(Open POV)
The promotional video starts off on a dark screen.
"Video games are EVERYTHING!" The unnamed scientist said, as a voiceover. The scene cuts to a montage of people playing games. "Jobs, entertainment, lifestyle! It's the engine that powers society itself, and to make it in this society you need to win…" The scene cuts to the Glitch Productions logo. "...a lot." The scene then cuts back to the montage of people playing games. "Be it in FPS games, platformers, battle royales, you name it. There are gamers who train EVERY waking moment of their life with the hopes of becoming the best. And at the top of the food chain, you have Meta Runners." It cuts to a scene of two Meta Runners playing an FPS in front of a crowd. "People who are willing to replace their limbs just for a boost in accuracy, dexterity and performance." The red haired Meta Runner is shown succeeding against the purple haired Meta Runner, as she is shown holding her by the elbow in good spirit, whispering in her ear whilst giving the thumbs up to the crowd. The other gives a simple 'peace' sign whilst smiling awkwardly. "With legions of fans who adore them, Meta Runners are the best of the best!...That is…" It cuts to the same scene being shown on a computer monitor as it pans out into an unnamed lab showing the scientist, a tall, brown haired man in a white and blue jacket. "...until the world sees what I have planned. Until the world sees you, Tari."
Unnamed lab…
The same lab is now darkened and abandoned. A blue haired girl who we know as Tari wakes up, gasping. There are various different abandoned lab equipment. Tari notices a needle in her right arm, then looks to see her cybernetic arm on her left. She looks surprised.
"You did it! You beat the game in record time!" the scientist cheered, his voice distorted in Tari's head. Tari's mind flashbacks to the scientist. "I'm so proud of you, Tari!"
The flashback ends.
(Jared's POV)
Tari removes the needle as she gets up and starts to walk around the abandoned lab.
"H-hello? Is anyone there?" Tari asked, walking towards the exit door.
"Tari." I said, walking towards Tari, standing by the entrance door. "You okay?"
(Open POV)
Another flashback begins.
The scientist takes a sip of coffee there, "We're going to ramp up the difficulty a bit... All I want is you to try your best."
The flashback ends.
(Jared's POV)
Tari stumbled outside with me supporting her from falling and we entered an alleyway, as we walked towards a bright light.
(Open POV)
Unnamed lab…
"Oh god no! Oh no, no, no, no, no! Shut off! Shut off!" The scientist yelled, as a distorted voice over in Tari's head.
There is a flash back to the Scientist in the lab now with a red alarm going off.
"Doctor! what's happening?" An unnamed girl asked, nearby.
"J-just hang in there! I am trying to…" The scientist said.
They both scream as the flashback gets even more distorted, an explosion in the lab is then shown.
The flashback ends.
(Jared's POV)
Silica City…
Tari fell on her hands and knees, with me supporting her from falling down onto the ground face down, Tari and I found ourselves out of the alley and onto the streets of Silica City.
"Who are you?" Tari asked.
There are various screens promoting video games and products placed all around buildings.
"A friend." I said, lifting Tari off the ground. "I'm Jared. You don't know me, but I know you."
"So you know my past." Tari said, while we began to wander around the city as I looked up at a skyscraper. "Are you from around here?"
"Not from this time period." I said, and Tari and I walked through the city, I looked at various people playing video games. "I'm from the early 21st century."
"Oh hey, did one of you want a turn?" A male pedestrian asked, looking between Tari and I.
"No, s-sorry. We're just looking." Tari said, grabbing my hand.
A man across the street is visibly annoyed about losing in a puzzle game on a bus stop's screen, "God damn it. C'mon, ah! Hahaha! Yes. ... My bus! Damn it, wait! Wait, wait, wait! Wait…"
"The early 21st century?" Tari asked, squeezing my hand. "Isn't that in the past?"
Tari and I chuckled at the man's failure as we continued to walk around the street.
