Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond: The Trilogy

by mariodeleon59

Behold a thrilling trio of tales from the world of Blood Blockade Battlefront! Along with returning characters you all know and love, the spotlight shines on a group of newcomers as they tackle reality-bending theaters, short-fused Blood Breeds, lunatics, gods, and family issues. Brace yourselves for the insane! Set two years after the start of the anime series.

3. Chapter 3

Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond: The Trilogy-Equinox Part 3: Curtain Rises

Welcome Back, last we left, the new recruits of Libra were getting to know their new home in HellSalem's Lot, thanks to senior agent Leonardo Watch, who offered to let them stay at his place for a short while until they figure out a proper home. During their first night in, Leo shares with the new guys some info on the capabilities of many of Libra's other heavy hitters, he even went and shared with them his own story, his possession of the All Seeing Eyes Of The Gods, which happen to be one of the most uniquely beautiful and powerful artifacts in existence, along with the tragic origin of how he got those eyes, and the involvement of his younger sister Michella, which costed her own eyesight. The recruits were moved by Leo's determination to restore true normalcy to his sister, so they henceforth name their own group Watch-Force in his honor. The next day, they head out early in the morning accompanied by Leo and other senior agent Zapp Renfro, to investigate the strange happenings in the even stranger theatre for the arts, one that is said to exist outside reality itself, known as the Equinox. Now, the show begins.

After staring in awe of the place for a minute or two, the group finally decide to head in before.

"Hey, here's an idea, why don't we mark the occasion?", asked Rhys.

"Are you serious?! You're on your first job with us and you wanna take pictures?! Christ, you're such a tourist kid", said Zapp complaining about this act of enjoyment.

"Cool it Zapp, it's not like this'll get in the way of the job, we haven't even started yet after all. Better to do this now than risk forgetting later", said Leo as Zapp didn't find his siding with Rhys much appreciated.

"Some help you turned out to be" said Zapp rudely.

"Then it's a good thing we hate each other's guts then. Rhys, if you want the picture to look back on this day, now's your best chance", said Leo encouraging Rhys, who much appreciates the go-ahead.

"Thanks a lot! And you guys?", asked Rhys to make sure the others got a say in this matter.

"I'm fine with that, sure", said Jennifer.

"Alright alright", said Gandolfo.

"Sounds fun", said Aiko.

"Make sure to get my good side, i.e., all of them", bragged Jyoji.

"Don't forget to get me in the shot too", said Sonic.

"Great idea, I'll get the camera out", said Nora as she pulls out her camera, and sets it up real fast. Zapp reluctantly uses a thread of his blood like a tentacle to hold the camera a decent enough distance and everyone got in a pose in front of the place.

"Can't believe I'm doing this", muttered Zapp to himself, but refused to say it to anyone since they mostly wouldn't care. About five seconds pass and the camera flashes and the picture comes out the front. Once that was done, Nora grabs the camera from Zapp and shows the picture to everyone.

"I look like a boss", said Jyoji proudly.

"I look like a total douche!", shouted Zapp in response to his appearance in the photo.

"Like there's a day when you look like the complete opposite of a douche", said Gandolfo harshly to Zapp's dismay.

"W-well the important thing is that we'll remember this day for the rest of our lives. Glad we got the chance to do this guys", said Rhys joyfully as Nora stows the picture in her backpack along with her camera.

"We'll make some copies for everyone when this is all over, for now let's head inside, our client's probably still waiting for us", said Leo as they all got their act together, acknowledged the suggestion, and go straight inside the Equinox. Once entering, they find themselves inside this massive empty room with nothing in there except a door on the far side, and a poster with listings for the coming event. They start to wonder where their client, until he pops out from nowhere, which surprises them a bit. Dressed in an all-white suit with a yellow neck tie, near-shaved haircut, his left eye milky blue, the other all black, the man is walking backwards casually from right to left, with a cigarette in his hand, and somehow doesn't notice them yet.

"Sorry, we're closed for the time being. Not allowing any exclusives, oh, I see, you're not the press", said the man as Leo approaches him while the rookies figure out what was that.

"Dude, felt like I was getting some Twilight Zone vibes for a sec", whispered Jyoji.

"Did anyone else see him when we came in?", whispered Jennifer.

"No, and it doesn't look like there's any doors here, no way he's got invisibility", whispered Rhys as Leo greets the man.

"No, we're not the press, we're with Libra, and Klaus sent us. I'm Leonardo Watch, this is my partner Zapp Renfro", said Leo as he and the man shake hands while Zapp lights a cigar, since it's clear smoking indoors is alright.

"Figured as much, Hazel said you were due in, just got wrapped up in some other business so I forgot about you for a bit. Old Klaus told me about you and the tanned guy behind you, but what about those six behind him?", asked the man, referring to Watch-Force.

"Oh, sorry sir, we're actually new to Libra, just started yesterday, I'm Rhys, it's a pleasure", said Rhys as he shakes the man's hand while the others introduce themselves.

"Pleasure's mine kiddo, and by the by, no formality required, I'm Cribbage so you know. (echoes) Welcome, to the Equinox", said the man called Cribbage with his voice now giving off an echo when he apparently reversed-smoked from that cigarette of his, like he inhaled the smoke that came from the cigarette that was just floating above him.

"Did that guy just take a smoke in reverse?", asked Gandolfo.

"Uh-huh, neat", said Aiko like I didn't faze her much.

"Hey there, Zapp right? Wanna be a good sport and let me try that cigar of yours?", asked Cribbage.

"Hell no, I paid for these, I don't gotta share them with anyone", said Zapp rudely before Cribbage goes and manages to casually inhale the smoke from the cigar, much to Zapp's dismay.

"Mmm, Cuban, nice choice pal", said Cribbage after tasting the smoke.

"Hey! Don't go inhaling someone else's cigar smoke 'pal!'", shouted Zapp in anger.

"Just let it go already, it's pointless, not to mention how silly that would sound to most people", said Jennifer.

"I couldn't agree more darling", said a disembodied female chipper voice, in the tone that comes from a radio, surprising the group.

"The heck is that? A ghost? Or maybe this place is some killer mansion like in the movies?", asked Jyoji.

"You're wrong on all fronts sport, that's Hazel, my lovely co-host. I know 'lovely' is an understatement considering she likes to keep herself out of view most of the time, but trust me, by the time you see her, the men among you will fall head over heels with her, I guarantee", said Cribbage with a smirk on his face to further hint at what he was implying. The ladies of the group were interested/confused, while Gandolfo shrugs it off, Rhys and Jyoji blush in response since they've never kissed a girl before, Leo sees it as no big deal since he's already in love, but Zapp however.

"Heh, if she's that hot, I'd do her", joked Zapp with such arrogance it may as well be a stench of its own.

"Zapp! That's inappropriate! I'm sorry to had to hear that Ms. Hazel!", shouted Rhys in defense and apologies of Hazel, a woman whose appearance he doesn't even know of.

"Hazel alone works fine champ, and it's no big deal, I'm more than used to it by now. Joining up with our host Cribbage, we welcome you to our fine establishment", said Hazel as Rhys collects himself just before the door behind Cribbage suddenly opens up.

"Well go on, do drop in, everyone's waiting", said Cribbage as he leads the group through the tour and starts to give them a tour of the place for a short period. The group is led into this long yet spacious hallway, red interior, fine beige carpeting with black swirls, small spaces apart from one another with comfy chairs or couches with little tables and a lamp, with a merry-go-round style piece of seating furniture in the middle, beyond that, is supposed to be a small series of doors, some of them especially marked for the current creators in residence, a staircase leading to the next floor, and some strange paintings hanging high up on the walls.

"This place is much more impressive from what Klaus described", said Leo.

"Yeah no kidding, it's incredible", said Rhys.

It's really cozy too", said Nora.

"Trippy is more like it", said Jyoji.

"We get that a lot too", said Hazel through this strange small light apart from the lamps that was fading out like the bulb was dying then goes back to shining bright like nothing at all, no doubt to mimic Hazel's speech pattern.

"To think I'd get to visit the actual Equinox theatre, it's practically a dream come true for me", said Jennifer as she was in a bit of awe looking around her surroundings.

"Glad you're enjoying yourself here. Now, as I'm sure you're aware of our current 'predicament', if there's anything you need to ask or see, just come find me or even talk to Hazel or one of the staff here", said Cribbage as he reversed smoked.

"Actually I was wondering, since Hazel can practically see what's going on around here, think she's caught a glimpse of whatever's causing the disturbances around here?", asked Leo.

"'Fraid not sport, I'm no god, I can tell ya that much about myself", said Hazel.

"Figured as much, knew it'd be too easy. Anyways, before we look further into this, we'd like to meet with the creators you got here", said Leo.

"Sure thing, as you surmised, the Equinox has three creators in residence at present, an artist, a musical act, and a filmmaker", explained Cribbage.

"But they're somehow languishing", said Hazel.

"Dying on the vine", said Cribbage to finish that thought.

"See for yourselves, I've already told the staff here about you folks, so no need to talk it out with them", said Hazel.

"Take your time with them, and once you're done, feel free to check out the rest of the place to find anything that could help you in your investigation. Here's a map to help you find your way around here", said Cribbage as he reached for Zapp's jacket pocket and a map if the place is suddenly pulled out from there, much to the others' surprise.

"Nice trick", said Rhys as Aiko applauds like a cheerful toddler.

"Seriously? Couldn't do something original, like I don't know, make it come out my ears or nose? Maybe even make it pop up taped to my back?", asked an unimpressed Zapp as he takes a smoke.

"How 'bout you make him puke the thing out next time?", asked Gandolfo harshly to Zapp's dismay.

"Hey!", shouted Zapp angrily.

"Oh I know, maybe come in the shape of a bird and make a cute little nest on his head?", asked Aiko adorably.

"Shut the hell up already!", shouted Zapp.

"Maybe even have it move like a mouse and scurry around in his clothes", chuckled Nora as Sonic sat on her shoulder and just swung his legs.

"So you noobs like magic tricks huh? How about I abracadabra you sorry losers into the nearest trash bin?!", shouted Zapp losing his calm before Leo then uses his God Eyes to hijack Zapp's eyes and makes him slam his face into the wall to his left a few times and stops, leaving him drained for a minute before he gets back up and deals with his cigar, then looks to Leo, who's not okay with this shit from him right now, "For the record, I let you get that one in".

"Whatever you say Zapp, sure", said Leo as Watch-Force were a bit taken back from that act.

"That's…one way to stop a fight", said Rhys followed by a nervous chuckle.

"Well if that's that, I got other matters to attend to, good luck to you", said Cribbage as he walks past them and before they knew it, he's just gone.

"Sorry, he's got a bad habit of doing that around the guests. Anyhow, happy hunting", said Hazel as the group gets their act back together before they make their move.

"So Leo, what's next?", asked Rhys.

"It's obvious we gotta meet with the creators and see just how warped they and their craft are by now. First up, let's go see the artist, they were the first to undergo the sudden change in their self and craft", said Leo.

"Lead the way, 'o fearless leader'", said Zapp sarcastically.

"Still sore about that dude? Man you got a hard time letting go", said Jyoji.

"Go play doctor with someone else turd-wallet", said Zapp rudely.

"Whatever man", said Jyoji trying to not let Zapp get to him so easily again. Then going down the hallway, the first door the group spots is specifically marked thanks to this sandwich sign next to it.

"'The Equinox Presents Artist-In-Residence: Marisol, In Dead Man's Party'. Guess that's the artist we're looking for", said Rhys as he read the sign.

"You got some real talent for stating the fricking obvious, kid", said Zapp sarcastically and rudely, though Rhys just felt a bit embarrassed about the moment, and before anyone could react, the door is suddenly swung open by this man dressed in a black suit and bow-tie, the most unsettling thing about him, is the dark gold smiling theater mask he's wearing, which catches the group off guard a bit.

"Ah!-oh hey, sorry about that, you just startled us a bit. We'd like to see Marisol's exhibit please? (moment of silence) Uh, excuse me, sir?", asked Rhys as the masked man just stood there staring at them for almost thirty seconds before he just closes the door on them to their surprise and chagrin, "Okay, wasn't expecting that".

"Shy probably?", asked Nora.

"Hey you opera-loving prick! Don't go closing the damn door on us! We're working here!", shouted Zapp angrily.

