Chapter/Tale 6: Online at Techno Star: Act 1
Author's Note Intro:
Hi, everybody! Nice to see you all again! Hope you enjoyed the previous arc as well, and thank god that one was short… I guess. Nonetheless, I really don't have anything to say, so let's just get right into the swing of things and get it on! Enjoy!
Let's recap everything about the story so far…
After the events of the prologue occurred, Kirby awoke on Aura Star under the care of Merina, Maddie and Mackenzie; knocked out for five days straight. Once recovered, Kirby sets out to find the two crystal spirits and defeat the den of darkness surrounding Dark Forest in his human state. Defeating the matter possessing Aura Woods, not only did he encounter a foe claiming to be part of Dark Matter named Dark Soul, he also met a little girl as well named Kazela, but it was a surprise for him that she was connected to this adventure.
The plot thickens even further as the gang meets some of Kailaine's friends, new allies and new enemies, searching for gem spirits, and finding out that this journey holds a shocking link to a previous incident known as Crystal Chaos, in which each planet of the Cosmic Galaxy had a chain relation of effects from that tragedy, even some of the heroes were involved in some of them as well! However, Zero's actions become unclear in this mess he made, and many began to question his motives. It's clear that Kailaine is his core gem for his heartless ideals.
But who would've expected that Kailaine actually escaped their shallow grasp during the arc of Chapter 5? With that, now the fate of this tale took a hard detour into their hands. What will await the protagonists now in this chapter?
Opening Theme 6: (Story- Uncle From Another World)
File Select: Choose a File!
KirbyPwnz1234: Lvl 30
Start Chapter 6? Yes.
Now Loading... Load Complete!
Now starting a new chapter...
Chapter 6: Super Cyborg Kirby Team Starlight Force Go!
Kailaine's POV: A New Beginning
"And that's how we basically escaped at the last minute. Of course, you know the rest," I explained.
It was a morning that felt like my first one witnessing. At the moment, we explained our side of the story to everyone else as promised yesterday. We did our best to explain everything we could so far. Their reaction was expected.
"So let me get this straight," Kirby spoke. "The real reason why you were able to escape was because they stole the Halberd and merged with it? So we were right about that part then!"
"That's not all, though," Adeline added. "Actually, part of the reason we knew so much about what Zero has done was because someone told us about it."
"Hold on, could you be talking about that Zero Knight named Eclipse?" Dedede caught on quickly. "That does explain a lot then; what he told us yesterday totally makes sense! He knew that you all would break out of the ship because he told you how to do it! But why would he do any of that in the first place?"
"All I can say is that he's different from the other knights; probably an anti-hero or something," Niva shrugged. "If he did all of that for us, then he probably realized from the start the truth, but he said that he can't remember anything about his past and neither do the rest of the knights. Still, he was part of the reason why we're even here now."
"But wouldn't that mean they'll be hounding us from now on?" Karly asked.
"He probably shifted that in our favor afterwards," I answered. "Nothing to worry about yet, but we're still not done with this madness. Eclipse told us about what happened to Crystal Star; Zero dominated the entire planet after we left, and the castle is where he is right now. In fact, everyone that had been kidnapped were imprisoned in the castle walls, and everyone's under anarchy."
"So that's why we asked Blazel and the others to build a Chaos Gate," Bandana Dee reminded us. "To rescue all the others that were abducted. But not until we find the other gem spirits first." Everyone agreed.
"But man, this is out of whack, to think that he dominated everything in one swoop… that's insane." Aege groaned. "Almost like how we went against that Peganoa Knight before with 10,000,000 Beast Knights and Angeloids in the fray. In the end, it was triggered only by some hidden program then. If only we knew where it came from..."
"Hidden program? Oh that?" Meta Knight responded. "I think I might have an idea on who was responsible for that- the very same that mechanized Popstar and every planet in the Gamble Galaxy."
All who knew what he meant gasped, even Adeline as well. "Haltmann Works Company?! But weren't they defeated a few years ago?!"
"If so, then Susie wouldn't be around with us when we went to investigate the Parallel Dimension earlier before. After all, they excel in profiting with mechanization and programs of any kind; as far as I'm concerned, that company's most likely involved with what happened before," He continued. "And not just Skylight Star. The Halberd was rigged with her gadgets and trinkets and whatsoever."
"I suppose that's true, she was planning to continue the company's work in the end, but in a different way." Kirby added.
"What makes you so sure about that, Meta?" Karly asked. "It does make sense, but it can't be entirely true."
"Then why don't we go ask Susie herself about it? After all, we're heading there anyways," Meta suggested. I knew what he meant, and the others caught on as well.
"Techno Star… you think we can find her there?" I questioned that fact, but it's somehow ironic it's true. Meta Knight is confident in his word, though.
"I think so, too," Kirby defended. "Anything with technology is where someone like Susie would bound to be, and she is the secretary of the company as well. But that's what I'm worried about ironically. I'm thinking that she could be a viable target for Dark Matter somehow due to that clone of Dark Matter Blade the mother computer summoned. I can't say for sure, but at least something had her involved in whatever mess they made."
"Mother computer… you're talking about Star Dream, right?" Niva clarified, and Kirby nodded once. "I knew it; that program called Fatal Success was activated after the merge, disabling all of the defenses temporarily for us to get through easily until we reached the deck. Her name was Susie, I believe? That guide for that program was named Susanna, so they're the same person after all."
Callie then said, "Then, do you think Zeta might know about her or that whole incident at least? I did try to call her, but she never picked up that time. Did something come up or what?"
"We won't know until we find out ourselves, Callie. That's how it works, fish breath," Adena shrugged; Callie was that close to unsheathing her cat claws on the mermaid for lunch. Meta Knight seemed satisfied with everyone's opinions at once. The two split twins were just as lost as some were.
