Fate of the World Session 8

It's the morning after your little field trip(and subsequent fight for your lives) and you wake up and the morning is about how you'd expect it to be: Up bright and early because Ryza is already in your kitchen and several people surrounding her as she makes things. Mosst notably is Dante and him having several strawberry Sundaes sitting around him.

You're not really surprised anymore...

You groggily get to your feet, your presence and awakeness being known by the others who were already up.

"Mornin' Hiro!" Renee exclaims bounding over to you, you'd never understand how in the hell she had so much energy at...you look for some sort of clock, and you see that the microwave reads that it's 10AM. Yeah, how the hell does she have so much energy at 10AM on a goddamn weekend?

"G-good morning Mr.Hiro..." Holly muttered

"gorfmatralmamon" You grumble back

"Uhm...?"

"It's just morning blues Holly, Hey Hiro, guess what! Ryza found out this cool Alchemy trick when some items she's been picking up after our battles!"

Alchemy thing...?

>What will you say?

>Jusshovemintrpotovather, newmacofee

You like at Ryza and Renee for a moment, before finally finding the suitable words to say to them "Jusshovemintrpotovather, newmacofee"

The two women look at you before turning to look at each other.

"Um...what did he say?" Ryza asked

"I'm not entirely sure, I think he mentioned coffee?"

"Well...I *can* make coffee, that's easy, but he has his coffee machine thing to do that. Oh I'll just say it anyway: I think I can make us some duplicates of items! You see when those doppelgangers we fought died, they left behind these weird inky black ords. I'm pretty sure they're the source of their power and I think with some other things I've gathered I can make something really cool!"

Words. These are words she's saying. Possibly good ones. But still, they are merely just that: Words.

The revelation hangs in the air some as Ryza looks at you. "Ehehehe...w-well Hiromu, what do you think?"

>Finethrowsomethin'in(Choose at least 2 items)
>This does not matter, acquire coffee
>Other/Write-in

>Finethrowsomethin'in(Bead and Doppel Source)

You let out another groan and walk over to the pot that Ryza is using(Seriously why does she have to use your pots for her wacky experiments) and you throw in your single revival bead into the pot and you tell Ryza to throw in one of the Doppel Sources.

"Okay, let me get to work!" Ryza exclaims as she takes a ladle and begins to stir the pot. What in the hell did she put in there? You think about this as Ryza's pot begins to shake a bit.

"Uh...is that safe?" Mythra whispers to Ace

"No idea, and if it isn't, let's be ready to beat it." Ace whispers back

"Right behind you..."

The pot shakes more violently before it finally stops and Ryza smiles "It worked! It really worked!" Ryza exclaims handing you 3 new revival beads.

"W-wow..." Holly mutters

"It actually works..." Renee said looking at the three small beads

"Holy shit..." You say slowly, as you are now fully awake at this revelation

>What's your next move?

>Make coffee as to not die from morning existence
>inquire about the status of breakfast
>Hey Ryza, can your pot boost our gear?

Okay, first things first: You need some freakin' coffee. You go to the coffee maker and go through the process of making yourself a cup. When it's finished, you take a nice sip of it and feel yourself waking up more properly. Sure the surprised helped, but *this* does it JUST right for you.

"So...is there any breakfast for me?" You ask

"O-oh um...he-here!" Holly exclaims handing you a plate of pancakes, nice and syrupy with some butter sitting on top like you'd see on a tv commercial. As you eat, you think more about Ryza just showed you.

"Hey Ryza, could you boost our gear with that alchemy of yours?"

"Actually I can! Well, it'll be a bit tricky...I had a furnace back home...but if I do that...and add some of that, then I might be able to pull it off!"

Well that, is certainly interesting... you think to yourself as you take a bite of food.

>What will you do next

>Mix the broken sword and red orb(70)

"Alright Ryza, how about mixing up a weapon? How do we go about that?" You ask

"Oh it's easy! Okay, watch this, I picked it up off of that weird clown guy we fought with the robot." She says fishing out the broken sword. "We've also got this red orb here! I've taken the time to examine it, and if my hunch is correct...well, just wait and see."