"Alright cool it Zapp", said Leo.

"Why should I?! The guy just totally shut the door in our face! Literally!", shouted Zapp again.

"Leo's right, jus calm down, I'm sure it's just some misunderstanding", said Rhys trying to be the reasonable one here, but Zapp's not having it.

"Here's what ain't a misunderstanding: me kicking that door right in that guy's fat mask loving face!", grunted Zapp as he was readying himself for a heavy kick on the door before it just slowly opens up on its own to the group's surprise, even more so when the man is no longer standing there.

"He's gone", said Rhys stunned.

"Guess we can go inside after all" said Jennifer.

"The guy couldn't even stick around to lead us in? If that's not shit common courtesy I don't know what is", said Gandolfo.

"Guess that means no door-kicking huh Zapp?", asked Aiko cheerfully.

"Whatever, I would've held back", said Zapp feigning ignorance.

"I'll bet, let's go guys", said Leo as the others agree and follow him through the door, which reveals this huge room, with several various sculptures, all of them skeletons of dead men as the title implied, scattered around the place in various poses and situations, all of them made of candle wax. The first one they really spot is not too far from the door, with one skeleton placed on a small pedestal, panicking and shielding himself from the light of a candle. Another one involves two skeletons playfully sharing a cigarette, the candle one is holding to represent the cigarette, even one piece of three skeletons in a conga line, looking at the strange and not-too-dedicated craft, one thought was racing through the heads of the group as they examined the state and form and effort of these sculptures.

"The fuck is this, a high-society art gallery or a lame-ass kindergarten collage of bullshit?!", demanded Zapp harshly as it echoed around the room. Okay this was one way to put it, it's true though.

"Not so loud Zapp, stick with your indoor voice", said Leo fiercely.

"Yeah dude, bet your brain is way more shitty than this whole exhibit", said Jyoji.

"That's not any better Jyoji", said Jennifer.

"Yeah, but this does suck ass though", said Gandolfo.

"It's kinda nice but this doesn't really fit into a big time art show right?", asked Nora.

"Maybe not, but it's definitely colorful", said Aiko.

"This definitely doesn't look right, if this was made for something that actually fits it, then it would make sense, but it doesn't fit here at all. I bet this Marisol lady is really talented, there's no way she'd think something like this would really impress some big critics or the general audience right?", asked Rhys as Leo also takes a closer look at one of the sculptures.

"You're right, this isn't something an up-and-coming artist would use as her debut to the world of art, no matter their reasons", said Leo as they notice this one big centerpiece of the exhibit. The piece they're staring at is of a skeleton walking on stilts, all painted pink, but the real kicker is who's standing in front of the painting, a woman clearly in her late twenties, green dress suit, black dress shoes, short black hair, brown eyes, this happens to be the artist Marisol, speaking with a man in one of those opera masks, and not looking to happy about what she's hearing, ashamed is more like it.

Too arts 'n crafts-y, reminds me of something one makes at Summer Camp", said the masked man harshly, it seems like the Equinox has its own band of personal critics to be among the first to sample and examine the work of the creators before the general public gets the chance.

"I've struggled to find the right medium. Sadly, all this time spent, and the results of my efforts are still nowhere near what they should be", said Marisol in a French accent, looking very gloomy and self-conscious about the whole exhibit.

"Well if the artist herself admits to how pointlessly childish this whole thing is, then the visitors and big time critics will tear you apart come opening day this Friday", said the masked critic rudely yet he spoke the truth.

"I'm well aware, if I can't display any high quality art to my potential admirers, then I may as well not be fit to make strides in the world of artistry", said Marisol sadly, and the group saw this whole thing go down.

"Wow, she really sucks", said Zapp bluntly.

"Zapp, be nice", said Nora.

"Oh come on, you know it's true, chick's bound to fall flat on her face at this rate", said Zapp harshly yet again.

"Doesn't mean she should, she's obviously poured a lot of her heart and soul into her art, Marisol doesn't deserve to fail when she's barely gotten started", said Rhys.

"All the more reason to figure this out, otherwise this whole event will go up in smoke. We'll figure something out later, for now we need to see the other two creators", said Leo.

"I think we should check out the musical act next, I've really enjoyed music, even some jazz on top of it", said Jennifer.

"Yeah, I'm fine with that, I've listened to some decent songs back home", said Gandolfo.

"Yeah I heard about your country's type of music, ya sing a lot of goat crying back there?", joked Zapp, which irritated Gandolfo a bit.

"That's in places like Switzerland I think", said Jennifer.

"Oh my bad, sausage boy all worked up because I got the kind of music he listens to all wrong?", joked Zapp some more.

"Go fuck yourself ya walking tanning booth", said Gandolfo.

"We'll see who's the tanning booth here when I'm done", said Zapp as he and Gandolfo stare down on each other fiercely.

"Another rumble incoming", said Aiko.

"Anyway, the musical act follow up sounds great Jennifer. We should probably stop them before they ruin the exhibit", said Rhys worried about Zapp and Gandolfo lashing out.

"I don't think this gallery can get any worse dude", said Jyoji.

"Regardless, we should get a move on already", said Leo as he and Rhys worked to get Zapp and Gandolfo to break it up just when they were about to go crazy. That took a couple obnoxious minutes but they finally got back on track and returned to the hallway, where just four to five feet from Marisol's room, was a door specifically marked for the second creator.

"'The Equinox Presents Musical-Act-In-Residence: Many Embers', huh, that's a nice name", said Rhys as he read the sign next to the door.

"Well, if it sucks at least they picked a name that's actually original", said Zapp as he lights a cigar.

"That's a bit much, but the name is unique, that's for sure", said Jennifer as they head inside, and they find the room to be a typical layout of what you'd find in a regular bar, several tables scattered around, with most of them taken by more of those masked critics, and there's the stage, with a microphone in place for the star/stars of the act. Each table holds up to four seats, so the group takes two tables close to the middle of the room, and they all seat themselves in groups of four made up of the same teaming as when they first drove to the Equinox.

"Looks like the show's about to begin, glad we got some of the best seats in the house", said Rhys.

"Wouldn't hurt if they offered drinks at least, we don't even know how long this act is supposed to be", said Zapp as he took a smoke.

"Just be glad they don't care if you smoke indoors dude", said Leo.

"Wished they'd kick out a bitch like you", said Zapp bluntly, but Leo wasn't up for it right now.

"Hey guys, I think it's starting", Nora as the audience quiets down and readies for the show to begin. Ten seconds pass by before the curtains on the stage rise up, and standing behind the microphone, is the one-man-band of Many Embers, who choose to be called after his band, dressed in a blue suit, blue shoes, wearing shades, sporting a short and brown haircut, neatly combed, and the suit is covered in some Wild West designs.

"Thank y'all for coming, hope y'all are ready for a mighty fine performance here today at the Equinox! Now here goes", said Many Embers in a Western accent, then he starts singing a slow honky tonk tune while slouched, and slapping his right hand slowly against his leg at a steady beat to go with the music and the singing as well. The song's lyrics were something depicting the woes of disaster and catastrophe, but to practically everyone in the audience, the message wasn't able to convey with them because of the muse of Many Embers, which was way too laid back and cringe-y to gain a steady foothold on their interests. As this verbal nightmare of a hayride goes on, Leo and the others, who have various feelings towards this act, signal each other to get out along with a few of the masked critics. At last, they're outside, able to get a better handle on the situation.

"I felt like I was going deaf in there! This ain't no rodeo goddamn it!" shouted Zapp in frustration.

"I-It wasn't completely terrible", said Rhys awkwardly.

"Are you fricking high or something, kid?! We're not some outlaws coming in for a honky tonk after wrangling some stray cattle!", shouted Zapp.

"If that was some half-assed cowboy joke, it sucked", said Gandolfo.

"A for absolute downer dude, for sure", said Jyoji.

"I kinda liked it", said Aiko.

"You like almost anything", said Gandolfo and Aiko acknowledges this fact.

"Western musicians aren't uncommon, but somehow Many Embers wasn't making his muse the slightest bit enticing, despite his efforts", said Jennifer.

"I didn't like it too much either, but was he really that bad?", asked Nora.

"Yeah, he was", said Sonic simply.

"That's a bit much", said Nora in response.

"Sad thing is most people have a lot of tastes, country music isn't one of them. Let's go, there's still one more creator we need to check out", said Leo.

"Mr. Cribbage said the third creator was a filmmaker right?", asked Rhys.

"Exactly Rhys, let's check it out", said Leo as he and Zapp lead the group down the hall to the room for the third and final creator in residence.

"'The Equinox Presents Filmmaker-In-Residence: Avery Arnault'. This is it", said Rhys as he read the sign.

"I can't wait to see what we'll make of this mess", said Gandolfo as they head inside, bracing themselves for whatever they're going to see. Once inside, they find the room as a typical movie theater auditorium, half of the seats taken by those masked critics, the rest are empty. The group goes and finds some decent seats in the heart of the auditorium, once they're seated, a man dressed in proper attire, with black hair, green eyes, and a goatee, walks out from the left of the screen and into the center to greet the audience, no doubt Arnault himself, makes sense since he's the creator.

"What? No snacks? (thud) Ow! Not cool", said Jyoji as Jennifer reminded him to mind his manners as the show's already about to start.

"Hello everyone! And thank you for being among the first to sample my film debut! I promise this movie will not only provide quality entertainment, but also serve to be quite thought-provoking to boot, as is with most of the industry's finest movies. Now, sit back, relax, and please enjoy the show", said Arnault as he steps aside, walks out of view to who-knows-where, and the lights dim down as the film starts to roll.

"You know guys? I know things aren't looking too good for Marisol and Many Embers, but I got a solid feeling Mr. Arnault will have gotten his work right, I can tell", said Rhys positively as the film begins. It all starts with a brief introductory prologue, like most films, the prologue serves to hook the audience and get them wanting to see this through to the end credits, but what the group is about to see is the opposite of what was intended. The following is as goes:

In the world of tomorrow…

"Invaders from Kepler 62-E have atomized Peoria, a major Mid-Western hub", said a news announcer with two other men. So far the group is intrigued.

Our only hope…

Is a ninth-grade science class.

THAT'S when they're caught dumfounded and stunned.

"We only have this class period, forty three minutes, to teach you every last detail about botany, or the Earth…is doomed", said the classroom teacher as the screen shifts from a teacher and his class, to a few pictures of chemicals interacting with one another, to a close-up shot of the planet which fades to black before the title shows up in front of an atomic explosion.

Biology Movie: The Movie

The group was absolutely stunned with what they're seeing, and were no doubt thinking it'd be best to avoid seeing the whole movie, but it seems Zapp already thought of it when they spot him desperately sprinting for the way they came in, like his very life depended on it, easier for him since his seat was closest to the walkway. The rest of the group doesn't think twice as they follow his lead for once and carefully yet swiftly rush out the auditorium like they were escaping some serial killer. Zapp was halfway down this corridor by the time the others catch up to him, also trying to catch their breath as they pushed themselves way too hard just to get out of there, but they were a bit disturbed to find Zapp on his knees literally crying in mental agony.

"(ugly crying) OH I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!", yelled Zapp in absolute frustration while gritting his teeth as the rest of the group collects themselves.

"Seriously?! Making a movie out of biology?! That's like the worst class I've ever had!", shouted Jyoji.

"Was it really the absolute worst?", asked Jennifer.

"Okay fine, somewhere in the top ten at best, but still hated it!", shouted Jyoji.

"I'm actually glad I didn't wanna watch a movie for once", said Nora as Sonic looks a bit dazed since clinging to her shoulder meant a lot of shaking when she jumps or runs.

"Funny thing you guys, I actually didn't think I'd wanna ignore a movie either, this is new to me, and I almost never hate movies", said Aiko like it's news to herself.

"Yeah no shit", said Gandolfo.

"I'm really sorry I spoke too soon, you guys", said Rhys feeling somewhat guilty for speaking too soon about their predicament.

"Well saying your sorry doesn't change the course of history! That was a motherfucking disaster on the silver screen!", shouted Zapp in a douche-y and angry manner at Rhys, who's feeling bad enough as is.

"He's right, this time at least. This just confirms it, something's going on that's literally changed the past of all three of those creators, making their craft into something it just wasn't supposed to be", said Leo as the group was finally getting their act together.

"Yeah, but what do you think it might be anyway?", asked Rhys.

