The thing about Cerealia is, there really isn't any nature to be found here. Sure, you can go outside the walls of the city and explore the land beyond but who wants to risk a terrible, horrible death just to sniff the flowers? Not you, that's who! CERES understands that, CERES sympathizes, and sometimes CERES decides to take action when such problems arise. As part of the company's current "Healthier and Happier YOU" initiative, they've decided to let everyone get back in touch with nature a little.
Via ViViD.
Of course, this being CERES, the nature they've sent everyone to is more of a swamp. The place is disgusting, a real marvel of ViViD ingenuity and it smells like the dead. There's strange rustling among the leaves from creatures that may or may not want to eat you, and random pits that open up right under your feet with the goal of sending you straight into the marsh. It's not really that fun. There's no welcome sign either, no nothing except for swamplands as far as the eye can see.
Welcome to ViViD!  This is Mosley. One of our programmers forgot to include a welcome greeting for the level this time. How incompetent can you get? He's been fired now, it's fine. Instead, I will greet you today. Lucky you! You've been invited today to participate in CERES's "Healthier and Happier YOU" level where we've combined both physical exercise and relaxing meditation into the ultimate ViViD experience. Isn't that fun? You can... go camping and stuff. Or whatever. I don't... know...
Honestly, I don't even care. Have fun.
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PHASE I [ 6 00 ] Welcome to your new healthy living training ground! What does a swamp have to do with healthy living, you may ask? Absolutely nothing! To make up for it, CERES has outfitted all players with the proper equipment for their new healthy living lifestyle. They also may or may not have let you keep your shoes based on how benevolent the ViViD gods were being at the time. (Not very.)
Oh, and all newcomers will have something additional on their fancy new yoga shirt. It will be displayed loudly and proudly all over the front and back of it. And if you're one of the few not wearing a shirt, it will be on the back of your pants. As in, your butt. It will be on your butt.
What’s ViViD trying to say, anyway?
Regardless, it probably doesn’t matter as much as finding your way through the swamp. Some sort of dry land would be really nice right now, wouldn't it? You'll have to watch out for the mud that will suck you right down under the marsh, and the creatures with lots of teeth that will never surface from the mud but won't hesitate to snap up an unwary foot or two.
CERES is sure you'll be fine. Totally and completely fine.
PHASE II [ 800 ] Eventually, if you try really, really hard, you’ll make it to a house. Actually, it’s more of a shack, really. If you clamber your way out of the mud and the gunk and the marsh into said shack, you will find it to be empty aside from a table. A table hosting a huge pile of... well, health drinks. See, there's totally a health theme in this level. CERES would never make a ViViD level that wasn't thematically appropriate. Never! Health drinks of all sorts and types and sizes can be found here and there’s even a sign too; it simply says:
Take one.
Well, that seems safe.
Unfortunately, you won’t be able to leave said shack until you do take one. And drink it. The door will lock shut and cover itself in more swamp until you do. Yay. Depending on your luck, the drink may do the following to you: ➟ Cause your ViViD experience to glitch. This may involve phasing through walls, seeing everything in 8-bit, or hearing really annoying old video game music everywhere you go.
➟ Cause status effects. This can include suddenly moving incredibly slowly, being turned to stone for a period of time, suddenly being on fire, suddenly being poisoned, etc etc.
➟ Be healthier. Mmm, kale and hummus smoothie. Taste those veggies. If you try to take more than one, that’s fine too, nobody will stop you, but you probably won’t get lucky more than once.
PHASE III [ 900 ] And back you go, out into the swampy wilderness. Don’t give up! Keep going! Eventually, you’ll find the end of this level. Probably.
Eventually, though, you may stumble across something in the mud and the muck. It’s... a little doll?
In fact, it’s a little doll of one of your most important people (or, alternatively, of someone you absolutely hate). It might be someone in Cerealia currently, or someone who isn’t, but either way, the doll is there and it’s clearly them (covered in mud and all). Be careful, though. If you toss it aside, you’ll suddenly see that important person being tossed aside. If you cut the doll, you'll suddenly see that person bleeding. Even if they aren’t present in Cerealia, whatever happens to that doll, you'll see it happening to them. Is it a hallucination or are they actually there? That's a little more up in the air.
And if they are present in Cerealia, well... doing things to that doll might very well hurt them too -- for real, this time, though.
Be careful! Or don't. You do you, as CERES would say.
