IS Virus: Episode 2.5 - Re-Coding
Part 1: Uncertain Steps
-AUBERGENE HOTEL, QUÉBEC PROVINCE; 06:00, 6 HOURS TO SHOWDOWN-
Sokoto and Silvia was sleeping on the couch like a pair of old drunk geezers, legs spread out, drool profusely spewing from their mouths, and a foul odor tainting their underwear. In contrast, Autumn was already skipping rocks at the now defunct prototype's riverbed, still peeved from Sokoto's deception. She unleashed her wrath on him when they got back, but he was completely out of it. It was a shock, because she wanted to see him suffer. Properly. But her only chance would have to be at the lake, where Cecilia will hopefully muster enough courage and fight to finally shut him up. But given the sudden mind games she's played so far, that seems unlikely. Plus, if he lost, then that meant the hunt would continue. She was stuck. What was she supposed to hope for? Revenge? Against who, exactly? She made peace with Squall long ago. And let's say by a miracle that Sokoto pulls off a big win. What then? Are they stuck in Canada forever?
She groaned and rubbed her eyes. This was too much thought for the morning. Given the sudden double back slapped dual sided sword she's caught wind of, she needs to be fully composed until they leave Canada.
"Man...why can't I get some good air?..." she muttered, "I'll bet the banshee and the cooties are having a bla-" she covered her mouth, "Did I just say-OH GODDAMMIT!"
-RITZ-CARLTON MONTREAL, 07:30-
Cecilia woke up early to get a run in and sweat the memories of last night away from her mind. When she returned, she went to the hot tub to refresh. She looked in the mirror to check herself. Nothing out of the ordinary. Though her physique changed a bit. Her thighs gained an inch. She ran her hand across them.
"EEK!" she yelped, "That's muscle...and so are my arms!"
She waddled her way back to her room. What has happened ever since he happened? Well, she's has to work twice as hard just to "stay relevant", on top of her mind challenges. And everything snowballed within one week, forcing her mind, and as a result her body, to adjust to the sudden rush. No one, not even her parents, made her work this hard. She had to slog her way through this herself. And the crazy part? She never once took her power for granted. That's a major first. She held back her flaunting to a massive degree, and she even shot a few winds with the renegade! What is happening?!
THUD* She planted her face on the door.
"UUUUUUUUUUGH..." she groaned, "Anybody know what consciousness I've landed in?..." she walked in to an appetizing aroma. "Mmm...What is that delectable smell..."
"Oh, you can leave it on the dresser!" Chelsea shouted and ran, "I can take the rest by myssssssssssss..."
Awkward stare.
"Uh..." Cecilia clocked in.
"Don't even," Chelsea went back to the stove, "So, you were goofing off with the local townsfolk, I assume?"
"Hey, I was having myself a nice jog within the crisp confines of the maple air!" Cecilia shot back.
"For an hour and a half?"
"*GULP*...has it been that long?..." Cecilia sheepishly walked to the dining table.
"You destroyed your iPhone X," Chelsea slammed the tray of condiments on the table, "An IPHONE! ECKS! WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?!"
"It was playing a very seething song."
"Which fucking song?" Chelsea demanded. Cecilia used her IS to bring up a visual of-
(I locked myself in a hotel ro-)
-and quickly shut it off.
"Oh..." Chelsea went back to setting the table.
"You know," Cecilia said, "you could just grab a knife and fork and bon appetit."
"What, you're a pig now?"
Cecilia thought for a moment, "Heh...guess so..." She grabbed a plate of food and quickly wolfed it down. Then, she promptly walked out.
"Wha..." Chelsea screamed, "That's it?!"
"I've a battle to win," Cecilia said, "obtain clarity of mind, I shall."
"Wait, you can't just-" the door slammed shut. Chelsea tore her headpiece up, "Ooh! What I wouldn't give to sock her jaw again..."
Cecilia ran until she was out of the Ritz-Carlton's range of sight...
