Rising Sun

by Seanzilla1988

Takes place in the same universe as Gammatron's HEART dot Batch. Takes place after Megaman Star Force 3 in an altered timeline. A great evil is awakening just as Sonia is ending her career in television. Infected with something strange, Lyra Note must get used to changes in her while also dealing with the strongest beings she and Shooting Star Megaman have ever faced.

19. Painting 19

SZ: Time for another relaxation/gaming chapter~

GT: Yep. This time, we're gonna be putting a focus on what kind of games we'll be using, too.

SZ: Mmm hmm, so we hope ya enjoy the ensuing hilary and such….oh but before we begin. We don't own anything aside from original content.

GT: So let's start the games! …*looks around*...Phew. No sign of…

Kamen Rider Genm: Ahem.

GT: …I knew it was a matter of time before these chapters would attract this guy…

Genm: OF COURSE! BECAUSE I AM A GAMING GOD!*laughs in his usually maniacal…yet hammy way*

GT: …*opens door* EMU! HE'S IN HERE! *grabs SZ and walks out as Genm is still laughing and not paying attention* Bye-bye, stage!

Genm: EMU?! *gets kick in the face by Hyper Muteki Ex-Aid*

---

"Well…this is quite the collection," Boreal noted as he looked over the list Geo had forwarded in an EMail, "I swear, Geo can make friends with even highly dangerous criminals and get them acquitted nowadays…Still, with this amount, maybe it'd be best if I go with a multiplayer set." a beeping went off from his VG Hunter, "Hm? Ah! Where'd all this game data come from?! Another E-Mail? 'This is an advance thanks for those VR pods and having more people enjoy the classics. Kazuma and Axl Hikari. PS: Game on, Mr. Boreal - Axl. PPS: I am so sorry for Axl's humor - Kazuma.'" he sighed, "Geo made friends with a master Hacker…who apparently has a brother no one knew about. …I wonder if they'd be willing to work on exposing holes in AMAKEN's systems."

---

"Yeesh…Wasn't that Kazuma kid the one excited the most on this?" Omega-Xis asked, the small group outside AMAKEN.

"Omega-Xis, he's not late yet," Geo noted, looking at the time.

"I was hoping this wasn't a recurring thing," Issun sighed.

"What thing?"

"Male Hikari have a big issue."

"Aside from the battle junkie bit?" Lyra asked.

"That's an issue?" Omega-Xis snorted.

"...While female Hikari are always early to things…male Hikari are almost always nearly late or late to stuff," Issun went on, ignoring the two.

"Oh~" Sonia and Geo noted.

=So he's a lazy ass= Minor noted.

"M-Minor…" Ellie whispered.

=What? Nothing wrong with being lazy= Minor scoffed =One time I got REAL lazy the day after I took part in this food contest=

=She ate a 5 pound cupcake with her choice of frosting in 30 minutes…and she got a stupid shirt and her face on the wall of fame= Major sighed.

=Worth it!. Even beat the record by three seconds!=

=And you had to sit through another five to let it settle=

=...still worth it=

=Oi…=

"S-sorry for them," Ellie whispered, hitting mute, "Still working things out…"

"Mostly with Minor?"

"...Mostly with Karai, yes," Ellie slumped, "Aoiro was easier, but her sister…"

"I know the feeling all too well," Miyuki sighed, patting her shoulder in assurance.

"...Eh?" Sonia pondered, her wolf ears twitching as she looked to the north.

"What's up?" Geo asked.

"Screaming," Sonia replied before grabbing Geo and moving back a few steps.

"...Uh…" Omega-Xis, who had been beside Geo, began.

"...aaaaaAAAAAAAATEEEEEE!" Axl Rod screamed, skidding on the Wave Road above before grunting as his foot slipped, "Oh no." he yelped as he tumbled off the Wave Road, collided with Omega-Xis and turned into a wheel of blues, reds, and greens before hitting a tree.

"GUH!" both grunted…before the tree fell over onto them, "Ow…" a flash under it went off before vines forced the tree back up and back in the ground, revealing a tall, slender NetNavi with a head sporting a 'helmet' made of a pink flower and thorny vines wrapped around his lower arms.

"...That tree was like this when we got here," Axl Rod's transformation stated before Omega-Xis's head fell out of it and into his hand, "Oh, hi. …Uh…" he whistled before throwing it back up into the tree and walked off, switching back to Axl Rod and then to a still-whistling Kazuma that walked over to them, wearing a black shirt with gold circuit designs and black jeans with orange lines going up the sides, "S-Sorry. Alarms are kinda quiet."

"No, you're just a guy who can sleep through anything," Axl replied, "Well…except for me throwing you in the underground lake. But, hey! You caught us breakfast!"

"Well maybe I'd be up sooner if you'd remind me to set my alarm!"

"I did! You just slept through it…three times!"

'I'm still trying to correlate this to him being a criminal master hacker…' Geo thought, a drop of sweat going down the back of his head.

"Ahem! So, you two, what was that one? Vineman?" Lyra asked.

"No. Plantman," Kazuma replied, "His vines can bypass barriers to bind enemies."

"So long as you don't use them on me, I'm fine with it," Sonia noted.

"You went to Vault 69, didn't you?" Kazuma deadpanned.

"Vault what?" Sonia titled her head, "I meant I encountered a Corrupted Hanagami who tied Sensei and I up. What are you talking about?"

"...Nothing important," Kazuma muttered, "And oh…gotcha."

"Oh right. I need to go show Geo that place. The innocent boy he is needs education!" Issun declared.

"...Absolutely not given Kazuma's reaction," Geo deadpanned.

"Aw come on~!" Issun whined.

"Okay, let's get going," Geo ordered, "And please don't hack AMAKEN, Kazuma."

"He's serious. He will go nuts on you if you mess with this place," Sonia warned.

"I won't, I won't," Kazuma replied, holding his hands up, "I never mess with places of science. Nor any law practice that focuses on the clients and the truth. Family honor."

"Nevah! We respect those places because of our family lineage!" Axl huffed.

"Really?" Geo asked, blinking a few times.

"Well…yeah," Kazuma replied before looking over Geo's shoulder to see Mr. Boreal approach, "That the guy turning old game into VR?"

"Hm?" Geo looked, "Oh! Hey!"

"Geo! Great to see you again!" Aaron beamed, "And these must be your new friends here to help with the games we're going to be showing for the exhibit?"

"H…Hi," Ellie waved a bit.

"Sup?" Kazuma nodded.

"You must be Kazuma. I really owe you a lot for the games you sent! The ones I had originally been working on were all from Ameropa and Netopia!" he beamed, "I'm Aaron Boreal, but people keep calling me 'Mr. Boreal.'"

"No prob," Kazuma chuckled, rubbing the underside of his nose with the back of his finger, "Now…how's about we get our game on?!"

"You did not just quote the English dub of GX…" Axl groaned.

"What? It's a good dub."

"Fourth season, dude. Fourth! Season!"

"Um…What games did he give you?" Ellie asked.

"Oh more than enough! Several multiplayers, quite a few single or two-players that I have the feeling are far more connected to our lost history than one would think, and a few horror ones," Aaron grinned, "And one cartoon one. Bendy and the Ink Machine I believe."

"Um, that's a horror game," Kazuma pointed out.

"Really? But he doesn't look all that scary," Aaron noted.

"Trust us. It's a horror game. One Kazuma keeps freaking out over."

"I do not!"

"Alice Angel."

"...Er…which Alice?"

"The one with the decaying…"

"Okay, moving on!" Kazuma spoke quickly, clapping his hands together and sweating a bit, "Let's get to gaming!"

"..." Aaron chuckled, "Geo, you find the greatest kids to make friends with. You have really come a long way since you were elven."

"Ehheh…" Geo sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

---

"Um…I'll bite…What's this game?" Geo asked, wearing jean coveralls with a red turtleneck sweater, white gloves, and a red hat with an 'M' on the front.

"Mario Party," Kazuma replied, wearing a similar outfit in green with an 'L' on his cap, "A mixture of fun and rage."

"Um…Where are Lyra-chan and the others?" Sonia asked, wearing a pink princess dress with a mushroom-themed crown.

"I have a bad feeling, kyu," Miyuki noted, wearing a teal silk princess dress/gown with a star-themed wand in her hand.

"Same," Ellie whispered, wearing a yellow and orange princess dress/gown with shorter gloves than Sonia's.

"Considering we're on a hovercraft…yeah," Kazuma cringed before a large object dropped behind them…slowly revealing a massive dragon/turtle robot with a clear dome showing the Wizards in it, "...Yep. It's Bowser Party."

"Oh I am very happy with this!" Minor snickered in glee, rubbing her paws together.

"Can we start this game and not let the explanations dragon?" Axl asked, looking down at the vehicle the five were on in amusement.

"..." Omega-Xis gave a deadpanned stare before he dope slapped Axl upside the head.

"Ah! What the hey?!"

"Thank you, Omega-Xis!" Kazuma thanked.

"Pfft…dragon…drag on…" Sonia snickered.

"Don't encourage him," Kazuma deadpanned.

"Oh come on! Maybe next game, we can party together, eh?" Axl grinned, earning the dope slap from Lyra this time as Sonia started laughing.

"START GAME NOW!" Minor laughed.

"We have to wait…" Major sighed.

"...damn it."

"Huh?! Why?" Omega-Xis asked.

"Because the order is them throwing their dices first and moving along the board and then we throw four dice at once to chase 'em," Axl explained, "We catch up to them, they do a very dangerous mini-game. Our goal is to catch them and deplete their health to zero while their goal is to reach the end of the board."

"...wait…so that means they can roll for…" Minor began as she started counting those on the board, "...five times…so gotta wait five turns?! But they'll be too far by…!"

"The game will compensate us by giving us a certain amount of dice so we can catch up," Major explained, earning a surprised look from Axl, "...what? I read the game's rules…unlike a certain someone."

"Oh you suck," Minor grumbled.

"Oh, and one last warning: watch out. This game can and will cause rage at times," Axl warned.

"...noted," Major muttered, cautiously eying Minor and Omega-Xis.

"I'm sure it's not that bad," Sonia noted.

---

Aaron muted the audio and removed his headphones twenty-five minutes into the game, "Yeesh…I am so glad Hope and Kelvin are on their cruise. Omega-Xis must have been teaching Geo some stuff he shouldn't know when in private…" he snickered, "And Sonia is giving it just as good. Pop Idols are really a different person behind their masks."

"Mario Party is a game of both amusement and great anger," Issun noted, "Even Ellie-sama has fallen into anger at points. Must have learned it from her brother."

Aaron reached out and unmuted it.

=YOU MOTHERF…!= Aaron muted once more.

"...So which one next, Issun?" Aaron asked.

"Well they're all good and raging, so they need a good vent," Issun noted, "...Monster Hunter."

"Monster Hunter? Oh those poor monsters," Aaron shook his head.

"Right…poor monsters…" Issun noted.

---

"...Is this…a shrine?" Sonia pondered as she looked around what looked like the ruined remains of a shrine/temple area.

"Yep!" Issun replied, "The Shrine Ruins from Monster Hunter Rise to be precise."

"...That explains why I'm dressed like a maiden," Sonia whispered as she looked at her outfit, consisting of baggy red pants and sleeves with a white robe-like top, geta, and black gloves all while her hair was pulled into a bun tied up with ropes, "...It feels…strange…"

"Strange?" Aaron repeated.

"This place…feels so familiar," she admitted as she raised a foot…and Ammy took a step before continuing into the area.

"...w-was that Sonia just now?" Ellie spoke as she and Miyuki walked into the area, the former blushing a bit due to her current attire being a tribal outfit consisting of creams, oranges, and green with a 'tiara' made with two black horns and a bikini in the three colors.

"It was. She goes by 'Amaterasu' in that form, but everyone calls her 'Ammy' for short, kyu," Miyuki replied, wearing a pair of gray short-shorts, white and black boots, a white tee underneath a red and gold jacket with puffy shoulders, gray gloves, and her hair pulled into two buns in white fabric held in place by red and gold ribbons.

"Oh…I see," Ellie noted as she took a small deep breath to calm herself down, "S-So…what do we need to do?"

"The game's called 'Monster Hunter.' What do you think we do?" a blue wolf-like being with green markings demanded in Omega-Xis's voice as he walked over with a white cat with red markings and a harp on her hip on its back…while also dressed up looking like Lyra Note.

"I think she was referring to WHAT we need to hunt exactly, Omega-Xis," the cat stated in Lyra's voice.

"Technically you can both hunt or capture the target monster," Issun explained, "As for what you need to hunt…since this is the first time you're playing the game, a Great Izuchi should do good for beginners."

"Right…And what are we exactly?" Major's voice came from a white and pink wolf…with a grumbling black and pink wolf cub on her back.

"Well we're not shedding on any couches, so that's good!" Axl's voice grinned from a cat-like being in his armor while standing on the shoulder on a figure in intimidating jackal-like black and white armor with long red blades resembling claws on his arms and feet.

"You are Palicos and Palimutes," the figure explained in Kazuma's voice, slightly echoing in the armor, "They usually help you out in battle, whether it's to heal, give you buffs, and set up traps in case of the Palicos; and can be ridden on top of in the Palimute's case."

"So we're able to kick butt then? Nice," Omega-Xis grinned as he looked over at Geo, wearing an onyx/obsidian-colored armored ninja outfit that left his shoulders exposed along with his right arm and scale-like armor over his left arm and fist, "Ready to go buck wild, kid?"

"..." Geo looked at Ammy, still walking around and just taking it all in.

"...Geo?" Ellie spoke, snapping him out of it.

"H-Huh?" Geo shook his head, "Oh, uh…sorry. Got distracted for a moment."

"W…" Kazuma began before the sound of grass rustling caught their attention, "...shh…careful. It's either an Izuchi, Jagras…..or a really angry Bulfango."

Slowly coming out of the grass was what looked like a pair of furred raptor-like fur was a rich cream and mottled white with jagged beaks and scythe-like tail ends.

"Yep…Izuchi," Kazuma confirmed, "If there are two nearby….then that means a Great Izuchi must be as well."

"What's the difference?" Ellie asked.

"Bigger for one, and they attack more in tandem when together with some Izuchi," Kazuma answered, "Makes sense considering these things are based on the Kamaitachi Yokai."

"...They're doing something," Miyuki whispered, standing ready as the two Izuchi gave off some trilling chirp-like sounds while looking around.

Ammy growled at them, earning their attention. She let out a snarl while her fur stood up on its ends while she glared at them. The two Izuchi raised their tails up as they began to snarl back at her, giving a yelp each time as Ammy barked at them.

A louder roar soon echoed throughout the area, making the group tense as a much larger Izuchi jumped over some weathered shrine walls as it landed between the two Izuchi. It let out a hiss at Ammy who returned with an area-shaking snarl while baring her fangs at the three. A few moments passed…before the three Izuchis began to back off, lowering their tails as they gave off small whimpers.

"...well….that happened…" Major blinked.

"...Oh I get it…" Kazuma realized, earning a few stars, "Considering Ammy's a goddess of the sun, the Izuchi decided to back down, mostly because to them…they feel like they're in the presence of an Elder Dragon."

"Elder Dragon?" Geo repeated.

"Basically the monster equivalent of gods," he explained, "And above that are Black Dragons, which are considered…yeah no. Those are pretty much world enders."

"Yikes," Ellie gulped.

"...Where can we find one?" Omega-Xis asked, his tail wagging.

"...I may need to ask Mr. Boreal for a copy of this image data for the next Solid Wave Dog Show," Geo muttered.

"...So now what are we supposed to fight?!" Minor complained.

"Well there's an Arzuros, but that will probably hightail it out of there when it sees Ammy," Issun muttered, "There's also a….oh…oh dear."

"What?"

"I forgot one of the Fated 4 are in this game."

"...Four most powerful monster species?" Miyuki guessed.

"Yup…just trust me, these ar-wait….where's Frost?"

"KYA!" Frost's voice yelped, "T-too slippery! Can't run right!"

"Frost-chan?!" Miyuki gasped.

"That sounded like it came from over there," Major spoked, her ears perked up as she looked over at a ruined gate nearby, "Somewhere over th-"

"LATER BITCHES!" Minor laughed as she hopped off and ran off.

"Oh that idiot…" Major groaned before Ammy growled.

"Sonia?" Geo pondered before yelping as Ammy grabbed him, tossed him up onto her back, and ran off, "Ah! S-Sonia?!"

"Hey! Come back here!" Omega-Xis barked as he ran after Ammy.

---

"Mmm…." Frost-currently an icy-blue and snowy-white Palamute-whimpered as she was caught inside a soapy bubble.

Near her resting was what seemed to be a very large reptile-like creature that seemed to almost resemble a fox. Its body was long and slender with bits of fur covering its body, the dark-purple fur coating its chest, underbelly, legs and tail. The scales that covered the rest were light in color and seemed more like the scales on a fish. Several fin-like appendages adorned its head, two taking the shape of fox ears, with its face elongated and seemed like a perfect blend of serpent and fox in shape. It let out a hissing growl of sorts as it moved around, far more graceful than it should have been capable of.

'Mmm…I d-didn't mean to wake her…I just..fell on top of her…' Frost thought as the creature began to curl up, 'Miyuki…minna, wh-where are you?'

"Ah! Whoa-whoa-whoa! Heel! Sonia, heel!" Geo's voice yelped, "You are incredibly strong in this form, you know that?!"

Frost looked in time to see Ammy jump over the bubble she was inside of, Geo holding onto her with wide eyes.

"Oh that doesn't look good," Geo cringed.

"H-Help!" Frost called.

"Huh?! Ah! Frost!" Geo yelped as Ammy growled at the monster.

The monster's ears twitched as it began to wake up, noticing Ammy before its ears began to fold back as it started to get up. Its bright colors started blending into a red color as it began to roar out, teh area rumbling a bit. Ammy let out a snarl in return, shaking the area further.

"Oh that is not good," Geo cringed as he patted himself, "Weapon…weapon…do I even have one?"

"Just reach behind your back and think of a weapon from this game!" Axl shouted from above as the others arrived.

"...What weapons are there?!" Geo shouted back.

"Sword and Shield, Long Sword, Greatsword, Dual Blades, Hammer, Hunting Horn, Lance, Gunlance, Light Bowgun, Heavy Bowgun, Bow and Arrows, Switch Axe, Charge Blade, and Insect Glaive!"

"...Insect Glaive?" Geo repeated in disbelief while reaching behind his back and pulled out a glaive covered in layers of insect exoskeletons that went from black to yellow to brown with a red blade on one end that seemed to come from the underbelly of a tiny dragon sculpture, "...Huh." He jumped a bit in surprise when a small flying beetle flew up to him, almost like it was waiting for him to give a command, "...Oh so that's why it's called Insect Glaive…"uh…" he pointed at Ammy, "Help her fight…" he pointed at the monster, "...That?" he looked up at the others, "What is that thing, anyway?"

"...EVIL FOX DEMON!" Omega-Xis freaked, jumping in the air and landing in Axl's arms while looking at the monster.

"Mizutsune," Axl stated as he dropped him, "It's a large Leviathan-class monster that can shoot pressurized streams of water, or trap their targets in bubbles from this soap on its fur."

"...EXTRA EVIL!" Omega-Xis barked, "KILL IT WITH FIRE! Oh wait, it's water…KILL IT WITH LIGHTNING!"

"..." Axl blinked before he tossed Omega-Xis into a floating bubble, causing him to get covered in soap.

"Gah! Why y-woah!" he yelped as he began tripping around.

"You've been bubbleblighted," Axl explained, "Depending on how you use it, it could give you an advantage…or could hinder your movements if you get hit by too many bubbles."

"YOU JERK!" Omega-Xis snapped.

"...Why is he panicking over the Mizutsune?" Axl asked, looking at Major.

"He used to date a fox-based FM-Ian by the name of Vulpecula," Major explained, "Long story short, she traumatized him during sex."

"That wax burned!" Omega-Xis shuddered only to yelp as he slipped and did a backflip in the air right into the bubble Frost was in, "..."

"...h-hi…"

"...Someone kill the demon fox monster thing…" Omega-Xis whimpered.

"Don't worry, we're co-woah!" Geo yelped when he hit the end of his weapon on the ground, causing him to be propelled into the air.

"Insect Glaives are perfect for Aerial combat!" Kazuma shouted, holding onto a large bowgun as he fired a few shots at the Mizutsune from a ledge above them.

The Mizutsune roared at him only to hiss as several slashes appeared on its body, making it turn and roar at Ammy who snarled back at the beast. The Mizutsune began to curl up before it began to spin around, sending out a sweeping barrage of large bubbles before it fired out a large jetstream of water from its mouth at Ammy. Ammy's tail flicked and the jetstream curved before her and went back at the Mizutsune, knocking it over with its own attack.

"It's down! Hurry and attack!" Kazuma shouted, loading ammo into his Bowgun before firing off more arrows.

"We're not really gonna kill it, are we?" Ellie asked in concern.

"I don't know…but chances are we can weaken it enough to put it to sleep, kyu," Miyuki replied as she reached behind her back, pulling out a long katana as she ran out.

"Oh…f-fair," Ellie whispered as she reached her arms behind her back, "Ano…t-tonfa?"

"Tonfa aren't in this g-" Kazuma began before a 'bang' went off, followed by a screaming Ellie as she flew by on a pair of tonfa covered in light-blue scales, "...HUH?!"

=I added a mod that lets you use the Frontier Exclusive Weapons!= Issun explained, =Granted I needed Skye to help with that, but it'd be a crime to let a piece of Monster Hunter history go unused!=

"Kya/Gah!" Geo and Ellie screamed as they crashed into the ground.

"...oh right…Tonfa were good in both ground and aerial combat," Kazuma muttered as he fired another shot at the downed monster.

"Oh~" Geo and Ellei groaned as they laid on the ground, their eyes replaced with swirls as the beetle looked down in confusion.

The Mizutsune growled a bit as it quickly got back up to its feet, swinging its tail as it sent out three more bubbles at Ammy, who quickly jumped out of the way before jumping onto its back, causing the fox-like creature to growl as it tried to get her off.

"...THE HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO DO WITH A STICK?!" Minor shouted as she held up a stick with a stone sickle on it!

=Palico's are more of a support class…but you may also have a subclass on bombardier, healer, or explorer to name a few=

"...bombs…where are the b-" Minor began, patting herself over before she pulled out a huge barrel with a lit fuse, "OHOHOHO YEAH~!"

Ammy barked as she twirled her tail a few times. The Mizutsune roared before a cherry bomb paper bomb lodged itself in its mouth mid-roar, making it tense before the bomb went off. The Mizutsune cried out as it staggered back, part of its ears missing and its face burnt up. It was about to buck once more before one of its claws stomped on Minor's barrel, causing a large explosion to go off as the Mizusunte staggered back…its claws now broken up and parts of the scales on its back missing a few pieces.

Miyuki quickly rushed up to the monster, her katana back in its sheath as she got into a drawing stance. The bubble fox was about to swing its tail right at her, only for the Oina warrior to shoot past it, her weapon above her as she slowly began to resheath it before sheathing it, causing the monster to cry out as part of its tail was cut off and sent flying.

"KABOOM!" Minor cackled as she threw another barrel at the Mizutsune as it roared, causing it to fall into its mouth again.

The Mizutsune paused before growling and glaring at Minor before the barrel bomb went off, making it gag as smoke billowed out of its mouth. It finally managed to kick Ammy off its back before it began to stagger off, coughing up some smoke as it quickly dove into a nearby cave filled with water.

"Well…That was nuts," Kazuma chuckled as he jumped down from his perch.

"That was quite the workout, hia," Miyuki agreed as she walked over, "Misora, daijoubu?"

Ammy shook off the water from her fall before hopping up and, in a burst of fire, Sonia landed, "Hai! Ugh…Just…Whew. That was so weird."

"Well, you are the reincarnated sun goddess," Kazuma noted, "Not surprised you felt that thing encroaching on what you were claiming as your territory."

"Oh…s-soka…" Sonai noted before she quickly noticed Geo and Ellie getting up, "Oh! Geo-kun! Ellie-chan!"

"We're fine…" the two groaned as they held their heads.

"Well that's good," Omega-Xis nodded, "...NOW HOW'S ABOUT G-" he began before Major poked the bubble, causing it to pop and let both him and Frost out, "...not a word…"

"..." Frost pawed the ground before sitting down and pulling herself a little with her front paws, sliding along the floor, "..." she giggled as slid past Miyuki, "Th-This is fun…"

"Just don't do it on carpets. I got whacked with a broom by Hope when I did it," Omega-Xis grumbled.

"I have the photographic and video evidence," Geo chuckled.

"Grr…"

"Hey, Kazy, maybe we can do something else now?" Axl asked, "I know a good game that will probably be a big ol' favorite for our sun goddess here."

"Hm?" Sonia looked over at Axl.

---

"Why do I have so many bandanas tied on me? A-And why are my clothes all torn up?" Geo asked, wearing a ripped navy blue shirt and ripped jeans with various bandanas in shades of red and blue on his upper right arm and one on his forehead.

"Rock Band," Kazuma explained, sporting his normal outfit with a tie-dye open tattered vest with tiger stripes and a tiger-print bandana, "The mode here is meant for multiplayer. Shy Gal's Wizards along with Frosty are judges since it's four to a band."

"...I feel weird," Omega-Xis noted, wearing a tattered leather vest with strips of leather along the bottom with small gold-rimmed sunglasses with magenta-tinted lenses.

"You're probably feeling groovy with the outfit," Axl replied, wearing tattered jeans and an open ripped fur vest with wolf-print bandanas on his upper arms.

"Groovy? …Groovy…groovy…groo…vy…" Omega-Xis muttered.

"A…Are we really playing instruments?" Geo asked.

"Depends," Kazuma replied, "Lucky for you, the game lights up the notes you're supposed to hit."

"Oh…That…That's good," Geo nodded, "So…How does this game work?"

"Here, you battle…" Axl began.

"Sold!" Omega-Xis grinned, holding up a chainsaw.

"...with music."

"Not sold!" Omega-Xis scowled, throwing the chainsaw away.

"Now hold on, hold on," Axl spoke, holding his hands up, "What's wrong with music?"

"Not much, but why's there a game for it?" Omega-Xis groaned.

"People enjoy music and this franchise was a gateway meant to help people become inspired to become musicians," Kazuma explained, "Only reason it went out of style is because of the price of the controllers needed for it. Guitars, Drums, microphones."

"I love it!" Sonia beamed as she walked over, wearing a pink sleeveless top with a white wolf face stretching across her ample bust, a torn white skirt with red detailing, bandages wrapped around her waist, high-heeled boots, and shoulder-reaching gloves with wristbands resembling bundles of magatama while her hair was let loose and looked wild with a lock of white dyed hair covering her right eye.

"?!" Geo's face lit up with a blush, "W-Whoa…"

"What's with the outfits?" Omega-Xis grumbled.

"I kinda like this," Lyra noted, wearing her own pair of sunglasses and a multicolored scarf.

"This is a realm of music and one of the strongest periods of time for musical revolution was the 1980s in the United States of America," Kazuma explained.

"Seriously? That's old," Omega-Xis huffed.

"Hey, it may be old, but music is forever," Axl shrugged, "I grew up with hits like Lou Rawls, Elton John, Puffy AmiYumi, Fall Out Boys, CeeLo Green, BER…"

"Who's BER?" Sonia asked, making the two Hikari boys pause and slowly turn their heads to her, "...Did…Did I say something wrong?"

=You haven't heard of BER?!= Issun gawked.

=I'm honestly at a lost here myself= Aaron admitted.

"No one knows about BER?!" Kazuma exclaimed.

"Why are you talking about a bear, kyu?" Miyuki asked, walking over in an orange tube top and a matching skirt with the hems a bit of a purple color.

"I'm not sure why they are. Is there a bear in here?" Ellie pondered, coming up wearing a pale-gray top with the string holding it up from the front in the shape of a pentagram, and a pair of torn shorts with an image of a moon and two wolves on it.

"We're not talking about a bear! We're talking about BER!" Axl argued.

"Oh for the love of…Who are Ber?!" Omega-Xis asked.

"Only the band that created the most amazing song ever!" Kazuma snapped as he pulled out a cassette tape from his pants, "The Night Begins to Shine!"

"You mean with stars?" Geo asked.

"A-buh-buh-buh!" Axl sushed him with a finger to his lips, "This band has created several love songs to the 1980s with their first ever hit being The Night Begins To Shine. It was forty percent written by Carl Burnett, forty percent by Franklin Enea, and sweet sweet twenty percent by William J. Regan!"

"...So you're freaking out over a band that plays 80's music," Omega-Xis deadpanned before Axl got into his face, "?!"

"They are masterpieces of musical art, you uncultured swine!" Axl declared.

"Right. You girls go pick a song to play while Axl and I introduce these two to BER so that we may play one for you all to hear!" Kazuma declared before grabbing Geo by the back of his shirt and pulled him off into a dressing room with Axl behind him with pulling Omega-Xis in by the roof of his jaw.

"...Well…that happened," Minor muttered from a nearby table with Major and Frost.

"Th-That's a big crowd behind us…" Frost gulped, looking out to the massive audience.

=Well duh~! It's a music game where you're meant to form a globetrotting band gathering fame and fortune!= Issun explained =This one was modded with every single song imaginable along with a neat feature where you turn into the band members on certain songs!=

"...heh. Well good luck with that," Minor snorted before jerking a thumb at her sister, "Sis here is pretty picky when it comes to performances."

"The only other I could consider an equal in music selection is Lyra," Major stated, putting on a pair of wire-rim glasses and pulling out a red buzzer, "So go ahead…try to impress me if you can."

"...hmm…what song to play though…" Sonia pondered, tapping her cheek in thought as her tail swayed.

"There are so many," Ellie awed, looking at the list of available songs.

"Hmm…why not try one of those BER songs, kyu?" Miyuki suggested, earning a look from the two, "It...honestly has my curiosity right now, especially that Night Begins to Shine song."

"...hmm.." Sonia began to ponder at that, looking at the list over Ellie's shoulder and tapped the filter, "B…E…R…"

"Sonia?" Ellie blinked.

"Oh, that's an interesting list of songs," Sonia noted, "Well…Why not that one? The Night Begins To Shine."

"...know what? I'm curious as well, so...I guess we can try it," Ellie nodded, "Miyuki?"

"I'm game," Miyuki nodded as she picked up a guitar.

"I'll play bass. Lyra-chan?"

"I'm good with drums," Lyra shrugged.

"Good! Ellie-chan, guess this means you'll be the main singer," Sonia noted.

"H-Huh?!" Ellie gawked as she was handed the microphone, "U-u-um…"

"You can sing, right?"

"...w…well…" Ellie whispered as she blushed a bit, "O…only in the shower when no one else is around…"

"..." Sonia looked at Lyra and Miyuki, "You two give me a few moments with her. Get everything set up and we'll meet you."

"B-beg pardon?" Ellie blinked before Miyuki and Lyra left, "...g…girls?"

"It's alright, Ellie-chan," Sonia assured, "It's kinda funny. I used to do that, too."

"Huh?"

"Singing in only the shower. I was just so embarrassed to sing in front of others," Sonia explained, "Mama would actually hide her Transer in the bathroom before I'd take a shower just to record me singing. It was so embarrassing!"

"...I…c-can relate," Ellie whispered with a blush, "Only…it was with my sister-in-law Clover…"

Sonia giggled, "Hai. I get it. It's hard to do it outside of a place you feel as a safe location to do so. But that's the thing." she tapped her head, "It's all up here. The 'shower' is in your head, ready to go off the moment you want to sing."

"Eh? R-really?" Ellie blinekd, "That…really works?"

"Of course. How do you think I'm able to hold such wonderful performances without freaking out on stage?" Sonia winked, "You'll do great up there, Ellie-chan. I just know it."

"...I…I don't know…" Ellie whispered, "What if I…"

"Pussy~!" Minor called out, "Too scared to sing and yet you're willing to go out in front of a crowd to wrestle…tch. Man…no wonder you keep getting your butt whooped by me when I used my human disguise."

"Mmm…" Ellie slumped.

"..." Sonia looked over Ellie's shoulder and glared at Minor, all her markings glowing along with the whites of her eyes.

"Gh?! S-Sorry…" Minor apologized, hiding behind a bewildered Major.

"Hmph," Sonia huffed, the glow fading away as she gently coaxed Ellie to look her in the eyes, "Just ignore them. When you get on stage, just sing. Don't pay attention to the audience or anything else. Just 'see' the shower and sing."

"...Just 'see' the shower and sing…" Ellie repeated.

"Exactly," Sonia nodded, offering her hand, "Come on! Let's go knock their socks off!"

"...y-yeah…" Ellie nodded a bit, giving a small smile as she took her hand, "...in fact…mind if I change my outfit? This is what I ended up with…"

"...Minor?"

"Her choice, yeah…" Ellie slumped.

"What? You'd look good if you went with a goth hellhound look!" Minor shouted before noticing the stink eye Major and Frost were giving here, "...what? ...What?!"

Sonia whistled sharply. Minor looked and squeaked, hiding behind Major once more to avoid the glowing reincarnated sun goddess's glare. Ellie looked at Sonia, the glow completely gone before looking between her and Minor a few times. She tilted her head and Sonia shrugged innocently.

"Let's go swap your clothes," Sonia spoke, gesturing to the female dressing room.

"O...okay…"

---

"Okay girls…sorry about that," Kazuma said as he walked back in with a stunned Geo, a grumbling Omega-Xis floating in behind Axl.

"Wow…Just, uh…wow…" Geo blinked a few times, "Seriously, what was that in there?"

"Music has the power to transform you, man," Axl replied, "It builds up!"

"Honestly, haven't felt something like that since Sonia wrote Shooting Star," Geo admitted.

"Oh?"

"She wrote it just for him," Omega-Xis chuckled as Geo blushed.

"Shoulda guessed," Axl grinned.

"Speaking of, may as well see what those girls picked," Kazuma shrugged as he walked to the stage.

"Shouldn't be too bad," Geo added before seeing a screen pop up before him, "...oh…oh wow. What timing…"

"Hmm?" Kazuma blinked before he looked at the screen, "...Yes. So much yes."

"That explains why we couldn't pick that one to perform," Axl noted.

"So…" Omega-Xis began as he floated into an open seat, "I suggest we just stay back and listen to the vibes…"

"At least until it's our turn," Kazuma replied before tapping on something on the screen, "And may as well see who does this better."

"Hmm?" Geo blinked at that.

"Just be ready to sing when it's our turn," Kazuma replied.

"M-Me?"

"Axl and I can't sing for shit," he explained, "So you're our singer."

"M…me?" Geo blinked as he pointed at himself.

"There's no other guy named 'Geo' here," Axl replied.

"Sush. They're starting," Omega-Xis sushed as the girls took to the stage.

"Guess Ellie's going to sing," Geo noted.

"Mmm~" Ellie whined as she shook a bit, sweating nervously as she looked like a deer in the headlights. She also seemed to be wearing something different as she sported a pink top with fuzzy collar, bandages around her waist, and a pink miniskirt with warmers on her legs and lower arms.

"You can do it," Sonia whispered to her.

"Alright…Show us what you've got," Major ordered, bringing her paws together while narrowing her eyes.

Ellie gulped as the other three began to play. The stars above seemed to start to shine a bit brighter than before as the song played. Ellie gulped before closing her eyes.

'Just think you're in the shower. Just think you're in the shower…' Ellie mentally chanted as she took in a breath and started singing, "I saw you dance/From the corner/I caught your name/In a conversation/Playing hard-to-get/But I can understand."

"When I look at you!" all four sang.

"I see the story in your eyes…"

"When we're dancing~!"

"The night begins to shine!"

"Huh…She's got a good voice," Kazuma whispered as the girls kept it up.

"...Oh she totally sings in the shower," Minor whispered as Major kept a focused eye on the girls.

"Talk 'til Dawn/My heart was racing/I took you home/In the driving rain/Had my mind made up/I wanna feel your touch!" Ellie sung on.

"Huh…Oi, you two, this game when songs are sung, they don't just mess with how ya look, do they?" Omega-Xis whispered, seeing the stars turn magenta as they began to shoot across the night skies above.

"Good eye," Axl chuckled softly, "Some songs can also affect how one sees the entire place. Some events in the story mode coincide with how well you play, like workers destroying a building or escaping a crowd of overzealous fans."

"Ahh…"

'Ok…d-doing good so far,' Ellie thought as the girls in her team continued to play their respective instruments, 'This song sure likes repeating its title…but…it does have a good beat…'

"Ohh~" Frost softly awed, looking around at the sky, "P-Pretty…"

"When I look at you!" all four sang once more.

"I see the story in your eyes…" Ellie sang as she began to move along with the music.

"When we're dancing~"

"The night begins to shine!" Ellie declared as she was now move in unison with the moving lights, "The Night begins to shine! The night begins to shine! Night begins to shine~! When we're dancing, the night begins to shine!" the music began to slow down a bit as she quietly whispered into the mike, "The night begins to shine…"

'Wow…she…she's really good,' Sonia admitted as she strummed her guitar gently, 'I have got to get her to do karaoke. Maybe a double date!'

"Had my mind made up…" Ellie whispered, the 'crowd' clapping in unison with the music as the lights all shone down on her, "I wanna feel your touch!"

"When I look at you!"

"I see the story in your eyes…."

"When we're dancing~"

"The night begins to shine!" Ellie sang as her hair began to blow in the 'wind' and her movements, "The night begins to shine~! The Night begins to shine! Night begins to shine~! The night begins to shine! Night begins to shine~! The night begins to shine! The night begins to shine~! When we're dancing, the night begins to shine~!"

"Night begins to shine~" Sonia sang as she joined in.

"The night begins to shine!" both girls sang as the music began to die down slowly, "Night begins to shine…the night begins to shine/oh~"

"Huh…not bad," Omega-Xis noted as the song finished.

"Let's see what our judges think," Kazuma spoke, looking at the tree FM-Ians.

Frost held up a 10, "It-It made everything really p-pretty and sh-shiny…"

Minor held up a 10, "Good music and hot babes!"

Major held up…a 6, "While the music was brilliant, the lyrics were rather lacking in variety."

"...ah man…" Ellie sighed as she slumped.

"Warned ya!" Minor noted.

"It's fine, Ellie-chan…you did pretty good," Sonia assured the whitette as she patted her shoulder.

"It was really good at the end, kyu," Miyuki added.

"The vocalist is why you got a 6 and not a 5. You have quite the voice, Ellie."

"...thanks," Ellie whispered as Miyuki and Sonia led her off the stage.

"...Hey, you actually got us a better score. Great job!" Sonia beamed, "Now it's time for the boys."

"You're excited aren't you?" Miyuki giggled.

"...a little," Sonia admitted as they took their seats.

"She's excited to hear Geo sing again," Lyra giggled.

"I don't think I've ever heard him sing," Ellie spoke as the boys began to take the stage.

"Should be interesting, kyu," Miyuki added.

"He's so good, he pacified an Onryo," Sonia smiled.

"So what are they playing?" Major pondered as she looked at the song, "Another from BER?"

"Is it gonna make everything sh-shiny again?" Frost asked.

"Maybe," Minor shrugged.

"Y-Yay…" Frost softly cheered.

"Ugh…gag me…" Minor muttered under her breath as she looked away from the tinier fox-based FM-Ian, 'Too cute for my tastes.'

With that, the music began to play. Everyone blinked before jumping in surprise as, behind Geo, the trio of Kazuma, Axl, and Omega-Xis began to glow. Kazuma's guitar turned blue before he changed into a humanoid magenta robot in blue jeans, boots, and long flowing orange plasma hair with a digital neon-blue star-shaped guitar with a 'R' buckle on his belt. Omega-Xis's drums turned neon red as he turned into a bulky astronaut in a stylized spacesuit with a buckle sporting an 'B'. Axl smirked as his pick and bass turned neon green as he played, turning into a humanoid blue falcon in a pink button shirt, red vest, blue jeans, black heeled shoes, and a 'E'-shaped buckle.

"What the…?" Miyuki gasped, hers and Sonia's ears and tails poking up in surprise.

"Didn't Kazuma say some songs could make your band become the band members?" Ellie asked, her eyes wide.

'They did something…' Geo thought, but kept focus on the crowd, specifically Sonia, 'Well…Here goes…' he breathed in before he started singing, "It's hard~ to sleep/Because your mind is playing tricks on me!/I'm try~ing to keep/My hope-filled heart from missing a beat!/And I'm trying to let you know~/How your love makes me want to go, go ,go!/And I'm trying to make you see~/How much you mean to me, me, me!"

"?!" Sonia tensed as a blush formed on her face, her tail wagging excitedly as her ears stood straight up, 'G…Geo-kun…'

"Forever~ (Forever~)/Forever~ (Forever~)/Mine! Mine! Mine!" All four sang.

'It kinda sounds like a love ballad,' Ellie thought before mentally giggling, 'Almost like it's meant for Sonia from Geo…'

Sonia said nothing as she focused in on the music, her eyes mostly set on Geo…almost as if the world stopped turning and all but the music and his singing being the only sounds she could hear. Her tail swayed behind her, the tip's gestures making small hearts.

"You can lie~ and cheat/But you can't drag my Heart to dare these dreams!" Geo sang as Sonia winced, recalling the Bermuda Maze once more, "I'm tired~ and hungry." Sonia had to hold back a laugh. Was that really one of the lyrics? "I know your love ain't far out of reach!/And I'm trying to let you know~/Of all the beautiful girls I know, know, know/And I'm drowning in a sea~/Of your love falling down on me, me, me!"

'This song…it feels like something written just for us…' Sonia thought, a loving smile forming on her lips, as they sung the chorus, 'That karaoke double date is sounding a lot more fun.'

Miyuki's nose twitched and she glanced over at Sonia, the wolf girl just focused entirely on Geo with a loving smile and a strong blush on her cheeks, 'Oh dear…You're going to be busy later, Geo-kun…'

"And I'm trying to let you know~/Of all the beautiful girls I know, know, know/And I'm drowning in a sea~/Of your love falling down on me, me, me!"

"Forever~ (Forever~)/Forever~ (Forever~)/Mine! Mine! Mine!" All four sang, "Forever~ (Forever~)/Forever~ (Forever~)/Mine! Mine! Mine! Forever~ (Forever~)/Forever~ (Forever~)/Mine! Mine! Mine!"

"Forever~Mine, mine, mi~ne!" Geo sang the last lyrics as the music ended and the trio behind Geo changed back to normal.

"...10," Frost spoke as she held up the score card.

"...It's a love song…but…d'oh it was too good…" Minor muttered as she held one up as well, "10…"

"...Not as repetitive as the previous song," Major stated as she held up a 6, "Omega-Xis mistimed a few hits, throwing it off for a moment, so you lost a point."

"SHIT!" Omega-Xis cursed.

"It wasn't that bad," Axl argued, "We at least tied with the girls, so it was a draw."

Kazuma chuckled, "That one is quite the harsh judge. Like that one judge from that Gaijin show from the early 2000s. American Idol, I think it was called."

"...well I thought you boys did good," Sonia spoke up as she stood up, "Especially Geo-kun. I had no idea he could sing so well."

"...I...I wasn't that good," Geo muttered, sheepishly rubbing his cheek with his finger as he blushed.

Sonia giggled as she walked over and pecked his cheek with a kiss before whispering into his ear, "You were amazing, Geo-kun. Hope you don't get tired from the rest of the games."

"?!" Geo tensed up at that, a heavy blush forming on his face.

"...Someone's boning tonight," Minor whispered before Major slapped her with a paper fan, "OW! WHAT?!"

"Let us proceed with the next game, please…" Major stated.

---

"...WHY AM I SO BLOCKY?!" Omega-Xis and Minor snapped in unison as…everyone in the group was in fact blocky and cube-like.

"Minecraft," Kazuma replied, "One with several mods to it. Basically used a few of the ones for this one long series called Insanecraft."

"Insanecraft?" Ellie repeated.

"It's called that due to the numerous mods, but also due to the escalating plot when one of them got the Infinity Gauntlet and the Infinity Stones," Kazuma shrugged, "Then it escalated to a tentacle monster from another dimension and I think you'd need to watch to make sense of it all."

"Don't forget the pickle army," Axl snickered.

"Don't you dare do that, Axl," Kazuma warned, "You know I hate pickles!"

"So how do you play?" Sonia asked.

"Well you take pieces of the environment and cr-"

"Already bored," Minor and Omega-Xis deadpanned as they plopped onto the ground.

"...craft things like houses, fences…even make weapons with the silver, gold, and diamonds you find. But with a few mods that I've added, you also get things like this gauntlet," Kazuma added as he held up a gold gauntlet with several gems in it.

"Uh, wait, what's that?" Omega-Xis asked.

"Infinity Gauntlet," Kazuma replied as he pointed at Omega-Xis and Minor and both glowed blue before he swung his arm up…and both screamed as they were sent flying high into the air.

"...Did you put yourself into Creative Mode?" Axl asked.

"...No…No, of course I did…n't," Kazuma denied.

"...There's something…uneasy about that gauntlet," Sonia whispered as she looked at it, "What are those gems in it?"

"Infinity Stones," Kazuma explained, "Time, Soul, Reality, Space, Mind, and Power…by themselves, they are pretty powerful…but when used all together…Let's just say in the wrong hands they can wipe out half of the people in the universe with just the snap of a finger."

"Of course in the mod they're from, they wipe out all the Players aside from the snapper," Axl added as he put on a farmer's hat, "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go get some chickens."

"Chickens?" Frost repeated.

"For a chicken farm. One of the mods lets you breed chickens that produce all kinds of materials," Axl replied before Omega-Xis and Minor screamed as they landed, flashed red, and vanished in puffs of smoke leaving behind maps, "...And be careful of fall damage."

"...Pfft…" Major turned away, holding back a laugh.

"And be careful. There are zombies, witches, slime monsters, skeletons, pig zombies, tiny zombies, tiny pig zombies, skeletons on giant spiders, giant spiders, tiny zombies on chickens…" Kazuma warned.

*THUD*

"...Oops," Kazuma muttered as Miyuki was using her tail to fan the currently fainted Ellie and Frost.

"They come out at night and in dark caves," Axl noted, "So best make shelter. Day lasts twenty minutes as does night."

"Oh and look out for Creepers."

"...Creepers?" Sonia cautiously asked.

"Basically exploding zombies that ruin all of your hard work after PUTTING SO MUCH EFFORT INTO IT!" Kazuma snapped, startling the others, "...Sorry, sorry…First time playing it and lost my first house to one…along with the diamond I dropped by accident. Was gonna put it in a frame and everything."

Omega-Xis and Minor popped back into existence, "BWAH!"

"What was that?!"

"You two fell from too far a height and took enough damage to die," Axl explained before slowly backing away from the two.

"...What?" Omega-Xis asked as Minor sniffed her armpit.

"I took a shower this m-what sounds like hissing?" Minor asked.

The two looked behind them to see a plant-like creature with a pair of black eyes and a black mouth on four legs that was hissing and flashing.

"...What in the…?" Omega-Xis began before it exploded and the two died once more, leaving a rather sizable crater with a few floating blocks littered around it.

"Ah! Wh-What's going on?!" Ellie yelped, hugging an equally startled Frost as they looked around.

"Relax. I learned after my fifth one and you just need to get some cats," Kazuma assured, "Creepers are terrified of those fuzzballs."

"Eep!" everyone looked at Sonia to see her surrounded by wolves all looking up at her and barking happily.

"...Well…haven't even played and you already befriended quite a few wolves," Axl noted, "Probably due to the fact that…well you're part wolf yourself I guess."

"Those are good for keeping skeletons away," Kazuma grinned, "And they teleport to you when you're far away enough from them and if you don't have them sit."

"So how do we get a cat?" Lyra asked.

"With fish," Kazuma replied, pulling out fishing rods, "But…"

"Oh I don't like that tone," Geo grimaced.

"Underwater zombies?" Sonia guessed.

"Some with throwable tridents you can steal," Kazuma admitted, "But you can also fish in a block of water so no worries."

"Oh…well that doesn't sound too bad," Sonia noted.

"Also you need to make sure to tend to your equipment because…" Kazuma began as Geo was chopping at a tree…and his wooden ax broke, "...yeah your starting equipment breaks easily."

"So basically gather materials and build things such as shelter? What is even the end goal?" Geo asked.

"Oh there's beating the Ender Dragon in the End, crafting and beating the Wither, and even slaying the Warden in the Deep," Kazuma replied, "But most people tend to just build amazing structures…or, in Axl's case…a petting zoo."

"Petting zoo?" Frost asked.

"Oh yeah. There are all sorts of cute animals in this game!" Axl beamed as he pulled out two steaks and tossed them to two wolves…before a baby wolf appeared between the two, "See?"

"Aw~" Sonia, Miyuki, Frost, Lyra, and Ellie cooed.

"It's mostly a relaxing game, so you can go at it at your own pace," Kazuma smiled, "Good in case you want to wind down after a long day of Virus Busting and such."

"You said mods…aside from that gauntlet and, apparently, those chickens Axl wants to breed, what others are there?" Geo asked.

"Well…there's a mod that lets you go into space and…" Kazuma began.

"What do I need to do that?!" Geo asked, instantly before Kazuma.

"Whoa nelly!" Kazuma yelped as Sonia started laughing.

"Oh you're in for now!" Sonia laughed, "Geo-kun loves space a whole lot!"

"Alright, alright! I'll tell, I'll tell! Jeeze! Personal space, man!" Kazuma yelped as Omega-Xis and Minor popped back into existence.

"I am not gonna like this…" Omega-Xis grumbled.

"Aw no worries, you two," Kazuma chuckled before giving both of them a stone sword, "Here. Use these to kill monsters." he then handed them iron picaxes, "And use these to go into the ground here and find diamonds to make better weapons and armor. Just don't dig straight down."

"That's Rule Number 1 of surviving Minecraft!" Axl added.

"Um…C-Can I help with making a petting zoo?" Frost asked.

"Sure thing, my fluffy friend!" Axl beamed, patting her head, "But…we should probably focus on making a basic shelter first before the sun sets."

"Oh~" Frost nodded a bit as she followed him.

"Tch. I do what I want!" Omega-Xis huffed as he started digging straight down.

"We are rebels!" Minor declared as she followed suit.

"Honestly…" Major sighed as she shook her head.

"...What happens when you dig straight down?" Sonia asked.

"Well you could fall into a cave and die, fall into a lake of lava and die, or end up in the abandoned underground city overrun with a gunk that hides the Warden that will one-shot you if you're not in the right kind of armor," Kazuma explained, "Or worst case…you end up running into Enderman."

"Enderman?" Geo repeated, looking up from the popup screen he was reading about the space mod.

"Tall, slender monster made of shadows with purple eyes. Don't look at its face and it won't go into a berserk rage," Kazuma explained, catching Ellie as she nearly fainted, "Why don't you go with Axl and Frost to make that petting zoo? Oh, and if you find a village, don't kill the villagers there. They're good for trades and are pretty much harmless…and funny, too. Added an Element Animation mod to it for extra personality to them."

"...n….noted," Ellie whispered as she began to follow after Frost and Axl.

"...Villagers?" Geo and Sonia repeated.

"Nicest folks in Minecraft. You can trade things with them for other stuff, especially emeralds," Kazuma explained before a screaming Omega-Xis and Minor popped into existence.

"What the hell was that?! What kinda big hulking monster was that?!" Omega-Xis exclaimed.

"Oh god! It had souls in its chest!" Minor shuddered.

"...They saw the Warden," Kazuma snickered.

"He warned you not to dig straight down," Major noted as she floated by them.

"It's true. You really should listen to Kazuma and Axl about this game," Geo agreed.

"Aw shaddup, ya whipped boy," Minor huffed, "Go snuggle with your wolfy gal."

"..." Sonia looked at her wolves and pointed at Minor, "Sic her."

"Wait, wha-Oh shit!" Minor yelped as the wolves pounced on her with snarls of anger.

"Well…I'm liking this," Sonia smiled, carrying the wolf puppy, "Ne, Geo-kun, let's have a lot of fun, ne?"

"Right," Geo nodded.

---

=Um…Guys? You are aware you've been playing for three hours now, right?= Aaron asked.

"Wait, what?" Geo blinked.

"Wow," Sonia gawked, "We really lost track of time, huh?"

"It happens," Kazuma noted as he landed near the two.

"I think I'm going to get a copy for the VG Hunter when I'm bored," Geo admitted, "It's honestly been fun."

"I'll say," Sonia agreed as she looked at the large town they had built.

"We have been at it for a while, kyu," Miyuki admitted as she walked over…after having made a few ice sculptures set up in the center of town, "Also surprised the ice hasn't melted by now…"

"That's the power of modding," Kazuma nodded.

"Do we have to go?" Frost whined…a baby bunny on her head.

"Sorry, Frost, looks like we gotta," Axl sighed.

"Aw~" Frost whined before setting the bunny down and letting it hop off, "B-Bye-bye, bunny…"

=Hey, where are the Baka-Inu and the other Baka-Inu?= Issun asked.

=Checking. Huh…They're in this weird dark place with some sorta gunk, covering it all with…TNT?=

"...I was wondering where all that sand went…" Kazuma muttered as Geo looked at his VG Hunter.

"Omega-Xis…" Geo began.

"There it is!" Minor shouted.

"DIE, MONSTER!" Omega-Xis roared as something was heard being pushed.

A few moments passed. Multiple explosions erupted from the speakers on the VG Hunter as the ground shook. Several moments passed before both stopped.

"Did we get it?" Minor asked.

"Hold on, I'm getting the pickax out," Omega-Xis replied before several moments passed and both screamed before appearing by them a moment later, "Dammit! That thing can't be stopped!"

"Ugh! One-shotted us again!" Minor complained, "Rrrr! We'll get you, you Warden!"

"Not now. Moving on to the next game," Kazuma noted.

"Aw come on!" both snapped.

"We almost got it that time!" Omega-Xis complained.

"...Wait…Have you two been spending the last three hours just trying to kill this Warden thing?" Major asked.

"We thought if we made one of those Wither things, it'd win! But nope! It got messed up by that Warden thing!" Minor complained.

"And the less we say about the Ender Dragon we tried to hatch the better," Omega-Xis added.

"...Maybe it's best we change games then," Geo muttered.

"Don't you dare!" both barked, a twitch in their left eyes.

=Yep. Next game away!= Issun agreed.

---

"...What….game is this?" Ellie asked, the group now in what looked like a large, Japanese-style city with various small humanoid cats walking around.

=This is the Nyakuza Metro stage from…= Issun paused before cringing =Ooh….A Hat In Time…=

"..." Sonia's ears drooped as she adopted a sad frown.

"Kyu?" Miyuki tilted her head.

"Bad moment at the end of when we last played this game," Geo explained.

=Ah! S-Sorry, Sonia…= Aaron apologized.

"..." Kazuma patted the red head's head, "I've played this game several times. That kid you're worried about? She'll be okay at the end."

"Really?" Sonia asked.

"Of course," Kazuma replied, "Just gotta smack some sense into her."

"Ahh…oh thank kami," Sonia sighed in relief at that, "I was scared it'd be something worse, right Lyra?" she asked..only to get silence in return, "...Lyra-chan?" she blinked as she turned…and saw no sign of her partner, "..."

"Oh I'm already not liking this," Geo admitted as he looked around.

"Oh right," Kazuma recalled, "The yakuza…or Nyakuza as they're called here…originally steal an hourglass you have to get through favors." he looked around and frowned, not seeing Axl, "Those mangy felines swiped our partners."

"Eh?!" Miyuki gasped, "Then Frost-chan…"

"Was snatched by them, yup.""

"So how do we get them back?" Sonia asked.

"Easy enough," Kazuma replied, "We've gotta go speak to the boss and agree to a few 'favors' she'll need us to do. Though…" he looked over at Sonia, "You are gonna have to keep your ears and tail off."

"Eh?" Sonia tilted her head.

"Relax. We'll get you something so you can feel comfy," Kazuma replied as he looked at a nearby stall.

"Why do I have to do that?" Sonia pouted.

"Sonia, we're in a city filled with cats. You turn into a wolf," Geo pointed out, "...Though come to think of it, you do like keeping your ears and tail out."

"I feel comfy with them out," Sonia replied.

"Alright. Shopping!" Kazuma called.

"Shopping?!" the girls gasped as Geo cringed.

---

"Mmm…" Sonia frowned as she felt the prop black cat ears on her head, wearing a pink and lime green jacket with a cat paw on the back, a magenta tube top, and jean short-shorts with magenta stockings, "These aren't as good as my wolf ears…but it's for finding Lyra-chan."

"Just be careful," Miyuki advised as she and the girls stayed close to one another, wearing similar outfits to Sonia in different colors, "Even if they are cats, the Yakuza are not people you want to underestimate, kyu…"

"N…Noted," Ellie whispered as she stayed close to the two, noting a few cats they had passed were sporting a baseball bat, "S…so what do we need to do?"

"There should be an Hourglass somewhere here," Sonia replied as the girls, Geo and Kazuma walked into what looked like a subway, "Meaning it might be at the end of this train line…should be simple en-"

"Meow!" a large meow went off as a large cat dragging a train ran by.

"..." Sonia blinked a few times.

"Uh…Sonia?" Geo asked as she started to growl.

"ARF!" Ammy barked as she ran after the train.

"Oh not again!" Geo yelped as he ran after her.

"Again?!" Miyuki repeated in disbelief, "Geo-kun, what do you mean 'again,' kyu?!"

"She did this back at the garden!" Geo shouted, "Sonia, stop! That cat's so much bigger than you!"

"...while those two are busy going after Hourglass Shards, we can deal with something else to make things quicker," Kazuma stated to Miyuki and Ellie as he pulled out a list, "Hmm…we can either ride on top of trains that leads us to an Hourglass, collect power cells to reactivate a generator holding one, find a restaurant in a very small and hard to find spot, or….find Goro Nyajima…hoo boy…"

"...That bad?" Miyuki asked, noting the slight cringe in his voice.

"Secret boss meant to be a reference to Goro Majima from the Yakuza games…and is just as, if not more so, crazy."

"The what games?" Ellie asked.

"...Right. Don't be surprised when you have a package delivered to your houses," Kazuma warned.

"Okay…" both females tilted their heads.

"...Let's find the restaurant then, ok?" Miyuki offered.

"Good idea," Kazuma nodded as the trio walked off.

---

"Mmm…" a feline in Minor's colors growled as she and a few others were stuck in cages, "This sucks…"

"I'll say," a blue and green cat huffed in Omega-Xis's voice.

"This should not have happened," a calico cat in Axl's armor muttered, "They're supposed to steal the hourglass, not us. Did someone change the programming?"

"I don't know…but this worries me," A cat in Lyra's colors whispered.

"Mmmm…" a cat in Frost's colors whimpered, hugging a cat in Major's colors.

"...We need to get her out of here," Major advised, petting Frost's head, "...Omega-Xis."

"Vulpecula kept her locked in a cage for most of the time from what she's told Miyuki," Omega-Xis growled.

"...mmm…" Major frowned at that, "Disgusting…"

"I kept telling folks she was off her rocker," Minor huffed.

"Took me taking hot wax to figure that out, " Omega-Xis grumbled.

"Ooh…." Minor winced at that, "...yeah that'll do it…"

"Like your any better?" Major deadpanned.

"Hey…I like to fuck around when I was in my human disguise…but I know my fuckign limits," Minor huffed.

"Hey! Shaddap from the prisoners!" The group looked down at a pair of black cats in neon yellow masks.

"You better be lucky da boss keeps you alive," the second cat added, "So long as yer friends gets dose hourglasses for her of course."

"Oh sure~" Axl waved them off.

"...She's not gonna release us, is she?" Omega-Xis asked.

"Nope. They're too valuable to her for reigning over this place."

"...Tch. Yer pretty smart," one cat noted, looking at the nonchalant Axl.

"Well, it's simple: your boss is gonna be maimed badly," Axl replied.

"And why is dat?" The other asked.

"You stole from a Kami and have more than likely angered her."

"...bed pardon?"

"Yeah. You done goofed," Axl shrugged.

"Oh you guys are gonna end up like me or worse," Omega-Xis chuckled.

"Huh?!"

Omega-Xis grinned before pulling his head off, "Boo!"

"AHH!" the cats freaked as they ran off, "YOKAI!"

"...was that really necessary?" Lyra deadpanned to Omega-Xis.

"It was a lot of necessary," Omega-Xis chuckled as he put his head back on.

"Nice!" Minor cackled.

"The way they became worried…what makes a Kami that intimidating?" Major asked.

"Oh, that's because Kami can cause massive disasters if you anger them. Earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, tornadoes. You name the natural disaster and they'll do it tenfold," Axl explained, "You diss them and ooh…you are gonna need a cartographer because you'll need to redo the maps!"

"...so…we basically got off lucky not facing one of those Elder Dragon things back in Monster Hunter," Minor noted

"Oh totally," Axl nodded, "Kazy and I get so mad at those things because of how many times we get maimed."

"...Are you serious about that landscape thing? That Sonia can cause that?" Lyra asked.

"Eh, eventually. At the moment, though…probably just level small cities," Axl shrugged, "But I do know one thing at this moment."

"What's that?" Omega-Xis asked.

"Sonia will not be the cat's meow for these Nyakuza. They're gonna feel all caged up with her on the prowl. Probably should make a feline for safety, eh?"

"I hate you," Omega-Xis deadpanned as Axl gave a cheeky grin.

---

"...hoo boy," Geo whispered, he and Sonia looking out into a small room with various large cats pulling trains going around the area, a few glowing pieces of glass floating around the area.

"Mmm…" Sonia mumbled, hopping a little in place as she looked at all the large felines.

"...No barbecue for a month if you chase them again," Geo warned, "And no sleeping in the same bed for two."

"Ah mou…" Sonia whined, her fake cat ears drooping, "Fine…what do we need to do…"

"Hmm…" Geo pondered for a moment as he focused on one of the floating glass shards, "...Maybe we need to collect those shards in order to get an Hourglass."

"Oh, a puzzle quest?" Sonia realized.

"Yeah."

"Aw great…" Sonia groaned, "BurgerQuest made me hate these kinds…mainly for the fact that's all there is to it!"

"Well there's two fo us to make this easier," Geo pointed out, "We'll split up and collect two shards each, then…" he pointed at a floating shards in the back of the room just as a Large Cat ran by, "We meet up and pick that last shard up."

"R-Right," Sonia nodded.

"And no chasing the giant cats," Geo reminded as he hopped onto one of the trains as it went by, "Good luck!"

"You, too!" Sonia waved, waiting for a train to pass as she jumped down into the center area, "Hmm…now where could…" she paused when she saw a shard floating in front of a food stand, "Oh! That was easy enough," she beamed as she walked over to pick it up…only for a cat to run by and grab it, "Wh-?! Hey!"

"Thanks, toots!" he laughed as another ran by holding another shard piece.

"...Well, he said I couldn't chase the giant cats…" Sonia muttered before pulling her brush out, "Or, maybe…" the world turned sepia to her as everything froze, "And now…" she put the brush to the first cat and made a line that curved around to go to the other cat, "Let's see what happens." with that, she put her brush away and the world turned to normal…before the first cat spun around and ran right into the second, knocking both of them over and sending the shards into the air and right into her hand, "Thank you~!"

"Nice thinking," Geo spoke, coming out of an air vent as he held another pair of shards, "There was one in there and another right where we were standing."

"Really?" Sonia blinked.

"Yeah…Guess we didn't notice," Geo shrugged, "Still...this was easy enough. Just gotta get that last shard.." he looked up above them, seeing another large cat running by before the last shard, "...all it takes is timing is all."

"Like you said, shouldn't be too hard," Sonia nodded before holding her chin in thought, "Though how can we get up there…unless…" she looked at a large cat pulling a train circling around the room on a track, "Huh…One of those kono-plant thingies are on it."

"Huh?" Geo looked at the train, blinking a few times on seeing the peach-like hovering plant floating above the train, "Even in games?"

"You think it's because of me?" Sonia asked, tilting her head.

"Not sure," Geo replied, "But it does help us get there easier."

"Hai," Sonia nodded as she held her brush up, "Shall we?"

"No time like the present," Geo nodded as Sonia began to draw on the air leading towards the floating peach, causing vines to ensnare both of them before they were flung right towards it, "Woah now!"

"Ah!" Sonia yelped as both landed on the train and tumbled on it a bit.

"Mmmph?!" Geo muffled as the tumbling stopped with his face smothered inside of her tube top.

"Ahn~" Sonia gasped out as Geo's struggles to get out of her top rubbed his head in her breasts until he managed to pull out.

"S-Sorry!" Geo apologized, his face bright pink.

"Y-You're gonna…deal with it…later…" Sonia panted, her cheeks pink.

"...n…noted," Geo whispered as the two quickly hopped off the train once it got near their stop, the brunette grabbing the floating glass shard, "And last one…"

"Question is...how do we put them back toge…" Sonia began before the five shards they collected began to float up, moving towards one another before within a flash of light, a floating Hourglass took their place, "...oh…that simple."

"Yeah," Geo nodded in agreement as he took the Hourglass, "Now…let's go and meet back w-"

"Nyeheheh…" a low chuckle went off, making the two turn to see a pair of cats approaching them with one sporting a baseball bat, "You know da drill…hand it over so da boss can give ya yer reward."

"Yeah. Give it over, youse two," the other added before whispering to the taller one, "We're sure neither of them is the angry Kami they's were spoutin' 'bout?"

"Dat was juest smoke 'n mirrors," the first huffed.

"Who are these two?" Sonia asked.

"I think they work for whoever took our friends," Geo replied.

"..." Sonia frowned before turning to the two, "Okay, two chances for you two. Tell me where our friends our."

"Oh? Youse ain't gonna be followin' da orders?" the first asked, "Youse don't care 'bout 'em?"

"No…" Sonia replied sweetly before taking her brush out and made a line on a train before it passed by…and was sliced down the middle, sending the top half flying, "I'll do that to you two if you don't comply. You have one chance to comply."

"?!" the two cats tensed with the shorter one dropping his bat.

"Watashi wa Amaterasu no Mikoto," Sonia greeted sweetly before glaring at them, her marks glowing, "Now give me my friends back."

"...b-better yet, how's about we leads ya to 'em?" the first cat nervously offered, "J…just don't smite us, Kami-sama…"

"Don't level our homes, please!" the other pleaded as Geo slowly looked at Sonia with wide eyes.

'Okay…Even if that little mustache girl isn't here, she really doesn't want to be in this game much longer…' Geo thought.

---

"...Ok. So maybe I should've mentioned the tunnel with multiple Cat trains going down it," Kazuma muttered as he, Miyuki, and Ellie were standing outside of a jewelry store.

"Mmm..." Miyuki frowned a bit at him...with Ellie shaking like a leaf as she held onto her.

"I really am sorry," Kazuma apologized, bowing to the two.

"...Let's get this stupid hourlgass to their boss so they tell us where our partners are, kyu," Miyuki muttered as she held up an Hourglass.

"Th-The drinks were nice at the place…" Ellie noted.

"Yeah. That…That was interesting," Kazuma agreed, 'Guess this system adds extra bits to it? Huh…Gotta see what it does to a game like Breath of the Wild or Splatoon…'' he thought, the trio going through the doors of the store before…

"Are you trying to play a trick on me?" a voice demanded in a serious tone, making the trio look to see a much taller female cat in an open kimono holding onto a smaller one, a glare on her face with a noticeable white scar over one of her eyes

"No…I'm not, I swear!" the smaller cat panicked, sweating, "I'd never lay a hand on your jewelry!"

"Then why did I find your cat hair on it?" the taller cat questioned as she held up a small piece of fur.

"...ahh…" the smaller cat began to whimper before he was tossed into a corner of the room, exploding into floating hearts.

"?!" Ellie tensed at that as she further hid behind Miyuki.

"...Don't let that…." the taller cat began, turning her head towards them as her eyes were slit, "...be you..."

"...noted, ma'am," Kazuma whispered, Miyuki handing him the Hourglass as he approached her, "H…here…"

"Ahh…thank you," the taller cat noted as she took it from him, "Well done..my organization can always use people like you…" she stated, pulling out a wad of money form her coat pocket before handing it to him, "Just know there's a place for you three here. Provided you don't…disappoint me…"

'And now I personally know firsthand what it feels like to encounter a Yakuza mob boss outside of the Yakuza games…' Kazuma thought, keeping a neutral expression on his face as he bowed, "Arigatou."

"Still..." the taller cat began as she went back to behind the counter, "My collection isn't quite complete…so…" she paused, resting her elbows on the counter as she crossed her fingers together, "Get back to it…and be thorough. Leave no stone unturned, you hear?"

"...O-of course m-" ellie began before the doors were opened, "Ahh!"

"L-lady Empress, we're back!" two cats exclaimed as Geo and Sonia walked in, "A-another Hourglass for ya."

"Oh what perfect timing…" the now named Empress smiled a bit as Sonia began to approach her, "You and your friends are already proving to be truly efficient.." she mused as she she pulled out another wad of money, "Keep it up…and you might get into my inner circle of people I trust…" she reached out towards the Hourglass and tried to pull it back…only for Sonia to not let go, "...is there a problem?"

"Our friends…" Sonia began as her markings glowed, "Where are they?"

"...you're that Kami my men have been talking about, aren't you?"

"...Oh what did they do?" Kazuma groaned quietly as he looked at Geo.

"Demanded we hand them the Hourlgass in a threatening manner," Geo whispered as he walked over to him, "Add in the fact that Sonia really doesn't like being in this game because of the mustache girl…and our wave partners being kidnapped…Yeah, I'm starting to regret not letting her tire herself chasing the cat trains."

"...leave," Empress ordered the two smaller cats, making them yelp as they rushed out, "Who do you think you are?"

"Amaterasu no Mikoto," Sonia replied, baring her fangs in a snarl.

"...Hmm….So an actual Kami decided to grace my city," Empress noted, completely unphased by the snarl, "Noted…but listen…Kami or not, you won't find me bowing to you anytime soon…" she frowned as she bared her own fangs, "I control everything that goes on in this city…the businesses, the train system..even the power grid are under my control…your little friends became my property the moment you stepped into my city, so if I were you…" she paused as she leaned forward to glare Sonia in the eyes, "I would suggest you do what I say…or else your friends my end up in a small…accident."

"..."

"...Oh she's dead," Geo gulped as he noticed a few plants in the room.

Sonia pulled out her brush. Before the cat could blink, her body was ensnared with multiple vines that erupted from the potted plants in the business while she was pinned to the floor by a growling Ammy, her markings glowing as her eyes glared into the feline's.

"...Yup…She's dead," Kazuma deadpanned before Miyuki poked his shoulder, making him turn to see her pointing to a door in the corner behind the counter, "Yeah, that's likely where they are."

"OH FOR THE LOVE OF KING CEPHEUS, STOP THE CAT JOKES!" Minor screamed.

"...Yup. That's them," Geo sighed as he and the others rushed over, kicking the door open to see their partners behind the cages.

"FINALLY! WHAT KEPT YOU!?" Omega-Xis snapped, "Axl's been making cat puns non-stop!"

"Well, I was just thinking these were purr-fectly good puns, thank you," Axl huffed.

"Ugh…" Kazuma groaned, "As much as I'd like to keep ya in there right now, mad Kami."

"Wait…really?" Axl asked, turning pale, "I was just joking with those guys earlier."

"Sonia really doesn't wanna be in this game any longer," Geo explained.

"So let's get out of here before something happens," Miyuki added as she grabbed a nearby key and opened the cages.

"FREEDOM~!" Minor and Omega-Xis screamed as they shot out.

"MIYUKI~!" Frost sobbed as she tackled her partner into a hug.

"Oh…There, there," Miyuki comforted, returning the hug and petting the fox's head.

"Yeah, she's gonna be like that for a while," Major warned.

"Oh dear…" Ellie whispered in concern, "...th-then let's hurry out bef-"

Ammy's yelp caught their attention as she was tossed into Geo, making him fall onto the ground. The group quickly looked at the doorway…and saw a livid Empress glaring at them with her coat now sporting claw marks and torn up vines. Her non-scarred eye twitched a bit…before she pressed a button behind the counter.

"Attention…everyone…capture them. Dead…or alive…" she ordered as her voice echoed throughout the city, "The reward…one million…Ten million if you bring me the Kami's head."

Ammy growled as Geo got up with her.

"Is she trying to lose her city to an angry Kami's rampage?" Axl whispered, gobsmacked, "...No, no…wait. Video game villain…yeah, they're that dumb."

"...?!" Miyuki tensed as the ground began to rumble a bit, "...We need to go…now."

"Sonia, let's go," Geo whispered to the growling wolf.

Ammy huffed before looking at the glaring female cat. Her tail twitched and the cat suddenly ran straight into a wall. Chuffs came out of Ammy's mouth as they ran out the door with Ammy wagging her tail. The cat grunted as she pulled herself off the wall before hissing made her spin around, seeing a large paper cherry bomb a few inches away from her with the fuse about to reach the end.

"...Clever mutt…" the cat noted calmly before, as the group got out of the store, the windows and door were blown up by the explosion.

"Oh geez!" Ellie yelped as they kept running, only to skid to a halt as a giant wall of cats blocked their path, "Ahh!"

"That's one big hairball," Axl gulped, jumping onto Kazuma's shoulder.

"Technically this isn't supposed to happen until much later," Kazuma added, "Basically...we need to keep running until we find an elevator to get out of here…" he quickly ducked when a missile made of diamonds flew over them, making them turn to see a growling Empress in tattered robes standing in the wrecked entrance of the now ruined jewelry store…wielding a large golden rocket launcher, "With her trying to kill us with diamond rockets."

"Run, people, run!" Omega-Xis shouted, hopping onto Ammy's back with Lyra.

They quickly ran down an opened path between the group of cats, barely avoiding another missile as Empress reloaded another into her weapon.

"Do not let them escape…especially the mutt," she ordered as her eyes narrowed, "She's…mine…"

"This game's insane!" Minor shouted as they quickly ran into a metro station, barely avoiding some of the cats that were leaping at them..

"Incoming train!" Kazuma warned.

Ammy growled before letting out a loud snarl that shook the area. The giant cat skidded to a halt before backing away while sweating heavily. Ammy huffed as she ran after it, barking to make it go quicker in its backing. Once it got out of the tunnel, the group quickly ran around it. The giant cat sighed in relief as it proceeded back into the tunnel…before rowling as the wave of cats engulfed it and the train it was pulling.

"I am never watching anything with a cat in it for the rest of my life!" Minor declared.

"Not even Oliver and Company or The Aristocats?" Axl asked.

"What the hell is that?!"

"...Right. Anaheim, California has the Disney Bunker," Axl noted, "We need to educate these fools on good stuff."

"Later!" Kazuma barked, "And will you please A-Trans already?! Preferably something with speed?"

"I'm thinking, I'm thinking!" Axl replied, his emblem flickering, "Mmm…" he looked down at the train tracks they were running along, "Oh! A-Trans! Chargeman!"

A flash of light went off and the group was now atop a fast moving train, the engine actually a red and burgundy train NetNavi with pincer hands.

"WHOO-WHOO! Here comes the Boscono Panic Express!" A-Chargeman bellowed, blowing his horn loudy.

"...You mean we could've used our skills in games?!" Omega-Xis snapped.

"Only if ya wanna be bored, yeah," Kazuma huffed.

"..." Geo gestured to Ammy in his lap as she changed back to Sonia.

"...that's different?" A-Chargeman tried to argue.

"We're almost to the elevator," Kazuma spoke, choosing to ignore the AM-Ian as he patted himself, "Aw crud. Dropped my SynchroChip before we got in those things."

"...Geo, you and the girls have your VG Hunters on you?" Omega-Xis asked.

"Yep," Geo replied.

"Couldn't play without them," Sonia added.

"Any chance you can cast Deluge?" Kazuma asked.

"Deluge?" Sonia repeated.

=Oh! That's a technique derived from Waterspout!= Issun beamed.

"Why are you asking that?" Ellie asked.

"Have you seen any water in this place?" Kazuma gestured.

"..." Geo facepalmed, "Seriously?"

"Best option we have."

"...how do I use it?" Sonia asked as she brought her brush out.

"I have no clue," Kazuma replied, "None of the bunkers has any of the images of the brush techniques, only descriptions."

Sonia grimaced as she looked out at the mass of cats coming at the temporarily transformed NetNavi-Wizard they were on. As they rode, Sonia spotted a sign for a bathhouse. She blinked a few times as she looked at the image of three wavy lines making steam for the bath. Her brush glowed as the world turned sepia. She raised her brush up and mimicked the three lines. The brush stopped glowing and the world resumed color…before a thunderclap startled Frost and Ellie before a massive downpour came forth.

"?! REOW!" one of the cats hissed as they began to scatter, "RAIN!?"

"NYO! NYO-NYO-NYO!"

"NYOT THE RAIN~!"

Everyone blinked as they watched the cats flee for shelter before Kazuma looked at Sonia, "Yeah…That? That was Deluge."

"Really effective…" Miyuki whispered.

"Yeah….effective," Minor deadpanned…her and Omega-Xis fur drenched from the rain while Major held an umbrella over herself, Lyra, and Frost.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we thank you for riding Chargeman Railway. We are now approaching our stop. Please make your way for the nearest elevator. Thank you and have a good day," A-Chargeman informed as he came to a stop.

"Th…thanks," Ellie whispered as she and the others got off, letting A-Chargeman change back into Axl.

"We can relax once we're out of here," Axl informed.

"Agreed, so let's move!" Geo shouted as the group bolted for the elevator...only to skid to a halt as it opened and revealed Empress, "?!"

"Well well well…look what the cat dragged in," Empress noted in a calm manner, "Step inside…won't you?"

"...you…" Sonia began before Miyuki put a hand on her shoulder, making her look to see a small group of cats in rain ponchos blocking the way behind them, "...fine…"

"Hmm…" Empress smirked as the group walked into the elevator, letting the doors closed as it began to move, "Clever on making it rain, little girl…but did you really think you could get out safely? Honestly…I thought I could trust you and your friends. It's so rare I make a bad investment."

"You're a bad investment," Minor muttered before Major slapped her, "Ow~ What?"

"You know…not only are you so greedy you'd steal from me…you have the arrogance in attacking me," Empress continued as she eyed Sonia, "So bold…for someone so young looking…all my fault, really. I should have a better eye for who I elevate. Shame…you could've been someone important here one day…"

"...You intend on taking us out here, aren't you?" Sonia asked in a neutral tone.

"You catch on quick…" Empress stated with narrowed eyes, "You should've realized…even a god is not safe in my c-" she began as the elevator doors opened, letting a pair of cats in cop uniforms walk in, "?! O-officers…a pleasure…"

"?" the group-minus Kazuma and Axl- blinked, noticing the sudden tone shift Empress took the moment the Cat Cops appeared.

"How…convenient…" Empress whispered, rapidly pressing one of the elevator buttons with a clenched yet nervous smile on her face, "I was just about to get out…" she quickly leaned over to Sonia before whispering to her, "Trust me...they're harder to get rid of than you are…and heaven forbid I deal with the IRS…"

"...eh?" Sonia blinked as the elevator doors opened, letting Empress quickly bolt out of there.

"I'll get you next time, you damn mutt!"

"...uh…." Geo began.

"This happened in the game as well," Kazuma whispered to him.

"...well that was a cop out…" Omega-Xis muttered, "I figured we would've had to fight her in this elevator or something…"

"...You did not just say that," Major frowned as Axl and Sonia started to snicker.

"What?" Omega-Xis asked as Kazuma groaned.

"Not another punster…" he muttered.

"...OH DAMN IT!" Omega-Xis snapped once he realized what he said, "I burgled right into that one-shit!"

"Pfft…" Axl began to hit the side of the elevator with a fist as Sonia buried her face into Geo's shoulder, letting out muffled laughs.

"STOP IT!" Omega-Xis snapped as the elevator stopped, letting one of the cat cops step out as the other turned to face them once the doors closed, "...oh what? You want some, too?!"

"Hey relax…" the cat began as he took the hat off, "Don't worry…Boss Meowjima sent me to help you guys."

"Eh?"

"He saw what happened at Empress' Jewelry store and thought it was a laugh riot," the cat explained with a laugh, "Not many people get that level of respect from da boss outside of Kazunya Kiryu…but he'd have to be crazy to not respect an actual Kami pissing dat overconfident bitch off!" he paused and bowed quickly to Sonia, "Err…No offense, Amaterasu-sama."

"Call me 'Sonia,'" Sonia assured, managing to pull herself back from her laughing fit, "I only use Amaterasu when I am mad. And I take no offense to you calling her that."

"Ahh….g-gotcha," the cat nodded before reaching into his hat and pulled out a pair of Hourglasses, "One of Empress' Mooks was gonna trade one of these to her, but I knocked him out and took his place…the other one's from Boss Meowjima himself because 'what good is using this thing if it's gonna just reset things over again? That'll be boring!' His words…not mine."

"Oh…well thank you," Sonia blinked as she took them.

'Ok this definitely did not happen in the game,' Kazuma thought as the elevator stopped once more, 'Just what's going on here?'

"Anyways…I gotta head out. Da boss wants to hold another surprise on Kazunya Kiryu," the cat informed before he rushed off, "If yer ever in da neighborhood, hit up one da local hot springs! They give out great milk!"

"...n-noted," Ellie whispered.

"...And like that, I don't mind this game now," Sonia noted.

"S-Seriously?" Geo asked.

"What? He was very nice and apologized when he didn't need to," Sonia replied, "And I loved how they spooked off that stupid lady. It was the cat's meow."

"..." Omega-Xis walked over to a nearby potted plant, took said plant out…and screamed right into the pot before putting the plant back.

"...I blame you," Kazuma glowered at a snickering Axl.

"I never got the chance to do that one. She's a real catty gal, that Sonia," Axl snickered.

"GRAAAAGH!" Omega-Xis roared as he grabbed Axl and began to choke him, "WHY YOU LITTLE…!"

"Ack! Uncle! Uncle!"

"NO UNCLE!"

"Aunt!"

"I'm just thankful this is done," Miyuki sighed a bit, "I'm just ready to head home for a nice hot bath, kyu…"

"Gonna go for a cat nap?" Sonia asked.

"...Ok, that…that one was clever."

---

"That was a pretty fun," Geo noted as they got out of the chambers, "The last one was kinda crazy, but still…"

"It was pretty nice," Sonia smiled, letting her ears and tail pop out after she stretched a little, "And it was nice to have more people involved."

"It…was fun," Ellie admitted as she got out, "...st-stressful and tense…but fun…I liked the music game."

"...yeah…fun," Kazuma whispered as he got out next.

"...Something up?" Geo asked.

"Just things ruminating in my head…" Kazuma admitted before Sonia hugged him, "?!"

"This was a lot of fun, Kazuma-san!" Sonia beamed as she let go of him to bow, "Arigato!"

"...eh heh. My pleasure," Kazuma chuckled a bit as he rubbed the back of his head, "And thanks for inviting me…that really was a blast. Hell I might just come again because there's a lot of other games I'd love to play in a new perspective.""

"Always glad to have a helping hand testing these out," Aaron grinned as he walked over.

"Heads up. May end up sending more game data your way," Kazuma chuckled as he walked over and shook his hand..before quickly leaning in to whisper, "Check the data…something's up."

"?" Aaron blinked at that as Kazuma began to walk off.

"Well, off to home now. Gonna be busy for a bit getting things set up for dealing with those DarkCards," Kazuma spoke, giving a wave, "Axl!"

"Later!" Axl waved as he jumped into Kazuma's glove while he inserted the SynchroChip into it, turning into Axl Rod and shooting off on the Wave Roads.

"I need to head off as well," Ellie spoke as she picked up her VG Hunter, "I need to do some practice tomorrow for an upcoming match…"

"And once more…we're back in the locked box…" Minor grumbled from it.

"Fortunately, we had all those vacation hours saved up that we're using for this probation period," Major noted, "A few more weeks and then we can go back to having physical bodies for the matches."

"SWEET!" Minor grinned, "Don't get too fucked up, Ellie…don't want ya getting soft on me~" a smack went off in it, "OW! Sis~!"

"Aw shaddap, Minor," Omega-Xis huffed.

"DON'T CALL ME MINOR!"

"I'll escort you back home. I'm honestly exhausted after that last game," Miyuki offered Ellie.

"Thank you," Ellie sighed in relief as the two walked off, "I'll see you later then, Sonia!"

"Later, Ellie-chan!" Sonia waved, "And Geo-kun?"

"Yeah?" Geo blinked as he looked at her.

"Let's head on home," she stated, walking over before whispering to him, "I have something special for you~"

"H-Huh?" Geo blinked a few times.

"You guys take care now," Aaron waved, "I've got to check on some things and finish prepping the ones for that exhibit for Wilshire Hills."

---

"Hmm…I wonder what she has in store?" Geo whispered to himself, walking into his room as he closed the door, "...knowing her it might be a surprise…or something completely different….good thing I had Omega-Xis leave with Issun in case things get steamy."

"Ara ara~ Steamy you say?"

"?" Geo blinked before looking over at his bed, a bright blush forming on his face as he saw Sonia laying there...wearing a form fitting white shirt and a copy of her old shorts with her tail swaying a bit above her shapely rear, "?!"

"How 'steamy' are we talking?" Sonia teased him with a small sensual smile as she sat up.

"...This is part of the surprise?" Geo guessed, his eyes focused on her and her alone.

"Mmm…You want it to be?" Sonia asked as she walked over and bent down a bit, letting him get a view into the top of her shirt into the valley of her two hills while she slowly ran a finger along the underside of his jaw.

"...well…I take it Lyra's out as well?"

"Mm hmm~"

"...mind sharing with me what spurred this on?" Geo asked once more, his hand reaching to his bedroom door before locking it.

"The singing game," Sonia replied, "I knew you had a great voice when we were in that rap game, but hearing you sing…" she leaned in close, letting the tips of their noses touch, "Oh, you made me feel all hot and bothered from how good it was."

"...I-Is that so…?" Geo noted, already seeing where she was going with this, "And you wanted to give me something special for giving you such a good performance then?"

"Hai~"

"...well…" Geo paused as he looked away a bit, deciding to have a little fun with her as a grin grew on his face, "If I was able to impress such a high-class idol such as you with my singing...I must be doing something right…makes me curious what she has in store for me."

"Oh, quite a bit, actually," Sonia giggled as Geo squeaked, blushing now, "I'm glad you're…excited~"

"O-Oh my…" Geo gasped out.

(Find lemon scene on AO3)

---

Meanwhile…surprisingly back in the game Hat in Time, a small roomba-liek robot beeped as it cleaned parts of a room that was a mix of a command room and a living room with a TV and few displays set up around it. It was about to make a turn before it heard the doors open, making it beep happily as it ran towards its master...only to stop once it saw someone else standing there.

"Ok…I snuck in perfectly," Mustache Girl whispered to herself as she looked around, "Knew causing all that trouble would distract her enough for me to sneak in."

=B#RQJ#RQ#!=

"Hmm?" she raised a brow before looking down, seeing the roomba butting against her leg…before she kicked it away, "Beat it. I got something to look for…" she frowned before she spotted a large safe door, "...perfect." She quickly ran up a nearby ladder before rushing for the safe door, spinning the lock on the front as it slowly opened up, revealing a massive collection of Hourglasses, "Time to mess with time a little!"

The roomba groaned as it slid down the wall, groaning a bit before it heard the sounds of glass shattering, making it tense as it looked up at the second floor, seeing the intruder breaking its master's Hourglasses.

"Change this, and change that…oh change some of…" Mustache Girl began as she threw down more Hourglasses, only to stop when she noticed something, "Hmm?"

Picking up one more Hourglass, she noticed what looked like a hole in the floor…and oddly she could see a bunch of zeros and ones floating out of it.

"...What's this now…?" she blinked as she leaned towards the hole, "Shoddy work..but what kind of sh-" she screamed as she was soon pulled into the hole, screaming as she fell through a series of zeroes and ones…only to grunt when she fell into a mound of snow, her feet sticking straight up, "?!" A moment or two passed before she began to kick about before finally freeing herself, "GAH! That…was unpleasant…ugh…c-cold, too…" she shivered as she shook a bit, wrapping her cloak around her body as she looked around, "Wh…where am…"

"Hey….its unfriendly to have your back to someone…"

"?!" Mustache girl tensed up, slowly looking over her shoulder to see a figure standing right behind her, their hand stretched out.

"Come on…how's about a shake, kiddo?"

"..." Mustache Girl cautiously eyed the hand before she gripped it…causing a loud farting noise to fill the area, "..."

"Hehheheheheh…gets them everytime," San chuckled as he moved his hand back, stepping into the light to let her see him, "Hmm…that is odd though…you don't appear to be the human I usually meet…th-" he began before sidestepping a slash.

"Back off!" Mustache Girl snapped, holding a dagger out as she stood defensively, "That was a low down trick you pulled…but what do I expect from a bad guy!?"

"Bad guy? Me?" Sans asked as he pointed at himself, "Eh…I'm a bit lazy yeah…but that doesn't exactly make me a bad guy."

"You're a bloody Skeleton!" She argued as she swung at him, only for him to sidestep, "You shouldn't even be alive, and you pull a nasty trick like that? That automatically makes you a bad guy in my eyes!"

"...wow. Talk about judgemental," Sans joked as he looked to the side.

"..." Mustache Girl looked in the same direction he was, "What are you even looking at? There's nothing there!"

"Eh. I'd tell ya, but I fear you might get more…red if ya did," Sans grinned before winking to the side, the sound of a drumroll filling the area as a laugh track soon followed.

"What th…?! What was that?!"

"I have no idea what you mean."

"...GRAAAAGH!" Mustache Girl shouted in annoyance, "Just shut up and let me destroy you!" she snapped as she tried to slash him again, only to suddenly stop as a blue aura covered her, "?!"

"Now then…allow me to ask you something…" Sans asked in a rather…eerie calm before looking over at her, one of his eyes glowing the same color as the aura around Mustache Girl, "Who are you…and what game did you come from?"

"?! Wh…wha….g….game…?" she whispered nervously before she was lifted up into the air.

"Guess it's one with no 4th Wall Awareness," Sans noted, rubbing his chin in thought, "It is unusual. Normally, my awareness goes only to a certain extent, like I'm aware someone using Frisk as an Avatar of sorts for them, but lately my awareness has felt…more…than it should."

"...wh…what do you mean awareness?! What wall?!" Mustache Girl snapped before blinking, "...Wait….did you ever come across a tall girl with red markings and wolf ears? A-And she was with some guy with funny brown hair in spikes?"

"Oh those two. They appeared in place of Frisk once. Come to think of it…the girl of the two…She felt as if she were Human…but also more…" Sans admitted, still rubbing his chin in thought as his sockets narrowed as pieces started to fall into place, "...She must have been a Divine Being, a literal God, awakening her powers."

"?!" Mustache Girl's eyes widened at that, "...She…she really is a Goddess?"

"Seems like it. But her power is untamed and is constantly leaking. No wonder I've been more aware and why you seem to recognize her. By chance, have you seen her since?"

"N-No…Just this girl my age in a hat. But…I think I heard rumors of the wolf lady being in Nyakuza Metro at the same time Hat Kid vanished…"

"Hmm…I see…" Sans noted with a slight nod, "So that's how it goes...she and that guy with her end up taking the places of the player character of those games…and her power is actually making them become far more…as if the games are becoming actual worlds."

"...Actual…worlds…?" Mustache Girl whispered…before her eyes narrowed, "Worlds filled with their own bad guys…"

"Careful there, kid. You've already got a pretty unique LV and a hefty bit of EXP."

"Huh? LV? EXP?"

"'Level of Violence' and 'EXectuion Points.' When you kill innocents, LV and EXP grow inside of you. Yours is pretty interesting as is. About as close as Frisk is when someone goes the Genocide Route. Keep on doing this and…" Mustache Girl squeaked as four massive skeletal demonic heads appeared, glowing blue demonic eyes shining in their sockets staring right into hers, "You're gonna have a Bad Time. Be it from me or someone stronger."

"..." Mustache Girl was shocked as she gave a shaky breath…as if she was staring at a literal devil.

"But…I'm not completely heartless, so…" Sans began as he moved her further up into the air, "How's about I give ya a ride home? Don't come back now, ya hear?"

"...Wait wait wa-!" Mustache Girl panicked once he realized what he was gonna do…before she was thrown high into the air," AHHHHHH~!"

"Close yer mouth! Don't wanna swallow a bug ya know?!"

"Oh bloody P-" she began before gagging, "Ack! Gross…I swallowed one!" she gagged as she went through more zeroes and ones before she hit her head, making her grunt as she hit the floor, "Ahh! Oh, I'm gonna…" she growled as she got up…and noticed she was back in the ship command room, "...I'm back…I'm home…but…"

She looked back at the Hourglasses and noticed the hole was gone, bits and pieces of Hourglass still on the floor. At that moment…the skeleton's words echoed within her mind…multiple thoughts going through them. That tall girl with the Red Markings…Sonia if she remembered what the guy called her…She did this…She made them feel more self aware…she helped make new worlds each time she appeared….but in turn….it resulted in creating more bad guys, leading to more pain and suffering…like she did with those damn Mafia thugs when they took over her home.

"...If I use the Hourglasses…I can go into those worlds," she whispered as she approached the Hourglasses, the lights beginning to dimmer on and off, "I can use those…to make it as if those villains never existed….no no…" she whispered as she shook her head, her eyes changing to a complete red for a moment as red static began to cover her dagger, "Even without bad guys…what will the heroes fight? ...They'd just become as worse as the bad guys without a clear goal…and that girl…She did this…She's no goddess. If she was any real God…she would've killed that world's bad guys…no…she could've made it so they wouldn't have any pain….and yet she does nothing with her powers…She just plays games!"

The Roomba began to beep in worry as it tried to hide behind a corner, cautiously looking out as Mustache Girl just stood before the safe holding the Hourglasses.

"...Good…bad….there are no such things…no…call a person who does good deeds a hero…they still do bad things because they beat someone up who was also trying to live…" she whispered as the lights flickered again, her eyes changing to red again as parts of her blonde hair began to bleed into a brown color, "If a bad guy redeems himself and is called a hero…his past actions will always make them a bad guy…good guys…bad guys…it's all bloody nonsense…maybe it's time…" she paused as she gripped an Hourglass, "Someone more appropriate judges them….to see if they deserve to live…"

The doors opened up as a small girl in a purple hat, button jacket, and cape began to walk in, blinking when she noticed the lights flickering on and off. The sound of an Hourglass breaking soon caught her attention, causing her to look and see Mustache Girl standing before the safe. She gasped and the red hood-wearing girl paused.

"...ah….Hat Kid….right…on schedule…" Mustache Girl whispered, her voice sounding a little more…mature and yet….oddly calm, "You're just in time…"

Hat Kid tilted her head before frowning and hefting the purple umbrella in her hands over her shoulder and pointed at the Hourglasses.

"Oh these? Oh you don't have to worry about anymore," Mustache Girl informed, "I'm gonna use them for something special…."

"?!" Hat Kid rapidly shook her head as she pointed at a map with a planet circled and sporting arrow marks.

"It's not real, you know," she noted, earning a confused look from Hat Kid, "Or…it may be now."

"?" Hat Kid blinked as she titled her head.

"Let's just say thanks to a so-called goddess…our world…many worlds now exist," Mustache girl stated as she held up another Hourglass, "And someone needs to keep a close eye on them…a real god…in fact…" she paused as she hefted her dagger up, "You probably did quite a few naughty things just to get these Hourglasses back…didn't you?" Hat Kid raised a brow and gestured to her opened vault, as if silently saying 'And you haven't?', "Oh I may have..but it was for the greater good…you wasted these Hourglasses' potential…all you do is play games…just like her…"

"?!" Hat Kid tensed up a bit, feeling the bloodlust starting to emanate off Mustache Girl…Almost like...she didn't even recognize her.

"But I'll be stronger than her…more of a god than she could ever wish she was," Mustache Girl whispered as she turned, the shadows of her hood covering the upper half of her face…and reveal a side of red lines acting as her eyes as she had an unhinged smile on her face, "And I'm gonna need more LV and EXP…"

Hat Kid tensed as she readied her umbrella. She blinked and Mustache Girl was suddenly touching noses with her, her knife coated in red glitching data in post-swing. The Roomba let out a beep before fainting as the purple hat fell to the ground.

---

GT: …Wow. And here I thought these game chaps weren't meant to be anything but fun, but nope.

SZ: All kinds of nope right now…just…hoo lordy.

GT: But does make sense. I mean, Amaterasu is known as 'Mother of all' in Okami. Of course Sonia's presence in virtual reality games on the level Aaron made them become would cause this.

SZ: Mmm hmm…question is what's gonna come of this sudden shift? Guess you'll hae to find out next time as we get back to more of the main story!

GT: Indeed. Please Read and Review, folks!