A/N: According to my poll, the voters have decided that the story ought to go on, no questions asked. However, taking earlier criticism into account, I shall be making a greater effort from here on forward to improve the quality of this fanfic from its story elements to its character developments. Reviews are welcome, as are criticisms, so long as they are logical and well thought-out.

I don`t own Log Horizon. Only this story and my OCs.

Chapter Four: Coming Noise

November 4, 2018

New York City, NY

Mazer POV

A getaway vehicle is always a rather unusual sight in New York, considering its constant traffic trouble. That same vehicle being a truck would make for an even rarer sight to behold. But that same truck being pursued by what looked like a police officer shouting "PULL OVER!" bearing black fox ears and tail with giant silver gauntlet on his arms would convince a normal bystander that he was either hallucinating or had fallen into a parallel universe. Or it would, if the Adventurers of Elder Tales hadn't returned just two days earlier.

This is not how I imagined getting back on the force would look like, Mazer, a Level 82 Foxtail Monk thought sullenly, as he leaped from car roof to car roof in pursuit of mobsters getting away with a truck full of stolen evidence from a federal warehouse.

Cars careening through the streets at high speeds, dodging pedestrians and incoming traffic, while frantically turning corners and blitzing ahead so as to catch a break, or catch their prey. The sounds of cracking gunfire being exchanged, of screeching tires burning rubber, and wailing police sirens filling the air. A contest of speed, skill, and equipment between two or more drivers and their allies.

For Corporal Brandon Daniels of the New York Police Department, this was the iconic Hollywood image of a car chase. He had been in one car chase before in his career, but it was a short affair that almost lasted three blocks and saw his suspect get T-boned by a bus. And he wasn`t even the guy driving at the time, since it was his partner`s day for the wheel.

On top of the duty of protecting the people of New York and paying the bills, Officer Daniels had joined the NYPD for its potential thrills. He had grown up on cop movies, from the dead-serious "Dirty Harry" franchise and "Heat" to the more comedic likes of "Beverly Hills Cop" and "Lethal Weapon." He wanted to get into a shootout with the street gangs, the Mafia, and the Mob all at once. He wanted to go undercover and bust the biggest drug ring that eyes had never been laid on. He wanted be in the driver`s seat for a police car chase for criminals who had robbed the American Museum of Natural History of the biggest diamond on Earth.

When he had been very suddenly dropped into the world of Elder Tales, he was quick to cast aside any and all fantasies he had for doing Hollywood-esque police business of any sort. Immediately, he sought out to join a guild that had a good sense of security and camaraderie. This resulted in him bouncing around the city of Big Apple, "browsing" a number of different guilds in order to find one he could be comfortable with. In the end, he decided to join a guild known as Street Smarts, a group of native New Yorkers who helped to bring order back to the city after an attempted monopolization of tasteful food preparation resulted in citywide riots.*

The six years that made up his time in Elder Tales were filled with fantastic adventures that made his time in the NYPD look gray and lifeless. Then, the exciting days were few and far between, as well as being far less whelming than his daydreams. Those days had been largely occupied by patrols for illegal parking and mind-numbing deskwork. In Big Apple, he fought everything from monsters to NPCs to other Adventurers in a variety of different situations, from game events like the Skin Changer Revolution to outright war with Lander states and Adventurer cities. In Elder Tales, he was never bored. And the work he did in Street Smarts to help the other residents of Big Apple, like renovation projects on the city`s multitude of empty buildings - providing more housing and room for industry – gave him greater satisfaction in making a difference than his police days ever did. It made him feel like he was home.

Thus, when he suddenly reappeared back in his apartment in uptown Brooklyn, on top of the shock at the unexpected occurrence, he was also more than a little downhearted for having left his life in Elder Tales behind so abruptly. Thankfully, it didn`t take long for him to meet other Adventurers who also lived in NYC, even reacquainting with old comrades from Street Smarts. This brought him to the swift conclusion that all of the Adventurers of Elder Tales had returned home, and the subsequent discovery that the world was very aware of it.

While a person walking down a street in fantasy garb would draw odd looks any day of the week, a person who did so fully armored and armed with shield and broadsword with long, flowing black hair with fox ears and tail would bring the attention of the entire street on one's head, complete with smartphones snapping pictures, curious bypasses pulling on said ears and tail to see if they were real (they are) and thousands of staring eyes and questioning voices. Oh, and the police were called. This resulted in his reunion with his old precinct, his explanation of everything that had happened in Elder Tales, and his introduction of his guildmates to his police coworkers.

