2025-08-12: I Rolled A One
- Cutscene: I Rolled A One
- Cast: Myunghon Yeo, two tabletop gamers, and a special surprise
- Where: Crime Alley, Hirasaka Ward
- OOC Date: August 12th, 2025
- IC Date: June 24th, 2012
- Summary: The Cardboard Dragon is low on Skill Cards. How does Myunghon restock?
It's a known fact amongst the supernatural that the Cardboard Dragon deals in Skill Cards. But who is their supplier? They don't have an in-house artist, something that Myunghon wants to change someday. It'd be great to work out a deal with an artist. But they don't, right now, and thus...
Click. Click.
Myunghon turns off the lights after ensuring that the louvres of their windows are shut. The air conditioner's low thrum comes to a lazy stop. They check their phone for a moment: 2:23 am. They'd already been productive through the Dark Hour, but their night still hasn't come to an end -- no, they're going through the graveyard shift, probably right through to the morning at this point.
Rumourmonger Merry wouldn't let a fool thing like healthy rest stop them.
"... right. Let's get to it," Myunghon tucks the collar of their Cognitive Coat a little closer to themself, and leaps through the streets of Sumaru City in the eerie morning hours. The Dark Hour is one thing, but supernatural activity has a way of manifesting when the least eyes are upon the city that, supposedly, never sleeps. Sumaru City is ephemeral, a beauty that wears one face in the morning and another at night, and yet more devilish ones during the hours no one hopes to be caught wandering in...
And now...
Hirasaka is an aged district. It has never received any injection in cash in the way suburbs like Shibuya or Shinjuku once did, buoying them to life once more. There's hints of glory days, once upon a time, when the economic bubble was alive and well and seemed invincible, like it'd never stop growing. But it did pop, and the dreams of vanity and luxury are just that: dreams, and the grime and decaying infrastructure all just make it seem like the bad hangover of something everyone was intoxicated on...
This alleyway is one of many in Sumaru that's designed in an old L-shape -- a clumsy little piece of 50-year old civil planning designed to give the surrounding commercial buildings their service entrances -- and the moon hangs low, obscured by the clouds, leaving even less light to shine through into lot. This is a bend, out of sight of the main street, where a lot of illegal activity happens: drop-offs, muggings, illicit fights in supernatural spaces with assassins with bridge powers, and also...
"HO HO HO!"
The dark silhouette of a duo can be seen in the distance. They're rotund and smaller than human beings; the air warps around them, chilled around one, heated on the other. The air is tense and thick with the cloying aura of the supernatural. Demons.
"We spared you last time, hee-uman, but you brought the goods this time, right-ho?"
The first face looks deceptively adorable, blue and white with a hoodie-like hat to go with their mascot appearance. The second is a pumpkinhead garbed like a wizard.
"That's right," Myunghon answers. "I promised you I'd show you the ritual arts humans use to go to other worlds. Let's get started, shall we?"
...
...
...
"I ROLLED ANOTHER ONE, HO!" Jack Frost is in shambles, staring at the infernal plastic rolling-thingies that this foul human showed him!! "What does that mean?"
"That means that your character, Jackie Ho, didn't make the jump. Jackie Ho plummets into the deep ravine! Is this the end of Jackie Ho?"
"You'd best not mess with me, hee-uman!! I was really hee-hee-nvested in the backstory of Jackie Ho, fearless practitioner of the Hee-roic Fist!!" Jack Frost is angry and upset! His aura is flashing red and blue!
"Ah, but in a flash of light, Jackie Ho is swept up from a certain doom by none other than..."
The pumpkin-headed Demon looks positively energised as he brags, "That's right, ho! Hee-re comes my new witch character, Lantern Uzumaki, who has the abili-hee to fly on a broom! And not only that, I cast Fireball on your pursuers!"
"Brooo...!! You saved me, bro!" Jack Frost starts crying.
"And, and? What happens next?? Frost Brothers are dy-heen to know, ho!"
Myunghon holds their long finger up. "Ah, but we are out of time tonight... you can hear the birds chirping, can't you? That's our deal."
Jack Frost whines and says, "That's not faaaaaair, ho! I wanna know why Jackie Ho's sister betrayed him and joined the Watermelon Corps!"
"Next time, my dear Jacks," Myunghon reassures, drawing their screen back and folding it up and scooping the little miniatures and wooden tokens up into a small bag and effortlessly making the little setup disappear.
"Hee-hee-ho-ho... you sure know how to keep us coming for more, hee-uman! That's how you were able to form a Pact with our kind... fine! Take this with you, as agr-hee-d!"
A series of cards rotates around a brief glimmer of sparkles, and Myunghon gratefully accepts their prize. The two Demons scamper off, still chatting about how Lantern Uzumaki could totally kick Jackie Ho's ass in a fight (no you), and Myunghon sighs and shakes their head.
"You all done?"
Myunghon glances over their shoulder. "Oh, you were watching? Your friends had a lot of fun. Why didn't you join them?"
"... that kinda nerd stuff ain't my thing."
"You say that, but you sound like you wanted to."
"Nuh uh! C'mon, let's go back already."
The sun is rising already. Their shoulders are aching and their body's at about its limit, especially with how little food it receives. GMing sure is hard work, especially when your players can freeze you if they're discontent. Well, that'll tide the store over for the next week or so, unless someone has a special request...