Hi guys, good news and bad news, today.
Good news: the Wi fi is back up, yaaaay! Now I can upload again without having to use my phone as a Hotspot!
Bad News: I'm moving in a couple days, so I may have to focus on that for a bit, which could impact my updates. Just letting you know now, so you know if you see any irregularities with my normal schedule, you know why.
anywho, enough about me, on with the story!
Chapter 26 - Beginnings of Hell
The next morning, everyone woke up to the alarm set by IF the previous night. Nico and the Nurse-in-Training had returned to the Hotel only to find Noire and Neptune acting like they were close buddies, no signs of their earlier awkwardness or tension. The two had glanced at each other, shrugged, then continued with their night thinking that Neptune had somehow wormed her way into Noire's heart.
Which wasn't far from the truth really.
Mentally though, Nico couldn't help but do a mini celebration. If he wasn't underage and had less morals, he would have popped open some alcohol to celebrate their new bonding. Seeing how they were slowly but surely coming to terms with each other, more Noire than Neptune since the latter made friends easily given her personality, was surely a heart-warming sight to see. It was also just in time, too, for his preparations were practically completed yesterday. He just had to make a few phone calls yesterday and everything would be set. Now all he had to do, was tell the girls what he'd been doing.
Despite everything going well, there was one thing that still bothered him, though. Avenir used to employ WAY more manual Labour than what they do today. To make a comparison, their manual labour was 80% higher than what it was in current times. In addition, those who were from companies that couldn't pay their outlandish taxes were unheard from afterwards, as if they just up and left overnight. No signs of sabotage or kidnapping from their homes. He had interviewed several of their families, but they all said that their family members, husbands, lovers, friends, fathers etc., never came home and they had no idea why.
When he discovered about Avenir's taking of Umbrella tech though, a small part of him suggested something he hoped to any deity in existence was wrong.
Right now, as the girls got dressed after showering, Nico swiftly going in when they began to change, IF pulled on her Shorts and glanced at one of her Phones. She saw that a message Icon had popped up and so, after putting on her green bra and tank top, she reached down to the Phone on her bed and picked it up. She opened her phone, got to the messages tab, and narrowed her eyes.
"What is it, iffy? You looking at a newly blocked vid on your favourites list?" Neptune asked, popping up behind her in nothing but her underwear. She had seen that IF was staring at her phone intently, which had drawn her curiosity further so she had decided to come on over. Likely, IF hadn't noticed her coming so she'd likely flip out.
Surprisingly, the brunette only sighed in annoyance as she glanced over her shoulder at the preteen. "Hi, Nep." She greeted in annoyance, before her gaze shifted back to her phone. "Looks like we have another job for Avenir. They've sent the co-ordinates for the meeting point, but…"
Compa, who was also in her undies, walked over while donning her usual skirt, drawn to the conversation that the two girls were having. "What's wrong, iffy? You look worried about something." She asked with concern, getting the brunette to turn to her and show her the message she got for Avenir.
IF frowned further as she explained the cause for her ire. "These co-ordinates point to an abandoned Factory west of Lastation. A couple hundred miles, if I'm not mistaken. I'm just suspicious on what they would have to gain from meeting us there." She replied, before bringing her phone back to her and beginning to text a reply. "Remember the last mission? The meeting point was close to Thelad Sanctuary, but there's next to nothing like that at these co-ordinates. Seems kind of odd and suspicious." She explained. It was practically a remote, isolated area, which didn't do her instincts any favours. Alarm bells rang in her mind, despite her attempts to stoop them.
Noire soon joined them, looking to have gotten further with her clothes as she wore her white skirt, stockings and boots, while her boobs were covered by her light blue bra. She crossed her arms under them as she thought about what this could mean. "Well, we'll just have to find out, won't we? It won't do us any good just sitting here, we need to find out what Avenir is presenting at the Expo." She reasoned. Even if this did turn out to be a trap which she doubted because they'd kept most of their activities secret, they should keep up appearances.
The others nodded in agreement with the blackette. If they didn't go to this meeting point then Avenir would become suspicious about them, also they wouldn't be able to find out what those guys were planning. What's more was that IF also had a point, they could be wandering into a trap, which was worrisome. But what choice did they have? They can't run away, that would be counterproductive. There was no turning back after this.
