Welcome to CERES' new dating experience -- ABOMIDate (Catchy, huh?). They've found that they're a little concerned with everyone's ability to... connect with denizens of different species, and in a place like Cerealia that is full of aliens, that's a Big Problem! After all, it's pretty clear by now that there are a lot of things about your friendly neighborhood aliens that you just know nothing about. What else do you not know? That the greeting of a Faswwg is face licking? That feathered species require mating dances to woo? That [REDACTED] needs [REDACTED] to [REDACTED]? So clearly, the way to fix this problem is...to practice dating other species!
Namely eldritch abominations! In CERES' experience, eldritch abominations really sum up the full interspecies dating way of life and provide you a variety of different species (and orifices) to enjoy.
So it's time to put on some proper music -- no, not that, that's not right. There, that's better. Anyway, time to put on some sexy background music, and woo the monster of your dreams!
 [ horrifying noises of nightmares and despair ]
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PHASE I [ 8 00 ] Welcome to the new and improved Abominable Dating, CERES’ brand new virtual dating experience! The first thing you will see will be a character select screen, because CERES wants you to get to the dating part right away. Don’t worry, there are a lot of beautiful and handsome candidates to choose from so feel free to jump right in! There’s this fellow, or this dashing lass and even a hidden character who is... not really all that hidden if they’re right there to be picked, but there you go!
You have to pick one. There’s no other option, I’m afraid.
And once you do, you’ll end up in a room with your date, dressed up in beautiful, date-like clothing. Unfortunately, everyone else who picked that date will also be in the room with you, also dressed up and prepared for dating.
This is awkward.
It gets even more awkward when your date decides that you look like a great main course. Watch out for those claws/teeth/limbs/etc! Maybe you can work together to take down your starving date, sad as that sounds.
PHASE II [ 1000 ] No dating game would be complete without stat boosting sessions. Regardless of how you feel about your current date, you’re locked into the game now (and hopefully not while covered in the blood of your date themselves, though they just come back even if you managed to kill them), and the game is picking a stat it thinks you need to work on. Either your intelligence is deplorable, your charisma is totally lacking, or your strength is at noodly-arm levels. That’s pretty bad. (It doesn’t matter what your actual intelligence, charisma or strength are, the game might be making things up at this point.)
Because of this, you’re going to be automatically tossed into a mini-game to increase those stats! This will be fun, absolutely. Nothing but Fun here in ViViD. So regardless of what the game thinks you’re lacking, it’s going to throw you into the same mini-game -- eldritch abomination make-over sessions.
You'll show up at a row of dressing rooms, each marked with a sign above the door reading NO INTELLIGENCE or NO STRENGTH or NO CHARISMA in bright red letters. Choosing the right one (embrace your shame) will reveal your initial date to you. They bat their eyelashes in greeting and growl out a very sultry, Will you help me, senpai?
Time to get to work!
You won’t be able to leave the mini-game until the monster is completely satisfied with its makeover, so it’s time to really tap in to your inner fashion sense. Of course, the fact that you’re all trying to apply makeup to the same monster might make this hard, but you can surely all get along, right?
Right?
PHASE III [ 1800 ] At first, you were on a date. Finally, you, your monster, candelight. Everything was going right until... well, you made a bad dialogue choice. They asked you what your favorite food was, you accidentally picked "Italian" (or maybe picked it on purpose which makes this even worse!) and then things went dark.
When you wake up, you'll find yourself in a cage. The room is dark and dank and there's no light other from the crack of a door somewhere up a flight of stairs. You're in a cage in a basement and there's a key glinting on the table right across the room there. Is it for your cage?
Welcome to the Yandere Route.
You might not actually be alone though. The cage isn't terribly big but there's enough room for someone else and if you shift around a little, you'll bump into them. Maybe you should share some woes of the eldritch horror dating experience. Maybe you should try and find a way out! Who knows? But there's one thing for sure:
You're both extremely naked.
Good luck!
PHASE IV [ 1830 ] You did it. You’ve gotten to the end of the game, or nearly. You’ve earned up enough affection points somehow. Maybe it was through the eldritch abomination following you around to trying to eat you or maybe it really, really, really liked your makeover. Maybe there was that thing and the cage and some weird pictures it took -- who knows! But now it’s time for the inevitable scene.
The confession scene.
Except... well, ViViD can’t do confession scenes very well. You'll find yourself there in the schoolyard, dressed in the appropriate school uniforms but...
