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« 007 ⇢ event007.exe »

Who: CERES & you
When: IC: 10/19 | OOC: 12/16
Where: ViViD
What: Intro Log
Rating/Warning: PG-13

//event007.EXE

The Haunting II: Haunt Harder

ViViD has opened up a new world that new arrivals will be pulled into while frequent players will be invited to check out. This particular setting is the new beta world that CERES is constructing in time for the Hallow's Eve celebrations and festivals. It's a world inhabited by the undead and several ghouls and monsters of typical horror lore. Inside, one will encounter werewolves, lichens, vampires, succubi, incubi, specters, mummies, and so on. They will be on the prowl and eager to attack, but players need only concern themselves with getting through and getting out.

At first, players will awaken outside of a large manor supposedly owned by a wealthy noble who is rumored to be practicing strange alchemic experiments within. Many know him simply as The Count.

New arrivals and those logging into ViViD will first find themselves being greeted by their guide at the start screen:

"F̳̰̘̝̭͚̙̝̺̅̀͋̊̑͐̎͜͝͝͝Ü͎͉̗̬͍̫̤̳̳̓̉͌͛͒́̔̎͝ͅÇ̢͎̳̰̫̝̝̮̣̈̓̽̂͒̌̾͊̊̓K̯̺͎̬̟̠̳̤̙̥̍͊͒̐͌̏̍̂̚̚!̧̛̹̲͎͕̥͓̥̻̟̿͐̔̑̈͗̕͘͠-ɯǝɥʇ ʇɐǝq oʇ ʍoɥ sı ǝɹǝɥ

¡ǝuo lɐuıɟ ǝɥʇ ʇǝǝɯ noʎ ǝɹoɟǝq sʇsoɥƃ ɹnoɟ ǝlʇʇɐq oʇ pǝǝu llıʍ noʎ

ʎɐpoʇ suoıʇɔnɹʇsuı ɹnoʎ ƃuıʌıƃ ǝq llıʍ ı

ɹouɐɯ ɐıɔoɹʇɐ oʇ ǝɯoɔlǝʍ

slɐʌıɹɹɐ ʍǝu ollǝɥ"

//SCENARIOS.EXE

PHASE I

[ xxxx ] Yes, those are all the directions you get. Welcome, indeed, to Atrocia Manor. On the outside, you'll notice a faint howling in the distance. You better start running. That howling is only going to get louder as the werewolves start approaching. They roam in packs and will approach you from all sides, leveling a menacing stare at you before-!!!

-licking your hand. They'll all suddenly surround your character and start licking and lavishing attention on you as their tails wag from side to side happily. They may even roll over and show you their bellies for belly rubs. Please give them a treat and lots of love.

PHASE II

[ xxxx ] Once you survive that grueling challenge, it's on to the next part. This is where things start to heat up. The inner atrium of the mansion is dark, only lit by faint torches. In the center are three of the four ghosts that were spoken of, slowly moving in circles around a shrouded figure. Before you can glimpse at the figure, it disappears and the ghosts turn to you and start approaching from every side. They block you in, leaving you in the center and slowly looming around you.

Their howls are prolonged and deep, piercing your ears, and they seem to want to lead you into a room. You can choose to run from their frightful faces or you can follow them. They will seat you down at the dinner table then slowly pull forth a power point presentation. This is your love and/or sex life. Yes, you have a sad one. How dare you? The ghosts will guilt you for this, and somewhere in the midst of their lecture, you notice a faint figure moving along the windows. It's only for a flicker of a second that it appears, but the impression it leaves on you remains.

PHASE III

[ xxxx ] Feeling tired already? Well, don't stop and rest now! The challenges will only get worse. As you escape the three ghosts, you will ascend the stairs to the second level. Awaiting you is a vicious vampire …panda. Does it want your blood? Nope. It wants to talk to you about how to properly file your tax forms for a successful tax return. It will then lecture you on the EVILS of tax evasion. Be prepared for a scary ride with this one. It's not letting you out of the room until you listen to everything it has to say. For those who attempt to escape, it will… do absolutely nothing. It will sit there and watch you run.

