Out with the old, in with the new as they say, and this ViViD level is no different. Ever progressive and ever mindful, CERES has decided in their war against the evil carbon footprint to give citizens both new and old a lesson in healthy living. To show this, they've created a level all about... recycling, or as close to recycling as a company like CERES can get. (Which isn't very close at all, honestly.)
This, of course, means that when you're dumped in to today's ViViD level, the first thing that will hit you is the stench. It's vile and rancid and the type of stench that makes a person want to give up smelling altogether, and when you finally open your eyes, you'll see why. There's trash everywhere. The buildings are decrepit and crumbling, the cars are broken down and rusted, and overall, it looks like the apocalypse rolled right on through. Which is weird because this is definitely not a post-apocalyptic game. Yet wandering around this pathetic excuse for a ViViD level will just reveal more of the same -- it's a total wasteland.
And if you look up, you will see a billboard.
RECYCLING AND YOU: HOW NOT TO BE A DIRTY WASTE OF SPACE
You'll only have a moment to be offended by the sign before, amongst the piles of trash and rubble, there's another, smaller pile of trash and rubble. The only difference is this one can talk.
 Welcome to The Dumpster Dive, my cool cats and sweet kittens. A brand new ViViD level, created and innovated to you by CERES's very creative and innovative technicians. We're all here to help you learn to Reuse, Reduce and Recycle, givin' you kids some tools to help you lessen your impact on the planet. After all, we're all here together on this great planet of Tellus. Wouldn't want to ruin it, right? Ha ha!
Happy Trash Day to Cerealians one and all!
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PHASE I [ 6 00 ] So, you're here.
You're probably sitting in a pile of trash because, well, everywhere is a pile of trash. You're in a landscape of trashiness and there's no escape. Your only option is to give in to the sweet, sweet pull of the garbage. The buildings are crumbling, the sidewalks are a mess of bottles (but no bottle caps), rubble, and empty chip bags, and you're stuck in this... trash. This garbage. This hellhole.
Wasn't recycling supposed to be clean?
It probably takes a rat skittering over your foot to get you going but like any good game, the protagonist needs to move. If you're going to find out anything in this trash heap, you'll need to explore a bit. See if you can find someone else! Or something else. Maybe someone more experienced with ViViD can help you figure out how to log out. Even if logging out doesn't seem to be working right now. You should be careful too because one wrong step might cause the pile of trash you're standing on give way and send you into the sewers below.
Which means there are rats, there are bugs, the ground is unsteady and... yep. It's starting to rain.
Good luck.
PHASE II [ 800 ] And then come the... trash drones.
They zero in on any living thing in this ViViD level -- if you’re moving, if you’re breathing, if you have some sort of a pulse, they’ll be there. And they’ll grab you and take you away. No matter how many you shoot down, more and more and more will come, never stopping until you're swarmed completely by them. They have to get you! You're garbage, you're garbage, you're garbage! You're garbage!
And so, you're snatched up.
Don’t worry, though. After a short flight (wave hello to your fellow drone-napped neighbor!), you'll arrive at three huge trash chutes with three equally huge signs above them. GARBAGE, RECYCLING, and COMPOST hang above the chutes and the drones pause just momentarily before announcing one of these options in a robotic voice. You've been sorted and without any preamble, the drone will dump you in whichever one it decides.
Hopefully you don’t end up in the compost. Gross.
Of course, once you down there, there's plenty to poke around in (or not much if you're still not into the whole trash thing). It's piles and piles and piles of trash as far as the eye can see! Again! If you're especially clever, you may be able to use the trash to build a way out of the chute. The very, very long chute. Maybe there's someone around that can help you? And better do so quick, who knows what CERES has deemed to be "recycling" this time.
PHASE III [ 1125 ] CERES's standards continue to shine on again, because after some time, those chutes will finally start working. So if you've been separated from a friend through any of this ordeal, don't worry about it. You're all gonna end up in the same place anyway.
Which is the incinerator, of course! (Wait, that’s not how recycling works.)
The ground beneath you shifts, enough to knock over whatever flimsy excuse for an escape plan you have, and suddenly all of the trash, compost or recycling will be dumped down into an underground furnace -- along with everyone stuck there, of course. Bit by bit, everything moves ever closer towards that red hot furnace and it’s clear that everything's going to be dumped straight into the fire and burned. Say your farewells. Make nice with your neighbor. Finalize your will because --
Oh. It stopped.
