A Tricky Treat - RPLOG
Participants
Date
29/10/477
Log
Whoever was behind this party has obviously spared no expense! The manor house, which had seemed empty only hours ago is beautifully lit and the gardens and grounds, while still neglected, are decked with festive decorations and filled with floating lights. There must be some great mathemagicians in the host's employ. At the door, guests are formally greeted and their invitations taken by a bear in a fine suit whose face has been cleverly painted to resemble a skull, white paint on his black fur. "Have your invitations ready, please," he rumbles as guests arrive.
After the trip to the beach, this evening was turning out to be quite eventful indeed! Having stopped home just long enough to change into her tailcoat suit, Cassidy shuffles up to the door, invitation in hand. "Of course! Thank you, sir," she says to the greeter as she moves to enter the manor. "What a night this will be, huh, love?"
"I know!" Natska answers, the jaguar having changed as well; her long, slender evening gown of crimson silk is cut midway up her thigh, and she's decided to accessorize it with a pair of long black gloves and, for he event, her black domino mask. It does leave her happy grin visible, and her tail flicks back and forth as she takes in the arriving crowd.
Shliek enters wearing a flowing cloak with black on the outside and red on the inside. On top of his head is a tall magician's hat which looks like it was crafted out of spare pieces of leather. The hat easily adds another foot to his short stature. Underneath, he has dark-themed finerythat, at first glance, could make someone mistake him for a noble. He hands over his invitation, reaching as high as he can to place the paper into the bears's hand and join the rest of the gathering crowd.
Rev made a quck stop at the freesword in clean himself up after clearing up his work. And after cleaning himself up, and dressing up in attire appropriate for the party. The wolf is on his way with his invitation in hand, and of course a cigar firmly clamped between his teeth. He approaches the mansion dressed in a long black tailed suit with a purple vest, and a white undershirt. And a cravat that is pinned in place by a tinay skull shaped pin. And to top it all off a top hat decorated with a small skull with four frathers sticking out from behind it two on each side, and a pair of round darkly tinted glasses. The wolf hands over his invitation to the bear at the door, and makes his way inside
The bear accepts invitations from Freeswords, peasants, beggars and nobility with the same solemn gravitas as he allows the guests up the stairs and into the main hall of the old manor. The inside is as extravagantly decorated as the outside! Small blue flames flit about near the ceiling, casting strange shadows as the guests mill about beneath. In one corner, a quartet of musicians are painted up in the same manner as the valet outside, white paint on black fur. The air is filled with music and a number of beings have started to dance. Black streamers line the great stairway and trim the fine buffet of autumn foods.
Cassidy brushes her white-gloved hands along her black skirt, taking in the room with a delighted hum. "Oooh... Where shall we go first?" She asks the jaguar, tail twiching behind her. "Perhaps the buffet? I'm a little peckish this evening! But what do you think?"
Natska turns her happy smile on Cassidy, then looks up around around the room again. "We can, yes. I am most interested in watching the crowd and seeing who shows up, but the buffet is as good a place as any to watch from." She gives Cass' arm a small squeeze.
Shliek walks through the crowd, cloak and tail trailing silkily behind him. At one time or another he has to dodge a foot coming too close to his tail, but his hat seems to do a good job of making sure people don't run into him. He looks around to try and find an unoccupied table where he might set up his little game.
Rev allows his eges to wander around the room behind the tinted lenses. His hands are clasped behind his back. As he proceeds further into the manor. The wolf makes his way to the buffet, and puffs on his cigar as he eyes the food. However the for once finely dressed wolf doesnt begin to fix himself a plate. Not just yet anways as he is not exactly hungey just yet.
It is difficult to find an unoccupied table with so many beings milling around and so few actual sitting places. It seems that people are expected to mill around and dance and talk. Shliek could undoubtably stuff himself into a spot. The buffet is well stocked with cheeses and seasonal fruits along with a huge roast beast of some kind, cut carefully into strips and placed carefully back onto the ribs. Great capped tusks jut from the thing's jaws. It must have been quite the hunting party that felled that thing.
As of yet, there is no sign of the host. Or at least, they are not announcing themselves just yet.
Cassidy nods at that and makes her way towards the buffet table, nibbling on a fruit while she fetches a plate of the roast for herself. "Wonder what the thing of the evening will be. Think there's a game of some sort being planned?" She muses to her companion as she glances around the room.
"Hmmmm... I would be surprised if there wasn't something in the works," Natska replies. She watches the crowd, and gives Rev a small nod of her head as she continues to stay close to Cass.
Shliek finds himself a larger table with some people at it, but with one end of it mostly unoccupied. He sits at the head of the table and reaches into his cloak, removing three identical wooden cups. "Who wants to play a game?", he asks with a glint in his eyes.
