Joker Quest: Episode 5.5Continued from here: http://archive.foolz.us/tg/thread/19887421/Archive:Recap: You are ANON, the RED JOKER. You pass your days in school, and - when a challenge looms - in the distorted Otherworld, battling those who would see you dead. Last time on Joker Quest, you met the mysterious HECATE for the first time, who invited you to visit her at the PAPILLON. You also went on a date with ASUNA (the school librarian), only to be interrupted by DEATH CALIBRE, a lethal sniper. In the battle that followed, you summarily defeated him...But not before being hit by his Relic firearm, the ominous BLACK JOKER. Upon returning to reality, his alter-ego plunged to his death, in an apparent suicide. That was a week ago. Now, you find yourself locked in combat with NEON STRIKER - With your HP still depleted from your previous fight.
> cancer
The Interceptors zip away from your shoulder eyries, from the small of your back - Decoupling with an audible *clank*. The spherical drones begin to spin fiercely, around their own axis - Slicing fields flickering to life, whirring through the air as they launch. The first Interceptor hurtles towards the sprinting shape on the left, in a spinning, scything arc; You're aiming low, the agile sphere zipping past a warding swing - Raking across, a slashing arc that cuts into Striker's knee with a banshee wail. You hear a muffled grunt of frustration, as Neon Striker slows, for a crucial instant; The copy on the right...*snaps back* into him, vanishing like a mirage. A fist swats your Interceptor from the air, but he's promptly bedeviled by two more - They're hard to heat, his blows telegraphed by the shift in air pressure, whiffing back the annoyingly persistent drones...-And then he has other worries, as you draw a bead on him, pummeling him with both Vulcans at once. You can see cracks appearing in his armored greaves, now, right before another Interceptor explodes - Crushed to nothing in a three-fingered fist. You're backpedalling, firing away; Stray shots whine off him, leaving deep scorch-marks on glossy black plate. Another buffet sends your last Interceptor tumbling to the side, his fist winding back for another shockwave...> HP: 59%> METER: 16%> ASSAULT SHROUD: 82% > INTERCEPTORS (1/3) READY.TIER ONE WEAPONRY UNLOCKED> TRISKELION LAUNCHER - 3%/Missile, INDIRECT FIRE. > PLASMA CASTER - 10%/Projectile, DIRECT.YOU HAVE CONTROL.
>>19903757Awwww, shit. We're still in the middle of the electrified zone, right? Launch two missiles, give him something to tihnk about as we run the fuck away from him.
>>19903757Was this guy melee or ranged?edit: Disregard, checking the backlog now.
rolled 19 = 19>>19903741Finally caught one of these. Gruddamned timezeons.
>>19903757Jesus, he KO'ed two interceptors. Seconding>>19903757to clear the air.
>>19903757Send two missiles in an arc above us to come down on him while we dodge the shockwave. And as always keep firing at his legs.
>>19903757JUMP. Fire two missiles down at him from mid-air, and slam into him feet first, surf his body to the ground and lace him with molten plasma.
>>19903852>>19903827The missile racks on your back snap open - Smoke engulfs you as a pair of rockets spiral out, corkscrewing through the air on wings of jetair and flame. Plasma vulcans spit actinic light, as you dodge to the side; The fringe of the shockwave buffets you, knocking you a step back...But the superheated bolts chew up the ground beneath Striker's feet. You've hobbled him, slagging the interlocking plates of his right leg beneath the blowtorch blast - As both missile come hurtling down, kicking up plumes of sharpnel and flame.He comes out of the explosion, moving faster than the human eye can follow - A forward flip that lands with the same crunching force, wisps of vapor trailing from glossy black plate. Neon Striker's wounded leg gives out, driving him to one knee for a moment - Coolant and something darker, something that looks suspiciously like blood, oozing from the joins. His reply is to drive one fist into the ground. Your legs are coiled, about to leap as a vertical blast erupts beneath you, like a geyser; It hurls you upward and back, in a sudden, hot *push*, forcing you into a tumbling roll - Your fingers raking furrows in the shattered tiles as you come to a stop, perilously close to the spitting, charged loops of the chain-link fence. Your opponent's still on his knees, tensing to spring again - Fighting to keep his balance, favoring his uninjured leg. Your last Interceptor CRUNCHES in his right fist, flung aside with a curse. > HP: 53%> METER: 21%> ASSAULT SHROUD: 68% YOU HAVE CONTROL.
