So, instead of the whole "one chapter for every five chapters of From Mafioso to Pirate" thing I had planned, I just decided to update these as I see fit, 'cause it was taking WAY too long. X( Plus, classes started, so my time is filled to the brim with studying. :(
Rereading the comments, I think I may have made a slight misunderstanding. I did say that it was probably going to be Arcobaleno/Skull, but in the sense that they fall for him and that he falls for only ONE of them. As of right now, I haven't decided which one.
Failing Wings: Their first impression of him probably won't be that different. I mean, it's not like they can tell that he has a special ability just by looking at him, and Skull's gonna kind of try to hide it as best he can. 'Cause, it's awesome, but to him it's kind of an embarrassing ability when compared to the other Arcobaleno, when it reality it outclasses them all and he's just to dense to realize it. XD And Tet sent him back a week before the Arcobaleno meet, remember? He won't be meeting any of them earlier than that. XP
judokufu: I'm glad you think so! XP But I am not a dude. X(
BlackShadow1: Thanks! Updates will be slow, but I'll try to put them out as soon as possible! Also, yeah, I hear from a bunch of people that my ideas are unique. Not sure if that's a good thing or not. XP
Guest: Poor Skull indeed. He has no idea what he's gotten himself into. XD
9tail-Naruto: Ah, yes, Skull has the tenacity of a cockroach. XP ...Or at least that's how the Arcobaleno probably see it. As for Skull abusing game mechanics... Skull: "Those game mechanics will be my BITCH!" *pumps fist into the air* Reborn: What the hell are you even talking about? -_- ...Seriously, though, a cockroach can live without its heads for weeks, and even then the only reason it dies is because of starvation. Those things are freaking SCARY. o.O
Elioenai: Update! ...Yay! Hope you enjoy :D
XXX
Restart and Try Again
Chapter 3: Learning the Controls
XXX
It didn't take long to find the forest surrounding the Arcobaleno mansion. Standing in the middle of all the trees and nature, he crossed his arms and arched an eyebrow.
"Dang, I found this place much easier than the first time around."
What happened the first time around?
Skull coughed and looked down in embarrassment. "I...got really, really lost. I bumped into Fon and he showed me that way. He was always the nice one..." He finished with a small smile which quickly returned to a frown. "...Which isn't really saying much, now that I think about it."
Well, it seems that there's one who isn't a complete asshole then, came Tet's cheery voice. Also, remember, use your inside voice.
'Yeah, yeah,' Skull thought back to him, rolling his eyes. 'There's no one around...'
I know, but it'd be better if you got in the habit of it.
'Ugh, fiiiiine... So, what's this ability you gave me, anyway?'
Impatient, aren't we? Alright, I guess we can start now. I've give you an ability which I've affectionately named "The Gamer" ability.
'"The Gamer," huh? A bit uncreative, but alright.'
...Anyway, you can just think of it as a video game character's ability.
'Video game character? What the hell does that mean?'
It's exactly what it sounds like. You now have all the perks and privileges of a video game character. For example...
Skull jumped and nearly let out a (girly) yelp when a screen suddenly appeared in front of him. "Whoa! What the hell?!" He exclaimed, jumping away from it, eyes widening when it followed, never once widening the distance between him and it. He blinked and took a closer look at it. "Is this a...menu screen?"
Yep! Tet's voice was cheerful and amused to an infuriating degree. So you understand now, right?
'It's, uh, it's starting to sink in,' he thought back dazedly as he examined the screen.
It was about the size of a computer monitor screen and violet in color. It was pretty obvious to him why Tet had chosen that of all colors. On the top right side of the screen were the words "party." Right under it were four boxes. The first one was a small picture of him with his name right next to it, while the other three were completely empty. It took him no less than a second to realize that this was for him and his party members. Once he got over the initial 'Holy shit, I can have party members?!' he looked closer and saw a picture of a lock in the bottom right of his picture. Feeling strangely calm now, he thought to Tet, 'What's this lock mean?'
That means that you can't replace that particular party member.
'So I can never remove myself from the party... Figures. Can I only have three?'
No, you can have as many as you want, you just gotta scroll down.
Skull blinked and reached out his finger, hesitating for a moment before tapping a downwards arrow that was right under the third empty portrait, which then caused the screen to move downwards, revealing even more empty portraits.
'This is really weird,' the future Arcobaleno thought as he examined the left part of the screen this time. He read a number of different options running from top to bottom. Status, items, skills, pets, and options. 'Like, really, really, really weird.'
You'll get used to it. Humans are so adaptable that I'm sure that it'll just be normal for you eventually!
'I'm not really sure I even want this to be normal for me...' he thought back. 'I guess I'll look at these in order...'
Oh, quick heads up, you don't have to actually click anything to access the menu screens.
'What do you mean?'
You can open it verbally by calling out the specific name. You can also do it mentally by thinking it instead. Go on, give it a try.
'Uh, alright...' Skull looked intently at his menu. 'Let's do this in order. Status first.'
