lostcarnival | ⇨ THE MASQUERADE

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⇨ THE MASQUERADE

Who: Everyone! Attendance is mandatory.
When: Late Day 65
Where: The Celebration
What: The Masquerade arrives, and so does the carnival's enemies. For more info, check out the Draculas 101.
Warnings: Further party hell. Also, vampire violence, mind control, etc.

THE HOST & THE HORDE↴

The time of the Masquerade arrives. You've been given free reign of the place up till now, but a few hours before the party commences the Host will inform you that your presence will be required, and will assist you (forcibly, if need be) to sort out any last minute costuming concerns you might have if you've left it until now. When masks and outfits are sorted, you'll be left to your own devices until you are summoned on the evening of Day 65.

The Masquerade will start off normally - relative to everything else in this place, at least. Everyone in the Celebration will be called in for this event, centered in a grand hall with side rooms offered to those that need them for whatever reasons might come up. The food and drink is especially ambrosia-esque this evening, and the music will stir your soul, even if you're not usually a music person. Enjoy it if you can - the peace won't last.

► MASKS: Though the masks seemed only mundane before, once within the Masquerade atmosphere, they will magically begin obscuring people's identities beyond what a normal mask should be able to do. When a person is wearing one, it would be supernaturally difficult to figure out who they are - maybe you forget what their voice should sound like, or maybe the other details escape you. Of course, it's possible to figure out if you look for it, based on general shapes and personality traits, but unless you know someone well it could be a challenge. Of course, you can just take your mask off and remove the enchantment entirely - though the Host will hassle you if they notice you going without. Stop ruining the party!

► TEMPTATION: Though it's felt easy to be whisked away by the draw of pleasure and luxury during the rest of the week, that feeling will seem to come to a head at the actual party. If you are aware of what needs to be resisted then it's possible to fight back and ignore it, but more than ever it feels all too easy to just dance your life away. Nobody seems to be dying from it, at least, or 'burning out' any faster as a result - it's mostly just extremely distracting from other concerns. Like vampires, for instance.

VAMPIRE: THE MASQUERADE↴
It's during the latter half of the party that things will start to go bad. Though it will go unseen by the carnival, the Masquerade has gained an additional set of guests - the vampire's of the demon lord that has been chasing them for the last several months. The Host doesn't discriminate, and anyone is welcome to attend the Celebration, provided they don't start a fight.

Right. About that.

► THE KINDRED: The vampires don't like to play fair, which means that they are going to be attacking with stealth and trickery - taking advantage of the way that the party has dulled the alertness of many of the carnival's workers. They'll be using that lack of inhibition to lure individuals into places they can be attacked or turned in private - their primary goals are to capture the Supervisors and to turn as many of the Ringmaster's workers as possible before escaping back to their dimension. Some of their targets will be gone before anyone has a chance to notice.

Remembering that they will be avoiding big public confrontations, so if anyone starts one of those it will probably by the carnival members striking back. This is going to wear on the Host's patience extremely quickly.

► COLD IRON: Oh, right, and they are definitely bringing iron weapons - as pure as they could get. They'll have things like iron collars or shackles to try to trap people with, as well as iron daggers and guns with iron bullets. They'll have to be on the down low with, but they are going to exploit that weakeness as much as possible. Those that have only been in the carnival a few months will mostly just feel discomfort at the touch of it - as if they are touching something that is slightly too hot or too cold. Veterans that have been around for years will find its touch to be burningly cold - the type of temperature that would threaten to destroy flesh after prolonged contact. Those that have been here for up to three years will take it the worst. See the Transformations page for more details!

► TURNING THE TABLES: Being turned is a mixture of pleasure and pain, and is often hard for mortals to mentally reconcile as it happens to them. Being drained by these vampires is simultaneously impossibly satisfying and extremely terrifying - once they've started in on your, the way it overwhelms your mind and body can make it nearly impossible to stop them without help. Once you are dead or dying, they will feed you their blood - at which point your body will go through a painful transformation as the demon spirit takes its place inside of you and your dead body is violently resurrected.

As soon as you wake up, freshly changed, the bloodlust will set it - it will be extremely hard to control, and at first all you will think about is wanting to sate that hunger. Combined with your sire having direct control if your mind through your blood connection, new vampires will be mostly incapable of doing anything but following the whims of the rest of the vampire pack and seeking nourishment. This blood lust will begin to fade after they've fed. Killing isn't necessary to feed, but it can be hard to stop yourself, as a neonate vampire.

