Chapter 3: First quest.
A few days later a loud and persistent chime woke Adam up. He wasn't used to alarm clocks of any kind - the last time he had to use one was back in school, and during his so-called 'career' in the band, waking up early was an anathema.
Confused, he looked around, but there wasn't a clock in sight. He didn't set one up , but maybe one of the guys wanted to prank him? Half asleep he kept looking unsuccessfully until he noticed a blinking green square in the very corner of his vision and opened the menu.
The damned noise stopped, replaced by a rather pleasant bell accompanied by yet another prompt.
Quest Alert! The last of the participants have completed Phase One of the challenge, and a new Mandatory Quest has been issued.
Quest: Develop and publish at least one game within 33 days.
Success conditions:
You need to develop at least one game with System Rating above 10%.
You need to manufacture at least 1000 copies or contract a publisher.
You need to sell at least 100 copies or contract a publisher.
Bonus conditions:
Make at least $1 profit.
Obtain Customer Rating of at least 50% or System Rating of 60%.
Gain 100 fans.
Publish your game for more than one hardware platform.
Adam was stumped. Thirty-three days wasn't a long time to develop a game, make at least a thousand copies, find willing customers and sell a hundred copies required. And he wasn't even sure if there were a hundred potential customers around. He felt that he should rush and try to make the best game possible, but the rational part of his brain kept telling him it was just panic talking. What he needed was to sit back and make a plan.
And so he did. First, he took some paper and painstakingly listed all his assets, expanding the list with all the funds and items he had access to while housesitting.
Then he listed all the questions he had, like how many computers were around. How many other game developers were there? Were there any publishers willing to work with a small fry like him? Would there be any other games available, and how would those compare with what he had? Maybe it was all pointless, and he was barking up the wrong tree altogether?
And then he discovered another resource, unlisted in the system. Saying silent thanks that he decided to eat a slice of humble pie and already apologised to all his friends for overreacting the way he did, and his request wouldn't be awkward, nor his apology would seem forced he headed towards the garage. They were still on the way, but at the pace, he was capable of they still might arrive first. He managed to beat the band by a few minutes though, and exhausted plopped down in an old armchair and waited.
"Good morning guys, we need to talk." He greeted the band as soon as they entered, realising too late how it sounded when their faces fell. "I need a really big favour from you."
"Morning Adam, what do you need from us?" Their relief at keeping the place to practice was visible.
"I know it is an important time for you, with Lee just having started you need to practice all you can, so I could hardly ask at a worse time, but I'm starting a business, and I really, really need your help."
They looked at each other, uncertain, but in the end, Art took lead as usual "Sure thing man, what do you need help with?"
"Lots of things really, I need to sell the cars, which almost cost me an arm and a leg, then I need somebody to visit some libraries and bookstores, and I need somebody to phone some companies for me. And then… " He blurted.
" Whoah, Whoah. Easy there, business mogul." Interjected Art. "First tell us what will your company do?"
"Oh, didn't I say? I'm going to make computer games!" Adam's smile was so broad it nearly separated the top half of his skull from the rest of the body.
"Like 'Ping?' I love that game!" Exclaimed Paul.
"Hmmm… Similar, but I hope to put a different twist on things." Improvised Adam trying not to seem ignorant all the while silently cursing the restriction on his memories.
"So, are you going to make your own console?" Pete kept digging for answers.
"Maybe someday, for now, I want to focus on something called microcomputers."
Adam had to totter all the way back to the main house to curb Peter's curiosity. But the moment he loaded the Dragon Hunter, Pete was gone, tapping the keys in a trance, which gave the rest of the crew to discuss issues without interruption.
Art agreed to deal with the cars, Derek would man the phone, Luke would cover the bookstores and any shopping necessary and Lee agreed to stay on call to help with any unforeseen requests Adam might have.
And Paul? Paul was extraordinarily bad at human interaction, so there was only one task they could possibly set him with. The next morning Art would drive Paul to the Library armed with a host of legal pads, pens, highlighters and the whole shebang.
They attempted to explain it to Paul, who suddenly interrupted Art mid-sentence. "Your idea won't work. This game is stupid. It was fun for the first five minutes, but after that, I found the pattern. And the hardest level is just random."
"Don't you worry, Paul. This is just the first version I cobbled together in a day. The finished product will be much better. You'll see."
