Zoey Boey

World of Light

Sakura Level 8: 36/80
Karin Level 3: 13/30
Location: Sea of Serendipity
Word Count: 759
Points Gained: 2
New EXP Balance--- Sakura Level 8: 38/80

Karin Level 3: 15/30

Sakura was pleased by the sight of the giant Blazermate with a giant ship and a giant pirate skeleton. Karin just pressed her lips together and thought that these Seekers really did just let anyone join up. A practice that would inevitably betray them at some point. At some point, the giant skeleton monster was going to want to eat them instead of being their friend.

Next up, was a spot of serene serendipitous sailing. The two girls carried their Steve-made boats on deck and sat them down. While Sakura sat on the edge of the boat, happily kicking her sneakers against it, Karin observed the entire thing with a discerning eye. Not that one needed one with how much of a mess this boat was. ”This boat doesn’t have much class. It is quite literally in a state of disrepair.”
”I think it’s cool! Come on, it’s a little cool.” Sakura said. Karin frowned as a will o’ wisp crewman passed her by. No comment.

It was then something caught her attention. She squinted up at the birds that were taking flight. If it wasn’t for Nadia’s keen eyes and warning, it would have taken her a while longer to react. Even still, her only reaction was a surprised gasp and a flailing of her limbs. It was Karin who yanked her off the railing and onto the ground. Crouched over Sakura and raised both her hands. An explosion went off in front of them and defensive Ki energy sparked as Karin deflected the fragmentation blast with comparative ease. Though the sleeves of her red jacket were cut into, and it still hurt. Sakura got up and crouched back to back with Karin just in time for a bomb to land behind them. Crossing both arms, she too absorbed the kinetic energy of the blast. Wood and shrapnel chipped at both girls. Wide-eyed, Sakura looked out to the water as their enemies made their introductions. She didn’t even notice Karin speed off to grab something.

”Oh, man…” Sakura said. ”Is- is everyone okay? We have to do something!” She called out, frenetic.

Then she turned around to face her friend rapidly approaching friend, Karin. ”You saved me! Karin?” Her friend was carrying a single rowboat.

”What’s the plan?” Sakura asked, wide-eyed.

”Our enemy has naval superiority. You and I must get on board an enemy ship as fast as possible, where we have the advantage.” Her eyes, razor sharp, scanned the oncoming forces. There was only one ship to board. Since their enemies were uncoordinated, there was a sizeable gap in their assault that would allow Sakura and Karin to breach through and attack the overlong named Tinkerslung.

”My boat was destroyed, so we will be taking yours. Are you with me, Miss Sakura?” Karin asked.

Sakura nodded rapidly, hyped, her adrenaline pumping. ”Yeah! Let’s go kick some ass!” She said, raising the back of her fist, which Karin quickly met with her own.

”Quite. Let us begin.” Karin said with a small smile. Fear or hesitation wasn’t an option. She tossed the boat overboard, where it landed neatly on the surface. Sakura followed after, crouching and gripping the oars.

”Sakura and I shall be assaulting the Tinkerslug! PROVE YOUR WORTH, SEEKERS!” With that command she vaulted over the edge and joined her long-time battle companion. Karin seemed to want to let Sakura drive, but Sakura insisted.

”You drive, Karin! I’ll use my Hadokens to stop any cannon shells that get too close.” She said. Karin opened her mouth, but then nodded, letting Sakura take her by shoulder as she sat on her legs in the boat. Karin swished her coiled hair and leaned forward, her arms beginning to pump circularly.

One speedy vessel, relying on their small size to not be hit by the enemy. They would leave before the Raptor Elites arrived, and they would be of no notice to the forces attacking the Adrian from below.

”Once there, we shall destroy the enemy's cannons! Then, defeat that scantily-clad, royal pretending pirate queen and seize her disgusting vessel for ourselves, taking it out of the fight. After that is done, we will decide our next move depending on the state of the battle.” Karin surmised between breaths, watching the Tinkerslug infront of them.

”We can do this! Our friends have our backs. They’ll get done beating the other guys before the TInkerslug is ours, I bet!” Sakura said optimistically.

Karin smirked, slyly, eyes narrowing with battle lust. ”Oh, I doubt that very much so.”

World of Light

Level 7: 03/70
Word Count: Teeny
Location: Metro Hub - > Mint Line
Points Gained: 1
NEW EXP balance--- Level 7: 04/70 (pending)

As Jesse turned away, she wondered if she had said anything to make Therion upset. Despite being a psychic, mind-reading was not on her list of abilities.

Which is weird. Because that’s kind of a big one, isn’t it? Maybe someday we’ll get that one. It’d be neat. Make social interactions a lot easier.

Jesse waited on the train, watching the dark tunnels pass on by.

Wait, oops. It’d be pretty fucked up to just go around reading people’s private thoughts all the time just to make sure it easier to talk to them. Yeah. Glad to know it only took me thirty seconds to remember that crucial detail.

