Solo Tremaine

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by pbfrontmanvdp [/i] [B]I dont want to ruin the series for yea but i just thought i would add this in....it gets a lot more violent way later on in the series.[/B][/QUOTE] [COLOR=#503F86]I don't mind it being violent, just so long as it stays relatively optimistic. I'm a sucker for a happy ending, heh. Or at least one that's not [i]too[/i] depressing.[/COLOR] [QUOTE][B]And yes there are a lot of similarities of RahXephon compared to Eva. I just like RahXephon a lot more since it doesnt get into the whole [spoiler] religious spectrum like Evangelion did which kinda freaked me out in the whole End of Evangelion movie....i thought the whole thing was great but a little freaky compared to the other movie and the actually series itself. [/spoiler] [/B][/QUOTE] [COLOR=#503F86]I don't mind the religious imagery so much as long as it's explained. [spoiler]I did leave EoE thinking 'What just happened?' somewhat, but I can take a while to understand things anyway. I don't exactly want everything spoon-fed to me- I think too much explanation can ruin something -but too little explanation can be just as bad.[/spoiler] What I have to do now is work out what all the musical terms used in RahXephon mean ^_^;[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]During the actual tournament, there was: -Joey vs Mai, -Joey vs Rex Raptor, -Joey vs Bones, -Joey vs Kaiba -Joey and Yugi vs Para and Dox, -Joey vs Bandit Keith -Joey vs Yugi. Outside of that there was also him against Yugi and Anzu (I prefer typing that to 'T'ea'. It looks like Tea o_O) individually before they left. But they're not technically in the Tournament. So 7 or 9, depending which you want me to include ^_^ EDIT: Okay DM, you have me ^_^; My question: Name all of the different DARK-attributed monsters Yugi has played.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]"Thank you for coming on such short notice." The young man said hurriedly, brushing his long dark blue hair away from his face. "Trying to work under these conditions in [i]incredibly[/i] trying." The guest looked around the room, admiring all the sharp sword glinting in the sunlight. The client walked over to the other side of the room and poured himself a glass of a strong alcoholic drink- the burning scent of the chemical filled the guests?s nostrils. "So I see..." He idly flicked a small gold statue resting on the table. "You have a job for me?" The man turned back to face him as his bodyguard firmly closed the heavy wooden door behind them. "Take a seat." He offered, rolling his shoulders backwards to ease some of the tension dumped onto him within the last few days. His heavy green jacket rustled as he moved. Obediently, the guest moved to sit down, making sure to move his tail out of the way before he did so. The man stared deeply into his red eyes. "You know I'd never usually ask you to do something like this, but it is... a personal request." The guest nodded and his ears pricked up. "What's the job?" "A few weeks ago I hired someone to do a job for me. The job itself was only delivering some cargo to a neighbouring star system, but three days ago I received a message from my client telling me that they still hadn't arrived. It shouldn't take more than a week's travel, and... I do get worried about these things." The guest lent back on the padded sofas, holding his hands behind his head. "So this is a simple search and retrieve mission?" Fred Luo nodded. "Yes, but you must understand that this is a [i]personal[/i] request, so you mustn't tell anyone about it." He leant forwards, giving the guest a stern look. "Especially not my father." The guest clicked his claws doubtfully. "Aren't there others better suited to this? I do have other, more needy concerns you know. I lost my entire crew on my last mission." Fred grasped hold of his hand tightly. "I understand that, Trace. And that's why I'm giving you double your normal wage to find him for me." Trace pulled his hand free and gave a wry smile. "Alright, Fred. Who is he?" "Gene Starwind." -------------------------------------------- Right, that's the general starting point of the story. The remaining crew of the Outlaw spacecraft ?Midnight Wing? are on a confidential mission to recover Gene Starwind along with his ship the Outlaw Star and his crewmates Jim Hawking and Melfina. They last had contact with Fred when entering the territory of the Tempa Empire. Fred has refused to specify what they were carrying, but that is where their search must start. Before that, however, Trace Arihyoshi- the captain of the Midnight Wing -needs to recruit some new crewmembers. The Midnight Wing itself is an indigo blue version of the attached. It has three grappler arms for combat and the capabilities to dock two smaller spaceships in its hold. For sign up details, you need: [b]Name:[/b] [b]Age:[/b] Anything you like, so long as it suits the character and race. [b]Race:[/b] Could be anything, e.g. Ctarl-Ctarl, Terran (human), Saurian? [b]Gender:[/b] Stands to reason [b]Occupation:[/b] As it stands right now, Trace is the only crew member of the Midnight Wing. There are no other members as of the start of the game; we will need some, but for now just post your occupation as of the start of the Game. --> Other occupations include Ban Pirate (Kei Pirates don?t exist anymore), Space Forces Officer, Ctarl-Ctarl Ambassador (if you happen to be a Ctarl-Ctarl), Tempa Empire warrior, Hired Assassin or Outlaw. [b]Affiliation:[/b] Outlaws (including the MW) are completely neutral, only obeying themselves or whoever pays them. Ban Pirates are loyal to Ban Pirates (naturally) and people from the Tempa Empire are loyal to the Tendo King. Anything else is up to you. [b]Appearance:[/b] Pictures are good, don't worry if you don't have one. But a detailed description would be nice if you don't. [b]Weapons:[/b] This means personal weapons as opposed to ships. Ban Pirates and warriors of the Tempa Empire have powers akin to the Tao spells used by the Kei Pirates as well as things to hit and shoot people with. Not too many Casters, please. [b]Spacecraft:[/b] If applicable. [b]Biography:[/b] Self-explanatory. Try to make it original. To clarify- you don't have to be a crew member if you don't want to, but make sure you can fit yourself into the running of the RPG. You might be on a mission to retrieve the Outlaw Star or capture the Midnight Wing, for example. Or simply be a member of the Space Forces patrolling that area at the time. NOTE: This is confusing, so please read it carefully. Characters from the series are available [i]apart[/i] from Gene, Mel, Jim, Fred and anyone who happened to die during the course of the episodes. This means characters like Duuz, Valeria, Siya Wong, Aisha and Susuka are up for grabs. Ron and Harry McDougall are possibilities. But: you will need really high-quality posts if you want to be Aisha or Susuka simply because the characters are so major to the series, and full bios are still required. You have to be able to get the personality right, heh. Now, for the more horrible bit of the sign-up process, I would like you to write an introductory scene for your character here. I will be picky as to whom I choose, so try and keep post quality high, please. Another note: I (and quite a few other people) have noticed a lot of RPGs dying spectacularly because the people who sign up for them don?t commit to them. I would like to ask you to look carefully at your track record and decide whether you can commit yourselves to it. I don?t really want another RPG disappearing without a decent run. I hope I don?t sound too harsh, but this really is getting to be a major annoyance. I don?t mean to turn people away- if you want to join up, feel free to. I would just like commitment from the people who do. My Sign-Up: [b]Name:[/b] Trace Arihyoshi [b]Age:[/b] 35 [b]Race:[/b] Gaoururos [b]Gender:[/b] Male [b]Occupation:[/b] Captain of the Midnight Wing [b]Affiliation:[/b] Neutral [b]Appearance:[/b] See avatar for close-up of face. Body is [URL=http://groups.msn.com/BloodyRoarPrimalFury/shinaandcronos.