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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Huh. Like - like what? [ The question makes her excitement clear, but she does take additional time to glance over her shoulder, measure the conveyer belt's progress, and nod in the opposite direction. Time to get walking now that they're mostly friendly! ] My family doesn't really have a name. It's just me and Mother. Where are you from that they give out names like Rock?
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Yes! It would not be official, but I would be glad to give you a nickname! What do you think of... Blossomfist?!
But, it is alright if your family does not have a name! That should mean that you are free to appoint one yourself...!
As for my home? [A confident chuckle.] It is alluded to in my title. I hail from Konoha Village!! It is located in the Land of Fire...
1/2
BLOSSOMFIST ]
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[ So! The crush of smoke and scent of burning debris doesn't seem to lessen any as they move towards bright light or clean air, though it's nice not to fear for her life. Unfortunately, lack of adrenaline is causing her stomach to growl. ] You live in a kingdom made of fire? How do you not just - burn up? Isn't that implied in the name? Unless 'fire' here means really hot...
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I am so happy that you approve! Please feel free to use it at your own discretion!
[He laughs at her guesses.]
It is not truly made of fire, and it is not a kingdom. The fire is symbolic in nature... I believe that it must refer to the way that our fighting spirits burn brightly!! [He never thought to ask if there is an actual reason. But he keeps pressing onwards as they talk, without any fatigue.]
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[ Rapunzel gasps. Her stomach whines. Finally it hits her! ]
[ lol jk ]
Is... that what you're here to do? Stop the Flamemines? The Flame miners? Ugh. I mean those creatures who destroyed... who supposedly destroyed our homes a-and whatnot? We were told something awful had happened to this place.
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The Flam Men?! [He has been here for six whole months.] Ah... I have been trained to try to fight any enemy, especially those who endanger those precious to me! The Flam Men are one of those enemies... If I ever find them, I will put my very life on the line to defeat them all!
[He raises a determined fist. But then he softens a bit.]
I... I know, that it is difficult to hear about such things that have supposedly happened...
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It is. But I wouldn't stand much of a chance at surviving if... if I couldn't handle it. Right? [ Rapunzel smiles broadly, hoping to dash any worries about whether she's all right. She isn't, but that's fine for now. ] No worries. We'll take this on together!
Wait, does that mean you've been separated from your village this whole time?
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He smiles warmly at her affirmation. That she seems to believe in herself and their teamwork so soon after hearing about the fates of their worlds - it is very inspiration for Rock Lee!]
Yes! That is a very good point. I am sure that you can handle this. Especially with the power of teamwork! [He raises the thumbs up again.] Working together, there is no problem that we cannot solve!
[And then, he gives a more serious nod.]
Yes. Some others from my world have been here in the past, but now I am the only one left here. It... it has been about six months since this all started for me!
no subject
That's... that's terrible. You've been living in this - in whatever all this muck is for an entire six months? [ Her eyes don't quite fill with tears, but the look on her face could fool you with ease. ] Oh my gosh, Rock– [ shaking her head ] I didn't know. I– Come on.
[ If she ever gets around to learning the proper social attitudes, she'll apologise to her "boldness" for this later. As it is, Rapunzel reaches for his hand, fully intending to drag him along the belt and onwards towards the sunlight. ] We need to get you out of here.
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N-no! This is... You do not understand!
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Uh... Definitely not going to argue with you there!
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That is reassuring! But, ah, this place... It is not real! This is - is not truly where I have been living!
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(and put the phone down)
(and give the phone to Rapunzel) ]
What do you mean? This isn't real? This... this whole thing with me and you and the trash and "vivid"? [ Suffice it to say she's come to an abrupt stop. This time the guilt-tripping emotion in her face is betrayal. To think she'd cared! ] I... I knew it couldn't be!
no subject
N-no! Er, or yes! Only some of those tings are not real!
ViViD is real! But, it is also not real...! You see?!
no subject
She nods. Slowly. ] Let's... say I do see. Explain further.
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Yosh! Ah, well, you see... this place we are in right now, ViViD is... it is called a virtual reality. It is not real! We enter it to complete games, but it is not where we live on this world!
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[ second given ]
So it's an illusion. Like a waking dream - which is what I thought! - but... [ She turns to him with an apologetic smile before wrinkling her nose in a frown. ] What for?
no subject
That is exactly correct! [Well maybe not exactly correct, but correct enough for Lee's understanding. He answers her with cheery enthusiasm as if he answer cleared a test with flying colors.]
This is supposed to be a 'game', where we complete objectives! But... I do not know what we are supposed to do here!
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[ In that case, this is even better than she'd thought; games are, among concepts that make it easier to numb and distance yourself from truly horrific real life events, something she is super hella great at!! Thinking of this as a game shouldn't be too much of a leap. ]
Right. [ a nod ] In that case, I am... extremely sorry for doubting you, Rock, and I hope you'll forgive me. From now on we are going to work together like a team and complete our objective! Which is maybe – ... figuring out a way away from the fire? [ she already feels lighter just thinking about it! ]
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Please, there is no need to apologize! [He dismisses that with a wave of a hand.] Please consider yourself to be forgiven without any conditions! But, your guess - it sounds very clever! That just may be the objective!
[Filled with energy, he raises a fist in determination.]
Rapunzel-san, let us begin our ultimate mission of youthful teamwork!
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[ This is the part where she takes a handful of hair and, as if pulling it up into a ponytail, swings it defly overhead before letting it go in the opposite direction of the sedately roaring incinerator. She smiles as the looped end comes to rest over a hooked portion of the ceiling. ]
How's that look?
no subject
[Then he watches as she does that trick with her hair, and it is only then that he realizes how truly gigantic her hair is. He looks on in wonder.]
Your- your hair!! That is so incredible...! [Even coming from a world where ninjas have all sorts of weird powers, he's never seen someone use their hair in such a way.]
no subject
Yes! Thank you. I-It's nothing, really. Ah. Don't touch it. Shall... we...? Rock-san?
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And... let us escape from this place! [He steps forward and reaches towards her!]
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