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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misaya reiroukan | fate/
[ even with thigh-high boots, misaya still finds sand beneath her feet, and needless to say, it puts her in a foul mood. there’s no food, no water, no shade — but at least everyone out here has the comfort of each other. how pleasant.
there’s also one additional problem: idle socializing doesn’t really fit in her agenda. so when a gaudy pink car shows up, she hops in, clearly intending to leave driving up to the person next to her. she’s only been driven around by chauffeurs, but in the case that neither of them do know how to drive, she’d figure it out… somehow.
at least there’s nothing but miles and miles of desert, where she probably wouldn’t barrel right into a group of innocent people. probably. she’ll do her best. ]
Do you know how to drive?
[ but in the moment, her tone is cold and authoritative, and her sheer insistence would probably compel anyone to say yes, even if they’ve never been behind the wheel before. ]
iv;
[ what she wishes for is something practical and uninteresting — a creature large enough to escort her through the desert, such as a horse or a camel. instead, what she gets is puppies. a lot of puppies. within the temple, at least ten individual puppies materialize right then and there — some of them look like hunting dogs, while other ones are white and long-furred, but regardless of how they appear, they all crowd around her enthusiastically, tails wagging at a mile a minute.
at first, she tries to push them aside with her hands, but then… hmm… she looks left, right, and when she sees no one in sight, aside from the incredibly tricky genie, she places her hand on their heads, patting them gently, and she’s even smiling —
but then there’s a noise — the abrupt click of someone’s shoe, or a chuckle from behind one of the temple pillars, and the smile immediately vanishes as someone else appears.
and here she is, still covered in Very Excitable puppies. what will this do for her reputation? she glances towards the dark, charging her eyes with magic in order to get a better glimpse of whoever it is. ]
You — you saw nothing.
[ her patting them, she means. god, how embarrassing. ]
bonus;
[ for an expert magus such as her, acquiring new powers is easy to adapt to. and to an extent, she seems to be having fun with it, conjuring up pieces of ice and chucking them at the water-filled worms with ease. by now, there’s a puddle around her, which cycles between quickly being replenished and quickly evaporating.
it’s ice that tastes… inedible, however — maybe it’s far too salty, or would stick to your tongue without melting. and even if it manages to be stomached, it’s certainly not something that would quench anyone’s thirst in the desert.
in the midst of this, perhaps one of these chunks of ice will head your way and smack you — right in the head. after all, misaya’s aim with her magecraft is impeccable.
and true to her nature, instead of apologizing right away, she speaks up snappishly. ]
Did I say you could be in my way?
wildcard;
[ another prompt in mind? i’m good with anything! ]
i!
Once he's all situated in the tiny seat, he looks at the controls. LUCKILY, they look like they're for a kid? So it leaves Mikazuki to wonder...WWTD (What Would Tsurumaru Do)? ] Let's see...please strap yourself in, dear lady. Leave it to me now, ahaha.
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and while leaving responsibility to him might not be the wisest thing to do, she's convinced for now. (oh, how wrong she is... WWTD is not a safe, risk-free plan at all.)
before they take off, she'll offer him some words as recognition of her acceptance. ]
Then, I'll be leaving myself in your care. Do not disappoint me.
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He'll turn his attention to the driving at least, humming and looking around for a moment to try to assess where to begin. There's pedals and one's a "go" and hte other is a "break". He knows THAT much but he's not sure beyond that -- so he ends up hitting the gas and ZOOM! At least the breeze is nice in the hot desert? ] Ahaha, we're going pretty fast for such a small car? The wind in your hair but hopefully no sand, dear lady. Please tell me if you want to go anywhere in specific! [ Even if there's only sand, sand, and more sand all over. ]
1/2
so when he slams his foot on the 'go' pedal, she — ]
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THERE'S SAND EVERYWHERE AND SHE'S YELLING AAAA MIKAZUKI WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS
but no, that's a little unseemly of her. she may be yelling and thoroughly enraged, but she's certainly not flailing around, instead trying to give him an order. ]
Stop! Stop the vehicle, you fool!
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iv... naturally
so instead of pointing out the dogs...
he's going to point out something else, because knowing know ViViD works now he can presume she was in the same wishing predicament, huh? ViViD is getting kind of predicable now. ]
So, instead of wishing your way out -- the easy way -- you wasted it? How stupid.
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Taking the easy way out is a coward's choice. Is there any elegance in simply wishing for my way out?
[ listen, hijikata... you're talking to the girl who sealed away her servant's gae bolg just because she found its guaranteed kill effect too crude.
despite how she snaps at him, a few of the puppies, who had initially viewed him as a threat, will run towards him eagerly, their paws skidding on the slippery floor. ]
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Huhh... Really now?
