ioculus | //TESTDRIVE.EXE

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!test drive

//TESTDRIVE.EXE

"I'm the reason half of you are drunk at the moment." (CEO-SAN, NO...) "I'm the reason half of you are drunk at the moment." (CEO-SAN, NO...)

//TESTDRIVE.EXE

The lights flicker overhead, music blaring from the speakers as you step inside, every sound drowned out except for that hypnotic tune. The walls are painted in an array of hypnotic colors, saturated to the point where your attention doesn't know where to land, and all kinds of screens hang from each corner, showing flashing images of ads, gadget after gadget appearing in a second to show you the best of what Ceres has to offer. Dancing bodies flank each side of the large ballroom, bodies with eyes that look hollow and their faces too symmetrical. They'll occasionally glance at you and smile, maybe even engage and offer to take you to one of the private rooms in the back. However, their words are interrupted when the lights suddenly turn brighter and focus on the center where a raised platform sits. A man appears in the center, one hand raised to silence the music while the other holds a microphone.

"It's been some time, hasn't it? As you may or may not know, I am the CEO and founder of CERES, Julius Vincere, and you can say, I'm the reason half of you are drunk at the moment." He chuckles lightly before continuing, "For a second there, I was worried we wouldn't make it, but I placed my confidence in all of you. I knew you'd surpass my expectations when I first brought you here, and you were able to utilize our tools to perfection. As you may have suspected by the gallons of champagne being passed around at my behest-"

He pauses to reach out for a glass, snatching it from one of the wait staff passing by before raising it to the crowd.

"We've finally obtained our first victory here on Cerealia. The colony is ours completely and will be fully functional from this day forward. Please enjoy all the luxurious amenities we have put together, and join me in journeying towards a new and better future. Together, we will expand our territory here and reach even further horizons. And by all means, don't be shy with the staff. They're also here for your entertainment."

He gestures around the room, smiling before taking a sip of his champagne. Applause echoes from the crowd while Julius steps off the stage, handing the mic to one of the staff before pausing for pictures and interviews from reporters. You stand in the crowd as the lights dim once more, lost in a sea of people and wondering where to go next.

//SCENARIOS.EXE

PHASE I

[ 1801 ] The screens lining the walls inside even extend into the bathrooms and the back rooms, playing commercial after commercial, all CERES themed, as you mingle with the other guests, but occasionally, the image transforms into a flash of something else. It appears for a split-second. There's the face of a woman, lips parted in a soundless cry. She looks to be in pain, fingers pressed to the screen. It's so quick that most don't register it, barely even notice it's there unless they focus. The party continues without incident, otherwise. Because it's a pretty damn good party, isn't it? There's plenty of food, strong drinks - hey, no one under seventeen is allowed to drink - and many decorative people. Just ignore that feeling of being watched! You're just so good looking, after all.

PHASE II

[ ???? ] A room sits in the back with several helmets characters can wear to upload themselves into ViViD, a state of the art virtual reality game, and enter one of the game stages to participate in a team mission. They can sample a few minutes of gameplay as they enter a short battle with one of the NPC creatures. They'll quickly become familiar with the state-of-the-art technology as all pain and wounds experienced inside will feel real and will appear on each character's body. But what an awesome game it is. With amazing digital quality surround, it's a world like none other... but be careful not to fall too fast! (Those monsters even smell real, don't they?) Feel free to talk to Vidia, the game host, if you need help getting things going!

PHASE III

[ 2134 ] The evening is wearing on, the dance floor is becoming more crowded. The music seems oppressive by now. People are feeling charged with adrenaline, or feeling the intensity rise in the mood. Maybe a new partner is the right choice to go with- or maybe you can talk to a wallflower. But one thing is for certain... The loud vibrations disguise the fact that something is moving over the vents. You can hear it in the background, the rustling sound that agitates your ears. But hey, maybe it's nothing, right? After all, it's just a party...

