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Amid the pouring rain descending upon the forest, not much can be heard.

Two people creep along the ground at a slow pace, worriedly looking around with their assault rifles held tight to their chests. Both men are wearing matching outfits – jeans, leather jackets, and even identical neon blue armbands. The only difference between the two is that one has bright green hair, and the other has purple – despite having a faint aura of toughness around them, you wouldn’t be able to tell it by their voices.

“Y-Yo, Venom, have you seen any sign of ‘em?” The purple haired one asks, jumping like a startled cat when a crack of thunder resounds through the air.

“Not since we fought them at the outpost, Elastic. Fuckin’ crazy how they move.”

Venom responds with a shaky tone, casting a glance over his shoulder to see if anyone’s following. He can’t see very well, it’s far too dark – his flashlight was shattered in the last exchange, along with half of his HP.

Elastic gulps as he takes stock of what he has on him – he’s down a few clips in his rifle, the grenade launcher is completely dry, and he has no health patches remaining. The uneasy feeling grows as they creep through the woods, desperately looking for any form of solid shelter.

“Did you hear that?”

Venom’s eyes slowly scan across the dark expanse in front of him. He can’t tell if he just heard a branch break, or if it was just the rain crashing harder into the thick canopy of trees. The pair of delinquents are soaked to the bone, and yet they have no choice but to move on – to be caught unaware out here means certain death.

The year is 2030, and gaming has taken the world by storm. From popular FPS shooters and battle royales, all the way to virtual concerts and real-time strategies – it’s easy to see that in this world, games are now what reign supreme.

In such a world, there are many types of people. Some work hard for their talent, spending countless hours in honing their craft so they can make a living. Some seem to pick it up naturally, trailblazing the field and creating legends as they do. Of course, there are also some that play casually, dipping their feet into the vast ocean of mind transporting VR technology.

Four of these types of people inhabit this forest. One pair is currently scared out of their mind as they move across the dark woodland floor.

The other is standing above them, fully obscured in shadow.

How would you like to take these two down, Wolfgang O’Neal?

>Keep up in the trees and take one out with your sniper rifle, allowing Orion to take the other.
>Descend and take them down with your knife, having Orion follow your lead as you do.
>Let Orion deal with the pair by himself, as this is a training session to get him back up to speed.
>Have him watch you as you take out the pair yourself as a method of practical teaching. (Write-in)

Thread archive: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=Gun%20x%20Glory
Thread Discord: https://discord.gg/bfBa2uX
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>>4430486
>Keep up in the trees and take one out with your sniper rifle, allowing Orion to take the other.
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>>4430486
>Keep up in the trees and take one out with your sniper rifle, allowing Orion to take the other.
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>>4430486
>Keep up in the trees and take one out with your sniper rifle, allowing Orion to take the other.

synced kills are cool
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>>4430490
>>4430492
>>4430505
This goes through, writing now!

Hope everyone's doing well today!
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>>4430506

“Let’s pick them off from here, Orion.” You murmur into the communicator, sliding the bullet into place on your rifle.

“Got it, boss.”

“You want the left or right?”

“It doesn’t matter to me.”

“I’ll take right, then.”

You exhale through your nose and brace the gun against your shoulder, easily able to bring the purple haired one into your scope. The slow pace they’re moving at makes them nothing better than sitting ducks, which makes you wonder if they even saw the loadout you had when you fought against them earlier.

Sharing a quick look and nod with Orion, you both pull the trigger simultaneously. The crack of the gun overtakes the sound of the rain for just a moment, and you watch as the bullets race through the air and tag the pair of greasers without any fuss. They immediately fall forwards, and their bodies hit the wet ground the next moment.

>MATCH DECIDED!
>n0v4_c43s4r & Orange def. elasticlove & theREALVENOM
>CONGRATULATIONS!

“Man, they’re a bit shit, aren’t they?” Orion says with a smug chuckle, shouldering his rifle as the two dissipate into blue polygons.

“No need to be rude, it’s just a game.” You toss him a sideways glance and sit on the thick branch.

“I know you were thinking it at least somewhat, right?” The haughty look is turned your way, and you resist the urge to shove him to his death.

“No comment.”

The game pulls you into darkness a few moments later.

This has been how your training has gone over the last two days. It’s been an hellish grind in order to get Orion back up to speed for the tournament, especially with only you and Cinder being around to help adjust him. You’ve refrained from contacting Fletcher over this due to not wanting to bother him, and while you lack his training expertise, grinding has literally always helped hone talent – especially when you’re playing an upwards of 20 hours a day.

Ah, it reminds you of the old days in Genesys – shit was rough. You’re glad that both you and Cinder have been switching on and off in shifts.

Putting aside the grind, however, you’ve been trying to decide what role that Orion should be playing in the tournament. He was a very adept breacher and front-liner five years ago, however you’re not entirely sure if that would fly in a duos only tournament.

How exactly have you been training Orion over the past two days?

>You’ve kept him as a front-liner for the most part – sticking with what he knows is what you felt was best, especially when it comes to dipping his feet in again.
>You’ve been teaching him how to snipe properly – if there are two snipers, your odds of being able to pick off the enemy without conflict increases.
>You’ve kept him firmly in the mid-range with an assault rifle – perfect area for cover and engagement, which is a solid base for him to work with.
>You’ve gone with a mixture of all three – it may have left him without a certain specialty, but a jack of all trades keeps the enemy guessing, at least.
>Write-in.
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>>4430511
>You’ve kept him as a front-liner for the most part – sticking with what he knows is what you felt was best, especially when it comes to dipping his feet in again.
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>>4430511
>You’ve kept him as a front-liner for the most part – sticking with what he knows is what you felt was best, especially when it comes to dipping his feet in again.
Welcome back cirno
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>>4430511
>You’ve kept him as a front-liner for the most part – sticking with what he knows is what you felt was best, especially when it comes to dipping his feet in again.
>>
>>4430518
>>4430523
>>4430524
Keep him on the front lines, his shotgun game be fire. Writing now!

>>4430523
Thank you kindly, anon, it's good to be back!
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>>4430530

You saw it as only natural that he should keep doing what he was good at. Him and Buster were a hellacious combo on the battlefield – Buster was the tank with the LMG, while Orange moved around swiftly with a shotgun and machine pistol. They were able to maneuver people wherever they wanted them, and they had kept your ass out of the fire multiple times back in the day due to that.

After a few seconds of drifting through the endless virtual void, the sound of loud conversation begins to hit your ears. When your vision returns, a sight that’s slowly becoming familiar to you appears – namely, a packed multiplayer lobby.

There isn’t a ceiling here – the only thing above you is the wide blue sky and the sun, not a cloud in sight. It isn’t warm in the slightest, however, as the lobby is kept at a relatively cool temperature despite the sun beating down on the whole area. The ground itself is made out of a white, slightly translucent material. There are tables, chairs, and couches scattered about for the players to rest while they challenge people or wait to queue up – all in all, it’s a pretty comfy environment.

Well, comfy is a stretch, you’d say. The amount of people here makes you very uncomfortable.

It isn’t packed super tight or anything, but the mere presence of all these people is enough to make you sweat. You can spot a group of avatars with cat ears discussing a 5v5 win a few feet to your left, or a black haired boy trying to hit up a bunch of older-looking women. You can really find all types of people in a Warscape lobby, it would seem – you’re still not used to how flashy things have become.

“Maaaan, I’d say that was a pretty good match, huh?” Orion speaks from beside you, collapsing onto a couch and propping his feet up on the arm. His tone is completely casual, but his face is still perpetually frustrated – it’s something that’s been very hard to get used to, especially with your constant fear of ridicule or hatred from the man.

It’s funny how the mind works! You still probably need therapy, and you still probably won’t get it.

>Tell him honestly that he’s getting better – he’s not perfect, nor would you expect him to be, but at least he’s not getting spooked by a gust of wind.
>Find something to critique him on – the whole point of this is to train him, and it’d be a useless exercise if you didn’t find something that needs improving.
>Agree with him and leave it at that – the both of you did pretty good, especially with that synchronized kill at the end. Shit’s always rad.
>Shoot off a message to Cinder and ask her if she saw it – she’s currently manning the counter of the arcade in real life, since she’s literally the only one you’d trust with that.
>Write-in.
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>>4430542
>Tell him honestly that he’s getting better – he’s not perfect, nor would you expect him to be, but at least he’s not getting spooked by a gust of wind.
>>
>>4430542
>Tell him honestly that he’s getting better – he’s not perfect, nor would you expect him to be, but at least he’s not getting spooked by a gust of wind.
>>
>>4430542
>>Find something to critique him on – the whole point of this is to train him, and it’d be a useless exercise if you didn’t find something that needs improving.
Time to put on those big boy pants. It'll help improve him and build up our confidence in dealing with him.
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>>4430542
>Find something to critique him on – the whole point of this is to train him, and it’d be a useless exercise if you didn’t find something that needs improving.
>>
>>4430542
>Find something to critique him on – the whole point of this is to train him, and it’d be a useless exercise if you didn’t find something that needs improving.
>>
>>4430554
>>4430555
>>4430559
Critique him - there's always something to improve. Writing now!
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>>4430563

“It went well enough – there’s stuff to improve on, though.” Facing the man, you cross your arms and attempt to put on your big boy pants. You gotta break your nervousness around him somehow, and what other way to do that by critiquing his performance in the name of self-improvement?

That sounds pretty fucking woke to you, to be honest.

You can see Orion’s eyebrow raise, but he doesn’t interrupt you, so you can only hope that he’ll take this the right way.

“During the fight in the depot, you hardly took cover at all when pursuing those guys. It was fine since they were cowards—” Orion snorts “—but doing that in any capacity in a professional setting will get you killed nowadays. Also, I could tell how flippant you were being towards them – for all we knew, they could have been leading us into something, and their cowardice was a farce.”

“That’d be a hell of a reach, Wolf.”

“You can’t underestimate people, is what I’m trying to say to you.”

There’s a bit of a standoff between the two of you, and just when you feel yourself begin to falter, Orion shrugs his shoulders.

“Alright, I get it – there’s more for me to improve on. Still, you ain’t gonna stop me from takin’ pride in a good match, so take the stick out of your ass and try to have a good time.”

“The only reason I’m here is because you need money.”

“No reason not to have a good time doing it then, right? Mix business and pleasure, rather than being a little recluse like you’ve always been. Live a little.”

“You were in your room more than me!”

The sound of someone chuckling brings you out of the staring match, and you realize that you’ve attracted the attention of quite a few people with your conversation. Sighing deeply, you sit next to Orion and run a hand through your hair.

“So, what’s the game plan then, Mr. Trainer? Do I get to use my shotgun this time?” His voice is a bit snippy, and you’re not sure if it’s in jest or not.

At this rate, you’re not really feeling up to another match with him – it’s getting close to Cinder’s shift anyways, which will help his CQC training even more.

What would you like to do?

>Log out of the game and let Cinder take over – you’re starting to get a little bit heated.
>Take Orion to the marketplace and browse for new items to use in the tournament.
>Ask Orion to recap you on the tournament details – it’s tomorrow morning, after all.
>Write-in.
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>>4430578
>Take Orion to the marketplace and browse for new items to use in the tournament.
Can we get Cinder to go with us to the marketplace? Her playstyle's pretty similar to his, right? She'd probably provide better advice for gear than us. And shit if we can get a recap of the details on the way, that'd be real neat too.
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>>4430590
+1
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>>4430578
Supporting >>4430590
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>>4430590
>>4430594
>>4430610
Take Orion out on the town, and maybe bring Cinder to third wheel! Writing now!
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>>4430630

“We’re not going back into the queue right now. We’re gonna take you to the marketplace and get ourselves outfitted with some weaponry for the match tomorrow.”

“Sounds logical. Do you have the money to spare?” Orion quirks an eyebrow, making you shrug.

“I can cover myself, and you can more than definitely cover yourself. My account got nuked – yours didn’t, so don’t expect any freebies from me.” Your voice is firm, and Orion sighs, adjusting his jacket.

“Alright, then let’s go.”

“Hold on – I’m gonna get Cinder in on this. Her playstyle is similar to yours, so she’ll be able to pick some good stuff out for you.”

“Isn’t she manning your arcade for you?”

You stealthily check your menu, and you see that it’s approaching closing time. How convenient! You’re a bit shocked at how easy it is to lose track of time in here.

“It’s just about closing, so I’m sure she it’ll be fine.”

Pulling up the messaging menu, you locate Cinder’s username and pull up the window, idly noting that she’s online on her phone. Apparently, you can link the in-game messaging system to your phone in a snazzy little app, which is pretty useful! Not that you’d ever need to use it in most scenarios.

>n0v4_c43s4r: Hey, Cinder. Think you can get to the marketplace in a few minutes for some window shopping?

It takes a few seconds for a response, but she’s quick on the ball.

>Drag0n: Sure! Am I gonna need to show you around again?
>n0v4_c43s4r: Nah, Orion. Figured you’d be able to help him better than me due to having similar playstyles.
>Drag0n: Sounds good to me! Race you there!
>n0v4_c43s4r: It’s not a race.

“Alright, that’s sorted. Shall we get going?” You pose the question to Orion, who’s already pulled up his menu and is ready to press the button. He says nothing in response, causing you to sigh and begin mentally planning your own purchases as you’re transported.

You only have $1,930,000 on you. Each level up seems to give out $100,000 plus a $10,000 bonus per match win, and you’ve climbed up to Level 14 since you last checked after your match with 0phelia.

What might you be looking to buy on this fine, yet slightly tense, night?

>Focus on weapons – you’d like to find something that’d be able to compliment Orion’s loadout, even if you need to get some of Auxilia’s basic stuff.
>Focus on items and consumables – these will allow a tactical advantage, since no one can truly expect you to pull random shit out of your pocket.
>Focus on finding a good gacha – you’ve heard the stories, you know the risks, and you’re ready to potentially get some good items.
>Don’t buy anything, actually – you’re happy with your current setup, and you’re more than willing to chit chat while the other two shop.
>Write-in.
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>>4430659
>>Focus on finding a good gacha – you’ve heard the stories, you know the risks, and you’re ready to potentially get some good items.
Gacha is my crack cocaine, gib
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>>4430659
>Focus on items and consumables – these will allow a tactical advantage, since no one can truly expect you to pull random shit out of your pocket.
Our weapons are good enough and we aren't going to become whales.
Items can turn an entire match.
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>>4430659
>>Focus on items and consumables – these will allow a tactical advantage, since no one can truly expect you to pull random shit out of your pocket.
We did pretty well with our current set-up in the Edit fight, so items sound pretty good.
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>>4430659
>Focus on finding a good gacha – you’ve heard the stories, you know the risks, and you’re ready to potentially get some good items.
>>
>>4430659
>Focus on items and consumables – these will allow a tactical advantage, since no one can truly expect you to pull random shit out of your pocket.
>>
>>4430667
>>4430669
>>4430708
Find some consumables - the element of surprise is a valuable one. Writing now!

>>4430664
This is an intervention, anon.
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>>4430711

Despite the marketplace having a lot of people in it at this time of night, it somehow doesn’t seem as crowded as it would be if there was daylight.

Unlike the Warscape lobby you were just in, you’ve become aware that the marketplace’s sky changes in accordance to the time. The smell of the sea hits you like usual, and you can spot the vast expanse of the virtual ocean from the spawn point – there’s a railing that stops people from jumping off the top and down to the beach, and you’re willing to bet that if you walked closer, you’d see some people going on a night swim with some friends.

“I’ll tell ya Wolf, this place is a lot more lively than it used to be, even at night.”

Orion’s head is on a swivel, looking at the various colorful signs with a hint of interest in his eyes. He’s only been here once so far – that was because Cinder picked up a set of frag grenades to train him with, so you doubt he’s had time to idle and take a look at this place.

“I know, right? When I first logged in here, it was like a sensory overload.”

You lead Orion over to a table that has an umbrella stuck in it, taking a seat and gesturing for him to do the same. The smell of something sweet hits you, and you turn your head to regard a patisserie a few buildings down to your right. You’re not sure if you remember that being there the last time you were here, leading you to conclude that renting out buildings is like paying for ad space.

A moment of silence passes between the two of you, before you decide to break it.

“Alright, Orion, give me the lowdown on the tournament one last time.”

“It’s a relatively small affair – 16 teams are gonna go at it, and whoever makes it to the end of the bracket wins. Each match is capped at an hour, and it’s going to be spaced out over four days. The prize is enough to pay off my rent, meaning I can get out of your hair at the end of it.” Orion kicks back in the chair and props his feet up on the table. “All the teams need to have some repute to their name, which is why I was able to get us in so easy. As soon as I showed my ID and said we were Genesys, the woman looked like she was about to pass out.”

“So we’re enrolling under that name?” You frown slightly, to which Orion looks at you like you’re stupid.

“Well, that’s what we are, right?”

Blinking, you shrug your shoulders. He almost sounded serious, although that could just be your residual fear of being rebuked.

“I guess you’re right.”

>Wait in silence for Cinder – you’ll take this moment to rest.
>Walk around the marketplace and see if you can find anything interesting!
>Ask Orion any other questions you may have about the tournament.
>Write-in.
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>>4430730
>Walk around the marketplace and see if you can find anything interesting!
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>>4430730
>>Walk around the marketplace and see if you can find anything interesting!
>>
>>4430730
>Walk around the marketplace and see if you can find anything interesting!
>>
Went and had a late lunch, was pretty great!

>>4430740
>>4430774
>>4430776
Search for some interesting things! Writing now.
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>>4430870

“Well, I’m sure Cinder will shoot me a message when she arrives. Want to walk around and see some of the sights?” Looking at Orion, you shoot him a glare when his eyebrows raise. “You know, in the name of living a little.”

You spot the briefest hint of amusement in Orion’s eyes before he shrugs and rises out of the chair.

“Lead the way, boss. I’m curious just what kind of stores they allow in this place – it was about as barebones as it could get back in the day, and now I’m smelling fuckin’ pastries. What, can they fulfill hunger through a console now?”

“That’s physically impossible, but you can taste them, and that’s pretty neat! Had chicken with Fletcher a week or so ago, and it tasted like the real deal. Apparently companies can rent out buildings as ad space to advertise their food in real life, and I can only imagine that it works if people are still doing it.”

“Hold on - does he still do the bone thing?”

You can’t help but crack a wry grin.

“He still does the bone thing.”

“Fuckin’ weird, but hey, that’s one of his good points. Let’s hotfoot it, then – I’ll trust your judgement.”

Oh boy, you’ve been put into the role of travel planner! Considering Cinder was the one guiding you literally every time except once, you’re aware that you don’t know all of the hip spaces around the market. Can you truly take this man out on the town and keep him entertained?

The answer is yes, there’s literally so much shit to do. Where do you want to start?

>Find one of the aforementioned food places – show Orion just how far technology has come!
>Look for some amusement on the street – on your first day in here, you had that duel that scored you some money.
>See if there are any weird shops to take a look at – surely there has to be a place selling inane shit, right?
>Find a gacha place. This is the course of action you have decided on, and by god the whaling calls.
>Pick a direction and walk in it – who knows what you’ll find? Life’s a mystery. (This will require a roll.)
>Look for any place in particular you think could be interesting. (Write-in)
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>>4430892
>Look for some amusement on the street – on your first day in here, you had that duel that scored you some money.
>>
>>4430892
>>Look for some amusement on the street – on your first day in here, you had that duel that scored you some money.
Didn't we also get a pretty good weapon out of that? Either way, probably the most comfortable way to bond right now. I can see Wolfgang being awkward as hell when eating with Orion.
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>>4430892
>Look for some amusement on the street – on your first day in here, you had that duel that scored you some money.
>>
>>4430902
>>4430918
>>4430924
Find some roadside funsies to partake in. Writing now!

>>4430918
Yep, you got a slick revolver out of it!
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>>4430938

“Then let’s wander around and find some stuff to do on the road.” You nudge the man and start walking in a random direction, putting your hands in your pockets as you do. “First day in here, I got into a duel with a girl – can’t remember how much money I got out of it, but she also gave me a pretty slick weapon.”

“Huh, interesting. So Warscape allows that kind of stuff on the streets? I wonder if people try to make money only based on that stuff.” Orion muses to himself, stroking his chin with his hand.

“I can imagine it being a fun little time waster. They have stuff like that, a gacha system, and I could have sworn I saw a casino last time I was here. Seems like you could play this game only for the marketplace and make bank while you’re at it.”

“Sheesh, no wonder it’s still as popular as it is.”

The two of you idly converse as you make your way down a side street, the air still tense between you. It’s not like you’re purposely trying to create this feeling – a part of you is relieved it’s not abject hatred like you’ve been fearing for the past five years – but it’s not much better than that. You feel as if you’re walking on eggshells, and it’s not helped by Orion’s demeanor nor your incredibly wimpy and nervous self. The concoction of those factors makes the air awkward between you two.

Eventually, after a little while of walking and no word from Cinder, you move from between a cramped alleyway and back into the open streets. This one seems to have quite a bit of a crowd, and you can spot several stands and carts up and down the entire stretch. It almost reminds you of a town fair in a way – hell, when you look down the road to the left, you can spot a few people playing gentle music on a raised platform, even if a few sounds of gunshots disrupt the idyllic scene.

“Wow.”

Orion’s the one to speak this time, eyes focused on the amber lights that seem to be strung up from more than a few stalls. People move around slowly, some with food in their hands and some with still smoking weapons. Unsurprisingly, there must be a few games that involve the use of weaponry, considering this is an FPS game.

>Remark that you didn’t expect him to be so enamored by the sights, even if you were the one to offer.
>Go find some games to play – you might be able to spark conversation with him over some mutual competition.
>Lead him over to where the music is – you think you can recall his music tastes being somewhat adjacent to jazz.
>Write-in.
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>>4430961
>Remark that you didn’t expect him to be so enamored by the sights, even if you were the one to offer.
>>
>>4430961
>Remark that you didn’t expect him to be so enamored by the sights, even if you were the one to offer.
My guess is it's the fact he was mostly playing that RPG game. Don't think that game had a nice little hub outside of the matches to do all this in.
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>>4430964
>>4430977
The sights are pretty. Writing now!
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>>4430984

“I didn’t expect you to be so taken with the sights, Orion. From the sounds of it, Infinite Skies has the same amount of details, even more so if you consider character interactions.” You say to the man honestly, the two of you moving to lean against a wall and observe the slowly moving crowds.

