40 - A Princess, A Game: The Rematch

Eden, The Unknown

Tutorial blinks at her.

Seijuro stares back.

"…You're back."

"Indeed. And I have questions… If the creature whose purpose in life is to answer them would dignify me with an actual useful answer for once."

Tutorial smiles. "Ask away. I'll answer if I can."

"Are you able to observe players?"

"Of course! I'd die of boredom otherwise… Though, there are many of you, and only one of Tutorial. I might miss something every once in a while, especially if I happen to be working at the time it happened…"

"You mean welcoming players?"

"I suppose that's a way to describe what I do, yes."

"Is there a way to talk to you from the game?"

Tutorial shakes her head sadly. "I'm afraid not. You could ask, but even if I happen to be listening, there'd be no way for Tutorial to communicate from here."

"I see. Were you watching me?"

The creature smiles, something glinting in its eyes briefly before disappearing, too fast for Seijuro to interpret its source. "Of course! Most impressive thing you did back there, by the way. Some might even call it impossible…"

"If I log in, am I going to find myself facing spider fangs?"

"No. You'll respawn… Again."

"Explain."

"Well, you must have been warned of your ability to log out at any point, yes? This preventive feature was mostly implemented as a way to help players who find themselves in… stick situations."

Tutorial giggles as Seijuro rolls her eyes.

"However, the fact a player might run from a fight at any point with a simple mental command doesn't sound very fair from the perspective of your enemies, now does it? As such, it was decided a player may only exit the game without dying by placing their hand upon their patron God or Goddess's statue, similar to how you enter the game in the first place. Any other means of leaving the game will result in the death of your avatar."

Seijuro frowns. "But there wasn't one."

"One?"

"A stupid statue! There wasn't one near my spawn point!"

Tutorial averts its gaze. "…Maybe next time?"

Though she clenches her teeth, Seijuro forces herself to keep her temper under control and think. By now, it is clear she won't ever reach her goal without taking the task seriously. She must forsake her current way of thinking and accept the fact she's playing a game, however disgusting the idea may...

So be it. If she's going to play it, then she's going to beat it.

"Oh? Is that a glint of fire I see in there, girl?"

"Shut up. I'm thinking."

Tutorial said a player can't log out without finding a statue, but it never said there would be one around every corner. Assuming the game follows real-world logic, statues should be plentiful in cities, or temples, in specific. And considering one of her species's perks is to forgo the death penalty's timer…

It's obvious enough Dryghrs are simply expected to die over and over again.

"Would I be correct in assuming a statue is equally necessary in order to heal my avatar?"

"You would. Well, time and a healer might do the trick, given enough of the first."

"Which is to say, I'd be better off simply killing myself and respawning after breaking a leg."

Tutorial shrugs. "How to play the game is up to you. I'm just Tutorial."

Of course.

"What happens to a player's avatar after they die?"

"Species specific. For you, nothing. After your consciousness escapes, the body… Well, I assume it'll end up as insect food much more often than not."

Lovely.

"When I was hurt, I felt no pain."

Tutorial nods. "You felt sluggish? Lethargic? Indeed, the discomforts you might face throughout your journey in Eden might be many, but physical pain is not one of them."

"I received… Some sort of mission, from my God."

Tutorial nods, its expression serious. "They like doing that. It's kinda their purpose, you see, to guide the play- ahem, heroes, excuse me, in completing their mission."

Was that sarcasm?

"Defeating Xiaris. Yes, I remember. But they weren't particularly specific in what I'm supposed to do."

Tutorial tilts its head. "I thought you didn't care?"

"…I'm assuming I'll receive XP by completing it?"

"Yes. Depending on the complexity and difficulty of the quest, your God might even throw in some Hidden Skills, or Magical Items as well. I wouldn't expect them every time, however. I'm told these things are limited in nature."

First come, first served?

"…Speaking of which, have you finally changed your mind about playing the game?"

"No. But I'll do what I must in order to achieve my objective."

"The Abyss, and Tanaka Aiko... Yes, I remember. Are you ready to return now?"

Seijuro nearly growls in annoyance. "You never answered my question!"

"…I thought I did? Oh! Yes, in respect to specifics regarding your mission, I'm afraid your patron God is the only one who might explain them to you, as specific quests lay outside of Tutorial's purview."

