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⬣//SPREAD, CONTAMINATE, ERADICATE
You've had a chance to adapt to your new circumstances and make peace with what your life has become… hopefully. If you haven't, don't expect life to get any easier.
A few things have changed in recent days. Healing no longer works as effectively as it did in the past. If you're in the habit of behaving recklessly, don't expect one of Fragment's few healers to pick up the slack. Broken bones will now remain broken no matter how many healing spells are cast on your shattered limbs. Damage to organs can't be repaired with the wave of a wand.
What's more, HP and SP restoring items have gotten harder and harder to come by. Potions are no longer available for purchase at generic NPC shops and gatherable items needed for crafting have become fewer and fewer in number, limiting your item making options. If you've gotten into the bad habit of injuring yourself heedless of the consequences, it's time to rethink your lifestyle. Playtime is over.
Think of the three core memories that have formed and shaped the person you are today. Some will think back fondly on family and friends while others have been jaded by the ill treatment they've received from important figures in their lives. In any case, it's of little concern to you now. One of those three precious memories has vacated your mind, taking with it a vital piece of you that you can no longer get back.
You may choose one of the three key memories listed on your application to be taken away from your character. Choices are limited to the memories supplied in your application and additional memories submitted for the previous memshare event or not eligible for convenient plot-induced memory loss. Choose wisely, because you aren't getting it back.
And Sky Fish, and Disco Knives, and Evil Armors…
Has anyone noticed the monsters around town lately? Which town, you may ask? The answer is all of them.
Monsters have invaded Root Towns in large waves, attacking anything and everything in sight. Any lovingly crafted signs or other furnishings you've erected around town are easily torn to shreds and destroyed by the monsters who have come to roost in your once safe Root Towns. On the plus side, PvE and PvP has now been enabled in all Root Towns, which is excellent news for those who wish to combat the monster invasion and those who can't seem to help hurting themselves and others.
These monsters range in level from 50 to 75, and while many of them can be defeated with a bit of ingenuity and teamwork, some of them boast impenetrable shields that no regular attacks or spells can break through. They are also immune to status/potion/armor effects.
When in doubt, turn to your fellow players for support. There may be some among you who know how to deal with these impossibly strong monsters, but there's no guarantee that they'll want to help you.
A lilting, boyish voice sings to you in your sleep. His voice sounds familiar to you, tickling your heart like a call from an old friend, but this is no friend of yours.
"You had every chance to abandon this world and return to your own. What stopped you? Was it ego? Hubris? In any case, it's too late for regrets now.
They say the world is what you make of it. Doesn't the same hold true for reality?"
The voice will periodically visit you and your sleep, but the moral of his message never changes: you did this to yourself. You were trapped here because you chose to look the other way. If anyone is to blame for the current situation, it's you and you alone, but there is a̸̬̲͔̘͈͚̠̫̘̬̗̖̋͑̉̓̿͛̈́̋͐̃̾̈̕̕ͅń̵̩̱̠̫̖̬̲̻͉̝̈́̀̀̚͜͜o̴͍͎̣͔̤̝̲͍̺̿̒t̴̨͚͓͍̜̮̥͊͑̿̈́̉̂̐͜͠͝h̷̨̨̦͕͖̙̞͙̗̗͎̬͛̂̾̋̅͜͜͝ȩ̸͎̭̙̜̯͎̯̳̮̘̲͒ȑ̸̡̧̢͓̠̦͙͇͍͎̭͑̈́̓̿̓̅̑̅̌͑̈́̕͝͝ ̴̧̼͕̟̬̰̞̮̗͔͈̬̙͍̈́̀w̵̗̖̩̘͇͖̲̩̫̣̗̙̲̌͜a̷̛͎͋͑̃͛̆̈̋̑̋͠y̴̡̬͕͈̗̫̯̟̯͊͐̌̀̐͑͘͝͝.
Another h̶̦̘̤̘͐͑̿̂̏̎͋͝o̴̧͖͚̖̜͓͂̏́͒̑̈́͝͝p̶̡͙̏̉̿̎̀̑́̈̆͌̉e̷̡̡̦̣̯̘̺͍̟̰͍̤͛̀́̚͝͠. Will you heed that voice and call to it?
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Admin Hien? I didn't expect to see you here.
[ And with a new skin it looks like! ]
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Hien, meanwhile, is at an empty shelf, putting a book there. The first book of the empty shelf... ]
Oh, hello.
[ ... ]
Yeah, I'm not a reading kind of person.
[ Nailed it. ]
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Are you here on admin business?
[ Do admins shelve books? ]
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[ The small book remains there on its lonesome on the shelf with it being the only book so far. ]
It's not administrative work.
[ The tone of his voice doesn't make it sound like he's lying, but he seems a little hesitant on explaining the actual reason why he's here. ]
Were you looking for a specific book? The inventory is paltry compared to most real libraries... I think.
[ He's never been to a real library. ]
Or you can request one too, I suppose.
[ Does Haru have something to offer for that request though-- ]
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I was looking for books on horticulture. I was thinking if I could grow herbs in my garden, we would have a supply at hand for crafting. Since resources are getting scarce.
[ Ah, does that mean... ]
You can fulfill requests?
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... I'll take trades. I heard you have been good at making coffee. I will give you a book of Fragment's botany in exchange for a cup. However, it will take about a day for me to obtain it, so I'll drop it off with the grunty in that cafe guild you're in.
[ He forgot the name. Sorry, Haru. ]
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Oh, yes. I'd be happy to brew a cup for you.
[ Come to think of it, she had wanted to give him her coffee last time she saw him, but Hien was looking awfully overworked and sleep-deprived that the timing didn't feel right.
Haru can't recall exactly why she was working so hard at it, nor why she had felt nervous about sharing her own brew, and her expression wrinkles momentarily, but she shakes her head and snaps out of it. ]
Do you like yours sweet or black?
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[ He holds out a container of hazelnut coffee creamer to Haru. ]
I like it with this. You can keep the container if you'd like.
[ He has more. ]
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Alright. When you stop by the guild tomorrow, I'll have a fresh brew ready. If you have time, stay a while.
[ She doesn't know if he will, but the invitation to have coffee together is there. ]
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[ He can't really set a time for this, because he doesn't know what time it is!! Time is fake!! Not even his admin console has the most basic function of a clock!! ]
I'll wait outside. It seems to be a private guild.
[ Yes, he's head admin. Yes, he can just break into whatever guild he wants. But will he? No. ]
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[ Time is fake! But it's okay, Haru will spend the day around the guild. Between cooking, crafting, and tending to her garden, there's plenty to do. ]
I'll leave you to your work then, Admin Hien. See you tomorrow!
[ A polite bow before she departs. ]
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The next day, Haru will find that the Masked Grunty has a book for her. It has every single detail of the game's gatherable plants that are under the botany profession, giving each a description, a sketch if she needs help visualizing, where to find them, and how they should be cared for in a garden. He also writes in-game recipes that she can use for them, separated by profession levels along with what they could be used as a substitute ingredient for if she decides to cook with them, but also as ingredients themselves for real world food recipes. It's... very thorough.
The book has no written author and has a bland title of "A Guide to Fragment's Botany Profession". Hope she enjoys it! I wasn't sure if you wanted to handwave the coffee thing, but if you do, we can say that he did drop by later for the coffee. ]
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