109 Vote

"Exodus is down for maintenance. Currently, we have no timeline for when it will be restarted." QJ read the forum headline, his face etched in a frown. 

"Where did the LAIs go?" Wu asked. "Even Exodus Grand Station is closed, including the Songbird."

"Ravenwood," QJ replied. "Although technically, it's an instance attached to TAP. It receives separate software updates and, under the LAI Accord, is an independent colony for virtual citizens." 

"Is this related to what happened to you?" Breeze asked.

QJ nodded. "Indirectly, although you'd need to know the whole story to understand how."

"Dumb it down for me," Sato demanded. "Why shut down Exodus?"

QJ considered the best way to make it understandable. "An organization was able to transfer assets to a virtual world currently disconnected from Exodus. If such a thing were possible, the inverse could also happen." 

Wu nodded. "I get it. Think about the hundreds of billions of credits tied up in Exodus economics. Every hour, it remains shut down, results in tangible corporate losses across the globe."

QJ grabbed a six-pack of beer from the fridge and handed them out. "Despite that, they can't risk letting a pathway remain open. What if there's an army of LAIs ready to enter Exodus?"

Any further talking was paused when the kitchen's island hud buzzed. Anna's face popped up a few seconds later; the stress of the day's events was written on her face. "We found her."

"You found Anya? Where is she?" QJ sighed heavily; the weight that had been sitting on his chest lessened. "Did Felix and his team figure out the destination?"

Anna shook her head. "My friend Roxy contacted me; it's a long story. I'm sending you everything I have on Kenzo, Gaia, and Michael Benz. We're wading through the same data. Let me know if you come up with anything."

QJ nodded and accepted the data packet. "I remember Roxy and Bai. You introduced me to them before I joined GnG."

"We'll share information in the morning." Anna smiled fondly. "Love you, QJ." 

QJ grinned to lighten the mood; it was obvious from her red eyes that Anna had been crying. "Love you too, Nanna. We'll catch up tomorrow." 

After the hud shut-off, QJ opened the Kenzo bio file and read it aloud. The brief biography covered the accidental death of his parents, followed by his battle with cancer, and ended with his agreement to have his consciousness transferred into an avatar and sent to Gaia. 

Wu shook his head. "Gaia of all places... I played it for two days before refunding my money."

"It's not like that anymore," Nina explained. "I came across Kenzo's stream a few months ago. The world has fully evolved into different human/animal hybrids. It's missing a lot of gaming elements. Kenzo has been giving an engineering ability, but it's totally OP."

"You still follow the stream?" Lotte asked.

Nina nodded. "I don't see many of his feeds anymore, but his fanbase sends newsletters updating his weekly progress. He's pretty amazing. The only human in an LAI world."

"I'll help you go through that data," Wu volunteered. 

"Same here," Sato added. "Give me something that I can make sense of."

The roommates spent the next two hours reviewing the compiled data, occasionally sharing observations or items they deemed noteworthy.

The more QJ read, the more he admired Kenzo. "His engineering ability is more like a game developer console. It could be something left over from Michael Benz. It's definitely something that is game-breaking."

Nina brought up Kenzo's feed while they worked. They listened as Kenzo and Angel took turns asking questions. "At least we know Anya is okay."

QJ stared at the feed; a feeling of uneasiness made it challenging to focus. "She could be stuck there. Gaia is a private virtual world; Karl Benz could deny us access."

As the hours progressed, the roommates filtered off to bed one by one. When dawn came, only QJ and Lotte remained. 

"Let's get some sleep," QJ noticed her head nodding off. "I'll give you a ride."

Lotte smiled and climbed onto his back when he stooped before her. "There's so much information left."

QJ nodded in agreement and walked to her doorway. "Get some rest, and we'll hit it again."

"Would you sleep in my room?" Lotte asked. "I'm scared, and my stomach hurts." 

"Sure, let me get cleaned up first." QJ unloaded her near the bathroom door before returning to his room to brush his teeth and shower quickly. 

"Slowpoke," Lotte commented when he entered her room sometime later. She had her hair pulled back in a ponytail and wore a white t-shirt that hung to mid-thigh. 

"Is that my shirt?" QJ waited while she climbed into bed before sliding in next to her. "I hope you don't snore; I'm a light sleeper."

Lotte clucked her tongue at him. "Just a bit, maybe like a quiet chainsaw." She pulled him closer, throwing a leg over him before settling against his shoulder. She kissed the side of his face before tucking her head against him.

A knock at the door woke them a few hours later; Wu's voice spoke from the other side of the door. "Sorry to bother you, Lotte; do you know where QJ is?"

QJ rolled out of bed and answered the door. "Something happened?"

Wu nodded. "The board of corporations is taking action. They are forcing Karl Benz to comply and allow a team to enter Gaia." 

QJ considered Wu's statement; it made sense. If there were an open window from Gaia to Exodus, they would need access to shut it down. "That's good news."

Wu's sudden silence implied there was more. "I believe your Dad and the Songbirds are heading in." 

"Really?" QJ crossed into his room long enough to throw on warmer clothes and brush his teeth. Everyone was waiting when he arrived at the kitchen island, including Ringo, who was logged into their home VRP virtually.

"Hey, Ringo," QJ grinned at the OP guild leader before accepting a bottle of water from Lotte. "Why is everyone here?"

"They are about to announce that a team of ten people from TAP will be entering Gaia," Ringo replied.

Wu immediately tossed a fly into the ointment. "There is also a rumor that a group of elites from Righteous Hand will be going." 

QJ opened the island hud and skimmed the forum headlines. "Looks like there will be a board vote; tabulating the votes from a hundred corporations should be fun."

Ringo glanced around the home; there was a bit of envy in her eyes. She lived with her relatives in a building she purchased; none were gamers or understood virtual life. "You don't think RH can get the nod?"

Wu shrugged slightly. "Their advantage is the corporation behind them. Orion Media backs TAP, but they probably have fewer votes. However, there are a lot of votes that aren't affiliated with either. I would guess there is some hardcore lobbying going on right now."

QJ closed the hud and took a long drink. "The forums said they would announce the voting results at 1500 hours."

With a few hours to burn, most of the group played cards while Ringo chatted with QJ and Lotte. They returned to the island hud just as the results were going live.

Although Felix Soma was considered the Lead Developer for Guns and Gore, he was also part of the Developer group that monitored Exodus and ensured across-the-board compatibility. He stood in front of the microphone and gave a short speech. 

"Hey, we know him." Lotte had seen him a few times when she was with QJ.

QJ nodded and turned up the volume from the hud.

Felix straightened up his glasses and read from his personal hud. "Earlier today, the integrity of the Exodus Platform was called into question by an open pathway from TAP to a Gaia, a game disconnected from the Exodus platform. A group of individuals, working in tandem with Michael Benz, the creator of Gaia, managed to transport individuals from Asperia to Gaia. To preserve the integrity of the Exodus Platform, we've received permission from Karl Benz to send a team in to shut down this pathway."

A young woman stepped on stage long enough to hand Felix a Slip of paper. The bespectacled developer glanced at what he saw before speaking. 

"The Corporate board has finished voting, and the results are as follows. 

Righteous Hand Elites: 27 votes.

TAP Elites: 44 votes.

The team around the island breathed a sigh of relief, clapping and smiling before Felix Soma's next words stunned them into silence. 

One Problem Team: 60 votes.