Normally there would be hordes of people roaming the polished streets of Tokyo.

There would be street food smells mingling with the faint smell of smoke.

There would be loud music and conversations spoken in at least five languages.

Instead, the heart of Tokyo was not overpopulated with tourists, school children and business folks, instead it only held home to a few people brave enough to take on the winter's cold. Most people in Japan had a few weeks off for the New Year, as well as Christmas. During the downtime, people would put down their books and cell phones and actually pay attention to the world around them. People would laugh and share jokes. Great food would fill their homes, big or small, and kindness would spread around more fiercely than usual. Things had changed drastically over the past few years. The entire world was a much better place. It was safer, happier and more harmonious.

Homelessness and general disease have been eradicated.

The world has become a more considerate place and in doing so, the people have been able to focus on the advances of science and medical qualms. Nowadays, people aren't seen as rude for being on their cell phones. Everyone is tethered to their phones for a reason. Their whole life is literally linked to a wireless connection in the back of their necks. People used their phones to keep track of their health, finances, media, everything. If you were getting sick, you were altered to it, as well what to take or where to go for attention. If you bought clothes, they could be digitally delivered directly with a special bar-code that you could then link to your usual wardrobe and you'd be able to wear it right away.

With everything so instant and everyone so cheerful, not many people paid mind to the dangers which were nestled deep deep under the surface. Even though everyone had jobs and global affairs were resolved, it didn't mean evil had been abolished. There were still forces at work that wanted the world and its people to suffer. These people knew how to best attack the world and that was through the wireless realm it had created, the Digital World. The DgtWld was used every minute of every day. People bought things, went online, chatted, sent themselves to virtual concerts, libraries and shops. Yet, these users did not put themselves into the world. The public was unaware that such a thing had been invented, yet there were always dreams of being able to fully root ones self in a safe fantasy.

But for now, it was the Government's to use.

All around the world, various Gvns have hired secret teams of people who could protect the innocent in the DgtWld. These people weren't necessarily hackers or renowned science geeks, but were people who were passionate about protecting the world they lived in, even when it meant sacrificing their own freedom. Being a Corrector was a great honor but one that no one could know about. While everyone in the world was given basic defense for the DgtWld, only the ultra wealthy could truly protect themselves from the onslaught of vicious viruses and nasty hackers who were hell bent on stealing information or killing people. It was a Corrector's job to fight for the people, to fight against these digital creatures.

Sometimes they would be sent to deal with a maze which had been made by hackers, it would be filled with dangerous monsters. Other times, they would deal with direct people who had somehow constructed their own App to put themselves into the DgtWld. These people were called Hackers, of course. These Hackers had their own avatar like the Correctors did, and often joined forces to keep Correctors busy, in order to steal people's credit card information through a person's MChip, or sometimes, they would make people actually sick with a carefully constructed virus meant to damage a person from the inside out, while bypassing a MChip's security. These issues would be reported day or night and it would up to the Correctors, to set things straight while also maintaining their normal life as if everything was fine.

Some Correctors and Hackers had been killed, that wasn't uncommon. When it did happen, the Gvn would try to imply it was an accident while also tying up lose ends and trying to assist the hurting family with any means necessary. The income of the average Corrector was very high, they got several perks depending on their status and history. The hidden glamor wouldn't last forever, even though the concept was new, they weren't allowed to exceed the age of 26. In Tokyo, the sector of Correctors had lost many comrades but one who had managed to stay above the fray was Mimamoru Uede. She had lived an average life and because of this, she takes great pride in her secret job. The long blond haired girl was never much of a fighter so she made her role to be one of support.

Mima had been hoping to have a low-key holiday break but instead, their group had been called several times over the past few weeks. It didn't happen often but she supposed that some hackers were just too mean spirited to take a break. She spent some time with her parents but by this point, they weren't too bothered by her suddenly having to go do something. It pained her to miss so much time with them but she knew it wouldn't go on forever, she would soon hang up her digital coat and finally have a life in the real world. She lived in a nice modern apartment in the middle of Tokyo, close to the HQ. It wasn't often they were called directly to the HQ itself but it was somewhat comforting to be close to it, for personal reasons.

As she crossed the street, she checked her phone.

In the year 2021, no one ever had to press a button for a crosswalk, the GPS could alert the traffic controls ahead of time so people didn't have to wait very long to get where they were going. Paying for the bullet train was the same way, you needed your phone, all money was registered to your MChip which synced with your phone on a regular basis. And if you went abroad, you never needed to worry about converting or translating either, your tech took care of it for you. At the moment, the woman was heading for Soshi's home. He lived in the city, of course, but his place was a lot bigger than her two bed-room modern hole in the wall. Due to all the constant work they had to do, it was Soshi's idea that they have a little party to try and forget about work for a little bit. To Mimamoru, it sounded long overdue. Their team was close but it was dangerous to do more work than socializing.

Meanwhile, the host in question, Soshi, was moving around his house. He had a large suite on the top of a high-end apartment complex. It had been given to him by his parents upon graduating. It had a great view of the city and he often held parties with his friends. His girlfriend Miya was out of town visiting her family, so he decided to throw a little get-together for his fellow friends and Correctors. The boy had light blond hair, at times it looked white and at others, it looked golden. Soshi enjoyed looking good as much as he enjoyed doing good. His smile was icing on the cake when it came to being a charming persuader. The male was often warm and loved large gatherings. He loved them even more when he was called away to work because it made him want to use his time wisely, to make the most of those he was with.

Lying had to be done.

He had an odd relationship with lying. It's easy but it's also too easy.

Either way, Soshi could often find solace in his friends because it was being a Corrector, that made them a great team. Soshi had plenty of other friends of course but the only ones he could surely trust with his life, and he did on a daily basis, were those he worked with. So the party was his way of saying he loved him. He threw them often and liked to have everyone mingle but this particular one was only for the Correctors. Food and drink were already set out and music was playing, streaming from his collection in his cell phone. Shifting to the window, he looked down to see a thick layer of gray clouds hang over the city and he hoped they could all generate enough cheer to coax the sun to come out, even for a little bit.

All of his friends had codes to his suite in their phone so he knew he didn't have to worry about them not being able to get in and up all sixty floors. He turned when he heard the usual woosh of the front door open. He saw Mima carrying a plate of frosted cookies. "Hey." He smiled and moved to take it from her. "Your hair's a bit damp. It's not raining is it?"

"Nope, just misty. I like it." She smiled as she followed him into his kitchen. The whole floor was an open concept so the rooms ended up blending together without bothering with walls. Except for the bathroom of course, everything else was pretty much out in the open. Mimamoru helped herself to a cup of hot tea to warm herself up. Soshi turned up the heat slightly, using his cell phone before he looked back over to see Mima remove the plastic from her homemade cookies. "I smell pizza." She smiled and looked to see it on the table, along with chips and other treats. Due to the world coming together, a lot more cuisines were available, so if someone in France wanted something authentically Mexican, they could have it. And if the Japanese wanted something perfectly greasy, they could have whatever they wanted as well. "You know what I like, Soshi-kun." She held her cup between her hands, eyeing it.

"Did you hear from Michiko?" He asked her.

"Yeah, he sent me a text and said he's a bit busy right now with family."

Soshi made a face, "Really? He's not busy to work but he is too busy when it comes to hanging out?"

"You know work is something we can't miss." Miam shrugged and set her cup down.

"And this is?"

She knew Soshi wasn't really upset but she did see the merit in the whole group attending. "I know it's not just his loss, it's also ours..." She sighed and walked over to get something to eat because she neglected breakfast earlier. "As a team, we need to keep our morale up, as well as our communication and connection. We've been working so hard lately, I wish we could go away somewhere." She frowned and pushed her hair out of the way so it didn't get messy. Soshi pocketed his hands and watched her.

"I've never had a vacation and I probably never will. Can you imagine the Gvn finding someone to stand in for us?"

"Impossible." Mima agreed with a dry smile as she took a bite of the cheesy goodness. "Mmm, more pizza for me."

"So what do you think of all these notifications lately? You were recruited right when Correctors were first started, don't you think these attacks are a little weird?" He asked her as he took a handful of M&Ms and ate a few.

"I do." She said with a heavy sigh and set her paper plate down. "I don't want us to talk about work though...unless you've gathered us all here for a motive other than to get us to let off some steam and have some drinks..."

Soshi smirked and held up a hand, giving her an innocent look. "I have only so many stones in my pocket, I'm offended you would think such things about me, Mi-chan." He said sweetly.

"Your aim is better than mine." Mima guessed they'd wait for everyone else to arrive before they talked about the recent events and whatnot. Soshi sat down on one of his many leather couches and changed the music to something classical and relaxing. Mimamoru picked her plate back up and went back to eating while enjoying the view. Soshi was still unsettled in terms of work. He wasn't tired of it, as much as he was weary. He had seen people die, he had seen fellow Correctors sustain fatal injuries in the DgtWld only to log out of it and find his friend dying in a pool of their own blood in the back of a Cyber Cafe, only blocks from a hospital. It wasn't fair. It wasn't justice either. The male wanted to make things right but at the moment, he couldn't help but worry about things going wrong. Getting up, he poured himself a nice cold beer and noticed Mima had already finished her slice of pizza.

"You have another you know..."

"I'm gonna wait for the others." She glanced to him and poured herself another cup of tea. The two sat down on the couch and tended to the drinks in their hands, a gentle sense of restlessness falling over the pair. They had known each other a long time. They had gotten into many fights over stupid things. They both seen people die and people transfer to other sectors. They shared many ups and downs that they considered each other family. Then again, the band of Correctors were like family. They had to be. A family shared an unbreakable bond, a bond that could withstand bullets and harsh words. And Mima was the doting mother who fawned over everyone. She was an only child, so she was so happy to have found a group of people who were only hers.

Soshi took a big drink from his chilled glass and heard the door open, though he wasn't sure who would be the second to arrive. Mima was already back on her feet, giving their next guest a wave before she came over and hugged them. It wasn't like it had been a while. The Correctors had just been called to work yesterday and it was pretty basic stuff, fight some nasty bugs and report about it. It was yesterday that Soshi had brought up the idea of meeting at his place at 1 PM for a little party of sorts. It was short notice but they were all used to being quick on their feet for work. And this summons would promise drink and that was a bit better than having to go into battle, in Soshi's mind anyway. "Help yourself." Soshi just held up his glass, without breaking his gaze at the view in front of him. Anywhere you looked, you'd see a great view.

it was a perk of not dealing with walls or rooms.

"I brought cookies!" Mima announced to the newest addition when she let go of them.

As the melodic ringing of a concert carillon, hummed gently through the apartment, the lone occupant had already been awake for the ten minutes all according to routine as always. The alarm as it was kept out of regularity, the same procession it had been since Satoru was just a boy, it reminded him of the reasons he woke up in the morning. Soon his morning routine had begun and he went through his motions like an old Sensei going through his kata: methodically, with the actions being performed coming naturally and fluently as water runs down a stream. He walked a few paces from his bed over to the corner of his bedroom, were a heavy bag and speed bag were connected on a stand. He started off slow letting his whole body feel the impact of each punch and the resistance applied against it before he began to pick up pace.

Satoru was a man that believed in the essentially of routines. This was an ideal passed on to him by his father and his grandfather before him. This progress to the point where his father had told him a story of his great great great grandfather a man that severed The Imperial Japanese Army during the Second World War, that had everyday even when American G.I.s stormed the beaches, followed his routine of his morning prayer everyday. He was shot by a sniper during his ascent to the top of the hill where he would pray.. so in the end he was the perfect example of a Matsushita man that brought honor to his family; living and dying by his routine. Soon after he was done was the bags, he progressed into his crunches and push ups. This time taking about an hour of his time in the morning hours, before he either ended up going to work or the university.

But today was different He thought to himself as he arose from his floor and made his way towards his bathroom. His apartment was a small two room located small high tech development about five or so years old, three floors and generally consisting of wealthy salarymen and the occasional recluse, it was conveniently located about halfway between HQ and the University ,it was affordable and it catered to his minimalist appeal beside his bed, shower, common kitchen accommodates and a small television set there was nothing else. But Satoru was right today was different. Today he had plans to go to the small gathering Soshi-san had planned. Satoru had work to do with his final project looming ever closer, but he would make the sacrifice for his friends. They all had been bogged down lately by the influx of attacks, and a little chance for them to take a little breather would be good.

The young man sighed as he stripped out of his clothes now coated in a thin lining of sweat, as he did he spoke in the firm authoritative tone, one usually restricts use to that of talking to technology. "Play, The Way To Play, Evans, Bill, from the top please." He heard a small hum in recognition as the voice sensors built into the walls of his apartment recognized the command. Almost instantaneously the hum of twentieth century jazz, and the swing of a piano began. As he applied his deep facial cleanser, he thought about his winter break, a time he thought he could spend some time relaxing maybe catching up on the occasional book he meant to read but never got around to and the like, maybe go with his parents to Matsumoto to see his grandmother and the rest of his extended family. Of course though this was not the case, the devil doesn't sleep and neither does the hackers it would seem. His family didn't mind that much, even if that bothered him a little bit in itself. They knew that he had a busy job, doing some contracting job for the government so they knew that when duty called you answered it and asked it for whatever help it desires.

