princessvegas: (025. survival of the richest)
Julie Lawry ([personal profile] princessvegas) wrote in [community profile] abraxaslogs2022-10-29 09:01 pm

[ open ] This is Halloween, everybody make a scene

Julie has always thrown a good party. It was true in Kansas, it was true in Vegas, and it's true in the Horizon. And last year's party had been a smashing success by Julie's standards.

At that time.

See, the thing is, back then, Julie didn't understand exactly what she was capable of doing with the Horizon's powers. She had, without meaning to, limited herself to things that already made sense in the world she had previously known. But that's not the world she lives in anymore, and after a year of learning, she's ready to actually throw a Horizon-worthy party.


I | WAIT
For the vast majority of the Summoned, this will be the first time they've ever seen the pink neon that illuminates the edges of Julie's club go dark. The pink carpet and pink velvet ropes are gone; the big double doors are closed and locked. Those with keen eyes might notice that the door handles, normally in the shape of rising clouds of butterflies, are now swarms of bats. There is a small sign on a stand at the door.

All around the building, there's the loud, ominous sound of a grandfather clock's swinging pendulum, ticking toward an unknown time (well, it is known, as Julie sent out invitations). The wood of the doors bears long, ragged scratches, as if claws have been dragged down them. Thick fog gradually surrounds the building -- while not thick enough to obscure vision, it is nonetheless ominous and haunting.

The clock chimes nine o'clock; the sound is deafening. There is a long, pregnant pause, and just when it seems like nothing is going to happen, there is a sudden screech from above. An enormous, bulbous spider crawls atop the roof as if from the back, its body and legs so large and long that they span the building's width. It gives another great shriek as it leers down from the roof, fangs dripping, but it doesn't reach down from its perch. It remains above the crowd, menacingly.

At the same time, the doors burst open in an almost explosive manner, and the pounding music begins to pour out from within. More fog floats out of the foyer, carrying obscured green and orange light. The party has started.


II | CREEP
Walking through the front door, there are many details to be noticed, enough that it's easy to overlook most of them. The mist is a heavy blanket across the ground, thinning out for visibility only around waist-height. Where last year the theme was set in a barren forest, this year appears to be set in a massive, abandoned Victorian mansion. While the club maintains its normal shape from the outside, the inside is transformed to mimic long, winding hallways and spiraling staircases that seem to lead nowhere. The roof is high, in cathedral arches, and the fireplaces are dark. The walls and mantles bear various pieces of decoration: eerie black-and-white portraits in filthy frames, cracked vases full of dead flowers, jagged and broken sconces. Everything is covered in a vast, dusty coat of cobwebs, and the entire main hall must be traversed to reach the music that streams through the air.

Ignore the movements in the corner of your eyes. And be careful not to graze the walls -- lest you discover that the black pattern on the dark wallpaper is less of a pattern and more of an infestation.

Along the way, one might be inclined to open one of the many doors that line the halls and see what's inside. There are any number of strange scenes to find -- those familiar enough may recognize the haunting figures as Julie's clubgoers in costume. Interacting may have... unintended consequences.

Make it through the maze of haunted rooms and revolving doors, and you'll be rewarded by finding the ballroom.

III | PARTY
True to Julie form, the ballroom is fully decked out for only the wildest of parties. Spiderwebs stretch across the vaulted ceilings and between pillars, with lights hanging from their gossamer threads. Candles help illuminate by floating near the ceiling and around tables.

The bar, swapped for heavy Gothic design, is manned by Steven, as always. Despite being dressed as a white-eyed demon, he is as helpful as ever, and happy to make you whatever drink your heart desires. Two long tables flank the bar -- one boasts a huge variety of spooky snacks and bowls of candies, amongst other, more classic party dishes. The other holds vast quantities of... other goodies, should one be tempted to participate: bowls of pre-rolled joints and various pills, silver platters with small mountains of cocaine atop them, and even tiny canisters of whippits, for those with low tolerance. Be careful not to confuse the regular candies with their cannabis-infused counterparts.

The dance floor is large and lit in purple, orange and green. The music is loud enough to dance to, but not so loud that conversation is impossible. The resident partiers that weren't used to play roles in the scary scenes congregate here, in a wide assortment of random sexy costumes.

Hopefully, you've arrived in time to see Julie's grand entrance.
doubledead: (not half bad for a dead guy)

[personal profile] doubledead 2022-10-31 04:15 am (UTC)(link)
"I was just exploring and I saw the spider--" Jack gestured back the way the two of them had came. "When I'm not helping on the farm, I'm here trying to see all of the Horizon. Everyone's homes here are so interesting. Nobody could get bored here. What's your Domain like?"

Even as he stood there before her, he fidgeted. He turned to look at sounds with wide, excited eye sockets and his grin reached so far past his eyes that it threatened to split his head in two. Suddenly he snapped his attention back to her.

"Oh! Jo, it's great to meet you! I almost forgot to say."
tobeclosetohim: (And the sky is falling through)

[personal profile] tobeclosetohim 2022-10-31 02:13 pm (UTC)(link)
The more Jack talks, the less creepy it registers on. Yeah, the costume is ... a thing. Weird. Over exaggerated. Though in comparison to Julie's, it's almost tame. Maybe if he looked less like some kid-safe version of a skeleton that went toward kookily kid-friendly (save those weird flashes of nearly opening his mouth wide enough to crack that full skull head in two).

But the guy inside? He's like a puppy dog—a distracted and awed five-year-old.
All interest and enthusiasm about the whole shebang of the show Julie put on.

"It's different. Big forest, long winding highway, a bar tucked into the middle."
doubledead: (chilly down)

[personal profile] doubledead 2022-11-01 01:23 am (UTC)(link)
"Hmmm, a lonesome highway. A great place for a ghost story to happen." Jack nodded as though he were some kind of expert on the subject. "Sounds like a great Domain. I recreated my home town...I thought I would be spending Halloween there but after...well, everything, I decided to go out and see other people. And I'm glad because now I've met you."

He gestures to Jo with a sweeping arm.

"Why don't we explore together?"
tobeclosetohim: (And you pray with your knees)

[personal profile] tobeclosetohim 2022-11-10 03:51 pm (UTC)(link)
Jo stares at his arm for a long second. She's not touchy-feely most of the time, and when she is, it's definitely with her people, where she doesn't mind a general hug, a hand on a shoulder, arm, or back of the hand. Casual and congenial, or a moment's concern. But she's not home. And she's not at the Roadhouse. (And she's not dead.)

She's at some stupid normal people's Halloween party (where they have crazy Horizon meditation hallucinations and piles of cocaine).

"You know what? Why not." Loops her fingers around that weirdly boney elbow.
"Promise me a drink, and you can have me for a while even."
doubledead: (muffled mission impossible theme in the)

[personal profile] doubledead 2022-11-14 12:59 am (UTC)(link)
"Great! It's a deal, then." Jack grins and stands tall, pleased that he has smoothed over his faux pas from earlier. He hasn't made any enemies that he's aware of since arriving in this world. He would hate for such a relationship to start on Halloween.

With Jo on his arm, Jack turns to take them exploring down the nearest hallway. He pauses at the first door they come across.

"Would you like to do the honors?" He bows his head. "It's so exciting to think what could be on the other side. I bet it's horrible!"