DIA LIKELY TO SOON HIRE HUMANS FOR HIGHER ROLES IN FIRST FOR DPF

By: Porter

This just in from the Dimension Investigation Agency: Humans are likely going to be accepted into higher roles at the agency.

This is according to an official announcement that was teased by DIA chief detective last Monday during a press conference. The chief touted overall low crime in the dream world, but also addressed ongoing rumors being leaked from the agency to the press. One of these rumors was an order involving human-beings potentially seeking higher employment in the DIA.

“Yes, we’ve been made aware that this rumor began circulating to the press last week and I’m here to set the record straight with everyone since it’s been the talk of the town it seems like,” the chief said, “There’s been some thinking here at the DIA on how to modernize the branch and some of this collective thought has put our human friends into the equation.”

Chief Sylveran explained that in order to transform the DIA into a 21st century model for other branches to follow, it includes having to make some never-before-seen changes that the DPF overall have not considered or prohibited.

“We have considered that if we were to allow humans to seek employment at higher positions at the DIA, it would mark a significant shift towards modernization not just at the DIA but at the DPF in general,” the chief detective explained, “So, letting humans become fellow DIA detective agents is on the table that we’ll be exploring in the coming weeks.”

The Dimension Protection Force has long prohibited the employment of human-beings into “high-risk” positions at the agency citing the risks and dangers it could pose to humans who are powerless and mortal. Unlike dream world residents who are able to better defend themselves, the DPF believes it would rather protect human-beings than put them in harm’s way but will employ them at lower level positions that do not involve field work.

However, the DIA is seeking to change this.

“There is no rule that stops me from changing this very old and outdated policy and let our human friends join our incredible agency,” chief Sylveran told the press, “To modernize our agency, we are also seeking to be more inclusive by providing equal opportunities to everyone and making the DIA a little more diverse. In this case, having human-beings be given this opportunity to become detectives.”

The chief later explained that nothing is official yet, but it is “strongly” being considered.

“None of this is set in stone as of yet but we hope that if it comes into fruition, our human friends will sign up and help us in reducing crime across the dream world,” the chief said, “I’ll be speaking with DPF Director Ferekides on this initiative and see where it goes from here. Stay tuned.”

This is a developing story. For the latest information as it happens, stick with the Subliminal Tribune.

DFPS CONTINUES TO PROVIDE GUIDED TOURS

By: Oswald

As the middle of the month approaches, the Dimension Forest and Parks Service is continuing to provide guided tours of the wilderness and Backrooms.

The agency provided a statement recently that as summer begins to slowly come to an end, the DFPS remains busy with guided tours. However, the agency acknowledges that the amount of overall tours are steadily declining from a peak during the last week of July.

“We had a lot of people who have been interested in taking tours over the past month with these tour numbers peaking during the week of July 20,” DFPS chief Ahwi said, “Since the beginning of August, tours have since steadily gone down, but we remain providing tours for anyone interested. It’s not too late.”

Wilderness tours continue to be provided as well as tours of the Backrooms. Since the beginning of August, there has been more interest in Backrooms tours than the wilderness. As summer slowly ends, residents appear to be heading for the indoors than the outdoors.

“Summer is known for outdoors and vacationing but the season is also slowly coming to an end soon and people may not be wanting to venture to the outdoors as much as they did during the beginning of summer,” chief Ahwi explained, “Because of this, visitors are likely preferring to take the indoors portion of the Backrooms tour.”

The Backrooms have seen an increase in foot traffic during all of July. Interest in visiting the dimension persists going into August but the DFPS states that they’ll likely continue providing tours of the Backrooms even after the summer season ends.

“We provide guided tours year-round, but they’re most popular during the summer,” the DFPS chief said, “However, since the backrooms are located indoors, we think that public interest will continue even into autumn. We may just continue to promote the Backrooms and see where it goes.”

The agency says that no major incidents have been reported in the Backrooms thus far and reminds visitors to follow all directional and informational signs to stay safe.

“It seems like people are obeying all signs and instructions from our forest rangers when visiting the wilderness and Backrooms,” chief Ahwi stated, “That’s pretty good. As long as people keep doing that, I think this will be a pretty great tour season overall. Consider booking yourself a tour if you haven’t yet!”

To book a tour or for more information, please visit the DFPS website or your local DFPS tour booth.

Q/A: Ask the creator

Dear Adri, what do the locals think of Biz Mart in the story?

