Hello Lovelies And Welcome Back To Another Update!
I hope you guys are doing wonderful! In this chapter, we'll have a flash back of Noriko's past encountering Dio so here's a ***WARNING*** DO NO READ IF IT MAKES YOU UNCOMFORTABLE OR TRIGGER YOU! When her flashback starts you can go ahead and skip it.
Anyway, without further a do, let's begin!
Enjoy! ～('▽^人)
D'Arby, The Player Part 1
"My name is D'Arby, Terence T. D'Arby." The butler introduced himself with a smirk.
"D'Arby?" Jotaro knitted his brows together.
"Yes, Terence T. D'Arby. The man who you previously defeated beyond recovery, Daniel J. D'Arby… is my older brother." Terence stated.
The Crusaders gasped.
"You're D'Arby The Gambler's younger brother?!" Polnareff asked.
"Are you here to avenge your older brother?" Avdol queried.
Terence smirked and moved to the side while still levitating.
"No, not at all." He simply nodded. "I wouldn't even think of it. Didn't my brother tell you that the one who is fooled and loses is at fault? I believe that to be true, as well. After all, it's my brother's fault for losing. I don't bear a grudge at all." He continued to act polite which was getting annoying to the group. "My brother is my brother, and I am myself. We are different people. I am ten years younger than my brother. I respect my brother to a certain degree but we are from different generations. My brother is old-fashioned, he had to cheat and swindle to win. He could only defeat those who were either old-fashioned or amateurs. Even Lord Dio realized this sad truth but that's why he chose me as his butler."
Not receiving a single word from the Joestar group, Terence gave them a curious look. "What is the matter?" He asked.
The Crusaders briefly glanced at one another.
"If you are eager to fight me, then please, step inside the mansion.
"Everyone, don't rush in there carelessly." Avdol warned, not taking his eyes off the enemy and keeping his guard up.
"We don't have time for games, hurry up and take us to Dio." Jotaro told Terence.
Terence moved his arm and his Stand manifested behind him. His Stand, Divine Atum, suggests the God, Atum. The Stand resembled a humanoid robot with Terence's athletic build decorated with heart motifs on its body. On its face are Terence's initials, along with what appears to resemble a breathing apparatus. The apparatus has two nozzles that periodically spray out steam.
"H-Hey! He brought out his Stand!" Polnareff exclaimed.
"You don't see that quite often…" Joseph remarked.
"It has been quite some time since we faced someone who openly used their Stand." Avdol said.
"So who will it be?" Atum asked. "Who shall be my first opponent?"
"Tch, what a pain in the ass! Jotaro, give him a good beating!" Polnareff shouted.
"W-Wait, don't fight him, JoJo!" Noriko protested. "We don't even know what his Stand can do!"
Jotaro stepped inside the mansion, summoning his Star Platinum. Atum raised its hand and pointed a finger at Jotaro.
"Let's make a bet." Terence suggested. "The first attack Star Platinum will attempt to use against me…"
"... is a left-handed blow." Atum finished.
The delinquent widened his eyes in shock and so were the others.
"He will punch me with his left hand. That's my bet." Atum said.
"It doesn't fucking matter!" Polnareff snarled, clenching his fist. He was starting to get annoyed by this guy. "It's all the same if you hit him with everything you got! Hurry up and hit him, Jotaro!" He demanded.
"You idiot, we don't know what his Stand is capable of!" Noriko yelled at the Frenchman, smacking the back of his head. "Don't listen to him, Jotaro! This could be a trick like his older brother!"
Jotaro narrowed his eyes and Star Platinum raised his arm to swing at Atum.
"ORA!" Star Platinum swung with his right arm to punch the enemy Stand but Atum swiftly dodged the attack much to Jotaro's shock.
"What?! H-He dodged it?!" Joseph exclaimed.
"He's so fast!" Polnareff said.
"Inconceivable!" Avdol said.
Atum grabbed Star Platinum's arm and glanced at it. Terence chuckled and levitated to the other side.
"Too bad. It seems I have lost this wager. Just like my brother, I also love to gamble but I'm not very good at it." Terence said.
