Exploring the Resort II

Brianna watched as everyone almost immediately left the room to explore the resort. Brianna was left in the room with Jessica, Nicole, and the other maids. Jessica seemed to be taking her time to eat while Nicole was messing with her phone. Brianna handed off her plate to one of the maids and thanked them.

The maid nodded before she handed it off to another maid as they walked towards the back of the kitchen and dropped the plate in the sink. Brianna didn’t want to go explore the resort. What she wanted was to talk to someone about the situation they were in.

Brianna asked the same maid, “Hey, could you show me where the master’s room is?”

The maid nodded and walked out of the room while Brianna followed. She noticed that Jessica didn’t even gaze in her direction while Nicole looked at her with an eyebrow raised but said nothing as she went back to messing with her phone.

Brianna asked, “Do you have a name?” as they walked toward their destination.

“No, I am designated as Android 1,” replied the maid in the same monotone and without expression.

“Is it all right that I give you a name? I’d rather call you something other than Android 1, especially if I’m going to be calling on you again in the future.”

“That is acceptable.”

Brianna thought about it for a while and came up with the name Sapphire because of her eyes. She knew that Sapphire’s eyes were a brighter blue than normal sapphire, but the name just seemed to fit in her mind.

“How about the name, Sapphire?” asked Brianna a little nervously.

“This unit is now designated as Sapphire,” responded Sapphire in the same monotone voice.

Brianna breathed out a sigh of relief, “That’s good. How many maids are there on the island?”

“There are a dozen maids on the island. Some may be helping the other contestants as we speak.”

Brianna asked curiously, “Do you like working for the resort?”

“I lack the capacity to form opinions such as those. I was created to do my job effectively and efficiently, nothing more.”

Brianna felt saddened hearing that and said, “Well, I believe you can be much more than that.”

The maid didn’t respond and instead stopped right in front of an elevator.

“This elevator will lead to the master’s chambers. There is an intercom on the side to contact him while he is in his room.”

Brianna pushed the button on the intercom and said, “Hey Max, are you up? If you are, then can I see you?”

She didn’t have to wait long for a response, “Yeah, come in.”

The elevator door opened, and she walked inside. Brianna clicked on the M button for what she assumed meant was the Master’s suite. She waved goodbye to Sapphire as the doors to the elevator closed.

When the doors opened again, she gazed into the fancy chambers with interest and made her way to Max. He was dressed in some casual clothes consisting of some jeans and a white T-shirt. He was sitting at a table off to the side with a book in his hand.

“Good morning, Brianna. How’d you sleep last night?” asked Max with a welcoming smile on his face.

“Like a rock. I was taken a little after I got home, so I was already a bit exhausted from working all day. How about you?”

“Good, all things considered. The bed here is so soft and relaxing, but knowing about what this show is about didn’t make sleeping any easier.”

“Yeah, I just hope that my family isn’t freaking out too much. My brother is probably going a little crazy if I’m suddenly gone. Ann said that time works differently here, so maybe only a couple of seconds have passed here even though we’ve been here for many hours already.”

“I don’t know how much we can trust what Ann says, but I think that on that point she can be trusted. If only because I think it would be too much of a hassle to explain or use magic to cover up the disappearance of nine people.”

“Why do you think that?”

“If this is a game show, then it makes sense that Ann is on a budget, so I’m assuming that the magic she can use is limited. Why use more magic on things when she doesn’t have to? Of course, this is only an assumption based on practically no evidence. I don’t know how her magic even works to say one way or another.”

“Thanks. I know you were only trying to make me feel better. I’m concerned about it, but I trust that everything will work out. However, that’s not why I came here. I came to ask how you’re doing.”

Brianna saw his eyes widen a bit in surprise as he answered, “Well, I’m okay. It’s... a lot to process, honestly.”

“Yeah, I think everyone is trying to dive headfirst into this game to distract themselves, look for a way out of this place, or win this game.”

Max smiled, “Not you though. You worry about other people first.”

Brianna blushed a little, “I’m not that selfless. You’ve just been on my mind lately.”

Max watched her blush even harder and relaxed a bit more, “I was just reading this book Ann left for me about the various activities I can do around the island. There’s a bowling alley, library, and an aquarium near the cafeteria from what I was reading. It seems that there are activities that would be more fitting to do as a group like tennis and volleyball too.”

“Ooh, do they have a ping pong table too?”

“Yeah, they even have their own movie theater. It would be nice seeing some shows or movies on such a big screen.”

“Do you get to choose the movies they play?”

