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>>25807039

STAGE: THE ACROPOLIS

The aftermath of a battle is a strange thing. The Red World always takes it's due: The charred husks of Dark Tusk and Malachite Orb decaying in fast-forward, grey pixels lifting from their disintegrating forms - Coiling heavenwards, like incense or lost prayers. The damage you've wreaked has begun to repair itself: Shattered portrait frames cycling into new configurations, spotless tiles lifting up in place of the old, white as ivory.

Except here. On one slanted wall, violet fires burn; Your ever-smiling mark seared into the surface, stark and grinning, backlit by glowering flames.

There's a dry *hiss* - A sound like a protracted threat - as the Thief slides the Fatal Abyss back into his battered black scabbard: He holds it in one hand, his right hand, with the exquisite care reserved for something infinitely precious and infinitely dangerous at once - His dark coat rent by the furious slash-stab of swords, a little charred at the edges from the point-blank discharge of gunfire.

> [X] "You're right, it was."

A dry, hacking chuckle. "...Better than the last time, at least. That's something."

The lavender glow flickers over your crimson armor, and the bleached bone of his skull-helm, as he cants his head to the side.

"-You're getting better, Joker."

> [X] "So soon? I still have questions."
> [X] "You're leaving now?"

"There's a time and place for everything, Joker." The Thief's - Akira's - voice is his usual rasp, but not unkind. "This isn't the right one." A note of something - Not quite amusement - enters his tone. "You have a date to return to - And I have a sniper to go after."

The ruddy light in his hollow eye-sockets flicker, fitfully.

"And I'm not leaving - Not yet.

You are."

> [X] "Can I count on your help to save Hecate?"

"If you can find her."

The words hang in the air - Heavy, somehow, leaden.

(Continued)

>>25807080

You can tell; He doesn't believe it - Not for a moment - but he's humouring you.

To him, Hecate's already dead.

> [X] "I know I can't convince you otherwise, but just remember we exist, alright? You don't have to go lone wolf all the damn time."

That dry, hacking chuckle again.

"How's that working out for you, Joker?"

Around you, the world begins to attenuate; The dimensions become drawn, uneven, insubstantial as mist. You're being drawn back, a little at a time, as the Red World releases it's grasp on you.

The Thief's form begins to waver at the edges, blurring to the point of indecipherability - For a moment, he almost seems to be two people: Two silhouettes, superimposed on each other, like twin visions of skeletal and grinning death.

You try -

There's almost enough time for one last question.

[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>25807039

(Quick note: Entries for the Chain Mine and the Carnifex have been added, including alternate firing modes. The Carnifex has also been rebalanced after some further testing.)

>>25807152
>the Carnifex
>When activated (At the cost of 35% HP)
Damn, now it's balanced.

>>25807112
"A favor--check up on Kaz for me? He's been acting strange since Nara, and if he isn't one of us he's getting *close* to the Red World. I don't have the skills and my luck doesn't work like that, but you..."

Hey OP, good to see you. Whose life are we ruining tonight?

>>25807152

35%? That's a little excessive, isn't it?

>>25807112
>[x] "Do you know what Pazuzu's up to at Nara Dreamland?"

>Can you do me a favor? Don't lose sight of who you are, Akira.

>>25807345
>>25807576

He raises one hand - His left hand - in a curious gesture, that might be a salute or a goodbye. For a moment, the emberous red glow of his eyes are muted: And then he nods, fractionally, a brief inclination of his skull-faced helm.

An answer, but to what?

>>25807375

You have to strain to hear him, that impassive form flickering before your eyes; You only catch snatches of it, but-

"To finish ever-...six years ag-"

The world goes away.

You're at the gallery again; Your clothes cold, clammy against your form, with the bitter taste of quinine and metal in your mouth. Things seem slightly distorted, to you - Too bright and sharp at the edges, as a sickly heat throbs beneath your skin: The beginnings of fever.

You're back where you started - The viewing box looming overhead. A brief, searching glance reveals nothing: There's no sign of Akira, though that doesn't surprise you. Your gaze lights on a familiar figure, not too far away-

Asuna's slight form seems smaller than ever; Her expression drawn in momentary worry, brown eyes large behind her glasses. Condensation beads on the clear plastic of the bottled water she's cradling - She ducks past a chatting couple, mouthing a murmured apology as she hurries towards you...

-And then someone slams into you from behind.

(Continued)

>>25807357

Still leaves us with 95%. Not too excessive, but it's closing in on that point of being not worth using.

Just need to get a some HP, which the Abjudicator provides.

We are going to visit AP for the new and improved shield, right?

Right?

>>25807748
Ri--Haha no, we're comforting Asuna. This is the second time one of our dates with her has ended with fatalities.

After that, sure, if we can get hold of him.

So, to not forget:
- Hollow Sun
- Shield
- Hospital

>>25807748
Yes but not now.

>>25807833

Well, we are experiencing symptoms of the most deadliest thing known to mankind.

The Japanese Cold. Pretty sure Asuna will be comforting US.

Chicken noodle soup loaded with onions and enough pepper to kill a horse breaks those in no time.

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>>25807742

You stagger forward a step before you catch yourself - Even as you hear a muffled oath, as someone stumbles past. You get a quick glimpse of straggly brown hair, frantic grey eyes, the folds of a red jacket fanning out behind him; Then a brief, rattling sound, as something small and rectangular hits the floor, bounces.

He moves with a stumbling, panicked gait - Pushing past you, hard, nearly overbalancing. A quick, covetous - And terrified - glance over his shoulder - and he's reeling for the exit, as quick as his legs can take him.

[ ] "Watch where you're going!"
[ ] "Hey, you dropped-"
[ ] Wait for Asuna.
[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>25807954
>[ ] "Hey, you dropped-"
Time to not be a psychopathic asshole for once.

>>25807915
[X] "Hey, you dropped-"
[X] Free
That has to be Helix or the Sniper. Pick it up and take a look under the guise of returning it.

>>25807954

First grab the package, coincidences aren't coincidental when you've just reaped a bounty of luck. Then wait for Asuna; Jezail is in enough trouble.

"How exactly did you make the stained glass? That looks like the work of years."

>>25808013
Hey! We're almost never a psychopathic asshole in the Real.

>>25808022
Good point.
Changing >>25808013 to just taking the stuff.

>>25807915

Well, the sniper is spilling his spaghetti all over the floor here. Wonder if Totenaz is having trouble catching 'em.

I wonder. Do you think it would be worth tagging him? We put the fear of God into this faggot, so he'll be more than willing to spill the beans on what he knows if he knows anything.

We just need to keep Akira from eviscerating his bowels. And that requires returning to the red world...

>>25808017
This, then wait for Asuna.

>>25807915
[X] "You people never learn, do you?"

Under our breath. I think he's the one that got away.

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>>25808022
>>25808040

It's...A matchbox? Black and white, with a striking surface faint smell of sulphur - Yes, definently a matchbook. You turn it over, making out the crudely-stamped symbol - Squiggly lines within a red circle - and, below it, two words.

Two words:

CLUB NARAKA

It rattles, faintly, as it slides open; You make out a thin sheet of red tissue paper, and wrapped within it-

...A fragment - A splinter, really - of violet glass.

>>25808104

He's already gone; The red tails of his jacket whipping around the corner.

Then-

"A, anon-kun?" Asuna sounds faintly out of breath; There's a slight catch to her voice, a flush of exertion in her cheeks...Concern writ large on her face, as she presses the bottle into your hands - Cold enough to tingle. "-I got some water, and..." There's a little rustle, as she produces a small plastic packet - "I, I wasn't sure which one would work, so I got three differen-"

> "How exactly did you make the stained glass? That looks like the work of years."

Asuna stops, mid-sentence - The red blush creeping to her ears, a little *gasp* teased from her throat; She looks away, embarassed but clearly pleased at once.

"W, was it really that obvious~?" she says - Ducking her head as she brings her hands to her cheeks. "I, ah, I spent - A lot of time on that one..."

Then, shyly - And a little cautiously - "Do...Did you like it?"

[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>25808236
>...A fragment - A splinter, really - of violet glass.
Motherfucker.

>>25808236

Fuck.

We NEED to go after that guy.

>>25808236
[x] Enter Red World.
Go after that guy, we can be on autopilot with Asuna for now.

>>25808236

>violet glass

Shit. So those things can do the exact opposite and eject something from the other world?

>>25808286
>>25808301

YOU COULD HAVE STOPPED THIS. IT'S HAPPENING.

Shit. I even asked if we should chase after him.

>>25808236

"Well, after I had the chance to experience it from a different perspective, it kind of had an explosive impact."

>>25808236

Goddamn, that was the sniper! And he's hauling ass for safety. We're going to need to come to some kind of graceful conclusion with Asuna, and then head off after him.

Is the matchbook a clue?

>>25808236
I sense a pattern. Another of Mikogami/the Black Cardinal's purchases, under new management by the Smilers?

"It wouldn't have been obvious if you hadn't been so obviously excited. It's a great piece; I'm amazed that you're a multi-talented artist. Is the red knight the old one from your story, or the squire? The black one is new I think.

