Hello! Ari here representing Studio Calamari! We are so proud and excited to present our entry to Spooktober Visual Novel Jam 2020!
____________________
Once upon a time, a scarecrow stood on a farm. Her existence was a simple one, observing the people who lived there and scaring off the birds. Even when the people had gone and the farm was left barren, she had no wants or needs. How could she?
After countless years of not seeing another soul, a strange woman shows up and gives the scarecrow newfound life. The woman tells her that she has a task for her: grow some plants, and in exchange, she'll free her from the farm. Fail, and she'll go back to being a normal scarecrow.
Scarecrow tends to the plants as directed, unsure of what else to do, and spends her nights walking aimlessly. In time, she meets a kind lion and a mischievous rabbit that bring companionship to her empty days. Maybe this new situation isn't so bad after all?
But the plants are growing a little too well, becoming a bit too lively... Scarecrow can only wonder what this feeling is inside of her that's telling her to run.
- 7 CGs total (4 Mini CGs) -
- 4 Endings -
- 16.2k Words -
- Original Soundtrack -
- Original, Dynamic Background Art -
- Voice Effects -
- Font Toggle -
I'm J. Kiln, and I'd like to say that this was an enjoyable Visual Novel!
The story can get rather spooky, as it is a Spooktober 2020 VN submission, and more than that, the main character's existential musings did intrigue me.
The directing is also pretty good, and the writing for the characters are well thought out. There are also plenty of visuals and audios that helped immerse me into the story.
Overall, I think this is a good Halloween-themed VN, made with deft execution!
And, I'd like to also share a short fan-fiction for the game, as I found the characters quite interesting, and I wondered how their characterisations might further develop.
Do note however, that the following fanfic takes place after the VN's story, so there are some spoilers!
Thanks for reading!
And do check out "What Grows in the Night" if you haven't! It's an excellent VN with a spooky story!
===================
WARNING! THE FOLLOWING CONTAINS SPOILERS!
====================
"Unexpected Changes"
by J. Kiln
(based on the Spooktober 2020 Visual Novel, "What Grows in the Night" by Studio Calamari)
-----
We walk down the quiet, shadowy road.
The townsfolk look at me, Noel, and Amaranthine with suspicious eyes - some with outright anger - as we leave town and head towards the old farm.
I suppose their resentment isn't really unfounded, considering it was Amaranthine who brought the first seeds here in the first place.
But Amaranthine simply ignores the glares, striding confidently as she always does. I think the reason the townspeople aren't hurling insults right about now is because they know better than to provoke her, or me or Noel.
I guess they too must have heard the stories about us... about Amaranthine...
Amaranthine... the traveler who hails from the Land of the Three Gorges in the Far East... the immortal who has fought a thousand battles... the undying wanderer on a never-ending journey...
I doubt if anyone who's mortal can ever truly realize just how long a life my master has lived on this earth...
While Noel and I have traveled with her throughout the land, seeking out one strange thing after another to satisfy her curiosity, we can sense full well that we've barely begun to see the depths of her knowledge and magical power.
She once told me that her past reaches as far back as the English Civil War, when she fought her first battles as a Royalist wizard; ...that's about three hundred and fifty years ago.
Noel's voice suddenly draws me out of my thoughts: "We're here," he says, as we approach the farm... the same one where I was made, stuck into the ground as a scarecrow... and then animated and given life by Amaranthine, decades later...
This farm... is where I was 'born'. After spending so much time journeying with Amaranthine and Noel, it feels weird to be back here... I never thought I'd again lay eyes upon this place, and the old house still standing under the moon and stars.
"Are you feeling alright, Scarecrow?" Amaranthine asks me, with concern in her eyes, though her voice is as self-assured as ever.
I nod. And I smile to Noel too, to convince him there's nothing to worry about.
"I'm fine, just never thought we'd be back here, that's all."
"Hmm... me too," Noel says. He, much like Amaranthine, also has wanderlust, and likes going to some faraway place or another on a whim. I don't think any of us really did think we'd be coming back here to deal with the same nuisance as we did back then.
"Well, well, well," a figure says as he approaches. "The prodigal daughter returns." I instantly recognize him as soon as he steps out from the shadows behind the house.
"Yves," I say with a smirk, and also a little bit of relief to see him again after so long. "You look terrible."
"No thanks to your plants, though I see your sense of fashion hasn't improved," he scoffs. "Is that the same hat still?"
"Yes, Yves. I still have my hat, and my jacket, and my lovely silver wig and big red bow. Where's that fancy suit of yours?"
He frowns, but doesn't give a retort. He just goes to pick up his long machete, then hands Noel a spare axe, and flicks his head towards the forest, gesturing for us to follow.