The "Status" option glowed for a second before the entire right side of the menu became grayed out and he was left with only the right. It took him a moment to realize that it was prompting him to choose whose status he wanted to see. Seeing that the only available option was himself, he chose that. 'Alright, let's see here...'
Lv. 35
'So my level's 35, huh? That's good, right?'
Well, the level of an average civilian as somewhere between three and seven, so, yeah, pretty good. You are an Arcobaleno, so it's natural that you're level would be above average.
Skull couldn't help but smirk. 'Well, I guess I'm stronger than the others gave me credit for!'
Not really.
He faltered. 'Wait, wha?'
The average civilian is somewhere between level three and seven. The stronger percentage of civilians, like those in the military, or into martial arts, or things like that, are around forty to fifty. So you're kind of in the middle the two groups.
'Wait, so... I'm basically the level of a slightly-above-average civilian?!'
Basically.
'Are you... But... Then why... How does that even...' He just stood there, sputtering in his mind for a few moments before throwing his arms up in the air and saying out loud. "Why the hell am I an Arcobaleno, then?!"
Well, despite you're level, you're cloud flame is very, very powerful.
'Seriously, what the he- wait, it is?' Skull asked, pausing. 'Really?'
Yeah, your cloud flames are stranger than any I've ever seen! And I've seen a lot when I was trying to find possible Ability Users.
'...Really? But...' He frowned. 'I've never used my flames before... Not really...'
The strength of your flames has nothing to do with how often you use them. It's something you're born with. You can increase it through training, but only by a certain amount depending on how strong it is naturally.
'Huh...' Skull crossed his arms thoughtfully. 'You sure know a lot about this...'
Well, I am a god. Out of anyone else, I should know how the natural world works.
'Alright, that's fair play,' Skull conceeded. 'Gonna remember that for later. Back to this, though.' He looked back at his status screen. 'Let's see here...'
Name: Skull
Lv. 35
HP: 20000/20000
MP: 40000/40000
Attack: 35
Defense: 43
Intelligence: 38
Special Defense: 39
Agility: 30
Vitality: 35
Dexterity: 30
Luck: 10
'Alright, HP, MP, Attack, and Defense are all pretty freaking obvious...' Skull thought to himself as he exmined them. 'I'm guessing that Intelligence is like magic attack or something, right?'
Essentially.
'And that makes Special Defense magic defense... What does Agility do?'
What do you think it does?
'Well... I don't know, reduce casting time?'
Oh, wow, you actually got it right. I thought you were gonna say something stupid, like that it makes you faster.
'And what, become Sonic the Hedgehog? No thanks... I mean, how would that even work?' Skull asked, scoffing at the mental image he conjured up.
Aw, don't you want to run faster than the speed of sound?
'Anyway, Vitality, what's that do?'
Alright, just ignore me, that's fine. Vitality basically determines how high your HP and MP can grow as you level up.
'Huh... Gonna keep that in mind. What about dexterity?'
Hand eye coordination.
'Alright, and Luck is also pretty freaking obvious.' And with that, he exited out of the Status Screen. 'It actually feels like I'm playing a video game... You did a good job with all this.'
Well, I am the god of games. Tet's voice sounded proud as he said that. You can praise me more if you like.
Skull scoffed. 'You're like a little kid. If it weren't for all this,' he gestured at the menu screen. 'I wouldn't believe for a second that you're a god.'
Well that's kind of insulting...
'Hm? There's more?' Skull blinked and continued scrolling down the screen.
Age: 19
Primary Flame Type: Cloud
Secondary Flame Type: ?
Class: The Gamer
Title: None
'It tells me stuff like this, too?' Skull asked, looking on in interest. 'Wait, what's "secondary flame type" mean? And why's there only a question mark?'
Well, everyone is born with one primary flame type and one secondary type. Your primary flame is obviously cloud.
'Obviously,' Skull agreed.
Your secondary flame, since you haven't really unlocked it yet, is a mystery.
'Wait, do you mean that it's sealed or the video game kind of "unlock"?'
Yes.
'...'Kay then.' Closing out of the status menu, he clicked on the next one. 'Items, huh? Let's see, I have...' The menu opened to reveal a completely empty violet screen. '...Jackshit, apparently.'
It would appear so.
'Do you always have to sound so damn cheerful?' Skull thought in irritation before going over to the next menu. 'Skills. This oughta be interesting.'
Passive Skills:
Gamer's Mind
Gamer's Body
Cloud Regeneration
Active Skills:
Observe
'Whoa, I already have a bunch! That's pretty cool!' He said, choosing the first one.
Gamer's Mind: Allows the user to calmly and logically think things through. Allows peaceful state of mind. Immunity to psychological mass effect.
Skull blinked. 'Okay, this explains why I'm so calm about all this fuckery.'
Yeah, I figured it would be useful. Humans are so prone to panicking. It's actually pretty funny, buuuut might get you into some nasty situations.
'Moving on...'
Boooo! Stop ignoring me!
Gamer's Body: Grants body that allows for the user to live the real world like a game. Sleeping in bed restores HP, MP, and removes status effects.
