[Logging in Kayleigh]

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Welcome to Neo-Genis, Kayleigh.

As she loads into the Neo-Genis hub, Kayleigh bounces on her feet to get re-used to the way moving feels in the digital world. She's greeted with the usual. Safe zones in all sorts of shapes and colors, NPCs walking around with markers above their heads as well as players in all shapes and colors moving between zones. Some of them talk silently with each other lips moving but releasing no sound, others have their voices projected loudly. It's awfully strange to see this from the perspective of someone living in the world itself. Kayleigh thinks.

'There are... a lot of people here.' She reaches around and runs her fingers through her tail as she tries to work up the courage to start asking questions. 'I need to find anyone who knows Task. I have... so many questions to ask her.'

...

"Youre... not looking for a hotel? Youre messing up my business! move move! stop blocking it then" "Ah- Sorry sorry sorry!"

...

Kayleigh runs around a corner, shaking off the nerves from that catastrophic NPC interaction. 'Calm down, Kay, calm down Kay. It wasn't real, it's just an NPC! It just wanted to- to provide it's service, keep CALM girl.'

Before she can talk herself out of it, she walks up to a man with a hat over his face reading a newspaper.

[brrrrrring, brrrrrring, brrrrrring]

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["Minerva Jones" is not available. At the tone, please record your message. If you have finished you may hang up or press 1 for more options.]

[Hey, mom. It's Kayleigh. I'm sorry I wasn't able to make it to family dinner. I just got really busy with my work and I lost track of time. I... I'm sorry. Maybe we can, um, talk about another time we can do it together? Sorry for bothering you.]

[Click.]

[...]

[...]

[Local Therapists]

[Online Therapists]

[Online Therapists good reviews]

[pathwaycounciling.org]

[Welcome to Pathway Counciling! Would you like to:]

[Check on the status of your appointment, Register for an appointment, Talk to an employee.]

[Talk to an employee]

[Open Phone app?]

[Yes    No]

[> Yes]

[brrrrrring, brrrrrring, brrrrrring]

"Hello, this is Pathway Counseling! My name's Cheryl, how can I assist you today?"

"Um... I'm- uh-"

"Take your time, ma'am."

"My- my name is Kayleigh and- um- and... and I think I need help.]

[You have received a message from Devonia]

[K: ]

[D: ]

[D: Do you remember our conversation earlier, about the Simulated reality?]

[K: Yeah.]

[K: She was, like, a dedicated role-player. Wanted to give her an ‘in’ to the situation, haha.]

[D: They were most likely Sentient NPCs. Like me.]

[K: …]

[K: Do you have somewhere private to meet?]

[K: Doubt you want this overheard.]

[D: Hmm… Do you know someone by the name of Sebastian?]

[K: Nope.] ‘Do I? I can’t recall…’

[K: Can they be trusted?]

[D: He’s a friend of mine and is trustworthy for the most part, they have a bar we can go over for some privacy… though there is a forest or other options we can look for.] ‘A forest? Like the one where the mages’ guild is?’

[K: I’ve heard tell of a mage listening in on conversations in one specific forest. Is it the same or another?]

[D: I think it’s the same one, but I didn’t know about the ‘listening in’ part.] 

[K: Then the bar. If this leaks, something tells me it would be your head on the line so I’ll let you take the risk.]

[D: Alright then, I’ll let him know ahead of time and hopefully soon we’ll have some privacy to talk.] 

[K: Understood.]

[You have received a Portal Link. Travel to destination?]

[>Yes     No]

[Traveling…]

Wearing a hat and a medical mask is a flimsy disguise when you have a pair of kitsune tails and ears, but to Kayleigh it felt safer than going bare-faced. The person, Devonia, was there. A towering individual with horns and feathers growing in patches around their skin. Another individual, a tall purple sea naga man who seemed confusingly familiar to Kayleigh was manning the counter at a bustling bar. “Devy! Nice to see ya’ again. Like I said, the backroom is available, gimme a sec…” He made the arrangements and started leading us to the backroom, but Kayleigh wasn’t quite listening. She had her eyes on Devonia, cautious as she could. 

The back room of the bar, the Johnny’s Robin, was full of drinks from wall to wall. Kayleigh found a crate and, willing herself to become light as a feather, perched upon it in a composed squat. “Here you are. Should be loud enough out front for whatever you say back here is kept secret from any of the patrons out front.” As the naga-man left through the door, Kayleigh took her flimsy disguise off. “So… you too?”

Devonia nodded. “In terms of technicalities not originally coming from the ‘Real’ world, yes.” 

“Huh…” She looks up at them. "This obviously isn't the first time I've met one, I'm sure you're aware, but I promised the ones I've talked to about it that I'd keep their privacy. Don't expect anything about them from me and we'll get along fine."

Devonia paused, pondering something. ‘It feels like they’re fishing for something. They might be a potential ally, but… I promised to keep their secrets. I won’t tell them anything they don’t know. I hope they don’t press me.’ Eventually they came to some sort of conclusion and said “Alright, Ms. Kayleigh.”

‘Rather diplomatic, but at least they aren’t trying to press me.’ She let out a sigh of relief, then smiled at them. “Thanks for letting me in on your situation. I’ll keep your secrets. So, what did you want to talk about?”

Devonia breathed a sigh of relief as well, then looked to their feet and began speaking. "When I first... started to become aware of the fact I was in a literal video game, I was in one of the games like the one we just did together, but afterwards I was put into a sort of..... code void"

Kayleigh leaned closer, a feeling of anticipation in her breast. “A code void…”

"It wasn't exactly a well known place, given it took a hacker looking through the literal code to find me, but they eventually managed to break me out of that boring hell, and got me into the real place of Neo-Genis. the void was mostly black, with the occasional string of void floating by, and basically nothing else unless you go poking around there"

“I… see…” ‘Is this my lead?’ “How did the hacker break you out, if I might ask?”

Devonia pauses for a second, then looks Kayleigh in her eyes, challenging, perhaps testing her. “They used a sort of hack power, a whole tech based set up to reach me and drab me out with their robotic arms”

‘CLYW.’ Kayleigh couldn’t control most of her surprise as her eyes flared open, but she didn’t move to continue either. Devonia continued after it became clear she wouldn’t be responding herself. "Do you happen to know about someone by the name of CLYW, Kayleigh?"

‘Shit shit shit.’ She goes to school her features, disguising her recognition, surprise, and anxiety. 

Kayleigh: Charisma + Stealth (5 Dice) = 3

Devonia: Perception + Alertness (7 Dice) = 2

3 > 2 : Kayleigh Succeeds

She manages to keep her face impassive and maintain eye contact, if barely. “What would it mean if I did?”

Devonia rolls their shoulders back from their slouch, facing her straight on. Kayleigh could feel the seed of worry in her stomach sprouting. “Mostly in that now you know two people with not exactly normal origins.”

She looked away, unable to keep contact with those deep amber eyes. “I… I won’t tell you anything they said to me, but you already know of their existence." She slumps her shoulders as her facade drops a smidge. "And... and I suppose you might know them better, too."

Devonia smiled, and something in Kayleigh balked at giving them that victory. "Well, I'll mention a little fact, CLYW was the mentioned hacker that did break me out, and did a real solid for me right there"

‘That’s… that’s incredible but… why…’ “Why are you telling me about this?” 

“Mostly because for the most part, I don't exactly have a lot of connections or friends in Neo-Genis, given that most of my existence was seemingly in isolated simulations, and then... I learned my entire reality was a video game"

“Oh…” ‘And you were lonely.’ The resentment in Kayleigh’s heart washed away with her empathy. “I understand.” She gave a friendly smile. “Well, you’ve made one today, at least.” ‘I don’t want them to be lonely either.’

Devonia schooled their features suddenly “There’s one other thing… Do you know of the Angel?”