Atum tightened its grip on Star Platinum, keeping a hold on the purple warrior-like Stand.
"As a reward, I shall take you to an amazing world."
A large hole appeared on the floor. Terence used Atum to drag Star Platinum and Jotaro along inside the hole.
"It was a trap after all!" Noriko quickly moved between Avdol and Polnareff to help.
"JoJo!"
"Dammit!" Avdol muttered.
"Jotaro!" Joseph cried out and quickly summoned Hermit Purple to grab his grandson.
At the same time, Noriko also summoned her Stand and grabbed her boyfriend's hand while Joseph grabbed the other.
"Pull him out!" Joseph said.
Terence popped his head back and looked at the two Crusaders.
"Oh, very well. You two may enter, too." Terence said and grabbed both Noriko and Joseph, dragging them inside the hole.
"Mr. Joestar! Noriko! Jotaro!" Polnareff screamed, trying to reach out to them while Avdol held him back, preventing him from getting dragged.
"It's too dangerous for you to follow them, Polnareff!" Avdol warned the Frenchman.
"Avdol! Do you hear me?!" Joseph yelled, his voice echoing from inside the hole. "If you don't hear from us in ten minutes, set the mansion on fire! GOT IT, AVDOL?! BURN THE MANSION!"
"MR. JOESTAR!" Polnareff and Avdol cried out.
The large hole then disappeared.
The three Crusaders safely landed on their feet, touching the ground but were surrounded by the dark and fog. They have no clue where they were.
Suddenly, on the horizon the sun rose, bringing light into the area they are in. The sky was bright pink and the sound of the water waves and seagulls surrounded them.
Joseph looked around, "This illusion… Are we underground or above?" He queried and felt his shoes get wet from the water.
"This wet feeling, this reality… It's too convincing." Joseph said. "Just what is he trying to do?"
Noriko and Jotaro found Terence behind a table for four. There was other stuff nearby, such as a big door, a cabinet with a few drawers, and another table with two wine bottles on top.
Jotaro took a step forward, "Old Man, Noriko. Explain this mystery for me. His Stand knew without a doubt that I was going to throw a right punch. Why do you think that is?" He asked his companions. "If we don't solve that mystery, this guy will beat us."
The Crusaders averted their eyes at their enemy, watching him walk over the table with wine bottles.
"Would you like something to drink?" Terence kindly offered. "Of course, the drinks are real." He picked up one of the wine bottles. "I assure you they are not poisoned."
"Are we inside the mansion?" Joseph asked.
"Indeed." Terence confirmed.
"Where inside the mansion?" The elder Joestar walked forward.
"I cannot disclose that."
"Are we below ground?"
"Perhaps."
Joseph walked past Terence to the door. He turned the doorknob and opened it, nothing was behind it.
"Is this illusion created by a Stand?"
"Yes."
"Is this your Stand's power?"
"It is not."
"Is it Dio's?" Joseph continued to ask and made his way over to Terence.
"It is not."
"Whose is it?" Joseph placed a hand on the small table.
"That information is not necessary." Terence answered, setting the wine bottle back down.
Joseph narrowed his eyes, "According to the Speedwagon Foundation's intel, there are about two or three other Stand user's remaining. Is that true?"
"That information is not necessary."
Joseph turned around with a huff in defeat, "Looks like we're not getting any straight answers from you." He glanced at Terence over his shoulder.
"I could lie to you but I don't tell lies or trick others, as my brother did." Terence explained.
"Tch." Jotaro mumbled under his breath in annoyance, which Terence noticed.
"So what are you getting at?" Joseph asked. "If we don't defeat you, we can't proceed?"
An amused smirk spread across Terence's face. "EXACTLY!" He then bowed, "That is indeed correct."
"The needlessly polite attitude… This man is starting to get on my nerves." Noriko remarked as she crossed her arms.
"Have you forgotten that it's three against one?" Joseph reminded the enemy. "We're in a hurry, so all three of us will attack you."
"Now, now, no need to be in such a hurry." Terence said and walked over to the cabinet. "Before that, let's take a look…" He grabbed the handles of the cabinet and opened it. "… at my collection, shall we?"
