23 - Crazy Cat Shuffle

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: Crazy Cat Shuffle
When: September 20
Where: Shibuya & Ikebukuro, as well as the Far Shore
Summary: The new Crazy Cat mascot keychains are sparking real passion in Tokyo's hot spots. Brawls have broken out over the extra-rare versions, and all of this angst is attracting ayakashi. The gods have been asked to step in before things get out of control.







Crossing Crisis

The Shibuya scramble crossing is always busy, but it's especially wild today. Ten new Crazy Cat vending machines have been installed at the mouth of the alley across from Shibuya Station's exit. Rumors are flying that these machines have extra Blue-Star Cats in them: the very rarest kind! A crowd of hundreds of excited fans have gathered, but the people at the front of the lines are buying lots of cats, and the mood is starting to grow sour as the people at the back of the lines begin to wonder if there will be any left by the time it's their turn.

This crowd needs crossing guards... or just someone who can snag some of those ultra-rare Cats and sell them to the back of the line for crazy cash. Everything a god does is righteous, after all.

Sunshine Struggle

Crazy Cat machines dot the Sunshine City complex in Ikebukuro. The machines here are attracting some particularly nasty ayakashi: jealous little purple creatures with too many legs that stoke buyers' envy and need for more and better collectibles. Under their influence, it's not just the Cats going fast. The local stores are selling out of everything cute on the shelves.

Worse, some of the ayakashi victims are turning to theft when they run out of pocket money. Time to exterminate those bugs before they start a new crime wave.

Taking Stock

Accident? Sabotage? No one's telling, but a delivery truck carrying boxes of new keychains to restock the machines blew a tire and overturned on a major street. Under the influence of those greedy little ayakashi, collectors are descending on the wreck to snag their favorites before the police show up.

The dazed driver doesn't know what to do, the crowd is starting to get violent, and those Cats do look amazingly cute. And appealing. And, for that matter, valuable.

Bad Kitty

The cat keychains are super cute! Even gods or shinki might be tempted to buy one and take it home, but taking these keychains back to the Far Shore will give away their hidden secret. It's not just human envy that's attracting ayakashi to the Crazy Cats. There are ayakashi hiding inside this batch of cute kitty dolls, and bringing them through a shrine to the Far Shore will force the hidden creatures out of their plushie prisons.

They're big, they're mad, and they're hungry. And the Heavens are full of souls that smell delicious.

The ayakashi escaping from Crazy Cat dolls on the Far Shore resemble gigantic (taller than a person at the shoulder) versions of the cute plushie cats, with very real and sharp teeth and claws. They run and attack at random once released from the dolls, so even gods and shinki who did not bring the toys back could be faced with a fight. The patrolling shinki will do their best to hold them back with borderlines, but they need help to rend these crazy cats before they do too much damage!

In Summary:

• Placate the crowds
• Squash bitty ayakashi
• Struggle with temptation
• Defeat the cat invasion
• Have fun~

Comments

[redotiertwo]

[Davesprite probably wouldn't even consider "damn" a swear, and he definitely doesn't react to it in any way even if he does.]

I mean. Either way there's not much we can do except try to mislead them or set up comical distractions until someone who can actually deal with them shows up.

[artificialrose]

Define 'distractions'.

[Because 'comical distractions' just makes him think of cartoon stuff...]

[redotiertwo]

An oversized ten ton weight trap, for starters.

[Serious suggestions possibly incoming after he gets this one out of the way.]

[artificialrose]

Yeah, I don't have anything that convenient around.

[Just his borderlines.]

Do you think it'd be better if we went through trees or not?

[redotiertwo]

Uh. I dunno, probably, they might get distracted and use one as a scratching post. [Or they could just lose them in the obstacles, but Davesprite's taking the more potentially hilarious option here.]

I'm gonna have to fly higher if they're too dense, though, so backup's harder.

[artificialrose]

Ah, right...

[Wings those big won't work with too many trees. Garry swears again, a little breathlessly considering he's still running.]

Well, let's just hope our lines hold until we're close enough to Komaeda's temple.

