{ haunted carnival | test drive #08 - october 2022 }

[dreamposts]

HAUNTED CARNIVAL

Full details on everything can be found here, but an important reminder that this event log doubles as our Test Drive Meme and information can be found in this section.

This means 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 25 through 31 (this log is forward dated to the 25th). However, outside characters can only thread within this log, so for those seriously considering the game, you are welcome to use non-festival prompts for your toplevels. 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 as people randomly disappear already, 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 Tuesday, 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; updated 10/28)

American McGee's Alice - Alice Liddell
Avatar: The Last Airbender - Azula
BlazBlue - Noel Vermillion
Case Study of Vanitas - Vanitas
Dangan Ronpa - Chiaki Nanami
Devil May Cry - Lady
Final Fantasy VII - Cloud Strife
Genshin Impact - Albedo
Genshin Impact - Eula Lawrence
Genshin Impact - Kaeya
Genshin Impact - Razor
Great Ace Attorney - Ryunosuke Naruhodo
Helluva Boss - Blitzø
Helluva Boss - Octavia
Jujutsu Kaisen - Fushiguro Megumi
Kaze Hikaru - Okita Souji
Library of Ruina - Angela
Mikagura School Suite - Yuto Akama
My Hero Academia - Bakugo Katsuki
Octopath Traveler - Ophilia
Original Character - Kate Galloway (Jigoku CRAU)
Original Character - Marie Daenthelm
Original Character - Pauline Bonheur
Persona 3 - Ken Amada
Promare - Lio Fotia
Shadow Hearts: Covenant - Yuri Hyuga
Tales of Berseria - Magilou
Tales of Berseria - Rokurou Rangetsu
Tales of Berseria - Velvet Crowe
Tales of Hearts - Chalcedony Akerman
Tales of Hearts - Hisui Hearts (Aefenglom CRAU)
Tales of the Rays - Baldr
Touken Ranbu - Hizen Tadahiro
Touken Ranbu - Ichimonji Norimune
Transformers IDW - Soundwave
Your Wings and Mine - Shealtiel

I. CARNIVAL FUN

The moment a guest enters the carnival grounds, there is a high chance (read: optional) they will find themselves changed in some way to fit the spooky, haunted atmosphere. Instead of just wearing a vampire costume, the character will actually turn into one. Of course, how much of a transformation varies between complete to partial changes. It should be noted that this is only a cosmetic and ability change—no matter what someone changes into, they won't have any personality changes…unless one of the carnival attendants cast a small enchantment to make it so. Of course this is by chance as well (read: optional).

A. Haunted Food. While there is some standard fare carnival food around, the Haunted Carnival has some unique items with even more interesting effects:

Caramel Apples: Tart green apples dipped in caramel and decorated with chocolate to look like they’re covered in spiders and spider webs. Eating one of these will have the dreamer feeling crafty and industrious, just like spiders themselves often are. Also, the idea of eating bugs (or even other spiders?!) suddenly seems strangely appealing…
Cherry Blood Popcorn: Popcorn drenched in cherry syrup and decorated with candy bones. The combination of sugar and dreamotion energy leaves the eater feeling giddy and cheerful, somewhat in contrast to the gruesome appearance of the treat itself.
Funnel "Brain" Cakes: Funnel cakes colored to look like brains when served. Comes in regular or zombie brain varieties. Eating one makes you feel lethargic and hungry, like the only thing that matters is your next snack fix, but you’re not willing to do much more than shamble toward it.
Mummies in a Blanket: Small hot dogs wrapped in biscuit dough and decorated to look like mummies. After eating this, you may or may not want to wrap yourself into a blanket and take a nap—ideally somewhere dark and spooky.

B. FUN AND GAMES. Mixed in with the food vendors are several booths advertising a variety of carnival games, including but not limited to the ones below.. The prizes you win may or may not be cursed. Best of luck!

