MIND·BEND

JONAS HARTMANN Twenty-six years old Graduate student from Universität Hamburg, currently attending Harvard

[jonas-hartmann]

shadia-abassi​:

jack-vargas​:

elena-arias​:

Elena smiled and nodded, thanking Jack for the coffee. “We can’t just leave this here, though,” she ventured into saying. There was some gray area there. Technically most of the hardware inside this room was property of the academy… so she wasn’t sure if she wanted to be the one to suggest- well, stealing it. But the possibility of just leaving it all be, waiting for everything in the room to be cleared and very likely be disposed of, before the building was torn down was just out of the question.

She was expecting more people from the group to show up after the news was dropped and some frantic texts began to pop up in their group chat. It was nice knowing those that were still involved in The Grid didn’t want to just sit with their arms crossed. So it wasn’t at all surprising to see Shadia walk in after a moment. “Hi,” Elena greeted with a grin. With their resident daredevil willing to do something to save their virtual world, the very thing that brought them all together, she knew things were about to get interesting. And maybe a little reckless. “A heist?” she repeated, not sounding against it at all. “Okay, but how on Earth would we pull it off? It’s not like this is small, easy-to-transport equipment”. A lot of the hardware -with the exception of the stuff Jonas had installed later- was straight out of the 90′s. Bulky as hell, not at all something they could sneak out discreetly.

“Yeah, I know,” Jack replied. “But maybe it’s a sign…you know? That we should leave it behind. No one really comes down here anymore.” Although, they felt that maybe this was a sign that they should give up the Grid. Maybe they should start living life in the real world instead of in a computer. It was something they’d started thinking about since learning of Kishan’s death and “resurrection” in the Grid. It was why Bailey kept going into the Grid. It wasn’t because she felt like helping them or about fighting an evil program. Jack could debate that maybe the evil program wasn’t as bad as they thought, considering they hadn’t seen any damage yet. “A heist? Seriously?” Jack said, raising their eyebrows. “We’re not bank robbers, Shadia, and last time I checked, neither are you.”

“Um, okay, calm down, Jack,” Shadia said with a laugh. “Okay, fine, it’s not a heist heist, but we can’t let anyone find this equipment. Sure it looks like junk until someone looks at all of Jonas’s stuff and realizes someone’s been down here tinkering with all of this,” she explained. She walked over towards her friends and sat down in one of the chairs. “It won’t be easy if there’s only three of us, but with everyone on the team coming in, we can do it.” She raised her eyebrows at them and smiled. “All we need is a U-Haul van, some handtrucks, and access to the building after 12 AM. Then, we just need a place to move it. Obviously not my place since I’m moving. Did Zara move out of her apartment that she had with Kishan? We could use his old bedroom as a new headquarters. Otherwise, I’m sure June would be more than happy to have the equipment at her place.”

Seeing what had been posted on The Epigram meant the group would have do to something about The Grid, and be quick about it. Jonas didn’t believe any of the people who had gotten themselves involved in this would just let that old computer be taken away before the building was demolished. He wasn’t sure what the others might be planning to do about it, but he’d already pretty much made up his mind to anything to keep his mother’s creation in safe hands. And the gang would also be in need of a new HQ after Turing Laboratory was no more. Now, that he could offer to the team.

He could barely make up quiet voices as he approached the door in that empty hallway of the deserted building. He slipped his key in and was greeted by the faces of Shadia, Jack and Elena looking his way as he opened the door. “Hey,” he said, closing the door back with the lock. “You read the news too, huh?” he easily guessed, considering the snippets of the conversation he caught as he entered.

[jonas-hartmann]

june-maslow·:

sal-rizzo·:

elena-arias·:

Elena: That’s so cool! Count me in!

Sal [unsent]: Of course they do.

Sal: I can bring a cooler if I’m free.

June: Sounds like a cool plan June: Guess I’ll go too.

Jonas: Cool! Jonas: I’m gonna stay for a couple of days, if you also want to crash there there’s enough space. Jonas: If you want to invite someone that’s cool too, just let me know beforehand.

[jonas-hartmann]

Texting 📱 Grid gang

Jonas: Hey guys Jonas: My family has a house in Nantucket and it’s going to be free this summer Jonas: You’re all invited if you want to come ✌️

[jonas-hartmann]

sal-rizzo‌:

Sal nodded. It wasn’t that long, but if they were already facing trouble, there was no telling how much worse it could get over the new couple hours. He couldn’t stop himself from glancing a little uncertainly in Bas’s direction, not familiar enough with the man to know if he could be relied on in the Grid. About the only person there he fully felt comfortable joining was June, but for the sake of being back there, he’d deal with the discomfort. He was uncomfortable in most situations anyway.

Sal was nearly all set to go in when Jonas said something that caught his attention. He looked down at his wrist to see if his tattoo was peeking through, but it was entirely covered by his uniform shirt. It took a moment for him to realize what Jonas was actually referring to - and it immediately brought a smile to the man’s lips. First time back in the Grid and he even got to play with his pet? It was worth any backlash he might get from his boss for taking too long on a cleaning assignment. “We’ll see what works when I’m there. Ready when you are.”

Jonas smiled. Another user in there -and one with a creature like the Ouroboros on a leash- would surely change the odds to the group’s favor. His eyes quickly scanned all the gear to make sure everything was ready. Sal let him know he was all set. “Put his on” he said as he tossed the little communication device for him to put in his ear. That was a new addition to the process of going into the virtual world, something different from Sal’s early days in The Grid, but an useful device that would allow him to stay in touch with Jonas, with the outside world. Once that was done, Jonas gave a nod and typed a command to send Sal in. “Help’s on the way” he spoke into his microphone, letting the others know they’d be joined by a friend soon, and he smiled to the screen as he saw a group of pixels shape into Sal’s avatar inside level 40.