"Well, we could leave someone behind to guard the City in our absence." Nico's voice shouted from within the bathroom. The male had gone in there, taking his Bracers with him since they had the link to his Void Storage. The male had gone through his routine during the girls' talking so he had opted to switch from his PJ's to his normal getup, getting rid of the time it would take to put clothes on.
Seriously, Void Storage had many uses.
IF hummed as she considered this. "That could work. It'll give us a sense of peace since someone would be here to defend Chian just in case this turns out to be a trap. However, Avenir's seen all of us and they've requested all of us, so we must show up to keep our image, otherwise we'll lose credibility." She explained, sighing in disappointment as her shoulders sagged at this revelation. It was a good idea too, shame that it wouldn't have worked since they didn't have anybody that Avenir didn't know about.
"Actually, I have a way around that. Remember, I'm a Spec Ops Agent." Nico responded as he was busy adjusting the collar of his Trench Coat. He raised his right Bracer and activated the interface, quickly scrolling through his options before finding the tab called 'Contacts'. "I've been setting up backup plans in case this does prove to be a trap, if it happens to be so, we won't have to worry as much. Multiple eyes are on those assholes right now, so we can rest easy while we go do our job."
The brunette had never felt so glad that they had a Spec Ops Agent on standby than she did now. She aimed a proud smirk at the bathroom door as she slipped her Trench Coat on, alongside her phone covered belt and boots. While she found it suspicious how Nico seemed to be on top of things recently, she couldn't help but admit that it was a good thing he did. The brunette had indeed noticed that Nico seemed to leave them fairly often, so she had been wondering on what he had done by himself. "Dude, your a lifesaver. I'd rest a whole lot easier if we had some of them notified early on though. Rather not have these contacts of yours be caught unawares. Could you get on that?" she asked him, getting a "Righto!" from the male as he went to work. IF then turned to address the girls, her face setting into one of confidence as she held a hand on her hip. "Well, while Nico's doing that, we should focus on getting ready. Avenir's not going to take lightly to us being late."
After a few moments, Both Nico and the girls finished their appointed tasks. Nico had finished contacting his comrades in Lastation, comrades he had also mentioned were Racoon City survivors like himself, telling them that these comrades would keep an eye out for any suspicious activity from Avenir, the notify the rest of them if they found anything. Meanwhile the girls had finished changing and had called the male out the bathroom, telling him it was safe for him to do so.
Before they left the Hotel room, Noire then glanced to the preteen as a question sparked in her mind. "By the way, Neptune, I can't help but notice the sword you use in your human form. Where'd you get it?" she asked her, remembering the crackling crimson blade Neptune had in her possession.
Hearing Noire's question, Neptune hummed as she pulled Murasama out of her Inventory, holding it horizontally in its sheath. "You mean, this? Nicky got it for me back at Planeptune. He called it a HF something or other, said it was something I could use instead of a wooden sword." She explained sheepishly.
Noire gave her a disbelieving look, raising an eyebrow in confusion. "How could someone wield a Wooden Sword in their battles? That sounds like they're begging to be slaughtered." She remarked dryly, making Neptune laugh a bit more, though it was increasingly forced as seconds passed. She then looked to Nico who had finished deactivating his Bracer, probably doing something with one of its functions. "You gave that blade to her, right? Where'd you get it?"
Looking up at her, Nico responded swiftly. "It's called a High Frequency blade. Murasama was originally a simple Katana, however one of Planeptune's raids yielded us a technology Lastation's engineers deemed hopeless, one of their greatest errors in my opinion since HF Technology's one of the best technologies around. Anyways, Planeptune engineers perfected it and applied it to many of the military's weapons, Murasama being one of them. I gave it to Neptune so she didn't get herself killed." He explained, gesturing to the weapon, which was now unsheathed and occasionally crackling with electricity.
Noire found herself perplexed as she looked at the blade. On one hand, she was ticked off that Planeptune stole a Technology that Lastation built, but on the other hand she felt proud that such a useful idea was not simply left to rot in the backburner. From what she had seen, it worked wonders. A surge of jealousy rose within her as she looked at the blade, and she mentally cursed Lastation's engineers for throwing away such a useful technology to the wolves.
