Chapter Text
A server is created on Discord by someone with a swan icon, LoveSwan. Alkakurei’s Gaming Center.
Quickly, the user sends out the invite link to 7 other users. The first one to join has a cherry blossom icon, SakuraAmber, and sends a “hello” sticker into the chat room. Second to join has a simple white icon with some mint leaves, identified as HiMERU, and sends a simple “thumbs up” into the chat. Another joins the server, this one with a black background and a white opera mask going by ThePhantom.
A few moments go by before LoveSwan, Aira, starts a call with the current members, turning his camera on. “Testing, 1,2,3, can you hear me?” He sounds off into the electronic void.
“A little loud, Love-han, but yeah.” SakuraAmber’s camera turns on, revealing pink hair only marginally being kept more tidy by the headset.
A slight whisper voiced out, but it almost sounded like static. LoveSwan noticed after adjusting his audio, “Mayo-san, I think you need to turn up your mic. I can barely hear you.”
Mayoi, ThePhantom, adjusts the volume before speaking, “S-Sorry. I’m going to be helping Hiiro-san and Tatsumi-san get set up and join, s-so I’ll be gone for a minute.”
HiMERU attempts to speak, but no audio is heard. “HiMERU-han, I think yer muted. Did ya accidentally hit the mute button on yer headset?”
HiMERU checks the buttons on the headset before hitting the mic’s mute button, his voice booming into the call, “CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?”
Aira and Kohaku jolt backward and cringe at the astronomically loud volume blasting their eardrums. “I think the dead can hear ya, HiMERU-han.”
The blue-haired idol furrowed his eyebrows before checking his settings. His eyes widened slightly in brief alarm before his voice, now at a much more reasonable volume, spoke out again, “HiMERU apologizes for that.”
“It’s okay,” Aira smirked good-naturedly as he attempted to joke, “not like I need my eardrums for anything important, right?”
Four pings sound off in quick succession, signaling the arrival of an army of 4 icons with a white person silhouette on a grey background with very basic names: Amagi_Rinne, Shiina_Niki, Amagi_Hiiro, and Kazehaya_Tatsumi.
Mayoi sends a private message to Aira.
ThePhantom: had to round up the other two. I think we’ll have our work cut out for us with these four.
Said four join the call and a cacophony of voices sound off in unison at different volumes, none of which had their cameras on. Kohaku, with the blankest expression he could muster, casually leans away from the monitor and brings out an air horn, waving it in front of the camera to warn the currently three silent members who very quickly take off their headsets to spare their ears. Kohaku also takes his off before sounding the air horn directly into his headset’s mic to silence the chaos.
After putting the headset back on, Kohaku began, “Now that I got yer attention, we will go one a’ a time.”
HiMERU nods, “Amagi, begin.”
Both Hiiro and Rinne started talking for a split second before both quieted down. Despite their cameras not being on, one could feel the two looks each was giving to the void; one confused, the other giving a deadpan “bro, seriously?” vibe. HiMERU tsks, “Right, there are two of them now.”
Aira giggled, “Hiro-kun, you first.”
Several minutes go by as they adjust their setups, with Mayoi helping the last four change their icons so they weren’t “basic”, as Aira put it, and turn their cameras on. HiMERU noted, intrigued, “HiMERU can’t help but notice how… professional your icons are.”
“What? Ya jelly, Merumeru?” Rinne cackled. His icon was a honeycomb background with a cute cartoon bee wearing a crown.
“He is just making a comment. Though someone had to have made that for you. He doubts you have the skill or know-how to make something like that.” HiMERU brushed off Rinne.
“Anzu-nee-san made everyone logos! Though since you guys already had accounts she said the higher-ups won’t care if you use them or not.” Niki piped up. His icon was similar to Rinne’s though instead of a crown his bee was wearing a chef’s hat.
Likewise, Hiiro and Tatsumi’s had a similar look of a teal background with the Alkaloid logo on it, but each had the logo in front of their respective card suits in red, Tatsumi’s a diamond, and Hiiro’s a spade. Hiiro spoke, “Umu. Speaking of the higher-ups, mind if I start with the introduction? Though I guess everyone is aware already…”
A resounding “no, not really” was heard from the members of Crazy:B, barring Rinne who was receiving glares from the others. Hiiro’s eyes widened in surprise, “Hoh? Nii-san, did you say anything?”
“Okay, to be fair,” started Rinne, which earned him a scoff from Kohaku and disapproving looks from HiMERU and Niki, “When ya sent me the request it was pretty barebones and vague about what exactly this is all for. Only thing I understood is that our units would be playing games together.”