Rev takes a momemnt longer to examine the contents of the buffet. Then prepares to move on from the buffet when he notices Nataska give him a smalk nod. A nod which he returns in kind before moving on from the buffet table in search of an employee of the mannor who kay be free enough to possiblly inform him on whi the hist if the party is.
The haunting dance melody from the band comes to a sudden end and a frigid wind suddenly blasts through the room.
"Welcome, beings of Firmament," booms a powerful, heavy voice. It is impossible to say exactly where from, with the way it seems to echo. "I hope you have enjoyed your party so far," the voice booms, "Because now it is MY party!" The voice erupts into booming, sinister laughter and the blue wisp lights flare up and flicker out, leaving the room in darkness.
A lady at Shliek's chosen table looks with interest on his cup game until the lights go out and her cry of fear and dismay joins many others. From one end of the room a distressed male voice shouts, "The doors are locked!" and then everything descends into mayhem in the darkness!
Cassidy chuckles softly under her mask as she leans back, tilting the chin of the porcelain up just enough to let her continue eating, nibbling at the meat from the creature on the table. "Well, well! Looks like we'll get -something- alright, huh? How exciting!"
Natska giggles quietly as the lights suddenly go out. She doesn't panic; rather she remains still, where she's at next to Cassidy, and tilts her head to the side as she listens to the crowd. "Oh yes! Frightfully exciting, love."
Shliek frowns at the sudden disturbance and quickly tucks his cups away when stuff starts to go down. "A shame.", he says in a disappointed tone. He flip is cloak around in a distracting flourish and tucks under the table. Moving in a half-crouch, he retreats behind a billowing curtain and starts to fiddle with his soul pendant while watching the scene unfold carefully.
Rev reaches into his coat, and withdraws the hea of an ax, and retrieves the secon half which he had tucked within the back of his coat. The big wolf combines both pieces as he puts his back to a wall."Well well well and here I though this party was going to be boring."He sags as he reaches into his coat and withdraws a match which he quuckly strikes to give him a bit of light to work with.
"No!" the booming voice laughs, "You cannot leave yet! I told you! My party is only just beginning!" As the echoes start to fade, light returns to the room, but not as the flickering lights that lit the room before. Instead, several pale green willo-the-wisps spring up, casting a sickly glow on the party goers and the sudden addition of dozens of beings in ragged clothes surrounding the dance floor! Their faces are slack and dull and painted with the skull motif that has so far defined this doomed party. At first they stand in silence, then one of them shuffles forward with a moan and the others follow! To top it all off, a sickly glow comes from the buffet table and the bones of the roast beast rise from the plate, shaking off its delicious roasted flesh and turning glowing eyes on the crowd before letting loose a bellow and leaping from the table!
Cassidy is taken aback by these recent devlopments! Surprisingly enough. She stares first at the shuffling, moaning skull-faces, then at the formerly-dinner beast! "Well. I did not expect this." She leans forward and stares intently at the reanimated dinner as she sticks another mouthful of its meat into her muzzle, chewing in defiance.
"Oh!" Natska calls out, as the dinner menu gets up and roars. "That's... Cass! Are you sure you should be eating that?" she asks, tone worried; she slips a half step between Cassidy and the thing, her stance wary as she watches.
Having gathered himself, the bearded dragon removes a deck of cards from his pocket and shuffles them. A faint purple light emanates off his fingers as he handles the cards, charging them with dark magic. He tries to remain hidden at this point, however, not wanting to make the first move.
Rev rests his ax as he steps forward. The big wolf chuckles as the former dinner gets up, and leaps off the table. Clearly the big wolf is more amused than he is scared. As he makes his way towards the dance floor while attempting to shout over the terrified guests. "This is all very amuesing but why don't you show yourself. I think we would all lije to be made aware if just who are esteemed host is."
The stunned silence is quickly broken by the sound of a woman's scream as a Blackback woman faints dramatically before the shambling horde shuffling toward the crowd. The panicking mass of beings press up against the door until it suddenly swings open, revealing another mass of ragged, skull marked beings limping and dragging themselves from the foyer!
A thickset badger who was nearest the door cries out as he finds himself dragged away by the unexpected shamblers. Several other guests try to catch at the poor badger's feet, but they only find themselves dragged away with him into the darkness!
Then, from the distant, invisible ceiling comes a twin shriek as two glowing apparitions swoop down at the crowd from above! Two bat beings, glowing with a sickly green color and bearing that strange skull marking descend on the fleeing party goers, long hair flapping in an unseen wind and long claws raking the air! One of them manages to snatch up a small weasel from the crowd, swooping back up into the darkness with the poor soul screaming the whole way! % Meanwhile, dinner seems to have had enough and charges at Cassidy!
