[ESC] DJ geocities in da house

Rich

After a delightful meal at Mizu's, you all head back to the office to log into VR. A quick walk out of the lobby, and then you're moving to the concert. DJ geocities is a pretty trendy "individual". Geo, as the DJ prefers to be called, wants to only be known for the music. No single look, no single gender, just the music. There are entire shows where geocities is logged in remote. That's rare, since fans have requested at least the feeling of the DJ's presence.

Being West Coast, the night's party has already started. There are sims and VR jockeys all throughout the club. What's this club look like, Raleigh? Did you set this one up? Who are you expecting will already be here?

Adam

A lot of the more popular clubs in VR tend to emulate the look and feel of the real world. It's a form of escapism — I can't afford to get into the best clubs, so I'll hang out here — but they still rely on that common experience: someone creates an experience for you, and you're a consumer. The community I've founded is a little bit more complicated than that — we don't really provide a common look and feel to the space, because we want the members of the community to decide that for themselves. They're the architects of their own reality, and the views that get discussed in my community are a little more broad than "OMG, I THIS BAND! LOLZ!". I've recently been paying attention to topics about how to break commonly held perceptions in VR, like "how do I design a VR room that could not exist in the real world?" — but even I admit that's really snobbish. More an academic curiosity than an actual discussion.

I mean, who would want to spend more than a few minutes in a room that is explicitly designed to break your brain?

This club has a neat construction, very much like a lot of electronica concerts you might attend in real life — crowds of people, exuberant decorations, an energy in the room. This one is small, largely because Geo doesn't really want to be about the spectacle — just about the music. The room has a retro vibe. I'd imagine today's set will likely be inspired by some older classics. Most VR architects try to pair the visual/tactile experience of their shows. Most rooms have walls, and are in an enclosed space. This one is no different. The acoustics of this room even sound almost right — this is going to be an amazing show.

Rich

Geo is "spinning" some classic house. Remixing mostly Bad Boy Bill's Banging the Box series.

Sounds a bit like this:


To show of Geo's skills, there are "actual" turntables up on the suspended platform. Geo appears like an androgynous person in a yellow jumpsuit. Slightly olive skin, dark hair, very "easy to lose in a crowd". But the smile on Geo's face, not faked, pure. This is what the DJ lives for. And the mix, it is good.

People are hoping and bopping, most of them on the dancefloor. Of course, a certain percent of the denizens are pseudos, aka sims, used to fill out the crowd. How much AI do the sims have, Raleigh?

Jenni is showing her alt avatar, which is an adorable Japanese schoolgirl, like a younger, skinnier version of herself, complete with plaid shirt and red necktie. It isn't "sexied up", just seems to be one of her favorite skins.

Beatriz appears as she does IRL, nice black dress, makeup and all. She looks around at everyone (Jenni is appearing IRL to Beatriz, just not to you), and asks, "Should I, ah... change, Raleigh?"

You're spotted by BrokeNL, a lanky guy in a crazy white kung fu get-up, like a Shaw Brothers movie, with big cuffs and buttons and lots of gold flair. He's all smiles as he heads your way through the crowd.

How do you appear? Are you known as Raleigh here? How do you know BrokeNL?

What do you do?

Adam

In a dance club? Minimal. Usually it's just to up the atmosphere, but sometimes the record labels insist the sims have AI's that can play to the fantasies of people at the concert. Some people like the idea of a random, no-strings-attached hookup with an AI. I'm not really one of those people — the logistics of that kind of hookup are messy, and laundry intensive.

I'm always a little surprised to see Jenni's avatar — I mean, I've seen it before, and it's not shocking, but Jenni doesn't strike me as the kind of woman to hide her true self... I'm not one to judge though — it's her avatar. "Don't worry about it," I assure Beatriz, "I took the liberty of setting your account here's public default avatar to "scene appropriate random" — like mine — so we probably look like random rich white kids at a party to most people here... Unless you want to change, of course. I think you look great, though."

