The Reality Vortex: Shadow Games

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Zenta’s Location

Clark was not phased at all from Zenta having no eyes; he’d assumed that was a case due to his blindness. What shocked him was his ties to only pupil; it felt beyond than simple master and student. It was like a father losing his child; something that he could relate to in a way.

“It’ll be disingenuous for me to say I know exactly how you felt. We’re different people after all, but I can see that feeling can eat you up.” He paused. “Especially feeling that you don’t have purpose… it isn’t fun. You’ll get there. This world is a big place, and once you get your head straight… you can face your student. Maybe that’ll help you better communicate with her with whatever problems she’s facing.”

The Kryptonian wasn’t sure if Zenta made the right choice, but it was important to have a sound mind before making any decision. Something that he himself still must learn.

After Avalon asked Clark of a place they’re heading, he nodded. “Right. You guys just came back from a fight, right. I do think you guys deserved some rest, and I know a place where you can do just that. Let’s go back with the others.”

===

Outside of Clark’s Home

“No need for warnings, noddlebot. You ought to have more concern of not getting turned into a tin can if you mention a ramen shop again.” Lucifer joked. “While it does warm my cold heart that Naoki caused mayhem, he is his own person. Not every disciple acts the same—and Berserk’s personality won’t change over it. So, I’m not concern at all; the Breakers will be fine.”

The angel was thoroughly impressed with how Berserk defended herself. “Ah, what a wonderful attitude. You remind me a lot of someone back in my world.” Lucifer looked up, noticing Clark on his way. “Whelp, once the tour concludes, we can continue where we left off. Fortunately for you, the process is rather quick and simple.”

Clark landed on the ground, with Vortex Man approaching him.

“Did you find him?” Vortex Man asked.

“Yeah, they’ll be here soon.” Clark answered. “Once they get there… I’ll take you guys around the city. There’s… a place I think you guys might really enjoy. A tournament! How about it, Vegetto?” Clark saw Vegetto outside of the hut. He thought that was a good opportunity to get to know them. He turns to Spina still sitting on the boulder. “You might want to get on this too, pal!”

“Don’t call me pal, bastard.” Spina

“…Right. Uh, but before we get there, I’m going to take you to a place where you can get two whole days’ worth of rest in a few minutes. And a new change of clothes. You guys’ stink bad.” The Kryptonian paused for a second. “No offense.”
 
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Cayde quickly shook his hands defensively, his voice still low but a bit rushed as he gestured towards Berserk.

"Oh no no, I get it! Do what you gotta do; I'm just saying...keep it down for a little while, yeah? At least, out of earshot from hotheads or people who are gonna get the wrong idea before you get the power up to handle them."

He paused, briefly turning his eyes to Lucifer. Cayde tilted his head slightly, shrugging his shoulders lightly.

"Technically, I'm already a tin can...but c'mon! Threats?"

The android blatantly pointed towards Vegetto with his left thumb.

"That's his thing, doesn't really suit you well."

With or without the angel's permission, Cayde then reached over and blatantly patted Lucifer's shoulder with a content sigh.

"I'm just trying to educate you on the finer things in life, my friend."

Cayde proudly placed his hands on his hips, keeping his large smile.

"In fact, I'll say it now: one of these days...you're gonna cave. Doesn't matter how long it takes...I will get you to enjoy a warm, delicious bowl of spicy ramen. No matter what."

Yet as Clark arrived, Cayde turned his attention as well back to the team gathered and fell silent. Once Clark recommended a good watch, Vegetto perked his right eyebrow with his arms crossed in front of his chest.

"A tournament?"

Vegetto soon lowered his eyebrow, having no immediate reaction to Spina's ruthless comment in response to Clark or about changing clothes. The Potara fusion kept his stance, his eyes narrowed slightly.

"As long as we don't have to fight, I suppose that'll be interesting. Do you know who's fighting in it?"
 
Bernkastel waited on Zenta for a long pause, not flinching from his eyeless face rather to stare into them. "No need to apologize-- think it over for a bit while we regain our bearings here. While it's safe." She guided him by the arm through the portal back to Clark's house, but was bothered that she couldn't foresee any useful action to take besides letting him leave.

Nothing can be done, yet I don't want to just leave it at that... the Witch scowled dejectedly. It wasn't like before where she could go scouring an abyss for a few hours and return with something in hand. But with no useful information Bern was drawing a blank. She mused over the meaning of 'purpose' and chuckled under her breath-- it either was a dice roll for the obedient to kneel to, or a curse for the rebellious to spend ages chasing after.
Which of them am I, I wonder?

