//SCENARIOS.EXE
PHASE I [ xx xx ] So you've all just been dropped off at the venue and now it's time to get some food in you. After all, as any of Cerealia's professional models will be able to tell you, standing under the lights and looking pretty is a whole lot harder than it looks! You're definitely going to want to keep your strength up. But don't worry about paying, because this meal is on the house. Eat as much as you like. It's buffet-style, and anything that runs low will be refilled by friendly robots in a timely fashion.
Also on the house is treatment from the colony's various appearance professionals. Makeup artists and hairdressers will have their time to shine as they primp and polish 'til you glow with pride, and representatives from various boutiques and clothing stores, as well as professional fashion designers, will be on hand to ensure that you look your best!
Don't be surprised if, while you're waiting to get started, a dark-clad figure in a hood sidles up to you and dumps a letter or two in your lap! These are letters from your adoring public (yes, even the new arrivals have quite a devoted fanbase), and they range from cute to creepy. ...how did that messenger even get in, anyway? Maybe the way they seem to melt into the crowd and disappear when you blink has something to do with it.
PHASE II [ xx xx ] Now it's time to get down to business! Business, of course, being getting your picture taken by these overly-enthusiastic photographers. ...do some of them look like cats? That's got to be your imagination. Blink and they'll look normal, promise.
The photographers are interested in catching as many shots of the various visitors to the colony as they can possibly get, so don't be surprised if they pair you up with people you don't even know just because they think you look cute together. The poses they'll put you in will range from normal to outright risqué, so here's hoping you and your new buddy don't feel awkward together!
Midway through the shoot, one of the volunteers will run into the room very excitedly, wheeling a cart full of animal carriers behind him. Some of the things he's brought along are harmless CYBuddies, because what photoshoot isn't made cuter by including adorable animals, but some of the others are... let's just say CERES probably won't be too happy once they hear that someone's brought alien life forms into the colony. In all fairness, some of them are actually quite cute, like the aquatic creature that manages to float itself around in a sphere of water and the multi-tailed fox with glowing purple eyes, as well as the... Well, no one's really sure what this thing is, not even the person who brought it, but it's cute enough. Others, on the other hand, are just entirely bizarre, but to each their own.
Feel free to chat up the others while you're waiting for your turn, to play with the animals, or to try and escape. Those who try and duck out the back will eventually be tracked down by a volunteer or a robot that will try to either bribe or kidnap them into continuing with the shoot, though! Maybe you and a friend can team up to figure out a way past them? Or you could just be on good behavior and let them take your picture.
...a word of caution, however. No matter how often the photographers urge you to do so, do not look directly into the camera. Characters who do will be rendered unconscious (those with spiritual sensitivity will actually be able to tell that they've been rendered soulless, though characters that already lack souls to begin with will still be rendered unconscious) for five minutes in the first instance and five minutes plus one minute for every instance thereafter (six minutes for a second time, seven for a third, and so on). Should they reach the point where they would be knocked out for a period of ten minutes, the photographer will try to leave the building. You will want to stop them. If you don't, your character will remain unconscious until the dawn of the next day and will be transported to the CERES medical center. If other characters manage to keep the photographer from leaving, your character will wake up after ten minutes as normal. Feel free to NPC these encounters yourselves if it comes to it; the mods will not be doing so. It's up to you whether the photographer escapes or not.
PHASE III [ xx xx ]
Uuuuuuh-oh. Whoever thought it was a great idea to bring in all those alien creatures is probably going to get fired, because one thing has led to another and now they're on the loose. What's more, those of them that can do so have taken on decidedly more threatening appearances, and more than a few of them seem to be out for blood.
In the chaos brought on by their outbreak, a second wave of photographers will make their way into the building. They're more aggressive in their attempts to have the characters look right at them when they take their pictures, and will absolutely try and gang up on them to hold them down and turn their heads to force them into having their pictures taken over and over again. These shots will have the same effect as being directly photographed during the photoshoot, but fighting back against them is okay - in fact, the volunteers and photographers who organized the shoot will actually do their best to help you fight the paparazzi off. This sort of aggression is not condoned by the locals who love you, after all. Should your character be rendered unconscious for ten minutes, anyone who attempts to stop the paparazzi from absconding with their soul will be assisted by the official volunteers for the photoshoot.
...of course, if your character is managing to hold their own, they'll just hang back and photograph the fight. Why waste a good opportunity for candid shots? After all, you're the people who are going to be restoring your own worlds and subsequently protecting theirs from the Flamines! Why wouldn't they want to document it every step of the way?