"No idea, but whatever it was, it's not clinging to them like gum on a shoe that's for sure. I got a quick peek with my God Eyes, all three of them were clean, and meaning there wasn't anything standing out that would show signs of time manipulation. If there was, something like that would have left some trace no matter how perfect it was pulled off", explained Leo to the others.

"So whatever did this to them, was definitely some outside force?", asked Rhys.

"That's right, this gives me an idea. I wanna check out what they have for a security room and look over the footage of the disturbances and the times those staff members were attacked", said Leo.

"I see where this is going, you want to confirm the source of the problem definitely can't be seen on a camera, but you want to know exactly where the occurrences all went down", said Jennifer as the others were slowly stunned by this brief exchange between her and Leo.

"Yep, that way I can mark down those spots on the map Cribbage gave us and go scan them with my God Eyes to see if there's something left behind so I can get a better idea on whatever's doing this", explained Leo.

"Hold up man, with those crazy eyes of yours, wouldn't it be way faster if you use them to check the whole place out?", asked Jyoji.

"True, but I shouldn't be using them all over the place, just because we're guests here doesn't mean we can go poking around in the business of everyone else here, even if they never found out. Besides, I try to make a point of not having to rely on my powers too much, otherwise it becomes a crutch, and not a really good one either, if you get what I mean", explained Leo as this definitely clicked something in Watch-Force, as they know what it's like.

"Yeah, I think we do, thanks Leo, we'll be sure to do the same", said Rhys gratefully.

"No problem, speaking of which, Rhys, I want you, Nora, and Jennifer to stick with me as we go over that footage when we get there. Gandolfo, you, Aiko, and Jyoji, along with Zapp, I need you guys to check in with Cribbage, tell him what we already learned and ask if there's anything else we need to know about this whole problem", said Leo as they all acknowledge this until.

"Fuck that, I'm gone", said Zapp as he starts to walk away.

"W-wait Zapp, where are you going?!", shouted Rhys in surprise.

"After all that dumb shit we had to deal with? I'm taking a break, I snuck a peek at the map and now I'm on my way to the bar on the second floor to drown myself in some booze just in case I'm not going nuts", said Zapp like this is no big deal.

"For Christ's sake pal, we're on a job here, you don't see me up for a drink right now", said Gandolfo irritated.

"Yeah well it's a good thing I don't got my panties in a bunch like it's something fierce, unlike SOME people", said Zapp rudely, making Rhys, Nora, and Jyoji blush from embarrassment for obvious kid reasons, Leo, Aiko and Jennifer differ in how it's no big deal to them, Gandolfo is obviously on the edge of snapping back at the guy.

"Don't push me bitch-face", threatened Gandolfo while gritting his teeth.

"(nervous chuckle) Try to calm down Dolfo, just take some slow deep breathes, so we don't end up accidentally bring this place crashing down on everyone here if it's possible", said Rhys nervously as things were heating up a bit with Gandolfo.

"Look I'm not gonna go leave everything to you guys, I just need a drink or two, or three maybe, so I can feel like myself again", said Zapp.

"You mean a ginormous asshole? Doesn't take much", joked Jyoji.

"Piss off waterboy! I'll go get a drink, and kick back until you guys call me if you find something huge and I'll come running, happy?", asked Zapp losing his patience already.

"That's actually a good idea", said Rhys, then Leo steps in to reign in his partner.

"Yeah, I don't think so Zapp, you forget way too easily that I know you too well. That's not happening, unless one of us goes with you to make sure you don't go wandering around where you shouldn't", said Leo firmly, and Zapp didn't like this suggestion much.

"Unbelievable, you gotta go and take the fun out of almost everything I do, don't ya?!", demanded Zapp and a douche-y manner.

"Not really, but someone has to, might as well be me", said Leo in response before Jennifer walks in between them.

"It's alright Leo, I'll go with Zapp, keep him company and all that. Let us know when you need us", said Jennifer, which stuns Zapp a bit.

"Oh shit", said Zapp sadly in response.

"If you're alright with it, good luck to you then, and be careful, he's a real handful. Rhys and Nora, you're still with me, Gandolfo, Aiko, and Jyoji, you three still stick together. We know where to go and what to do, good luck", said Leo as the others agree and split up, leaving Zapp with Jennifer, much to his dismay. About ten minutes have passed since Zapp and Jennifer reached the bar, got a drink for each of them, Zapp offers to pay for hers this time, and were settled in, just enjoying some downtime until they need to act.000

"So, you gonna make a move or not?", asked Jennifer, sitting right next to Zapp on his right.

"Wait what?", asked a surprised Zapp.

"I'm only curious, I'm a year younger than you, that's one thing, but the fact that I'm a rookie agent, along with the others of course, shouldn't really stop you from trying to flirt with me since you're obviously a ladies man, a terrible one at best, no offense", said Jennifer trying to strike up some conversation with Zapp, an awkward and lousy one at best.

"You can't be serious, but I guess you are. There's plenty of hotties like you in the organization sure, but I don't ever bother hitting on them, I don't roll that way. And even if I did, Chain would go all wolf-bitch on me as usual and beat my ass senseless", said Zapp annoyingly as he takes a sip.

"Oh right, that Sumeragi lady, I mean Chain, sorry if I assumed wrong, a few guys almost like you tried to have their way with me once or twice, just needed to be sure you weren't gonna make a dumb move like that", said Jennifer as she takes a sip as well.

"I get ya, no worries", said Zapp.

"While we're on the subject, you and Chain really and obviously don't seem to get along too well. Think you'll ever be on real equal footing with each other?", asked Jennifer,

"No fucking chance in hell! That wolf-bitch has it out for me! I'd sooner sell my damn soul a million times over before I ever even TRY to get along with her! So forget it noob", said Zapp irritated.

"(sighs) I kinda figured as much", said Jennifer disappointed, though she knew something like that was too much to ask of from someone like Zapp of all people.

"Pardon me sugar face, but is this seat taken?", asked a woman who seems to be the same age as Zapp, medium length blonde hair, red eyes, wearing a red dress that ends just below the knees, full-open toed dress shoes of the same color, and an average yet decent sized bust, which it combined with her looks are what turn Zapp on instantly.

"Not at all hot stuff, ha huh, pop a squat right here", said Zapp with charm in a lecherous manner that was easy for Jennifer to figure out, as the red-dressed woman takes the seat right next to Zapp on his left, and takes off her shoes to get comfortable for now, and even more unusual about her is that, due to the size of the bar stools, the woman had enough space to sit cross-legged there like it's nothing. Hey, some people are just weird like that, "So sweet cheeks, ya got a name?"

"Jamie Burns is the name, but call me Jamie please. So, you two came in with that other bunch right? You're the guys they called in to help solve our problem", said Jamie casually as the bartender brings her a glass of vodka without her putting in an order, and no doubt it means she's a well-known regular here.

"That's us alright, don't worry about a thing Jamie, we're professionals after all, we'll get the job done and take good care of you, huh", said Zapp swooning a bit over Jamie, his womanizing instincts running the show as his gaze looms back and forth between her face, and her breasts, both at once in fact

"Pardon me, Jamie, but how did you know about that exactly? We didn't exactly announce ourselves and you couldn't be part of the staff", asked Jennifer.

"Quit brown-beating her already ya tree-green noob! Can't you see she's fricking sexy?!", demanded Zapp rudely.

Of course she is", said Jennifer sarcastically in response, almost forgetting who she's stuck with for the time being.

"No it's fine, I may not look it, but I do work here, I'm in charge of resources here by the way. I'm sure our host Cribbage already told you that he'd let the whole staff know about you guys so we wouldn't make some mistakes like kicking you out, so there", explained Jamie, still obviously casually trying to flirt with Zapp, to great effect no less, and just sits and takes a sip from her drink.

"Alright, thanks for clearing that up, sorry about that", said Jennifer.

"No problem, glad we understand each other now, so what about you big guy? Assuming you're not too busy, think if you got the time, ya wanna, get down and dirty? (chuckles joyfully)", asked Jamie as she really takes it forward with grabbing ahold of Zapp's left hand, and casually lets him rub her right cheek slowly, before then moving it down and letting him rub and even squeeze her breast a little, all while Zapp becomes all the more enticing, so much so that it's amazing he hasn't already tried to strip her and make out with her on the spot.

"Good grief, hard to believe this guy's one of my superior's and the partner of one who's much better at his job than he is, no less. Better snap him out of it", thought Jennifer.

"Well, I'm n-not working right now, I'm game if you're up for it babe", said Zapp with glee and his hand still on her chest as the two were about share a kiss until Jennifer pulls Zapp out of his seat and onto the floor.

"Keep it in your pants Romeo, can't afford to get lazy while we're on the job", said Jennifer with a bit of a snarky manner, while Zapp looks very pissed, coming back to reality.

"Fucking hell! Don't bud in ya pansy!", shouted Zapp as he got back up, ready to get back to his moment, until Jennifer's phone starts to ring.

"Hello? (Chatter over the phone) Of course, we'll be right there, got it", said Jennifer before she hangs up.

"The hell was that?", asked Zapp.

"It was Leo, he said he's found something interesting. He wants everyone to meet up at the location he sent us on our phones", said Jennifer much to Zapp's dismay.

"That's bullshit, I was gonna get laid here with one of the hottest babes I've ever met! And why the hell did you get a call from him and not me?!", demanded Zapp.

"He figured you were gonna get drunk anyway, so he wanted to call me to make sure we weren't goofing around", said Jennifer, irritating Zapp some more.

"Un-fucking-believable!", shouted a frustrated Zapp.

"Hey now, don't blow a gasket over little old me big guy, I won't stick around here the whole time you're gone, but I'll see you again soon enough, and we'll get to have some real fun in bed when we're both off the clock", said Jamie flirtingly, which turned Zapp on again before Jennifer had to literally drag him off a bit.

"Let's go, time's wasting", said Jennifer.

"We'll finish this up next time we cross paths gorgeous! Count on it!", shouted Zapp as Jennifer dragged him off and out of the bar while Jamie sat there and waved them off before getting back to her drink, even thinking some more about Zapp.

"He's a bit rough around the edges, but then again, I've always loved men like him", said Jamie happily to herself as she took a sip. As they were walking off, Jennifer was looking to her phone for where Leo and the others are while Zapp is still feeling rather grouchy over what happened just now.

"Complete shit is what it is, cock-blocked when I was THIS close, fucking hell", said Zapp angrily to himself before he notices Jennifer with this look on her face like something is on her mind, "What's with you?"

"Hm? Oh, sorry, it's about that Jamie lady", said Jennifer.

"I know, she's fricking hot, I'd do her a hundred times over if we can transcend the confines of space and time girl (laughs)", joked Zapp, but far from what Jennifer was really implying.

"Not what I meant, the way she was talking to us, it feels like we've heard it before, but I can't out a face with that kind of voice", said Jennifer.

"Come on, if we'd met that chick before I think we'd remember her. You're probably just being paranoid, can't say I blame you after the dumb shit we've already seen on this job so far", said Zapp in logical sense that's stunned Jennifer a bit but regains her composure.

"Yeah, sure" said Jennifer simply as she and Zapp continue to their destination. Following the directions given to them, Zapp and Jennifer reach this destination somewhere on the first floor, Leo and the others were already waiting for them there.

"Oh hey guys, glad you made it", said Rhys greeting them.

"Suck it punk, I was gonna make today a winner with some help from this chick, but in case you can't process it through those tiny brains of yours, let me put it this way. I was close to banging this super-hot babe I ran into at the bar until you morons go and ruin my fun, thanks a lot", explained Zapp as that clearer reveal makes the youngest of them minus Aiko blush in embarrassment, again for obvious reasons, while Leo just shrugs it off like a speck of dust on his shoulder.

"Anyways, we're here now, so Leo, what's up?", asked Jennifer as they all got together share their info.

"We checked out the security footage, and something did attack those staff members, most were still alive, but it wasn't a pretty sight either. I marked down the places where they all happened and was able to do a quick scan, even took my time with a couple places, except whatever did this could probably bend reality to its will in some way, just like the theatre itself, because the trace they left was either extremely faint, or there was no trace at all", explained Leo.

"We even went and talked to Cribbage, he and Hazel gave their best guess on how this is happening. Said something about some kind of games of skill and chance that can let you interact with fourth dimensional space", explained Gandolfo.