She tosses the items into the pot and hurriedly begins stirring. You can tell that she's excited, almost too excited if the way she's stirring is anything to  go by. You watch as she continues stirring so fast that some of the...whatever that's in the pot splashes onto the floor, the others (and yourself) backing up slightly as she continues.

"Almost...almost...Success!" Ryza shouts as a glow fills the room "Look Hiro, I did it!" she exclaims holding up a sword with an orange glow to it "Just as I thought, that orb had flame properties!"

"Hell fucking yes!" You exclaim taking the sword and marveling at it. You give it a practice swing and a small trail of flames flow from it.

>Obtained the Flameblade!

You can't wait to take this thing for a spin!

"Nice work Ryza!" You say shooting her the thumbs up

"Hehe, thanks! Glad you like it!"

Things continue on like this, with you marveling at your new weapon for a bit, before you and the girls recall all of your summons. What should your next plan of action be?

>What will you do?

>To the velvet room!

"So! Anyone fancy a trip to the shooting range?" you ask the two women

"The gun range? But why?" Renee asks

"Well, I figure we need to get better at handling our guns, can't keep missing and all."

"Well I guess so...even if I've never really missed anything." Renee teases

You feel your eyebrow twitch at that, but you decide to just let it slide for now

"Um...I-I don't mind. It sounds like fun!" Holly said with a smile "S-so let's go, I can call my uncle and let him know."

"Cool, but first, let's go see Mirei. We've got more crystals to spend."

"Well, that couldn't hurt. These guys have only been getting more and more brutal." Renee sighed

"I'll say. Let's stop by before we do anything else."

The ladies nod in agreement and once again you all trek up to your room. You wish you could smile at the fact that you've brought two girls to your room, but you always end up on the couch, so it's sort of not that great really. Especially when you aren't joining them in the room...

You all step through the glowing blue portal and once more you're at the Velvet Room.

"Hello my friends, how are you today?"

"Not dead, so that's one thing." You say with a shrug

"Doin' fine Igor!" Renee exclaims with a thumbs up

"H-hi Mr.Igor." Holly says with a little wave

"We're going to see Mirei, is she busy?"

"Oh no, she is ever at your service. Please, do not let me delay you."

With that, Igor leaves you to head through right door where Mirei awaits.

"Hello again you three. How may I be of service?"

>Summon allies with Common Summon Crystal(Choose for Hiro,Renee, or Holly)
>Summon allies with a Rare summon Crystal
>Power up Allies
>Leave

>Summon allies with Rare Summon Crystal(Holly, 103)

"You first Holly. Go on." You say

"O-okay!" Holly said stepping forward. She takes one of the crystals and focuses on the type of hero she'd like.

"There...I see it! The ally of your choosing! Come forth!" Mirei shouts

The light engulfs the room, until you see a...okay you have no idea who this girl is, she's extremely tiny, but her shield is massive!

"Hi, I'm Maple! Don't worry Holly, I'm gonna do my best to help you beat this Nyarlatheotep person! It'll be okay I promise!"

"S-sure! Oka-okay! Let's do it Maple!"

>Summon allies with Common Summon Crystal(Choose for Hiro,Renee, or Holly)
>Summon allies with a Rare summon Crystal
>Power up Allies
>Leave

As Maple begins to enter Holly's COMP, a strange phenomenon occurs, as the lights in the area dim and the same light that happens when a summoning occurs takes place again.

"Oh my, I didn't expect something like this!" Mirei exclaims "This will be interesting!"

The room shakes some more before finally, sitting on the floor is a...child?"

[6:57 PM]
"Hello! My name is Aurora
The one with the big noise filled me in
Now let us go and make things right again!"

"W-what the...um...h-hello Aurora. I'm Holly..."

