Discord
"What the fuck," you said, your voice shaking with barely contained rage, "did you do to me."
"We saved you."
"No. I can't fucking walk. What did you do."
The man grinned that practiced smile again. "You know how otaru works. It inflames the nervous system, degrading it as it spreads through body, until it hits the brain. By the time it progresses to your conscious mind, the damage is already done."
You stared at the wall, not wanting to look at the man as you spoke. "So... this is permanent, then? It's not some kind of drug-induced effect. I'm not going to get my legs back."
The man reached under his seat, and tossed a folder onto your lap. "Read for yourself. They were still monitoring you normally, until about two weeks ago. It's all in there."
Your hands shook. The report was curt, but there was enough information to gather what you needed. Stage III otaru-induced spinal neuropathy. Inflammation of the brainstem. Projected complete loss of motor function below the abdomen. Projected degradation of motor function in the upper abdomen. Brain lesion-induced seizures. You would need medical care for the rest of your life. You looked at the man again. "So..."
"So. You can refuse to help us, as you have in the past. That's your right. We won't hold that against you, neither will we demand payment for the assistance we just gave you. Rather gracious, don't you think?"
"But if I refuse, you leave me where I am."
"No reason to house you if you're just going to take up space," the man said casually. "The clock's run out. We don't have the time or the resources to run a charity. You're resourceful, I'm sure, but considering the state of the city outside I doubt you're resourceful enough to make it very far on your own."
Your heart raced, the barely contained panic of someone who knew they were trapped and couldn't escape.
"What would... What would you have me do?"
The man beamed, from ear to ear. "We're restarting it, Doctor."
"Restarting what?"
The man leaned towards you, his eyes shining with manic intensity. "Oneiori."
[ ]
[...]
MEMORY LEAK DETECTED. PAUSING ITERATION Zx002qRfT.
STATUS CHECK:
Warning! Maximum entropy level decreased!
Running diagnostic.....
Custom recovery system found. Using latest version....
************************************************************************************************************************
cl.recover version 8.2
Maximum entropy decreased! Good job!
Checking meshed mutagenic codeform....
Codeform: Inform Z-Machine 6.30, circa 1999.
Checking compatible assets.....
Assets Generated.
Please choose an asset. Current entropy levels mandate a single choice. Perceptual bundle included.
1) Open/Close function.
2) Expanded directional library
3) Object placement
************************************************************************************************************************
>_
"We saved you."
"No. I can't fucking walk. What did you do."
The man grinned that practiced smile again. "You know how otaru works. It inflames the nervous system, degrading it as it spreads through body, until it hits the brain. By the time it progresses to your conscious mind, the damage is already done."
You stared at the wall, not wanting to look at the man as you spoke. "So... this is permanent, then? It's not some kind of drug-induced effect. I'm not going to get my legs back."
The man reached under his seat, and tossed a folder onto your lap. "Read for yourself. They were still monitoring you normally, until about two weeks ago. It's all in there."
Your hands shook. The report was curt, but there was enough information to gather what you needed. Stage III otaru-induced spinal neuropathy. Inflammation of the brainstem. Projected complete loss of motor function below the abdomen. Projected degradation of motor function in the upper abdomen. Brain lesion-induced seizures. You would need medical care for the rest of your life. You looked at the man again. "So..."
"So. You can refuse to help us, as you have in the past. That's your right. We won't hold that against you, neither will we demand payment for the assistance we just gave you. Rather gracious, don't you think?"
"But if I refuse, you leave me where I am."
"No reason to house you if you're just going to take up space," the man said casually. "The clock's run out. We don't have the time or the resources to run a charity. You're resourceful, I'm sure, but considering the state of the city outside I doubt you're resourceful enough to make it very far on your own."
Your heart raced, the barely contained panic of someone who knew they were trapped and couldn't escape.
"What would... What would you have me do?"
The man beamed, from ear to ear. "We're restarting it, Doctor."
"Restarting what?"
The man leaned towards you, his eyes shining with manic intensity. "Oneiori."
[ ]
[...]
MEMORY LEAK DETECTED. PAUSING ITERATION Zx002qRfT.
STATUS CHECK:
Warning! Maximum entropy level decreased!
Running diagnostic.....
Custom recovery system found. Using latest version....
************************************************************************************************************************
cl.recover version 8.2
Maximum entropy decreased! Good job!
Checking meshed mutagenic codeform....
Codeform: Inform Z-Machine 6.30, circa 1999.
Checking compatible assets.....
Assets Generated.
Please choose an asset. Current entropy levels mandate a single choice. Perceptual bundle included.
1) Open/Close function.
2) Expanded directional library
3) Object placement
************************************************************************************************************************
>_
