Warning

Well, funny you mention that because Emiko technically comes from the digital space. it's almost like Megaman battle network stuff. So that could be an introduction to it, kinda. I have some characters I could use that also matches this kind of thing and system. I've had some characters dealing with digital networks here and there through my stories.

Shinigami looked slightly annoyed but otherwise didn't interfere with her answer, this time. The girl was at least right on one thing, she indeed was Shinigami and it's all that mattered to her. The relics, the gifts of Death, she had thrown them away in the mansion when she was trying to relax with Jumi. Whether they were still a thing in the hands of Death or not, she had no regrets about it. The girl looked at all of them but grinned to the words of Jumi. "Oh, you're no fun. Still irked by what happened back then, aren't you? It was a fun game and you won, you should be happy. Besides, you saw things you should not have. It could have went worse, you could have died in there... Or found Mao.", she joyfully mocked. The catgirl still there had remained quiet without speaking a single word yet. Whoever she was for this girl, she always looked serious and ready to launch if she was ordered to do so. Her golden eyes appeared to keep their gaze on the surrounding people of the temple. The tension held for a moment, as Mitsuko wondered if anyone would advance to ask the last question. Nall himself looked afraid to see what would happen while Shinigami kept her cool just fine but looked annoyed by the girl's game. "You can leave. Tell Death I will find him later. Next time I see you, I will send you to him myself.", she threatened, making Mao's ears twitch but stay still... The daughter of Death herself was being serious about this. The reaper girl pouted but respected her choice. "As you wish... Don't think it's over, though. Enjoy your humans while you still can. Let's go, Mao~ ♪", she told the cat who stared at Shinigami a little longer before she obeyed and floated closer to her master. Mitsuko moved closer to Shinigami before interjecting, "Wait... Where is Lenneth...?", she asked, getting the girl to look at her for a bit, "The cat who was after you...? She put up a fight and almost destroyed me. She's out there and for you to deal with. Bye bye, now...", she said while she threw an apple for Mitsuko to catch then disappeared through her portal. The cat took a final look toward Shinigami and the others before she finally flew through, closing it.

Jumi's sarcasm was not unjustified and Mitsuko knew way too well. She was not going to allow things to go that far. The fact that Hikaru allowed it was already a lot but she could tell that he would react if that girl and her cat went just a bit too far. Two questions and nothing else. The deathly girl seemed slightly annoyed by Jumi's lack of faith. "Rude of you, little fairy. It's only a game as far as you play by the rules. I will do the same... I will give you this one since you didn't let me finish. I am the Emissary of Death. His most loyal servant and devotee. The one and only who truly understands the beauty of death. In this regard, Lady Shinigami was born as a perfect symbol of his fearsome power.", she said playfully. Mitsuko opened her mouth as she wondered if it meant what she thought it meant. If she was not a demon then... Once Jumi proposed her little sarcastic offer, the fox snarled back at her, now being a bit annoyed by the fact that she was lied to. The hostility was not toward Jumi herself, anyhow. "Tell me more about me, then. Why am I here?", she ended asking with a menacing tone. The girl figured that she would ask and nodded, snapping her fingers and making an apple disappear but also a triangular magic symbol appear under the fox's paws, "You are the daughter of Death, that part did not change. You were the hallows made flesh and given the powers of the relics. Now, you're Shinigami.", she told her.

Hellhound stopped eating to nod to Akemi, whatever the question meant. For the beast girl, she had eaten worse before so a quality meal like this did well test her tastes. For what it was, she enjoyed what she was eating. The amount of humans coming around didn't even bother her. She was used to approach them anyway, as long as they didn't try anything against her. As Akemi started eating, the hound just continued eating her own meal, a bit non-humanly but that's all she knew. When she was finally done, she put the bowl away and wiped her mouth clean, finally giving a thank you for the food as well, now that she able to talk. Her behavior was very doggy but at least she wasn't burning things with fire. As Hellhound looked around, her eyes finally took notice of one strange person outside who was not like other ones. Humans had their ways to dress that made them human compared to the hound who only dressed as much as she was comfortable. What she wore now was an exception but still pretty light, like she liked it. This one human however was dressed like another animal and a skimpy one at that. With a sign in her hand, one hellhound couldn't quite read, she looked like one of those mascots or whatever Akemi had mentioned. Giving her a poke, the hound looked at her. "I think one weird human is doing something outside... Is she one of the mascots you talked about?", Hellhound asked curiously.

