Code: PIRULUK

In response to Yuri's question, the AI heart-stuffed-toy-robot-thing pops out from one of the innumerable holes in the wall. "Hmmm, yes, the tech expo one, right? I know because I'm amazing and cute and totally in sync with you. And definitely not because I have 30% of my processing power dedicated to interpreting data from the unbelievable numbers of surveillance devices I have hidden on this ship. Nope. That would be silly." The thing spins around excitedly. "Anyway, if you're ready to go, I can send you right now. Just head over to the hangar on the bottom floor and I'll get a skipper prepared." Yuri and Azusa are not given a chance to say no, and are forcibly pushed with the pointy end of the heart toward the hangar, where they are promptly forced to board a cramped miniship that takes them down to the surface spaceport. Once they arrive, they're unceremoniously ejected from the pod, which flies off, promising to come back in about 10 hours or so. Somehow finding their way to the job location, they're received by a bespectacled man in a business suit, who quickly tells them about their job - they are meant to help out with advertisement for the booth, using all their charms and anything at their disposal to get customers to buy the products on sale (shoddily-made music players with shady manufacturing details). The products are cheap, but also poorly constructed, and just holding one up makes it feel like it's going to fall apart at any moment. The girls' performance is rated based on how many units they sell, with an additional bonus if they're able to secure additional funding from investors. The morning comes and goes, and the girls try their best to cheat trick coerce persuade woo the numerous passing customers, but have yet to make a single sale. Annoyed, the boss tells you to go on lunch break, with a warning that if you can't make five sales by the end of the day, you're not getting paid. Sitting down outside the expo with a pair of burgers, Yuri and Azusa take a moment to commiserate. ((This is the bit where you can have moar interactionz and discuss events that occurred, or talk about anything really. Building bonds!!! Also I may introduce certain events during these break segments in all job requests, depending on my mood. If you're lucky enough to get one, you might be able to get a rare item, or some other benefit, assuming you respond correctly.))

Kagari awoke in her room, aching all over. Ah... that's right. I lost. She bit her lip, but somehow she couldn't get angry. At least Hiroki gets another win. That should boost her score some. She turned on her side, unwilling to leave her bed. She pulled out her phone and started scrolling through her coveted collection of photos, but somehow... she wasn't in the mood. She couldn't get excited, even when staring at these pictures of cute lolis. She sighed. ...She probably thinks I was lying to her. She probably hates me now. She had attempted to give the diminutive girl a sign to indicate that she had intended to throw the match, but in that brief instant before the attack hit, there was no way she could have seen it... ...It hurts. Kagari turned on her belly and buried her face in her pillow. Rivulets of water began to run along its surface as a string of choked, muffled sobs echoed in her empty room.

Serene moves to J12 and Fireslaps Knight 4

As Ayaka and Yuki enter the training room, they are greeted with a room about the size of an indoor tennis court. A set of long balance beams line one corner, and trampolines dot the floor, surrounded by large gym mats. An AV system in the side beckons invitingly, decorated in a gaudy pink colour with a large arrow pointing to a port that read "Insert Music Player Here". Next to it was a beginner's VFX rig, designed for ease of use, for idols to select VFX they wanted to experiment with. Training Room Level 1 Available VFX: Simple Projector. ((Practicing your Appeals here is freeform. By indicating which Appeal you're practicing, I'll make a note on my Secret GM Sheet (TM) and you'll find it easier to pull off that Appeal in your next Live.))

QB popped out of another hole, this time next to Ayaka. "Simple! Just go down this corridor, turn left, then right, then left, then left, then go up three stories, go right, find the stairs with the odd number of steps, take that up two floors, turn right, turn left, jump two steps to your left, spin around in circles thrice, go straight for 200 meters and shout "kitaaaaaaaaaaaa" in an excited voice; a hidden staircase should open. Take that set of stairs down five floors and follow the path; you'll find yourself right back here, so when you do, just turn and take that door on your left." With that, QB disappeared again.