======

"No need to tell me twice," Berserk agreed if only because she found the meddling of adults to be a nuisance. Judging from the way Lucifer talked about the process, it didn't seem to be a very arduous undertaking. "Ya think so? Maybe that means I'd get along with your pals back home! The Breakers' vibe kinda clashes with yours, so maybe Naoki didn't like how serious they can be. That sucks. He's missing out on these battles, they're way more fun than anything I've played in the arcade."

"What's this about a tournament?" Bernkastel asked, walking up to the group with Zenta in tow.

"Ya never heard of it? It's like a big group of fighters going head to head until the last pair goes-- winner gets a huge prize!" Berserk explained.

"...People actually do that for sport? It's not just rounds of death matches?"

"Nope! It's just for people who have powers or crazy strong moves. They have fun! But maybe you'd find it boring since you're not doing the fighting..."

"Nonsense. I've spectated many games & mysteries, but never beyond the illusions of fantasy. This sounds like an excellent opportunity to research true hand-to-hand combat," Bernkastel smirked confidently. "Finally I can put my observational analysis to excellent use."

"I wanna go! But Clark's right... we really do stink." Berserk's nose scrunched up, while the Witch tilted her head in confusion. "Yeah! A bunch of you smell like old blood and... puke. Ewwww!"

Bern looked down at her dress, noticing the wide stream of dried red staining her bodice and even more of it dried around her mouth in a rust-colored stain. She had completely neglected it, but seemed rather oblivious to the stench. "Fine. It's unbecoming to run around in bloody rags anyhow. People will think we came here to cause trouble and I don't wanna deal with that headache."
 
As Zenta and Avalon reunited with the group, there was a small hint of woe in the air, particularly around Zenta. Although he did not express it, he was quiet, not excited in the slightest about the upcoming tournament. The beast allowed Bernkastel to keep a hold on his arm for the meanwhile and spoke in short sentences.

“Ah, that is nice to hear…” Zenta said silently. “Perhaps it will be good to see a tournament. It might lift our spirits.”

“A tournament?! Cool!” Avalon cheered. “And we get new clothes? Aren’t we spoiled?” Soon, the ninja turned to Berserk and Bernkastel’s comments about stinking and looking like a bloody mess. “Hey, we don’t stink that bad!” Avalon slid over between Bernkastel and Berserk, lifted his arm in the air, and sniffed his armpit before reeling back, his face showing disgust. “…Okay, maybe we do. New clothes and a shower do sound nice…”

“I rather not get my fur wet…” Zenta grumbled slightly. “Besides, changing clothes seems… pointless for me. Maybe I should just remove my pants?”

“Don’t.” Avalon stopped Zenta in his tracks. “Just let us pick out some new clothes for you! I happen to be a fashion master!” Avalon boasted as he pressed a thumb to his chest.

“I’ll let Bernkastel decide what pants I should wear.” Zenta cleared his throat. “No shirts please. It feels like I am suffocating…”
 
Outside of Clark’s Home

“Nonsense,” Lucifer was quick to retort. “A Vortex Coin is a much suitable experience than devouring such horrendous food.” His ears perked at the conversation about the tournament from Clark. “Ah, I was not aware that this City hosts a tournament. Causal or we’ll finally see the Advanced Tournament?”

“Heh, I’m not surprised that you two are familiar with the tournament.” Clark nodded to both Berserk and Lucifer. “Like Berserk explained, the tournament is where fighters across Vortex gathered to fight it out and see who’s the strongest. It was set up two years ago by a man named Seto Kaiba who wish to see different fighters and their abilities. He called it…”

Clark took an embarrassing pose before revealing the title. “The Strongest of the Skies Martial Arts Tournament!”

Vortex Man was caught off guard by Clark’s sudden pose. “Uh, yeah. People flock to these things because it’s better than fighting out to the death or territorial disputes. Plus, it’s fun to watch. It’s also one of the fastest ways to collect Credits for all your goods. Even participating one grants you a minimum of 100,000 credits. Winning can net you over a million. And that’s just the causal tournaments.”

“I’ve joined a few myself!” Clark, proud of his pose and hopes it brings a smile to the group. “Advanced Tournament is the real deal I’ve heard… where it will determine the true strongest of them all. We haven’t had one yet… so I wonder when Kaiba will finally announce it.”

“Regardless, Clark really wants to take you guys now that the tournament is already running. They’re probably halfway through, so you don’t have to worry about joining in. We’re just spectating, is all.”

