"Good manners, good manners." I reply.  I tended to find HAL amusing, and I've never watched the whole movie finding it boring.

I'm grinning at the awesomeoness of Clone Wars.  If only the Lucas of my homeline had the sense to do this, then his misbegotten other thing.

I"m a bit skeptical of the society description, but it is true that a society of versers, some very long lived, some of immesne power is going to ....be weird.

I consider the relation of helping others with their problems to picking fleeas from amother's fur....

At first my response is to say no, but then I decide to go do the calisthenics there.  It willhelp to keep me honest.

The Welcome to Verser World ape continues. "Any material you might posses, whether books, audio visual recordings, computer programs or technical schematics may be sold to be recorded into our database. If you wish to patent an item, you may do so for a fee. You and you alone will then have access to that material. Some versers do this with schematics of items that they have invented, to reproduce them to sell or trade."

So Ray probably didn't bring all of those ray guns. He probably brought schematics and reproduces them here.

"You are currently in one of many Towers. These are scattered about the landscape. This place is not a planet in any traditional sense. Which is to say it is no a ball of rock floating in space. It just exists. As far as can be determined, it is infinite in mass and space. It is flat. Our best scientists have not been able to make a better determination than that. There is no sun. Heat and light just come. They just exist. The source is unknown. All that is known is that the mass contains an inordinate amount of raw scriff. It seems to attract versers like a magnet."

It's just a flat mass of infinite size, with unknown heat and light that radiate from an unknown source.

OOC) There might be more.



The next class is scheduled for 12 hours from now. And it's expensive.

Shouldn't such a thing collapse into a black hole?  That is, if a black hole is the correct theory, anyways.  All it says is some serious finaglingon Cosmic Laws or perhaps some dampeners of planetary size...

Not my concern.  I don't have the math to hack stuff that would give Einsteain a headache.

I'll skip gym class, and just work at home.

I'll wander the market a bit looking for a small set of free weights, and hobby supplies, and a chess board.

As if reading your mind, the ape says "Some have theorized that this should cause the land mass to collapse in on itself. No one has yet determined why this is not the case. It's one of the great mysteries of Verser World."

It's just an infinite land mass with no ends. It's not floating in space. It just exists. No one can figure it out. It's beyond the ability of millennia-old versers to comprehend.

The ape continues. "If you were to travel upwards, you would find a breathable atmosphere and survivable temperatures for at least ten-thousand miles. Looking down, the land mass stretches forever in every direction."

And then it shows a picture of it, apparently taken by the verser who flew up 10,000 miles. It just goes on and on and on in every direction.

"The land is rich in every mineral known to any verser who has examined it, and even a few which have never before been seen anywhere in the Multiverse. Some theorize that God, or deities or whatever runs the Multiverse created a special place just for versers to inhabit."



After asking around for a bit, you determine that free weights are one of the very few things you will NOT find here. There doesn't seem to be a single verser who would waste his precious weight limit carrying literally dead weight. You are advised to fill bags with water or sand for that. Just make sure you don't claim them as property. There is a gym in the tower, but none of the versers in the market have any free weights.

If you want that type of exercise though, you can always blacksmith with Magehammer. (Just reminding you is all.)

What sort of hobby supplies? You find them, I just wonder what kind.

Asking around for a chess board leads you to Gaylord's Gaming Emporium. He deals in low-tech board games and card games. He asks "What kind of chess do you want? Two player?" (Traditional) "Three player?" (Triangular board) "Four player?" (Much larger board with pieces on all four sides. This actually exists on our world.) "Three Dimensional chess?" (Straight out of Star Trek) "How many pieces on a side?" (Different variations on traditional chess. He's got some that have 100 pieces on each side.) After a bit of explaining and questioning, you determine that a mediocre chess player could probably pick up every variant of the game within hours. They're all similar, but completely different.

I try the bags of sand, and the thick wooden dowel rod first.

I use my moped to take an hour drive for sightseeing.

I check to see how deep the land mass is theorized to be.

I try to find out if there is some sort of casual sparring match club.

I buy a chess board, tradtional.  Then I buy some stone, and a hammer, and stone chisels, and plates of slate and marble.  My goal is to create an outdoor suitable chess board inset into a stone table.

Plastic trash bags are provided with the room and you've got a nigh infinite supply of them. Suitable scrap sticks are easy enough to find.



