Arms Slave looked around. Last he remembered, he and a couple of Sweepers were doing some clean up around the Black City. It was almost ironic that he and his friends were cleaning up the ruins some days before the Black King made his big announcement. Maybe someone higher up knew this was going to happen, or it was just a coincidence. No matter, it was good fun, and good for getting EXP. Arms Slave himself only died once during his clean up duty, and that was because he got ganked chasing down a straggler. He needed to learn to not be so greedy.

The orders for clean up duty ended around yesterday. That is to say, that's not what Arms Slave intends to do now. Pulling up the communications with his friends Arms Slave started gave the signal. "Aight guys, you know what to do. Just make sure to make a lot of noise and put up a fight!" Arms Slave jumped into his own vehicle; an armored up war rig that was lacked weapons, but made up for it in sheer durability and speed. It was mainly a transport, but in a pinch it had a nasty ramming ability. Arms Slave fired up his engine and rode towards the Ebon Stryker's base. And in the distance, there were other players coming in. Outlaws looking to get get a shot at the black king. And Arms Slave's friends, members of other guilds, who were going to try to crush the Ebon Strykers before they could amass their power.

Arms Slave moved fast and arrived to the Black Castle before the horde arrived. There were a myriad of Outlaws who had been fighting each other for dominance over the city, but now a somewhat organized gang of them were making their way to the black tower. Most of them were rogues who were setting up hazards and traps to ensure anyone going in or out were going to get hurt. The rest were simply gankers. There were also some Scarlet Harleys showing up. Arms Slave's friend could only rally about ten, but they were around level 5 to 7, and well equipped for PvP. Their group was also nicely balanced in terms of classes: 3 warriors, 2 mages, 3 healers, and 2 rogues. Then there were a big gang from the Ivory Masks, mostly loyalist to the White King who seeks to defeat the Black King to earn her favor. Which meant there was at least 30 of them coming. Fortunately for the Black City, they were low levels who had nothing better to do and nothing (much) to lose if they die. Then there were the Cobalt Bruisers. From what Arms Slave's friend said, he's actually not rallying any cause someone else is setting up a war party. He has no idea who's leading, only that it's big and it looks like they're holding their forces for something to happen. "Aight, keep me updated."

The Fanged Rangers were the only ones that Arms Slave didn't get any intel on yet. His guy inside the Fanged Rangers got swept up chasing down some thief. "Who gives a fuck? Rally them and tell them to head to the Black City! Make up some lies, tell them the thief works for the Black King or whatever. Just hurry up, I want to see a melee."

Arms Slave parked his war rig and took up a post high on the Black Castle. He noticed a few people who had made a dynamic entry through the roof, and Arms Slave intends to intercept those who would try to pull that for an actual attack. Two hands gripped the masonry to keep Arms Slave steady, while his other two held axes ready for slashing. "Let's give the Ebon Strykers a real warm welcome."

---

On the outskirts of the White City, Dark Wraith left an encoded message scrawl on a rock. A dead drop to her fellow Erasers, giving a bit of detail about her plans. She wanted the word to be spread amongst the Sweepers about a potential alliance with the Black King, though Dark Wraith wasn't so naive as to think everyone would be okay with that. There were some ambitious people in the Sweepers after all. She could name a few who'd see the Black King more as an obstacle then a boon. Many probably think the same of Dark Wraith too, which was all the more reason she needed to alliance with the Black King. Dark Wraith wasn't one to only rely on ace in her sleeve however. There was a reason why she had left this dead drop near the white territory.

Dark Wraith soon left her location. She'd need to head to the Black City soon, and from the communications she was picking up there are already rallies forming to attack the Ebon Strykers. It wasn't a surprise; despite the rumor and legend behind the guild currently it was in it's infantile state. Many would assume that even the Black King cannot stand up against a full force of a guild war, and they may have a point. It doesn't help that one of her own Sweepers were orchestrating the attack for his own amusement. It seemed like he intended to come in as a hero of some sort, trying to valiantly defend the Black Guild as his way of earning the king's favor. If he didn't act so foolish people might actually be able to see that he was the mastermind. But no matter. Dark Wraith can also make use of the chaos. It was going to be a slow walk but Dark Wraith knew she could arrive to the city before the fighting ends. She wanted to meet the Black King too, but in private. She'd rather not have to play games with spectators.

Long after Dark Wraith left a player arrived to the location of her dead drop. He jotted down what was written and got back into his vehicle. He was going to report the information back to the White Queen.

As Static made small talk with her newfound acquaintance, another person came by to talk. Static turned to see another girl, who expressed some interest in the two. Static tilted her head, curious to see who this new person was.