"Hey guys? Can we just get on with it and leave sooner?" Kazela complained. "If you all wanna chat, do it after I'm finished eating first or we actually get there. All this talk hurts my ten year old head." She had cleared about ten bowls worth of cereal and pancakes without having a full stomach, just like Kirby's ego. Her cheeks were stuffed with food, and she looked so adorable.
"You should've been finished a long time ago," Karly sweatdropped. "Look what you've done, Kirby. Kazela's contract your ego of being a glutton."
"At least she didn't contract your ego of wearing cringe-worthy outfits," shot back Kirby.
"She has a point, though," Saito spoke. "We should take this elsewhere on Techno Star and get ourselves situated at least, well, you guys can do that- I heard that early release of that new game is being sold there today!"
"Saito, no. If you think I'd waste my time getting that crappy game, then you're out of your mind!" Aege growled. Those two bickered with each other for a bit and it was really hilarious to watch.
While the interactions continued, I glanced around to see a lot of allies that they've all gathered on their way here; I didn't think that many would be willing to join them, but to be honest, we've got quite a lot of people in one spot though. Not that I'm complaining or anything. Now would be a good time to not be a bother to them all.
Soon, the meeting was adjourned forcefully by a stubborn Monokitsune, making us prepare for the trip to Techno Star. Most of them changed to their default clothing they had from the start, but not me or Adeline- we definitely had to change. In fact, I was starting to get sick of wearing a dress nonstop as well as all these other accessories; I'm still keeping the necklace by the way. I then recalled what Kirby wore the entire time here since I technically did gave Karly some of my older ones. Casual was the approach I wanted.
So, after a few minutes of cliché clothing-binge and stuff, I stepped out of the room like a model in showcasing the latest trend of style. In my case, I was wearing a floral pink sleeveless shirt with the collar wrapped around my neck and black tight pants that cut short barely to my ankles. My feet were locked in red platform heels made for combat; my right arm had only a black sleeve reaching my wrist from the bends of my elbow whereas both hands were sealed in battle gloves. I still kept the star-shaped necklace on my neck and my hair the way it was yet I noticed the pink streaks grew wider than before. I've never worn something like this before, but it does feel good to not wear a dress for way too long.
Once I did show myself, I seemed to be the last one to finish. Everyone's reactions were really nice, but for Kirby, he tried to look away as if I'd think he was staring at me in a weird way, and yet he was blushing shyly, probably at a loss for words. He looked so cute when embarrassed, you know. All he did was give me a thumbs up so shaky that it was covered in his own blushing sweat. Don't worry, I'm not the kind of person to even get mad over something like that.
"Wow, that's the first time I've ever seen you wear something besides your dresses," Dinah smirked. "But seriously, I think you somehow copied Kirby's style without noticing it, from your pink flat shirt to your red heels it pretty much matches."
I turn even red than before. "Thanks for that."
Monokitsune let out a fox whistle while reading a magazine that looked familiar. "Upupu, I bet she only dressed like that just so she could give Kirby a nosebleed here. Either way, my innocence just committed suicide the moment it saw your appeals right now; today's weekly issue really knows me so well, just looking at a never-ending array of your radiance-" I quickly snatched the mag from the fox and turned red at the sight on the first page.
It was me- wearing my swimsuit earlier this year?!
"What the-?! When did they take those photos?! Where did you get this?!" I gasped, grabbing the fox in a stranglehold.
"You'd be surprised what you can find on the internet, toots!" Monokitsune snickered. "Or specifically, all of my weekly magazines are sold on Techno Star and I order them on a daily basis! Those suckers base their topics around anything they can get their hands on! Oh, by the way, you're not gonna believe this, but this week's issue was made this time by the same company that you despise for trying to take over your home planet! They've got dirt on everyone single one of you as well!"
"WHAT?!" Everyone screamed; they scrambled over the magazine collection to find out what specific dirt they had on each of them. It was not pretty.
Dedede glared menacingly at the fox. "You better have a good excuse for this!"
"Hey, don't look at me!" The fox replied, "If you wanna hear the end of this, why don't you duke it out with the woman behind this right now? Your dignity's on the line here! And I hope you know a genius or a good technician at least because you're gonna need them, just saying. What are you waiting for? Get out there and kick some ass if you don't wanna be the talk of the century, but calm down first! One more thing as well…"
"What is it then?" I demanded, tapping my heel impatiently.
"You see, I just so happen to find out there's another Star Warrior currently there; explaining will take forever, so I'll just cut to the chase- head to the Retrolution Company Labs and you'll find that particular warrior there. Everything you need to know will be at that place since that's where Zeta technically lives in a way and you'll get the bigger picture regarding Celestial Lighthouse and that program. Understand? Good; now get moving! You've got a galaxy to save!" Monokitsune confirmed.
"Thanks for that," Kirby responded. "Well, enough talk. Let's just take the Chaos Gate this time since my Warpstar is still exhausted from yesterday. Anyway, someone call Mackenzie once we get there." With that, we were ready to travel to Techno Star. Monokitsune told me to keep that issue because he claims it contains something that may help us with the crisis on that planet. I patted his head and turned to leave with everyone else as we entered inside the gate and warped.
This time, we're ready to fight back.
World 6- Techno Star, Planet of Retrolution
(Deja Vu- The World Ends With You)
Welcome to Techno Star, everyone. As the name implies, it's obviously a futuristic planet and all that stuff. Here, you'll find everything you need for the latest in technology and gaming and digital media, duh. This version involves cyborgs and robots, secret lab projects, and a city full of companies all over. Sometimes you wonder if there is anything left of nature at all. There is, but that's because we're in Haltonia City, the largest and most tech-relying area of this planet. This is where everyone mainly hangs out, and it's busy every day. If a latest product comes out, expect there to be casualties.
Still, it surprises me that magazines are still popular in a technological city; those could've been a hit at Lunadark Star or elsewhere, maybe Popstar. Why question it anyway? There's a lot of things that doesn't make sense. Anyways, those details will be classified for the moment.
