Warning: Today's chapter may contain some material that is, although historical and part of the very nature of Baroque period, may be inappropriate for some readers. Most likely, however, you probably don't care, so you skipped this part.
Ian: Wait, why would you make a disclaimer like this?
Vincent: Trust me. About halfway through this speech, the flaming will start coming, because I'm going to deal with a former method of singing that are of a very... um... which reminds me, I have to get in my flame suit.
Time: 12:34.12 P.M.
Location: Same
To allow things to be fast forwarded, we have divided today's chapter into segments, with occasional interludes.
Segment 1: Ky Kiske.
As the cast of GG walks back into the hallways, Vincent gives Ky all the planning on how this audition is going to be.
"All right Ky. Now we know you are pretty experienced with fighting crime, but we are not sure about your credentials with acting. For starters, let's hear you from your lowest voice up to the top gradually."
"Ok."
In his first attempt at singing, he felt a bit nervous and could not reach high enough. Fortunately, the three were patient, realized his reluctance, and eventually he began to sing, and slowing hitting a low vocal note, similar to a sound of a baritone horn. As the session continued, he eventually started to sing in the higher pitches; his voice eventually hitting the ranges of a trombone. It was around his attempt to hit the lower range of a trumpet before his voice shifted to a high pitched falsetto which signaled the end of the session. The three intervened and quickly formed a consensus.
"I think you line somewhere in a baritone range. You could do tenor, but it'll be a stretch."
"Is that so, Vincent?"
"It all depends, Ky. You may be new to this, but a thing to understand is that there are 6 different vocal ranges, ranging from bass to soprano.
"Wait, isn't there something called castrato that was higher than soprano?" Areia asked nonchalantly.
"Well, there is something called castrato. But the requirements were downright ridiculous and horrifying."
"What do you mean?" Ky asked.
"In order to have a person like that, well, how should I put this… Recall the on and off thing involving Bridget and the fact that his parents were trying to raise him as a woman?"
Ky instantly became nauseous. "Ugh! Forget I asked! Anything involving that guy defies thinking."
"Trust me. Don't take a look at the Baroque era. There is a lot more to see there."
"Why?" Ian inquired.
"Lets just say rationally was thrown out the window, and so has my readership once this gets public." He though about at the end of the session.
Segment 2: Sol Badguy
As Sol entered, he started to have some really serious doubts about this idea. In fact, he has no idea why the hell is he still going through with this.
"Vincent, I don't why I'm still here. Why don't I just quit this? I'm no actor. Hell, I can't even sing, but I do like Queen."
"Oh. Then do you realize that one of those members is a…"
"IAN VANDEROFF, ARE YOU TRYING TO SCAR SOL BADGUY?!
The two lashed out to their partner. Sol was obviously confused at this turn of events.
"Sorry about that, Sol." Ian said. "Anyway let's hear you try to sing."
"OK, but it's not like I can anyway."
Unlike his knightly counterpart, Sol was telling the truth, as he tries to perform the same procedures as Ky does, and shifts to falsetto once he gets to the lower end of the baritone range.
"See. What did I tell you?"
Vincent was willing to try anything though. "Well, at least you're a bass. I think we have something some where along the line. Stay for a while, and we'll see."
As much as he agreed, he still hated still being there. "Damn! I though I had a chance at leaving this." He though as he left the stage.
Segment 3: Millia
Millia walked into the stage, and from an initial look, was very interested in trying this out. "Vincent, I'm glad you asked me to do this. It's been something that I wanted to do for a while now"
"You're welcome."
"But I have no idea how to sing."
The three "facefaulted."
"Did Ky or Sol tell you how to do it?" Areia said.
"No, but I do happen to know something. I hope it's not much."
"Well, show us."
Taking out a small disk and placing it in the same audio system that Slayer brought over, Millia starts to sing the romantic song "Somewhere Out There" which is the ending theme to the original "An American Tale" movie. However, it was so well done that Voltaire had to stop mid performance.
