Chapter 24: The Impostor Among Them
The system pulsed with a familiar hum. A soft ripple of energy danced across Cal's screen as his monitor flickered, transitioning into stream-ready mode. Night had barely fallen, but Cal's fingers hovered over his mouse and keyboard like a pianist about to strike the opening chords.
[SYSTEM MESSAGE]
[Current Influence Tier: 2 – Gaming Innovator]
[New Mission Unlocked: "A Wolf in Crew's Clothing"]
[Objective: Stream Among Us and Generate Minimum 50,000 Total Views]
[Reward: +4,000 Points, 1 Influence Pulse Token]
Cal smirked.
He hadn't planned to stream so soon again after yesterday's double showcase, but with this new mission and the unlock of Among Us, it was time to sow chaos.
This game, released in 2018 in his original timeline, had exploded into meme culture in 2020. But here in 2010, nothing like it existed. Multiplayer deception games were fringe, niche experiments. The concept of social deduction through online play was borderline alien.
And that made it perfect.
He adjusted the mic and clicked into OBS.
Stream Title: "Space Crew Trouble – New Indie Multiplayer Game (4K)"
Tags: #AmongUs #FutureGames #Crewmate #IndieGame #SocialDeception
The stream blinked on.
Unlike his flashy PUBG intro or the rich visuals of Clash of Clans, Among Us opened with simplistic 2D characters floating inside a cartoony spaceship.
Some of the chat instantly laughed.
"Is this… a kids game?"
"Lol the graphics are so basic."
"This looks like something made in MS Paint."
But Cal knew better. He didn't start with explanations. Instead, he silently queued into a match with system-generated AI players designed to simulate a real game scenario. The player names were randomized, the reactions built on preloaded behavioral scripts drawn from real online play patterns of the future.
He started as a Crewmate.
The game began.
Immediately, his small, bean-shaped avatar zipped through the Skeld, the game's most iconic map. He showcased the Task System, the gentle chimes of successful completions, and the chaos of group movement.
And then it happened.
The lights went out.
A red body fell.
And the meeting was called.
"WAIT. What just happened??"
"Someone DIED?"
"Hold up, this isn't a kids game!"
"They're… discussing who the killer is?"
Cal muted himself, letting the system simulate player dialogue in English, then softly overlaid translated commentary for Japanese and Korean viewers.
Red accused Blue. Blue pointed at Green. Yellow stayed silent.
Then, without warning—
Ejected: Green. Not the Impostor.
The betrayal was palpable.
The chat exploded.
"This is like mafia… but in SPACE?"
"You can LIE and win?"
"I'm obsessed."
He played three more games—one where he was wrongly accused and thrown out early, another where he expertly cleared his name despite witnessing the kill, and a final match where he took on the role of the Impostor.
That last game sealed the stream's fate.
4th Game: The Impostor Round
Cal silently sabotaged electrical, waited in the vent, then popped out behind a crewmate and struck. The tiny body dropped. The lights flickered. Someone reported the body too late.
"He just MURDERED someone!"
"Nobody saw it!"
"This guy is playing 3D chess!"
He lied through his simulated voice input, threw shade at another crewmate, and led the vote like a manipulative puppetmaster. The wrong player got ejected.
One by one, he picked them off.
Victory screen: Impostors win.
"BROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
"I can't trust anyone anymore."
"This is my favorite game already."
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
[Live Viewers: 72,104]
[Replay Queue Surge: +240,000 (Record)]
[New Timeline Influence Detected – Indie Dev Forum Clusters (US/EU)]
[Term "Impostor Game" Created on Forum Thread #7821]
[System Points Earned: +6,100 | Bonus Achieved]
[New Item Received: Influence Pulse Token x1]
Cal slowly leaned back, his eyes darting over the system notifications with controlled breath.
The game was an unexpected hit—far more than even PUBG. It wasn't just mechanics this time—it was emotion. It was humanity. Trust, deception, guilt, betrayal. All in a simple space loop.
He saved a few clips for system archival:
– First emergency meeting reaction.
– His flawless impostor run.
– A slow-motion vote eject moment with dramatic music overlay.
1 Hour After Stream End – Internet Reaction
Japanese Video Game Blog "NextPixel":
"An anonymous streamer has introduced a strange multiplayer game where players must deceive one another to survive. The psychological tension is unlike anything we've reviewed before. Is this the future of storytelling in games?"
A Korean dev student on a message board:
"My professor says this is the 'death of linear multiplayer.' I disagree. It's the birth of social mechanics in gaming."
An American Reddit clone (early days):
"Among Us? What a dumb name. But I can't stop watching replays. I NEED to try this."
Fanart began emerging online within hours. One sketch depicted Red holding a bloody knife behind his back while smiling at Blue.
Back in Cal's Room
He stared at the growing dashboard.
Views were climbing in real time. New subscribers. International interest. Developers from timelines far and wide were rattled. Inspired.
And still, he was alone.
Cal closed the curtain a little tighter. Even as his influence grew worldwide, his apartment remained a quiet, solitary world. There were no knocks on the door. No friends texting "nice stream." No family calls.
Only him and the system.
Yet he didn't feel lonely. Not anymore.
He felt… fulfilled.
The screen flashed another notification.
[SYSTEM MESSAGE]
[Viewer Influence Score Increased: Tier 2.5 Reached]
[New Game Categories Unlocked: "Co-Op Chaos", "Esports Era Previews"]
[Global Viewership Now Spans: 14 Countries | Language Auto-Translation: Expanded]
[System Comment: "Your influence is accelerating. Be wise with what you show next."]
Cal took a deep breath and smiled.
He was just getting started.
Tomorrow, he'd show the world a rhythm game so stylized and electric, it would redefine how people viewed music.
But for now, he closed his laptop, stood up, and walked to the kitchen.
Even viral stars need to eat.
End of Chapter 24