Sliver Shiver's AR Shivering Experience! [2024 Halloween Event Quest] (Private)

[Sliver Shiver GM]

The Halloween Festival that came every year was here once again, put on by the same mysterious host, a man wearing an old time Jester outfit and mask. Except he had horns coming up from his head. And... there were dozens of him. He ran every booth, every food cart, attended and managed every ride. And he always remembered you from year to year, and from booth to booth, to boot!

But this particular night, one Silver Shiver approached our five heroes of the tale. He approached with legs a little too stiff in the knee, bending backwards a bit too far with every step. He stopped rigid straight infront of our group.

"Well hello! You are just the patrons I have been searching high!" He stretched onto his tip toes and put a hand above the eyes of his jester's mask, and mimed looking around. "And low!" He squatted down to the gravel-covered ground, his rear touching the rock with his knees sticking out like the ears of some kids unlucky while growing up and his chest parallel to the ground, head raised. Maybe he looked more like a spider, at a moment's more consideration. He stood at attention once more. "For! You all have battle prowess, yes? Expertise in fighting monsters, yes? Do you wish to test your skill?"

"I have just the opportunity! If you would follow me, Me and I and some others..." He got angry and growled out those last three words, "have put together something truly special for you! An AR experience! With the latest technology in... well, something for sure, I'm not sure what, you can fight holographic Grimm in a simulated environment! And... there will be prizes!" Was it was the groups imagination, or did that last part seemed hastily tacked on to lure them in? "So, what do you say, folks? Willing to give Sliver Shiver a chance and test out- I mean, take Sliver Shiver up on this wondrous opportunity?"

[Saoirse Luíseach]

Sei... wasn't sure how she'd ended up here.

I mean, sure, she knew literally how she'd arrived here sure enough: she'd walked here from the transit station. She even knew why: it was apparently a cultural holiday and there was a festival being held in town, and she wanted to see it.

How she'd ended up getting roped into some kind of game(?) with a hidden harlequin, though? That was entirely beyond her. She'd seen this particular harlequin several times already: perhaps he was a character related to the festival's cultural significance? The more she thought about it, the more she realized that she wasn't going to figure it out by standing around.

Glancing around at the people stood next to her, she decided that this would be an amusing diversion at worst and a grand adventure at best. "I shall gladly accept your gracious offer," she informed the masked merryman with a slight curtsy.

[Sliver Shiver GM]

"You're Grrrrrrrreeaat!" The Jester cheered to Sei, not waiting for anyone else to agree. "Follow me!" He pivoted on one foot, the other outstretched to the 90 degree, and he began walking once more. His arms pumped at his sides excitedly and with purpose as he lead them off towards an old warehouse.

There was a large metal crate next to a mandoor in the side of the warehouse wall. He opened it up and pulled out 5 white devices with nylon straps to go around the head and a small plastic long box that would go over the eyes. "You will put these on before you enter the... Haunted House! Or more accurately, a Haunted Science Facility! Do not worry, inside is nothing but wooden frame walls and the floor and some stairs. But with these on, your perceptions will be transported and you will see a whole new place! You people are known for acrobatic and fast movements, so they will be afixed to your heads until the end of the experience. So they dont fall off, of course. Go ahead and put them on!"

[Professor Fiona L Caligo]

Fiona had always been a fan of the holidays, especially the ones this time of the year as they were usually held in the evening and late into the night.
She had honestly just come here to the market to grab a few sweets, treats and a costume, currently trying out a few witches hats the copy of Sliver Shiver was holding out to her, yet just a few feet away she could see a group of her students listen to another copy...this one seemed a bit different.
She could not help herself but approach, leaving the hats laying where she had found them and walked up besides the students, greeting them with a small wave as she did not want to interrupt Sliver, she knew how annoying it was to be interrupted during an explanation, though she did feel it prudent to raise her hand as if to ask a question as this whole "project" seemed a little unsavory....just for the Jester to ignore her and lead her students along.

Fiona sighed...she had just come here to buy a costume but even on her time of she had to watch her students, as her instincts were telling her they may need her help.

Arriving inspected the headgear given to her closely, as she did not like the wording of this Jester.
"Excuse me Mister Shiver, but this seems..."
She was thinking about how to word this without offending the Jester.
"...very sketchy, are you certain these are safe."

