Chatter filled the entirety of the restaurant, customers littered the booths and overcrowded around the bar area. Korori walked out from the kitchen and into the mess of bodies, a tray of beverages held high by her thin arms. She tried her best to maneuver around a group of large rowdy men hovering over the bar, but one decided to step back just as she was passing behind them, causing her to crash into some chairs and spill all the drinks. Her petite body fell to the ground, liquid encircling her. Thankfully none had gotten onto her work clothes, running them through the wash this week really wasn't in her budget. Quickly she picked herself up, the man who had backed into the waitress now faced her. His mug was inflamed from the level of alcohol within his system, mouth wide with a devious grin as intoxicated eyes looked over the body standing before him.
At that moment, Korori wanted nothing more than to turn into her digital form and stab the man right in the neck, but instead she had to apologize for being so 'clumsy' as per restaurant policy. The drunk just stared at her with hungry eyes and insisted that the girl now had to make up for 'disturbing' his night. Korori glared at the man and once again said sorry. She explained to the customer that she would see if a free drink could be given to him and attempted to walk away, but the man grabbed her arm and yanked her back to him. "I've got all the beer I need, but there's somethin' else you can help me out with." His eyes motioned to his lower parts as his grip tightened on her thin arm. Korori's eyes widened, disgust plain as day on her pale face, her mouth was about to open and scream obscenities at the foul pig, but before she could even move, a brown haired boy dashed her way.
"Excuse me sir, but is there something I can help you with?" The waiter's smile was pleasant, but those hazel eyes were glazed over with anger and despise.
The intoxicated man looked over at the new face, his own anger apparent. "Nah, this pretty little thing is gonna take care of me tonight." He said, a smug grin plastered on his wide face.
"I'm sorry sir, but her shift has actually just ended. I will be more then pleased to, take care of you." The boy's voice held a faint bite to them, his fists clenching as he spoke. The man was about to throw Korori to the side and swing at the arrogant boy, but just before he was about to move, the two front door bouncers could been seen walking toward the trio. The drunk grunted and released the girl's arm, mumbling inappropriate language underneath his breath as he walked away.
Korori stumbled over to her savior as she gritted her teeth in anger, she was so pissed off that there was nothing that she could do to that disgusting pig-man. Her eyes began to tear up from all the pent up rage that boiled beneath her fair skin. "Hey," The boy wrapped an arm around her narrow shoulders, "don't let it get to you." He gave the woman a quick kiss on the top of the head. "You really should clock out, I'll cover the rest of your shift."
Korori looked up at the boy, just enough tears to fill the corner of her eyes, but not enough to spill over. "Are you sure?" Her voice was quiet and broken when she spoke, hands clenched at her tight chest.
"Yea don't worry about it, plus, isn't there some preview on that new update in an hour on CLOUD? One of us has to be there, message me all the details once it's over, k?" The boy gave a big smile before pulling the girl's body in for a hug, slightly lifting her short frame off the ground, afterwards he walked away in a hurried manner before their manager saw them. "Don't forget to message me!" He shouted over the chatter, giving a small wave before disappearing back into the kitchen.
Korori wiped her eyes, returning the short wave before her friend disappeared and quickly made her way out the side door of the building, a huge smile on her slightly puffy face. Her bike was chained up to a light pole next to the restaurant. It only took a few moments to roll in the four digit code and only about twenty-five minutes to ride to her apartment. Most of her time was spent hauling the bicycle up the front entrance stairs, then down the flight that lead to the basement floor room. Once the bike was settled against a wall, the girl leaped over to her computer, jamming her finger into the power button. The minutes she had to wait for the machine to boot up was such a tease, her body jumping with excitement over what this pre-announcement could be. Earlier today the gamer already had it set in her mind that she was going to miss the news because of work, "Oh thank you, thank you Aaron!" She shouted out as she bounced around in her beanbag chair, the monitor screen loaded and the CLOUD login popped up. Dainty fingers jetted across a keyboard, now placed in the girl's lap.
COSMIC ETHER IS NOW LOGGED IN.
A small, furry dragonic figure appeared on the screen, clothed in a light breast plate and cloth scarf with a katar strapped on each small arm. Korori gazed in awe at her DAEMON for a few moments, as she did every time she logged in, she loved playing as Cosmic Ether, anything could be accomplished in her digital form. The girl was so caught up in her excitement about what the update could be that she hadn't at first realized that Cosmic was sitting in an arena with many other players. When she did, the DAEMON looked around the area, her small head swiveling around, at the thousands of players all waiting to see if anything was to be revealed about this new update.
"Greetings, players! My real name is not important, but you may call be by my username, ICARUS. As you may already know, the brand new update for CLOUD will soon be here. Many have been excited about the news of a 'revolution' and your enthusiasm is not in vain. Tonight's announcement grants all users present a secret item and a hint at what the new update will be."
Cosmic opened up her inventory, a small, brown leather bag that was wrapped around her waist like a fanny pack. Inside, a small silver key had materialized with her username engraved within it. The furry creature picked up the item, inspecting it with her dark pink eyes.
"CLOUD has always affected our lives in a positive way and it's time to take the online experience to the real world. Or is it time to take it the other way around? It really depends on how you use CLOUD. Whatever the case, this new revolution will change the way you perceive the world around you, both on and offline. That is all I will reveal. Have a nice morning, day, night and evening."
At the end of ICARUS' speech, CLOUD closed out and Korori was left staring at her desktop screen. Her face struck with awe and confusion about what had just happened.