BrokeNL is an older member of my online circles — we started hanging out because of a similar taste in music, and it turned out we had similar beliefs about privacy, VR, and life too. I wave over to him and smirk at his outfit as he approaches.

Rich

"Oh, delightful," Beatriz trills. "I've always wanted to be a random rich white kid. Am I at least a girl?" She asks with a smirk, she's not perturbed by this, just amused.

BrokeNL comes up to you, parting through the crowd deftly, a smile wide on his face. "Rall! Jenn!" He calls and does a few mock kung-fu moves.

Jenni grins, "Hello, Broken-el. This is an associate of ours..."

Beatrz interrupts, pushing a hand forward to shake BrokeNL's, "Call me Bea. This is my first time here!" She's raising her voice over the music, since she doesn't have selective audio filters.

Adam

I flip off on public mode for a minute to see Beatriz' avatar — just to check — then answer, "Probably," for giggles before slipping back into private view with her. I smirk when she admits to this being her first time out, and I put a hand on Broken's shoulder, "how's the show treating you, BrokeNL?"

Rich

BrokeNL smile wide when Beatriz admits this is her first time. He doesn't drop it down like "virgin", but yeah, newbs are a treat. Any local customs for first timers?

When you ask how the show is treating BrokeNL, he raises an eyebrow dramatically, "It treats me like the fine dandy that I am, of course!" He's head bobbing to the music. The guy loves music, moving to the music, like this is the soundtrack to his life.

Beatriz is enjoying the music, too. She's smiling, dancing in place gently, more like moving to the beat. When BrokeNL catches her eye, she suddenly says, "Dance with me, Broken-El!" It's a pleasant demand, not in a diva tone, more like an enthusiastic
youth, really. He shrugs, then takes her hand and they gravitate to the center of the floor where others are dancing, normally in pairs, sometimes in small friend-circles.

Jenni laughs, "Wow, that's crazy! Hey, Raleigh, you want a drink?"

Adam

First timer customs? Depends on the group — some are pretty harmless, others are more ... extreme. The darker corners of the VR have people experiencing death from a first-hand perspective... The more hardcore of them don't even give them the choice in death. Those people are creepy. The one I was in last week puts you in a room with non-euclidean architecture, and sees how long you can last without freaking out... It's like a bad acid trip, but it's all in good fun. BrokenNL and I are big on living out personal fantasies — the grander the better. Like, say, taking down 20 skilled martial artists in a kung-fu brawl, or sleeping with a supermodel...

You know... stuff you couldn't necessarily do in real life. We're big on selling personal happiness in the VR.

I wave to Beatriz as she goes off to dance with BrokeNL, and nod to Jenni when she asks if I want a drink, "I don't know what the hell a venture capitalist would want for, but I have a feeling we're about to find out..."

Rich

Jenni laughs, "Who knows? Maybe she wants to be a random rich white teenage boy and you already nailed it?" She giggles, then slips into the crowd.

Alone in the sea of dancing people, you see that BrokeNL is dancing and showing off for Bea, who is taking it in stride, and trying some of his odd gravity defying antics.

You spot endy, clad in grey and beige, distinct in his attempts to blend in. He hasn't seen you yet. He's currently sitting at a booth, watching people. Like he does.

Dancing with "her" lightshow and sim entourage is HakuneMizul33t, a vocaloid from decades ago that's been "claimed" by a VR enthusiast. You're rather sure, from the way Mizu acts aggressively and sexually, that "she" is actually controlled by some guy. But the handler has deep pockets, and hacks non-stop, adding in lots of flair to the world and spaces, so most folks put up with Mizu.

Doing anything before Jenni returns?

Adam

I suppose that's possible. I lean against the bar, and let myself get lost in the music for a while with the "crowd sound" filtered down to a muffled rumble. I'm here for the music, more so than anything else... And maybe Beatriz. It's interesting, because it looks like BrokeNL is out to impress her, when Beatriz is just here to have fun. I don't know how well that's going to work out.

I'm just going to relax a minute before Jenni comes back... Just enjoy this moment.

