No More Sacrifices!
While groping at the sky, I finally internalized that this place was virtual reality. The seemingly endless open heavens above were all fake. The Outernet's inner walls, glassy to the touch, were right there within arm's reach. Only then did I notice the horizontal tiers slicing endlessly across the Outernet—like game matchmaking for players of similar skill...
"Let's go meet Tiara's little tumor together, yeah?"
"...Yeah."
I poked and prodded at it, but no matter what, I couldn't imagine smashing through this thick wall. Of course, I didn't have time for stray thoughts.
"THE-IAAA!"
The culprit who'd smashed the inner wall herself? Eyeball-tipped tentacles were coiling around skyscrapers. Theia was carefully gauging the distance between her fist and the glass ceiling (physics edition). Normally, I'd hop off her back and cheer on her punch, but...
"Hold on tight!"
"...Urk...!"
Crack! Grind!
The screech of the building's exterior tearing apart echoed as the ground shook harder and harder. If I got down carelessly and fell, it'd be a disaster. No, don't even think that. My arms were already going slack...!
Why did I have to experience acrophobia so damn much? This, this cursed open-world game.
"Then...! Instead...!"
I closed my eyes and focused my senses. Theia steadying her breath, her white hair tickling my nose—I erased it all. Starlight. I recalled the starlight hidden in her bodysuit. To her, our duel was just a warm-up, but I'd fought Theia for real. And back then... for a split second, I'd grasped that starlight.
"...I'll signal you."
"Huh...? What...?"
I felt Theia falter at my low whisper. But I just clung tighter to her back, doubling down on that starlight sensation.
"Three."
Theia clicked her tongue, clenching her fist.
"Two."
The vibrations from below intensified. No more delaying.
"One...!"
Got it!
Starlight flickered to life near the heart of her bodysuit. I seized the moment, stretching opponent time waaaay out and honing my senses. Nosebleed trickled down, my head burned hot. The bodysuit's starlight bloomed like a flower, floating before my eyes. I'd finally peeled back Theia's bodysuit.
A massive five-starlight. Fitting for story-locked gear—Legendary tier or higher.
Haa... No time to bask in accomplishment. I quickly scanned for functions that could help Theia. 'Cloaking Veil' or 'Parkour'? Useless for breaking walls. 'Hack Resistance' and 'Detection Resistance'? Pass—our position was already blown. Left with... 'Strength Boost'? Helpful, sure, but... that much?
As I agonized in that brief window, I spotted faint starlight glowing on Theia's forearm where her fist was clenched.
That's....
Inside the bodysuit. A ring Theia wore directly. An accessory I'd never seen in a game without an 'accessory' slot.
The gear's starlight was fading from neglect. But the moment I clocked the ring's design, I released the maxed-out opponent time acceleration.
Time snapped back, prickling pain crushing my skull. But...
"Now!"
Fuu...!
"Haaaah!"
I breathed faint life into Theia's thrusting fist on my cue.
Krunch!
Theia's fist slammed into the fake sky.
"This... real?"
Theia stared in disbelief at her handiwork. Her punch hadn't pierced the tier wall like the monster's tentacles. Instead...
Zzzzzzt...!Crackle...!Sizzle...!
Before even touching the wall, it tore a pitch-black hole straight through Outernet space.
Dimensional Punch! Dimensional Punch! Theia's a god!
Of course, not really.
"A temporary comms packet."
"Comms packet...? With who...?"
No, Theia. You aspiring Netdiver? She stared at me like some illiterate merc, not grasping my words. Sure, I'd never actually hacked for real—just yanking game knowledge by force.
"That guy's voice from earlier... He's not on this server, right?"
Theia nodded at my question.
Figured.... John Felix, was it? His voice sounded like it was coming from inside a Cloaking Veil, so I'd mixed it up. In-game, no voice chat—just speech bubbles. Plus, he'd revealed himself outside it, so I'd subconsciously assumed he was still with Theia.
But that guy. His face rang a bell. Unfamiliar name, but the Netdiver protagonist's NPC who popped up every death: 'How about my assistance?' Accept, and your HP/stamina ballooned. A noob-mode difficulty slider! I'd never used it, so it took a sec to place him.
Game lore-wise... he was a Biomechanic. Healer class. And non-playable Mechanics weren't combat-fit. So? He'd bailed off-server when shit hit the fan.
"He called you."
The identical rings on Theia and that guy's hand. Exact same as the game item you bought for NPC affinity. In multiplayer, it had a twist:
"Theia, your tumor invited you."
Friend request function. Alerts your presence anywhere in-game... even Outernet or no-signal zones. 'Friend' system. The ring's core probably handled that.
A gamble, but it paid off...!
And friends could obviously do this.
Theia snapped alert at the familiar voice, staring into the black hole her fist had punched.
"Felix...!"
Community systems with My Room always bundled this: friend invites to your My Room. Shove through this black tunnel, and you'd warp to Felix's My Room. I'd once dreamed of expanding mine to invite Dorothy. After we escaped here, obviously.