Looks like it jammed.
It doesn't remain jammed for long because CERES is, if anything, highly efficient. So it starts up again. But then stops again. And then starts again. And then stops again. This may be a glitch in the level, actually.
So, you're still getting ever closer to fiery death, but... slowly. Very slowly. In fact, you could probably walk away from said fiery death faster than you're going towards it. It's like they can't even program a near death experience right!
PHASE IV [ 1125 ] Maybe you avoided the incinerator. Maybe you ended up in a different part of the level altogether. Maybe you just got lost. Either way, now you’re stuck with the age-old hobby of enthusiasts and the exceptionally desperate alike.
Dumpster diving.
And CERES wouldn't send you down there without an incentive, you know. If you look, it seems like there might be something valuable, something incredibly important and just for you. A shiny item that you’ve always wanted right from home and it’s right there in your grasp, something precious that you could never get in Cerealia. How it came to be there, nestled between an empty carton of eggs and a half-eaten cheeseburger, no one knows, but you'll be filled with the inescapable, all-consuming urge to go get it. Just jump right into that dumpster and get it.
The more you resist the urge, the more it'll hurt. (As in, physically hurt actually. The feeling will be comparable to your fingernails slowly being plucked out.)
This is ViViD though and the moment you hit the trash, the spell breaks. You'll see that your most precious thing, whatever it was, was never actually there. Instead, you seem to have actually grabbed something else and whatever it is, you can't let go of it. Be it an empty bottle of bacon soda or a bicycle tire with a giant hole in it, it's attached to your hand now and no matter what you do, you can't get it off.
Hopefully whatever you grabbed wasn't too big because it looks like you're not getting rid of it. Not till you beat the level.
BONUS [ why o'clock ] The odd thing about being stuck in a trash wasteland is that you can go for ages without seeing another person. Ages. Of course, CERES doesn't like that very much since ViViD games should be co-operative! Player with player! Player against player! Players who shouldn't be playing at all. That's the type of play CERES supports.
Which means the longer you go without seeing another person, the more you might feel an itch. It gets under your skin, making you feel dizzier and dizzier, and shorter and shorter of breath until -- you pass out. Vision going dark, breathing cutting out, and down you go into the trash and whatever this ViViD level has planned next.
It won't take long. You'll wake up feeling slightly confined and there will be a moving body next to you. It seems as if you've finally, finally found someone -- and they're really, really close. In fact, maybe a little too close? When you open your eyes, you'll see that the two of you may be bound together in a way that might be familiar to some.
But instead of a shirt, it's just a garbage bag. A really, really strong garbage bag that can't be broken out of no matter how strong you happen to be. No laser eyes, no super powers, nothing will separate you from this person other than, well, getting along.
There really is only one question you have to ask yourself now. Just one.
What the hell does this have to do with recycling?
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PUNCHES CATCHERS MITT
He also gets the distinct feeling that she might be lying about that, just maybe... HM. Okuni is clearly someone to keep an eye out for and perhaps he won't look so quickly the next time she starts screaming about rats. Either way, RUDE, don't insult his swordsmanship!! He's quick to sheathe his blade, making a huffy noise.]
I'm one of the fastest uchigatana in the army, y'know. There's no way a smelly rat could outrun my draw.
[HE SEES YOUR GAMES, PUNK.]
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That's quite a claim to make. [why is this dude calling himself an uchigatana??? WHAT... is she talking to one of those Super Serious Types that like to go on and on about how they're a Sword for their master. But it also doesn't seem like that? hm]
But there are all sorts of armies out there. Being the fastest in an army of backwater mercenaries, for example, isn't very impressive...
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But ugh no, unfortunately she's run into an even bigger weirdo. HOW UNFORTUNATE. Not a super serious type who speaks in dumb metaphors, but an actual sword who has no idea what's happening at any given point in time. What a life.]
The army I'm part of is the only one in the whole world that can do what we do. [GOSH. But even Kashuu isn't the sort of person who'd needlessly talk about the intricacies of their mission just for Pride Points, so he leaves it at that, reaching up to brush some gunk from his shoulder.]
—Anyway, be more careful next time! If you just start pointing and screaming about rats, you'll make everyone down here paranoid. [And by "everyone" he means "Kashuu".]