“I haven’t seen who’s the participants in the tournament, since you know, television got blown up before I got the chance.” Clark answered Vegetto. “That’ll ease off your mind and just relax. Good food, roaring crowd. Beach City folks will be more focused on the tournament than you guys. And you guys get new clothes—”

Clark turns to Zenta suggesting going nude. “You’re getting clothes, or at least some new pants. And don’t worry about the cost. It’s on me. I’ll pay for everything!”

Turning back to Vegetto, Clark smiles. “What do you say? Wanna bring your team to a good show?” Thinking Vegetto is back as the leader of the group. Clark’s intention was also to see how Breakers will react to see a diverse group of people in this world. And allowed himself to get to know them on an individual level.

Vortex Man nudged him. “Uh, I think that’s on Spina or Bernkastel.”

Clark blinked once. “Oh, my apologies! I didn’t mean—”

“That jackass can have them and make their decision; I’m done with that. They can follow him or the Witch. I don’t care which.” Spina jumped from the boulder seeing that everyone had arrived. Upon landing, cracks formed underneath his boots from the impact. “The tournament is gonna be interesting? Lead the way, I’m curious to see what kind of fighters they have.”

“Uh, yeah. Lemme make sure I have my wallet—"

“I’m losing my patience, clown. Hurry it up.” Spina had already flown in the sky, waiting for Clark to lead the way.

“Ah, okay!” Clark sweated a bit when Spina was rushing him. “Okay, okay! Lemme take you guys to this place to get some rest and new clothes. It’s called…” Clark pulled down his beach glasses and had a handsome smile. “The Cool Wave Shack.” A light sparkle upon showing his perfect teeth.

“Hurry up, dumbass!!” Spina screamed.

“Right! Urm… follow me!” Clark flies off and heads in the direction of the Shack.

“Is he always like this?” Vortex Man turns to the others. “That guy’s intense.”

“Hmm, being led by Vegetto? I almost want to eat ramen now.” Lucifer thought to himself, considering that eating that is far more favorable option than Vegetto leading the charge. “Shall we go? I’m dying to get an appropriate attire for this city.”



The Cool Wave Shack

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It’s a variety store with tons of knick-knacks, clothing and the sort. Whatever you need to fit in in Beach City, the Cool Wave Shack is the best place to be! It’s incredibly expensive… but worth the price! And has a special room, called Relaxing Spa. With the time limit of 1 minute, you will feel refreshed, clean and have 2 days of rest! It is one of the reasons why this place is very popular with the locals!

A young man with tan skin, reddish hair and a tattoo on his right biceps is watching the television of the tournament.

“We are here to introduce… two fighters! Caim! A feisty swordsman who slays anything in his way! He’s a silent type. His opponent is Mooli! She’s---”

A sudden quake shook his store, causing most things to fall to the floor, including his television and cutting off the tournament. “What the?!” He ran outside to see a very large man looking around.

“This isn’t the tournament.” Spina said.

“Well yeah! You gotta get new clothes and some rest.” Clark pinched his nose. “And you need a shower, too!” The Kryptonian turned to the clerk of the store. “Sorry about that Reef!”

“Tsk…” Spina grunted.

“New friends of yours?” Reef said.
 
Cayde shook his head with a small chuckle at Lucifer's quick retort, turning his attention back to the group once the tournament was mentioned. Yet at the others immediately dismissal, Cayde turned towards Zenta with a small rebuff.

"Don't worry, Zenta...I understand. One day, perhaps...we will be free from the tyranny of pants."

Yet as Clark announced the name of the tournament with his ridiculous pose, Cayde audibly sighed and pinched the bridge of his metal nose. Vegetto stood with his arms crossed, indifferent to the display but lowered his curious eyebrow with a normal stare. None of the spoken names elicited a reaction from the Potara fusion, but as Clark referred to the Breakers as his team, Vegetto's eyes widened a bit in confusion. The interjections all happened before Vegetto could even speak a word, and in the correction, Vegetto immediately frowned and glanced to the side. He scowled slightly after Spina's harsh comment, but his words echoed a similar reluctance towards any form of connection to the role of leader.

"Let's just go."

Flying after Clark, Vegetto kept his arms crossed and scowled slightly at Spina in growing annoyance towards his hostility towards Clark. Cayde flew after the team shortly after, heading for the shop.


Landing on the opposite side of Clark, Vegetto touched down lightly and looked over the slightly disturbed but standing shack. His eyes followed Spina briefly for a moment, before turning to look over the merchandise silently while Clark talked to Reef. Cayde dropped down to the ground not too long after, elated at the sight of the shack based on his tone.

"Oh, not bad...not bad at all. Hey, you think they have ponchos here?"

Vegetto glanced to the side towards Cayde, his dual voice curt.

"You're not getting a poncho-"

"Shut up, don't talk to me. I'm still mad at you."

