Yarn: Fuse Box (Story)

Unknown:*In a neon lit bar, smoke blurs the vision as rock plays on the box in the center of the room. Laughs and plastic clinks fill the noise between songs as two men sit in a booth near a wall of a faded window, the shadows of the people walking past on the outside. The man on the left brushes his thin red coat off his thigh as he says, saying

"You do this, the towers got your back."

The man opposite to him hesitates for a second, grabbing the flavoring food that came with his drink and tossing it in his mouth before reluctantly nodding, causing the red coated man to smile, saying as he stands

"Welcome to the first level, Mike Graus."

Mike: As his associate walks away, Mike peers to the bar and locks eyes with someone, completely by accident before the person looks away, showing disinterest as Mike closes his eyes, resting his head on the window beside him, the music fading away as the camera zooms into his face, revealing as it zooms out that he is now in an alley as it is beginning to turn dusk. Walking into the door before him, he finds himself in a type of back alley motel where a clerk behind a barred off counter questions rather or not he wants a room, to which he replies

Unknown:"No, I'm here to see someone. Room 13."

Mike: "No, I'm here to see someone. Room 13."

Unknown:"A or B?"

The clerk questions, raising their eyebrows high with Mike giving a nervous nod and a bit of a point with B. Placing something in a trey which is then slid out under the bars offering a key to him.

Mike: Taking the key, he begins walking up the stairs as directed by the clerk and is able to quickly find the room, where he opens the door to find himself in a type of mud room, something never seen in motels, with another door on the other other side of the room. Trying the key in the next door he finds it doesn't budge, and decides to knock, awaiting the voice of a contact on the other side

Fuse:There is a sound of metal clicking together from the other side followed by a long silence "Who is it?"

Mike: "Mike Graus. I messaged your employer, he said to meet here at... Twenty minutes ago, but.. I got held up."

(From Fuse): 277

(From Fuse): 27

Fuse:The door quietly opens, revealing Fuse sitting in a chair. His left hand holds the remote to the door while his right hand rests on his leg casually with the palm facing the door

Mike:With the door opening, Fuse sees a younger man, just a few years his junior step in, wearing a police uniform with their various poaches around his body, his hands empty and raised, in full view for him to see as the boy enters.

"You the breachier?"

Fuse:"I'm going to need you to put your hand on that scanner there." He clicks a button and a small panel turns on next to the door

Mike:He peers to the scanner and gives a nod, lowering his hand at a stead pace onto it and letting it scan

It takes a moment, but the scan returns to Fuse explaining that Mike Emioaly Graus is a lower leveled aemable neuman. He holds two years on service with the Tirashep-Police force, and was recently reassigned to a new unit, [DETRACTED]. His heart rate is currently normal and his overall body temperature is just above normal. He was the only child of a military hero who was [DETRACTED].

He is 20 years old and holds citizenship in two countries, [REDACTED].

REDACTED*

Fuse:"Looks like you are who you say you are. What's the job?"

His right hand grips tightly and Fuse's hand shutters a bit before it opens back up

Mike:Lowers his hands, he begins to walk in the room, closing the door with his foot behind him before getting further in the dimly lit, dank room with red walls.

"I need to get into a building."

"A heavily guarded building."

"High security, but mostly tech, not big on human guards. I was pointed to your employer as having a man who was exceptionally good at dealing with most things like that."

"You happen to be him?"

Fuse:He chuckles "Might be." He leans forward "I'm going to need details. Everything you can give. And it doesn't hurt to tell me where you're trying to get to in the building. Might save you some heartache later."

Mike:"I need in a Jui Distribution warehouse. I've come to understand that someone is using them to smuggle weapons through the city. I'm also in need of a particular drive. Holds something private that several parties want. And it's something that those parties can't get."

Fuse is aware of Jui Distributions being a giant in the delivery service world, and that they've been pushing for cybernetics and cyberware for years, even getting into a handful of legal situations due to their activism

Fuse:"You sure you have the skills to get that drive when you get in?"

Mike:"The drive isn't the problem. And neither will be protection, I got another guy joining us who'll be there for that. I just need someone to get me to it."

Fuse:He nods "So long as you pay the fee, it should be smooth sailing if that's the case."

Mike:"I already talked with your employer, as soon as you agree, you'll get the Diped."

Fuse:Another nod "This happening now?"

Mike:"Next week. Meet me at.."

Mike gives him the location and the time, which Fuse may know is only two blocks away from the warehouse

Fuse:"Works for me."

Mike:"Alright. What should we call you?"

Fuse:"Fuse is fine. And your hired muscle?"

Mike:"Ledge."

Fuse:"Never heard of him." *He flicks a finger and the door swings open. The remote nowhere in sight."

"Never heard of him." He flicks a finger and the door swings open. The remote nowhere in sight*

Mike:He nods

"They're not usually in this line of work."

With that, he takes his leave

Fuse:"Word of advice. Don't go asking for help from crooks while in you police uniform. It makes you look both suspicious and crooked."

Mike:The only response Mike gives as he leaves is

"I know."

//TIME\\

Days pass as Fuse finds the appropriate funds in his account, with the rest to be transferred after Mike gets the drive and weapons. The day comes, as Fuse exits his vehicle for hire in the location given to meet as he sees a handful of people hanging out, the location being a fast food stop.

Fuse:He's spent the past few days researching and looking into the location, spending a small potion of his pay on getting his hands on information. Upon arrival, he's somewhat confident as he looks around for his conspirators

Attempts to notice (68)

Narrator:As he peers around, he isn't able to see his meetup, however finds a rather flamboyantly dressed man staring at him. Along with this, he sees a child, getting ready to kick their parent in the shin

Fuse:He goes to order a cheap meal and hang out for a bit to keep an eye out

Narrator:The child kicks their parent and immediately finding a back hand that busts their lip as they hit the ground, causing a commotion. With most people looking towards it for only a brief moment, Fuse watches as a police vehicle slowly descends before parking in the parking lot as Mike and a woman step out and enter the place.

Mike:It only takes a moment for Mike to spot Fuse and walk over, asking as he gets in earshot

"Don't think you'll get queasy?"

Fuse:He takes a bite of his greasy burger, almost positive it isn't meat "This isn't my first run."

Mike:With a nod, he gives a quick nod towards the girl, saying

"This is Ledge."

Ledge:Having been looking at something else, she looks back to Fuse and offers a hand, adding with a mild voice

"Hey."

Fuse:He gives a two finger salute as his new eyepiece gives her a scan

omit*

He returns the shake, his new eyepiece scanning her

Ledge:Grabbing a drink from a nearby table, she finds herself a comfortable position as Mike offers Fuse a USB 6., as he doesn't see Ledge's echelon, not even a hint

Mike:"Here is the schematics and the path we'll be following."

Fuse knows he has a USB 6. port on his B.B.8.; a pocket sized black box that has three ports to connect to things which he can read with his eaftousia

Fuse:He slips the USB into his pocket and plugs it in, activating his eaftousia as he does so to read the data

Mike:Fuse is given an interactable 3d map of the warehouse which appears to be a massive maze, and sees a clear path from the roof down into one of the lower floors where boxes are stored, which he can assume will be the weapons, and then into a large, expensive, safe, which he can assume holds the drive.

Fuse:Attempts to notice (117)

Mike:Fuse sees a much quicker path with a less likely chance of running into a guard

Fuse:His eye twitches as he maps the data in his head before pulling his hand back out "I've done my research, and I can tell you there's a better way in."

through*

Ledge:"Bullshit. I mapped it myself."

Fuse:"Did you have the guard shifts and patrols in mind when you did?"

Ledge:She stops herself from responding before biting her tongue

Mike:"Alright, what's the new route?"

Fuse:He nods his head toward the door "Outside first. Less crowded place."

Mike:With a glance to the door, Mike leads the way as Ledge and Fuse follow outside where they begin the trek to the warehouse

Fuse:He explains on the way, mapping it out to them as clearly as he can without having a 3d map on hand

Mike:"Alright, so Ledge, you take lead once we're in, and I'll keep the back."

He explains before stopping at a corner saying as he points to the guards who Fuse can see are wearing a helmet

"The helmets have a few things, including heat sensors."

"Luckily, the sensors are lower tiered, so as long as your not directly in their line of sight, it shouldn't pick up your body heat."

Fuse:"So all we have to do is sneak well and we're home free."

Mike:"As long as the path you got is as good as you say."

Fuse:"Trust me, it is."

Mike:"Alright."

Staring to walk once again, Mike leads the two into a building before entering an elevator where he takes off his jacket and folds it in his arms, waiting to reach the roof

"You good at jumping, Fuse?"

Fuse:"I'd say so."

Mike:"Certainly hope so."

Fuse:"Why?"

Mike:"The most secure way to reach the warehouses roof is by going through a couple of hops and skips."

With that, the door opens and Mike leads the two the edge where he places his jacket under a duct, along with his belt, storing most of his police attire here while Ledge looks at the warehouse across the street

"This building is, for the most part connected with all of the ones down the street. We get to the end, there is a walkway connecting this sides building with that sides. A little unnessesary you may think, and that... I completely agree with, but it is how it is."

"Now, we walk along the roof of the walkway, get to the building on the opposite side, make our way back over here, where."

He then points to the building on the left of the warehouse

"There should be a ladder on one of the floors, we take it to the top and climb down onto the roof."

Mike:"Hide the ladder, make our way through the warehouse tag the weapons, get the drive, make our way back to the roof and then climb up the ladder, make our way back to this side, and bam, I transfer the final money to both of your accounts."

"How about it?"

Ledge:She looks at the buildings down the street and the warehouse before looking back to Mike with a more confused as to why it has to be so complicated expression

Fuse:"Have you ever heard of the expression K.I.S.S? I feel like you haven't."

Mike:His face cracks into a smile before he gives a nod

"Yeah, that was all bullshit."

He reaches back down to where he placed his jacket and pulls out a bag, placing it on the wall along the roof

"We will be having to do a bunch of jumping though."

"In another hour, it'll be dark enough that their helmets will switch to night version, that's when we'll be going."

He points to the left of the warehouse, under where he said the ladder would be and explains

Mike:"There is a fire escape over there, we'll use that to jump the fence."

"Around back will be a ladder that leads to another fire escape for the warehouse, which'll lead us into the security room."

"If you can open the door and get us in there, we can take care of the cameras, then follow the stars up to the roof, where there is an opening."

