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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Only... Rei... knows the girl? She relaxed a bit more but pressed her lips together, keeping a steady eye on that blade.]
Rei, who is she? [To mention transforming so easily...]
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Tch! Ask me yourself, I'm right here!!
What's the deal, Rei?!
[ She thought they were monsters or perverts (yes, she regards them on the same threat level...) ]
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[It is stupid. Rei lowers her own bow almost instantaneously and steps clear, jerking her head to Ami in a 'step back' motion.]
We weren't sure who was out there. Or what. It's been a trying few days. Come in, get under some shelter.
[A beat.]
Ryuko-chan, this is Ami-chan. A friend from home.
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She gestured towards the fire.]
Please come in, it is very nice to meet you Ryuko-san. Have you been able to eat anything or have clean water?
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A-Ah, I mean... I'm sorry! Don't waste your food on me, though, I'm fine.
[ ...Sadly, her stomach betrays her by growling at the thought of food. ]
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Food's no issue, I've been able to hunt just fine.
[She reaches out and grabs Ryuko by the wrist and yanks her inside, shutting the door with a kick.]
And yes, a friend from home.
[She smiles at her blue-haired bestie before going to the weird deer creature she'd hunted up.]
Minako-chan is out for the moment, but there are three of us now. I'd have introduced you, but...there wasn't time before all of this.
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No... nothing so far... Then when the door was closed she turned back to her and smiled warmly.]
It's really very nice to meet you, I do apologize for my initial yelling.
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[ Oh wow! That's a lot of food options there... even fruits! ]
Is it too much to hope for at least a lemon inside this jungle?
[ Y..es... she eats them raw..... ]
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[Or something. Rei skewers meat on a cleaned stick and sets it on a spit over the fire.]
You have to rotate it though. It's your punishment.
[As for fruit? She'll leave that to Ami.]
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Please, have your fill!
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Her other hand accepts Ami's fruit as Ryuko turns to examine it. She knows they're offering her safe food, but she's reminded of all the bad things she had to trial on her first day here. ]
I had a mushroom that made me laugh a lot the other day. This place has some pretty weird food, huh?
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You mean you ate a forest mushroom without any thought as to it's toxicity?
[Geez, she sounds like Ami...]
You're lucky that's all it did.
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But as for the food, I haven't been able to actually examine the evolution of this place. To be quite honest, it's hard to say just how much this world mirrors many aspects of Earth, if at all. So far, despite the fact that the animals are different... well, some of them, plant life and water still functions the same. In fact, we should be quite glad we have drinkable water on this planet. That is truly what will allow us to survive.
[And Ami had no real desire to become a water mill to ensure everyone had some.]
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I guess water is water no matter where you go, huh. Like fire. [ See what she did there? ]
I'm glad ya found each other out here. Some of the others are still tryin' to find their group...
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Finding one another isn't too hard when one of you has ESP. I was going to check up on you, too, but I know you. You had everything well in hand, I'm sure. Especially the monsters.
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It does help that even this place follows the rules of the periodic table and chemical chains and reactions. By that virtue, things can be easily broken down into the equivalent earth object.
It doesn't hurt that we have the ability to keep in touch apart either. [Though Ami didn't bother explaining about the communicators she, Rei, and Minako all had. She smiled.]
How did you and Rei meet?
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Rei and I? Kinda saw her when she arrived. Had a present in her hand. [ Will not say what was inside it, however! Rei can fill that blank. ]
Anyway, I invited her to a sleepover my roommate was makin'.
[ They were both supposed to invite their friends, but Athena had invited Ryuko's friends before she could! So, Ryuko improvised and invited a stranger on the same day they met...... because she totally has a lot of friends, too. ]
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Though at the memory, Rei's cheeks flush bright red. Minako and Ami hadn't heard about that story, and while she can count on clinical analysis from Ami? She can also count on a little teasing. So, her confirmation and denial comes out a little too quickly.]
Yes. Right. CERES was giving everyone some fairly dangerous gifts. I appreciated the help, too. Since that was my first day here and all.
[She pauses, trying to still her nerves. The rest of that? Well that had been quite nice. The invitation had been appreciated.]
And actually, that party is where I met her roommate. Athena-chan. And Leia-chan as well. Two of the best friends I have here. Which...really, I don't know if I ever thanked you for that, Ryuko-chan.
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Still, she was happy to hear that Rei was making friends, on her first day, no less.]
Despite my qualms with CERES, there seems to be wonderful people here. It is a pleasure to meet you, Ryuko-san, and thank you for taking care of Rei. Ah... may I ask you something?
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[ She is pleased about Rei making friends, too, even though she doesn't really want to take credit. Leia and Athena are pretty extroverted enough that they would have found Rei anyway... just as they found a thug like Ryuko. ]
What's up, Ami?
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Mmm?
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[ It was just Ryuko and Senketsu... Senketsu being the uniform that she's wearing right now. The uniform that sometimes looks like a face with eyes from a certain angle. The uniform that appears to be staring at Ami, as if it's possessed by a ghost. It may even blink when absolutely nobody is paying attention. It's probably what Ami seems to have mistaken it for a creature, but Ryuko doesn't make that connection as she considers her uniform a person. More than that, it's her closest friend. ]
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[Rei...has never quite parsed how weird it was for Ryuko's shirt to blink at her.]
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