PHASE I [ ?? ?? ] It's impossible to tell time in this place, and everything looks the same, but it won't be long before you're probably sick of the tower. Time to get down -- unless you have magical powers or can fly or something, it'll probably be pretty tough, too. You could try to climb down, but the walls look pretty slick, and -- oh god, your arm just went through the wall, what the hell.
Whatever you do, don't fall.
If you fall, you'll be stuck falling forever. And ever. And ever. Looks like they didn't put a failsafe into ViViD for falling, so now you're stuck. You might see some other people stuck in the same glitch, falling forever a la Alice in Wonderland, but honestly? You're stuck that way until your game resets itself.
PHASE II [ ???? ] Either way, you've made it to the ground (somehow). The ground looks like... a half-finished city, really. There are streets, and houses... but some of the houses are unfinished, just four walls and no roof, or only three walls, or nothing inside, and a lot of the NPCs are completely faceless, or only have one line they repeat over and over again.
It's honestly pretty unnerving, especially since there's no soundtrack at all. You can just traverse this creepy hellscape in complete and utter silence.
And then the cars start to fly away.
That's definitely normal (is there anything about this game that isn't faulty?).
PHASE III [ ???? ] It's not safe.
You could be anywhere in this level, wandering, searching -- and then suddenly, it's there. As it appears, a battle theme starts, but it's distorted, eerie and off-pitch. There's something very wrong about this enemy, that's for sure. It can't be defeated, either. Attacks can harm it, and it can be tossed aside or fought, but it just gets right back up, bloodied and beaten, as if unstopped by anything it's feeling.
Over and over and over again.
Just don't let it touch you.
Because it will start to absorb you, code bit by code bit, until there's nothing left of you. It's a cannibalistic distorted monster, wonderful.
PHASE IV [ ???? ] If it wasn't apparent already, physics is a little weird here. One second you're walking along, and the next there's basically no gravity; you could jump wherever you want, clearing buildings in a single bound like the superman you were always meant to be. One second you're your normal amount of strength, and the next you could life cars (if you so chose), for no apparent good reason.
Sometimes the world just tilts, making the ceiling the floor very suddenly, and sometimes the floor drops out from under you entirely.
Anything that could go wrong with the physics here does go wrong.
Just try not to get caught halfway through a now-solid floor. That sounds really, really uncomfortable.
BONUS [ ???? ] Of course, it wouldn't be glitch central without something weird happening to you. And it could be anything -- one second you're fine, and the next your arm is twice as long as it should be, and totally noodly. Suddenly you have a mermaid tail or animal ears, or your head has rotated upside down (how is that even happening?). You're suddenly able to walk through walls, or drag objects to you by pointing at them.
If this was a video game (it is), it would be the faultiest game to ever exist, that's for sure.
(Still, teleporting from one side of the world to the other by jumping on a single spot on a flowerbed is kind of entertaining, if nothing else.)
[ Remember to apply proper warnings on threads with sensitive or inappropriate material and do let a mod know if your thread careens off into maiming or canoodling so we can lock the log. ] |
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
Doudanuki Masakuni | Touken Ranbu (returning)
[He hadn't expected to ever be back here. Where he'd gone, he couldn't remember, but being back? Not part of the plan. At first, he hadn't been certain of where he was, but with the code flying everywhere and him having just fallen about thirty leagues to land in a hellscape where computer code seems to be flying up into the sky, he only has one guess: ViViD. Somehow he's back.
Doudanuki isn't sure what to do. There's no enemy to fight or clear goal to be achieved; only half built homes with furniture that fuzzes out into nothingness halfway through and doors that go nowhere. The people have no faces and they don't seem sentient. He also hasn't seen anyone else yet either. Is this what hell is like? It's definitely not the afterlife, that's for certain. He walks up to one particular weird looking NPC - completely rendered except for the face and yet a voice comes out.]
Hey! Hello?
"I had a dog named Jerry once."
That's nice. Can you tell me where I am?
"I had a dog named Jerry once."
Yeah, I got that. Where am I?
