Garie - Yellow Flag

Gari would have shrugged as she watched Jake go, if she could muster the lack of caring necessary for it. As it stood, she merely shifted to the side as he left. "What's his problem," she muttered to herself indifferently. She wanted to escape too, that was for sure, but for that she needed magical, alchemical assistance. Some space cowboy wasn't going to be able to help with that, especially if he couldn't muster a single motivation for them working together beyond 'because we're in the same situation.'

That said, she turned to listen to the explanation as it was given. Well then, someone who wanted to kill a nigh omnipotent being? That was a goal that Garie could get along with, and one that she knew Carol could approve of. It was secondary to getting out of here, of course, but she wouldn't be above lending a hand when the time came.

And shortly thereafter there was an appearance from the mysterious figure in person. Garie frowned, unimpressed by the sight that she was greeted to, the humanoid figure with a legitimate question mark on his face. Hmph, Carol was more impressive. Especially hen she was going all out.

Well, for now there was nothing to be done about it. She would play along, and wait for her opportunity to act, and take advantage of whatever situation arose. So, she rested in the bar a few moments longer before heading out into the city. She needed shelter, and the memories she had gotten would provide that. And if the relevant people complained, well, she could deal with that. All in all, this would be simple.

---

As the static and void burst into view outside of the train cars, Donkey Kong lumbered out and peered at the rift-screen. He listened intently to the omnipotent Viewer's explanation, growing angrier with each word, his shoulders heaving at a higher frequency for every second he listened to his adversary's babbling.

DK didn't like his diction. "Survive?" That implied that people were going to die. Donkey Kong nearly threw up his bananas at the thought.

He pounded his fist into his palm. Ooh, that ?-fellow was in for a walloping; DK would pound him like an item block as soon as he got the chance. He would ram his meaty gorilla fist right up the Viewer's--

---

"Wow! It's like we're on TV!" Dizzy cheered, spinning around on her hind wheels. "Brilliant! I have lots of talents!"

Dizzy leaned back and picked up three smooth stones, juggling them between her wheels like balls. Her eyes followed their path, swirling around and around and around, before she deftly tossed each one into her drum. THUNK! THUNK! THUNK! "I'm always up for games!" Dizzy rambled. "Oh, I do hope there is checkers!"

Dizzy continued to rattle off fun board games, seemingly oblivious to the apparent danger that the characters were in. "Maybe there'll be card games as well!" Dizzy quipped.

The Overlord glanced at Marchesa, he had forgotten about the test that he had setten up to determine her worth. It seemed that she had survived the flaming inferno without a third-degree burn on her, it seemed that she at least had the skill of dodging lethal objects, but he needed more than that to allow another living being to follow in his presence. However, in the situation of being trapped without a minion in sight, he could make some adjustments to what could eagerly die for him. However, there seemed to be something bigger than determining what minions could follow him, and that would be the overwhelming presence of this stranger. The Overlord stretched his shoulders, allowing his mace to scrape against his armor, trying to deter the stranger from fighting as fighting this being without his minions would be mere suicide.

The glowing eyes followed the strange man, watching closely for any sudden movements which would allow the Overlord to use this insignificant lady as a meat shield. However, his pathing seemed to note that a fight wouldn’t insue, but he was walking over to one of the corpses on the floor. What was he going to do with them? Eating them was an option, seeing Melvin eat all of that meat during battle was an abhorrent strategy for fighting, though it may have made him stronger, it just made it easier to pop him like the zit. The stranger sooned moved something rather than his legs, the Overlord shifted only slightly, the armor shifting across each other, the mace scraping against his shoulder, and his slitted eyes giving a more dangerous look. Ready to slam his mace into DIO’s face and make his escape into the city, once again, the pathing of his hands and arms seemed to go another direction rather than the most obvious. DIO seemed to damage himself, lightly plucking at his skins causing blood to slip out of his body. Did this man fight with his blood? The Overlord soon noticed that the blood was actually going into the body of one of the corpses. The mighty steel man pondered, what was going to happen.

His question was answered as the corpse seemed to greedily drink the corpse, the pale body’s wounds started to disappear, the flesh mending itself in a magical manner. Strange, the Overlord thought that only the blood pools in the old world could do that, did this man somehow infuse his blood with that of his own? Though, the blood pool couldn’t revive the dead, only mend the most fatal of wounds. What was this creature?

Deep in thought, trying to discover what kind of creature the Overlord was dealing with, he didn’t notice the twitch of life that was coming back to the body. Though, he did notice when DIO helped up the monster to its feet which made the Overlord glare at DIO, succubus? Is this some new type of demon? Only they could revive the dead in such a manner, and not even in the same purity of the corpse. They only revived as zombies, lifeless, rotten, and simple minded creatures. What kind of magic did this creature have left in him? The Overlord, not betraying his posture still looked at the stranger with genuine interest. This could possibly be the new Overlord if handled properly, the magic that he possess, the sheer intimidating presence, and that evil aura. The Overlord wondered, if he was his replacement in the future, how long shall he last? The Overlord shooed that thought away, he is the Overlord, he shall overcome any obstacle in his reign, and it seemed that this man was the biggest obstacle yet, the Overlord needed to be warey of his being.
The Overlord was tasked with two things, allow this being to join his rule, or dismiss him to be the biggest enemy he has ever faced. It was a challenging task, if was in full power, he could possibly take down this foe, but without his mob, he was severally weakened. So, with careful consideration, the Overlord looked at the fellow and nodded to this plan. The Overlord right after, could sense something sinister force, even on the verge of overwhelming the cladded iron man. However, he shall stay strong, as he is the Overlord, he shall never falter in his reign.