"Fourth dimensional space huh?", asked Jennifer.

"Sounds weird", said Zapp.

"Those two said that here all time exists at once, they just don't have what it takes to get a handle on it", said Jyoji.

"Makes sense in a way, those two are part of the theatre, but that doesn't mean they can control everything it can do. Then, there's these games they talked about, sounds like it's a surefire way to help the creators, and since they can't pull it off themselves, they no doubt figured any one of us might have a better chance than they do", said Jennifer.

"SO one of these games they talked about is down this stairway? Fucking losers can smoke in reverse, pop up where and when they want, set up all this art shit, but they can't win some LOUSY GAME?", asked Zapp irritated.

"I wouldn't put it that way, but when you think about it, I don't think they would've told us about this unless they were sure we could handle it", said Rhys.

"(chuckles) OR maybe they're freeloading off of us instead", joked Jyoji.

"Come on Jyoji", said Aiko.

"Hey I'm just pointing out the obvious", said Jyoji in his defense.

"Still seems too much", said Nora.

"Well either way, if this can help fix this change in the creators, we have to check it out for ourselves, let's head down there", said Leo as the others agree and they all head down this stairway that seems very long yet only took them about a minute or two to reach the end, once there, they see the entrance to the game room, marked as "Arcade" in neon above the entry way, and when they go inside, they find a not too big room with some purple neon lighting, and a power cable leading somewhere else. But the real kicker, is not only the strange black mirror on the way across the room, but the strange-looking arcade-style video game sitting right next to its right. Upon inspection, the group see this game implying a dark theme, bold and bleak colors with picture of several in-game monsters on the sides, and the title of the game reads above.

Maze Of The Space Minotaur

The group was a bit stunned with something like this, yet.

"A retro-arcade game in a 1920s theatre, yeah that makes sense", said Gandolfo sarcastically.

"Kinda surprised they even have something like an arcade game in this place, hey Dolfo, what did Mr. Cribbage say about this again?", asked Rhys.

"Not much, he was being vague in the sense, but he told me this thing just showed up out of nowhere, and they decided to make this into some unique addition to the game lineup they got here", said Gandolfo.

"How's this supposed to help us with the creators anyway?", asked Nora as Sonic was just lying on her shoulder.

"No idea, but it's the only lead we have at this point so we have to try it", said Leo as Zapp walks past him.

"Oh forget this, I didn't pass up get-laid time with that Jamie hottie, just to play some cheap-ass arcade game!", shouted Zapp in anger as he summons his Big Dipper Style blood sword.

"Wait Zapp, let's try to calm down!', shouted Rhys desperately yet Zapp ignores his plea as he makes a rightward swing at the arcade game, but upon making contact, the blade just bounces off, much to Zapp's surprise, he then takes a few more different swings at the thing, but to no avail.

"A warning would've been good ya dick!", shouted Jyoji as Zapp stops his onslaught.

"What the fuck?! This thing's still intact!", shouted Zapp in frustration and surprise.

"No shit Sherlock! Let me try", said Gandolfo as he summons his Power Hitter Blood Art baseball bat and wastes no time trying to smash the arcade game, but not a single dent can be found, "This thing's unreal alright".

"That was fun, let's do it again", said Aiko with joy.

"Yeah I'm thinking we cut back on the crazy stuff right now", said Jyoji.

"It's like trying to bring down a stone castle with nothing but a stick or a plain old sword", said Jennifer as she examined the arcade game.

"Hang on, Rhys, shrink down and look around the arcade game, see if there's a way for you to slip inside", said Leo as Rhys quickly got what he meant by that.

"Sure thing, I'm on it" said Rhys with confidence as he shrinks down and using his agility, he inspects the game from top to bottom, then he returns to normal size with bad news, "No go, there isn't a single panel or even an exhaust vent on this thing, it's not even plugged in so I can't get in from there, it's like this game is able to run on its own".

"I'd say that's pretty nuts, but considering where we are, it's not impossible", said Leo.

"Yeah no kidding, though I never thought I'd see an arcade game that could go on forever", said Nora as Leo steps up and runs a scan on the arcade game with his God Eyes to find out anything else about it, and the results he gets are definitely something else.

"Well, you were right about this thing having its own power source, I'm seeing a small but strong and steady flow of power coming from this thing, but it's very dark, as for what's inside that could be its power source or the key to solving this problem, there's nothing of significant value, no weird mods or anything like that, inside and out, aside from the bleak theme, physically speaking it's just a typical arcade game" explained Leo after he examined this thing himself with his God Eyes, and as he described, the game was giving off this dark aura of power, and was able to see inside like an X-Ray and took a close look at all the parts, nothing stood out as far as he could tell, he's no mechanic but anyone could tell what's supposed to belong in a machine such as an arcade game.

"Well considering the trashing it took, not to mention the fact that Cribbage sent us here, including what he told us, there's no way this isn't just a typical arcade game", said Jennifer going off of what Leo learned.

"So what's the plan then? Even if this piece of junk isn't normal, how's an arcade game REALLY gonna help those creators?", asked Gandolfo.

"The way I see it, our only real option here is to play it and find out for ourselves", said Leo as they others reluctantly agree without regret, most anyway.

"Can't believe we're playing some dumb game to save the day", said Zapp all grouchy.

"So then, if that's the case, who's gonna the one to try first?", asked Jennifer before Aiko and Jyoji zoom in front of the game in anticipation.

"I wanna play!", shouted the two of them in unison, then realizing the sudden singular move.

"Jyoji, please let me play?", asked Aiko kindly as usual.

"Tell me something Aiko, when's the last time you ever really played a video game. Scratch that, have you ever played a video game at all?", asked Jyoji.

"Well, there was this one time I was invited by one of our butlers to play at this old arcade in their old home town", said Aiko, like she's not done yet.

"But…?", asked Jyoji, waiting for her to finish.

"That was back when I was eight years old, heh", said Aiko like it's nothing at all.

"Oh, so when it comes to any video game experience, which of the two of us has that in spades huh?", asked Jyoji.

"It's you of course", said Aiko gladly.

"Exactly, so the way I see it, I should be the one among us to sample this fine piece of gaming machinery!", shouted Jyoji while puffing out his chest and acting all high and mighty, making Aiko applaud while the others, in their own way, stood there and didn't make much of a fuss about it.

"How about this then, just for fairness's sake, let's flip a coin, sound good?", asked Rhys as Aiko and Jyoji nod in agreement, and Rhys pulls out a quarter, flips it high in the air, catches it, and slams it on his hand.

"I call heads!", shouted Jyoji.

"Tails!", shouted Aiko, as Rhys reveals the coin did land on tails, which he chuckles about while Jyoji doesn't take this well.

"AW WHAT?! COME ON!", yelled Jyoji in frustration.

"Sorry Jyoji, rules are rules, Aiko, you won, so you get to go first", said Rhys as Aiko cheers in joy but pauses to pat Jyoji on the back as he freezes in shock.

"Don't worry Jyoji, there's always next time. Alright, let's go!", shouted Aiko with confidence as she starts up the game, which just took a simple button press as this thing doesn't even take money, another way of breaching the machine that Leo and Rhys couldn't find either. But not ten seconds pass before Aiko stumps the rest of the group when she loses right on the spot, "Aw I lost, well there's always next time".

"Doesn't ANYTHING phase this girl?", asked a dumfounded Zapp.

"I guess not, no", said Jennifer as Jyoji rushes in front of the game with a fire in his eyes.

"YES! MY TURN! Prepare to be amazed!", shouted Jyoji as he starts up the game right away like Aiko, and like her, he doesn't even bother trying to read the instruction manual section on the screen.

"Hey numb-nuts, don't ya think you should actually read the manual to find your way?", asked Gandolfo.

"Pfft, manuals are for amateurs pal, now watch and learn boys and girls!", shouted Jyoji with confidence as he starts playing and just tries to button mash his way to victory, but not too long after, he's left shocked in his crushing defeat with a seriously stunned look on his face.

"Well I guess we're amateurs then since that didn't take too long", said Nora.

"Yeah, you were as dead as disco", joked Sonic.

"Well uh, hey Jyoji, if it means anything, at least you lasted almost twenty seconds longer than Aiko on her turn", said Rhys trying to comfort his friend, but to no avail.

"WHATEVER! I'm just getting started", said Jyoji as his own brand of gaming arrogance wasted about five minutes of the group's time as he tried the same strategies over and over again, but no luck. At last he stops, again after five minutes, and cries in the corner in shame.

"Safe to say that was much worse than what I expected", said Leo.

"Yeah I'm calling some kind of bullshit, I mean who the hell ever heard of a kid who's played a ton of games lose to one a hundred and fifteen times in a row, in five minutes?! And yes, I counted it", said Zapp smoking a cigar as a couple others were wondering about that.

"Maybe a hundred and sixteen times is the charm?", asked Aiko.

"I think we'd all be better off if we didn't let that happen. Kinda felt like my brain cells were committing suicide one by one, wasn't fun", said Gandolfo as Nora was briefly comforting Jyoji with a pat on the back, who heard everything still.

"Not cool dude", said Jyoji as he resumed crying.

"Well, mind if I give it a go? I'm a decent gamer myself", said Rhys, and it didn't take long for the others to agree, better than letting Jyoji try another hundred times and fail.

"Alright then Rhys, go ahead", said Leo as he patted Rhys on the shoulder for a moment.

"Thanks Leo, you sure though?", asked Rhys.

"You ask me, it's a lot fucking better than the alternative, aka Mr. Joystick Fumbler", joked Gandolfo.

"Hey up yours ya jerk!", shouted Jyoji while still in a corner.

"Okay then, can't say I like the sound of that, but I'll do my best", said Rhys with confidence as he actually takes his time with the game and starts it up, and unlike those other two, he actually takes the time to read the opening introduction and instructions, of which the former was spoken a depressing and deep, hollow voice.

You are Ryker, sent on a mission to investigate a possible cosmic threat to a nearby solar system, and if possible, to eliminate said threat. But upon reaching the location given to you, you find yourself suddenly thrown into a trap, a strange labyrinth, home to some of the most dangerous and deadly cosmic beings in the whole universe. Now, you're forced to face these beings all on your own, armed with nothing but the tools at your disposal, and your wits. Now, you are in HIS world…

LOSE YOUR IDENTITY, IN THE MAZE…OF THE SPACE MINOTAUR.

"Well that's ominous, but no turning back now", said Rhys as he was a bit uncomfortable with such an introduction as the instructions appeared, including a list and specifics on the enemies to be encountered in the game.

The tools at your disposal require energy, your gauge contains six bars of power, and each weapon uses a specific amount.

The Laser Sword is silent and self-charging, but it's weak. Requires no energy charges.

The Blaster is powerful, but is loud and will attract some enemies. Requires two energy charges.

The Teleport Pack will transport the player randomly across the maze, but it requires a lot of energy and could place you in a bad spot. Requires five energy charges.

The Traps are explosive mines that blast outwards in all directions. Requires three energy charges.

Now for your foes…

Pinback: a silver massive near-cone shaped mechanical head with two clawed arms, four crab-like legs, small pink-glowing eyes, a small, frowning gapping mouth, and a glowing dome on top. He will either slash at you or blast you from a distance. Here he is blue and pink.

Nebula: A silver metal fearsome, teleporting space steed, with red eyes, pointed legs, four large blades going down his head, and a bladed tail. Here is appears green.

Marduk: A giant silver metal skull with big round red eyes, four spikes going down the back, a devil's tail, two hoofed legs, and dual lances on either side. He will attempt to charge at you after three seconds. He thirsts for the blood of poets. Here, he is dark blue.

The Void: A flying silver metal enemy, with form of a pyramid-shaped dagger with bat wings, and a red eye in the center. It will attempt to blast you from afar. Here it is pink.

The Space Minotaur: The worst of the beings and ruler of the maze. A silver muscular enemy, a bull-like humanoid who will charge at you instantly upon making visual contact and will hunt you relentlessly unless you are at a safe distance. Here he is red.

"Okay that last part's gonna be tricky, here goes nothing", said Rhys a bit nervous but determined all the same.

