January 25, 2019, 7:23 pm.

Raz's door swings open, the noise tangible as I cross the threshold. Raz is sitting at his stage, playing his guitar again, though this time he's joined by several other creatures, creating a more complete experience. There's an insectile creature who stands out, a beetle with a membrane between its massive legs. They're playing the membrane, running a soft rod across the edge, producing a sound similar to a well-tuned violin. I listen for a moment when the others emerge from the door behind me.

"Hey, Beth. I lost my connection to Rufka when I was messed up. I'm going to leave the party so I can contact her again," I inform Beth while Roberts waves down the multi-limbed (tentacled?) waitress, Amanana.

"Okay kid. Don't take too long. I'd like to get going as soon as I get my new wings from Raz."

"Kay," I respond before crossing directly to the change room as Tipan follows the others in.

There's another of those beetle people entering the room when I arrive. Their feet click on the floor as they close the door behind them. I reach out, but the door remains closed for a couple of seconds before responding to my touch. I guess it takes time to switch instances. Whatever the reason, a second later the door clicks open.

I stare at the bath with longing but prioritize talking to Rufka, opening the system interface.

Okay, first. Ensure all my existing connections are in place. Yep, still know where everyone is, cool.

Next, leave the party.

Pacing back and forth, I focus on wanting to leave the party.

"You're about to leave 'Beth's Group'. Please confirm. Y/N?"

Sending my mental assent, I access the message center in the system Nexus when a new notification appears. I almost ignore it but then my brain processes the first word.

"Wyonna has invited you to join her group. Do you accept? Y/N?"

It's with some trepidation that I accept the prompt. There's a slight delay but then Wyonna's name appears on the party screen. However, all her information is grayed out, other than her name.

I wait for a second but there's no sign of notifications telling me she's back.

Turning to my trusty companion, I say, "You won't believe this Smoulder, but I just got a party invite from Wyonna. How crazy is that?"

Instead of responding, Smoulder tilts her head to the side while reminding me that we're in the playroom but the obstacle course is missing.

Rolling my eyes, I set up a simple but challenging course for her using wind platforms that are invisible with lavafalls interspersed throughout.

As I'm finishing Smoulder's obstacle course, I check my notifications again. This time I'm rewarded with a new message, though it's not quite what I expected.

"Wyonna has offered to transfer the 'Group Owner' role to you. Do you accept? Y/N?"

"Yes!" I yell at my notifications.

Even as it accepts my response, I resume pacing as I wait, hoping for another message.

A minute later, nothing.

What's going on? Why would she give me leadership permissions?

Okay, stop and think Alexis. There are only two functions that owners have that everyone else doesn't. At least according to Tipan. The first being that only the group owner can invite new people to the group. Which isn't going to help since Wyonna's already in my group.

That leaves the second function. But I'm not certain what use having control over the chat and voice channels is. Especially when I don't have either of those…

It can't be that easy? Could I just buy the ability then be able to talk to Wyonna again?

I mean, I've been saving my integration points lately. Mostly for emergency resurrection recharges. Not that we've received many since the races stopped giving easy points and I completed my manipulation skills quest.

Which means most of the points I have are from essence. I still have a fair amount, but not as many as I should. When Josh went down, I forgot to loot most of the ant-hoppers and dolls.

Speaking of which.

Yep, there's a quest.

"Quest received: Gotta slay em all - Ant-Hopper! Description: Kill the remaining ant-hoppers from the pack that attacked your group. Requirements: 56/512 ant-hoppers slain. Reward: iron rank integration points based on your contribution; variable. Time: 3/3 days."

Huh. No quest for the dolls. Weird. Also, that's a lot of ant-hoppers.

I seriously doubt we'll be hunting down the rest of those ant-hoppers at this point. Does that mean I'm not going to get any rewards?

Anyway, not important.

Converting a couple points of mana essence to integration points, I buy the party chat function. The second I make the purchase, I facepalm. I didn't even try to connect with her directly.

"Wyonna?" I mentally send, watching the words appear in a visible chat window. I'm able to shrink and enlarge the text as much as I want while still being able to read it. Which makes me wonder, can I receive the messages directly?

Before I'm able to continue my experiment, I receive a message.

(Wyonna) "Alexis! Did it really work?! Ohthankgod. I wasn't sure you'd get my invite while in your group."

I lean against the nearby tub in relief as I ask, "Are you okay Wyonna? You kind of disappeared there."

(W) "I think so. Most of my internals are fine but I'm trapped in the training room with most of my System access unresponsive. It's unsettling being so blind and deaf. What happened?"

(A) "New quest triggered anti-corruption protocols. Which apparently included you," I inform her while filling the tub. This conversation is going to take time. Might as well use it to my advantage.

(W) "Anti-corruption protocols? Oh. Wow. That's… well, at least you figured out how to contact me right away. Was this related to the summoners?"