Seeing her reaction to the story, Nico sighed as he once again checked the Void Storage. He knew that what he was looking for was in here somewhere, and while Noire's Rapier was a decent weapon, it had nothing on a HF Blade. Plus, seeing as she was from the Nation that made this tech, he felt it was only right. Soon enough, his mouth turned into a smirk, his target finally found. "Aha, found you." He muttered, much to Noire's confusion as he selected whatever he did on the Interface, before holding out his hand as a weapon materialised in a sheath.
It was a sheathed blade, but not any old blade… a High Frequency Blade.
"Here, this should belong to you." Nico said, handing the blade by the sheath over to the blackette, whose eyes widened as she gingerly grasped the weapon. As she brought it to her chest level to examine the blade, her eyes filled with awe as she felt the electric current even through the sheath itself.
The sheath was slim, thin but long, coloured a metallic grey with a black hilt sticking out which was made from leather. Reaching for the hilt, Noire slowly unsheathed the blade, bluish white arcs of electricity sparking from the slowly released blade. When she pulled it out, Noire saw that the blade was a Katana's length, but with a straight edge, a curved tip like a diagonal angle, with a blunt backedge. A low hum could be heard as Noire gave the blade a practice swing, then another and another, making sure not to harm anyone.
"Your giving this to me…?" Noire asked him when she finished testing the blade, sheathing it before depositing it into her Inventory. She'll keep her Rapier in case she would have to rely on it if she ever lost her new Blade. Nico nodded to her, adding to her confusion. All this time she had seen how he calculated in his mind whenever he looked at her, which made her think he saw her as someone suspicious and dangerous, especially when she heard from Neptune about his protectiveness over Compa. So, why was he arming her like this? It just didn't make sense.
Nico, sensing her confusion, figured out what her thought and made to explain his actions. "Originally this technology was of Lastation's make. Its only through ignorance and stupidity that it was lost to Planeptune. Since you're from here though, it stands to reason that you should fight with one." he explained his points. One reason though that he wouldn't mention was that the male had figured out who and what she was a while ago, having done ample research and investigated those leads. This was his way of helping her prepare for battle in a sense.
Neptune glanced from between the two, her head moving faster than a blur, staying on one of them for a moment, before glancing to the other. She then had a flash of inspiration, and she began to chuckle in prankster-type evil that only IF realised. "Oooh, looks like Nicky plans to show Noire his 'sword skills' if ya know what I mean."
"Wha-?!"
"Oh, Goddamnit, Neptune!"
"Tee hee-hee!"
Just before Nico could show her what Rebellion could do, IF groaned and pushed the red-faced duo as well as the grinning preteen apart. "Enough guys, we got a job to do. Avenir's waiting for us and if we show up late, we'll be held accountable later. So, let's move it, people." she told them sternly, almost like a mother scolding her children for being rude as she finished getting changed, walking out of the hotel room.
Grumbling and cursing, both Noire and Nico gave in to the brunette's demands, though not after bonking Neptune on the head to elect an "Owwie!" from her, much to their satisfaction, before they dismissed their weapons. the Party then left for Avenir, hoping that it wouldn't end up being a trap.
"And so, Nep and family have arrived at a closed factory for Avenir's work!"
Neptune spoke while grinning as they arrived at the front of, as she had described it, a factory. It looked pretty run down, like it hadn't been used in a while. There were various holes in its infrastructure, and the factory had this dark, creepy atmosphere that would better match a haunted mansion. For some reason though, the now masked Nico felt that this was familiar… like he'd seen this somewhere before. 'Hmmm… I'm getting a suspicious feel of familiarity here… wonder why?' he mused in his mind.
Unaware of his musings, Noire, who now wore her Mask to cover her face, sighed deeply at the preteen's meta antics. "Your happy, as usual." She remarked snidely, she was getting tired just from listening to how happy this girl was. How she remained happy like that was anyone's guess.
