Very exciting Wil. Keep up the usual awesome work!
Indeed, I had PMed Ken over some details of his story that I felt I needed to know better. He came up with great ideas, including having the Doppelganger look like Audrey Hepburn, which I loved. My main contribution to his story was setting the whole real world/fake world relationship. I hope you enjoyed the results, Ken.
I may PM any of you when your parts of the story come up, to develop them as well. (But please wait until I contact you, I don’t want to be flooded by PMs simultaneously!) Remember, folks: this isn’t just “my” story; it’s OUR story. I write it as a thank you for all your support for me and for the site. My job is weaving your ideas into something that makes sense, and is, hopefully, fun to read. 
(And yeah, those pesky errors keep slipping in, even with my spellchecker. I’ll try to correct them later. Hope they don’t bother you people too much.)
Have you by chance read John Gardener’s novel Grendel? If not, I highly recommend it, as it is fascinating exploration of Grendel’s psyche and his own potential humanity and/or non-humanity. The novel deals with (and mocks) numerous philosophical ideas, too, although mainly existentialism and nihilism.
Very nice update Wil. This just seems to get better and better as time goes on.
Most enjoyable Wil. ^^
-"Hades?” Wil gasped. “WHICH Hades?”
Ken didn’t answer.
-“Surely not… Hades Shinigami??” Wil insisted. “PLEASE tell me you didn’t take advice from him!!”
Ken looked away, but that was answer enough for Martinez.
-“Are you- out- of- your- COTTON-PICKIN’ MIND???” Wil fumed.
-“…I knew you wouldn’t understand” Ken said.
-“Of course I don’t understand, you haven’t explained yourself yet!!!” Wil roared. “Hades is an agitator, someone who causes trouble just for the fun of it. Why would you take his advice on- anything??”
-“Hades is not evil, Wil!” Ken snapped back. “He’s a Scion of Chaos. He understands its importance, its place in the balance of things, the way I do. He didn’t tell me to cause any havoc; he only suggested that I embraced my legacy as a Paean of Loki instead of continually trying to avoid it, and to use it creatively. So I did. I was blocked, I was getting nowhere with the story I was writing… so, I decided to employ my potential, to literally enter my creation, to understand it from within as well as outside. Except… things didn’t go the way I expected. The magic was- too powerful, it escaped my control-”
-“Gee, CHAOS magic running out of control, who’d thunk it??” Wil said sarcastically. “Ken, didn’t you learn anything from that scuffle we had with your father last year? I thought you’d given up on the whole Chaos deal already!”
-“Chaos cannot be ignored, Wil- it is part of reality, of our everyday lives.”
-“Chaos is just the disruption of the natural order of things, done by malcontents like Loki or Hades” Wil countered.
-“Give it up, Ken” a drowsy, female voice said from behind Wil. “You’ll never get Wil to admit that Chaos is necessary. You’ll never meet a more Order-minded guy.”
Wil turned around, to see Valkyrie Esker starting to wake up, sitting up on Ken’s bed, where Lugia had laid her when they arrived. It stood next to her now, helping her up.
-“Ah, Val. About time you woke up, that was one long nap you took” Wil said to her.
-“No thanks to you” she grumbled.
-“What was that crack you just made?” Wil asked.
-“You know it’s true. You can’t even play video games without setting up an armload of rules for yourself first” she responded.
-“What? Don’t be ridiculous, I don’t care about Order any more than I do about Chaos!”
-“Erm, people?” Lugia interjected. “Shouldn’t we be focusing on other priorities right now…?”
-“…You’re right, Pink” Wil said, calming down. “Ken, that Eyeful Blob of yours wrecked a good chunk of Baldwinsville. There’s been apparently no loss of life, though, mainly because everyone ran away the moment it showed up. The local authorities are already dealing with the material losses, helping people move, etc.”
-“Thank goodness” Ken said, relieved. “I’ll check out on my family and friends now.”
-“Oh by the way, there’s this guy, Jose I think…” Lugia started to say.
-“My Boss? What about him? Is he alright??”
The heroes then explained everything that had happened with Jose and the doppelganger.
-“…then Wil put him to sleep and we dropped him back at the restaurant” Lugia explained. “Hopefully he’ll figure the whole thing -or at least the violent part- was a dream when he wakes up. I did leave him pay for the fish we ordered, of course.”
-“Then we forced the False Ken to take us to his world, but we were attacked almost as soon as we entered. You know the rest” Wil finished.
Ken stared at Val. “You stabbed Jose?” he said, in disbelief.
Val just looked away.
