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

[nightwild]

Yeah. Home life was shit, but it won't get any better here.

I'm gonna be breaking out one way or another.

[southernchere]

You're right, Sugah, it won't. I had a funny feelin' when I got here, 'cuz ain't no world this fine and dandy and gumdrops.

And after that infection outbreak and folks turnin' into their other version of themselves, staying cooped up in this simulation will keep messing with us 'till we lose who we are.

[nightwild]

What about this world seems fine? It kidnapped us and it's falling apart.

I heard little bits but no one's giving me the full story of what's been happening here.

[southernchere]

When I got here, this place was throwin' a big festival and the locals were grinnin' like a possum eatin' a sweet tater. For a while, it was like there were no cares and it was all sunshine and rainbows. Like it was tryin' to fool ya into thinking this world was some island resort.

But then things start goin' hog wild when the outbreak happened, and people who were infected by the virus started killin'. I'm still new here, so I don't know what else's been happenin', but it can't be pretty.

[nightwild]

... Yeah. I heard about that infection. I'm not sure it was really a virus, but whatever it was...

... This place needs to go.

[southernchere]

Glad to know we're on the same page.

[nightwild]

Yeah. Doesn't seem like a lot of others are.

But this world needs to be destroyed.

[southernchere]

People fear of the unknown, it ain't uncommon.

[ lord does she knows that. ]

[nightwild]

They should be afraid of what we do know.

[southernchere]

Humans are... humans, Honey. I'm not gonna pretend I know all about how they feel or how they think about things.

[nightwild]

Sounds right. Annoying, pain-in-the-ass humans.

[southernchere]

[ she chuckles a little. ]

Aw, c'mon. They ain't all that bad.

[nightwild]

Some of them.

Most of them are liars and hypocrites who won't ever just say what they mean plainly.

[southernchere]

That's more of an "everybody" thing than a human.

[nightwild]

Humans are the ones who do it most.

[southernchere]

... Have they been treatin' ya unfairly where you're from?

[nightwild]

Only one has treated me fairly.

And that person is...

[how does she describe Rin.]

... More human than me, anyway.

[southernchere]

I understand what that's like, more than ya know. But there are some good humans out there, though. I know it's hard to see it, but they're there.

[nightwild]

... That person wants to save everyone she can. So there must be something in all those humans that's worth saving.

[Cryptic? Maybe a little. But if Rin wants to save everyone...

It reminded her of her own childhood dream. To be a hero.]

[southernchere]

There is. Which makes this whole dang talk all the more frustratin' to me...

[nightwild]

Yeah. All these people here are totally useless.

... How do you do that thing where you make a conversation private? So no one else can hear?

[on one hand, making it obvious that such a conversation is happening is... probably a bad call. On the other, she's really bad with technology.]

[southernchere]

Do you wanna have a private conversation with me, Sugah, or with someone else?

[nightwild]

You. Maybe someone else too? But right now...

private.

[southernchere]

There ya go, Honey.

private.

[nightwild]

Thanks.

You agree with me, right? We have to prevent that reset and break this whole place.