(Apologies for the late start - I just got back, later than expected.)

Above, the rain hammers down in a vertical torrent - Ripples of water forming in the soaked streets, a relentless thudding hail that never slackens, that only seems to grow heavier with each passing moment. The neon lights of the city's electronic hub cast their flickering, fitful illumination through the misted fog that rises from the roads - Cars speeding past, trailing great arcs of water in their wake.

Where is he?

You remember the charred smell of roasting flesh, the dark blood staining the carpet underfoot - The door swinging in the howling wind, banging back and forth on its hinges.

Where is he?

Bardiel can't have gone far. In your mind's eye, you can almost see it unfold...His arm flash-burned by a spontaneous holocaust of flame, a horrid scream of agony and shock slicing through the air - And then the frantic thrashing, the flailing as he staggers to the door, out into the streets.

If it wasn't raining, you'd have found him already; But the rain turns everything into a featureless blur, washing away the blood trail he's leaving in his wake.

[ ] Go back to the Papillion.
[ ] Wait for the rain to stop.
[ ] Head east, further into the electronics district.
[ ] Head south, towards the train station.
[ ] Free.

YOU HAVE CONTROL.

>>20782238

> [X] East.

Fuck. I don't think we're going to find him, guys.

Only an idiot would run towards the obvious escape, so...Go East?

Tough crowd tonight OP.

He'll be going to ground since we hurt him badly to lick and heal his wounds.

Is there only one hospital in this city?

I'd hang out in the lobby and ask the nurses if any burn victims came in recently.

>>20782263
I don't think we should pursue. He was obviously at the armory for a reason, we should go back in and do a more thorough search of the place.

Ah, we know Argent Prominence in real life right? It might be time to bite the bullet and ask for help.

He might actually be insatiably curious that a player somehow lived through his avatar's destruction

>>20782284

(There are multiple hospitals in the city: However, the Kuchiki Metropolitan Hospital, the one Akira was warded in, is the closest. It's about two train stops from your current location.)

>>20782238
[X] Head south, towards the train station.

I can't think of why he'd head towards the electronics station, it's more likely that he'd head somewhere where he can go to a safehouse, a hospital, that sort of thing.

>>20782287

This makes sense, we should go back and see that Mio's all right. And also find out whether we did anything with her, because we were using her lap as a pillow when we woke up.

>>20782284
>>20782302
>>20782293

We may run right into a trap. No, let him get away for now; Go back to the meido cafe, and call Argent Prominence on the way.

>>20782298

Ah, that complicates things. Local clinics then. Our best option now is to open the yellow pages and call up the local hospitals.

"Uh hello?! Nurse! Yes! My friend was burned badly! Is he there?! Yes?! [Give Description]. Oh. he's not?! Oh damn! Thank you for your time."

Next hospital.
>>20782302

Nah, he won't be going for the trains. Too many people. He disappeared down an alley. Literally *vanished*.

>>20782287

You're forgetting that he's fought us before. He *knows* how we operate. He'll be far FAR more cautious the second time we scrap.

Best to find and kill him now.

The ones that get away learn.

>>20782341
Except we have no idea where he went. And even if we do catch him, he'll probably be fine in the game.

>>20782367
I doubt it, but if he is we'll beat him down again and again and again until he knows a fraction of our pain and sorrow. Until he understands that hurting the love of the Red Joker was the worst mistake he ever made.

I doubt he lives in the area and wants to stay around here so the trains are my bet.

>>20782367

Time for a bit of investigating instead of running around like our head is cut off then.

Call those small, local clinics like the other anon suggested. We gotta start somewhere.

>>20782395
Yeah, I wasn't really planning on letting him live that long.

Actually, when you think about how the smiley brigade was acting, the electronics (and thus video game) district sounds like exactly where his backup would hang out.

Say. What if he's moving through the Red World? Time flows differently there. It slows down, it speeds up, it stops. What if time sped up so our buddy here could escape?

The grey city stretches out before you, in both directions - The hurrying shape of pedestrians mere formless blobs, only resolving into people as they pass by. Further down, the street gives way to the unruly clutter of the district...A tangled mess of alleys, arcades, shophouses, pretty much *the* major shopping area for electronic/computer/otaku goods.

If Bardiel's run into there, he could be *anywhere*...And it's going to be nearly impossible to find him by yourself.

>>20782326

You take shelter in a nearby phone booth - One of the old-fashioned ones, the plastic sheeting cracked and grimy, a coin-operated phone hanging askew on the hook. It doesn't work, but your handphone does - You find a battered copy of the yellow pages on the metal shelf, and open it to the appropriate page...

There's nearly a dozen hospitals scattered around the city, with countless smaller clinics - And probably even more that aren't listed. You narrow it down to the nearest three, making a quick call to each one; He's unlikely to have reached *any* of them yet, but you leave his description and your number. It's a start, at least.

