Wu Hai spent the next hour on his flight to Tokyo thinking over what he would do when he arrived. 'I have to get a lot of attention but how?'
He was headed to convention filled with prying eyes and skeptical minds, he had to be better than good. He had to be amazing. Re-rolling his abilities to suit the event, Wu Hai used an the dice to pick out an elemental body with very few visual effects, Earth-Wood. Although the transformation would appear on his skin, it would allow him to enter the premises unnoticed, many people were coming in costumes and Jin had given him clothes that could fit.
The entry line was long, over a hundred thousand people from around the world were expected to have shown up for the V4 75th Anniversary Gaming Convention. It was a milestone occasion and was being broadcast worldwide. Developers and Fans filled the Streets and alleys. Shops had sent retail goods and clerks to the City to represent their Stores, some of them even worked outside the main event for people that were passing by. Others had gimmicks and prizes but all of them had some sort of merchandise.
It was early, the event was only just beginning and some places were still setting up. After the doors finally opened, the bells and whistles of the entire plaza had come alive. Vendors were calling to customers while wearing extravagant costumes, pretty Girls lined the isles to help bring notoriety to stalls. It was an appreciated sight for the demographic.
The pretty girls and tween icons played their parts and a lot of the costuming at the event was very well done. A few of the people in line wore outfits that looked like the clothes people from Wu Hai's world would wear, However, he could see through such disguises, every one looked happy ..almost.
'None of the Armor is real..' Wu Hai frowned. 'None of the weapons are real except for the batons that the Guards have.' His face distorted a bit more, he saw a giant sword made of foam.
Wu Hai did see a few people with what looked like Staves but they also turned out to be plastic or just cheap sticks. The wait in line was trivial but he waded and watched the current of people passing by. He was shocked at how many people were arriving in the venue.
It was a good turnout, everything in his memories seem to say what he thought. 'It was right to come here.' Feeling more at home at the convention than he expected, Wu Hai started looking through items that the vendors had placed out. Pamplets about the event were free and there were more than a thousand stalls set up inside of the convention center.
According to the Pamplet, there was going to be a contest for the Gamers that would last from the second day until the fifth. The contest would take place on a newly developed gaming platform that accessed the subconscious and use real world reflexes from the user to command the Avatar within the game.
The first game that was to be released on the platform was a space odyssey called 'Re-installed Machine.' The scope of the game was that each player would pilot a Giant Robot and then battle in a 3-D environment. The Idea was pretty fun for the developers and the story line of Earths defense was a classic that many games incorporated over the past generations.
Slipping into the building rather than paying for entry, tickets were soldout by the time he had made it through the line. Once inside, Wu Hai found the larger vendor map and did his best to memorize it. He didn't understand the names of the certain stalls but he did see a few places that sounded interesting.
As it had been during his entire trip, the Prince didn't have money to spend but he had an endless supply of gold on him. Back in Beijing, after rolling for metal magic at the Hotel, Wu Hai had made a bunch of coins, bars were just too large a sum and silver coins didn't seem nearly as rewarding. Wu Hai was sure that he had plenty of usable currency that no one would refuse at a gaming convention. For whatever reason, each time he saw another shop table, he felt a sense of nostalgia and his memories, vague and distant, would come flushing by.
Slipping from stall to stall was a complication in of itself. Everywhere he passed, he was getting a lot of attention and creating a lot of confusion with the public. Wu Hai had been an fanboy for most of his past life and even in the memories from then, he had never been in a place that had such a variety of things to sell.
His arrival at a convention only fueled his innate desire to collect samples of everything. After clearing the stock from a lot of the stalls, he had a bunch of toys that no one from his world would understand. After running through the majority of the shops, he found his way to the stall he knew wasn't coming to the Expo.
"FROHK never shows up!!" Wu Hai was sure of it.
They wouldn't care and they really didn't. The Foundation never had any interest in gaming competitions themselves, only development or cutting edge advancements.
Every year the V4 committee would ceremoniously leave them a booth. This year, Wu Hai was going to use it, he had a need to work in secret and the booth was a space all of its own. FROHK would send money to help keep the lights on but it never leaked its advancements to the public, it kept competitors a greater distance away.
