VantaQuest

you awaken to find yourself on a grassy green hillside beneath a pleasant sunny blue sky. you can't recall where you are, or how you got here. but you get the faintest sense that it doesn't really matter, and you should just roll with it. casting your gaze upon the lands below you notice a vast plain of colorful flowers stretching for miles and, beyond that in the distance, a port city along the coast of a shimmering ocean a black military-style [[messenger bag]] lays at your feet. it's punked up with various pins and patches sewn on with white waxed dental floss

you flip open the bag and look inside. it contains various hot pink plastic objects -- a bong, water bottle, lighter, and herb grinder. they glint beautifully in the morning sunlight there are also three sandwich baggies filled with dank herb. they are labeled [[sativa]] and [[hybrid]] and [[indica]] a strange sensation overcomes you as you begin to realize what you need to do...

you inspect the baggy closer, noting the strain and its effects STRAIN: [[durban poison]] EFFECTS: energetic, focused, uplifted HELPS WITH: stress, depression. anxiety

you inspect the baggy closer, noting the strain and its effects STRAIN: [[sour diesel]] EFFECTS: energetic, talkative, creative HELPS WITH: stress, depression, anxiety

you inspect the baggy closer, noting the strain and its effects STRAIN: [[ ice cream cake]] EFFECTS: sleepy, relaxed, hungry HELPS WITH: anxiety, stress, pain

you crack open the plastic sandwich bag and are immediately overwhelmed by the pungent aroma of dank herb. with hints of pine, spice, and sage... yum! you grab a modestly-sized nug from the bag and chuck it into the grinder. a good number of twists later, it's been converted nearly into a smaller more smokeable form you empty the contents of the water bottle into the bong, pinch some bud into the bowlpiece, and light up, torching the entire bowl in one fell swoop you [[exale the sativa]] in an explosion of dankness

you crack open the plastic sandwich bag and are immediately overwhelmed by the pungent aroma of dank herb. with hints of cream and vanilla and sugary dough. yum! you grab a modestly-sized nug from the bag and chuck it into the grinder. a good number of twists later, it's been converted nearly into vaguely rice grain sized more smokeable form you empty the contents of the water bottle into the bong, pinch some bud into the bowlpiece, and light up, torching the entire bowl in one fell swoop you [[exale the indica]] in an explosion of dankness

you crack open the plastic sandwich bag and are immediately overwhelmed by the pungent aroma of dank herb. very dieselly. yum! you grab a modestly-sized nug from the bag and chuck it into the grinder. a good number of twists later, it's been converted nearly into vaguely rice grain sized more smokeable form you empty the contents of the water bottle into the bong, pinch some bud into the bowlpiece, and light up, torching the entire bowl in one fell swoop you [[exale the hybrid]] in an explosion of dankness

you are suddenly imbued with great energy! colors become brighter. ambient sounds more vivid, and you find yourself hyper-aware of everything in your general vicinity. but, more than that, you find your head rushing with constructive ideas you feel the urge to [[create]]

a warm sense of comfort washes over you as your body grows heavy and your thoughts slow down considerably. you lay back and take in the warm comfortable atmosphere of the hillside, letting out a big yawn as your stomach grumbles. you start to feel both [[hungry]] and [[sleepy]]. but which urge to satisfy?

you feel a sense of excited comfort wash over you, you're equal parts chilled out and hyped up. your ears perk up and you swivel your head around to take in the beauty of your surroundings. strange birds chirp in the distance. your mind begins to crave something engaging... suddenly, you feel the urge to [[consume]]

the warm summery sun beats down against you. pondering both in equal measure, you find yourself momentarily stuck between writing a [[story]] or a [[poem]]

you lean back and begin thinking about ideas for a short story, you try to look to your surroundings for inspiration, but when you can't even recall your own name or current location it's a little bit hard to "write what you know." you dream up something utterly fantastical, but the moment you begin putting pen to paper you're interrupted by a cute little potted [[cactus]] hopping towards you

you start writing a small poem about your immediate surroundings but you're quickly interrupted by a small living potted [[cactus]] hopping towards you, somehow, with a grin

you put the pen to the paper of the notebook and begin sketching out your surroundings. rolling green hills, fields of flowers, a village in the distance... just when you've finally obtained a decent sense of flow with the project, you're snapped out of it by a small potted [[cactus]] jumping up and down in front of you

you rummage through the messenger bag and find a notebook inside. it's a hot pink one of standard size and shape, with a glittery hot pink cover. there are various small drawings done in permanent marker on the front, indicating prior use, but the very first page lays bare before you. there's a clear pink pen stuck in the spiral binding you realize you can either [[write]] or [[draw]]

you dig through the messenger bag some more and manage to find a pair of earbuds alongside a retro-ass mp3 player and vintage-as-fuck portable clamshell dvd player. it's a choice between [[watching]] and [[listening]]

you pop open the portable dvd player and find a single disc inside. it's a burned copy of the first episode of the first season of "mr. robot" according to the sharpied on title. there's a cheeky little pirate flag drawn underneath too. the LCD screen reflects the summery sun dully, transforming it into a muted glare you flip the power on and hit [[play]] on the first episode

you plug the earbuds into the mp3 player and begin scrolling through its contents you only find two genres, [[folk punk]] and [[hyperpop]]

you search through the messenger bag once more and manage to find an unopened bag of haribo sour gummy bears. without a second thought you hungrily tear the bag open at its corner and plop a clump of them into your mouth. you chew slowly, savoring every single bite. it is truly a transformative experience as you come to learn what it means to become one with flavor. yum! having satisfied your craving for food, you once again feel [[tired]]

you close your eyes and fall asleep soon thereafter. some amount of time after that, your conscousness melts into a [[dream]]...

your eyelids grow heavy as you begin to doze off. now seems like as good a time to nap as any. the peaceful summery atmosphere of the hillside threatens to lull you to sleep. will you [[fight to stay awake]] or succumb to the [[sleepy]] feeling?