"Yeah." I said, as Tari and I then came across a girl frustrated at her drink being stuck in a vending machine.
"Rrrgh! Dang it!" The woman said, angrily.
"Ummm, is something wrong?" Tari asked.
"Rrrgh! My day's ruined!"
"Here you go." I said, placing my free hand on the side of the machine, as an electrical shock came out of my hand. The drink falls. "It's all yours."
"Thank you so much!" The woman said, excitedly.
"It's no biggie." I said, removing my hand off the machine. "Enjoy."
Tari and I walked by a motion capture screen. The game's model reflecting Tari resembles the version of Tari from SMG4. She does a playful little dance before moving on.
"Bintendo consoles! Get your Bintendo consoles here!" The Bot-Boy said, nearby.
Tari almost walks into a fedora wearing Bot-Boy sitting in a gaming chair.
"Um, excuse me, sir, ma'am? I bet you've heard of gaming chairs that go 180°... but can yours do THIS?" The Bot-Boy asked, reclining the chair forward over his own head.
"Oh my gosh! Are you ok?" Tari asked.
"I can't feel my legs!" The Bot-Boy said, worried.
"Tari, over here." I said, pulling Tari to the outside of a gaming café known as 'Game Drop'. "Look at this!"
"I don't even have legs!" The Boy-Boy said, nearby.
Tari presses her face against the window of Game Drop as we look at people playing video games on computers. After a while, an employee notices us.
"Uhhh…" Tari said, smiling, and chuckles awkwardly as she looks away.
A random male pedestrian walks past and notices Tari's arm.
"Wait a second... is that…" The male pedestrian said, looking down at Tari's arm.
"Hey! Uhh, that cybernetic arm... you're a Meta Runner, right?"
"Excuse me...? Could I have your autograph?" The female pedestrian asked, looking at Tari.
"Um... oh!" Tari said, getting a crowd of people to start cheering at her. "Jared?"
"Um…" I said, squeezing Tari's hand.
"I can't believe I'm meeting a real life Meta Runner!" A woman in the crowd said, making a high pitched scream.
"What...? Oh, no. No, no, I'm not…" Tari said, sadly.
"Which gaming company are you with? COG? Cloud7? A-Alphamax?" A man in the crowd asked.
"Umm, uhh…" Tari said, at a loss for words.
"Tari..." I said, pointing at a sign for a store with the words 'TAS Corp' written on it. "Look."
"I'm with... TAS Corp?" Tari asked, and the crowd collectively gasps and begins to whisper amongst themselves. "Uh... That's right! And uh, speaking of which…" She begins to slowly walk away, dragging me behind her. "I-I think they're calling me and my friend there now, so gotta go...! Y'know…"
Tari and I walked away, laughing awkwardly.
TAS Corp Store…
Tari and I entered the TAS Corp store. There are many different gaming enhancing products available for purchase.
A Bot-Boy salesman with an Afro and Mustache notices Tari and I and gives us a wave.
"Oh! Uh, um…" Tari said, looking away as we started browsing. "You look like you know what's going on, Jared."
"More than you know." I said, picking up a speed ring and looking through it. "So different from my time, that's for sure."
"I see you're interested in the speed ring!" The Afrobbot cheered, jumping in front of the speed ring.
"Crap." I said, dropping the ring.
"One of our more popular gaming enhancement wearables. It's proven to make your finger button mash at an insane rate." The Afrobot said, proceeding to mash a game controller intensely until it breaks.
"N-no thank you... That looks... painful." Tari said, sadly.
"Ah, not your style eh?" The Afrobot asked, while it threw away the broken controller as it crashes into something nearby. "What about an Alpha X Stabilising Wristband? Infinite Accuracy Glove? GlitchyBox Console, Comes with a free game!" The bot pulls out a cartridge of Ultra Jump Mania. "TAS Corp coveted Headset? Cloud7 Toothbrush? Limited edition Gaming Duck?"