(A) "Right away? Wyonna, it's been eight days," I respond, testing the water then raising the temperature when it feels chilly.

(W) "Really. Okay, this is worse than I thought. That means I'm in some kind of containment that's messing with my perception of time. I can't believe we're dealing with these measures. Akilo should have been clean. It's a sealed world for crying out loud!"

(A) "Yeah, I don't know what most of that means. But the quest wants us to deal with the summoner which should let you out. Unfortunately, we've got other problems. Someone stole Josh." The last sentence almost makes me feel bad about sliding into my bath. Almost.

(W) "But you're able to track him, right?"

(A) "Well, yeah. But we have to get him back."

(W) "Right. Uhm. So, couple of things you should know. You might have figured it out already but all your Forerunner conditions weren't technically system approved. Part of why I chose a sealed world was its antiquated system."

(A) "Yep, we figured out the buffs are gone."

(W) "Cool. The other thing… anti-corruption quests are dangerous in a way other quests aren't in the system. And not just if you fail them. Success makes you into a Citizen, a system agent which has benefits but it comes with personal attention from the system too."

I stare at her words for several seconds trying to understand what she's talking about before I finally reply.

(A) "We're already Citizens."

(W) "What? No. That's not possible. What do you mean?"

(A) "I mean, we're Citizens. Pretty sure we've been Citizens since we woke up. Are you telling me that wasn't your doing?" I ask as Smoulder comes over, bumping into my exposed shoulder. I may be freaking out a little.

(W) "No. Not at all. I can't…. I don't…. I have no idea how this happened."

(A) "Okay. So, what does being a Citizen mean anyway? The only thing we've figured out is we can buy a couple abilities that seem to be exclusive."

(W) "Lots of things. The most important aspect Forerunners have confirmed is Citizens don't stay dead. They're also protected from a lot of things that would kill regular users. We modelled our Forerunner's N.E.W.B. Protection based on a detailed recording of one of them surviving a direct nuclear blast. I don't think we've ever had a Forerunner who was also a Citizen before."

(A) "Huh. Well, already knew all that. Except for the Forerunner parts of course." I tell her while petting Smoulder harder than strictly necessary.

(W) "Really? Interesting. Now, what else? There are worlds that are off-limits to users that only Citizens can access. Rumoured to be paradise worlds. Scattered throughout the Known Worlds there are ships, artifacts and other devices that only respond to Citizens. The Starkiller for example."

(A) "Uhm. The Starkiller? That sounds bad. That's bad, right?"

(W) "Oh definitely. It's the size of a moon. A fully operational battlestation. Plus, it can cause a star to go nova."

(A) "Damn. I can understand why they wouldn't want anyone using things like that."

(W) "Yep. It's only been used a couple times according to my records. First time it was used by the species that built it, they blew up a neighbouring star system. As a test. There was a bit of panic until everyone found out the system had confiscated the entire ship. Now it only shows up after something's gone incredibly wrong in the target system. Like when the Reavers converted Corella to a breeding ground."

(A) "That's incredible. But I feel like we're getting off track here. Welcome back Wyonna."

(W) "It's weird hearing you say that. It feels like we were just taking out a horde of Fallen and discovering their soulstones."

(A) "Yeah. About that. There's lots I need to fill you in on, but we're still trying to deal with getting Josh back. And I need to contact Rufka."

(W) "Of course. I'll just… you know, I have no idea what I'm going to do. Everything is still offline. Hmm. Nevermind. I've got an idea."

(W) "Later."

(A) "Uhm. Okay. Later," I say then stare ahead for a second. Was that really Wyonna? It felt like it. Briefly, I worry it was my imagination, then before I know it, I've sent another message.

(A) "Let me know if I can help."

(W) "Kay."

Well.

Contacting Wyonna was not what I had in mind when I came in. Now I have even more to talk to Rufka about.

Accessing the mail system, I send a party invite to the only person on my super simple contact list. A contact list that doesn't have an add, remove or even a sort function. Those are all part of the purchased ability. Which is still kind of low on my priority list.

"Group invite sent."

I stare at the words for a few seconds before realizing Rufka's not going to respond immediately. Probably. So I finish my bath while collapsing Smoulder's obstacle course.

When I'm nice and dry I still haven't received a response.

Well, I was hoping I'd be able to connect to Rufka then rejoin the party, but it doesn't look like that's happening. Especially now that I've contacted Wyonna. But that's okay. I can just connect to everyone directly.

Smoulder is proudly stationed on my shoulder as we exit the change room, moving to join the others. They have a table near the musicians at the front.

Demo's slapping the table, his head tilted back as he howls out. Beth is chuckling while Tipan's face is in her hands, her shoulders heaving, her laughter barely audible.

"Yes. As you can tell it wasn't my finest moment," Roberts notes as I approach. Damn. Sounds like I missed something good.