"You don't exactly look like a healer if you ask me," Static said with a smile on her face. "But if you say you are one, I don't see a reason to not believe you." And it was true, she didn't see a reason to distrust Faust.

Static extended a hand to Faust and said, "My name's Static Flash, but you can call me Static. I'm a Berserker."

The room was slowly filling. Emma wasn't going to let the others overshadow her. She cleared her throat, "As I was saying... the answer to both of your questions are more or less the same. In the Harleys, or any other guild for that matter, there would be almost no chance for a Level 3 like me to get a face-to-face meeting with a King. And who better to learn from than someone who is not only Level 9, but also holds the highly coveted title of 'King'? Approaching you I have a surefire chance of being heard... plus, you're pretty badass, aren't you?" Emma grinned.

If I really want the Black King to consider me I need to show her I can be useful... and I need to be honest.

Emma's expression straightened. "To be frank with you your kingship," She didn't speak the title with doubt like the newcomer. "I originally intended to come here to find out more information about the break-in at the other Kingdom's vaults. It's obvious that you're involved... too obvious. I'm sure whoever preformed the theft wants you to be suspected. The other Kings are probably also smart enough to know this, but they'll turn to you as a convenient target." Emma, helpfully, raised her hand, holding up three fingers. "Basically, related to my motives, there were three potential outcomes for me. The first was that you accept me as your apprentice and I turn my loyalty to the Black Kingdom, happily progressing under your tutelage." She lowered a finger. "The second and third both involved me returning to the Harleys. In the second scenario I could've returned offering false, or, more unlikely, true information implicating you in the theft... or maybe absolve you, depending on which would be more convenient for me." Emma dropped yet another figer. "The third involved me staying on a little longer. I suspect you'll look into the thefts yourself, since they hold some obvious interest for you as the 'suspect' of the crime. If you do find out the true identity of the thief I could've offered it to the Harleys." Emma now dropped her final finger and lowered her arm. "In the second and third scenario I would gain notoriety in my guild and have a higher chance of advancing, obviously a win for me. However, after coming here, I think I'm going to change my plans... The idea of joining you sounds pretty exciting. The Ebony Strikers against the world, right? I'd like to be a part of that. So I think whether you take me as an apprentice or not I'll join you, but obviously I'd prefer if you accepted my request. So I'll pledge to you right now: If you accept me I will work my hardest for you and the Strikers, and I'll be the most loyal subordinate you have." By now Emma's now signature grin had returned.

As Midnight Soloist dusted herself off, using the long sleeves of her jet-black coat to knock off the bits of dust and debris that had got themselves stuck on her clothing, she realized that someone else had also failed to land properly. Laughing silently as the rocket-propelled blondie smashed through the roof of the castle, Yuuki hopped up onto her feet, her arms whirring and clicking again. It looked like they were more or less functional, and a few more tests involving spinning joints and quick strikes confirmed that her personal ‘equipment’ hadn’t been damaged at all by the fall.

As voices resounded within the castle, echoing in a manner that made it clear just how empty the fortress of the Black King was, the strawberry blonde girl took that as her cue to enter, walking merrily up to the doors before flicking it open with her Heavy Arms. The doors slammed against the wall before they rebounded back, closing shut right after she slipped through. It looked like some renovation was going to happen after all, with the broken mess of a blondie with a rocket lance having caused a part of the roof to break open. Well, being able to see the blue sky from within the grim interior of the Ebony Stryker’s fortress was nice, at least. Gave some character to an otherwise dreary place.

Really, who came up with this name anyways? Were they writhing in pain about how pretentious and edgy they were in the past? A mischievous smirk surfaced on Yuuki’s face, before she waved with her real arms in a cheery fashion, “Yo ho, Ebony King of Eternaly Black Darkness! Nice to see that you’ve already been swarmed by a whole bunch of new kids!”

“Anyways, I’m just dropping by to tell you that I’ll be doing some exploration in your territory, ok? Never had a chance to see how your land looked like, but hm…I don’t mind spoilers, so could you tell me whether or not your territory consists only of empty black-glass buildings?”

“Oh, and good afternoon to the rest of you as well! That was a wonderful sight to behold, rocket boy! Take me on a ride when you got time as well, kay?”

Yuuki was definitely chattering a little bit more than normal, but hey, being a bubbly, vacuous loli with gargantuan mecha arms was fun as well.

"Hey actually I kinda do have time right now." He said quickly, scrambling to his feet. "Just let me grab my lance..."

His lance was stuck in the roof at that moment but he had a way around that. Going to his inventory, he unequipped his lance and re-equipped it. The lance disappeared and reappeared in his lance good as new. This was the only way he had of remotely retrieving his lance. Maybe he'd get boomerang when he was up to it but this would have to do for now.

He sort of ran awkwardly over to the newcomer.