Rich

The place has a hum to it, Raleigh. The music, the movement of the people, the pulse of the dataflow.

Your HUD gets a message from Bloo
Raleigh, it's Bloo. Encroachment tonight. Some Corp hackers trying to crash the party. Keep eyes peeled for new blood.

Rich

hey Raleigh, I'm going to compel your VR Don aspect here. If you choose to hunt down these supposed hackers, then I'll give you a Fate point for it. Of course, you'll need to ignore Jenni and Beatriz to pull it off.

Adam

Shit... That's not good.

I double tap my phone to bring up a console and twitch-type up a quick response.
I've got eyes on some business partners right now. Have you got a clue about entry points?

Rich

Jeni is heading over to you with blue-colored drinks.

Bloo responds:
Yes, got their insertion access, they piggy backed Mizu. Not sure if it was consensual. You can check their feed trails, I marked them.

I'm adding a free aspect of "Marked Trail" to the pair of hackers here at the club.

You can tag that Aspect for a roll once the first time without paying a FP.

Adam

Well, the last thing our little community needs is the company of a few corporate heads trying to find out who's cutting into their business. I make my way over to Jenni, and keeping my eyes on the crowd I whisper low, "Jenni, I need to be a dick for just a minute — can you keep an eye on Beatriz? I shouldn't be long. 5-10 minutes tops." ... I hope.

Rich

Jenni smirks, "First time for everything. Don't worry, I've got it." It's a joke, you realize, Raleigh. She knows you have work and she'll cover you.

Adam

OOC: I'm taking the fate point.

I smile back at Jenni and turn my attention to the crowd. "Ada," I call in a private chat, "can you hide all non-AI entities in the room, and flag anyone in my trusted list? I want to do a sweep for anyone using Proxies or known corporate IP addresses."

Rich

Let's make this a test. These hackers are pretty good, so I'd like to make this a full-on conflict between you and them.

I'll have you go first, since you have the heads up on them.

Adam

I'd like to quickly ID them so we can kick them the hell out.
(Rolled: 4dF+2. Total: 4. Rolls: 0, 0, +, +)

Rich

Ada drops out the AIs from your view, then flags your known persona as green. That leaves only five unknowns. You weed out three as users in your gray list, meaning they're here through a friend of a friend, on a short-term basis.

There are your hackers. One appears as a male, in the crowd, dancing with sims, probably, but they're invisible to you. The other is watching endy, a table away, appears as female. They blend in rather well.

What do you do?

Adam

I presume that these hackers are working from the same server, though I could be wrong... It won't ultimately matter, because I'm kicking them both out. Part of the way VR was made publicly accessible is by making the coding portion of the world available through physical interaction in the VR realm. I can kick anyone from here, but I can leave with them if I'm touching them physically. So I can ride their connection to their lobby, find out who they are, and wreak some havoc in their home.

I cross the distance to the lady hacker, playing it cool... It's time to bring down the ban-hammer.

Rich

She notices your approach eventually, but her pose is still relaxed. She doesn't seem to have an idea that you're onto her. She looks up with a languid expression, confidant, like she's the prettiest girl in the room. "Hello there."

You feel her gently reaching out for information on you, searching through the feed and the matrix and whatnot for your details.

What do you do?

Adam

Even prettier than me?

I kid. What she's going to find is my business IP, which will lead her to my media profile — a huge display of "entrepreneur of the year" and "hottest start-up kingpin" awards. I'm hoping the flashy profile will keep her distracted long enough to let me do my thing... "My, my miss... You certainly do know how to put on a show. Can I buy you a drink?" I'm flashing her my best smile. Anything to get her to touch me so I can spring my trap.

Rich

She looks up, a little smile on her face that says "oh, did I?" like she didn't mean it. "I don't need a drink... Raleigh." She looks to the seat beside her, inviting you sit take it, and talk.

Adam

I smile coyly, and clap my hands in restrained surprise. "I suppose my IP address precedes me." I take the seat next to her, and lean back calmly, "what brings a pretty girl like you to such a small little venue?"

