Chapter One

Heights Beyond the Clouds

Sunshine peeked through shreds of clouds in the golden sky. In central Den City, chatter mingled with the bells adorning horse-drawn buggies. Yusaku tossed the smelly animals a glare as he approached a hot dog stand. He clutched the collar of his wool jacket closer; the holidays were a mess.

A hollering of his surname plus a warm hello had him hastening his pace. The culprit kept up an excited wave. Aoi wore a velvet blue coat over her uniform plus an ice-blue beanie keeping her brown locks tucked inside.

Steam rose from the pair of hot chocolates upon the picnic table. He took his place beside her and noted she picked hot white chocolate for him this time. He mentioned off-handedly, once, it was his favorite.

"I always love this time of year," she said. "We should take a ride in one of the horse-drawn carriages! Their sleigh bells are like a lullaby to me."

She giggled and tugged on the dangly threads of her toque. For the first time in his life, Yusaku considered the beasts clop-clopping down the street in a positive light. He sipped at the hot white chocolate and hummed an agreement.

The patting of a pair of hands interrupted them. Jin smiled and tied his bright yellow apron tighter. Brown leaves crunched under his walk towards them. "Great to see you two again! Making a Thursday night tradition, huh? You having the usual?"

Yusaku offered a thumbs-up. Aoi squealed about how great Jin was recovering, which had become yet another tradition. He scratched at his temple and waved off her compliments.

"It's true, though!" Aoi said. "You're up and at 'em every day! I remember a month ago you could only work one day a week. Look at you now! Don't you think he's a superstar, Yusaku?"

He offered a brief nod. "Is Kusanagi around?"

"At the grill," Jin said, "but I'm sure he'll come forward once he realizes who's come calling."

Yusaku left the pair to chat and tugged on a pair of pink mittens. When Roboppy was still around, he had to gather the gloves wherever Yusaku happened to toss them. The reminder of the missing piece of his life dampened him.

"You look like you could use this."

Kusanagi pushed a warm bun into Yusaku's hands without so much as asking. The gesture lightened him, at least; Kusanagi made it with the works, just like Yusaku preferred. "Thank you."

"Psh. So formal all the time! You never change," he said. "Say, when's the last time you visited VRAINS?"

Kusanagi shook a thumb towards the giant screens fixed above Den City Center. They displayed Soulburner and Blood Shepherd clashing; further away, Ghost Girl showed Kiku some basic combos.

"Homura's cashing in on the fame you two rightly earned, yet not a lick of news from the man himself!" Kusanagi said. "You camera shy?"

Yusaku shook his head. Ever since Ai, entering VRAINS simply brought up too many memories that'd aged like milk. Attempts at explaining that particular situation caused his tongue to weigh tons, though.

He let everyone have their happy endings.

"I haven't counted the days," Yusaku said. "I like it out here."

"Riiight," Kusanagi said. "Whatever the reason, it's nice to see you living a normal life. Making… friends."

What the wink Kusanagi gave suggested, Yusaku had no clue. "Sure."

"Oh, c'mon! Can't help but notice how much time you're spending with Aoi these days!"

"She's nice."

"And?"

"I'm not sure what I'm supposed to say here."

Kusanagi laughed. "Like I said: you never change. To what do I owe the pleasure of today's visit, by the by?"

"I was wondering if Jin-"

Warnings flashed on the jumbotron. The VRAINS feed cut away to the CEO of SOL Technologies, Akira Zaizen. At the sight of her worried brother, Aoi shot to her feet. Zaizen stated, "This is an emergency alert regarding the online status of LINK VRAINS. Anyone currently within the program: please attempt logout immediately. An anomaly within could cause physical harm if encountered. Spread the word if anyone you know is currently logged in."

The hot dog splatted against the pavement. Yusaku watched the announcement with a slacked jaw. Just when he thought it was over, just when he thought he could relax…

"Kusanagi," he said.

He'd already opened the door inside the hot dog truck. "Got you."

Yusaku stutter stepped. He glanced back to the picnic table. Jin's hand hovered over Aoi's shoulder. She fretted back and forth on whether to call her brother or not. Would it add to his stress? If it didn't go through, would it only make her more afraid for him?

Approaching drew her out of her worry. As soon as their eyes met, hers adjusted to the tilt of concern. "Oh. You're… going in, aren't you? I think I should, too, but I'll have to run home, and what if Akira-"

He took her hand in his as they had once before. This time, he placed his other hand atop hers, capturing her fingers between all ten of his, to show he meant more than a mere handshake.

Then he drew away and sprinted into the truck. Kusanagi shut the door behind him. Yusaku checked his wrist dealer was on tight, unclasped his deck box, and exclaimed, "Deck Set! Into the VRAINS!"

A blinding flash followed. An instance of floating stole away his grounding in reality. His feet fitted to solid ground. His school uniform had phased away for the more form-fitting, black-green bodysuit. Wind whisked through his longer hair. He'd spawned on a Speed Duel board.