>>20782293

-Argent Prominence.

You've come face-to-face with him only once...But perhaps this is a good time to call him, after - Well, after *all* that's happened. You don't have to wait long; He picks up the phone on the second ring.

> "Hello, Anon - I was wondering when you'd call. How may I help you?"

As always, his voice is calm, placid and untroubled. In the background, you can hear a low, electronic beeping - The hiss of recycled air.

[ ] Free.

YOU HAVE CONTROL.

I'm just going to take this opportunity to point out that Hecate's lab is filled with reprogrammable warbots and Pazuzu has a Nihl sphere too.

>>20782293
Actually he wasn't really defeated. We used the Nihl sphere to warp both of us and part of the attack out before he could finish whatever transformation he was doing.

>>20782442

I hate talking on phones, it makes me sound like a prat. Tell him what happened, and suggest a meeting?

>>20782442

"I.. I need your... *swallow* help. Can we meet somewhere? Private"

>>20782442
"I'm sure you've heard about the Nara Dreamland incident. This call is tangentially related to that, I'd love to talk to you about that in person sometime soon. There are some players that ought to be brought to your attention and perhaps I can shed some light on that day.

But onto the matter at hand, a certain bird of prey, name of Bardiel, has managed to earn my ire. I would appreciate it if you could have your people keep an eye open for him, it shouldn't be too hard for your network, one of his arms, in the real world, is rather crispy, it stands out."

>>20782475
We've lost our anchor to sanity man. I don't think we'd come off as clean, crisp, and due diligent as that.

Should we really be relying on AP? Hecate was pretty freaked out by him at the hospital.

>>20782503
I'd hardly say Hecate was that important to our well being.

>>20782503
We need to keep it together man. Yeah in private we can collapse, in fights we can be bloodthirsty and happily blow Bardiel into artfully displayed chunks, but with Argent Prominence, perhaps the most dangerous person involved in the game right now, we need to stay calm and professional. Don't show any weakness.

>>20782508

"An enemy of my friend is still my enemy."

He's a useful person with a lot of resources while we have jack shit. We (I especially) might not like it, but we're low on options.

>>20782525
I still say we should head back into the armory and really search the place. And don't forget Akira is running down leads on Pazuzu's group for us.

>>20782536

Hence why we should have AP run down leads on this player. As I said, he's a useful person, but we're playing with fire and will get burned in do time. But right now, let's get the fucker who killed Hecate.

Amazing. I just caught up yesterday, and I managed to make a quest the day after.
God damn Bardiel to the ninth level of hell.
I was really enjoying Hecates character.

>>20782546
Actually, since Chrome Cypher was also at Nara Dreamland we could have AP give us everything he has on Pazuzu's guys.

>>20782557
I don't remember seeing Chrome, or a glint of their armor.
That's really just unconfirmed speculah.

>>20782460
>>20782469
>>20782475

He doesn't say anything - But you can almost *feel* the scrutinity of his full intention, as he listens.

On the other end, you hear the faint buzz of charged air...The slow clop of thoughtful footsteps, mingled with the sounds you've come to associate with an office - Then the dry *click* of a door swinging shut, the noises abruptly cutting out.

> "-I see."

There's the faint scritch of a pen on paper, the soft creak of a chair's springs.

> "Yes, I do believe it's time for us to meet."

He says, at last. There's an odd note to his voice; It's almost *too casual*, but -

...And you realize, he's speaking for an audience. He may be in his own office, but he's taking pains not to say anything out of the ordinary - On his side, at least."

> "Unfortunately, I have certain commitments today - But tomorrow's an excellent time. I've made a reservation at La Tombola...Perhaps we could discuss this over lunch?"

[ ] Free.

YOU HAVE CONTROL.

>>20782572
One of Pazuzu's guy mentioned a "Chrome bastard" over the radio while we were killing that sniper. Also, we were pretty sure that Chrome was either Kazuya or Natsumi and both of them were there.

>>20782585
"That sounds lovely, I'll meet you there. Thank you and have a nice day."

>>20782585
"Fine. I'll bring Chrome; she's been unwell since the incident."

>mfw I forget OP lives on the other side of the IDL.

>>20782606
Quit doing that damn it!

We aren't exactly sure who Chrome is yet so stop acting like we are.

That said we should check on Natsumi.

>>20782585

"Yes. That is acceptable.

Until we meet. "

Investigate the armory now?

>>20782606
Yeah, was wondering why you hadn't showed your mug in this thread.

>>20782585
"Of course. I'll be waiting."
Do we know where the place is?

>>20782598
Ah, fair enough. Forgot the radio mention..
I'm a skeptical person. Didn't want just assume Chrome was fighting because they were in the area.
Which is stupid to think in this game.

>>20782615
>Investigate the armory now?

I say yes to this.

