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Star ArmyⓇ is a landmark of forum roleplaying. Opened in 2002, Star Army is like an internet clubhouse for people who love roleplaying, art, and worldbuilding. Anyone 18 or older may join for free. New members are welcome! Use the "Register" button below.

Note: This is a play-by-post RPG site. If you're looking for the tabletop miniatures wargame "5150: Star Army" instead, see Two Hour Wargames.

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  • 📅 January 2025 is YE 47.1 in the RP.

ZKC - Colliding Universes

The boy withdrew some money, he'd notice something out of the corner of his left eye - a ghostly image of a person standing at the end of the wall of the store, the person stared at them, their face unrecognizable from this distance but strangely.. the boy would feel like he knew this person.
 
The boy became aware of the apparition, and he employed one of his simpler inventions. He utilized psychometry not through the hands, but through the feet. While the sole of one shoe was meant to hold an ECCM if needed for a mission, the other was kept empty normally...giving Toshiro room to install a simple system to help more effectively relay data through the shoe and foot. The telltale psychometric glow was contained within his shoe as he attempted to analyze just what or who was there...
 
There was no signs as to what this thing was, except that it was obviously not alive. The person, or whatever they were, just seemed to be watching them.

After a minute, or two, their ghostly arms folded over their chest and another ghostly figure appeared from the stores door just a few feet in front of the boy. This person looked in Toshiro's direction, although perhaps they didn't see him or perhaps weren't paying attention and went to walk over to the other ghostly figure.

As the girls watched, they didn't notice Minamoto walk around the side of the vehicle and fold his arms over his chest. "And what.. are you three doing here?" he asked.
 
After being caught, the group looked back to Minamoto with varying expressions...Aoi was the most guilty and remorseful, but stood her ground. Shiho was unchanged, and Kaoru was stubborn.

Aoi: "...W-we just wanted to know why you were taking him shopping and not us! Don't neglect us ladies, Minamoto-han!"

Shiho: "I've already circled things in a magazine and left it lying out in the apartment in assorted places for you to see. Are you really going to ignore a woman's hints and say I can't tag along?"

Kaoru: "I want the new Miracle Momo-chan resin doll! With plunging neckline and miniskirt kick action! It comes with its own doujinshi as well!"

Spooked and confused, Blues stepped away, after reclaiming his card, money, and returning to the vehicle, where the Children were caught by Minamoto. The girls looked back to him...only to see the spectres. Shiho nearly shrieked, petrified...though it was counter-intuitive, the girl was terrified of ghosts.

"Blues, Minamoto, what are they?" Kaoru asked in surprise.

"No idea. Psychometry detects them, but they're not alive whatever they are!" Blues responded.
 
More of these spectres began to appear around the convenience store parking lot, but it seemed no one else could actually see them. Behind Minamoto, and out on the road, Shiho would notice spectre cars driving up and down the road.

These manifestations faded in and out, sometimes a few would appear on the walkways, out in the streets, or on the side of the road; and then would suddenly disappear only for another batch to appear down the ways.

"What are what?" Minamoto asked, looking around to see what it was Kaoru was talking about.. and Blues for that matter.
 
"What, you can't see them? They look like people and cars, but...tit's as if they were spectres..." Blues said, as Aoi gave agreement.

"They're like the ghosts in the movie we saw last week, Minamoto-han..."

Shiho realized that Minamoto couldn't see what was happening, unlike the others in the group. Could only Espers see these things? Blues got in the car, and Aoi and Kaoru got on edge...while Shiho decided to help Minamoto.

"Minamoto-san, here...I'll help you see what we see." The girl placed her hand on the man's arm, and relayed what they were seeing into his mind...since he couldn't see them directly.
 
Minamoto was both amazed and perhaps a bit nervous at what he was seeing, or rather, what Shiho was sharing with her. He couldn't really understand 'why' these things were around or what prompted their appearance.

After a moment, he looked at the girls. "Let's go," he said although his eyes wandered into the direction of the spectres and where they were at.

Toshiro would still see them moving around, in fact, there were several new ones now as well; including ghostly images of aircraft and other assortment of vehicles moving about the area.
 
Toshiro moved to get back to the front seat, only for Shiho to claim it to keep a hand on Minamoto so he could see the entities. This left Toshiro sitting in the back, between the two remaining girls.

Aoi adjusted her glasses. "...You probably don't know much about girls, Toshiro-kun, so I'll give you a bit of advice. Don't leave girls out of shopping plans, okay? We will find out."

"Ah, listen to Aoi-chan. She's so happy to finally have a kohai (junior)..." Shiho said, delivering a soft barb. Just enough to pierce Aoi's attempt at image toward their now youngest member...or second youngest if Sakura joined as well.

