Console Wars

The back of the console snapped back into place. the sound seemingly echoing from the number of other devices sounding out the same accord. An entire shipment of devices just up and disappeared before the distributors ever got the piece of machinery they ordered. The device did not go on sale for another few days, but already the disappearance made the rounds of internet video game boards.

The complications they faced stretched further than their angry rants could ever imagine.

Years ago, a video game model named Yvette Reue met an unfortunate accident when she performed as a sexy physicist for a science demonstration to build up support for a new game design. The glass used to support a vat of acid broke under the biting corrosion of the acid and burst forth, covering Yvette Reue, almost killing her-- and destroying her modeling career.

One more console snapped into place and her job was done. Or, at least the first step. Yvette and her gang of cosplayers tired of dealing with throngs of ungrateful fans used their feminine wiles and high explosives to steal the shipment and now reconfigured them with a bomb. Before the consoles could be played, first a patch would need to activate the hardware, including the bomb. Internet speeds would determine just who died first and who would take it last.

Under the advice of Amethyst, Elaine and Imena took to the convention in costume. "It's called Cosplay, Google it."

"We did, and that's why we look like this." Imena looked up a character named 'Ashe', but failed to understand how many fictional characters from medieval RPGs were named 'Ashe'. Wearing gold boots with stockings up to her mid thighs and a pink skirt with a white top from Final Fantasy 12 Ashe, Imena insisted on also walking around with the bow from the League of Legends character. "I think we look good."

"I know I do." Elaine simply went with the white nurse outfit with stockings pulled up above her knees with red ribbons on them. She hid her pistols inside of the two giant kama she carried. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail with a nurse hat sticking out on top. "What excuse did Ame come up with for not showing up somewhere dangerous?"

"She said she needed more time for her costume."

"Well I hope kids blowing up won't get in the way of dressing like a Cosplay."

A familiar sign stood before them, perplexing them. "Girl Alive!" Elaine tapped her finger to her chin. "There are no verbs in that fragment. Why punctuate."

"I think we know them from somewhere."

"They all look alike."

"The China folk?" A shared bond of underlining racism brought Imena and Elaine together. Whereas Elaine cultivated hers from an elderly figure still living with values from the Nineteenth century, Imena unfortunately grew up in the Nineteenth century. "Maybe we should find them and see how they know us."

"Good idea..." Elaine spotted three girls in brightly colored outfits depicting all sorts of odd characters carrying boxes of the console they needed to find going into a hallway nearby. "Be right back."

"Elaine, I'll come with..." Before she could finish, a portly man lifted her off of her feet and spun her around. "Cosplay is not consent! Cosplay is not consent!" She kneed the man in his stomach, freeing her to grab her pepper spray.

"Oh, I'm sorry..." Before his apology could fully come out, Imena sprayed him in the face to teach him a lesson. "Please stop!"

"Do you now know why you should not..." The spray came to an end. "This was a new bottle." The man now laid on the floor cowering in tear soaked eyes with the mismatched cosplayer standing over him. "Oh dear, I think I overdid it."

"Mam, if you could come with us." A security guard asked politely if Imena would follow him. She looked to see where Elaine went, but could find no trace of her. She turned back and followed the security guard.

Elaine managed to catch the attention of one of the cosplayers carrying a console and waved her over. After a blow to her head, Elaine tied the girl up, gagged her, and left her a supply closet. Now she just needed to find the other two girls and give an explanation for why she-- then she bumped into them. "Oh hey, are you guys carrying these bomb things to?"

"Where did you come from?"

"Montana, but that's not important. Have you guys seen the fourth girl?"

"I thought there was only..."

"Yeah only four. We just need four more of these to complete the order."

"I guess we picked up an extra..."

"This is time sensitive, so they needed me to bring this from Montana as fast as possible; you should be glad it was someone as experienced and dedicated as me or one fat slob wouldn't get what was coming to him."

Both girls eyes narrowed at the thought of the ungrateful attendees. "Good. This must happen."

A cosplayer dressed in a short police skirt with dark shades and knee high boots walked into the detention center of the convention. Before the police officer could say anything, the femme fatale doused him with pepper spray and continued on to the bench Imena was handcuffed to. "I saw what you did to that swine."

"Oh I'm sorry..." Her handcuff lock popped and her wrist was free.

"Let's go."

A series of ninetails bounced as Amethyst strode through the hall. She played with the blonde wig and adjusted the purple popstar hat atop her head. Her walk carried purpose in the purple pump on her way to the Girl Alive! stand. Something about the short suit and blonde wig gave her far more confidence than she carried before; she flashed a smile and strolled back to the VIP area to find Tyuki, Yui, Bonnie, and Kyrie. Anytime before, Ame would gush and possibly cry while meeting her idols, but the suit gave her so much confidence, she could control the room-- and herself.
Elaine infiltrated back to the basement of the convention hall with her new partners. She lowered the console on the stack the other two did and stood back and counted. Over three hundred consoles would go out and all contained the hazardous bomb. "Do I know you?" A woman covered in head to toe with makeup walked up to Elaine.

"Yeah, I'm the special recruit from the Montana convention scene."

"I've never heard of..."

"A fat guy with bad hygiene picked me up and ripped the imported silk from my Fuu kimono." A shocked gasp let out among the villainous gang.

"You have much hate inside you." Yvette put her arm on Elaine's shoulder.

"I've been told that."

"The time is almost among us sisters. We will distribute these to the vendors and then we will take our ultimate revenge."
Elaine started to back away towards the back door to make her escape when the door burst open. The girl Elaine captured bounced through with her hands and feet still tied and the bandana around her neck. "She's an infiltrator." Her head nodded towards Elaine, giving Elaine the signal for her to shadowstep to the other side of the door.

However, a shove pushed her momentum towards the center of the room. Elaine found herself standing in the middle of every video game character. "Aw shit."