Act 4: Renewal
Chapter 11: Special Occasion
Year 0, Month 6, Day 1
Studio Room, Triple-R & Nexus Property, Earth, Sol System, Terran Sector, Orion Arm
Following a long string of snowy days, the weather finally started to settle down. The same could be said for the temperature, which remained low enough that the snow accumulated on the ground didn't melt away…
...Leaving the Residence and the surrounding region to be covered in the white powder, as things still went on inside. And among the hustle and bustle of the day was the activity going on in the Studio Room with the people inside.
Working at his station was Triple-R, with an accompanying Triple-M and Gene checking over and maintaining the recording camera in its usual position with some cleaning kits on the ground. And the trio were somewhat quiet until...
"... ...So, do you guys have any plans for the upcoming holiday?" Triple-R started to ask, once he briefly checked the date on a nearby calendar inside his station.
"You mean, besides avoiding the Eggnog and Fruitcake?" Gene noted over in a semi-joking tone.
"Well, I did plan on getting Fruitcake to act as the replacement for snowballs in the snowball fight…" Triple-R replied back with a similar joking tone.
The two then briefly chuckled at the idea, before Triple-M chipped in with, "Are either of you guys also going to consider what you'll be giving as gifts to the other Residents?"
"Yeah, I am. Just… ...gotta start asking around." Triple-R replied back, as he recalled how many people were living among the building.
"Same here, but I'm going to get some help with Gespenst and Caroline…" Gene also replied over, before taking a moment to wrap up cleaning the camera.
"...Well, just as a heads up, I already got a feeling Lindsey is not going to be up for using her powers, especially around this time of the year." Triple-M made sure to note over to the other two, albeit in a somewhat serious tone.
"And what makes you think that?" Triple-R asked in an immediate reply.
"Because she told me earlier this morning about it…" Triple-M simply replied back, before going quiet afterward.
"At least we still have time to get things settled…" Gene noted in response, as him and Triple-M took a moment to get their cleaning tools back into their kits.
Then in a minute or two, the duo headed off to get to work on some other stuff around the Residence, while Triple-R focused back on his station…
And ended up thinking to himself once alone, "... ...Maybe I should go find Mira and ask if she wants anything and work from there…"
Rec Room, Triple-R & Nexus Property, Earth, Sol System, Terran Sector, Orion Arm
Nexus and Towa were in the Rec Room, watching TV, namely some of the movies in Nexus's library of movies. As they changed movies, however, a Christmas commercial appeared on the TV, as they swapped DVDs. Once the movie started and the commercial was gone, however, Towa asked Nexus something.
"...Say...what's the plan for Christmas?" she asked.
"A Christmas Party, mainly, but everyone still needs to get gifts…" Nexus asked, as he sat back down...then, he turned to Towa. "...By the way...is there anything you've been wanting?"
Towa shrugged. "Nothing that I can think of…"
Nexus nodded. "Alright… … …" he replied, as he began thinking, "... … ...So...what's your plans for Christmas?"
"Oh, I was gonna try to find something to get Caro...She and I have been friends for a while, ever since she bailed me out, so I was hoping to get her some stuff…"
Nexus began thinking, "...Well...what does she like?"
At that point, the two began discussing Caroline's likes and hobbies, as well as potentially what they could get her.
Garage, Triple-R & Nexus Property, Earth, Sol System, Terran Sector, Orion Arm
In the time since Phoebe's rescue by Oneryx, Phoebe had been more open with the entity. In return, he'd been more open with her; for example, when Oneryx's body finally finished forming, it was Phoebe he let be the first one to see his face.
The two were, at the moment, working on some basic maintenance with the Tanbal (as in, Phoebe was doing the maintenance, Oneryx was watching).
As they worked, Oneryx spoke up. "...I keep hearing about 'Christmas' being soon...I haven't had the chance to look up holidays, so...what exactly is it?"
Phoebe paused her work, and turned to Oneryx. "It's a holiday around the end of the year, that has religious origins, but most people follow the secular traditions involving it nowadays…"
"And these traditions?" Oneryx asked.
"Generally gift-giving and spending time with friends and family," Phoebe explained.
"...Gifts?" Oneryx replied questioningly, before thinking.
"Yes...gifts...anything else?" Phoebe asked.
"Not right now," Oneryx replied, before going back to his thoughts, as Phoebe continued working on the Tanbal.
Kitchen, Triple-R & Nexus Property, Earth, Sol System, Terran Sector, Orion Arm
Ever since her strings were broken, Skye and Zondrys had been spending quite a bit of time together, namely due to the fact that Zondrys was the one to free Skye. Currently, Skye was waiting on Zondrys to finish preparing lunch for them, specifically instant ramen and grilled cheese sandwiches.
