For my First Trick.. [Action]

[eensietay_agicianmay]

[There’s a strange little stand set up in Grand Central Station, with an even stranger little man bouncing excitedly in front of it. The stand itself is just a simple table with some odd-shaped masses hidden under a bright purple sheet…
Many in the Arcade have already met the Magician (or his double), but it’s a rare occasion to see him in total NPC-mode outside of his own game. He’s in top form: loud, animated, and humorously charming. He sounds a little bit like a carny or a used car salesman, and his grin is as bright as possible.]

Ladies and entlemengay of the arcade! Do you live in fear of stepping outside your game? Well, worry not, friends! I’ve got just what you need!

[With a dramatic flourish, he whips the sheet off the table, revealing rows of glass bottles, each containing a single, floating heart.]

Multiple lives, at any time, in any game, whenever you need it! All you have to do is crack open a bottle-

[He picks one of them up and bashes it on the corner of the table. The glass shatters and vanishes, as the heart grows in size and floats behind him. Now that it’s larger, it’s easier to see that the heart has a dopey-looking smile on its face...]

-And voila! You are now safe to explore! Each heart is guaranteed to last you for an entire life! Battered, burnt or bubbilized; you’ll be good as new as soon as the heart breaks! Careful, though- The heart won’t save you from being crushed or drowned! So don’t get too rowdy! And hooow much would this cost, you might ask? Well, that’s up to you! You heard me right, folks!

Since there’s no... aheh, real currency between all of our games- heck, some of you don’t even have any form of credits… I’m willing to barter! Got any interesting power-ups from your own games? Or maybe a prize, a gadget, a weapon? I’m interested in anything! Just give me something good, and I’ll give you as many hearts as you need.

[a]
[The Magician’s excited pitch is starting to cool down, and he turns to face the small crowd that’s formed. He extends a hand in a friendly sort of greeting, but it’s clear the gears are turning in his head as he stares expectantly at his audience.]
So... what do you say?

[b]
[Some time after the initial crowd has passed; the Magician still has plenty of stock left to sell. The heart is bobbing peacefully behind him as he tries to get the attention of some tough looking characters.]
Need some proof that my product can save your life? Give it a test run! Come on, hit me! Pop me right on the nose! I’ll be fine, you’ll see!

Comments

[eensietay_agicianmay]

Pfft. Cool your engines, it's foot-racing segments. We're not trying to steal the competition!

[He looks around at the other entrances in the arcade. He actually hasn't explored that many of them, but he has a basic idea.]

Well, there's games for dancing and rhythm keeping, fighting, racing, shooting, a few platformers, puzzle games.. a little bit of everything! We've also got some of those blocky old retro games..

[roadblasted]

[Oh. Foot races make a little more sense, he guesses. He's somewhat relieved, apparent by a noticeably less tense shift in expression and posture.
Tas already asked the next question that Turbo was going to, though The Magician's answer causes the oldest racer to raise a brow.]

"Blocky ol' retro games"? The heck are ya talkin' about?

[twintastic]

[Tas frowns a bit, raising a brow. Blocky? ...Old? That causes the more outgoing twin to give Ales a bit of a look from beneath the edge of his helmet, folding his arms tightly over his chest.]

You wouldn't happen t'be talkin' 'bout games like ours bein' blocky an' old, right?

[eensietay_agicianmay]

[..OH.]

Bubble me! Uh, sorry, I didn't realize! You look pretty slick for coming from an older game... 16-bit, right? 8-bit?

[roadblasted]

[Turbo quickly scowls when he realizes The Magician called him old. That's about the last thing he needs right now.]

8-Bit, schnoz-face, and PROUD ta'be! We don't need some fancy-arse newfangled graphics ta'rake in all the quar--

[All of a sudden he fully processes what Ales said, though he isn't at all sure he heard right.]

... Wait, didya also just call 16-bit old? I thought that was the cuttin' edge new thing ev'ry gamer was losin' their heads over!

[twintastic]

[Tas feels his lip curl as he shares another glance with Tic, who looks annoyed by the comment himself, but now mostly confused. He shrugs before Tas turns back to Ales, his scowl growing.]

It is the cuttin' edge right now, ain't it?...

[That was the sole reason Roadblasters had been so wildly popular when it was first plugged in. It made no sense for Ales to be calling that old. While it was true this arcade had games that completely seemed to surpass anything else the brothers had ever seen before in terms of graphics. Heck, half of them looked like they were just parts of the gamer's world made into a video game.

...but...why?]

[eensietay_agicianmay]

Uh.. No? [Ales quirks a brow.] They're retro! Classic, old-school.

