Halloween Nightmare: Part I

[dreamposts]

✵ 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!]

Comments

[shakra]

[ there is great power in names, but that is neither here nor there. he files her name away in his mind, looking up when the basement light makes a valiant effort to come on. the scant lighting gives away all the items, old and stored away, and he senses her wariness, this slip of a girl who is so very, very young and seems like an old, old soul all at the same time.

taishakuten lifts his hand, palm up as a golden lotus forms in it, skeins of bright, glowing light giving it form, driving away the darkness. it might be the girl's dream, but taishakuten's celestial nature and his knowledge of realms and dreams allow him to press onward. ]

Relatively. [ something of an understatement, but that's neither here nor there; taishakuten is far more interested in this particular enigma before him. ] What do you need me to do?

[lethechained]

[ The girl's blue eyes flutter a little wider open as light blossoms from Taishakuten's hand. Beauty in a cold place like this is a simple balm for an artistic soul like her own, and protection from the darkness is more so. A flash of surprise crosses her expression that becomes something dangerously close to relief, just for a moment. It ebbs quickly even though the glow of the lotus doesn't, her reservation back again with a different tone, this time, as her gaze lifts back up toward his face. Part of her is comforted by the glow, the reflection of it warm in the darkness of her pupils, but small kindnesses aren't enough to convince her to let down her guard entirely.

Such powers aren't forbidden here, not by the nature of the dream itself. This may be a nightmare, but it's as if there are rules held in place somehow - by the Nobody's mind, perhaps, without her knowing it. Taishakuten claims his relative strength, and Naminé doesn't dispute it; he seems slender for a man, much the same way she is even for a teenage girl, yet that's never been any reason for her to question such a response. If the magic is anything to go by, there's more to him than a glance will tell.

While he's curious about her, the same can also be said in reverse. Preoccupied though she might be, Naminé's more able to recognize his peculiarity than she has time to acknowledge. In the wake of the display, he might become aware of a faint ripple of a different power, one that doesn't come from him; Naminé's not inconsiderate or foolhardy enough to reach out for his memories, but the passing thought does occur to her, and her magic stirs faintly in response. It's gone in an instant, and she responds, ]

That thing upstairs... it doesn't want to let either of us leave.

[ Frowning, she folds her hands together. It has the look of a self-comforting gesture, although she continues on with grim certainty. ]

If you're fast enough, you might be able to get out before it catches you. But if not, then... you'll have to fight it. [ With a narrow shake of her head, ] It's not going to give you a choice.

[ Except that's less an answer for what she needs and more a matter of helping him understand his own predicament, isn't it? ]

[shakra]

[ taishakuten watches her, those fragile, lovely features illuminating in the unrelenting glow of his light. naminé is wary of him, still, and taishakuten doesn't fault her for it -- after all, it takes an awful lot to trust someone who is still, essentially, a stranger.

and of course, he becomes aware of a different kind of magic. hers, created in a different world, strange and yet familiar, because magic is magic, and taishakuten is accustomed to the workings of power. from the stirrings of her magic, she will likely sense a strange, strange thing that seems incongruous with the man before him: a barrier not of his making, memories that don't sit quite right, rewritten by a much stronger hand and sealing away a potent madness. it's as if there's the imprint of another inside of him, fleeting.

the seeming absence of a heart; which is beating in another's chest -- unbeknownst to taishakuten.

there is, too, a darkness that ripples and pulses inside of him, the presence of a powerful shard inside of him that sustains his existence. taishakuten, however, focuses on her words, tilting his head briefly. ]

Then I will take that choice for myself, and you. I will not leave you here.

[ he regards her keenly, unable to help but to reach out in return, the most delicate tendrils of his own power brushing up against hers. ] What about you? Who are you?

[lethechained]

[ His oddness was so great to her that she would have noticed it without her powers; touching against it briefly with them leaves Naminé quietly shell-shocked, their threatening surroundings and his place as a stranger in them the only things keeping her from all-out distraction. Lips parted in voiceless concern, she frowns. Only having caught a glimpse at first, she manages to shake it off, thinking herself mistaken, but the little she did see almost fascinates her.

What he has to say is as comforting as his light seems meant to be. Is he that heroic type of person that she always seems to find her way to by one path or another? Not the broad-smiling kind like Sora, and he doesn't seem bound by private fears like Riku...

Neither kind, then - and that becomes obvious when she senses Taishakuten's power come into contact with hers. The girl goes rigid in surprise, not at all prepared for this, but her curiosity is for once quicker than her caution; her magic reacts briefly with his, a momentary flicker of connection that she doesn't intend.

Through it, she begins to recognize more of those facets of his state than she did the first time. The tangled shapes of improperly chained memories, of locks and lies and the kind of reworked mind that Naminé herself is painfully familiar with. A bond that goes off into the distance beyond what she can see, and the twisting, roiling darkness that ill-suits someone who sees fit to be kind-- there's just so much that's bizarre that the girl doesn't know where to start.

Preoccupied as she is, she's not prepared to defend herself from being seen in return. Her nature is complex, tangential to what human ought to be and yet very much not one. She's what happens when the shell of a person's being is pared off, when flesh and bone are left behind for a form made of something else completely - a strange facsimile born of will, pure and simple, that looks for all the world like a girl. Her existence is in direct contradiction to a reality which seems helpless against her, for she's present in spite of its rules. Where before there was an empty husk, now there is a new life entirely; not the individual she was in her previous existence, but someone unique.

She lacked a heart too, once. Now, there's something else in its place - an in-between stage, perhaps, as every day makes her a little more real. Her power is subtle but immense, the sort of quiet, creeping thing that an uncareful mind might easily mistake for their own thoughts; it's laced into every aspect of her being, a natural-born part of her existence.

But for someone as practiced as Taishakuten is, her magic might be easy enough to spot. She's not accustomed to meeting another soul able to bridge the gap between minds the way that she can, and her startlement is obvious as her power snaps away from the momentary contact, realization on her features. Her feet echo the sentiment as she draws in a breath, taking a quick step back that nearly has her colliding with an old trunk behind her.

Every part of her is trembling now, her eyes round when she gasps a quick, punctuating, ]

Nobody--! [ It's two answers in one as she folds her arms closer about herself, shaking her head while she tries futilely to swallow some of her nervousness before he sees it. ] I'm-- nobody.

[ She's already given him her name; it seems reasonable to assume he was asking something else, that time. Still slightly folded in on herself, the girl regards him cautiously, and yet-- for all that she's shied away, there's something more open in her eyes, now. A sympathy of sorts, a conflicted type of concern. Her voice is small when she accuses, with none of the force of an accusation, ]

But I think... I should be asking you that.

[ Whoever, whatever he is, he's no more human than she is. ]

[shakra]

[ she is a strange, strange creature -- not wholly human, possessing something else that keeps her alive that isn't a heart. taishakuten explores curiously, wanting to learn more about this mysterious girl with her dark, dark dreams, who seems to be able to see right through him. ]

Nobody?

[ he echoes, aware of her nervousness, but not entirely sure of what it might mean -- is it the name of her kind? it seems ultimately obvious that she is somebody, unless she's afraid of being exposed as different from the others, with her magic and her strength, the unique power that she's steeped in. but then she boldly asks him the question he has asked himself more and more often of late, the memories rewritten inside him unbreakable and unyielding but brittle, lacking in some spaces that taishakuten cannot fill, no matter how he tries.

locked away inside of him is madness, pain, loneliness, banished like a beast -- the barest tremor of its existence evident to one who is attuned to such things and yet, not to taishakuten. he frowns, for a moment... lost. ]

I'm king of the Celestials. [ a crown he obtained through blood and sacrifice -- first from the band of corrupt noblemen, and the second time around through the blood of one who loves him most, even if he remains none the wiser to it. ] Although I wasn't always so.

[ but that's not the answer she's looking for, is it? because the correct answer is: i don't know. ]

Why do you call yourself nobody?

[lethechained]

[ For an entity that looks so much like they belong in the Light, Naminé has an unusually deep understanding of the Darkness. Her fundamental nature lacks it, but her mind knows it well; this ominous cabin is proof enough of that.

Grimly, she nods at the word Taishakuten repeats back to her, watching him a moment to determine whether or not he recognizes the more specific meaning. Noting that he doesn't appear to, the girl lets out a small, short breath, close to a sigh - but rather than exasperated, she looks subtly relieved. None of this, however, truly draws her attention away from studying him. Though she may not say it aloud, his situation troubles her; the threat to both their persons in the nightmare might be immediate, but whatever's going on with him has clearly been taking place for much longer.

A king, he says he is. Naminé's brows lift before she can stop them, expression one of concerned realization. For someone to have such complicated processes going on inside them is one thing, but when they're a king-- that's a problem on a whole other level. Just what in the world happened to this fellow? The more she learns about him, the more it feels sinister. ]

... I see, [ she says at last, and she does. She's just still trying to figure out what it all means. Nevertheless, with a note of sympathy in her voice, ] That must be a heavy responsibility.

[ And marks him out as another non-human, if she's understanding the title correctly. 'Celestials' aren't a people that she's heard of before, but she's sure there are plenty of those. Millions, maybe, from what she's learned recently. By now she's taken to frowning at Taishakuten, peering at him past the golden light in his hand as if she's trying to see straight through to the back of his head, and yet her magic stays firmly tucked away from him. Hesitant, perhaps, now that she knows he can sense her as well.

But that question strikes a chord with her even so. Straightening a little, she shifts in place, almost reticent. When she answers, though, her words are firm. ]

Because that's the truth.

[ No matter what she's learned of her future, the facts of her current state haven't changed - so far as she knows, anyway. Her fingers lace together in front of her, her face serious. ]

It's what I've always been called. [ A beat; more reluctantly, ] ... Among other things.

[ The name was given to her, then, rather than chosen by the girl herself, even if she did see fit to repeat it. ]