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.
[ 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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UMU! you speak my language! its ok oso is so cute, hes going to be neros son.
now what's one way to get on nero's good side? it seems like osomatsu was graced by buddha because he'll win a few brownie points for his words. now he may believe himself to be a smooth operator, but the servant tilts her head at him before )
But how admirable, you aren't much of a fool that you make yourself out to be, are you? ( the blade in her hand lowers down to her side as she gives a big grin towards the raven. ) I think there may be a unique brain covered by these raven tufts. ( extending a hand so that she can curl her index finger in his hair, a bit of the sand falling out which does catch her attention and make her hum in curiosity. )
Though, you should fix that sand in your hair problem, it could cloud your judgement and when one's eyes are on me, I cannot deny how much that makes me happy.
oh my gosh
she... she actually touched him. without punching him. she even complimented him! this was... something of a miracle.
he must be dead. he died and went to heaven. that's the only explanation for this.
except... he's certain he would not have gotten into heaven. so he must still be alive! alive, and in the presence of a goddess.
he turns away, grinning like an idiot, and ruffles his hands through his hair to get the sand out. it's everywhere. in his hair, his ears, his clothes. but he could care less about how itchy it is, or how hot those three blazing suns are. no, all that matters is this woman, and the fact that she's not repulsed by him]
You don't have to worry. My eyes aren't on anyone else. [once he's gotten most of the sand away, he turns back to face her, rubbing his nose. he's... actually never gotten this far with a woman, really. even with Totoko-chan, she had rejected his advances once he'd grown up. so he's kind of winging it!]
i hope youre ready, hes pure? hes red? one of neros roman people
Are you acting out in such a manner that you like what you see?
( what makes this worse is that the bottom-half of her dress is see through and she does hold the air of someone important, though she had been ready to cut away the male's body not too long ago for this car. ) It'd be worrisome if you became a wandering eyed scoundrel, but it can't be helped that you're enraptured by my appearance, but for now I want you to place your attention on the vehicle we have at hand.
( pointing towards the ride before demanifesting her sword. ) Do you mind doing me a favor, it's just a simple one. ( hopefully osomatsu will do it for a cute girl. do it for her.png )
hahaha pure......
Depends on the favor, milady. [he grins again, eyes sweeping over the car. he's being honest... Osomatsu may be interested in women, but he's also lazy. so if she's going to put him to work, he might have to decline. he wasn't Choromatsu, after all]
listen... hes pure enough.. in neros standards..
( maybe, though she is an emperor and will most likely stand by her word, she just wishes for this male to perhaps drive and she'll sit in the other side. i mean, who wouldn't want a cute girl by their side and driving as if they own the place? )
What do you say, you won't turn away such a request, would you?
i suppose he would be, by her standards
his grin becomes a bit mischievous, and he leans in towards Nero]
I'll, uh.... I'll see what I can do. [if he were Karamatsu, he might wink at her here. but that's even too painful for him. so he just moseys on over to the little car, and crouches down. HMMMMM.
well, there's a plastic key in the ignition, so maybe...
he reaches in and turns it on. the car comes to life, not moving anywhere because it's still in park]
Heh! Awesome! [wow, you moron, you managed to turn on a toy car. good for you, don't get too proud of yourself]
see? it all works out! even if hes trying to be a smooth operator around her
Umu! It seems that you were able to do what I had requested of you, because of that! If there's anything that you would need done, you may ask me. But only once!
( setting the bear down in her lap, she hums softly while playing at the fabric of the small doll. )
Now, you should speak to me of your name, what is it that you go by? Unless you adore being called an "unwashed savage". ( oh nice! first name bases it seems! looks like someone is lucky for being able to make this weird toy car work. )
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he squeezes into the driver's side of the car as best as he can. good thing he's not very tall! or big! he's an average Japanese man. he nearly dies when their hips become flush. how the heck is he going to concentrate with this attractive girl pressed up against him?]
Unwashed savage has a good ring to it. [a joke, and he winks here, actually, since he's feeling mighty fine!] But no, my name is Osomatsu.