-SQUARE DORCHESTER-
...then stalled on a bench beside a bus stop and keeled over.
"Oooooo, my overhearting beat..." she groaned, "What I wouldn't give for a moment of maddening silence right about now..."
"Is this seat taken?"
"AHOY, MATEYYYyyy..." Cecilia freaked out before realizing it was just tiny Silvia on the headrest, "Piss off..." her hand went through Silvia in vain.
"Now, is that any way to act before a fight?" Silvia mimicked her old mannerisms and accent.
"Oh, you got the news, too?" Cecilia asked sarcastically.
"The entire country did." A voice suddenly spooked Cecilia and made her peeked down.
"Yo," it was Madoka of all people, half-asleep under the bench, waving a peace sign at her.
"Why?" Cecilia whispered.
"Same reason as you," Madoka curled back under, "to clean out my head."
Cecilia lied back down on the cold hard marble bench, "Oh, why am I even bothering...Nothing makes sense anymore..."
"Hahhh...why does everything have to make sense..."
"Why? Really?!" Cecilia was about to go off, "Without sense, we'd all be-"
"It was a rhetorical question, you fucking muppet," Madoka shut her up.
"Oh..." Cecilia folded her arms and lay on her side so that she could stare at the gazing eyes of the ever curious populace.
"KEEP IT MOVING, PEOPLE!" Silvia downloaded a 3d model of a dinosaur and scared everyone away, "WE'RE TRYING TO SLEEP HERE!"
"Keep it down, Sil..." Madoka scratched her head, "I need a clean silent sweep, here..."
"Be honest..." Cecilia said, "Do you want him to lose?"
"Huh? The hell did that come from?"
"I dunno...if I win, the hunt continues...but, where's the fun?..."
"Uhhhhhhhhhhhh?"
...Where...the hell...DID THAT COME FROM?!
"I know. It's weird. But that's honestly how I feel."
"So, why come to me, not your preppy maid?"
"No way. Just, no."
"Ok..." Madoka just laid silent, only allowing the rushing whiz of the cars and the clatter of the people to penetrate their sound barriers. While Silvia was goofing off, making the sidewalk light posts beckon the coming of a nonexistent murderer, Cecilia was still racking her mind about the renegade. Specifically, the way he lost it when he saw Autumn get taken out by surprise, and the way he cleared the path for the escapees by shoving himself in front of the gunfire like it was an afternoon shower. Madoka tried not to let the question affect her mind, but it was no use. She got to thinking about him as well. Specifically, the way he connected with her in IS subspace, as well as everything else he did with her, just his interactions with her and how she got on his nerves in an irritatingly playful way.
Oh, that's where it came from.
"He is dense on a level that shouldn't be possible..." Cecilia blurted out.
"How'd you figure that?" Madoka returned.
"He said I'm not Sour Vanilla..."
"Huh?"
"He did...while I was in the smell hole..."
"Did he...with his hand..."
"Held it out in front of me..."
"ULK...oh my god..."
"And the sour..."
"I don't believe a word those doctors said. He downed a core when he was little. I'm sure of it."
"How would he survive?"
"I dunno! Formula?!"
And the two drifted into wistful conversation.
-MONT ROYAL REDPATH CRESCENT, 08:00-
Meanwhile, Chelsea has gone on a frantic search for her spoiled brat, "Ooh, why do I even bother?! One day is enough to derail a decade of friendship-what am I, her nanny?!" Just then, she looked up and saw the renegade, wings only, land in front of a newspaper vendor. He purchased the paper for today and started to go off on a rant. Chelsea gripped her basket and stomped her way towards the renegade, who unfortunately sensed her aggressions and challenged her to a mini sparring match.
He flew into her, and she instinctively caught him off guard with an upward saber stab. She quickly backed up before his legs could catch her chin, and she quickly blocked his energy shots. She saw him rush into her front and swung her sword down, but he planted his feet on the blade and landed and uppercut and two kicks, while blocking an extra sword strike. She staggered backward, but recovered her fighting stance while Sokoto channeled his inner Bruce Lee and frantically waved his hands.
