Chapter 101 : Chatting 101 (Patreon)

HardCored - Chatroom

MagicIsTragic: Did you guys hear about the new gang war in the slums?

TechnoGogo: One explosion doesn't make a gang war, Magic.

MagicIsTragic: So you did hear about it!

KillLaKrill: Can't say I've heard about that. I mean, unless it involves the big three, we don't hear much about what goes on there.

(Mod)Seagullag: Yeah, you kids shouldn't be aware of this kind of stuff. Who did you bribe, you two?

MagicIsTragic: I didn't bribe anyone! My uncle just so happens to work in the police, and he talks a lot after a beer or two.

TechnoGogo: Same. My big sis can't handle her catnip, which is great to learn juicy stuff. But really, Magic, it was just one bomb. The only reason they even took notice of that is that it wasn't far from the Black Border.

MagicIsTragic: Girl, your info isn't complete. It wasn't just a bomb, there was a magic fight, and one of the guys even used a teleportation crystal. A TELEPORTATION CRYSTAL. I'll be able to afford a car before I can get one of those, and they're one-time use.

TechnoGogo: You're making it up.

MagicIsTragic: Girl, I like to mess around, but I never lie when it comes to magic.

KillLaKrill: Yeah, I trust her on this one. You wouldn't be messing around with stories of super robots either, Techno.

TechnoGogo: Ugh, I hate that you're right. So, what else do you know?

Saray: Am I the only one that feels doting over stuff like that is very twisted?

KillLaKrill: I get what you mean, but at the same time it's kind of normal. It's like all those murder documentaries, very macabre they're being done in the first place, but really popular too.

(Mod)Seagullag: Bah, in Draskia they would directly show you pictures of the corpses, not those awful reconstitutions.

KillLaKrill: Case in point.

MagicIsTragic: Ok, so apparently some time ago something big happened around the Black Bank, to the point the guy in charge had to step in. One of the guys responsible is being watched by the police, and apparently, someone dropped a bomb where he's thought to be a day or two ago. Right after that, there was a big fight between two magic users, two different kinds of hydromancers from what my uncle told me. Just as one was about to win, a third guy came out of nowhere, some sort of umbramancer, and chased him away. Thing is, apparently the hydromancer that fled works for one of the founding members of Wicked Witchcraft.

KillLaKrill: A founding member of WW? You're sure of that? That feels like the kind of thing we should have heard about.

(Mod)Seagullag: Someone annoyed the Blacks? You're sure they're still alive?

TechnoGogo: There's no way a major member of the big three did something like that in public without us hearing about it.

The Silence: I can confirm there was an incident at the Black Bank, they sent a notification to all of their clients some time ago about a disturbance near their building.

KillLaKrill: Silence, my guy, my buddy, my pal, why the hell do you know about that?

The Silence: They have an online service. Their fees are reasonable, and I know for sure no one will burst through a wall and steal everything in my vault, unlike other banks in the city.

KillLakrill: What about the ethics of it, man? How can you give money to guys who wear boots made out of baby seals and eat kittens?

The Silence: Krill, don't act like the Black family is the only barely legal group to abuse their money and influence to do whatever they please. I prefer the evil that is open about its nature to the one that claims itself righteous. And weren't you the one complaining about how friendly the media portrayed seals despite them being just another wild predatory species the other day?

(Mod)Seagullag: Guys, keep it cool. Anyway, Magic, do you know which guy from Wicked Witchcraft got involved in this mess?

MagicIsTragic: Apparently it's one that went mostly independent, some sort of runemaster. No my preferred form of magic, but still really impressive if done right.

TechnoGogo: Uh, I thought you'd know more.

MagicIsTragic: It's not like they have an official website, Techno. Those guys aren't fond of technology, and it's really hard to learn anything about them outside of what the Union and the news are willing to say.

TechnoGogo: Fair. So, an ex-WW big guy's minion got into a fight with two other wizards. That's the whole story?

KillLaKrill: Put like that, it's a lot less impressive.

(Mod)Seagullag: Honestly, when it comes to super stuff, I'm much more interested in the recent fight between one of the Empress' top machines and Sunburn.

KillLaKrill: It wasn't a fight, Sea. Sunburn destroyed the thing in less than a minute. Though, it's really funny that the Angels and the Empress targeted the same shipment on the same day.

TechnoGogo: Poor robot warrior. It flew too close to the sun. But hey, at least the videos of the fight are impressive. And the fire was quickly contained.