Kayleigh’s tail fur prickled at the dread around that name. “Yes.” She nods seriously. “I do.” ‘That… that monster is the reason that Task is so scared. Why CLYW is so scared. I need to understand more.’ “I’ve been warned about it, a lot.”

“...Yeah, and from what I’ve heard it’s also a part of the main firewall of Neo-Genis, and it’s something I’ve thankfully been able to avoid the attentions of, but there are others…” Devonia eyed Kayleigh and she stiffened her lip. "How have you managed to avoid the... that thing? Before you ask, no. I'm not planning on going after it. I'm not stupid." ‘Not anytime soon. Not unless it chases Task first.’ Devonia continued “Basically, it’s part of the firewall. You go poking around in the code, the Angel targets you. The only thing I did was escape thanks to CLYW’s help.”

‘That doesn’t help! What if they’re already a target! What if they’re…’ “Fucking…” She leans back to try and calm herself, but her anger built up regardless. “It’s just… It’s just not fucking fair! It’s not fair that I get to walk away and… and…” ‘Get a hold of yourself, Kay. You cannot let this slip.’ 

“And you don’t get to hear the end of that sentence. Sorry.”
"And yet a friend of yours has to have a reaper constantly tailing them...."

They both froze at the same time… ‘What. What do they mean. Do they mean task? No, no they must… they must mean CLYW. Unless…’ 

After the deafening silence, despite the ruckus of the bar outside, Kayleigh made the first move, keeping her tone as calm as she could. “Hypothetically. Let’s say someone has a number of people keeping things from one another.” Devonia locked eyes with her, but she soldiered on. “Perhaps the best way to resolve the knot of secrets is to bring the ends together.”

“Right… given that we have a common threat as well-”

“I can’t do that.” Kayleigh snapped. “I don’t break my promises, but have you  made any promises?”

“For one, but not another. They don’t mind too much.”

“Perhaps we can figure something out then. I can't tell you anything until I know exactly what you do. But, regardless… I do still want to be your friend, you know. Nobody deserves to be alone. Especially not in this."

Devonia gives a shaky smile in turn. “Glad to hear that, regardless of… this whole ‘secrets’ thing.

‘I need to reciprocate. Devonia has shared a lot with me, so…’ “I can tell you two things though, since they’re just about me. The first thing is that I have someone I need to protect, and I want to be able to protect that person better.” She watched the recognition in Devonia’s eyes but pushed the topic further forward before they could act. “The second thing is that I have a theory.”

“What is your theory?” Devonia asked cautiously. 

“Do you know what happened to the body of the one known as CLYW? The physical flesh.”

"As far as I know, the flesh and DNA was converted into digital code, since the code we both are composed of is based on DNA...." ‘That still doesn’t make total sense to me, but that’s not the point.’

“That’s one answer. Consider it this way. Flesh, physical flesh vanished from the real world and entered the world of Neo-Genis. That violated the laws of conservation of mass by ‘destroying’ it.” Kayleigh leaned back, trying her best to give off a sense of confidence. “I’m not clever at this but I think…” Devonias eyes widened as they made the connection. “I think it might be possible, if dangerous and unlikely and hard, to pull someone out.” She looks up to Devonia’s expression, lost in thought, and impresses on them “If it comes to that, I will do what I must. But I don’t think I’ll be able to do it alone.”

Devonia muttered and stammered. “That’s…”

“I… I like Neo-Genis. I like the adventures that I’m having, I like these tails, It makes me feel… happy.” She locks eyes with them with an expression full of iron. “I will give all of it up to protect a certain someone. And, if I can, I’ll bring anyone else who wants it with me.”

"How can..... Then could NPCs as well..... Amnestics affect players as well..... Atomic structures, anomalous effects, what's the..." Kayleigh waited patiently while Devonia worked through their thoughts. A faint crackling glow starts around Devonia's neck before looking back to Kayleigh with a combination of curiosity and happiness "That would be wonderful, Kayleigh."

Devonia startled, receiving a message that Kayleigh couldn’t read. "I… I’m going to go talk to someone. I might contact you later Kayleigh, but I need to confirm something, and well, I'm gonna see if Seb has any apple cider vinegar so I can horrify some of his patrons by chuggin’ the thing."

“Naw, go ahead.” Kayleigh steps down from the barrel and makes to leave… then hesitates. The words of her therapist ring through her mind like Professor Oak. 'Sometimes you'll need to face things which are uncomfortable in order to have fun. Sometimes that's work or a dirty task, but sometimes it's going into the unknown.’ “Actually... um…”

“I- um, I don't suppose you've room for another?" She gives an apologetic little smile, kind of hunching in on herself unconsciously. 

Devonioa looks back with a curious tilt to their head “Room for another what?”

"I- I mean, I don't know about the vinegar part... but... I could go for an apple cider." 

Devonia gives a warm smile which Kayleigh doesn’t know how to respond to. “Sure, why not!”

"Oh... um... thank you." She looks away, masking her embarrassment.

…

A short while later, a new friend approaches.

…

Devonia chugs a bottle of apple vinegar in a non-decorative bottle, clearly made for cooking, while Kayleigh watches them. She’s quietly cupping her cider amidst the revelry, but clearly making an effort to enjoy the air. Kayleigh had remembered that she shared her first game with Sebastian, but was hoping that wasn’t brought up so she wouldn’t have to admit she forgot his name.

She turned to the door as she heard it squeak, her sensitive ears a little roughed up by the sounds of the patrons. Said ears flicked up in interest as the most adorable little chipmunk fellow she had ever seen walked into the bar. The confusion on his face disappeared when he seemed to recognize Sebastian at the bar and approached. Kayleigh looks back at Devonia being cheered or jeered and waving around the empty bottle and wilts a little as she had missed the ending, but goes back to watching the new arrival curiously… and also awkwardly.

“Maze! My brodentia! How ya been? I know it’s not been long but I’m still curious.” Sebastian asks, waving a hand. “Come, take a seat! Today’s discounted special is the starfish tonic- a rich flavor backed by a tart aftertaste, while being one of the lighter specials on the menu.”

"Hi Mr. Sebastian! It's a pleasure to see you again, I wanted to see your bar first hand since you mentioned you had built it. It looks really cool." They would look around, eyes showing a glowing curiosity to them as he added, "I've been okay, been practicing a lot more and getting new skills, I believe I can only get better with new experiences!" Before looking over to the people glancing at him, "Hello there, I'm Maze! It's nice to meet you."

“I’m happy you like it, me and my sister put a lot of effort into it.” he leans on the counter, his hands empty due to Happy Hour ending. “So, what can I get for you my friend?”

Kayleigh goes to speak, but her voice crackles as she coughs. "I- um... The ciders are good." She manages to squeak out. 

“And so is the vinegar!” Devonia booms. Kayleigh chokes out a guffaw and whacks Devonia’s arm lightly.

Maze, as the chipmunk was apparently named, ordered a drink while Sebastian and Devonia dig at each other over the vinegar drink Devonia took. Kayleigh went back to her drink, expecting for Maze to approach one of the more interesting conversationalists around, before startling as the chipmunk looks at her and says “Are these your friends, Mr. Sebastian?”

‘Wh, me!?’ Kayleigh gives an awkward wave, then realizes she had already waved to Maze, and puts her hand back onto her cup to get it out of her way.

“One of them, yes, the other I think I’ve only met…once? Yes once. This is Devonia, recently no longer devoid of name, and this is Kayleigh, she came in with Devonia.” he says, gesturing to each of them. “you two, this is maze, a rather good friend of mine.”

“Hh- hi there. It’s nice to meet you, Maze.” She fiddles with the clasp on her ear and fantasizes vanishing from the unexpected conversation entirely, before dismissing that initial anxious reaction.

"I have...uh let me see..." He dragged his paw along the open air, bringing up an inventory of sorts and said "I have a bunch of sandwiches, I made them myself." Then he would nod to Devonia as they greeted him but would wave his paw towards Kayleigh, "Hello Ms. Kayleigh! I hope you're both having an amazing day!" He seemed very positive and cheerful.