As Zondrys prepared that, he and Skye had just finished a similar conversation to that of Oneryx and Phoebe. "So, when was the last time you celebrated Christmas?" Zondrys asked.
Skye became a bit sullen, before answering, "Years ago...since before… … …" Skye shook her head, trying to shake out the thoughts entering her head.
"...I see…" Zondrys replied, before finishing up the prep and giving Skye her food. As they ate, Zondrys began considering what to do for the holiday, for Skye...
Foyer, Triple-R & Nexus Property, Earth, Sol System, Terran Sector, Orion Arm
Meanwhile, two individuals had just finished some training outside. Ever since her own arrival, Ariana had been trying to overcome the weakness caused to her by her own strings being cut, and the strength given to her by the dark magic of the axe she used being gone. Of course, the incident led to a distaste for using axes for her, so she'd decided to use a greatsword. There was a period of time, consisting of a couple months, where Ariana was bedridden by the weakness caused by the dark magic leaving her, but Azaresh stayed by her side, giving her company.
Afterwards, the two began training again, this time with Azaresh helping Ariana with using a greatsword. They just finished one such training session. "...You are certainly improving," Azaresh commented to Ariana.
The green-haired young woman smiled at Azaresh and replied, "Thank you...you've been a great teacher…"
Azaresh nodded back. "No problem… … ...So, what are your current plans?"
Ariana shrugged. "Mainly, just getting ready for the holidays...I really cannot wait for this event I'd been missing out on for the past few years…"
Azaresh nodded. "This would be my first, period...so I guess I will be seeing how this goes…"
Ariana chuckled. "I forgot you're rather new to the world…With the skill you use a greatsword, I wouldn't have thought that..."
Azaresh nodded. He enjoyed his time with Ariana, feeling a level of affection towards her...He'd done quite a bit for Ariana since she joined the residence...However, Azaresh wanted to do something more for Ariana…
...After all, according to the others, the upcoming holiday involved gift-giving, and it'd be the PERFECT time for Azaresh to do something for Ariana...
Year 0, Month 6, Day 17
Gene's Room, Triple-R & Nexus Property, Earth, Sol System, Terran Sector, Orion Arm
Checking over his personal computer at his desk, after making sure to organize some of his wrapped gifts with each other, the Studio Assistant started typing on his keyboard.
The screen had several names of the other Residents, namely with small notes and lines generally talking about if Gene had gotten them gifts, along with trying to match their interests. But as he checked it over a few more times…
...Something kept feeling off as he reread the names over.
A knock at the door snapped his attention off the screen, taking a moment to get up and answer the door…
...And on the other side, was the small ghost, with its friendly smile waiting to see his friend.
"Hey little buddy, what are you doing here?" Gene asked, as his mind focused more on the ghost for the moment.
"I need help getting gifts, but I can't do anything…" Gespenst noted back, before the smile faded away.
"Well, how many gifts do you need to get?" Gene asked back with a supportive tone as his mind jumped
"... ...20." Gespenst nervously replied back.
"... ...Is that 1 gift for everyone in the Residence besides yourself?" Gene asked, noting how many there was, alongside seeing the current date on his computer screen.
The Boo nodded back in a bit of a sad demeanor, before it started to get a bit emotional…
...Getting Gene to pick the little fellow up and try to comfort him by telling the ghost after settling it on the nearby bed with, "Calm down, Gespenst. You still have time to get the gifts you want to give out…"
"But.. ...how?" Gespenst asked, as it still felt emotional.
"... ...Well, you can go ask for help from Triple-R or Triple-M. That's the best place to start and if they can't help you, I'm sure someone else will…" Gene noted back to the ghost in an uplifting tone as that thought about his own gifts came back into mind again.
"... ...O-O-Okay… …" Gespenst said in between sniffles, before taking a few moments to pull itself together and float off the bed towards the door. But once at the door, the ghost turned back to Gene and told him, "... ...I'll make sure to get something special for you, Gene…"
"And I'll make sure yours is special as well…" Gene answered back with a smile on his face, but with also something starting to turn in his head…
...And once the door closed behind the ghost, it all clicked together and made the Studio Assistant's smile fade away in a heartbeat.
Triple-M's Room, Triple-R & Nexus Property, Earth, Sol System, Terran Sector, Orion Arm
Floating over the second floor over in the direction of Triple-M's room, the small ghost made sure to knock on the door with one of its stubby arms. And after hearing some movement beyond the door…
...It was Lindsey who opened the door, as the ghost then saw Triple-M further inside the room resting against the desk chair.
"... ...Oh, I was… … ...I-I-I need… …" Gespenst started trying to say to Lindsey, before the gift situation started making the ghost stumble on its words.
"You alright there, Gespenst?" Lindsey asked back in reply.
The Boo took a few seconds to respond, before just shaking itself in reply to her question.
"Then what's wrong?"
