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. ] |
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Either way, she gives him a nod and gestures for the direction to start out in, ultimately not leading from the front so much as the side. Otherwise it'd feel too much like actually leading him around, which makes her think of the bath house, and she'd prefer not to at the moment. Helping out and good customer service are different things. She's helping him out, like so many did with her when she first arrived. Or who continue to do so even now. ]
Izumi-san, what's your favourite colour?
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Color? [ He hums. ] I don't have a favorite, exactly, but black and red go pretty well together, don't they? I don't mind light colors, either.
[ Pink is great, too. They're talking about this, because of clothes, right? He's never thought too hard about what he throws on. ]
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Black and red go together well. Especially with some gold, too.
[ Literally speaking what she thinks... save us all. ]
We'll find something that looks nice and will keep you warm. I kind of have an idea of how to do this by now.
[ By "do this" she means "put together an outfit for someone that's not hideous to look at." Granted, that's by her standards, and since she has Kashuu in mind, it also means a well covered and bundled Izumi if she ends up picking things out and putting him in layers. ]
We'll want to cross the street here! It's another block down on that side.
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Izumi crosses the street with Chihiro at his side as bidden, pleased that chatting has made the walk go faster. The way she's talking, she seems more into the idea of clothes shopping than him (because he'd honestly just grab what's on the top if it were up to him). ]
Oh? Does that mean you're gonna find me an outfit?
Considering the humidity right now, though, being warm isn't that big of a deal.
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She makes a thoughtful noise in the back of her throat before answering. ]
I'll try! Kashuu would be better suited to it, but I'm sure he's busy.
[ She's not going to ask any friend to come help if there's not an express reason. Largely it's because she presumes they're all busy with their own tasks; how accurate that is may be a matter of some debate. ]
I... yeah, you're right. [ The fact he is has different problems attached. Ones she doesn't fully understand. ] Only I don't know if that's for the better. It's a jungle we can't survive in outside the city, so the humidity makes sense if it's coming in now. You're okay with shorts?
[ Say it's not good, say it's a jungle, then jump to shorts. Hard to tell what she considers to be a priority, but she's not a clear historian without being asked. Once they hit the storefront, she trots on forward and pulls it on open. She doesn't trust the automatic door that slides open at the same time to her right. ]
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Izumi is not as much a fan of shorts as he is jeans, the latter of which would make more sense to him in a jungle for a number of reasons. He's also not a fan of menial labor, and is this close to approaching the automatic door when he notices that Chihiro has ignored it completely; manual door, it is. He'll hold that door open for her.
Compared to the terrible humidity of outside, the inside of the store is downright heavenly – perhaps even a little chilly in his damp clothes. ]
Finally! I prefer jeans, but let's see what they've got.
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[ More lack of context, but if one teenage boy wears jeans, there is apparently room to believe there's a jean supply in store. She nods her head to him as a quiet thank you when he holds open the door, registering it because she'd expected he may use the automatic one. It's relieving when he doesn't. Robots are coming back on line... what if the automated systems start rebelling again? ]
Guy's pants... Should beeeeeee back over that way!
[ She heads off in her beeline direction toward the part of the store that looks like it has something like jeans on display. Truth told, who knows if they're men's jeans or women's jeans or trying for unisex. It's not like the colony hadn't catered to a wide pool of clients over its existence. ]
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At the very least, the jeans on display are probably not children's. Whether they're a specific gender's jeans or for unisex, Izumi is pleased enough to be one step closer to being dry (and less smelly). He hovers around one of the tables with neatly folded jeans, appraising the many colors in which they come. ]
All right, dry pants! I'm going to take a look around. Chihiro-chan, why don't you browse for yourself, too?
[ Because waiting around while somebody shops for their own stuff is boring, and there's going to be that point where he browses the other stuff. ]
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By the time she's bringing back tanktops and button-ups in a variety of shades (purple striped, one seafoam green, another in red and black plaid) she also has a rain poncho in hand. It's just at that time where she feels something misting around her, spurring her into bolting to Izumi to shove what she'd picked out at him with a hurried: ]
Here!
