Complete Private ✪ Finweald Like Cats and Dogs

[Ash Vargold]

"Hah, yeah. It's not like I'm not doing the same thing, but it's hard to look away and pretend nothing's wrong when you know the truth." He'd realized that after what had happened with Lúthien. Like it or not, he'd made connections within the game. His desire to protect people from the game was one thing, but his desire to protect his allies?

(His friends?)

"I don't think I could live with myself if I didn't try to stop this."

Ash needed to be better than that.

(Aisling wanted to be better than that.)​

"Just another part of the web Terrasphere spins... um."

He sighed, then glanced towards Rhela. She was staring pretty intently at him... or something near him? With a confused expression he turned to look behind him, but there was nothing there, living or dead.

Ash turned back to Rhela, still looking confused. "Something wrong?

@Rhela Elahka

 

[Rhela Elahka]

"Your last name is Vargold?" Rhela asks, her tail was still, as though her realization had frozen her for a second. After a moment a friend request would pop up for him from Rhela Elahka. "Are... are you the one who wrote the blog I found?" She asks after a moment, as though trying to piece together everything she knew from that. She turns her head away.

"I mean, there's no way that would be the case, it'd have to be a coincidence, right?" Right? How often do you just end up running into the people who were your first taste of the game. Or the people's who's words... ended up bringing you into a death game. And if it were the same person---

THIS GUY MUST FEEL LIKE SHIT! How do you talk to someone like that? How do you explain that it's okay for them to be here? Hell, is it even- it's not, she knew it's not okay for her to be playing this. It's why she never told her parents she was playing! And now she had confirmation that this was a death game- if she died mysteriously... Oh, she'd break their heart.

"Sorry, sorry, for the staring..."

@Ash Vargold

 

[Ash Vargold]

Ash glanced upwards, as if he might see the nametag Rhela was seeing right now. Right, that existed. He was so used to people who simply refused to use the UI for the sake of "immersion". He could still salvage this situation, though. Just had to be smart with it.

"...guilty as charged."

"Sorry for the caginess, but I've had some... interesting reactions from players who find that out. Not all of them good."

That wasn't a lie. Ash was perpetually surprised by how many had read this blog, and just as frequently surprised by how many read it and decided to play anyway, Rhela included.

Rhela especially included. When she'd messaged Aisling, it didn't sound like she was playing, but now here she was, having played long enough to get to Finweald-

"Just don't go yapping about it, alright? Being hunted down makes my job difficult."

Could he have done something to prevent this situation? Was it too late to fix things now?

Was this his fault?

@Rhela Elahka

 

[Rhela Elahka]

"I won't, I won't. But ah, maybe you shouldn't have used your last name as the username you post under..." Rhela mutters quietly. There's a shake of her head, too late for that now. She takes a deep breath. "Though I did message a friend about it because it looked like their style of writing and whatnot... Kinda wanted to... make sure it wasn't them when I actually ended up getting the email as the invitation."

She gave a lil smile. "... Maybe I'm just too... stubborn and dumb for my own good. Even if the person I was talking to didn't make any sort of statement that truly hinted at it being like... a thing she was doing."

"But ah, yea, I won't make your job anymore difficult- wait what is your job, anyway?" Of course Ash said something that piqued her curiosity, it was inevitable in a way. Rhela was ever a curious cat. And sadly, we all know what curiosity does to the cat.

@Ash Vargold

 

[Ash Vargold]

"To be honest, I didn't expect the blog to explode the way it did."

Big enough to get hunted down in real life, even. Thankfully by someone who just wanted to give him a job, but it had been a reality check about the risks he was taking.

Risks like Rhela edging ever closer to a connection he'd rather she not make. He snorted quietly, shaking his head. "Well, hopefully your friend isn't playing the game. Terrasphere's got enough victims as is."

(He sure wished that could be true).

"It's less a job and more a... personal quest, I guess." Well, it was his actual job now, but Aisling was writing the blog before VRS and would have continued if she hadn't taken the job. "There used to be a lot more information about Terrasphere when it first came onto the scene four years ago. Then VRSA swooped in and nuked it all."

Ash's tail began to thump his frustration again. "I'm just trying to make sure there's something telling people what's happening. Something that might change their minds about playing."

@Rhela Elahka

 

[Rhela Elahka]

"... I hope she's not. But I can't shake the feeling that she is... If that makes sense?" Her head tilts to the side. But then her ears perked up a bit about VRSA.

"Yeah, something is better than nothing, I guess? Though I do have to wonder why you entertained some of the people who were writing fanfic in the margins." She thinks a moment... staring at the ground. "... So it's three times, yeah? Then we're gone? How many times have y- no, that's probably too personal. I shouldn't ask." She shakes her head quickly and kept staring at her feet, unsure what to really say.

"... In some way, you're preserving the memory of those who do pass on while they're here. But the list of names is creepy as fuck-- which is good for what you're trying to do but holy shit, it seems almost stalkerish as I looked..."

@Ash Vargold

 

[Ash Vargold]

Can't shake the feeling, huh... It was a correct feeling, but he did not feel like dealing with that. He was going to need a plan for that one.