► CLOSING TIME: Before the party is officially over, the Host will have had enough. Before you can pursue all of the vampires or take back the people they've stolen, the lot of them will have escaped back to their dimension, and the Host will have kicked the entire carnival out for participating in so much violence. If you want to make any final moves before you go, this is the time.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"Ill? You're not ill, are you kiddo?" The man tousles Jamie's hair, clearly oblivious to the drying blood still liberally coating the lower half of his face. "He's just a little...rambunctious. You know how boys get, right?"

He pauses to think for a moment. "But I guess it couldn't hurt to go see this doctor of yours, if it'll help convince you. What's she look like?" He drapes his arm around Jamie's shoulder and gestures for Greg to lead on.

How boys get. That's not how boys get, is it? He says it is, but... but there's blood. Boys shouldn't bleed, not because they can't, they just shouldn't. Greg looks between the two of them, stony brow furrowed in conflict. The man says he's fine.

"The doctor... well, those masks can't hide four legs. It shouldn't take too long to find her."

He starts to turn, but looks back again, eyes on Jamie. His head hurts. It's noisy in here, and he's very tired, so his head hurts. Surely it's worse for Jamie.

"...He shouldn't be walking by himself. I can carry him, if you want."

The man brushes off Greg's concern. "Psssh. We raise 'em stronger than that in this family. Right, tiger?" He gives Jamie a playful punch to the shoulder, to which Jamie merely grins vacantly.

"Four legs, huh?" His eyes narrow in thought for a moment, darting furtively, but then he gestures for Greg to lead on. "Should narrow things down a little. What's your doctor's name?"

"Z...Zeco...? Uhh. I always call her Doc." He'd just been doing it as a nickname thing, but it's actually sort of embarrassing to realize he can't remember her name proper. She deserves better than that.

Greg starts moving through the crowd, slow and grinding. If Jamie's going to get ~~violent~~ rowdy again, he doesn't want to take risks. He can't say he thinks too much of that parenting tactic, but he's not about to butt in on how they do things. "How're you two related?"

"Zecora?" the man supplies. There's perhaps a hint of an odd note to his tone, as though this confirms something for him, but he continues without giving Greg too much time to think about it. "You know, now you mention it I think I saw her a little while ago, headed up toward the mezzanine level - said she wanted a break from all the activity." He indicates the sweeping staircases at one end of the ballroom, steering Jamie in that direction and clearly intending Greg should follow.

He takes his time answering Greg's question, thinking about it with a faint smile on his lips. "The boy and me? I guess you could say I made him everything he is right now. Isn't that right?" He looks down at Jamie, who returns a sort of intent, worshipful gaze that one might expect a dog to give its master. "We're very close, I can't believe he's never mentioned me."

"Oh! You are from the carnival." Greg can't think of any other reason the man would know her name. Well, Jamie could have told him. But what would be the odds of meeting someone from the past in a place like this? "Sorry, I haven't gotten everyone's names and faces down quite yet. Greg Universe."

There's something strange here, something he can't quite put his finger on. Something about Jamie's attitude, how the man is doing all the talking for him. But--first thing, they've got to find Zecora and get Jamie to help. He can figure out this guy when they're alone, maybe. "I'm glad you two can look out for each other. Things can get rough around here."

"Irvine. A pleasure." He neither confirms nor denies Greg's assumption about him being from the carnival, merely smiles benignly as they make their way across the ballroom floor toward the staircases.

"It's so important for kids to have adult supervision, isn't it? So many terrible things can happen to them otherwise. Awful things." He says the words with a certain relish that probably sounds somewhat inappropriate. "Just the thought of this young man wandering around that carnival on his own just...makes my heart stop. You understand me, right?"

It's a precision strike to Greg's weak point. Ashamed, he fixes his eyes on the stairs ahead instead of stealing glances back at the pair.

"I do."

The thought makes his stonespell weaken to a thick greyish hide, just so he can move a little faster. He has to get back to searching. Maybe Zecora will know something.

"I don't see her," he says as he nears the top. "How long ago did you run into her?"

"Can't have been too long," Irvine replies nonchalantly. He takes a few steps around the mezzanine, which is all but empty of people, most of the guests opting to enjoy the festivities below. "Take a look behind those curtains, maybe. She must be up here somewhere."

He notices the way Greg's rocky armor diminishes, eyes narrowing shrewdly, but is distracted from his contemplation by Jamie leaning against his side.

"I'm so hungry," he croaks, looking up at Irvine woefully.

He claps Jamie on the shoulder, his gaze returning to Greg. "Hang in there, kiddo. We'll get that taken care of soon."

"Why would she be..."

Except he's already looking, because Irvine said he should, and it can't really hurt to look. There's just so many places to look, she could be anywhere.

