You know what everyone needs after rampant robotic attacks and another iteration of clone wars? A vacation! That’s right everyone, you deserve this. CERES understands what you need. CERES is here for you all the time, so never doubt that this is a pleasure colony, and they are here to look after all of your needs. Kick your feet up, relax, and let CERES Recreation and Activity Necessity Keepers (Team RANK, that is) set you up with your ideal getaway.
It’s as if you can sense the incoming relaxation and luxury before you even completely finish loading. There’s the warmth encompassing your entire body as your code gets transferred into this particular ViViD Level. A cool, refreshing breeze hits you. The sounds of waves gently lapping against the coast fill you with relaxation. The sun, the sand, the surfs, it’s all there – welcome to the beach, baby!
An echoing greeting message from the ocean comes next, if you can translate it.
 OOOOOOOOOOOOHMAHH GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHD.
YOOOOOOOOOOOORRRALL SOOOOOOOOOOOOO KYOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT.
KYOOOOOOOOOOOT EEEENAAAAUUUUUUUF TOOOOOOOOOOOOO EEEEEEEEEEEEEEET.
|
PHASE I [ 08 00 ] That said, isn’t that breeze a little… too strong? It feels like it’s brushing up against all of you, if you know what I mean. When you open your eyes and look down, it becomes rather clear why. It seems that you’ve found yourself in some pretty interesting attire. Everyone. No exceptions. You appear to have two options – be overcome and scream like the Victorian maiden your heart says you are, or strut like a model in this stuff. Turn some heads! Work that up do!
But don’t worry, we’re also conscious about safety here at CERES! Therefore everyone’s also been provided a pair of super high-tech safety-tested appendage protection floatation devices (STAPFD for short.)
At least everyone around you is caught in the same sort of attire – and everyone around you also appears to be stuck inside a giant sand castle. It’s entirely malleable to what you want it to be! Want to see a fancy sand bidet? Feel like adding a sand statue in your honor? Think that wall should now be a door? Well, with enough perseverance, you can make it happen!
Just uh, be careful about getting sand in your… everywhere.
PHASE II [ 1000 ] Someone broke it. Not pointing any fingers, even though you sure do seem like a prime suspect, but someone broke it.
It almost starts like an earthquake with how the castle starts to rumble, the sand shaking right beneath your feet. And then the walls right next to you start to cave in followed promptly by the ceiling right… above your head. Oh dear. The sand starts to run and fall, losing its structure and shape. The hallway behind you starts to cave in, ceiling first and then the walls follow suit. Now the sand really is getting everywhere – but not just uncomfortable places. It’s in your hair, your eyes, your nose…. this sure doesn’t seem like a pleasant way to go!
Best to start running – there’s a trusty drawbridge to get over the moat (because what’s a sandcastle without a moat?) but who knows how long until that, too, is going to give way? Best to cross over it before it starts to shake and disappear too. Or if you don’t make it, hopefully you can land some pretty impressive airtime to make it to the other side!
If not, well...there'll be the sensation of sand crushing down upon you, filling your mouth and eyes, and you won't be able to breathe at all – and then you're alive again on the beach (but possibly in yet another new, uncomfortable, skimpy swimsuit). Honestly, be more careful, would you?
PHASE III [ 1200 ] However, once you do make it to the other side, it’s all smooth sailing from there! Or is it? Hah, as they say, life sure can be a beach.
Which is what this is.
Welcome to your Beach Episode, folks. Now that you’ve made it out of the collapsing sand castle, you’ve made it to the luxurious, picturesque golden coastline. Sure, you’re coughing up fine, luxurious, sand dust right now and you’ve definitely gotten sand in all of your crevices thanks to your swimsuit, but that’s okay! Go take a soak in the ocean or something or cool off with a smoothie. There’s a smoothie shack off into the distance, complete with a long chalkboard with… well, probably a few familiar names? And some unfamiliar ingredients. Sounds appetizing right?