Rich

She turns to face you, her eyes flashing like her smile, "I'm BIT-r, Raleigh. I came here on Mizu's invite." She inclines her head towards the vocaloid. "Been to other VR escapades, but this one... it's clean." She looks around appreciatively, "A girl could get used to this."

She winks once, "Come here often?"

Adam

"Whenever Geo's playing," I answer plainly, "I like these smaller venues – they're more intimate, you know? I think there are only five or six people here I've never met before. So how did you meet Mizu?"

Rich

BIT-r listens without moving, looking at you intently. Ada pings you with "She is probing your IP more deeply, Raleigh. Do you wish for me to extend defenses further? It will become noticeable to her, most likely."

When you ask about Mizu, BIT-r answers simply, smoothly, "Similar interests. I was building my own vocaloid and heavy on the fan communities. I chatted with Mizu, and, uh, they mentioned this place. I know, sort of weird to go from "we both like this one thing" to "hey, come out to this club with me", but I don't get out much. I'm a private person normally." The last bit of her cover story seems a bit more revelatory that you probably anticipated.

Adam

This woman sure is pushy for a first time encounter. "Keep her out of our work and home network, but there's nothing we can do about her looking up our work IP..."

I smile back at her and nod along, "well you came to the right place for a private party — I don't suppose you'd care to dance?" I offer her my hand. Take the bait you stupid pencil-pusher.

Rich

BIT-r looks at your hand for a moment, then takes it, letting you pull her from her seat to head to the dance floor.

Let's see how well you keep BIT-r out of your network, Raleigh. I'd like to see this as a simple roll, with you and BIT-r pitting your hacking skills against each other.

Her ongoing intrusion attempts will count as her "attack" (Overcome action) on your secret identity.

Since taking her hand serves as your intrusion, we can count that as your attack (Overcome action) on her defenses.

Let's see some dice!

Rich

BIT-r's first Overcome roll on Raleigh, she's Cleverly trying to distract you while running her inquiries):
(Rolled: 4dF+2. Total: 4. Rolls: +, -, +, +)

Adam

Well, I suppose that might be clever, if she hadn't tripped our defenses being in here, and I wasn't actively trying to keep her out of the nondescript parts of my life... Fortunately I've been extremely careful to keep my work and personal life separate.

(Rolled: 4dF+2. Total: 3. Rolls: +, 0, 0, 0)

Adam

OOC: using that free aspect, marked trail to keep tabs on what she's looking at, bumping that up to a 5.

Rich

Actually, invoking an Aspect gives you a +2 on the roll. It stands at a 6. That's two better than BIT-r's roll. If you want to spent a Fate Point on another Aspect for another +2, you can succeed with style.

Regardless, you beat her .

Rich

BIT-r moves to the dance floor with you, her hand in yours, held lightly. She's smiling, maybe a little excited about this. She starts moving with the movement, smoothly, choreographed. Her dancing is pretty textbook, might be lifted from some mo-cap of a Dance Central game. She keeps eyes on your, and the dancing isn't too presentational.

At least she's trying to dance with you, which is still better than BrokeNL. He's doing some serious acrobatics. You catch Bea's eye as she's dancing. Her body moves well, natural movement to the music, not some hyper-active gyrations. She smiles at you, looks to BIT-r, raises her brows in a silent question. More curious than anything.

Rich

Ada whispers in your ear, "I have successfully isolated her, Raleigh. We can boot her from the VR system when you wish, and if you want to trail her back to her lobby, that is also possible. Let me know when you wish to do this."

Adam

I smile to myself, pleased that the time I spent segregating the work network from home has paid off. "Do it, Ada — and switch me over to my home profile when we hit the other side. Let's find out what these rats are after."

Rich

*BAMF*

You're in a very sleek-looking corporate lobby. There are suits and execs here, all moving in and out of an intranet. A very confused, woman is standing in front of you. She's in her thirties, thin, not unattractive, but definitely not the hotness from the club. "You...? You booted me?"