"And how about the piece with the French name? That's 'Countdown', right?"

>>25808361
Belay that, the shard was going to be used to capture the Thief. Hang on to the shard, I have a use for it in the Hollow Sun.

>>25808387
>>25808361
Theif's taking care of it, remember? That's probably why he's so panicked.

>>25808398

I'm kind of thinking it was a "Get out of Deep Shit" card.

Need to check it out in the red world.

Or give chase to Jaziel who is leaving a long trail of spaghetti behind him as he beats feet for the exit.

>>25808398
AP wanted one of those shard too don't forget.

>>25808361
Actually, cancel that. Entering the red world is pointless. Akira is already going after the sniper, and the chances are that this guy's not in that world.

>Also, what stained glass?

>>25808398
Yeah, it's usually a good idea to go with Wata's social responses

>>25808501
Check the last thread. We saw what Asuna's art actually looks like, and there's a gorgeous piece with the Red and Black Joker (presumably) dueling under another figure.

Also, I completely forgot that I wanted to burn the Joker's mark onto one of the pieces over there. I apologize for continuing to fail in this tradition.

>>25808301
>>25808383

A quick glance in his direction - No good, you can't see him from here. It takes an effort of will for you to stop counting the moments as they tick by...How far can he have gone, on foot?

Where's he going?

> "Well, after I had the chance to experience it from a different perspective, it kind of had an explosive impact."

Asuna giggles; She doesn't *quite* understand what you're saying - Not in the way you meant it, perhaps - but she catches herself, sighing softly...A slow sound of relief. "Haaaa ~ I'm...a little relieved," she murmurs, almost to herself. "-I want...I wanted to show you - But I wanted to know what you *really* thought about it."

Her gaze meets yours, for a long moment - And then she lowers her eyes, though her soft smile lingers.

>>25808398

"Anon-kun, y-you're making me blush..." Her pale hands press against her cheeks again, as Asuna shuffles slightly to the side - Lowering her voice, as if afraid of being overheard. "I...I haven't decided yet, actually. M, maybe - I was just so happy when they were selected, but I didn't want to put my *name*-"

She seems to start, as if suddenly brought back to the here and now.

"Um - Y, you know how it is."

> "And how about the piece with the French name? That's 'Countdown', right?"

Asuna nods. "Mhm! I finished that one about - About two weeks ago. I'm not sure w, why...But it just *seemed* right." She looks at you, askance. "Is that...strange?"

[ ] "A little."
[ ] "Not really."
[ ] "-I'm not sure."
[ ] "What's it about?"
[ ] "How long have you been painting?"
[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>25808602

Oh wow, I had an inkling, but now i know what she was so keen on asking us out.

>>25808602
"Strange? No, not at all. Fortuitous maybe. Any prophetic dreams to go with this one?"

>>25808602

"The only weird one here is you. I'm more shocked you didn't tell me about this sooner. A famous artist, huh? I should be shocked, but I'm pleasantly surprised."

>>25807875
>- Hollow Sun
>- Shield
>- Hospital

Yes yes and more yes

>>25808602
[X] Free
"That's how you know it comes from the heart."

>>25808894

Normally, I would be all for it. But at present, I think we really should check out club naraka. We have this bastard running scared, and if we can take him alive, we can shake him down for information with some old-school brutality.

>>25808937

Concur, but we shouldn't go in alone.

Text friends, bring a crew. Google the name on our phone on the way, and let AP know we found some funky violet stuff that he's interested in - who knows, maybe the guys's a part owner or something.

We just told the Thief not to be a loner - lets take some of our own medicine.

If we need a fast excuse to ditch asuna temporarily, we should go 'wait that guy dropped something' and run after him.

>>25808937
He's not going to the club. He came from there. This is the same pattern as with the Smilers who jumped Argent Prominence, one of them dropped an item that led to Sheol Star Arcade. Note that Sheol was a Hebrew underworld, while Naraka is Hindu/Buddhist. There's an encounter waiting for us there, but we should do a few things to prepare.

>>25808982
In case you haven't noticed the Red Joker HAS no allies. The Tri-Stars have broken off official relations entirely, Argent Prominence's people are afraid of us, Natsumi owes her Red World loyalty to Argent in full (and it turns out is nowhere near our level) and anyone else we tried to partner with would always be tempted to put a bullet through our skull for the armor.

And actually Argent Prominence isn't really interested in the purple crystals. He wants the *black* crystal, the Nihl Sphere.

>>25808849

She seems to flinch at the word 'weird', but the tension drains from her shoulders as the rest of your words reach her; "I...I wasn't sure," Asuna admits, in the same soft voice; Her brown eyes lowered. "-Sometimes, when I look at it...I'm amazed at what I've done. I, I don't want attention, really - This...Just knowing that people like what I've done...It's enough."

There's something more, there - She seems to be steeling herself, somehow, slowly working up to it.

>>25808800

"Maybe." Her smile is a touch mysterious, now; "...All art comes from our dreams, you know? That's what I've heard, anyway."

>>25808923

As if in echo of your words, Asuna touches her hand to her chest; Her fingers curling lightly, as she draws a deep breath. "The heart..." she begins, her voice trailing off...For a long moment, she's quiet.

Then - She lifts her gaze, looking you in the eye.

"Anon-kun...There's someone you like, isn't there?" There's a touch of a tremor to her voice, but Asuna holds herself still - Sounding more sure, somehow, than ever before.

[ ] "-That's not true."
[ ] "Maybe. I'm not sure."
[ ] "Yes."
[ ] "That's...a rather sudden question."
[ ] Free.

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>25809065

We should still check it out. I'm all for plumbing the depths of the hollow sun, but I get a feeling that this is a time-critical thing.

>>25809080

Oh balls. We do NOT need this now.

>>25809080
I knew this would hapen sooner or later.
Guys, just make sure you don't go about this in the same way as you did with Natsumi. We should be gente.

>>25809080
"That's...a rather sudden question. I'm not sure how discussing art lead to -that-. But since you've put it on the table, might I ask the same of you?"

>>25809080
"Could you have at least waited until I wasn't sick to ask the hard question?

"I like a lot of people. In the sense that you mean though I am both horribly torn and still looking. Not metaphorically in the latter sense: someone who I think I cared about very much was at Nara Dreamland and has not been seen since. The least I can do for me, for her, and yes for *you* is find out one way or another what became of her."

>>25809248

You know, it's pretty obvious that she likes us. I'm just saying. I can't see why else she'd ask the qustion.

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>>25809080

"Sure I like you...

...and Akira and Kazuya."

...

"Okay. I'll be straight. I can't answer that right now, alright?"

>>25809275
As much as I like your responses, you have the unhealthy habit of openly telling the not-so-subtle truth that just makes Joker seem depressing and far too melancholic.
>>25809080
"I'm guessing you're not talking about friend-like but like-like, yes? In a way, I guess I do."

>>25809080
"I like a number of people. I hold all of them dear, and yes I do like you, hold you dear, and care for you, and they all deserve more than I can give them.

There was a girl who I 'liked' at Nara's Dreamland, I never really got over it, I still think she's out there sometimes, that I just have to find her and it'll be like she was never gone. I know I sound somewhat crazy, but I can't help it."

>>25809320
Nigga this is /tg/. I ain't no romance expert, I'm trying to distract her with small talk so we can GTFO. I'm not ready to spend all night digging ourselves into a pit like we've done with Mio and Natsumi- and I'm -certainly- not ready to spend all night arguing who we should pursue as an actual relationship.

We have important life or death shit to deal with.

>>25809489

Harem end.

Search your cold dead hearts.

It is the only way.

>>25809514
See, this is exactly what I don't want right now.

I'm not saying I reject the notion outright, but we have been holding off some important stuff for more than a few threads now.

>>25809514
The only ones left with cold dead hearts will be the girls that will most certaintlz get killed or mindbroken due to our dailz agenda.
This is why we should have chosen someone who's as hard to kill as a Fraulein Kreutune.

>>25809275

> "Could you have at least waited until I wasn't sick to ask the hard question?
> "That's...a rather sudden question. I'm not sure how discussing art lead to -that-."

"...It's selfish of me - I know that. But...If not now -" Abruptly, you realize that Asuna is trembling. Her voice wavers - her eyes coming perilously close to misting over.

"T-then when?"

There's a hitch to her breath, now. "M, maybe - If I'd been more selfish from the *start*..."

> But since you've put it on the table, might I ask the same of you?"

A wounded expression crosses her face, as she bites her lip; "-I, ah..." Her hand comes up, to adjust her glasses - "...it's not fair if you *make* me say it..."

> "I'm guessing you're not talking about friend-like but like-like, yes? In a way, I guess I do."
> "Okay. I'll be straight. I can't answer that right now, alright?"

There's a flicker of something - Hope, maybe, or confusion - in Asuna's gaze; "I, is that the way it is?" she murmurs, almost to herself. She seems so small, just standing there - Holding herself poised, taut, as she retreats further into herself.

