estoria | « 006 ⇢ event006.exe »

Who: CERES & you
When: OOC - 11/25-12/02 ; IC - 10/09-10/12
Where: Cerealia & Pleasure District
What: Event log
Rating/Warning: PG-13 | possibly nsfw (please let us know if you need this rating changed)

//event006.EXE

I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa-bot underneath the Mistletoe

It's the morning of October 9th when you feel it. At first, it's a gentle rumble. Then, the ground begins to quake harder as a transparent shield erupts from the perimeter of the colony. Those fortunate enough to be standing outdoors will get a glimpse of it as it slowly closes around the colony, forming a glass dome that keeps everything enclosed inside. It may spark your curiosity. It may even cause a bit of fear and anxiety, but other than that, the day remains the same. Plain. Neutral. A little too quiet.

That's when the cold sneaks up on you, little by little. You may notice yourself shivering and in need of a warm blanket. It's just a little breeze, right? You might close the windows in your apartment or throw on a sweater. But the cold doesn't stop there. The temperature begins to plummet gradually by the hour, and you notice frost appearing on all visible surfaces. Machines start to malfunction and grow stiff all over. The wind knocks over a few post boxes and signs. Your skin goes numb in places. Shrinkage happens for those who have things that shrink.

All in all, it's an unpleasant experience, and the trains are shut down, leaving most of the colony's citizens with limited transportation. However, a figure appears in a dimly corner of the station to brighten your day. He has a blanket laid out with snow globes placed on top, some plain, some rose-tinted. They're all for sale for a meager 25 credits. Since he can't speak, he lets his boom box do the talking for him, letting out a familiar song.

"♬~ Oh the weather outside is frightful
But the fire is so delightful
And since we've no place to go
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

It doesn't show signs of stopping
And I've bought some corn for popping
The lights are turned way down low
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!~♬"

//SCENARIOS.EXE

PHASE I

[ xxxx ] The cold is starting to set into your bones, a sharp pain emanating from the way it seems to burrow under your flesh. No amount of jackets, parkas, and sweaters offer relief as the temperature plummets by the hour. The streets are paved with ice everywhere, and snow is rapidly falling from the ceiling of the dome. Will you play in it? Will you settle by the fire with a warm beverage? Will you and your ill-prepared body be subjected to the slow madness promised by hypothermia? It might seem bearable at first, but nothing is ever that simple or easy in Cerealia.

Of course, for those who wish to brave the weather, come see the snow globe salesman in Cerealia's train station. He'll show you a few wonders that linger behind the glass.

PHASE II

[ xxxx ] Just as the cold starts to reach its most unbearable temperatures, a single haven lies in the Pleasure District at Cerealia's famous virtual Fantasy Hub. Whispers will pass from lips to lips, moving quickly across the colony about the warmest place to be. Your character is welcome to investigate for themselves and set aside their embarrassment for a little bit of reprieve.

The robot staff will be more than welcoming, offering you compliments, cookies, and hot chocolate. The three great C's! They will let everyone linger about the lounge and encourage them to pair up and try out a bit of the technology. They might even find a little something to smile about after. The robots will be promising customers a lovely boost of warmth just for subjecting themselves to a world of their own desires.

PHASE III

[ xxxx ] For those brave enough to venture into their virtual fantasies, you'll be lead into a private booth where no one else will be able to bother you. A headset will be available for you and any companions of choice. Feel free to put it on and check it out. You'll be prompted to type in or verbally explain your fantasy before watching the world being built before your eyes until you're completely immersed in your ideal world. You are welcome to roam around and enjoy for as long as you wish but do remember you're on the clock and that there are other customers waiting. Oh and do try and clean up the booth after use!

PHASE IV

[ xxxx ] It's day four. The cold has reached its lowest, most unbearable point. Those who took a trip into their own fantasies or the fantasy of others are now free to revel in the warmth (and in their own embarrassment and shame). Congratulations! For those who avoided it, prepare to feel numb in places and to possibly lose a finger or two. The CERES medical facility will do their best to stick you back together or keep you from death. The suffering will continue until the very last second when Julius Vincere, CERES' CEO, will appear on all screens and billboards to announce that the climate problems have been fixed at last.

Just like that, the dome will open once more, and the temperature will return to normal. With that comes another set of apologies same as before. How much are you willing to put up with his bullshit?

BONUS

[ whyo'clock ] They're cute. They're cuddly. They're also being sold at a CYbuddy shop near you, provided that snow hasn't blocked the door from opening. They're seemingly harmless and innocent until you take your eyes off of them. That's when they'll scuttle to your underwear drawer and slowly and surreptitiously start stealing pairs of it to hide in a super secret stash so it can sell your unmentionables in an elaborate robot underwear smuggling ring. Prepare to brave the cold without underwear.