Krieg had managed to stand on his own two feet, climbing a vertical wall with only a shoddy axe and strength was something that would tire almost any out. He greedily sucked in the clean air, trying to get his breath to stabilize as his eyes scanned his opponent. He looked strong, or at least produced the aura of being strong as he stood silently with his lamppost. Krieg smiled with an almost sinister aura, fighting was in his blood, there was most likely combined with other people’s blood, but their blood also had the fighting spirit within them. His grip of his buzz-axe tightened as the strong man seemed to show off his ability with the bizarre weapon. “Do not engage, I repeat do not engage. I swear, if you start swinging that thing witho-”

The voice in Krieg’s head was interrupted, it was interrupted with a speech that got Krieg even more eager to battle. “Yeeeeeeeeeeeeesss, AGAIN!” Krieg screamed out, his body rearing to get into another scrap to the death. The voice on the other hand could see where this was going, and he couldn’t stop Krieg with all of this taunting. It paused for a few seconds, trying to think of an idea to not let Krieg kill this man, and a brilliant idea entered Krieg’s mind.

“Don’t kill them, this is duel. This is just for fun, for fun…”

Krieg didn’t react to his statement, did he listen? The voice in his head started to worry, he just needed to be on his toes to stop this fight from getting too violent to cause either death or harm on the onlookers. The Psycho on the other hand drooled in anticipation, a tiny countdown inside of his head counting down.

Five… Four… Three… Two… One…

“Bring it ON”

Krieg’s eyes shined with blood fury, and he laughed inside of a frightening manner as he activated his Buzz Axe Rampage.

“This is gonna get ugly…”

“YESYESYESYES!!!”

Krieg, with much anticipation, ran with amazing speed towards Jax. As his feet hit the ground, the rhythmic beat starting to get into the psycho, he laughed once again before chucking his buzz-axe straight at his opponent. The rusted weapon aiming true to the man, and though one may think he had just lost his most precious weapon. Another buzz-axe digistructed right into his hands. “BLOOOOODDDD!” With every step, he threw another buzz-axe towards Jax, and another, and another, and another until it looked like a hurricane of blades were after his opponent. Krieg didn’t stop the momentum, it was just getting faster and faster as he started to get closer and closer. Krieg was just waiting for the right moment, his legs bending just in the perfect angle… And… JUMP!

The Psycho flew high into the air, his buzz-axe aiming for the shoulder, a non-lethal spot if you didn’t get too deep, but that was all that the voice could do to help this man. Krieg continued to scream as he descended before Jax, his strategy in any fight was to fight like he was going to die at any moment, and most of the time everyone on Pandora fought in a similar way.

Again... It... It happened again! WHY WAS THIS HAPPENING!?

It was almost starting to seem like everyone she spoke to suddenly froze and stopped responding and it was REALLY starting to wear on her admittedly already questionable sanity... Granted, it wasn't especially unexpected with the strange giant man who exhibited Pinkie like abilities, she always acted weird or oblivious whenever she asked about those strange powers of hers. but still! "whu... why does-" and that was about when someone very heavy approached and addressed her in a manner other than screaming like they'd seen a monster... though she wasn't sure if it was potentially aggressive or not considering the question...

The things she 'did' know:
It was a big mechanical something that had addressed her
It didn't seem especially confrontational or accusing in it's question
It also seemed like it should be vaguely familiar, but she couldn't put her hoof on why.

Either way, she found herself providing it her full attention, being that it was huge and could squish her probably, and thoroughly considering the question "Hmmm, decepticon?..." She began mumbling quietly to herself as her eyes wandered off in thought "_{Decepticon, Decepti-Decep-Deception? Deceiver?... Ohhhh! that's such a simple connection to make.}" She straightened up and even managed a little smile, perhaps subconsciously grateful to be distracted from the absurdity of things she'd been trying not to panic about, yet again!... woe unto the thing that fails to pull her musings away from insanity inducing inexplicables "No, I am not a 'decepticon', I am Twilight Sparkle, a pony, an alicorn, and a princess too. I actually find deception deplorable outside of necessary circumstances that my tenure as a leader have unfortunately made apparent, but being a deceiver as a person is undesirable, and-" turns out, someone wanted to interrupt their short lived conversation with shouting about 'sentai' and what it is, and somehow it clicked "Color coded?! huh, aside from the giant robots my friends and I would fit that description too. We've fought some giant monsters and stuff before. There was this one Centaur-"

Then 'it' showed up.

Her expression cracked, an ear flick here, an eyelid twitch there, even a few locks of hair springing out of place. Naturally, all eyes had gone to this titanic image speaking out to them all. She listened, and as she did she could feel herself nearing the end of a certain rope, one that seemed to be burning itself shorter with every new mind boggling thing testing her grip on sanity... She felt compelled to challenge this faceless entity that thought to play with their lives.

Unfortunately, with said faceless entity having fled their view before any form of replies could be directed at it, this led to her talking to herself "*angry horse noise* Someone Fancy's themselves a chess master and assumes we're all toys in his hands then? Good luck with that, I was 'raised' by an immortal Chessmistress, she tells the freaking 'sun' what to do!... I should've expected this as the next step... Beat up a giant centaur monster that wants to suck up all the power in the world, have a vacation, Boom! Pocket dimension playhouse! I almost want to sic Pinkie on him, but that might be too cruel a punishment even for 'this'... Then again, now he interrupted the food chance, and-" She paused suddenly, perked up, calmed down, smoothed out her mane, and took a deeeeep breath... Then put on a potentially frightening smile as her horn lit up with a purple light, a similar color surrounding one of the keys on the tray, then she started to calmly trot away with the key in tow while calling out in a much more calm tone of voice "If anyone would like to share a room... I find the company of others very 'calming', at least when they don't scream and freak out or freeze up mid conversation."

As she wandered off she also spread that telekinetic light over a large section of grass, which was suddenly cut free of the ground and bundled up to make a back-up snack...



Ironically... Big boss might be one of those present who had the most experience with someone 'playing' with his life, as many soldier's unfortunately get to experience as pawns on some faceless organization's chess board.

However, 'Un'Ironically, He had broken away from such things and set himself up as the leader of his 'own' not so faceless organization, and had spent years allover the world leading them go far above and beyond the petty obsessions of most nation restricted groups, literally saving the world several times.