"Where are you headed?" He asked.

To everyone else it probably looked like he was trying really clumsily to pick up a girl, but in actual fact he only saw her as his ticket out of there. To be frank, he was sort of scared of the Black King considering her reputation, and the new player didn't seem to want to join her even though she was clad entirely in their theme color.

His trepidation was rather logical after all. The Black King was reputed to be good at hunting hackers who were probably mostly on godmode or unlimited abilities or something, and the level difference probably meant that she could one-shot him even if he were on full health and not almost dead. Truthfully though his escape plan didn't have a follow up, he wasn't even sure he could handle the weight of those robot arms.

"I can take you wherever you want to go, I know my way around the black city too." He said, sending a silent plea for help with his eyes.

Nies Hellum, Cassandra had to get use to thinking of herself in her avatar name here, watched The green King himself walk passed her, whistling a tune, and blinked as he gave her a wink. She watched as he continued in the direction of the crazy guy who had nearly run her down hesitating for a moment, curiosity won over her and she followed Verdant Grin. She watched as he pretty much took the vehicle out of commission, and then the little scene. Nies Hellum didn't recognise the guy, but it seemed like he hadn't been around in a while. Black Guild? Gates being opened? Was that what she had missed, then?

The vehicle guy seemed to be alright, although Nies Hellum didn't know if that was a good thing or not, she would never wish harm on a guild mate, nor another living being. She listened as the guy pretty much tried to weddle his way into getting more chances of getting EXP. She couldn't help but giggle as the song echoed around the area. It appeared that that choice hadn't been on purpose, as Jukebox seemed surprised.

She thought she better step up, and make it known that she was there. She hadn't meant to eavesdrop, it had just happened. All she wanted was to figure out what was happening, that was all. "Um. E-Excuse me? if you want to train, and need a healer, I'm looking for people to train with..." She said, trailing off, feeling like she had brought too much attention to herself now.

"Excuse me? Sorry to interrupt but did I overhear you two talking about partying up?"
Havoc's eyes widened as she took in the newcomer, she hadn't been in DGO long enough to acclimatize to the oddities of peoples appearance and she visibly shrunk back as those red eyes came to rest on her.
"Uh, i'm a healer? If that helps?"
Mustering her courage she straitened her back but was saved from the need to reply as Static spoke.
"You don't exactly look like a healer if you ask me, but if you say you are one, I don't see a reason to not believe you."
As Static introduced herself Havoc found herself a little confused, there are warriors, rogues and mages in DGO, so what are healers and beserkers, she let that thought trail behind as not to be outdone she piped up.
"I'm Havoc!"
She was just that little bit too enthusiastic in her proclamation and immediately blood flowed to her cheeks.
"urmmmm I'm a warrior class I think, we're going to visit the Black King, did you get her message aswell?"
She nodded towards Faust indicating who the question was directed at.

---

Level: 1
EXP: 0
Next Level EXP: 10,000

---

Hibiki wanted to get on Deep Ground earlier, but she had dinner with her family. Her whole family this time, with her siblings and everything. It was a bit awkward since most never interacted with eachother, not even in Deep Ground. They talked a bit about their success in Deep Ground, what they intended to do with their lives after Purple Crown, and just how their day has been going. Hibiki herself was quiet since she didn't want to interrupt her siblings. When it was her turn to speak Hibiki said with confidence. "I'm going to defeat the Black King!" There was some silence at her table before one of her older brothers sighed. He said good luck, but thinks that Hibiki was too young to try. "I know, but... But if I can defeat the Black King, that would make me pretty strong then, wouldn't it? I can do it! Just watch for me. When you heard that the Black King has been defeated it would have been because of me!"

Dinner ended shortly after. Everyone went their separate ways and Hibiki returned to her room. She looked at the homework that sat on her desk and got to work. Always the dutiful daughter, even if she wanted to do something fun. Fortunately for her the homework was easy, mostly just multiplication and a reading journal. What really made Hibiki sweat was the entrance form to the Computer and Game Club. Hibiki wanted to learn how to make her own video games when she leaves Deep Ground, and figured joining this club would be the start. But some of this stuff... It went way over her heard. She had books for it, but she's never read them enough to know them by heart. This was going to be tough.

Hibiki saved the club application for later. Her eyes were getting tired from looking at all the program lines and code, so she opted to just head to Deep Ground. She needed to go fight the Black King after all.

---

---

Starting in the White City, Smitten Kitten did an inventory check. There she saw it: Her Outlaw Declaration. She had spent the earlier tutorial phase to get the EXP necessary to buy one of these. She'll need to wait until she's near the Black King so she could attack him when she's ready. For now she just left it in her inventory. Checking her other weapons Smitten Kitten only had a shortsword and a light crossbow. She equipped the Crossbow; it still scaled to Smitten Kitten's Cat Cut damage, and she could just settle for kicks to do some damage.

