SPOOKY HAUNTS AND TRAILS » OPEN

[maskreant]

WHO: the infamous nasty crimeboy, Akira Kurusu, and you!
WHERE: Places in Recolle
WHEN: Spooky Month of October
WHAT: EVENT STUFF and mundane stuff if it comes up. if you would like to plan anything, hit me up via halloway or hei#2323 on discord.
WARNINGS: Persona 5 spoilers for last boss battle and late-game conspiracy unveiling. Will update when necessary!

NOTE!! You can leave an empty comment with the subject header of your choice or even RANDOM for something unlisted/miscellaneous (lighthearted) and I'll write the prompt. For nightmares, it may skip around and make no sense very much like how actual dreams are.

nightmares

[ When you enter the dream, you're engulfed by darkness until you hear a deep and unfamiliar voice. It speaks in a language you are most comfortable with. ]

The contract has been sealed...

You have agreed to provide the Trickster support
in his journey to oppose fate and seek change.

CASINO
It's filled with a variety of gamblers from talking fish to actual people. Shadows are also gambling? But they're aggressive due to their mass losses. There are several elevators and it seems like the treasure is on the VIP level.

If you choose to enter the CASINO, you may appear outside of the structure or on the first floor in costume and mask. Akira will accompany you in his Joker outfit.

VELVET ROOM
Are you a prisoner? Or a keeper? You can stand behind the bars with Akira, withstand the abuse and rebel alongside him, or on the opposite side—ushered by two wardens and a man with an elongated nose to carry out discipline. Rehabilitation is important.

If you choose to enter the VELVET ROOM, you may appear inside or outside the cell. Your attire will change into prisoner wear or officer uniform respectively.

MEMENTOS (SPOILER)
In the city of Recolle, you notice there's something strange. People walk past the blood red rain and the towering skeleton pieces. The irrelevant become forgotten. The forgotten vanish. Is it your hand that's disappearing? Or is it Akira's?

If you choose MEMENTOS, you'll be in your normal attire or in your underwear. Whichever your character feels less attractive in if you want. Once again, Akira is beside you.

CODE CREDIT

fog

[ Akira has been having a hard time with his nightmares. Some of them he remembers bits and pieces (all useless), but he's thinking a jog in the ungodly time where the thick fog rolls in is a good idea? Unfortunately not... He ends up running away from one of these three tormentors in his pajamas. What's with his luck?

As he looks behind him, he crashes into someone. Sorry. ]

TWIN WARDENS (SPOILER)
Their names are unknown to you, but they're two girls with silver hair with a single golden eye (an eyepatch covers the other). As attendants of the Velvet Room, they have this ethereal aura to them, even menacing as they shoot various skills into the fog.

"Come back here, inmate! You can't hide forever!"

"You're only delaying the inevitable."

IMPERIOUS ANGEL (SPOILER)
An angel appears with an abstract body shape. Wings scaling wide and halo spinning over its head, it spreads its several hands that hold instruments. With the rise of the triangle, the angel rings it with a clear ding. In a matter of seconds, a flash of light magic strikes near.

"I am what humanity desires. Why oppose me?"

You can hear the sneer in its voice.

GOLD PIGGER
This silver piggy bank may seem cute, but it's also massively large and rolls without end. What does stop it from rolling are valuable items. Throw something expensive and it'll take a break to appraise it with a series of oinks. The one in control is a half-fly guy throwing out some mad rhymes.

"Yo yo yo! You think you can just walk into my neighborhood and disrespect me like that, dawg?"

CODE CREDIT

wildcard

[ THROW ME WHATEVER! Baby haunts from the new ghosts or even the Retrospec Maze! Even anything normal. ]

Comments

[maskreant]

Where did people disappear to in August? Into pockets of unreality, right?

[ Akira answers but his expression drops with the serious question. Despite that, he answers seriously. The purge begins and people start disappearing left and right. Eventually, this causes an actual uproar before the masses start screaming and frantically running from... What?

Nothing?

"There is no escape," whispered this dark, foreboding voice. ]

I'm not sure where people go this time. Are we even able to save them this time?

[parodeity]

...They're not network. Only network people vanished, right?

[ back in august. and dave doesn't recognize most of these people. ]

But...somethin' has to be causing this. Maybe we should...look for the source of the bones?

