STORY

STORY

A TALK WITH A FAKE ARTIST
[Hot Sugar - Their Morals and Ours]
Barley Bonekeeper
2024-12-25 18:39:06
Barley Bonekeeper Profile
Posted by ID #107
Last edit: 2025-07-30 04:54:13
Barley wandered outside in the harsh rains. No matter the looks he got, he didn't stop. He was seeking one thing. There were murmurings that the great artist, Bones, was around. He watched people with cekekis in hand. Clearly the craftsmanship of the artist he looked up to, and even once wore the skin of.
2024-12-25 18:39:26
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Posted by ID #8
Last edit: 2024-12-25 18:44:00

What he didn't expect, was to end up in front of a capsule machine owned by Zoo Corp.

"You two are not Bones."
"Isn't that guy like, gone?"
"Dude resigned forever ago. Last time I checked, I still work here."
Barley Bonekeeper
2024-12-25 18:40:28
Barley Bonekeeper Profile
Posted by ID #107
Last edit: 2025-07-30 04:54:39
"Everyone has told me that Bones is making cekekis again. I've analyzed the craftsmanship, and it's clearly a Bones' original."
("Is he acting a little funny to you, or is it just me?")
("More obsessive than usual, you mean? Like, I don't believe in ghosts, but...")
"...Dontcha think there's a stronger chance we're just, y'know, pulling from old backstock?... I know the boss has got a few old capsules laying around."
Barley doesn't say anything. His tendrils creep up on the duo and the machine,
"Oh god! Did the crypto stock market crash again or something?!"
"Uh, if you damage the machine, Zookeeper is going to sue, you know!"
"Bwaahh dude, cut it out! Don't touch me with your weird... wires? It's creepy."
He pivots out of the way of the tendrils. "If you're tryin' to lash out at your dad, you know where his office is!"
Even as the duo moves away, the tendrils shoot forward, slamming into the ground, and burrowing down with ease.
"He's just turning the ground into rubble like nothing!"
"Oh well, I'm not paid enough to deal with this!"
"I'm sure the machine is insured so do whatever you want. I'm out!"
"Come on Skipper, before he turns us to rubble as well!"
"Wh-wuh-wait!! I still need to be paid! L-let me just-!"

Skipper shuffles in place, before scooping up whatever animals happened to be at his feet, and not giving much effort beyond that.

Pondskipper
2024-12-25 18:46:55
Pondskipper Profile
Posted by ID #8
Last edit: 2024-12-25 18:47:10
"Okay! I'm coming, I'm coming!"
Barley grabs the machine, shaking it. Capsules fall out, but onlookers who get near, hoping to steal one of the fallen prizes find themselves pinned by wires and soon pushed aside as a warning that Barley was not to be interrupted. He could easily crush them by accident, much less if he intentionally took aim.
The machine seizes in Barley's grip, the pull of the metal wiring slightly deforming its metal exterior!
Bones
2024-12-25 18:48:47
Bones Profile
Posted by ID #8
Last edit: 2024-12-25 18:49:04
Behind it, the machine's sole passenger recoils from the sudden movement. The uneven surface of the crumbling ground ensured they wouldn't be able to have slipped off the machine and onto a safer plane. Finding themselves cornered...
"O-okay! Please, I get it! The shaking! We- we can talk, man, you just gotta ask..."

Barley instantly snaps out of his trance upon seeing Bones. He suddenly feels a ray of hope. Bones was his hero. They would know what to do.

"No way! It's actually you!"
"Sorry for shaking you. I uh, figured they locked you in the machine and forced you to make capsules and wanted to get you out."
"Forced... no! N-nah, dude, it's cool! I'm uh, just doing my own thing, y'know? Here on my own volition. Nothing you've gotta be nerv-"
"I have to be honest, I'm kind of nervous. You've been a big inspiration to me for my whole life. I even used to wear your pelt."
"I MEAN....."
("There's no recovering from that.....")
"...."

...Bones... finally able to slide over to the front of the gachapon machine, uses their uncomfortable pause to scrutinize their assailant.
Oilslick wiring. Parasocial obsession. The logo.