The Crusaders gasped under their breath.
"Collection?" Joseph knitted his brows.
The group could hear painful groaning and moaning sounds coming from the cabinet. Inside were two shelves filled with dolls, but there was something strange about the dolls.
"Though it pales in comparison to my brother's, I also have a collection." Terence glanced at the group. "But one likes to hear compliments about their precious collection when showing it to others."
"It can't be…" Jotaro muttered in shock.
"W-What are these dolls?!" Noriko pointed at the collection, her finger slightly shaking.
Joseph had a disgusted look on his face, he couldn't believe what he was seeing. "No, those can't be any ordinary dolls Noriko, since we're facing one of the D'Arby brothers."
Suddenly one of the female dolls that wore a blue dress began to squirm on its own. One of her eyes twitched, making a cracking sound. The sound and movement of the doll startled Noriko, reminding her of those American horror doll films.
"D-D'Arby!" The doll desperately cried out. A tear trailed down her face. "Talk to me. Please talk to me… Please talk to me!" The doll begged.
Then the other dolls began to squirm with a terrifying expression on their faces. They moaned and groaned as they tried to reach out to the young D'Arby to get his attention.
However, Terence had his back turned to them, still facing the Crusaders with an amused smirk on his face.
"Talk to me!"
"I'm so lonely…"
"Help me!"
Joseph, Jotaro and Noriko were horrified by what they were witnessing. Shivers ran down their spine as the small hairs on the back of their necks stood up.
"Oh my God!" Joseph commented. He couldn't believe what he was seeing.
"They're alive… These dolls are alive!" Noriko stated, feeling very uncomfortable.
"You bastard!" Jotaro snarled at Terence. "They're souls!"
"My hobby is to make dolls." Terence casually stated, as if there was nothing wrong with his collection. "And I've had real souls inhabit these dolls. I'm letting the cat out of the bag, but this is my Stand's power."
"My brother simply enjoyed his soul coins, collected in little rows. But that's rather simple and boring." He continued. "I change their clothes and even talk to them. For example…" He grabbed the female doll wearing the blue dress.
"D'Arby! Oh, D'Arby!" The doll pleaded.
"… Her name is Sonia." Terence said. "I love hearing about her beautiful love stories. Isn't her skin beautiful? She's so beautiful, I'm never embarrassed to show her off." He then pointed at another doll. "This one here is Dr. Elliott, he is a murderer. He's killed eight people. I enjoy hearing about the patients he murdered. I made his glasses and stethoscope myself."
His eyes widened and sparkled, "Ah, that's right! I must show you this." He put Sonia down and reached out to another doll.
"The video game master from Japan, Tatsuhiko!"
Noriko gasped under her breath as Terence picked the doll up and showed it to the group. She knew who that person was, she was quite a fan of him too. She wondered what had happened to him when he just suddenly stopped showing up in tournaments and arcades. At first they assumed he moved but his mother had reported him missing when he never returned home one night. She didn't think she would be the one finding him here within the young D'Arby's grasp.
"His IQ is one-hundred and ninety, so he was formidable. Beating him and taking his soul was no simple task." Terence added.
"Mama! Mama! Mama!" Tatsuhiko wailed, thrashing its arms and legs everywhere while holding a controller.
Hearing his pleading cries angered Noriko. Her fists clenched tightly.
"Both of you brothers are insane." Joseph said. "No, as a matter of fact, you're much worse than your brother. You're pissing me off!"
Noriko huffed and looked away, "Hmph. You act like a gentleman, but you're nothing but scum. You disgust me!" She stated.
Terence turned around and started walking over to the cabinet. "By the way," He began. "I'm sure you experienced this when fighting my brother but human souls are indeed mysterious." He placed the doll back inside. "Once you admit defeat, your soul's energy drops almost to zero." He closed the cabinet doors. He looked over his shoulders at the Crusaders.
"I prepare for that moment and take their soul!" He slammed his hand against the cabinet. "That is how both my brother and my Stand works!"