Putting up the tarps to screen his workmanship from sight, Wu Hai pulled the Creators Crusher out of his storage ring and set it onto a large stone that he made on the foundation of the Event Center.
Just like Arthur had done in Camelot, he would try it here. He had made it into a game, if they could lift the Crusher even a little, they were innocent enough to invite or reward.
Using his spiritual power, Wu Hai reached out to see if there were any people who commanded energy by even a speck within the swarm of Attendees. The unfortunate truth of the matter was that there were way too many people. Wu Hai could probe a wide area for energy but if people were clustered together, it made detecting individuals harder than he imagined initially. Back home, he could feel the differences in people because everyone had different auras but everyone present was either so weak they couldn't be picked out, or so talented they chose not to be.
Few subtle traces of energy could be felt outside of the venue and even some inside, Wu Hai had high hopes but wouldn't hold his breath for too long. Unless those people chose to exert their power, he would have a hard time figuring out who they were in the crowd.
The Convention had only just started and he had to come up with a rock solid plan to gain attention, an audience and hopefully, some recruits. With a prize of Gold Coins, Wu Hai had a reward and a gimmick that people would enjoy. He re-rolled to a Qilinkin body and then opened up the tarp for the guests to browse his attraction. The Wings were a great spectacle for the Gamer Convention, everyone was in outlandish costumes and his was sure to be the most attractive.
Everyone nearby was confused when FROHK's booth was suddenly opened but the crowd didn't make too much fuss when they didn't see any hardware on display or merchandise. Their eyes were focused on the pile of gold coins that seemed to overflow from a bag on the table behind the large, feathered man.
"WHOA! Sweet costume!" A couple of the onlookers were immediately impressed and gave their very vocal approval, some even took selfies before they realized that it was a contest of some sort that had been set up.
Many of them noticed the heavy looking rectangular weapon on the stone and started asking questions.
Soon after, a line started to form in front of Wu Hai's stall.
The Security of the venue that was going to ask for credentials when Wu Hai gave him two of the Gold Coins. It outweighed his pay from the event, he stood there for a moment in confusion then turned around and became a guard for the treasure pile.
Wu Hai was happy with the turn of events, he scribbled on a white board.
"'The Testament of the Creator.' If you can lift this weapon even a little, you earn a gold coin and a chance at additional prizes. Grand Prizes will be announced at the end of the Convention." Wu Hai was selling the scene to everyone rather well. He wasn't expecting anything too dramatic, none of the auras that he was able to feel had any weight to them.
People came up and took pictures with the Prince throughout the first day.
On the second day, someone finally managed to lift the handle of the weapon off the floor and Wu Hai scanned her with his ability.
The woman was athletic, when she introduced herself to claim her prize she was mesmerized by the feathers on Wu Hai's costume. They were far too realistic and large to be real.
"Here is your reward. I do have a few questions, if you could fill out this entry form for the Grand Prize that would be fantastic." Passing over a clipboard that had hand written questions was a little awkward but what wasn't awkward at a convention.
"Please fill it out over here, you'll have to be present to claim Final Prizes." Wu Hai put on a decent act, more people were coming over to check and see if they could win a prize.
After the first winner came out holding a real and relatively large gold coin, everyone wanted to take at least one shot at the challenge.
After the first few thousand people, Wu Hai had started to flinch at the flashing cameras from time to time. It was a little hard not to indulge the audience but he had to endure for another three days during the event, he couldn't abandon the search. The flashes of light were blinding, so many people had taken his picture. Still, he was happy. If anyone could actually lift the crusher they were going to be on the short list that join him, if they chose to.
On the 4th day, three more people were able to lift the handle from the ground, although none of them could lift it all the way. Getting their information and confirmation that they would be there until the end of the convention, Wu Hai was going over his plan silently in his head.
'I can't be vicious but I might have to be.' Wu Hai polished his resolve a bit but wondered if he would be considered a villain. He tried to put himself in the audience's place, he kept an open mind during his considerations.
The Gaming competitions had just commenced when he took a break from the booth. Hiring the guard to monitor the booth was simple enough, the Guard was mostly happy to do the job after being paid. A handful of coins and the guard was downright eager to follow instructions.
Wu Hai felt relieved.
