⬣//GROWING WILDLY OUT OF CONTROL.

[cccorp]

>>Gathering // >>Waiting // >>Can't Return // >>It's Real

⬣//STERILE WHITE WALLS

September 23rd—conference day. In the hours preceding the meeting, beta testers are supplied with information on how to access the virtual conference room and offered a set of conduct guidelines. Testers are urged to read them thoroughly and instructed to sign their name on the bottom of the page to confirm that they’ve read and understand the following guidelines:

1. All questions will be addressed. Do not interrupt speakers or other beta testers when they are asking questions or having their questions answered.

2. Conduct yourself professionally and appropriately. Do not curse, shout, or otherwise engage in disruptive behavior. Violators will be muted and their speaking privileges revoked.

3. No eating or drinking. Keep your virtual space clean and free of debris.

4. Remain seated. Excessive movement or inappropriate behavior will result in restriction of your avatar’s movements.

5. PvP is disabled in the conference room. Weapons cannot be drawn and your Fragment inventory is unavailable during the duration of the conference.

Players are generously allowed one hour to filter in and find their seats, review the guidelines, and discuss the questions they’ve prepared with their fellow beta testers.

⬣//THE LOW RUMBLE OF DISTANT THUNDER

One hour comes and goes. The room remains occupied only by the beta participants, CyberConnect Corporation’s flashy logo spinning idly on the conference room’s 80 inch display. Restlessness begins to settle in, idle chatter turning to frustration as one hour becomes two. Still, no one from the Corporation shows.

The conference room remains devoid of purpose, some forty-odd people sitting alone in a sterile conference room, a locked room, should anyone grow so restless they try to leave. Any attempts made to break doors and windows will fail.

The door is locked, as are the windows, the world beyond their stark white blinds a slurry of purple and black. Thunder crackles in that dark, endless void. Even if you could leave, where would you go?

⬣//TORRENTIAL RAINS

It’s painfully evident after three hours of silence that no one from CyberConnect is showing up to the conference, but you knew that already, didn’t you? This mandatory meeting was fishy from the start, some would argue, while others may yet hold out hope.

That ends the instant anyone tries to log out and leave. Everyone who attempts to leave will be met with the same error Shoka was some weeks ago, but this time, the error is permanent. This time, there is no connection between mind and body anymore, and any attempt to “reach” your real self will fail.

You feel no one on the other end. You no longer feel the weight of your headset on your head or the keyboard beneath your fingertips. All your worldly aches and pains have drifted away only to find you here in your new reality, every sensation so real that Fragment no longer feels like just a game. Fragment is reality.

Three hours pass from the start of the conference. The boring white walls and rickety office chairs shudder and shake and give way to the Mac Anu everyone knows. You’re back where you started, more or less. What you do from here is up to you.

⬣//LOST TO THE TUMULT AND BEDLAM

Some menus remain online. Players retain the ability to send and receive friend and party requests, access their inventories, spells, and weapons, and so on, but a few notable items are missing.

Players can no longer toggle their pain sensors on and off. Every blow you take is one you’re forced to suffer through, and what’s more, your health no longer automatically regenerates when idle. You’d better keep a stash of potions or a pocket healer handy.

While you’re at it, try not to die. The sharp-eyed among the group may notice that the respawn information nestled in the menus is no longer accessible to them. The respawn counter now reads as a series of zeros instead of the typical 20 minutes. Now is probably not the best time to continue testing Fragment’s death mechanics, but nothing’s stopping you from trying. No one’s going to save you, either.

Good luck, players. The real test has begun.

>>Navigation

Comments

3

[rebelles]

[ Since that nightmarish conference, Haru's been trying to take things one day at a time. Sitting around doing nothing only added to the dread, so she keeps herself busy. Brewing coffee, organizing equipment, browsing old logs on the network for signs that she might have missed. She's out for a walk when she runs into Sinclair. ]

Vogel? What are you doing?