At the time, we headed straight towards the company base as the fox told us to- Retrolution Company Labs. It's a company known best for ambitious projects and a straight obsession with the history of animation and gaming by making them into reality. They always allow beta testing whenever a game is at near completion, so it was any gamer's dream; animation or specifically anime, they turn your ideas into an actual anime, and so they allow any submission anywhere, which is any anime fan's dream. They've got good music as well.
Anyway, the others marvel around Haltonia, their eyes locked onto the many flashy items on sale in stores everywhere. Trying to get them over there was a hassle; it took a while, but I find myself at the front desk requesting to see Zeta. A little while later, we were told to take the elevator to the main area of the company, and after stepping out of the elevator, someone was waiting for us there- two little girls. I look at them in confusion; Kazela didn't, because she knew them.
"Maddie? Mackenzie?" She called out. "What are you doing here?"
"The same reason you're here," Mackenzie replied. "Also, we saw everything that happened yesterday with the whole despair reign and that stuff. I'm glad that everyone's okay, considering that a little longer and everyone would've been consumed by that Void beast. And with that," She approached me with Maddie in a respectful manner but excitedly grabbed my hands. "It's really nice to meet you, Princess Kailaine!"
I blushed. "You don't have to be that formal, just call me Kaila if you want. Actually, I have to thank you two for taking care of the others after I got abducted beforehand. They might've not made it if it weren't for you two and Merina."
"Yeah, those five days were really something," Maddie giggled. "Merina still had amnesia after all that happened and didn't remember until she nearly got kidnapped by two of the Zero Knights; I think Auralia and Molotov were their names."
Merina turn beet red. "Did you really have to tell her that? It's really embarrassing to remember that I was friends with a princess and had amnesia for about 8 years or so- ack! Why did I just say that?!"
"Anyways, we better get moving," Mackenzie said. "There's something you definitely ought to know about what happened today."
We then followed the two girls through a floor filled with long hallways and visible rooms seen from long-scale windows containing testing grounds for about anything. It was then we arrived in the core part of the company- the Virtual Spector, which is the name of the room.
"We're back, professor!" Maddie shouted. "Everyone is here!"
A woman wearing a white lab coat with cyan long hair and yellow eyes stood there. "Already? That was quick, you two." She clicked her heels as she sets down the clipboard she was just holding. "The name's Espera Neonagenesis H., pleased to meet you all."
"Same here," Yae replied. Espera is the head professor of the Retrolution Company, who is a genius in the areas of gaming and animation… and robot making. She is rumored to have some sort of beef with Haltmann Works Company, but I don't know for sure. Either way, those two companies are rivals brawling like a game of Smash Bros.
"I take it that you're here for Zeta, right?" Espera stated. "She's right over there."
Pointing to a seemingly robot charging station in a large room lies a golden haired girl with light black skin and bolt bangs. Her electric golden eyes were covered by a strange headset goggles, followed by her body pulsating every once in a while; it was hard to see because she often wore long clothes like that full scale black and yellow spy bodysuit she's had on right now along with high-tech short boots to conceal the lines on her body; she's a demi-cyborg, a living murder weapon if she wishes to be. Princess of Thunder, she is a walking robotic being known as Zetra Voltagenesis. Just call her Zeta- she prefers if you didn't confuse her for someone else by using her actual name; if that does happen, it's a mere coincidence if someone has the same nickname as she does.
The way she's hooked to whatever simulator she's in makes me think that she was in that thing the entire time and didn't respond to our calls. Actually, she's wearing the headset, but she's suspended in an anti-gravity chamber which held her horizontally. "Typical, she's in another simulator again as usual. Is that more important than what's going on around her?" Callie shook her head.
Espera came into her defense and said, "Actually, it is important if it's involved with a situation that had just happened in the city."
"But it's just a game, professor!" Adena retorted. "How does that have any relevance with reality? I know this is a company made for gaming and animation, but this is beyond ridiculous!"
Callie smirked. "Aw, I thought you knew technology, but what do you know? You're just a mermaid!" Adena was about to return fire until Merina had to break it up.
"You're talking about Haltmann Works Company, if I'm not mistaken," Meta Knight sharply answered. "I suggested that company were in cahoots with whatever scheme they pulled here."
"My, you definitely have a sharp mind," Espera chuckles, slightly lifting up her glasses. "That's correct. Techno Star is filled with products from that company, the very same that mechanized every planet in the Gamble Galaxy. I'm well aware that you were involved in their fall, swordsman. Specifically speaking, President Haltmann himself."
"If I had to guess, I'll assume this is where they came from," He continued. "So what is that girl up to this time?" I could tell there was a strong grudge in the way he spoke. Did that secretary do something to him? I'm surprised they actually came from here; now how did I not know about that when I should've known?
"The very same reason why all the other incidents occurred," The professor answered. "Of course, it all started after Haltmann's death was confirmed. No one had heard from his secretary as well, I mean, years before that. His daughter was involved in an accident and disappeared while making the mother computer known as Star Dream. Max went mad trying to get his daughter back, and I'm sure you've seen the truth of that in that gauntlet of a hellish boss rush mode, True Arena." The warriors looked at each other, not wanting to recall that experience again.
"… yeah, we did," Kirby slowly answered. "I thought he was crazy at first, but that's only because his real motive was to get back his daughter, and the constant usage of Star Dream caused him to lose his memories slowly and to the point where his soul was being absorbed when we fought it. And the True Arena made it worse because whenever you destroy a core, you can hear him scream as he's being erased slowly in the Nova Heart."
I gasped, "That's just messed up! A mother computer is capable of doing that?! I mean, you did tell us before about it, but that attack had such a horrible secret behind it?" The others who've never heard of it were in shock.
"Everything gets dark once you discover the lore behind it; remember when I told you about Void Termina?" Adeline reminded me. "That was only the latest news so far. In depth, it's way crazy than it seems the first run, and the True Arena reveals the theory of everything. A lot of things have yet to make sense to this day anyways."
