"Come on, Hiro. Pick up!"

An irked Tak was patched into his GSS immersion rig, trying to reach his brother by an OASIS video call, but the younger Shirazi didn't respond.  He tried Hiro's mobile phone, but it went straight to voicemail. Disappointed in the brother he was close to as a boy, he sighed and left a voicemail asking him how he was doing, what he was up to, and to please return his calls as soon as he can. 

This is weird. It is not like him to not reply to me on the private chat or not pick up my calls for nearly a week. Perhaps I can ask Hana if she had any recent contact with him or knows what he's up to.  Perhaps his new job keeps him occupied. I do wonder if he works odd hours, but I do wish he would pick up to confirm that. 

Trying to shake down the notion that something could have happened to Hiroyuki or he was up to no good once more, Takeshi logged onto the Oasis once more and brought up the messages he and his brother exchanged previously and noticed that they were more than a week old.  He used his haptic glove to select a message between them and enlarge it. 

PersianSamurai2018:
Yo, Tak. Been a while, huh?

Madaraizen:
Whoa, Hiro? It has been a minute. Last I heard, you were getting that new job after they let you out of jail. Figured you went AFK for good. Has the Prison - Industrial Netwok Complex come through for you?

PersianSamurai2018:
Nah, I didn't drop off the face of the Earth. I just got sucked into work. The job's... let's just say it's keeping me busy. Way busier than I thought it would.

Madaraizen:
Busy like "I love my job" busy or "they don't let me sleep" busy? You good?

PersianSamurai2018:
"Good" is a strong word, bro. It's mostly backend maintenance on OASIS assets. And by "maintenance," I mean I'm chained to my workstation 24/7 cleaning up old code, fixing asset glitches—stuff no one even notices unless it breaks. What's more? I unload all the cargo out of the Gregarious warehouse by the Newport docks at daybreak. 

Madaraizen:
So you're basically on janitor duty for the whole OASIS? 😂. JK bro. That's a step up from running illicit cargo for the  Glitch Hounds. I can understand if you are tired. It is always good to hear from you. 

Ever since then, Tak had eagerly checked in each day after work to see if his kid brother had a chance to touch bases with him about his new job, but he was only greeted by silence. Hiro wouldn't answer his phone nor would he respond to his DMs.  Tak was getting concerned about his wellbeing and was considered giving his sister a call to see if she had any recent contact with their brother, but the electric white-blue digital numbers on the top right of his screen showed the hour as late. 

I'll give Hana a ping tomorrow morning after I take Chewie out for his walk and give him his breakfast. All that has happened is keeping me preoccupied.  I do hope it won't prevent me from getting my much needed shuteye. 

Unfortunately,  Tak's racing mind kept slumber at bay. Knowing it was no use pushing it, the developer decided to immerse himself in old Star Wars games, particularly the ones that included Revan, his favorite character. After a bit, the gameplay got a bit stale so he decided to login as his avatar Madaraizen to visit some of his favorite places in the Oasis. Once he was fully immersed with the HUD on display, he selected the planet Neonir and decided to pay a visit to Aunt Mai. Upon spawning in the futuristic cyberpunk world, the clone avatar was greeted with some dark synthwave sounds as well as bustling streets that reminded him of scenes from Blade Runner, Altered Carbon, and Total Recall as aircraft shot by overhead like Coruscant from the Star Wars prequels.  Walking past a sort of 80s bazaar, he was greeted by vendors hawking their wares or adults talking loudly toward each other.

"Hey dude, would you like to buy some Neo-ramen? You could really increase your XP points to where you level up without having to complete dangerous quests. Who wouldn't want that?"

Ignoring the mustached ramen vendor, Madaraizen made his way past groups of avatars and NPCs hanging out on the street and toward his destination ahead- the Dragon and Sword Bar.  Noticeable by its distinct logo, a metallic green Oriental dragon wrapped around a glowing silver katana, the Dragon and Sword bar had a welcoming vibe as the building glowed neon teal, pink, and magenta, the sound of club music playing inside. The name of the bar was written in large red letters styled in kanji.  Before he could enter, something caught his attention by the entrance. 

"Would you be able to spare a few credits or XP points for a poor soul like mine?"