[Akiko Momiji]

Akiko's eyes start to open up as she had woken up from her nap on a nearby bench, her surroundings decorated with the Halloween spirit as she started to glance around with mildly tired eyes. Unknowingly being wrapped up within a game of some sorts, Akiko got up from the bench and joined the nearby group that happened to be standing in front of a masked individual who was adorned with a jester's outfit. As she found her spot with the group, she looked around the area as the multiple copies of the host, occupying all the stalls, rides, and even the food carts all around.

Something feels off, but Akiko shook off the intuition as their host offered and opportunity within the jester's game. After all, she did hear there were prizes; were they buckets of sweets and snacks? or were they simply take-home souvenirs that she could leave in her dorm or with her parents. Alas nothing venture would be nothing gained if the fox didn't take upon this offer while following the group and their host to the Haunted House. She listened carefully to the jester's instructions, slowly reaching for the device to put on for the eerie building.

"So just on the head right-..."

Akiko suddenly realized that she was in her shark onesie, suddenly now remembering why she was out and about in the first place as she was looking to find a costume for Halloween herself before she decided to take a nap on that bench. She flustered a bit, but she regained her composure as she turned towards the Professor as she adjusted the device on her head via the Jester's instructions.

"Is this thing on right? I can't tell if this is supposed to be this tight or not."

[Forrest Waldstein]

Forrest groggily came to in a crowd of people, some familiar and some not. They were clearly being led by this tall jester figure. In fact, there were many of him all around the place. It was strange and unsettling to say the least, especially when the one leading the group growled lowly. Forrest tried to remember how he got here, seeing that his memory was foggy at best.

Didn't I... pass out on my bed just a moment ago?... he thought, the mind fog still present as he tried to unclutter the thoughts in his head. As he looked around, he became aware of an unusual sensitivity at the base of his neck. His eyes went wide for the briefest of moments as he recalled exactly what happened to him before he had passed out. Fortunately for him, his clothes went up his neck enough to conceal it.

Oh, right... that's what happened... Forrest mused, maintaining a stoic visage while giving himself a mental pat on the back. His attention was then turned towards the jester as he produced five white devices with straps and handed them to everyone. Taking his pair, Forrest affixed it to his head against his better judgement as the nearby fox Faunus went over to Professor Caligo. Noticing Sei only a few steps away from him, he turned his attention and took a step towards her.

"Are you just as confused as me right now?" Forrest inquired.

[Brigid Laghairt]

Brigid was overjoyed, sampling all the food and treats this festival had to offer. Being from Vacuo, she rarely got the chance to experience festivals like this. Especially with such a strange host. Were the attendents really all one person with multiple bodies, like a Semblance that made clones? She shook her head, immediately discarding the follow up thought, not wanting to even consider biting one of them. She would never become that desperate.

She aggressively bit into her cotton candy to get away from those thoughts, instead getting lost in sugary, artificially strawberry-flavored bliss. Her scaled tail flicked excitedly behind her as she ate and walked, expressing her happiness for the world to see... and at the accidental peril of any passersby who got too close and got whacked by it. Before she knew it she'd finished her cotton candy and found that she had absentmindedly wandered up to a group of students, along with a teacher, who were being spoken to by a rather tall jester. This was the same person as all the booth attendents.... allegedly. Seeing them up close, she was amazed by the jester's height. What caught her attention most, though, was the promise of prizes for playing in this game. The fox faunus' assumptions about the prizes being snacks were echoed by the hungry lizard girl's gluttonous imagination hoping the prize would be an all you can eat buffet.

She followed along without a second thought, wondering what kind of game they'd be playing. Based on the sound of it, they'd be fighting, so she wondered if she'd be able to use her shield or if weapons would be provided for them. When it came time to put on the AR headsets, she tried to put it on herself and failed miserably. She couldn't get the straps over her horns, so she too went to the Professor asking for help putting it on.

[Sliver Shiver GM]

The Jester limbered over to the Fox Faunus and with quick nimble hands, correctly affixed the headset. And set a lock on it. "There you go, all set!" He moved on to the Lizard that seemed to be having troubles as well, while his head turned to the Professor. "I am perfectly and reasonably assured that these AR devices can not harm you! They simply scan the environment around them and change certain aspects. Or so I'm told." He tightened this device as well and locked it.

