sunny application for somnia (cultor)

[sadpoem]

PLAYER INFO

Name: Panthera
Preferred Contact: pantheraliam
Age: 30
Invite Link: here

CHARACTER INFO

Character Name: Sunny
Canon: OMORI
Age: 16
If Under 16, why is this character a good thematic fit for Somnia?: n/a
Canon Point: two days left @ the lake scene, right before Hero appears
Wiki Link(s): here

SOMNIA-SPECIFIC QUESTIONS

1. Dreams are how Sleep chooses you. What might draw your character into Somnia— a wound, a wish, a weakness? Would they follow the dream, or run from it?

To put it quite simply, Sunny could very well stumble into Somnia merely because he spends 80% of his time dreaming. For the last four years of his life, he's lived alone in his room, sleeping away most of the day. Half of OMORI takes place in Sunny's headspace, the world created when he dreams. Sometimes, it's a lighthearted happy place where nothing bad happens, and sometimes it's a horrific hellscape where anyone who enters may be psychologically or otherwise tormented. This place, Black Space, is a manifestation of Sunny's guilt, grief, and the darkest thoughts that he hides. I could easily see Sleep's black wave simply becoming part of Black Space and swallowing Sunny up.

You could easily call this a weakness, as even when Sunny's awake, he dissociates so heavily that he hallucinates things from his dreams. Being so intertwined with them twenty-four hours a day has warped his mind. He would certainly also wish to live within a dream, which could additionally be what brings him to Somnia when Sleep comes.

2. Somnia is a slow unraveling—of worlds, and of selves. How does your character respond to fear, transformation, and losing control? Do they fight, adapt, collapse?

Sunny is always afraid. Before his sister died, he was already a jumpy kid, but after hear death, he became terrified of everything. Even locking himself up in his house only brings the ghosts inside. His only escape is sleep, which he does as much as possible to avoid having to be awake and face his fear. To that end, I'd definitely say that Sunny's first response to fear, transformation, or losing control is to run from it - avoid, avoid, avoid. I wouldn't necessarily say that he adapts afterward, either. He may adapt in the sense that he can survive, but he won't thrive under pressure or distress. He's quick to panic or run when he faces something he thinks he can't defeat.

I will mention here that he has a few strategies for coping with fears which appear as his skills in the combat section of the game. These include "focus", "calm down", "persist", and "overcome" (these don't include his final skills). He is coached by the voice of his sister to gather his courage, take deep breaths, etc., and uses this to calm himself down and face his fears. At his current canon point, he can only use "calm down", "focus", and newly "persist".

3. Connection is the only constant. What kind of bonds does your character form— fast and burning, slow and wary, deep and desperate? How might that shape their time in this world?

Bonds are a core theme in OMORI as well, not only between Sunny, but between all the members of the ensemble cast. When it comes to Sunny, the bonds he forms are deep and long-lasting, despite losing touch/falling out with his friend group after his sister died. The game tells the story of them coming back together in the short few days before Sunny moves away, and spending time together, maybe for the last time. Despite all they've been through, and spending so many years apart, or even at odds, their bonds are still able to bring them back together for one last hurrah.

I must also mentioned Sunny's bond with one of his friends, Basil. Sunny and Basil share a bond that can't be replicated by anyone else, and it's because the terrible secret Sunny harbors involves Basil as well. (OMORI endgame spoilers start here). Mari, Sunny's sister, was killed when he pushed her down the stairs in a fit of anger. Basil helped him stage her suicide in order to protect him. To that end, their bond is both incredibly strong, and incredibly warped. Sunny finds it difficult to be around Basil, but also longs to be close with the only person who can come close to understanding his grief. Basil would be his greatest convergence if they existed in OMORI.

4. What are two major forces in your character’s personality that are often in conflict? (Ex: logic vs emotion, power vs guilt, obedience vs rage, etc.)

These might sound a little weird at first, but I'm going to say that Sunny's sense of reality vs. fiction are two forces that are constantly at war. Sunny processes trauma, fear, or any sort of distress by avoiding it in any way that he can. Even before Mari's death, he's described as spending most of his time daydreaming. After her death, he spends most of his time sleeping so that he can live in the fantasy world he's created, where everything is fine, everyone is still friends, and nothing bad ever happens. Even when he's awake, he hallucinates things from his dreams, both pleasant and unpleasant. He has an extremely poor sense of reality that he struggles with even when he's awake and lucid.

It's a conflict because Sunny still has to survive in the real world, so he doesn't want to be in a constant state of questioning what's real and what's not. It's something he'd like to be able to control, just as anyone would.

VESSEL SELECTION
Which Vessel Type are you choosing: Token or Offering? token
Why does this Vessel type feel appropriate for your character?

Sunny is a weaver of dreams. Although he does see himself as a monster, he fails to see that he is also a master of creation. He's responsible for one half of the game's setting, and although he's the only one who can access the headspace, Sunny's perception was strong enough to warp himself into his own villain (the titular "Omori", who takes on a life of his own). Illusionist in particular is an incredibly good fit for him, as it deals with themes of the truth vs. lies, which is a huge theme in OMORI, particularly surrounding Sunny. He harbors a terrible secret which leads to the events of the game, and he is, in fact, so good at lying about it, that he even forgets it himself for four years.

Choose one OR list three subclass options within your chosen Vessel type that you think would suit them: illusionist