It is a quiet day in mostly reconstructed Cerealia. The robots are busily running into walls that were not there before, the Cybuddy bees are buzzing...and CERES has still not said a word. Attempting to contact them still gets the User Offline error. Strange...
But who cares if CERES is offline? After all, they are the cruel and tyrannical captors. A Cerealia without them must be better than a Cerealia with them. So there's nothing to worry about on this fine, peaceful day. Or, at least, that's what it seems like, when suddenly there's a voice in everyone's head. A chosen few may recognize the voice, for they will have heard it before, but to the vast majority, it is brand new.
Looks like someone has been saved, and a reward granted... and no, you don't have a single choice in the matter.
 Your heroism will be remembered, lost and stolen souls.
You have saved me, and so now, I shall save you.
All of you.
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PHASE I [ day one ] It happens so quickly. One moment you’re in the colony, going about your daily life, and the next, you’re… floating. A moment later, every player character from the colony is transported with a wisp of fresh air to...somewhere very very different. The distance is far, but it is covered in what must have only been a scant moment, and it’s clear somehow, especially to air characters, that it was Caeli’s doing that brought everyone there.
There, naturally, being right in the middle of the jungle.
Everyone is then unceremoniously dropped. You may land on a tree, or in a patch of poison mushrooms (no really, look out for the colorful plant life, it’s probably poisonous) or in the river. There are some strange insects of all sorts and types, some of which have some uncomfortable side effects if you’re bitten, such as swelling or the uncomfortable urge to go hug the nearest person, and there are strange flowers everywhere, some of which glow only in the dark of night or the shade of trees. It is dreadfully humid, however, and a little hard to breathe--unless you’re of the air disposition.
Either way, you’ve certainly landed somewhere fantastical, so take some time to get used to your surroundings. It shouldn’t take too long to find everyone else, hopefully.
PHASE II [ day two ] Of course, this far into the jungle, and making this much noise, it was only inevitable before some company was attracted.
Some are clearly dangerous, some are peaceful as can be and some are somewhere in between; approach at your own risk.
Either way, these monsters are all drawn to larger groups of people and a lot of noise, so it may be best to keep quiet...though the ones that keep their distance may be even more concerning.
Everyone is certainly being stalked at one point or another in the jungle -- and at night, there are eyes watching from the darker parts of the trees.
PHASE III [ day three ] But perhaps if you follow some of those monsters deeper into the woods, you will stumble across an old, run down village of sorts. It looks as though time and the jungle has overtaken it. Exploring it will reveal plenty of homes that were clearly lived in however, by families and by people of all sorts.
There are empty rooms, covered in dust, and a central village fire, long gone out.
Small knick-knacks and various objects can be found… if you want to steal from the dead, you know. It’s a little rude. It appears they led a simple, peaceful life, however; most notably, there is no technology to be found.
And if The Bridge catches you doing it, she will look incredibly sad and ask you to put everything back in its proper place before she goes back to looking very irritated at Caeli. You may overhear words about how this “isn’t the right place” and Caeli’s unrepentant, “It is only a few hundred miles”. Looks like something went a little wrong in the transportation process.
Time to camp out for the night, perhaps. And your CereVices don’t get any reception out here, so no surfing the internet for you. If you try to connect to the internet, for some reason the device starts playing a song. Was that programmed…?
PHASE IV [ day four ] By the fourth day, it’s pretty clear that you’re going to be stuck here for a bit. Pestering Caeli or Maris gets nothing, while the Bridge still can’t be approached for pretty good reasons. So… you’ll just have to make the best of it while they figure out their next approach.
Time to figure out how to camp with few supplies and even fewer nice places to sleep. Maybe try to make a fire (though it’s incredibly difficult, considering how muggy it is here) or try to find some bugs to eat (ew gross).
Of course, you can try hunting, but the prey doesn’t look too friendly, so be careful not to become the prey yourself. The same goes for fishing, it seems.
Some of the trees are poisonous, some of the grasses will cause unfortunate rashes, and some vines will lash out to grab at people (especially colorful ones); basically, this is an entirely untamed alien jungle, so it may not be the fun camping trip you'd like.