NERF Gun Shooting Gallery: Use dreamotion to shoot foam darts from a gun at various ghostly and ghouly targets lined up on a platform. Advanced players may want to try their hand at making the guns shoot other objects. Water? Fire? Glitter bombs? The only limit is one’s imagination.
Ring Toss: A series of witch hats are lined up, and the objective is to toss rings on the hats for points. Did something just peek up from under one of the hats? It’s probably nothing to worry about.
Potion Bottles: A variation of the milk bottles game wherein you throw balls to knock over flasks and beakers filled with strangely-colored liquid. In most cases, the spilled potion is totally harmless. Once in a while, however, it may have some interesting effects on the player and/or the booth itself.
Slime Pit: There’s a giant pit of slime with a sign next to it: prizes within for those willing to get a bit messy! Said prizes range from giant candy bars to random silly toys to skeletal limbs…? Oh that belongs to the skeleton having fun in the pit, they might want it back.

II. ATTRACTIONS

A. Hall of Mirrors. A classic maze of mirrors that are usually filled with special effects to make one's reflection look distorted. In the beginning the distortions are more humorous, making one look super skinny or extremely curvy. However, the deeper one goes, the reflections begin to look a bit…strange. The mirrors begin to reflect the "worst" side of an individual, but in a more embarrassing manner. When they first wake up in the morning, having a bad hair day, dressed poorly, being lazy on the couch—mostly benign things that would be embarrassing to show others. But there are some that may reveal one's darker self they wish to hide from others and are forced to face—especially when the reflections will step out and follow the original until the end of the maze. They won't do anything, just follow silently like a shadow, but even that may be taxing for anyone, especially if others see. The reflection must either be pushed back into an empty mirror, or it will disappear on its own when exiting the building.

B. Wild Carousel. The creatures on this carousel are not just colorful painted steeds but are more frightening in nature and looking more undead than living. Skeletal horses, direwolves, fanged deer with bloody horns. What makes this ride truly terrifying, however, is that the creatures are alive, restrained only by the pole stuck through them. But there are times when they manage to break free, causing havoc as they run through the park. The only good news is they don't attack, instead aiming for the carnival food as if hungry. Either hang on or help capture them back!

C. Cirque du Souleil. Near the center of the carnival is a large circus tent, and it boasts a variety of shows that are death defying, terrorific, and guaranteed to make everyone scream in fright and awe. The usual acts are available to see: acrobatics, musical performances, theatrical skits, and using ghostly steeds to ride through the large arena. But what makes this circus unique is that all the performers are capable of separating their soul from their physical body, similar to astral projecting or dreamwalking outside of dreams and being visible to all. And now they're asking for volunteer pairs to either participate in a more simple act such as an acrobatic stunt on the swings or tight rope…or eat a special candy that will allow them to have an out of body experience via dreamwalking outside. The only "flaw" is their dreamwalking form will tend to float up to the top of the tent, so their partner who hasn't eaten the candy has to tether them via dreamotion to get through some simple obstacles. No worries, the professionals will help return the soul if they get lost.

D. Spinning Bumper Cups. A combination of the classic bumper cars and spinning cups rides, this attraction has its riders in skull shaped bumper cars that will randomly spin. Riders have the ability to fire off "pumpkin bombs" at the others, which will splatter pumpkin goop to slow down their car. It will also make the car spin for a few rotations. Dreamotion will also help boost the speed, stabilize a spinning car faster, and make the pumpkin bombs more explosive. Just be careful—the barrier around the arena is made of bones and therefore quite brittle. It's not unusual to see a car spin out and lose control driving through the carnival grounds. Stop the runaway car and bring it back! Or shoot people with pumpkin bombs.

E. Ferris Wheel. Ah, the ferris wheel, a gentle ride that elevates one high in the air to allow them to see the sights below, in this case the entire carnival grounds and the surrounding areas like the bordering forests, the Observatory, and the edge of Reverein. However, as with everything in this carnival, the ride is not always so gentle. There are times when the entire ride accelerates to a faster pace, causing the (fortunately) enclosed cabins to rock dangerously as it rotates around. There are times when it keeps going, not letting anyone off until three rotations. And then there are times when the top half of the cabin disappears, exposing the riders to the cooler winds. Fortunately handle bars will appear they can hold onto, but no seat belts. Enjoy the view?

