Side Story A Certain Bizarre Encounter

[Jeremi]

"Kiss, huh? It does look. . .interesting." Giorno commented on Ermes' stand, keeping with his habitual politeness despite leaving his first impression lukewarm. The seasoned stand user has seen enough wild abilities to determine that Stands, by their very nature, cannot be logically judged off of appearance alone, since most Stand abilities betray the Stand's physical appearance, or have no correlation to their appearance until they are seen by the human eye. Which is precisely why Giorno silently nodded in agreement with Leivinia's and Ollerus' reasoning.

Meanwhile, Jotaro Kujo calmly listened to the reasoning of his allies, and nodded, crossing his arms and holding one hand to his chin. "Hm. You're all right, Fiamma of the Right may have done his research, and I can't question hard facts. After all, it'd be embarrassing for me to question calculations without presenting any logical reasoning of my own," the accomplished marine biologist reasoned as he moved his hands into his coat pockets and began a steady approach towards his daughter.

"However."

"I'd like to do a little test of my own. We don't have much time to waste now, so I'll make this quick."

Just as the last few words escaped his mouth, a vibrant golden light began to coalesce around Jotaro's body. The shimmering aura grew in size and intensity until it finally projected a few inches behind his body, taking on a definitive physical form. Giorno's eyes widened slightly as the new Stand emerged.

That must be. . .

"Star Platinum."

This would mark the first time Ollerus and his party would see Jotaro Kujo's supposedly powerful Stand. According to that frenchman hiding within the turtle back at Giorno's office, the stand before them is responsible for killing Dio Brando for the first time, as well as being the only Stand that rivals The World's power. They picked up this marine biologist guy on the turtle's word, as well as a hunch by Giorno Giovanna, so it might be worth something to see him in action.

Star Platinum moved in front of Jotaro, phasing through his body like a ghost and facing towards Stone Free. It then held up it's fists in a defensive stance.

"You hate me so much, Jolyne? Let out your anger. Stone Free's power versus Star Platinum's durability." Jotaro taunted his daughter.

Giorno stared at the scene in utter silence, and then looked over at Ermes and her ready-to-fight Stand. ". . .I-I don't think we'll need the same requirement for Kiss." Giorno said, hopefully shooting down any split-second ideas Ermes had.

@Kaykay @Jeremi @Ver
​

Tch! The old man trying to act though, and his usual aloof shitty self. "Better watch it, unless you really want to fall flat on your face."

As Jolyne continued to talk shit, Ermes gave Giorno a look. "What you scared a girl would beat you up?"

Back to Jolyne and her father Stone Free continued looming behind Jolyne as she sized up her father. Then! A glimmer in her eyes as Stone Free's arm flung out ready to hit Jotaro right in his stoic face!

@Kaykay @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Ver​

 

[Crunch]

Tch! The old man trying to act though, and his usual aloof shitty self. "Better watch it, unless you really want to fall flat on your face."

As Jolyne continued to talk shit, Ermes gave Giorno a look. "What you scared a girl would beat you up?"

Back to Jolyne and her father Stone Free continued looming behind Jolyne as she sized up her father. Then! A glimmer in her eyes as Stone Free's arm flung out ready to hit Jotaro right in his stoic face!

@Kaykay @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Ver​

The golden haired boy looked back at Ermes with an affable glance. "No, but I believe fighting in this situation is a useless waste of our time."

THUNK!

"Case in point," Giorno sighed.

Stone Free's fist immediately clashed with Star Platinum's, evoking a sound not unlike a gunshot crashing against solid metal. Star Platinum's fists were crossed in a defensive stance, holding back the force of Stone Free's blow without so much as a sweatdrop from Jotaro, who dug his hands into his pockets.

"A lot of power, huh? Guess my instincts were wrong. But you still won't agree to leave. What attachment do you have to a prison? How many times do I need you to punch me until you forgive me?" Jotaro's stoic face wasn't harmed as Jolyne had intended. However, he couldn't fathom his daughter's attachment to a prison. . .or, perhaps, her want to stay in a prison as opposed to seeing him again. Jotaro's stoic face was clearly beginning to crack under desperation.

And then, the golden boy stepped in.

"That'll be enough."

"Giorno, don't get involved," Jotaro immediately cut in with a stern tone.

"Jotaro. . .please, allow me to talk to her for a few moments. Ermes, you might want to listen as well."