PHASE IV [ 1200 ] And then, eventually you reach a quiet, swampy area. Not that the rest of the swamp isn't swampy, this area is just extra swampy.
There’s very little happening here in this swampy place; even the birds are no longer squawking. And for a long moment, everything will remain quiet and peaceful, a place of reprieve... until the swamp begins to bubble. Then suddenly, a new friend will burst out of the swamp, showering mud and gunk everywhere.
Without warning, that creature is going to try to grab for the nearest person (it might be you!) and let out a mighty roar when they have them. Then, they'll hold them up to... read the nutrition facts on their shirt? What?
Of course, it will try to gobble you or whoever else it grabs if it finds, say, the salt content to be acceptable (the monster is watching their carbs). If it's not, then they'll just fling you away and move onto the next snack. For those without a handy nutrition facts label on your shirt, well, it might just take a gamble and try to eat you anyway.
Great. A health-conscious monster. That's just what this level needed.
BONUS [ xxxx ] Finally, you’re free of the game. Without warning, you’re dumped into Cerealia properly and you’re able to scrub the mud and gunk from your clothing (wait why did that come back with you and where are your normal clothes?). You're able to then make your way to your new place of residence (or old) and...
There is a tiny tree there waiting for you. Isn’t it cute? And if you take care of this tiny tree, it will eventually bear fruit! Tiny fruit. Itty bitty fruit.
Depending on which tiny tree you get, it will be one of the following: a tiny dildo tree, a tiny bacon tree, a tiny kazoo tree, a tiny carolina reaper tree, or a (dumb) tiny hats tree.
Everything will, naturally, be tiny. Enjoy your new healthy CERES gift!
[ 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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vietnam
But now that the threat was quite literally no more, Genos will turn to Vietnam and give her a bit of a nod in gratitude. Even if he doesn't agree with his display of power being "impressive"—it was more like adequate and what should be expected from someone of his standings (at least, back home). ]
Thank you, and for the help as well. I would not have been able if it were not for your distractions.
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It is impressive to her, coming from a world where heroes like himself is not the norm. He's admirable!]
I did my best, since you had a plan. It was a small action, but for victory I gave it my all for...teamwork, I suppose? [Army knowledge, this one.] You were the commander.
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However, that aside, when she calls him a commander, that throws Genos through a loop for a bit. He has never considered commanding much of anything ever. Sure, maybe working together as a unit but never standing in front even with his rank and standing as a Hero back home. It's...a weird thought. ]
A commander? No, I was no commander. We worked well together and achieved victory as equals.
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She's used to even those who are equal having higher ranking officials because it is just how a team works. However, the idea of equals has always appealed to her, so she's still touched by the thought. So here she is, trying to remain cool, but it's evident by how she shifts on the spot.]
Ah, well, it was your plan, so even if you consider us equals, I am glad and thankful you came up with it!
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Genos notices her shifting but doesn't make the connection between that and his words and simply continues forward. Perhaps they should get moving as well? There was plenty left of this ViViD to explore or maybe there wasn't anything left, he honestly had no idea. ]
Then our gratitude is mutual. I was impressed that you managed to throw the bolder that you did. You are much stronger than I had thought you were, my apologies in that regard.
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It's alright to keep moving, in fact it will make her less embarrassed for sure.]
I do not mind. [She quickly waves a hand.] I am small, so it is a fair assessment. I am sure you are still stronger than me. My strengths actually lie in my ability to regenerate.
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Your ability to regenerate? [ That gets his attention. It's good that she accepts his assessment of her though he still feels a bit bad for once again underestimating those around him. ]
Do you heal quickly?
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Yes, I heal quicker than the average human. In this universe, as long as it is non-fatal. [Even if a limb is blasted off!]
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Does that mean you can regenerate limbs? [ Because come on, his mind is totally going to go there. Though was there something to her wording? ]
And you said—"in this universe"—does that mean there are different standards from where you are from?
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Yes, I can regenerate limbs. [She wonders if this is normal info from his world too! After all, he's a cyborg.]
And yes, for example, my kind doesn't exist in other universes. And sometimes, they have magic, which also doesn't really exist where I am from either. [She says this after talking about regeneration but that's different SHHH.]
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Can everyone from your world regenerate limbs? [ Sorry he's focused on that it's just...weird to imagine. How would that even work? If someone like him was able to regenerate themselves after what happened all those years ago... No, it was better that it happened the way that it did. ]
Where I am from we are not able to regenerate limbs nor are there things like magic. However, I suppose there are some fellow heroes who are able to do things that are mystical in nature.