"We heard enough!" Joseph snapped, his Stand immediately manifested. "You're really pissing me off!"
Both teens also summoned their Stands, ready to beat the shit out of Terence.
"We'll hurry up and defeat you, then move forward!"
"You haven't heard quite enough yet!" Terence said. Atum was instantly summoned in front of its user.
"You should know, Jotaro, that you have no choice but to play at my pace." Atum spoke.
The three Crusaders grunted under their breath.
Terence crossed his arms, "Jotaro, earlier when I read whether you were going to use your left or right, you were shocked, weren't you? And how I read it is still a mystery to you."
Star Platinum diminished as Atum approached closer to Jotaro.
"At that moment, though subtly, I was able to touch your soul." Atum continued to speak. "What do you think I did when I touched it?"
Jotaro widened his eyes when he felt an immense pain coming from his right arm. He pulled the sleeve of his jacket up and saw a hand gripping his arm tightly, the veins on his arm popping out.
"W-What?!" Noriko gasped in shock and shot a glare at Terence. "You bastard!"
"What the hell is that?!" Joseph asked.
"I left Atum's hand attached to your soul." Terence explained with a smirk on his face. "If I were to crush your right arm, I'm sure Lord Dio would be greatly pleased."
"But if I were to do that, in an instant Noriko and Joestar would attack me and I would be utterly defeated. I don't want that to happen." Terence walked over to the table of four.
Joseph gritted his teeth, Jotaro's eyes darkened and Noriko kept glaring at Terence.
Terence placed a hand on the table. The table had four small televisions, a console system in the center and a couple of games stacked on top of each other. Each TV had a controller.
"So how about this gentlemen, and young lady, why don't we play a little game and wager our souls?" He suggested.
"What?" Joseph blinked.
"If I admit absolute defeat, I shall let go of his arm." Terence said.
"Good grief…" Jotaro muttered in annoyance. He then glanced at Terence. "No choice but to stay at your pace, huh?" He lifted his right arm. "True… but you'll regret tricking me, Terence."
"I would absolutely love to hear you say, I will play a game and wager my soul. But the first to play will be…" Terence averted his eyes between Noriko and Joseph.
He slowly lifted his hand and pointed at the red-haired girl.
"Noriko… I choose you."
Noriko gasped as her eyes widened. Jotaro immediately stepped forward, holding out his other arm in front of her protectively.
"Hey, what the hell is the meaning of this?" Jotaro demanded, holding back the urge to punch the shit out of Terence. "You should fight me first."
"You and Mr. Joestar are related by blood but you have no relation to Noriko. If, after I steal the two Joestar souls, Noriko would lose interest in waging her soul and attack me with her Hierophant Green, that would be quite troublesome for me." Terence simply explained.
"You're so full of yourself." Joseph grumbled. "You seem to think you've already won."
Noriko gently moved Jotaro's arm out of the way with her soft, delicate hands and took a step forward.
"Very well, I shall be your first opponent." Noriko said, her violet-eyes piercing at the enemy.
"What?!"
"Noriko!" Jotaro tried to protest.
Noriko raised her hand, "It's fine. I feel quite confident." She assured the Joestars. She walked over to the table, "You guys don't know this about me but I have experience when it comes to video games." She grabs one of the game cartridges.
She lifts it up, holding it between her two fingers and reveals the game to Terence, who's across the table.
"I'd like to challenge you in F-Mega ."
Instead of answering her, Terence had a dark look on his face. He was actually surprised that the girl accepted his challenge, however, he was waiting for the familiar words to come out of Noriko's mouth.
"I bet my soul!"
"Good. Hmph." Terence smirked.
"Noriko!" Joseph shouted as he approached the girl from behind along with Jotaro. He was worried
Jotaro placed a hand on his girlfriend's arm, slightly squeezing it, filled with worry. "You don't have to go first, Noriko." He argued.
"Of course I do. I have to" Noriko said. "Since you have that thing attached to your arm, there's a chance you could make a mistake." She then pointed a finger at the enemy.
"Terence, do we have your word that if you lose, you will let go of Jotaro's arm?"