>>19903881Time to play chicken. Leave your assault shroud doppleganger in front of the fence, the moment he leaps at "you", lunge at the ground where he once stood and send your last interceptor straight through his remaining leg. Spin around and watch the fireworks as he crashes into the gate.
>>19903887Caster and 3 missiles.
>>19903887Melee AND ranged? That's one solid build he has, whoever he is. Let's hold our ground, see if we can bait him into the electric fence. Do we have any decoys or something?
>>19903887Keep Assault Shroud doing the dopples for when he charges.Keep pouring on the vulcan fire. Launch 3 missiles at him, prepare to use the Caster when he gets close, blow a hole in his other leg.
>>19903887Keep pummelling him with full-frontal attacks as he charges in. If he commits to a dash he can't do anything else and it's a good opportunity to lay in uninterrupted hits.
>>19903909>>19903913>>19903915>>19903927The Assault Shroud makes a rising whine as its substance disperses - Like a shimmering outline of your form, the interlocking polygons of the Relic fading from a rich red to a dull grey as the nanofiber is depleted. You keep firing; Plasma bolts spark off Neon Striker's vambraces, his rasping hiss of pain a staticky growl - You can see blood and coolant sheeting his leg from the shin down, even as he hunkers down behind armored forearms, blocking your shots...The electric fence is so very close, now, cising arcs of electricity crackling against your armor...Only to be drowned out in the WHOOSH of rockets launching one after the other - A triple barrage this time. Neon Striker hurls his left arm out; You feel a exhausted ripple of force shove against your projectiles, though you're braced against the impact. Perhaps his reserves have been depleted, too, because it's far weaker than before. Two of your rockets wobble in mid-flight ~ One veers off course, slamming into the other in a fracticidal explosion. But he *has* to charge, and now - And you're *ready* for him when he does. (continued)
When he leaps for you - Making an audible sound, a sonic-boom CRACK of displaced air - you hurl yourself forward, in a baseball slide. Charging lights wink to life on your Plasma Caster, your armor striking grinding sparks from the cracked ground in a long, skidding furrow...-But he doesn't see this, as he swings a massive overhand punch down at your hovering doppler. Maybe your opponent has an instant to realize that he's been suckered, when his armor fist connects - A millions millions volts of electricity lighting him up. You hear the *bang*, as something in his gauntlet explodes (Sooty smoke and ash), then a *roar* of pure, undiluted agony, fizzling through his voice modulator. Neon Striker lights up, electric fire busting across his armor - He stands rigid, stiff, as he begins to boil, arcs of lightning flaying the ground around him, his back to you - Amplified shrieks tearing the air, as he judders in the cage's furious grasp.> HP: 51%> METER: 6%> ASSAULT SHROUD: 32%(PLASMA CASTER READY FOR FIRE.)YOU HAVE CONTROL.
>>19904023FINISH HIM!
>>19904023Open fire with the plasma Caster, either blow his back to pieces from the close range we're at or blow apart his less damaged leg thus taking out all maneuverability.Don't use the Interceptor, it'll get zapped. As always continue to fire with the Vulkans, blow him to bits.
>>19904047>>19904042You roll over, on your back ~ Levelling the snub-nosed barrel of the Plasma Caster at your opponent, the cyclopean emerald of your optics whirring as they lock on. The view through the sight: Four straight black lines, crossed by a succession of shorter lines - Neon Striker dead center, lit up by stabs of stark, eerie light.When you fire, the bruising *kick* of the Plasma Caster punishes your arm, your shoulder; The gun vomits a ferocious eruption of light, a meteor of pellucid blue fire that thunders through the air, in a powerful demolishing shot. The blast concussion makes the smoke eddy and swirl in curious patterns, like ripples of water- It hits him, thrusts him forward, just as he pulls himself free. He slams into the detonation grid, and *howls* - The sound deafening, inhuman, as the electricity takes him to pieces. The blast cores right through your opponent, with mauling force; With a vicious BANG, he comes to pieces like a grenade explosion, fragmenting out in every direction at once.(Continued.)