"Friend of mine left it unlocked, it'll lead us past all the guards and into the path we had, and the path you got."

"From there, it's just follow the dotted line."

Ledge:"That sounds much better."

With that said, she goes to find a spot to sit for the next hour

Fuse:He leans against the guard rail and does some people watching while he waits

Mike:The hour quickly passes as Mike pockets his phone, having been playing a game on it to pass the time.

"Alright, let's get going."

Walking to the elevator he presses the button but finds it not responding

He pauses for a moment before giving a sigh and entering the stairs. The three make their way down before finding the lobby of the building mostly empty, with a couple of the characters behind desks looking their way

Leading them to the left side of the warehouse property as he pointed out, there is indeed a fire escape that they can climb and do, where Mike takes out a mask and covers his face

"Alright, ready?"

Fuse:He nods. As he does, the small bits of metal and hardware on his face shifts around to make a very distinctive mark on his cheek

Mike:He watches Fuse do this, giving an expression of shock and disgust as he does this

Fuse:He chuckles at this "What? Can't handle a little redecoration?"

Ledge:She grabs a pair of goggles out of Mike's bag and places them on before making the first jump, clearing the wall pretty well and landing in a roll

Mike:He watches her jump before looking back to Fuse

"No, I just.. I didn't expect it.'

"I thought you were just... Like you were a machine whisperer or something, I didn't know you could move it around your body."

Fuse:"Perks of having little decorative pieces. What money can buy will surprise you."

Mike:His face bounces as he thinks of the decorative pieces

"Yeah.. What money can buy."

Fuse:He gives a wink and goes to make the jump

Attempts to jump (171)

Mike:As Fuse goes to make the jump, his foot is caught by the railing of the escape causing him to fall straight down into a dumpster, busting right through it's lid

He peers down to him calling out

"Holy shit!"

Fuse:His whole world went upside down and he stares at the sky through the broken lid "You know, I've been here before. Think I got too drunk at a bar right down the street now that I think about it."

He looks over to the dented lid on the other side of the dumpster "Yep, right there."

He groans and makes his way out of the dumpster before he goes to climb up the building to get to the fire escape on his side of the building rather than have to go around

Attempts to climb (266)

omit the go around*

Ledge:Fuse makes his way up the fire escape and makes the jump again, this time making it decently, much better than last where he finds Ledge crouched down, waiting

"The hell were you two doing?"

Fuse:"I was incredibly graceful."

Mike:The two hear a bit of a scuff and then an exhale before seeing Mike just barely make it, landing on the wall before crawling over onto the walkway with them

He gives a deep breath before looking over to the two

"Almost didn't make it."

Fuse:"But here you are."

Mike:He sits up and enters the crouched position with them as Ledge begins leading the way to the back of the warehouse, where just as Mike said, a ladder awaited them. Leading up to a locked door, Mike looked to Fuse as Ledge peered down after having quickly climbed up it

Fuse:He's quick to take the ladder and approach the door

He takes a look at the panel next to the door

Narrator:A series of numbers and slots make up the panel.

Fuse:He puts his hand on the panel and closes his eyes

Fuse used Integration, a rank 2 Other Super, with a Short range = (258)

Narrator:The door opens not long after he places his hand on the door as Mike reaches the top of the ladder and Ledge enters the room, after scanning it, motioning for the two to enter

As they do, Mike leads them to the security room where he looks to Fuse to open the door, another security panel.

another security panel rests beside it, similar to the last one, but this time a hand scanner connects to it

Fuse:He places his hand on the panel once again performing his magic

Fuse used Integration, a rank 2 Other Super, with a Short range = (265)

Narrator:Fuse is able to open the door pretty easily, revealing a big man in a not big enough chair as he spins around to them, questioning with a box of cheese

WatchingGuard: "Who the hell are ya!?"

Narrator:He doesn't have the time to call for help before Ledge blasts him, leaving four total holes by the time she stops firing a silenced S.S.43.

Fuse:"I need one of those."

Narrator:She looks to Fuse through the goggles and gives him smirk

Mike:He makes his way to the computer and rolls big man out of the way before looking at the set up

"Hey, Fuse, think you can turn this stuff off?"

"Maybe erase any recording it's done or will do?"

Fuse:He walks up to the security desk "I'll see what I can do. Keep a look out. This might take a bit longer than a door*

." he places his hands on the desk, concentrating

Fuse used Integration, a rank 2 Other Super, with a Short range = (270)

Mike:He gives a nod and looks back to find Ledge already on it

Fuse:Attempts to notice (103)

Narrator:While it does take Fuse a bit longer to enter the matrix than it did with the doors, he does get in a bit quicker than he thought, with this place having more lax security than he initially thought. It doesn't take long for him to find the recordings, as well as access to the cameras. While connected, he finds several hidden files with an unusual name; Tower of Nites

Fuse:He downloads these files into the thumb drive stored in his arm before wiping the security and setting up a loop that looks like an amalgamation of the past week's footage

He lets go of the desk with a bit of a suction sound from his hand "Done."

Mike:"Alright, then let's go."

Ledge once again takes lead, as the three quietly make their way around the corner and up a pair of stairs leading to the roof.

Fuse:Attempts to sneak (156)

Mike:Ledge makes it to the window, with Fuse right behind, however Mike manages to stumble but doesn't appear to attract much attention

Opening the window, Fuse sees a girder right below which holds lights and supports the building. Ledges lowers herself down onto it and begins shimming a small bit before leaping to one of the shelves below it

"Alright... Fuse, you wanna go next or me?"

Fuse:He's already after Ledge

Attempts to climb (252)

Attempts to sneak (134)

Attempts to jump (197)

Mike:Fuse makes it onto the girder with ease and manages to make it to the shelve beside Ledge as she climbs down, it's at this point that Mike is on the girder however slips just before the leap, hitting the shelve, grabbing hold of a box, which doesn't support his weight and falling a decent distance, hitting the ground with a loud bang

Ledge:As he slams against the ground, Ledges takes a moment to look at him, however notices he isn't moving and glances back to Fuse for a second

She quickly tries to make her way down the series of shelves, mumbling something as she goes

Fuse:"He's going to get us killed."

He keeps a lookout

Attempts to notice (108)

Ledge:Fuse sees not one but three flash lights turn on and begin making their way to the two as Ledge gets to the unconscious man, rolling him over to his back

"God damn it. Couldn't wait until we were leaving.."

She mumbles a few other things as she checks on his state

Fuse:"Just get him up here. Got three incoming."

Ledge:She looks up before looking to the sides of the shelves to see the flashlights getting closer.

With no time to think, Ledge tries to move Mike in a hidden spot but isn't able to and is forced to leave him as she rolls over some of the boxes, hiding behind some of them

Fuse:He grabs a box on the shelf he's on and throws it away from where they are

Guard:Two of the lights shine towards it, both making their way over, however the third light shines down the isle holding Mike as he is lays along the floor, finally a grown emitting from him as the light's owner stops, with Fuse able to see the light attached to a type of assault rifle as it is aimed at the waking thief

Fuse:Attempts to hide (66)

Guard:The guard gives a quick glance up as the light goes over him, however too quickly for the guard to see him. Finally getting just before Mike, the guard gives a kick to him as he lets out a big gulp of air appearing to have had the breath knocked out of him from the fall

"HEY!"

The guard calls out before being taken to the ground as Ledge wraps around his body, placing him in a choke hold

Fuse:He gives golf claps

Guard:Fuse sees the two lights from before turn back towards the isle with Ledge, Mike and the guard after the guards call

They quickly begin making their way towards them, as Mike finally catches his breath, getting up to his feet as Ledge grabs his arm and manages to get him away from the isle just in time

Fuse:He smiles maliciously as he pushes several boxes over, timing it so it sounds like things falling at random before moving on to making his way toward the others

Guard:Fuse makes several forms of confusion as he hears the guard call in for back up before finding Ledge crouched over Mike with her hand over his mouth as a guard walks right past them, not seeing them as they were just behind a pair of boxes, hiding them from the guard's line of sight

Ledge:As the guard passes, she lifts off him and looks up to Fuse, motioning for him to try and jump across the next few shelves to try and get out out of this area of guards

Fuse:He nods and goes to make the jumps as quietly as possible

Attempts to jump (219)

Attempts to jump (216)

Attempts to jump (253)

He goes to climb down

Attempts to climb (177)

Guard:Fuse slips on his way down and falls right in front of a guard, falling ontop his side as the guard takes aim, saying

"Whoa, what the hell!?"

Fuse:He raises his hands in front of him "Whoa, whoa, whoa. No need to shoot."

Guard:"You stay right there!"

"Don't you move, I'll blow your fucking head off!"

Fuse:"You know it, pal." He puts his left hand to his chest while holding his right hand toward the guard "I'm completely cooperative." He looks past the guard to see if Ledge was in sight

Ledge:As he goes to look, he sees a wire appear from behind the guard as Ledge jumps on him, putting her knee into his back and pulling back with all her weight and strength on his throat with the wire

It only takes about twelve second before the guard hits the ground, knocked out

Fuse:In that time, he got up, brushed himself off, and started to retrieve Mike if he was in sight

Mike:Mike was leaning against the corner of the shelve, trying to keep himself up, however as Fuse got to him, he noticed blood seeping through the back of his mask as he was acting a bit wobbly

"Fuse, I can't... I need to sit down."

Fuse:"Not an option, man. We need to get to the drive. Not sit out here with armed guards. Ledge can't ice all of them."

Mike:Reaching into the side of his pack, Mike brings out a small tracker and offers it to Fuse

"Look, just.. Just go and put this on a crate with the numbers 149-6783."

"When you get back, I should be good to get to the safe."

Ledge:It's by this point that Ledge makes it back to them, having rolled the guard onto the bottom shelf and did her best to hide him behind some packages

Seeing the tracker, she looks to Fuse

"What's going on?"

Fuse:"He needs a break apparently." He sighs "I'll put the tracker on the crate and hurry back."

Ledge:She gives a shake of her head and a sigh before kneeling down to Mike

"Alright, I'll watch him."

Fuse:He makes his way out

Attempts to sneak (88)

Guard:As Fuse continues, a guard steps out of another nearby hall and looks towards him, questioning

"What was that?"