Instead of answering her, he gave her a teasing grin. He walked past the three Crusaders, over to the cabinet. He pulled one of the bottom drawers and grabbed something inside. Turning around, a disturbing and menacing aura emitted from him as he revealed a female doll; long-wavy red hair, the white uniform shirt with a red ribbon, a green high waisted skirt along with black tights and brown shoes. It even had the same cherry shaped earrings as Noriko. The doll looked identical to the red-haired teen.
Noriko was speechless and creeped out at the sight. Both Joseph and Jotaro shot a glare at Terence as they clenched their fists. It was taking a lot for Jotaro to hold in his rage and suppress Star Platinum from lashing out.
Joseph inserted the game cartridge in the console system. He used Hermit Purple to check the TV's, gaming console and the cartridge. He then recalled his Stand.
"There's nothing wrong with the TV, the console and game cartridge. You could find this video game anywhere in the world." Joseph stated.
Terence pulled one of the chairs back and sat down, "Do not confuse me with my brother, I don't cheat." He declared and picked his controller. "Now, shall we begin?"
Noriko sat down next to Terence and picked up her controller. "Sure."
They both pressed the start button and the announcer of the game greeted them with "F-MEGA!"
"Start by selecting your car, Noriko." Terence instructed.
"Right." Noriko muttered.
She chose a green car and Terence chose a red one. Her race car had the number twenty-eight on it while Terence's had number fifteen.
"So your machine is number twenty-eight, eh? Mine is number fifteen because I was born on January fifth." Terence said. Atum appeared around its user, even placing its hands on the controller.
"Are you ready?"
"Enough with your pleasantries." Noriko snapped at him with irritation. She was getting annoyed by the pointless conversations he was trying to have with her. She looked back at her screen and Hierophant Green manifested around her. The slender-green Stand placed her hands on its user's.
"Let's begin."
"Race starts in… Five!"
"Four…"
Terence's Atum began spamming the acceleration button on his controller. The rapid clicking sound caught the teen's attention.
"H-He's trying for a start dash!" Noriko realized.
"Three…"
"Crap! I'm not going to be able to dash like this!" Noriko panicked in thought.
"Two…"
"He's going to get ahead of me!"
"One!"
"START!"
As Noriko expected, Terence received a head start. Noriko's car was able to catch up but remained at a distance. Taking this opportunity, Terence moved his car in front of Noriko's, blocking her way. Noriko tried to get out of the way but Terence refused to let her. This frustrated the teen and Terence chuckled for the strategy working.
"As long as I keep this up, I'll win!" Terence told himself with a smirk.
"It is impossible to get past me at this point. And sadly, I, Terence D'Arby, never make mistakes with controls in a race. You were naive, Noriko!"
Noriko narrowed her eyes and extended her arm out, using Hierophant Green, she used her Stand to make a rapid circular motion on the D-Pad of the controller. Her green car spun rapidly and even gained speed. She collided into Terence's machine, causing him to lose control and skid off until it crashed into the track's walls, pointing in the opposite direction.
"I see you've played this game before, Noriko. So you do play video games?" Terence asked.
"I don't need to answer that." Noriko replied. She had a smirk on her face for her successful strategy.
"All right!" Joseph cheered with a fist in the air. "This is your chance, Noriko! Hurry up and get your machine back on the course and start!"
Terence gritted his teeth in annoyance and used Atum to spam the acceleration button once more. Noriko was also using her Stand to spam the accel button as well on her controller.
"That technique…" Terence thought. "It's not possible by simply having experience in F-Mega. Although she looks rather anxious on the outside, she has a very bold personality."
At first Terence assumed the girl was all talk instead of being an actual gamer. He thought she agreed to his challenge to prevent her lover from playing, after all, word had spread quickly of their relationship. He underestimated this girl.
The two cars were now tied, going at the same pace. But Jotaro noticed that further down the course there was a turn the two players were going to make. The issue was that Noriko ended up on the outside, if they hit a curve side by side, her car would be at a disadvantage.
"355 kilometers per hour…. 358… 360…" Noriko counted. "Only three seconds to the first corner. It's possible to take the corner at this speed!" She narrowed her eyes, filled with determination.