[maskreant]

... You're right. Only network people vanished.

[ NPCs and network people vanish. Do you see a familiar person across the crowd? Maybe it's Chiyo Matsuoka or Souji Narukami—anyone. Their expression of intense fear shows, maybe on the verge of tears, before they just disappear. ]

They're coming from the ground... So we must go under, right? Didn't a team investigate the subway.

[ As they plan, they're also disappearing again. It doesn't seem to matter if they remember each other or not. "It is imminent."

Repeated over and over again. ]

We don't have a lot of time.

[parodeity]

[ chiyo and souji. those are people he cares about, and chiyo in particular gets a stunned look and a drawn in breath, before dave...nods.

they can fix this. they have to fix this? ]

Let's go. We have to - we need to reverse whatever the fuck is goin' on.

[maskreant]

All right. It's this way.

[ Akira leads Dave hastily, make sure they can easily weave through the hysterical masses, but they're losing themselves piece by piece. By the time they reach the start of the stairs, they're practically translucent, but there are spider veins that stretch out from the concrete and into the city. ]

I hope you're ready for this.

[parodeity]

Yes. Do you know what's there?

[ at the end of the stairs.

he'll take a step even without an answer. ]

[maskreant]

No clue.

[ They are so ready for this. Unfortunately, as they take steps down the stairs, they feel themselves ceasing to exist entirely only to be recreated in a different environment.

It seems like a coliseum except the rows of people at their seats are actually in jail cells surrounding them. They're at the center, fastened with weapons of their choice.

"You dare defy me? This is what humanity asked for."

What appears... in front of them... Is a giant blackened cup. ]

[parodeity]

[ he really does not like ceasing to exist for a second or two. that sucks.

and his weapon of choice is -

well, a sword. ]

...I know I didn't ask for that. If I had, there would be a silly straw in it. You know, one of the super twisty ones with colors.

[ when uncertain and ill at ease, MAKE JOKES ]

[maskreant]

I guess if you're into drinking the life force of the people, then that would be nice.

[ Because there are veins coming from the cup that branch to the cells surrounding them. Is it weird that these people are cheering for... a cup? A cup called the Holy Grail, apparently.

"Foolish mortals... It would be easier to submit. A world blind is full of bliss."

To test the waters, Akira starts shooting it with a gun that appears in his hand. There's clanking noise and the cup seems to take damage&mdsah;while it doesn't make a noise, the people around them scream stop hurting it! What are you doing?! ]

[parodeity]

Is doin' that gonna hurt them?

[ that's his only concern. dave's sword is in his hand, and he'll have to attack it physically if he gets the okay.

akira seems to know what's going on more than he does, though... ]

[maskreant]

I don't think so.

[ The crowd continues to boo them, however, cheering on... A cup? A black cup that is getting shinier with each second. Akira summons Yoshitsune to test something. Lightning strikes the cup and it does damage as usual. ]

It's a god and I think it's feeding off of the people's wishes...

[ As so. It heals itself up through these veins that are attached to the cells.

"A life where you don't need to make decisions... A life where you don't need to worry. Doesn't that sound nice?" ]

[parodeity]

...We need to cut the veins, then? On it.

[ he has a sword. what else is it for except to cut shit?

dave kicks off the group and heads for the nearest to slice through. ]

[maskreant]

Dave—

[ It was okay when it was a full party and the cup didn't notice if one person was gone, but they're only two. The cup only snickers before it shows a ray at light at him.

Fortunately, Akira is quick enough to summon Yoshitsune to land a brave blade, making that ray stray off course.

"Do you think you two can really stop this from happening?"

The cries of the public continue to boo them, cry over how they're hurting the grail, and that these hooligans need to stop. The veins are cut, but the cup keeps becoming brighter.

And brighter.

Almost a dark gold now. ]

At least it's not healing?

[ Time to beat it to shit like a pinata. ]

[parodeity]

It doesn't have to be "us two", you know.

[ because he's the knight of time, and there can be more than one of him. dave reaches for his sense of time, to start up a series of loops. ]

[maskreant]

[ "Ah... Is this a trick?"

Akira, on the other hand, is also watching with intrigue, but he has to shake himself out of it. They're supposed to beat this cup, but it just... Seems to exist. The people also adore it to bits.

"I will play your game."