…We also can’t predict the future.

Once back at the Metro Hub, they reunited with other Seekers. Therion and Primrose were some sort of duo, and yeah, Primrose was pretty damn tall now. Generally speaking, Jesse was used to be taller than most of the women around her- even a majority of the men. That and her general…demeanor, meant some people were intimidated or off put by her. That was just one of many reasons why she liked juxtaposing herself against crazy bullshit all the time.

Once again it was Jesse’s job to get more Pons for herself. She jumped up, floating around, hopped and vacuumed some towards herself with her incredible cosmic powers.

Weirdly, some had reappeared in the same place she had just picked them up. So this was definitely intentional. Or just some immutable feature of the world. It’s not like people were going around-

Okay! Enough theorizing with the Pons, alright? We get it. It’s confusing. Who fucking cares?
“I’m back.” Jesse said, landing on the platform with a satisfying ‘thunk’ of her boots. “Let’s do this, people.” Having a clear destination in mind brought her confidence back to the surface. “The Seekers will be a force to be reckoned with after this.”

World of Light

Sakura & Karin
plus Omori

Sakura Level 8: 33/80
Karin Level 3: 10/30
Location: Eryth Sea
Word Count: 1660
Points Gained: 3 @Majoras End
New EXP Balance--- Sakura Level 8: 36/80

Karin Level 3: 13/30

Sakura lifted her oars briefly out of the water as she felt Rubick start tugging her boat along. “W-woah. Haha- weee! Thanks, Mister Rubick!” She couldn’t help but grin ear to ear. She cast a glance over her shoulder at Karin as she was separated from her and began to say something, but just laughed again. “You guys are too much. That’s so funny.”

Karin, meanwhile, was hardly a stranger to this kind of treatment from people who thought they were superior, or even an equal, to her. She proved them all wrong, in time. ”Hmph.” She hmphed. ”I’ve no issue protecting the rear flank of our troop.” She ended up near Omori’s boat. When she noticed the mono-colored boy, he caught her attention. She wondered what kind of powers he had. He looked the nervous sort, and she wondered why.

Sakura realized she was pretty darn cold. ”Do you have a heating up spell? Like a dry clothes spell?” Sakura asked Rubick after a while, squeezing some more water out of her scarf. She really wasn't expecting an answer, And her socks were wet, too. If she was totally honest, all of a sudden she felt like crying, because getting dunked in the water this early on really sucked. She felt stupid. But the thought of crying because she fell into the water so early on made her laugh again. Covering her mouth, she just kept her head down and kept moving forward. Man, she was all over the place.

A little while later, Sakura was very startled by the nearby giant sea monster, and she instinctively karate chopped the air several times, almost falling out of her boat again. Karin called out to make sure everything was all right, speeding up.

”Oh, my gosh, Ms. Nadia, are you oka- Oh, my gosh, Mister Bowser no!” She covered her ears and leaned away as the koopa troop got dragged into a confrontation with this giant monster fish. An even more giant sea monster came out of Bowser’s spirit arsenal, eliciting another shriek from Sakura.

”Ah! What the heck!” She just rowed away as fast as she could, very eager to get to shore. Karin rowed by, watching the battle with interest. ”...Yes. I imagine I could kill the creature inside out, should it attempt to eat me. It would be easy. And once it died, it would turn to ash.” She nodded to herself, confident in her sea monster slaying abilities. The Biblical Jonah didn’t have the power to punch through an arm’s length of concrete, did he?

Once that was over and done, they ended up on shore. Sakura stayed way the hell away from the giant skeleton monster pirate and his pile of gold. That was just asking for trouble. She liked her body in one piece, thanks. The thought of literally stealing gold didn’t even occur to Karin, being as unfathomably wealthy as she was. If she was going to steal someone’s money, she would do it with wit, paperwork, charisma, and espionage. The correct way. Karin was 14 when she brought her first business competitor to tears.

Karin once again watched Omori with interest, her focused gaze not entirely comfortable for most people. She watched him loot weapons from the shipwreck. The very prospect wrinkled her nose. ”Hold on. You’re not just…some boy whose just now found a gun, are you?” She asked. A warrior would already have a weapon. And surely someone with magic wouldn’t pick up some sand-covered gun.

"Hm?" At the question directed towards him, Omori turned to look towards the source. Oh, she was with that brunette that fell through the mossbed. Karin mentioned the pistol he found the machete with. The boy held up the gun in one hand and motioned his head towards it. "This? Honestly, I wasn't planning on taking it at first. Never handled a gun before, but it didn't feel right separating it from this." He explained picking up the machete in his other hand and showing it to her.

She leaned forward, looking down at the blade with an unimpressed look. ”What skills do you have, if you don’t mind my asking? For fairness’ sake, I shall go first. I am a Grandmaster martial artist and pioneer of Kanzuki-ryu Kakutojutsu.” She said, fingers delicately splayed across the front of her red jacket.