Cayde's quick and curt rebuttal cut Vegetto off in an instant, the android turning to Clark and Reef.

"Eh? How 'bout it, huh? Poncho time?"
 
Outside Clark’s House

100,000 credits? I wonder if that’s the currency here in Beach City or all around Vortex? Avalon tilted his head before catching wind of Clark assuming Vegetto to be the leader. He quickly rolled his eyes. The ninja gazed over at Spina silently, narrowing his eyes at how unreasonable Spina has gotten.

“Well, let’s get goin’ then. The more we wait, the more we stink!” Avalon said, smelling his armpit again. “Wow! That’s bad.”

“I will walk. I rather take my time when it comes to getting my fur wet…” Zenta said, however, before he could finish, Avalon approached him and grabbed his arm, trying to tug him towards the hole in the wall. Zenta barely budged an inch while Avalon was struggling to pull him with all his might.

“Oh no you don’t! You’re just gonna disappear again!” Avalon continued to pull on Zenta’s arm as he let out a whistle. His paper avian flew up towards the hole in the wall and perched. “C’mon Zenta, I think it would be best if you stick with the team. You don’t need to do things alone, y’know.”

There was a small pause before Zenta let out a sigh of defeat. He walked with Avalon to the hole before lifting the ninja and throwing him out with incredible force. It was not malicious, but it gave Avalon a spook as his bird flew out and caught him by the back of the shirt.

“W-What was that for?!” Avalon gasped. “Y-You tryin’ to kill me?!”

“No, not at all.” Zenta said calmly as he hopped off the edge of the hole and onto the paper falcon’s back. “But I appreciate what you are trying to do, Avalon…”

“Sheesh! You could’ve warned me, y’know!” The ninja’s skin was pale. “W-Well, let’s go.”


The Cool Wave Shack

As Zenta and Avalon landed by the shack, the paper bird released Avalon, dropping him on the floor. Zenta gracefully hopped off the bird’s back and onto his feet. The paper falcon disappeared into a cloud of smoke shortly after. Avalon groaned before lifting himself to his feet and turned to face the shack. Almost instantly, his eyes widened at the cool stuff the shack had.

“Whoa!”
 
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Bernkastel raised an eyebrow hearing Clark imply Vegetto was leading the group, let alone be reinstated to be part of it again. Ultimately she didn't say anything beyond a snort under her breath with a glance off to the side. She started to speak so she could correct Vortex Man's assumption before Spina's curt response caught her off-guard; considering he took the mantle upon himself after their bout with the Coin Hunter, it was surprising he let go of it so freely.

"But wait a minute, I'm not..." Bernkastel trailed off into silence as she seriously thought the idea over. That's strange. The last thing Spina would do is let me be leader again after that embarrassment I caused. She just eyed him from afar with a distracted expression. "No. Nobody is going pantsless," Bern managed to reply though with a less than energetic tone.

"It's uh... a recent thing," the Witch vaguely alluded to Vortex Man as the group began following Clark.

Berserk was left speechless by Clark's posing and bombastic announcements of each amenity's ridiculous sounding name. She simply stood there with a perfectly neutral expression. I had no idea Superman was such a huge nerd. Aren't hero guys supposed to be... cool?
=====
The Cool Wave Shack

"100,000 credits! Geez that's practically free money if you win a few tournaments in a row!" Berserk zipped in between different racks of clothes excitedly. "Maybe I ought to get pants with lots of pockets down the leg... I like wearing skirts but all my portables would benefit from hidden storage."

"We're just acquaintances," Bernkastel emphasised matter of factly. Her small stature next to Spina was almost comical since Reef would have had to look downwards rather than upwards. "Let's not be in such a rush, I'm sure these things have pre-match commercials that stretch out for a good 5 minutes. It's easy finding clothes if you already know what you want. Watch this," she told Spina as she entered the hut. With a scrutinizing gaze she ignored everything that had vibrant colors or loud patterns, heading straight to a rack of black clothes. "Black does an excellent job at concealing blood and camouflages you in the dark."

"No way, it's so hot out here! You'll roast wearing that," Berserk pointed out.

"I got used to hot weather after a century or two. This is nothing," Bernkastel said while handling what looked like a long-sleeved jumpsuit. "There, all picked out in a minute with black socks thrown in. Try and beat that." It seemed like she took a more playful approach to take the edge off Spina's impatient mood.

"Aw, no fair! I'm supposed to be the fastest one of us! I gotta find my stuff fast or else I'm gonna end up going last into the Spa!" The Powerpunk started searching even faster out of an impulse to not be bested.
 