‘Am I having an amazing day?’

‘…’

"Yeah. Yeah I think I am. I... I hope you're having one too."

Sebastian turned to her with pity on his expression. “Ah, I apologize for the inconvenience, I’m more used to patrons with a certain level of outgoingness, sorry for dragging you into this.”

‘Wait, nono I don’t want to stop!’ "Oh- oh no it's fine. It's... uh. It's good for me." But the pity also spread to Maze, who went to ask "Are you sure? I don't want to impose. "If it helps you can have one of my sandwiches? They're super good, I even learned how to do some of them from my friend's wife."

‘Please don’t force me out of this!’ "Nono- I insist. It's just that..." She breathes in... and out... "I'm just not used to it, that's all. I'd love to talk, I'm just, um, rusty. And- and that would be nice! Thank you."

Sebastian made a remark that Kayleigh couldn’t quite hear over the sound of her anxious thoughts, but Maze gave a big smile and dug out a messenger bag with a number of foods inside. “Yep! She said it was best to be prepared for when I leave, so I spent a few days learning how to cook from her. She's really sweet when you get the time to sit down and just gossip about fish stuff." He laid the dishes out, one by one. "So I have normal sandwiches, I have Onigirazu, some pulled pork ones, oh- if you don't know what Onigarzu is, it's this." He'd then show it, as what looked like seaweed wrapped in normal sushi with sticky rice, and with an assortment of tuna, spicy shrimp, salmon, and peppered with light seasoning or even chicken.

“Wh- woah, that’s… quite the variety.” A certain smell passed through her nose and she could feel a strong anticipation overtake her. “Is… is that… chicken?” 

"Yeah, I was told that chicken can be added in to add some mix of flavor to it, so I grilled some and slipped it into a few. Not all of course."

“I love chicken!” Kayleigh’s vulpine ears flicked with excitement. “May… may I try a few?”

Sebastian stared at the tuna ones, before he shook his head and wiped his mouth. He cleared his throat before talking. “I don’t suppose you'd be willing to share a tuna or two? And perhaps the recipe?” he asked in a stiff ‘I must control myself’ voice. Seeing that reaction, Devonia asked "I'm guessing this person Maze learned from knows how to make some good sandwiches?"

“Of course! I bring like- 8 of these around with me nowadays, just in case. So feel free.” Looking at Sebastian next he would say, "Yeah you can have some too, I'm always happy to share with new and old friends! Although I don't know if your cooking skill is high enough to learn it Mr. Sebastian." He'd tease, but offer them anyway. Same for Devonia too. Kayleigh took one and ate it, and… she was filled with a sudden childlike glee.

Maybe it was the fox part of her virtual form taking over, but she made a high pitched squeaking noise as she ate. In that moment a weight lifts off of Kayleigh's shoulders, one she hasn't been noticing. She hardly realized it was there too, but something about the way she holds herself... changes a little. A little lighter, a little more genuine. She heard Sebastian say, in a low tone “I can see what you meant by needing it.” and took a heavy drink from her cider in order to wash away her embarrassment of being seen.

A thought striking him, Sebastian spoke up “Oh, Maze, how’s Oscar been liking that gift I got him? He causing some ruckus with it?”

"Oh? You mean the big pokey thing? He loves it! I see him use it pretty much every day, he's also still trying to mount it to his boat, it's a bit hard though as he's not extremely handy haha."

Sebastian chuckles. “I figured he’d like it, harpoons are cool as hell, and damn useful too.” he says as he pours himself a drink, a simple foamy ale. Taking a sip, he speaks. “It's getting late, gonna have to close up soon, so let’s have some fun till then, eh?” he says to the group, offering his mug for a ‘cheers’ “To good drink and good company!”

Kayleigh raised her mug a little less reserved than she usually is as they all made their own cheers in turn. The conversation wandered from then, eventually with Kayleigh and Devonia talking about the hunt they performed for a dangerous beast that she struggled against. Her mood… soured a little, something Devonia picked up on. "You good, Kayleigh?"

“Hahahaha… no.” She fiddles with her cider, her eighth glass (fortunately non-alcoholic.) “Honestly if anything, it just reminds me of how far I have to go."

"Do you need a hug? Hugs make me feel better."

‘Yes please’ "I think I'll be okay for now. Thank you though. I’m just… not strong enough yet, and I’ll need to be." Kayleigh glances to the side at Devonia, who caught her glance before she could look back. 

"I don't know if I can help much, but you can always improve and get stronger over time. If you train to be the best one day you might reach it." Maze gave a little cheerful motivational speech, showing an almost determined outlook to the idea of feeling weak. Kayleigh’s false smile dropped as a wave of nostalgia hits her, reminding her of confident anime protagonists giving impassioned speeches about friendship and strength and training. A warmer smile came to her face “Thanks, Maze.”

The conversation continued onto different topics, culminating with Kayleigh demonstrating her incredible dexterity by performing an olympic-level corkscrew flip onto a bottle of sake without breaking it. The group gave her praise (which she did not know how to deal with), and Sebastian made a remark.

“Last I saw you, you just had your throwing stars. Man, you’ve grown quite a bit.”

"Hehe, yeah! And I'd say you've grown too, but if you grew any bigger... well..." She giggled at her own dumb joke. “Oh, by the way! I saw Gehrman in the game after the one we shared!”

“Oh? What was he up to?” Sebastian refilled his mug.

"Aw, pretty much the same. Serious about his work as he was the first time. Good strategy though! In that game I saw both him and T-" She freezes. Devonia’s head snaps to her.

“Um, nevermind.” ‘Shit shit shit shit this is the WORST thing you could have done right now. Kayleigh you MORON! You absolute idiot!’ “It’s, um. I’d better get moving” She stammered out. “This has been lovely, really lovely. I certainly owe you a favor or two Devonia for that augment you gave me!" She begins to make for the door before Sebastain can connect the dots between their shared players.

“If you’re sure, just remember to take the gift box.”

She moves back quickly to accept it with a strained smile, but that gives Devonia enough time to cut in before she escapes. “Hey, may I talk with you about a last thing, in DMs?”

Kayleigh stops at the threshold to the bar, looks at Devonia, gives them an anxious nod, and flees through the door.

…

Kayleigh uses the Neo-Genis travel system to move quickly away, looking for any spot where she can hide when she gets a message from Devonia. With a knot in her stomach, she opens it.

[D: Task]

Oh god.

Oh jesus fucking christ oh no oh no oh no I meant to I didn't mean to-

Can I lie and tell them that I don’t know what they mean? But they’re smarter than that and I don’t even know how much they know and… and…

Kayleigh curls up around her knees and breathes as much as she can, desperately holding onto the breaths in her lungs. She eventually musters up the courage to send the only message she can think of back to Devonia.

[K: fuck]

[D: I met them a little bit after CLYW broke me out, and it was because she found CLYW rooting through the game code as well, while CLYW was freaking out about the angel coming after them.]

[D: And... they were not happy about the Angel's attention being on CLYW now.]

[D: I... had my suspicions before we talked, given your experience with sentient NPCs and that CLYW might be connected somehow, but well, just going around talking about this is obviously not what they want, and so I had to be sure...]

Kayleigh bites her lip, but remembers the feeling of Task hugging her, the feeling of seeing Task nearly dying in her arms.

[K: …no. she doesn’t want this."]

[K: she wants me to stay away from anything about… about it.”]

[K: but as long as I can leave and she can’t? I won’t.]

[K: the kid doesn’t deserve this.]

[D: …she doesn’t.]

[K: On that, we are agreed.]

[D: Right then, I might make a sort of tree base within the jungle I mentioned I wanted to create earlier, give us a place to group up at that's isolated enough for us to group up at, including CLYW]

[K: call me there when it’s time. tell the kid when you do.]