The boy hummed in thought. "Sounds interesting." Omori noted. He pocketed the pistol in favor of his knife. "I'm no martial artist, but I'd say I'm pretty good with smaller blades. That's why I grabbed the machete." He twirled the knife in his hand with experienced dexterity.

Karin squinted. "No martial artist?" She questioned. "You understand we're going into battle. You need to be lethal with that little knife of yours. It does not matter how proficiently you can carve you and your crush's initials into the side of a tree."

For a moment, Karin was met with no reaction. His gaze was almost off-putting. He had even stopped spinning his smaller weapon and lowered his hand.

But then, Omori narrowed his eyes. "You underestimate me." He spoke bluntly. But like a switch, his expression let up. "If you're concerned I'll lag behind, perhaps you can teach me some pointers, given the chance?" He tilted his head.

”Ohoho.” Eyebrow raised, Karin said her laughter instead of laughing. ”What I do cannot be taught. If you're looking for pointers and concern, seek the drenched idiot with the unkempt brown hair.” Swishing one of her golden coils back over her shoulder, Karin turned and strode away. Either he was more capable than he looked, or she could relish in his later failure, knowing that she told him so. Victory is assured, as always, for Karin Kanzuki.

Omori simply watched her walk off, all smug and such. "...Hmph, interesting lady." The monocrhome boy said to no one, putting his stuff back in his inventory, then walking back to the main path himself.

What was her deal, anyways? Not like he couldn't learn how to fire a gun eventually.

Meanwhile, Sakura was looking at some bears. Apparently, Nadia knew one of them. Sakura was just very pleased by the cuteness of some of the bears, and in awe of the power of others. In other good news, her outfit was very slowly drying off. Very slowly.

Later on Karin and Sakura took their boats to the river's mouth, the path forward being a rocky river ride. ”Careful, Karin. That Miss talking bird said the river is like a theme park ride.”

"Of course.” Karin said, rolling her eyes. "Do you often take advice from Muppets?” She asked.

”About as often as you lose boat races.” Sakura said casually. ”When you crash on the way down because you didn’t take my advice, don’t complain to me about your hair being undone.”

"And when you crash, feel free to pretend that you didn’t because you are already soaked in water. ” Karin said, already rowing much faster.
Sakura grinned and sped up. ”I like our banter, Miss Karin. But just because it needs to be said sometimes, you really are one of my best friends. ”

"Ugh. Silence. We are racing.” Karin said, the downward momentum of the water beginning to speed up the boat. Up ahead, the Koopa Troop were taking point.

”My heart is full of respect and platonic love for you!” Sakura called out as the sound of the rushing river muffled her voice. To herself, Sakura snickered, setting her teeth on her tongue. It felt good to say it out loud, though. In the past, Sakura had tried to steer their friendship away from the ‘pretending we don’t like each other’ stage. But Karin was a tough rock to budge on that front. But still, it wasn’t too bad considering once she had shouted ‘compassion is weakness’ and then kicked one of her employees in the face. And that employee was a crucial corner of a human pyramid.

Karin’s shoulders were hunched and she was focused on winning the race, moving between rocks. Naturally, canoeing was something she had lots of practice with as well. Though she found when she thought to pull a particularly skillful maneuver, she realized she couldn’t do it. Like the skill was locked. Hmm. She did the safer route instead, still fast, but not as fast as she would have hoped. Karin would have to ponder on these limitations placed upon her by the world. She had no doubt that with enough focus, she could break through all of them. Or at least, the ones relevant to their pursuits.

Sakura meanwhile, had very little if any canoeing experience. Eyes and mouth wide, she narrated her entire trip down the river with excited, nervous noises. “Ooaaahhh woah woah oaaahhh! Eek! Ahaha- woaaah!”

Karin vanished over the curve of the river and Sakura sped up to catch her. She shrieked as she sailed over the edge of a waterfall, only for Steve’s magic boat to stay fully intact and upright. Once at the bottom, Karin was waiting and laughing loudly.

"Ohohoho! How delightful! Miss Sakura, you really will challenge anyone to anything, won’t you? Regardless of if you win or lose, or if you have any experience at all.” Karin said, smiling.

”Thanks, Karin. That almost sounded like a compliment.” Sakura said, standing up in her boat to stretch her legs.

"Of course. Karin Kanzuki does not associate with mediocre commoners. It is fortunate you picked street fighting to be your hobby, otherwise you never could have been anywhere close to my rival in any other skill.”

Sakura furrowed her brow, really trying to parse that one out. ”Thaaanks?” She tilted her head to the side.

As Karin nodded graciously and began to take a look around, Sakura asked, ”Um. Where are we, anyway? Are we there yet? I hope there’s another waterfall, I think I’d have more fun this time.”