"The fanfic guy? Honestly just thought it was funny." Ash smirked - he'd been put off by it at first, but at this point he was just impressed. "And if I'm out here trying to archive things so they aren't deleted, I can't be making judgement calls about whether something is worth preserving."

guiltySurgeon: can't be making judgement calls about what's worth preserving
guiltySurgeon: just becomes another way to manipulate the public
ketsugoi desu ne: :-O oh boy it's tinfoil hour!

"Might as well throw my lot in with VRSA if I did."

"So yeah, the death list's kinda creepy - but we wouldn't need it if it weren't for the big coverup."

Thump, thump. Th-thump. Ash's tail twitched to the beat of a heart that was starting to stutter. The sense of camraderie had shifted into a fear of being hunted and the need to defend himself. One way or the other, he was going to have to get out of this situation soon.

@Rhela Elahka

 

[Rhela Elahka]

"Oh I was by no means saying delete the thing, mostly just.. ah... questioned why you engaged more than anything else." She chuckles a bit. "And yeah... Best not to cover up, even if it could cause massive panic..."

Rhela leans back and sighs. Her head turning to look at him. "... You sure you're alright?" The tail was giving it away.

@Ash Vargold

 

[Ash Vargold]

"Why I engaged with... Terrasphere?

Ash paused, tail still thumping erratically. "Things were different when I started playing. That was... god, 5 years ago now?" He crossed his arms and closed his eyes in remembrance. Had it really been that long? And yet he could remember some of those first days more clearly than recent events...

"We didn't know about the three death rule, because no one had died that many times yet." He snorted as he opened his eyes. "Even I thought it was worth a try back then. Didn't have much else to do..."

Rhela was staring at him. Ash blinked a few times until his mind caught up with the thump-thump-thump of his tail, which was starting to get a little sore. He forcefully shoved it to the side, wedging it so it wouldn't keep going without his consent. "Hah, sorry. Thing's got a mind of its own. I'm fine. Maybe a little agitated, but that's not your fault."

His smile was a little half-hearted.

@Rhela Elahka

 

[Rhela Elahka]

Rhela paused a moment. "I meant engaged with the fanfic, but I thank you for the answer regardless." She paused a moment, thinking a bit before letting out a sigh. She opened her palm menu to look at it for a moment. Before closing it with a sigh. Must have been checking the time or something.

"That doesn't... hurt, right?" Rhela asks about the tail being wedged. But she quickly turned her attention away from his tail. More of a realization on her part more than anything else. "Might I ask what has you agitated?" She tilts her head up so she could look more at his face... Floof ears...

@Ash Vargold

 

[Ash Vargold]

Th-thmp. Th-th-thump. Th-th-th-​

She kept asking if he was fine. No matter how many times he told her he was not fine, like she was hunting for a different answer. She kept pushing at him, pushing him into a corner, he was alone-

"Not any more painful than sitting on your hand. It's mostly fur, anyway."

Ash looked away, eyes closed as he steadied his breathing. Stop it. He'd gone down this path before. He knew where it lead, and he was not going there again. The thump of his tail was contained, more or less.

"I'm just not a fan of what this game does to people. I can't help but get a little upset when I get started on it."

In and out. There was nothing stopping him from making an excuse to leave. He could go chat up NPCs at the market if it got bad enough. He could just log off. He had escape routes.

Th-th-thmp. Th-thmp...​

@Rhela Elahka

 

[Rhela Elahka]

"... Ah... makes sense..." Rhela glances around a bit. She sent him a friend request quietly. Might as well- in case they meet again or something! "Accept that if you want... I should... maybe get some actual food irl before long." She takes a breath as she stands up, patting down her skirt. "Sorry for bothering you for such a length of time."

She opens her palm menu again, clearly debating logging out right then and there. "Take care of yourself, and be careful, please." Things were... getting awkward for her.

@Ash Vargold

 

[Ash Vargold]

The friend request notification made Ash jump - he'd been so focused on regulating his heart that he'd briefly blocked out everything else. He blinked at the notification a few times as if it might start to flicker at him, then let out his breath. It was a change in the conversation's direction, and he seized that change like a lifeline.

"Oh, thank you." He opened up his menu and immediately accepted the friend request. Here was a name he'd keep an eye on for sure... "You definitely should get some food. It's easy to forget in here, sometimes."

He stood up and brushed his pants off. The shift in his demeanor was immediate, and maybe a little off-putting, but Ash was just happy to feel his heart settle back into something manageable. He flicked an ear Rhela's way, then offered a hand to shake. "It was good to speak with you. I'd say you should log out and never come back, but..."

If the offer was taken, the handshake was quick. Otherwise, Ash pulled his hand back.

"If you need help, don't be afraid to send a message. It's important to stick together in here."

@Rhela Elahka

 

[Rhela Elahka]

"Oh, trust me, I would enjoy never coming back, but I've already said made a vow to protect someone in this place." She took Ash's hand with a slight smile. A quick handshake and quickly releasing her hand. "... And I'll be sure to send a message if I need any help at all. Same thing to you, if you need help, send a message. But you probably have others who are higher on that list than I am."

She turned, taking a deep breath and navigating to the logout button. And clicking it. Rhela's body would vanish, just like that.

@Ash Vargold