sheets all on the floor just like an ocean ...

[headandhand]

WHO: All y’all!
WHAT: Your regularly scheduled NAPs event for the month
WHERE: Fort Pillowtown
WHEN: Oct. 7-10
WARNINGS: Please use these if applicable!


Look at all of these bright, shining new faces! There’s even a few less bright, less shining faces - maybe even a few folks without faces - but hey, this city welcomes all types. Chances are, if you’ve just arrived, you're seeing some pretty crazy things, unless you're used to an eye-blinding amount of neon, robots, weird-ass technology, magic, and an omnipresent police force...and hey, if you are, congrats, you're gonna settle in juuuuust fine. But for the rest of you, the Head knows this has gotta be pretty overwhelming, right?

Well, since your quaint individual processing units are probably having a hard time, why not link up with another one? By which the Head means...

Hello, new citizens of Dualis,
and welcome to your monthly Network Adjacency Protocol~!

NAPs are a monthly community networking event similar to the Earth concept of speed dating! Two citizens (new arrivals and old hands alike) are placed at a table together with a handy cue card of queries to help break the proverbial ice. Ask queries and receive results, or ignore the card and yeet yourself straight into a brand new friendship! But don't be too shy, you've only got ten minutes together, and if you just sit in silence for the whole ten, the Network Admins are likely to come supervise and try to repair the uplink through a mild shock to the ol' central nervous system. You might find yourself saying all sorts of unintended facts about yourself if that happens...probably better to just make friends, right? Who doesn’t like friends?!

This month’s event is held at a new, super-comfy all-ages establishment called Fort Pillowtown. As the name suggests, it’s a large indoor space filled wall to wall with permanent pillowforts. There are a variety of sizes, shapes, and colors, with each individual fort constructed of gauzy hanging sheets, strings of soft lights, warm blankets, plush toys, a mini television with on-screen menu for choosing movies to watch and video games to play, and yes, lots and lots of pillows. Snacks and drinks of all sorts are available for purchase, as are whimsical onesies and comfy slippers to wear. Board and card game sets are also available to borrow or buy. Sounds like a dream, right?

So pull up a pillow pile, get to know your new neighbors, and enjoy a well-earned and comfy chill-out session. And hey, if you end up napping at NAPs, rest assured that it’s absolutely allowed.

Comments

[sanephiroth]

There's an elegant arch of his eyebrows. Did you just issue a challenge, Zack? He huffs and accepts the controller.

"If it means that much to you." It's just a video game. He settles down next to Zack, legs crossed and hair carefully pulled out of the way. He takes a moment to figure out the controls and starts to look at the character selection.

...

"Do they not use swords?"

[legacy_blade]

Yes, this was absolutely a challenge. He is challenging you. And with the challenge accepted he pulls of his best puppy grin because yeah, he's still this person.

"Why would they use swords in a fist fighting game?"

That's a silly question Sephiroth. Zack is careful to pick an awesome looking girl.

[sanephiroth]

It's still strange how easily Zack seems to forgive, but after the recent bout of (well-deserved) hostilities, it's nice to have someone he knows not hate him right now.

"This man has claws," he points out with a shrug and selects him.

It's going to be weird for the first few minutes as he fumbles and figures out the controls. This is... a little frustrating. But fun perhaps.

[legacy_blade]

Is it forgiveness? Or is it him trying his hardest to be fair to the man before him as he is?

Or is it that his last encounter with Genesis and what he saw there so close to the Lifestream made him react to things differently?

"I mean, there's all sorts."

He grins though as the game starts. He does offer over some really basic pointers. Like which button he's figured out is punch. It's... about the only reliable thing he's figured out.

[sanephiroth]

He's not sure he deserves even that much, Zack. He knows what he's capable of.

"It's a little more sophisticated than the 3D Battler." In Gold Saucer. Yes, Sephiroth has tried that once.

Punch. Kick. Hitting both at once. He's starting to find a pattern. Zack might want to keep up.

[legacy_blade]

"A lot more sophisticated. I've broken that."

No, keeping up is not his style. No, instead he's busy just button mashing. What? Eventually it triggers combos. Sometimes. Mostly he looks like a fool. But a fool that is getting down half of Sephiroth's life. Fear the untrained fool!

[sanephiroth]

A huff. Of course he did.

Ah. That one series of attacks grinding down his character's health is making his narrow his eyes. He's certainly not ready to lose now. Not to button mashing. Still, systematically figuring out combos is giving Zack an edge and he's soon at the last of his health.

He risks a newly-discovered combo... and fails. The screen declares Zack the winner.

"Ah." He blinks, surprised.

[legacy_blade]

And Zack? He's definitely celebrating, dropping his controller and pumping his fists in the air.

"Finally kicked your ass! Wanna do another round? Gonna take you down again!"

[sanephiroth]

Sephiroth narrows his eyes, slowly looking from the screen to his controller and then at Zack in a less threatening manner. Unbelievable. Zack's cheering is equal parts endearing and a little irritating.

"One more round," he confirms and presses the button to return to the character selection screen. He picks the same and waits for Zack. He knows more combos now. He won't make it easy.

[legacy_blade]

Oh hell yes, Zack's totally got this. Another round is the best, and he's grinning because he's going to WIN. He selects the same character and once again, goes at thins with his button mashing potential

"Isn't it sad how you can't handle losing for once."

[sanephiroth]

Crude, Zack. Overconfidence will be your downfall. Sephiroth is focused on the screen, registering the attacks and figuring out the best defenses and counters as he goes.

But the comment does make him pause.

"Not in battle." Not since his first year in Wutai. "In games... It hasn't happened in a long time." Not since Genesis began to degrade.

[legacy_blade]

"Well, maybe you should get used to it because I'm awesome."

And he really is. He still keeps button mashing. He really isn't very good at this so much as spirited. An eager puppy, if you will.

[sanephiroth]

"Randomly pressing buttons is not skill, Fair." Aggravatingly, Zack keeps getting lucky and continues to keep Sephiroth on his toes as both their life bars dwindle. He tries to squeeze in an attack but whatever Zack just did seems to have unleashed some kind of limit break.

And Sephiroth fails to block it.

He frowns as his character collapses. Again

"Hmph."

[legacy_blade]

Zack laughs and leans over to poke Sephiroth in the shoulder.

"Face it. Logic isn't how the world works, dude. The most dangerous person to the best swordsman in the world isn't the second best. It's the worst. And thaty's how I kick video game ass."

[sanephiroth]

Sephiroth half-rolls his eyes but he's releasing a resigned breath and smiling as he looks over at Zack.

"I'll concede to that. However, swordsmanship has little bearing here." He's pressing start again. Guess who's picking another character (a more punchy one) and is determined to throw in some button mashing this time. "One more time."

[legacy_blade]

"Maybe, but the principle might well be the same," Zack counters. He's sticking with this character, clearly it has all the luck in the world.

[sanephiroth]

"I won't be defeated by a bumbling swordsman in reality." Sephiroth counters. A lot of that is arrogance but it's an earned status.

[legacy_blade]

"Uh... Yeah, probably not," Zack agrees. But he doesn't really mean it.