Songs of INNOCENCE (MGLN INNOCENT Quest)

[InfiniteDaze]

Brave Duel.

That was the name of the game that has been sweeping the nation. Just a few months after it's release and hundreds have flocked to your district of the city just to play it, so it's only natural that you got curious about.

"Welcome!" The cashier lady greets you, "How may I help you today?"

You take a flyer out of you pocket and point to it.

Even with how popular the game was there are still only three places where you can play the game. You don't really understand how such a thing can occur but you aren't going to question it right away, not with the faction/style sort of thing they have going on...

Speaking of, just where are you beginning your foray into Brave Duel?

[] A hobby shop and the most popular place to play the game.Team Style: Mid-Childan
[] A book store... with an underground arena? Team Style: Belkan
[] A research center. Apparently this game leaves nothing untouched. Team Style: Industry

"Ah of course, you have the fee yes?" You take out the money, having it ready in your pocket since leaving the house, and hand it over to her in record time. "Thank you. Wait a just one moment please."

She disappears for a second before bringing you two containers, a small white object that you could almost mistake for a chip and a fancy looking red pouch inscribed with wings and magical runes. "These are your Data Cartridge and Brave Holder. The first one is your player identification and data recorder while your Brave Holder holds all your cards so make sure you don't lose them! Now I can show you to the Card Loader if you just come this way..." She smiles and gestures towards a doorway.

You follow the lady down the busy halls until you reach the main area, full of people playing the game. All kinds of people have gathered here, like a sanctuary away from the rest of the world. In the middle a huge stage rests underneath a monitor which was displaying one of the fights that you had heard so much about. Magical spells and fighting techniques flew through an arena, different from the videos you had seen online.

"It's amazing isn't it?" Your companion asks you as you take it all in, "For one game to bring this many people together, it's almost a miracle."

You nod your head a little in agreement.

"Speaking of, why don't you tell me a little more about yourself?"

Well...

[] You were always told you resembled your sister perfectly. Masquerade
[] You're the one to smile in the face of tragedy. Partners in Crime
[] You're a mechanical engineer who wanted to build machines that help people. Fresh Start Fever
[] You're just a simple coffee shop worker. Untraveled Road

"Is that so? Ah, we're here."

You blink before staring at the huge capsule in front of you. When you were told about them you almost laughed it off but to see it in real life...

"Now, put your cartridge into this container and step into the capsule, after that enter your personal info and try not to move as the camera scans your body."

You quickly follow her instructions, eyes widening at the holographic display before a brief flash of light overcomes you.

"Hm, that's strange." The lady comments, "It appears an error occured in your registration. Let's try that one more time..."

This time the machine got it right and you... take the card that appears out of thin air.

You just aren't even going to question this anymore.

"Well, enjoy your time here and we hope you'll come back to us soon."

You stare at the card in your hands.

This is it. The start of many things to come, you can feel it.

You didn't know it but at that moment you had just taken your first step into something much bigger than yourself. A new story was about to unfold, and you were about to be placed as a key player in the events to come. Enemies will be made, friends will be forged through fire, and everything will be put on the line.

Are you ready?

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

So in an effort to break through a writer's block I didn't even know I had, I decided to try and push myself to do something and somehow this is what spiraled out.

What this basically boils down to is me taking INNOCENCE and slightly reimagining it.

You won't see much of the original here, mostly because a variant of it has already taken place, but I'm still willing to go have some fun.

And if you're still willing to follow me in then well, who am I to disagree?

 

[InfiniteDaze]

Kyouya Takamachi

• Main Bio Eclipse Drive Cards Techniques Weapon

  • 
    
    
    Name: Kyouya Takamachi
    Age: 16
    Title: The Godly Ace
    
    Info:
    
    Older brother of the rising star of the Brave Duel world, Nanoha Takamachi, he is the protagonist of this quest and has only joined Brave Duel in order to test and sharpen his skill with the sword against a variety of opponents. Ever since he was a young boy he has dedicated himself to cultivating the sword as the heir to the Fuwa-ryū sword style and has thus become considerably skilled in both fighting and terrain movement.
    
    A man of composure, he is skilled at reading people allowing him to rarely be surprised at the actions of others, and is considerably mature for his age. His preferred hobbies are fishing and bonsai trees but he does work in his family coffee shop Midoriya after school from time to time.
    
    He is also a ladies man, though this is not something he does on purpose.
    
    
  • 
    Name: Untraveled Road
    Namesake: Untraveled Road by Thousand Foot Krutch
    
    The Eclipse Drive belonging to the Ace. It allows the user to split into three different routes that appear to the world around it like illusions. While this ability is activated the user is invincible but will take the damage sustained in the route that he has chosen.
    
    At the moment this drive is at the Basic level, causing the user to not be able to recognize or see the other routes during activation and must stitch back the memories of the routes after use due to not being able to mentally handle comprehending all three at once. This can be fixed by training.
    
  • 
    Round Shield: Creates a round shield in front of the user.
    
    Flash Moves: Moves the user to another location at super fast speeds. Does not work for the long term travel.
    
    Chain Bind: Sends multiple Chains to immobilize a target.
    
  • 
    Flash Impact: A variation of Flash Move that sends the user at high speeds to a target in order to let out a devastating blow.
    
    Chain Anchor: A variation of Chain Bind that wraps itself around an object and pulls the user closer.
    
    Sound Sensing: Kyouya can trace a map of his environment and position of his opponents just by the sound that they make.
    
    Fuwa Mikami School Twin Kodachi Mikami Style: The school of sword that Kyouya both trains and teaches.
    
  • 
    Not much is known about it other than being two futuristic purple and black katanas. An inbuilt AI does not seem to have come out with it though that remains to be seen.
    
    Peculiarly, one of the blades only shows when the Eclipse Drive is activated.
    
    Currently does not have a name.
    

 

[InfiniteDaze]

You lift your eyes up from the card and look at the store keeper, a slight smile on your face.

"Thank you." You respond, clutching the card tightly. "I hope I enjoy it here as well. To be honest, I can't wait to get started. I've heard good things about it."

"Hm, that's quite the spirit you have there." There's a sparkle in her eyes, you note,
something that just seems to draw people towards her. "Well if you're going to be a repeat customer it's only fair I tell you my name. Don't want you to call me 'that lady' all the time."

"Of course not," You chuckle, "I would never be so rude as to call a women in such a way."

"And a gentleman as well. I can see how you could work at a coffee shop, just talking to you makes me feel like my problems have vanished." There's another round of light laughter before she finally reaches a hand to you, green hair blowing in the wind. "My name's Lindy Harlaown, one of the co-owners of this hobby shop. It's nice to meet you mister...?"

You take her hand and shake it hard, staring directly in her eyes as the grin on your face grows even wider.