>>25809455
>>25809275

Asuna shakes her head - "I...I don't understand you at *all*~!" she blurts out - Loud enough to make heads turn; Before her voice catches, going hushed. "-It's like...You're a *different person* all the time - I can't...That's..."

And then, softly: "-I k-know...You're just t-trying to be kind. But - Anon-kun...Kindness can be cruelty, too."

(Continued)

>>25809514

Well.

If our stature in the red world reflects upon the real one, as argent prominence's level and business success and admission there of might indicate, its possible (not that i am supporting or advocating it) that this may be a possible extension of 'our luck with women'.

I'm not sure what I think of the whole mess, but asuna's the one who dreamed the play up about rescuing hecate, right?
If so, we need more info, and if making her comfortable may encourage her to be more open about it.

>>25809612

"-I can't tell if you're *serious*, or if you're lying *all the time*, but-"

You're attracting attention, now - Low murmurs, inquisitive gazes, as she tears up before you. She seems about to say more; But then Asuna looks away, her hand pressed to her mouth - The corner of her eyes reddened and blotchy.

"E, excuse me," she says - And it sounds awful, her voice thick, swollen. She bolts - Her back turned to you, shuffling away in a seemingly random direction; Her slim shoulders slumping.

There's only one way she's going: Away from you.

[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>25809737

Balls.

>>25809737
Well... I think we just screwed up in an even worse fashion than the last time we broke someone's heart.

So... we follow or leave in a lonely fashion and head to HS?

>>25809737
A bit sooner than expected, but fine. "I AM sorry Asuna, but cruelty is all I know to give. I'm not your knight, just a joker."

>>25809737

Well. There goes the asuna route.

That's pretty goddamn depressing, I have to say. I think I might sit the thread out after this. But whatever the cause, I vote to go to naraka immediately, as soon as we get the opportunity.

The way I've always seen it, this is Anon's coping mechanism. Anon likes being liked by all these attractive young women, and since he doesn't really have any other support system he's actually gotten a bit addicted to the attention. It's not that he's trying to live out a harem anime, it's that he can't not try to win a girl over. Always knew this would end in disaster. Best case scenario, The girls move on with their lives and look back at their interaction with Anon as positive if frustrating part of their adolescence.

>>25809839

I guess we leave. We haven't been able to reach argent prominence, and we're kind of out of luck on the allies front.

Fuck.

Wow guys way to cock this up.

I guess this goes on the "Joker Quest moments where you can see an NPC's heart shattering" list.

>>25809949
So we're back to square one as the lone Joker.
Go figure.

>>25809737

Agh. To hell with decorum.

Before she can truly build up a head of steam, grab her, and drag her into the Red World.

"LOOK AT ME. This is not something you can LIKE. People end up DEAD OR TERRIFIED IF THEY GET CLOSE TO ME, ASUNA. I CARE FAR TOO MUCH ABOUT YOU FOR THAT TOO HAPPEN. Why do you think I've treaded delicately around this issue for so damn long, Asuna? WHY?! Because I don't want you injured or worse DEAD! You're precious to me, very precious to me, Asuna, which is why I keep you at arms length. I don't know what I would do if I lost you."

>>25809885
>>25809855
>>25809839
If we follow we're effectively moving into cheating territory, which after this interpretation of Anon >>25809907 I can actually see as in character.

irregardless Asuna will be devastated how we treated Mio in a similar situation. That will really send the message "you're just not good enough."

I'd say go after her but I can't think of a way to salvage this.

>>25809907

That's actually depressingly accurate. It's kind of ironic that the one girl we really want is the one we can't have.

>>25809949
We haven't even tried to get in touch with AP. Natsumi even recently told us that he wanted to meet.

>>25809988
>I AM SO FUCKING DARK AND CONFLICTED WHICH MEANS I CAN STRING YOU ALONG

>>25810006
Who, Kotone?

>>25809737
[X] Leave, head for Club Neraka (Now that's not ominous).

>>25809988
No, anon. Go sit in the corner. Like, right now. Go there and think about what you just typed.

>>25809988

Gah. Should we try to do this? Is it even possible? Guys?

I'm very, very sure that Asuna has player potential. But SHOULD we bring her into things, even if we can?

I'm tentatively backing this course of action, but I think it'd be an immensely awful thing to do.

>>25809988
Ignore this. Incredibly OOC, it wouldn't get us anywhere and only worsen the situaton.

>>25810072

isn't asuna anon's childhood friend? which is cypher?

>>25809974

It's always been down to just us.

>>25810052

'Naraka' is the name of a place of torment. According to wikipedia, it is the Underworld of Man. Let's go for it, but it can't be good.

>>25810103

That's natsumi, Chrome Cypher. We also fucked things up with her.

>>25809991
Should have been more clear, my response at >>25809855 was to "Tell her that and leave."

>>25809907
Could be. I'm not even playing Anon that self-aware, but he knew he liked Hecate and wanted to be upfront about needing time to figure out how he felt when she vanished.

>>25810103
That's Natsumi.

>>25809988
I don't think that's even possible and if it was it would be a total dick move.

>>25810052
The main reason we can't get Kotone is because she pops out whenever, she knows about our lingering feelings towards Hecate and also probably about Mio.
Going for her after everything goes to hell is still an option.

>>25810103
No, that's Kaz's girlfriend, Natsumi.
Asuna's the librarian

>>25810039
>>25810073
>>25810072


We're getting fucking nowhere. Too many women. Not enough plot. Scare her off with the big confession and the terrifying visage and be done with it. Move on. Jesus Christ.

I have to say, I'm entirely amused by this course of events. This is the first time I've seen all the waifu shenigans come back to REALLY bite someone in the ass.

Good job, OP. Is it always like this?

>>25810170
Too bad it was done through moe stutter.

>>25810128
>Anon
>self-aware
Hey, I never said that. He's just a teenager. I don't think he really gets how selfish he is, even his"why am I doing this?" moments are more of a "poor me".

>>25810119
>>25810129
>>25810131

ive actually lost track of all of the chicks that want anons dick at this point.

>>25810170
Well given that we can pinpoint the exact moment we ripped out Natsumi's heart and stomped on her soul, yes.

>>25810224
We kinda sorta patched it up later, IIRC.

>>25809988

I was one of the ones that advocated the bit upgrade and even i think this is retarded.

Let's not go with this OP, shall we?

>>25810217
Natsumi: Redhead.
Asuna: Librarian.
Hecate: Dead
Mio: Cosplayer, blond, some kind of light wizard.
Kotone: Black Joker.

>>25809988

For a moment - Just a moment - you consider grabbing her by the shoulders, shaking some sense into her: To *make* her see what you can see...

-You breathe out. Slowly.

Your breath cycles in and out of your lungs, and a pinpoint of calm returns.

>>25809855

Does she hear you? Maybe.

You're getting odd looks, as you walk out - Outside, the afternoon has shaded to evening. Night is coming earlier, here, the seasonal cold making your breath fume in the air...

A fat drop of moisture hits the shoulder of your coat, and slides down.

It begins to rain.

Perfect. Just, perfect; That's really all the day needs.

(Continued)

>>25810273

>hecate: dead

ill punch u right in the gabber m8

;_;

>>25810255
YOU.

Are forgiven, it's worked out pretty well.

>>25810170
Just stick around and watch Mio shatter like fine crystal when we drop her for Hecate after we made ourself the defining positive influence in her life. Kinda hoping she somehow winds up with Kou, he certainly didn't seem to be struck by an innate dislike for her and I think they might have complementary personalities.

>>25810303

But I actually like Mio.

>>25810298
She's alive (Kinda? Sorta?)
Probably won't remember us though.

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>>25810291
>For a moment - Just a moment - you consider grabbing her by the shoulders, shaking some sense into her: To *make* her see what you can see...
>-You breathe out. Slowly.
>Your breath cycles in and out of your lungs, and a pinpoint of calm returns.
Thank you, based JQOP.

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>>25810335

I like Mio too. The Lemonade is delicious.

>>25810353

He's learning. Deculture learned too recently. So did Goushoujin-sama back in the day.

>>25810353
I want that table.
>>25810291
For a moment there, I though I would get heart attack. Thank you based OP

>>25810273
You left out Megumi, we made quite an impression on her last time we saw her.

>>25810438
She works for Pazuzu.

>>25810438
I didn't count her because I'm fairly sure she's taken. I'm not that great with memory, she was the girl whose pictures came from a footjob scene right?

>>25810291

as a long time lurker of this quest who is breaking his lurk to post, i'm happy to see you did not go with the troll response. it would have been hilarious if you did just to see the frothing rage generated, but i'm glad you didn't. i like this quest far too much to see joker get killed this early.

back to lurking I go

>>25810353

(The action was veto'd, actually; It's really thanks to the other participants.)

>>25810052
>>25810104

It begins to rain hard, as you trudge on - You're vaguely surprised that the rain doesn't flash into steam, when it touches your skin. It's an unseasonal rain - Turning the early snow into liquid mush, the few remaining pedestrians scattering for cover as the downpour begins.