"... ...I… ...I wanted to get gifts for everyone, but I… ..don't have any money or anyone to help me…" Gespenst answered back, sounding a bit sad in tone as well.
"...Well, is there anything-" Triple-M started to say, having overheard the conversation before-
"-Wait just a moment." Lindsey told him as she gave him a look to remain where he was, before she shifted her attention back to the Boo.
"... … ...I really need help and I want to do what I can to make this Christmas be special…" Gespenst ended up saying towards Lindsey, as the small ghost sounded like it genuinely wanted to do what it was saying.
It took a few seconds for Lindsey to sigh and think, before she started saying, "... ...Gespenst, you know by now I don't really want to use my powers for just anything for anyone… ...But given what's going on, I'll be glad to make this moment an exception."
"... ...Then… ...you mean you'll help me?" Gespenst said back, with some shock and joy to its voice.
"Yes, I am. So why don't you head inside and sit on the bed while we quickly work out what to do…" Lindsey made sure to tell Gespenst, before the ghost entered the room…
...And rested on the bed, as Lindsey made sure to close the door behind her as she then looked at Gespenst and Triple-M as the conversation started up again...
Paved Road, Outside City Grounds, Earth, Sol System, Terran Sector, Orion Arm
"You sure it's wise to do this?" Nowan asked over to Gene, who was currently driving Triple-R's truck, as the two moved across the road to the closest city to the Residence.
"Again, I told you… ...I have to do this." Gene noted back, a bit stressed given what his tone sounded like.
"...You mind actually telling me why?" Nowan asked back, with some concern in his voice to his friend.
"... ...I forgot to get the gift for Gespenst, so I need to go get it from a specific store…" Gene lamented back, clearly not enjoying what he had to explain.
"At this day, especially at this time?" Nowan replied back with concern, before following up with, "...No wonder you asked me to join you…"
"Let's just hope things will go well… ...It's only just one thing I need to get…" Gene replied back, unknowingly tempting fate as he said that...
Commercial District, Inside City Grounds, Earth, Sol System, Terran Sector, Orion Arm
"... ...I HATE my luck right now…" Gene ended up saying, as both him and Nowan arrived to find the various stores and business in the immediate area closed or out of stock on a LOT of things.
"Well, where do you need to go?" Nowan asked back, using his senses to begin helping out in searching.
"One of those businesses that makes special requests for making custom gifts … ...One named… … … …'KRC' or something… ...I didn't have time to write their name down…"
"Okay… …" Nowan noted back, before taking a moment to scan over as the two moved around the area…
...And stopped as he found the place in question, albeit with its signage saying, 'Kustom Request Corp' for its name.
"You think that's the place-" Nowan noted over-
"-Yeah, that's the palace. Let's go!" Gene interrupted, before the two sprinted their way into the store…
...Before settling things in a somewhat calm manner, as Gene ended up making sure to pay the full price for the gift he had to get. And once in his hands, the Studio Assistant headed out of the store as Nowan tried to follow-
-Before Gene got immediately sidelined by a figure wearing inconspicuous clothing as they also ended up taking the box that Gene dropped. That soon led to Nowan exiting the store and giving chase as Gene ended up closing his eyes...
… ...And once he opened them again, he… ...blinked a few times as he felt the pain in the side of his gut act up. But that feeling of pain soon got ignored as he turned to his left…
...And saw Nowan in the driver seat, looking no worse for wear, but a bit worried given his demeanor.
"... ...What happened?" Gene ended up asking, which got Nowan's demeanor to shift immediately in response.
"Some moron ended up trying to steal Gespenst's gift after they must have sidelined you or something… ...I chased after them for a bit, but they ended up disappearing without the gift. And don't worry, I made sure to put in the backseat…" Nowan replied back, before pausing...
...And continuing when Gene looked back to see it was there. "...I also made sure to take care of this for you. So, just sit back and relax…"
"... ...You know, I'm really glad I brought you along…" Gene noted back in a genuine glad tone as he took a moment to settle in his seat.
"Thanks Gene. Means a lot hearing that from you…" Nowan replied back, with an equally genuine and appreciative tone…
...Before the two ended up crossing the point where they finally were getting back to the city outskirts.
Year 0, Month 6, Day 19
Rec Room, Triple-R & Nexus Property, Earth, Sol System, Terran Sector, Orion Arm
With everyone having gotten their gifts already given over to Triple-R to set up before the big day, the entire bunch of residents waited for when it was going to start…
...And as soon as the day arrived, everyone woke up in the morning to get through the morning routine before the party started to kick off later in the day.
The location to hold it in was the Rec Room, which had most of its furniture moved or rearranged to fit in the Christmas Tree, alongside the plethora of presents underneath it, some tables stocked with themed food and drinks, and some really comfy places to sit near small faux fireplaces set around the room.