Adam then went to a hidden wall safe in his father's office, and with an aching heart borrowed a thousand dollars out of a thick pile left there in case of emergencies. He distributed the money according to what he expected his friends would need - disturbing their band practice was one thing, but asking them to cover his expenses, even if it was only for fuel was something completely different.
You have used The Debt of Honour 1 of 3. Your friends will perform the tasks you asked them to the best of their personal ability, even though it greatly inconveniences them. You may ask them for two more favours of such magnitude before they will consider their debt repaid.
The next few days passed in a flurry of activity, although Adam spent most of the time in front of the screen. He tried to check the contents of the black rectangles, which for some reason were called discs, but they appeared empty, so his research into the state of the competition momentarily stalled.
Fortunately Luke delivered as expected and a thick pile of magazines and books soon covered the large living room table. So far it seemed that there was only a single magazine focused solely on computers called 'Bit' and hardware manufacturers advertised in most magazines dealing with electronics, including HAM radio, audio equipment and so on. However, there wasn't a single ad for a standalone computer game and just a few ads for professional software.
It was almost as if owners were expected to create their own entertainment.
Adam jotted down the address of the closest dealer, who's shop was still a couple of hours away, and seriously considered making the trip himself - with Lee as a driver. But then he remembered the fateful -30% typing speed, which meant he might not have enough time for such frivolities.
Shop catalogues were a different issue though, Adam was surprised to learn that there were a few consoles available on the market, and after Paul brought his 'Ping' and the crew wasted a night, getting high and moving the blocky paddles on the screen, Adam was sorely tempted to waste some more money to buy a console of his own. He knew though, that the allure was too great and he would squander all of his allotted time away, playing games instead of creating.
But Sears catalogue brought another revelation. While most of the available systems had just a few simplistic games, there were two competing consoles using cartridges, allowing for new games to be played. The selection was yet abysmal, but it was something worth looking into, so Adam asked both Derek and Lee to find out everything they could about the new-style consoles, especially how one would go about programming them without a keyboard.
And the books were educational, to say the least. There were more programming languages than just BASIC. He would have to learn the Assembly Language, as it was something called low-level language, operating directly on the microprocessor instructions. As far as he could say it was devilishly difficult, but at the same time in the hands of a skilled person provided full control over the device.
And yet, despite unlocking the Hardware:General knowledge skill and raising every other skill even remotely related to programming he wasn't any closer to the solution to the big question. Would his game even be adequate for the market? And what would other participants come up with?
Adam had no other choice, but to plod forward; in the worst-case scenario, he would have to request a rewind.
At least Art has some good news.
"Marty will be buying the Monza back, although I had to promise him a discount." He beamed "I have the title for Caprice with me, but the truck will be a problem. The guy accuses you of cheating, and says he wants his car back."
"Cheating? How?" Adam's jaw nearly hit the floor.
"He's just a sore loser. Or maybe he genuinely believes your finger was fake, to begin with. Anyway, there is no way he cooperates, and he might even call the cops on us, so I contacted a friend. He will break the F for spares. It might even net you more money, but it will take some time."
"What about the Dodge?"
"We had the title all along, and somebody is coming tomorrow to look at it."
"Finally some good news." Adam smiled "Have you heard from Paul yet?"
"You know him, he will be in that library until he runs out of ink or new information to read."
Adam divided the new tasks on the ever-growing to-do list and went back to working on his game, but the doubts in his mind kept nagging until he started making silly mistakes. After he lost the effects of a couple of hours of work, by forgetting to save before resetting the computer, he had to admit defeat and started looking for a way to deal with uncertainty. He remembered reading in some cheap paperback self-help book, that women when faced with a problem, have to talk about it. Not to sole anything but just to voice their emotions. Men, on the other hand, need a different problem to work on, while the main issue slowly simmers on the mental back burner.
Adam let his mind wander.
He was halfway through solving the world hunger problem in his mind when Art burst through the door. He started saying something when he noticed Adam's state.
"You're drooling. Is everything all right?"
"Yes, sorry. I just get this feeling of inadequacy. I wonder whether my games will be any good. After all, there will be many more people competing in the market soon."
"How did you know? And here I thought I was bringing you the news. I just got off the phone with both 'Popular Electronics' and 'Bit' and they said that today there was a virtual deluge of enquires about advertising for computer games. Not a single one as long as they remember, and then a hundred calls in a day." Art said bewildered.
"I expected as much." Adam dropped his gaze in dismay. "Did you manage to get any details?"