It's a huge flea market type of place. For the most part. You pass by a Colosseum of stone and marble. You pass by a state fair kind of amusement park. Rides, games of skill, circus shows, etc. You see two other Towers, at North and East compass points to the one you know. They're far away and barely visible. There's a hovercar dealership, a shoppe that sells tamed animals, beasts of burden as it were. Some you don't recognize. One popular beast is a six hoofed hippopotamus with feathers. It's a local creature. Strong, docile and supposedly very tasty when cooked properly.



All the evidence and studies which have been done suggest that the land mass is infinitely thick. There has been no evidence to suggest otherwise. As far as anyone can tell, you're on the top of a cube of infinite size. There are oceans, deserts, forests, lakes, etc. All of the features you would expect. The area you're in, with the Tower and the marketplace is a scrub desert. Hard packed earth with little vegetation. Your moped has little to no trouble traversing the ground.

Water is brought up from deep wells. There is no sun, no moon, no stars at night. Heat and light just come from somewhere. No one has yet determined from where. Sixteen hours daylight, eight hours darkness. It's on that cycle like clockwork, with no variation. You could set your watch by it. And there's no transitional period. That is, no sunrise or sunset. One minute it's dark, the next minute, bright as noon. Unexplainable. Sixteen hours light, eight hours darkness.

There are variations in season in some places. The area you're in, being a desert, doesn't really experience them. But there is rain, snow, sleet, etc. in some places. But the desert stays pretty much the same all year.



There are Roman gladiators who train people to fight in the Arena. It's the Colosseum you passed on your moped trip. It's not death matches. They have doctors and other healers standing by. They will train you with broadsword and staff.

But that's probably not what you're looking for. You want Fight Club. Asking around, you're introduced to Tyler Durden. Yeah, Fight Club. Not exactly the movie, but close.



You don't really need a hammer ya know.....

Asking around, you are directed to Mason. He's a stone cutter. He's more than willing to help you.

"I get all my tools made by Magehammer. I see you've already got one of his hammers. Here's what I'll do. You can apprentice with me and I'll provide the rest of the tools. But you gotta work for me. The tools he makes are magical, if you're lucky. Makes the work a whole lot easier."

He's offering you an unpaid apprenticeship for the tools. He'll teach you Masonry. He'll provide you with tools you can keep. You work for him for free. And of course you're going to be doing the lowest of the low grunt work.

Good.  I work a bit, fiddling with my system to get it right.  I have to lift and relift to try to make sure both sides are even.  And then one side's knot slips loose. Sigh.  More work.  But after a bit, i've got a servicable free weight which I begin to use for curls, dead lifts, and pull up lift up drills.

Mostly, I just do it when I'm a bit antsy, or after i've come home from work.

I enjoy my trip, and stare for a good five minutes at the feather hippo thing, long enough for the owner to come over and try to sell one to me.  I smile and shake my head.

"No, I'm...just enjoying the weirdness."

Ok. Serious fiddling with the local Cosmological Constants, probably, or something.  I didn't have a clue what it was, but I was aware that I was probably in the position of trying to explain my hi tech flint and steel firemaking tech to Mr. Spock.

"I didn't watch the movie. What am i signing up for?" I ask Durden.

"Mason, I already have a job.  However, I could work say two to three hours at night, and when you think I'vedone enough to earn them, you can gift me the tools."

Forgot to mention, about every mile or so, in a seemly square grid pattern, is one of those silvery bubbles, that link to a destroyed universe. There's one a hundred yards from Magehammer's shoppe, which he claims links to the first world where you met him. Your Cessna airplane is still sitting in the hangar waiting for you. Most of the universes are still inhabitable. You see occasional people coming and going from them. Supposedly some splinter groups and loners have made homes in them. Occasionally people cross into them for supplies and gear. You just have to have it in a scriff-infected container to bring it back out.

OOC) You seemed a bit disappointed that you didn't get to finish working on your Cessna, so now's your chance. You can go back into that world any time and be totally alone if it suits you.



He laughs. "You'll find quite a bit weird here, even by verser standards. In a couple weeks, we're planning on having a heffalump roast." (That's the name of the beast) "Everybody's invited. We have 'em every 400 days or so. Kind of a unification celebration. Bring your appetite."

That's as close as you can get to an annual celebration.



You get the feeling that's the way most of the versers feel about this place. Your theories will be considered just as valid as the theories of the guy with 54 PHD degrees. Nobody can figure it out. Many have tried, none have succeeded.