-“Val has become a Berserker” Wil said sadly. “She’s had some… life altering experiences of late. Don’t worry, Jose is OK. And we’ll help Val with her problem.”
-“I see… don’t worry, I’ll talk to Jose, and explain everything away” Ken said.
-“Tell him the groupers were delicious!” Lugia said, smacking its lips.
Ken looked out of the hole on the wall, at the damage done to the town. He was feeling miserable, Wil realized.
The mage sighed. “Ken, don’t blame yourself over what happened. I know you would never have wanted for this to happen. Focus now on making things better… for this town, AND the other one.”
-“I will” the young man said with resolve.
-“And for the love of God, the next time you see Hades, DON’T LISTEN TO HIM, will you?”
Ken didn’t answer, but Wil hoped he had learned the lesson.
-“OK, I think that’s all we can do here. Let’s go back to RPGC” Wil said. Val and Lugia stood beside him, as he once against casted his teleportation spell, and the three of them of them vanished in a burst of green sparks, as Ken silently watched.
Wil, Val and Lugia rematerialized exactly where they had taken off from: the RPGC Headquarters Waiting Room. There were three persons there now, whom they recognized immediately. Two of them were young men with oddly-colored hair; the third was an green, humanoid dragon wearing a blue robe and a crown.
A young man with spiky, purple hair, wearing a green tunic, known only as GG Crono, stopped chewing on a pizza long enough to welcome the arriving heroes. “Dudes! About time you showed up. Wassup?”
-“Yeah, Weiila told us about your mission” a blue-haired young man, wearing a white gi martial arts outfit and blue pants, who was standing next to Crono, said. “What happened?”
-“Long story, Mabatsekker. I’ll fill you in soon” Wil responded. “Bahamut, good to see you.”
-“Ahh, just call me Xero, we are not in my court now” the dragon said.
Wil turned to Lugia. “Pink, forgive my asking, but could you report what happened to Weiila for me? I need to talk with Val.”
-“Sure, Wil” the pink-haired “man” said, and exited the room.
Wil turned around, only to see Val heading away as well.
-“V? Where are you going?”
-“Never mind” she responded, curtly.
-“V, we have to talk about your problem-”
-“It’s MY problem, Martinez! Stay out of it!!” she snapped.
Her reaction shocked the guys, but just as she was about to continue walking away, Wil said: “No, it’s not just your problem anymore, V. You almost KILLED an innocent man today, don’t you realize that??”
-“She WHAT?” Crono burst out in shock, almost choking on his pizza slice.
Val stopped, her back to her friends.
-“Something… happened recently to Val” Wil explained to the others. “I’m the only one she had talked about it, and I decided not to tell the rest of you guys until she was ready to speak about it. But, she has gotten… worse.” He looked at her: she was staring back to him as well. “I’m afraid we can no longer keep it a secret, Val. You need help, and you know it.”
She lowered her gaze.
-“Yeah, Valk. You know you can trust us!” GG said. “If there’s any way we can help…”
Val sat down on a couch, still avoiding the other’s eyes.
The others surrounded her.
“…I can explain for you, if you wish” Wil gently said.
-“No, it’s OK- I can do it” she said, then began to tell her story:
“As you guys know, I come from Midgard, a World that resembles your Norse legends” Val explained. “For over a thousand years, I was a Valkyrie in service of Lord Odin himself, helping him find the warriors who would help in the final battle against the enemies of Asgard: Ragnarok.”
She was silent for a moment, then said:
-“Well… it just happened.”
-“What happened?” Crono asked. “You don’t mean-”
-“Yes” she nodded sadly. “Midgard has been destroyed.”
The heroes were left speechless.
It was Wil who spoke next: “Well, to be precise, Midgard wasn’t destroyed permanently. Rather, the godlike forces unleashed recreated it.”
-“But- they’re all gone” Val interjected. “There is a new Midgard, with new people, new gods… but the ones I knew…” she trailed off.
She wasn’t crying. Not with tears, anyway.
The others didn’t know what to say.
-“That is why Val lost her powers” Wil again explained. “They came from her patron deity, Odin, and now he no longer exists.”
-“Wait a moment” Xero said. “I’ve met other beings claiming to be Odin, in the Gaia worlds. What about those?”
-“They’re just impostors!” Val snapped.
-“Err, actually they’re extradimensional counterparts” Wil clarified. “Still, they’re not the same Odin Val served.”