They think their next action through, very carefully.
Bones
2024-12-25 18:53:33
Bones Profile
Posted by ID #8
Last edit: 2024-12-25 20:07:01
".....O-oh! Uh. Wow! Hell... yeah, dude!"
(THAT'S NOT THE APPROPRIATE RESPONSE)
"Oh thank you so much for not thinking it was weird. I didn't choose to have it, I just uh, had it as long as I existed. I swear I was just keeping it for you, I promise!"
"Some old lady ruined it though. Don't worry I........" He killed her.....
He strangled an old woman who tried to kill him in front of her own wife......
"Told her off. Yeah."
"But it's ok! Not like you needed skin. You look great. Haha? Haha!"
"Unless you don't think you look great of course!"
"Wait, is it weird to say you look great? You look like a person. A 2D person. But still a person!"
He doesn't know how to talk to Bones THIS GUY WAS A LEGEND AND HE WAS MESSING IT ALL UP.
"Hey, i-it's appreciated! Like, my pelt? Yeah, with the lady?- Er-"

Bones pauses frequently, waiting for a good moment to interject as the mass of wires gushes.

Bones
2024-12-25 18:57:48
Bones Profile
Posted by ID #8
Last edit: 2024-12-25 19:01:29
"H-hey. Hey, man-" Bones pauses.
"...You got a name? Said you know me."
"Well who doesn't know you? At least around Zoo Corp!"
"NOT THAT I'M A ZOO CORP SHILL."
"I actually hate Zoo Corp! My dad told me I would never be able to do art there."
"B-But uh, my dad could be anyone not just Zookeeper or something!"
"Oh I just give up. My dad is Zookeeper, I'm Barley Bonekeeper. But I swear I haven't been around my dad for over 20 years, ok? He kicked me out because he hated the way I supported the arts and my investments."
"Didn't take you as one, man. I like, get it more than anybody, kind of hard to separate yourself from the 'corp when..." Bones gestures at their own self, slightly cowering against the surface of the machine. "You're kind of a product of it."
Bones
2024-12-25 19:00:38
Bones Profile
Posted by ID #107
Last edit: 2025-07-30 05:01:32
"Not that I don't like what I've got going on. You asked 'bout that earlier. It's... kind of cool, right? Kinda liberating."
"Not my first option, but I've learned to roll with the punches. Since I left, I've been doin' what I want, on my own terms. Hope it's been doing the same for you?"
"Yeah you get it! I might be a product of the machine but I'm my own thing!" Barley looked a lot more than just a product of the machine. He looked like the machine itself.
"I've been looking for you ever since I learned about you. I always thought the way you stood up to Zoo Corp was great...."
"Even if it does seem a bit odd you're here now."
"I've been trying to make art, all without copying or scanning artists work. My own thing! I spent over 10 years on it too."
"Though, no one likes my work. They keep telling me it lacks a soul. So I wanted to know if you could look at it?"
"Leaving the Zoocorp was..." Bones hesitates for a moment, clicking their tongue. "It was hard. You know the kind of benefits your dad flings around to his leads."
"It was a pretty conscious effort to trash it. I get a lot people telling me it's brave. Which is affirming! But maybe I was just really bad at following instructions, heh."
Bones
2024-12-25 19:04:59
Bones Profile
Posted by ID #107
Last edit: 2025-07-30 05:03:51
"Feels good to know it's helping other people out, too. Show me your art, man! 10 years is no joke, whatcha been up to since you left?"

All the people who had critiqued him before were wrong. He knows it. He nearly gave up on his blockmon project because of some "losers who think his art didn't have soul." A true artist like Bones would understand his take. Barley quickly mints a new blockmon. Even though he had abandoned the others in the gallery, he still made sure to hold just enough blockcoins to create a blockmon. He'd hate if the price of it skyrocketed the second he gave up on it.

"Here, check it out, it's a blockmon!"
2024-12-25 19:08:15
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Posted by ID #2
Last edit: 2025-06-26 15:35:10

"Ge-tttzzzzzzzz!"