"Kyouya Takamachi mam, pleasure to meet you."

That's right... You are KYOUYA TAKAMACHI, heir to the Fuwa-ryu sword style, and has come to this hobby shop in order to try out Brave Duel while hopefully finding new opponents to test your sword skills on. While practicing with your siblings was challenging and all, you decide that this might be worth a try and here you are.

"Truly?" Lindy asks as she let go over your hand. "Any relationship to Nanoha Takamachi?"

"Ah yes, that would be my little sister," You reply, "truthfully she was the one I had first heard about Brave Duel from. I can still remember her gushing about it all night on the dinner table before going dreamy eyed on us, was almost impossible to snap her out of it and by the time we did her food had already gone cold."

"Is that so?" The green haired woman responds, struggling to hold in her laughter. "Well you can find the main game over in that direction, though I recommend you go talk with your sister first. She and her friends are the main team of our shop, the T&H Elements. I'm sure they'd be happy to show you the ropes. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go manage the other customers."

"It's no problem, I hope to see you again soon Mrs. Lindy."

"And you as well Kyouya."

You wave your hand in goodbye to the woman and she returns the same, leaving you alone in the store.

Well since you are already here, you might as well check up on your sister right?

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

On your way there you had ordered a small drink from the food counter, sipping it along the way before you finally spot a familiar pigtailed girl having a peaceful talk with a blonde haired girl in twin tails. Both of them sport a look of pure bliss on their face as their friends generally hung out around them, some familiar to you and others not.

Luckily, you can make out what they're saying from your location as you draw closer to the group.

"So then she let off a huge amount of bombardment spells and I did the same! It was a really pretty explosion of colors." Your sister gushes, waving her hands everywhere. "You should've seen it Fate!"

"I wish I had Nanoha, it seems like you had quite the day."

"Nyhahaha, well even though flying is my specialty I don't mind being powerful as well."

"Really? I always preferred speed and precision myself." You interrupt, now standing behind your sister before your hand goes on top of her head. "So this is the place you've been hanging out recently."

Her body goes still before she whips her head around and whacks your hand off it, staring at you in shock. "Kyouya!? What are you doing here?!"

"Why to play Brave Duel of course, what else?" You reply teasingly, taking a look around before settling your eyes on Fate. "So you're the girl Nanoha has told me about. I'm Kyouya, Nanoha's older brother, it's very nice to meet you Fate."

"I-It's nice to meet you to." She stutters out, eyes wide. "If I m-may ask, what has she said about me?"

"Oh you know, this and that." You chuckle as her eyes go even wider. It really makes you wonder what she's thinking as Nanoha begins to pout underneath you.

"Mou, Kyouya..." She grumbles, tucking her arms together. "The least you could've done was tell me you were coming, I would've been happy to show you around."

"So Mrs. Lindy says." The smile on your face hasn't left since you last talked to her now that you think about, "Anyways, you think you could introduce me to your friends?"

"Of course!" Your sister exclaims as the rest of the girls had turned to face you, the two that you already knew about giving you small waves in acknowledgement. "You already know Arisa and and Suzaka, but over there is Fate's older sister Alicia, don't mind the fact that she looks around the same age as us, she's older-"

"You bet I am!" The girl yells, interrupting your sister by leaping up on top of the table and taking your hand. "Hi there! Welcome to T&H! As Nanoha already explained I'm my adorable little sister Fate's older sibling and the announcer girl here for most Brave Duels here! We hope you enjoy your time here!"

"Well, it's nice to know my sister has such enthusiastic friends." You reply before freeing your hands. "Though shouldn't you keep your feet off the table?"

"Eh?" She lets out before looking down at where her feet where. "Oh whoops!"

You watch in amusement as she jumps back down before rubbing the of her head sheepishly. "Can you not tell Mrs. Lindy I did that? She'll have me cleaning the table twice over if she knew, though my mother is the other owner so I don't think it would be too bad..."

"So," A new voice cuts in, taking your attention away to the red head school girl which was tapping her foot impatiently with a mischievous grin on her face. "You're Nanoha's older brother."

You don't bother replying as you see something in her eyes, a warrior's soul. One that had seen many fair share of battles, yet you're intrigued by how this one somehow retained its innocence.

"Well It's only fit that I introduce myself," She continues on, not bothering with your lack of reply. "The name's Vita Yagami, The Knight of the Iron Hammer! I may be hanging around here, but my loyalties lie to the other Brave Duel center at Yagami's!"

"Oh, I see..." Hm, something caught your interest in that little speech. "And I assume that title's not just for show?"

"Of course not!" Both of your grins widen as you size each other up. Yes, this is what you were looking for. A fighter, even if it was in the form of a little grade school girl. "I'm one of the best player's in the game! I've been playing since the beta as well, there's almost no one who can beat me! Though now that I mention it, Nanoha was pretty good in her first duel. I wonder if the same applies to you?"

"Is that a challenge?"

"It damn well could be."

"N-Now hold on a minute!" Fate interrupts, slamming her hand down on hands table. "Even if he is somehow skilled, you've been at this game for way longer then him! If he's going to have his first duel, t-then I'd be glad to show him the ropes while you'd just smack him around!"

"Whoo, go our ace!" Alicia cheers in the background. "Don't let the devil knight tempt him!"

"Wha-hey! What do you mean 'vile knight'?!" Vita yells back, before staring Fate in the eyes.

There's a tense moment of silence before both girls turn to you at the same time and shout in unison.

"CHOOSE!!!"

Jeez, just what have you gotten yourself into...

[] Vita (Increased relationship with Vita, better standing with Yagami's actually looks challenging)
[] Fate (Increased relationship with Fate, better standing at T&H, don't really know much about her besides what you can remember from Nanoha)

 

[InfiniteDaze]

"Hm," you mutter to yourself before making your decision. "Well, I feel like going up against Fate would be best. Hopefully we can have our duel some other time Vita."

"Hmph, just afraid you're going to lose..." Vita grumbles, turning her head away from the rest of the group so that she could get away with pouting.

You... kind of have the feeling that you just dodged a bullet there.

"Don't worry Kyouya," Fate reassures you. "I'll help you out so you can go against Vita. Now there should be some open capsules right over there..."

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


<Connecting to database>

<Connecting Senses to System>

<Error, player data corrupted>

<You have come>

The city was so silent.

It was amazing what this VR technology could do, creating the illusion of an abandoned city that was never populated to begin with-

A loud bang resounded through the building you were hiding in. But it only causes you to smirk. Closing your eyes, you listen to the sound racing through the building, tracing the interior of the structure thanks to the vibrations in the air.

...She's moving impossibly fast, zipping through the hallways on the direct opposite of the floor. Pretty soon she's on the other side of the door leading to the room you were in. You leap onto the wall and run over them, crossing to the other side of the room right as she burst into the room with a zap of electricity.