Just as Yuki finished that sentence, QB popped out from a hole in the wall - at this point, you realise that the walls in the ship are lined with dozens of these tiny holes, presumably to make it easier for the girls to throw away their money summon QB. The little heart of gold spun around rapidly, tearing a brief gap in reality near its base. Looking into the hole, you would have seen the expanse of the stars, stretching out endlessly, a sea of possibility beyond human comprehension... Then, without warning, a small pink box giftwrapped with a silver ribbon popped out of the hole, floating midair. Its job done, QB spun once and disappeared along the same hole from whence it had arrived. Opening the box, Yuki finds a cute little silver tiara, simply designed, with a little pink jewel set in its center. Yuki obtained the Simple Tiara!

Kagari switches songs to Paradichlorobenzene. Heal Soryn and Hiroki for 7 + 1d4 hp per turn as long as she keeps singing. Prei activates Elemental Spears - her next 4 instances of damage will each deal an additional 3 hits of 1d12 Fire damage!

Prei performs a Basic Attack on the closest enemy - whichever that is. Elemental Spears is still active. Kagari continues singing.

The Blue Knight laughs again. "My only wish was fulfilled long ago, by my own hands. As for what I think you should remember... well. Don't lose your way. In your mind, you have to be as one with your companions. Concerts are a collaborative effort, and only by working together, can you achieve the goal of a great performance. Don't be afraid. This is how you can get stronger. By strengthening your bonds with each other, by facing all challenges in your path, head on and without fear, you'll grow as idols and as people. And if you do, the next time They come, you'll be ready." Her left arm and legs are completely gone, with the rest of her body dissolving. "Crap. She's calling for what she's owed. Not good." The Blue Knight holds out her remaining arm, 5 orbs of light appearing in her palm. "This is my essence as an idol, split five ways. I'm giving it to you, so that she doesn't get her hands on it." With that, the five balls fly out and enter each of the idols' chests, near their heart. They feel themselves suffused with warmth. All Idols get an additional stat point in any one stat As this occurs, her arm disappears. Then her helmet dissolves, revealing a beautiful lady with green eyes and silky, black hair. You recognise her instantly. Everyone's seen her picture at least once. As some of you suspected, she is the Miracle Idol, Stella Kiseki. She smiles at you. "It was great meeting you, the new generation. My time is up. Now is the start of your era. I...sincerely hope that we do not meet again, though I am sure that we will." With that, Kiseki vanishes completely, leaving the five of you alone. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Then the sounds of the crowd and the audio start to come back, and the crowd starts moving again. The colour returns to the world, and you find yourselves back in your original dresses, onstage, right after your disastrous performance. The crew backstage ushers you off, leading you right into the waiting space cruiser. The whole way, you're dazed and disoriented by the entire experience, and are not given the time to recollect your thoughts as the crew pushes you past the waiting journalists and into your cruiser's cockpit. When you finally do come to your senses, you are already on the cruiser, with a flight course charted for the Alpha system. As you sit in the lounge, dazed, a floating, heart-shaped robot drifts into the center of the ring of sofas upon which you are seated. Its two white eyes - set against the pink of its exterior - blink rapidly, and it spins around excitedly. "Hello, hello, hello. I am the Artificial Intelligence unit who will be accompanying you on this great journey. Since your agency had no money to afford to sustain a human manager, they opted for me, instead. The more environmentally-friendly, non-resource-hungry AI companion manager. I will be managing your schedules, your meals, and attending to any other needs that are within my capabilities to address. My official designation is the LUV1764 model 3A Type-QuickBanter, but you may call me QB for short." QB twirls around a bit, then a holographic window appears in front of it. "Now then, these are the job auditions that you've received." Job Openings "Well, not a lot of jobs, huh..." If QB had a mouth, it might have frowned. "Oh well, every job is a job worth doing, I say! Moving on, your popularity rating after that last concert have... come... hm. Perhaps it's better if - gah! No! I can't lie! Good AIs can't lie, and I'm a good AI!" Another screen opens up in front of QB. Popularity "A-A-Anyway, on to happier news. Money! Money makes everyone happy, right?! We've tabulated our profits for that last concert, and we've also disbursed your share of it into your bank accounts! Which were technically opened under our name, but don't worry about it!" Finances "Anyway, that's all for now, so I'll-" QB abruptly stops talking. It spins midair for a while, then flashes golden. "Presence of Miracle Essence confirmed. Unlocking Miracle functions." QB quivers a bit, then turns completely white, but with pink eyes. Then it speaks again. "All of you have the Miracle Essence in you. I'm not actually sure what that means, but it's in my programming to tell you that you now have access to the Miracle Draw function. I can reach into the realm of the collective unconscious and synthesise items I find there for you. I have no control over what actually comes out, but from what my logs tell me, the conceptual forms of various dresses can be found just floating in the void, so it's possible to synthesise those. Unfortunately, my programming also compels me to incur a cost, because one should not lightly fool around with with collective unconscious. In any case, if you wish to try synthesising an item through Miracle Draw, simply tell me - it will cost 10,000 yen per attempt. However, I am allowed to give you each one free attempt, so just tell me when you want to try." QB hovers around for a bit. "Other Miracle Functions have yet to be released. It seems you do not fulfill the qualifications. Well then, with that, I bid you ladies a good day. You may find me on the bridge, if required." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Preparation Phase 1 - Each Player has 2 actions Available Actions: > Take a Job (1 Action): Take a job from the following list. > Rehearse an Appeal (1 Action): Rehearse 1 Appeal from your repertoire; it will be much easier to perform that Appeal in your next performance. > Hang out in the city (1 Action): Any number of you can go out into the city together. There, you can go catch a movie, go to a cafe, visit a museum/cultural center, sing Karaoke, or go shopping. > Job Hunt (1 Action): Scour the classifieds for any work that you might be eligible for, even though it was not explicitly offered to you. You may pay 150,000 yen to hire a headhunter who will increase your chances of landing a job, and may provide access to rarer jobs. > Training (1 Action): You may spend an action to do some form of training to improve a stat of your choice - note that this may not result in an immediate stat increase. > Research (1 Action): Do some research about the system you're going to perform in. May or may not produce useful results. > Talk to your fellow idols (Free Action): Have a chat. You may only gain 10 bond per prep phase from conversations that use this option. > Try your hand at the Miracle Pull (Free Action): Have QB synthesise an item from the Miracle Pull. Miracle Pull