Once everyone was ready and asked to quiet down, Triple-R started off with saying, "Thank you everyone for being here. It has been a crazy year, but I'm glad to see you all here as well."
He then followed it up with, "But enough wasting time, let's get to the gifts and see what everyone got!"
It took a moment, given that no one immediately wanted to go first, but soon enough…
"I'll go…" Gespenst called out, before floating over and grabbing the first gift with its name on the tag.
Taking a second to open it up with its stubby arms, the ghost soon found…
...It was a replica of the Ghost Driver from Kamen Rider Ghost, which the Boo made sure to hold up into the air to let it be seen.
"... ...Who got this for me?" Gespenst then asked, being curious as it looked around at everyone, even stopping at Alma for a moment.
"It was actually me, Gespenst...I'm the one that got it for you. It probably won't fit you, but it's no doubt that one is now yours…" Gene started saying to get the Boo's attention for a moment.
The Boo then looked immensely grateful, before it placed its gift nearby and let someone else go next…
...Which ended up being Mira, who nervously reached out for the first present with her name on it. Once she got it in her hands, she took a moment to open it…
...And found it contained a single bound book, alongside a simple pair of a light and dark blue scarves to use.
"That's my gift to you, Curalia. The book is blank, so you can fill it in however you want, while the scarves are to help you out for any cold nights out in the future.." Triple-R ended up saying, despite him getting some vague feelings coming from others nearby.
"... ...Thank you very much, Triple-R… ...I… ...I-I… ...didn't expect you to.. ...do this…" Mira replied back, clearly not thinking she really deserved it given how her voice cracked a few times.
Someone then grabbed a gift from under the tree, before then making sure to pass it over…
...That being Triple-M who gave the gift over to IceBite.
"Yeah, that's for you, Ice…" Triple-M noted over once it left his hands.
IceBite nodded, and opened the gift, finding two games within...one was Dawn of War 1, a complete collection with all 3 Expansions included; the other was Star Wars: Empire at War, with its own Expansion included.
"I know you have those games already, but those are 'special' modified versions of the game… ..." Triple-M made sure to partly explain over to IceBite once he had a chance to.
And once IceBite was done, Triple-R made sure to grab a gift under the tree as well, but made sure to hand it over to Nexus.
"And same for you, Nexus." Triple-R made sure to say with a genuine smile on his face.
Nexus opened his gift and found that they were the same games. "...Same modifications?" he asked, Triple-R?"
"Yeah, I did… …'most of the work' and gave a spare set to Triple-M… ...after we got Lindsey to help out to make sure things worked alongside the modifications." Triple-R noted back, before sheepishly pointing over to Lindsey for a moment.
Lindsey nodded and approached. "Basically, all 4 of the campaigns for Dawn of War, and the Campaign and Galactic Conquest of both Star Wars: Empire at War AND Forces of Corruption have Co-Op for them. In said Co-Op (barring Empire at War's campaigns), you can select factions similarly to skirmish, and play as them. The campaign maps've been modified to facilitate this; in Dawn of War: Soulstorm, for example, the planets have more 'regions' to them, and each faction has two starting points, as opposed to one, and at the beginning of the game, you can choose which starting point for your faction you wanna use. In the Empire at War and Forces of Corruption maps, you can choose your starting planet from any in the galaxy, bar those specified to another faction, like Ryloth, Coruscant, and Hoth. Also, I made it so Empire at War and Forces of Corruption can allow for cross-faction allied play in Skirmish."
Nexus smiled and looked over at IceBite. "Tau/Eldar Team-Up to take over Kronus?"
IceBite smirked. "You're on!"
As those two looked rather glad with their games, the Boo made sure to look at the tree before moving over to push two gifts out with one that went to Gene and Alma, respectfully.
"You open yours first, Alma…" Gespenst politely asked Alma, as it watched in anticipation.
Alma opened the gift and found…A small doll that looked like Alma, except with the way it was made, the doll looked happy or cheerful. It even had its own version of her non-hunter clothes to empathize how much nicer the doll looked alongside it.
"It's...nice…" Alma said to the Boo, "Did you make it?"
The Boo then took a second to say, "I… ...I can't say right now… …"
"...Well...I like it…" Alma replied.
Smiling back in response, the ghost soon swapped over to Gene before saying, "Your turn, Gene!"
Taking the time to crack the gift open, the Studio Assistant soon found that it contained…
...Two small crafted figure versions of Magma Bot and Ice Bot respectfully, with the small touches that distinguished the two apart. And despite the Bots lacking usual facial features, they just gave off a feeling of being friendly like the real ones.
"... ...Not to be rude, Gespenst, but there's no way you made these and that doll you gave Alma… ...Who helped you out?" Gene made sure to ask as politely as he could.
