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CyberConnect Corporation ([personal profile] cccorp) wrote in [community profile] altimit2023-08-24 02:17 pm
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⬣//A SINGLE CRACK LETS THE LIGHT IN.

//BRAVELY SAILING INTO THE UNKNOWN

As they say, fortune favors the brave. Five lucky players took part in a Limited Quest: The Mysterious Sky Islands, in which they discovered a brand new Root Town. While the team was largely successful in their efforts to make the mysterious floating town in the sky habitable, not everyone embraced the spirit of teamwork on this journey.

When you gate in to this shiny new Root Town, you'll notice something curious: it has no name. Its name simply displays as "???" in every context menu and there is no signage around the Root Town itself that points to its true name— rather, the name it had before they came along.

Whispers on the wind tell of an evil wizard in flowing white robes who ruthlessly boiled the village elder alive. With him died all of this mysterious Root Town's lore and history, and in its place are tales of the monster who robbed this land of its identity. The elemental sprites that populate this village refuse to speak their name, simply wishing you "good luck, have fun!" as you turn to leave.

While on your journey to check out the island, you'll notice how unstable the bridges are. Unstable might be putting it lightly, because for some unlucky souls, crossing the wrong bridge means plummeting to your death. It seems that whoever was put in charge of constructing these bridges didn't give a damn about structural integrity.

The local sprites are pleading with adventurers to assist them in building better, more stable bridges, but bridging the gap between one island and the next is not a job for a single person. If you have enough of a heart to heed the pleas of the sprites, you'll want to work with your fellow players to get the job done. All the wood, nails, and rope you need to construct better bridges has been helpfully supplied to you by the sprites. You could always sabotage the project too, of course, but what kind of person would you be if you did that?

//BUILDING THE FUTURE

The professions system has been added to fragment. Rejoice, busybodies, for there is much furniture to be built and dubious potions brewed.

In celebration of the new crafting & gathering system, a crafts festival is being held in the Unnamed Root Town. Take care not to plummet to your death while traversing those rickety bridges.

Players are encouraged to set up a booth of their own and trade their unique handcrafted items with their fellow adventurers. In addition to being supplied with enough level 1 and level 2 crafting materials to give the crafting system a spin, the local NPCs are running a contest encouraging people to come up with their own for a chance to have their creations canonized as real crafting recipes.

To submit your own recipe ideas, you need only fill out this handy form:

Recipe name:

Recipe category: Alchemist, Carpenter, Chef, or Jeweler?

Which two items does your recipe call for? Choose two items to combine. Only gatherable items (refer to the professions page) can be used.

Effect: What does this item do, if anything?

Description: A brief description of your lovely new product.


Submit your recipe contest submissions here.

//ONE STEP FORWARD, TWO STEPS BACK

Fragment's beta test has seen its fair share of unusual bugs and unintended features, and with the latest update bringing many new changes, it's inevitable that some things have broken behind the scenes.

If two players happen to log in at the same time, they might find their avatars swapped with one another's. Thankfully, this issue doesn't lead to the unpleasant exchange of deep-seated memories or anything of the sort, but getting used to a body that isn't yours takes time. Thankfully, this particular bug resolves itself when both players log out.

The windy town of Unnamed Root Town is generally quite scenic and pleasant, but there's just one issue. It's far, far windier than it should be. If the rickety bridges don't kill you, the gusts that intermittently blow across the sky islands might knock you off your feet if you don't watch your footing carefully. Thankfully, the crafts festival on the southernmost end of the island hasn't been impacted by the severe winds. Among them is one voice that you don't recognize: a voice that promises a death, gruesome and bloody, in the days to come.

To everyone's relief, the carnival and its notorious hall of mirrors has packed up and left Lumina Cloth, but your past hasn't finished haunting you. The foul winds carry whispers of the past along with them, uttering words and phrases uncomfortably familiar to you. They're the voices of your past, the voices of people you've known, loved, and lost. Covering your ears won't keep the voices out of your ears. Nothing will.

Finally, on the more mundane some of things, professions have a few kinks of their own that need to be worked out. Occasionally, a crafted item won't come out quite right, instead resulting in one of the following "items":

Alchemist: Truth Serum. Become unable to lie for 24 hours.

Blacksmith: Whatever you're enhancing transforms into a denim disaster. Introducing your new "body" armor, "leg" armor, "head" armor, and "arm" armor.

Carpenter: Mirror Mirror. Reflects the person you're most afraid of becoming.

