PHASE I [ 6 00 ] You wake up, and you're in a camp ground. The graphics aren't bad here, not really, but they're definitely last gen -- not the type of quality expected out of ViViD. On top of that, every once in awhile, the scenery sort of... glitches before going right back to normal as if nothing ever happened. If you're particularly unlucky, your own body parts might glitch out for a moment too, appearing as nothing more than broken code and then back to normal. Pretty weird, right? Oh well, don't worry about it. Totally harmless.
Glitches or not, you're still in a camp ground along with everyone else. There's a fire, there's some tents, some trees. Maybe some s'mores? You got it all. You're also not wearing what you were before. No, now you're wearing some sexy shorts, or maybe you've got a whip at your side, or maybe you've got a really classy fedora. And if you're one of those lucky few who have all three at once? Good for you! Try not to blind everyone with all that sexy.
Or, you know, the game will glitch out again and you'll be stuck wearing something else. That's definitely not as sexy.
PHASE II [ 730 ] If you decide to finally go exploring that crazy jungle, you'll find that you have a wide range of exploring options. Seems ViViD's taking a crack at their very own open world game -- this one modeled after your run of the mill adventure game. There are rivers to swim through (complete with alligators)! There are cliffs to scale (complete with angry birds ready to peck at your face)! There are even ravines to swing across on vines (just like Tarzan)!
Actually, the game is made to allow you to do just that -- those vines are all conveniently lined up for everyone to use them to swing across. Go on, it'll be fun. If you miss, you'll just lose a life, right?
Of course, if you overshoot your goal, you might run into one of the other glitches; the white space that you'll stumble into implies that you flew right off the world map and are now in unprogrammed space. Don't worry, you'll dissolve eventually, slowly but surely, and will reappear on the cliff so you can try again. There's no other way around that ravine either. Still, it's only a little frightening watching your body disappear piece by piece, right?
PHASE III [ 900 ] If you manage to scale one of those cliffs or swing across that ravine or cross that river, you may find yourself a chest. It's a treasure chest, and you don't even need a key to open it! Open it right up, a cute little jingle will play, and… nothing will be there.
Or the item will be there, hovering in the air, something amazing, fantastic, incredible that you've always dreamed of having and wanting, and -- you can't touch it. No matter what you try, it hovers right out of reach, and you can't interact with it at all.
Oh, and the cute little jingle is going to follow you around now, on constant loop.
PHASE IV [ xxxx ] So you died.
No big deal. Perhaps you got eaten by a crocodile. Perhaps you fell off a cliff. Perhaps another player stabbed you (that's rude). Either way, you've only lost one life and you have two more so it's nothing. After all, this is just a video game, right? It's fine.
Except it's really not fine.
You'll find yourself in a graveyard, tombstones all around you (maybe one of them has your name on it -- hope the epitaph doesn't suck). It's nighttime, it's foggy, and you're with the other players who have also lost a life. For a while, nothing will happen. The cold and quiet of the night will start to seep into your bones -- and then a figure appears. It can't be killed, it is silent and grim, and it does not speak.
Instead, it approaches each person there, reaches out and touches them on the forehead. Even you. All you can see for a long moment is corpses around you, the dead faces of everyone who had been with you in the ViViD level, flesh rotting away and faces caught in expressions of horror --
And then you're all dropped back into the camp ground together again. It's sunny and cheery and everything is fine, and you're down to two lives. Just, you know... don't lose the rest, okay?
BONUS [ xxxx ] You have a butler now, congratulations! He's following you around everywhere. He's an NPC, and not a very well-made one; sometimes his face glitches out, and he doesn't so much walk behind you as just… appears right next to you. He's handy though because if you ask him to, he'll pull up the start menu. You can sort out your inventory there and exit the game if you wish (except no matter how many times you press the "quit" button, you... can't).
Sometimes, though, that doesn't work out so well. Not the start menu but the butler himself. He might appear next to you on a narrow cliff face, knocking you right off the edge, or appear right on top of a hornet's nest, making them angry enough to go after, well, you. Maybe he accidentally summons a bear when all you were trying to do was ask him where the next dungeon is. That's unfortunate.
You can't seem to get rid of him either, no matter what you do. How annoying. Hopefully he doesn't cause you too much trouble because that bear... well, that bear's pretty angry.