This was nothing new to him, though the context in which it has taken place baffled the mind, his position in it means little more than an irritant at the moment. People like this 'viewer' always get what's coming to them, whether by his hand or another is ultimately irrelevant, being an impotent ball of rage about the whole ordeal wasn't going to serve anyone positively though.

That said, he did have some more immediate concerns though... Not the screaming man who was somewhere nearby, probably getting in a fight, nor the strange girl who had something from under her hat steal a piece of food from another woman who looked like she could kick a moving tank and win. Of all the individuals here, many of whom clearly 'could' be dangerous, and some of which who had demonstrated certain abilities... That strange colorful equine put him the most on edge, he didn't care if she was essentially a talking animal with unrealistic anatomy, or even some kind of royalty from another dimensions. What bothered him was the evidence of psychic ability of some sort, and one could hardly blame him given recent revelations he had acquired prior to his ending in this place.

Still, she didn't seem violent about it, even if she seemed a little unstable, so he had only gone as far as setting one hand on the tranquilizer pistol on his hip, before withdrawing it with a sigh 'why can't I ever have a combat experience that doesn't involve someone with psychic powers? Controlling bees was one thing. ricocheting bullets and invisible snipers? I can handle that still. Even facing down a river of the dead. But these... 'psychics'? I never seem to be able to find a way to stop them from just coming back, or bringing back other things I 'have' stopped... And now, Inter-dimensional faceless madman playing a 'game' with us. I should have brought my rifle, I have this feeling that there's going to be something I'll rather take-out from a 'long' distance."

He stopped his thought process finally and rose from his seat, simply giving a wave of his metal hand "I'll be fine without a key miss... and for fair warning to the rest of you, try not to sneak up on me while I'm smoking." He didn't even introduce himself properly before he removed himself from the little food-joint, didn't get any food either. Instead he simply made his was off to one of these 'dorm buildings' that had surely been indicated and set himself up in a corner of their entryway before pulling out a small black cylinder that he began to 'very' slowly smoke from.

Clementine - The Yellow Flag

Clementine looked at the blood as Juri asked if she was okay. "It's not mine. I'm haven't been bit." She said it as though it were the only answer that mattered, and to her it probably was. She sipped some more of her coke and listened to what Juri had to say next. It's not safe didn't really mean much to her. Clementine hadn't been safe since the outbreak, and she hadn't felt safe since Lee died.

For Juri to ask about Clem's parents was a sort of surprise, though. No one ever asked about family anymore. "The walkers got them. I saw them in Savannah. I guess they're probably still there." Before either of them could say anymore, the Viewer appeared, interrupting every conversation in the bar. He wasn't there long, and when he left the Russians started to leave, too.

After the Russians were gone, Juri stood up and made her way to the door, kicking a drunk that tried to harass her as she went. Clementine supposed that might be what she meant when she said she was dangerous. Juri asked if Clem was coming, and Clem hurried to follow her out, leaving half the bottle of coke on the counter.

Out in the street, Clem continued to follow Juri. Something seemed off, and it took her a moment to realize what. The statue was gone.

@GameGuruGG

As the psycho's axe raged down onto Jax the Grandmaster's thoughts began to flow like a Quicksilver Sash. A Noxian technique? No, Noxians are a bit more refined, and that's a really big stretch... He looks like he's enjoying this, not new really. That buzzsaw, I swear this guy has gone to Zaun before. Maybe I've never seen him... Perhaps he's a new recruit or- Jax's thoughts were interrupted by the multiple buzzsaw's blades seeming to rub up against each other to create a deafening sound. Oh right, that.

Jax looked up as his mask lit up with such beatiful glint of sapphire, he quickly kicked his lamppost upwards and began to spin it around very fast. The first couple of saws hit him, dealing damage to his cloth and one of them dug into his leg, but at the time the rest of them impacted- Jax's spin had reached it's maximum speed. It was knocking every other saw that came at him away. A few sailed past him as they had been thrown rather quickly and not accurately.

Jax had blocked most of the saws but a few of them had dug into his arms and legs, they were now sticking out in a very weird fashion. They were like cactus's sticking out of a Venus Flytrap. Then Jax turned his attention upward to see the maniac growing ever so close to him, saw out and foaming at the mouth most likely. Jax took about five seconds to pull most of the sawblades out of his cloth, one of them managed to dig a little deep and some red liquid seeped out. Jax tightened his grip on his lamppost and without hesistation swung it upwards, flames pouring out of the top.

The saw hit the lamp, making a giant CLANG!! noise that reverberated throughout Mahora. Jax smiled underneath his mask and perked up, tightening his resolve the Grandmaster boomed:

"Now it's my turn!"

Jax put a large amount of energy into right foot, he kicked upward towards Krieg's face, as the foot continued to travel it slowly began to light up with yellow energy. The heel traveling ever closer to the psycho's mask.

@Invisible Man

That's when Nobuo stopped ranting. Right around the part where Twilight mentioned that she had a Sentai team too, one that takes on giant monsters without mechas and she was offering a room. Nobuo went wide-eyed and began to fret. He pulled out his Z-Cune Aoi figurine.

"The thing that spawned from the internet has a Sentai!? She's the closest thing I have to a Sentai right now! And now she's offering me a room! Aoi-chan, what must I do?" Nobuo thought and looked at the doll. He imagined her voice coming from it.

"Nobuo-kun, your comrades might think you've jump ship if you join her. Besides, I myself worry that your heart might waver." Aoi said.

"No, my dear Aoi-chan! My heart belongs to you and only you! I just need to learn from her while this... whatever the hell these challenges are... goes on. By the time I get back, maybe I'll learn a few things from her!" Nobuo thought.

"I don't know. I don't feel like she's right for you."

"Nonsense! I'll accept her offer gracefully. Worry not, my fair Aoi-chan. I'll love you, always."

"Oh, Nobuo-kun!!" And with that, Nobuo pecks his Aoi-chan figurine and turns to Twilight.

