songerein | Halloween Nightmare: Part I

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Halloween Nightmare: Part I

✵ HALLOWEEN NIGHTMARE: PART I ✵

It comes without warning. A few nights before Halloween, when the moon is supposed to be full and bright, it suddenly blinks out and turns pitch black. Even the stars seem to be covered, casting a strange darkness all over Songerein. While the fae sense something unusual, the newly arrived people—the dreamwalkers—all suddenly fall over asleep as if struck by a curse. Thick, black fog covers the town and one by one their bodies glow bright before converting into dream energy and disappearing into their crystals.

Alarmed, the tapirs investigate, some plunging deep into the realm of dreams to try and find wherever they went. What they discover is something they had never seen before—a massive dreamscape rippling through the dimensions, one full of life, color, and sound. It's as if its own little world, unaware that a giant group has dropped in uninvited. Before the dreamwalkers can be too confused, the tapirs send out a message via their crystals:

Careful, Dreamwalkers! We don't understand what's happening, but you have entered an unusual dreamscape, one where everyone here believes this to be their own world. It feels unstable, to the point where if too much disturbance happens it could turn this entire place into a nightmare! One that could affect Songerein!

Good news is it looks like they're throwing a huge party, so maybe if you just have fun and help out, it will pass quickly and you can return. There's a strange barrier that prevents anyone from coming out of the dream normally...but, we'll figure it out! Just try and have fun, okay?

That might be a tall order for some, but there's little choice. Already everyone has been outfitted in appropriate costumes that serve as "disguises"—some more realistic than others—allowing them to blend in. So long as they follow along and don't cause any disruptions, the locals won't bat an eye. However, the moment someone behaves oddly, such as speaking of other worlds or not behaving in a "frightfully ghoulish" manner when expected, the locals will start eying them with suspicion and small cracks will start to form in various places, most notably the sky where are a large grinning moon watches over everything. Fortunately it will take quite a lot before things get dangerous, but care is needed.

Now, what kind of "dream" have they been pulled into?

I . HALLOWEEN FESTIVAL

The town is bustling and looking quite alive despite its rather monstrous and undead citizens. The architecture style is a mix of ye olde Victorian England and steampunk—with bones and spiders and a lot of sharp things, of course. There is a giant cauldron in the center that acts as a fountain, and while touching it won't harm anyone, drinking it might cause a few green, gassy, flammable hiccups and fire breath that goes away after a while. There is even an odd story going around about a crazy witch called Baba Yaga and many wonder if something strange will happen again like all the other years. For now it's advised for everyone to carefully explore while perhaps getting into the various festivities. It's their time of the year after all!

A. Costume Party. Everyone's in a costume and there are plenty of contests and parades for everyone to show theirs off. All are encouraged to do their best and act like whatever they're dressed up as, and some may even be pulled into random impromptu "acts" for fun. Cute little black cats with witch's hats will hop on their heads and drop some special candy as a "reward." What could be so suspicious about this? (Yes, this is the cursed candy mentioned in the official details.)

» BONUS: MAGIC THREADS. Some locals need a little help with their costumes and request special thread that can be harvested by the ghoul worms—an underworld version of the silkworm. However, getting to them can be a bit...tricky. The worms need to be scared out of their wits for them to spit out the thread. The next difficult part is capturing the thread and not having it all over one's face. There are also some rainbow spiders who produce colorful threads, but they need to be sweetened up before they'll pass over their hard work.

B. Beware the Food. Of course the food is to die for. No, really, be careful of the food because there's a high chance it's been cursed and will cause one or more of the following: 1) suffer severe food poisoning; 2) become an undead zombie; 3) turn into a ghastly toad; 4) have a Wicked Witch experience and turn into a puddle of goop to then become a slime monster. Except for the first one, these changes are all painless and will just make the affected feel funny for half an hour. For the food poisoning, drinking from the Cauldron in the center of town will cure it, but for those who don't want flame breath, creating a certain witch's brew could be concocted.

» BONUS: WITCH'S BREW: Gather the following items to create the special witch's brew that will not only cure the food poisoning but other maladies as well. Just need a few tails of newt, a couple eyes of mud guppies, and the nails of opossums. Fortunately there are quite a few stores that carry these items so no one has to harvest them themselves, though they are certainly welcome to. If buying, the payment requires five chocolate coins. The catch? All the kids have the chocolate coins so need to somehow get them. Maybe the trick-or-treating can help.