"She's right, princess," Espera continued, "Regarding the attack known as Planet Robobot, sometime earlier in the years, the company base still remained prosperous, constantly at work. It was only then that she returned and took over in her boss' place. Everything was silent… until now."
"What do you mean? Is it something so urgent for even Zeta to not ignore it?" Dinah asked.
The curvy professor nodded. "Exactly. In fact, we are more than just a company. Our true intent is defending the city against corrupt organizations in secret; secret agents if you look at it that way. Recently, there were reports of a gem hurling over to where Haltmann Works Company is located, followed by a strange dark ball, and obviously you know what that means."
"Let me guess: either they corrupted all of the servers, made a Robobot army, or plan to destroy the planet with a giant mecha; somewhere along the lines of that, I guess?" Dedede assumed.
"Any one of those would've been most likely, but however that wasn't the case. Has anyone heard of our latest game called Starlight Vacation?" Espera asked, noticing Saito excitedly started fanboying over it. "It's a MMORPG that combines it with virtual reality to make the experience more enjoyable. This was one of the awaited seasonal games ever to come out, and the game was released for sale today."
"So how did it go wrong then?" Kazela asked. "You did make sure to beta test the game, right?"
"Of course we did! And it went smoothly as planned, so it was safe for launch. And that's where it all began," Espera explained. "We've received complaints from parents about how their children are too hooked to the game that they spend their entire time playing and nothing else. Just today, actually. The beta test was two weeks ago, and pre-ordered releases were just last week. Official releases were today."
"What a crappy complaint; it's completely normal these days," Aege scoffed. He does have a point there. "And on the first day? That's kinda out of base, if you ask me."
"I agree it's crappy, but that's because we've failed to realize the meaning behind that. Eventually, it made more sense if it meant people went under mind control," Espera finally admitted. "That was only the beginning of it- anyone that plays the game or even puts the headset on will become mechanized on the spot!"
"What?! That doesn't make any sense!" gasped Saito in crushed spirits. "How did you make a game that actually mechanizes people?! It's just a game!"
"That's because we didn't- Dark Matter did. After we went to check the game once those urgencies appeared on the spot, it was discovered that they corrupted the coding of the game during the beta testing without our notice and snuck itself into the millions of copies we produced in that amount of time! Have you noticed anything different about the people in the city? They were wearing the headsets used for the game, and that's what turns them into robots! In fact, HWC took over our game and changed it completely to their bidding!"
"They always say that gaming turns you into a mindless robot or something like that, but never would I have thought of it in a literal sense; I was not expecting one game to literally turn them into robots- wait, why aren't they attacking people or anything like that?" Dylan asked.
Espera nods in Zeta's direction. "Because of her. Zeta immediately acted after we discovered this happening and entered the game herself in order to stop the mechanization. However, we lost communication with her on the spot after she reached the final level of the game- Paradis Tower, a level so hellish that you could think of it as unbeatable. It was two days ago that she went in, but we never heard from her since then."
"An impossible level? That's what they always say… you didn't make that level impossible to beat, did you?" Jodie sweatdropped.
"Hell no! It grows from easy to challenging as you get further into the game, but impossible?! That's impossible; might as well make the entire game hard for players then that we'll be forced to have a death count on how many players get clapped on the first level! And the death count is our real concern!" Espera snapped. "No one likes an impossible game anyways!"
I then began to visualize the entire scene right there. "You don't mean to say… if they die in the game, they bite it in real life, just like the plot of SAO?"
"It could be if we don't stop that secretary. The base of the company is surrounded by a negative barrier making entry null and void. The key to break the barrier unexplainably revealed itself in the game without notice, so if you can get that key in the virtual dimension, you should be able to get in, even from the game since they took over it and back up Zeta," She confirms. "I don't know how, but it looks like we can manipulate certain things in the beta version and use that to fight back."
"Excuse me, professor," Aqua asked. "Zeta entered the Virtual World through the beta version, right? Are there any other beta testers besides her, at least? There's a lot we wanna ask, but I'm sticking with that question only until the madness dies down."
"Oh yeah, that's right!" Espera answered. "With all of the commotion going on, I forgot that there was only one person who managed to resist mechanization entirely! I believe he was acquainted with the Star Warriors, and he also entered the game as well."
Sirica gasped, "That's gotta be Knuckle Joe! We've gotta help them now!"
"Not so fast, Sirica," Niva stopped her. "I sense a Demon Beast coming from the game in the last level; I bet that's why he went in there as well." Oh yeah, Niva can sense Demon Beasts even from inside machines. "I'm certain they rigged the game's levels while they were at it. We need to go through this carefully or else we're done for. Professor, how long will it take to get to the last level before they get creamed?"
"That depends on the player's performance status," She shook her head. "However, we have no time to deal with that, so we'll guide you from the base as you all head to Paradis Tower. But there's too many of you in one spot, and only a few people can enter the game; we didn't make enough stands for all of you, so I guess that's impossible…"
Coincidentally, one of the other assistants came in. "I don't know about that one, chief. But I'm here to say… it is definitely ready, chief! Over here, everyone!"
We walked to the large testing room to find a large door that automatically unlocked itself to reveal a spiraling blue star shaped vortex in the center of it. "Here it is- Cyberspace Gate! This can instantly warp a group of people into one area in a flash!"
We all marvel in amazement; Espera was delighted. "Splendid work! I totally forgot about that! Problem solved, I guess."
"Hey guys?" Adeline asked. "Doesn't that look like the portal from last time, as in Another Dimension?"
"Yeah… it's just like when we fought against Sphere Doomers for the Energy Spheres to repair Magolor's Lor Starcutter," Bandana Dee answered. "How are they able to recreate that anyway?"