Chef: Durian Delight. A succulent durian pudding that reeks so strongly that its stench can be smelled all across the Root Town or Area you're occupying.

Jeweler: Crystal Ball. Breaks after one use but allows you to read another player's thoughts for five minutes.

//WHAT ARE YOU, AN IDIOT SANDWICH?

With crafting in full swing, a certain admin has been lured out of his hidey hole by the smell of delicious chef-prepared meals. Hien is hungry, and you will feed him.

Chefs are not limited by the recipes they know like some professions are, so players are encouraged to think outside of the box and combine unique ingredients to cook up something truly special.

Taste, however, isn't the only important part of a perfect meal. Chefs looking to impress the big man himself are expected to present their culinary delights to him with pomp and finesse. You need to impress Hien if you want to gain more from this venture than the participation prize of a chef skin.

Those who successfully woo Hien with their delectable dishes will be given an additional prize: a little black pomchi pet to accompany their avatar around Root Towns and Special Areas. Hien will be giving these out at his discretion, so you better suck up to the dogboss in charge if you want a pomchi of your very own. If you catch Hien in a good mood, he may even agree to give you a different breed of dog if you ask nicely.

Feed the local Hien here.


//ZELKOVA’S CORNER

Hello, everyone! Can you believe it's been an entire month since our beta test began? Even though we've already been through a lot together, we've still got three months left! I'm rooting for you all!

As of today, the level cap has increased from 25 to 50. That means new armor and weapons will be available to you! Get out there to different Areas and start leveling up! But don't forget to stop every once in a while and enjoy your surroundings, too. Which reminds me—don't forget to check out the new Recreational Areas! We have a beach and hotsprings for you to enjoy now. I hope everyone continues to have fun exploring!

We've also opened up the GP shop, where you can create your own special armor set for a certain price, along with a few other things. Please check it out!

Oh, and don't forget to use these three new greeting cards I've made! Here they are! Make sure you use them so you can connect with your fellow players! We're all friends here, after all.

fluorite: dnt (96)

[personal profile] fluorite 2023-09-06 01:29 am (UTC)(link)
Maybe.

[ An incredibly noncommittal answer that still gives everything away.

Fai stares at what is supposed to be Hector's glass now in his hands, as he slowly swirls the wine around. It's hypnotizing, almost. The fact that Hector is looking decidedly anywhere but Fai is what makes it easier for him to actually say something, vague as it still is. ]


It's difficult, coming to terms with regretting a promise that has already been fulfilled.
trollophoroi: credit: <user name=bloodcrazed> (037;)

[personal profile] trollophoroi 2023-09-06 01:34 am (UTC)(link)
[ People? Fuck 'em. We don't like people here. ]

One day, perhaps. If I publish all my work, free up the patents on my methods, someone else, someday, might be able to take it all and see it through. I know it won't be me, though. I've... hm. Well, claiming that I've made my peace with it would be a lie.

[ But what else can he do? Very little, if nothing at all. ]
tablescraps: (pic#16643693)

[personal profile] tablescraps 2023-09-06 01:38 am (UTC)(link)
( MAKES A FACE......... )

That's—...

( ...

He shakes his head. )


I can't.

( First of all, he has a revenge pact with Sinclair. He's not dipping. Even if he sticks around to help with Kromer, it feels disingenuous to Sinclair.

And... he can't put it into words, but the idea of living a life no longer defined by revenge, no longer filled with his hate of the professor - it feels so painfully, unimaginably empty. It just doesn't feel possible to fill that void. )


... Have you ever thought about the things I did as captain?

( Oria might not know what he did specifically, but Oria's a smart cookie. Mithrun presumes Oria can guess they weren't good things. )
dissimulative: (pic#16653646)

[personal profile] dissimulative 2023-09-06 01:53 am (UTC)(link)
The moment I found out.

[ Yeah, but Oria can make peace with it. They've all done shitty things of various degrees. He's not going to have a dick measuring contest about it. ]

But you're just "Mithrun" here.
userunfriendly: (29)

[personal profile] userunfriendly 2023-09-06 01:53 am (UTC)(link)
[ Michel blinks in mild surprise, as if he hadn't expected Yael to desist just because of his protests. A little of his defensive irritation melts away again as he leans back in turn. ]

I'm positive that's not how you meant it.