As you shelter beneath a bus stop, you turn the matchbox over in your hand, looking at the address. Surprisingly, it's not that far - A little out of the way, but a half-hour's walk will probably do you good.

Your thoughts come in time to the sickly throb of your fever, as you dart beneath walkways and storefronts, to avoid the worse of the downpour. This world - It's a complicated place. You've never been that quite that certain of where you fit in: Perhaps part of you will always be *down there* - On the black sands, acid waves lapping against the surf.

Before too long, you find yourself standing on an oddly rumpled street, the buildings on both sides shuttered and worn and barred shut. For a moment, you're confused: This *is* the right place. But then why...?

And then, something clicks in your mind.

Six years ago, after the disaster - There was a massive urban reconstruction effort, to erase the scars of the past. The operation was far-reaching and extensive and very, very rushed: The new city was built on the bones of the old, when buildings folded into each other, crushed and compressed.

That means...

You look again, not up but down. Slightly askew - Between two slanting, sagging shophouses, visible cracks rising in the seams of the road like bones pushing through flesh - you can make out steps leading downwards, almost like an underpass, a feverish red light pulsing wanly at the very edge of perception.

(Continued)

>>25810457
You say that as though it's going to stop anyone.

>>25810466

Yeah, that's her. The CG set wasn't that great if my memory serves me right

>>25810514

And above the slanting doorway and the crazed steps: C B N A R A K A, lit in twitching neon light.

You're silhouetted by the squirming illumination, as you descend the steps one at a time, watching your footing...

The steps go on for a long way, in the red-lit gloom.

Inside-

You're not sure what you expected, but the club's packed. A brand of harsh, discordant music - Pounding and incoherent - echoes in your ears. Panes of red glass have been put over the light of the lanterns wired to the walls, and the place is a hellish swamp, the air body-warm: You're standing on a slanting, raw concrete walkway, with steps leading down to the dance floor.

Looking down is a disorientating process: You're not sure exactly how many people are there. The writhing forms and the lines of skipping light remind you, suddenly, of a mosaic - Motion and shadow somehow blending together into a ghastly symbol of unity, ecstatic and obscene at once.

Here and there, you catch glimpses - It's a harsh place, jury-rigged; All aluminum tubes and flakboard panels wired up so that ropes of light pulse in time to the music pumping through the overhead speakers. There are three storeys to the place: You stand on the second floor, along a corridor lined with veiled booths - Below, tables radiate out from the bar's central hub.

Most amazing of all is the dance floor: It's not concrete or granite, but panels of glass suspended over what looks like fuming waters, lit by the same crimson light, somehow managing to take the weight of the dancers.

(Continued)

>>25810826

You know, instinctively, that your mind is playing tricks. Just a popular club, one that's ironically - And literally - underground at the same time...But for a moment (Just a moment)...it reminds you very much of the hell below reality.

The masked, capering dancers don't help; Neither does the constant, seething morass below, the music going on and on and on, without pause for breath - Just a wall of noise, with no indication when the track changes.

[ ] Descend to the dance floor.
[ ] Go to the bar.
[ ] Check the corner tables.
[ ] Check the booths on the second floor.
[ ] Check the booths on the first floor.
[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>25810836
>"Find a new perspective-" Something flickers in his flat gaze.

>"-And be enlightened."

Enter the red world.

>>25810836

(Apologies: The second-last option should be 'booths on the THIRD floor'.)

>>25810856

Wait a moment. We don't know HOW many players are here. We could be right in the middle of a trap, for all we know.

What are doing here, anyway? Looking for the runaway? Let's start by doing some detectoring, before plunging right into the mess.

>>25810881
Have we ever been able to detect how many players are around?
And I suspect this place has correctors, especially considering the time frame and the nature of the surroundings.

>>25810951

We've never been able to detect other players, but other players have been capable of detecting US.

>>25810836

Grab a seat near the main entrance. See if Jelaiz makes an appearance. Should've stopped on our way here for some aspirins.

>>25810836
Just doing stuff at the front-end isn't going to help us at all. We want into the back rooms, so we'd best look for the entrances to such. The VIPs will likely be waiting to hear back from the hit team, so looking for obvious security staff could be useful as well.

>>25811007

> [X] Grab a seat near the main entrance.

Surprisingly, there's no shortage of tables. They're oddly organic structures, seemingly welded in place: Injection-molded forms sprouting from the stone floor like strange growths.

As you make your way downstairs, your vision swims - The sight is a disorientating one, the hard-cut steps leading just past the dance floor. You have to cut through the corner to get there - Jostled, and jostling people back, as the crowd spills over slightly towards the seats; Cordoned off by thick links of chain, and by the winding yellow of police tape in other places.

You slump - Rather gratefully - into a seat. A haze of oddly bitter smoke hangs in the air; Two tables over, you can hear a group - Or is the word 'gang'? - of boys talking, glass clacking against a hard surface - No-one seems to pay much attention to you, beyond the first, cursory glances...It *is* a little odd that you're alone, after all.

The music they're playing - It's familiar, somehow. You rack your mind, and finally recognize it: It's one of Kerebos Guard's songs. It seems being dead has only made Okami Kurosu more popular...Like most great artists, after all.

Was that really just a few weeks - Months? - ago?

> Should've stopped on our way here for some aspirins.

You really should have. You pat yourself down in a cursory way - Something crinkles, in your pocket. The pills - A random assortment of antibiotics and cold medication - still in their plastic sleeve...

-Asuna must have handed them to you, at some point.

You dry-swallow two. They don't seem to help much.

(Continued)

>>25811126

Looking around for...

Odd. There doesn't seem to be anyone who's obviously staff - Except for the mismatched quarter manning the bar. Come to think of it, there wasn't a bouncer outside, either: It strikes you that most of the people here *are* rather young - Enough that you don't immediately stand out.

Self-service, too, apparently - You haven't been approached yet, either.

There's a secondary entrance: A fringed 'mouth', lined with plastic fangs, at the far end of the hall. It leads down, not up - Further into the old city, or just a dead end? Either way-

A hand closes on your shoulder, and squeezes.

"Hey, you're - Anon, is it?" the voice is vaguely familiar, though he has to shout to make himself heard - A face swinging into view, as you turned. Bespectacled, slender, his intense-looking features flushed and faintly shiny with sweat - "...It *is*!"

Izumo Suoh sinks into the chair opposite in an alarmingly casual way - He has a weighty bag slung over one shoulder, which swings back and forth as he makes a grandoise gesture with one arm. "-What are you *doing* here?"

He's on something - Drunk, maybe, his pupils dilated behind his glasses. Still dressed the same way he was before, at the Museum - It's a weird coincidence! "And alone, too!" Suoh's gaze darts back and forth.

"Where's that girl of yours - The one with the..." He waggles his fingers overhead, in a good imitation of fox-ears; His voice raw with forced cheer.

[ ] "What are *you* doing here?"
[ ] "Huh. Small world."
[ ] "None of your business."
[ ] "-Do I know you?"
[ ] "Are you all right?"
[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>25811459

Down on his luck too, I see. So he was at the gallery...Wonder what happened to him.

>>25811459
[X] "Huh. Small world."
[X] "Looking for Shindo still?"

>>25811550

> [X] "Huh. Small world."

"*Too* small!" Suoh snaps - Not at you, just at the world in particular. He has - No joke - a steel thermos flask in his other hand; His motion making the contents slosh, as he takes a long, deep pull, wiping his mouth with his sleeve.

He looks...dishevelled. Possibly not in his right mind. Mad at something, certainly, but there's a reckless despair in it, too.

> [X] "Looking for Shindo still?"

"-He's DEAD!" His voice rises in a shout - The flask comes down hard, and bangs against the table with startling force; Enough to jar itself out of his hand. An oily, sharp-smelling liquid spills out, in a glistening puddle.

Suoh's face crumples, as he leans his forehead against his arm.

"...My best friend's dead, and no-one cares," he says, softly; His fingers splayed on the tabletop. "-It's all turned to *shit*. All my buddies are dead, because of that, that..."

He draws a hitching breath, metal scraping as he retrieves the thermos.

"No one *cares*," he says, again, bleary-eyed. "...No-one at all, not even that awful bastard. He laughed at me - *Laughed* at me, can you believe that. That stone-cold son of a bitch."

[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>25811640
>[X] "Wait, wait. Dead? have you called the police? Who laughed at you?"
Should probably feign sympathy and find out who this 'awful bastard' is.

>>25811640
"I'm sorry to hear you found out. But to laugh about it... That's awful. How did it happen?"

>>25811686
>>25811729

He shakes his head, convulsively - Dissolving further in welther of self-pity and gnawing, corrosive fury. "'Call the police'. What a joke." Suoh moves as if to lift the flask to his mouth again - Then seems to dismiss the effort as too strenuous.

> "Who laughed at you?"

"Him!"

He jabs an unfocused but firm finger in a single direction, pointing at...