"You see, there are different kinds of dimensions that can be opened up with the right kind of intention in mind. In this case, since we want to get into the company base through the game, a rift will open up to warp into a digital game, and it does well in a virtual reality game. Rifts can be opened at will if you have the necessities of doing so or at least have the power," The assistant explained.
"I guess that makes sense," Dedede scratched his head. "Ain't that much about it was answered to this day."
"Wait, but why can't we just walk over to the company itself instead of going inside the game?" Fololo asked.
"Because it's gonna take too long to do that if you were in the game; they took over the game and did things in their leisure, so we're taking advantage of that by entering the game and getting through there since the exit is beating the last level," Espera sighed. "It's not like we have any other choice, right?"
"Still, it does seem like there are other options…" Falala added.
"Never mind that. Look, the point is we need to shut down the mind control from the game and stop the secretary from whatever it is she plans to do, so that means no johns whatsoever," She sighed. "Noting that, we have to sort out how we're going to set this up with so many of you in place."
Oh yeah, we do have a lot of people in the group to around 14 or so, excluding the princesses: Kirby, Karly, Dedede, Meta Knight, Bandana Dee, Dylan, Dash, Aqua, Aege, Saito, Sirica, Jodie, Fololo and Falala- the main party members. Then there's the captives: Me, Kazela, Merina, Callie, Adena, Dinah, Yae, Adeline, and Niva. In total, there's about 23 people, which is definitely a lot to keep track of.
"I suppose half of us will enter into the game while the others stand guard for anything else that might happen on the way," I suggested. "Apparently, all of us in one area could be a hassle at this point."
"But who's going in the game and who stays?" asked Merina.
"Actually, maybe a few of us could back the players up somehow," Saito chimed in. "On standby, I mean; if one player is nearly defeated, another can take their place until they regain their health up. Obviously, I'm getting into that game; Kirby/Karly, Meta and Sirica are solid picks for one. How many can you take in?"
"An entire group, but I'm limiting it to about 12-13 or 14 people," Espera confirmed.
"Good, then why don't we let Kaila, Adeline, and Niva come as well?" Saito offered. "Aege, you're joining- no johns, sissy! Dylan and Dash, and the last spot is available for anyone else that wants to come and that makes 11."
"I'll go," Kazela took the offer by surprise. "I've always wanted to try a virtual reality game."
"Count me in, too," Jodie offered as well.
"Then it's settled- we have twelve-thirteen players," Espera smiled. "The rest of you will back them up in case anything happens to them. Everything's going as expected. Now then, we should get you twelve all ready for the experience of a lifetime. Just let us know when you're ready, okay? It'll take a while to set up everything. In the meantime, cupid boy will explain how Starlight Vacation works since he is a huge fan of the series. Get yourselves ready if anything urgent should arise."
"And, um, that thing I wanted to tell you all about," Mackenzie stuttered. "I think it can wait until everything's sorted out.
"Thank you very much, professor," I replied. "You too, Mackenzie." I pat her on the head after that.
After that, the meeting was dismissed at the moment; it's been a decent amount of time that went by. Everyone decided to look around the company for a little while; some went into the games while the others were watching anime or looking at original animation. I wanted to stay a little with Kazela, but at the same time I felt she needed a bit more time before that. It was a bit out of whack if she told me that I had to spend it with… Kirby.
In fact, he was sitting by himself near the window. He seemed so distant yet a bit frustrated over something… I decided to sit next to him. "Hey, Kirby. Something the matter?"
He turns a shade of cherry red. "I'm… fine… nothing to worry about…"
I looked him straight in the eye with a more concerning approach like I'm his mother. "You're thinking about how it's strange to see me already out in one piece, right?" Kirby was surprised, then he slowly nodded. I crossed my legs as I said that, playing with my right heel.
"… It's true. After what happened a few weeks ago, it was the first time I ever felt so… human, in a different sense. That's coming from someone who was cursed into a human body, ironically. And you've endured that longer than we did; you went through a lot than we did in regards to your situation, losing nearly everything you cared about and still kept going… you're more stronger than I am in that case," Kirby explained honestly.
"Why would you say that when I ended up being the reason why you nearly died at the hands of those beasts and risking your fragile lives?" I refuted, throwing Kirby off guard. "They showed us your encounters with every monster you all went against while we were detained helplessly. We're forced to watch you all shed blood every second, and it hurts me knowing that it's my fault in the first place. Maybe if I had done a better job at killing Zero, then you wouldn't have to deal with them as we did…"
Kirby countered, "It wouldn't made much of a difference if they always keep coming back no matter how much they fall. After going on this debut, it made it clear they'll always come back through any shape or form possible. But it's definitely not your fault, I know that. We never expected this to happen so suddenly. Still, that won't stop me from doing my thing, even if it costs me precious dinner time."
I giggled. "How cute. My mom would be all over you if she was still here; adorable people like you are her favorite. Still, it didn't matter what kind of curse anyone puts you in because you always rebound from it anyways."
"Same for you," Kirby replied. "I can't believe you were able to break your way out of Dark Matter's grasp in just a matter of time along with Adeline and Niva and found out that much than we did. What was it like in there?"
"It was rather… a lively experience for us," I sweatdropped. "I didn't expect any of the minions to have their own personalities and character traits, excluding the Zero Seven, making them individually unique. Three of them I remember the most were named Stark, Zane, and Macy. Definitely a weird experience, but they didn't treat us like prisoners as I was expecting them to, surprisingly. That's the only thing I'm trying to figure out, because as a whole, they came to my defense behind Zero's back so often that I think they're only pretending."
"I see… well, I could tell something will spark from that sooner or later. By the way, what about that one Zero Knight named Eclipse?"
"Him? He appears to be more trustworthy than the others; after all, we'd still be stuck over there if it wasn't for him, and he risked his position for our sake as well. However, Eclipse had another reason for this. As far as he knows, he's the only one who has doubts about being a knight for Zero as he had memories he doesn't remember having; as such, he wants to learn the truth, even if it means going against Zero and helping us. I just hope it didn't cost him after we got out."
