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purplehairedwonder · 3 years

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Hearts With(out) Chains Chapter 11

Fandom: One Piece Rating: PG-13 Pairings: Gen (eventual Lawlu) Words: 3537 Characters: Trafalgar Law, Monkey D. Luffy, Zoro, Nami, Franky, Smoker, Tashigi, Vergo Note: I’m taking my turn at the Corazon!Law AU because my brain won’t leave me alone until this is written down. Tags will be updated as the chapters come out.

The story title is based on the Ellie Goulding song “Hearts Without Chains.”

Summary: Law is reclaimed by the Family when he's 17 and, with Doflamingo holding the lives of his crew as collateral for his good behavior, eventually becomes the third Corazon. Years later, trapped by his impossible situation, Law finds a strange connection to Monkey D. Luffy, which offers a glimpse of something he's repeatedly had ripped away from him: hope.

Previous chapters: Prologue | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10

Read also at AO3 / FF.N

Smoker’s eyes widened. “Vergo? What is the head of G-5 doing here?”

“I’m here on business, Vice Admiral,” Vergo replied, inclining his head at Smoker.

“We called for backup but were told you were on leave,” the swordswoman said, frowning.

He never said whose business he’s here on, Law thought wryly as he sliced through the chains holding the two Marines captive. He stepped back out of the cage, eyeing Vergo. Law didn’t like the sense of satisfaction radiating off the older man. He’d heard what Law had said—but had anyone else?

“Doffy didn’t believe me before that you’re a traitor, but now he’ll have it in your own words, Law.”

Could Vergo have a line open to Dressrosa? Or perhaps he’d recorded what Law had said.

It also confirmed that Vergo had called Doffy with his report on Law’s defection, but apparently Doffy wasn’t buying it; the Warlord knew full well the safeguards he’d put into place to prevent Law from betraying him, after all. If Vergo had proof, though…

Law needed to make sure those words never left this room.

“I didn’t think you’d be so foolish as to blow your cover over a grudge,” Law commented, raising an eyebrow. He kept his tone purposefully light, but he expanded his Room and kept Kikoku hefted in front of him.

With a quick scan of his Room, he found Zoro’s swords and Shambled them into the man’s hands. Zoro let out a surprised yelp (one Law knew he would deny making until his dying day), and Law’s lip twitched as he glanced back and met the pirate hunter’s eye. The other man’s startled expression quickly shifted into a nod of appreciation as he replaced the blades at his side.

“Cover?” the swordswoman asked, following Smoker out of the cell.

Smoker jerked. “A traitor?” he growled, glancing between Law and Vergo. His gaze finally settled on the base commander. He shook his head, and Law could practically hear the pieces clicking into place in his brain. “I can’t believe I didn’t see it. You’re the one who’s been covering up the abductions of the children, aren’t you?”

“Don’t feel too bad, White Chase-ya,” Law said, and Smoker looked back at him suspiciously. “It’s not like Vergo was a traitor to the Marines. Vergo was a pirate from the start.”

“What?”

Law couldn’t help his lip curling into a sneer. “He’s Doflamingo’s most trusted subordinate. He joined the Marines on his orders fifteen years ago and climbed the ranks.”

“A pirate posing as a Marine,” Smoker hissed. “Shameful.” He shook his head, disgusted.

“How dare you,” the captain yelled at Vergo, betrayal tinging the anger in her voice. “Those children are innocent!”

“They’re sacrifices for the greater good, Captain Tashigi,” Vergo said simply. He’d been watching the exchange with a bored affect in place, though Law knew better than to take him at face value; Vergo was always poised to attack.

“The greater good?” the cat burglar snapped. “What greater good could possibly come from experimenting on children?”

“That is super messed up,” the cyborg agreed.

“A world ruled by Donquixote Doflamingo, of course,” Vergo said, as though the answer were obvious. And, Law supposed, for Vergo, it was. “Give me some credit for keeping up my cover, Smoker-kun. I’ve been on my guard ever since you transferred to G-5. It will be good to finally be rid of that concern.”

Vergo turned back to Law. “And who says I’m blowing my cover, Law?” Vergo had completely dispensed with Law’s title, apparently. He’d never respected Law as a successor, no matter how many times Doffy pushed him on it, and now he had the excuse to back it up. “None of them are leaving this island. I’ll file it away as a tragic accident at sea, as always.”

Law narrowed his eyes, reminded once more of the World Government’s coverup of Flevance’s destruction. Vergo, as far as Law was concerned, was proof pirates and soldiers weren’t so different, no matter what people like Smoker professed. Law knew he was no better, but he also never claimed to be.

“I won’t let that happen,” Smoker snarled. He didn’t have his jitte since he’d been captured—and Law wasn’t feeling particularly inclined to return the weapon that had taken him down with Seastone—but he didn’t let that stop him.

Smoker shifted into smoke form and charged Vergo with an outraged yell. He had to know about Vergo’s talent with haki and the effect it would have on his Fruit’s abilities, but he attacked anyway, his fury at his base commander’s betrayal driving him on.

“Smoker-san!” the captain called, worried.

“What is he doing?” Zoro muttered.

Smoker punched at Vergo with a smoky tendril, but Vergo blackened his arm and grabbed the smoke. Smoker cursed as Vergo spun and whipped him into the far wall. Smoker coughed and sagged to the floor. His second and the Straw Hats gasped, but Law took the moment of distraction to Scan Vergo; there was a Den Den Mushi in his pocket.

With a twitch of his fingers, the Den Den Mushi flew from Vergo’s coat toward Law. Vergo’s eyes snapped toward him.

“No!”

Law grabbed the snail from midair, and he pocketed it just as Vergo’s haki-coated stick slammed into his chest, tossing him like a rag doll into the wall behind him. The back of Law’s head hit the metal; his vision briefly went dark, and his stomach threatened to empty itself—another blow to his head was not what Law needed when he already had a concussion—but Law, taking a stabilizing breath, was able to collect his wits and keep his Room from falling. He Shambled himself across the room before Vergo could recover the Den Den Mushi.

“Brat!” Vergo snapped as he turned to find Law slumped over on one of the couches, having swapped places with a pillow. “But I suppose running away is always what you’ve done best.”

Law could vaguely hear the Straw Hats making some kind of commotion, though their words wouldn’t form in his ears; his blurry vision, however, was directed entirely toward the man striding toward him, a murderous intent barely contained beneath his haki-clad skin; Vergo knew he couldn’t kill Law before bringing him back to Dressrosa, but that wouldn’t stop him from beating the shit out of him—again.

Law just needed a moment to bring his vision back into focus…

Suddenly, Vergo was flying across the room. He crashed into the far wall and crumpled. Law blinked, his battered brain trying to comprehend what he was seeing. Belatedly, he turned to see Straw Hat, flanked by his crewmates, standing in the doorway, his rubbery arm returning to him with a loud snap.

Before dealing with that, Law pulled Vergo’s Den Den Mushi from his pocketed and noted in relief that there wasn’t a live line open. That meant Doffy hadn’t been listening in. Vergo still could have recorded his words, but Law would worry about that later. If Doffy hadn’t heard Law, then all Law had to do was prevent Vergo from bringing his words back to Dressrosa.

He pushed himself to his feet and headed toward the new arrivals. His vision was clearing, but his balance was still slightly off. The doctor in him was concerned, but the pirate in him knew he didn’t have the luxury of taking a break.

The two factions of Straw Hats were greeting each other happily. Straw Hat’s expression lit up as Law approached.

“Torao!”

“What are you doing here, Straw Hat-ya?” Law demanded. “We agreed you would wait.”

Straw Hat frowned. “We were talking, but then there was all this chaos on Torao’s end of the line. No one was responding. It sounded dangerous, so we decided to help.”

Ah. Law supposed he had gotten distracted by Vergo’s appearance and hadn’t considered how that would have sounded to the Straw Hats listening in.

“So, what exactly happened to cause this?” the cat burglar asked, gesturing between Straw Hat and Law. Though she’d agreed to trust Straw Hat, she was still suspicious of Law—and she was right to be.

Still, Law ignored her. They didn’t have time for this; Vergo wouldn’t stay down long, even after taking a hit like that.

“If you want to rescue the children, this would be the time to do it,” he said.

“What about him?” Straw Hat asked, nodding back toward Vergo.

Law grimaced as he noticed Vergo stirring. “I can handle it.”

“Because that went so well before,” Black Leg muttered.

Law ignored him as well. He didn’t have Seastone draining his abilities now. “I’ll handle it,” he repeated, looking directly at Straw Hat. Vergo might be taking an excuse to finish what he’d started thirteen years earlier, but Law wasn’t a terminally ill child anymore. It was unfinished business for them both.

“Luffy, what—” the cat burglar started.

But Straw Hat studied Law’s face for a long moment and seemed to find whatever he was looking for because he nodded. “Okay.”

Law felt a measure of relief at the response; it wasn’t that he needed Straw Hat’s permission to take on Vergo—alliance or not, he wouldn’t let anyone take this fight from him—but having his agreement was a lot easier. His crew would follow his lead, and they’d be able to accomplish both their tasks and move on to rescuing Law’s nakama.

“What?” several Straw Hats gasped.

“Okay,” Straw Hat repeated. “Torao will handle the Verto guy, and we’ll go after the kids.”

“You think I’m going to let that happen?” Vergo said. He’d risen to his feet and stood, arms crossed, in front of the doorway the Straw Hats would need to go through to find the children.

Straw Hat made to draw his arm back again, but before he could strike, Law held out a hand. Straw Hat stopped, eyeing Law curiously.

“Go. Caesar and Monet are still with the children. They’re both Fruit users, so don’t take them lightly.”

“But—”

Law Shambled Vergo into the cage, and, with a few twists of his fingers, retwined the wires holding the front of the cage together. The doorway was now open, and Vergo cursed. The cage wouldn’t hold him long, but it didn’t need to—just long enough for the others to leave.

Straw Hat whooped. “Thanks, Torao!” he called as he charged forward, the promise of a fight clearly drawing him like a magnet.

“Wait, Luffy!” the cat burglar called, running after her captain. “You don’t know where you’re going!”

Straw Hat’s laughter echoed against the metal walls as the Straw Hats and, Law noticed, Smoker’s second filed out of the open doorway. Smoker, however, remained where he was; he’d gotten to his feet while Law was talking to the Straw Hats. Law narrowed his eyes at the other man.

“This is my fight, White Chase-ya. Stay out of my way.”

“That man is a traitor to the Marines, and I plan to see justice done,” Smoker said, voice tight, as he strode up next to Law. “Don’t get in my way, pirate.”

Law and Smoker both turned at the sound of a metallic slam; Vergo had kicked the cage’s front out, the metal wiring sliding several feet across the floor before coming to rest. Though Vergo’s eyes were still hidden behind his glasses, Law could feel the anger radiating off the man.

“Enough,” he snapped, stepping back into the room.

“My thoughts exactly,” Smoker roared, charging at Vergo. “Traitor!”

Law sighed but didn’t intervene. Though he thought the man was being foolish considering how his previous attack had failed, Law could understand his rage at realizing Vergo, the base commander of his own unit, was a traitor.

However, Smoker wouldn’t get an advantage on Vergo this way; Vergo’s haki was superior to the other vice admiral’s. The first Corazon didn’t have a Devil Fruit to enhance his attacks, so he’d trained and honed his haki over the years until his masterful control and overwhelming power became what he was known for. For a Logia like Smoker, Vergo was a bad matchup.

Still, if he wanted to wear Vergo down while Law took a few moments to rest, Law wasn’t going to object. At full strength, Law wasn’t particularly concerned about taking Vergo on, but he didn’t want to take any chances when he was unsteady with a head injury. As the two vice admirals clashed, Law scanned the room until he found Smoker’s jitte. He could still feel the ghost of the Seastone tip slamming into his back, causing his Room to fall around him as weakness spread through his entire body. Law grimaced, but, grudgingly, he summoned the weapon into his hand.

“White Chase-ya,” he called as Smoker fell back from a swipe of Vergo’s bamboo stick.

“What?” Smoker demanded, not looking toward Law.

“Catch.” He tossed the jitte in the man’s direction.

Smoker’s eyes flicked in his direction then widened as he saw his weapon flying in his direction. He sent a smoky arm toward it, grabbing the hilt before Vergo could interfere. He grunted a nod in Law’s direction, clearly unhappy to owe Law anything else.

Even with his jitte, Smoker was clearly outmatched. Vergo’s haki-coated arms were able to strike Smoker’s smoke form, forcing him to revert to his base form. They traded blows, Vergo’s bamboo stick with Smoker’s jitte. Vergo’s haki-enhanced hits pushed Smoker into retreat.

“It’s no use, Smoker-kun,” Vergo taunted. “You’re no match for me.”

“You’ve betrayed G-5. The men trusted you. I’ll see you pay for that, pirate,” Smoker snarled back.

Vergo side-stepped Smoker’s blow and looked at him curiously. “You seem to care for those morons. Why?”

Smoker leapt at Vergo, only to be pushed aside by his bamboo. “Because they’re my men!”

Vergo tsked. “And that is your problem, Smoker-kun. Placing loyalty in trash. You will only end up discarded along with them.”

Smoker roared in response, but Vergo kicked out and tripped Smoker. Smoker fell backwards, hissing as his back hit the floor. His eyes widened as Vergo suddenly appeared above him, ready to strike a killing blow with his bamboo.

Deciding he’d seen enough, Law twitched his fingers, sending Vergo to the far side of the room.

“Law,” Vergo growled when he realized what had happened. “Don’t interfere. I’ll have time for you, too.”

Law rolled his eyes and turned back to Smoker. “Enough, White Chase-ya.”

“Dammit, Corazon! I can still—” He broke off, wincing at what Law would guess were broken ribs from Vergo’s many haki-enhanced blows.

“I can see that,” Law replied wryly. “Don’t make me move you, too.”

Smoker glowered but didn’t argue.

As Vergo started charging back toward Law and Smoker, Law Shambled himself across the room, directly into Vergo’s path. He swung Kikoku, but Vergo dodged just in time. A large chunk of the wall behind Vergo came down with a loud clatter. Law swung his blade several more times to create smaller pieces of metal from the fallen wall.

Law turned on his heel and immediately jumped back toward Vergo, using Kikoku to block a flurry of blows. His arms shook under the strain of countering the strikes, but he gritted his teeth then powered forward, driving Vergo back.

Lifting a finger, Law used Takt to lift the metal pieces he’d created and hurled them toward Vergo. The vice admiral cursed and dodged the large sheets of metal, knocking those he couldn’t dodge away with his stick.

“What’s wrong, Vergo?” Law taunted as he ducked under the flying pieces of metal to approach his target. “Not so easy when your target isn’t shackled in Seastone?”

“Don’t flatter yourself, Law.”

Law sent a large piece of metal Vergo had already knocked away back toward Vergo and ducked behind it; Law followed its path, so when Vergo knocked it out of his way again, he jolted in surprise as Law suddenly appeared. He swung his bamboo to push Law back, but Law ducked under Vergo’s outstretched arm, catching the man off-guard.

Law shoved his free hand forward into Vergo’s chest. Mes.

Vergo gasped as his heart was expelled backward. He slumped forward as Law summoned the heart into his hand.

“Bastard,” Vergo hissed.

To his credit, Vergo’s heartrate remained steady as he kneeled in front of Law. Even now, he wouldn’t let his successor rattle him.

“I have your life literally in my hand, Vergo,” Law said, eyeing the heart. “I’d watch my tongue if I were you.”

“And what will you do with it, boy?” Vergo sneered, looking up. “Kill me?”

As Law felt the heart pulse steady in his hand, memories of Minion Island flashed in front of his mind’s eye.

Finding Vergo as he looked for help for the fallen Cora-san.

Vergo and Cora-san recognizing each other.

Vergo beating the wounded Cora-san, taunting him all the while.

Vergo beating Law, no sympathy for a dying child.

Vergo leaving them both, battered and bloody, in the snow to report to Doflamingo.

Law squeezed the heart, and Vergo writhed on the ground, pained groans coming through his clenched teeth.

Cora-san. Law released his grip on the heart. Vergo let out relieved gasps and slowly stilled.

“Corazon,” Smoker said slowly, as if afraid to spook Law. “He needs to face justice.”

Cora-san had always believed in justice. He hadn’t wanted to kill Doflamingo but bring him in. He wouldn’t want to kill Vergo either but instead, like Smoker, to bring him to justice.

Law wasn’t like them.

“Justice,” he scoffed bitterly, eyes never leaving the heart in his hand. “Where was justice when my little sister collapsed from Amber Lead Disease at seven years old and died as my parents’ clinic burned to the ground? Where was justice when soldiers destroyed my country then covered it up?” Law could hear his voice rising in his ears as he spoke, but he didn’t care. Years of pent-up rage flowed through his veins. “Where was justice when the man who saved me was murdered for it? Where was justice—”

He cut himself off at the sound of Vergo’s choking laughter, throat tightening as he realized what he’d just said.

“There’s no such thing as justice, Smoker-kun,” Vergo said between pained gasps. “There is only strength and weakness.” He turned his head to stare at Law. “And your precious Cora-san was weak, Law. Just like you.”

Fury rising in his chest, Law squeezed the heart again, Vergo’s screams a melody to his ears.

When Law let go of the heart once more, Vergo collapsed to the floor and panted. For years, Law had waited for the chance to avenge what Vergo had done to him and Cora-san that night; Vergo had haunted his nightmares, a looming figure of cruelty. But now, laid out on the ground and trying to hold onto his pride in his defeat, Law thought he looked pathetic.

And just like that, the fury drained out of him, leaving him feeling oddly hollow.

“So now what, Law?” Vergo asked between gasps for air. “You can’t kill me.”

Law raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”

“What do you think Doffy would do to you if you did? To your crew?”

Law barked a humorless laugh. “If he thinks I’m a traitor, we’re all dead anyway.” He narrowed his eyes. “Might as well take you with me.”

Vergo frowned. “You know how the Family deals with traitors.”

“I do,” Law agreed.

“He’ll never let you go,” Vergo said. “Not until he’s done with you. Wherever you go, he’ll find you.”

“I know.” That was why he’d return to Dressrosa once his business here was done. “Don’t worry, Vergo-san. I’ll file it away as a tragic accident at sea.”

He tightened his grip around Vergo’s heart, watching as the man writhed. He felt… nothing. Vergo coughed blood, but the satisfaction Law had expected to feel at the sight of Vergo dying at his hands was missing, sucked into the hollowness in his chest.

“Corazon, you don’t have to do this,” Smoker spoke up. “I can take him in.”

Law tightened his grip further. “You really think Doflamingo would let his favorite subordinate be locked up in Impel Down?”

“Even Warlords don’t have the power to stop something like that,” Smoker replied with a frown.

Law shook his head. “He has more connections than that, White Chase-ya.” If Vergo left Punk Hazard alive, Law and his crew were assured slow, agonizing deaths. If Law killed Vergo now, there was still a chance this could be salvaged.

Vergo huffed a strained laugh around his cries. “He’s. Right. Smoker-kun. You. Have. No idea. Who. You’re. Dealing with.”

Smoker looked between the two pirates and shook his head but said nothing. Law continued squeezing the heart, waiting to feel something after all this time.

“What’s wrong, Law?” Vergo panted. “Don’t have. The stones. To finish it?”

“Hardly.”

Law closed his fist completely, crushing the heart until Vergo let out a final bloody gasp then went limp.

Still feeling that odd emptiness, he opened his hand dropped the still heart next to the corpse.

“That was for Cora-san.”

Next chapter

#I've had this plotted out for a while #but was struggling to get it on the page #I really like how it turned out though #Trafalgar Law #Vergo #Smoker #One Piece #One Piece fanfic #One Piece fanfiction #Caitlin's fic

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pokemonapex · 5 years

Photo

Alpha Build 8 Now Available!

It's here! It's finally here! I hope you all are as excited for this as I am! The story now continues into the southern mountains of Abbadon where mysteries and danger abound. Here are the highlights:

Story Continuation - The story goes on! See what awaits you in Chapter 3!

New Areas - Explore Mt. Belial, the town of Nysa, the Crystal Channel, and a strange abandoned lab on the snowy mountaintop. Each area is packed with items, Pokémon, secrets, and battles!

New Music - Three new toe-tapping tracks have been added to the game's soundtrack. I hope you like them as much as I do!

New Custom Items - Use the Warding Charms to keep away wild Pokémon at the cost of draining money on each step. Use the new Impulse items to give experience to your Pokémon. And don't forget new Artifacts to play around with!

New Quality-of-Life Options - Use Fast Mode to speed up gameplay, helpful for repeat playthroughs. Also, you can now disable weather effects for those who have perfomance issues when weather occurs. Find these options in the Options Menu.

Hard Mode - This newly-added mode cranks up the difficulty by restricting saving to special sigils found throughout the game, and causes a Game Over upon losing a battle. Don't worry, though, as most trainer battles can be surrendered in this mode, letting you instantly end the battle, while still caughing up the loser's fee. Additionally, prize money from battles is increased while in this mode. This mode is still experimental, so try it out and see what you think! Start a new save to try it out.

Item Drops - Wild Pokémon now have a chance to drop the held item they were holding. It's rare, but it should hopefully help you gain a few free items for defeating wild Pokémon.

Loads of Changes - A whole heaping helping of changes, fixes, and tweaks have been added. See the changelog for details!

I've been working super hard on this build, and I really hope you guys have fun with it! I already have lots of plans for Build 9, so hopefully development for that won't be as long this time. As always, please report any bugs you find on the subreddit, come discuss the game on our Discord server, and contribute your knowledge of the game to the Wiki (we really need some active contributors!).

I'd like to take this chance to thank our contributors for their hard work. Lesser Bay composed the amazing new tracks, and CandiHyphenPants created some cool new trainer class designs. I'd also like to thank the people who worked to playtest this build to squash a LOT of bugs. I daresay this will likely be the most bug-free launch we've had! (Fingers crossed super hard)

Downloads are available in the Launcher now! See the blog for more info.

Read on for the full changelog:

Additions

Dahlia can now give the player TM27 Return if shown a Pokémon with perfect happiness.

Two new Secret Hollow locations in the Acacia area.

New item balls in Acacia area.

Mt. Belial, Nysa, and various sub-maps are now available!

Wild Pokémon that are carrying items now have a chance to drop the item upon defeat. The Pokémon must still be holding the item upon defeat, and there is a percent chance equal to the Pokémon's level that its item will drop.

New items: Vitality Impulse, Life Impulse, Supremacy Impulse. These give a set number of EXP to a Pokémon. Good for leveling up multiple times, especially at lower-levels.

New option: Fast mode. Enable to play the game in slight fast-forward. Good for repeat playthroughs.

New option: Weather effects. Disable to hide weather on the overworld for those who experience slowdown when weather is displayed.

Added a few examination events to The Secret Spot.

Added high-resolution Gen V back sprites (created by Dreadwing93 on Deviantart)

Added three new music tracks for new areas.

Added a temporary way for players who used the temporary event in Build 7 to return to Nascene City in Chapter 3 to get back on track.

Tweaks

The 10-yard markers in the Nascene High football field have been moved to the sidelines to be more realistic.

Altar of Fortitude has been renamed to Altar of Will.

Added a primer on Pokeballs in Rosemary Market.

Slight contrast bump to a few tiles in the desert tileset.

Pokémon are no longer healed by placing them in the PC.

Updated the Ancient Map to reflect changes in future story locations.

Added more detail to Sagaxis Deep Wood.

Minor tweaks to Sagaxis Forest tileset to improve color balance and perspective.

Slightly clarified quick start intro dialog.

Added more detail in Jagged Pass South.

Added more detail to road construction area in Nascene Suburbs.

Added a hint if the player returns to their apartment after receiving the skateboard.

The player can no longer name the protagonist certain restricted names (mostly important NPC names).

Bonsly now learns Mimic at lv17 (down from lv33).

Umbreon now learns Curse at lv50.

Shuppet and Banette now learn Shadow Claw instead of Shadow Ball at lv30.

Minor color tweaks to Holly's sprite.

Added small details to the dials in the Dajjal Temple dial puzzle.

Magneton now evolves into Magnezone in Aegis Generator Room.

Added suspicious wall spot events to Jagged Foothills.

TM60 has been changed from Quash to Avalanche.

The Spooky Plate has been renamed to Soul Plate.

The Up-Grade has a setting-specific tweak to its description.

Feebas can now evolve while leveled up at night while holding a Prism Scale.

Shelmet and Karrablast now evolve when exposed to a Dusk Stone or Dawn Stone, respectively. Their PokeDex entries have been modified to reflect this.

Cave floors now register as rocky terrain.

OST Organization is now played during the cutscene in Jagged Cavern during the Prologue.

The player can no longer enter school during the chase with Dante in the Prologue.

Minor pacing tweaks to the first cutscene in RevTex Textile Factory

RevTex Textile Factory now plays OST Abandoned Lab Battle during battle.

Slowed down lighting flash in RevTex Textiles Front Office.

Added a few Potions to the early sections of RevTex Textiles 1F

Improved visibility of ghost dialogue.

Matthias now has a unique overworld sprite.

Temple Catacombs and Temple Dungeon now play serious wild battle music.

Wild Munchlax and Snorlax now only rarely spawn with a Leftovers.

Reduced difficulty of the Training Dummy in Unknown Side Room.

Action Kid Carson has been renamed to Action Kid Mitchell to avoid name overlap with Biologist Carson.

New texture for locked doors in bars in the Temple Dungeon.

Medic Ollie now has better shop handling, and can no longer be sold to.

After battling Sayaka in Jagged Pass South, she will now heal your party.

Sandstorm Warning events in Jul'far no longer trigger during the bandit siege.

Added in-battle message for Bandit Boss Tariq.

Updated Abbadon region map for new and future areas.

Player no longer has to fight Lolita Astrid in Puzzle House Challenge 1 upon failing the second puzzle. Instead, they must re-complete the first puzzle.

Wild double battles now play both foes' cries.

Various Rock-type moves have had slight accuracy increases: Rock Throw, Rock Slide, Stone Edge, and Rock Tomb.

Removed mention of unused out-of-battle function for Teleport from its move description.

The Temple Catacombs now allows use of Escape Rope.

Money is no longer lost during battles in the Unknown Dungeon section.

Changed PP of Sucker Punch from 5 to 10.

Updated years on splash screen.

The player's party is now healed after the battle in the Altar of Truth.

Ice types are now resistant to Grass-, Water-, Bug-, and Dragon-type moves.

Fixes

Fixed an invisible wall in Jagged Pass South.

Fixed map transfer from Jagged Pass South to Jagged Cavern placing the player on the wrong tile.

Fixed a rare Essentials bug where the game would crash if metadata could not be loaded from a save file.

Fixed static pronoun usage in journal note #3.

Fixed error message during multi-trainer battles.

Fixed generic player icon on map screen.

Fixed issue where talking to Dahlia while she's following you in Sagaxis Deep Wood makes certain events freeze.

Fixed cutscene objects in the Altar of Truth not resetting if the battle against Samael is lost.

Fixed various tile layering issues in Nascene City.

Fixed a tile priority issue in Amon Desert, causing some ledges to be able to be jumped over from both sides.

Fixed an Essentials bug where attempting to deposit a Pokémon in the PC while the target Pokémon is held above an empty party slot crashes the game.

Fixed bookshelves in XENO Corp. Lab 1 being able to be read from all sides.

Fixed a missing tile in Acacia Town.

It's no longer possible to examine the door to the Rival's Apartment while the Rival is waiting in front of your apartment during the Prologue.

Fixed missing transfer event into Flowertown Florists in Nascene City Downtown.

Benches in Nascene City can no longer be walked onto from the sides.

Fixed inconsistencies with lighting in Jagged Cavern.

Fixed some stray tiles in Acacia Temple.

Fixed an uncolored line of dialogue in Matthias's speech in Acacia Temple.

Fixed an NPC outside of the Jul'far gates using the wrong sprite.

Fixed a bug where there bandit outside Jul'far Pharmacy re-charges you every time you want to go in.

Fixed a typo in NPC dialogue in Naptha Inn.

Fixed a typo on the fence break event in Jul'far.

Fixed artifact acquisition event turning the room dark in the Altar of Will.

Sayaka no longer turns randomly during an event in Murmur Tower.

Fixed a missing tile in Sagaxis Deep Wood.

References to "Temple of Dajjal" and "Forest Temple" have been changed to "Dajjal Temple" for consistency.

Fixed inconsistent lighting in transitions into Jagged Cavern B1F.

Removed a stray impassable tile in Jagged Cavern B1F.

Fixed missing color code in Spelunker Hikari's rematch text.

Fixed broken replacement code in Medic Damian's defeat text.

Player can no longer use shortcut keys during cutscenes.

Fixed artifact in XENO Corp. Lab 4 not appearing during cutscene.

Fixed a bug where giving EXP to a Pokémon via items leveled it up if the total EXP given was less than what was needed to level up normally.

Fixed a typo in Note #205 (Journal Entry #5)

Fixed an Essentials bug where using Fling causes an error message.