“I could have sworn I sent the full proposal with a list of detailed notes on the important parts,” Hiiro mumbled concerned.
“…Well, okay, maybe I skimmed the notes and called it good enough.”
“Of course you did,” the rest of Crazy:B muttered.
Hiiro sighed and continued on, “Well, Producer-san came to me with a proposal to start what she called an ‘Idol Gaming Session Series’. I guess there are a lot of fans of Alkaloid that are also interested in gaming, so she and the higher-ups thought we could make gaming content when we can as part of our… ‘fanservice’? Is that right, Aira?”
“Well… I guess it could be like that, yeah.”
“Okay, soooo why is Crazy:B here?” Niki gestured vaguely around his camera’s field of vision in hopes of aiming for his fellow unit-mates.
“Producer-san wanted me to see if I could get another unit to join in if possible. I figured since our units are close with each other already that it was only natural to invite you guys. It seems that if our program is received favorably by our fans then they would start this series for all the idol units in ES, and have special episodes where units feature each other.”
“So we’re the pilot episode of a new TV series basically,” Aira commented wearily, “That’s quite a lot to live up to. We’ll basically be making or breaking new opportunities for everyone.”
“Umu. But I believe we can do it!” Hiiro formed a fist in the air.
“Question,” HiMERU voices, “Are we editing these videos, podcasts, whatever these are going to be, ourselves?”
“Uh, Producer-san said they were approved editing teams to work with us, so all we have to do is send the whole video file and they’ll take care of the rest. I think she said they would try both a compilation format and a podcast format to see which ones do better. Though I don’t really know the difference between the two.”
“Basically a compilation is much shorter, maybe about 15 ta 30 minutes on average of various clips, or bits of the session in this case. Podcasts don’t really have a lot a’ edits and can be hours long.” Kohaku explained.
“Is there a limit to how long we are allowed to go, Hiiro-san?” Tatsumi spoke up.
“No, the editing team will just take the whole video and turn it into however many episodes they can make out of it. Though they do want all of us to send our own perspectives each so that nothing is missed.”
“Alright, important question here,” Rinne claps his hands, “What’s the content rating? PG? PG-13? Or are we allowed to get Explicit here?”
Kohaku groaned before Hiiro continued, “Nii-san, the editors will take care of the censoring, but try not to get carried away.”
HiMERU speaks up addressing the camera, “So then HiMERU will say this. Editors, to make your job easier, just censor the older Amagi out entirely anytime he speaks. It will save you time and not give you all a migraine.”
Alkaloid tried to choke back their laughter while Crazy:B, with the exception of Rinne who feigned offense, barked out laughing. “I’m barely here five minutes and I already feel so attacked right now! Is this how you treat your Queen Bee?!”
“Depends, if ya mean the queen bee that thinks she’s all that but is an overdramatic, pretentious bitch, then yeah!” Kohaku snapped back, earning more laughter from Niki and a Cheshire-cat-like smile from HiMERU. Alkaloid carefully eyed the soon-to-be swarming unit.
Rinne folds his arms and glares at his camera, shaking his head in disapproval, “Listen here, Kohaku-chan. If we end up playing a game where I can kill ya, it will be on-site no hesitation.”
Kohaku leans into his mic with a shit-eating grin, “Bring it, Queen Bitch.”
Everyone’s jaw dropped while Rinne remained silent for a beat and a half before stating nonchalantly, “Ototo-kun, let’s get this gaming session started, preferably with a game where we can kill each other first. I need to teach these bratty bees a lesson.”
“W-WAIT! I didn’t do anything! Why am I being put on the chopping block!?” Niki exclaimed.
“Two of my bees are being lippy with me. What better way to keep you all in line than to punish all of you at the same time?” Rinne noted darkly before a toothy grin formed, “Kyahahaha! C’mon Niki-kyun! I need to hunt three bees for sport!~”
“NOOOOOO! My head will not look good mounted above a fireplace!”
Hiiro looks on at the chaos of his brother’s unit in complete wonder, “What have I started?”
Tatsumi comforts the other, not noticing HiMERU sent him a message on his phone, “It’s okay, Hiiro-san. We will get through this hell together.”
Mayoi mutters out uncharacteristically calmly, “Let’s just not get caught in the crossfire.”
Aira perks up, “You’re being quite hopeful, Mayo-san.”
Mayoi deadpans, “Oh, I’m not hopeful in the least. I just figured I’d try to give a sense of security even though it’s false.”