World of Light

Level 7: 02/70
Word Count: short
Location: Queen Station - > Metro Hub
Points Gained: 1
NEW EXP balance--- Level 7: 03/70 (pending)

“Read whose mind?” Jesse asked, catching the tail end of the conversation between the two males. Therion didn’t seem very pleased, and Raz was a psychic, so she filled in the gaps.

“Hmm. Probably not a good idea to read my mind, either.” Jesse mused, rubbing her chin.

I think I’m past it now but I don’t want to risk triggering any old bad habits. You know what I mean, with the tin foil hat that one time. That was a bad year. Plus, I don’t think you would let him in, even if you wanted too, right? You’re always watching out for me. I think it’s enough, just the two of us in here. I know I shut you out sometimes. So, I’m glad you’re still here.

A shimmer in the corner of her eye. Jesse’s best friend. Thankfully, though, not her only friend anymore. They decided to head out to the other station on the Purple Line, since Queen’s Station was obviously way too far underground. Once there, they emerged from the much busier train station to find…
“Yeah, we’re still underground.” Jesse said, squinting at the ceiling. “How’s it go? I just say Moogle?”

At the magic word, the Moogle appeared. “Oh, great. Hey, um-”

“All done!” The Moogle interrupted politely.

“Huh?” Jesse asked, confused.

“Oh, sorry: All done, kupo!” The Moogle repeated with clarity.

“Right, I know, but, all done with what?” Jesse asked seriously.

“Sectonia’s Team found the closest one to Twilight Town, kupo! You can all go back, kupo!” Poof! The Moogle told them where to go, and was gone.

Jesse stuffed her hands in her pockets and glanced at Raz and Therion. “Well, boys. Operation Fuck-All is complete. Let’s go home. Or, I guess, Twilight Town.” Jesse nodded.

“Honestly, Therion, we could spend the rest of our lives exploring this place. I can only assume that anywhere we go, there’ll be something worthwhile to poke. And to be honest, I’m pretty excited to link up with the rest of the Seekers, get a real good look at this operation we’re running. See who the Good Guys are. Maybe learn a little more about what we’re up against, too.” She followed his eyes up to the Resort. “But, y’know, it’s your call. I’m not the boss of you.” Jesse said, before stepping back onto the train and take it back to the main metro.

Then she would go about the business of reuniting with the other Seekers.

World of Light

Sakura Level 8: 30/80
Karin Level 3: 7/30
Location: Alcamoth
Word Count: 1553
Points Gained: 3
New EXP Balance--- Sakura Level 8: 33/80

Karin Level 3: 10/30

Sakura listened to the recap of the matches eagerly. She looked at Geralt, puzzled. ”You lost?” She asked incredulously. ”I mean, hey, that’s okay! Nothing wrong with losing! As long as you learned something.” She backtracked, though it seemed like she still didn’t really believe it. Geralt lost? To some angel guy they didn’t even know? She’d have to take a crack at this Pit guy to see if he really was tough enough to beat Mister Geralt.

”Hey, good job, Mister King Bowser.” Sakura congratulated the king. ”And you said you beat that Miss Dante person earlier? Guess they don’t just make anybody the king, huh?” Sakura said, smiling. Then a thought occurred to her. ”...Then how come you keep losing to Mario? Isn’t Mario just some plumber guy that can jump pretty high?”

”And aren’t you just an undereducated schoolgirl with a crush on a homeless man you’ve met four times?” Karin said suddenly, preemptively coming to Bowser’s defense, and perhaps the defense of villains everywhere.

Sakura blushed, her origin story outed for anyone who cared to pay attention. ”It-it- it’s been more than four times! And he’s not homeless! Geez! Why do you have to be so mean to me? Let’s just go!” Sakura hurried off, and Karin followed, pondering why indeed she felt the need to be so mean to Sakura sometimes.

On the way there, Karin’s eyes opened wide in shock as someone committed suicide from the top of Alcamoth, exploding into a pile of blood in limbs. Sakura seemed nonplussed. ”Don’t worry, Karin-san. That’s just Miss Nadia. She does that sometimes. Gross, huh?” Indeed, it was only a few moments later that the Seeker literally pulled herself together. Karin huffed, affronted by this uncouth display from Nadia. Some commoners truly did have no manners. Adjusting her coat and ruffled sleeves, she followed Sakura to the meeting. It turned out to be a race, and Sakura immediately participated, taking off as fast as she could to keep up with Nadia and Geralt. The three of them were quite the group of speedsters.

Once there, Sakura listened to the speech. Her face fell, a sneer revealing her teeth. ”Boats? Again? I just got the last of the sea salt smell out of my hair.” Rubbing her brown hair, she huffed.

”But Sakura-chan, you’re dressed for the occasion.” Karin teased lightly, flicking Sakura’s yellow tie into her face.

”That…that is true. Hey, why aren’t you in your uniform, anyway?” Sakura asked.