"Don't worry, I can tell he won't let that happen at all; he might've convinced Zero to leave things as it is since you're with us now," answered Kirby. "Regardless, we need to be wary of the other remaining knights now; at least we don't have to deal with Coral again. Speaking of which, what happened to her?"
I coughed nervously. "Er, I don't know about that one, Kirby. Let's just say she's taking quite a long nap and leave it there. But never mind that. This is the first time we're able to talk together like this personally. I hope I'm not a burden to any of you here."
"Of course not! I do owe you in a way, so why would I say that? Besides, after this, we're still going to have your vacation go on without any disasters this time! We're gonna need all the help we can get to stop Zero again. For now, we're gonna pay the secretary a little visit this time," Kirby smiled.
I blushed. "Heh, thanks."
I could feel a strong bond between the two of us, and I'm not sure how to describe this particular feeling I had when I was sitting that close to him unwittingly. Or whenever I even think about him randomly, I turn red every time. Despite that, I felt like I was his friend and that's all I wanted… maybe so.
"Hey, your hair's kinda messy," I pointed out as I went to brush it out, aware that my chest was pressing against him for the moment. "There we go. That's better." Kirby blushed continuously.
"Thanks…" He said before looking away nervously. That would be because they grew from about 6-7 cups or so. "Well, I guess we should head out soon. Better be ready to fight another Nova if possible."
"Yeah, that's right. Oh, I know you've already told me about the company, but you did say the ship was actually a Nova, right? How does that even work in the first place? I mean, you were inside it without knowing that the whole time!" I asked.
Kirby shook his head. "Honestly, I wish I knew the answer to that. Maybe Niva might know, she's the same species after all."
Coincidentally, Niva called out, "Kaila! Kirby! We're gonna set off in a few minutes, so hurry!"
"I suppose we'll find out once we get there," I said as we both got up and went to the main lab.
A few minutes later, the twelve or rather the thirteen of us were given instructions as to playing the game and such. Here's the concept of Starlight Vacation- Cybervirus Reality: In this game, the land of Starlight Resort has been transformed into a robotic Toyland during a vacation and the people were transformed into cyborgs in the process. Trapped under the reigns of the Mother Computer, the people are left with no choice but to rebel against the MC's forces and reach the last level and return the land to normal. Luckily, Starlight was known for summoning heroes from another world, which are the players, and had them take the form of cyborgs which have special abilities. In our case, only two people managed to get to the last level, and we have to get there.
"Understand, everyone?" Saito asked, and we nodded as we received each a pair of VR Headsets, which resembled high-tech scouters and were in different colors. I put them on and they were clear as day since they weren't activated yet. They're really comfortable, honestly.
"Nicely done, Saito. With that, just know that you will feel pain when taking damage of any sort, so be wary of that. Secondly, we made these headsets so as they won't get in your way; we can communicate through these. And we managed to configure your avatars with your abilities and such, but you also have access to the skills in the game. The others will also act as replacements if the need arises, and they can also assist you in combat and exploration terms. Mackenzie, Maddie and I will hack through any problems created by HWC if that does happen," Espera explained. "Once you beat Paradis Tower and get Zeta and Knuckle Joe after getting the key to breaking the barrier, the dimension rift will open and take you all to the company in the real world; you can handle the rest, of course."
"So beating the boss of that level will free the players from mechanization?" Karly asked. "And that key must be the Gem Soul Spirit… I see. Just one question, what is the boss of the last level supposed to be?"
"We don't know yet or maybe I should say that it's pretty unclear for the boss, but as for Knuckle Joe and Zeta, we managed to get ahold of both their statuses as of now, and it looks like they're fine for the moment. The boss is unknown, but it could be that demon beast Niva was talking about in the form of some sort of demi-virus. Details can wait, we have to send you in the rift now!" Espera answered. "Everyone, stand on the platforms and hold still! Headsets on!"
"Rift stability secured! Player avatars set! FPS set to 1440p60- VR Stable!" Assistants confirmed. "Opening dimension gate!"
The gate unveiled itself to reveal the digital vortex that laid before us. The guys on standby also had them to replace any one of us. The platform we all stood on shifted gears and slowly slid towards the portal and stopped for a while in the middle. There were weird molecules shaped like stars floating out the rift and grew faster.
"Remember kids: grab the key before heading to Paradis Tower and kill the demi-virus! One more thing- try not to die in the game if it becomes the plot of SAO suddenly!" One of the assistants shouted. "Good! Let's get right into the game!"
"Good luck, guys!" Espera shouted due to the noises getting quite loud. The program spoke:
"PLAYERS READY, INITIATING COUNTDOWN SEQUENCE. 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… GO! LAUNCH!"
The platform yanked back suddenly and shot itself towards the portal with all of us on it like a roller coaster ride. The headset was activated as I saw nothing but a spiraling blue ahead of me and my body being slung into zero-gravity with everyone else.
"Holy crap, this is awesome!" screamed Saito as he fell.
"You're so obnoxious sometimes, it makes me wanna barf!" Aege shot at him. "What's so great about virtual reality anyways?!"
"WIMP!" Cried Dylan and Dash together. "Suck it up, you sissy!"
"Shut up!" Aege shouted, trying to get to them in anger.
Kazela was clinging onto me. "Big sis, let's have some fun, okay? I'm not as helpless as you think, I slaughtered a crowd of demon beasts at the palace, you know!"
"I guess so, Kazela," I chuckled.
"Um guys? Is it me or is the fall taking too long?" Adeline pointed out. At once, that was cut short when everything came to a white flash that caught us all in a mere second. I felt my body transform during that.
