Fandom The Only Way To Go Is Up! ~The Story~ [NO SPOT LEFT!]

[Irish_Dragon_76]

heartshapedsprinkles

Hearing Clem yell up to him and Edd, Ryan stopped to listen and waited for her to finish, a blank look on his face.

"Looks like Mom's in a bad mood today..." Ryan said to Edd jokingly. Let's go wait for them I guess, it is a bit reckless to run up in unknown territory." He added, laughing a bit on the inside.

Ryan couldn't help but think back on how that was how most of his adventures were. Traveling to places he never even heard of, doing things he never expected he would do.

Thepotatogod

"That's very noble of you miss, though, lots of guns would be nice too..." Ryan said to the woman with the clipboard as he walked to the end of the stairs.

"Anyway! Now that we sorta know what's going on, are we all ready to take a trip up this tower? I'm itching for some adventure and maybe a few bar fights."

 

[Sumirenko]

"...Oh." This wasn't the work of a kidnapper, then, but that didn't make the situation any less serious. Kokoro was still reeling with confusion as she desperately tried to process what on earth was going on. Her looming night terrors weren't helping. While the others were asking questions of their own, Kokoro slowly sank back into the couch cushions with her gaze firmly set on the floor. Her emotions were swirling around and around in confused clumps; the youkai wasn't very good at coping when her world was turned onto its head.

"Are you alright?"

Kokoro's head jerked up to look at this new stranger. She was a pretty lady, probably younger than the Fool's Stewardess, and she had pink hair almost the same shade as her own. More importantly than her appearance, though, was the pure emotion of concern that radiated from her body. Kokoro's masks glowed a little bit brighter in her presence while the childlike youkai fed off of Colette's feelings. A full stomach (? Wherever she kept the emotional energy) did wonders for her outlook.

"Um, that depends on what you mean by... oh, my head? Yeah, my head feels okay. Thank you for asking. My name is Hata no Kokoro. It's very nice to meet you, Colette.~" Kokoro murmured softly, trying to give Colette a smile- which only resulted in the corners of her mouth twitching a bit. Luckily for the expressionless girl, her masks were there to do the job, and her Mask of Confusion swapped its place for her Mask of Happiness.

As soon as it fell into place, anyone too close to Kokoro would begin to feel an odd warmth trickling into their chests. The result of her mask's power overflowing. Her ability uplifted the people around her to feel exactly what she was feeling: happy. Kokoro was genuinely happy to find someone nice when she was feeling down; she saw no reason to suppress it. Even while Colette turned around to talk to the other people in the room, Kokoro watched her intently. She was nice. She was pretty. And just like that, Kokoro decided that Colette was her friend.

Kokoro left her moping space on the couch so she could somewhat follow in her footsteps, staying a couple feet behind her while she stared up at the looming staircase. From what the Fool's Stewardess said, it sounded like they would have to climb all the way to the top so they could get home. Who designed it like that? That seems silly, the menreiki thought to herself, watching several of the people in the group practically climbing over each other in the attempt to get to the next floor. Unlike them, Kokoro was perfectly fine with staying down here for now. So she waited in Colette's shadow, a silent observer to the many people talking and arguing around her--

Thunk!

The youkai couldn't help but jump at the sudden noise, almost bumping into her 'new friend' in the process. Kokoro whipped around to face what could be a potential threat, but luckily, it was only a semi familiar face from her own world. "The other shrine maiden." She remarked out loud, quoting a certain shikaisen's condescending name for the green-haired girl on the floor. To be fair, Kokoro didn't remember her name either. She wasn't really sure how she felt about a shrine maiden being in their group, but seeing as Miss Reimu was nice enough, she figured this one couldn't be that bad.

She lost interest quickly, turning to the flight of stairs once again and swallowing hard. They were looking more and more imposing by the minute. "Do we really have to go all the way up there...?"

heartshapedsprinkles , Count Gensokyo (brief mention, lol)

 

[Axcicos]

"...Oh." This wasn't the work of a kidnapper, then, but that didn't make the situation any less serious. Kokoro was still reeling with confusion as she desperately tried to process what on earth was going on. Her looming night terrors weren't helping. While the others were asking questions of their own, Kokoro slowly sank back into the couch cushions with her gaze firmly set on the floor. Her emotions were swirling around and around in confused clumps; the youkai wasn't very good at coping when her world was turned onto its head.

"Are you alright?"