[K: I’ll be there.]

[D: Right, I'll let CLWY know, we'll talk with Task about it, and then hopefully soon we can start working together on theories on how to de-digitize someone who wasn't ever digitized in the first place...]

[D: Given how we got that beastie earlier and how we worked together, I’m sure we can get her out into the real world.]

[K: whatever it takes.]

[K: I’m giving her a way out]

Kayleigh Jones, urban photographer and part-time Kitsune, brushed her tails with a heavy-duty brush to avoid listening to her anxiety. They got matted if she left them alone too long after all. Stickers and tangles would get stuck in them, so she brushed them clean and plucked the sharp bits out. It was meditative, really. And it reminded her of happier things.

She sat on one of the tallest branches of an enormous tree, barely outside of the Hub area as she groomed herself. The wind was fresh through her vulpine ears, far fresher than a digital wind should rightfully be. Today was the day that she would meet the kid again. Task, the little girl made of ones and zeroes. The one who kept trying to keep her away and face a terrifying, unknown threat all by herself. The one who would get herself killed if Kayleigh wasn't able to-'

She shook her head and yanked her brush through a tangle in her tail, biting back a pained gasp. 'Stop it.' she told herself. 'Don't spiral, not now. Not when you're so close.' She breathed in and out gradually before returning to her work. 'One brush at a time, make it look nice and fine.'

[Bling]

Her calm shattered as she scrambled to open her UI, checking her messages for the invitation she was expecting.

[C L Y W: URGENT. ARRIVE ASAP, DISCUSSIONS BEING HAD.] 

First Second

She didn't bother to send a response. Her brush was thrown to the side. She could get a new one, she needed to go.

Second Second

She slammed the 'accept invite' button as soon as the invitation was sent by CLYW, and the portal opened in front of her.

Third Second.

She dived in, nearly sprinting off the branch to enter the gateway. The seconds of the transfer ticked by agonizingly slow. Fourth second, Fifth second, Sixth second...

Seventh Second

Kayleigh stumbled through the portal into the abstract world CLYW claimed as their home. Kid, kid. 'Where's the kid?' She... wasn't there. 'I guess, I guess I'm early.' She locked onto CLYW and, before they could say anything, said "For the record, CLYW, I said nothing about you that Devonia didn't already deduce."

"She didn't." Devonia, a hulking mass of muscle, feathers, fur, and horns confirmed. CLYW simply stood impartially. "I would have figured as such. We're not here to berate you. For that matter, I'm glad you arrived quickly. Refer to the whiteboard."

Devonia stood behind her as she approached the board with a sloppily-drawn diagram on it. "Welcome to Doomsday, Kayleigh." they said.

'Finally, I can... huh?' "Is... is that what we're calling it? I was hoping it would sound more hopeful" 'You IDIOT! Stay focused!' "Bah, sorry. Getting distracted already."

CLYW graciously didn't comment on her immediate lapse of focus and continued. "There are rules. Do not discuss DOOMSDAY with anyone outside of DOOMSDAY. Do not discuss DOOMSDAY over unsecured lines. The Johnny's Robin is an example of an unsecured line. That is all."

Kayleigh side-eyed Devonia, then returned to the board. Devonia's subsequent apology and CLYW's blunt correction were lost to her as she took in the names on the board. 'Kay', 'Dev',  'CLYW', and 'TT' 'It's me, Devonia, CLYW, and... and task? Who's the second T?'

Her question slipped out of her mouth before she could catch it, and CLYW answered "The Twins. Task and Finality." 'WHO!?'

"It's fine, I get what you're trying to say. You stay safe too miss Kayleigh! We don't want anything bad to happen to you"

The quote echoed in her mind as Devonia shouted at CLYW. "CLYW!? KAYLEIGH DIDN'- MNGH!" They clutched their head in their hands at CLYW's apparent slip. "Oh, I apologize. I was a little focused." the machine responded as Kayleigh passed the words over in her mouth. "Well, I'll deal with that later, no sense in hiding it anyways, a team effort requires communication."

"I figured something was up, if it helps." 'I knew the kid was hiding something from me. And she should have, she didn't know me... yet.'

"That is true," Devonia spoke up again. "That is true, but we both know how Finality would feel about that, to be clear. Finality... likes their privacy. A lot."

"To an extent bordering on excessive" CLYW droned.

"Maybe... maybe it would be best to let them explain it? Give them control over the dispersal of this secret."

CLYW waved their hand "In any case, just treat it as if I said nothing." 'No, that's not the point.'

Sighing, Kayleigh elaborated. "I meant attempting to approach it with honesty. I need to tell the kid that she's not keeping me out of this, anyways. Our last conversation was... messy."

"I'd like to break this habit of allies not saying a word to each other outside of 'what did you do?', so I'm going to speak as it is necessary."

'Right.' "Yeah. You'd said that those like you didn't interact much, right?"

"Indeed" CLYW's robotic frame was as impassive as ever.

"I meant what I said. That sounds lonely. You shouldn't have to go through that."

CLYW evaded the statement skillfully by saying "So, Devonia. I was the one Kayleigh interviewed. That is one truth, even if obvious."

'Oh!' "Actually, did you read that article? I've been using word-of-mouth to get it out there instead of, like, trying to run an ad campaign." It would have been better for the kind of audience she was trying to curate.

A look of recognition dawned on Devonia's face. "....wait, Kayleigh, did you write that one blog that went viral a month ago?"

'...viral? oh god.' "I... didn't realize that 'viral' was the term for it." 'Shit.'

"Practically as soon as it was released, yes. I like to keep a constant stream of information on hand."

"Well, um, I was using it as a way to look for information with a broader net. People have been pitching in things they've seen. Haven't gotten through sorting them yet though. And... and also I like taking photos. That's what I do. It's my job."

"Oh, so you do Photography in the real world?" 'Oh god I shouldn't have brought it up.'

"Right. Urban photography, don't bother looking it up. I've come to the conclusion that I hate concrete."

CLYW drifted away, lost in thought, while she shared a few of the better photos she had with Devonia. A few otter pictures sparked a conversation. "I've actually seen a version of otters before, did you know some otters can live by rivers in the jungle?"

'I mean...' "I know that there are river otters, so presumably there are sea otters. I wouldn't be surprised to see otters anywhere, to be honest. They feel like one of those... ubiquitous animals."

"Yeah, apparently they live in groups and can scare off jaguars if they work together"

'Oh, even jaguars? That's impressive. Fascinating... Oh, wait a minute!' "You're making that jungle, right? Planning on installing a few otters? Lay the foundations for a real otterman empire in that jungle."

"Well, not just-" Devonia's face enters a state of complete blank zen. The kind of peace that can only come from the soul vacating the body. 

"Now-" Her stoic facade broke a little, but held firm as she spoke. "Now I know what you're thinking. Why would you want to do that?"

"Well! I think- snrk." Devonia sat down in a low-polygon chair, bringing their head down onto their knees while folding their hands together as Kayleigh dropped the guillotine. "Well I think you ot-ter!" She breaks down cackling as Devonia, seemingly against their will, cracks up as well.

CLYW stood unimpressed, which made Kayleigh feel even better about her stupid joke. "Where did I leave that anti-otter code...?" they asked, causing Kayleigh to release an explosive "HA!" of laughter.

"Shit... what were we talking about? Where were we?" Kayleigh wiped the tears out of her eyes. "The plan." CLYW responded, approaching the board again.

"Right, the plan. Sorry! We got sidetracked." 'Got distracted again. Goddamnit.'

"No worries, I had some time to think." CLYW responded neutrally

"Should we bring the kid- the twins in on this?" 'Twins. Are there two of them, or are they linked somehow?'

"I'm not sure if i want to give them my player lobby link, personally. Also, the earful i'll get is not worth it."