"Huh?' You hear her mumble. "The radar says he's here-"

You don't even let her finish that sentence. Gripping the futuristic katana in your hands, you spring off the wall and strike at her exposed back with a quick downward slash. In a flash, she whips around and parries your stab with her black and yellow scythe, her energy weapon bathing the black-and-purple blade of your sword in an electric yellow glow.

You launch a flurry of strikes. She struggles to keep up with your blows, forced on the defensive and yet still being pushed back to the edge of the room. Her weapon refuses to be dent. She skids to halt and sends a flying kick to your face. You duck her foot but blink in surprise when she vanishes in a burst of electricity.

A moment later, you're blown through the wall and onto the open street. After rolling a couple of times, you managed to use your momentum to flip yourself back onto your feet.

"So that's what being hit by a mana blast feels like," you mutter.

She touches down on the street, black coat blowing through in the wind as she brings her Device to bear.

"You're pretty good for your first time." Fate brushes some hair out of her eyes. "Nanoha told me you practice your family sword style but I didn't expect facing you to be like this."

"Oh? She told you that? Didn't she also give you a demonstration?"

"Mhm, i-it was amazing..."

"Oi, Earth to Fate." Arisa's voice cuts through your chatter. A holographic panel pops out near Fate's face. Her sister looks annoyed. "Don't get lost in a trance now. You're still in a duel, remember?"

"Ah! R-Right!"

You chuckle as she goes bright red before trying to put on a serious expression in front of you. "K-Kyouya, you should use your skill cards..."

"Ah right, those." You shrug. "I had been putting those off since I don't know how to adapt them to my style."

You bring up the three cards that you had obtained from the card loader.

Flash Move

Round Shield

Chain Bind

"The cards are controlled by your imagination," Fate explains. "So if you can imagine it you can control the spell into any output you want. That makes them very flexible."

Imagination huh?

"I'll let you get the first strike in if you need time to prepare-"

Flash Move Loaded

The world moves into a blur. You're now standing in front of the blond girl, and as your sword arm begins to move, you can clearly see the shocked expression on her face.

"Flash Impact." You whisper almost companionably as you bring your sword up into a devastating slash that sends her flying. You're pretty sure that would've killed her in real life but here she instantly gets back up into a lightning fast dash.

Learned [Flash Impact]!

"Hakken Saber!" You hear the girl roar as she swung her scythe in your direction. A golden energy wave leapt from her weapon and screamed towards you. Instinctively you sidestep it, but as you turn your attention back to Fate, you hear the crackling grow louder instead of softer.

You look over your shoulder and stare at the energy wave that has inexplicably come back around to attack you from behind. You're so confused by the improbable sight that you can only stare as it reaches your face.

And then it explodes.

The bright yellow blast rattles your guard. You have little time to dodge when an electrical scythe cut down on where you had been standing a heartbeat ago.

You were starting to hate explosions.

"You're doing well at dodging," Fate comments as you jump away from her. "But it's going to take a lot more than that! Piercing Lancer!"

You barely had any time to register the glaive before it slammed into your chest. You are blasted into the nearby wall, and some of its rubble collapses into you even as you struggled to get back up to your feet.

Fate takes her time to walk towards you before lunging forward. Fast; she's moving too fast. You barely have any time to act before she attacks you again and again. You don't know if you could fight her off when you barely have time to register the tricks she's pulling on you...

"Do you give up yet?" She asks this while she stares into your eyes during a brief break. "We can quit now if you want."

...No. Not like this.

"....One last shot." You return her stare with twice the intensity. "If I can't dodge this last attack then we give up for the day."

It was not often that your pride came up. And you were clearly not used to the way things worked here. But something inside of you screamed with all it's might that you will not fall here.

And you were more then happy to agree with that inner voice.

"V-very well." The stuttering blonde hastens to hold up her Device to the sky."I'll pour my all into this last attack for you."

You're already on the run before she even finished her sentence. You hop onto the side of the nearest building and start jumping between them to build up your momentum.

And then the Binds came, literal lightning braking your momentum and forcing you to drop to the ground. You struggled uselessly as a ball of condensed lightning begins to form above you.

Well shit.

"Thunder Rage!"

As the bolt of thunder came towards you there was a part of you that acknowledged her skill, even if you didn't really have a clue as to what that skill really was. You knew she must have worked hard to obtain it and you respected that.

But for the most part the world slowed to crawl and the main thing on your mind was MOVE MOVE MOVE MOVE MOVE MOVE MOVEMOVEMOVEMOVEMOVE!!!

And then the world stopped.

<Connection Established>

Poor swordsman, trapped in a distant land.

I hear your plight and answer the call.

In exchange for power I request you one thing.

Seek me.

Kill me

Four apostles have been chosen, when all four have gathered only then will the way be clear.

But be warned, time is not on your side.

The barriers of your world are crumbling.

Day to Night.

Dusk to Dawn.

And everything will fade in the Eclipse.

Style gained! Kyouya is now a practitioner of the Eclipse Style!

Untraveled Road Ability gained!

Title Gained: The Godly Ace

<Thou shall not be afraid, I am with you>

<Reactor Activated>

<RERISE UP!>​

Fate's binds disappear as you use your surging new strength to-

Raise your sword in a blur of action and block the incoming lightning bolt-

Attempt to get back up to your feet and-

Roll to the side, dodging the incoming strike and get back up in your feet.

Your memories slam into you as the whole battle screeches to a halt.Things that you did and yet you didn't race into your mind. You try to regain a grip on yourself, only to realized that you have changed.

Your clothes have changed, you note. You distinctly recall starting the fight in your school uniform, but now you wore a blue jacket over a black shirt akin to a business suit.

As you check out your new threads, you feel something crawling down your right arm. You stare in fascination as what appears to be black ink traces a tattoo towards the back of your right hand. Once there the ink forms a shape similar to a cross.

Most importantly, you distinctly recall having just one sword. But now you held two swords.

"Eh? Kyouya? What's going on?" Fate runs up to you but stops when you gesture at her with your heavily-armed hands.

"...I'm not really sure myself." You held your two blades opposite each other in a familiar stance. "But some how, I feel like I can stand against you on even footing now."

"Are you sure?"

"Please Fate," you request. "Let's find out."

"Very well then." She sighs, nodding her head and readying Bardiche. "I don't know what's going on. But if you're fine with taking me on, then this time I won't hold back!"

Fate Testarossa
Ace of Lightning
Style: Mid-Childan
Team: T&H Element

Duel Start!​

[] Write In Battle Plan

All cards have been reloaded.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Untraveled Road - Eclipse Drive held by the ACE. Allows the user to split his movements into three hypothetical routes before choosing which path he'd like to take.