"Don't worry, Jamie, we'll figure this out." Greg rummages through the curtains as he assures him. There's not a whole lot a kid can eat when they're this sick, though. Certainly not all this fancy food at the party. Maybe some of that wiggly alien snack got him like this. Zecora will know. If only she were behind all this drapery! "We'll get you some nice broth, some rice, you'll be fine."

Irvine and his spawn follow Greg into the shadowy alcove formed by the heavy drapery, effectively cornering him. The elder vampire removes his arm from Jamie's shoulder, and the pair move into a flanking formation, Jamie following a silent order from his sire.

"I think he's gonna want something a little more filling than broth," Irvine says. Then the two vampires are rushing Greg, fangs bared and eyes alight.

"WhRGH"

He doesn't see the attack coming, and that extra second of recognition means his stoneskin can't protect his head from cracking against the wall or his antlers reverberating the hit around his skull.

Stone thickens and darkens over his skin, but Greg's eyes are unfocused. Jamie's having another episode, he's on him again. Irvine is...? Trying to get Jamie off, isn't he...? Why's he on Greg too...?

"Juh... Jamie? Jamie, stop--Irvine, help me!"

The vampires are fast, but Greg raises his defenses before either of them can get a fang into him. Jamie howls in frustration, but Irvine is grimly impressed with how quickly Greg's stoneskin takes effect.

"I don't think you need any help from me, pal, you're making this hard enough as it is."

He draws back one fist. "Neat trick you can do with the rock hide and all. You ever tested how much punishment it can take?"

Irvine drives his fist forward, aiming for the back of Greg's neck.

For what it's worth, Greg finally understands what's going on here. A bit late to do anything about it, but take what very, very, very small victories you can.

Irvine's words send a sick shiver through him, and he'd go pale if he were still proper flesh. He thrashes to try and break free, but it's two to one. His flailing saves his neck, if not his shoulder.

Greg yells out from the pain flaring through his defenses, his cry nearly drowning out the CRACK from inside. A hit like that should have pulverized his bones to pieces, and instead throws his arm out of his socket.

"You're even tougher than you look." Irvine draws back, lip curling in a vicious smirk. "This could be fun."

At Irvine's mental command, Jamie scrambles his way up Greg's body, where he tries to lock one arm around the man's neck and use the other to drive more punches at his already injured shoulder. Jamie is much weaker than Irvine, but his strength is still capable of doing some damage if applied properly.

While Greg is distracted with that, Irvine bolts around to stand in front of him, and then draws his arm back again. He drives one punch at Greg's midsection, then another, with all the strength he can muster, and winds up again for a third.

With each new hit to his arm, locked out of place in its stone armor, Greg's teeth grind against his pained grunts. In this form, Greg's voice always gains an uneven and rough edge, but now it positively rattles.

He bucks, trying to throw Jamie off or ward Irvine off with his horns, but the boy's on tight and the sire is too quick to track.

"Jamie--please, listen to m--"

Irvine's first hit knocks the wind from Greg's lungs. The second knocks loose a rib or two. Pain makes his vision flash white. This isn't supposed to happen. He's supposed to be protected. Steven made sure of that. Greg failed him again.

The third hit is white-hot, and there's something wet in the cracks.

Irvine's grin grows wider and more feral with each blow. This little exercise hasn't taxed him in the slightest; he could go on like this all night, and there's something in his smile that suggests he would be only too happy to do exactly that.

"That kid can't hear you, guy," Irvine tells him helpfully, as Jamie continues pounding away at Greg's dislocated arm. "He only hears me now. And by the time we're done with you, you'll be lucky if you can hear that much."

He draws back again. The night is young, and there's so much more pain to be delivered.

Steven had come to the masquerade in a daze. Lars had taken him back to his room to rest, but when he woke up he found himself along again - except for the Host telling him that there was a party to go to. As woozy and uncomfortable as Steven still felt, he hadn't really wanted to - or wouldn't have, if it didn't seem like the perfect opportunity to track down the people he'd lost. His dad especially. He must have been really worried.

Arriving at the gathering, in a fresh white and glittering dress and a mask of wild roses to match, Steven found the noise in his head returning from the moment he entered. The more people that were around him, the worse it got, so badly that he couldn't barely look for anyone with or without that disguising enchantment. Eventually, after wandering around like a zombie for what felt like hours, he decides to go to the upper levels, desperate to clear his head.

He hears Greg's cry first, and it wakes him up like nothing else could have. His heartbeat skips and then speeds, and he finds himself running across marble floors in his bare feet, hardly understanding what he's reacting to. It becomes a lot more obvious when he comes upon his dad being struck by Jamie (???) and another man.

He's confused and hurting but that doesn't make his attack any slower.

"Dad...? DAD!"