"So, you said you were offering a room?" He asked her, unaware that he had just kissed the figurine in front of not just her, but Wreck-Gar and some of the others.

@Shoryu
@Sir Screwloose

Nobuo simply squees at Wreck-Gar's statement. Ignoring the chaos that was ensuing between Jax and Krieg, he began to fantasize about forming his own mini-Sentai with him, Wreck-Gar, and Twilight. What would he even call it? He pondered.

Wreck-gar nodded and smiled blankly at Nobuo's explanation, though some of it seemed to have gotten through.

"Oh, then no, I am not a sentai. I am Wreck-Gar the Autobot! I am part of a team of color coded heroes who fight evil and are robots."

He pulled out a large, slightly dented iron girder and posed heroically with it, then frowned when he noticed the fight that was going on.

A large metal hand came down in between Jax and Krieg.

"Hey! Heroes don't attack their teammates."

He paused in though for a moment. One hand between the two combatants, the other still holding the construction-grade iron girder. Very large. Looked like it'd been used as a weapon before.

"We are all teammates...right?"

The voice watched the graceful display of their opponent, his mask seemed to shine in color as his lamppost began to move almost like the blades of a helicopter. Though, the voice winced as some still managed to get through the mighty defense, it seemed that he was able to block the flurry of buzz-axes, but still the hurricane of blades still managed to get past the rather strong defense. Krieg only smiled, metal digging into flesh was the best thing that could ever happen, it was what he was born in, and it was what he would die in. The Psycho still seemed to be hovering over the air, time was going to slow for this beast as his weapon was ready to dig into the sweet succulent flesh. The voice merely continued to watch, wondering if this fight was going to be fatal and when to stop. Though, both participants in the brain could both see in the corner of their eyes the counter to their own brash strategy.

Metal upon metal, the buzz-axe seemed to vibrate against the spewing flames of the lamp, Krieg smiled more viciously while the voice sighed in relief. It was only time before Krieg would pay for his blatant attack, a glowing foot of justice seemed to soar through the air like a majestic rak corpse sailing into the blades of buzzard. It made complete contact as Jax's feet slammed into Krieg's face. "Ouch, this guy fights almost like Zer0 as well, wonder if they are cousins," The voice calmly thought was Krieg's jaw was dislocated most likely with a few fractures to boot.

Krieg flew from the hit, slamming onto the ground and rolling away only a few meters away. This kick would have downed many, but Krieg only became more entranced as the fighting would continue. "Feels so right!" Krieg laughed out, yet another buzz-axe appearing into his hands, the mighty meat hunks reducing the handle into splinters. He flailed his destroyed weapon into the air, the sharp part was still attached to the broken bits, so it was still fine! The Psycho chucked yet another weapon towards Jax's direction, though, something appeared in the trajectory of its path as it was stuck inside of a huge chuck of metal, and it wasn't even the robot that got hit! He growled in frustration, ready to pounce onto the head of this GUN Loader and rip out its eyes, though his body seemed to freeze in place. "You got your fight, be lucky that I allowed you to spill even the tiniest bit of blood. Now say sorry to the man, and say yes to the robot."

"That's wrong! SO WRONG!" Krieg screamed in anger, knocking at his head that the fight went undecided by the nosy Wreck-gar, though his words could be misinterpreted by the people who didn't trust the Psycho one bit.

_____________________________________________________

She paused to look back to the admittedly rather unusual, to her anyway, human that had brought up her offer of sharing a room. His behavior 'was' odd, but hardly enough to really put her off, afterall, very VERY few could compare to Pinkie Pie in oddness.

After a fairly long moment of thought she pushed a small smile and nodded "Yes, I was offering to share a room with someone... Having a companion is bound to be better than being alone... Just don't freak out if you hear me crying myself to sleep or something, I've been holding in a break-down that I need to get out before I can think straight again, ever since figuring out I was dragged away from my friends and into some Sociopath's private dimension and even our own resident mad-pony Reality breakers couldn't so much as poke a finger through after me." Goodness, but it was weird being in a muddled state and still being able coherently explain things like that... well, it wasn't for her, but by average standards it was.

Jax looked up and jumped out of the way just to see that a huge arm had landed in front of him. The ground split and a rock hit one of the sawblades out of Jax's arm, blood bursted out of the wound and Jax gripped his arm. Crap, this is a pretty big wound. I'm no medicinal man but at least I can... The Grandmaster looked up at the robot, Alright Heimer, when did you get this big of a budget!? That thing was huge! It looked like some sort of machine straight out of Piltover which is why he had thought of Heimerdinger earlier, however as big as it was it was probably not dumb. He had mentioned teamwork. Jax thought back to the Summoner's Code that nearly every Summoner had followed for at least five hundred years now, don't flame your team, don't grief your team, you are a team. Those were the basics that only skimmed across the massive paragraphs inscribed in that giant book.

Jax then noticed his still bleeding arm, it was a pretty deep wound and the blood would not stop gushing. The Grandmaster, clearly annoyed ripped off some of his hair and quickly tied it around the wound. He then took his lampost and put it right next to his arm, Jax tightened his resolve as the lamppost began to glow. Sensing the robot's impatience he looked up at it and said, "Excuse me, just a minute."

Crimson flames began to pour out of the iron cage at the top of the post, the wound began to heat up and after 3 minutes the bleeding seemed to stall to a halt as the hair began to crust away and the wound began to cauterize. This was only a temporary solution however, the real wound beneath would take time to heal and his arm would probably sting for about the next twelve hours. He had felt this pain once before on the Shadow Isles, that damn spider had tore into his entire arm and even into the bone before Jax had slammed her away and ran for cover. Whoever this psycho was, he wasn't screwing around.