"I'm going to bust through that corner at full throttle!" She declared.
"Two… One!"
Once at the turn, Noriko spammed the accel button while Terence was trying to push her off the edge. The back wheel of her car was sticking out of the course but that didn't stop her. It forced both players to go through it at the same time.
"They both turned that corner at the same speed and at the same time!" Joseph exclaimed. "They're side by side!"
"I've taken a liking to you, Noriko!" Terence stated, with a grin. His statement made the delinquent stiff and shoot a glare at him. "You wagered your soul but you're not scared at all! You rise above fear to work the controls. Only people like you, Noriko, who give me competition, are worthy of being a part of my doll collection!" He praised the teen girl.
"Me? Rise above fear?" Noriko chuckled to herself. "Thanks, that's because I've been through a lot…"
Terence's words triggered a memory that Noriko wished to be suppressed forever, it was six months ago…
July 1988
Noriko recently started her summer vacation and her family wanted to go to Cairo, Egypt to visit the Nile river.
While roaming the busy streets of the city of Cairo, Noriko was separated from her family. She came across a secluded area. Curiosity took over her and decided to take a look. She had no clue what she got herself into but she encountered a man and a… falcon? The blonde man was tall, muscular, and beautiful. It was hard to see his face since it was covered by a shadow.
The moment her eyes were set on him, she was terrified of the beast he was. She lost feelings in her legs, every hair on her body stood on end, even her body froze. When she realized she couldn't move, the paralysis on her hairs stood even more on end.
The roses and vines that were spread across the ground slowly began to wrap around her legs and move upwards to her body.
Dio looked at the red-haired teen with his golden eyes, "Noriko…" He spoke.
Noriko's breath hitched at the tone of his voice. His voice was gentle as if he were speaking to a child.
"There's nothing to fear…" Dio assured and pressed his body against her back, pulling her body towards him.
His hands began roaming around her body. The red-haired teen has never been touched before until now, she didn't know why but it felt so good. Without knowing, Noriko instinctively firmly pressed her body against his, enjoying the sensation of his hands.
"Let's be friends…" He whispered into her ear, playfully messing with her cherry-shaped earring with one hand while the other caressed her thighs, moving upwards to under her skirt.
"I curse at myself every time I hear those words from him…" Noriko narrowed her eyes.
Dio's hands were under Noriko's skirt, pleasuring her and soft moans escaped from her lips.
Noriko felt relieved. She felt relief from the bottom of her heart. While too busy being distracted, Noriko failed to realize that one of the roses was now in front of her. Dio used one of his hands to make her look forward while the other continued to do its work inside of her.
Then, the rose in front of her pierced her forehead…
"It was humiliating, I can't forgive him!" Noriko told herself as she tightened her grip on the controller from the memory flooding in her brain. "Nothing could be more humiliating! I couldn't forgive myself after that! I despise myself for giving in to him!" She felt disgusted for letting his filthy hands touch her.
"Jotaro…" She continued, "He saved me, and that was the reason I went on this journey. I will never return to being that vulnerable and pathetic Noriko ever again!"
"Terence, that's exactly why I'm betting my soul with you in this challenge."
"Three… two… one!"
Both cars made a turn at the corner at the same time once again.
"They went together again! The third one!" Joseph exclaimed.
"That's because I, Kakyoin Noriko, refuse to allow my nerves to make me mess up even once!" Noriko told herself. "I'll show you!"
"All right! The fifth corner! Together again!" Joseph cheered.
"N-Noriko… you..!" Terence mumbled as he gritted his teeth and his brows furrowed.
"Next is the sixth corner!" Joseph said.
"A boost tunnel is visible once you pass the sixth corner. Going through the tunnel allows you to reach speeds of up to 850 kilometers per hour! I must enter the tunnel no matter what!" Terence thought.
"That tunnel is only wide enough to accommodate one vehicle…" Noriko thought.
"If they keep racing neck to neck, one of them won't be able to enter the tunnel!" Joseph pointed out.
