Brian, 25 year old construction worker

Author’s note; I am writing this as a semi-prequel to my main sponsor branch, although it has no real connection. It’s just set shortly after the establishment of the AWIO. It can be read as a completely stand alone story, and doesn’t require any previous knowledge of the world.

You flop onto your couch, tossing a beer to Dave, your good friend and coworker. Leaning back with a sigh, you rest your feet on the coffee table as Dave flips through channels on your TV, finally landing on whatever is on the sports network today. The two of you have just finished your workday, and he decided to swing by your place to hang out for a bit. Dave cracks his beer and takes a drink, tossing the remote onto the table. The two of you watch the game for a bit before he speaks up.

“So, Brian, how have things been going? You ain’t been talking much at work lately, you doing ok?”

You shrug. “Eh. Same shit, different day, you know? I don’t have much going on right now.”

Dave chuckles. “I hear you, man. Just asking, ‘cause you seem a little bit down lately.”

You nod. “Yeah, I suppose. Hasn’t been the same since Kelly left.”

Kelly was your ex, almost a year removed. If you’re completely honest with yourself, you’ve been in a funk ever since she decided that she wanted more than you offered. Since then, you’ve just been going through the motions, and apparently it’s become obvious to Dave.

Your friend glances at you. “Have you heard of that new place? Some kinda magical portal shit?”

You shake your head. “Nah, I haven’t been following the news.”

Dave shrugs. “Apparently there’s this rift or something, opens to some weird magic world. Anyway, they recently started a…I guess it’s like an immigration office mixed with a dating service? You can offer to sponsor a ‘monster girl’, or something like that. Apparently they’re looking for homes to put these girls into. I know you’re into weird anime and shit, figured you might be interested.”

You stare at him for a while. “What, like a mail order bride or some shit? Seems weird.”

Dave shrugs. “Yeah, maybe. But it’s worth looking into, at least. Hell, I’d probably be interested if I wasn’t already married!”

You chuckle. “Yeah. I suppose it couldn’t hurt to look.”

Dave grins. “Yeah, and let me know if there’s any hotties, maybe I’ll ditch my wife!”

You roll your eyes. Dave was a goofball, but a good dude, regardless. Despite his jokes, he was looking out for you. He scribbled down a web address on a scrap of paper, and you promise to check it out later.