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I'm only doing my best to properly warn others... [her eyes grow as big as saucers...!! and with the exact same kind of urgency] Oh, behind you!
[GUNNING FOR STRIKE TWO RIGHT HERE]
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Also see how Kashuu tries so hard to pretend like he's not going to fall for this while simultaneously attempting to covertly check over his shoulder...]
Seriously, if you're gonna warn people, at least wait for there to be something to warn them about!
[BUT WHAT IF THERE REALLY IS A RAT THIS TIME he has to peek--]
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[suddenly Okuni picks up the nearest piece of trash that can easily fit in one hand, which apparently turns out to be a crumpled up fast food bag filled with.... no one wants to know but ANYWAY IT SURE IS HANDY, and it sure is convenient for her purposes right now.]
[which is throwing it down at Kashuu's head.... she's not even trying to be subtle anymore]
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He only took a quick look, so he turns back around just in time to get a face full of greasy fast food bag. MMM, DELICIOUS. He's gonna cry. ...Or just yell a lot, he looks like he's on the verge of some Yelling™.]
What is your problem?! Seriously! Are you just super upset to be covered in garbage?! Take it out on someone else!
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[Still, her eyes are very Wide as Kashuu yells at her, but she can't snap her fan fast enough to cover her smile... okay, that's far more entertaining than watching Kashuu shriek about imaginary rats!! BUT KASHUU'S HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD... She's mad about life and taking it out on poor unsuspecting people who don't deserve it at all... after some GIGGLING]
I didn't think it would actually hit you! [TITTERS] I just wanted -- what was it you said? One of the fastest uchigatana in the army? I wanted to see how quickly you could cut it in half!
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But she's still a BRAT and he's old and tired and cranky and embarrassed, because he sure doesn't look like an impressive sword now!!]
There's no way I'd use myself to cut up garbage. If it was something actually dangerous- [or a rat, apparently] -it wouldn't be a problem!
[YEAH THAT'S... that's totally it. That's how being a sword works, yes.]
—Anyway, don't just throw stuff at people and try to excuse it!
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Hey, are you really an uchigatana? Or is calling yourself a sword just a weird habit of yours?
[SHE IS GONNA IGNORE THAT LECTURE!!]
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He also doesn't want this punk getting too close to him!! So as she walks closer, his shoulders hunch a little and he steps back to put some more distance between them again. She's a sketchy individual, okay... For all he knows, she might be a sword collector! Maybe she's just gearing up to knock him out and steal his vessel or something!!]
What kinda question is that? Even humans who refer to themselves as swords don't pick out a specific blade for comparison, right? [It's always just "I'M A SWORD FOR THIS PERSON" or "I'M A SWORD FOR THIS CAUSE", never "I'M A WAKIZASHI HAHA". But snark aside, he'll also somewhat helpfully add:]
I'm a tsukumogami.
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A tsukumogami? [HUH.... it'd be funnier to think of Kashuu as this Weirdo but this is kind of cool.] You don't look like one at all! Shouldn't you have a sword for a face, or something like that? Like a kasa-obake!
[why doesn't kashuu look like a one-legged umbrella demon?????]
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You're the second person to say that. [GOSH. He doesn't know why he looks like this, okay!! He technically looked this way even back before he was summoned... A mystery, just like "why was Kashuu summoned with his nails already painted??"]
A-ny-way, my master made this body for me, so maybe he had something to do with what it looks like.
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And are you satisfied with your appearance? [this is def an innocent question]
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But why is she coming closer. Kashuu can't back up any further either?! There's a bigass pile of soggy trash behind him and he is not touching that, nope, no sir.]
—Of course! [Is that a trick question??] I'm super cute.
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Hmm... I guess. [a long... judging pause for the sword who just called himself cute.... have you NO SHAME, KASHUU?? going to try and poke Kashuu with the tip of her metal fan.] You're alright, but you don't look very intimidating.
[why make tsukumogami that look like cute guys... maybe kashuu's master has Weird Taste]
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You guess. [FLATLY. He doesn't have any shame, so of course he's going to call that out!! He also reaches up to bat the fan away, you stop that Okuni.]
I'm definitely cute! And it's fine if I don't look intimidating. [Swords like that aren't cute, you know?!] The important part is being able to get the job done, yeah?