Now all she needed to do was find a way to the Black City. She's never actually been there because of all of the Outlaws, and even her stealth wouldn't be good against the ones who were able to detect her with their abilities. Lucky for the Kitten there was a group of Ivory Mask players who were going to head towards the Black City. They rode in their big vehicles, so Smitten Kitten just latched on while no one was looking and rode with them like that. "Just you wait, Black King. I'll defeat you myself!"

---

---

That was the message that would be sent to Azga the Amazing’s user interface. Honestly though, it was practically dripping with the makings of a scam. For starters, the fact that the Sender was simply titled “Friend” was skeptical enough in on itself and it wasn’t uncommon for Hackers or even other Players to send in prank messages to spam other people’s inboxes. And the lying thief? Seriously, it sounded like the beginnings of a bad novel or something. With luck, Azga would flat out ignore the message and continue on with his journey to the Dark Guild.

But as if orchestrated by some ulterior force, his progress would soon be impeded by the tumbling of bodies and a loud protest. One moment his path was clear and in the next someone had logged in right in front of him. The Player had no time to react as they were plopped right in Azga’s line of walking. Stumbling backwards, the female Avatar scowled darkly before fixing her hat atop her head.

“Hey watch it scrub! You know, we all wanna level up and be badasses, but that’s no reason to not watch where you’re going,” the girl said pointedly. Above her head, her Player status was visible to all with only a few weapons on hand and minimal cash.

It read Corpse Collector.

Back in the Black Throne, Moon Rider regarded Newt’s long winded explanations once again with a cool demeanor. Did Scarlet Harleys usually talk this much? The Black King neither knew nor cared, only listening in silence as Newt laid out her reasonings and pledged her allegiance to the Ebony Strykers with that confident smile of hers.

“I don’t need your assistance in hunting down this apparent thief. I already know the Player’s Avatar and it’s mere common sense that they would want to frame me,” she said indifferently. “Furthermore, I accept no apprentices. After all, whose to say you won’t merely take the chance to eventually dethrone me and lead the Black Guild yourself? That being said, you are welcome to join my Guild as a Player of the Ebony Strykers. Your first task as a member of this Guild is proving to me you deserve to become my comrade at arms, let alone my apprentice.”

Moon Rider opened up her user interface and accepted Newt’s request in joining her Guild; her Player status would now read her Guild affiliation as Ebony Stryker instead of Scarlet Harley. Once that was said and done, she focused now on Flan. So this was the one that had sent her that message then. To her, the Black King softened her features just slightly. At least this one wasn’t automatically kissing up to her like the former Harley over there.

“Go on and speak,” she said encouragingly before something loud echoed across her throne halls. Glancing up, Moon Rider saw Rocket Lancer plummet down from her rooftop and land rather wincingly onto the ground below. A massive skylight was now created, bathing the throne room in an ethereal glow, light being provided by the single moon that hovered over the Ebony Stryker’s territory. Another large knocking was heard before someone else entered her presence, this time a female Avatar with massive mechanical arms.

The Black King watched the two introduce themselves to her before exchanging conversation with each other. Needless to say, Moon Rider didn’t appreciate random Players just strolling in and destroying her property. As Rocket Lancer picked up Midnight Soloist, Moon Rider raised an eye.

“While I appreciate the efforts to see me, both on your own parts, I’m afraid I cannot allow you to simply explore my District without supervision. So I’ll say this only once because I expect an answer. Either swear your loyalty to my Guild now or get out of my territory.”

She glanced over at Newt, motioning for the new Ebony Stryker to spring into action if these two refused. After all, she fought for the Black Guild now not the Harleys. It was an opportunity for Moon Rider to see her in action and for Newt to prove herself.

Suddenly, the sounds of battle and strife were heard on all sides of the throne room. It was a result of Arms Slave and his feckless attempts to cause strife once more for what was probably just an excuse to have some mindless, violent fun. Moon Rider suppressed the urge to roll her eyes, instead choosing to lean back and ponder how this would all play out.

Things were about to get interesting.

Farther away at the Green Guild, the leader of the Fanged Rangers nodded to Jukebox’s words as the other Player moved away from him. At that moment, a song began to play due to Jukebox’s uncanny ability. Verdant Grin narrowed his eyes slightly at the catchy tune before his smile became even wider.

“Yeah, I hear you. You’re like, what, still Level 1 right now? See, if you played DGO just a little more, maybe you wouldn’t be having this problem, eh? Oh, and I’m kind of surprised that ‘Be Prepared’ isn’t playing. I see that ability is still causing you trouble.”

