Check out a kiosk

You look around and notice there happens to be an open kiosk nearby. You gesture towards it as you say, "Why don't we check that kiosk out over there. It looks open." The 2 of you walk over to it and each of you sit down on a stool in front of a huge touchscreen display.

"Oh, fancy!" Mom exclaims as she is evidently impressed by it all. You agree with her as you take in everything on the screen. Along the side of the screen is what appears to be a Character selector. You recognize most of the names immediately: Disney, Nickelodeon, and Harry Potter, just to name a few. Along the top appears to be submenus for various aspects of the Character. The first one you notice is "Instance Version." Then there's one called "Outfit." There are quite a few more, including some named "Talents/Training, Mental State, Physique, Add-Ons," and more. In the middle was a sample display of a Character you somewhat recognize, but can't quite put your finger on who exactly it is. "I wonder where we should start," your Mom says thoughtfully.

You start clicking through the Character Selector menus on the side, checking out how it works. You find that after selecting an Parent Company, you can select the IP you want and so on and so forth until you have found the specific Character you're looking for. It seems pretty straightforward. You respond to Mom after a delay and say "I'm just trying to figure it all out at the moment."

You select a random Character, it just happens to be Lara Croft again. Now your attention turns to the menus along the top. You click "Instance Version." A submenu takes over the screen that has a disclaimer written in bold, capital letters across the top:

ALL CHARACTER'S INSTANCE VERSIONS ARE FROM SAID CHARACTER AT AN AGE APPROPRIATE TO SATISFY AND AND ALL LOCAL AND REGIONAL LAWS AND REGULATIONS.

Lara's display has shifted over a bit to make room for the new Instance Version submenu. You glance over it and notice that it appears to be a list of her game appearances, broken down by game. After clicking one just for shits and giggles, you're surprised to see another layer of submenu within that specific game that chronicles different levels within the game. Again, clicking one randomly, you're surprised yet again to see yet another layer of submenu that has a list of literal time stamps, laid out almost like coordinates. You click one randomly and to your relief, another submenu does not open this time. "Wow, they are VERY thorough in their available options here. I literally wouldn't know where to start picking details that specifically." You chuckle a little at the almost absurdness of it all.

Next you click Outfits. This time a list of various outfits available pop up. No surprise, it's extremely extensive. At the top of the list it shows "Default" as currently selected. There is a small * to the side with print that states "Default" Outfit is determind by the specific "Instance Version" selected. "Okay, it seems like the default outfit is whatever they were wearing at the time stamp, or extraction time. Makes sense." You say, glancing over at Mom.

She appears to be mesmerized by everything going on on the screen in front of you guys. You turn back and scroll through the outfit options until you reach the end of the list. The very last one appears different than the rest. It reads:

DON'T LIKE WHAT YOU SEE HERE? VISIT OUR STORE FOR OUR FULL CLOTHING CATALOG ANYTIME!

It appears to be a hyperlink to their online store, but you're not really interested in that at this specific moment, so you store the info in the back of your mind for later.

Moving on, you click the tab labled Mental State, curious about what that meant. This screen appears very different than the previous few. Instead of a long list to scroll through, there are only a few options available and each has thorough text accompanying it explaining what each one means. However, like the Outfit tab, there was an already selected "Default" setting. The text describing it reads as follows:

"Default Mental State is defined by the state of a Character in which they retain as much of their personality and free will as possible, while "reprogramming" them to be completely obedient and subservient to their owners in every way. A control collar is required by law for all Characters, irregardless of any modifications or add-ons and is included automatically with every purchase."

After reading the description, you summarize it verbally to make sure you read and understood it correctly. "So basically, in Default Mental State, the Character acts just like normal in every way except for being completely obedient to you. That sounds awfully convenient. No wonder it's the "default" mental state." Mom agrees with you, confirming that you were understanding it correctly.

You check out the next one. It's labeled as "Pure" and has a text description as follows:

"Pure Mental State is defined as the Character being in an un-changed mental state, retaining all of their personality, but having zero obedience towards their owner by default. This state is only recommended for experienced owners looking for the "pure" experience with their Characters. A control collar is required by law for all Characters, irregardless of any modifications or add-ons and is included automatically with every purchase."

The next one is titled "Blank Slate," and is described as followed:

"Blank Slate Mental State is defined by a state in which the Character has had their mind wiped completely, leaving a blank slate for the owner to start completely fresh with to teach and train them how they see fit. The Character's personality may be heavily influenced in this mental state and may no longer be recognized as the Character originally purchased, personality wise. A control collar is required by law for all Characters, irregardless of any modifications or add-ons and is included automatically with every purchase.

*PLEASE NOTE THAT "BLANK SLATE" MENTAL STATE REMOVES ALL TALENT/TRAINING OPTIONS AS WELL AS SOME ADD-ONS.

Finally, the last one is labeled as "Other," and has text that reads:

"Don't see exactly what you want here? Customize your experience by selecting from many different variables by clicking here. A control collar is required by law for all Characters, irregardless of any modifications or add-ons and is included automatically with every purchase."

After you read the last bit to yourself, you comment "Well the others sure have their uses and I'm not saying I'm not curious about them, cause I am, but I think Default may be the best choice on our purchases today. Who knows though, we might feel froggy later when we're actually picking everything out." Again, Mom agrees with you and you move on.

You click on the tab called Talents/Training. You notice a massively long list of things that people can do: cook, clean, plant a garden, mow the yard, etc... However, you also notice another Disclaimer written across the top of the page. It reads:

"Talents/Training are not available for Characters with the "Pure" Mental State or some with the "Other" Mental State. Please see a sales associate for more information or if you have questions."

Directly below that it reads:

"It is suggested that a Character has no more than the recommended number of Talents/Training to prevent the possibility of Mental, Personality, or Memory problems. The recommended number of Talents/Training for an individual is determined by their specific Instance Version and can be found in the upper right corner of this screen."

"Now this stuff is perfect for what we were looking for!" You exclaim happily.

"Yeah, it appears to be a very comprehensive list. I'm sure we will be able to find what we're looking for on it." Mom says with a sense of urgency like she can't wait to just get started.

You click Physique next and a vast menu with seemingly an infinite number of sliders that do various things to various parts of the body opens up. It looks like you can basically change literally any aspect of their body. As you quickly scroll through the list, you notice the absence of some of the sliders you are most interested in; the ones involving tits, ass, and genitals appear nowhere. However, once you reach the bottom, you notice a button labled as: 18+. You push it and a pop up window prompting you to put in your credit card information to verify age pops up and covers the sample image which appears to have been stripped naked behind it. "Ah what the fuck!" You exclaim, definitely not expecting a parent lock on the kiosk, but you suppose just anyone's kids could walk in and up to one of these things. Plus, it appears to basically just access their online shop anyway, which could be accessed from anywhere by anybody with an Internet connected device.

Mom starts to reach into her purse for her wallet when an unkown hand reaches between the 2 of you and pushes a few quick buttons, swipes a badge, and loads up the 18+ only area before you realize even what's going on. "There you go. That's really only there to prevent little kids from wandering into something they shouldn't, if you know what I mean," the salesman jokingly stated after helping you out.

"Haha yeah, I get that," you say as you turn back to the screen and scroll through the options available now. Sure enough, everything about their body is available for modification via this slider system. It was very impressive.

"Do you have any questions? Looking for anything particular? Or maybe you're just ready to go through the process and maybe I could help you?" The salesman seems very eager to help. You ponder for a moment while you decide what you want to do next.