"Fine. Show me the statue, then, and I'll ask them myself."

"Here you go."

Producing the usual flourish, Tutorial smiles as it points Seijuro toward the tall stone obelisk supposed to represent her patron God as it appears nearby.

"See you soon?"

"Shut up."

Seijuro doesn't hesitate in placing her hand upon the statue, even as she is immediately assaulted by its whispering voices and the beginnings of a headache.

'Hello. Do you remember me?'

'Yes.'

'Kin.'

'Returned.'

'Failed.'

'trY?'

'Again.'

Is it her or the voices seem clearer than before?

'Indeed, I wish to return and try again. But first, I'd like ask about the mission you bestowed me.'

'Mission.'

'yEs.'

'UnclEar?'

'Too much.'

'Too little?'

'More.'

Images of yellow eyes being torn apart by claws flash though her vision as Seijuro cringes, forcing herself to withstand the pain.

'War.'

'enemy.'

'Death.'

'Victory.'

'Or nothingness.'

'Understand.'

'Now.'

'Kin?'

'Victory… Victory or death, yes, I understand… But how many… How many do you expect me to kill, exactly?'

'ALL,' the creature answers in a single, deafening chorus, 'ALL MUST DIE, DIE A THOUSAND DEATHS, FOR WHAT THEY TOOK CAN NEVER BE REPLACED, FOR THEIR PATHETIC LIVES CAN NEVER AMOUNT TO A SINGLE STONE OF WHAT THEY HAVE DESTROYED!'

…Seconds, or perhaps minutes later, Seijuro blinks toward the gray - ceiling? Sky? - of Tutorial's room, her back against the ground, and her skull as if having been hit by a sledge hammer.

She is surprised the experience didn't log her off. It certainly fells it should've.

"Er… Are you… You're okay, right?"

Tutorial's concerned expression slowly hovers into view.

"That looked slightly above the intended ceiling for a mental effect. I reported it as a b-bug… Did you piss them off or something?"

Seijuro narrows her eyes toward the creature.

"I-I see. Don't worry, I'm sure they've realized their mistake… They're supposed to grow and learn as well, you see, together-"

"I don't care."

Seijuro rises as her headache gradually fades. Questioning the game's design at this point will bring her nowhere – what it decides to throw at her, she'll simply outdo.

"Bring it back," she demands, after realizing the statue has disappeared once more.

"Well, look, far from Tutorial to question the decisions of a player but-"

"Then don't. I'm not here to play your stupid game, and the sooner I-!"

Seijuro shakes her head. What would be the point of explaining herself to a program?

"Just do it."

"…You're the boss, I suppose."

As Seijuro approaches the statue, a shiver descends her spine, the memory of the creature's voices as hot iron in her mind. Though the hand she extends in the obelisk's direction trembles slightly, Seijuro doesn't hesitate in placing it upon the stone.

For once, the insect God is silent, its many voices muted, nearly imperceptible.

'I understand,' Seijuro projects, 'I'll kill as many as I can.'

…Which is to say, any who stands in her way.

'Thank you.'

'Apology.'

'Kin.'

And as such, Seijuro finds herself surrounded by darkness in the now-familiar enclosure of an insect egg.

Okay... Let's try this again.

Seijuro pushes, bursting through the egg's soft shell as she falls, easily landing on her feet.

Unsurprisingly, the enclosed incubator cave is an almost exact copy of its sisters, from the soft green light irradiated by the eggs to the small crevice Seijuro quickly identifies as her only exit.

'Interface,' Seijuro commands with a wave of her hand.

User: Seijuro Aston | Species: Dryghr | Level: 02 | XP: 78%

Strength: 55(50) | Agility: 77(70) | Sturdiness: 44(40) | Stamina: 109/110

Skills: Dark Vision 7/10, Acid Resistance 4/10, Poison Resistance 4/10, Clarity of Mind 5/10, Creature of Darkness 1/10, Acid Spit 1/10

Active Quests: Kill, kill, kILL!

…It seems her kill covered for both death penalties and then some. Assuming she'll always receive half a level in XP deduction from dying, she'll have to at a minimum make up for the deficit every time in order to brave this place.