Fuse:He keeps a-sneakin'

Attempts to sneak (119)

Attempts to sneak (92)

Guard:Fuse makes it over to the isle where he finds several crates making up the walls of the shelves

Fuse:Attempts to search (95)

Guard:It takes only two boxes to find his crate before placing the tracker on it and then make his way back

Fuse:Attempts to sneak (130)

Guard:Fuse manages to get back to Ledge and Mike without a cinch where he sees Mike getting to his feet, appearing to be a bit better than he last left him

Mike:"Alright.. Let's finish this and get out of here."

Fuse:"Just don't go falling again."

Mike:Ledge once again takes point as she leads the way through the halls, following the new map Fuse gave them, with Mike giving a very light nod to Fuse's joke filled jab

Fuse:Attempts to sneak (110)

Mike:Fuse and Mike make a bit more noise than they probably should, but things go by without much of a hassle or too many guards showing up before they finally arrive at the wall of safes as Mike rests himself against a wall to their left as he examines the safes

"Ledge. The fourth safe down there."

"Put your right hand on the scanner and enter the code 43-48-71."

Ledge:She looks at him for a second before asking

"Are you fucking stupid, I put my hand on there, not only will it know I'm not the owner, but then they'll have my prints."

Mike:"Just.. Trust me."

Ledge:She looks to Fuse

Fuse:He sighs and does it himself, knowing no system has his prints

Mike:As he does this, Mike calls out

"No!"

just before he does it.

Fuse:He stops "What's the issue, man?"

Mike:"If you do it, the numbers are 34-84-72."

Fuse:"...Now I have to know why it changes."

Mike:"I'll explain it later."

"Just open it."

Fuse:"....You fuck me, it'll be a long time before you have the credit to buy a car." He half jokingly mutters as he goes to do it

Mike:As Fuse puts in the numbers and lets it scan his hand, there are a series of sounds, including the sound of steam escaping before the safe finally opens revealing several things inside, all highly valuable on any market. However Mike makes his way over and reaches in, moving a couple of the valuables inside before grabbing a hard drive and stepping away

"Alright.. I got my things, and your money has been transferred."

Ledge:She peers inside before asking

"What do you mean the money has been transferred?"

Mike:"Nothing, like I said, I'll explain later."

"Let's just.. If you want anything from in there, take it and let's go."

Fuse:"Before you do anything..." He sweeps his hand over the items, feeling out for things that could interact with his power, namely tracking devices

"It's clean."

Ledge:She looks around and grabs a couple of items, tossing them in the bag that she is now carrying

Fuse:He grabs a suppressed small arm and tosses it into his messenger bag. He then reaches in and pulls out a small metal stake with a light on the end. Fuse smiles and places the stake in his bag as well

Ledge:As he does this an explosion is heard outside, causing Ledge to jump into a martial arts stance and Mike to grab his head as he almost falls from the vibrations

"God damn it, now what?"

Fuse:He shifts with the explosion but doesn't freak out "I did push over some boxes. Might have had some explosives."

Mike:He grabs ahold of a wall. As Fuse makes his comment, he gets a cold tingle down his back before Ledge lets out

Ledge:"What the fuck is that?"

Fuse:He turns around to see what Ledge is looking at

Unknown:A more than gravely snarl appears from the darkness as Fuse looks over to see a black figure in the darkness

The air becomes thin as a voice pounds their heads with a laugh, saying

"Which little mouse."

"Wants to steal from my safe?"

Fuse:He calmly pulls out the stake and points it at the thing, pressing a button as he does so

Son:As the stake turns on, the lights of the warehouse turn on as screams crack their ears, revealing a larger than life man, build as if someone had place eight body builders into one, with skin so black that it gave the darkness light, and hair sharp enough you could cut cheese with it

"RAHAUOHUAHAO!"

He drops to a knee as the light on the stake gently and calmly blinks

Guards fill the room, surrounding the three with some of them being affected by the stake, but the others yelling at them to drop the items and get down

The beast of a character crying in pain as he is slowly being crushed under his own weight

"NAOWHUA RAUHAOHLAOA!"

Ledge:Ledge lowers herself as Mike gets to his stomach, both knowing they can't fight the amount of guns aimed at them

Fuse:He drops to the ground, absorbing the now powered of stake into his arm as he goes down in a way that lets a couple of usbs fall out and get utterly crushed

"Shit, I broke it...God damn it..."

Son:As Fuse lets go of the stake as to not harm himself, Son raises up up and takes a giant inhale, enough to make Ledge move a little before letting out a

"AHUAPOHHHHHHH MEHAU GOWH!"

"NOOOAOAHO!"

Son then lets out a swing from hell that absolutely destroys his guards, sending them into clouds of blood before he screams at Fuse

"WHAUT THE FUCK WAS THA!?"

Fuse:He looks up at Son "It was something...now it's broke."

Son:"Well that was god damn painful!"

"One of you fucking people tell me what was in that safe so I know to kill everything that has ever mentioned it!"

"That fucking sucked!'

One of the guards looks to Son raising a hand before getting blown into a cloud of nothing as Son punches him into the wall

"WhAT THE FUCK IS THIS SHIT!"

Unknown:"Through scars."

"Bloody knuckles."

"And hard regrets."

A voice echoes through their minds, seemingly coming from everywhere as the glow of white eyes appear above them

Son:"Oh, now what the fuck is this!?"

"God damn it, woman!!"

The Throttle:The clouds and mists of his fallen guards begin to clump together, slowly forming The Throttle

"Son Gopo."

"Broken bones that keep healing."

Son:"You're god damn right, womah!"

(From Fuse): 2

Son:"Dey keep healin'!"

The Throttle:"Did you just call me... Womah?"

Fuse:He squeezes his left hand discreetly, activating the stake as a little light pokes out of the bottom of his palm

Son:Son hits the ground, almost immdiately, crying once again in pain

"AUGHAPO HGPLAOUA !!!"

The Throttle:The Throttle floats in the air above them, watching with disgust as he watches Son ravel in pain as his body quickly sinks lower and lower

"You truly are a nasty entity."

Son:Son can do nothing as one of his eyes pop, his weight rapid cutting off not just his airways, but also his circulation as his screams are slowly quieting and turning into more of wheezes and whistles

"WAHHOAUHHHHHAKKKAKAKKKMKMKMKMKMKMKM"

The Throttle:He lowers as the guards open fire however all of their bullets instead go right around and light them up instead

He looks to Fuse

"Turn it off."

Fuse:He promptly does

Son:His body springs up as he rolls to his stomach, and begins sobbing and fighting for breath as his body regains his control

His blown out eye swollen as he peers to the throttle and then to Fuse asking

"WAYuhhal!!!!!!!"

Fuse:He stands "Like you wouldn't have turned us into paste!"

Son:"NAUGHHHHHH!!!!!"

He finally catches his breath, or at least enough to let out a swing at the throttle

The Throttle:As Son's fist hits The Throttle, Fuse watches as the hero just absolutely flies past him, with enough force that throws him against the wall and everyone else in the room, as The Throttle disappears past the safes, destroying them

Son:"WAURHGHA!"

"You lying sack of shit!"

Son calls as he looks to Fuse

A siren beginning to blare as Fuse can hear the foot patter of guards on their way

"Who do you think you are little man!"

Fuse:He groans against the wall, holding up his left hand "You talk too much."

Son:"Do you see what I just did to your number one hero!? You're yoioshi!?"

Fuse:A little red light appears

Son:His body once again hits the ground as sounds of pain the like never have been heard by Fuse are burned into his memory

HEAULAHUAUAH!

Fuse:He slowly gets up "Let's go. We've got our route out."

The Throttle:Ledge gets up from where she had been thrown, and follows Fuse, Mike slowly making his way behind as the safe The Throttle had been thrown through begins breaking apart as the Throttle gives Son a stare straight from hell before Son's body begins to levitate

His body crushing him even more as some force pushes it against the gravity that was already harming him as Fuse hears a snap that shakes his skin

Son:"GUSHGAHHHHAHAHAHAHOAIJGO!!!!!"

The Throttle:Finally, Fuse gets far enough away for Son to spring back to normal, having to take a moment to catch himself as The Throttle makes his way towards him

Guards coming out and aiming their guns at him all find themselves gently beginning to float in the air before being slammed into it hard enough to cause vibrations felt even to Fuse and them as they try to make their way off the property

"Graveyard shifts never missed."

Son:"AUGHASOOOOOOO!!!!"

"WHat the fuck are you babbling!?"

"Throttleeeeee!"

The Throttle:"Intrepid and inimitable."

Son:"God damn it, shut up!"

The Throttle:The Throttle stops and looks to Fuse, as Fuse gets the feeling he should look back

Fuse:He can't help but look back

The Throttle:Fuse locks eyes with The Throttle and suddenly finds himself in a chair, with completely different clothes on

Fuse:"Well, add that to the list of unplanned events today." He looks around

Unknown:As he looks around, he sees he is in a rather nice house, a rather expensive house, even with a maid dusting some books off to the side.

Before he's able to get up, a women, not too much older than him walks over to him saying

"So, do you have work tomorrow?"

not too much older is about ten*

Fuse:"Well I hope not. Was hoping for a beach vacation." he is fighting to determine if this is a power or if he just finally snapped

Unknown:She gives a smile

"Well, we have been talking about a vaction for a couple months. Maybe we should finally go on it."

A little boy runs in from the other room and over to Fuse, calling out

"I did it! I did it!"

"I completed the puzzle!"

Fuse:"That so, champ?" He tries looking for a mirror "Was it difficult?"

Unknown:"Yeah, but when I got it, I see now that it wasn't."

The woman notices he's looking for something and asks

"What're you looking for?"

Fuse:"Oh, just a mirror. Think I've got something on my face." His minds is running a million miles an hour but he's trying to keep his cool

Unknown:"Milena! Get a mirror."

She calls to the maid who goes to fetch a mirror, as she does the woman examines Fuse, saying

"I don't see anything."

The little boy asks

"Do you wanna come and see it?"

Fuse:"Sure, champ." He looks down at his hands to see if they're his

Unknown:His hands are slightly different, but not enough to tell him anything as the little boy grabs the bottom of his shirt and starts pulling on him to follow

As he does, the main returns with a mirror and offers it to him

"Here you are, mister Romal."