Time to work together to survive out here, at least for a little longer.
It’s your time to shine. This is Person Versus Wild.
PHASE V [ day six ] On day six, the jungle goes utterly silent.
The monsters and animals disappear. The extra friends poof away hastily and suddenly. Maris and the Bridge fall silent (though Caeli admittedly continues floating there as ever). If anyone approaches them to ask, they'll just say that "she is coming".
And soon, she does appear. She moves slowly, lacking in feet; they are roots, as though that of a tree. Nonetheless, she has no troubles with moving forward, slow bit by bit. She does not speak, not at first, and behind her, trotting lightly through the woods, there is another. Both feel strongly of spiritual energy, just like Maris and Caeli. And eventually, after observing the people gathered, they can be spoken to.
BONUS [ day ??? ] After spending some time in the jungle, emotions might be running a bit amuck. And those emotions might bring some unexpected...friends. Yes, let's go with friends.
Because if a character is typically grumpy, gloomy, stoic, lineface, or anything along those lines, they may find themselves followed by a bright, happy bird. That bird feeds off of those emotions, and will just cheerfully follow around any lineface character for as long as possible. Or until they smile. The birds are otherwise harmless, chirping happily every now and then and following them around like a friendly shadow.
Happy, cheerful, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, energetic characters, on the other hand, will soon find themselves followed by... a different friend. Or maybe a handful of them. It depends on how cheerful they are. Either way, these creatures feed off of happiness and fun, but they will also chew on hair or an ear if they're allowed to get that close, making horrifying, chittering noises as they follow anyone who is in a good mood.
[ Remember to apply proper warnings on threads with sensitive or inappropriate material and do let a mod know if your thread careens off into maiming or canoodling so we can lock the log. ] |
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Leon
[Yeah, it's probably best that William doesn't start a discussion of geographical zones with Leon. Besides, when he thinks about it, this planet's layout could be entirely different. Which is food for thought.
But anyways...]
It isn't that entertaining.
[It's fortunate that the campsite he and Kevin had made isn't too far off. William had been making efforts not stray too far least the angel became overly paranoid. So it's not a long trip and if he's not super talkative it's because damn he's still too warm.]
Well here we are. It isn't much, but it'll do.
[It's actually quite a nice set up, with a good fire pit, a fairly sturdy lean to made of leaves and branches to sleep under and a few woven baskets of fruit and other food stuffs, along with a pile of dry wood. It's about what you'd need to camp out in this sort of situation . It's amazing what you can do when you're bored and too smart for your own good. Or if you have a butler.]
But just set that down for now.
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[Damn. Prissy rich boy knows what the hell he's doing, or at least someone involved in all of this does. He sets down the log near the others, taking a good look around the area, which looks almost--cozy. Almost. It looks cozier than Leon had thought he'd ever see again until they got into a real city, which had damn well better be happening soon.
He lets out a low whistle and then turns back to William, eagerness in his eyes.]
--Soooo you're gonna let me chill with you, right? I'll carry all the firewood you want!
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He does look incredulously at Leon for a moment, and then nods.]
As long as you are willing to help, sure, I see no reason to say no.
[Which is a way to say "Don't give me a reason to change my mind."]
But you wanted to see magic, correct?
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Besides, he likes William, and it's kind of entertaining to see his stuffy prissy rich boy version of jungle survival. Which is clearly working out much better than Leon's way.
Also, there's magic.]
Yeah! Yeah, right now? Lay it on me, man, I've gotta see this! I've been seein' so much crazy crap out here shoved together with everyone, I'm ready for the next level!
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The next level? I really do not see what about this is more shocking than anything else we have experienced.
[But he sighs and shifts some logs in the fire pit and the nods to himself.]
Very well. Pay attention.
[He does the incantation quickly and efficiently at this point, because the fire spell has proven very useful here and then snaps his fingers. Instantly, one of the logs sparks, catching fire with a good roar.]
That magical enough for you?
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Awesome.
[Literally awesome. He sounds actually awed. That was cool. Leon watches the fire roar, with an intent grin.]