"...Lindsey was the one who helped me out… …" Gespenst eventually answered back, as it looked over to Lindsey for a moment.
Lindsey didn't say anything back, but just remained quiet for the moment as Triple-M gave a quick appreciative glance her way.
Some more gifts started getting opened afterwards, before it ended up stopping for a moment on Caroline, who had to take a moment to grab some of her own from under the tree.
One of Caroline's gifts was a joint venture by Nexus and Towa: a drone of the Shooting Ray, colored red with silver and orange trim. And another one was a small collection of mechanical tools and parts inside a large kit that was explicitly from Gene.
Making sure to show her appreciation, Caroline then made sure to grab one of the gifts to Towa and hand it over to her best friend. Though given how heavy it felt, Towa quickly learned that her friend had given her various components and sketched plans for a variety of drills.
That wasn't the end of Towa's gifts, though: Nexus had managed to acquire components and tools to help her maintain her Mech. He was rather tight-lipped about where he got it from, though…
Oneryx's gift to Phoebe was next, and it was revealed to be a yellow-green stone with a swirling shadowy core. Oneryx explained that it was a 'Young Grass Dew' stone, that he infused with his own power, increasing its effectiveness. When asked what it was effective at, he decided to leave that as a surprise...
Then, it came time for Azaresh's gift to Ariana, and when she opened it, it turned out to be an outfit that was a modification of her prior outfit (which itself was a variation on what she wore as 'Achetto'). This new outfit's main area was split between black and navy blue, with red and silvery trim. Other modifications included the removal of the fur lining of her boots, but said 'lining' being moved to the collar and shoulders. Furthermore, the upper portion now included a short mantle and long sleeves that reached down her arms. Also included was an intricately-designed greatsword with a blade consisting of two 'blades' of metal frequently crossing, before joining at the tip, and made of a VERY sturdy metal; and a set of gloves.
Afterwards was a gift from Zondrys to Skye. Like Ariana's gift, it was a modification of Skye's time as 'Simon', with leggings that cover the whole leg, and longer sleeves for her top. Her coat was the same, but the top, leggings, boots, and scarf were lightly colored, almost silvery, with white trim. Alongside the stuff was a long, thin dagger with a curved blade on it. When Skye turned to Zondrys, he explained that it was for in case she got attacked at close range. He agreed to help train her with it, so she didn't cut her own fingers off or something.
Following that, Nowan ended up receiving two gifts from Gene and Gespenst. The first one turned out to be a small special watch that was able to shape and adapt itself alongside Nowan's shapeshifting, which was very much appreciated. The other gift turned out to be a small meteor that had faux gems inside it, which took a moment for Nowan to smile at once he connected the dots.
Some more gifts followed with ones that went to Oneryx, Khadis, Azaresh, Zondrys and especially Talma… …
The 4 'siblings' got magical rings that Lindsey admitted to having helped Gespenst obtain...Oneryx got a flowery-designed ring that was green in color; Lindsey identified it as a Chloranthy Ring, and Oneryx realized he felt he regained energy faster while wearing it. Khadis's looked like a broken chain link, and Lindsey said it was a Prisoner's Chain, which increased the wearer's defensive capabilities, increasing their staying power in combat. Zondrys's Ring was a silvery band with etches and runes on the border of the ring; Lindsey identified it as a Darkmoon Ring, which greatly increases the Spell Attunement Slots for the wearer, meaning Zondrys's ability to use magic increased. Azaresh gained a ring that resembled a shield or scale on a band; Lindsey said it was a Dragonscale Ring, and it decreased the effectiveness of backstabs on the user.
As for Talma, her gift ended up being a rather formal glass container with some dirt and earth in it to allow the blue and yellow crystals inside the container to remain in place. Lindsey also ended up quickly admitting her part in this gift as well from Gespenst, alongside identifying them as samples of the normal and rare Minerals from StarCraft.
Talma also revealed that on certain worlds, Mineral Crystals could regrow, meaning that given time, Talma could theoretically bring Minerals to Earth...which would greatly help MANY people...All she needed now, she said, was some Vespene...
And given all of their reactions, it was clear to Gespenst that each of them found their respective items to be very thoughtful or charming before things moved onward from there.
After that, Lindsey retrieved two presents from the tree...which confused the others, until they found that the gifts were to IceBite and Alma, respectively...and respectively from the other…
IceBite had apparently given Alma...a Warhammer Fantasy High Elf Miniature army. The others looked at IceBite weirdly. "...Alma and I had talked about wanting to do some Tabletop War-Gaming, so I thought I'd get Alma's army started…" That satisfied the others.
Alma's gift to IceBite was also a Miniature Army...of Tau from Warhammer 40,000. "Well, looks like we got an army for Warhammer Fantasy, and one for Warhammer 40,000...Now we just need one of each for the other…"
"Not exactly…" Lindsey said, before pulling up two more gifts. The two opened them, finding...a series of manuals and such about a game called 'GUWGS'.