The Blue Knight turned to Azusa. Her helmet moved - she was laughing. "Well, I'm afraid you won't forget me, or what I've said. My case is... slightly different from yours. I'm already dead. Have been for centuries. You lot are still very much alive, and so you are in danger. That's just the way it works, I guess. Trade-off for actually being alive. As for your question, I'll repeat what I told this young lady, over here," She motioned to Lucinda. "If you decide to walk away, you'll never perform ever again. Not as an idol, not as a dancer, not as... well, any kind of performer. It's your choice. If you want to walk away and give up on being an idol forever, go ahead. But... I don't think you will. You have the aura of an idol. You may not know it yet - but you were born for this. You were born to perform. Make of that what you will."

The Blue Knight turned to Yuki this time. "What you can do to get stronger? Become the best idols you can be." The Blue Knight chuckled. "Easier said than done, I know. But that's all you can do. Your power comes from the support of the audience. The more hyped up they get, the more excited they get, the more power you will possess in this world. Normal battle training doesn't do anything to prepare for this place - the rules are too different. All you can do is to improve yourself as idols, and bring excitement and smiles to your crowd. If you can accomplish that, you'll be able to hold your own when the Knights next attack. The idol's job is to bring smiles and dreams to her audience. If you can keep that in mind, then you'll be fine."