Adam

I'm looking around the corporate lobby as the very confused lady is trying to get her bearings, "Nice digs..." I look over to her, and nod, "I did — and don't bother trying to log in again, I've got friends watching you. Hey — what the hell was a suit like you doing at a posh indie concert? You know... I bet I could find out if I started scouring the NAS drives for your username..."

In fact, I'm going to pull up a terminal and do just that!

Rich

"I'm not a suit!" she says angrily. "They pay the bills, but I'm my own person. Are you even him?"

Terminal reads:
Patricia Tern Age - 34 Employment - Samsung-Comcast Zaibatsu Position - Security Consultant

Adam

"Am I even who?" I answer blankly, still browsing her files, "you do know security consultants typically hack their employer's servers, right? I'll just check your contract, and clear that up for you... Seriously though, what's a girl like you doing at a concert on a business IP?"

Rich

"Raleigh the wunderkind." she replies simply. Then, she looks at you, hacking her, laying her bare in her own lobby, and shrugs like, "yeah, probably".

"It was a job, to scope the private VR sites. Mizu is such a dumbass, he leaves big trails easy to follow, so I did."

Adam

"Don't you worry about Mizu — he's going to get a spanking for this one — and if it helps you sleep at night, you can call me Raleigh. Hell, you can call me Mark, or Palmer, or any of those rich, media darlings that expose their IPs for girls like me to piggyback on." I look to her again and give her my full attention, "last chance, Patricia — tell me what your bosses want with indie rooms, or I'll go hack your partner for more answers."

Rich

Calling her Patricia unnerves her a bit. But then you threaten to hack her partner, which really puts her on edge.

Why don't we make this into a simple roll against a Fair Difficulty (+2). It isn't so much if you get intel out of Patricia, as much as "do you get that intel before her partner does some real damage?"

Adam

The goal here is to act quickly. I don't necessarily think she's a bad person, but I'm not into corporate creations that sneak into private parties, attempting to encroach on our civil liberties, and monetize on our right to utilize what was deemed a human right by the UN...

Well... Before misguided and corrupt politicians had their way with us.

"Look," I offer, "I need this information now, and I'm happy not to report this little screw up to your superiors if you cooperate. I'm going to go digging through your corporate files for an answer – and as a security consultant, I would imagine that would constitute a breach you could capitalize on... Right?"

I'm not above dealing with her. I'm even reasonable to the human beings that get dragged into this nonsense.

OOC: I'm trying to be clever here...

Adam

(Rolled: 4dF+3. Total: 1. Rolls: 0, -, -, 0)

Adam

I'll spend a fate point to tag VR Don, and make that a 3.

Rich

Patricia breaks, on each point she weakens. Finally, in an exasperated tone, she answers, "Fine. Who... whoever you are. I was hired with Will to encroach on that VR space. It's linked to a start-up, and we're just kicking tires right now. I swear, that's all I've got. I'm just a jockey. For real." She's serious.

What do you do?

Adam

It's linked to a start-up? Like my start up? This won't fly...

"Well, Patricia, that is disappointing as hell... I'm pretty sure the start-up in question wouldn't appreciate a big corporation using intimidation tactics to get them out of their turf — let alone the venture capitalists who are hoping for ROIs." I take a step closer to her, "I'll tell you what — you get Will out of there before I have a chance to kick him out, and don't step foot in that club again, and I won't blacklist your name... It's not even our main hangout. If you get particularly bored, have a peek around the exnets for me. Some of the members out there love trash-talking corporations."

Rich

Patricia sighs and nods slightly, "Alright. I can do that." She pauses, like she's accessing comms. Ada notifies you of the pulse. "Thing is, uhm, ma'am. I'll have to report the boot. I know Will reports this kind of shit. It won't make them go away, just us. Which sucks, even for a, ah, back-up hangout. To be seen as hostile to corpsec."

She shrugs, "Just saying. I mean, if there's nothing going on, you could just bore us to death and we'll move on."