If you wondering how it works, think weaponized server lag.

And here we see just what I mean by operating on Rule of Cool. A pinch of Force, a batch full of INNOCENT, and a cup of shounen tropes makes the heart and soul of this quest folks.

The character sheet will be up by tomorrow.

 

[InfiniteDaze]

[X] Use Untraveled Road.
-[X] Road 1: Direct frontal assault, Chain Bind as you occupy her from the front with a flurry of blows.
-[X] Road 2: Rush feint and Flash Move to her side blind spot(where her hair blocks the view) and strike from there.
-[X] Road 3: Aggressive defense, rush her, and focus on cutting down attacks, bait out a big attack, catch it on Round Shield as you get in under her defense.
-[X] Settle on Road 2

It's amazing. You feel faster. Stronger. A rush beginning to boil inside you. It feels like you're about to explode with energy. You have no idea what just happened but you're certainly not complaining.

"Split." You intone and then-

"Chain bind!" You yell, causing her eyes to widen as a magic circle appeared in front of you before a bunch of chains shoot out. In a flash she disappeared from the direction of the chains but you're already on the move, running across the buildings, keeping pace with her, striking downwards with a powerful strike. Your hands become a blur as you attempt to create even more blurring. She tries to attack but-

"Flash Move!" You yell as she dodges something in shock. You barely notice how she seems to not being paying attention to you as she tries to counter something before attacking her side, causing her to give a cry. For a brief moment your eyes meet before she suddenly gets distracted.

You leap towards your distracted opponent, launching lightning-fast strikes at her while blocking every single one of her flailing counterstrikes. Her head spins as a look of pure panic crosses her face.

"Keep your head in the fight," you whisper. A look of determination crosses her face before she looks dead at you.

"Scythe Slash!" She yells as she hurls an energy blade at you. You smirk, calling up on your Round Shield as you block the strike-

Except you don't know what the hell she's thinking since you're over here, having flanked her already. Taking advantage of your advantageous position, you slam the hilt of one of your swords into her side. As she staggers from that painful impact upon her ribs, you take the other sword and ram its blunt hilt into her torso, knocking the wind out of her. Her eyes widen as you kick her down to the ground and slam your foot on her back, pointing the sword in your left hand at her head.

"I win, Fate," you mutter as your memories begin to stitch themselves back together. "Do you give up?"

She slowly turns her head at you with a tired look, alternating between your sword and your foot before sighing. "It's your victory."

"Well, wasn't that a match?" Alicia's face fills up the holographic screen. "But just what was that at the end?! You seemed to split in three!"

"To be quite honest, I don't know myself," you shrug, "All I was thinking about was being able to keep up with Fate and then.... I just moved and I could do that."

"It could be something like an avatar skill similar to Hayate's Lord of Glory avatar," Suzaka suggests upon joining the conversation.

"Oh, nice catch Suzaka!" Arisa then realizes something. "Hey what's with all these cheat-like avatars?!"

"W-Well even without that he's a pretty good fighter," Fate defends you as you take her foot off her and help her get back on her feet. Once she's standing, she brushes something off her cloak. "You didn't make any unnecessary movements when you attacked me."

Oh? "You caught that?"

She nods. "My lightning-type avatar enhances my senses and reflexes. It wasn't too difficult to see your attacks. Though that doesn't mean I could keep up entirely with your assault. You were coming at me from three directions at once...."

You sigh before shaking her hand. To think technology has evolved to the level where you could alter someone's reflexes...

"Don't worry about it, I don't really understand what happened there as well, but it was nice having you as my first opponent."

The blonde girl blushes and looks away. "I-It was nice fighting against you to Kyouya."

DUEL END
WINNER: Kyouya Takamachi

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
​

Dinner is an... interesting affair.

"And then Kyouya was like ching and split into three!" Your little sister squeals excitedly over dinner. "I couldn't really keep track of anything and then everything was over!"

"My, my, Kyouya," Your mother puts a hand to her face. "Looks like you had an interesting day?"

"Mn..." You finish the last of your food. "I definitely will be playing again."

"Really?!" You swear her eyes have stars in them as she looks at you with the biggest smile you have ever seen on her face. "That's great!"

"Hm, I might have to try it myself with the way you two are acting." Your other sister, Miyuki, smirks. "Though pretty soon mom and dad will be all alone during the afternoons."

"Eh?!" Your sister exclaims. "No no! I'll still help! I promise I will!"

Everybody gets a good laugh as Nanoha goes bright red. Your eyes idly glance at your right hand which you had covered up for most of the day. You aren't sure how but...

There, sitting on your right hand, is the same cross that had appeared on your Brave Duel avatar.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
​

The school bell rings and pretty soon you are excused from class. You don't really have to help in the shop today, but you're pretty sure your parents would appreciate it. You could also polish up on your swordsmanship skills in the dojo.

Of course that's not counting playing Brave Duel.

It is currently Monday. (Pick two)

[] Work at the Midoriya

[] Polish up your swordsmanship skills

[] Play Brave Duel at...
-[] T&H

[] Explore
-[] Yagami's
-[] Granz research center

AN: So it's been a literal month.

Alright so... let me explain some things.

We'll be following a schedule system, due to most of the plot of this being something you guys have to find and to have something else rather than BRAVEDUELBRAVEDUELBRAVEDUEL-

You get the point.

So let me explain. Working at the Midoriya, while not mandatory, will grant you some money. What you do with the money is up to you; you could spend it on dates for all I care. Hell, go buy money for mobile games; that's a money sink if I ever saw one. Midoriya is closed on Sunday due to your dad being a soccer coach.

Training is not really required given, you know, you're Kyouya. But you could also train with other people once you get a high enough relationship, allowing them to be more combat-effective.

Locations are locked until you explore them. After that you can go to them whenever you please.

You could hang out with someone. But you don't really have that many people to hang out with, so that's not even an option at this point. Go get some friends.

Also this marks the end of the prologue, yay! Why yay? Because this means I get to stop using titles incorporating the word INNOCENCE.

Here's your damn update.

 

[InfiniteDaze]

"Thank you for coming to Midoriya." A charming smile graces your face as the girl in front of you blushes before running out of the store with her baked goods.

Work is at its usual pace today, customers of all variety moving in and out of the shop. Some come here to hang out with friends, some come here to relax, and some just rush straight out of the store.

You used to think it'd be hard, but you've gotten used to it over the years. Everything comes to you like second nature now and the time seems to go by like a breeze as you make small talk with the patrons who visit the shop.

It's just when the usual afternoon rush seems to be dying down that the phone rings, disrupting your attempt to stifle a yawn.

"Midoriya, how I can I help you?" You greet the moment you pick up the phone. There's some shuffling over the end of the line before a nervous voice reaches your ears.

