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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no subject
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?
no subject
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.
no subject
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.
no subject
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.
no subject
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
no subject
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.
no subject
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.
no subject
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.
no subject
[ 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. ]
no subject
[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.]
no subject
[ 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... ]
no subject
She then bows her head politely.] It is nice to meet you, Genos.
[If only they had more power to control this place.]
no subject
[ 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.
no subject
No no, I think I am the lucky one! [He just blasted a creature to pieces, a real life cyborg!]
no subject
My master, rather, a doll made in the image of my master. It lacks in capturing his pure essence however it isn't a bad copy.
[ He's too distracted talking about his master to tel her—once again—that it's really them together that made it all possible. ]
no subject
Ah, so this is your master. What is his name? [She can't actually greet him though.] Is he your teacher? [It was either that or "master" being the man who made him, but somehow he doesn't look like the kind.]
no subject
[ He says it casually but no doubt there are signs of just how proud he is when talking about his master. ]
no subject
You are very powerful, so I can't even imagine how strong your teacher must be. How impressive!
no subject
In all of the time that I've spent with my master, I've yet to see the end of his strength. [ Genos will close his eyes and hold onto his doll fondly. ]
He is a very powerful man.
no subject
I know I would like to meet him! He sounds wonderful.
no subject
If my master is here, I would not be opposed for the two of you meeting.
no subject
Thank you, you are too kind. I have to thank him for teaching you, so that I was able to meet someone great.