Before we start, let's play a guessing game! I will give you job classes and I want you cast the characters/players to them!
The player: Munakata Reisi, Awashima Seri, Fushimi Saruhiko, Kusanagi Izumo, Yata Misako, Kamamoto Rikio, Yatogami Kuroh
The job classes: Monk, Mage, Hunter, Bard, Ninja, Priestess, Warrior.
Read through and let's we if we came up with the same casting! :D
Disclaimer: I do not own K nor Sweet Fuse. Too bad.
"This theme park is divided into seven themed areas. Today's game celebrates the world of RPGs. Let's move, everyone!"
A man wearing a black helmet appeared to guide them and set off for the RPG attraction Yukari indicated.
No one spoke as they followed the green vassal through the park. Their footsteps heavy and slow as everyone's assessing the situation they're in.
"Kusanagi-san, I won't cooperate these Blues. I'm sure we can do this without them." Yata finally broke the silence.
"Hah!" Fushimi snorted. "As if your brain can answer the puzzles here, you drop out."
"Say that again, bastard!" Yata grabbed Fushimi's collar, slightly pulling him down. "If you can't remember, you dropped out with me!"
Munakata then cleared his throat. "It is clear that unless we can complete this game, the hostages will die, Yatagarasu-kun."
"Che." Yata spat as he released Fushimi.
The group halted in front of an Edo period castle with a sign on it. The gate looked like one from a European castle but the towers that rose up behind it looked Japanese.
"It's Samurai Fantasy VII!" Yata screamed as he saw the castle.
"You know the game, Yata-chan?" Kusanagi took a drag from his cigarette that he lit along the way.
"Yeah!" Yata answered. "I played the game before. It's about a party of adventurers who set out for Edo Palace. The castle and the country have been taken over by the nurarihyon, and the adventurers have to stop them."
"So we have to defeat the nurarihyon?" Awashima asked which caused Yata to back away a bit, standing beside Kamamoto. "P-Probably." He answered.
"Look at this." Kuroh walked over to a statue of a pig with a cigar between its lips. "It has a screen on its stomach."
As if on cue, the screen came to life and showed Yukari beside Nagare. "Welcome to the world of Samural Fantasy VII, everyone." Nagare spoke. "Now, you must enter Edo Palace to defeat the evil nurarihyon who controls the country of Edo."
"As you have already been informed, this quest will put your life in danger." Yukari reminded them.
"You don't need to tell us that every single time." Kuroh said with irritation. "We remembered it the first time."
"You never change, Kuroh-chan." Yukari chuckled. "Anyway, unless the seven of you work together, you'll never be able to finish this game."
"That's it then, Yatagarasu-kun." Munakata turned to Yata. "You have to cooperate and work with us."
"I got it already!" The teenager, who wasn't blessed with the gift of height, almost choked on his words.
"Well then." Nagare's voice rang once again. "Please enter the castle. I wish you all the luck." And the screen blinked out of life.
Munakata strode off toward the castle without waiting for the rest to follow. Awashima and Fushimi immediately flanked Munakata's sides while Kuroh followed them behind.
"Let's follow them." Kusanagi told his comrades which they answered with a nod before following the others inside the castle.
Once inside the castle, Munakata spoke up. "Do all of you have your PDAs or watches?" He asked. They all nodded with the exception of Fushimi. Munakata then looked at his PDA. "Right now it's noon on the dot."
"We have seven hours to finish this game." Kusanagi said.
"We must keep that time limit in mind." Munakata continued. "Let us not let our guard down."
The group looked around the room they entered at the end of the hallway. Just like the outside of the castle, the interior was also an odd mix of east and west but the room seemed to have a stronger European influence. In the center was a statue of a creepy-looking animal. There was also a large device with several panels next to the statue. Each panel had a silhouette of a person it. The doors to the left and right side of the room were bolted with chains across them- obviously to prevent them from going out.
"This room is creepy." Yata hugged himself and rubbed his arms. "I sure hope we're not going to get locked in here or something…" As if those were the magic words, the door behind the group swung shut as soon as the words left his mouth. "Just fucking great." He said in defeat.
Fushimi immediately tried to open the door but it wouldn't budge open. "It's locked." He said to them. "You just had to say it, didn't you?" He said turning to Yata.
"Calm down, Fushimi." Awashima told her subordinate before a start breaks out.
"Everybody, look for clues. We need to solve this puzzle if we want to get out." Kusanagi ordered. "Every bit of time is precious."
"Hey, don't do anything rash." Kuroh told Yata. "We need to think about this carefully."
"I know that already!" Yata grunted before walking to the statue in the middle of the room. Then suddenly a voice spoke.
"Awaken to your destiny, and slay the demon nue. Fail to slay the nue, and die by its poison."
"Huh? Think that was some kind of hint?" Kamamoto asked.
"A nue…" Kusanagi pondered.
"What's a nue, Kusanagi-san?" Kamamoto turned to Kusanagi.
"A nue is a Japanese creature of myth and legend."
"So how do we slay this nue?" Kuroh asked to no one in particular. With all of their eyes on the nue, something that looked sort of like smoke began to spill out of its mouth.
"What? What the heck is this?" Yata backed away from the statue.
"Everyone, get away from there!" Kusanagi ordered. His voice slightly muffled by the handkerchief he'd pressed over his mouth and nose. The rest clasped whatever they had on their faces.
"I-Is this poison gas?" Kamamoto nervously asked.