That was badass! Man, no fair, why can't I do that stuff?! It was so cool!
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It is a pretty amazing when it actually works.
[He does look at Leon a moment, thinking.]
Maybe it is different in your world. When I was offered the chance, my teacher told me I had the aptitude for it. But it isn't easy to learn. At all.
[Well for him. Otherwise it seemed any idiot with an interest could learn it. Life was unfair.]
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[Leon walks over and flops down next to William--a comfortable distance away, but not very far. It's such a simple setup, but he already feels a little more human for it. Things are tidy, kind of; there's a fire; there's someone here to talk to. He can almost pretend it's camping and not a struggle for survival.]
I just don't get it! It's not like history, where it's like . . . you memorize some crap in a book and put it on a test and bam, you passed History! Now you know history! That's just rememberin' stuff. Magic's not gonna work like that, though, right?
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[Granted, it wasn't the most sane meeting, with Mathers coming to his window at night like some weirdo, but that was how half of William's relationships worked.]
No, it's not. [He frowned for a moment, because he didn't like admitting such weaknesses, but well...] I am the top student in my class, probably even my school, but I find magic hard. I tried going at it like it was a science, but it is like no field of study I have ever heard of. Not even in this world.
Isaac though, he's... not very good at academics and was held back a year. But, he loves the supernatural and occult and for him...
[The most sour look passes William's face.]
He learned it like it was nothing. So I do not think the normal rules for such things apply. At all.
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[WAY TO MAKE HIS DAY. Leon is definitely, a hundred percent in the "not very good at academics" category here, so he can't help but feel a little brotherly moment of hell yeah you show 'em! in the general direction of whoever this Isaac person is. See, who cares about all that academic crap! It's not everything in the world!
Not that Leon cares about the occult either . . . but things change a little once you've seen indisputable evidence for it being real, in the flesh.
His mood definitely got a boost there, sorry William. Your sour looks are going totally unsympathized with.]
Heeeeh, that's awesome! Academics ain't my thing either, in case you didn't notice.
[He says that with some amused self-awareness, at least.]
So that just makes it sound even better to me! Not that I'd trust some rando who just walked up to me outta nowhere and offered to teach me . . .
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[This guy not being good at academics was like a cat having whiskers honestly. The least shocking of things.
He did blink a moment and had to think on what "rando" meant. William had made an effort to study up on pop culture and slang if only to avoid any social faux pas, but sometimes he still found himself a little lost.]
He is a bit weird, but he told me it would help me fight back against demons and angels, so, there was very little to lose. And well, when he's around, he is a good teacher. Sort of. Kind of.
[He shrugged then, because honestly, yes, Mathers, was kind of weird and undependable. Like most adults.]
Then again, maybe there is magic in your world and you just have not found it yet.
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[Draco had said the same thing, implying that magic did exist, he just wasn't privy to it. How unfair is that? Why do some guys get walked up to by creepy old men and taught magic and demons and shit, and some guys get--what Leon ended up getting? Talk about getting screwed over! Leon sighs and leans in--not too close, but in--to take a look at the fire, wondering if there's anything obviously magical about it or if it's just a normal fire.]
I just don't get it! How could a whole thing like that be a secret from 99% of the world? What's so special about the 1%, huh?
[Dang magical one percenters.]
But I guess it's not like I wanna fight angels and demons either, so maybe it balances out? If I could do magic, I'd want it solely for cool purposes!
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[Wow that felt like a life time ago.]
Just to say, you might have just not been unlucky enough to stumble across it yet.
[Unlucky was an understatement, he thought to himself as he laced his fingers together. But then again, life with demons was easier than this... jungle adventure he was on. Demons tended to like feeding you.]
Let me guess: you would use it enamor girls, wouldn't you?
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[He laughs; it's out of his mouth before he really thinks about the implications.
But it doesn't take long for them to occur to him. They're right there. After a moment he trails off and blinks curiously.]
I meant that, like . . . I'd show off for 'em and impress the hell out of 'em! Not like I'd magic them into wanting to sleep with me. Can you actually do stuff like that? That'd be so messed up! I guess it'd work the other way too, if a girl was a witch . . . it's illegal, right?!