"If it wasn't for the fact that my ears are bleeding, I would have automatically allowed you to join up." Vincent said as he tried to regain his breath and control.
"Wait, was I that bad?!"
"Hell no. It's just that if someone starts singing a la The Little Mermaid, I start to suffer psychological trauma, which means that since you are going to be in this play, I'm going to need my visor."
Vincent walks out with his head hurting badly as he staggers to the door.
"So, I'm in?"
"Oh yeah!" Areia said "But you'd better not sing like that unless he has his visor. He submits easily to angelic siren-class singing."
Segment 3 ¾'s: Venom
Venom walks in with a determined mind on his side, particularly in the department of making sure he is safe. "Ok, Vincent. I'll have you know that I am a busy man, and I want you to understand that if I do this, I do not want everyone to find out who I am. I'm surprised that you have Ky here, but I guess it is because he is on vacation."
"Understood. Let us being, shall we?"
"Can I do something I though up of myself?"
"Go ahead."
After placing his audio disk in the sound system, Venom attempts to do the famous "Fiagro" act from "The Barber of Seville, which is roughly the one used in the classic "The Rabbit of Seville" cartoon starting Bugs Bunny. However, it too was halted halfway through the performance, though not by Vincent's doing.
"Vincent, do you happen to have another one of those visors?" Areia asked covering her ears and acting the way Vincent did moments ago.
"Sorry, it was custom fitted for me. I have my reasons you know."
"Other than that, you're in." Ian congratulated.
"Excellent then. Now that I'm in, I can finally finish of Millia for what she did to Zato-sama."
"We heard that!"
Segment 4: Bridget
With much anticipation, the star of the show, Bridget, finally walks onto the stage.
"Ah Bridget, just the guy I want to see. I'll assume that you are ready for this."
"Yes, I am, and just so you know, I know all about the castrato issue."
"Wait!" yelled Ian. "How do you know about the castrato?"
"It's a long story, and I don't even want to get into my personal life. To make a long story short, I'm fine and I have everything still intact. Why do you think we have stories about me and the other girls?"
Everyone stares at him with shock and confusion
"Ok… Too much information."
"Well we can get that part out of the way, Areia. Anyway, I want you to start singing from your lowest note all the way to the top."
Bridget performs the same procedures that was requested from Ky back at the beginning, and with some very surprising talent, manages to reach the lower end of Dizzy's potential voice. The three of them are quite pleased with the results.
"Oh… yeah. Now I know you can reach as far as Mezzo-Soprano, though technically it is called a counter-tenor." Vincent said.
"Very impressive! Most people couldn't do that without sufficient training, let alone natural talent." Areia added. "The part is yours."
"Cool."
Segment 5: Faust
As Faust walks in, Vincent takes out a resume folder, which contains all the achievements that the doctor did. He analysis it and makes a note. "Ok Faust. Now before I begin I want to ask, seeing that you have a lot of experience in medicine and such, do you have any experience doing acting? I would assume that since you are a purveyor of weird things, acting may be partly your nature."
"Perhaps."
"Do you anything to show this? Ian added.
"Allow me."
Faust takes out another audio disk and inserts it into Slayer's conveniently placed sound system. He hits play. Unfortunately, it is a song that turns all three off very quickly. Think Faust shaking his butt and rapping…
"I like big butts and I cannot lie."
"NO!!!"
Seconds later, Faust is ejected from the roof of the opera house and propelled upward toward the sky, courtesy of the three as they each hold equally smoking Trident Rocket Launchers in their hands. (Directly from the Unreal Tournament games)
"I know what you are going to ask, and yes, that was necessary. And to think I expected more from him."
"Just by asking, Vincent where did we send him?
"Ah, Probably no where important, Ian."
"You're probably right Areia… Ah well, send in the next victim."
Several streets down the road, in Madison Square Garden, the final rehearsals are underway for one very (in)famous fighter/idol singer/Psycho Soldier member. Sadly, the rest of the crew is very tired and would like to go home.
