Halloween 2020: Choose Your Spooky Outcome: Chapter 1
Welcome to Drew's Annual Choose Your Spooky Outcome Novel, done over the 13 nights leading up to Halloween. First and foremost, this is a running story, so you'll want to read prior years' entries to know the whole tale.
THIS IS A SEQUEL, SO IF YOU WANT THE STORY TO MAKE SENSE YOU SHOULD GO READ THE FIRST ONE HERE, SECOND ONE HERE, THE THIRD ONE HERE, THE FOURTH ONE HERE, THE FIFTH ONE HERE, THE SIXTH ONE HERE, AND THE SEVENTH HERE.
If you're reading one of these as it's happening, then be sure to vote for the choices you want made. If not, simply enjoy reading the finished story! Here's how it works:
The novel will run from October 19th – October 31st (13 days of Halloween). Every night I put up the newest chapter, along with a poll for you to make your decisions. Polls close at Noon CST on the following day, so I can write the next installment. Post goes up at night, rinse, lather, repeat.
There will be Dead Ends, choices you make that get your character killed. Choices with this potential have a skull motif on the voting block so you know you're in danger. If people pick one, I’ll give you the Dead End, then redirect you to the other choice that didn’t kill you, because I think we all cheated at those books as kids and I see no reason to change that. Make it to the end without hitting one, however, and there just might be something special in store.
Happy Haunting!
The shadows loom over you, peering down. Tall, towering, a forest of flickering visions, all trained on you. With every step, your heart quickens, the crunch of autumn leaves like thunder in your ears. Sometimes the shadows seem familiar; faces you’ve known, unknowns you’ve faced. Other times, the heads are little more than shapes. A cat, a Jack-o-lantern, a scarecrow, a pointy hat, and that’s only the ones you recognize at a glance. As you move deeper, the shadows draw closer, enveloping you.
Surrounding you.
Through the darkness, you see something flash. A soft glow, the moon reflected off metal. There, past the shadows, is a tree growing in a peculiar shape. With the metal orb in the center and the rectangular frame, it looks like… a door. Your hands reach out, inadvertently plunging into the nearest shadow. Suddenly, the cold dark washes over you, drowning out everything else, even your own breath.
With a start, you awake in your bed, sweat dripping down the forehead. Was that a death? No… those usually end a lot more violently, and this memory doesn’t feel like the ones you’ve recovered before. Rubbing your skull, you look around the room’s fading afternoon light and finally return to your senses.
A Halloween afternoon nap made sense, given your history with the holiday. If it isn’t errant wishes or rival magical families, it’s anti-scary organizations holding family-friendly fares or thwarting mysterious magical objects. And that’s just the usual stuff, this Halloween has the potential to be different.
The Between. That’s the lead you discovered last year, the place some entity is trying to lead you. Victoria, your friend, usual ally, and conduit of Halloween magic, said she could get you there, but it wouldn’t be an easy journey. Or necessarily a safe one. It’s been a year since then, a full year to contemplate whether or not you want to see what lies further down the rabbit hole.
Shaking off your oddly story-recap-based train of thought, you hop out of bed and grab a quick shower. Not originally part of the plan, but sleep-sweats can change things. With that done, you throw on some nearby clothes, fully aware that the outfit is a temporary one.
Stepping into the living room, you find Wilbur putting together the last of his pages into a briefcase. In the past year, Dem Bones Coffee has gone international, and Halloween is a big night for his company. With a giant magical skeleton that most of the public believed to be a mascot, not suspecting Wilbur was in fact the owner, Halloween tended to be a busy evening. Tonight they have a huge promotional event paired with the opening of a new coffee shop in downtown.
“Heading out?”
“Have to be there in time for make-up,” Wilbur says, snapping the lid shut. “Also, I helped Jim get into his costume. You owe me.”
With that ominous warning delivered, your third roommate heads out, carefully locking the door behind him. By this point, you know Wilbur can afford better digs, you’re not sure if he’s still around out of loyalty, or because he’s home so little it rarely matters.
It doesn’t take long to find out what Wilbur was referring to. Moments later, Jim comes bursting out of his room. At a glance, Jim could almost be mistaken for respectable in his blue business suit. It would take a moment for the casual observer to realize that Jim was wearing a luchador-style mask decorated to resemble the markings of a tiger. If they kept staring, said observer might then realize he was also wearing a set of bright orange trunks on top of his suit, with another tiger face emblazed directly over the crotch. No wonder Wilbur had to help Jim out, he was essentially poured into those tight shorts, crushing down on the suit’s slacks.
“What do you think? I went with Tiger-Dick 7: CEO Tiger-Dick. It’s the one where Tiger-Dick has to take over as head of a formerly evil company and lead them back onto the righteous tiger path.”
“You hate that movie, it has the least punching of any Tiger-Dick series.” Living with Jim has exposed to a wide array of media, and the Tiger-Dick movie franchise is strange even among that grouping. But at least Jim’s not dressing like one of his own characters, which can be… unpredictable, at times.