Fuse:"Thank you very much." he follows along while looking at the mirror

Unknown:As he peers into the mirror he sees himself, but... different. Wrinkles now appear, his hair thinner, facial hair, no tech, with cleaner and clearer skin than he has had in some time

Fuse:"Guess I was wrong." He puts it down as he follows along, taking in the scenery

Unknown:Fuse is led into another room, his son's room, but not a bed room, more like a playroom, continuing the trend of expense as his son picks up a ball and offers it to him

"Click that button in the middle."

Fuse:He does so, waiting for the monster or the astral or the explosion

Unknown:As he does he watches as the ball falls apart in his hand

The little boy gaining the widest smile and giving a bounce as he says

"Now I get to do it again!'

"See, I did it!"

"I made it!"

Fuse:He smiles hesitantly "Such a bright boy. How long did it take you?"

Unknown:"All week."

Fuse:"Then try to beat four days. I know you can do it, Champ." He goes to look outside of a window

Unknown:As he looks outside the window, he sees something he's never before be able to see in his life.

A bright, blue, healthy sky

With a bright yellow sun pouring it's shine down and fluffy white clouds slowly passing by as the world appears to be a much more natural, less tech heavy state

Fuse:He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath, realizing this isn't a nightmare where the monster comes for you. It's the one where you see something you want but know you can never have

"If only this could last forever."

Unknown:*The woman takes a seat on the couch before turning on the TV, turning to the news where it explains that another series of murders happened that day by notorious serial killer; Perseus Valden, son of local crime boss Fukase Yozo."

She turns the channel, not wanting to hear anymore on that topic and finds a channel for kids, which is guest staring Pascal Prescott, the younger brother of Super Yoioshi Linus Prescott, teaching you the difference between red and green, and why red means stop, and green means go. As this turns on, the little boy runs in and sits down as Fuse is able to gather by his and the woman's interaction that it's his favorite show

Suddenly he gets a call on his phone

Fuse:He looks at who's calling

Unknown:He sees the ID reads Michelle Labelle

Fuse:He answers "Hello?"

Unknown:"Sorry to disturb you on your day off, Mister Romal, but do you happen to know rather or not you're working tomorrow?"

Fuse:"If need be. Depends on what's happening." He's trying to act like he knows what's going on and feels like he's steadily getting worse as this goes on

Unknown:"Well..."

As she begins to talk, his hearing begins to fade as a series of flashes appear on the TV catching his eye

As he peers over to it, he suddenly hears a horn before feeling himself be tackled to the ground

Ledge:"What the fuck are you doing!? We need to leave!"

Fuse:He shakes his head "Getting sucked into someone's power, I imagine. Thanks for the wake up."

Ledge:She shakes her head and gets up, trying to help drag him up too

"Come on!"

Fuse:He takes the help, getting the hell outta dodge

Narrator:As he returns, he finds himself in the middle of the road as the entire street, that was previously pretty nice, not compared to the dream he was in, but compared to the normal streets of the city, is now on fire with wires sparking high amounts of lightning fly everywhere and glass being thrown about as explosions can be heard not so far away

The Throttle:As they run, suddenly Throttle shatters the road below them as he is thrown into it with the force of a tornado, letting out heavy puffs and coughs

Son:"Throttle, I told you once not to fuck with me. Now you pissed me off!"

The Throttle:As Fuse and Ledge run past, Fuse can see Throttle's body shaking as he appears to struggle in picking himself back up.

"You have been running... Your rings for far too long."

Taking a step forward, Throttle suddenly flies into a punch on Son as Son takes better than anything else would or could

Son:He springs back into a headbutt, slamming Throttle into the ground making him call out in pain as he slams against the ground but then somehow warps through it

"Oh, yeah?!"

"That trick again, huh!?"

Fuse:He looks to Ledge "Should I use the thing again on him?"

Ledge:"No, Throttles got this, let's just get out of here!"

Fuse:"Fair enough!"

Ledge:She is still trying to run, but Fuse notices her leg is soaked in blood and banged up pretty badly

Son:Fuse hears a roar before a giant crash behind them

Fuse:He wraps and arm around her and gets under her shoulder "Let's hurry up, yeah?"

Ledge:She looks to him with bleed dripping down her face and gives a smirk, gladly accepting it

Son:Suddenly however, the two go flying off into a nearby store as Son lands in front of them with a gust of wind that feels as though they were behind five jets

"Fine. You want to run, Throttle!"

Ledge crashes into a series of shelves as Fuse lands behind the counter in a gas station

"Go ahead and run!"

"But I'm not done!"

"Not by a long shot!"

Fuse:He groan and tries to drag her behind cover

Son:As he attempts to, she tries to crawl aswell but finds herself in too much pain as Fuse hears the calm before the storm as even the sound of fire and electrical sparks fade before the counter is ripped off by a hulking beast as it reaches down and picks Fuse up in a way that causes a lot of pain

Fuse:"Gah!"

Son:"You pissed me off too."

"I'll use you."

He begins walking out of the store, completely ignoring every bit of rubble and broken bits on the ground, his feet not fazed by it at all.

"THROTTTLEEEEE!!!"

"THIS PIECE OF SHIT IS GOING TO DIE!"

"AND IT'S BECAUSE OF YOU!!!!"

Son:He looks to Fuse and asks

"Ready?"

He raises his hand and gets ready for a swing

Fuse:"Absolutely." He holds up his left arm as he spits a little blood

blip

Son:Seeing his arm raise, Son sees in slow motion as he hears the "blip".

However Fuse feels a bit of a tug on his arm as Son hits the ground

Fuse:He looks down at where it's coming from

Son:As he looks at his arm, he can't seem to understand what he's looking at, it certainly takes him a moment, but he finally realizes that as Son went to hit him, he shifted his swing at the last second into a grab and grabbed Fuse's arm, however since the stake appeared it caused Son's body to slam against the ground, his hand yanking Fuse's arm off

Fuse:He blinks, shocks setting in real quick "That can't be....the thing had me with both arms...."

Son:Son begins to stand and laugh as he says

"Finally!!!!!"

"I FINALLY FOUND IT!"

"IT HURT SO FUCKING MUCH!"

"BUT I GOT IT!"

Unknown:"absolute"

The Throttle:"THROTTLE!"

Suddenly, The Throttle appears from below them, coming out of the ground and in between Fuse and Son and axe kicked Son hard enough to send Son nearly a mile into the ground as he lets out a kiai that can be heard the same distance

While in a state of shock, the last thing Fuse sees is Throttle flying below the ground, chasing after Son

Fuse:"Get him....yeah...."

Narrator:With that, Fuse's vision appears to become blurry for an uncountable amount of time before finally he finds himself snapping back to reality

Now finding himself in a hospital room, with a hospital gown on

Fuse:First thing he does is try to wiggle his fingers

tries*

Narrator:He feels everything wiggling

Fuse:He looks to his left

Narrator:He finds a nurse standing beside him, writing something down in a tablet

Fuse:"Hello there." He tries to raise his left hand

Narrator:He manages to do so as the nurse looks to him and gives him a soft but obviously fake smile

"Hey, how're you doing, sleepyhead?"

Fuse:"Still have old lefty, so much better than what seems like a minute ago."

He looks up at the nurse "Give it to me straight. How many years of indentured servitude do I owe this place?"

Narrator:Her head tilts as she gains a expression of 'what'

"No... That's all taken care of."

Fuse:"Great, now they own my soul." He goes to sit up

Narrator:As he sits up, he feels aches through his body, but can be pushed through. The nurse gives a bit of a giggle to Fuse's comment before saying

"After his fight with Gopo, Throttle used the last of his stamina to put your arm back on, and brought you here."

"He then rested for a few days, but when he woke up, he paid for all of your stuff. So... As soon as you're ready."

Fuse:He slowly gets up "Well, I'm sure there's someone who needs this more than me."

Narrator:It's at this moment that Fuse gets the sense that of familiarity, but can't seem to pin point it

Fuse:"Did there happen to be a man and a woman be brought in at the same time I did?" As he looks to the nurse, he looks for a nametag

Narrator:He sees her name is Harris as she thinks for a moment

"No.. No, I don't think so."

"But a man did come by while you were asleep."

"Don't know why or what he did while he was here."

Fuse:"Was he a cop?"

Narrator:"Yeah."

Fuse:He nods "Thanks. So what's the process of getting me out of the assless chaps here?"

Narrator:"Just walk into the bathroom and change, got a pair of clothes waiting for you on the nurse's chair in there."

Fuse:"Thank you very much." He changes, not particularly in a hurry given the soreness

Narrator:By the time he leaves the bathroom, the nurse has left(

Fuse:He wanders out of the room and toward the exit

Narrator:As he leaves, he finds himself back in the everyday life he had grown accustomed to, but his experience had somehow made things feel... Different

Fuse:He sits down when he finally gets home, reliving the moments. After a while he looks up the files he got from the security desk

Narrator:At home, he is able to discover that it has been nearly two months since the Throttle vs Son incident which took after three days of battle, is still being reported on, and that Throttle hasn't been seen since he finally killed Son.

As he opens the files he finds them blocked with several layers of security

Fuse:Attempts to remember, with (0.5263157894736842) degrees.

Narrator:Fuse finds a series of walls that he just can't pass it

Fuse:He's left scratching his head "I'm going to need a specialist." He attempts to get in contact with his employer

Unknown:Managing to do so, Fuse gets a hold of his employer who claims

"This is W&A Brother's Sea Food, can we place an order for you?"

Fuse:"I'm trying to pick up a shift."

Unknown:"A shift, well why don't you give me your info and I'll message you when one is open."

Fuse:"ID: Techie-293."

Unknown:"Two nine three, well that shift actually just opened up. Go ahead and come by. Surely you know the address if you're looking for a shift. Our hours are 2-8."

Fuse:"Rrrrroger."

He hangs up, leaning back into his seat. "Wonder if she made it out alive..."

After some time of contemplating life, he gets up to go to his place of work

Unknown:As he arrives, he finds a man standing behind the counter and knows to ask for the manager about non-sea food.

Fuse:He walks up to the counter "I'm need to talk to the manager about some non-sea food options."

Unknown:"Yes, sir."

The clerk places in an order before giving a nod says

"It'll be a moment, if you need to use the restroom while you wait, it's right back there."

