Rising Tides
"You skipped it!" (Hotaru)
"Huh? Oh, you can go over what you want. I wasn't listening too much." Hibiki yawned before reaching back into the snack pile.
"..." The other's jaws dropped to the floor. It took a minute for any of them to recover from that statement.
"THERE'S NO WAY!" Kohaku slammed his hands onto the table and stood up. Caught off guard by his significant other kissing him.
"It's not hard to fake my way through a discussion. How's it tastes?" (Hibiki)
"HA?!" (Hotaru)
"Mmm…, I-I hate you!" Kohaku faltered under their small exchange. The savory piece of chocolate melting in his mouth was something few got to experience.
"Love you too, Nishishi~" (Hibiki)
"YOU CAN'T DO THAT!" Hotaru stood up in the same fashion without interruption.
"Hm?" (Hibiki)
"I WANT SOME TOO!" She stuck her hand out and a moment of silence was held before Hibiki slowly slid another piece into his mouth.
"I figured." (Hibiki)
"Y- huh?" (Hotaru)
"I was wondering how they'd react if you didn't enter your room. I guess it's time to find out." Hibiki clapped his hands together and a construct shaped like a crystal orb with airplane wings flew out of the wall.
"I-I don't know what you're talking about?!" She stood her ground but couldn't hide her pinkening ears...
"Oh? Makoto, you've had your chocolate, right?" (Hibiki)
"... Yes…" He pulled a small bag out of his coat and caught the piece thrown his way.
"Y-You're joking!" (Hotaru)
Hibiki leaned in close, "Oh, bestie…, I'll pray for you. Time's ticking."
"FUCK!" She sprinted back as the emerald arch appeared, already opened.
Hibiki sighed, "She's hopeless."
"Uh…" (Kohaku)
"Time to pay up, you two." (Hibiki)
"Tch!" (Makoto)
"How was I supposed to know she'd completely skip out!" (Kohaku)
"That's why I made the bet. She's been too focused on that passion project lately, so I hope this makes for a nice wake-up call."
"I didn't think you'd let them come," Makoto uttered quietly.
"By. the. Gods. Makoto, this place is for us to take a break. I never clarified which "us" on purpose." (Hibiki)
"Wh-" (Makoto)
"Shh…, We'll be able to watch a lot of fun stuff happen or even take part if we want. As long as we can keep up with news, unlike someone." (Hibiki)
"Mm! It's not that bad, It's not that bad!" Kohaku hurriedly swallowed a piece of chocolate from Hibiki's bag.
"Eh? Really~?" (Hibiki)
"..." (Kohaku)
*Click*
***
-Kohaku's POV-
I couldn't wait to get to bed for another adventure!
I spent the day with a skip in my step. Makoto was awesome! The way he'd destroy and disarm traps made our job a cakewalk! You should've seen it for yourself!
The only issue was that it was taking too long, even though Hanashi wasn't too happy, he kept us up with what was happening on the other side. I got to take Taichi for a joyride… then got us scolded afterward. Ehehehe…
Thinking about it did keep me up so I was the last to arrive, dashing to the other side where I hear a door shut before I made my way in.
The others were turned to another hall and waited for the teal featureless figure to walk through.
"Everyone?" (Hotaru)
"Hi." (Kohaku)
"AHH!" She jumped and shrieked at the top of her lungs.
Makoto flinched and covered his ears, "What the-"
"We can see you! I KNOW WHAT YOU ARE!!!! AHHH!" She ran at me and grabbed onto my Kosode.
"AHHHHH!!!" I didn't know what we were doing but, I screamed anyway.
"..." Hanashi stood there, I think he was considering leaving but the next thing he said sort of clarified my panic.
"We see you too..."
"AHHH!!!" The brunette screamed with a newfound vigor that I wasn't about to lose to.
"AHHHH!!!!"
"BESTIE! WHY DIDN'T YOU SAY ANYTHING?!" She now turned-on Makoto, who wasn't covering his ears from the megaphone mouth.
"M-me?!" He turned back to look her in the eyes and pointed to himself.
"WHO ELSE?!!!" (Hotaru)
"I thought you knew!" (Makoto)
Thus, the screaming match began.
"AHHH!!!" (Hotaru)
"AHHH!!!" (Kohaku)
"A-AHHH!!!" (Makoto)
The three of us turned to where Hanashi was. Nothing. I gotta admit, he sure knew how to make everyone embarrassed. Just as Hotaru's grasp started to slip on my clothes, I heard the low-
"Ahhhh…" (Hanashi)
We all jerked our heads back to him and he turned away. Then the three of us turned to Sirus.
"You were saying?" Hibiki coughed up to get back to the conversation.
"Ah? AH! Um…, How do I?" (Makoto)
"Oh, right. You said something about that. You don't mind if I-" Even if I couldn't see it, I thought he was looking at his status at the time.
"No, no. Go ahead." (Makoto)
"... I figured it was as good of a time as any to run through a couple of things about the whole [AVRIL] Status and stuff.
So, stop me if you have a question and I'll try my best to answer it. If you have something to add on, go ahead."
With that Hanashi went through how to readjust our status to not just be a long block of text.