PHASE IV

[ xxxx ] You escape the horrors of both the first floor and the second floor only to arrive at the basement. The mysterious fourth ghost awaits with its back turned to you. It's covered in a shroud, and you are sure it's going to talk about diversifying your stock profile next. Oh, how wrong you are.

Because this one legitimately wants you dead, and it will wear the face of your worst enemy or your least favorite person while swiping down a scythe to reap away your life quickly. It won't be easy to kill, but once you whittle down its life halfway, it will finally reveal its true form. That's when the entire dungeon will start to glitch, and the ghost will cradle you between its hands before warning you:

sn ǝɹǝʌǝɹ sn ɹɐǝɟ sn ǝɹǝʌǝɹ sn ɹɐǝɟ
sn ǝɹǝʌǝɹ sn ɹɐǝɟ sn ǝɹǝʌǝɹ sn ɹɐǝɟ
sn ǝɹǝʌǝɹ sn ɹɐǝɟ sn ǝɹǝʌǝɹ sn ɹɐǝɟ
sn ǝɹǝʌǝɹ sn ɹɐǝɟ sn ǝɹǝʌǝɹ sn ɹɐǝɟ
sn ǝɹǝʌǝɹ sn ɹɐǝɟ sn ǝɹǝʌǝɹ sn ɹɐǝɟ
sn ǝɹǝʌǝɹ sn ɹɐǝɟ sn ǝɹǝʌǝɹ sn ɹɐǝɟ

It will then fade away, and congratulations! You won! Sort of...

BONUS

[ whyo'clock ] Congratulations on surviving Atrocia Manor! Here's your complimentary coupon for 35% off on your next Vidia's Secret purchase. Wasn't that a fun ride? But wait. There's more! The final final boss awaits you outside in the courtyard. It's the most gruesome of them all. The worst ghost you can encounter because it's one that has known great suffering and is out for vengeance.

It will follow you around and try to eat you basically. One floating dot at the time until it can reach you.

[ Remember to apply proper warnings on threads with trigger-y or inappropriate material and do let a mod know if your thread careens off into maiming or canoodling so we can lock the log. ]

//RUN.EXE

Welcome to CEREALIA's latest intro post. For your convenience, we have compiled a post detailing everyone's usual arrival experience (which is not entirely applicable this round for reasons stated above^) and a FAQ that should explain everything in more detail. Please read them thoroughly before playing. Thank you!

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

[ PHASE I ]

Prepare yourself!!

[Honestly, Natalia's not interested in really letting any monsters get close to her to find out if they're friendly or not. With a practiced motion, she moves to notch one of her arrows into her bow, moving into a stance to properly aim-

And her heel gets caught on an uprooted piece of tile. Ah. So she's off-balance for a moment, glancing behind her, and that's when one of the werewolves pounces on her without hesitation and-

There she goes. Her squeal of surprise is quickly followed by a noise of confusion though as the werewolf then proceeds to... lick her face.

There is now a princess in a werewolf pup pile. Your move.]

[ PHASE III ]

[It's like the start of a joke. A princess and a panda walk into a manor. The Panda says, "This is how you should file your taxes!" The Princess says,]

I understand what you're saying, but that seems like a very complicated system for the sole purpose of collecting revenue for a government. It's no wonder that people wouldn't wish to pay their dues!

[Natalia is.... actually talking politics with the Panda.... and doesn't seem to be making any motion to leave.

Uh. She might not make progress in the manor at this rate....]

[ PHASE IV ]

[Well that was... an experience. Natalia is brushing herself off afterward and glancing about before making a waving motion to the person nearest to her to come closer still.

Did you get a little scuffed up during your trials? Whether it's a cut or even a quickly forming bruise, that simply won't do. Perhaps this is a game, but Natalia does worry about your well-being regardless and so she tilts her head-]

Come here. Let me see your wound.

[Wow lady, didn't you ever learn to say please?]

phase i

[Were you getting ready to fight those strangely cute and yet still menacing werewolves? Were you about to try to fight them off, because they're monsters and that's dangerous?

Too bad.

Suddenly there's a princess lunging between you and the werewolf, arms spread and spear in hand (but not pointed threateningly in the least).]

