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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(LAUGHS GROSSLY)
(They're dead.)
Giorno doesn't say a word as he slowly approaches the sight that he had stumbled upon. There was a certain level of preparedness that he had started to develop as he continued on with this place. How many days has it been since they arrived? How many people has he stolen from? It didn't seem to matter—peasantries compared to what he sees now. ]
Fugo. [ Giorno's voice is calm as it normally is, but it sounds also vaguely distant as he approaches with caution. Purple Haze might not have been the one who was the cause of this death (there would be nothing left it were), but he was aware of how closely the two were linked in emotions. ]
That isn't Buccellati.
[ Fuck this game in particular. ]
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...I know that. [It's said somewhat sharply, defensively, as if Giorno had read his mind and he was embarrassed about it.] I know.
[He did, but he still felt guilty anyway. It wasn't about the corpse at his feet (honestly, it didn't matter to him who it was—it never really had), but rather, what it was trying to represent, and... if it was implying what he thought it was, then it didn't feel wrong. He wasn't sure that he could argue it.
But Giorno... He didn't know about any of that, did he? He wasn't sure what he did know, but it's that thought that makes Fugo realize— this doesn't matter. It's not important. Even if Fugo were to talk about it, to explain, he couldn't tell him anything anyway, so... it didn't matter. All that mattered was that Giorno was here now, and he could move on without having to wonder about it.
It takes a moment, but he looks over at him again.]
They must be trying to throw us off.
[And it had worked, even if it wasn't quite in the way they'd intended. ...honestly, he kind of preferred the monsters to this.]
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He...hadn't learned how they died or why it was only himself, Fugo, Mista, and Trish who had survived. Or rather "survived" given what he has "learned" about this place. Just what kind of place briefs over that much information in such a manner all the while trying to seem honest and sincere about it?
Either way, Giorno only gives a small nod. ]
It's an effective tactic. [ There's a moment's pause as Giorno considers the corpse he saw. ] However, if what they said is true when we arrived, they'd be dead anyway.
[ #allmyfriendsaredead.....exceptFugo. ]
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[What was so special about them? They were Stand users, true, but they were far from the only ones. And it didn't explain Giorno's selective memory, either, unless... something had gone wrong with bringing him here?
...no, he didn't know enough. He couldn't come to a conclusion like that just yet.]
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[ If Giorno was capable of seeing things selfishly, he would see why he was brought here—his drive and will to see things through might have been a logical choice when selecting someone who may come to help "fix" all of this. Though Giorno wasn't that selfish and honestly even if he did care to want to help, he'd want to do it under terms he could understand.
Not to mention that thinking would implicate that the others didn't have the same drive as him; a fact that he'll point blank refuse. If there was a reason for them over others then that reason should be expanded. ]
I don't believe we'll find any more answers here or quickly. [ Unless they magically would be extremely forthright with the information after this. ] How have you been getting by, Fugo? Time passes strangely here but it feels as if it has been a while.
I'M MAD BECAUSE THAT TAG DEFINITELY WASN'T WRONG.
[That seemed like a pretty good sign as far as he was concerned. (Of course, he'd come close to having to use it multiple times, but that was beside the point. Maybe he'd just been lucky so far, but it should still count for something.) Even though he thought he had a somewhat better handle on Purple Haze now than he did before, he didn't want to use it if he didn't have to, partly out of habit, but mostly because— he did not know yet what the world outside of this game had waiting for them. He couldn't risk wasting it when he didn't know what else they had to look forward to. Compared to what they'd dealt with back home, nothing here had been that bad yet, but...
Maybe it's because of what happened before, or maybe it's because of what Giorno had done for him recently, but either way, he felt like— he didn't want to mess this up.
Fugo shrugs a little.]
But I think you're right. This is different from last time. How much longer is this going to last...?
[Hopefully not too long, because he's getting real damn tired of these "games."]
I'M LAUGHING
[ Which honestly sounds kind of ridiculous. What in the world were they supposed to do with the "dead body" of the person who they both valued? Giorno had taken on look at his and stepped away—not before turning the ground beneath them into a flower field for them to rest on. In fact if there are a few buds blooming by the body of "Buccellati" then think nothing of it.
At least the ViViD hadn't decided to dump rain of them and Fugo hasn't had to use his Stand, right? Small blessing for that. Giorno might have said the same but he has used Gold Experience's abilities a few times, though the effects of it aren't nearly as deadly. A Stand that stood for life and creation and a Stand that could annihilate anything...
Such a pair. ]
Speaking of which—what did your profile say at the beginning of this?
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Well, thoughts like those weren't going to help them advance.