By: Lowe Callie

Hello there Lowe! I know a lot of us are aware that Biz Mart (or Bizzy Mart if you want to refer it to its “new” name) is located along Highway 1 in northeastern Minnesota in a rather rural and secluded place. Seeing this convenience store in the middle of nowhere might strike curiosity for anyone driving by, but in the story, how exactly do the locals think about it and what do they say? Well…

Biz Mart in the story is actually infamously known by the locals who often tell others to avoid the store if they can. I’m sure you’ve heard that people have reported that the area around the store is spooky. Reports of cryptid-like monsters, strange lights, odd noises, and others experiencing hallucinations or even nausea. The area itself is indeed bizarre, but it does spook a lot of the local people. You might be told to never stop for gas at a convenience store in the middle of nowhere on the Voyageur Highway because of the weird things they may have heard about or even experienced firsthand. “Just keep driving” they say, but some have no other choice but to stop since it's the nearest place to fill up your tank, use the restroom, or get a bite or drink…

The store itself is also a subject of discussion. Believe it or not, Biz Mart has mostly negative reviews! These reviews range from the spooky occurrences, but they also are attributed to the store itself, how it’s run, and what it has to offer. Sid seems to run a tight ship and is a bit “extra” in how he polices the store by telling people not to touch certain items, avoid certain spots or telling them to not play around. The items in the store are also questionable as some items are straight up expired, rancid, or just not appetizing. Also, there’s some spills that haven’t been attended to and the men’s bathroom is seemingly always out of service. I mean, it sounds like this place deserves 0 stars!

Even so, it’s run and maintained this way for a reason. Biz Mart is a hotspot for a cluster of vortices that lead straight to the dream world. Running a convinience store this way is a tactic to deter people from stopping by and potentially becoming the next victim of the “Anamolous Vortex Zone.” Sid will seem like a rude worker, but all of this is to prevent people from going missing. Unfortunately, it hasn’t always worked and some local residents have gone missing as a result. The sheriff’s office has made a few stops but haven’t suspected or seen much. It doesn’t seem like Biz Mart is in the eye of local law enforcement, but perhaps it’s gotten the eye of other particular people? What a bizarre business!

Dear Adri, just to be clear, are Sid and Lucid different people or are they the same?

By: Ceein Dubble

Hi Ceein! I’ve heard this question many times now, but I understand why I still get it. Since the beginning of the game and even when you spawn into it, you’re greeted by Biz Mart and then you’re greeted by Sid: the cashier working the night shift at the store. Sid appears normal but it feels like he’s hiding something more. The more you explore the store and eventually the dream world, you start to realize that Sid is hiding something…

So, are Sid and Lucid the same person or different people? The two of them seem to share some similarities such as both of them wearing face masks, same hair style, skin color and height. They’re also different as Lucid is known to not use contractions when he speaks, but Sid uses them freely. Lucid also has gray eyes and black hair, but Sid has black eyes and white hair. Lucid lives in the dream world while Sid seemingly resides in the real world. It feels like these two aren’t even the same person, but surprise! Yes, Sid and Lucid are the same person. Sid is simply Lucid’s human persona residing in the real world to escape persecution in the dream world while also guarding the largest vortex to the dream world in the real world.

It’s not explicitly stated in the game that they’re the same person as you kind of have to connect the dots. Lucid, as Sid, does have some personal touches around the store that still allude to the fact that they’re both the same person. Sid is often seen reading at the cash register and has a collection of books in his office which circles back to Lucid’s own love of books and literature. Sid’s office has a lot of black and white to it which circles back to Lucid’s own curse of seeing the dream world in black and white. The number six can be seen a few times too since it’s Lucid’s favorite number such as the number of taped boxes, the number of fridges, the number of gas pumps, parking spaces, and more! Lucid’s appreciation for Nate can also be seen. Ever wondered why the store’s official color seems to be red? Well, Lucid may or may not have gotten inspiration from Nate for that (he did)!

Lucid/Sid has given a lot of his own touches to the store over the years since  1966. You won’t find Lucid in the dream world if you see Sid at Biz Mart. Likewise, you won’t see Sid at Biz Mart if Lucid is in the dream world. Lucid doesn’t have any siblings so Sid is not his brother either. Lucid and Sid are one in the same and both real even if “Sid” is just a faux persona Lucid puts on to fit into the real world. I guess you can say that Lucid doesn’t fit in the dream world right now as a criminal, similarly to how he doesn’t truly fit in the real world as a faux human either. Geez, Lucid has it tough. I sure hope he finds redemption one of these days!