Chapter Text
I’d already beaten the game once. Not completely, of course, Demo 4 was the current endpoint, and nobody knew what came after. It just stopped. Promise of more to come. But that didn’t stop me from falling in love with it.
The aesthetic? A charming world in a classic Roblox way.
The writing? Witty, sometimes unhinged, sometimes heartbreakingly sincere.
The combat? Brutal. No mercy system. Just attack or run. That always felt… wrong.
An oddball of a game that mashed EarthBound weirdness with Paper Mario charm and tossed in fights and charming NPCs who always wanted to kill me.
I’d tried to play a pacifist kind of path on my first run, to see if I could talk to enemies, dodge fights, heal instead of hit. The game didn’t let me. Still, I watched the characters. I listened. I read every line like it mattered, because it did. They had feelings, fears, sometimes names. They were part of the world, not just roadblocks. And there were characters I wished I could have saved…
Click.
The screen blinked.
Wait… what?
My avatar stood frozen mid-step in Bizville, but the music stuttered, glitched, then went silent. My mouse stopped working. My keyboard flickered. I reached to restart it when…
Everything went black. No light. No noise.
Then came the wind.
It wasn’t possible, but I felt it, cool air rushing against my face, the smell of something strange and sweet, like old candy and ozone. My fingers tingled, my skin prickled, and suddenly…
I was falling.
Not in a dramatic dream-way. In a real, stomach-clenching, oh-no-my-soul-is-leaving-my-body way.
Everything spiraled. Colors shattered like glass. Somewhere in the chaos, I swear I heard menu music. Then something grabbed me, I couldn't tell what and it pulled me through.
When I opened my eyes, I wasn’t in my room.
I was on a couch.
In a hotel room.
On a couch… in a game.
A glowing TV bathed the carpet in pixelated light. On the screen, a newscaster was talking :
“Today is the long-awaited Roblox VIP Convention! I hope you have tickets… it’s gonna be great! And of course… the star of the show… CEO DAVID BASZUCKI will be making a grand appearance!.”
I blinked. Slowly sat up.
“What the...?”
Davide Baszucki?
Builderman?
Wait.
Wait wait wait.
That’s when I noticed my hands. Yellow. Bright, classic Roblox yellow...
I jumped up and ran to the nearest mirror, well, reflective surface. I looked like… me. Sort of.
- Bright yellow skin.
- Fluffy yellow hair, strands out of place.
- A red and black cap with a slight tilt, cool by 2010 standards.
- A red jacket-hoodie combo over a black Roblox-logo tee.
- Black jeans, red sneakers, black mittens.
... not my actual Roblox avatar, mind you, but some kind of halfway between my player model and the default starter pack.
I looked like a lost mashup from 2012.
“Okay,” I said, nervously laughing, “uh... what.”
I spun in place, checked behind me, pat myself down. This wasn’t VR. This was real.
Real in a very… plastic way.
I looked around the room in a panic, arms flailing.
“Oh no oh no oh no wait… I know this place!” I froze. The tiled floor. The angular hallway. The foggy skybox. I knew this. I had walked these paths before. On screen.
“Oh no,” I whispered. Then louder: “OH NO I’M IN BLOCK TALES.”
Panic hit, absurd panic. I sprinted in a circle, tripped over the sofa corner, hit the floor, rolled onto my back, and screamed into the ceiling.
“I’M NOT BUILT FOR TURN-BASED COMBAT!!”
…Pause.
A very loud, very unhinged laugh escaped me. “I’m in Block Tales.”
I immediately clutched my face, giggling into my mittens like a madman. “Oh my god this is happening. This is happening!”
And that’s when it hit me.
I wasn’t playing Block Tales.
I was in it.
I still darted around, checking doors, pressing buttons that didn’t exist. Nothing. No “Leave Game” option. But then instinct kicked in, and I pressed... well, something. Maybe I just thought it. And…
Ding.
A bright blue HUD popped into the corner of my vision. Inventory. Stats. BUX and TIX. And above my head, a quest marker :
> Go RIGHT towards the ROBLOX VIP Convention!