”Because we’ve been in this new world for more than one day and I own more than one pair of clothes.” Karin said snootily.

Sakura was defensive. ”Hey…I wash it!” She hugged herself. ”I- I meant to buy a new pair of clothes I just- forgot. PLus, this one was a gift from Miss Isabelle! So I actually have two pairs of clothes. The other one is…somewhere.”

Karin scoffed. ”That’s what I get for leaving you alone. Upon our return to Limsa, Shibasaki-san and I will be escorting you on your next shopping trip.” Sakura giggled apologetically, rubbing the back of her head.

Once there, they received a mini map and a boat from Steve, the weirdest looking person Sakura and Karin had ever seen. He was friendly enough, and definitely a part of the good guys, but Sakura in particular had a hard time not staring whenever she saw him. The guy was operating on a totally different wavelength than everyone else, and everyone else included every other person in existence.

Karin stared at the boats in disbelief. ”What…this? This is our boat? This is not a boat. This is a glorified milk crate.”

”Hey, be nice!” Sakura said, a laugh in her voice from Bowser’s blunder. She was already happily rowing around in her boat, marveling at its simple but highly effective design. She also thought the mini-map was wicked cool. ”This is actually really cool! I feel like I’m a Ship Girl again!” She zipped around.

Karin frowned, but relented, accepting a boat and mini map. ”This is hardly befitting a woman of my stature…” She stated, stepping carefully into it and sitting very still as Alcamoth prepared itself to release them into the sea. Karin had rowed in bows before- competitively, of course- but only a part of sport or for leisure. And in Kanzuki Brand kayaks, of course.

Speaking of Ship Girls, Sakura cast a worried look over at Rika. Still, she was glad the Abyssal was joining them. But also a little sad she wasn’t finding a new path, like Bella was. She would just have to keep an eye on Rika with her new friends.

Soon they were on the way. The open ocean, with everyone in their own boats. Sakura compared it to the last time she was on the water. Both had pros and cons. On one hand, she felt pretty vulnerable. On the other, she had freedom of movement and wouldn’t be trapped on a big boat. While she wasn’t a Ship Girl anymore, she did have her original body back, which meant she was stronger and faster than before as long as she got on land. And their goal was land, so once they got there, Sakura would be more effective than she was in Ship Girl form. She really wanted to punch some evil goon right in the face.

Karin, meanwhile, was ready to show the Seekers how it was done. They had done well thus far, certainly, but with her onboard things were bound to go a lot smoother. Karin was prepared to do what it takes to secure victory. Galeem would be destroyed, and the natural order of the universe would be restored. The Kanzuki Zaibatsu would ensure it.

Sakura was happily rowing along when she saw some weird green stuff floating on the surface. It almost looked like a huge grass plain on the water. A large section of it, just to the left of the Seeker armada. Despite her uniform, Sakura was hardly an experienced sailor, so she attempted to plow right through it. Instead, it scraped against the green stuff, which was actually grass, and got all tangled up in it.

”That didn’t take long.” Karin said, slowing down alongside Sakura.

”Shush shush.” Sakura said, thinking. ”I guess I’ll just get out and push.”

”Miss Sakura, I really wouldn’t-” Karin began, but it was too late. The grass was merely kelp, greeting an illusory floor that Sakura immediately fell through. Karin covered her mouth, suppressing a smile.

Sakura flailed for a moment underwater, trying to get the icky kelp off of her. Underneath the surface though, the water was very clear, and Sakura opened one eye to look around. It was green, and hurt her eyes a little but, but under the grassy sea plain was a beautiful sight. The sky was green! There was a statue of sharks! So many verdent colors!

Under there, she saw a small group of dinosaur sea turtles swimming peacefully about among the rocks. As well as a host of other colorful fish. The view was almost literally breathtaking.

Up on the surface, Karin watched the Sakura shaped hole in the kelp with mild disinterest, waiting for her companion to emerge from the water. As she did, her keen orange eyes spotted green on green movement. Narrowing in, she spotted some kind of beast slowly moving through the kelp, barely disturbing it. From Karin’s perspective, it almost looked like a three-eyed alien crocodile.

She sensed its hostile intent. While Sakura was floating happily below the surface, Karin protected her friend. She and the creature made eye contact, and a hardened gleem passed through Karin’s eyes. She glared at it, tilting her head to the side questioningly. There was the universal feeling of a blade being unsheathed. Or the feeling of walking near a cliff’s edge, or entering a dark cave where predators lay inside. Karin communicated with the creature in a language that could be understood by even the simplest of minds. Any nearby Seekers could feel it- even the kelp around Karin seemed to drift away from her boat. The beast’s will broke first, and startled, it turned around and dove back underneath the surface, swimming away from the Kanzuki. Satisfied, Karin relaxed in her boat. The blade was sheathed, the cliff smoothed, the cave lit once more. It was safe to pass.

It was then that Sakura spotted the large creature as it swam away, quickly returning to her boat. She spat some water out.