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=306]here[/URL] (ignore the man on the left). He wears a piece of bulky chest armour, as well as heavy fingerless gauntlets. He has thigh armour, but nothing else below that- it?s all fur. [b]Weapons:[/b] One armour-piercing assault rifle, a Light Shield and a large sword stolen from a Space Forces research centre. [b]Spacecraft:[/b] Midnight Wing (see attachment). [b]Biography:[/b] Trace was born on the planet of Gauros before the brutally short war with the Ctarl-Ctarl empire. In that, a large number of his family and friends were killed, and his planet all but decimated. Needless to say, he bears an extensive grudge against any Ctarl-Ctarl he comes across. He left the planet with the planet?s most advanced ship, hoping to be able to achieve something that would restore his planet back to its former glory. Not having a plan, however, he failed and he exiled himself away from Gauros in shame. He pulled together a small crew from various locations around the solar system, one of whom was a female from a genetically altered race similar to the Gaururos. She became the navigator of the Midnight Wing on the condition that she?d get transport to Sentinel III. He had planned on asking her to stay with him permanently, but before he had the chance she was killed in a grappler skirmish while on a paid mission for a client on Blue Heaven. He does his best to hide his emotions, but is known to randomly break into rounds of deafening howls when it gets to be too much. He makes sure no one?s around to hear him when he does, though. My introductory dialogue?s up there, hehe. And that?s about it. I?ll allow swearing in this RPG, but not to excess. Think along the lines of the OS series and you should do fine ^_^[/COLOR]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Manic [/i] [B]I'd have to say Roy is a very cheap character. Roy has the largest sword in the game, and there's no point in going hand-to-hand with the guy. He'll knock you away before you have a chance to smack him with your umbrella. [/B][/QUOTE] [COLOR=#503F86]I'm pretty sure Marth actually has a longer reach than Roy. I always find I can make hits further away with Marth than Roy, but that may be due to the speed difference. I've been meaning to post in here for a while but never got round to it. Here we go, then ^_^ I started off always being Fox, because he was the character I always used in SSB for the N64. I was pleased that his speed improved for Melee, as it made him a much more deadly character to use. Although that can make him a little unpredictable to control at times. His long-distance moves aren't fantastic, but his kicks can deal a great amount of damage. I usually run in, start hitting and my opponent doesn't usually get a chance ot recover until I've done %100 or so damage. Usually, that is. I've not played in a few months. When I unlocked Roy and Marth I played with them a lot more (... and not in that way, you dirty-minded people)- with marth I can use the same kind of 'Blitzkreig' tactics of not letting your opponent get back up before hitting them again. In some ways I prefer Roy because he gives me a chance to use a more even strategy and play fair. I don't like being dishonourable when it comes to things like this. I find it incredibly annoying when CPU players just stand at the edge and punch you off when you get close, so I never do it. But since Roy's slightly slower and has more powerful hits I can enjoy a more well-balanced game. Although the lack of ranged attacks and rather poor aerial skills give him some holes in defence, but I still like him nonetheless. He has a sword and a swooshy cloak, anyway ^_^ I tried using Mewtwo for a while- I think he's one of the best-looking characters but is really hard to get to grips with. I use him when I'm bored, heh.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86][SIZE=1][b]Thanks for clearing that up, Masterdramon. In future, questions about individual cards should go in the [URL=http://www.otakuboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=20652]Yu-Gi-Oh CARD Advice Thread[/URL], located at the top of the page. Thread closed. Mwaha.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/b]

[COLOR=#503F86]Aha, I found the thread ^_^ This is the first series I don't want to read the spoilers of, so I can't give much comment on everything being discussed, sorry about that ^_^ I really like the Major guy, though (the one in the green uniform who Megumi likes). The second DVD just came out in the UK a week or so ago, I hope the next five will appear soon. But Shinji is generally a lot more troubled character, yeah. I wouldn't say whiny so much... but he shows more of his insecurites. I was glad Ayato had slightly more integrity- it just makes it a bit more pleasant to watch. Not that Evangelion isn't good, mind you- it's still great and I'd recommend watching it. Even after watching through an episode a few times I still get frightened by some of the scenes. I was surprised by the similarites the two series hold- the big mech and the pilot chosen to... pilot it, heh. Then there's the strange symbols and things... although most of the characters are fairly different- RahXephon's more clean and probably for a slightly younger audience. Not that I mind, though ^_^ [spoiler]I just hope the ending's slightly more clear-cut and less depressing than Eva's.[/spoiler][/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]OtakuBot's a Famicom Disk, eh? I shall have to remember that ^_^ Heh, I won't be able to include everyone, but I will gladly give someone a mention if I can fit them in. As it happens I needed a gap for a few someone to be clobbered by Raiha, so Leh and doukeshi03 filled it rather nicely ^_~ Anyway, thank you for reading through it all.It means a lot to me. I'm really glad it's so popular. Rest assured, Chapter 3 will be on its way soon ^_^ But I have re-edited the last bit of the second chapter. I almost kicked myself when I found out I'd forgotten about ModRods. But that has now been rectified, hehe.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]I tend to use IGN just for news now, but if my expectations of a game are low, then there's a greater chance I'll enjoy it more, heh. Mind you, if there's a game I really really want I tend to ignore what the reviews say and get the game regardless, such as I did with Starfox Adventures and Bloody Roar: Primal Fury. I like the reviews in my NGC Magazine, though. They give a really fair and honest review in my opinion. They've not gotten round to doing Double Dash yet, though. And it's out [i]TOMORROW![/i] I just hope the store I preordered it from will deliver it on the day as opposed to next Monday. I don't want to have to wait three extra days, as little as that may seem ^_^;[/COLOR]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by terra [/i] [B]Except I'm not sure how Adam, etc.'s HTML from the last chapter fit in, as they didn't seem to know their way around the OB building. I would've thought that since they were doing the HTML modifying, they would've known where everything was instead of needing OtakuBot to show them around ... but whatever.[/B][/QUOTE] [COLOR=#503F86]^_^; Yeah, I see what you mean. I'll probably edit that when I get back home this afternoon. But they'd go round on a tour anyway, to see how everything looked. You have to admire your work once it's finished, after all. I'll add in some more Mod bits also- I felt some bits needed a bit more explaining. I know it seems like I only write about the Mod Squad, but I personally don't have a huge amount of interaction with anyone else so it's hard to properly justify the characters. The Adventure Arena comes in the next Chapter, heh. I just need to figure out how to work it.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]Well, it didn't look like I was going to get this finished for today for various reasons, but here it is ^_^ I hate disappointing people, heh. I apologise if it's not quite as good as chapter one- This is really an end to the introductory bit before leading onto the main stories. I need to ask some people about their avatars, too... Anyway, here we go: ---------------------------------------------------- [b]Chapter 2: Home from Home?[/b] Adjusting to a new house is never easy. Adjusting to a whole new reality is considerably more difficult, especially if the usual, somewhat comforting laws of physics no longer apply to your new location. As far as most people could tell, it was still the first day of their rather sudden departure from the real world. The digital clouds floated serenely overhead, streams of glittering HTML code parting through them every few minutes. Approaching the OtakuBoards main entrance, the hoards of members were greeted by several pairs of glass doors, above which a stone plaque read [url]www.OtakuBoards.com[/url] in a New Century Gothic font. The doors swung open and the smell of new carpet wafted outside. Excitedly curious, the mass of characters bundled inside. Syk3, OtakuSennen and the Gundams peered inside through the upstairs windows, looking into a glass-walled corridor at what looked to be bedroom doors. Gasps of awe and amazement (and perhaps one or two of disappointment) echoed around the massive foyer as they stepped inside. It was a large, round room with a marbled floor in a purple, pink and blue colour scheme. A large ?OB? was embossed in metal onto the ground. Wide, carpeted corridors led off in three different directions- one signposted ?Arenas?, one ?Forums? and the other ?Lounges?. A balcony stretched around the upper part of the foyer, presumably attached to the upstairs part of the building. The walls were painted a sky-blue with grey borders, reminiscent of the v6 skin created some time ago. Above them was a stained glass dome covered in anime and game characters from every franchise imaginable, the most prominent of which was Mario. ?Not too over the top, I see?? Sara said with a smile. Leh strained