“Oh that’s wild. That’s illegal,” I muttered, grinning. “No way NPCs have this. This is a player-only thing.”
And that’s when I realized, yeah, I’m the player.
But I’m also in the game.
I’m the only one who can see this.
This is gonna be nuts.
I opened the inventory menu again. Empty, obviously. But it was there. Like I was a real player. I snorted. “Do the NPCs have inventories? Nah, they probably carry things like normal people... oh my god, I’m talking to myself. That’s fine. That’s normal.”
I looked out the hotel window. The world outside was cartoonishly beautiful. The early area. Bizville.
“Okay… I’m in the preprologue. That means no swords yet. No bosses unless I… oh man, this is nuts.”
I took a moment to gather myself and walked out onto the hotel steps, where I immediately came face-to-face with…
“Hey there!” said a figure, a zombie looking way more real than behind the screen.
It was Marcus. I knew him. Enthusiast roblox zombie, the first NPC we talk to in the game. He started talking about his look. I half-listened. Not because I was rude, well, okay, a little, but mostly because my mind was trying to figure out what the rules of this world were.
Then he asked: “Are you on your way to the VIP Convention bro?”
I blinked. The game usually has you choose your answer. I instinctively expected a dialogue box with three pre-written answers. But I realized I could say… anything.
I smiled, half-freaked out. “Uh… yeah. Heading there now!”
Huh. That worked.
Marcus nodded, but then tilted his head. “Hey, what’s your name, by the way?”
My heart stopped.
This wasn’t supposed to happen. This question wasn’t part of the game. There was no prompt. Just… a question. A real one.
My mind blanked.
Say my real name? No. Too dangerous. I was inside the game. Oh crap. I couldn’t use my real one. Not here. Think. Think!
“Uh… I’m Jester.”
There was a beat.
Marcus didn’t seem to notice the hesitation. “Cool name.”
I exhaled in relief and waved as I walked away, murmuring to myself, “Yeah. I can roll with that.”
As I walked down the street, I kept messing with the UI. I dashed a few times for fun and getting used to the feature, remembering how important running was going to be. I practiced dashing, just like in the game. It felt a bit clunky, but it worked. The short sprint would be vital later when I started avoiding fights I couldn’t talk through. I’d need that for running from fights, since talking people down wasn’t a mechanic in the game (yet).
I also looked for the hidden BUX, because if I was going to run away from the fights i was quickly going to be poor with no possibility of having TIX. Man I just invented a new hard mode for myself.
I passed some fries with arms and legs and tried not to stare. Even though I’d seen them before in-game, it was different being here in person. The animation was weirdly charming. Everyone moved like a Saturday morning cartoon on a low budget, but it worked.
The world beyond the hotel was like stepping into a toybox: weird creatures walking around like it was normal. Snowman. Fish with human legs. A standing lizard ? I grinned so hard my cheeks hurt.
I didn’t talk to most of them, I already knew what they were going to say. Instead, I kept practicing dashing between trash cans and lampposts. That feature was going to save my life if I couldn’t talk my way out of things.
Then I saw them. On the playground.
Two little and one older blue penguins.
Harry and Mary. And a little one having fun behind.
I had to stop myself from grinning.
They talked about their Grandpa and Great Uncle. Grandpa Terry. Great Uncle Jerry. Both legends. I knew what was coming in the story, and even though Terry could be… kind of a jerk. I barely held in my grin. Terry had been such a pain in my first run. But he grew on me. Grumpy, sure, but loyal to the end. And hilarious. Just… don’t insult him. The man has rocket launchers.
“Yup!” I told them when they asked if I was heading to the convention.
“Yoooooo!! That’s sick: You should come and sit with us and grandpa during it!“ chirped Harry.
“...He’s usually so loud people tend to sit far away,” added Mary. I barely hold a snort at that one.
That warmed something in me. I couldn’t help it, I played with them for a few minutes. Just lighthearted chasing, some tag, a few penguin puns. Then I waved goodbye and jogged off, still dashing every few seconds and collecting every BUX I knew was hidden.
