estoria | //EVENT033.EXE

//EVENT033.EXE

//event033.EXE

What new and wonderful and exciting ViViD level awaits you today? What fun time will you have in ViViD this time? Surely it will be a work of art that CERES has been working on for months and months --

Actually, wait, CERES isn't even around, are they?

Uh oh.

Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzt.

Error: Files Not Found

//SCENARIOS.EXE

PHASE I

[ ???? ] This time, ViViD is a deathtrap.

There is random magma everywhere, monsters will spawn at random, and at some points, the game is entirely unplayable. It’s like the dev team totally disappeared mid-constructing the level.

Oh wait, that’s exactly what happened.

Monsters may spawn on top of you, you may suddenly be standing in a poisonous bog, you may suddenly lose your powers, or your senses, or so many different things --

It’s time to get out of here, ASAP.

Thankfully, the exit is obvious. Like. Blindingly obvious. It’s got a big sign over it that says EXIT

And just like that, you’ll be out of ViViD and --

PHASE II

[ 0830 ] When you wake up (and it’s strange, because you were sure that you were logging out just a second ago), it’s in a pile of bodies.

They’re cold, but not in the same sense that a dead body would be cold. While they are lifeless and look incredibly real, they don’t feel real. They feel like dolls, mannequins, empty models and nothing more. Their code doesn’t seem to be functioning right.

And what some characters may realize upon looking at this pile of bodies is that they are all of the characters who were sacrifices before. Any character that was dropped who had a high magical or spiritual affinity is there in that pile of bodies, lifeless and eyes blank and vacant. Even you might be there, staring at your own dead body -- but it isn’t real It can be touched, but it’s really nothing more than a lifeless body.

You’ll have to crawl out of that pile of bodies to get anywhere, and then you’ll realize -- you’re in the Sanctuary, a building built by the characters as a safe place from CERES. And it’s looking pretty run-down at this point. The technology in it no longer functions, there is no security on it whatsoever…

Oh, and now there’s a pile of bodies. Great.

PHASE III

[ 1000 ] There’s also a robot.

It’s wandering from place to place, though it’s impossible to follow. One second it’s there, the next it’s just gone.

Also, it’s wearing this. Weird.

But even with that on its face, the robot seems focused on one thing in particular. In fact, it has a sign, and it says:

Down with CERES. Up with Robots.

That’s a happy, cheerful message. If you try to go up to it to talk to it, it will look at you before...bonking you on the head with the sign and running off. That’s incredibly rude.

Alternatively, you may be safe and sound in your home, but then the doorbell rings, and there’s the robot again. The duck mask is gone, but now instead it has a pin on his fake lapel, and then he’s shoving a pamphlet at you.

He tips his hat, and then he’s gone. Weird.

(Also, if you hold onto the pamphlet, it will lead you directly to the person whose picture is on it, and you’ll feel like you’ve known them and have loved them for years.)

PHASE IV

[ 1245 ] But not all is fun and games and shenanigans. There is something...well, strange happening, and the first real realization of that will be when it starts to rain. More than just the localized rain that a few unfortunates have dealt with -- no, it’s raining completely and totally, and that’s when it might hit you.

For the first time in Cerealia, there’s weather.

It’ll rain for a few hours, and then it’ll stop and become hot and sunny. It may get humid, considering it’s a jungle planet. At night, it’ll get rather cold.

Seems like whatever was keeping Cerealia’s atmosphere stable is now gone -- which also means that characters may start to occasionally experience headaches, nausea and dizziness if they go too close to the walls. It seems safer in the center of the city, and the Residential District is still okay, but… there’s no doubt that the planet’s atmosphere is starting to encroach on the city.

BONUS

[ why o'clock ] But who cares about all of that? More importantly, you are here in this… totally not shoddy city to have fun, and it’s still being advertised as a pleasure colony. Or, well, it would be if, you know, CERES was still around.

But close enough.

And as a pleasure colony, it would figure that the first robots to really get fixed are...well, the Pleasure District robots. Unfortunately, the Pleasure District is still a nice big mess, so now they’re wandering the entire colony, looking for people they can hug, massage or...try to drag into more explicit activities.