Adam

I sigh audibly... That's particularly depressing. Imagine — somebody breaks into your friend's party, starts asking you extremely personal questions, then tells you "oh, well if you're too boring, I'll eventually move on! But if you kick me out, I'll just send my friends here to be even more disruptive!"

"I'll tell you what," I answer, "keep Will off the trail, and you can stay."

Rich

Her eyes widen a little, that seems tempting. "But... I don't even know who you are. How do I know the offer it legit?"

Adam

I put a hand on her shoulder, "the exnets, my dear. Call it a leap of faith for now. If you play nice with me, I'll introduce you to my friends."

Rich

Patricia considers it for a moment, then closes her eyes. After a couple "breaths", she opens them again, "Alright. Challenge accepted. Will's dropping offline. So am I. But I'll find you, or I'll just show up at the club later." She winks out, disconnecting from VR, leaving you in the lobby.

Adam

Part of me wants to piss in the big fountain, and cause a little trouble — but the better part of me remembers there's an attractive Colombian woman who would probably appreciate some attention on the dance floor...

Plus, I'm not so big into cyber-vandalism — it's more what these corporate assholes do — so instead I just drop out to the club, switching back to my work profile, and grab the blue drink Jenni got for me to go join the party.

Rich

One of the wonders of VR is the speed of travel, isn't it? In a blink, you're back in the club. A quick check and the second corp hacker is gone. Jenni is sitting with endy, talking with him. He's still withdrawn, but being polite. He's more open with her than most. Such a serious fellow, always watching and thinking the worst that could happen.

Beatriz is still dancing with BrokeNL, but she sees you, with the blue drink, and gives you a look like "save me".

How do you butt in?

Adam

Endy owes me. I don't like getting my hands dirty if I can avoid it, and being on the clock with people? I just hope Patricia doesn't come looking for me in real life... Hopefully my acting was believable.

I spot Beatriz' request for rescue, and slowly start making my way through the crowd. I put a hand on BrokeNL's shoulder and whisper, "boy you're dancing like the Energizer Bunny out here..." I look over to Beatriz and smile, "have you ever tried a digital cocktail? The bartender here's can whip up some pretty fantastic stuff. C'mon! I'll introduce you!"

Rich

BrokeNL laughs, "Hey man, what can I say? I pull out ALL my smooth moves for your ladyfriend." He slides back into an odd repose.

Beatriz moves closer to you, answering, "Never had one, it sounds interesting. Thanks, BrokeNL." She walks off with you towards the bar. Along the way, she asks, "Do the cocktails actually physically stimulate anything through the headgear, or is it visual only?"

Adam

I give a quick two finger salute to BrokeNL as I step away with Beatriz. One of the great things about immersive VR is how real the world seems — so much work has gone into recreating the real world experience in VR, and we're made leaps and bounds of late. "It works the same way touch does," I start handing her my cocktail, "VR headsets help you get into a highly suggestive state, almost like hypnosis, and the electrical impulses the headsets emit can trigger a bunch of the senses — olfactory included. It isn't perfect — like most things you recognize from the real world don't taste quite right — but you can also stimulate parts of your pallet in ways you couldn't do in real life... A lot of people use them to trigger other parts of your senses that you might not be expecting. It's a pretty common prank to give first-timers an unexpected ride."

You know... Sexual ones.

"What's your poison?"

Rich

Beatriz smirks, "You mean, I'm in a suggestive state right now?" She slips an arm in yours as you close the distance to the bar. "I hope you aren't going to prank me." Her tone says she's not opposed to a harmless prank.

"I like vodka, actually," Beatrix answers as she looks behind the bar at the items on display. She admits, "Cheap stuff, since that's what I craved as a teenager."

Adam

I chuckle to myself and bring up a console to place an order for two more drinks — a second of this blue thing Jenni got me, and a straight "cheap vodka" emulator... Which is surprisingly harder to code than the purest stuff... The more subtleties and variation you add to something, the more lines of code it takes, and the tougher it is to get perfect. It's that "uncanny valley" effect.