At that moment, the Player from before walked over to the chatting duo. Verdant Grin glanced at Nies Hellum before wrapping his friendly arm around her now. A snicker escaped as he brought Jukebox closer, holding them together in the middle.

“Whoah, whoah, call us a dream team! Sadly, I’ve got kingly things to do so I won’t be joining you on your little expedition. But hey, you two can do me a big favor by relaying any intel you got on old Moonie to me, right? Sounds like a plan!”

Verdant Grin finally released his grip and walked off, but not before waving at the two Players with a happy smile.

“Have fun you two! Oh, and sorry about the bike Juke old pal. No hard feelings? Good, see you around!”

Sam was eating his chicken. His father and mother were talking with eachother, but not with him. He didn't mind it though, he was used to not talking much, especially with his parents, as they weren't really the type to talk about his interests. Or rather, his interest. He finished eating his food, then said goodnight to them, as he would probably be in DGO for the rest of the evening. He already finished his homework before dinner, so he had all the time. He layed down on his bed, closed his eyes, and focused on the DGO program.







He opened his eyes, and was greeted by the familiar room in one of the chambers of the Water Guild. It was his habit that if he would log off from DGO, he would act like he was going to sleep. He got up from his bed, and walked out of the room, into the big halls of the Cobalt Bruisers' base. There, he was greeted with the familiar login bar

---

---

He looked around and saw less guild members then normal. After the 'U.N. Owen' guy hit the guild, a lot of people lost their interest in the guild, and Shadow Shot could imagine that even more left after the Black Guild anounced to go public as well. He himself was also considering leaving to join the dark guild, clouded in it's mystery, which fits Shadow Shot perfectly, although he didn't want to dissapoint anyone. He looked.

As he walked through the guild, he came past the task board. A guild known for its player services like the Blue Guild couldn't survive without it. He looked at it, looking for any good jobs. He even saw his own post.



Seeing this, Shadow Shot thought about his inbox, and opened it. It was hanging there for a while, and also spread out across some towns of DGO, so someone should've noticed it by now. He refreshed his inbox, hoping for a job...

As Azga ran, he heard his console beep at him. Not stopping, he pulled up his menu and went to his messages, expecting one from his brother. As he read the message, he blinked a little in confusion. How had they gotten his contact information? Aside from his brother nobody really messaged him other than some old comrades he'd tagged up with every now and again to help with battle. And furthermore, what thief? He never really paid attention to the user updates about crimes so that didn't really mean anything to him. Why would they want him to go to the Ebony Strykers? He was already headed there anyway----

His thoughts stopped immediately when he bowled over a blonde avatar woman, sending them both careening to the ground. His menu shut off automatically and he landed in a heap with his decorative cloak covering his head and his glasses coming off in the process.

“Hey watch it scrub! You know, we all wanna level up and be badasses, but that’s no reason to not watch where you’re going,”

"Mm..." He groaned softly as he sat up slowly, his cloak falling back into position. He looked up at her, his golden eyes meeting hers. Erika contemplated apologizing profusely as she usually would but then, this is Deep Ground. She didn't have to be herself here. Azga's eyes widened and then relaxed as he smiled at the Corpse Collector. When he spoke, it was with a deep, sensual tone and sounded like his throat had been painted with honey. "You are right chere," He paused to slip his glasses back on before smiling at her. "Perhaps I am too focused on what is to come, rather than the beauty in front of my eyes,"

At last, all that romance novel reading was paying off! Azga stood up slowly and offered his hand to the flustered blonde, smiling down at her. His hand reached into a fold of his cloak, counting something out before drawing out a small drawstring bag full of 500 credits. Money was no issue, after all, Erika's parents were frequently reloading her credits on a daily basis, always keeping just enough on hand to buy necessary items but not enough to attract thieves. Her dad had learned the hard way when his treasurer status for the Ivory Masks had been temporarily revoked due to losing it when a ranger snipped his coin purse. He had managed to get it back eventually, but from then on he was smarter about storing it. Azga had the drawstring pouch ready for the blonde whenever she got up. "This should compensate for any grievances, yes?"

Just as the final bell rang, Michael hurried ahead of his classmates. He was determined to get home first, and beat his friends onto DGO. He barely interacted with them once they were inside the programme, but he wanted to be on early just in case there were any messages or was any loot that he could get to ahead of his buddies. Michael wasn't competitive, but he did enjoy having that slight bit of power over people, but not too much. He wasn't the type to become drunk on power and lose his friends because of it. He'd let somebody else take that plunge for him instead.