>La Tombola

Do we know where that is?

>>20782639

With a name such as that, it'll be hard to miss. A quick Cougar search will find it.

>>20782652

GOD DAMNIT GOOGLE. GOOGLE. Fucking phone.

>>20782614
Still going for confirmation one way or another. Getting one person to react in with an affirmative or negative will settle it.

>>20782660
We could always just go confront Natsumi, since confronting Kaz didn't work like you thought it would.

>>20782683
That was my suggestion for the last thread, but this gives us one last chance to not make an idiot of ourselves in front of a traumatized friend.

>>20782698

>mfw we already traumatized him with our outburst accusing him of being Chrome

I wonder how he puts up with our eccentricities.

>>20782698
We could just straight up ask Argent who Chrome is when we meet.
Say we think it's actually a friend and we don't like such a secret being kept.

>>20782698
If we can figure out how to use the Nihl sphere's rift function we can just go up to her and transform If she's a player it'll count a s a challenge and force her into the Red with us. Then we can use the shpere to gate us both out without killing each other.

File: 1348043527498.jpg-(297 KB, 850x601, jokererimaid.jpg)

>>20782604
>>20782606

> "-As you will; I'll be looking forward to it."

Mr. Fumito sounds amused, like an indulgent uncle with a favorite nephew; The connection lingers for a moment later, before he hangs up. Rainwater is slowly seeping into the booth, a cold drizzle that runs over the plexiglass like tears - It's a clammy feeling, as you tuck the thick phonebook back into place, retracing your steps to the Papillion...

-Inside, you're surprised by how *quickly* the place has been cleaned up - A new tablecloth replacing the scorched one, just like the crimson carpet underfoot...But still, there's something in the air. The cafe has emptied out quite a bit, now - The faint smell of char still lingering, faint burn-marks on the varnished wood.

...Otherwise, though, it seems to be business as usual. The staff seems a little rattled; The maid at the counter - The one you saw sobbing - is now missing...Enough that you enter unnoticed, without the cheery greeting you'd usual expect.

And then-

The door to the backroom you recently vacated - It's ajar, with Eri hovering nearby, her brow furrowed with worry...Though her expression lights up, as soon as her gaze settles on you.

"Joker-kun!"

(Continued.)

>>20782606
LOOK WHAT YOU DID!

ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?

>>20782727

Heads turn, as Eri hurries over to you; She can't hide the relief in her voice as you draw near, her hands clasping your arm.

"You're all right..." she breathes - Then flushes, slightly, aware that people may be watching. Self-consciously, Eri guides you to the side, her voice quieter now:

"Anon-kun, what happened? When you ran out like that, all of a sudden...You *really* scared me. And that guy, he..."

Eri's voice trails off, as if she doesn't want to think about it. "-What's going on?"

[ ] "-I'm sorry; I didn't mean to make you worry."
[ ] "I heard someone scream - I had to find out what happened."
[ ] "Are you all right?"
[ ] "I'm sorry, but I need a moment to myself."
[ ] "I should be the one asking that. I don't know, either."
[ ] Free.

YOU HAVE CONTROL.

>>20782744
[X] "-I'm sorry; I didn't mean to make you worry."
[X] "Are you all right?"

>>20782744
[X] "-I'm sorry; I didn't mean to make you worry."
[X] "I heard someone scream - I had to find out what happened."

[X] Free

When I saw that trail of blood I thought I should try to help, call him an ambulance or something, but I couldn't find him.

>>20782744
"I have no idea. I was wondering that myself."

>>20782744

"Ah, the usual. Playing life and death in an alternate reality."

>chuckle

"Take a seat."

"What happened after I ran out?"

>>20782727

Have I mentioned that Eri is hot? Because she's really, really hot.

[X] Free.

PAT HER HEAD and

> TOUCH FLUFFY EARS.

>>20782744
[>>20782759

X] Free.

Did you hear what happened?

>>20782706
Years of experience?

>>20782709
It's in his interest not to. If he knows that we have a connection to Chrome he'll use it because he's gotten very old playing a very dangerous game, which means he's very very good at it. At best he'll never reveal Chrome's identity to us himself, preferring to let us sort our our own problems. If worst comes to absolute worst he'll send Chrome after us, knowing that Red Joker will be uncertain about how to treat the attacker. The question is, do you trust him?

>>20782737
By the meido in OP's image, yes. Otherwise you lost me.

[x] Free. "I'm sorry, when I heard that shout for a moment I thought I was back--" (trail off)

Debating as to whether suggesting that he was one of the attackers would be a good idea. If we really want to make his day a bad one we drop an anonymous tip to the police about a man with a burned arm.

OP, how's the weather? Still freezing?

>>20782781
OP used your "I'll bring Chrome" suggestion (and AP didn't flinch one bit) but we still aren't sure if Natsumi's really Chrome. Stop putting us in situations where we could get egg on our face.