"Hi, um, I'm with the Granz Research Center, we want to the, uh, usual?" It was a female voice, definitely, though not one you recognized. "Sorry, they wouldn't tell me what it is no matter how much I asked."

"It's not a problem, I know what you're talking about." You chuckle. "I know what you're talking about. I take it you're new?"

"Yeah, first day on the job." The women on the other end replies, audibly relaxing by way of letting out a breath of relief. "They just told me to call this number and ask for the usual."

"That's alright," A slight smile crosses your face, "They discovered us about a month ago and have been ordering nonstop ever since. Anyways, your price will be..."

You got money! Your savings are adequate.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Soon enough your shift is done, and before long you found yourself standing before a bookstore.

Yagami's was known for two things according to the internet. The first being that it was the host of the Belkan fighting style of Brave Duel, specializing more on the melee fighting between opponents. You had thought of coming here first but apparently things can get a little... Brutal here.

No one was willing to corroborate on that, but you could hazard a guess or two on what that meant.

You had also heard that due to it being a family owned business, the staff of the center were a bit quirky, with the owner said to frequently act as an eccentric commentator during battles.

Then again, you also heard that she was nine years old. So who knows if that was true or not.

But here you were, admiring the homely feel of the antique book shop that served as Yagami's primary business. The floorboards creaked when you walked on them, there wasn't a bit of dust anywhere and all the books were neatly organized....

It was also devoid of any employees.

That's not to say it was closed, no. The doors were unlocked, so it had to be open for business, but you couldn't find any employees at all. A sigh escapes your lips as you take one last glance at the bookstore, wondering if you should walk away before a familiar voice calls out to you.

"Do you need any help?" She asks as you turn around, only to tense up immediately at the sight of someone you did not expect.

Mature eyes stared back at you from behind a pink pair of glasses. She was far younger than you, being more around your sister's age...

To put it the best way you could say it, she was a dead ringer for your sister. If it wasn't for the hair style and color they would look practically identical. At best, you could probably say she took after your father and no one would question it.

"Hm, did I startle you?" The mysterious girl asks, adjusting her glasses. "My apologies, you simply looked like you needed help."

"No, it's fine." You try to reassure her by putting on a smile. "You just look like someone I know is all."

"I see." She nods. A flash of understanding crosses her eyes before a slight chuckle escapes her lips. "Does this person happen to be named Nanoha Takamachi?"

Nanoha knows- And she didn't tell- Never mind, now is not the time to try and figure out your sister's thought process. That'll give you a headache for days.

"You guessed correctly. That girl just so happens to be my younger sister," Your muscles relax as you hold out a hand to the girl. "Kyouya Takamachi."

"Stern Starks," The brunet takes your hand and gives you a firm shake. " I assume you're trying to find your way into the arena?"

"You're quite good at reading people." You chuckle, "If you would be so kind?"

Stern nods again before leading you into the shop, guiding you into the middle of a square indent in front of the counter.

"Each Brave Duel center has it's own way of handling customers," Stern begins, easily vaulting over the counter nonchalantly all the while. "Hayate, the owner of Yagami's, has an inclination towards the dramatics, so she hid the Arena and forces customers have to look for it. Most just look it up on the internet or ask a staff member."

She bends over and fiddles with something behind the counter before a metal fence pops out of the ground.

"This is one of those dramatic entrances." Stern declares, flipping a hidden switch. The floor beneath you rumbles and starts to descend as Stern clears the counter again, somersaulting in midair before landing right next to you.

"Nice leap." You tell her with slight applause.

"Thank you."

The platform slowly picks up speed as it goes deeper underground. It almost comes to the point where you have to hold onto the rails before it finally comes to a screeching halt in front of a metal wall.

"Identification: Stern Starks."

The metal wall turns out to be a door that slides upward as Stern casually walks through the now open dimly lit passageway, with you following quickly behind her.

Eventually the light once again reaches your eyes and you find yourself on a raised platform, the sound of roaring fans rise from the ground.

"Stern! Glad you could make it!" A new voice exclaims, "I knew you would come!"

Suddenly your companion is tackled by a brown blur and you're greeted by the amusing scene of a girl snuggling up to your sister's look-alike on the floor. The touchy-feely greeter continues her assault while Stern stares up at you blank faced before the new girl suddenly notices you, causing her to jump off poor Stern.

"And you even brought a guy with you!" Stern's assaulter shouts, looking you up and down.

"The name's Kyouya Takamachi." A small chuckle almost escapes your lips while you dodge a kick Stern sends your way. "I hear my sister's been making quite a name for herself?"

"Ah! You're the ninja Vita was talking about last night!" The girl exclaims, nodding enthusiastically while putting a hand to her chin. "My name's Hayate Yagami, owner of Yagami's of course!"

...So the internet was right. The owner of Yagami's really was nine years old.

You hear Stern sigh before picking herself off the floor and turning to face the two of you while adjusting her glasses "Now that the introductions are out of the way, you said something about a new duelist who caught your eye?"

"So you did get my message!" Hayate cheerfully shouts before visibly calming down, looking away nervously as she continues. "And about that, well... See for yourself."

She gestures to a big screen in the center of the room where you spot the now familiar form of Vita being sent flying.

The arena is outside an ancient castle this time, very unlike the abandoned city you had fought in just yesterday. The sky is dark, night covering the sky and yet still stars shined bright through the dark. But they all paled in comparison to the big full moon that illuminated the arena, causing the castle to gain an almost celestial glow of which a shadowy figure flipped in front of a in a big leap.

The entire thing looked like it had been lifted straight from a movie if you were being honest honest.

"D-Dammit!" Vita yelled as she grabbed the tip of one of the castle towers, using that as a handhold to swinging herself around. "How are you-"

The poor girl doesn't even have anytime to finish as her opponent descends on her like a meteor with one strong punch. Dust spreads through the area of impact but is quickly blown away by a sharp kick from her opponent, whose shadowy features are finally illuminated by moonlight.

The first thing you notice about her was her mismatched heterochromatic eyes, bright red and green, which seemed to have an intensity akin to that of fire. Her sweeping orange hair, which was tied up in a ponytail that went down to her waist, contrasted with her blue metallic bodysuit and white over-vest with an aura that just screamed fighter.

She was older than you and much older than Vita. Indeed, she stood almost like a giant compared to the tiny red-haired girl below her who just slowly looked up to her, only to be greeted to the sight of a grin sprawled across her opponent's face.

"Time for the finisher!" The orange haired women yelled as she picks Vita up off the ground before throwing her in the air. A metallic hammer appeared in her hands with a burst of light as the younger girl began to fall, and with a fierce roar the heterochromic warrior swung her hammer at the redhead, punctuating each word with a swing of her maul. "Eins! Zwei! Drei! Here! I! Go!"