Michael burst through the door and headed into the kitchen for a quick snack. School had left him particularly hungry that day, but he didn't know why. He hadn't worked harder, he didn't skip breakfast. He just wrote it off as an uncommon occurrence and raced up to his room, preparing himself for what he might encounter in his next DGO session. Michael lay down upon his bed, and let the programme take him over.

Welcome, Hyde

Hyde had awoken in a bed, not unlike the one he had fallen asleep in. He swung his legs over the side, and gathered his bearings. It was dim, but not so dark he could not see. Hyde stretched out his armoured limbs ahead of him. He smiled to himself and stood up. The armour-clad avatar reached over to the bedside table and picked up the menacing Morningstar propped against it. It still looked as vicious as the day he had got it. He rested the Morningstar over his shoulder, and headed out into the town centre, wondering what kind of adventures he would be undertaking today.

Faust took the offered hand and shook it gently, taking in the person she was meeting.

"It's nice to meet you Static. You can call me Faust."

With this exhange she then turned her attention to the third party in the conversation. The one who had found them-self with a knee imprint on their face.

"urmmmm I'm a warrior class I think, we're going to visit the Black King, did you get her message aswell?"

Warrior, you think? Faust pondered this then a small smile formed on her face. A newbie, most likely.

"Yes, I think pretty much everyone received it." The healer remarked in response to the message in question. She hadn't given it much thought. The ebony strykers seemed a little too mysterious. She wasn't going to immediately trust in them, and honestly joining a guild that would soon be getting a massive influx of members would just make her feel more lost. Though these were judgments passed without any trustable knowledge. Maybe a visit would be good?

"A visit sounds interesting." She concluded with a thin smile. She could feel her want for action rising, and it was highly unlikely they could avoid it with this objective. After noticing herself lost in thought she blinked hard to shake it off. Good job, playing it cool, real smooth. "uh, how are we getting there by the by?"

A walk could be a good chance to get to know each-other, as well as maybe meet some rabble on the way. Though speed was always more convenient, and who knew how many people had already beaten them to the black king?

Static was glad that she and Havoc were getting another person coming along. The more the merrier, Static thought, pleased to have made another new acquaintance, possibly even new friends as well. Then came the issue of how to even get to the Black King in the first place.

"Hmm..." Static hummed, thinking about the issue. Then Static opened her interface and sent both Havoc and Faust a party invite. "We'll just have to get there by walking, unless you have any money to afford a taxi or something," Static said as a message box popped up in front of them, saying, "Static Flash would like you to join a party. [Accept] [Decline]"

After the invites were accepted, Static turned to face the path she was originally taking. "Let's go!" Michelle said happily as she began to walk down the path. "If we keep following the map, I'm sure we'll get there eventually!" And so, the three friends went off on their little journey, heading for the Ebony Strykers location. What could possibly go wrong?

Talking to Verdant Grin was always a bit nerve-wracking at the best of times, but now? Well I either die because an ability I have no control over announces I'm a traitor, or Verdant understands and lets me off... I just don't know what to expect!

“Yeah, I hear you. You’re like, what, still Level 1 right now? See, if you played DGO just a little more, maybe you wouldn’t be having this problem, eh? Oh, and I’m kind of surprised that ‘Be Prepared’ isn’t playing. I see that ability is still causing you trouble.”

Actually I'm Level 3, but if thinking I'm only level 1 keeps me out of trouble I'm not gonna correct you! as Jukeboc was about to fill the awkward silence that followed another guild member spoke up.

"Um. E-Excuse me? If you want to train, and need a healer, I'm looking for people to train with..."

This quiet healer looked like an angel that stepped between Jukebox and a natural disaster the added bonus of her wanting to train was all the excuse he needed. All of a sudden the girl was pulled in by the King as well.

Hearing a snicker escaping the Green King, Jukebox was held even closer.

“Whoah, whoah, call us a dream team! Sadly, I’ve got kingly things to do so I won’t be joining you on your little expedition. But hey, you two can do me a big favor by relaying any intel you got on old Moonie to me, right? Sounds like a plan!”

Verdant Grin finally released his grip and walked off, relief flooded Jukebox in an instant. Before rushing away when the King spoke again.
“Have fun you two! Oh, and sorry about the bike Juke old pal. No hard feelings? Good, see you around!”

Oh! The bike!

"Don't worry King, the bike wasn't built for two so we'll just grab a car instead. With your permission of course" turning to his savior he said
"We better get a car and head out to Black City, do you know how to drive? Or have a preference in car? C'mon, I'll let you choose!"

Leading the healer by the hand he went back into the garage and went about introductions "So, you might have picked it up earlier, but my name is Unrelenting Jukebox. I'm sure that little musical number outside clued you in why I'm that. I'm also mockingly called the Noisy Assassin since, well... I am. I'm probably supposed to take offense at it, but it's got a nice ring to it."