”I just saw some kinda alien reptile thing! And turtles! Oh, man, but Miss Karin, it’s beautiful down there! You should really see it!” Sakura said, trying and failing to dry herself off.

”We’ve not left the port for ten minutes, and you’re already gotten yourself drenched in sea water and plant matter, rambling about sea turtles. Please, do not talk to me or look at me.” Karin said, before rowing off to keep up with the rest of the Seekers. She didn’t tell Sakura about the sheer amount of malice she projected on her behalf. Sakura brushed her short brain hair out of her eyes and laughed.

”Okaaay…but I just had a really cool adventure. So I’d say it was worth it. I saw some really big turtles.” With that she rowed off, trailing towards the rear of the Seekers little navy.

One Universe: Unlimited - A Marvel/DC Comics Roleplay

im going back to college soon and i havent started working on another post

BUT

World of Light

Sakura Level 8: 29/80
Karin Level 3: 6/30
Location: Alcamoth
Word Count: 549
Points Gained: 1
New EXP Balance--- Sakura Level 8: 30/80

Karin Level 3: 7/30

At the end of it all, Sakura’s loudness was NOT an issue. It was drowned out by huge yells and even huger weapons. Sakura was shocked into silence as she felt the entire place tilt to the side on a particularly climactic hit. For a moment, Karin feared Sakura had passed out standing up, until she snapped back into a reality with a fangirlish squeal like she had just watched her favorite boyband perform.

“Wasn’t it AMAZING, Mister Geralt? The power! I’ve only ever heard of people that strong back where I’m from!” Sakura gushed just as predicted, clenches fists vibrating under her chin.

”It was- fine.” Karin said, somewhat dismissively. ”If Sol was trying to, say… destroy a dam. If Dante hadn’t been so focused on using her projectiles she could have jumped right over it. That’s the problem with focusing on power instead of technique. It gives you tunnel vision.”

“Yeah hey cool except shut up! Any of them would have wiped the floor with you!” Sakura poked Karin.

”I doubt it.” Karin dismissed the idea outright.

Sakura wouldn’t let it go. “That new guy beat Mister Guile- oh, hey, it’s Mister Guile!” Sakura waved at the ever-serious soldier. The two weren’t exactly friends or anything, but they definitely knew each other. They were both street fighters! Sakura believed that all street fighters were at least, a little bit, buddies. There were only so many weirdos on the planet that got into it, after all, they had to be kindred spirits on some level.

”Yes, Mister Guile is exceptionally talented. But it was a two-on-five! Who knows how that fight happened? No. Perhaps I can’t defeat five talented fighters at once, but I can certainly beat the person who can.” Karin said proudly. She fully believed her duelist skills were unmatched. She DEFINITELY knew she could defeat Jack-O. Minions weren’t meant fight along side. Minions- excuse her, employees, were only to match the forces of the villain. Karin never hid behind her army. Instead, she trained them to face off against the forces of evil. The day Sakura had to fight through an army of ninjas to get to Karin was the day Karin shaved her head and took up house-keeping!

Now it was Sakura’s turn to be unimpressed. Had Karin already forgotten that Sakura JUST beat her up on the beach? “Man. I’m surprised you made your hair so big when you need to stuff your head up your own butt so much.” Sakura teased, totally blindsiding Karin. ”N-na-?!”

But Sakura had already moved on. Despite being the one she was rooting against, she loved a fighter who shouted the name of their attacks as they did them. She hopped up in the air and brought her fist down a few times as she walked forward. “Bandit Bringer…Bandit…Bringer!” She said to herself.

“Anyway- Mister Geralt. Mister Kamek, Mister Bowser- I wanna hear details! I know, I know, we’re busy and gotta save the world but- come on! How did your fights go? I had a great fight with Cadet- I won, by the way- and I think I learned a lot! About potions, bombs, and grenades.” She bobbed her head a bit, dodging invisible potions. “Did you guys do okay? Learn anything, win or lose?”

World of Light

Sakura Level 8: 28/80
Karin Level 3: 5/30
Location: Alcamoth
Word Count: 517
Points Gained: 1
New EXP Balance--- Sakura Level 8: 29/80

Karin Level 3: 6/30

Sakura was clearly excited to watch this battle, her fists moving up and down as she bounced on her heels. Karin watched, arms crossed, weight on one leg, clearly more analytical than emotional.

They hit each other right at the same time, which elicited a barking laugh from Karin. Sakura meanwhile recoiled from the reverberation, arms flailing happily. The brunette was clearly blown away by the flashy combos and cool attack names. She grabbed onto Karin’s shoulder and hopped up and down, shaking the heiress.

Karin wasn’t as impressed. It was all flash, no substance. It seemed like they were flinging their weapons around like plastic tubes, hovering and floating about and exploding at each other. Still, Sol reminded her somewhat of herself, while Dante reminded her of Dhalsim. An aggressive zoner versus- well, Sol’s rushdown was angry and fast and unrelenting. Some people had forgotten the value of the walk and block.

