NieR: Duplication

Unfamiliar territory

September 14th, 2004. One year after The Giant and Dragons arrival

A crowd of people fill the subway train as it made its way through the underground tunnels that had been made for it. The majority of them mainly kept to themselves waiting to arrive at their destination while some passed the time by chatting with their friends or family. Amongst the crowd was Alex Miller, a Caucasian male in his early 20s who had short white hair, pale blue eyes, and rosy skin. He wore a simple white shirt, gray hoodie and black jeans. Overall, someone you wouldn't think twice about.

Ipod in hand and headphones resting on his head; Alex, like the others, kept to himself as he passed the time by listening to some of his music. However, that time would be interrupted when he felt his phone vibrate. Pausing his music and taking off his headphones, he reaches into his pocket and pulls his flip phone out. A call from Mark Jones, his roommate and a close friend of his.

'Huh. Looks like he finally got my message.' Alex thought to himself. Not wanting to keep him waiting, he answers the call. "Hey Mark, what's up?"

"Hey Alex! Sorry I didn't get your message sooner, something came up and I had to go deal with it." Mark's voice came from the phone. "Anyways, just wanted to call to say good luck on the whole brain scan thing! You're gonna need it."

"Thanks man. And it shouldn't take to long, it'll probably last for atleast 10 minutes. I'll be out before the hour is finished." Alex said to Mark.

"All right, if you say so man." Mark replied. "Hey, listen. I know that the work you're doing will provide you with good pay. I mean, 200 dollars is nuts! But do you really think we'll still have enough by the time Halo 2 comes out?"

"Of course man! You know how much the game means to us."

"I know that. But we have rent amongst other things to pay. And given how much our job sucks, we barely have enough money to afford all of that."

"Mark. I promise you that we'll be able to get that game at launch day. If worst comes to worst, I'll just do some more volunteer work to get some extra cash."

"...All right. If you say so." Mark said, after some hesitation. "Anyways, I'll talk to you later!"

"Later, man." With Mark hanging up, Alexander puts his phone back into his pocket. As he reaches for his headphones, he heard the sound of the TV that was playing in the train.

"In other news, we've received reports of a tragic incident occurring in Shinjuku, Japan." The news reporter said, catching Alex and the passengers attention. "A few hours ago, twenty-seven year old Aiko Kohana, beloved actress, was attacked and killed by thirty-four year old Haruto Sato, who has been diagnosed with the White Chlorination Syndrome. Since the incident, the people of Japan have turned in favor of sealing the city off from the rest of the country to ensure that no more harm would occur. Further updates will be provided at a later date."