Sokoto stared her down for ten seconds, watching some sweat drip from her brow, before withdrawing his IS entirely, "Ok," he stretched, "I think that'll do for a warm-up..."
"Uh..." Chelsea gasped, "That's it?! That's the callback I get?!"
"Yep!" Sokoto walked straight into the giant army of trees.
"Hey!" Chelsea chased after him, "You're seriously gonna go in there?!"
"Well, I've been in the Suicide Forest. It doesn't get any worse than that." Sokoto skipped his way into the forest, with Chelsea in tow.
"Huh...not bad shrubbery," Sokoto commented, "Nice arrangement, and I'm visualizing an infinity bridge stretching all across the park."
"That's what you see..." Chelsea gripped her purse tightly, "What I see are many hiding spots for the wolf to pounce on us..."
"There's nothing here, lady. Just small animals-oh!"
"Huh? What?"
"There's a lone feral something down thataway..."
"Ok...not funny...I don't know what you're playing at, but-"
Just then, a coyote popped out of the bushes and lunged at Chelsea, who shrieked and metal punched its snout. The coyote winced and retreated in agony.
"Haaaahahahahahahahah!" Sokoto laughed, "What're they doing all the way out here?! Aaaahahahahaha!"
"Grr!" Chelsea growled, "You think a lady in fatal trouble is funny?"
"No, but the during, it's all-" imitation girly high pitched squeal "-YAAAAAAAA-" return "-Ahhhhahahahahahahaaaa!"
"...what kind of renegade are you?..." Chelsea sarcastically asked.
To which Sokoto gave a curtsy, "...one of a kind," and skipped happily along the dirt trail.
"Ohhhhhhhh..." Chelsea shivered, "I can't understand him..." and tried not to get left behind.
-TIFFANY COMPANY, 09:15-
Forte was staring down a huge row of diamond rings. She marveled at how she could see all the colors emitted from the many prisms created by the diamonds, all through a very clear space through which the other side can be seen. She kept going back in her mind about how good they'd look on her and Daryl, only to be returned to the present day by Squall's departure.
RINGRING*
And Autumn's arrival.
"Hello, my dear!" a clerk greeted her, "Thank you for that wonderful display earlier!"
"Really?" Autumn stammered, "After that other display right after?"
"It was the renegade. Nothing much you could do about that."
"I guess..."
"For you, I'm taking 75% off...just this once, though. I can't do it again."
"Uh, yeah...thanks." Autumn just walked in and surveyed some of the jewelry, completely ignoring Forte's angering presence. Forte strained herself to try not to think about, or look at, Autumn. It didn't take long before her composure cracked. She walked up to Autumn just as she was about to point to a watch, and slammed her fist in front of her, nearly cracking the glass.
Autumn just blinked, "Um...can I help you?"
"Why, yes," Forte pulled out a knife, "you can." Just as she was about to thrust it into her neck, Autumn swatted it away and positioned her fingernails just under Forte's neck.
"I'm not interested," Autumn hissed. She retreated her hands and asked the clerk for four diamond rings, a locket, and two watches.
Forte was not having it. After the purchase was finished, she tried to yank the jewelry from Autumn's hands, but she dropped the bag and turned Forte into a clumsy clod. Forte rammed her body into a cardboard stand and toppled tens of thousands of dollars worth of necklaces all over her limbs.
"Ah, can I go 100% to cover for that?" Autumn asked.
"75%'s enough," the clerk said.
-09:20-
Autumn took a stroll around town, trying to figure out the best way to break her newest gifts to Madoka and Sokoto. She has accepted Squall and Sokoto as one being (dunno how that works), but she still can't shake the unease around Madoka. Despite both her and his best attempts to move her past her dark side, she doesn't know what to do. She was the only person who hasn't seriously wronged Madoka in any way. She could be gentle, but what good would that do?