Sakura was having her face melted off by the sheer power of awesomeness. ”OH MY GOOODDD!” This was easily a Top 10 Street Fight!!

”Come on Dante, kick his butt!” She punched the air with heavy haymakers. ”WOOOOHOO-hoooo uh oh.” Sakura couldn’t hear the theme music change, but she definitely felt it.

Both Karin and Sakura’s eyes widened, however, when Dante bounced off an invisible wall. ”Wait, what? Huh? You can just do that?” Sakura turned and looked at Karin, who was very focused.

”Just a free wall? It’s been ages since I’d had anyones back to the corner…” Sakura mused wistfully, causing Karin to suppress a wince. As sweet and naive and as dumb as she may seem, Karin does not want to be caught by Kasugano Sakura in the corner. Like a gleeful little pressure monster. Ugh. Sakura hasn’t had the chance or the appropriate arena to get someone’s back against the wall since she arrived in the World of Light. Watching a fight can almost be as good as actually being in one, and she’s definitely going to be on the lookout for such opportunities in the future.

Euden and Mym- oh, hey, Euden and Mym! Sakura hadn’t seem them since Lumbridge! Without them, especially Mym, Sakura never would have gotten to reunite with the Seekers. But right now, they were being huge nerds!

”Yeah, come on! Round two! Round two! Round two!” Sakura cheered. ”You can do it Dante!”

For a brief moment she paused to apologetically grin and wave at Euden and Mym, before focusing back on the fight. Personally she didn’t mind getting flipped off at all, Sol was playing an excellent heel. It wasn’t easy getting people to root against you while also being totally awesome at the same time.

Karin covered her face slightly. Maybe Sakura had a roaring crowd and theme music pumping in her empty head, but she was currently the only one cheering. Her high pitched voice was echoing loudly throughout the entire lobby. It was an unflattering effect.

”Must you be so loud, Miss Sakura?” She asked hopelessly , the words bouncing off the side of the other street fighter’s head.

World of Light

Sakura Level 8: 17/80
Karin Level 3: 5/30
Location: Alcamoth
Word Count: 1,009
Points Gained: 2 (Sakura +9, Karin +4)
New EXP Balance--- Sakura Level 8: 28/80

Karin Level 3: 7/30

Sakura happily skipped by Cadet’s side, very pleased with their fight. It went very well. Both fighters learned a lot and were growing in skill, and she felt like she had really cemented Ace as one of her friends. Plus, again…it didn’t help that she won. Which is why she couldn’t help but smile, amused, as they rendezvoused with the fuming heiress, Karin Kanzuki.

”Uh oh…” Sakura said, setting a hand on her hip. ”Geez, Karin. I’m sorry you l-”

”Not another word, commoner!” Karin interjected, cheeks red. ”I did not lose. My victory was as complete as it was skillful. As clever as yours are lucky. So shut up this very moment before blow that happy little grin right off your chapped lips.” She threatened, jabbing Sakura with a gloved finger.

Sakura put a hand up to her lips. ”Chapped..?” She asked quietly. She tapped them gingerly. ”W-well..,uh…anyway. If you won, why are you so mad?”

”Mad! Hah! Who's mad?! HAHAHA!” She shouted out a cackle that made it sound like Sakura meant ‘crazy’ when she said ‘mad’, not ‘angry.’ ”An arrogant smug little wizard could never get under my thick yet perfectly moisturized skin. No, my young Sakura-san, I am riding the high of perfect victory, as usual.” Karin swiped her hand through the air like she was cutting any alternative viewpoints in half with a knife.

”...Right. You mean Mister Rubick?” Sakura asked, curious, blowing right past all of Karin’s nonsense.

”Yes, I mean Mister Rubick. You saw what he did to you at the restaurant. Copied your technique like it made him special! Well, Karin Kanzuki cannot be copied. Karin Kanzuki never falls for the same trick twice. Karin Kanzuki-...can choose to talk in the third person if she so chooses!” She said defensively at Sakura’s raised eyebrow.


”The point is- that cowardly arrogant bastard picked an arena where he could just use his telekinesis to toss me off, as if that counted as a victory in any meaningful way, shape, or form. The audacity! I demanded a rematch and he was foolish enough to accept, for naturally I exposed him as the fraud he was the instant I knew of his trick. Then he forfeit before I even got to hit him!” Karin vented to her friend Sakura.


”Well…I mean…rules are rules. Sounds like you two tied.” Sakura said.

”We did not tie! My victory was complete and total! His was merely- circumstantial! And once I knew his trick, my victory was assured!” Karin protested.

”But you-” Sakura began.

”But nothing! You may be happy to lick the heels of others to make friends, but Karin Kanzuki has pride! I’ll not be making peace with that magician. That noodle-armed, bug-eyed charlatan. Instead, I am plotting revenge.” She rubbed her hands together.