Turning to the blackette, Neptune began to sway from side to side like she had just achieved freedom for the first time. She hummed a merry tune while addressing Noire. "Hey, when you don't have your memory, you can do whatever you want." She said in a sing-song tone. Though it also felt like guidance, from one amnesiac to another.
"I sometimes admire your free nature…"
'That makes two of us, Noire…' Nico thought to himself as he regarded the two closely. 'Seems like they've gotten onto decent terms, then. Glad I was able to talk Noire into it, who knows when she might have come around otherwise. Maybe then that will make the future confrontation proceed smoothly.' he mused,, a frown on his lips that was hidden by his Mask. He may have made ample preparations for Avenir, but even he knew that things can go wrong any time, and that nothing truly goes to plan. While he was thinking this, Nico turned to address IF, when his mouth closed as soon as it opened as he saw Ganache walking up to them, his usual pleasant smile on his features.
"It's been a while, folks…" the man began, his tone level and calm, not betraying any sign off aggression. "I'd like to have work done again from you." He informed them with his hands behind his back. For some reason, his instincts were telling him to be cautious, like they have been telling him about Noire and the first time that they met Ganache and his boss, Singe. He'd been able to keep a tight lid on his instincts so far that it wouldn't affect his daily life, though thanks to his mind actively trying to suppress their activity Nico hadn't been able to fight at his full potential. Hell, when he had transformed Nico had done all he can to quell both his instincts and the demonic energy, two chaotic sensations that ultimately overwhelmed him on in the end.
Neptune, ever the oblivious one, raised an arm high and waved at him in a cheery manner, not bothering with the fact that he was from the Organisation she had wanted to 'sleuth' previously. "Hiya there! You must work a lot. Don't get burned out, you hear?"
'Never thought I'd hear Neptune showing concern for an Avenir worker…'
Ganache tilted his head as he looked himself over, his mouth set into a pensive line. "Do I really look that bad?" he asked them, not getting an answer as he continued before they could give him one. "I have been taking my breaks quite liberally." He assured them all, though the way he was looking at Neptune set off Nico's instincts even further. What was it with this guy that set off his Instincts so much? Why did he have the sudden urge to kill this bastard in the worst manner possible?
IF glanced at him and noticed subtle shaking in the male's arms. She instantly figured out that he was repressing his instincts and got on guard herself. Powerful his instincts were, and they seemed to hone in on the slightest chance of someone attacking them. That man in the Basilicom was a good example, but the extremities that Nico would go to when under their influence worried her. So, she made sure to ready herself in case he loses it.
Compa hummed in jealousy, not noticing the exchange between the two as she thought of what that must be like. "I wish I could take breaks whenever I want, too." She remarked, sighing wistfully. Being a Nurse-In-Training was hard, and one wasn't allowed to have much time to relax. This was mostly because Nurses had to be ready at any point in the day or night, in case an emergency patient came for treatment. Though with the way things were, part of her missed that lack of time to herself. It kept her busy, gave her purpose.
"Well, most of our work is handled by machines, so things are easy." Ganache explained once he saw the girl looking all pouty. It explained a lot of things about Avenir's methods though. Chian said that they didn't create jobs when they monopolise the market, but didn't say why. Now they knew, if their work wasn't handled by humans then there would be little need for manual labour. It also explained how Ganache could be so lax with his work, considering that most of it was handled by other methods. Thus, there was little reason to be jealous, at least in his mind.
Sensing that things had changed from what they should have been, the brown-haired man cleared his throat and the atmosphere once again became one of formality. "Now, getting back to business. Let's get right into the subject." From his suit's left pocket, Ganache pulled out a device before gesturing to the ruined factory. "As you can see, it has been years since this facility was in operation."
"So, what are we doing here?" IF asked him. If this factory hadn't been used for so long, why would Avenir have any interest in this place? Whatever it was, she doubted it was good, and that was further proven with their friend's state.
Ganache then held the device out, not minding the impatience in his fellow brunette's tone. He pressed a button and the device lit up, before a holographic screen appeared before them showing what looked like a piece of ore. It constantly circled around with a list of statistics, as well as a series of labels and data around it. "We want you to find it and bring it back to us."
