Chapter Text
You've felt alone almost your entire life, having been raised by a single parent and as an only child. You had only a small handful of friends throughout school, only one of them persisting to your adulthoods--Sam. The feeling of loneliness continued, seeming to be never-ending; it only got worse when you moved out from your parent's small apartment into a larger house. It was filled with objects but never people. Occasionally, Sam did come to visit, but each time she left, your house was left feeling emptier than before.
Most of your time in the day was spent in your office, hunched over your desktop computer, save for occasional late-night outings to the bar or nights spent passed out on your kitchen floor, whisky bottles often half-empty in your hands. You tried to fill the void in your life with online forums, dating apps, or writing erotic self-insert fanfiction. Often, you were on phone calls with Sam late into night, hanging up only when one of you couldn't stay on. She had other things to do in her life, you knew; her job was one of them. You, too, applied for many places. Yet, it only left your emails filling with rejection after rejection. It felt like the BFA in Customer Service that you spent so long to get was just going to go to waste.
Things started to seem like they were turning out better; you got a partner, a job at Valdivian (thanks to Sam), and a larger social circle. Though, just as things went well, they crashed to the ground. Your partner broke up with you, your new friends ghosting you post-breakup. Valdivian had also immediately 'fired' you--or rather, put you in 'job limbo'--just to replace you with AI. The once colorful world around you seemed to grow more grey.
You forced yourself out of your office chair, your legs shaking every step. Pain shot through your body, dizziness swarming in your head. You stood up too fast again. You were used to that uncomfortable or sometimes agonizing feeling at this point; it was never ending, and you didn't remember when it started. Pain, occasional breathlessness, existential dread, and the feeling of emptiness seemed to follow you everywhere you went at this point; you accepted the fact that you'd probably never shake it.
Bracing against the wall for support, you took slow, wobbly steps towards the kitchen, fully intending to empty at least 2 whisky bottles in a night. You just wanted to forget everything, to pretend that everything was 'okay' for a while until being dragged back down with the hangover that always followed. You only made a few steps into the hallway when your phone buzzed with a notification. You hesitated, but pulled it from your pocket seeing a notification from Thiscord. Was it Sam? You hoped so; every time you two talked made the world seem more... full. More pleasurable. Though, you knew not to get your hopes up for anything anymore; you were right in this case, as the message wasn't from Sam. Instead, it was from an unknown user named tinfoilhat. Against your better judgement, you opened the message.
<( Hello, Player )
<( Okay, here goes nothing... )
( Who are you? )>
<( Well, that's not important. Think of me as a friendly, yet anonymous hacker. )
<( Any second now, you will receive a delivery via drone to your front door. Tell absolutely no one it is in your possession. )
<( I will return with further instructions when the time is right. )
( Cool, sounds like fun. )>
You rolled your eyes, your phone immediately vibrating with a reply. Though, you didn't have time to read the message before you heard desperate thumping against your windows. Looking up, you saw a drone slamming itself into your office's windows, before crashing into the window of your front door. It left the closed package on your inside doormat, the drone fleeing just as quickly as it came, leaving you in an annoyed and confused state.
Little did you know, your life was about to change, for better or worse.