his eyes to see try and identify the characters he could see above him, not really paying attention to which direction he was slowly shuffling towards. Suddenly, he felt something pressing against his stomach. He looked down to see a curved reception area. Hundreds of small PM boxes covered the walls, looking hungry for correspondence. To one side of the desk was a cork notice board labelled ?Announcements?, and printed on the wall in a big, bold font were the Site Rules. Behind the desk sat a rather forlorn-looking OtakuBot, twiddling his thumbs and poking a post-count badge on his chest, reading 0. As soon he noticed Leh he leapt to his feet and beamed at him happily. Upon seeing the people behind him, he leapt onto the desk, throwing his arms out dramatically. ?Welcome to the OtakuBoards Information Center!? he chirruped as loudly as he could, as everyone began moving into the corridors to take a look at the other forums. He cast a steely glare to James. A massive sweat drop cascaded down the back of the Site Director?s head. ?Everyone, wait!? he bellowed. Immediately, everyone stopped and turned to face him. Oddly bemused by his total command over everyone, he pointed at OtakuBot. ?This is OtakuBot,? he announced, nodding towards the aforementioned VHS tape with limbs. ?He?s, er? going to guide us round the building.? OtakuBot?s chest swelled with pride. ?That?s right. I know everything about these forums- I know every single thread, every reply-? he paused to cast a threatening glare to Shy while making a point of flicking his ?OB Official Mascot? badge ?-and I have memorised everyone?s profiles.? Everyone looked around nervously. There was a lot of blackmail potential in that thing. OtakuBot ignored everyone giving him slightly derisive looks as he strode to the front of the group, walking towards the corridor marked ?Forums?. ?Right. As I was saying, Welcome to OtakuBoards. A fantastic online community bursting with over 5,000 active?? He paused. No one seemed to be interested. ?Well, do you [i]want[/i] to know about this site?? he asked huffily. ?OtakuBot, most of us have already been here for a few months already. We just haven?t been [i]here[/i]-? James pointed all the way around the group, indicating the building. ?-at all. We?d like to know where everything is, if you wouldn?t mind.? OtakuBot pouted for a second, then jumped round everyone to the Forum corridor. ?Any questions before we leave?? A massive shadow moved over the foyer as Syk3 raised a colossal hand into the air. ?How can I get inside?? OtakuBot tapped his foot on the ground impatiently. ?Resize your Avatar to something smaller.? He shouted. The skyscraper-tall members outside fumbled with their computers for a few seconds, then seemed to vanish. A few seconds later a relieved looking troop of Mechas entered the room. Syk made a beeline for Mei and gave her an embarrassed smile. ?This way.? OtakuBot sighed. * * * The forums were breathtaking. A far cry from the screen of lists everyone was used to, the Music, Movies and Entertainment forum had become a vast cinema screen with more then enough room to hold all of the members present. Doors lined the lower half of the massive room, each leading to a soundproof room with a smaller TV screens in them. For the music fans, an archway led to another chamber- this time completely covered in all sorts of music playing equipment- MP3 and CD players, cassette decks and (for good measure) a wind-up gramophone. A large stage with six-foot speakers either side of it stood at one end of the room, awaiting a performance by anyone brave enough to try. AJeh immediately leapt onto centre stage and grabbed the microphone. ?Who?s up for a song?? he yelled. Anxious looks darted around the room. A polite reply of ?No? came from every other member in the room. AJeh shrugged and rejoined the group. The Poetry, Fan Fiction and Literature forum seemed to be an endless library of books and computers. Not many members ventured inside, slightly intimidated by the amount of books lining the walls. Most of them had actually encountered books before, just not this many. Although well lit, it stretched far into the distance, and smelt very strongly of old leather. Next came the Anime Forums. Each had their own screen at one end of the room- the Anime Lounge had several sections each with their own TV and a massive selection of DVDs lining the walls. No one knew how they had managed to get there or even whether they were actually viewable in this world, but it was a hugely impressive collection anyway. Lining each of the walls in the forums were discussion threads. Subject titles lined the walls- every time one was selected another window burst open in front of the reader, allowing them to read through what was inside. They also contained relevant DVDs, books, videos, soundtracks, action figures? it was a collector?s paradise. The group marched past the DragonBall, Digimon, Gundam and .hack//SIGN forums. The door to the Yu-Gi-Oh section swung open, revealing four massive duelling arenas much like those seen in the series. The collective jaws of Solo, Jinzouningen17, Altron Gundam, Domon and various other duelling fans dropped to the floor. Adam looked smug. ?We downloaded a lot of programs and incorporated the programming into the various forums- for this we used the Yu-Gi-Oh Virtual Desktop. This should make your online experience even more enjoyable.? He smiled. Once everyone had finished being in awe, they moved on a bit further. OtakuBot reached for the door to the Yu-Yu-Hakusho forum, then stepped backwards, a sweatdrop appearing behind his head. ?Perhaps I?ll let you see that one for yourselves.? He murmured, before wandering in the direction of the Gaming section. * * * Some hours later, once OtakuBot had finished his exhausting tour of the forums and sat back down behind the OtakuBoards Information Centre desk, everyone migrated to the Otaku Lounge (near the kitchens, baths and bedrooms). The springy sofas were very welcome, and all the members sat down with a relieved sigh. In the relaxed near-silence that followed, a cushion whirled across the room, hurtling into Raiha?s back. She slowly turned round with a wicked grin, grabbed a pillow, and? In the OtakuBoards Moderators forum, James took his seat at the head end of a long black desk which stretched from one end of the room to the other. Various Moderating threads covered the walls, and to one side was a Member list and map of the OB Island showing where all of the members were situated. Charles and Adam flanked the Site Director, the six SuperMods sat in the chairs down from them, then the regular Moderators and technical staff at the end. ?Right? now what do we do?? James asked no one in particular. Everyone exchanged semi-blank looks. No one could have anticipated anything like this happening, so what to do next was somewhat of a mystery. Adam looked at his cartoon watch. It flashed 12:20. ?I think we should get the admin out of the way first.? Charles looked worried. ?You mean administration as opposed to Administrator, right?? Adam nodded. Sara looked thoughtfully at the map of the building. The label reading ?Kitchen? caught her eye. ?Can we eat anything?? A Mexican Shrug made its way around the room, ending with Sara. Everyone began exploring their User Options. Several clues popped up, but no one dared select the ?Mass Prune? function in the Moderator panel. Shy investigated his pockets idly. There was something inside one of them. Something crumbly. He cautiously removed it to find a rather ordinary-looking chocolate chip cookie staring back at him. He looked to everyone else for a prompt. They nodded. Slowly, he moved it towards his mouth and bit down on it. It lacked the finesse of most cookies, but was certainly edible enough. He turned to smile at everyone approvingly, but suddenly noticed that they?d all disappeared. He was outside on the beach, staring at the OtakuBoards building way off in the distance. His body had reverted to the grey, mannequin state again. Starting to panic, he looked at the computer on his wrist. ?Already registered? Login here:? it read. Hurriedly, Shy entered in his details. ?Thank you for logging in, Shy.? His Bosko body zipped back into focus and he breathed a sigh of relief. The half-eaten cookie in his hand reformed from a crescent to a round again. Curious, he flipped it over. On the back was carved ?[url]www.otakuboards.com?.