"Not really, at least not yet. You will have to wait for the next edition to come out unless you really need that data sooner. But I digress, we are on a clock here. I managed to reserve you a full page in both magazines, but it will cost you, especially with the sudden rise in demand."
"So what's the damage?" Adam desperately needed some good news, but he was sure it would be anything, but.
"$500. But that includes their in-house artist doing the work. We could have it cheaper, but the deadline for print is in 24 hours."
"Five hundred is not so bad…" Adam blurted out, before realising it was the nineteen-seventies and a muscle car was only $4000. "If it includes artwork and everything for both magazines."
"Yes, but we need to hurry. The sooner we give them your answer the more time they can spend working on your ad. And there would be less chance of a mishap when transferring the design between the two printers. Have you got any ideas yet?"
"Call everybody here. I think I need some help with this one." Adam admitted.
The crew gathered in the living room, and the dinner table was emptied of books, but someone enterprising eviscerated al the past issues of the magazines they already gathered and laid out a tableau of computer software and hardware advertisements.
The moment Adam entered another prompt momentarily obscured his vision.
ATTENTION: A timed Quest!
Timed quest: Ad-libbing the ads.
Time: 23:45:24
Success conditions:
Develop a concept for a successful advertising campaign and deliver it to one or both publishers within the time limit.
Successfully deliver payment to one or both publishers.
Bonus conditions:
Achieve System rating of your ads above 50%.
Adam dismissed the prompt as he simply had no time to play the silly games. But the system wouldn't let go so easy, because as soon as the writing vanished, a tune started playing. Some background music wouldn't be so bad but it employed a clever illusion and the ever-increasing tempo set Adam on the edge.
Their task was impossible. They had to advertise something which did not yet exist, to people they knew nothing about all within a preposterous time limit.
"So, what shall we do?" Adam asked. "Shall we go with the Dragon Hunter, or did any of you had a breakthrough?"
They all shook their heads and Art said "I think you should stay with what you got. There's no point in introducing another unknown at this point."
"But what if it isn't good enough?" Adam still had his doubts.
"And what if another game is worse?" Art retorted.
"Point taken. So we stay with Dragon Hunter. But how do we sell something that doesn't even truly exist yet?"
"You don't sell sausages. You sell the sizzle. What is your game al about?"
Adam was stumped. This level of expertise was completely out of character for Art, but the system was quick to explain.
NPC's have their own lives, including interests, skills and aspirations. Has the participant just talked with Artur, he would know that in a few months he plans to start working towards an MBA degree.
"It is just a simple game. A guy tries to save his village from a dragon. I will add to it, but right now it's just a simple puzzle."
"It might be, but I think it's so much more. Or at least it could be. Think, Adam. Think!" Art sounded now like a teacher trying to elicit an answer from an obtuse student.
"It could be a story. An adventure I guess. If I add…"
"No! Don't think about technicalities now! Think about the meaning, the greater picture!" Art pressed on.
"It is a story of someone ordinary becoming a hero and slaying a dragon." Adam got lost in thought for a moment. "Something right out of an Arthurian legend." He laughed.
"Good. So now you have an idea. How do we sell it? How do we make it stand out?"
"We could get some nice drawing of a knight fighting a dragon, maybe?" Ventured Adam.
"OK, that's one possibility." Anything else?
They all got stumped until Luke quietly mumbled: "Didn't the dragon slayers usually got half a kingdom and the princess as a reward?"
"What do you mean?" The idea piqued Adam's interest.
"You could offer a reward for the first player to beat the dragon," Luke said so quietly they barely even heard him. "I don't know whether it would work, or how would you verify that."
"I think it could be done. But I need to look into the technical side of things."
"Not really. You are not in the award-giving business. You are in the game-selling business." Art shot him down.
"So the reward is a bad idea?" Asked Luke, dejected.
"Not at all! I think it's great. But does it matter who gets the money? It would be great if a cute disabled orphan got it, but if a cheater gets it? Not our problem. Our goal is to sell as many games as possible, and that happens when we promise the prize, not when we pay it out. What happens after that doesn't matter." Art explained.
"How much should we offer?" Asked Adam "Contrary to the popular opinion I'm not made out of money."
"I'd guess anywhere between 50 and 500 dollars. Enough that it would be an incentive, but not enough for the serious cheaters to get involved."
"Let's go in the middle then. 250 it is. Unless of course, anyone has a better idea."
Another prompt appeared.
Bonus quest! All is fair in love and games.
Success conditions:
Ensure that the proposed contest is fair.