Jotaro's murderous glare intensified, but it didn't make a dent on Giorno's suave demeanor. Star Platinum vanished in a messy fizzle, as Jotaro turned his back to his daughter and Ermes, walking away and out of earshot from both of them. As soon as he confirmed that Jotaro wasn't listening, Giorno Giovanna turned to look at Jolyne and Ermes.

"I really do hate repeating myself. But, I don't think we've actually explained the scope of the situation to you yet. I'm sure your fathers caution and desperation would make more sense if you knew what was going on. Listen carefully, because I won't say any of this again."

Giorno looked at Jolyne. The strange connection between the two began to manifest.

"I'm the son of Dio Brando, a man who has achieved immortality after rejecting his own humanity centuries ago in a battle with Jonathan Joestar. You and I are related by blood, because my father had managed steal Jonathan Joestar's body and use it to impregnate a woman that would go on to be my mother.It's bizarre, and somewhat disturbing, but I'm telling you this for a reason. Decades ago, your father had traveled to Egypt to kill my father and stop his attempt to achieve ultimate power. Jotaro succeeded in killing DIO, but it seems as if that was short-lived."

". . .I suppose, you could say you and I both have 'daddy issues'. However, there's more."

"You see, there exists realities beyond our own. Universes and timelines that are vastly different from what you or I would understand as normal or sensible. I've been involuntarily taken to these other realities myself, and so has your father. We're both here with these people," Giorno said while motioning to Leivinia, Ollerus, Fiamma and Touma,"because there is something out there that is more dangerous, powerful and destructive than any feuds you may have with your father."

"DIO is back, and has joined forces with a woman named Othinus in a gambit to effectively erase everything you know. I know it's bizarre and perhaps even stupid, but I'm going to tell you the same thing Ollerus told me; in essence, if Othinus were to get her way, she would become the one true goddess of the multiverse. She would use that power to destroy the multiverse and create a new one to her liking. My father has the very same ambition that he had those years ago when he battled with your father; to become a god."

"You would die."

"I would die."

"She would die," Giorno motioned to Ermes.

"He would die," Giorno motioned to Jotaro.

The weight of the situation began to press down upon the two Joestars. Giorno's voice refused to lose any resolve, however. "Jolyne, Jotaro isn't the only one asking you to join us. I'm asking you to join us, because it seems as if fate is unavoidable, and is calling all of us. If you don't do this now, then the last memory you will have before the end is sitting in a prison cell and never getting any closure with your father. This may be the last time you'll ever see him again. And even if you don't do it for his sake. . .do it for the sake of everyone else."

"Why would you do that?"

"Because you're a good person, Jolyne."

"You aren't a prisoner, or a thug, or a forgotten daughter, or anything else but a good person. To put it in terms that I think you'll understand better. . ."

"If you don't do this, you'll never escape this ocean of stone!"

@Kaykay @Jeremi @Ver
​

 

[Jeremi]

The golden haired boy looked back at Ermes with an affable glance. "No, but I believe fighting in this situation is a useless waste of our time."

THUNK!

"Case in point," Giorno sighed.

Stone Free's fist immediately clashed with Star Platinum's, evoking a sound not unlike a gunshot crashing against solid metal. Star Platinum's fists were crossed in a defensive stance, holding back the force of Stone Free's blow without so much as a sweatdrop from Jotaro, who dug his hands into his pockets.

"A lot of power, huh? Guess my instincts were wrong. But you still won't agree to leave. What attachment do you have to a prison? How many times do I need you to punch me until you forgive me?" Jotaro's stoic face wasn't harmed as Jolyne had intended. However, he couldn't fathom his daughter's attachment to a prison. . .or, perhaps, her want to stay in a prison as opposed to seeing him again. Jotaro's stoic face was clearly beginning to crack under desperation.

And then, the golden boy stepped in.

"That'll be enough."

"Giorno, don't get involved," Jotaro immediately cut in with a stern tone.

"Jotaro. . .please, allow me to talk to her for a few moments. Ermes, you might want to listen as well."

Jotaro's murderous glare intensified, but it didn't make a dent on Giorno's suave demeanor. Star Platinum vanished in a messy fizzle, as Jotaro turned his back to his daughter and Ermes, walking away and out of earshot from both of them. As soon as he confirmed that Jotaro wasn't listening, Giorno Giovanna turned to look at Jolyne and Ermes.

"I really do hate repeating myself. But, I don't think we've actually explained the scope of the situation to you yet. I'm sure your fathers caution and desperation would make more sense if you knew what was going on. Listen carefully, because I won't say any of this again."

Giorno looked at Jolyne. The strange connection between the two began to manifest.