#pokemon #gaming #build #release #pokemon apex

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sparklyjojos · 6 years

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Let’s Read & Suffer: Tsukumojuku by Maijō Ōtarō [part 19]

Today`s recap: In which Tsukumojuku finally enters the Illusionary Castle, reunites with a character that I honestly forgot existed, discovers a very convoluted serial killer puzzle, and then things once more get pretty damn meta. [tw: gore]

STORY 4 PART 3

After Tsukumojuku discovered her crime, Serika and Seshiru had to escape once more. They both looked very hurt, with Serika crying and saying that she didn’t want to get separated from Tsukumojuku again, even if she understood that he had his own life now, what with his marriage and kids. [No, I don’t know how he can get married at like 16 either.]

(Love was a memory kept by the whole body. Made in the brain, spread with the blood throughout one’s entire being, and would never cease. ...and the love he once held for Serika was nothing more but a distant memory, he realized.)

When the twins fled Chofu, they left two disembodied hands of a man in the hidden room. According to Serika, that man’s name was Okubo Kengo. Well, that's proof enough. Tsukumojuku returned Ryouko's hollowed-out body to the police, and said that the criminal was Seshiru, leaving out the truth about Serika. A lot of bodies were later pulled out of the river, among them Okubo Kengo.

Tsukumojuku got the 10 million yen prize, transferred half of it to the twins' bank account, bought the magazines for his mother-in-law, and returned home in time. Whew! The mother-in-law questioned why he only got half the money, and he couldn't thought of a reason other than “er, must have dropped it on the way here?”, but it seemed they believed him.

He then learned that since Yanbe Tetsuo, the Illusionary Castle's owner, was quite rich, a prize for solving the Castle case had been funded: 30 million yen, which was something they could definitely use.

–

That night Tsukumojuku read the Third Story. Apparently Okubo Kengo was a serial killer there. In reality... well, you could say a lot of killing was done by his hands. [*rimshot*] In the Third Story, Seiryoin Ryusui was trapped in the Castle... maybe that meant they’d meet tomorrow, once Tsukumojuku got through the underground waterway. (The Castle’s underground... wasn’t that where the monster Gajobun was supposed to live?...) Maybe him thinking about the flag of Gibraltar, showing a key under a castle, really did make sense after all. Did the cross and the crown mean something too?

When he went to the park next morning, there was still a lot of policemen in there, investigating the terrain around the hidden room. A journalist came up to him like “Oh, so you're that Great Detective Tsukumojuku”. Since Tsukumojuku was afraid Ms Suzuki or Tsutomu would learn from the media where he is, he made the journalist faint before he could get any material. The police warned him against more noisy reporters, and didn’t say anything as he entered a manhole, although they looked a bit confused as to why he was doing that. Tsukumojuku went some distance underground, turned on the flashlight he'd brought with him, and looked around.

The waterway was full of ghosts.

STORY 4 PART 4

Of course the waterway was full of ghosts, their faces twisted in sadness or anger; lots of people had died in the Castle. Maybe they were trying to look for their way back? As he walked forward, their numbers increased, until he had to practically squeeze between them to proceed. Finally, he found the place where all the souls were looking up at the same spot. A hole in the ceiling. It seemed no soul could pass through it: a lot of them were frozen in mid-air reaching for it, and Tsukumojuku used that fact to climb them like a makeshift ladder. [Sure.]

Once he climbed out, he noticed a rope ladder, that this “Seiryoin” had probably been using to exit the Castle. If he really was the culprit of the Geneijo case, and these souls were the victims, then it’s kinda weird they didn’t do anything to him.

Tsukumojuku wandered the Castle’s cramped passages for some time before hearing upset voices:

“...I don't knoooow! This makes no sense! Enough! Enough!” “Calm down, Abe.” “I'm serious! I want out of here, right now!” “Stop crying, it's annoying! There's no reason for it! We're fine! Your assistant should be able to do something...” “He’s not my assistant, he’s more like a little brother to me...”

Following the voices, Tsukumojuku opened the door to what looked like a giant chapel, with stone pillars and stained-glass windows. Above the altar, maybe 15m above the ground, a giant crucifix with a figure of Christ was suspended. There were about 20 men and women in the chapel, and one of them was someone very familiar to Tsukumojuku: Abe Atsushi, or Daibakusho Happy. (安倍敦, or 大爆笑ハッピ)

[If just like me you have already forgotten who the hell was that -- it’s that private tutor from the First Story who couldn’t teach for shit, constantly repeated the rakugo “Dowry”, and hanged out with little Tsutomu a lot.]

Tsukumojuku followed Abe’s horrified sight to see what this was all about. On the altar, there was a box with a woman's head inside. Her pale face had a red circle painted on the right cheek, and a blue circle on the left cheek. Her eyes were open, dark eyeliner and fake eyelashes applied. On the box’s inner side was written the name “Geneijo” in red, and the number “5” in blue. On the head's right side somebody had put a clown doll dressed in black.

Oh, and there were 42 other boxes.

Small or large, all rectangular, sometimes containing a head and sometimes half a body. All were decorated with colors, had some kind of toys inside, and were numbered.

Three boxes didn't have bodies: one was numbered “7″ (seventh column from the left) that happened to be next to another “7″. “5″ (tenth column) was empty too, and also had another “5″ as a neighbour. A “1″ (2nd column) also had another “1″ next to it, but instead of being empty, it contained a hand made of clay. So, a double box number would distinguish the empty ones?

The 43 boxes all symbolized individual covers of the 1975-1999 issues of Geneijo, a detective novel magazine. The empty boxes corresponded to '75 July Extra Issue (with Edogawa Ranpo on the cover), and '76 May Special Issue (with Yokomizo Seishi). The box with black clay hands was the '78 New Year Special Issue.

[The next four pages are Tsukumojuku’s drawings of the boxes -- don’t worry, you don’t actually have to pay any attention to these for the plot, but I’m putting them here just because.

Columns 1-2:

Columns 3-5:

Columns 6-8:

Columns 9-11:

–

Among them Tsukumojuku found Ryouko’s head, wrapped in pink scarf, with lips painted pink. (He hoped the white rose in the box would be, as stupid as it sounded, a bit of a comfort to her lost soul... though her soul was still stuck behind that bookshelf.)

He quickly understood the reason why the criminal had used 12 bodies from outside the Castle. During its first year being in circulation, the Geneijo magazine was published by a company called Geneisha, which eventually bankrupted. The magazine was from then on published by a new company called just Geneijo. So the first year issues, from February '75 to January '76, were “from outside Geneijo” -- from outside the Castle. And so were the victims.

- - -

Tsukumojuku approached the group of people, and told Abe that he was Tsutomu's older brother. Abe recognized him (“Oh, it’s you! You alright? How did you get here? Does Tsutomu know you’re here?”) Tsukumojuku told them about the waterway entrance, and everyone cheered, for some reason shouting “Kick-kick-kick, four-dimensional kick” in happiness. A tall man thanked Tsukumojuku for coming, said that everyone in the chapel was an entertainment group [as in actors] called the Angel Bunnies, and asked for his name.

“I’m the Great Detective Tsukumojuku.”

The cheering stopped abruptly.

"What the fuck?!” Abe yelled in tears. “That's already the third Great Detective Tsukumojuku! I don't understand anything! Is the world made out of Tsukumojukus?!”

The tall man tried to console Abe saying that it was all fine, they could leave now -- but Tsukumojuku quickly said that actually, they couldn't leave yet, since the criminal may be among them.

“But,” he said, “I can guarantee that the case will be solved in the next 30 minutes!” Just in time to get back home for lunch. “So please be patient and--”

“But that's exactly what the other Tsukumojuku sa-a-aid...!” Abe was completely hysterical, so Tsukumojuku asked everyone else to look away and took off the sunglasses. Now that the nuisance was temporarily gone (along with two other people too curious for their own good who also had looked his way), he put the glasses back on.

The tall man was like “oh shit, that really is the Great Detective Tsukumojuku, what's with the unnatural beauty and all”. Huh? So that other “Tsukumojuku” was just as beautiful as him?

- - -

The Angel Bunnies introduced themselves to Tsukumojuku. [You don’t have to remember these names at all, don’t worry.]

The name of the tall man was Fukushima Manabu (福島学). People who had fainted alongside Abe were Kawabe Keisuke (河辺恵介) and Nakai Sayaka (中井紗也香).

Other members, men: Kawai Kazuhiro (河合一洋), Hongou Takeshi (本郷雄士), Tanaka Masatsugu (田中正嗣), Kumono Takuya (雲野巧也), Hoshino Masato (星野真人), Aoyama Gen (青山元), Furutaka Masayuki (古高雅之).

Other members, women: Mizoroki Fumie (溝呂木文枝), Kajiwara Ayako (梶原亜矢子), Nomura Rie (野村りえ), Obata Aki (尾畑亜紀), Nonaka Mami (野中麻美), Yoshida Yukino (吉田由貴乃), Iwai Yumi (岩井ゆみ).

A total of 19 people. There were 20 of them once, but unfortunately Higashimoto Mika (東元美佳) was currently stuffed in the box symbolizing the November '76 issue of Geneijo.

As for what they were doing there: apparently Tsutomu (now Great Detective Daibakusho Curry) had been invited to the Castle party. He and Abe were a part of the Angel Bunnies, so when he got the invitation to the Castle, everyone went together with him to have some fun.

Needless to say, it wasn’t fun. Among other casualties, Seiryoin Ryusui vanished without a trace the very first day. Other weird shit was going on too. Apparently some actual JDC members had appeared out of nowhere: Ajiro Souji, Hikimiya Yuuya (氷姫宮幽弥), and the Detective God Tsukumo Juku himself. The rumor was that they had come to protest the publishing of Seiryoin's JDC books, and that Tsutomu / Daibakusho Curry was secretly cooperating with them.

Three JDC detectives... each with his own method of reasoning. Ajiro Souji would ponder the topic endlessly, Detective God would wait patiently and gather evidence that showed up with time, and Hikimiya was mostly there to write the data down. Apparently this now meant that Ajiro was worrying himself with Geneijo on a break from his usual telephone detective stuff. Detective God mostly closed himself in his room and napped [probably because why bother when the evidence hadn’t showed up yet?]. Hikimiya was running around and calculate many weird things like how many chairs and bed there was on the first floor (the same that the number of pages in Seiryoin’s Cosmic, apparently), the number of windows (99, like the number of chapters in Joker), and how much space the carpet took (the same as all the illustrations, table of contents etc. in Carnival.)

Hikimiya was now busy reading through the entirety of the library, counting how many times individual characters show up, or some weird specific shit like that. (...Tsutomu’s cooperation probably meant he was taking care of poor Hikimiya while he was working. Tsutomu was just the kind of person who’d want to take care of others.)

- - -

Since the Angel Bunnies had no idea what the hell the Geneijo magazine even was, Tsukumojuku explained.

Geneijo was called that after Edogawa Ranpo's famous essay. The same essay’s name was also given to the mysterious castle showing up in Seiryoin's book -- in these books, the Castle’s owner was even called Hirai Tarou, which happens to be Edogawa Ranpo's true name. In Joker, a serial killer called the Artist killed a whole lot of people in Geneijo, and the JDC detectives had to stop him... but of course, that was just a story. To make things even more meta, in the JDC books there actually appeared a character called “Seiryoin Ryusui” who was simultaneously writing the JDC books.

Just a story... But the JDC detectives had appeared in reality now, as the Angel Bunnies pointed out. But maybe they were just cosplayers, who would made up things using words and numbers -- anagrams, math puzzles, word plays and so on. If you kept doing this long enough, one thing would always lead to another. For example,let’s say we want to connect “words” and “numbers”. If you moved the voiced consonant in “kotoba” (word) from end to beginning you'd get “gotoha” which you can write down as “五とは” which has the number 5 in it, isn’t it just amazing?

Or that the word “suuji” (numbers, 数字) would also be read “suuji” when written as 崇辞, and if you now swapped the second kanji in that for same-reading 詞, you'd get 崇高な詞 (a sublime word?) which are 本物の言葉 (real words). Words within words. Words without unnecessary decorations. (余計な装飾のない言葉). Words by themselves, to sum it up.

[I’m equally confused by the word play onslaught, don’t worry.]

There were a whole lot of these word games, and obviously some common theme would always crop up if you banged one concept into the other hard enough. These puns and anagrams were the essence of the JDC series, so naturally, it wouldn’t be strange that these “hardcore JDC cosplayers” would also love them.

- - -

In an attempt to solve the mystery, Tsukumojuku then took Ryouko’s head out of her box and using a knife carefully cut off her face to make a mask, which caused the horrified Angel Bunnies to run away to the other side of the chapel because what the actual fuck, dude. Tsukumojuku put the makeshift mask on, and just like when putting on her skin, Ryouko’s memories instantly attacked his brain. They were so strong he fell on the floor in convulsions, and actually broke three ribs in the proccess. Too many memories, way too much information, too great of an impact, and then suddenly – the memory from just before death.

Chofu, near the river, late at night. Somebody trying to catch Ryouko – it's Serika, wearing Okubo's hands like gloves. Ryouko ran, but was caught and tackled to the ground. Serika sat on her chest, and yelled for someone to keep her legs down!”. A man with long black hair and glasses -- Seiryoin.

Mystery solved. In Geneijo, Seiryoin was God.

And as he took the mask off, that God’s “Angels” -- Ajiro, Hikimiya and JDC’s own Tsukumo Juku -- entered the chapel along with Tsutomu.

- - -

IMPRESSIONS:

*Maijo voice* how many layers of meta are you on? you’re like a little baby, watch this

Jesus, just how many tiny kanji can you fit on all these diagrams, Tsukumojuku? Good thing the details don’t really seem to matter in the grand scheme of things, at least as far as I’ve read, so I don’t have to translate this mess.

I love the scene with the ghosts. The soul ladder reminded me of the Kars ladder from Jorge Joestar, for some reason.

I don’t know if this is the intentional reading here, but I love the idea that the Detective God would just chill out in his room while shit is going on because he knows how mystery novels work and that the case’s not gonna get solved before the writer wills it. “Gonna take a nap, wake me up once the scared witness gets shot just before revealing the killer’s name.”

In the JDC series, Hikimiya Yuuya specializes in crime statistics and such, which requires him to always carry a laptop he can calculate data with. He loves quoting mystery novels whenever he can. While working as an assisstant to such great detectives like the Detective God or Ryuuguu Jounosuke, he has some complexes about his own power of reasoning. Not a very remarkable guy, at least on first sight.

>>>>NEXT PART>>>>

#sparkly reads tsukumojuku #long post #maijo and jdc stuff

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poetryofchrist · 3 years

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Climate and theology, Jonah 3

I wonder if it is time to bend my theological comments if any toward a recognition of the disaster we are in the midst of.

