Love is in the air in Cerealia -- or, well, it is in ViViD anyway. And nobody cares about your lives outside of ViViD, so that's all that matters. It's an artificial love construct, but for you sad, lonely, little people, it's probably good enough, right? CERES is on a mission to find you your other half, your soulmate, your one and only, and this is how they've decided to do it -- through technology and abuse of your private information! Welcome to your new love life, courtesy of ViViD.
For your convenience, CERES has automatically generated dating profiles to help match up the new arrivals swiftly and speed up the "get to know each other" process. Nothing like some not-entirely-agreed-to speed dating to break the ice and improve new relations! You're going to be here for awhile, so you may as well get to know each other.
For the older residents, well... you may very well find your soulmate here! You don't want to miss out on that. That would just be an unfixable tragedy. So here, use the handy-dandy profiles and find your new honey. After all, the information on these profiles is 100% accurate, certified and verified by Mosley himself.
Why would you ever doubt that?
 I've never actually been on a date before. Not that there haven't been offers but I'm just too busy a guy! I think to myself, "Mosley, me, guy who's talking to himself, why won't you go on a date with that nice lady who just asked you out?" And I reply, "Oh, you gorgeous bastard, I'm satisfied with my life as it is already! I don't need love." After all, what is love? Baby, don't hurt me. Don't hurt me. No more.
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PHASE I [ 6 00 ] Gooooood morning, new ViViD compatriots and gamers! You’re not going to get a lot of time to adjust and recover from your sudden retrieval from destroyed and sad code, really, because as soon as you arrive, fresh and new to Cerealia, you’ll be faced with a profile.
Oh, look, it’s your face! And… a quote attributed to you? And your favorite object? Hopefully those details are correct, because there’s no going back now.
You’ve become an otome love interest.
For those who aren’t brand new to ViViD, you’ll be presented the exact same profiles -- but you’ll have to pick one. You know how this works, pick the love interest you want to romance and sweep them off their feet. Better pick the right route too because, haha! You wouldn't want to end up naked and alone in a basement again! That would be crazy. Just pick some rando hottie instead, it's no big.
Or, well, that’s what they say. But then you’re dumped into a ballroom, dressed up to the nines in finery, and surrounded by other milling NPCs. You're given a moment to process the whole situation before a genteel-looking older man who seems to be running this party steps up to the microphone. Gently, he clears his throat, and welcomes everyone to the party ("Haven't been to a party this fine since I had all my teeth!"), and then he gestures to a pile of weapons in the middle of the room and finishes cheerfully, “Anyway, whoever survives can leave this room -- enjoy!”
It looks like the NPCs aren’t messing around; they’re immediately diving for the weapons, so you might want to get a move on.
Welcome to the Cerealia Dating Hunger Games.
PHASE II [ 1000 ] When you burst out of the ball room, possibly covered in the blood of your enemies (your poor dress/suit!), you’ll find yourself in what looks to be a sprawling jungle. In reality, it’s a circular arena, and if you travel far enough, you can reach the walls, though they’re electrified with no way out. If you try to get past them, you’re going to fry yourself before you accomplish anything else! Where's the fun in that?
The bigger problem is this: there are some unfortunate monsters on the prowl (don't they... look a little familiar?) in the jungle, and they are ready and willing to eat up anyone who crosses their paths. They’re drawn to the scent of blood -- and, even more so, the scent of people in love. So hey, if you're in love right now, it might be a good time to run. Otherwise, you're the top target and about to be hunted. Have fun out there, lovebirds!
Meanwhile, the NPCs (or even your fellow player characters?!) are out for blood themselves, so nowhere is truly safe.
Was that... was that a scream for help, or someone coming to get you?
PHASE III [ 1145 ] At some point, you’re going to need supplies. It starts to feel like you’ve been in here for days without any food or water (but that’s weird, wasn’t this ViViD session supposed to be just a few hours -- ) and you’re starting to feel the effects.