'Sounds fishy… Why would they want this item of theirs now of all times? Why not before? What isn't he telling us?... and did I just make a reference to that guy in the suit of armour? Damnit those guys are getting to me.' Nico thought seriously at first, before resisting the urge to facepalm again. One, he didn't want to look stupid right now, and two his head needed a break from that punishment. He didn't know how may skin cells perished with each attempt, and wanted to keep his face normal thank you very much.
Neptune blinked momentarily. That sounded easy enough, in fact it sounded like they were getting better and better. She began to hop up and down in excitement as she spoke. "Is that it? Wow, it sounds even easier than before."
The man had to chuckle at the eagerness showed by the purplette. It was most amusing to see from the little ball of energy in human form. "It does, doesn't it?" Ganache mused, before his face became serious once again as he delivered another piece of news. "Well on the contrary, there's monsters there now." he told them the device showing the interior of the factory being swarmed by various monsters. One type consisted with Dogoos… with Tentacles.
If it was difficult staying in control, it was nearly impossible to resist now. Nico hated that species with a passion, more so than any abnormal. Their normal versions were enough, but these guys were worse. 'Those fuckers better get ready, because the reaper has come for them…' he thought darkly, gritting his teeth so hard that they could potentially crack under the pressure.
"I see." IF hummed in acknowledgement. Killing monsters was something they did daily, so they weren't too worried about these guys. They looked like cannon fodder monsters, compared to the Abnormal Monsters like the Nargacuga, several of which they have now encountered throughout their Quests. The Frenzied version may have been stronger than them, but without the virus taking away most of their mental faculties they could make use of their high speed and mobility, which made them painstakingly hard to kill. "So, you need us to go in and take care of that, too." IF then looked to the holographic screen, which had flashed back to the item they apparently had to find. "So, what's this thing we need to recover? It sounds important."
A nod of confirmation came from the brown-haired man before them as he proceeded to close the device down and pocket it. "It is a certain ore. We call it the "Lastelite." Just on gram holds enough energy to power a game console for ten thousand years." He explained to them.
Okay, NOW Nico realised what was going on, and what his instincts were trying to tell him. 'This guy, he's lying to us. I can tell because A: I've never heard of such a thing and out of all of us I'm likely the most versed in the four Nations considering I've been to them. B: come on, powering a Console for that long? There's no way such an ore exists. The possibility of this being a trap is growing steadily.'
"The excavation of it is difficult, so we'd like to recover what we have."
The Guild Agent raised an eyebrow in suspicion. No doubt she had come to the same conclusions as Nico had done, and she was thinking similar thoughts to him. "I've… never heard of such an ore before. If it's that great, I would at least know about it…" she remarked slowly, not believing the man.
""Lastelite" …I've never heard of it, too." Noire added, it seemed that she too was thinking with her brain as she too wasn't convinced of such an ore.
Ganache nodded, having expected them to be doubting of his words as he proceeded to explain why they wouldn't have heard of this ore. "Well, of course, we held monopoly over this ore. We did not disclose it for the sake of holding full control of it." he explained, and while it was a good enough explanation for two of the party members, it wasn't enough to fool IF and Nico, the latter of the two noticing a brief flash of victory in the man's eyes. It sounded too ludicrous to be true, and who would fall for something as obvious as… oh wait.
"Well," Neptune drawled as she became quick to believe the story that Ganache had told them. "If it's that super, do you mind giving us a small wee bit?" she asked, looking at the man with a pleading expression on her face.
'… Of course, SHE would be the one to believe him. And now, Neptune's dug us into a hole.' Nico thought to himself with a dismayed grunt, the male's eyes focused on the preteen as IF had told her to stop fooling around, only for the preteen to counter with how such an ore would be a haven for gamers everywhere, with how much power it could grant. The passion and intensity of how she spoke managed to cut off any rebuke that IF had in mind, completely flooring her with no chance to argue back.
Then, Ganache sealed the deal in Neptune's mind as he offered a hand. "Well if you would like some, I can certainly spare a small bit." He suggested with a smile, although it didn't reach his eyes which IF and Nico noticed, Noire soon following suit as she clenched and unclenched her fists. Something was wrong here, something was very wrong here.
"Really?!" Neptune exclaimed with joy, zooming up to the man with massive stars in her eyes.