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[This guy does act like a bit of a Cad, but it's obvious there's not much malice in him.]
...I believe you might be able to, though I have not been taught that and have little desire to learn it. I know the demons back home can do it, but I am not sure if that is a learnable skill.
I do not know if it is illegal here or not. Outside of a few practical matters, they care much more about Corporate law here.
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[Who knows what new crimes people could come up with if they had magic? . . . Well, William probably does, but Leon sure can't imagine them. Sending a demon at someone?]
I don't think they care a lot here, though. Like, if they did, half the crap they do to us would get them thrown in jail!
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[That would not surprise William in the slightest. At this point, he just took for granted that most adults in his life were undependable.]
They should be brought up on charges of Criminal Negligence at least. I do not think they will let that happen though. They are the Man, or whatever is you people call it.
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[He snorts, though, amused by the phrasing; he gets it. They probably don't call The Man The Man in Victorian Whatever.]
Yeah, that's what I'd call it, anyway!
. . . But I think I'd rather get pissed off at The Man than have to live in the jungle forever, y'know?
[He sighs and leans back on his hands, taking a good look at their surroundings. This sucks. It hasn't started sucking any less since they got here.]
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[Logically that meant that they just had to keep walking and eventually they would loop back. Hopefully.]
And then we can go back to those lovely inventions known as air conditioning and the refrigerator, and leave behind this horrid place.
[He wipes the hair away from his brow sighing. Also that wonderful invention called the "shower" would be nice.]
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[He trails off, though, some quiet awkwardness catching up with him after that's out of his mouth. It strikes him that he's not actually sure what he's going back to himself, after what he's heard from the others.
If he can even go back.
It puts a damper on the thought; he might be in the same position as William after all, and it's a thing he tries not to think about too much. It's too overwhelming to face.]
. . . I guess we just gotta make the most of what we've got while we're here, even if the people givin' it to us are shitty.
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[All the science, no having to pretend he actually cares about Church, no poverty, no demons...
Okay, his feelings on that last one are mixed and he frowns for a moment.
And notices Leon trails off there. Something wrong with this guy's home? But then again, this is the kind of person that if he wanted to actually say something, well, he'd just say it right? William is itching with curiosity though.
But he restrains himself.]
Count your blessings then? I guess so. An easy life and good people are enough I suppose.
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[He groans, a bit dramatically. It's nice to have been pointed in the conversational direction of complaining about the jungle; it means less thinking about that other problem he has, and doesn't want to talk about. Maybe someday. But maybe not. Leon's never sure what anyone here would think of him if they knew about all that. Isn't it better this way, just being himself, except conveniently leaving out that part of himself?
Probably.
And right now, himself could really use a shower and air conditioning and a fridge and a bed.]
There's no way we can be stuck out here forever, right? We can't live out here like this!
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Hah, well there are people back home who live like this. Different tribes and the like and they don't seem to mind. So it is not impossible.
But, we really do not want it to come to that. I do not think either of us are the type of people suited to this for the long term. At all.
[William's just some frail, time displaced rich boy. And this guy is just some ridiculous slacker jock. If this were a horror movie, they'd probably be two of the first to die.]
But we should not assume the worst case scenario yet. We might get back there or else come across some actual living natives who will hopefully be helpful. Maybe.
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I wouldn't wanna be suited for this! It's fine for tribes or whatever, but I ain't one of those guys! I'm all about the city lights, and, y'know, having toilets and junk.
. . . You think maybe they were tryin' to get us to another city? One that's not all flooded?
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Well now there is a thought. Maybe they have their own city they wanted to take us to and just... made a mistake. Or something to that effect.
[Supernatural beings were incompetant when interpreting human desires. Horrifyingly so.]
Though, it depends on if it is as nice as what CERES gave us or not. They could either make it much easier for us or much harder. it could just be a walled in jungle.
[Now there is an unpleasant though. He closes his eyes and sighs.]
Honestly, I think I might rather deal with the old enemies. They are at least, as far as I can tell human. Or mortal. That is always easier to deal with.
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