"Fight. Club." He says, enunciating. "Basically a bunch of us tough guys get together every so often and try to bash each others brains in with our bare hands. It's an amazing stress-reliever. And nobody goes home with hard feelings. So you break 20 of your opponent's bones. No big deal. A wizard puts him back together. You shake hands, he gives you a hug and invites you to dinner. Your opponent, not the wizard I mean. We do it for fun. Come by some time and check us out if you're wanting to work on your brawling skills."

It's bare knuckle brawling/boxing. Like John L. Sullivan was famous for.

OOC) You never saw Fight Club?????? You poor, poor, deprived child!!!!!!! Add it to your NetFlix IMMEDIATELY!!!!!!!



Mason says "Sound good. Mostly what I need is somebody to help me haul the stones from the quarry. Then I'll teach you how to chip them. The statues you're trying to make are already there. You just need to remove the rough bits."

So you've got a gentleman's agreement. Come by a couple nights a week.

It's a terrible idea.  It's neccessary.  I reply back to myself.  I need to confront my weaknesses, and this is a good place to do so.

Grimly, I look back up to Mr. Durden.

"All right, I'm in."

It does occur to me one diff between O'Sullivan and here is that here you can hit harder.  The punching gloves made it so you could hit harder too.

One movie that i loved, even if I did not agree with this scene, Timecop, had a modern TKD guy taking out O'Sullivan's sparring partner.  I figured, no way.  I figured the sparring guy would take everything offered, and come back for seconds.

I shake hands with Mason even as I groan inside.  This is gonna hurt a bit.  But it will be good for me.  And i'd like to make some outdoor chess tables.

He gives you a hard stare and says coldly "First things first. Mister Durden was my father. I'm Tyler. Do you hear me? Ty-Ler. You call me Mister Durden again and you're gonna have your first fight like that." (Snaps his fingers in your face.)

OOC) I know you didn't really say it to him, but that was too cool to pass up. And in case you don't know, it's Brad Pitt that's getting up in your face here. That's something I love about using movie characters. You've already got their personality.



He shakes your hand and says "Welcome to Fight Club. The first rule of Fight Club is: you do not talk about Fight Club. The second rule of Fight Club is: you DO NOT talk about Fight Club! Third rule of Fight Club: someone yells "stop!", goes limp, taps out, the fight is over. Fourth rule: only two guys to a fight. Fifth rule: one fight at a time, fellas. Sixth rule: No shirts, no shoes. Seventh rule: fights will go on as long as they have to. And the eighth and final rule: if this is your first time at Fight Club, you have to fight."

And he grabs your arm and more or less drags you into a tent. You'd have to do some heavy resisting here to get away from him.

You see two guys in the ring going at it. They're both bloody faced and knuckled. There's maybe 40 guys and even a few gals standing around watching and cheering. One of the guys in the ring lands a wild haymaker on his opponent, and the guy goes down. He taps out. He's done. The winner is cheered. You see money change hands. They were betting on the outcome. Then Mister Miyagi comes out of the crowd. He enters the ring and starts waving his hands around and chanting some strange language. And both fighters are healed of all injuries. And just like Tyler said, they get up, shake hands and hug each other. No hard feelings here.

Tyler raises your arm over your head and yells out "I got some fresh meat for Fight Club. Who's gonna take on this guy?" He is of course referring to you.

And at least a dozen hands go up. You've got your choice of opponents for your first fight. There's even two women's hands up, willing to fight you. Just looking at them, the women would probably be among the tougher opponents.



No weapons here of course. You're gonna have to drop your toolbelt.



OOC) This is happening after Fight Club.

"Be back ten minutes after dark."

I let the finger-snapping go.  I'm uncertain about what I  should do.  But when he starts haulling me, I plant my feet, and then yank my arm back.  My other hand is already balled up.

"I'm not your three year old."

If he allows it, then I will walk in, my stomach doing flip flops.

I shrug. Pop my neck, work my mouth, spit on the ground.

Lord, help and guide me.

I then unbutton my shirt, and take off my shoes, and drop the tool belt, take out keys, wallet, etc, and look about for a box or some place to put them.  Even as I do all this, I stand taller, and let my face get colder.

by the time, I'm walking out there, the room is dead quiet, except for a heckler who tells me to hurry up.
"You want to go?" I ask him.