Welcome to Cerealia!

[ 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. ]

//RUN.EXE

Welcome to Cerealia's September intro log! For your convenience, we have compiled the characters' arrival experience here, and should you have any questions, feel free to ask them here! You can also check the FAQ for more general inquiries. Should this event log hit Captcha, there is an all-purpose overflow here. Thank you!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[England can be quite the scoundrel sometimes, but he's almost always a gentleman when a lady is involved. he is happy to keep her dry. or, well, as dry as he can]

I suppose. [he makes a thoughtful hum] I was told it's been a little over a month since I was last seen here. To me, that seems like nothing.

And a month ago....how did things look to you? Well, minus the rain, of course.

Mm, well, the colony was running smoothly... Or, well, I suppose as smoothly as it could with CERES running the place. There were robots working in practically every store, and the trains were running.

I will not lie when I say that happens to be an optimistic outlook. I cannot say I have seen anything of the such in my time here.

[optimistic? him? how interesting]

Really? how long have you been in the colony?

A few weeks, at the most. But not much of what you have mentioned has ever existed here for me.

I see. So you were not here when CERES was around?

Allow me to say that whatever was here when I arrived did not stick around long enough for me to sorely miss it. Though I will admit that I am used to working without much of the pleasures of technology.

[hm. he nods, mulling over her answers. an awning is close by, and it could shield them from the rain, so England starts heading over that way]

Ah, forgive me for switching the topic here, but we were not properly introduced. My name is...

[a pause, and England contemplates giving his human name, as he usually does. but then, he wonders what the point of hiding it anymore is. he'd been so concerned about it before, but now, in the state everything is in, it seems like it doesn't matter]

...England.

I see. It is a pleasure, England.

[Angela isn't one to question names. Even if they seem weird. Then again, she has seen a lot of weird stuff while here. She is more than happy to follow, though.]

I am Angela Zeigler. Or Dr. Ziegler if you prefer.

[they reach the awning just in time. England's papers are soaked. he tosses them in a nearby waste bin]

Dr. Ziegler, well met. [she doesn't seem too concerned about his name. maybe England does not exist in her world] May I ask what you are a doctor of?

That's quite a broad question. I have run a hospital, been a combat medic, and a head medical researcher. As of now and even during my latest time back home, I have been the type of doctor that travels to less fortunate areas of the world and provides assistance in any way possible. For free, of course. I would never charge for my work.

[his eyes widen with each passing statement. wow!]

Incredible! That's quite the list of accomplishments. I swear, I've met so many fascinating people during my stay here.

While I appreciate your enthusiasm, I would hardly call it incredible. I was simply doing my job. You sir, have probably done more than myself.

[England smirks at that and then looks out at the rain] I cannot argue with that, I'm afraid. I have lived quite a long time.

Is that so? Perhaps you and I can sit down to a beer one day and discuss it.

[beer! what a good] I'd be up for that. Maybe after I settle back in.

Take your time, there happens to be no rush. How about we find where you used to stay, as a start?

Oh, that's a good idea. It was in the residential district. [if that even is still a thing]

That happens to be where many still live so we can thankfully go there.

[Unless something drastic happened rather recently, which she hoped not. She ran her clinic out of her own home, which would be bad.]

Thank goodness. You never quite know with this place. One time, there was a flood so severe that it actually washed away peoples' homes. They had to rebuild the entire district!

That sounds like quite the disaster, especially for a place this size. Entire countries have issues recovering from such things, I cannot imagine a small colony like this having an easier time.

It was strange... CERES had the robots rebuild the district, but they did it in record time. Actually, I've always felt it was a mite suspicious.

Suspicious of what? How fast the work was done? If you are worried about shoddy construction, I can at least say all the buildings are still there.

Mm... [a thoughtful hum, but then England shakes his head] It's not important. As long as they are still there, that is what matters. In any case, I should be able to find my way back. I don't want to keep you if you were heading somewhere.

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