Finally, I reached outside Roblox HQ.
Crowds of important figures gathered, talking in buzzing chunks of code and chatter. I recognized a few of the developers.
The convention doors loomed.
I stopped.
My chest felt tight.
Behind those doors, I knew what was coming. This was the point where the plot snapped into action. I’d enter the convention. Something would go wrong. A time-travel rift would send me back to 2010. Tutorial Terry could blow me up at the wrong answer. And I’d be sent to collect the Seven Swords of Time to save Builderman.
The game would throw me into the past, into Roblox 2010. A fight I couldn’t skip. A timeline I could change.
My goal? Collect the SFOTH swords. Save Builderman.
But more than that?
Save as many people as I could.
Even the ones the game said couldn’t be saved.
I took a deep breath, muttered, “Alright Jester. Don’t mess up the ball shot like an idiot,” and stepped forward.
Time to bend the story.
The inside of Roblox HQ looked exactly like I remembered it from the cutscene. Which was weird. Because now I wasn’t watching it, I was living it.
“Good morning, fellow imagineers! The Visionaries innovation…”
The Roblox HQ lobby was buzzing, literally. There were soft ambient chords playing from nowhere. I stepped through, grinning and slightly nervous, heart beating like I’d just picked up an ultra-rare loot box.
I scanned the rows of seats in the front, and spotted them as I walk to the front.
“Hey! We’re over here!” Harry called out.
Mary continued “Come sit with us! We saved a spot for you!”
Mary was tugging on the wing of a sleepy old penguin in a sun-faded explorer hat, snoring upright in his seat.
Terry.
“Oh boy,” I muttered, sliding into the seat next to him.
“Eh?! Who’s this dipface you kids brought over?!”
Yep. That was him. Tutorial Terry. A cane, big eyebrows, grumpy frown. I could recognize that dark blue color anywhere. He was already dozing, drool forming like an icicle under his beak.
JParty then annouced dramatically, then gestured to the wings. “Please put your hands together… For the founder and CEO of Roblox… BUILDERMAN himself… DAVID BASZUCKI!”
Up on stage, the spotlight beamed down, and a stylish figure took the mic. I’d seen this scene before, but being here… hearing his voice echo across the auditorium, I actually felt the weight of it.
Applause thundered. Builderman stood, smiling with the casual confidence of someone who once built a global platform with virtual bricks. I clapped along, leaning forward. I’d seen this speech in the game, but something about hearing it live felt different.
Builderman began his address. “Oh goodness…Hello Everyone! This is a record year for the ROBLOX’s VIP Convention…”
My attention drifted. I remembered how the speech went. He looked exactly like his in-game model: sunglasses, clean suit, confident stance but with a slightly tired smile that made him seem more human than icon. He began his speech, recounting how Roblox started with his friend Erik Cassel, how players from dozens of countries were attending today, how proud he was to see creators thrive and communities grow…
Terry was obviously snoring through it, then Builderman thanked the fans…
But suddenly he is interrupted and I know where this is going. I got tensed at the voice of the main vilain we still didn’t know the identity of.
“Yeah, Right.” said a mysterious voice.
Builderman blinked. Confused, he turned to JParty. “Excuse me? JParty… Did I miss a segment transition cue?”
“You think you’re so GRAND, HUH?! Spouting all those words… and for WHAT?!”
Builderman started panicking a bit. “i-I think we’re experiencing some technical difficulties here.”
The ceiling panels shattered.
A figure in a long dark cloak dropped onto the stage. Two smaller figures landed beside him, one wearing a giant helmet, the other looking like a lopsided Lego minifig with too much confidence.
A helmet Noob and a Nooblet.
The mysterious figure pointed at Builderman.
The Noobs obeyed immediately, wrapping thick ropes around Builderman. The crowd gasped. I froze while the Mysterious Figure talked.
Then JParty, bless his pixelated heart, tried to help. He jumped on the stage and then launched a glowing Superball straight at the helmet noob.