I may have added a Goosebump to Bea's drink... Just something to give her a little chill, tickle, and a flush when she takes a sip. Nothing overly uncomfortable — and way easier than my first time prank. "I think you'll enjoy this one."

Rich

Without hesitation, Beatriz downs the drink, which wasn't a shot. It's sort of a "why not" kind of thing more than a drunkard. She leans back after and you see the gooseflesh erupt on the side of her neck below her long hair. "Wow. Not Cuervo, but close, and very different. Me gusta." She grins, pushes the glass forward towards the sim bartender.

"This is a cool place, Raleigh," Beatriz says. "Is this where you normally go?" She turns to you sideways, an elbow on the bar. She's got like, no sense of personal space, she's inches away, but for her, it seems natural.

Adam

That was pretty impressive... I probably should have told her that our bodies have a pretty strong ability to emulate being drunk... After all, you don't drink sim-alcohol for the taste. I shake my head, "this place is just a room the DJ rented. The people who own the room rent out to a lot of musicians, so we come here from time to time. I spend a lot of time in discussion groups, and the occasional escapist room." Listen to me, shaking it off like the admins in the Escapist rooms don't know me on a first name basis. "Why do you ask?"

Rich

Beatriz nods along, listening to you with interest. She's engaged in the conversation, like this is what she really wants to know about this place. She laughs silently and asks, "Discussion groups? Is there something about VR that makes that, ah, not boring? What's an escapist room exactly, just like it sounds?"

When you ask why she's asking, she smirks again, "Curiosity. Like me, at home with my TV. Hundreds of channels, but I only surf maybe ten of them, if that. So, VR is maybe like that, I wonder. Lots of possible entertainment, but really, there's only the good stuff in certain places. Si?"

Adam

Not boring... I guess my life is boring. I smirk mischievously and shake my head. "We're still mapping out what VR can do for us as human beings, and I like seeing what my contemporaries are thinking about... Maybe I can help make some of it a reality, you know? As for the Escapism rooms, they do everything: sex, drugs, violence, rock and roll... You name it. Of course, there's nothing that beats the original... in some circumstances... I guess it is kind of like TV."

Rich

The bartender refills Beatriz's glass. "Making fantasies into realities? If those happen, then what's left to pine for? To desire?" She's curious, perhaps also playing with you. She takes another long pull from her glass, reaches over to touch your forearm, smiling.

Adam

I smile back at her, "oh, there's plenty to pine for... We may use VR to taste ambrosia, but it can't feed us. There are people who don't want to go back to our real lives, but we all eventually log off."

I eye her up and down, and give her hand a quick squeeze, "some of us more willing than others."

Rich

"Alright, Raleigh," Beatriz says after she finishes her glass, putting it down with emphasis. "You cannot mention an escapist room and not offer to show me." She grins wickedly and waits.

Adam

I put a hand up to my chest and pull up a console, "well, who am I to deny a lovely lady what she wants?" I smile over at her as I start punching in the IP for a well known escapist room, "have any particular fantasies you'd like to live through?"

Rich

Beatriz asks you quietly, "What fantasies... do you recommend?" She's standing practically on you, leaning in to look at you, and catch a view of the console.

Adam

Oh my...

"Well," I answer, slickly wrapping an arm around her and showing her the console, "I've always been partial to a quick five-star getaway... Miss home? I could go for a few drinks in a beach-house near Santa Marta — once the setting is picked, we'll be able to pull up any assets we need to spice it up..."

Rich

She purses her lips, leaning in to your chest and looking at the console, but using it to be close. She's flirting, it feels like flirting, right? With her nice dark eyes she looks up and gently shakes her head no, "I worry I might be too critical of any flaws. If it doesn't feel just like home, it would be... weird, you know? Take me somewhere new. Somewhere unexpected. Anywhere you like."

Adam

Swiss Alps it is.

Rich

In a moment, there you are, standing on the shore of a lake, surrounded by warm sun and a slightly cool breeze. Beatriz turns towards the lake and the mountains. "...wow."

She stands there for a few moments, staring at the reflection of the mountain in the water, her fingers lightly touching your arm around her waist, fingers in yours as you touch her flat tummy.