"Shiho, you were just as upset as I was!" Aoi said, not liking how she was suddenly the bad cop. This was not what they agreed upon!

Once the car was moving, they'd head for electronics and pawn shops, as Toshiro had asked...pawn shops tended to have interesting things. He never knew what to get for Sakura normally, but sometimes something just leapt out at him...
 
HQ

Sakura rested her head on the pillow, her book lying on her chest. She was somewhat asleep right now, as evidenced by her closed eyes. A nurse came in to check on her, looking at her vitals and nodding her head.

"How is she?" Sakaki asked, walking into the room and up to the heart monitor. He noticed slight fluctuations in her heart rate, occasionally dropping before returning to normal, the same was said for her brain activity as well.

"Her vitals seem stable," said the Nurse, who was checking things off on her clipboard.

In the city

Minamoto continued to drive, noticing all of the spectres thanks to Shiho's ability. It was quite eerie to say the least, although he wondered what was causing them to appear so suddenly, when they hadn't been seen before.

After a few minutes of driving, they arrived at a large electronics shop; he was tempted to tell the girls to stay put but knew that wouldn't work so instead he looked at the girls. "Stay close ok?" he told them and got out of the car, he took one look toward the large store, glancing up and down it and then toward the direction of HQ's, then back at the store.
 
Toshiro got out of the vehicle and entered the store. Rather than simply buying preassembled things, however, he bought an array of electrical components, a watch, and a manner of other devices. He roamed the assorted areas of the store for specific things, while Aoi and Shiho merely browsed.

Aoi asked Minamoto for a wearable GPS, she could actually use for herself, and Shiho wanted a DVD murder mystery far too gruesome for her age...
 
The man sighed at the requests, he could accept the one for Aoi but what Shiho was asking a bit 'too' much. "You're to young," he said to Shiho with a look of 'no' on his face but nodded in Aoi's direction.

As Toshiro searched, he'd come across another spectre, a young girl browsing the aisles looking at electronics... however this girl looked oddly like Sakura...
 
Shiho looked to Minamoto, irritated at being treated like a child. "I've solved real murders, Minamoto-san. Do you really think this movie is going to do my mind any damage?"

Still, she started looking for something else. Kaoru wouldn't find much here to pique her interests, or at least it'd be harder to find such a thing.

Toshiro simply stood looking at the spectre in surprise. He knew she wasn't alive, but he couldn't help but stop and speak to her.

"...Hello...Sakura?"
 
The Spectre, at least at first, didn't seem to notice Toshiro's presence as it walked along the wall looking at the items. Then it turned toward the boy and looked him over curiously, walking around him, staring at him, almost like it was studying him....
 
He watched her curiously, turning with her...wondering if she was a threat or otherwise as he sensed with psychometry if she was somehow different. He then got the idea that if he couldn't hear her...he could use sign. He attempted to use sign language. She looked like Sakura, after all.

~Hello. You look like Sakura. Who are you?~
 
The spectre didn't seem to understand, at least that's what it appeared given how it looked at Toshiro curiously before suddenly looking behind the boy at something; something that only she could see.

As she walked away from the boy, looking at him one last time, her figure began to fade away - although a faint smile could be seen.
 
Toshiro was quite confused, but gave a light sigh after she vanished...and picked up some more electronics and components. He reunited with Minamoto...to find the Kaoru was asking for a game system, Aoi holding her GPS, and Shiho carrying a different DVD.

"I've got what I came for..." Toshiro said, Shiho and Aoi waiting more patiently than their redheaded friend.
 
Minamoto was effectively surrounded, and not in the sense of being attacked - at least not physically. He knew Shiho had seen many things that a child of her age shouldn't see, and he knew that he couldn't exactly say 'no' to her not without getting her and the others angry.

With a heavy sigh, he resigned himself to having to bend to their wills... at least for today. "Ok, you may," he said, looking at Shiho as he did so and Kaoru. "Did you find everything you wanted?" he turned toward Toshiro.
 
"Yes, at least here at this store...I still would like to visit a pawn shop and see what interesting things they have for sale." He said, as Kaoru celebrated her victory, eager to get back home or to HQ and hook up the game system and the pack-in title. Of course, this was only if she could wrest control of the television from Shiho. Perhaps Shiho could watch them on the computer, instead...
 
"There is a pawnshop nearby," remarked Minamoto as he started heading for the register, with the girls in tow. "We can stop by it before we head back to HQ."
 
Blues nodded, smiling as he paid for his purchases...which included a number of rather advanced components and a handheld game system with some games for Sakura while she waited to heal.

"Sounds good to me!"
 
RPG-D RPGfix
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