The Blue Knight turns to the rambling girl. "This place is a place of infinite possibilities, a realm that exists between moments in time. While in this space, your power as an idol is able to manifest new possibilities by tapping into the stream of the collective unconscious, the stream that flows within all branches of humanity across all planes. Perhaps, in some other plane, some version of you is a great warrior, fighting tooth and nail against enemies on a daily basis. Perhaps, in some other plane, there is a you who is a great sage, studying magic and its intricacies. While in this place, the power of idolhood - the power your audience gives to you - allows you to manifest these possibilities, allowing you to take on these forms. An idol's identity is largely represented by her choice of dress - that is why this power manifests through dresses as the catalyst. You might notice that some of you awakened different abilities from others. That is because your individual personalities and tendencies - reflected in your choice of dress - have caused you to resonate more powerfully with some possibilities than with others. You are, after all, just one of infinite yous. The appearance each of your companions took on is a manifestation of their desired selves - Just as this armor is a manifestation of my desired self. You will find yourself unable to call upon these possibilities once you leave this space between moments, but while you remain here, you should be able to freely manifest your armor at will - it is required, if you are to tap into the power of the limitless potential that lies beyond the confines of this plane. If you do not assume the armor of your heart, then you will be unable to tap into the power of your other selves. It is as simple as that. If you simply calm down and wish for it, you will find that the armor manifests effortlessly. As does the weapon. Since this space lies between moments in time, any injuries you sustain here will vanish once you leave. But be warned that should you die in this space, your existence will be erased. Your family will not remember you. Your friends will not remember you. No records of you will exist. Not in this plane, nor in any other plane. All versions of you will cease to exist. So... try not to die."

The Blue Knight turned to Ayaka. "That was SCORPIO. She was a member of an organisation that I call the Scourge Knights - though they refer to themselves as the Enforcement Knighthood. Many millennia ago, they kept the balance between planes, putting down threats to stability when they appeared. They were a force for good, until their leader one day decided to break the balance herself by taking over a plane. Of course, since they were the ones keeping the balance in the first place, there was effectively nobody to stop them. So they took over plane after plane. Their leader's eventual objective is unknown to me, but they've set their sights on this plane - on your plane. On our plane, rather. This, too, was once my home, many centuries ago. In any case, our plane is a bit special. Because of how idols are the glue that holds humanity together, they interact with the collective unconscious in a unique way - idols have the power to influence the fate of this plane. There are conditions. The first is an audience. The idol must have an audience, for it is the support of the audience and the staff that lends idols their unique power. The second condition is that the idol must hail from Earth - you are closest to the heart of the human collective unconsciousness, and thus your influence over it is greater than that of your peers. Unfortunately, you lot are the first interstellar idols to hail from Earth in... a long time. Whenever you perform before an audience, the human collective unconsciousness becomes vulnerable and open, due to your influence and power to bring people together. This moment of vulnerability is what the Knights target. At any other time, they are denied access to our plane, due to a precaution I took centuries ago. Its power is starting to fade, as is mine. You asked why SCORPIO wanted to kill you. It's because by killing you, they can widen the gateway, allowing them to mount a full incursion into our plane. It is the essence of an idol that allows the transgression into our plane, and by killing you, they hope to steal that power and use it. No doubt, they will continue to attack you girls. You can do nothing to stop it. All you can do is prepare for it. Thankfully, even though its power is fading, the precaution still holds. Though they may break through, they may only break through one at a time. And thus you will only face them one at a time. Excluding their leader, there are twelve of them, all of them extremely powerful. But if you can repulse all of them, you might be able to end this threat once and for all. As for your show... it was terrible. Horrible. Easily one of the worst I've seen in my lifetime. Exactly like my first performance. I know what happened - you had no time to prepare. Have faith. I can feel the aura of true idols in you. It's hidden, raw, unrefined, but it's there. If you put in the effort, you'll definitely come to rival my name in time."

