Elara Vance woke up with a headache and a floating green bar above her forehead.
She blinked. The world wasn't the soft, chaotic white of the Public Domain anymore. It was bright. Aggressively bright. The sky was a perfect, pixelated blue with static clouds that didn't move. The grass beneath her feet was a repeating texture of green triangles.
"Welcome," a disembodied voice chimed, "to The Game."
Elara stood up. A window popped up in her vision.
[PRESS 'X' TO STAND UP]
"I'm already standing," Elara muttered. She tried to take a step. Her legs didn't move. She was frozen in a rigid idle animation, swaying slightly back and forth.
"What is happening?" Elara panicked. "Why can't I move?"
[PRESS 'X' TO STAND UP] the window flashed red.
"Fine!" Elara mentally pressed 'X'.
Her body snapped into a standing position with a mechanical whoosh.
"Elara?"
