Halloween Horror RPG ToE

>Nightmare Night in Ponyville.
>Luna has promised to be there, and ponies have come from all around just to try to get a glimpse of the new princess of friendship and the old princess of the night. Our erstwhile party had also come.
>Spectral Shard – A unicorn with knowledge of magic and skilled in forcefields. Who also thinks costumes are for foals.
>Sagebrush - an earth pony scientist, known for causing mischief and skilled in MAD SCIENCE. Dressed as a timberwolf.
>Cream Bee – A feisty pegasus skilled in hoofboxing. Dressed as a cat.
> BookMark – A unicorn obsessed with symmetry and order, and skilled in knowledge of Equestria’s history. Dressed as an android.
>And Zippersnap, who got too scared in the first haunted house and had to run home frightened. Dressed as a maid. (Player had to leave)
>The party arrives in Ponyville to see the huge crowd all gathered together. The two princesses who promised an appearance were up on stage welcoming the ponies lined up to greet them.
>Eschewing the line-up in favor of some festivities first, the party agrees to go to the haunted house.
>There is a pony wearing a cloak at the door, who welcomes them with a poem.
“Of you who come to see the home, of those long lost, and left alone, beware the sound, beware the tome, and when you leave, leave on your own!"
>They shuffle about in front until Cream Bee decides she’s not afraid, and enters the haunted house.
>Zippersnap follows after, and BookMark steps aside to let the mares go first, then follows.
>The rest of the ponies, not wanting to go through alone, pile in, and the crowd works their way into the haunted house. Nopony is scared by the ambience, but they eventually reach a shadowy corner.

>A zombie leaps out at them! But it was only Scootaloo, wearing makeup and a costume! Sagebrush and Spectral Shard were scared by her, and shriek incoherently at the surprise, losing 1 stamina each.
>After this surprise, Bookmark takes the lead as they approach yet another dark corner.
>A bright-yellow filly jumps out wearing fake fangs and a cape. (it is at this point Zippersnap gets so scared she has to leave the game and disappears.) [spoiler]Player had to go[/spoiler]
“BLUHHHH!”
>Nopony was scared by her leap, and she retreats into the darkness.
>They approach a third dark corner, and as they expected, a third pony jumps out. A white one, wearing a mask and holding aloft a little chainsaw with her magic. She runs around them, screeching incoherently and waving her chainsaw, scaring Spectral Shard, who loses another point of stamina.
>After that, they leave the haunted house, Spectral Shard trembling in terror.
>They relieve their fright with snacks and games, buying pumpkin-spice everything, and playing the beanbag toss. Sagebrush aced the toss and won himself a brand-new bugle!
>As they play and eat, a fog starts rolling in. Thin at first, Sagebrush and Bookmark notice it piling up at the edges of the city.
>Spectral Shard, meanwhile, is looking for more interesting games to play. He wants to visit the princesses, but is waiting for the crowd to thin somewhat. He notices, off down a street, a Mystery-solving game.
>They agree to investigate, and upon approach, see that the building is cobbled together to look like a tiny theater. The marquee on the front reads: “The Marriage of Figaro ft. Octavia Melody. Tonight Only! 10/12/1012 A stack of newspapers sits next to the front door, and a pony holding a lantern watches them. Only her right eye, a brilliant green, peering at them from her seat out front.

>Both the newspapers and the marquee show a date that has not yet happened. This is some time in the future, and is not in the past. Upon reading the newspaper headline, it reads: “Murder at the Carbuncle Theater!” and the story details the mysterious murder of Octavia Melody inside the theater.
>Bookmark, not wanting to waste any time, enters the theater doors. The others, not waiting for anything or talking to the pony out front, follow after him.
>Inside the building appears much larger inside than out. The lights are on, but dim, and a thick layer of dust covers everything.
>Bookmark investigates a door directly next to the doors they entered to find a ticket booth. The shutters are closed, and inside are rolls of ticket-paper, a newspaper with the same information as outside, notes, quills, and a bottle of ink.
>The others head off to a sign reading “Bar”, looking for alcohol.
>Inside the bar, they find bottles filled with all sorts of different alcohol. It’s notable that some are from past years, and some are from years in the future. Cream Bee almost drinks some vodka, Sagebrush and Spectral Shard, however, find an empty bottle of arsenic hidden way at the back.
>Cream Bee decides not to drink.
>Stunned by the revelation of some poison and unsure if it’s supposed to be a joke, they take the bottle. It is a “Mystery-solving” game, after all, and maybe this is the murder weapon?
>The group returns to the lobby and instead opens the doors leading into the first-floor of the auditorium.
>The curtains are open and the orchestra pit, although also open, is empty. The stage is lit only by the house lights, and is dim, but serviceable. The balcony seats up above have their curtains drawn, and loom large overhead.
>Bookmark picks up some of the papers strewn about to find a program for the night 10/12/1012 and sees “Carbuncle Theater! Tonight Only! Octavia Melody!”

