CHIRAL: SIDE Y

CoolZack
>Hmm.
>Once the current situation is cleared up, there's something I'd like to try.

>Shellgowrath trying to barge inside the game, thankfully without luck, gave me an idea.

>If anyone's interested, I'll need someone to get a few things.

>Namely a piece of chalk, some wax, and a bit of string.

After a few minute's wait, with Tipsy and Yuptam waiting patiently, your hearing comes back to the point where you can hear them-- and the chatlog, which you guess is supposed to be the Orderlog, but since you're Gene, it doesn't really matter.

You can finally check in on all the bedlam, and you proceed to.

ChatlogShow

CoolZack: Hmm.
CoolZack: Once the current situation is cleared up, there's something I'd like to try.
tiptopGipgop: That’s going to rely on how stable Tars is.
Crast Pactian: numbers just mentioned that tars is alive!
tiptopGipgop: I can read, Crast.
tiptopGipgop: He’s deaf, and can’t elaborate, so you can see how this causes problems.
1234567890: h35 0k 4nd 1m w0rk1n6 0n m4k1n6 h1m 5749 7h47 w49
CoolZack: Shellgowrath trying to barge inside the game, thankfully without luck, gave me an idea.
EXA: ooo ooo ooo ooo
EXA: are you gonn bee
EXA: another e-e-e-evil forcscse
YUPPERS: this is COOL ZACK you are DEFAMING.
1234567890: 934h d0n7 d155 c001 24ck 11k3 7h47
CoolZack: If anyone's interested, I'll need someone to get a few things.
CoolZack: Namely a piece of chalk, some wax, and a bit of string.
YUPPERS: i have PLENTY within my VAULT
YUPPERS: of that TRASH VARIETY
YUPPERS: if you are INTERESTED.
1234567890: m3 700 8u7 45 90u c4n pr0b4b19 6u355 1 c4n7 jump 84ck w17h 74r5 50 w3r3 57uck h3r3 un711 50m30n3 8u575 0p3n 7h3 w411
cripesalmighty: Hey, uh…
cripesalmighty: Everyone, um.
cripesalmighty: I really almightily screwed up. So I’m sorry. I just wanted to get Tars out of the cell asap and kinda forgot that grenades are dangerous shit.
1234567890: h3 5495 175 0k49
cripesalmighty: Well of course he’d say it’s okay because it’s goddamn Tars we’re talking about!!
cripesalmighty: I’m saying sorry to the fact that I actually did nearly kill him and also me, regardless of if he wants to preemptively forgive me!!
1234567890: h3 5495 7h475 f41r 700
tiptopGipgop: Cripes, augh
tiptopGipgop: Listen, you didn’t…
tiptopGipgop: Screw this, we can just talk in person. These headsets make conversation so confusing sometimes.
cripesalmighty: But it does clue in the Zacks, I guess.
tiptopGipgop: It seems fair to assume they are clued in regardless of where we’re talking.

"Your hearing's back," Tipsy says at last, taking a long breath.

"Yeah," you reply, "obviously, since we just had a headset convo on the down-low."

Yuptam stares at the both of you boredly. "Gene, do you ever truly invigorate yourself in a talking match between friends, or are you constantly tuned out?"

You nod firmly. "All the time! I guess it's just easy at this point to do both at once."

Tipsy grasps your chin and turns your head to face her. "Okay, then pay attention to this conversation, Gene. Please."

"Alright," you say. The shock is starting to pulsate-- not go away, but shimmer in and out, the wave of force from the explosion still making waves throughout your carapace.

"Please don't be sorry for all that. I mean, by all reasonable definitions, you made a mistake. But we're all on pretty short fuses right now, and I need you to not worry about it. Everyone's going to be fine-- even Mulligan."

Mulligan swims amidst your thoughts again. "...god, I just needed him to get out of there. I-It'd been so long since he was a person."

"I know," she mutters, her voice wavering as much as yours, "I know. But Oats has gotta handle that now, and you know that it's just as big for Oats as it is for us. Bigger, probably."

"Wait, what?"

For a moment, she considers placing her head in her palm, and then pulls away, deciding it's easier to just not go down that route. "That's a later topic."

That's fair enough. "Okay, Tipsy, it's a later topic, and maybe the grenade explosion gets priority?"



Yuptam chimes in. "Recent events always get priority, Gene. That's another conversational topic-rule that you woefully grace over most of the time. You are quick to tangentalize and dodge."

"That's not a fair thing to say because basically everybody here does that!"

He scoffs. "Well, the first step to identifying a problem is solving it."

Tipsy shrugs slowly, turning back. "True enough."

Yes. That is a true statement worded correctly.

Yuptam retrieves a small pipe section from his MAGIC POCKETS and lazily tosses it into the PIT. "Either way, Gene, my point is that of convention. Everything will get discussed eventually. Organizing it in a sensible way is more important than silly conversational flow."

"What you're saying," murmurs Tipsy, "is true, in all the completely wrong ways."

"Yeah, what she said," you add.

She looks you in the eyes, clearing her throat softly and taking a long breath. "Gene, you are physically fine, I think. Yup can take a look if he really wants, but besides a hell of a scare, I don't think you even got burned."

You chuckle, and tap at your carapace. "Thick skin, I guess?"

"Well, we've all got thick skin. Explosions still certainly hurt."



You both take a look towards the opening in the floor, which still moves and pulsates confusingly. You say, with no sureness, "What do you think it actually is?"

"If I had to guess, there are two possibilities. It's the draw distance of the game, or there's no draw distance-- and that stuff is where the game gets so far out that the code breaks. Floating numbers and point interfexes, what have you. It's not really my field."

"I bet," you say, "it's a game mechanic. Most of the wacky shit that the heroes found was a game mechanic, right? Like, sure, it's probably just a glitch, a bug, but maybe not everything is chaotic and shitty?"

She chuckles warmly. "I'd like to be able to say that not everything is chaotic and shitty, for sure, Gene."

Yuptam watches the section of pipe go, and grunts.