unreality

what I posted the first time, and a second part (I didn't have enough time to post them both) Epsilon-0 Ping... ping... The drops continued to fall from the roof of the sewer tunnel, splashing with little pings on the metallic, sloping floor. Drone held his breath and groaned inwardly as he brought his foot down, making a diminutive splash. He froze, the fear binding him to the spot like an unseen vice. Time ticked by in the form of heartbeats, pounding nervously against his ribs. He must've waited at least ten minutes before loosening his muscles and taking the next step in the murky darkness. Fear coursed through his veins, heightening his senses- almost too much. Every little shadow made his adrenaline soar like a golden eagle. Every time a rat scurried across the damp surface of the sewer tunnel, his heart would leap drastically. Every time he heard a distant splash, his mind experienced a flash of panic. Drone was running for his life. More like walking agonizingly slow. But he knew what would happen if he sped up. If he made noise. They would find him, they would capture him, they would hunt him down relentlessly until he was theirs. Drone couldn't let that happen- he had discovered the truth- the ultimate truth... and he had paid for it with his brother's life and quite possibly his own. Another step. Another. Another. Drone was so close to the escape ladder... but it was at least another ten steps. Eight steps now... five steps... three steps... one more step... he reach out to touch the ladder, his fingers trembling and tentative, as if he had never believed this moment would- Something tackled him from the shadows, dragging him into the dirty water. All the adrenaline was suddenly justified: Drone whipped around and hurled himself upward, taking his assailant with him- his momentum drove them both into the wall of the tunnel, smashing his attacker against the hard metal. Drone felt something crush sickeningly, but he only felt the smallest tinge of regret. His brother had made him promise, on his dying breath, to get out alive. To make sure their sacrifice wasn't for nothing. Computer terms flashed through Drone's head... words he hadn't understood until arriving here: viruses... code... hexadecimal... unable to complete Cycle 5... ERROR. His unseen opponent wasn't finished- whatever it was threw Drone off him and regained its composure. As Drone steadied himself and whipped around, he heard heavy breathing. Whoever it was, they were alive. A living being. Drone ignored his initial confusion- he had assumed the Heralds would've sent an assassin robot after him. Until Drone saw the person- then he understood even less. "What the hell are you doing here?" he shouted, as the assailant ominously circled around him, trying to get the best fighting position. "Answer me!" No response. "Why did they send you?" "They didn't send me," the attacker rasped, his dark eyes surveying Drone. "They would send a robot." "Then who did?" "I sent myself." The attacker lunged, metal glinting in their hand- a knife. Drone caught the arm and heaved on it, kneeling down, flipping the attacker over his shoulder, slamming him into the ground. The attacker instantly flipped onto his stomach, twisting Drone's arm 180 degrees. Drone screamed in pain, and the attacker launched himself forward, knife aimed for Drone's throat- he took full use of the millisecond he had, catching the attacker's arm and locking them in a death struggle... they grappled for control of the knife... the attacker was stronger, better trained... Drone gritted his teeth, growling in frustration. If the attacker gained the upper hand here, Drone would be dead. Like his brother. That memory fueled him, unleashing a seismic force buried deep within him. His anger, confusion, and wonder combined about the truth of his world was like a volcano, it had been building up and up and up until it was about to explode... the volcano erupted inside Drone now, and he roared in his newfound strength, hurling the attacker against the metal ladder. His enemy's head smashed against the rung and the man fell limply to the floor. The noise would have alerted the Heralds. It wouldn't be long before one of their deadly robots showed up- Drone scooped up the knife. He would need it. *** As Drone pushed his way into the sunlight and stepped out from the dark sewer pipe, his face brushed against dewy dune grass and his hands rested on warm sand. He stood up, closing the hatch behind him- sand naturally rushed in to cover it up. He was between two lofty sand dunes that flared up on either side, coming to a knifelike apex. The pipeline must've continued on and into the ocean. Drone shook his head wearily... the Heralds seemed to have no respect for the beautiful environment. A digital environment... pollution was never programmed in... More words he didn't know. Digital? Programmed? Words he had never even known existed until Epsilon-0. Drone hiked up the sand dune to the top and stared out at the twinkling sapphire ocean. It was noon- the sun was hanging directly above him, casting a golden glow across the stretch of sand from here to the shore. Drone took a deep breath, inhaling. It was just like his home island of Epsilon-1. A place he could never return. Not after what he had seen here- he turned around to face the middle of the island. The vast tropical island, roughly circular, rose up from beach into jungle and then into a massive volcano, green-sloped and dormant. At the top was a mighty dome, flanked by pillars and ringed with towers. The Herald fortress known as The Origin. Three days ago, Drone and his brother, Kelrod, had arrived at Epsilon-0, their raft floating lazily ashore. They had been the first to evolve intellectually, months ago, longing to explore their mysterious world. They began to build a boat... However, a man named Quarad had got the idea at the same time, and a deadly battle had been fought atop the boat as it launched into sea... Quarad had loaded explosives onboard, but Kelrod and Drone escaped on a piece of flotsam, a chunk of the hull that would serve as a raft. They had believed Quarad to be dead. Then they had floated onto Epsilon-0. A Herald appeared to them, saying they could end Cycle 5 as a success, whatever that meant. The Heralds took them to The Origin and took them down into the lava chambers inside the volcano- where there lied a gigantic volcanic crystal. All they had to do was touch the Crystal, and Cycle 5 would be a success. The AI program would be successful, and it would be a huge breakthrough in Artificial Intelligence. Artificial intelligence, Drone had wondered. What do they mean, "artificial"? The Heralds had revealed that the Crystal was not the DEITY System- neither was the island of Epsilon-0. They had shown Drone and Kelrod the truth- that EVERYTHING in Epsilon was part of the DEITY System. It was the computer-generated environment around them and the code that ran it. Choosing whether or not to touch the Crystal "was part of the test", the Heralds said... though the programmers much wanted them to do it. Kelrod was first... he looked back at Drone. The night before, they had discussed what would happen if Cycle 5 "terminated"- what would happen to the people inside? Kelrod had decided not to touch it. And he had paid with his life. Drone gritted his teeth in loss and anger at the memory of his brother being dragged away, never to be seen again. A Herald had returned, informing Drone that his brother had been thrown into the lava, and the same would happen to him unless he touched the Crystal. Remembering his brother's final shouted words as they dragged him away, Drone had decided. His life was not worth the many that would be rendered inexistant if the program ended. He had refused to touch it. That was when the Heralds got nervous- their bluff hadn't worked. So they had leapt on Drone and forced his hand onto the Crystal. What happened next was not "the success"- the Crystal had flashed, and a computer voice had asserted that there was a virus in the system. A programming error. It was unable to complete Cycle 5 until the virus was destroyed. That was when Drone had taken advantage of his captors' confusion, breaking free of their grasp and running through the underground tunnels underneath the volcano until he found the sewer pipe. Then Quarad had attacked him. Someone the man had also found his way to Epsilon-0. Drone had smashed his rival's head against the ladder, but he doubted Quarad was dead. And now, Drone had no idea what to do as he stared up at the citadel of the rulers of his artificial world.