Maybe she could ask Forte, because of the seething breath of cold air rushing up to her back. Her Absolute Defense kicked in the moment the lance connected with her head. She just looked behind her, "You done?"
"Ugh..." Forte dropped to her knees, "Why can't I get to you?..."
"Because I'm tired, ok?" Autumn unloaded, "Everything has been punching me in the chin nonstop, so for once I'd like to have some peace and quiet, so I can hear myself think. And don't you come at me with your petty "she left me because her older cousin got shanked in the ass" weak ass punk argument!" Uh, ok. You can- "Your love ain't dead! Your love ain't stabbed through the neck! She's still roaming around like a goddamn wannabe cupid while I'm still wallowing over ass shit! YOU THINK YOU'RE THE ONLY ONE WITH PROBLEMS, BITCH?! TRY OPENING YOUR EYES TO THE REST OF THE WORLD AND GROWING A BRAIN!" Autumn took several deep breaths before she fully calmed herself down, just in time to see the disdain growing in Forte's eyes. "Unbelievable..." she gave up, "I just wasted my breath on a spoiled brat..."
"Your precious Squall made me like this..." Forte just kept her eyes down, "She took me and Daryl in..."
Autumn was about to say something when she saw the strangest thing just a couple buildings down.
The renegade and the former IS Representative of the UK...having breakfast with their friends...
"Right, right, no brains allowed..." Autumn rubbed her eyes and walked towards the building, while slipping into Forte's ear, "If you say 'You haven't seen the last of me,' or "This isn't over,' I'm going to puke on you." And she walked towards the steakhouse while Forte wallowed in her...distraught feelings.
"You're right..." she silently said, "I was going to say both of those things..." She stood up, dusted herself off, and walked away.
-EGGSPECTATION, 09:20-
"Ok, in honor of this restaurant," Sokoto said, "Let's have a You Laugh You Lose Egg Jokes challenge!"
"Oh, no, not with her here!" Cecilia pointed, "She'll laugh her yolk off before you scramble your first joke out!"
"And when that happens," Madoka took note of Chelsea's current condition, "I scramble her eggs and deep fry them over her sizzling grill."
Chelsea was just under constant torture. Thanks to her earlier one on one session with the renegade, her emotional fortitude was ruined. She cannot open her eyes without risking sputtering her food everywhere.
"Well, go on then," Cecilia nudged Chelsea, "Give us your best egg-celency."
"This can't be happening..." Chelsea whispered.
"Yo!" And suddenly Autumn! "What's the skinny on the yokes?"
"BAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAA~" Chelsea lost it.
"Really?" Madoka said, "That's all it takes to get you off?"
"What are you all doing here?..." Autumn grabbed a seat and sat beside the group.
"Well, we were just given a most egg-celent offer," Sokoto mused.
"On the dawn of our showdown," Cecilia ramped up the snootiness, "The restaurant has scrambled our lovely golden browns, provided we come together for a well balanced eggs-tavaganza."
"YAAAHHHHHHAHHHHHHHAHHHHHHHAHHHHHH~~~" Chelsea was gone.
"Choke on it, man!" Sokoto cracked.
"And thus, was she infected with laugh gas!" Cecilia creaked, "Our first casualty, Chelsea Blackett!"
"HAHHHHHHAHHHHHH-HAIHHKAHNTHHBREETHHHHHH~~~"
"Mm!" Madoka delighted, "She's hyperventilating! She's hyperventilating!"
"Uhhh..." Autumn looked the other way, "Moving on..." to Cecilia, "So, this is your way of coping with the insanity?"
"Oh, absolutely," she answered, "Actually, it's been a pleasure to not have to deal with the pressure and politics. No wonder why the-" oh god no "-EGGHEADS-" why "-are always so-" Don't "-HARD-BOILED-"
"NO-HHHHHHHhhhhhh..." Chelsea cracked again.