"It probably is." Munakata answered.
By now, the smoke pouring out of the statue's mouth was purple. Clearly, it wasn't ordinary smoke.
"Smoke would have risen up." Kusanagi said, "But this one is slowly spreading out over the floor."
"'Fail to slay the nue, and die by its poison." Awashima muttered.
"Guess we've figured out that part of the riddle." Fushimi firmly pressed his handkerchief over his face.
"Whatever happens, we can't just start running around." Kusanagi moved slowly closer to Yata. "There is no place for the gas to go. If we move it too much, we might end up spreading it."
"Then what the hell are we gonna do?!" The anger in Yata's voice was muffled by his beanie that was firmly pressed on his face. "We're gonna die if it fills the room!"
"Don't shout, you idiot!" Fushimi told Yata in low anger. "We need to keep the air still!"
Yata flinched and stilled almost immediately.
"Calm down." Kuroh told off the two. "Let's quickly solve the puzzle."
"Yatogami-kun is correct. The sooner we solve the puzzle, the sooner we get out." Munakata agreed.
Slowly and carefully everyone made their way back to the statue which released gas slower.
"That things that voice said earlier sounded like a hint… Do any of you know what it might mean?" Awashima asked to everyone but mainly to Yata.
"'Awaken to your destiny, and slay the demon nue. Fail to slay the nue, and die by its poison.'" Kuroh repeated the words the voice said awhile ago.
"The latter part appears to be fairly straightforward." Munakata told them. "Perhaps we should concentrate on the line which says 'awaken to your destiny.'"
"I agree." Kusanagi said. "But we still don't know anything about this room. We need to look around some more."
"Yeah. We don't have a lot of time so why don't we split up?" Kamamoto suggested.
Yata groaned. "Fine…"
The group agreed and split up. The Blue clan is to examine the statue while the Red clan is to examine the panels with the Black Dog.
"What do you think these silhouettes are supposed to represent?" Kuroh asked."They look like fighters of some kind."
Kamamoto took a closer look at the panels. Each one had a human-looking silhouette. One panel was lit up. "Yeah, they look like people… One of them has a sword; this one has a bow…"
"Do you have any idea, Yata-chan?" Kusanagi turned to Yata.
Yata took a closer look at the panels. "I think they look like the job classes from the game."
"You're right, Yata-san!" Kamamoto exclaimed at the man beside him. "There are names under each one. 'Warrior,' 'Monk,' 'Mage'… Just like in RPGs!"
"One of them is lit up." Kuroh pointed out.
"Yeah, the monk one." Kamamoto said. "I wonder why it's the only one lit up."
"There has to be some sort of meaning to it." Kusanagi rubbed his chin. "Yata-chan, you played the game this was based on, right? Give me a summary of it."
"Sure." Yata nodded. "The protagonist is a warrior who goes on an adventure and teams up with a bunch of other people. Eventually you have a full party of seven-"
"A party of seven! That must be what the panels are!" Kamamoto exclaimed interrupting Yata.
"But it still doesn't answer why there's only one lit up." Kuroh walked closer to get a better look at the only lit panel.
"Anyway, we should report back to the other group and strategize. They must have found something by now." Kusanagi suggested. The other three agreed and headed back toward the statue and the other team.
The group met up again and began to exchange information.
"…All right, let's go over everything." Kusanagi said. "The panels are the seven adventurers from Samurai Fantasy VII."
"And the only one that is lit is the monk." Kuroh added.
"There are five buttons on the nue." Awashima said. "On the head, neck, leg, stomach, and tail."
"Is that everything?" Munakata asked and the rest nodded.
"The panels and the statue must be… connected somehow. But what does 'awaken to your destiny' have to do with them?" Fushimi mumbled, talking to himself.
"What are you mumbling like crazy over there?" Yata turned to Fushimi.
Before Fushimi could even open his mouth to speak, Munakata spoke to him. "Why don't you tell us your thoughts, Fushimi-kun?"
Fushimi stared at his king for a few seconds before sighing and speaking. "I think the panels and the statue are connected somehow but I still don't understand their connection to 'awaken to your destiny.'"
As everyone started to think further, the soft hiss of gas filled the silence.
"We have to do something soon or…" Kamamoto nervously broke the silence between them.
"Maaan." Yata followed suit. "We're not getting anywhere! I say we just go balls-out and hit one of those buttons." He then started to walk towards the statue.
"W-Wait! Stop!" Kuroh yelled at Yata who was already in front of the statue and was mumbling which one to push.
Kamamoto dashed forward to try and stop Yata. He quickly encircled his arms around Yata, locking and restraining his arm. Yata started to struggle and tried to shake Kamamoto off him. All his struggling stopped when he caused Kamamoto to accidentally hit the button on the statue's leg with his elbow. Everyone froze.
A bright chime echoed through the room as the light on the monk panel clicked off and the mage panel lit up.
"Huh. Now the mage one's lit." Kamamoto nervously pointed out.
"Ah! You're right!" Yata exclaimed. "Ha! See? Just gotta go for it! What're you all worried about anyway?" He laughed.
"You idiot! What would have happened if you were wrong?!" Fushimi lost his temper.
Yata was taken aback but quickly regained his flare. "But I'm not!"
Fushimi glared at Yata before sighing. "Why do I even bother?"
"Just don't do that again, okay?" Kusanagi breathed. "I think it took a few years off my life."
"…I'm sorry." Yata apologized in a small voice.