"And while you will still be these student's responsible and able chaperone, I will also be along to supervise! However, the devices will change how I look. Wouldn't want to break the immersion!" There was a loud bang against the wall of the warehouse, something slamming it from the inside. "Must be the crew finishing up." He put his hands on his hips. "Now, anyone else need help?"

Once they all had their headsets affixed, locked and turned on, Sliver Shiver opened the door for them. The headsets were very well balanced, not putting too much pressure around the eyes of the back of the head. However the straps did go to the base of the skull on the back and were held fast, and no matter the quick movements or injuries the students might suffer, The Jester assured them that they would not be coming off until the end of the experience. The metal door squealed in protest as it opened, like a cat's claws on a chalkboard.

To everyone, the outdoors of the warehouse was the same through the headset. And it did a fantastic job of not impeding eyesight or peripherals. But inside that door, it was a dark place. Metal floors briefly illuminated by a sparking, swinging light fixture. There was a blood stain that dragged on into the darkness, black on the metal floor, that was shown for brief moments as the sparks from the wires overhead fell to cool on the ground. The Jester held the door open. "One last word of advice. The health bar you might see in the upper left corner of your vision is equivalent to the Aura shield meters that the Amity Arena uses. Do keep an eye on that, as we are still experiencing a... bug... with the death screens. If you fall, you may be stuck unable to help your fellows. Now! With that last disclaimer out of the way~" He leaned over the door and with a hand, gestured them inside. "Step right in~"

Inside they would be in a small area that looked like your typical employee entrance. Lockers, maybe two dozen in all, lined the walls. Most were dinged and dented while a few stood open. White lab coats were in a couple of those open, and black security garb and armor were in the rest. Patches and name tags were present, and all bore the same employer.

"Vale Anti-Monster Priority and Integrated Research Experiments"

A bathroom was to the side of them, the door halfway closed, the light inside blinking white. A hallway stretched forwards into the darkness infront of them, where the blood stain on the floor dragged into. The only sound was the tiny squeak of the light fixture swinging over head, giving off periodical light along with the bathroom, the distant and deep whirring of air conditioning, and the door closing behind them. And locking.

"He-hello?" Came a man's voice, crouching low next to the door. "A-are you the ones they sent in here to help us?" The flickering light would show this to be a dark-skinned man in his late fourties, slightly balding. He had on a white lab coat and glasses, cracked in one lens. Speckled red dots tarnished the otherwise clean white surface of the left side of his coat, neck and face. A nametag affixed to the breast of his coat identified him.

Hermit Rowlands
B-Class Researcher
Head of Distributions

[[OOC: Go ahead and examine the lockers, the bathroom, further on ahead, or talk to Dr. Rowlands. Or anything else you can think of. I couldn't think of a way to put in easily how you all see eachother. The characters all see eachother exactly as they normally are, garb and hair and all without headsets. Your weapons are all on you, if you decided to bring them along when going to a festival.]]

[Saoirse Luíseach]

Ehh arr? No, wait, this was clearly an initialization. What AR stood for was a mystery to Sei, though. Still, the prospect of earning a reward appealed to her, so she put on the device, affixing it to her eyes and ensuring it was snug.

"Are you just as confused as me right now?" Ahh, it was Forrest.

"I would classify my current feelings as more curious than confused," she replied. "Though I will readily admit to a certain degree of confusion, I do not believe that I am any more confused by the technology and terminology of this Kingdom at present than I would be otherwise."

Wait a moment. Sei herself being confused was, as she'd just said, normal. Forrest, however, had lived his whole life in the modern age, yet he too was confused. "Which part of our current circumstances is the source of your confusion?" she inquired, hoping he would elucidate something that would assist with her quest to understand the intricacies of modern Dustforged society.

Seeing everyone was properly equipped, Sei made her way inside as she listened for his answer.

"H-hello? A-are you the ones they sent in here to help us?"

Taking in the interior at a glance, Sei raised her hand and muttered the name of her weapon to summon it.
"Draíocht," she muttered, and her weapon appeared in her open hand.