He got out of the shower 24 minutes later, and wrapped a towel around his waist as he walked over to his mirror. He pressed his fingers against the mirror and interior LEDs glowed as the glass seemingly magically split into two close up views of either side of his face, so close one could see the follicles of each strand of early morning scruff. Taking the straight razor and the shaving cream, that he kept on the sink counter, he went to work. As he did he thought about the strangeness of it all, how in the few short handful of years he had been working as a Corrector it had already felt like an eternity. Watching everyday the world being so close to societal collapse and everyday catching it before it falls. The scary fact of it all being they only need to slip up once for Humpty Dumpty to fall off his wall. Everyday people died all over the world, just because a Corrector somewhere let something slip through the cracks, that person that dies could be another Corrector, a kid, a mother, father, somebody, anybody. But in the calculus of war, casualties are to be expected.

He finished up the bathroom freshly clean shaven, as he left the room the door slid shut behind him. As he pulled out his clothes to wear for the day, Bill Evans continued to play in the background. Jazz made sense to Satoru, it was at the heart moving along the same beat of the world. It moved along the rhythm of ordered chaos, and ordered chaos.. wasn't that the best way to describe life itself? He looked at his reflection, a young man dressed in a white tee-shirt with a black jacket over it, wearing a pair of dark colored jeans, and a worn in pair of running sneakers. Average and meant for practicability just as he liked it. He progressed into the living room/ kitchen/ entrance/ dining area/ what ever else you really wanted to cal it area. He walked over to the small marble counter, atop of it sat a small blender and next to it a large bowl of fruits. As he weighed a apple in one hand, he tapped something into the holographic display on the countertop, and the T.V across the room from him snapped to life.

As the T.V came on, the sounds of Bill Evans faded away automatically, as the morning news audio fed itself directly into Satoru's head. The same women, in the same casual business attire with the same red shade of lipstick, and her same co-anchor a middle age man with hints and streaks of grey in his hair, and the muscular build that was well highlighted through the tailoring of his suit. The women was talking about the recent announcement made by the Minister of Defense, stating for his continuing plans of modernizing the security of the Japanese people and their government to allow for greater protection in this new age of cyber terrorism.

Cyber terrorism, hackers. It seemed that these words and the whispers of threats that circle these enigmatic phantoms follow him wherever he seems to go. It was the common focus of governments worldwide, with internal struggles and international warfare being replaced with broken firewalls, and back door entrances. Evidently even so when that time came for Satoru to hang up his corrector identity and assume a normal life, these words would still end up haunting him. Even his final project to graduate from University, working with the Tokyo Metropolis Local Gov in updating the security camera feeds on Rainbow Bridge. Officially it's to ease pedestrian marking crash dedication, and suicide prevention systems. In reality it was to make the scanners more effective at finding illegal MChips and unmarked figures within the Gvn's database.He supposed it was a fact of life he was to just get used to, to keep the peace and to keep order, once must always be prepared. As he finished these thoughts he placed his selected fruits in the blender and began to let them pulse.

Sometime later it was time for Satoru, to leave to head to the gathering. He pressed a button on his phone and the lights in his apartment turned off and the window he had left cracked upon in the bathroom shut itself and then proceed to lock back into place. He nodded in approval and grabbed the bottle of whiskey he left in a plastic bag on the kitchen counter and grabbed it before heading out the door. He went down three flights of stairs to the street below, and hooked up to a bike rack, lay hitched in just where he had left it the night before, untouched. As he approached the sensor within the locking mechanism sensed his phone and automatically unlocked its self. Satoru got onto the back and grabbed the small helmet attached to the rear of his seat, bringing it down onto his head, a small visor from hidden within clicked down over his eyes. Soon a wide array of information was being told to him: Compass direction, current location, heart rate, tire condition, proper seat elevation, the works. An indicator in the bottom right hand corner clicked on signalling that his phone had hooked up to the helmet automatically. He pressed a button on his phone and in moments directions following the quickest route to Soshi's apartment was plotted, a small thing green line appearing on the road in front of him. He kicked up his kick stand and began peddling and he was off.

Some time later, he arrived at the large tower like apartment complex that Soshi's apartment lay within. He parked his bike outside on another almost identical looking bike stand from the one outside his apartment, the steel lock closing in as soon as the rider put it into place. He ran his head through his hair now coated in a faint shining of mist as he walked up to the entrance to the complex. He pressed his phone against the small scanner and a small chirp of approval was heard as the doors opened, the scanner reading Soshi's codes that he programmed into his phone. He walked across the lobby his damp footsteps echoing across the empty space, the only other occupant being the doorman lounging in his chair at one end of the lobby, his phone in his hands not even bothering to look up at Satoru. Satoru walked up to the elevator hit the call button and waited until he heard a hum as the elevator reached the ground floor and its doors open. Two well dressed salarymen in polite conversation with one another walked out as Satoru entered the elevator.

He pressed the button for the sixtieth floor and waited as it slowly began to rise. One side of the elevator was made of glass and one could if they choose look out onto the city of Tokyo below as they ascended into the heavens. It was all a little too posh and extravagant for Satoru's taste, and he felt almost out of place in his standard street clothes holding a plastic liquor store bag with a bottle of the strongest cheap american whiskey he could get his hands on. He was like a rat entering the kitchen of a five star restaurant. Though this rat could not argue with one thing and that was that Soshi's place had one hell of a view. He waited stepping from one foot to another, occasionally checking down at his phone as the elevator made its ascent slowly up the last twenty stories. The city of Tokyo now a grey mist of light and activity far below. The doors opened and he made his way through the halls towards Soshi's apartment, once again lifting his phone up, to allow the door to open for him.

And within thirty seconds of him getting into the Apartment and halfway through his hello, he was seemingly attacked by a very hyper active 24 year old, who ever though she was three years older than him, he still felt like he was dealing with a younger sister or cousin at times. He took the embrace as best as he could, not letting the whiskey bottle drop out of his hands. He smiled and shook his head with a short chuckle as Mima declared that she had brought cookies.

"Well Mima, I alas sadly did not bring cookies.Though I suppose you could say I brought something to satisfying a different kind of sweet tooth." He explained shaking the contents of the bottle as he step further into the apartment, and peered into the room towards were Soshi was sitting down on one of his couches, he moved towards the couches, sitting down and passing his party favor over with a smile.

"It would seem, that Mima has beat me here, and won the early bird catches the worm award. And how are you today Mr. Everything the light touches is Soshi's kingdom? On this gloomy day?"

Yasukazu Irie, ball handler.

---

A part of Yasukazu appreciated the fact that Tokyo was within driving distance to his family dojo. For one it meant he was able visit them like he had done straight after that work call yesterday. Sure the trip took a total of four hours for the going and return trips alone, but he made sure to make the drive every week; it wasn't because he was obliged to do so, but rather because this little time consumption would be better for him in the long run. His decision to go to a university in Tokyo and ultimately moving out of the dojo had not been a comforting new to his parents; last thing he needed was to give them an excuse to call him back to live at the dojo, when he still had a purpose and an ambition to fill at the nation's capital.

For another, it served as a time of reflection and to an extent, relaxation. Having driven the same route countless times allowed the twenty-two year old undergraduate to drive with his mind elsewhere with little difficulty. When he was at home in Tokyo, his time was spent immersed in his ultimate dream; finding different ways to construct applications and programs for the ever-growing technology, sometimes uploading them on the DgtWld for others to test them out and review them. Sometimes digging for answers and solutions to go about with things. Other times he found himself out of the comfort of his chair to train his body, reiterating the same sparring routine he had learnt from childhood. The ideal ways to punch and kick, or the fluid movements of parrying and dodging required his utmost attention to make sure that he was doing them right which meant in these occasions he willed himself to focus solely on the arts, visualizing the opponent with his mind's eye and recalling the memories of past fights for reference. And of course, there were times he had to spend as a Corrector. This lifestyle of his often left him with a dearth of time for anything else, and so the trip gave him time to go over his thoughts, or at times to just rest from all the thinking and enjoy the music.

It was a couple of minutes after one in the afternoon when Yasukazu finally got off the vehicle, arriving at the meeting place. He got off with a sizeable bag slung across his right shoulder, giving no sign of noticing what that action had done to his shirt; it was pulled at due to the bag's band. Each step by the main hand-side foot tightened his plain shirt further, outlining his well-toned body for the world to see... not that he met anyone in particular on the short walk from the parking lot to the residential complex. In any case, he looked about with enthusiasm as he walked, observing if there were any changes since his last visit. Then again, 'change' was not something that happened that rapidly or often around here. The only real difference he sensed was the temperature, but that could just have been an illustrious sensation from staying so long inside the insulated ride from his family's dojo around Isesaki. The pathways and the layout wasn't all that different to what he knew from his own tiny complex, as well as the parking lot for cars and the bike stands. His gaze went past the mentioned places which had minimal but not entirely empty with occupants, though sad to say he didn't know what kind of vehicle other members had to figure out which car could've been owned by someone he knew.

The security which forbade Yasukazu to progress within the actual complex went feebly down by a wave of his free hand; or to be more precise, by the wrist phone. The wrist phone was perhaps one of the best investments Yasukazu has made to this date; it preserved the freedom of his left hand for combat and general usage, acts as a watch when he needs it to and best of all won't forget where it was.

"I seem to be a little late," Yasukazu's voice rang strong, announcing his presence as soon as he arrived at the party room. There were at least three other people already, all settled and chatting away. Before he made out who they were, he unslung the bag from his shoulder as a means to draw others' attention to it instead of him. His mind's eye could visualize the containers in the shapeless bag and its various contents; there were various fillings of sushi, little dumplings and riceballs and so on in the traditional way his mother had learnt from her mother who learnt from her mother.

"I suppose it won't exactly help for being late but I have some finger foods to add to the occasion."

For the first time in what seemed like weeks, Sarah stepped outside the door of her hotel room. There were so many things to see and do within the confines of the small - though extremely comfortable - room, she just hadn't been able to find the time or motivation to leave. Work had been busy, or at least, far busier than she was used to. She had only been in Tokyo for a few months, and was able to stay in the core of the city on her wages and savings. She was still paid royalties for her modelling work, despite being out of the country, and had been able to pick up the odd photoshoot here in Japan as well, but even if she did nothing but sit in her hotel room and eat every day without working, she could still afford to stay in her room for another month. Such was the state of her bank account.

Of course, though modelling was her career, it was not her primary source of work. Being a Corrector supplemented her income very comfortably. It was also the reason she had moved to Tokyo and had been able to meet her new friends and comrades. They had made her feel welcome in the country, and it gave her a warm feeling. Far different from being back at home. They also happened to be the reason she was finally tasting the fresh city air. During her short stay in the city, she had worked a lot and stayed in a lot more. It hadn't been much different from her old home life, but every once in a while she had gone out with her friends like a normal young adult. They hung out quite a bit, and while Sarah couldn't always make it, she always tried to make her presence known somehow, through a message or otherwise.

Not long ago, Sarah would have been called a Hikikomori, an outcast from society. She was weird, and stayed inside with no company but herself for unreasonably long periods of time. Now, however, things were different. The network that linked all of Japan, and the whole world, had expanded and evolved, and everyone was a user. Everyone understood now. Most people still went out and socialized and went to school or work, but if you happened to be on the 'net for long periods, they weren't quite as quick to judge you as they might have been, historically.

Sarah walked, as usual, with her headphones on and her visor plugged into her headphones, looking like something out of a science fiction movie. Since the invention of MChips, headphones and other peripherals like it had become obsolete, but Sarah was fond of them for reasons that nobody could quite understand, and she wasn't very good at trying to explain. In the end it had worked in her favour, as they were her calling card. Back home even if they didn't know her name, many people would recognize her as "Headphone Girl." Here in Japan, not very many people knew of her. The only way they would know is through imported publications or through Canadian broadcasting and entertainment. The break from popularity was sort of nice. It allowed her to enjoy days like this, with her friends.

She found Ice's apartment - no, it was Soshi's apartment (she needed to remember to use people's real names) - without much issue. She was familiar enough with the layout of this part of the city, since it was only an hour's walk away from her own place. Walking aimlessly around the town was one of her hobbies. There was a lot to see and do in the city, even when you were alone with no destination in the middle of the night. The place was ritzy like her hotel, but it was a fancy place for people to live in. The look was similar, but the feel was completely different from a place where people were only supposed to stay temporarily. it was more... home-like.

A short jaunt into the building and a long trip up the elevator and the white-haired girl had arrived. It was pretty clear that she wasn't the first person to show up, and if the past was a good indicator, she may even be one of the last of the group. It had taken her the full hour to walk from home to here, and she wasn't completely on time because of that. On top of everything, she realized that she had gotten fairly wet from the long walk, and water droplets had formed all over her hair and her sweater. She shook as much off as she could so that she didn't soak everything in the place.

Still a bit shy, she knocked out of habit and courtesy as she arrived. Of course, the door had opened either way, she had proper clearance and everything, as usual, but old habits died hard, and Sarah always felt awkward speaking up. Knocking was a way to let everybody know she had arrived. She didn't say anything even after entering, but held up a small convenience store bag filled all the way to the top with candy. She had been craving something sugary and had stood staring at the store shelf for over five silent unmoving minutes trying to choose what to grab. In the end, she had bought one of everything, so there was chocolates, gummy candy, hard candies, chewing gum, and various other novelty treats for the group. Sugar was Sarah's major vice.

