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⬣//BLOSSOMING FROM A GAP IN THE ASPHALT.
A new Root Town has been revealed: Naval Monte, a tiered city built upon a mountain jutting up from an endless expanse of ocean. These fortified walls house an innumerable number of NPCs who, unlike those which occupy other Root Towns, are quite a bit more advanced.
Those of you who spend entirely too much time logged in have no doubt noticed the set patterns the NPCs of Mac Anu and Lumina Cloth take to move from area to area. Their paths never change. Their dialog rarely diverges. Talking to a freshly painted wall would be more stimulating than conversing with your run of the mill NPC, but Naval Monte's are different.
They move in accordance with their own whims, seldom found in the same place twice. Some NPCs have entire families while others boast elaborate backstories and speak at length of their tales of bravery and triumphs over evil. While they won't accept your party invites, they may instead invite you to share a meal with their family and regale you with stories until you've had your fill.
Travel far enough into the depths of the city and you'll hear tales of a graveyard that sits within the core of the mountain, but the NPCs who guard this elusive site are defensive at best. Don't expect them to let you in, but given their advanced nature, you may be able to wheedle some valuable information out of them.
Be aware that there is a price to enter Naval Monte. After crossing the vast bridge leading right up to the mountain city, you'll be accosted by no less than a dozen eager vendors fighting to peddle their wares to you. Some are so desperate that they ask only for a single GP, and in exchange, they grant you passage to the city.
Ask them why they're so desperate to make a sale and they'll answer plainly: if you don't, the curse will persist.
Come Saturday morning, an email flagged as urgent pops up in your inbox.
To our beta team,
It has come to our attention that a number of our beta testers have failed to report previous underlying health conditions that may negatively impact their ability to perform their duties as intended.
In our ongoing efforts to monitor the health and safety of our beta testing team, all participants in Fragment's closed beta test will be required to complete a health screening before the date of September 16th in order to continue participating in the beta.
Beta participants will be matched with a health professional in their area and the fees for their screening and assessment waived. As such, it is necessary that you make an appointment with the medical professional assigned to you or select another from within our network.
No exceptions will be made for those who fail to submit their health assessments to CyberConnect's Health and Human Resources department. Termination from Fragment's beta testing program and applicable legal action will be taken in the event that you fail to participate in these necessary steps.
We take the health and safety of our beta testers very seriously. If you have any concerns, please contact us at cccorp.ccmail.com.
Thank you for your continued efforts,
CyberConnect Corporation of Japan.
Murmurs of an unusual NPC have begun to circulate within Naval Monte.
According to eye witnesses, one of the local residents has "gone rogue". According to them, a woman with dishwater eyes and hair messily pulled into a loose bun has been spotted going door to door begging to be let in.
"We need to go," she shouts, her eyes glossy with tears, her every word slurred. "We'll be safe there! We'll be free! We can't live like this anymore!"
From what you've heard, that woman has managed to break free from the confines of her native Root Town and has been seen running through the streets in Mac Anu, Lumina Cloth, and the nameless Root Town in the sky. You may have even come across her, accosted in the street and urged to listen to her increasingly erratic ramblings.
"I need you to take me there! Take me to him! His father left the key within him!"
Ultimately, nothing you say or do will influence the woman's behavior or calm her down. All you'll get for your troubles is an ill feeling in the pit of your gut, something that blooms from within you and spreads infinitely outwards. An infection you can't cure.
You won't realize that the infection has begun to spread and mutate until you see it blossoming all around you, your fellow testers complaining of an unidentifiable malaise. You'll know what afflicts you and everyone you've infected when it's far too late to do anything about it. Until this unfortunate "bug" is patched, you'll continue to get sicker and sicker. The progression of the illness is as follows:
Stage one: The complete inability to lie, but is that really a bad thing? We could all stand to be more honest and communicative.
Stage two: The loss of one of your key senses, but only one. Maybe it's your sense of smell. Your keen tongue. Your vision. Whatever it is, it's a vital part of you that won't return to you until you log off, but when you next log in, you may find that a different sense has gone missing instead.
Stage three: Disconnect from your real world body. You'll realize after several days have passed that you can no longer feel your real self as keenly as before. You may not realize you've slapped yourself in the face or knocked a tooth out on the edge of your desk until you log out for the day and witness the extent of the damage.
Final stage: Memory loss. Your head feels foggy. Concentrating becomes a struggle, your thoughts sluggishly crawling through your mind and and ultimately losing their way. In the final stages of the illness, you may forget to log out for days at a time and wake to find yourself passed out on the floor with your headset jostled loose, inadvertently freeing you from the game.
The "cure," aside from a timely patch, may hide somewhere within the game. Before your senses leave you, you'd better start asking around.
As many of you know, it isn't easy to get ahold of CyberConnect when you need them. Hien is, at best, completely useless. Pete isn't much better. It's for these reasons and more that players have been invited to a digital conference and encouraged to give a voice to the rising concerns within the beta testing community.
The conference is to be held, both ICly and OOCly, on September 23rd at 12PM EST. If you have any burning questions to ask the people who hold power and influence over the state of the game and what happens within it, you can't afford to complain about timezones. This is your opportunity to speak your mind and have those questions answered.
