.hack//LIMINALITY Fan Fiction / .hack//SIGN Fan Fiction ❯ .hack//CHECK ❯ Wing ( Chapter 11 )

Chapter 11 // Wing

#Knock, knock, knock#

"Hey, Tiffany, it's me! Open up! It's rent day!", shouted a voice.

Tiffany bumbled out of her bed, and stumbled to answer the door. "Oh. Mr. Bezok! Rent's due already?" She reached for the letter holder near the door, and pulled her checkbook from it. "Pen, please?", she said as she held her free hand open. The man fumbled and frisked himself, found a pen, and handed it to her. She quickly wrote the check, tore it out of the book, and handed it to him. She began to shut the door.

"#Ahem#", went the man, "Pen?"

"Whoops.", she handed the pen back to the man.

Tiffany glanced at the clock on her stove. 8:05am. She trudged to her bathroom and began to brush her teeth. "#Sigh#." This nonsense is going too far... I just wanted to have a little fun, meet some new people... Now, I just don't know anymore...

She looked at herself in the mirror as she buttoned up her shirt. That event starts today. Things are gonna be really busy. Wonder if he's gonna show...?

She grabbed her keys, threw on her coat, and rushed out of the door.

. . .

The El pulled into the station, and Tiffany boarded it. The El had the same odd, unidentifiable smell it always had. She saw two old women, purses in hand, on their way to the river boat bus. To her, this was an indication that it was indeed Thursday; as she saw these two women every Thursday. There was a meek-looking man in the corner of the car reading a newspaper. His constant shaking and fiddling with his glasses always made him look timid to her. On the far side of the car was a man with a cup of coffee. It was the same coffee as always; Starbucks.

The El screeched into the final station as passengers gathered near the doors of each car. Tiffany stepped off and rushed to the bus stop.

. . .

The bus arrived just as she had. She began to board the bus. "Hey! Tiffany!", called a voice. She turned around to see her coworker, Andrea. "Hi, Andrea. How are you doing?" She asked.

"I'm fine. You ready for today?", asked Andrea as they found a seat.

"I hope I am."

"The boss man said today's gonna be extremely busy. Especially since the new wing will be opened today."

"Yeah. It's been a long time coming, but the new wing should be pretty impressive. I would imagine that it's going to be a madhouse. You think any kids will ditch today?"

"Do you even need to ask?"

"I suppose you have a point..."

. . .

Tiffany and Andrea arrived at the Scramble Arcade. Video arcade machines were scattered about the floor as far as the eye could see. On the second level was more video arcade machines. At the far end of the building was a set of stairs. Beyond those stairs was the new wing. The two entered the locker room, and put their belongings into their locker. "Tiff, Andrea! Today's the big day!", yelled another voice.

"John, how long have you been here?" Andrea inquired as she turned to face him.

"I've been here since last night! I'm so freaking excited! This is going to be the best release ever!"

"Did you even sleep?", asked Tiffany.

"Well, no. The wooden benches around here aren't too comfortable, you know."

"Where's Carl? Did he say what our assignments were?", asked Andrea.

"He should be in his office. He didn't leave last night either."

The two left the locker room, and went to Carl's office. Carl had just stepped out of his door. "Hey, Carl, what are our assignments today?", Tiffany asked. Carl turned to face them.

"Oh, you two.", he said as he flipped a couple of pages on his clipboard, "Okay. Tiffany, you are manning the token counter, and, Andrea, you will be working the floor with John."

"All RIGHT!!!", shouted Andrea, "WHOO! I'll be the first to try it out! I'll go tell John!" Andrea ran off.

"Thanks, Carl.", said Tiffany as she walked to the token counter next to the new wing.

. . .

At 10am, there was a crowd that ran through the entire building. Tiffany, had just finished setting up at the token counter when the man at the top of the stairs began to speak.

"We at the Cyber Connect Corporation are proud to be here for the launch of World III on a new platform. This establishment is one of ten around the country to have such a facility installed, and more locations will follow. You are all here because a month ago, the CC Corp had sent invitations to all of you. Why you? All of you have successfully participated in at least one event of World III. Well, either that, or you were an employee of this establishment. As those of you who have inspected your invitations know, there is an eleven digit code on the bottom. This eleven digit code enables participation in one of the most exclusive events yet: The Cyber Connect Grand Prix! Just enter the code at the nearest Chaos Gate, and you'll be entered! The rules are simple. This is a free-for-all which means that the last one standing wins the prize. First, we'll allow the initial wave of five hundred contestants into the event area. Every thirty minutes, a new wave of one hundred contestants will be introduced into the fray. There are no item restrictions. With that, let the Grand Prix begin!" The man flung open the large doors at the bottom of the stair well. The crowd began to file into the new wing.