⬣//SPREAD, CONTAMINATE, ERADICATE

[cccorp]

>>Famine // >>Death // >>War // >>Conquest

⬣//AN ILL OMEN

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.

⬣//PAY IT NO MIND

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.

⬣//GHOSTS AND GOBLINS

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.

⬣//WHISPERS ON THE WIND

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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Comments

[dissimulative]

[ Oria always had an obvious bias as to what he wanted Sinclair to do, but it wasn't his right to force him onto one track over the other. Sure, he provided assistance, like trying to hire a hit for him and Mithrun, but... well, he supposes that's neither here nor there. ]

You deserve to have make your own choice. It's your life, after all.

And I'll never... let anyone take that from you.

[insinning]

[ This is why Sinclair said no to that hit: It would be a long dark road of justifications for cruelty. Neither Kromer nor the Professor deserved mercy. Neither of them would get mercy. If nothing else, wrath should come at the hands of their victims directly. But Sinclair wouldn't break himself to bring either of them down. Not anymore. He had been broken too many times. ]

That's one of the reasons why I love you.

[ And he keeps falling, again and again. Isn't that ridiculous? He presses a kiss to the top of Oria's head. It feels freeing to say this]

I want that for you too. All of your decisions, chosen because you wanted it.

[ Good or bad, Sinclair would stand with Oria to the very end]

[dissimulative]

[ Oria always makes his own decisions when he can afford to. There are so many things that impacted his life that he didn't get to. He...

...

What... was it...?

Oria doesn't tense up, but he stays still for several seconds before burying his face into Sinclair's collar this time. Never mind the glasses. ]

[insinning]

[Ah. Sinclair blinks, petting Oria's hair still, cradling him close. There's nothing to tip Sinclair off that there's something wrong. But that stillness is different, when Oria normally has something quick to say.]

Oria...?

[dissimulative]

--Sorry. I... was trying to think of something. When you said that you wanted me to have the ability to choose for myself, my mind wandered a little...

[ He'll come back to this if it comes up or if I don't forget. ]

But with all that said, was that what you talked about with Mithrun today? About the revenge plan.

[insinning]

[Hm. That's concerning. But they'll focus on what they can now]

Kind of.

[ He lets out a quiet huff]

I think 'DV'...Lily did something to him. Did you notice how he was acting at the meeting?

[dissimulative]

Yeah, he looked like he just went through the roughest breakup of his life.

[ So, yeah. Unmotivated? That's what Oria thinks Sinclair is talking about. ]

I found it weird, but I didn't really have a place to ask about it when everyone else was talking about everything else. But he was only like that in the beginning. After some time, he was hounding people for info like his usual researcher self. Oh, and that faceoff against Koto, but I just think Mithrun got screwed over on his end of a business arrangement that he overlooked.

[ Oria's used to seeing the latter from others, unfortunately. ]

[insinning]

[ Oria your analogies... not wrong because half of Sinclair's conversations with Mithrun basically read like Mithrun had been Sinclair's spurned lover]

Mm, no it was worse than that. He didn't want to even move on his own. He said... he had no reason to return home.

[Sinclair lets out a little huff here]

...I got a little angry at him for it, since he was the one who had gotten so angry at me before about not wanting revenge. [ But lets not focus on that]

...he doesn't remember any of it. Kromer. Him visiting me. His brother...it was like someone ripped out all his memories that existed only outside the game.

[dissimulative]

[ Oria looks genuinely surprised. ]

Everything outside the game?

[ Oria still remembers his life outside the game, which... eases his mind a little, but he can't tell he forgot something if he, well, never knew he had it in the first place. ]

[insinning]

He seemed to know places like 'Miami'. Facts. But I told him how we all visited him and Cael and his mind went blank. He remembered nothing about wanting to do research, nothing about the professor...then when he was trying to tell me about Lily being Zelkova's brother, that man's son, he started to get sick.

[He exhales slowly. He wont know if this was a mistake until later but:]

...even if he had written things on the forums or his inbox, he didn't know what they were. He asked me what the professor and Kromer meant. I told him.

