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

[S121]

Mess Hall - Prometheus Labs - London | Dawn

"Mmhm. We have a training room deeper in The Labs. I'll take you there once I'm finished eating. In the meantime, you and Flandre could get something to eat before we head over there. is that alright with you?", Alice asked Cole.

[Koishi]

Treasure Vault

---

As Takoizu said that, uncloaking all around the elevator were large purple chameleons, the size of a large dog.

"Chameleons." HP sighed. The chameleons however simply sat there, as if waiting.

[WriggleRid3r]

Eientei - Bamboo Forest of the Lost - Gensokyo

---

"Well, you're thrown into an arena called Summoner's Rift..." Annie tried to explain, but the more and more she continued, the more strenuous it became. "And you go to your designated lane... uh that's where you start your battle... Ah dammit how do I explain!"

She sighed and looked at John. "It's better if you see a battle by yourself... the Institute of War's main lobby shows live battles, so you can get the hang of it there."

[S121]

Eientei - Bamboo Forest of the Lost - Gensokyo

"Okay. I'll be sure to observe the battles once we get there.", John said as he opened up a Corridor of Darkness.

"I'll be back. I'm going to grab some people to help us, and talk to Satori.", John added.

After speaking, John entered into the Corridor of Darkness and disappeared.



Near Chireiden - Underground City - Old Hell - Gensokyo | Dusk

All of a sudden, a Corridor of Darkness opened up at the front door of Chireiden and John stepped out. John wa now in Old Hell, more specifically The Underground City, the home of the Oni. In the city behind him, John could heer the hustle and bustle of the local Oni as they walked the streets, drank at one of the many bars, shouted, and partied. No matter what time it was, it always seemed as if there was something going on in the busier parts of the city. Such chaos and merrymaking did not particularly suit John, but he didn't really pay any mind to it. Besides, it was not like he was there to visit the city, he was here for Satori's help.

After John approached the door, he grabbed the iron knocker of the door and smacked it against its striking piece.

*KNOCK* *KNOCK* *KNOCK*

Now all that was left to do was wait for someone to answer. In the meantime, John opened up an internet browser on his HUD and began to research the game Annie came from League of Legends. If John wanted to be competent on the battlefield, then he would need to learn about the game as soon as possible.






Treasure Vault

Takozu was surprised to see the chameleons staring at both The Higher Power and her. She did not really know what they wanted, and she didn't really care. All she wanted was to leave and finish her journey.

"Well, time to go.", Takoizu said as she pressed the button on the elevator and readied herself for a possible fight.

[WriggleRid3r]

Chireiden

---

Not long after John knocked on the large gate of Chireiden, the door swung open, revealing a red-haired catgirl wearing a simple gray long-sleeve, olive green shorts, and a black eyepatch: Rin Kaenbyou, or Orin as her close friends and associates called her.



"Ah it's just you." Rin said welcomingly. "Come on in. Who are you here for?"

[Luna Pixu]

Mess Hall - Prometheus Labs - London | Dawn

---

So this place did have a training room. How very convenient. Although it was obvious that there was going to be a training room of some manner here. This place was basically some kind of military base or training facility for these SPARTANs so it made sense that there would be a place for them to do indoor training. Of course, Cole and Flandre would not be able to visit this training room until Alice was finished with her meal. Naturally, the wise option would be for the duo get their own meals while they wait for Alice to finish.
"Yeah. That seems fair." Cole replied with an indifferent and almost unemotional voice. With that done, Cole then turned around and prepared to speak to Flandre. But... she wasn't with Cole. Where on earth did she go? Cole thought that Flandre would stick by his side in this but it turned out that she went wandering off. If Cole had any chance of getting this play session done, Flandre needed to be with him.