>>20782837
If Natsumi isn't Chrome we call the company and ask for Chrome's number. Could be funny.

If Natsumi is Chrome we finally put this discussion to rest. Well, that happens either way. What's driving me up a wall is what Hecate said about the Thief, combined with that robo-pigeon from two threads ago. Of course checking every one of those flying rats to find the robotic one is definitely crazy behavior. Although, maybe if we went into the Red World outside...

>>20782837
I agree with this.
You're getting a little obsessive of finding out Chrome Cypher.

>>20782879
The unwillingness to force the issue is emblematic of some of my least favorite anime and manga--or any media really--plots. More to the point this could be an easy way to clear up some of the major mysteries about the setting, most prominently what separates Players from non-Players, and how the former are chosen.

> "Ah, the usual. Playing life and death in an alternate reality."

She tilts her head to the side, looking slightly quizzical - As if not entirely sure what she's hearing.

"...I don't...What does that mean?"

> [X] "Take a seat."

Eri looks around, for a moment - Before she steps back into the room, sinking into the plush seat with weak-kneed relief. You have the presence of mind to close the door, lending the place an air of privacy at last.

> [X] "-I'm sorry; I didn't mean to make you worry."
> [X] "Are you all right?"

"Mmmm." She nods, slowly - making a wordless sound of affirmation, her hands clasped together on her soft lap. "I'm all right - Just a little surprised, that's all." Her lips curve in a little smile - One that means to be reassuring, but just looks pale and drawn.

"It happened so quickly...Rena says she heard someone scream, and when she turned to look - There was this, this guy, and he was bleeding, *burning*...Then he just ran out into the rain."

> [X] "What happened after I ran out?"

A pause. "-We...We just cleaned up the place a little - Someone wanted to call the police, but I thought...It'd be better *not* to." Eri's hand comes up - Her fingers trembling minutely, as she brushes stray strands of blonde hair back from her face.

Then, very softly:

"-Anon-kun...I was really scared. Really, really scared-"

Her hands tighten on her forearms - Her head lowering, as if hugging herself, eyes momentarily hidden. "...I don't want anything to happen t-to anyone..."

[ ] Free.

>>20782910
THEN ASK ARGENT. You fuck.
He already knows we're connected to Chrome, so mentioning it doesn't change things.
And we're not being unwilling, we're just not FORCING it.
There is a time and place, you have never hit it.

>>20782911
Honesty this time.

[x]Free
"Eri... I'm sorry. I wish I could tell you what was going on, why these terrible things keep happening, but I can't. I hardly know myself. Are you going to be all right? I can stay until you go home, my business will keep at least that long." Then we talk to Natsumi.

>>20782911

Damn, I know it's technically cheating, but I can't help it. Give her hug.

>>20782911
Give her a half hug.

"I know, I feel the same way, but it still happens.

Sometimes it's a shit world, where bad things happen to good people and there's no reason for it. Where the good guys lose and the bad guys win. Life sometimes sucks.

All we can do is soldier on, stand up again, try one more time, and try to be the best person we can be. No matter how many times we fall down it still hurts like the first time."

>>20782911
So, how involved do we want to get with Mio? Cause this is a great time to take her hand or hug her or any other reassuring slightly intimate actions one can take in this situation?

>>20782954

It's cheating soon as you touch that fluffy tail.

Nothing can resist the fluffy tail.

>>20782962

GOD DAMNIT.
We must learn the secret of how she does that.

File: 1348045963635.png-(37 KB, 512x384, 30-image018.png)

>>20782928
I don't trust him. At all. I trust the Thief more than I trust Argent. Again, Argent is a master level Player who could probably school us harder than Pazuzu, Rust Asshat and "Try Armor On Your Arm Next Time" could at the same time. And he's building an army. Now, if he comes clean at this meeting, tells us about whoever he has on that respirator in the hospital I'll be inclined to think he's trustworthy until whatever he wants dead, is. Until then, whatever help we get from him is going to cost more than we might be willing to pay. And probably more than we realize.

>captcha: Myrdin from
Not sure what Merlin has to do with this one, captcha.

>>20782991
I'm not talking about trust.
The most straightforward route to an answer is Argent.
Also he knows we're a player, and he knows we're friends with Natsumi and Kazuya.
What do we lose from asking him straight "Who is Chrome?"?

>>20782954

Seeing Mio like this - Looking so forlorn, so *scared* - you do the only thing you can think of, and give her a hug.

It's a simple sentence, but a very crowded one. As you slip your arm around her shoulders, her shivers grow into trembling, then to shaking, her breath hitching into quiet, half-stifled sobs; She buries her face into the hollow of your neck, leaning into you - For a moment, you think you smell brimstone...But not, that's just a trick of memory. It's the same faintly charred smell Bardiel left in his wake, intruding on your senses.