"Mii, Soshi, Sa-san, Yakkun, it's good to see everybody." Sarah greeted everyboy with the lazy names she knew them by. It was 'too hard' to remember anybody's name if it was longer than two syllables, and it sounded friendly to her. While she was one of the oldest members, a combination of her status as the 'new girl' and the fact that Japanese was not her first langauge or culture made her speech and nomenclature a little funny, and honorifics sometimes ended up in strange places.

Satoru was the first to arrive after Mimamoru, who was happy to see him of course. The male held up his own gift of sorts and her lips curved up in a sly grin, the next best thing. He then approached Soshi, the two exchanging a friendly few words. "Of course, everything from atop my throne seems lovely and fair as ever. Such weather has been permitted but the sun should come out soon enough." Soshi gave Satoru a sly grin as he patted his friend on the shoulder. Mima went back over to pour herself a new drink, this time she passed on the tame tea, and went for something more smooth and silky, the whiskey that their friend had brought over. Once she poured herself a neat amount, she walked over and leaned over the boys from behind. "I guess the second mouse gets the cheese." Soshi offered to Satoru when the door slid open and another Corrector announced their arrival.

"You're not too late, don't worry!" Mimamoru said to Yasukazu who then showed off his own offering. "Those look very good, thank you." Mima said and quickly took the bag off of his hands. "You always make the best snacks." She praised him and helped set them up on the table for everyone to enjoy. As they chatted, the other female arrived. Sarah was a foreigner, new to the group as well as Japan itself. As the leader, Mimamoru had made it her mission to help Sarah acclimate smoothly. "Hello there, Sarah-san." She bowed her head in her cute manner and helped her set up some of the goods she had brought. Like Sarah, Mima loved sweets. Or any food, really. SO they two could easily bond over treats and chocolate. Japan had a lot to offer in terms of snacks and sweets though Sarah's taste was different due to where she was raised and how.

Even so, there was something for everyone if you looked hard enough.

"Hey there." Soshi flashed a smile to Sarah and Irie who had also arrived. He rose to his feet and dimmed the music down so it would be easier to converse without having to rival the smooth rifts of a saxophone. "It looks like we're all here, I suppose our missing member has other obligations." He frowned a little but caught Mima giving him a look so he cleared his throat. "Anyway, I was hoping we would all be able to use this time to unwind. Work has kept us all busy and I know I could use a drink. It seems Mi-chan has helped herself so everyone else, feel free." He said. He wouldn't normally make speeches like that in his own home, especially for a casual get together, but they did have a new member that needed to feel included.

Making his way to the kitchen area, he made himself a drink and got down some sake in case anyone wanted it. He could remember several times when their group would go out late after work, drink and eat street-food until they passed out in the gutter. Those days of working and bonding seemed so far away but they were young back then and didn't know any better. Some could avoid school and think they'd be okay but they were only fooling themselves. Now that he and Mimamoru were older, they knew the cost of what they did and why they needed to take it seriously. Even so, it was for that very dangerous reason, that they couldn't wrap themselves up in seriousness. They needed to balance emotions just as they would being a Corrector.

Still, Soshi wasn't sure if he should bring up what he and Mima were discussing. They were the eldest members of the group but if it did concern Mimamoru, it was better they talk about it now. If they needed to do their own digging, it would need to be done outside of the eye of the Gvn. They couldn't look like they were trying to trick the system or imply that they didn't trust it. if Correctors stepped out of line, it wasn't uncommon for them to be killed or relocated. But the increase in work was an understandable inquiry, was it not? He finished his drink and made himself another. He also made a plate of several of the things his friends had contributed to the party. Approaching the topic itself wasn't an easy task. If they all agreed to check up on the flux of threats, they were risking their jobs but also their lives.

Of course in the back of his mind, he considered that this was just an abnormal amount of work and that was that.

Or that it was a Hacker's ploy to get innocent Corrector's attention.

An unsettling feeling washed over Soshi as he sat back down on the couch. "Actually, Mima-chan and I were discussing work before everyone arrived." He commented as he ate some sushi.

"Yes..." Mima looked to her second in command and then to the others who had the same right to know about her apprehensions. "I was just expressing how odd it is for us to be called into work so frequently at this time of year." She cleared her throat. It could be nothing but could be something. And if it was something, she had a right to know what could be coming after her friends and the innocent. "Usually around this time, we get space to breathe and be with our loved ones, ah not um...we're not each other's loved ones..." She blushed slightly. "I mean, it's..." She wasn't usually one to get tongue tied unless she let her emotions get the best of her. Mimamoru chewed on the glass rim and smelled the contents. They were warming and soothing. "I know questioning it doesn't do anything useful and if we wanted to investigate ourselves, it could be seen as treason...I just want us all to be safe."

"If there is something brewing, I'd like us to be prepared." She finished and set her empty glass down.

Soshi looked to her and then the others. Mimamoru seemed oddly serious about the issue. He didn't think it had consumed so many of her thoughts. "So much for a fun afternoon." He muttered and ate a few more bites and licked his lips. He wasn't one for rocking the boar and poking where he shouldn't be. He wanted to handle the situation, if it was one, with care and consideration. And the group didn't need their leader freaking out and pushing them into a bad direction, which was why he decided to speak up and offer another look at the issue. "If there was a growing danger, I'm sure we'd be made aware of it. For all we know, this isn't a Hacker but the Gvn themselves trying to test us. We don't want to overact just because you have a bad feeling about something." Soshi considered. "We've had tests before where we weren't aware of them until after they were over." He pointed out.

"I know." Mima sighed. "I've just...I've lost too many people and if this is the start of something-"

"What do you guys think?" Soshi glanced to the others. He could understand Mima's reservation about just sticking to their job and letting things settle or pass. But his reservations were also valid. Which was why they were in a group. Groups made choices and had better ideas, rather than someone who was alone on their own. The Gvn knew that while it was a risk to put a lot of power in a gang of strangers, they also knew that great things could come out of such progress. The Correctors had been a valued asset behind closed doors. And as such, they were making enemies. Hackers would and handmade infections would be presented to them and yet they all followed orders without fail. Soshi wanted to ensure they were safe, yes, but he wanted them to remain level headed.

If you let Mima make a choice when she was high off of good food and drink, it would be a questionable one come down the line.

It was why, he insisted she not move in when she kept bugging him about it when they went out for a round of ramen and sake after work. She was in a great mood and therefore not thinking straight. So he was the voice of reason then, and he had to be now. "Personally, work is bound to settle down and this blip would be a thing of the past." Soshi smiled but as he did, their phones went off simultaneously, their Cnnt App notifying them of a new threat that needed to be handle. Mima opened her mouth to likely say she told him so but he cut her off, "Coincidental." He told her and pulled out his phone. Thanks to the latest upgrade, they didn't need a physical computer to sync the application with the DgtWld, they could get comfortable and jump right in. "Guess we get our snacks and get right to work." Soshi considered and grabbed a cookie and ate it before he laid back on the couch and touched his wristwatch.

A warm fizzing sensation overcame him as his body became limp and he materialized in the DgtWld, a wide black and neon green realm. It was a grid, an endless plane of vacant data. When they had to take down a foe, it's coordinates would link them to the close destination. If they were taken directly too the danger, it was likely that something would go wrong if the group was unprepared to deal with the unknown enemy. Usually they would run the extra bit or one of them would use a flashy mode of transport, depending on if they got an upgrade or recent promotion. A male in old fashioned attire and dark blue hair looked around, waiting for the others to join him. Soon he was standing beside a girl with pink hair and similar scantily clad attire. "Long time no see, Ice." She winked. Still, she was on guard and ready to get to work. No worries there.

"Oh yes, how I've missed you, E.G." Ice sighed softly and brushed some of his hair back, out of his eyes. The DgtWld was silent as usual, in the real world, Mimamoru had picked a lounge and settled down, before she connected to the DgtWld. "I think this is our chance to find whatever answers you're after." He muttered, though he was trying to be a vague as possible. You never knew who was listening to them. "if anything, these constant calls are the work of some serial killer or hacker." He considered.

"They're at X-94, we're at W-90, not too far..." Eternal Grace muttered, consulting the semi-transparent screen in front of her. "I don't have a good feeling about this though."

"Yes, words every solider wants to hear from their leader before charging into battle." Ice rolled his eyes, though he was clearly messing around with her.

"Ah, well I have faith that the clouds and the many other ethereal subjects will bow down to your kingly demands and the sun will shine forthright your majesty." Satoru proclamied with a courtly extravagant bow. Satoru poured himself a drink allowing the silky bitter warmth of the whiskey coat his throat, relishing in these moments of peace that seemed to have as of late have been flung few and far between. Soon enough the others filed in.

The good thing about the nature of their line of work was that common squabble, resentment and envy that was present in a more normal work environment. When you have each other's life on the line there was no room for distrust and hate. Satoru had always thought it to be an interesting fact about how life and death situations had the ability to bring all types of people together. Satoru had know known Yasukazu for about just as long as he had Mima and Soshi. The resident ball handler was the type that was very useful to have on your side of the court: dependable, grace under pressure, and the works. Sarah on the other hand Satoru had only known for sometime now as was the case with everyone else. Though she was a nice girl, not at all portraying the standard stuck up foreigner traits that were usually displayed on the net and television. Together they mad a patchwork group of personalities that worked well enough together in and out of combat and that was all you could really ask for in their given circumstance.

They talked idly for sometime, it was casual and relaxed as if for a moment they were truly just an odd assortment of friends rather then a collective group of Gvn spooks, that secretly help keep the weight of the world off of Atlas. In the end though the reality of it all was still present in Satoru's head as he took another swig of his drink, a smile on his face. That was the part that bothered him the most really, his ability at which he was able to brush aside the darker truths of their jobs. But in the end it was a skill that every Corrector, nay every person that performed a job where lives were on the line. It was one of his own personal little mantra's that he kept drilled in his head, for he knew the moment that he started blaming himself, putting weight to could haves and would ofs, becomes the point that you lose sight of the bigger picture. In their line of work people died all the day, it was a fact that the Gvn agents that recruited them made a big deal in emphasizing, was the high mortality rate. And yet here was a bunch of kids barely reaching the definition to be called an adult who all had the choice to walk away. And yet none of them did.

Satoru was dragged out of this morbid train of thought by Mima and Soshi beginning to voice their concerns. Satoru listened intently to them and what they were saying was all very much true. He sure as hell knew that he had felt it, and he was pretty sure the others felt it but it felt as if they had dived too deep and too quickly into a battle that seemingly had no end. The implications and the effects of them being overstretched as a seemingly endless series of attacks and alerts went out each day. Most of them had been working on two to three hours of sleep a night, and the effects of it had begun to show. But it was what they had to do wasn't it? If they did not extend themselves as far as they could, something could slip through the net, it could be something harmless like a small virus that just siphoned funds out of one's accounts, but it could be something much worse a terrorist attack akin to the one that happened in America three years prior, fifty people died and a hundred others were put in a hospital. For if they at least had the chance to save a life, they had to take it even it wore them out in the process. The end justify the means and all that.

The fact that hit home the most though, was how he knew how much Soshi and Mima cared about the rest of them. Mima being basically a seconded overprotective mother to everyone, even Sarah by this point. It was a fact that Satoru came to understanding very quickly, wither you liked it or not if you were a part of Mima's team then she officially became protective as a mother bear of you. To be fair they all cared in their own way, they had to care. They were a family bound in the blood of battle. They had to stick together for the pebbles of human isolation get swept up in the currents of time, but the bolder of trust it would stand firm in the strongest of raging currents. They had lost a lot of people over the years, their friends, their family. And none of them wanted to go through that feeling again.

Satoru cleared his throat and took another sip of his drink before speaking, flashing a small smile. "Mima, I have faith in our ability nay our dumb luck in the field of not getting killed. Beside we can't just sit around and hide when things get a bit hard on us. We have to take the punches and throw back some hurting bombs. It is all we can really do at this point. Because any other action would end with us on the execution block for treason. And personally I think we all look much better without nooses on our necks. Then again we could just vanish... get thwacked by Gvn spooks higher up the food chain than us...But let us not worry about that, if it comes to that. Well, we will cross that bridge when we get there." Satoru declared triumphant though on the inside, he was a lot less sure and the thought that something bigger and much more aggressive was brewing, worried him, but like everything he had to brush those thoughts aside, to be dealt on his own time as he lay awake in his bed, knowing all too well he was not going to get any sleep.

A few moments later, there phones went off and a sort of business like silence took over the air. "Speak of the devil" Satoru muttered to himself as he flipped on his phone. He looked for a place that he could crash onto into before jumping in, the others doing the same getting comfortable for they might be in there for awhile. He finally was content with a large roundish chair set by one the large glass windows. For if Satoru was going to be killed, at least the view would be nice. Ironically enough as Soshi had declared earlier seemingly ages ago, the first few specks of sun began to pierce through the afternoon grey. Satoru rested back into the chair, letting the cushion material seemingly absorb him into it, he looked around on last time and exhaled deeply before pushing a button on his phone as a low pitched humming resonated from somewhere in the back of his head.

Soon the humming was replaced with a radiating warmth and then the feeling of being thrown face first into a lake on a cold winters day. The materialization senesation being a bit different for each and every user as their brains reacted to their own Mchips. A wide endless expanse progress as far as they eye could see in every direction. A small holographic display flashed in front of his face for a moment stating in bold font; Connection successfully established. Welcome Futen. He swiped his hand in front of him and the display vanished. Now standing a few feet off from the meeting point was a man dressed in curt smooth western dress, akin to that not uncommon during the Meiji Restoration, an odd mixture between traditional Japanese attire and more modern western dress. A sword hung in a scabbed at his waist, he cracked his neck in one direction and then the other before walking quickly up to the others as they started to group together. As he heard his two courageous leaders voiced their concern to one another, he stepped over and spoke as optimistic as ever.

