Chapter 10 - Seeing The Sickening Sights At Acquama

Akira and Vash followed along the course of the river, until it reached a crystal blue lake basked in white and lavender lilies. Where, situated on an island at the center of the lake, was the town itself: surrounded by a great wall of unblemished white marble, seeming to float atop the still waters—only made accessible from the shore by a single wide, cobblestone bridge.

Other players were traversing the bridge on foot, dripping into and out of the city through a tall iron gate.

They were all low-levels, like Vash and Akira, some of whom were also dressed in the full [Howling Set], while others settled for what amounted to rags or Roman style togas, all bright-eyed and excited about whatever adventure next awaited them.

'Those poor motherfuckers,' Akira thought to herself. 'Just wait 'til they see what I've seen.'

Posted at the forefront of Acquama's tall entry gate, as well as along the course of the bridge at regularly spaced intervals, were warriors labelled as [Level 50] [Immortal Guards]. They were dressed in matching white and gold centurion armor, their helmets topped by blazing bright orange and yellow tassels. All standing statuesque, armed with imposing golden spears, swords and shields.

Seeing all these soldiers and defensive fortifications, Akira got to thinking...

"Strange," she turned to Vash, saying, "I highly doubt there would be all this security just to keep the local bear and wolf population in check."

Vash lowered the brim of his hat to cast a shadow over his eyes, grinning. 

"Who knows, 69? Nirvana is a big place."

Thus, whilst Akira was struggling with feelings of being a small fish in a big pond, she and Vash finally made it across the great bridge and past the threshold of the grand enormous gate…

To venture forth, into a whole new world.

"Welcome...to Acquama!" Vash announced, holding his arms out at their surroundings. 

"Your first major town!"

Akira was stricken in awe, from the very first sight. 

Immediately, she glimpsed a striking resemblance to the city of Rome among its fragrant scented, decadent concrete and brick villas, lush green pavilions, and rustic marketplaces lined by stalls hung with see-through drapes scattered with flower petals. Old world pottery and tiles. Fresco murals painted on the sides of buildings held up by rows of carved round pillars. Marble busts and towering statues, depicting various identifiable Roman gods and goddesses.

As everywhere, countless other players swarmed the streets like Tokyo during the morning rush hour; a population largely made up of players between the levels of [1] and about [15], most of whom were abundantly busy: Scampering around, beating loud footsteps across the cobblestones. Bustling in and out of guild halls and quest halls and auction halls and forum halls. Inspecting the market stall wares, while talking and joking amongst their party members.

Some were engaged as day laborers or artisans, toiling in the hot sun.

To Akira, they all seemed so...happy. 

She had to wonder if it was because they were still oblivious to this world's tragedy.

Or, did those who knew...come to accept it?

High-levels were exceedingly less common: the highest Akira saw that day being a sole individual at [Level 44], spotted taking a leak in a gutter. They, as a rule, appeared distinctly more wizened and mature compared to the low-levels; looking like adults in their early thirties, as opposed to college aged teens. 

They were most often seen in pairs, rather than parties, ostensibly as romantic couples between all different combinations of sexes: Leisurely strolling while holding hands. Whispering and giggling quietly to each other upon scenic balconies. Some kissing in tucked away plazas, or passionately making love in dirty alleyways. 

Akira noticed that, generally, the higher a player's level was, the progressively more bulky and intricately styled armors they wore... 

That is, if they were a male character.

Because on the other hand, armors became ever more skimpy and revealing for the girls, to a point where only their modest parts were being covered—even then, just barely—in outfits that could best be likened to lingerie; replete with pasties, lavish jewelry and anklets substituting as footwear, tasseled or glistening sequin bras and thongs, thongs and more thongs. 

Many of whom, were also...

Visibly pregnant.

'Girls can get pregnant in this world?' Akira thought, in awe. 'But how?! If every person here is supposed to be reincarnated...' 

She saw some infants as well as children, both labelled with [Levels] in the negative range—clear indicators of this being the bizarre reality—but still, in her mind it was the [Tapioca Pudding] all over again!

It just didn't make any sense!

Vash could see Akira's expression of sheer befuddlement, patting her on the shoulder.

"I was a noob too, once," he told her. "It may take a while, but you'll get used to seeing stuff like—"he motioned to a pair of intensely muscular human males nearby, smooching each other in just their boxer brief underwear, underneath the cascading waters of a fountain. 

Akira smirked. "Do as the Romans do, eh?"

"I've heard it gets really slow and dangerous to level up at around the 40s, so a lot of players just couple off and basically retire at that point."

"Isn't it weird?" Akira said. "Not knowing what a person was in their previous life?"

"I suppose it all comes down to the individual," Vash answered, then abruptly pulled Akira to a bench by the fountain, discreetly pointing at something. "Look."

Akira looked, and saw it was a [Level 25] tan, blonde Squell in a two piece flannel bikini with a huge baby bump, pushing a [Stroller] alongside a [Level 41] Human male in thick, black, spiked plate armor with a white skull-painted horned helmet. Both flanked onall sides by their horde of other children, Squell and Human alike, with [Levels] in the negative range.

Vash leaned on Akira's shoulder, whispering as she watched them go: "I've been told...the 'end game' for most girls is to have as many children as possible."

Akira reared back, shooting him an amused glare.

"You want that to be us, don't you?"

In his surprise, over such blunt straightforwardness, Vash fell back in alarm with a sudden coughing fit--

fearful that he'd been too forward, and now would face her wrath!