Even here, the red world finds a way to seep through.

Mio is...very soft. You can *feel* every inch of her against you, as you stroke the long cascade of her blonde hair, hearing the faint *rasp* of her costume against her skin - Just holding her, until she calms.

> "Eri... I'm sorry. I wish I could tell you what was going on, why these terrible things keep happening, but I can't. I hardly know myself. Are you going to be all right? I can stay until you go home, my business will keep at least that long."
>>20782956

For a moment, you think she might be on the verge of tears, but then Mio's shaking slowly quietens. "I just..." she murmurs, against your throat. "-I just keep thinking - hoping - dreaming that it won't happen again...But everywhere I *go*..."

Her hands clutch at your shoulders, tugging at your shirt - She doesn't want to release you, clinging to you so hard it almost hurts. "-I'm so, so, *sorry*..."

[ ] Free.

YOU HAVE CONTROL.

>finally caught up

As a man who has had his leg caught between a (still hot) exhaust system from a car after a jack failed, I can safely say that man will need medical attention if he doesn't want an infection to set in. Third degree burns are NOT fun.

>>20783028

> "I just..." she murmurs, against your throat. "-I just keep thinking - hoping - dreaming that it won't happen again...But everywhere I *go*..."

Oh. My. God.

Is she saying what I think she's saying?

>>20783039
Entirely possible.

>>20783028
"I know for a fact that what happened here today wasn't your fault. I understand, sometimes you just want to stay home, hide away from the world, hoping that maybe nothing bad will happen if you don't interact with it."

>>20783028
Poor girl. Of course OP knows that someone's going to start prying. Sigh.

[x]Free. (comfort her. Head rubbing, shoulder pats, hug)
"Eri, I can't help with that, I'm not a therapist, but it might help to talk. Maybe not here and now after this mess, but soon, when you're ready. I'll give you my number and you call if you've got something you need to get off your chest. Or if you just need to talk, I can listen. I can do that much, I promise."

Really don't think we should pry the story out of her today. Maybe next thread.

>>20783039

Makes you wonder how many other people are trying to keep their heads down hoping this crazy shit will blow over, eh?

This is taking too much time. We need to shift back to the armory and do a thorough search.

>>20783066
I'm pretty sure we're in a private room again. We could use her real name.

>>20783028

>Mio is...very soft.

I bet she is. You know, while I'm against cheating, Mio would've been a great girlfriend if we'd only met her earlier. A blonde girl who plays tennis and has a penchant for cosplay? That's like several fetishes all rolled into one cuddly package.

>>20783080

Hold your horses. OP types faster than Deculture, but not the glacial pace of Vedibere. We'll get to it.

>>20783084
I can never keep her real and work names separate. Mio is the real name? Goddammit.

>>20783086
She's also presented by Tony Taka's delicious artwork. The man makes clothing more attractive than nudity every time he touches ink to page. OP has an excellent taste in poster girl.

>>20783092
No, I meant interacting with Mio was taking too long. Stunning as she is I still put whatever her problems are on a lower priority than finding that potential piece of the Fatal Abyss that we left in Hecate's care.

>>20783059
>>20783066

You soothe her. She's not listening to you, not really - But then again, it's not the words she needs right now. The next few minutes pass in the same vein, until Mio calms - At last, she's sufficiently recovered to draw away from you (a little reluctantly). Her face is flushed, either from her sniffles or from the prolonged contact...Looking up at you, rather shyly, seemingly *right* on the verge of saying something.

Her gaze is enough to make you feel pleasantly uncomfortable, an air of *significance* lingering in the room, until...

"Anon-kun," she begins. "Anon, I-"

There's a knock at the door.

> "Eri, is everything all right?"

"Ah - Just a moment!" she answers, startled - Looking momentary guilty, as she bolts to her feet...But then she smiles, faintly, enough for you to know that she'd be all right.

For now, anyway.

And you slip into the red world without looking back.

(Continued.)

>>20783147
Oh thank Hecate for convenient distractions, even I don't know what we would have done if she'd tried to confess right there.

Now comes the part where we realize that while Anon was being held down by a pretty girl someone else raided the vault.

>>20783165
At least they won't have gotten a functioning cobalt booster.

The Armory again, for the third time - And, if anything, the place has become *even more* dilapated than before. The Hall of Devices is in ruins, now; The seemingly untouchable displays of odd, bizarre artifacts now little more than molten slag...Rendered all the way down to the plinth, by a smokeless flame that shed no heat.

No...Not flame. It's as if the obsidian itself has been...*melted*, somehow - Something that should be impossible, in every sense of the word. As you make your way down the familiar route, your misgivings deepen...You can make out deep scars in the ground underfoot, in the long walkway-

...Until you reach the great double-doors, frozen just as you left them.

Beyond, the chamber full of silent sentinels is...