What happened next could only be described as brutal. Vita's opponent swung such a flurry of blows with her hammer that even you could not follow her movements. Vita herself was knocked around like a ragdoll, almost turning into a red blur before the final hit sent her flying into the sky, vanishing off in the distance.

"And with that final blow, the newcomer has won against our very own Vita!" A new voice boomed throughout the stadium as the cheers from the crowd made your ears ache. "Give it up for Vivio Sägebrecht for winning her tenth match in a row!"

If the crowd made you feel like you were going deaf before now it felt like your ears had just been shot off with how loud they were.

"Sägebrecht?" Stern mumbles next to you as she stares at the proceedings. "Could it be? She did mention she had one..."

"You know her?" Hayate asks, leaning over the brunet's shoulder. "She appeared here a few days ago, and ever since then she's been taking the arena by storm."

"Maybe, maybe not." Your sister's doppleganger shrugs, "I've never met the girl before, if that's what you're asking."

The three of you watch in silence as a tired Vita and a very young-looking Vivio (much smaller than when she appeared on screen a few minutes earlier) come up on stage. The difference is jarring. Where there used to be a mature women, there now was an innocent looking girl around your sister's age, eyes filled with wonder as the crowd chants her name.

"So Vivio, do you plan on taking any more challengers?" This is asked by a blonde woman who appears on the big screen that had just previously shown the fight. The camera appears to have been shifted to the commentary box where the blonde is sitting alongside a white haired women and- is that Signum? She works here?

Huh, the more you know.

"Well..." Vivio trailed off as she looked at a watch on her wrist. "Ah! I think I have time for one more match! Would anyone like to have a go?"

The arena goes dead silent, no one saying a word as the tension ramps up. All of you waiting for someone to say something.

[] Accept
-[] Choose the way you accept

[] Ignore

AN: That girl at the beginning is Saiyuri Oda, a plain brown haired girl who laminates her plainness but is too shy to do something about it. She was told about the Midoriya by a couple of friends and instantly got a crush on Kyouya the moment she laid eyes on him but couldn't find the courage to speak to him.

You will also never hear from her again, as that entire moment was written completely by accident.

 

[InfiniteDaze]

You stare at the girl for a few seconds before making your decision.

"What do you say Stern?" You hear Hayate ask as you stretch your arms, "Want to take her up on the offe-"

"No need." You declare, "I'll take her on myself."

"Eh?!" The brunette responds, looking up at you in shock. "But didn't you just start playing
yesterday?

"So?" It's not even a concern in your mind. Maybe it is the years of wielding the sword, maybe it is something relating to the cross on your hand, or maybe it is just recklessness but you are fairly confident that you could handle this. Besides, this girl is a supposedly a "beginner" as well.

You doubt that. Even if you aren't an expert in fist fights you could tell that she has experience in the way she moved, not those of a little girl who had suddenly just picked up the art.

"Besides," you begin, a slight smile crossing your face as the words leave your lips. "I may have indirectly promised Vita a duel, and I can't do that if someone else has beaten her first."

Hayate just slowly turns her head to your sister's doppleganger, who gave a slight nod in return. "...Let him go."

"Well when you put it like that, how can I say no?" Yagami's owner chuckles, "You want to make a special entrance as well?"

"...Just turn the lights off for a bit."

"Righto!" The girl cheerfully declares as she pulls out her cellphone. Her thumbs turn into a blur before she suddenly looks up before giving you a grin. "You're good to go in three-"

You don't give her time to finish, jumping onto the wall behind you and beginning to run up it with your momentum as the stage goes black. Your eyes close and sound becomes your only companion as you run on the roof, mentally tracing the world around you before dropping right in front of your target.

To her credit the girl wastes no time at all in reacting, somehow managing to guess what was happening reacting in no time by sending a jab from her right hook flying your way. Your hands move by instinct and soon you're holding a little girl's fist in your left hand as the lights flicker back on.

She's tense, you realize, as you begin to take in everything you could see from a first glance up close. Bright red and green eyes look up at you in fear as you let go of her fist, feeling her hand squeezing in on herself as nails began to dig into the fingerless gloves she wore.

The girl reminds you of your sister, though she is dressed in much more casual clothes, a white hoodie and a pair of grey jeans. Then again, you suppose every little girl you've run into recently reminds you of Nanoha.

Your sister is weird like that.

Still, you couldn't let her be afraid of you, so you give her a comforting smile as the fear in her eyes began to transform into a fire as bright as the sun.

A moment of silence passes between the two of you as you size each other up before you give a response.

"I think I'll take you up on that offer."

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Well Signum, that was quite an entrance don't you agree?"

"I wouldn't call it exciting Shamal but I must admit it certainly got the crowd roaring for this fight."

"Speaking of, the match itself seems to be quite interesting ."

"I believe Reinforce is more capable of explaining this topic then I am."

"It would be my pleasure Signum. This duel is set to be a one on one match between challenger Kyouya Takamachi and new comer Vivio Sägebrecht in the Gladiator Arena, a special stage only hosted by our Belkan style. At first, it appears to be a normal colosseum but as time passes the environment inside the stage will drastically shift from a change of weather all the way to spawning new enemies for the duelers to deal with. Adaptation is the key for winning this fight, and those who don't get eaten alive by the Arena."

"Well you heard her folks! Now, let's get onto the part that you've all been waiting for!"

Adaptation, huh?

You look at the girl across from you on the other side of the arena, a flat surface filling the gap between the two of you as empty stone chairs loom above you from all sides.

Vivio looks much more relaxed now, doing a few stretches before giving you a cheerful wave. "Sorry for earlier, you really startled me mister!"

"Don't worry," You reply, "It was my fault for doing that in the first place."

"No no it's okay!" The girl insists, shaking her head. "Don't feel bad."

"I suppose we should get on with the duel then?"

"Ehe..." The blonde lets out as two cards appeared in her hands. "I guess I should probably tell you that I'm not an ordinary duelist."

"Well that's a good thing," You reply as you summon your personal card. "Because it just so happens that neither am I. Now then..."

A grin spreads across both your faces as you yell in unison.

"RERISE UP!"

<REACTOR ACTIVATED>
​

As the light begins to die down from your own transformation, you gave a quick glance at your opponent only to find the same older women you saw during Vita's fight.

"Well?" She asked, a bright smile on her face as her battle outfit formed. "You ready?"

Of course you were.

Vivio Sägebrecht
Shadow of the King
Style: Eclipse

Duel Start!​

[] Go on the aggressive - Overwhelm her with a flurry of attacks. Try to keep her off guard and get as many hits in as you can.