"It's a bit inspired by you, but don't worry, I didn't use any of your works directly!"
"If you sort of put it next to your works, it really does fit in, while being its own thing!"
"I tried my hardest. I'm dealing with you know, two issues. I'm an AI, which means any art I make is a "copy" of something I saw, and I was raised in Zoo Corp, so you know, that affects the art!"
"But I did my best to make sure to overcome it. Made art for 10 years. Most of them looked like nothing, but when I found a piece that looked like something, I saved it. Then I combined parts to get a blockmon!"
"They got all sorts of special features. I even sold a few blockmons before they even got art, meaning I'm a great salesman."
"Blockmons are built on the blockchain. Kind of. It kind of got troublesome to use a real blockchain so I started just using a more centralized system."
"Woah! Woah wait, that's-"

Watching an animal generate before their very eyes takes Bones slightly aback.

"That's... actually awesome, dude! You made that?"
"YOU REALLY THINK THEY'RE AWESOME?!?! NO WAY!"
"All of my toil, finally.....Yes I made them! And I can make more right now if needed! I have all the parts."
Barley Bonekeeper
2024-12-25 19:12:34
Barley Bonekeeper Profile
Posted by ID #107
Last edit: 2025-07-30 05:07:52
"And if you mine enough blockcoins, you can make them too! They're really accessible, so anyone can invest in them."
"I mean like, it's impressive! Eheh, despite what you'd think, being stuck on the back of this machine doesn't really prepare you for other crazy art-coming-to-life shit to happen."
"Yeah I have to assume it doesn't! But people don't seem that impressed. They keep telling me blockmons don't have a soul and won't invest in it because of that."
"But you see that they have soul, even if they're from the (centralized....) blockchain!"
"So, the uh, 'blockchain', you mentioned were making your own art for it? Or maybe it's going over my head how it works."
"I've got some light understanding about how AI make artwork, that sounds... really laborious. Trying to navigate around your own mind while stringing these guys together." Bones makes a vague gesture, "Hard to get that at face value, y'know?"
"Forgive me if I'm speaking out of line, or anything. I think they look cool. Maybe I'm biased though, just 'cause I'm touched they're inspired by my work."
"Well I could link you to a few video essays on how the blockchain works, but uh....." Barley speaks in barely a whisper. "Blockmons aren't on a real blockchain...."
"But the basics of it is that blockmons are sort of like, puzzles that have taken form. They can't be edited, changed, or even copied!"
"Uh...so.....can I tell you a secret that I've never told anyone else?"
"I.......Actually can't see blockmons."
"They resist being copied. Which means....as I use a camera to see...they don't....appear to me."
"Oh. What?" Bones glances down next to Barley, to make sure the blockmon he'd just generated was still actually there. "...Really?"
"But you know they're there, right? Like, I can tell you that there's one chilling out down there right now, but..."
"But I know what the art I put in looked like, so I know what their parts look like!"
"I just don't know what each blockmon looks like cause my eyes are digital."
"I know there's something missing in my sensors. It's sort of uh, when you're looking at something without your glasses. (Err wait you don't wear those.) When you see something that's blurry, but it's like, a big blur."
"...Maaan, that's intense. But, like... I guess I get it."
"Half the time, when I work on capsules and commissions, I don't get to see the art I make ever again, or know what's gonna happen to it."
"Maybe easy to wave off 'cause I already 'got the paycheck', but it's more like... the process of making them is enjoyable. Feels fulfilling knowing I 'did it'."
"You do... enjoy what you're doing, right? Making blockmons?"
"The process of making blockmon was long, traumatic, and lonely, with no one to support me."
"There's a lot of times I wanted to quit, but I knew if I did, that'd just prove my dad right."
"But I stuck with it! And now......"
Barley Bonekeeper
2024-12-25 19:22:04
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Posted by ID #8
Last edit: 2024-12-25 19:22:24
"No one likes them."
"I....have to admit it felt like a waste making them, only for no one to praise me or anything. I spent 10 years on the art and no one cares..."
"Sure there's some people holding blockmon, but it's all about the investment.......That's not to say I don't want blockmons to be an investment!"
"After all, I want to earn a lot of money from blockmon. That's why I've been selling them even before they were completed! I wanted to show my dad I could be like you. Selling art without being in a company. "Going to Fortuna!" Moneywise."

None of that.....described Bones at all.