“Acquaintances?” Reef squinted his eyes after all the members of the Breakers arrived at his shop. “They looked like they belong to a heavy metal band, dude! Totally bringing the vibe down, bro.”

His eyes trailed over to Zenta walking in. “Whoa, hey! No dogs allowed bro. Keep that thing outside on a leash.”

Lucifer chuckled a bit. “Fufu, quite a predicament, my child. Don’t worry, I’ll seek to it to bring out a souvenir fort you as you sulk all day—”

“You got go too, bro!” Reef pointed at Lucifer. “Angels, Demons and short creepy Gothic creatures aren’t allowed either! It’s messes with the sweet spiritual vibe I got going on here.”

The angel gasped, placing his hand on his chest. “Well, that’s quite rude.”

“Whoa!” Clark gestured his hands to calm Reef down. “Relax… they’re good people. They won’t do anything crazy. We’re just here to buy some stuff and we’ll be out of your hair quick.”

“Hmm…” Reef crossed his arms. “I dunno…” His eyes widened the moment he saw Vegetto. Seeing the Potara fusion made everything click inside his head. “Bro… aren’t you guys the Breakers!? No way, dudes. You guys ain’t shopping here, that’s for sure!”

Reef pointed at Vegetto. “Aren’t you the guy that was foaming at the mouth during Rogue City incident? I saw that on TV.” He quickly grabbed a tiki torch as means to defend himself if they were to attack him. “You’re back as leader for the Breakers, huh?! Get out, dudes!”

“Reef, just calm down for a second!” Clark felt the tension was increasingly getting worse. The Breakers had already come from a battle, and now they’re thrown into another one.

“Just put down the torch. No one’s doing anything. We promised nothing is going to happen.” Vortex Man tried to reason with him, but it fell on deaf ears.

While Witch approached shopping in a playful manner, Spina was the exact opposite. He thinks that this whole voyage was a waste of time. He didn’t want to go shopping; he didn’t want to watch the tournament either, but at least it was something to pass the time. However, there was something that he needed it and the Breakers are the key to it. “Tch… this isn’t fun.”

Spina went inside, pushing both Zenta and Avalon out of the way. Without venturing much, he picked the first rack of clothes and picked an outfit from it. Seeing that he had everything he needed, he turned to Reef still attempting to block everyone from going any further.

“I’m done. Go to the register so that idiot can pay for this.” Spina demanded.

“You’re deaf?! I ain’t letting you guys run around. If news broke out that I’m serving the Breakers, my business gonna tank hard, bro.” Reef snapped back.

“I’m not asking. I’m telling you.”

Reef turns to Vegetto. “Tell your little lackey that he ain’t welcome here—”

Instantly, Reef’s torch snapped in half. He burst into a sweaty mess as his eyes trailed back to the older Saiyan. Upon his eyes laying on Saiyan, he’d seen Spina turning him down with a face of silent fury.

“Uhh… Oof!” Reef felt his feet no longer touching the ground, with Spina lifting him up by the neck. “W-wait!”

“I’m no one’s lackey. No. One.”

“Spina! What the heck are you doing?! Let him go!” Clark and Vortex Man attempt to grab Spina by the arms and forced to release the man, but a strange pressure of darkness halted their movements.

Spina turned his head slightly, dropping the man to the ground. Reef coughed to catch his breath.

“Apologies for my friend, here. He’s uh, on edge since he and his pals defeated the Red King! You know that guy was turning everyone into those rock people?” Clark hoped that reef wouldn’t blow up.

Reef rubbed his head. “Ahem…” He was silent for a bit before continuing when Clark mentioned the Breakers defeated the Red King. “Oh, they did that. Several of my buds were turned into them…” He looks at Spina and the rest of the Breakers. “Uh, yeah, sorry dudes. I was just a bit worried since, you know, reputation and all that. If you guys don’t make a scene... then we’re cool.”

“We’ll help you clean up since Clark… and Vegetto have community service after we’re done.” Vortex Man offered to help.

“No, no. It’s cool bro.” Reef said. “Just do your shopping, and I’ll be here when you dudes are ready. Still, no dogs allowed. That goes for Witches and Angels.”

“Thanks…” Vortex Man wants to go home already. “Get whatever you guys need so we can go. Don't forget to take the Relaxing Spa. That'll wash off the smell and give you much needed rest."

“Phew…” Clark wiped the sweat from his forehead.

“Clark.”

“Uh, yeah?” The Kryptonian turned to Spina. “Oh, he’s gonna apologize for acting out? Oh, this is a start of our friendship—”

“Don’t call me your friend, idiot. We’ll never become friends.”

“….Noted.”
 
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