I know I have friends who are refusing to hear, yes, even religious friends, looking for the Deus ex machina to fix the problem. Dim wicks who can barely see past the end of their noses.

I watched Greta Thunberg's 3 hour documentary on the climate. It is right up to date. I watched it on PBS but it is available here also and probably lots of other places. It's definitely worth the time to watch.

Now - what to do. That's a different problem. It's more what to undo. But theologically, some of us must first get our heads out of the sand. Particularly the religious who are too afraid to face reality, like the Chinese government who cannot tell the truth because they need to save face. The second coming will not fix this. Those who are denying climate change likely overlap with coronavirus deniers, the vaccine hesitant, and those who still claim that the US election was fraudulent. It won't do, folks. You will be devoured along with the rest of us by the 'fire from his mouth'. (Psalms 18 et al.)

What did Jesus say? The only sign for this evil and adulterous generation is the sign of Jonah. And this has nothing to do with the fish story. We are Nineveh - we need to change our behaviour and stop denying reality for a starter.

Arise - walk to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against her, for their evil has come up in my face.

We can also consider ourselves Jonah, the one who refuses to preach that there is a problem. But he changes - well, at least a smidgen. Yet 40 days (an indeterminate time) and Nineveh will be changed. (Note I did not interpret that as 'destroyed'. I could have used overturned but for some reason I didn't. I could not have used destroyed because that I have used for a different root. Destroyed is the traditional gloss.)

And Nineveh turned from its wickedness, from the king to the cattle. And they even stopped eating and drinking.

As some of us have done for Covid-19, we turned our lives to help stop the virus. It turns out that too few of us have done this so our action is moot as to its effectiveness for herd immunity. The same political issue happens here as in all crises - a few, sometimes a large few, do the work, but everyone has to, not just a few. And maybe it's good that we are failing so that we do not restart the destructive paths we have been on. You will get this from the film: 2020 saw a 7% reduction in emissions over 2019. We need to do this every year for the next 10 years to get to a control point that will begin to hold the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees.

How long is the gap between human turnaround and God sighing. Well, folks, God sighs (that's my word for nkm, which some translate as repent, a word I don't use). What might God's sigh be composed of - signs of hope?

China and Poland closing coal facilities,

Alberta closing down the oil sands,

Brazil removing its knee from the rainforest that makes the earth unable to breathe.

politicians to stop lying,

all of us changing our clothing and purchasing habits,

and our diets,

and carbon capture being scaled up,

and cattle burping less. (Lots of cattle in Jonah, not to mention the children...)

No - we don't have to 'go back to church' to reinforce our prejudices. Nineveh didn't promise much. If church is even to continue, we need to become the church, a caring body that is no longer taking refuge in its sin. It's the king, the secular leader (clearly anticipating the one who removed his garment and washed the feet of his disciples) who says - Who knows. This God may turn and sigh, and turn from his fierce anger and we will not perish ... (immediately).

Turn false interpretations upside down. Let priests indeed be clothed with righteousness. And let's get on with doing something good in that good temple we have been entrusted with. (The patient among us can also reread early Genesis beginning here. It's a very gentle presentation that extends our vision past the end of the nose.)

Jonah 3 Fn Min Max Syll וַיְהִ֧י דְבַר־יְהוָ֛ה אֶל־יוֹנָ֖ה שֵׁנִ֥ית לֵאמֹֽר 1 And the word of Yahweh happened to Jonah a second time, saying, 3c 3g 13 ק֛וּם לֵ֥ךְ אֶל־נִֽינְוֵ֖ה הָעִ֣יר הַגְּדוֹלָ֑ה וִּקְרָ֤א אֵלֶ֙יהָ֙ אֶת־הַקְּרִיאָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר אָנֹכִ֖י דֹּבֵ֥ר אֵלֶֽיךָ 2 Arise, walk to Nineveh, the great city, and call out to her the call that I was speaking to you. d 3d 4C 10 19 וַיָּ֣קָם יוֹנָ֗ה וַיֵּ֛לֶךְ אֶל־נִֽינְוֶ֖ה כִּדְבַ֣ר יְהוָ֑ה וְנִֽינְוֵ֗ה הָיְתָ֤ה עִיר־גְּדוֹלָה֙ לֵֽאלֹהִ֔ים מַהֲלַ֖ךְ שְׁלֹ֥שֶׁת יָמִֽים 3 And Jonah arose and walked to Nineveh according to the word of Yahweh. Now Nineveh happened to be a great city of the gods, a walk of three days. 3d 4C 15 20 וַיָּ֤חֶל יוֹנָה֙ לָב֣וֹא בָעִ֔יר מַהֲלַ֖ךְ י֣וֹם אֶחָ֑ד וַיִּקְרָא֙ וַיֹּאמַ֔ר ע֚וֹד אַרְבָּעִ֣ים י֔וֹם וְנִֽינְוֵ֖ה נֶהְפָּֽכֶת 4 And Jonah let himself come into the city one day's walk, and he called out and he said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh will be changed. 3e 4C 15 17 וַֽיַּאֲמִ֛ינוּ אַנְשֵׁ֥י נִֽינְוֵ֖ה בֵּֽאלֹהִ֑ים וַיִּקְרְאוּ־צוֹם֙ וַיִּלְבְּשׁ֣וּ שַׂקִּ֔ים מִגְּדוֹלָ֖ם וְעַד־קְטַנָּֽם 5 And the men of Nineveh believed in God, and they called a fast, and they clothed themselves with sackcloth from the greatest of them and to the least of them. 3d 4B 12 19 וַיִּגַּ֤ע הַדָּבָר֙ אֶל־מֶ֣לֶך נִֽינְוֵ֔ה וַיָּ֙קָם֙ מִכִּסְא֔וֹ וַיַּעֲבֵ֥ר אַדַּרְתּ֖וֹ מֵֽעָלָ֑יו וַיְכַ֣ס שַׂ֔ק וַיֵּ֖שֶׁב עַל־הָאֵֽפֶר 6 And the word touched the king of Nineveh and he arose from his throne and transferred his majesty from him, and he covered in sackcloth and sat on the ashes. 3e 4C 27 10 וַיַּזְעֵ֗ק וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ בְּנִֽינְוֵ֔ה מִטַּ֧עַם הַמֶּ֛לֶךְ וּגְדֹלָ֖יו לֵאמֹ֑ר הָאָדָ֨ם וְהַבְּהֵמָ֜ה הַבָּקָ֣ר וְהַצֹּ֗אן אַֽל־יִטְעֲמוּ֙ מְא֔וּמָה אַ֨ל־יִרְע֔וּ וּמַ֖יִם אַל־יִשְׁתּֽוּ 7 And he appealed and he said, In Nineveh from the taste of the king, and his great ones, saying, The human and the cattle, the herd and the flock, let none taste anything whatever, let none pasture, and water let none imbibe. 3c 4B 20 28 וְיִתְכַּסּ֣וּ שַׂקִּ֗ים הָֽאָדָם֙ וְהַבְּהֵמָ֔ה וְיִקְרְא֥וּ אֶל־אֱלֹהִ֖ים בְּחָזְקָ֑ה וְיָשֻׁ֗בוּ אִ֚ישׁ מִדַּרְכּ֣וֹ הָֽרָעָ֔ה וּמִן־הֶחָמָ֖ס אֲשֶׁ֥ר בְּכַפֵּיהֶֽם 8 But let them be covered in sackcloth, the human and the cattle, and call out to God resolutely, and let each turn from its evil way and from the violence that is in their palms. 3e 4C 24 22 מִֽי־יוֹדֵ֣עַ יָשׁ֔וּב וְנִחַ֖ם הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים וְשָׁ֛ב מֵחֲר֥וֹן אַפּ֖וֹ וְלֹ֥א נֹאבֵֽד 9 Who knows. This God may turn and sigh, and turn from his fierce anger and we will not perish. 3d 4B 12 11 וַיַּ֤רְא הָֽאֱלֹהִים֙ אֶֽת־מַ֣עֲשֵׂיהֶ֔ם כִּי־שָׁ֖בוּ מִדַּרְכָּ֣ם הָרָעָ֑ה וַיִּנָּ֣חֶם הָאֱלֹהִ֗ים עַל־הָרָעָ֛ה אֲשֶׁר־דִּבֶּ֥ר לַעֲשׂוֹת־לָהֶ֖ם וְלֹ֥א עָשָֽׂה 10 And this God saw their deeds, that they turned from their evil ways, and this God sighed over the evil that he designated to do to them and he did not do it. 3d 4C 19 25

For a short cantata on Jonah, listen to this music derived from the accents of the Hebrew Bible with a nod or two to Gershwin. Looking for a sponsor to get this performed and make it go viral! ($20K should do it.) Get the message out that God has given us humans the task of controlling our waste products. ($40K and we can perform Unleashing Leviathan as well. Pace those who say that the dragons are dealt with in Gen 1.)

You religious who are looking for a bit of comfort - by all means read Psalm 18. Concentrate on verses 5 to 16. And then imagine you are one of David's enemies. Conspiracy theorists are not on a friendly basis with the Most High. Business as usual will not fly.

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japanessie · 6 years

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MY FIRST STORY MMA Tour Final The Premium Symphony 2017 in retrospect

On 23rd December 2017, MY FIRST STORY made another milestone by performing at the same venue which was supposed to have been the place where their rival brother band ONE OK ROCK was originally scheduled to perform with Linkin Park in November. Looking at the visuals presented to us so far, it was a roaring success.

Photos by Masanori Fujikawa and Taka Tallman except *

Here are my thoughts .... for my reader who requested. Basically a continuation of what I had said in a previous post before.

1. The stage looks like something inspired by Jules Verne novels combined with the Parthenon.

That’s impressive!!

Then, similar to OOR, they also used a runway heading out to the audience. OOR normally use this for their acoustic set where the band members would gather together with their instruments. MFS used the end platform for Hiro where the digital piano was mechanically raised from below the stage. For a rectangular concert hall, you have to have this kind of setting for the audience's optimal viewing.

Look at the laser lighting! It was among the elements that worried the s**t out of their boss GEN back in the Shinkiba Studio Coast show because it was expensive. But looks like he’s not worried anymore based on this elaborate display.

Ready to go “Around The World In 80 Days” or “20,000 Leagues Under The Sea”! XD

2. The attendance at Makuhari was higher than the Budokan.

From the TV clips shared by Japanese fans, 18,000 people came compared to 12,000 for the Budokan. Reading through fans' reports, it looked like Blocks A & B were the most packed or the crowds consisted of the hardcore fans. One girl in Block B said she wished she could transfer to Block C where she could breathe.

Looking at the crowd placement, I started to feel doubtful whether choosing a seated ticket for this venue is worth it for someone like me (154cm tall) because unlike the multi-tiered Budokan or the Makuhari Event Hall, the Makuhari Hall 9-11 are flat. They're exhibition Halls after all. How high were the seats raised from the main floor if they were raised at all?

* Photo: Makuhari Messe Hall 9-11 when empty. Making me wish that it had a premium ceiling seat XD

3. It was MFS first attempt at using a full orchestra + a full choir

When they first announced the MMA Tour Final, they said this would be MFS as we had never seen them before. The ALL SECRET TRACKS album obviously had been arranged for this. The Live was not named The Premium Symphony for nothing. To me MFS music from the start has always been heavily layered. It was inevitable that they would arrive at this point.

Photo: The moment the curtain came down. Aaaahhhh!!! That’s 終焉レクイエム (Shuuen Requiem) making its debut everyone \(^^)/

When MFS did the acoustic set for Itsuwari NEUROSE Final at Shinkiba Studio Coast, my mind actually wondered whether they would one day tackle the violin-cello string arrangements. Would have been slammed with the "OOR copy" moniker big time if they did it back then, wouldn't they? The difference is MFS actually created songs with orchestration right on their album rather than pick a few songs and re-arranged them with a string section for the Live show.

You know what’s beautiful about the above photo? The backup musicians were smiling as they looked at the band members giving it all. Despite the different genres they come from, all artists know passion when they see it.

4. The Surprising setlist :-o

More like shocking to me!

The most striking thing about the setlist is the fact that they had excluded their signature Live songs Second Limit, The Story Is My Life, 最終回STORY and Awake :-o. Seriously?? WTF! You know what this means??! This means they were signalling the beginning of a new era. Up to this point, an MFS show would not be complete without those songs. This is them presenting the fans the new-phase MFS!

The Setlist

1. 終焉レクイエム (Shuuen Requiem) 2. ALONE 3. Black Rail 4. 悪戯フィクション (Itazura Fiction) 5. Missing You 6. REVIVER 7. この世界で一番の幸せ者にはする事など出来ないかもし��ないけど... (Kono sekai de ichiban no shiawasesha ni wa suru koto nado dekinai kamoshirenai kedo...) 8. 失踪FLAME (Shissou FLAME) 9. See you again 10. Love Letter 11. monologue 12. 虚言NEUROSE (Itsuwari NEUROSE) 13. LET IT DIE 14. "BOOM" 15. Zero Gravity 16. The Puzzle 17. CHiLD -error- 18. Tomorrowland 19. モノクロエフェクター (Monochrome Effector) 20. 不可逆リプレイス (Fukagyaku Replace)

(Encore)

-Nori Ohtani marriage proposal- EN1. 「花」 -0714- (Hanarenai yo) EN2. Merry Christmas EN3. REVIVER

While I understand their wish to move forward with their music, it's sad for me to see 最終回STORY go because that's the song through which I fell in love with MFS (T_T).

5. Hiro debuted his piano solo performance

My wish came true \(^^)/! Back in 2014 when MFS released their Taylor Swift remake We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together, I told another fan on my friend's MFS FB fanpage that I hoped to see Hiro perform with a piano.

I guess it wasn't the right timing for it then because it was the time when Hiro was still so heavily criticized and ridiculed as being Taka's copycat. Hiro with a piano onstage would be a bad move a few years ago. Nowadays, the comparison with his famous brother is much kinder as MFS music is speaking for itself more and more. So I think Hiro picked the right time to finally do it.

By the way, Hiro played See You Again solo. For Love Letter, he played solo halfway and then joined by the others. Can’t wait to see these (^^)

6. Hiro’s vocal performance

You see this one coming. My MFS concert commentary wouldn’t be complete without me talking about Hiro’s vocals, would it? True that I wasn’t there at the Hall BUT I have come to the point were I can slowly trust him to nail it around 90 to 95%. While I wasn’t expecting perfection, I know Hiro had worked really hard as he was confident enough to again include the song I directly and openly criticised him for through the band’s social media back in 2016, 失踪FLAME . Though they did not respond to me directly but Hiro did acknowledge on STORYTELLER that the song was hard.