"That's why I wanted to ask you, how can I get a soul? You know, to make my art finally get the appreciation in deserves."
"I used to say that the term soul was harmful to artists....but I think that was....eugh....coping. My art is missing a soul. I need a soul for my art to really sell and you know. Get what I want."
"Going to Fortuna..." Bones parrots the catchphrase with uncertainty.
"...Y'know, when I left the company. It was kind of hard for my life to not be all about making money. You want it to not be important, to pursue your passions just for the sake of yourself, but you still need a roof over your head."
Bones
2024-12-25 19:25:15
Bones Profile
Posted by ID #107
Last edit: 2025-07-30 05:10:50
"And then I realized, oh, wow. It's... almost no different than from when I was still working for your father. I'm kind of a beast of habit. It's why I'm back here at the machine, doing things I should be doin' on a paycheck for free."
"But nobody ever forced me to keep drawing. I could've hung it up, rolled over for a coffee job. Probably would have done better at it. But I had some sort of will to keep pushing for what I wanted."
"And you want to make blockmons, even if it's a struggle. Does it matter why? I guess, a little... but that's still, like, drive to do so."
"I just want people to give me money and attention."
"BzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzI want to see it go -zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz-"
"Isn't that what everyone wants?"
Bones
2024-12-25 19:27:27
Bones Profile
Posted by ID #107
Last edit: 2025-07-30 05:12:07
"You're taking these parts and equations and stringing them together in a shape you want to see. Soul won't sell art, but that's intention if I've ever seen it, y'feel?"
"I mean... art's got inherent value. It kind of sucks to acknowledge, but if there's a market... You said you've already sold a few of these guys, right?"
Bones
2024-12-25 19:27:56
Bones Profile
Posted by ID #107
Last edit: 2025-07-30 05:12:47
"The people out there that buy these things," Bones gestures to the blockmon on the floor. "They like to have them, and look at them. Maybe they think they're valuable, but that alone makes them feel good to have."
"So...you're saying....it's ok if I make art just to make money?"
Bones shrugs, "Why do you think I freelance?"
"Work's work, I guess. I'm of the lucky few that happens to like what I get to do."
"............................."
"This whole time I've been trying to lie to myself and say I was all about the process and the art."
"It's nice to hear that I don't have to lie anymore."
"I want money and attention."
"I don't need soul!"
"I just need something that is attractive that people like....and people don't like blockmons."
"This whole time I thought I had to be original, and my own thing, just like you. People always talked about how you were a total artistic rebel."
"But you're just a normal wagey!"
"In a good way."
Bones
2024-12-25 19:37:00
Bones Profile
Posted by ID #107
Last edit: 2025-07-30 05:15:41
"Snrk. It's fine, I've gotten worse from product reviews."
"I'm done with blockmons, and the blockchain. I'm done with pretending I need to be some rebel."
("Not like the blockchain was going anywhere anyway.")
"I mean like, your priorities are your priorities, man. External validation hits like something else, no shame in it."
"All in all, like, keep at it. Even if it sucks shit now, even if nobody's buying, you gotta be your own biggest fan."
"But, like... the moment it's not enjoyable for you, take a step back." Bones gives Barley an uncertain smile. "I think the folks who do like what you make will thank you for it."
"I've never liked art."
"Oh. Well! That makes this a lot simpler."
"Hey."
2024-12-25 19:44:39
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Posted by ID #8
Last edit: 2024-12-25 19:46:26

Barley grabs a cekeki that's trying to scramble away from the machine.

Barley Bonekeeper
2024-12-25 19:45:01
Barley Bonekeeper Profile
Posted by ID #8
Last edit: 2024-12-25 19:46:23
"You made this one right?"
"Oh shit, hey lil' guy. Uh... yeah! I did, not too long ago."
Barley scans it.......
Processing...............
Bones... watches...
2024-12-25 19:48:57
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Posted by ID #2
Last edit: 2025-06-26 19:04:17

Barley picks one of the creatures in his database, and spawns it into existence.