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Umu! If you like it so much! It can remain your name! You shall be Unwashed Savage. ( think of it as a nickname! maybe if osomatsu didn't play a joke with an emperor who makes up her name. maybe he needs to request to her to use his other name and not this one, but would he let a request like that be used for something so small! as her legs brush up against osomatsu's own, the female raises a hand to pull at the fabric around her chest as she sighs softly from the heat. )
How much I desire a bath, do you think there's any place like that? I'd like one with rose petals swimming upon the water's surface.
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he gulps as Nero pulls at the fabric on her dress and instead focuses on getting the car moving. there's a lever to pull up the brakes and then they're off, puttering along through the sand]
I'm not sure we'll be able to find a bath in the desert, especially one with rose petals.
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Why do you act as if that's the inevitable? I'm sure there has to be one around here, so do not fret, I'm sure I'll have a grandiose bath soon.
( a nod and finally letting go of the fabric of her clothes, she takes a look at the other. ) So tell me, Unwashed Savage, what are you doing out here so far in this desert. Though, I don't know if I believe what I see here. There's something twisted yet comical towards the despair of others who suffer in this heat.
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he presses his foot to the gas, trying to get the little car to move just a bit faster, but it's not. this is about as fast as it can go, 15 miles an hour. geez]
I was just checking out the game. [which is the truth. he shrugs] I've never played a virtual reality game before, and people were talkin' about how high-tech it was, so I thought I'd see for myself. Gotta say, I'm impressed! It really feels like I'm in the middle of a desert.
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A game...? Interesting, what happens if someone here dies, have you found out that? ( this is like that one horror game movie with frankie muniz where they die in real life or.. is that the one of the twists and turns in /extra, pretty sure it is. )
So are the other people around us NPCs.. would you happen to be one as well? ( she would touch his forehead to find out but when she's about to, the bear in her arms squeaks unhappily. maybe this carebear plays a bigger role here than they think. )
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I'm not an NPC, and I haven't died yet. I don't think we'll die outside if we die in the game, but who knows? I only just arrived yesterday.
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( so this is.. the same. thinking of her previous masters, she looks to the male next to her. ) Are they.. here too? ( normally it isn't right for servants to remember their previous summons but this place is all too familiar. )
I demand that you stay by my side, we will go in search of someone. ( that's a command from the emperor! well, not like osomatsu knows that. ) Were there any others that you met while here? Perhaps.. someone with brunette tufts and stars that glitter in their eyes.
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Don't worry, baby. I'm not going anywhere. [he brings the one arm that is closest to Nero up and around the back of the seat, keeping his other hand on the wheel] Haven't seen anyone with stars in their eyes, though. They a friend of yours?
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Umu! Excuse yourself, do not belittle my name to just a mere child. I am an emperor, nothing more and nothing less! ( now that's something she's got to correct, a serious look on her features as she places a hand to her chest. ) Make sure you do not falter again.
( they really don't have stars in their eyes, it's just nero's elegant way of speaking. sadly, this might just make osomatsu's job even harder. when it comes to her friend, she hums lightly before speaking. ) They are someone important and if you find them, you must tell me. Though.. how will we contact each other if you do.
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Didn't you get one of those communicators when you got here? God, what are they called? CERES Devices? We can communicate with that, like a cellphone, I think.
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CERES Device? I have an understanding of what you mean, but I had not been gifted one. Where is it that I should retrieve such a device, is it for all people or.. I inquire to know this information! Do share it with me.
( she's waiting to be shown!!! )
I'll give it back just as swiftly if you hand it over.
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I thought all newcomers got one. You'll probably have to ask that Mosley guy when we get out of here.
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Anyway.
( taking the device, she eyes it as he drives but oh no! it seems there's a little bump in the road and she drops his CereVice right on the sand.. outside of the car. WHOOPS!! )
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Hold up. What creature was this? I haven't seen any wish-granting creatures. [he glances at Nero, then back to the road] Was it in here?
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( but! it seems he's yet to find one. )
Mm. Yes, it was. Something that grants only lies, sadly. Even I was fooled. ( there's such an upset look in her eye but she hides it well by looking at the carebear. ) But it is fine, since I've learned it's secrets.
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What do you mean my device is lost?