F. Other Rides. There are plenty of rides and attractions at the carnival, too many to list all of them here. A roller coaster, tower drop, gravitron, bungee jumps, pendulum ship—whatever one might think exists, it's there in all its twisted nightmare glory. One thing they all have in common is the more fear and thrill and screams generated, the faster they go. Just hope the ride doesn't stall and get stuck…

III. HAUNTING CLUES

Although the main purpose for these prompts is to find the clues, anyone is free to use them for general use and not focus on getting the clue. For those who do participate, we'll be asking for thread during our Activity Check! Those who are TDMing regardless of application can also have their threads counted by commenting to this thread and following the directions.

#1. Haunted Dollhouse. There is a special building called the Haunted Dollhouse. It's similar to a haunted house, however this attraction is filled with moving porcelain dolls that will try to scare and chase those who enter (it's quite likely some members of the newly added Porcelain Town have volunteered to help). Sometimes, those who enter are cursed into a doll and are now vulnerable. They are also not always able to move on their own will. This is not great as sometimes the dolls kind of…malfunction and will actually become aggressive. The weapons they wield are also not props, so that's a problem. However, they are small and can only inflict minor wounds and can be easily taken out.

The main clue here is "Villains!' I shrieked. 'Dissemble no more! I admit the deed! Tear up the planks! Here, here! It is the beating of his hideous heart!" To help both those who have turned into dolls as well as get the clue, everyone has to find the right place where some candied hearts are hidden. Fortunately the "blood trail" (it's raspberry syrup) will help lead them to the right place.

#2. Abandoned House. A little away from the main attractions there is a run down house surrounded by trees…and a lot of ravens. A raven with red eyes will guide those who dare or wish to face a lost loved one to the house. Inside it's just filled with faceless busts and empty paintings, but soon they are filled with the images of those lost ones. It could be a person, pet, thing, but they are there, just staring. Only the eyes and mouths move, and what the person hears are their insecurities and fears related to how they lost whatever they see. Anyone else will either see the original blanks or their own personalized images.

The main clue is "And the Raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting // On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door // Back into the chamber turning, all my soul within me burning // Shall be lifted – nevermore". To get out of this house, they have to first look for the bust that has the red eyed raven on it. This will be tricky as there will be many ravens with different colored eyes. Once they do, there will be a small picture frame. They must manifest one or more of the images they are seeing and capture it into the frame. This is simply done by waving it like a net, but the manifestation can move around. This can be as easy or difficult as a player wants, and how affected the character is from what they see and hear can also be a factor. The more affected they are, the easier it is to manifest but difficult to capture. The less affected, it will be more difficult to manifest as they have to tap into that raw fear, but will be easier to capture.

#3. Hay Bale Maze. Just outside of the circus tent is a large hay bale maze with the hay…looking as if it's seen much better days. It's filled with spooks that like to jump scare maze goers or bodiless limbs that reach out to grab, but aside from that it's harmless. Except for one particular figure.

The main clue is "Who dares?" he demanded hoarsely of the courtiers who stood near him --"who dares insult us with this blasphemous mockery? Seize him and unmask him --that we may know whom we have to hang at sunrise, from the battlements!" There is a red clad figure wearing a skull mask. He will randomly bust through the hay walls and engage maze goers into a fight. Those who are incapable will flee in terror while the figure will chase, which will be a pretty good clue as to where he is. Once engaged, any weapon and dreamotion can be used at their disposal and the challenge is to just simply best him in a fight (not to the death). Striking the figure even once will earn a victory and the skull mask will be granted.

#4. Musical Catacombs. For a bit more lighthearted fun, there is an underground catacombs that is filled with tombs. Some of them have actual skeletons and ghosts sleeping in them, but they won't harm anyone if bothered. Just be a bit cranky, maybe throw a bone. At someone's head. Down here it's quite lively, filled with music, dancing, and a lot of alcohol. Minors will only get sparkling juice.

The main clue is "'Ha! ha! ha! — he! he! he! — a very good joke, indeed — an excellent jest. We will have many a rich laugh about it at the palazzo — he! he! he! — over our wine — he! he! he!' // 'The Amontillado!' I said." One of the games is a dancing game where the tombs will light up a certain color and participants have to properly hit the correct corresponding floor panel (basically a music rhythm/DDR themed game). Should they make a perfect score, one of the tombs will open and have a crusty wine bottle in it. It has competitor and co-op mode.

Comments

[lestray]

[It's kinda fascinating seeing the dogs at work from this vantage point. But mostly it just enhances the adorability to watch as these pups sniff around.

She does appreciate Aerona checking up on her! Gina makes sure she's nice and secure as can be before flashing the dog the most heart-felt (emphasis on 'felt') smile she can manage like this!]

Good girl! Go on now, I'm ready for a ride! [As ready as she'll ever be.]

[starshower]

[At Gina's go-ahead, the two of them take off together down the hall, their noses stuck to the ground as they weave about and follow the trail all the way to the end where they stop at a door... and it's there where they whine and paw at it before they take a seat, and Idris tries to stuff his nose under the crack of the door.

Right... they don't have opposable thumbs, and neither do Tifa or Gina.]

Gonna need to find a way to open that, huh...?

[Aerona barks in confirmation.]

[lestray]

[Gina holds on as tight as she can! She can feel the wind wash over her as they move, like she really is riding some incredible giant creature!

And then they reach their stop. Loosening her hold on the door, she frowns and looks up.]

Right. That... that could be an issue. [She frowns and looks down.] We ain't gonna be able to squeeze under that door, right? Or 'ave a go at the knob if we can get ourselves up to it... [Surely they can find some way to open the door even without thumbs... right?]

[starshower]

It'll take some balancing but... between the four of us, we might be able to find a way.

[Because whatever is in there, the dogs are eager to get to it as Idris is pawing at the crack in the door now, sticking his claws underneath in an attempt to pry it open, but when she pats him between the ears, he lifts his head and looks at Gina and Aerona.]

Think you two could stay still long enough? And then Gina, you and I can try to climb...

[Try being the keyword here.]

[lestray]

[She frowns as she looks upwards.]

...Yeah, it's worth a try. An' it could be our only option. [It just looks like a lot for them to cover at this size! She tries considering their options for lowering the distance.]

Wot if these pups stand up against the door? Could they pull that off?

[starshower]

That's exactly my thought.

[Great minds and all!

But the dogs seem to understand what they want, so without much of a warning besides their initial thought, they rear up on their back legs and stretch up with their front paws to support them, and it puts both Tifa and Gina on either side of the handle.

The only problem is... their movements are severely limited in this form, so Tifa is struggling to climb on top of Idris' head.]

I guess I... didn't think about this part... nngh!

[Almost... there...!?]

[lestray]

[Gina's proud that she's thinking on the right track!

But now she has a different type of thinking to apply as she makes her way up Aerona's back. She wasn't that far from the head, but it's still tougher than expected!]

Oi...! I really wish one of us would've thunk it! [She grunts as she makes her way upward, climbing up the fur with these little hands.] I 'ope I ain't pullin' too 'ard on 'em, but we gotta get up there...!

[starshower]

They're sturdy.

[Neither of the dogs seem particularly bothered by the two dolls pulling on their fur, and they even try to stretch themselves a little higher to give them access to the door. Eventually, with some struggling, Tifa is able to make it and she balances herself between Idris' ears.

And once Gina is up there too, Tifa looks up at the door handle with as thoughtful an expression a stuffed rabbit could have.]

I wonder if we alternate pulling and pushing on it, we could wiggle it open...