OOCly, the conference will begin on September 23rd at 12PM EST and end on October 7th at 12PM EST. During this time, your characters can ask whatever questions they'd like of CyberConnect corporate staff, bring up concerns, and provide insights on their beta testing experiences.
Participation is mandatory (ICly), so set your alarms and don't be late!
Hello, everyone! Sorry I was away for a while. I got stuck in an outer level of the game and it took me a week to get back, but I should be just fine now! I hope I didn't miss anything too serious...
I did see that all of you have worked hard on those recipes, though! I liked all of them so much that I've added each of them into the game so that everyone can make their own. Congratulations!
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[ Tylor tosses him a confident look, without breaking pace. Although at the first note of that distressed lady's voice far in the distance, Tylor turns sharply to the left. The opposite direction of that mess.
He seems aimless as he walks along, stopping beside an NPC. Predictably, one with a pretty face. Time to charm themselves into a meal. ]
Why hello there, how is your day going?
[ Tylor asks eventually, after a glance.
I figure we can both do what we like with the NPCs? So, this one glances from Tylor to Oria with a shy smile, not put off at all even in her initial delayed response. ]
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We couldn't help but to notice you in the crowd. You look very approachable. See, we're a couple of visitors to Naval Monte...
[ Ugh. Flirting is so hard when he can't lie...... ]
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Tylor's gaze remains on the NPC, save for the glance he gives Oria. He winks when she turns her attention to Oria instead. Someone is clearly more her type, says the way her smile shifts.
A soft, Oh, before she launches into pleasantries and thr beginning of her own story. A single mother, older brothers, and a home waiting for her once she has begged for enough money. Soft spoken as one would guess from her demeanor, she weaves together her life for them as casually and with the same details as a normal human might.
Tylor nods along politely, and he seems to regard her the same as he would any player-- ]
Oh, I see. Well, your mom sounds like a hard working lady. Does she get dinner ready all on her own?
[ She only glances to Tylor to nod affirmation. Her gaze is shy when it looks to Oria and drops to the ground with a little flush.
When she isnt looking, Tylor gives his wingman a thumbs up. ]
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We would like to get to know more of the natives here. So if it isn't much trouble, could we join for dinner?
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They eventually arrive at the house. It could be better, but it's what a poor family can afford. The kitchen table can surprisingly fit two more people around it, though one of them will have to use a box as a seat. Oria doesn't mind using that one. ]
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Finding his seat, he looks to Oria with a little laugh. When the NPC has them settled, she ducks into what is probably the kitchen, judging by the pleasant smells wafting from it.
Tylor leans over comically far to whisper-- ] Isn't this fun?
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[ Oria feels the warm family atmosphere, which is honestly something he's familiar with, but to even see it in the game amongst npcs, they feel more real. ]
I feel like I'm visiting someone's house for real...
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[ Tylor says it happily, waving to one of the older brothers? Probably, so he smiles and greets them when they pointedly sit on the other side of Oria. The original NPC frowns when she reenters the room. They share a look and Tylor is oblivious as he gets chatty with the brother.
Of course this leads to a story about his heroism, predictably, as the food is set out before them. It smells as good as the kitchen did. ]
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Tylor... is quite a person. Oria gestures to the girl that she can sit next to him instead. When the food is laid out, Oria doesn't do the usual inhaling. Instead, he has manners that he displays in the game for once: he waits for everyone to be seated, eats neatly, makes sure not to talk with his mouth full, and more. He also reiterates parts of the story back to the speaker to show that he's been paying attention and that he's generally nice company to be around. ]
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Tylor has manners too, though some that have met him might be surprised by it. Somehow he's still himself, even while making it look effortless to chat around the table as the meal goes on. He's learned how to make them laugh by the middle of their meal, pulling Oria into the conversation with the flow, and back out again if he seems to want that.
By dessert, he's a family friend. The whole experience is setting Tylor where he natural thrives. Genuine enjoyment of being entertaining around people, even if they're NPCs. Without any put upon airs, he smiles brightly and offers the family 500GP to help them out. The initial shock makes it unclear if they will really accept it or not. ]
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Honestly, he can't help but be at awe. ]
Please, accept it as a token sign of our gratitude. The dinner was delicious and all of you are excellent company.
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Really, it's nothing! Thank you --for the meal--and hospitality, ow.
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Thanks again! Let's go, Tylor.
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Eventually though, he escapes. ]
Oh, alright. See you all around!
[ Joining Oria with a few bounding steps, he waves and smiles back at their hosts.
Still, outside he heaves a big sigh like his lungs have to remember how to fill completely again. A little breathy, he laughs and turns to Oria back out on the street-- ]
See? Fun, right?
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[ He sounds a little surprised by this, because he really didn't expect it to be that much fun? Wow. Everything he said was the truth too, so he clearly enjoyed his time there. ]
But I feel like I might get weird looks if I keep barging into people's houses. This won't be like any other video game where the residents just ignore you when you look through their trash cans for rare items.
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But have you really been barging into people's homes? Did you find anything interesting?
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[ Pokemon, especially. ]