C. Jack-o-Lanterns. There are pumpkins everywhere and an assortment of activities to do with them. From simple pumpkin carving for decoration, to loading them into catapults to see how far they go, to avoiding flaming pumpkin heads flying around causing mayhem. But the real buzz is carving pumpkins for the newly "arrived" skeletons that have unearthed to join the populace. As part of a celebration these special pumpkins will be worn by the new skeletons so the more decorated the better.

D. Trick-or-Treat. Of course there is candy being handed out and thrown out to be passed to the younguns. Some adults may find a giant skull head full of various candies shoved into their hands so they can give them to any excited gremlins. Just beware, those little monsters are more than happy to pull a trick instead, so tricks are also fair game as long as they are eventually given candy. In fact, tricks and pranks are highly encouraged, to the point that some are throwing competitions. Should anyone try to withhold the goods, however...well, curses from children are the worst.

E. Candy Corn Golems. Some candy corn will randomly come together and transform into candy corn golems. They range from knee-high that can do little more than just do feeble punches and throw goop on people's legs to a towering ten foot monstrosity that is ready to launch candy corn missiles that explode into harder gunk that can completely imprison anyone. While some locals might find their presence a suitable chaotic ingredient, many don't as they have no idea how these creatures came to be as the usual hexes and underworld magic seem to have little effect. Yet they are susceptible to the dreamwalking abilities… Most will cheer when a golem is defeated, but some may become suspicious.

» BONUS: FIND THE SOURCE. Even though the golems can be taken care of, the more that only the dreamwalkers can destroy, the more unnecessary attention and suspicion is aroused. Best to figure out where to find what's creating them and put an end to it. Whispers of a "mad witch" and "crazy hag" can be heard and curiously, some of the smaller golems trundle down away from the main chaos through some small alleys. Following them will lead them to a strange house, the magic spilling out unnatural. There are drag marks and broom bits that are tinted blood red and inky black. Stray, tattered pages and black smears can also be found around the house. Attempts to enter the house result in being blown back into the town center cauldron, however as long as attention is drawn to the house then suspicion will reduce from the dreamwalkers.

II. GRAVE WEDDING

Just outside of town is a vast graveyard that stretches for a considerable distance, the madly grinning moon seeming to loom and be its brightest here. Although mostly consisting of graves, there are also large mausoleums and a dilapidated looking chapel. Many live within the graveyard and those not participating in the town's festivities are having their own little parties. There's even a wedding being held at the chapel. However, not everything is going well and a helping hand—connected or not—will be appreciated.

A. Haunted Wedding. What a spooktastic night for a wedding between a bootiful bride and her ghastly groom. The chapel may be old, riddled with holes, and look ready to fall apart at the slightest breeze, but it's the ideal venue for all wicked weddings. With the pews filled with other residents of the town, it looks to be a perfect celebration—until red-eyed goblins suddenly burst through the already broken windows and holes. Some of the guests are quick to fight back (with some thinking it part of the event), but these goblins seem stronger than usual. Anyone who is nearby will be asked to help and get rid of them before they really do wreck the wedding!

» BONUS: GOBLIN SEALS. No matter how many are defeated, more just keep appearing to take its place. A gravekeeper shouts out that they witnessed the goblins appearing near a dark corner of the cemetery, a place known to be heavily cursed and filled with hexes due to all the witches buried there. Those who investigate will find all the graves dug out and each one with a summoning seal inside. Fortunately they are easy to destroy by either casting magic or even chucking rocks to break up the symbol. Destroy them all to stop the goblins, but be careful as some will pop up in the process.

B. Grave Situation. The graveyard is considered as one of the largest neighborhoods with many finding their underground or stone mausoleum homes quite comfortable and even luxurious in some cases. As part of the Halloween prank, tombstones, grave markers, and even coffins have been moved around and the residents are not happy. They'll need help replacing everything, but be warned—some pranksters have gone beyond and boobytrapped some. Triggering the traps will produce sticky webbing, glitter paint, and "bloody" marshmallow slime (it's just dyed red).

» BONUS: HOSTILE NEIGHBORS. There are some undead and skeletons lying in their earthly beds and cramped coffins that will not take too kindly to being disturbed. They are quite aggressive and will outright attack anyone who comes near their homes, even if they aren't in the right place. They need to be restrained and it would be bad news if anyone is severely harmed or worse—destroyed. Careful examination will reveal a strange slip of paper with what looks like a hex symbol on their heads, and if removed they will pass out but return to normal.

