Cedri's Carnival

The Carnival's in town, maybe we should close shop early so we can attend? Oh don't give me that face, we need a night to just... relax, and I hear the Carnival is the perfect place. I'll even buy you a pint there, whatever you like.

There's not a city within the Empire's borders which has not been visited by Cedri's Carnival, at least once. Yet residents who were present when it happened would be hard-pressed to explain what happened that night other than "it was wonderful". This collection of Imperial wains have been modified to serve as living quarters, quickly-assembled stages, and storage for the Carnival. There are dozens of performers, laborers, and other entertainers of every major race who travel with the Carnival, all wearing masks elegant in their simplicity. Somewhere, on the painted exteriors of the wains, the symbols of Cedri the Masked Reveler can be found; this is one of the many aspects of the Carnival which help set it apart from any other traveling troupe.

Because, of course, it's not quite ordinary.

The Event

The caravan arrives outside a city at some point before noon, though when asked it is "a little fuzzy" on when exactly they arrived. After the midday sun, the troupe can be seen busying themselves setting up various stages for performers and stalls where small trinkets can be sold to children. Once the sun sets completely, the entertainment begins with a wild yell from the performers, and all residents who wish to enter are allowed in for a truly small fee - never the same from city to city, depending on the general wealth of the residents. Jugglers, dancers, singers, musicians captivate their audience for the night for as long as there are people left to watch. No member of the troupe removes their mask, though occasionally they switch up masks in dressing areas hidden from open view. Every entertainer does their best to be cordial, polite, and lift the spirits of whomever they are talking with - if even for a moment. Attendees have later remarked it was a relaxing experience, even for those who entered feeling sour for whatever reason.

The type of refreshments offered varies wildly from event to event, seemingly linked to the tastes of the attendees. Alcoholic drinks are available, but never given to children who are not permitted it by their guardians. As with many aspects of the Carnival, memories of exactly what was offered for consumption is "hazy" - all which can be remembered is how it was worth whatever price was paid for it. Some attendees who did not drink any ale or wine have sharper memories of various types of pastries with fruit preserves, or smoked meats with a peculiar spicy kick to them. Similarly, memories of what acts were part of the performance are hazy, but even without inebriation no attendee can offer a single definite example of what they witnessed other than a general type of act. Questions on whether any of the performances were "uncouth" or "inappropriate" are universally met with incredulous denial, and an insistence of how fun it had been to relax for a night.

After all the attendees have been sent home for the night, the lights around the caravan are extinguished and the troupe begins cleaning up the area. By the time the false dawn arrives in the early morning, there is nothing left but vague memories and a feeling of relaxed satisfaction when thinking of that night. Normalcy returns to the city with the sun's rise over the horizon, though all who attended the Carnival are reinvigorated and are cheerful for a good many days following it.

The "Rules"

Investigation into the Carnival itself has led to the discovery of a few simple rules which can be attributed to the troupe's behavior, and attendees who pay for their entrance. Breaking the rules meant for attendees usually results in the person in question waking with no memory of what they did the night before, and friends being amused at their fellow "behaving badly". While there are rules which the performers seem to follow, they are never witnessed breaking any of them. It can only be imagined what happens when a rule is broken, or if it simply cannot happen.

A sample of the rules which can be inferred from divination magic applied to attendees who broke rules follows:

• No violence towards others. Troupe members gently try to intervene and calm situations before it reaches actual violence, but even 'just-for-fun' brawling seems to trigger the penalty. When this rule is broken, a troupe member whisks away the offenders with an offer for more drink and a special show. Divination trying to pry into exactly what happens fail, but it picks up shortly after with the offenders in bed asleep.
• No stealing. Attendees who try to steal from others are treated slightly differently, as a troupe member quickly pick-pockets the thief while another asks some variation of "Now, did that belong to you?". It takes repeated, willful, offenses before a reaction is triggered, which usually takes the form of two troupe members locking arms with the offender as if to dance or guide them away. As with other offenses, what happens is hidden from divination, but the end result is the offender sleeping it off at home. And anything which did not belong to them is removed from their person, whether they stole it during the Carnival or not.
• No harassing the performers. Attendees who get too rowdy, or disruptive, are usually approached by another member of the troupe and quietly whisked away. In these cases, it always seems the troupe member who arrives whispers something to the offender before they walk away. Depending on the severity of the offense, the offender may be ejected in similar manners to other offenders... or merely be guided away from the performer they had been harassing to something else to entertain them.
• Respect the masks. This is the only rule which elicits a much stronger reaction, and successful divination into the events following this are rare. In the event an attendee touches the mask of a troupe member, with the intent to remove the mask, the Carnival terminates completely and all attendees are ejected without the usual benefits of the Carnival. Most unnervingly, the offender does not turn up for weeks until they are found along the side of a road leading to the city - a half-day's travel in distance, with an extremely nervous reaction to being asked where they had been.

Class

Imperial Wain

Motto

The Best Night You'll Not Remember