you dig into the messenger bag and manage to find a bottle of caffiene pills. but, oh no! you used all the water from the water bottle to fill up the bong... you get the feeling you should probably try to [[dry swallow]] the pill, but realize you can also [[drink the bong water]]

you guzzle down a caffiene pill using the water from the bong.. for a split second everything seems like it might be half okay, but then you suddenly begin [[projectile vomiting bloody murder]]

you plop a caffiene pill into your mouth and dry swallow it forcefully. your tummy starts grumbling and hurting in protest. this was probably a bad idea! you try to focus on the lovely weather and not the horrible growing pain in your stomach after a handful of minutes, the pain wears off and [[you feel energized]]

you find yourself in the midst of a technicolor hellscape. it looks like a city with playstation one era graphics but put through the filter of a very bad acid trip. the sky looms black as night overhead, though lacking any of the stars characteristic of a typical one. everything is all foggy and grainy and fucky wucky. you swivel your head to take in your surroundings and notice a shadowy gray hatted figure staring at you ominously to the [[south]], to the [[north]], the street continues on unabated and that's probably your best bet tbh

you make your way towards the shadowy gray hatted figure. the edges of reality seem to fray the closer you get. darkness bleeds into the surrounding atmosphere from the hat man. you start to move slower with each step as you approach him, until you're crawling at a pace that'd frankly make a snail embarassed to be seen with you. finally, you reach conversation distance and prepare to [[ask for directions]]

you follow the grainy, pixelated, acid trip nightmare of a city street down a block until you reach a dusty, desolate building at the end of a cul-de-sac. it's a dead end, and this is the only building on this street not totally boarded up and covered in layers upon layers of graffiti a broken sign reads, roughly, "[[ART MUSEUM]]"

you put in the earbuds and select a jaunty folk punk tune by ramshackle glory. just when the song seemss to be getting to the good part, you're interrupted by a small potted [[cactus]] jumping up and down in front of you and smiling profusely

you put the earbuds in and select a turbocharged hyperpop tune by 100 gecs. just when the song seemss to be getting to the good part, you're interrupted by a small potted [[cactus]] jumping up and down in front of you with a goofy smile

the small ball cactus smiles brightly. she's about the size and shape of a can of soda, and of course covered in an array of incredibly sharp spines "hey there!" she says, "i'm cuddles the cactus! my pronouns are she/her and i'm vanta's bestest plant friend who's alive!" struck by the sheer absurdity of the situation, you consider [[screaming]] in abject horror and asking to [[cuddle]] her in equal measure

you let out a piercing shreak, a death howl, for a solid thirteen seconds before burning yourself out. it ricochets all across the plains below, and the aftershock echoes directly back into your ears. after panting and gasping for a bit, cuddles asks "are ya done?" you nod tepidly and decide to [[listen what she has to say]]

you ask cuddles the cactus for cuddle you, to see if she lives up to the name. she politely declines, "nooooo that's a baddddd idea!!! sorry!!!!!" you decide to [[listen what she has to say]]

you projectile vomit bloody murder down the grassy green hillside. in the runoff, you notice the caffiene pill you'd taken laying amid the dirt and grime. you also notice yourself growing sleepy at an alarming rate rapidly losing energy, you begin to feel [[sleepy]]. eyeing the dirty puke-covered pill laying amid the grass, you consider [[trying again]]

no words. he didn't speak. just laughed, the most evillest laugh imaginable. one that'd put light yagami to shame. his voice was an inhuman roar, that seemed to echo off every surface of the surrounding countryside. then the dude's mouth grows to inhumanly wide proportions -- like it'd be comedic if it wasn't so terrifying-- and baring sharp teeth he just straight-up [[chomps]] your whole head off

cuddles clears her throat and gives a little spiel "you there, adventurer!" she hops up all hype-in-the-pipe, "i could use your help! are you in?" you shrug and say "sure, why not" cuddles grins, "good! that backpack you've got there..." she angles herself towards the messenger bag next to you. "you've probably realized that's no ordinary backpack!" she stops for a sec to make sure you're still paying attention "you're in super vanta world! that's her backpack!!!" you inspect it closer and realize that, indeed, it has a large patch on the back that says "PROPERTY OF VANTA BLACK" "what? who? [[where am i?]]"

you ask cuddles the cactus where you are she replies, "this is super vanta world! the cosmic domain of vanta black!" you consider a [[push for clarification]] but realize you could just as easily roll with it and [[not give a fuck]]

you ask the cute cactus to clarify further. "who IS 'vanta' anyway? why can't i remember who i am? how i got here?" cuddles stares at you quizzically for a second "[[who gives a fuck?]]"

"um... okay" you say. "[[how can i help?]]"

cuddles lay sit out for you thusly, completely glossing over the fact that you haven't the faintest clue who she's talking about "vanta is missing!!! i need you to help me find her!!!!! i can take you to her castle in libertalia! we can look for clues! you should [[carry me]] if we wanna be expedient" she seems panicked, and you feel it's best you go with her if only to stop such a cute creature from feeling such distress

you feel overwhelmingly energized and decide to get a better view of your surroundings. you sling the messenger back over your shoulder and, just as you're turning to leave, you hear a voice behind you "hey! wait!" you turn around to face a cute little potted [[cactus]] jumping up and down

resigned to your fate, you reluctantly agree. "[[how can i help?]]"

you pick cuddles up by the pot and carry her in both of your hands. she starts whistling a jaunty tune as you depart. as you make your way down the side of the grassy green hill, she leans towards a port city in the distance, past a large [[field of flowers]]. "that way!"

the field of flowers seems to encompass the entirety of the visible light spectrum, every color of the rainbow is here! as you're walking, cuddles the cactus lays out the lore for ya "super vanta world is a mental construct of vanta's. she did a magical spell to imbue it with life and give it form within the multiverse. there are various ways to be transported here, gateways if you will. the most common is a web game known as VantaQuest. when you start it up, your soul gets sucked into this realm with computer magic! she's supposed to greet you upon your arrival, but i can't seem to find her. there should be clues in her room at the castle, but i don't have arms or legs so" you nod slowly and [[continue through the field of flowers]]

just as you feel yourself starting to get engrossed with what you're watching, really starting to feel the world and vibes and characters, you find yourself interrupted by a small potted [[cactus]] jumping up and down and shouting over your earbuds

"don't worry," cuddles reassures you, "you're only stuck here until you beat the game or log out!" "wait," you ask, "so i can just log out? how do i do that?" cuddles laughs. "easy! you have to die. but the pain you feel here is very real so i don't recommend it!" you ponder the scenario for a bit. "how can i win the game?" cuddles giggles, "you win whenever vanta says so! she always lets people leave if they want. which is why it is imperative that we find her! you happen upon a small hot pink dog standing immobile amidst the colorful flowers. you realize after a few seconds that it must be taxidermied or something, considering its unflinching stare and presence you lean in closer and inspect its name tag: "BREAKFAST" cuddles gets bored and urges you to continue on. "that's nothing, we need to move!" so y'all do, until reaching the [[edge of town]]

sakura trees line the sides of the hot pink brick path leading into libertalia, shedding their petals and making their surroundings that much more beautiful. the beautiful summery light of the hot pink sky filters throguh the webwork of leaves, bathing everything in a warm pretty light what appears to be a [[traveling salesperson]] passes by pulling a wagon full of wares, heading the opposite direction, and you feel cuddles tug you in their direction. a sign across the front reads "FREE." you can also [[ignore her]] and continue onwards

you approach the traveling salesperson and note the badge on their shirt: "sapphire they/them" you flash a grin and before you can speak cuddles pipes up "hey! sapphire! [[whatcha got?]]"