So, time to get in touch with your inner man vs wild. There are animals to hunt (deer, rabbit, etc.) and if you can fashion a spear or use a weapon you scooped up in the chaos, you can kill them for food. Alternatively, you can just try stealing some supplies from your fellow players. That's probably a saner option.
Which leaves you sneaking up onto their camp, full of sneakiness, and more sneakiness, and a little bit of stealth, you reach out and...
Suddenly, there are lights on you! Cameras! Cheering, adoring crowds! There's a narrator narrating every step you're taking (loudly) and there are fans hanging on your every move --
Oh, did that wake up the other player and/or bring monsters roaring down upon you? Whoops. The perils of spectator sports like the Cerealia Hunger Games, really.
PHASE IV [ 1400 ] You did it. Someone came at you, and you killed them. Their blood is on your hands, but it’s fine -- it’s just a program in a game.
Right?
Except when you look again, it’s someone you know. The corpse of a person who’s very important to you in so many ways is lying there on the ground, blood still warm but clearly dead. They’re solid to the touch. They’re there, and they look just like that person you care about so very much. Your heart hurts.
And you’re the one who killed them.
Then, without warning, it starts to rain because ViViD is nothing if not good at sensing the mood.
PENALTY [ why o'clock ] So.
You died.
This isn't really that surprising, considering it's the Cerealia Dating Hunger Games. People die a lot in games like these. It's the price of love.
Don't worry, though! It's just ViViD, so it's not like you really died. You'll get reconstructed, good as new, and they'll toss you right back onto the battlefield. Except, well... it seems like something's a little different.
For one thing, you've got claws instead of hands.
You can't seem to speak, either; all you can manage is garbled growls and sharp noises.
And, worst of all... you're really, very intensely hungry, and you can smell blood (or people in love, that's an even better scent).
So yeah, you're one of the monsters now. Don't worry, it only happens the first time you die in this game; if someone valiantly slays you again, you'll come back good as new, a normal person in the Games. What a weird glitch. There's no way that's on purpose or anything, right? No way!
[ 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
Super strength.
[ because her slim physique, honestly, can't explain that. ]
Seriously?!
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A-ah, yes I suppose I am gifted with some strength! [Some strength. Just some.
RIGHT MOMENT IS NOW THOUGH and she throws it at the creature that could easily pick them up and eat them.]
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[ "gifted" is an interesting way to put it. he thinks. he watches the boulder soar through the air and land on the monster with a satisfying, yet likely kind of gross, crunch. one of its limbs twitch from underneath the rock's weight. ... but hey, it doesn't seem like it's going to walk that off anytime soon.
he's stunned. this is a lot to take in. honestly, though, his mind's mostly stuck on her admittance of strength. ]
... What's your training regimen? [ yo dibs on your secrets ]
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But now is no time to dawdle, they should keep moving, so she tugs at his wrist.
Training regimen though?]
Ah...it's--[And she lists the push ups, lunges, punches and other martial art goodies she does to train. It's actually pretty basic for martial arts. No secrets here! (Vietnam your strength is just stupid god)]
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[ no, now is definitely not the time to dawdle. somehow, though, talking about push-ups and other boring exercises keeps him from focusing on the emotions pertaining to the reality of their terrifying situation. but let's not be fooled; he's focused, planning ahead should they have another unfortunate encounter. ]
That's it? [ he doesn't mean for it to sound dismissive, though. ] I mean— Not to say it's not impressive. It is. It just doesn't seem possible...
[ nothing here does!! ]
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She checks around one before moving forward.]
It is why I said I was gifted with some strength. Some is developed, of course.
[It's true though, what makes sense?!]
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[ he halts around the tree, keeping his voice low, ears pricked for any noises of movement that aren't their own. he supposes strength from the gods... could be true. depending on your religious viewpoint. the scientific mind doesn't buy it, though. if the gods favored her, surely they wouldn't be in this situation.
but he attempts biting his tongue against and further skepticism. she basically just saved his life, after all. ]
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[Really, she doesn't know how she came about, anyway. For all she knows, it could be a god. Or some kind.