Fortunately, it was very easy to see Flandre amongst the crowd of SPARTANs and the few scientists. After all, how could someone lose a girl with unique features like Flandre's in crowd like this? Flandre's wings and clothing made her stick out very easily amongst the crowd so Cole very quickly located her. Moving over to Flandre, Cole saw that she was speaking to the nearby SPARTANs once again.
"Hey, what are you eating? Can I have some?"
"Oooh... I like armour. It's pretty!"
"What's your name? Mine's Flandre."
Cole didn't know what to think about this. For a peppy and random girl like her, why did she wind up with a pessimist like Cole? It was as if Fate itself decided that it would be funny to put complete opposites together and see what would happen. But thinking about Flandre's behaviour, she was not at all like this yesterday. Or rather, the second half of yesterday. She was calm and on the border of being considered shy. And before that, she was in a world of her own on the intent of killing those around her. Just what on earth was this girl? If Cole had to make any comparison to the other people he met in Empire City, Flandre could be somewhat compared to Sasha -the leader of another gang in Empire City, the Reapers-. But at the same time, Flandre was nothing like Sasha. Furthermore, she was nothing like anyone Cole had met before.
"Flandre." Cole called out to her. His voice in a half serious, half calm tone. From another person's perspective, it was hard to see as to what mood he was in. He could be trying to scold Flandre or he could merely be trying to talk to her.
"Huh?" Flandre turned her head and saw Cole staring down at her. "Cole! What's the matter? Is Alicey being a meany?" Flandre said as she put on a childish pouting face.

[S121]

Near Chireiden - Underground City - Old Hell - Gensokyo | Dusk

John was watching a tutorial video when Rin opened the door and greeted him. As soon as he heard Rin's voice, John shrank the video screen and placed it in the top-right corner of his visor, allowing him to talk to Rin and watch it at the same time. John was a little surprised to see Rin in modern clothing, but in these past four months, it seemed to be a trend or craze, perhaps due to the Hakurei Border being destroyed. What John found most striking was the fact that Rin's eye still did not heal. John knew that she was a Youkai, and as such, she should have healed. Maybe she was injured with the same weapon Eirin was? If they resided within John's time period with his technology, there would be no worry over missing limbs and the like. They could either grow new body parts, or give people cybernetics. John felt a little saddened over the loss of Rin's eye, but he didn't show any outward indication of feeling that way.

"Hello Rin. I'm here to see Satori.", John calmly said as he followed Rin inside.






Mess Hall - Prometheus Labs - London | Dawn

Even though Flandre was pestering the SPARTANS, they didn't really seem to be bothered. For many of them, it was somewhat relaxing to see the happy little girl overcome with wonder and curiosity, while others didn't really care either way. For them, it didn't really matter, as long as they weren't on duty. As Cole and Flandre talked, Alice overheard what they were saying and simply smirked as Flandre called her a "meanie".

"No, I'm not being mean to Cole. I just told him that you guys should eat before playing in the training room. After all, it's not a good idea to play on an empty stomach.", Alice said to Flandre in a friendly tone.

[Kristia]

Yakumo Estate

Looking at the cracked necklace, Renamon spoke to Yukari "This necklace had the purpose to see how you could cope with the possible madnes inside you after the death and resurrection. Seeing that it has some cracks is both good and bad news.

The fox then started explaining "The bad news is that you have a growing madness that will try to overcome your mind no matter how strong you are, it will beat you with time. The good news is that its going in a very slow process. If you are wondering why only you have a necklace is because the others had something to actually overcome the madness by themselves. take for example Yuuka, she already has a twisted mind and would devour the madness like a fire taking a sheet of paper."

[Koishi]

Treasure Vault

---

As the elevator tried to descend, it suddenly stopped. THe strength of the chameleon's tongues were stopping it. Another tognue went out to Takoizu, seemingly clninging onto her armor. Then, suddenly, it pulled away. It didn't take the armor. It took the clothes which were under the armor. Then, as suddenly as they appeared, they disappeared, and the elevator went down.