[ Because misting rain around her has the potential to become its own downpour, and while she accepts that to degrees she's going to be raining on every parade, they're probably trying not to shove him in new wet clothes? Which leaves her trying to run off again to get a few meters between them, while likewise seeing if she can find any more open space to minimize the clothing damage...
... there aren't many places in a clothing store to fit that bill that aren't the fitting rooms. ]
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[ Dropping the t-shirt in his grasp, Izumi finds himself suddenly burdened with way more clothes than he was expecting. Then Chihiro bolts, and he stands like a lost idiot wondering if he's not supposed to go after her and what he's going to do anyway with so much luggage – there's even a poncho here.
For the lack of anything better to do, he calls her name across the store. Volume control, what is that. ]
You okay?
[ Does she need to use the toilet? An emergency number two? ]
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I'm okay!
[ She shouts back, getting the clerk to glare out at the both of them to no decided resolution (summoning up the energy to care is difficult when shouting is more noise pollution than wrecking the store). ]
I don't want to rain on you!
[ Which clarifies approximately nothing.
With the end growing muffled as she ends up sequestering herself away in one of the dressing rooms. Bathrooms weren't a bad idea, but usually were hidden away as "employee only," so she was pulling her raincoat hood up and standing up off the floor, the walls of the dressing room keeping her raincloud contained.
... Slowly, water pools and runs out of the one dressing room toward the others. Even more slowly, that water starts to edge out into the store proper... a sad, snaking trail sourced out of the steady sound of a tiny enclosed downpour.
... Got plenty of time to get around to those things with arms full of way more than he bargained for. ]
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Those parting words about the rain do nothing for Izumi, who spends the next few minutes finding a carrier into which he can dump his baggage. Then it's time for those things, and it's right after that that he hears the faint splash before seeing the water when he steps on the growling pool.
He follows the water to the dressing room, where he leans his ear against the door. ]
Chihiro-chan? Is that you in there?
[ Leaking really badly? Because if so, there's nothing to be ashamed of. Everyone has a phase . . . ]
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Izumi-san? [ Splish splash while the sound of water falling keeps on going. She opens the door just enough to peer out with one eye.
... Which is too much. As soon as she's allowing more free space, it starts raining outside the door. ] Have you found everything you need?
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Yeah, but what's with all this water? It's not coming from you, is it?
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That started happening in the last two weeks. Each of the code-born is tied to an element. Mine's water.
[ She pulls her hood a little further forward. ]
Sorry. You'll probably figure yours out... if it's fire, we should get you an extinguisher.
[ #helpful ]
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Since you're raining water, does that mean people associated with fire are bursting into flames?
[ That sounds dangerous. Maybe Izumi should carry an extinguisher whether he's bound to fire or not, because someone else might explode. ]
Is there a way to guess before something happens? [ Wait, you know what – the bigger problem at hand right now is the flooded dressing room. ] The rain has to stop at some point, right?
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[ That's a no to guessing beforehand. ] Not really. I mean, no, people don't know before unless they've been here long enough to remember being taken to the jungles. And the people with fire light things on fire nearby, but not themselves.
[ Even as she explains that, her own rain cuts out with an abruptness that makes the silence that follows stark by comparison. She holds out her hand, feeling for water droplets, then opens the door a little wider. ]
... Yeah! It comes and goes.
[ She offers a smile, relieved the most recent indoor shower is done. ]
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Then it's no wonder you're dressed like that.
[ Somehow, there's a sense of camaraderie . . . They have a mutual predicament related to water. It's silly, but that's why he can smile back. ]
Are you all good to go? I'm done browsing.
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[ His inner pyromaniac is showing... (though it would be cool; then again, she thinks voluntarily controlled magic is pretty neat when not used to harm or intimidate others for no purpose past being mean.)
She nods, pulling her hood back and carefully stepping through the puddled water to move back out into the hall. ]
Mm! I'll tell the clerk about the water...
