The desert. It's hot. It's sandy. It's filled with creepy monsters and things. But mostly it's hot and sandy and there's a whole lot of nothing. You appear and wonder "why am I here? What is there to do here? Is that a cow skull? Do cows live out here in this desert? How can cows live in the desert? Maybe it's a horse?" These are all very complicated questions with equally complicated answers but there's no one to provide them no matter where you look. Instead, you're given the option of walking. Forwards, backwards, to your right, to your left, any direction is yours to take. Try not to die from dehydration or something, that would be a sad ViViD death and the cow-horse skull might start laughing at you. I mean, you'll just start over from the beginning anyway but still.
Welcome to ViViD's new line of Vacation Spotlights: Desert Edition.
Moo-Neigh.
 One wish, that's all you get.
Make it snappy, I don't have all day.
Actually, I have eternity but I just don't want to spend it with you.
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PHASE I [ 6 00 ] So.
There's sand.
In fact, there's so much sand that there's probably already sand in your shoes and your shorts and all sorts of other places that aren't fun to have sand in. It stretches for miles and miles, in large dunes and deep dips, and above it all there are three suns that beat down upon everyone's backs. Why three? Because why not, that's why. Enjoy the sunshine and try not to get sunburnt.
You've got a long ways to travel before you find anything but sand, but thankfully you're not alone -- there are a bunch of unfortunate stragglers who are out with you, so it's time to make some friends as you travel. You've got pleeeeenty of time. No water though. Or food. Or... anything but human interaction.
Thankfully, it's only a matter of time before you stumble across your hot new ride. Thankfully, it seats two, so you and your new friend can enjoy a cramped road trip. You, this relative stranger, and the great... sandy... unknown! Good luck!
PHASE II [ 645 ] If you prefer to not take your ride, you're going to wish that you did soon enough. Every desert level has to have desert monsters, after all. You're walking through the sand, trying to make it to somewhere that isn't sand, and then suddenly, the sand worms appear.
Or.
Well.
They try.
Unfortunately, they're little more than 5 or 6 inches tall apiece, and they'll mostly try to eat your shoes and socks. How scary.
Alternatively, if you have actually taken that sweet ride of yours on an adventure through the desert, you're going to hit something at one point. It makes a rather pitiful scream and there's a small bump underneath your tire before your car comes to a stop. You just ran over a sand worm.
Anyone who is intrepid enough to kill a sand worm though will find one interesting thing about them. They're filled with water, and you are very, very thirsty. Ew.
PHASE III [ 1000 ] It sure is hot.
And unless you've devoured one of those poor, sad, screaming sand worms, there's no water to be found. It feels as though you've been wandering in circles for ages, so perhaps it's really no surprise that the heat starts to get to you. First come the headaches, and the thirst. Then the dizziness and vertigo.
And finally, the mirages.
What you see is a waterfall cascading into a crystal pool, beautiful and pristine and painfully cool. It's just begging for you to come enjoy it, and -- wait, there's one more thing. Standing in front of that pool is either someone you care about immensely or someone you hate immensely.
And either way, the things they say or do will be the same. First they reach for you, beckoning, and they they start to detail all of the things they'd like to do to you. NSFW, SFW, loving or cruel or so many things in between, all that's honestly consistent is that it's pretty shocking.
Oh, and awkwardly, it seems as though anyone with you can see and hear that hallucination too. That's embarrassing.
PHASE IV [ 1215 ] Eventually, though, you'll find your destination. Or... at least, it seems like it should be the destination. The tiny temple is at least a change from the endless sand, and in the middle of it, there's a lamp. That sure looks familiar.
If you rub the lamp, of course, you'll release the genie, and he'll glance at you, and inspect his fingernails as though you're hardly worth his time, and offer you one, single wish.
As soon as you make it, well... You'll get the opposite of what you wish for with a sudden apology note in your hand. The card will read "Sorry, this level isn't entirely finished yet - Mosley" before immediately disappearing. Your wish will only apply in ViViD, of course, but hopefully you didn't wish for anything too crazy, or you might have made the level Much Harder for everyone around you.
BONUS [ why o'clock ] One second you're walking along the desert sand, enjoying the eternally same view, and the next there's a sudden pinch on your ankle, and a scorpion monster scuttles away quickly. Whoops, looks like you've been stung.
But it's not poison, it would seem. Aside from feeling a little odd and having a mild fever, you're fine.
More importantly, you've now found yourself in possession of some... new powers (a la Spider-man), and they're...
Well, they're useless.
Maybe you can summon water now, but... only sulfur water. Perhaps you can now make pretty light shows and that's about all. You can see the future but only the next three seconds. The possibilities are endless, but what's for certain is that they're all completely and utterly useless to you.