[jonas-hartmann]

jack-vargas‌:

elcucuy-reyes‌:

june-maslow‌:

June nodded along Jonas’ words on their communication devices. “That’s right” she said, confirming that they had in fact not chosen their avatars. She’d never known how the process of selection had worked inside the virtual reality and why they’d gotten the avatars they got. Sebastian’s complaints were the least of her concerns at present and she simply narrowed her eyes at him. He could complain all he wanted once they were out, safe and sound, but right now wasn’t the time.

Losing a fucking life inside The Grid was the least agreeable experience there was. The pain didn’t last that long in here, though she knew it would echo into her real body out in the real world, something that she would go on feeling for days, perhaps even over a damn week… Here she just felt her general level of energy lessen and she was awfully aware of how her powers would be somewhat limited from no on. “We have three lives in total, Reyes” she explained once they made it to a safer spot -for the time being, at least- “Even losing a single one takes its toll on us back in our world. And zero lives means you die, both here and out there. You’re 100% your mind in here, and out there a body without a mind won’t survive. So if you’re ever down to one, you tell Jonas to get you the hell out right away” she warned with evident gravity to her voice. Her attention then went to Jack, so see if they had already spotted the underground passage that Jonas mentioned.

“How many lives do you all have?” Bas asked, furrowing his eyebrows in real concern after hearing off the consequences. It reminded him that this really wasn’t a game. This was far more dangerous. “Can you get more lives?” In all the video games he played, he was able to get more lives from special packs and things. Maybe they could have Jonas create something like it. “Is there a way to get us back if we lose all three lives?” he asked. He wasn’t entirely sure how it all worked now, especially when his mind drifted back to Kishan who was able to reactivate a backup of his subconscious into the program. “There’s got to be a way to get us back into the real world if we lose all our lives. What are we supposed to do when we have one life? Stay away from the program forever?” he said. He followed Jack to the underground passage and started swimming, which unfortunately got darker and darker and darker. There was some real fear in the back of his mind as he wondered what happened to their bodies if they died inside the program. How would they explain that to people? He was still struggling with whether or not he should tell Tara about Kishan and a version of his subconscious being inside the program.

“Let’s think about avatars later,” Jack said with a huff. “You’ll get your other ability sooner or later. Besides, you’re not completely useless.” They were started to doubt bringing Sebastian along. They were all doing just fine without Kishan, without Wes, and without Bas. What made him so special? Why wasn’t there someone else they could bring in who could actually do something helpful for once? Jack shoved Bas towards the underground passage so he could go first. If anything jumped out at them and attacked, Bas would take the first hit. Jack started swimming further and further down and the idol started to glow some more. They held onto the idol tightly but then something shot out and went straight for the trio. Jack moved backwards, just narrowly missing whatever it was, but it went by them and went for June. Jack sent a blast of energy at it, disintegrating what Jack could now see was a trident before it could ever get to June. “Bas, keep going!” Jack followed closely behind him and the idol started to glow even more as they came across another set of underwater ruins. “Great. It’s another maze.”

“Three’s the limit, Bas” he clarified as Reyes continued to ask more questions to better understand the avatars, and possibly if there were other differences about his own avatar compared to the others. “Don’t worry about it, that’s what I’m here for. I can pull any of you out and back to the real world before it’s too late” Jonas explained. Altering Wes’ hardware and software in that way had allowed the group to be a little bit safer when entering The Grid. At the very least they wouldn’t stay trapped inside as it happened once before, according to what Maya had told him. “And no, you don’t have to stay away forever. Once you leave The Grid and go in the next time your three lives are back”.

Jonas continued to monitor the screens and then muted his microphone as he heard someone walking into the old computer room. Luckily for all of them, it was Sal. After a brief exchange and setting everything up for him to go in, Jack, June and Bas had an ally on the way. “Help’s on the way” he said after unmuting his microphone, smiling to the screen as he saw a group of pixels shape into Sal’s avatar inside level 40.

[jonas-hartmann]

sal-rizzo‌:

Of all the people to encounter his first time back in that room, Jonah was the lowest on the list. He was still skeptical of the man, though clearly others were starting to trust him. Or already trusted him, Sal didn’t know for sure. It was ironic how Sal was so skeptical of Jonah considering what Sal had done to the man. “Each level’s harder, they’ll figure it out,” Sal said flatly, and took one more step on his way out the door.

They could really use your help.

If it wasn’t concerning the Grid, he wouldn’t have paused again. If he hadn’t once been trapped in the Grid for twenty-four hours, he probably wouldn’t be so…sympathetic. Was that what he was feeling? Maybe, or maybe he was just  looking for any good excuse to get back into the game. Letting out a sigh, he pulled the cart back into the room fully, shut the door, and placed the cart in front of it to keep anyone else from opening it.

“How long have they been in there?” Sal asked, moving to his usual chair. “What are they dealing with?”

Jonas nodded slowly at Sal’s reply. If he didn’t want to go in he couldn’t very well force him to. And for someone who had stayed away for such a long time the need of being taken back to the virtual reality probably wasn’t as strong. The four of them -three in, one out- would have to figure it out on their own, it seemed.