“Yeah, but every bit of detail has a purpose, you know? It’s all procgen, but it’s still built with a specific purpose – a town with quests, a capital city to win favor, hideouts to secure tools and experience. They’re pretty, but it doesn’t feel natural – it’s hardcoded, even if the program is incredibly advanced and beyond my comprehension. Not only that, but you only have four hours to assimilate it all – some people do by roleplaying, but that’s not my jam.”

He sweeps his hand towards the entire street, but you know he’s also referring to everything beyond.

“This stuff feels human. There are real players manning all of these stalls. All of these guys aren’t AI, but they’re real people here to have a good time. IS doesn’t have that – you queue up, you’re dropped in the game, and you’re brought back to your menu. All purchases are done through a screen. You don’t go through shops and spend time rooting through them – everything is just right there in front of you. So, I guess I find it so nice because I can sit and enjoy it, you know?”

Yeah, you think you understand. You’ve been disconnected from VR for several years, and the level of interactivity in this game surprised you to a massive degree – you’d never expect to be able to physically sort through shelves to find hidden gems like you did at the Gallery. Even Orion, who plays a game that has similar full dive technology, was wowed by some of the stuff he felt in multiplayer matches – not at all to mention what’s currently in front of him.

“…I’m glad you like it.”

You shrug your shoulders, not sure what else to say. You feel like you’ve learned something about him from that – it’s sometimes easy to forget that there’s more to him other than his looks, and you can’t help but feel a bit more relaxed.

>Find some games to play – all this sappy talk has made you want to test your skills.
>See if you can continue the conversation and lead him towards the gentle music.
>Grab some food from a stand – if Orion likes the sights, you’d bet he’d enjoy being able to savor food here.
>Write-in.
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>>4431007
>Find some games to play – all this sappy talk has made you want to test your skills.
>>
>>4431007
>Find some games to play – all this sappy talk has made you want to test your skills.
>>
>>4431007
>Grab some food from a stand – if Orion likes the sights, you’d bet he’d enjoy being able to savor food here.
Oh shit, we're making progress. Wolfgang's relaxing, Orion's opening up... I want to keep this ball rolling.
>>
>>4431013
>>4431020
G-G-G-Get your game on. Writing now!
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>>4431107

Without much warning at all, Orion punches you in the shoulder, causing you to wince as a bit of a shock goes through your arm.

“Let’s go find some games rather than sitting around, yeah? Dunno what’s holding your girl up, but let’s see if we can make some profit before we’re resigned to shopping.” Orion steps off the wall and cracks his knuckles, making his way towards the crowd.

You bite back on what you were going to say – namely that he probably has more money than a lot of people in this marketplace – and instead follow him, crossing your arms as the two of you begin to scan up and down the street. After a minute or so of walking, you’re able to identify three places that look like gaming spots, although some are more suspicious than others.

The first place is a small tent at the very end of the street, devoid of anything inside except a person, a dark green mat, and a table. On top of the table sits three cups and a bullet – the rules next to it appear to be simple. Offer $10,000, and if you catch where the bullet is, the tattooed man will double it. This apparently scales until you feel comfortable enough stopping, so you could keep going for a while if you ended up winning.

The second isn’t a building, but it’s a person with blue hair moving between stalls rather quickly, asking people if they’d be willing to play against him in a game of “skill and whimsy”. You’re not quite sure what this means, but it was enough that it piqued your interest.

The final place is a significantly larger tent, taking up quite a portion of the sidewalk. There’s a long booth blocking anyone from entering inside, and the person behind it is twirling a hand grenade pin between her fingers. The game is using any weapon at your disposal to try and knock a grenade off of a pedestal – if you do it without it exploding, you’ll win some money and supplies.

“Man, they’re creative in this game, huh?” Orion muses, giving off an appreciative whistle. “What say you, Wolf? Any that tickle your fancy?”

>The cup game.
>The blue-haired man.
>The grenade game.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4431134
>>The blue-haired man
>>
>>4431134
>The grenade game.
>>
>>4431134
>>The blue-haired man.
I'm very interested in games of skill and whimsy. Also cup games are pure BS. Grenade's pretty interesting too but I feel more confident with the guy who has to go around asking for customers than the one waiting for suckers in their booth
>>
>>4431134
>The blue-haired man.
>>
>>4431150
>>4431154
Whimsy awaits! Writing now!
>>
>>4431181

“Let’s go talk to that blue-haired dude. I don’t think he’s gonna try to scam us like the cup guy, and maybe we can double back to give the grenade game a shot before Cinder gets here.” You say to Orion, already stepping towards the man. You hear him follow with a grunt of affirmation.

“Ma’am! Please, I promise you that there’s everything to gain!”

The man clasps his hands together and bends over in front of a girl. She looks disgusted at the man’s horrible approximation of a bow, and begins slowly backing away from him. Unfortunately, with the direction she’s moving, she runs directly into Orion, causing her to immediately fall over with a little squeal.

“Sorry ‘bout that.” Orion says to her in a flippant tone, not bothering to help her up in the slightest. “You. I hear you’re offerin’ a challenge.”

From this distance, you can see that the man has stubble that matches his hair, and his expression immediately lights up. He rushes towards Orion with glee in his eyes, and eagerly clasps his hands and leans in with no regards for personal space. You can see Orion’s eye twitch, but he’s able to restrain himself from pushing the blue-haired man away from him.

“I am, sir! Have you ever wanted to win money before? A lot of it? All in one sitting?”

You can’t hide your snort or your flabbergasted look, and Orion looks like he wants to clobber you for it.

“Yeah, I have.”

“WONDERFUL! Oh, where are my manners – my name is Carmine, pleasure to meet you – and I must say that today is your lucky day!”

He lets Orion go and claps his hands together, stepping back and straightening the collar of his gaudy green suit. The lady takes that opportunity to scamper away from the scene entirely, her white tail almost taking a plate of food off of an adjacent counter.

“What’s the terms, and can more than one person challenge you? My buddy here wants a crack at you.” He roughly jabs you in the side, and you nod in affirming, deciding that speaking to this man is not what you want to do in this current moment.

“Follow me and I’ll tell you! And yes, your friend there can join us – the more the merrier, after all!”

Carmine immediately scampers across the street and into an adjacent alleyway, looking as if he was a kid running towards a candy store.

>Follow him – you’re ready to make some bank.
>Look at Orion with exasperation and stay put.
>Express your concerns with this situation.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4431207
>Follow him – you’re ready to make some bank.
>>
>>4431207
>>Follow him – you’re ready to make some bank.
I have a feeling Orion knows exactly what we're thinking about this situation.
>>
>>4431207
>>Follow him – you’re ready to make some bank.
>>
>>4431220
>>4431223
>>4431233
Let's acquire bank. All of the bank. Writing now!
>>
>>4431257

(This is gonna be the last one from me tonight since I’m tired! Thank you all for reading, and I hope you’ve had fun doing so! Have a great night anons, and I’ll see you tomorrow morning!)

“Shall we get going, then?” You ask Orion with a bemused smile, to which he nods.

Without another second’s delay, you both head after him with a hurried pace, trying to catch up to him before he gets out of your line of sight. The chase, admittedly, doesn’t take very long. He leads you for a few seconds down a few narrow passageways between the buildings, and finally ends up at a metal door with a blue and green bullseye painted on it sloppily.

“Alright, gentlemen! Are you ready to see something that you’ve scarcely seen in Warscape before? Something that will lead to a night of profit, magic, and overall gain?!” Carmine gives a grandiose gesture at the door, flashing a big grin at you as he does.

“Tell us the terms, first. We’re on a bit of a time schedule, you see.” Orion’s voice is even, and almost cold as he regards the man. You can’t exactly blame him – the dude’s acting weird, and Orion’s about as blunt as you can get when someone’s getting on his nerves.

“Okay, be sure to listen well, though!” He brushes some of his tangled hair out of his face and points at his ear. “Past this door, there is a room filled with targets! You will give me some money - $100,000 is the minimum, by the way – and a fraction of that value will be assigned to one of the targets! Your job is to deduce which targets are yours, and which belong to your enemies! For every one you shoot and score, that’s money that ends up in your bank account! As I said, a challenge of skill and whimsy!”

“That…seems like much more of a game than I was expecting.” Orion says with a hint of shock to his tone, which you wholly agree with. That actually sounds kinda fun, providing he’s being fair when he’s stating the terms.

“Wanna go for it, Orion?” You quip.

“Of course. That sounds like a good time.”

“WONDERFUL! I am truly glad to hear it, my friends. May I ask you for your admittance fee?” He extends his other hand towards you, a genuine smile plastered across his face.

>Money: $1,930,000

>Offer $100,000.
>Offer $250,000.
>Offer $500,000.
>Offer an amount of your choosing. (Write-in)
>Ask any additional questions that you may have. (Write-in)
>Write-in.
>>
>>4431325
>Offer $250,000.
>>
>>4431325
>>Ask any additional questions that you may have. (Write-in)
>What's the precise fraction used to assign value?
>What happens if we shoot an enemy target?
>>
>>4431325
Supporting >>4431341
>>
>>4431325
>>4431341
+1
>>
>>4431325
>Offer an amount of your choosing. ($1,930,000)
>>
Good morning, everyone! Hope you're doing well, let's get started for the day.

>>4431341
>>4431395
>>4431455
You've got a few questions. Writing now!
>>
>>4431866

You can see Orion about to accept, and so you put a hand on his shoulder before he can. Shooting Carmine a critical look, Orion doesn’t stop you from continuing.

“What’s the precise fraction used to assign value? Are you just going to put all of the money on one, and then screw us over by scamming us? As well as that, what happens if we shoot an enemy target?”

You maintain your critical gaze as you move your hand from Orion’s shoulder, crossing your arms. While the concept does sound interesting, you’d prefer it if you knew everything about the match beforehand. Not knowing a single thing about this man, you have no way to judge whether or not you’re walking into a scam – especially with how over the top and carnival-esque his attitude seems to be.

“Astute questions, young one!” Carmine strides forward without pause and roughly grabs you by your arm, pulling you over to the door. Orion immediately reaches out to stop him, but Carmine slaps his hand away, opening his menu with the other hand and pulling out a hefty stack of cash. “Allow me to demonstrate and no cost to yourself – I understand that proof will be needed before purchase!”

When he reaches the door, he makes a fist with his hand and punches the wall next to it, causing a few sections of the brick to move outwards with a mechanical groan. You can see a small console that’s not unlike an ATM, and he holds up the money to the screen, which disappears in a few moments. After that, a small scanner protrudes from the top and takes a few sweeps at Carmine’s hand – when it’s satisfied, it retracts, and the bricks slide back into place.

“The money that I just submitted is $1,000,000! This, of course, is far from the minimum – but what better way to test things than losing a little money, eh?”

“Losing money?” You parrot, causing Carmine to laugh boisterously.

“Just watch and learn!” He opens the door and shoves you inside, striding in and pulling out a pistol as he does. The gun looks like a trumped up USP .45, with a strange polka dot pattern painted across the casing. Orion follows in a few moments afterwards, looking at you with a faint semblance of concern, but his vision is drawn away as he looks at the rest of the place.

The inside of the building looks like a dingy warehouse, lacking any of the flair that Carmine seems to possess. It’s a room that has no furnishings to speak of – not even any visible machinery, although with the console on the outside of the door, it wouldn’t surprise you if such things were built into the walls.

>Wait for him to prove his point – patience is a virtue, after all.
>Repeat the questions that you asked him – you’re on a time limit, since Cinder’s on her way.
>Look helplessly at Orion, because you seem to be a bit out of your depth.
>Try to see if you can glean any information off of Carmine with your eyes. [This will require a roll.]
>Write-in.
>>
>>4431879
>Try to see if you can glean any information off of Carmine with your eyes. [This will require a roll.]
Also if possible repeat our questions while doing so
>>
>>4431879
>>Try to see if you can glean any information off of Carmine with your eyes. [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4431879
>Wait for him to prove his point – patience is a virtue, after all.
>>
>>4431956
>>4431959
This goes through! Please roll me 1d20, and the best of three wins!
>>
Rolled 1 (1d20)

>>4431981
>>
Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>4431981
>>4431985
What a hell of a way to return
>>
>>4431985
Fuck, the curse is back. Writing now!
>>
>>4432006

(Alright, gonna have to head out for a few hours unfortunately, getting my haircut and spending some time with my grandma before my birthday tomorrow. Be back soon, be sure to alleviate the curse by the time I get back!)

You squint your eyes at Carmine, trying your best to get any information you can from his form. Perhaps an errant facial expression? A twitch of his fingers as he tries to craft a finely tuned lie? Maybe even some fiddling with something under his suit as he masterfully orchestrates a formidable and rigged test of ability—

Carmine pulls out a pad from his inventory and taps his finger against it, and you feel a tingle in your ears as a blue wire-frame expands across the room.

“Thank you for your patience, gentlemen!” Carmine says in an exuberant tone, pointing to the wall farthest away from your little group. Try as you might to observe him further, you find yourself following his movement, and you can see some circular shapes beginning to form. They’re largish bullseye targets that are a variety of colors, and Carmine raises his gun to fire at one with blue rings. When the bullet connects, the target shatters, and the following words appear.

>PLAYER #1 “carmine” LOCKED IN! ASSIGNING COLOR BLUE.

“To answer your questions – what is the precise fraction of value? A fifth of your wealth will be distributed among five targets which will belong to you.”

As he says this, five blue targets appear across the wall, and more words are displayed above it.

>CARMINE: $1,000,000.

“You can consider them your health AND your wealth! If you run out, you lose the game. And what happens when you shoot an enemy target? You obtain all of the wealth within, although it won’t be added to your health – just the profit at the end of the game! Everyone needs to have an equal chance, you understand? It wouldn’t be a game of skill otherwise!”

“Wouldn’t it be easy to just shoot an enemy target and call it a day, then? This seems redundant.” You can practically hear the scowl on Orion's face.

“You haven’t let me finish, boy.” Carmine’s voice is still pleasant as he fiddles with the pad. All of a sudden, a loud and piercing noise is heard throughout the chamber, making you wince. “Let’s get this party started!”

Unable to take your eyes from the wall, you watch as the blue targets slowly move – they turn over in place, showing an uncolored back. Four of the targets disappear, and you watch as two more blanks appear to the sides of the formerly blue one. They then begin to move rapidly, exchanging positions almost faster than your eyes can track.

“This is the bit that requires a little bit of luck, boys. Any one can shoot a plain ol’ target – but can you deduce which targets don’t belong to you?”

You blink.

>He’s damn right you can – you’ll take the offer, it seems interesting.
>This seems a little too out of your league – you’ll pass, but watch Orion do it.
>Ask some more questions, if you have them.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4432014
>He’s damn right you can – you’ll take the offer, it seems interesting.
>>
>>4432014
>He’s damn right you can – you’ll take the offer, it seems interesting.
>>
>>4432014
>He’s damn right you can – you’ll take the offer, it seems interesting.
>>
>>4432014
>He’s damn right you can – you’ll take the offer, it seems interesting.
>>
>>4432014
>He’s damn right you can – you’ll take the offer, it seems interesting.
>>
Good afternoon, everyone! Had some car troubles, but I'm here, so that's fine. How are you all on this fine day?

>>4432023
>>4432046
>>4432093
>>4432245
>>4432305
Take your shots. Writing now!
>>
>>4432481

“I’m pretty sure that I can.” You say with a smidgen of confidence, finally standing up from the ground and brushing dirt off of your clothes. Seriously, this place is dingy as fuck – you bet this guy could make some money off of this, so you wonder why he keeps the place in such shoddy shape.

“I’m very glad to hear it, young lad. Would you kindly follow me to the outside so I can process your registration? The game hasn’t begun yet, after all.” Carmine’s grin could rival the sun, and he walks towards the door with a major bit of pep in his step.

“You’re gonna keep the million in the pot?” Orion asks with a note of shock, reaching back to help you up and retracting his hand when he realizes that your ass is already off the ground.

“Of course! It’d be a bore if there weren’t some real risk for me, so I’m more than willing to sacrifice my money for a good time!”

“…he’s weird.” You whisper to Orion, stepping beyond the threshold of the door.

“I figured that he was from the moment he flagged down a girl on the street.” Orion says with a dark smirk, patting you roughly on the shoulder. “Hopefully he’s as stupid as he looks, though.”

You recall trying to analyze him earlier, and deduce that this man probably is as stupid as he looks.

“Lads! If you’re done whispering, may I please ask you to submit the money? Time’s a wasting, after all!” He pounds the side of the door again, and the hidden console is revealed once more.

Well, you’ve committed at this point. How much money do you want to submit?

>Money: $1,930,000.

>$100,000.
>$250,000.
>$500,000.
>$1,000,000.
>Wait for Orion to submit, and base your own offer off of that.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4432499
>>$250,000.
>>
>>4432499
>$250,000.
>>
>>4432499
>>$500,000.
>>
>>4432505
>>4432509
Put a quarter million on the table - no big deal, right? Writing now!
>>
>>4432551

“Here you go, boss.”

You pull up your menu screen, and after fiddling with it for a solid 30 seconds – this shit is still new to you, after all – you’re able to properly figure out how to withdraw money in Warscape.

Look at you! A stunning example of learning something new every day, even if the new thing is completely useless in most circumstances.

After placing the money to the device, you’re able to register your profile to the game. Stepping back, you gesture for Orion to take your place, which he does with a smirk.

“Well, I’ll make things interesting for you, Carmine.” Orion drones on, rooting around in his inventory and taking out a larger stack of money than the blue-haired man did. You gasp in shock, and you see Carmine’s eyes light up.

“And how would that be, sir?” Carmine’s grin is nearly splitting his face.

“Doubling the pot.” He presses the money against the scanner and looks over his shoulder, “$1,250,000. If I’m gonna be beating the both of you, I might as well double my earnings.”

“You do realize that you winning doesn’t entirely depend on you, right?” You can’t help but joke, which causes Orion to lightly bump your shoulder with his as he makes his way into the room again.

“Lighten up, Wolf. Ain’t talking smack a part of the game?”

He withdraws a revolver with an incredibly long barrel from his inventory, raising it and sniping an orange target.

>PLAYER #2 “Orange” LOCKED IN! ASSIGNING COLOR ORANGE.

You think you hear Carmine gasp during the loud noise the machine makes, but you don’t feel like inquiring as to why. Raising up your own revolver, you ponder which color to pick from the vast variety displayed before you.

This is clearly the most important decision you have made in the last three weeks. This will decide your entire (immediate) future. Choosing incorrectly could mean shame, death, and sadness – potentially in that order.

Which do you choose?

>Red.
>Green.
>Yellow.
>Purple.
>Trust your QM’s impeccable color coordination and judgement.
>Pick another color or something it’s probably up there idk. (Write-in.)
>>
>>4432578
>>Trust your QM’s impeccable color coordination and judgement.
>>
>>4432547
SHAME ON YOU

>>4432578>>4432578
>>Pick another color or something it’s probably up there idk. (Write-in.)
Orange while blinking at orange
>>
>>4432578
>Yellow.
>>
>>4432578
>Trust your QM’s impeccable color coordination and judgement.
It's just a solid color, there's no way QM can mess this up

The dude's shock at Orange alongside the woman at the tournament when Orion signed up... Genesys is more well-known than I thought.
>>
>>4432580
>>4432603
I can't fuck it up, you say? Of course I can't - my color coordination is the greatest. Writing now!

>>4432581
You can't prove ANYTHING.
>>
File: you asked for this.jpg (3 KB, 355x355)
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>>4432616

It takes you a few moments to decide. Color coordination is a pretty serious thing, right? As you raise a hand to your chin, it’s almost as if you have an out of body experience. While you can’t analyze Carmine worth a damn, you know that you CAN do this – you are the pinnacle of fashion and color choice, just ask you from five year—okay maybe don’t do that.

Raising your gun slowly, you decide on a color that would suit you best.

BANG!

>PLAYER #3 “n0v4_c43s4r” LOCKED IN! ASSIGNING COLOR CHARTREUSE.

For the first time in many moons, you think you can hear Orange attempting to stifle laughter.

You don’t give a fuck. This is the best color.

Carmine taps around on his pad for a few seconds, and locks in the game as started. After some time passes, you watch as the blue wire-frames appear around the room again, flashing in intricate patterns. Slowly, you watch in awe as a scene begins to be etched into the walls – no, it’s like the walls are being brushed away, revealing a landscape that could have been taken from an actual painting.

You’re standing in a field at dusk. The air is cool against your skin, far from the cloistering heat of summer and freezing chill of winter – this is perfect temperature, you’d say. The area under your feet is green and well-kept, but as your eyes trail up, you notice that the circular section is surrounded by wheat stalks. The moon is well into the sky at this point, and you can spot the barest hints of the sun descending beyond the horizon.

“Did I surprise you gents? I figured we should have a splendorous setting for a spectacular match!” Carmine eagerly puts his pad into his inventory and strides forward, placing his hands on your and Orion’s shoulders as he does.

Maybe it’s just me, but he’s squeezing my shoulder pretty tight.

Putting away your curiosity, you follow Carmine as he beckons the both of your forward. A small railing emerges from the ground, signifying that this is the point you’re supposed to stand at – beyond it, fifteen targets are floating in the air – a blue set, an orange set, and a chartreuse set.

One of these things are not like the other.

With a wave of Carmine’s hand, all of them flip over simultaneously, and twelve of them disappear into pixels. Six blank ones appear afterwards, and they begin to shuffle like the example pair did.

You have a few moments to converse before the game starts. Is there anything you’d like to say?

>Stay silent, and see if you can spot any indication of which targets belong to whom. [This will require a roll.]
>Try to spark up some form of conversation with Carmine – who is he, and how long has he been playing?
>Discuss some strategy with Orion, or maybe piss him off so that his judgement errs. You want to win!
>Write-in.
>>
>>4432628
>Stay silent, and see if you can spot any indication of which targets belong to whom. [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4432628
>>Stay silent, and see if you can spot any indication of which targets belong to whom. [This will require a roll.]
Chartreuse? This is just a worse version of yellow! To think I could've had normal yellow if I had just voted with that other anon.
>>
>>4432635
>>4432641
This goes through! Please roll a 1d20, and best of three wins!