Maybe you'll want to go into the back rooms for a bit to... explore your new friends? The rooms (and your companions) are quite pretty and cozy, and can be adjusted with holograms to create a room for your desired mood. After all, it's a little too noisy when you're not alone, but the sudden silence might get oppressive too...

[ Feel free to get intimate or just get out of the party and sleep off the drinks, but remember, anything above PG stuff must go into your own journals and under NO circumstances will unwanted propositioning be allowed or any non-consensual activity lest you want to be locked in a cold box on top of a huge ice cube for the rest of the night. Naked. Please use your own discretion, the minimum age for intimacy is 15-16. ]

PHASE IV

[ 0243 ] In the quieter corners of the party, it becomes more ever-present until something falls on your eye. It's red. Warm...

As you gaze up, you see a dead body faced down, the half-sliced face lying against the ventilation screen. The body's eyes remain open, staring down at you. Screams and sounds of shock sound, and the party halts. As the security filters in to investigate the body, the rustling only grows louder.

It's then that they suspect something is in the vents. It's crawling avidly across the ceiling, and lights fall one by one, exploding against the ground.

There's barely a moment to register the chaos before the last knight of CERES appears. You can choose to run. You can choose to engage. The knight won't let you leave its sight alive. But you know you have to do something. Be it protecting the innocents there, or fighting off the creature that seems to only be there to harm you and your friends, old and new.

And you do want to protect this place, because it's just been won... don't you?

BONUS

[ whyo'clock ] There's a ball pit hidden in one of the auxiliary rooms. All invited parties are given a maximum of one hour to have fun time in the ball pit. They must not exceed their one hour or they will be forcibly removed by the security droids. Please keep all food and alcohol out of the ball pit. Do not have any genital parties in the ball pit. The ball pit is sacred to CERES.

[ The party will be long, so take your time enjoying each scenario... and dreading it. At the end of it all, things will be calmed down and you're free to enjoy the night as you please. Remember to keep things PG (the FAQ below elaborates!), and absolutely no forcing any R-rated things with anyone below 15-16 (so be sure to ask their age, right?) or the droids will have a little fun chasing you around! Do enjoy the pretty views of the gorgeous digital city though. Which seems strangely quiet, but at this late hour, why not, right? ]

//RUN.EXE

Welcome to CEREALIA's first test drive! Please forgive our appearance as we are going through the final stages game completion. While most pages are under development and/or hidden from the public eye, please don't feel discouraged, since knowing everything doesn't always make the experience. Your characters will know as little as you. For your convenience, we have compiled a mini-FAQ - please read it thoroughly before playing. Thank you!

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

HOW DID MY CHARACTER GET HERE?

You may have been just been doing their day-to-day activities - be it swimming or fighting demons - but the next moment, a crack and blinding light - now you're here, in your best attire, celebrating. The memories of your at-home activities fade away like a fleeting dream, and it's replaced with the feeling of happiness. ( You haven't forgotten your past, just that anything you were doing seems far too distant to be important. ) Must be something in the air. You can't remember clearly fighting for CERES, and whatever this Julius Vincere is telling you might be complete bullshit for all you know, but something influences you to play along anyway - if you think about it long enough, perhaps you had fought for CERES after all...?

WHO/WHAT IS CERES? WHAT IS CEREALIA?

You mean... you don't remember? After all the help you gave it?

WHAT FORMAT CAN WE USE FOR THIS TESTDRIVE?

Action (brackets/prose), video/voice, and texting are all available via your CEREVICE at this moment. Most functions are currently undergoing a system update, but as long as it is still connected to the Auralia Network, it will be available for communicative uses.

WHAT IS ViVID?

An amazing VR game! The demo version of ViViD will be here to play, aren't you excited? It's played with headsets that immediately allow you to experience full-body simulation, without having to move out of your seat! You can enjoy the demo world, design your own, play alone, play with a team, but remember, the boss must be beaten! Please check the phase ii thread for details and interactions!

SO... PHASE III?