But then his words had an effect on Sal, he could see it. Maybe, just maybe, he could in fact be persuaded to get in and help the others. He felt himself sit straighter, his expression turning a tiny bit more hopeful. “June and Bas went in forty six minutes ago, and Jack went in thirty two minutes ago” he said, looking at the timers he set for everyone whenever they logged into The Grid. “It’s the last level of Gamma, the underwater sector” he explained, glancing back at Sal. He’d been around long enough to know last levels were the hardest, having a mix of various elements from the previous levels of the sector. “A while back the group got a mysterious stone idol in the last level of Beta which apparently belongs to this sector and they must retrieve it to its rightful temple now. They’ve been going against sea monsters, a maze-like city in ruins and enemy programs”. Jonas went ahead to prepare the computer to send a new user into The Grid. “I hear you have an ace under your sleeve” he mentioned as a small smile curved his lips. He’d only heard about Sal’s Ouroboros but hadn’t actually ever seen it in action. And judging by what he was seeing on the screens and what the others were telling him about level 40, that creature would come in handy.

[jonas-hartmann]

jack-vargas‌:

elcucuy-reyes‌:

june-maslow‌:

“Sera?” the hacker asked. Asking about the avatars had been the least of her concerns when they all first encountered the helpful program. All questions had to do with the increasingly hostile nature of the programs, with G.A.I.A., with the Limbo, with the original creator… But now that she thought about it, perhaps Sera could be of help regarding Sebastian’ situation. The program had been able to cause alterations to the game from within, so perhaps she could alter Reyes’ avatar enough to shield him from G.A.I.A.’s control. June ignored Sebastian’s complaints and simply gave him a serious look. “We just have to deliver it to its temple, Reyes. It’s not that complicated of a mission” she stated bluntly. But then again, Sebastian hadn’t played level 30 in the Beta sector, when they had retrieved the stone relic and were given the instruction to guard it until the time came to place it back inside its rightful temple at the end of the Gamma sector. And whether the idol did more than marking the end of the level and getting them access to the next sector, June couldn’t know.

The kraken attack came out of nowhere and June narrowly escaped being hit by a large tentacle as she teleported a couple of meters away from it. June’s avatar was hardly one devised for attacks, and she was awfully aware of the fact that she couldn’t do much against a massive kraken. All that was within her power was to open and close a few portals, managing to sever only two of the many tentacles as the portals shut around them. Using her portals was the skill that drained her energy more and the hacker was beginning to feel how it dwindled. But as Jonas spoke through their communication device she knew she’d have to open at least another two. “Reyes! Jack! Get in!” she called out and created portals for them to go through, leading them away from the path of the coming riptide and deeper into the ruins of the city. As she focused on keeping those portals open a tentacle crashed from above and the sheer force of it colliding against her was enough to display the holographic sign indicating she had just lost one life. Her human body, lying elsewhere would feel this for days. And with what felt like just remnants of energy, June managed to teleport herself to join her friends, away from the tentacles and the away from the path of the coming riptide.

“Is it possible for me to change avatars? Have any of you tried to change your avatar? How did the program even decide what our avatar is going to be?” Sebastian looked over at June and then at Jack. He studied their avatars and all their details a little more closely in the moment of peace before the kraken started its attack. “Like, did either of you have uglier avatars or something? Does anyone have an ugly ass avatar that they can’t change?” Despite his crude and immature questions, he did have a point. The avatars seemed like another mystery in this program of enigmas. “Okay, June, I’m glad the mission isn’t that complicated, but if someone is looking for it, it’s only a matter of time before they find us,” Bas said in an annoyed tone. He let out a huff as he stared at the idol in Jack’s arms. “I’ve played enough video games to know how this goes. The kraken is just the beginning.” And just like that, the moment of peace was over. The kraken came crashing down on them and it thrashed its tentacles around. Bas jumped and dodged the tentacles, and then flew through one of June’s portals that took him to safety. “Um, how many lives do you have left and what happens when they get to zero?”

Jack didn’t like the thought of Bas and his avatar being so vulnerable. Sure, there was a clear pro and if Bas could control the other programs and monitors, he could be a big help. But, if GAIA took control of Bas, they had no idea what the repercussions could be in both the program and in the real world. Jack already heard about how the program had affected everyone’s mental states, especially when one of them got injured or lost a life. Jack hadn’t experienced losing a life in the game, having left before they got to the more difficult levels. Having the strange phantom pain was enough to spook some of the other members of their group, like Shadia, who already had some trouble in real life. “As far as I know, we can’t change avatars, no matter what we try. Although, we haven’t done it with Jonas in the driver’s seat,” they said, shrugging their shoulders. As the kraken attacked, Jack used whatever power they could to distract the kraken as June mustered the energy to create portals. They let a tentacle come crashing down on them and caught one of the tentacles since their avatar could one, take more hits than June’s avatar could, and two, could absorb the energy and use it. Jack took the energy and then fired it back at the kraken, destroying several tentacles. The kraken fired back at Jack, swinging its tentacles more violently. Jack leaped into the air, narrowly dodging the attack and then ran towards June’s portal. “How much further? Do we have a map or something? We can’t keep going like this or we’ll all die,” Jack said to June.