The clerk points to the side where Fuse can find the bathroom, which he faintly recalls is where he needs to go next

Fuse:"Thanks." he casually strolls toward the restroom

Unknown:As he enters the room, he finds it to actually be a really nice restroom, really clean and kept up with. After the door shuts behind him, he hears a hissing sound as the wall to his left extrudes into itself before shifting to reveal a hidden set of stairs

Fuse:Not particularly surprised anymore by it, he marches down the stairs

Unknown:After hitting the base of the stairs, the wall seals itself back before a man walks up to Fuse, saying

"Well, find a pretty skirt and show the wind, you're alive!"

"It's been two months, Fuse, the hell happened?"

His employer questions

Fuse:"Last job went a little sideways. Lost an arm. Got it back. The usual."

Unknown:He looks to both arms and sees they're flesh and says

"If you don't want to tell the truth, Fuse, that's fine, but I ask next time you want a vacation, you let me know."

"Now, what's the deal?"

"Money from the last job finally drying up?"

Fuse:"Honestly haven't checked. The bills probably ate it while I was in a coma. Just need to do something. It was harrowing to say the least."

Unknown:"Alright. Walk and talk."

The employer begins walking down the rest of the hall that the stairs led to before revealing another city, an inner city, an underground city, which rests below the ground of the surface

"So, what can I do you for, Fuse?"

Fuse:He's following in step "A job. Whatever at this point. Preferably not the break and enter type though."

Unknown:"Alright, well we got plenty of that. Always do."

As he says this, they walk down another set of stairs with Fuse feeling a quick breeze push his pants onto his legs, as something happened below the stairs

"So, no break and enter."

"Let's see. We got the kill, the guard, the eavesdrop, the.. Ohhh, the runners, always have fun with them."

"The storage."

"The... It'll be easier if you just tell me something you'd prefer to do."

Fuse:"I don't know. How about a protect kind of job? Oh and I have a question. You know of a worker called Ledge?"

Unknown:"Guard, can do, can do. As a matter of a fact, I got a big job for that just recently."

"Small risk, heavy fuckin' reward."

"Ledge, huh?"

"Got any information about 'em?"

"There are a couple of Ledges."

"Especially in this city."

Unknown:"Hehehe."

Fuse:"Runner, chick, and worked the same break in job with me two months ago."

Unknown:"Ledge... Runner huh?... Doesn't ring any bells, but hey, I got a lot going on. Tell you what, I'll look into her, let you know if I find anything."

"Anyways."

As they say this, they enter the heavily, shoulder to shoulder crowded streets of the Inner City Tirasheppo.

"So about this job, the yakuza leader."

"The boss, the head. Dragon, lion and bore."

"That guy."

Unknown:"He has a son, right."

"He needs someone to watch after him for a few days."

"Not something he usually comes to others for, but hey, dude's willing to pay a fortune, who am I to question him."

"So, how about it, you the babysitting type, Fuse?"

Fuse:"I can handle a gig like that. Probably has assassins coming for him or something."

Unknown:"After him? The son of the yakaza? Doubt it. Even the yoioshi are afraid to go after the elders."

"Anyways."

As he says this, Fuse passes by a giant creature with chains around it's neck that is being walked by several people, some of which hold electrified staffs aimed at it incase it gets out of line. Mancator is what they're called, men who are cursed or blessed to turn into mindless beasts once a month

Fuse:"Poor guy."

Unknown:"Poor? Are you kidding me?! I wish my papa was the fuckin' yakuza!"

"That

"Wouldn't have to live in this place then, would I?!"

As he says this a person he was passing looks at him with hate but he only responds with

"Ah, fuck you, what you lookin' at!?"

Before shoving them away, into someone who promptly begins whaling on them for pushing them

Unknown:"Heheh, fuckin' christ, this place smells terrible, so how's living on the surface? Nice, huh!?"

"I go up every once and a while."

"But the cops don't stop nagging me and eyeing me, makes me think I'll be busted anytime, so I just come right back down."

"Just got one of them faces."

Fuse:"Sure, it's the face."

Unknown:As they move through the crowd, Fuse is met by a girl who asks

"How much time you got?"

Fuse:"Not enough for whatever you're selling."

Unknown:"Oh, trust me. I can make it worth the time."

But before Fuse responds she too is pushed by Fuse's employer who proceeds to yell at her

"You fuckin' who-er! I'll kick your ass if you give me your damn bugs!"

They continue on with Fuse's employer saying

"These people man, I can't tell you how annoyed they make me. Just every day. Every day I gotta deal with them."

Fuse hears her spit at them, but nothing more as she goes about trying to find another customer as the employer finally enters a store where he walks over and passes the counter, sure Fuse will follow, as his son, who had been watching the store while he was gone, begins trying to tell him something, however is brushed off as the employer brings Fuse to a backroom and plops himself in a chair

Unknown:"So."

"You take the babysitting job, yes?"

Fuse:He nods, having followed along "Works for me. I need the where and whens."

Unknown:"Alright."

He types a handful of things in the computer at a surprising speed before picking up and pointing a gun to Fuse

"Done."

After saying this, he points the gun to his son who is still going on about something in another language unknown to Fuse, causing the Employer to do the same, leading to his son to walk away in frustrating, before the employer looks to Fuse and taps the gun against his own head, saying

"Kids man, you love 'em, but god damn if you don't hate 'em."

"You be glad you don't got one yet."

Unknown:"When you do, you'll be needing three jobs like me."

"Hehe, but not mine, huh! hahaha!"

Fuse:He remembers the vision "I don't think that'll be the case."

Unknown:"Well, let's hope not. Don't seem like the settling type, but that's coming from someone who doesn't know you. So..."

He looks to the computer

"Two days from now."

"Be at.."

he gives Fuse the location

"At exactly four thirty in the morning."

Unknown:"How's that sounding?"

Fuse:"Sounds early. " He chuckles "I'll make it gets done. In the meantime, you know any good codebreakers?"

Unknown:"Codebreakers?"

"Of course!"

"Scotsta!"

"As a matter of a fact, he's not far and at work right now."

"I give you the place, you go."

"The best."

Unknown:"Get past anything you need."

"W-w-w-with a few exceptions."

"Not because he can't, but because he won't."

"So, you go and meet him."

"Nice fella, but very dangerous."

"Not to you, he won't mind you."

Unknown:"But to someone who is a threat."

"He'll"

he whistles

"cut ya'!"

Fuse:"I'll bear that in mind."

Unknown:As Fuse responds the son runs back in, asking what his father wants, to which his father yells at him to leave again

"So. Scotsta is.." he gives him the location

Fuse:"I'll go visit him now then. Let me know if you find anything on Ledge. More than anything, just curious if she's still alive."

Unknown:"Will do!"

Scotsta:Fuse gets to the address without much trouble. The address leading to a store which deals heavily in pre-war technology, however occasionally deals with modern tech aswell, with it's owner and main employee looking to Fuse and giving a wave, asking in a very nice, almost timid way

"Hello sir, can I help you with anything?"

Fuse:"Heard from a guy that you're good with finding your way through firewalls."

Scotsta:"I.. Can't promise to live up to any expectations, but we can see how close I come."

"This an older firewall?"

Fuse:"Probably very new, actually."

He holds up his hand and the skin crawls as the thumb drive gets spit out of his hand and he catches it between two fingers

Scotsta:"Ohhh, what a... Unique ability."

"Would that happen to be your power? You can store items in your body?"

Fuse:"Something like that." He chuckles

Scotsta:"Well..."

He examines the drive before slowly and hesitantly picking it up

"USB 6., so certainly newer. If you... Couldn't tell by the store, the older stuff is my expertise, but."

He takes the drive over to a computer off to the side of his counter while talking, placing it in an adapter before clicking a few processes on the computer it's connected to

"I'm Scotsta, by the way."

"Scotsta Hiroyuki."

Fuse:"Fuse. And you were highly recommended by my employer, so you're the first guy I went to."

Scotsta:"Oh, well, I appreciate the optimism and trust. As I said, we'll see what we can do but first."

"What do you know about this drive or it's files?"

"Or rather, what do you want to know?"

Fuse:"I need everything on the drive cracked if you can manage it. It's more of a curiosity than a mission, so don't be worried if you can't do it."

Scotsta:"Alrighty. Would you happen to know who placed the wall?"

Fuse:"Jui, I think."

Scotsta:"Jui? Distributions?"

Fuse:"That's the one."

Scotsta:"Pretty big company. That's alright, but if that's the case, I'll have to charge you for this."

"70 Wenlow."

"First time fee."

Fuse:"Sure."

Scotsta:"Alrighty, we'll deal with that after I get this done. It shouldn't take that long, Jui is a customer favorite, so I got plenty of expiere-.. Well, that's odd."

"Okay, let's try..."

"That too, huh? Well, that's interesting, this is a little better than their usual stuff."

"Guess they found the flaws and updated."

"Alright, then instead of that, what about op-720?"

"Ahaha, there we go."

Scotsta:"Never expect op-720."

He pauses for a minute as a series of loading bars begin appearing on his screen

"Well, that's not good."

He intern presses a button on the side of the monitor before pressing another after counting to twelve

"Alright, that's one life down."

"Six more to go."

Scotsta:Shortly after he exclaims

"Alright, and I'm past."

Fuse:"That so?"

Scotsta:"There are a couple of folders, what they're names mean, I have no idea."

"But, here you go."

He moves the monitor towards Fuse

"Have at it."

Fuse:He takes a look through the stuff

(To GM): 63

(To GM): Fuse uses their Echelon Eye Scanner

(To GM): 55

(To GM): Stririk|Prime.Weapon.Damage.Type

(To GM): Stririk|Prime.Weapon.Damage.Type

(To GM): _

(To GM): Stririk dealt (2) damage with We

(To GM): Stririk dealt (16) damage with

Narrator:Looking at the file, Fuse finds it holds three recordings, and a fourth audio file. Each labeled to give an order

Fuse:He nods and takes the usb "I'll have to look at them later." He stands back from the computer "Surprised you managed it."

Scotsta:"It wasn't too difficult, alot of those big companies like using the same kind of things."

"Once you know how to properly navigate through one, it's pretty simple to maneuver the rest."

Fuse:He chuckles "I'll keep that in mind. You've earned the money, for sure."

(From Fuse): 1

Fuse:He thinks a moment "You know any good parts places around here? I've been topside long enough for them to change up."

Scotsta:"Depends on the parts."

"What're we looking for?"

"Car parts, weapon parts, implant parts, bot parts?"

cyin parts*

Fuse:A devilish smirk spreads across his face "We're starting simple. Hydraulics and steel frames."