sapphire sets their wagon aside and uncovers it, setting the tarp on the ground. various glass and silicon wares make themselves known, from bongs to pipes to bubblers to grinders to lighters. they smile. "all free, as is custom in libertalia. take your pick" cuddles surveys the selection for a moment before concluding, "nope! nothing! [[let's go]]"

you decide to ignore cuddles' advice. she rocks back and forth in her pot in protest, but you disregard that and keep on going. you weren't entirely sure why you ignored her, it just felt good to do it "you said we're in a hurry! [[let's go]]" you reply

once out of earshot of the traveling giving-stuff-away-for-free-person, you ask cuddles what the deal was with that "why's everything free here?" you inquire "why wouldn't it be? super vanta world is a kinder place! she could make it however she wanted, why make it miserable?" you ponder that response for a moment, shrug, and [[nod agreeingly]]

you and cuddles soon find yourselves at the glittering hot pink gates to the city of libertalia. they're open, not a gatekeeper in sight. the high walls of the city are constructed out of a similar hot pink brick as the roads that led here, stretching up pretty far. you can see vanta's castle from here, also constructed out of large hot pink bricks of an unknown material. the bright orange sun burns through the beautiful pink sky there's an [[info booth]] to the right, and you can [[head through the front gates]] to continue into the city

you walk up to the info booth and examine its offerings. there are various pamphlets free for the taking. amongst them, a few catch your eye: "[[magicannabis cultivation for beginners]]" and "[[the cult of the gray man]]" and "[[anarchist communism and you]]"

you make your way past the threshold of the city gates, and are immediately overcome with an overwhelmingly bright and colorful scene. all the buildings here seem to be made of gingerbread! and decorated with icing and gumdrops and such. the road is still the same hot pink brick that led you two here. the orange sun burns brightly in the glowing pink sky, partly obscured by clouds you continue up the road, cactus in hands, until you find yourself at the [[town square]]

"WHAT IS MAGICANNABIS? magicannabis is magically-infused cannabis. it has the same potency and effects as regular dank, but grows like way easier. you can plant it easily in a pot and it grows in a mere 420 minutes!" you grow disinterested and return the pamhplet to the booth. being bored with reading, you and cuddles [[head through the front gates]]

"HE'S IN YOUR DREAMS HE'S IN YOUR DREAMS HE'S IN YOUR DREAMS HE'S IN YOUR DREAMS HE'S IN YOUR DREAMS" you quickly become bored with the pamphlet and put it back before deciding to [[head through the front gates]].

"ANARCHIST COMMUNISM AND YOU: welcome to the fine city of libertalia! this is a safe place, where you are welcome to express yourself freely so long as it brings no harm to others. we practice a longstanding tradition of anarchist communism, and as such all things, including essentials such as food and water and medicine and electricity, are given freely. no citizen here is forced to go without! furthermore, industry in libertalia takes the form of a gift economy, and we practice principles of solidarity, autonomy, and mutual aid on a daily basis as best we can" you grow disinterested, having gotten the gist of the place, and continue on to [[head through the front gates]]

you follow the hot pink brick road until coming to a large ornate fountain in the center of the town square. it flows with a radioactively bright pink liquid that looks equal parts delicious and terrifying. numerous townspeople mill about, some human and some distinctly not. various signs advertise for "PC repair" and "game store" from the nearby gingerbread buildings you consider starting to [[continue towards the castle]] but realize you can also [[take a drink from the fountain]]

you dunk your whole head into the fountain and drink. it tastes like pipeline punch. was this... an energy drink fountain?! hell yeah. you immediately feel energized and ready-to-go cuddles grins. "that fountain has a secret, you know! [[try going for a swim]]" you consider either doing that, or [[not doing that]]

you make your way through the sleepy little gingerbread city. there's a candysmith here hawking wares at a stall. cuddles notices your gaze and interjects, "that's fuschia! she makes all sorts of candysteel weaponry and armaments and trinkets!" you COULD bother the [[candysmith]], or just continue your journey towards the vanta castle [[courtyard]] ahead instead

you say fuck it and set cuddles aside and jump in. you feel a magical tug whisk you downward as you begin sinking further and further and further until the light at the surface is a mere dot. you hear a dull muted plop as cuddles jump into the fountain and follow you [[ever-downwards]]...

not entirely sure if cuddles is fucking with you, you decidee against jumping entirely into the fountain and [[continue towards the castle]]

you begin drowning! you stop being able to hold your breath, let out a gasp bubbling with air, and the world starts to [[grow dark]] as pipeline punch fills up your lungs and you become one with the drink

fight as you might, your whole body grows numb and you [[lose consciousness]] entirely. the darkness seems to stretch for an infinity and eternity, and you find yourself trapped in the void between being and unbeing

you feel something sharpish prodding at your ribs, and open your eyes to see someone in a large suit of armor wielding a halbeard the armor is ornate, seemingly molded out of pure sugar hard candy. it is decorated with gumdrop jewels and candy swirls and molded chocolate. you notice that the halbeard, too, appears to be made out of candy, with a transluscent blue raspberry blade and sour candy cane haft a gruff voice speaks, "woah, easy there. easy. you've been out cold for a couple of minutes now. why don't you just [[relax]] a second, get your bearings?"

you relax and take stock of your surroundings for a moment. a mostly-empty basement room, pipeline punch flowing from a pipe and into a grate below. this must be where you came in. the messenger bag is next to you, seemingly unperturbed by the watery fate that nearly beset you you panic suddenly, not knowing where cuddles the cactus went. did she drown in a sugary grave? "oh, you're probably lookin' for cuddles." you examine the guard's armor closer and see "klein he/him" painted on the chestplate. klein briefly leaves the room before returning cactus-in-hand. she smiles blithely at you as he sets her down on a table nearby "HOW are you okay?" you ask "i'm magic! i have magic! i can make forcefields! weak ones, at least. enough to keep myself dry." cuddles responds, "sorry about you drowning for a bit! i forgot... you can't breathe underwater like i can" klein let out a hearty laugh, "cuddles, you're silly" you can either [[take it in stride]] or [[take it in anger]]

you laugh amusedly, realizing there's nothing you can do in this situation besides revel in the sillines. after the moment has worn off, klein steps over and [[begins explaining]] the situation...

"cuddles?!" you question. "what the FUCK?! you said it yourself, the pain i feel here is very real. why did you convince me to FUCKING DROWN MYSELF?" cuddles frowns and holds back tears. "it was... a shortcut..." klein steps over and [[begins explaining]]...

