>>40097579
>Go help Julie! Forget this!

>>40097579
>Go help Julie! Forget this!
>Call out, see if your friends are on the other side of this wall!

>>40097579
>Call out, see if your friends are on the other side of this wall!
>Break through the wall!

>>40097579
>Go help Julie! Forget this!

>>40097579
>Call out, see if your friends are on the other side of this wall!

>>40097579
>>Go help Julie! Forget this!

>Go help Julie! Forget this!
>Call out, see if your friends are on the other side of this wall!

Writing!

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I know they're on the other side of this wall. I just have to figure out a way to get to them.
"HELLO!?" I yell at the steel mesh separating this room from the stairwell. "IS ANYONE OUT THERE!?"
Faintly, I can hear some chatter and talking outside of the wall. It's not very strong, but it's definitely there.

I hear a small thump, and then another. Each one against the metallic spacing that separates this room.
"HEY!" I yell once more, again there are more thumps in return.

That's when I hear a squeak, and turn around to see Julie knocked backwards again. She isn't in the best of shape right now.

I think it's time to focus on something more important.

I take out Belle and quickly assemble her armor. Swiftly, I stand between Julie and Asai.
I raise my shield and point my sword toward him. He just stares at me.
"Priestess."
"Let us out of here! Right now!"

He crosses his arms. "No one goes anywhere until I find out where Empress went. I don't want you wandering around more than you already have."
"Then I'll just break out!" I scowl at him. "You can't hold me here!"

Asai grumbles. "Then I may have to break you, if you don't cooperate."
I can see behind him that a section of the concrete floor is rising up, almost as if a statue is building behind him.
"Please be a good daughter."

>NO! Attack him
>Grab Julie and try to get away from him.
>Time to break out! Right now!
>Stand your ground! See what is next move is!
>Other?

>>40098666
>Grab Julie and try to get away from him.
No time, asshole!

>>40098666
>>Grab Julie and try to get away from him.

>>40098666
>Grab Julie and try to get away from him

>>40098666
>Grab Julie and try to get away from him.
>Time to break out! Right now!

>>Grab Julie and try to get away from him
Writing!

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I notice the concrete behemoth behind him slowly starting to rise over his back. I'm worried it could come rushing at me at any moment. Belle is strong, but I'm not sure that her shield could deflect THAT.
Is this another one of this illusions?

Whether it is or not, there's only one thing that comes to my mind.
RUN AWAY!

I hop backwards and grab Julie, quickly we scramble to the opposite end of the room as the stone blob behind Asai struggles to reach out toward us. It seems like it's bound to where it first swelled up.

Asai slowly starts to walk across the room toward us. I jump to my feet and stand against him with my sword drawn.
"Stay away!"
"This is MY building, why don't YOU stay away, Priestess?"

Thud.
Thud.
Thud.

Asai stops.
Is that sound my heartbeat, or something else?
Maybe Julie's heartbeat?

Just then, a hand appears out of the wall behind us!
Asai falls backwards as it yanks both Julie and I right out of the building!

"EEK!" Julie grabs onto it.
"Relax." The hand seems to speak.

I look down, and notice that we've been dragged outside! The ground is still many floors below, but something seems to be carrying us.

It's that monster, the good one. He's holding both of us in his arms as he hovers outside of the newly-created hole in the building.
"What are you two thinking trying to fight Asai inside of his own building? You can never win."
"Why do you care?!" Julie snaps back at him.

I grab onto his neck. That's when I notice he still has the gaping hole in his midsection.
"Thank you, but I told you to leave! You're really hurt!"
"You didn't really think I was going to leave because you told me to, right?"

I think about it for a moment.
"No."

Asai stands up and looks at us through the hole in his wall. Now I'm not really sure where to go from here.

>Ask him to put us back inside somewhere else in the building
>Ask if he knows where Mom went
>Let him decide where to go next.
>Wait for Asai's next move
>Other?

>>40099981
>Ask if he knows where Mom went
>Let him decide where to go next.

>>40099981
>Ask if he knows where Mom went
With that I'm off to sleep, thanks for the thread!

>>40099981
>>Ask if he knows where Mom went

>>40099981
>Ask if he knows where Mom went

>>40100144
Thanks for playing

>>40099981
>Ask if he knows where Mom went
>Wait for Asai's next move

>>40099981
Man, this guy has been so helpful and nice ever ssince we met him. We should totally make him our brother if/when he gets a human form.

>Ask if he knows where Mom went

Writing!

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"Everyone is still inside! What do we do?"
"Masami, I think we should worry about one thing at a time."

Asai is still at the human-sized hole, staring at us. It's uncertain what he might try to do next.
"It's okay." The monster grumbles, "As long as we're not inside of that building, he cannot hurt us."
"Do you know where Mom is?" I ask him, "She wasn't inside!"

"I have an idea where she is, but we can't get to her right now. A friend is taking care of her."
"A friend?"

He looks at the corner of the structure, in the direction of the stairwell.
"First we have to get your friends out of there, this way."

He flies away from the hole, leaving Asai standing there.
He looked really upset.

Instead, we fly to the corner of the building that contains the stairwell.
"Masami, can you break this down?"
"Sure!" I say, almost a little too excitedly.