Over the course of that day and the next, he endured everything from near-harassment from strangers and news reporters to reacquainting himself with his old friends and family (of the latter, all that was left was his big sister, who he wasn't close to in the first place). Then, he and all of the other Adventurers had to go through a bunch of government red tape in order to not only register their identities, both IRL and from Elder Tales, but also their new races, appearances, classes, and affiliations. Thankfully, while the government hadn't made any final decisions regarding guilds, they hadn't done anything to break them up either. This meant, for the time being, that Street Smarts was still in business. On top of that, he was even given his job in the NYPD back.

Just in time to be able to react to an emergency call stating that a federal warehouse had been broken into while he was on patrol.

Now, here he was, his crazy adventures now simply continuing in a new world instead of coming to an end, as he watched the truck sideswipe an SUV as it continued to plow its way through traffic.

This has gone on long enough, he concluded, as he made a final leap from the roof of a yellow taxi (ignoring the cursing cab driver) onto the rogue vehicle, landing on top with a thump.

"This is your final warning!" Mazur shouted. Pull over and put-"

RATATATATATATAT!

He was very suddenly interrupted when someone began firing a machine gun though the roof, causing him to stumble back, before getting his bearings again and dodging around on the roof to avoid the gunfire.

Playtime's over, boys, he thought in a macho manner, getting tired of the chase.

Quickly considering his options, he ran down the truck trailer and leaped into the air, getting himself above the truck itself.

"TIGER ECHO FIST!" he exclaimed, activating the skill. With his fist enclosed in an orange glow, he brought it down square on the truck's engine block, crumpling and crushing the entire front end of the vehicle.

Immediately after, Mazer jumped off and rolled as the formerly motorized transportation machinery quickly became dead weight on wheels, as the momentum of the trailer slammed into the truck itself, causing both parts to skid and fall sideways in a loud CRASH! As they skidded another dozen meters before coming to a screeching halt.

Getting up, Mazer's fox ears noted that the airbags had gone off and no one was moving inside. His senses also told him that a crowd was forming up, as people were pointing at him and the truck, soaking in the spectacle they had just witnessed. Some had taken out their smartphones and were either snapping pictures or recording videos. There was a faint sound of approaching sirens heard over the traffic, but much closer, and drawing attention upward, was the sound of flapping wings. Looking up, Mazer saw a giant, black eagle, with glowing blue eyes that literally sparked with electricity, marking it to Mazer`s eyes as a thunderbird. And, unfortunately, Mazer only knew one Adventurer who rode a thunderbird.

"Don't you think was a little bit of an overkill?" a voice called out from the bird's back, as it landed atop the truck, showing itself to easily be as large. A figure leapt down from bird's back to the ground. The figure showed itself to be a small, slim, teenage Elf girl, with a slight tan and short, white hair, wearing a simple, rugged blue dress underneath a cloak of red and orange feathers, and holding a tall bronze staff with a spherical, shining ruby. The beast next to her marked her to be a Summoner. Mazer groaned at the sight of her.

"Oh yeah, like you wouldn't have made that into an even bigger circus act," Mazur retorted. "Seriously Tiulwë, I don't know why you joined up with Inkblade, you would've fit right in with Hudson & East Company."

"Come on, copper," Tiulwë teased. "It's because I'm such a fabulous showman that Inkblade recruited me. It's literally my job to make a scene, so that the other guys can work behind it. Everybody knows that."

"Everyone from Elder Tales, you mean," Mazer replied, taking note of the growing crowd listening in on their conversation. "Wouldn't your guildmaster want you guys to keep a low profile now that we've returned to Earth?"

Tiulwë laughed heartily. "Come on, did six years in Elder Tales make you forget about the Internet? Someone posted a video on YouTube of my guildmaster delivering a very rousing speech yesterday in his hometown. He had the crowd almost literally eating out of his hand. It was just like the time Iraza first arrived in Big Apple after the riots settled down, and he set up that huge spectacle to help you guys in your 'ahem' Grand Alliance set up a government that actually worked."

Mazer sighed, before replying. "Please. Stop. You should have stopped rubbing that in years ago. It's gotten more than a little annoying."

"Maybe for you, copper," Tiulwë replied. "But remember, we're in THE Big Apple now. Everything we say about the other Big Apple is news to people here. Hell, everything about Elder Tales is news to people here. And Elder Tales is changing the world as we know it."

Mazer gritted his teeth. This was why he hated Tiulwë so much. She always presented herself as a huge showoff and a jerk in public, but she was also fiendishly clever with a sharp tongue. This made everyone underestimate her, even those who knew her, leaving them vulnerable to her manipulations. It was for this reason above all else that Inkblade welcomed her with open arms.