"...Never heard of GUWGS…" IceBite commented.
"You know about GURPS?" Lindsey asked him, to which IceBite affirmed. "Well, think of GUWGS, or 'Generic Universal War-Gaming System', is basically a War-Gaming variation on the GURPS concept...I...kinda knew what you were getting each other, so I thought that getting you a gaming system where you could mix and match various War-Gaming Series' armies would be fun…Not to mention you can now simulate High Elves vs Tau, using GUWGs Warhammer Fantasy to Warhammer 40,000 Balancing Rules..."
"They have that?" Alma asked, surprised.
"...Well...I'll admit...I kinda created GUWGS a while back, so… … …" Lindsey sheepishly replied, "I've released it in several universes now, and once I was done with preparing the Zoo, I was thinking of contacting the creators of GURPS, to see if they wanted to collaborate the updating and distribution of GUWGS…"
"... ...Is that assuming they won't do a cease and desist letter?" Triple-M asked, despite knowing who Lindsey was already.
Lindsey smirked, and replied with confidence, "...Trust me, I have a feeling this'll work out…" She took a breath, before turning back to the engaged couple. "But either way, I decided to get you two a copy each, so that you can potentially not only pit Fantasy Armies vs 40k ones, but also even mix and match such armies in the future…"
Some time passed shortly after that, as one of the gifts that remained had something saying it was for Triple-M. So after getting the gift moved over, another nearby gift was spotted that was meant for Triple-R, which quickly got moved over…
...Before Triple-M then went first, opening the gift to find… ...A large physical strategy guide for Terraria, which slowly earned some confused looks from both Triple-M and Triple-R.
"...Wait, how does this get here? Terraria never received an official strategy guide made by any of the companies that made these kinds of physical book guides…" Triple-M started asking aloud as he started flipping through the pages.
"Wait, you don't know that-" Triple-R noted back before then saying, "-Yeah, the Prima Guide and other stuff like them are still around, they just rebranded themselves and expanded their business…"
"Then who's the one that got me this, then?" Triple-M noted back, after taking a moment to process that.
A chuckle from IceBite's direction gave him the answer to that.
"Where did you get the idea to get this, Ice?" Triple-M then asked with a bit of warm curiosity to his voice.
"Actually, Nexus gave me the idea…" IceBite replied.
"... ...Huh, then I wonder what…" Triple-R ended up commenting, before he then opened his gift…
...And found a Starbound Strategy Guide inside, which quickly led everyone to look at Nexus alongside Triple-R.
"And here I thought you weren't going to get me anything I would want…" Triple-R then noted in an amused joking, but still very appreciative tone over to Nexus.
Nexus just nodded in reply to the comment.
And soon after, the last few gifts were still under the tree...Leading to Gespenst to take the one that was addressed to it first.
Opening the box behind the wrapping… ...revealed the gift to be… …
"... ...An entire bed just for me?" Gespenst ended up saying as it pulled out several of the small items that made up the entire gift out of the box.
"...Yeah, from me…" Alma replied, shuffling nervously, "It's the best I could think of to get you, honestly…"
The Boo took a moment to pause after it heard that, before then quickly heading over to where Alma was and stopping in front of her before it then said, "... … ...Thank you, Alma. I… ...I really… ...really like it!"
"...Uhm...no problem…" Alma replied.
The small ghost nodded back… ...before then offering up a thankful hug to give her as the little fellow started to get a bit teary...
Alma...paused before she accepted the hug and slowly started forming a faint smile as the two shared that little moment with each other.
And while that lasted for a little bit before the ghost moved back to its spot in a very cheery mood by that point…
...One of the last gifts in immediate sight was quickly taken by Gene, given it was addressed to him.
Taking a bit of time to crack it open…
"... ...Entire collections of Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy games… …Wow. Who… ...who was the one that got me all of these?" Gene said back with some awe to his voice, before clearing it up and asking politely towards everyone else.
"Over here, Clarkson. I've spent enough time figuring out your taste from our banters...So I hope you enjoy them, buddy." Triple-M noted over in a friendly tone as he focused on Gene for a moment.
"... ...Thank you, Boss-I mean… ...I….I can't thank you enough for these, Connor…" Gene tried to say, before trailing and cracking off a few times for a bit there.
The last gift went to the last person to join the Residence: Talma's gift gave a jingling sound, like glasses clinking against each other. Tilting her head to the side, Talma opened the gift...and the group found a series of test-tubes, with various colored liquids in them. Talma pulled one out, staring at it...before her eyes widened. "E-E-Essence…"
Lindsey spoke up. "...I thought I'd do something nice and give the resident Zerg some Essence from various lifeforms, sapient and not, that I met on my journeys...it's not EVERYTHING I've ever met, but it SHOULD be a good starting point for you to experiment with…The Test Tubes are enchanted unbreakable, and anything inside them is perfectly preserved: just open them and toss them into your Evolution Chamber's Analysis Pool, and you'll have a LOT of stuff to experiment with…""
Talma returned the test-tube to the box. "Th-Thank y-y-you…" she thanked, with a smile.