Scotsta:"Well, Doctor Auto is a fairly decent place, won't scam you too much and offers pretty decent parts for the price."

"Where my son plans on getting his first car."

He picks up a bag of noodles

"Though, if that ever comes, we'll see."

Fuse:"Cars are expensive, especially down here. Hope he has a nice job." He chuckles humorlessly "Though that might be a bit much to ask for in these parts."

Scotsta:"Well, that's why he's been signed up to that power school. If all goes well, he'll have a pretty good job, even for up there.. But then there is the problem of him staying in."

Giving a couple of yanks to the sides of the bag, Scotsta takes a seat on a stool and opens it, grabbing a pair of sticks off to the side

Fuse:He gives a two finger salute "I'll see you around if I need any more cracking. Got my go-to guy now."

Scotsta:He gives a tap of the head right back

"Reoccurring customers are always welcome."

Fuse:With that, he's off to find Doc Auto

Narrator:It doesn't take long for Fuse to find the store of Doctor Autos as it's one of the nicer looking places in the bottom layers. Making his way through the crowd, numerous bumps into other people later, he makes it into the neon lit building, which appears to be playing music comprised of car noises, including a motor revving, hydrolics pressing and drills moving as a bit of smoke fills the bottom later of the store, with the smell of burning rubber occasionally hitting the nose.

It's not until a good moment that he's been looking around before a man walks up to him, asking

Auto:-Dealer "Anything I can help you with?"

Fuse:He nods "I'm looking for parts and, if you can, a custom framework."

AutoDealer: "Custom framework, huh? As long as you got the nods, we'll have your mods."

Fuse:"Might have to piecemeal depending on how much you're scamming me, but I need some basic hydraulics and a human shaped frame."

AutoDealer: "Scam-pftft! You're at Doctor Autos'.... Now what exactly are you looking for a human shape for?"

Fuse:He scoffs a bit, ending up with a smile "It's an art project."

AutoDealer: "Pr- All-ll-ll-llright." The dealer gains a bit of a smirk before taking a step back "Well, a frame like that will range, depending on what all we're putting on it, but... Seven fifty? Maybe eight."

Fuse:"Going basic here. I'm just asking for a frame. Nothing more, nothing less. I'm sure that worth way closer to six-fifty."

Narrator:"Ehhh... I don't know... How.. Big are we talking here"?

Fuse:He raises his hand just over his head "Eh, me. A little bigger."

AutoDealer: Gives a nod before saying "Yeah, a good seven twenty five sounds pretty average."

Fuse:"Knock it to seven and it's a deal."

AutoDealer: "Seven? I... How're you looking right now?"

Fuse:"I can drop that now. Don't know about the hydraulics on top of that, but I can do the frame for sure."

AutoDealer: "Alright, fine. You pay right now and sign up for our monthly sweeps, and that's that."

Fuse:"Monthly sweeps?" He shakes his head "Whatever." He makes sure to bring out his bullshit account for the sweeps

omit up to "I can drop that now"*

"I have half now and the other half should be in tomorrow. Should work out since you have to build the thing."

in two days*

AutoDealer: "Two days? You planning on betting?"

Fuse:He shakes his head "Paycheck comes in. Gotta support the art somehow."

AutoDealer: He offers a smile "Two days from now is a race we'll be putting on, so.. Won't be working that day, but you stop by the day after and we can finish business. Go ahead and give me the money, and uhh... I guess we'll place the order."

Fuse:He nods "Who knows. I might get the chance to place a bet." He pays the man what he has, leaving Fuse penniless for the days to come

AutoDealer: He types a handful of things into his computer before giving a smile to Fuse "Order is in. Have a nice day."

Fuse:He gives his signature two finger salute and heads off to home to hold out for the next few days, drawing up plans, and calculating

Narrator:Fuse gets a good bit of things done, but not enough before the time comes for him to go to work, having to wake up super early, he had set his alarm for two in the morning so as to have enough time to get there.

Fuse:He yawns, the alarm turning off as it slinks out of his face along with the alarm to his home deactivating as the remote melts from his hand and onto the bed "Man, it's gonna be a long one." He performs his morning rituals and double checks his plans before he heads out. Once he leaves, finally feeling the passion for his recent project die down, he decides to watch the recordings by plugging into his black box with the usb while he walks, hands deeps in his jacket pockets to hide the melting of flesh and machine

melding of*

Narrator:Fuse makes it to one of the trains, paying the last of his money for until the end of the day as it begins to take him to his destination of an area in the above

The recordings open with Son in a hallway, talking on a rather large, custom made phone.

Son:"Who!?... No, I don't know a fuckin' Mudakai Yamagikaze... With the Yakuza?... I don't give a shit if he was with the Shishibuki, tell him I'm busy, he can either meet with the usual safe seller, or go somewhere else... How much?"

Son stops just after the camera switches to the next hallway, with him now facing it

"Set up a meeting for tomorrow... Eleven forty."

Narrator:The clip ends

Fuse:He is left pretty confused, hoping the next ones to answer his new questions

Narrator:The next recording turns on and shows a large room, with a couple of handfuls of characters making up the entities. Obviously somewhere in the warehouse with the shelves, crates, and packages making up the background, the camera points towards Son as four men walk over, one of the four explaining that he is Mr. Gopo before being relieved by Son. The angle only showing Son's face, however only one of the three men seems to be who he's meeting, a smaller man with spiky green hair and wearing a clean suit. The other two men seem to act as types of bodyguards, both having blond hair, and standing at an average height, in contrast with their boss, they both wear normal street clothes. Son extends his hands, showing off his warehouse as he says

Son:"You're paying big money for a safe."

Mudakai:The green haired man gives a rub to his face as he says with a smooth voice.

"Actually, most of the money is to meet with you."

Son:"Me?" Son questions "Why on earth would you want to meet with me?"

Mudakai:"I have a deal to make with you."

Son:"As long as the money is good, we can talk for..." Son looks off to the side, probably at a clock "Three hours."

Mudakai:"Glad to know your hourly rates, but I have something to attend to in hour, so this won't long."

Son:Son gives a crooked smile, with much of his mass seemingly not being detailed by the camera, the only suggestion to the smile being the sudden appearance of his pure white teeth

Mudakai:"Before we get to that, however, I did pay for a safe, and would like to see it."

Son:"Right this way."

Son begins leading the man to the area with the safes, ending this clip.

Fuse:He starts thinking about which safe he may be after and how bad that might be for him

Narrator:The next clip begins in the safe room, where we get a side profile of Mudakai, appearing a clean shaved, early to mid 30s man.

Son:"Here you are. One of the best safes in the world. It's security from Eisina, requires a number and a handprint."

Mudakai:Son Explains as Mudakai gives scan of the safes that make up the large wall of the room before walking over to one of the opens ones and taking out a hard-drive from the inside of his suit and placing it inside the safe, saying as he steps back out

"Gald, bring the items from the car."

He then turns to Son, asking as one of his guard takes his leave, the other standing almost completely still.

"With that out of the way, let's get to the real business. I'm aware of you and your company's criminal activities."

Son:Son attempts to cut him off, saying

"The hell are you talking about, I'm a mailman!"

Mudakai:However it doesn't work as Mudakai keeps talking under him

"I don't much care for that, and originally, thought about black mailing you to work for me, however the more I dug, the more I understood that we have similar interests."

Son:Son's expressions shows aggravation

Mudakai:"This'll be a sore subject, however I ask that you not do anything out of negative emotions. I recently found that The Throttle has done a handful of things to you."

Son:"You best stop right there."

Mudakai:"Your father was probably a good man."

Son:"I SAID STOP!"

Mudakai:"Mother and Brother too."

Son:"UAHHAIA!" Son screams in frustration before swinging at Mudakai causing his body guard to lift their hand before Son flies off camera, leading to Mudakai to say with a smug reflection

Mudakai:"My family has suffered at the hands of the Throttle too... I've been developing a plan for sometime now, and wanted to extend an offer to the head of the Gopo Clan as I... Empathize with you. You don't have to join, and I'll let your illegal activities continue."

Narrator:This is where the clip stops.

Fuse:He's very glad that the cameras were off and hops over to the audio

Narrator:A gruff voice begins the tape, with static almost overpowering him as he talks

Unknown:"Didn't get a clear shot of Muda's face, but the audio is as clear as light. Nice work, I'll transfer the money after you send the files. Just remember, not a word to anyone."

Narrator:The voice that responds sounds very familiar to Fuse, but it's not until his last few words that he recognizes the voice to be the camera operator with a box of cheese that was blasted

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, just make sure to put in a good word for me at the office. I've sent eight applications and still haven't heard back."

Unknown:"Sure."

Narrator:clip ends

Fuse:The pulse of electricity from the train brings him back to reality as his hand unsticks from the door controls he was leaning against

Narrator:Exiting the train, the rest of the people on car that he was in watch as he exits and begins walking among the above segment before the train takes everyone else back down. A good bit more time passes as he walks to his destination, where he finds a mansion behind a massive, electrified wall, with the gate in and out holding an intercom

Fuse:He presses on the intercom "Hello?"

Unknown:A green light begins blinking on the other side as a stale, almost creepy voice questions back

"Who is this?"

Fuse:"I was hired for a guard job."

Unknown:"Oh, was that today?.. What's your name?"

Fuse:"Fuse."

Unknown:The light gives three red blinks before the gate begins opening as the voice says

"Walk on in, I'll be down to introduce you."

Fuse:He starts in, gripping his fist in his right pocket, causing a click

Unknown:As he walks in, he finds the building to be relatively cozy, yet a bit ominous, with silence filling the home, pitching his ears before the sound of steps down stairs appears as a rather tall man turns around a corner in a bit of a quick fashion

Cora:Extending his hand to shake, Fuse gets a chill down his spine as the man locks eyes with him

"Cora, pleased to meet you."

"There has been a slight change of plans, but for how much we're offering, I'm sure that won't affect you any."

"Turns out two children will be here. The one you're here for, Juba, usually just stays in his room."

"Sound is basically all you'll notice. Just walk by and make sure it's not quiet. And the second one, Maki will be spending the day in the study. Just occasionally step by the door and peer in."

"You're permitted to go into five rooms, and that is all. The kitchen, right through there. The lounge, right through there. The study, past the lounge and down the hall to the left. The restroom, down the hallway on the right side of the lounge. And the hallway at the top of the stairs, which is where Juba's room will be."