"So that's sorted. How will you actually sell the games? We had no time to speak with any retailers yet." Art moved on to the next point.
"I guess the only option is mail order for now. I think most of the business is done that way anyway." Adam pointed to the pile of ads on the table. "We need to rent a p.o. box and think about accepting credit cards. And we could add something along the lines 'Available at all good retailers', just like this one." He fished one ad out of the pile.
They missed the closing time of the paper that day arguing each and every detail, but it was no big deal, as they had to wait until Art arranged things with the post office anyway. In the end, they agreed that they would sell the game for $19.99 each plus packing and postage costs. Adam would have to prepare versions for the Colorful Computer and Durian and initially, they would only provide the tape version of the game, as the blank disks themselves would cost over ten bucks apiece.
It was past midnight, but Adam couldn't sleep. The damned tune was racking his nerves, reminding him that the quest wasn't over yet, and try as he might he couldn't find an option to disable the sound. And despite Adam's insistence, the system remained mum on the matter.
He lay in bed thinking. The system was behaving strangely as of late. It has almost become snarky. And why was he calling it the system? The Original Joel didn't refer to the system as such. And yet Adam immediately knew the correct name. But the old man called it a game of sorts as well, didn't he?
So the system was a game. And without warning, the mental gears hitherto spinning idly seamlessly meshed, and Adam had an epiphany. He knew this kind of games. It was just a logical development of the very D&D system he and his friends played ever since it was first published a couple of years ago.
Adam got out of bed and hobbled to the bookcase, retrieving a badly mistreated manual. He knew it by heart but neede to verify something. Yes, the system was similar. How could he be so blind! It was so obvious! How did he miss the similarities between his own character sheet displayed by the system and a paper one he used during one of the countless dungeon crawls. It even used the same Statistics for goodness sake!
But that had larger implications. If the system was just an advanced role-playing game, that meant people were still playing RPG's in the future, and therefore it meant it could be a valid genre for a computer game even today.
Congratulations. You have researched Role-Playing Games.
You have unlocked a skill: Industrial Espionage: general. Current level 10.
So the system was upset? Good.
But Adam was just getting started. He made his way to the phone and dialled Art's number. It took nearly twenty rings, but Art finally answered.
"Hello?" Art's speech was slurred.
"Art, sorry to have woken you up. Earlier you mentioned something about getting the information about our competitors sooner?" Adam asked excitedly.
"God, Adam! Do you know the time?"
"Is there a way to get that information earlier?"
"What information?" Art was obviously still three-quarters asleep.
"The ads, Art. The ads."
"Well, yes, I think so."
"Could you elaborate? Just a little?" Adam had to keep drilling, as Art dreamed of nothing else than the sweet embrace of Morpheus.
"The printers usually sell the used plates. If we manage to buy them we will get the information you need a few days early."
"How many days exactly." I don't know. "And you can't exactly request particular plates. You get what they sell. I can look into it tomorrow if you want. Well, later today. Can I go back to bed now, please?"
"Sleep well, Art," Adam said, but the only response was the nose of a receiver thrown back in its cradle.
Adam didn't sleep that night. The noise got even more annoying, but Adam stopped paying it any attention. He was too busy scheming. He decided to make the best game possible, but only use the minimum amount of RPG elements necessary. After all, if he made the connection his competitors could have as well. And Adam wanted something unique.
Adam thought hard. What were the seventies famous for? There were the moon landings. The last one happened in December 1972, but the idea was still very much alive in the minds and hearts of the people. There was the Vietnam War, Watergate and it was the year of the Bicentennial of the United States. So, those would probably be the topics other participants of the challenge would pick.
Adam could also expect several clones of 'Ping', a host sports games and the old favourite - digital gambling. And he had a Plan. If, after polishing his own game he had any time left over, he would make as many low-quality games to directly compete with the others' games. And then he would find a way to give his games out for free, thereby reducing his opponents' success.
Adam was going to win.
He grabbed the phone but reconsidered and mercifully left Art a note. Then he went back to the bedroom and started working on the game. This time neither the sound nor the doubts disturbed him, and he typed non-stop until the bright rays of the sun and sounds of his friends reporting for duty roused him from the trance.
Art dealt with the USPS first thing in the morning, so the crew could contact the publishers a few minutes after their respective offices opened, and Adam watched as yet another pile of dollars evaporated from the safe. And the second Art put the receiver back in the cradle, having confirmed that the money has been received another prompt appeared in Adam's vision.