Despite what happened so far, the Emissary did not seem too surprised by the interruption but still looked cautious now. "The hero in shining armor, I presume. So literal, in your case. You're not being very fun right now. Disappointing... Shinigami, for you to be called a lady guest, you must really be proud.", she said with some sarcastic delight before she snapped her fingers and transformed into her magical form or whatever it was, with her floating torn robe. A void gate appeared behind her anew, showing pitch black darkness and unexplainable metal shapes. The fox was not sure what to think of it except for what familiar feeling emanated from it. A feeling of death or at the least a complete lack of life... Mitsuko felt some annoyance as some more of the girl's power showed to them. Something that felt familiar but for different reasons than what Shinigami felt. "W-wait. We should still hear what she has to say.", she told Hikaru while taking a step forward. The girl's gaze locked on Mitsuko, smirking to her softly. "A smart girl... She wants the game to go on.", she commented but Mitsuko shook her head. "This is not for you but for Shinigami.", the valkyrie replied, careful with the way she avoided questions as well. The fox calmed down but said nothing, crossing her arms for now. The catgirl appeared to keep an eye on them as well but before anything, Mitsuko wanted the permission of Hikaru to continue. Maybe with his help, they could get something out of it. The girl and her cat could have escaped anytime they wanted by now but the reason for her being there was not quite clear yet. Mitsuko didn't think that it only was to give them information. She didn't trust her like she did with Shinigami, who admittedly looked pretty scary at first. Still, there was something else to her. She said she was allowing them to ask three questions... If they did not go beyond them, would the girl hold her side of the deal and leave them alone? There were too many things that they needed to know, about her, Shinigami, Lenneth, Death maybe? Mitsuko's plan was not to leave her any chance... But if maybe they got answers...

Can't say anything about it. I don't know much myself but I only know it involves some personal "drama". Gard will come back when he feels comfortable.

Probably issues with problematic users again. Welp. Too bad. I just hope some activity happens anyhow. Even if I try, I can't get much these days. x.x

In due time...! I kinda dislike how things slowed down to a stop. I have my Emiko girl in here but where she goes is a mystery. She escapes, she searches...

Me, Satai and Gard having characters piloting mechas, yes. It went slower and slower but I guess now this is an official halt to it. (Troubled Youths?)

Him being gone means we are screwed for the mecha story as well. (Not blaming him of course, just stating the situation). It's a bit of a shame.

Nall had been tossed behind the fox but without harm, now just left to fly around. He wasn't sure how to react to the pair yet. The comment of Jumi seemed to make the catgirl twitch but at least she was being held back by the girl standing near her and appearing to enjoy the situation. At least Jumi seemed to remember her time with her. The words spoken to her next however did not appear to do much to bother her. Her arms opened wide as she replied, "Threat? You misunderstand... I've come to offer a fair deal. Three free questions then any further ones require a payment. You do not have to take that deal. He would not care either way.", she said, smirking gently. The catgirl only showed a serious expression. Mitsuko didn't like it. First Lenneth then this woman who could change her form like them, who caused troubles for them and Jumi and who almost killed Shinigami by doing horrible things to her. "I won't forgive you for what you've done... Who are you?!", the valkyrie then shouted. wanting a clear answer. The question didn't faze the girl, who had expected it either way. Taking one of the apples, she started eating it before she spoke, "Right to it... I am the Emissary of Death. I miiight have lied to you about cert-", she started saying before Shinigami raised her hand and charged a ball of darkness quickly before she shot it at both the girl and the catgirl, causing a blast of darkness in the hallway where the two were. Nall flew quickly in front of the fox's face. "Not inside the temple! You will make gods mad!", he yelled at her, making Shinigami push him away in frustration as the catgirl appeared out of the hallway to try and attack her in retaliation, leaving the fox to barely avoid a slice of her scythe before she kicked her away forcefully. "...Hold it, Mao. Very bold of you, Shinigami. I guess I deserved that...", a voice spoke as the darkness dissipated, showing the girl standing with some torn clothes. Mitsuko was confused on her side but the answer at least seemed to confirm something about her. The fox didn't look very happy and the tension could be felt. "The game goes on... Two questions remain.", she then said with a smile.