"Now this is interesting, it seems there was some surplus energy in that crystal, granting you two allies Holly. Treat her right now okay?"

"Y-yes ma'am!" Holly replies

>Summon allies with Common Summon Crystal(Choose for Hiro,Renee, or Holly)
>Summon allies with a Rare summon Crystal
>Power up Allies
>Leave

>Summon allies with Rare Summon Crystal(Renee, 110 AND a Nat 69!)

"Okay, it's my turn next!" Renee says walking up to Mirei.

"Very well, do it just like before Renee."

"Yeah! I'm gonna get someone nice and strong! Just wait and see!"

Renee takes the crystal and focuses with all her might to call forth who she wants. The engulfs the room and when it finishes you're left staring at a blonde woman.

[7:38 PM]
"Hahaha! Thank you for calling upon me! It is I Darkness!"

"Darkness? Well um, hello Darkness I'm Renee and-"

"THERE'SNONEEDTOEXPLAINIGORTOLDME!" she blurts out "DON"T WORRY! THROW ME AT ALL OF YOUR ENEMIES SO THAT THEY  CAN VIOLATE AND HUMILIATE ME IN FRONT OF YOU ALLLLLLLLLLLLL~!"

"I-wha-h-huh...?!" Renee replies

"Well...she seems like a keeper." You mutter

>Summon allies with Common Summon Crystal(Choose for Hiro,Renee, or Holly)
>Summon allies with a Rare summon Crystal
>Power up Allies
>Leave

>Summon allies with Rare Summon Crystal(Hiro 96)

After Darkness manages to finally stop being well...Darkness, it's your turn. Mirei gives you those same steps as before and you focus on what kind of person you want to join you. Someone whose good at healing would be ideal. Someone who can really get you out of a tight pinch if you and your friends are in trouble.

"I see them! Now come forth!"

As before, another bright flash engulfs the room before your new ally stands before you.

[8:44 PM]
"Goodness, it really is something that I'm constantly being pulled to different realms. Well, no matter, I am here now and I'll do my best to aid you in these trying times. I am Y'shtola Rhul. A pleasure to meet you.

"Nice to meet you and welcome aboard!" You say extended your hand, she takes it shaking it a lot more firmly than you'd expected.

>Summon allies with Common Summon Crystal(Choose for Hiro,Renee, or Holly)
>Summon allies with a Rare summon Crystal
>Power up Allies
>Leave

>Power up
2 for Y'shtola
2 for Maple
2 For Aurora
2 for Darkness

Your next move is to power up your new allies a bit. You got a decent amount of crystals from those two insane twins so you and your friends funnel the power of some of them into your new allies to increase their power. No doubt it'll be a good thing you did whenever it is you next get into a fight.

With that being done, you all leave the Velvet Room, Mirei giving you a dainty wave as you exit the area. You say goodbye to Igor and return to your room. You do a quick search on your phone for a gun range in the area and to your luck there actually is one. It's a bit of a drive, but hey, you've got no problem with that.

So, with that being the case, you and the girls hop into your car and drive off.  You make sure to leave your personal guns behind. Sure anyone who isn't in the know about things can't see them, but you don't think it'd be wise to show up to a gun range with your own personal weapons that you bought off a coffee shop owner. You're pretty sure it's kind of illegal.
You pull in to the shooting range's parking lot and after some talking with the clerk and get yourselves all set up. You manage to all get your guns of choice too! You picking up an SMG, Renee with her shotgun, and Holly with her AK (you're still surprised she handles it with such ease). You put on the ear muffs provided to you and now it's time to start firing!

"Hehe, come on Hiro, let's see whose better! I bet you I can hit more targets than you!" Renee says with a giggle

"You sure about that? What about you Holly?"

"U-uh....I-I'm okay with it! L-let's go!"

Looks like you've got a bit of competition going on!

>Roll 1d100+AGI!