Worth noticing, the flying creature still provided XP despite the fact she did little in terms of damage to it herself… That being said, Seijuro has no way of knowing if she received full XP for the kill or not. Something to pester Tutorial with, she supposes.

Still not having a clue as to what Creature of Darkness is supposed to be. Maybe something species-related?

And lastly, Clarity of Mind seems to have gone up, either during her struggle against the flying insect, or the mental attacks she received from her patron God.

Food for thought. In the future, assuming she'll return to school soon, she'll have plenty of time to ponder in between dives.

Closing her character interface with a wave of her hand, Seijuro begins a simple series of exercises to warm herself for what's to come, as she would before a fight.

Something about the layout of the place leads her to believe what she seeks is most likely to be found at the bottom, but if her experiences so far have proven something, is that larger places tend to harbor larger insects, and she might not have a choice but to strengthen herself before attempting to face them.

Should she head up, or down…?

As a secondary priority, finding a statue would allow her to forgo the death penalty altogether, at least for a while (if she understood the game's system correctly), and perhaps even begin the initial drafts for a map of the place.

Having gained some insight into her new body, as well as more of a feeling to it, Seijuro stops several minutes into her warm-up, lowering her leg after a high kick which easily surpassed her head's height.

Her avatar's body is light and surprisingly flexible. Not exactly as deadly as she'd have liked, especially against a well-armored enemy, but if she's able to find weak points or a weapon…

Seijuro stares toward her four-fingered hands with what would've been a frown were her face still able to form human expressions.

No point in wishing for a different body now. She'll work with what she has.

Speaking of which…

The cave's crevice attracts Seijuro's gaze, having remained unsurprisingly unchanged during the past minutes.

Third time is the charm… Or something of the sort.

Seijuro approaches the crevice without hesitation, though she's still careful in squeezing herself in. After all, just because nothing attacked her in it before, doesn't mean it won't ever happen.

While threading forward, Seijuro considers her options.

Her fight against the flying creature and its subsequent conclusion proved far too well her new body's capacity to stick to surfaces. In order to succeed, she needs to stop thinking from the perspective of a human…

…Wind howls, darkness stands before her eyes, and Seijuro doesn't pause for more than a second; Identifying a nearby opening big enough to squeeze through, she immediately drops along the wall, freefalling for a stomach-churning moment before grabbing onto the stone surface once more.

…Bingo.

A sudden shriek cuts the air, and still, she doesn't spare more than a glance in its direction – spotting the distant glow of yellow-tainted eyes – before repeating the process twice more as she lands beside her target crevice and quickly inspects its insides, painfully aware of the creature's beating wings growing louder as she squeezes herself through the narrow opening.

Small, careful, yet hushed steps lead Seijuro further and further into the dark, growing distant the whistling of the wind and therefore the creatures inhabiting it.

Were she still capable of, Seijuro would've released a sigh of relief. Instead, she finds herself clicking her mandibles softly as the crevice not as much ends, but rather, grows gradually as she threads along it.

Finding herself walking through a narrow tunnel soon enough, Seijuro stops, inspecting her surroundings.

The wind is now a distant, nearly imperceptibly whistle at her back, and a new, distinct noise attracts the princess's attention, something reminding her of…

Sucking? Drinking?

Seijuro scans the walls, ceiling, and floor of the tunnel, at first glance composed of simple stone… If not for the presence of strange bulges she's quick to notice upon closer scrutiny. Slightly moving bulges of stone, in fact.

Mostly lodged against the ceiling, Seijuro counts dozens of them spread over her immediate vicinity… When the nearest protuberance suddenly dislodges itself, dropping near her feet while flailing tiny insect legs and a round mouth smeared with golden liquid.

About the size of her forearm, the creature seems to have no eyes, blindly sucking the air with its sharp teeth as if still searching for whatever source of sustenance it had lodged itself onto.

Glancing up once more, Seijuro quickly finds that the golden substance's source seems to originate from the stone itself, or, more likely, a small crack on its surface, which seems to gradually release drops of the golden, thick liquid.

…Disgusting.

Without looking down, Seijuro stomps, ending the creature's nearly imperceptible cries.

And she's about to continue on her way, pointedly ignoring the substance now covering her foot, when the sudden silence of her surroundings draws her attention as one, and then another, the creatures dislodge themselves, creating a chain reaction of weak cries as they hit the ground, and a chorus which has Seijuro's hair standing on end.