Cora:"If it is discovered that you decided to venture anywhere else, even if a child is with you.. Well, I'm sure you're well aware of who we are, given your employer's personality."

"The repercussions for touching one of the children in any way aside from shaking their hand upon greeting, will be far worse than simply opening a door."

"The payment for staying here with the children all day, will be two thousand, four hundred BipJen, distributed in any way you wish."

"Any questions?"

Fuse:After the quick handshake then the monologue, Fuse has been looking at Cora, but after a while, he almost ends up looking past him "Just one. Are you expecting trouble while I'm here or am I just here to babysit?"

"It makes a big difference on how I go about this."

Cora:"If you're aware of who we are, you're aware that we have many enemies... But, recently there was a threat sent to us by a particular entity that we suspect might act on it. While you're here, your job, while it is to act as a bodyguard to the children, it is also to contact us if anything suspicion appears to happen, in or around the building."

Fuse:"Then where's the security console? I imagine that's how I alert you."

Cora:"There are nine security consoles positioned around the house. The number you will place in is A-9-7-0-B-C-4. This will cause the house to go into lockdown. After this, you will press the red button on the top right of the console. After that make sure the children are safe and you'll get your money. However we do not think anything will happen, this is just a... Just in case."

Fuse:He nods "Of course."

Cora:"If you have nothing else, I'll be leaving."

Fuse:"Have fun."

Cora:Cora takes his leave, with Fuse getting a sudden sense of relieve as the door closes behind him

Fuse:He figures it's the guy's Eaftousia and moves on to check on the hoodlums

Narrator:It doesn't take Fuse long to get up the stairs and to the door of his priorities room as music appears to be blaring with a bit of rocking being heard from a chair

The door has a series of stickers and markings, one of which make sure to state that this room belongs to Juba, with the door being a striking contrast to the rest of the house which was purposely built to have a much before war design

Fuse:He knocks on the door "Hey, just letting you know my voice, if you can hear me.... Anyway, I'm your guy for the time being. Hear someone else, hit that lockdown button and I'll take care of the rest." He gives a second to see if there'll be a response

Unknown:The music comes to a stop as Fuse hears an eerie sound of heavy, metalic breathing before in a very calm way, the voice of a younger teen appears

"Will do."

Fuse:He nods to himself and moves on to check on the study

Narrator:As he gets to the stairs, he hears the music return, heavy industrial metal with screamo vocals. Just a small bit of walking later, Fuse finds himself passing the rather large lounge with several shelves of various unique and rare items, finally stopping in front of the study, he is able to peer in where he finds a hooded figure behind a mask resting on the couch, their head being held up by a hand, with the other holding a rather large book, something that may give a bit of a shock to Fuse as whole books, let alone paper, was extremely rare and almost never seen, with book stores even selling USBs instead of paper books.

Fuse:He waves casually "Yo, not going to interrupt too much. I'm your guy for the time being. See or hear anyone else, press the lockdown button and I'll handle the rest."

Maki:The figure's head snaps to Fuse, having not seen him before, however gives a soft "Alright." after he says his piece

Fuse:He nods and heads over to a security console, looking it over

Attempts to notice (164)

Narrator:As he looks over it, he sees it has several buttons, a camera that shows the gate with an intercom button to speak to whoever is there, and the button Cora told him was the lockdown button

As he looks at the camera, he notices a man stop at the gate as he was walking by, taking a second to check out the building before walking away

Fuse:"Gone a few minutes and we already have people casing the place." He places a hand on the console and attempts to feel out its uses

Narrator:Fuse is able to feel it has several uses, with the lockdown button being exactly what it says, the keypad appears to have a variety of effects, including the opening of hidden doors, the camera can be changed to various other cameras, with a total of 76 beings attached to it, and the intercom can be changed to instead speak to any of the other consoles, to allow for cross the house conversations.

As well as this, the camera appears to have a face and retinal scanners, recording all who look in it's direction.

Fuse:He shakes his head as he finally finds his head out of the rabbit hole fifteen minutes later "Whoa..." He then goes out to do some rounds and check out what he was allowed to be around with his own eyes

Narrator:As he walks around, he finds several things that he likely has never seen before, at least not in person, including a working, four foot globe with various information about the pre-war information. Several items made from non-clone animals, including a decorate knife made from what reads to be whale bone, along with a rather large painting on one of the walls, titled; Mozbarry and Company.

As he continues, he finds the kitchen to be an extremely smooth area, with the smell of soft dirt filling the air as several plants make up the corners, a glossy topped island counter in the middle of the massive kitchen, and a handful of refrigerators are placed along some of the walls

Fuse:"Man, I wish I could live in the Above..." He looks out of a window, wondering why he never came to visit the Above before

Maki:"Hear that a lot."

The girl from the study says as she passes through the lounge, on her way into the entrance

Fuse:"I'm surprised you get to talk with enough people that say that given your station in life." He's rather surprised seeing her leave the study

Maki:"Think you got the wrong idea."

She says as she leaves the lounge, heading for the kitchen

Fuse:Now he's curious "If you were so rough and tumble to not be left in the Above, why am I here then?"

He's following along

Maki:Opening a pantry, she begins taking a couple of things out before taking her mask off

"Because Juba is only fourteen."

Fuse:"That's a load of bull. If that's the case, you'd be clear to watch the house."

His eye scanner comes to life

Maki:"I wasn't originally supposed to be here. Was going to be down at the races today, but... Then Shoda had to go and piss some people off."

"Like usual, ruined it for the rest of us."

Similar to Ledge, nothing seems to appear when Maki's echelon is scanned, however unlike Ledge, Maki's echelon doesn't seem to exist, at all.

Fuse:It blips off "That explains people already casing the house."

Maki:"Casing, huh?"

"When?"

Fuse:"Little while ago. If they're coming, it'll be soon, I'm guessing." He cracks his neck "I'm going to check on the other kid before hell breaks loose."

Maki:"Probably just checking out the house, bunch of business and base layer residents like coming up every so often to do a small walk around. What'd he look like?"

Fuse:"Tall, lanky. Looked like the kind of guy that didn't do the break in, just the scouting." With that, he starts back to check on Juba

Unknown:As Fuse reaches the stairs, he hears a ring on the door before the intercom turns on, causing Maki to peer over

"Mister Yozo."

"Mister Yozo, I have some business to discus with you."

Fuse:He approaches the console "He's busy. You'll have to come back another time."

Unknown:"Another time won't be good. And whatever he's busy with, I'm sure can wait. At least until I'm finished."

Fuse:He takes a good look at the person

Detective Murakami:He sees the person holding up a badge in front of the camera, well aware it's there.

Fuse:"I'm sorry you feel that way, but it won't change the fact you'll have to come back another time."

Detective Murakami:"And that doesn't change the fact that I have a search warrant that says otherwise."

"Now you can either let me in. Or I can have my squad bust down this fancy smancy gate and that, I'm sure costs alot, door."

"So what's it going to be-ahauh!"

The camera goes dark for a brief moment before coming back to show no detective

Fuse:He blinks "Shit..." He looks to Maki "Could you go check on the kid?" He puts his hand on the console, searching for a camera to look around the premises

Maki:She looks to Fuse, giving a thought for a second before giving a tilt of the head, agreeing to go

Fuse:If she looks, she can see his eye twitching as he changes cameras as fast as one would blink

Shoda:As Fuse changes to a camera showing the entire front yard, he finds several police bodies scattered around the floor before watching as a body flies off the edge and down into the business layer below as a man in a mask yells at a barely conscious Detective

"I've had a bad god damn night, Murakami, and now I have to come home to this shit! Dad's not home, dumb kuso, you'll have to come back later!"

A series of fantastically dressed men stand behind him, one of them holding an officer in a headlock

After saying this, he puts a code into the console causing the gate to open and him to walk towards the building. His 'friends' making sure sure the enforcers are escorted away from the property

Before Fuse knows it, he hears just outside the door

"Nantekotta!"

Fuse:"That's not how I expected this to go...."

Shoda:As Maki makes her way back down the stairs, the door slams as Shoda enters and points to her

"You! You fuckin' bitch!"

"You knew good damn well that they were planning on jumping me!"

Fuse:Aaaaand lockdown

Maki:She mostly brushes him off, going back to the kitchen saying

"What'd you expect, Shoda. You killed the dude's pet and slept with his girl."

Shoda:Before he can respond the sound of metal fills the house as lock down is initiated, the doors and windows are all suddenly closed behind massive walls of thick metal, with a siren beginning to blar, causing the mask to looks to Fuse at the console

"Wha- What the hell are you doing?"

"Who even are you? You're not one of our guys?"

Fuse:"I was called here for a sitting job. You kinda are the very thing I'm supposed to be here for." He nods toward Make "Given what she's said, I'm guessing you're related, but, by then, alarms already were tripped.

Shoda:"Kuso baka... Move out of the way!"

He approaches the console

Fuse:He doesn't move, but he releases the lockdown

Shoda:Placing in a series of numbers, the lockdown is canceled and the shutters come up before saying

"Ignore it, Cora, new guy shit himself when some cops showed up."

He then looks to Maki

"And you, you fuckin'... Awhoohh, if you weren't mom's favorite, I would rip your fucking hair out of you head for that. I have three broken ribs right now and a dislocated knee."

"Do you know how much pain I'm in?!"

"The only reasons I'm walking is cause Iuot gave me some pain meds."

Maki:"Maybe you'll learn to stop fucking with the help and start doing what you're told."

Shoda:His hand grips into a fist as his pure anger can be seen resonating off him

Fuse:His hand finally comes off of the console and he wipes it on his jacket, staying out of the quarrel so long as it doesn't get violent

He mutters to himself "It's not cops I'm worried about."

Shoda:"I'm going to go and lay down. I have a doctor on the way."

He points to Fuse

"D. Rong is on his way, you let him in."

Giving a roll to his shoulders to reposition his jacket he lets out a loud sigh

"Maki. Our conversation will be finished at a later date."

With that, he begins walking towards a backroom, behind the stairs

Maki:She peers out of the kitchen and gives him a bit of a mocking expression before taking a bite of a sandwich

Leaning against the door frame to the kitchen she takes a moment to let out a sigh and widen her eyes as the moment cools down

Fuse:He lets out a sigh of his own "Well that is not how I was told the morning was going to go. Wonder what other surprises today has."