"-all the time."
"WE HAVE A BATTLE *COUGH*COUGH*~~~"
"I do, not you."
"Give me a break!" Chelsea glugged a giant gulp of water, "UGH... I thought I was gonna die..."
"Oh, get over yourself," Madoka said, "You've been through worse."
"And I suppose you have better lessons to share?"
"I do," Madoka put her forka an knife down and crossed her hands, "Better to trust and be betrayed than to never have trusted at all."
"Whoa..." Autumn whistled, "You've clearly gone off the deep end."
"Ass..." Madoka said, "So, what's the agenda for today?"
Sokoto and Cecilia suddenly realized the lasting consequences of their impending showdown, and just stared blankly at each other, "Um..."
"Really? You have the balls to potentially reshape the sociopolitical and ideological landscapes of many more nations to come, and you still can't attend to your petty grudges and inner conflicts?"
"Well," Cecilia stammered, "I was going to..."
"Uh...wha...?" Sokoto blanked out.
"You two are just as insufferable as my inane rant," Madoka glompedthe rest of her platter and made for the bathroom.
Chelsea watched Madoka plow through the horde of people fawning over the little woman, then turned to Sokoto, "She's right, you know..."
"You understood all that?!" Sokoto exclaimed.
"Yep, and Cece knows it too."
"I don't understand the question," Cecilia sheepishly said.
"Seriou-oh my god," Autumn scolded, first at Sokoto, "You! You're the second male to successfully pilot an IS! You wrecked and exposed Japan big time! You rescued a bunch of maple syrup lappers! You brought an IS to life! Literally! Has any of that clicked?!"
Blank stare as if he saw a galactic light show in her eyesballs.
Then, to Cecilia, "And you! You wound up here to die, and you ended up jumping over the moon and rearranged the stars like LEGO light bulbs! Despite you losing everything and having something from your past making you throw up every ten minutes! Is that what you call closure?!"
"Well, I...uh..." Cecilia's mind wasn't at all focused intently on anything. She was constantly trying to distract herself from the bad, shifting perspective to fantasy or alternate reality.
"Ohhhhhhh, that's a bad sign..." Autumn slouched back into her chair, "The way you two are now, you're going to self-destruct the moment you get wronged and can't right it. You have to spend the next-what is it-90 minutes in the real world, take in everything you did, and then get a solid grip on your minds."
"For once, she's right," Chelsea said, "The battle ahead is not just of strength, but also of clarity of mind. In other words, what will you do after it's over, regardless of whether you win or lose. If you're undecided, it will not end well for you. Take the time to sort it out."
-SQUARE DORCHESTER, 10:20-
This marked the first time they ever got a real meaningful scolding. Cecilia and Sokoto took a walk to work through the events of the week, trying to process everything in relation to the current world affairs. They had barely begun to scratch the surface of what mental scarring they suffered. They sat in front of the statue, gazing at the many park goers who were in complete bliss in spite of everything they experienced. They sat in complete silence trying to make sense of the joyous noise. But with Cecilia unfamiliar to the ways of the common folk, and Sokoto still unable to comprehend, or care about, the impact of his rampage, they are stuck.
"How do they do it?" Cecilia whispered, "Just...toss out their worries like a begotten damp flip flop?"
"Same way I do it, probably," Sokoto said, "Just do it without a second thought..."
"Is it really that easy for them?"
"Not really...but when you need an escape, it gets easier..."
"From what?"
"Their troubles...kinda like when you have someone you can unload all your baggage onto and you can just have the best time with... you keep going back to that person or doing the same thing that gets you good, it just clicks..."
"It used to click for me. I had someone just like that."
"Really? Who?"
"He's a nobody, now. A past memory."
"What'd he do?"
"I was in competition with many other women. We confided in the same man, but unless it was in the heat of battle, never really in each other. I guess that animosity seeped into our lives, because once he made his choice..." she couldn't.