[lestray]

[She releases a breath once she's at the top and then grips her cap as she looks up at the knob looming above them.]

Sounds like it's worth a try. ...An' I ain't got any better ideas, so I say we go wiv it! I'll try some pushin' first. [She's ready to go for it!]

[starshower]

[Tifa's little rabbit hands reach for the door, and she only just barely manages to reach. This is going to be rough, but... so far, there hasn't been anything that she and Gina haven't been able to do. Then again, neither of them was small enough that they could fit into the palm of someone's hand...

Her felt hands are a bit slippery, but she manages to grab hold of it.]

Alright. I'll pull, and then we keep alternating until we manage. [With a glance down at the dogs:] If you two could help out a little, that would be great.

[Idris gives a small boof in affirmation, and once Tifa gives a nod to signal them to start, the dogs will help move the two of them on their heads back and forth as they push and pull, again and again, until—

Click!

They manage to get the door handle turned, and now it's just a matter of... pulling it open while holding on so that it doesn't click shut again...]

[lestray]

[It's one of the toughest ordeals, and also one of the strangest. But, coordinating with Tifa and the dogs, they manage it! Almost! At the click, Gina is frantic to try to seize the moment.]

There!! We just gotta pull now! 'Elp us out!! [She pulls like her life depends on it!! She'd take being tugged by a dog's teeth if it helps them get this open!]

[starshower]

[Idris drops back down onto all four paws when Gina makes the call for help, leaving Tifa hanging on for dear life on the other side of the handle.]

Idris, what are you—!

[Her little stubby feet kick and she squirms as she tries to find a foothold on the end of Aerona's nose, but it seems the other corgi has a plan of her own. Which is exactly what Gina had been thinking. She takes one of Gina's legs in her mouth—gently, like she is her favourite toy—and she pulls. Meanwhile, Idris sticks his nose near the opening of the door so that as soon as Aerona and Gina can get it open, he shoves himself through and swings it all the way.

With that, he grabs Tifa in his mouth and carries her inside while Aerona trots behind her little brother.]

... Well, that was... something.

[At least they got it open, but Tifa's sounding a little frazzled as she hangs sideways out of her dog's slobbering mouth. The smile stitched on her face is incredibly deceiving.]

[lestray]

[It seemed like the only way they could get it open! She didn't take into account how weird and kinda gross the whole thing would be. At least it doesn't hurt! But feeling herself dangle out of another creature's mouth is strange, to say the least.]

W-well... We got the door open, ain't we... [She says a little wearily, trying not to look down at the ground too much.] I think ya can set us down now, nice an' easy! [This room better be worth it!]

[starshower]

[Tifa has the same thought.

The two dogs pause to look at each other, and very carefully, they drop both of them down on the ground. Unceremoniously. Like they are their favourite chewtoy... before they leave the two of them there to explore the rest of the room.

And Tifa is lifting her head off the floor.]

She said nice and easy!

[Neither of them are paying Gina or Tifa any mind as they stare up at a high table, their bums wiggling with glee.

Slowly, Tifa tries to force herself to her feet, but the stuffing and stiff limbs makes it difficult.]

Did they find something?

[lestray]

[She gives out a grunt as she falls to the floor. She then tries to regain her bearings, crawling along the floor as she gets a look around. In this case, it probably helps that she has experience from being a scarecrow...]

I... I think so... There sometin' on the floor...? [It looks like there's something running along the floor. Something reddish?]

Don't eat that, you two!! [She gently warns the pups!]

[starshower]

[They're going to eat it anyway, even as Tifa motions to nudge them away... which won't work. They're much bigger than she is and can move a little easier. So, instead she looks around them.

While Aerona climbs up on the nearby couch to look, Idris is following the substance on the floor until he shoves his nose into an empty hole in the floor nearby. He barks, drawing their attention to it, but gives a little whine when he lifts his head back up to reveal a big blotch of red on his face.]

Wait—!

[And then proceeds to lick it off.]

Is that blood?