>>4432641
Don't you mean better version, anon?
>>
Rolled 6 (1d20)

>>4432648
>>
File: 1426808400442.jpg (26 KB, 400x462)
26 KB
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Rolled 19 (1d20)

>>4432648
>>
Rolled 3 (1d20)

>>4432648
1
>>
>>4432652
The curse was gone as fast as it appeared. Writing now!
>>
>>4432663
You fucker, I saw the 1 and actually panicked a little. Christ GxG got me fucked up.
>>
>>4432664

Rather than engaging in conversation, you decide to lean against the railing and observe the rapidly moving disks. It’s very hard to make them out when they’re going so fast, and it really comes off as one big white blur. You sigh to yourself – this really will be a game of chance, won’t it? Just as you resign yourself to fiddling with your gun, you notice something sudden from near the shuffling discs.

A bright blue blip, followed by a dim orange and an even dimmer yellow – no, that’s chartreuse, you can’t mix up the incredibly different colors.

You stealthily glance to the side, and you see Orion’s eyebrows are raised in thought. Carmine, however, has his ever-permanent grin on his face. When he sees you looking out of the corner of his eye, he waggles his eyebrows at you.

”Did you see it?”

That’s what he seems to be implying with his expression.

So this isn’t just a blind shot for money. There’s some evidence of where they are – but how the fuck do they correlate to where they’re at?

Suddenly, the discs stop in place, an unnatural beep resounding throughout the incredibly natural mirage. They slowly spread out in a three by three grid, all blank and just itching to be shot. You try and rack your brains as to the meaning behind the lights, but Carmine interrupts your train of thought.

“Alright, gentlemen! Would one of you like the first crack at it, or should I do the honors?” Carmine spins the pistol around his finger, showing again his startling lack of trigger discipline.

You gaze at the grid. What would you like to do?

>O O O
>O O O
>O O O

>Take the first shot – might as well get the show started, right? (Specify where you’d like to fire.)
>Motion for Carmine to fire first – maybe you’ll gain some information from that.
>Look at Orion meaningfully – if he wanted to double the pot, he can shoot first.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4432680
>Take the first shot – might as well get the show started, right? (Specify where you’d like to fire.)
The middle
>>
>>4432668
Just a matter of time, dear anon
>>4432680
>>Take the first shot – might as well get the show started, right? (Specify where you’d like to fire.)
Right in the middle
>>
>>4432680
Put our hatred for chartreuse into the shot.

>O O O
>O X O
>O O O
>>
>>4432689
this
>>
>>4432689
>>4432690
>>4432692
>>4432693
You take your shot. Writing now!
>>
>>4432700

After a few moments of consideration, you aim the revolver directly at the center of the grid. Where better to start than the middle, honestly? If this were a game of tic-tac-toe, you’d choose there as your beginning point!

The gun roars, and the bullet finds the bullseye with little trouble. A few seconds pass as the shards fall to the ground, before words appear above the entire grid.

>HIT SCORED!
>Orange: -$250,000.

“Oi,” Orange speaks up and looks from around Carmine at you, “Now I’m gonna have to beat you harder so I make a profit.”

You can’t help the laugh that comes out – you didn’t expect to make your winnings back on your first shot, but hey, looks like you’re lucky today.

Orion raises his own gun and fires at the topmost right corner, eyes narrowing.

>MISS!

“Goddamnit, Wolf.”

“An unfortunate occurrence, Orange! Perhaps your aim needs some work?” Carmine grins, taking a shot on the middle right target.

“Not my fault you’re only givin’ a single beep to work off of.”

>MISS!

Carmine shrugs his shoulders, almost as if asking “What can you do?”.

>ROUND 1 COMPLETED!

>O O X
>O X X
>O O O

>carmine (5/5) - $1,000,000.
>n0v4_c43s4r (5/5) - $250,000.
>Orange (4/5) - $1,000,000.

Three more discs appear and insert themselves into the grid, shuffling with all of the others just as quick as they had the first time. You squint at them and wait, and surely enough, dividends are paid.

Bright chartreuse, dim blue, dimmer orange.

“The second round falls upon us, lads!” Carmine chirps, causing you to nod and Orion to grumble.

>Wait and fire. (Specify location.)
>Go second.
>Go third.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4432722
>Wait and fire. (Specify location.)
bottom right
>>
>>4432722
>Wait and fire. (Specify location.)
Bottom middle
>>
>>4432730
this.
>>
>>4432730
>>4432739
>>4432785
Internet took a while to decide whether or not it wanted to work, but hey, that's fine. Writing now!
>>
>>4432911

“Indeed it does.” You respond to the man blankly, stroking your chin and raising your gun idly. You already shot the middle, so why not adjust your aim towards broader horizons? You adjust your gun so it’s aimed at the bottom right, pulling the trigger.

>HIT SCORED!
>Orange: -$250,000.

“Do you want a fight, Wolf?” Orion’s head slowly turns towards you, and you find yourself flinching a bit at the look on his face. You know – well, you think – he’s just getting salty over the game, but you’d rather not risk his ire.

“Not my fault, dude. It’s dumb luck.” You meekly respond, fiddling with the cylinder on your revolver.

“Now now, boys! Let’s not get upset over parlor games!” Carmine chimes in with a laugh, aiming at the top row. You see him aim his gun between the top two spots, before finally settling on the top middle.

>MISS!

“Looks like my luck is poor tonight!” Carmine claps his hands together, looking at you out of the corner of his eye and winking. “Hopefully third time’s the charm, eh?”

You’re not able to get a bead on this man. While he looks and dresses silly, and his over the top exuberance is ever-present, he seems to have sharpness underneath the surface. You had pegged him as stupid the moment you met him, but it would seem that you can’t (entirely) judge a book by it’s cover.

Orion, in the midst of your musings, fires at the target to the left of yours.

>HIT SCORED!
>carmine: -$200,000.

“Ah, it appears I’ve been bested!”

“At least it makes up for some of the loss.” Orion murmurs to himself, squinting at the board as more targets are added to the shuffling pile.

>ROUND 2 COMPLETED!

>O X O
>O O O
>O X X

>n0v4_c43s4r (5/5) - $250,000.
>carmine (4/5) - $800,000.
>Orange (3/5) - $750,000.

>Fire first.
>Go second.
>Go third.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4432919
>>Fire first.
We've been doing pretty well thus far. Seems like the blips are pretty straightforward... waiting for the other shoe to drop.
>>
>>4432919
>Fire first.
>>
>>4432919
>Fire first.
>>
>>4432923
>>4432933
>>4433069
I do not know sleep. Writing now!
>>
>>4433123

(Just kidding I know sleep. Heading to bed, and I’ll probably be sleeping in a bit since it’s my birthday. Going to be heading off around 5 PM in the afternoon, but I’ll try to update as much as I can until that point! Thanks for reading everybody, and have a great night!)

As the targets readjust themselves once again, you set yourself on being the first to fire off again. Your lead seems to be paying off, considering both of your shots paid massively, so you might as well keep that ball rolling and hope that more money falls in. You’ve already made double your sum, after all!

You also paid attention to the beeps – there was first a weird mixture of bright chartreuse and orange, followed by a dim blue.

Musing to yourself, you eventually settle on the leftmost row. Having already shot at the other two, you’d be remiss not to take that one – especially when a pattern is slowly making itself known to you. While your target is on the row, you know Orange’s is as well – and to be honest, you’ll take a shot at him if you need to.

Gotta love the process of elimination, right?

You pull the trigger and the bottom left target with a small smile on your face, almost getting excited at the thought of all the money that will be coming in.

Unfortunately, someone fires as the exact same time as you.

Before you, the two bullets that soar through the air collide, making a cacophony of noise and sparks that makes you wince. Rather than halting as you expected them to, they continue on a slightly jilted trajectory, tumbling through your original target.

Your head immediately shoots to the side, and you see Carmine smiling back with his gun still smoking.

>HIT SCORED!
>Orange: -$250,000.

“Looks like that one’s for me, then!” The man chortles, leaning towards you with a hint of smugness in his eyes. “Care to try again, Nova? You still haven’t hit a target yet.”

So allowing someone to shoot uninhibited is a courtesy, not a mandate.

>O O O
>O O O
>X O O

>Pick a location to fire on.
>>
>>4433138
Left middle
>>
>>4433138
left middle
>>
Good afternoon, everyone! Woke up late, had some lunch with family, and I'm now ready to write until I'm carted off to the bar later.

Hope all of you are doing well today!

>>4433165
>>4433377
Fire at the left middle spot. Writing now!
>>
>>4433611

Keeping a sharp eye on Carmine, you raise the gun a notch higher than you had originally planned to. Orion seems non-plussed by this occurrence, although you could swear you can see a vein popping in his forehead as he tries to keep a façade of calmness – the loss of money is a heavy burden on Orion’s head apparently, whether it’s in real life or in a video game.

“Gonna do that again?” You ask with a cocked eyebrow, not sounding very amused.

“There’s only one way to find ou—”

Before he can finish speaking, you pull the trigger and the bullet lands squarely in the middle of the target.

>MISS!

“Your perfect shot record has been shattered, Nova! Truly a shame, truly a shame.” Carmine shrugs his shoulders, a haughty chuckle escaping his mouth. You can’t tell if he’s trying to be a dick on purpose or not – you genuinely can’t get a read on what this guy is really feeling, or if the façade he’s presenting is genuine.

“Better watch it, Carmine. Getting too cocky often leads to a downfall.” Orion snipes, deciding on the bottom-most middle target again.

>HIT SCORED!
>carmine: -$200,000.

“It would appear so! Goodness me, I may be out of the game at the rate I’m going! I wonder who will profit the most from this?”

>ROUND 3 COMPLETED!

>O O O
>X O O
>X X O

>n0v4_c43s4r (5/5) - $250,000.
>carmine (3/5) - $600,000.
>Orange (2/5) - $500,000.

>Focus on the bleeps again – there’s a pattern here, and you’d like to know where you’re shooting.
>Try to get a bead on Carmine – this battle seems weirdly psychological with him. [This will require a roll.]
>Attempt to discreetly signal to Orion that you should team on him – he’s losing anyway, so it shouldn’t be a problem, right? [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>Write-in.
>>
>>4433630
>Try to get a bead on Carmine – this battle seems weirdly psychological with him. [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4433630
>Try to get a bead on Carmine – this battle seems weirdly psychological with him. [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4433630
>>Try to get a bead on Carmine – this battle seems weirdly psychological with him. [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4433630
>Try to get a bead on Carmine – this battle seems weirdly psychological with him. [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4433636
>>4433639
>>4433640
>>4433641
Sus this man out with perfect accuracy. Please roll me a 1d20, best of three goes through!
>>
Rolled 10 (1d20)

>>4433647
>>
Rolled 8 (1d20)

>>4433647
>>
Rolled 7 (1d20)

>>4433647
>>
>>4433652
turns out we're pretty bad at analyzing people

That or Carmine is just too over-the-top for anyone to understand
>>
Genesis || team members: Fletcher (captain), Nova, Orange, Dragon, Sky.

Y/N?
>>
>>4433670

>N

We're the new captain
>>
>>4433652
This goes through, writing now!

>>4433664
Carmine is truly an enigma.
>>
>>4433670
i would say no because sky is mainupulative
>>
>>4433677

Forgoing using the lights for guidance – you’re sure you’ll get it right no matter what – you instead shift your vision away from the shuffling targets and towards Carmine, who’s idly looking at them while flicking the revolver’s hammer.

This man reminds you of a clown. He has an over-the-top exuberance that you haven’t seen before, which is only accented by the gaudy hair and suit. He seems to be egging the both of you on, but is largely unconcerned with winning on his own. You also don’t know many random people willing to blow $1,000,000 on a bet, however Orion’s also in the room, so you guess you can’t hold that against him.

He’s a puzzle, and it’s one that you can’t quite solve. You lean closer and squint at him in an attempt to peel through the outer layers with your mind, but he catches you in the act, head snapping towards you.

“Nova, shouldn’t you focus on keeping your eyes on the match? You may be in the lead, but one can easily be overcame should their attention wane!” He shimmies over to you and grabs you by your wrist – the one with the anti-cheat band on it – and forces your pointer finger out, aiming it at Orion. “I mean, look at that man! He’s only gotten one hit, and he’s in last place! He said he’d beat us soundly, too…”

Orion’s face morphs into a sneer, and he opens his menu in a flash. A second later, you see him withdraw a knife – one of the old slim models that he hid up his sleeve as a last resort, you remember - and sends it flying at the both of you with a growl.

>Let it fly – you don’t feel like contesting him when he’s being salty.
>Attempt to dodge – why would you want to be jabbed with a knife? [This will require a LOW roll.]
>Pull Carmine in front of you – he said the thing, he should take the knife. [This will require a roll.]
>Try to catch the knife – you will show off because you can, goddamnit. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>Grasp your gun by the barrel and try to redirect the knife into one of the targets. [This will require a VERY HIGH roll.]
>Write-in.
>>
>>4433686
>Attempt to dodge – why would you want to be jabbed with a knife? [This will require a LOW roll.]
>>
>>4433686
>>Pull Carmine in front of you – he said the thing, he should take the knife. [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4433686
>Attempt to dodge – why would you want to be jabbed with a knife? [This will require a LOW roll.]
>>
>>4433693
>>4433702
Roll to dodge. Please roll me a 1d20, best of three goes through!
>>
Rolled 6 (1d20)

>>4433706
>>
Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>4433706
>>
Rolled 4 (1d20)

>>4433706
>>
>>4433712
This goes through, writing now!
>>
>>4433725

You sharply jerk to the side and let the knife pass over your shoulder, Carmine mirroring the action as well – the blade clatters against the stone wall, and silence dominates the room.

“A textbook example as to why you never get mad over a game! Because it’s just that, a game! I bet a player such as yourself has a high amount of money to fall back on, right, Orange?” The man’s voice is almost teasing. He stands up and brushes off his suit, striding back up to the railing with his ever-present grin.

“It’s the principle of it, dickhead.” Orion doesn’t hide his contempt well – for one being onboard with this in the beginning, his attitude has definitely adjusted. He follows up his words with a sigh, murmuring something under his breath.

“May I ask what you said?” Carmine asks hopefully.

“None of your damn business. Wolf, take a shot before I try to beat him to death.” Orion looks at you, stalking over to the wall and picking up his fallen knife with a glare. You watch him for a few seconds, almost expecting Carmine to throw in an additional jab – he does no such thing, however, and you’re stuck glaring at the targets again.

You don’t have any beeps to go off of this time either, but hey, you’re in the lead. What could go wrong, right?

>O O O
>O O O
>O O O

>Pick an area to shoot, and then do so.
>Wait for Carmine to fire first, and try to intercept the bullet with your own – payback’s a bitch. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>Walk over to Orion and ask why Carmine’s getting under his skin so much.
>Politely ask Carmine to stop antagonizing your friend.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4433729
>>Wait for Carmine to fire first, and try to intercept the bullet with your own – payback’s a bitch. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
Smokin' Sexy Style
>>
>>4433729
>Walk over to Orion and ask why Carmine’s getting under his skin so much.
>>
>>4433729
>>Walk over to Orion and ask why Carmine’s getting under his skin so much.
Might be a nice little moment to build up his tolerance for smug jackasses cause lord knows there's a ton of 'em in Warscape. Can't have him losing his cool once the tournament starts.
>>
>>4433729
>Wait for Carmine to fire first, and try to intercept the bullet with your own – payback’s a bitch. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>>
>>4433729
>Walk over to Orion and ask why Carmine’s getting under his skin so much.
>>
Yo, people showed up earlier than expected, so I'm gonna be heading off for now! Vote's open until I get back - could be later tonight or tomorrow, depending on how things go. See you soon, and have a good one anons!
>>
>>4433729
>Wait for Carmine to fire first, and try to intercept the bullet with your own – payback’s a bitch. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>>
>>4433729
>Wait for Carmine to fire first, and try to intercept the bullet with your own – payback’s a bitch. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>>
Good morning, everyone! Last night was wild, and I'm up earlier than I thought I'd be. How are all of you doing today?

>>4433733
>>4433746
>>4434525
>>4434721
Deliver payback with prejudice. Please roll me a 1d20, and best of three goes through!
>>
>>4434845
Holy shit! Your back, glad to see you! Long time lurker hoping to actually play.
>>
Rolled 18 (1d20)

>>4434855
Forgot roll opps.
>>
Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>4434845
>>
Rolled 2 (1d20)

>>4434845
>>
>>4434858
Hey, that's pretty good! Writing now.

>>4434855
Even though I live in bursts, I still live. Glad to have you here anon, and I hope you have a good time!
>>
>>4434904

Rather than firing immediately, you lean against the railing and stare at the target board longingly. What could your options be? You didn’t see the beep, so it’s really a crapshoot – but maybe the power of luck will be in your favor? This could be the most important shot of the match, so careful observance is really the safest course of action—

In the midst of your thoughts, you casually raise your gun at the same time as Carmine, and pull the trigger just before he does.

The bullets dance through the air once again, and upon collision, an even bigger shower of sparks occurs as the metal impacts with the target directly in the middle.

>SELF-HIT SCORED! NO MONEY REWARDED!
>n0v4_c43s4r: -$50,000.

You turn to Carmine with a smirk, managing to keep your cool despite shooting yourself in the foot almost literally.

“As long as you don’t get it, that’s fine by me. Care to try again, Carmine?” You blow on the smoking barrel of your gun, and Carmine throws his head back as he laughs.

“Turnabout is fair play, I do admit that, Nova!” He pounds his hand on the railing as he guffaws. “Oh, you truly are a treat.”

You don’t like that this man just called you a treat. In fact, it makes you feel strangely slimy.

As you look at this man, you feel a rough hand pat you on the shoulder, and Orion murmurs what sounds like a compliment in your ear. You wonder if disrupting him was enough to make the orange-haired man lighten up a bit, although you highly doubt it due to him hemorrhaging money.

Either way, Orion takes aim at the bottom left target and fires.

>MISS!

Rather than getting upset about it, you spot Orion slightly nodding to himself – perhaps he’s got an idea in his head?

After waiting a few minutes to see if you’ll interrupt him again, Carmine gives you both a cheeky look and pulls the trigger at the topmost right target.

>MISS!

Your eyebrows quirk up. It feels like he’s messing with you.

>ROUND 4 COMPLETED!

>O O X
>O X O
>X O O

>n0v4_c43s4r (4/5) - $200,000.
>carmine (3/5) - $600,000.
>Orange (2/5) - $500,000.

Looks like the fifth round is upon you, and this time you manage to catch the bleeps too. Bright orange, dim blue, dimmer chartreuse. You’re glad you were perceptive enough to pick up the last one – if you didn’t know it was there, chances are you’d have never found it.

What would you like to do?

>Pick a target and fire.
>Spare a moment to check your messages and see if Cinder’s sent you anything.
>Beckon Orion over and try to convince him to explain the pattern secret. [This will require a roll.]
>Snipe at Carmine’s bullet again, because fuck this over the top man. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>Write-in.
>>
>>4434920
>Spare a moment to check your messages and see if Cinder’s sent you anything.
>>
>>4434920
>Spare a moment to check your messages and see if Cinder’s sent you anything.
>>
>>4434920
>Spare a moment to check your messages and see if Cinder’s sent you anything.
>>
>>4434920
>Spare a moment to check your messages and see if Cinder’s sent you anything.
>>
>>4434926
>>4434936
>>4434943
>>4434949
Check DMs, they may contain whimsy. Writing now!

Also, things might be a little spaced out this morning, just because I'm working on assignments at the same time. Gotta love the second day of college!
>>
>>4434963

Tuning out from the others briefly, you pull up your menu and navigate to the messages tab. Sure enough, there are two unread messages there, which will probably double soon if you don’t give Cinder your immediate attention. While she is a compassionate friend, patience is not a trait that she possesses.

>Drag0n: hey I’m at the marketplace where are you?
>Drag0n: did you really ditch me lol

Your eyes dart to the bottom of the screen, and you see that she’s already in the process of typing out another message. Rolling your eyes with a small chuckle, you manage to type one out before she does.

>n0v4_c43s4r: Went on a walk.

She stops, apparently spends a few moments backspacing whatever she was in the process of writing out, and continues.

>Drag0n: where?
>n0v4_c43s4r: Towards the street game setup they have a little bit out of the marketplace.
>Drag0n: i’ll head over there then. any good games?

You look up just in time to catch Orion finally shooting first, hitting the top-middle target.

>HIT SCORED!
>carmine: -$200,000.

“HA!” You’re almost surprised to hear Orion raise his voice in a way that doesn’t sound threatening.

“Very good shot, Orange! Only six more to go, providing you don’t get shot first~!” Carmine’s voice is in sing-song, and he turns to you with that big grin on his face. You see him notice that you’re in the middle of texting, so he appears to wait patiently while you do so.

How can one man be so smug but strangely polite? You’ll never figure it out.

>n0v4_c43s4r: Playing one right now. The owner’s fucking weird. Stay near the street and we’ll be there soon.
>Drag0n: …okay?
>n0v4_c43s4r: Also, did you lock up the arcade?
>Drag0n: of course

It’s not like you doubt her, but you’d just like to hear it for confirmation.

When you close your menu, Carmine immediately speaks up.

“Nova, I require your counsel!”

“Why’s that?” Your voice literally could not get more skeptical.

“Well, I was just contemplating who I should shoot! I am pretty sure I know where the both of you are on this board, so I just wanted to know your preference!”

“…has anybody told you that you can be irritating?”

“Perhaps, perhaps not!”

You find yourself gritting your teeth. This dude is absolutely fucking with you, although you’re not sure why.

