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Songs of INNOCENCE (MGLN INNOCENT Quest)

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Do I even need to do this? Not like there's actually another vote...
 
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04: An Open Mic Challenge
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    • "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.
     
  • Threadmarks
    • [X] Accept
    -[X] Make a dramatic entry into the arena and declare you want to test her skill. Ask Hayate to help with the lighting to make it Extra dramatic.
     
    [x] Accept
    - [x] Quietly find an elevated platform, maybe a table or something, and stand on it.
    - [x] Politely borrow someone's hat, preferably one that looks close enough to a fedora
    - [x] Have Hayate shine a few spotlights on you
    - [x] The moment the lights hit you, do your best Michael Jackson pose with a finger pointed at Vivio
    - [x] "Are you looking for an eleventh win or your first defeat?
    Do you think you can keep going or do you feel light on your feet? My blades are eager and my heart is ready, Prepare for battle, for I am Kyouya Takamachi! And I challenge thee, Vivio Sägebrecht, to a battle most memorable, to one more fight!"

    I will laugh my ass off if this vote wins. :lol
     
    [X] Accept
    -[X] They call you a ninja. Leap into the arena and challenge her in the hammiest, most stereotypically ninja way possible.
     
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