>>19904082Fragments of his armor zing through the air - clattering off your battered plate, as you rise with a groan of tortured servoes. There's a CLUNK as a heavy capacitor hits the ground, burnt-out by the tremendous heat channeled through your Caster...-The familiar green pixels of light swirl in the air, drawn towards you like iron fillings towards a magnet. What happens *next*, though, isn't remotely expected - The released essence sinks into you......And dissipates. On your cuirass, the scorched deathmark of the Black Joker fades a little - Not entirely, but it's fainter than before, now. You feel no stronger; Your armor refuses to autorepair, still. With a *hiss*, the cage of the detonation grid shrinks away into the ground - Spontaneous applause erupting, as the shadows outside resolve into the familiar shapes of the audience. You make out Hecate's form, near the front - Her head tilted to the side, her brow furrowed ever-so-slightly as she regards you...As if sensing something in the air. She looks...Well, it's a complex expression. But you'd swear that she seems strangely uncertain - Worried, even. RED JOKER VICTORY.YOU HAVE CONTROL
>>19904125Burn the symbol of the Red Joker into the ground, as is our custom.Then, if we can, speak with Hecate.
>>19904125Well fuck. We can't keep this up, the attrition is going to get to us, we won't always get a fight that we pull off only losing 14% health. We also aren't leveling up, this is seriously bad.About how much percentage wise did the mark fade?Draw the symbol of the Red Joker somewhere, try to talk with Hecate, investigate the symbol more, see if prodding it, scraping it anything like that does anything.
>>19904145>>19904164You turn - Plasma fire gouts from your forearms cannons, the churning bolts searing into the ground. It's a now-familiar symbol, scorched into the chipped and broken earth; A horns-and-grin graffito, etched out in black.-This time, though, unease twinges within you as you realize how *similar* it is, to the mark you now bear. Your fingers brush against it - It's faded, just a little, you know...But how much before it's gone? *Can* it be removed...?The *click* of stiletto heels interrupts your train of thought. "...Well done," Hecate offers, her voice lilting - "They'll be cleaning Striker off that field for *weeks*." Her tone's light, but her green eyes are ever-so-slightly narrowed...Her head tilting to the side, as she considers you. "...Is everything all right? You look like...Well, you've seen better days. That emblem, too - It *really* doesn't suit you..."YOU HAVE CONTROL.
>>19904164(Sorry, my trip fell off.)
>>19904206"It's preventing me from regenerating. At least, I think it is. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"
>>19904206Lovely to see you again Hecate. I really have seen better days. What can you tell me about the mark, I have already noticed that it prevents me from upgrading myself with my fallen opponents and that it doesn't let me heal leaving me to a battle of attrition against all comers.What do you know about the symbol, this curse? How can it be removed? Why does the Black Joker hate me so much?
>>19904206I'm fine in a sense, I can still function and fight. Hecate, have you ever heard of or witnessed a weapon, relic, or competitor who could place curses on someone? When I faced death caliber, he shot me with the gun he called black joker, since then I've had this mark and the healing I'd naturally receive from winning fails to occur. Any thoughts?
>>19904328[x] Truth.[x] "...I never knew him."
She blinks - "...Preventing you from-" Hecate begins, thoughtfully...Then her eyes widen, just a little, as she looks up at you. "So *that's* how Death Calibre was doing it." Slim fingers brush her hair back from her face - An odd gesture, for a girl with violet horns. She's silent, just for a moment...Clearly pondering something, before she nods. "-It's the first I've heard of it, but..." Her touch grazes against the charred mark, then away - A little shiver running up her spine. "...There's Relics, and then there are *Relics*. The deep past is a funny place...I didn't think something like that would *ever* turn up again.""It's a rumor, but...A long time ago, at the end, there really *was* a Black Joker. A player, not a weapon - Maybe it was something of his, once." "...I know something that *might* help, but..." Those full lips curve in a little smile. "-You'll have to come see me, and soon." Another pause - An instant's hesitation - but Hecate can't quite hide her curiosity, her voice hushed. "...Didn't the Red Joker tell you? The...previous one, I mean."[ ] Truth.[ ] Lie.[ ] "...I never knew him."[ ] "-Only at the end."[ ] "...I never gave him the chance."[ ] "-It was too late; There was no time."[ ] "..."YOU HAVE CONTROL.