[S121]

Treasure Vault

Takoizu had no idea what had happened. She still had her armor, and the items that she had, and her... That's when Takoizu realized it, the extra skin contact with her suit. Takoizu slowly looked down at her armor in shock, then slowly looked at The Higher Power. All of a sudden, Takoizu pulled out her M6D Magnum Pistol and spoke in a calm, yet somewhat eerie tone.

"Let's go back. I've got enough time to perform a little pest control.", Takoizu said to The Higher Power.

[Luna Pixu]

Mess Hall - Prometheus Labs - London | Dawn

---

Flandre turned to "Alicey" and smiled. From what she could hear, Alice knew a place to play and was going to show her and Cole as to where it is. Finally, some playtime for Flandre! But... like everything that Flandre had experienced in the Scarlet Manor*, there was something else. It brought Flandre back to the times when her sister, or when one of the mansion staff, would promise to let Flandre do something, but have her do some chore in return.
"Ok." Flandre replied as she moved over and began to tug on Cole's arm. "Come on, let's get some breakfast!"

Cole could not believe what she just said. Flandre just stole the words straight out of his mouth. He was going to say the exact same thing, albeit in a more serious tone. What kind of world is this? Cole had gotten the impression that, by saving Flandre and bringing her to Prometheus Labs, that he was going to be taking care of Flandre not vice versa. But in the end, Cole conceded and decided to just go along with it.
"Ok... Let's go..." Cole said in a somewhat frustrated voice. And with that Cole followed Flandre as she dragged him to the dispensers to get their meal of the morning. Bizarrely enough, Cole couldn't help but notice the force at which Flandre was dragging Cole. For a girl of her physique, she should not be able to drag Cole with such force. But the way that she was dragging was making Cole keep moving with Flandre even if he attempted to counter it and go the other way. How strong is this girl? Cole couldn't tell. He only saw Flandre battle alongside him briefly before turning against him. Judging by how quickly Flandre took out Organisation XIII's creatures and by the amount of force she charged at Cole with, it must be a lot. Inside, it was beginning to frighten Cole a bit over the fact that he would end up battling her again. But this time, he wasn't going to put her unconscious again.

Eventually after little moment of struggle, Flandre and Cole got their meals from the dispensers. Flandre's was some bland cereal with fruit and Cole got some... toast. Alongside the simple choices, the two of them got a candy cane and a mug of cocoa each. Not that Cole would have the candy cane because of the fact that he wasn't too keen on candy. With that, the two of them moved over to the nearest empty space they could find and sat down. With little hesitation, Flandre began to quickly dig into her cereal whereas Cole merely ate his toast at a slow pace. Cole turned to where Alice-258 was and saw that she was still looking over the two of them.
"You gonna sit with us?" Cole asked Alice in between mouthfuls.

*(RPer's note: I have a major pet peeve regarding the naming of the Scarlet Devil Mansion. Due to my Scarletism, I have a belief that the true name of the SDM is the Scarlet Manor and not the Scarlet Devil Mansion. Although I know that ZUN named the SDM as it is, I don't think that was what it truly is called. And if people know me well, they know that I stick as close to the canon as possible with deviations where necessary.)

[WriggleRid3r]

Chireiden - Gensokyo

---

"Of course. Follow me." Rin nodded and the door swung a bit more, allowing John to enter the silent depths of Chireiden.

---

Yakumo Estate - Gensokyo

---

"Hmm... Perhaps it is best for me to show you what I've seen." Yukari announced as she tore up the boundary between thought and perception, allowing Nera and Renamon to see what Yukari saw but not feel it.

---

Yukarivision - Purgatory

---

Yukari was dead.

Her last remaining life energy spent on defeating the Devourer, her conscience in the world slipped away, only leaving her unscarred spirit in this world.

Is this hell? Surely Yukari was bound to the dark depths of the Underworld; Shikieiki even personally said so. But all she could see was white smoke, lingering in the air. White smoke, but no scent, unlike the smoke caused by the burning fire.