“Yeah, I get to choose to play any movie I want for free, but if you want to use it, then you’ll have to pay BP.”

Brianna frowned, “Makes sense that they’d want us to pay to use it.”

“If you want to watch something, then let me know. I don’t mind picking something out for you. It’s free for me anyway.”

“Thanks, Max, but you don’t have to.”

“Yeah, but I want to. Besides, you’re the only person among the contestants that I feel like I know.”

Brianna looked a little confused at that, “I thought that everyone competing was related to you in some way.”

Max sighed, “They are, but just because I’m related to them in some way doesn’t mean that I know them. For example, take Kimberly, she’s my boss, but she goes out of her way to make my life miserable for some reason. Other than that, I don't know anything about her. She’s as much of a stranger to me as Serena is even though I talk to her relatively frequently.”

“Max, I’m sorry I didn’t know.”

“Oh, you don’t have to feel bad, Brianna. You couldn’t have known. Kimberly is very careful with how she does it, so I’m not surprised that not many people know about it. I think the only person that might suspect foul play is my supervisor. Don’t worry about it, I’ve gotten used to it. I’m not going to hold it against her when her freedom is on the line.”

Brianna looked sad still as Max continued speaking, “I’m more concerned about my mother. She left when I was just a baby, and now I have to not only talk to her but accept that she’s a part of my harem.”

Brianna put a hand on his shoulder, “It’ll be all right. I’m sure that is an opportunity in disguise for you.”

Brianna gains 5 VP from comforting touch

Max smiled and replied, “Thanks, Brianna. I’ll keep that in mind. However, you should go explore the resort too. I don't want you to fall behind too much talking to me.”

“Are you sure? I’m happy to stay longer.”

“Yeah, I still need to finish this book and check a couple of things out.”

“All right, I’ll see you later, Max.”

Brianna headed to the elevator and went down to explore the resort-like everyone else. She didn’t hear Max mutter, “An opportunity, huh?”

---

Nicole watched Brianna leave the room with curiosity. Did she think that going to seduce Max so early was a good idea? She had to give it to her though. She certainly had initiative, if nothing else. Especially when compared to the other person left in the room with her. Jessica continued eating like everything was right in the world. She neither rushed off like many others to explore the resort and get points or seduce the master. She really thought that everything was going to work out for her.

She doubted that this place was that kind. Nicole was more worried about the special event planned for tonight, but she couldn’t dwell on it considering she gave no information about it. There were more important things to do with her time as she gazed at the phone in her hands.

She spent her time analyzing the phone for any useful information. Time sped by her, and she didn’t even notice that Jessica was gone. Nicole frowned as she reviewed all the information in her head. It made her realize that the hosts favored sabotage much more than she thought.

The first thing she noticed was that the phones had no locks on them. Anyone could simply grab and use someone else’s phone if they got their hands on it. There were no barriers to prevent it. She doubted that Jessica could be bothered to try to steal her phone, but that wasn’t necessarily the case for the other contestants. Everyone’s roommates would have the best chance of stealing and using the phones while they slept. Nicole wondered if she should even bring it up at the meeting considering that people are more likely to **** that information. However, she couldn’t deny the possibility that they would be unaware of it without her saying anything. She didn’t know what the right thing to do was. Also, she noticed that the store doesn’t have a confirmation screen when you’re purchasing an item. Which means if you accidentally clicked on something, then you purchased it. She figured it out when she accidentally purchased a shampoo bottle that she didn’t need. The only way it didn’t allow a purchase was if you didn’t have enough BP for it. Thankfully, you couldn’t have negative BP on the show.

The store had countless things in it, and she could spend all week trying to comb through it all. However, she got the general gist of how the prices of the store worked. Temporary transformations were by far the cheapest things in the store if you don’t count normal items like clothes or books. They ranged from about 30-300 depending on a bunch of factors. Physical transformations were generally cheaper than mental transformations. Temporary physical and mental transformations are the most expensive transformations you can get if you don’t touch permanent transformations. Those start at 700 BP and get higher the stronger or more in-depth they are.

There were also items that you could buy to make yourself faster, stronger, or more intelligent. There was even a magical ring that could keep your body permanently clean. There were many things in the shop that could be useful for the right scenario. One of the things she needed was a laptop. She needed more than her initial 10 BP to buy it, but hopefully, she could create a program to prevent her phone from getting into so easily. Also, there was a chance she could create a virus to find out more things about this show in the future. She stopped fiddling with the device in her hands and left to search the result for one of those game rooms, she needed more BP to do what she was planning to do.

