« 005 ⇢ event005.exe »

[reparator]

Who: CERES & you
When: IC: 10/04 | OOC: 11/15
Where: ViViD & McCERES
What: Intro Log
Rating/Warning: PG-13 | slightly nsfw

//event005.EXE Learning is Fundamental! Let's play CERESLearn ViViD's usual worlds are unfortunately down for maintenance. While CERES' programmers work on getting it back up and running, all new entrees this round will be going through a different level than usual. Only a single world is accessible at the moment, a simple one entitled 'CERESLearn.' "What the $%@& is this?" you must be thinking. Well, it's simple! It's a study program, of course! CERES' advanced AI technology is here to make sure you learn and that you learn sexily. Whether or not you pay attention to the actual content is up to you, the player. Please enjoy it while it lasts. They're here to teach you a variety of subjects and also to make you feel vaguely uncomfortable all over. New arrivals and those logging into ViViD will first find themselves in a classroom with a new operator greeting them rather than Vidia. "Greetings and welcome to Cerealia! It's nice of you to join us at last. As you can see, we're just about to get started! Here are the instructions: ♥ Choose your subject of choice. They include things like medicine, math, CERES economics, CERES history, fun facts about Julius, engineering, and science! ♥ Choose your tutor. You can hire Astor, Hilda, or UN-Zippy ♥ They'll teach you slowly, deliberately, sensually. Then after that, they'll drill you hard and without stopping. ♥ Just when you think you've had enough, they'll quiz you all over until you're sweating and panting. ♥ For those of you who pass, you'll be welcomed well into Cerealia and be given a free voucher for a McCERES Mildly Content meal. Please enjoy!"

//SCENARIOS.EXE PHASE I [ xxxx ] Once you choose your lesson and your tutor, you will be transported to a classroom where you and a few other players who decide to choose the same lesson will sit with your tutor after school, getting knowledge taught to you by someone who seems more intent on learning what's under your clothes than filling your head with knowledge. They will be awkwardly stretching, dropping pencils by 'accident' on the floor, and bending down slowly to pick them up. Certain things might be spilling out of their clothes. Awkward things. They will breathe down your neck and make sure you are well-versed in their anatomy by the end of the lesson. Fortunately, it won't last long as their bodies start to flicker erratically. PHASE II [ xxxx ] Just as things begin to escalate, the flickering will grow intense until your tutor will start to morph before your eyes. What takes their place is something that is anything but friendly. And yes, it will continue to breathe down your neck and speak in a sweet, soft, alluring voice while reaching out with its 'hands' to try and touch you. This will be your cue to run through the halls of the school while That Thing chases you in every single direction imaginable. There will be others joining you as everyone starts bolting out of their classrooms. PHASE III [ xxxx ] Feeling tired already? Well, don't stop and rest now! For those who successfully murder their own tutor, they will get their food voucher and a lovely welcome into CERES. You've officially passed! Everyone will be allowed to mingle around the game room in the CERES Research Tower before being directed into McCERES just across the street. For those who were already in the colony, you will also receive a voucher and directions to McCERES at the end of the game in case you want to go meet up with the newcomers there or just eat some artery-killing fast food. PHASE IV [ xxxx ] For those who get eaten by That Thing or don't pass their quizzes and upset their tutors, they will be forced to endure the Price of Failure. This means being sent to the gym with the other 'failures' to endure a painfully slow and erotic striptease by UN-Zippy. Once that is over, they will then be logged out and allowed to have their complimentary McCERES voucher. BONUS [ whyo'clock ] Congratulations on surviving CERESLearn! Here's your complimentary voucher for a free Mildly Content Meal at McCERES. This month's special is also the McKnight Burger. Characters are immediately invited to take a load off and enjoy some good ol' fashion fast food of questionable origin. Those who decide to order and eat here will also get a special toy included inside their Mildly Content Meals. [ 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. ]

//RUN.EXE Welcome to CEREALIA's latest intro post. For your convenience, we have compiled a post detailing everyone's usual arrival experience (which is not entirely applicable this round for reasons stated above^) and a FAQ that should explain everything in more detail. Please read them thoroughly before playing. Thank you!

Comments

[harepiece]

[kya yata the true shonen hero...!!

But Oz will pull up shy, stopping behind Yata's raised arm and looking a little alarmed. Though probably not for the reason he expects... or should be...]

Wait—! We can't just... These were people before, right?

[The idea of holograms doesn't really make sense to Oz, even with his jamjar experience. As far as he's aware, what he witnessed was pretty similar to what happens to people when they become Chains. A LITTLE MORE TERRIFYING on both ends of the spectrum, but still...]

[rollin]

Not exactly!

[ Oz, don't be difficult while two butt ugly worm things are flanking you. The kid has a point, but Yata's sure about his gut feeling. And it's not because Hilda tried to eat him up in ways more than one! He knows a hologram when he sees one, so if Oz won't—can't—fight, then Yata needs to get him to safety first. ]

Look, I dunno what these things are, but they're out to kill us all. If you're not gonna fight, just stay outta my way, okay?