Yukari slowly rose up to a standing position. She was naked, like all spirits that has passed on to the afterlife was. She spun around to find that she was enveloped in white smoke everywhere.

"Welcome to the Purgatory."

A voice startled Yukari. Behind her stood a woman wrapped in white and glowing with gold light. Surely, she was too holy to be the damned in Hell.

"Where am I?" Yukari asked the woman.

"You are in the Purgatory, the eternal resting place for the weary souls." The woman answered. "My name is Isadora, keeper of this paradise."

"Isadora... I've heard of you... From Valenciel." Yukari said, and Isadora smiled. The white smoke began to drift away, revealing that Yukari was in a large room ornated with marble pillars, crystal chandeliers, and satin carpets. In the middle, just behind Isadora, stood a basin made of granite and studded with diamond. It was full of Holy Water.

"Ah, so you know of Valenciel, Archangel of Balance." Isadora declared. "Then, you must be..."

"I am Yukari Yakumo."

Isadora flinched back, but quickly caught her calm demeanor. "Then... You being here would mean..."

"Gluttoneriel has been vanquished."

A silent shadow glinted from a distance. It was a man, clothed in black leather pants and black shirt, as well as a black cape marred by golden chains. He carried a golden staff of two snakes intertwining each other. He eyed Yukari with the look of a mortal man in love.

For once, Yukari looked for anything to wear.

"Hermes the Messenger." Isadora greeted. "Fancy seeing one of you Greek Gods here."

"I had to send the message." Hermes jollily leaped from the pillar he was on to land on the ground with a soft thud. "Gluttoneriel's defeat... It is probably one of the best news to tell for ages. I've already sent the news to the Palace of Tenochtitlan, the Grand Mosque, and the Nirvana."

"You were a busy bee, weren't you?" Isadora chuckled, and Hermes smirked as well.

"I could go for some drink right now. Do we have a banquet set up?" Hermes asked Isadora.

"Yes we do." Isadora answered, and the two began to walk, but not before Isadora ased Yukari: "Wouldn't you join us?"

"I... I don't know if I belong here." Yukari stuttered. For once, she has never felt so... Helpless. "I... I was told by the Ten Kings that I will be surely sent to Hell."

"Ah, but you have performed the deed of defeating our eon-old enemy." Hermes intervened. "That alone cancels out any dark deeds you have done."

"Then... Can I ask you where I could've been if I hadn't defeated Gluttoneriel?" Yukari inquired.

"That... You can see for yourself." Isadora said as she opened a small vial and dropped a drop of red liquid into the granite basin.

Yukari walked up to the basin and looked into it.

Everything else was solid black.

[Kristia]

Yakumo estate

Seeing the vision made the fox think for some moments until she spoke "You would have been thrown to the eternal darkness, nothing to feel, nothing to see, the nothingness. Yet it is possibly the worst punishment. she said sighing

"Then again, madness would have overcome you in what could have been days max. the fox continued

[WriggleRid3r]

Yakumo Estate - Gensokyo

---

"I am surprised that I've managed to last this long." Yukari sighed. "But what could this mean? Other than the dreams, I feel absolutely fine."

[Kristia]

Yakumo estate

"When your soul leaves the world of the living, it is raw and unprotected, therefore exist all the realms of realms after death depending on your behaviour and beliefs as you saw both hermes and Isadora. Im not well informed about it though, but I know the risks of being in the purgatory since I have visited it many times in my own way" Renamon spoke

"Now after being exposed to the otherworld, your soul got a taste of it and also allowed to be tainted by the otherworld too. Take for example the people who die and come back, some are sane, but others tend to go speaking of seeing the light or predicitng things about what they saw. But there are others who get zealot and lose their minds and im worried that you might become that type of person" the fox explained

"At first you will only see it in dreams, then with time you will start having illusions and wander on your thoughts and so on until the madness overcomes your mind and become a mindless creature"