[dissimulative]

... I thought his brain injury started severely worsening all at once, but then I remember Nanashi saying something similar too, about how he had all those things on the forums but doesn't remember sending them.

[ ... ]

It wasn't a cover up either, because when I met Nanashi in the game before, he acknowledged things he said on the forums. Then he just... forgot all about it...?

[insinning]

Yeah. I was thinking Nanashi's personality had really changed somehow, but I couldn't put my finger on it. Until he said what might have happened to him.

[ Frowning]

Mithrun scared me more though. Even after he had come out of his coma, I had never seen him so...empty. But there were signs of desperation in him too. I tried to get him to hug Ki, but it didn't help. So there must have been something else that happened to him.

1/2

[dissimulative]

But what could it be? The revenge plan was his primary motivator for literally everything in his life. How can he just forget that—

[dissimulative]

[ A...h... Oria thinks he gets it now. It feels like it's falling into place when Sinclair mentioned Ki. There's no obvious plague going around either... ]

Did the game... somehow extract his memories?

[insinning]

...yeah. [Sinclair hugs Oria a little more tightly] A memory plague, I think. One that keeps him from remembering anything outside the game. And one that keeps him from actively talking about anything to do with the voice and CCCorp's founder.

[Dehya had put it in his head that saying Harald Hoerwick's name could be taboo. And after seeing three different people become ill after saying it, he's a little worried what would happen if they all push it]

...it did make me think though, if there's anything I've forgotten.

[dissimulative]

It would have to be big, right? We already talked about your family and Kromer...

[ Oria tries to think. ]

Hm... The school meet? The fancy business parties? That guy you had a big crush on?

[insinning]

No, I definitely remember the food...and how boring those parties were until you were around.

[Wait, hold up]

...what guy? I didn't have any crushes until, well.

[Oria :T]

[dissimulative]

[ Oria would retort by telling Sinclair not to lie out of shyness, except... he knows he's not lying. Sinclair is a terrible liar. Oria would know immediately. ]

There was this really pale guy. Black hair! Blue eyes... I think? He defended you from Kromer when she was being creepy to you at school! And you were like a maiden in love!

[insinning]

[maiden in love? Oria, please. But Sinclair can't focus on that now because his chest aches.]

...no one defended me from Kromer. I was alone. I was alone that whole time.

[But...was he? Sinclair goes very still, as he tries to reach back through those memories. Yeah. That's right. Kromer had hassled him, forced him to join her team and...

Something happened.

Something strange.

What?]

[dissimulative]

[ Oria feels like he's being so gaslit right now. ]

No, you had him. He was your friend—Demian! You were talking about him so fondly too... back at the hall of mirrors.

[insinning]

...Demian?

[Sinclair murmurs softly, testing the name on his tongue. It's not familiar. There's no stirring of warmth, the feelings an old crush should inspire. When he reaches back, he can't place a face or name like that.

...and when he thinks about his conversation with Oria back then, and then afterwards: what had it been? What did he say? Why does everything become so fuzzy? He remembers Oria's memory with clarity, the pain Oria had been hiding all this time. What--]

...Oria. What did I say?

[dissimulative]

Well, it was a memory I saw at the hall of mirrors. You were being badgered by Kromer about pairing with you for a project, but then Demian came in and said that he was already paired with you for it. He had this weird red necklace too... it looked like this?

[ Oria draws the symbol in the air next to then so that Sinclair can see it clearly. ]

... He was everything you wanted to be.

[insinning]

Everything I wanted to be...

[ Sinclair murmurs, his brow furrowing. That necklace...]

I have one like that. At home somewhere. [ But think think] But I don't remember where it came from. Or what I wanted to be back then.

[dissimulative]

It's a pretty unique design. I don't think I've seen it anywhere else.

[ So it definitely sounds personal. ]

You also said that before your project, you never spoke to him, but after he saved you from being paired with Kromer, you talked to him a lot more.

Then your crush got super big.

[insinning]

I don't remember any of that. I did my project solo in the end and I spent most of my time in the library on my own to avoid her.

[ There's this nagging sense of wrongness he can't escape. He can't work it out. He believes Oria is telling the truth. But...how?]

And how are you certain it was a big crush anyway?