With that, a small break was called to get the wrappings and any bit of trash cleaned up, allowing everyone a chance to get more refreshments and so on...
...And after everything settled down, the group got reorganized back into their spots as Triple-R made sure to tell everyone to take stock of the gifts they got and keep them next to themselves.
However, as the group began to further look over their gifts…"Hold on," Oneryx called out, "Another gift remains unclaimed under the tree!"
The group's gaze swiftly turned to the tree...and sure enough, a lone, unnoteworthy box with an envelope on top remained under the tree.
"That's really strange. I made sure to triple check the number of gifts yesterday…" Triple-R noted aloud, as he mentally counted out the gifts that were passed out already.
"...Well, there's one more…" Lindsey commented, and she went down and picked up the box. Reading the envelope on top, she announced, "...It's addressed to Alma...by…'Someone you know'..."
"What is this, some 'Secret Santa' crap?" Nexus asked, as Lindsey, finding the gift safe, passed it over to Alma.
Alma took the envelope and opened it, finding...a mundane Christmas Card, which barring the normal Christmas message, said 'It is the one you remember'. That confused the Huntress.
There was also some money inside the card…Pocketing the money, and opening the box, she looked inside…
...And she gasped, nearly dropping the box.
That got the others to pause, save for Gespenst who got worried immediately and asked, "Alma, you okay? What… ...was inside it?"
Without answering, she carefully put the box on a nearby table, and removed something from it...revealed to be…
"That's a CR90 Corvette," Nexus identified, as IceBite walked over to Alma, "...Also looks like one of those models you have to assemble with glue and stuff, before painting yourself...only it looks unpainted…"
"Alma," IceBite called to her, "You alright…?"
Alma was quiet for a time...before saying, "...If...the card...is telling...the truth… … ...This...This… … ...This is a model...my mother and I put together when I was seven…"
The room completely SILENCED in shock. Triple-M and Gene especially looked the most affected, before the latter ended up asking, "... ...How… ..how did it get there?"
Alma shook her head. "...I don't know how it's here… … ...My father took it away from us when I was 8...before we could paint it...but...it disappeared the day after my mother-..." Alma silenced herself...
...The model could've only been in one person's hands...but how did it find its way to her...In her heart, Alma KNEW this was the same model, but HOW did it get here? The only person who could have had it was-...
...Is it possible that Alma's mother was here? In this world? If so, where was she? How'd she get here? Why was she here?
Alma shook her head clear. She couldn't let herself be consumed by these thoughts...there was still the party going on.
"Uhm… ...Alma, are you going to paint it?" Gespenst ended up asking, once it built up enough courage to ask.
Alma turned to look at the unpainted model again...before closing her eyes, and thinking...When she opened her eyes again, she shook her head. "...No...I think...I'll leave it unpainted, for now…"
"Why's that?" IceBite asked.
Alma smiled, and looked back at the model. "...Call it a feeling…"
Front Door Entrance, Triple-R & Nexus Property, Earth, Sol System, Terran Sector, Orion Arm
The party then kept going after the gifts were squared away, leaving everyone to enjoy what was left of the festivities as Triple-R started playing christmas music to help fill in with the environment. And things were going rather well…
...But at one point, Triple-M made sure to whisper over something to Lindsey about meeting him elsewhere in a little bit. And once she responded back in the positive, Triple-M quickly made sure to find and locate Gespenst as well and told the little ghost something.
The two then ended up leaving the Rec Room quickly and up the foyer stairs to their respective rooms, before the two met back up at the front door. Once there, the duo then headed outside and waited, with Gespenst going invisible at Triple-M's kindly request.
Time then passed for a bit, till…
"... ...Connor?" Lindsey asked once she saw him waiting beyond the door with his hands placed behind his back as he faced away from her.
"Good to see you here, Lindsey… ...Wanted to be out here to make this moment a bit more special…" Triple-M noted as he turned his head around briefly to look at her, before looking forward again to focus on the snowy environment out there beyond the entrance.
Lindsey then took a moment to look around, already finding Gespenst nearby despite the ghost trying its best to be invisible. But she soon focused back on Connor and moved to be next him as she joined him in looking out there at the snow…
"... ...I'm aware you know that you didn't get a gift earlier from anyone else yet, but well… ...I wanted to make sure I was the first one. So… ...just one moment…" Triple-M said over to Lindsey in a bit of a cherry tone, before he reached into one of his pockets…
...And produced a small wrapped box that held Lindsey's gift from him to her.