Kokoro's head jerked up to look at this new stranger. She was a pretty lady, probably younger than the Fool's Stewardess, and she had pink hair almost the same shade as her own. More importantly than her appearance, though, was the pure emotion of concern that radiated from her body. Kokoro's masks glowed a little bit brighter in her presence while the childlike youkai fed off of Colette's feelings. A full stomach (? Wherever she kept the emotional energy) did wonders for her outlook.

"Um, that depends on what you mean by... oh, my head? Yeah, my head feels okay. Thank you for asking. My name is Hata no Kokoro. It's very nice to meet you, Colette.~" Kokoro murmured softly, trying to give Colette a smile- which only resulted in the corners of her mouth twitching a bit. Luckily for the expressionless girl, her masks were there to do the job, and her Mask of Confusion swapped its place for her Mask of Happiness.

As soon as it fell into place, anyone too close to Kokoro would begin to feel an odd warmth trickling into their chests. The result of her mask's power overflowing. Her ability uplifted the people around her to feel exactly what she was feeling: happy. Kokoro was genuinely happy to find someone nice when she was feeling down; she saw no reason to suppress it. Even while Colette turned around to talk to the other people in the room, Kokoro watched her intently. She was nice. She was pretty. And just like that, Kokoro decided that Colette was her friend.

Kokoro left her moping space on the couch so she could somewhat follow in her footsteps, staying a couple feet behind her while she stared up at the looming staircase. From what the Fool's Stewardess said, it sounded like they would have to climb all the way to the top so they could get home. Who designed it like that? That seems silly, the menreiki thought to herself, watching several of the people in the group practically climbing over each other in the attempt to get to the next floor. Unlike them, Kokoro was perfectly fine with staying down here for now. So she waited in Colette's shadow, a silent observer to the many people talking and arguing around her--

Thunk!

The youkai couldn't help but jump at the sudden noise, almost bumping into her 'new friend' in the process. Kokoro whipped around to face what could be a potential threat, but luckily, it was only a semi familiar face from her own world. "The other shrine maiden." She remarked out loud, quoting a certain shikaisen's condescending name for the green-haired girl on the floor. To be fair, Kokoro didn't remember her name either. She wasn't really sure how she felt about a shrine maiden being in their group, but seeing as Miss Reimu was nice enough, she figured this one couldn't be that bad.

She lost interest quickly, turning to the flight of stairs once again and swallowing hard. They were looking more and more imposing by the minute. "Do we really have to go all the way up there...?"

heartshapedsprinkles , Count Gensokyo (brief mention, lol)

Edd

"Well, if we want to get out of here, we better start our ascent. I for one want to get back to my simple life of drinking cola, drawing things, getting forced into adventures with my friends and killing zombehs. Not sure about the rest of you but if we want our livelihoods back we're gonna have to earn it." Edd told the group as if he was having a speech.

The Batter

The Batter was a silent listener when everyone was arguing about what to do. In order to get a move onto his quest of purifying the spectres that roamed around this potentially dangerous tower. Without warning, the Batter started climbing the stairs, with his Add-Ons following suit.​

 

[heartshapedsprinkles]

Thepotatogod Irish_Dragon_76
Clem rolled her eyes at Ryan’s “mom” comment, and bit back the sarcastic retort that was on the tip of her tongue. If they were going to be stuck together for who knows how long, she figured she might need to do her part to help build some sort of… camaraderie. Or at least get along well enough that they could get through this together and come out relatively unscathed in the end. And her mouth, she’d been told in the past, had a tendency to piss people off. Not that she really stopped to care what other people thought of her.

Sighing in annoyance and uncrossing her arms, Clem ran her fingers through her hair, her mouth set in a grim line. She was not at all excited to deal with “hostile” residents, and if these floors were entire worlds that they had to navigate and escape, they might be stuck in this tower for a long time. “Thanks for answering the questions. Sorry you’re stuck here too; sounds like we’ve all got the shit end of the stick on this one.”

Rolling her shoulders and adjusting the straps of the backpack she had on, the redhead surveyed the room quickly. It seemed all of the guys in the room had all decided to make their way to the stairs, whilst the women of the group were hanging back. Sighing, she headed towards the stairs, figuring she might as well see what they were up against with her own eyes. Though she’d rather spend more time at least getting to know everyone, it seemed like the majority was itching to leave. And like Makoto said, it would be better for them to stay together in a group.

Looking over her shoulder at The Fool’s Stewardess, she said expectantly, “You coming? If you wanna help, it’s time to put your money where your mouth is. You probably know this place far better than we do, after all.”