"I had a dog named Jerry once."
...Great.
Phase III : say you don't know me but don't eat my face
[This thing has been stalking him for over an hour now. Everywhere he runs, it's there. He tried fighting it and it ate part of his code, siphoning off bits of him until he could break away. Now he looks like he's got moderate damage. Bits of his armor broken off and his clothes torn. He's realized he can't fight it, so he runs, but it's always there. As he turns a corner and flees, looking over his shoulder, he runs right into someone. With parts of his code missing, he isn't as solid as he should be, so he bounces back, hitting a partially constructed wall.]
Shit! Sorry!
Wildcard
[fite me bros]
no subject
They weren't always like this. Some of these things were helpful when I was last here.
[He sighs as the figure repeats its one line.]
I think it'd be creepier if they suddenly started making sense though.
iii!
[A SURELY FAMILIAR WHINE--
Except it's more of a reflexive shout than a complaint this time, and Kashuu is quick to (attempt to) reorient himself because he has to be quick. This level is awful?! He didn't even think CERES was still around to make levels!!
But more importantly, after a second, it registers that he actually recognizes the presence of the person who so rudely slammed into him. After so many disappearances, one after the other, it's odd to see someone returning. Not that there's much room to celebrate, ah.]
Doudanuki?!
no subject
Even in his panicked, moderately damaged state, he cannot mistake that voice for anyone other than Kashuu "A Menace to Microwaves" Kiyomitsu. He stops, starting at the other sword for a moment, and then hears the battle music starting up again.
Dispensing with all niceties and formalities, he grabs the other sword by his hand and starts running.]
Don't ask! Just run!
no subject
That said, he's easy to tug around, being a veritable twig and all...! He stumbles a little when Donut first grabs his hand and starts tugging him along, and then almost stumbles a second time when he decides to try looking backwards to see what his kinda tattered-looking comrade is running from.
Also, because "don't ask" was said, he's gotta ask.]
What's going on—? What're we running from?!
[At which point he catches a glimpse of their spookyass pursuer and promptly makes a face that says "why does this shit always happen to me or to the people that bump into me".]
no subject
He's pulling Kashuu along, slowing down when he stumbles because falling down at this point could be (video game) fatal. He doesn't answer because Kashuu is a grown-ass sword and he has two perfectly working eyes and pretty soon he is sure to see the monstrosity chasing their butts.
And sure enough, there it is, doing that shudder walk and glitch closer deal that makes Doudanuki's hackles raise. He rounds a corner again, hoping to lose it among all the broken houses.]
Yeah, that. I tried fighting it and it ate part of me.
no subject
Ew!! What?! What does that even mean?! Oh my god, are you okay?
[TRYING TO LOOK OVER BOTH DOUDANUKI AND HIS SWORD AT THE SAME TIME which is a difficult task when also running, trying not to trip and keeping an eye on the thing behind them... With his free hand, he's withdrawing his own vessel though, just in case he needs to Fight™.
There sure are a lot of broken and empty houses here to hide in, though! Catching onto the plan, Kashuu spots an area of the neighborhood that hasn't had streetlights put in yet and darts over there.]
This way!
phase iii
He inevitably ends up waving it around a tad as he flails his arms in an attempt to regain his balance, stumbling back a step, but he succeeds quickly enough.]
I-It's all right, don't wo—uh, are you okay?
[Because that is a somewhat worrying appearance, sir.]
no subject
That said, he's looking over his shoulder every few seconds like a paranoid person would.]
No. That thing's comin' this way. You won't want to be here when it catches up.
no subject
[Well, it's ViViD, so whatever it is, it can't be good, meaning that Karl will take this guy's word for it. His grip tightening around his weapon, he glances in the direction Doudanuki came from.]
All right, thanks for the warning. You still up for running, then?
[Because he has no intention of leaving anyone behind, whether it be a stranger or not.]
iii
Doudanuki?
( He almost can't believe it? Where were you, buddy? )
Where'd ya--... what happened to ya?
( Is something out there? Who did this to you, friend! )