"He did it!" Minnie jumped up and down.
"Our daredevil," Persica's stress vanished.
"This has been quite the thriller night," Asterion chewed popcorn. Gamer yelled in the background about how that isn't a video game reference.
"Wow, dude really be dependable," Tommy complimented. Mandy fawned over Gamer next to him.
"Hi, I'm..." Vaicuum began, but Gamer aimed her nozzle at the backpack and extracted her soul.
Minnie stepped closer, "Do you think we can use the ghosts to fight Lord Shellie? They'd be a big help against his army."
Gamer immediately flung the backpack against the ground. It broke into pieces, and the soul container exploded with ethereal expulsion. He released all the spirits. With no target in sight, the spirits rushed out in a spectral fountain. The open glade flooded with an otherworldly glow as the babas all laughed and floated about. Even the spirits of Yaga, Frainky, Marco, and Ouija were freed.
Persica walked *sniff* ('⧝｀) *sniff* up next to Minnie. They stared at Gamer, who ducked and covered after the explosion of ghosts appeared. The princess asked, "Now why did you do that? I figured your fear would keep them sealed away forever."
Gamer barely lifted his head, "I'm not a big fan of people being held against their will. Even if they are ghosts. Be it Marco or Ouija, these bastards were just walking trauma centers, and their victims deserve better..."
"I like that answer," Minnie rubbed her friend's shoulder for comfort.
Persica stared down longingly at Gamer, "A sweet daredevil."
The billiard, a group of babas, spiraled around in gleeful freedom. They laughed and swam near the mollies and the group. The mollies were receptive, and joined in the jolly.
A couple ghosts, however, were busy with unfinished business. Ouija tried to fly away, but Frainky's spirit grabbed him by the ghost tail. They battered him with ghost punches and verbal denouncements. He whined and cried, and the babas joined in on beating him up.
Frainky yelled, "Oooh, mister, you're going to pay for everything you put us through!"
"Waaah!" Ouija complained as his moustache was pulled on and eyes were poked.
Queen Yaga descended in front of the group, happy as can be, "Thank you for freeing us! No longer will we suffer at the hands of Ouija! I never thought this day would come. It started so long ago..."
Yaga gave her backstory epilogue. Minnie and Persica listened intently. However, Gamer snuck behind Asterion to hide, appreciated the entire bakery he had on display, and then asked, "Dude, do you know what she's talking about? These ghosts talk too much."
"Nope, not a clue. I've had quite the evening. Got bukkaked, fought Frankenstein's monster, and was nearly digested by a house."
"I was too busy trying to figure out who pissed my pants..."
"Fair enough," Asterion agreed. Neither were upset and fist bumped; they weren't completionists.
"What will you do now with your freedom?" Persica asked once Yaga finished with her epilogue.
Yaga clasped her hands together and her eyes reflected the stars, "I want to become a famous singer! I want people to enjoy my songs and performances! It might sound cliché, but if I can bring music to people's lives, my undeath will mean something."
"Why not give a performance now?" Asterion suggested. Gamer nearly fainted from the suggestion, but the bull man continued, "We can have ourselves a little celebration. Make up for the whole night."
Yaga almost started to cry, "Really? You'd be okay with that?"
The babas jingled and began their show routine. Frainky hogtied Ouija with his own wisp tail in the background. Minnie and Asterion started to clap along and encouraged the emotional ghost queen. The mollies acted as the audience and cheered. The queen's phantasmal dance matched her haunting pop song.
Gamer prepared to shove his head in the nearest mollie hole when Samira sent, "Σ(°ロ°) Bro, take a look at your high score!!"
Gamer opened his character screen and saw his new high score: 575,260. His heart skipped a beat and he felt a renewed energy, "I need to suck on more mansions!"
"You're a sixth – uh, phrasing ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) – of the way to the Total High Score!"
Gamer closed his screen and looked around. He saw Persica move towards a thick patch of grass. In it, hidden away, was a nearly invisible Marco.
"Buongiorno, Marco," the princess curtseyed.
Marco hugged his wisp tail like they were knees. He spoke with a forlorn echo, "Buonasera, mi principessa." (Good evening, my princess.)
"I...didn't want things to end this way," Persica sat next to Marco, and cuddled her knees up to her body. "You changed so much. I couldn't reach you."
"Non c'è rosa senza spine," Marco reached out to touch her cheek. His hand faded through. (There is no rose without thorns.)
Ouija let out a painful coo. The babas stretched him like a kite and carried him to the tune of their queen. Seeing his brother tormented, Persica took pity on her ex-lover, "I can exorcise you, if you want. No more indignation, no more remorse. It'll let you find peace."
Gamer stepped closer and drew their attention to him. The two rivals exchanged glares, but there was something new in Marco's demeanor. Perhaps death and brotherly experimentation shifted his view on some things. Or perhaps what Gamer faced was a clone of some kind. Either way, Marco asked, "Posso fidarmi di te? Proteggerai la principessa?" (Can I trust you? Will you keep the princess safe?)
The emotional weight strained the dead man's voice. Persica stared up in anticipation, and her flames flickered across her watery eyes. This was an important moment – and Gamer didn't understand a word the guy said. He nonchalantly shrugged, "Ye."
Marco nodded, and then gave Persica permission. She swallowed her emotions, but failed to hold the tears back. She stood up, and Gamer gave them room. She used the flames of the flare flower to incant the rites. The haunting song in the background became secondary to the beautiful farewell. Marco's body faded out, and as he disappeared forever, he shot Persica one final glance.
Gamer asked after giving Persica time to breathe, "You gonna be okay?"
