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007 - Welcome to VoidCon!

The registration desk for VoidCon rests at the base of Mt. Silver, looking a bit conspicuous in contrast to the natural cave entrance. Lanyard badges have been laid out across the desk, one for each person that dwells within the Void... although, some will still be unclaimed by the time the convention ends. Above the mountain rumbles a thunderstorm, granting enough power to easily keep the convention space powered for a few days. Even if you’re not interested in the convention itself, you might as well take advantage of the stable power source while it lasts.
Next to the pile of lanyards is a stack of cards, each covered with blank squares and the words “Stamp Rally” written at the top. The instructions can be found on the back, along with a list of goals and activities - not all of them make sense, but as long as you think your interpretation is correct, it seems to count. Each completed goal will be rewarded with a matching stamp, which will simply appear on the card on its own. Get six or more stamps and you get “a prize.” It's not clear what the prize is, but it must be something good, right?
The goals for each stamp are as follows, and can be completed in any order:
- Sign your autograph on ten different surfaces.
- Wear someone else’s clothes.
- Hug lovable arcade mascot Potato-Cat.
- Find yourself in Kyo’s merchandise booth.
- Reenact the best scene in the book.
- Win a round in the holo-arcade with another player's abilities.
- Eat the BBQ.
- How much is a currency? Can I have it?
- Tweet a hash tag into the ley lines about your experience at VoidCon.
- Share and subscribe to the most liked art piece.
So I’m A Fanartist, So What?
In proper fandom-based convention fashion, a small herd of Brushboys have responded to the call for creativity and settled themselves into the convention space. Some have taken residence in their own stalls as they draw whatever (or whoever) comes to mind, but others will take a more guerilla approach to their art as they walk about in search of their newest source of inspiration - you!
Most art can be observed in the form of prints and postcards that are lying about for public viewing on occupied vendor stalls, but other Brushboys have taken some liberties with their mediums. A lucky individual may find an entire mural painted on a cave wall that’s dedicated to them, or perhaps telling the story of the relationship between them and another character.
Styles of the art vary depending on the individual who has painted their respective masterpiece, but most depictions are compliant to “canon” in terms of their content. That’s not to say that every piece is, however - canon divergence is key in fanworks. Pieces with two characters together may have never spoken a word to each other before, or perhaps the nature of their connection to each other has been grossly misinterpreted by the artist. Whatever the case, each work of art is certainly a conversation starter.
In Another World With My VR Headset
Numerous signs and posters found around the arcade direct attendees to the elaborate VR game set-up, the potato-cat mascot proclaiming in a large speech bubble that “Fun and Excitement Awaits!” followed by an odd little nonsense phrase in smaller writing that is probably meant to be motivational but either comes across as nonsense (“what did you do that did”) or simplistic (“wow!”). The posters are not particularly needed, however, as the set-up takes up a large area, and the bright lights and music likely draw more than enough attention to it.
The interactable and realistic hologram display shows a little piece of another world. It could be a room, or a city street, or a little piece of the outdoors, but every world is familiar to at least someone present. It changes by the hour, with every attendee’s world featured at least once. Each world is presented as a game, and while the game does not always appear relevant to the location it is usually at least playable, and frequently allows for two or more players to either cooperate or compete - it’s better with company! Games include rhythm games, stealth games, monster battles, fighting games, card games and more. The goal of each game will also change with the genre, so you’d best beat it quickly if you want to make any progress.
In this VR world, attendees will find that their existing powers work perfectly in-game, as though an intended feature, even if they don’t seem at all relevant to the game. Furthermore, powers can be unequipped or exchanged for someone else’s powers by accessing the menu, allowing for free experimentation and a chance to see what the neighbors are truly capable of. If you don’t have anyone to trade with, just hit the “randomize” option - you’ll be given a completely random powerset, or you’ll be randomly swapped with another nearby player. The possibilities are endless!