"Theia, let's go!"
But Theia gulped hard and grabbed the back of my neck again with one hand.
"Gack...! Theia...? What...!"
No explanation—she just shoved me into the tunnel. Half my body hit the black void, and the handsome guy on the other side jumped, staring at me. I glanced around. A massive resort-like space. Felix's My Room, and half my torso was tumbling in upside-down.
"Theia? No, that clone kid...?"
Clone kid? From a pretty-boy twink? No time to gripe about nicknames. The look on Theia's face before shoving me was all too familiar.
"Hey! Push me back! Theia's that psycho bitch trying to sacrifice herself!"
My yell made shoving Theia and dumbstruck Felix (or Penis, whatever) freeze. No way, clone or not—you can't read your original's face?
"You think... I'd let you sacrifice yourself...?"
I splayed my limbs wide! Spider-clinging to the tunnel's thick ceiling outside.
"Damn it! Just shove!"
Penis dude snapped to at Theia's voice, shoving my head back through.
BOOM!! ZZZT!
My head crossed back into the tentacle-wrecked Outernet.
"Peekaboo."
"...Hahaha! You psycho bitch!"
Theia's ankle was wrapped tight in the monster's tentacle tip, her tragic smile beaming.
...Knew it. That's why she shoved me first.
"Don't worry. I'll find a way out somehow."
Seeing her weary smile, I respected how our shit-shih tzu hadn't slapped me after her 'Get in the pod, Dorothy' trauma.
If I hadn't braced in the tunnel...!
"Shut it."
I snapped sharp, head whipping around. What now? Can't let Theia sacrifice. Those eyes. Resigned eyes. Real ones. Leave her, and she'd be monster tentacle toy or Outernet cyber gladiator, pad-lipping deep-sea horrors.
Then...
Right....!
I jerked my head up. Why was I trapped here to begin with? Didn't know how to exit Outernet. So how'd I enter without knowing that?
Normally... Outernet unlocked post-story. City gov access key, or smash City gov and lift restrictions. One or the other.
Mega-corp route to smash City gov? Wreck city landmarks—storage hubs. That's how I'd logged in: partial unlock of City gov's Outernet access.
So... auto-sucked into Outernet. Specifically, my My Room.
Exit should lead to My Room too, right?
"Tiara...! Hurry in!"
Shut up, Theia. No sacrifices in front of me anymore. Not me, not Dorothy. We all survive.
Gangster bugs? Crush 'em all...
"Wait."
Hold up? Something... something... Snap!
A spark in my brain. Can I even...? Won't this break the game story? But the more I thought, no other answer.
"Tiara! Quick...! Can't hold much longer!"
Theia gave up shoving me, swatting creeping tentacles off the rooftop one by one. One leg bound, she twisted to block any toward me.
"Theia..."
Screw it. Go big. I shoved my head back to Felix and bellowed.
"Exit! Make an exit! Outernet exit! On my head!"
"Fuck! Got it!"
Quick on the draw. Must be that lone antenna bobble... A familiar translucent pane floated before Penis-face. My Room edit UI.
He fiddled somehow...! Summoned a transparent mirror, jamming it to my face.
"Puhahaaa!"
Tiara. Spent a full day crashed in the wasteland... half-awakened!
"Huh?"
But where was my shit-shih tzu, who should be knee-pillow-serving or glued to my side?
> BOOM!
> Rat-a-tat-tat-tat!
> Gyaaaaah!
Guns and screams instead. Massive firefight noise echoing to the tower top.
"What...! No way."
Dorothy, you went out to fight?
I scrambled out the tower exterior.
> Kill it!
> Monster bastard! Die!
> I'm beat!
"Haa... "
In the original game, towers and landmarks were safe zones. Respawn spots. Open-world mobs chasing to respawn? Hell no.
But this was reality. Game-reality lines blurring sharper. Confirming my plan too.
> KABOOM!
> Rat-a-tat-tat!
A missed shell slammed the tower. Bug-like mayfly gang punks in off-road trucks. Chasing a red blur moving too fast to track...!
"Dorothy!"
Dumb call. Rash call. My hasty judgment tormented Dorothy again. Drove her to fight. Even...
Save Theia, save Dorothy... I had to save everyone—still split half in Outernet, half in reality. Staring across two worlds. Just holding this drained noseblood drops. Without Netdiver compute power, my brain would've fried dead. Same without My Room server expansion.
"But...!"
Trembling legs to the railing. Up via levitation field... now just flesh and bone.
"I can do it...!"
Dorothy's red afterimage flared barriers in the distance. Heading tower-ward, perfect.
"If it's me...!"
And Dorothy!
Sunrise wasteland. Harsh winds. Flapping clothes. Gulp...!
"I'm a menhera... I'm a menhera... "
Lying to myself.
Burning lifetime vocal cords now...!
"DOROTCHIIIIIII!!!!!!"
I summoned my shit-shih tzu and hurled myself off the tower.