”But Karin!” Sakura said, alarmed. ”You’re on the same team! You need to work together!”

”That’s just it, my naive friend. During the course of our battles, I’ll save his pathetic life so many times, he’ll have no choice but to accept my superiority!” She grinned a familiar, villainous villainess grin.

”Oh, uh…okay, I guess.” Sakura scratched her head. That wasn’t so bad. At least she wasn’t trying to take over high schools anymore. Or hosting a gigantic free-for-all fighting tournament with Sakura’s entire hometown as the arena.

”Well. My fight with Ace was actually pretty-” Sakura began.

Karin held up a finger. ”My sincerest apologies, my dear Sakura, but this story may have to wait. I hear a commotion. Do you?” Karin asked, raising an eyebrow. It took a moment for Sakura’s unsharpened, commoner ears to pick up on the noise, but eventually she did.

”That- that is weird. Did someone forget you aren’t supposed to fight outside the fighting spots?”

The two of them began to head towards the reception area where they first arrived. It took them some time to get there, given the massive scale of the building. It was fortunate the acoustics were so good. Once they did, they saw the aftermath of a huge battle. Unconscious and half-conscious bodies were flung about the place! Sakura gasped, but when she saw no signs of dust or spirits, she let out a sigh of relief. Karin cupped her chin and strode forward to get a closer look.

The street fighters looked over at the two overly dressed newcomers, who seemed to be the cause of the commotion. Seemed like they were intent on challenging anyone in their way. The teams that were designed to ambush newcomers under Galeem’s influence actually lost! Sakura couldn’t believe it. Karin, meanwhile, eyed the man in red and the woman in white. They seemed like worthy challengers. But someone else had already taken her spot. One of their own, a Seeker, seemed as if she wanted to take on both invaders by herself. Quite a bold declaration of skill considering the ten or more defeated fighters in the lobby.

Sakura seemed pretty excited. Kamek was tending to the wounded, and Street Fighters beat the snot out of each other all the time, so she was pretty sure everyone would be just fine once they had some rest. ”Winner stays on, okay! I want to fight next.” She grinned.

”Or, you know…I know you guys just did a 2v10, but 2v1 isn’t fair, either. Maybe we could just split into two 1v1’s instead and-” She rambled as she began walking close to the fray.

Now it was Karin’s turn to be the Straight Man of the relationship. She set a hand on her shoulder and pulled her back. ”Miss Sakura, I am not quite sure this is that type of fight. Remember they are under the influence of Galeem.”

”Oh. Haha. Right.” Sakura blushed, grinning apologetically as a bead of sweat ran down the side of her face. Karin pulled her back.

”Still. Should our bold huntress fail in her endeavor, I call dibs on the handsome fellow with the cool sword.” Karin added with a quick smile.

”Aw, man!” Sakura pouted, crossing her arms.

World of Light

Level 7: 01/70
Word Count: short
Location: Queen Station, PURPLE LINE
Points Gained: 1
NEW EXP balance--- Level 7: 02/70 (pending)

Bugs at a tea party giving her directions. The more she saw them react to what she said, the more she realized there were some communication barriers. Like what ‘reception’ meant. Or even what the surface world was. Jesse ended up stuffing her hands in her jacket pocket and letting them work it out amongst themselves, nodding politely whenever addressed.

Who said I don’t have social skills? Who said it, huh? Seriously, who. I want names. The light in Jesse’s head did something akin to rolling her eyes.

The Director rubbed her chin at the information about the nature of the surface world. Hours and hours away. “I figured something like that.” Bugaria, huh? That was a good a name for a place full of bug-people as any, right? And wasn’t Gerudo Town named after the Gerudo?

Seems kind of funny though, right? That’d be like naming a town humans lived in…Humanaria.

Actually, I’m going to shut all the way up. My hometown was named Ordinary.

She dismissed any need for apologies with a wave of her hand.

“No, it’s fine. You’ve been really helpful. Thanks. Have a good day.” She nodded to the two ladybugs and their hostess, as she turned and walked back to her two Purple Line companions.

“So. It gets dangerous off the main roads, no surprises there. This place is called ‘Bugaria’, I think. There’s some mining operations going on in a place called Dirtmouth, which sounds like a human surface town. But apparently it’s hours away and pretty difficult terrain.” Jesse rolled her shoulder, as she was prone to do.

“I’m thinking we just try the train again. Go to another station down the line. Maybe the Resort? We just need one Moogle per line, right? At the very least, I don’t see us making any progress here by ourselves.” Jesse concluded. “Especially with only a vague goal and sense of direction. It’d just be a big…stupid waste of time. We’d get eaten by giant bugs.”

“...Huh. Well, I guess we’d turn to dust first. Before getting eaten. So there’s an upside. But overall, no, not worth it.”