"O-oh, wow! You uh, got pretty close, huh?"
"I bet you right now, I could sell this thing for more than I ever sold any blockmon."
"I was avoiding doing this...because I felt it would be wrong. That art had to be "real.""
"But, I get it now. If I want money and attention, no one really cares if it's "real" or not."
"Can't believe I wasted 20 years on crypto I could have been doing this from the start....."
"Thanks for the help. You're the best!"
Barley Bonekeeper
2024-12-25 19:50:48
Barley Bonekeeper Profile
Posted by ID #107
Last edit: 2025-07-30 05:17:39
("I guess I can suck it up and return to Zoo Corp if they're still paying...")
Bones opens their mouth to say something, but becomes extremely aware that they're suspended mid-air by a stories-tall machine anomaly. They force a smile instead.
"If you, uh... do happen to keep up with the blockmon stuff, feel free to show me! I thought the fact you couldn't see the end result was like, kind of metal."
"But you do you, man. It was cool to, uh, finally meet you!"
"After you'd known 'bout me for so long. Worked where I worked, wore my... pelt..." They trail off, occasionally glancing at the ground below.
"It was nice meeting you as well!"
"In a way....I'm kind of sad to know you're just kind of, a normal person. But I guess I was holding you up like some god like figure when that's not what you were all about."
"I was trying to reach this artist ideal that doesn't really exist. Only rich artists get to be "free from what other people think." And even then most of them care as well."
"Heh, us artsy types tend to turn out kind of underwhelming when compared to their work, huh? I mean, ignoring the fact I'm kind of... spraypainted onto this machine."
"I think you should do what feels good, dude."
"Man to think I....was thinking of harvesting your soul to see if that would improve my art."
"Just like...in case I needed an actual soul...."

Barley places down the machine.

Bones
2024-12-25 19:55:27
Bones Profile
Posted by ID #8
Last edit: 2024-12-25 20:13:26
"eeeeee..." Bones extends the breadth of their 'canvas' down to the concrete below, just in case they're hoisted into the air again, "-eeyeahh! I'm, uh, thankful you... didn't. To say the least."
Barley Bonekeeper
2024-12-25 19:54:52
Barley Bonekeeper Profile
Posted by ID #8
Last edit: 2024-12-25 20:13:57
"I'll do what makes me the happiest. And that's whatever gets me the most of what I want."
Barley Bonekeeper
2024-12-25 19:55:02
Barley Bonekeeper Profile
Posted by ID #8
Last edit: 2024-12-25 20:14:05
"For now it might be these new critters. Later it might be some new tech or investment."
"M-maybe just. Poke your head in, see if the owners of those beasts are cool with you making lizard-clones of them..."
"...b-but that's, like, none of my business!"
"Like they'll even know."
"Glad to be done with this hipster rebel stage of my life."
"Major cringe."

Barley slinks off, leaving Bones and the machine alone.

"Deuces, Bonekeeper."

Bones slumps down against the surface of the machine.

"...We're all just... trying to put food on the table, at the end of the day. I guess."
"Well......"
"Guess it's better he'd accept his fault instead of eating everyone's souls, I guess!"

Skipper slinks back into view, glancing the metaparxi up and down.

"...So, uh, you're uh..."
"The capsules I'm stocking in the machine go to your guys' wallets. Don't be snitches."
".........Works for me."
"Uh, gotta be honest, I assumed that was just the Collector restocking the machine while I wasn't looking... I should... question these things more."
"I stopped painting cekekis awhile ago. I agree with Barley, I hate art!"

Collector looks at the...."""Cekeki""" Barley made.

2024-12-25 20:01:56
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Posted by ID #2
Last edit: 2025-06-26 19:04:28

"Kokokiki."

"God I hope he doesn't make more of those."
Collector
2024-12-25 20:02:38
Collector Profile
Posted by ID #2
Last edit: 2025-06-26 19:52:57
"That poor thing......he's not paying attention to how it should look...."
"It looks sick."
"His dad wouldn't possibly allow him to sell those."
"Zookeeper is money hungry but he wouldn't let Barley get him into blockcoins."
".........................Oh geez...."
"He's going to be pissed off again when boss tells him he's not going to let him put those in the machine, isn't he?"
"I guess we can hope they don't actually... profit. If I can give Zookeeper one thing, it's quality control."
"Can't say the same for him keeping tabs on his son." Bones sighs, motioning over to Skipper. "...I'd get another cardboard box for the capsules, just in case."
END OF UPDATE
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