Before him sat a vagrant with sunken eyes  dressed in a mismatch of clothes with different colors patched all over. The cloaked avatar noted that the rover had crimson-dyed hair that seemed faded as well as various belts and trinkets on him, resembling an explorer like Indiana Jones or Nathan Drake or someone from Stargate SG-1. Regardless, he took pity on the avatar and lent him credits and XP points. 

"Anorak bless your avatar," the wanderer whispered to his benefactor.

"No worries,  I'd assume you'd do the same if I was stuck in your position, Virtual Drifter," Madaraizen called out as he entered the bar. He was greeted with loud music and flashing lights as various avatars partied on the floor or drank by the stools while he glanced for an open spot away from the throng. Finding one by the opposite end of the dance floor, he gladly took it.  

https://youtu.be/upBC2d2z6MU

"Madaraizen, it's nice to see you back again so soon. What are you doing up so late? I am assuming it is late in your area."

Mada was greeted by Aunt Mai, an avatar that looked like a mix of an older version of Ada Wong or Suzee Pai's character from Big Trouble in Little China,   the owner of this establishment. While she employed a few live avatars and NPCs for help, Aunt Mai preferred to get involved in running her beloved bar and club herself. According to her, she liked to be close to her staff as well as her most frequent customers to get to know them, especially the people behind the icons.  Madaraizen felt that while it was futile to learn about the real person behind the immersion rig as no one was usually their true selves in the Oasis, which was an escape from the dystopian mess that became  a part of people's lives in the real world, he had to give the older Asian icon credit. Perhaps she had a crappy life outside of this digital construct and spent more time where she would have more interactions. He couldn't fault her as this is what Morrow and Halliday created the Oasis for. 

"I couldn't sleep so I decided to kill some time and thought why not give my favorite tavernkeeper a visit?"

Aunt Mai just chuckled and shook her head. "Oh, you compassionate knight of the Oasis.  I still have trouble processing how my little 'tavern' as you like to call it has become the favorite haunt of someone who is part of GSS?"

Mada removed his helmet and placed it on the smooth obsidian counter. "You actually talk to me unlike the rest of the clublords. "

"Clublords." The Dragon and the Sword's owner smirked. "They are just soulless automatons who have as much personality as those droids they have running their establishments. They are just sycophants at best and avaricious swindlers at worse. Now pick your poison for tonight."

The Star Wars avatar drummed his fingers on the counter. "I'll go with a Replicant Reviver for tonight. Have Sonikal or  Aiku stopped by?"

"Look to your left, Brutha. "

Madaraizen glanced left to see a 7 feet of a hulking figure wearing a silver jackal mask who's top was Sonic's blue color scheme, a black cape, a blue and cream trenchcoat, dark trousers, and spiked knuckled vambraces embrace him from the side. His defining feature was his spiky blue-sprayed mohawk hair which made the game developer recognize him instantly. 

"Sonikal, thought I'd find you here. I was beginning to think I was wrong. You seen Aiku here?"

"Oi! I have!" The masked avatar growled. He pointed to the narrow blue-lit hallway to the side that lead to the restrooms. Chilling beside a digital couple who were snogging, an avatar who appeared as Harley Quinn from Birds of Prey and wearing purple armor similar to Demetra from Spy Kids, complete with an Autobots emblem on her chest and a headband that Michelangelo from TMNT wore, smoked an cigarette and chilled as the dark synth bass echoed throughout the club. 

"At least now I know that my Spidey senses work," the cloaked clone quipped. "You all just chilling or you couldn't sleep either?"

"I'm on my break so I thought I come on here and have a doss." Sonikal took the seat beside Mada. "With tech so advanced as it is today, it slips my mind that we got people like you Yanks and anyone not in Europe together in one area which I think I find ironic knowing that the world hit the shittah after the last war and the energy crisis that resulted from it. " The masked avatar leaned in closer to address his pal. "Ya know what else I find ironic? Your avatar looks like Tem Morrison yet you don't have a Kiwi accent, mate. "

"How does this sound, mate?" Madaraizen tried to do his best New Zealand accent. It only resulted in the avatar with the Cockney-accent snorting and laughing. 

"Ah, that's terrible, chum! Why can't you 'Mericans emulate foreign accents? Is it because you lot don't travel much? That shan't be an excuse in this day and age. We got the OASIS , for crying out loud!"