Sexy things can happen, you're getting hot and heavy on the dance floor, and there are rooms in the back that can be decorated to your mood, after all. REMEMBER, the age of consent is 15-16, please use your own discretion and don't upset people. For the test drive, any situation that goes above PG (beyond kissing/grinding/light making out... We're lenient) must go into threads in your own journals. Any creeper behavior or unwanted advances will get an IC boot into the Frozen Locker with "Let it Go" on repeat.

POWER LIMITATIONS?

Actually, no, the characters don't have any of their abilities locked or otherwise suppressed. More info will be i the official FAQ, but so long as you don't destroy the entire game ( and we trust you can use your powers responsibly— as does CERES! ), limitations are nonexistent.

OKAY, WHAT ABOUT PREVIOUS GAME MEMORIES?

It's completely acceptable to bring a character that has been in a previous game to Cerealia!

THE NAME LOOKS FAMILIAR. . .

Yes, a loosely related setting concept with a place called CEREALIA was pitched for an ExitVoid phase before the moderators decided to close the game for good. A few of us got together with the original pitchers of the idea since we thought it really awesome and with a lot of potential and decided to try our own thing with it!

ARE THE GAMES RELATED?

Nope. Not at all, it's been rehashed from the ground up and built to stand on its own as an original place and game.

We'll keep coming back to this, so don't worry.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ And she's seen younger man then the boy in front of her march off to war and die for the sake of all humanity. So she hardly thinks twice about such a young kid standing in the... club or whatever one wished to call this hall. Still, she can't help the slight tensing of her shoulders when she notices his race, but she kept it from her eyes as she shook her head. ]

Perhaps, but perhaps not. I can see no reason our host would care to broadcast such a thing willingly, can you?

[ and Peggy would much rather chase down a ghost then be a wallflower for another hour or so before politely excusing herself. Especially if there truly was someone in need of aid. ]

Not really.

[he can't really argue that much. it's probably pretty strange, even if nam soon isn't thinking all that much of it. he doesn't really think all that much of her shoulders tensing at the sight of him, though maybe not for the same reasons. they're strangers who ended up in a bit of a precarious position... and it wouldn't be the first time someone saw his face and immediately had the urge to back away.

not that it would be obvious why by looking at him. not when he's soft-spoken and mild-mannered, even as he takes a moment to consider what she's saying.]

We don't know the reason for anything else they're doing either, though.

[ Strong emotions and a world almost destroyed can hardly be dealt with in a day or even a year, even if some of the best men in her unit had been of Asian descent. After all, she can hardly claim that those of her own race were the cream of the crop either with men like Johanna Schmidt destroying the world. ]

You're right, of course. [ and her smile tightened at that though as well ] I'm afraid that's the curse of working for a corporation. They're not always upfront with their reasons for doing what they do.

[ she tilted her head, and gave Nam a more thoughtful once over. ]

I don't believe I've seen you before. Are you in security? [ She hoped not, otherwise she was losing her edge. ]

No.

[he shakes his head, fairly curt before tilting it a bit. the truth of the matter is that he doesn't remember anything about working for a corporation. why would he do that? he already has his part-time jobs that sustain him well enough without cutting into his school schedule.

the truth of the matter is that even though it's a strange and confusing blur, nam soon doesn't seem as bothered by it as he probably should. none of this really makes sense, but he's unharmed. even if he did fight, he seems to have gotten out unscathed (which should probably be a warning bell in itself). so why stress over it? there are more important things to worry about, he thinks — like finding a familiar face in this crowd, maybe. but one thing at a time, and the first is answering the question presented for him.]

I'm a student. [he's about as straight-forward as it gets, never beating around the bush with these things. why lie, right?]

[ she raised an eyebrow at his answer and then her thought immediately returned to the question of the lady they had seen just moments before. ]

And you're certain you have no idea who that woman was in the video? She looked about your age I would gather...

[ but then she shook her head ]

No, never mind. I have no reason to doubt your first answer. My apologies.

