lostcarnival | ⇨ 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

"I mean, if he's as vicious as you say, I'm sure he'll get into it pretty quick," Xabat laughs.

"And, pfff, like yours last any longer. You just have a million, so no one notices. I like to HAND PICK mine."

No, he will not stop petting, don't judge him. You're just as bad as him, Allegro. Sora blinks a few times, and then wobbly sits up, looking around the room sleepily, a haze over his eyes. Xabat assists him with a hand on his back, smiling sweetly at his new charge.

"Anyway, I intend to keep a close eye on this one."

Well, he might be... [...Shrug.] I think it might have been me. I seem to have this effect on them, it's a shame! [he whines, as if their kind hadn't made an attack on them months earlier.]

And I do not have a million, I just have a lot. [............] I bet I could name all of them! Every last one!

[No.] ...Hmmm, so sleepy...you'd better, if he's staying alive, [he mutters, raising an eyebrow.] My newest at least looks like he could fend for himself...

"Pff, yeah, right! You'd need a book to keep track of all those names."

Xabat sticks his tongue out at Allegro and laughs. You're such a jerk, why are they friends again?

"I didn't pick him 'cause he looks strong, dude. I picked him 'cause he's cute. And smelled pretty delicious. What's your name, kiddo?"

Sora's eyes continue to wander around the room until his eyes go to Xabat's. He blinks for a second before answering.

"...Sora..."

Hoh! And look at that, he speaks!

Which is more than I can say for you, [he mutters, frowning to Xabat once again.] You defend yourself, only to incriminate yourself again...you should stop talking, it's not working for you!

"Aww, what d'you know, anyway, Allegro. You're just jealous~"

Sora is, admittedly, pretty fuckin' out of it. His head lolls forward a bit, eyes half lidded.

"...He IS pretty quiet, for a newborn. Usually they're in a blood rage by now."

Jealous of what, your army of children? [he scoffs.] Maybe you fed him too much of 'you', and he's already full..~

"Shut up, Allegro, geeze. My children are all great. And could totally beat your vampire orchestra any day. So there."

He sticks out his tongue again, and laughs again. So what if he wanted kids?

But can they beat our performances I don't think so~

[The sad realities of Vampires. NO BABIES FOR YOU. This is getting a bit worrisome however; he can feel that his own is just about ready to let loose. Waking any moment, trotting around like a rabid dog sitting on edge. This...hmm.]

...This really is a problem though, Xabat, what did you do to the kid that he's so out of it..? You weren't hypnotising him were you?

"No! I'm not an idiot! I just tugged him over here a bit."

Sora reaches up and rubs at his eyes, sitting up a little better now, and looks around the room again.

"See? He's fine. Just took a sec, is all. Why don't we go get you a drink, little one?"

At the semi order, Sora stiffens again, and looks back down at the ground.

"Ohhhhhhhhhh..."

Well, something obviously went wrong... [Though he does seem to be brightening a little.. ...Ooooooohhhh...

He blinks.] ...Is.

...Is he resisting? [This doesn't look like resistance, certainly. It's the weirdest form he's ever seen, for sure.]

"I think he's resisting!" Xabat laughs, relieved. So he -was- worried.

"That's adorable. Looks like he's a lot stronger than we thought, eh?"

Sora wraps his arms around his middle, and grasps at his shirt and sides, confused. He's so thirsy... What's going on?

Huh...so strange, [the vampire mutters, squinting his eyes.] That's the dullest resistance I've seen yet...he must really not know what's going on, must he?

[Well. He stands a bit straighter, peering over the boy's expression.] You're going to have to let him wander, at this point...he's not going to figure this out, I don't think...

"Yeah, probably. Like I said, I think I caught him pretty off guard," Xabat replies. "Meh, at least he's alive. Or as alive as we get, anyway."

The adult vampire stands, brushing off his trousers, and helps Sora to his feet. More like 'picks him up and sets him on his feet', really, but so far so good.

"Should probably go get a drink, eh? I bet he's ravenous, even if he won't admit it."

If he doesn't get a drink now, it won't be too fun for him later, [Allegro warns.] You know how it goes.

[He'll be sent to the tunnels, and expected to prove himself-an already difficult task if you're a 'kid'.]

"Yeah, yeah, we're going. You don't gotta tell me twice. C'mon, kiddo."

Sora takes another dazed look around the room, then reluctantly follows Xabat out the door. Geeze, maybe Xabat should keep a better eye on his kids.

[Yeesh, he really should...Allegro shakes his head, but he disappears into the shadows all the same. Soon enough everyone will be meeting in the catacombs, and Xabat will have to wait for the 'verdict'. A year might as well be a month to them, but it's a long one all the same...

And at that point they'll find out if they 'survived'.]

⇨ THE MASQUERADE

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