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!
|
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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why are u so cruel to me
But she's not wrong, and Kashuu isn't going to pretend he's a cool enough bean to be okay with trash climbing. HE'S NOT. He doesn't even like trash being under his feet okay, and those are protected by shoes!! Shoes that he'll need to scrub 10 times once he leaves...]
...If you think you can do it, okay.
[HE'S TRUSTING YOU, OKUNI. WITH HIS LIFE!! Kind of literally, even!]
But if you get me lodged in garbage or something, I'm never gonna forgive you.
WHO'S CRUEL TO WHO
I won't. [she NOTICEABLY does not say the word promise... because once it's a promise then Okuni is probably like 300% tempted to break it... let's not jinx it yet.] And I'll return those words right back at you. If you leave me behind, then I'll tell everyone I come across that Kashuu Kiyomitsu is a totally not cute and super mean uchigatana who can't kill rats.
[so she's not gonna kill him or come after him.... just put him in the burn book????]
YOU'RE CRUEL TO ME, INNOCENT AKI, A PURE FLOWER
Honestly that's more effective than a death threat to a sword like Kashuu, though. His reputation is important!! He needs to defend it!]
Lucky for you, I'm not the kinda sword who abandons people who need help.
[He's a good sword! He lives up to what he was made for, even if it means he has to shank some people to do it.]
Should I climb up with you, or can you carry me without getting me dirty?
a pure flower whose roots reach ALL THE WAY DOWN TO THE HELL OF TRAGIC CANONS
It's better if I carry you. I put in a lot of traps while making that hill. [and it'd be a pain to tell other people about them, apparently... why did she put in traps]
i cant believe u made me read these lies with my own two eyes
...Traps? [THE LOOK ON HIS FACE SAYS "WHY" but then he just looks tired.] No, no - any answer is just gonna give me a headache. I'll leave it to you from here, okay?
[And then in the ULTIMATE DISPLAY OF TRUST, he'll slide his vessel from his side and hold it out for Okuni to take.]
it's like the reverse emperor's clothes... only impure people can read them
Okay! [kashuu already knows how to deal with Okuni.... looking tired and not asking any questions... Okuni will graciously accept Kashuu's vessel because Kashuu decided to trust her anyway and she should be touched, but instead she's like 'oooh pretty'... But she's holding it properly with both hands instead of sticking it under her obi and forgetting about it!!]
[She looks back at Kashuu because what is he going to do now... disappear??]
what does that say about u who typed them then!!
He's tired and he'll continue to be tired but at least he knows how to handle Okuni! Kind of... Close enough for now, honestly. Anyway, after making sure that she isn't about to drop him in a pile of gunk or stuff him under her obi or chuck him like a javelin directly into the wall, he'll... disappear, yep. THAT'S IT. Without any fuss or fanfare, he's just gone, like he'd never been there at all.]
DAMMIT
I wonder, can you talk in this form too? [probably... not?? maybe, but she's just seen a perfectly normal looking dude disappear in front of her eyes and she can't really detect his presence hiding in any trash heaps so ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE. she is very OPEN-MINDED RIGHT NOW.]
ugh shoves u into the impure pit GOOD BYe
That said, if Okuni has spiritual awareness, she'll be able to hear a weird disembodied Kashuu voice answering back with:]
Kiiinda. It's a lot harder for people to talk to me like this, though.
[And if she doesn't, she'll only hear silence. The woes of being a sword spirit, honestly.]
I'M WAITING FOR THE DAY YOU GET PUSHED IN TOO
[Instead, she'll reach the top in record time, dodging certain areas because that's where all her trap cards are of course.]
Alright! I'm going to throw you now. [and with that, she finds her solid footing, pulls Kashuu's vessel back, and then FLINGS IT UP!! All the way up!! At an angle too, so that Kashuu safely lands outside the chute and not precariously at the edge... hopefully he doesn't land in slimy trash...]
WOW how rude.....
Instead, he just... well, he can't really brace himself for impact since he's a dang sword, but he mentally readies himself! And then he's being flung, oh boy!! Miraculously, he manages to avoid landing in any slimy trash, though his fall is softened by a nice big pile of empty packaging from who-knows-what. Nothing smelly or gooey, anyway, and that's what's important.
And as for re-manifesting... WELL. If Okuni's looking up toward the chute, she'll see a flash of brilliant light and then a... a shower of sakura petals... There sure are a lot?! Seems this part is a lot flashier than disappearing. And then, the sound of Kashuu's voice before his head pops over the chute's edge!]
I made it! Good toss!
SHAKES FIST AT
Aren't you glad you trusted me? [what would have happened if their positions were reversed tbh?? But she looks up at him expectantly.]