The game begins, and it opens up to Ryker, who is yellow with a red upside down triangle collar, and his surroundings are revealed to be the maze itself, very large, almost Pac-Man based, then the foes appear, scattered across the maze, then the hit bars show up, each foe, including Ryker, has about three pegs in their bar, and three lives each, but the Space Minotaur is the lord of the maze so he gets six pegs in his bar, with six lives as well. Ryker first encounters The Void, flying around this one sector, and tries to stealth-kill it with the laser sword, but only gets two pegs and is forced to flee for the time being as The Void finds out and chases him while blasting him, missing each time, so Ryker is forced to use his blaster to finish off The Void right now and collects a shard of energy from where it fell, which reveals that each enemy has about fifteen seconds until they revive each time they die.

But it was a poorly desperate move on his end as Ryker alerted Marduk, which happened to be close by and Ryker was lucky enough to avoid Marduk as the enemy took three seconds to charge and attack, but as he makes his way through this one area, Ryker was found by Marduk this time, and Ryker decides to utilize the traps, and sets one up just as The Void returns and happened to have spotted Ryker. Ryker then sets up the trap and with it being set up in the middle of this long stretch-way, and sacrifices a peg from his bar when Marduk rushes in at last and lands a blow on him to lure him in, but then Ryker quickly takes out The Void with his laser sword after a few slashes and then uses the fallen energy shard to help fill up his teleporter and get out of there in time, winding up somewhere else in the maze, and takes out Marduk with the trap in one fell swoop.

But by the time he notices, and Marduk and The Void return, Ryker finds himself with Nebula, who had just teleported around that area, and takes two seconds to charge at Ryker, taking out a hit from his bar, so he desperately swings his laser sword at the steed, and was lucky enough to take him out and collect his energy shard. He then moves on and finds Pinback, who spots him right away and tries to shoot at him but misses. Ryker then attempts to sneak up on Pinback and hits him with his laser sword a couple times, and gets one peg out, but Pinback was able to land a blow on him, killing Ryker. Ryker then appears in the middle of the maze again, having only two lives left, but so does Nebula and Marduk, and The Void only has one left, but Pinback still has all three lives. And then trouble really rears its ugly head when The Space Minotaur finally stumbles upon Ryker, who was able to get in a couple quick blasts on him, but then had no time to dodge his charge attack and takes a serious hit. Ryker runs away and reaches a corner path in time to set up two traps at the end of this corridor and then lures The Space Minotaur into following him that way, but not before that Minotaur hits him, taking yet another peg from the bar, but then Ryker gets the Space Minotaur to charge at him and against the wall where the two traps were laid out, and around the corner, he detonates them, killing the beast, which, as suspected, took two lives from the big guy, really doing some damage.

Once he was dead, Ryker had the time to grab the two shards he dropped and recharge his weapons, so then he goes and deals with Pinback, and lays two traps as before with the Space Minotaur, and gets two of his three lives easy, and collects his two shards. Once fifteen seconds pass, Ryker goes to finish Pinback at last, he gets him to chase and shoot at him, but once he leads him down this part of the maze, Ryker hides around the corner and once close enough, he takes out Pinback at last with his laser sword, and after a couple slashes, Pinback was no more. Though victory was far from achieved, because after he grabs the last shard from Pinback, Ryker has no time to notice The Space Minotaur from across the pathway and charges right away, killing Ryker. Now Ryker revives, and with one live left to give, so he needs to tread carefully, or else all is lost. Ryker wastes no time in tracking down The Void, which starts following him and so Ryker takes a shot at it with his blaster, taking one peg, and then he manages to lose it, then ambushes from behind and takes another shot with the energy sword, rapidly slashing to finish it quick, and succeeds, The Void is gone. Now with that shard collected, Ryker tries to track down Nebula, but he finds him first, so he decides to use a trap for him once he gives himself enough time to dodge a charge, and shoots him from behind, taking a peg out, then sets up a trap and then Marduk shows up, which proves convenient for Ryker, as he instead goes and take out Nebula at last, then uses his last fallen shard to fill his energy bar, teleports out, then finishes Marduk in time with the trap.

Now The Space Minotaur is all that remains, and he won't be so easy to finish, as he accelerates his pursuit and wastes even less time hunting his target, but Ryker persists as he carefully makes his way to the fallen shard from Marduk, and narrowly facing death from The Space Minotaur, and finally reaches it. Once he does, he gets caught by the hunter, and sticks to his guns, literally, as he rapidly fire off at the beast, and with the gun alone, takes out his third life, but not before The Space Minotaur was able to take a peg out with that insta-charge attack of his. Ryker then collects the shard, then readies for his enemy's next move, which would come sooner than expected as Ryker tries to set a trap, then once that was done, he had made a poor attempt at slashing at him with the laser sword, but after a couple hits and loses a peg, the beast lands a hit on him, so Ryker tries to get away, and after some twists and turns with the beast in hot pursuit, he was able to set a trap, and detonated it, taking out another life from the beast. After collecting that fallen shard and the beast comes back, Ryker notices that he's moving faster and faster now, meaning less time to rely on the traps and the teleporter will put him in a bad spot if he has to rely on the laser sword alone, and it didn't take long at all for The Space Minotaur to find him after rushing around like a real mad bull, and so Ryker decides to place all his bets on his blaster and after some close calls, and some extremely narrow movements, Ryker is able to fell the beast with the blaster alone. Once collecting the shard, the beast returns for one last bout, and with one peg left, and on his last life, Ryker makes his bold move, and heads straight for the beast directly. Ryker first attempts to get a few slashes in the beast with the laser sword, and once he takes a peg out, he makes a mad dash and almost loses his life when the beast turns and charges for him, only to hit a dead end. Then Ryker goes for the killing blow and with a small barrage of shots from his blaster, thus he has finally defeated the beast at long last.

Then once the quest was done, the screen fades to black before these mighty words in bold green lettering appear with Ryker floating past them.

Feat Accomplished: Vanquished The Space Minotaur

Turns out this was so strenuous and nerve-racking, it took Rhys almost twenty minutes to pull this off the way he did, and everyone else, even Jyoji, was impressed.

"I-I can't believe I actually pulled it off, I actually won", said Rhys still stunned over his victory.

"Way to go Rhys, nice one", said Nora as she held his hand.

"Yay! You did it!", shouted Aiko as she hugged him with such joy.

"Gotta say, didn't peg you for a kick-ass gamer", said Gandolfo.

"Even I couldn't've pulled it off like that", said Jennifer.

"Not world class, but still decent I guess", said Zapp sounding a bit jealous.

"You jealous or something Zapp?", asked Jennifer jokingly.

"In your dreams ya broad!", shouted Zapp in response.

"Nice work Rhys, I'm impressed", said Leo as he patted Rhys on the shoulder.

"Thanks Leo, it means a lot", said Rhys in response with a smile.

"The hell man?! How come I couldn't be that badass?!", demanded Jyoji in denial and shame.

"Because you rushed in?", asked Nora.

"Because you didn't read the instructions?", asked Aiko.

"Because you suck ass at arcade games?", asked Gandolfo rudely.

"Shut up! Not what I meant", said Jyoji sour about those answers.

"Easy Jyoji, I'm just as surprised as you are, I just got in the zone, and all that, sorry if I ruined the moment for you", said Rhys deeply.

"Fine yeah, w-whatever man, just be glad I'm such a good friend", said Jyoji blushing and a bit shameful again for his behavior, where Rhys smiles in response.

"So, now what? I won the game, but nothing's happening", said Rhys looking confused as he looks at the screen, which still says what he did, "'Feat Accomplished', I didn't even know there were feats in this game to begin with".

"Guess that's saved for when you actually win the game", said Leo.

"Yeah it could be that, but personally I don't see why it's a-", then Zapp was abruptly cut off when a quick flash of light from the screen caught the group by surprise, stinging Zapp's eyes while everyone else was able to shield their own, "GAHH! I looked right into it! It's like looking into a laser pointer, fuck I'm gonna be seeing spots later!"

"Geez, what was that? Maybe a surprise from the game?", asked Jennifer as the game returns to the start-up screen.

"(groaning) No, I don't so, but it was a surprise alright", said Leo as everyone was finally readjusting.

"Looks like we're all fine!", shouted Aiko.

"Yeah speak for yourself brat!", shouted Zapp, still a bit disoriented from looking right into the light.

"(laughs) Sure glad I ain't you buddy", said Jyoji jokingly.

"Well we'll see who's laughing when one of us is face flat on the pavement, and spoiler alert: It's not me who's eating concrete", threatened Zapp.

"Go ahead 'gramps', I'll wait for you to get your glasses on before we go at it, maybe even your contacts if they'll help better", joked Jyoji.

"Why you rotten bastard!", shouted Zapp in anger as he and Jyoji briefly butt heads while Jennifer tries to break them apart, and Gandolfo just shrugs it off, meanwhile.

"Hey Rhys, where'd that weird glove come from?", asked Nora as Rhys inspects his left hand when he collects himself, and then the others stop what they're doing and he finds himself wearing some kind of black leather glove with the palm exposed in the center like a perfect circle, but that's not the strangest part, as they'll soon find out.

"Holy cow! The back of my hand, I can see right through it!", shouted Rhys in shock as a few others react the same way, as the exact same circle-shaped spot is on the back of the glove, but Rhys can see right through it, as if that space in his hand was just gone with no trace. Rhys panics a bit while trying to figure this out.

"Calm down Rhys, this doesn't really mean anything bad, it's just the glove no doubt. When you think about, there's no other way your hand could be doing that", said Leo as Rhys took those words to heart and those who also panicked calmed down as well, and take a closer look at the black glove. Just in case…

(deep breath) Alright, just in case…", said Rhys as he tries putting his right hand through the hole, but can still feel something there that resembles that portion of his hand, "Well, I can still feel my hand even in this spot, so that's something. Thanks Leo, I'm not used to something THIS crazy".

"It's fine, I would've reacted the same way back when I was a rookie", said Leo to relate to his friend and trainee, who appreciates it.

"So what's this for anyway?", asked Rhys as Leo inspects the glove as well.

"No idea, but this is probably the means to helping those creators, maybe that mirror is part of the solution", said Leo as he inspects the mirror with his God Eyes for a moment, then has Rhys come closer to the mirror, "Hey Rhys, go ahead and move your hand like you're putting it up against a wall".

"Whoa, it's pretty", said Aiko in awe as Rhys had his hand positioned as so and with the hole from the glove revealing the symbol of an old camera in orange on the lower left of the mirror, which briefly read "Medium", then Rhys move his hand around and when he positions it at the top center of the mirror, he sees a yellow picture of a microphone that briefly read "Message", when he moves it to the lower right, it's a purple picture of a female face smiling, which briefly read "Muse".

"Dude this is far out", said Jyoji in awe.

"It's like some kind of trick mirror", said Nora in awe.

"Except it isn't, this mirror is kind of like a separate reality, only my God Eyes can see past the veil and look at what it's hiding. Well, not just my eyes, that black glove too from what we just found out", explained Leo as Rhys examines the glove again and has a look at all the different markings on the mirror, then he spots something else out.

"Hey guys, I'm not the only one seeing this right? That face at the top of the whole mirror?", asked Rhys as the others look up.

"No kiddo, you're not seeing things, I see it too", said Gandolfo.

"Same here, is that who I think it is though?", asked Jennifer as the face happens to be of someone they already know of.

"Yeah, it's Ms. Marisol, I guess this is for her, this glove could definitely be what we need to help them all with their pasts. Problem is, what exactly do we change?", asked Rhys as he uses the black glove to help everyone see what's on the mirror so Leo doesn't need to hack all their eyes, easy as it is for him, this method is much easier.

"Good thinking, we got no clue what about her past we gotta change, don't wanna mess it up", said Zapp.

"Here's an idea, the glove is showing us options between the medium, message, and muse. The art behind Marisol, her muse was acceptable, and the message was clear, the problem was her medium of course", said Jennifer.

"Oh yeah, that guy said Ms. Marisol's art was like something you make at Summer Camp, right?", asked Nora.

"Now that you mention it Nora, it's true. So if that's the case, let's hope this doesn't leave Ms. Marisol any side effects", said Rhys.

"Go for it Rhys, just watch yourself", said Leo as Rhys nods in agreement and he tries to figure out the way to activate the change like pressing a button, then he literally mimics his hand pressing a big button, and suddenly there's a bright flash like before, and everyone but Zapp was able to shield their eyes in time.

"AGH! WHAT THE HELL?! AGAIN?!", demanded Zapp as he tried to fix his eyes, while the others recover in time to notice something different.