-The couple three tables away. You take them in at a glance: The 'him' in question - Looking as fresh as night frost, white jacket immaculate as he sips at a fluted glass...A little smile on his surprisingly boyish face, one that's more polite than earnest.

But it's the girl he's speaking with - The one who laughs at some bon motte he's just made - that takes your breath away. She's beautiful; Objectively so, an incredible softness of features. Large pale eyes framed by thick black lashes, hair held up by an architecture of jeweled pins - A few loose curls spilling free to hang around her ears.

She's wearing the dress that every other princess's dress echoes - Layered cream fabric, lace, silk, something that's almost a kimono...And utterly out of place, yet utterly *real* in a way you cannot quite describe.

The jeweled pins in her hair glint violet, as she folds her hands on her lap.

[ ] "...What, *him*?"
[ ] "Who's *she*?"
[ ] "You're kidding, right?"
[ ] "That's the guy?"
[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>25811729
Well. I've never been good at social interactions.

Watashiwa, it is in your hands now.

>>25811950
"Are you sure it's him?"
"Who're they?"
"Why'd you look for him in the first place?"

>>25811950
"Why would you talk to them about him? And who gave you that drink, I think it's eating through the table."

Kraken and Hellebore I suspect.

So, wait, we are talking to one of the evil Smiley guys?

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>>25811950
>The jeweled pins in her hair glint violet

>>25812044
I don't think it's Hellebore, but given the place, Kraken seems likely.

>>25811950
[X] "Who's *she*?"

Only one other person has been described as that sort of *real* before, and that's Hecate.

I'm starting to wonder if we'll ever get the shield/Sun/hospital trinity.

>>25812036

> "Are you sure it's him?"

"*Look* at him - Look at that smug bastard's *smile*." Suoh's focus is ferocious and unsteady at once. As if he's been overheard, his target glances up; He *is* smiling, but - To your eye - it's actually tolerant and a little long-suffering, instead of mocking.

He looks at you, and his shoulders rise in a little shrug; His eyes flicking to Suoh, as if acknowledging your predicament. It's a silent yet eloquent message - "I don't know this *alien*."

Then the girl's hand closes on his - A little squeeze - and draws his attention away.

...You really can't blame him.

> "Why would you talk to them about him? And who gave you that drink, I think it's eating through the table."
> [X] "Who's *she*?"

"I-"

Suoh goes quiet, suddenly - As if suddenly aware he's said too much. He takes a drink: A *long* drink, his Adam's apple bobbing as he swallows.

"...Forget it," he says, hoarsely, moving to rise. "-Forget I said *anything*."

He staggers to his feet, propping himself up against the chair...

-And over his shoulder, you see the boy who brushed past you in the gallery. Still in the same ratty coat; Ascending the steps, looking furtive and stubbornly *un-hip* - And making a beeline for the third storey.

Just a moment's glimpse, but it's *him*.

[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>25812162

I know, right? Other things KEEP coming UP.

>>25812177
Right now I really wish we'd have an avatar with stealth capability, the ability to make sure our body doesn't do stupid shit while we are afk (like building a harem, as Asuna's comments implied) and an actual Red World equivalent of real world architecture.
That would be perfect for spying right now.

...Hey, does anyone want to go Carnifex spy mode?

>>25812177

Fucking finally. Guess our hunch was right: Go after him! This has really been a shitty day for the red joker so far, we're going to nail this bastard if it's the last thing we do.

>>25812205

What 'stupid shit' when AFK? That was all us.
I'm kind of depressed now.

>>25812177
[X] "Suoh. Hey Suoh. Look man. I'll talk to him for you. I just have to take a leak first."
To the third floor.

>>25812237
>That was all us.
She talked about how we are sometimes "different" and way too nice to her.
I took that as our afk personality - Flirting with chicks while we are fighting. We are probably a suave motherfucker during these moments.
Similar to how the Kendo guy is perfect at Kendo and a strict teacher while he's afk.

>>25812177
This promises to be revealing. Tell Suoh to get some sleep and a psychologist, follow Jezail. We're going to try to get in hearing range of whoever he's meeting with and the second the words "Red Joker" come up we issue our very first 1v1 challenge this entire quest to whoever he's talking to.

>>25812205
The Carnifex does not work like that.

>>25812257
No, the flirting thing is all us. When we're in the Red World our body is listless or zombie-like.

>>25812266
>The Carnifex does not work like that.
It amplifies our bodily abilities through overextension and speeds up our thought process.
We just have to manually make sure that we aren't breaking our joints or something.
It's not different from a human with permanently unlocked limiters.

The increased speed would be perfect for sneaking.

>>25812257

I think that's the problem. We're a Nice Guy, not a nice guy. We might not be a bad person, but we're fundamentally a survivor. We're very good at tell people what they want to hear, a la SOCIAL LINK GO, but there's no real honesty to us.

We are a pretty suave motherfucker, admittedly.

>>25812293
Anon has ended up as a remarkably complex, and utterly fucked in the head, character. We're generally pretty good at hiding how utterly fucked we are from the general population.

>>25812247
>>25812216
>>25812266

He mumbles something in answer, vaguely affirmative; Looking almost relieved, somehow, as if he's been slipped off the hook.

And then...

Before, pushing through the milling crowd was a disorientating experience. But now, you have target lock - Forging your way forward, one grim step at a time, moving with purpose. Vertigo sweeps over you, as you're assailed by an appalling, momentary dizziness...But then you're climbing, following that receding figure, getting closer with each step...

-He don't look back, moving with quick, nervous strides. For a moment, you think you've lost him; But one of the hanging veils twitches, giving you a glimpse of the darkened alcove beyond - There's a curved bench and a round table, large enough to comfortable seat anywhere between four to six people.

You reach the third-storey corridor, drawing closer still: Silhouettes moving across the silk screens. There are sounds of laughter, of muted conversation, of clinking glasses, of moans-

>>25812205

The Carnifex is in your pocket. You rest your hand on it, your touch resting on the intricate carvings of interlocking skeletal fingers.

A glance back, then forth. The passage is momentarily clear, as you pause just out of view, listening for...

-You hear nothing. The music drowns out almost everything, but he's not *saying* anything. As you strain your hearing, you finally make out...

The constant *click* of fingers on a keyboard, a steady clack-clack-clack of hurried typing.

[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

I think we need to NOT use the Carnifex. Using it here is a really dumbass move.

>>25812354

> "HERE'SSSSSSSS JOHNNNNNYYYY!!!"

>>25812278
Speed has nothing to do with stealth. Stealth is about moving around unnoticed which is not the same as not being seen. The human eye is pretty good at detecting acceleration, so moving faster would hinder rather than help stealth. The other thing that human eyes are good at is pattern recognition: Faces and outlines. Thus the trick to being stealthy is densely packed human environments is to slide along a crowd and go with the flow.

>>25812293
Probably a result of reintegrating to civilization after the one hundred years of solitude. People paid attention to him when he has a problem, that triggers Red World flashbacks, and when this leads to panic attacks he comes under even more scrutiny. So he learns to manipulate conversations as a means of drawing attention away from himself. Ten years later he's an adroit conversationalist who says exactly what he thinks people want to hear without saying anything at all.

>>25812354
So much for that plan. "The of your snipers I fought left a mark of me. It didn't last."

Issue challenge.

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>>25812391
*The last

>>25812330
So, essentially, Anon is the second coming of Kurosu Taichi.

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>>25812402

>>25812406

I think there's this horrible disconnect that's being explored: Can you be both a good person and an absolutely murderous bastard at the same time?

I mean, we kill without mercy and with no apparent guilt. That spells sociopath.

>>25812391
>Speed has nothing to do with stealth. Stealth is about moving around unnoticed which is not the same as not being seen. The human eye is pretty good at detecting acceleration, so moving faster would hinder rather than help stealth. The other thing that human eyes are good at is pattern recognition: Faces and outlines. Thus the trick to being stealthy is densely packed human environments is to slide along a crowd and go with the flow.
I'm not exactly saying that we should use the Carnifex in an environment full of people.
I was thinking more along the lines of quickly looking out of cover and back, because we are not only physically amplified but also are faster at taking in the visual information.

But I do agree that right now I'm not sure if the Carnifex would help. We don't intend to physically attack them in the real world, right?
Might be useful for escape once the dude comes back out, though.

>>25812415
>That spells sociopath.
Not really.
We still feel regret at breaking the hearts of people.
Sociopaths have greatly subdued emotions. You can be a remorseless killer without being a sociopath, especially as people in the Red World don't even look human.

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>>25812377
>>25812391

You sweep the veil aside, with one pull - And step through.

He's hunched over an open laptop, a blue USB stick jagging out from the side; His fingers making an audible CLACK each time he hits the keys, hammering the buttons as if it simply isn't responding fast enough. At your entrance, he wrenches the flash drive free - Panic, fear, and surprise warring on his features as he makes a sound like a strangled yelp, looking up at you...

-Then his brow furrows. Whatever he's terrified of - It's not you.

"Who the fuck *are* you?" he snaps - Angry, now, anger at being afraid. "-Get the fuck out, you *fuck*-"

>>25812391

Silence.

