Chapter 126: One for all, and all for one.
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Chapter 126: One for all, and all for one.
Ozzy watched the trio of adventurers run out of the butcher shop and head for the tavern to get a clue about the entrance to the dungeon. They seemed nice - playing the game for the adventure of it all. The last few minutes bothered him though.
"Rolly, tell me what the hell just happened?"
Rolly was looking around his shop and poking into cupboards. From one of them he produced a bag of stale cookies, "Hmm, these aren't bad. But I think they might be dog biscuits. Do you have a dog, Ozzy?"
Squirmie flew in the door and stuck his head into the bag. Ozzy looked at Rolly and his pet chewing up the dry, stale cookies. Was there anything the two wouldn't eat? "No, I don't have a dog."
"Great, we call dibs then. Oh, what just happened? Isn't that a bit obvious? You and I just sent three nice people down into a rabbit-themed, undead hell-hole in search of loot, EP, and adventure. Maybe even a chance to find a pet."Emerging from the sanctum of Nøv€lß¡n☆, this essence holds secrets untold.
Sometimes Rolly was a master of the obvious. It was one of the reasons people underestimated his intelligence. You had to ask the question just right, "I'm more thinking about how I have a butcher shop and why you ran in here suddenly and said what you did."
The hungry duo had finished the bag. Squirmie flew upstairs to explore. Rolly pondered the question, "I get it, you mean if we consider breaking the immersion? Then I'd describe it as the two of us, in our roles as The Butcher of Sedgewick and The Simple Shepherd, entertained three guests who came to take part in our scripted quests. Same stuff we've done for years."
Ozzy drummed his fingers on the counter, "Rolly, how did you know what to do? These quests just seem to have a script and we play along without having read it. Doesn't it bother you that the AI is sticking stuff in our heads?"
Rolly stood up and closed the door and locked it, "Let's go upstairs. Squirmie? I need you to make sure no one’s around while I talk to Ozzy."
So saying, the bug flew out an open window of the third-floor room where Rolly led Ozzy. A minute later the bug flew back in.
Rolly sat on the floor and waited for Ozzy to do the same.
"Truth time, Ozzy. The AI can't put thoughts in your head. It's frozen at -452 degrees. I'll remind you that you negotiated with the AI to essentially kill and freeze you, and upload your mind into the game. The AI isn't putting things into your head, you put your head into the AI."
"But..." Rolly held up a hand, cutting him off, "I'm not done yet, just giving you time to consider my words."
"Let's consider how the game works. Everyone accepts getting better with weapons, acrobatics, riding, and other things. That's also the game influencing us. We don't mind because it's what we want."
Ozzy looked up from his reading and dismissed the screen, "The guy that thought he was the world’s greatest director? I hated that guy. We all knew the script, but he kept wanting to micro-manage everything. That production was six months of sheer frustration. I was so glad when he just quit suddenly."
"So, let’s think about how Leonardo influenced you in your role, and how Wally the AI influences you."
"You're right. I'd much rather have these little mental nudges than constant harassment by that ass, Leonardo. I was so happy to see him gone."
Rolly grinned, "So was Suzette."
"Suzette? Yeah, he was really hard on her all the time."
"Worse than that. He was pressuring her for 'favors'. And hinted she'd never work in that game again. It was strange how all those pictures from his personal files got sent to upper management, the media, the government, and his wife."
"Oh, shit."
Rolly grinned, "Ask her for the story, it's a good one. Oh, and before I forget, Squirmie found this near where you killed Leroy." He tossed a scratched and burnt ring to Ozzy."
AbusedRing of Mental Reflection
This once shiny ring is made out of Ethereal Silver from the Astral Plane. Now scratched and burnt, Someone has treated it poorly, but somehow it still works. Someone should take better care of their stuff!
The ring creates a subtle disruption in magical spells or skills used to read your mind. A probe to find your deepest desire will instead find a memory of when you kicked a puppy, or when you cheated on an exam.
A powerful being can pierce the disruption, but why should they when a cursory scan of your mind only shows your surface thoughts about donkeys, farting, and an oddly shaped potato you found yesterday? Increases your chances at winning at poker and telling a lie to your mother with a straight face.
"Whew, yeah, I didn't know magic items could hold a grudge. I'll get it shined up good. But thanks, I really liked this ring and was missing it."
Ozzy stood up and put his hand on Rolly's shoulder, "Thanks. I think I needed that. I wasn't considering how much protection the roles gave us. I guess it's worth a little mental nudge now and then. I'm curious though, is it different at all for you and Ben."
Rolly grinned widely, and petted Squirmie on his shoulder, "Wouldn't know. Ben and I talked it over and a little bit after you and Suzie came back, we cut a deal with Wally to freeze us solid too."