-“Ever since then…” Val continued. “I’ve just been- drifting. Going from place to place, trying not to think of the fact that my life is now meaningless. I came back to RPGC because it’s the closest thing to a home I have now… but… my battle rage- once the pride of my combat abilities- it’s gone out of control, and I have no idea why. I guess, my inner self just can’t deal with the truth, and just lashes angrily at any provocation… I know, I cannot continue in RPGC in this condition. I must leave this place, too…”
-“Not so fast, V” Wil said. “You don’t know for sure what the cause of your rage is. And even if it is due to the recreation of Midgard, there might still be a way to help you overcome it.”
-“Indeed! We live in a universe- no, a multiverse of wonders and miracles- you know that! Anything is possible! Surely, somewhere on Earth, or beyond, there must be a way to help you!” Mabatsekker stated firmly.
-“Yes, indeed” Xero added. “If your problems are caused because you no longer have a World to belong to- why don’t you ask the new gods of Midgard to take you in?”
-“Yeah, I was going to suggest that, as well” Wil said. “In fact, I’m surprised you haven’t asked them already.”
-“It’s… complicated, Wil” Val admitted. “You see, the new ruler of the Aesir –my gods- is Lenneth.”
-“Lenneth, the Valkyrie?” Wil asked. “But isn’t she an old friend of yours?”
The young woman looked away.
-“V?” Wil insisted.
-“Yes… yes she was. But that’s precisely why…”
Again she trailed off, but the others just waited for her response.
-“You have to understand” she then said. “Lenneth was my mentor, my idol- everything I dreamed to be, as a Valkyrie. Now she’s the All-Mother! The queen of the gods! And I… am nobody. Just a mortal. Not even worthy of dying in Ragnarok, it seems. Who am I to go to her and ask to be accepted in the New World?”
-“Who are you?” Wil snapped incredulously. “You’re Robin Escara Der Lesser, Valkyrie of Odin! Veteran of a hundred wars, and one of the greatest warriors I’ve ever had the honor of fighting besides of. WHY wouldn’t she be willing- no, honored! - to have you by her side??”
-“I…”
-‘”Yeah, dudette, you rock, and you know it!” GG happily added.
-“Don’t forget, you’re also one of the Righteous Protector’s greatest champions as well!” Mabat exclaimed.
-“I back those claims as well” Xero said. “If anything, they owe you help for the thousands of years of loyal service you gave them. If you need someone to represent you, I, Xero, Bahamut of the Dragons, would be honored to accompany you.”
-“Yeah! I’ll go too- for what that may be worth!” Mabatsekker agreed.
-“Count me in, too” GG joined in also.
Val was far too proud to cry. But if she weren’t, she certainly would be crying now.
She had lost many things, indeed; but she still retained something very important, she now realized.
The loyalty of her friends.
-“My friends… Thank you” she said, in an unusually humble tone for her. “I must warn you though: I myself have no idea of what Midgard is like now. Or even how to contact Lenneth herself. For all I know, a long, dangerous quest might be ahead of us.”
-“And what are the Righteous Protectors, if not questers?” Wil laughed.
-“And where are you people going now?” a female voice suddenly asked.
Everyone turned around to see who had spoken.
It was a young, bespectacled woman with brown hair, wearing a red dress, with two large, leathery wings protruding from her back. Everyone here knew her well: Weiila,
Staff-Level member of the Righteous Protectors, in charge of Records-Keeping. In actuality, Weiila was a goddess- a daughter of Ukko, the Finnish god of the sky. Originally, her wings had been feathered, like an angel’s; however, she had changed their look after a recent incident. Weiila was originally a very kind, caring person. She left Kalevala, the Land of Finnish Gods and Heroes, because she felt she didn’t fit in such a backward world; her hope was that people in the civilized, modern world would be more sensible. She had joined RPGC looking for a place she could belong, while making a difference in the World.
Her problem was, she cared too much. She eventually decided to extend her duties to include teaching new members how to behave and fight safely. But not only she found most of them infuriatingly stubborn, but some were vulgar as well. She tolerated them as well as she could, until she recently snapped during a mission. Exactly what happened no one knew for sure, for she didn’t report it and nobody else involved talked about it. But her personality, and her looks, had changed drastically since then. She was still dedicated to her duties, but had become sarcastic, and worse, seemed to be happy with her new disposition.
-“Ah, Weiila” Wil spoke. “I just sent Lugia to fill you in on-”
-“I know, I just ran into it in the hallway” she explained. “It went out to get something to drink. What about you guys- Are you going to investigate Ken’s problems further now, or what?”
The heroes quickly explained about Val’s problems and their decision to go to New Midgard.
-“Is there going to be danger?” Weiila asked.
-“Yeah, most likely” Val said.