"I'm the son of Dio Brando, a man who has achieved immortality after rejecting his own humanity centuries ago in a battle with Jonathan Joestar. You and I are related by blood, because my father had managed steal Jonathan Joestar's body and use it to impregnate a woman that would go on to be my mother.It's bizarre, and somewhat disturbing, but I'm telling you this for a reason. Decades ago, your father had traveled to Egypt to kill my father and stop his attempt to achieve ultimate power. Jotaro succeeded in killing DIO, but it seems as if that was short-lived."

". . .I suppose, you could say you and I both have 'daddy issues'. However, there's more."

"You see, there exists realities beyond our own. Universes and timelines that are vastly different from what you or I would understand as normal or sensible. I've been involuntarily taken to these other realities myself, and so has your father. We're both here with these people," Giorno said while motioning to Leivinia, Ollerus, Fiamma and Touma,"because there is something out there that is more dangerous, powerful and destructive than any feuds you may have with your father."

"DIO is back, and has joined forces with a woman named Othinus in a gambit to effectively erase everything you know. I know it's bizarre and perhaps even stupid, but I'm going to tell you the same thing Ollerus told me; in essence, if Othinus were to get her way, she would become the one true goddess of the multiverse. She would use that power to destroy the multiverse and create a new one to her liking. My father has the very same ambition that he had those years ago when he battled with your father; to become a god."

"You would die."

"I would die."

"She would die," Giorno motioned to Ermes.

"He would die," Giorno motioned to Jotaro.

The weight of the situation began to press down upon the two Joestars. Giorno's voice refused to lose any resolve, however. "Jolyne, Jotaro isn't the only one asking you to join us. I'm asking you to join us, because it seems as if fate is unavoidable, and is calling all of us. If you don't do this now, then the last memory you will have before the end is sitting in a prison cell and never getting any closure with your father. This may be the last time you'll ever see him again. And even if you don't do it for his sake. . .do it for the sake of everyone else."

"Why would you do that?"

"Because you're a good person, Jolyne."

"You aren't a prisoner, or a thug, or a forgotten daughter, or anything else but a good person. To put it in terms that I think you'll understand better. . ."

"If you don't do this, you'll never escape this ocean of stone!"

@Kaykay @Jeremi @Ver
​

Jolyne listened intently to what Giorno had to say and finally she spoke a heavy sigh escaping from her lips. "Give me a break." Stone Free vanished from behind her and faced the son of Dio. "...Fine we'll do it."

"We?!" Ermes asked shocked. "So you're suddenly just talking for both of us?"

"Were you going to say no?" Jolyne asked her friend.

"W-Well no..."

"Then it's settled. However!" She looked at the group gathered there. "When we're done saving the universe or some shit, you're going to put me right back here where you got me. I'm not going to use you as a get out of jail free card and just walk out. I'll do it myself, with the skills and power that I have. You got it?"

"She's right! There's a reason why I'm in here! I can't just walk out and leave that shit unfinished you know!"

Brushing aside her father Jolyne handed out her hand to Fiamma. "So do we have a deal?"

@Ver @Kaykay @CrunchyCHEEZIT

 

[Ver]

"Jeez, he said that all so easily, and hardly even stuttered," Touma commented, as though complimenting Giorno's ability to speak so eloquently, especially considering the amount of information he'd intended to communicate. Even Jolyne seemed to need a moment to process it all. "But what he says is all true. This whole situation we're in is a serious matter that'll rip apart my reality, yours, and perhaps every conceivable reality ever, unless we do something about it."

"Earnest and focused on such little details, even to the very end," Ollerus said with amusement in response to Jolyne's conditions, "Do understand that there is very little guarantee that the multiverse will come out unscathed after the end of this, let alone you and your... homely issues. It would be quite a humorous tragedy befitting humans, wouldn't it? Fail in your endeavors to save the multiverse and die with it, heroically sacrifice yourself while saving it, or succeeding altogether only to voluntarily return to this prison. But perhaps that is something unique to people like you; such a life, filled with people and places that you want to protect, is precisely what drives you to try so hard."

"... Perhaps family is far more important than I give it credit for," he continued, giving a wry smile to both Jotaro's and Leivinia's way.

Giving a reticent nod, Fiamma of the Right firmly shook the young woman's hand. "So we do. Either way, you personal issues are not my concern, so if we get through this alive, at your request, I shall return you two to where you were before."

"Not if! When we all get through this!"