-Oddly untouched. It's really almost just the way you left it; The great wreck of the Armory Guardian in one corner, the endless rows of alien metal constructs standing at eternal, unmoving attention - Some of them overgrown with the same bizarre crystal growth, others partially or nigh-completely disassembled.

At the far end stands the melted framework of the Vitruvian device.

[ ] Examine the constructs.
[ ] Examine the Vitruvian Device.
[ ] Examine the breaches in the ceiling.
[ ] Free.

YOU HAVE CONTROL.

>>20783165
Actually, I've been wondering if Hecate perhaps wasn't killed when Bardiel nailed her to the ground. We didn't actually see her disintegrate int green particles after all. And it'd explain why Bardiel knew about this place.

>>20783187
[X] Examine the constructs.

This first. Just in case there's someone hiding among them.

>>20783190
It's possible, it's a slim hope to hold on to, but even if she is alive we don't have any way of knowing where she is or how to find her. If we do then we have to say "you still owe me a kiss" kissing her like she's never been kissed before.

>>20783187
[X] Examine the constructs.
Start with the constructs, we'll get the others later.

>>20783190
>>20783212
I want to BELIEEEEVE.
Yeah, if she's still alive we kiss the SHIT out of her when we find her.

>>20783187
Those plasma scars and the melted artifacts are a real problem. Our fight couldn't have caused that.

>>20783187
"Almost untouched"? Interesting. I assume you mean the holes in the ceiling and the golems that were knocked over. Have we looked at the crystals? Let's try pulling out the Nihl Sphere, see if it sparks any reactions/is visibly different. Are the crystals energy related? More fuel. Check around the golems, then the Device. I'm wondering if there isn't a map or something.

>>20783201

The constructs have *always* puzzled you. Who made them? Who put them there? What *are* they? The chamber's dimensions are shifting ones...You have the eerie feeling that if you wandered too far from the path, you might not find your way back. Still, at random, you examine the nearest one...

-You begin with an almost complete specimen...It stands stationary on hinged legs, articulated fist and large-bore weapon at the ready as you give it a once-over - All pitch-black steel, the crested helmet lowered as if sleeping. You can see the marked similarities to the Armory Guardian, here - The machines clearly share a common ancestry.

This one, though, has been modified. The crystalline growths bristle - Like spines - along its length...The air dead and still, as ruddy crimson light beams down from above. You make out - very faintly - *etchings* made into the carapace...Like scrolling writing, scratched out in harsh strokes that seem alien yet familiar at once. Your HUD doesn't want to focus on them - It fuzzes, as you try to look directly at it.

Someone has clearly gone to a considerable amount of work, the effort painstaking, obvious. As to the purpose, though...You have no idea.

It's then that you notice the litter underfoot - A familiar sight, so out of place amid the red world's alien vistas. Crude tools; A fragment of metal from another automaton's limbs - A shard from the Armory Guardian's lens...Like a trail of breadcrumbs, leading away into the forest of metal statues, winding away into eternity.

You could follow them - But it'd mean leaving the cleared path.

[ ] Free.

YOU HAVE CONTROL.

>>20783281
Follow the path, it seems interesting.

Okay, I'm pretty sure we don't have any string or anything but we still need a way to mark our path.

So every X feet we make a scorch mark where we have walked so we can find our way back.

>>20783281
Follow. If we get lost we can just fly up to get our bearings.

>>20783281
[x] Do something.
[ ] Do nothing.

Oh come on OP, that's not good design.

>>20783281
Follow the traces, leaving the interceptors around as direction pointers

>>20783314
Interceptors take meter energy, don't think we have enough to keep them running.

>>20783332
Well, let's use the cobalt booster then. its better than high-jump around like in whack-the-mole to find the path if we get lost.

(Apologies for the delay.)

>>20783295
>>20783299
>>20783308

Every few feet, your Plasma Vulcans blurt a brief gout of flame - It *sizzles*, against the ground, licking at your boots as you make your way forward. It's a good thing you did that - Within the cavernous hall, amid the endless rows of machines...It'd be all too easy to get lost.

Space is distorted, here - Your Interceptors detach from your shoulders, hovering where you leave them...Buzzing fractiously, the sound a comfort in this deep, empty hall.

Here and there, you begin to see signs of habitation. Things that shouldn't below - A half-discarded roll of bandage, broken pencils worn down almost all the way to the nubs...And more of those fractured shards, used as awls and chisels - The base of each splinter wrapped for a grip.

It must've taken...a very long time...longer than you can imagine, to do this. Each machine you stop at bears the same markings - Some of them scratched out, others apparently abandoned, like the signs of a project, until...

-Until the trail ends, at the feet of a hulking machine. This is where Hecate (If it was Hecate) must have stopped; The debris track coming to a stop at last, bits of metal and cloth littered around the area-

Your foot nudges against something small, yet out of place. It's...a notebook? A cheap one, that could've been bought from anywhere - One of the most eminently disposable items you could've know.