"Oh, you always have a bad feeling about everything we do E.G. Take a deep breath and smell the pixels. Rekindle that sense of ever present adventure! Or are we going to have to promote Ice to the chipper one that enjoys prancing in fields and cuddling with animals. For I don't think that really fits his style."

Yasukazu Irie Eclipse.

---

The first thing Yasukazu took notice of after the initial greeting was the lingering scent of western food in the air. It wasn't that he particularly had a preference to it, but rather it was not something he had much during his day-to-day life. Perhaps it was an influence from his overly traditional family or perhaps because it was easier and quicker to just get ramen and be done with it.

He thanked his senior for both the praise and taking his offering, going down to help her populate the room with more food for everyone to enjoy. Upon placing the last dish down, he claimed ownership of a slice of the pizza closest to him, making the 'Pacman' pizza open its mouth more. The soft and chewiness was mouth-watering, contrasting significantly to the rice and ramen he was used to having. Each bite tore off the melted cheese from the pizza bread; the sharp and sour hint of tomato stimulated his tastebuds into attention as they poured out, the fragrance of spices eminating from the bitten wound on the half of the slice that escaped the wrath of his first mouthful. By the time the fifth person arrived he was had just finished his third slice, accompanied by the bitter-sweet taste of beer that he poured for himself some time between the first and the third slice.

The fifth person was, to his delight, Sarah. Sarah left a lasting impression on the undergraduate ever since the first meeting; for one it was an ambivalent feeling having a 'junior' who was his 'senior', so to speak. For another, she was a foreigner, from her appearance to the intriguing accent. And then there was the way she called him. 'Yakkun' had a nice vibe that made him feel at ease, as if they were friends since the time he started working as a Corrector. Apart from that, he was certain she could be a big help to his project. His dream of the 'ultimate application' would be something to be used worldwide; having a foreigner's opinion with foreign culture and views to give feedback to his ideas was a crucial step in the near future. Having a foreign friend he could talk to would address that perfectly.

It was only after Sarah's arrival that Yasukazu realized there was going to be an absent member. It was hard not to admit how much Yasukazu enjoyed Michiko's contribution to discussions, or hearing the choice of words Satoru strings together! It was a pity there will be less discussions, but at least Satoru was here. He pushed these thoughts to the side as Soshi continued to address everyone in the room. A smile crept upon his face at the part about helping themselves to the food, having already binged on pizza and beer almost as soon as he had arrived. What would his father think when he found out his only son took food from seniors before asking permission?

The time frame between that first speech and the second speech was spent by chatting and idly taking food and drink to his mouth. Yasukazu pushed the thoughts about work, about his ultimate goal and other stuff in his mind to the corner so that he can do what this meet was all about; taking a break. He found it quite easy to get involved in talking and relaxing with the members in this room compared to being with anyone else, the fatigue from dealing with work, his old-fashioned parents and the drive this morning already forgotten.

And just like that, the unwinding time came to a close with the two senior's serious talk. Irritation flashed across his eyes as Mima's talk came to an end. It wasn't as if he couldn't understand her concerns; he could even relate to it for he too had found the amount of times they had to risk their lives as Correctors for the past few periods to be peculiar. He agreed there was too much risk to investigate it themselves like Mima had pointed out. And again, being prepared was something he completely agreed on. But what use was it expressing it at this instance?

He gave himself time to calm down before answering Soshi's question about what each one thought of this. He liked everyone that was present plus Michiko, and the last thing he wanted to do was make things worse by saying the wrong things. Thankfully Satoru contributed to buy him time to do just that, all the while thinking about what he can truthfully and inoffensively state.

And then their phones came alive with the dreaded siren.

Yasukazu let out a snicker; of course, he should've seen this coming. He exhaled as silently as he could, pushing all unnecessary thoughts to the back of his mind like he did before only this time focusing solely on his duty as a Corrector. Despite the constant risks and fatigue, he had to admit going to the DgtWld had never failed to make his heart beat with excitement. He couldn't wait to meet Vs and Hackers, see what kind of abilities they have or just what they are capable of. All in the name of his dream.

Yasukazu's dialing sequence was nothing fashionable enough to mention. When he opened his eyes after the brief void occured from transfer, he was Eclipse. He was now stronger, faster and... closer to his feet. Yes, he was at least a head shorter as a Corrector. This, he argued when someone asks, allows him to evade and dodge more easily. Whether that is true, he isn't sure.

"By the way, continuing on from earlier," Eclipse piped in at the group while checking his own monitor for the location of their target; he had entered the DgtWld at the "Rekindle" part by Futen and figured there were still some concerns unresolved in the team. "Just wanted to say how about we gather information about the past frequent alerts and see if there is any pattern? The location and date of occurance is freely given to us and it'd be better than doing nothing. Although X-94chan would come first." With that said, Eclipse willed a Green ball to materialize in his right palm, tossing it up and catching it with one hand. It was a habit of his; test if everything is working fine. Even the safest machine or the simplest code can have errors. Last thing he needed was his power to malfunction when he needed it.

Everyone settled in quickly, which was natural for the group. Even Sarah, as socially strange as she was, melted into the relaxing atmosphere that her host was so careful to set up. With an absent member, the group felt incomplete, but they got along fine with just the five of them. They meandered and conversed and snacked for a while, but the topic of conversation eventually drew to their ever-increasing workload.

Sarah frowned. This was the first time that it had occurred to her that they might be overworked. Work was her life. Perhaps she had just been on autopilot the whole time. But some Correctors had school and families and other obligations, and Sarah wasn't quite sure how they were supposed to handle everything. It was a troubling thought, and her gut response was to just stop thinking about it, but for some reason, she couldn't just dismiss her senior's musings.

In the end, when asked for her opinion, she just shook her head in silence. It was far too early for her to draw any conclusions, and as far as the notoriously quiet girl was concerned, there just wasn't any point in saying anything if you weren't sure about what you were saying. She didn't have to wait very long for the subject to change, either. Her phone went off both quietly from her pocket and a bit louder inside her headphones, a catchy jingle from an anime she watched recently. It was time for work again.

Not a great way to start a party, but with this many of us, it shouldn't take long. She stared hungrily at the pile of sweets in front of them while watching Soshi and the others plug themselves into the DgtWld through their various phones, and as she clipped her visor back onto her headset, shoved a few hard candies into her mouth. She didn't expressly need the visor, but she liked to use it while she was away to hide her eyes while she was using Cnnt.

It was a unique sensation, like literally being pulled from her body. A sensation like a laser crawling up her body in a solid, unbroken line, and the world fell away when it reached her head. Her senses faded and would come back when she was fully transferred to DgtWld. In every way, she would become Serenade, a being of her own creation, yet not too far from herself. Without opening her eyes, she felt the weight of her clothes shift as her sweater and pants were replaced with a dark skirt and long jacket over a white collared shirt. Belts and pouches for utiliy crossed over her body in several directions, and with a little bit of mental focus, she summoned the weight of her cross-pointed pike in her hands. Serenade could summon smaller one-handed spears, but preferred the weight and versatility of the larger weapon. Normally, she would put the weapon away after running an initial test, but today she was in a bit of a hurry to get back to reality. Her combat style was a physical-type, and within the group, she was always on the front line. She lacked a strong offense like some of the other members, and tended to instead focus on protecting the more vulnerable members from harm. In other words, she needed to be ready to react at a moment's notice.

She opened her eyes and looked around at the familiar sight just in time to hear E.G.'s ominous prediction, and Ice's pithy retort. In her head, she smiled and laughed, but the emotion didn't quite make it to her face, and her stony demeanor remained unchanged.

The group shared their responses and ideas while Serenade tapped her spear on the 'ground' nervously. This body was comfortable for her, and she certainly spent a lot of time in the DgtWld, but being here meant that there was danger, and that they had an obligation. She was eager to get going. Futen seemed relaxed and easy enough, as well as Ice, and Eclipse brought up a possible solution. He seemed partially excited. In a group situation, this positive energy was good. But Serenade herself couldn't help but share Eternal Grace's reservations. In the end, of course, she faced forward with a blank stare, ready for work as always, but she couldn't seem to stop the rolling tides going back and forth in her mind. The downside of trying not to think to hard usually was that when there was something worth thinking about, sometimes you couldn't handle it as easy as other people. She was probably just experiencing that now.

"...Time for talk can come after action," Serenade stated, more for herself than anybody else. "...We won't die. So there will be time."

With Futen finally joining them, thus turning their gang into a threesom, he offered his two cents. E.G shook her head with a weary smile. "Oh no no no no." She waved her hands.

"Animals, no thanks." Ice smirked and looked between the two.

"Don't worry about me, I'm not worried at all hahaha." Eternal Grace laughed nervously. Eclipse joined them next and mentioned the notion of doing some digging, at least to the point where they were allowed to tread. Ice mentioned that he and Eclipse could do some investigative work if it would help quell the worries of their leader. "Let's get moving." E.G said when their final member joined them. She knew she couldn't keep wavering on such a topic and in such an empty place. "I got us a little present actually. tis the season and all that." She raised her hand in the air and swiped a screen which was barely visible. "I kept asking for something fun for us to use and finally after months, I got my wish."

The pink haired healer pressed a button finally, and out of thin air, a large collection of sleek silver and black motorbikes popped up. "One for each of us to use, it'll make traveling around DgtWld a lot easier. I haven't tested the controls but when we log off, I can give you each the code so you can use it on your own." She explained as she got on one. Her mind was back to focusing on their task in front of them. Sometimes there would be a summary of their foe or foes but it seemed this wasn't one of those useful instances. She revved her engine and looked over her shoulder to see Ice getting on a bike off to the left of her. He seemed worry-free as he sped ahead. She wanted to call out to him but just grinned and hurried after him, knowing the others would quickly catch up.

A unique roar bellowed throughout the digital realm, a normally eerily quiet domain.

Ice was the first to arrive the designated coordinates. He quickly skidded his motorcycle and planted his foot down as a bit of steam escaped from the back tire. He saw two figures hunched over a circular object. Their backs were to him and Ice was sure they were hackers and not some half-baked virus or infection. He quickly got off his pike and briefly pondered a way to make it go away but before he could, E.G joined him and quickly got off. "Get back." Ice told her. He spotted the weapons that the two unknown hackers hack attached to their avatars. They were clearly close combat trained and E.G wouldn't do well in such a situation. Eternal grace backed up slowly and Ice held his ground. "What are up you? Nothing good, I presume." He called out.

The first person to turn around and reveal her face, a long haired female.

"Just doing some...investing." The girl said with a shrug and grew her scythe.

"You're...Fright and Fury." ice said, finally able to recall where he had seen their images from. The Gvn had emailed all Correctors a list of notable enemies and these two were right near the top as of recently. His friends were quick to join him and E.G had already migrated to the back so she could provide defense and support as needed. "I'm sure you mean stealing, not investing."

"I get those mixed up." Fright shrugged and gripped her weapon with both hands while her partner, Fury was still typing away on an illuminated keyboard in the center of the sphere, his body hunched over in concentration. "Silly me." She laughed and drew back her black and swung it forward like a baseball bat. A large gust of wind was blown at the group of Correctors. It wasn't ordinary wind however, it had contents of shards, spikes and bits of acid. A music theme began to play in the background. It seemed that both the hackers were keen on making a scene as fun as possible when it came to fighting. None of the Correctors got liberty with music but some of the people they fought, found way around that wall.

"Delta-X-C-Sigma-4-5." E.G summoned forth a large glass shield that ended up slowing the spikes and shards of glass but the bullets of acid managed to get through. Meanwhile, Ice jumped backward and ducked behind his bike and began to mentally create a series of ice throwing stars. He wasn't foolish enough to go toe to toe with the duo, he had read the report. While there wasn't a lot of first hand information on the two up-and-coming hackers, Ice was positive that they were not to be taken lightly. What they needed to do was to get Fury away from the console, he was sure they were hacking some local bank in Tokyo, taking advantage of the holiday, which meant less security and a bigger payout with people giving each other money.

"Everyone watch out." E.G said as she began to summon a more sturdy defensive spell but she wasn't sure what other tricks these two had up their sleeves.

Ice got to his feet and threw three sharp ice stars at the male but Fright quickly ran and swung them away with ease. "Armature." She laughed and then dashed for him. She was fast. Before Ice could make anything to stop her, she kicked him backwards and then sprinted for girl with the spear. "You look like fun, on the other hand." Fright swung her spear hard while Ice got to his feet and put a hand to his cheek, realizing that some of the attack had gotten to him, but how? His right cheek had burn marks and some small but deep cuts. He had thought he had dodged the flood of crap but somehow she got him? How? Was it the kick? Did her movements have some sort of vortex of defense? Ice was stumped and getting distracted by the burning pain.

"My face." Ice couldn't help but mope momentarily. But with the crazy girl kept busy, it meant they could try going for the other one. "Hey, Futen, come on!" Ice said and began to make an axe so he could be of some use. He was sure Eclipse could cover them and then E.G could help keep things under control with Serenade and Fright.

