To Further Lands Chapter 1
*Akihabara Junior High School Library*
Kyokuzawa Daisuke tapped away on his holo-keyboard, working his way through his latest assignment. He tapped at the air, pulling up the app he was using to stream music straight to his Neurolinker. Cycling through the music selection, he sighed before just leaving it on what was streaming now. Lost in his own little world, he couldn't hear the figure sneaking up on him.
"..suke. Daisuke!," a voice yelled into his ear, simultaneously pulling off his Neurolinker. Daisuke, in all his humble glory, flailed his arms through the air as the surprise caused him to go crashing backwards.
"Chiharu! What was that for?!," he called up to the figure standing above him. Katsumi Chiharu lived in the same apartment building as him, 20 floors above to be exact. They've known each other since they were little, his dad worked as a chef in a local restaurant and his mom worked at a company maintaining their server. This caused them to be out at all hours and Chiharu's mom would look after him most nights.
"You were lost in your own little world again, that's what. I tried talking to you and when that didn't work I called your name. It's not my fault if you don't want to pay attention to your surroundings, especially seeing as you're the one who called me here," she chastised him, standing with her hands on her hips. Daisuke just smirked at her, it wasn't his fault that she looked cute when she tried to be angry.
"Well, yeah. Anyways, are you ready to see why I called you here?"
Chiharu huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "I don't see why we had to come all the way here, it's not like we're messing with illegal programming. We aren't, are we?" She eyed him cautiously as she spoke, wondering what her longtime friend could possibly be up to.
"No, it's not illegal programming. It's just a game, okay? Just trust me and connect this," he explained, holding out one end of a Direct Link cable. He plugged the other end into his cream Neurolinker. Chiharu eyed it suspiciously before taking the other end. "Trust me, okay? It's a meter long cable."
"Okay, but Daisuke? I'm putting my trust in you. Don't let me down," she whispered to him, plugging the other end into her cerulean Neurolinker. A pop up appeared in their vision, informing them that they were Direct Linked. This pop up was to inform them that all safety software wouldn't protect them from each other.
"I brought you here to send you a game file," he informed her through mind speak, "I just needed us out of the public eye." He tapped away at the air in front of him before sliding his first two fingers toward her. A file pop up appeared in Chiharu's vision, slightly startling the young girl.
" Eh?," she asked the young boy. The icon prompted her on whether or not she accepted the download. She extended a finger, hesitating over the accept button. "What is this program, Daisuke?"
"Chiharu, it's your ticket to a new world. Trust me, okay? I have faith in you."
Chiharu swallowed around a lump in her throat. Her finger hovered over the accept button for a few moments more before jabbing down on it. The pop up disappeared before being replaced with a steampunk download bar, riveted iron suspended by chains. "Why is it taking so long?," she questioned Daisuke.
"It's a big file, Chi. I'm just glad you've gotten this far," he murmured to her, relief evident in his voice.
She chose not to dwell on his choice of words, but she couldn't get the last thing he said out of her mind. 'What did he mean by gotten this far,' she thought to herself, wondering just what she got herself into.
Suddenly the download bar disappeared, only to be replaced with a torrent of flames. She reeled backwards, but didn't feel any heat. Jagged, studded iron letters hung suspended in the air in front of her. "Welcome to Accelerated World?," she muttered.
Daisuke lunged forward, picking his friend up and twirling her in the air. "You got it! You really got it!" He laughed as he twirled her. By the time he set her down, they both were reeling with vertigo, stumbling backwards only to be pulled towards each other as the cord reached its limit.
"Got what, Daisuke?," Chiharu spoke through mind speak. "What have you gotten me into?"
"It's nothing bad, I promise. Will you promise me a few things?" His gaze had become steely, his tone over the wire growing guarded.
She nodded her head once, almost solemnly. He seemed so happy about what she just installed, but she still didn't know why.
"Until you get to school tomorrow, please stay disconnected from the global net." He waited for her to nod before continuing. "Tonight, when you go to sleep, keep your Neurolinker on. This program is going to run through your mind's landscape. It will shape an avatar for you, a reflection of yourself. This takes place as a dream, more like a nightmare really. Everyone who has downloaded this has had one, but we usually don't remember what it was."
Chiharu's eyes took on a slightly scared tone, his words processing through her head. "I promise, but you'll still be here to help me, right?," she pleaded.
"Of course," was the only words to come out of his mouth before disconnecting the Direct Link. He took her hand in his and together they left for the apartment complex where they both lived.
…
*Akihabara Junior High School Library the Next Day*
Daisuke waited patiently in a chair by the door, expecting Chiharu to come through the door at any moment. His fingers tapped lazily on his holo-keyboard yet again, trying and failing to work on his homework. His mind was racing, Chiharu hadn't spoken to him all day. When he saw her in the hall, she was always surrounded by her friends and he couldn't talk to her about yesterday in front of everybody. As his mind began to wander, the door to the library slammed open.
