September 30th, 2019

Scott Conner sat behind his computer late Wednesday night, his fingers flying over his keyboard. As he sat there, his music blasting as he occasionally took a pause to pop his knuckles or take a gulp of his energy drink. This is how he had been spending all his nights recently. Scott had been working non-stop to get his new virtual reality game, Dralkia, ready for beta testing. As he stopped typing and leaned back in his chair, his email alert went off. He hit enter causing his email to pop up and display the new mail. "Huh, Sven got the motion smoother, sweet." Scott said to himself as he read the title of the email titled 'Motion smoothing complete.' As he opened up the mail and began reading it, he found the attached code file and downloaded it. "Scott, I finished making the motion look more like a human. I eliminated that jerking motion in the joints while running and I made the head turning much better. I am done with all my work and I am gonna help Karen with the enemy physics." Scott read aloud. "Great, that means that as soon as me and Karen are done, the game will be ready for beta testing." He thought to himself.

Two Weeks Later

Scott and his entire staff were standing around in a large ballroom, having a good time as they all were drinking and eating. This was the party for the beta test release of the worlds most anticipated game. As Scott made his way up to the podium at the north end of the room, everyone began to quiet down, curious to what he was going to say. Scott set his glass on the podium, putting his hand on the edges to support him as he leaned over to speak into the microphone. "As you all know, I am horrible when it comes to talking, especially to a crowd. So please don't expect me to deliver a super motivational speech to get you all inspired and deeply moved. Instead just know that I want you to know that I greatly appreciate all the hard work that all of you have put forth to make this dream of mine possible. I remember when I first thought up the concept of this game. I was just a young programmer with no experience and too much stubbornness for my own good. My game concept got shot down the first time I presented it to the president of DrakenRights. He said that he thought there wouldn't be anyone who would be able to create this kind of game in this. I decided to put my dream on hold and work on finding the people to make it. Now, 9 years later, I have found all of you and Dralkia is now ready for beta testing release. I can't express how happy I am and how grateful I am to you all. Thank you." Scott picked up his drink and raised it. "To everyone, and to DrakenRights, and to the success Dralkia. Cheers!" Everyone did the same, the entire room erupting into celebration at the same time.
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November 3, 2019

Ty stood outside the DrakenRights building, his winner certificate firmly gripped. He had been watching the progress of Dralkia since it was first revealed. Ty was a well known online gamer who went by the username ZiggyBoy. As he stood there, waiting for the guard to open the gates, his heart started racing. He was so excited that he could barely contain it. He had no clue what to expect to get, but that just made his anticipation grow. As the gates opened and Ty stepped through, he saw several men in suits, the one in the center holding a box. As Ty approached one of them held out his hand and asked, "Do you have the certificate?" Ty held out his certificate and let the man who asked for it take it. "One moment, I need to verify it is real." The man took out a black light and shined it on the certificate, revealing the logo of Dralkia on it. "Ok, it is real. My name is Scott Conner, the lead programmer of Dralkia and the one who came up with the idea."
"Wow, this is an honor to meet the legendary Scott Conner, the biggest programmer in the world. You have been the brains behind the biggest programs in the last 10 years. I have been a fan since your early career. My name is Ty, but my friends call me Ziggy."
"Its nice to meet you Ty, I wouldn't mind staying to chat with a fan but I bet you are more excited about this." Scott took the box from one of the other man and handed it too Ty.
"Thanks, I can't tell you how much I am looking forward to playing this."
"Have fun, and don't forget the agreement, you have to play the entire story."
"Don't worry, that was my intention. I plan to finish the story before I start to explore the rest of the game."
"Alright, well, there is a card in there with my email address and all the instructions you will need. I expect your first report in a week."
"No problem. Well, I am gonna head out and play, later."
"Alright, have fun."
Ty turned around, heading back towards his car. He opened the door of his old jet black 2002 Pontiac Firebird. He set the box in the passenger seat before buckling himself in, closing the door and starting the car. As he backed up, he noticed a group of people his age. "They must be the other winners." One of the girls caught his eye. "Oh, one of those types. Like my ex. Probably will get pissed when I win and try to do something to throw me off if I toy around with her. Either way, she will probably be good for a few laughs." Ty turned on the radio to his favorite alternative station and headed home.