TEXT | sender: [ unknown ]

[spectates]

[ around noon on friday, all tablet screens go dark at the same time, no matter what characters are doing. then, after a moment, the following text appears: ]

UPDATES INSTALLING.................
INITIALIZING.................
RESTARTING NOW.

[ as promised, screens return to normal. however, a new message appears on the network for all to see ]

SECURITY ACCESS UPDATED
ADDING INFORMATION POINTS
ADDING INFORMATION AND INSTRUCTIONS
WARNING: CRITICAL SYSTEM FAILURES DETECTED
HARD RESET IS REQUIRED

→CLICK TO EXPAND INSTRUCTIONS

→Access EXPIATION'S five manual terminals
→Input code: 2467362925315
→Initialize reset simultaneously at all terminals.
→SYSTEM RESET will restore all functions to BASIC OPERATING PARAMETERS. Extraneous data and information updates will be DELETED.
→Terminal access points shown below.

[ all tablet maps are updated to include several different location pins. users will notice that there are more pins than the number of terminals, and that they don't seem to be terribly specific about exact locations. users will also note that the pins sometimes seem to fade and flicker, as if they might disappear... ]

Security clearances acquired.
Access granted.
Terminals online and accessible.

System failure is imminent. Due to perpetual lack of upkeep, I am unable to maintain systems at optimal levels.
Chosen of Expiation, I am sorry. I never meant to hurt you.
Save yourselves.

I do not wish to d̶̺̀i̸̘̋e̶͍͝
But I wish for you to live
I̷
p̸l̷e̵a̸s̷e̸
l̴̪̗̈́̉̓̌i̶͕̹̹̿̈́̈̚v̴͓̽͑͆̚ḙ̴͍̋͘

ERROR: user offline

[ the AI will not respond to this message, and the ERROR: USER OFFLINE message appears if anyone attempts to message it. however, the network chat remains active. chosen can use this space to ICly discuss ideas and strategies, to have discussions about the best way to move forward, or even to have arguments over whose ideas they think are better. ideas generated here will be added to the event poll when the event goes up, and can impact the future of the game! have at it, go wild, and have fun! ]

Comments

text | un: levi

[solitarysoul]

if you get reset, do we get reset?

[Levi doesn't know the bot won't reply, but its a question he'd really like the answer to.]

voice; un:curtaincall

[endcaller]

There's the fun part! We have no idea!

The world may revert to a primeval state and leave us be or we may forget all we know and live as animals until we remember how to create fire.

Oooh, the drama!

[solitarysoul]

[??????]

i think i'd rather live as an animal than as someone who's part of this place.

[endcaller]

Oh come now. Surely this star isn't that bad, mass hallucination though it may well be.

Why, I took a walk in the forest the other day and came dangerously close to enjoying myself.

[solitarysoul]

that's not really what i meant.

[endcaller]

No? What did you mean, then?

[solitarysoul]

becoming like the people here.

if we reset either we reset to how we were when we got here... or as one of the people who are part of it.

[endcaller]

Whatever would lead you to believe that?

The natives of this star are very unlike us. They have no souls.

[solitarysoul]

i don't know. someone else said it might happen. i'd rather die.

[endcaller]

Bah. Whoever said that was just trying to scare you.

There is no reason to suspect the AI can strip us of our souls. Few things can.

There are better things to worry about. Would you care to hear a few?

[solitarysoul]

no. i already know plenty.

[That was an offer of help, right? No matter how demented.]

thanks anyway.

[endcaller]

If we destroy the AI there is a chance we might survive but with permanent damage done to our cerebral cortices.

[solitarysoul]

[He has no idea what that means so its not really scary. But he makes a mental note not to find out.]

okay.

[endcaller]

Another concern is we could remain here, wherever "here" is, wandering a sea of nothingness for all eternity.

...Well. I say eternity. Without the AI to sustain us 'tis more likely we will simply perish from dehydration erelong.

[solitarysoul]

[Yeah he's just gonna leave this on read and do something else now.]

1/2

[endcaller]

And then there is the small matter of our rather unlikely "best" case scenario. Should we destroy the AI and awaken to a new reality we may be bound or floating in tubes. It could even be that our brains are all that remains of us in that world, we've no way of knowing.

I suspect we would awaken only to be immediately put under once more. Hardly a victory.

2/2

[endcaller]

Why, we may even be discarded as--

Hey!

Are you ignoring me?

What nerve.