Kotopartments

Ariel found herself riding the MetroLine, having successfully made it back to Electopia. Come to think of it, she hadn't told her Navi something..."Oh, I never told you why I suddenly interrupted you in that mission, did I?"

"No, you did not. ...Actually, I see you got an e-mail from the apartment complex owner. What did it say?"

"You really want to know?"

"Yes!"

"Sure?"

"You realize I can just open it and read it myself, right?"

"You're no fun...well, apparently, the part of town with the complex got rezoned!"

"Rezoned? ...Wait, you mean...?"

"Yep, it's part of Kotobuki again, and not ACDC! They also changed the name to Kotopartments, which apparently was its original name, before it was zoned into ACDC Town."

"Ah, wonderful news! I suppose now it truly is your home!"

"Yep! Oh, and because that's not enough good news, the MetroLine to Kotobuki's been reopened! So, it'll be a shorter walk for me there!"

"Quite a good day for you, eh?"

"Tell me about it!" With that, the pilot could feel the train slow down, as it neared its destination. "Oh, we're here!"

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Once she was out on the street, Ariel truly felt at home; this was where she grew up, after all. She also hadn't been able to visit it recently...but with the re-establishment of the Kotobuki MetroLine, and her apartment now being a part of Kotobuki Town, that was going to change. "...It's good to be home!"

"Indeed!" a ZephyrMan hologram appeared on her shoulder, and started looking around. "You know, it'd be a shame to head back right away..."

"Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. So, what I'm going to do is...head for that bench..." Nearby, there were several park benches, despite technically not being a park. Behind it, were some small trees and shrubs, neatly groomed to perfection. "Take a seat...ooh!" That goop she got on her from the mission just kicked in as she bounced. Unlike her requestor, however, she welcomed the sensation. "...Scoot over..." She moved slightly to her right, enough that anyone wanting to use that bench would have trouble if they didn't want the other edge. "Lift my PET high, point it back..." Which she did, of course. "...And...Jack in! ZephyrMan, Execute!"

The windy hologram vanished, and a red beam of light shone onto what had appeared to be a tiny tree...

(TO KOTOBUKI NET)
As her Navi returned to his rightful place in her PET, Ariel hopped up off the bench, and stretched. Oddly, she started to frown as she did so. "That's odd...I didn't notice it until now since I was so caught up in busting, but...there's usually more people around this time of day. Wonder why it's so quiet?"

"Hmm, I couldn't say. Even Kotobuki has its quiet days, I suppose."

"I guess...it doesn't have very many, though. ...I guess it's getting a little late, so I oughta head back to the apartment."

"That would be for the best, I'd think."

"And it's nice and close, too. Being back here is great!" And since it was great, there was an extra bounce in her step as she started her brief trek...and luckily for any men she crossed, it added an extra bounce in certain points north, as well.

=========================

A couple of hours later, the pilot was laying contently on her couch, her usual outfit removed for a less form fitting extra long T-shirt. She was making good use of a remote, flipping through the various channels with a blank expression on her face. "Nope...nuh-uh...ooh, this one's-wait, seen it, bleh...nope...no...mm-mmm...not in the mood for porn...nope...I think I'm gonna have to face it. Nothing's on."

A hologram popped from her PET, as ZephyrMan appeared in the real world. "Not in the mood for porn? I really must say, that's bold words for a woman wearing nothing but a T-shirt..."

"First off, I'll have you know I'm also wearing underwear! See?" She yanked her only visible garment up to her belly button, and indeed, there was a pair of black cotton panties. "And second, it's not like I have sex on the brain 24/7..."

"I suppose that's true. The majority of the time, sure, but not always..."

"See? ...Say, since you sound peppy right now. Wanna do a little more busting tonight? Or are you still busted out?"

"Hmm...well, if you're bored, I'd be up for another battle or two!"

"Yay!" Ariel quickly sat up, and traded her remote for a much more presently useful handheld device. "Actually, there's a place I kinda want to check out. NAXA's opened up their part of the Net to the general public, right? I think it'd be neat to check it out. We'll go beyond the sky, and through the stars!"

"That's rather poetic of you! Very well, that will do! Just jack me into the TV, and I'll find my way there!"

"...The TV?"

"You have satellite TV, remember? If I enter the TV cyberworld, then transmit myself through your dish, I should be able to easily locate NAXA's satellite network!"

"Well, you're the expert. If you think that's the best way to get in, we'll do that!" Point PET at port, and..."Jack in! ZephyrMan! Execute!"

(TO NAXA NET)