I don't even know if I HAVE bits! [Seriously, what are bits? He only hears the old games referred to as that..]

[roadblasted]

[He glares at Ales irately, snapping at him. He's sick and tired of things not making sense.]

Are all yer frickin' screws loose?! That stupid hotshot new game RoadBlasters came out THIS YEAR, 1987, and it's 16-bit! Gamers were sayin' s'the best graphics they've ever seen! How in Pong's name is that "old school"?!
'Course ya have BITS! What kinda game character doesn't have pixels or bits?!

[Of course, somehow those mysterious games definitely don't look like they have pixels, but Turbo doesn't understand why... yet.]

[twintastic]

[At this point, the Twins can't tell if Ales is actually serious, or if he's just trying to make fun of them and their game. He seemed to nice and amiable before, albeit a bit eccentric. So suddenly turning on them wouldn't make sense at all.
So that just makes what Ales is saying all the more confusing. ...Perhaps Turbo is on to something, and the Magician is just missing a few pixels up where his brain was supposed to be.

For the moment the two stay silent, quite incredulous at this point, and obviously as agitated as Turbo is.]

[eensietay_agicianmay]

[Ales' thin black eyes narrow at the three, as the gears in his head spin wildly to figure this whole mess out. This was getting more and more interesting by the second.. His voice becomes a little less comedic, a lot more careful.]

Are you joking around or not..? It's 2013. 16-bit hasn't been the best in a looong time.

[roadblasted]

[There's an almost chilling pause as Turbo's expression goes blank for a long moment...
Before looking at Ales like The Magician is absolutely insane.
This doesn't change the fact the racer is still furiously snappish, probably even more now than he was just a minute ago.]

ARE YOU SCREWIN' AROUND! 'Cause if ya are THAT INN'IT FUNNY!

[It should be very clear to Ales now that Turbo and the Twins are anything but kidding.]

[twintastic]

[No, not funny at all. The Twins look at each other for a brief moment, horrified, because Ales sounds just as dead serious about this as they do.]

2013!?? That's freakin' INSANE! That'd be 26 years in th'future! Whadda' ya take us for, morons!?

[Tas sounds both angry and uneasy, because unless Ales has the best poker face of any character that's ever existed, it sounds as if fully believes that it really is 2013.]

[eensietay_agicianmay]

[Ales jumps back a step, a little worried that they're going to take their confused anger out on him.]

I'm not kidding around! Look, you could ask anybody else, and they'd tell you the same thing!

B-besides, you're the ones saying 16-bit is the coolest new thing! Games are 3D now! High definition! It sounds like you're 26 years in the past.. I know this must be really confusing, but I'm just trying to help!

[SO PLEASE STOP YELLING AT HIM.]

[roadblasted]

[Turbo pauses once more, speechless again, as he actually considers what Ales said.
Ask anyone else?
... He thinks he'll do just that.
He turns to see another character, who looks to be a soldier from a first person shooter, passing nearby. He shouts to them, to get their attention.]

'EY MAC! WHAT YEAR IS IT?

[The soldier raises their brow at the racer, and at such a strange question, but answers nonetheless.
"Uh, 2013? What are ya, retro?"

And just like that, Turbo loses all color in his face, his gray skin paling to become almost as white as his jumpsuit. He could swear his heart stopped beating for several seconds.
3D... High Definition...
That would explain why all those games didn't look like the games they knew at all. 16-bit wasn't cutting edge anymore. Technology had advanced even farther, and graphics had gotten even better. So much that they now looked nearly real.
He's so beyond shocked, his lisp starts to show itself, as he mutters aloud.]

W-We... we were unplugged...
Fer twenty-thix y-years...

[That's the only logical explanation explanation, as to how suddenly being so far in the future is even possible.
Right?]

[twintastic]

[Tas and Tic are stunned. All they can do is stare at each other for a long moment before looking back at Turbo, absolutely flabbergasted.]

T....twenty-six....

....years....?

[It made no sense, but it was the only explanation that they could think of. What else could it be?

Whatever has happened here, it's definitely a lot bigger than the three first realized. They had been unplugged for seemingly twenty-six years, and were now stuck in the year 2013. They thought they'd escaped the fate of one who had been unplugged, and in a sense they had.

But had they truly?]

[eensietay_agicianmay]

..I know this is probably really confusing. If you ever have any questions, or need anything, just ask me! I'll do what I can. I have a communicator, and you can always find me at my game, if it's an emergency.

[But then again.. It's probably not a good idea for them to go in there unprotected. He grabs three bottles off the table and holds them out.]

You'll probably need these for later. They're on the house! Consider it a welcoming gift.

[Besides, all the information they've accidentally provided about unplugged games is payment enough.]