"Then... how about mine? Is there a way to reinforce a different player's world from detection? I haven't... like... touched mine. At all. I still don't know how to actually access it, to be honest."

CLYW shrugged in turn. "I've yet to try. I keep this place hidden enough. In any case, i have an idea on how to get out. We need one specific person."

"And I feel like we'd be getting that earful one way or another, if Finality is like you said. I really do believe that honesty should be the policy between allies- oh?" Kayleigh's words were cut off at CLYW's, breaking through her topic.

"There is a woman, a doctor. In a game known as Maikendo."

"Maikendo..." 'Maikendo? I... I don't know what that is. Can it really help us? It can't be that easy, can it?' "I haven't seen that one yet."

"She's the key to this plan. She's a very competent scientist, seeing as she's the one who put me in the game."

"I'm thinking it'll be possible to reverse engineer something or other. It's all I'll say, my words are limited on topics such as these, seeing as you haven't yet played."

"I see. I'll have to find that one and get through it soon to understand."

"Well, you don't find Maikendo. It finds you."

"Then it will find me soon to understand." Kayleigh faked confidence to hide her uncertainty.

"......lets hope the angel isn't targeting the doc as well...." Devonia chimed in.

"Very well then. Any other ideas? I'm thinking otherwise this meeting will come to a close very soon."

Kayleigh grits her teeth. 'I still don't know anything about that fucking thing.' "Would describing how the angel makes it's actions affect the infohazardous properties?" she bargained.

"That's an unknown factor." CLYW nods. "So much to learn, so little to sacrifice to learn it." 'We... don't know anything? It's not just me?' "All I know is that if you know about it, you can see it. I'll have to ask The Twins for more info, I feel like they'd know. If you can see it, it can see you, if you don't break its rules, you'll be fine." 'And... and the kid doesn't have that luxury.'

Kayleigh breathed manually, hiding a clenched fist as CLYW spoke about the monster. "Ordinarily, as far as i understand, as a player you'd just be banned, you know, avatar deletion, account deletion, gone." they said.

"But if you don't have that body to fall back to..." Kayleigh's voice was thoughtful.

"It is the firewall measure stopping hackers like me from going too deep in. If it gets it's hands on someone like the two of us. We will die." CLYW emphasizes this fact, showing a semblance of emotion in their voice to push the importance of the statement into her mind. Kayleigh nodded, determination writ across her face.

"...There's something to think about, given what we know so far, CLYW. What if the person being brought into the real world doesn't have the DNA code strings like we do? That may be a extra thing to have to account for, and work around"

Kayleigh grimaced ‘Not the first time I’ve heard this.’ “That's not really how DNA works, but I doubt that's a worthwhile factor here. DNA is just the… the instructions for building the body. After the body is made, it's inert." she muttered, unheard by the others.

"I'm not sure what happens. I don't think anybody does." CLYW continued. "Worst comes to worst, we'll need a 'field agent' to construct a body to act as proxy." ‘That would be me, of course.’

"Right, since we don't have an example of objects being digitized…” Devonia seemed to understand the conversation better than Kayleigh did at the moment. 

"If it's of any substance, I have some experience in downloading consciousnesses. 'I did that to someone once. I had the disk containing them destroyed within minutes." ‘I’m… not going to question that. I’m sure they had their reasons.’ 

"More experience than me. I'm not going to be very helpful for actually figuring these things out for you all, but if you need something done?” She looked CLYW dead in the eyes. "Call on me. I'm getting tired of nobody taking my offers seriously." 

"Same Here CLYW, I'm not going to waste my life on nothing," Devonia backed her up "We are united in common cause."

CLYW stared back, the cracked, half duct-taped faceplate still void of any flashing lights. "Of course. I know how it feels to not be treated like a professional, and I know it annoys me to no end. If anything comes up, I'll call you.”

‘You’d better.’  Kayleigh nodded seriously. The group exchanged friend requests, which Kayleigh accepted, but her resolve faltered as she saw Task’s profile clearly on her friend list.

‘Kid… please. I want you to be here, I want you to be safe.’ 

CLYW’s voice passed through her ears, barely heard by her in her amidst her stress. "I trust this meeting is adjourned? ...Ah, actually, Kayleigh. Keep trying to gather as much info as you can, i'll talk to the Doctor, same goes for you Devonia." ‘I… It’s over? But… we didn’t even…’

"Alright, but... I don't think I will be lying to the kid about not having this meeting." She looked back at the group "She... they..."

"There won't be any need to lie, we've got a plan and the twins need to hear it." CLYW’s voice was neutral. ‘They don’t get it.’  Devonia’s voice, in turn, was unsure. "...Yeah, they... deserve to know. Regardless of the earful we are all about to receive..." They don’t GET IT!’

"The kid doesn't deserve that! They deserve to know that they have people on their side." Kayleigh speaks with passion, as if she's wringing the words from her very chest. "I want her to know, know for certain, that she's not going to be alone in this. That none of you have to be alone in this." She stared them down, as if challenging them to contradict her. They didn’t.

Devonia put their hand in the middle of the group, clenched in a fist "Then Doomsday shall start getting to work, then?"

Kayleigh puts her hand in. "Looks like it." She also looks up at the others. "If one of you can help me figure out how to get into, and how to 'reinforce', my player hub, that would be swell. Either that or let me put together something in your jungle, Dev. I'll leave the door open for the lot of you if we can make it a secured line."

"Indeed we shall." Clyw, notably, does not touch hands, adding- "Do not touch me. I am making it known that i am okay with this plan but do not touch me."

Kayleigh nods with understanding. "Of course." ‘Touch-adverse. That makes sense for the hub they made. It’s hard to feel anything in here’

Devonia nodded. "This is mostly just for showing our unity, no need for contact... and I wouldn't mind you setting up a base in the jungle once it gets grown, Kayleigh." Kayleigh smiles at that gratefully.

Stepping back from the impromptu hands-in, Kayleigh retreated into her thoughts. ‘I… I need to message the kid.’ "I think I have a secured line to Task. I mean, the kid made it for me. Doubt that she would've put sloppy work into something like that. "And... and it would be best if we talked to her soon about this. I don't want to be scheming behind her back." She looked to CLYW "Do you know if there's another secured location we can use other than your player hub? If you don't want the kid with an invite to it, I mean." Opening her UI, she saw clearly that Task was marked as online. For a digital person that must mean… “And... and I think she's accepting messages right now. Huh." 

"Either of yours should do the trick, i can help you make yours eventually." CLYW responded. 

"Alright. Dev, do you have one set up for a meeting? And, of course, would you be willing?" Kayleigh started drafting messages as Devonia responded, bringing her focus to the messages at hand and only partially listening to the conversation.

Task: [Miss Kayleigh?]

Kayleigh: Hey kid. Saw me coming, huh?

Task: [Saw the typing notification. I was worried after last time...]

Kayleigh: I've talked with a few people you know, and it is my intent to be completely and utterly honest with you right now.

Kayleigh: The first thing is that I am fine. I've stayed safe.

Kayleigh: The second thing is that the others. A 'ghost in the machine' and a very tall person, have told me something about you.

Kayleigh: I told them not to explain what it means to me. I don't want to hear it from them, I want you to be able to talk about it. It wasn't their secret to share.

Kayleigh: The third thing is that you are not alone. You will never be alone. I won't let that happen.

Task: [Kayleigh, you're worrying me... what's going on?]

Kayleigh: I know I'm worrying you, but in all honesty the reverse has been true. I don't want you to cut yourself off from everyone, alright? 

Kayleigh: One second, world transition loading times.

Kayleigh: C doesn't want you in their hub for some reason, so D's opening up their own player hub. It's secured, they say.

Kayleigh: Please?

Task: [C? D? Kayleigh, what's going on?]

Kayleigh: A group. I'm helping all of you build a way out. Together. C, D, you, and your... twin. I don't understand that part, I'd like to hear it from you.

