Gordon (Sponge)

[BlueSlime]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

Her sad smile changed into a genuine one. "You understand. Or at least, you say you do."

She stood back up from her kneeling position and moved back to the bedside, sitting down upon it. She brushed her long hair behind her with her hand, hooking it behind her long pointed ear.

"The nature of this dream-spell is suspect, as much to you as it is to the powers that be. I am depending upon you not being able to believe me. It is what strengthens my argument of defense against those who would sense this. I can say my only purpose here was to plant a seed of doubt - a moment's respite from you would be all I might need to defeat you later on. Hesitation is death in the heat of battle, yes? So the very essence of this vision, this conversation, is blurred in uncertainty. That is how I can deliver this message to you."

She gazed at him, blinking her slanted eyes in a state of peaceful repose.

"There is another veil clouding your understanding that you have yet to pierce. I hesitate to speak outright of it, for there may be no coming back should I voice what I fear. I have lain hints for you to consider. Perhaps you'll stumble across it in your own time. But for now, this is what I can tell you: When you meet me in the 'real' world..." When she spoke the word real, there was a definite audible quotation around the word - an extra strong emphasis that suggested in fact, the opposite was true.

"...when first you finally meet me, I will not be as I am now. I shall be following the pattern set before me, walking that tight rope helplessly. I will be your enemy. I will seek to do harm to you, likely through your friends first, then to you. My goal then will be to truly dominate you - I will want to trap you, force you to be my lover, I will try to poison any relations you have with your women friends. You will have right to hate me."

She tilted her head away from him and sighed, bringing a hand to rub at her temple. "I do not know how you will avoid it, but I ask you to search for a way to free me. I ask you to capture me, subdue me, convert me legitimately so the me which is currently trapped inside can come forth. It can only truly end by destroying the Darkness which enslaves me. I ask this because I see no other way out for me... It is my belief..."

Here she hesitated for a few moments, her eyes flitting side to side. "It is my belief that should I defeat you, I would die a death as permanent as if you were to kill me yourself. I fear death, young one, for I do not feel that I have truly lived. I am asking you to help me live. Do you understand?" Then under her breath she muttered: "Can you understand? I wonder."

 

[Sponge]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

(I'm confused as how to respond to this 0_E)


This.. is a cry for help. But she's asking me to consider. But also I have to doubt her enable to make the dark powers convinced that she's not going against them? I hate contradictions. But again, she could be trying to trick me. I should be careful what I say here though, as the dark powers might pick up. In a way, this is a message that can only be delivered by her, I can't deliver a response or I'll make her a suspect.

Giving a nod, he did at least confirm that he understood her."So be it. Know that I won't hesitate to kill you if I have no other choice to protect the ones I already have however."

 

[BlueSlime]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

"It is enough then that you will consider it," she said, nodding to herself. "Know then that in your current state you lack the ability to defeat me within my place of power, and I shall not risk confronting you at a time when there's even a slight chance that I would be vulnerable. I will send minions instead. You would need a powerful artifact - one that would boost your powers many times over - if you hoped to subdue me. Naturally, I shall not tell you how to acquire this, and it is only as a boast that I tell you it is not far from your precious village."

She winked at him then. "I shall not risk contacting you like this again either. Once is suspect enough."

She rose again and looked about her.

"This spell is an imperfect divination. It is a picture of the way things might or could be... often its intent is to persuade or to provide warning. Some diviners might use it on a person and pass it off as the only way things could be - but the truth is that fate is not set. Free will exists - at least for some. You may go now. Or stay as you please. The spell will last until the morning if I wish it, but ask, and I shall unravel it swiftly. This will be our last polite communication until you release me."

 

[Sponge]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

Hm? Why the heck would he want to stay? There wasn't anything for him here.
"Unless you have further things to attend with me, I'd like this spell to be unraveled at this moment."




(sorry for the short post, mornings.... bleh 0_e)

 

[BlueSlime]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

The Dark Bishop shrugged. "Very well."

The world shimmered before his eyes and he felt himself falling into a deep sleep, even as he stood there in the chamber. His eyes clouded over, and in the next moment he was waking up in the small bed that he had fallen asleep in at Deana's house. Outside the window, the world was gray, but no longer night.

A message appeared before him as the game paused in a broken immersion:

"It has been more than 3 hours, you should probably exit the EGG for a rest. Will you Save & Quit now?"

 

[Sponge]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

Gordon blinks, surprised to see this message. He had totally forgot it was just a game. Now THAT'S immersion!

