The HoloChronicles

Chapter 1

(A/N: Well, here it is everyone: the longest story I've ever written, hope it turns out alright.)

The sun shone brightly over Holo City, the beautiful morning gracing its inhabitants.
The city was a relatively small place nestled in between mountains to the north, forests to the south and east, and a large lake to the west.
It was a little slice of paradise for anyone lucky enough to stumble across it.

The streets bustled with people from all walks of life, going about their business.
Just another peaceful, ordinary day in a peaceful, mostly ordinary city.
Despite the city's size, there were many large buildings, most notably the Hololive office building that stood proud and tall in the middle of it.

It was the place where so many dreams had been realized; to be a part of Hololive was the dream of nearly every person in Holo City.
Those there who didn't dream of joining Hololive were happy to live amongst and support the members of the company.

Every woman and man who was involved with Hololive in some way resided here.
From the many pretty homes to the little businesses such as Bar Coco and the Peko Mart, it truly was a wonderful place.

As the city bustled with activity, a single woman stood watching it all.
Ina'nis Ninomae gazed out the large windows of the Hololive office building, deep in thought.
Something was bothering her, though she herself wasn't quite sure what it was yet.
"You okay there Ina?" The voice of Calliope Mori suddenly spoke up, startling her.
Most of Hololive's talent worked from home so the office was typically mostly empty, the Grim Reaper's apprentice herself, however, was too much of a workaholic to stay away from it for long.

"Ah, yes Calli... I'm alright." Ina replied slowly turning and offering a warm smile to the reaper.
"Just making sure, you've been spacing out a lot more recently." Calli noted, walking over to her desk, and depositing a stack of papers on it.
"I... suppose I have." Ina responded softly, gazing out the window again.
Calli frowned slightly, she wasn't used to seeing Ina so distracted.
"What's up? You seem off." She questioned.
Ina shook her head with a small sigh, "Oh nothing, just thinking. It's nothing too important, really." She reassured her.
"If you say so." Calli said as she sat down at her desk, not wanting to pry any further than necessary.

A few minutes went by, only the subtle ticking of the clock filling the silence, until the elevator dinged, signaling the arrival of someone else to their floor.
Ina had been so lost in thought earlier she hadn't noticed the sound when Calli arrived.

"Good morning!" Amelia greeted cheerfully.
"Mornin'!" Gura echoed, grinning widely as the two stepped into the HoloMyth office.
"Morning you two!" Calli responded, returning the shark girl's grin.
"Good morning." Ina greeted softly, turning to face them both.
"Beautiful day." Amelia commented, sitting down at her desk.
Gura did the same, doing a full rotation in her swivel chair as she sat down, her tail accidentally knocking a cup of pens off her desk in the process, which she did not bother picking up.

Most generations of Hololive talent had their own office, which translated into a floor of the tall building that had a desk for each girl and that was typically decorated with merchandise associated with each generation's respective talent.
Each office also typically had a couch, tv, mini fridge, and microwave for when anyone needed a break.
HoloMyth's office even had a Nintendo Switch, which Gura, Calli, Kiara, Amelia, and Ina had each spent many an evening playing and unwinding after a long day at work.

"Is Kiara coming in today?" Calli asked.
"Think so." Amelia replied. "Why?"
"Oh, just curious." Calli responded casually.
Amelia smirked, Calli and Kiara had a special relationship, they seemed to spend more time together than apart.
Even though the reaper always tried to make it seem like she simply put up with the phoenix, it was clear the two girls cared deeply for one another.

As if on cue, the elevator dinged, and Kiara's smiling face appeared from it as she stepped out.
"Guten morgan!" Kiara greeted in her usual bright tone, waving energetically before settling down at her desk, which was situated beside Calli's.
"Hey Kiara!" Calli smiled at the phoenix.
"Good morning, Kiara." Amelia greeted

"You okay Ina? You seem distracted." Gura suddenly remarked, noticing how Ina's gaze had drifted back to the window.
"I'm fine, just..." the priestess paused, "Have any of you felt like something is off lately?" she inquired.
The four other girls exchanged confused looks.
"Off? Off how?" Amelia asked.
"I... I don't know, something just feels off with me lately... like something isn't right." Ina explained. "But I can't seem to figure out what it is."
"Maybe you're getting sick?" Gura suggested.
"Or maybe we're working too hard?" Kiara offered.
"Maybe... but it doesn't really feel like that..." the priestess mused, frowning a bit. "It feels almost like-"

Ina's train of thought was interrupted by the elevator dinging for the fifth time that morning.
This time, it was Hololive EN's newest recruit: Irys, who was looking rather concerned.
"Irys?" Ina questioned curiously, a bit surprised by the Nephalim's appearance.
"Sorry to intrude, but I think we have a problem guys." Irys stated, her expression growing serious.
"Huh? What kind of problem?" Amelia questioned.
"Have any of you heard of something called The Godcube?" The Nephalim asked.
"Godcube?" Gura asked, "Is that like a Rubik's cube?"
"Uh, no, Gura." Irys sighed "In fact it's-"
"An artifact that according to ancient legend would bring the apocalypse if it were ever opened." Ina finished.
Irys' eyes widened slightly, "Yes, exactly, Ina!" She said, turning her attention to the priestess. "How do you know about it?"
"I have some connections to the Ancient Ones; it's mentioned multiple times in texts." She answered simply.
"I see..." Irys muttered, her lips pursed into a thin line.

"So, what does this have to do with the problem you mentioned earlier?" Calli inquired calmly.
"Ah, well, up until recently The Godcube was being kept in a very secure location, out of fear of its fabled power..." Irys explained, "But, it's been reported as stolen!"
Ina gasped, "But that means..."
Irys nodded, "if it ends up in the wrong hands we could be in big trouble."

The others were silent for a moment, processing what she had just told them before Ina started towards the elevator.
"Ina? Where are you going?" Amelia asked, rising to her feet.
"We have to find it, if we don't..."
"No telling what will happen." Irys finished, stepping forward to follow her.
"Well you're not going without me!" Amelia proclaimed proudly as she joined the other three.
"If there's a mystery to solve here, who better to help than a time travelling detective?" she added with a smile.
Gura hopped off her chair, "If Watson's goin, than so am I!" she declared as she followed suit.
"Me too!" Kiara called happily.
Calli sighed, "Well, I'm not going to be left behind, I'm in too." she added, following the rest into the elevator.
As soon as the doors closed, Irys pressed the button for the ground floor.

"It makes sense now... Irys, have you felt strange lately?" Ina suddenly asked.
The Nephalim paused, "Strange how?" She questioned.
"Like something is wrong but you can't explain it?" Ina suggested.
"Hmm... maybe?" Irys replied, unsure.
The priestess nodded, "I've had this strange feeling all week... I wonder if it's something to do with my connection to the Ancient Ones and The Godcube being taken..." She pondered.
"Who could've taken this thing anyway?" Calli asked.
"That I can't answer." Irys admitted sheepishly. "But it was heavily guarded, so whoever took it must have had it all planned out."
"I just hope it hasn't fallen into the hands of someone with bad intentions." Ina murmured worriedly.
"Or someone who doesn't know what they're doing." Gura interjected as the elevator dinged open.