"Ok, people we are going to take this from the top. I want to make this perfect for our grand tour around the world.
"Athena Asamiya, we have been through this five times already. I think we all deserve a break."
"Sie, I know, but just this one more time and then we can go home. Now a one, a two…"
All of a sudden, Faust quickly penetrates the roof and collides with Athena. The force of the fall also topples the stage right from under her. As the crew runs over to the area, Faust gets up from the wrecked stage relatively intact.
"I'm so sorry about all this, Miss. I did not expect this to happen."
Athena's response was not pleasant… "Someone get security! Everything is ruined thanks to this psycho doctor!
Seconds later, as we take a look at the quiet streets of the Garden…
"AHH!!"
Segment 6: Baiken
"Baiken, now listen, I know that you don't want to do this." Vincent said to an annoyed Baiken.
"You think?" She answered as he was brandishing her sword for action.
"Well, I have no problems, but before you do say anything, I think I have something that can change your mind."
"Which is?"
"Take a look at these pictures."
Ian took out a standard issue suitcase, opened it up, and takes out a series of photos which show Baiken singing in various places, including a waterfall, a karaoke bar, a Kabuki theater, and in the shower.
"How the hell did you get those photos, and don't bother selling them on eBay. Give them to me, or I'm not budging!"
"Well we figured that maybe you can explain it to us."
"What exactly?" She asked.
"Vincent, I think we can let her go on this one"
A surprised response came to him. "What do you mean, Areia?"
"Well… it's like this…" Areia walks over back to the conveniently placed audio system and places a disk in. Moments later, we hear Baiken singing badly. Not to mention the fact that she keeps messing up the notes, but she is completely WAY off key. The three are shocked.
"Areia, how did you get this?"
"Well, I did some research before hand…"
(Flashback)
We see Areia in stealth ninja gear sneaking around the forests of the colony. Quickly, she gets to within several meters of Baiken's site.
"All right. Let's see."
In her immediate vicinity, we see Baiken taking a shower beside a waterfall, with her trying to hum something. As Areia contiunes her vigil, she starts to hear her singing. With quick speed, Areia hits record on the tape. Minutes later, she is satisfied with the results.
"That's one issue out of the way. I must report this to Vincent quickly."
(End Flashback)
"Areia, when did you take this, by the way?"
"Uh... a day after you announced the project."
He face faulted. "And why did you not tell me this before?"
"We were all hurried and press for time. What was I suppose to do? You already set up the lure before I had a chance to get the info down." She had a point considering the waiting time, occasional forgetfulness and the sudden rush of events happening at once. "So I guess with this in mind, you are pretty much off the hook."
"Good. I'll be off then." She runs off very quickly towards the exit.
"But we do have an opening for head of security."
"Tell me that later, Vincent. I just want to get the hell out of here." Her voice was barely audible as the front doors are slammed closed.
"You think she'll come back, Vinnie?"
"You know… I'm not sure…"
Interlude
As Jam enters the main house, and Bakien flushes out of the way, the Jellyfish crew finally arrives: All fourteen of them in fact.
"Well, here we are everyone. I told you we are going to make it in time." He immediately looked at Ky, who was checking his clothing for burn marks. Ky also takes note.
"So he invited you as well." Johnny said unpleasantly.
"Ky, are we going to start this today?"
"Can you?"
Everyone gives Sol a nasty look. Anji smacks him with his fans for saying that remark.
"No. I'm on vacation right now. I don't want to deal with crime fighting. So could you try to keep things normal around here?"
"If you want." He sits down on one of the couches. "It really doesn't matter. The fact that…" He notices Axl as he suddenly appears from the bathroom. "Axl!"
"What?"
"You owe me something."
"And what is that?"
"This."
Johnny goes over to Axl's position and tries to "sucker punch" him, but he steps back a moment before contact. Taking out his weapon from wherever he keeps it, he goes on the defensive.
"Man, what was that for? I didn't do anything."