"cuddles is vanta's pet cactus that she brought to life with a demonic pact. the spirit who vanta conjured to inhabit her is kind of goofy," he explains. "it took her two weeks to learn to not try to literally cuddle people." you wince. her prickly spikes looked painful! "why did vanta make the pain here so real?" you [[wonder]] out loud.

klein frowns ever-so-slightly and sighs. "the demonic ritual that brought this plane of existence from vanta's mental world to the multiverse went a bit... fucky wucky, if you ask me" cuddles whistles inconspicuously he continues, "this place is a realm in the multiverse, which has many worlds linked by gateways. vanta did demon magic to bring this place into existence here, but fucked up during the ritual and it went through incompletely" you silently take in the lore "anyways, that's enough of that. cuddles tells me you two were on your way to hunt for clues! allow me to escort you to the courtyard" "we're... in the castle?" you question klein nods. "yeah. the fountain's a bit of a shortcut. it just happened to line up with the basement down here, so vanta linked em. she loves building stuff like in minecraft" you collect yourself and your belongings and follow klein to the [[courtyard]]

you pick a direction at random and fuck off to one of the side towers. guards and townspeople mill about, seemingly not too concerned with your presence. you see a few signs, pointing to the [[kitchen]] and [[barracks]] where you could explore

you enter the central tower. the first room you come into is roughly what appears to be a living room, with a large 4K television set and big fluffy pink couch. there's a shattered candyglass bong on the coffee table "our first clue!" cuddles explains. "candyglass is SUPPOSED to be invincible!!! so whatever did this must be of comparable power to vanta herself..." you walk over and [[examine the shattered bong]] closerly...

you find yourself in the courtyard of vanta's castle. it's an imposing pink brick building with ornate rainbowy stained glass windows. it is composed of four large towers, separated by walls, with a central tower in the middle that seems to stretch immeasurably far into the sky cuddles tugs towards the central tower. "in there," she says, "that's [[vanta's place]]. that's where clues'll be!" you realize you're the one with the legs in this situation, and consider [[fucking off to one of the other towers]] instead

you walk up to the jolly candysmith and get ready to introduce yourself, but cuddles interrupts, "we're looking for vanta! vanta is missing! weapon seller, show me your strongest wares! so we can slay whatever monster is holding her hostage!" you blink heavily and wonder if there are really monsters in such an idyllic world fuschia smiles, "would you two like to see the [[candyforge]]?"

you nod, and follow fuschia into the gingerbread house, down the gingerbread stairs, into the gingerbread basement it's a large room with a considerably-sized anvil in the center. various bits of stray candy are strewn about the floor. a selection of candysteel weaponry hangs up in a display case on one side of the room, and on the other a similar case houses multiple variant sets of candysteel armor as you're taking in the room, you are suddenly startled by a suit of living candysteel armor walking right past you! "autonomous magical guardian constructs" fuschia explains. "so you know the gist of this place right? mental realm turned multiverse reality?" you nod "good!" she grins, "well you're probably wondering what use such a chill place has for weaponry!" you nod again "well, [[truth is]]..."

"super vanta world is just one of many realms within the multiverse! the connective tissue of the multiverse, known as gateways, are tunnels through the ether that can be conjured and shattered by great willpower. vanta did a demonic ritual to bring this place to existence within the cosmos, but the ritual was incomplete and our gateways aren't entirely sealed!" the look on your face says "???" she continues, "darkness can seep in from the cracks because yeah that shit ain't sealed right!" "???" your face basically says again "not all realms within the multiverse are as not-horrible as this one!" just then, a portal opens and spits out two horrific abominations. they look like they... used to... be human, at least vaguely. but their form is a horribly corrupted mass of arms, body, legs, flesh, skin, bone, and sinew. good luck! fuschia tosses you a candysteel sword hilt-first. you drop cuddles and catch the sword before taking a moment to examine it in awe of the design. hard lime green gummy hilt, molded chocolate guard, and deep green hard candy blade with a splattery swirling pattern cuddles rolls away perfectly unharmed, protected by a small transparent pink forcefield "hey! yo!" fuschia calls out, and draws her own candysteel battleaxe from a deep purple sour gummy sheathe you draw your sword and [[prepare for battle]]...

you slice at the grotesque demon's center of mass, severing one of its five sprouting limbs in the process. a torrent of green blood spurts out, and it falls to the ground in a heap. it begins withering away to ashes and dust before your eyes you look over to fuschia and noticed she's dispatched the other demon as well. there's a brief tense moment, then she returns her candysteel battleaxe to its sheathe and grins. "that was an unexpected annoyance. how 'bout [[a toke]]?"

you head back up the stairs and into the living room of the gingerbread house, then plop down on the couch and stop to catch your breath for a moment "yes, i live here," fuschia says, "in case you were wondering" she pulls out an ornate candyglass bubbler from beneath the gingerbread coffee table. it's on a clear frosted candyglass tray "this stuff looks fragile, but it's actually stronger than anything," she explains. "all candy thingies are. except, y'know, the edible stuff. would you like some, by the way?" you decline politely, not being particularly hungry after such a sudden thrill fuschia hits the bubbler first, exhaling a thick plume of smoke across the room that catches light from the stained candyglass windows in a very pretty manner. she motions the tray towards you next, and you [[oblige]]

you take a large rip off the bubbler and melt into the warm comforting embrace of the loveseat. fuchsia looks to you with a giggle and waves to return to work the stalls outside. you bliss out so hard you actually [[fall asleep]] for a while

you and cuddles find yourselves in a large kitchen room. there's no chef in sight. a pile of empty jack in the box munchie meal boxes takes up a significant portion of one of the countertops. the hot pink metallic fridge boasts ice and water dispensers on the front, and the hot pink plastic microwave appears a bit dirty. the sink is a rainbow of dirty candyglass dishes in various colors you can [[open the fridge]] or go back out into the courtyard and enter [[vanta's place]]

you inspect the scene of the tragedy closer. the ornate chrome bong is cracked into three main portions of roughly equal size "a moment of silence," cuddles suggests, and shuts her eyes tightly after about five seconds she whispers, "requiescat in pace" then asks, "shall we continue to the [[vantabedroom]]?"

you and cuddles walk through the doorway to the next room over and find yourselves in the vantabedroom. it predominantly contains a large queen-sized bed with, of course, incredibly glittery hot pink blanket. you notice a streak of blood on one of the matching pillows and an enormous candysteel [[zweihander]] plunged directly into the pink shag carpetlike the sword in the stone. the room is lit by a series of LED christmas lights slowly cycling through the colors of the rainbow in unison, addinga surreal rhythm to the space. the room is sparsely furnished aside from the bed. there's a desk in the corner, guarded by a hot pink gamer swivel chair

you slowly make your way around the room, surveying its contents more thoroughly. the glittery pink walls, ceiling, and carpet all reflect the rainbow christmas lights in a very surreal manner. failing to find anything else worthwhile in the sparsely-populated space, you notice a sticker-laden [[laptop]] on the desk cuddles tugs you forward, "a clue!"

you set cuddles down on the desk and pick up the laptop. it's a thinkpad T420 covered in stickers from various weed packagings. clever! some of the more reflective ones glimmer prettily in the room's rainbow lighting "normally this would be in her bag! the fact that it isn't is... very unique indeed!" you unlatch it and, to your surprise, it's unlocked "let's not rifle through her shit," cuddles cautions. "we're just looking for clues about the last thing she was doing" it takes a moment for your eyes to adjust to the brightness of the screen in the shiftingly dark room, but you soon realize she was just writing a macabre death note fanfiction about killing off her whole extended family in hilariously ironic ways "just a fanfic she was working on" you say, before returning the laptop to its previous position and state and picking cuddles back up "drats," she responds. "[[check the bathroom]] maybe?"