"Merry Christmas, Lindsey. I hope you really like it…" Triple-M then made sure to tell her first, before then passing the gift over into her hands.
Lindsey took a moment of time to think over what it was, before she just went with tearing open the wrapping and opening the box before she gasped at-
"-Yeah, I know its… ...frankly, a mess. But I tried my very best to make the final product once I got everything together…" Triple-M ended up admitting over to Lindsey, once the gift was fully visible.
Said gift… ...was indeed a mess. It was made of crudely combined gems of various kinds, that on close inspection, was meant to be in the shape of a-
"-'Jump Crystal'. You… … ...made a Jump Crystal for me?" Lindsey finally started asking, as she looked away from the gift and directly at Connor with a tough to read expression with her face.
"I apologize… ...if you didn't want the reminder of it being with you being… …'you know', but… ...I honestly thought that… ...it was the most fitting thing I could give you. With how long we've been in this relationship, I wanted to give you something… ...well, made from deep within my heart." Triple-M started nervously at first, before calming down and being sincere with his feelings as he talked.
"... ...Well, I know it isn't a real Jump Crystal without the-" Lindsey started to say, before she stopped and then said, "-Sorry… ...I-I'm just.. …a bit stunned at seeing this. And I'll make this clear… ...I… ...I really appreciate what you did. This is… …"
But before she could keep trying to express her reaction, Connor took a second to look over to where Gespenst was and quickly said, "Gespenst, you can reveal yourself. And please make sure to hand the other 'special' gift to Lindsey…"
The Boo then became visible again, before floating over to where Connor and Lindsey were and presenting the wrapped together gift it had in one of its stubby arms.
Lindsey took a moment to grab the gift and open it… ...
..And finding out, it was a Origami Jump Crystal, given how well folded it was. And it felt a bit heavy-
"-Lindsey, there is something inside that 'Crystal' that you are free to take for yourself. And on behalf of everyone among the Residence, I offer it to you as thanks for everything you've done." Gespenst ended up saying, sounding a bit rehereased given how the ghost phrased its words.
Keeping that in mind, she soon carefully opened it to retrieve the item before restoring the figure back together. And once that was done, she took a deep look at the object…
...Finding it to be a large coin made of metal, with one side showing what used to be the 'Studio' and the other side being the 'Residence' they were living in.
"Merry Christmas, Lindsey." Gespenst then said in a very cheery tone before the small ghost went invisible and headed back to the party by going through the wall.
"...Yeah, Gespenst came up with the coin part, Gene and Caro did the metalwork, and the two sides were something else everyone agreed upon to make it that just a bit more special." Triple-M said over in a sheepish, yet proud tone to his voice.
"...Well...I can safely say that, as far as Christmases I've had, this one is fairly up there in the 'I enjoyed it' scale…" Lindsey replied.
"So I assume that my part in all of it, didn't help make it one of the best, then?" Triple-M then asked in a semi-appreciative, semi-joking tone.
"Actually," Lindsey chuckled, "Your one of the reasons it's 'up there' in that scale…"
"Good to hear then." Connor noted back sincerely, before following up with, "And you know what, the day isn't over yet… ...Meaning I still got time to go make it better than where it is now."
Lindsey chuckled and nodded. "Alright then...So, what's the plan next?"
"Let's get back inside and enjoy the party. And I heard Triple-R is going to be bringing out the Gingerbread House and the Hot Cocoa as soon as the next hour rolls around…" Triple-M made sure to say back about what the plan was.
The two then took a moment to quietly look at each other's eyes, getting some warm fuzzy feelings between the two before Triple-M moved first to get them back inside.
And as they re-entered the party, they noticed that Triple-R was getting the Gingerbread and Cocoa ready, alongside some other stuff suggested by other residents. Following that, the two joined in a conversation with Gene and Caroline, while nearby, Alma and IceBite were talking about constructable models and large-scale miniatures...
IceBite's and Alma's Room, Triple-R & Nexus Property, Earth, Sol System, Terran Sector, Orion Arm
It was later on at night, and Alma and IceBite entered the room. After storing away some of their gifts, while setting up others (like Alma's CR90 Model) for display, Alma flopped down onto her bed, as IceBite sat down at his desk.
"...Well...that was fun…" IceBite said.
"...Yeah...it was…" Alma replied.
IceBite chuckled. "And to think, we'll probably be able to do more of these in the future…I'm guessing that sounds fun to you, right Alma?" Silence. "...Alma?" IceBite asked, before turning around, finding that Alma had fallen asleep, a smile gracing her face.
IceBite just smiled and chuckled, before walking over, and covering her with the blanket at the end of her bed. "...Good night...and Merry Christmas," IceBite said, before going back to his desk and getting to work on something…
End Chapter 11.