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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ah yes! you should become one of my roman people? call me emperor all the time
I will excuse you since your previous words have salvaged you from my anger.
( that's her way of saying "bless you" towards the other's itchy nose. but nero is surprised and wonders where all the petals have rained down from, did they just fall from the sky? well, they are still falling from the sky but not at a quick and alarming rate. )
Now, has the issue passed? If you're willing to praise my looks like so, you should continue doing so and maybe your sneezes will go away, what do you think?
if rome's okay with vietmanese SURE
Ah, but you are a really lovely person though. It seems like being in a desert hasn't dampened your spirits.
as long as the vietmanese loves her! she'll accept ai as her roman citizen!
( she doesn't know much about the other but she is happy with these words if praise coming towards her. the petals still following down and settling upon her red dress until she moves forward, some of them falling onto the sand. )
Do tell me, are you allergic to the sand, if so, this truly isn't a place for you.
VIVA LA ROMA
[As for what Nero said about begging for water, Ai steps out of the pile of roses she was in, trying to sweep them off of her own dress as she answers.]
Um, I don't think I'm better than anyone else here right now. Everyone's dealing with it in their own way and... I suppose I'm just used to not voicing any complaints. The sand doesn't bother me too much either.
PICKS YOU UP neros child now you shall be queen one day
( with the petals that fall to the ground from the female's dress, she gazes at the other for her next set of words. )
Ah, then that is good for you. Don't allow such heat to weaken your strengths. It would be sad if you were to pass out like anyone else, that would make things harder for you. I'm sure.
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I'll keep doing my best! Thank you so much for your kind words, Miss.
[She nods decisively.]
I've been in many environments because of ViViD, but you never know what they throw at you at these times. But the rule of thumb is to always be on your toes.
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ViViD? Praytell, what is the meaning of that name? Is it able to change the surrounding with ease? ( she's curious as to what this is about, waiting for her to speak. )
If it does not bother you, is it... fake?
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And, yes. This is all a virtual reality that encompasses our senses so it feels like we're actually within the setting that's presented in front of our eyes.
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Umu! ( when will she cut this out! and there it is again, another set of roses that fall right down on ai and hopefully her allergies will be okay!!! nero does come over and allows the roses to just bury ai for a moment before smacking some of them out the way. )
Is there a world outside of here? If so, why are we here?