed her. She's very much become the archon he likes best (though maybe Venti is edging her out, if for different reasons), and it'll be nice having the most sensible of the Archons around for his sanity if nothing else.]

...do you like cats?

[ That was an abrupt topic change. She tilts her head inquisitively, wondering where he was going with this question. ]

I haven't had the pleasure of seeing one in person, but I think they're very cute.

If you want to see one in person, I left Arashi at home.

["But you can come see her."]

Arrival

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