"Your optimism is noted, but not considered. Such an attitude despite your never-ending misfortune, I've never found to be logical. Even to this day, you're a bit too earnest. As they say, people like that tend to be the most deviant. Would you say that is so, Ms. Birdway?"

@Kaykay @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Jeremi​

 

[Kaykay]

Leivinia didn't really react as the family feud continued, simply remaining a spectator as they wailed it out and Giorno made his speech. Taking upon a more calm mien after her provocation, her arms stayed crossed throughout the entire exchange. She didn't have much part to play in this recruitment of a force she was largely ignorant about, so it didn't bother her too much to simply remain in the background. Simply being an instigator was good enough considering it appeared to get the job done more or less.

When Ollerus looked her way, though, she simply huffed and faced the other way. Unlike Jotaro, her family was unrelated to this mess. At least, as unrelated as one could be to the recreation of the multiverse.

Uncrossing her arms as Fiamma spoke to her, Leivinia smirked as she glanced Touma's way.

"I'm inclined to agree, even if they refuse to admit it themselves."

@Ver @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Jeremi​

 

[Jeremi]

"Jeez, he said that all so easily, and hardly even stuttered," Touma commented, as though complimenting Giorno's ability to speak so eloquently, especially considering the amount of information he'd intended to communicate. Even Jolyne seemed to need a moment to process it all. "But what he says is all true. This whole situation we're in is a serious matter that'll rip apart my reality, yours, and perhaps every conceivable reality ever, unless we do something about it."

"Earnest and focused on such little details, even to the very end," Ollerus said with amusement in response to Jolyne's conditions, "Do understand that there is very little guarantee that the multiverse will come out unscathed after the end of this, let alone you and your... homely issues. It would be quite a humorous tragedy befitting humans, wouldn't it? Fail in your endeavors to save the multiverse and die with it, heroically sacrifice yourself while saving it, or succeeding altogether only to voluntarily return to this prison. But perhaps that is something unique to people like you; such a life, filled with people and places that you want to protect, is precisely what drives you to try so hard."

"... Perhaps family is far more important than I give it credit for," he continued, giving a wry smile to both Jotaro's and Leivinia's way.

Giving a reticent nod, Fiamma of the Right firmly shook the young woman's hand. "So we do. Either way, you personal issues are not my concern, so if we get through this alive, at your request, I shall return you two to where you were before."

"Not if! When we all get through this!"

"Your optimism is noted, but not considered. Such an attitude despite your never-ending misfortune, I've never found to be logical. Even to this day, you're a bit too earnest. As they say, people like that tend to be the most deviant. Would you say that is so, Ms. Birdway?"

@Kaykay @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Jeremi​

Jolyne seemed very nonchalant about what Ollerus had to say. "Look you can think whatever you want, that's the conditions and you're going to piss me off if you say no."

But it seemed they were accepted as Fiamma held his hand out for a shake. "We're going to fix this, don't matter what you say, Fiamma. Me and Ermes still have business to take care of. Dying would fuck that up royally."

"So will we get paid for this too or...?" Ermes asked off hand. "Sounds like a huge job."

@Ver @Kaykay @CrunchyCHEEZIT

 

[Ver]

"Splendid. I look forward to working together," Fiamma said to Jolyne with an air of benevolence that almost seemed too friendly to be genuine, even to a condescending fault, but alas, he didn't really have any true reason to antagonize them. The only real hang-up he had was that between these two women and Giorno's associates back in Italy, it seemed like everyone in this universe was just so... vulgar in a lot of ways. But of course, judge not lest ye be judged.

Ignoring Ermes's inquiry about how they'd be potentially compensated, Ollerus folded his arms behind his back. "Right. Well, let us be on our way then. We'll have to get you ladies settled... anywhere besides this prison, at least. Will you do the honors, dear Fiamma?"

With an obliging nod, Fiamma's hand began to glow a deep shade of crimson, before it conjured up a portal into the air, just as created when they first appeared. Gesturing with his head for everyone to follow through, he walked forward and disappeared into the nebulous portal, followed by Touma and Ollerus, and with that, their party grew twofold that day.

The clock continued ticking before the end of a certain multiverse came.

And the God of Pestilence, the one who almost became a Magic God, and God's Right Hand all wondered to themselves if they could stop such an event.

. . .

Fwoosh!

"Not so fast! You've got another thing coming if you--Huh?! Where are they?! Arrghh, dammit, am I too late?!"

Just as everyone had departed the prison, a dark-skinned woman named Mariah appeared in a similar looking portal, as if expecting to encounter them there. It appeared that she was too late.

Such misfortune.

- F I N -​