But Helmet Noob headbutted it, deflecting the ball with a metallic clang, and the rebound smacked JParty right in the face. He stumbled back… and Nooblet spun around and swung his wooden sword at him and sent him off the stage.
He collapsed like a ragdoll, and Nooblet finished him off with a slap so weak it would’ve embarrassed a toddler.
The Superball rolled across the stage and stopped… right at my feet.
I bit my lip to stop myself from laughing.
This. Was. Just. Like. The. Game.
“Grandpa! GRANDPA!! WAKE UP!” Mary was shaking Terry’s arm.
The Elder Penguin blinked awake. His eyes locked on the figure on stage and something changed as he seemed to recognise the Mysterious Figure. Terry threatened him to kill him then he stood up and turned to me with the ball in front of him.
Oh no.
He looked at me. “Come on, bruh! It’s been a while, hasn’t it?! Get up there and SLAP THEL UP!!”
“What?” then I knew I needed to follow the plot here so I faked a confused face but the panic was real. “I never did this before.”
“Eh?! What do you MEAN you’ve never done this before?!”
He continued his tirade while I did my best to remain calm. But he smuggly said we both kick their can, I stood up and I picked up the Superball with both hands.
My knees were jelly. I held up the Superball. It was weirdly heavy. My fingers curled around it tighter than necessary.
I was not ready.
“This is stupid,” I muttered to myself. “I’m gonna screw it up. I’m gonna drop it. I’m gonna throw it at a wall. Or my own foot.”
I climbed up onto the stage and almost fell back down. I caught myself, red-faced, and scrambled up to the platform.
My internal monologue: Okay, okay, don’t panic. You can do this. Just like in the tutorial. Except this time, everyone’s watching. And you don’t get a redo. And also, oh god, your throwing arm sucks!
Helmet Noob raised his arms. I didn’t wait. I hurled the ball, completely missing my target. It bounced off the side curtains. I scrambled, caught it, spun, and tossed it again, this time it hit the Nooblet square in the face. The tiny minion wobbled, stunned.
Helmet Noob charged.
I screamed, a little too high-pitched, and dove to the side just in time. Screw the counter, I am sure I would have missed and then get a concussion.
Helmet Noob skidded past me then went back on his side of the stage.
“Now! Again!” Terry screamed.
I grabbed the bounce and lobbed another, this one sent Nooblet spiraling off the stage like a bowling pin.
Then I jumped (clumsily), threw… bam! The helmet Noob staggered. I caught the rebound, another throw, hit!
The helmet cracked slightly. The Noob collapsed with a comical groan.
BATTLE END.
Result: “You Won”
You earned: 7XP, 6 TIX
I stood there panting, holding the Superball. My hands shook. Then the stage lights flickered.
The mysterious figure stepped forward, slow and eerie. They examined me, like a scientist studying an ant.
“How… interesting,” he said quietly, “How… FASCINATING. Never… NEVER did I expect this. An enigma, free of conventional order and wisdom. How… Insultant. And yet… it seems… so different….Ah. Then there is no need to worry.”
I tensed.
“You’re a COWARD wearing facades of revolutionaries. Comfort-bred. But understanding only comes from struggle. Not play.”
He was holding up the clock that would start my journey as he kept talking. As he was about to use it, Builderman begged him not to do it.
Terry’s voice rang out below the stage. “That device! Aim for the device, dude !”
I didn’t even hesitate. I took aim and threw my ball. The ball collided with the clock. It cracked. The clock device shuddered, sparks flying. It screeched like bending metal and then… The air around it fractured like a mirror as the energy of the clock went out of control.
A massive ripple exploded from the device, pulling everything toward it. Builderman, still tied up, shouted something I couldn’t hear.
I floated off the ground as the clock’s light swallowed me whole.
“Nooope I regret everythinnnng—”
And I heard someone scream, not the mysterious figure, not Builderman…
Me.
We were falling.
Falling back in time.
Back to 2010.
I don’t know if things will work out.
Or if I will be able to go home.
But I knew the first demo of the story was next.
And I was going to get yelled at by a very angry penguin.
[End of Preprologue]