That said, once you do ingest some of the smoothie with the name of a newcomer, you might suddenly find yourself feeling a bit… different. You’ll be taking on some of their traits, one of the most intense parts of their personality – or you might need to take a second to sit down because you’re suddenly seeing one of their memories. Whoa. What do they actually put in this stuff?
PHASE IV [ 1500 ] For the brave souls that venture out into the water, you have even more adventures waiting for you. Anyone who’s swimming around, wading in the water—hell, even looking at the water is getting scooped up and deposited in one of these giant orbs. But don’t take up too much room, because someone else is getting shoved right in there with you. Time to get cozy with your new friend, because it's only going to get worse as the waves begin to carry you out into this big, blue, virtual ocean. Hopefully the choppy waves don’t bounce you around too much or – well, you could always get really friendly with a stranger! Why not?
At least until it’s made very clear that fresh air does not make it back into these balls. That seems like a bit of a design flaw. Now what? Fight the other person who’s inhaling all your air? Suffer through it for swimsuit-clad fun? Or if you break it…. well, you sure are stranded out in the ocean. Or are you?
After enough flailing, you’ll be met by a giant, dumb-looking creature who will then eat you whole.
Everything goes dark. This is surely the end --
And then you're in Cerealia proper; it seems that was the exit to the level (but why there?) and you'll find yourself either in one of the fountains or the pond in the park. Either way, you'll be very, very well. And this time, that's not virtual. But hey, at least you'll have all of your stuff with you.
BONUS [ xxxx ] Do you hear that?
Anyone idle on the beach will hear a distant melody coming from further out into the ocean. It’s a beautiful, elegant song that automatically makes the listener stop what they’re doing and immediately wander toward the noise. It takes you a moment to recall – it takes a moment to think about anything now, really – but you remember hearing the smoothie shack owner say something about mermaids populating the beach. Could this be their song calling out to you? Whether you would normally abide by this kind of call or not, you find your feet walking further and further out into the water, the shallows lapping up to your ankles and up and up as you are drawn in by the song.
A rather classic song, though the usual instances of French are also replaced with the very enticing, enchanting nonsense promise of omelette du fromage........and then they try to drown you.
[ 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. ] |
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
no subject
SO, in the interest of not grossing himself out, grossing this stranger out, and making their journey even worse than it already is, he just nods and claps a hand over his mouth for a few seconds.]
Ugh... Y'know, this is my first time even being in the ocean properly at all. Everyone talks about how great it is, but this is the worst!
[Normally people don't get shuttled into hamster balls either, but how can he be sure!!]
no subject
I've never had a chance to swim in the ocean either.
However, from my understanding, this isn't a typical occurrence! Maybe next time will be better.
[Basically, they're both screwed unless they're saved by the Giant Doofy Whale of Yore.]
['Saved'.]
[In any case, it seems like the ball has steadied enough (for now) to allow for them both to regain their bearings as best they can. What better time for introductions? So Lavellan holds out a hand in as polite a handshake as she can pull off while the waves gently rock their bubble.]
[You know. In the middle of the ocean.]
[...She's not the best at timing.]
Inquisitor Lavellan, at your service.
May I ask for your name as well, friend?
no subject
[HE HUFFS AND PUFFS ANYWAY THOUGH just because he wants to actually experience the nice, normal version of these things CERES throws at him! He just wants a normal day at the beach! A normal first Christmas!! No hamster balls or murderous chainsaw santas or really awful smoothies, just good clean family fun...!
But he'll have to wait for another time for that, apparently...
On the plus side, with the bubble not rocking as violently, he doesn't feel quite as sick anymore! That may just be some passing nausea anyway, which his dumb ass is afflicted with because of eyechip shenanigans.]
I'm Kashuu - Kashuu Kiyomitsu. [He reaches out for her hand, giving it a good shake!
Or, you know. As much of one as he can manage when he's still trying to stand upright and has a hand on the side of a bubble.]