Sumirenko Count Gensokyo
Colette, on the other hand, was still focused on her conversation with the masked girl, her smile brightening a bit when she shared her name and the fact that she had been unhurt. She took notice of the change in the mask upon Kokoro’s head, tilting her head curiously and deciding that she’d ask about it later, once they were a bit better acquainted. For some reason, after speaking with the girl and witnessing her mask change, Colette felt her anxiousness fade away a bit, the tight feeling in her chest replaced by a warm glow.

“Well, I’m glad you’re alright! It’s nice to meet you too! Though, I wish the circumstances were better.” Rubbing her head sheepishly, she added, “You’re handling this much better than I am, by the way. I started to panic, until Stella,” she gestured towards the woman in question, “was kind enough to distract me so I could gather myself.”

Colette was about to suggest that they follow everyone to the next floor, when a loud thud and soft whimpering caught her attention. She’d missed the green-haired woman asleep on a shelf, and it wasn’t until she crashed to the ground and called out that she spotted her.

Hurrying over to her side, she stuck out a hand to help her up, worry evident on her face. “Oh my goodness, that was quite the fall, I hope you’re alright. Here, let me help you…” Once the green-haired woman was on her feet, Colette couldn’t help but smile, the sudden happiness still lingering in her chest. “I’m Colette, by the way. And this is…”

She turned to face everyone in the room, scrunching her face up a bit as she tried to recall the names she’d overheard, pointing to each person as she said their names, “Kokoro. Oh! I hope it’s alright to call you that, by the way. And that’s Clementine, Stella, Edd, Ryan, Timothy, Makoto, the Batter, and The Fool’s Stewardess.”

Turning back, she smiled, hoping it would set the other woman at ease. “We’ve all just woken up here like you have, and have been told that we have to escape this place, this… Tower, I think it is? Except all of the floors are actually other worlds, and not all of them are friendly, and it’s honestly pretty confusing. I’m not sure I understand much of it at all.”

Blinking, she blushed slightly in embarrassment and said softly, “Oh, I’m sorry. I ramble, sometimes, when I’m nervous. What’s your name?”

 

[Thepotatogod]

0 - FOOL'S LOBBY
Irish_Dragon_76 heartshapedsprinkles Axcicos Count Gensokyo
​

Stella(BRS), Akira Kurusu(Phantom Joker)

While observing Colette and Kokoro, the other pink haired girl discuss with one another, she somehow felt some...Warmth. She didn't know what it really is, but it does remind her of the times she had with Rothcall...It was quite nostalgic, at best. Soon enough, her attention was drawn to a green haired woman fell from a bookshelf, landing on top of a young man clad in black's chest, who in turn, let out a groan in pain.

"....Why...me...?" He whimpered to himself as he found his glasses lying beside him, soon slowly grabbing it and placing it on his head. This surely was not his home back at Japan. In fact, the mere absence of Morgana is just as worrying. As soon as a pink haired girl soon helped the one on top of him up, he let out a sigh of relief, soon rising to a sitting position as he rubbed his head as the pink haired girl soon listed out everyone within this room. In order, he recalled everyone she listed down.

Colette, the short haired pink haired girl, Kokoro, the other pink haired girl whose hair is long, Clementine, the fierce looking girl with red hair, Stella, the emotionless looking twintailed girl wearing nothing but a hoodie, black gloves, shorts and boots, and her black string undergarments showing under her open hoodie. An odd fellow, that's for show. Then we have Makoto, the blue haired lethargic looking boy, Edd, the normal looking brown haired kid in a green hoodie, Ryan, the man clad in black, Timothy, a man that looks mistakenly like the Shadows in Kamoshida's Castle, the Batter, who appears to be wearing a baseball uniform, and the Fool's Stewardess.

Now the Fool's Stewardess' name sounds truly odd. Why would she be named like that? He soon stood up, brushing the dust off his black uniform as he soon pushed his glasses on.

"I'm Kurusu Akira. Nice to meet you." Akira introduced himself to the two of them in a polite fashion, soon rubbing the back of his neck as he heard they were in a tower of sorts. He soon rolled his eyes to the side, recalling his past experiences with alien locations such as this to be quite painful.

Timothy Arthurn, Makoto Yuuki, Fool's Stewardess

"The most I can do for now is to transport you all to the first safe zone." The Stewardess said, flipping through another list. "If I dare leave my post again, I'm afraid the Herald would be all over my hide for suspicion of 'Treason'." She said with a sigh, soon taking out a blue card, handing it to the Batter.

The Card depicted a blissful traveler about to walk off a cliff, carrying a stick and a bag filled with his belongings, a dog following after the traveler.