Then I look at the crowd of volunteers.  I discount the women immediately.
"No, no, not you either.'
I look at the remaining ten.  Anyone who is too obviously superfit, although i'm lots better than i was, still, i don't want to chase someone who runs marathons....out they go.
Any teenager looking types.
Any obvous martial art types, as i'd like to learn something and not just get smacked about as a chew toy.
Anyone who doesn't look like creep tasstic gets the boot.
of those left, I do a very loud and quick eenie meeenie minie mo...just to amuse the crowd.

Coolly, he says "You're not my three year old. But you will be my opponent."

He lets you walk in, he takes off his shirt and he gets in the ring.

"All challengers step aside. New Guy is mine!!!!"

Looks like you're fighting Tyler.

And as you're turning to leave, he says "Remember rule eight New Guy. First time at Fight Club, you have to fight. You can fight me, or you can fight everyone here."

And they all make it clear that that's exactly what will happen. You are fighting Tyler or you're fighting everyone at once.

They do give you a box for your stuff. You know theft is unheard of here. Can't steal something from someone who can scriff in on it and find it.


God doesn't seem to be answering today.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:13, Mon 01 June 2015.

"Anything you say, Mr. Durden." I snark.  What a drip, I think.  And then I advance forward, based on geometric theory.  I'm trying to limit the amount of running around space he has by seeing the ring area as circle, and pushing him against the side.

I take it slow because I'm aware he could just bum rush me.  My hands are high, but I'm really hoping to wrestle him as he's probably a good bit smaller than me.

Everybody knows how he dislikes being called "Mister Durden" and so a loud "Ohhhhhh" erupts from the crowd. You're clearly taunting him. He looks pissed.

Tyler is tall and skinny, but well-muscled. He probably weighs in at about 150-160 pounds. So you've probably got 40-50 pounds on him. He looks quick and agile. Your main advantage here is that you can probably take a lot more damage and stay on your feet.

You get the distinct feeling that this fight will most likely determine your entire future with Fight Club. You're either going to become well-respected and liked, or become the biggest laughing stock in the place. Not much middle ground here.

So you get in the ring with him. He's moving around like an idiot, trying to intimidate you. You put your dukes up. He does likewise. And as if charged by electricity, you strike, hard. You land a direct shot to his sternum. He recoils back. The expression on his face tells you that he's clearly underestimated you.

Tyler swings at you. It's coming in perfect, but he loses his footing and slips. You easily dodge as he's falling flat on his face. Then you tag him in the back with an elbow as he's going down. He rolls over and snaps back to his feet. Yeah, he's definitely underestimated you. But no more. He swings and hits you in the face, then follows it with a left before you can react. Your head is ringing like The Gong Show, prompting you to throw a wild haymaker. It connects beautifully. Now Tyler's head is ringing. Your following gut shot doubles him over for a moment, and he comes back up with a wild uppercut that catches you on the chin. That's gonna leave a mark. But once again, he swings wild and loses his footing. He's flat on his face.

You're about a half-second away from stomping him on the ground and he puts his hands up and yells "Okay stop stop!!!!!" And even in your adrenaline addled state, you see his fear. Breathing heavily, you back off.

A slow clap begins in the crowd. It builds into a crescendo of whooping and hollering. Mister Miyagi comes out and starts chanting and speaking his strange language. The blood you've lost is reabsorbed into your body. The pain stops. Tyler gets on his feet. He too is healed. He shakes you hand, hugs you, and yells "We have a winner!!!!"

You've just gained massive respect points in Fight Club. Rocky Balboa ambles over. He says "Hey kid, ya got potential. What ya need is a trainer. I'm your man."

I'm standing there with a dazed grin on my face, and I find it easier than it usually is for me to be kind to Tyler.  It helps that he is a good example of this, as my occasional flickers of anger shame me.

When Rocky comes over, I think for a second, and then nod.  This is just what I need.  He'll train me to be a big bruiser, and that's what I need.

"Yes, sir." And I shake Rocky's hand.  "You're my trainer."  i tell him of my two other jobs, real quick.

OOC) Don't get too cocky there about the fight. Tyler did roll two botches after all.


Rocky says "Ah, stone cutter and a delivery boy. Thems good jobs. When ya wanting to be starting training?"

Meanwhile, there's another fight going on. Two women are in the ring. Much more vicious than you might expect.

"As long as you can fit around my schedule, as soon as you're ready, Trainer."  I look back at him, clearly waiting on his decision.

