RIP Visceral Games. Your games were some of my favorites.

Hey again. Enjoy the read, if you please.

"Hey, there she is!"

Makoto couldn't help but smile at the cheer in Akira's voice as she made her way up the stairs leading to his room, only mildly surprised by Futaba watching the game he was playing with rapt attention. "I see you wasted no time with the new system."

Futaba nodded enthusiastically, gesturing for her to take a look at the TV. "How did you afford one of these?! I've been bugging Sojiro to get me one for months!"

Makoto laughed, carefully setting down the large tray Sojiro had given her next to where Akira kept his school bag. "Boss made hot chocolate for us because of the rain. Have some before it gets cold."

"Whoo! Akira, you've never had this before, you have to try some!"

"Sure."

Makoto heard someone shout in anger through some sort of filter, a strange blasting noise bursting from the TV before Akira paused the game and stood. Futaba had already seized her drink and bounded back to her seat, all without spilling a drop, leaving Akira to head to the table as Makoto stirred some of the leftover cocoa until it dissolved. "Hey, Makoto."

Makoto smiled distractedly and finished what she was doing just before Akira looped an arm around her waist. "Hello, Akira."

She accepted a kiss in what was quickly becoming a very welcome habit, stopping him from taking it further with a balled fist under his chin. "Couldn't that have waited until after I had something to drink?"

"Didn't want chocolate to get in the way."

"Bleeeh. Can you two save it for when you're alone?"

Akira chuckled and picked up his mug, carrying it back to his seat. Rather than sit again, he set the mug down and walked to his desk, fishing out a folding chair and setting it up next to his chair. "Your throne."

"Thanks."

"C'mon, let's go, let's do this!"

Futaba bounced in her seat while still keeping her drink stable, pointing insistently at the TV as Akira sat down. Makoto followed suit and rested her head on his shoulder. "What are you playing?"

"Silent Space. Think the subtitle was 'Psycho Biohazard', or something. Mechanic stuck on a space station infested with weird alien zombie things."

"Interesting. Although...the only thing scary about now seems to be that name….How far along are we?"

"Eh, a few chapters. Stick around, it's getting good."

Makoto mused to herself about how the avatar's suit looked far more advanced than she expected for someone who was simply an engineer. Watching him enter combat simply gave her more fuel to comment on. "...That laser is standard issue for mechanics?"

"Well, at first it was just a flashlight. Then he found a mini mining laser and, uh...put 'em together."

"With duct tape, or…?"

"Yeah! Guess you had to be there."

Makoto smiled at Futaba's strange boast, taking a slow sip of her cocoa. "Ah, I got another suit blueprint."

"Is that the Military Suit?! Dude, find a store!"

"You found a blueprint for military hardware lying around in a space subway station?"

"Yeah."

"Okay."

Akira found a store and redeemed the blueprint; the new suit appeared in the grid-based shop inventory with a sleek 'NEW' sign flashing on its tile. "Get it! Show Makoto how future mechanics put their suits on!"

Amidst a scarcely suppressed laugh, Akira complied. Makoto stared at the TV as the store's display collapsed and folded away, allowing the player character to step straight inside as the entire store kiosk closed around him. A bright light streamed forth from the store-turned-dressing-room, followed closely by a loud hiss and a burst of steam. Finally, the alleged mechanic stepped out, clad in a new, advanced suit that he briefly looked over before a sleek helmet closed over his face. "...Wow."

"Right?! I need this!"

"It would be nice…"

Akira moved on, wandering through derelict hallways that had clearly seen some sort of abuse. He had his avatar step into an elevator that was still functional, pressing the holographic button to take him to the top floor. "Are these the offices?"

"Looks like it."

"Ohoho…"

Akira took a second as the elevator doors opened again to glance at Futaba. "W-what?"

"You'll see."

Makoto had silently been savoring her cocoa as she watched Akira's exploring, taking a closer look at the screen and pointing something out. "That door has a strange lock."

"I can unlock them with these little, uh…" Akira opened his inventory and pointed a cursor at the picture of a small widget with a counter reading '2' next to it. "...things."

"How descriptive."

"Quiet, you."

Akira used a widget to open the door, cautiously stepping inside to find that the office was empty. "Have I been duped?"

Futaba choked down her next sip of cocoa and hastily set the mug down when she saw exactly where Akira's avatar was. "This is it! If I remember right, there should be a trap right about...here."

"And the good news just keeps coming..."

Akira slowly stepped around the desk, turning the character to face the silent form on the floor. "Yeah! Ye-ye-yeah! That one turns into a zombie when you leave! He got me good the first time I played."

"Alright, then."

Akira kept his sight on the body as he turned the character's back to the door, walking backwards to keep his focus on the supposed zombie trap. Suddenly, a grotesque figure burst out of a nearby ceiling vent, tackling Akira's avatar to the ground with a guttural screech.

Akira didn't scream; rather, he jumped in his seat and made a strange sputtering noise as the controller almost fell out of his hands. His companions, however...

"WAH!"

"AAH!"

Makoto's chair creaked in protest as she forced it backwards in her fright, while Futaba quickly latched onto Akira's arm for safety. Akira, despite the pint-sized handicap, quickly pulled himself together, dispatching the enemy before his health dropped any further. His character stumbled to his feet, bewildered, and gave the fallen foe a final punt that sent it into the office he had just exited.

Akira paused the game then, setting the controller on the ground and taking a deep, shaky breath. He glanced back at Makoto, still holding her breath in fear until he gestured for her to come forward again. He smiled gently at her as she hesitantly complied, turning his attention to Futaba, who was still attached to his arm and visibly terrified. His free hand rose to carefully pat her head, using the hand she was holding to lace their fingers together briefly. "You missed the best part."

"W-what?"

Akira pointed at the TV with his yet-to-be-released hand, leading Futaba to look at how their unexpected assailant was draped almost comically one of the chairs lying around. She stared blankly at the sight before blinking rapidly and managing a weak little laugh. "Ahaha...oh, my immersion."

Akira grinned and tousled her hair, just as Makoto sat back down next to him. Without missing a beat, he put his arm around her shoulder and pulled them close for a hug. "This is the best."

"I don't find being scared out of my wits very fun."

"You'll come around. And Futaba?"

"Uh oh. What?"

"You lied."

"I did not!"

"Look at the menu, Mechanic Man wrote a note on it."

"He did not!"

Makoto watched the two bicker with a small smile, raising the mug of cooling cocoa to her lips and taking a small sip.

Has it really been that long since I updated this? Sheesh. Should have another chapter out relatively soon.

Thanks for reading. Have a good one, till next time.