>O X O
>O O O
>O O O

>Pick a target and fire – you won’t play his games.
>Tell him to decide himself.
>Tell him to shoot at you – you’re in the lead.
>Tell him to shoot at Orion – you want to win.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4434985
>>Tell him to shoot at you – you’re in the lead.
>>
>>4434985
>Tell him to shoot at you – you’re in the lead.
>>
>>4434985
>Tell him to shoot at you – you’re in the lead.
>>
>>4434985
>Tell him to shoot at you – you’re in the lead
>>
>>4434987
>>4434988
>>4434989
>>4435038
Call his bluff, protect your friend's score. Writing now!
>>
>>4435087

“Alright, Carmine. Go ahead and shoot at me.” You say flippantly, shrugging your shoulders. You’ve already made enough money to make up what you spent and then some, so you have no qualms with him taking a shot at you. Not to mention, you think Orion would actually blow a gasket if you told Carmine to shoot his target, so you’ll go ahead and take the L in order to protect yourself.

Interestingly enough, you see Carmine’s eyebrows furrow for a moment, although his face is still morphed into a grin.

“A good choice, Nova! Have to protect the ol’ teammate, right? I get that, I get that a bunch!” Carmine nudges you in the side with his elbow – you have to stop yourself from slapping away his arm – and he aims at the right side of the board. Squinting, you watch his eyes flash between every target in the row, before finally settling on the top right corner.

>MISS!

“Huh, I thought I had you there.” Carmine admits honestly, running a hand through his blue hair. “But hey, what can you do? It’s all in the name of the game, right?”

You don’t respond to him, but you do feel satisfied knowing that he might have just been taken down a peg. This man is awakening something dark within you, and that being is called pettiness.

What can you say, the dude’s smugness is grating on you. Not to the level that it’s affecting Orion apparently, but it’s still there.

“It’s your turn, Wolf.” Orion speaks up from behind Carmine, leaning against the metal railing.

>O X X
>O O O
>O O O

>Pick a target and fire.
>>
>>4435105
>Middle
>>
>>4435105
Middle.

Wolfgang should embrace his pettiness after the joy it brought him with Edit
>>
>>4435105
>Pick a target and fire.
Middle row, left column
>>
>>4435105
>Middle
>>
>>4435117
>>4435121
>>4435149
Shoot directly in the middle - writing now!

>>4435121
He just needs to use it as gamer fuel.

Also finished up my work for the day so we're back to the grind!
>>
>>4435327

“Yeah, yeah, I know.” You respond to Orion and raise up your gun, moving it over to the middle target. Glancing at the door behind you, you wonder if Cinder will somehow track you down to this place and bust in the door police style. The game is weirdly secretive – Carmine was flagging down people only to lead them all the way over here, after all. You bet this game would be much more popular if the guy wasn’t as ostentatious as he is.

You mean, seriously, who wants to follow a random guy in a green suit?

Just because you did it doesn’t mean that other people would want to, god.

Rolling your eyes at your own train of thought, you pull the trigger before either of the two men can give you any flak for it.

>MISS!

You click your tongue and flick open the cylinder of your revolver, letting all of the casings clatter to the ground. Due to this being in a menu hub and not an actual match, you’re surprised when more bullets appear out of blue polygons and automatically slot themselves into the open holes. Raising an eyebrow, you snap the cylinder shut and give it a cursory spin.

This game just seems to have a solution for everything, huh?

>ROUND 5 COMPLETED!

>O X X
>O X O
>O O O

>n0v4_c43s4r (4/5) - $200,000.
>carmine (2/5) - $400,000.
>Orange (2/5) - $500,000.

“Did you make this game yourself, Carmine?” You ask the man as the targets shuffle, observing them as you do. A dim mixture of orange and chartreuse, followed by an even dimmer blue.

“I did indeed! I found myself getting quite bored with the parlor games outside, so I figured that if I want something, that I should do it myself! And so, after many trials and tribulations, this game came to be – whilst it can be difficult to those who aren’t observant, I find it to be a very pleasant test of skill, along with a good icebreaker between chums. Isn’t that right, Orange?” The man prattles on with a smile, causing Orange to visibly roll his eyes.

“You’re lucky that this is more interesting than playing cups.”

“Oh, are you talking about the parlor on the street? You should absolutely go there when you have the time! It may be boring to me, but good ol’ Adam always adds a fun twist to his games!”

“We’re on a time limit—” Orion begins with a cold tone, and you interrupt in order to try to keep the mood up.

“—but we’ll think about it!” You finish, shooting Orion a look. He’s been salty for the past while, and you’d rather not get into any hot water before the tournament. It’s not like anyone except Carmine is watching, but still, the walls have ears.

>O O O
>O O O
>O O O

>Pick a location and fire.
>Ask more about the game - you're a bit interested.
>Text Cinder and wait for the others to fire.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4435348
>Kiss orian deeply
>>
>>4435348
>Text Cinder and wait for the others to fire.
>>
>>4435348
>Pick a location and fire.
Bottom middle
>>
>>4435348
>Ask more about the game - you're a bit interested.
>>
>>4435348
>Ask more about the game - you're a bit interested.
>>
>>4435348
>>4435400
If people have questions, I'll just switch to
>Ask more about the game - you're a bit interested.
and speed things up
>>
>>4435396
>>4435399
>>4435420
Interrogate this man - what secrets does he hold? Writing now!

>>4435361
Your enthusiasm is appreciated, anon.
>>
>>4435422

“If you don’t mind me asking further, Carmine. What inspired the concept of this? I don’t think I’ve seen anything quite like it.”

You motion for Orion to fire as you’re talking, which he does with a look you can’t exactly place. He probably didn’t expect to be pulled into this rigmarole with this slight slime ball – I mean, who would ever expect a guy flagging down random strangers to be sleazy – but he’s the one who talked to him first, so he can deal.

Carmine takes this question in stride, turning on his heel towards you and spreading his arms out wide. This movement slightly startles both you and Orion, although the latter is able to keep it in check much more than you.

“I’ll tell you something, Nova. Would you go to a regular shooting gallery in Warscape?”

You’re about to respond, but he cuts you off as soon as you open your mouth.

“OF COURSE YOU WOULDN’T! Why would you do that when you can instead go into training mode? It’s just like a shooting gallery, and it’s of no expense to yourself! So when I realized that, I had a thought, you see. What could I do to make a shooting gallery succeed? Make the targets big? No, that wouldn’t do. Wager some money on it? Sure, that could be good. Add a level of intrigue? BINGO!” Carmine claps his hands together just as Orion fires the gun at the middle right.

>HIT SCORED!
>carmine: -$200,000.

“Got you again,” Orion comments, but Carmine doesn’t pay him any heed.

“And so began the testing of this new game. A shooting gallery where all you have to go off of is brief flashes of color – I know you saw them, by the way – in order to identify where the opponent’s target is. If you win, you can win millions. If you lose, you may still be able to profit. Isn’t this the ultimate kind of carnival game?”

“I see…” you trail off, raising a hand to stroke at your chin. “Any chance you can tell me what’s up with the color patterns?”

“I’m afraid I cannot do that, Nova. You must use your own intuition – also, it varies by game once in a while, so my answer might not be accurate. We must be fair about these things, I’m sure you understand.”

“I’m not sure that I do, but it’s a very interesting system, I’ll give you that.”

“Why, thank you! Perhaps we can talk about it some more after we finish?” There’s a glint in his eye. “I promise I’ll make it worth your while~!”

You have never doubted something harder in your life.

>O O O
>O O X
>O O O

>Pick a location and fire.
>>
>>4435459
Bottom middle
>>
>>4435459
>top middle
>>
>>4435459
>Bottom Middle
>>
>>4435468
>>4435506
Bottom middle it is - writing now!
>>
>>4435579

“We’ll see about that, chief.” You say with a hesitant tone, instead focusing on aiming at the target. With a rightward glance at Carmine to make sure he doesn’t attempt to interrupt you, you fire your revolver at the bottom-middle target, hoping that you can manage to score.

>HIT SCORED!
>Orange: -$250,000.

Orion doesn’t have anything to say this time around, instead sighing deeply and leaning his arms and face against the rail. The sight would almost look sad if his hair wasn’t obscured by a fur-lined hood, which instead makes him weirdly look like a jilted kitten. You make sure to be certain that you never say this Orion, because you’re pretty damn sure he’d actually murder you in real life.

“Quite a good aim you are, Nova!” Carmine throws back a loud guffaw, flicking up his gun and firing directly at the center of the board.

>HIT SCORED!
>n0v4_c43s4r: -$200,000.

“Let’s all go down a point, shall we? Sharing the wealth is one of the kindest things that you can do, after all!” He slaps his knee like he’s told the funniest joke in the world, looking between the both of you like you should be laughing right along with him.

Both you and Orion exchange gazes and sigh deeply, although for different reasons.

>ROUND 6 COMPLETED!

>O O O
>O X X
>O X O

>n0v4_c43s4r (3/5) - $150,000.
>carmine (1/5) - $200,000.
>Orange (1/5) - $250,000.

“It looks like some of us are on death’s row! Will we recover, Orion? Can we oust the king from his seat?” Carmine asks the man, and you can see Orion physically restrain himself from lashing out at him.

Some people apparently just don’t mesh, and two of them are right in front of you.

The beeps flash by again – bright orange, dim blue, dimmer chartreuse.

>Take your pick of the targets and fire.
>Message Cinder and see if she’s there yet.
>Try and intercept one of their shots – you know, like an asshole. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>Write-in.
>>
Rolled 5 (1d20)

>>4435597
>Try and intercept one of their shots – you know, like an asshole. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
Carmine s shot
>>
>>4435597
>>Try and intercept one of their shots – you know, like an asshole. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>>
>>4435631
>>4435634
This goes through! Please specify who you'd like to intercept and roll me a 1d20 - best of three goes through!
>>
>>4435673
Carmine
>>
Rolled 7 (1d20)

>>4435689
>>
Rolled 5 (1d20)

>>4435673
orange
>>
Rolled 9 (1d20)

>>4435673
>>
>>4435707
I forgot to specify. Carmine
>>
>>4435707
>>4435710
This goes through - writing now!
>>
>>4435728

Eyeing Carmine, you try and stealthily raise your gun in order to intercept his bullet once more. You’ve had a 100% percent success rate with this trick, because you’ve only done it once, but that’s more than enough for you to feel some semblance of confidence as you give the man a side eye.

Carmine, for once, isn’t looking at you. He’s carefully analyzing the board – namely, the right side. You see his thumb slowly trace the indents in the cylinder, and he clicks his tongue as he slowly adjusts his aim from target to target.

“Oh my god, can you shoot already?” Orion gripes, waving his gun at both of you with a sneer. “I’d like to have a chance to get this one right.”

“Oh, fine, fine! You know I can’t say no to you, Orange.”

“The fuck does that mean—”

Carmine spins the revolver in his hand and fires towards the topmost right target, and you immediately do the same in an attempt to catch him. Upon closer look, however, he fired slightly above it – your bullet goes directly through it, and as soon as it does, he brings the hammer back and fires it at the bottom-right target.

>MISS!

You wince.

>HIT SCORED!
>n0v4_c43s4r: -$50,000.

“You’ll have to be a bit quicker on the draw to beat me, good sir!” Carmine cackles, patting you roughly on the shoulder. “Third time isn’t the charm, huh?”

“I only fired twice.” You grouse.

“No, you see – I fired and succeeded first, you did it second and succeeded, but now you’ve failed on the third total attempt! It’s like the saying, but in reverse!”

You feel abject irritation in this moment, which is slightly quelled as Orion fires at the top-middle target.

>HIT SCORED!
>carmine: -$200,000.
>PLAYER “carmine” IS OUT!

“Aw, looks like today wasn’t my lucky day! At least I made out with a little money, huh?” Carmine gives Orion a round of applause. “If I had some, I’d throw some confetti for you!”

“Go fuck yourself.” Orion says with a snort, turning towards you. “Looks like it’s you and me now, Wolf.”

“It…definitely seems so, huh.”

>ROUND 7 COMPLETED!

>n0v4_c43s4r (2/5) - $100,000.
>Orange (1/5) - $250,000.
>carmine (3rd place) - $0.

>O X X
>O O O
>O O X

As the dust settles, you watch as two of the shuffling targets remove themselves from the pile and shatter into blue dust, leaving six of the white discs to take their place on the board. It’s still just as strange seeing that in the middle of a false night sky – even though this scenery is beautiful, Orion’s knife still clattered off of where the walls have always stood.

One regular orange flash, one regular chartreuse flash. Looks like there’s no light level hints anymore.

“Well, let’s get this over with, Wolf.” Orion spins his cylinder and looks over at you, a glint in his eye.

“Yeah, let’s.”

“Ooh, is there some tension here? Wonderful! Healthy competition is what this game is all about!”

You ignore Carmine. You have a game to win.

>O O
>O O
>O O

>Pick a location and fire.
>>
Rolled 1 (1d6)

>>4435774
>1 4
>2 5
>3 6

I'll let the dice gods decide
>>
>>4435774
middle left
>>
Rolled 19 (1d20)

>>4435774
>>4435782
Agree
>>
Rolled 20 (1d20)

>>4435774
Middle left
>>
>>4435805
>>4435782
High rollers tonight!
>>
>>4435782
>>4435793
>>4435805
Bruh, nice crit. Writing now!
>>
>>4435834

“On the count of three, then?” You offer to Orion with a little half-smile, hoping that he’ll take it up.

“Yeah, sure, whatever.” Orion shrugs his shoulders and looks at you, snorting and shaking his head when he sees that you’re smiling a little bit.

You’re not sure whether or not that’s a good thing, but you’d like to assume so. A lot of the reason that you did this in the first place was to establish some rapport with the man, so you’ll try to believe that his gesture was an indication of success, despite said gesture being a semblance of a laugh in your direction.

Figuring out people is hard, you much prefer arcade machines.

“Three.” You say, raising your revolver and holding it directly at the left-middle target. Orion actually mirrors your gesture towards the right-middle, and you exchange another look.

“Two.” You pull back the hammer on your revolver, and Orion once again mirrors it. It looks like this is gonna be just like the symmetrical kill earlier, only towards targets instead of heads.

“ONE!”

Carmine screams this out at the top of his lungs, and while normally you’d jump, you feel a strange concentration as you hold yourself steady.

Orion, however, does not have such a thing. In fact, at the sudden loud noise, he becomes startled – you watch as he involuntarily pulls the trigger, the bullet sailing right through the top right target.

>MISS!

“You motherfucker.” Orion turns around with a hiss, walking towards Carmine with his fists clenched.

“I was only trying to add to the fun, good si—” You hear the sound of a fist hitting flesh, and as much as you want to stop him, you find yourself agreeing a little bit that he had it coming at that point.

Instead of focusing on the brawl behind you, you line up your shot without a care in the world and fire, the countdown now abandoned.

>HIT SCORED!
>Orange: -$250,000.
>PLAYER “Orange” IS OUT!

>PLAYER “n0v4_c43s4r” WINS! CONGRATULATIONS! MONEY IS BEING CALCULATED!

Looks like you’ve won another match, even if it’s of a different sort.

>Allow yourself a victory fist pump – you’ve earned it.
>Text Cinder and notify her of your sweet victory.
>Break up the two behind you, because it might get uglier.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4435854
>Break up the two behind you, because it might get uglier.
>>
>>4435854
>Break up the two behind you, because it might get uglier.
>>
>>4435854
>Break up the two behind you, because it might get uglier.
>>
>>4435854
>>Break up the two behind you, because it might get uglier.
>>
>>4435854
>Break up the two behind you, because it might get uglier.
>>
>>4435856
>>4435866
>>4435867
>>4435877
>>4435882
Alright, alright, break it up you two. Writing now!
>>
>>4435888

Rather than savoring the moment of victory as planned, you instead pivot on your heel and observe the situation. Orion is straddling Carmine and is trying to punch him in the head with wide arcs, but Carmine’s able to use his forearms to deflect the blows. It’s almost a comical occurrence, but you know that if it keeps up, things might just get more than a little more heated.

“Alright, break it up, guys. Match is over, money is dividing, let’s not have this happen.” You walk forward and reach out to secure your arms around Orion, but he uses his upper back to push you away, sending you stumbling a bit.

“This dude’s been fuckin’ with me since the match began, dude, I ain’t gonna take that.” Orion seethes, causing Carmine to laugh even under a hail of fists.

This is a long shot from how you used to perceive Orion, a guy who wouldn’t talk too much, stayed in his room when he wasn’t training, and just floated around the house when he wasn’t in a team exercise. It occurs to you in that moment that you may not have really known him at all back in the day, even if he apparently considered you a friend.

That’s a bit depressing, honestly.

You shake off the sudden melancholy – that’s for when you get in bed at night – and rush forward, wrapping your arms firmly around his midsection.

“Get the fuck off of him, Orion. We have places to be.” You hiss in his ear, to which he responds with a sharp shake of his head.

“No, let him keep going, this is fun~!” Carmine calls out in sing-song.

Alright, it’s time for you to get serious.

>Please roll me a 1d20. Best of three wins!
>>
Rolled 10 (1d20)

>>4435905
>>
Rolled 1 (1d20)

>>4435905
>>
Rolled 19 (1d20)

>>4435905
>>
>>4435916
the prime physical specimen known as wolfgang o'neal
>>
>>4435916
Best opportunity for the 1
>>
>>4435920
>>4435921
Thank you, thank you.

I'll be here all night
>>
>>4435916
That's not even a curse, it's just wolfgang's destiny not allowing him to win
>>
>>4435916
Wolfgang O'Neal is not a very strong man. Writing now!

>>4435936
Born to lose when it counts.
>>
>>4435943

With all of the power in your body, you squeeze and pull backwards, trying to physically take Orion directly off of Carmine’s sprawled body. At first, you think it’s working well. You’re pretty sure you can feel him move along with you as you put all of your strength into your legs, almost as if you were attempting a sort of suplex maneuver.

You can feel it in your bones, Wolfgang. This is you surpassing all of your limits – for every headlock you’ve endured, for every loss in arm wrestling, for every time you’ve accidentally dropped a box on your foot – this is it. This is your time to shine, to prove your worth, to PROVE YOUR STRENGTH—

Orion bucks out of your grip with all of his might and checks you again in the chest with his upper back – despite being wiry and almost gaunt, there’s a surprising amount of strength there. You feel lances of electricity spark up and down your chest as you’re sent back into the steel railing. Funnily enough, as soon as that happens, the idyllic simulated scenery disappears, the dingy walls of the warehouse coming back into view in a matter of moments.

Coughing into your hand, you look at the two guys squabbling, and in that moment decide that you can’t do this yourself. You let out a long sigh and stare at the ceiling, listening to the beeps of Carmine’s game as it apparently calculates your money, alongside the sounds of scuffling and angry swearing.

Why’s it gotta be like this, you ask the universe.

It doesn’t answer.

>Stare at the ceiling and wait for the money to finish calculating.
>Walk out of the door and see if you can find Cinder – she can help you, probably.
>Send a message to Cinder and go off on your own – your mood is soured by your failure.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4435957
>>Walk out of the door and see if you can find Cinder – she can help you, probably.
The strongest human being we know
>>
>>4435957
>>Walk out of the door and see if you can find Cinder – she can help you, probably.
>>
>>4435957
>Walk out of the door and see if you can find Cinder – she can help you, probably.
>>
>>4435957
>Walk out of the door and see if you can find Cinder – she can help you, probably.
>>
>>4435961
>>4435962
>>4435964
>>4435966
Get the strongest girl around. Writing now!
>>
>>4436136

(Heading to bed after this one, as I’m quite tired and it’s one in the morning! Thank you very much for dropping by to read today, I hope you all have had a good time doing so! Please leave any comments you may have as it fuels me to do better and keep writing! Have a great night anons, and see you tomorrow!)

After taking a few solitary moments to sulk against the cold concrete floor, you eventually pull yourself off of the ground and glare at the fighting pair, skulking across the room at out the door. You don’t even bother to pay attention to the match winnings – you just want to get those two set straight so that the three of you can go shopping, and you can damn well look at the winnings when you’re on the move.

Stepping out into the alleyway, you take in a deep breath of the cold night air. It was much hotter in the building than you realized, and you find yourself wishing you had a sweatshirt of some kind due to the sudden change in temperature. Rubbing your bare arms, you try and mentally retrace your steps back to the attraction-filled street. Thankfully, it doesn’t take long, as you can spot the amber lights across the ground at the mouth of the alley.

You hurriedly make your way into the street and look around, trying to spot Cinder as quickly as you can. Unfortunately, you doubt you’d have an easy time finding her with this big of a crowd – the street is much more crowded than when you left. It isn’t really surprising, since this operation seems like a pretty well oiled machine.

It still leaves you without your pal, though. What would you like to do?

>Text her and ask where she’s at – it’s the simplest way to go about it.
>Use the excuse to go play some games or find some food – you feel like you need to destress.
>Try and find her through your astute powers of observation and ancient tracking arts. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>Write-in.
>>
>>4436150
>>Try and find her through your astute powers of observation and ancient tracking arts. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
Feeling real good about this one, it'll be a real turnaround
>>
>>4436150
>>Try and find her through your astute powers of observation and ancient tracking arts. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>>
>>4436150
>Try and find her through your astute powers of observation and ancient tracking arts. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>>
>>4435957
>Walk out of the door and see if you can find Cinder – she can help you, probably.
>>
Good morning, everyone! Hope you're doing well today.

>>4436155
>>4436156
>>4436233
You have never been more confident in your life. Please roll me a 1d20, best of three goes through!
>>
Rolled 1 (1d20)

>>4436413
Weee
>>
Rolled 3 (1d20)

>>4436413
Might as well
>>
Rolled 17 (1d20)

>>4436413
>>
Sorry for the short wait, got sidelined with some stuff to do.

>>4436432
Wolfgang just can't win. Writing now!
>>
>>4436495

(Grabbed lunch. Was very good.)

Standing on your tip-toes, you do your best to look over the crowd to spot her ever-familiar red head of hair. There are many people on the street – either lingering on the side or moving in either direction, this place is undeniable packed like a tin of sardines. It doesn’t help that a lot of people have wacky ass hair colors that naturally drawn attention, such as a dude with a Polnareff-style cut only neon-green, or a girl with bright pink puffy pig tails.

You rub your eyes as you sigh, bringing your heels down to the ground. Orion and Carmine’s scuffle has given you enough of a headache, and the multitude of explosive colors that are assaulting your vision. It’s astounding to you how bad fashion can be in this game, and how Auxilia is comfortable enabling such things is beyond you.

