Chapter Text
[January 5th, 2024]
(Anon POV)
Skin Row.
Weather Condition: Oddly lukewarm for the middle of winter.
I've just finished unpacking the few items I brought with me to this run-down apartment, my new home for the time being. It's not the greatest living space, or even a good one to begin with. It's pretty shitty, but its better than living in the damn streets. If I didn't have a pocket knife or a baseball bat on me, I probably wouldn't survive the day.
Lovely. I've got everything situated and now, I'm more or less all set to experience my first day in a new school tomorrow, predominantly infested with dinos that could all kill me if I so much as look at them funny.
Oh, wait a minute...
I open up a secluded pocket in my duffel bag and am met face to face with multiple bank rolls of quarters.
Bingo.
That's gotta be like 35 dollars worth of quarters! I've got my credit stash for any and all arcades that I come across while I live here. I knew collecting all the soda bottles that the shitty rich kids tossed in the garbage was worth it. Unfortunately I couldn't seem to find any arcades as I walked through Skin Row for the first time, but considering how much criminal activity, violence, and vandalism happens here, that's honestly for the best. Guess I'm gonna have to venture out a bit farther to get my arcade fix.
...Eh, fuck it. It's only 1:30. I'm going to an arcade today.
---
Looks like the nearest arcade was about a half-hour walk. Kinda annoying, but whatever, it's all worth it. After an incident at my last school caused my social status to plummet so hard that I had to eventually move to this rathole of an area to preserve dignity, I was looking for something to fill that part of my life that anime used to. I still think I like anime, but after it was the subject of my humiliation at my last school, I somewhat distanced myself. In it's place, my new obsession became the arcade. As much as I love the Xrox that I brought with me, arcade games bring me life.
Or more specifically: Fighting games. Other genres are good too- I loved my time with Crazy Taxi, Metal Slug, and Sega Rally at the local arcade from my old home, but there's just...something about fighting games that call to me. Maybe it's the feeling of community or how fun it is when you're facing off against another fellow fighter, saurian or sapien.
Yep, this looks like the place. The Final Round Arcade. With a name like that, they've gotta have a good selection of fighting games. I take a deep breath, and confidently, yet forcefully open the door to enter the arcade.
Everyone that's not distracted by their game turns their head to stare at me. Shit, I probably looked like a dumbass getting all dramatic at the entrance. Well, guess its time to observe the games on display while trying to ignore the oppressive gazes of all those dinosaurs around me.
Let's see what this arcade has got...
Pinball machines? Check. An obscene amount of rhythm games? Check. Crane games that end up costing you more than a meal that could feed a starving Victorian family of 5? Oh, you better believe it.
Heh, looks like this arcade has 2 DDR cabs. SuperNOVA and A20. I never really liked most of those new-age DDR games. Call me crazy, but there was something really charming about watching those weird characters dancing in an otherworldly void while panicking your ass off trying to hit every single note perfectly. If I need a break from the fighting and bloodshed, I know which one I'm sinking my money into.
Seems like we've got 5 fighting games that stick out in particular, those being Tekken Tag 2, Tekken 3, Capcom VS SNK 2, Marvel VS Capcom 2, and Third Strike. Sick, lots of older fighting game representation. After another jaunt around the arcade, I find out that there's another fighting game in the arcade, that being Street Fighter... 1.
Raptor Jesus. It's the model with the pressure sensitive buttons too.
Disregarding all that though, the only one of these franchises that I actually play regularly is Street Fighter. Yep, I am a normie. I've played a bit of Marvel but never got good at it. Still fun tho. As I begin to let my morbid curiosity win and walk to insert a quarter into the Street Fighter 1 cabinet, I'm stopped by the noise a few cabinets down.
A few individuals seem to have gathered around a duo of arcade cabinets. It looks like they're around an arcade cabinet of Guilty Gear Strive. Huh, I didn't even know arcade cabinets existed for that one. Can't say I'm too familiar with Strive though; The only Guilty Gear experience I've had was when Accent Core +R was on sale for dirt cheap. I couldn't for the life of me tell you what the fuck happened in regards to the story though, I've heard that shit is almost as long and arduous as KH lore.
From the small gathering of saurians at the Guilty Gear cabinets, I listened in and found out that the one at the opposing cabinet is riding high with a 7-win streak, with past challengers showing up and eventually adding to that streak. Regardless, everyone seems to be rather chill about all of it.
Whenever I play fighting games at an arcade, I usually only play the single player arcade mode, since barely anyone ever shows for a challenge. I hesitate for a second and begin to wonder if it's because of the species difference between me and practically everyone else. Seeing the atmosphere and the banter between everyone captures me though, and I can't help but walk towards the games.
As I get closer, I survey the saurian playing at the cabinet. A lime-colored stegosaur, with her hair done up in buns and longer hair still going down to her shoulders. I also see that her tail is coiling around her right leg. Observing by her facial expression, I'm going to assume she's rather into the game.