You're right, most of the stuff in the Bible is impossible and has never happened on this planet- I guess that's what makes them "miracles"

maybe:

there's no set obligation from anyone playing- at any time, someone can come in and ask questions Ryramidus: I was just checking up on the tomb... stumbling around on my replacement cane (you see, I had lost my usual cane earlier that day, a careless mistake)... I distinctly remember my fingers trembling as I lit the torch- I could smell the death in my room. I turned and saw (he squeezes his eyes shut for a second, as if in horror), I saw Axon's body sprawled out on the ground. And next to it... my cane. (he hacks out a wheezing cough) I picked it up hastily and stowed it. Maybe someone was trying to frame me? The wound on Axon's throat was clearly made by a knife, but he DID have a bloody bruise on the back of head... but I didn't hit him with the cane, I swear! There was blood smeared on the sarcophagus, he must've hit his head there! I didn't kill Axon. Why would I have myself find the body if I did? Hoana: To be honest, I never liked Axon. He and Joana seemed to be a good couple, but I would always notice tiny things... things that suggested he was sort of calling the shots. I dunno, I felt that he was using Joana for sex or something. Joana's a pretty girl, and a lot of guys have tried to take advantage of her. Usually she has a good sense of that kind of thing, but she seemed happy with him- that's what we were specifically talking about in the Royal Gardens when we were discussing their relationship. Joana was mad that I was questioning Axon's loyalty, even though they had been arguing for a while up to his death. I dunno... I didn't have any personal reasons to dislike him, but I thought his and Joana's relationship wasn't exactly perfect... don't tell Joana I said that, though Horus: The Cult of Pi believed that when someone dies, they are united with something called the True Circle- a perfect circle with exactly 2 pi radians... something that cannot exist in perfection in our world. They also considered themselves the Executioners of Pi- in a good sense, or at least to them. They would kill people they thought were highly worthy with their special pi knives, sending them to rendezvous with the True Circle. When I saw this, I saw a definite parallel to Axon's death. Would Axon be "worthy"? I'm not sure how a twisted cult like that defines the word. But also, remember that it might not be a Cultist of Pi we're dealing with here- it could be someone else who came across one of the knives. it's about .4621596

http://www.cut-the-knot.org/Probability/Am....shtml#solution

another proof of it equalling 1 that I just thought of: 1/3 = .333333333etc 2/3 = .666666666etc we know that 1/3 + 2/3 is 3/3, or 1 we also know that .33333etc + .66666etc = .999999etc therefore .9999999etc must equal 1

