⇨ THE GAME CUBE

[ringleaders]

Who: Everyone who gets caught in the game.
When: Day 97
Where: Hellbound Hallows, the game inside of a cube inside of a city inside of a computer.
What: On Day 97, a massive Game Cube drops on the city of Mainframe, forcing those caught inside to fight against the User for their lives. This log is 100% Hellbound Hallows gameplay. Plotting deets are here.
Warnings: Diablo-esque violence, characters dying, and edgy video game aesthetic gore.

HELLBOUND HALLOWS↴ The Game Cube drops close to the entrance of the carnival - so much so that it will end up pulling a lot of people from it in, out of sheer terrible luck. Alternatively, your character may have seen it coming down and understood what allowing the programs to fail would mean, dashing in to be caught beneath it out of sheer heroism. Maybe you entered the game for some reason in between. Either way, once the walls of the Cube have passed you, you'll find yourself in a new reality. You find yourself somewhere in the levels of a dungeon crawling game with a dark aesthetic. Some binomes and sprites from the city have been pulled in with you, and all oft them know what to do. It's time to Reboot. Use the icon button the Ringmaster gave each of you. Tap it twice and say "Reboot", and you'll be able to assume your new form. Maybe it's useful, maybe it's not, but it's probably better than nothing. Probably. Now, figure out where you fit in to the structure of setting, and wait for the Game to begin. ► LEVEL ONE: Level one is where the Users will enter. With a cold blue aesthetic, it appears to be some manner of underground fortress, filled with many hallways and grand archeways. In a standard game, the enemies here would be theoretically the easiest to defeat, but you are under no obligation to follow those rules. Level one is ruled over by Sora, rebooted into the form of a vampiric overlord. He must be defeated in order for the Users to gain access to level two. ► LEVEL TWO: The colour pallet shifts to purple here, the corridors becoming darker and only lit with scattered braziers and the occasional stream of lava. Banners and tapestries depicting some hellish god line the walls. The traps here are primarily fire based, with lava traps or geysers of flame becoming more common. Level two is ruled over by Yamato, who has rebooted into the form of a fiery hellbeast. He must be defeated to access level three. ► LEVEL THREE: As the colours shift into a sickly green, the Users will reach the final level. The architecture is shaped based on the screaming faces of the damned, and the rooms are large and dramatic, filled with vast obelisks and deep chasms. Subterranean plant life haunts the floors and shadows of this place, and poison traps become deadly and common. Level three is ruled over by the man Gongenzaka, the final boss of of the game. If he is defeated, the Users have won. Do not let this happen.

Comments

GONGENZAKA | LEVEL 3 BOSS | OTA

[betheman]

[-TapTap- IS THIS THING ON]

MMNFG- [He did not expect this. Not at all-Gongenzaka looks around from where he was caught in the very center of the cube and swallows, his robot-like body clashing greatly with the shades of green.]

SNUH! [Barks 'Suzu' as the realm shifts. It is difficult not to contain any panic, at least for the puppy, but Gongenzaka pats down the somewhat shiny 'dog', looking around. So, this is the Game...this is a dangerous situation indeed, he thinks to himself. And he only sees so many Biomes with him at that. Indeed, though he is certain judging by the room that there should be more than just them, it is a daunting image.

Still, he remembers what they were told. He taps Suzu first, after taking her as far from the 'entry' to the room as he can.] Do not worry, Suzu...this will help to keep you safe, hmm? REBOOT!

[There is a slight yip, and Gongenzaka has to jump as the dog abruptly morphs into some sort of thorned plant. It gives a muffled bark however-and so, Gongenzaka sighs in relief. Well...that at least proves the snubull is alright.

Then, that leaves himself. He takes a deep breath, facing the doorway with a determined frown.] REBOOT!

[...What happens next is quite unexpected. The earth beneath him crumbles-in the same moment that a flash of light blinds him, he feels his body abruptly shift significantly. Everything is tiny, minuscule, and more importantly 'scattered'. It is as if...] A-

AUHH!!