When I saw this visual for 失踪FLAME , I felt good because I knew he still kept his determination to get that song right. I believe he handled it well. He wouldn’t have made this visual display if he couldn’t do the song right, could he (^_-)?

7. Former drummer Masaki came (^^)

Their friendship remains solid and Masaki once again showed that he wouldn't miss his former bandmates' big moment for the world. He tweeted saying it had been awhile since he went to see them, how awesome the show was, apologizing that he was giving an impression of an elementary schoolkid’s excitement and then attached his old photo wearing his underwear with producer Nori with a congratulatory message. Because that’s the only two-shot photo he ever had with Nori XD

8. "Men In Black" (^^)

Who wasn't taken by the fact that the band performed fully in suits?

I think rather than setting themselves apart from the backup orchestra + choir members, the look they chose tied the whole thing together. The formally attired orchestra + the choir that coloured the overall feel of ALL SECRET TRACKS and their visually impactful LET IT DIE MV from ALL LEAD TRACKS. It was "MFS The Premium Symphony" and not "MFS with some guest musicians for some songs".

Oh, yes. To me Teruki Nishizawa is the most dashing of them all in black suits. They’re all cute guys but Teru actually has that “prep school + white collar” aura which transcends well with that outfit. I don’t think I’m biased at all. Just look.

9. Hiro & Blouson Chiemi

I'm a bit blurry with this one, did he do something like her comedy skit onstage or what? I saw a few Japanese fans mentioning her name along with Hiro’s. Knowing that Hiro likes her, I was hardly surprised. But MFS always edited out extra things like this when the concerts went to DVDs. So, if he ever impersonated any celebrity at all, it probably wouldn't go on the official release (-_-)

But at least we had seen Hiro posing like her during VAMPS Halloween Party 2017 XD

*Photo: From BREAKERZ Daigo’s blog

10. Sho Tsuchiya did not perform with them this time

Though he did appear here and there on the MMA Tour, he did not perform at the Final as I previously had expected. Well, they already played up his surprise appearance to the MAX at the Budokan. Anyway, I'm glad I wasn't at the Budokan because I swear I would have pissed in my pants the moment I saw his face on the screen XD. But it wouldn't have the same impact doing it the 2nd time around, eh? The only way Sho’s re-appearance can top the Budokan is if they actually announce him coming back to them.

* Photo from iTony Entertainment (it’s JMS subsidiary too!)

11. The biggest surprise of the night ..... Nori's getting married!

Their producer Nori Ohtani proposed to his girlfriend and after which, the band launched into their wedding anthem 「花」 -0714- . The fans, including yours truly XD, flooded the band's social media with messages congratulating him and wishing him well.

My thought :

Dating a rock band's manager / producer has its perk, eh? If things go well, you may get an epic marriage proposal with an orchestra, a choir and 18,000 eye witnesses too XD

Overall

One fan commented on IG that after watching the Makuhari show, the Tokyo Dome now doesn't seem like a dream anymore. I agree with her. I mean, if a band or any artist can hold a packed show at a venue like Makuhari Messe, with glowing reports and feedback afterwards, then the Tokyo Dome is not a dream but already a given.

#my first story #mma tour final #hiroki moriuchi #teruki nishizawa

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hibisha · 7 years

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The Ace

Chapters: 1/1

Fandom: K (Anime)

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Relationships: Akiyama Himori/Hidaka Akira

Characters: Akiyama Himori, Hidaka Akira, Benzai Yuujirou, Awashima Seri, Gotou Ren

Additional Tags: Crime, AU, Murder Mystery, Romance

Series: Part 2 of

Dire Needs

The Ace

External mirrors:

1.) Fanfiction

2.) AO3

BAU, PSIA headquarters, Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan.

04th July, Monday.

[8:30 AM]

Mondays were just one of those things that made for a very tedious existence.

The observation was made by a young man staggering through the main entrance of the bureau and collapsing in his work space, glaring at the pile of case files in front of him that needed reviewing and debriefing. Benzai Yujiro had sworn to himself that he would never look at another piece of report for a month but then again, that’s what he swore to himself each weekend as he stuffed some paperwork in his bag to take home with him. Next to him, Kamo Ryuho was sipping coffee and was already flipping through a case, not batting an eye at the gruesome display of bodies before him.

"I can't believe it's Monday already." Both of them turned to look at their newest recruit, a young red head, drag himself into the room and throw himself into his own chair. "I can't keep doing this every week, my body can't handle the stress." Doumyoji Andy was so far the youngest person in their department and Benzai knew for a fact that Kamo had taken quite the shine to him – the only reason why he offered him a smile instead of a scathing remark with a complimentary eye roll as Benzai was about to do.

Speaking of new recruits...

"Weren't we going to get two new members transferring in today?" He mused out loud, thinking back on what the Captain had told them before the weekend. Both his colleagues were about to respond when a sharp click of heels against the marble floor of the place made them all turn around.

Awashima Seri, the young blonde woman who had replaced Gen Shiotsu as the communication liaison around a week ago, marched straight out of her office and made her way over to them.

"Gentlemen." Her tone was brusque, eyes going over their desks, disapprovingly taking in all the unfinished files and paperwork. "Has anyone seen Akiyama kun arrive since this morning?" Benzai and Andy, both who had clocked in only moments ago, turned to look at Kamo, who presumably had been there since six am, only because he didn't have any other obligations. The dark haired man shrugged.

"I haven't seen him, sorry." Awashima nodded, her blue eyes glancing at the large clock hanging on the wall before she turned to Benzai and gave him an almost pleading look.

"Could you call him and ask him where he is? He was supposed to bring the two new comers from the airport -" Andy let out a small noise and they all turned to look at him as he ducked his head low, face turning a bit pink, "- and he hasn't been picking up any of my calls." Awashima finished, still eyeing Andy suspiciously, the later having dropped a pen and having to dive under his desk to retrieve it. Benzai on his part, kept a straight face until she had left only to have Andy break out into a fit of giggles and even Kamo was trying to hide his amusement behind his hand.

"Okay you two, knock it off."

"Akiyama-san. She sent Akiyama san to get the two newbies. From the airport. She sent Akiyama-san to drive them back here from the airport." Andy couldn't even seem to breathe and Benzai almost wished he'd choke on behalf of his best friend. He was about to snap back at them when another soft laugh joined Andy's explosive ones and Benzai looked up to see Fuse approaching them with Enomoto tagging along behind, both holding steaming mugs of coffee and wearing matching grins.

"Akiyama-san's driving? Alone?" Benzai sighed.

"I'm sure it's not that bad..." He mumbled, pulling out his phone. Dialing his oldest friend's number, he waited for the line to connect as all the others listened in, showing various levels of interest and amusement.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Click.

"I'm not lost."

That's when Andy truly couldn't control himself. The red head bent over, laughing soundly as Fuse joined him and even Enomoto and Kamo let out a small chuckle. "Why are you all laughing, I said I'm not lost!" Akiyama's tone sounded too peeved for Benzai to take those words in account though. "…I just took a wrong turn."

"Enomoto kun..." The bespectacled man nodded at Benzai, and pulled out his laptop, setting to work on tracing Akiyama's cellphone coordinates. "Akiyama, take a left."

"...okay but I just want to confirm everyone knows that I'm not lost."

"Of course you're not lost. How are the two with you?" Benzai added hastily, coughing to drown out the noise of everyone snickering in the background. There was a derisive snort heard from the other end that was so unlike Akiyama that Benzai had to pause and blink for a while before confirming that yes, this was still his best friend's voice. "Akiyama?"

"One of them had the bright idea for me to let him drive."

"Alright?" Keeping an eye on the red dot on Enomoto's screen, he quickly added before Akiyama could respond, "Take a right and then just drive straight – you'll get on familiar roads soon."

"Why is the headquarters so far away?" The other man complained, "Anyways, like I was saying, the car broke down. Twice." Benzai raised his eyebrow, even though the other couldn't see it.

"Oh?"

"Yes. It was weird. It just stopped and wouldn't move forward and … it was odd."

"Okay, just be careful and make it back in one piece alright?"

"Yes but for the record-"

"Yes Akiyama, we get it - you weren't lost."

BAU, PSIA headquarters, Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan.

04th July, Monday.

[9:42 AM]

"Hidaka Akira and Gotou Ren." The young brunette looked up with bleary eyes as a tall man approached them, "Sorry for the inconvenience. We were unaware of the troubles that could have happened." The fact that the man did not look even the slightest bit sorry – if not anything, he looked a bit amused – made Hidaka almost snipe back. The other man had dark hair, deep violet eyes framed by the delicate frames of his glasses. He wasn't taller than Hidaka yet his presence alone made Hidaka feel smaller. "I'm the section chief and SSA, Munakata Reisi, you must be the two new recruits from Kyoto?"

Both of them nodded. Munakata san smiled, eyes twinkling behind the lenses.

"Well the, I'm glad to welcome you to the team. Rest assured, Awashima kun will show you around but for now, why don’t you two just rest. After all, I heard it was quite a taxing ride."

"It was alright – wasn't it Hidaka san." Gotou smiled at him in his usual demure manner and all the frustration and annoyance that had been building up inside him was calmed down – a bit.

Gotou was no miracle worker after all.

"Yeah." He mumbled, "We'll get over it." Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a certain green haired man walking towards the coffee pot and he almost marched straight up to him to tell him exactly why he shouldn't be allowed on roads if he couldn't even follow a GPS map on his phone.

"Excellent!" Munakata said, clapping his hands together. "Why don't you take some time to familiarize yourself with the place – we haven't had a case today so it’s a slow day."

"Alright sir." Both of them nodded and in a blink of an eye, Hidaka was in hot pursuit of the short directionally challenged man who had escorted him to the HQ - if you called it an escort.

What was his name again? Akiyama Himori right? The man had been so focused on getting them back to the bureau that introductions had gone sailing out of the window.

"Akiya-!" The rest of the words got drowned in his mouth as he saw the look of utter despair and resignation on the other man's face. There was a phone lodged between his ear and shoulder and he was talking very vehemently, the hand that was not holding the coffee mug, was making all sorts of gestures, clearly indicating the other man was highly agitated.

"-on't do something you'll regret... You know what, fine. Have it your way! We're done!" Grabbing his phone, he angrily cut the call and whirled around only to come face to face with Hidaka who had enough sense of mind to realize he might have witnessed a breakup.

A rather abrupt and depressing one.

"It's not polite to eavesdrop on someone else's conversation." Akiyama sniffled out, his hair swept across his face, covering his right eye, making him look rather...adorable for lack of other words. "I don't know where you've transferred in fro-"

"Oh no, I wasn't eavesdropping! I was here to -" Yes, telling him off about his atrocious navigation skills was really not going to help the other right now so he began searching his mind for an excuse. "-ask you where I could get some coffee!" Akiyama looked at him and then pointedly at the coffee machine that sat right next to Hidaka, innocently doing what it was meant to do – brewing coffee.

The sudden low chuckle that escaped the other's mouth made him almost cry with relief because really, what the actual fuck. Coffee? Really?

Thank you brain.

"It's alright, I wasn't exactly somewhere private or secluded enough to have this conversation." Jamming his hands in his pocket, Hidaka shot him a sympathetic look.

"Tough day?"

"You have no idea."

"Want to talk about it?" A single green eye blinked at him as if he hadn't expected this before a small smile crossed his features, turning them softer and making them look much more meek and mellower than before.

"It's alright...Hidaka san?" Hidaka grinned.

"Yup! That's me! Hidaka Akira! I suppose I'm your junior right now!" The small smile on the other's face grew wider and even thought he could still blatantly see the other's misery reflected on his face, he didn't push his luck in trying to make him laugh even more.

"Well Hidaka san, I hope we get along." Hidaka watched as the shorter of the two made his way to a work bench where he got comfortable and was immediately joined by a group of people, all who were slapping him on his back.

He also noted how there was now a smile plastered on the man's face.

BAU, PSIA headquarters, Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan.

11th August, Monday.

[8:45 AM]

"Right guys, since we're all here I'll get started right away." Awashima announced as soon as she waltzed into the conference room. Over the past month, Hidaka had gotten used to the fact that while the curvaceous body looked like it had been in every man's dreams at least once, the woman also possessed quite the sharp tongue that could quite possibly rip you into two if you stared at her chest for longer than absolute necessary - 0.01 seconds to be precise.

That and she had a boyfriend, who was equally just as terrifying as her.

Next to him, Gotou merely smiled into his cup of tea.

Gotou Ren had turned out to be a blessing in disguise for Hidaka. When the young man was looking for an apartment to live in after being randomly evicted from the one he was staying in on his second day because of a very bizarre reason - "You're too tall, you scare our children. We're sorry but could you please find somewhere else to go?" - Gotou had offered him to come live with him in an apartment that his family had owned in the area.

He also found out that no, Gotou did not smoke pot every morning, he was relatively this calm by nature.

A tap on his head made him turn to the right just to stare into the disapproving face of Akiyama san, who was staring at him steadily with the one eye that wasn't covered by the mess of his hair.

"Pay attention." he chided, "Hidaka san, you're going to get yourself into trouble if you keep zoning out like that."

"Sorry Akiyama san..."

"It’s alright, just don't make a habit of it. Also, you've been tapping that pen against the desk for a while now, it's getting a bit distracting - could you please stop?"

Akiyama Himori, Hidaka had discovered, liked everything to be in perfect order. He was always smiling and was the person you went to for advice.

"Alright Akiyama san, I'll stop distracting you."

"You'll need to stop existing for that to happen Hidaka san."

He was also the person who, and here's the part Hidaka didn't understand quite how it had happened, seemed to have started a sort of fake relationship with him where both of them pretended that they were dating.

As if his life wasn't odd as it was.

He supposed his constant flirting had been to blame too.

But he really hadn't expected quiet and shy Akiyama Himori to respond to his subtle remarks with even more highly inappropriate things – all in subtext of course because Akiyama san was going to be inappropriate, that would be improper - that made him think that maybe he was dreaming up the whole thing.

"Guys!" Benzai admonished them from where he sat, giving them an exasperated look. Akiyama immediately gave him a sweet smile and returned his focus back to the case.

"Right, we have a series of women abduction cases in Itabashi - so far seven women have gone missing over the past month and two of them just turned up dead - Maki Mamoru and Reiko Masashi. Both strangled, with their hands and feet showing signs of being bound to something."

"Any signs of sexual assault?" Benzai asked, looking at the file in front of him. Awashima shook her head.

"None but if you see here around their necks, you'll realize-"

"The marks come from collars."