Hellhound just kept behaving like a dog more than a normal person as she waited patiently, teased by the scent floating around while her attention was soon on all of the activity going around. Clearly, the humans didn't come there to see her but it was still the very first time that so many of them were around and not to fight her. The ones eyeing her caused her to be distracted for a moment but other than that, the hound was watching quietly as she tried to understand this side of the human world. At the very least, when meals were served, she visually understood that, like her, humans came to taste food as well. By their reactions that were soon heard around her, it sounded like the food was really good, too. Hikaru then came to set a bowl of food in front of her. Not something she probably ever ate, considering her main source of food was meat caught in the wild and only cooked by her own hell fire. This was another level, something only humans could possibly achieve with their cooking alchemy. The idea that this could possibly taste better than anything she ever ate made her salivate. When Akemi sat down close to her, her head turned to her for a bit, before she was told to eat. With a nod, Hellhound leaned closer and started picking the meat at first then dug deeper for some more food, eating like a dog for the most but gently for cleanliness. Her wagging tail was telling enough of how much she enjoyed it.

Shinigami went along with what he said. He knew, obviously. It was a good thing, however. She knew something was off but he had confirmed what she was thinking. She just was not sure yet but what she felt didn't mean anything good. Being sent back though gave a pretty strange feeling like she was going back to sleep for an instant yet with what memories she had intact. Nall still kept guard while being on top of the fox but that didn't do much for them. The invader and her cat familiar stood or rather, floated near the void gate with unknown intentions. Only when Umi brought the attention to herself did the kitten really answer to the challenge with a scythe forming in one hand. Slightly goofy but very sharp. The woman with skull earrings moved a hand in her direction, though. "Let's not be too hasty there, shall we? You say I am not welcome yet you allowed this one in. How deliciously hypocritical.", she said with quite enough amusement. In her moment of distraction, Shinigami's eyes shut open and she didn't take any chance, flipping back and quickly picking Nall who she had felt on her before she released him behind herself as she landed on her paws. Mitsuko had come back a little sooner but still hardly managed to believe what she was seeing. That kitten may have looked cute but if the one named Death had brought her here, she could not be mistaken as anything but an enemy. Her blade quickly formed. "So quick to draw conclusions. I might have heard that you want to know more about me so let's play this game for now.", she playfully said with a smile while forming three floating apples above her hand. "Three apples, three questions... If you run out then I start taking souls as payment. Fair enough, isn't it? My little reaper over there will be happy to collect. Let's make this easier.", she continued, landing on the floor before she made all the gravity defying and fancy clothes disappear, getting them replaced with what appeared to be casual school girl clothes for the moment. The void gate behind the two also vanished while the three apples kept floating above her hand, spinning around slowly in a circle.

Hellhound tilted her head, not really understanding the question she was asked. The only costume she had were the clothes she was wearing, thanks to Akemi. Before she could realize, her ears twitched as the girls approached toward her. Instead of reacting aggressively, she just sat there calmly and smiled. Humans rarely approached her like this so that situation was new for her. Normally, humans always were cautious around her, even children. Even if they touched her, they didn't normally just come and praise her. With that headpat, her tail started wagging a little more as she moved her head closer to the patting hand, thoroughly enjoying it. Being a good girl was not so bad so far, with what she got from it. When Hikaru finally approached her again, her gaze turned to him with a pleased smiled. As he gave signs for her to stand up, Hellhound played along for now and followed. The mention of food got her a little excited but she tried to remind herself to behave, first calming her own tail as much as possible. She obeyed for now and sat down on one of the seat that looked comfortable for her butt then moved her tail closer to herself so it wasn't in the way. "Food sounds good... Hellhound is hungry...", she said with a slight whimper of excitement but pain as her belly demanded to be fed. Her eyes turned to the girls if they were still around but mostly only looked at them curiously or otherwise around, being quiet.