"Give me a break. You blew up the Mayship's engines and having us stranded in the middle of three separate runways!"
"Oh come on. Can't you understand I have problems with time? I just keep popping from one moment to the next."
"That's enough." Slayer rushed over and "dusted" the two, throwing them into the short ceiling above. "Vincent insisted that no one was going to duel here. Besides, do you really want to anger him? He just ejected Faust for crying out loud."
"What did he do? " Axl asked as he got up from that fall.
"It isn't worth asking." Sharon added
"So there is no dueling around here then?" May added after getting all the girls settled. Sharon nodded and Johnny understood her.
"Ok. I think I can understand that." Johnny got himself up from the ground. "By the way, you told that that someone named Vincent is involved?"
"Yes, His full name is Vincent Voltaire." Millia said as he was brushing her hair. "You want me to tell him that you're here?"
"No. I'll just tell the next person who walks in." He gets back to the girls before realizing that Millia cut her hair, which just made Johnny seem very out of place.
Segment 7: Jam Kuradoberi
Moments before Jam entered the stage, he wondered about her high vocal range, and wondered if the audience could tolerate her voice. To test this out, he goes under the table and takes out three champagne glasses, setting them on the table beside him.
"Now then," said Ian as Vincent positioned the glasses properly. "From our experience, we know that you have a very high voice, and quite possibly, you may be able to pull off some of the parts and…"
"No more explanations." She clamored. "I want to play beside Ky-chan."
"Ky-chan you now call him?"
"Yes, Vincent." For reasons only explained through anime physics, a floating heart shoujo background appears behind her. "He is my one true love, and neither rain, sleet, snow nor the occasional kitchen fire shall separate me from my soul mate." The background shifts to an enflamed battlefield. "So you better not screw this up, or I'll show you 5000 years of kicking ass!
Areia and Ian instantly became nervous. Vincent was interestingly unaffected.
"I see, but that depends on if you can sing." He replied with eloquent tranquility. "Please start to sing from your lowest note up to the top."
The test went off without a problem. Estimated time of shattered champagne glasses is .000001 second
"Thank you high density earplugs."
"Ditto, Vincent. Ditto." The other two said, sighing in relief.
Segment 8: Axl Low
Axl walks in, feeling very glad he was able to get out of the sticky situation involving Johnny. "Just so you know, Johnny and his crew are here, and I think you need to make note of extra security."
"They are here? I see." He makes a note on a steno pad. "Ok. Done, but for right now, I want to hear you sing."
"Well, I'm not that great, though I do have some experience with wooing my sweet Megumi." He clears his throat and walks up to the stage. "If you don't mind, I would like to ask if I can sing the first five minutes of 'Le Nozze di Figaro.'"
The three were very surprise that the guy knew the original name of the opera, so they decided to give him free reign on his singing, and from the looks of it, it was not bad. Though a baritone ranged singer, he seemed to have a great skill in trying to perform the first five minutes of "The Marriage of Figaro." It was not as great as Slayer, but good enough for Vincent.
"You've got skill, Axl. I am hereby accepting you in as part of the cast."
"Thanks. I kind of got it while I was dating Megumi."
"Oh, and on your way out, tell Johnny to send Leap over once everyone is done."
"Why her?" He inquired.
"There is something about her that interests me a lot. She may have the ability to make this opera wonderful."
"Ok, your call man." He left the stage wondering what was making Vincent so interested in Leap.
Segment 9: Anji Mito
"Ok, Anji, now, I am nearly done with selecting the parts, and so far, you seem to have the most knowledge of the entire story, second only to Slayer." Vincent spoke towards Anji as he appeared in front of the triumvirate. "Seeing as I don't need to explain much about the parts, I want you to tell me what your capabilities are."
"Well, from my own personal experiences, and my vocal range, I want to play the part of Don Basilio."
"I'll assume you mean the part of the music master who does that "damage control" scene at the end of act 1, correct?" Ian said.
"Hai."
"If that is the case, then let's hear your vocal range."