"In the end, all is well." Munakata smiled and moved closer to Yata.
Intimidated, Yata stepped backward and tripped on his own feet. In a moment of panic, he quickly planted his hand to whatever was near him… which was the statue. "…Fuck." He swore as he slowly removed his hand that was firmly pressing the button on the nue's stomach after steadying himself.
"Damn it! Misaki, what the hell?!" Fushimi rushed and grabbed Yata's shirt.
"L-Let go of me!" Yata grabbed the arm holding his shirt. Kamamoto went over them and was about to help Yata when Kuroh suddenly spoke.
"Wait. Quiet down. I heard something." He said.
"The mage panel!" Awashima called their attention. "It turned red!"
"What?" Kuroh turned to the panel.
"There's more gas coming out of its mouth!" Fushimi moved away from the statue, pulling Yata with him, and slapped his hand to cover his face and everyone followed suit.
Kamamoto leapt away from the statue and indeed the gas pouring out its mouth is much faster now.
"You idiot! Do you realize what you just did? Were you even thinking?!" Fushimi turned to Yata once more.
"I-It was an accident!" Yata defended himself. "But I remembered something!"
"Say it quickly, Yata-chan!"
"Uh, in Samurai Fantasy VII, the nue is a boss somewhere around the middle of the game. There's a sort of… trick to beating it. It's weak against arrows, but you can't hit it with an arrow unless you, uh, set up the attack first." Yata would pause often. "First the monk hits the legs with a special attack. That stops it. Then your mage hits the tail, which keeps it from casting spells. Finally, you use the hunter to attack with his bow."
"Monk, mage, hunter… There's a panel for each one on here, right?" Kuroh asked to Kamamoto.
"O-Oh! Yes! So that's why the monk panel was lit up!" Kamamoto said. "I got lucky and accidentally hit the right button. And now the mage one is lit up."
"So when the stomach button was pushed incorrectly, the panel turned red." Awashima stated.
"Based on what Yatagarasu-kun said, I think it's safe to assume that the button we should push next is the tail." Munakata walked closer to the group and Yata hesitantly nodded. "Very well, I shall push the button.
When Munakata pushed the button on the statue's tail, a small chime sounded. "The red light on the mage's panel has turned off." Kusanagi breathed in relief. When the mage panel turned off, the hunter panel had lit up.
"It's on the hunter now! You were right, Yata-san!" Kamamoto commended Yata.
"Good. Now there's only one more button to push." Kuroh patted Yata's shoulder.
"The next button is the last one, but… which one is it?" Awashima asked. "Yata Misaki, where does the hunter attack this thing?"
Yata stepped closer beside Kamamoto and shook his head. "S-Sorry… I don't remember."
"So we've just have to guess?" Kuroh walked closer back to the statue. "If we get it wrong, the gas is going to fill up the room."
"If I remember correctly," Munakata spoke up. "In the Tale of Heike, Minamoto-no-Yorisama killed the nue with a bow passed down to him by Minamoto-no-Yorimitsu. That's probably where the game got it. In 'Minamoto's Slaying of the Nue' and Yoshitoshi's 'New Forms of 36 Monsters,' the nue is shot in the neck."
"Ah!" Yata exclaimed. "You're right! I think it was the neck!"
"So the button on the neck is the next one we should press?" Kusanagi asked in confirmation.
"Yes."
"All right. I will push the button." As he spoke, Kamamoto leaned over and was about to press the button but Fushimi grabbed his wrist. "What?" Kamamoto asked.
"You are not the hunter." Fushimi said as he let go of Kamamoto's wrist.
"Huh? What do you mean?" Kamamoto lowered his hand.
"Misaki said that in the Samurai Fantasy game, you have a party of seven people. They put seven panels here for the party and there are seven of us."
"I'm getting what you mean." Kusanagi said. "Each panel represents each one of us."
"So if Kamamoto Rikio and Captain pushed the buttons earlier…" Awashima acknowledged the two. "Then they are the monk and the mage."
"Is it because I specialize in hand-to-hand combat?" Kamamoto scratched the back of his head.
"Well, I can kind of see Captain as a mage." Awashima mumbled.
"I believe then that we must take into account our style, personalities, and appearance." Kuroh said.
"Then who's the hunter?" Yata looked around.
"Isn't it obvious?" Fushimi said to Yata with a snarky tone. "It's Kusanagi-san."
"Is it because of my fighting style?" He chuckled. "Well then…" He stood in front of the statue. Almost everyone held their breath as Kusanagi pressed the button on the neck. The ones who held their breath, breathed again when the flow of gas from the nue's mouth stopped.
"Hey! Hey! The statue's moving!" Yata pointed to the nue. It slid slowly to the side, revealing a staircase leading to a lower floor. As it did, a chime sounded and the hunter panel turned green. The thick gas quickly vanished into the vents that opened on the wall.
"Damn." Kusanagi swore. "This is only the first puzzle and I'm already tired."
Everyone was taking breather when a short tune played over the room's speakers, followed by an announcement. "The Room of the Guardian has been completed. You have obtained a reward."
"A reward?" Kuroh asked but before they could ponder what it meant, the base of the statue popped open.
Yata ran up to it and looked inside to find a chest that looked exactly like one you might find in a video game. "There's a scroll." Yata announced. He pulled it out of the chest and showed it to the others. "It looks like a map of this attraction. See, here's the room we're in."
"There are two more rooms with puzzles in them." Kamamoto groaned.