Jax, cancelling his memories looked back up at the robot. He then said, "Teammates? Sure, but we were havin a duel. Nothing serious. In fact I'm not even sure if this psycho knows about teamwork, but besides the point- who are you? And where is this?" With that the Grandmaster turned around for a split second to observe Mahora, it was a beatiful place seeming to be filled with people of big and small. Returning to his original posistion Jax continued, "Odd really, you don't usually see giant robots giving advice. Thanks for kind of saving me anyway."

Jax then eyed Krieg, who was cleary upset at something. The brazen bozo had wounded him, but that didn't mean much to Jax; and besides, he probably didn't know better anyway.

(And on that note the first day ended.)

@Sir Screwloose @Invisible Man

High up above the City, the figure who overlooked the sprawling mega-metropolis gazed down upon his little world, body expression rather lively and enthusiastic if the wiggling fingers were something to go by. "I've gotten the minimum required number of Players to once more instigate a session... I wonder what will come out this time...~" The man shaped being simply reached out, grasping the handle of a machine that looked suspiciously like a roulette, if said roulette was as big as a whale and had literally tens of thousands of spaces etched upon its face. The giant wheel spun with the intensity of a hurricane after the lever was pulled, slowing down once a full minute had passed. Soon, the chosen theme was... "Ohoho... Rather wonderful, this Challenge... I can't wait to see what the Players will cook up..." Chortling with glee, the Viewer eagerly watched...

The City rapidly changed a wave of color emanated out from the Tower and swept through every nook and cranny of the giant place, spreading to its outermost region in the blink of an eye. Even those who were awake and awaiting the very next day would be hard pressed to find any gradual change to the environment considering just how fast these differences came about, space all but shifting into something else in less than the blink of an eye. This particular Challenge was rather colorful to say the least... If one was to describe it with only one word, then it could only be described as "Plentiful".

Food sprouted up everywhere, far as the eyes could see. Ridiculous and nonsensical things such as trees that grew giant baked goods to ice cream mountains to giant breakfast themed islands could be seen in the distance landscape depending on where people were located. Rivers of wine and mint candy grasses, cotton candy clouds and literal candy canes. It was utterly alien and defied the laws of physics, and even some regular ingredients could be seen to be warped as though they were something much more quirky like fish that literally shined a golden luster to butterflies whose wings were made from potato chips. There were even giant dangerous animals rampaging about certain parts of the city, untold amounts of property damage while still fitting in the theme of the challenge such as giant boars that barbecued themselves from their own anger. Just about anything could be imagined as long as it was epicurean in nature.

The various Players would find this to be just the tip of the iceberg as they experienced the liberal food themed challenge that all but beckoned to be eaten. Ranma for his part had been all but gaping, since this was a level of weird that was too much even for him. Still, he had thick skin to situations like this and proceeded to just go about sampling everything like the glutton he was, rather enjoying himself through his stomach. "...Well, it's not too bad if it's like this..." Already the pigtailed boy was going about and picking up random things to either munch on or throw in a bag for later eating. Currently he was seated in the branches of a tree that seemed to grow Japanese bentos, plucking a box and opening it up to reveal the fragrant smells of tamagoyaki and miso soup along with fresh white rice. Chao herself was out and about procuring the various ingredients that her restaurant would need, filling her stocks up to their very limit by taking advantage of the bounty.

Over in Roanapur, the same thing was happening though in a much more chaotic in nature. The poor were acting like wild animals, fighting tooth and claw over the large bounty while the rich went about the place, charging those weaker than themselves for the right to eat. Others were gored and attacked by wild beasts who appeared in the same vicinity as the tempting foodstuffs, defending their territories. Those who had went through previous Challenges were also waiting for the other foot to drop, seeing what specific Objective the Viewer had in store for this Challenge and when it would show up. They were jaded folks, and simply put, there was no such thing as a free meal. In fact, for some... it could be considered a "last meal"...

"Uwah..." Kino stood in bewildered silence.

"..." Hermes did as well.

Certainly, neither were unused to unusual sights. The dark-haired girl had already awakened, cleaned, and dressed herself, and had been practicing drawing her guns when the world suddenly changed entirely, transforming into something not only entirely different but wholly inexplicable. To put it simply, it was a world of food. Not just food sitting out on plates, the landscape itself was composed of food. Plants sprouting food, and in the distance she could see commotion of wild beasts... made of food. There were even butterflies made of food. Hermes seemed to be confused into silence for a few moments. Holstering the Cannon, for the moment, she quietly approached a nearby bush. It was sprouting not leaves, but what appeared to be biscotti if Kino was correct.

Grabbing one, she plucked it from the bush. Raising it to her lips, the girl took a small bite.

"... It's real!" she exclaimed. It was a surprise to the traveler, who had naturally assumed you couldn't just grow food on trees. Well... you could, but not like this.

"... Is this what humans mean when they talk about growing food?" asked Hermes, behind her.

"They don't mean like this, Hermes," replied Kino. She paused for a moment and took another small bite of biscotti. Not only was it real, but it was quite impressive in terms of flavor... "... At least, not in our world."

---

Eh, there wasn't any real reason not to show off in this entrance. Sure, it wasn't anything serious at the moment, but those two weren't expecting it. Placing her pocky in her mouth, the redheaded magical girl lept down... and suddenly the ground appeared below her far, far faster and greener than it should have. Hitting at an awkward angle, the girl lost her balance. She attempted to drive the point of her spear into the ground in a bid to catch herself, but it was too little, too late.

Kyouko hit the ground face-first. It didn't hurt, it's not like that kind of thing was a problem for her. But it did snap her pocky in two and cause her to lose it entirely. Quickly, the redheaded girl pushed herself off the ground, leaping to her feet and swinging her spear up and at the ready, anger playing clearly on her face. "Okay, who the he-..."

She trailed off when her eyes fell upon the world around her. This... was certainly not the alleyway she had been descending into. It wasn't even in Mitakihara. She didn't know what it was. It definitely wasn't anything she was familiar with, but what the hell could explain this?!

... And yet, at the same time, there was this... mass amount of food. She could smell it, she could practically taste it on the air. And it was just growing everywhere!