Realizing the tunnel must harbor hundreds if not thousands of them, Seijuro immediately sets off in a run, except she doesn't move very far before the first of the creatures jumps toward her body, meeting her closed fist for its troubles and ending as a broken mess against the wall.

The creatures' cries echo throughout the narrow tunnel as Seijuro runs; Kicking, punching, jumping, dodging, and quickly losing count of exactly how many she killed during these brief seconds.

The tunnel is quick to grow larger, however, and Seijuro doesn't hesitate to enter the yellow glow of a bigger cavern as she spots it, immediately turning on her heels once she realizes the insects no longer surround her.

Instead, not unlike a wave of darkness, they quickly jump in her wake, pouring from the tunnel's mouth by the dozens.

Noticing one of them has lodged itself against her shoulder, Seijuro contains her disgust as she forcibly removes it, then clenches her grip, ignoring the small stream of green blood created by the creature's absence upon her carapace, as well as the small explosion of golden goo over her hand and forearm.

Without missing a beat, she immediately releases a ball of acid toward the largest clump of giant fleas (having decided to call them as such), before kicking, punching, elbowing the first, second, and third of the creatures to jump at her, respectively.

She's finally growing used to it. And their jump is about as fast as an average punch… Much slower than the dragonfly's tongue.

Seijuro's movements are a dance intended to eradicate her enemies, each blow sending another flea to crash against the nearest surface. Her thoughts have the single focus of keeping the creatures from reaching her body as she breaks their vanguard's fly with brutal, decisive blows, retreats, and repeats the process, careful to avoid being surrounded once more.

Her breathing grows rasped, however, long before the creatures' numbers have shown signs of lowering, and the occasional slip-up allows for more and more of them to lodge themselves onto her carapace, eventually causing her movements to grow sluggish…

Opening her mandibles, Seijuro snatches a flea midair before it can reach her body, then jerks another from her chest's carapace and throws it toward a particularly large group about to jump in her direction, spitting acid over their scattered bodies as she continues to retread from the main mass of insects determined to devour her.

Thankfully, the yellow cavern proves much larger than the one containing the fleas, and Seijuro finds some respite as she dodges the insects among yellow mushrooms much taller than her, running over gigantic yellow clusters of fungus as she ducks, sidesteps, and jumps the creatures' relentless attacks.

Unfortunately, the naturally soft surface of their new surroundings allows many of the creatures to survive a first crash, though their survival is often short-lived as they're trampled by their brethren, or simply unable to give chase due to a myriad of broken legs.

Above the insects' chorus of cries, Seijuro's own shriek rises as she sends their own to crash against the largest clumps of enemies in sight, her movements now a mix of desperation and rage.

If she has to go down, then she'll take as many of them as she can…

She'll kill, and kill, and kill…!

Acid is spit from her mouth at fixed intervals of a minute, though she quickly loses count of how many times she has used the skill midst the cluster of insect bodies now covering the ground beyond her blurred vision.

…And kill, and kill, and kill…

As Seijuro feels her knees finally buckling, she slaps another flea midair, then smashes one of them, lodged onto her thigh, before spitting one last mouthful of acid upon the encroaching tide…

…Immediately noticeable, the cloth of her couch feels cold against her skin, and her suit's air much cooler than that of the cave.

Slowly, Seijuro removes Eden's headgear in order to allow her skin and hair, stick with sweat, to breathe.

Her hand shakes, images of the jumping insects playing across her vision throughout the darkness of her apartment, almost real enough to warrant an immediate reaction from her; to run, to fight, or…

Placing her forearm over her eyes as she lays back against the couch's backrest, Seijuro sighs.

A nightmare. If only the last five years of her life… were a simple nightmare, something she could awake from. Her mother would smile at her, gaze filled with love… And they'd hug, sharing stories about their day…

Clenching her fists, Seijuro takes a deep breath as she stops herself short of releasing a scream for the second time today.

After all, what would her neighbors thin-?

Sudden knocks, polite yet firm, release Seijuro from her spiraling thoughts.

"Lights; Thirty percent," she commands with a sigh, and then, while narrowing her eyes against the abrupt brightness, "Give me two minutes!"