Anji starts to try and hit the proper notes. As he keeps going, the three realize how experienced a voice Anji has, and after some discussion, decide to agree with Anji.
"Ok. Anji. Quite possibly, you are good. Your voice seems to be in the tenor range, and I think we have a way with getting you to play his part."
"I see. Well then, thank you very much, Vincent"
"Don't mention it."
Interlude 2
From outside the main stage, Anij walks out toward the back as Chipp walks ahead of him. Slayer goes up to him to check on things, and finds a relieved Anji
"So I see he has accepted you into the opera."
"I feel confident that I'll be in it. Trust me."
"I'm not sure about me though." Jam said. "Maybe, he wants you in because you know the script."
"I know I'm out. Thank goodness."
"Well, that is because… Baiken?"
Everyone turns around to see Baiken, now reappeared from what was assumed to have been her last appearance today.
"Wait, I though you left." Slayer added.
"I had to take care of some unneeded business somewhere. That and I have a new sake bottle with me." She waves the bottle in front of everyone. "The old one was full of cheap water." She plops down to the ground again. "Besides, I know Vincent is probably going to do some security work with me. Maybe it'll be fun."
"The same with me, probably." Sol added.
"Hold on a second, we are not going to know who is going to get into what until tomorrow at least." Venom said in an attempt to not confuse everyone. "For all we know, he may just have us acting minor roles, or possibly the ensemble cast."
"At least I know that I'm going to be in it."
"I would like to see that happen, Millie-kun." Millia literally threw a nearby raspberry at Venom.
"What upsets me the most though is that I know some guy from Britain is going to get the part of Cherubino."
"You mean me? Anji?"
"No, not you, Axl." He shifts positions on his spot and points his fan towards the kid. "I'm talking about Bridget here."
"So, do you have something against me?
"Not really. It's just that I just can't see you play that part."
"Oh come on." Slayer interrupted. "The kid's perfect for the act. I don't see how he cannot be Cherubion."
"Perhaps. But I've seen a lot of performances before, and Cherubino has always been played as a woman, just like Peter Pan. Besides, the only way Bridget came in is if he happened to be a..."
All of a sudden, Vincent appears from out of nowhere, quickly takes out his ASMD shock rifle, and wakes everyone up as the beam streaks by Anji, narrowing missing him, Jam, May, and Dizzy since Anji was perpendicularly parallel to their spots. This rush move gives him barely enough breathing room to speak.
"New… rule. From now on, anyone… making… a castrato reference… will be shock rifled… on the spot… Spread the word…."
He walks back in, with everyone now scared and concerned...
"Uh... Sorry?" Anji said... with emphasized cowardice in his voice.
Segment 10: Chipp Zanuff
Vincent returns to the stage and goes to where Chipp is currently standing. "I'm sorry for that. It's just I'm starting to get sick of hearing about that."
"It's all right. I think Bridget fits the part perfectly."
"So do we, but I want to see how you can sing first off. Just let me get back to my seat." He carefully returns to his seat, taking a note to drink a little Mountain Dew that was standing there. Areia bopped him for that since it was hers to begin with."
"Well, I'm not much of a singer. But let me see... if you want, I can try to do some works by Mark Anthony."
"Are you trying to be multicultural, Chipp?" Ian asked. "It seems you claim to be Japanese, but was born from the US, and now you wish to try this out."
"Come on." Chipp added. "About how much of this nation is Latin anyway?"
"He has a point there." Vincent concluded. "Ok, go ahead."
Despite the trio's initial viewpoints of the American ninja, Chipp is no Mark Anthony. Estimated time of Vincent tooting a random bugle and Areia hitting a gong: Around 10 seconds.
Vincent: Y…
Areia: Fuerda
Ian: Feed him to the lions!
"Oh come on. This is completely unnecessary." Chipp blurted out. "Could you at least hear me out for a second?"
"Ok, ok, we're sorry. I though we needed some sort of ice breaker after my episode." The two put their instruments down beside them. "But seriously, you do need a change. I personally don't think this will work out. I'll give you another chance, OK, but this'll be it.