Suddenly, she playfully elbows you, then runs towards the shore. With quick movements, she strips off her clothes, down to her matching bra and panties, and screams out a "Whoop!" as she runs into the water, slashing it up around her legs. She squeals, "Fucking cold!" and looks back, but keeps moving deeper, then dips her head backwards, getting her hair wet.

Adam

I throw my shirt over my head, and drop my pants to dive in after her. I'm big on going into something whole-hog, whether it's a business proposal, or a cold lake in the swiss alps... Never half-ass something.

I swim up alongside her, and pull her in down into the water. "I could turn up the temperature of the water, but what would be the fun in that?"

Rich

Beatriz slips under the water. Her body is very nice, she is athletic and trim, with a very nice set of legs. She surfaces, sputtering and laughing joyously. When you mention the water temperature, she giggles and says, "I bet you could cook me!"

Then she's right beside you, looking into your eyes, the sun dancing off the water around her. She cranes her head up towards yours, sliding fingers into your hair and kissing you. Like her exuberant run into the water, she's kissing you fiercely. Just a kiss, but a fiery one indeed.

Adam

I kiss her back, slipping my arms around her as I tread water, and enjoying the moment... This is exactly why I love rooms like this. Privacy, and freedom from consequence. For giggles, I turn the water of the lake up to a comfortable mid-day pool, and fill the water with a bubbler — to massage and tickle us as we enjoy this passionate kiss.

When we finally pull back for air, I whisper, "You're wearing one of my headsets, Bea — I could do a lot of things to you."

Rich

Her eyes dance when you suggest the things you could do. Then she giggles... "It's getting warm now. Did you pee in my lake?" She cracks up, then leans back into you, kissing more hungrily. After that bout of kissing, she pulls back, "Do whatever you like. I want to escape it all."

Adam

Ooooooh... You know what I love about being the founder of a VR dev company?

Unrestricted access to debug mode of our headsets.

So long as I ease her into things, so I don't break the illusion, I could make her whole body shake ... Not that I need access to debug mode in a VR headset to do that, but it certainly helps. It's q shortcut. I do a quick terrain mod to put a comfortable little island underneath us, and put a warm sunbeam on top of us. "Then you're with the right guy."

Good thing these NSFW functions are all software... I just won't tell Jenni... Hopefully she's enjoying herself.

Rich

Beatriz marvels when the ground swells underneath you and the water recedes. The sun warms you both and she closes her eyes and practically purrs. "Raleigh... this is enough to make my head spin." She breaks away from your embrace and spins around on the patch of land like a top, her hair flying in the wind. It dries instantly, of course. No need for it to stay wet.

After a little, she stops, wavers a little and laughs, "Oh, I feel dizzy. I didn't know if that would..." She looks over at you, "Can we fly?" She asks the question like a little girl, her goes high at the end in an expectant, hopeful tone.

Adam

This probably hasn't come as much of a surprise to you, but I'm just keeping my console open. I kill some of the NSFW functions so she can focus on the room for a bit — I'm all about attracting people to the hobby — and then flip on "flight mode" for the room. "This is going to sound crazy — because it's a throwback to retro computer games — but jump twice..." I demonstrate by leaping up off the ground, and suddenly stopping in mid-air. "It sounds ridiculous, but you'll totally get it when you try it."

I reach a hand out to her, "c'mon up!"

Rich

Beatriz eyes crinkle as she giggles, "Really?" Then you show her, and she shakes her head, laughing, blown away by the abstract motion to result.

Of course, she bends her knees, all dramatic, which looks odd in her dress. Then, she jumps, getting good air, more than she expected from her little gasp. At the apex, she stabs her feet downwards, in some weird attempt at a jump. And promptly stops. In mid air.

"Mierda!"

Her eyes wild, she looks at you, mouth agape.

Adam

I'm going to take her on a quick flight — wherever the heck she wants to go, really — and help her through the learning process.

Seems like she got her childhood wish after all.

Rich

--END SCENE--