Having reached the car portion of the garage Jukebox gestured "So, take your pick. I don't think Verdant keeps any bad cars, so it should be fine. I know he jokingly talked about relaying intel, but we probably should do it anyway, just in case he, y'know... wasn't."

“Oh, you do?” Yuuki’s mechanical hands clapped together in elated surprise, the metallic clang resounding in the empty castle, “Then, we just need…”

Unfortunately, what she needed, the Black King’s approval, wasn’t what she got. Her smile faded temporarily as the raven-haired edgelord made it obvious that Moon Rider didn’t appreciate random people exploring her kingdom without any supervision. Yuuki frowned, internally pouting for a few seconds at the Black King’s ultimatum, before smiling again. Without supervision? Well, then, clearly, that meant that one of the new members of the Ebony Strykers could just supervise them then! Following Moon Rider’s gaze towards the mage, Newt, Midnight Soloist thumped her fists against her palm, two of her Heavy Arms mimicking the same motion.

Then, she realized that the Moon Rider’s gesticulations weren’t quite as friendly as they could have been, and her eyes narrowed, the smile becoming thinner.

From out of nowhere, she placed an archaic coin on her thumb, before looking right at Moon Rider. “Heads is chaotic,” she stated, “Tails is lawful.”

The coin shot up into the sky, shimmering in the moonlight as it reached for the opening in the ceiling, only to fall short and come tumbling down. Before it could strike the ground, one of her mechanical hands snatched it out of the air, before bringing it to chest-level and revealing the result that only Yuuki could see.

Well, it was supposed to be ‘all things in moderation’, but she seemed to be getting lots of heads today.

The din of a grand battle commenced all around, as headhunters, loyalists, and outlaws all converged in the same spot, their shouts and strikes causing the buildings to rumble, shimmering trails of detritus and debris falling from the broken windows.

“Sorry, Black King, but I’m afraid I won’t do that, so if you want to send your champion up…well, let’s do it! And Rocket, feel free to blast off without me! Looks like things are going to get dicey~!”
The claws of her Heavy Arms clicked and clacked like mechanical keys as she awaited Moon Rider’s response and the mage’s attack. There was so much to gain and so little to lose, after all! She was going to milk all the amusement she can out of this!

Daaaamn! What?! He thought.

He had to say he was really surprised. Well, she looked serious enough but was she really going to try and fight the Black King? That was almost suicidal! She was a king!

"Are, you sure about this?" He said incredulously.

Well he said that, but he too was getting a little bit excited. He sort of liked this girl, she was really unique and he liked that a lot. There were too many generic people around and people like this were people he wanted to stick around with. He readied his lance in front of him as a smile crept onto his face.

The game wasn't letting him forget that he'd pretty much get one-shot by anything right now but he wasn't going to let himself get hit until he got her name.

"Because if you're sticking around, I'll be with you until I go down." He said.

Emma was, of course, disappointed. I underestimated you Black King. Most people don't recognize the difference between me throwing a lot of words at them and me actually having something of substance to tell them. Looks live I've failed to impress my new King. Emma frowned. "I'm sorry you feel that way King. I'm not nearly ambitious enough to see myself as King, although now that you mention that doesn't sound too bad... but if I did I don't think the other Kings would appreciate my actions. I'd probably call myself Queen just to piss them off." Emma had a wry smile. Acting smart and trying to sway the King was pointless, that was clear now. Might as well be my usual self from here on...

Emma caught her new leaders first order. I hope these guys don't turn against us... unless the King herself decides to intervene it'll be two players against me... very tough even if one of them is lower level. And judging by their demeanor the Black King's request wasn't going to stop them. Emma's doubt didn't show on her face, still holding her wry grin. She couldn't look weak in front of her new King and would-be opponents. Emma equipped her weapon, sword materializing in her hand. The weapon wasn't ornate, merely a simple steel sword. Nothing special, but reliable. This won't be the last fight the Ebony Strikers get in today, so we better hope for more members... me and Moon Rider can't hold all this territory ourselves, and people are going to want a piece now that we're back in the game.

Unfortunately the pair refused Moon Rider's oh-so-polite request. Well Newt, it's do or die time now, I guess it's up to you to beat the odds. Emma raised her sword. "Well, Moon Rider, guess I have no choice but to follow my new King's orders." But I wouldn't expect too much... she must know it's unlikely I'll win solo. Emma raised her free hand. Magic in DGO for a Caster class wasn't a complicated matter, a simple matter of selecting the proper sell and willing it to fly from your hands... or hand, in Emma's case. Well best to take initiative... I'll use this attack to probe them out, see what they can do. With a simple flutter of her hand a pair of imps appeared before her. Controlling the creatures was an easy matter, as they seemed to tune into her head. She aggroed the pair of monsters onto the level 2 girl. Next she cast her hand over her shoulder, willing a flaming sword into existence. The weapon seemingly materialized from what was once thin air. It flew swiftly towards the player with the ridiculous lance. She poised herself to defend in case one of them rushed her, and then waited to see how they dealt with her initial attack.