The man, surprisingly having not been too affected by her sudden movement, nodded in response as he proceeded to explain. "Yes. We managed to work efficiently because of your work the last time. If you keep this a secret, I don't see any harm sharing a bit."
Hearing his response, Neptune began jumping up and down before entering a dance routine as she celebrated this little reward for their Quest. "Yay! I thought Avenir was kind of bleh, but Ganache saved the day!" she cheered, while not realising how offensive her comment could have been taken by their employee.
Fortunately for her, the man waved it off as a child's comment. "I'm happy to know that. Now, we don't want to waste time here. Please take care of the order." He turned to the others while saying this, his eyes turning from polite to serious once again in a matter of seconds.
The purplette saluted Ganache as she bounded over to the entrance to the Factory, which was slowly opening to reveal a darkness inside, the lack of lighting being the cause of it but fortunately there was sunlight outside so they could use that to navigate. "Okay! Leave it to Captain Nep and her friendly crew!"
IF rolled her eyes at the dramatic response Neptune gave to the businessman, and she swore she saw him sweat drop a bit as well. Though she didn't think the term 'friendly' described all of them very well, especially not their Spec Ops Agent with the way he was right now. "Sure, Captain. Lead us to the depths of the ocean…" she remarked sarcastically. None of them noticed the flash of something…. Sinister in Ganache as they entered.
As the Party entered the Factory, Nico quickly accessed his Bracer's motion tracker. He checked to see if there were any monsters within the immediate vicinity. 'Looks like we're safe for the time being… wait a minute.' His instincts set themselves off as his ears twitched. 'Why do I hear sounds of electric currents? Power should have been cut off when the factory was abandoned… unless…!' his eyes widened after that thought as he quickly whirled around facing the door. "Shit!"
His sudden behaviour caught everyone off guard, everyone nearly falling to the ground and ending up in some... weird looking poses. "Wh-Wha-?!" Noire cried out before she righted herself and glared in Nico's direction. "Nico, what's up with you, shouting like that!" Noire shouted, facing the same direction as he did. She soon saw what got him all riled up however as the doors to the factory had shit just as they had turned around. They were both made from metal, and looked to be firmly shut with no way of opening them from the inside. "What?!"
IF was the next one to comment on what just happened to them. "Why did the entrance close behind us?! Ganache, what's going on?!" she shouted from the other end. However, if they were expecting a response from the cool, polite man that they knew before, then they would be dead wrong, for that was NOT what they got by a long shot.
A chuckle came from the other end, and it was COMPLETELY unlike what they had heard from the man in their earlier talks. It sounded like someone who had achieved their master plan and was trying not to laugh like a hysterical maniac. Soon, Ganache spoke in a fake surprised voice. "Oh, my bad. I must have pressed something." He remarked, before chuckling again, and this time the sinister intent could be heard as clear as day, sending tense vibes through to their side. "…Well, that's not quite true. I shout it for my convenience." He explained, before saying in that same polite tone from before, though everyone could tell how forced it was from the words he spoke with. "I'd like to ask you all to satisfy the hunger of the monsters there."
The Party collectively gasped, save for Nico who growled in anger and tried to smash the doors with his fist. Unfortunately for him, all that resulted was a small dent and a red, battered hand which made him flinch and Ganache to chuckle even more at the attempt. Despite his anger increasing, Nico tried to rein in his instincts as it seemed that at any attempts to smash the door would be futile.
"Wh-What do you mean?!" Compa cried out in dismay, horror and fear in her eyes as they stared at where Ganache had been standing where they had entered this factory. The power had simultaneously been activated throughout the factory, although the controls for the door were on the outside so they wouldn't be able to activate it to escape.
Neptune stomped her foot the ground as she growled in anger at the man. She stomped over and began banging on the door. "Hey! What?! Why?! I'm not gonna get your precious ore if you do this!" she yelled out, thinking that was what they wanted.
However, the reaction she got was far from what she expected as Ganache finally let out a full laugh. And it sent chills down everyone's spines, even Nico's. Iff they thought his chuckles were sinister, then his laughter would be described as maniacal borderline psychotic. The laughter lasted for a few moments before it finally settled with Ganache wheezing. He was likely rubbing tears out of his eyes as he regained his usual composure. "I'm surprised you've actually believed what I said. Of course, there's no such thing as an ore that can house that much energy."