If you manage to reach the end of the game, you’ll be greeted with a large and flashy display of “Congratulations!” along with some virtual confetti, followed by a holographic display of everyone’s high scores… which are a bit confusing to read, since every new version of the game has a completely different scoring system and one player might go through several of these before hitting a proper “ending.” Is a smaller number or bigger number better? Why does a farming game even have a combo score? Maybe it’s best not to think about it.

Ann Takamaki | Open
NerdVoidCon.[ So, it's not a big secret that something has been going on, considering the weird flyers that have been popping up, advertising... whatever the heck this is going to end up being, and now that the day has arrived, Ann's a little skeptical. Granted, the last strange thing that'd happened like this was a party, and that had been a whole lot less lethal than she'd originally thought it'd be, so maybe this will be something along the same lines.
She's pretty sure that these badges probably don't matter, but whatever, she's going to find hers because rules are rules, and it's then that she takes note of the cards that are sitting there. Blah, blah, prize... she hums, turning to the person standing closest to her. ]
Hey, you think if we get some of these done, we'll be able to meet whoever dragged us here face to face to get our "prize"? Or do you think it'll be like one of those deals where it'll just pop out of no where?
[ There's a sudden memory of Akechi that hits her, sitting and trying to sip tea, while a burst of random confetti and a medal slowly being lowered around his neck while a random sword had suddenly gotten stuck to her hand at the exact same time... it does make her smile, a little bit, because the whole thing had been so stupid, and yet. The Void. ]
...Guess we won't know until we try.
B - So I'm a Fanartist, So What?
[ Once further inside the 'convention hall', this isn't like any con she's seen or been to before. It's preferable, right now at least. No sweaty nerds in weird cosplay trying to ask for her number, something she can appreciate! She's noticing, though, that a lot of this fanart looks... familiar. And of course it would, because a lot of it involves people and creatures within the Void, it seems, even if those people aren't entirely here anymore.
She's found a few really cute drawings, too. A few of Seto, some of Parsee. They're cute -- even one she's found of herself is pretty adorable, mostly because this is clearly from their Destinyland trip, before it all went to shit. It's cute enough to get her to smile brightly at the Brushboys responsible, and in turn, they seem to puff their chests out with pride. ]
Wow, that's really cute! Thanks so much!
[ The creatures seem pleased with their glowing praise, even as Ann moves along to inspect some other things drawn by other Brushboys. The next piece of
art has her left eye twitching, however. ]
Whoa, hell no! I wouldn't be that desperate-- [ She turns to face the trio of Brushboys responsible, but they're not paying attention. They have, what appear to be, paper bag puppets on their hands, two of which bear a hilarious resemblance to both Ren and Ann, the other being a doofy looking black and white cat. All of the puppets have uneven googly eyes which doesn't help, and all she can do is stare in horror as they make the 'Ren' and 'Ann' puppets lean in. ]
What!? ...no! Hey, don't you dare!
[ They look up from their activity, tilting their heads, then back at each other, then down at the puppets. For a moment, it almost seems like they're going to listen, until they suddenly smash the puppets faces together in what she can only assume to be a 'kiss'. ]
NOOOOOOO! Give those to me RIGHT NOW!
[ As if she's going to be able to catch them, the trio of Brushboys scatter and Ann is left chasing after them with the absolute rage of someone who could breathe fire if that were possible. It's probably a good thing she can't call on Carmen right now. ]
C - In Another World.
[ As if she hasn't had enough exercise, Ann's found her way to whatever the hell this is supposed to be. The Brushboys from earlier are long forgotten at this point, at least, now that she's had time to cool down. She's busy taking out what little rage she's got left in this VR thing, at least, she's trying to -- this is way too weird.
Don't. Mind if she flails around a little as Carmen appears at her side, hovering in all of her supernatural glory and dragging those poor, heart headed men around like the dogs they are. This is. Different. ]
So uh... what exactly are we supposed to do here?
[ Of course, if this turns into a rhythm game... good luck. ]
D - A small break.
[ Much, much later on, Ann can be found just wandering around, covered in various pieces of random con swag, though the most notable is probably the plushie she's carrying, clutching it close to her chest, all while decked out in an oversized hoodie with a familiar logo on the front. She may also have stuffed the large pocket in front full of stickers.