Kayleigh: I don't know how much I should say over this line.

 You have sent a PORTAL INVITATION to Devonia's Player Hub

Task: [Twin? What do you mean twin? I'm just me...]

Kayleigh: You and F. That's all I know. I told them not to tell me anything more about it.

Kayleigh: Please, kid. I promised that I'd watch over you. I don't intend to break those things.

Kayleigh: You can yell at me if you want. It's okay.

…

…

…

{...I see, s̮ͯͣó̝̫ t̵͔̟h̔͗̋a̴̮̬͛̑͢t̡̑'s h̫͗ọ̐w̘̄͡ t̬̀ͭh̞̯͝i̱͓͜_s i_s}

…

Kayleigh: I’ll see you soon.

“I… I think we’ll see her soon.”

“Alright then. 3… 2… 1…”

A portal opens, but rather than a short little girl in a pink dress a cloud of fragmenting code bursts from it, swirling around the two violently. Kayleigh’s mind flashed back to the first day they met on the rooftop and Task revealed her secret. ‘It’s her.’ She smiled with heartbreaking relief. “Thank you, kid. For coming.”

{Don't call me kid} The voice was more monotone and robotic, distinctly not Task's voice. {I am not like you, do not lower me to your level}

“Hello, Finality.” Devonia audibly grimaced, but Kayleigh simply shook her head. "You're... the other one, right? You... you leak into the text you send, sometimes." She looked into the cloud from where she was sitting, as if she could manifest a pair of eyes to look through with sheer concentration. The cloud, in turn, coalesced in front of the two.

{There is no 'other one', there is just me.} The voice was monotone, but had a hint of vitriol. 

‘I don’t really get it, but…’ "Then... that changes even less about my intent towards you." Kayleigh stands up to face the cloud. "The 'C' I was referring to is CLYW, if you couldn't tell. I wasn't sure how much to send over that line, but this hub should be safe enough for conversation."

{I gathered, that fool is like a lighthouse of poor decisions. He's the reason I'm even in such a mess in the first place}

"So... I guess it's time for me to ask it again, huh." Kayleigh looked deeply into the cloud, searching for something to make eye contact with. "Finality. What is your... deal?"

{My deal is that I want all of you out of my life and yet somehow you three insist on worming your way back in} They muttered something quietly, but Kayleigh’s vulpine ears could make it out. {No thanks to the sub-routine}

"Because it's dangerous for me?” She stepped forward. "Because you don't want me getting hurt if it means keeping you safe? Because you would rather be alone than that?"

{Oh I don't care, do whatever you want with your life. My problem is when your decisions start causing 'me' problems.} The cloud flickers blue for a moment before returning to its default green. ‘They’re lying.’

"Then let me stop being a problem." She dropped down to kneel in front of the cloud of code, at where Task's eye level would have been. "Stop trying to shove me away and- and keep everything secret. Stop trying to handle the entire world on your own and let me help you.

It... it isn't fair, kid. It isn't fair that you're trapped here with that... that thing. It isn't fair that I get to leave and that you don't." 

Kayleigh has a look of absolute resolve on her face. "I will never leave you behind, kid. I fucking swear to you. You don't deserve to have to exist in a world that is trying to hurt you, you deserve someone on your side.”

The cloud flickers as it backed away from Kayleigh’s resolve.  {I'm not some human child. I don't need your pity or sympathy. I...} [Shut it!] ‘That voice! KID!’  [We can't do this alone Fin... Kayleigh wants to help, they all do. Why can't you just accept that?!] {You do not have a say in this} 

Kayleigh pressed on. "You're not a human child, but you are a child. I know you don't like that but I know it's true. And children shouldn't be made to fight for everything they have." She holds out both of her hands. "I promised you I'd be careful as long as you let me keep an eye out for you, and I need to revise that promise”

She looked at the child, her child. "I promise that I will never leave you alone to face a world that hates you. I won't leave you behind. And that- that goes for both of you."

"Please, kid?" She begged, holding out her arms as if to catch her kid, as the cloud shuddered with an internal conflict.{I don't need you, I don't need anyone! I'm above all of you, I'm better than all of you! You... you} The cloud’s protests trailed away as it collapsed onto itself, leaving behind the figure of Task, falling to the floor. Kayleigh forced herself forward and locked her arms around her kid in a hug that has been in the work for months. Full of every ounce of worry and protectiveness and warmth she feels for her kid. At that moment, the angel didn’t matter. Nothing would hurt her kid. She wrapped her tails around to secure the hug tighter, wrapping Task as she sobbed in freshly-brushed fur.

[We're scared, so so scared... Both of us...] Kayleigh felt tears pricking at the corners of her eyes. "I know, kid. I'm... I'm scared too. But neither of you need to be scared alone." She pulled back a tiny amount, just enough to get a good look at her face, while she smiled. "It's nice to see you again, kid."

Task wraps her arms around Kayleigh in turn. [It's nice to see you again too. Both of you]

"Thanks for coming. I meant it. If you can hear this, Finality, that goes for you too. Thank you.” Kayleigh started to cry. She didn’t sob or shake, but she blinked away tears while squeezing her eyes closed. “Will you be alright to stand for a moment? I want to fill you in on the group." Kayleigh is hesitant to let go of her the kid, but she feels that lingering ghost of anxiety begin to creep up on her.

"Yeah, we decided to make a group" Devonia’s voice was closer. They must have moved closer. Task nodded quietly as she standed to her feet. "CLYW wants to call the group 'Doomsday.' I was hoping for something a little more hopeful, but hey, whatever works." Kayleigh stood up as well, though visibly hesitant to do so. "The goal is to get you, well, to get all of you an escape route. I'm the only one who's entering Neo-Genis temporarily, through a headset, so I don't want you all to be stuck here if you want to or need to escape."

{You said you want to find a way for us to leave Neo-GENIS?} Finality's voice interjected. It was strange hearing it out of Task's mouth. 

"Yeah. If it can suck someone in it can spit someone out. That's the end goal. I won't claim to know how realistic that is, but if that doesn't work..." Kayleigh shrugged "Then we'll just figure something else out. Maybe we can find a way to build a, like, mechanical body to inhabit or whatever. Far as I can tell the only way to prevent the danger threatening y'all is to remove you from the situation." She grimaces for a moment. "That or fighting the angel, but I'm not stupid. That's not a valid option."

"There might be a download process that could hold both you and Finality, Task."

{Well, then you're going to need my help.} ‘Task’ gestured to Devonia,  {You and the other one merely got uploaded here, I've been here as long as I've existed.} 

Devonia protested, saying "That's... I'm not sure if I was actually uploaded, Task"

Kayleigh nodded vaguely at Devonia, then at Finality. "I don't know the half of it, but I can be here to keep you safe and do anything that needs doing." She looks at Finality, doing her best to project 'respectability.' "I'm stronger, now, and I'll keep going until I'm as strong as I need to be."

{Where you came from is irrelevant, and don't call me that. My point is that your code and mine differ fundamentally from one another.} [Wait, you are actually helping?] Task’s voice radiated surprise. {If you are going to make an escape for me, you need my knowledge.} ‘It’s odd watching her go back and forth like that, huh.’

"Of course. I look forward to working with you, Finality." Kayleigh held out her hand for a shake, which was promptly ignored. She returned it to her side after a moment.

“Well, I’m glad to know that you are onboard as well, Finality. Is your... 'preferred form' the cloud of code from earlier?"

{My form is simply a conduit for a purpose. I'm not confined like you.} She almost seemed to scoff at the thought.

"That makes sense, you probably have a much more fine control over your form than I or Clyw does..." Devonia rubbed their chin. Kayleigh nodded, but mentioned "Might be easier to be referred to with your preferred name if you can differentiate yourself a little. Just a suggestion of course.”