"Yeah, while Ganache's a maniacal douchebag, I kinda see his point. You fell for it hook, line and sinker Neptune." Nico commented, still glaring at the door. If looks could kill, then the door and the man behind it would have been melted by his stare alone, it was THAT intense.
His words, along with the smug chuckle from Ganache, made Neptune growl even more at being trolled like this. She couldn't believe that this was happening! She was supposed to be the troll character here, not this one-game antagonist!
Noire stared in bafflement at the door where Ganache would have been. "What? You tricked us?! But why?!" she screamed from the top of her lungs. Even her Mask couldn't hide the shock, confusion and anger in her tone.
"I already know you are assisting Chian of Passé." Ganache began, sending them into stunned silence. The guy had known what their end game was all along! "I assume you were trying to get information on our exhibit plans, no?"
With this new information, the party's leader turned to IF with a look of horrified realisation on her face, sweat rolling down her forehead as she exclaimed. "Iffy! They knew all along!" the said brunette gritted her teeth at the situation they were in, her hands clenched into fists as beads of nervous sweat rolled down her forehead. 'I can't believe they knew about this…' If Avenir had known all along about their plan, then they had been playing right into their hands, with all the work they'd done! Everything they did, and this was what they got to show for it.
"We would win regardless, but I'm the careful type, you know." Ganache explained as he began to walk away, judging by the sounds of footsteps. "Now then, I don't have much time, so I need to go. Farewell. Oh right, one more thing." Ganache's footsteps halted as a text message came to Nico's Bracer to say hello. "When I said there were monsters here… I was half-lying."
'What?' that was what the male thought while accessing the Message on his Bracer. His eyes widened and his face lost all colour at what he saw. 'No… No, he didn't… tell me he didn't do what I'm seeing!' he screamed in his mind, horror and dread filling him to the brims of his very being. Ganache may have gone far in trapping them here, but this… this was pushing it worse than Umbrella did!
Seeing his horrified face, Neptune frowned in nervousness. She knew that Nico was a serious person most of the time with a playful side that's exposed now and then. However, to see such a look on his face was deeply unnerving… and wrong, on so many levels. She knew that the others would feel the same thing, even Noire. "Um, Nicky, what's wrong? Your face is losing so much colour."
Ganache chuckled darkly, they may not be able to see him, but they could hear the amusement in his voice. "I may not see it, but it appears that my little message has rattled you, DEATHSTROKE. You are aware of what happened at Racoon city, yes?" he asked him, getting a furious growl from the mortified male. "Well, we decided to give your friends an honorary experience, if you will, as to what happened back then. This place is not filled with monsters, but something you are no doubt intimately familiar with. Have fun with that…"
The footsteps began again, and IF quickly ran to the damaged doors. "Wait, Ganache!" she called out, but got no response. He had already left them, much to her ire. She kicked the door that was trapping them, and winced at the pain that shot up her spine because of her actions. She had to bite back a whimper and make a Tch noise as she stepped back, wincing at the possible bruising that would form in a while.
Noire sighed as she saw that, despite the efforts of Nico, Neptune and now IF, that they were well and truly trapped. "Well, looks like the way out is sealed tight." She noted, eyes gazing across the doors. It didn't seem that they had any means of breaking that door down. Though, what Ganache said about Racoon City had rung alarm bells in her mind., but she didn't say that part. Things were already bad enough as it was, they didn't need that right now.
Compa turned to the brunette as she returned to the Party, kneeling before her foot as she began activating her Healing Skills to heal the damage. She spoke in a pensive, nervous voice as her brain ran wild with scenarios of their future… none of them were pretty. "Iffy… what's gonna happen to us?" she asked her, worried.
"Um, well…" IF tried to find a response that would calm Compa down, but the truth of the matter was, she couldn't. She had to remain strong for her, but IF didn't know if they could make it out of this one. She had no idea how to get out of this one, because seriously back in their room they had once occupied the idea of this being a trap, but none of them had given any thought as to what they would do about it if it was, which it was.
