Author's Note: Welcome to my latest fanfic project, Dreams of Discord! Before we begin, let me get something important out of the way.
This fanfic is going to be set in what I call the "dub-verse", meaning it will use elements unique to the English localization of the series, names and all, while establishing it as a separate universe. This will allow me more freedom to establish reinterpretations of the characters and setting without contradicting or otherwise sullying the integrity of the original.
With that said, as an American writing a story based on a European localization of a Japanese game, certain values and themes (cultural references, etc.) may differ. (I hope you can understand all that—it sounds way more convoluted than it needs to be.)
The bell of the convenience store rings as a new customer enters the building. A dark-skinned boy, short for his age, with pale blue hair veiling half his face, walks around the store for a while, before settling for the magazine rack. Browsing the racks, his hand hovers through the myriad of choices until it picks up a thick comic anthology. Within the tome's pages are a variety of stories, mainly targeting young boys his age, filled with action, adventure, and an occasional bit of titillation for the older crowd. As he flips through the book, he comes across a familiar name: Mark Gambling.
Gambling—once known under the alias Moe Manga—was a teenage prodigy best known for co-creating Nana Silky, a series popular with the "otaku" crowd. It was frilly and girly on the surface, but packed with action and magic and some surprisingly heartwarming moments. Nana Silky lasted for several years, concluding on a high note. After it ended, the writer and artist split up, with Manga working solo on different genres. However, none could match Nana Silky's success, and he switched to a different magazine, using his real name full-time.
The boy recognizes the name and style from one of his older series, during the author's more experimental phase. The story in question was a mecha sci-fi with a strong emphasis on characters. While it caught on with both females and males, critics were mixed about the execution of the overall plot, and eventually, those holes grew too large to ignore, leading to its eventual demise. While the story didn't live up to its earlier legacy, the series still enjoys a cult following to this day.
Curious, the boy buys the anthology and starts heading for home. As he treks down the sidewalk, he starts to wonder what drove him to that purchase. Sure, he used to read Gambling's works, but he was in elementary school then, and a lot less picky about content and quality. Even at junior high, he has to admit to himself that he has outgrown these sorts of comics. So why?
"Oof!"
In a blink, he's on the floor, surrounded by papers. Pale hands scurry to pick them up, and he instinctively helps out. Picking up a page, he catches a glimpse of the contents. A comic?
"Thank you so much," the pallid owner says as he retrieves the last pages. "You saved my work, you did!" With blond hair tied up in a messy bun, decorated with pens and paintbrushes, and his eyes hollow with dark circles, he looks every bit like the stereotypical artist.
Thinking back to the page he picked up, he looks them straight in the eye and asks, "That comic… was that Arcade Master Technia?"
Taken aback, the artist replies, "Why, yes, it is. And if I don't get to the office on time, the editor's gonna have my head!"
"Oh. Well, don't bump into any more—" His advice is cut off by the manga author bumping into a telephone pole. Nevermind.