With nothing happening, they keep moving. If he gets tired, they can rest too!]
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[ "a good idea?!" he thinks that implies it might on occasion be a bad idea, then. he's drilled her enough on it for one day, as fixated as he is on STRENGTH. and thankfully, if there's one thing marco has, it's stamina. MVP of most yards run during a season, right here. who would've thought that particular aspect would come in handy!
his arms fold loosely over his chest. ]
Ah, but might I have my savior's name? [ before they're eaten or something, you know. ]
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[It could be a bad idea because of all the people she beat up, oh. But that's always good, right?! But look at that! His stamina means he's going to SURVIVE.
She turns and bows her head politely to him.] My name is Vietnam! What should I call you?
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[ repeated, a bit blankly. a vietnamese woman named vietnam with super strength. isn't that curious food for thought. the bow isn't returned, but he does nod his head. ]
And thanks for saving me. [ a beat. he badly wants to be talkative, but knows how inappropriate it is for this situation. ] Ah, it's Maruko, but that's a bit too girlish for my tastes.
[ it's a straight-up girls' name, is what it actually is. ]
"Marco" would be much preferred.
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You're welcome, we are all in the same situation here, so we are comrades. I can't just leave you there. It is nice to meet you, Marco. [See, she uses his preferred name!]
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[ keeping his eyes trained for even the slightest unwelcome rusting of brush, his mouth draws into a frown. ]
So, "here"... [ cerealia in general, really, beyond this mess. ] Have you lived here long?
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She stops him for a moment, but it was just the wind.]
A few months. It feels much longer than it is.
[Amy makes fun of the IC=/=OOC days WHOA.]
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[ speaking of holy crap, he visibly JUMPS at the hand that indicates stop— and oh, wind. he's not jumpy at all, shut up. and moving on: that's a long time to be stuck in this place, he thinks. he wonders if she's changed much since arriving, but that's not a question he can ask. ]
You don't believe our homes have actually been destroyed, do you. [ please say no ]
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Yeah, she won't reveal his secret that he JUMPED YOU KNOW, but it's okay. She'll tell him more about this place: It's not all jungle.]
Honestly, I have no idea. I would like to think that it is all a lie. It is better for us to think of the worse case scenario, but I can assure you that there is something very suspicious with our apparent saviours.
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[ gosh, he feels a bit bad drilling her on all these facts... if she's been here months, he's sure she's explained it several times over already. but hey, he's a newbie that's hungry for as much information as he can get. ]
"Very suspicious"— How do you mean, exactly? [ beyond... everything about their world ]
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Well, we're here right now, no? [She points down to the ground, indicating the stage they're in.] It's not really something saviours would do.
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[ that's true, and definitely apparent. his mouth quirks into a quizzical smile. ]
Honestly, I was hoping that was just some nuance of this unfortunate place. [ also known as, perhaps their kidnappers had nothing to do with it! that they had as much control over the environment as their hostages did! ... it's foolishly optimistic, he knows. ] That they weren't as all-powerful as they appear to be... Kaa, that it might be possible to defeat them.
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It is known to happen. That they lose control of this place. Glitches here and there. And well, they could be defeated, we just don't know how. The previous leaders were assassinated. So they are not all powerful.
[She pauses.] I apologise if all of this is too...heavy, for you now.
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[ a previous assassination gives him hope; it tells him that they're mortal. and at her apology, he laughs somehow hollowly. ]
Ah, it had to happen sometime! Why not while we're stranded in the middle of a forest, being hunted down by both humans and monsters? [ he doesn't mean it to sound harsh; it's just the reality of the situation. ] I do appreciate the information, really.
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[That is actually a really good way of looking at it! That they're not all powerful.
She gives an awkward smile.] What an odd place to hold such a conversation. But you're welcome. Once we finished dealing with this place, we can have a proper conversation.