[X] TRUTH[X] I never knew him.
>>19904328Aw, shit, is that a multiple-choice past?Go with...> [X] Truth.> [X] "-It was too late; There was no time."
>>19904347[X] Truth.Play it straight with her, we need answers and I don't want to get on her bad side. [X] "-It was too late; There was no time."If we have time after this we should tell her that the mark has faded somewhat after the fight.
>>19904347> [X] TRUTH> [X] I never knew him.There was another red joker? Holy shit.Then who the hell did we use to be?
>>19904418Not the Red Joker, that's for sure. Two possibilities I can think of with this answer, we were shoved into the game, maybe not even knowing about it, and given the title, or we were already in the game under a different name or something like that and the title passed on to us for some reason we don't understand.
> [x] Truth.> [x] "...I never knew him."...That's right. You never knew him. You were never chosen - Just in the right place, at the worst of times. Maybe - Maybe, if there'd been a chance..."I see," Hecate murmurs, but you're not sure if she does. "-It's growing fainter, you say? It might be wearing off...Or it could be counting down." Her slim shoulders lift in an eloquent shrug, as if to say it could be either. "If you keep fighting, keep *winning*..." The rest of her words are lost, as reality shimmers, your vision distorting. It's already time - You feel the familiar distortion engulf you, the red world wavering, giving way to the familiarity of the real. You strain to make out what she's saying, as you fade out- "...care of yourself, Joker-kun. You know where to find me."****************** "-telling you, it's just too weird."Sound returns - Then light. You feel solid ground beneath you, the rooftop's surface warm to the touch...Now strewn with scattered wrappers and drink cartons. Akira's seated on the floor, cross-legged - His poise oddly meditative, as you hear the door to the stairwell swing shut. "...There he goes again," he sighs, glancing over at you with a knowing smirk. "-I tell you, that job's really working him over; Glad I'm gainfully unemployed." [ ] "Where did Kazuya go?"[ ] "...What's weird?"[ ] "-We better head back."[ ] "...I'm taking the day off. Cover for me."[ ] Free YOU HAVE CONTROL.
>>19904505[x] "Where did Kazuya go?"[x] "...What's weird?"
What's weird?Just found this today OP you are great, thanks for running this
>>19904505[X] "...What's weird?"First laugh off us the fact that it looks like we just took a nap and say something about how the pay isn't terrible. Then ask what's weird.
> [X] "Where did Kazuya go?""...He got a phone call, then lit out of here - Said they needed him at the office," Akira supplies, indifferently. He catches your surprised look, and chuckles - "...I know, right? I didn't think *he'd* have a part-time job; He's the laziest person I've met."He lowers his voice, conspirationally. "-I think he's saving up for a girl on the side. He's *definently* sweet on someone, anyway - Not like he's hiding it."> say something about how the pay isn't terrible. "Right, right. You're best buds, aren't you? This...'Sterling Institute' sounds classy enough - I'm not sure what he *does* there, anyway."> [X] What's weird?A dry, faintly annoyed 'tsk'. "...The *deaths*, Anon. You know, all the crazy accidents?" He tilts his hand towards you, revealing the screen of his handphone - He's at one of those crackpot 'Paranormal Journals' he favors, the text scrolling along the screen in magneta-hued confusion. "-It's a big city, but they're happening way too often. Another one just came up; Someone got fried by a power surge in the Underground. Just like that train, eh?"[ ] "...Wow, you're as morbid as ever." [ ] "That's just coincidence - It isn't even linked." [ ] "Way too often? What do you mean?"[ ] "Eh, these things happen."[ ] Free.YOU HAVE CONTROL.
>>19904625[X] Way too often, what do you mean?
>>19904625> [X] "...Wow, you're as morbid as ever." Akira sounds like one sick puppy. Why would you even notice that? We should get out of here, too, and find hecate...Wsaiting till after school might be too long.
>>19904625This guy creeps me out. You know he's just jerking off to all the death and violence. Go with> [X] "Eh, these things happen.
>>19904625You are way too morbidWhat do you mean way too often?
>>19904625Lean over a bit and see if you can't catch a glimpse of the website url he's visiting- If whoever's running the site knows about the deaths THIS quickly, it's a fair bet that a spectator may be on the other side of that screen. Also, perhaps we could use this paranormal journal site to mark the progress of competition in the area until we find a more reliable way of becoming the red joker. Food for thought.
