This is a story of SBURB if the game had made its way to our world and some other alt universe was reading about it. The characters are all original, and the story itself is sort of a reboot in our universe of the original story, with different twists and turns than the original webcomic. I hope you enjoy it.

Ch 1

A young man stands in his bedroom. It is July 19th, though the date is irrelevant to this story, and the boy silently laments that he is still seventeen despite having graduated high school already. What is this young man's name?

Well first he would like to assert that he is grateful for the use of his correct pronouns as he was born female and has not yet had the means to transition. With that out of the way, you may name him.

You roll your eyes and name him something reasonable: JOHN EGBERT.

You were wrong and you also passed up your chance to insult the boy. His name is ALEX TRITON. You stare passively at him and wonder if this story will continue to be narrated in a meta voice the entire time. I assure you, it won't.

Alex is admiring his newly dyed hair in the mirror. It is now a violent shade of red, though the change in color didn't make it any more manageable than it had been before. It refuses to follow any of the instructions Alex murmurs to it, so he gives up and lets it stick out wherever. Still in his pajamas, he shuffles over to his laptop and yawns. Eleven is too early for Alex to be completely awake just yet. He prods the screen gently and it lights up. Skype blips at him, letting him know that Niki was messaging him.

Niki: YOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Alex rubs the sleep out of his eyes as best as possible in order to summon enough enthusiasm for a conversation his friend. He takes a deep breath and blinks slowly.

Alex: YYYYOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Niki: THE BETAS ARE COMING TODAAAAYYYYYY

Alex: YAAAAASSSSSSSSS

The Beta, of course, means the SBURB Beta, which is only the most anticipated game in ages. The allure of this particular beta is, oddly enough, how little anyone knows about it. About a month ago it was suddenly being advertised worldwide, and suddenly is the key word here. One day everyone woke up to billboards, web ads, TV ads, newspaper ads, even telemarketing ads, all to do with SBURB. But not one single ad or telemarketer would say what exactly the game content was. All that was needed to have it sent to you was the completion of a quiz online that would tell you what sort of fruit you'd be if you instead had been born a fruit based on your personality. You were then redirected to a page of directions on game setup. In bold, the page stressed that four or more players were necessary to play the game safely. There was other drivel about having two copies per person, both the server and client copies being needed, and warnings about keeping at least five computing devices on you at all times during gameplay. Most of it was absurd and nonsensical. Alex therefore ignored much of it.

Without telling his friend he'd be back or even that he'd gone, Alex stands, stretches, and waddles his chubby self out to the mailbox to see if the Beta has already arrived. Sitting on a chair in the foyer is a large manila envelope with a bright blue house symbol printed on it. It is addressed to Alex, so he quickly retreats to his room with the envelope so his father doesn't hear him tear it open. It is impossible to know when the old man would be in a social mood, and if he is, then he is likely to try to talk to Alex and suck him into cleaning something or watching a boring movie. Dad encounters are unpredictable but always unwelcome for the young man.

The envelope Alex absconded with contains two disks in separate paper sheaths, one being the server disk, and the other being client. Skype blips plaintively at Alex, and he tears his gaze away from the CD ROMs he holds in his hands. Niki had been messaging Alex throughout his brief absence, and was becoming agitated.

Niki: ARE YOU PUUUMPED
IM PUMMMPED
WHAT TEEEAAAAAMMMMMM?
COME ON
I SAID A WHAT TEEEAAAAMMMM?

Alex: WILDCATS OK CHILL I JUST CHECKED THE MAIL MY COPY OF THE BETA IS HERE

Niki: MINE IS TOO BRO
WANNA BE MY SERVER
CAUSE I REALLY WANNA FREAKIN START ALREADY HOLY SHIT

Alex: Yeah sure hang on I have to install it and so do you if you havent already
...who am i kidding youve had it installed since like six this morning havent you
Fuckin wierd ass morning people

Niki: SHUT UP AND INSTALL IT
NOT MY FAULT YOU SLEEP STUPID HOURS

Instead of replying, Alex cracks a smile and shakes his head as he slides the server disk into the computer. A message about installation pops up and he hits the "Next" button until the computer takes over, installing the server program. Alex decides to surf tumblr until notified that the installation is complete. An hour later, and Alex is dozing off with his head on the desk. His laptop beeps ferociously, signifying the completion of a particularly hefty install. He blinks himself awake and checks the program. A smiling cartoon apple is dancing on screen next to the box containing the full loading bar for the download. He clicks the "Finish" button and his computer restarts automatically. This is the beginning of the end of the world.

Authors Note: Hey thanks for reading, I'll be updating again as soon as I can. The Chapters will be longer from here on out as well, this one is just a little short because I'm testing the waters. I'd appreciate any comments if you'd like to give me some feedback, and I'll answer any questions you have. c: