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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Unfortunately, hunger was a bitch, and these weird, disorienting changes weren't helping Yusuke's mood in the matter. Really, all he wanted to do was eat-- why were people making this so difficult? Not that this guy really smelt... well, human, but at this point, he would take any tasty morsel he could get, even if it was mystery meat.
There was a low growl as he began to advance forward, almost like a panther sizing up it's prey. Was he going to make a break for it? Yusuke sure hoped not-- he could barely make proper words come out of his mouth right now, more or less deal with being parched after chasing someone. Better to stop him before he gets ahead.
With a sharp snarl, he bolts towards Hiro (much faster than someone with that sort of hair should move), clawed hands out and ready to sink into his flesh in case he tries to move.]
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So much to Yusuke's disappointment, he's only manages to get air. Meanwhile, Hiro is floating upside down in the air with his legs crossed and there's a rather smug look on his face. He had to give this guy credit, he'd might be able to give Byakko a run for his money.]
And a "Groooooowl" to you too, big guy! [He's not floating too high in the air (since he was afraid of heights). But if he's low enough to be in punching range if Yusuke felt like throwing a jab or two.] I'll call that "Kageyama Teleport". What do you think?
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Yusuke's head whips to and fro, trying to find where his meal ran off to, when Hiro's taunting voice caught his attention. Whirling around, he catches sight of the other boy floating in the air, and his eyes narrow in frustration. He wasn't entirely sure what Hiro was saying to him (it was hard to focus when you were so damn hungry), but he got a vague feeling that it was meant to piss him off. And honestly? He wasn't in the mood to get sass from his snack.
A low growl rumbles from the back of his throat, getting louder and more threatening as he bares his teeth, almost in a sharp grimace. He darts forward again, giving himself a running start before lunging up to where Hiro was, looking to tackle the guy down, or at least get a decent chunk out of him in the process.]
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So as much as he liked talking to people regardless of race.... Being tackled into had proven a wake-up call that he was in a fight and in danger of being killed. Through Hiro was pretty quick with his reflexes after being beaten into the dirt by demons and humans alike. Whenever his back collides into the ground, he doesn't pause a beat to pull his fist back and direct it straight for his gut. Yusuke might go flying back a bit as that certainly wasn't human strength there. There was no need to use the Gravity Factor to boost his strength even more yet.
If Yusuke did go flying off, Hiro will hop right back to his feet with a quick exhale. His eyes are firm and resolve as he's trying to get a feel of his opponent. Fighting with opponents was almost like talking, sort of.]
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There was a brief sense of satisfaction when he drags Hiro to the ground, eager to sink his teeth into his abdomen and see just how this mystery flavor might taste. Before he can get close enough, however, a sharp pain collides with his stomach, causing him to gag before being propelled a small distance away from his prey. He lands with an ungraceful thump, temporarily stunned. How? Sure this guy didn't seem normal-- the disappearing thing, the floating stuff and the weird energy made that pretty obvious-- but not many people, at least not demonic ones, could land a blow quite like that to his person that easily.
Shakily rising back to his feet, panting a little, Yusuke's eyes meet Hiro's, narrowing in consideration. So, just savaging the guy wasn't going to cut it. Fine, he was willing to get a little creative.
Yusuke's hand curled into a fist, starting to glow brighter and bright with a red energy until it was outright pulsing. Without any warning, he dashes forward, seemingly intent on hitting Hiro with said glowing fist-- until he's about a foot away. Diving down, his hand collides with the ground, the energy breaking apart the earth around them and making... quite the sizable crater.
HAVE FUN WITH THAT.]
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--Holy shit! A curveball!
[Literally like baseball. He was expecting a straight and ended up getting a curve. Hiro had to shield his eyes while keeping his balance since there was dirt and dust flying around everywhere. He knew some demons were very primitive and straightforward when they wanted to kill you. Then you had some demons that were actually intelligent and crafty. Green gales of wind form around Hiro's fingertips as he flicks his hand out to unleash a burst of green tinted wind to blow away some of the debris.
Eyesight in battle was very important. Not all of it was blow away, but enough for Hiro to get some decent vision and center his grounding. That wind was also offensive magic, so if it hit managed to hit Yusuke by sheer luck... Then Hiro would've considered that an advantage. Either way, he's coughing a bit as he looks around for his opponent.]
--Man, wish I could get some stats on this guy! [Bringing out the COMP would've helped for getting some weaknesses out from him... But 1) Yusuke didn't look like a demon from his neck of the woods and 2) Hiro didn't really have time to multitask between looking at his screen and his opponent at the same time right now. It's a little quiet before Hiro meekly calls out in a random direction.] Erm... Marco?
[PLEASE LET THIS BE A KIND AND GENTLE POLO.]
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NOPE.
Suddenly, from behind, a fist pulsing with the same red energy lashes forward, aiming to deliver a square blow to the back of Hiro's head!! It would have been sooner, but the wind magic the other boy had cast to clear away the dust had thrown him off-course, knocking him a little away from his prey before he could reach him. It wasn't enough to do anything aside from being an obnoxious set-back, so Yusuke had been able to shake it off and keep with his plan until the time was just right.
Hopefully this worked! Being the descendant of a battle-god of a demon make him more clever at battle curves than the average man-hungry demon, but it was getting obnoxious to put in this effort for some food.]
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The first taste that comes to his mouth is copper. It's been a while since he's tasted his own blood. You'd expect him to be down for the count, but Hiro staggers up with some blood dripping down a side of his mouth and a bruise on his cheek. He simply spits out some blood and wipes off his lip. Well then... It'd start to heal through his deity-alien-whatheiseven body.]
... Damn. Not often that I bleed in my own blood anymore. [His eyes look more serious now.] Alright then. Let's try this.
[It'd be a good time to play around with a new move that he just came up. There was never a wrong time to experiment with attacks... No matter how dorky they looked. Hiro's fists start to glow with a red flame that suddenly shifts into to bright white flame, then he simply starts to punch rapidly through the air towards Yusuke's direction. This wasn't a spell that he used through the COMP, but something more original... He saw this in a manga, okay? DON'T JUDGE HIM.]
Tch... Kageyama... [UHHHH.]... Wild Gatling!!
[In Yusuke's direction will be multiple flaming fist projectiles flying through the air and heading towards him. In his head, Hiro thought that it would effectively cover distance and use speed for power. It probably would've been cooler without the goofy sounding attack name.]
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-- crap. He was getting back up again. What the hell was this guy even made out of? Yusuke wasn't even trying to hold back, either-- he was so intent on taking someone down to feed on them that there wasn't any point going easy on them. Any other time, Yusuke would be intrigued, excited even-- people doing usually get up after a hit like that, at least with just a bruise and some loose teeth.
But not now. Now it was just getting annoying. The scent of his blood was whetting his appetite even further, even if it still smelled somewhat foreign and strange. There has GOT to be a way to put a firmer end to this. With a frustrated snarl, he advances upon Hiro again, the red energy from the earlier punch now filtering down into his single finger. If he can get a shot at him instead...
It was then he caught sight of what Hiro was doing with those flames, and experience had taught him that flaming fists were NEVER a good thing to be on the other side of. Yusuke speeds up, hoping to get to the other guy before he launches his attack, but-- it was a little too late. The flames rush toward him, their speed hitting into him harder than he thought, and he lets out a pained roar as some of the flames singe his flesh and hair. As a last ditch effort, he fires the energy being stored in his finger towards Hiro, hoping to hit him in the chaos. IF HE'S GOING DOWN, YOU ARE TOO.]
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