"The 'Corridor of Hate' and the 'Room of the Supreme Ruler'" Awashima read the names of the room written on the scroll.
"Two more?" Kuroh asked. "This one took us two hours."
"We better get moving then." Kusanagi told them.
The group headed the stairs, toward the Corridor of Hate. When they reached the bottom of the stairs, they found themselves in a long stone hallway. It was dark and gloomy, but there were torches mounted along the walls casting enough light to see by. The darkness would have been bad enough, but there were also bunch of what looked like demon heads on the walls.
"This place is creepy." Yata scooted closer to Kusanagi.
"Creepy?" Fushimi asked to Yata in a mocking tone. "Why don't you just say that you're scared, huh, Mi~sa~ki~?"
"S-Shut up!" Yata raised his hand, and found its way on Kamamotoi's arm and squeezed it tight. "I-I'm not scared!"
"There's a set of panels again." Kusanagi said. "The one's that's lit up now… is the bard?"
"Are you sure, Kusanagi-san? Let me take a look."Kamamoto walked closer to the panel with Yata who still wouldn't let go of his arm. When they pushed toward the panel… "Whoa!" "Gah!" Something flew out of the left-hand wall at an incredible speed, sending Kamamoto and Yata toppling on the ground. They looked on the wall and saw an arrow embedded on it.
"Damn, that was close!" Yata exclaimed after pushing Kamamoto off of him.
"Have a look at the arrow." Munakata said. "It's too thick for a bow, don't you think?"
Awashima narrowed her eyes to take a look, not chancing to walk closer to have another arrow fly out. "It's a crossbow quarrel."
"If you want to die that's your business." Fushimi glared at Kamamoto. "But I'd appreciate it if you could- just every now and then- look before you leap."
Kamamoto glared back at Fushimi before crouching in front of Yata who was still sitting on the ground. "Are you okay, Yata-san?" He asked as he swiped the bead of sweat on Yata's forehead causing Fushimi's glare at him to grow more intense. Yata nodded and he continued. "Sorry about that." Kamamoto stood up and offered his hand to Yata. Yata gratefully accepted it and was pulled up.
"It looks like each of these heads has a trap like that in it." Kusanagi said as he walked closer to his comrades to make sure they're alright. "Walk in front of one of those faces and you end up with a fancy new hole or two."
"Proceed with care through this hateful corridor. Give ear to the song of the demons, for they will be purified by the light that shines in the darkness." A robotic voice suddenly announced.
"Thanks!" Yata sarcastically said. "Would have been nice to know we needed to 'proceed with care' before we're just about to get skewered!"
"Now what in the bloody hell do they mean by 'give ear to the song of the demons'? And what's that 'purification' nonsense about?" Fushimi said under his breath.
Kuroh sighed. "Shall we start with 'give ear to the song of the demons'?"
"Obviously, the 'demons' are those ugly bastards." Yata pointed behind him with his thumb, his fear of the place already forgotten.
"That's obvious, Yata-chan. We need more information." Kusanagi paused. "I guess I hafta do this." He edged toward the nearest head. Very, very carefully, he began to examine it.
"See anything, Kusanagi-san?" Kamamoto asked.
"Yeah. This fella's got a little light on its forehead. I figured it's some sort of sensor." Kusanagi answered. "Time to put it to the test." Yata almost tackled Kusanagi when he waved his hand in front of the demon's nose, but no arrow came. "Relax." He turned to Yata. "See? Long as you don't trip the sensor, no arrow comes."
"Say something first before you do that, Kusanagi-san!" Yata said in one breathing.
"Alright. I'll do it again." Kusanagi sighed and told everyone to step back. He waved his hand over the demon's face again, this time in front of the sensor. Just like before, an arrow shot out of the demon's mouth with blinding speed. "And there you have it."
"Is your hand alright?" Awashima asked.
"Nothing to worry about, Seri-chan." Kusanagi waved his hand. "Pulled my hand away at the last second."
Awashima glared at him because of the nickname. It was fine with her but not in front of her king.
"That's fine, but there are a lot of these heads, and there's no pattern to them. It would be impossible to avoid them all." Kamamoto said.
"Huh? Did that…?" Kuroh mumbled.
"What is it, Yatogami-kun?" Munakata asked.
"… I thought I heard something from the demon's mouth. It was really faint, like sort of a stretching noice." Kuroh was still thinking and mumbling to himself when Awashima spoke.
"'Give ear to the song of the demon.'" She said. "The noise you heard might be the demon's song.
"Can you still hear it?" Munakata asked.
Kuroh shook his head and said, "No."
"So once the arrow fires, you can hear the noise for a little while then it stops?" Kamamoto asked.
"Maybe but I have just been imagining it. The rest of you couldn't hear it?" Kuroh looked at them one by one.
"We may not have, but there is an easy way to determine it." Everyone turned to Munakata. "Perhaps we should fire another arrow?"
"A'right. Yatogami, raise your hand when you hear the noise then drop it when it stops." Kusanagi told him.
"I understand." Kuroh nodded.
"Good. I'll trigger the sensor." Kusanagi stepped up beside the demon's face and waved his hand over the sensor. Just like before, an arrow shot out and embedded itself in the wall. Kuroh's hand shot up. Kusanagi then waved his hand in front of the sensor once more.
"Kusanagi-san?!" Yata screeched. He was about to ask what the hell his friend was doing when Kuroh lowered his hand.