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Like cutting down your enemies? [a pause, then a decisive nod!!] I suppose appearances don't really matter when killing's involved.
[He did say he was in an army, and he's a sword!! She can't imagine a bunch of sword tsukumogami being summoned to have tea parties...]
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That said, his general swordishness does tend to become the most blatantly clear when killing is the topic of the day... He's Utterly Unperturbed about it.]
Ex-act-ly! What good's a blade that can't even do that? [Killing is an important part of the job?!] But I mean, you can still look cute at the same time.
[Kashuu "blatantly fishes for compliments" Kiyomitsu.]
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If that sort of thing's important to you, then -- I guess. [busting out the 'I GUESS' again.] But is it really easy to look cute when you kill? You get blood and guts splattered all over you when you fight.
[WHY ARE THEY EVEN TALKING ABOUT THIS]
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Just I guess is no good. [He'll just discard her half-assed compliment like garbage, too!! Whatever, he doesn't need compliments from such a PUNK.
Also there's a brief pause here where Kashuu is probably thinking about all of the times various Soujis have said that he's beautiful when he's covered in blood but that would just take this conversation to an awkward place... Even he knows that...]
I dunno how you fight, lady, but any sword worth their salt can kill cleanly.
phenomenons... spellcheck betrayed me 1/2
It's hard to call someone cute in a place like this. [she says, as innocently as possible... totally not implying that Kashuu doesn't look cute atm, of course not. She pauses, considering Kashuu's words.]
You're not wrong. [Her own sword's hard to spot when it's been stuffed into the folds of her kimono, but it's there, albeit way shorter than the average katana.] But the battlefield's a pretty unpredictable place. You can have a good sword and a clean stroke, but... you'll get dirty one way or the other.
[Okuni's Seen Some Things, okay... It's a byproduct of being from a turbulent era.]
2/2
Is that your original form? [time to INVADE THE PERSONAL BUBBLE]
LMAO it's ok i still got u... even tho spellcheck got u first
No one else has a problem with it. [Implying people have called him cute even when surrounded by garbage?! Okay Kashuu. He's quiet for a second after that though, since what she says is actually pretty poignant and not exactly untrue. He should know better than most just what sort of surprises a battle can store...
But alas, before he can say anything poignant in turn, she's all UP IN HIS SPACE!! He reflexively puts his hand on the hilt of his vessel, giving her A Look.]
Yeah, that's me. [A beat, and then he helpfully adds:] Don't touch it.
[NO TRUST FOR OKUNI.]
covers my face in shame
But I can't see you properly when you're sheathed. [She doesn't have to see him at all... Does she have enough points with Kashuu that he'd show it to her???? Okuni looks expectantly up at him.... PROBABLY NOT]
ugh no my turn for shameface... when u forget the subject head
now we're both shameful....
ugh our shame pile
the shame pile and the sin pit....
WHERE DID THE SIN PIT COME FROM
SDLFJLMF IT JUST REMINDED ME OF OUR KONDOU THIRST OKAY
UGH OUR SIN PIT THIRST.... thirsting after a married man
now it's immortalized in our headers....
FUCK NOW WE CANT HIDE
how do u have time to tag me and drag me into swordhell aT THE SAME TIME
IM MULTITALENTED watch as i destroy u in 2 places at once
IM REGRETTING
POINTS AT EYES POINTS AT U
SHIELDS YOUR EYES
WHY MINE
BECAUSE THEY'RE EYES OF SIN
why are u so cruel to me
WHO'S CRUEL TO WHO
YOU'RE CRUEL TO ME, INNOCENT AKI, A PURE FLOWER
a pure flower whose roots reach ALL THE WAY DOWN TO THE HELL OF TRAGIC CANONS
i cant believe u made me read these lies with my own two eyes
it's like the reverse emperor's clothes... only impure people can read them
what does that say about u who typed them then!!
DAMMIT
ugh shoves u into the impure pit GOOD BYe
I'M WAITING FOR THE DAY YOU GET PUSHED IN TOO
WOW how rude.....
SHAKES FIST AT
RUNS AWAY LIKE A SUPERVILLAIN
a purehearted supervillain...
oh what a glamorous title..
AKI UR TAG CRACKED ME UP
GOOD points at eyes points at u
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