"- So that's that. It'd be embarrassing to have it all available like that when you even have separate tabs. You probably knew that though, you just needed to read through the settings after all."
< "'"...""" >
'That's… cool…'
"Why was it set up this way?" (Hotaru)
"I could tell you that but, you have to promise not to blow up over it." (Hanashi)
"Alright?" (Hotaru)
"The creator was a batshit crazy genius that believed everyone playing had pea-sized brains. So, most of the information is left upfront until you drag it over to its respective tag." (Hanashi)
Player | Traits | Skills | Title
Name: Kohaku
Pronouns: He/Him
Race: Human (Hobgoblin)
Class: Monk (Lvl.5)
HP: 100/100
Str: 12 (2+10)
Dex: 7 (6+1)
Int: 1
Wis: 3 (1+2)
Cha: 12 (2)
Stm: 6
End: 5 (4)
Stamina: 60/60
Attribute Points: 40
[Title gained:
< "'"...""" >
Watching a vein bulge from Hotaru's fist, I think we all held that silence thinking of beating up the creator.
Hotaru shared what to learn from some old crown about a legend about a Lunarite who fell in love with a Nymph. They made a hidden grove that is said to only appear on nights when the moon is at its fullest. Makoto finally managed to share the quest while whispering with Sirus.
[WORLD REACTION: QUEST SHARED!]
<(D) Quest: Howler Harvest>
A Remnant of a Forgotten clan's desire has managed to escape the border between your dimension and Limbo.
-Find out what you can about this forgotten Clan.
-Locate the lost Remnant.
-Exorcise the Remnant before it can - - - - - - - - (10%)
Balancers: 1/4
Loot: Varies based on results.
[WORLD REACTION: You may invite your fellow Balancers to assist you.]
"Well, shit." (Hanashi)
"Let's do it!" I pushed yes without a second thought.
"Howler?" Hotaru tilted her head, grabbed the screen we could see, and leaned in, looking at the ground.
"Mhm, I was hoping we'd be able to find any more clues about it while we were in-game." (Makoto)
"It's not that hard." (Hotaru)
"Could you tell us- huh?" Hibiki must've grabbed and moved the screen out of his face
"What? A howler isn't that bad." (Hotaru)
"You know what it is?" (Makoto)
"Nope!" She proudly puffed out her chest with a smile on her face while the rest of us fell to the ground.
"I-I'm glad you're optimistic…" (Makoto)
"B-B-BUT!!! … I heard from a little light bulb someone who might!" Hotaru pointed over to Sirus who had surprisingly fallen like us and taken off back into the air.
"Too bad, the early bird catches the worm!" She exclaimed from the top of her lungs.
"They're sending us to our deaths again?" (Makoto)
"I love your level of reassurance." (Hanashi)
"WHO CARES! LET'S GO!!!" I didn't leave much space between myself and the glowing orb zooming down the hall Hanashi walked through.
It was hard to tell if the hall had an ending. It curved slightly the more you go along. You'd think you were walking through a piece of elbow macaroni if the walls weren't lined with white tapestries, the occasional light source across the roof, and the floor wasn't flat.
We went past three heavy doors of various colors, each large enough for a giant to walk through. Maybe even bigger. Two were chained shut before we arrived. I thought the next door would follow the same pattern but, it also had chains piled to the sides.
The others followed shortly behind as golden energy struck the door. We all watched it dissolve into particles. It opened up to a space grander than anything I'd seen before. It was like having a whole new dimension out in your backyard.
There were the gray trees with shimmering blue leaves and black grass just like before. In addition to a babbling stream that wrapped around each section divided with a Soribashi. 4 bridges for 4 islands.
We followed the wisp down a dirt path to the right onto a large stone platform where 5 large wooden structures stood. Sort of like a table.
They're scattered across the land and aren't something everyone can even notice. They're perfect for a quick getaway and the more we locate, the better.>
"I feel like you're speaking from experience." (Hanashi)
"Which one do we choose?" As soon as those words left my mouth, Hotaru pointed her finger toward the grey gate.
"That one, right?"
"Praise me more!" (Hotaru)
Not a moment later, that very structure lit up with a swirling purple light in between the two pillars.
Oh, and Sirius gave us these weird orb thingies before we hopped into the portal.
'A new adventure awaits!'
***
-Sirus' POV-
I stayed a little longer watching everyone make their way through the portal with bated breath until the chakra left no trace.
"Well, well, well~ Shouldn't this be fun."
I turned back and my stomach dropped looking at the sight of not 1, not 2 but, 7 other people sitting down without me getting a hint of their presence. Each one of them wore a hood, different in variation but it was all in the make with that snake's design.
"What~? I'm just here for a check-up. Don't get your panties in a bunch."
<...I'm doing everything I can.>
"I'm not blind. There's a lot to catch up on." There it was. I could feel my chest tightening when they stood up, taller than most at about 6 ft at the time.
'Things are different now. They're different.'
"... Always the fucking optimist… I can't believe I just remem- Oop! Well, that's a tale for next time. So, why don't you fill us in while I lighten that weight a little?"
*Click*