To his knowledge, no one could use space magic on Earth and the guard was unable to lift the handle. If the crusher actually really left the area, he could likely feel the traces of it being carrying away.
Having some freedom, Wu Hai began to watch the competitions.
Watching the competitions was not the same as playing but he could see the passion in some of the Players. The fought fantastically and several of them seemed phantasmal at times, a few Players were exceptional in many regards. It was obvious that those players had early access to the content.
The team he was watching the most was one of the leading development teams for the game itself, they were meant to show off the best portions of the game and usher in a player population. A few of their Snipers definitely had military training in their backgrounds, the shots were just too accurate and auto-targeting had been disabled for the competitions.
It was really very competitive.
The players all had serious faces on, occasionally screams of glee could be heard outweighing the screams of anger and frustration. Lasting until the end was the goal of the first Challenge. It was a free for all with limited rules to allow for teamwork.
Over 75% of the active players were eliminated in the first round. It was cutthroat and demoralizing when players were eliminated, some would choose to teabag over the remains of defeated opponents. The robots didn't have testicles but the dancing and squatting was obvious.
The reactions were comical and mostly gratuitous.
Returning to his stall, only one person had made the cut and the guard had given them a gold coin and had even tried to get him to fill out the form.
When the guard was explaining what had happened, Wu Hai nearly jumped out of his skin. "He picked it up?"
"Yes, I was really surprised when he waved it around. He seemed like a nice guy." Prattling on, the Guard seemed thrilled at having done a good job.
"Picked it up?" Wu Hai was happy and a bit angry, he stepped away for half an hour and that was all the time that was needed for him to have missed this worthy person.
He cursed inside. "Where is his sign up sheet?" Wu Hai asked.
"He didn't give it back, he said he couldn't be here until the end of the convention, something about work.." The Guard seemed worried that he had done something wrong until Wu Hai consoled him with another Gold Coin.
"What did he look like?" Wu Hai had to look for him, otherwise he would be a fool. Holding the Guards hand, he asked gently.
"Normal guy, American but nice, he said that this booth was suppose to be empty, then he stopped talking about it and picked up your thing over there." The Guard told Wu Hai everything he knew and then stood by the corner while more people came to challenge.
The Guard felt slightly awkward about holding some guys hand but Wu Hai had already been quite generous. No one had to pay for chance at the game so no one was at a loss when giving it a shot.
Wu Hai figured that eventually, nearly everyone at the convention would have given it a try. Looking in the direction that the guard had pointed out, Wu Hai sent his soul threads out again and probed for the strongest energy in the vicinity, his Crusher was not something just anyone could lift.
Locking onto a large energy source Wu Hai sprinted out of the booth and darted toward him.
The Man was rather nice when Wu Hai stopped in front of him, Wu Hai's costume was absolutely remarkable and so was the man in front of him. He was dressed as Wildfire from the Ronin Warriors, even though his Costume was made out of cardboard, it was very well crafted. The suit was nearly seamless in its construction and didn't rub on the wrong places.
The Prince didn't want the man to leave, he handed him a sack of gold coins. Struck in confusion, the crowd gathered around them and Wu Hai asked the man to come back for an interview.
The Crowd fell silent. Many of them had been to the contest, they knew the gold coins were real.
'Are they doing some sort of Role Play?' A few watchers had glittering eyes, while some were disgusted or cringing at the thought of people larping around a Gamer Convention.
It was the typical reaction, Rp'ers were mostly unwelcome in the gaming community but Rp'ers were also necessary to build an atmosphere of immersion.
However, the man in the wildfire costume just stood there for a moment and thought it over. "Fuck it, you're paying me right? I need it.." He took another breath and stared Wu Hai in the eyes. Tossing his hands up, he continued to speak with a terrible accent, "How could I refuse when you pay me this much.." The man didn't know what else to say, he went back to the booth with a forced smile and the two started talking inside.
"My name is Zao Wu Hai, what can I call you?" Wu Hai was putting on his best manners.
"My in game name is always Vector. You can call me Mike though," Mike didn't know what the man wanted to know but he had just been given more money than he all year. Wu Hai was generous with his money, it was in Mike's best interest to at least hear Mr. Zao out in case a job offer came.