>Hiro:61+8=69
>Renee:87+5=92
>Holly:49+4=53

You take aim with your gun and at first you're actually doing pretty good! You hit the targets dead on and you can feel yourself entering the zone...and then you take a look at Renee and Holly. You learn something from watching them: The kickback on a gun makes a girl's boobs jiggle quite nicely after repeated fire. You...try to keep focus, but that's managed to successfully rattle you.

Holly wasn't doing too well, missing a lot of shots but she was still pretty focused all things considered. But you...you falter hard and though you hit a few more targets, it's not as percise as it was before and you can tell that you're missing more and more as your little competition goes on. When you're finished, Renee is has a smug grin on her face as the scores are tallied up.

"Teehee, looks like your shooting needs more work Hiro~!"

"T-that's not true! I was...distracted."

"Distracted by what?"

There's no way you can tell her that her tits jiggling like jello is what caused your distraction, so you just make something up.

"W-well I mean, it's just all the fighting. I just was thinking about it and it kinda got to me I guess."

"O-oh..." Renee mutters "I uh...I think I get it. Come on, best two out of three yeah?"

>Try again?

>Hiro:55+8=63
>Renee:26+5=31
>Holly:78+4=82

"Sure, best two out of three couldn't hurt." You say taking position again. The girls do the same and...things sort of play out the same. While you aren't distracted by boobs this time, you're still only able to get so many shots in before your accuracy tapers off and you miss more than you actually hit. You spare a glance over at Renee and she's not doing too hot either, that makes you feel better.

...Until you see Holly

she must not have been too happy with her performance the first round, because she goes all in this time and is hyper-focused, hitting multiple targets with ease. Whenever another pops up, she quickly shifts aim and opens fire on it before going back to another one.

How the hell is she so good?!

This continues on for a few more minutes, until things come to a halt and you all look at the score tally.

Yeah, no doubt about it. Holly smoked both of you.

"Great work Holly!" Renee says patting her back "I didn't know you were that good."

"I...um...I play a lot of FPS games when I have the time. I-it's fun!" she replies with a small blush on her face.

"Well, it's 1-1, with Hiro in dead last." Renee says giggling  "One more to see who wins it?"

>Think you can win this time?

>Hiro:99+8=107
>Renee:60+5=65
>Holly:47+4=51

That last jab Renee made at you stings. You're gonna win this time! You're not gonna be in dead last! You all get yourselves set up again and this time. You are focused. You keep your eyes on any target that appears and hit it with pinpoint accuracy. In some cases, it's almost as if you're able to predict where they're going to appear as you open fire on them.

Renee is faltering, you can already tell that she's not hitting as many targets as before and Holly isn't doing much better either. In fact, you can tell that you've won this round by virtue of not having missed a single target. You've hit every single one that's popped up, and when you're finished the scores are tallied up.

"W-what the? Hiro, you did this good?!" Renee shouts incredulously upon seeing the results.

"What can I say, when I focus I get good results." You reply smugly

"Fine then, since it's all tied up, there's only one more match to go. Winner takes all!"

"O-okay, one more time!" Holly exclaims with a determined look (or at least as much of one as she can muster)

"Take your position Hiro, I'm gonna show you what I'm made of!"

You step up, ready to give it one final go.

>It's the final showdown!

>Hiro:98+8=106
>Renee:70+5=75
>Holly:47+4=51

Okay, one more go at it! You step up again and taking a few deep breathes you focus like you did before and you start unloading on any of the targets that show up. You don't miss a single one, hitting them all and almost always being on target. You don't bother looking at the women, you're too into the zone. Yeah this is perfect...

You think you hear Renee say something, you aren't entirely sure. It doesn't matter, you have to win this, there's a target on the right. Okay, got him, one on the left, got that one too, two more on the right, you gun em down easy.

It feels like an eternity that this little competition goes on, until finally, at long last the targets stop coming and you feel yourself calm down.

"W-wow Mr.Hiro..." Holly mutters

"Hiro, are you some kind of gun nut?" Renee asks

"What do you mean?"

