Comic Archive

Adil: Hey, now that you have a good view of our surroundings, any explanation for the frisbees we found earlier?
OIB-A271 (voice from phone): Nope, none at all. They are just plain frisbees. However, I do notice something very interesting…

Alana: Which is?
OIB-A271 (voice): The reactor's output goes to a lower zone near you, it consumes an enormous amount of power and produces a lot of heat. But, I cannot look inside it, its “level security” is off the charts.

View of OIB-A271 in the real world.
Alana (voice): Any way in?
OIB-A271: No obvious way… but, there is a ventilation shaft. Not ideal, because it's a pretty steep vertical drop and I cannot see how deep really, or how it ends.
Alana (voice): Well, if it kills us… the respawn chamber is nearby. Let's go.

Setting: they are standing around an opening in the floor with hazard markings around it.
Zhang: This must be it. Such hot air, seems like a furnace down there.
Adil: Just a hole in the floor, no protection besides some markings. It can't be that dangerous…
Zhang: Mind what Heidi said, this place is not built to be safe for humans.

Steve: The worst that can happen, is getting severely injured without dying.
Adil: I have enough grenades for a “group respawn” if that happens. What I fear the most is getting telefragged if we all spawn together…
Steve: If that chamber is not large enough for all of us, it may take a few cycles…

Adil steps into the hole.
Adil: I do not want to experience multiple simulated deaths in a row. I'll go first. If I die first, I'll also respawn first. See you at the bottom, suckers!

SFX: Crack!
Adil (voice coming from the ventilation hole): Argh!
Zhang: That does not sound good. Let's go after him, but try to slow our descent.

We see Zhang falling on top of Adil, who is lying on the floor.
SFX: THUD
Adil: UGH!
Zhang: That didn't work… I am just too heavy!

Zhang has dragged Adil to the side, while the others exit the shaft, using their arms against the walls to slow down.
Zhang: Adil seems… dead? Why is he not respawning?

Heidi has also come down the shaft, while Alana arrives as well.
Steve: What do you mean, dead?
Zhang: Our avatars are supposed to breathe and have a heartbeat, but Adil has none. Heidi, can OIB-A explain this?
Heidi: Oh no, there is no signal here. We have lost contact.

Heidi is looking up the shaft.
Heidi: Max, don't come down… too late, he's already descending.
Alana: What is going on here?
Heidi: We are in big trouble. We cannot reach OIB-A271 here, and Adil's avatar has died, but fails to respawn.

Alana: What? Then what's going to happen to the real world Adil?
Heidi: If we don't find a solution soon, he might end up in a vegetative state.
Max: Why should I have stayed above?
Heidi: You were our last chance to regain contact with OIB-A271. Never mind.