Does she probably look stupid right now? Yes. Does she care? Absolutely not. She's hungry, and she's on the search for food. Specifically, the one mentioned on the card. She glances over to the person closest to her, sighing. ]
Hey, have you seen any barbecue anywhere? I think that's one of the things we're supposed to do, eat barbecue, to get a prize, and I'm starving... also, have you seen any crepe stands anywhere?
[ Please. Tell her there's at least ONE, because she hasn't found any yet
because she's been too busy grabbing random bits and pieces of swag and she's still on the hunt for more... ]A
She looked right at Ann when her friend suggested that the prize of this whole shindig might have been somehow to get to meet the void. As she looked down at the stamp card in her hand, her eyes flashed a little and she frowned, trying to decide how she felt next to her. There was a bark next to her and she looked down, reaching to scratch Angelo's ears and give it a little, reassuring smile.
"It couldn't possibly be that simple. I probably shouldn't win. I'd have some words with them right now." She was trying to smile, but she clearly wasn't happy right then, and was here to attempt to make herself feel better.
no subject
"Words aren't a bad thing, and besides, that'd make two of us..." She's got a lot of select words for whomever is in charge. But, that doesn't really matter right now. Ann gently loops one of her arms through one of Parsee's, smiling slightly. "Hey, even if we don't get everything on the card, we should still check out everything that this... convention has to offer. There may be some useful stuff, right? And if it's all free, we should definitely see if there's actual barbecue here!"
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"Y...yeah, wait did you say barbecue? Bet Angelo would like some of that," she said, sighing quietly and looking up to give her a fake smile. "And we can see if there's something interesting at least." She could figure out her plans later. This was ok.
no subject
"Mm?" Ah, right. Here and now, focus. "Yes! Yes, barbecue is a thing that is on this card that we should definitely go and get because food is amazing!" Also, eating ones feelings in spades is never a bad thing! She flashes a far more genuine smile back at poor Parsee, and nods. "Yes, I'm sure he'd love it. Let's go find wherever it is, it'll be a good treat!"
no subject
"So... is this kind of thing normal in the human world now? Conventions about people?" She was trying to focus on things that weren't Rinoa, and that seemed like an idea. "While we're getting barbecue maybe you can explain all of t...well, this." Because it was confusing, and she was sure she'd seen keychain plushies of herself and was NOT sure how to feel about that.
no subject
"Yes! Well, sorta. Normally they're held for fictional things, like video games or manga, but this is kinda similar. Uh, I've never seen a convention full of things about... normal... actual living people. Except for the Star Trackies. But we don't talk about them." Shudder. Trackies are the weirdest. "Sure! Ooo, I wonder what other food stuff they have?" Off they go, into the wild yonder of this odd convention. "Ah, usually to get into this sort of thing, you have to pay, too. Unless you're a person holding a panel, like a voice actor or something."
no subject
"I.. that makes so little sense you realize that? It's like they're kind of worshiping us, but not quite the same? I'm just confused, because there's all this food and everything." She frowned a little, confusion evident, but hey? It was occupying her head, which was probably a good thing.
"Hmmm.... I think someone said corn dogs? I've never had one of those. Do you know if they're any good?"
no subject
"Yeah, it is kinda like that. Usually people will blow an excessive amount of money on this shit, but it's like... not every convention is like this, either. I've been to like, fashion conventions, let's say. Far less nerdy, and usually the only things and people being 'worshiped' are the designers and the ridiculously priced clothing that's on sale." A lot less food at those conventions, unfortunately, but mostly there's models and high end designers, they aren't there to eat. Unless you're Ann. Then you're there to eat everything and anything at least once.