"Oooh! Wait.. no. I was wondering if you could tell us where we are? My memory's a bit hazy." Tari said, sadly.
"Ahhh, I see... Party too hard last night, huh? No problem! Afrobot is here to help! You're in Silica City! The video game capital!" The Afrobot said, excitedly.
"Silica City... That sounds familiar."
"And there's no better place in Silica City to be then the TAS Corp Super Store! With top of the line peripherals, tools and gaming enhancements as well as the world's greatest e-sports team! TAS Corp is the most trusted name in gaming! TAS Corp!" Afrobot yelled, whispering to Tari and I. "The new meta!"
"Um…" Tari said, frowning.
"Now let's find the perfect gaming enhancement for YOU TWO! Maybe a Geo Synchronised Orthopaedic Mouse…" Afrobot said.
Tari and I enter the same arena I remember in the Scientist's monologue at the beginning where we now see a live speedrun being held. On stage is Belle Fontiere, playing the platforming game Ultra Jump Mania.
"And after that AMAZING split, Tascorp's Meta Runner Belle Fontiere is on a world record pace. Will this be another speedrun world record under her belt? Look at her blaze through that final level, that jump dive precision is phenomenal! Another amazing split! Now, all she has to do is get to the goal in under 60 seconds to officially hold the world record time!" The announcer said, over the speaker.
"Excuse me…" Tari said, as she and I were walking through the crowd of cheering fans. "Hey! Sorry, Jared, can you tell me what's going on?"
"It's a speedrunning competition, Tari." I said, letting go of Tari's hand. "She's trying to get the latest high score by breaking the game using glitches."
"LOOK AT THAT DETERMINATION, ladies and gentlemen! This isn't your average Meta Runner here!" The announcer said, and Belle activates something on her cybernetic arm as we then cut to a determined look in her eyes. "OH MY GOD! That frame perfect precision!"
Tari and I watched on in excitement. I looked over at a sinister looking man with slicked blond hair and a blue business suit.
"All she has to do now is execute the coconut burst jump, and the world record is hers." The announcer said, while Belle smirks and chuckles. "For those new here, the coconut burst jump is a newly discovered glitch that cuts this level in half. And we're about to witness it in all its glory." Tari and I gasp as Belle has Coconut Boy hanging on the edge of the platform. "Remember now, the coconut burst jump comes in two parts. Here we go! The beginning of the glitch! It's all or nothing now." Belle pulls the first part off flawlessly. "There's the setup, and now she's positioning herself. Ooooh...! And there it is! A perfect wall clip!"
"What is she…" Tari said, in awe.
"As I said, she's glitching the video game character." I said, clutching the strap of my sling bag. "She's up against the best of the best in the arena."
"Wow…"
"She's now glitched herself inside the wall. Allowing for the final and hardest part of the glitch…" The announcer said, as Belle takes a deep breath and focuses. "Here it is! The coconut burst jump! Will it be enough to break her out of the wall and fling her to the goal though?" Coconut Boy is launched out of the wall. "Holy smokes it worked! It actually worked! This is it. She just has to land we have a new speedrunning champion!"
The aforementioned Sinister man is now nodding and smiling. Coconut Boy misses the goal by a few inches and lands in the lava below which causes gasps of shock, which arise from the audience.
"Aw no! She missed! She just missed! The run, It's dead folks!" The announcer said, over the speaker.
The audience are walking away looking disappointed.
"No! It was right there! Just one stupid jump! Agggh!" Belle said, throwing the controller at the ground and storms off.
"No idea what speedrunning was, Jared, but that looked awesome!" Tari cheered.
"Yeah. It's not really my thing." I said, and the title screen of the game begins to play.
"Yeah! Ultra Jump Mania!" The game said, over the TV.
Tari picks up the controller and starts to play. She presses one button. Coconut Boy jumps.