Inside...It's filled with writing, packed page-to-page in small, cramped handwriting - Symbols that make your eyes hurt, your HUD clicking and whirring as it struggles to decipher them. You don't understand a single word of it - But it reminds you of program code, with no break between symbols, like a multitude of ones and zeros...

(Continued.)

The other half of the book is blank, unmarred except for an idiot scribble or two. *Almost* blank, except...

-Except for one page, which says:

X: 40.8
Y: 24.6

Beneath your feet, the ground trembles, slightly - Enough to make you look up, wondering if Bardiel has returned. The tremor slows, and stops...Though the darkness is slowly shading to the crimson glow of the red world, a surrusation like soft sand coming from above...

-You get the feeling you might not want to stay *too* much longer.

[ ] Examine the Vitruvian Device.
[ ] Examine the rifts in the dome.
[ ] Leave.
[ ] Free.

YOU HAVE CONTROL.

>>20783437
>[x] Examine the rifts in the dome.

>>20783437
Navigational coordinates? Iiiiinteresting.

We caused the rifts, so Vitruvian Device. Grab a hunk of crystal on the way out; it'll be a keepsake if nothing else.

I imagine that if we looked outside we'd see the Red World reclaiming this building. Interesting and perhaps educational, but not immediately useful.

Isn't Hecate the only one we know that can bring items into the Red World? No matter what they are.

>>20783437
>X: 40.8
>Y: 24.6

Does the Nihl sphere have a GPS function?

>>20783437
I want to head back. Before we fought Bardiel when we were in the artifact room there was the option to head in the opposite direction of the armory.

Oh, I also want to suggest closing the armory doors as we leave, no matter what course of action is decided on. No reason to help whatever's coming take the rest of the complex.

Exeunt Watashiwa. Night all.

>>20783437

Check the rifts, we already checked the vitruvian device.

[X] Examine the Vitruvian Device.
Use the scrander to get there quick.

We were interrupted last time we looked. If we don't find anything interesting we should slag it more so that Pazuzu's guys can't get anything from it.

(Unfortunately, not that you know of. To you, it's just an inert sphere...Except when it isn't.)

The great rents in the vaulted, gently curved ceiling of the dome...They seem to be widening, though that might just be a trick of the shifting light. You look up, as the ground begins to tremble again - There's a faint trickle, a soft rustle that echoes in your ears...

-It's not your imagination.

Even as you look on, you see cracks beginning to spiderweb up from both rents - The one caused by Bardiel's breach, the other one created by you as you smashed your way *out*. The fractures become exponentially faster as the skitter onwards...Like an ice shelf cracking, fracturing out in all directions moment by moment...

You don't have long, now.

> 20783478

The Hall of Devices stretched out seemingly forever, much in the same boundless way the Armory did - Each pedestal holding a new and alien device, the use of which was utterly indecipharable...Just like the writing in the book you now hold.

Stranger still - You couldn't interact with the displays. They *existed*, but were utterly impervious, utterly immovable to your attempts to move or tamper with them, like...

-Like the painted backdrop of a game.

> [X] Examine the Vitruvian Device.

As the rumbling builds, the Tempest Scrander at your back flares - The turbines cycling up, propelling you up and above the endless rows of machines. Black sand is beginning to trickle down from above, now - The rents are growing wider still, the tremors enough to make walking difficulty...But you land on the Vitruvian Device's pedestal, all the same, the jets cushioning your descent.

(Continued.)

Just as you'd left it: The metal gibbet is twisted, melted, crumpled on itself...But the rough shape of it still stands. You take aim, as your plasma Vulcans cycle up - The square of black stone one of the few remaining stable places in the shuddering chamber...

It takes two full bursts, each shot fireballing off the frame in tiny cratering suns. While the destruction was terrible before, you make it *complete*...Blasting it all the way down to the bedrock, sharpenel whizzing out in all directions beneath your shots-

...And abruptly, the ground lurches, hard enough to make you stagger; The rumbling building to a fearful crescendo, as if the sky itself is shaking. The view through the rents is beginning to change - A bizarre roiling motion, as the red sky flickers with sullen lightning...

-It's SINKING.

The entire structure - The one you're in - it's filling itself in, as black sand rises around the armored feet of the silent machines, converted seamlessly from one form to the other. It's as if - By breaching the surface - time is beginning to move again, at an accelerated rate...

[ ] Transit out.
[ ] Fly out.
[ ] Free.

YOU HAVE CONTROL.

>>20783584
[X] Fly out.

I want to see what's up there.

File: 1348052595998.jpg-(53 KB, 600x232, Cool guys.jpg)

>>20783584
[x] Walk.

>>20783596
I don't care if cool guys don't look at explosions, that's retarded.