What the fuck, ViViD.
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[ Okay, well, for a couple minutes Izuku is still convinced that, just maybe, this is a U.A. security measure thing, but the lack of anyone he's ever met has him suspecting otherwise.
So, too, does the desert buggy. If you can even call it that. Izuku's a shy sort of kid, but he's also the sort of kid who can't leave people alone, so if you're looking like you're flagging, he's there for you.
Alternately, of course, you'll find him peering at the dashboard of the buggy muttering not-quite-under his breath. ]
No, but, it'd be counterproductive to booby-trap a vehicle like this so far from civilization, wouldn't it? It might kill the occupants and anyone nearby, but everyone here's so spread out, aren't they? Maybe it's wired to explode once it reaches a certain population density? Or location? Maybe I should check for bugs?
[ He will literally continue for this the next twenty minutes before trying to open the hood. ]
bonus;
[ Wasn't one set of superpowers he can barely use enough? Apparently not, says the universe, as Izuku rubs at the outside of his ankle between his school pants and his sock, pulling a small face. He doesn't feel too bad or anything, and if he were fatally poisoned he'd probably be able to tell?? Probably. As he pulls his hand away, he jerks with a static shock. How had that happened? He has no idea.
From the way his already messy head of hair is now sticking out even more, the scorpion left him with a nasty case of self-inflicted static cling. ]
wilcard;
[ hit me with anything! ]
ooc: izuku is from the manga, chapter 70, just before the training camp. i'm defaulting to no spoilers, but let me know if you're okay with or avoiding them!
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Are you okay?
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[ Oh, crap, it's a girl. This knowledge dawns on him as soon as his undignified squawk is out of his mouth, and he sinks down a little into his seat. But then he starts to talk: ] I mean--yeah, I'm fine, I was just--thinking. [ And keeps talking... ] Uh, about whether this thing is safe or not, I mean, it seems kind of suspicious to me?
[ At least his experience in crisis and immunity through daily exposure has made talking to girls a little bit easier? ]
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A vehicle can be suspicious?
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[ He trails off uncertainly. Looking the gift horse in the mouth might be unwise in this stage of the game, but he can't help it. ]
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If someone's tracking us with it, I'll fight them. But if it's an explosive... [ She pauses, thinking. ] Well...I would be alright. I'm not sure about you though...
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[ And with that, he presses the button that seems to have taken the place of the ignition.
He's tense for fifteen seconds, but nothing. He breathes out a sigh of relief. ] I... guess I was worrying for nothing!
[ He looks at her, pressing carefully on the - gas? He thinks it's the gas. The thing moves, anyway. ] Ah, I'm Izuku Midoriya. Nice to meet you.
i;
Um... [ she didn't want to spook him. she's heard what he was muttering to himself but at the same time, it wasn't polite to eavesdrop so she pretends she didn't hear anything. ]
Is something the matter?
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creepily mumbling to himselfsorting out his thought processes he hadn't acted on it--his eyes are round with surprise. A pretty girl he's never met in his life is talking to him. ] Um,[ Her question takes a moment to register, and then he shakes his head. ] Not, uh, really, I'm just a little concerned about these things! This is a game, and games provide transportation for characters all the time, but I've never been in a game this real before, so I can't decide if it's going to be a problem at the next stage?
[ Nerd. ]
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[ she'll give the car a little rapt with the back of her hand. this was still a vivid so everything sounded slightly off to her but...nothing to be worried about. it seemed made of sturdy stuff despite its appearances. ]
I don't think you'd have to be too worried about anything. Or, at least this. It'll be a good vehicle for you to get you where you want to go.
[ kururu will give him a smile of confidence, hopefully. she didn't want to overstep any boundaries since she was technically intruding on him so she keeps her distance and arms crossed behind her back. ]
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[ It makes sense someone would have a Quirk that lets them talk to tech, he supposes, but he doesn't want to assume. ]
bonus
Eeeeh? Is this some kind of useless ability, to make your hair mess up? I've got some shampoo that should fix that right up.
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[ He reaches up to touch his hair, confused, and there's another spark. ]
It's never done this before, I don't - shampoo? [ Is she offering to... fix his hair woes? ]
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[The ones she knows can't make magical shampoo so how can one ever expect to have luxurious hair?]
phase i.
Are you getting in?
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Ah, um. I - yeah, I think so. [ Nervously, he shifts his weight. ] Do you - want to drive?
[ Since, you know, he has never driven a day in his life. ]
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i
[ She knows what booby traps are. She's misunderstanding on purpose. ]
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Gasp! It's not?