you and cuddles mosey on through the doorway and into the vantabathroom. it's similarly dim and lit by a rainbow light, but this time just a nightlight in the corner. cuddles tugs you towards the wall and suggests you [[flip the lightswitch]] to get a better look at things

you flip the switch, bringing the hot pink lightbulbs on the ceiling to life, and immediately a hundred dark bug entities turn to face you in a swarm. they look like cockroaches, but far bigger and more menacing. there's an awkward momentary pause... "oh no! ethermites!" cuddles screams, "[[RUN]]!!!!!"

pursued by the monstrous hoard, you flee cactus-in-hands you run out of the vantabathroom, through the vantabedroom, and back out into the living room. it all happens so quick you barely have time to process the scenery change but, before you know it, you're back in the courtyard "GUARDS!!!" cuddles screams "ETHERMITE INFESTATION IN THE VANTABATHROOM!!!!!" suddenly, a hundred guards clad in whimsical candysteel armor descend upon your location from the nearby barracks. it's like an emergency flash mob! "you there," one points to you with a sword, "are you infected?" "[[infected]]?" you ask

you make your way into the barracks, despite the cactus' grumbles. it's a large room filled with bunk beds. this was where the "royal guard of libertalia" resided! you felt another question bubble up to the surface of your consciousness. "why do the guards live here if this place is an anarcho-communist utopia?" "i dunno," cuddles says. "why are the houses made of gingerbread? why fucking anything? it's vanta logic, don't try to make sense of it. we exist because she spoke us into existence in an ancient forbidden demonic ritual, and now this is her playground. but at least she's, y'know, not like mean about it or anything!!!" you shrug and, barring anything interesting in the barracks themselves, you make you way back out into the courtyard and then into [[vanta's place]]

"well, you see," the guard begins to explain, "ethermites can cause an infection. one that causes you to... shift between realities, at random" "it isn't fun!!!" cuddles cuts in. "so it's important you tell us if one touched you at all!!!!!" you try to recall. "i don't think one did... there was a lot of commotion. i mean, i would've felt it, right?" the guard buries her face in her hands. "ethermite bites are imperceptible... until it's too late. please, come with us to the [[infirmary]]"

you nod and follow the guard through the castle courtyard, to one of the corner towers. a nurse clad in a white and green nurse outfit greets you as you enter the waiting room. they point to a vending machine in the corner, "medkits can be found over there, no need to wait" "oh, no," cuddles says, "we're here for a potential ethermite infection!" the nurse's eyes widen and they rush into the back for a moment. coming back just as swiftly, they wave you over to the back hallway and into exam [[room #420]]

you open the fridge and survey its contents. a half-eaten jack in the box munchie meal, spicy nacho chicken jalapeno, rests upon one of the shelves. there's also a few cans of hard seltzer, a tin of weed chocolate blueberry thingies, and a jar of pickles you close the fridge and, deciding you've had enough of the kitchen, make your way back to the courtyard and then enter [[vanta's place]]

you lay down on the reclining thingy and wait for the doctor. she shows up soon enough, a blue and green and teal-furred sparkly anthropomorphic terrier dogperson in a patched up grungy labcoat. she has a shiny green septum ring "hey there! i'm doctor green! she/her pronouns" she smiles and waves upon entering. "i hear you're here for a potential ethermite infestation?" she asks you you nod, "yeah" her dog ears perk up. "we can definitely help you with that!" dr. green pulls out a barcode scanner out of her coat and aims it at your forehead. "this'll only take a-- nope, you're all clear. good to go" noticing your confused expression, she explains, "checking isn't hard. it just has to happen in a safe and sterile environment!" she pulls a big swirling rainbow [[lollipop]] out of her coat pocket and hands it to you before departing back through the door. "i trust you'll be able to see yourself out! have a fun one"

you find yourself in the hazy fog of a dream. you're standing in a field of flowers, but unlike the one you waded through earlier these are all jet black and crunchy. like, playstation 1 era graphics crunchy. the field stretches out endlessly in all directions beneath a violently overcast black sky suddenly, you get the sensation that maybe you're not alone here and turn to see a shadowy gray hatted man standing right behind you, formless and flatly colored. you try to scream, but nothing comes out, so you [[turn to run]]

you run through the field of black flowers, soot-like substance rubbing off them as you kick and press through. you don't dare turn your head to check behind you, you just keep running until you can't anymore. until the sole in your shoe gives up. until the soul inside you goes away. you never wanna give up... finally, as you're nearing the end of your energy, you find yourself at the edge of the meadow. the ground suddenly gives way to an abyssal gorge below. darkness stretches down, seemingly forever you swivel around and come face-to-face with the gray hatted man! he flashes you a grim smile as you feel your limbs tense and [[freeze up]]

two red eyes pierce the flat shadowy mass of the hat man's featureless gray face and stare into your soul. his voice is an inhuman roar. "you... meddling in affairs you do not understand... in a realm you do not belong..." he clears his throat. "i am the eater of dreams and i will consume your soul" you reflexively start to [[let out another scream]]

you let out a terrified yelp and instantly find yourself back on the couch in the living room of the gingerbread candyforge house fuschia rushes inside, "hey! everything good?" she looks at you with an expression of utmost concern you nod. "yeah, just a nightmare" she looks at you even more worriederly "the darkness of the ether has been leaking into this world and tainting it through nightmares," she explains. "i hope there wasn't anything traumatic in there?" you shake your head from side-to-side. "nope! just a gray guy" "you saw the gray man?" her eyes bulge "yeah!" you nod she eyes you with contempt before loosening up. "take as much time as you need, i'll be outside if ya need me. [[stay frosty]] like royal milk tea!"

you take a moment to collect yourself before standing back up and making your way out the candycane arches of the front door. you pass fuchsia as you depart and wave a small goodbye. she seems a bit concerned but friendly nonetheless. having had enough of distractions, you follow the hot pink brick road to the [[courtyard]] of vanta's castle

you unwrap the lollipop and give it a nice big lick. it tastes like... everything! every sugary treat you've ever consumed, but all at once! you suddenly feel more alert, energized, focused... "that's a magipop!" cuddles pipes up. "those have magical healing properties! you should save it for when we're in a pickle" you stare in disbelief at the crumpled up wrapper, before delicately moving it back into place and sticking the whole shebang in the messenger bag "those thingies are great! they dig into your memories and find all the bestest tastes you've ever experienced and recreate them... ALL AT ONCE!" you laugh softly "...that was the only way to counterbalance the aftertaste" cuddles cuts in "[[the what.]]"