---

Jessica found it entertaining to watch all of them scramble in different directions. Their desperation was amusing, and she could see why people would bother watching the show. She wasn’t like the rest of them. Jessica knew that she had already won the prize and everything between now and then was just a formality. She didn’t have to seduce the master. She was sure that he was already well on his way to falling for her. After all, she was gorgeous, and any sane man would see that.

“Hey Maid, show me the way to the clothing store.”

Jessica needed a new swimsuit if she was going to spend her time at the beach. The maid nodded, and she followed her to a random room on the island that was filled to the brim with clothes. Outfits of various kinds as far as the eye could see. They were all separated based on the type of clothes. There were dresses in one corner of the room with jeans in another corner. She leisurely looked through the store and found the section for swimsuits. There was an emerald two-piece swimsuit that matched her eyes that she had to have. It was weird that she had to use her phone to pay for it. She usually had one of her many butlers do it, but it couldn’t be helped.

She changed in the store and ordered the maid to show her the best path to the beach. The maid complied, and she was led to the beach where she saw some beach chairs already laid out. She smiled knowing that everything continued to work in her favor as she laid down on the chair to relax. She watched the calm ocean waves as she ordered the maid to get her a drink. She nodded once again and left to complete her request.

Everything was going perfectly for her. She wondered what she should use the wish for. She had everything and would continue to have everything she wanted. The maid came back with her drink, and she slowly slipped the drink as she relaxed into the chair and dozed off.

---

Crystal caught up to Serena after she finished her game on Dance Dance Revolution.

“How about we stick together, Serena? I don’t want to wander around this place by myself.”

Serena smiled, “Sure, the more the merrier. You might want to play the game to get some points.”

Crystal nodded as she went up to the machine and started the game. It's been a while since she had the time to play a game like this. It felt nice even though she had to do it to survive this game. Serena stayed silent as she danced to the pop music that was playing on the machine. Crystal appreciated the silence as she did her best to get as high a score as possible. However, her skills were rusty, and it wasn’t long before she lost the game.

23 BP gained

She glanced at her phone to see that she had gained some BP just like Ann had said they would.

“Nice going Crystal. You did better than I thought.”

“Thanks. Serena, do you think there’s a way off this island?”

Serena thought about it for a while and said, “It’s possible, but it's also possible that leaving the game will result in you being eliminated from the game. Do you think it's worth the risk?”

Crystal looked unsure, “I don’t know. Part of me believes she’s only bluffing, but another part is too scared to test it out considering what would happen if it's true.”

“There’s also the reasoning that if you did somehow leave this place, then wouldn’t they just capture you and bring you back.”

Crystal frowned, “I didn’t think of that. I was kidnapped in my own home, so that’s not safe anymore. I also don’t want to go to my family’s house for fear of what might happen to them. However, that’s no reason to simply give up on the idea completely. There must be a way off the island.”

Serena put a hand on her shoulder, “We can get through this. We can play their game and win. There are multiple winners, so you don’t have to worry about being the best.”

Crystal scowled at her and practically shouted, “I don’t trust the other contestants. Hell, I barely trust you. They're all strangers to me, and who knows what decisions they’ll make. You’re telling me that I must be satisfied being on the end of someone’s mercy, especially when I’m unaware of it.”

Serena looked at her softly, “Yes, that’s just how it is now. We have neither the tools nor the power to fight back. There’s a chance we will get that, but you just have to be patient.”

“I thought you’d be all for this game.”

Serena smirked, “This place does seem to push every button I have in the right direction, but that doesn’t mean that I can’t see the bigger picture, most of the time.”

Crystal rolled her eyes, “Most of the time, she says. I just can’t understand you.”

“I’ve been told that I’m unique in every word imaginable, so it's nothing new.”

Crystal sighed, “I just don’t think I can seduce anyone. I’m not anything special.”

“Everyone’s special, Crystal.”

“That’s just a fancy way of saying that no one is, Serena.”

“If no one is special, then doesn’t that mean that you could become anything you want to be since no one person is special over the other.”

“Why are you trying so hard to cheer me up? I shouldn’t mean anything to you.”

“Do I need a reason to help someone? Come on, maybe playing some more games would help. You seemed to enjoy the last one we played.”

“I guess, thanks.”

Serena smiled, “Of course. Now, let's find some more games to play before we’re called to do this special event later.”

“I already have a bad feeling about it.”

“No use worrying about it, we have a whole resort to explore.”

Crystal followed behind Serena as they made their way to the next room.

Jessica (Swimsuit)