C. Nightmare Graves. Some tombstones will have writing that will mysteriously change to words that will provoke those who read it and send them immediately to a nightmare. It could be something completely random or it could be personal with the severity also random. Some dreams will be reflected on the tombstone similar to the crystals while others can be entered via dreamwalking. In either case, the dreamer's body will be lying in repose in front of the tombstone, which will have a line of "Do not disturb" along with cryptic words related to the nightmare.

» BONUS: NOCTAERE. The longer someone stays in a nightmare, the greater the risk in either attracting noctaere into the dream and out into the dreamscape and for the dreamer to become a noctaere themselves. It could be a partial or full transformation, depending on how strong the nightmare and how sensitive the dreamer is. Dreamwalkers must help try to stop the change before it's too late by attempting to change the dream or calm the dreamer. But if the dreamer turns into a noctaere and starts causing havoc within the dreamscape, then they must be subdued physically with dreamotion abilities.

[Mod Note: This is Part I of our event! To look over the official details as well as ask any questions, drop them in the official Event Details post. While we prefer for threads to remain in the event log, players are welcome to take their threads into their own individual logs for personal organization. We only request players to comment to the event log with a link to it so that others can find them more easily!]

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[ Yeah that's a pretty dumb, obvious statement. One that makes Vanitas roll his eyes as he pulls out his Keyblade to start walking towards a cluster of goblins. It's time for him to have a bit of fun himself.

At least... Lio says it like that. Honestly he hadn't thought it would be something that others think about too often. Ventus and his friends hadn't. ]

Well that can't really be avoided.

Why not?

[ feels like something that's easily solved. as he watches van approach the monsters with his weapon, lio is quick to follow after--- though instead of a keyblade, he reaches over his shoulder to grab an arrow out of a quiver that simply appears. in his hands, a bow made out of something dark materializes as well. ]

There's only one you, after all.

[ and he fires an arrow that doesn't pierce the goblin, instead knocking it back, making it bounce a few times before it crashes into another. ]

[ A bow. Interesting choice. He supposes that it makes sense to him in some way. Vanitas just prefers to walk up to the goblins that are distracted with his Unversed. Just cut them down without hesitation. Lio is used to such behavior from Van at least. It's not anything new...

He grips his Void Gear a bit tighter though. There had been things that Vanitas never fully explained. Lio is arguably one of his closest friends. Had felt for himself how... Broken Vanitas has been. Still is. ]

It's a long story. Probably not one best told while smearing goblin guts all over the place.

[ But with the promise of telling him about it. Later. ]

Yeah. I get it.

( vanitas... they all have their own burdens to bear. his are certainly more complex than his own! to be exposed to so many people from other worlds, problems seem equally bigger and smaller based on their experiences. so he could never think less of anyone. ever. especially a friend. but van's...

he wants to hear them. try to understand better. those visions from a long time ago... )

Should be easy to take out the rest of them. And then... whenever you're ready.

( because it'll take courage on his friend's part, too.

another arrow, and another goblin is sent packing. )

This feels good, too.

[ Look, they both have their issues and whatnot and that's fine. Vanitas isn't sure that one is any worse than the other. To him, Lio's world and situation sounds complicated. To Lio, Van's does. It's only because it's something new and unknown to the both of them. ]

Well right now, I'm thinking that we should back out and find the source. If you hadn't noticed, our friends' numbers aren't really shrinking at all.

[ But Vanitas knows where to go? ]

Lead the way.

( if he knows where to go... he'll follow van. he might follow him to the ends of the world, if he chose to do so? but lio places his faith in the one who was born from someone else's heart and could always give him the benefit of the doubt.

this will never come back to haunt him. probably. )

They're getting out of hand, aren't they...?

( he could have infinite arrows but his energy and focus? not exactly a forever kind of thing. )

[ It's not going to take them overly long to get to the cemetery. Vanitas pretty much makes straight for it, as he had followed the goblins to this location in the first place. However, once they are there? He hesitates. All he can do is drag Lio and himself to the area that they are clearly spawning from ]

It is. Not that I really care too much about that... But even I don't care to fight things that are weaker than me all day every day. So it's better to just put them down.

[ So he makes some kind of gesture towards a place that the goblins are hanging out. ]

Be my guest. Show me if you have any investigative skills.

( it's obvious to him that this is where the goblins have actually been coming from; not just from random holes in the church. much like how a stream can be eventually traced to a bigger and wider source of water, except the water happens to very aggressive and annoying goblins wielding various chunks of wood and rocks... all trying to keep them from going to one particular corner. )

... shouldn't take much, right?

( and as he starts plodding his way over, swinging glowing fists... whatever rage that had been building up over time with no way for him to burn it off starts to dissipate. it's becoming harder for him to wade through the goblins, who start pushing him back. )

Van...