You are so far into your mental rabbit hole of good fashion and color allotment that you nearly jump when a firm hand grips your shoulder.

“There you are! I thought I was gonna have to bombard your DMs until you answered me!” A very familiar voice says in your ear, causing your beating heart to still.

It would make sense that you couldn’t see Cinder at all, as you were only looking in front of you rather than behind. A rookie mistake. You can’t believe you’ve made such an amateur error. God.

Swallowing your shame and mental anguish, you turn around to face the girl.

It’s always weird seeing Cinder with short, almost spiky hair in the game – you’re too used to hanging around her IRL, where her long red locks are still present. Her outfit contrasts with the almost punkish look – she’s wearing a sleeveless blouse that shows off the beginning of two tattoo sleeves around her shoulders, the rest obscured by a hoodie with grey and gold patterning.

You look down at yourself. You are wearing a grey t-shirt and jeans, as your coat was incinerated in the first match with 0phelia. Your fashion leaves much to be desired at the moment.

“Am I gonna need to buy you some clothes, too?” Cinder smirks at you, detecting your thoughts immediately. “At this rate, people might think I’m spoiling you!”

It’s true – she’s bought you a lot of shit since you got back in here.

>Tell her the situation with Orion and Carmine immediately – she’s the only one you can turn to.
>Deflect away from your poor financial status with a compliment – she looks good.
>Pout at her and insist that you have money now, and a (relatively) lot of it!
>Write-in.
>>
>>4436530
>Tell her the situation with Orion and Carmine immediately – she’s the only one you can turn to.
I want that compliment option but we gotta hurry and I have a feeling spaghetti would be dropped anyway

>It’s astounding to you how bad fashion can be in this game
Imagine having the kind of fashion sense that can only be granted by the QM and you think this about other people
>>
>>4436530
>Tell her the situation with Orion and Carmine immediately – she’s the only one you can turn to.
>>
>>4436530

>Tell her the situation with Orion and Carmine immediately – she’s the only one you can turn to.
>>
>>4436530
>Tell her the situation with Orion and Carmine immediately – she’s the only one you can turn to.
>>
Yo, had some shit to get done, but I'm back and should be free for the rest of the night.

>>4436537
>>4436561
>>4436647
>>4436652
Gondor calls for aid. Writing now!

>>4436537
Wolfgang's fashion is right, everyone else's is either slightly right to majorly wrong!
>>
>>4437084

“Let’s set that aside for now,” you consider complimenting the girl about her looks, but then realize that you’d probably make an ass of yourself which would wound you mentally, and potentially shatter your self confidence in an irreparable way. “I need your help. Orion’s gotten into a fight with a game stand owner, and I can’t pull them apart.”

“I…see. Why is he fighting with the game owner?” Cinder quirks an eyebrow and crosses her arm, following you when you start walking back in the direction of the alleyway.

“He kept antagonizing Orion, and money was involved, so I think he blew a fuse when the two things add up. Also, he seems like a smarmy jackass, although I’m not sure if it’s intentional or not.”

In the middle of talking, you hear a strange ping in your right ear. Looking out of the corner of your eye, you’re able to catch a green notification popping up in your field of vision, apparently signifying a money transfer of some sort.

>+$1,100,000 added to your account.
>From: carmine

According to your mental calculation, that would put your bank account balance at $2,780,000. That’s more than quadruple what you put into the game, so you’d say that it’s a very strong victory! Even if most of the shots you made were on Orion’s dime.

God, you hope he doesn’t ask for the money back. You could use that for so many things!

After a few seconds of walking, you return to the entrance that leads into the dingy warehouse. You reach out to open the door again, but are taken wholly off guard by the way the door slams open, Orion and Carmine tumbling out of it – one has anger in his eyes, and the other is just as amused as he always has been.

You notice however, just as the two hurtle towards you, that Carmine’s hair is now messed up and the collar of his suit looks to have tears in it. Looks like Orion got to him during your absence.

>Move out of the way and let them crash to the ground – this is absolutely not your issue.
>Try to catch Carmine and use their falling position to pull him away from Orion. [This will require a roll.]
>Wedge yourself between the two and push them apart by force – now that someone’s witnessing this, you’ll prove your TRUE strength. [This will require a VERY HIGH roll.]
>Write-in.
>>
>>4437128
>Try to catch Carmine and use their falling position to pull him away from Orion. [This will require a roll.]
very high rolls are for headlocks only
>>
>>4437128
>>Wedge yourself between the two and push them apart by force – now that someone’s witnessing this, you’ll prove your TRUE strength. [This will require a VERY HIGH roll.]
A girl's watching, we can't lose now!
>>
>>4437128
>Try to catch Carmine and use their falling position to pull him away from Orion. [This will require a roll.]
Gotta help Onion without dying in the process.
>>
>>4437128
>Wedge yourself between the two and push them apart by force – now that someone’s witnessing this, you’ll prove your TRUE strength. [This will require a VERY HIGH roll.]
>>
>>4437128
>Try to catch Carmine and use their falling position to pull him away from Orion. [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4437149
>>4437152
>>4437282
Gotta catch em all. Please roll me a 1d20, best of three goes through!
>>
Rolled 19 (1d20)

>>4437309
>>
Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>4437309
>>
Rolled 10 (1d10)

>>4437309
haha time to crit fail
>>
Night got very, very hectic. Apologies for the wait, everyone!

>>4437315
Wolfgang finally gains some semblance of strength. Writing now!
>>
>>4437585

Reacting significantly faster than you felt you have throughout the entire night, you’re able to brace your leg against the ground and secure your arms around Carmine’s waist, immediately pivoting and pulling him out of Orion’s reach. You can hear your back crack as you go through the motion, but you’re able to successfully maneuver Carmine around so he doesn’t slam into the adjacent alley wall.

From behind you, you hear the sound of struggling followed by a loud crack.

Turning around with a startled look on your face, you can see that Cinder has secured one of Orion’s hands behind his back and slammed his head into the brick wall of the alley. Looking closely, you can see a few cracks spider-webbing out from the point of impact, although you watch them turn blue and fix themselves in a matter of moments.

“Wouldn’t have expected you to be this rowdy, mate! Calm the fuck down, you lost, get over it.” Cinder says nonchalantly, exerting more pressure on Orion’s arm. You’re not sure if you’re imagining it, but you can swear that you hear the faintest sound of bones creaking, making you wince.

Cinder is just as strong as she’s ever been, it seems. While you’re aware that the game systems don’t exactly track your real life physical condition, it’s still a marvel to see in the moment.

“Yes, indeed!” Carmine calls from behind you, winding his way out of your arms and adjusting his suit tie. Upon noticing that his collars are frayed, he swipes open his menu and removes the green jacket, showing off a pink dress shirt underneath it. “It is just a game after all, my good sir!”

“Don’t antagonize him further, man. It’s unnecessary.” You glare up at his face.

“Hmm, if that’s what you say, then I suppose I’ll oblige! Wouldn’t want to get on anyone’s bad side, now would I?”

The amount of effort it takes not to facepalm is immense.

“Anyways, I would like to congratulate you on your victory, Nova! Did you receive your money alright? I haven’t tested the transfer function outside of close range, so I am prepared to reimburse you should it be necessary.”

A surprisingly kind offer from this man. You flash back to how much of a dick he’s been to your friend, and by extension, you. A kind offer like this doesn’t seem like it’d fall out of the sky with him.

>”Yes, I received the money.” Tell the truth – you have places to be.
>”You’ll reimburse me if I hear out what you had to say?” You recall that he wanted to talk with you later.
>”No, I haven’t received it yet.” Lie to him – you know, like an asshole. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>Write-in.
>>
>>4437590
>”Yes, I received the money.” Tell the truth – you have places to be.
>>
>>4437590
>>”Yes, I received the money.” Tell the truth – you have places to be.
We always attract the weirdest motherfuckers in this game
>>
>>4437590
>”Yes, I received the money.” Tell the truth – you have places to be.
>>
>>4437593
>>4437595
>>4437601
You did, in fact, get the dolla dolla bill. Writing now!
>>
>>4437606

“Yeah, I got the money.” You state, not feeling the need to lie. This guy may have been an asshole, but you have no particular want to return the favor – you’re not a liar, you’ve never been a liar (except that one time you entered a match with cheats which is probably lying by omission), and you won’t start due to this man.

“Very glad to hear it, my good man! Wouldn’t have wanted that to get lost in the system, aye?” He nudges your shoulder with an elbow, throwing back his hair and stepping away from you. You can’t help but notice that his legs are incredibly long, now that you’re specifically paying attention. “Anywho, I must be off! There’s more testing to be done, after all!”

“You’re going to poach more people off the street for this?” You ask incredulously.

“Of course! Why would I do anything else?” He winks at you and turns on his heel, marching directly back towards the entrance to the attraction-laden street. “Oh, and Orange~? Check your back pocket!”

Glancing over your shoulder, you feel like Orion would have some choice words for him were Cinder not mushing his face into an actual brick wall.

“You can let him go now, Cinder. I’m sure he’s not gonna go and chase him down – at least, I’d hope not.”

As soon as you say this, Cinder releases Orion’s arm and steps away, raising her fists just in case Orion gets swingy. When he turns around and sees that Carmine is nowhere in sight, however, it’s almost like he deflates like a balloon, dropping back into his usual slouch.

It doesn’t stop him from kicking the door into the warehouse – you’re more than willing to bet that that one stung.

“Feeling better?” Cinder asks sarcastically, lowering her fists and crossing her arms.

“Not really. Fuck that guy, seriously – I’ve never met someone that annoying in my life.”

“Not even Golden?” You snort, leaning against the wall.

“Not even him.”

The golden haired boy in question is nowhere to be seen, likely due to the fact that as soon as the day you fought with him came to a close, he vanished and said that he’d been slacking enough from practicing competitive play. He didn’t even stop by to say goodbye, that asshole. You were just starting to get used to having him around, as an ever annoying presence behind your desk.

He sounded kinda dejected when he left the arcade that night, though. Wonder why.

Shaking your head, you turn to your two companions. The night is young, and you’re now in place to take it by the horns!

>Suggest that the three of you go shopping now – you can get weapons for Orion, and items for yourself.
>Take another detour and find another entertainment spot to clear the air – shit feels very tense.
>Pull Orion aside and ask him what that whole deal was – there has to be some more to it, right?
>Pull Cinder aside and ask if she’s got any shops picked out – you want to know if any names sound familiar.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4437619
>>Suggest that the three of you go shopping now – you can get weapons for Orion, and items for yourself.
>>
>>4437619
>Suggest that the three of you go shopping now – you can get weapons for Orion, and items for yourself.
>>
Heading to bed for the night, thank you for your patience today! Vote is open until I return tomorrow morning - have a good one, anons!
>>
>>4437619
>>Suggest that the three of you go shopping now – you can get weapons for Orion, and items for yourself.
>>
>>4437619
>Suggest that the three of you go shopping now – you can get weapons for Orion, and items for yourself.
>>
Good morning, everyone! How are you doing today?

>>4437623
>>4437629
>>4437837
Get the shopping quest started. Writing now!
>>
>>4437936

“Alright, rather than dwelling on this, how about we start shopping?” You look to the both of your friends, trying to project an upbeat tone – judging by Cinder’s amused face, it’s not working. “We gotta get prepped for the tournament, and I’d rather get to sleep at a good time tonight. We have to be up early tomorrow, and if you’re lucky, I’ll even make you breakfast.”

You could swear that you see Cinder stiffen a bit, but Orion has a less favorable reaction as he sighs and rubs the heels of his hands into his eyes.

“Fine, whatever, let’s go.” He turns in the opposite direction of the entertainment-laden street and makes his way away, jamming one of his hands in his pockets. His other hand goes towards his back pocket like Carmine told him to, and he withdraws something from inside.

In the very faint moonlight, you think you can see that it’s a stack of money.

Orion promptly opens his menu, shoves the money inside, and moves quicker.

“You know, I didn’t think he was so easy to irritate. He seems a lot more violent when he gets pissed off for real, huh?” Cinder says, the both of you beginning to follow Orion at a much slower pace than he’s going.

“I didn’t think so either. He handled Golden pretty well – maybe it just takes a certain kind of person to bring that out in him?”

“Could be. Hey, so I was thinking…”

The two of you make idle chatter as you catch up to Orion, talking about various tips and tricks that she has for him. Due to them sharing a primary play style, it’s much easier for her to provide feedback – nothing you could say would be better than what she will, probably.

That goes double for the fact that, again, you have not played this game since the start of this month. Cinder’s advice is much more valuable than yours could be at this stage.

As you make your way further into the marketplace, the crowds of people begin to thin out, and the building structure begins to change. While a lot of the structures towards the central marketplace are big and have a lot of space between them, these seem a lot closer together, some businesses even sharing the same building in a few cases. There are a lot more advertisements plastered up over the windows and on the sides of buildings, and the inviting neon signs have started to go out.

“Man, it doesn’t look nearly this oppressive during the day.” You casually remark, remembering how Cinder had led you through similar backstreets on the way to The Gallery. As you sidestep a pair who smell like smoke, you continue your words. “Are we heading back to the old man’s place?”

“No, he wouldn’t be up at this time of night.”

Curious.

>Ask her where she’s leading you – all of this mystery is just too exciting for your poor little heart.
>Talk to Orion about the tournament – are any of the other player names available to the public?
>Observe the environment for buildings of interest – maybe you’ll find something that can help your shopping quest. [This will require a roll.]
>Write-in.
>>
>>4437955
>Talk to Orion about the tournament – are any of the other player names available to the public?

>if you’re lucky, I’ll even make you breakfast.”
Translation: go out and buy a breakfast bucket
>>
>>4437955
>Observe the environment for buildings of interest – maybe you’ll find something that can help your shopping quest. [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4437955
>Ask her where she’s leading you – all of this mystery is just too exciting for your poor little heart.
>>
>>4437955
>>4437963
I'll switch to
>Observe the environment for buildings of interest – maybe you’ll find something that can help your shopping quest. [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4437964
>>4438029
Look for any places that seem interesting around these parts - please roll me a 1d20, and best of three makes it through!

>>4437963
The call of the breakfast bucket is intense.
>>
Rolled 10 (1d20)

>>4438036
>>
Rolled 16 (1d20)

>>4438036
>>
Rolled 4 (1d20)

>>4438036
>>
>>4438045
This goes through, writing now!
>>
>>4438063

Moving down the shadow-laden streets, you direct your attention away from your companion’s chatter and towards the litany of buildings that you are passing on the street. As you noticed earlier, a lot of them are in some element of disrepair, which makes you wonder just how businesses are managed here.

Looking behind you, you can’t see or hear the marketplace anymore. Where that area is full of life and light, this place seems hollow – there are people around, but most of them are heading in the other direction, not deeper into the slummier area of the marketplace. Various players are leaning against walls or sitting on steps in front of buildings, occasionally trying to flag someone down.

“Oi! We got the best guns in the game, let me tell you. Best accuracy, best rate-of-fire – hey, are you listening to me!?” One such man tries to catch your attention, but you shake your head and avert your gaze.

As you move through the streets, however, some semblance of bright light breaks through the shadows – red light, to be exact.

When you turn the corner, you’re immediately assaulted by color. The lights in this section of the slums seem to be a lot brighter – there are even moving advertisements on the streets, showing off a litany of products that you could care less about. What does attract your attention, however, is a bunch of buildings that make you stop and observe them while Orion and Cinder continue to move forward.

The first is a type of building that you have seen before – a casino. It’s wide and low, and a stream of people are coming to and from it, some looking visibly drunk, angry, or a combination of the two. While you did see one on the way to the Gallery with Cinder, this seems far more grandiose in scale. The name is plastered directly over the two double doors leading into the place – The Avenue of Dreams.

The second is a building that reminds you of some of the carts you saw on the street a few minutes ago, although there doesn’t appear to be any games inside. Rather, a man with long black hair is leaning against the counter, pointing at various papers pinned up along the walls and murmuring to those who come near him. You can see people slipping him some money – and in some occurrences, guns.

The final is a building that’s so un-noteworthy that it’s very noteworthy, namely due to it lacking any distinguishable features in this world of color. It’s made of stone bricks, and the windows have thick metal bars over them, preventing one from seeing inside in the slightest. Raising your eyebrows, you squint as you look closer at the space above the door – there’s something written there, painted on rather than using neon lights. The name is simple – The Widow’s Workshop.

Very interesting.

>Go to the Avenue of Dreams.
>Go up to the man at the counter.
>Go to the Widow’s Workshop.
>Follow Orion and Cinder still.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4438087
>Go to the Widow’s Workshop.
Little wolf getting lost
>>
>>4438087
>>Go to the Widow’s Workshop
Gives me a real practical vibe.

>litany of products that you could care less about
>could care less about
>could care less
>could
literally unreadable baka
>>
>>4438087
>Follow Orion and Cinder still.
>>
>>4438087
>Go to the Widow’s Workshop.
>>
>>4438094
>>4438098
>>4438112
Wander away - you have been distracted. Writing now!

>>4438098
Grammar has defeated me yet again!
>>
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>>4438120

You call out to your comrades that you’re gonna take a gander at the Widow’s Workshop, although you don’t think they hear you – Cinder has his full attention with her various critiques and suggestions, and she takes her shit very seriously when someone asks her for help.

Shrugging your shoulders, you walk up to the door and place your hand on the doorknob, turning it as you do. To your surprise, however, the handle doesn’t move much – it’s locked. Just as you’re about to knock or step away, you hear the sound of a bell dinging from the inside, followed by slight footsteps against stone.

Raising your eyebrows, you watch as a rectangular piece of the door is removed at eye-level, and you see green eyes and slight brown bangs staring at you.

“Are you affiliated with Auxilia, the Gemini Runners, or Ballistic Designs?” The feminine voice is very soft, but there’s a strange firmness to her tone.

“No. I’m here to shop, presuming you have something to sell.” You respond, your eyebrows quirking up even further. That’s a very strange question to ask at the door, immediately piquing your curiosity.

“Okay then, please hold on!”

You watch as she raises the piece she took out of the door and replaces it, followed by the sound of six deadbolts being unlatched. Your hand is still on the doorknob, and you can feel it jostle slightly as she unlocks it.

“You can come in now!” Her voice is very muffled behind the steel door, but you oblige and open the door.

The first thing that greets you is a strange mixture of coffee and steel.

The atmosphere of this place is completely at odds with what you expected from the outside. It looks like a miniature prison due to the bars and stone, but the inside is painted brown. You can spot lines that you’d guess are meant to emulate wood painted in neat patterns, and the stone floor is covered in a variety of carpets. A few paintings and trinkets are strung up randomly across the walls as well – it gives off a surprisingly gentle vibe, especially in contrast to the name.

The girl who let you in is on the way back to her seat – which is apparently behind a simple wooden table with a cash transfer device, a mug, and a book atop it – and she looks at you. Her brown hair is long, and she’s wearing a cream sweater that makes her look right at home in this shop – the two things that set her apart from the decor are her green eyes, and the feather earring on her one exposed ear.

“Apologies for the interrogation. May I assist you?”

>Ask her what she sells here – you wouldn’t be able to tell from this front room.
>Ask her why she asked you that question – have they done something odd around here?
>Compliment her on the décor of this place – you’re surprised to see a cozy shop in this crazy section of the slums.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4438163
>>Ask her why she asked you that question – have they done something odd around here?
>>
>>4438163
>Ask her why she asked you that question – have they done something odd around here?
>>
>>4438163
>Ask her why she asked you that question – have they done something odd around here?
>>
>>4438168
>>4438174
>>4438191
Do some sleuthing. Writing now!
>>
>>4438196

“Before that, I’d like to ask why you asked me that in the first place.” You move forward and shut the door behind you, walking in front of her table afterwards. Before responding, she reaches out and takes the mug with surprisingly dainty hands, sipping on her coffee and looking up at you.

“They’re trying to aggressively buy this place – or rather, the person making the guns here.” You can already tell that being convincingly angry is not something this girl is good at. She puffs out her cheeks and rests her elbows against the table, brushing the hair out of her eyes. “And the Gemini Runners have been very rude about it. Just two days ago we needed to buy a new door for this place! As if coming in and shouting your demands will get you anywhere!”

Yikes, you can only imagine how much strife that would cause for a small business like this. You’ve been on the receiving end of the fanbase’s wrath at its fullest, and you’re pretty sure only a small fraction of it would be enough to drive someone up the damn wall. When they want something, they expect to receive it – whether it’s a gunmaker or a player’s blood, apparently.

“I’m surprised that Auxilia is throwing their hat in the ring,” you say cautiously, leaning against the wall. “Thought they’re pretty selective about who they let on their design team.”

“Well, they’re looking for someone who can be a player and a designer to cut costs – at least, that’s what I heard. Whenever they send someone out, I go in the other room.” The girl looks embarrassed at this, but straightens in her chair. “Anyways, did you come for anything in particular? Did you place a special order? I’m sorry that we don’t have any stock out here yet, we’re waiting for some shelves to come in.”

Ah, that’d explain it. This place is pretty spacious, even if the exterior makes it seem smaller than it is – they could mount some stuff on the walls, they have plenty of space for shelves…they also need a desk or a counter that isn’t a table.

Shit, your business owner brain is kicking in. Reel it back, Wolf, reel it back.

>”Is there anything you’d recommend? It’s been a while since I’ve played.”
>Inquire further about Auxilia’s situation.
>Ask her if she sells items as well – might as well hit the bird with the stone.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4438227
>>Ask her if she sells items as well – might as well hit the bird with the stone.
>”Is there anything you’d recommend? It’s been a while since I’ve played.”
See all the good shit
>>
>>4438227
>Ask her if she sells items as well – might as well hit the bird with the stone.
>>
>>4438227
>Ask her if she sells items as well – might as well hit the bird with the stone.
>>
>>4438227
>>Ask her if she sells items as well – might as well hit the bird with the stone.
>>
Back! Had to help family with some car troubles - gotta love it.