"Do you like this world we live in? Or, do you prefer the worlds you so see in Anime and Gaming?" Wu Hai was trying to get a feel for Mike's personality, he wanted to know if Mike was someone that he really wanted to invest in. He had passed the test of the Crusher but what Mike wanted as they were moving forward had to be considered.
It was already apparent that Mike would be a strong force in the other world if he came along but Wu Hai wasn't in the habit of gambling with lives. If Mike was dangerous, he would be routed out or excluded.
"Why would anyone want to be here? It's dirty, the people are terrified and except for the escape into video games, life sucks for most people. The vast majority of the people I know would rather spend their time logged in than out." It was frank, Mike spoke clearly, he had spent a lot of time online himself and knew what he was talking about. There was no loss of sincerity in his words.
"Hypothetically, And I mean that. Hypothetically. If you were given the chance to 'transmigrate' to another world, how many people here would jump at the chance?" Wu Hai asked with a soft voice, it was completely unexpected for their conversation, he had said it as if it were possible.
The Prince's Expression was somewhat serious about the inquiry with his tone. Mike thought about it for a while before he answered. He was processing the question for a minute but when he couldn't find a reason not to answer, he was somewhat forceful with his response. "If the chance ever existed, I seriously doubt that anyone present would stay here."
Wu Hai sort of hoped for Mike's response, with it, he affirmed what he already thought.
"I'm going to ask you about something completely off topic and offer you something you'll never expect. I want you to hear me out and more importantly I want you to stay until the end of the convention when I make my way on stage." Wu Hai had said a mouthful but he was still being serious. He had already begun to alter his long term plans, it was a risk but he was hopeful toward the future and needed someone like Mike.
Mike tried to bottle his pride for a moment, at first it sounded like he had won an extra prize but after analyzing the sentence in his head, he had several questions himself. Knowing that his own questions could wait till after the explaining, he said, "You already paid me more than I'll make this year, I can afford to stay but.. Do you really need me to be here until the end?"
"Yes, I need that the most. Especially if you're going to agree to what I have to say." Wu Hai pulled the tarp back up on the booth and closed it up completely.
"Don't be alarmed but what I'm about to say and show you cannot be seen by others. They wouldn't understand without an introduction." Wu Hai finished closing the booth and stepped back a bit from the table.
"Introduction to what?" Mike had a constipated look on his face as if he might dislike what he was about to hear. The words came out somewhat involuntarily and eye began to twitch.
Wu Hai opened his palm and a Crystal appeared, it was the same kind he had fed his Brother, Father, Genba, Darkwing and the Cheng Twins. They were in short supply. 'This man, regardless of his choice in the end is worthy of power.'
Gently flicking it to Mike, the Crystal landed in his lap.
"This is something I brought with me, if you eat it.. you'll be able to do things like this." Opening his palm again Wu Hai brought out a flower and made it grow. Then he started making roots come up from the concrete into the form of a chair. The scene was spectacular and somewhat unforgettable, albeit way too fanciful for Mike's tastes. Still, it was a rather simple and all together non-frightening introduction to a serious discussion about magic.
"You won't make plants though.. this is just the magic I could use here without creating a panic indoors. Shh." Wu Hai finished his sentence with a shush and watched Mike throw the Crystal into his mouth like it was vital medicine.
He didn't care what the outcome was but no sensible Main Character would ever give up the opportunity. "YOU BETTER NOT BE FUCK.. ...ING WITH ME!" Mike chewed on the crystal and nearly broke a tooth.
It was not suppose to break, the crystal was not suppose to be digested. Mike's actions were avoidable but Wu Hai hadn't considered the miscommunication. He held up both his hands in a stop motion, "You could have just swallowed it. I also have something else so don't quite freak out yet." Wu Hai pulled out the cup from his storage along with the form die.
Casting a die into a cup, Wu Hai rolled it onto the table and Mikes Eyes opened wide with revolting thoughts. 'he's fucking with me right?' "D&D?"
"You didn't just make me eat some drugs right? I mean, some drugs can be fun but I need my brain cells." Mike was infuriated for a second, then, he watched as Wu Hai changed shape behind the screen.
Wu Hai held in his excessive laughter and prepared to re-roll.
