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!
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Iv!
But he's free from that pile of bodies, so eerily lifeless without being "dead". He's already seen a lot of familiar faces, reassuring him that he isn't alone here. And now he's out in the rain, fresh(?) water landing on his face--it may not taste good, but it feels nice.
It's only when he rounds the corner that he stops short, his body recognizing the person in front of him before his mind has time to catch up. This isn't a face he's seen in Cerealia before, but he'd know it anywhere.]
Ichi-nii...?
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He turns round then runs over to wrap his brother in a tight, almost suffocating embrace.] Namazuo!! [He buries his face against Namazuo’s shoulder, trying not to cry.] Y-You’re alive... You’re alive!
ugh dw didn't give me a notif wtf
Ichi-nii...! [Ichigo may fight his tears, but Namazuo doesn't bother to try, clinging like he's afraid this is just another trick of CERES'. He still remembers seeing Honebami strung up, and if that wasn't real, who says this is? He can't be suspicious, though. If it's trick, he's already fallen for it, and he'll deal with the consequences later.] You're really here!
dw is up to its old tricks again!
[Any urge Ichigo had to cry is quickly dispelled when his younger brother starts crying. His entire focus switches to comforting and calming him instead. Ichigo pulls Namazuo even closer and rubs his back in a soothing gesture.]
Yes, I'm here, Namazuo. There. There. Everything is going to be alright.
[Ichi-nii will protect you at all costs!]
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But for now, it's all he can do to bury his face in Ichigo's clothing, taking comfort in his newly-familiar solid form. These bodies are mysterious and terrifying and wonderful, Namazuo has never been more grateful for them.]
I was starting to worry that I'd never see you again. [He mumbles it into his brother's shirt, unwilling to pull away long enough to speak coherently. It's fine, Ichigo will understand him.]
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You won't be able to get rid of me that easily, Namazuo. Now try to pull yourself together. You're one of the oldest after all!
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You're right, I'm sorry. [It's just that Ichigo is one of the few remnants of the past he has left, the only family he's seen in so long--well. No, that's not quite true, is it? Not now that he's come to recognize the rest of swordhaus as family too. Still.] Are you unharmed?
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I am unharmed.
[At least physically. Mentally is a whole other story but not something he wants to burden his younger brother with. He has to be strong for Namazuo and the rest of their family.]
What about you?
[He reaches out to place his hands gently on Namazuo’s cheeks as he delicately wipes his tears away with his thumbs.]
Are you alright?
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I am. I was very surprised to find myself here again-- I didn't think I'd ever left. [For him, it felt like sleeping, or the same kind of darkness the amnesia left behind.] Things are so different now...
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You were here before...? But I didn't even notice you gone back home...
[He still can't really understand how this place works. One moment he was just having breakfast with all his entire family as usual then the next moment he's told their world is destroyed, then he finds him next to corpses of... and how here’s Namazuo telling him all these strange things... It's a lot to process.]
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I was here for several months. It seems I disappeared for a little while, but I don't remember it. It feels like I just slept for a long time. [Kind of like the period before he'd awoken as a spirit, not that he remembers that.] Have you seen any of the others?
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[Which is disappointing, admittedly. He looks dejected for a minute, but then he brightens up again.] But if you're here, then they could come, too!
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