'So, my body's a video game character's, too?' Skull looked down at his hand. 'I wonder what else I can do, then...'
You'll just have to find out as you go along~!
'You're no help at all...' Skull huffed before moving onto the next one. '"Cloud Regneration?"'
Cloud Regeneration: Because your Cloud Flames are so powerful, their abilities of propagation make you very hard to kill indeed. Grants 30% Regeneration Buff.
Skull blinked slowly.
"...Oh hell yes."
I figured you'd like that.
'Hey, anything that can help me NOT die is a good thing. And, besides, I've played enough MMO's to know that passive buffs the most helpful thing ever! So, uh...thanks, I guess...'
Well, I can't take all the credit. You actually had this particular ability from the beginning. I just named it for you.
'Wait, seriously?' Skull asked, gaping slightly. 'Uh, HOW?!'
Well, I don't know for sure, but I think that you've been unconsciously using your flames to do it yourself. Your body must be so used to it that it just happens by itself now. To your body, it's as natural as breathing.
'So I had this kickass ability from the start?!' He paused in thought. '...Well, I guess that explains how I survived half the shit I went through...'
As a stuntman?
'Yeah, that too,' Skull nodded.
?
'Now for the Active Skills! Looks like I only have one, though,' he said, tilting his head slightly. 'Observe, huh?'
Observe(lv. 1) - A skill to observe objects, situations, and persons, allowing the user to quickly gather information. The higher the skill, the greater the data obtained. At level 9, the skill will comment on what is observed.
'Well that's interesting. And what does that last part mean?'
Oh, that's just a little special touch from me~.
'...Kinda worried now. So this is the only Active Skill I have, huh?'
Yeah, just a little something to start you off with. You'll get more by doing various actions in real life.
'What kind of actions?'
Various.
'Still no help at all,' Skull grumbled before exiting out of the Skills Menu and taking a look at the next one. '...There's a pet system in this game?!'
Sure is!
'How would I even get pets?'
You'll figure it out on your own~.
'Dammit, Tet...' He sighed again before going over to the last menu: Options. He blinked in surprise at the contents. 'Whoa, it really is an options menu!'
Well, yeah. I mean, what did you expect it to be?
'Shut up. It's surprising, alright?' Skull shot back as he looked at all the different options.
Brightness
Sound
Music
'Are you serious? Okay, this menu is just a bit too weird for me.'
You never know, it might be useful~.
'Uh, okay, I'll believe that when I see it,' Skull said sarcastically. 'Looks like that was all of them.'
As you go through your life, you'll get some more.
'Like what?'
There's no fun in telling you now.
'You're just never going to give me a straight answer, are you?'
I value having fun above aaaaaall else.
'That's unsettling,' Skull mumbled as he looked around the quiet forest. 'So was there even any point in coming here? I mean, all I did was go through the menu. Why'd you make me come here?'
Waaaaaait for it.
'Wait for wha-' Skull cut himself off and jumped slightly when once again a screen appeared before him. "Damn it! I'm gonna have to get used to that..." He looked at the screen and raised his eyebrows in surprise.
Alert:
A new dungeon, "Evergreen Woods", has opened up!
You now have access to the "Map" menu!
'...What the fuck?'
Suprise! It's not an RPG without dungeons to crawl through and monsters to fight!
'Wait, so you can just create random dungeons at will?!'
Nope, that's too much work for me. It's your ability that does that. I'm just here to have fun and see how my first ever Ability User does~!
'Um...when you said monsters, did you mean...?'
Real life RPG monsters.
'Uuuuuuuh,' Skull started to take step after step backwards towards the enterance, looking around the forest warily. 'No, no thanks, I think I'm just gonna go and-'
You have entered the dungeon "Evergreen Woods"!
Skull blinked and stared as his surroundings started to warp and change. The trees were now large and greener, and completely unlike any trees he had ever seen. The grass became longer and more lush as strange flowers of all different colors, some the size of his head, sprang up in random places.
"Fucking dammit, Tet! You did this on purpose!" He shouted at the heavens, clutching his hands into fists. "What the hell?!"
The entrance to the dungeon was right behind you~. And the locations are random, so I didn't do it on purpose. You just have bad luck. This is getting very fun indeed~!
"Fuck you!"
XXX
Next time, Skull goes through his first dungeon. XD And sorry this took so long. I really have no excuse for procrastinating for so long. :( I was gonna have the dungeon be in this chapter, too, but it's been so long that I want everyone to know that I'm not dead. XP
After some debate, I've decided to eventually include OC's in this. But the thing I noticed about OC's is that they tend to not be done very well. There are some really good ones out there, but I haven't come across that many of them. :( The reason I'm making OC's is I just want to give Skull some friends who aren't assho- Arcobaleno or already canon characters. And I wanna practice with writing OC's. GOOD OC's. I already have two in mind that are inspired by a multitude of already real characters, but I won't actually write them in until waaaaaay in the future after the Arcobaleno curse. Don't expect them to be normal people. :P Skull here will have veeeeeeeeeeeery low standards when it comes to friends. XP ...Skull is a lonely person. ._.