"Hey dudes, were those huge power cables lying there before we came down here?", asked Jyoji, and before anyone could answer, they hear some music upstairs.

"Are we close to Marisol's room? We're not anywhere near it", said Gandolfo.

"Well this theatre does exist outside reality, anything goes I guess", said Jennifer.

"Yeah, let's check it out", said Leo as the others agree, even Zapp once he got his eyesight back. As everyone treks up the stairs, they can see a faint light coming from below the door, and once they open it, they're surprised to find Marisol and her exhibit radically changed, from sculptures to multimedia, as the whole group sees her, and some others in the room with all sorts of boards and lamps, and special equipment taking in plenty of power all spread out. Now the exhibit is called "X-Ray Vision", appropriate I know.

"This really is X-Ray Vision alright, amazing", said Rhys in awe.

"It's so pretty", said Aiko in awe.

"It rocks", said Jyoji in awe.

"It's so damn bright, ah my eyes are still effed up", said Zapp in annoyance and slight agony.

"I wanted to show people a sight they've never seen! Their own skull, their own skeleton, ambulating, FULL OF LIFE! I thought, X-Rays! All perfectly safe! Tested it on the interns last night", said Marisol as she gave her small audience a brief rundown and demonstration of her craft, which proved to be more than remarkable.

"Indeed, very few artists could make use of X-Rays in the world of multimedia, let alone the art world. Marisol, I think you're gonna go far!", shouted a masked critic standing not too far from Marisol, then one figure notices the group and walks over to them.

"Well done champs, I figured you'd have the chops to fix Marisol's artwork", said the man who seemed familiar.

"Wait, Mr. Cribbage, is that you? I'm sorry, but with these X-Rays it's hard to tell who's really who exactly", said Rhys as the group inspects themselves and are amazed with how they can literally see each other's skeleton without use of Leo's God Eyes or any other certain types of equipment.

"I don't like how bright it is in here, but man, I'm totally tripping balls in here", said Zapp.

"This is fun", said Aiko as she and Nora played around a bit with this show.

"That's right my boy, thought I'd stop by and see this first hand. Glad you're impressed, in a way, this was your time as well, since you went and fixed what was broken in the first place", said Cribbage as he skeleton goes and reverse-smokes, which is a weird sight to see.

"Keep up the good work sluggers", said Hazel through a special lamp on a faraway table.

"Sure thing, we'll go and help the other two creators right away! See you in a bit", said Rhys as he and the rest of the group close the door behind them and return to the mirror.

"Alright, we started helping those three in one order, might as well do this in that same order", said Leo as Rhys tries something with the face of Marisol on the top of the mirror, and when he mimics pushing a button, the face changes to Many Embers.

"Huh, that was easy, so any ideas on what to do with Many Embers?", asked Rhys as Jennifer uses the black glove he's wearing to take a closer look at the symbols again.

"Going over what he offered, I'd say his muse was the only real problem he had", said Jennifer.

"Muse it is then", said Rhys as almost everyone on cue readied to shield their eyes, except Zapp of course.

"Hey wait I need a second-!", but Zapp was cut off when the bright flash of light indicating the change goes off and fries Zapp's eyes yet again.

"That wasn't so bad" said Rhys before this.

"YEAH SPEAK FOR YOURSELF YA BRAT! MY EYES ARE ROASTING HERE FOR CHRIST'S SAKE!", yelled Zapp.

"Oh shoot, sorry about that Zapp!", shouted Rhys all worried.

"Yeah are you alright?", asked a concerned Nora.

"Sounds like someone needs some love", said Aiko cheerfully, then Zapp, with what little vision he had at the moment, got more furious.

"NO WAY KIDS LIKE YOU CAN BE THAT DUMB!", yelled Zapp in a manner that startled those three before Leo stepped in and handled things.

"Easy Zapp, you've been through worse, nothing some rest and actually avoiding any serious bright light can't fix", said Leo.

"Don't tell ME what to do ass-hat", pouted Zapp.

"Dude's dealt with worse than this? No surprise there", said Jyoji.

"Oh yeah, almost all the time, even more so with the women he spends every other night with", said Leo which makes Rhys, Nora, and Jyoji blush and feel embarrassed.

"Stop going around and telling other people my business Leo!", shouted an awkward Zapp.

"This is just sad", said Gandolfo.

"We uh-should probably go and check on Many Embers now", said Rhys trying to contain his embarrassment.

"Agreed", said Jennifer as everyone tried to get their act together and go up the stairs, now suddenly they find themselves in that open theater again, and with a small audience of masked critics gathered up, Many Embers appears on stage for a brief talk, except now he's wearing the same outfit but lacking in the cowboy extras and is red rather than blue.

"Hello Equinox! Hope you're ready for the cure to a bleak day, because it's time for an upbeat day with Many Embers!", shouted Many Embers as the music starts up, and as intended, it's a steady upbeat melody with drums and guitars, and the man starts singing this upbeat song with some strange lyrics that would sound pretty dark on their own or in any other form of music but with that cheerful tone and instrumentals they are made to work in all the right ways. The group was blown away with such a joyful performance and even Zapp almost danced away to it before he stopped to maintain his composure. After the song ended about three minutes later, the group closes the door and return to the mirror to discuss what they saw.

"Whoo man! Haven't felt that good after listening to a song ever", said Jyoji feeling very joyful.

"That was so stinking beautiful!", shouted Aiko overflowing with more joy than she usually is as she and Nora engaged in a brief celebratory dance.

"Reminds me of some of the folk music they played back home when I was a bit younger", said Gandolfo.

"How young exactly? Back in your elementary school days perhaps?", asked Jennifer jokingly, to Gandolfo's dismay.

"Can it", said Gandolfo in response.

"Yeah I thought this song would suck ass even more so than the last one, but I'm surprised I didn't feel like blowing chunks that whole time", said Zapp.

"Did Zapp actually say something nice about someone's work? That's a first", joked Sonic.

"Piss off fleabag", said Zapp irritated.

"That's not nice Sonic", said Nora gladly.

"Doesn't mean it's not true", said Sonic.

"Fair enough", said Nora as she pets Sonic.

"I hate that monkey so much", said Zapp even more irritated.

"This is going good so far, that leaves Mr. Arnault now", said Rhys as he took a look at the black glove again, impressed with how something like this piece of fabric even exists to peek into reality like the God Eyes that Leo has.

"Muse and medium were fine, now after seeing that opening scene for Arnault's movie-", then Jennifer was abruptly cut off.

"Which was totally moving cancer on the big screen", said Jyoji cutting in.

"Yes, that, it's obviously the message is the issue we have to deal with", said Jennifer.

"Alright then, time for a change in the message, get ready guys", said Rhys as he prepared to make the change or Avery Arnault once the mirror was set for him, then this happens.

"Hey, sweet score, mine no-", Zapp was about to pick up a quarter that one of the others must have dropped and got seriously blinded by the changing flash for a four time in a row.

"Alright, this movie better be good", said Jyoji in anticipation.

"Only way to know for sure is to see for ourselves, and risk losing our minds at best", joked Leo as Zapp was rolling on the ground and rubbing his eyes fiercely in agony.

"SWEET JESUS FUCK! AM I GONNA GO BLIND WHEN THIS IS ALL OVER OR SOMETHING?! FUCKING SHIT!", yelled Zapp as the others finally notice and check on him.

"That's a real miracle if you ask me", said Gandolfo harshly.

"Oh man Zapp, I'm so sorry! That wasn't what I meant to do, you okay?!", demanded Rhys as he knelt down and checked up on Zapp. But then Zapp pulls Rhys in close to his face by the collar, and stares at him with such fury, his eyes all red and watery from the light and the intense rubbing.

"I. HATE. YOU. SO. MUCH. You're gonna be so sorry rookie", said Zapp in such a terrifying manner that it filled Rhys and a few others with much fear, and Rhys, with a look of nervousness and dread on his face, remains frozen in that spot for a full twenty seconds after Zapp releases his grip.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm halfway there to making a huge mess in my pants right now", said Jyoji in fear.

"Not around me you're not", said Gandolfo as everyone takes a few minutes to collect themselves from that terrifying moment they've endured just now.

"(whispers) Uh Leo, think there's any chance Zapp will accept my apology?", asked Rhys quietly.

"(whispers) Yeah, that's not gonna happen. Zapp has a bad habit of never letting go of a grudge, all you can for now is wait and see if it's not as bad as you'd think, but speaking from experience, it's kinda overly hopeful thinking", said Leo quietly as he patted Rhys on the shoulder as if wishing him luck, clearly that's not too helpful.

"Oh boy", said Rhys nervously as he took a deep breath.

"Well, not that we got that out of the way, let's head upstairs and check out Arnault's movie", said Leo.

"If it doesn't suck, I'm taking the front seats dudes, calling it", said Jyoji with his hand raised with a couple others looking on in either uninterested manner or awkwardness before they head upstairs already. Once they open the door, they are now in the same auditorium as earlier, and they decide to take the same seats as before.

"If this blows, I'm barfing on one of these guys", said Zapp rudely referring to any of the masked critics around the room.

"Please don't", said Jennifer being the reasonable one, then Avery Arnault shows up with a brief introduction as before.

"Hello everyone, thank you all for coming for this exclusive screening. Now, I'm sure you're all well aware that some of the most unique films in the industry are those that prove to be quite provocative in their own way, in other words, movies that make you think. But in this day and age, some of those types of films tend to fall on deaf ears, no offense to certain individuals, but there are other ways to convey a message. Here, is one such example, enjoy the show, and thank you again", said Arnault as he steps aside and the lights go dim before the show starts.

"Brace yourselves, this'll probably be another crapper", said Gandolfo as Aiko quickly yet playfully shushes him before the show starts.

Down on Wall Street

"Hey boys and girls, we got this new and booming chain of pharmacies just rolling in money thanks to its high quality and filled-to-the-brim stockpile!", shouted this one sharply dressed male employee.

Something big is brewing, worse than embezzlement

"Sounds nice, and even sound like a huge capitalize market for a bunch of us! Emphasize on capitalize, for us of course! So, wanna talk it out?", asked a sharply dressed female employee.

It's none other than…a musical

"I'll so you one better, we're gonna SING it out!", shouted the male employee as he and all the employees in the office drop what they're doing and all at once break out into a singing and dancing act.

"HOPE YOU'RE READY FOR SACRIFICE, BECAUSE IT'S TIME FOR US TO CAPITALIZE!" sung the employees in unison as their dancing intensifies and the singing goes on for a moment.

Broadway On Wall Street: The Movie

The group was a bit weirded out with this concept but it didn't make them wanna run out of their with their sanity intact, and so much so that, as promised, Jyoji took a strange interest, no doubt of the musical part, that he went and snuck to the front seats when the others didn't notice. The whole film was supposed to be an upbeat parody on the sometimes, if not almost complete, corrupt nature of those at the infamous Wall Street. On its surface, it's just a silly and convoluted and clichéd musical, but when one pays closer attention to what it is that's happening and going during the musical, amusing as it may seem at first, this exterior hides a blunt yet obvious message of those in stock markets and broker companies that will attempt to swindle and at times rob a veteran and especially novice business of much of what they make, forcing them to either close down or struggle desperately to keep up, when some would wind up being forced to close anyway. The group was surprised that they were able to figure this out, yes, even those like Zapp and Jyoji, I know right? In fact, by the time the credits rolled and Arnault comes out to thank everyone for their time, everyone present rose and gave him a round of applause, and he seemed extremely grateful for the praise. By the time that was over with, the group rushes for the door and close it behind them to make sure the masked critics and Arnault himself can get out and into the rest of the Equinox, and when they return to the mirror, they discuss what they've experienced.

"Wow, just wow, gotta say that was something else. It was definitely a movie that would make you think, no doubt about it. What did you guys think?", asked Rhys.

"I'm surprised I followed it as good as I did, and it was good", said Nora.

"For once, I watched a musical/documentary kind of movie that actually didn't make me hate the thing", said Jyoji.

"It was crazy catchy and stuff, really wanted to get up and dance", said Aiko.

"Let' just go with the fact it didn't turn out to be a steaming pile of garbage like last time", said Gandolfo.

"Blending informative with whimsical was pretty clever actually, anyone with the need to think and understand will want to pay close attention from start to finish", said Jennifer.