Both vehicles successfully turned at the same time in the sixth corner, now up ahead was the tunnel. They continued trying to push each other off.
"Noriko! Don't let him push you out!" Joseph shouted.
"It seems you haven't realized it yet, Noriko." Terence said with an amused smirk displayed on his face. "Do you really think you can just push me out?"
Noriko glanced at him in suspicion.
"Take a look at your #28's remaining power."
Noriko looked back at her screen and her eyes widened with a gasp escaping from her lips.
"N-Noriko has less power!" Joseph said.
"At the start of the race, you spun and were blown away by my blocking maneuver." Terence then began spamming the accel button with a huge grin. "Didn't you realize you would have less energy after that?!" He pushed Noriko off.
Noriko was able to recover quickly and tried to push Terence's car as they got closer to the tunnel but her car still wouldn't be able to get in the tunnel first.
Terence chuckled, "Two seconds until the tunnel."
"Noriko you're going to crash! Just let him have the lead! Go into the tunnel after Terence!" Joseph suggested.
"I can't and I won't!" Noriko said. "If I let him take the lead then I won't have a chance to win."
"One second until the tunnel." Terence said.
"Noriko!" Joseph cried out.
Noriko swiftly pressed left, right then left again on the D-Pad and tilted her car, entering the tunnel the same time as Terence. Her car was now driving along the walls of the tunnel.
"What?! I never thought you would enter on the wall!" Terence said in shock.
"Y-You did it, Noriko!" Joseph cheered with a huge smile on his face. "Your mental game is stronger than his! Keep going!"
"Shut up!" Terence snapped at the elder Joestar. "You're a distraction!" Sweat was now trailing on the side of his face.
Terence's car then began ramming against Noriko's car out of desperation.
"It doesn't matter how little power I have remaining." Terence narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth. "I'll take this next turn even if it's only one hundredth of a second faster than Noriko! I'll take the shortest path even if it's only by one hundredth of a millimeter! And I'll get through this tunnel even if it's but a moment faster!" He thought. He refused to lose, especially from a girl.
As Terence continued to ram against Noriko, the tunnel became dark.
"NO RADAR!" The announcer of the game said.
"H-Hey! What's going on? I can't see them anymore." Joseph said.
"We have to make it through the tunnel in total darkness, Mr. Joestar." Noriko informed him.
"What?!" Joseph blinked.
"An absolute darkness where the radar is completely useless." Noriko continued. "There are eight curves, a mine and a cannon. The tunnel's exit lies at the end of the darkness. One mistake and you'll hit the wall. But I've memorized the timing needed to take each corner! And so has Terence…"
Then everyone stayed silent, listening to the cars turn at every corner in the darkness while the players stayed focused.
"What's going on?! Where the hell are they?! Who's going faster?!" Joseph spoke, breaking the silence.
"Three." Noriko began.
"Two." Terence followed.
"One!" They said in unison.
A cannon appeared in the middle of the course and fired three cannon blasts. Both players dodged the blasts by circling around the tunnel and during that moment, everyone was able to see the vehicles for a split second.
"We were only able to see them for a split second from the light of the cannon blast!" Joseph exclaimed.
"Noriko is still a bit behind." Jotaro stated, with a hint of worry in his voice as he watched.
"I see the exit! They're exiting the tunnel!" Joseph pointed out.
At the same time, both players exited the dark tunnel and flew high up in the air. It appeared both vehicles were neck to neck but just as they feared, Terence was ahead.
"Terence is ahead by a car length!" Joseph said.
"Victory is mine!" Terence declared with a devious smirk.
Noriko frowned, gritting her teeth.
To Be Continued…
What did you guys think? („• ᴗ •„)
I hope it wasn't too much with Noriko's flashback and didn't make anyone uncomfortable. (/▿＼ )
To be honest I wasn't sure between Telence or Terence. (ノ*°▽°*) There was even another spelling too like Terrence so I wasn't too sure which one to pick. So I went with Terence from the way it was pronounced in the Sub.
Next chapter will the continuation of Noriko VS Terence D'Arby!
I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and I'll cya in the next one! ～('▽^人)