[ he can only offer a challenging smirk towards Misaya's way to combat her icy glare. ] That pride is going to get you killed one day.
[ says the man with a lot of pride himself, but he already accepted it might get him killed one day. his life is already short ever since he took on the samurai life anyway. ] It'd be a shame if you're buried under all that sand out there -- rather than being buried in a proper grave, you know.
[ JUUUST SAYING. but ah... puppies are his weakness. he has a rep to keep up... but puppies...
damn it.
no. he's ignoring them! ]
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A dog who knows nothing shouldn't spend its time running its mouth. [ her arms fold across her chest, with something of a proud smile. ]
Instead of focusing on where you want to be buried, you should focus on making the most out of your own life while you still have it. Is that not so?
[ not that she's too focused on where she's buried, when easing the circumstances of her own death had been her priority.
but before she has time to make another retort, another group of puppies scramble across the floor over towards hijikata, seeing that the first group of puppies had been unsuccessful in receiving pats from him. these puppies think they can win over anyone, honestly! ]
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iv
I don't know what you're talking about.
☆ His expression says something completely different, as he strolls over and crouches down to pat one of pups. So cute... ☆
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but despite what he says, she does see that smirk, and it's obviously a mocking expression that's meant to mock her! which is completely unacceptable.
her eyes narrow, tone icy as she questions him. ] You're laughing. Do you think this is some sort of joke?
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☆ If anyone can appreciate this, it has to be Shu, who doesn't really care for the tone that the woman uses on him. She's clearly never met an idol like him before, and his tail bristles in slight annoyance. ☆
But this place is no place for animals... or humans, for that matter. Maybe we should get them somewhere safe and away from here?
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bonus!
Except, you know, sans the dying of thirst part because cheatingass spirits. BUT STILL, RUDE. The ice bounces off and Kashuu recoils with a little "agh!!" sound, and then he's immediately on the hunt, scoping out the area for whichever punk threw it. Which isn't hard, considering this is a desert and there is nothing here, lord help them.]
Maybe you could try not throwing stuff instead—!
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her retort is swift, however, as she sends a glare his way. ] Don't order me around, as if you have any authority over me.
[ which is just a fancy way of saying, don't tell me what to do. because she's misaya! a noblewoman from the highest ends of society! ]
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He doesn't seem deterred by the snappy response, either way. He sees her +5 year old maturity and raises her maturity of the same exact age!!]
I wouldn't have to say anything if you knew how to, y'know, not throw things at people like a three year old!
[Ah, she's been demoted from 5...]
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bonus!
Pachunk! It hits her right in her hair.]
Eeeek...! I'm so sorry!
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What were you thinking, just standing there? Do you have some sort of death wish?
[ little does she know, however, that she's standing in front of an actual caster-class servant... ]
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I don't, but please don't throw ice at others...! It's not very nice!
[In a world where no one hurts others people don't throw ice at pure beans!]
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bonus!
It... seems I was.
[ Whether he recognizes this snappy woman or not is in the air, totally. Blame the heat or what may be a concussion. He gives her a small forgiving smile, and picks up the ice chunk curiously... is that red on the ice? ]
Did you create this? It's fascinating- melting much more slowly than it should in this climate. That would it's probably useless for refreshment if a solute is involved, but the coldness is still welcome.
[ Unlike other things. Like his face. ]
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Spare me your false flattery, Von Hohenheim.
[ she spits his name, as if she can't stand to say it. it's a name that she'd once called with fondness and admiration, after all, and she remembers the days where he would smile at her, just like that.
it sickens her. how dare he? ]
Only a fool would choose to show themselves to me after what you did.
And I know that you are no fool.
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"It wasn't false, you are as talented as you back then. That's wonderful, my child."
but he holds his tongue with an expression that looks like pain for a second before it's something stoic. Warmer than how Misaya looks at him, but his smile's faded away. ]
I might as well consider myself one. Do you believe... I could do worse to you than what I've already done?
[ He shakes his head. Both to say he isn't out to place another curse on her, and that he can't think of a worse thing than his betrayal. ]
You are free to disregard my words... but you have the symptoms of mild dehydration. If you summon that ice in proximity to those worms, the high amount of water in their bodies will freeze. You'll then have drinkable water that won't evaporate in this heat.
i'm sorry that she is the way she is....
(′︿‵｡) well it's like 92% his fault she's like this anyway
that's true... shakes caster why did you wrong her this way?
wronging people is the Fate/etc MO forever lbr here
i
Er...Nakigitsune can figure it out! It ah, doesn't look too difficult.
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Nakigitsune? Is that your name, or that boy's?
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Oh no, Nakigitsune is his name, not mine! I am simply an accompanying fox.
[he makes a foxhand! it's habit.] That's right.
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