PHASE IV [ xx xx ]
The paparazzi has been successfully expelled, the photoshoot has been finished up, and as if by magic (okay, no, it's just technology), they've actually managed to produce the prototypes for the various merchandise that will be sold around the colony. Isn't that exciting? You've all done a great thing here today, the volunteers will tell you. Now just sit back, relax, and let them make up for all the trouble.
Admire the calendars, books, and prints you're all appearing in! Or, you know, you can also wonder why ghostly images of people who aren't even there are showing up in some of the pictures you've taken. If you took a picture with just one other person, you might see a third person there, posed perfectly to go along with you! It's almost like the photographers were able to see them all along, but that's not possible, right? They won't always be there, either. You can see it and someone else can see it, but if you look away for too long and then look back, the picture will look just the way it should have based on how you took it. Huh. Weird.
Anyway, enjoy the lavish banquet the volunteers have prepared to thank you for all your hard work! You've done a fantastic job and they really want to express their gratitude. If there's any particular food you like, chances are it will be there. (Don't ask how they knew what you like.) While you're eating, another black-clad messenger might appear and give you even more fanmail than you might have received before the shoot - apparently people have been watching, and this has really boosted your popularity! You're developing quite the fanbase. The dinner crowd's fanmail definitely ranges more along the "creepy" side of things, though some of the notes actually will be cute and innocent expressions of admiration.
The security has been stepped up considerably for the meal, so the paparazzi won't be able to get in (though you can certainly hear them trying). At the end of the night, the volunteers will offer to escort you home, and should you take them up on their offer you'll make it home safely and be unbothered by the paparazzi at your place of residence. Try and go home alone, though, and the paparazzi will stalk you until sunrise, even going so far as to try to break into your room.
BONUS [ why o'clock ]
It seems like your devoted fanbase has gotten a little out of hand! At any point during the log - even during the chaos surrounding the animal outbreak and paparazzi attack - you might just be approached by a robot. A robot that loves you so much, it's going to take you away from all of this. This robot will wax poetic about its undying love for you and how it's going to make sure that the two of you can be together forever and no one will ever be able to take you away from them.
It will then proceed to do its best to kidnap you. Maybe there's some kind of a glitch in its program, because it's not gentle about it at all! And if you try and escape, it'll definitely get violent. Try to run away and it might just have to break your legs so you can never leave it behind. Try and fight it off, and it'll do its best to incapacitate you so it can drag you off, put you on display, and take super good care of you.
These robots are incredibly sturdy, but the more technologically-inclined may be able to reprogram them into being less creepy and more helpful if they can get to the control panel on its back. Fight hard enough, or avoid it for long enough, and eventually its battery will wear down and you'll be safe. If you can't fight or run, you'd better hope someone who can will come along and help you...!
[ Remember to apply proper warnings on threads with trigger-y 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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THE LATEST OF THEM ALL and open!
[Mia's not really one for getting her photo taken at the best of times, especially not when she's surrounded by unsettling photographers and being made to feel like she's on display.]
No, really, I don't want to be photographed- look I said no! I'm not consenting to this.
[There are far, far more pressing concerns to be dealing with, and even when the cute animals start to come out of the boxes she's getting the distinct impression that something's not right here.
Especially not when the room suddenly starts to feel really, really weird. It's been a long time since Mia's paid an active interest to matters of spirits and any form of channelling, but something isn't right in the room and as she turns around to look for an escape, she finds herself staring directly at a camera and then-
POP goes the flashbulb.
Mia topples to the ground, unconscious.]
(iv)
[It doesn't matter how grateful the hosts are, or how lovely and glossy the publications look with their artful photography, Mia's had it up to here with all of them and is looking for something stronger than a soft drink. She's not a big drinker but boy oh boy does she feel like she could use one.
Especially given the fanmail, and the number of requests for her to appear in some more 'specialist' material. Has she ever considered topless modelling?
Mia rips that letter up before she finishes reading it. It's unnervingly sticky.]
Seriously, who or what do these people take us for?
ii
It is at this point that he encounters a woman sprawled on the floor, unconscious, near a throng of paparazzi. The long brown hair and the black business attire invoke memories from a few years ago. But for now, a name doesn't leap into his mind. What leaps into his mind is the need to quickly check if she's fine (of course not) and pull her away from the crowd before she gets stepped on - or worse.]
Excuse me...!
[He pushes his way past the paparazzi, shaking his head at people demanding photos. The cameras click all around him, but he has eyes only for the prone, still form. Luckily, it's that determination that saves him from dropping out cold as well; he doesn't look straight at any cameras.