“We could give it a try, but as far as I know, you didn’t really chose your avatars, they kind of chose you, right?” he said, as that was what Maya had told him. The group went in and they had those digital vessels in there. He wasn’t quite sure how to alter that, but that didn’t mean it couldn’t be done. With some research and some tinkering around maybe it could be altered. Jonas followed the schematic of the level after the riptide passed again, looking for a possible path for them to follow. “Guys, there seems to be a sort of tunnel. Jack, to your tight, under the arches and fallen colums” he said, as they were the one closest to it. Going down there would mean they’d swim in sheer darkness, but getting the idol closer to its temple would make it glow and that could light their way.

[jonas-hartmann]

sal-rizzo‌:

Since his promotion in the summer, Sal hadn’t been “on the ground” nearly as much as when he was a custodian. Occasionally, when people called out or a big event was coming up, they’d need an extra set of hands and he was always willing to put in some overtime as long as it didn’t conflict with his night classes. It’d been months since he went near the old computer room, but when someone called out sick at the last minute, he’d offered to cover that building. 

It felt strange to walk down the hall to a room where he’d once spent so much time. In hindsight, those first weeks away from the Grid were painful, like some kind of drug withdrawal. He’d gotten busier with his new job responsibilities and night classes, and that made it easier. There were still times when he found himself unplugging his console at home because it could never compare to the Grid. It’d been a couple months at least since he even heard from anyone else in the group. After the anonymous incident that proved someone knew something about his break-in at Jonah’s, he’d decided to take a step back from them. And it wasn’t like he’d ever really taken much of a step in with them to begin with.

Despite his reminiscing, he still hadn’t expected to find anyone in the room when he pushed the door open. With one hand still on the knob and another on the cart, he stared at the figures lying in the room. Being so close, seeing people clearly locked in, he suddenly wished he could just drop everything and join them. He missed it - despite all the distractions and busy schedule, he missed the Grid more than anything. Was this what homesickness was like?

“Uh, I’ll clean later, when they’re done,” he muttered, and he couldn’t hide the strain in his voice as he started to back out again. He had a job, he had other responsibilities now. There was no time for diving into a level when he didn’t know how long it would take. Besides, he doubted he’d be much help with whatever they had going on. He was out of practice, after all.

Jonas’ attention was fully on the screens before him. So much that he almost didn’t hear the sound of the key turning and the door opening. Almost. He quickly turned around to face the door, panic quickly rising in his chest, fearing he’d see a shocked stranger there. Luckily for him, for all of them, it was Sal. Frankly, it was quite unexpected seeing him here. The ones that were going to show up normally sent a text to their group chat -even if the number had dwindled as of late- so it was a surprise that someone other than June, Jack and Bas had come. But seeing the cart and hearing the intention in Sal’s voice it was clear he hadn’t come here to lend a hand to the group.

“Wait, Sal” Jonas said before the other guy retreated completely. “They’re really struggling in there. I’m helping as much as I can and I’d go in myself if I could”. He made a brief pause, letting out a breath. Better to just say it direcrtly. “They could really use your help”.

[jonas-hartmann]

jack-vargas‌:

elcucuy-reyes‌:

june-maslow‌:

“Well, ours didn’t, so you must have done something to it” the hacker stated matter-of-factly, since no avatar had given signs of that kind of malfunction. Though she mostly said to poke a bit of fun at Reyes. The circumstances practically put the opportunity on a silver platter. Thought after Jonas couldn’t tamper with the code of Sebastian’s avatar, she was growing more certain it was just part of the gameplay. He had to play it was meant to be played in order to unlock his next skill. “They were already part of the game. Whether they were all designed by the original creator- by Jonas’ mom, or by G.A.I.A., that we don’t know” she replied simply, thinking this wasn’t the best of moments to discuss everything they had discovered about the avatars over time. She’d seen that already firsthand. There was nothing off about the code written by Gabrielle Eaton by the code written by G.A.I.A… it was encrypted and obfuscated in so many ways, even with hidden failsafes like the one she had unknowingly activated when she hacked the original program from the old computer. “Maybe yours is one of G.A.I.A.’s, maybe that’s why it’s so hard to alter your code” she mentioned off-handedly, though she did think it was a real possibility.

Something shook violently and then that violent current rushed towards them. June was quick to teleport away to get herself out of the way of the riptide and to a safer area. From a distance she saw Sebastian being pulled and teleported to his side, opening two sets of portals  as soon as she felt she was in the midst of the current too. One opened right behind them and the other several meters away, making all that water that nearly crushed them funnel into the portal and continue its course away from them, pouring out from the second portal. “Where’s the idol?” she asked with wide eyes as soon as she took notice that Sebastian no longer had it. But much to her relief Jack showed up, swimming towards them with that valuable artifact in their hands. “Seems like we do” June replied, smiling at the sight of their friend, safe-keeping the piece that was meant to bring about the endgame of this level. “The plan is to navigate the maze-like ruins and not get killed in the process” she let out with a breath, thus admitting there was no real strategy. “And keep that safe. We need to deliver it to its rightful temple”.

“Fine. I’ll just wait for a third skill to show up then,” Bas said with a heavy sigh. He turned his head to face June. “Did you ever bother asking the nice robot lady slash not a lady about our avatars?” Bas asked, slightly annoyed that they couldn’t get his third ability unlocked. All he could do was fly, which was useless right now, and his suit could adapt to other environments, which also seemed useless right now as he could see that June and Jack’s avatars were doing perfectly fine underwater. “So what good am I doing here if I can’t do anything?” he said, mostly complaining to himself that directing his words at anyone in particular. He made a face, which no one could see under his mask, and then frowned. Once he recovered from the underwater riptide, he glanced over at June as she asked for the idol. It slipped from his fingers when he was being knocked around, but he was relieved to see that Jack had picked it up. “What exactly does the idol even do? Is someone looking for it?” He was still so new to the game that he didn’t quite understand everything that was happening. Sure he liked video games growing up and enjoyed playing them, but this was very different. Bas looked up and ran over to the next piece of rock as a kraken’s tentacle came crashing down. 