"In order to access a Safe Zone, please find a suitable space and raise the card and utter words: Adsumus custodes pacis. A door should allow you to gain access to a small space with various objects needed in your survival; such as food, water, and some sleeping furniture." She said with a nod, hoping that would be enough for them to begin...

 

[Axcicos]

The Batter

The Batter stopped in his tracks once The Fool's Stewardess walked up to him and handed him the card. "Hmm... a card? That's peculiar... alright, I'll keep it. Thank you, Fool's Stewardess." he told her, examining the blue card. The picture shown on it was definitely something. He put it in his pocket where all of his normal cards that would be worthless here go.

Edd

"Alright, are we ready to start our adventure onto the top of this floor? I think we're about ready now that the baseball guy has that card." Edd thought to role-call before they left. "Hmm... we have... Colette, Kokoro, Clementine, Stella, Makoto, myself, Ryan, Timothy, and the Batter. Is that everyone that the Fool's Stewardess listed?"​

 

[Thepotatogod]

Makoto Yuuki, Timothy Arthurn
heartshapedsprinkles Axcicos Irish_Dragon_76

"There are definitely others." Makoto took note of the other figures down below; one with green hair, and a plain looking teenager in glasses. "But I think it would be best if we go ahead...I trust that the Stewardess can handle things from here?" he asked, glancing at the Stewardess let out an agreeable nod, as Makoto soon climbed up with the rest of the group, ascending onto the eerie blue light on the center of the clock; passing through it as if it's nothing.

Reaching the top of the stairs, a small hallway greeted them with a blue door in the distance. The door was marked with the Roman Numeral 'I' and another card hanging from the knob. It depicted a man in a robe, raising what appears to be a wand with a Infinity symbol above his head. It wasn't the first time Makoto saw a Tarot, but it was enough to make him stop for a brief moment, allowing Timothy to grow slightly worried.

"Are you well, Sir Yuuki?" Timothy asked, approaching Makoto from behind. Makoto merely turned and nodded, soon going ahead and opening the door.

--I - MAGICIAN'S KEEP--

Upon opening the door, Makoto's group's vision was soon filled with light, obscuring their vision as their surroundings faded; changing into an open, grassy area; the skies tinted green as a town can be seen inside the forest in the distance along with tall, black pillars that seemed to be holding up something. Upon closer inspection, the pillars appear to be holding up the sky; similar to how Atlas held up the skies in Greek Mythology. As the breeze brush through everyone's hairs, Timothy was left in awe, looking around at the sudden change of scenery.

"What Sorcery is this...?" He gasped in awe, as Makoto merely remained his lethargic look, surveying the distance as he shoved his hands in his pockets once more, glancing behind him to see if the rest of his group is with him.

((Sorry I've been AFK for a week. Exam's are coming up after all, and preparations are to be made!))

 

[Irish_Dragon_76]

Ryan followed closely behind Makoto, glad they were finally making their way up the tower. Once they went through the eerie blue light, which Ryan didn't hesitate to go through, he couldn't help but notice something off.

"Hey... Anyone else find something off about this room?" Ryan asked, looking around the room while still following Makoto. "Like, this is either a really off-balance tower, or the last room had some really thick walls..." He added, remarking to the length of the hallway in comparison of the lounge room.

Once they opened the door, his question was answered quite quickly.

"Ah... Right, okay... This is gonna get interesting..." Ryan mumbled. Phil's Herbs had worn off.

 

[Count Gensokyo]

As soon as it fell into place, anyone too close to Kokoro would begin to feel an odd warmth trickling into their chests. The result of her mask's power overflowing. Her ability uplifted the people around her to feel exactly what she was feeling: happy. Kokoro was genuinely happy to find someone nice when she was feeling down; she saw no reason to suppress it.

Soon enough, Stella's attention was drawn to a green haired woman fell from a bookshelf, landing on top of a young man clad in black's chest, who in turn, let out a groan in pain.

"....Why...me...?" He whimpered to himself as he found his glasses lying beside him, soon slowly grabbing it and placing it on his head.

Thunk!

The youkai couldn't help but jump at the sudden noise, almost bumping into her 'new friend' in the process. Kokoro whipped around to face what could be a potential threat, but luckily, it was only a semi familiar face from her own world. "The other shrine maiden." She remarked out loud, quoting a certain shikaisen's condescending name for the green-haired girl on the floor.