> [X] "...Wow, you're as morbid as ever." He chortles, folding his handphone away. "...Hey, it's not my fault I have an inquisitive mind. Newspaper club, remember? There's nothing more interesting than a good mystery."> [X] "Way too often? What do you mean?""You tell me." He ticks off the points on his fingers. "-It's been less than a month, and, let's see: That singer got squished at his own concert, your train almost derailed...And that's not even counting that guy from our school." Akira's pale eyes flick over to you, and he smiles, just a little. "...Wish I had your luck, Anon. Three accidents in two weeks - That's some kind of record."He seems on the verge of saying more...Before the schoolbell tolls, the electric chime signalling the end of the recess. Akira draws himself up, smothering a yawn - "-We should be heading back, I guess; Just as well, really. I needed a nap." [ ] "...Yeah, let's go."[ ] "Go on ahead ~ I'll be skipping the second half."[ ] "Cover for me, will you? There's somewhere I need to be."[ ] Free.YOU HAVE CONTROL.
>>19904734(Quick addition: The site is the paranormal journal 'Kairo' - 'Pulse'. It has a subsidiary site called 'The Black Room'.)
[X] "Cover for me, will you? There's somewhere I need to be."
>>19904796[x] "...Yeah, let's go."
>>19904796[X] "Cover for me, will you? There's somewhere I need to be."Answers on fixing the mark take HIGH priority over school. One is school, the other is something that is likely to kill us in the underground otherworldly duels we participate in. Head to Papillon to meet with Hecate.
>>19904796Cover for me
>>19904810Ominous. We really should head off to meet hecate, for now. Skipping school is a thing they totally do all the time in anime.
>>19904638I actually think he could be end of the competitors and knows what going on, he uses the newspaper club as a cover for being nosyI am paranoid as all hell though
>>19904850>>19904847>>19904830>>19904820>>19904850>>19904847>>19904830>>19904820Missing class won't kill you. Another battle, however, very well might - Especially if you can't remove the Black Joker's mark. Put like that...It's really no choice at all. > [X] "Cover for me, will you? There's somewhere I need to be.""-I can do that. If anyone even notices you're gone, that is."He pushes the door open - Then hesitates, as if struck by a sudden thought. "...Be careful, all right? Good luck only goes so far." He's half-joking, half-serious; Embarassed by the sentimentality, but expressing it all the same. "-It'd be really weird if you showed up on the Black Room next."As if sensing he's said too much, Akira ducks into the stairwell - You hear his footsteps making the rounds as he descends, the echoes fading as he gets further and further away. You'd wait a bit longer, for the corridors to clear, before you head out...It's actually fairly simple, if you get the timing right. Then...It seems that you'd be paying Hecate a visit. From what you know - The last time you checked - the Papillon's an upscale club (One of those 'themed' cafes, on paper) in the slightly shadier end of the district. An odd choice of meeting place, but it's not like you have a choice. -You've had quite a lot to consider, this time...And the strangest feeling that things are just about to get interesting.
>>19904960I'd love to continue, but it's getting really late on my end; I'm afraid I'd have to break here for now - The next part is a substantial segment. I'll continue Joker Quest on Friday, afternoon to evening - GMT + 8:00. Thanks for being a great audience: Good night, and god bless?
>>19904970you are on my time zone as well?awesome. I need more QM's closer to my time zone.Time for me to go through the archives
>>19904960> Then...It seems that you'd be paying Hecate a visit. From what you know - The last time you checked - the Papillon's an upscale club (One of those 'themed' cafes, on paper) in the slightly shadier end of the district. An odd choice of meeting place, but it's not like you have a choice. Oh man. If that's her real identity, it would explain so, so much.
>>19905028It still doesn't explain why Hecate seems to have the hots for us. Or why she doesn't have any power armor.
>>19905077My theory is that she's actually a guy/kind of ugly/shy, and she's playing the seductress because that's the way she wants to be.
>>19903752There needs to be a Mobile X Destiny/Joker quest crossover at some point. The cool guy with a harem (and a mech) versus the gunslinger murderer. It would be fucking awesome.
>>19904989Should probably archive this one as well.