"Ah. Alexis, you're back. Good. It appears we'll be spending the night," Roberts informs me while pushing a chair out for me.

"Oh?"

Beth stops chuckling while squeezing one hand into a tight ball. "Raz hasn't been able to finish my wings. Apparently, he needs my direct input to finalize the changes. Besides, Roberts has convinced me that we should rest here before we try to track Josh down. It's not like we can teleport directly into Aethire so it's going to take us several days anyway."

As she finishes, she slowly unclenches her fist, revealing the cracked form of the Josh figurine within.

"Huh," I respond as I slump down into the proffered chair. Guess I'll get to enjoy Raz's performance for a while longer then.

Ordering a strange new pasta, I only half-listen to the others discussing possible problems while I wait for Rufka to accept the party invite. It's been at least ten minutes. Has she not received the invite?

Oh. Maybe she's in a party like I was. She couldn't get the invite then. Or maybe there are other rules. I should ask Tipan.

"Hey, Tipan. Are there any restrictions on accepting a party invite?" I ask in a low voice as Roberts points out we can't make solid plans without more information. Which Beth agrees with. Then continues proposing ideas anyway.

"Sorry, what's that?" Tipan asks as she turns to me.

Repeating my question, I add, "Rufka hasn't accepted yet."

"She's probably not close enough to a Nexus. Invites only show up when you're at a Nexus."

"Oh. That explains it. Thanks." I'm standing again even as I speak, prepared to go send Rufka a message alongside the party invite so she knows what's happened. Smoulder decides to stay with Tipan, hopping to her shoulder.

"You don't need to stay by the Nexus once the invite is sent, you know," Tipan teases while stroking Smoulder's tail.

"Yeah. I know. But I want to send her a message. I don't want her to think I forgot to call her; you know?" I tell Tipan.

"Ah. Of course. Tell her I say hi," Tipan says as she starts loosely braiding strands of Smoulder's tail.

Nodding, I slip away to the change room.

It's only as I'm writing everything that's happened in the last couple days that I realize I forgot to tell the others about Wyonna being back. Hmm. Thinking of which.

(A) "Wyonna? Do you know if there's a way to send a party invite without the other user being at a Nexus?"

(W) "Sure. If you have the friend's list feature you can send and receive group invites from anyone on the list from anywhere. I mean, if both users have the option and aren't in a group. Why? Aren't you already in a group with Josh?"

(A) "Oh, it's not for Josh. I was hoping to contact Rufka."

(W) "Well, you don't need to be in a group to do that. But being in a group is cheaper."

(A) "What's the other option?"

(W) "Lots of system upgrades. First, both of you need to unlock the friend's list feature under communication. Then you'll need to have purchased the party chat or party voice. That'll unlock the Friend Channel feature for purchase. After you've purchased that, you have to have added each other to your friend's lists. Then, problem solved; unlimited calls and chat with all your friends. Careful who you add as a friend though."

(A) "Well, that's not an immediate solution, but I'll mention it to Rufka next time I reach her. Thanks, Wyonna. It's great to have you back."

(W) "No problem Alexis. Glad I'm able to do something to help."

(A) "Wait. Could we contact each other through the friend's list then?"

(W) "If you buy the ability…. Probably. You'd need to add me to your friend's list though. I'm not able to invite friends. Another of those AI restrictions."

(A) "Wow. Jerk move. Okay, once I purchase the ability, I'll send you an invite."

(W) "Really? I mean, thanks, Alexis. That means a lot."

Shrugging off her gratitude, I say goodbye to Wyonna again. Then I add her information to the letter I'm writing (mentally projecting?) Rufka. When I'm finished writing, I look it over. I haven't mentioned my feelings for her.

Because that feels like a thing that should be done in person. Or at the very least, over voice connection.

Once I'm finished, I send the letter off, receiving a notification that simply says, "Message sent."

Since I'm here anyway and we're staying for the night, I decide to check the communication options. As I'm going into the menu, I notice the anti-corruption submenu. I almost forgot about the anti-corruption options being added.

In idle curiosity, I open the menu to read the description of the abilities. There are all the abilities Beth mentioned, most involve using a Nexus node to cleanse Fallen or soulstones. It's all ridiculously expensive. The cheapest option is a Soulstone purification chamber that costs five iron rank progression points, can cleanse one Soulstone per week and requires five iron grade mana essence to recharge.

Again, they all require the 'Claim Nexus' feature which is kind of out of reach at the moment.

After checking over the communication options, which I hold off on purchasing, I return to the others where we play a quiet game of Astra's Stride before turning in for the night.

Even as I lay in bed, there's no sign of Rufka in my party interface. In a way, I'm kind of glad Josh is somewhere in Aethire.

If Rufka doesn't respond, at least I won't have to choose who I'm going to save first.