Wait, please hold!

[Clearly, these squishable werewolves need to be protected even at the risk of Tana's own skin, sure. You'd think she'd know better after fighting monsters all campaign.]

They're really quite friendly!

phase iii

[Tana's...trying so, so hard to understand, she really is. It seems like she's stuck, though, head cocked and hands propped on her hips. Someone please rescue her, she knows literally nothing about filing taxes, but she's trying so hard to get it.]

Eh? I'm sorry, I don't understand...would you mind repeating that?

[Just drag her away from the vampire panda.]

bonus

[She feels...rather victorious. She's walking, stretching even with her spear across her shoulders, and grinning to herself. Just wait until Innes sees how great she was. Just wait until he learns. Then he won't tell her to go home and stay out of the way!!!

She pauses. Glances over her shoulder.

The ghost comes a dot closer.

She blinks.]

What...? What are you doing? Do you need something?

[She might need saving here too--or at least to realize that it's dangerous, at least that.]

[Phase I]

[You see this face?

This is the face of not caring. The face that says he could even ignore a chihuahua whimpering. Not even phased as he walks through them, not even caring that these creatures are licking his hands a bit too much.]

....how troublesome. An attempt to frighten but absolutely pointless in the end. Shoo, before I decide to remove you myself.

[Not in the killing way, nerds. Not that the werewolves seem intent on listening to him, which just elicits another sigh.]

[Phase IV]

[After taking way too much joy in slicing up a Shirou-faced creature, Archer is palpably disappointed when it's not really an angry Shirou trying to kill him.

With that dying message, this servant is more for rubbing his head than feeling bad or even listening to something that was quite hostile.]

Is everything going to be like this? A test, a waste of time? It's better than the opposite but what's the end game?

[A pun but not one done intentionally.]

Whatever. It's clear this isn't a regular war so I'm going to need to learn the rules before continuing. [To see if they can be broken. But he shoves in a shrug and a huff.] Anyone have any answers?

It ain't even a war, dude.

[ There's someone standing upside down above Archer, if anything, he's looking kind of interested at how Archer's fighting, or rather, what Archer was fighting.

From the looks of it, this guy seems to really hate this Shirou guy Naruto met earlier on. But hey, at least there's one person who's not really liking this current ViViD scenario, so it balances out to him tbh. ]

It's just a stupid horror game, really.

Edited 2014-12-17 06:03 (UTC)

PHASE I ▶

_{[ Possibly he's a member of your team in this venture. He may quite possibly be your leader in this phase, or maybe he's just in your way to prevent you from getting where you need to go.
Regardless, Katsura is taking in this phase in utmost bliss. He's frozen, crouched to the ground with his hands on his ever-blushing cheeks, lashes batting grossly at these adorable little creatures. The werewolves? They're surrounding him; practically toppling over each other with wagging tails and little yips, eager to lick his hands and his face. ]}

Do you mind if I pet? What about your fluffy stomach? Or your ears! Ohoo, you're so cute—
A-aaah this is it. I've finally gotten a taste of nirvana—! No, this isn't simply a taste, this is— this is—

_{[ Oh nooo, interrupted by werewolf kisses as they pretty much run him over and send him back first to the ground. This is disgusting. This is the grossest thing you've ever witnessed. Try to budge him away? Good luck. ]}

PHASE III ▶

_{[ By the time the panda has gotten about halfway through his speech, Katsura is taking things like taxes and paying to the government very seriously. In fact, he's got his hand on the hilt of his katana at this rate. With a lowered voice, he starts: ]}

—I don't appreciate being told what to do in regards to things like this. Haaa, paying taxes to the government correctly; what a joke.
They've taken enough from me. They don't deserve anymore.

_{[ spoiler: he doesn't pay his taxes right.
Coax him to leave? Things could get bloody here should this panda continue. ]}

PHASE PAKKUMAN ▶

_{[ He's seen this before, definitely. It's one of those vintage games that he simply can't break away from playing now and then.
Anyway, he's running ahead of you. Try to keep up; this guy can go pretty fast for being in sandals. Running from the police will give that to you. If you're not running fast enough, he's definitely grabbing your wrist there and tugging you along. ]}

I'm not your food, I'm Katsura!