(Mod)Seagullag: Yeah, Firefighter is great to have around. He's a great reminder that not every Hero has to be a ridiculously powerful fighter to help the community. I wish Draskia had more guys like him. It's kind of a shame he's not more popular, he's a much better model for kids than Mecha Man. I feel like one of his inventions goes rogue every other week.

Saray: I don't think he minds. I mean, he goes to schools but never accept any interview? That seems like someone who enjoys staying discreet and the smaller things in life.

MagicIsTragic: I'm very disappointed in you guys for failing to appreciate what I just told you.

KillLaKrill: A medium Villain's elite minion fought two unknowns. There's really nothing impressive here. If at least it had been that runemaster himself fighting an unknown then it would have been curious, but that's it.

Saray: I still think it's weird you guys talk about Villains and criminals like that.

KillLaKrill: Saray, everyone I know has at least thought about who was their favorite Villain. You're the weird one here.

MagicIsTragic: Guys, I think we might be seeing a new Villain on the rise here. A new unknown is involved in a mess with the Black Bank and still gets to live? That unknown then gets in a fight with a decently powerful mage? That screams like ambition to me.

The Silence: Magic, do you have any idea of the number of people that would be considered Villains that live and die in the slums every day? The only reason you pay any attention to this event is that it was close to the Border, and the police just so happened to be present to see it all happen. There are much greater monsters in those streets than some of the Villains we hate here.

TechnoGogo: Silence's being a little overdramatic as usual, but he's right. We have no idea of the sort of stuff that happens there.

JamesIsInTheDark: Well, I log in and I see this. Off to a great start.

Saray: James! It's nice to see you. And you see, guys? I'm not the only one uncomfortable with getting excited over Villain stuff.

JamesIsInTheDark: Also, couldn't some of those guys be Vigilantes instead? That's a thing here, right?

(Mod)Seagullag: Yeah, Zalcien also has those. Mostly low-profile ones, but there are a few that can mess with the big boys. I'm a big fan of Fisticuffs, personally.

KillLaKrill: Honestly, I don't think the Villain or Vigilante labels work when talking about the slums. You can't exactly break the law in a lawless area.

JamesIsInTheDark: Why is that place even allowed to exist in the first place? I mean, we had a few bad spots back home, but nothing of this level.

TechnoGogo: There are a ton of reasons, but to sum it up, it's too big of a mess to clean up.

Saray: Fixing the infrastructure alone would cost a fortune, but you also have to get rid of the monsters and find a place to host the inhabitants while everything is getting repaired or built.

KillLaKrill: Also, the people from that place wouldn't do well in the city. Going from a hellhole like that to a modern and civilized place? Kinda hard to adapt.

(Mod)Seagullag: That one is stupid. I come from Draskia, the land of ice and steel, a place where the tallest buildings are the chimneys of the factories, and I adapted well to Zalcien.

TechnoGogo: How long ago did you get here again?

(Mod)Seagullag: That's irrelevant.

MagicIsTragic: Man, you guys are a bunch of killjoys.

JamesIsInTheDark: From what I've learned anyway, fights like this are pretty common there, no?

TechnoGogo: From what we know, yeah, they are. It's hard for the info to reach us, but what does is usually pretty grim. The border is relatively peaceful because the Union keeps an eye on that, and that specific area is even calmer since the Black Bank is there, but the rest? There's a reason why people think the Nightsnatcher might be from there.

JamesIsInTheDark: Right, that thing. The one that killed a teen during a phone call, right?

MagicIsTragic: Young adult, but yeah, but dude, how can you not be sure of that when there's still a curfew to stop people from going out around while it's hunting? Just yesterday there was another disappearance and it was plastered all over the news.

Saray: They actually found the missing girl today. It turns out she just sneaked away to go to a party with her friends. She's alive and well.

KillLaKrill: Uh, that's a nice turn of events. Very stupid of her, but nice to know she's unharmed.

JamesIsInTheDark: I just don't keep up with the news all that much lately, I've been pretty busy handling stuff.

MagicIsTragic: Oooh, what kind of stuff?

JamesIsInTheDark: Personal stuff.

MagicIsTragic: Fine, keep your secrets.

TechnoGogo: Say, James, I know you're not from here, so what's your opinion on Zalcien so far? I'd like to have an outsider's perspective on it.

JamesIsInTheDark: Isn't Seagullag also not from here?