[/url] ?Aah? cookie.? He muttered, placing it back into his pocket. He entered the building again, strode straight past OtakuBot (who threw him an evil glance) and made his way towards the Moderator room. As he saw the door come into view, he heard a soft padding sound behind him- footsteps on the carpet. He glanced over his shoulder to catch who it was, then glanced over again. No one was there. He quickened his pace, all the time watching what was behind him. The footsteps began again- this time faster, matching his pace. As he bolted towards the door he slammed into an invisible shape in front of him. He landed on his back and listened to the shape groan as it lifted itself back to its feet. ?Who?s there?? Shy called, crawling backwards. Not that he could see it, but the shape smiled. A ripple through the air travelled across to a small floating button, which depressed itself. A six-foot bipedal wolf with long grey fur and red eyes appeared in front of him, grinning apologetically. ?Sorry about that, Shy.? It held out a gloved hand to him. He grabbed it firmly and they jointly pulled him to his feet. Shy brushed himself off. ?Solo, if I didn?t know you I?d have been incredibly scared.? A sweatdrop dripped down Solo?s furry head. ?Heh. I went to find out where you?d disappeared to. On the way I found the ?Invisible Mode? in the User Control Panel.? His head dropped slightly and he gave Shy another apologetic look. ?I don?t think I?ll use it too often, though.? Shy rubbed his neck in thought. ?Perhaps we should disable that feature.? He murmured as the two of them walked back inside the darkened room. They came back to find everyone with various different objects in front of them. Queen Asuka (looking very fetching as Chii from Chobits) was standing opposite a large mirror, holding a Ruffly Dress against herself and smiling happily. Ken (sitting relatively comfortably in a suit of black and gold armour) was busy having a staring match with Mini-Ken and Break (a computer-animated version of Cloud of Final Fantasy VII) was poking some dumplings in a boiling pot on a stove. Charles knocked a hammer on the table with the same amount of authority as a judge. ?Let?s not get too crazy here,? he said, watching Sara try to prevent her soot sprite from falling onto the floor. ?How?? Shy began to ask. The Harlequin leant back in his chair and placed his hands behind his head in a relaxed position, while Mini-Ken made frantic gestures to jump onto his vulnerable stomach. ?We put it in asterisks on our computers," he explained. "And for some inexplicable reason, it works." He deftly typed ?*Harlequin picks up frying pan*? on the keypad and as soon as he did, a frying pan appeared from out of nowhere and placed itself in The Harlequin?s outstretched hand. ?How do we get rid of them?? Lady Katana inquired, watching Mini-Ken storm around the table. Asuka whirled her Plushie Wand through her fingers, its business end leaving a trail of glitter in the air. No one seemed to know or be particularly bothered by what happened to the items that they conjured up. At least now they?d be able to recover all of their own creature comforts from home. And, even better, they could eat. Break looked disappointed that not everything that he put into asterisks actually happened, as he found out trying to force-feed himself to Desbreko. Charles knocked his hammer on the table again, enjoying the sharp rapping sound that pierced the air. ?There?s something else we need to discuss?? Small poles appeared in front of each of the moderators. They were sleek, black, and looked rather like truncheons the police carried. "A Benny Hill show?" Transtic asked, eying the rod carefully. "ModRods!" Charles said ecstastically, grabbing his. A small 'Admin' badge appeared on his outfit, gleaming brightly in the light. Everyone else followed suit and grabbed the shiny batons. Badges appeared on all of them, depicting their unique statuses. "To the Modmobile!" Chaos cried, pointing his ModRod at the door. * * * Once everything had been decided on (and the minority coerced to agree on things not fully decided on), the Mods made their way back to Otaku Lounge. Feathers covered the floor. Members were lying in heaped piles on the floor, having been thoroughly beaten into submission by cushions. Raiha stood victoriously over the dazed and bruised forms of doukeshi03 and Leh. As soon as she noticed them arrive, she tossed the cushion away. Timid members emerged from underneath other members and makeshift bunkers constructed from sofas. ?What the Boom Boom Da-Donka Da Donk happened here?? Charles exclaimed. ?Drix, Transtic; I believe this is your job?? James sighed. Drix cracked his knuckles and straightened himself up. ?Right, then.? Transtic cleared his throat and stood next to him. They each produced their ModRods and pointed them at the floor. The feathers began to move- they shifted across the floor to a large pile in the centre, then completely vanished in a flash of light. Another Rod-point at the sofas whirled them through the air and back into their original positions, cushions landing on them in perfect order. When everything was finally cleared Drix gave a triumphant nod of his head to rapturous applause from the members in front of him. Transtic couldn?t help but smile either. He rubbed his hands together, feeling very smug. ?I could definitely get used to this,? he beamed. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]Alaris followed closely behind them, a little apprehensively. What Ben had done to the human shocked him to the core, but revenge could twist a soul so easily. He just hoped this wasn't too rash a plan of action. He sighed. It was a just cause. Perhaps this was just the wrong way about it... He felt something brush against the scales on his chest. He reached up with his hand and felt a small, jagged pendant dangling from a chain around his neck. Rayea had given it to him. He gripped it firmly. Perhaps now was the time to finally take an initiative. If no-one did, it would only be a matter of time before one side cracked. He didn't want to feel the burning pain of loss again. Alaris shouldered his sword and quickened his pace to walk alongside Ben. He gave him a sideways glance and a cheerful smile. "You wouldn't think of starting a battle without me, would you?" he smirked. Ben smiled slightly. It wasn't going to be easy by any means. But at least he wasn't going to be alone.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]For now, I'm going to use a good-old orignal Digimon. I've wanted tp play him for ages, heh. I hope he's alright. [b]Name:[/b] Flamedramon [b]Level:[/b] Champion/Armour [b]Attacks:[/b] Fire Rocket, Flame Claw [b]Attack Descriptions:[/b] [i]Fire Rocket:[/i] Flamedramon creates a flaming barrier around him and rams at full speed towards an opponent. [i]Flame Claw:[/i] A fiery slash at a nearby opponent, leaving a trail of fire on their bodies. [b]Personality:[/b] 'Warrior with a Heart' basically sums up Flamedramon. He is always ready to fight for what he believes is right, and his determination keeps him going until he reaches his goal. [b]Biography:[/b] Flamedramon was appointed as a commander of part of the army fighting against Concitomon. I can't think of anything else at the moment, heh. I may edit this in a while, I'm not sure. I just wanted to get something down before he went ^_^[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]Aidian took up a defensive stance next to Ryan as Akphetnon marched towards them. "I figured youd be in trouble when I found you," he joked. Ryan cast him a sarcastic glance. "Very funny, Aidian. Let's just get this over and done with as soon as possible." "My thoughts exactly!" Akphetnon roared, lunging at Aidian. He caught him in a vice-like grip around his waist and brought him crashing to the floor. Aidian felt the wind being knocked out of him as he hit the hard surface underneath him. He struggled to pull Akphetnon from him. Immediately, Ryan pounded the side of Akphetnon's head with his fists to try and pull him off. Akphetnon rolled away and leapt to his feet, blood dripping from his lips but still hungry for battle. Aidian pulled himself upright and the two sides glared at each other for a few seconds. "Leave me alone!" Akphetnon screamed. "Get out of here, I don't need you." "Well, you've got us, bub." Ryan growled in reply. Akphetnon clenched his fists. "You won't be alive long enough to regret saying that if you don't [i]back off[/i]." Aidian looked across to Ryan. He had no idea who this guy was, but it was clear that he wasn't friendly. And he meant business. Slowly, he lowered his fists.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]Name: Aidian Jackson Age: 17 Deck Theme: Warrior Beatdown Description: Tall, with long light blue hair (in a style similar but slightly shorter than Bakura's) and deep blue eyes. Wears a long black sleeveless jacket and a dark red top. On his wrists are metal vambraces that reach up to his elbows, and he has a sword-shaped pendant. Rarest Card: Jinzo / Magical Cylinder Deck: [i]Tribute Monsters[/i] Buster Blader Mystical Knight Of Jackal Jinzo [i]Low Level Monsters[/i] Breaker The Magic Warrior Tribe-Infecting Virus Hayabusa Knight Injection Fairy Lily Gemini Elf x3 Vorse Raider x3 Maruading Captian Goblin Attack Force x3 Gearfried The Iron Knight x2 Giant Rat x2 Amazoness Swords Woman Sasuke Samurai Sangan Cyber Jar Witch Of The Black Forest Fiber Jar [i]Magic Cards[/i] Harpie's Feather Duster United We Stand Axe Of Despair x2 Raigeki Gaia Power x2 Emblem Of Dragon Destroyer Pot of Greed Mystical Space Typhoon Monster Reborn Graceful Charity Secret Passages to the Treasure [i]Trap Cards[/i] Mirror Force Magic Cylinder Imperial Order Waboku Ring Of Destruction Barrel Behind The Door x2 Call of The Haunted[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86][SIZE=1][b]MaliksGrrl, there is a very good reason why that thread was closed- it was spam, as this is also. If you continue to post like this I can promise you your stay at OtakuBoards will be a short one. I don't want to have to warn you again. Thread closed.