[insinning]

Ah. Noir.

[Sinclair startles from the gate]

...I was trying to decide what dungeon to go to next.

[rebelles]

By yourself?

[ Her expression creases with worry. Many run dungeons solo, and it wouldn't have been usual before the conference, but now... ]

[insinning]

[ Ah, caught out]

Yeah, I didn't want to trouble anyone.

[rebelles]

It's dangerous to go alone. You can always call on me if you need a partner, it's no trouble.

[ But she gets feeling stressed, she's been stressed herself. ]

[insinning]

Mm... you're right.

[He hesitates but smiles. Haru is a good friend]

Shall we try another dungeon then?

[rebelles]

[ Haru gives him a smile back, nodding. ]

A battle might just be what I need to de-stress. [ For her at least, beating up monsters takes the mind off things. ] But let's be sure to go in prepared.

[insinning]

Right. More potions is important.

[Gotta go hard on them if they want to vent]

[rebelles]

[ Exactly! ]

Why don't we stop by the shop first? [ She suggests, beckoning him away from the Chaos Gate. ] We can also see if others are around to join us.

[insinning]

That's a good idea.

[Another dungeon run will make him happy and it's not like he's against working with people. Back to the shops then]

[rebelles]

[ Off to the shops they go! No need to rush things. It also gives her time to catch up with Vogel since everything happened. ]

How have you been?

[insinning]

Like everyone else, I think. Trying to keep busy so I don't think too hard on things but...

[It's difficult. ]

You?

[rebelles]

We can only keep going. [ A solemn nod. ] Do you have anyone looking out for you back home?

[ She's sure her father's discovered her body by now, but he said he'd lost his family. ]

[insinning]

My co-workers.

[ Isn't it funny that's all he has now? ]

I live in a work-based complex.

[rebelles]

It's good you aren't alone.

[ Gotta look on the bright side where they can. ]

Although we're trapped here, at least it's together.

[insinning]

[He smiles and nods, taking a little refuge in that. That was the terrible thing, wasn't it?]

...yeah. We're not alone in this.

[rebelles]

[ Speaking of which... ]

I was thinking of getting the guild together. Times like these, we can do a lot more as a team.

[insinning]

Mmm, I agree. A lot of things like crafting take too much time on our own. If we came together to gather and make supplies for everyone, we'd be better off.

[And he feels at a loss of where to proceed. But more importantly:]

Of course, I'd be following your lead, Leader Noir.

[rebelles]

[ Leader Noir! She suddenly feels the weight of responsibility, but also determination. ]

I'll do my best! [ Haru wants to carry on what Arsene started. ] We can start by organizing what we have and getting to know everyone's professions. Then we can make dungeon runs for the most important materials.

[insinning]

[Be strong, Haru! Sinclair will be here for support]

I'm level four for most professions now so I'd be happy to tag along to help pick up materials from different areas when you need me to. If we can get our cooking levels up, this will help balance out the lack of healers, I think.

[rebelles]

That's great. I feel better knowing we have someone with high crafting levels.

[ Hers is still level 1 because the mun is bad at inventory management, but! It's reassuring to have Sinclair's support. ]

If anyone's underleveled, we should help them get up to speed, too.

[insinning]

[ He'll get all the supplies! No problems]

Yeah, it shouldn't take too long. But it's more doable with the supplies. What do you want us to stockpile first?

[rebelles]

Healing potions will be important.

[ Since the guild lacks healers, RIP. ]

We should also gather ingredients to cook with. Maybe we can make everyone's favorite dishes.

[ Buffs are important and all, but so is a taste of home. ]

[insinning]

Mm, you make a good point. I've been doing endless surf and turfs but I think people will be sick of that pretty soon.

[They'll stockpile all the ingredients and supplies nbd]

[rebelles]

I know we can't afford to be too picky about what we eat, but I think it would make Fragment feel a little more like home.

[ And less like a miserable game of survival...even though that's essentially the game they're in now. ]