KillLaKrill: He's been around for at least a decade now, he's used to everything.

JamesIsInTheDark: Well... I guess it's livelier than my home town. Very diverse, too. I've never seen a non-human person before, so meeting my first extraterrestrial was weird.

TechnoGogo: Oh, you got to meet one of those? That's so cool! Don't get the wrong idea, James, aliens are rare even here. Sure, there are a few famous ones around on TV and the net, but meeting one in person? Now that's something worth talking about. Right, Magic?

MagicIsTragic: I hate you.

TechnoGogo: I love you too, my dear nemesis. But whoa, an all-human town? I know we're the most numerous people here, but whoa, that must have been something. No elf, no dwarf, no mutant, no robot... Wait, James, you do count robots as people, right?

JamesIsInTheDark: It depends? If it's like one of those basic AI in vacuums then no, but if its AI is developed enough to feel like a person it probably is, then? At least it makes sense to treat it like one. I mean, so far the only sapient robot I've met was this one automaton guy who sold me a souvenir. Robots, where I come from, aren't that developed. The smartest robots were all focused on one or two topics and mostly algorithms and databases to act, not actual thoughts.

TechnoGogo: Oof, good. You gave a scare for a second there, buddy.

JamesIsInTheDark: I take it not everyone is so accepting?

TechnoGogo: Yup. Recently Senator Sigmund mentioned proposing a law that wouldn't allow robots to be recognized as citizens, and the number of supporters it had was... Kinda frightening. Doctor Decanov had some very strong words to say about that.

JamesIsInTheDark: Who is doctor Decanov?

KillLaKrill: Oh boy, fangirl mode incoming.

MagicIsTragic: Fly you fools.

Saray: Come on, guys, you're being overdramatic.

TechnoGogo: So, since I can't sum up a decade of work in a few sentences, I'm just gonna tell you about the man himself. He's a robot scientist, and by that I mean he's a robot that chose to study science. He's a genius held back by the ambient robophobia, seriously, if the Union bothered to hire him he'd outshine Mecha Man's stuff in no time. The media love depicting him as this mad scientist with a love for chaos and destruction, when in truth he is a paragon of creation and innovation. He also might as well be the face of the robotic movement in Zalcien. He may not be the actual leader of the Movement for Robotic Respect, but any sapient machine in Zalcien will tell you about him.

(Mod)Seagullag: He's also Draskian. Well, of Draskian descent, since he was made and programmed here, but still.

TechnoGogo: Yeah, that doesn't help his popularity either.

Saray: Techno, you can't ignore the dozens of explosions he left behind.

TechnoGogo: He can't be responsible for accidents when he isn't present. Besides, he's never been condemned for anything. In the eyes of justice, he's a perfectly innocent man.

KillLaKrill: Saray, there's no convincing her when it comes to Decanov. And James, just so you know, the actual face of the MRR is Mecha Man's failed robotic assistant who woke up with a soul, Drone Dome. I met her once, she was very nice. The whole dome head thing was kind of hard to get used to at first, but when your mother's boyfriend has a clam for a face, it becomes easier to read people with no facial expression.

JamesIsInTheDark: If you say so. Say, Silence, are you still here? What did you mean about worse monsters than Villains in the slums?

Saray: Don't worry about that, James. It's mostly rumors and creepypastas. Honestly, criminals who go there to hide from the law and dangerous animals are the biggest common threats there.

The Silence: Do not speak for me. As for the horrors and terrors that roam the worst parts of this city, there are countless entities I do not know of, but there is one anyone who has researched the darker side of Zalcien will know of. The Patcher. We do not know much about him, only that his victims are still alive to beg for mercy when he works on them, and that the monsters he creates hate their existence as much as they yearn to maim and kill any soul unlucky enough to cross their path. He's such a monstrous man not even the rest of the underworld dares to meet him, and yet he has made himself too vital to be wiped out. He's a cancerous growth that only spreads death and misery, and the fact no one has bothered to put an end to his accursed work is all the proof I need to know this city is corrupt beyond saving.

KillLaKrill: It's all greatly exaggerated. I think.

MagicIsTragic: Sheesh, dude. What did the guy do to you?

The Silence: One of his monsters took my sister before my eyes when I was a child.

(Mod)Seagullag: Alright, I just received a warning from the hosting website's algorithm. I'm guessing they're gonna pull the plug soon. And guys, let's talk about something else when the chatroom is back, alright?

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