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/b]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Leh [/i] [B]I think he got the point the first thousand times you told him to hurry.[/B][/QUOTE] [COLOR=#503F86]Heh, I don't mind too much. It might not seem like it, but these replies can be up to about a fortnight apart. It's good for me to know there's still interest in the fic, and more often than not I really need something to kick me into business. I finished Chapter 6 today, hehe. But you won't get to read that until I finish 7. I always like to stay ahead of what I put onto the boards, just for personal preference, really. But I wouldn't mind having a bit more input- [ego]I know it's good[/ego], but I'd like to know if there are any bits that don't quite fit, or that you think could be improved. Or, if there are any bits you really like, say so. I need to have constructive feedback so I know what I need more or less of, heh. This Chapter's very big, so it'll come in two parts for ease of... reading, heh. ------------------------ [b]Chapter 5: Shadows of Fear[/b] The blade crashed through the glass tube, sending shards of metal flying in all directions. The computer screen disappeared and sirens started wailing around the room. Red beacons flashed urgently as the creature fell to the floor. ?WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?? Naraku shrieked. He ran to the side of the room and drew a massive blade from the wall. Just as he raised it to break the window in front of him, a noise stopped him. The creature opened its eyes. Aidan was standing over it, holding his sword towards the floor. It crawled backwards and jumped to its feet, glaring at him. Its purple eyes darted around the room, searching for an exit. ?Wait.? Aidan called. ?We don?t want to hurt you.? [i]Boom![/i] The humans had broken through the metal door. The colossal noise made them all jump. Immediately, two blades shot from the top of the creature?s hands, glinting dangerously in the light of the beacons. They could hear the soldiers? boots clattering on the metal flooring and the click of the ammunition clips being loaded into their assault rifles. Aidan grabbed the creature?s arm and pulled it towards the exit on the other side of the room. Alarmed, it swung one of its blades round at his waist. He let go just in time; he felt the blade slicing through his fur. Up above them, Naraku snapped out of his trance and smashed the window, just as the armoured troops arrived at the doorway. ?Restrain them!? he screamed. Immediately they leapt onto the four digimon. Aidan hurled one into the wall behind him, where he saw the scientists fleeing through a smaller doorway at the back of the room. Another two grabbed his arms and tried to pull him towards the floor. Suddenly, a vicious roar cut through the noise of the capture- the creature, enraged by being jumped upon, flew into the air. It plunged one of its blades through a human?s chest and threw his lifeless body to the floor. ?NO!? Naraku yelled. ?Stop!? Nearing the generator, the human flipped up his visor and wiped his blonde hair from his eyes. The hum of the nearby turbines reverberated through the floor. He ripped a grenade from the pocket on his flak jacket, ready to catapult it into the heart of the humans? power source. MetalArmadillomon spun free from three of his oppressors and charged towards Gabumon. He slammed into one of the soldiers, catapulting him into a computer desk. The creature reared back its head and pushed the tips of its blades together. They began to spark. A massive bolt of white lightning shrieked from the ends, hitting the crowd of soldiers. A horrifying mass of screams filled the room. Gabumon froze. ?No?? Matt kicked open the door to the generator room and hurled in all the grenades he was carrying. He stopped at the last one, his hands shaking. ?This?ll teach you for butchering Tai!? He tore the pin from the grenade, threw it in and hurtled away. The explosion rocked the corridors, knocking him to the floor and sending debris crashing all around him. The lights flashed out. The walls of the research lab shook violently. Bits of the wall exploded inwards, knocking into those inside. Distracted, the creature ceased its torturous attack and disappeared through the door, into the pitch-black corridors of the base. ?Wait!? Naraku shouted after it. A rumble from above him stopped him in his tracks. A piece of the ceiling crashed into his back, flinging him forwards. He plummeted through the open window and hit the floor with a sickening thud. Aidan, leaping over the fallen humans, grabbed MetalArmadillomon and Gabumon and carried them into the corridor. As they sprinted away, the rumbling began to die down and the building around them shook less violently. ?What was that thing?? MetalArmadillomon spluttered, steadying himself. ?She?s just like me?? Aidan said quietly. Gabumon looked around. There was no one nearby. ?Where do you think it went?? ?I don?t know?? Aidan sheathed his sword and unclipped his bow from his wrist. The arc extended to its full size and a glowing string appeared, stretching from one tip to the other. ?But I want to find her.? ?What?? the other two chorused. ?Why?? Aidan started down the corridor to their left. ?There?s a chance she could be changed.? Gabumon shook his head. ?But we still need to find Matt!? he cried. ?What if he was in that explosion?? Aidan knelt down in front of him. ?You?d know if he was dead. You?ve shared the link through the Crest?s power for so many years now. Give yourself some credit.? ?Well?? Gabumon began, his hopes lifting. ?He wasn?t in that group of humans back there. He must be elsewhere on this floor.? * * * ?What happened, soldier?? Matt felt a hand on his shoulder pull him upright. He shook his head and looked at the debris around him. Behind him were four soldiers. ?I-er? one of the digimon got into the generator and blew up the power supply. I?m guessing it blew itself up as well.? He stammered, thinking on his feet. ?Damn kamikaze monsters?? the soldier cursed. He patted Matt heartily on the back. ?We?ll get ?em, though. Don?t you worry. You fit to fight?? Matt picked up his rifle from the floor and gave the best salute he could manage. He had to get out of here. The soldier flipped his visor open and gave him a smile. ?Good work. I?ll set you to work on hunting down those digimon with these two.? He said, gesturing to two of the soldiers. Matt saluted again and followed his two companions into the darkness. ?So, where are we headed?? he asked, closing his visor. One pointed the rifle barrel in the direction of the light of his shoulder lamp. ?They were last seen near to the research labs. Since the power?s out and most of the guys have been injured, we?re some of the only troops left. As they passed the lab where the creature had escaped from, they saw the carnage it had caused. Bodies covered the floor. The injured were lying still, barely alive. Matt shone his shoulder lamp over them to see if any were able to help. In the shadows to one side, he saw movement. ?Someone?s alive!? The three of them ran over and picked up the man. He stumbled forwards. ?Commander Kamagata!? Naraku clenched his metal fists. This was the second time the digimon had almost destroyed his body. Through the light of the torch, Matt could see that most of the man?s body was covered in metal plating, with wires and pistons showing through. Real flesh remained on his face, but was undersewn with wires and tubes piping bodily fluid to the rest of his body. His eyes, although still real, carried with them a cold, almost mechanic feel to them. He was barely human. ?Get me to the munitions room.? Naraku hissed. * * * Water dripped from the ceilings of the pitch-black corridors, forming rusty puddles on the metal grates where the drains had become blocked. The explosion had ruptured a large part of the building, and water was now slowly being forced through cracks in the concrete walls. She felt quite at home in the damp conditions. The ocean was calling to her- her true home. Somehow she had to get out. She wasn?t afraid of the darkness, but the things inside had tried to hurt her. She wasn?t ready to be captured. Her footsteps were barely audible amongst the drips of the water, save for the clicks of her claws on the metal grating. She moved swiftly through the darkness, searching for a way outside, to the world she had to escape to. Voices. She leapt into the ceiling, hugging the pipes and his herself in the small gap above them. Below, three beams of light swaggered through the corridor, jointly carrying a fourth body. ?Hurry!? It