I take out Belle's sword, and with a slash, I cleave straight through the corner of the building. Julie helps take away some of the debris until there is a nice large-sized hole in it.

"Masami!?" It's Aiko's voice. I can't see clearly inside of the poorly-lit stairwell, but I know they're down there.
"Aiko! Everyone!" I yell at them. "I think I can get to Mom, but you need to get out of here now!"

Gently, he flies into the stairwell and lets Julie and I stand up. Immediately, Kaori protests.
"Hold on! The whole reason we came in here is so you wouldn't be alone! Who is going to go with you?"

"Well... um."

>Julie is going with me!
>No, Julie helps everyone get out. The monster goes with me.
>And.. anyone else?
>Other?

>>40100992
>No, Julie helps everyone get out. The monster goes with me.

>>40100992
>Julie is going with me!

>>40100992
>No, Julie helps everyone get out. The monster goes with me.
>And.. anyone else?
>Kaori
I'm not sure if we can stop Mom from doing whatever it is she's doing by ourselves.

>>40100992
>>Julie is going with me!

>>40100992
>Julie is going with me!

>Julie is going with me!


Writing!

I'm sorry everyone, I had a writing delay.

>Writing continues

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"I'm not going alone! Julie is going with me."
"That's right!" Julie says, grabbing me by the shoulder.

"Masami, your mother is on the ground floor." The monster walks over to the group. Several of them back away from him. "She's trying to get out, but all the exits are sealed."

"Then we're going after her! In the meantime, I want all of you to evacuate! Can you help them do that?" I look over toward the monster.
"I can do that." He immediately picks up Aiko and Maeda, Aiko struggles slightly in his grasp.

"Good! Then I want you to sit this out because you're really hurt!"
"But Masami-"
"No buts! You shouldn't have followed me in here as it is!"

Kaori sneezes, and then gets my attention.
"I can feel Asai, he just moved. He's going up to the top floors."

I grab Julie by the hand, "Perfect! He's going the wrong way! If we leave right now we can get Mom and get out of there before he realizes it!"
"Masami, wait." Kaori grabs my other shoulder. "Something about this doesn't seem right! Why would he go the wrong way in his own building?"

I can't worry about these things now. Before anyone else gives me more of a reason to hesitate; I grab Julie's hand and rush down the stairwell.

--

I was expecting more resistance than this.
The stairwell is clear, the stairs were perfectly fine all the way to ground level.
I walk up to the entrance and notice something strange.

"Julie."
"I see it too."
The place where the door should be is barren, it's just a flat wall.
"Stand back."

With a swing, I let Belle strike the bare section of wall. Her sword clanks right off of it. Completely different from the other bits and pieces of building I've gone through today.
"Now what?" Julie puts her hands on her hips.

>Try calling out to whoever is inside!
>Try some other way to get inside of the room
>Maybe try the other world?
>Maybe try another card?
>Other?

>>40103470
>Try calling out to whoever is inside!
>Maybe try the other world?

>>40103470
Speed Card + Belle Card + Other World + Ramming Speed = one very broken wall

>>40103470
>>Maybe try the other world?

>Try calling out to whoever is inside!
>Maybe try the other world?

WRiting last post of the night

>only write six posts in seven hours

That's really upsetting. I need to work on that.

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"Any ideas?" Julie taps the wall with the tip of her sword.
Of course, only one idea springs to mind.

"HELLO!?" I yell at the wall. "IS ANYONE IN THERE?"

I put my ear against the bare wall and listen, but I don't hear anything.
"Hmm, should we go back?"
"No!" I snap at Julie.

"Well, what else are we gonna do?" Julie crosses her arms.

I think about her question for a minute. It's definitely a valid question to ask right now when we're both staring at a literal brick wall.
"I guess I'm going to try and break through it again."
"Masami.." Julie grabs my shoulder, "Don't hurt yourself trying to get through this wall. There might be weaker points elsewhere we can use."

I brush her hand off, "If Mom is in there, that means she might be in trouble. I'm going in after her!"
Concentrating, I feel the speed card sift over me. It combines with Belle's powers and makes the usually bulky armor feel as light as a feather.

Then, opening my eyes, I find myself in the other world. The wall appears to be completely solid here, too. Usually it's sort of translucent on this side.
It's also much softer on this side, too.

Getting her shield out, I brace myself and aim for the wall.
With a roar, I charge straight at it!

--
CRASH!
The room is in disarray from the sound of someone bursting straight through the wall! I ready my footing and quickly try to see what is happening.

All around the room are monsters. At least five or six of them. One of them is the secretary who argued with Maeda the last time she was here. They stand around a burning red orb in the center of the room.
Inside of that orb, I can see two people. One of which is about Mom's size.

"Mom?"
She doesn't answer. The monsters continue to circle the orb and try to find a weak point to break through.
"MOM!"

>Thread End

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Thanks for the thread everyone. Sorry again for the short runtime. I was hoping it would run a little longer today, but real life stuff got in the way.

Let me know what you thought, or if you think this entire arc has gone on too long.

Thanks

>>40104826
Thanks for running.

>>40104826
>if you think this entire arc has gone on too long.
Naw, kind of wish we made more cards, though.

>>40104979
It's a bit late for that, I think.

>>40105022
>>40104979
Let's see how things turn out time-wise before we write that off just yet.