Kyouko could barely believe her eyes. Her mouth hung open, exposing a fang and a little bit of drool. For the moment, her anger had subsided, and her love of food had taken position front and center. For now, at least.

A butterfly drew close. Only it wasn't a butterfly, because Kyouko was completely certain that those wings were potato chips. Her hand snapped out to grasp the creature and pull it closer. In a few seconds she had crushed its body and pulled the wings free, holding all four chips in her hand. She planted the head of her spear in the ground for a moment and popped one of them in her mouth.

"... It... it really is potato chips!" she exclaimed, in wonder, "... What kinda place is this?!"

The fingers that protruded from the dumpster and the low moan of pain and disgust that accompanied them gave off the distinct feel, Filia thought, of a homeless street rat blissfully ignorant of the dogma of hygiene. An image rolled around in her mind, one tempered by familiarity, of a lonesome outcast meandering without cause or knowledge through an inhospitable city, lodging in destitution and squalor. A sympathetic frown covered her face as she held out her own hand above the dingy, odorous container, and assisted the unfortunate, trapped individual out.

One look at the man upon which she'd bestowed her charity convinced Filia thoroughly that the repulsive heaps of trash lining urban alleyways were far removed from anything that could be considered Ed's natural habitat. How many hobos were there, bedecked in expensive-looking black jerkin and long, red robe? Even his hair, thick and blond, implied some trace of aristocracy or at least officiousness. Without so much as a word of gratitude Ed ignored her, seeking to cleanse his own garb in a conceited manner. Rather than soil a happenstance encounter and invite unwanted resentment against herself, however, Filia said nothing. Instead, she watched as the distant, nebulous spire lurched into action, increasing with a solemn and foreboding rhythm is revolutions, until the sky lit up with the image of a great being. Both mouths fell open, unhinged by the grandeur and majesty of the image, and only after the Viewer's visage blinked out of existence did Filia feel able to breath again.

For a moment the demands of Ed failed to penetrate her own thought: this being is more powerful than a Skullgirl. We're in much more danger than we thought! Luckily for the alchemist, the back of the schoolgirl's head proved more attentive. ”Don't know, some place called Mahora. Now beat it!” Though the gruff voice emanated from Filia, the girl's face bore a look of shock momentarily. Only a few moments of contemplation passed before the amnesiac realized the wisdom behind Samson's surliness. With the shadow of the Viewer hanging over them, she and her parasite were surrounded by a turbid sea of prospective opponents. ”Come on, kid, let's get out of here. Even normal people go crazy when a big problem comes up, an' the things we've seen today are anything but normal.”

Filia's gaze fixated on the ground, and her hair settled back into a normal position. Though she was beholden to nobody, she still felt ashamed when it felt like she was doing someone wrong. Without further ado, she turned tail and took off running, routing her confusion and anger into energy to power her down the street, away from Mahora, and into the City. She continued running, her raven-black hair streaming behind her like a curtain of ink, until she spotted a train station. Steel tracks, colossal engines, and expectant passengers all cooperated to bring a dry smile to Filia's face. Leaving the street behind, she strode purposefully across the dirt and gravel until she found a flatbed train car, into which she pulled herself. This was a favorite practice of hers and Samson's both, for aside from the provided view it was infinitely more interesting and safe than curling up on a lobby couch or in an alleyway. Here, with her back to the steel and the wind in her hair, the melancholy of wandering could persist while her aching feet found rest. Around the city she'd ride, staring out with ruby-hued eyes at all the city had to offer, until her vision grew clouded by the veil of a dreamless sleep.



A colorful light roused Filia from her sleep. While far more fitful than comfortable, her slumber had successfully restored her vitality, and the schoolgirl sat up to yawn happily. A louder, more grunting yawn sounded from the back of her head, signaling the awakening of Samson. Their first sensation was of motion, that of their flatbed train car and the whipping of air through their hair. The second, a blend between sight and smell, befuddled them utterly, even after Filia had blinked several times and attempted to rub the grogginess from her eyes.

Overnight, the world had gone wacky. Before her stretched an endless smorgasbord where there had once been a city. Twizzlers had replaced antennas, breadsticks lightposts, drumsticks stopsigns, and -most intriguingly- an entire hill had become a stack of pancakes. The sight of this caused both of Filia's mouths to water uncontrollably, and an appropriately-timed growl issued from her stomach. An instant later, she found herself springing into the air and off a moving train, her hair transforming into octopus tentacles to grab anything and everything in reach in order to prevent a gruesome impact with the ground. Once safely on solid land (and taken by a circuitous overnight route not far from where she'd started, Mahora) she made a beeline for the hill of pancakes. Kneeling at the hill's edge, she seized a handful and tasted it cautiously, somehow not anticipating that Samson would send a whole fusillade of hair spoons and forks to grab pieces of pancake and stuff them into his mouth. In an instant, Filia went from famished to stuffed, and dropped her handful of pancake with a sigh. “It's no fun when you scarf it down all at once. I don't even get to taste it!” Experimentally, she poked her stomach. “At least you didn't overdo it this time.”



DIO watched the two beings with the expectant air of an emperor awaiting a petitioner's request. From the woman, he experienced a telling absence of presence, power, or indeed, much character at all. Not every person with talent also played host to the ambition to use it, he condescendingly rationalized. With an orange stare established now on the Overlord alone, DIO observed, the silent mass of his newly-raised ally rising and falling behind him with every cheated breath. At last, the vampire's patience was rewarded by the armored behemoth's assent. DIO permitted the steely hulk a toothy smile, more for his own sake than the Overlord's, given what little he knew about his new partner's psychology. ”Splendid! Though for now your tie with me may be naught but respect for my power, I look forward to the day when we will reign together, a duumvirate of support and devotion mighty enough to tear down this pretentious Viewer and expunge the life from his veins. I have already set up a temporary but fortified base and acquired a slew of loyal minions. Walk alongside me, if you will.”