_{[ What's supposed to happen? Turn around and fight? Maybe you have some ideas. ]}

Edited 2014-12-17 07:19 (UTC)

phase i;

[okay, so those really aren't a lot of directions at all. which could be frustrating if not for the fact that yuri's pretty good for not doing things by the book, anyway. besides—wolves? he's fought a few wolf-like monsters already, so he's just not as concerned as he maybe should be. of course, once they're in sight, they look a whole lot less menacing than they're trying to be... but he doesn't let his guard down for that.

or at least, as much as one could really even tell his guard is up. he's standing pretty comfortably, and even though his sword hands from the wrappings gripped in his hand, he's not drawing it just yet. he probably should, considering he's all surrounded. but then it happens—!

...they're licking his hands. they're wagging their tails and licking his hands, and they seem nothing more like excited puppies.]

...Not exactly what I was expecting. [a somewhat idle observation, but once he realizes there is absolutely no threat to these "werewolves," yuri finds himself crouching down to play with them a little. in its excitement, one of them starts running circles, chasing its own tail, and he's pretty amused by this.]

Looks to me like the only thing you guys are going to attack are yourselves. [he's sure if repede was here, he'd be a lot more menacing than these pups. maybe that's not a bad thing, even if the thrill of actually fighting something had been appealing.]

phase iii;

[he tried. really, he tried to sit around and listen to the cute vampire panda talk to him about tax evasion, but this is just thoroughly uninteresting and honestly irrelevant to just about anything. this isn't battling ghosts at all. the whole situation had been confusing from the get-go. the powerpoint explanation of what happened to his world (which he was trying very hard to save, thank you very much) and probably his friends to being thrust right into this—yuri's barely had time to process this, much as he's taking it all in stride.

but he's bound to get a bit bored of this eventually, so he'll get up and leave the room. once outside the door, he decides to cool it for a few to try and figure out just what to make of it all. for those who are considering going in there? well, they may be called over by yuri, who's leaning against the wall a few feet away.]

Do yourself a favor and just skip it. Unless you're looking for a lecture, then by all means, have fun. [he's not really sure anyone would be interested in the evils of tax evasion, though.]

phase iv;

[now this? this is what yuri's talking about. even if whatever it is looks like zagi's face (why did it have to be zagi, seriously?), he knows it's not. but hey, at least this is an actual challenge. he's quick to flick the sheath of his sword off to the side somewhere (where? hammerspace, probably. that thing has strange and mysterious properties) and get into the thick of the fight. it's pretty obvious that he knows how to take on a tough monster—ghost, whatever it is. his moveset is flashy, with his sword spinning, energy projectiles, and quick, well-timed strikes at opportune moments.

yuri takes no issue with one or more people fighting alongside him; if they do, he may call out some things to help or work out a formation to keep everyone relatively safe.

well, until they reach that halfway point. the glitching is weird, and frightening mostly in its unfamiliarity, but it's only seconds before he's out of the game. a little worn, but mostly just disappointed that his challenge got cut halfway through. still, that was pretty weird, wasn't it? so he'll look over to whoever it was he fought alongside, and just to check:]

You alright over there? [he's relatively unscathed—just a little tired from how tough he was. but yuri's not a totally inconsiderate guy. he can, at the very least, make sure the people working with him didn't have any strange injuries or issues coming out of... well, whatever it was.

most of this still doesn't make sense to him after all. he's got a lot of thinking to do later, when there's some real downtime to process everything.]

[He's not your dude, broheim.

Still, he looks up but nothing has ever really phased him. Even ceiling standing brats!!]

Call it what you like. These things still have a point. Only an idiot would miss that.

...

[ Right now, Naruto is seriously re-considering a refund on his entry to this stupid game. Because really what kind of a horror scenario is this!? He was about to shank one of the stupid werewolves before a girl actually stopped him from doing so.

...Wow. ]

Uh, you realize we're supposed to survive the attacks of the monsters, right?