Aunt Mai arrived with Madaraizen' s drink and set it down before him. "Here's your Reviver with extra curacao and a dahs of orange bitters. What can I get you,  big guy?"

As  xXSonikolausXx requested his drink, Mada glanced over at Aiku69 lounging about and enjoying her cigarette, occasionally chatting with a few other patrons of the Sword and Dragon. Just as he was about to invite her over to their spot, he noticed something from the corner of his eyes. From the entrance, a figure with a wide brim hat and dark attire entered and made their way to the corner on the other side of the rectangle that served as the bar. The figure glanced around the floor before taking a seat between an avatar that looked like L from Death Note dressed like an Espada from Bleach as well as a Vegeta figure dressed as Jotaro Cujo. Curious, Mada turned back to Sonikal.

"You ever seen that dude before?"

The jackal-masked avatar gazed over at the ominous newcomer before shaking his head. "Can't say I have. While the bugger may look like death, it's not uncommon for blokes like him to drop in time and here again. Besides, who doesn't love Aunt Mai's grog? You can almost taste it like it is the real thing. I do wonder if you can get hammered from it. "

Before Madaraizen could respond, Aiku sauntered over and placed her hands on the back of their chairs. 

"How ya doing, boyos? I hope you ain't talking about me."

Both boys turned to her before Mada spoke up. 

"No, we weren't talking about you. We were chatting about that stranger over there. You seen him before?"

The combat clown girl stared at the grim figure with the reaper hat over his face and frowned, shaking her head. "Nah, can't say I have. Though I must say, he gives me the willies."

As Aunt Mai was approaching the new arrival to attend to his order,  a couple hooded figures, flanked by another, came up to them. Baffled by the masked profiles' intent and their sudden confrontation, the three avatars rose to face the aggressive characters.

"What can I do for you?" Madaraizen warily asked the three veiled forms. The first two had navy blue robes , but one had a cow skull mask while his partner bore a kitsune mask. Behind them, their colleague wore a black robe with a Neko mask, signifying a higher rank than the first two. 

"Just sit back down and relax," the cow-mask entity assured them.  "We mean you no harm."

"Then what the hell do you want from us?" Aiku demanded, crossing her arms. 

"We are from the Virtual Freedom and Justice Association, or just call us the VFJA for short," the kitsune woman explained, her softer voice giving away her gender.  "We would like to invite you to join our cause against corporate authoritarianism."

"What in blazes is that?" Sonikal replied. 

The Neko mask persona stepped forward and addressed them in a high voice similar to Puar from Dragon Ball. "We are an organization that began as a gathering of OASIS netizens who believe that Parizival , and to a certain extent the rest of the High Five,  has been abusing his power since he took over Gregarious Games. His crimes include but are not limited to nepotism, silencing those who don't align with his beliefs with permanent deletion, breach of privacy, and lack of transparency.  Our group mostly consists of former Gunters who sided with him against Sorrento and the Sixers, but felt let down by him as he favors those Gunters that align with his vision of how the OASIS should be run rather than organizing the administration of this virtual reality in a democratic process."

Cow-mask nodded his hooded head. "That's correct.  It's ironic that we followed Parzival in a war against corporate fascism only to be sidelined for those he was closest to when applying for jobs for GSS.  "

"In other words, he has turned into the same authoritarian enforcer he led us against," Kitsune girl added. "It's not fair for our friends who lost their OASIS privileges just for not agreeing with the way the High Five are running things. This sounds awfully close to IOI to me rather than Gregarious Simulation Systems."

Madaraizen felt his blood boil at these baseless accusation as against this hero. "Nonsense! I work directly for GSS and Parzival has yet to micromanage us or run our division with an iron fist.  Take your baseless accusations and shove them up your asses! We are not interested in your zany crusade."

"Oh, I wouldn't call our fight against tyranny 'zany'"

The three turn to see another figure, wearing a blue mask with black eyeholes trailing blood-red tears down the eyeholes that bore many similarities to Eyeless Jack and a large electric blue cape, stride over to them, flanked by two figures carrying electric staffs, pikes, and spears. One figure, dressed in red, looked just like an Imperial Royal Guard from Star Wars while his brother-in-arms looked similar to the Witch King of Angmar. As the two menacing figures functioning as bodyguards hovered back, the Creepypasta-looking character swaggered toward the group like the king of the jungle. Mada noticed that the music stopped as soon as he arrived. 