"Ok then." With that Chipp changes his tune this time from Latin star to crooner has starts taking works from the Frank Sinatra library, such as "Luck Be a Lady" and "Come Fly With Me." The two were reluctant to use their musical ejection instruments this time.
"So, what do you think?"
"I though it was different." Ian said. "Different, and yet it works for some odd reason."
"Great. So does that mean I can try my other songs again?"
Areia immediately hits her gong.
"Holy Zen."
Segment 11: Leap
At this point in the game, exhaustion is starting to wear on the three. Since all the remaining participates have gone through, it's only the pirates to deal with. And first on the list is Leap.
"Normally I don't like holding clichés in my performances, but it is a common fact that women of your caliber are known to have big operatic voices." Vincent replied, pointing out her features. "This is due in part to your extensive lung capacity."
"Oh." She replied with complete understanding.
"So anyway, in the effort to see how you talk, I would like to hear your vocal range."
"You mean how low or high I can get?"
"Yes."
"Well it all depends. I'm mostly an alto, and I can usually manage a range from tenor all the way to mezzo-soprano, but then again there are such differences, such as lyrical soprano."
"That is fine, Leap."
Apprently, she is still continuing her lenghtly discussion on the art as if she knows everything. "But then it really depends on the circumstance. For some moments, you have to have the right vocal settings to show the emotion of the characters, whether it is for a comedy or a drama."
"That's enough, Leap." He tried to stop but she continued.
"…not to mention have a supporting cast of different vocal ranges."
"I understand, Leap, and I think you can fit right in."
"Of course, then you have the ridiculous castrato, which just..."
All three face fault in unison. "Arrrggg! Could you not do that again?"
Leap instantly recalls what happened several moments ago, and apologizes. "Oh. Sorry. I just know a lot."
Segment 12: Johnny
Johnny enters with a question pertaining to the sudden increased interest in Leap: "I see that there was a lot of interest in Leap over there."
"The good news is that she's in," Vincent said, as the three hold heavy duty ice bags in their heads "but can I ask you, does she have a collection of classical works or something?"
"The lady is a musical fanatic!" He expressed to the trio. "How do you think she knows all this stuff? In fact, she even wrote her own musical: "The Voyages of the Jellyfish Pirates."
"How is it?"
"Not sure. I never bothered to take a look for obvious reasons."
"Oh yeah, the 'Midnight Carnival.'" He took his icepack down. "Anyway, let's get down to business."
"Tenor." Johnny blurted out without thinking. The three wanted a clairiation to what he said.
"I'm a tenor. Leap said it herself."
"So you are telling me that you…?
"…are a tenor? Yes, Areia."
"How so?" Vincent wondered. "More specifically, how do you know that you are a good tenor singer?"
"How do you think I have an entire crew full of ladies on board who are loyal to me at my every whim?"
All three see him and realize that his good looks coincide with his perfect voice. "Good point."
Segment 13: May
With the three on the verge of exhaustion, Vincent was more than willing to finish up the auditions, so with May, he figured this wouldn't take long. "Ok, May. Johnny told me all about your skills, so I would like to get this out of the way. To speed things up and prove that what Johnny said is true, I want you to hear your vocal range."
"I just want to know one thing though." She implied. "Can I be with Johnny-sama?"
"That depends on how high you can sing."
"Ok."
May tries to hit a note which was sadly placed under the "champagne text." The estimated time of more shattered champagne glasses ended up being a lot longer than Jam, I can tell you that.
"So how was I? Was I good?"
"We'll let you know."
The three turned around a formed a group huddle. "Ok, now I know May isn't the brightest singer, but you all agree that Leap may have trained her to be like this, correct?"
"Most likely Vincent, I mean, she was not as bad as Jam. That I know."
"I agree, Areia. I was asking myself as I heard her voice the possibility that maybe Leap trained her, you know, to sing that high?"