🎲 PHASE I: FOOTBALL

[ For those who are just foolish enough to linger outside the manor in time for the pack to advance on them, fear not. Were you going to take on all those frightening balls of fluff all on your own? Perhaps you've already discovered that they're affectionate and desire belly rubs over human flesh? Regardless, there's a teenager girl who runs right up to the pack and... PCHOO!

One ball of fur goes flying off into the distance. Don't ask how she managed to do it in those boots but someone is looking mighty pleased with herself. ]

Are you keeping score? I think that was my furthest yet.

🎲 PHASE II: THE NURSE'S OFFICE

Yes, I'm aware. [ The ghosts are trying their best to make her feel ashamed of her actions, but if there's one thing she's always been good at, it's rolling with the punches. ]

Do you know what I hated most about that? She peeked in like the deviant she was, but didn't even offer to stick around. Who even passes up a threesome when they could possibly die the next week?

[ The ghosts really don't know how to handle this. ]

🎲 PHASE III: TERRORISTS DON'T PAY TAXES???

[ Admittedly out of everything here, this is what frightens her the most. It isn't the panda (or his cute cape) that intimidates her, oh no. It's all the years she's failed to file and how much debt she's in from all that time spent running from the law. ]

So you're telling me I'm going to be in debt for the rest of my life? [ Nooooooooooo. ]

Edited 2014-12-17 06:10 (UTC)

Ah, so you're one of the newcomers, huh?

[ He's going to just 'jump' and flip in mid-air, before landing normally. ]

Then yeah, I guess you've just been picked to fight in a war to save your world.

[ It's non-chalant, but either ways, it seems this guy can take everything with a shrug anyways. Therefore Naruto doesn't really mind giving him the down low right now. ]

And you just passed the test of entry, really.

...Nah.

[ There's a blonde idiot(?) standing right besides her as he tries to gauge the distance the wolf is flying through. Finding it to not be that far according to him, he just said that. ]

I think I can do ya one better though.

[ an immature challenger has appeared. ]

Well, if this isn't embarrassing.

[Because he certainly didn't want to walk in on this. Nor did he actually, you know, recall this at all. That left him at something of a disadvantage. Which meant play dumb, which he was certainly amazing at.]

I didn't realize they showed fantasies in here but it was naive of me to expect better from you.

Edited 2014-12-17 06:13 (UTC)

[ CHALLENGE ACCEPTED. ]

It's on. [ Pointing to the indentations above the entrance to the manor. ] See those?

That's the goal.

[If this kid was in the know, Archer would probably be a little sarcastic. But he probably wasn't and, most of the time, when Archer did randomly appear somewhere, it was to save the world. Or clean up after it, depending on what was what.]

I see. I'd certainly say this was the first time I had to be tested for it. Competition must be getting stronger.

[ PHASE I. ]

[ Gray fur, black fur, brown fur, white hair.

One of these things is not like the others.

But Mary can't help that, because not only did she get cornered by werewolves, she got tackled by werewolves, and as relieved as she is that they're not trying to eat her, she is still having minor difficulties.

... Such as getting out of this dog pile, because right now, they're all so snuggly and insistent on bringing her down to their level that you...

... May see a small hand reaching out imploringly from the sea of wagging tails and lolling tongues. And in between the happy yelps of joy, a faint "Heeeelp meeee..."

Newcomers, this is your senpai. ]

[ Phase II. ]

[ She sure is getting lectured about her (lack of) love life, and Mary sits ramrod straight in her chair, petrified and too scared to protest or ask questions because what if they don't like that? WHAT IF THEY EAT HER?

So she's the perfect scared student (and why does this always happen, first she gets lectured by bugs, now bedsheets), except when something flickers by the window-- and she shrieks, bolts from the chair, and books it.

Probably into you, forgive her. ]

Heh! I'm going to kick all of them there before you know it! Better hope you know how to count!

[ without warning he's going to just kick one right at the indentations.

CRASH!

Naruto - 1. ]

P H A S E : I

[Okay, look, hear this out. He'd been totally prepared for a battle of epic proportions against a bunch of furry, round wolf-looking things but then!!! As soon as one of them licks his hand, it's game over, man. Who'd want to beat up such affectionate creatures?? Not this guy.