"Well Hiro...you kinda shot all of the targets."

"Aren't I suppose to?" you ask

"Hiro, you shot our targets."

"...Oh, Uh, Sorry?"

"It's fine, you looked really cool." Holly mutters "Like...like a hero straight out of a-an action movie!"

"Yeah...but that's not important, I suppose what is important is that you won our little game! Well, not like there's any prizes though." Renee shrugs

"Right, we should probably get goin' we can't keep Holly forever after all. Just let me hit the bathroom."

"Alright, we'll be waiting for you out front."

You nod to the two girls and make your way to the bathroom. You handle your business and begin washing your hands when you look at the mirror...what the hell. You don't see your reflection...but instead you see the moon?

"What the hell...?"

>Touch the mirror
>NOPENOPENOPE

>sword touch

Alright, you've seen enough freaky shit in the past while to know that this is some weird next level shit. Some kind of monster maybe? You don't hesitate for a moment and take out your flaming sword and poke the mirror with it. At first nothing seems to happen, but the mirror ripples a bit an the next thing you know you're literally being sucked into it!

"Wh-whoa, wait what the-!"

You feel like you're falling for who knows how long, your body warping and twisting before finally you're standing on the moon. You turn back to look at the earth...and yeah that's definitely earth...but what the hell is that black hole on the bottom of it?

As curious as you find it, you don't have the luxury of waiting around...you have to find a way out of here. You continue walking around, how are you even breathing up here? There's no air in space! Your thoughts about all of this are drowned out though as you come across a lone figure standing facing the earth. He stares at the black hole, preparing to step towards it.

"Please wait...we have a visitor." You look around to see who spoke, but all you see is a mass of wires connected to some machine. What the hell is that thing?

The armored person turns to you, staring for a second and then towards the machine.

"An anomaly has occurred. This person is indeed human, yet scans show that he exudes an energy somewhat similar to yours."

The armor-clad person stares at you again

"I shall question him. This is only the 13th iteration of the Schwarzwelt. It has been 400 years since the last incursion. Humanity is learning. You have time to spare."

You really aren't following this...

"Unidentified human. Why are you here?"

>I have no idea
>What exactly is here
>Why can I breathe in space?!
>Other/Write-in

>I needed a piss
>some sort of mirror portal
>and where's my fucking helmet

"I needed a piss while at the gun range and the next thing I know there's some sort of weird mirror portal that leads me to space. With that being the case, where is my fucking helmet, why can I breathe in space. And by god what is that hole on the planet?!"

The computer...thing is silent for a moment before speaking again.

"Interesting. Allow me to scan again..."

It is quiet once more as the armored-man continues looking at you, almost as if he is daring you to make a move. That gun he has is pretty threatening looking as well

"Scan Complete." The computer thing says "A more thorough diagnostic has been done. Upon scanning you are currently more of a interdimensional spirit and thus you are not actually 'here'. Hypothesis would indicate that the Schwarzwelt has a part to play in this. However we cannot be certain."

"What the hell is a Schwarzwelt?" You ask

"The black hole that you see upon the earth. Perhaps not on your earth, but for us it is a place where demons gather and if left unchecked they will ravage the earth. My partner has made it his eternal duty to destroy it should it ever return."

Well...shit, that's rough.

"Okay, that's fine and all...but how do I get home?"

"As we speak, your body is already pulling you back to your world. It will not be long before you return...tell me, does your world suffer the plague of demons?"

>Yes
>No
>Somewhat

>Yes...Somewhat

"I mean...somewhat. We've got a evil fictional characters to deal with. Though the fact that he's even attacking us makes me wonder if he's really fiction anymore. My point is, not exactly demons, but those aren't off the table. So yes? You get what I mean..."

"I see...then I have a proposition to make."

You watch as the armored man looks at the computer, you aren't sure what he's thinking, but perhaps he is surprised?