>Cream Bee approaches the orchestra pit and looks down into it, seeing a tunnel to backstage.
>Upon her approach to the stage, blue light swirls on stage. The house lights dim and spotlights light up, illuminating the stage. They focus on a single spot, and the blue light coalesces at that point to reveal Octavia Melody herself! She takes a bow, then begins to play.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGQLXRTl3Z0
>Despite them asking questions, Octavia pays no attention to the ponies in the audience, instead focused entirely on her music. Her eyes are closed and her bow slides smoothly back and forth across the strings.
>The ponies decide they do still need to solve this mystery, so Cream Bee says she’ll investigate the stage and the others can look at the orchestra pit and tunnel.
>Cream Bee flies up and onto the stage, but the moment she does, the music stops!
>Octavia’s eyes open and her mane floats up above her head. Her eyes are pitch black and her mouth opens in a horrid screech.
“DO NOT INTERRUPT ME!”
>Octavia’s cello disappears and she flies off the stage straight for Cream Bee!
>Cream Bee seemingly lands a good hit on Octavia at first, and her belligerence and skill at fighting makes her confident she’ll win.
>Bookmark tries to go help and attempts to leap the orchestra pit to the stage, but as he gets his running start, his hoof slips and he falls headfirst into the orchestra pit!
>Cream continues her fight with Octavia, but Octavia lands a solid hit, dealing massive damage!
>Sagebrush looks for a different path to the stage and finds the side entrances. He runs for them and tries to distract Octavia, blowing his brand-new bugle! Sadly, it does not attract any attention from the ghost, who is focused entirely on Cream Bee.

>Spectral Shard tries to capture Octavia in a forcefield, but despite all his efforts, he can’t quite manage to make a forcefield big enough!
>Octavia and Cream continue their scuffle, with Cream Bee once again seemingly hitting Octavia for a good amount of damage!
>Bookmark, now down in the orchestra pit, looks at the sheer walls on either side, and instead opts to take the tunnel backstage. Unfortunately for him, he does not see the spider webs at the end of the tunnel, and gets himself severely caught! Something moves in the darkness around him, unbeknownst to the rest of the party!
>Cream Bee, meanwhile, tries to continue the fight against Octavia, but takes a MASSIVE HIT! Cream goes down!
>As soon as the pony on stage is down, Octavia becomes docile once again and returns to playing her cello, leaving the pale and rasping body of Cream Bee alone to die on stage.
>Bookmark screeches that he is in danger to his friends, but they do not seem to hear him, intent on getting Cream Bee offstage.
>Sagebrush finds his way to backstage and looks out of the curtains at Octavia and Cream Bee’s body.
>Pressed for time and unsure what any of the pulleys and ropes here do, Sagebrush dashes on stage, aiming for Cream Bee’s body.
>Octavia once again stops her performance and rushes and the pony interrupting her!
>Bookmark, meanwhile, manages to pull himself free of the web, but there is a giant spider above him in the darkness!
>He uses his telekinesis to part the webbing and gallops out of backstage, heading for the exit!
>Sagebrush scuffles with Octavia, bull-rushing past her and straight to Cream Bee’s body!
>Spectral Shard tries to pull Cream offstage, but can’t manage to heft her body with just telekinesis.
>Sagebrush’s hooves whiff through Octavia’s ghostly body. He manages to reach Cream, but can’t find time to avoid Octavia’s attacks and simultaneously push Cream Bee off the stage.

>Finally, at the last moment, Spectral Shard pulls Cream Bee off stage and pounds her chest with a hoof, struggling to get her to breathe. She stabilizes, but Sagebrush is still on stage with the ghost!
>He doesn’t want to continue the fight, so rushes off stage right, only to bump into Bookmark, being chased by the giant spider!
“OH GOOD SWEET CELESTIA, ABSOLUTELY NOT!” (Sagebrush Quirk: Fear of spiders)
>Terrified of spiders, the two of them hurriedly dash for the doors out from backstage! All the ponies run for the front doors and pile outside into the fog!
>The fog is much thicker than it was before. The pony sitting next to the doors looks up at them, her lantern glowing a pale blue. Lights can be seen in the darkness, but everything is eerily quiet.
Bookmark: “What’s the meaning of this? One of our friends nearby died back there!”
Pony: “Did you solve the mystery?” She points toward the newspaper, her voice low and emotionless.
Bookmark: “The only mystery here is what the guards will do to you!”
Cream Bee: “She died of arsenic poisoning?”
Pony: “The guards will have to find their way to me, first. She certainly did not die of arsenic poisoning. That is merely a red herring. There is no proof, only your opinions.”
Spectral Shard: “We are done with your games that’s for sure! C’mon guys, let’s leave this crazy hag alone.”
Bookmark: “I’m going to report this!”
Pony: “The answer to this mystery, is lost alone for sure, you see. To get away from here and me, you’ll need to solve the problems three.”
Sagebrush: “…what are the three problems?”
Pony: “How, why, and where. All can be found within the Carbuncle Theater.”
Bookmark: “Are you really listening to her?”
Sagebrush: “Does it look like we’re still in Ponyville? Or anywhere in Equestria?”
Spectral Shard: “You’re insane! I’m out of here!”