"Not enough bananas", said Sonic a bit disappointed.

"Yeah it was decent, sure as hell fifty or sixty times better than that shit show we almost watched the first time around, thank god we didn't stick around for that", said Zapp.

"True, I mean you were LITTERALY the first of us to rush on out of there before the real movie even started", said Jennifer.

"(laughs) Zapp was running out of there like me when I had my very first sugar rush when I was little", joked Aiko joyfully.

"Go to hell posers", said Zapp rudely in response.

"Too late, anywhere near you IS hell pal", said Gandolfo in response.

"Screw off", said Zapp in response.

"And you Leo, what'd you think?", asked Rhys.

"It was definitely a good watch, if I had to nitpick a few things, chief among them would probably be a few musical numbers where the songs were either too cheerful or high-pitched, stuff like that, other than that, it was great", said Leo.

"I know, I'll be blown away if it ever comes and wins an Oscar someday", said Rhys with confidence.

"You're hoping too much again Rhys, but the least is that it'll get nominated, that's something", said Leo with Rhys smiling a bit to that answer until the mood's a bit ruined.

"Besides that award show ain't worth watching a lot unless you need something to kill the time. That glorified piece of bait spends half the time giving awards to shit movies that don't even deserve some recognition in the first place, hell those piss-poor excuses for 'quality films' should've just been spat on and buried in some guy's backyard to begin with", explained Zapp harshly.

"Almost on point as it sounds, a lot of your input was a tad bit too much", said Jennifer.

"Some of those movies that they pick for the show do suck though", said Gandolfo.

"Exactly! That's exactly my damn point", said Zapp, glad someone agrees with him on this.

"W-Well, the important thing is that we were able to help those creators and get their work back together, and all of that in one day no less! I guess our first job wasn't as hard as I thought it'd be", said Rhys proudly as he looks to the black glove for a quick moment before he decides to hold onto it for safekeeping.

"Easy Rhys, we're not really finished just yet", said Leo before anyone could celebrate.

"I'm sorry Leo, but why not? We saw what was going on with those creators and with the black glove, we were able to fix the problem and get their lives and craft back together in time for the opening event this Friday", explained Rhys as he is left a bit confused.

"That's true, but that's just the easy part from what I could tell. The hard part is figuring out what caused these changes in the first place", said Leo as Rhys finds himself stunned with this realization, something that he forgot when Leo and Zapp briefed him and the rest of Watch-Force during the drive over to the Equinox.

"Oh yeah, felt like we forgot something", said Nora as she realized this as well.

"Oops, same here", said Aiko.

"Hard to believe some kids these days can forget stuff like that so easy", said Gandolfo rudely.

"Oh jeez! I can't believe I forgot something THAT important! Serious my bad you guys!", shouted Rhys in panic when he feels extreme shock and guilt over forgetting such an important detail from earlier today.

"Settle down Rhys, just take it slow, happens all the time, I've made mistakes like that so trust me, you're not exactly alone here", said Leo as he grabbed Rhys by the shoulders and stopped him from panicking so much, which got through to the kid as he stopped moving so much and took a couple deep breathes.

"(deep breath) Sorry about that, thanks Leo, I'm good now", said Rhys.

"Glad to hear", said Leo in response with a pat on Rhys's shoulder.

"Heh, pussy" joked Zapp.

"Yeah, dude's way too painfully earnest", joked Jyoji and Rhys blushes in embarrassment while rubbing his neck.

"In any case, that is a good point Leo made, the Equinox is unique but that doesn't always mean random chaos like the rest of HellSalem's Lot I gather", said Jennifer.

"Yep, remember that what happened with the creators was the biggest problem, but it wasn't the only problem. Their security staff did get hurt by some strange force that's able to leave little to no traces for my God Eyes to pick up on, and no doubt that black glove Rhys picked up isn't gonna be of any better help", explained Leo.

"So we gotta find the thing that started this whole mess or things are go south for Cribbage and everyone else here when the opening event kicks off in a few days", said Gandolfo.

"Exactly, it's getting late so we'll start looking around some more first thing in the morning", said Leo.

"After breakfast right?", asked Aiko with a pouty puppy-eyed look on her face, which made Leo flinch a bit, he's not used to cute stuff like that.

"(sighs) Sure Aiko, after breakfast", said Leo in response in which Aiko cheers for joy.

"Glad I wasn't the only one wondering about that", said Zapp.

"Same here dude", said Jyoji.

"Well Leo, how do you wanna do this?", asked Rhys.

"We still have no clue what it is we're looking for, or how dangerous it really is. So if anyone of us finds something that might be the culprit in this whole mess, then don't try to take it on all on your own, that includes you Zapp", said Leo with all eyes on the tanned prick.

"Don't go making me look bad in front of the noobs, scrotum face!", shouted Zapp in an angry response.

"One, these guys need to know not to follow every example we make, you more than me considering how much of an ass-hat you really are. Second, we both know it doesn't take much effort on anyone's part", said Leo in response, which only made Zapp angrier.

"You're the ass-hat, ass-hat", said Zapp in a lowly manner.

"Nice", said Jyoji.

"Look, all I'm saying is that no matter how tough anyone of us is, chances are whatever we're facing might be tougher, or they might some trick up their sleeve we might not stand a chance against. Just try not to take any unnecessary risks everyone, I'd hate for Watch-Force's first mission for Libra to go up in smoke", explained Leo with great concern for his new friends despite his calm demeanor, and Rhys and the other rookies acknowledge this.

"We understand Leo, thanks for looking out for us. We'll be sure to stay careful", said Rhys with confidence.

"I'll hold you to that then", said Leo with a small smile before he and the others head upstairs and see if they'll find themselves in the same area where they all first entered the "Arcade".

"Think this door's gonna bring us back?", asked Jyoji.

"This is the Equinox we're talking about, I'm sure this is nothing", said Jennifer as she was proven right when they open the door and appear to be where they were earlier, and Cribbage is there waiting for them.

"Impressive work so far everyone, now all that's left is to find the root of the problem", said Cribbage reverse smoking.

"I'd come on over and applaud in person, but it's still too soon, sorry sluggers", said Hazel through a special lamp.

"Mr. Cribbage, thanks for that, you and Hazel, but does this mean you know everything we've been doing and talking about?", asked Rhys.

"Lemme tell you something sport, even the two of us don't have total control over this crazy theatre", said Hazel before Cribbage finishes that thought.

"But that doesn't mean we're completely powerless in here either", said Cribbage.

"Oh, that makes sense, I guess", said Rhys now clarified yet still a bit unsure of the specifics.

"Kinda like stalking if you ask me", said Zapp.

"Totally (shivers)", said Jyoji creeped out by that thought.

"Anyways, you'd better hope you'll manage against what's behind the scenes, whatever it is", said Cribbage.

"Just know that we'll be rooting for you champs", said Hazel.

"We appreciate the luck, thanks", said Leo.

"Alright guys, tomorrow, we're gonna find out what's behind the problem here in the Equinox, and we'll come out on top and make our first mission a success", said Rhys as he rallied the rest of the rookies, moving Leo, Cribbage, and Hazel of sorts, but Zapp had another way of expressing his thoughts.

"NERD ALERT! Seriously dude, that's just way too cheesy, clever, but cheesy", joked Zapp while ruining the mood.

"I really hate your guts", said an irritated Gandolfo as the group collects themselves and look for and get settled in their rooms for the night. The next day, the group splits up in various teams of two or three or four, or as a whole in fact, but despites coming up with a few possible leads, there was no trace, and no activity from the unknown force. The next day, same tactics, more effort, no luck, then most of Thursday was spent searching as well, and still nothing, the group was slowly beginning to have doubts over this unknown force, yet they know something attacked the guards and altered the pasts of the creators, so they couldn't stop just yet. It was around eleven thirty in the night, the others had gone to their rooms to rest for tomorrow, Friday, the opening day for the big event, and most of the hallways were empty as preparations from all involved were busy with other stationary tasks, but at this time, Jyoji was out and about, taking a stroll through the halls trying to find a lead or anything, but…

"Man this sssuuuccckkksss….three days and no action, no threats, no nothing. I'll be surprised the most fun we get tomorrow is some shmuck trying to rush the creators and force an autograph from them or some dumb stuff like that, ha", joked Jyoji as he was almost ready to return to the others, but about a couple minutes in and…

"Now that I think of it, when this is over and we head home, I gotta ask Leo if we can find some tea house around here and order up a few huge bowls of ochazuke (tea on rice), with some scallion toppings! Haven't had any of that since a week before I left home, man feels so long ago. Whoa…what's this freaky feeling just now? It's like, dread…like something from a video game maybe", said Jyoji as he was first thinking about food before suddenly being engulfed by this sudden feeling of bleakness and dread, not very pleasing feeling most would enjoy, then a voice in a mechanical and low yet menacing tone.

Marduk thirsts for the blood of poets.

"'Blood of poets'? I'm not some poet man, and I ain't a vampire either, I'll get by fine without the 'blood of poets' (chuckles then stops abruptly). Wait…who said that?", asked Jyoji uncomfortably as he did a quick scan of the hallway he was in, and despite seeing nothing around him, this sense of dread still lingers with him, ever so persistent. As he's nearing the end of the hallway and about to reach this set of doors, and as he was facing the opposite direction making sure nothing was following him, Jyoji had a thought.

"Hang on, get a hold of yourself Jyoji, there's no stalker ghost around here, it's gotta be Hazel right? Yeah…yeah Hazel's probably watching me and messing with my head for kicks, that's it, you're cool, you're on top of things, you're a-okay dude", said Jyoji to himself to get his thoughts together, until his heart nearly skips a beat when he hears this whirring noise behind, him, of blown steam and soft growling, and the dreaded feeling intensifies even more so than before, then Joyji reluctantly yet automatically turns and standing seven or so feet from him, in front of the set of doors, is a familiar creature, Marduk, from that arcade game, easily looming over Jyoji yet not nearly big enough to engulf the entire theatre. Jyoji stands paralyzed in fear for a full two minutes while staring into Marduk's glowing yet lifeless eyes, looking back at him with such hate and death, then Jyoji speaks something mighty heroic.

"I'm so dead", said Jyoji in terror as Marduk lets out a screeching yet bloodcurdling roar, frightening Jyoji and forcing him to run for dear life as Marduk wastes no time going after him. Jyoji runs as fast as his legs can carry him, but Marduk is easily catching up to him, and a few times he even tries to skewer the kid with those huge lances of his, the kid even tries shooting some water balls at him the size of chairs, but obviously that's not nearly enough to stop a hulking mass of metal going at high speeds. Then this left turn comes up and Jyoji uses his water power to stretch out a hand and spin and propel himself right into this other hallway, but the low doorway he passed through wasn't gonna slow him down at all, as Marduk has no trouble smashing though the whole wall there and accelerates his pursuit with another roar, scaring Jyoji into moving even faster than he thought he could.

"HOLY SHIT SNACKS I'M DEAD! Come on dude, you're not a total idiot, try using some shit you learned in school, maybe that could help here! (Looks back at Marduk, who lets out another roar) AAAHHHH! Yeah right, like school's gonna save my ass here! Nothing they teach there could be used against THIS THING! Wait! I got an idea, and this is totally nuts!", shouted Jyoji as he uses his water power to propel himself a few feet further ahead of Marduk, and when far away enough, Jyoji waits a few seconds until Marduk quickly closes the gap between them, and then Jyoji fearfully yet without hesitation, uses the same trick to propel himself straight for Marduk, but since the hulking lancing-beast can't make instant stops or turns, Jyoji was able to slide right underneath Marduk, then once he was behind him, the kid rushes to unleash a special move on the beast while it was still running ahead.

"Alright ya freak! Eat this! MIZU SAIKURON! (Water Cyclone)", yelled Jyoji in Japanese as he spread his legs apart just enough, and outstretched his arms and grasped his hands together as he wastes no time creating and letting off a medium yet fierce looking water cyclone, as the name implied, and it quickly stretches out and towards Marduk with great speed, knocking the beast off his hooves and pushing him right through the big doorway to this big room, tearing down the wall in the process and making a huge mess that covered that whole area in a big dust cloud. Once that was done, the cyclone dissipates and Jyoji, breaking the stance, collapses on the floor, still sitting upright and still conscious, but was extremely drained from all that running and water shooting and stuff, not something a lot of kids would be seen doing in their spare time of course. About five minutes had passed, yet Jyoji was still sitting on the floor recuperating by the time Leo, Zapp, and the rest of Watch-Force eventually finds him and rushes to him.