"Finished." The boy said and turned around to see two people nearing him. "Too late." He smiled. "Better luck next time."

"If there is a next time." Ice glared.

"Yeah, none of you might not live to see that day." Fury said and pulled out his own sword.

"Careful, he could be as unpredictable as the other one!" E.G called out, hated how she needed to stay back and watch but she picked her role and that meant having to stay back, even during these difficult times.

"You do not need a therapist if you own a motorcycle, any kind of motorcycle!"
~ Dan Aykroyd

But does a digital motorcycle, constructed primarily of ones and zeroes still count? Futen was about to find out. He could barely contain the look of amusement on his face, as he mounted the bike, and one might expect him to giggle about like a young school girl that just got a valentine from her crush. He always wanted a motorcycle, all the heroes in action movies had one, the quintessential companion to the modern day action hero, as the Samurai, or the American cowboy had the horse. But it was always the irresponsible economic decision, for his part, most the traveling he did was close enough to either walk, run, or use his bike. All of which required a lot less storage space than a bike would, nor would he have to pay for the parking of them either. So instead Futen had to be content with his non motorized vehicle life, in favour of stability and good economic decisions. His forefathers would be proud and disappointed with him at the same time.

But, now here he was. A digital motorcycle, was not a regular motorcycle he did not really have to pay for a parking space or worry about fees to get it registered and the rest. Best part of all was that it was free of charge, more or less, just required the selling of his soul to the government, which he had already done at this point. And so with essence of childlike wonder and innocence, he pushed forward on the accelerator and the engine roared to life, with a beast like grumble. He typed in the coordinates into his own navigational display on the bike and a thin green line appeared in front him, only viewable by his own person. He looked on ahead and saw that Ice and the others had already began to move, so he nodded to himself a grin on his face as he sped on forward as he talked to himself. “You know even though, we are thrusted into life and death situations on a daily bases, and you could watch you friends die in front of you at any moment. This job is really worth it sometimes.”

He soared along the digital plain, an oddly quiet place for one that held such a vast amount of information and the foundation for modern society as it was known. Millions of zettabits of data flying about them, some containing messages: written to lost loves, friends, families, invitations. Others were more important work based info, data on projected sales and many interesting tidbits of data. But usually as Correctors they were sent in to defend the very big picture stuff, government agencies, hospitals, banks, places were that having their infromation secure was of vital importance.

As he progressed forward he saw Ice and E.G stop a bit further ahead at location of the breach. As he pulled up and quickly though it pained him to let it go, got off of the bike and took up position a bit further up to the right of Ice. He stood and watched as Ice confronted the two hackers. Fright and Fury, currently wanted for a series of breaches against high value targets, They were professionals and not just some run of the mill blackhat, messing around with his toys, and should be considered dangerous targets. that was what Gvn report had on them. Futen shook his head, it would seem that this was not just going to be clearing out some run of the mill virus or hacker, no this was going to be a fight that they had to take seriously.

Moments later Fright casted her blast of wind, out at the group. As E.G casted her shield, Futen threw his body to ground hard, behind his vehicle as he heard a whoosh as the gale of miscellaneous objects trying to murder them soared past. As he got up he looked down at the bike, he used as a barricade, it was cut, torn and punctured looking a bit worse for wear. He had a mixture of feelings about this, first being filled with relief that he was not the one filled with cuts and puncture wounds, like swiss chess that had been thrown in a war zone. But on the other hand he was a bit disappointed, that his new shiny toy, had just be beaten up. “You messed up the paint job!” Futen muttered angrily to himself as he put his hand on the hilt of his sword.

"Hey, Futen, come on!" Futen nodded as Ice called out to him and ran up after him, getting to his side as the two of the moved towards Fury, he tilted his heads to his squadmate and told him some very simple words. “Slash & Smash?!” hoping very well that Ice would catch on.

Slash & Smash, being the nickname that most Correctors used for a combat technique they learned in basic combat to be used against another close combat ordinated opponent. One corrector would strike out first quick and unrelenting, taking the full brunt of the attackers aggression. This part is the so called Slash. The other part is the Smash. With the attacker focusing on squadmate one, the other Squadmate is available to go in against the attackers unprotected flank and hit them where it hurts. Very basic in turns of tactics, but sometimes that most basic tactics are the most practical.

And so Futen lead inwards with the Slash. As Fury turned towards them and drew his own blade. Go forth like an avalanche unrelenting and unforgiving Futen thought the mantra of his old Kendo teacher as he drew his blade and stroke out against Fury. The two blades smashed together. Fury looked at Futen and give him a predatory grin as the two of engaged in a dance of metal. Fury was unrelenting his attacks, held power and ferocity behind them, as well as a demon like speed. And Futen was doing his best to counter each stroke with one of his own. One torrent of blows, was countered with another. But Fury was pushing Futen back as he was forced to take a more defensive stance as he brought down a heavy overhand blow. Futen countered bringing their two blades together with a clash. Fury kept the blades together as he pushed against Futen’s trying to drive his own into his skull.

Futen gritted his teeth as he pushed back, and he did not notice as one of Fury’s hands left the hilt of his sword and came swinging underneath hard slamming into his stomach and sending him sprawling backwards as he rolled away as Fury blade slammed into the ground . wincing as he arose to his feet, Futen raised his sword again and slammed into him again, this time making it so Fury was the one that had to take a few step backwards.

“Ice! You know anytime you want to jump in would be appreciated!”

Serenade wasn't entirely confident about getting aboard the digital motorcycle. There wasn't a whole lot of risk involved, and she wasn't unsure about her riding skill, but it was her policy to take life slowly and surely - something that bikes were not built for. She always walked everywhere in the real world. After all, what was the rush? But this was a little different. She couldn't deny that the group had reason to hurry in this case. With a small shrug that didn't quite mirror the excitement of some of her friends, she climbed aboard the stylish machine and fired it up.

Since it wasn't required that she take point for combat situations just yet, Serenade followed behind the group at a comfortable distance, making sure to keep up. The world rushed by, and though it was intangible, she got the sensation of the wind rushing through her long white hair. Things like that transferred to the DgtWld quite handily, and even in her digital form, Serenade did not find it particularly unpleasant. It was a little bit like being on horseback, she mused, which suited her combat style well. Perhaps they would learn to get along after all.

As they reached their destination, their targets became obvious. Two hackers were in the middle of something, looking at... she couldn't tell what. Serenade quickly scanned and spotted the same thing that Ice had noticed: the two hackers had given themselves weapons. Melee weapons. Not the usual glitches and hacks which manifested as spells or monsters in this world, but lines of code designed for the two of them to use to directly attack their opponents. Or their victims. Silent as usual, Serenade calmly summoned her large pike without any fanfare, and waited out the conversation between Ice and the two. Ice was far better at speaking than she was, and would be able to get them either into or out of a combat situation, depending on necessity. Her chips weren't exactly down on a non-combat scenario.

Of course, her instinct was on the mark. The female of the pair lashed out with a gust of wind carrying... god knows what. Spears weren't exactly well-suited to dealing with nasty area attacks such as this, but Eternal Grace had worked up a bit of a shield, which Serenade jumped behind, not quite making it all the way in time. She was just agile enough to turn her back to the assault before taking cover, and she felt splashes of the acid burn spots in her back, through her clothes. They had no armor to them and offered little protection. It was painful, but thankfully not disabling in any way.

As music began to ring out across the field, the unsettling silence which Serenade loved so much was broken, replaced with a sense of unsettling out-of-place-ness. There wasn't supposed to be music here. To Serenade, who needed and used music as a sort of emotional regulator, the intense battle music only served to make her angry. Why did they have to do that? Why were they here now? She was getting steamed, and as she fingered her weapon lightly, she knew exactly where to point that steam when the cork blew off.

The battle began, formally, and she grasped her polearm tightly, ducking low in her default battle stance, coiled low like a jungle cat, ready to spring forward, or dodge to the side. Amongst her peers, she had a near-flawless track record in defensive battles. She could hold a position better than almost anyone she knew, and while she lacked offensive power, she was good at dodging, parrying, and blocking, which meant that it was difficult to hurt her, and equally difficult to get at something that she was protecting. In this case, her target was Fright, and she needed to protect Eternal Grace, who was behind her. On paper, scythes were good against spears. A scythe was an angled weapon, and could easily hook around her guard and attack her. She needed to dodge and parry, rather than block. Her battle plan set, she was ready to receive whatever her enemy wanted to throw at her.

It looked like Ice, Futen and Eclipse could handle Fury, and the girls were going to have a party all their own. That was fine with her. E.G was a fantastic support, and Serenade was confident that she could keep Fright off of her. She was willing to take a lot of hurt to use herself as a meatshield if she had to, which, in a crunch, should be a good insurance policy against any sneaky tricks like the gust from before. Most hackers were selfish. They didn't think about the possibility that you could sacrifice yourself to help somebody else, so most of their attacks were targeted. Sneaky attacks directed towards a group healer or other target were difficult to block with code like weapons or walls, but were easily absorbed into one's own body. It was dangerous, sure, but one of the basic rules of strategy was to always fight on your own terms. Letting hackers do whatever they pleased was akin to letting them fight on their turf. It was a bad habit to fall into.

As the newcomer, Serenade wasn't completely accustomed to every support skill that E.G could use. Oh, she had been told, but without a lot of practical application, the words meant nothing. They had practiced quite a bit, but she was sure that she hadn't experimented fully with E.G's full repertoire. Meaning, if the situation called for something nonstandard, she would need to adapt. She spread her hands farther apart on the haft of her spear. This grip lessened any lever-like force, but allowed for quicker movements and a more versatile range of motion.

In what seemed like an instant, Fright had swung her weapon with great force. It wasn't like Serenade expected otherwise, but the hacker was not kidding around. Or if she was, she had a sick sense of humor. Serenade's back still hurt from before, so she made sure to be hyper-focused on her enemy, and her reaction time was as short as she was going to get. From her low stance, the lancer was able to rocket forward at an odd angle, both to the side and towards her attacker, putting her on Fright's left side, hopefully out of her angle of attack. It was, however, right in range of a spear thrust. Angling herself carefully and without hesitation, she struck out with the bladed point of her weapon, at Fright's gut, below where she would have swung her scythe. The easiest way to dodge this would be to jump backwards, which is exactly what Serenade wanted, as the action would put distance between the enemy and Eternal Grace, giving her space to cast her spells. If the hacker did something other than jump back, well, Serenade would need to be ready for that too..

Eclipse

To think his first motorbike ride would be within the DgtWld; that was the last thing Eclipse had thought of doing here. It had never been the favoured method of transport for him mainly because he felt cars were better and safer, but nonetheless Eclipse hopped on. It would be impolite to decline such a generous offer, assuming he even got the chance to do so before Eternal Grace and Ice sped away to the distance, and besides it was a new experience. Quite contrary to other members around him, Eclipse found himself heading off with a slow start. It wasn't that he couldn't move it at all - despite being the first time he got on a bike, all it took was his knowledge of operating a car and some trial and error to find the accelerator, the brakes and set up the navigation - but rather was having a slow start. Every time he accelerated on the bike it felt like he would lose control of it. It felt weird having to rely on a single line of wheels to speed away without losing his balance but thankfully there wasn't any comical sliding and toppling off the bike as he had feared. His pace also picked up gradually; perhaps it was due to being in the DgtWld, but when they were travelling in a straight line it wasn't as bad, and he was even able to enjoy the speed.

Eclipse slowed his bike to take position next to Futen as their team reached their destination. He tensed a little, leaning to one side but not actually getting off the bike just yet; the targets this time weren't Vs, meaning that they had every chance to attempt escape... not that the infamous hacker duo would show such cowardice. Ice was already talking to them to find out their motive; meanwhile Eclipse silently summoned a Blue ball with the hand behind him, a blind spot to the duo. It was obvious that of the duo, the one who wasn't speaking was working away at a certain device; his Blue ball would serve as intereference to all and any connections between the device in their hand and whatever it was used for; most likely hacking a bank or similar. The only problem was that they were armed. If they were any ordinary hackers or Vs he wouldn't have given a second thought, but these two were different. If the Gvm had decided it was worth the effort to alert the Correctors of their danger, then they were a force to be reckoned with.

His dilemma came to an abrupt end as the woman, Fright, drew her weapon back. That was all the action he needed to switch tactics; it was apparent that there was no way to avoid conflict. He willed the Blue ball in his hand out of existence while simultaneously summoning the Grey ball, crushing it in his hand. With a soft pop his hands and arms were instantly dyed grey not a second sooner as the gust of wind struck the team. He hunched down on his bike, curling like a ball and not enough time to get off the still-revving vehicle, protecting his face and body as best as he can with his shielded arms as the debris and acid hit. He wasn't able to escape it unscathed, with bits of cuts and burns here and there, but those were minor; most of it was repelled, and the places that hit weren't vital areas. Besides, he boasted in his vitality and tolerance to pain.

A mix of envy and curiosity piqued in Eclipse's mind after the windy strike, his ears picking up the music suddenly flowing throughout the DgtWld. How were they doing that, he had to wonder every time he met hackers capable of such a feat. Where was it coming from? What range will this music be broadcasted to, and will others who are in the DgtWld, the non-correctors in the DgtWld, be able to hear it? Or rather, maybe he could also program to have his own theme! It also made the teal-scarfed Corrector tense; the ability to broadcast their own music theme was like a rough measurement of their hacking levels; something similar to a boss fight in common role-play games where they have their own themes. If he had any doubts as to whether they were really the hacker duo with a high alert, then there was no mistaking it now.