"My partner and I cannot traverse worlds. However, he can impart onto you some of his knowledge. Take what you learn and defend humanity from its enemies. Though our earths are not the same, the protection and survival is still tantamount and is our mission."

The armored warrior looks to you, drawing his gun...

"Hey whoa, hang on now, I don't wanna fight!"

"There is no worry, you assuredly cannot die. What's more,  you are far too weak to harm my comrade. Draw your weapon and hit him as hard as possible. That will determine how worthy you are."

Oh this thing is a little shit talker isn't it? You go to grab your sword but...it's not there? What the hell?!
You don't have anything to fight with...until you feel your SMG in its holster.

This shit is too weird.

"Come now, there is not much time left. You will return to your world soon, and my partner has his own obligations. Do not hold back."

Fuck guess there's nothing to do but go along with this!

>The Armored-Man Prepares to test you!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jaqpQNjJLc

>Survive for 5 turns!
>You can only use Gun attacks and items!
>Your COMP isn't working...

>Do your attack rolls and what have you

>Hiro:Spray and Pray(49,91)

You decide to just unload on the guy as hard as you can, shooting wildly at him. However, you notice something, unlike others you've fought, he just stands there.

>The Armored Man did not bother dodging your attack!

>The Armored Man stares at you

>The Armored Man is waiting to see what you'll do next

>4 turns left!

>Hiro HP:72/72 MP:36/46

"Do not falter. Continue doing your best." The Computer chimes in

>Hiro:Spray and Pray(100,61)

Alright, this guy thinks he's tough shit? You get up close this time and unload directly into his face! You manage to him and he even stumbles back a bit! You can tell that he definitely felt that one, especially since he didn't bother dodging again.

>The Armored Man appears impressed by you!

What follows next is something you didn't see coming. Instead of using his gun, the Armored-Man instead tries to punch you! You dodge the first hit easily, but that just leads you open for the next two, and dear lord they fucking hurt.

"What the hell is that thing made out of?!" You blurt out

"The Demonica armor-" The Computer starts

"IT WAS A RHETORICAL QUESTION!"

>3 turns left!

>Hiro:HP:16/72 MP:36/46

>Armored-Man:HP:???????

>Hiro:Spray and Pray(Burger,Defend)

You fall back and pull out one of the Ryza Burgers and you take a big sloppy bite of it. You feel your wounds heal slightly. The Armored-Man looks at you, bewildered by the action while you take a defensive stance.

>The Armored man is confused by the burger

>The Armored Man nods at your taking a defensive stance before attacking you again!

You suffer another punch and though you block it, you still feel like you're on your last legs as you can barely stand. Fuck this space guy and the goddamn armor!

"You are still standing. Impressive. Your potential is becoming clear. Continue holding out, you will be returned home soon.


>2 turns left!

>Hiro:HP:1/72 MP:36/46

>Armored-Man:HP:???????

>Hiro:Spray and Pray(Burgerx2)

Okay, that hurt. Christ, that hurt. Okay you need to fix yourself up again. You shove more burgers into your mouth, chewing and swallowing as much as you can before returning to the fight.


>The Armored-Man is still very confused by the burger and how it works

>The Armored-Man appears to be contemplating something, although you aren't sure what it is...

>The Armored-Man points his gun at you, as if he's preparing for something!

"Time is almost up, you shall soon return to your world. Good job enduring things thus far. You are almost done."

1 turn left!

>Hiro:HP:36/72 MP:36/46

>Armored-Man:HP:???????

>Hiro:Dodge and Fire(82,94)

You don't know what he's doing with that gun, but he's taking aim at you! you try to plan it out, wait for him fire first. And as soon he fires you dodge as best you can, you can feel it hit your leg, whatever that attack is, it burns, but even as you get hit, you open fire on the Armored-Man, managing to hit him at just the right angle so that it throws off his aim just a bit, not a lot, but enough to save yourself.