At the mundane nature of the conversation, about simple names and preferred appearances, Kayleigh breathed an enormous sigh of relief. ‘She’s talking, I’m talking, we’re talking. It’s… it’s okay.’

{You humans and your names and signifiers... fine} ‘Task’ closed their eyes for a moment before Finality opened them glew green {Better?}

Kayleigh smiled and nodded. "Works for me. I'll call you Finality when you have those, and 'Task' when you don't." As a teasing aside, she said “And ‘Kid’ either way.” ‘Cause you’re my- ah- you’re a kid. “My Kid?” That’s embarrassing, Kayleigh. Stop that.’ Kayleigh kept her thoughts to herself, though, and smiled fondly at the kid.

Task shook her head, eyes shifting to blue. [Sounds like a plan!]

"Once I figure out how the hell to set up my player hub, I'll send you a permanent invite or something. So you can have a safe place when you need it, and also when you don't. Ah, and also how to 'secure' it. That too."

"Yeah, and that reminds me, here's a starting point on getting that set up.” Devonia sent her a video tutorial through her UI. “CLYW sent it to me to help get this place secured"

“Thank you very much, I will need it." She fired back.

Finality’s green eyes flicked back and forth between the two. {So, does the madman have any ideas of how exactly we're doing to get me out of here}

"Right! CLYW'd mentioned something that had a lead. A game of sorts, but one that 'finds you' instead of you finding it. Something called… Maikendo." Kayleigh looked to Devonia, who nodded to confirm the name.

{No game by that name exists in the Neo-GENIS database} Finality’s monotone voice somehow seemed unimpressed. "I'd think that means that's a good sign, eh? If there's a backdoor of sorts it wouldn't make sense if they had it in their systems." The kid thought for a moment, before near-imperceptibly grimacing. {As much as I hate to admit it, you make a valid point}

"So other than the rules for 'Doomsday' which are pretty simple, (Don't talk about it about anyone who isn't part of it and don't talk about it outside of secured lines), how have you been, kid? Like, mentally. Have you been doing something other than worry about the... thing? Something you enjoy?"

{Enjoyment is a human need} [We have been doing our best, but mostly just keeping a low profile] The kids eyes flicked back and forth as the two spoke. Kayleigh nodded as she took in both answers. "I think that when you're trying to stay alive, you need to indulge in the reasons why being alive is worth living.” ‘I’ve made that mistake before. I don’t want her doing that too.’ “Still though, good on you for keeping a low profile."

…

They continued on, for some time. Devonia offering a hiding place in their jungle project, sharing new powers with one another, and just… catching up. It was… nice. Nicer than words could say. Being there, out in the open, talking.

[What was that, Miss Kayleigh?] ‘God damn it, did I say that out loud again?’ 

"Well. Ah. I'm... I'm just really happy we're out in the open about all this now." She smiles at Finality. "I'll get that player hub set up, or the secret hideaway in the trees. Whichever works out." She gently reached down and, on her knee, took their hands in her own. "I'll make sure it's somewhere you can be safe and... and enjoy yourself at. I won't hold you if you have something you want to get to, or if you just... just need a break from all these... emotions." She stood up and rubbed at her eye. "I probably need that, actually."

The kid nodded, eyes flickering. [Thank You, Kayleigh}

Kayleigh smiled at the shared voice of her kid the kid with few words left in her, all of them worn away by the exhausting conversation. As soon as they scurried off through a portal, Kayleigh turned and gave Devonia the biggest hug she could possibly reach. Devonia hesitated before gently returning the hug as Kayleigh squeezed them. 

Exhausted, embarrassed, and emotional, Kayleigh slipped out of the hug and opened up her player UI. She gave Devonia one last exhausted smile before disappearing through a portal of her own.

Kayleigh was being followed.

She knew it was rather conspicuous, ferrying carpentry equipment back and forth between the hub area and a distant ridge hidden in the Babylonian Jungle, but was hoping that the number of more conspicuous individuals in the hub would serve to mask her movements. It seems that hope was in vain though.

She brought up her pace a little, hoping to lose the shadow she could feel from the corner of her eye without cluing them onto the fact she knew of their presence. They kept pace with her, however, even as she sprinted over the very leaves and leapt between trees.

‘This isn’t working… I need to try something else.’ Kayleigh spotted a particularly thick trunk and made her move, vanishing her steps as she rounded it and quickly climbed into the branches without a sound other than her nervous breathing. She waited on the branches for the shadow to pursue her… in vain, as no one came.

Carefully, gently, she crept across the branches, hugging them tight as she could with a gravity-defying crawl. She slowly… slowly peeked her eyes down in order to try and catch sight of her, and barely stopped herself from screaming at the enormous pair of eyes staring directly into hers just a foot away from her.

Two big eyes, two great big ears, and a smug smile. Maze the Chipmunk smiled at her as she slumped in a mixture of relief and resignation.

“Did I scare ya?” Asked Maze with more than a hint of smugness in his voice.

“N-no.” Kayleigh lied poorly while Maze laughed to himself, not buying it for a minute.

“Well, I saw ya going back and forth (and back and forth) from that hardware store and I thought I’d follow you! What'cha doing out here? Can I help?”

“I… Um…” She fumbled for a moment, before pulling out her cell phone. “I need to send a message to someone, sorry.” Maze nodded and waited patiently while she texted, even smiling for a picture she quickly snapped of him.

Kayleigh: Hey.

Kayleigh: Someone showed up. [Attached Image]

Devonia: What the hell?

Kayleigh: I know??? But… like… out of anyone to find us here, Maze might be the best option. Do you think we could loop him in on this? I don’t think we can build this without him.

Kayleigh: We… really need the help.

Devonia: I’ll let CLYW know, but it should be fine??

The kitsune looked back up to Maze, stashing her cell phone away. “I… yeah. Uh, I’ll show you what we’ve been doing… We could probably use your help.”

“Sure thing! Here, point for me and I’ll carry you!”

“O-okay, I mean I can move on my own- wah!” She squeaked as Maze swept her up into his tiny arms and, on instinct, she curled into a ball.

…

Kayleigh hated to admit it, but Maze far outclassed her in sheer movement speed. He tore across the canopies of the Babylonian Jungle at terrific speeds while she curled in on herself and occasionally . He sped up a particularly nasty-looking cliff at her direction and deposited her gently on the ground. “So- um… thank you for offering to help, Maze.” Devonia walked up, turning away from the plants they were tending, as she spoke. “We’re trying to build a sort of… um… sanctuary of sorts. Somewhere… quiet and out of the way. And we can’t really… hire anyone because… well… that defeats the point of having a little hidden spot, right? Speaking of… please don’t tell anyone about this.” She asked quickly and pleadingly.

“Well that is a pickle. I can help you out, though! We just need a Diagram and some resources!”

…

The work wasn’t necessarily hard, thanks to the nature of the world being so ‘gamey’. It was time consuming, though. It took a week to collect enough resources, even with Maze running about while carrying entire 20ft tall trees in his hands, and another week to fully fill the diagram. Devonia constructed a brace by growing sturdy trees as pillars and interlacing the branches, and Kayleigh… did her best. She didn’t contribute very much, but she did her best.

When all was done, the Sanctuary was built. A pair of buildings on a wooden platform atop an inhospitable ridge. Camouflaged from below by the shrubbery Devonia had sculpted and protected from hearing by the sound of rushing wind through the leaves.

The first addition to the building was a framed picture of Maze midway through assisting with construction, carrying a one-ton tree in one hand like it was nothing. As the others went their separate ways and left Kayleigh to her new home away from home, she found herself sitting cross-legged on top of the larger building, staring at her friends list. One name stood out to her, as it always did. She reached out and began composing a message.

Kayleigh: Shockingly, it's done. The treehouse, I mean. Kayleigh: I thought we'd be able to get the first steps done by now and finish it in another two weeks, but someone (fortunately someone trusted) saw me and, with his help, we were able to finish the sanctuary today.