[ HMMMmm.... ]
I apologize if my questions have been too intrusive.
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No, humans are powerless. My kind cannot die back home, so we regenerate our bodies. Here though, I can die. [Considering that they can feel all the pain of dying without even dying, it's sometimes better not to. Hetalia, I thought you were a gag manga.]
Mystical? Like...would similar to what you did, no? But with a human body?
[She waves her hands.] It is fine! Feel free to ask me questions.
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You're not human? [ He feels a little slow for not picking on that earlier but given the way she keeps referring to herself as an identity other than human... ]
And no, not exactly. Are you familiar with Psychokinesis? [ Genos has a feeling that maybe there might be similar terms even across different universes. There are other Heroes too but most of them can be explained. Somewhat. (Can anyone really explain Puri-Puri-Prisoner, though?) ] Or divinity?
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I'm not exactly human, no. [Who knows about origin stories since Himaruya is a flake. But there we go!]
Psychokinesis? [She tilts her head, she's definitely puzzled by the term. Though it sounds familiar, since it's not like those words don't exist. (Puri-Puri-Prisoner can only be explained by watching magic girl animes, it's true.] I know of divinity, but it might not the same as your world's version.
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If you're not a human, what are you then? [ It's okay, Genos does and doesn't have the clearest origin story too. ]
Yes, such as moving things with your mind and projecting things—in short an esper. [ Hopefully that is a term she knows too but then again in the off chance she doesn't he did clarify for her. ] How is your's defined? Ours was expressed by an old woman who could predict disasters before they happened with the utmost accuracy.
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A country. Or, perhaps the spirit of a country in human form might be more accurate. I live alongside the physical country and its people, so it's not like I'm the land itself. [HIGHFIVES CLOUDY ORIGIN STORIES...]
Oh! I understand now. Esper is a term we are familiar with yes. Though they are considered fiction, since it is not like we know anyone with such power. [And if they do exist, they've kept it pretty secret.] Our divinities are only in legend, but some legends could involve an old woman. Or someone who could predict a natural disaster. More like...gods, in a way.
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On that same thought as your injuries then, then do you not age? [ It sounds like bullshit but he'll believe it. Why would she lie? ]
But I see. Seems like there are some overlap in of our worlds and yet still very much so different
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Slowly, at first. The furthest memory I have, I was just a small child. Somehow when we reach either a physical age of late teens or adulthood, we just...stop? Or grow increasingly slowly. I've never seen any country appear aged. [After answering this, she gets how it could be totally confusing.]
Yes, it is similar with many of the others too, with their similar worlds. It's all so familiar and sometimes we even experience the same parts of history, but yet our lives are different.
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Then, in a way, you are born whenever your country is first founded and then stop aging once it's reached its peak of development. Is something like that correct?
[ TBH, he never thought he would ever meet a country. This sort of gives the terms "exploring new lands" a whole new meaning. ]
I believe then that could be explained by scientific theories, such as multiverses. Granted, I suppose they are no longer exact theories by strict definition.
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Yes, we don't really remember anything before that. I'm not entirely sure how we age further too. [Except for countries who lose their identities and turn human, but Prussia's been keeping that secret to everyone. DAMMIT.]
Ah, you are right. What we thought was just theories or ideas are now true. And we will have to find out how they work once we try to find our ways back home.
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[ He should probably properly introduce himself too, but later. They're about to contemplate quantum physics for a moment. ]
If something like that is even possible. [ Not that he doubts, but he is...concerned. A lot of what he learned from the power point seemed fantastical at best. ]
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[But he did introduce himself more often as Arthur Kirkland, verses her as Vietnam. Just habits!]
We will see what we can do. Surely some information or development will still arise. [She actually figures that a hostile takeover might get them the abilities they need, but considering how much power CERES has, probably not. Not yet.]
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[ He'll give her a bit of a nod. ] My name is Genos.
I suppose that is true.
[ He doesn't like the idea of waiting for things to happen but c'es la vie... ]
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She then bows her head politely.] It is nice to meet you, Genos.
[If only they had more power to control this place.]
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[ You know the bald egg guy who he has tied around his neck... And honestly this is the best answer he can give her due to the nature of OPM world. ]
The pleasure is mine. It has been extremely fortuitous meeting you here.
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