"Holy smokes Jyoji! You alright?!", shouted Rhys as he and Nora kneel down and check up on their friend.

"(Panting slowly) Well, I'm still kicking, so yeah, more or less, ha", said Jyoji while giving himself time to pull himself together.

"That's a big hole", said Aiko in awe as she stares at the missing space of the wall with the dust cloud still floating around.

"Christ kid, think you could've done something way less messy with your spare time? Just because we don't gotta pay for any damages doesn't mean we can run wild here ya know", said Gandolfo jokingly yet with slight disdain.

"Yeah I gotta call bullshit here too dude, even I wouldn't go this nuts when I'm at my most drunk, and that's ME saying it", said Zapp.

"Oh so I'm the one to blame here?! Look dudes, before you side with Dolfo and pin this on me, I didn't do this, okay well that hole in the wall was kinda my fault, but that's beside the point! That freaky lancing head with legs and spikes from that arcade game we found was here!", shouted Jyoji.

"Wait, Marduk?", asked Rhys upon remembering the creature that fits the description given to him.

"Who else?! That thing came out of nowhere and tried to run me down! I'm amazed I'm still alive here!", shouted Jyoji.

"So you lured him here and knocked him through that hole there?", asked Nora.

"Nah, dude's shell was way too tough and my water attacks barely phased him, like water on a duck's butt or something, I just zipped behind him while he was still running crazy fast and used my Water Cyclone move to trip him up and push him through", explained Jyoji as Nora pulls out a half-empty water bottle for him and takes a drink of the whole thing.

"So what you mean, is that you used the beast's mass and velocity against him by attacking from behind and forced him to lose his balance, that right?", asked Jennifer after she examined the hole from a distance, and her explanation leaves Jyoji a bit dumfounded, since that's the true formal explanation behind his trick.

"Yeah, that's exactly what I did, right", said Jyoji acting cool.

"Gotta say, we've seen loads of bizarre shit dude, but video game monsters popping out of nowhere has gotta be in some top ten list somewhere", said Zapp.

"Definitely, and that reminds me Jyoji, I thought I told you and everyone else to call for help if things get bad", said Leo.

"Yeah wasn't really able to get a minute to make a phone call when a space robot head was trying to kill me man", said Jyoji in response.

"Yeah, sorry, just glad you're safe", said Leo.

"You got a point, for once", said Zapp.

"Dude, now, really?", asked Jyoji.

"Well you look fine to me, so you did great Jyoji, nice", said Rhys as he tried to fist-bump Jyoji, but the kid was too tired for that right now.

"(Scoffs) Yeah right, I look FINE to you all? Yeah I look in one piece on the outside, but on the inside I got seriously scarred for life, let me tell ya", said Jyoji making clear the fact he was greatly traumatized from this brief yet tedious ordeal.

"Sounds like he's fine to me", said Nora gladly as she scratched Sonic on the head.

"I've seen worse", said Sonic.

"Yeah, you'll be fine pal, don't worry", said Rhys in agreement.

"How 'bout you get chased by a killer robot and say it's fine huh?!", demanded Jyoji with Rhys and Nora playfully laughing it off, then this.

"Guess we know what caused those attacks in the first place", said Rhys.

"Yeah, but that doesn't explain how that monster can makes changes like that on the creators just by fading in and out and causing serious damage", said Leo thinking hard on this.

"Huh, yeah that's true", said Rhys as he now wonders the same thing.

"Guys, you might wanna see this for yourselves", said Jennifer as she went closer to check out Marduk. When the others get their act together, and Rhys and Nora were helping Jyoji back on his feet, the rest of the group meet up and once the dust from the wreckage settles down, the damage caused opened up this big storage hall, filled with so many known and unknown props, but in this big open space where Marduk should be, he's not.

"Kinda looks like someone wasn't able to make a fake snow angel", said Aiko casually.

"What the heck? How can something that big just disappear?", asked Rhys as he and the others are staring at this big and busted area of the floor where something of great size and mass fell and left a hard-to-cover-up marking.

"I'm with Rhys on this", said Leo.

"I know, that's worrying, but that's not the most disturbing thing I've found", said Jennifer.

"There's more you said?", asked Leo.

"That's right, look over here", said Jennifer as she points out something high on the walls somewhat past the opening, written in messy and bright purple glowing letters, the message left there surprised the group.

Tomorrow…Lose Your Identity, In The Maze…Of The Space Minotaur

"Well that's ominous", said Zapp.

"Not creepy at all", said Gandolfo sarcastically.

"What do you think this means?", asked Rhys

"Guys, remember back when we first found that arcade game, and I used my God Eyes to scan it?", asked Leo.

"Yeah, you said you saw a black aura surrounding it", said Jennifer.

"Well looking at what Jyoji just went through, and adding to everything that's been going on, I think that arcade game isn't just behind all the attacks, it no doubt was what changed the creators' past in the first place", said Leo.

"That black aura you saw around the game, wasn't just a sign of power?", asked Rhys.

"No, I thought it was, but after seeing this, I jumped back to what Cribbage told us about that thing, how it just showed up out of nowhere, and add to the Equinox existing outside reality, but not really in such a bad way, I'm saying that arcade game is kinda like a cancer to the Equinox, slow acting but the effects are seriously messed up", said explained Leo.

"So what you're saying is that the arcade game is giving off this dark power that's having a negative effect on the entire theatre", said Jennifer to clarify.

"Right, and since the Equinox, again, exists outside reality, that means the game can do more than mess with a power supply or unleash in-game monsters, it can warp the lives of certain people", said Leo to finish that thought, and this really made the rest of the group think on this revelation.

"That includes those creators, whoa", said Nora stunned.

"A reality-warping arcade game, I'd say that's a crock of shit if everything that's gone down didn't say otherwise", said Gandolfo.

"And judging from that message they left us, I'd say they're gonna pull out all the stops and make their big move tomorrow", said Leo grimly.

"The game probably can't go around and mess with the creators and their past again, not with us around since we won't let it stay permanent, so it's gonna go with the next best option: mass chaos", said Jennifer, sending a bad vibe around to the others.

"Well, anyone got any bright ideas on what we oughta do here?", asked Jyoji.

"Beats me, smashing it ain't gonna work, and best guess that thing's not gonna be easy to get close to a second time", said Zapp as he lit a cigar and took a smoke before Rhys took another look at the message on the wall and came to a realization.

"Some help from one of the pros here", said Jyoji rudely.

"Guys, I think we'll have to settle with tomorrow to solve this", said Rhys as he was looking at the message.

"What are you blabbering on about kid?", asked Zapp.

"This message Marduk left, the game's not just declaring some kind of war, it wants a rematch!", shouted Rhys.

"Wait what?", asked Zapp confused.

"A rematch?", asked Nora also confused.

"That's right, call it a hunch, but the game is probably not happy with losing at its highest difficulty, especially to someone like me who doesn't play as many video games as someone like Jyoji here", said Rhys, then Jyoji looks shameful.

"You don't gotta remind me of my losing streak against that thing man, not cool", said Jyoji with shame.

"Kid wasn't even going there ya dumbass", said Zapp as he takes a smoke.

"Still though", said Jyoji shamefully again.

"(Nervous laugh) Anyway, the game really wants to prove to be better than an amateur at games like me, and that it was just plain luck I won the first time. But since it's obviously mad at us, me especially, it doesn't wanna play by any rules we want, so it's making it harder for me to reach it until it feels like the time is right", explained Rhys, as Leo is pretty impressed with the lad's already growing prowess and thinking, same would go with Jyoji and how he handled that beast all on his own, despite being caught off guard.

"So if we wanna put a stop to all this, and make sure this doesn't tear apart the entire theatre, we'll need to beat this at its own game, literally", said Leo finishing that thought.

"Pretty much, I know it's crazy, but it's gotta be our best, probably our only bet at saving the Equinox's big day, and the people here too, I'm sure", said Rhys firmly and Leo was slightly stunned, even a bit more after what the kid just pointed out just a moment ago, then gave his thoughts.

"You're right about that Rhys, this idea is crazy, but that's to be expected working for Libra. Have to say, that was some nice thinking there, it'll be tough, but we'll make sure you give that game the rematch it wants, and beat it again. Good work so far, I'm amazed really", said Leo proudly as Rhys looks joyful about this kind of praise, even though he wasn't at all expecting this idea of his to make sense or be something anyone would even agree upon.

"Yeah, for once so far, you're not half-assing things, so nice work", said Zapp in a slightly uncomfortable manner like he just swallowed his pride as he smokes his cigar again acting like nothing important was said.

"Well I did the heavy lifting here, so I guess I gotta share the credit with Rhys all the same", said Jyoji reluctantly yet with no regret.

"Our little Jyoji's all grown up, and he's right, wat to go Rhys!", shouted Aiko cheerfully.

"Not cool!", shouted Jyoji in distain for that playful yet somewhat hurtful comment.

"Not like he's grown up much to begin with, but I'm with them on this too, nice job short stack", said Gandolfo.

"Quit ganging up on me already!", shouted Jyoji in frustration to these sudden jabs at his ego.

"Joking aside, you did great Rhys, color me impressed and all that", said Jennifer gladly.

"Nice Rhys, I'm happy for you", said Nora as she congratulated Rhys her way, with a hug, to which Rhys responds with a hug as well.

"You did good thinking, noobie", joked Sonic, and Rhys looked utterly proud of himself for instantly settling on the group's next course of action, he was so happy he was on the verge of crying.

"Oh shit, we got a crybaby on the something-ith, floor", said Zapp jokingly yet harshly.

"Easy now, settle down Rhys, and try not to flood this place just in case", said Leo somewhat jokingly as Rhys was able to calm down, not letting loose a single tear.

"Thanks everyone, even you Zapp", said Rhys gratefully.

"Bite me rookie", said Zapp rudely.

"And you too Leo, I'm glad you're the one we've got as a supervisor", said Rhys gratefully as well.

"It's my privilege Rhys, no problem", said Leo gladly.

"Well guys, guess it's game on tomorrow", said Rhys with confidence as Watch-Force is eager to end their first mission with a bang, and Leo and Zapp will be there helping them along the way, ready for the rest of the vile creatures from the game's world that will unintentionally serve the arcade game's will and turn the entire Equinox upside down, and not in the fun way, it's game day now.

Hello there everyone, and thanks for checking out and enjoying part three of this four-part first story in a trilogy set in the world of Blood Blockade Battlefront! I just wanna say that I've enjoyed showcasing the world of The Black Glove in this story and world as well as I have, since the game didn't get the full funding it needed, gathering all the information I needed to really make this set in the world of The Black Glove wasn't a problem, nor was including a few things of my own if you notice them. Though in full honesty, I still would've loved for the game ot have been completed by now so I could've included even more content from there, but I enjoyed what I put together all the same. Hope you're loving these newcomers so far, I know I do, and I can't wait to spend more and more time with them in the very near future. Which reminds me of two important things I need to tell you all: one, I intend on completing and uploading the final chapter of Equinox before February 9th, I feel like I've kept you all waiting for the rest of this crazy and epic trilogy long enough, that and I'm fed up with how long I taken for myself to continue writing this some more. And second, I've got a very important and special announcement to make once this trilogy is done, and you'll not regret it at all, so if I make sure to follow the same pattern with the other two stories finishing part four of Equinox, as well as the second and third stories, then you can hopefully expect it to come near the end of February, until then you'll have to be patient with me if you don't mind, farewell

Story Voice Cast Part 3:

Aaron Dismuke: Leonardo Watch

Ian Sinclair: Zapp Renfro

Monica Rial: Sonic

Robbie Daymond: Rhys Jordan

Apphia Yu: Nora Ni Chorrain

Dallas Reid: Jyoji Nishi

Todd Haberkorn: Gandolfo Montini

Cristina Vee: Jennifer Amy Ford

Christine Marie Cabanos: Aiko Schmadel

Fryda Wolff: Marisol

Kaiji Tang: Many Embers

Bryan Massey: Avery Arnault

Jamie Marchi: Jamie Burns

With

Tara Platt: Hazel

And

Yuri Lowenthal: Cribbage