"Time is up." The Computer states "Good work, you survived an encounter with my partner. I do not know your name, but in your endeavors I wish you luck."

The Armored-Man raises his hand and you can feel your leg healing...and your consciousness fading away. It's like you're being sucked into a vacuum cleaner. As you fade away, you hear a more deeper voice speak and its then you realize that it's not the computer, but the Armored-Man himself speaking to you.
"Good job. I will leave you with the words a great man once said to me:"You realize, I hope, that you have chosen to side with the weakest power in this conflict. Great hardships await you on the path you've chosen to follow. But I want you to remember the way you feel now... I want you to remember that determination."

"I hope you take those words to heart stranger and do what's right. Your Journey is only just beginning.

You can say nothing as your body twists and warps and before you know it you're back in the bathroom standing in front of the sink. Looking at the Mirror, it's normal and shows no signs of anything weird happening. Did you even really just go to the moon?

As you think on this, you realize that you've been granted the knowledge of a new skill to use with your gun!

>Hiro learned Grateful One!

"Seriously, what the hell was that you say as you walk out to the waiting women."

"Hiro you okay? You look a bit out of it..."

>I just took a trip to the moon
>Just got my ass-kicked is all.
>I don't wanna talk about it, let's go home
>Other/Write-in

>I just took a trip to the moon.

"I just took a trip to the moon." You say casually "It is not made out of cheese I think I may have also developed catoptrophobia."

"Catop-wha? You're clearly out of it. Come on, let's get Holly home."

"Yeah...right."

You hop into your car and drive to Holly's house. It's a bit of a ride, but not too bad really. You have Holly call ahead that she's on her way home and when you all pull up he's already standing at the doorway.

"B-bye Mr.Hiro, Bye Ms.Renee, I-I'll see you later okay?"

"You got it Holly, take it easy now." you say letting her out

She waves the two of you off as you begin the drive back to your apartment

"That was really fun Hiro, we gotta do that again sometime!"

"Heh sure, and I'll be sure to smoke you again!"

"That was a fluke! I'll be sure to win the next time!"

"Yeah yeah, I'm sure you will."

The back and forth continues like this until you get home, with Renee deciding to go and take a nice long soak in the bathtub to relax, leaving you alone.

"Hey Hiro...I got a question." You hear Ace say from your COMP

"What's up Ace?"

"Well uh...ya mind if I check up on my little brother? You can do that right?"

>I guess so
>Sure thing Ace
>Not right now
>Other/Write-in

>Sure thing Ace

You weren't expecting that...but you know the whole deal with Ace, so you're in no real position to deny him this one favor.

"Sure thing Ace." You say as he appears out of your COMP

"Okay so, I kinda get the idea that we're supposedly made up in this world...so there's gotta be some way to find out what Luffy's doing right? Use that Teevee thing or whatever?"

"Well, not that at least." Follow me

You lead Ace up to your room and you boot up your computer. You haven't been using it lately with all that's going on, but after a minute or two you're already on youtube.

"Alright Ace what do you wanna see?"

"The prison after I uh...kick the bucket. I just wanna see if Luffy gets out."

You do your best to find the moment he's asking for and after some searching, you manage to get the part you wanted. Sure enough, Luffy did in fact get away. However, White Beard wasn't so lucky, but even so you see a smile crack on Ace's face.

"He made it! My little bro made it!" Ace exclaims shaking you wildly "He's alive! He's alive!"

"Y-yeah he is!" You cough

"I...damn...White Beard though. I guess...I should have seen that coming, but still...at least Luffy got out...at least someone I care about got out!"

You notice that Ace's face is absolutely stained with tears...

>He goes on to be a great pirate
>Leave Ace for now
>Other/Write-in

>Pat him on the shoulder.
>Kid goes places.
>Leave

You cannot think of much to say, and so you opt to simply pat him on the shoulder, the grown man shaking as he sobs his eyes out.