Arrows of light start shooting at Dave, randomly hitting whichever copy. It only needs to find the real one, right? Akira takes this opportunity to get closer to the cup, but it attempts to stop him with more pillars of light. With a brave blade, the cup shakes, spilling some of the "wishes" out of the chalice.

"You lowlife hooligan! This is the will of the people—"

The cup grows darker in color. ]

[parodeity]

[ well, the unfortunate thing about this is that all of the daves are the real dave. they are just either more future or not. the earliest dave has the hardest time dodging the arrows; the later ones have an easier time, because they have lived this before and know when they're coming.

it's weird time logic mixed with weird dream logic, because what is time in a dream?

but he works steadily at being both a distraction and trying to cut the veins. ]

- It ain't my will!

[maskreant]

[ That moment when double team becomes actual time clones. It's true though, Akira only notices their differences from the corner of his eye, but has to roll back from the incoming wave of light energy. Unfortunately, he has to tank it if he wants to keep this close distance.

"You are just blind, covering your eyes from the truth. Worry not. You shall see."

The veins, or how many left, fill the cup to the brim before it starts pouring. It overflows and the liquid touches their feet. It's crystal clear yet bright red. The voices come louder, almost suffocating, voicing how difficult it is to continue on. These memories are weighing them down or how these memories are all they have. Their emotions also infect all that touch—powerless, hopeful, and exhaustion.

The cup grows gold as the coliseum starts to flood. ]

Dave, cut the last few.

[ With being so close, Akira casts another brave blade which cleaves a good amount of the veins. The people in the cells cry out louder, damning their heroes. ]

[parodeity]

You got it, captain -

[ says A Dave. he's listening to the voices, to those whispered emotions, but he's self-sacrificial to a fault: he doesn't mind being damned if it will help others, and working in tandem with future versions of himself he cuts through the last veins, lips pressed tight together and face pale. ]

[maskreant]

[ "You fools... The future is only filled with more suffering. In ignorance, there's bliss and peace. You have damned this world and its people to an end no one wants...!"

Akira doesn't believe in any of that... And while he doesn't like making decisions for others, they won't be able to make them if they don't have that opportunity. Satanael reappears to shoot a beam of energy at the chalice. It doesn't pierce through, but it does tip the cup over like a large domino.

The will of the people spill, but evaporate back into the jail cells. The cells themselves prop open, but the people are too scared to wander out. It takes them some time. ]

I think that's it...?

[ He's... Relieved? But uh. He looks over to Dave, then at other Dave, then this other Dave. How many Daves are in his dream?

... Is this trying to tell him something? Does he really, really, really like Dave? ]

Thanks.

[parodeity]

[ clearly that is the secret of this dream. DEEP DOWN, AKIRA IS IN LOVE WITH DAVE STRIDER, alternately his coworker is like, a time traveler or something. ]

What the fuck was that?

[ - IS THE FIRST THING TO COME TO MIND, IF THE DREAM DOESN'T IMMEDIATELY END ]

[maskreant]

[ You know Akira will just consider both. He must be in love with Dave who is a time traveler. Why settle for anything else? You can have a man from any stage of his life—except let's not go there.

As the coliseum deteriorates into nothing, much like the skeletons and the dark red skies, there's finally normal rain to wash everything else away. People start... Returning. ]

It's the Holy Grail... Though it claims to be a god from my memories. [ It must be difficult to handle, but he guesses Dave will roll with it. The dude just called upon his many selves, after all. ] Congratulations, you've acquired the title "God Slayer."

[ And in a pop up menu, it literally says DAVE STRIDER has acquired title GOD SLAYER. ]

[parodeity]

I prefer the title "Revenge of Ricky Schrodinger". [ no he doesn't. but he just kind of nods, glancing around. ]

...Well, that's chill, anyway. Does this mean everyone who was disappearing is back now?

[maskreant]

... All right, you can have that.

[ Dave now has that exact title equipped without his consent. That's what you said you preferred? ]

It should, but I guess we'll have to see.

[ Though as they try to exit the arena, the area starts going white. The nightmare is ending... But before it does, it'll start raining actual cats and dogs. ]

[parodeity]

- What the fuck?

[ cats and dogs. ]

Jesus. None of this is real - [ but that's about all he'll say before he fades out. ]