"No, 69-san! I swear I was only--"

"Akira," she corrected, as she moved to hoist him back onto his feet from behind. "My name is Akira."

"Akira…" he repeated. "That's a beauti--"

Before he could finish, Akira brusquely locked him in place with her hugging arms, squeezing her fat breasts tightly against the curvature of his spine.

"Akira! What the he--"

"Take me somewhere to eat," she ordered. "A nice restaurant that serves seafood."

"Huh…?" Vash couldn't think straight. He could feel her chest continually expand and contract with her breaths, her nipples poking through the thin fabric of her top to temptingly graze against his back.

She breathed her words against his bare neck:

"Don't you want to please me?"

"Aha...!" Vash groaned, both swooning over and feeling embarrassed by this bullying treatment at the same time; woefully unequipped to fight against it. "S-so forceful, all of a sudden!"

Akira smirked. Having once been a man herself, she knew just how to pull at his strings to make him dance:

"At this rate, you can keep on dreaming!" She laughed, pulling away from him sharply with a hand placed on her hip. "I would never dedicate my precious womb to a man who couldn't even keep me fed!"

IAkira had resolved herself to not be cutthroat anymore, except for emergencies...such as this--continued, irksome rumbling in her stomach--as she was also still furious at Vash for leaving her to sleep without any dinner last night.

Fortunately, with Vash she didn't have to try too hard.

As minutes later...

The two were sitting down to a grilled lobster lunch, at a cozy little fresco diner.

And ut was here, while waiting on their order to come, Akira regaled him of all her experiences in Nirvana before meeting him: About the dungeon filled with captive Squell, and the Nandi. About Lazuli's rescue as well as Akira's own daring, totally unheroic escape with the other Cattle Squell. Ending her tale of events by telling him about the last Cattle Squell who died to wolves, right before she'd found his camp...

"Sounds like a bad karma starting zone to me, if there ever was one" was his simple response.

Akira grimaced. "That's what Lazuli said." 

"Is it possible...she's still alive?"

Akira let out a sigh as she faced away, her eyes narrowed in concentration.

"I...don't know. But I owe it to her to return someday, when I'm stronger, if she is. Because I've been thinking, maybe this new life is meant as...like, a chance at redemption." She brushed a hand along her other arm, in a show of growing discomfort. "One I feel as though I've been wasting, by continuing to carry on selfishly...with no consideration of others."

Vash glanced at her, wisdom shining through in his eyes.

"I think we all become shaped by the kind of world we're born into, in order to survive in it," he said. "So, if Nirvana is really anything like a purgatory for sinners, it's because it allows us to escape from all the old junk that used to tie us down, and completely start over. A full reset."

Akira nodded in understanding, feeling a slight relief. "Yeah. It's almost like a clean slate." Her eyes narrowed again. "Almost, except that we keep our memories."

Vash swirled the umbrella in his [Martini Glass], before taking a quick sip.

"Some believe the children of this world are persons reincarnated with their memories erased," he said. "Though, if you ask me, it's far from preferable."

Akira crossed her arms, hanging her head in sadness.

"To think...all these people are dead."

Vash looked at her with sympathetic eyes, saying nothing for a while before grinning.

He'd come up with a diversion to cheer her up: starting by flashing his tie to get her attention—the same one he'd referred to as his "Memento," while they were walking along the river.

"This tie...my memento…" he said, flapping it at her face.

"What about it?"

"You can't take it from me."

Akira raised an eyebrow. "Is that a challenge?"

"Not really," he returned, with a mischievous smile. "I'm only saying, no force that exists on Nirvana, as far as I'm aware, can tear it away from my neck." 

Akira rolled her eyes. "Oh, please." 

She slowly extended a hand, reaching forth to grab it…

"I mean, it's just a crappy, regular old tie—"

Just as her fingers wrapped around the fabric and started to pull, though, Akira felt something like an electrical shock go all the way up her arm to the shoulder.

"YEEEEEOOOOOOOOOW!" 

She screamed in pain as she fell back, toppling from her chair.

Vash laughed, joined with some of the other players eating at the restaurant, as Akira then sheepishly picked up her chair and sat in it again.

"Asshole." She huffed, facing him with a raised set of claws.

"I did warn you!" he blurted, holding his arms up in surrender. "Mementos are what's called a [Soulbound] item, meaning they're attached to a person's body for as long as they live." 

He gave a wink. "So, don't go around randomly pulling off people's clothes."

Akira snorted back a laugh. 

"Yeah. But what if you're, like...about to do it...with someone...and they've got..."

As her words trailed off, Vash just gawked at her with uncertainty for a time, before it dawned on him what she was actually saying:

"Ohhhh," he said, snapping his fingers at her in realization. "I get it now! You're talking about if two players are about to have SEX, and someone has got on—like—a pair of Memento [Nipple Piercings]."

Akira gave a nervous nod, sensing the judging looks of other restaurant-goers.

"That's easy." Vash shrugged, pausing to take a loud, crunchy bite out of the lobster tail he'd ordered before continuing, chewing with his mouth open: "All the player does is just un-equip it for a bit. A [Memento] can still be placed in your inventory, if you want. Since I guess that still counts as it remaining on your person."

"Well, where's my Memento, then?" Akira asked.

'Since you said every player gets one…'

Vash raised his hand, bidding her to wait for an answer, but then spoke with his mouth full anyway:

"You haff to shee the Or-icle!"