Everyone turned to look at Akiyama, who in turn had gone very pink in the face and mumbled something along the lines of "know from a friend..." Hidaka wondered what kind of company Akiyama liked to keep.

"Are we sure it's the same guy who kidnapped all seven?" Benzai interrupted, raising his eyebrow, "I mean, it could be possible that some of them aren't related to the case."

"That's what I thought too except this guy likes to throw a calling card." The screen behind Awashima lit up, revealing an image of a playing card.

"The Ace of spades?" Hidaka asked, giving a small smile. "How..."

"Original." Benzai deadpanned from across him. "I'm guessing that's what the media has started calling him."

"You know, in legend and folklore, it is also known as the death card." Gotou added a bit dreamily. Awashima nodded and sighed.

"With the captain and half the squad away on a business trip in LA, we're kind of short staffed as well."

"Don't worry Awashima san." Akiyama said, smiling politely, "I'm sure we can handle it." The blonde woman nodded, her eyes flashing with determination.

"Indeed we have to, seeing as we don't have a choice. Alright squad let's move out!"

"Yes!"

Middle of nowhere, Tokyo, Japan.

11th August, Monday.

[ 09:18 AM]

"Akiyama san, why did you not listen to me when I asked you to let me drive?"

"I'm. Not. Lost."

"You're right. We're lost. Both of us." Hidaka couldn't believe his luck. Of all the people who could have driven on the one day he fell asleep in the van, it just had to be Akiyama. The rest had gone ahead in another vehicle and Benzai had explicitly warned him not to let Akiyama take charge.

And he'd fallen asleep.

"I didn't want to wake you up! You looked so cute just sleeping there." Flirting aside, the man did look very apologetic and remorseful, so Hidaka supposed he could overlook it.

"Okay okay, but where are we?"

"I don't know but-"

"Okay yes you're not lost I get it. We get it. The world gets it. But that's not going to help us right now." Akiyama pouted and Hidaka felt his heart skip a beat. Or several. "Oth-other than that – we're not getting any cellphone reception here either." Akiyama looked away, looking the absolute picture of misery.

"I know what you’re thinking and yes, this is why I'm not allowed to drive by myself."

"...Okay, let's just keep driving till we find some cell phone signals?"

"You think I'm incapable of driving without a guide."

"Akiyama san – we are currently in the middle of nowhere with no cell phone reception, no cars within sight – yes I think you are an extremely incapable driver." Seeing the other man opening his mouth looking affronted, he held up a hand, stopping him before he could say anything. "Still, I don't mind being stuck here with you. But we need to find a way back to the others okay?" Akiyama didn't respond or even meet his eyes, opting to tap his fingers against the steering wheel.

"What?" Hidaka was suddenly filled with realization that just maybe his words could have been taken as a tad bit offensive and he suddenly began to splutter out an explanation. "No, that's not what I meant – I think you're a great driver -"

"I don’t' mind being stuck with Hidaka san either." The words were mumbled out as if Akiyama wished Hidaka wouldn't hear them. The tall brunette started, a slow and easy grin creeping along his face. Slinging an arm around the other, he poked him in the cheek.

"Aww Akiyama san is so cute."

"Remove your arm lest I remove it off for you - permanently." But even as he said it, Hidaka noticed the small smile on the man's face. "Alright, let's start driving, you keep focused on looking for a signal okay?" Hidaka nodded and offered the man a mock salute before the car was revved up began to move down the road.

Police Department, Itabashi, Tokyo, Japan.

11th August, Monday.

[10:45 AM]

"So how does he get to the girls?" Benzai stared at the whiteboard in front of him, frowning. All of them had arrived about half an hour ago and had just received a message that Akiyama and Hidaka were on their way, after taking a small detour. By detour obviously they meant Akiyama had gotten "not lost" again. Seriously...

And he had warned the other man to not let Akiyama take charge.

Benzai loved his best friend but even with him closing his eyes to all his faults, there was just this one thing that he couldn't let go off mostly because he was sure it would end up putting Akiyama in danger one day.

"Well we figured out that all seven of them had no places they'd ever come across each other except for this one bar." The local head of the PD, Chitose Yo said, reaching out to tap the map pinned on the board. "This place is the only bar around here for miles that offers a single ladies night once a week. Now according to the locals and regulars of the bar, they had seen each of the missing ladies at least once there."

"So the unsub scopes out single women at the bar and then what?" Gotou asked, cocking his head to the side thoughtfully. "It's not like he can just grab a woman in front of everyone and drag her away."

"He?" Chitose asked, looking startled, "I assumed it would be a female seeing as the killer manages to watch his victims at a ladies' night." Awashima shook her head, her blonder hair pulled back in a bun.

"That's what we would have thought too except the woman he abducted last - Haruka Maki was an all-star athlete. It would take a very large person to subdue her."

"Unless the killer had a gun." Benzai pointed out, "Guns usually make the strongest fall and become compliant. So we’re not ruling it out entirely."

"It could also be a really tall woman." Relief flooded Benzai's system as he whirled in his seat to stare Akiyama who came striding in with Hidaka on his heels. "Haruka san is strong but what's saying it couldn't be a stronger woman?" Awashima looked thoughtful.

"Well yes, I suppose that could be it."

"So we're back to square one.”

"Let's look at the victimology." Gotou pipped up, "All young women, dark haired, around their late twenties. All of them single and just out to have a good time."

"Something happens in that party that triggers off our unsub." Awashima added, "And next thing you know, we've got ourselves a new victim." Her blue eyes darkened, forehead wrinkling with worry. "That's all fine and good but why keep them for so long and then kill them? The bodies showed no signs of torture - no defensive wounds or anything. Just the marks on their hands and feet. They were well fed and no signs of being starved or being unkempt. They even had their toenails all trimmed and proper."

"So the unsub keeps them prisoner, takes care of them and then what? He just kills them?" Hidaka asked, raising his eyebrow. Benzai drummed his fingers against the table absent mindedly.

"No, something isn't quite right here. We're missing something. We need to go talk to the families and see what they say before we make any deductions." Akiyama suggested from where he was perched on a counter, "There has got to be something that links these women more than just their build and appearances." Awashima nodded.

"Okay, everyone pick a family and go talk to them. We'll meet back here and discuss what we've found out alright?" Nodding, all of them got to their feet. Benzai made his way to Akiyama.

"So - what happened?"

"Well, I took a wrong turn or two. Not my fault, you see, the signs were all very faded and it was hard to decipher one arrow from the other."

"And Hidaka san?"

"Oh he fell asleep. But he does look cute when he's snoring so I let him stay pressed up against the window, drooling." Benzai snorted. Akiyama smiled brightly. "I even took pictures!" Benzai just shook his head and reached out to ruffle the already messy hair before him.

"Don't make me worry like that again."

"I'm a grown adult-"

"-with no sense of direction."

"Still. I can take care of myself and you know it." Benzai snorted again, remembering their training days together in the academy. Akiyama had been known as some sort of silent holy terror. 'His bite is definitely worse than his bark' - the rumor that had drawn him towards the otherwise very silent and sweet looking individual.

"Well yes, I have no doubt that you can take care of yourself."

"See? You have nothing to worry about." The smile Akiyama gave him made him not even a little less worried about him.

"I'm still going to be the one to drop you off where you want to go right now."

"That is such -"

"Hidaka san can pick you up."

"- such a nice idea." Akiyama grinned. His eyes were twinkling mischievously - or eye. The only one he could see anyways. Benzai groaned.

"You know, you could stop pretending you don't have a crush on him and outright instead."

"Now where would be the fun in that? Besides, it's not like he ever takes any of my comments seriously..."

"Well maybe you should openly tell him instead of making a game out of it."

"He started it! We're just joking around Benzai." The two of them were making their way to where one of the cars they were supposed to be using was parked and Benzai slid into the driver's seat, Akiyama climbing in next to him.

"Well actually, I think he flirted with you genuinely and now he's confused..."

"He flirts with everyone!" Akiyama did have a fair point. Hidaka did flirt with everyone - or used to. Except everyone else had just given up while Akiyama had responded and Benzai knew when his best friend had a crush from a mile away. Akiyama on the other hand, was still in denial about the whole thing. Factoring in the last relationship that he had, which had ended rather sourly, it was understandable why Akiyama wouldn’t want to get into another one – his boyfriend had just up and realized one day that he wasn’t gay, something that Benzai couldn’t understand because how on earth do you just, after being in relationship with a man for almost a year, just suddenly realize you weren’t gay? But apparently that was a thing that happened. Which made this all such a huge pointless drama that Benzai wouldn't be surprised it was written by some young college student who liked creating nonexistent complicated messes.

"Okay look, if by the end of this case you don't tell him, I'm going to do it for you. He may turn you down but then at least you'll know?" Akiyama pouted.

"Well true enough I suppose. Alright, when we're done with this case, I'll tell him." Benzai smiled as he pulled out of the driveway.

"That's the Akiyama Himori I know."

Mamoru household, Itabashi, Tokyo, Japan.

11th August, Monday.

[11:30 AM]

"Good afternoon Yuki Mamoru san, may I come in?" The short brown haired woman nodded and stepped aside to let in Awashima as she flashed her credentials. The blonde woman entered the house and looked around, seeing what you'd find in a normal everyday household. Framed pictures on the walls, a small living room with an attached kitchen and some doors which she assumed were the bedrooms.

"Ah thank you for speaking with me Yuki-san." she said, bowing her head a bit, "I wanted to ask you a few questions regarding your daughter?" The woman let out a small sniffle but apart from that managed to hold herself together and give her a tiny nod.

"Okay, did Maki have any enemies? Anyone who'd want to do this to her?" Yuki shook her head aggressively, eyes shining with unshed tears.

"No, not that I can think of. Maki was an outgoing child - a bit rambunctious but over all a nice kid. She wouldn't hurt a fly and wasn’t bad at heart. I know – I know what everyone says, that Maki – my Maki, probably did something stupid and reckless – and that she d-d-deserv-" Awashima reached out and put a gentle hand on her arm and gave a firm look.

“Yuki-san, I know this is hard but know that no one blames Maki or thinks she deserved any of this. We will find whoever did this and we will bring him to justice. But I need you to be strong and answer my questions. Can you do that for me?” Yuki nodded, wiping her eyes on her apron. Awashima gave her an encouraging nod. "Alright, you told the police that when Maki didn't return home for a day, you didn't think too much about it until it crossed was about three days later?" Yuki let out a sob and shook her head.

"You - you probably think I'm a bad mother but I didn't - she would usually spend nights at her boyfriend's house so I didn't - she never listened to me anyways." At this the woman dissolved into tears and Awashima awkwardly reached out to pat her back. The woman finally took a deep breath and managed to calm herself down.

"She recently just broke up with him too - I should have known. But I thought they made up - they always do. Always." At this she just broke down once more, not even attempting to pull herself together. Awashima, sensing that she was not going to get any more answers out of the woman, got up and bid her farewell. The woman just looked up and gave her a hard stare.

"Find this person. Find them - save those other girls." Awashima nodded and exited the house. Pulling out her cellphone, she put all of the squad on a conference call.

"All right Maki Mamoru was a bit of a rough edged girl but she didn't have any enemies. She was recently going through a breakup -"

"With an on again off again boyfriend?" Benzai interrupted. Awashima blinked.

"Yes that's exactly-"

"I think I know what this is all about." came a clipped reply. “Everyone gather at the PD's conference room." Hearing all the others agree and drop the call, the bewildered blonde woman was left wondering what on earth was going on.

Police Department, Itabashi, Tokyo, Japan.

11th August, Monday.

[01:14 PM]

"He's targeting women who're single - but not just single. Recent breakups." Benzai pointed out. "Women who are all together with some on again off again romance and by the looks of it, he's telling them that he wants to tie them down - in other words, they should settle down once and for all."

"Why the girls though?" Hidaka asked, "They aren't the ones who initiated most of these breakups." Awashima frowned.

“He’s also taking care of them.” She argued, “Doesn’t seem like something a man would do if they were just discipline his victims.”

“Unless he thinks he’s saving them from that way of life.” Akiyama supplied. “Tie them down and enforce them to not go back – stay with him who treats them so kindly?”

"Maybe something to do with his own past?" Gotou pipped up from where he was sitting, "Either way, I think I have a plan on how to catch this guy."

"How?" Chitose asked, looking confused. Gotou smiled mysteriously.

"All we need, is some insider's information."

Raven’s Heart, Itabashi, Tokyo, Japan.

12th August, Tuesday.

[9:45 PM]

“I still say this is a highly bad idea.” Hidaka muttered under his breath as the two slipped into the bar, wearing tuxedos. Akiyama shrugged, looking around cautiously. Zeroing in on Dewa Masaomi from a distance, he nodded to Hidaka.

“There.” Hidaka turned to look at the quiet dark haired man, just sitting there quietly, sipping vodka and scoffed.

“You have got to be kidding me – that’s our informant?” Akiyama shrugged. It appeared he was a close friend of the local PD head so what was the point on commenting. Not that Akiyama was going to deny that the man looked way too different to be a friend of what Akiyama had established on first sight, a very flashy police officer.

“Well, he’s our best lead. He’s going to be the one who helps us identify who’s a regular here and who’s not.”

“And we’re looking for a regular?”

“Yes, because the unsub needs to visit a lot to know everything about the victims as he did.” Akiyama signaled the informant with his head and the man gave them a long hard look before very subtly pointing in the direction of the bar, where a small group of women were hanging off the arm of a dark suited man, giggling and batting their eyelashes. Next to him, Hidaka whistled softly.

“Check out that girl’s ra-oof!” a sharp elbow in his side made the rest of his words die in his throat as he found at the end of a highly disapproving glare. As the other was apologizing profusely, Akiyama began to recall the plan in his head.

Grab a drink and go make small talk.

How hard could it be? Smiling, he picked up two glasses of cheap wine off a passing waiter and handed it to Hidaka. It was going to be as simple as baking a cake.

Swank Motel, Itabashi, Tokyo, Japan.

13th August, Wednesday.

[3:55 AM]

"You have got to be kidding me." Hidaka stared at the dress in absolute horror and then at the man holding it up, smiling rather smugly.

"No Akiyama san, I can't-"

"But you promised." Hidaka swore internally - Akiyama seemed to have discovered some internal weakness of his which was basically making the worst sad puppy dog face you could manage to pull off. And he was getting too good at them. Or he was always good at them - fuck.

"I was drunk!"