[x]Fly out.

>>20783584
Fly out. Let's see what's happening outside.

>>20783584
I'd like to fly out and see what's happening from the outside. But maybe we aught to call out and see if there's anyone who needs an evac. I'm just thinking, Hecate could have easily gotten new modern tools given how she could shift from Red to Real. Someone else might be in here.

File: 1348053212595.jpg-(58 KB, 640x480, jokerredskies.jpg)

Conscious of the racking convulsions all around you - The growing knowledge that this place isn't going to *exist*, for too much longer - the Tempest Scrander fires up, sparks lashing against the ground...

For one terrible moment, the whine dies - Only to start up again, as you force power to it; Leaving the ground on fuming wings of jetair, flickering contrails trailing across your crimson armor as you *soar*-

Your flying's hardly graceful; Fortunately, you don't need any complex manuvers - Just aiming for the widening rifts, and applying a full burn. The roof looms closer and *closer* now, falling away from you as you surge out into the seething skies.

You don't stop, as you emerge from dry darkness into the endless red of the crimson world. It's only when you're a safe distance from the ruin down below - When you can no longer hear the rumbling - *then* you turn back to look.

It's an awe-inspiring sight. The pitch of the wind is rising, in a mournful, keening howl – the crimson horizon losing definition, as the cold black vault of the polar dome *sinks* beneath you, disintegrating and collapsing upon itself at once; For the very first time, you see the red world from the skies...

-The impossible vista stretches out beneath you: Far, far larger than any mortal city, from *the* city you know. It's a patchwork landscape, the sprawling ruin of the cyclopean buildings stretching out all the way to the horizon...The terrain changing from area to area, without limit.

It goes on *forever* - The greatest metropolis of all time, an architectural nightmare that never ends. You're not alone, in the skies - In the distance, you can make out the black specks of other shapes - Players, perhaps, or Correctors - gravitating towards the sight.

(Continued.)

Ehhh, I hope Hecate doesn't get mad that we sunk her workshop.
Y'know, because we will find her.

>>20783664
Does our armor have a zoom function? I'd like to take a look at some of those players an see if they're wearing a smiley face.

You have no doubt that the Armory will stand another day, or even another hour. It'd be erased from the world, *and* your memory. The Tempest Scrander makes the warning growl of the charge dying down - It begins to sputter, as you bank into the ruins streets to make a landing, touching down amid the gutted remnants of a great tower, one that devastated several blocks in it's collapse.

Overhead, flying Players circle. You make out shapes that resembling flying crafts - Leather-winged monstroities - armored figures born aloft on jump packs - all those and more, like vultures swarming around a kill. No-one notices you, the sky filled with their darting shapes...Like a mass migration of birds, an air shows of infinite variation.

The world begins to slip sideways, as you come to a skidding stop. Your jets cut out at the last moment, dropping you back down to the paved street with less grace than you'd prefer...

-And then, at last, you come back to yourself, away from the crimson vastness. You feel a tremor under your feet, like an echo from far away - Something like a minor earthquake must have happened, here, because several windows lack glass, shivered forth from the frames of signs and displays; Nearby, a car's horn sounds again and again, crumpled like a tin can again a crash barrier.

And above you, the midday skies - Clear, without a cloud to be seen, the rain ended at last, sometime in the lost hours - have turned a deep and bloody red.

JOKER QUEST

EPISODE 20

TO BE CONTINUED.

>>20783713
Can't risk a battle. The notebook would get trashed for sure.

(Gentlemen, I'm afraid that this is all the time I have for tonight; I apologize for the late start, and the way this instalment didn't play out quite the way I expected.

I'm trying to avoid the 'pixel-hunting' problem common in adventure games, while still preserving free choice - Hence, a little less happened in this instalment than I was intending.

Once again, thanks for playing - As always, you've been a great audience. Good night, and god bless.)

>>20783736
The problem with adventure sequences in quests is that there's never enough time to seriously consider things.

Like, it only just now occurred to me that those X/Y axis coordinates might refer to a location among the rows and columns of warbots in the armory or a specific pedestal in the hall.

>>20783736

Awww, I still say we should have spent more time with Mio.

>>20783991

Any more, and she'd have had her tongue down our throat. Story first, girl-chasing later.

>>20783736

Damn, I feel that more could've been done this time around. Oh, well, youcan't have a hit every time, op.

I'm the only one who would like a list of all the characters and creatures we met until now with specs and description?

>>20784213

OP, are you hearing this? This would be an incredibly useful thing to have.

>>20784226
...I was thinking about it as more "cool" than "useful"...but I guess you're right.

>>20784226

I think he said he was working on that.

When are we going to see more Asuna, that's what I want to know.

What did the the note from the assumed Black Joker girl say?
I can't remember it.

>>20786306
The note said "Thank you for everything. I never want to see you again."