The first thing they needed was to know who or what was in their immediate surroundings. Sei wasn't the best scout, but she did know a few methods of detecting enemies that were out of her line of sight. Flipping a few pages, she ran her finger along a line of text in shining white ink that read Iat-Woll-Fol-Leb, creating a pulse of light that would cover a wide area and linger on nearby entities, faintly illuminating the direction in which they were.

The next thing they needed was to, y'know, see. "Iat Zun Zeg Atush," she said, gesturing above her head. A small sphere of silver fire appeared about a meter above her, casting a soft but bright light on the interior of the building. "The light should endure for a moment and a half," she announced to the group as she made way for them all to enter and looked around the area.

[Professor Fiona L Caligo]

Fiona just sighed she was not reassured by what the jester said in the slightest but there were students potentially at stake she could not in good conscience let them go into a creepy abandoned warehouse without her help, especially when Brigid, the oh so ever adorable lizard faunus needed help attaching the googles did Fiona shake her head and helped Brigid, carefully making sure her hair did not get tangled in the straps as she fastened it around her head.
"There you go Bridig, have fun but be careful."
After the words of caution she put on the AR googles offered to her, following her students inside the building, she took her staff from her back having it with her at all times in its folded up form was an old habit.
She saw Seirose already cast a light ahead and while she would much rather have done that herself she did not want to undermine the students especially because she did not need light herself to see, Bridig was also most likely fine being a faunus, which only left poor Forest without proper sight.
Fiona held her hand out towards the young man and a tiny mote of light appeared atop his shoulder, providing the young man with what was essentially a shoulder mounted flashlight.
"There now everyone should be able to see, have a look around the area but stay close students."
Fiona said, she knew that in a combat setting it would be the smart move for her to stay behind and provide support, but until the students found some structure in this improvised team she'd try to take charge.
"Hello, this is Professor Caligo of Beacon Academy, what do you need help with good sir?"
She asked the scared researcher as she approached him, from what little she knew it was always the smartest move to talk the NPC's for exposition and information, and while being strong was an important part of a battle information was just as if not more important.

[Akiko Momiji]

The AR Goggles were correctly affixed to Akiko's head, the environment itself starting to replicate within the warehouse what the program had in store. The goggles were firm, but not too annoying to her eyes as she could see clearly through them as everyone had their gear at the ready. Unfortunately, Akiko would seem to be the one currently out of the ordinary as she was only fitted with the shark onesie she was wearing and her weapon as everyone started to enter the building. The inside was dark, eerie, walls and floor stained with blood that dragged into dark unknown that the building had to offer.

"hmm... so dark... is there a nearby-"

the room started to flicker for a bit, revealing a man crouching next to a door, calling out for help. "He-hello?" "A-are you the ones they sent in here to help us?" A light was cast soon after, the source itself coming from Seirose as the room itself as it lit the room up a bit for the group to search and look around their surroundings. Glancing around, Akiko started to look around the group's surroundings, starting off with the lockers as Professor Caligo started to address the npc that stood in front of them. Akiko decided to let her curiosity go off, her weapon in hand in case of a sudden jumpscare that could happen.

"Pray that something doesn't come out from these... But I hope there's something nice for us that we can use."

[Forrest Waldstein]

"I can't exactly remember how I got here... The last thing I remember was passing out on my bed, and then I was here. I wanted to ask how much you remember about getting here, see if anyone else had the same problem as me..." Forrest queried to Sei, unable to piece together what happened to him in the interim. As they all passed through the doorway into the small area, the darkness would retreat in the presence of both Saoirse and the Professor's lights.

"Thanks Professor." Forrest noted as the light remained just above his shoulder, providing him with enough light to see past the darkness. Forrest took a quick scan of his surroundings and what the others were doing. Seeing as Professor Caligo was dealing with the researcher and the fox Faunus searching the lockers, Forrest went ahead just enough to examine the trail of blood on the floor, ensuring that he didn't go too far ahead of the group. Primarily, Forrest wanted to figure out how long the blood trail had been there for. Besides that, Forrest would also try to figure out other properties of the blood trail, such as amount and distribution, to produce a clearer picture of what happened. He didn't have Grashalm at his side, but given his Semblance, it wasn't a huge issue as he could produce a makeshift weapon if needed.