“If he is an avatar created by GAIA, does that mean he could potentially be a way into GAIA’s little army of programs?” Jack asked June and Jonas. They knew that June and Bas created a virus to help turn GAIA’s programs onto their side, but in case they needed a little extra push, Bas and his avatar could certainly help. But then, Jack became concerned about the possibility of this information. “If Bas’s avatar is created by GAIA, could that mean GAIA could control him more easily than us?” They had always wondered if GAIA could hack into their own brains or something like that. Could GAIA have direct access to Sebastian if his avatar was created by the AI? Jack adjusted their hold on the idol and followed behind June as they moved around. They tumbled and rolled to the side though as a kraken’s tentacle came crashing down on them. They kept a tight hold onto the idol as they moved around to avoid the kraken from crushing them or pulling them into its mouth. “Can you do anything about that kraken?” Jack asked. It was getting harder and harder to move around with so many tentacles swinging around at them.

If Bas’ avatar was in fact one of G.A.I.A.’s creations -and all seemed to indicate that it was- then Jack was really getting to something there. “Depends on how much of a two way street it is. We’ll have to look more carefully into the code of Bas’ avatar” he mentioned. They would probably have to keep Bas inside in a safer space -Limbo, possibly- so those outside could analyze every little piece of code. “If his code is similar to those of G.A.I.A.’s programs or System Monitors, it should be fairly easy for him to gain control over them once the virus hits. It wouldn’t even be too disruptive within the game to have them follow a piece of code that’s more alike than it is different”. In that case, it would even play to their benefit that Bas’ avatar was what it was. They could potentially get away with not even drawing much attention from the AI if the game went on as if it was unchanged. As if the AI’s programs were still following more of its own programs. “But yes... he’s also more at risk of G.A.I.A. getting access his digitalized consciousness because the link it’s- well, it’s already there”. That situation would leave him thinking for a long time, because it was a very clear pro and a very clear con, and no imediate solution came to mind as to how to eliminate that particular risk. Jonas couldn’t afford to wonder about that now, though, because the others needed him present and ready to give a hand. He typed quickly, going through the options to help them. The kraken was one of those pieces of code that might fight him, that might reset because G.A.I.A. put it there... but he could reuse the sequence that had caused the riptide. “I think I can drive it away with the riptide. Find cover and hang on” he warned them.

[jonas-hartmann]

jack-vargas‌:

elcucuy-reyes‌:

june-maslow‌:

“Did you break your avatar already?” June asked with a light scoff, glancing at Sebastian before she looked around the area where she’d transported them to. It was odd that he had two skills, just like when they all began in the Alpha sector almost two years ago. It could have something to do with that, with Reyes having been around for less than ten levels, since reaching the ten level mark had unlocked everyone’s third ability. “We’ll probably see more of those” she said after he mentioned the sea monster he’d seen. Last sector levels had a way of packing in various elements from the previous levels and Gamma had thrown a Leviathan, the creatures of the trench and other bizarre beasts at them so far. June knew they could expect plenty of that here. June rolled her eyes at his last words, a gesture that was so clearly real-life June in spite of inhabiting an avatar now. “You’re holding the damn thing, the least you can do is monitor whether you see any changes” she stated plainly, swimming towards one of the many possible entrances into the ruined underwater city. 

“Haha, very funny,” Bas said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “And no. I didn’t break my avatar. It came broken,” he said, dodging some debris that was flying around. He looked around, trying to find some place for them to get cover, but the only place that was around looked live a cove or a cave. It didn’t seem like the best of options when there were giant sea lizards throwing giant ass rocks at them. The lizards could make matters even worse. Bas felt himself being updated, which kind of felt weird and felt like a strange thought to be going through his head, and then after another moment, he swiped up to check. “Um, hey, Jonas, whatever you did, didn’t work,” he said. Nothing had changed except for his other abilities. They were the same, but slightly altered, along with the rest of his weaknesses. The third one was still locked. Was it because he hadn’t been there as long as the others? Could the game sense that? “Where exactly do all the avatars come from if we didn’t create them ourselves?” He hadn’t exactly thought to ask that until now. “I’d love to monitor it except that I’m trying not to get eaten by these giant squids,” he told her. After he spoke, he heard a loud booming noise and water. He turned and saw a massive wave starting to come crashing down. Well, he wasn’t exactly sure what to call it other than a wave. Could there be waves underwater? Was riptide a better name for it? It didn’t matter. Bas felt himself being pulled and jerked around by the water and he couldn’t break free.

As Bas started tumbling around in the water, he let go of the idol, unable to hold onto it any longer. Jack’s avatar started up in the air before free falling into the water, just above where Bas and June were. They hit the water and immediately, their hearing was blocked and they couldn’t figure out what was up or down or even hear June and Bas talking. After taking a moment to adjust to the water, Jack swam over towards the idol that Bas dropped and grabbed it into their arms. “Hey, guys. Need a hand?” they asked. “Sorry I’m late. Had to turn in an assignment. Jonas gave me a brief run down, but what’s the whole plan here?”