He had rolled before and his wings disappeared. He turned into a Vishnan, A female one. Wu Hai even flexed his gills slightly.
Waving his webbed fingers, Wu Hai waved the cup and threw the dice again. When he finally landed on human, he took a deep breath and relaxed.
"This is my true form. I come from another world." Wu Hai dropped the bombshell and waited with his arms crossed..
"Ha haha hah ha ha hahah ha!" Mike laughed uncontrollably and almost got up to leave but he felt clear headed. The whole situation made him think, the man in front of him had even changed into a fish girl once. He had already gone through several steps, he didn't feel any danger and so it required some more thought. 'This guy is in a convention, why would he drug me??'
Then Mike felt a bit of apprehension, 'true form?'
"Let me explain before the effects start to take root." Wu Hai pulled the Wooden Die out and placed it gently onto the table, along with the cup.
'Oh god, he did drug me' Gulping, Mike's survival was his family's blessing, he couldn't go out like that. Mike was searching for the quickest route of escape but before his eyes could finish darting around the room, he was interrupted.
"Pick it up and Roll." Wu Hai was nearly demanding with his tone, he could see the mistrust in Mike's eyes but he could understand it to some degree. He himself loathed being treated with suspicion, he had only just begun to learn the extent of the power from the Gygax.
Mike sole concerns were not thoughts of himself, the hesitation began to melt away with each passing moment. He still didn't feel drugged but he was worried about the terms being used. Some sort of effect was suppose to take place and sweat was beading down his back. 'I've already eaten a Gemstone.. a fucking Gemstone. What could a Cup and Dice game do to me?' Mike slammed the cup upside down on the table, the die inside stopped on Ice.
'Did he have to slam it?' Wu Hai was glad no damage had happened to the cup but it scared him for a second.
With a sudden rush of a fresh breeze he felt the tips of his fingers and skin go blue all the way to his shoulders. Mike's initial manifestations from the change had taken up his entire arm, his costume froze over like a sudo Ice Armor that spanned across across both forearms and shoulders. The cardboard flexed and cracked slightly.
"This is amazing!" Mike was impressed, either he had magic or the drugs were top notch.
He didn't feel off, he didn't feel dizzy but rather Mike felt an intense cold and then a beautiful warmth. His heartbeat slowed significantly and his posture was correcting with every pulse from his heart. He felt invigorated. It was a feeling he had never felt and it was growing in strength.
Mike's expression changed rapidly. When he opened his mouth again, nothing came out. He was still at a loss for words. He flexed his fingers and took off the gloves. There were patterns across his skin, it was like a tattoo.
"Mike. What I really want, is to find people like you. You're the only other person that's picked that weapon up, all the way. Trust me, I've let thousands try." Wu Hai illustrated his point with a gesture.
Picking the weapon up Wu Hai spun it once very quickly and a breeze almost tore the booth apart before he gently sat the Crusher back down on the stone. "Appearances are very deceiving."
"What I want, is to find people like you and invite them to transmigrate to my world. Zao Clan is able to accept you, specifically 'you' more than anyone else in this building and probably this City." Laying it on a little thick, Wu Hai couldn't help but cheer on the inside, it was very fortunate that he had met Mike. He wanted him to come along and did his best not to lie about anything or withhold information.
"Life is strange, we don't have Electricity. Hot water is obtainable but it takes things. Monsters exist.. Hmm.. Demons, Dragons, Qilin, Minotaurs, Elves, Poochie, Bastets, Orcs, Goblins.. Elementals, they all exist in my World. Magic and Death are everyday occurrences." Wu Hai counted on his fingers as he rattled off some creature names. He didn't want to leave anything to chance, he wanted Mike to know the danger and still choose to come along.
If he accepted, Wu Hai was going to let him re-roll till he was personally satisfied.
"Demons... like... Demon Demon? Or like, mean people?" Mike gulped again.
"Demons. Demonkin possess the bloodline of Demons, they come in all sorts and shapes. I've fought a Demonkin Beast before, it was very different than a Human, that doesn't mean they can't come in that shape." Reminiscing a bit, Wu Hai got lost in thought. When he recovered, he continued speaking.