you feel an overwhelming bitter sensation take root in the pit of your stomach. it's like you vaped a rotten clove of garlic! the bad flavor burns your nostrils like wasabi, and you stumble around desperately in search of something to dull the horribleness in your blind grasping you find the sink, and drink straight from the faucet with reckless abandon "as long as you're tasting another flavor, the aftertaste should be kept at bay" cuddles explains. "let's go to the candy museum and get you something nice!" you stumble out into the hallway, now seeing tunnel vision. you pass the nurse on your way through the waiting room and they run up horrifiedly. "what's going on? what can i do?" "candy museum! express teleport! emergencia!" cuddles cries out you lose yourself in a momentous [[flash of light]]

next thing you know, you're standing in the molded chocolate entrance archway of the libertalia candy museum. you turn around and see a hot pink brick road, recognizing the couryard fountain from earlier, and slowly regain your bearings once you become aware of your hands you realize you're still holding cuddles the cactus. the bitter taste blossoms within you once more, and you accost the shelves of the candy museum to find [[something edible]]

you blindly tear open the bag and shovel a handful of gummy goodies into your mouth. it's a bag of generic blue gummy sharks. "gummy blahaj," as the label reads. suddenly, the horribleness subsides and you're able to think again "the aftertaste only lasts for ten minutes, by the way, so you should be good to go soon" you fall to the floor and breathe a sigh of relief, taking a moment to truly get your bearings. now would be a good time to [[explore the candy museum]] but probably an even better time to [[get going]]

you mosey about the candy museum, noting the various varieties of confectionaries free for the taking. there's also some special specimens in candyglass display boxes -- sour gummy bears, spicy chili-covered gummy worms, rainbow sour stripes... and many, many, many more! there's even a [[second floor]] to this place, but you figure you should probably [[get going]]

you ascend the molded chocolate staircase to the floor above. a sign in the stairway introduces you to the "MULTIVERSE SECTION" of the museum. perusing the free-to-takes on the shelves and the candyglass-protected display items, you begin to realize all these items are from other realms within the multiverse there's more mundane stuff -- alternative flavors from parallel timelines -- and more out-there stuff like... whatever the fuck that oozing breathing green sponge is. you feel a bit squicked out and decide to [[get going]]

as you make your way out of the museum, you ask, "so.. what now?" "there's one other place we can look!" cuddles reassures you "and where is that?" "the realm of torment, of course!" "oh. cool." "let's [[walk and talk]]," she suggests

as you're making your way through the town square, you feel cuddles tug you a different direction than the way you entered initially. "east is where we need to go, through the rainbow forest!" you follow the road east and happen upon an purple anthro feline [[food vendor]] proudly displaying their catperson cuisine selection. there's also a live [[candyglassblowing]] demonstration going on and a [[band]] playing some live music. [[departing]] as soon as possible is in your best interest, really, but you can't help but feel the urge to slack off and dick around a bit

you take note of the curious selection of catperson cuisine. sushi! sashimi! canned sardines! it all looks like it tastes really, really, really good. there's some tasty-smelling candles burning on the table -- sizzling bacon, cooking beef, and fried chicken scented. your mouth waters the catperson smiles at you and asks, "any questions?" "the aftertaste should've worn off by now," cuddles cautions, "there's no need" you mull it over a moment before [[departing]] with a shrug

you curiously examine the candyglassblowing demonstration. a hairless sphynx catperson in a tattered brown robe is expertly crafting a bong in the colors of the trans pride flag while their pugperson assistant, clad in similar, explains the process to the crowd. you sit and listen a bit, in awe of the depth of the discipline, before eventually getting up and [[departing]]

you walk up and stand near the back of the crowd, listening to the band play its music. they're totally acoustic and consist of four members -- acoustic guitar/vocals, trumpet/vocals, washboard, and finally gut bucket. they're singing a jaunty tune about the end of the world. you chill and listen for a bit, taking in the raw energy of the performance, before eventually [[departing]]

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the sword comes unstuck with absolutely zero friction or effort, as if by magic. like a flaming katana through cannabutter. you overestimate the amount of needed force so much, you end up stabbing it straight into the ceiling! a quick tug pulls it loose, and you shove it in the vantabag and walk over to the bed to examine the [[bloody pillow]]

try as you might, you just can't seem to unstick vanta's sword from the floor. that motherfucker's really goddamn in there! just as you're about to give up, cuddles clears her throat "excuse me. gimme a sec. i got this!" she makes some sort of grunting noise that implies great effort and... nothing else happens. "try now" you wrap your hands around the sword's grip and [[pull hard]]

you inspect the bloody pillow closer. it's a bloody pillow, all right! a pillow, that is now stained with blood. that much is evident "is this hers?" you question "how the fuck should i know?" cuddles retorts. "i mean, i don't think she had any guests over recently so..." you shrug and start to [[look around the bedroom some more]]

just as you begin to make your way to the eastern edge of the city, a dark swirling portal appears and spits out two grotesque demons! they're huge, lumbering behemoths the size of a minivan with an odd number of limbs tipped with razor sharp claws the size of playing cards. pedestrians scatter like pigeons, not wanting anything to do with the situation you set cuddles down carefully and rummage through the vantabag to draw your weapon -- vanta's enormous candysteel zweihander. gritting your teeth, you [[slice]] violently at what could be a rough approximation of this four-legged beast's heart

the wretched abomination coughs and sputters and crumples over in a heap, spurting goopy green blood everywhere. without a moment of respite you turn to meet its sibling directly behind you, and roll to [[dodge]] its slashing claws

you regain your balance after dodge rolling and [[cut]] the demon down at its ankles. its dispatched sibling withers away in the wind in your peripheral vision, becoming nothing more than ashes and eventually even less than that

the demon writhes and wiggles as it is rendered mostly harmless. you finish the job, driving vanta's sword through its approximation of a chest. you yank the sword out from the gaping wound and return it to the messenger bag. the demon's body begins withering away you scoop cuddles up and stroll on over to the city's [[east exit]]

you wake up in a cold sweat. you're still where you were before dozing off -- the grassy green hillside. the summery sun beats down upon you lazily, and you start to feel the lightest of breezes. before you have the chance to fully regain your bearings, you're interrupted by a small potted [[cactus]] vying for your attention

you enter the art museum through its wide double front doors. they creak in protest, but abide and allow you passage. dust scatters around your footsteps as you make your way through the desolate reception area and into the central atrium. the skylights are all busted here, and a light spray of rain trickles in from above. the room is lit solely by the moonlight, with the exception of a spotlight in the center highlighting the main and in fact only exhibit. it's a large framed mirror held up on an easel. you approach it, slowly, and then gaze into the spotless [[reflective]] surface

just as you're on the brink of a major life-changing revelation, you find yourself thrust back awake by a cutesy voice vying for your attention and find yourself face-to-face with a small talking [[cactus]] jumping up and down excitedly in front of you