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steeples fingers
pale eyes blink once, then lift, and-- ] M-Mikazuki-san! [ he rolls to his side, coughing, then staggers to his feet, before abruptly flinging himself at the spirit, wrapping dirty arms around him in a fierce hug. ] I! I can't believe you're back!
puts hand on your hand
Ah, it's you! H-Hold on, I - [ Wiggling around a little, Mikazuki's arms settle around the Saniwa. While he's always happy to see his favorite person, he is a little confused about what he means but probably won't question it just yet. ] Aruji-sama, what happened just now? You fell from the sky? Aha, I guess you could say you came from Heaven..! [ he's worried though, don't be fooled ] You didn't hurt yourself, did you?
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he hesitates, then shakes his head. ] I'm okay. [ basically, more or less. he still has a cold that's been lingering (and getting slowly worse), and he sprained his ankle during all the flooding, but-- honestly, he's been worse.
he slowly releases mikazuki, obviously reluctant--a little nervous that he'll disappear, maybe--and takes a moment to dust the worst of the dust off of himself. ]
Um. S-Sorry, I just.. [ he glances back up, something a little embarrassed in his usually-solemn features. ] I'm just.. really glad you're okay.
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[ There's a brief little pause as he contemplates something but without much warning, Mikazuki is soon tilting and inspecting what he can of Haru before ultimately releasing him. ] It seems like you should rest for awhile, we can talk if you'd like or I can always carry you and we can talk that way, haha. [ He'd do it too. ]
The choice is yours, Aruji-sama but I'd prefer not to put you in any sort of danger. [ Swords are made to protect their masters, after all. ]
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.. ah.. no, mikazuki-san... still, he lets the spirit examine him without protest, even as his ears go a little red. the blush only spreads as mikazuki speaks up again, his hands flapping in alarmed dismissal. ]
No, no, I can walk! [ please don't carry him! that was embarrassing enough when dotanuki did it.. ] I-- I'm perfectly safe here. It's a camp, right? No one's going to bother us here.
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but if you do feel like you're about to faint, please do try to fall into my arms. [ sparkle sparkle ] We can't have you landing on the ground in such a fashion again, can we?
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I--! I'm not going to faint, Mikazuki-san. I'm not fragile.. [ he's small, maybe, but he's pretty sturdy! he finally settles, offering a cautious glance back up. ] .. I'm really glad I left your side of the room like you left it, now.
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Ah, so you did... [ This next part is a little tricky. While Mikazuki is happy to hear that the Saniwa had a room for him, a room they shared by the sounds of it, he can't recall or pretend to know why. The last thing he wants to do is upset Haru but, he can't very well lie to him. ] Aruji-sama you'll have to forgive me but I don't necessarily...remember anything that you're referring to.
[ He remembers the citadel, the other sword spirits, the Saniwa, but beyond that? This is all new to him. Had he been reforged and didn't realize it? It's all a little confusing but he hope that Haru can understand. ]
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[ he straightens again as mikazuki continues, pale eyes a little wide and startled. he doesn't remember being here? that's.. well, alarming. but in the end, he supposes what really matters is that he's here, and he seems fine other than the memory thing. ]
That's.. [ he hesitates, then reaches up, gently pushing a few strands of hair back behind the spirit's ear. ] That's okay. I'll tell you about the things you don't remember. And you'll meet everyone you knew again soon enough.
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Yours however, is a relief to see. [ The smile he offers is much softer than his earlier teasing ones. ] Though it would be better if you didn't look so ill. [ Carefully and delicately, Mikazuki sets both palms on either side of the Saniwa's face, feeling the heat from both his sickness and probably his flushing. ] It wouldn't do any of us spirits well if something happened to you, Aruji-sama.
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the blush is definitely not abating, especially with comments like that and mikazuki's hands on his face. ]
It's-- It's just a cold. I'll be okay. I just need time and some more medicine. [ he curls his hands around the spirit's, leaning up a little to bump their brows together fondly. ] Don't worry, okay?
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[ Mikazuki may be a little stubborn about this but the Saniwa is important to him in so many ways. He wants to protect and take care of his master to the best of his ability and if that means playing doctor and nursing him back to health, then he's very well capable of doing just that. ]