[As if he has gained another head. Or...Four, really. It is ironic, but his closest friend would likely see him now and be reminded of something quite familiar in the worst of ways if he were there...but for now, Gongenzaka finds himself a legless, long-tailed dragon, most of him hidden within a cavernous hole in the ground. A significant gap sits between his body and the edge of it-and as for Gongenzaka himself, he now bears an enormous wingspan, and menacing claws on muscled forelimbs. Five heads, one hooded, two from his shoulders, and two from the wings, stare downward with beady eyes, and the entire body seems somehow comprised of cruel plants. Thorns, blood, petals...they coat him entirely, and he looks himself over with wide eyes.

...Well.

They certainly did say there would be no way to predict the form but...] Th-This is...

Is this truly what I, the man Gongenzaka, am to work with..!?

[Not that it's bad, persay, but as the information fills his mind...

...Something feels very unique about all of this!!]

[MUFFLEDBOSSTHEMEINTHEBACKGROUND]

[Obviously, that is not his actual Boss MusicWith the Game started, Gongenzaka finds himself...Stuck. Everyone needs to work together, but it feels to him as if he's in a large dead end. Not to mention, unable to move. There is a 'feeling' in the back of his mind. A feeling that tells him he'll need to eventually duck into the very hole he's sitting in in fact, as soon as...

The dragon's many eyes flicker, and he finds the urge to do so overwhelming. As soon as the Player(s) are in range, is the answer. Within an instant he's under the ground, and all that remains of him is the end of a tail, coiled up into the air in the mimicry of a tree.

When the players come in to inspect it...a rumble passes through the ground. Earth shuffles and breaks in cube-like fragments, as the players are crudely thrown to the ground in what the Users will call a 'cutscene'. The dragon's enormous form breaks the earth where his 'hole' would be-and a roar passes through his five throats, wings dropping bloodied petals in his wake as a tail decorated with pixelated vines and leaves trails behind him. He circles the 'arena' once...and then dives into the hole, before rising back upward.

The Boss is here. And with another roar-]

SAHH! SO THIS TRULY IS THE END THEN? [He 'questions', looking down upon the challenger team.] THEN I, THE MAN GONGENZAKA, SHALL FACE YOU!

[Some time ago, he was slotted into the 'villain' role for a duel as a show...

...As he reminds himself of the people of Mainframe however, acid brewing in his mouths, he feels far more 'suited' for it. This 'villain' after all, is no 'villain'.

As the Final Boss, he stands as the last defense between those biomes and 'nullification'.]

COME FORWARD!

[empty_vessel]

Spawning in will never not be disorienting. But he's still on level three, according to the gold trim, anyway. Except instead of the usual small pile of loot, he's in the middle of a huge pile of loot.

Invincibility potions, haste potions, a handful of fire breath potions and enough health and mana potions that it should have been spawned in by the gallon. The users haven't arrived yet, and there's no sign of anyone else. Jimmy can't really go far, but he can look around a little bit. He leans to peek around the massive, ornately carved doorframe and see if there's anyone he knows down there. ".... Hello?"

[otoko]

[Now that-that is a familiar voice, and his heads peer toward the source immediately.] Jimmy? Is that-

[And....Gongenzaka promptly stops, stares, and blinks repeatedly with all ten of his peepers.] ............................

................Is.....that you..?

[empty_vessel]

"Yeah. Hi Gon." Jimmy's trying to be as nonchalant about this as possible, and not really doing that great. "You're.... Are you the end boss?"

He has to be, really. Five heads, giant plant dragon monster, the biggest thing Jimmy's seen yet. And maybe Jimmy's a little irritated at everyone else getting turned into monsters and he's a pixelated centerfold. But being able to actively sabotage the users more than made up for it, though.

"Looks like you made out okay when the game came down."

[otoko]

[.........Well.] A...Auuh, evidently so, though...