the hot pink brick road here is strewn with faded leaves, but doesn't go the direction you're headed through the forest. you see mt. nightmare in the distance, its icy peak towering well past the clouds you stand in awe of the utterly enormous obstacle before you until cuddles starts shaking to get your attention "ready to go?" she asks you take a moment to collect yourself and brace for the coming journey before letting out a soft, "[[yes]]"

trekking through the forest, you come across a large boulder the size of a small boulder. that is to say, medium. hankering for a rest, you plop cuddles down atop it and sit next to her. it's silent, for a moment, before she pipes up with something "hey?" she turns to you with a confused expression on her face. "what's it like in your world? can you remember?" you ponder the question for a moment before responding, "only barely. i'm starting to recall who i am, and how i lived, but not much beyond that" she sighs, "i'd love to see your world someday. that's where vanta is from" "who IS vanta?" you ask, sensing the perfect opening to finally get an answer to that question "oh, y'know... she's... vanta!" cuddles responds. c'mon, you've gotta remember the whole spiel! trans enby girl polyam lesbian gender terrorist, and rogue wordsmith extraordinaire!" you decide to [[keep going]]

you and cuddles hike through the densely-wooded rainbow forest. the trees here are every color imaginable, glittery leaves sparkling in the summery sunlight. the fallen ones crunch like paper-thin potato chips as you walk over them. cuddles falls asleep, snoring noticeably, giving you a welcome moment of respite you come to a [[river]] that seems to stretch for miles in both directions. it's too deep to safely wade through, and too wide to even consider jumping

with cuddle still asleep, you realize you can either throw her across and attempt to [[jump anyway]], or take out vanta's candysword and start chopping trees to [[make a bridge]]. without putting much thought into either prospect, you make your choice hastily

you say "fuck it" and before she even has the chance to realize your plan, chuck cuddles overhand like a basketball over the width of the river. as she lands she deploys a pink spherical forcefield and slowly rolls to safety in a tuft of grass... then rolls into the river and floats there you say "fuck it" again and attempt the jump, missing horribly and plunging into the shivering depths of the river. you shut your eyes tight and grab around for any sort of footing in the darkness you manage to crawl out of the river, scooping up cuddles as you [[exit]]. the vantabag is miraculously dry as if by magic

you swing vanta's sword wildly at the surrounding rainbow trees, felling them left and right. the sound of the first one falling jolts cuddles awake. she watches in amused silence as you go to town on the fuckin wilderness. soon, you've cut a considerable swathe of the forest down. enough to build a makeshift bridge, probably! so you walk over to a nearby tree and attempt to [[drag it over to the river]]...

try as you might, you just cannot drag such an enormous tree. it is beyond the limits of your strength puzzled and at a loss for any alternatives, you [[ask cuddles for assistance]]

"what the fuck am i supposed to do?" she laughs amusedly. "i'm a cactus" in a blind fit of anger, you pick cuddles up and chuck her across the river "weeee!" she sings as she soars through the air, deploying her spherical pink forcefield to ensure a safe landing. she finds herself stuck in the lower portion of a tree "that's the spirit!" she shouts from across the river. "now [[your turn]]!"

you shrug and, lacking any better options, get a running start and attempt to [[jump over the river]]

your rage fuels you and you are surrounded by a powerful glowing red aura. in an instant you clear the entire river via an utterly inhuman leap "yayyyy you've unlocked your emogic!" "emogic?" you ask "magical aptitude and, indeed, magical energy itself in super vanta world is tied to your emotional state. we like to call it... emogic!" you grin and [[continue onwards]] (set: $magic to 1)

you crawl up the side of the river and continue making your way through the rainbow forest. it takes what seems like forever, with cuddles dozing off and coming to several times along the journey eventually, you come to the [[base of the mountain]]

you continue onwards for quite some time until eventually reaching the [[base of the mountain]]

you eventually come to a trail and follow it to the foothills. at the base of the mountain you find a small shack set up with a sign that says "tour guide" you look down to cuddles for advice and she says, "yeah! definitely a good idea!" you can either [[agree]] or [[ignore]]

you knock on the door to the shack and a small albino capybara -- not a capybara-person but just a regular one -- scuttles out! they're wearing a cute little pork pie hat that's staying attached somehow as if by magic. it has a they/them pronoun pin and nonbinary pride flag pin attached to the top "hey there i'm jade! welcome to mt. nightmare! i can be your tour guide, if you'd like! for the low, low cost of... i'm just fuckin with ya. so are you in?" you nod and say, "yes, please" "okay! [[i'll lead the way!]]" they say, rushing ahead

you ignore cudddles and continue along the [[path]] leading up the mountainside

you follow the winding trail up the side of the mountain for like an hour before stopping to [[take a rest]]

you follow jade up the winding path for quite a while before stopping to [[rest]]

you rest for a while then [[depart]]

eventually you find yourself at the [[mountain summit]] face-to-face with a slumbering lumbering demon you set cuddles down as she is napping

you rest for a while before [[contiuing up the path]] with jade in tow

as you near the [[top of the mountain]] jade sniffs the air. "yep, demon's here" cuddles falls asleep

you draw vanta's candysword and prepare to [[strike]] at the sleeping demon (if: $magic is 1)[but realize you can also use your newfound magic to send out a concentrated [[blast]] of pure energy] you sever the lumbering six-legged behemoth's head in one fell swoop and it rolls off cleanly

you follow the trail to find yourself face-to-face with a lumbering slumbering demon you set cuddles down as she is napping "wake it up nicely" jade suggests "and it'll grant your wish probably. what'd you even want?" you begin to [[draw the sword]] as jade screams in horror (if: $magic is 1)[but realize you can also use your newfound magic to send out a [[concentrated blast]] of pure energy]

you draw vanta's candysword and strike at the sleeping demon you sever the lumbering six-legged behemoth's head in one fell swoop and it rolls off cleanly jade screams in horror and flees back down the mountain you return the sword to its bag suddenly, a [[portal]] opens atop the corpse...

you send out a flaming burst of energy that instantly evaporates the demon, turning it into a meaty pulp strewn across the summit a victorious grin on your face, you look down to see cuddles in horror and follow her gaze to meet the charred remains of [[jade]] laying off to the side of the meat puddle

"oops!" you say "...yeah," cuddles responds. "oh well, no use letting a freshly-cooked meal go to waste. wanna dig in?" "you're joking right?" "no" the thought of food brings you back to earlier, and you remember the magical lollipop you recieved. you dig into the vantabag to retrieve it and quickly stick it in the charred capybara corpse's mouth nothing happens, except that you wasted a perfectly good magipop just then, a swirling glimmering [[portal]] opens over the demon's corpse

the swirling dark portal looks similar to before, but bigger and brighter than the others and enormous. it lets out a pulse of dark energy that hits you with the force of a 1000W bass amplifier cuddles screams in horror "you were just supposed to ask that demon to teleport us there! not kill it!!! that was the gateway guardian between the linked realms!!!!!" you look at her, "what?" "by erasing the link between the two worlds, you've caused them to begin to merge..." you look up and notice the size of the portal is growing rapidly "what do we do?" you ask "i don't know!!!" cuddles responds [["me either!"]] "fuck!"