Chiharu stomped in, her eyes scanning the library as she looked for one particular person. Little did she know, she had strode right past the one she was looking for. Daisuke cowered in his chair, arms held in front of his face. He knew better than try to reason with her while she was like this. Finally, she spun around in a huff and her eyes fell upon her prey. She covered the distance between them in only a few strides.
"A nightmare?! That was the worst thing to ever happen to me!," she hissed in his face.
He waved his hands in the air placatingly, "I tried to warn you," he cried out as he dropped his hands into his lap. "Do you remember what it was about?"
Chiharu crossed her arms, huffing. "Of course I don't," she muttered. "I just remember it was terrible."
Daisuke chuckled, rubbing the back of his head with his hand. "Well, that means the program did its job. Are you ready to see what this is all about?," he questioned excitedly, holding out half of a Direct Link cable.
Chiharu dropped her arms, his excitement was catchy. She took the offered wire and plugged it into her Neurolinker. "Well, yeah. How do we start?"
"Repeat after me," he instructed. He took a deep breath and uttered two words, "Burst Link."
"Burst Link," Chiharu repeated. Suddenly, the world was painted in shades of blue. Daisuke stood in front of her, in his virtual avatar. His avatar looked just like him, but much more dressed up. He wore a nice suit and a top hat, a cream pocket square the only source of color. Chiharu, however, had a more elaborate theme. Like him, hers looked just like her, but her outfit mimicked that of the Disney version of Alice in Wonderland. She looked around, staring at her own frozen features. "Where are we?"
"This is the first step of the program. Right now our minds have sped up 1000 times. Time isn't frozen for us, just moving very slowly." He gestured at their frozen forms, having her notice the slight movement in her arms as they dropped to her side. "Now, you should be able to see a blazing B icon on the left hand of your screen. Hit it and select the only available name. When you do, it'll prompt you to duel them, accept it and we can get started with the rest of the explanation."
Chiharu followed his instructions, a menu suspended by chains falling in front of her. She saw her name at the top, Osmium Cheshire, and below that was only one available name, Marigold Sleight. After pressing the name, a prompt quickly appeared. She hit duel and the world around them faded. The world came back into view, but instead of the library she knew, gears and metal walls surrounded them.
"The Construction stage, huh?," an unfamiliar voice spoke out. Chiharu turned her head and found herself face to face with another person. She jumped back in shock, almost tripping over her own feet in the process. It took her a moment for her to process what she was seeing, the unfamiliarity slowing her thoughts. The avatar was the height of a grown man, about 5' 11" at least. A marigold top hat was placed jauntily on top of the head, adding the illusion of extra height. Travelling downwards, glowing green eyes shone out of a cream mask, a crooked grin displayed proudly. The clothing consisted of a marigold overcoat, fastened with chains, over top of a light orange vest. Cream colored gloves clad the hands, pants the same color as the overcoat dressed the legs, coming to marigold Oxfords. "Daisuke, is that you?," Chiharu's voice rang out over the noise.
Daisuke chuckled, waving a hand in greeting. "Yeah, this is me. Not too shabby, huh?" He strode over to her, holding a hand to his chin as he took in her avatar. "Osmium, eh? Well, that makes you a metal color. I've never heard of an Osmium blue after all." Chiharu kept her eyes on him, turning to follow him as he circled her. "Would you hold still? I'm trying to work here," he griped at her. She jumped slightly, standing ramrod straight. Daisuke chuckled, taking his hand off his chin to lay on her shoulder. "Everything is okay, I'm just trying to work things out." His hand lifted from her shoulder, lightly tapping on the bow slung across her back. "Looks like you got an Enhanced Armament right off the bat. This could be a good or bad thing," he spoke with pride, his Child was turning out to be full of surprises.
"Enhanced Armament?," she asked, her voice carrying her confusion.
"It's an item, typically a weapon, that represents your avatar. Yours appears to be a bow and arrow. If you take Osmium's characteristics into account, I'm wagering that the arrowheads will be reinforced. Now, have you taken a look at yourself?" She shook her head, feeling a slight fear in what she will see. "Go ahead and look," he said gently. "This is the new you."
Chiharu looked down at herself, staring in awe. She held her hands up, taking note of the claw tipped fingers. Stripes criss-crossed across any visible 'skin', dark matte grey lines contrasting with her shiny appearance. Her upper body was clad in a slate blue corseted vest with a high collar, open in the middle to reveal the striped surface underneath. Her slate blue petal like skirt was an opaque material, covering long, thin legs ending in feline-like paws. Chiharu shifted from foot to foot, feeling an off-setting weight behind her. She craned her neck, attempting to peer at her back when a weight settled itself around her ankles. Peering down, she squealed and jumped back, tripping over her own tail in the process. "What is this?!"
"That would be your tail, kitten," Daisuke managed to get out between laughs, bent over at the waist and clutching his stomach."Can you open your mouth and say ah?" Daisuke suddenly questioned, standing upright abruptly. Chiharu was taken aback, but complied either way. "Well, your mouth seems to just be a mask then. It didn't move at all."