Hands now in his pockets, DIO strode imperiously out of the alleyway, with his new zombie on his heels. Silhouetted in the lambent streetlight, he twisted his body around to face the Overlord without moving his heels. ”Oh! And where are my manners? My name...is DIO.”



Deep in his reading was DIO, several hours down the line, when a chromatic miasma settled over the City and an endless feast sprang from the ground. Disturbed by the energies flowing around him, the vampire slammed his book shut, and dropped it onto a waiting side table before standing up. A few long strides brought him to the window, which like all of Hotel California's windows had been screened overnight to prevent ultraviolet rays from getting in. A colorful horizon marked the coming of that loathsome sun, the vile orange beacon that prevented DIO from taking action for roughly half of every day. In the hours preceding the sun's imminent arrival, Hotel California had been further fortified by his zombies, including the elimination of alternate routes. All stairwells had been blocked off, and other channels of passage suitable only for the unique methods of vertical navigation of vampires and crawling undead. For the less mobile, such as the Overlord, the elevator had been kept operational. Furthermore, the windows on the lower levels had also been barred on the outside, though the encroaching solar rays meant labor on that task had stalled. These thoughts were relegated to DIO's memory as he looked down and beheld the outside world.

And it seemed that the Viewer enjoyed his world utterly asinine. Cracker sidewalks? Soda fire extinguishers? Giant kit-kat benches? Nothing seemed more stupid to the vampire than a world made of food. Still, it would be fun, he imagined, to tour the proximity of the Hotel to search for weak points in its defense and to survey the idiots enjoying their feast. Thirty minutes, at most, lay between now and sunlight direct enough to be harmful to him. Smirking, DIO walked out of the penthouse and down the hall to the collapsed stairwell, where he dropped six stories and sauntered afterward through the zombie-populated lobby without so much as a scratch. If the Overlord asked where he was, a zombie would tell him.

Chun-Li, Mahora, The Next Day

Chun-Li seemed to still be trying to comprehend just what had happen last night. The entire land seems to have become made of food. She was quite reluctant to eat the food that seemed to blanket the land as she was unsure if it was even safe to eat... that is until she saw a tree that was growing Western confectionery. Chun-Li only had so much willpower especially for something she liked, so after a bit of a taste test to find the confectionery was actually good to eat, Chun-Li pulled out a bag and began stuffing it full of sweets. After she got enough sweets to last her days, Chun-Li eventually followed Ranma up the Japanese bento tree to get an actual meal and to talk to the pigtailed martial artist.

"When Chao said 'challenge,' I was expecting something more... not this," Chun-Li admitted feably to Ranma as she ate out of her own bento and offered Ranma a cookie from her bag of sweets.

@Grey Star

---

Juri, Roanapur, The Next Day

Both Juri and Clementine were able to find a nearby abandoned house to stay for the night... However, the next day, Clementine would wake up to hear fighting outside.

This was the fifth person who had to be beaten into unconsciousness today, and Juri was starting to get annoyed of it.

"JUST BECAUSE IT'S A GINGERBREAD HOUSE NOW DOESN'T MEAN YOU GET TO EAT IT!!!" Juri yelled frustrated, though she was successful in finally driving off the attackers from the house now apparently made of gingerbread. Juri panted and sighed, glancing at an untouched stop sign made of Buffalo chicken. Curiosity finally getting to Juri, she took a bite of the Buffalo chicken stop sign and her tastebuds were in spicy heaven.

"...What," Juri said to herself, all logic that she knew having been thrown out the window right then and there. The food that blanketed Roanapur was edible! Finding a paint can filled with Ranch dressing and a ladder made of celery, Juri decided to sit down on the cracker sidewalk and just eat the buffalo chicken, Ranch dressing, and celery right then and there. If Juri was going to spend the day in Buffet Land, she decided to just make the most of it.

@Azakma

Clementine - Roanapur

The night had been amazing for Clementine, who couldn't remember the last time she'd been in a place with running, heated water. She'd then slept on a bed, and between those two things she slept better than she had in at least six months. When she did wake up it was to the sound of Juri yelling. She drew her pistol and ran outside, expecting the other shoe to have finally dropped and to find the city overrun with Walkers, but when she passed through the door all she found was Juri sitting on the sidewalk eating chicken.

About half of the things around the house had been turned into food, and that included the house itself. Clem spared a thought for how gross the food might be, exposed overnight to bugs or animals or whatever, and then she started gathering her own breakfast from her surroundings. Beggars can't be choosers after all. The saying made a little less sense just because of how many options there were. She sampled most of it, and by the time she had she wasn't hungry anymore.

"So... This is our challenge?" She didn't really get it, and hoped Juri had heard something before she woke up.
@GameGuruGG

Garie - Roanpur

"Hmph, pathetic."

Garie sighed to herself as she looked out the window of the house that she had managed to find and occupy for her time here, with a bit of fighting necessary to make sure that no one bothered her about it any time soon. What could she say, she wasn't going to stay outside the entire time. It just ended up being an inevitable hassle. Even she had her preferences.

Now though, things had become....odd. Even she could see it as the city shifted to the point where it looked like it was completely made of food, as if such a thing was logical or made sense at all. It definitely showed the power of the Viewer, that much was for sure.

Garie though, was unimpressed. For one, it wasn't as though she had to eat food in the first place. So any nutritional value was completely lost to her. But it was amusing to watch, to see the people squabbling and tearing each other apart over what was available here and now. And if Carol had been here, well, she would have hated this as well. After all, it was nigh akin to a miracle, which she knew Carol's opinion of all too well.

Still, she supposed she couldn't wait around. As if it were difficult to figure out that this would herald a challenge. So with casual nonchalance she departed her current hiding spot to walk through the miraculous city, and to wait. It was sure to be...fun.

Souji Mitsuka - Mahora

A blazing comet fell from the sky, similar to all those who had come before it. Ensconced within the burning flame was a redheaded boy, clad in a school uniform and current unconscious. This would make the landing more pleasant, but in the end he didn't have to worry about it. Specifically, the fact that his fall was cushioned by a layer of jello from the transformed city, which he punched through before hitting the ground.