I'm difficult to handle, but my performance is top notch. Good to meet you! ...Eh, except for the whole stuck in the middle of the ocean thing.
no subject
[This is their lives now.]
You sound like a handful of my friends back home, Kashuu.
[The home that she'll totally make her way back to in no time because there's no way that destruction nonsense is true!!!]
If it is all right to ask, have you been trapped here for long?
[A pause.]
...In this place overall I mean, although I suppose the bubble counts as well.
no subject
I hope that's a good thing. [Little does he know one of her friends is that PUNK, HAWKE... But the rest that he's met, he's cool with. This works! This is fine!]
Anyway, even like, five seconds in this stupid bubble is way too long. ...But yeah, I guess you could say I've been here for a pretty long time, too. Like, definitely over half a year by now, I think? But there are some people who've been around for a year or more.
[Why is he always the one delivering that awful piece of news, that's what he wants to know.]
no subject
[She smiles again in reassurance--but don't call her buddy Hawke a punk, u punk.]
[But what's more important is the year-long time frame that Kashuu's mentioned. That doesn't sound right!!! Unless--]
Has nobody been negotiating for our release? I'm sure if we speak to the right people, we'll find that this has all been one huge misunderstanding.
I mean, from what they've said upon my arrival, it sounds like they want well for us, so it cannot be impossible for us to speak with someone about leaving.
no subject
THAT SAID-- Goodness, sometimes he forgets what it's like to talk to people who aren't already jaded by CERES and its constant stream of tomfoolery. He pulls his ponytail over his shoulder, fussing with it a little as he talks in an absentminded gesture.]
Yeeeah, about that. They definitely don't actually care about us. No matter who you talk to you're gonna get the same answers, too, which are probably gonna be lies. They don't think we're important enough to know what's really going on here or whatever, so we're pretty much on our own in trying to find a way back. That's why it's taking such a long time, y'know? So many things are working against us and without any outside help, we kinda have a bad time. Even trying to find outside help is hard, so.
[It's just consistently A Struggle.]
no subject
[Or punked. That one's more likely.]
[Lavellan listens to Kashuu's explanation with rapt attention, breaking her gaze only to reach out and grasp at the bubble walls in a bid for steadiness. Makes it kind of hard to have a serious conversation, but she'll give it her best.]
That's unacceptable behavior on their behalf! If they're housing us, then it is their responsibility to ensure our well-being until we can return home, which we have every right to do.
Is there any contact allowed between ourselves and a person in authority?
no subject
Well, yeah, but it's pretty much useless. You can call Bellona - she's the new CEO, but no one's gotten anything good from her so far and she'll probably redirect you to Mosley. He's kinda this wildcard... Some people think he's okay to trust and some are pretty wary, still.
[Kashuu's in the latter group, if only because his biases last for miles.]
I can send you a link to the file that's got all of this stuff in it once we get outta here, if you want.
no subject
Understood. I'll be sure to try and get in touch with Bellona as soon as possible. Thank you very much for the information.
[Which may not be very soon at all, recent events considered.]
[Kashuu's words earn a confused blink. Link? File? That must be local vernacular for something. But what? And why does it sound so fancy?]
That won't be necessary. A letter sent to my new place of residence will suffice.
[There! That'll be much easier to do than some link and file nonsense!]
no subject
[Not that he's really done much for her, considering how absolutely unhelpful the CEO and Mosley tend to be, ah... WELL, HE SURE TRIES.
That said, he gives her A Look for a second before realizing - ah. This must be one of those people from a place and time far removed from texting... HE UNDERSTANDS, being over 500 himself! But boy it sure is hard to tell who's from where without the clothes being a give-away.]
Oh— That's basically what texting is! It's like a letter, but you get it instantly. Pretty convenient, right?
no subject
[Kashuu's explanation leads Lavellan into a blinking fit as she tries to wrap her head around the concept.]
I think I understand what you're saying.
But I've never heard of such magic outside of a sending crystal, and even that doesn't pass along written words.
no subject