His face goes from red to milk-white, as his fingers twitch.

On the table, the laptop begins to smoke, with a dull, buzzing hum.

"Oh, fuck *me*," he breathes - "It's *you*-"

He makes a jittery, almost convulsive motion - An attack? A plea for mercy? Or just an attempt to run away? - as the world flickers and goes *red*...

RED JOKER

V.

HELIX GYGAS

(Continued)

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>>25812402
.

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>>25812472

STAGE: NARAKA

As your mono-optic sensor coheres, as targeting data flickers across your HUD - Your systems ping with high-energy reactions from all around-

...The half-sphere of a great cage - The insides thwart with spikes and recurve
barbs, like a reverse bear-trap - locks down from above, sizzling with patient tics of cohered lightning.

Outside - It's like an ocean, a seething morass of moiling grey fog; Half-visible, twisting, strands of smoke that hint at faces and forms. And within it - Stark, armored - crowd Players.

There are dozens of them; Visors and faceplates swinging to take in the new sight, pulled from one world to the next - As twin black suns collide overhead, one lit with a corona of red flame...The other half the size, with a seething purple core.

Great monitors flicker to life: Displaying, on one side, your grinning emblem - On the other, an odd, almost abstract symbol...Three Helix Blades clenched in a fist, it looks like.

> "-Let me out...He's going to KILL me! You have to-"

HELIX GYGAS is at the far end of the cage, his back to you - Holding just short of gripping the bars, his words drowned out by a tremendous, brazen roar; Cheers, the pounding of steel-shod fists against armor.

"Joker-kun, I love you!" a voice shrills - You make out, startlingly, a girl with her hands cupped to her mouth; Her eyes shining as her voice cuts across the commotion...So quickly, you might have imagined her.

Then there are more cheers, bloodthirsty and mindless; One rising exhalation from the assembled audience.

"Jesus," Gygas hisses, as he turns to face you - His psychic blades orbiting him in a sharp-edged halo. They're been restored, surprisingly: But his posture hardly looks confident.

HP: 130.0%
COBALT BOOSTER: 150%
ASSAULT SHROUD: 150%
METER: 12%

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>25812567
"I can and will. Unless you tell me what I want to know."

>>25812567
Have our weapons ready to go when needed, but talk first, he's scared as hell, we can get something out of him.

"Hello Sunshine, lovely to see you again.

Righto, since we're both here why don't you answer a few questions I have.

What were you doing at ACROPOLIS earlier tonight? What was the plan for you and your friends? Who sent you? What were they trying to accomplish? What's with this place? Who made it? Who else is here watching that I might care about?

On a related note Malachite said I killed his friend, which person was that? It can be hard to keep track of all the people who fail to kill me."

>>25812567
Thinking about it some I feel kind of bad about this. Helix was the one who wanted to cut and run at the first sight of us.

On the other hand, he's a Smiler and would have been perfectly content with killing any other Player, so he's not having a change of heart, he's just afraid of dying.

Lead with the Vulcans, let's see if they still hold up. We're going to be trying out the Chain Mine this match, so let's build some meter.

>>25812625
Question I forgot to ask in my post here. Not another separate vote.

"Where are you lot getting the purple shards?"

>>25812567
"Wait, someone who DOESN'T want to fight?
I'd love to let you live. This kind of foreward thinking should be rewarded."

>>25812626
>Chain Mine
Question:
The pastebin has this line:
>initial detonation are drawn to life readings, rather than magnetic materials
For Cobalt Boosted chain mine.
But aren't ALL players metallic?

>>25812716
>What is a player?
A miserable pile of ceramics, polymer and metal.

>>25812716
Most, not all. There are wholly organic Players (Hecate), some flesh/metal hybrids (Baphomet, but who knows if he's still even canon) and of course Correctors by the million.

And with that I'm off. Luck all.

>>25812742
>Hecate
She was an exception, though. Wasn't she noted to be very different BECAUSE of her human looks?

>>25812747
Extremely.

Which is why I'm very interested in that girl we saw earlier who we saw for a fraction of a second telling us she loves us right when we got here.

My guess would be that she's the one getting them the purple shards of murdery murder.

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>>25812596
>>25812705

"I don't know *anything*!" He hovers a full foot over the pitted ground - The panic in his voice utterly incongruous, coming the mouth grille of his wedge-shaped helm. "-I'm just *some guy*...Why you gotta kill me, man?"

>>25812625

"I can't - I can't *tell* you!" Helix's three-fingered hands are raised, in a warding gesture; "...I don't know anyone! I can't-"

>>25812625

His fevered gaze sweeps the crowd, as your forearm Vulcans cycle: Levelling both guns at him, as you ask your final question. For an instant, he hesitates, as if at some unseen signal; You glance in the same direction, seeing only coiling mist and shadows...And the rows of Players, of course, gathering to watch the fight...

-And you're jarred off your feet, as your vision goes white with a bone-rattling surge. There's a loud *bang* that seems to echo in your skull, a shuddering crackle that merges with a CLANG as you land on the polished floor and slide a few metres, dying webs of charge flickering across your chest plate...

So that's how it feels to be struck by lightning.

Sparks play between Helix Gygas's claws: Positive ions beginning to build in the swirling air around him, a spitting, crackling aura - One fed by the ribbons of lightning drawn down from the cage's spikes, until he begins to glow from within, incandescent.

He's building a thunderbolt - With your name on it.

(Continued)

>>25812753

The crowd's roar echoes in your ears, as you find your footing once more; Your Vulcans spitting hailing bursts of plasma, green bolts spearing across the distance. With an oath, Helix flinches back, levitating higher into the air - The double-edged, hiltless blades of his namesake weapons knitting together in a spinning silver wheel. Your first volley splinters them apart, as they tumble away in momentary confusion...Like a startled flock of birds, struggling to recohere.

You realize, in a rush of inspiration, that he's not fighting *you*, not really: He's fighting the man he *thinks* you are. He's attacking to save his own miserable hide.

"You'll *let* me live, Joker?" he crackles, his voice flecked with static. "Let me go if I play along?" Coiling streamers of lightning shudder through the air, his Helix blades weaving complex patterns of attack and defense...As shuddering spheres of electricity seethe at his palms.

"-You can cooperate by *holding still."

And the bloody game is on.

JOKER QUEST

EPISODE 48

TO BE CONTINUED

>>25812761
Next episode when?

>>25812761
Well, he started it. We were trying to be polite and look where that got us.

Time to murder the schmuck, we should be able to do that well enough. He seems to like keeping distance and range, and we're better at that than he is.

>>25812761
How about we lightning bolt his ass?
Can't use the jetpack inside of the dome, anyway.

(My apologies, gentlemen: It's really, really late for me. I'd love to continue, but the start of the battle looks like a good breakpoint.

As always, you've been a great audience: Things have played out in unexpected and rather interesting ways, I have to admit.

Good night, and god bless: I hope to see you again soon.

>>25812716

(Apologies: What I meant is, the standard-issue Chain Mine is guided by conventional targeting mechanisms. When enhanced by the Cobalt Booster, the resulting projectiles are drawn to incinerate life.

A target might be radar-silent, and some of the incendiaries will be attracted to him anyway.)

>>25812773

Most likely on or slightly after the 08/07/2013.)

>>25812761
>"-You can cooperate by *holding still."
Welp, we gave him the chance to live. Now we'll just have to smear him across the arena like a particularly hungry man smears his mother's homemade marmalade jam across freshly baked bread.

Basically we're going to kill this asshole.

>>25812785
Alright, see you then. Wish you'd give a time estimate on twitter too.

>>25812792
That is a remarkably specific simile you've got there.

>>25812792
You know what conducts electricity? Carbon.
You know what the assault shroud is made of?

>>25812792
>>25812798
I vote for doing a very clean kill.
The crowd doesn't deserve to enjoy this.

Also, it's ironic that just a few days ago I was wondering if the crowd was retconned out.

>>25812812
Nah, we go slow. Blow out his weapons, his sensors, his limbs, and every time we say something that includes "Why you gotta do this man?"

>>25812798
I really like jam.
>>25812810
Really? I always thought it was kind of a nanomachine dealie.
>>25812812
I think they're going to enjoy the festivities anyways, and Helix Gygax doesn't look like he wants to make it fast for us in either direction.

>>25812827
>>25812840
On the one hand, I can understand us being pissed off.
On the other hand, this dude is scared to death. He didn't attack because he's an asshole (even if he is) - He attacked us because self-preservation kicked in.
If we don't kill him, one of his superiors will.

Then again, how about doing something creative?
We need to get used to our full equipment.

Let's try how many missiles we can fire if we are at 100%.
Or how about seeing how quickly we can deploy the railgun?
I would love to test a maneuver where we sacrifice all of our interceptors to stop the enemy for long enough to do some railing. Followed by a lightning bolt.

...What happens if we combine the lightning bolt with our railgun?