RUNS AWAY LIKE A SUPERVILLAIN
He'd rather not get dirty again now that he's cleaned off, but it's not like he's the sort of person who'd ditch someone who gave him a hand. LUCKY FOR OKUNI.]
It wasn't a bad idea. [HE GUESSES.] Anyway, I'm gonna need to go find a rope. You didn't see any lying around while you were up here, did you?
a purehearted supervillain...
I did! [HM??? hm OH RIGHT. she nods] I saw one draped over an ugly statue. It shouldn't be too far from where you're standing.
[the statue might be in a middle of a puddle of ooze though...]
oh what a glamorous title..
But oh, that sure will be A Find once he actually stumbles across it.]
An ugly statue? O-kay! Wait right there and I'll go look for it.
[AND AWAY HE TROTS... Considering there actually aren't that many statues around, it doesn't take him too long to find what he's looking for. But ah... why is it in the center of Lake Ooze... He didn't sign up for this.]
Eh... [He glances back over to the pit and then out into the great wilderness of the garbagelands, considering both A) asking Okuni if she has any other ideas or B) just going off on his own to search for another rope. Both of those are quickly ruled out, though... Okuni would probably just troll his dumb ass and if he was gone too long in his search, she might think he ditched her and try to kill him or something.
SO INTO THE MUCK HE GOES. Slowly. Carefully. One step at a time... trying to find footholds in more solid patches of garbage. This is successful for a short while, but of course his luck doesn't last forever and his boot ends up slipping into a big patch of stinky liquified something. Even back in the pit, Okuni will probably be able to hear:]
GROSS—!!
AKI UR TAG CRACKED ME UP
[PEALS OF LAUGHTER!!! OF COURSE.... She's sorry that she couldn't see it herself... The imagination is never good enough in times like these.]
Hehe, are you okay? You didn't fall face-first, did you? [LAUGHS AGAIN...]
GOOD points at eyes points at u
[As if Okuni got the rope and put it on the statue specifically because she felt in her bones that she'd need to ruin Kashuu's shoes today...
That said, his face is miraculously still okay! Not that he actually stops to answer her question, because he's a moron and is now more focused on trying to beat the pile of gunk to win the rope. He can't let his shoes slip again! What if he really does fall face-first next time?! He'd probably just lie down in the garbage pit and pray for death.
Anyway, by the time he gets to the statue, his shoes are definitely beyond salvage... But at least that's it! His pants have managed to avoid the splash zone and if he's careful with extracting the rope, he'll be just fine. So he's very careful! Very, very careful... Like, he's definitely taking a fair few minutes here.]
no subject
[ugh she sure sounds gleeful.... and after her giggles finally taper off... Okuni waits.... Okuni waits a million years for Kashuu to come back and rescue her even though she was a butthead and laughed at his misery before.]
He~y, what's taking so long? [Did he leave her? HE DID, DIDN'T HE... But no, he didn't seem to come off as the sort of punk who'd do that? But Okuni's probably been fooled before...] Don't tell me... He fainted...? How embarrassing...! Hey, hey -- Kashuu Kiyomitsu-san! Was it too much for you? Did you panic and faint? I hope you're not just lying there in the lake... I guess that would be kind of funny though. Hey, hey, hey --
[HEY HEY HEY HEY KASHUU HEY HEY HEY]
no subject
She'll be able to hear the sound of other trashdrones nyooming by overhead and probably the screams of whoever is unfortunate enough to be dumped into the recycling or compost pits, but no Kashuu or Kashuu-screeching to be heard! No one else is dumped into the trash pit during this unfortunate interlude either. Maybe he really did slip and fall into the scum lake?! Maybe he's just drowned out there and he's decided to stay dead because a death like that is too embarrassing to face. Maybe a drone came and picked him up while he was knocked out and now he's lying in a different pit somewhere...
Or maybe he just prioritized his shoes and pants over getting to Okuni in a timely manner, ah.
INDEED, IT'S OPTION C, because a rope comes swinging down the chute probably right at the cusp of it really seeming like he did play ditcharoo.]
You're so noisy! Has anyone ever told you that?
no subject
Eh, that's mean. I was only worried about you! [cackling to herself and being annoying equals WORRY AND CONCERN. but the rope!!! the rope of escape!! She jumps up on her toes to grab it with both hands. And then she'll shimmy up like a punk squirrel to reach the top. once she does, she peeks up over the chute to look for Kashuu... and to bust out laughing at his appearance of course]
Where did all those flowers go, hm?
no subject
It's your fault for picking a rope in such an impossible-to-reach place! Honestly! If you're gonna be scouting for useful things, you should be looking at places where it's actually easy to get around. [And then he HUFFS AND PUFFS LIKE HE'S GOT MORE TO SAY but no, he's just tired and done with the day, so he gives the rope a tug.]
Just hurry up and get out here already. I'm tired and I wanna go take a bath.