"What was that?" Yata asked in confusion.
"You were watching, right? I didn't trigger an arrow." Kusanagi answered.
"So the noise Yatogami heard was the trap reloading." Awashima told them.
"Yes." Munakata confirmed. "My guess is that it takes approximately five seconds for it to reload."
"I guess we'd figured out what 'give ear to the song of the demons' means." Yata laughed weakly.
"I couldn't hear anything, though. You must have really good ears." Kamamoto praised Kuroh.
"He probably has." Yata laughed. "Listening to his former king's words on the loop like a creep probably has something to do with it!"
"I dare you to say that again."Kuroh growled and triedto draw his sword but his hand met air instead.
"Alright. Alright. Stop getting on everyone's nerves, Yata-chan." Kusanagi reprimanded the teenager then turned back to everyone. "We've figured out how the demon faces work. Now we just need our bard to do his thing." He looked at Kuroh.
Kuroh nodded and went over the demon's face, somehow knowing what to do, and waved his hand in front of the sensor.
"Oh, look, the bard panel turned off." Kamamoto said. "Good job, Yatogami."
"Now it's the ninja panel that's lit." YAta added.
"A ninja, huh." Awashima said, shifting her weight to her other foot. "We know it's safe for about five seconds after the trap fires but…"
"One slip-up and they'd be toast." Fushimi said what Awashima couldn't.
"We have to figure out who our ninja is." Munakata broke the tense atmosphere that was forming. "All we have left is Fushimi-kun, Awashima-kun, and Yatagarasu-kun."
"Maybe it's me?!" Yata lit up. "I mean, I'm fast!"
"Yata-chan." Kusanagi looked worried.
"Sorry, Yata-san, but you're only fast when you're on your skateboard." Kamamoto paused after receiving a glare from Yata.
"And you don't know how to be careful." Kusanagi added.
"And it can't be me." Awashima said. "So that leaves you, Fushimi."
"Hah?! Why me? Misaki should do it! He's only 167 cm tall! I bet he won't even reach the sensors since he's short!" Fushimi tensed the numbers and the word short.
"You picking a fight, you shitty monkey?!"
Kusanagi immediately headlocked Yata. "We already told you why he can't. You know that more than anyone."
"Fushimi." Awashima called.
Fushimi's mouth tightened slightly but he began to walk toward the demon heads.
"W-Wait." Yata grabbed the arm around his neck. "Are you sure this is the only way?" He asked but his question fell on deaf ears. "Listen to me! Hey! We still haven't figured out what 'They will be purified by the light that shines in the darkness' means! W-What if it's just an endless corridor there?" Yata rambled with panicked tone.
"Alright, Yata-chan. I get it." Kusanagi removed his arm around Yata's neck. "Come back here, Fushimi."
"Mi~sa~ki~! I didn't know you're that worried for me." Fushimi couldn't help but grin as he teased the short red clansman.
"I-I'm not, you shitty Saru!" Yata fumbled. "W-Who would run across that if you die just because we missed something!"
"Stop flirting, you two. I would've told you to get a room if there was one here." Kusanagi told the two which made him earn a retort from Yata. "Let's go back to the riddle."
"Is the 'light that shines in the darkness' supposed to refer to these torches? Or maybe the sensors in the demons…" Kuroh asked.
Everyone was silent, having no idea. For several minutes no one spoke. Finally, Fushimi seemed to come to a decision, and began to walk toward the demons again.
"W-Wait! What are you doing?!" Yata called.
"We're getting nowhere." Fushimi took a deep breath, moved into a crouch, and leapt forward.
"Woah! Fushimi's doing it!" Kamamoto exclaimed in awe.
Fushimi quickly established a rhythm, touching a sensor, waiting a split second for the arrow to fire, and then moving past the next one.
"Damn. Look at 'im go."
"In a few moments, Fushimi disappeared into the darkness, and all they could hear was the 'thwack' of arrows firing. A familiar chime echoed down the dark corridor.
"It looks like he made it." Munakata adjusted his eyeglasses. Then suddenly, the hallway exploded with light.
"Whoa! That's bright!" Yata shielded his eyes with his hand from the sudden light. Down at the end of the corridor, they could see Fushimi adjusting his eyeglasses.
Kusanagi waved his hand in front of the sensor but no arrow fired.
"Good job, Fushimi." Awashima smiled at his subordinate. "The sensors no longer work." And they all walked down the corridor.
"There was a switch down here that turns them all off." Fushimi gestured towards a spot on the wall.
"The switch had turned on the lights when it turned off the demons." Munakata said as he eyed the switch. "So this is what it meant by 'purified by the light that shines in the darkness.'"
"We've only got one more puzzle left." Kuroh informed them.
"Oh man… Why can't we be done already?" Yata sighed. A short tune then played on the room's speakers. "Whoa! That's the same sound we heard when we cleared the Room of the Guardian!" The fanfare was quickly followed by an announcement.
"The Corridor of Hate has been completed." A loud 'clank' was then heard from the end of the corridor, like a lock opening.
The Corridor of Hate led to a long staircase that took them up and up.
"According to the map," Kusanagi started. "The last room is at the end of these stairs. So far we've spent about three hours."
"Four hours left. Not bad." Kuroh commented.
After that the group fell into another silence, focusing on the task before them which was climbing the what seemed like an endless flight of stairs. The group kept going until at long last they reached the top of the stairs. In front of them stood a set of double doors.