Hey, guys, I think I just found something weird:
>LEVEL 2 UPGRADE:
>The Plasma Caster now utilizes the same systems as your primary Vulcans.
Does this mean upgrading the Vulcans will also upgrade our shotgun?

>>25812887
We can always stop once he actually starts doing something other than trying to kill us and gives us what we need.

Did we ever use our EXEC commands in front of a crowd?
I'd say it would be best to keep them secret whenever there's a crowd watching. Someone might find out about the Hollow Sun in some arcane manner (maybe a weird ability or something).

>>25812907

You know, the biggest question I'm wondering about.

Who are the girls? We've seen two Red World girls in the same place. The one that guy was talking to, and the one who cheered for us.

Are they the same kind of player Hecate is?

>>25813325

They're probably chalice-type players.

>>25813325
I'm pretty sure they're the same person. If you look at the picture posted here >>25812567 it matches the description of the girl >>25811950 pretty closely with the exception of how her hair was styled at the moment.

Also, if someone is in the real world and is described with the same unearthly, inhuman, *real*, beauty as Hecate, and then moments later a girl, not a robot, a girl shows up in the Red World it's probably the same person, not a different one.

In addition in her hair were jeweled violet pins, violet, like the Nihl Stone and the shards that do all sorts of weird stuff which lends credence to her bouncing between Red World and Normal World. My personal guess is that she somehow produces them, but I don't have sufficient evidence for that.

So we've found one other player that acts like Hecate and she's with the Smiler bastards. We'll probably have to find out what she wants.

We do not trust her, not in the least. Every word she says could be a lie, deception, trap, or ruse. Every action she makes could be a ploy to mess with us, to gain our trust to use against us, to distract us from her actual goals. She is a squishy type in what seems to be a rather cutthroat organization, she knows how to use people against each other.

>>25813528
...What if she stole Hecate's manner of using the Red World?
Fuck, she's a big hint.

On a side note: Has anyone noticed that newer descriptions of upgrades aren't quite as detailled visually anymore?
At least for our latest addition I feel like that. But maybe it's because we didn't actually use it yet.

>>25813528

I think they're two different girls, actually. We'll have to wait to the next instalment to find out, however.

>>25813560

Didn't we last get attunement? That one's an internal one, right?

>>25813563
>Didn't we last get attunement? That one's an internal one, right?
We also got the mines.

>>25813580

That's a special weapon, isn't it? I thought we just manifest those guns when we're using them, like the plasma caster or the fusion annhilator.

>>25813586
Yeah, I just noticed.
I looked at the missiles and the Vulcans and the nuke, so I didn't see the less visual descriptions of the other weapons.

By the way, I somehow think of the alien weapons in Breed for special weaponry like the plasma caster.
Too bad that it's fucking impossible to do a search on images/videos for the game.

>>25813649

Breed? Never heard of that one. But that would be fuck-awesome.

Is anyone going to archive this?

>>25813840
>Breed? Never heard of that one. But that would be fuck-awesome.
It's supposedly pretty mediocre, but it's still infinitely better than the original Halo.

You had human and alien weaponry that you could pick up and the alien weaponry had all kinds of blue shiny glowing elements, which kind of reminds me of our style with multiple reactors and the like.

>Is anyone going to archive this?
Oh fuck.
Trying to do it now.
Thankfully, there's only two tags.

>>25810335

I think that our choice of love interests is ultimately going to be between Mio or Hecate. The problem is, those are the two that I find the most attractive.

The new girl is a hottie, but I'm not sure how relevant she'd be. Not to mention she's apparently taken.

I archived it now.
For some reason, someone archived quest 47 with arabic numerals.

>>25813932
We can't let just leave Mio. That's bound to fuck her up majorly.
We have to fix the Asuna stuff somehow.
But first we need to murder the fucker, investigate the !Hecate girl and then visit the Hollow Hospital while eating a shield.

>>25813944

Well, she seems to be pretty turned on by the fight. That can't bode well.

>>25812567

Wow. This has been an amazing episode, in that we're pretty much at our lowest point. We've scuppered our chances and possibly our friendship with Asuna, just when she worked up enough courage to confess.

Now we're fighting for our lives in a gladiatorial arena, against a guy who's trying to avoid getting murdered by us. Not to mention, we're suffering from a severe fever.

This really hasn't been our day.

>>25814242
>trying to avoid getting murdered by us
Wait, doesn't that mean that he has Carnifex-like boons like now?
Life-threatening situations tend to disable your limiters.

>>25814242

And that, my friend, is how you reverse a Social Link.

>>25814282

He hit us with LIGHTNING BOLTS from the cage, and he's amped up with electricity. He couldn't do that before!

>>25814288
And that's why I vote for lightning bolting his ass. Because that should cause hilarious overload.

>>25813932
I'm just hoping that Kotone will also be relevant later.

>>25812567
>new girl by taka
Goddamn, this just isn't fair anymore.

>>25814785

I really like her costume, too. I'm amazed by how sexy that not-quite-a-kimono can be.

File: 1372957698954.jpg-(163 KB, 904x1280, randommaid.jpg)

163 KB JPG

>>25814801

Well, a quick search for a white-haired girl means that Kotone probably looks something like this.

File: 1372957736661.jpg-(78 KB, 599x800, takagirl.jpg)

78 KB JPG

>>25814867

Or like this.

>>25814874
SHAAAAAAAAAAAAAFT

>>25814242
Don't you just love it? I think it's about time Joker relieved some stress by brutally murdering a guy to a chorus of cheering players.

I like thinking that RJ is a barely restrained psychopath who tries to do the right thing and fight for something good, but in the end he's just aiming the bloodlust (that he doesn't want to believe is there) at the bad guys rather than the good guys.

>>25815138

I think that after a hundred years in hell, good and evil have pretty much lost all meaning to us.

You know, something's occurred to me. What if all of Pazuzu's inner circle is like us? Bardiel couldn't have been, because he was basically a jumped-up punk. Rust Kaiser is terrifying, Kraken is quite possibly a genuine psychopath, and I'm not sure what to make of Enfer.

>>25815206
Enfer is just a grizzled merc. Kaiser is barely even sentient, he's a fire and forget weapon at this point. Kraken is most definitely a psychopath or a sociopath. Pazazu himself seems half insane and half manipulative sociopath, but it's a little early to tell, really.

And yeah, spending a few hundred years in hell is a great way to turn somebody into a psychopath. Also give them major PTSD, which I think describes the Joker fairly well. Really, if anything, we're playing him as more stable than he should be, but we can dismiss that as a tissue thin veneer of a person hiding the bubbling insanity underneath.

>>25815138
>>25815206
You know what?
How about doing some fucked up insane justification for killing the other half of the twin players?
I want that second sigil.

On the other hand, what if Natsumi is watching right fucking now? She will be horrified if we do the exact thing that she wanted us to stop doing.

By the way, have we ever told her that we spent about a century trapped in that world?

>>25815273

No. We let her assume we were only in there for 'some time'. It's interesting to note that we are significantly more SKILLED than most players. Not just more powerful, which comes with the armour, but actually better at fighting.

My guess is that most people die simply because they don't know how to fight properly. Sure, they know how to use their powers, but the red world is like a video game to them. We, however, have lived it.

>>25815273
That's part of what makes it so good, from a narrative point of view. Natsumi is trying to fix the Red Joker, but she doesn't understand that you can't repair that kind of damage. The dramatic tension that creates is delicious.

Besides, last time we saw her, a building full of people was burning, we'd just blew everything within about a mile radius to hell and killed a gigantic corrector, and then we rolled around laughing about it. I think she's sort of catching on about the extent to which RJ is broken.

>>25815307
>My guess is that most people die simply because they don't know how to fight properly. Sure, they know how to use their powers, but the red world is like a video game to them. We, however, have lived it.
It's like the difference between a casual and competitive player in an RTS.
The casual may be doing their best, but the competitive gamer has spent hours perfecting his build order with spreadsheets and learned to play to win - He will use ALL the tools at his disposal.

>>25815590
>That's part of what makes it so good, from a narrative point of view. Natsumi is trying to fix the Red Joker, but she doesn't understand that you can't repair that kind of damage. The dramatic tension that creates is delicious.
Funny thing is that I always saw us as fixing Hecate... But it seems like it went both ways.
And then she got taken away and now we are even more unhinged.
Ok, operation slaughter is go. But first try if you can break that cage. I want to murder some bystanders and scream at them for their voyeurism.

>>25815602
Break the cage afterward we murder the hell out of Gygas. While they're still cheering for blood.

They want to see a slaughter? Red Joker provides a spectacular show for his audience, and they get to watch it from the best spot in the house: The centre of his weapon sights.

>>25815619
Time to build that 100% meter.
That's our strategy: Only Vulcans. Build up meter.
Then try to tell our opponent that we intend to kill his tormentor.
Set up railgun and shoot through the dome (does it have holes?) at the dude. Watch the glory of hundreds of dudes being cut apart.
If he doesn't want to listen, we just restrain him via fortress mode or something.