>>4438234
>>4438247
>>4438298
>>4438301
Ask for the assortment of good shit. Writing now!
>>
>>4438654

As soon as you heard that there was a gunsmith, you perked up. Upon first sight, this place really does look like a furniture shop – that’s not what you need right now. However, if there’s a weapon maker, it would stand to reason that the person would also be an item maker. That’s what you mainly wanted to shop for after all, and while guns are nice, the tactical potential of items call to you.

You remember Edit scorning you for using items and mentally chuckle. He did the exact same thing as you, yet tried to pass it off like his gameplay was backed by skill, and yours wasn’t. That pettiness will take a while for you to get over – dude is a dick.

Shaking your head, you remember that you should be speaking to this girl, as she’s still looking at you patiently.

“You said that there was a gunmaker in the back? I’m new to this area of the market, so I wasn’t aware.” You look towards an inconspicuous wooden door in the back. “Do you sell items as well? Guns are also fine, but I’m mainly looking for items.”

Realistically, you’re doing fine for guns at the moment. You have the Skyfire, you have the L85A3, the Silverdollar, and the Ocelot – you’re damn well outfitted for someone who just got back into the game. You aren’t averse to adding more to your growing collection, but there are priorities.

The girl leans back in her chair and cups her chin, staring at the ceiling.

“What…are you looking for in the item department? We might be able to accommodate you, depending on what it is. We don’t make a whole lot, you see – she’s really only started experimenting with items.”

This is a good question. What exactly are you looking for?

>Something offense-oriented – grenades, traps, and otherwise are your ballpark.
>Something that would increase your mobility – you’d like to be able to maneuver around your enemies if needed.
>Something defensive – being able to hunker down while Orion goes on the offensive would be a good plan.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4438669
>>Something that would increase your mobility – you’d like to be able to maneuver around your enemies if needed.
Mobility makes for good offense and defense.
>>
>>4438669
>Something offense-oriented – grenades, traps, and otherwise are your ballpark.

We are the trap master
>>
>>4438669
>Something offense-oriented – grenades, traps, and otherwise are your ballpark.
>>
>>4438690
>>4438711
Look for offensive things - they are your bread and butter. Writing now!
>>
>>4438719

“Do you have anything that will help with offense? Grenades, explosives, knives, and such?” You ask her, and she immediately opens up her menu, pulling out what appears to be a little black booklet with various markers sticking out from the sides. She thumbs through it for a few moments, and when she finds the page she’s looking for, she moves her finger down the page as she speaks to you.

“Well, you’re in luck. She’s only experimented in that field before!” The girl exclaims, before snapping the book shut. “But I’m going to check with her, as I’m not entirely sure this booklet is up-to-date. Would you mind waiting for a few moments? She doesn’t like people she doesn’t know in her workshop.”

“Fine by me.”

“Great! Be right back, then!”

She stands up and makes her way towards the door, pressing a button near the side and opening it a second later. As soon as the door is ajar, you hear the sound of a very loud grinder being pressed against metal, enough to make the both of you wince. When she disappears into the workshop, the place quiets again.

That’s some very heavy noise cancelling walls, goddamn. It sounded like something you’d hear in a bank heist.

Minutes pass as you linger in the reception room of the Widow’s Workshop. You haven’t received any messages from Cinder or Orion, meaning they haven’t noticed your absence yet, or they trust you to be on your own, considering that you’re a goddamn adult. You idly start counting the seconds as you eye the door. You’d figure that she’d be a little more prompt about coming back out, but it appeared that her business partner was in the middle of a project.

You wonder who this crafter could be, especially if Auxilia of all people want to put her in their pockets. And what was that about them needing a player? As far as you’re aware, that team has remained unchanged since it started. Mysteries upon mysteries, it would seem.

You’re drawn out of your mental musings by the sound of a loud pounding against metal to your right, making you jump and instinctively duck low to the ground. The noise sounds like gunshots, although no bullets tear through the metal. Someone is pounding at the door with a vengeance.

“Oi, Dahlia, you in there!? When the fuck are you gonna sign with us already – you know we ain’t the fuckin’ patient type!”

The rough-sounding man continues to pound on the door without pause, making you grit your teeth. This must be one of the gunmaker’s buyers – sounds like he’s a real damn piece of work.

What do you do?

>Go to the door and tell him to fuck off – if he wants something, he’s gonna need to be polite about it.
>Stay put and wait for one of the girls to come out – this isn’t your problem, you’re a paying customer.
>Try and crack open the barred window if there’s space to and fire a shot off at him – maybe that’ll spook him. [This will require a roll.]
>Write-in.
>>
>>4438747
>Go to the door and tell him to fuck off – if he wants something, he’s gonna need to be polite about it.

sorry, no se habla ingles come back never

alternatively se habla ka-boom
>>
>>4438747
>Go to the door and tell him to fuck off – if he wants something, he’s gonna need to be polite about it.
Because fuck guys who ruin our shops
>>
>>4438747
>>Go to the door and tell him to fuck off – if he wants something, he’s gonna need to be polite about it.
Channel every experience we've had dealing with 0phelia, Rock, Golden, Edit, and Carmine just to really hammer in how tired we are of this shit
>>
>>4438747
>Go to the door and tell him to fuck off – if he wants something, he’s gonna need to be polite about it.
Also isn't Dahlia that famous gunmaker?
>>
>>4438768
Oh shit, you're right. That's who created our rifle. She also sent a message to us that I don't think we've read yet.
>>
>>4438747
>Go to the door and tell him to fuck off – if he wants something, he’s gonna need to be polite about it.
>>
>>4438772
Oh wait, nah, re-reading through the threads. We've seen her message, told us to call her if we needed anything. Also our revolver is by her as well.
>>
>>4438754
>>4438759
>>4438764
>>4438768
>>4438775
You're sick and tired of people being dicks to business owners. Writing now!
>>
>>4438810

As the pounding continues, you feel something in your head begin to snap. Since when the fuck do people think it’s okay to harass business owners? When people don’t do what they want, they come around and fuck shit up, and act like it’s a completely normal thing to do. You feel your hands begin to clench into fists, hard enough to make small spikes of electric pain come from your palms.

This is a bunch of bullshit, that’s what it is.

You storm over to the door with a scowl on your face, not paying the increasingly loud pounding any heed as your anger begins to build up in the pit of your stomach. You have had plenty of experience with people walking in and acting like they run the place over the past month – for fucks sake, you needed to replace some of the shit in your arcade because of that.

“You know, Warscape doesn’t prevent your shit from getting broken!” The person outside the door screams loudly, kicking the door hard enough that you see it dent slightly. “We can burn all of that fancy shit you got inside – I’ve got a fuckin’ cocktail right in my hand waiting for ya! Just come out and don’t be a dumbass!”

You glance behind you – the fact that they can’t hear this shit astounds you. How loud must that workshop be on a regular basis that they had to insulate it in such a way?

Shaking your head, you turn back towards the door. This shit ends now.

How do you want to go about telling this man to fuck off?

>Open the slot on the door and speak to him.
>Open the door itself and push him away from it.
>Open the slot, but also with your gun drawn – for added insurance.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4438827
>>Open the slot, but also with your gun drawn – for added insurance.
I want to push but I don't trust Wolfgang to be able to do that
>>
>>4438827
>Open the slot, but also with your gun drawn – for added insurance.
>>
>>4438827
>Open the slot, but also with your gun drawn – for added insurance.
>>
>>4438827
Open the slot, but also with your gun drawn – for added insurance.
>>
>>4438827
>Open the slot, but also with your gun drawn – for added insurance.
>>
Hello, everyone! I have had an incredibly long day - seriously, who asks someone to help them move and then makes them do most of the work - but that's alright, I'm here now. Hope you all are doing well tonight!

>>4438832
>>4438839
>>4438844
>>4438875
>>4439264
The gun makes it spookier. Writing now!
>>
>>4440343

Reaching out to open your menu and pull out the Ocelot, the banging continues. The dent in the middle of the door is only growing deeper, and you’re slightly worried that this man will knock a hole in the door – you recall the green-eyed girl mentioning that they had to get a replacement – and you feel a whole new wave of rage hit you.

God, you hate rabble-rousers in businesses. You hate them with most of your heart – the remaining part is reserved for 0phelia, probably.

Moving up to the door and cocking back the hammer on your gun, you quickly remove the slot in the door and hold up your gun. You can’t see much on the other side, due to the positioning of the streetlights facing towards you rather than away, but you think you can make out a large man with a beady set of eyes staring directly at you.

“The fuck do you want?” You rest the tip of the gun in the slot, and project your meanest glare. You try to emulate Orion a little bit, and can only hope that it works somewhat.

“You a new hire? Mind askin’ your boss to get out here? We got some shit to discuss, and I’d hate to put the torch to this fuckin’ place – she’s a rich girl, you see, so she can afford the costs.”

Although you can’t see it, you have a feeling this man is either scowling or grinning – either way, his breath reeks of alcohol. You try to scan the surrounding area to see if there are any more enemies, but the man blocks up the entire view that the door slot provides.

How do you deal with this man?

>Don’t say a word – just fire your gun right into his chest. It’ll start a fight, but honestly, you’re too mad to give a shit. [This will require a LOW roll.]
>Tell him in no uncertain terms that if he doesn’t fuck off and calm down, he isn’t gonna be getting shit from this business. Is he that stupid? [This will require a roll.]
>Politely tell him that your “boss” won’t talk to him if he doesn’t clean up his act a bit – try to play the mediator. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>Write-in.
>>
>>4440354
>Tell him in no uncertain terms that if he doesn’t fuck off and calm down, he isn’t gonna be getting shit from this business. Is he that stupid? [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4440343
>who asks someone to help them move and then makes them do most of the work
They actually read this quest and knew you needed a great deal of anger to channel for the next post

>>4440354
>Tell him in no uncertain terms that if he doesn’t fuck off and calm down, he isn’t gonna be getting shit from this business. Is he that stupid? [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4440368
>>4440372
Fuck this guy, honestly. Please roll me a 1d20, best of three goes through!

>>4440372
This tracks, this tracks hard.
>>
Rolled 14 (1d20)

>>4440389
>>
Rolled 11 (1d20)

>>4440389
>>
Rolled 20 (1d20)

>>4440389
>>
>>4440395
nice
>>
>>4440395
Wolfgang suddenly becoming the most badass motherfucker
>>
>>4440395
Goddamn. It's about time we got one of these in here. Writing now!
>>
>>4440499

“Listen, man. If you don’t fuck off, you ain’t getting shit out of this business.” You don’t hold your tongue, pounding your own fist against the door – the man jerks slightly at this. “Do you really think the best way to conduct yourself is coming around and being a fucking nuisance? Pro tip from a business owner – that isn’t how you get ANYTHING done.”

“The bitch keeps snubbing us—”

“And why the fuck do you think coming around like this is gonna help your goddamn case? Are you that fucking stupid?”

“The FUCK did you just say—”

You see the man reel back and aim a punch at the damn door slot, but you don’t hesitate in pulling the trigger, the bright flash making you wince as the bullet hits the man square in the head. He immediately recoils with a shout of pain and falls to the ground, out of your view. You can hear him groaning on the ground – even if this isn’t a match, you can’t imagine that a bullet right between the eyes would feel good under any circumstance.

“If you want anything from this business, asshole, come back and conduct yourself in a calm demeanor. Don’t make me come out there and beat some more sense into you.” You hiss – your rage has hit the tipping point, and you’re about tempted to kick open the door yourself and empty the rest of the cylinder into the man.

The thing you hate most in this world are bad customers – not even Edit pissed you off this bad.

“I-I’ll bring more guys!” He moans pitifully from the ground, and you watch him clamber to his feet and back away. The threatening tone of his voice is gone – he sounds like he wasn’t expecting to get hurt at all. You can only imagine that the brown-haired girl would be far too nice to actually retaliate.

>”Go ahead. I’ll take them all on.”
>Say nothing and glare at him – you won’t waste your words on him. [This will require a roll.]
>”If you do, I’ll have five more bullets waiting for you.” [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>Write-in.
>>
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>>4440511
>Slowly take out the L85A3 + grenade launcher attachment and aim it through the slot
>>
>>4440511
>>”Go ahead. I’ll take them all on.”
>>
>>4440511
>”Go ahead. I’ll take them all on.”
>>
>>4440541
>>4440548
You will become an army of one. Writing now!
>>
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>>4440610

“Go ahead, I’ll take them all on.” You sneer at the fleeing man, firing off another shot and cracking one of the stone tiles on the street. The coward yelps and scrambles away, pulling up his menu and hurriedly speaking into it as he disappears into the shadows. Moments of tense silence pass as the anger still courses through your system, and in a fit of your body trying to get rid of the rage, you punch the door yourself (although on an undented part of it).

“’ey, there. Don’ be fuckin’ up my doors if ya can help it, otherwise I won’t be able to thank you.”

You slowly exhale and turn around, trying to dispel all of your anger through sheer force of will.

It turns out that you have a lot to be angry about still, and now that you think about it, you haven’t really expressed that in any way other than self-hatred for the entirety of the past few weeks! Man, you really need that therapist.

Slowly shaking your head in an attempt to make the bad thoughts go away, you avert your gaze from the ground, and find that a foxgirl is staring at you.

Her hair is stark white, brighter than the hue of paper. She wears a dark and heavy looking coat, although the sleeves are rolled up and forcefully pinned in place, showing off what looks to be a watch on one arm and a weird touchscreen device on the other. You see that she lazily is holding an assault rifle with one of her hands, and the other holds an object that looks more like a grey cube than anything else.

“Sorry about that. I found myself getting a little bit upset, didn’t mean to cause any trouble.” You look away from her, feeling a good helping of shame intermingling with the anger. Keeping your cool is something that you’re usually good at.

“No worries, friend. That bitch has been comin’ around for quite a while – if anythin’, I’m glad you dealt with him, cause I was gonna unload a few magazines into him. Maybe it’d finally get ‘im the fuck off my back.” Her voice has a distinct Celtic twang to it.

“Well, he’s apparently bringing some more people with him at some point. Saw him calling them and everything.”

“Then I guess we gotta deal with them, aye, Nova?”

“You know my name?” You raise an eyebrow.

“’Course I do, told ya to come around whenever you had the time. Name’s Dahlia.”

Oh. You think you remember reading a message like that a long time ago, but more pressing concerns happened, namely dealing with an unsolicited guest.

>Tell her that it’s a pleasure to meet her – you may be mad, but you have manners.
>Ask her about her stock – all you wanted is items, and you instead got a skirmish.
>See if she has any details about the cowardly man – apparently this is a coordinated issue.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4440645
>Tell her that it’s a pleasure to meet her – you may be mad, but you have manners.
>>
>>4440645
>>Tell her that it’s a pleasure to meet her – you may be mad, but you have manners.
>>
>>4440645
>Tell her that it’s a pleasure to meet her – you may be mad, but you have manners.
>>
>>4440645
>>Tell her that it’s a pleasure to meet her – you may be mad, but you have manners.
>>
>>4440645
>Tell her that it’s a pleasure to meet her – you may be mad, but you have manners.
>>
>>4440648
>>4440649
>>4440650
>>4440651
>>4440668
You're a polite man. Writing now!
>>
>>4440670

(Heading off for the night – it’s been a long day today, but the good news is that I have nothing going on tomorrow! Should be able to get a good amount of updates out, as long as the very statement didn’t jinx me, so I’ll see you then! Hope you all have a great night and sleep!)

Sucking in a deep breath, you sigh deeply and hold your hand out to Dahlia. If the man’s gonna be coming back tonight, you can take out your anger then. You will not be hindered by that jackass and his gang of cowards, your rage against those who want to mess with others livelihoods is too strong.

“Nice to meet you, Dahlia. I wasn’t aware that this was your place, but hey, this is a good coincidence.”

One of her big fox ears flicks downwards for a moment, but she reaches out and snatches your hand, giving you a hearty handshake.

“Indeed it is. Looks like us business owners have ta’ stick together, yeah?”

“So you saw, too.”

“Everyone with an ounce of curiosity did, mate. If I weren’t overseas, I might’a fancied a visit myself, but I figured that’d be pretty rude of me to do, ‘specially since we ain’t met before.”

Dahlia raises her arm and taps the device’s touchscreen with her nose, making an ephemeral blue box spring out. She raises the assault rifle up to it and it disappears into smoke – she tosses the cube in the air, and it does the same.

“So, figured I’d toss an offer to see if you’d want guns, since I heard yer inventory got stripped. Looks like you found one of ‘em anyways.” She looks to the revolver that’s still in your tight grasp, a coy grin coming to her face. “I tell people not to sell ‘em, but what can you do? Not like I can restrict ‘em, although I bet they upjump the prices a fuckload.”

You don’t know what to say to that, so you turn around and look at the door suspiciously. You’re now afraid of a surprise attack – it’s not like you can die in the marketplace or anything, but pain is a very real issue, apparently.

“Oi, pay attention when someone’s talkin’ to ya.”

You’re suddenly pulled forward slightly by Dahlia, who furrows her brow at you. Her grip around your shirt collar is damn tight, too.

“Mach says you wanted some items, right? I ain’t got a lot of ‘em, but I can hook you up – might even discount it if you stick around, but I ain’t gonna blame you if you bail. Still interested?”

You just might be.

>Tell her you’re absolutely down, because you are. New items make you very happy.
>Ask how a fight’s supposed to work in the marketplace – do you just shoot at each other until someone taps out?
>Try to scrounge some details about the large man who came here – you’d like to know who you’re fighting against.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4440681
>>Ask how a fight’s supposed to work in the marketplace – do you just shoot at each other until someone taps out?
I am down but I'm also real interested
>>
>>4440681
>Ask how a fight’s supposed to work in the marketplace – do you just shoot at each other until someone taps out?
>>
>>4440681
>Ask how a fight’s supposed to work in the marketplace – do you just shoot at each other until someone taps out?
>>
>>4440681
>Tell her you’re absolutely down, because you are. New items make you very happy.
>>
Good morning, everyone! Hope you're all doing well today! Today I got to plant barley for my biology course.

>>4440692
>>4440717
>>4440726
Inquire. Writing now!
>>
>>4441225

“Before we talk about buying, I have a question for you.”

“Shoot.” The girl responds, one of her ears flicking downwards again.

“So, is there a specific way to fight in the marketplace, then? Or do you just shoot at them until they eventually tap out from the pain?”

You cross your arms and idly adjust the cylinder of your revolver, looking over Dahlia’s shoulder. It looks like the brown-haired girl – apparently her name is Mach – is nowhere to be seen. You recall her telling you that when shit goes down out here, she usually takes cover in the other room, so she’s probably waiting for Dahlia’s go ahead to come out.

“Most people do it that way, yeah. But you can also get ‘em banned from the marketplace for a short time by killin’ them, too.” Dahlia taps at the touchscreen on her wrist for a few seconds, eventually pulling out the grey cube. “This thing makes ‘em susceptible to it – makes a false match, if that makes sense. Also makes sure that the marketplace doesn’t get fucked up in the process.”

“A…false match?”

“Business owners gotta do what they gotta do. Have a rowdy customer? Pop one of these bad boys and shoot them before they shoot you – because if you lose, you’ll also be banned from it. That’s why people prefer to make ‘em hurt – at least then, their livelihoods won’t be at stake. You get me?”

“I suppose. How does it prevent the marketplace from being torn up, though?”

“Records a copy of it and transports ya there – you won’t even notice a thing. Ever read this manga called Th—you know, never mind. Basically, shit will be fine, so there’s no need to be stressin’ about it. I’m decent, you’re god-tier or whatever, so I doubt we’re gonna get shot the fuck up. Unless you leave, which you’re free to, but even then I bet I can get one over on the cunts.”

She seems fairly confident in yourself – you recall again that Mach mentioned that she was being sought after not only as a gunmaker, but a player.

>Shrug your shoulders and ask for her wares – you learned what you wanted to know.
>Ask her if Mach could help her in a fight – if she’s here and you are too, that’s a good sized team.
>Ask why she didn’t pop off that device earlier, in that case. Has it only recently gotten this bad?
>Write-in.
>>
>>4441231
>Shrug your shoulders and ask for her wares – you learned what you wanted to know.
>>
>>4441231
>>Shrug your shoulders and ask for her wares – you learned what you wanted to know.
>>
>>4441231
>>Ask why she didn’t pop off that device earlier, in that case. Has it only recently gotten this bad?

>>4441225
My man is preparing to never go out to a bar again, gonna make his own beer for more frequent questing. What dedication to his craft.
>>
>>4441239
>>4441240
Ask the stranger what she's selling! Writing now.

>>4441242
Gotta make as much time as I can, considering how much I seem to be cursed.
>>
>>4441272

“I see. Sounds like a complicated system, but hey, what do I know?” You shrug your shoulders and sigh, stowing your pistol away in your inventory for the moment. “Rather than focusing on the chaos that’s about to come, mind if I ask you for your wares? Got a tournament tomorrow, and I’d like to be outfitted.”

“Oh, goin’ back into tournament play, are ya? Surprised the news wouldn’t be reportin’ on that, shit.” Dahlia chuckles and turns around, gesturing for you to follow. “Come on back ‘ere. Ain’t got shelves yet, so I’ll have to show you the workshop. Don’ want those assholes bargin’ in during a sale, either.”

“Thought Mach said you don’t like people you don’t know in your workshop?” You comment quietly, waiting a moment before walking behind her.

“Are you daft? Told ya if you needed anything, you could call. I ain’t gonna give you shit for free, that’d be ridiculous, but I ain’t the type to extend that offer and be cagey about you comin’ in.”

You can’t help but notice as you look down that Dahlia has a fluffy, white tail. Neat.

The girl throws open the door to the workshop, and the collision of the steel against the wall is almost deafening. As you step in behind her, a weird mixture of steel and paint hits your nose. Rather than looking homely like the reception area does, this place seems very artificial – the walls are painted white, there are steel desks, tables, and cabinets strewn everywhere, and all of them are covered with tools or guns.

“Sorry ‘bout the mess, I ain’t good at keepin’ track of what I have or haven’t finished!” Dahlia cackles as she walks inside, peering around for a moment. “Oi, Mach, you in here, or did you run out the back door?”

“I am!” The voice that responds is very muffled, and one of the aforementioned cabinets towards the back room cracks open, revealing Mach stuffed in there.