"Promised." The man in front of him wasn’t giving up though. The plan, the night before, had gone horribly wrong. The two of them had been doing a stake out in a bar, like they had been originally assigned to do, all the while keeping close to one of the only suspects they had. While he had ordered more drinks with the suspect so they could all drink, Akiyama had severely overestimated Hidaka’s ability to hold liquor. Two drinks in and he was blabbering nonsense and Akiyama had to hurry him away in case he accidentally blew their cover. Amidst all that, at one point there had been a conversation that Hidaka could only vaguely recall.

"Akiyama san is really pretty."

"What?"

"Like lots an' lots of pretty. Bet you'd look even more pretty in a dress."

"Hidaka san you're starting to go incoherent and you clearly cannot think straight."

"Can't ever think straight around you."

After that was a huge gap in his memory and he remembered nothing except when he woke up, Akiyama was grinning at him and telling him he had promised to wear a dress - for him. Hidaka was willing to bet his life on the fact he hadn't promised any such thing but Akiyama was persistent and so here they were.

"Look, if I promise to wear the dress, can we just leave?"

“You already promised to wear a dress. And yes, you can leave wearing the dress."

Really, why was it always Hidaka's job to deal with this?

"Okay, but I'm not entering the hotel in those clothes - just till we reach the police station then I'm changing in the back of the van. Got it?" The green eyes in front of him blinked.

"Alright, whatever Hidaka-san feels comfortable with."

"I feel comfortable in my own clothes." Hidaka couldn't help but put in a tad bit desperately.

"Not that comfortable." Really, Akiyama Himori was a demon.

Itabashi, Tokyo, Japan.

13th August, Wednesday.

[5:30 AM]

"I see, thank you Awashima san." Disconnecting the call, Hidaka turned to look at Akiyama, who was keeping his one eye focused on the road. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Hidaka wondered if that was the reason why he was always getting lost but discarded it. Sitting there in a sparkly pink dress, with his hair done up in a clump of pony tail, he hardly was in any position to say anything.

"You make a lovely woman Hidaka san." The corner of Akiyama’s lips was twitching and Hidaka had the painful urge to punch him straight in the mouth.

“Why thank you, I really work hard on this body.”

“Lets put it up on display next time in the conference room alright?”

"Shut up, Awashima-san said we should meet her at the bar so you’re going to have to turn around. I'll go change in the back." He looked around him to see if his original clothes were there but he was unable to spot them and figured they were probably in the back.

"Isn't in convenient we took the van?"

"...I don't know how but you planned this somehow."

“I did not.”

“Where did you even find the dress?”

“I bought it while you were knocked out. Two drinks might I add – just how weak are you? Can’t keep going for more than two rounds.”

“I am not in the mood for this right now.”

"I don't know what you’re talking about.” Really, it would be so much easier to believe him if only he hadn’t been smirking when he said that. As Akiyama turned the van around, Hidaka clambered behind to the back and began to look for his clothes.

“Akiyama san, where did you keep my clothes?”

“Oh, they’re in the black bag.” The other man said, trying to keep his mind on where they were going.

“What black bag?” That got him a response. Akiyama turned to give him an incredulous look, before immediately facing the front again.

“The one I told you to pick up on from the bed!” The small note of panic in Akiyama’s voice filled Hidaka with dread. The man was serious…

They had left his fucking clothes at the fucking motel!

“Let’s not panic.” Akiyama finally managed to voice out and Hidaka wanted so badly to snap at him that no, he was going to panic because Akiyama wasn’t the one in the dress. He wasn’t the one everyone would see in the dress and the ridiculous makeup and hairdo. Akiyama san wouldn’t be the one going to get off the van looking like some trashy version of a one night stand from a nightmare in hell. Angrily, he was about to turn and tell off the man when he saw the dazed look on his face.

No. He had only taken his eyes off for 15 minutes. Surely…

“Hidaka san..." His tone was fearful.

"Yes?" So was Hidaka's if he was completely honest.

"Don't get angry - we’re not lost but-“ Hidaka just closed his eyes and moaned.

"Fucking hell Akiyama san, just keep driving, we'll find some place -"

"And we're also out of gas," The car stopped.

"Okay look, I'll go and look for help, why don't you stay in this van and I'll return with some clothes too?" His soothing tone of voice did nothing to placate Hidaka's anger but the idea was appealing so he nodded. Akiyama smiled, looking a bit relieved that Hidaka was at last talking to him now. Well, nodding at him – he still wasn't talking

"Okay, I'll just walk straight and hopefully someone will pick me up and then we can go back okay?" Hidaka nodded again, still too busy sulking to care about what was going on. Watching Akiyama's disappearing back, he was suddenly struck with a horrible thought.

"Oh fuck, did I really just send Akiyama san out alone?"

Yeah he was most definitely screwed.

An hour.

It had been an hour since Akiyama left and now Hidaka was sure he was hopelessly lost –Hidaka could just see him muttering "I'm not lost" over and over again and the thought would have been funny had the situation not been so dire. Not only was he stranded, Akiyama had taken the keys with him so he didn't have much of a choice but to stay put. Looking out of the van miserably, he was just about to fuck it all and go to sleep, when he saw a sleek black jeep pull in next to him.

A raven haired head poked out and Hidaka felt his breath get knocked out at the sight of the beautiful woman.

"Hey girl, you lost?"

Girl. She thought Hidaka was a girl. Hidaka wondered if this was a good or a bad thing – he certainly wouldn't mind anyone's help right now but-

"I'm waiting for my uuhh boyfriend to come back – he kind of went to get help."

And now I need to find a way to get us both help.

"Oh – do you need a ride?" The woman smiled gently, tilting her head. "We can leave a note here, get you somewhere safe and have your boyfriend comeback and pick you up later." That was actually a very good idea. Hidaka smiled.

"Thank you uuuh..."

"Maria. Mari Yubikiri."

Police Department, Itabashi, Tokyo, Japan.

14th August, Thursday.

[1:32 PM]

"I shouldn't have left him there."

“Akiyama san, it isn’t your fault.” Gotou said, casting a worried look towards Awashima who shook her head a bit, indicating she did not know how to calm the man down. Hidaka had been missing for well over twenty-four hours and counting. Akiyama had returned to find the van empty with just a note saying Hidaka had found a ride and was getting help and that Akiyama should stay next to the car. Except Akiyama had already found help and had returned with Benzai but Hidaka never came back.

And there, in the seat, was the card.

The Ace of spades.

“Akiyama, I know you think you didn’t see anything. But you have got to think hard. You probably do remember things but we both know how panic makes someone over look things that are usually very important.” Akiyama frowned.

“Girl.”

“What?”

“Hidaka was dressed up like a girl.” Ignoring the shocked looks of various faces, he jumped to his feet, pacing back and forth. “While me and Benzai were on our way back, I saw a black jeep drive past. I didn’t think much about it but – that road is kind of not used at all isn’t it? On top of that, Hidaka wouldn’t be so stupid that he’d just climb into the car with some random man. A woman on the other hand...” He turned to face Benzai. “It has to be woman who took him.”

“That fits our earlier profile too.” Awashima added, looking thoughtful. “And it also makes sense why she would target women who were in and out of relationships. Taking care of them until something happens to trigger her off.”

“She’s asking them to stop returning to their boyfriends.” This came from Gotou, who was frowning slightly, “That’s what the chain and binding are for – keep them from going back."

"Ace of spades." Akiyama said, his eyes getting brighter and brighter, body shaking a bit. "Not King. Not Queen. Ace. A King represents a male role that she doesn’t want to assume and the Queen is usually signified in the game as of less value than the King. She doesn’t want that title either. An Ace on the other hand – it beats them both. The Ace of spades is traditionally the highest card in the deck of playing cards.”

“That would also explain the lack of sexual assault and the way she kept them healthy and well taken care of. She probably had some bad relationship in the past and never got over it. So she’s helping women who she feels are in similar situations as her. Forces them into accepting that they don't need the men in their lives.” Benzai added softly. A sudden thought made them all freeze and Chitose was the one to voice it out.

“So what happens when she finds out Hidaka’s a guy?”

Itabashi, Tokyo, Japan.

14th August, Thursday.

[07:55 PM]

This was a bad situation.

A very very bad situation.

In retrospect, Hidaka knew he couldn’t really blame Akiyama san but it was really much easier blaming him than having to think about anything else in this situation. After he had gotten into the vehicle with Maria – if that was truly her real name – she had blitz attacked him and injected him with something that had made him unconscious till he had come round to see himself bound to a bed. Next to him was a row of beds, each containing a quiet terrified looking woman. Five to be exact.

The missing women. Something inside him swelled in relief at seeing all of them unharmed if not looking terrified and teary. But they were alright. All of them were fine.

Him on the other hand…

He looked down at his feet which were bound to the bed by a single long rope. Looking up, he could detect collars around the necks of the other prisoners, which were chained to their respective bedding.

Hence, the bad situation. Maria had come in minutes ago to tell them all it was time for all of them to get ready for bed. Hidaka didn’t know how long he had been knocked out for but it was already the whole of the next day had passed and it was night time again and he had a sinking suspicion that no one really knew what had happened to him.

Shit this was a really really bad situation.

He should really consider himself lucky that she hadn’t decided to change his clothes while he slept or else she might have murdered him in his sleep.

“You, come with me.” He looked up to see Maria smiling at him. Gulping, he got to his feet and wondered how hard it would be to overpower a woman. But then he remembered the athlete and the fact that this woman had single handedly carried him up here and groaned. Of course, the one time he got caught, it had to be some woman with near inhuman strength. Maria knelt down and undid the rope and even then Hidaka knew making a run for it would be bad. For one, he didn’t even know if she had a gun or not.

Following her out of the room, he found himself facing an empty changing room.

“Here.” Looking down, he was startled to have some clothes suddenly pushed onto him. “Wear these.” Looking at the clothes then at the smiling woman, he could feel realization dawning upon him. Slowly, bits and pieces of the story were coming together and he finally could make out the bigger picture.

So that’s what’s going on…

“Why thank you,” he managed to keep his voice high enough to pass off as a gruff woman, “I didn’t know what I’d be sleeping in.” If he could just keep her believing he was a woman till –

Till what?

It wasn’t as if anyone knew where he was.

Thus no one was coming to save him – he was on his own.

Maria must have read the depression on his face a bit differently because she rested her hand on his cheek and lowered it a bit to stare into his eyes.

“It’s alright – you don’t have to go back to him. He’s only going to hurt you. Just stay here until you know how to be your own person again.” Hidaka’s mind was whirling with a thousand questions but he chose to stay quiet. Mostly because he knew this wasn’t going to help him. The woman’s razor sharp nails cut him a bit on his cheek and he watched as she smiled at the sight.

Fucking psycho.

“Go wash your face – then I’ll take you to your bed. You’ll stay here where it’s safe.” She urged and Hidaka shook his head. Take off the hideous make up? The only thing that was keeping him from being exposed? For one thing, he couldn’t believe Maria still thought he was a woman. Mostly because no matter how you’d look at it, Hidaka wasn’t in any form or shape feminine. Now Akiyama on the other hand-

Okay that’s too much think about Akiyama and less thinking about how to get out of there. Looking around, he spotted a small window in the corner of the room. Analyzing it in his head, he mentally made a few calculations. It would be a tight squeeze but maybe he could just-

No, it wasn’t possible.

Miserably, he turned to look back at her. Maria smiles sweetly and he felt a trill of danger run through him.

“I don’t like taking my makeup off, it completes me.” He had seen some girl use this line in a TV drama once, whatever it meant. He must have said the right thing because Maria smiled at him, shaking her head softly but not exactly forcing him either. Leaving him alone, she shut the door behind her to give him – her? – privacy to change. In a flash, he was next to the window, trying to open it. If not anything he could always yell out for help.

It wasn’t like he had any other options.

“What are you doing.” It wasn’t a question. She knew exactly what he was doing. Turning around, he all but shook with fear as she stood there in the doorway, holding long rope. “This is truly disheartening – and here I thought we could have been friends… You men only lie. Lying, deceitful little creatures you are.” The blood in his veins froze. She knew. Maria let out a small laugh. "Oh what? You thought I would see past your pathetic disguise?" Hidaka shook his head. Well, if he was going to die, might as well not give her the satisfaction of knowing she frightened him – even if she did just a bit.

“We’re not friends. You’re just a psychopath who likes to abduct people and kill them under the pretense of looking out for them.” Something in him made him keep speaking even though it was very ill advised in his current situation. “You cover your own guilt by saying you’re keeping them safe but you’re not – you’re just like every other guy who kept them prisoner – no you’re worse. They just did it emotionally; you’re doing it physically. You’re nothing but hypocrite Maria Yubikiri!”

The woman let out a snarl and pounced on him. Hidaka struggled against her, but discovered soon, that her petite frame was only a misleading cover to a ferociously strong body. As she pinned him to the ground, he stared at the ceiling.

Huh. So this is how it ends then.

Really, he had so much left to do. He hadn’t even called him mum in a long while now. What had it been – a month? Two?

The hands round his neck tightened and dark spots began dancing in his field of vision. His chest heaved trying to get some oxygen in as he scratched at her hands hoping to get her to let go.

If only-

“Let go of my boyfriend, you crazy bitch!” The last thing he saw before he blacked out was tiny blur of green yank the body off of him and with a smile, Hidaka’s consciousness faded to black.

BAU, PSIA headquarters, Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan.

16th August, Saturday.

[8:30 PM]

“So how did you guys even find me?” Hidaka asked, rubbing his throat a bit. The marks were still there, scars where her nails had bit into his skin and made him bleed. The darkening bruise across his tanned skin would take days to heal but Hidaka knew it would disappear sooner than later and this whole business would be behind them. Benzai coughed.

“Well once we realized it was a woman with a black jeep, the rest was easy. We just looked up every woman in the area who owned one and fit the description of the victims. Maria Yubikiri lit up like a beacon. Her own relationship had gone south and she had killed her ex-boyfriend but the charges against her were dropped since the boyfriend was such a douche. She had been in and out of therapy. She was such a cluster fuck of problems that you could just tell from a mile away were trouble.” Hidaka nodded. They had all just returned to the headquarters, him being finally released from the hospital after many threats and angry outbursts.

Really, he hadn’t even been in that bad a shape.

To top it all off –

His eyes found themselves fixed on a certain figure that was discreetly trying to leave in the background. A small push made him stumble forward and he barely manage to catch himself, turning to look at Benzai, confused.

“Just go ask him out properly, you both are giving the entire team a head ache with your constant tip toeing around each other." Behind him Gotou nodded savagely while even Awashima made a shrugging motion with her shoulders. Hidaka turned to look back at the figure only to realize it was gone. He quickly bid the other goodbye before sprinting out after the other man.

Really, they were going to see each other the next day – he shouldn't really make such an effort right now. But something inside him told him it was either now or never.