"Hmm? What happened then?"
But she had to. "We turned on him and tried to do him in."
"Damn. I think I know why you're in the rut now."
"Why's that?"
"You're looking for redemption from that guy, aren't you? You done him wrong, he never wanted you even though you revolved your whole life around him, he rejected you. You want him to validate you as a...not really a wife, I think, but as a partner. Is that it?"
Spot on. "How did you..."
"I spent over a decade wandering the world in search of a fulfilling life. And I got this crazy emotion reader ability. Borderline supernatural."
"What?" She got a little playful, "You're lying."
"Oh, you wanna play, huh?" So did he.
"Oh, I do. Find me two people who want to snu snu right now."
"Uhhh...behind the statue and over there at the tree."
"Where? Over the-Uh..." A woman and a man were stalking the park until their eyes met.
"What'd I tell ya? Ain't I scary?"
"You certainly are...in more ways than one..."
"Like how?"
"Well...aside from the renegade status, you're like a little crazy cat no one can control. Plus the fact that you want to live a good life without restraint can stretch the nerves of others."
"Stretch nerves? How that?"
"Well, it can be charming to outsiders, but very taxing to your partners. They feel like they can't keep up. Maybe ease up a bit?"
"Like, in the battle?"
"Hahahah, if you want! No, I was talking about liffffffeeeeeeeee..."
"Oh, yeah...that..."
And they just sat silent for a few minutes. Before Cecilia said, "Did you figure out what you're going to do after?"
"Nope. You?"
"No."
Cecilia checked her watch. -10:30- "Well, it's about time to go. Shall we?"
"Yeah..." They gave each other a melancholic smile and floated towards the battle site hand in hand.
While giving the public and the internet so many incest memes to gorge on.
-ÎLE AUX HÉRONS, 11:15-
Once they touched down, a ton of paparazzi greeted them, followed by selected UN attendants that will oversee the battle. They separated the combatants into their own makeshift locker rooms to prepare for the showdown and become familiar with the rules of engagement.
The buzzer will signal at 12:00. One fight. All attacks must happen over water. A winner will be declared when their opponent's shield energy is depleted. Both have a copy of their opponent's battle data and videos to study, however all data must be wiped and the combatants ready for battle ten minutes prior. No help from anyone, all external communication must be blocked.
Something Silvia took harshly, "But I'm a part of the IS! I AM THE IS! WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?!"
"Sorry," the attendant said, "but they must use their brains, and theirs alone. And you're considered a living being, so..."
"God damn life..." Silvia fizzled back to Autumn's shoulder and comically wept.
"Come on," Chelsea said, "Let's all grab a seat before all hell breaks loose."
"What hell?" Madoka said, "Those blondes ruined hell. Satan is pissing himself."
Cecilia was studying every second of the footage, trying to find a pattern to his seemingly wild fighting style. "So, he takes the punishment to look for an opening...if he's all speed, then he can't take a hit...but the massive energy blasts..." And when she saw the videos of his most violent battles, she noticed something about his wings. They would glow every time he prepared to enter Emergency Override. "So, that's how he's doing it...I'll have to concentrate on those wings..." She turned off the video and tuned her IS to endure all.
Meanwhile, Sokoto was sifting through what little video they could capture of the newly registered Mermaid's Tears. Her speed, attack power, and agility went up, making for a very tough opponent. If there are any holes in her defense, he can exploit them with his one sure fire strategem: the point where attack is the strongest is also the point where defense is the weakest. He has to create a false sense of security for Cecilia. He turned off the videos and proceeded to fine tune his IS.
He kept silent, while Cecilia talked her way through. Radically different approaches to mask the fact that this is the only thing they can focus on. One word of their connection, and the fight is done. They can't afford that luxury now. Whether or not they truly are connected will be settled in the battle.
Yes...everything will be settled. And the whole world will be watching.