A tendril of data storm, indigo and violet blending in a flood, carried him through the sky. To the north, a diamond larger than the grandest skyscrapers in Den City was suspended in the VRAINS sky. Blips in the urban area below indicated the many users heeding Zaizen's warning and logging out.

Kusanagi's voice crackled in Yusaku's ear: "The anomaly is towards the south, Playmaker."

He shifted his hips to jerk the board in the opposite direction. The surge of the data storm moved with him, its ebbs and flows as familiar to him as his pulse. The sight of the "anomaly" left him in awe.

A tower grander than even Hanoi's pierced VRAINS' lavender sky. Gold and black lattice spiraled upward in layers. The golden portions of the highest floors shimmered like sunshine. The concrete foundation curled around the base like a snake.

A scream from below had Playmaker slowing his course towards the tower. A pair of familiar faces on a rooftop had him debating whether to stop or not. Noticing the thing in the lower courtyard, he leapt off the board and shouted, "Soulburner!"

The convulsions from his lips to his eyes said he wanted to offer a smile but just couldn't manage it. His girlfriend, Kiku, huddled close to him. "Glad to finally see you again. Sorry it has to be like this. These creepy things are all over, and if they hurt you, it carries over into the real world."

What he pointed at was nothing less than a monstrosity. Misshapen, golden teeth jutted out of its jaw. Its skeletal body was formed from cymbals and stands serving as limbs, bent windpipes as a ribcage, and drums at its joints. Every step the monster took caused the crashing of the cymbals over and over.

The setting of Playmaker's brow cast shadows over his green eyes. "Are there any casualties?"

"No," Soulburner assured. "Well, no one's dead, if that's what you're asking. Plenty are hurt. It's strange. They're aggressive but never to that point. The things are more and more common the closer you get to the tower, so…"

"They're protecting it."

Kiku piped up. "That's what I said! He wouldn't let me take another step closer, though. It has to mean something bad! That's how these stories always go!"

Crash went the cymbals on the monster below. A groan like a zombie's escaped the instrument's mouth. Playmaker stared at it. "If I fly, I can close in easily."

Kiku's chuckle oozed sarcasm. "You'd think. There are these types that fly! One's like a dragon with harps for wings, and the plucking would be nice and soothing and stuff if it wasn't trying to bat us out of the sky! The music stuff makes it all creepier, somehow."

The kneeling of the skeleton elicited the banging of its kneecap drums. The sound reminded Playmaker of thunder from a gathering storm. Soulburner said, "What's the problem with the tower, anyway? VRAINS being under attack is obviously horrible, but why does the tower in specific need to be shut down?"

"Blackouts."

A haze of blue digitized the form of Akira Zaizen, who folded his hands behind his suit coat as he observed the gathered trio. "Playmaker, I appreciate your presence. Same to you two. Something at the tallest heights of that tower is draining power from the real world. SOL Technologies was only the beginning. We project the blackout to spread across the country within hours, and we have no idea when the drain will end. If it lasts too long – long enough for backup generators to fail – think of the consequences. The largest hospitals in Den City-"

Soulburner's eyes squeezed shut as he said, "You can stop there! Okay, we reach the tower, then what?"

Zaizen lifted his head to observe the impossible heights of the glimmering silver and gold tower. Cloud cover miles above their location prevented them from seeing the top. Odd, Playmaker thought. He'd never seen weather effects besides the data storm in VRAINS before.

"There is some sort of antennae at the top. If you can reach it and knock it off, the drain will halt. I'm sorry I have to request the aid of you two once again-"

"Soulburner," Playmaker said, "are you aware of the entrances to the tower?"

"There's just one, but you won't like the odds."

"Um," Zaizen said.

Soulburner smiled and scratched his temple. "Sorry. He's… you know. We'll handle this! No need to worry!"

He nudged his own nose with his thumb. Zaizen sighed, but a small smile played at his lips. "I'll keep you updated with everything I know. Our backup generators are mostly committed to data, though, so I may lose contact at some point. For now, I can tell you the outer heights of the tower are swarmed by flying, metal – sorry, this is a moment where the truth is stranger than fiction – flying, metal tubas with sharp attachments. I imagine the outside route will result in shredding."

"Which is why you wanted the front entrance?" Soulburner asked.

Playmaker responded with a brief nod. "What's the issue with the inside?"

Soulburner jerked his chin towards the tower. Whispers passed between him and Kiku. Her glare could sear a man's insides, Playmaker thought, but Soulburner responded with a beg that melted her. Kiku relented and agreed to log off. Zaizen said his farewells and promised to keep in touch.

Once the pair were alone, Soulburner asked, "How've you been?"

"This isn't really the time."

"I know, but I understand how difficult losing a partner can be. After Flame, I could hardly-"

Playmaker said, "The entrance."

Soulburner dashed a hand through his hair, grumbling, "Alright, alright. Follow me."