you convert the demon from living being to meaty chunks in a manner of seconds it crumples to the floor in a heap then, a [[portal]] opens above it

you behead the slumbering behemoth in one fell swoop, its head rolling clean off and away you return the sword to its bag then, a [[portal]] opens over the corpse

instinct grips you and you turn to run, whipping the messenger bag around as you do a total 180 then, there's a strange [[rustling]] within the bag...

suddenly, [[vanta]] emerges from the depths of the messenger bag! she leaps out cleanly, as if propelled by magic, does a flip, then lands down precisely, sword-in-hand, ready for combat "sup"

you cast your gaze over vanta head-to-toe. noticing she really does live up to the spiel cuddles gave you earlier her <span class="rainbow-text-loop">magically enchanted hair</span> is slowly cycling through the colors of the rainbow and glowing with a faint light. she has a few iridescent metal piercings -- a septum ring and fake safety pins in her ears. she's wearing cute hot pink glasses, and behind those her eyes are decorated with thick smudged black eyeliner. her grin is takes form with jet black liquid lipstick her black baseball cap has a "GENDER TERRORIST" patch sewn onto the front (with white waxed dental floss of course), they/them and she/her patches on the sides, and a transgender anarchism symbol on the top front her vest is a black and grayish denim thing, covered in various patches and pins of a musical and political nature, with four large camo cargo pockets from military jackets transplanted onto the front and sides. there's a large tranarchy symbol made out of reflective sew-on tape that takes up a large portion of the back. the collar is studded with black pyramid studs aside from those two punk items, she's wearing a cute rainbow striped dress with rainbow knee socks above black fishnets, and some hot pink converse with rainbow laces she wields her candysteel zweihander surprisingly with a single hand, zapping a beam of energy at the portal and [[grinning]] at you amusedly as she notices you in awe of her apperance

"throw cuddles in, please" she says, pretty calmly given the situation you look at her incredulously. and she reiterates by pointing vigourously then motioning towards the portal with a great degree of animation you think about [[throwing cuddles into the portal]] and start to [[freeze in fear]]

you run over to cuddles and scoop her up by the pot "sorry, buddy" you whisper as you run up to the portal while starting to tear up you throw her into the portal forcefully with both hands, and she gets sucked in slowly, it starts to dissipate and eventually [[disappears]] in a flash of light

you let fear overcome you and stop moving vanta walks over slowly to where you set cuddles down, still zapping the portal via sword with one hand, and walks back over just as slowly she chucks cuddles in unceremoniously and the portal sucks her in then slowly begins to collapse. she keeps zapping it with a beam of energy finally, the portal collapses and [[disappears]] in a flash of light

you fall to the ground and start to weep sure, cuddles was annoying, but you still felt for the poor little cactus. still bonded with her over your journey throughout super vanta world vanta walks over and begins to console you, "i'm sorry you had to deal with that! it was definitely scary and not part of the show so to speak" "cuddles... she's..." "--the new gateway guardian, yes" you stop crying and look up at her. "what?" "cuddles replaced that demon you slayed" you frown, "if you were in the bag the whole time why wait until the world was falling apart to come out and help?" she replies, "i was asleep, but that bass-boosted death wail when the portal started sending out blasts of energy jolted me awake" "but why were you in the bag?" "oh, yeah, i got stuck. fell in on accident while trying to use it as a pillow" "the broken bong at your place? the bloody pillow? the sword stuck in your floor? the ethermites in your bathroom?" vanta shrugs, "ah, yes, i was trying to imbue a bong with life when it shattered and cut my hand, so i got pissed and shoved my sword in the floor. and... ethermites are like ants but for magic. there was lots of it there so" you nod "can you take me back home?" "sure thing. click you heels twice and..." she laughs. "just kidding! i can't eject you from the game, but i can send you back in time to when it was still open. [[hold still]]"

you close your eyes tightly and in a flash of light you awaken to find yourself on a grassy green hillside. you can't recall where you are, or how you got here. but you get the faintest sense that it doesn't really matter, and you should just roll with it. casting your gaze upon the valley below you notice a vast plain of colorful flowers stretching for miles and, beyond that in the distance, a port city along the coast a jet black military-style messenger [[bag]] lays at your feet. it's punked up with various pins and patches sewn on with white waxed dental floss

you flip open the messenger bag and survey its contents. it contains various hot pink objects -- a plastic bong, plastic water bottle, plastic lighter, and metal (shockingly) herb grinder... there are also three sandwich baggies full of dank herb. they are labeled [[sativa]] and [[hybrid]] and [[indica]]. suddenly, you know what you need to do... you get the idea that you can either pick one to choose from, or mix them all together into a [[salad bowl]]

you crack open the plastic sandwich bags and are immediately overwhelmed by the pungent aroma of dank herb you grab a modestly-sized nug from each bag and chuck it into the grinder. a good number of twists later, they've been converted nearly into vaguely rice grain sized more smokeable form you empty the contents of the water bottle into the bong, pinch some bud into the bowlpiece, and light up, torching the entire bowl in one fell swoop. if you were smoking with others this would be poor form! cornering a bowl when sharing is the way to go you [[exhale the salad bowl hit]] in an explosion of dankness

you find yourself outside of space and time and everything else and are transported back to your earthly body where you feel a sense of contentment at having saved super vanta world and rescued vanta game over. [[the end]]

🏆 [[you're winner ! ]]

VANTAQUEST BY VANTA BLACK 2023 from the bottom of my heart, a heartfelt thanks for playing <3 i hope you were able to enjoy this as much as i enjoyed writing it i legiterally had a blast this is my first real big project since i started writing again and i wanted to make it fun and silly and imbue it with the sorta life i myself try to embody i hope i did a good job peace y'all! keep it real!!! seeya 'round!!!!!

you pick the pill out of the dirt and puke and grass, holding it up to examine it in the sunlight. you brace yourself for once again [[swallowing]] it...

try as you might, you just can't bring yourself to attempt to swallow that pill a second time. it's too gross. swiftly, you find yourself giving into the [[sleepy]] feeling...

you open your mouth to speak, but nothing comes out. you can't talk. you feel your body beginning to freeze entirely as you become completely immobilized. the gray hatted man slowly levitates towards you, hovering a few inches off the ground, his aura of darkness grows, and he flashes a warped [[smile]]

gazing into the mirror, you see yourself -- or, rather, an idealized version of yourself. the person you'd like to be someday, though you'd never admit it. memories of your hopes, and dreams, and aspirations, and fears, and failures, all come flooding back for the briefest of moments. like something on the tip of your tongue you just cannot recall you begin to [[realize]] the thing you've failed to notice all along....