Congratulations! Timed quest Ad-libbing the ads completed successfully.
Quest reward: The annoying music stops. What did the participant expect?
Bonus conditions will be evaluated after publication.
Yup. The system was acting all snarky.
He was slightly dismayed, but the day brought some other news as well - Lee tracked down the manufacturers of both cartridge-based game consoles, but they were unwilling to cooperate. Syzygy Computers, in particular, was adamant that no third party software would be allowed, ever. They went so far as threatening Lee with a lawsuit if he even attempted to program a Syzygy 2500. Adam wowed then never to even consider working with a closed system like that.
Art had some success though - he introduced himself as a journalist and managed to sweet-talk his way through to the engineers working on the console. They explained to him that there were two ways to program a device like that, but due to hardware limitations they had to do everything in the Assembler or even worse - directly in machine code. The two ways to were out of Adam's price range as well. He would either have to rent a super-expensive mainframe computer to emulate the tiny 2500 console. Or he would have to write a program on a regular computer, connect it to an EPROM burner, program a chip, set it into a test cartridge and try it on a console. If the program needed more work, the process would have to be reversed, the EPROM erased in a special device, and the slow and arduous process would begin anew. The cost of the setup? Five thousand dollars for a basic version, not including the console itself.
You have unlocked a skill: Industrial espionage: human vector. Current skill level 20 (Proxy 80).
Adam put the idea of cartridge games firmly into the cylindrical file. Also known as a trashcan.
Adam's game project made excellent progress over the next seven days. He expanded on the original idea, crafting a whole multipart story and making use of the Colorful Computer's capabilities. He even dabbled in graphics and the red dragon was now really impressive, flapping its wings and blowing a tiny digital fire. He divided the story into a series of minigames or chapters and made each accessible only after the previous challenge was completed successfully. He even implemented a basic rock-paper-scissors combat system for one of the chapters.
Feeling that the game was as good as it would get for now he asked Paul to be his guinea pig.
"This game is stupid!" Objected Paul after just mere minutes. "It is even worse than the last time! There are no difficulty levels and with five spells the game is too easy! I win every time, and the game just asks me to try again and it's boring!" He almost whined.
"And what do you think would happen if you lose?"
"I can't lose. Not with five spells! That's the problem." Paul grumbled.
"Try anyway?" Insisted Adam.
Paul grumbled something and went to work on losing the easy game.
"There will be a problem with that. People won't like it. And we will get a lot of claims for the prize money." Arto pointed out.
"I kind of anticipated that. And I have a plan." Adam smiled just like a hungry shark, who smelled blood. "How are we getting along with the card company? Will we be able to take payments over the phone by the end of the month? And speaking of which, will we get a second line in time?"
"What are you plotting?" Art raised one eyebrow.
"In the beginning, I was planning to get the players six or even seven scrolls to keep everybody stumped on that level for ages. Let's just say that when the frustrated customers call to complain, we offer them a hint. For a mere $5. And you might have noticed that the dragon on-screen is green, not red. The people who call about the prize might want to buy the hint as well."
"Who are you and what did you do with Adam?" Art joked. "This is so out of character for you."
The system chose this very moment to express its opinion as well.
You have unlocked a skill: Scam Artist: general. Current level 50.
"Not fair, it's not like I'm misleading them, or forcing them to spend money. It's just a puzzle, like all the others." Objected Adam, more hurt by the level of skill gained, than the opinion both Art and system had of him. The system got increasingly stingy with skill points, and Adam couldn't manage to breach the magical 40 points barrier in any programing language. His BASIC programming skills were stuck firmly at 38 and 39 points and wouldn't budge, no matter how much effort or new research Adam tried. Moreover, his Assembly Language skill wouldn't progress over 5 and Machine Language wouldn't unlock at all, due to some 'missing prerequisites'. And here the system showers him with fifty points just to make a point? Preposterous.
"So, should we sell hints to all the other puzzles as well?" Asked Art, still doubting the whole idea.
"No, at least…" Adam tried to answer when Paul Interrupted him.
"You have to lose to win? That makes no sense! But it's cool!" He nearly screamed, finally having forced defeat upon himself. "And that next part? A maze? How does it work?"
On-screen a block of text appeared.
You have failed. The green dragon left you for dead; has devoured the villagers and took the beautiful miller's daughter into his lair.
Will you follow and try to free the fair maiden?
***
You are standing in an entry chamber to an old, derelict castle the Green Dragon made its lair. There are three entrances to the maze.