Putting on decent clothes with shaking hands proves harder than Seijuro would've liked to admit, though she forces herself to move with purpose, daring not to delay on thoughts related to her mother, or Eden.

The floor feels cold against her bare feet as she heads for the door, and Seijuro rubs her arms absently while willing it to open, revealing a recently shaved Kuro, whose awkward smile freezes mid-way through his once-over.

…At least she ended up showering.

"Hi," Seijuro says, stopping near the door as she crosses her arms.

Kuro's gaze jumps from Seijuro to her kitchen table, still containing her half-finished meal, then to her couch, and the headgear lying where she left it.

"I know I look like shit; You don't need to bother pretending."

Kuro's smile vanishes completely, and he nods. "Well, that's good, because I don't think I could've pretended."

Seijuro snorts, in spite of herself. "It's not that bad."

Kuro opens his mouth, then hesitates, seeming to think twice as he shakes his head. "It's just, I had never seen… You know what? You're right, it's not that bad."

"What?" Seijuro asks, frowning as she takes another glance downwards.

Yep, still a clean pair of jeans and a T-shirt. Nothing wrong with her hair either, if you ignore how messy, ruffled and-

"Seijuro, I didn't know you owned clothes this casual. But that doesn't matter. How are you doing?"

Seijuro raises her gaze once more to face Kuro's concerned one with a roll of eyes. "I don't know. Like shit? Like my entire life is crumbling around me and my only thread of hope is a stupid game? Like I'd burn the whole world if I could?"

Ever immune to her sarcasm, Kuro simply sighs and leans his shoulder against the doorframe as he crosses his arms, bringing their bodies slightly closer. "Trust me, Fioro might already be cinders had I thought it would make you feel better."

Seijuro blinks. "…Sorry. I know you went through much worse than me."

Kuro shakes his head, smiling bitterly. "My childhood was difficult, I won't deny it, but if there's something I learned then is that being surrounded by others who are in pain - be it less, or more - does little to help you forget your own. You shouldn't feel bad for having feelings, Seijuro. Anyone would need a break after what you've been through."

Seijuro sighs. "Except I didn't take a break. I broke, remember?"

"Which is my point exactly. You should've taken a break," Kuro points out, raising his eyebrow.

"As you tried to convince me to, many times. Yes, thank you for throwing it in my face, jackass."

Kuro's gaze slides toward her coach. "I see you've finally decided to give Eden a try… How was it?"

Resisting the urge to glance at the accursed object, Seijuro swears under her breath instead.

"That bad, huh?"

"I'm afraid there are not enough bad words in my vocabulary for your question. Alas, I'll do what I must."

Kuro frowns, his concern obvious. "I… I spoke to your father. He assured me Eden was the only answer he managed to find without…"

Kuro hesitates, and Seijuro feels her stomach growing cold, though she clenches her teeth and forces herself to stare into his eyes with self-assurance instead of averting her gaze.

"Say it."

"You might be better off not knowing. Seijuro…"

"Say it."

Kuro sighs. "They… They've tried everything they can, Seijuro. Everything they can without opening her head again. And… There's no saying what would happen then. She might wake up, or…"

"I see." Seijuro blinks rapidly, the floor suddenly unsteadies beneath her feet… And still, she doesn't allow her voice to waver as she holds Kuro's gaze, a port amidst the storm. "It won't come to that. I won't let it.

"You mean… You think it'll work?"

His gaze slides toward Eden's headgear again, and Seijuro nods.

"My father seems to think so. I'll make it work if that's what it takes."

And this time, she won't break. This time, she'll break the world, if needed. This time, no men, God, or monster shall stand in her way… Not for long.

Seijuro sustains Kuro's gaze for a long moment, before turning on her heels as she heads back toward the couch… Or, at least, tries to, giving no more than a single step before being stopped by his hand on her shoulder.

As she pauses, Seijuro throws him a confused look. "What? I have a game to beat."

"The game's not going anywhere. You need a breather… And besides, I already promised Melinda you were showing up."

Melinda? Of course she wouldn't have simply gone away earlier…

Seijuro frowns. "I don't care what you two arranged, I'm not going."

Kuro smiles. "Oh, but you are. The only question is, are you going voluntarily?"