He laughs at the question, thinking it hilarious he would need a rest after only 3 hours. 3 hours? Comon, I've played games longer then 10 hours, and that was only when I was bored. Too bad there isn't a "hell no" button.

Searching for a button to continue, he gave a snicker. "Resting only after 3 hours... they think I'm a noob."

 

[BlueSlime]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

Another pop-up zoomed in front of him, seemingly responding to his thought process.

"It is recommended during this Beta Testing process that new testers not stay in the game immersion for more than 3 hours at a time. Routine check-ups will be made, and players wishing for longer sessions may apply for over-night testing. This suggested initial time limit is for our programmer's benefit as well as for you, the Player. Save & Quit?"

It would seem that Gordon might be able to prolong his stay inside the EGG, but the AI prompt seemed to be strongly suggesting that he take a break. There was no "Yes/No" button on the screen - it seemed that the program would read his intentions through his thinking.

 

[Sponge]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

He could only laugh at this. It reminded him of Earthbound, where the characters father would constantly call you and try to remind you to take a break. In fact, it was actually pretty damn annoying. But maybe this was a good thing, considering the technology of this game. It had seemed like days, yet only three hours real time. The mental stress on the brain must be intense, so maybe it was the smart thing to do.

(take break)

 

[BlueSlime]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

Accepting his confirmation, the game world went blank, leaving him in that same feeling of desensitized weightlessness that had encompassed his entry into the game world. Then as quickly as it had gone, his sense of self awareness returned, and he was sitting in the EGG chamber, whose door opened with a hiss, letting the light from the testing room permeate through the machine.

Standing at the door, clipboard in hand, was the balding, spectacled man that had shown him into the chamber. After a split-second of searching his memory, Gordon recalled that the man's name was Max.

"Welcome back, Mr. Gordon. You were in there a little long... 22 minutes past our expected three hour limit. How are you feeling?"

After this initial exchange, Max gestured to a small desk with two chairs in the corner of the testing room. "Please. Have a seat. I'd like to take a few notes about your early impressions for the sake of the beta testing."

 

[Sponge]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

It was a shame he'd have to take a break.

Socializing with Max, they exchanged the usual "How are you" "I'm feeling good" routine, and taking a seat, Max asked him about first impressions.

"First impressions? Hah! That's all you guys need. You've launched through technological history with this kinda stuff! Character development, story, and the most important thing, immersion. You have immersion down. I don't mean to use harsh language, but this game makes immersion it's bitch. I've played plenty of games I felt I was a decent part of, and only few games where I actually cared about the characters. The Persona series being one of those." He pauses, shaking his head with a laugh. "You guys don't even need to test this. Other then for safety precautions of course. This game is going to hit shelves and be off them so damn fast, of course I'm betting the price for such a console game will be astronomical. But I'd pay so much money for this, I'd gladly sell whatever games I have just for this. And that probably wouldn't be nearly enough to reach it's price range."

 

[BlueSlime]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

Max chuckled. "I'm glad to hear you've had a positive experience thus far, but you've likely only scratched the surface. Early stages of the game are well-documented, but we need to be certain that the system works in the long-term, so the testing process is still very important to us. As for the game hitting shelves - eh hah... it will be some time. The EGG chambers are very expensive and highly technical - not to mention large - pieces of machinery. It will be some time before we can put these into the homes of the average consumer. Still, it is an eventual goal of ours."

He smiled and adjusted his glasses. "Were there any particular points in which you experienced a difficulty with the game? Are there any specific issues you wish us to address or any questions you have that I could answer or field to one of my colleagues in the other departments?"

 

[Sponge]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

Shaking his head, he replies. "Nope! Everythi- well actually one thing does come to mind." Tapping his head, he does remember something that was.. quite explicit for a video game.
"This will probably be the first game ever to have the "Contains Real Sex" in the warning labels. Your going to have to make sure that all your customers are of appropriate age. I mean I know kids who play gory games at the age of 4, and it's irresponsible parents that try to blame great games for their behavior. So to avoid possible lawsuit, scandals, and stupid old people who never have played a video game in real life, you'll most likely need to explain everything in full detail about the content of the game. Both blood, sex, and such. Maybe possibly put a time limit on the game system as well, otherwise somebody could spend their entire life in this thing without remembering to sleep, eat, use the restroom, and just become sex starved perverts. Did you hear about the Japanese kid who died playing World of Warcraft because he never did any of those things? Found him dead at his computer. And since this game is so vivid and realistic, the probability of somebody being committed to the game to such a degree if highly probable. Other than that... Nope!"