Persica quietly examined the area. The celebration with the babas was in full swing. Everybody became lost in the music and dancing. She used a strip of peploi to dry her cheeks, "Oddly, I feel better. I always felt like my choices and life were set in stone. You came along and showed me a brighter path. You saved my shroomans, you saved the mollies, and now you saved the babas. It's...inspiring."
"Saving is what players do," Gamer layered on the double meanings.
Persica turned to Gamer, and caught his heart. Her beauty, in the ethereal light, was punctuated by her hopeful expression, "We can save Lord Shellie, and by extension, those who follow him. We will end the cycle of hatred my father started long ago, and make Chanterelle better. I say this from the bottom of my heart, even if it is a digital thing; I believe in you, Gamer."
Gamer felt his cheeks burn, "Oh, wow...thanks. I don't know what to say. I don't often have sincere things said to me..."
Persica smiled and slipped an item into Gamer's hand; it was the star mint.
"You should hold onto this. You have proven to be quite formidable with enough tools at your disposal. Do tread lightly with that, as it is one of the rarest drugs. We may never come across another," Persica radiated with warmth.
Minnie came over, huffing from all the activity, "Hey, Gamer, come on! I wanna dance with you!"
More sincerity. Gamer cracked a smile and pocketed the new power up for a rainy day. He took a deep breath and said, "You know, I think I can put aside my fears for one night. I can't stay grouchy when things are on the up and up!"
Gamer hopped into the tornado of fun that Yaga and her babas created. The mollies adhered to Gamer, Minnie and Asterion went karaoke mode with Yaga's songs, and Frainky swirled around with Samira over the downtrodden Ouija. Together, everybody performed Yaga's specialist disco sequence. Under the moonlight and starlight, they danced all night.
***
A myriad of pixels assembled at the starting point. Within moments, a female with long, flared out black hair in a truly blue outfit materialized. The tips of her hair and her contacts were blue, to match the main color of her outfit. The clothes consisted of a racer jacket, crop top, and guarded racer pants. Her makeup was on point, and sharpened her almond-shaped eyes. Once materialized, she tapped her sleek sneakers on the ground and tightened the white gloves on her hands.
"Ready and set," the woman said with a peppy voice.
A screen popped up in her vision and showed the avatar of a golden nine-tailed kitsune. The avatar moved slightly when it spoke, but its facial expressions and movements appeared to be from a motion capture system. It spoke with a scratchy, boyish voice, "Great! Fore and firstmost, we need to figure out what direction you're headed, Sonia. Don't start the timer just yet. The bounty isn't exactly in that area."
Another window opened and revealed a world map of Chanterelle. A few marks were already made on the bitmap. While her navigator set everything up, Sonia played with her golden ring earrings, "Say, Talis, how many others are joining the game?"
"With Gamer's most recent increase in high score and bounty, we're looking at a few from different associations and leagues. Some independents, too," Talis informed.
"Competitive play will make this somewhat less dull," a deep, sultry voice said from behind Sonia. She turned to see a dark-skinned male in a black and red auto racing suit similar to hers. Red highlights streaked his wild, long mane of black hair. His eyes were sharp and brooding. He stepped next to the edge of the hill they were on and scornfully peered across the blocky horizon. Night settled in, and the stars twinkled brilliantly above. He took out a Desert Eagle from his inventory to make sure it was loaded, "Gamer can run and hide, but he can't escape from darkness incarnate. By my name, he will know true fear."
"Glad you can make it, edgelord," Sonia reluctantly greeted.
"I am Shade! I am the night!" her partner spat, as if declaring it to the world.
"Same difference," Sonia winked. Shade shot her disgust, but she reminded him, "Just because we're part of the same association doesn't mean I have to share the spoils with you. If you get left behind, it won't be my fault."
"Quit talking big. You might end up choking."
"Quest marker is pointing us to Lord Shellie's fortress," Talis spoke to both of them. "No wonder his bounty and high score are going up so fast. Probably cheating, too. Well, all set! Want me to start the stream?"
"Top-notch, Talis. Yeah, let's get this started," Sonia took a pair of futuristic headphones out of her inventory and slipped them on. Their neon lights cycled in tandem with her increased heart rate.
Both new players summoned forth modes of transport out of thin air. Shade front flipped onto a jet-powered black and red hoverboard, and Sonia timed a leg lift just as her blue motorcycle appeared. She revved its engine as Talis started the stream. Her screen showed LIVE at the top, and her chat displayed on the right part of her screen. Over a hundred viewers were already tailgating and welcomed the start of the stream. The viewership rose from there.
"Oooh, man! Who is ready? Who is set? What's up, everybody?!" Sonia signed in with a salute. "Yeah! Thanks for the donation, K-osBiker! Today we have ourselves a bounty speedrun. Check the feeds lately? Some dude punished with eternal gamenation cheated the system and is still fully conscious. Yep, yeah, that's the guy we're gunning for."
The livestream exploded with emotes and comments. The uninformed were shocked, doubters didn't believe, and a few were too focused on Sonia's suit's tightness. A paid chat message appeared with bedazzled effects.
Sonia read it, "Yes! This is a legitimate guy and not an event, moxiegames. Thanks for the dono, BTDubs!"
Chat spammed similar reactions, but Sonia ignored most of it. Shade grew impatient and huffed. Sonia reeled everybody in, "Hey, speedies, listen up! Ten grand bounty, and half a million points – you know your girl isn't passing up that kinda of score! Catch a seat, buckle up, hold on tight, and get ready as the speed queen, the blue blur, yours truly, takes you for a spin!"
Shade equipped aviator goggles on as the hoverboard's thrusters came to life. Sonia equipped her helmet and leaned into her motorcycle. 3D LEDs projected furry ears on top of the helmet. The neons whirled into solid rings as adrenaline conquered her system.
Sonia belted the quintessential video gamer line, "LET'S GOOO!"