[ Although now she had that niggling voice in the back of her head that was wondering why she wasn't questioning Nam's presence at a victory party like this instead of at home studying like a good boy should. After all, they were practically celebrating the annihilation of a race (or so it would seem) rather then a simple ribbon cutting ceremony of a fully functioning colony on some random planet she never heard of either.

But what were semantics? Surely her head was just a little bit fuzzy from all that champagne that was passed around, nothing more. She'll remember all those little details first thing in the morning, of course. Right? ]

[nam soon's head tilts a little at that. really? he's grown so used to people just not believing him or taking what he has to say seriously (what little he does say, at least). that's kind of just what adults do to punks like him. so hearing that, followed by an apology?

it's a bit surprising.]

It's fine. I haven't seen anyone I know here, anyway. [he pauses, thinking back on the girl for a moment. it's really hard to tell if she was in trouble, or something else.

but nam soon's not terribly interested in making his head hurt over it.] An actress. The girl, she's probably just one of those.

[there probably isn't much use in getting worked up about it, right? it may be a little worrisome, but there are probably things bigger for them to focus on, if that's the case.]

[ Peggy's a woman trained in disseminating information for the greater good; she knows better then to dismiss something as innocuous as a strange woman appearing amidst the celebratory video seeming to be trapped, weak, and in pain. However, there's very little she can do at the moment and she sighed, letting the tension in her shoulders ebb a little. ]

Yes, of course. I'm sure we'll figure it out anyway with time. Perhaps even our celebrated host will unravel the mystery for us, assuming she is an actress.

[ She quirked a smile and held out her hand for a handshake. ]

I don't believe I caught your name. I'm Miss Peggy Carter.

[ Just in case she needs a corroborating witness once this night was over. One can never be too careful. ]

[he gives something resembling a casual shrug at peggy's assessment. he guesses a person can never be too suspicious, especially with how dubious the entire situation is. but of all the things to be suspicious of, nam soon can't really find it in him to thing very much of the flashing image that's cropped up... well, more than once.

maybe he just snuck into too many horror movies when he was younger to really think all that much of anything but something that parodies or plays on that idea. kind of like the ring, only not.

it's all easy enough to shrug off; really, he's more surprised with the introduction than anything else. just as nam soon seemed surprised at the way she was speaking with him, this catches him too. he's just not used to it. it takes him a moment before he returns the gesture to shake her hand, accompanying it with a polite bow.]

I'm... G— Nam Soon Go. [he almost sputters his name out in proper eastern order first, but nam soon knows that could probably get confusing. it's still strange for him though, since he has such minimal (read: tourist passersby on the streets of seoul) experience with anyone from overseas. he leaves it at that, bowing his head again. the truth is that he's still not sure exactly how to address her; he knows the levels of formality between people are different elsewhere, but he isn't quite sure how to apply that to actual interaction.

maybe if he didn't sleep through all of his classes, this would be less of an issue...]

[ keep getting startled at every little thing and Peggy might start to think Nam's a shy, adorable, young man. Much like someone else she knew in her acquaintance. But she returned the handshake politely and then laughed softly at the bowing. ]

Please, we're all supposed to be friends here I believe--[ although some were certainly getting more friendly then others ]--and I think we can leave off at least a few of the formalities, wouldn't you agree? It's a pleasure to meet you, Nam Soon Go even if it is under slightly strange circumstances.

[ such as the fact she has no idea how she even got there other then some vague recollection of working here for a while (surely) before finding herself on the attendance list to this party. Even if said party was drastically not to her taste. Turning away from the spectacle happening out on the dance floor, she cleared her throat. ]

So have you been here for long? If you're a student, surely your parents must be here as well, I presume?

Ah.

[he's the type of person that's of few words, but there are enough times when the subtle shift of his facial expressions can say a lot. the surprise in his eyes is definitely something that comes as a result of minor culture shock. he's just not used to adults telling him to drop any formalities. maybe it's not a bad thing, and he won't argue with her about it, either. it's just something to get used to.

and seriously, if she wants to believe that he's shy and adorable? well, he won't really stop her there either. it's probably better she think that than know some of the deeper truths, anyway.]