"Oh! Yeah, corn dogs are AMAZING. Girl, we've got a mission now: we're getting you your first corn dog."
no subject
"Ah, those sort of make more sense. The styles of the day were always a popular topic, and arguments over how many layers were needed, how pale the skin could be. It changed from time to time. So they eventually just did formal gatherings?" She sort of made a little face. That really wasn't her scene, but she got it. This was the same, only for favorite fictional characters and, in their case, themselves? Hmmm. "It's kind of like the Void's trying to tell us it's a fan? I think sometimes this place really just doesn't get how to say what it wants to say. But let's definitely find ourseves one of these corn dogs. If they're so good I might as well try one once."
D - how to maybe call out ann: the epic saga
... that and he's weak for burgers. And he totally got one and is eating it as they make eye contact. Sort of eye contact. Yugi is eyeing the heck out of that merch.
I'm hoping this burger counts.
[Does he think she looks stupid? No. Does he think she looks like she has a sponsorship deal with KaibaCorp? Yes. Does he say anything just yet about it?]
No crepes yet, sorry. But how do you feel about funnel cake?
[... Apparently not. He's still working up to asking her about that.]
yugi why are you like this
It does! I mean, food is food anyways, right? And it looks really yummy!
[ Food is a good distraction from being a walking KaibaCorp billboard, at least. To be fair, she probably should have thought this through before grabbing everything 'KC' that she could find, but, she's not really known for thinking too hard on things, whooooooops. She pouts at his confirmation that no, he hasn't seen any crepes yet, but just as quickly she brightens again, because funnel cakes are still deserts and they're SORT of crepe like. ]
I was hoping this place would at least give me the one thing I've wanted since getting here... I don't ask for much, just a crepe or three. But funnel cake is amazing too! Especially when drenched in powdered sugar and a ton of strawberry and chocolate sauce. And ice cream... with more chocolate sauce. Actually, forget the barbecue, I think I'm ready to go straight for desert...
the real question is why is ann *not* like this
I mean, there might be one here? I wasn't looking for crepes in particular, and watching funnel cake get made is always kind of... eye-catching. [You know. Somehow watching fried dough get made looking pretty delicious. And then you add sugar and sauce and toppings...]
[Wait. Wait. No. The point is barbecue. The point has to be barbecue. Funnel cake (and crepes) are not barbecue.] Wait, don't get dessert yet! You're trying to get the stamp, right? You should work on that first.
she will learn from her senpai
This place seems to enjoy antagonizing me by bringing everything except the one thing I want, so I wouldn't be surprised if there isn't. Agreed, it's fun to watch them get made! It's even more fun to cram them into your mouth, though. [ Does. Does she have a problem when it comes to sweet things? Maybe. Yes. Does she care? Nope. Unless she's got a modeling gig coming up, but fortunately that's not a thing here! ]
What stamp-- oh! OH. Yes! Yes, that... definitely just for the stamp and not because barbecue is delicious and it should be illegal to not have barbecue readily available to us on a daily basis. [ A Sage Nod™. ] I dunno, dessert might not be a bad starter course...
no subject
Not just fun-- distracting, too. So I could have just missed the crepes? [Ever the optimist. Though if there really weren't any crepes, this was probably just making it worse.
Hm. Hmmmm. That sure sounds like someone contemplating the merits of eating only dessert today. Well, someone needs to be the voice of reason here.] C'mon. If we find something for you for the stamp, maybe we'll see crepes on the way...
B
Especially Amamiya. As the brush boys took off, he kept his keen sight trained on the one with the Ren and Ann hand puppets, as he sprang into action.He literally vaulted over a table to land before the culprit.]
Where do you think you're going?
[He sneered down at the creature before reaching down to seize it by the tail. Then threatening it in a low growl he added]
Drop the puppets and this won't get ugly.
[Once it relinquished the paper bags, he let the thing go. Then he took to ripping up the evidence himself]
no subject
Not only is he quick to react, but he gets results: the brushboy is quick to relinquish its silly puppets and scamper off to rejoin its buddies, and Seto is... already ripping them up. She can feel her cheeks turning pink because her boyfriend just went out of his way to save her -- the mere notion fills her chest with a warm, happy feeling as she quickly makes her way over to his side. ]
Wow! Thanks, Seto! That was super impressive!