[IC Board] All the World's a Game - Season II

[wonderweiss]

Yakumo Estate
_______________________

Otori shook his head.

"Everyone... Everyone's dead. Their bodies buried. Yours was the only one that no one could find.I had no friends left. They were all dead. I was so depressed that I even contemplated doing... Something unnerving."

[Kristia]

Banished library

Nera looked at the statue she was closest to and to its respected tile "Ok then, does the statues can be moved while not activating the furnaces or they have to be lit?" she asked outloud while preparing to move the heavy object

[S121]

Yakumo Estate - Mayohiga - Gensokyo | Day

John couldn't help but feel that them never finding his body was some sort of grim joke.

(Spartans are only MIA, huh?), John grimly thought.

"What were you planning to do?", John asked Otori in a somewhat confused and suspicious tone.

[Cucoo5]

Banished library - Gensokyo

"Maybe...Though there was something odd about them when the furnace was lit as Annie and Patchouli pointed out." Shulk said.
"Aye, something tells me it's not as easy as it looks. Why else would the entire room change otherwise? I have a feeling whoever set this up wanted to make sure not just anyone can get past. Like a sort of lock where you just have to set the key." Kenway said as he looked around the room. "Also...there's 7 statues...but only two that need to be moved? Hmm...Oi, tell me, how many valuables are there beyond here do you reckon?"

---

The statue will not move...

[wonderweiss]

Yakumo Estate
____________________

"... I... Was so distraught that I created a machine... Nay, a monster. Takoizu, youere never told of this. I never would've told anybody, but since the future is going to be history, I might as well show you now. There was no one left, so... I used my father's research and money into building this."

The next slide showed a giant computer connecting to every known console in the world. Behind it were video games, including the Halo series, the Touhou series, the metal gear series and many more. Then, at the bottom... A Horizon console, and the computer only had one button: RESET GAME.

[Kristia]

Banished library - Gensokyo

Renamon noticed what the pirate was talking about "Maybe if we either put a statue on its place, another tile shall appear for the next statue" she said while trying to sense a hidden tile around the room

[S121]

Yakumo Estate - Mayohiga - Gensokyo | Day

John was confused by what he was seeing, but he was smart enough to quickly figure out what its function was.

"Is that.. what I think it is?", John asked Otori.

Takoizu already knew what it was, thanks to what Jack told her earlier. It offended her before, but now that she was not in a confrontation, she simply acknowledged the machine as a desperate attempt from Otori to revive his friends.

"Jack already told me. I then told him that you could replicate their bodies, but not their souls.", Takoizu calmly said to Otori.

[Cucoo5]

Banished library - Gensokyo

"Maybe..." Shulk said. "Let's see...here, I marked the two statues in dark green that match up with those two tiles."



"Doesn't seem there is a straight-forward path for them to reach their destination." Kenway pointed out. "Didn't you say there was a second slot in the furnace?"

[Kristia]

Banished library - Gensokyo

"Nera, can you sense anything?" Renamon asked to her partner as she was also searching for a tile

the jackal closed her eyes and focused on the diferent elements of the statues, there was small embers of aura coming from each statue and the two already shown tiles had similar embers for their statues "I can sense two faintly.. its over there" she pointed to the one she found (C2 and C6)

"I think you could help me if we use your heightened senses, let me hold you" the lucario spoke as the fox got within arm reach. Nera put her paw on Renamon´s shoulder as her energy flowed making her senses highly sensitive.

At first, the fox reacted like of pain "I hear too many things.. and see everything and.. nothing.." she said breathing deeply trying to focus as the overdose of energy obviously was strong. She closed her eyes to isolate what she wasn´t looking for and could sense other two tiles "Over... there" she pointed to the other tiles (F4 and I2)

liftining her paw, Nera took Renamon´s arms to help her calm down

[Cucoo5]

Banished library - Gensokyo



"And then, there was six." Kenway said as he went over to inspect the tiles. "Aye, these have symbols too. Probably are correlated to..."

"Yeah...which symbol goes to which statue?" Shulk asked as he looked at his notepad.

[wonderweiss]

Yakumo Estate
____________________

Otori simply faced John. "... I was going to create a second Horizon incident. Everyone would respawn. Everyone would renew relationships. And I'd be the Neo-Yakuza leader, waiting to be taken down by my next of kin. Watching down as my child's friends died. Watching as he'd suffer depression. Watching... As he presses the reset button... And the bloodline grows stronger by each generation. But that's why I stopped. I didn't want those horrible things to happen. I shut down the project... But not destroyed it. Any questions before we move on?"

[Cucoo5]

Yakumo Estate - Mayohiga - Gensokyo | Day

"So...he would see to the destruction and recreation of the world." The voice of a young man spoke up, the same voice as the white haired man that had helped Takoizu, but he was no where to be seen. It was faint and only Takoizu could hear it properly.

[S121]

Yakumo Estate - Mayohiga - Gensokyo | Day

"That's not ethical.", John flatly said to Otori.

"Taker me for example. Even if I had a machine to bring Cortana back, it doesn't mean that I would. She was one-of-a-kind, and as such, she will remain that way. Trying to copy someone is an insult to their memory. I still want her back, but I know that even if the copy looked, acted, and sounded like her, it wouldn't actually be her. The same goes for every single friend and fellow Spartan that I have ever known... Watching them die is painful enough, but... dwelling on it only makes it worse.", John explained to Otori, slightly pausing his words at the end.

To be honest, John found the thought of copying living beings to be upsetting. To him, some things should never be replicated, or else it would lose its worth, its value. Even though John found it upsetting, he calmed down and continued to speak.

"Sometimes-... Sometimes, you just have to let it go, or it will kill you.", John said in a calmer tone.

It was evident that John was concerned for Otori. After all, not only were they friends, John also went through the same grief Otori was going through.

[wonderweiss]

Yakumo Estate
______________________

Otori smiled.

"What's really sad is that I couldn't see it and there was no one to help me see it. At least I didn't make that mistake."

He flipped to the next slide, showing a few red and white ribbons.



Banished Library
___________________

Jason was (again) bored when he saw something on the roof... Something reflecting.

"The hell?"

He shined his flash-light on it, revealing it to be a mirror.

"Hey guys, look what I found."

[Cucoo5]

Banished library - Gensokyo

"Huh? Shulk looked up when Jason spoke and was shining the flashlight up towards a peculiar object. "Is that a...Mirror? Why would there be mirrors up there?"