"Well done." Nagare's voice suddenly rang. "I see you're not dead yet."
"You bastard!" Yata screamed. "I swear, I'll fucking kill you after this!"
"I have to say," Nagare continued. "I'm having fun watching you lose your minds. Especially you, Yata Misaki." A low chuckle was then heard.
"Bastard!" Yata screeched.
"Don't let him provoke you." Kuroh told Yata for the nth time. "You can't fight him, not here."
"I know that!" Yata growled and spat angrily.
"Well, at any rate, the next puzzle is the last one in this attraction. Until we meet again! If we meet again. Good luck, everyone." And with that, he was gone.
"That jerk! Is he just messing with us?!" Yata continued.
"Probably. He's trying to get us riled up. In your case, at least, it seemed to have worked." Fushimi said to Yata.
"Yata-san, you better calm down." Kamamoto patted his friend's shoulder. "You might die of heart attack." He laughed.
"Don't even joke about it, you temporary lean fatso." Yata also laughed as he punched Kamamoto's arm weakly while Fushimi clicked his tongue.
After a few minutes of rest, the group gathered themselves and moved to the door, ready to take on the puzzle.
Kusanagi grabbed the doorknob and looked back at the rest. "Are you all ready?" He asked and they nodded.
Beyond the door was a glamorous Japanese-style room covered in Western ornamentation. The walls were all sliding doors but a massive chandelier hung from the ceiling. It looked like a house built during the late 1800s or early 1900s. In the center of the room was another strange statue. And just like before, next to it was a device with seven panels.
"The head is really big." Kamamoto said pertaining to the head of the statue.
"That's the nurarihyon." Kusanagi told him. "It's a monster that goes into people's houses and drinks their tea. This one's kind of different though." He eyed the statue.
"Yes. It's got western armor, and it's holding a sword." Awashima told the oddities of the statue.
"That's the final boss from Samurai Fantasy VII." Yata told them.
"Ah. Well, that makes sense. I guess?" Kamamoto said.
Moving carefully and checking everywhere for hidden trap, they slowly approached the statue. They were eyeing the statue when they heard a familiar voice.
"Take in hand the holy seal, and with the prayer of the priestess defeat the demon king. The light of victory will illuminate your path." The announcement said.
"A priestess, huh…" Kuroh hummed.
"We should investigate the room thoroughly." Munakata suggested. "Once we know more, we can examine the hint more closely."
The group then decided to split into three groups. The Blue clan will examine the floor. Yata and Kamamoto will examine the sliding doors. Lastly, Kuroh and Kusanagi will examine the statue.
The Scepter 4 officials spread out in different directions, scanning the floor. It seemed totally ordinary until Awashima spotted a mark about the size of her fist near a wall.
"There's something over here." She announced.
"This is three-leafed wild ginger." Munakata said after seeing the mark. "Wild ginger usually has two leaves. Three-leaved plants are exceedingly rare." He paused, thinking.
Fushimi deemed it time for him to finally speak up. "Edo Palace was the home of the rule Tokugawa family. The protagonist of the game is actually a part of the family."
"You know the game, Fushimi-kun?" Munakata asked with a tone that was not surprised but instead of a tone that sounded like he knows something.
"I… used to play the game." Fushimi mumbled.
"That means this is the crest of the ruling clan, right?" Awashima asked and Fushimi nodded. "Could it be the 'holy seal'?"
"I think so." Fushimi agreed. "It's sticking out, just a little. It's some sort of switch."
"Let's regroup with the others." Munakata said and the two nodded.
They all decided to regroup and see what the teams had found. It only took them a few minutes to go over what everything they'd found.
Kuroh and Kusanagi reported finding a diamond-shaped hole going all the way through the statue from its stomach to its back. Also the statue and its base were apparently made of different materials.
Yata and Kamamoto reported that they'd discovered the sliding doors were mostly just painted on, although there were a few real ones. Each wall had one real, not counting the entrance, there are three possible exits.
"Looks like we've found everything we're gonna find. Now, how does this mess connect to what we heard?" Kusanagi asked.
"'Take in hand the holy seal, and with the prayer of the priestess defeat the demon king. The light of victory will illuminate your path.'" Kuroh repeated the announcement.
"'Take in hand the holy seal, and with the prayer of the priestess' must mean that the priestess has to push the button with the seal on it." Munakata said.
"Seri-chan, you have to do it." Kusanagi said to Awashima.
"I know." She said, seeing that she's the only woman in the group. She went over the three-leafed wild ginger mark they found awhile ago. She took a deep breath and pushed the button. "Huh?" Nothing happened. She pushed again. Silence. "Nothing's happening." She turned to the others. "I don't think it's even moving." She pushed again, this time harder.
"Huh?" Yata was about to stand beside Awashima but suddenly stopped then scooted farther from her. "Maybe you're not pushing hard enough." He said then pressed down on the seal with his foot. A pleasant chime sounded, and the priestess panel disappeared to be replaced by the warrior. "W-What the hell? Why'd it work for me?" Yata turned to the others.
"You must be the priestess." Awashima said as she stood up.
"Whaaat?!" Yata screeched as he flailed his arms to prove them wrong. "That's crazy! Lies! Look, if I'm either of those little pictures, I'm the warrior!" He looked flustered. A low chuckle was heard. Yata turned to the source. "Saru, you bastard. What are you laughing for?!"
"Isn't it because of your name? Mi~sa~ki~?" Fushimi drawled the other's first name.