For one thing, there’s a heavy shower of rose petals. A heavy shower. They’re everywhere. They might get in your mouth and face, they’re pooling around your knees, it's a rose petal flood and you're about to drown!
For another, the eldritch abomination you chose to romance is getting closer and... closer. And closer. And that sure is a lot of teeth, huh? Is it coming in for a kiss or to eat off your face? It’s... really hard to tell with all the rose petals, isn’t it?
To make matters even worse, you can’t move -- you’re locked into the scene until it comes to its proper conclusion. The game is stuck and you're here, suffering through it all. Well, you're suffering unless someone comes and rescues you, but who in the world would interrupt a touching scene like this to do that?!
BONUS [ why o'clock ] You know you have to get dressed up nicely for your date. It's an important one! Third date means third base, after all. So, you’re shoved into a closet, and surrounded by tons and tons of choices to pick from. You're spoiled for choice!
But, well... no matter what you put on, or even if you just elect to stay in your regular clothing, it changes as soon as you step out of the closet to meet your date.
Don’t worry, you look adorable.
It can’t be taken off, of course. So you’d better get comfy, because you’re going to be a pink dinosaur for your third date and... your fourth date. And your fifth. Hell, you might still be a pink dinosaur when it comes time to confess! How... cute.
[ 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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no subject
Haha, I suppose "yet" is the keyword here?
But you're right, I was lucky in the sense that my date seemed to be really appreciative of the makeover we gave them.
[ not entirely a lie! but of course, more capable people handled the tasks that involved imminent danger, such as painting its claws and curling its tentacle-y ...hair? ]
I do wonder what we're expect to do at this point, though...
no subject
[Or, any games at all for that matter.]
But even I know, that this kind of game isn't something anyone would have in mind.
[A beat.]
Do you play these?
[Although Mikiya isn't as low-tech as Shiki is, she can't imagine him sitting down to play a video game. Would he? It's one of the oddest thoughts that strike her, more than anything else they've encountered in this new world so far.]
no subject
I don't play these myself, no, but Gakuto is... kind of a fan of the genre. Mm, I've watched him play while at his place a couple of times.
... Although his games were very different from all of this.
no subject
[A noncommittal noise as a response; it's like the usual except they're both in dinosaur outfits, but hey as long as they never mention this again, Shiki can deal unless someone tries to tease either of them.]
For one thing, it feels like we're actually in another space and location, but our senses are simply being tricked and replicated. It's too advanced. I don't like it.
no subject
[ he opens and closes his fist experimentally, staring intently at his own hand, and then uses that same hand to poke his own cheek. ]
Is that so...? [ shakes his head, as if to correct himself ] Well, I suppose you'd be able to tell for sure.
Then, do you think we're here for somebody's entertainment?
no subject
[A beat.]
Maybe there's more to find out if you asked around. There's probably people who've been here long enough to know what the nature of the situation is.
[you go do that info gathering mikiya, but for now]
No sign of Touko or Azaka?
no subject
I-Is this really a good time to try and find out what's going on here? I mean, I'm not against it, but with all these monsters around, I doubt people will be very inclined to have some small talk.
[ his expression becomes more serious at the mention of the other two, however. he shakes his head. ]
Not that I've seen, no. But if they're here too we'll definitely meet with them sooner or later, right?
no subject
[Considering the information they were given, Shiki isn't very optimistic about the chances of anyone else showing up from Mifune.]
Best to lay low as well.
[In Mikiya's case, that won't be an issue. Hopefully.]
no subject
It might be a little hard to lay low while we're dressed like this, but I guess if we're not the only ones dressed like this it will be easier to blend in.
More seriously, Shiki, what are you planning to do?
no subject
We should get out of this game first. Apparently we'll get lodgings and a guaranteed job to help pay for necessities.
no subject
[ he doesn't mind. while he's rather used to working with Touko and running all sorts of wacky errands with her, it would be hard to maintain that sort of life in this place, even if his boss is here after all.
but Shiki...? it's not that she lacks the skills to get a different kind of job, but would it actually make her happy? ]
no subject
Generous of CERES isn't it? The apartments can't stay rent free forever.
no subject
[ he's hoping Shiki can infer what he means with that question, if only because she probably wouldn't like him directly addressing the... ah, issue at hand ]
no subject
[She says this curtly and has the look that says, "Do you think I'm that useless???" Granted, she'll just have to find a job that doesn't require friendliness and/or social interaction outside of what's necessary.]
no subject
A-Ah, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that! I guess it's better to focus on the matter at hand for now, right?
no subject
Let's get back our normal clothes for one or figure out how to wear something that isn't this.