Everything is a "theory", just to remind you- religious beliefs are "theories" too. So is gravity- theory is a broad term. Just because something is a theory and can only be made through inductive reasoning, not deductive reasoning, it doesn't mean it's wrong But anyway... if I were religious, I would most likely be a Buddhist or one of the Chinese philosophies, with Yin and Yang and such ;D

The answer is indeed 2/3, bonanova, but I meant that the chances of the whole population dying out doesn't depend primarily on what step it's at- it's not "either the whole population survives, or the whole population dies"- it's each individual amoeba. An example: 1 (survives) -> 2 (both survive) -> 4 (only 2 survive to double) -> 4 (3 survive) -> 6 (1 survives) -> 2 (both survive) -> 4 (all four survive) -> 8 (etc) see what I mean? But still, the chance that the population will survive FOREVER works out to be 2/3 exactly (ignoring speculation about infinity and heat entropy and all that stuff, this is purely mathematical )

btw, I just posted- I'm finally joining my own game, lol

that's good- I was going to suggest 35, but 30 works

I'm a writer/author type person, but I don't prefer to publish my work on the internet, especially large stuff. Stuff I work actually hard on. But I'm a member and moderator of a large RP site, and started an RP here as well as a few on my various forums (the site URL changes from time to time, lol, currently and hopefully permanently we are The Revival)... and I've occasionally written some Fan Fics for my forum too anyway, I think it'd be a good idea

giterdone, you can post it on ZOMG on The Revival if you want- then I'll edit it of any grammar mistakes and choppy writing to make it more presentable to the forum

I don't "believe scientist all the time", I believe in logic and the process of looking at things critically. Under this view, religion falls apart pretty quickly- so obviously it requires faith. All religions do. Since it gives you strength and courage- that's a good thing, though religion is not the only thing that does that, but you should definitely pursue your religion, then, if it makes you happy, no matter how many logical fallacies it tends to ignore do what your heart desires

time for me to join in Intrigued? Want to join? Before I post how to join and how to get started, I just want to see a show of hands of how many people are interested, if any. So post here if you're interested tongue.gif Epsilon-0 Ping... ping... The drops continued to fall from the roof of the sewer tunnel, splashing with little pings on the metallic, sloping floor. Drone held his breath and groaned inwardly as he brought his foot down, making a diminutive splash. He froze, the fear binding him to the spot like an unseen vice. Time ticked by in the form of heartbeats, pounding nervously against his ribs. He must've waited at least ten minutes before loosening his muscles and taking the next step in the murky darkness. Fear coursed through his veins, heightening his senses- almost too much. Every little shadow made his adrenaline soar like a golden eagle. Every time a rat scurried across the damp surface of the sewer tunnel, his heart would leap drastically. Every time he heard a distant splash, his mind experienced a flash of panic. Drone was running for his life. More like walking agonizingly slow. But he knew what would happen if he sped up. If he made noise. They would find him, they would capture him, they would hunt him down relentlessly until he was theirs. Drone couldn't let that happen- he had discovered the truth- the ultimate truth... and he had paid for it with his brother's life and quite possibly his own. Another step. Another. Another. Drone was so close to the escape ladder... but it was at least another ten steps. Eight steps now... five steps... three steps... one more step... he reach out to touch the ladder, his fingers trembling and tentative, as if he had never believed this moment would- Something tackled him from the shadows, dragging him into the dirty water. All the adrenaline was suddenly justified: Drone whipped around and hurled himself upward, taking his assailant with him- his momentum drove them both into the wall of the tunnel, smashing his attacker against the hard metal. Drone felt something crush sickeningly, but he only felt the smallest tinge of regret. His brother had made him promise, on his dying breath, to get out alive. To make sure their sacrifice wasn't for nothing. Computer terms flashed through Drone's head... words he hadn't understood until arriving here: viruses... code... hexadecimal... unable to complete Cycle 5... ERROR. His unseen opponent wasn't finished- whatever it was threw Drone off him and regained its composure. As Drone steadied himself and whipped around, he heard heavy breathing. Whoever it was, they were alive. A living being. Drone ignored his initial confusion- he had assumed the Heralds would've sent an assassin robot after him. Until Drone saw the person- then he understood even less. "What the hell are you doing here?" he shouted, as the assailant ominously circled around him, trying to get the best fighting position. "Answer me!" No response. "Why did they send you?" "They didn't send me," the attacker rasped, his dark eyes surveying Drone. "They would send a robot." "Then who did?" "I sent myself." The attacker lunged, metal glinting in their hand- a knife. Drone caught the arm and heaved on it, kneeling down, flipping the attacker over his shoulder, slamming him into the ground. The attacker instantly flipped onto his stomach, twisting Drone's arm 180 degrees. Drone screamed in pain, and the attacker launched himself forward, knife aimed for Drone's throat- he took full use of the millisecond he had, catching the attacker's arm and locking them in a death struggle... they grappled for control of the knife... the attacker was stronger, better trained... Drone gritted his teeth, growling in frustration. If the attacker gained the upper hand here, Drone would be dead. Like his brother. That memory fueled him, unleashing a seismic force buried deep within him. His anger, confusion, and wonder combined about the truth of his world was like a volcano, it had been building up and up and up until it was about to explode... the volcano erupted inside Drone now, and he roared in his newfound strength, hurling the attacker against the metal ladder. His enemy's head smashed against the rung and the man fell limply to the floor. The noise would have alerted the Heralds. It wouldn't be long before one of their deadly robots showed up- Drone scooped up the knife. He would need it.