"Don't say my name." Yata scowled. He then turned to a corner of the room. "Fuck you too!" He yelled for Nagare.
"Yata-chan." Kusanagi placed his hand on Yata's head, suppressing a laugh.
"Oh, hey!" Kamamoto called. "Take a look at this. Part of the floor opened up."
They went over to see what Kamamoto was talking about. Sure enough, there was now a large hole on the floor.
"Looks like there's something inside." Kuroh said. He stuck his hand into the hole and pulled out.
"A katana?!"
"This one's pretty heavy." Kuroh weighed the sword on his hand. "This must be the holy seal." He lifted the sword to show them its guard.
"Wild ginger…" Awashima said as she saw the design of the guard.
"Yeah. Maybe." Yata said. "This is the Holy Sword Muramasa from the game. It's an heirloom of the Tokugawa family, and the only thing that can hurt the nurarihyon."
Kuroh drew the sword from its scabbard with a flourish, and swung it around a few times.
"You have obtained an item." The voice echoed across the room.
"The next part is 'defeat the demon king' so…" Kusanagi trailed.
Kuroh went over to the statue and shoved the sword through it. "It fits the hole perfectly." He said and with a final shove, the statue made a small 'click', followed by an electronic whirring noise. "It looks like it triggered something." He told them.
"What do you think that noise it?" Yata asked.
"Probably that." Kamamoto pointed.
"The light is… moving."
They watched as it slowly turned to point at the top of the sword.
"It's reflecting off the katana and pointing to the…" Kusanagi squinted. "door on the right-hand wall."
"'The light of victory will illuminate your path.' We have solved the puzzle." Munakata smiled.
"Alright, Seri-chan, you open the door this time." Kusanagi turned to Awashima.
Awashima nodded thinking now that the puzzle was solved, all she has to do it open the door and they would be finished with the attraction. She grabbed hold of the door and threw it open. On the other side was a wall with the head of a demon mounted on it. She stepped forward to get a closer look- A harsh buzzer sounded.
"The warrior panel turned red!" Kamamoto nervously and hurriedly yelled.
"Get down, Seri-chan!" As Kusanagi shouted, an arrow fired from the demon.
Awashima froze in place by surprise until something slammed into her.
"Ugh. Are you okay, Seri-chan?" Kusanagi grimced in pain. The bolt that was meant for her was buried on his shoulder. "This hurts a little more than I expected."
"We need to stop the bleeding!" Awashima stood up after recovering from the initial shock. The group watched for a few tense minutes while she applied some rudimentary first aid. She took her handkerchief from her pocket and skillfully tied it around Kusanagi's wound.
"We need to get out of here as fast as we can." Yata paled as he remembered what happened to his two friends who were already gone.
"What did we do wrong?" Kuroh asked.
"Maybe we went through the steps wrong… Or we're missing something important." Munakata said.
The minutes ticked by. Every so often the Red clansmen would often turn to Kusanagi who would sometimes grimace in pain and shift uncomfortably.
"Let's… Let's go over everthing again." Kusanagi said, wincing. The others nodded and went over what happened in their minds.
"Damn it!" Yata cursed. "What did we miss?!"
"We forgot how the statue and its base are made of different materials." Fushimi said, heads turning to his direction.
"In that case, perhaps we should consider what that difference might mean." Munakata said.
The group huddled around the statue and began to study it with renewed interest.
"Hey. You think this thing turns?" Yata asked as he circled the statue then pointed down towards where the statue met the base.
"That's neat, Yata-san!" Kamamoto told Yata. "Here. Let me see if I can move it." Carefully, Kamamoto stepped forward and put his hand on the statue. When noting happened, he slowly started to push. "Oh! It moved!" He exclaimed. It appeared that the katana could be used as a sort of handle to rotate the statue.
"I think Awashima-kun should take over now." Munakata said, "As the warrior, I think you'll have to." He added.
"There might be more tricks, so just go slowly and be ready to get out of the way." Kusanagi said.
AWashima nodded. She moved the statue slowly and before long, the head suddenly shot off and flew across the room, slamming into a wall and dropping to the floor.
"T-That surprised me!" Yata exclaimed, clutching the front of his shirt.
"The panel's green." Kuroh informed them.
"Our warrior has defeated the nurarihyon. So our steps were right, in a manner of speaking, we were just missing one." Munakata said.
"That means that we just need to follow the light again, right?" Kamamoto asked.
"IT's pointing to a door on the left. Let me handle it this time." Yata strode off toward the door and, once he'd made sure the others were out of the wait, he pulled it open. He let out a sigh of relief, and Kusanagi followed suit.
"The Room of the Supreme Ruler has been completed." A voice echoed.
"Look! You can see the outside!" Kamamoto beamed. "This is the exit!"
At last, they'd finally finished the first day's game. Their faces were drawn and tired but some had split a relieved grin while others just sighed in relief.
"Stage one has been completed. You have obtained a reward." One of the floorboards in the passageway popped open. Inside was a treasure chest like the one they'd found in the first room.
"Let's see here…" Yata opened the chest. "What the heck is this? It's just a piece of paper." He pulled it out and frowned at it. "TOGETHER…" He read. "What the hell does this mean?"
"We can think about that after we've gotten Kusanagi taken care of. How about you give that to me for safekeeping?" Munakata opened his hand.
Yata looked hesitant then turned to Kusanagi who nodded. Reluctantly, Yata handed the paper to Munakata.