It was clear that this was getting worse for them, and that nobody had any ideas as to how to get out of it. This situation had been brought up, but back then they had little option to follow other than play along, and this was how they ended up. In the end, Avenir had played them for fools, no, they had played themselves for thinking that they would have been fooled into thinking they were harmless. Of course, they should have expected this, they were a large corporation, in addition they sat at the top of the 'throne' so they were basically like Kings, so they were bound to be cautious of others. It was natural to think that way, many leaders fell from grace from this method.
As the facts rained down heavily upon their shoulders, Noire's shoulders slumped as she hunched down, head hanging low in guilt as she realised that none of them would have gotten themselves in this situation if it weren't for her idea. "I'm sorry. This is all my fault." She apologised sadly, fists clenched in anger, sadness and frustration in one unhealthy mix that resulted in a horrible sensation in her gut. She wanted that sensation to go away, but a large part of her was thinking 'whelp, karma for us girl'. "If I didn't suggest taking Avenir's work, this wouldn't have…"
The depressing air was enough to bring tears into Compa's eyes as the mood of the party went downhill. She realised now that the situation they had found themselves, while their own fault for falling into it, was also something they likely wouldn't get out of alive. Ganache and by extension Avenir had got them, and they got them good.
Neptune looked around and saw everyone's depressing faces. She puffed her cheeks and balanced herself on one leg, flailing her arms about to get their attention. "Oh, C'mon, gals! What's the matter? This isn't like us! It's not like we can't get out. Let's just try to look for another way." She suggested to them, before standing straight as she noticed one other party member who was still active. She then raised a hand and pointed at that party member, it should be obvious who that would be. Just look at Nicky, he's playing it smoothly and still is ready to kick some monster booty."
Nico, whom had been walking down the path that was open to them, looked back at them after pausing mid stride. His eyes were firm, set in stone with a lack of despair in them like Neptune. "For once, I agree with her. We're in a hard spot right now, but when did we expect anything different? This kind of work is what we should have expected when we signed up for this adventure. Like Neptune said, we should focus on what we should do next, not wallow in our own grief."
"Ni-Ni… Nep-Nep…" Compa breathed in awe, watching them both with amazement and admiration in her eyes. She could tell they were feeling eh pressure of the situation as much as any of them did, however unlike them, these two were focusing more on how they were gonna survive this, to look for a way out. They pushed past their fears to look for a possible solution. She was right back then at the Monster Cave, Neptune and Nico shared the same trait of being brave and fearless.
Soon enough, the rest of them had begun getting their courage back after seeing those two acting so calm and collectedly. If those two could do it, if they could keep it together like that, then who's to say they wouldn't be able to do so too? They began to feel hope return to their beings, seeing their party leaders in action. Yeah, they didn't just see one leader here, they saw two of them, and that right now meant twice the confidence boost. Neptune the Amnesiac who cracked jokes and memes 24/7, and Nico the Spec Ops Agent DEATHSTROKE, full on badass and soldier.
Watching the girls gain back their courage, Nico couldn't help but crack a small smile as he walked back to them. What he didn't tell them was that their journey would be harder than ever before. They may have some speculation on this fact, but they had no idea, no idea of the horrors that now lay within these walls. Sure, they could look for a way out, but he highly doubted that they would make it out of this with everyone alive and well.
'No, DEATHSTROKE, stop that!' Nico scolded himself just after thinking that. 'You must focus on keeping them all alive by the end of this! Unlike Racoon city, you haven't got to worry about civilians, just your teammates! This won't end like last time, not if you have anything to say about it!' No, things would not end that way, not if he had anything to say about it. This wouldn't end like it did with Racoon City, mark his words.
Chapter end!
Now that's out of the way, it's time for this story's first descent into madness, hehehehehehe!
You all are in for a treat, because with what I have in mind, things are going to become a doozie. Not only has the party been trapped inside the Factory, but Ganache rattled even Nico with his little warning. Hehehehe, no normal monsters will be plaguing THIS Party tonight.
Anywho, tat's enough of that, review, fav, follow, all that good stuff, please! It keeps me going, it gives me purpose!
Peace!