"To be honest I don't know too much about my own World, it is enormous. Earth is very small in comparison." Wu Hai fumbled with his chin and paced. "I want you to join my Clan, leave this world with me and change the World I live in. The Humans in my world are like this one was 700 years ago." He set his hands on the table and poured some items out on the counter. "Carefully go over what I've said. The Gold is yours, here's a bit more if you're lacking. The Power is yours to keep as well, you passed my test. You not only deserve the power I gave you, I wish I could give you more. No matter how you choose, I hope that you'll use your power to do the right thing. You're probably the most powerful human that was born on Earth, right now. I haven't given out abilities like this.." Wu Hai mentioned some key factors and collected the dice in his storage. He set them onto the table.
He hadn't let anyone else from Earth near the Dice but Mike was different. "I have more, and moreover, No one else from my world can do these things." Wu Hai
"Mister Zao? These things you've said, are a bit on the scary side." He waved his hand and rubbed his head. His hands were frozen over but they didn't feel cold at all, "Will I turn into something else, like you, after some training?" Mike was hooked. Wu Hai had already changed shape a few times but asking questions at such a time was crucial.
"Yes, and No." Wu Hai went on, "You can change forms but it takes something very very special. Like these Dice, the changes are permanent until they are re-rolled but some tools might do other things, I don't know. I have only been alive in this body for 18 years.." Pulling out the Dice of the cup, he showed them to Mike and waited for a response.
"So that's why you want Gamers? You Reincarnated." Mike was really starting to get a clearer picture of what Wu Hai was talking about. 'This New World seems like it might be very fun and full of life.'
"Count me in." Mike tried to throw the gold back to Wu Hai but it made the event table tilt a little.
Wu Hai pulled a ring from his storage and handed it over along with the Gold, once again.
"Then welcome to the Zao Clan, Brother Mike. Here is a storage ring and take the sack of gold. Go buy whatever you want from this world and come back to this booth when you're done. Don't be late or gone too long.. I'm leaving here after I go on stage. Promises made, should always be promises kept." Wu Hai said a number of things but he had also said that he was going to go up on Stage like it was something that was not planned or authorized.
The conversation left Mike feeling like he was not really well informed.
Passing the storage ring over, Wu Hai clasped hands with his new friend. "Mike, I hope you know the trouble I've put myself in by revealing myself.. People cannot know until I announce it, please keep this secret until we're done. I am leaving near the end of the of the convention, don't be late. "
Mike didn't have an evil bone in his body, otherwise he never could have picked up the Creators Crusher in the first place. Wu Hai didn't feel the need to be rude or overbearing but he still had to stress several points, being left behind after what was to transpire could become a bother.
"I'll go then, see you soon." Mike stood up straight and wanted to ask something else. "Two more things. Firstly, how do I turn this off and how do I use the ring?"
Wu Hai spent a moment to explain and when Mike finally calmed down, the magic armor receded.
'Snowflake tattoos appeared on his hand? that's a first..' Wu Hai took note of it and then explained the rings functionality. After Mike had at least some control over himself, he could focus on operating the ring.
Wu Hai was impressed at how fast Mike was adjusting to the idea and panic. "I've never seen someone get a tattoo from these but okay." Wu Hai was finding out new things everyday.
In just half an hour, Mike had all but mastered the basic operations behind using the ring.
Wu Hai wanted to talk more but Mike said that he had things to settle, it was a good opportunity for the two of them to part ways. Mike would either return, or he wouldn't. Wu Hai took down the tarp and allowed more people to try out the challenge. He had found at least one person who was partially sworn to the Zao Clan. The trip to Earth had been strange and sad, but he finally saw some real talent emerging from it. The Trip, if nothing else, he learned that tattoos could be associated magics.
'It would have been nice but at least he's a good one.' Elated, Prince Wu Hai watched as more people tried to lift the Crusher unsuccessfully. He felt like charging people but there wouldn't be as many people trying it out.
The rest of the day was pretty boring, Wu Hai packed up his things like before and made his way to the Roof. He had been sleeping up there rather than booking a Hotel in Tokyo. It was hard to book without advance notice and so many people were still arriving from around the World.
All the Hotels were booked solid.
Wu Hai could sleep in the Shadows, there was no care in the World.
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