"Hey, doll-face, this is a crime scene! Take your oversized pigeon and haul your ass outta here!" a brash voice suddenly interrupted.

Mazer turned to his side to see his partner, Sergeant Mike McCurry, standing there. Mazer had gotten himself so wrapped up by Tiulwë's annoying presence that he had forgotten that the police were coming.

He heard the Elf girl sigh, and turned back to her. "Alright, officer, I'm leaving." She leaped up onto the truck, where the thunderbird had remained, alert and watching for threats, throughout the whole time they were talking. When she patted its side, it lowered itself to allow her to clamber onto its back. She looked back one more time. "Pleasure doing business with you gentlemen!" Then the bird flapped its wings, blowing everyone nearby with its wind, and took off, heading downtown.

Mazer let out a breath he just realized he'd been holding, feeling relieved. He heard his partner grumble.

"All you freaks are gonna be a pain in my ass," McCurry said, stone-faced. "Most of you are just a bunch of losers with superpowers. And losers with more power than they're worth are nothing but trouble. First, we got you jumping around and breaking stuff like you think you're some kind of superhero, and then an annoying bitch just swoops down on a freaking huge bird like no one's business and tampers with the crime scene. The captain's gonna have a cow once he hears about his."

Like no one's business, huh? Mazer thought. She said 'Pleasure doing business with you.' What was she really doing that would compel her to strike up a random conversation the moment I stopped a runaway truck filled with-

Evidence. From a federal warehouse.

He eyed the truck with suspicion.

"We better double check with the feds that there's nothing missing from here," Mazur told McCurry.

"What makes you say that?"

"Just as Tiulwë said earlier. She loves to put on a show so that her guildmates in Inkblade can work behind the scenes. They wanted something from the evidence these guys stole."

Mike was confused. "What would out-of-touch freaks want with federal evidence? Who are these Inkblade people anyway?"

Maze looked at him very pointedly. "A good analogy would be Elder Tales' version of Big Brother."

Mooresville, MI

Iraza POV

An email alert popped up on the computer screen in front of him. Taking a break from scanning the news outlets, he quickly browsed the message.

Kayman`s Door-in-the-Wall Overskill allowed him to access the evidence trailer and confirm our suspicions that it was on the truck. The Wary Jade Necklace, which reputedly gives the wearer warning of an impending attack or accident. Not only is that true, but it's also a genuine Elder Tales artifact. –Tiulwë: Director of Inkblade, New York (formerly Big Apple) Branch

Sighing, he got up out of his chair, picked up a green tack out of the cup on his desk, walked over to the world map on the wall opposite him, and placed the tack on New York City, above a brown tack. Stepping back, he looked over the map, taking note of the multitude of tacks that were scattered all over it.

Black indicated a branch of Inkblade, and they could be found through every region of the nation. Yellow was the (rumored) presence of an Elder Tales monster, and they were few, concentrated mostly in rural and wild areas, far away from where most of the Adventurers lived. Blue was a (possible) Lander, and they were found tacked mostly to urban areas and small towns. Brown was an (alleged) Elder Tales artifact of non-Adventurer origin, found in urban and rural areas. Green placed above one was a confirmation.

Iraza returned to his desk, once again browsing the media for stories relating to the Adventurers: talks in Congress over how to handle the Adventurers' return; violent altercations between Adventurers and "Normals" across the globe; confusion and chaos throughout the religious communities as more mainstream churches like the Catholics and Lutherans were largely welcoming their return with open arms and more fundamentalist and Evangelical churches were sharply divided, along with the Muslim world; the video game industry had also undergone an explosion in popularity; sharp discussion over the role of fiction in pop culture had skyrocketed.

Things were much easier for Iraza in Elder Tales, as smaller population numbers and densities as well as slower information speeds allowed for him to better measure people's states of mind and possible reactions to various situations and pieces of information, although it was still very difficult. Here, people's collective mindsets were nigh impossible to be accurately gauged by any one person, as they were simultaneously set in their ways and constantly changing on a daily basis. He, more than most, could see from the pattern of events that something big was coming, from both this world and the one the Adventurers had abruptly left. He did not know for certain what exactly would come, but he had grave, legitimate fears of what might come to pass. He needed to get ready to face the music, but he still didn't have what he needed in order to do so.

His head fell into his hands as he bemoaned his predicament. Dammit. This is NOT how I wanted to come home. I miss being Aaron. Things were so much simpler then...

*LH Canon

A/N: My new story, All Hail the No-Life Queen!, has been released! And there is a new poll on my profile.