[] Test - You don't really know your opponent until you see how they react. Test her boundaries and skills for later use

[] Defensive - Go on the defensive, trying to not get hit no matter what

[] Write in

Current Cards:

Flash Move

Round Shield

Chain Bind

AN: If things seem a bit weird please note that I haven't gotten a solid beta yet. Three different betas have done the updates to this quest and each is different so I'm pretty sure the writing style may come across as different at points.

 

[InfiniteDaze]

Back in fifth century BC, a Chinese military strategist once wrote a thirteen chapter book on the military. This book would later be heralded as one of the greatest books on warfare despite it's age, spreading its name throughout every corner of east Asia.

It was simply called, The Art of War.

While you had not exactly read the book yourself, you certainly had heard quotes from it numerous times before, and you couldn't help but feel like one quote in particular was particularly relevant in your current situation.

"So if you know yourself, and know your enemy, you will not be put in peril even in a hundred battles."

Dirt kicked up behind you as you dashed straight forward towards the heterochromatic women who in turn held up her fists as if waiting for you. In a burst of digitized light your blades appeared out of nowhere and into your hands as you drew them to your sides.

You rush in, trying to catch her off guard with a sudden burst of speed before using your right blade to make a quick slash at her chest before jumping back. Reacting at the speed of light, she twisted her body forward to the left while throwing a jab at your head. You yourself whip your head back in order to dodge the incoming attack.

Taking advantage of your moment of weakness, she quickly closed in before shooting several more jabs at your head causing you to weave through them all as you looked for a weak point.

Hm...

She was a boxer definitely, or at least some kind of equivalent. Didn't seem the kind to make big punches from the get go either...

A counter attacker then?

Interesting…

Leaning back to avoid getting a kneecap to the jaw you quickly dash behind her as the ground underneath your feet starts rumbling.

"You just don't keep still do you?" Your opponent roars over the shaking of the colosseum.

"Not if I wanted to get hit." You smirk as you duck under a roundhouse kick from the heterochromatic woman before unleashing a flurry of slashes at the exposed women's side, causing her to go on the defensive.

Suddenly, the arena stops shaking and a bright flash of light bursts through the stadium, blinding you for a moment, allowing the girl to land a sharp punch to your chest sending you flying. You quickly adjust your body before grabbing onto a... branch?

Wait what?

Your head tilts downward from where you hang on the branch only to reveal a giant white tree now standing in the middle of the arena.

"And Gladiator's Arena has shifted!" Shamal exclaimed, her face appearing on a monitor in the sky. "From this point on no one knows what to expect on the battlefield!"

"Alright!" You hear Vivio yell as you spot her jumping onto the closest branch before climbing up by jumping from branch to branch.

Tilting your head to the sky, you realize you can't see the top of the tree at all. Instead all you can see is it piercing through the cloud with a sort of... divine aura emitting from it.

You aren't really sure what to do. At the moment, you have less of a footing to do your sword work with and with her counter attacking style you'd need a reliable space to dodge. Yet at the same time if you continue on upwards you could only hope to get lucky...

And at that moment, the world splits.

[] Route One: Flash Move to her location and attempt to knock her off the branch

[] Route Two: Chain Bind Vivio and drag her up to where you are

[] Route Three: Chain Bind to the highest branch you can see and try to drag yourself towards it

AN: A bit on the short side for the wait but the choreography here was a nightmare

 

[InfiniteDaze]

"Flash Move." You intone as you feel the the card activating. The world turns into a blur as you shoot to where your opponent is at high speeds before landing on the branch Vivio is hanging on. "My apologies."

You then proceed to unceremoniously kick her hands until they let go of the branch-

"Chain Bind." You mutter as the card works it's magic. A magic circle once more appears in front of you before several chains begin to shoot towards the falling girl before wrapping around her-

You really need to get away.

For one thing, you aren't really in a position to do any fighting, at least not from here. You're currently hanging one handley on a branch while Vivio begins to climb her way up here. You need to find better ground, and you need to gain distance on the heterochromatic girl.

The best way to do that?

Go up.

The highest branch you can see is around fifty feet away, if you're guessing correctly. Of course, there's a couple more branches near the breakthrough into the clouds, but that's a little too close to the unknown for your comfort.

The problem is that Flash Move is a bit too risky to go that far a distance, and you have absolutely no faith in your ability to fly. At all. Actually, you don't think Vivio does either, so that's something you could use to your advantage.

Speaking of, the girl herself seems to fallen off the branch and if you squint you can faintly see chains around her for a few seconds.

Wait a minute.

You summon the Chain Bind you got yesterday into your hands, before looking back up at the branch. If this worked for Flash Move, maybe, then, maybe...

"Chain... Anchor." You mumble as the card glows. A magic circle is quickly summoned, before your chains shot towards the branch before wrapping tightly around it. Throwing away all hesitation you let go of the branch and let the chains pull you towards the sky.

Learned [Chain Anchor]!

The wind feels absolutely great in your hair as you were zipping through air at speeds you have absolutely no idea of but it all comes to an end as you approach your new branch, using the chain to swing around it before landing on your feet.

You give a slight wince and start to lean against the tree as you begin to stich your memories together-

"Chain Anchor!"

You whip your head down only to see the familiar chains of Chain Bind coming straight at you even they're recolored in, of all things, rainbow. Unfortunately you still had to deal with stitching your memories back together correctly, and by the time you had managed to get a firm hold on them the chains had already wrapped around the branch causing, you to look up towards the nearest branch.

...Which was one of the branches beginning to peek into the clouds. Great, that left standing your ground or risking it.

You get off your spot on the tree before summoning your swords back into your hands, positioning yourself for escape at any moment.

"Wait!" The blonde haired girl/women-who-is-actually-way-younger-than-she-looks exclaims as she lands on the branch, "That thing you just did, it's not normal is it?"

"Is it?" You ask while shifting your feet a little, "I don't exactly know much about this game, and I hear you're a newcomer as well."

"Only by a few days," The women shrugs, "But I know for certain that's not normal."

"Oh? And why is that?"

"Shh, let me finish." Vivio whispers with a smile, playfully bring up a finger to her lips with a wink. "Let me guess... do you have any relationship to Nanoha Takamachi?"

You don't give her an answer but your body tensing up is all that she needs as a light giggle escapes her lips.

"If you're wondering why I know about her it's quite simple," She smiles, walking towards you as you keep your ground. "Flying prodigy, taking on the best players days after the game was released, and coming in third with her team in the first ever Brave Duel tournament... she's quite famous you know? Her duels are everywhere on the internet."

"Where are you taking this?" You state as calmly as can manage while your grip grows tighter on your swords.

"Eh? W-W-Wait calm down!" A look of shock crosses the woman's face before she began to flail her arms around, much to your amusement. "I-It's just that she's particularly famous for her special technique."

"Special technique?" You haven't heard about this, "and what would that be?"