"Yo, you gonna challenge her dude?"
'Oh shit.' Guess I stared and stood for too long. One of the spectators called out to me. Guess I gotta roll with the situation.
"Oh, yeah man. Just kinda hesitant to get absolutely bodied. Believe it or not, I've never played Strive. You guys seem cool though, so I'll go ahead and give it a shot."
"That's what I'm talking about man!" It seems like another spectator chimed in. "You won't regret checking this one out. And don't worry if your first few matches are a bit rough, getting bodied is good for you after all."
Can't exactly say he's wrong.
I sit down at the opposite cabinet and drop a quarter in.
HERE COMES DAREDEVIL!
As the new challenger SFX blast my ears, the full gravity of my situation hits me at this point. I'm facing a crazy skilled stego chick in a fighting game that I barely even know. I don't even know any of the characters names here! I don't stand a fucking chance.
At this point, my opponent is already selected her character, ready and waiting. I decide to use the same character that I used back when I played Accent Core a little, a doctor with a comically large scalpel and a paper bag over his head, although he does seem a bit off and deranged compared to when I saw him in that game. I hope he's doing ok.
Between him and the character that my opponent picked, a young girl swinging an anchor with a dolphin by her side, I'm going to guess that most characters in this series are a freakshow.
The round loads up with a bible-verse sounding intro, and I am thrust right into my demise. Many missed ranged attacks, whiffed jabs, and dolphins flung my way. It isn't long before I fall. At least I managed to take about a fourth of my opponents life.
Right. Time to harken back to my old strategy from the first time I played Accent Core for Round 2.
'RANDOM BULLSHIT GO!'
I fling a bunch of random items at the opponent, which doesn't help all too much. Pretty sure the only change was that the spectators began chuckling a little. I forgot that the bad part of randomness was that not only my opponent doesn't know what was going to happen, but neither do I.
The game ends with much of the same outcome as Round 1, bringing that stego-girl's win streak to 8. The spectators begin chatting.
"What a fine display of totsugeki."
"Alright! Another win for the Stego-Star!"
Hm, could swear that name sounds familiar.
"For a total newbie, that wasn't too bad."
"Actually, that was still kinda sad considering all that."
"Oh, you be quiet! I still enjoyed dueling with him regardless!"
That last one didn't actually come from the spectators. I saw the stegosaurus shift from her spot in front of the cabinet to look at me face to face.
"Don't let first-time anxiety get you down. You were a joy to play with. Thanks for the match!"
Didn't expect such a nice consolation from the person that beat me senseless of all people. Despite getting steamrolled, I didn't really have that bad of a time during all this. Man, maybe being in a group is actually alright.
"Thanks, you and everyone else were pretty cool yourselves. Perhaps I'll get a better outcome when I actually know what the hell I'm doing first."
The lime stego-girl chuckles a bit to herself hearing what I've said.
"Heh, would love to see when that happens! Hey, do you wanna go for a few more matches?"
Even though I was totally flying by the seat of my pants in that last match, I can't lie and say it wasn't fun.
"Ah what the hell, I'll do another."
"Yay! I'll try not to beat you as bad this time, hehe."
We duel a couple more times, with my skill slowly but surely improving with each match. I know she said she would go easy on me, but I can't help but feel that I'm getting better.
I decide to check my phone. Should probably get back home to prepare for my first day of my new school tomorrow.
"Alright, this was a great time, but it's about time for me to head out. My school life starts up tomorrow."
The stegosaur sinks a bit into her chair, disappointed at that news.
"Awwww. I also start school tomorrow, but I'm gonna stay here for a tad bit longer."
"Trust me, I'd stay longer if I could, but the walk to both here and to Volcano High from where I live is quite a time-sink."
As the words Volcano High leave my mouth, the expression of the stegosaur changes from disappointment to excitement. Does she-
"OH! You go to Volcano High too? Sweet! I'm sure I'll see you tomorrow if that's the case! My name's Stella, by the way."
She seems to have perked up compared to 5 seconds ago. I won't lie, the amount of joy in her voice from just talking to me did sound a few caution voices in my head, but I didn't go full DEFCON LEVEL mode. You know, despite all the negative things that have led up to me moving into a neighborhood in the middle of fucking nowhere, I haven't really been as negative and scornful as I thought I would be. It's been oddly comforting today.
"Heh, nice name, Mine is Anon. If I see ya, I'll make sure to talk. See you at school tomorrow then."
"Okay then, take care and train up, I'll want a rematch soon enough! See you later!"
She waves her hand and winks as I begin to get up. I even caught her tail wagging out of the corner of my eye.
'Heh, even I gotta admit, that's pretty cute.'
As I leave I look back and see Stella with a slight pink hue spread across her cheeks, as well as some of the spectators staring at me with raised eyebrows and grins across their faces.
Huh, wonder why that's the case?