“Ya know, I could probably spare some money to get a panic room or some shit. Ain’t that uncomfortable?” Dahlia asks the girl, moving over to a set of tables and unceremoniously sliding pieces and tools off of the surface and onto the ground. While the clashes of metal against stone are distracting, you can make out that she’s trying to look for something specifically.

“Not at all, don’t wo—oh, hello, sir!” Mach cuts herself off when she sees that you’re standing in the doorway, hurriedly standing and smoothing out her cream sweatshirt. “I’ll be out in a second!”

“No worries, I told ‘im to come in. Stop standin’ in the doorway like a fuckin’ creeper, I invited you in.”

You cough out of embarrassment and move into the room, looking towards the ground. This girl is pretty damn blunt, isn’t she?

>Ask her what she’s looking for, and if you can potentially help.
>Remark that you’re surprised things aren’t cleaner, if she’s running a shop.
>Send off a message to Cinder and Orion – maybe you can get them as backup.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4441285
>Send off a message to Cinder and Orion – maybe you can get them as backup.
>>
>>4441285
>Send off a message to Cinder and Orion – maybe you can get them as backup.
>>
>Send off a message to Cinder and Orion – maybe you can get them as backup.
more muscle to kick some asholes in the ass
>>
>>4441285
>Send off a message to Cinder and Orion – maybe you can get them as backup.
>>
>>4441291
>>4441292
>>4441296
>>4441340
Assemble the squad. Writing now!
>>
>>4441346

Rather than intruding on Dahlia’s search for whatever the fuck she’s looking for, you shut the door behind you and lean against it, pulling up your menu. Navigating over to the message tab, you almost don’t notice when Dahlia starts talking again.

“So, yer lookin’ for stuff that’ll help you out offensively, huh? Mach probably told ya, but that’s the only shit I’ve dabbled in so far – I’m a bit strict about the shit I put for sale, you see.” Dahlia snatches something off the table, squints at it, and chucks it over her shoulder. You look up in time to see Mach duck out of the way of it, followed by a resigned head shake.

“Are you, now? I’ve heard items aren’t so hard to create.” You murmur, pulling up Cinder’s message tab – looks like she’s still in game, which means they likely haven’t finished up shopping yet.

>n0v4_c43s4r: Yo. How goes shopping?

“Well, they aren’t, but I like to add a lot extra to my shit – ain’t worth goin’ on the market with ‘em if they don’t look good to match! Speakin’ of that—” Dahlia suddenly reaches outward and pulls a brush from an open can of paint, dashing a few lines of yellow on a gun “—good thing I remembered to do that. Thankfully paint don’t dry until you put it on somethin’ in this game!”

>Drag0n: it’s going well, got Orion a mod for his gun – upped the range a little bit. where did you get off to?

>n0v4_c43s4r: Found a place that seemed interesting. Remember that Dahlia girl you talked about? Just ran into her.

>Drag0n: oh! i didn’t know she set up shop around here!

>n0v4_c43s4r: Yeah, some folks are giving her some trouble, and are coming back for more. Might need your help here in a few.

>Drag0n: i’ll…definitely see if I can get over there. did they like…give a timeframe?

>n0v4_c43s4r: No. Why?

>Drag0n: we walked pretty far.

>n0v4_c43s4r: Ah.

>Drag0n: I’ll try my best to make it, though!

>n0v4_c43s4r: No worries, take your time.

You close your menu with a deep sigh, just in time to move away from Dahlia throwing a wrench at you.

“It’s rude to text when people are talkin’ to ya, Nova! Always thought you seemed a bit brash, but shit, s’weird seein’ it up close.”

“Sorry, was trying to organize some backup. We’ll see if she shows up, though.”

“Eh, I’m sure we can deal between the two of us. Mach ain’t a good fighter, so we might as well count her out.”

“Sorry…” The girl in question looks to the ground, clasping her hands in front of her waist.

>Nod and stand in place – Dahlia looks like she’s making headway on her search.
>Ask Mach why she plays this game if she can’t fight – might as well make conversation.
>Move into the other room so you can keep watch for the goons.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4441370
>Ask Mach why she plays this game if she can’t fight – might as well make conversation.
>>
>>4441370
>Ask Mach why she plays this game if she can’t fight – might as well make conversation.
>>
>>4441370
>>Ask Mach why she plays this game if she can’t fight – might as well make conversation.
The inverse of people who play Minecraft for the combat
>>
>>4441375
>>4441377
>>4441391
What's this girl's deal? Writing now!
>>
>>4441422

“I’m surprised that you play this game if you can’t fight well, considering that’s what this entire game is about. Have you tried any matchmaking before?"

“I have, but my reflexes just aren’t up to par.” She smiles, opening and closing her hands. “I figured that it would best to help out Dahlia where I can. She’s the one that convinced me to play it, after all – she even bought me the console to do it!”

“That’s ‘cause you never leave yer fuckin’ room, Mach. Gotta get interaction somehow, yeah?” Dahlia comments, grabbing something off of a desk and putting it to the side – it looks like a triangle. “Not blamin’ her for that, mind you—she’s real sick, you see. Figured I’d do my part, since her body’s so fucked up.”

“While I wouldn’t describe it like that, she’s correct. I have a hard time walking nowadays, so I don’t get out of the house very much. I’m a bit starved for company as a result.” Mach shoots Dahlia a look, almost as if she wasn’t happy with having the information revealed, but does nothing more. “So, I act as the cashier for the business, while she does all the heavy lifting.”

“Good on you for managing despite everything – sounds like a heavy pain to bear.”

“Oh, it’s not so bad. At least I don’t have to get out of bed most days!” The air has become slightly awkward, and while you search for potential avenues of conversation to pursue, Dahlia shatters the air with a triumphant shout.

“FINALLY! Was wonderin’ where these fuckers got off to!”

Dahlia lets out a wild laugh and slams a container onto the counter. It appears to be a metal cylinder, with the middle of it entirely transparent. Within, you can see red motes of light jolting around a clear liquid, making bubbles rise to the surface. It almost reminds you of a lava lamp.

“Alrigh’, get over here before those dickheads show up again.” Dahlia doesn’t wait for you to move, instead coming over to drag you there yourself.

You look down at the materials spread in front of you. The lava lamp looking cylinder is one, the triangle you saw her grab is another, and the final one looks to be an ordinary grenade.

“So, I’ll word it so it’s real simple, right? First one will melt away the ground underneath whatever it touches – shit’s real caustic, let me tell you. Haven’t tested it on a player yet so I don’t know what the fuck damage it will do, but it’s definitely an offensive item. Triangle is an electric caltrop – plant that in the ground, and if someone steps on it, they’re gonna have a real fuckin’ rough time. Final is a grenade disguise I came up with – looks like one, yeah? You’d be wrong – if someone gets tagged by that, it won’t hurt ‘em, but it’ll allow you to see ‘em. $1,000,000 a piece – that’s much lower than my guns, by the way – and they’re yours.”

Very interesting.

>Money: $2,780,000.

>Buy the caustic grenade.
>Buy the electric caltrop.
>Buy the tracker grenade.
>Inquire further about any item.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4441438
>Buy the caustic grenade.
>>
>>4441438
>Buy the caustic grenade.
>>
>>4441438
>Buy the caustic grenade.
>>
>>4441438
>>Buy the electric caltrop.
>>Buy the tracker grenade.
>>
>>4441438
>>Buy the caustic grenade.
>>Buy the tracker grenade.
>>
>>4441438
>Buy the caustic grenade.
So was there anything we were considering to get, the tracker grenade seems nice but if there was stuff we were considering to get i dont mind if we don't get the tracker grenade
>Buy the tracker grenade.
>>
Back, had a phone call to take!

>>4441447
>>4441452
>>4441454
Three votes for only the caustic grenade, so that will go through. Writing now!
>>
>>4441683

“I’ll take that caustic grenade. Sounds like it’ll be a good escape plan, should I need it.” You say, reaching out and grabbing the tube. It’s very warm to the touch – not uncomfortably so, but it’s an obvious contrast to the almost chilly air in the workshop.

“A very good choice. Wanna go out to the other room so we can finalize the purchase?” Dahlia snatches it out of your hand and summons the box from her touchscreen, making it disappear in a puff of smoke. “Everythin’ I have for sale is linked to this touchscreen, which in turn is linked to the transfer system on the table. Very good for someone on the go, or for someone who doesn’t have their fuckin’ shelves yet.”

Dahlia mumbles under her breath and exits the workshop, causing Mach to shoot you an apologetic smile.

This is certainly an interesting pair. A blunt foxgirl, and a sick girl who can hardly play the game conventionally. What is it with you and attracting strange people in this game? Although, if you’re being honest, you’d vastly prefer meeting people like to meeting others like Carmine. Walking out of the cold workshop and into the significantly warmer front room, you’re taken off guard by a single sound coming from the outside of the store.

BANG!

The sound against the front door is deafening, and you can see the dented portion of the metal go much farther inward. Mach immediately flinches and retreats into the room, shutting the door behind you as she does. Dahlia lets out a string of colorful curses and pulls up her shop’s menu, hurriedly searching through her stock for something – presumably, the cube that will make this a real match.

“Think you can hold ‘em off for a second, Nova? I’d like to make myself fully equipped before we get this shit show on the road.”

“Yeah, I have your back. Business owners gotta stick together, right?”

Another wild laugh.

“Yer damn right. Do the honors, then.”

>Pull out the L85A3 and light up the fucking door. [This will require a LOW roll.]
>Unlock the door and kick it open – you’ll put them on the back foot immediately. [This will require a roll.]
>Circle around the back of the building through the door in the workshop, and fight them there. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>Write-in.
>>
>>4441697
>Pull out the L85A3 and light up the fucking door. [This will require a LOW roll.]
>>
>>4441697
>Pull out the L85A3 and light up the fucking door. [This will require a LOW roll.]
>>
>>4441697
>Pull out the L85A3 and light up the fucking door. [This will require a LOW roll.]
>>
>>4441702
>>4441715
>>4441720
Light em up. Please roll me a 1d20, best of three goes through!
>>
Rolled 5 (1d20)

>>4441729
>>
Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>4441729
>>
Rolled 16 (1d20)

>>4441729
>>
Rolled 12 (1d20)

>>4441729
>>
>>4441745
This goes through, writing now!
>>
>>4441747

“Gonna have to pay you back for the door later, Dahlia.” You say to the girl as another loud bang resounds through the room. Quickly pulling up your menu, you navigate to your inventory with a curse and pull out your trusty L85A3. “I’m about to wreck the fucker.”

“It’s already wrecked, jus’ fuckin’ do it.” She gripes and glares at you with chilly blue eyes, making you wince. For someone who looks relatively fluffy, she sure has one mean fucking glare.

“GET THE FUCK OUT HERE, DAH—”

Before he’s able to finish her name, you’ve taken aim at the door and started pulling the trigger. The gunfire is louder than the saw you heard earlier, and it easily tears through the metal and collides with the opponent behind it. You hear him scream in pain as he’s viciously assaulted with bullets, and you hear the apparent battering ram clatter to the ground as he falls back with a thump.

“Yo, Rockstar, you ok—”

“Bruv, get the fuck up—”

Dahlia surges forward from her position, apparently having prepared her arsenal in the midst of your burst of fire. You can see a rifle strapped across her chest and jacket – in one hand she holds the cube, and the other holds a Japanese looking sword that’s the size of her forearm. She shoves her shoulder against the door and sends it off the hinges, causing a multitude of people outside to shout in surprise. Her blade glints off of the streetlights as she cuts through someone to the right of her, whirling around and catching a blonde-haired man in the chin with her boot.

“Get the FUCK out here, Nova, otherwise y’aint gonna get caught in the field!”

Not one to talk back to women with knives, you move through the door and block a punch with the side of your rifle, using it to push the person back while you snag her in the jaw with your fist. You spring away and go back to back with Dahlia – a quick sweep shows that four people are now on the ground, and two are still standing.

You cast a look around the street. Cinder and Orion are nowhere to be seen – looks like you’re by yourself on this one.

“Ready to rock, mate? Yer in this shit with me now.”

“Aye aye, captain.” You respond sarcastically, reloading your magazine while you still have access to unlimited bullets.

“Alrighty, then.” The grin on Dahlia’s face is positively fiendish, and you swear you can see her ears twitching in excitement. She raises the cube up, and throws it towards the ground.

You have seconds to craft a plan of engagement. What would you like to do?

>Take out the people standing, first. They’re currently in the most fighting shape.
>Use your rifle to mow down the people on the ground – maybe they’re too hurt to dodge.
>Swap your rifle for the Skyfire sniper – you can ascend the building and pick them off from above.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4441770
>>Use your rifle to mow down the people on the ground – maybe they’re too hurt to dodge.
Just a buncha sitting ducks. Plus it might scare some of them if we ban a few right off the bat
>>
>>4441770
>Take out the people standing, first. They’re currently in the most fighting shape.
>>
>>4441770
>Take out the people standing, first. They’re currently in the most fighting shape.
>>
>>4441793
>>4441795
The most able bodied are the true threats right now. Writing now!
>>
>>4441852

As you settle upon a plan of action, Dahlia throws the cube directly at her feet.

A ring of white polygons immediately spreads from the broken device, rushing over the ground like a wave of smoke. Some of the downed goons are visibly startled by this, and those that are standing are no exception.

“The fuck is that—” A girl in black and red shouts, clutching a shotgun close to her chest as the ring comes for her. She squeals and jumps when it’s about to touch her feet, effectively avoiding the wave. She immediately whirls around to see where it’s going, and backs up when it begins to climb the buildings.

As it moves upwards, the few people that remain visible on the street disappear behind the shimmering wall it leaves behind. At a certain point, it moves outwards from the tops of the various structures erected in the marketplace – you can see that it’s forming a translucent box. When it’s completed, the polygons and evidence of the wall disappear, leaving you all in a desolate street.

>MATCH DECLARED.

A robotic voice booms throughout the area, making you adjust your posture as you eye the two people standing. You nudge Dahlia and jerk your head towards the fallen men, which she responds to with a widening grin.

>TIME LIMIT: NONE.
>HEALTH AND AMMUNITION: ENGAGED.

“Wait, are we having a real fight!?” The man that Dahlia kicked tries to stand up, but is only able to rest on his knees as he cradles his aching jaw.

>LOSERS WILL BE PROSECUTED.
>WINNERS WILL BE LAUDED.

There’s a tense moment of silence.

>BEGIN.

You’re dashing forward before you can even process it, raising your rifle and aiming it at the lady with the shotgun. As soon as you fire, she moves down to the ground ungracefully, screaming her head off as she fires a round of buckshot at you. You’re able to roll to the side without being harmed, however, and you raise your rifle yet again.

“This’ll teach ya ta’ fuck with my shop!” Dahlia hollers from somewhere behind you, followed by the sound of something meaty being cut.

Holy shit. She’s on a rampage.

>Please roll a 1d20. Best of three goes through.
>>
Rolled 16 (1d20)

>>4441857
>>
Rolled 11 (1d20)

>>4441857
>>
Rolled 6 (1d20)

>>4441857
>>
>>4441859
This goes through, writing now!
>>
>>4441869

You can see the girl with the shotgun begin to move, but you’re much quicker on the draw. You fire off several rounds at her, and all of them collide directly with her head. You watch her head and neck snap back with every blow, and then she collapses like a broken marionette.

>Ammunition: 25/30 (-5)

“Don’t turn your back, buddy boy!” You curse and roll over, hearing the horrific noise of steel scraping against concrete. Raising your gun and pointing it at the assailant, he unfortunately knocks it to the side with the flat of his sword, going for a kick on you as he does. Thankfully, you’re able to strike out with your leg and sweep him off his feet, eliciting a curse from him as he crashes against the ground.

You immediately throw yourself away from him and attempt to right yourself, only to find that you’re meeting another person doing the exact same thing.

“’ey there, stranger!” You feel a fluffy tail bat against your leg before you recognize it’s Dahlia, who pulls you down just as a volley of submachine gun fire goes overhead.

“Took out two of ‘em, but the others are still kickin’! How’s about you?” She sounds wired to all hell, and despite being pressed against your back, she’s able to fire off a few shots at an unseen threat. Unfortunately, the recoil hits you directly in the side, but that’s fine – you’ve felt worse.

“One down, one’s still after me.” Your response is simple, and you crack your neck. “Can we still access our inventory in this mode?”

“Should be able to!” Dahlia quips, springing up from the ground and drawing her sword just in time to send a bullet through an adjacent window. “Back ta’ the grind, though!”

“Glad to hear it.” You gripe, standing up and facing your assailant, who apparently also threw himself to the ground when the gunfire hit. He has spiky aquamarine hair, and he honestly looks like a Thug #6 type of guy.

“Ready to get gutted, yet?” His sword is long and thin, and he licks along the flat of it like some kind of fucking weirdo.

>Shoot this man – he’s the enemy. [This will require a roll.]
>Pull out your knife and engage him in melee. [This will require a HIGH roll.]
>Try and pull some slick shit – make him stab one of his comrades. [This will require a VERY HIGH roll.]
>Write-in.
>>
>>4441885
>>Shoot this man – he’s the enemy. [This will require a roll.]
Indiana Jones vibes

>he licks along the flat of it like some kind of fucking weirdo.
Reminder Wolfgang once thought he was being an edgy teen cause his avatar had red eyes. Now we see someone doing this shit. Doesn't really seem too bad in hindsight.
>>
>>4441885
>Shoot this man – he’s the enemy. [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4441896
nova probably licked his gun in game once
>>4441885
>Shoot this man – he’s the enemy. [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4441885
>Shoot this man – he’s the enemy. [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4441885
>Shoot this man – he’s the enemy. [This will require a roll.]
>>
>>4441896
>>4441904
>>4441905
>>4441913
>>4441915
Please roll me a 1d20, and best of three goes through!
>>
Rolled 19 (1d20)

>>4441921
>>
Rolled 8 (1d20)

>>4441921
>>
Rolled 9 (1d20)

>>4441921
>>
>>4441925
Nice roll, anon! Writing now.
>>
>>4441931

You blink at the man as he charges forward, a sudden flashback triggered by this man’s over-the-top behavior. A time where you swung around a battlefield on a rope, your coat billowing behind you, acting like some form of swinging, red-eyed vigilante. You recall Drifter and Buster howling with laughter at your behavior – even Fletcher couldn’t resist a smirk.

You fire once at him, and it hits directly in the head. Two more shots to the torso as he falls down, and another to the skull that sends him tumbling back against the pavement. He does not get up again.

>Ammunition: 21/30 (-4).

You never wanted to remember that scene ever again, and now this man has forcefully dragged it up from the recesses of your mind. The intense feeling of wanting to curl up in a corner and cry of shame briefly washes over you, but you mask your sadness with a sigh and turn around.

It’s okay, Wolfgang. The blankets will hide your shame later.

Shaking your head roughly, you focus on the battlefield in front of you. Dahlia is like a tornado of steel, effectively eliminating the ability to fire upon her due to her intense movements. All the opponents are able to do to cope is block her with their swords or guns – a few try to strike, but they’re quickly parried in a flash of sparks.

Just as you begin to move forward, you’re halted by a loud shout ringing through the area, kicking up stone and dirt near your feet. Your vision slowly trails away from the now scarred road, and up to one of the taller buildings on the path.

You can see a small line of smoke from a darkened window.

“So they’re not entirely stupid. Good to know.” You spit on the ground, rolling up your sleeves.

>Go after that sniper physically – he poses a threat to the entire operation.
>Assist Dahlia with the enemies – the both of you can team on the last remaining one afterwards.
>Pull out your sniper rifle and counter-snipe this man – you ain’t one to be topped by a random goon.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4441933
>Pull out your sniper rifle and counter-snipe this man – you ain’t one to be topped by a random goon
>>
>>4441933
>>Pull out your sniper rifle and counter-snipe this man – you ain’t one to be topped by a random goon.
>>
>>4441933
>>Pull out your sniper rifle and counter-snipe this man – you ain’t one to be topped by a random goon.
Quickest way to deal with this.

One day Wolfgang will learn to embrace his past antics to trigger his hyper rage at-will.
>>
>>4441933
>Pull out your sniper rifle and counter-snipe this man – you ain’t one to be topped by a random goon.
>>
>>4441936
>>4441939
>>4441942
>>4441947
Counter-sniping is the way to go. Writing now!
>>
>>4441986

Cursing to yourself, you dive to the side as another round kicks up more of the stone road. You throw out your arm so you’re able to access your menu, hurriedly taking out the Skyfire and shelving the L85A3 for now. As much as you’d like to keep both out, you’d rather have the maneuverability that comes with not having two primary weapons on your person.

You spring up to your knees and brace the rifle on your elbow, looking through the scope at where you saw the smoke coming from. Sure as shit, there’s a girl with a hime cut coolly gazing out the window, although the rifle is no longer pointed at you. As you expected, it’s aimed towards the person being arguably more problematic – that, of course, is Dahlia.

When you glance over at her just to ascertain her position, you witness her blade going through a man from the crotch up, no doubt causing him unimaginable pain as he fades into polygons. There’s only one person left on the ground, now, and he’s wisely trying to evade Dahlia while firing on her from a distance. You notice that a part of her pant leg has been torn from gunfire, but other than that, she seems unharmed.

That’s not gonna be the case for long, though, if you don’t deal with that sniper rather than observing a foxgirl cleave through four men. You’re starting to understand why Auxilia’s campaigning to recruit her, but enough about that – for now, at least.

You swivel around and capture the sniper in your sights once more. It’s likely that the girl stayed her hand due to Dahlia’s unpredictable movements, but you can spot her finger flexing as it goes to pull the trigger.

Time for you to shine.

>Please roll me a 1d20. Best of three wins!
>>
Rolled 5 (1d20)

>>4441992
>>
Rolled 19 (1d20)

>>4441992
>>
Rolled 10 (1d20)

>>4441992
nat 20 here we go, shoot right through his scope like a cold motherfucker
>>
>>4441995
This goes through, writing now!
>>
>>4442010

(Yo, sorry for the wait, had a late dinner tonight! Probably going to head off for now, as I’m pretty tired and I have a paper due tomorrow, so I don’t want to be out of sorts for that. Thank you very much for coming around anons, and I hope you’re doing well! I’ll be seeing you intermittently tomorrow while I work, so see you then! Have a great night, everyone.)