Bookmark: “Fair point, but I don’t really want to go back in there.”
>Their surroundings do still look like Ponyville, but only shapes can be seen through the fog. Shapes, and lights.
>Of the four, Cream Bee, Bookmark, and Spectral Shard leave the theater, disappearing into the fog. Sagebrush remains behind, re-entering the theater to try to solve the mystery.
>The three who leave wander through the fog, slowly picking their way through the shadowy buildings looking for a hotel to stay at.
>They wander past shapes in the fog, and hear voices talking, laughing, eating, and chatting as they go, but they never seem to pass close enough to one of them to see anything more than the shape of a pony’s body.
>When they find a hotel, they enter and the pony at the front desk says not a word. She passes them three keys and points down a hallway without ever looking up at them.
>Unquestioning, the three take the keys and go to their rooms.
>Cream Bee and Spectral Shard go straight to the room, while Bookmark tries to phone the guards or police, or a hospital or anypony.
>Every time he dials, he gets nothing but cello music.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSg-zh0qsXY
>Cream Bee, having been injured, tries to get some rest while Bookmark and Spectral Shard discuss what they’re going to do.
>Spectral Shard leaves the room once Cream Bee falls asleep and makes sure to lock the door behind him for protection.
>Spectral Shard and Bookmark head out into the street to try to get some attention from other ponies for help.
Spectral Shard: “Hey, excuse me! Can you point me to the police station? We have a crime to report!”
>The shadowy figures of the ponies stop talking, but don’t stop to talk to him, and he never gets close enough to see what they look like.
Bookmark: “And if possible we’d like direc—… I feel like they’re avoiding us.”

>Every pony they approach can’t be seen, and won’t talk to them.
>At this point, Bookmark notices he’s wearing a cat costume.
Bookmark: “Hold on a second! This isn’t my costume!”
>Cream Bee awakens in her room to an awful screeching sound. She wakes up, scared and groggy, to see Octavia standing in a corner with her cello, rasping the bow along the strings producing a horrifying squeal.
>Cream Bee screams!
>Spectral Shard and Bookmark run back inside, but when they get to the door they find the key missing.
>Inside the room, Octavia gets larger, and holds up the key to the door, her black eyes staring at Cream Bee, and the ‘music’ getting louder and more cacophonous.
>Panicked and desperate, Spectral Shard and Bookmark buck the door down, tearing it off its hinges.
>The noise stops.
>Cream scrambles forward to her two saviors, clinging to them in terror. Octavia is nowhere to be seen.
Spectral Shard: “I bet the cloaked mare is behind this! We all know who is responsible!”
Bookmark: “We need to kick some asses!”
Spectral Shard: “I suggest we go back and get answers. Besides, Sagebrush might be in danger. We should depart right away.”
Bookmark: “Yeah… we shouldn’t have left Sagebrush alone.”

>While they were trying to leave, Sagebrush was on his own, investigating the theater. He went to look inside, by himself.
>He took a careful look around the lobby, then went to check both the mare’s and stallion’s restrooms.
>Inside the stallion’s restroom, he found a book of matches, mostly used, and a note written inside with the date 10/12/1012. While this was nothing new, at least it gave him something he could use.
>Returning to the bar, he took some of the alcohol, and using his skill at MAD SCIENCE, he created a Molotov cocktail.
>He went the final location they hadn’t investigated, and looked upstairs on the balconies. Inside one of the seats of the chairs in the far corner, he found a crumpled note wedged into the cushions.
>It read:
"Octavia has performed in place of my daughter for the last time. See that her rise halts here, or it will be your head on the chopping block! I don't care how it happens, but on 10/12/1012, see to it she does not perform the opening act!"
>Having found the “why”, Sagebrush gleefully looked down at the stage.
>Octavia stood alone, not playing, as there was no audience, but the spider was climbing the wall beside the balcony!
>In a rush of adrenaline, fear, and anger at the ugly creature, Sagebrush hurled the Molotov at it!
>It was a direct hit! The creature was engulfed in flame and fell to the seats below. The dust coating everything caught fire as well, unfortunately, and the theater began to burn just as Spectral Shard, Cream Bee, and Bookmark re-entered!
Sagebrush: “Hah! Take that, you little bastard!”
>In a panic, the ponies know they only have a very brief amount of time to find the answers they seek! While one half of the auditorium burns, they dash backstage to hunt through the mess of instruments, papers, and theater set pieces.
>As Octavia watches her theater burn around her, she starts to play once again. A mournful, sad song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qAj-HPXmSE