Jonas narrowed his eyes to the screen after having loaded the changes he’d input into Bas’ avatar. Something was wrong. The code seemed to have reseted somehow... “Scheiße” he cursed under his breath. If he could take a guess, he’d say it was probably something the AI had done to prevent users becoming too powerful inside its game. So it didn’t come as much of a surprise when Reyes said there was no changes “Sorry, man. I could try to force something a bit more aggresive but I can’t guarantee it would work and it might end up causing malfunctions in your avatar in the long run”. He tapped his fingers against the table “I think it’s best if you wait until the game lets you unlock your next skill. But it’s your call” he said, leaving it up to Bas to choose if he wanted to take that risk.

Then when he heard the key turning and someone else walked into the old computer room Jonas turned and smiled, tilting his head in greeting. Based on what he’d seen on the screens about this level June and Bas could use the extra help and he was content to see Jack had showed up to give it. It took a mere couple of minutes to explain how things were faring so far and have them linked up, ready to go in. “Good luck” he said to Jack before sending them in.

[jonas-hartmann]

elcucuy-reyes‌:

june-maslow‌:

The stone idol wasn’t in June’s care. That wasn’t her task. Her task had been to help her companions wade through the area surrounding the old underwater city. Strange sea creatures that looked nothing short of bizarre mutations to what one might expect to find in the depths of a real ocean lurked there -at this point they all knew anything was possible in The Grid, strange beasts and all- and June had made use of her portals to get them away from those potential threats and closer to the maze-like ruins.

“The layout of this level is encrypted. I’ll try to crack it to let you know which way to go, but it seems you’ll have to rely on that stone thing for now” Jonas’ voice was heard in their communication devices. “Noted” June replied before she looked back at her companions. “Anything? Is it glowing more?” she asked as she swan closer to the one who was carrying the stone idol. That thing had started to glow faintly the closer they got to the Ruins of Kandam, like the temple where it belonged was calling to it and the idol was calling back, wishing to be delivered.

“Um, quick question,” Bas said, looking around. He swiped up to look at his skills and weaknesses and furrowed his eyebrows. “Why is one of my abilities still locked?” No one else had a locked ability. At first it didn’t bother Bas, but now it did because what if it was a skill they needed to pass the level? Did everyone else have to unlock abilities? What was with this avatar? The good news was that his suit allowed him to adapt to any environment, especially the weird ocean and sea creatures. “Hey, Jonas? Think you can hack my avatar and get rid of the little lock symbol over this third ability?” he asked, looking up at the sky as if Jonas was there looking down on him like some kind of god. “By the way. I saw a giant mutated lizard looking thing in the ocean and it looks angry.” When June asked him about the idol, he looked down at it and then back up at her. “It looks the same. Why are you asking me? Ask someone else.”

Jonas scanned the computer screens before him, tracking the way they were following within the level. As soon as he heard Bas say his name his eyes darted towards the area on the screen where he could see his avatar. “Yes, give me a moment” he replied, typing rapidly as he went through the motions of tinkering with Bas’ code. “You might feel a bit off as you’re being updated” he warned before he pressed enter. And then he did, and the changes began to load and after a few seconds it was done. “You’re good to go”.

[jonas-hartmann]

maya-hadler‌:

Somehow, all in a matter of seconds, Maya can’t even remember why she was crying in the first place. Why she sat down, stayed in here away from the group, with only Jonas to find her minutes later. His presence has that effect on her. She laughs gently, shaking her head. “I can’t argue with that logic, now can I?” Maya sighs, continuing to inspect Jonas’ eye. Nothing there but a little irritation, and that would go away in time. “I…think we both know it’s terrible aim,” she chuckles, hand dropping back into her lap once she’s done looking at his eye. His next comment makes her laugh so hard she snorts, and she’s quick to cover her mouth with the back of her hand. “That’s just mean,” she retorts, smiling when his head bumps gently against hers. 

Their gaze stays on each other a minute longer and Maya thinks about saying something. What would she say though, exactly? Hey, I think I might like you? She’s only now just began to recognize the feeling! The flip flops her stomach does when he smiles at her, the way her heartbeat quickens when he enters a room. She finds herself staring at him a lot, just…examining him, his features, the faces he makes. By now she’s sure she might be able to decipher nearly every damn one of them. Hell, they have been spending a lot of time together, nearly almost all of their free time, actually. Maya bites down on her bottom lip, head shaking gently as she leans forward, pressing her forehead against Jonas’ chest. His chin is just above her head, and when she shifts, she can feel it bump into forehead. “I just wanna stay for a moment longer,” she breaths out, closing her eyes as she listens to his heartbeat. “Maybe if we come out together in a second they’ll think we were making out rather than me crying my eyes out,” she chuckles, shaking her head. “I think I’d rather have that anyway. I don’t want them to worry right now, there’s a lot going on.” 

“‘Beware the innocent looking’” he told her in a playful tone, giving her a pointed look. “They’re the worst, they’ll attack without you even seeing it coming”. His eye was fine in spite of Maya’s sudden M&M’s attack. It was nice seeing her smile and laugh, once more bravely overcoming her painful emotions, this time by, well... playfully engaging in a bit of a food fight.

Jonas was still smiling as the silence between them stretched. Spending time with Maya had a way of becoming the highlight of his day and this time in particular was no exception. So he was content to stay a little while longer here as she told him she didn’t want to go back to the group just yet. “Okay” he said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders as she moved to lean close to him, resting her head on his chest. He couldn’t help but chuckle a little at her words. “Do you think they-? They’ll really think that?” he asked, still laughing a little before he tilted his head a little to rest his cheek against the top of her head. Gott, maybe one of these days they’d prove her friends right. If Maya and him had gotten close enough in the past months to make others think there could be more than friendship between them... was that something she also thought? Because she certainly was one of the closest friends he’d had in ages, and he treasured that part of their bond, but Jonas also happened to have other, more complex feelings, for her.