At futen's declaration of battle tactics, the Slash & Smash, Eclipse replied by accelerating his battered vehicle towards the sword-dancing duo. He stood by in the sidelines for an opening he could Smash into their opponent. His chance came after a strong blow from Futen, almost at the same time as his call to Ice. Perhaps it was the upbeat battle theme or observing the fierce blows exchanged by Futen and Fury that worked their magic to spike his adrenaline, but regardless, Eclipse accelerated straight towards Fury. He quickly closed the gap between himself and Fury as fast as his motorbike allowed him to without horribly falling off, attempting to crash into the hacker. Unlike a car, he was confident in his abilities to get off the bike as it hits Fury; that way if the hacker was more agile than he anticipated and dodges the vehicle, Eclipse would be able to send in further blows. If the hacker wasn't agile enough to avoid the live wheel straight to his face, that would be an added bonus. Of course he would fall back not too long after to get out of the hacker's range so that Futen can keep the hacker busy once more. He was confident he could block a blow or two with his shielded hands, but whether he could actually land damaging blows to the hacker, he wasn't sure.

Thankfully Futen was quick to hurry over. "You know it." Ice gave a curt nod to his partner. He could be useful in either role but it seemed like Futen was eager to do most of the hard work. Ice dashed around, trying to pace himself. Soon Eclipse joined in and the three men could keep the troublesome Fury busy. Ice had abandoned detaining the duo as they were unprepared. He quickly made a report to alter the Gvn to what they had stumbled upon. If they could act quickly and send help or some sort of program to disable all activity in the area. he wasn't sure what could be done but he knew he needed to report the danger as soon as possible.

While he was busy with the report, Eclipse swung in and Ice quickly exited the screen to look over at the mess unfolding. "Shit." He hissed and saw Ellipse driving straight into the fray. Fury was knocked over and fell back two feet away, landing on his back. Ice shook his head, not sure if he was impressed or amused. Either way, the Corrector raised a hand and began to furiously create ice throwing stars. He threw them at Fury to try and hold him in place. While they did the trick, he charged for the foe and created a long staff out of ice. He gripped it and lunged at Fury. Ice restrained himself however and held him down by his neck, pressing the icy staff into his throat. "You can take some pretty impressive hits." Ice complimented the hacker.

While the boys did their own thing, E.G was keen to protect them as needed but her main focus was Serenade and Fright. It was hard to figure out which sort of shield would work best for the female hacker but Eternal Grace had a good idea of how to help her partner out. In order to help out one friend, she had developed an interesting defensive spell. It wouldn't work for the group but it could work if she singled out a target and right now, Serenade would be that target. "Delta-Y-4-1-3-2-Z. Target: Serenade." She commanded. The pink haired leader waved a hand toward her friend and the girl was soon encased in a transparent wed of armor. It was entirely weightless and quickly vanished to embed itself in the coding of Serenade.

It wouldn't make her safe from everything but it would at least make any direct hits very minimal. It granted a target of Eternal Grace's choice, a big boost of defense for five minutes. Most battles weren't very long winded but she needed to be careful and figure a plan out. They hadn't been successful in their mission but their lives were what was really important now. She saw Ice had sent in a report so she hoped that the Gvn could do something to stop the criminals from doing what it was, they were up to. "You've got better cover now! But still, be careful!" She called out to Serenade as the Corrector lunged for Fright who seemed to be readily advancing on the lone female. Stepping closer to the action, she decided she needed to do more than protect.

E.G decided to take a risk. She was sure that Serenade would be okay, "Alpha-9-Eplisilon-Q-W-5. Target: Fright." She directed. At this moment, Fright had jumped back to evade a deadly blow by Serenade. A large swirling pink mass of energy was quickly generated only eight or so inches above where the two were having their stand off. Fright jerked her head up and raised her scythe to act as a shield from the blast which came only seconds later. "Serenade, are you okay!?" She called out as Fright was thrown backwards. The hacker finally stopped rolling and got to her feet though it was evident that the intended attack had been a success.

Fright's face was scarred with second degree burns and this alerted Fury to the situation. The male swung back at Ice and struggled to get to his feet. While things appeared to be going in favor of the Correctors, it seemed the duo was keen on retreating. Ice didn't want that to happen. They were so close. "Fright, let's go!" He called out. Before Ice could smack him down with his staff, the two suddenly vanished and they were now left alone. Ice looked to take note of how the others were. Thanks to the spell Serenade had on her, it seemed like she wasn't affected by the blast whatsoever.

While everyone was fine, save for some minor burns and injuries, it was clear the defeat was a disappointing blow. "We should log off, send a report and...try to enjoy the rest of the night." E.G said and vanished, dematerializing in a glitter of data and pixels. Mima opened her eyes and found herself back in the real world. She didn't have any wounds to tend to but as Soshi sat up, she could tell he would need something to help the burns. "I'll go find the first aid kit." She told Soshi and got up. She found the bathroom section and pulled it out and returned to help the others.

"At least we got a nice set of wheels." Soshi said and smirked.

"At least they didn't do anything worse." Mimamoru muttered. "I feel like they could have...you know?"

"Yeah, I get that too, it was clear they were just messing around with us." Soshi frowned as Miam found some ointment and bandages.

Things were going well as Futen had fallen backwards to a supporting position, protecting the flanks. Eclipse's well timed application of the motorcycle was something out of an action movie and was surprisingly effective. It was no wonder that Ice had managed to survive for as long as he had, doing what he did. He was able to exchange blows with Fury with an elegance to it. Together the trio was seemingly putting up a fight against the hacker and when Ice had pinned Fury it seemed it was all good. Futen nodded moving to the right of Ice his sword still raised and ready to move if the hacker had attempted anything. Futen had felt the raw strength of each of Fury's blows when the two of them clashed, he had strength and the swordsmanship to back it up, they were not just some kid messing around and hacking a bank account for fun. As good as the three were at being correctors, something still felt off as if the hacker was not giving it all he had.

It was around this time that an explosion to the were the girls were caught Futen's attention. A large swirling pink column of fiery death was what he saw when he turned his head. E.G was not a squishy wizard that you just forgot about and what she had just unleashed was to say impressive at the least. Futen let out a low whistle of appreciation with Serenade and E.G being able to handle their opponent just as well with two people as the boys did with three. And for a moment as Fright was sent stumbling with some pretty nasty burns and Fury was still pinned down under a staff of ice, things were going well. If they were able to win the fight then it would be a much needed moral victory in the slew of busy days that had precede.

But as quickly as it all started it had ended, the two hackers vanished with little pomp and they didn't even bother to leave a cloud of smoke. Just gone in a sea of ones and zeroes. Futen let out a quiet curse underneath his breath as he drove his sword into the ground where moments early Fury's head had been. They did not prevent the attack from occurring, nor where they able to apprehend the ones responsible. All and all it sucked, and as the others vanished around him Futen did the same as well reemerging in the world of the living.

Disconnecting......
M- Chip Cooling....
Life Signs stable.....
Consciousnesses reestablished...

Satoru's eyes opened and the sensations of life wriggling back into his body was ever present, the odd feeling there were many names for it but the most common was "After Burn" named after the sensation of warmth that came to the human body after their consciousness returned from the DgtWorld. Though the prevalent sensation was in fact the sore pain that was aching through his body most particular in his lower abdomen where he was thoroughly punched in the gut. The pain to Satoru was the most wonderful sensation in the world. The pain reminded him that he was still alive, that today was not going to be the day his star faded from the sky. No matter how many times he was cut, punched, thrown, bludgeoned, stabbed, blasted, scorched, and otherwise getting every ounce of him thrown against the wall with the force of an angry robotic ape the pain would be more preferable then feeling nothing at all.

He almost let out a sigh of relief as he slowly got up from the chair that seemingly moments before he had sat down in, Satoru found it odd sometimes when he went into the DgtWorld when he came out time seemed to be distorted as if he was moving quicker than everyone else, or was is that he was moving normal speed and everyone else was just going much much slower? Never the less his own movements seemed sluggish as he raised a hand behind his head ignoring the sharp pain as he stretched his right arm behind his head scratching it as he thought about the events that had transpired. They didn't lose that was for sure considering things could of gone much much worse, and everyone was still for the most part intact if a bit more worse then wear. But a victory was not the way to describe how Satoru was feeling, he did not feel like the triumphant hero that had just stormed the castle, slain the dragon and saved the princess. He felt frustrated more than anything else for he knew that if Fright and Fury had wanted to kill them in their current state the duo probably could of. Ifs and maybes could've been declared, if there had not been so many attacks as of late and they were not as fatigued they wouldn't of had a chance, if this happened, if that happened. In the end though they didn't really have an excuse they were the heroes weren't they and it was the heroes duty to always ready to fight the advisories in the name of justice.

But are we really the heroes? Or are we just another set of spooks working on a Gvn paycheck?

Satrou felt a light buzzing in his pocket and took out his phone automatically a scrolling alert was displayed to him having been sent from Gvn HQ themselves. It read as following. Warning to all Corrector squads: Our Correctors in the Tokyo Sector have encountered the Hacker team of Fright and Fury. Please be on high alert and remain diligent. That is all. Satrou let out a sigh as he put the phone back into his pockets. Oh and aren't you guys a bit late to the party. Satrou thought bitterly to himself as he walked over and picked up the bottle of whiskey he had bought hours ago though it seemed almost like another lifetime ago. Not bothering to take a cup, he just walked back over to the windows looking out upon the city of Tokyo in a brooding manner deep within his own thoughts as he took a long hard swig from the bottle feeling his sense slowly snap back to him. From up there in Soshi's apartment looking down upon the peaceful city below it did really feel to Satrou like they were heroes, that it was up to them to save all that lay beneath them, to ensure every little boy playing heroes and villains with his friend and every musician with a dream to go big and every girl pegging on their super hot Sempai, they owed it to them to be at their very best, to be the ones that prevent humpty dumpty from falling off of his wall.

Friends of theirs had died believing in this ideology and countless others that they had never met and would never get to meet. They were just the next in a line of those summoned to perform a duty to become slightly bigger cogs in a massive machine that was called the human experience. Maybe that was why he was mad, disappointed, for every time they let one go. All the ones that died seemingly died for nothing. The holiday break they were currently progressing through was showing them that sometimes you were pushed to your
limit and in those cases you had to push past that limit. But even so Soshi and Mima's worries about something bigger going on still rang in Satrou's head even if he dismissed them with lighthearted care before. That was what he had to do Satrou was not seen as one to be preoccupied in worrying fby his squad mates, he was engrossed in a devil-may-care persona where nothing could seemingly damper his high spirits and him openly admitting his own worries would probably do more harm then good. But he did make a mental note to look into the increase of attacks on his own team, off the books and through some secure if not the most morally pleasing channels, there was benefits to having friends in low places as well as high ones.

It was then that Futen walked away from his view outside the window and sit down with the others gingerly, judging from the present pain a rib was either bruised or broken but that was in no way shape or form the worst thing that could of happened. He looked around at the defeated faces around him mirroring his own face at the moment. Raising the bottle of whiskey in the air he once again took a long drag once more, letting the smooth warmth coat his throat before he spoke trying to at least find the silver lining.

"Nobody died today and beside a few injuries here and there we are all fine. Sure Soshi has a few blemishes on his face, but he already looked like he went through a trash compactor once already... So I don't think anybody will really be able to tell the difference." He explained with a smile. "I guess though it wasn't anywhere in our contract saying that this job was going to be easy, because if it was why did they go through the painstaking process of finding idiots like me to go fight crime, instead of hiring professional killers and soldiers. Maybe because Idiots like me don't care about the odds or the impossible or maybe its because I'm cheaper. Either way it all boils down to the fact that we can't all become pessimistic just yet, a war isn't one in a day and all that. Right?"

Serenade's attack, while it was a miss, was successful in that her oppenent moved into the position that she wanted. Not only that, but she felt the protective spell that E.G had cast on her. There was no time for thanks, but it was implied. The spell was transparent and aside from the knowledge that she had been 'buffed,' the lancer couldn't really feel anything at all.

As she transitioned into another low stance, Serenade felt a foreboding wave of power form above her. Like a missile it came down in the middle of the fight, and while Serenade had positioned herself to be able to react to Fright's next attack and counter, she had not planned on needing to dodge a magical attack from an ally. What was Eternal Grace thinking...? But it hit her at the same moment the attack hit her opponent. The shield, of course. She had trusted her ally, and it had spared her in the end. The doubt was only momentary.

As E.G called to her, Serenade's red eyes were focused on her enemy to notice. As soon as she had registered that the energy blast had not done her any harm, she had had both her focus and her weapon pointed at Fright. But she didn't have to wait long for something to happen. Fury, who had been pinned down by the boys, called to his partner, and though Ice struck out against them, the pair vanished into the darkness.

Eternal Grace and Ice, dejected, dematerialized back into the real world. Futen was quick to follow. Serenade ran a hand through her silvery hair and stared around for a moment after everyone had left, soaking in the quiet solitude. She was in pain, but it was comfortable here. And for now, things were peaceful. Before anyone could get worried about her, she heaved a small sigh and disconnected herself.