“Exactly! Everyone dresses like character from good movies, I’ll have this one all to myself.” Jim tapped his own head in triumph, as if signifying his genius.
There is no knock or warning before the door swings open, despite Wilbur locking it on the way out. It isn’t the lock’s fault, far greater forces than it have folded to the will of Victoria. She isn’t clad in a costume yet, and you know why. It has to do with the three bags slung across her shoulder. It’s something of a mini-tradition in itself, one you can’t ever recall being this nervous for.
“Embodying the spirit of a great beast. The presentation is as erratic as I’d expect, but at least you’re on the road to a proper costume.” Victoria’s brief examination of Jim tells her all she needs to know, attention quickly moving on to you. “Merlin, you appear slightly distressed. Has the fear crept in?”
“I’m not afraid,” you protest.
“Then you’d be a fool, and we already have one of those.” Victoria sets the three bundles down carefully on the table, then takes you by the shoulders. “Understand that where you wish to tread, there are great dangers, ones beyond even my abilities. If we go to The Between, then I’d advise you to clutch that fear and hold it close, it will help you remember just where we are stepping.”
Moving back slightly, a mild amusement seeps into her smile. “However, the course has not yet been charted, so perhaps save the worry for once you know where the night will lead. While I have made preparations to visit The Between, there are also other ways in which we might spend this evening.”
“What did you have in mind?” You peer down at the black bags, aware of Jim looking from over your shoulder, the whiskers on his mask tickling your ear.
“It occurred to me that whatever force has been acting must be tethered to All Hallows Eve in some fashion, given when the items appear. There is a place we can visit only tonight, an old town near one of the roots of this day’s magic. Perhaps, we might learn more about what is at foot, though I should warn you, this too will have risks all its own. It is also a journey upon which your brother cannot join. The magic that protects him would not be welcomed upon those grounds.”
Slowly, Victoria unzips the first bag to reveal long robes, a glass orb, and a small wooden staff. “One who seeks knowledge shall wear the garb of the sage.” Her hands move on, touching the second bag. “Alternatively, my father has elected to unveil a new attraction this year. I know little of what it entails, he wants all to be surprised, but I’m assured there will be ample revelry to be had. Should you wish to take the night in a more traditional Halloween direction.” With another unzip, she reveals the second costume. “This one doesn’t demand a special outfit, so I went with vampire. I love a classic, and it offers great options in the event of costume-magic.”
With surprising gravity, her hand lands on the final bag. “The last choice is the one you’ve had all year to consider: venturing to The Between. To enter there is no small feat, the way is narrow and specific. You will need the garb of the traveler, one who seeks to walk between worlds.” Pulling the bag open, she reveals a thick coat, along with matching hat and a pair of…
“Holy shit! Did you bring guns?”
“Replicas only, unless magic intervenes,” Victoria replies.
There’s a mild clucking sound from Jim as he leans more forcefully over, nearly toppling you in the process. “Hang on, is that a cowboy outfit? Did you already do that a few Halloweens back?”
“It wavers close, admittedly, but cowboy was a costume donning the fictional spirit of a character from the world’s wilder times. This is outfit harkens to the role Merlin seeks to fill, one who can traverse leave his world and seek another. These roles are shaped by the shared minds of humanity, and in recent years, there’s been one major character walking between worlds to crack the collective consciousness. This is the garb of a gunslinger. A touch too modern for my tastes, but I suppose at some point that was true for the vampire as well.”
You look over the table, seeing your outfits and choices laid carefully down, waiting for your decision. There’s the sage costume and the opportunity to learn more about all the Halloween magic, assuming things actually go to plan for a change. No Thad though, and he’s been pretty helpful the last few years. Alternatively, you could grab Thad, toss on a vampire costume, and see what crazy fun Victoria’s father has cooked up. It is still Halloween, and you do love a good party. Lastly, your eyes travel to the final outfit: the gunslinger. Choosing that starts you down a path with the kind of danger that scares Victoria, true, but it also offers the chance for answers. And, deep down, part of you wonders about who exactly has been reaching out, the familiar face of someone left behind briefly bubbling up from within your memories.
Time to decide what the night ahead holds in store.
Hey folks, Drew here with a few important notes.
Historically, I’ve used the pattern on the surveys to indicate whether it was a normal choice like you’ll see below, a Dead End featuring a skull motif, or something special for choices with even greater stakes. However, the polling site I use has done a major redesign, and a lot of the patterns I previously used are gone. Because of that, the polls will have a new look, and I’ll make sure to call out when we get to our first Dead End so there’s no confusion.
I’ve also got a fun surprise for you! Since this event is built on working together as a community to make choices, I thought it might be helpful to have a tool for more interaction. That’s why I’ve created a temporary Discord to run throughout this event, open for all to join. Come talk options, ideas, or just Halloween fun!