(Preshow) Registration (Where you Sign up IC)

[Little Ghost]

Continued from A stumbling misadventure at the Tangled Green sign up station.

The silence was stifling. Correction, the silence would have been stifling if not for the sounds (of the relatively tame and domesticated parts) of the Tangled Green around them. Little Ghost was still staring expectantly at the attendant of the sign-up booth. The man cleared his throat once more before he once again asked the question that had started this whole mess, "A-are you here for the Dante's Abyss r-registration?" Though his voice trembled slightly it was otherwise clear. Little Ghost had probably scared the piss out of him, if a bit unintentionally. Little Ghost simply tilted his head to the side in reply, a questioning look upon his face. "Oh, you want me to tell you about what the Dante's Abyss is? I take it that that you're a rather fresh Prime, then?" Little Ghost nodded in reply to the first question and then paused slightly before replying in the same fashion to the second question. He had no idea what this 'fresh' business was about but assuming the strange bug meant 'fresh' as in 'new to this place' he was most certainly spot on.

The attendant quieted in thought, wondering how to best describe the Dante's Abyss to someone who had either obviously not read the large posters on the fortified recruitment office right behind him (nor the ones at the little booth in which he sat), or couldn't read. Eventually he arrived at a conclusion. "The Dante's Abyss is a yearly tournament held by the Syntech Corporation to determine the Strongest Prime out of those willing to join in. It's a wonderful opportunity to learn where you stand in the world and even to make friends! Though I guess that friendly rivalries are all the more common than pure friendships." A tournament? Brief flashes of a large stadium, of being enclosed in its midst and fighting not only for his life, but also for his honour, his skill, and the sheer thrill of it all! That sounded very interesting indeed! And friends? Little Ghost wasn't sure that he knew what a friend was, but this would allow him to learn that as well! "So are you interested in signing up?" Speak of the grubberfly and it shall appear! Little Ghost was very much interested and his fervent nodding made this very clear, the attendant smiling at the enthusiasm. Though the smile was tinged with sadness, for such a new Prime would likely vanish in the press of the initial hardship, the attendant gathered a stack of papers, gave Little Ghost a pencil (which apparently works just like a quill), and instructed Little Ghost on how to fill out the forms.

---

What is your name? A question that at first made Little Ghost stumped. How was he supposed to answer this when he didn't know what a name was? He quickly skipped to the next question, fully intent on coming back and filling out the first one later.

How long have you been in the Omniverse? Oh, this one was very easy. It couldn't even have been a day-cycle yet, right? And even if the travel through that strange gate was not as nigh-instantaneous as it had felt, Little Ghost believed that he should only take into account the time he himself had experienced. Thus he answered with a short, and to the point: "Less than one day-cycle." Content with that answer he turned to the next question.

Where do you live in the Omniverse? Hmm, come to think of it, he had not found a place to live yet. Depending on how long this tournament lasted for he should really start working on a nest of his own, so another easy one: "I have yet to make a nest anywhere in these strange lands."

What is your current job? Huh, how queer a question. "What is a job?" The attendant was sneaking Little Ghost glances as he filled out the form, eyes widening slightly at some of the answers though this one prompted what sounded like a weird snort of mirth.

What was your life like back in your own world? This was another question that stumped Little Ghost for a while. What did they mean by this? Hallownest had once been a mighty kingdom, but its fall was what had caused him to begin his journey in the first place. Maybe he should write something about that? He put this strange pen-quill thing to the paper and began to write, each word carefully considered. Capturing Hallownest's essence in words was difficult. But then, why put it in words? letting the quill-thingy rest beside the forms, Little Ghost put his hands upon it and focused on the swirling Duality within him. Soul and Void. A quick flash etched a black and white image into the paper, an image formed from half-forgotten memories of face-masks and adventures: [spoiler]

[/spoiler]

Why are you joining Dante's Abyss? And now came the final question, if one discounted the first one that he had so far left blank. Why was he interested? There was only one answer to that question: "Because it sounds fun!" There! Little Ghost looked to the attendant, whose weird fuzzy thing above its eyes had shot up very high on its forehead-plate (they were almost concealed by that strange fuzzy thing on top of its head), and made to hand the forms back.

"Hold on there, buddy, you forgot the most important field of all." Little Ghost looked at the field the attendant pointed at. The text What is your name? was clearly emblazoned upon it. Little Ghost scowled, he hadn't forgotten. But he had no idea what a name even was! "Look, what do you call yourself?" the attendant helpfully queried. Call himself? He didn't call himself anything speci- A memory flash of a quick female bug. Sleek, with large face-mask-horns, and wielding a Nail and Thread in ways no one could hope to replicate. Hornet. She had called him something, but what was it?

After much deliberation, he arrived at an answer and wrote "Little Ghost." in the proper field with clear and precise strokes.

---

The attendant-bug shuffled the forms into their proper order after checking that they all fit regulations, 'i's dotted and 't's crossed and all that. "Ok, everything looks to be in order. If you'd follow me, please," the attendant bug stated as it got up from the chair it had sat on. Leading Little Ghost into the larger blocky building, the one with the geo-gulka and geo-sporgs hidden in berths on the outside. "If you'll just stand right over there you'll be sent to the proper station for the rest of the pre-tournament procedure." Little Ghost obediently stepped up on the small dais in the middle of the room. The attendant-bug walked over to a console and pressed a button. A slow hum began in the background and the dais began to glow. "Good luck, Little Ghost," the attendant-bug said. Little Ghost waved in reply just before the recall-station fully activated and he was sent to Syntech Station 17.