"The kid goes places." You say solemnly before exiting the room, you aren't entirely sure if Ace heard you, but you decide to leave him be...you aren't entirely sure if 'grieving' is the right word, but Ace is definitely feeling something.

You have given Ace some closure on what happened after his death. Ace's Affection can now be raised higher!

Ace has learned the Brotherly Spirit skill!

You head down to the living room, and flick on the TV, just some random news playing

"Wow...Ace has had it pretty rough huh?" Duran says from your COMP

"Yeah...yeah he has. We aren't speaking of this, got that everyone?"

A curious of agreement comes from your COMP as things settle down again and you focus on the tv...what to watch?

>News
>Cartoons
>Reality TV
>Other/Write-in

>News

Time to be a responsible adult and see just what the hell is going on in the world. To that end, you turn on the news to see what all is going on. Thankfully, there doesn't seem to be anything being shown about the carnival, so there's more than likely no issues there. No dead people or anything like that thankfully.

You continue watching and learn that the next few days are going to be extremely rainy. Well that's something at least. As much as you like the sun, you don't mind a nice rainy day or two every now and then. Aside from that, the other big story seems to be some big technology expo that's going to happen in a little while, there's no defined date, but it's supposed to be really cool.

Maybe you'll check it out at some point. Could be a good time-waster

As you continue watching TV,Your phone rings with a call from Holly. Huh, wonder what's up, you answer to hear Holly's trademark stutter.

"O-oh um...M-Mr.Hiro! H-hello!"

"Hey Holly what's up?"

"Um...well...that is..." she starts

"What is it Holly?"

"I...um, wanted to know if you could hang out with me at some point? U-uh...i-if that's okay? ITOTALLYGETIFYOUTHINKI'MNOTWORTHITTHOUGH!!!"

You instinctively pull the phone from your ear. She's really a bundle of nerves

>That'd be great Holly
>I'll need to take a rain check
>Other/Write-in

>That'd be great Holly

"That'd be great Holly."

"REALLY?!" She shouts again, which causes you to move the phone again

"U-uh yeah, should I tell Renee too?"

"Oh um...t-that be great! I'd love for Ms.Renee to come!"

"Alright, when should we drop by?"

"U-um, whenever is fine for you, I know that you two still have jobs and all that."

"Well okay, I guess I'll just call you then, would that be okay?"

"Y-yeah! That'll be great Mr.Hiro! Th-thanks so much, I really mean it!"

"Heh, no problem. Catch ya later Holly."

She hangs up, leaving you to your thoughts, and as if right on cue, Renee plops down right next to you. The smell of shampoo permeating the air around her. She's got some extremely loose clothing on that makes it clear with how little she's wearing underneath it. In fact, you're almost certain she's got nothing but panties on...

"Boy, baths are the best! Anything interesting happen Hiro?"

>You free to hang out with Holly in a couple days?
>Couldn't you wear some more proper clothing?
>Other/Write-in

>You free to hang out with Holly in a couple of days?
>You better not have used all the hot water by the way
>Stripes or black?

"You free to hang out with Holly in a couple of days?"

Renee strokes her chin for a moment. "Hmmm maybe..."

"Maybe? You don't want to? You and Holly seem like good friends

"Oh it's nothing like that, just well..." she tenses up for a moment before looking away from  you "I may have found something good. A real good opportunity for me is all."

"What do you mean?"

She goes to speak, but stops herself. "You know what, I'll save that revelation if things happen to pan out. I don't wanna get either of our hopes up."

"Okay..." You say deciding to drop the subject. "You better not have used all the hot water by the way."

"Oh there should be plenty left."

"Good. And one more question."

"Yeah?"

"Stripes or black?" You ask with a smug grin

"Stripes or...? You perv!" Renee exclaims slapping your shoulder

"Sorry sorry, it was a joke."

"It was a bad one!" Renee huffs

"I get it I get it."
"Besides, both of those are wrong! The real answer is purple." she replies flashing you with a cheeky smile.

...You lose this round.

>End