[ The little crease forming between his eyebrows is the slightest bit at odds with the confidence of his assertion. It is, perhaps, remotely possible that not every word has barbs behind it. He'll consider it. ]

...Unfortunately, if you're hoping for someone who appreciates muscles, you'd be better off looking elsewhere. I'd be hard-pressed to call you cute.

[ However... he is a little cool. Michel manages to bite his tongue before the rest of that thought slips out, but he loses himself in momentary contemplation of Yael's avatar instead. He'd decided not to go completely overboard on his own, but Yael's sends him back to his envious contemplation of Didier's broad shoulders as a child. ]
tablescraps: (pic#16637723)

[personal profile] tablescraps 2023-09-06 02:14 am (UTC)(link)
... Is it that simple?

( He doesn't feel guilty for anything he's done. He doesn't carry it with him. But other people might - or so he'd have figured. )
ganymed: (my city and number)

[personal profile] ganymed 2023-09-06 02:14 am (UTC)(link)
I wouldn't call myself the most observant person, but...

[ There's a lingering pause. He thinks he's gotten used to watching people more. Still, it isn't exactly a matter of that too much either. ]

Maybe this was something more revealed on reflection, more than wishful thinking.

But, it's not a bad thing.
userunfriendly: (129)

[personal profile] userunfriendly 2023-09-06 02:17 am (UTC)(link)
[ No, he should definitely blush again. Especially when Michel is close enough to appreciate it; especially now that he's at least half convinced that it isn't a fever, or Ganymede feeling unwell. ]

I thought that was how the dance was done.

[ Does his deadpan sense of humor come across somewhat different when his voice sounds like -- whatever that tone was in his voice, just now? He's being ridiculous. It must be the lack of sleep, at least in part. And yet. ]

...Why did you take off today?
ganymed: (now both of us)

[personal profile] ganymed 2023-09-06 02:21 am (UTC)(link)
[ Nyoro~n

He huffs at the bzzt, though he does say: ]


Well, I'll consider that to be a good thing. Something like that has way too much firepower to be handled by most people...in the real world, anyway.

[ Even those who might have something of a passing knowledge of it?? It sounds like definitely 'something used in a military' thing, in retrospect. Which now makes him recall why he heard of it in passing before. He thinks. ]
tablescraps: (pic#16602960)

[personal profile] tablescraps 2023-09-06 02:23 am (UTC)(link)
Do you want to understand what happened to you?

( With the 24 hour coma, and all. )
dissimulative: (pic#16653645)

[personal profile] dissimulative 2023-09-06 02:28 am (UTC)(link)
For me, yeah. I don't have enough room to care about people who I've never known to be affected by your research in devastating ways. Now, if I see it in front of me? I might care. Even apart from all that, it's already done. What's me getting mad gonna do about what you've done? Nothing.

[ Waste of time and resources. ]
weaseled: (33)

[personal profile] weaseled 2023-09-06 02:29 am (UTC)(link)
[He can imagine that Michel's defensiveness has a purpose and a reason. Where it stems from is nothing Yael desires to know — he isn't in the business of psychoanalyzing twinks — but he can relate just enough to give him a pass.

Besides, he truly does find Michel charming. No amount of sass and defensiveness that's sprung up as a result of a shitty upbringing could ever mask an earnest heart, and that's why Michel's every quip and insult rolls right off Yael's back. You'll have to mean what you say when you insult him if you want Yael to take offense, Michel.]


Well well, aren't you honest? No offense taken. We all have our types.

[Another laugh, brief but mirthful. He's been accused of much worse than being a muscle-brained brute, but it may come as some surprise to Michel that Yael's caught on to the way he's caged his tongue. There's a brain hidden somewhere beneath all this muscle.]

Go ahead. Finish your thought.
ganymed: (Tell him)

[personal profile] ganymed 2023-09-06 02:29 am (UTC)(link)
[ ...Ah. He supposes that might be a problem too.

CCorp seems like quite a large entity. Not that it's stopping people from you know building potential cases against them... ]


Because they're a big company?
selfconcept: (pic#15650894)

[personal profile] selfconcept 2023-09-06 02:38 am (UTC)(link)
[ Oh.

He's... being praised? For his work? By a beta tester? His shoulders lower, a sign of relaxing, and smiles a little.
]

Sure thing. Have fun with your pet... I'll come back for ribs later.
userunfriendly: (58)

[personal profile] userunfriendly 2023-09-06 02:55 am (UTC)(link)
[ Winter gives a nod, with some feeling in the emphasis. He's also very relieved that his intention came across. ]

It does. I'm... grateful that you invited me.