[Gongenzaka stoops as low as he can, his heads stretching toward the end of the room to try and make Jimmy out. Whatever Jimmy is, it doesn't look like...er...] For the most part, it would seem so, but...

...Exactly...what sort of 'enemy' did you reboot into..?

[empty_vessel]

"I'm not. I'm a bonus objective. I got carried off in the opening movie and there are bonus rewards if I get rescued." Jimmy looks around at the pike around him again, and then looks back through the door at Gon. "I think I'm in a pile of stuff meat to help boost the users and improve their chances of killing you."

Not that Jimmy's going to let that happen, anyway. "You're a... Plant creature, right?" There's no money and a suspicious amount of fire breath potions here. Not a good sign.

[otoko]

Bonus objective..? [Well that's new. But as Jimmy describes the pile he's in, and asks the question, Gongenzaka stiffens. Oh.

He thinks he can guess what it all means.] S...Something along those lines, it would seem. There are petals along my back, and the end of this tail appears to resemble a tree...

Boss Battle Canon Fodder - TW: Cheesy video game gore

[thevictoriandetective]

[After that massive earthquake, Sherlock suddenly feels himself get yanked towards something else, and suddenly reappears right next to a giant plant dragon thingamabob nonsense creature that he honestly did not have time for because--where was Toby!?]

Toby!?

[A faint bark from one of the entrances where he'd been hanging out all this time, from what he could deduce that this was what they called a 'final boss' battle that he was right in the middle of.]

Good! Toby, stay there! I'm not entirely sure what's going on, but it's safer if you--

[Wait. The dragon thing fighting the players. That was Gon's voice!]

Gon! It's me, Sherlock! I--

[Just then, a user fired a blast of something right towards the dragon. Sherlock didn't even hesitate, he had insanely fast spider reflexes and jumped right in front of the blast, desperate to protect Gon.

BOOM!--

Green goo and plant-spider parts everywhere before de-rezzing in a poof of smoke.]

omg sherlock...

[otoko]

[Well, there's Sherlock-] Auh! Sherlock! I, the man Gongenzaka, see that you are-

[....And there goes Sherlock. He was about to say 'hello' but. Yknow. Um.] .... Ah.

[Meanwhile, the Healer's only combat spell will be casually sliding off his hide...]

...he tries...

[thevictoriandetective]

[A second later, loot appears where he disappeared, and Sherlock respawns somewhere off to the side, not too far away.]

What in blazes just happened...?

[Sherlock is bewildered, everything has gone a bit dark and poof, he's here again. It was slightly painful, getting exploded, but nothing too bad. He patted down the rest of his plant-spider body and the tree growing out of his back with a couple of his legs. All in working order.]

my god does he try,,,,,

[otoko]

SH-SHERLOCK! [Oh there he is! And he has the healer on Entangle, so she's been slowed right up for now.] Sherlock! You've returned!

[thevictoriandetective]

It seems that I have.

[He's just as baffled as anyone. He sees his 'loot' being taken, and he finally gets it.]

Ah...I think I died a bit. Neat.

[otoko]

N-

That is not NEAT! Sherlock! I, the man Gongenzaka, am barely being struck at this moment..! You should be keeping yourself safe..!

IS THIS THING ON

[hippocarnival]

[Yuya doesn't have a chance to get his icon working before Gon's. So he stops trying for a moment so watch Gon's transformation into--well, it's an even more eclectic rearrangement than he usually is. And distinctly more reptilian.

He just stares, mouth agape. Partly it's the unsettling similarity to Zarc that puts him, for a moment, back before he ever entered the carnival. The other part is just because Gon is a five-headed dragon and that's still kind of sick.]

Uuuuuuh... you got.

Bigger.

'this should be amazing but somehow it is not' < Gon, right now

[otoko]

[Ohhhhh he certainly did. Fortunately for them both, reptilian faces do not lend well to facial expression, and Gongenzaka can't catch quite all of the emotions running through Yuuya right now. Instead, all five of the heads turn on the otherwise tiny 'sprite' and blink-a motion that would no doubt be terrifying if it weren't Gongenzaka doing so.]