"H-huh? What do you mean by that?" Sanae asked confusedly with a frown. However, it wasn't long before she suddenly felt a new feeling of relaxed contentment spread through her body thanks to Kokoro's ability. For Sanae herself, of course, her mood swing had no explanation.

She lost interest quickly, turning to the flight of stairs once again and swallowing hard. They were looking more and more imposing by the minute. "Do we really have to go all the way up there...?"

heartshapedsprinkles , Count Gensokyo (brief mention, lol)

"Hey, um, where--" Sanae began, only for another girl to come rushing over to her.

Hurrying over to her side, she stuck out a hand to help her up, worry evident on her face. “Oh my goodness, that was quite the fall, I hope you’re alright. Here, let me help you…”

"Oh, thank you!" Sanae said as she took Colette's offer and stood up to her feet.

Once the green-haired woman was on her feet, Colette couldn’t help but smile, the sudden happiness still lingering in her chest. “I’m Colette, by the way. And this is…”

She turned to face everyone in the room, scrunching her face up a bit as she tried to recall the names she’d overheard, pointing to each person as she said their names, “Kokoro. Oh! I hope it's alright to call you that, by the way...

"Kokoro..." Sanae repeated mentally as she got a better look at the pink-haired girl who had been the first to talk to her. She knew her from somewhere, but she just couldn't remember yet...

As Sanae tried hard to think about where she could have seen someone like Kokoro before, she lost track of focusing on what Colette was saying. It wasn't until Colette stopped listing the others' names when Sanae snapped out of her thoughts.

"...And that’s Clementine, Stella, Edd, Ryan, Timothy, Makoto, the Batter, and The Fool’s Stewardess.”

Turning back, she smiled, hoping it would set the other woman at ease. “We’ve all just woken up here like you have, and have been told that we have to escape this place, this… Tower, I think it is? Except all of the floors are actually other worlds, and not all of them are friendly, and it’s honestly pretty confusing. I’m not sure I understand much of it at all.”

Blinking, she blushed slightly in embarrassment and said softly, “Oh, I’m sorry. I ramble, sometimes, when I’m nervous. What’s your name?”

Sanae had plenty of questions to ask this woman about the tower and the 'other worlds' she mentioned, but she'd hold those back until after she introduced herself.

"I'm Kochiya Sanae, the priestess of the Moriya Shrine--" Sanae began, but she cut herself off. "Then again, I get the feeling that you don't know what that is, anyway."

0 - FOOL'S LOBBY
Irish_Dragon_76 heartshapedsprinkles Axcicos Count Gensokyo
​

This surely was not his home back at Japan. In fact, the mere absence of Morgana is just as worrying. As soon as a pink haired girl soon helped the one on top of him up, he let out a sigh of relief, soon rising to a sitting position as he rubbed his head as the pink haired girl soon listed out everyone within this room. In order, he recalled everyone she listed down.

Colette, the short haired pink haired girl, Kokoro, the other pink haired girl whose hair is long, Clementine, the fierce looking girl with red hair, Stella, the emotionless looking twintailed girl wearing nothing but a hoodie, black gloves, shorts and boots, and her black string undergarments showing under her open hoodie. An odd fellow, that's for show. Then we have Makoto, the blue haired lethargic looking boy, Edd, the normal looking brown haired kid in a green hoodie, Ryan, the man clad in black, Timothy, a man that looks mistakenly like the Shadows in Kamoshida's Castle, the Batter, who appears to be wearing a baseball uniform, and the Fool's Stewardess.

Now the Fool's Stewardess' name sounds truly odd. Why would she be named like that? He soon stood up, brushing the dust off his black uniform as he soon pushed his glasses on.

"I'm Kurusu Akira. Nice to meet you." Akira introduced himself to the two of them in a polite fashion, soon rubbing the back of his neck as he heard they were in a tower of sorts. He soon rolled his eyes to the side, recalling his past experiences with alien locations such as this to be quite painful.

Sanae turned around to find a new face in front of her—one who had just risen from the spot she had apparently landed on earlier. He sported a pair of reading glasses, ruffled black hair, brown eyes, and a black suit. There was a badge of some sort on it, so maybe it was a school uniform?

Wait a second. If he was getting up from where she'd been just a moment ago...

"Oh gosh, I'm sorry, sir!" Sanae said with an apologetic bow. Now that she thought about it, she had heard a pained voice when she woke up. Did that voice belong to this man she was talking to now?

"I was the one who fell and hit you," Sanae said. Maybe it wasn't entirely true, but she would rather apologize for something she didn't do then not say anything about it.

Sumirenko heartshapedsprinkles Thepotatogod