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Chapter 126: One for all, and all for one.
Ozzy watched the trio of adventurers run out of the butcher shop and head for the tavern to get a clue about the entrance to the dungeon. They seemed nice - playing the game for the adventure of it all. The last few minutes bothered him though.
"Rolly, tell me what the hell just happened?"
Rolly was looking around his shop and poking into cupboards. From one of them he produced a bag of stale cookies, "Hmm, these aren't bad. But I think they might be dog biscuits. Do you have a dog, Ozzy?"
Squirmie flew in the door and stuck his head into the bag. Ozzy looked at Rolly and his pet chewing up the dry, stale cookies. Was there anything the two wouldn't eat? "No, I don't have a dog."
"Great, we call dibs then. Oh, what just happened? Isn't that a bit obvious? You and I just sent three nice people down into a rabbit-themed, undead hell-hole in search of loot, EP, and adventure. Maybe even a chance to find a pet."Emerging from the sanctum of Nøv€lß¡n☆, this essence holds secrets untold.
Sometimes Rolly was a master of the obvious. It was one of the reasons people underestimated his intelligence. You had to ask the question just right, "I'm more thinking about how I have a butcher shop and why you ran in here suddenly and said what you did."
The hungry duo had finished the bag. Squirmie flew upstairs to explore. Rolly pondered the question, "I get it, you mean if we consider breaking the immersion? Then I'd describe it as the two of us, in our roles as The Butcher of Sedgewick and The Simple Shepherd, entertained three guests who came to take part in our scripted quests. Same stuff we've done for years."
Ozzy drummed his fingers on the counter, "Rolly, how did you know what to do? These quests just seem to have a script and we play along without having read it. Doesn't it bother you that the AI is sticking stuff in our heads?"
Rolly stood up and closed the door and locked it, "Let's go upstairs. Squirmie? I need you to make sure no one’s around while I talk to Ozzy."
So saying, the bug flew out an open window of the third-floor room where Rolly led Ozzy. A minute later the bug flew back in.
Rolly sat on the floor and waited for Ozzy to do the same.
"Truth time, Ozzy. The AI can't put thoughts in your head. It's frozen at -452 degrees. I'll remind you that you negotiated with the AI to essentially kill and freeze you, and upload your mind into the game. The AI isn't putting things into your head, you put your head into the AI."
"But..." Rolly held up a hand, cutting him off, "I'm not done yet, just giving you time to consider my words."
"Let's consider how the game works. Everyone accepts getting better with weapons, acrobatics, riding, and other things. That's also the game influencing us. We don't mind because it's what we want."
Ozzy looked up from his reading and dismissed the screen, "The guy that thought he was the world’s greatest director? I hated that guy. We all knew the script, but he kept wanting to micro-manage everything. That production was six months of sheer frustration. I was so glad when he just quit suddenly."
"So, let’s think about how Leonardo influenced you in your role, and how Wally the AI influences you."
"You're right. I'd much rather have these little mental nudges than constant harassment by that ass, Leonardo. I was so happy to see him gone."
Rolly grinned, "So was Suzette."
"Suzette? Yeah, he was really hard on her all the time."
"Worse than that. He was pressuring her for 'favors'. And hinted she'd never work in that game again. It was strange how all those pictures from his personal files got sent to upper management, the media, the government, and his wife."
"Oh, shit."
Rolly grinned, "Ask her for the story, it's a good one. Oh, and before I forget, Squirmie found this near where you killed Leroy." He tossed a scratched and burnt ring to Ozzy."
AbusedRing of Mental Reflection
This once shiny ring is made out of Ethereal Silver from the Astral Plane. Now scratched and burnt, Someone has treated it poorly, but somehow it still works. Someone should take better care of their stuff!
The ring creates a subtle disruption in magical spells or skills used to read your mind. A probe to find your deepest desire will instead find a memory of when you kicked a puppy, or when you cheated on an exam.
A powerful being can pierce the disruption, but why should they when a cursory scan of your mind only shows your surface thoughts about donkeys, farting, and an oddly shaped potato you found yesterday? Increases your chances at winning at poker and telling a lie to your mother with a straight face.
"Whew, yeah, I didn't know magic items could hold a grudge. I'll get it shined up good. But thanks, I really liked this ring and was missing it."
Ozzy stood up and put his hand on Rolly's shoulder, "Thanks. I think I needed that. I wasn't considering how much protection the roles gave us. I guess it's worth a little mental nudge now and then. I'm curious though, is it different at all for you and Ben."
Rolly grinned widely, and petted Squirmie on his shoulder, "Wouldn't know. Ben and I talked it over and a little bit after you and Suzie came back, we cut a deal with Wally to freeze us solid too."