That woke him up if nothing else did, and he grimaced as he rubbed the back of his head, laying on the ground. "Ahhh," he complained, glad to see that there was no blood but definitely confused. At that point he got a good look around, noting the incredibly strange city. "What?"

The last thing he remembered was walking to school with Aika, Erina, and Twoearle, yet here he was instead. In a city. Made of food. Even by gender shifting twintail warrior standards that was kinda weird. He'd assume it was Anko's work, but this didn't seem like the sort of thing she would do, since she had to know that it had no appeal for him, and she didn't know his secret identity anyway. So that couldn't be it.

He rose to his feet then, brushing crumbs off of his school uniform in the process. He was glad to see that he still had his Tail Gear, so he did have options, though it further confirmed that this wasn't Anko's fault. Probably.

With that he got on the move, jogging out of the alley as he looked around, to see if there was anyone who could give him some assistance. At least it was easy to tell that he wasn't alone, which was better than nothing. "Hello," he called as he moved down the street. "Is anyone there?"

Placing some food aside in her bag, carefully wrapping it to keep it fresh until she found a better storage solution, Kino decided it was best to approach her fellow... 'players'. At least, that was how they had been referred to. Taking Hermes' handlebars, she walked him over to the nearby tree, which appeared to sprout a large amount of bento boxes, complete with all kinds of food. The blue-dressed woman and the red-wearing martial artist were in the tree, enjoying the inexplicable bounty. Stopping shortly before the base of the tree, she looked up towards them. She noticed the one girl from before suddenly engulf an entire hill of pancakes... into the back of her head, but that was not the strangest thing she'd seen since arriving.

"This is certainly a different type of world, isn't it?" she said, "Growing food is nothing new, but I've never seen it like this before..."

Kino couldn't help it. Even with her internal frustration at being constrained somewhere against her will, this was still giving her that feeling... That feeling that she thought birds must have. That feeling of travel. Certainly, it was no substitute for traveling to other countries, but she had never, ever before seen something like this. It was entirely new to her.



One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six.

The agility of a magical girl was pretty useful. One by one, Kyouko snatched the potato chip butterflies out of the air, swiftly crushing the insect part and preserving the snack food by yanking it free. Certainly, she was ticked off about being dragged off somewhere, but why would she ever pass up this opportunity? There was food everywhere! Tossing another potato chip in her mouth, the redhead bit down with a crunch, pulling out a plastic bag to keep the ones she had gathered in. Normally, it was for food she'd taken from people who obviously had less use of it than she did. Who left food lying around so unattended, anyway? They were practically begging for her to take it. And this... this was totally ridiculous, but the sheer amount of food was nothing to ignore.

Swallowing, Kyouko took another potato chip from her bag as she looked over her surroundings, a fanged grin on her face. That pocky flower thing looked pretty promising for her next stop...

She paused for a moment when she heard a voice calling out, and grasped the shaft of her spear, swiftly pulling it from the ground as she spun towards the source of the voice. The spear swiftly raised as she directed the point towards the source. Huh. Some redheaded guy, asking for help or whatever. Jeez, he looked like a loser.

"... Askin' for help's pretty dumb if ya ask me," Kyouko commented, keeping her spear pointed towards him, "Does it look like anyone'd have a clue what's goin' on here? 'Sides, anyone with half a brain'd pass up a loser like you."

As if for punctuation, she popped another chip in her mouth. Damn, they were tasty.

---

---

Donkey Kong woke up to a paradise of food.

He grunted and looked around; he had found himself strung up in a net tied to two large stalks of celery. The surprised gorilla whirled out of the net and landed on the ground with a thud. Mixed in the dirt were cookie crumbs of different varieties. DK dusted them off his hands, then plodded through the foodscape, taking occasional sniffs.

DK swung his head around, before patting his stomach. Perhaps he could go for a bit of breakfast. But what to eat? The landscape had been replaced with various food items, cooked or otherwise. Of course there appeared to be normal-sized fruits and vegetables in addition to the giant food-structures. DK, however, preferred his meals non-processed (he was an ape with standards, and even his banana cream pie had to be made with all-natural bananas and creams).

To his delight, it wasn't long until he discovered a large bunch of bananas in the shape of a hedge. There were some grapes in the mix as well; DK was looking at a veritable fruit-salad hedge. He plucked a banana from the bottom-most row...

...and the hedge collapsed, spilling bananas and grapes all over the ground. DK sheepishly stepped away from the mess (bending over to pick up a couple more banana bunches). He peeled a banana and took a satisfied bite.

But what could make survival difficult in the biggest buffet in all of multiversal history? Donkey Kong sure didn't know, but as long as he had his bananas, he was happy. He felt a twinge of apprehension, but was altogether unbothered as he continued munching on his banana and exploring the food-world. He wasn't so much interested in the other foods (barring the fruits, but his arms were full), but the number of sights and smells certainly piqued his interest. He stared up the sweet yellow frame of a massive Twinkie, moving on to a sapling that appeared to be composed of pretzel bread. He even bent down and realized that a lot of the grass was candied mint. It was a ridiculous amount of food, DK had to admit; this bountiful harvest couldn't possibly be natural.

DK figured it meant free bananas for at least until the Viewer decided to take it all away for his sadistic amusement, so he gladly took the bananas in his arms and continued to explore.

---

Dizzy was a cement mixer and didn't really need to eat, but the sight was certainly whimsical and had Dizzy's attention taken completely. She whirled around in the cookie-dirt and commented on the various food-structures. "Wow! I wish Bob and the others were here to see this! It's fantastic!"

She backed into a peppermint-bark tree and a few chips of chocolate sheared off the trunk and tumbled into her drum. She heard the thunks and jumped forward in surprise. "Oh!"

She smiled at the peppermint bark tree, before whirling back around to explore the world, hopping giddily up and down, her excited eyes darting from left to right.