>The ponies scramble about backstage, hunting for some answers, and find a hole at the back of the spider’s lair. Inside a body is wrapped up in a cocoon. Sagebrush attempts to tear it open, but the fire licks at the spider’s webbing, and the heat grows. The pain and brittle set pieces in the stage left area alight, and the fire grows in strength.
>An initial wave of heat washes over them, and when it becomes too much, they’re forced to pick up the cocoon and flee with it.
>The fire has burned the seats in the auditorium, almost blocking their exit.
>Cream Bee flies nimbly through the heat and smoke, and is the first to make it out just as one of the balcony’s collapses, blocking the rest of the pony’s exit.
>They’re hurt by the flames, but Sagebrush and Bookmark manage to climb over the debris, but Spectral Shard can’t make it!
>He tries to put a forcefield around himself to protect from the heat, but it’s too difficult and he starts to choke on the smoke!
>Sage passes the evidence to Bookmark.
Sagebrush: “Make sure this gets outside, I’m going back for him. Make her stop this! Tell her we have all the clues, Bookmark!”
>Sage looks back through the flames at Spectral Shard.
Spectral Shard: “Sage! It’s now or never! I am not sure how long I can keep the flames away from me!”
>He tries to put up a forcefield again, but he can’t manage it, and he starts to collapse.
>Sagebrush, in one final attempt, dives back through the flames, lifts Spectral Shard, and climbs back out with him!
>Bookmark dashes outside with Cream and addresses the pony at the door.
Bookmark: “Somepony wanted Octavia to die because she was a better musician!”
Pony: “This is the truth, you’ve found that much, I hope you don’t expect a crutch. The why you have, but where’s the how? Please don’t keep me waiting now.”

Bookmark: “She… ehhh… died because of that spider!”
Pony: “You come to me with but one answer: Just the why, not more. This mystery, you’ve come to see, is more than just a bore. There’s still the how, and then the where, don’t you recall my words? If you can’t tell me more than this, you’ll be food for the birds.”
>Unable to answer the pony’s questions himself, Bookmark waits for the rest to come out. The fire doesn’t appear to be coming out of the building, and is only inside. They are safe, for now.
>Sagebrush rips open the cocoon and finds inside a pony, dressed in what was once fine clothes, but now is long-dead. He is holding a knife with dry blood on it.
Pony: “A knife! A knife! A quite sharp knife! The one that took her life!”
Pony: “You’ve found that one, now where’s the last? The ‘where’ they did the deed? The body of our fairest corpse, the answer that I need?”
Sagebrush: “I have the motive. Did Bookmark tell you the motive?”
Pony: “He did, yes. But you’ve one more answer to give.”
Cream Bee: “In the mare’s room.”
Spectral Shard: “Here, in front of the theater?”
Sagebrush: “This stallion killed her… on these orders with this knife… in the performer dressing room.”
>The pony shakes her head no.
Pony: “Bookmark, you’re the very last. Your shoulders hold their fates. I’ve not much time, so answer fast, or meet them at the gates.”
>Bookmark hesitates. They’ve burned down the theater, and all their answers with it. He has to guess correctly, or who knows what will happen. He worries, frets, and thinks, but comes up short.
Bookmark: “…on the stage during a performance?”

>The mare cackles, and the fog closes in. The theater, the pony, the newspapers, and everything disappears.
>They’re standing back in Ponyville. The moon is out, the night is clear, and everything seems fine.
>Confused, the group see that the princesses are free, and try to report the strange goings-on to them for help, but Twilight hasn’t seen a pony with a lantern and bright green eyes.
>They find that they’re not burned, nor injured, nothing seems wrong with any of them.
>Spectral Shard stays near the building that was the theater, trying to find answers. Cream Bee stays with him. Sagebrush goes to the hotel to sleep, and Bookmark goes to the bar to try to drink the experience away.
>As the night grows longer, each of them start to hear music, growing in volume, just behind them. No matter where they are, and unnoticed by ponies around them, a fog grows thick around their hooves. The cello music grows to a terrifying volume, and they hear a screeching in their ears as the hairs on the back of their necks stand up, then a voice:
“WHERE IS MY BODY!?”