[ Think, Yata, think. The two bugs have them trapped once again, but this time is different. They're in a corridor with rooms on one side and windows on the other so he could toss both bugs out, but that's too difficult. He can only manage one and if he does, Oz will be left with the other and— ]

God dammit...

[ Whatever, he'll take both of them on. He just needs the right moment. ]

[harepiece]

[Asking Oz not to be difficult in a situation where being difficult could be fatal... HAH...

But okay, he's only really reckless when it comes to his own life (or occasionally the lives of those close to him?! NO ONE SAID HE HAD TO MAKE SENSE). This means that Yata, a stranger who risked his life to protect him, definitely has to be protected in turn. He feels badly about harming one of their awkward creepy tutor bugs, but if these things are anything like Chains, it's not like they'd ever go back to being people anyway...

So he takes a few steps back and it might seem to Yata at first that he's going to take that advice and stay out of the way, but noPE. There's a large sweep of wind, and then the bug creature that had been following them up the hall is pretty dead-ish. As in, like... cleanly bisected. Then, over his shoulder to Yata:]

—Do you have that one?

[JUST IGNORE THE SCYTHE that has quite suddenly appeared. He holds it with ease despite the fact that it towers above him... He's worried that Yata just has mad parkour skills though, unless he's planning on kicking the thing to death with his fire legs.]

1/2

[rollin]

[ It seems like Oz is finally cooperating, so Yata surrounds himself in a storm of red fire and smirks because it's time to get crazy and show off. He charges at the creature, burning its eye before he makes quick work of it with his fire legs and fists. It's a crazy parkour-packed fight, but Yata's not cool enough to deserve a blow-by-blow account. So! Once he lands the final blow by punching a hole through its chest, he stands tall over his victory, proud. ]

Heh! Hey, didja see—

[rollin]

[ Then he sees Oz and his jaw drops. Come to think of it, he did feel a breeze behind him. Um. ]

Yeah.

I got it.

[ he has a hugeass badass scythe that looks like it came straight out of hell this is uNFAIR ]

[harepiece]

[YATA NO... Oz just stands there awkwardly for a second, looking out at Yata's handiwork and then at Yata himself. One day, his parkour will get the admiration it properly deserves...]

Um— Good work! [YEAH. The hell scythe disappears with a weird popping noise and Oz's eyes, which had been red, return to their bright green once he blinks.]

I guess you really didn't need the help after all, huh? [He would have helped anyway, make no mistake...]

[rollin]

[ At the praise, he scratches his head and laughs sheepishly. ]

Haha, well, it's nothing much, I just—

[rollin]

WAIT! What the hell was that? How the fuck did you do that? Why didn't you use it before!?

[harepiece]

[His posture snaps straight at that, like he's being scolded by a grandpa or something...]

Oh—! Well, I wasn't entirely sure that I could use it... [And lots of other various Complex Tragic Shonen Reasons™, but that one seems like the best one to verbally give.]

But I didn't want you to get hurt because you decided to look out for me, so I had to give it a try. I don't want anyone here to be hurt by those... [People? Things?? Creepy bugs??? He just lets his sentence trail off, unfinished.]

[rollin]

[ Give him 40 years and he might still be the same grump with the same babyface... Yata seems to be satisfied with his answer. A little embarrassed, too. Anyone can tell from the way he frowns as he looks away. Demonic appearances aside, Oz is a good kid! ]

Bugs? Yeah, me neither. I dunno what's going on, but at least we're safe. ...Thanks.

[ He doesn't want to end on an awkwardly mushy note, so he continues. ]

But you know, for holograms, they felt pretty real to me.

[harepiece]

[Grandpa Yata, telling those crazy scythe-wielding kids to get off his lawn...

HOW AWKWARDLY MUSHY, THOUGH. Oz seems mildly touched! But he can also tell that the subject isn't one to linger on, so the thanks just gets a nod and a little hum of acknowledgment. He doesn't even address the "we're safe" part yet, even though he should probably add an ominous for now to it. Instead, he focuses on the one word that he doesn't understand.]

A hologram? Is that the type of creature they are...?

[rollin]

[ Yata snorts at his honest question because he's hella rude. ]

What century are you from? Nah, they ain't creatures. They're s'posed to be, um... [ Time to use hand gestures to explain this. He pretends to be holding a flashlight, using his other hand to show Oz where the light is coming from. ] Like when you shine a light, but a picture comes out... [ Then he passes his hand over his pretend flashlight. ] and you can touch it and shit.

[ a+ explanation yata gj ]

[harepiece]

[HELLA RUDE and hella confusing, because that explanation totally sails over Oz's head. He looks like he is trying really hard to get it, though...]

...So it's light? It's a picture made of light? [Which isn't entirely incorrect, but Oz is literally having to think of this in terms of like, magic, or else it makes no sense to his Victorian brain.]

I think I'm behind most people when it comes to the year, though... I don't really understand a lot of these technologies.