Hellhound followed Akemi with her beastly attitude, not really noticing the odd design choices of the place even if she probably had seen the animal itself in the wild somewhere. To her, this was part of how odd she found humans to be, not really considering or realizing that she might be the odd one. The two customers that left made her look at them with a smile like nothing was wrong but as they left rather quickly, the hound returned her attention to Akemi and the place that they walked in. For a moment, Hellhound eyed at what kind of place she found herself but the man approaching attracted her attention the most soon enough. Rare were times like this were humans just behaved normally around her. Upon being introduced as friend, the beast girl's tail wagged while she gave a smile. "Hi...!", she answered shortly as a greeting, not knowing the manners to have. The father seemed to be praising her and this only fed her pride more as she played the part to display herself and even flex some to show off. When the question about the convention came up, Hellhound's eyes turned to Akemi for a second then went back to the man when she didn't really give an answer. "I was told not to go to the convention. I met Akemi outside and we played before we took a bath and rested. I'm Hellhound...!", she said a bit excitedly but otherwise tried to remain calm and behaved, as she promised to be a good girl, after all. Despite her clothes and everything, it was difficult to hide her swaying tail which was pretty long or her fur, paws and claws. Above all, her skin was dark grey and probably nothing like any other humans, added to her fiery colored eyes or her ears. While many of these traits could be cosplayed, she might not be able to avoid suspicions for very long. What probably did not help was the way she behaved. If she tried to be a good girl, it didn't take long before she sat on the floor to relax for now with her legs forming a W close to her butt. Without realizing, she was behaving like a dog waiting patiently, trying to detect the scent of food roaming around the restaurant. The hunger was making Hellhound eager.

Shinigami felt annoyed by the answer. Sure, if she was this good, eluding a god might not be out of her range of power. But a detail amused her. "If you mean the cat, I survived her as well. I don't know if she is a goddess but she is irritatingly powerful. My mother didn't tell me a lot about her power but she did give me life. She likes toying with me or humans just the same. If she is the one who made those relics for me then no wonder she was upset when I destroyed them along with my home.", she said with a bit of a grin. "Can't tell you what she's plotting, though. Even I don't know.", she added. She knew what she was herself but being a tool for Death was not in her own plans. She still didn't regret escaping. The last bit made Shinigami feel a little strange just like before. Humans caring about her. That was still something new that she tried to adapt to. For Mitsuko and Jumi, she was starting to have less doubts but Nymphia had trusted her rather quickly, mostly thanks to the two girls. There also was this other woman who had helped them with her. Knowing now that Jumi wanted to go this far for her, though. It showed a certain trust between them that she wasn't certain of until then. Humans really were odd creatures. As Jumi and Mitsuko started to shift back, a ripple of sort formed around the area and seemed to alert Shinigami, making her look around. "I have a bad feeling about this...", she quietly muttered, In the real world, it seemed like an event happened nearby Shinigami's location where a void gate stood in the hallway, blocking any exit. A pale and barely dressed red-eyed girl stood there with a devilish smile, resulting in Nall being bristled while being on top of the fox. "Naughty naughty fox... I didn't think she would go this far. Playing the soul game with humans, now?" She voiced out while not looking at Nall much, not impressed with the fur ball much. Her attention was rather focused on what was going on currently. Soon along, a purple-schemed furred catgirl familiar showed up from the void gate. A pair of golden eyes looked around passively, not caring about Nall's increasingly worried expression.