The women lets out a sigh of relief, turning her back towards you while looking up towards the clouds. "Unison Rerise. It lets her combine her personal card with another person's personal card in order to gain a new form. Truthfully, anyone can do it, but you'd be hardpressed to find someone with another personal card. Getting someone to straight up give you their card? No way."

"If you're wondering where I'm going with this..." Vivo trails off, turning back to you before tilting her neck causing your eyes to widen, "Well, I can do the same thing. But a bit... more advanced."

Normally you wouldn't be so shocked by an opponent but sitting on her neck...

Sitting on her neck was the exact same black cross that was imprinted onto your hand.

Instantly your left hand turned into a blur as you slashed at the girl in front of you only to stop by the sound of metal ringing against each other. Your eyes trailed downwards as you slowly take in the sight of your sword being stopped.

Your sword being stopped by another sword held by the girl in front of you.

Your sword being stopped by a sword that looked exactly like your own.

"It's a cheater's ability I admit, and I bare no pride in owning it." The heterochromatic woman states, staring directly into your eyes. "But this ability of mine... it lets me copy the skills, weapons, and cards of an opponent."

You... A feeling you haven't felt in a long time wells up within you.

The wind begins to pick up, as a tense silence fills the atmosphere before the two of you descend into a fury of slashes. Vivio easily matching every move you make, with the same fluidity of that of someone who's practiced for years. There was no waste of movement as your blades cut through the air, slowly picking up the pace until it felt as if your edge had extended onto the winds.

It was frustrating, watching the style you had trained for so long in copied so easily, but...

But as the sound of metal rang throughout the arena you almost fell into a meditative trance, allowing you to realize what you felt. At first, it was anger, but now? Now it's just simple curiosity-

Something touches your skin as the temperature drops several degrees colder. Slowly the two of you drop your blades as you register this new feeling, looking up to the sky as particles of white begin to fall from the sky.

"...Snow?" You mummer, "And it's getting heavier."

Strangely though... You don't feel cold. Sure a part of your body feels a chill but it feels like a warm light is heating up your back. Vivio seems to be dealing with it not as good as you but well enough.

"Kyouya, do you mind putting your hand against the tree?" Vivio asks seriously, "I promise I won't attack until I've tested something."

Keeping an eye on the girl, you slowly press your left hand against the tree trunk only to be assaulted by the warm heat of a summer day. You quickly whip your hand back and turn around only to be assaulted by the fact that the tree is glowing.

"The tree gives off heat." You mumble, turning back to face your opponent. "Is this another change to the arena?"

"No, that would be the snow. This would count more as a reaction." The girl says, dismissing the swords in her hands, before lifting her hands up to the wind. "And it's getting heavier."

Heavier, huh? Interesting...

Hm... You still have no idea how far that ability of Vivio's goes and it would be best to get a handle on her capabilities.

"Hey," You begin, adjusting your feet before smirking at the girl who's just looking at you with a confused expression on her face. Perfect. "Try to keep up."

And at that moment you kick off and begin to run on the tree...

[] Upwards. You're willing to risk it now, if the snow will keep in your way.
[] Downwards. The best footing is solid ground, even if the temperature is dropping

AN: Vivio's ability really annoys me in it's simplicity but it does go further then what she explained in the update. On a side note, a total of five people have beta'd this quest! Yeah, I tend to ust bug whoever's available.

 

[InfiniteDaze]

It's getting colder you note as you begin your ascent up the tree. The freezing winds bite into your face but you can't hesitate for a moment, lest you lose momentum and fall to the ground below. You don't even know how high up you are at the moment and you don't really care. Your training pays off for this moment.

As it turns out, it pays off twice over. And you don't get the extra.

"JET STEP!" You hear Vivio roars before the faint footsteps of your opponent turn into a roaring avalanche, the faint glow of her heterochromatic eyes piercing the tumbling snow as that bright hair of hers appears by your side. "Of course I can keep up! You're pretty good if you can do something like this!"

"That ability of yours sure is something." You reply, not turning around to face her. "I'm sure it has caught a lot of people off guard."

"What about yours?" She asks. "I can't even copy it, what does it do exactly?"

"You know," The clouds that surround the top of the tree are getting closer now, just a few more seconds and you'd be able to pierce the barrier. "I'm not even sure myself. This is only my second duel after all, and I've only had it for a little while."

"Aha, I know how you feel. I wasn't sure what mine did at first either."

You let a small chuckle leave your lips as you measure the distance between and you the top.

The sky beyond there is unknown, but you aren't going to hesitate because of that. You are going to go all in.

"Flash Move!" You intone as the world because a blur. One moment you're running up the tree with Vivio, the next you've pierced the clouds only to see the most gorgeous sunset you've ever seen.

Also, you're falling several feet in the air. Angling yourself, you land on the top of the tree trunk that extended itself into the sky. It was flat, you realize. No branches extended higher into the sky; in fact, there are no branches above the clouds at all. Just a wooden platform to stand on where falling off means falling to the cold ground far below.

You slowly bring yourself to your feet, and your swords into your battle stance as Vivio's form bursts through the clouds, rolling onto the arena before copying you. "Well, this is it, isn't it? The highest we can go."

You give a light smile. "Don't worry, this is more than enough room to face you."

"Then it's more than enough room for me."

And in an instant you split-

You charge at her from the left side before swinging your blades, each strike countered by the girl's own-

You go for her blind spot, dashing to her right before your blades are knocked out of your hands by a sudden blur-

You just charge right at her, appearing in front of the woman and giving a quick slash before she bends her knees, swivels to the right, and gives you a counter with her left blade, leaving your hand up in the air and your chest open.

She lunges for the opening but you blink, memories crashing together in a brief surge of pain as you twist your body quickly in order to dodge the blade and give a counter of your own. The sound of metal against metal rings through the air once more as you counter each other blow for blow, mirroring each other almost perfectly as you try to win this duel.

Her foot position shifts as she swivels to avoid another of your strikes again, as she counters before lunging forward which you swiftly counter with a strike of your own. You pause, dashing away from the girl-turned-woman as your thoughts churned.

Something seems about the way she fought seemed... off.

Do you see it?​

She is matching you blow for blow but the way she is doing it felt wrong.

Can you see behind the Masquerade?​

You watch her circling around you, panting for breath as she gets into position.

You can, can't you? The hidden part of this royal dance.​

You thoughts turn to analyze the entire fight, every thing the girl did. Every action...

Go ahead, show me.​

And then it clicks and you know exactly what to do.

You're not alone in the mirror..
​

[] Use Untraveled Road to mob her again.
[] Bait her into a counter attack.
[] Try to remove her swords.

AN: Six months and only a eight hundred word update? Well It's not as long as I would've liked but I've gone without updating long enough.

I'm a bit hesitant because the road to victory requires you to actually think.

The other two lead to defeat, or a Bad End.