If railgun doesn't work, we go 100% again and fire our nuke. Though I weep for all the EXP that the act would waste... Maybe a Cobalt Boost would make it give us at least some EXP?

>>25815619
I'm pretty sure that you're logged out after a 1v1 challenge specifically to prevent something like this from happening.

Also, the bleachers are a field effect, the crowd is probably in the spectator dimension.

>>25815711
>Implying that will stop us

>>25815666

How about not killing the entire crowd? We'd be caught in the singularity as well. Keep in mind, the BFG killed a Cthulhu abomination that would make Father Yog Sothoth jump in proverbial glee.


How exactly are we going to play this? He's terrified. Escaped the Thief's clutches only to end up directly in our gunsights. I really want to get him to talk before we blow his kneecaps out

>>25815757
So...
How about we blow his limbs off?

>>25815757
Pain is a good motivator.

>>25815757
The crowd is screaming for blood, that is what we give them.

>>25815776

So long as we keep the head and the majority of the torso intact, disarming and delegging would be the quickest move.

>>25815794

The crowd wants entertainment. Not precisely blood. If we deliver some flashy moves that quickly remove limbs, they'd be satisfied.

So what are our best amputation attacks?
The shotgun might over-penetrate and explosives are obviously no-go.
And I don't want the crowd to see Cobalt Boost and Carnifex.

>>25815830
They want to see two people killing each other.

>>25815902
You can bet your ass that most don't care about the deaths. They simply want to see a kickass fight.

>>25815869

Crowd knows we have the booster. That's no secret considering we use it near constantly.

>>25815902

Sure, the crowd wants to see two players make a spectacle of themselves. They expect that. That's entertainment that they witness every day in this world. No. We will provide something better. Something more grand.

We shall provide Art. The expertly placed plasma shotgun to the knee to blow off a limb. The precise stitching of vulcan fire to remove an arm. They'll eat it right up.

>>25815974
Seems like it's time to use the Cobalt Booster for close combat for the first time ever.

Hey, look at this:
2.) A short-ranged photonic burst. (10-25% per blast.)
3.) A focused particle beam. (25%-40% per beam.)
4.) Multiple arching (but inaccurate) energy beams. (50% onwards, 10 - 15% per volley.)

Number 4 would be lovely if we had the capability to aim it, but 2 might be perfect for our situation.
Or maybe 3, if we want a clean cut.
Now I want to use an Aikido move to place his arm in front of our chest. And then do Number 2.

...Why are we talking about entertaining a crowd of Smilers? We're here to send a message that anything they want we oppose. We don't need to do anything flashy, instead we should try to make it QUICK as a reminder that we're a threat to them on every level.

Wonder if we can do enough damage to the field to have an effect on the real world; would be cool to do to Naraka what as what happened to Sheol Star. Preferably without draining the Nihl Sphere further.

>>25816066

Don't we have that red crystal?

>>25816066
>>25816093
We have EXEC_REND.
It allows us to phase a single attack into reality.

Also, I got carried away with the murderize idea. Yes, I'm absolutely for a clean kill. Had the same thought further up in the thread.


...Wait a moment. Can we build up meter without an enemy?
If we can't, go into Red World near the club. Then murder a Corrector.
And then shoot our nuke at the club through REND.

>>25816129
Correction:
Seems like the rend overlaps with us.
So, instead, we need to wait for our enemy to shoot another lightning bolt...

>>25816066
Because the Red Joker is a showboating asshat.

>>25815830
>So what are our best amputation attacks?
>>25815830
>The crowd wants entertainment. Not precisely blood. If we deliver some flashy moves that quickly remove limbs, they'd be satisfied.


Hip-fired Railgun. Cobalt boost the Tempest Scrander momentarily for added stability would probably be the best bet for this.

In order to make that work, and beat the sniper at his own game...
Loose a few missiles at him before we fire, one or two of which are Cobalt Boosted - explosions and AOE fire damage to cover up what we're doing while we maintain lock on his position with Exec_harrow.

>>25816066
>We don't need to do anything flashy, instead we should try to make it QUICK as a reminder that we're a threat to them on every level.
>Wonder if we can do enough damage to the field to have an effect on the real world; would be cool to do to Naraka what as what happened to Sheol Star. Preferably without draining the Nihl Sphere further.

Now that I'm thinking about this, we could probably use our Exec_harrow deathmark through the walls of the arena.
Putting the jokers killscorch onto big name players should freak them out - our mark may also give us some sort of 'ownership' over the club, since red world-real world similiarities, and its being done with a reality-hacking codeburst instead of our guns.

We could also probably do something similiar to the cage itself - codeburst and remote detonate the locks to it through the energy barrier, or just railgun them off.

That's what we should do to Gygas. Shoot the cage open and say "You're free to go, as long as you tell me what I want to know. Or, I'll stop you. "(this has a nice side effect of being able to let people who want to stop him from talking IN, putting more pressure on him)
"I'm not as much a killer as your friends have told you. Plenty of jerks gun for me because they want the armor. I'm just REALLY good at keeping it."

>>25816093
Also don't want to use that. I have a plan to use the Hollow Sun to find the source of the crystals. Having one to compare against is the only way I can think it'll work.

>>25816093
>>25816260

red, or purple?

>>25816259
>That's what we should do to Gygas. Shoot the cage open and say "You're free to go, as long as you tell me what I want to know. Or, I'll stop you. "(this has a nice side effect of being able to let people who want to stop him from talking IN, putting more pressure on him)
>"I'm not as much a killer as your friends have told you. Plenty of jerks gun for me because they want the armor. I'm just REALLY good at keeping it."
Now that's just perfect.
We've seen Natsumi talk through the spectator wall. So it's definitely possible to interact through it, even if at great pain.

>>25816260
And this is definitely right.
Stop trying to waste our trinkets on inane shit.

>>25816259
Except Red Joker is exactly as much of a killer as his friends have told him.

The bodycount is in the dozens. By real world standards he'd be the most successful serial killer to have ever lived.

>>25816315
>dozens
You are underestimating him.

Anyway, being a killer does not mean liking the act of killing.
Actually, some of it was retcon fuckup. The initial fluff had the implication that deaths after a game were unusual. So we gleefully murdered people until it became the norm.

By the way, I have no fucking clue how the fuck so many players even exist. Any fight should end with one of them dying, after all.

>>25816365
Except it's been pretty clear that on some level, Joker does enjoy the fighting and the killing, even if he doesn't want to.

>>25816415
>Except it's been pretty clear that on some level, Joker does enjoy the fighting and the killing, even if he doesn't want to.

However, thanks to Natsume(i think?) the concept's been introduced to us that we don't HAVE to kill eery time we fight.
We don't have to be the wounded animal backed into the corner because everyone wants out shiny suit. We can rise above that instinct.

Whether we actually DO it remains to be seen. But talking people down IS kind of a natural extension of our real-world savvy - we just haven't thought to try diplomacy like that before.

Also, if we REALLY want to make an impression, we should take a Hollow Sun portal out.
"Nope! Fuck your shit."
Log out and grab the laptop and usbkey while Gygas is still trapped here.

>>25816650
>Also, if we REALLY want to make an impression, we should take a Hollow Sun portal out.
>"Nope! Fuck your shit."
>Log out and grab the laptop and usbkey while Gygas is still trapped here.
Well, that would be decidedly hilarious.
But only after we deathmark the chick.

>>25816283
There are no red crystals that I know. Even the shard we got in this thread was violet.

>>25816650
Want to know something funny? The Red Joker's current reputation is entirely Anon's fault. Natsumi told us her fears about what the Red Joker was like--robotic, relentless killing machine, etc. She became a Player three years ago. We've been the Red Joker for six.

Makes me wonder if there's a priority effect. Like, if you issue a Player challenge and the Red Joker's in the area you get the Red Joker regardless of whether you challenged another Player or just made a matching request. That would neatly explain why people are sometimes surprised that they drew the Joker as an opponent, and why Anon doesn't know jack-all about the way the Red World works: he's always fighting (unless the field moves during combat) and never in the audience, which means he never talked to anyone in the Red World before Hecate.

>>25817182
>Makes me wonder if there's a priority effect. Like, if you issue a Player challenge and the Red Joker's in the area you get the Red Joker regardless of whether you challenged another Player or just made a matching request. That would neatly explain why people are sometimes surprised that they drew the Joker as an opponent, and why Anon doesn't know jack-all about the way the Red World works: he's always fighting (unless the field moves during combat) and never in the audience, which means he never talked to anyone in the Red World before Hecate.
Now this is some kind of insane special characteristic.
Other people can make items or transform souls into relics... We are a black hole of challenges.

But it explains the "Joker" name.
Imagine using the matchmaking and suddenly seeing the smiling face on your HUD.
That must feel like there's an asshole actively messing with you because he loves to kill.
But actually he's kind of tired of people constantly hitting him at the worst times.

>>25817275
From now on you will see the Red Joker's mark as a trollface.

>>25817182
Interesting theory that would explain both the Red Joker's lax attitude towards murder and the general fear that surrounds him.

But hey, if the glove fits...