Serenade vanished from her consciousness, and she was Sarah Blaise again. Like falling a small distance onto a bed, the sensation of suddenly being aware of your body was unique, yet comfortable. It was warm, and she had heard some people seem discomforted by it, but for Sarah, it was merely a transition. She always displayed a black screen on her visor so that the light didn't blind her when she 'woke up,' and perhaps this precaution made the shift just a little easier.

Mimamoru was fussing with a first aid kit and speaking with Soshi as Sarah took stock of the room, and Satoru was staring out the window. Sarah repeated the ritual she had enacted before disconnecting, sighing and running a hand through her hair. The feeling was different, but not uncomfortable or foreign. Just... different. As she sat up in her chair, she winced slightly. She could still feel the acid burns all over her back, which she had ignored until that point. It was a sharp pain, and a reminder of how close a shave they may have just had. As frequently as Sarah threw herself into danger - indirectly by just fighting, or else in a more direct sense when she literally blocked attacks with her body - this was different. It felt more important. Like it had more weight. Perhaps it was just the atmosphere of the room, which sat heavy and dull in a way that even the usually passive Sarah could feel.

Satoru's words of advice rang true for her. He was right, while maybe some of their group felt a hard loss today, Sarah couldn't count today as a loss. "They had a tactical retreat today. It was a smart move. We could have killed them. It was not a victory, no. But it was no loss. Perhaps... a lesson. For both us and them."

Sarah didn't want her friend to start fussing over her with the bandages, so she got up and shoved a handful of chocolates into her face. "Brshides, we'ff stull got trme." Swalling her mouth full of food, she continued. "They'll be back. And we'll be here. We're always here anyway."

Eclipse Yasukazu Irie.

The ball handler wasted no time triumphing in his successful maneuver of the motorbike as it blew the male hacker off his feet and closed in on the sprawled man. This was the duo who the Gvn decided was a threat enough to broadcast warning messages to the Corrector teams. For all they know, these hackers might have some kind of cheat functions invisible protection that would save them even after getting run over by a tank. As if to reply to Eclipse's expectations, their eyes met. He didn't look as beaten up as expected; he was certainly on the ground now, but his eyes were still alight with energy, face showing barely any distortion from injury apart from minor discomfort and perhaps humiliation of being swept off his ground. Eclipse tensed; even he, who had trained his body his entire life and held pride in his vitality would've doubted his chance of being conscious without the disorientation from the pain and injury after a full impact of a live vehicle.

It wasn't clear whether Ice was thinking something in the same line as him, but Eclipse welcomed his actions to keep Fury pinned to the ground. It wasn't necessarily their job to kill hackers, he knew, and thus there really was no reason to continue with the fight unless Fury retaliated. Besides, he wasn't one to enjoy maiming others for no reason... though he was interested in finding out and perhaps adapting whatever Fury had to be so strong. This was a personal interest, and with Futen coming up to watch over the hacker, he knew that it was something that have to wait. Eclipse got into his usual battle stance, legs apart for balance and fists up for any sudden attacks and also to support Futen if necessary.

The explosion that came soon after wasn't enough to divert Eclipse's interest on Fury, albeit made him concerned of who was on the receiving end of that explosion; was it E.G. and Serenade? Did they need to go in and help them? It was certainly true that the hackers were a formidable enemy, but he also trusted E.G.'s defenses and Serenade's offense; in some ways they were quite a combo, no doubt more flexible and trickier to defeat than Eclipse could manage with anyone. Plus if E.G. was in trouble, he was sure Ice would somehow be on the case before the event happens.

His concern dissolved with Futen's whistle. regardless what had happened, it seemed like the explosion was by the Corrector's side, something flashier than his motobike attempt and being worthy of others' awe. What he didn't realize was on that small fraction of a second where he felt relief for his allies was when Fury decided to retaliate. Fury, who had been looking at the direction of his partner's fight after being pinned down, must've thought it was now or never. It's not like that mattered much to Eclipse, but all he could do was be on the defensive at the sheer power as the hacker relentlessly went for his freedom. He gritted his teeth and swung a straight punch when he realized the target was not him, but the hackers spelled their escape long before his fist could find its target.

Yasukazu often enjoyed the transition sequence between logging on and off the DgtWld, but this time he took little notice of it. The dull pulse of minor acid burns where his Grey ball weren't able to protect ate at the edge of his mind more significantly now that he was back in the real world. He didn't trust himself to get up or get treated just yet, still having trouble coming to terms with their... no, his failure at catching either one of the hacker duo. He lost them, and he lost his chance to investigate their source codes for their powerful avatars and hacking skills. It was like as if he had missed his chance to a giant leap towards his goal of creating the ultimate app; they were still out at large, fending off the Gvn. Yasukazu was certain there were some incredible ways of coding and techniques he had never thought of used in the ways hackers developed their codes such that it could avoid them being caught for so long and yet allowing them to get what they want.

Despite everything, he was still a techie man. When his phone went off for a message in the custom tune that was reserved for Gvn-related contacts, he muttered a voice command whilst locked in his own brooding. The message was read out by a mechanized voice in his head via the MChip; it was an alert message warning about the appearance of the hacker duo. When the text-to-voice ended reading it out, Yasukazu relaxed a little; there really was no use thinking over what's already done, was there? the world is a big place, and it wasn't as if his only path to success was via catching hackers. No, there would be other ways, surely.

He looked up from his own thoughts soon after, hearing Satoru's voice addressing the team. He couldn't help but feel inferior at the fact that while he was thinking over his own gains, there were others like Satoru who was trying to assure everyone of their small but definite 'success', and those who were already preparing for what's to come like Sarah and the senpais, mentally focused and treating the worse of the injuries. Putting that aside, he had to think of how to go about this from now on. He wanted to discuss about further actions regarding the duo, however the food on the table which were now mostly cold reminded him why they were here in the first place; to not think about stuff related to work for once... whether that façade can still hold now was a mystery. At the same time it piqued his curiosity; can they actually go back to relaxing after all that?

"I guess it's back to partying then?" Yasukazu piped in, reaching for a piece of food also before wincing a little. "Also shotgun the next person to get treated by the beautiful Mima senpai."

Any injuries sustained on the job were covered by their top notch insurance. Though Mima had hoped everything done by the troublesome duo could be patched up with some simple measures. Anything major would be needed to be taken care of at the nearest hospital and reports would then be made to the Gvn regarding the issues that had taken place. For now, the girl wasn't too worried about the group but she did notice that Satoru seemed more quiet and uncomfortable than after a usual jaunt into the DgtWld. 'Of course this time, things didn't go so well.' She considered, trying to taste anything besides bitterness in her mouth. Turning back to the others, Satoru made a small joke which earned a roll of the eyes from Soshi and a snort.

Soshi decided to take Satoru's next remarks more seriously, "They picked us because we know very little about computers which means they can better control us and our avatars. They also selected us because of our moral values and that we're pretty neutral in society. I don't think we're idiots by a long shot, and I don't think the Gvn does either...of course they still keep us at arm's length." He shrugged a little. "Ow, shit that burns." He waved a hand at Mimamoru who had finished patching up his face. She looked around to find her next target but it seemed that Sarah quickly found something else to do. "Whatever their issue is, we can't do much about it now." Soshi said with a sigh. It was hard to walk away when they hadn't made a positive difference. "We can't win em all."

Everyone was trying to give their two cents. It made Mimamoru quite proud to see the team still able to rally together after what happened. If was her younger self, just a beginning Corrector, she would have blamed herself for the faulty defensive spells she had used. But now that she had years of experiences, having dealt with both loss and victory, she was able to see a big picture. In reality she had done the best she could given the sudden attack and it made her smarter for the fights to come. Her knowledge would help the Gvn collect better data and the team as whole would be able to fight better next time. She gave Sarah a nod as she set the kit aside for the time being.

"Oh!" She blushed and waved a hand at Yasukazu. "Too bad I left my nurse outfit at home!" She joked and grabbed the kit to see if he needed any assistance. Soshi headed over to where Sarah was, helping himself to some chocolates too.

"The intermission is over, let's get things back on track!" He grinned and looked to his cell phone on his wrist. He pressed two buttons and some music started to play, a nice upbeat pop song by the artist XY3. It was all the rage around the world and even he couldn't deny it had some crazy charm to it. As the night continued to roll onward, no new information or alerts came to them so they were free to enjoy themselves without any further trips into the DgtWld. As things began to wind down and more drinks consumed, Soshi was settled on the couch with Yasukazu. "You know, you and I could do some more digging into these two weirdos." He expressed.

Mimamoru, on the other hand was off playing video games with the others, it was a cool racing game. Any fighting games in her mind were ruined thanks to their job. So she was happy to stick to puzzles or racing games to get her mind away from the black hole which was work. She paused the game and glanced over her shoulder. She thought she saw something out the window. It was probably a bird. Mima went back to playing and after the race was over, she coming in dead last as usual, she still managed to wear a red faced smile. "I think that was my new personal best!" She said as she took another shot. "You know if we keep this up...we all might have a big giant awesome sleep over at Soshi's house."

Just as she clumsily put down the empty shot glass, the door opened. It wasn't anyone she recognized. Soshi stood up and six people in black suits walked in with black shades. At first glance one would mistake them for the typical JPN Gvn but instead of the nation's flag pinned to their suit, it was instead a Romanian flag. "What's going on?" He asked but the men and women in suits simply threw out small gas grenades and slipped on gas masks in a very fluid but calm manner. "Everyone get down!" Soshi said and ran towards the back of the suit. Mimamoru stumbled backwards and put a hand over her mouth while trying to shield her friends with her body though it didn't help much as the small round balls began to emit a green fog.

His vision began to fade as Soshi stumbled to the floor and everyone else quickly lost consciousness.

The six people, two women and four men, began to pick up the bodies of the friends and collected their circular tools. They headed outside to the elevator after locking up and ensuring everything looked as it should. Once in the elevator, they removed their masks and made a call to the crew waiting in the street. It was dark enough and still private due to the holiday celebrations, that they could move people without anyone noticing. Of course the security cameras had already been toyed with, to ensure no one saw what was happening in the future or by accident. Once the Correctors were deposited into the silver van, it sped off to a small airport.

The gas was odorless and tasteless, it would subdue them for several hours while being taken back to Romania. And hours later, after the quick jet ride across the world, the Correctors were now situated in a large room. It was decorated with red velvet carpet and had pictures of the country's history displayed in gold frames around the room. There were plush beds and couches where the Correctors had been laid out. The room had a globe, a desk, an old record player, and one door in the northeast corner. It blended with everything and the only hint that there was a door, was a small gold keypad. Soshi slowly sat up as he finally regained consciousness. "What the hell..." He licked his dry lips and say on the mahogany desk, a tray of tea and cookies. He didn't move from the couch.

"Guys, get up." He said quickly. He didn't see any windows but he was sure they were being watched.

"Whaaaat?" Mimamoru moaned and rolled on her side, in bed with Sarah. But a few seconds later, it all came flooding back to long haired blond. "Oh!" She then pushed herself out of bed and ended up rolling off it entirely. She quickly got up and looked around. The dark green walls and red carpeting were a bit odd and dated but she didn't sense danger. But at the same time, she didn't sense safety either. "We were kidnapped? Please tell me this is a really complicated joke. Haha." She walked around but didn't get any new clues. "Soshi, your phone is gone." She said, panicking. That wasn't good, they couldn't lose their cell phones or anything could happen to them with the MChip link-up and syncing process. "Mine's gone too!" She checked herself.

"Shit." Soshi rubbed his forehead. "Someone brought us here...but why?" He looked back at the tea, his mouth dry. It was tempting but he was still worried. But if tea would kill them, he didn't see the point in them being taken somewhere and then killed. He decided it would be a safe bet to make. "I think we can eat and drink until someone tells us what's going on." Soshi walked over and poured a few small cups of tea for everyone.

"It's not Japanese tea, that's for sure." Mima pouted and took a sip after sniffing it.

Satoru was sitting with Mima and Sarah they were playing a racing game on one of Soshi’s fancy T.Vs the level of electronics that screamed money. If Satoru had to guess it was probably one of the newest models right off of the factory line for the holiday season, to go with the fancy little console they were playing on. Like most consoles it was developed on M-Chip technology so that the data was funneled straight to the user, meaning that even with three players playing they all still had a full screen rather than a split screen experience. Personally he preferred something a bit more to his speed: fighting games mostly. He found it a more honorable way of play to best one in single combat if it was just digitally, to analyze the opponent and pick apart their defense and watch their whole plan fall atop of them. He was pretty good at them back before he joined the correctors, for some reason he found peace in it to memorize the combos and different characters strengths and weaknesses. These days though he really didn't seem to have time for games as much as he did before, between everything. But occasionally he was able to pop in a round here and there, using it therapeutically to vent out any of his qualms on some poor unsuspecting opponent. But this was not a fighting game for some understandably beating up another digital person sometimes hits too close to home, especially after a mission.

But racing was okay. It was more than okay. Anything to get their minds onto something else, beside Gvn conspiracies against them, crazy hackers, or failed missions. And that was just what it did having fun was an easy way to get your mind off of the bad things. The music behind them thumped through the speakers hidden but seemingly everywhere in Soshi’s apartment. XYZ one of the techno-pop groups that were all the rage in the country right now. Somehow combining the technical world with the more human elements. Big with the kids at the moment as well as a surprising number of Salarymen. More recently they made the top of the charts in sales of their new album. The childish upbeat tempo went along in the back of Satoru’s head and sure he could see why. With uplifting lyrics about how “On the other side of invisible there are stars shining in the unchanging, wide universe.” It give the teens an anthem of sorts to not be sucked in the cynical nature of their ancestors no matter how futile things were. Satoru himself found his foot tapping along to the beat and he shook his head suppressing a smile.