"Ian, if what you said is true, could that mean she also did it to the rest of the pirates, cause if this is true, then that means…"
The other two looked at Vincent, then at each other in unison.
"We have our ensemble cast!"
They finally turn around to May. "May, the good news is that you may still be with him after all." She cheers for happiness.
"And with that in mind, I guess that is everyone then. Do you want to call it a day, Areia?"
"Wait? What about the rest of the crew?" Johnny, apparently overhearing this, stormed right into the stage along with the rest of the very annoyed crew.
"More importantly, what about Dizzy?" May added.
"I can sing you know. Why don't you give me a chance?" Dizzy said as squeaked by towards the end. The director had to take charge.
"Well, I almost forgot to mention this. First off, I understand what happened at JFK was unfortunate, so let me make this up for you. I need an ensemble chorus to fit in the background, so all of the girls are in, including Dizzy."
The rest of the crew cheers as some potential character collisions are averted.
"Now if you'll excuse me, I need to take a breather. Ian and Areia, you handle the accommodations. I shall see you all tomorrow."
"Will do."
As the two walk toward the waiting area, accompanied by the Pirates, Vincent exits on one of the back doors, and as soon as he is in the clear, runs as far away from the duelists as possible, for what can seem to be the obvious reason of "uncertain" casting, and overloaded stress.
One hour later, at a local arcade, the "director" tries to repeat history at an Initial D Arcade Game Version 3… and succeeds.
"Damn it. Why can't I pass Irohazaka? I need to rethink how I do this course with "The Buntamobile"
Vincent's cell phone rings. He picks it up.
"Vincent, its Areia. Where are you now?"
"Getting my ass kicked in Initial D Version 3. Why?"
"Great. Come down to Times Square and the Winter Garden Theater." She didn't really care much what it was that he was doing.
"Why? Isn't that where they have the musical Mamma Mia?"
"Yes, but there is someone else wanting to meet with you. And she has a giant key with her."
"A giant key?" His eyes quickly widen. "Ok, I'll be there." He hangs up the cell phone and vaults out of the arcade. "A.B.A, you have arrived, have you not?"
Moments later, in front of the Winter Garden Theater, Vincent arrives as Areia and Ian await his presence. Beside her was a girl who appears to have bandages over her vital areas. On her back is a very large key, firmly affixed to her back, like a mother to her baby.
"Hi you guys."
The two respond with calm hellos.
"So this is the new girl, Ian"
"Yes. Vincent Voltaire, I would like for you to meet A.B.A."
She starts to act shy and unwilling to respond to his advances. Vincent extends his hand to him, but tosses it away, trying to avoid contact with him.
"Is something wrong?"
"No. It just feels scary to see someone new." She turns her face away from the three. "You better not harm me."
"At least you can talk."
"Yes. I have my key to protect me though, so stay back."
Vincent takes a look at the back of her, noticing the key on her back. "…is that key an 'outrage'?"
"Huh?" She said as she turned her face back to the three.
"It's nothing. What I want to know what has interested you to come to this city."
"I… I want to join the opera." She yelled out.
"What do you mean?"
"You heard me. I want to join."
"I'm confused." Ian replied. "It's like your forcing us to let you join. Who are you?"
A.B.A became defensive and continued her lashing. "I… I am the new duelist… doesn't that give me enough to…"
"A.B.A, I love to help you, but I'm very confused." Vincent attempted to calm her. "It looks like you want to come, but you are forcing us to allow you to join."
"Do you not want me to join?"
"It's not that." Areia added. "We swear."
"Then you'll let me join."
"Well, I'm not sure about that either."
"You are confusing Paracelsus and me."
"Paracelsus?" Ian replied.
"Yes, Paracelsus. It is my key, and my companion."
"Ok."
"I don't want you to be mean, but you have to..."
Vincent can tell that something is unusually wrong with her, so he tries to talk to her calmly. "A.B.A, I know about you. They say you are the new Guilty Gear Duelist, right?"
"Yes. I am the new duelist."
