Cloud Chasers

five | not to be reproduced [pt. one]

a/n: remember to vote!

"The Virtual Plaza?" Joyce asked, her eyes gazing away, refusing the idea that she was talking to a marble bust.

"The place you are standing in right now is the Virtual Plaza in its vanilla form," the resonating voice of Helios continued.

"You're—" Joyce broke off. Referring to a marble bust as "you" didn't feel right. She chuckled.

Chase turned to look at her. He was still in shock due to Helios, so his face remained serious.

Joyce cleared her throat and resumed talking to the statue. "You're telling us all these things and just assuming we understand any of it."

"What don't you understand?" Helios's echoing voice asked.

At the same time, a muffled, slowed down voice within the background music said, "Do you understand? It's all in your head."

"Well, for starters, what the hell is this place?" Joyce asked.

"This is the Virtual Plaza," Helios answered.

"No, not this place. This whole place," Joyce said, spinning a finger around.

"Ohh," Helios's voice echoed through the whole Virtual Plaza. "This is the Lobby," the bust said, "you got here through The Wave."

"Okay, Helios," Joyce fought the chuckle this time. "I'm going to need fewer names and more definitions from you, alright?" she said.

"Alright," Helios said.

"Are we still in Okin?" she asked.

"What is Okin?" Helios asked.

"Give me something, Helios," she said in a frustrated tone.

"What's up with the music?" Chase nearly shouted just as Helios was about to talk.

"The music you're listening to is Vaporwave," Helios said.

"Vaporwave? Really? Isn't that, like, a meme?" Chase asked.

"What is a meme?" Helios asked.

"Where's the music coming from?" Joyce interrupted the conversation.

"Nowhere," Helios said. The muffled, slowed down voice from the music repeated, "Do you understand? It's all in your head."

Joyce sighed. "Alright, Helios. Give us your best 'welcome newbies' speech. And try to be as specific as possible."

"Welcome to the Virtual Plaza!" Helios exclaimed, his voice resonating even more through the open space. "I am your friend, Helios. If you ever feel you need me, at any time, anywhere you are, just say my name out loud and I will be summoned before you. I hope you enjoy your stay. For any further information, I will be at your disposal."

"What if we want to get out of here, out of the, uh, Lobby," Chase said immediately after, "is there any specific way to do so?"

"All you have to do is cease the usage of The Wave for approximately five minutes and you will reappear in the location you drifted off from," Helios said.

"Well, we knew that much already," Joyce said.

"I thought there was a, uh, more official way to do it," Chase said and vaped twice. After that, he offered Joyce the vaping device, and she too inhaled it twice.

"Can I interest you in a refreshing beverage best served cold?" Helios said as the music changed to something a little more lively, but of the same strange style.