Not long. I don't think so, at least. [but considering the circumstances, he could be totally wrong. for a brief moment, nam soon gives peggy a quizzical look, one that seems to ask if it's similar for her.

but his gaze averts pretty quickly when she asks of his parents. he's got nothing to say on that matter, and if there's one thing nam soon is good at, it's not spilling the beans on a topic he's not interested in talking about.

whoops.]

[ trust Peggy to attach to one of the few silent types in the joint, but she noted the widening eyes at her request and the dire lack of an answer on the other and after a moment of holding her breath, she breathed a little deeper and then exhaled, clinging to her smile like the very real armor that it was. ]

Well, at least we can say we have that one small thing in common then; I've just newly arrived myself. [ both at the party and here in the colony. Fancy that! And, since she's not exactly one to force a conversation when all is said and done, she leaves it at that, only pausing a moment in her (slightly less then) awkward look around the hall to grab another flute of champagne. Even if she doesn't drink it immediately, it does keep her hands occupied and she would dearly love another look at that girl trapped behind the scenes as well.

If she can get one. ]

[if nothing else, nam soon is grateful for the fact that she doesn't press or pry. most adults, especially the teachers, were prone to questioning him about these things — even if they knew it would be met with a silent gaze.

he'll remain quiet for a moment as she grabs another drink — of course, nam soon himself does nothing. it doesn't seem like they'd make much of a fuss if he were to drink, but he's not that far off from turning 20; he can wait at least that long if he can keep track of dates and make sense of whatever is going on right now.]

So it's not just me. Are there other people like this, too? [if he looks vaguely concerned, it's because he is. but it's not the sort of alarmed feeling that he should have over the obviously strange situation, but more that it lights a little hope in finding someone who is very important to him.]

[ when all the world was reduced to rubble, prying was sometimes the last thing one wanted to do (or wanted to have done to them). The memories were still far too raw. ]

I'm afraid you're the first one I bumped into this evening, but I imagine if two of us have had the same experience, there are bound to be others just like us.

[ or else it was all a dream and she'll wake up in a few minutes with a pounding headache from crying herself to sleep again and a day of tedious paperwork to look forward to. One day, that will seem less like living in hell, especially as she's seen true hell out there on the battlefield.

But, sadly, at the moment that seemed more like home. At least there she had friends to watch her back and a clear enemy to fight. Now she was just back to banging on the wall, waiting to be let back in.

Glancing back to Nam Soon, she rolled the stem of her glass between her fingers, thinking. ] I don't suppose you've acquired any other acquaintances, have you?

I haven't. I just heard people around talking, that's all.

[but that's the kind of guy nam soon is. should he have spoken to someone earlier, tried to get a grasp on the situation and see what was up? sure, of course. but that was a lot of effort for something that honestly didn't feel like it was going to get him far.

most people seemed to look right at home at the party. those who didn't... well, for how observant he can be, he didn't really notice if there were any like that. all he'd been doing was scanning faces for someone he knew, and in taking a break to get his head on straight, ended up in this conversation with peggy. he wonders if maybe he should make some acquaintances.

but man. effort.

instead, nam soon tilts his head to the left a little, raising a hand to scratch at his head in contemplation. his lips purse a little before he makes another inquiry.] Is that something we should do? Go... make acquaintances, I mean.

[ this is why Nam Soon will end up dying all alone and without a single friend to find the body. Not enough effort to even set up a home delivery order... ]

Well, I suppose that's usually up to the person now isn't it? But I've found that most people find a friend sooner or later. It's just not in our nature to be entirely alone.

Of course, there are always the exception.

[ and it is a little odd he has to ask that question at all and it's something Peggy files away under the file heading: Nam Soon. It's always good to remember at least a few things about the people one meets, yes? ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

//TESTDRIVE.EXE

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geh, I hate html fail so damn much....

it's okay, it's gets the best of all of us sometimes...

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