"What do you mean?," she asked. In answer, he gestured towards a puddle of water, ripples dancing across its surface as water dripped from above. Quizzically she made her way over, tottering on her paws as she avoided tripping over her tail. With trepidation, she peered into the water as it settled from the last disruption. She jumped from the sight that greeted her, not expecting what she saw in the least. A Cheshire grin spread across her face, pointed teeth filled the smile. Her eyes were a rounded almond shaped, bright teal in coloration that was lit from within, and nestled into the smooth curve of her face. An angled bob, going from shoulder length in the front to base of the skull in the back covered her head. Atop her head, sat a pair of cat ears, twitching as her emotions ran wild. "This is me?"
"This is a representation of your inner fears, desires, and scars. The nightmare you had last night, the images you saw, created this avatar. By facing your inner wounds, you can make your avatar even stronger. The stronger the trauma, the stronger the avatar created. There is one thing that keeps things even for everybody, however. Every avatar of the same level has the same potential, no one is inherently stronger than anybody else. Osmium Cheshire isn't such a bad name, you know. I have high hopes for you." He stood in front of her, beaming like a Parent with his Child. "Anyways, open your menu and tell me what you see?"
Chiharu hesitated, not quite sure how to open the menu. A minute of tapping at the air finally brought her menu up in front of her. "There is only one thing on here. Down with the Bloody Red Queen?" Confusion hung heavily in the air between them.
"Tap it and tell me what it says."
Chiharu jabbed the move, a secondary window opening in front of her. "A Special Move used in conjunction with Briar Point. Pull a single arrow from the quiver, the rest will follow. Can be done either as a volley from above, or fired straight as a barrage. What's Briar Point?"
"You've got your own Special Move and Enhanced Armament?! That's great!," Daisuke rushed forward and grabbed her hands, her menus closing and disappearing from the air. "I was only born with an Enhanced Armament, I had to get a special move later. That was one level up bonus I was happy to get. Trust me, that led to some sticky situations to get to my current level."
"Level? Level up bonus? Special Move? Enhanced Armament? What are you talking about?"
"In this game, you start as Level 1 and as you battle and collect burst points you can level up your avatar. When you level up, you are given the option of a bonus. This could be an Enhanced Armament, ability, Special Move, or an increase to something you already have. I chose to gain special moves that work in conjunction with my Enhanced Armament"
Chiharu stood silently, processing all the information he was giving her. "But what about my name, my avatar, my bow?"
"Let me explain. You are a metal color. You don't fall into the normal scheme of things in this game. A metal color is created from the formation of walls around your heart due to trauma. As a metal color, your avatar carries the characteristics of the metal it is named after. Osmium falls on the far end of the metal color chart. Enhanced resistance to physical attacks, this covers anything from blunt to piercing attacks. You are weak against indirect attacks, the Yellow avatars' specialties, but we can fight against that. Osmium is used in practical applications for things that need a hard tip. This will reflect in your Enhanced Armament, in your case it's your bow and arrow."
"What about the other colors? You said something about Yellow?"
"There are 7 Kings of Pure Color, they rule their own legions in the game. Each avatar in this game falls somewhere around the color scheme of these 7. The closer an avatar is saturated to the pure color, the more specialized their fighting style is. Red avatars are long range fighters, someone you can fight almost on equal footing. Blues are close range fighter, they specialize in physical attacks. Greens are defensive, they typically have heavy armor but there are Green healers. Yellows are indirect fighters, utilizing either illusions or missile jamming. Purples are mid range fighters, they are a blend of blue and red. This could be spears or chained weapons. Black and White don't have a lot known about them currently. The only thing we've gleaned is Blacks have a high attack power, while Whites have no offensive capabilities. Even though there are colors in this game, your name may not reflect a color. Ardor Maiden is well known, with ardor referring to a blazing flame. She is the only avatar right now with a dual colored avatar, being both red and white. Aqua Current has no color, she is pure water herself." Daisuke paused to take a deep breath before continuing. "The second half of your name represents the type of fighter your avatar is. Take Scarlet Rain, the current Red King, for example. Her name doesn't mean the precipitation, instead it refers to the rain of artillery she drops on your head. You are Osmium Cheshire, a metal color with a cat theme. Everyone likes a classic and so Cheshire isn't completely a foreign subject. Right now, I couldn't tell you how your avatar will turn out. That's up for you to decide." He let his words trail off, looking her in the eyes.
"Woah, that's a lot to take in." Chiharu's head was reeling, but she was a tough girl. She wouldn't let this trip her up. "What do we do now?," she asked, straightening her back and staring him in the eyes.
"Now," he said with a smirk. "we let this duel run out, then we'll go challenge someone so you can get some real battle experience."
…
Thank you for taking the time to read this. Any comments or critiques are welcome. Remember, flames will be shot down. If you have any ocs you'd like to see in my story, leave them in a comment below with all the necessary information. (avatar name, irl name, abilities, enhanced armaments, special moves) But, please keep them realistic. If you're oc is op it will not be put in.