"Wooow…" Tari said, while she manages to get Coconut Boy to move, but promptly jumps him into a pit. "Awww... damn it."
Belle starts swiping through her phone but hears Tari playing, "Uhhh, what do you think you're doing with your friend? This is the speedrunners arena. I don't know if you understand but you need this thing called skill to be…"
"Oh! I made it over the spikes! Yes! Oh!" Tari cheered, noticing Belle as she then chuckles. "... Hi!"
Belle glares at Tari and I with disgust.
"Uhhh... don't suppose you could show me how to make Coconut Boy go as fast as you did?" Tari asked.
Belle chuckles, "You want ME to teach YOU advanced speedrunning tricks when it looks like you've never touched a game in your LIFE? As it looked like YOUR FRIEND has touched a game in his LIFE?"
"Fine... I'll just have Jared help me figure it out…" Tari said, letting out a sigh.
"This world revolves around games, kid. Your friend here looks like he knows that. If you ain't any good, don't bother. Go be a janitor or something." Belle said, as Tari begins to play really well. "Tch, y'know... button mashing ain't gonna get you anywhere!" She notices how well Tari is doing. "So you HAVE played this before?!"
"Am I winning...?" Tari asked, beginning to breathe heavily.
"You are." I said, and Tari begins to play VERY well... then Tari and I gasped as we went through our eyes. "Crap."
Ultra Jump Mania…
Tari and I come out of some kind of portal as we wake up on a sandy beach, on an unknown island.
"An island? Is this a dream?" Tari asked.
A holographic UI appears in Tari's eyes, containing various types of information. I did a gesture with my left hand to see the holographic UI from ALO, containing various types of information.
"What... what is all this?!" Tari exclaimed.
"It's a game interface." I said, walking over to Tari. "Yours is more advanced than mine."
"Ahhhhhhhh!" Someone yelled, nearby.
A random coconut comes flying at Tari's head, knocking her over.
"Ow! Who the…" Tari said.
The coconut comes flying back to none other than Coconut Boy himself.
"Take that, foul beast!" Coconut Boy said, angrily.
"Wait... Coconut Boy?" Tari asked.
"I forgot about Coconut Boy." I said, happily.
"God, he's more adorable in person."
Coconut Boy once again throws his coconut at Tari's head.
(Open POV)
Real world…
Tari and Jared are standing there lifelessly. Tari's eyes and Jared's eyes are glowing blue.
"Yo, you two? You alright?" Belle asked, touching Tari and Jared, by placing a hand on their shoulders. She gets a shock through her body. "Uhh, Lucks! You might wanna see this!"
The same sinister man, Lucks, is on his phone.
"I'll call you back. It's one of my Meta Runners." Lucks said, hanging up. "What is it Belle? I'm EXTREMELY busy explaining to the press about your disappointing FAILURE of a performance tonight!"
"Hey! SCREW YOU man! YOU go and do better. Oh wait. You can't play video games for CRAP!" Belle yelled.
"Rrrgh... There's no need for language like that dear Belle!" Lucks said, roughly grabbing Belle by the arm. "Need I remind you who owns you? And who can decommission you in an INSTANT...?"
"Really? Intimidation. Come on Lucks. That might work on your other Meta Runners, but we both know you wouldn't let anything happen to numero uno here."
"Maybe I will after today's performance." Lucks said, noticing Tari and Jared and pushes Belle away. "Hm. What triggered this?"
"I don't know... she just sort of... freaked out with her friend and froze. I thought I broke her and her friend, y'know, emotionally!"
The TV screen's static fades, showing Tari and Jared standing next to Coconut Boy.
"Wait.... Coconut Boy?" Tari asked, on screen.
"I forgot about Coconut Boy. God, he's more adorable in person." Jared said, on screen.
"Lucks, are they in the...?" Belle asked.
Lucks activates his earpiece, "Bring in the Tascorp scientists. I want all of them here. NOW!"
There is a close-up shot of Tari's face.