"Who are you?" Sonikal asked. "Or more appropriately, what are you?"

"Ah, I see that my name hasn't even reached the most basic laymen of the OASIS." The blue-masked man tilted his head to the side. "I seek to change that soon enough. I am EyelessBleach182. I head the Virtual Freedom and Justice Association, which these three activists of mine have introduced you to. I am sure you know of our goals."

"Only too well. No one is buying your horseshit so I suggest you get yer pathetic asses out of here before we make you. You are obviously not welcome."

All eyes turned to the stranger who had entered earlier face down the leader of the intruders. The ominous patron, whom Mada initially had assumed to be male turned out to be a woman with shoulder-length hair the color of Oakwood and bright yellow eyes that looked like the belonged on an angry wolf, glared at EyelessBleach, the tan-colored hat up on her head and not concealing her eyes anymore. Her black and gray attire, complete with a belt that had a fox's face stamped on it, reminded him of something the edgy goth kids wore at his high school back in Irvine.  The two bodyguards drew their weapons, cackling with blue electricity, but their leader raises a hand and they stood down. He turned to address his challenger in a calm and steady voice.

"I wouldn't try to challenge someone who outclasses and outnumbers you. If I were you, I'd sit back down and enjoy my drink instead of risking my health and XP points in a fruitless confrontation. I completely accept that you won't join our cause, but don't ruin it for others. Let them make their own choices."

'We will see who is outclassed once you and I cross blades. You are lucky I have an ounce of elf-control in me. " 

As the wolf-eyed woman drew a scythe, Aiku stepped forward.

"What's more? She isn't outnumbered as no one at the Dragon wants to hear your anti-Oasis propaganda crap. If I were you, I'd buzz off before you get your asses whooped by everyone here."

As the patrons of the establishment encircled the anti-Parzival missionaries, Aunt Mai stepped forward with a T- 800 on one side and Johnny 5 from Short Circuit on the other.

"If that isn't incentive enough, I am requesting you six to leave the premises. Note that I am not asking you, I am requesting you. If you fail to comply with my directive, these two boys will be more than content to show you the door themselves."

As the two VFJA boyguards raised their weapons, their leader raised an arm for calm. 

"Very well. We will respect your wishes, but don't think that you have silenced our voices. This only proves our point. You will regret this."

As the cloaked activists turned to leave amid the jeers and taunts thrown at them by the bar's patrons, Madaraizen turned to creepy woman who had sided with them.

"Hey, I want to thank you for sticking with us. I am glad to know you and the rest of the Oasis denizens have our backs and stand with the High Five."

The dark-clothed avatar only snorted. "Don't get the wrong idea. I don't give a cat's furball about those stuck up snobs. They can live in their luxury high rises in their bathrobes while everyone else tries to get by in this dystopian world. I just don't enjoy hearing the verbal diarrhea those nose makers spread. It is just garbage and an attempt to divert from the real problems of the world. If they have issues, fine. Let them handle it and not vent to the rest of the people who don't give two tokens."

Mada nodded. "Understood. Nonetheless, my gratitude still stands. I'm Madaraizen, but you can call me Mada. With me are Sonikal and Aiku."

The cold avatar nodded in greeting. "I'm LupaNocturna. It's a pleasure. I must take my leave now. I have business elsewhere."

As the woman with the wide brim hat sauntered out of the Sword and Dragon as Laura Branigan's 'Self Control' played as if the MC read the room, Sonikal chuckled and placed ahand on Madaraizen's shoulder. 

https://youtu.be/Ucmo6hDZRSY

"She ain't even half bad, bruv. I got a feeling this isn't going to be the last we see of her."

"Nor even those masked nutjobs," Aiku added. "I feel that a confrontation with those weirdos will occur one day."

"I agree, but let us take it one day at a time," Mada suggested. "Who wants a second round for drinks. This time, it's on me."

As his friends cheered and goaded him on, Mada couldn't fight the feeling that things would escalate with this cult of agitators and they should prepare for it. They could possibly be behind Ethan Turner's disappearance. That's something he would make sure to bring it up at the next quarterly GSS meeting. Another thing he was sure of and that brought him some fire was that their paths would cross with Lupa's sooner than they thought and they'd have allies against this inevitable conflict with the VFJA. Until then, they'd have to have some self control and take it day by day.