(Must be read in Rocky Balboa's voice for full effect.)

Rocky says "Ah, ya don't get me. I teach a class here. It's free for membas of Fight Club. Your stone cuttin' gig don't start till after dark. I teach this a couple hours before that. Lots of Da Versers teach classes......" (Then he seems to consider for a moment. Then his eyes light up.) "Councilman Tadeusz!! That's who you remind me of!!! He teaches a wilderness survival class along with a couple other versers. That other councilman, what's his name? Wizard-Mallet? Yeah, him and Tadeusz and a couple other guys teach the class. Ya got any really good skills ya could teach? Dat's what we's all about. Coming up with new ideas and sharing knowledge."

But the class is free for you. You'll be with lots of the other members of Fight Club. Rocky just likes teaching versers how to beat people's brains in. Gotta be ready. You'll never know what's in Da Verse.

(Doing Therapy)

I shake my head to his question.  I'm a bit dissapointed to know he's teaching a whole class, but i'll take it.

"Rocky, I'll be in your class then..."  I watch another fight, and then go home to take a long shower, and hit the bed hard.

You wanted a one on one trainer? You can get that of course, but they cost money. A good rule of thumb here, classes with multiple students are free/less expensive than one on one tutoring. One on one tutoring costs. They're generally very generous in the sharing of knowledge, but only with groups. Share it a lot.



Rocky's class starts right after the last fight, which is the one you're watching. So if you want to train today, you should stick around. And the stone cutter is expecting you after that.

Of course, you can skip it and go back to your room. I'm just reminding you.

OOC) Here's a thought I had. Indians would paint people's faces and dance and chant to cure illnesses. Most people would probably dismiss this as bunk. But what if it's not? The face paint is some kind of medicine applied, the equivalent of topical penicillin; and the rhythm of the chanting and dancing does something not unlike acupuncture. Acu-rhythm or something. The Indians might not even be aware of what exactly they're doing. They just know that it works. Then somebody comes along and figures it out. It just seemed like the kind of thing you'd be interested in.

(Doing Therapy)
This message was last edited by the player at 19:21, Thu 11 June 2015.

I'm working on footwork, and on hitting a light bag, and on my nemesis, the jump rope in Rocky's class...

Later, i hit the bed hard.

OOC) 1@2 Bare knuckle brawling. Or +1 on your existing skill.

No stone cutter?

Next day, you get up and go to work. You have a decent day at work. Nothing too bad. You have a delivery to Sin City. It's several floors of the Tower. Drugs, prostitution, gambling, all kinds of fun activities.

Whilst in Sin City, you're approached by a woman, mid 40s, blonde hair, blue eyes, wearing cut off jean shorts and a red flannel shirt, unbuttoned and tied at the bottom. In a thick country gal accent, she says:

"Hey there sugar. My name's Olivia. You looking for some company tonight?"
This message was last edited by the player at 14:33, Tue 16 June 2015.

I forget the stone cutting, but plan to apologize next day.  During my lunch break, I go over and explain that after getting punched, I totally forgot, and sorry, I'll be back on my regular time.

Later, I stare with a bland coldness at Olivia.
"No...thank you." Walk on.  Ewwww.  After that, I put on my Cold Face and imagine a barrier around myself about five feet out, a bubble to keep out others.

The stone cutter doesn't mind a bit. He just says "We got all the time in The Multiverse. I ain't in no hurry."

So you're fine there.



Olivia folds her arms across her ample bosom and says something you don't really understand, except that you're sure it's insulting. You get three feet from her and imagine your five foot bubble. The Order hammer starts to glow black, the Order staff on your back feels like a rod of ice going up and down your body. Then you hear Olivia grunt and fall backwards onto her butt. And there is a five foot energy barrier around you. It goes floor to ceiling, and is shaped like a soup can. The activation knocked Olivia down. She screams more curses at you.

And now it's just like in The Arcade. People get out of your way at a distance of five feet. It's pushing them out of the way. You get a lot of strange looks from people. But you've got your energy bubble.

OOC) 1@1 create Order shield.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:49, Thu 18 June 2015.

Regretfully, I drop my shield. I should be kinder, more empathetic to the sort of people in this place, but then they're among the sort who often gave me trouble so I have three reasons to be cold, and only one reason to be kind.

I say nothing, and make my delivery.  However, if things go sideways, that shield is going up post haste.