[jonas-hartmann]

maya-hadler‌:

A small smile begins to form on Maya’s lips, and she wipes a few stray tears away from her eyes using her free hand. “I never thought of it like that before. As an act of love,” she admits. Calling grief and act of love made it seem just the least bit happier, even if she still felt sad deep down. It meant she loved him, and that’s okay. Sometimes it just has to be okay to hurt, and she has to let herself feel it. Maya lets out a breath of air, shaking her head back and forth as if to knock the tension out of her body. Who knows, maybe she did. 

By the looks of it she did, because now Jonas as bean dip on his nose and Maya can’t stop laughing. “What? Salt? Oh come on, everything needs more salt!” She begins to protest, trying so hard to feign offense but fails miserably at every attempt. Laughing is the problem, but then- “Wh-” Before she can even finish her thought, Jonas is moving forward, his lips brushing against her skin. At first Maya remains still, a bit surprised by his actions, though they aren’t unwelcome. It’s the cold, wet feeling of bean dip sliding against her cheek and neck that make her squirm and yelp, probably alerting the rest of the part of their antics. “Aye!” She laughs breathless, lips agape as she looks back at Jonas in surprise. “Is there…did you just…it’s all over the side of my face, isn’t it?” Every other word comes out in a laugh, her hand coming up to cover her lips as she shakes her head. “You’ll pay for that one, Hartmann,” she threatens, reaching over to grab a tortilla chip from an open bag. Using the chip, Maya gets most of the smeared bean dip off herself but can’t help the laughter that follows. It even makes swallowing difficult, however she uses this distraction to aim a couple M&M’s at Jonas’ chest. One nearly hits him in the eye instead. Maya covers her lips, reaching over to touch his face. “Oh shit, did I hit your eye?” She grimaces, scooting closer to the edge of her seat so she can tilt his head a little to get a better look. “No…looks okay. I think the M&M just barely missed you. Your lucky, I might’ve had to make you a fancy eye patch.” 

The therapist he went to after his mother’s death told him that. While it didn’t magically take away the pain, that change of perspective did help make it all feel a little more bearable. With any luck it could have a similar effect on Maya. Grief was a long and emotionally draining process to say the least, but with the help of some coping tools and the presence of other loved ones around it pained a little less.

Seeing the smear of dip he’d left on the side of her face, Jonas couldn’t help but laugh about it, really loud, openly and loudly. “Yeah” he responded to her question with a nod, still chuckling about it. His eyebrows rose as she threatened him. “Hey, hold on. Let us remember you started this, I just fought back” he told her as he raised both hands in an innocent gesture. But before he knew Maya was already grabbing a bunch of M&M’s and hurled them his way. “Ow, Scheiße” he said as one hit very, very close to his left eye, hitting just at the outer corner of it. “Damn, I can’t tell if you great aim or terrible aim” he jokingly stated, very much aware that it really wouldn’t have been her intention to hit his eye. After Maya inspected his eye he gently rubbed over the sore area. “I wouldn’t have worn a patch, I would have let the whole world see you left me blind” he said in a teasing manner, leaning close to lightly bump his forehead to hers. Jonas smiled as he pulled back. He liked having time like this with Maya but he hadn’t yet forgotten they were at someone else’s home and that there was a whole group of people a room away. “Do you want to go back with the others?” he suggested, even though he had no rush to return to them just yet.

[jonas-hartmann]

maya-hadler‌:

A moment of silence passes between them before Maya gives a light nod, more sure of herself now. She takes a deep breath in, even manages a smile at Jonas. “Yeah, I’m sure. Really, I’ll be okay, I just needed…some time, I guess. I don’t want to just leave every time things get hard. I’d be inside all the time if I did that,” she points out, looking down at her hands. The letter hurt, yes, but it also felt good to have a little piece of her father still with her. It’s in his handwriting, his words, his tone…they’re little reminders of what it had been like when he was alive. Maya loves her farther fiercely, even in death that hasn’t changed. “I don’t think so. It’s just hard to remember. I want to, I don’t want to forget him ever, but…it’s hard. Sometimes it’s really hard,” she lets out a breathy laugh, using her sleeve to wipe away any stray tears.

Jonas takes her hand while she’s stuffing the letter back into her pocket, and the gesture brings a smile to her lips. He seems to be doing that more often now, just…taking her hand to comfort her. Besides that, there’s been a couple forehead kisses, long drawn out hugs, and night’s she’s fallen asleep on his shoulder watching TV. Somehow over the last couple months since their meeting, he’s been the person she spends the most time with. He’s the person she wants to spend the most time with. There’s a brief moment where her lips part, and she thinks of something to say, anything. What else could Jonas do for her? What he’s already doing feels like so much. He’s been there for her every step of the way, it seems impossible to do much else. Her head turns to the side briefly, catching a glimpse of her bean dip just inches away from them. With a small smile growing on her lips, Maya reaches over with her free hand, scooping a little bean dip up with her finger to smear on Jonas’ nose. “Yeah, tell me if this tastes good.” She laughs, feigning innocence even though she’s the very one who put that bean dip on his nose. “I actually made that myself and I’m…well, we know what kind of cook I am.”