Munakata smiled and said, "Let's get out of this place."
When they finally got outside, it was 7 pm and totally dark. The last room had taken them three hours.
"Congratulations on finishing today's game." The screen on the stomach of a statue of a pig lit up and showed Nagare. "You did an excellent job."
"Stop fucking with us!" Yata yelled.
"I imagine you've got some idea what sort of fun you'll have to look forward to in the rest of our games." Nagare continued. "You must all be tired. Your hotel will arrive shortly. While you wait, you are free to do whatever you want. Once you're all finished, please be sure to meet up at the far end of Adventure Village." He paused then looked at Kusanagi. "If you want to patch Kusanagi Izumo up, there's a first aid kit in the storage room in the main office." With that, the connect cut off.
"It wasn't hurting until he brought it up." Kusanagi grimaced and pressed a hand against his shoulder.
"I'll check the storage room Hisui Nagare mentioned." Awashima said. "Wait for me at the bench over there." She told Kusanagi.
"No. I'll go with you. Eventhough the game for today is already over, we shouldn't let our guard down." Kusanagi told her. "You guys should go get some rest." He turned to his fellow red clansmen.
"Alright, Kusanagi-san." Yata obliged. "I'm starving. See you all at the restaurant." He said and went over to the park's map with Kamamoto.
"Then I'll go have a look around the park. I might turn something up." Munakata headed off after saying, "Let's all meet up at the restaurant before we move to the Adventure Village." The others nodded.
"Well, now that we've all finished, I'd like to give a quick run-down of what I turned up out there." Munakata said.
Everyone looked up from their mostly empty plates.
"The entrance isn't locked." He continued. "If we wanted to, we can just walk out, but then he'd kill the hostages."He paused and looked at the others' expressions. "There doesn't appear to be any park employees anywhere. Everything's being run by the Green clan." Almost everyone sighed.
"He must be reaaal bored if he thinks this is a good time." Yata gritted his teeth. "When I get my hands on that bastard…"
After dinner, they headed toward the Adventure Village. Munakata seemed to know the way, so he led them there.
"Whoa! What the heck?!" Yata gawked. At the far end of Adventure Village, a gorgeous cruise liner had been anchored near the riverside dock.
"Well, now I see what he meant by 'arrive.'" Kusanagi said. "It's quite impressive."
Yata and Kamamoto stared at the ship for a minute or two, amazed by its size and grandeur. Keeping a close eye to their surroundings, they headed for the ship. As it turned out, it was just as spectacular on the inside as it was on the outside. The décor wouldn't have been out of place at a five-star hotel.
"Damn, I would've been stoked to get invited here if I wasn't in the middle of a some stupid game." Yata said under his breath.
"Me too." Kamamoto agreed. They both gazed around the lobby and sighed. "Huh? Is it moving?" He asked.
"I think so." Kuroh answered.
"He's thorough." Fushimi looked irritated. "This means we're stuck here until morning."
A man and woman, both wearing black helmet, appeared. "We'll show you your rooms." The woman said. "Please follow us." The group followed the two to the rooms they'd been assigned.
"Man. I'm so tired." As soon as the man who guided him to the room shut the door and left, Yata collapsed onto the bed. He moaned as he laid on the bed. After a whole day of running around, lying down felt so good. "Urgh." With a mighty effort, he hauled himself out of the bed and toward the bathroom. After taking a shower, he dried and dressed himself; he began to examine the room. The room was about the size of a spacious single hotel room, but it was neat and pretty. It was also well-stocked with just about everything he could need.
Feeling refreshed, he finally let himself fall into the bed. But… thoughts quickly flooded his head. Thoughts of his friends that were held hostage, the game they'd just played and whatever game they'd be playing tomorrow. The exhaustion from before was gone, replaced with restless energy. Sighing, he stood up and headed to the deck.
Yata pushed open the double door and was greeted with a cold breeze.
"I'm pretty sure it's past your bedtime." A voice said. Yata turned to the side and yelled the name of the person who just spoke.
"Saru!"
"Can't sleep, huh, Mi~sa~ki~?" Fushimi asked as Yata walked towards him on the railing. Yata nodded with a frown. "Can't say I can blame you." Fushimi leaned on the deck railing, looking over the water.
"You know…" Yata paused then grabbed the railing. "I… never thanked you properly for helping us when Anna was abducted." Yata paused again, waiting if Fushimi will mock him. He continued when Fushimi showed no sign of hostility. "Thank you, Saruhiko." He flushed, feeling embarrassed as he was not used to thanking his former best friend after the latter joined Scepter 4. Usually they would be at each other's throat and Yata grew used to it. "I really appreciated it." Yata mumbled. Silence. "Hey! Say something, will you?!"
"I didn't do it to help you. It just happened that I also needed infor-" "Achoo!" Fushimi was interrupted when Yata sneezed. He stared at Yata then said, "You still don't dry your hair properly." He then turned and headed back inside.
"Hey! Wait! I'm not- Achoo!" Yata sneezed again and tried to call Fushimi once more but he already disappeared inside. Yata frowned. "…And you still leave me behind." He mumbled.
Wow. This is the longest chapter I've typed. My back and shoulder hurts. Urgh. I might not update this for a while... because this is so long (for me) that it sapped my energy.
Seriously, I can't even focus on the words anymore. My eyes would keep wandering on their own. I need to rest now.
I apologise any typographical and grammatical error.
R&R