Maki:She looks to Fuse and gives a bit of a smirk

"It's diffidently something you gotta get used to."

definitely*

Fuse:"Hope I won't have to. This is a nice house and all, but I don't think I'm getting rehired."

Maki:"Unless Juba took a particular liking to you, probably not. Even without the unnecessary lockdown, Cora doesn't like getting the same guy twice, at least not in a row, usually liking three or four guys in between. You can ask why, but I don't know, Shoda won't be talking to anyone, and I doubt Cora will tell you anything aside from what you have to know."

"Likes to keep things pretty tight."

Fuse:He nods "Makes sense. I'm just happy with an easy job. This has gone a lot better than my last job."

Maki:"Honestly, aside from Shoda in there, everything should be fine, pretty sure Cora and them are worried about that dude with the twins, but.. I doubt he'll be doing much."

Fuse:"Guy with the twins?" His voice obviously says "not more"

Maki:"Yeah, but like I said, I doubt he'll be doing much, if anything."

"He's wanting to work with my father, not against him."

Fuse:"Never know in underworld."

Maki:"Didn't dress or act like he was from the underworld. He kind of just showed up, and that's what's got my father on edge. Dude doesn't appear on anything that we can find."

She finally finishes her sandwich, taking a bit longer to eat it as she was talking while doing so as she gives a swipe to her hands before turning the light off in the kitchen and walking back to the lounge where she takes a seat, expecting Fuse to join

Fuse:He follows along, keeping an ear open for the music

Maki:"He's an odd one, long green hair, a smooth talker, and more calm than Juba."

"Even after being shot at."

"He's an interesting fellow."

Fuse:Recognizing him instantly, he has to work to keep his cool "That so? Hope I don't run into him if he has your dad sweating. I have to ask though. Why the masks?"

Maki:Just before he questioned it, she had layed her mask back on her face

"Couple of reasons. Our mother gave them to us before she died, if you're the sentimental type. Protect our identity outside of the house, lessens the dangers posed to us by our father's enemies. They also appear to have some form of psychological effect on us, helping with certain personality traits.. Or at least that's what I've experienced."

"The only one of us that doesn't wear a mask is the black sheep."

Fuse:He raises a brow "So, if I'm going to be honest here, you were so quick to share I'm fairly certain you don't expect me to make it out of here. Having your mask off around me also doesn't hurt that theory."

Maki:"Honesty is always the best option if available."

Fuse:He nods slowly, chuckling "So, bearing that in mind. You have a reason for expecting me to not make it out alive?"

Maki:"Not anything I can say. I think I was just feeling a bit lonely and doubt I'll be seeing you again... It's nice to talk to someone who doesn't know you sometimes. Less judgement."

Fuse:"That what the mask helps with for you? Actually being a human being in the midst of the monsters?" He has to smile as he managed to make that as corny as possible

Maki:"Mmm."

She offers through a cringing smile

Fuse:He busts out laughing, smacking his knee

"I'm sorry, I couldn't keep a straight face!"

Maki:Through a grin, she replies

"Sometimes I wish it was the truth, but honestly... It usually makes me feel the opposite... But that's enough about me, who are you?"

Fuse:"Nothing special. Lost and arm. Died and came back. Born again odd jobs guy, if you will." He stands, taking a look around the room

an arm*

Maki:"Born again? Sounds exhausting... Do anything differently? Feel any different?"

As he examines the room, he seems to keep finding new items across the room, this time being a pair of series of cans stacked ontop of each other, a blue and white board hung on the wall, with some nasty looking creature's head right beside it

Fuse:He laughs and looks back at her "You think I could afford to be any different? I came here fully expecting to get attacked upon arrival. Meeting you and Juba was a nice surprise."

He turns back to checking out the head "And yeah, dying isn't a fun experience."

Juba:"I would image not."

A cold, shallow, metallic voice appears at the side of the room

Maki:Her head lifts enough to see Juba before resting back against the couch she had laid down on

"Hey, little brother."

Fuse:He takes a look "Can't imagine you have experience with it, do you?"

Juba:"Not yet, but everyone's time comes."

He gently says, letting out a long hollow breath as he goes to the door and opens it, allowing a man enter

Fuse:His scanner turns on as the man comes into view

Juba:With only a few seconds of vision on the man, Fuse is able to read it to be Dr. Donald Rung, one of the oldest, and most awarded doctors in the city. His eaftousia allows him to heal most injuries. His wallet fatter than even the owner of this house and a bounty on his head in the below layers worth just about this house.

With precise steps, Juba returns to the lounge, where he questions

"I heard Shoda yelling down here... Where is our oldest?"

Maki:"Who'd you just let in?"

Fuse:"The doctor."

Juba:"The good doct-.. Yes. He messaged me so to not impose on anyone else the heinous doorbell that our father loves so much to never be here to listen to."

He pauses before looking to Fuse

"You're the one Cora hired, the.. Guy."

"What's your name?"

Fuse:"Usually Fuse."

Juba:"Fuse. It is good to meet you."

He looks back to maki

"Shoda."

Maki:"Follow the doctor, that's who he's here for."

Juba:He peers outside of the room towards the back of the stairs

"I see... How long before he is calm?"

Maki:"Him and father will being having a fight tonight, and another in a few days, so.. Probably not for a good few days, Juba."

Juba:"How... Problematic. Fine."

Fuse:He finds himself muttering "What a guard dog I've been. Letting everyone in willy-nilly..."

Juba:With that, he begins back towards his stairs

Fuse:"Nice to get to meet you face-to-mask Juba."

Juba:Fuse can hear one of the most dry, deadpan, deliberate, no emotion laugh he has ever heard, or will ever hear

Fuse:"That just said more than I think I'll ever hear from him."

He's cracking up

Maki:She gives a smirk

"He's a character for sure."

Fuse:Once he finally stops giggling "Ah, this is fun. It's nice to see something different. You guys get to see the sky, and I feel like that does a lot for brightening the mood."

Maki:"Perhaps. Glad a lot of you find it so enjoyable up here."

"Juba seems to be the only one in the family or the business that really likes it up here. He often says that he likes to watch the storms come from a mile away."

"Says it's like art."

"I don't know about art, but I can see the peace in it."

Fuse:"I wouldn't know. The closest thing to real thunder I've ever heard was a crashing mag train. I don't see why you or the others would prefer it down below." He's found himself in front of a security console again, taking a look

Maki:The console shows nothing, with the group of guys with Shoda having left long ago

"It's easy to fade down there. One minute, up here, everyone is looking at you.. The next, you're just another face in the crowd. A nobody. The sounds of the crowd drown out even the loudest of cries, and people always show you their true selves down there."

She gives a sigh

"I'm just being dramatic and feeling a bit depressed. I know it's arguably better up here."

Fuse notices a body appear on the screen

Fuse:He investigates

Unknown:As he investigates, he sees a young adult, putting in a series of numbers, opening the gate. His face and hands pure black, a red jacket covering his torso and eyes whiter than Son's

Maki:She lets out a sigh before raising up

Fuse:"No mask and knows the code... Black Sheep?"

Maki:She looks to Fuse

"Most likely."

Looking to a wall mounted clock, she says

"Time's about right."

As the door opens for the boy to come in, the Dr. rushes out of the building

Fuse:"Hey! What's the rush?"

DrRung: "I am a very busy person, that's what."

He continues on, ignoring everything else to the best of his ability

Fuse:"I don't like that. Stroll in, run out. That's a bad sign." He looks to Maki "Should someone check on Shoda?"

Perseus:He watches Dr. Rung walk out "Did Shoda...."

Maki:"It'll be best to leave it be. If he needs something, he's got a phone."

Perseus:"So he did." he looks at Fuse "And he is?"

Fuse:"Fuse. Wow, that's starting to sound like it's not a word."

Perseus:"Not all there...got it."

Fuse:"Justified but hurtful nonetheless."

Perseus:He gives a look to Maki

Maki:"Got some news for you, Val."

Perseus:"Yeah?"

Maki:"Yeah, some pretty good news too. I had a talk with Shoda and father a few days ago."

Fuse:*He feels like he's hearing things he shouldn't but is not going to say anything

Maki:"We decided it'd be good for you, so... Starting tomorrow, you'll be going to the yoioshi school, Chikara Koko."

Perseus:His eyes widen "So you all finally decided to kick me out, huh? His eyes sink along with his posture "Don't get me wrong, I'm happy. Shoda's probably jumping for joy. Just going to be weird. We've been here so long. It's going to be hard to say goodbye."

Maki:"It's not goodbye."

She stands, letting out a small yawn before continuing

"If you don't want to, you don't have to go. And if you do go but want to come back, you know the doors are always open for you."

"As for Shoda, believe or not, he actually seemed kind of sad when dad agreed."

Perseus:He smiles, but it doesn't reach his eyes "There's hope yet then, huh? Well, I guess I'll get to packing then. Nice to meet you, uh...Fuse."

Fuse:"A pleasure, Val."

Perseus:He cringes a bit but doesn't say anything before heading upstairs

Fuse:After a moment "Was it something I said?"

Maki:"There's hope yet then..."

She repeats with eyes lowered before looking to Fuse and shaking her head

"I'm usually the only one to call him that."

Fuse:"I see. Great to hear. I get to be the guy that tried to be too buddy-buddy." He shivers a bit "Always hate those guys. Creep me out."

Maki:She gains a soft smile as her mood appears to be lifting

"They're usually a little off, to say the least."

"But I wouldn't worry about it."

Fuse:"True. We'll literally never meet again."

Maki:Readjusting her mask, she asks

"Do you have any plans, Fuse?"

Fuse:"Survive. Try to never meet Throttle again. Make some money. Probably not anything as grand as the mafia family members of this house have."

Maki:"Yakuza."

"While much of our people have been westernized, the Yakuza is one of the final bits of true numean culture left. As sad as that is, I ask that as another numean, you at least offer enough respect to call us what we are."

She walks back to the doorway leading to the study

"Survival is nice, but it's not a plan. Just surviving isn't a life. And don't worry too much about the Throttle. Like Juba said, everyone's time comes sooner or later."

With that, she ventures back to the study, leaving Fuse alone

Fuse:"Huh...." He sits there staring into the glassy eyes of the creature "She's still pretty nice even with the mask on."

Perseus:He packs his things, blasting music to cover the noise he makes as he goes about the room, cursing and wincing as he accidentally eats bits of his room as he runs around in excitment