[ God. Could Georges have been right about how bad he is at thanking people? No, maybe he's gotten worse in the last decade. ]
trollophoroi: credit: <user name=apocalypsios> (012;)

[personal profile] trollophoroi 2023-09-06 03:00 am (UTC)(link)
[ And then Fandaniel is there, having spotted this mayhem from a distance, and hurried to scale the roof to join good old Mister_Misteaks before he takes a bad tumble. It's not the first building he's climbed in this game and it sure won't be the last, but this time he has more than only looking for targets in mind.

A hand seeks to snag an arm, to pull him away from the edge.
]

Careful now, Barrett. Why don't we sit back down?

[ He's taking the more direct route to interfering here. Maybe he'll regret it. Maybe Barrett will throw him from the roof in a rage instead. Oh, but wouldn't that be fun? Provided, of course, that didn't cause a second tragedy on top of the first... ]
ganymed: (I feel like I have everything)

[personal profile] ganymed 2023-09-06 03:05 am (UTC)(link)
[ Funny that Michel wants him to blush again so much, because his comment is making that warmth on his cheeks burn even hotter. ]

Very funny. How would you know the dance was done like that?

[ That sure is a shift in his tone of his voice. Which is absolutely...unfair. Yeah, that's exactly what it is. Unfair and ridiculous.

But the serious question gets him to glance off to the side, amazingly keeping them moving without any stumbles. ]


Anyway, I wanted to...be sure you were alright. And, to spend more time with you, once I was certain—only when it was convenient! C-clearly, it turned out that way.
ganymed: (Tell him)

[personal profile] ganymed 2023-09-06 03:17 am (UTC)(link)
I do. If something like that happened to you, playing this game...I'm sure you'd want answers too. Right?

[ And he doesn't want anyone else to experience what he did. Not to mention, the other shadier aspects which might not be drawn out if he just leaves things as-is.

The more that can be thrown at the company, the better. Also, the teensy itsy bitty selfish aspect to this, but shh. ]
tablescraps: (pic#16602999)

[personal profile] tablescraps 2023-09-06 03:47 am (UTC)(link)
... We're similar.

( Pragmatic. Though, whether Mithrun would care about something happening right in front of him is... arguable. )

... We'll see if others I know are so reasonable. I won't stop playing Fragment for the time being, at least.

( He's... calmer now. He was pretty agitated earlier, and he's not against just going to Kill Right Now, but he needs a few things, even if he wanted to do it Right Now. Equipment and weapons, for one. )
Edited 2023-09-06 03:48 (UTC)
tablescraps: (pic#16636759)

[personal profile] tablescraps 2023-09-06 04:00 am (UTC)(link)
No.

( No desires, and all. )

But this game is strange. I think there's more here than the developers want us to understand... Unless their intent really is to harm us.

( It's never impossible with big companies. )
fluorite: dnt (49)

[personal profile] fluorite 2023-09-06 04:08 am (UTC)(link)
If it was wishful thinking, then it I wonder if I should feel insulted instead.

[ He laughs, clearly not too bothered by the idea anyway. ]

Good to know you reflected upon our first meeting so much.
fluorite: dnt (64)

[personal profile] fluorite 2023-09-06 04:13 am (UTC)(link)
[ Oh... cute. He can't help the soft huff of laughter that escapes him. ]

So am I. It's been a good opportunity to know you a little bit better... which I'm glad that I'm getting the chance to do.
threatmewted: ([Smug] Go on)

[personal profile] threatmewted 2023-09-06 05:00 am (UTC)(link)
I figured it'd make solo runs slightly less annoying, so.
rebelles: (Default)

[personal profile] rebelles 2023-09-06 05:10 am (UTC)(link)
Hmm, I wonder...

[ Not whether or not she'd like running a cafe, but whether or not she'd be allowed to. Fai's feedback draws her out of her distracted thoughts. ]

Ah, that's very helpful to know. I'll try that next time. It's subtle, but it makes a difference.
rebelles: (pic#16611684)

[personal profile] rebelles 2023-09-06 05:19 am (UTC)(link)
I'm sure they'd be happy to know their lumber was put to good use.

[ Why does she feel like he's seen through her...Haru laughs lightly and uncertainly, pulling the brim off her hat down. Because of the wind, not because she's hiding her face, surely. ]

I can help you hold it in place while you nail it down?