Press 1 to go forward.
Press 2 to go left.
Press 3 to go right.
Paul selected 1 and the screen changed.
You have entered a trial of memory! Repeat after me!
Asfit 12 %z0X8.
You have ten seconds! Make them count!
"There are three types of challenges, a memory challenge, which is just a Simon says game." Adam started explaining to his friends, as Paul attempted to beat the challenge screaming in frustration when on a third attempt he missed a key and the game reset to the beginning. "The second challenge is a sort of combat. There are rows of enemies coming at the player from the top, and in a single turn, he can move by one position to the left or the right and attack. The rules are simple. Knight beats peasant, peasant beats mage, mage beats knight. The player has three weapons to attack with, but after an attack, he cannot use it on the next turn, so he has to plan carefully whom he faces next. The third challenge is a decoder puzzle. The player is presented with a block of text and they have to decipher a password."
"And the maze, is there a plan they have to follow?" Asked Luke.
"There is no maze, the challenges appear at random, and any path the player takes will lead him to the dragon after between ten and twenty rooms." Adam beamed.
They observed Paul struggling with puzzles for a couple of hours, but he had to admit defeat. Adam booted another program from another cassette.
"I expected we wouldn't be able to finish the puzzles today, so I have the last two chapters on a separate tape." He explained.
You have vanquished the Green Dragon and returned in glory to the village with your beautiful bride. Now as Lord Paul you will have to prepare the defences, as monsters are approaching.
Beware! The Red Dragon knows about your crimes against the dragonkind and is on the lookout for you.
Press any key to begin.
The next screen was split into two parts titled Village and Forest. Basic pictures of houses adorned the Village side, while something vaguely resembling the trees cluttered the Forest.
Day 1:
VILLAGE:
Food: 500
Peasants: 100
Knights: 100
FOREST:
Food: 5000
Monsters: 100
Press 1 to send out Peasants to gather food in the forest. Beware! Monsters are dangerous.
Press 2 to send out Knights to kill monsters in the forest.
Press 3 to end turn without sending anyone.
Paul sent out the knights and the situation changed.
Day 2:
VILLAGE:
Food: 480
Peasants: 110
Knights: 99
FOREST:
Food: 4990
Monsters: 90
Press 1 to send out Peasants to gather food in the forest. Beware! Monsters are dangerous.
Press 2 to send out Knights to kill monsters in the forest.
Press 3 to end turn without sending anyone.
"The goal is to survive until the dragon attacks on the hundredth day. It seems easy, but when you send out knights the peasant population grows. When you send peasant, the knight population grows. And the food supply is limited, so you need to plan carefully. If you kill all the monsters your population explodes. If the monster population grows they will eat all the food and attack the village."
Paul failed two attempts, so Adam loaded the final chapter. And he was the first to admit it was a bit underwhelming. It was just a combination of the first dragon hunt with either the timed Simon says or cryptography challenge, and Paul beat it on the first attempt. Adam was at least proud of the special effects he managed to cram into the limited memory available. After each successful Simon game, the screen would flash and there would be a noise like a clap of thunder, and after each cypher, the screen would flash in shades of red to simulate magical fire.
"So… what do you think? Will it make the cut?" Adam inquired, his doubts resurfaced.
But he didn't need to wait for their answer, as paul was already back at the first level of the game trying his best to lose.
The next day he sent the crew with some errands, and finally alone, he called a local print shop. The man was initially a bit sceptical about the order but finally agreed after Adam explained everything, and a few days later a heavy parcel has been delivered to his door. Adam sequestered it in his room, and despite the pain took a cab to the post office himself. He then had to make a difficult phone call to the publishers, but money talked and they both agreed as well.
If Adam thought the previous week was busy, the remaining ten days were a flurry of activity, and he got by only by limiting the amount of blood in his coffee stream to the barest minimum. He finished coding the reward system, adding layers of traps for the cheaters. He ported the game to the Durian, cursing the limited graphics capabilities of the system. And then came hours of copying and testing the tapes. Luckily it required attention only while changing the batch, so he could start on the side project and the guys could go back to practise, with a small break to deal with all the printing plates Art managed to obtain, which netted very little in the way of useful information, save for a map of the US with red pins indicating the locations of other participants and a confirmation of Adam's suspicions regarding the prevailing themes. And of course a nice ten-point bonus to Industrial espionage skill.
Finally, the big day came and the timer ticked down to zero.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone