(Pre-Show) The Recreation Dome

[Neal]

Eco? He had to think back hard to remember what that was. "Eco... That's an energy source, right?" Neal inquired thoughtfully. As if hearing his own question confirmed it, he shrugged. "The Omniverse seems to be a conglomeration of various Multiverses. Theoretically Omnilium could be composed in part by Eco, or Reishi, or Chakra... Then again, this dimension has a slightly different feel to it." There goes that wild mind, taking the contents of a drink and leading into string theory and quantum mechanics.

"Sorry... I've recently come across a new awareness." Neal finally silenced himself with the mixed flavor of wheat grass and sour apple. Mentally, he was working the topic over further. As was the downfall to Insight, it was easy to lose himself in thought.

[Mickey Mouse]

At the sound of his real name, Mickey sprung back to life. What? he panicked, How do you know my name? The mouse had entered under an alias—he’d even seen it flashed up on all the screens—so how did this guy have any idea what he was actually called? Whatever, he would just play dumb. That would work, right?

“Um,” Mickey hiccupped, still a little drunk though sobered up a bit after his slight panic attack, “That’s not my name. I don’t know who Mickey is, but my name’s Ears.”

The doctor blinked a couple of times, and Mickey eyed him carefully, hoping he would believe him. Trying to play it off as casually as possible, the mouse stuck a gloved hand into the air between him, and put on a smile. The man looked at it carefully.

After a second more of contemplation, he reached out and shook it.

“And yeah, yeah, I’m…” he paused for a minute, trying to think of the right word to answer the original question the man had posed. Was he okay? Not really, obviously, but did he really want to get into it right now? And with a guy who he had never met?

He decided, in the end, to lie.

“I’m fine,” he nodded, using the stair-rail to pull himself up. “Thanks for asking, though, pal,” the mouse smiled, reaching up and patting the doc on the arm.

And with that, the Doctor hurried off to do something else, and Mickey leaned against the wall, trying his best to pull himself together. He straightened his clothes out and wiped the tears away from his eyes. Truly, he let himself get too worked up about these things; although, admittedly, that had probably mostly been the alcohol talking. He would never drink again, mark his words. He hated crying more than anything, and three glasses of wine had put him on the floor in a puddle of his own tears. He could not think of anything more pathetic.

Ugh, he sighed—he’d become certain this gosh-awful competition would ruin him. It lured him in with a great meal at Olive Garden and then quickly trounced upon that by waving Minnie in front of his face for a good half-hour. But he resolved not to let it get the better of him. Somehow, someway—

BOOM!

The mouse’s head turned quickly toward the disturbance. The big noise had come from the lobby, and Mickey decided that he needed to go check it out; even if he was too late to do anything about it, he certainly needed to know what had gone on. Besides, between crying his eyes out, almost having his identity discovered, and his ears being assaulted by that loud noise, he had pretty much sobered up, so what else did he have to do but investigate?

He hurried down the stairs, heading past an abnormally popular pool table and the Olive Garden that he had eaten that first (very good) meal at, and back to the entrance, making his way into the lobby to see what exactly all the fuss was about.

[Mami Tomoe]

As the door shut behind Mami, she crumpled to the floor and let out a deep sigh. She wasn't one to curse, ever, but that was her own personal hell. What met her eyes now was not, however. Everyone in the area seemed calm, which was a great starting point. To the place's benefit further, there was food. Mami couldn't remember when she last ate, or more importantly when she had last ate well. Her eyes lit up and sparkled with joy as she looked about for somewhere to eat. Where would she go first...?

First? How much was she planning to eat? Mami stopped herself. She had to restrain herself if she was to get used to the meager conditions she assumed she would be under while in the Abyss. I'll allow myself to have a little fun, but I'm not going to go too far, she thought. "Oh, I wonder what's in there?" she ran over to a cute little bakery dug into a wall, with a little pink sign over top titled DANTE'S BAKERY. Its window revealed a number of cakes and pastries, much higher in quality even than her own. She was, for the first in a very long time, giddy as a schoolgirl, and she couldn't be happier about it. Without a second thought, she ran through the door, which when opened was alerted with a little ding-a-ling.

The interior of the bakery was, for lack of a better word, adorable. The floor, walls and the majority of the bottom of most furniture had a brownish, fluffy-cake like quality to it, making the entire building look like a pastry in itself. The tops of chairs and tables, where one could sit and eat, were covered in frosting and sprinkles, though Mami assumed they were not edible. The carpets took on the same icing-like appearance, making the whole building look overwhelmingly like... Yes, this was familiar. But where had she seen such decor before? Mami let that idea slip as she dashed along the surprisingly solid floor to the lowest point of the counter, where a cookie-like cash register sat facing away from her to her right.

"And what can I get for you, miss?" A tall man of dark skin wearing mainly white looked down at her with a smile over the counter. "I'd like... Um..." she tilted a bit to the left, where she saw a number of different baked goods on racks behind glass, which was probably the only non-stylized material in the building. She found something she thought was interesting after only a few moments of letting her eyes wander - A little angel food cake slice, big and thick with a long and wide line of icing piercing the center. The top had a yellow M, which caught her eye shortly after. "That one! The one with the M on it," she pointed and hoped he would know which one she meant. He nodded and took the slice out, putting it onto a plate which he offered to her alongside a fork. Her eyes wandered to the cash register again, and she realized she had no money.

"Erm... How much do I owe you...?" she asked rather nervously, uncharacteristically so compared to the typical Mami that showed.

"You're going into the Abyss, aren't you? No charge," he chimed. "If you're going in there, I can't ask anything of you. Besides, it's not like I could charge you either way!" he laughed and Mami laughed a bit as well. "Feel free to sit down wherever you want while you have that. We're a bit quiet today, but I hope you can get comfortable here." As Mami walked over to one of the tables, she remarked, "Quiet's exactly what I want after being in the lobby. It's awful in there!".

Comfortably Mami sat down on one of the frosting-chairs, took off a little piece of the cake slice she had gotten with her fork and slipped it gently into her mouth. The fluffiness, the soft, mild sweetness, washed over her and she let herself relax. Maybe she could let herself just have a little fun before things inevitably went bad...

[Doomguy]

While I was not happy to be left alone again with nothing by my thoughts, the swill in my hand, and the dumbass who called himself a bartender, but even a short experience with the pink "princess" was both bizarre and though provoking, even it if was far more the former than the latter. How the tyke got the respect and admiration of not just a few teenagers but what seemed to be a number of people that grew every minute was beyond me. But Guu herself seemed to have enough self awareness to know that she was responsible for those people now, and my "growing up" was a bit more serious that how it came out. She was younger than most would start to learn about responsibility, though. I think. Jury is still out on that one.

It also felt good to just get my own past out on the field, if only to get it off my chest. I did feel bad that I had to lie about the prison break, since I hadn't yet done that, but If the imperial jackasses had their fingers in here that I had to mislead them a bit.

"So, are you going to order something else?" I slowly turned my head towards towards the dimwit behind me, putting a hole through his dumb vest and tie with my best glare. He leaned back, probably expected me to blow up on him and reach over to wring his neck, but I just watched him as he looked stupider than the stuffed moose head above him.

"Ya want this tip?" I asked with only a slight bit of growl and held my hand up until a orb of omnilium appeared. Just a little. He glanced between my scowling face and the OM, and bit his lip as he considered just what I had in store.

"Yes?" He finally decided on, although he clearly didn't sound very sure. There was an implied "Are you going to rip my head off if I said yes?" to that yes. But I tossed up the orb and let him grab it without incident, but he looked more like he was about to fumble it until he managed to get a grip on it.

"Good. Now get fucking lost" And I didn't have to tell him twice, as he bolted straight for the door to the back room. The second he was out of sight, I reached down over the bar and into the shelfs there in order to pilfer some of the harder liquor. Two bottle of Jack Daniels and a small one of schnapps literally under my belt and I was out. Time to see what the competition looked like.

[Schwi Dola]

Desco, DesX, and Guu all passed through the library where it really was quite quite. As they walked, they continued the discussion about DesX. "So why did your dad make you DesX?" Desco pointed to herself. "Desco was only the prototype model for a demon that could be Big Sis's little sister and take over the world for Big Sis. DesX was the finished version." DesX sighed, she wasn't proud of her earlier days before EarthX. "Yes, but daddy tried some different balances in my personality. Desco's personality was too young so Daddy tried to make me a little more knowledgable and mature and less reliant on Fuka. But I became jealous of daddy's attention being focused on Fuka so I killed her, and I proved my strength by defeating Desco and banishing her to Hades."

"But that turned out to be a good thing for Desco!" While DesX clearly didn't like her earlier time, Desco was all excited about that time. "Desco met Big Sis for the first time in Hades and she also met Mr. Valzy, Fenfen, Artina, and Emizel. She made lots of friends and we took over the Corrupterment! Did you know that Desco took over Earth too?! Desco doesn't remember that." The regret left DesX's voice as she started on about her time as EarthX. By that time DesX was re-purposed by her father and had most of her father's attention. While it was still in order to help Fuka and Desco, her personality was rebalanced to be nicer so that she could better serve her original purpose of helping Fuka. "Desco might not remember it but Fuka and Desco both came and took over the entire Earth. Once they defeated me, the final defender EarthX, they moved on to take over other worlds but that is the last thing I remember before daddy summoned me to the Omniverse." "It sounds like you two have a long history."

The group passed through another passage and made it into the Recreation Dome. Before them was a large variety of restaurants from your classic fast foods to your upscale fine dining experiences and everything in-between. They started their way walking along through the floor of restaurants when Desco spotted a nice little place that reminded her of both home and Hades. The food style was Japanese and while she never got to go out to enjoy Japanese culture, there were restaurants in Hades of the same kind. "Hey Look! Its a Ramen place! Can we eat there?"

[Jak Mar]

Daxter crossed his arms and looked over at Neal "I wish we could discuss more but...

Jak chimed in and said "It's a private matter... Perhaps...after the competition..."

Jak and Daxter were sucking on their personal smoothies rather calmly and said "Thanks for showing us this place though, Neal... Hope we don't run into each other during the competition.."

Daxter blinked "Jak, i'll be cheerin' for ya outside the stadium when it starts" "Don't let me down, buddy."

Jak stared at the tv in the rec area and started to think out loud "Wonder if anybody saw me on that tv a few days ago.."

The duo just blinked.

[Neal]

The idea that he would not meet Jak during the event made Neal chuckle. "If we don't meet, it just means we've been killed by someone else. If the contest is as ruthless as I think it's going to be, it might be better if we meet." The man stated with a slight smirk. "Just means less chance that one of us dies at the hands of some sadistic powerhouse with a fetish for pain." Maybe that'll rattle him. A fearful man is a dead man, after all. "Anyway, maybe I'll catch you later." And like that, Neal walked off like a total badass.

He did, however, leave something behind. It was a card with his Communicator information. Despite his cold nature and attempt to psyche Jak, Neal was always looking for potential party members. Jak might make a good front-liner. Daxter could be useful in special occassions.


To further entertain himself, Neal ascended to the third floor, where the food courts end and the games begin. There was a delicious smell still lingering here, but it was not as potent as before - just enough to have Neal slurping at his Grasshopper Smoothie more often than he would have normally. By the time the gamer closed in on an old arcade game, he was already suffering a light, throbbing pain behind his eye.

The aching made it hard to search down the front of the oldschool machine to look for a coin slot, until Neal realized there simply was none. Brow furrowed, he inquisitively pressed Start to see what the menu said. Instead of the Insert coins flashing at the bottom, it popped straight into Character Creation. "Sweet, a mashup!" Neal chimed in childish delight as he moved his cursor over what looked like an old cartoon character he didn't recognize.

"Ranma Versus Madera Uchia. Fight!"

"Wait, what? ACK! Damnit!" Like the noob he was, Neal tapped buttons and moved his joystick left, right, up, down, and every direction in between trying to find the special combinations. "STOP hitting me! Damnit, get up stupid!" He hissed at his character. "Common, totally unfair mashup!" He complained the moment the match was lost.

"Play again?"

"Damn right I'm going to play again. Leeett'sss seee who wee have heeere..." This time, he avoided the martial artist with the braid and moved over to a familiar face. "No... Way... Moka!" He looked no further. The sexy-powerful Vampiress would win, he was sure of it.

"Moka Akashiya Versus Ichigo Kurosaki. Fight!"

"FUCK!" Ichigo's on here! Damnit, I shoulda picked him! Ichigo had the advantage of both speed and range, with his Zanpakuto definitely getting the edge against Moka's hand to hand combat style of many panty-flashing kicks. "Common, you sexy bitch, get 'em! GET HIM!" He shouted at the screen as his fingers practically lit aflame with the friction against the buttons.

"Bon-

"GAD!"

"KAI!"

"DAMNIT" The screen flashed blue, then red and suddenly big letters painted the screen.

"Game Over."

"WHAT! The CHANGE killed me! This is bullshit -- fine, fine, yea I'll play again... where's Ichigo..." Two games, two losses, this time Neal wanted a heavy hitter. The moment his cursor scrolls over the orange haired teenager, Neal presses select, and is once again matched up.

"Ichigo Kurosaki Versus Krillen -"

"OH YEA!"

"FIGHT!"

There was hardly any fight to it. Neal's fingers practically slammed the large buttons as his other hand worked the joystick expertly. And yet, the outcome was less than desirable. "Fuckfuckfuck, stop throwing shit! DistructofuckingyourfaceAAAHHHH!"

"Game over. Flawless Victory."

"......" Neal just stands there, staring at the defeated Ichigo and the bald pansy dancing away. "This machine... is pure evil..."

[Carn_Val]

Walking past the doorway, I find myself in the Recreation Dome. How'd I know, you ask? There's that large, chrome lettering that says "Recreation Dome" on the door immediately in front of me. If the arrow that points here doesn't persuade you, I don't know what else to say. I suck the air into my non-existing nose to sense the smell that led me here, only to be overwhelmed by a wave of other nasal stimuli. I couldn't complain since all of the other scents are as good, in fact, my eyes can even see where all of it is coming from. Shops, stands, booths and carts, all working hard to make a common product, food. I had no choice but to succumb to the sight.

First stop was a little stand, simple and plain. Good thing it serves colorful cup-size cakes despite the stand's rather boring approach. I take one, sweet. Sweet...ew. Ew ew ew...yuck. "What is this ??", my back shakes with disgust as it reminds me of my own saliva. It was like biting a chunk off of solidified oral secretions. I wipe the little tear building up on my right eye as I try to get the thought out of my head, walking forward to the next stop.

Watching a tower of grey smoke rising from the distance, I find myself in front of another stand. This one is different, with a red and orange "flame" decal and grilled chunks of staked meat sizzling above live coal. The smoke suddenly rises towards me, temporarily catching me offguard. A bit blinded and eyes sore, I wondered why all this smoke didn't cloud up the dome and suffocate its guest. Blinking a few times to recover, I grab a few sticks with my hands and bite off the thick slices of succulent meat with my teeth. After a few moments trying to grind the beef with my molars, I stop in failure, swallowing the food reluctantly. This is a downside to having a sharp set of teeth, not possessing teeth for grinding. Too bad.

So far, the experience merely reminds me of how different I am and how I can't appreciate most of the 'normal' food served here. It should either be hard and rigid or big enough for me to dig my teeth into. I slump my shoulder, casually grabbing a table full of calamary and swallowing all of it in sadness. Naive secondaries screaming their guts out doesn't help either, just makes me a little more annoyed inside. Wandering around aimlessly, I grab any other food along with its stalls and table and shove them in my mouth absent-mindedly. I might even have eaten something alive too since it was struggling in my mouth for a while. Still, all of them merely tells me how different I am. A few minutes of roaming around got me stopping in front of a wooden structure. Moving my head upwards to read, the signboard says "Ramen Shop." Great, noodle soup. Well, it could help me forget thing since it's pretty much edible, right? I mean there's no trick to consuming salted water and strings of dough, correct?

Pushing the white curtain upwards, I step inside and grab a seat, calling out to whoever's in charge and order the biggest bowl they have. A few minutes of waiting, the food arrived. The bowl was made of porcelain, painted blue on the outside and wide enough to sit on. The bowl's easily bigger than my head, literally. Trying to process what lies on top of the broth and noodle, I spot some soft-boiled eggs, chunks of meat, vegetables and seaweed paper. Oddly, I feel appreciative of the great work served for me and, how else am I going to show appreciation other than eating all of it and leaving no left-overs? With a simple back stretching, I lift the bowl to shoulder level and chug the soup first until it was dry. The remaining ingredients were simply scooped up with a pair of chopsticks as I dump all of it into my meek mouth. With a smile of satisfaction, I look around to see people wearing faces on the border of ashtonishment and fear. I don't know, I'm not sure what they're thinking , I can't read minds. Maybe they enjoyed my little feat?

Anyways, another smell distracts me, this time it was coming from behind me. On the open street. The smell reminds me of the seafood I ate a few moments ago, this time it smells bigger, and there's two of them. Trying to listen in on the direction where the scent came, I hear little giggles. Drooling with excitement, I smile brighter the moment I hear them coming. A hand pulls the curtain up and my legs get ready to jump at my prey. I meet confusion topped with a little bit of disappointment when the owner of the hands appears to be a little human(?) with pink hair. Mouth wide open, I wipe my drool in embarassment. "I...uhm...I uhm, Hi," I stuttered. Looking behind the little pink-haired person, I spot my intended targets. "Sigh..." I deflate from my excitement. I'm still full anyway, might as well just enjoy company.

"I'm Carn. Want some ramen?" I offered them.

*sniff sniff* "Oh boy..."

[Guu]

I apologize for any typos, I’m trying to force this post out with sleep deprivation fighting against me the whole way.

Guu looked towards the ramen place Desco pointed towards. She focused her senses on that space. A creatures was inside there, something that sent shivers down her spine. Human words could not explain the form she sensed. She hadn’t reacted this way to something since the time with her elders. However, she could tell this beast was not one of them, this was something different, something fowl, something horrible.

“I don’t know about that place, it’s got a monster in it.” Guu said.

“Ooh! Now I have to go in there!” Desco Responded.

“Eh, what do I got to lose?”

The three head for the ramen place while they continue to talk, her mind still on the monster ahead.

“So what were you and your father doing? Outside a reunion of course.” Guu continued, trying to distract herself.

”Ooh! Daddy was working on the collars for DA!”

”Collars?” Slightly taken aback that there where conditions she didn’t know about.

”Yeah! Did you not know?”

”Of course I did!” She lied. “But tell me anyways so we can test to see if YOU knew.”

”Daddy said the colors make powers go away to make it fair! But it’s only working in this world! That’s why I’m in this, to help with Daddy’s research! Hehehe!”
Des X simply nodded in agreement. However Guu was still distracted. More and more, she prepared herself for a fight. She had to be prepare to protect Desco and her clone sister at all costs. She yanked the curtain out of the way.

There sat a strange pointy haired kid with charcoal black skin, looking straight at them with razor sharp tooth smile.

“I…uhm…I uhm, Hi” He spoke up. She only stared at him for the longest time, baffled at what she saw.

“I’m Carn. Want some ramen?”

Guu, signaled the other two in.

“It’s ok, no monsters in here.” She said casually. ”Kind of odd, my senses must be off.”

The three take their orders, Guu ordering the lightest thing on the menu. She was just going to stomach the whole bowl anyways. However, Des X was trying to get Guu’s attention.

“He’s still staring out you.” She whispered. Guu looked over and sure enough, he was still glaring. At her like she was made of fish or something.

“Maybe he’s in love with you?” Desco suggested, giggling.

By the time Guu looked over again, he had broken the space between him and her by several seat.

“What are you?”

“I’m Guu… You know, Princess of Ambrosia?”

“Yeah, but what are you?”

”…I’m Guu, I am my own being.”

”Just ignore him, maybe he’ll go awa-”

Suddenly, Carn slid a tongue up against his face. Des X recoiled in horror, Desco daww’d at the romantic scene before her. Guu doesn’t seem to react, and just lets him finish. After he pulls away, she pushed him off her.

“I appreciate it, but not on the first date.”

She reaches over and shakes Carn’s hand. Des X is confused as ever.

[Jak Mar]

he idea that he would not meet Jak during the event made Neal chuckle. "If we don't meet, it just means we've been killed by someone else. If the contest is as ruthless as I think it's going to be, it might be better if we meet." The man stated with a slight smirk. "Just means less chance that one of us dies at the hands of some sadistic powerhouse with a fetish for pain." Maybe that'll rattle him. A fearful man is a dead man, after all. "Anyway, maybe I'll catch you later." And like that, Neal walked off like a total badass.

Jak was a bit in thought as he turned for a second and frowned "So this contest is a little scarier than Playstation All Stars, with more blood. I think I could handle it. "

Jak made sure he had a few things on him as close as he could possibly have. "Then I have nothing to lose then, Neal... Of course, I always liked new challenges and opportunities to kick ass.

Daxter waved his hand and gulped "Ya... mean big... guys with lots of power? Jak.... maybe ya should listen... Hey... Jak JAK!" "HELLO?"

Jak bent down and picked up the small slip of paper in his hands "So this guy wants to talk.. I'll take a look a bit later. Jak frowned and studied the number and placed it in a safe place.

Daxter blinked "Are ya sure about this, Jak?"

Jak said "Since when have I've not been sure, Dax?"

Daxter stared at him "I can think of a lot of ways."

Jak and Dax left the recreation dome, and headed toward the park area.

[Chloe Price]

A man came in with all white suit with a black tie…he oddly resembled the Nexus…as if the Nexus were human. The man appeared to be in his twenties, skin absolutely flawless, grey eyes, blonde hair. He almost didn't seem human, and he came over to Gilgamesh and requested he talked to Karl Jak. As he went over to the Abyss' owner, I left. "Alright...If I hit the gym, I can make myself strong enough to win, and-" I was interrupted when I heard a familiar voice ring from the first floor.

"Alright, bartender, give me a beer. Make it...ice cold..."

I ran down to the first floor to find Captain Cold, in a bar. I walked up to him. "Captain Cold?" I asked. "What are you doing here?"

"Just here to give you support..." Cold replied. "Yeah, but what makes you want anything to do with me?" I asked. "Well, I guess I want the only eligible person FROM our universe to win..." Cold replied.

"Oh." I said, relieved. "Plus, I want to be the first person to kill you in this 'Omniverse'." Cold said. "...Less motivating, but okay..." I said. The bartender came over with Captain Cold's beer. "Twenty-five Omilli-" I interrupted the bartender. "He's with me." I said. "...On the house, then. Anything else?" the bartender asked. "Maybe a scotch." I said. The bartender left to grab my drink. "Well, Snart, I would love to hang out, but I can't stay for long." I then said as I turned towards Snart. "I have to get ready for the tournament, gonna hit the Dojo and trai-"

"I can train you." Cold said.

"What?" I asked, confused.

"I will see it as a win for our universe. Not a win for you." Snart answered, a Cold look on his face.

BA DUM TSS

"...Alright. You can train me." I said.

After our drinks, we proceeded towards the Dojo entrance.

[Schwi Dola]

As the group finished their Ramen they all got up to leave and the weird black demon got up with them. It seemed like he was going to go with them, so Desco thought it was important to introduce herself and DesX now. She didn't mind Carn at all, Desco was accepting of everyone while DesX was more reserved. "I'm Desco and this is DesX! Are you going to be a contestant Carn? Desco is!" "So I am." Carn started to drool a little which he wiped off. With Desco going to DA, Carn would have his chance when he wasn't full. "I'm going too!" "Cool! Maybe we'll see you there! So what should we do now?"

The group started to walk along the restaurants, but they had already eating so they weren't looking for one of those. Across the way were some other kinds of establishments like Karaoke and Bars with pool tables as well as things with unamable things with unamable creatures eating unamable foods. There were all kinds here, perhaps moreso than the standard universes where people tended to go with the verse that they felt most comfortable in.

Desco heard the familiar tones of ancient video games like those she was already familiar with. Soon they got into view of a tall establishment painted completely red with a giant symbol and below that a sign that said ATARI. "Hey hey look! An Arcade! Let's go there!" "Sounds fun." DesX glanced at Carn who still unnerved her for some reason. "Okay." They all went into the Arcade and all around them in the first part of the store were standard move a crane to pick up prizes or push buttons and other prize winning games. The prizes ranged from stuffed animals to 12" figurines of anime characters none of them were familiar with to all of the trinkets and other merchandise that you could think of.

They had a special going on that provided free tokens for Primes participating in Dante's Abyss if they'd take a picture so the place could show that they had visited. So with pockets full of coins they moved on to the video game arcade machines. There were such classics as Galaga and Galaxian and Pacman to Monkey Kong and Road Fighter 3 Super Deluxe Turbo Edition. But Desco pointed to a machine called Teenage Mutant Ninja Frogs: Amphibians in Time. The humanoid frogs were on the screen walking down some street getting attacked and beating human Ninjas that ran at them. The scene shifted and suddenly they were on some planet in a protected area, through the glass they could see the barren landscape and stars, while fighting off robots and ninjas. "Let's try that one! Look its four player so we can all play!" Desco slotted coins into the machine already as the others responded. "Sure." "I'll play, Desco." "I could try it."

[Chloe Price]

"I just realized that there IS no door between the Dojo and the Recreation Room. Not one I know of, anyway." I said, realizing our previous mistake. "Awkward..." Snart replied. We then turned around and started heading towards the Lobby doors.

"So, Snart, what makes you want to train me, exactly...?" I asked Snart on the way there. "Again, imagining it as a victory for our universe, not for you." Snart replied. "Harsh..." I said. "I tell it like it is." Snart said, dead serious.

"Later on today, I'm gonna be forced into the Barracks, and then tomorrow's the start of the competition, so we have to get to the training area while we can." I said to Snart, starting to super speed towards the door while holding Snart by the ear. Like usual in the Omniverse, I ran into the wall. "What I'm shocked about is, I was dragging you so you'd get there faster, how did you not get hurt?" I asked Snart. "I was dragging behind, you were pulling me by the ear." Snart replied. Nonetheless, we walked into the Lobby.

[Carn_Val]

Me, Carn, the black humanform Anomaly am here, right beside a being who feels much like me for some reason. She called herself a princess, a word that may represent a higher status but still foreign enough for me to really just give out a blank stare. I try to ask her again, she replies with a sort of puzzle. What's 'I am my own being'? She made her own form?? Cool. Just to try to feed my curiousity, I dab a little bit of my pointy, black tongue at her facial features. Oddly enough, she did taste like one of us. Too bad she wasn't the one I was looking for since her flavor didn't match with the scent that caught my attention. I stare at her other two companions, "Surely, it's them," I thought to myself with a little drool.

As I was about to go for the other two, they introduce themselves to me, halting my intended advance. Somehow, they drag me out of the Ramen Shop and have me tag along with them. I walk with them into a closed, hollow box of concrete full of neon lights and repeating music. Its an arcade, says so on the wall, whatever that means. Looking around in wonder as I witness someone going out of his way to kick an arcade cabinet to death, I easily fill myself with questions on normal human behavior. "I hav-" I said, trying to ask a question when I suddenly get interrupted by the chimes and rattle of tokens being dumped on my hand. "What's this for?"

Without much of a word to complete a conversation, I was being led by this 'being' into one of the more flashy arcade cabinets that seemed to accomodate 4 people, perfect. From the looks of it, it was a fighting game. I tap a few red buttons and the machine says I chose Plato, the red Ninja Frog. I press the flashing start button and the other three followed, only allowing me to hear the last character selected, which is Socrates, the orange Ninja Frog. The story starts us off in the sewage of the city, kicking every guy who wasn't a frog right on the face.


A few minutes in and a couple of tokens later, I was enjoying the simplicity of the game. It seems teamwork is effective when everyone understands each other. It inspired me to do better with my self and caused me to ask a question out of thin air. "After all this Dante's Abyss hype is gone and the event finished, will any of you help me build a place for beings like me? Guu? Desco? DesX?" I asked them plainly, not even expecting a positive answer. Somehow, it feels better to just let things happen and ask them rather than going aggressively with some begging involved. "I planned to join DA to help me fund my own place for Anomalies, maybe meet nice people along the way," I tell them with a genuine smile. "Honestly, I'm glad I get to hangout with being similar to me," I confessed. "One more thing, I need to confirm something," I continued, grabbing the little Desco from below her armpits, liftibg her up to shoulder level. Desco tries to wiggle her feet and tail, not out of objection but wonder. I simply slap the wieght of my tongue on her forehead as I slather sweet Anomaly saliva on her face and hair. DesX seemed more shock than her prototype. "Yep, it was you," I declare with a smile, satisifed to know who was the owner of such a tasty smell. I guess I can't eat her though, she's a friend now.

Just as I was about to win the game with my new friends, a PA system announces a message throughout the verse. "All participating primes, please proceed to the barracks. Late-comers will be escorted in. It kept on repeating itself until some clanking noises seemed to unlock something. Thinking it was supposed to me for me, I wave at the friendly trio, good bye. "I hope we meet again in DA! I wish you luck girls!"

After all that cheesy little parting, I walk into the direction the arrows said 'Barracks' . I hope I get to talk with the Marines.