Auh...S...So I did..!

...I, the man Gongenzaka, did not expect to be quite this.... ...Stationary.

[AS A STEADFAST DUELIST, HE FEELS CONFLICTED.]

[hippocarnival]

[Yuya takes a deep breath. Gon doesn't look that similar to Zarc if he really focuses on the differences. Like having multiple heads! And Zarc is a part of him, so surely he couldn't ever exist in another person, right? Right.] How much can you move?

[betheman]

[Multiple heads, plant-like body...heck, where it would be awkward armory box fin-legs it's just leaves on Gongenzaka.

The dragon gives a stretch, leaning forward as best as he can. It...only somewhat works however, and with an awkward flail and stumble, he quickly ends up with his upper half collapsing to the ground before him, portions clipping through the floor.] MMFNGH-

...Somewhat.

[hippocarnival]

[Yuya backs out of the way as Gon topples over, cringing at the sound of impact. Sorry buddy, but he's not going to try and catch you when you're twenty feet tall.]

... So how are we supposed to get you through the dungeon? [Do they just stake him at the front?]

[betheman]

Ahh....that is the thing... [The dragon groans, forcing himself back up before shaking himself to his senses. The room has only one path up to it. More importantly, there is that nagging sense of 'all or nothing' ringing in his ears. He's fairly certain...well...]

.... I, the man Gongenzaka... ...Have a feeling that this IS the 'through'.

...Rather, this is the end of the dungeon.

[control_freak]

Foster had never meant to be in the game to begin with. He'd only entered the realm at all to get away from carnival; when the game dropped, he'd been inside of it, and once inside of it...

Let's be real, the incredibly 90's flavour of his video game aesthetic was wasted on him. He hated video games. He hated hobbies that served no productive purpose. He hated distractions, the innumerable petty ways people went about the business of not living the lives they were given.

He'd hardly bothered to fight the users the first time, which mostly just netted him a respawn in a new, more monstrous form on another floor. But finding himself the pixellated mashup of a monstrous, quilled gator and a prehistoric horse was not an improvement.

If anything, it was a downgrade. He didn't even have thumbs.

".... again," he murmurs to himself, under his breath.

[betheman]

Again, indeed. Though Foster is not alone. Gongenzaka peers down from where he now stands as a rather enormous, if not horrific appearing creature, and he squints to the lizard-like thing with a squint.

"...Hmmnn?" He didn't quite catch that...nor would he entirely recognize the source as it is. "Who is it?"

[control_freak]

Foster did not, originally, look up.

Now he does.

And....

.... oh.

"..........haha.... hahahahahaha!" The enormity of the beast above him, the sheer, unapologetic magnitude of scale, strikes him as... inherently comical. Exciting? Inspiring? Arresting.

Of course, a cackling, crocodile-jawed monster probably looks significantly more strange and ominous than a human with a poorly-controlled gelatological response.

[betheman]

Well this is certainly confusing. He, quite frankly, is an enormous mess of 'eat you for breakfast', and looking down to Foster from where he hovers within the great hole in the earth is something Gongenzaka does for a number of moments. What on...earth...

"Are... ....you alright..?"

[control_freak]

He's stopped laughing, at least.

"Who cares!" Foster responds with all the tact and concern of a literal brick. It turns out that crocodilians don't have very emotive faces, though--or at least this one doesn't--so if Gon can even make out this particular monster's expression, it's extremely unhelpful.

"None of this is real, as you know! It just doesn't matter."

[betheman]

Ooooohohohooh wrong words to say, and he leans in with a low growl. "And you do not feel it is 'real' for the citizens, then? That the consequences to your mind, and the minds of all of those in here, do not matter then?" His eyes widen with irritation and disbelief alike. "I, the man Gongenzaka care. As do many of the others within this game!"