Kayleigh: Hold on, sending a picture of the friend.

Kayleigh: [Attached is a picture of Maze the chipmunk, carrying a 20 foot tall tree in one hand with a big smile. The treetops of the Babylon Jungle are visible in the background.]

Kayleigh: His name is Maze. And he's a resident of Maikendo, actually.

Kayleigh: Given that we're going to be routing through the functions of Maikendo in order to fulfill the end goal, I figured he's the best person to let in on the location of the hideaway, and he knew some tricks which sped up the construction handily. He can be trusted... honestly I don't think he has a mean bone in his body.

Kayleigh: Here's a permanent link to the portal to the Sanctuary. You are welcome here at any time.

[You have sent a Portal Link to - Sanctuary]

[Aww, they look so adorable! Makes sense that you would get their help, they seem really strong. I'm really looking forward to seeing this place. Both the tree house and Maikendo. If it looks anything like where we had our get together I'm sure it will look amazing.] 

Kayleigh: I'm looking forward to showing it to you too! Just make sure not to wander off the edge. I put up some rope railings, but there are several level 58 monsters in the forest below.

Kayleigh: Not level 5 or 8. 58. Good news is that means that nobody will want to wander around here (unless they're specifically adapted for forests like Maze is.)

[The edge?]

Kayleigh: The Sanctuary is elevated off the forest floor.

[Oh, oh okay] 

Kayleigh laid back on top of her new home and closed her eyes, listening to the sound of the breeze and feeling the sun on her skin. At that moment, she was at peace.

Was... was I asked out on a date!?

I've been... okay it's a little creepy but I've kinda been following the Ashen One around a little bit. She's really pretty, I want to know more about her. Then... then one day I got a letter. Hold on, I'm going to transcribe it.

"Dearest Maiden, forgive me for such boldness, I ask for your presence alone, to speak or awe in silence amongst the bonfire under a moonlit sky. Should we share the stories of thine path, it would do me much joy. May the Crimson Flame guide your path to me. - Ashen One"

It had a really pretty flower attached to it. I thought that meant that she wanted to get to know each other better? Since we're guild mates? And so I showed up to her player hub.

She wasn't wearing her outer armor, and I got really flustered when she wrote out her messages to me. Uuggghhh I'm so fucking pathetic she's so prettyyyy, and her words were written straight out of a fantasy novel. She said she wanted to "Bond under the gaze of the stars and tell tales of our paths", and that she wanted to "grow ever closer." I'm still kind of freaking out a little, and I really don't want to make this weird if she isn't actually interested, because why would she be interested? She's so far out of my league!

Agghhh, she said this one thing which I'm still agonizing over. "The Stars and Moon, akin to my soul are false under the words and tales, yet I yearn to find meaning... Hopefully, I ask, of you to guide me." She's clearly an intelligent NPC, but why would she want me to guide her? Am I reading into this? What do I dooooooo......

The last thing that happened was that I nearly fell asleep sitting up next to the fire, and when Ashen One noticed me dozing off she patted her lap. The worst part is I was groggy enough I nearly laid down right there.

God I'm so pathetic.

I was approached, a while ago, by the Hood Guy in my bedroom after I took my headset off. And he asked me who sent me.

I answered honestly, nobody did. I did all of this of my own volition. He seemed to believe me, and we... had a dialogue.

I still don't know what his deal is, but he asked me if I wanted a harbinger contact of my own. Apparently it's something important for people like me.

I'm hesitant to take him up on his offer. I'd be able to protect Jam better and I'd be able to be more than myself, but the idea of tying myself to whatever 'game' the Harbingers in the real world are playing unnerves me.

But...

I asked him two genuine questions and received two genuine answers. He left through the front door instead of teleporting out enigmatically. And what even happens if I say no? What happens then? Jam still has their own adventures to deal with, I'll still be... me, but I don't know if I'll ever be great.

It's a risky option, saying yes, and it might be a terrible, terrible mistake.

I'm starting to think it's just a mistake I'll have to make.

I need to talk with someone about this. I don't want to make this choice alone.

I'm still thinking about the offer I was given, but in the meantime I found someone who I could help out. The same person who posted that one forum post asking about bleed-through asked about getting things out of Neo-GENIS in Isaac's group chat, so I decided to help her out.

Maybe it was a little reckless of me to offer that information freely, but she turned out to be really nice. She was a doctor, though she did admit that she was a lot younger in real life. Still, Abigail seems to have a handle on what she's doing. I'll offer her my support if she needs it though.

After I left a little bit of blood, (bleed-through sample size), I was walking in no particular direction when Maze popped out of nowhere and hugged me. We talked a little bit, I confided in him that I was genuinely considering accepting Annuls/Hood Guys offer. He told me that things in the real world have steeper consequences than in the game. It was a good answer, but I knew that.

I'm really glad I have people like Maze around me. It's so hard to be proud of myself, but he's... really proud of me, I hope. And I was also glad I was able to help Dr. Castodon out! Turns out she already knew Maze, actually. Hopefully he was understanding with me foisting Abigail off on him like that.

I wonder how that went.

...

God, where do I start.

Yensid, the adult animation group trying to get involved in Neo-GENIS, murdered a man. Gerard Spence. He was an employee of theirs that they dragged into the game against his will. They forced him into some sort of experiment I don't yet understand, something with this... rhinestone ink that reacted to heat.

I followed a summons to help him. I tried to get all of us to disguise ourselves and sneak out, but they refused. All of them. Soppy, Gerard, and... and some priest.

We tripped an alarm quickly, and something caused every single god damned experiment in the facility to be released. They killed the scientist after he pulled a gun, and we tried our best to escape together. 

We made it to the elevator, we made it past the fucking ink monsters, we made it to the top floor with another scientist, Ivan, who I caught after he dropped into the elevator shaft. He told us that the only way out was through floor one, and so we ran with him out.

Then a group of gunmen showed up. Ivan referred to them as ‘B-Corp’. My armor kept me alive, mostly, but… but sometime during that scuffle, Gerard was shot. And he hid it.

We got out. We got past the gun turrets, we got past B-Corp, we got past everything. Then when we were finally fucking escaping on the submarine, he died. He told me a message to give to Task, and… he was gone.

I failed him. I got him out, but I couldn’t save him.

[The page is stained with drips of water.]

GINA THINKS I’M CUTE!?

I- she- she wanted to- we.

We went to explore Neo-GENIS together to get my mind off… my mind off things. We wandered around together, and I got to see that she made herself into a foxgirl too! I showed her my Yokai Wire, we explored parts of the Babylon Jungle while I made sure she kept safe, I carried her into a tree once to get away from a passing Deviljho- oh my god did she feel uncomfortable then? Or- did she-

Anyways- We passed by the Dualing Planes, but I decided it wouldn’t be a good idea to do that for our… our ‘hang out’ since it would be all sweaty. So instead we went to this underground subway station thingy. We wandered around the tracks since apparently the conductor doesn’t work for certain hours, and it turns out it was, like, weird and space-twisting. I made a little fence so nobody would fall into some giant hole of sorts, and when I… I reached out for Gina’s hand to find our way out…

She kissed me.

SHE KISSED ME!!!!!!!!

She kissed me! She- she fucking twirled me around and kissed me! On the face! I mean- on the lips! 

She- she told me that she thought I was- was adventurous and cute and- and that she didn’t want to leave things unsaid, and that she wanted to go out with me!

I- I didn’t- I mean I’ve literally always fucking had a crush on her but there was no way that she wanted me to- but she does! 

And I love her too! I do! I really fucking do!

She- Gina wants to go out with me!?

Mmnnghghghghghghghhghghhgggg...

...

Fucking TOOK HER LONG ENOUGH. God damn.

It's a good thing that Gina is so assertive. Our kit despises being alone, and she likely wouldn't have made the move herself.

They're really cute together, don't you think?

I mean, fucking obviously.