was him. That familiar, harsh voice she?d heard earlier. Scowling, she stalked them along the pipes. She licked her teeth as she smelt the disgusting scent of his metal flesh. ?Which way now?? One of the voices called. They rounded a corner and quickened their pace, moving towards a large security door opposite them. Punching a button on the wall, one of the figures opened the door. He walked inside while the other two helped the man behind him. ?It?s here.? The harsh voice hissed. ?Help me inside.? She growled. The blade on its left hand slowly extended forwards, ready to strike. Below her was a lone human who had been accompanying the man. She stopped for a second. Something about him was different to the others. Curious, she moved closer. Matt looked around nervously. He had to get out. ?Shall I secure the perimeter?? he called to Commander Naraku. There was no reply- he was too far into the weapons storage room to hear him. Seizing his chance, Matt sprinted out of the room. He ran back the way he?d come, to the room where they?d found Naraku. There were strange scorch marks on the wall- perhaps from a fight with the digimon. Gabumon had to be nearby. He searched the floor with his shoulder lamp to find clues as to where they went. As he stopped at a junction, he heard something land behind him. He whirled round, pointing his rifle into the light. Nothing. He turned round again and took the right-hand corridor, running faster this time. All the time, he could feel something following behind, but he didn?t dare look back. He turned another corner, when- ?Hey!? He ran headfirst into three soldiers. He fell back onto the floor and a helping hand reached out to him. ?This is the second time I?ve had to help you today, soldier. Don?t make a habit of it.? The officer said wryly. Matt shook his hand thankfully. ?Sorry, sir. I was just? I thought I saw something.? The officer turned to the other two and signalled them to move forwards. They ran forwards immediately, their rifles ready to fire. Matt wished he?d taken the other turning. He followed behind the officer, cautiously watching his back. The steady drip of the water falling to the floor echoed eerily through the passageway. Suddenly, the sound of gunfire pierced the silence. The two of them ran towards the source of the noise, the officer reloading his rifle. ?[i]Help me![/i]? A strangled scream shook Matt to the core. As they turned the corner, the light of their lamps uncovered a horrible sight. One of the two soldiers had been thrown hard onto a railing, his neck twisted and broken. The other was twitching on the floor, blood steaming from a gash in his stomach. He let out a few strangled gurgling noises, then fell silent. Matt?s stomach tightened. His hands began shaking. The inside of his visor began clouding up with condensation. He wanted to get out. The two of them stepped forwards slowly, searching the walls next to them. Matt backed away. He didn?t care what had killed them, he just wanted to survive. As he turned back, he heard the officer crumple to the floor. He whirled round in fright to see the creature snarling back at him. His rifle clattered to the floor? * * * Naraku felt the cold steel canopy close against his body- it felt soothing, protecting. He gripped the control sticks tightly in his hands and slotted his feet into position. The two soldiers slotted the last of the fine wire plugs into the sockets in the metal compartment of his head and jumped back to the floor, watching him nervously. ?Activate!? he barked. A low rumbling noise emanated from the engines behind him. The machine whirred into life and two huge lamps on its shoulders illuminated the entire room. The soldiers jumped back. Before them stood a gargantuan robot, with Naraku as its core. Black jagged armour covered its legs, arms and chest; wires and pistons visible through gaps and joints pulsed rhythmically with each thunderous step it took. Naraku?s eyes widened with torturous glee as he moved forwards. ?The ultimate step in human evolution? Move out!? * * * Part 2 to follow. Questions, comments?[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]*grins* I'm glad you like it. I'm about a third of the way through Chapter 2 at the moment, but as I'm out today I might not get it finished until Wednesday. Still, I really appreciate all the feedback. I do accept criticism as well, hehe ^_~ By the way, if anyone has any issues with it, please PM me. I'd hate it if I'd offended anyone and wasn't told about it.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]Probably either and both. With dubbing usually comes editing, although general censoring by various channels will come into that too (The UK does pretty well for uncut versions of Eva and Outlaw Star). As for Tenchi and Cardcaptors, I can only go by what I've seen so far- it's good that they're releasing uncut and possibly redubbed versions, but as I've not seen them yet I can't say how bad they aren't. If that makes sense.[/COLOR]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by The Mac Attack [/i] [B]I thought ADV did a really good job Bubblegum Crisis Tokyo 2040, and wouldn't have even thought Orphen was poorly dubbed until this comment.[/b][/QUOTE] [COLOR=#503F86]Yay ^_^ I liked the Tokyo 2040 series. Although some bits of the dialogue were changed, I think the English was probably better. But then, I tend to prefer listening to dubs as opposed to subs anyway, unless they're incredibly bad. Sometimes the Japanese syntax and semantics just throw me completely, especially if it's a dramatic moment. It's times like that I prefer listening to an English translation.[/COLOR] [B][QUOTE]So far the worst dub I've seen is the Tenchi Muyo OAV, and you can tell this without even seeing the original. At many instances it seemed so obvious what the characters were "really" meant to be saying. Also at times many voices weren't synchronised well with the mouth movements.[/B][/QUOTE] [COLOR=#503F86]I agree with you there. Another thing that bugs me a little is when they over dub alcohol to being tea. Unless it's Japanese tradition to keep tea in wine bottles, that is. I was going to mention the DragonBall series, but I've not actually watched enough of it to pass an educated judgement on the dub. I just don't like it anyway, heh. As for the Yu-Gi-Oh dub... yeah, a lot of things are glossed over, dubbed and airbrushed out (like handguns, for instance. At one point two bodyguards were just pointing their hands at this guy, telling him to freeze. Those index fingers can be vicious, I guess.) In comparison to the original version it's tame, but I still enjoy it anyway. It's better than nothing *shrugs*[/COLOR]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by ChibiHorsewoman [/i] [B]Yu-gi-oh is one of my choices simply because the main character seems so young, yet has such a deep voice.[/B][/QUOTE] [COLOR=#503F86]There's a reason for that: he is two different people in the same body. The short version has a voice suited ot his age, the taller one is much much older and hence has a deeper voice. I think one of themost frustrating dubs I've seen would be Cardcaptors, simply because the characters speak so slowly. I don't mind the dialogue as such (but Tori and Julian not being a gay couple lost a whole range of ideas), or the acting, but the slow speech really annoyed me at times. I still like it, but I've not experienced a great range of anime yet. The same goes for the three-episode movie thing of Rayearth to some extent (made by the same people, funnily enough). As for worst, probably The Winds of Amnesia. I just didn't like it, heh.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]Christina Aguilera pops up quite a lot in this... but I really like her song that's on the first Pokemon Movie soundtrack (which in itself is an embarrassing CD to own- I actually have four Pokemon song collection CDs, and there are various tracks from all of them that I like, heh). I bought two Steps singles some while ago... I can't think that there's too much else that's incriminating.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]One thing I've been meaning to suggest for a while which half-comes under this subject is a 'Preview Signature' option in My Profile. It'd make things much easier in terms of putting in and editing things to make sure if they look right. As it is I have to find wherever it is I last posted and have a look there, heh. Just an idea, even if it might be too complicated to implement.