With Jumi herself bringing out that point, maybe she didn't have anything in mind herself. Shinigami was new to this place so the suggestion still allowed her to think of something while she was there. As for Mitsuko, she was not sure what exactly to ask. A half god trying to help them was indeed impressive but asking for power to fight that catgirl would just be asking for a cheat. It was scary to think that her magical life started by being hunted by a powerful enemy but she was not alone, at least. Maxim raised a good point about fighting other magical girls but the situation was complicated. "I will do what I have to... Shinigami will attract conflicts and I can't let them hurt her... I'm sorry...", Mitsuko said, bowing down gently. The valkyrie didn't like it but she was resolved to do what she must, with one important rule. To prove themselves, they will have to do so without killing... Perhaps if they only defeated their opponents and left them alive, they might reconsider their choice to seek conflict with the fox. Mitsuko did seem apologetic about it but she didn't want to back down, with or without Jumi's support. Would the fairy even choose to fight her own kind if she had to? Would she fight her? That was a scary thought but Mitsuko was sure that she was on the right path, as long as she didn't lose her way. The issue was that she did lack experience and she probably would not last in a fight against a skilled magical girl. She had to fix that quickly. The question remained: What could Maxim do against Lenneth and where was she anyway? After the fight with the one who claimed to be Death, there were no signs of her. Could Lenneth be hurt? Surely. If she was wounded then it gave them some time. Shinigami seemed to have her own idea about the question. "What do you know about ጋቹልፕⶴ? Or the girl pretending to be my creator? If the girl there is as sure of your power as she seems to be then you might know something. I can't shake the feeling that I'm being mislead and I want answers. She had lot of books for her spells and I am sure that she at least summoned me but I have a feeling that she's not who she pretends to be.", Shinigami told him, testing him.

Time to bring Krystal and her mom to this world. They might not exactly fit the cyberpunk style, though. So not sure about that hot mom in this story. XD

Shinigami huffed as a response to his first answer but didn't argue it. He probably knew what she was thinking before she even thought it. Though, him being told about it revealed that either Mitsuko or Jumi might have slid a word about it to him. She didn't question it for the moment, rather listening to the answer to her other question. Her soul...? Did she even have such a thing? That was not exactly the kind of question she asked herself but she was there alright, seemingly out of her real body like the girls... That only left the twerp awake back there doing whatever about their state. At least that half god or whatever he was appeared to be fair, despite everything. That made the fox remain quiet for the moment. When Jumi started speaking, the two quietly listened. It really sounded like the conversation had been about her and a solution to whatever they considered a problem, more for them than for the fox. She didn't quite like a lot of things currently happening in her life but she was still capable to defend them if she needed to. At least Jumi sounded like she was trusting her with the decision and accepted what would result out of it but this only motivated Shinigami not to play along with that offer. Both Mitsuko and Jumi gave her something her creator didn't in the same way they did. Something that was worth fighting for. That part seemed to make her genuinely smile, in her own twisted but honest deathly way. "So I guess the answer is no. I will not hide disguised as a human or worse, put them in danger by making them take my form. This body right here or wherever you left it, is mine. I'll take the hit for them if anyone wants a fight with them because of me. It's just exciting that way. Besides, we have bigger issues than humans right now, if my 'creator' and that stupid cat decide to show up again.", Shinigami said with a bit of annoyance at the last part. She still was not sure who her summoner really was and there was Lenneth. Mitsuko looked surprised for a moment before she looked at Maxim. "Right. We do have enemies after us. I caused so much troubles...", she said a bit sadly but she still enjoyed her situation. Looking a bit more serious, Mitsuko bowed politely, "Forgive us for wasting your time... As Shinigami herself said, maybe it's best we prepared for a fight. I... don't want to fight other magical girls, who are the heroes I heard so much about but I don't want to let them hurt any of us, either. I promised Jumi and Shinigami that I would do my best to protect them and I still want to. There is a lot of trouble that's waiting for us out there but I want everyone to see us for who we are. Not with a mask... I still have to figure out how to fight Lenneth, too.", she tried to explain. It was not a speech the fox was exactly used to but it further proved why she did well to stay. There was still to find more about "Death" as well...