I feel a little bad now: Yves and everyone who lived in the woods had to leave when the plants invaded. Some bird most likely brought some still-living piece deep into the forest where it took root, and over time, the plants slowly spread and took over everything.
Yves sent out familiar after familiar to contact Amaranthine, at first ordering her to return, which Amaranthine took offense to, before he started begging her to come back and help.
And Amaranthine only came back when Yves promised she could harvest as much of the plants' fruit as she'd like.
So, here we are again, with Yves guiding us to the front lines, where the few brave residents of the forest still left are busy hacking away at the vines, trying to kill the carnivorous plants before they could spread even further.
Noel immediately gets to work and starts chopping at the thickest and most dangerous vines, while I guard Amaranthine as she starts pulling the very life out of the plants and takes the energy into herself.
With more than enough magical power at her disposal, she decides to transfer the excess to me, transforming me into a faster, stronger form to wreak havoc.
The skeletal wood inside of me expands and grows, the canvas skin of my back opens up, letting branches sprout quickly and grow into wings, feathered with golden and red leaves.
I pick up a scythe, and blaze my way through the retreating plants, decimating them before they can withdraw from my fury.
Throughout the forest, I move and dance with my blade under shafts of moonlight, my instincts guide me as I hunt and cut down every vine cluster I can find. It's better that I destroy them, since they're too big a threat for the others to handle.
While I try to make sure that I don't damage their fruit, I still end up accidentally slicing through more than a few, as the clusters shrink and tighten their defenses against me.
I'm sure Amaranthine can still find a way to- AH!
The last cluster of vines throws out a limb and knocks me down!
I quickly get up and fly to the side, as the cluster charges and... it's the primary cluster! The first and most mature of them!
I can feel its malevolence, its hatred. Its rage.
I also feel... fear, in it? A terrible, terrible fear, that it can't escape me. It knows it can't, it's felt me destroy every one of its kind in a matter of hours. Death is coming for it, and it is trembling as it tries to kill me first. The evil monster is incredibly afraid.
"You fear me?" I ask.
To my surprise, it answers with stolen voices, "Leave us be!!"
I suppose it's likely for there to be a few bodies in the plant clusters, crushed but not yet completely drained of life. The shrieking voices coming from this last cluster is weak and muffled; it's horrifying to have to hear them speak.
"You've taken so many," I say as I slice its limbs off. "And you dare plead to be spared?"
"Stop!! Stop!! You're hurting us!!"
I wish I could cover my ears. I can't stand it.
"I have no mercy for you. The same way you had no mercy for your victims. But unlike you, I at least give a quick death."
"Spare us!! Spare us!! We were only hungry!!"
My cold fury drives me to attack! I fly at it! And cut my way through the heart of the beast!
... And it falls silent.
The night slowly gives and fades into dawn...
Noel and I gather up as much fruit as Amaranthine's magical bags can hold, filling them up with about a hundred each.
Yves and his friends still have plenty, though they probably will have a lot of difficulty eating them, I think...
Before we leave, Yves comes to say goodbye.
"We will consider your debts paid."
"I never owed you anything," Amaranthine replies. "The plants only got that bad because you wanted their fruit; you were blinded by greed."
"Ha! I suppose there might be some truth in that, though I wonder if you weren't so different?" Yves glances at me. "More than willing to turn someone into a pawn for personal gain?"
Amaranthine is briefly surprised by his boldness, before she answers, "In chess, a pawn can be promoted into a queen, the most powerful piece in the game. How many queens have you made?"
Yves, too tired to come up with a retort, simply decides to shrug.
Amaranthine smiles, then turns and walks away, and Noel and I follow her.
Something about what she said bothers me a little, so I ask my master, "Isn't a queen still just another piece in a game?"
Amaranthine nods and says, "Of course, but unlike in a board game, life can be full of unexpected changes, such as a scarecrow becoming a person, or a friend becoming family."
I think that's as close as Amaranthine will ever come to outright calling me her daughter...
But it's close enough... I'll take it.
Suddenly, a drop of rain hits her on the head. I look up at the cloudy morning sky... and quickly give Amaranthine my hat.
But my master shakes her head. "Speaking of unexpected changes..." She instead pulls out her own hat, a wide-brimmed Cavalier hat, decorated with a purple plume.
She also hands Noel a cowboy hat, just large enough to cover his head.
And the three of us hurry away, towards our next destination, on our never-ending journey together, wherever the road may take us...
Hello there! Come check out my self-published ebook: It's a modern fantasy set in the 90s, with lots of action and mystery! Plus, it has a short text game as its prequel!