Chapter 126: One for all, and all for one.Ozzy watched the trio of adventurers run out of the butcher shop and head for the tavern to get a clue about the entrance to the dungeon. They seemed nice - playing the game for the adventure of it all. The last few minutes bothered him though."Rolly, tell me what the hell just happened?"Rolly was looking around his shop and poking into cupboards. From one of them he produced a bag of stale cookies, "Hmm, these aren't bad. But I think they might be dog biscuits. Do you have a dog, Ozzy?" Squirmie flew in the door and stuck his head into the bag. Ozzy looked at Rolly and his pet chewing up the dry, stale cookies. Was there anything the two wouldn't eat? "No, I don't have a dog." "Great, we call dibs then. Oh, what just happened? Isn't that a bit obvious? You and I just sent three nice people down into a rabbit-themed, undead hell-hole in search of loot, EP, and adventure. Maybe even a chance to find a pet."Emerging from the sanctum of Nvln, this essence holds secrets untold.Sometimes Rolly was a master of the obvious. It was one of the reasons people underestimated his intelligence. You had to ask the question just right, "I'm more thinking about how I have a butcher shop and why you ran in here suddenly and said what you did."The hungry duo had finished the bag. Squirmie flew upstairs to explore. Rolly pondered the question, "I get it, you mean if we consider breaking the immersion? Then I'd describe it as the two of us, in our roles as The Butcher of Sedgewick and The Simple Shepherd, entertained three guests who came to take part in our scripted quests. Same stuff we've done for years."Ozzy drummed his fingers on the counter, "Rolly, how did you know what to do? These quests just seem to have a script and we play along without having read it. Doesn't it bother you that the AI is sticking stuff in our heads?"Rolly stood up and closed the door and locked it, "Let's go upstairs. Squirmie? I need you to make sure no one's around while I talk to Ozzy."So saying, the bug flew out an open window of the third-floor room where Rolly led Ozzy. A minute later the bug flew back in.Rolly sat on the floor and waited for Ozzy to do the same. "Truth time, Ozzy. The AI can't put thoughts in your head. It's frozen at -452 degrees. I'll remind you that you negotiated with the AI to essentially kill and freeze you, and upload your mind into the game. The AI isn't putting things into your head, you put your head into the AI.""But..." Rolly held up a hand, cutting him off, "I'm not done yet, just giving you time to consider my words." "Let's consider how the game works. Everyone accepts getting better with weapons, acrobatics, riding, and other things. That's also the game influencing us. We don't mind because it's what we want."Ozzy looked up from his reading and dismissed the screen, "The guy that thought he was the world's greatest director? I hated that guy. We all knew the script, but he kept wanting to micro-manage everything. That production was six months of sheer frustration. I was so glad when he just quit suddenly.""So, let's think about how Leonardo influenced you in your role, and how Wally the AI influences you.""You're right. I'd much rather have these little mental nudges than constant harassment by that ass, Leonardo. I was so happy to see him gone."Rolly grinned, "So was Suzette.""Suzette? Yeah, he was really hard on her all the time.""Worse than that. He was pressuring her for 'favors'. And hinted she'd never work in that game again. It was strange how all those pictures from his personal files got sent to upper management, the media, the government, and his wife." "Oh, shit."Rolly grinned, "Ask her for the story, it's a good one. Oh, and before I forget, Squirmie found this near where you killed Leroy." He tossed a scratched and burnt ring to Ozzy."AbusedRing of Mental ReflectionThis once shiny ring is made out of Ethereal Silver from the Astral Plane. Now scratched and burnt, Someone has treated it poorly, but somehow it still works. Someone should take better care of their stuff!The ring creates a subtle disruption in magical spells or skills used to read your mind. A probe to find your deepest desire will instead find a memory of when you kicked a puppy, or when you cheated on an exam. A powerful being can pierce the disruption, but why should they when a cursory scan of your mind only shows your surface thoughts about donkeys, farting, and an oddly shaped potato you found yesterday? Increases your chances at winning at poker and telling a lie to your mother with a straight face."Whew, yeah, I didn't know magic items could hold a grudge. I'll get it shined up good. But thanks, I really liked this ring and was missing it."Ozzy stood up and put his hand on Rolly's shoulder, "Thanks. I think I needed that. I wasn't considering how much protection the roles gave us. I guess it's worth a little mental nudge now and then. I'm curious though, is it different at all for you and Ben."Rolly grinned widely, and petted Squirmie on his shoulder, "Wouldn't know. Ben and I talked it over and a little bit after you and Suzie came back, we cut a deal with Wally to freeze us solid too."