Lucinda does nothing. The combined attacks of the other four idols strike the weakened SCORPIO, dealing a total of 671 damage! SCORPIO staggers back a couple steps, before she falls to her knees. Then she keels over and collapses. Her body evaporates into thin air, except for the knife that was entwined with her braid - it clatters to the ground, where it lays there, still. The metal with which it is made is clearly not of this world - gazing at it feels like one is gazing into the depths of space itself. The edges are blunt and can't cut through anything, but perhaps there could be some other use for it...? Scourge Knight SCORPIO has been defeated! > Ominous Stinger was dropped! Aside from Lucinda, all characters gain 1 stat point in a stat of their choice! The Blue Knight pushes herself off the ground, but quickly collapses to one knee. "Ugh." She eases herself into a seating position and addresses the girls, except for Lucinda. "Not bad, for your first fight. I understand that this must come as a shock. Unfortunately, this is going to happen each time you girls hold a concert." She turns to Lucinda. Her helmet hides her eyes, but even so, you can tell she's glaring. "As for you, if you want to survive, learn to fight. It should come naturally, if you only make the effort to try. That's just how this place is. These girls managed to hold their own, so you should be able to as well. If you don't want to die, you have 2 options. Either you fight, or you quit. But know this: now that They've found you, They'll find you again. If you choose to run, you can never again perform in public. Keep that in mind." She coughs wetly, like blood was spilling through her throat - which, in all likelihood, it was. But despite that, she does not remove her helmet. "I don't have much time..." She glances at her left hand, which is already starting to fade - it is plain to see that she will soon disappear. "...but if you have any questions, I'll try to answer them. Try not to ask about unnecessary things like my identity. I don't have the time for trivialities. I won't be around to help you the next time. Make your questions count." ((Each character will get to ask one question of the Blue Knight, which she may choose to answer or not. When everyone has either posed a question or indicated their desire to abstain, I'll progress the plot. Also, one of you can pick up the Drop, it doesn't really matter who. Of course, you can also choose to leave it behind, but hey. What kind of gamer does that? Also, w.r.t. stat ups, each of you please indicate in your post (either IC or OOC) what stat you want to improve. Lucinda didn't get any exp for this fight since she effectively didn't participate. Sorry, but fair's fair.))

Kagari Kagari was caught by surprise, but moving instinctively, she rapidly swung her butt to generate waves of wind which cushioned her landing. Quickly taking in the vast numbers of enemies, she growled in irritation. She was bad at attacking large groups. She quickly transformed into her Idol outfit, beginning to sing a song of protection. Kagari's SYN and DEX are swapped. DEX is now 7, SYN is now 9. Kagari begins singing Knight of Firmament - All allies take 4 less damage as long as she continues singing. ----------------- Prei Prei flared out her wings just as she was about to land on the ground, slowing her descent. Jumping right into battle readiness, she drew Myriad, its form expanding into a spear. Meanwhile, a set of fiery spears materialised around her as she shouted out of habit. Outnumbered and surrounded. Now this was the type of fight she was used to. "悪国大将プレイ、いざんまえる。いざ、参る！" "Demon General Prei, engaging!" Prei activates Elemental Spears (Fire). Her next attack will deal an additional 3 hits of 1d6 fire damage.

Prei stowed Myriad away in dagger form, holstering it in a sheathe along her leg. Switching from combat readiness to leisure was something she was very good at. She stretched her wings and yawned; she needed a nap. Finding a comfortable wall to lean on, she sat down next to it and bent her head forward, quickly dozing off.

"I just did. Now, if you're going to join us, hurry up, otherwise go find somewhere less conspicuous to ogle. We're in the middle of a serious practice session." Kagari turned an eye to check on Hikari. The girl was keeping up remarkably well, but the turns were a bit... "Your turns need to be sharper, Hikari. I should be able to clearly see the shape of the figure eight. You should be getting a little tired by now, but keep at it; you're more than halfway there. Then we can move on to basic attacking."

"It means that you have a butt, and it is both firm and cute, and therefore a good candidate for being an infighter. do you not wish to become stronger? To do this?" As she spoke, she twisted her hips abruptly and strongly, using her full body to power the motion, targeting the swing in Sachi's direction; the sheer force with which she did so caused an immense gale of wind to burst in Sachi's direction, threatening to blow the other girl away.