...but he can't get too comfortable when Giorno asks him that. Honestly, if it had been anyone else who asked, he probably would have flat out refused to answer. Friends don't ask friends questions like that. But because it's Giorno, he'll give him the benefit of the doubt—if anyone could figure out anything about this, it was probably him.]
Why? Do you think it's something important?
[...but he still doesn't straight up admit it.]
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They listed my age to be 211 and said that my favorite item was that I liked towels.
[ Honestly, he doesn't see the link between their profiles and what is before them. It's definitely just useless information that serves no purpose but to humiliate them on some level, but Giorno really couldn't be too sure. With the first room, picking up a weapon, killing, and generally obeying the rules should have been the clear cut ways to advance but Giorno had rejected all of those options and yet he still advanced.
Why would this be different? They clearly weren't going to be mourning. So then, there had to be something else. ...right? ]
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Well, still. It was Giorno, and he'd rather not purposely embarrass himself in front of him like that.]
All they're doing is trying to humiliate us. [Maybe it was meant to be a distraction, to prevent them from reaching the end of this level... That was about the only thing that really made any sense to him right now, to be honest.] They're not even trying to be accurate.
[He's still trying to avoid it!]
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Then perhaps that isn't what we need to look at. [ If there was supposed to be a trigger for this stage to end then it hadn't quite made itself obvious to him and while honestly they could just pick up and walk away....where would they walk to? These games were truly frustrating.
An embarrassing. And just... If there wasn't money to be gained for doing these then why would anyone subject themselves to this? Honestly. Then again, weren't there better ways to gain money? Ways that didn't exploit people in these ways? The more he thought about it, the less it sat well with him. ]
There doesn't seem to be anything else here for us to do. We should see if we can't find the exit to this place.
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He nods at what he says, though. There didn't really seem to be anything left for them to do, although if this was meant to be a distraction...]
Let's watch our backs, just in case. It's strange that they'd show us something like that for no reason.
[It was entirely possible that it might not serve any purpose at all, just like the profiles were seemingly irrelevant, but better safe than sorry. The last thing they needed to do was be caught off-guard, especially now, when they should finally be getting close to the end.
...hopefully.]
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[ A small nod. Though...was the sight they saw really that strange? This entire "game" so far had been about attack people for little reason. Attack someone just because they were "supposed" to attack you in return? That seems so weak. (But don't you worry Fugo, he's going to find out about those "dog collars" and "tool" status one day.) ]
It could be that they were trying to keep ups from moving forward; showing the dead body of someone important is enough to trigger a response where someone might get stuck there.
[ But since they both know what happens to him, it's "easier" not to get wrapped up in those thoughts and sucked there in that spot. Though when he puts it that way, it leaves a bad taste in his mouth. It wasn't as if they didn't matter...
Still yet, with Fugo watching his back, Giorno will keep walking forwards—away from this place. ]
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Of course, Fugo follows him, without even needing to be prompted. Once again, he's frustrated by the fact that there's a goal and yet nothing even vaguely resembling a clear way to reach it. Some game this is, not even dropping any hints about where they needed to go or what they needed to do... He didn't play a lot of games, but seriously, how was this supposed to be efficient?
And not only that... He frowns.]
It's just a bunch of cheap tricks. This really isn't anything but a game to them. How many more times are we going to have to do this?
[It was a complete waste of time.]
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Seriously though, Giorno is just going to keep walking until he finds this stage's exit. There was some sort of log out station to look for, right? He was going to find that and end this charade and sham of whatever this was supposed to be. It couldn't be too far away. ]
Until it stops becoming profitable to them and to us. [ It was sort of an answer and Giorno doesn't even believe his own words right there because he knew it would always profitable somehow to them. If not between Fugo and himself or even with the other people he has met here—then someone else in this place. ]
However, if we're lucky the next time something like this occurs we'll have more of a say of when we can leave.
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Fugo's thinking is very much the same, though. It would be nice to think that this could stop being profitable to them, the ones that were supposedly trying to "help" them, but... Honestly, it didn't seem like anything that had happened to them so far had been done with good intentions. Forcing them into situations like this over and over... He probably wouldn't have thought much of it if they'd been given a choice, but that had yet to happen so far.
Was it possible that things would be different next time...? Maybe it was too soon to really know. His own experiences were limited, after all... But if Giorno could place some hope in that, then he kind of wanted to try to, too. Hope wasn't usually something he had much of, but Giorno just— always had a way of making things work out.]
...maybe. It'd be better if we could avoid it all together.
[There had to be another way... Something that could better accomplish getting the hell out of here and back where they belonged.
But... he shouldn't think too hard about that. He was getting ahead of himself. For now—the exit. That's all he had to focus on.]
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