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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That's kind of you. [Maybe a little dumb, though. Or a lot dumb. Maybe something she'll regret if they end up being led to a place even worse than the colony and she loses her chance to go to the ocean at all.]
So you'll wait until you see what they have in store?
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She scratches the back of her head, humming lightly as she tries to think] Well, perhaps you understand what I am trying to say anyhow. Want you to be safe.
And, yes, am curious. I will see what they want, and if it would be fun to help. Perhaps reward will be worth it. [Oona flashes Kaoru a quick grin at that. Because hey! Maybe they'll give them something super cool and then she'd feel like an idiot for missing out on it.]
no subject
Thank you for that, then. [Seems like an appropriate response, anyway.] I'll certainly do my best to stay safe so that you don't have to worry.
[A REWARD, THOUGH. That sure would be nice, but Kaoru is certain that this impromptu camping trip is the reward...]
I hope it ends up being worth your while, in any case. This experience is certainly what some would consider a hassle...
no subject
But no really... She likes Kaoru, it'd be unfortunate for anything to happen before she can express that fully and make sure everything's okay.]
Suppose you could think of it as an adventure. A 'learning experience' as they say. Though, I do not know what we could take as learning from this...
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But it seems Kaoru understands that she's just teasing, since the remark only earns her a little laugh.]
Of course, how silly of me. [A LEARNING EXPERIENCE, THOUGH.] That would be a very optimistic way of viewing it. Perhaps they simply wish for us to learn about how much better life is outside of the confines of the colony?
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Oona makes a slight face.] There are things will miss, though... I already miss sushi. [but she can just eat a fish straight from the river which is just as well. She kinda got used to human foods though, for the most part. Alas...
After a moment her expression suddenly goes horrified] I will miss the next episode of that show! They were going to reveal who the father of Rosemary's baby was! Ahh! [T R A G E D Y. She claps a hand over her mouth, looking distressed both that A. THE SECRET IS OUT guess who watches shitty soap operas during the day before work and B. Because she was really invested in the story.
She glances to Kaoru. Don't judge her. In a meek voice she mumbles around her hand] Had a bet with girl at work.... I will not know if I won or not...
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That is a shame now, isn't it? [A bet forever lost. Kaoru imagines she probably placed something hilarious on the line for it, too! Now that would have been A+ entertainment.]
With a bit of good fortune, what's waiting for us will be much better than that. [But the unspoken sentiment here is "haha it won't be", because when is it ever, honestly... Kaoru's used to situations going from bad to worse, not bad to better. Does that even happen??] But there are certainly some conveniences that will be a bit difficult to live without, especially if the place we're meant to be isn't as advanced.
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She sighs deeply and turns the crude doll over in her hands a few times, playing with it to distract herself.] Perhaps part of lesson is learning we were too, hmm, complacent. [Look at her, using her vocabulary words] Could do without that lesson. [But Oona grins a little, having caught the unspoken "it probably won't be good" sentiment.]
But, more likely, they will try to make things easy and will instead make things harder, yes? It is how these things go. We can never "catch a break," as they say.
no subject
Kaoru watches the doll move around in her hands, considering that statement. Where's her gold star for checking her vocab sheet?? But more seriously, Kaoru does have to wonder the same thing. Complacency isn't easy to fall into when you're a paranoid freak, but it's hard to notice the slip if it starts, too.]
Mm, most likely. It seems their intentions aren't terrible, but that means very little if the execution is poor. [Just shittalkin the gods who helped them out, ain't no thing.]
I would rather not have to see something like that in action again.
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Oona just looks a little amused though, tilting her head and pressing a finger to her lips] If they hear you, would that not be troublesome as well? Ah, but it is fine. Will protect you if they try anything. [There's an underlying, "I will always protect you," there that's a little too cheesy to say outloud in its entirety.
She is a weak mermaid with terrible taste in people to develop feelings for.]
Probably we should keep moving anyhow. This place is sad, and I do not want to be here for very much longer.
no subject
I doubt they would be bothered by a complaint as mild as this when others are complaining so much louder. [Please keep being loud and rude, other irritated people... Though Kaoru can also pick up on the sentiment there and - disregards it, honestly, because it toes a little too close to the things that make him upset and angry. Oona isn't bad to be around, even if Kaoru doesn't really categorize people in terms of "like" and "don't like" so much as "tolerate", "don't like" and "really hate". CLOSE ENOUGH.]
Then let's leave. There isn't anything for us here, regardless.
[Just ruins, and it's not like ruins have ever helped anyone. Kaoru turns after speaking, sweeping out from the center area and back toward the outskirts.]