Starlight Resort- World Hub
(Overworld- Kubbi)
When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was us all being carried down into a town at ease. As I gazed around the virtual world, I saw what used to be a resort now a mechanized robotropolis that point on. It really fits the theme of this world, you know. In that moment, I spotted a strange tower faraway but visible; it must be Paradis Tower, no doubt. What concerns me is the road that lies ahead for us.
It was gonna be another concern for later as we ended up in the middle of the town safely. The headsets were invisible when I felt them. I gazed at myself to see it covered in some sort of female robot suit that was magenta and black. My ears were covered with headphones, and my shoes were like the ones I was just wearing; my body felt a bit curvy than before. This must be the avatars we're supposed to take form of due to the fact that people were mechanized as a result. I noticed it affected everyone else as well.
"What happened to us?! Why are we dressed like cyborgs?!" Karly exclaimed, wearing clothes resembling the one I first gave her but with a skirt and cone sleeves.
"That's what we are in the game," Saito answered, pointing to the townsfolk around us. "Everybody's been mechanized into cyborgs and as the warriors, we're made to reflect that fact. They won't return to normal unless we kill that Mother Computer at Paradis Tower and neither will we."
"I take it you know your way around this game, Saito?" Jodie asked. "Or rather the series, specifically?"
"Yeah! Starlight always involves domination and that stuff; it's your typical RPG game anyways. Graphics are awesome as usual and even more! But never mind that stuff. We need to get moving now and find the other two that are here," Saito tapped on his pair of yellow headphones.
"I just hope that nothing gets in our way during all of this, you know," Kirby stated. "Where do we start?"
"Hey, we just started the game. Heck if I know," Even Saito had no idea, since it was a new game after all.
The town was flourishing in its mechanized state, but it felt real… too real, even for a virtual reality game, and I'm no expert on those. How are we supposed to get around now?
"Excuse me," An NPC character appeared out of nowhere; it was a robotic female. "You wish to stop the Mother Computer?" We nodded at the same time.
"I see… there were two other warriors like yourselves that sought to fight against it, but it's been about two years since we last heard from them. All the other ones? They were possessed by the curse of the virus."
"Two years?!" Sirica gasped. "But it's been two days in the real world since Zeta and Knuckle Joe went in! How is that possible?!"
"I see what she means," Niva stepped in; her attire had robotic cat ears and a tail that moved. "Time passes differently between the two dimensions, so even one minute out there could be an hour in here; two days equals two years! It's almost like this game became its own separate living world, like it became its own reality!"
"That's right," the NPC replied. "The heroes knows Starlight is a game, but our world is real because they believed it was real. And when they believe that, they're more motivated to help us and end this nightmare. Starlight was peaceful until that Mother Computer took over and possessed the heroes, turning them into mindless slaves."
"No way, so Espera was telling the truth! That's why there are so many cyborgs in our world!" Kazela pointed out. "So how many were enslaved?"
"At this point, we've lost count," She replied. "It does seem that the MC has a lackey to do all the dirty work for it. I've heard it was an elite warrior from a dark force or something like that, and he controls electricity as well."
"A Zero Knight," Meta confirmed. "Should've known… do you know anything about that Mother Computer, specifically speaking?"
She was thoughtless for a moment, then she got it. "It's the only thing that links from Starlight to your world so far, and it exported an army of magitech armored robots when the land was transformed. Not only that, but when it inflicted the previous heroes on mind control, there seemed to be some sort of spell that triggered them, and it may have been used in your world to control others, and they could be cyborgs."
"Is that the curse you were talking about?" Kirby asked. "That could be HWC's doing as well."
"However, those two warriors I mentioned were completely immune to the curse upon arrival," She continues. "You look like you seem to know them. In that case, a teenage girl first appeared and went for Paradis Tower alone, followed by a boy sometime later on. We never heard from them after two years, I fear something might've happened to them. What I do know is that there's another way of getting to the top floor: strange pieces which were called the Thunder Orb are used to summon a spirit known as Teravolt. With his aid, he'll guide you to the top of the tower but only if you can find the pieces that recently appeared."
"Collecting pieces again… no matter," Karly shrugged. "So how do we get to Paradis Tower anyway?"
The NPC points to an open town gate that looks like it leads to other areas. "Platform Plains, go through that route and it will take you through all the required areas that leads to the tower. You should clear that in a few minutes or so to get a feel for your surroundings. Just be careful on the way there, at the end of Platform Plains lies a magitech robot known as Heavy Gigavolt. The rest is in your hands after that."
"Thanks for the advice!" Saito replied. "Oh yeah, one more thing. I heard there's some kind of demi-virus that appeared a while ago. Is it the guardian of Paradis Tower?"
"Sorry, I do not know that," She shook her head. "That's all I can tell you."
"Well thanks anyway. That was really helpful to us!" Saito thanked her again. "Let's go, everyone!"
"Who put you in charge?" Aege refuted. "Ugh!"
To be honest, I was kinda on edge; the crisis is nerve-wrecking enough, but it's something else. Remember how we fought against Dragoon Serpentera and killed it? I was afraid of unleashing Zerosterlia in front of everybody else if something were to happen. What would they think of me once I become her? It's not like I can control it fully, it's triggered by anything negative that occurs. Still, I'm gonna refrain from letting her out unless I don't have a choice.
Shaking off my anxiety, Kirby noticed that and asked, "Something wrong, Kaila?"
"No, nothing's wrong… yet," I sorta lied.
"Are you sure? If it's important, then talk it out with any one of us if you're up to it. You're probably nervous with us, so I can understand that. Whatever it is, try not to let that weigh you down much. Everyone's waiting on you, so come on," Kirby urged me. "Even your little sister calls you a slowpoke!"
I couldn't help but smile and took his hand. "All right, I'm coming. Let's go save this virtual world."
Leaving the town as cyborg citizens waved us goodbye, my heart prepared itself for the trials that lay ahead. Even if things didn't go as some expected it to, I didn't care anyway, because one way or another, Kirby and his friends and allies saved us in any way possible.
From here on out, it'll be our turn to save them, starting now as we head over to Platform Plains to save Zeta and Knuckle Joe. I do hope they're okay…
Meanwhile…
"All three of them came with pinky, huh?" A sinister feminine voice spoke in the shadows. "Just as planned. Now I'm eagerly expecting how well they'll do in that dimension. Espera, sweet little Espera, your efforts will be all for naught soon enough."
"Ma'am," Some robots called the woman. "What shall we do with that girl now that she's in your hands?"
"Not anything yet. First, let them reach Paradis Tower. The Mother Computer shall deal with them, just as planned; after all, it's having a lot of fun with that Star Warrior since it is an elite Demon Beast of that rich cave of legends. But when they do come, I'll deal with them if the need arises. The girl, release her once they arrive at the tower with that Star Warrior." She chortled afterwards as she gazed into a hall of screens that projected the protagonist's every move.
"Yes, ma'am," The robots accepted her command and they immediately warped the captive trapped in a bubble away in a flash.
"Perfectly balanced," The woman sipped her drink and grinned. "As all things should be. Father would be very pleased if he hadn't expired then. Feels good for revenge…"
That's what she thought at first. Deep down inside her, there's someone who went against what she was doing. She couldn't reach her as she was trapped inside her mental prison consciously ever since she was overrun recently. If things went as all things should be, she really hit the rock bottom then. But she didn't give up.
"Stop it! I do not wish for this to happen!" She cried out.
"Silence, you maggot!" The woman snapped inside her head at the one voice that resisted, her voice was so intimidating to make her shrink back in fear. "Be grateful! You have every reason to do this and you wanna back out now? How pathetic!"
"When did I ever agree to this madness?! I'm not making that same mistake as Father did; why should I try to make things more hectic?!"
"Huh, you're so naïve. It's because of that pink pest and that swordsman that you should do this! Those savage natives destroyed everything we had in one fell swoop, and now we're gonna make them pay with their own blood! Don't fret, my former self. It'll be quick and painless, balanced as it should be, you'll see," The woman cackled. That voice knew it was pointless to reason with her dark persona any longer, so she kept silent.
"They'll never forgive me after this, would they?" She sank into bitter tears. "Please, make this end already…" That's all she ever said after that. She knows what's coming, and she wishes for the opposite of what her other self wants to happen.
All she can do is hope that this madness will be terminated…
"Oh, that reminds me, once they reach Neon Laboratory, send in the terminator!"
"What?!" She had a bad feeling about this…
Ending Theme 6: (Neptune Sagashite- Hyperdimension Neptunia)
Now Saving… Save Complete!
To be continued…
End of Chapter 6 Act 1!
Author's Note Summary:
Hope you like this chapter guys! It was a challenge trying to figure out which options to choose from, but it all worked out. Now I'm gonna have to bust my butt off for the next one really quick as well since I did hear we're returning our laptops, but I'm not sure yet. Either way, I'm not taking any chances on this one and hopefully pull through if that possibility's posted.
Let's get on with the usual, okay? This time, no one has to worry about saving the captives and now they join the party from here on out. With that, retelling the events that led up to now gave relief to everyone in the party and new questions to answer as they all get ready. Yeah, maybe I could've done a better job with Kaila's new style of dressing but it's the best I could come up with. And about that magazine Monokitsune reads daily… let's just say it had some stuff that shouldn't be declared public on upfront magazines. Now they all run off to protect their dignity and their embarrassing secrets.
So what do you think about Techno Star's concept of the situation? I was going to do something similar to the plot of Planet Robobot with the domination and stuff, but I thought that'd be cliché, yet I did have that in mind. Anyway, this planet's disaster involves a popular game series being the cause of players being mechanized into cyborgs through the virtual reality headsets in which they are trapped in the game and cannot leave until they- what is this, Sword Art Online?
Technically, you'd be half-right. In actuality, it was kinda the same plot as Spy Kids 3: Game Over if you've heard of it, that is. I thought it was a good movie until I realized how terrible the graphics were back then. That won't stop me, though… probably. Heck if I know. But that's where the inspiration came from, so yeah. Well, you all know the rest of it anyways.
With that, I don't know if the next chapter might have to be the last until school ends, my school is very indecisive with choices to make, but I ain't taking any chances at this point. Now I hope I'm gonna finish the next one before the deadline because summer awaits me with other stuff and junk. Still, I'm not giving up on the story yet, another hiatus yet again until I get my own laptop not controlled by the horrors of the school system. Like I said, the next may be the last for the time being until my senior year comes up, but I'll try to at least get working on it though if I can.
But it's still not the end yet! Enjoy it while you can, readers! As usual, let me know your thoughts in your reviews or PM me for any questions you have. Now if you'll excuse me, I'll be mastering my secret technique of running away-
Kirby: Did you just make a Jojo's reference?!
What are you talking about, Kirby? I was about to end things here just now! This is no time for a Jojo's reference!
Kirby: There's always time for a Jojo's reference, man! I literally just saw the meme before we went into the game!
But I didn't write that- Okay, I admit it! I was making a Jojo's reference! (A Gigguk's parody of Attack on Titan in 10 mins reference, by the way). Happy now? Not happy enough?! You got Kaila with you now! Seriously, you're such a chick magnet that you can literally be shipped with any female character from anywhere by your fans!
Kirby: I know, man! But when I look back, I'm starting to wonder… how did we went from a princess' visit to saving an entire galaxy from freaking Zero while beating up bosses that look like they deserve to be final bosses and somehow nearly dominated the entire planet they're on in mere seconds?!
Because screw logic.
Kirby: Oh, that makes sense- No, no it doesn't! And will you stop making another parody reference already?!
Yeah, I was getting to that. Anyway, I'll see you all next chapter! Until then, take care and stay awesome! (I don't own those references, obviously! - Disclaimer; check out Gigguk while you're at it if you love anime!)
Kirby: Bye!