 

[BlueSlime]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

Max took off his glasses while Gordon spoke, breathed on the lenses and rubbed them clean, then put them back over his eyes. "Yes, we already have an alert message designed to let players know how long they've been playing. You should have been hearing it for quite a while before you quit, given that you went 22 minutes over time... was there any specific reason you wanted to keep on going? Usually the game likes to sync up the 3 hour limit with a decent stopping point, such as going to bed. Was that not the case?"

 

[Sponge]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

He laughed. "Well it's true that video games are an escape from reality, but when I'm reading a good book or movie, I continue to watch or read so I can see what happens to the characters. In this case, this is one of those games that are so good, I want to keep playing not only for entertainment purposes, but for discovering the plot line and character development. And I'm also one of those people who can only eat if they are hungry, and can only go to the bathroom when they feel it. Otherwise I'd just sit and stare at the food, and likewise just sit on toilet doing nothing. And I don't remember a message, but perhaps I did receive one but I chose to ignore it because it might of occurred when things were getting really damn interesting. Regardless, the case is I just enjoy a damn good game. Books, movies, and video games are all art. I usually go to bed at around 11 pm, but one time I was playing a game and things got so interesting I couldn't stop playing until it reached 2 am. This rarely happens, probably once a year with a really good rpg, but I could see myself doing that with this game maybe once or twice. Still, I prioritize life over simple games. Though I'll admit life will seem like a droll and boring place after just hours of being in an amazing fantasy game.

 

[BlueSlime]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

""Hmm, I see. Well then, I'm glad you enjoyed it. I suggest that you do go and get something to eat at our cafeteria before you come back for your afternoon session. Also, Alice, the nurse you met this morning, will be wanting to speak with you in her office. It's quite close to the cafeteria exit, so you can go there afterward."

Max scribbled down a quick note and then put his clipboard away. "I'm sure we'll speak again sometime. Enjoy your break." So saying, Max rose up out of the seat and motioned Gordon to the door.

 

[Sponge]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

((wait, are we roleplaying him going home and taking a break or something? I'm confuzzled.))

 

[BlueSlime]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

((If you've read the other threads, you'll notice that there is a slight out of game roleplay that is occurring with everyone. It's to setup a possible meta story outside of the game world. This first break in the action is a bit routine, but it may get more complex as the days go on.))

 

[Sponge]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

Entering the break room, he plops down on a couch, closing his eyes briefly to relax his mind. It was good to take a break, all the stress from what happened in the in game world was sorta getting to him. While it was fun, and the realistic features made the game more exciting, it also at the same time made it more important, or seem important.
Maybe I'll just take a quick nap...

 

[BlueSlime]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

Gordon wakes up to a prodding finger in his ribcage. Opening his eyes, he is confronted with the visage of a tall black haired nurse, the one from this morning at the front office, looking down at him with an impish smile.

"You were supposed to come to my office after your break. It's important that we check up on your status. Come with me," she said, and offered him a hand up.

"Did Max not tell you that I wanted to see you?" she asked in a clipped manner as she rounded a corner, taking them out of the cafeteria and down a narrow, white walled hallway until they reached a door marked 'Nurse's Office.'

"Sit down, have a seat. We're running way past schedule..." she sighed, and then she took a seat across from him and began fiddling with a machine at the side of the desk, adjusting dials. "You fell asleep for an hour in the cafeteria, did you know that?"

Finally done with her fiddling, she took a metal band with some wires and attached to it and placed it onto Gordon's head, adjusting the band to a wider setting so that it could fit around his skull snuggly.

"This will read your brainwaves and measure the focal points of activity. It will also tell us if anything dangerous has happened. We doubt it very much, but there are liability issues at work here. I'm sure you understand."

 

[Sponge]

Re: Gordon (Sponge)

Waking up, he gives a soft groan. Oh, the nurse. Giving a soft smile, he follows her.
"Oh! Sorry, no I wasn't aware of that. He just said "enjoy your break." So I figured I'd rest until I could come back and play more of the game."

Following her to the chair, as she hooked it up to him, he couldn't help but feel like he was getting killed in prison. "Nurse, I believe the wet sponge is needed before you turn on the power, otherwise I'll cook alive?" He chuckled softly, giving a nod.
"I can understand the need for procedures. Crank it on, lets see what's screwed up in my head now."