Later after some more drinks as they played on the night seemed almost like it was going back to what it was intended to be a break for them. To get out of the hole they had dug themselves into as they hunkered down in the trenches waiting for the next blow, the next wave of artillery to come. The idle conversation was going on as they continued to play the game or just sat about. What always impressed Satoru about correctors that he had noticed in his time working with them was their profound ability to rebound, to be able to come back from anything. He had seen people that he would have ventured as far to call friends killed trying to save the world that didn't even know what they were doing. And never had they staggered for a moment, after every loss they came back the next day ready to do it all over again. It took Satoru a long time to realize that, to realize that no matter what happened you couldn't let it drag you down. As messed up as it sounded to be effective you needed to find a way to desensitize yourself to be able to keep your feelings of remorse, regret and anger away from your job. You didn't have time to feel sad, you only had time to do your job. For you slip up because you are feeling sad about letting somebody go and then before you know it hundreds of others are dead.

They were just getting into another race when Mima paused the game, it was only for a moment. But the jarring lack of stimulation brought his sense back and for a moment he could of swore he heard the soft thud of footsteps hidden behind the pop music and talking. But then the game turned back on and the sounds were muffled and Satoru soon forgot about it is they continued their race. Satoru himself managed a respectable second after managing to knock on the AI opponents off of the track and into the digital abyss below. Mima’s joy over her dead last managed to at least receive a small chuckle for the corrector. Who he himself was finishing the bottle of whiskey he had brought over, it have been sat next to him he was finally starting to feel the effects as his own movements seemed sluggish and the world moved at painfully sluggish speed.

Moments later the doors swung open and suits came in. Which in Satoru’s line of work as it was he used to suits randomly barging into his abodes. They had no sense of privacy and where all business, not the kind of people Satoru appreciated at all. But these suits worried Satoru, for they were not Japanese suits, they were foreign. That usually only meant bad things. And Satoru had seen this scene in action movies several times before, when the mysterious men in black come storming into the room and kidnap the people and take them to some secret facility. He always thought that if he was presented in such a situation that he would be the one to take down three of them before getting tazed or something. Turns out in reality, he was more concerned about why his legs felt so heavy, and why everything was spinning, and why the floor was approaching so quickly....

~~~

“Toto.... I don’t think we are in Kansas anymore.” Satoru mumbled to himself as he awoke slowly in a bed, his head was pounding not the gentle kind either. It was the type of pounding that was well accustomed to black out drunks and those who awake in hotel rooms seemingly of someone's urine and regret. He turned and saw Yasukazu was put next to him in the bed. Sighing he shook his friend gently on the shoulder trying his best to rose him from his slumber. He got out of the bed a few moments later slowly as if he was unsure of his own feet and he looked around at the small posh room. Where in the world are we? Rococo Europe? Satoru mused to himself as he looked around the room with seemingly no entrances and exits. It was basically a fancy cage, and if one had a cage... it would deem that one needed mice as well. And the fact their phones were gone as well.... that only complicated manners.

His eyes were drawn to the pictures on the wall, one of them was a painting of Michael the Brave and his mind flashed back to when they were abducted. Little flags, little tiny flags that Gvn officers have pinned to their suits. Must of been so that the governments could tell who’s spoke was whose. The little flag it was a Romanian flag. Romanina? What in the world would they want with us? To teach us the wonders of well thought out social welfare? I even liked Eminescu’s poems and this is what I get for it? You ungrateful little former soviet jerks! Satoru shook his head as he walked over to the small gathering by the table and picked up a cookie looking at it like he was about to interrogate it over his current situation before biting into it. “You know they are probably listening to us right now... Might as well make them feel welcome.” He cleared his throat before announcing. “Salut ce mai faci!” There was silence in return as Satoru peeked his head up waiting for a response that never came, hanging his head dejectedly he muttered. “Course the kidnappers don’t have any manners.”

But then another question dawned upon him as he began to address the only foreigner in their little gathering. “Sarah-san, I know you are from Canada and the great white land of friendly and polite polar bears. So I know of course you wouldn't do a thing such as this. But is it customary in the west to greet other agents of a foreign nation by knocking them out and abducting. Is this just the polite way to do things, or are we missing something here?”

"Who knows, maybe they're saving us from something." Mimamoru tossed out the idea though she didn't really believe it herself.

"No." Sarah shook her head and soon everyone was up. Mimamoru set her teacup down and looked to her team. Yasukazu and Sasha seemed concerned, as did Soshi and Satoru. 'I wonder how Michiko is doing.' She wondered and paced around, the carpet creating a soft padding sound as she went to and fro, from one side of the room to the other. Soshi knew they were being watching but by who? Sarah walked over and placed her hand on Mima's shoulder, stopping the long haired blond. "I know this is a helpless situation we're in but we'll figure this out together." Though she was new to the group, she had faith in the people she had grown close to. As she removed her hand, a small panel slid open, revealing a corner door. A man in a suit entered the room, the same one who had burst into Soshi's apartment. Mimamoru took a step forward, not sure how to defend herself and the others but she had to try, even without her online avatar to back her up.

"We'd like some answers, I think after kidnapping us, we're entitled to something." Soshi spoke up before Mima could.

"We had to be discrete with our retrieval." The man told the group.

"Retrieval?" Mimamoru repeated, puzzled.

"Before we explain everything, and we will, we have one more thing to take care of." The man in the suit said and put a hand to the small earpiece curled around his left ear. Mima looked back at the others. Her blond haired companion, Soshi, also moved beside her, unsure of what the man meant. Sarah stayed where she was but Yasukazu folded his arms, not wanting to play into their hand so easily. "I'll need you to log in with the systems we have here, in doing so, your avatars will integrate themselves into the DgtWld but your own Gvn won't be altered to the use of them." He said as his hand dropped, seeming to have heard whatever was being whispered into his ear. Mimamoru was unsettled, unsure as to why the ROM Gvn would want them to log in such a secretive manner. Mimamoru opened her mouth to inquire about whether not they should trust what he said but the man was quick to cut the leader off, "Comply and all will explained, if we see the right results."

"Fine..." Mima glanced to the others, unsure if she spoke for all of them in this situation.

"What results are you looking for?" Soshi spoke up once more.

"Why can't our Gvn known about this?" Yasukazu asked as he too was curious. The man remained silent and put his hand back to his earpiece and muttered something and then two men marched in, also wearing the same small pin that the brute had, the Romanian flag. The two men set down their large briefcases and began to set up their equipment. They were laptops and from them, large wires were taken out of the sides.

"Sit and get comfortable so we can begin." The man said. "But first I will need Yasukazu Irie and Sarah Blaise to come with me."

"Why?" Mimamoru glared, not fond of these constant demands of them. Her protective instincts were struggling to keep control of the odd situation they were in. Then the door slid open again, this time it revealed familiar faces. "Michiko, Milos." She had no idea that the strange men had also picked them up. How? She wasn't sure if she should be happy or even more suspicious. A little of both wouldn't be so bad. "Are you guys alright?" She ran over and threw her arms around both of them, moving into the middle so her arms looped around their opposing shoulders. She pulled away and smiled. They had seen Michiko only a week ago when he mentioned he had family matters to attend to but Milos on the other hand had a long leave of absence. Supposedly, Milos was going to return after the holiday had settled down and the new year kicked off. She had been emailing him slowly, both shooting emails when they had the time.

"It's time, Sasha, Yasukazu come with me." The man instructed again and the two slowly followed him out of the room, leaving the disjointed group alone with the two men who had finished setting things up, from the looks of things. Mimamoru relented and turned to sit on the couch. Soshi gave his old friends a smile before he sat down next to her. There were other seating options, the other couches or the beds, or even the carpets themselves. As everyone got comfortable, or as comfortable as they could, the silent men reached over and began to connect the thick coils to their MChips. Mima tensed up and looked to Soshi who just told her to relax and pretend that everything was normal, when in reality, nothing was normal.

'How long must we dangle like fish waiting to be slaughtered?' She thought.

As she felt a tug, she found herself shedding her human appearance and materializing in the DgtWld as E.G. Ice soon stood next to her in the cold vacant grid of numbers and coding. "What should we do now?" Ice wondered. He didn't have long to wait as the music kicked back up and the fearsome duo of Fright and Fury. "Oh great...them again." He muttered and readied himself for battle though he really didn't feel well rested enough to preform at optimum capacity. The strain brought upon them in real life couldn't be ignored in the DgtWld.

"Miss us?" Fury asked.

"I bet they did." Fright cackled.

"Guys, we need to handle this defensively..." E.G warned as she began to beef up a defensive spell. "Delta-J-3-9-R-Sigma-Q." It created a series of small shields around the users of her choosing. The shields would conform to the user's body and was nearly impenetrable.

"Thanks." Ice called out to the pink haired girl. He wasn't sure if BreGle had even heard of Fright and Fury since it was information recently released but surely Fox was aware. He created several icy playing cards and threw them towards the pair who easily banished the poor attack away.

"Come on kids, you're not still tired..." Fright teased.

"Nope, are you?" E.G glared as she considered her options with possible offensive spells. Their dynamic had also changed, her mind was occupied by her missing friends, even though others had taken their place. This fight was the last thing any of them needed.

" What the actual hell am I even doing here?"

Michiko did not understand what was happening around him. A couple of hours ago, he was back with at his place - just doing his regular things with school. Or, not so regular things. He was working on a really hard assignment when he was told by his parents that they will leave. He barely registered it as he was immersed in school way too much. A couple of minutes later, these - these guys showed up, nicely asking Michiko to come with them. He was persuaded to comply with the use of some sort of gas - he remembered hitting his head as he fell backward.." You know ... " he told the men that were leading him and Milos." ... figuring out that approximation was really, really difficult. And just when I was getting to the root of it, you must barge in. You know, I have to do that assignment in the next couple of days, right? Oh, nevermind ... you have no idea what approximation is. Am I right, Milos? I am hard pressed to belive you even know how to speak more word than the ones you told to me. Not to mention, you haven´t even apologized for the bulge on my head and the freaking headache it is causing me! Jerks ..."

No response. They were led inside of a building, but to where - Michiko had no idea. The architecture told him that he was not in Japan any more - but since he was knocked out, he had no idea how he got to the location where he is. He pardoned himself from his colleagues due to family matters that he solved as quick as he could. Still, it took him five days to solve them, and when he thought he could return to his duties, they were given that nasty assignment. But something else was bothering Michiko now. Who are those people? What are they goals, motivations? And why were they so secretive. But most of all - what was the Romanian flag meaning? He spotted it on the pins of the men, and he was thinking about it since then - his complaining about his homework was solely for the purpose of annoying them. What are people from Romania doing in the Japan? Does the Japanese GVN know about this? Were the Correctors failed to be notified about something like this?No. You know the answer, Michiko. This is not a regular GVN business. This is ... this is something else. He was interrupted in his thoughts as the man roughly showed him towards a door and moved his head, mentioning him and Milos to enter.

Getting in, he saw the first thing to make him breathe a bit easier. Mimamoru and Sasha was there too. As soon as Mimamoru hugged him, he hugged her back." Damn, did I miss you, Mimamoru. Sasha." He waved her awkwardly as he was being hugged."I´ve been better, thanks for asking. My head is pounding because these morons could not catch a lightweight guy like me when they take him out - I have a splitting headache. And I will most likely fail to submit my assignment ... not to mention my parents. The parents are the worst ... tell me, how are you ..." He never got the chance to finish his sentence as they were interrupted by another man. The group complied to his request and followed them to the other room, where they were supposed to take seats around devices that looked like they were used to operate with their MChips. Michiko took a seat that looked comfortable, but that was it." Are you guys kidding me? First, your buddies split my head because they are incapable of thinking, and now I am to break my back on these chairs? Can I at least get a pillow?"

He was silenced by a mean look and decided not to argue anymore - it was not wise to piss them up. As soon as they all sat down, they started to connect their MChips." I hope you guys know how to work with these. They are expensive and if anything happens to them, the GVN will pretty much kill ... ok, nevermind." Michiko bit his tongue as he felt an unpleasant feeling - this was the first time he felt it, probably due to his headache. He was leaving his body and felt himself to grasp his DgtWld ego of Fox. As his body was being constructed, he carefully observed the codings that appeared around them - they were the regular GVN algorhytms, yet something seemed to be weird about them. He felt his body was stiff and tired - and his headache got worse since he connected himself into the DgtWld. His back was aching, his movements were slumber and lacked the usual grace of his combat style.

As he appeared at the other Correctors, he grasped his blade more tightly - that was the only thing that felt the same. Having it in his hand made him feel a bit more secure - that was until he spotted Fright and Fury. Michiko was about to complain some more, but E.G was the first to speak. And as usually, he was right. He cast a spell while Ice cast a quick spell towards them, but it was easily warded off. Rolling his eyes at their provocation, Michiko took up a defensive fighting stance, holding the blade in a reverse grip as a shield of sorts in front of them." I agree. We shall fight defensively until we see or can create an opening. The moment I spot one, I am going in."

" Let´s show them what we´re made of!"