"I don't see why not," Cassidy replies to Natska. "Tastes fine-" When the dinner charges at her she drops her plate and leaps to the side, narrowly avoiding it. "Part of me is thinking that this might not be a game!" She says with a blink. "But I'm not about to be beaten by my meal!" She flips her fork around in her grip like a dagger and lunges at the thing.
The jaguar nods her head at Cass' words, using her position at the bone-thing's flank to launch a quick flurry of strikes at the animate carcass' side. Now that things are serious, she has called up all of her tricks, and her motion is nearly a blur of speed.
Seeing some combat start to break out, Sh'liek makes his move. He scurries along the wall and starts to flick darkness-charged cards out towards the line of shamblers. The cards, if they succeed, start to glow a evil red as they fly deliberately towards the hostile creatures and then explode into a hundred razor sharp splinters in their faces!
Rev "Oh enough with the damned theatrics, and come out you coward. The big wolf roars as he steps up to one of the shamblers, and attempts to strike it in the face with the butt of his ax. "Come now what's the fun in staying hidden like this?"
The deep, booming laughter continues as more and more guests are dragged away from the now truly panicked crowd. Cassidy's fork seems to have little effect on the animated bones of the oversized, porcine beast, save to serve as a handhold as it bucks around with her on top! Natska seems to have a bit more success as her attack is greeted with a satisfying crunch of bone, though the beast hardly slows.
Shliek and Rev both seem to be doing well as three of the shambling horde drop beneath the onslaught of dark magic and Rev's target goes down with hardly any fight. The rest of the horde hardly seems to slow though, and the party is quickly being corralled at the center of the great room! On the side nearest the door, there is a renewed shriek as the badger taken only moments before has reappeared as part of the shamblers! His face is now marked with the same frightful skull and his jaw hangs slack as he moans along with the others!
Cassidy narrows her eye as the fork fails to accomplish its goals. "Bah. Fine! Natska, watch out!" With its bones all nice and exposed, Cassidy applies her math to try to cause a small explosion of fire math within its ribs, hoping to blow them outward. Not before letting go of the beast, at least.
Natska raises her eyebrows as Cassidy begins working her fiery wrath on the bone beast; she gives her head a quick nod, shoves the skeletal miscreant away from her, then throws a hand up into the air as she looks at the crowd of shamblers. "Eyes, love," she warns quietly, before setting off a brilliant strobe of blinding light, watching for a reaction.
Shliek lets out an angered hiss. His neck and belly seem to darken as his natural defensive colors kick in. The small lizard makes a weird face but then starts to inhale, and inhale. His chest puffs up and his bodily spines perk as the lizard starts to look like a spiny balloon. He holds it in for a few moments before expelling it all at once as a directed blast of sound at the advancing shamblers.
Rev stomps on the shamblers head before mocing on, and hefting his ax. Which he soons swings in a wide arc at the hirde if shamblers. The wolfs eyes gleam with something akin to euphoria.As he continues his assualt on the horde. The wolf is clearly more than happy to cut down the shamblers.
Everything happens at once! With a BOOM and a flash of flame, Cassidy sends the pig-beast's bones scattering into the dark. Then Natska turns the whole room into a blaze of white light. Guests and shamblers alike are staggered by the combination of Natska's dazzling light and Shliek's horrible, ear piercing shriek. A whole line of skull marked shamblers stagger backward to avoid Rev's swinging axe, real fear suddenly sparking on faces that were dull and slack only moments before.
"Enough!" booms the loud voice once more and a bright light suddenly appears at the top of the grand staircase to highlight the great black bear who had accepted invitations! Only now, in addition to his skull paint and fine suit, he has acquired a high silk hat and a cigar he hlods clutched in his teeth. "I knew we had some heroes here," he says in his deep voice, "But I did not expect the axe! Is everyone alright?" Suddenly, the blue lights from earlier return and everything is revealed!
The shambling horde is only the serving staff! All painted up gruesomely and wearing torn, shabby uniforms. A number of them are watching Rev in fear. Up near the cieling, the two bats wave down from clever trapeze harnesses and their "victim" is safe and sound in a harness of his own. The "converted" badger gets a good slap from his escort, but seems to be in fine spirits.
Cassidy brings her arm up over her eyes just time for the flash, dropping it as soon as its passed. "Aha! So it -was- a game!" She says with a grin under her mask. "I was uncertain. Uncertain enough not to want to harm anyone, but I figured this thing would be fair game," she says, nudging the once-dinner.