The red trail of Soulburner's scarf flowed behind his leaps from rooftop to rooftop. The city at the heart of VRAINS tapered for flat wasteland, upon which the foundation of the tower lay. Their proximity allowed Playmaker a look at the hundreds of sentient instruments crowding the airspace. If he used the data storm for travel, he'd have to lay low, he thought.

"Eyes on the ground and you'll see your issue," Soulburner said.

The huff and clods of horse hooves sounded from the distance. A massive, equine beast easily the size of two buses treaded in front of the tower's entrance. The swiveling of its neck, a series of interconnected tubas, gave a whine like a trombone's sliding.

A human-shaped design rode the tuba horse. The knight's shield was a combination of a silver cello and a golden clarinet. Its spear was risen as though in preparation of a joust. The horse's tail, interconnected flutes designed to resemble hair, caused a melodious whistle as it swayed back and forth in its rounds about the tower.

"That spear'd kill me in an instant," Soulburner said. "Far as I can tell, though, there's only one of those things guarding the entrance. If I distract it, you can slip in. Just-"

"Good plan," Playmaker said. "I'll wait here and ride the storm inside once the knight isn't looking."

Soulburner winced. "Right. Yep. Heeere I go. Y'know, comparing the sizes, I'm basically a fly to that thing-"

"We don't have much time," Playmaker urged.

A sigh hissed through Soulburner's teeth. He leapt off the building, and his board materialized below. He hollered taunts on his journey towards the tower. The horse's head lifted. The monster trotted forward one step, two. The knight leveled his spear and lobbed the weapon at Soulburner. He ducked beneath the massive weapon. The stabbing of the lance into the earth kicked up a cloud of dust.

Playmaker dove off the roof, landed smoothly onto his board, and made a beeline for the tower through the clouded atmosphere. He kept his eyes thinned but had to blink away dirt several times. His eyes were wet by the time he reached the opening.

Vibrations in the earth made him hesitate. Symphonic music pulsed from within the tower. A pair of doors large enough to welcome the knight and horse lay open before him. The dark steel of their crisscrossing designs reminded him of something, but he couldn't put his finger on it. He kept his steps light as he passed the threshold, and the glass between the steel of the doors reflected a flash that temporarily blinded him.

He blinked as he entered an atrium. Playmaker's heartbeat rocked his chest. Leagues of instrumental monsters surrounded him. They weren't moving or paying him any attention, though; the beasts faced towards the tower's center, from which the music rang.

He passed through a pair of dragon-harps Kiku had described. Beyond their strung wings, stained-glass windows spiraled around the inner tower. The soft sunlight filtered as shades of the rainbow onto the marble tiled floor. Playmaker's feet padded across pink, gold, and indigo on his way towards the center.

The hallway's arches opened to the main, vertical vein of the tower. The stairway winding upwards across the room was his goal. An enormous machine stood between Playmaker and the route up: an organ-like beast attached to the bridge above. Its spindly claws drifted up and down in fluid movement despite the awkward tuba elbows the monster sported.

The keys atop the bridge pressed down despite no one touching them, producing the ghastly tune weaving through the tower. The gigantic, brass tube facing the ground reminded Playmaker of the monster's dress. A symbol above the brass matched the crisscross pattern on the front doors. Glancing around the room, Playmaker noted the same symbol on every monster.

The music halted. Dreadful silence settled. Playmaker held his breath as he scanned the organ above. An individual had appeared atop the monster. His long, purple hair flowed as though wind disturbed it, but the tower was still and quiet as a vacuum. The newcomer's posture was uncomfortably stick-straight, and his dark suit coat appeared metal like armor. The shield he hefted sported the same symbol as the instrumental monstrosities rampaging through VRAINS.

A soft, red ribbon was clutched in his fist. The crimson fabric flapped, and his hold tightened.

"Warn all others: do not enter the Orcustrated Babel."

The man's command boomed throughout eternity as though a law laid down by a god. Playmaker bristled, stood straighter, and said, "Your actions could cause hundreds of deaths, and this 'Orcustrated Babel' must be stopped-"

A bang of every key on the organ blasted a deafening soundwave through the bottom, brass tube of the huge beast. With it came an insanely loud exclamation from the man:

"BEGONE!"

The backwards blast threw Playmaker across the marble floor, through the crowds of instruments, and rolling towards the open glass doors. The cracking of his bones as he tumbled was the last sound he heard before his consciousness left him.

End of Chapter One

A/N: IMPORTANT: Constructive criticism in reviews and/or PMs is extremely valuable and appreciated! If you have anything to say or suggest, feel free to! I am always trying to improve and need your help! I make a point of responding to all reviews, too.

Lemme know if this story interests y'all any cos this lore always been real interesting and beautiful to me. Hope you enjoy my interpretations of them and how I'm mixing VRAINS with it + pls let me know what could be better lol

Relevant cards in order of appearance: Orcustrated Babel; Orcust Cymbal Skeleton; Orcust Brass Bombard; Dingirsu, the Orcust of the Evening Star; Orcust Harp Horror; Orcustrion; Longirsu, the Orcust Orchestrator