Nies hellum seemed shocked when Verdant Grin pulled her in, wrapping an arm around her. What was she meant to do? She was unsure, so for now she just went with the flow, managing a small smile. Jukebox seemed utterly relieved, and pleased that she had stepped in, and she wondered if she had interrupted him getting berated or something like that. She supposed she would never know.

jukebox seemed utterly relieved when Verdant Grin turned away, and that confirmed it for Nies hellum that she had indeed interrupted a dressing down, lf sorts. She suspectex that Verdant used his station to terrify others without actually doing anything terrifying. It clearly worked, if Jukebox was any indication.

She smiled nervously as Jukebox began to talk, taking her by the hand. She blushed as sne realised she hadn't introduced herself, but she couldn't seem to get a word in as Jukebox seemed intent on talking for a while. Every time she tried to speak up, he was talking. She didn't particularly mind, and took tne chance to study him fully. He seemed weird, well, his avatar did, but then she supposed they all did, really.

Finally, it appeared that it was her turn to speak, and she took a breath, before saying "I'm Nies Hellum. It's a bit weird, I know, but I liked it" she smiled slightly at her own foolishness. "um. I haven't tried driving yet, been a bit too...nervous about it" she admitted, once more blushing at her confession. She took her mind off it, by studying the cars, frowning slightly, "surely a noisy assassian wouldn't be a good one? I mean....well...you can't really be an assassian if you're noisy-stealth and all that, but I suppose...yes, we probably should look for intel" she said, before walking over to car, choosing that one, she looked to Jukebox.

Morgan Hazelnut - Flan

“Go on and speak,”

She sure is a bit direct in her speech... She is a king after all, I guess. And I suppose a king needs to get things done if they are to rule. "Well, I-" Flan's reply was suddenly cut off short by the addition of certain yellow headed fool crashing through the ceiling. Although, it was a rather fashionable way to make yourself known to someone important. Of course, he wasn't the only new addition. About that time, another blondie entered, but this time through the doors like a normal person. She looked cute, relatively speaking and at least better than the newly officially appointed Ebony Slayer, with strawberry-blonde hair and a rather young looking face. The pink stripes on the black mechanical arms were also a nice touch.

Morgan watched as the two new arrivals talked up a storm. The mecha-girl, actually seemed a bit demented once given the chance to talk. She was cheery enough, but didn't talk to kindly. However, the odd one of the bunch would have to be the fool. It was really uncertain what he really wanted, seeming more like he was there for the ride. It was a bit obvious that somehow the mecha-girl captured the poor fools heart. The only reasoning Morgan could give was that the fool was actually some sorta masochistic freak. This is why Morgan despises boys. Always so rash, so simple, so idiotic, so disgusting.

Of course, maybe it was just the romantic inside that made Morgan think this way, and they were probably just in fact some sorta bandits wanting to pass the time. Whatever the case, It was rather clear that the mecha-girl didn't mean to join the Black King, and now neither the blonde fool, but the girl really stood out once she was denied by the king, turning into the psychotic fool Morgan called her out to be and declaring war.

Flan turned to look at the caster, but was rather late as she just ran off swords swinging. "Wait, you shoul-" Again Flan was cut short, but this time from the realization of how futile it would be to stop them at this point. Morgan now had a choice in the events happening all around. One, was to fight with caster. That could possibly help earn favor with the king. Even if not personally, the role as a whole called for some recognition. This would indeed be helpful in uncovering who and what kind of person the Black King really was, though on the other hand, there was no specific reason why Flan should help. It certainly wasn't asked for.

Flan looked back at the king, but couldn't gather any useful reaction. Now was, regrettably, not the time to answer the king's question, but decided to try to put on a good show to make up for it. It didn't seem like it would be much of a fight as both opponents seemed they were missing a bit of health, but should things turn sour, Flan knew if anyone would have to leave safely, it would be the king.

Flan didn't hesitate once caster created an opening with the initial attack. The Jumping Bean ability activated twice, saving the last one for an escape route on the trip back down if required, and sent Flan straight into the air. Once at the pinnacle of the ascent, a furry of throwing daggers shot out, aimed at both the blonde duo's heads. Hopefully the extra height would've kept Flan out of view of the blondes, who were dealing with the caster, enough to proc off the Assassination feat. Regardless, it made for a clear vantage point to easily aim at what seemed the most vulnerable place at the time.