"Then what are you?" Ian added.
"The three of us can tell when something is wrong." said Areia as she supported the rear. "And what we know is you are hiding something outright.".
"Can you please tell us who you are?"
"Well, if I can sing who I am… can you let me join?"
"…I guess I can if it can clear up this confusing scenario." Vincent said as the trio backed away from A.B.A's immediate position, giving her room to breath.
"Ok, here is my story…"
Notes: For those that don't know, "The Buntamobile" is commonly known as the Subaru Impreza STI Version V Type R. (GC8V) It's a hidden car in the game, and is not available in Initial D Version 1. I'd list the code here, but this is GG and not ID.
Also, I don't know if A.B.A's weapon is an "Outrage." It may not be one, but I was wondering though since there were two unnamed Outrages, and even though the Outrages are presumed to be "protected" by the UN, three fighters use an "Outrage" as their weapon. (Sol = Fuuenken/Fireseal; Ky = Fuuraiken/Thunderseal; Anji = Zessen/Stopping Fans) It could be possible that the UN may have lost a forth, since A.B.A has found her weapon in her first journey out of her capsule home. However, this is not canon, and don't consider me as absolute. This is why I wonder if it is one, and I am not automatically accepting it as one.
And now to hopefully qualm everyone's potential concerns and/or curiosities… I present to everyone Bonus Material left from the first take.
Bonus Material about the History of Opera
(Or, could you give me a serious explanation about what the hell is a Castrato, please?)
In front of the cameras is a near exact duplicate of the classic "Mobil Masterpiece Theater" set, complete with fancy couches and cheesy classical music. Slayer and Vincent are sitting at opposite ends of each other.
"Good evening. If you are here, you are no doubt concern about what is a castrato, or are probably bored and/or traumatized by today's chapter. With either case, allow us to explain what is a castrato, and perhaps this will calm the concerns of you, or perhaps scar you even more. Slayer?"
"Thank you Vincent, Back during the time of the 16th century, women were not allowed to sing in traditional church choirs. However, as you may notice, a lot of male singers in a choir do not impress the audience a lot. So therefore, the practice was started where young boys were castrated before the onset of puberty. This would, in a sense, lock the high feminine voice onto the person for the rest of their lives. Vincent, if you continue?"
"This practice was more influenced by the Baroque period, where not only the obvious bans were in effect, but a strange concept of having muscular men doing high voices was very popular. The unusually weird and sometimes bizarre operas, as you might as well figure out, were further enhanced by these castrati. In fact, about 70% of these opera actors were noted castrati during the time, because some of these parts required the characters to have these high voices to act."
"There is one significant trade off to all of this though, Vincent. If you happened to be chosen as one of these singers, you will be set for life. The demand of these people in the operas was so great, that anyone would pay a lot of money for this time. So the trade off is that you trade your fatherhood for your life, which considering the demand coincides with the concerns of the poor, it would be a very good trade off for supporting your immediate relatives."
"However, Slayer, after a long time, this practice was finally ended in 1870 in Italy, where it was declared outlawed after 200 years of practice."
All the other male GG duelists including Bridget: Thank god!
"Today, Vincent, really talented but equally rare singers, called sorpranistas, can mimic the effects, and although he does refute this, an opera singer by the name of Ugo Farell is presumed to be a castrato, although now the only way that is possible is due to a biological anomaly, which I won't say since I think we have already scarred you enough."
"Well, I thank Slayer for coming today for clarify this, and I hope I don't want to use this as a joke again."
"It's been nice helping you, but I think now, you should run."
"Yes. I'd better do so, seeing as the stage doors of the studios are now being pounded on. If you'll excuse me…"
With that, Vincent promptly jumps out of a covered window and uses a parasol to descend to the streets below before an angry swarm of readers' raid the PBS studios in Manhattan.
And at this time, I really would like to apologize about mentioning about that. I swear that there will be no more jokes of that nature again unless seriously requested; because I can understand that it's not really a pretty topic to have it discussed.