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]"Hey, fancy a Pokemon battle?" The kid's voice was shrill and peircing, and annoyingly so. It sent a slight shiver up his spine as he turned to enter the Pokemon Gym in the Iron Mines city. He turned to face the boy, his cloak whirling about him. He stood at least two feet taller than him. He gave a snort of revulsion. "You don't want to try it, kid. My Pokemon have probably eaten Pokemon bigger than yours." The kid clenched his fists. "You talk big enough, but can you prove yourself in a match? Battle me!" he shouted. Suddenly, he was interested. If he showed this amount of barvery to people twice his size, his Pokemon must be pretty formidable. "Alright kid, you're on." The kid pulled the rim of his baseball cap to round the back of his head. "I'm no kid. Let's go!" He hurled a Pokeball into the air and it burst open. White light erupted out and formed a shape on the ground. A Tyranitar roared loudly, sending a rumble through the ground. The man stepped back slightly. How could a kid so young have a monster so powerful? Regaining his composure, he grabbed a Pokeball from his waist and threw it forwards. "Blade, go!" A white dog-like creature appeared and growled fiercely at the Tyranitar- an Absol. "Tyranitar, Hyper Beam!" The monstrous creature reared its head back as flecks of yellow energy began flowing into its mouth. Absol closed its eyes. "Blade, counter with Blizzard now!" A cold wind blew about the makeshift battle arena on the steps of the Gym. It grew in intensity, sending a piercing chill through both combatants' bodies. The Hyper Beam fired, and the Blizzard completely enveloped the blast, the snow turning to steam. "Now, Thunder!" A phenomenal Lightning Bolt shrieked from the sky and thundered into Tyranitar. It shook violently for a fe seconds, and then collapsed unconscious. The kid stood in awe at the move- Tyranitar shouldn't have been brought down so easily. He'd been training it to resist Electric attacks since he had him. "The Blizzard increased yout Pokemon's conductivity. It was easy to defeat." The man said with a note of irritation in his voice. He indicated an armband on his left arm, with a small pink 'R' imprinted onto it. "If you weren't on such a tight schedule I'd take him from you right now. He deserves a real trainer." He turned away and strode into the Gym, smiling to himself.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]OOC: Sure, Kyo-nnika can be Serenity's cabbit, heh. --------------------------------------- The red motorbike shrieked along the roads, narrowly avoiding six old ladies and a school crossing. A faint bleeping caught Kyru's atention. The bike skidded to a halt in the middle of a crossroads as he investigated his radio. Three cars swerved to avoid him and ploughed into each other. "Kyru here," he boomed. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" a voice screeched down the other end. It was Kiyone. "I'm racing towards the scene of the crime!" Kyru protested. "There could be danger-" "The only danger here is your driving! Where did you learn traffic codes?" she yelled, the radio shaking with each violent syllable. "I haven't yet... but I need to go! I need to sort out this crime." He said finally, slamming off the receiver. He revved up the bike and raced away through a red light towards the city centre. * * * Back in the office, Kiyone collapsed onto her desk, signing heavily. "I thought one Mihoshi was bad enough, now I have a whole troop of them..."[/COLOR]

[CENTER][IMG]http://img527.imageshack.us/img527/4713/briefcasekz5.jpg[/IMG][/CENTER] [COLOR=#503F86]The title's mean tot be a play on 'Enter the Matrix', but I don't think it works well enough, heh. Anyway, I've decided to write a series of OB fanfics. They're not to be taken seriously (generally- seeing as the storylines are fairly ludicrous it's almost impossible to anyway), so don't be offended if your character's wrong or you're not in it. There will be more than one, so don't think I've forgotten anyone. That said, I can only really include people I know, speak to and stalk, because I don't know everyone else's mannerisms. The basic premise is that we're sucked into a Tron-like virtual environment, where pretty much everything is customisable. A slight twist on the general OB Island thing, but I hope it's fun anyway. It'd be hard for me to explain the rest of the other stories if I didn't have this first, and seeing as a lot of the in-jokes on OB are based on online encounters anyway, it's easier to incorporate them into a similar environment. But enough waffle from me. Here's the fic ^_^ ----------------------------------------- [b]Chapter 1: Enter the Net[/b] An unusually stormy night in Melbourne, Australia. Outside in the darkness, rain plummeted in heavy drips from the sky and hit already-overflowing gutters and drains. Lightning streaked across the sky, rumbling thunder shook the buildings. In a small house near the outskirts of the city, a computer screen beamed a blue-white light into a darkened room, a tall figure approaching the chair in front of it. He sits down, placing a much-needed cup of coffee next to the keyboard. Cracking his fingers in anticipation, he gives the mouse a small shake to eliminate the screensaver. Greeting him was an AIM Away Message, reading ?be right back!? in bold purple lettering. Clicking the ?I?m Back? button, several windows zipped from the bottom of the screen and revealed a horde of private conversations. A Chat invitation, reading ?I TEH CHATT!!!!11!000! made him smile. James: I think I?m ready for this now I have my coffee. He invited himself in- hundreds of names zoomed down the side of the screen- he?d never seen so many people in one chatroom before. After a thousand greetings from everyone inside, he was free to speak. JamesOtaku01: Hi everyone. And I think I do actually mean everyone. In the entire world, lol. A purple-texted reply appeared underneath his. James knew this friend well. Desbreko145: We thought it?d be interesting to gather every OB member we could into one chatroom. Lady Liger: Which may or may not have been such a great idea ^_^; DeathKnightV4: There are about 300 people in this conversation. Now I can finally recruit you all to my Army of the Doomed. ShyGuy51185: A doomed army doesn?t sound too promising. DeathKnightV4: You shall be our first mortal enemy. James laughed and reached for his coffee. Taking a long, savouring sip he reached over to set it back on the side of the desk. Suddenly, the mug slipped. The corner of the bottom fell hard on the keys, entering in a random assortment of letters and numbers. The hot coffee spattered the screen and flooded the keys- more letters and numbers began piling into the text window. As James frantically tried to clean it up, swearing under his breath, he brushed the ?Enter? key. At exactly the same moment, a bolt of lightning shrieked into the house. The power socket sparked wildly. James reeled back as the image on the computer screen changed into a blinding white light. He closed his eyes, feeling a tingling sensation dance over his body... * * * Darkness. He must have passed out. He could feel a faint breeze blowing about him, and something almost wet behind his head. He tried opening his eyes. An unfamiliar female voice greeted him: ?Thank you for logging in, James.? ?What?? Suddenly, the darkness disappeared, and he found himself staring up at a dark grey sky. White, shapeless clouds floated gently through the air and he felt a metallic sea lapping at his head. Above him, large red and grey squares floated over like clouds. Flocks of small black triangles fluttered across the sky. Every few seconds, a bright stream of HTML code would streak across the sky, illuminating everything in a bright green light. He sat up and looked around. This had to be a dream, there was no other explanation. Or if there was, he wasn?t sure he was ready for it yet. There?s no way his house could be reduced to this after one lightning strike. Not even his entire neighbourhood would. He felt the ground underneath him- it felt sandy. The shape of the ground reminded him of a beach, were it not coloured entirely in different shades of Gourad grey. The island spreading out in front of him was no different. It was definitely an island- it was solid and had rises and valleys in it. In the distance he could just about make out the shape of mountains against the grey sky. Rubbing his eyes, he froze. His arms were no longer his own, home-grown arms. They had changed to a dull-grey robotic metal- the features of his skin and clothes had gone. He turned to the water?s edge and stared at his reflection in disbelief. He looked like an artist?s mannequin. As he reached forwards with his hand, he noticed a small button on his wrist. Hoping it would be able to explain at least some of this situation to him, he jabbed it. A screen burst out in front of him, displaying the text ?User Control Panel?. A whole host of data fields appeared below the title and he immediately set about filling them in. Except? ?How am I going to fill these in without a keyboard?? As if by magic, a keyboard appeared below the User Control Panel screen. ?Ah.? The selection screen was surprisingly limited. He couldn?t even fill in his real name on it, only his OtakuBoards username. Not that it mattered much, though- it was his real name anyway. After filling in various other details (including Age and Gender), he came to the final field: Choose Avatar. He clicked on ?Browse? A huge gallery of faces appeared on screen. Film stars, anime and game characters? Bewildered by choice, he