You’ve always been good in any position that you were put in. From a temp-front liner, to a mid-player alongside Fletcher, and sometimes a back-liner if Drifter wasn’t feeling up to it.

One thing that you’ve noticed is that, over the past few weeks, you’ve been getting a lot of mileage out of this sniper rifle.

Pulling the trigger, the bullet races across the air before the girl can even complete the motion of firing the gun. The bullet hits her directly in the lower jaw and exits through the top of her head – as you’ve learned with Rock, this is not necessarily an instant kill. However, she tumbles forward, losing any balance she once had as she falls through the open window.

You turn away from her, but the crack of her body hitting the stone and pavement is enough to make your own bones rattle.

On the opposite side of the field, Dahlia is just wrapping up. Finally using her assault rifle, she rushes forward and suppresses the final member of the group, getting just close enough to catch his throat with the very tip of her sword. As soon as he disappears into blue particles, the barrier caused by the cube cracks and shatters, allowing the thrum of the district’s night life to return to your ears.

Right in front of you, Cinder and Orion are staring at you – the former looks like she’s seen a ghost, and the latter looks like he’s about to punch you for daring to surprise him.

In the corner of your vision, you see a notification that you won the skirmish, although you don’t see any rewards pop up.

Winners will be lauded your ass, game.

>Meekly greet the two – from their perspective, you must have appeared out of thin air.
>Walk around them and go over to Dahlia – gotta make sure your temporary teammate is alright.
>Look around you for any signs of suspicious people – you need to make sure you can run interference if needed.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4442150
>>Meekly greet the two – from their perspective, you must have appeared out of thin air.
>>
>>4442150
>Look around you for any signs of suspicious people – you need to make sure you can run interference if needed.

Dahlia is more than alright, and our group can handle a little "suprise". If someone's watching now's the perfect time to check
>>
>>4442150
>Look around you for any signs of suspicious people – you need to make sure you can run interference if needed.
>>
>Meekly greet the two – from their perspective, you must have appeared out of thin air.
Dahlia is a good fighter, shell be fine, lets check in with the others.
>>
>>4442150
>Meekly greet the two – from their perspective, you must have appeared out of thin air.
>>
>>4442150
>Look around you for any signs of suspicious people – you need to make sure you can run interference if needed.
>>
>>4442150
>Meekly greet the two – from their perspective, you must have appeared out of thin air.
>>
Good morning, everyone! Hope you're doing well today!

>>4442153
>>4442186
>>4442267
>>4442457
Mitigate the spookiness. Writing now!
>>
>>4442598

“Hey there, guys.” You say meekly, hoisting your sniper rifle over your shoulder and addressing the two. You definitely can tell how weird this looks – good ol’ Wolfgang appears out of nowhere with his gun drawn, looking disheveled and all. For all they know, you could have gone and joined a foreign militia while they were on the way over here!

This is absolutely not the case, but it would be humorous if it was.

“You look like you’ve been busy.” Cinder trails off, looking at the sniper rifle and back to you. “I guess you managed to handle those guys you were talking about all right?”

“Yeah, they weren’t so tough. I think I’m too used to playing against relatively high-profile players.” You idly comment, brushing away some of the dirt from your shirt. “If anything, all they had in their corner were scare tactics.”

“Glad to know you aren’t being bowled over by random people on the street.” Orion idly comments, pulling a shotgun out of his inventory. It has red and orange spiderwebs painted throughout the casing, and it seems to have a barrel attachment – that must be the mod Cinder talked about earlier. “Managed to get this on discount.”

“You don’t seem like a spiderweb sort of guy.” You snort to yourself.

“I’m not, but hey, it works well for me. Also got a few new tricks and tools courtesy of Cinder, but I won’t talk about those here. The walls have ears and eyes, you know?” He murmurs the last bit to you, glancing up and down the street. “From what I’ve heard, people are a lot sneakier these days—”

“Damn, looks like you’ve got two of my guns!”

Dahlia interrupts Orion and traipses over, pulling you closer to her and taking the gun from your hands. Looking it over, a fond grin comes to her face.

“Shit, dunno where ya found it, but this one’s damn good. Made it right when I was hittin’ my stride!” Dahlia looks up at you, and then over at Orion and Cinder. “Was this the backup ya called? You guys shoulda been quicker – although, I think we did just fine by ourselves, huh?”

“Well, they weren’t very skilled, that’s for sure.” You reach out and take the gun back from Dahlia, depositing it inside of your inventory once more.

“Are you Dahlia, then? It’s good to meet you!” Cinder immediately sticks her hand out, not one to be denied a chance to meet new people. Dahlia takes it with a grin, giving her a firm shake.

“Aye! Did ya hear about me from my guns, or from this guy?” Dahlia firmly jabs you with her elbow, making you step away from her.

“Both, actually!”

>Pull Orion aside in a more secluded area to ask about his loadout.
>Remind Dahlia that you’d like to buy that grenade from her.
>Tease Cinder and remind her how she went on at length about how good her guns were.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4442610
>>Remind Dahlia that you’d like to buy that grenade from her.
>>
>>4442610
>>Remind Dahlia that you’d like to buy that grenade from her.
We can ask about Orion's loadout outside the game.
>>
>>4442610
>Remind Dahlia that you’d like to buy that grenade from her.
>>
>>4442610
>Tease Cinder and remind her how she went on at length about how good her guns were.
>>
>>4442619
>>4442620
>>4442622
Get the grenade, ask later. Writing now!
>>
>>4442626

“Hey, I don’t mean to interrupt, but is there any chance I can get that grenade now that we’ve dealt with those guys?” You direct your question to Dahlia, crossing your arms. “Also, we should probably let Mach know that she can come out of the cupboard, now.”

“Man, why d’you gotta word it like that?” Dahlia gripes, moving away from Cinder and towards the now ruined door of the Widow’s Workshop. “Swear to god, I’m gonna renovate this fuckin’ place…”

“Someone’s in the cupboard?” Cinder asks you as your group follows Dahlia, making you chuckle.

“The cashier for her store isn’t good at this game, so when trouble comes around, she hides in the workshop while Dahlia deals with it.” You explain, stepping over the ruined hunk of metal. “Can’t help but wonder if Dahlia likes it that way, since I’m sure she could afford it—”

“Finish that sentence, and I’ll gut ya like a fish, Nova.” Dahlia calls from the interior of the workshop, poking her head out and revealing that her ears are twitching angrily. “This ‘as been a recent issue – RECENT, I say! Mach, get the fuck out of the cupboard!”

It takes a lot for you to hold in your laugh, and you swear that Orion’s snickering behind you as well.

After a few minutes of sweeping up the place and having Orion linger outside of the door as protection, you’re able to make your transaction. The grenade is still warm to the touch, and you find yourself staring at the hypnotic patterns as you vaguely listen to Mach and Cinder having a conversation of some sort.

“Pretty thing, ain’t it?” Dahlia says to you, moving around the table and perching atop it, curling her tail around her waist. “Shit took a lot of effort to get right, but man, I’m proud of the product – hope it does ya some good in the tournament.”

“I’m sure it will. I’ve ended up on relying on items quite a bit in my fights, and something that can melt anything sounds pretty damn good to me.”

A bout of silence falls between the two of you. For the first time since you entered the street lined with games, you feel a sense of calm in the air. Despite the entrance letting in some slightly cool air, the interior of the workshop somehow manages to remain warm.

You look up from the grenade, and see that Dahlia’s giving you a weird sort of side eye.

>Ask her if she knew the affiliation of the guys outside – you know there’s at least three looking for her.
>Inquire as to the nature of the relationship between her and Mach – apparently she bought her a VR console, which isn’t cheap in the slightest.
>Tell her that if she has something to say to you, she can do it – it’s hard to rattle you nowadays.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4442631
>>Tell her that if she has something to say to you, she can do it – it’s hard to rattle you nowadays.
I'm wondering if it has to do with the fact that she's one of the few to not jump down our throat for the cheating incident.
>>
>>4442631
>>Tell her that if she has something to say to you, she can do it – it’s hard to rattle you nowadays.
>>
>>4442635
>>4442638
What's she got to say? Writing now!
>>
>>4442640

“You know, if you have something to say to me, you can go ahead and say it. I’m not gonna bite.”

It takes a lot to rattle you, nowadays. You’ve heard curses from the Warscape fandom, 0phelia’s vague threatening bullshit, and Edit’s smug hypocrisy. With the amount of shit you went through not only five years ago, but through this last week, she would need to do some earth-shattering bullshit to get under your skin.

And no, that wasn’t an invitation for the universe to enable that. You just, you know, wanted to make that clear.

“Are ya sure you’re gonna be okay to fight in this tournament?” Dahlia’s answer is surprisingly serious, making you fully regard her.

“I…should be. Why do you ask?”

“Dunno what it is, but I had a feelin’ that I should. Especially if yer goin’ around with that guy.” She jerks her head towards the entrance way, definitely referring to Orion. “Didn’t hear a lot about him back in the day, so I kept my distance – but I can tell that the two of ya don’ mesh very well, feel me?”

You raise an eyebrow. She’s not entirely wrong, due to your still present fear of him, but you wonder how she drew that conclusion from seeing your brief interaction with him – it’s not like you don’t get along with Orion or anything.

“Yer face got all pensive when he showed up. You looked pretty relaxed, even when you were pissed off at the guys outside. Ya knew that you’d be able to hold yer own against ‘em.” She shrugs her shoulders, grabbing Mach’s cup off the table and taking a sip of her coffee. “Maybe it ain’t my business, but I’m willin’ to bet that if you don’t get over whatever issues the two of you have, shit’s gonna implode real damn quick. Ya fucked up back in the day, but that was then, and this is now. You’ll need ta’ get over it sooner or later if ya wanna succeed.”

The words hit you like a rock – not due to any malicious intent on her part, but because she’s right. Ever since Orion showed up, you’ve felt like you’re walking on eggshells. While a part of it was due to how he looks and carries himself, you’re well aware that most of it was to avoid any wrath from him. That albatross of shame will forever be around you, and you never really addressed it – rather than talking it out, you ran.

“It’s…a hard thing to get over, you know?” You choose your words carefully, feeling your throat constrict. It’s like a lump’s stuck there.

“Don’t matter if it’s hard, ya just gotta do it. Simple as that, boss.” She downs the rest of the mug and slams it against the table, flashing you a smirk. “Don’t wanna see ya get shot in the foot before you’ve even gotten back on your feet, aye?”

That’s a surprisingly caring thing to say, especially to someone she’s never met.

>Thank her for the advice – you think you might have needed it.
>Tease her a bit - ask her if she’s just trying to ensure that a customer keeps coming back.
>Stand up and walk outside – you need some air.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4442658
>>Thank her for the advice – you think you might have needed it.
We got the coolest friends

And the fucking worst enemies
>>
>>4442658
>Thank her for the advice – you think you might have needed it.
>>
>>4442658
>Thank her for the advice – you think you might have needed it.
>>
>>4442658
>Thank her for the advice – you think you might have needed it.
>>
Back, worked on my paper for a little while, and also had lunch while I was at it!

>>4442661
>>4442662
>>4442680
>>4442765
She had some pretty good advice. Writing now!
>>
>>4442834

“Heh…thanks. Didn’t think I’d get such good advice out of someone I just met.” You run your hands through your hair, looking towards the other two girls in the room. Cinder’s seemingly attempting to teach Mach some semblance of fighting, considering she’s got Mach’s arms up in a fighting position.

“Well, you can consider it a token of appreciation from someone who used ta’ watch you quite a bit.” Dahlia chuckles, also looking at the humorous scene. “And hell, maybe you’ll consider me when you next need a purchase, aye?”

“Yeah, we’ll see about that.”

Dahlia reaches out and claps you on the shoulder, unfurling her tail and moving towards Mach and Cinder, saying that she shouldn’t be harassing her cashier.

You look towards the ceiling.

“Looks like things were worse than I thought, huh?” You murmur, sighing and reflecting on your own behavior. There’s some merit to trying to act like nothing happened, but even if you haven’t had much chance to talk with him since he came in and asked you to attend this tournament, shit’s apparently festered underneath the surface for you. It’s a damn complex issue to approach, and Orion isn’t even the tip of the iceberg.

Images of Buster flash in your mind, and Drifter after that.

If Orion’s being relatively calm about things, and it’s fucking you up this bad, you can only imagine what’ll happen if you ever run into those two again.

You’ll have to make sure that doesn’t happen until you’ve gotten shit settled with Orion. Your already stressed mind might not be able to take it.

“Fuck, man…” You lean against the wall and curse, idly checking the time. It’s past midnight now, far later than it was when you began training with Orion today. Will things really be okay like this?

“Something wrong, Wolf?”

You’re roused from your musings by Cinder, who’s crossed the room to stand in front of you. You can see glints of concern in her eyes – probably because you went from talking to Dahlia to leaning against the wall all surly like.

“Just thinking about the tournament tomorrow,” you respond, “and how I’m gonna make this team of ours work.”

“Hmm…” she glances between you and the doorway, raising a hand to stroke her chin. “I’m sure if you work hard, it’ll all be fine!”

Yeah, that’s about what you thought she’d say. Cinder, more often than not, solves her problems through sheer effort. She’s a smart girl, but when it comes down to it, she overcomes her obstacles with force of will rather than complex thought. You almost wish you could be more like that – as of late, you’ve been overthinking everything to hell and back.

>Agree with her, and ask her how she’d make the team between you and Orion work.
>Ask her if she’s done any research on the tournament – you’re mostly in the dark.
>Thank her for her words, and move to the outside – maybe you can talk to Orion about this.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4442861
>>Ask her if she’s done any research on the tournament – you’re mostly in the dark.
>>
>>4442861
>>4442877
Actually, lemme switch to
>Ask her if she’s done any research on the tournament – you’re mostly in the dark.
Should really talk to him about our problems when we're alone. Probably in the real world.
>>
>>4442867
>>4442880
See if she's got any deets. Writing now!
>>
>>4442891

“Well, I can only hope.” You try for a chuckle, running your hands through your hair again. “Have you done any research, by chance? I’ve been preoccupied with…well, everything.”

“I do have some details for you, although it’s a lot of speculation from forum posts!” Cinder chirps, leaning next to you and spreading her arms. “Since this tournament has a decent audience, but they try their best to keep things under lock and key – the only reason you haven’t received a shit load of traffic is because of that, probably!”

“How do you mean?”

“Well, it’s the 39th in the series, first of all – they call it something that I can’t really remember right now. They hold the tournament on every fourth week of a month – it’s exclusively 2v2, by the way. The reason this is important is because, if you look at patterns of what teams show up, you can reasonably guess who might be there this time around!”

“…okay, so what does that mean for us, exactly?”

“Basically, they’ve got three teams who have shown up more often than not – a group that have modified their avatar with armor that makes them look like robots, which are called Ballistic Designs.”

You idly note that that was one of the names that Mach mentioned to you earlier, when she was screening you for entry into the workshop.

“Sounds wild. What about the other two?”

“One’s a group that’s rumored to be a pair of strong players who are playing under smurf accounts called the Cyclers, and the other are two snipers called the Scope. They’ve been there for the past ten events, so we can assume they’ll be there now.”

“You know, you’re much better at researching shit than you look.” You grin at her, causing her to put a hand on your shoulder menacingly. “Meant as a compliment, of course.”

“I’ll be sure to take it like that, then. Anyways, this tournament is unique in that it uses a single map every year – however, as you advance through the bracket, you’ll be put on a different level of it. The match time limit is an hour, you’ll be able to see blood n’ shit, and the winner gets money along with a special prize!”

“A…special prize?”

“Nobody’s discussed what it is before, and there’s rumors that the winners are contractually obligated not to say – it’s been like that since the start of the whole deal, though.”

“Maaaaan, what happened to tournaments being straightforward?”

“It’s a bygone era, that’s for sure.” Cinder nods her head sagely, causing you to snort. Sometimes you forget that she was playing around the same time as you.

Looking at the clock in the menu, you notice again how late it is. At this rate, you might need to head home soon enough.

What would you like to do?

>Head back home for the night – you’ve done all you need to for the evening.
>Walk over to Dahlia and ask if she has anything else to sell.
>Explore the other two buildings you saw in the district when entering.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4442908
>>Head back home for the night – you’ve done all you need to for the evening.
>>
>>4442908
>Head back home for the night – you’ve done all you need to for the evening.
>>
>>4442920
>>4442941
Time to go home. Writing now!
>>
>>4442974

“Looks like it’s getting pretty late,” you comment to Cinder, moving off the wall and turning to face her. “Wanna log off for the night?”

“Yeah. Anything else you need to take care of?” Cinder asks, mirroring your motion.

“Nah. I got an item like I wanted, so I’m more than equipped for tomorrow. How about you? Is Orion all set?” You respond, catching Dahlia’s eye and motioning her over from across the room.

“Yep! Tomorrow, we can go over everything. Things’ll be great!” The redhead claps her hands together, turning around and heading toward the door. She’s most likely going to notify Orion that you’re all heading off – you can’t help but feel a bit of dread. The tournament is coming damn fast.

“Headin’ off, are you?” Dahlia asks, quirking an eyebrow. “Sure you’re all set? In all regards?”

You can’t help but chuckle, hesitating before sticking out your hand.

“In most of them, sure. Was good meeting you, Dahlia – you too, Mach!” You look at the other girl as she approaches, to which she gives a brilliant smile.

“It was lovely meeting you as well, Nova! Thank you very much for helping us out with those troublemakers.” Mach’s voice is overflowing with warmth, which takes you off guard majorly. Not many people speak to you with any semblance of that, nowadays – you get the feeling that she’s a very kind person, and you’re glad that she’s balancing out Dahlia somewhat.

“Well, no worries. Business owners gotta stick together!” You cough as Dahlia takes your hand, giving you a shake that makes your shoulder hurt.

“Indeed they do. Like I said, feel free ta’ come back if ya need somethin’ – maybe you can give me some free publicity while yer at it?” While Mach’s voice was warm, her’s is fiendish as she grins at you. “I might be swayed to give ya a discount while I’m at it~!”

You don’t believe this girl would, or ever has, given anyone a discount on anything,

>”Sure, I’ll give you a signal boost – not that you seemingly need it, mind you.”
>”Only if I can get that discount promise in writing!”
>Chuckle and shake your head while walking out the door.
>Write-in.
>>
>>4442987
>>”Sure, I’ll give you a signal boost – not that you seemingly need it, mind you.”
Enter the tournament with an I-Heart-Dahlia shirt.
>>
>>4442987
>”Sure, I’ll give you a signal boost – not that you seemingly need it, mind you.”
>>
>>4442987
>”Sure, I’ll give you a signal boost – not that you seemingly need it, mind you.”


I'm genuinely surprised that nobody voted to touch fluffy tail during our entire encounter with her
>>
>>4442987
>”Sure, I’ll give you a signal boost – not that you seemingly need it, mind you.”
>>4443002
Do you think Wolfgang has the balls to ask?
>>
>>4443005
No but he's probably dumb enough to do it without thinking about it
>>
>>4442988
>>4442990
>>4443002
>>4443005
You'll boost the fox. Writing now!

>>4443002
Touch fluffy tail was the hidden best option. The fox tail will remain untouched (for now).
>>
>>4443022

“Sure, I’ll be sure to do that – not like you need one, though.” You grin at the fox, who cackles and punches you in the shoulder as you walk away.

“Free publicity is always great, Nova! Seeya later, great meetin’ ya!”

You can say that it was great meeting her, too. She’s a pretty nice girl, and so is her cashier – now that you know where she’s at, maybe you’ll be able to hit her up in the future. Score!

As you pass the threshold into the significantly cooler streets, Cinder and Orion move off of the walls adjacent to the door.

“Ready to head out?” Orion asks, peering around the street and jamming his hands into his pockets.

“Yeah, I think I am. Set for tomorrow?”

“Of course. We’re gonna rock that shit, and get that money.” Orion chuckles darkly, removing a hand and pulling up his menu. “I’d like to not be homeless in a few days, thank you.”

“I’ll make sure that won’t happen, Orion.”

He looks you dead in the eyes.

“Glad to hear it, buddy.”

A second later, he logs out, disappearing in a flash of light.

Sighing to yourself, you turn and face Cinder, who’s looking on with concern.

“It’ll be fine, right?” You ask her, mostly so you can assure yourself that it actually will be.

“I’ll make sure that it is!” She smiles and winks at you, patting you on the cheek and vanishing in a similar flash of light.

In the moment you’re left alone on the street, you finally let your body slump and the tiredness of the day hit you. No one’s paying attention, no one’s gonna ask what’s up, you’re alone for the first time in about two or three days.

A lot of concern is coursing through your body right now. You’re worried that your former teammate is gonna go homeless if you don’t win, you’re worried that you’re going to get more undue attention at your arcade from entering this tournament in the first place, and there’s also the matter of the unopened letter resting on your desk that you haven’t attended to.

There’s a lot of shit going on in your life, and a lot of it is out of your control right now. For the first time in years, you’re truly inserting yourself into a professional scene – a well-known tournament, one that only accepts people of notoriety. Chances are the opponents will be bananas, and you’re going to need to push yourself to the limits to keep up with true professionals.

You let out a long sigh, running your fingers along the silver bracelet forever branded onto your avatar. Seconds later, you also disappear as you log out into the real world.

Tomorrow’s gonna be a big day.

You’re gonna grab it by the fucking horns.

>END THREAD.

Gun x Glory! OP 2: https://youtu.be/-DYzYD2-23g
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>>4443035

Looks like we've reached the end of this one, everyone! The thread has been archived.

We're almost at the tournament arc! Wolfgang and Orion get to go against a litany of opponents - will you survive?

Please follow the link here to vote on when the next thread will begin! https://strawpoll.com/ryghvqy2u

Thank you very much for coming around and reading, everyone. If you have any questions, comments, concerns, compliments, or otherwise - I'll be hanging around the thread for a few days, and I sure do love to talk.

Have a great day, anons. See you next time for Gun x Glory! #14!
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>>4442987
>”Sure, I’ll give you a signal boost – not that you seemingly need it, mind you.”



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