“Okay, you can always have all the time you need” he assured her. He did think that maybe it was best to let her have that alone time but their hands were joined together, and the girl even gave his a light squeeze, so Jonas stayed there with her. That odd and paradoxical feeling was something known to him, of wanting to always keep their dead loved one in their mind but also wanting a respite from the overwhelming pain. “I know it’s really hard, but- at the end of the day, grief is an act of love”. It only hurt so damn much because she had truly and deeply loved her father. That was the reason why saying goodbye for good hurt so bad.

The two of them sat there in silence for a moment, exchanging looks only, little encouraging smiles here and there as well. Then, out of the blue, Maya reached out for some bean dip to smear on his nose. He blinked a few times, caught of guard, but a smile gradually made its way to his lips. He took a bit of the dip from his nose with a finger, tasting it afterwards. “Hmm. I would have added a little salt” he said in a thoughtful manner, tapping his chin with his free hand. “What do you think?” he said as he moved closer, playfully kissing her cheek before he smeared the remaining dip from his nose on her cheek and the crook of her neck, pulling away with a chuckle.

[jonas-hartmann]

shadia-abassi‌:

“Not sure why,” Shadia said, shrugging her shoulders. “I like Bill Gates more than Mark Zuckerberg.” She took a sip of her drink and looked over at the German. “Hm.” She pursed her lips and thought about Wes and his place in this group, which was nonexistent now. With him having been gone for so long, it didn’t even seem like he was ever part of the group. Things had been moving on so quickly without him. “We don’t need him anymore,” she said. She thought of everyone else in the group who was fully capable of taking care of the program. “Even if he came around asking for forgiveness, I don’t want his apologies. I’m sure that none of us do.”

Jonas shrugged a little at her response, a silent ‘Fair enough’. It sounded a little harsh when Shadia stated so frankly that the group no longer needed the person that had practically gotten all of them together. But well, he didn’t even know the guy or what his relationship had been to this group, so he didn’t even bother to judge in anyway. “Well, his loss. He’s really missing out” Jonas said before he took another sip from his drink. The Grid was something too amazing to just let go of it, and these group of people- they were all pretty cool people. Beginning to make friends with them had turned out to be an unexpected and pleasant surprise.

[jonas-hartmann]

shadia-abassi‌:

“Mechanical engineering,” she replied, shrugging her shoulders. She didn’t mean to come off so nonchalant, but despite having a graduates degree, she wasn’t sure what she was going to do. Sure, she knew what she wanted to do, but things had gotten weird recently. “And you? Heard you were our new resident Mark Zuckerberg. Maybe Bill Gates is a better description though,” she said, thinking out loud with the last statement. She traced her finger along the edge of the glass after she set it down onto the countertop. “Took the place of Wes basically, wherever the hell he is.”

“Nice. That’s what I’m studying now” the German said with a smile, interested to chat with someone who had a master’s in the very field he was getting his own. Her next words made Jonas laugh a little, raising his glass for another sip. “Why Bill over Mark?” he asked, curious about the distinction she made there at the end. Though he would never compare himself to either. “I didn’t mean to take his place. I don’t think anyone can, not after what your friend did” he mentioned, since the A.R.V.I.S. program had bee a true stroke of genius that few people could have conceived. Having his mother’s virtual world to work with had done half the job, though. “I never even met him” he mused out loud, as Wes had already abandoned the group by the time he met the group.

[jonas-hartmann]

maya-hadler‌:

Punch. She went into the kitchen to get punch but never came back out again. Something stopped her, weirdly enough, something she found in the pocket of her jean jacket just moments ago. A letter her father wrote her after he went back to the hospital one last time. One last time before he decided he didn’t want to go back anyone. She didn’t have to open the letter to remember what it said. She remembers every word. When Jonas walks in tears have begun rolling down her cheeks, her eyes glazed over as they stare down at the note clutched tightly between her fingers. “Hm?” Maya says in surprise, quickly trying to cover up the fact that she’s been crying. “What, no, no we don’t have to leave,” she insists with a shake of her head, bowing down slightly to wipe away stray tears. 

“I just um, I found a note. From my dad. He wrote it uh, when he first decided to stop chemo.” With the note to still in her hand, Maya chuckles softly in spite, lifting it up. “I can’t just…go to a party? I can’t talk to people without someone saying something or seeing something that reminds me of him? It’s crazy, and…and annoying, even. I didn’t expect it to feel like that but,” Maya lets out a soft sigh, finally pocketed the letter. “It does. Constantly. I feel bad for feeling that way but for one- just one second, I’d like to be able to just…forget. Just for a little while.” 

“Are you sure?” he asked softly, his concern increasing as he noticed she had been crying. If Maya said she didn’t want to leave he wasn’t going to push it, but he just... well, he cared deeply about her and if she wasn’t feeling too great here he wanted to make sure she knew the option to leave whenever she wanted was on the table. Jonas glanced down and saw the note she was clutching. Little reminders like that could become painful with time. And she was right, the most mundane and common things had a way of hurting in the most unexpected of times. “I know...” he said with a sigh, relating to the feeling more than he wished he could. It had been that way with his mother’s passing too, and sometimes some things still brought him pain when he least expected it. “It’s not bad to want to feel okay, you know?” he mentioned, reaching out to hold her hand. It could feel like they were betraying the memory of their loved ones for wanting to forget, but there was just so much pain and grief a person could take. “Is there... is there anything I can do, Maya?” Jonas asked, squeezing her hand a little. He knew there probably wasn’t but he still asked.