[They totally won't break or anything, right...]

[redotiertwo]

Or hope that we can keep putting them up. Seems like the smarter course than just expecting them to not break forever under the onslaught of giant cat.

[Sure enough, their pursuer is clawing and biting at the borderlines at every opportunity - they're already starting to crack a little.]

I wonder if it knows it could just go around. [They're in a pretty open space right now.]

[artificialrose]

Don't give it any ideas.

[Who knows how smart that thing really is...]

Anyway, that seems like it could be tiring- are you alright with that?

[redotiertwo]

I mean, if you really want me to tempt fate I could try harder. [While Davesprite's reasonably sure ayakashi can't understand human speech, he doesn't need to say it out loud and then have it immediately turn out wrong, for example.]

If I'm about to fall out of the sky I'll let you know, but I'm pretty sure I won't.

[artificialrose]

Alright. Then let me know.

[In the meantime- well, shit, that's definitely his line going first, and Garry grimaces.]

[redotiertwo]

[Davesprite glides backwards for a little while and draws up another borderline when he feels his first one getting weak. Sure enough, the first goes down after another few hits.]

Shit's fucking determined, I thought cats lost interest after a while if it wasn't a laser pointer or something.

[artificialrose]

Except when they're hungry and they never leave you alone...

[Pausing just long enough to make sure he draws the line right, Garry takes off running again.]

Although they usually don't go after wayward souls.

[redotiertwo]

I'll take your word for it, all my goddess has are some pilfered vultures. [Which he's usually reasonably chill will by virtue of all of them being birds, even if they're a bit scabby and trash-eating.]

You're saying that like cats aren't here to take all our souls in the first place.

[artificialrose]

[Vultures..... This place really has all sorts. As much as Garry would like to talk more about that, however, they have more pressing matters.]

They usually aren't so violent and upfront about it.

[redotiertwo]

Well, yeah, but we all know they're just waiting for their opportunity.

[At least they've put a decent distance between themselves and the cats now, though Davesprite still glances back to make sure none of them are making a last-minute recovery.]

How much further is it.

[artificialrose]

It should be... [Shit, he hopes he isn't lost. He's been running so hard that it suddenly occurs to him that he hasn't been paying as much attention to his surroundings as he should have. Garry glances around, taking a second to reorient himself.]

[Give him a second, he swears he's fine]

Ah- it should be not far. There's a big tree with some gauges on it from an animal or something, so the bridge should be right past that.

[redotiertwo]

Big tree, claw marks, got it. [Davesprite rolls himself over again to check behind them before raising another borderline, then flipping to face forward once more.] Because I kind of got the impression you weren't paying attention to where you were going.

[Perish the thought.]

[artificialrose]

Can you call me out when I'm not about to have a heart attack?

[He'd appreciate it, thanks.]

[Still, there it is, and only a few more trees to run past before the lake surrounding Komaeda's temple becomes visible, and its lake with it.]

Ah- there!

[redotiertwo]

If you have one and I have to call the dead people hospital and do the fucking paperwork, then I'm gonna be calling you out anyway, might as well get a headstart.

[Don't die on him, Garry, it's inconvenient and involves too much bureaucracy.

Davesprite recognises their location once the lake comes into view, though, and breathes out a somewhat thankful sound.]

Fucking finally. Now we just need to get to that Escher bridge of his before they catch up.

[He could fly them over himself, but he'd rather not.]

[artificialrose]

[No further words need to be spoken. The sight of the lake and its bridge seems to give Garry an extra boost, and he sprints towards it.... although maybe that's necessary anyway, considering how ridiculously tall it is and he needs to rush.]

[He'll be fine.... Really... Just gonna struggle up the side of this shitty thing.]

[redotiertwo]

[Davesprite, as usual, just flies straight up to the top, though he does pause there to look from Garry to the cat ayakashi just breaking out of the distant treeline.]

You totally sure you don't want any help there, my dude.

[artificialrose]

LINE!!

[That's all he can wheeze out, scrambling all the harder at the sound of a giant cat in the distance.]