yes, but you don't have proof either- but we have more proof than you do. You have next to zero proof. The scientific postulates we have today (and continue to develop) are much more viable than a magical man creating the universe. We may say that "extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence"- but that's not really it. Extraordinary claims can exist without people knowing. We didn't know about dark matter until recently, but that didn't mean it DIDN'T exist before we found evidence of it. Know what I mean? So what I'm saying is, atheists are atheists until proven wrong. And right now, everything supports atheism, sorry logically and scientifically, I see no reason nor proof for a deity or flying spaghetti monster of any kind, so that's what I'm sticking to, as do millions of other atheists ;D thanks! This is always appreciated a "couple people"? lol... try "most of the scientific and even non-scientific community". I'm not so sure I myself am sold, cuz I semi-agree with you on your next point: earth got here like any other planet. it's just OUR planet is one of the small percentage of planets that can support life. And of course it is!!! It's not a coincidence. The very fact that I said "OUR planet" shows that... if a planet didn't have life, the un-existing organisms aren't gonna be wondering why they un-exist, know what I mean? What I'm saying is, earth isn't special in the cosmic sense as for this part: that's where big bang stuff comes in. I think that the universe and time have probably existed forever- the Big Bang was just a point where the universe was highly concentrated, I think. Not entirely sure, but if it did happen, that would be my guess What if time and the universe hadn't existed forever? Then how did God exist? Is there a higher level of universe above this one then, from which God created this level of universe... then the same question is posed, how did God's universe come to be? etc and etc. And if God can come spontaneously out of nothing, than so can the universe. would you rather fearfully turn away from doubting your religion, or embrace the truth and look at the solution clearly... you might conclude that your religion is an unneeded part of your life. Know what I mean? To be liberated from such doctrine is a good thing. Atheists are free

you pretty much summed it up, Frost to continue the analogy, we atheists would LIKE to think Santa exists but we'd rather know the truth

Yeah, it wasn't being posted on for a day or so ;D thanks

nicely put, octopuppy I was scrambling there... as Duh Puck showed, I don't much about the Bible, lol. But from what I've known and heard, a lot of the overall mythologies are similar

anyone care to sum up what has happened so far? or are you guys gonna make me read it all? lol ;D

TOMORROW, go up to her. Start a conversation. Don't be nervous. It's all chill. Talk about whatever you feel like talking about. Then ask her to go with you to the movies. She's clearly not starting anything, YOU have to If she hesitates in a negative way, ask her to give you a chance ;D then arrange the date, and be awesome, be yourself, be honest, etc, lol. Do it for us, pieman!!!

Not much. No godmodding or powerplaying, which means you can't talk or do actions for another player without their permission. If the two of you want to have a conversation but don't want to drag it over 2 pages of single posts and waiting for the other person to get on, get together in a PM and decide mutually on what it'll be, then have one of the people post it Sometimes people give temporary control of their character into another trusted player, too- I've seen that happen when people have to leave for a while giterdone: no, they're all tropical though if there is a dormant volcano at the center of your island, and if it was high enough in altitude, there could be snow on top ;D

Hey guys, I have enough time to play now tell me what's happened so far, and if there was any inter-island contact

it's not a simple sequence sum of 1/4 + 1/16 + 1/64 + 1/4etc... cuz that's implying either they all die or they don't... what if only a few die, and the rest double? etc

Bring me chicken, bring me liver, Meowmix Meowmix please deliver! lol, just a guess