[ 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 event post. For your convenience, we have compiled a post detailing what's going on right here and feel free to consult the FAQ if needed. Please leave any lingering questions in the OOC post, and we'll answer them as soon as we can.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Yep. I thought testing out a memory might work.

[ which is why there are also now a lot of angry-looking goons in red sunglasses pointing guns at them. ]

[He looks at the angry goons with guns. And around at the dance floor. And considers her words.]

Ah. That is less surprising.

[Of course her memories involve guys with guns OF COURSE THEY DO.]

... If that's true, then you're getting to know m--

[ and she's just going to dodge now, because THEY'RE OPENING FIRE. ]

[OPENING FIRE and Sousei's going to trust that Yang can take care of herself if this is a memory. He's too busy ducking that gunfire as well, working his way towards the wall so he has less to worry about at his back. It's a little too automatic to shift into lone wolf battle mode without his team here--

But he'll do his part in taking out some of those gunmen, at least.]

[ Thanks, lone wolf dog buddy thing. Yang will be just fine either way, but she'll probably throw a goon and take out another one aiming for Sousei's head.

Never say she doesn't look out for others. Unless she's fighting them. ]

[Thanks, Yang. Sousei notes that, and--well, he continues to get rid of the people in his way on his end.

But he'll keep an eye out for her too. And return the favor, when he gets the chance, stepping forward a few paces to smack one of the goons creeping up behind her upside the head.

Fine, fine, he'll dive right in then.]

[ Thanks, buddy. Goons aren't too hard to clear out, and she didn't bother inviting those twins this time, instead crackling her knuckles as she gives the room a quick glance. ]

That just leaves the rockets...

[Ro...ckets......

He follows her gaze and pauses and.

Man, this entire thing is stupid. But he doesn't hesitate or back down, instead stepping forward. Fine. Rockets. He'll help take care of those, whatever those...are....]

[ well, there's her favorite bartender with a rocket launcher sauntering forward now, and under her breath-- ]

You're going to want to go left.

[ As Junior fires. ]

[He's capable of listening when it suits him--left he goes, and that's a rocket launcher, now he understands........

But he's going to use his momentum to continue carrying himself forward, finally unsheathing his sword to aim for the arms.

Disarm, first--then counter. Simple stuff, he thinks.]

[ Except the rocket launcher will turn into some kind of giant bat and he'll swing at Sousei once he's close enough-- make sure to move! Yang's still in the middle of obliterating the rockets, she'll be with you in a moment. ]

[Thankfully, he's got quick reflexes. As much as he wasn't expecting that, he immediately sidesteps, allowing the man's momentum to carry him forward, even if he's quick to turn to try again.

It's fine though.

Sousei can carry on this song and dance for a little while.]

[ It shouldn't take long to disarm him, and when he does, Yang's there to send him flying back with one sharp fist to the abdomen.

Ah, she's missed the sound of breaking glass. ]

[That sure takes care of that... at the very least, this entire exercise has showed Sousei quite firmly that Yang can be trusted in a fight.

It's nice to know, even if he suspected it.

He simply sheathes his sword, glancing around thoughtfully, before neatly crossing his arms behind his back. He sure hasn't let his guard down yet, though.]

Is this the end of the fight in your memory?

I wound up outside and my sister caught me, but... [ she glances around, seeming satisfied. ] This is pretty accurate, yeah! You weren't half-bad!

[...hm.]

Thank you. [Maybe???] You were competent enough as well.

[congrats.]

Then we're finished here.

Yep! Did anything seem weird to you?

[ aside from rockets. ]

[Slowly, he shifts his gaze to her.

And then back to the wreckage.

And--]

All of it.

[Quite...frankly. He couldn't tell.]

... You didn't have a heart attack, though, so that's promising!

[are you being insulting or complimenting him...the constant question.]

I'm learning, if nothing else.

[thanks....for that.]

It was similar to it was in your memories, then? Nothing peculiar or particularly dangerous? [like evil teacher bugs...he tends to expect everything will malfunction here these days.]

Nothing's changed, from what I remember... so I don't really get why everyone was talking about it so much.

It's sensible to be suspicious given our experiences...

[...]

But I fail to see the purpose of this if this is all it is.

Right, there's got to be more to it than that...

[ hmm. ]

Maybe something's changed outside?

Perhaps.

[With that, he nods.]

Let's return from here, since there's nothing further to see.

Got it!

[ and logging out is a go, in which she'll move the headset off and blink. ]

... Huh.

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