Mitsuko wondered about Nymphia. She supposedly was preparing to return home soon though that time was not exactly clear. She was sure that she would be happy to see the two of them. Or the three now, as Shinigami was being summoned among them. On the other side, it seemed like she was pulled out of her body just the same. Thankfully Nall was there to somehow catch her so she didn't fall. All he could do however was help her in a position where she'd be fine, quickly enough so he didn't crushed. It was not hard to guess what had happened to her, assuming it was like Mitsuko and Jumi and not some bad news that would come to haunt them. For now, the fox looked like she was fine, at least. Shinigami appeared near them in the same naked form as the others but with also a veil robe of sort around her. The unusual sight made Mitsuko's eyes stare for a bit before she would force herself to look elsewhere. Although the dark fox looked confused at first, she was quickly guessing what was happening but listened for now while she tried to understand this place clearly not made for someone like her. Only when Maxim was done talking, seeming to query for a response, did Shinigami finally speak, "First of all... What is this place and why am I like this?", she asked, wondering what were those clothes that she had. Her body was floating so freely. Looking behind, at least the two looked fine and good... "Next... Turning into a human? To appease other humans when they could be looking at this?", she then questioned with a small grin, still wondering if that was a suggestion from Mitsuko or Jumi. The plan was going even deeper, as it was required for the two girls to trade a part of them for it to work, even if temporarily. "This is what you've come with? Giving in to humans to hide among them and make two problems instead of one? I've made it this far with their help, I don't need your help... If humans want a fight, they will get one but I will be good with the nice ones.", Shinigami said, with a bit of coldness in the middle, making Mitsuko gasp softly. Hopefully, Maxim would not take her tone too badly... Standing before him, or floating rather, was a proud fox. One who was being around two humans willingly. She didn't shy away from a fight if the solution was a battle. Something Mitsuko had yet to learn in this new life yet. The valkyrie could hardly blame her for it since she was seen like an enemy to the eyes of everyone and yet, she still did not seem to care if she got hurt. Or worse... Mitsuko was sure that they would have to fight other magical girls and knights, ones who might be certain that what they did was right. Among already existing enemies and not yet including demons, this new life sounded like it was going to be challenging but Mitsuko didn't plan on giving up. Her gaze turned to Jumi.

Yeah, I can see the style. I just realized "VA-11 Hall-A" is basically this anyway. It's a game I played which I really enjoyed so yeah. It works too in the sense that "dark city" is a theme that Emiko knows but it's a world she completely ignores about. The confusion is real as she might be pursued by those she escaped from. Or at least some bounty.

So more like Alita battle angel. (Previously known as Gunnm). I know it's more of a reference to Cyberpunk itself but I only really know Gunnm and etc more.

Also, I went a bit dumb with a character idea of mine (based on some older character). She is... uh... special. Well, anyway. Just a test. It should work with the setting but hard to say how well it will work with the theme. Feel free to say opinions. It's the usual wtf character sheets of mine going far and deep with stories that feel unusual. So... Yeah.

Name: Emiko (Adult Form) Age: 18 Sex: Female. (Robot/AI(?)) Seeking: Unknown. Characteristics: Her body is marked with battle scars which she hides with her maid uniform, rarely showing them to anybody. While she looks innocent in appearance and barely speaks a word, she is a merciless fighter capable of using many weapons from a sword, a gun, a flail or even a minigun type weapon stored with nanotechnology. Her strength is also deceptively higher than any normal person's, making her an opponent not to underestimate. General Info: Emiko, originally a character program in a virtual world, was transferred into a real-life recreation of herself. The ones behind it hoped to achieve the goal of making an ultimate fighter but they failed to take into account her own personal goals, leading to her escaping the facilities easily but finding herself lost in a world that was not hers. Carrying a replica of her teddy bear from the other "world" on her back, she seeks to find her lost sister. Favorites: Unknown. Consent: [Warning. Unit may present hostility upon attempt to infringe on her personal space. May show trust toward people treating her properly. Caution is advised regarding the target. Bounty for capture.]

I just want to know for sure but is this the kind of city this place is about or darker and more dystopian? (I found this purely by randomness, btw.)