[ The moment he hears Lio call out, Vanitas is right there. Quick on his feet as he ever is. Down comes Void Gear, making a mess of limbs and goo. He's not going to let anything happen to his friend. ]

Keep going. I'll back you up!

( it might be a dream, but the fact of the matter is that he's certainly running out of energy. trying to push his way through... his legs are burning from exhaustion and he's almost to the corner where he can see something faintly glowing. something that he definitely feels the need to destroy? it doesn't belong. that's how it feels. )

Something... in those graves! Can you reach them?

[ Oh Vanitas has Lio covered, rest assured of that. Because from his fingertips erupts a round of Thunder - though Van's takes the form of a chain lightning spell instead of raining down from the sky. He leaves that to his Unversed. It strikes the goblins, either frying them or paralyzing them for a moment. ]

Got it.

[ The Unversed he leaves with Lio, but Vanitas himself takes off towards the grave. He's not sure what Lio expects him to find, but he will come down with all of the force that he can muster behind Void Gear. ]

( it's more than enough from vanitas to allow lio to finally get to that corner, and he's equally surprised by van's magic. how strong the keyblade wielder is, how fortunate lio is, because despite his own strength? things are just easier with others and that having bonds... it really forced him to realize this. even as the most powerful burnish.

something glows ominously. a rune? some kind of symbol? not things he's unfamiliar with, but with the goblins seemingly spawning around it, there's only one thing he can do.

fire an arrow at it. the last one that he feels he can expend without collapsing, as embarrassing as it might be. and as it lands, the goblins stop appearing. )

[ Ironic because he feels like it is weaker. Lesser. The energies at work here don't quite mesh as well with him as the ones in Aef. It's irritating because he had been pretty powerful there too with his magic and bonds.

So when Lio fires an arrow, Vanitas enhances it with his own brand of fire magic. Perhaps that one shot will be all that it takes to shatter the seal. When it does and the goblins dissipate, Vanitas scoffs. ]

That one felt a little too easy.

I think anything is easy compared to what we've had to deal with before.

( fighting hordes of monsters and breaking what looked like a pretty simple target is definitely child's play compared to the cwyld. after all, this is supposed to be someone's dreams. right? )

But I think that makes sense. Doesn't it? If whoever made this world, temporary as it happens to be, wanted it to really hurt us...

( then it probably could. )

... so maybe we should count ourselves lucky, Van.

For you, maybe.

[ Because Vanitas pretty much had it made. The perfect life. At least as far as Vanitas is concerned. Mira. Sora. A group of friends. No Unversed being spawned from him. His heart slowly restoring...

Yes. It was good for him. This place? Not so much. ]

Whoever was behind this wanted to hurt whomever it was at the wedding more like.

Edited 2021-11-19 17:04 (UTC)

( and lio, to some degree, also had it made--- yet he also felt somewhat stagnant? but when he did feel that, he could fly up into the sky and let those feelings stay on the ground. here, he hasn't had that opportunity yet. doesn't mean lio will ignore any challenges in front of him. )

Yeah... maybe it is that simple.

( he's used to too many machinations at various degrees. )

Won't stop me from thinking about what else it could all mean.

( lio rolls his shoulders, rubs the back of his neck. he's sore. )

[ As is Vanitas. All of this could be random, of course. However, he doubts it. There must be some kind of angle or whatever. ]

Whatever the case, we're not going to find any sort of answers out here.

[ So they might as well head back. ]

Could use some hot cocoa...

( something to warm his body up after expending so much energy? something sweet to brighten his mood? but also, being with vanitas again... back into some action, it's heartening. it's relieving that he can feel this way with someone again. )

... mind if I lean on you?

[ Lean on him? Vani's eyes narrow slightly. ]

Are you wounded?

[ Because, you know... That's the only reason that someone would want to lean right? Because of tiredness or an injury? ]

Sore. Tired.

( but not hurt. at least, he can't tell if he is--- but he's positive that he's not bleeding or anything of the sort. )

Just until we get back somewhere safe?

[ Vanitas rolls his eyes. ]

Fine. Though the moment that someone sees and sees fit to comment, I'm dropping you entirely.

That's fine.

( vanitas' reputation is at stake, of course... lio respects that. but that doesn't mean he won't enjoy every second of it as they return, or that he won't cling a little tighter before he's let go just to make a small but subtle statement. )

I'll let go before you even drop me.

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Halloween Nightmare: Part I

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we can wrap this one up!

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