[ Glancing back at the water and the soaked room, she pauses. ]
... maybe after you check out.
[ Which is her own prelude to shaking off her feet and hopping over the running river of water to dance back out to the main room, beelining for the counter. Nothing strange about soaked people overall, right? Weather's come to Cerealia in a big enough way it shouldn't be notable. As it turns out, the clerk is apathetic enough to their situation to barely blink, more glad the two of them stopped yelling than noticing one's more damp now than when she entered the store. ]
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I'll change at the laundry. There should be one nearby, right?
[ Now to break the news and see if the clerk even cares . . . Who knows; maybe their priorities will be that screwed up. ]
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Mm, not in this part of the city, so much? Closer to the Residential District there is. You can probably use one of the public restrooms, though.
[ Those are still fairly clean. Automatic cleaning systems staying online can help with those little details. Regardless, Chihiro lifts her chin and squares her shoulders, looking properly at the clerk. ]
The dressing room's flooded. I'm sorry, it was kind of...
[ She trails off before saying the my fault, as the clerk has given a longsuffering sigh and stared dully between the both of them. ]
I'd really appreciate if you'd both just leave now.
[ ... she nods, quiet, and with a glance over at Izumi, turns and heads for the doors, leaving damp footprints behind her. She's not quite sure what to make of that reaction, considering she hadn't even gotten to the part where she admitted it was her fault.
... Nor does she know what to make of things when, after they leave the store, the lights go out and the OPEN sign flashes over to CLOSED: RETURN AFTER BRINNER. ]
I think they took that well?
[ Her face says she's absolutely unsure of this. ]
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Well, they're not charging us for the damages, so I'd say that's mission accomplished.
[ Is that a sign of professionalism on the clerk's part? Izumi, however, doesn't dwell on the question for long, as he feels the sweltering heat of the humidity hitting him like a sledgehammer. He wishes he can run back inside where it's cool. ]
Now that we've got what we came here for, let's go find a public restroom.
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Mm! There's one over this way.
[ She pulls her ponytail out of her hood and heads down the street, turning left instead of crossing the road once she gets there. The signs of destruction from weeks earlier are still readily apparent, including having a vehicle halfway through a wall, but Chihiro barely blinks. This is just how it is anymore. Even more strange, when it's still so bereft of any signs of life that weren't humanoid or alien in appearance. No animals, no insects, just... urban decay. ]
It's that round building down the way. The signs look a little funny, but that whole one's for everyone to share.
[ She shrugs. She's not used them often, but they're clean and act like... a public restroom? ]
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Nodding, Izumi stops once they're at the entrance of said "public restroom" and looks over his shoulder at Chihiro. ]
I'll be out in a sec.
[ Because he's so eager to feel less gross, he's going to move fast. It's difficult to do so, however, when his current clothes are sticking to him like nobody's business. After managing to peel various articles of wet clothing off, he pulls on the new, topped by the seafoam green shirt that Chihiro had shoved onto him earlier. It's humid right now, so he doesn't put on outer wear.
New clothes don't do anything for the clammy feeling of his skin, but it's a start. He packs what he's taken off and comes back out. ]
Much better! Okay, are we ready to go?
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Or at a drop of water into the countless puddles that slowly drain out on the roads. ]
You look nice!
[ She says, partly polite, but more because she means it. She's biased to the seafoam green. Plus, people who aren't miserably dressed tend to look better than those who are when she hasn't developed a healthy sense of schadenfreude. ]
Ready! Though which place did you want to hit up first?
[ Laundry facilities, apartments, food, anything but the CERES tower or the god shrines... unless he wanted to visit those. She rolls up onto the balls of her feet, tucking her hands behind her waiting for his answer. She's been modifying behaviours to be more people pleasing over her time here, lacking too many steadying forces to mitigate the tendency. (If anything, most her friends respond well to it, and so she perpetuates the cycle; not an altogether bad thing.) ]
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