His shield is summoned only a moment later, and Steven is launching himself directly at Irvine in a staggering charge. He attempts to plow right into the adult vampire, to shove him back against the wall and away from his dad, with all the force his alien physiology can muster.

The last thing Irvine had anticipated was somebody discovering them up here and trying to interfere. Steven's attack takes him completely by surprise, knocking him back to slam into the wall with a force he wouldn't have expected out of such a small person. His red eyes focus on the lion boy, looking astonished at Steven's strength.

"This just keeps getting better, doesn't it?" he murmurs, straightening slowly. His gaze flicks briefly to Jamie, who's paused in his assault on Greg to stare furiously at Steven, ears flattened in ire and blood flowing freely from his snarling maw. With the barest of mental commands, Irvine directs their collective attention to Steven, and Jamie leaps over Greg's shoulder toward the smaller boy, fangs bared and claws outstretched.

Irvine clasps his fists together, raises them above his head, and brings them down toward Steven's shield.

At first Greg was sure he'd imagined Steven's voice. Everything is noise and pain and motion--too much stimulation to process a new unexpected arrival in all this unplanned misery. All he knows is he's pinned, he's trapped, he's let himself be cornered and if he can't escape he'll die and he can't escape.

Only once the barrage of rock-breaking attacks halt does Greg's senses start to clear, just a little. That person--their mask is on, but he knows that shield, that dress, that look.

"Steven--"

Jamie launches off of Greg's battered body, aggravating his wounded arm and and getting another cry out of him. His mouth tastes thick and wet, and agony blooms in his gut as he moves to keep his feet; the more he moves, the more he strains the crack Irvine's opened up. Already, blood is turning the gray stone around it black.

This would be easier to handle if he wasn't still weak and disorientated from the things those elves had given him, but as it is, though it doesn't come close to breaking his shield, Irvine's strike causes Steven to lose his footing. He slips onto one knee, trying to balance himself, just in time for Jamie to throw himself at Steven's unprotected side.

Steven yelps with exertion, but extends his free hand towards Jamie, initially trying to push him away but then summoning a second shield in order to hold the neonate back. His head is dizzy, but still, Steven struggles to stand again - this time thrusting both of his shields outward, attempting to knock the two vampires off balance.

"Jamie, stop!" he pleads. He doesn't understand what's happening.

Irvine lurches a little, but maintains his balance. He's still impressed with the abilities on display here, but he's starting to get impatient. He'd hoped this would be a reasonably speedy affair where he could turn Greg and get on with his evening, and all these delays are beginning to annoy him a little.

Jamie, meanwhile, has lost virtually all control over himself. He's being compelled equally strongly by his sire's orders and the imperative to feed, and he's out of his mind with bloodlust, scrabbling at the shield with his claws, snapping and snarling while bloody spume sprays from his jaws. He's utterly mindless, but he might be a sufficient distraction.

While Jamie goes berserk on one side, Irvine bolts behind to Steven's unprotected back, where he squares up, draws back one booted foot, and swings at the boy's spine.

Greg's teeth grind, and he puts all his focus on Steven. He's here, they just got back together, he can't lose sight of that now. If he puts all his attention on Steven, all his awareness that the people who hurt him are trying to do the same to his son, it's easy to turn that pain into action.

"Get off!"

That's his kin in the middle, his blood under attack. Greg lurches forward, horns swinging to knock Irvine away.

Steven can be fast, sometimes, but consistency has never really been his strength. In the moments that he's turned to stare at Jamie's frothing assault with a look of horror, Irvine's managed to slip behind him and-

Get tackled by his dad, apparently. As relieved as he is to not get kicked in the spine, he's terrified of the idea of his dad squaring off with this guy - he gives Jamie one last glance, and then throws away his shield, complete with the vampire clinging to it. Then, he's leaping after his dad and trying to lock both of them into a defensive bubble, before Irvine has a chance to hurt him even more.

He leaps to embrace him, and hopes for the best.

Irvine is strong, but the sheer mass and desperation behind Greg's defensive attack are nothing to sneeze at, and standing one-legged to deliver his kick he's already off-balance. He staggers heavily to the side, slamming into the wall, and when he locks eyes with Greg again he actually looks angry for the first time tonight. This is proving far more difficult than he'd initially anticipated; it might be better to abandon this pursuit and go after less capable prey.

Still, he's a stubborn vampire. Commanding Jamie to follow suit, he lunges at the pair while they're close together. If he can sink his claws into the furry brat while he's unprepared and dispatch him, all he'll have to worry about is the already-weakened Greg - and the idea of cracking him apart one punch at a time is looking better and better the longer this fight goes on.

⇨ THE MASQUERADE

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