Natska laughs happily and claps her hands, then bows her head towards the bear. "Well done, my host, well done. It was quite marvelous! A shame about the axe, though."
Rev halts his ax in midswing the blade stopping before he actually managed to hit someone. The big wolf puffs on his cigar, and laughs as he breaks down his ax. The pieces of which he tucks back within his coar."Well what can I say I never go anywhere without my ax." He says as he leans over to pick up the top hat that had fallen from his head in the last moments before it was all revealed as a trick. The wolf still grinning, and puffing on his cigar looms over his shoulder to the shambler he left out cold on the floor. It may be a good idea to get him some help" he says while gesturing over his shoulder."Oh and them." He says as he points to the other few other injured staff members he was not responsible for.
The bear laughs heartily and waves to the band who are still safely in their corner. "Ah yes, my dears!" he says in a rich baritone, "The boar was to distract you fine heroes! But it was not enough!" He shrugs dramatically and continues, "A marvelous game that you all ended just a little too soon! You have ruined the joke, my friends!" The bear looks around at the costumed staff. "Everyone is alright?" he asks. He waits for a quick chorus of affirmatives as most of the fallen climb back to their feet, a tell-tale haze of protective math around them. Even the being who took the brunt of Rev's attack seems only mildly dazed. The bear gives a nod, then claps his hands. "Very good!" he cheers, "Now! All of my guests!" he calls, "back to the center of the floor and look afraid!" The lights suddenly go back out, with the exception of the hazy green were-lights.
Cassidy raises her brow and chuckles, leaning over to wrap an arm around Natska. "I'll do my best! It's hard to be afraid with her here to protect me," she says with a wink. It's hard to say if she's acting afraid, though, what with the smiling mask hiding her face.
Natska snickers. Her ears perk at the bear, and then she quietly applauds again before she slips her arm around Cassidy's shoulders and nods. "Oh, no, my dearest. Save me~" she says, quietly, swaying a little as she moves towards the center of the room.
Rev chuckles, and nods as he glances into the direction of the destroyed collection of bones. "Yeah you may have considered maybe setting up more than one of those boars.He says with a grin when he sees the dazed man climb to his feet"or maybe something a touch tougher at anyrate." He says while exhaling a cloud of smoke.
Some of the shambling horde just look sheepish now, instead of frightening, though they do their best. Many of the guests still seem rather stunned and are just trying to come to grips with the idea that they are not in any real danger. After a few more moments of shuffling and moaning, there comes the sound of rhythmic tapping from the stairs.
A spotlight lances through the darkness to focus on the skeleton marked bear in his top hat, who is tapping a skull topped cane on the stairs. The shuffling "zombies" all begin to shuffle in time to the tapping cane and suddenly shift into what must be a planned formation. Then, with a flourish, the band starts playing fast, exciting dance music and the room bursts into multi colored lights as the skeleton crew launches into a choreographed dance led by the bear in the top hat!
"There!" the bear cries out, waving to everyone to join in the simple dance as he leads everyone in a line around the room, "That is how Baron Saturday throws a party!"
Cassidy giggles softly and lets her arm part from Natska for a brief moment. "Well. Dancing is fine, too!" She says happily before offering a hand to Natska. "But even better with a partner. Shall we join in?" She asks before wasting no time in falling into the motions with the rest.
Natska gives Cassidy a small curtsey, bending her knees for a moment as she accepts her beloved fennec's hand. "By all means, let us! What a wonderous party this is turning out to be," she comments, following Cass into the dancing.
Rev makes his way back to the buffet, and fixes a plate to eat. Before finding a place to sit. The big wolf just sits back, and watches the others dance. While he munches on a collection of meat, cheese, and fruit. As he had managed to build up a bit of a appetite.
Baron Saturday laughs, waving and leading the dance while magical lights spin and flutter around the room. After a short while, he finally calls a halt to the processional dance and the lights shine from set sconces, a bright, clear light. "Welcome!" the bear calls, "Welcome to the new home of Baron Saturday and happy Halloween, my friends!" What a party!
Cassidy laughs happily as she dances up until its called a close. She doffs her hat to the bar and dips into a bow. "Oh ho? A new resident, then? Welcome, yourself! I enjoyed your party, and hope for many more. You will certainly be invited to ours!"
Rev having eaten his fill, stands then makes his way over to the bear to pay his respect, and thank him for throwing the party. Which he had thoroughly enjoyed before departing the Manors grounds.A trail of cigar smoke following behind him.
Natska bows to their host as well, alongside Cassidy. "It has been a great evening, Baron. I hope to see more like it! Welcome to our city." She gives the bear a happy smile, then tugs Cass towards the dance floor for a round with just the two of them.