[lestray]

[Gina looks on, alarmed, as the dog has the red on his face! ...And licks it on up!]

I... I dunno! [She exclaims as she gets closer to the substance.]

It kinda looks like blood, but... ain't it...? [She peers at it.] Oi! That some kinda jam?! [She wonders aloud!]

[starshower]

[Idris barks to confirm that yes, it is indeed jam. It's very sweet, delicious, and yummy! And a little sticky as he lifts his paw to try wiping it away from his nose, and it only sticks to his fur there instead.]

What in the world...

[But she has no time to wander further down that line of thought because as soon as she voices it, the table that Aerona had been staring at topples over, and the bowl that was sitting on top of it tumbles. From it, hundreds and hundreds of candied hearts spill out and across the floor, burying both Tifa and Gina in a mountain of them...]

[lestray]

[Suddenly an avalanche!! Gina's buried alive and struggles to try to dig her way out of the hearts.]

Wot... wot in the world was that?! Wot is all this... [It seems like some kind of candy? And... with a specific shape...]

...'Earts...? [She ponders while getting a clear look at one in her face. As she pulls it off, it says "❤ Beat" on it.]

...Oi... don't tell me...!

[starshower]

[Tifa does catch sight of the heart in Gina's hands.]

... Beat?

[As in, the boy? That does raise a few questions as well as a curious brow, and she's about to ask another when the avalanche of hearts begins to crumble, and she can feel herself sinking further into them. But an idea strikes her as she tries to wade her way back out of them.]

Wait...! Are these the hearts in that clue?

[lestray]

That's wot I'm startin' to think!

[She holds up the heart in her hands, the resemblance to her rival an embarrassing coincidence.]

That says, 'beat' don't it? Like a 'eart beatin'... the clue! So this is it? It was all about... a buncha candy?? [She exclaims in disbelief!]

[starshower]

[Oh. She (and I) just got the pun.]

I guess so! Looks like they might've been hidden before... maybe someone found them and was nice enough to leave them out for others to find?

[Because that's what she would have done if it were her.

She picks one up and tilts her head as she reads it aloud.]

... "Eat me"?

[lestray]

[Sometimes an attempted pun can miss a Beat-]

I guess so... It kinda takes the thrill outta findin' them though, ain't it?

[She scratches at the underside of her cap, for some approximation of scratching, as she looks over the hearts.]

They... are candies, ain't they? ...Can we eat 'em? [She's really not sure what else to do with them!]

[starshower]

[Can Tifa trust the candies in a place like this? They were supposed to find them, but was that all there was to it? She's on the fence about it, and she's a bit nervous as she stares at the big red letters on the heart that are taunting her...]

Well, won't know until we try.

[And better her than Gina.

Though it's about as big as her head, so she lifts it very carefully to her stitched lips, and... shoves it against her face...

At first, not a lot happens. She gets a taste of the sugar, and for as much as she likes sweet things, this one is a bit too sweet for her taste. If she could make a face, she would, but just as she's about to lower it...

POOF!

There's a giant burst of smoke, a thud, and the sound of hundreds of little hearts cascading to the floor, and when the smoke clears, there is Tifa, full sized, and sitting in a pile of candy. It takes her a moment to realize what's going on, but as soon as she does, she shuffles forward.]

Oh god, Gina—!?

[SHE DIDN'T CRUSH HER, DID SHE]

[lestray]

[Won't know until they try. That almost seems like the motto around her much of the time. She watches uncertainly as Tifa attempts to eat the little candy heart. It's actually kind of an endearing and funny sight, but there's not much time to reflect on it or make a joke. She smiles and just starts to speak when suddenly it happens.

A blast of smoke happens, and Gina suddenly feels weight pinning down her lower half. The little Hedgina wiggles her arms as she tries to make sense of the situation!]

W-wot in the world fell on me?! [She groans, but at least she's not sat upon for long. She frantically scrambles to freedom once Tifa starts moving around, which also clues her in on what happened.]

Tif, ya did it! You, you're like a giant!