Move to L13, hold Cancelled Action

SCORPIO's Hardened Carapace heals her for 360 health! Lucinda does nothing. Yuki and Ayaka work together to heal Lucinda, curing her poison and healing her for 369 health! Azusa braces herself for an attack Yuri attempts to land a [Heavy Sweep] on SCORPIO, but her attack glances off SCORPIO's white armor, dealing a reduced 231 damage! The Blue Knight swings down her blade, causing a stream of pink light to emerge from it and lash at SCORPIO, dealing a defence-ignoring 451 damage with her [Tantrum Ribbon III - Extend Pierce]! SCORPIO growls and her braid lashes out at all combatants, lightly grazing them - none of them take severe damage, but all allies are poisoned! Yuri and the Blue Knight are afflicted with Deadly Poison! SCORPIO's armor flashes black, just before her braid lashes out and strikes all combatants again! All allies take 300 damage, and Yuri and the Blue Knight each take 900 damage! The Blue Knight's [Scandal Scapegoat] activates! She jumps in front of Yuri and takes the hit for the idol, taking a total of 1800 damage! Heavily damaged, she collapses to the ground, unable to move. All Allies take 50 damage from the poison! Yuri takes an additional 100 damage from the Deadly Poison! SCORPIO staggers on her feet, her body shaking - she looks like she's on her last legs Enemy Status Player Status

"Nonsense. I'm a slime. I know that look when I see it. Join us. Start moving that cute firm butt, and we'll make a pro out of you yet."

Kagari continued to speak in her voice of command. "Join us. It's good exercise. Besides, you seem to be interested, at any rate."

Yuki's [Cleansing Tone] causes a feeling of relief to wash over you, curing all victims from the poison status. Azusa's [Slowing Twirl] seems to case some kind of spell on SCORPIO - her movements become slower and more sluggish. Lucinda plays dead. Ayaka's lace attack hits the slowed SCORPIO for 112 damage! Yuri's [HEAVY SWEEP] strikes SCORPIO, dealing 376 damage! Still groggy on her feet, SCORPIO lashes out at Lucinda, Azusa and Ayaka. She misses Ayaka and Azusa, but strikes Lucinda for 200 damage and poisons her! The Blue Knight runs up to the prone Lucinda and tosses her aside. "If you're not going to fight, then stay out of the way!" With that, she rushes up to SCORPIO and strikes the assailant with her flamberge, dealing 431 damage! SCORPIO takes a couple of steps back, clearly weakened. She lets loose a low growl as her armor flashes white. The poison coursing through Lucinda's veins hurts her for 50 damage! Enemy Status Player Status

Azusa attempts to strike SCORPIO, but SCORPIO deftly leaps over the attack, landing behind her. Following up, Yuki and Ayaka attempt to land their own attacks, but none of them connect, with SCORPIO avoiding all their swings. However, Yuri's [Heavy Sweep] manages to connect, her weapon crashing into SCORPIO's side, sending the armored lady flying and doing 226 damage! Lucinda is unfortunately unable to find any of the nonexistent hidden cameras. Furthermore, her magical defences are useless as she has not accepted the existence of her combat outfit. SCORPIO regains her balance and snarls, her blade-tipped ponytail flying out and striking Azusa, Lucinda and Yuki. Azusa takes 169 damage, Lucinda takes 200 damage, and Yuki takes 36 damage. Azusa, Lucinda and Yuki are poisoned for 2 turns. The Blue Knight shouts at Lucinda. "Stop staring like an idiot and fight! I don't have the time to deal with this now!" As she speaks, the Blue Knight raises her blade in the air, causing a bright pink light to burst from it as she uses [Healing Song III - Extend Strike]. All allies are healed for 1353 HP and gain 50 STR for three turns. Azusa, Lucinda and Yuki each take 50 damage from the poison. Enemy Status Player Status

"Oi, keep focused on your exercise. You're not skilled enough yet to multitask." Kagari chided Hikari and turned her attention to Sachi. The girl's butt was perfect for being an infighter. She called out in a commanding tone, using her "queen tone", as it were. "You. Girl. Come here."