Finally, he drops to his knees and gently lifts Mia's head and shoulders. He is about to check her pulse when he sees her face...and he gasps sharply, eyes widening to the size of dinner plates. Realization dawns on him. How could he forget the novice lawyer he went up against on his fateful first trial, or the victim in one of his cases who was murdered...and who would later return from the dead several times through spirit channeling?]
M-Miss Fey!
no subject
Still, a few minutes later as she begins to stir back into consciousness, Mia has the distinct impression that something is still not right. She's dimly aware of someone calling to her as she comes to, and with the sensation of being alive again still new enough to be unfamiliar, she makes the only natural conclusion that she's being channeled.]
What is it now, Phoenix?
[But... wait a minute.
Her eyes snap open and she's face to face with a ruffly cravat.
A very familiar ruffly cravat.]
Edgeworth?
no subject
iv
So yes, she does feel your pain, attractive lady whose bosoms could be their own being. (I'm sorry.)
Athena offers her sympathies, gently waving an envelope at her direction. She isn't offering it to her or anything, but rather, is pointing at her. You know, just so the other person knows Athena's talking to her. ]
The fan mail's pretty frustrating. I got some nasty ones earlier, but I burned them.
no subject
The sympathies are greeted with a smile as Mia heads over in her direction so they don’t have to bellow across the distance at each other.]
I think that’s a great idea, I might send these to join yours. Honestly, I can’t believe there are dimwits out there who actually think this approach will work for them. It’s getting a little old.
[She crumples the letter she has up into a ball and looks at it distastefully.]
Yeugh. Does this kind of thing happen a lot around here or did I just pick a really great day to arrive?
no subject
II
He comes to a halt when he steps on something though - something that feels distinctly more like a person than the ground.
Phoenix looks down and finds himself instantly stunned by the person he sees knocked out on the ground.]
It... It can't be... [He thought he was reunited with her a few weeks ago, in the snow. But that couldn't have been the real Mia. What does that mean for this one?
Either way, there's a problem. She's unconscious.]
Hang in there, Mia! [He leans over her form to try to tend to her in some way, then he tries to look up for a moment to get help.] Someone get a-!
[But that's a bad move because a cat snaps a picture of him at that very moment. Phoenix instantly passes out, sprawled over his dead mentor.]
1/2
[Especially as she can tell those bodies are now soulless. Her modus operandi has mostly been to shake the affected people until their souls returned (a tried and tested method!), but a familiar head of spiky head hair rushing leaning towards an unknown object on the ground gives her pause.]
Hey, Niiiiick!
[He might not have heard her through the crowd, but she's already making a beeline for him! And what else does she see, but---]
[--Her sister? The hallucination a week ago or so hadn't quite convinced her, though it'd been convincing enough. This might not be real either, but--]
[Her soul was gone, too! And there went Nick, toppling on top of her]
H-Hang on, I'm coming!
I lied 2/3
[Whatever that mysterious creature could be. She puffs out her cheeks, standing as tall as she can, and--]
If you want them, you'll have to go through me!
done!
[Welp.]
[Maya's out in a second, completing the Fey pile (yes, Phoenix counts) as the topknot cherry on top.]
[GOOD JOB, TEAM.]
that was beautiful :')
...
Oh good lord there's someone face down in her cleavage.
Acting on instinct, Mia smacks whoever it is upside the head.
Hard.]
Get off you perve!
everything is beautiful, and aweful
That's probably the gurgled thought going through Phoenix's mind as he slowly comes to. It feels like there's something weighing down on his back - it's kind of a pain. But at least it feels like he's resting on some very warm pillows. But something's a little off about these pillows...
Phoenix doesn't open his eyes until he's startled by the sudden smack. Then his head jerks up, his eyes open wide, and his face goes red as he realizes exactly what's been happening.]
GYAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!
[He would try to get up, but there's still whatever's on his back weighing him down. So he's just stuck there, trying to keep his head safely above the booby trap, as he tries to focus on the face of the person he fell on. Of course that makes him feel more embarrassed, along with the rush of emotions that comes from seeing Mia again.]
M- Mia! I... I didn't mean to-!
no subject
[But eventually, as Phoenix's face rests above cleavage city, peering down into the abyss of the twins, she starts to stir. And stares blearily at the scene from her vantage point. She recognizes Mia!]
[And.....]
N-Nick! I had no idea you were that kind of guy....!
[DIRTY OLD MAN.]
no subject