So he's... just trying to inch his way out of that crowd and not step on any paws or tails. It's difficult with the way they're swarming him but he manages... until—!!]

H-hey! [One of the werewolves jumps up to latch onto his arm warmer and it slides right off. When Soramaru reaches down to grab it, the offending animal happily runs away. This is clearly a game, right.] Don't take something that doesn't belong to you!

[A chase scene ensues and all of his attention is zeroed in on that werewolf so the possibility of running into or tripping over someone is very real. Or you could be a pal and stop that werewolf yourself.]

P H A S E : IV

[Seriously, what's happening. He's a bit shaken by what he saw, the Orochi's face still fresh in his mind, the way it had shifted forms and that strange message... And though he's out of breath from taking down whatever the heck that was, he stands firm, fists balled at his sides. His expression is unreadable, a heavy silence clinging to him as he gazes at the floor.

And then he suddenly drops down to crouch, both hands holding his head and his clouded expression is replaced with a dazed look.]

I don't understand it. Is this a dream? Could I be dreaming? What did I eat last night to make me think of these sorts of things...?

[Yeah, help.]

B O N U S

[You know what he's been doing a lot of recently?

Sprinting.

Don't get him wrong, he's not necessarily complaining. It's good training and keeps him fit, but gosh darn it all, it's not quite as enjoyable when he's trying to avoid being eaten.

If you're in the way, he'll just grab your arm and pull you along with him.]

Keep going, keep going, keep going!

Ah, fret not. These snakes use all sorts of intimidating language such as "30 days notice", "late-fees" and "IRS."

There is one thing we can do in a situation like this.
_{[ he's in her same predicament, actually. ]}

[ Slooooowly turning her head like an owl towards him. Gross, something unsightly has appeared and caught her in a (very embarrassing) of her limited sex life. ]

I'm not going to engage in petty little trifles with you, Archer. [ Or so she says.

Let's give her five seconds to turn that around. ]

Be glad you weren't in the one where we had a worm-like thing posing as a hot teacher that wants to bone us.

[ ...yeah, this is one of your seniors, Archer, sorry. ]

[ see, he's sort of been trained to fear wolves back home after a select handful of events, and even though he technically knows better now, he can't help but feel a shiver run down his spine when he hears all the howling. And even if he technically knows better, he also knows they're still dangerous! When he sees a figure being assaulted by the silhouettes of the beasts in the distance, he's quick to begin running in that direction, eager to help!!

Or... he was eager to help. Zara goes from worrying he's gotten there too late to slowly coming to a stop nearby and staring down, sword drawn, at the girl covered in adorable round wolves, looking somewhat confused. ]

... Do you... need help, young miss?

I suspect we could simply remove him by force.

[yes, delita is threatening violence. fortunately, he doesn't appear to actually be acting on it... and seems to be more interested in reading the tax code. whether he is actually interested or an expert at feigning interest is hard to tell.

maybe he's just trying to look good for her. or maybe he has something else up his sleeve. he's not even certain about the point of a tax code in a virtual reality, but... hey, you can never be sure. education is important, he's found, and there is a lot of stuff he should know about but doesn't.

also "literally lecturing people to sleep" is an attack in final fantasy tactics. he's seen this before if THAT'S what it is.]

You call that a kick? I'm pretty sure my grandmother can kick these things with more grace.

[ ~~It's funny because said granny is here.~~ ]

Maybe we can ask them for a running start to give you the handicap you need?

From what I see, it's quite the opposite of what you're saying.

[That looks like trifles in that Powerpoint! Possibly not petty or little but still there.]

Still, I'd rather not dwell on it. Hurry up and finish or I'll leave you behind.

Beats me, aren't you the one who makes your own food? No one else back home can cook!

[Tenka really sucks at reunions.

Regardless, he's immediately dropping into a squat right in front of Soramaru, meeting him face to face with a dopey smile - there definitely aren't tears at the edges of his eyes, definitely not. There's nothing to be sad or lonely about anymore because Soramaru is here. And even though it's hard to say exactly where 'here' is and if it's any better than home, it doesn't matter because they're together.]

I've got some answers for you if you've got some for me.

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