Spotting his desired company walking ahead, he smirked and grabbed him by the shoulder-

And found himself lying on his back, his body screaming in agony and stars floating in front of his eyes.

"Oh my God, Hidaka san!" Akiyama's horrified voice pulled him back into the world of the coherent and Akiyama helped him sit up. "I thought someone was attacking me so I just -"

"I always knew you were the ones who could make me see stars in their eyes."

"You really do have a concussion don't you, wait, I'll go get help. I should probably call the ambulance – you need to go back to the hospital."

"NO!" Hidaka's body jerked in an upright position. Akiyama blinked.

"Alright then, I'll just leave you here to die then See if I care." He huffed, getting to his feet. Hidaka followed suit even thought he was sure he had dislocated some of his vertebrae. Groaning, he held up a hand, silently asking the other man to stop which he thankfully did. Hidaka inwardly rejoiced because he really didn't think he could run after someone right now.

Fucking hurts like bloody murder.

"Okay no, I needed to ask you something." Akiyama paused, a bit of pink dusting his cheeks. Before Hidaka could get even two words in, the man was rambling on, not paying attention to what the brunette wanted to say.

"If this is about that boyfriend comment, I acted without thinking – I was in a panic -"

"Akiyama san..."

"So you can't actually blame me -"

"Akiyama san."

"Besides, do you realize how worried you had made all of us -"

"Akiyama san."

"Always doing careless things. I mean, who just -"

Hidaka just kissed him to get him to shut up. Which did work – until he pulled away because then Akiyama was all up in his face.

"What was that?"

"Well I'm not sure what they call this in your home planet – but here it's called a kiss Akiyama san."

"Why?"

"Well you kept talking and not listening -"

"Oh so you did kiss me only to make me quiet."

"What? No, That's not -"

"I'm sorry." Hidaka blinked. His mind couldn't keep up with the conversation and he vaguely wondered if there had been a bit of a time skip here.

"Excuse you?"

"I'm sorry." Akiyama repeated, looking away. "That day – it was my fault." Hidaka's eyes widened comically and he raised his hands, waving them frantically in front of him.

"No no, it wasn't your fault. Really."

"No it's – Hidaka san made no such promise." The low mumble made Hidaka stop and stare, a bit bewildered by the small confession. Confession to what exactly, he did not know.

"What?" Again, there was probably something he skipped - he was missing something majorly important, he was sure of it -

"Hidaka san never promised to wear a dress - I made that up." Hidaka stared. And stared, He opened his mouth to say something but really, nothing came out.

"Ah."

What else could he say? Anything he wanted to say was highly wrong in the current atmosphere.

You're here to tell him you love him. You're here to tell him you love him. You're here to tell him you love him.

"Please don't be mad, I thought you'd look really cute." Hidaka stared at the other man, incredulity spreading across his face.

"Akiyama san?"

"Yes?" The words were a tiny squeak as if he expected Hidaka to yell at him. He didn't though.

"It's a good thing I love you otherwise I might have just murdered you right now." Akiyama's eyes widened only for a fraction before Hidaka found himself being on the receiving end of a very long – and possibly bone crushing – hug.

Yup definitely slipped a backbone or two. he thought wincing slightly. But it was worth it though. Akiyama pulled away and began to dig around in his bag.

"I planned on giving you this tomorrow, as an apology, but here." Hidaka stared at the wooden box in surprise and blinked, looking at Akiyama then at the box and then back again. Akiyama nudged him. "Well, don't leave me standing here like an idiot. Just take it." Hidaka nodded. Opening the box he stared at the contents in surprise.

"Ah." Once again rendered speechless, he held up the wooden pen in the light, admiring the way the light reflected off the polished surface and the intricate pattern carved in. Akiyama shrugged.

"I really didn't know what else to get, I'm not good with-"

"Thank you Akiyama san." Hidaka cut in, placing his gift back in the box, "It looks really nice." Akiyama blushed again. Hidaka came to the conclusion he liked seeing Akiyama blush.

"Yes well, you did get kidnapped and all so I suppose it's the least I could do." He ducked his head and Hidaka grinned.

"You can also go out for dinner with me." Akiyama looked at him blankly then at his wrist watch.

"Well, I guess it's not that late." He finally receded. Hidaka grinned.

"Great, I just recently found this amazing diner-"

"A diner? On our first date? I would have at least expected a gourmet meal."

"It was a very last minute thing Akiyama san, I'm sorry I couldn't arrange for the flowers."

"That's no excuse, I want my flowers."

“Well if you want those flowers so badly, maybe you should ask me out on a date.”

“Why would I do that? Then I’d have to buy you flowers.”

“Akiyama san…”

#...I'm done #this got very out of hand I did not plan on making it this long #AkiHida #k project au #k project #fic

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entergamingxp · 4 years

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DualShockers’ Favorite Games of 2019 — Ricky’s Top 10

January 1, 2020 10:00 AM EST

Fortunately for you, the great editors at DualShockers have saved the best of these GOTY lists for last. Here are my top 10 games of 2019.

As 2019 comes to a close, DualShockers and our staff are reflecting on this year’s batch of games and what were their personal highlights within the last year. Unlike the official Game of the Year 2019 awards for DualShockers, there are little-to-no-rules on our individual Top 10 posts. For instance, any game — not just 2019 releases — can be considered.

2019 was a surprisingly good year in video games, at least for me. Sure, we didn’t get many absolute bangers that held the collective video game public hostage for weeks at a time. However, there were several good games that had a major impact on what should be a “tune-up” year as we near the release of next-gen consoles.

That said, while we’ve enjoyed a cornucopia of good games, they all had a flaw or five that held them back from being truly spectacular. So, in a sea of good, not great releases, I’ve chosen to highlight the games that I had the most fun with in 2019. After all, isn’t that we play games in the first place?

Here are my top 10 games of 2019.

Honorable Mention: FIFA 20 Web App

Let’s be clear, FIFA 20 was an overwhelmingly mediocre game on launch and EA has only made it worse with their various “fixes.” Ultimate Team, in particular, is in shambles for much of the community. However, I have spent more time playing FIFA than any other game in 2019. So, while I refuse to put it on my list, I still feel like I have to recognize it in some way.

Enter the FIFA 20 web app. I’m on this all the time playing FIFA‘s transfer market and usually having a great time doing so. If you like the idea of playing the stock market without actually investing money, this is the best way I’ve found to do it. Buying and selling players on the market and seeing that coin total slowly rise has been a fun challenge in 2019.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for FIFA 20.

10. Heroes of the Storm

I know, I know; Heroes is a dead game that no one plays. The way Blizzard just killed off the pro scene in 2018 continues to be massively disappointing, and those of us who still play are baby gamers who can’t handle a real MOBA. I get all that and mostly agree with you.

That said, Heroes, for me, is like a fresh plate of my grandma’s meatloaf: something I can always go back to and love regardless of where I’m at in life. My time in HOTS has certainly died down over the last year or so, but it’s the game I always go back to when I just need 20 minutes to unwind. Plus, Deathwing came out this year. That was pretty great.

9. Wattam

Listen, I’m a simple man. If you make a game that lets me make friends with and then explode poop, I’m probably going to like your game. So, while Wattam is in many ways barely a game, there aren’t many other games I enjoyed start to finish as Keita Takahashi’s latest.

This tale about friendship and coming together to conquer evil is one of the most joyous games out in 2019. Perfect for kids and adults alike, I thoroughly recommend this experience to anyone that has an afternoon to kill over the holiday. It won’t change your life and it doesn’t innovate, but stacking up poop and kabooming it to smithereens is so much fun.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Wattam.

8. Death Stranding

As of this writing, I’ve yet to finish Death Stranding. In fact, I just hit Chapter 3, which is where I hear a lot of people begin to have problems with Kojima’s latest. So, I reserve the right to move just toss this game off the list in the next few days.

That said, since starting the game a few days ago, I haven’t been able to think about anything else besides playing Death Stranding. I love the slow, methodical plodding Sam Bridges does as you move cargo from place to place. I love trying to map out the best possible route to stay away from trouble. I even love all the weird lore that keeps getting dumped on me.

Maybe it’s the fact that I come from a family of porters (read: truck drivers), but Death Stranding is the most fun I’ve ever had doing something that, in real life, seems like it would be pretty boring. I hope it stays that way.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Death Stranding.

7. Outer Wilds

Outer Wilds is among the most inventive games in 2019. I love how the game just gives you a world and says, “explore.” There aren’t any roadblocks to you beating it in 20 minutes and everyone is going to get to the ending in a different way. Add in a Majora’s Mask-like constantly-moving map and you have a game that’s nothing like anything else.

Outer Wilds also does something many games can’t and sticks the landing with a stellar (interstellar?) ending. I know you’ve heard this from every corner of the internet, but you really should give Mobius Digital’s freshman effort a try.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Outer Wilds.

6. What The Golf?

I adore golf games. My middle school summers were filled with countless hours of Mario Golf for the Game Boy Color and Nintendo 64. The reason I bought a Switch was to play Golf Story. For whatever reason, I can’t get enough golf in my video gaming life. I can’t stand playing golf in the real world, but virtually, there’s not much better.

That said, What The Golf? is not a golf game. Oh sure, you’ll hit objects toward a flag, but that’s where the similarities end. However, this game does just about everything else besides golf. And still, it’s by far my favorite mobile release of the year. The sheer amount of creativity in how to approach a non-golfing golf game is staggering. I don’t want to say much about what actually happens, as that would ruin the surprise. Just know that What The Golf? is great, regardless of how you feel about golf.

5. Control

Control is my annual “wow, this looks so good on my RTX card” game. Visually, there wasn’t a more impressive game to me all year. Much of this comes down to Remedy’s striking art direction. They do so much with color and lighting to make a game that is a visual feast. It sucks to hear that the console versions are less than stellar, because I want everyone to have the same experience I did.

Outside of the impressive visuals is a story that I had to see to completion. I don’t know if it breaks any new ground, but the narrative threads were so fun to pull at that I ended up doing everything. Combat is mostly fine outside of a few truly bad boss fights. If you’re looking for an entry-point to the Remedy-verse, Control seems like a great jumping-on point, especially if you have a relatively beefy PC.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Control.

4. Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night

Bloodstained is a fantastic reimagining of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. The Metroidvania combat and exploration is tight and incredibly fun. If that was all the game did, it would probably still make my list. However, what makes this game really stand out for me is how willing it is to not take itself too seriously.

Bloodstained is good with it if you become laughably overpowered. In fact, it seems to want you to. The way you can just break the game is so amusing. Many games are too precious about their power curve. Bloodstained doesn’t care. It just wants you to have a good time and rest assured, that’s exactly what I did.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night.

3. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

I had a paragraph written up about how FromSoft has truly evolved their gameplay with Sekiro to force you to actually learn how to play well and not cheese bosses, but honestly, there’s only one thing you need to know. This game is worth playing (or at least watching) to see the Monkey Fight.

For a developer known for creating controller-breaking and genre-defining boss fights, the Monkey Fight stands head and shoulders above them all. If the overbearing difficulty isn’t for you, that’s fine. Just look it up on YouTube, sit back, and enjoy FromSoft at its best.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.

2. Resident Evil 2

Resident Evil 2, as a remake, has no business being as good as it is. Mr. X is my favorite thing in gaming this year. His horrifying, omnipresent role in the game’s first half makes RE2 a must-play. The way he stalks you throughout the police station, appearing when you least expect it, made for countless moments of both pure terror and hilarity. Plus, the memes that sprung up around the character were exceptional.

When people ask if they should play the game, I just show them the “Mr. X Gon Give it to You” videos and they’re sold instantly. And sure, once you leave the police station, the game kind of slogs to the finish, but that shouldn’t keep you from experiencing the panic-inducing joy that is the early parts of Resident Evil 2.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Resident Evil 2.

1. Judgment

Where do I even start? Do we talk about the oddly captivating murder mystery full of more twists than a bad M. Night Shyamalan movie? Seriously, this story just goes places and is constantly defying what you think a Ryu Ga Gotoku game can be. The studio has really hit its story-telling stride with Judgment. Do we talk about how Yagami might be a better character than Kiryu? Don’t get me wrong, I’ll always love the Dragon of Dojima, but Yagami has more much range than the ever-stoic favorite foster son of Shintaro Kazama. How about the ease with which Judgment switches between serious, soap opera-style narrative and the wacky side quests we’ve come to love from Yakuza games? This has always been one of the series’ strengths; however, with the main character being a private detective, it makes a lot more sense for them to be randomly searching for a man’s cats or beating up a disgusting pervert.

Really, Judgment is my game of the year because I can’t think of another game that I had more fun playing. The beat ’em up gameplay is the same as it’s always been, but RGG has made it instantly a blast. If I want to show someone why I love Judgment, I’ll just jump into a random battle and I’m immediately piledriving all those young thugs into the ground. Judgment has, quite possibly, the best set of “heat” finishers in the Yakuza franchise. And truthfully, that’s the kicker with Judgment. It doesn’t do anything remarkably new with the Yakuza format. What it does is distill everything in the game down to its most fun form and slaps it all over the world of Kamurocho.

As I get older and there are more demands on my time, “fun factor” has become more important than ever. Judgment has that in spades. I’ve already put 100 plus hours into the game and just thinking about the game’s big moments over the past week while writing this has me seriously considering jumping back in. That Platinum’s not gonna earn itself. Thank you for reading my mini-review for Yagami’s greatest journey. If you haven’t checked out a Yakuza game yet, this is a perfect jumping-on point.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Judgment.

Check out the rest of the DualShockers staff Top 10 lists and our official Game of the Year Awards:

December 23: DualShockers Game of the Year Awards 2019 December 25: Lou Contaldi, Editor-in-Chief // Logan Moore, Managing Editor December 26: Tomas Franzese, News Editor // Ryan Meitzler, Features Editor December 27: Mike Long, Community Manager // Scott White, Staff Writer December 28: Chris Compendio, Contributor // Mario Rivera, Video Manager // Kris Cornelisse, Staff Writer December 29: Scott Meaney, Community Director // Allisa James, Senior Staff Writer // Ben Bayliss, Senior Staff Writer December 30: Cameron Hawkins, Staff Writer // David Gill, Senior Staff Writer // Portia Lightfoot, Contributor December 31: Iyane Agossah, Senior Staff Writer // Michael Ruiz, Senior Staff Writer // Rachael Fiddis, Contributor January 1: Ricky Frech, Senior Staff Writer // Tanner Pierce, Staff Writer

January 1, 2020 10:00 AM EST

from EnterGamingXP https://entergamingxp.com/2020/01/dualshockers-favorite-games-of-2019-rickys-top-10/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=dualshockers-favorite-games-of-2019-rickys-top-10

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