In 2016 (Part 3) (Kyouka Inai, Fuyuko Yuuhi)
| In 2016 (Part 3) (Kyouka Inai, Fuyuko Yuuhi) | |
|---|---|
| Date of Cutscene: | 15 April 2016 |
| Location: | Mitakihara Ward |
| Synopsis: | Apocalypses are not solely a modern phenomenon. |
| Thanks to: | Fuyuko Yuuhi |
| Cast of Characters: | Kyouka Inai, Fuyuko Yuuhi |
| Tinyplot: | The Game |
Several weeks earlier:
“I say we call ‘em Chitterlings.” Stellar throws the small folder down on the wood-surfaced table of the family restaurant, several blurry photos spilling out, as she slides into the booth. Beside her, a brown-haired girl in an oversized hoodie is busy devouring a comically large parfait.
She barely glances at the photos before saying, mouth full, “Look like big ugly bugs.”
“Yeah, they do,” agrees Lacuna, sitting across the table from them, wearing monochrome black and white as usual. Her dark eyes peer at the photographs for a moment, then turn up to the boy sitting beside her on her side of the table. “What do you think, Kaito?”
The young man, with a mop of dark hair and an easy smile, has one arm slung around Lacuna’s shoulders casually. He reaches with the other hand to idly pull one of the photographs closer to him, eyeing it with mild disgust that doesn’t remove that smile from his face. “I mean… ugly suckers, for sure. But you and Stellar killed like a dozen of ‘em, right Fuyuko-chan?”
“Sure,” The girl cuddled up to his side responds, sounding dubious, “But they almost ate me before Kyouka-chan got there. They’re pretty overwhelming in large numbers.”
“Yeah, and-” this from Stellar, now seated across the table and lounging back with both arms along the back of the bench, the brown-haired girl beside her still nose-down in her parfait, “There’s reports of ‘em all over town. Like these pictures?” She leans forward and taps the photos with one finger, “They ain’t from some like, magical source or something. Those are from 2chan. Mundanes won't be able to make out what they are, but enough to tell they're weird. Most people on there just say they're bad fakes.”
Kaito looks mildly aggrieved. “And we’re supposed to believe they’re real? -oof!” This last because Fuyuko has elbowed him in the side.
“We’re telling you they’re real, jerk.” She says, scowling up at him. “Kyouka-chan and I killed a whole bunch of ‘em just last night, remember? But if there’s more than just that..”
“A lot more, at least if the number of posts and rumors are any indication.” Stellar frowns thoughtfully, at the same time signalling a waitress passing by. “Hamburger steak set meal, please.” She tells the server, flashing a lopsided smile, before glancing back to her tablemates, face serious again. “Something’s goin’ on. Monsters ain’t supposed to be this numerous, and not all the same type like this.”
“So like,” the brown-haired girl finally sits up a bit, her parfait cup empty. “You think the city is like.. Infested? My aunt’s apartment got infested with roaches once. It was gross.” She makes a face.
Kyouka rolls her eyes. “Chiharu-chan, I have a feeling this is a bigger problem then roaches.”
“They were really big roaches, Kyouka-chan.” Chiharu says seriously, brown eyes wide.
“Look,” Fuyuko leans across the table, out from underneath Kaito’s arm. “They must be coming from somewhere, right? They’re definitely magical. We could tell that pretty easily,” she glances to Stellar for confirmation and gets a nod in response, “and they can move about without mundanes seeing them easily. So they’re not like.. Some kinda natural thing nobody’s seen before. They’re originating somewhere. Maybe like a.. A portal, or something.”
“Yeah or like a big monster-spawning device.” Kyouka waves an arm in the air expansively. “But it doesn’t matter. You’re right, Fu-chan, we need to figure out where they’re coming from and stop it.”
“Well, we can probably do that.” Kaito, brows raised, pulls up the sleeve of the coat he’s wearing to show a high-tech looking bracer fastened to his forearm. Dark grey and metallic, it has a single, diamond-shaped blue light blinking in the center of it. “Nightshield can scan for any magical signatures that would indicate a portal or other large concentration. If this many of them are coming through, it shouldn’t be possible to mask that effectively.”
He taps a few buttons on the Device, which pings, then flashes blue lights in a pattern before displaying a result in holographic text hovering over it’s surface. The text is in a strange language, but Kaito seems to have no problem deciphering it. “Yeah, looks like… underwater. Out in the bay. Pretty deep, too.”
Fuyuko stares at the result, though she can’t read the words. “Do you think this is… naturally occurring? Or did someone do this? Open this.. Portal or whatever and start these monsters coming through?”
Kaito shrugs. “Hard to say. But based on these readings, it’s only getting stronger over time, so unless we do something…”
“We’re gonna get overrun with these things.” Kyouka sighs, leaning her chin on her hand as she adds, “So who wants to go for a dive?”