-“Then I’m coming along too. I could use the target practice” she said, smiling sinisterly, while holding a small, magically-conjured fireball in her right hand.
-“What? YOU are leaving your post too??” Wil gasped.
-“So what? Galloway just decided to take a sabbatical, leaving me here alone while the rest of the Staff is on a mission in space! Well, I need a break too!” she snapped.
-“But, we can’t leave the Headquarters unwatched!” Mabat pointed out. “Who is going to mind the place?”
-“…I will” Wil suddenly said.
-“You’re not coming along?” Crono asked, surprised. It wasn’t like Wil to miss out on helping a friend in trouble.
-“Weiila is right, she could use taking a break from her duties. I can handle them, you know writing is my forte. Besides, I still need to figure out exactly how my new powers work, and if they will have any side-effects. I’m going to need to meditate a bit to do that.”
-“Great! Let’s get going, then” Weiila then bursted out. She began to gesture and mumble some words, obviously casting a spell.
-“You know how to get there?” Val asked.
-“Oh, sure” Weiila explained. “There’s long been an affinity between the Finnish and Norse gods. I can find their world easily.”
Within moments, a glowing, archlike portal had opened in the middle of the room.
Weiila entered it first, followed by Xero, Mabat and Crono; Val entered last, with one last look at Wil, who stood in the room, watching them with a worried expression on his face.
Then she entered the portal, and it quickly vanished.
-Man, what a weird day this has been Wil though silently. We meet a sentient AI in cyberspace, I gain cybermantic powers, Galloway leaves his post, Val goes crazy, Ken plays god, and Weiila goes “Extreme”. What’s gonna happen next? he wondered.
NEXT: A Call To Arms
Featuring even MORE RPGC members!!
Story Notes:
-The events Val narrated are from one of the alternate endings of VALKYRIE PROFILE I (AKA VP: LENNETH.)
-The Gaia Worlds are the Final Fantasy Game Worlds.
-“Off on a mission in space” was a lame excuse used in the old Justice League comics to explain away the absence of a particular member. 
Ah, the drama.
EDIT: I side with the “chaos is a part of the universe” side, though, in character and out. Out, for religious reasons … though I might have to write a story where Yar meets Eris at some point …
Grrrrumble Sorry guys, part two of last Chapter still isn’t ready. I’m not happy with the dialogue I’d written so I’ve decided to rewrite it. To top it off, I have a hackin’ cough now, that slowed me down further. I’m feeling better and hopefully the story will continue tomorrow. My apologies for the delay. At least I managed to round out Ken’s story arc so I can move on to the next one. And yes, many more of your characters will be appearing soon! 
Hey it’s okay Wil. You know none of us want you to rush this thing. We want you to work on it until it meets all your standards, after all that’s what makes your stories so good. They are of such a high quality.
And yeah Ken’s story arc was pretty cool, can’t wait to see what happens in the next story arc. And who shows up in it.
FINALLY, the rest of the last chapter has been posted. Please read and comment, if you so please.
Next chapter Friday Night.
I liked the newest half-chapter. Except for introducing three more members at the same time was kind of confusing. Otherwise, it’s great so far!
Huzzah, thrills and adventure! I’d better go polish the Adventurin’ Stick.
An angstier Val rears her head. Even so, it’s nice to see her get some depth. Wonder what’s gonna happen now that she’s the only mortal in a world full of immortals?
How exciting!
Good show Wil, Can’t wait until the whole castline is assembled now. Nice to see Weiila’s gonna get some action as well.
Val … if you only knew the power of the Snark Side! Being ludicrously dramatic is, like, so totally bogus, so why doncha come over and be an utter wiseass?
Very nice finish to the chapter, Wil.
Damn now I can’t wait to see what happens next. Truly the mark of a great story teller, when the audience can’t wait to get even more.
Argh!! Sorry, guys, but the next chapter of the story isn’t ready yet nor is it likely to ready tonight. My cough simply won’t go away, and it won’t let me rest well. My sister has started giving me antibiotics, so I hope to be better by Monday.
But I want you to know that I’ve been doing a LOT of research on RPGs that will be featured in upcoming episodes, so I haven’t been wasting my time either. I just need to be well enough to sit down and write for long periods. Don’t worry, I’ve had this bug before and I’ve beaten it. But damn, is it annoying.
Next week’s chapters will be very cool, I promise.
Ouch, sorry to hear that. But I will look forward to it!
Just focus on feeling better. I hear delayed gratification is the best kind of all.
The story’s continuing to be full of awesomeness, also. Keep up the Good Work! (but only when you feel better!)