clicked on Mario. Instantly, he felt his body changing shape. The metal robotic skin that was in front of him before disappeared and began changing into stubby, white-gloved hands with scarlet sleeves. ?Oh my?? The computer chirruped brightly and a new button appeared: ?Confirm Details.? As much as James liked Mario, he didn?t want to look like him. Choosing a more neutral game character, his body shaped into that of the tall, slim, long white-haired male he used for his Kill Adam signup. James? expression changed from that of mild shock to a slightly more relieved one. He sat down heavily, trying to take this all in. ?Well, that?s a start anyway. Now I have to figure out what?s going on?? He began to lie down on the sand when he heard a voice calling to him. ?Hello?? He sat bolt upright and turned to the source of the voice. An old-style Disney character was running towards him- Bosko. ?I?m glad to finally find someone,? the Bosko said, wearing a smile of relief. ?Where am I?? James shrugged. ?Your guess is as good as mine,? he replied. ?I?ve only just arrived here, and I don?t even know how I did that.? ?Oh.? The Bosko sounded rather disappointed. ?What?s your name?? James asked, as a feeling of familiarity dawned over him. ?My name?s-? the Bosko seemed to pause for a moment. ?Shy.? A wide smile cut across James? face. ?I thought it might be you, Josh. It?s me- James.? Shy looked up at him, impressed with his appearance. ?You?re taller than I thought you would be.? ?Yeah, but you?re Bosko now.? James replied with a wink. Shy looked thoughtful for a second, then jabbed the button on his wrist. ?I was thinking about either Kaworu or Shinji, but they?re too popular. If as many people are going to be here as I think there are, those two are going to pop up more than once. And I want to be unique.? James shrugged. ?Fair enough. Have you seen anyone else yet?? ?No-one I can tell for sure who they are- I?ve seen three different Links, Gohan, Tsukasa, a vampire and a Gundam running around. I didn?t want to take my chances with them until I knew who I was first.? ?This place is incredibly weird.? James? voice dropped slightly. The greyness appeared to stretch far into the distance. He couldn?t even make out where the horizon was. ?We need to find out what it is.? Shy sighed, looking into the sky. ?The last thing I remember was the chat- it was your reply that was the last I saw; all kinds of strange code appeared, then everything turned white. I woke up here and was told to choose an appearance.? He spread his arms as if to say ?And here I am?. A large sweatdrop appeared behind James? head. ?Somehow I figured it?d be my fault.? He looked out over the island and breathed in deeply. ?Okay, let?s see if there?s anyone else we know here.? * * * ?This is probably the oddest bunch of Moderators I?ve ever seen.? Charles commented light-heartedly as he looked over the group in front of him. And it certainly was an odd group, made all the more confusing by the fact that Shinmaru had somehow managed to take on Desbreko?s appearance, complete with sunglasses and long black leather coat. Needless to say, Desbreko was rather concerned that he couldn?t choose to look like his plain old self. ?But? that?s my face.? He said quietly as he watched himself grin back at him. ?You could use some moisturiser, you know.? Shinmaru said, poking his cheeks. ?Stop that!? Des folded his arms in irritation. ?It?s my face, I?ll do what I want to it.? ?MY face now!? Shin replied, sticking his tongue out. ?Besides, I thought you?d like being Link.? Des looked down at his Kokiri Tunic, tilting his head. ?It is nice? but seeing my face not on my body is rather disconcerting.? Shinmaru let out a big grin, then changed his appearance to that of Shin from Cowboy bebop. Des smiled approvingly. ?Don?t mess with my body.? He said slyly. ?There?s more than one place to stick a Master Sword.? The huge gathering of people looked like almost like an anime cosplay convention, interspersed with other odd creatures and machines. The entire cast of Yu-Gi-Oh was scattered around the group, along with numerous others from Trigun, Final Fantasy, The Legend of Zelda and pretty much anything popular on OB at the time. Everyone was being surprisingly well behaved for a group of two to three hundred teenagers. Although that might have been because the Moderators all looked rather formidable- Syk3 especially, who had changed into a full-sized Evangelion Unit 01. He could tell interactions with Mei were suddenly going to become a lot more complicated. He gave a worried look to Otakusennen. A skyscraper-tall Sachiel waved happily back. Not everyone was too happy at the prospect of being stuck in what could only be interpreted as a virtual reality game. It was an alien prospect- no-one knew what had happened to their homes or if they?d ever be able to escape. For some, however, it was a dream come true- being able to actually meet and properly interact with the friends they?d made over half a world away. Needless to say, the .hack//SIGN fanatics were very enthusiastic about it. And there was the added bonus of being able to change your appearance to whatever you liked. Most people seemed very happy with their new choices of bodies. Although some were already generating a fair bit of controversy- mostly due to bishounen being followed around by a large gathering of fans or fights erupting over which Shinji looked better. Although no two people could look the same, they could look incredibly similar. Hence, there were several Shinjis- some black and white, some colour, some in Eva plug suits. Asukas, Links, Sephiroths and Kenshins were the most prevalent of characters. The choosing of appearances now gave new rise to the impracticalities of anime hair. Jinzouiningen17?s Yami Marik hairdo caught the wind like a sail and was dangerously close to blinding anyone standing next to him with the points of the spikes. James, Charles (now Viewtiful Joe) and Adam (the same cartoon character featured in his avatar) stood ahead of the Moderators and got ready to address everyone. ?It?s hard to know where to start.? James muttered, scratching his neck apprehensively. ?Then I will.? Charles stepped forwards. ?Members of OtakuBoards!? he yelled. ?We have no idea where we are.? He stopped as about twenty hands shot up from the crowd of members. He pointed to a Gohan in the front row. ?Where are we?? Charles raised an eyebrow at him. ?We don?t know. Most likely inside something, somwehere.? He replied. Semjaza stepped forwards as David Bowie, gaining some frightened looks from the members at the front due to his glowing white eyes. ?My guess is?? he sighed. He didn?t seem too excited about the prospect. ??that some kind of anomaly sent us here from James? computer, and we?re now inside cyberspace.? A wave of murmuring spread over the gathered crowd. Some of the Moderators looked at each other uneasily. Apart from Syk3, who dared not move in case he unintentionally crushed everyone. ?In that case,? Queen Asuka tapped Semjaza on the shoulder. ?do you think this place can be altered by HTML?? ?It?s worth a try.? Adam mused. He brought up the computer screen and stared at it blankly for a few seconds. ?If I can figure out how this works.? The Moderators and technical staff all gathered around their screens, trying to figure out how to work their computers and manifest the code into the real-virtual world. Meanwhile, the Members began talking amongst themselves. The bishounen troop gathered themselves together, grabbing the ?safety in numbers? ideals. Domon and SuruBlu (God Gundam and Epyon) were happy to help police them around. It took longer than they?d anticipated. Many people were beginning to get restless, and Raiha had already started leading an expedition over towards the grey mountains. Adam, James, jblessing and Rikku stood up, holding their computers in front of them. Each pressed ?Enter? at the same time. Everything went white for a few seconds. The island seemed to disappear, along with the sea, the sky and the shapes. Everyone looked around apprehensively. Something appeared on the horizon. A blue-coloured bar stretched right across the horizon line. Another appeared immediately next to it, then another. At the same time the sea began to fade into view, first as a blurry mess of greeny-blue squares, then row by row their definition sharpened and a calm, gently waving sea appeared before them. Once the entire island had been given its skin, the Administrators stood back to admire their work. It was a tropical paradise. A large building stood proudly in the distance, the sunlight glinting from its tinted glass windows. It was curved in shape, built into the base of the mountain. It was very modern in its design- stone pillars, electric doors. Inside was probably going to look just as kitch. Everyone was already twitching in anticipation of getting inside to have a look round. James smiled brightly. ?Welcome to OtakuBoards.? ---------------------------------------------- And that's it for the beginning. What do you think?[/COLOR]