[rollin]

[ It's okay. If Yata was in Oz's shoes, he wouldn't get it either. Explaining things is hard. ]

Kinda. So you ain't from around here? [ The fact that Oz might be from another time hasn't quite registered yet. He looks around. ] Where is this place, anyway?

[ He presses one of the rivets of his watch and from the face, it projects a map. It's a navigation app! Not... that Oz knows what that is, but. It sure is a thing. ]

[harepiece]

[The class that he should have taken is how to explain things to someone from like the 1800s, gosh.]

No, I'm from Reveille. [Which, despite sounding French, is not French at all. Pandora Hearts...] I don't know the answer to that either, but—

[BUT THERE'S A PROJECTION. A light from a picture?! Wow, it's almost like Yata is trying to illustrate his explanation from earlier instead of just randomly checking things hoping that they show up on a recognizable map...!

He looks a little startled at its sudden appearance before tentatively reaching out toward it, because that's what a person should do when confronted with something new.]

—Is this a hologram?

[rollin]

[ We all wish this is what happens when you decide not to go to school like your genius ex-best friend, but he was like this to begin with... When Oz reaches out to touch the map, Yata instinctively pulls his arm away. He's trying to read, gosh! ]

Yo, don't do that. But yeah, it is.

[ If he could show Oz what a hologram was, why didn't he turn his watch on in the first place? He forgot. ]

I dunno where that Reveille place is, but we're either not on Earth or I ain't getting a signal. ...Or maybe this is all just a bad dream.

[harepiece]

[Yata shot for the stars.....

Oz will pull his hand back when told not to touch it, at least, even though the expression on his face is one that says but I want to touch the thing dammit. He has more self control than that!!

He is also just totally assuming that this is both a demonstration and Yata checking something useful. Rejoice, friend, his mental image is now much better than reality.]

That's the name of the place you come from, right? [Earth, that is... Because his planet has a different and also unknown name. WHY.] It's probably not getting a signal, though. Someone I knew before I came here had a phone with a signal that she couldn't get, too.

[rollin]

[ Demonstration. Totally. It's okay, Yata's a good kid deep down. You just have to break down the tsun barriers. Anyway, if Oz is not from Earth, he's definitely from Victorian Hell so his question is not weird at all. ]

Yeah. [ He presses a button and the hologram disappears. ] You know what's weirder? When you touch a hologram, your hand's s'posed to go through. [ Which Oz should know if... Yata let him touch the thing... He nudges one of the creatures with his foot. ] These things felt real. It doesn't add up.

[harepiece]

[OH GOOD, befriending tsuns is Oz's number 2 pastime, following closely on the heels of tormenting Gilbert.]

...So are they not holograms, then? [Yata you are confusing his ye olde Victorian brain!!] Or is something wrong with them, maybe? [Are the holograms sick...]

[rollin]

[ are the holograms sick Oz you sweet summer child. ]

I dunno, I ain't good with this sorta thing. [ Maybe they're ancient aliens!? Man, don't ask him. He's only good for smackdowns and manual labor and video games. ] Whatever they are, we gotta get rid of 'em fast.

Hey, I gotta pick something up from my classroom first. [ His skateboard, his love. He cocks his head toward the exit. ] You can go ahead if you wanna.

[ Be safe, little one. BE FREE!! His work is done here. ]

[harepiece]

[LOOK... it seems legit as anything else!! He looks a little distraught by the fact that they are both lost and confused, but that's also nothing new.]

Maybe we can check later... [Like, maybe there's a tag on one somewhere that says HOLOGRAM, MADE IN CERES.

He looks up at that, though, curious. ARE YOU TRYING TO DITCH HIM YATA?? No, Oz does want to escape, and he knows that his new friend is fully capable of self-defense, but... He'd feel like a rudeass abandoning him. They have Bonded Over Fighting now, okay, he can't just run out!!]

Um— I can go with you, if you don't mind! It's probably better to travel in pairs, anyway. [He'll ditch him after they get his skateboard, much better.]

[rollin]

[ Sticking together after fighting side by side... Oz, your canon genre is showing. ]

Yeah, guess you're right. [ He puts his hands behind his back and starts walking, expecting him to follow. ] Aight, if we run into more of those guys, I'm letting you slice the shit outta them.

[ He's being such a good senpai, he thinks. ]

[harepiece]

[HE CAN'T CONTAIN IT...

But Oz will dutifully trot on after Yata, glancing from side to side around the hall as he goes.]

I'll keep an eye out, then. [BODYGUARDING YATA. He'll just keep that in mind if any more bugs come scampering up the halls to seductively crush the life out of them both...] What did you forget, anyway?

[rollin]

Something important. A [ dead ] friend pimped it up for me so I can't just leave it lying around, y'know? But it slipped my mind when shit went down...

You know what a skateboard is?

[harepiece]

[Oz shakes his head, taking his attention away from the surrounding area briefly to glance up at Yata.]

Is it another kind of hologram? [Since Yata seems to be overlord of the holograms or something...]