double your live, double your fun

[unbr8kable]

Who: Everyone
Where: Just outside the hotel
When: Day 30, early morning

[There're a table and some chairs set up outside of the front entrance. Hurricane and Nemesis are seated there like those kids looking for passers-by to sign their petitions or sponsor animals. A modest sign in front says "Free Cheer"]

Buttpats! Get'cher buttpats here!

Pep talks, dude, don't give people the wrong idea.

It's not for us to say what motivates people. I mean, in this case it kind of literally is, but whatever.

Anyway, stop on by and gimme a couple of words. Whatever you pick, I’ll do the whole motivational speech thing about it.

And I swear to help out, or if there's something else you need, I guess. Either way, points.

[The app indicates this is a double live.]

Comments

[crossmyheartandhope]

Nah. Just "Cheer" made the sign look kinda plain, is all.

[metafaliure]

I suppose it's not technically false advertising.

[crossmyheartandhope]

I mean, either way it's accurate? So I figured, makes more sense to go with what looks good. Y'know?

[metafaliure]

I suppose so. So you're providing cheer based on a keyword that I supply?

[crossmyheartandhope]

Yep, got it in one.

[metafaliure]

Then, 'hope'.

[crossmyheartandhope]

...pulling out the big guns, huh?

Okay, gimme a sec to think. Guess I better take this one serious.

[metafaliure]

Here I thought it would be an easier topic.

[crossmyheartandhope]

It's cool, it's cool. Just kind of a big one in a place like this, y'know?

[metafaliure]

Fair enough, I suppose.

[crossmyheartandhope]

Okay. Here goes: hope.

So, it sucks here. Like, pretty hard. But there's a ton of us, and everyone's got different things they're good at, and pretty much everyone here's set on not being here.

Maybe it won't be today, or tomorrow - but we are gonna get out of here.

There's a way somewhere. We've just gotta find it.

[metafaliure]

Oh, that is a good one.

[crossmyheartandhope]

Uh. Thanks?

[metafaliure]

You can give it again when I come up with an escape plan.

[crossmyheartandhope]

Yeah?

[Casually takes his phone out of his pocket and shuts off the live.]

Got any thoughts so far?

[metafaliure]

Well, I know the powers they give us probably won't do it. At least, not directly. I might be able to build something that can disrupt the simulation, but after that it's hard to tell where to go from there...

[crossmyheartandhope]

...simulation?

[metafaliure]

Right, my theory is that this entire town is a simulation. All the buildings, all the games, all the powers. We're trapped for real, but not in this place.

[crossmyheartandhope]

[Welp. It's not like he hasn't had that thought before. He seems to think that through for a minute - opens his mouth like he wants to say something, then closes it again. He comes out with this, instead:]

...I get VR handling video and audio. Hell, their vid room's got holograms you can touch. But if it's all fake, how're they simulating like. The flavor of food, and actual open wounds and stuff?

[metafaliure]

Ultimately everything we can perceive is a function of nerve signals to the brain. If they could be artificially reproduced, we could be fooled into thinking anything is happening.

[crossmyheartandhope]

Death, too?

[metafaliure]

It's not as though we have a frame of reference to compare it to. Temporarily shutting off all our sensations could accomplish something similar.

[crossmyheartandhope]

[Thinking that through. Then, finally:]

What makes you think it's this, instead of something else?