Faceless

2: Screenshot

Belphagor rose from the ashes and the flames and the coal that engulfed him, trying not to yell in pain as his fire bitten skin was scratched on the falling wood. It hurt so much he'd thought he might die, but no… a prince doesn't die. A prince can't die. He wouldn't allow it! No regal man can die at the hands of a single peasant!

Yes, he could remember him quite clearly. That damned filth that attacked the Varia. Somehow, the mongrel was able to escape. Worse still, he managed the damage, and possibly kill, quite the bunch of them. The Varia and the prince… whoever he was won't get away with it!

Bel seethed with anger as he brushed charred objects that dusted his clothes and hair. It fell off in a shower of black snow, only to disappear among the mud ridden ground. His expensive outfit was ruined. His leather jacket no long existed. His boots were the only things that weren't touched because they were made of steel, but other than that, he was ruined.

"Ushishishi… Someone's going to die soon…" he snarled to nothingness, salvaging his many wired knives from underneath his metallic sole. What prince would be stupid to go around unarmed? More like, what Varia Royalty would be so dumb?

Bel cursed. As much as he wanted to rant his heart out to the thick, obsidian fogged sky, it wasn't the right time. He'll rant later. But soon his air would become short and the smoke would actually do damage, despite the flimsy cloth mask he got from his shirt. His poor, poor, princely shirt.

Oh yes, he'd pay.

He ran through the rubbish that used to be Varia HQ. This peasant was strong all right. His foot found a dead body and Bel looked down, only to see it was just one of the scum Mammon called waste of money and what Lussaria called a maid. Fran just called them all frilly idiots.

Speaking of which, where was his frog friend?

Not my problem, he convinced himself. That peasant Fran could take care of himself, regrettably. Sometimes he wished Fran really would die, but he'd tried killing the kid himself, and it was impossible. Infuriatingly impossible.

At last the prince broke free of the wreck. Never in his life had air tasted so sweet. Bel slowed to a clumsy jog, as his ankle was injured, and collapsed atop a hill. He had travelled a considerable distance by then, and could see the stars again, blinking like dying candles littered across space. There was a pillar of musty ugliness where he was not long before, and Bel gave off a spoiled look of disgust before flipping over on his back. He sighed in pleasure. The grass was dew-slick and ice cold, soothing his blaring burns and searing cuts. He flicked off one of his boots and polished it slightly so it was more like a mirror than a shoe. To his morbid horror, he saw in his princely reflection that his hair was singed black at the edges.

So. Dead.

It wasn't until relaxing there for a while, fantasizing about his torturing of that arson peasant that he noticed the long haired freak staring down at him, only a couple inches from his face with a look of irritation. Who dares to get irritated at the prince? Then it hit him. Ohhhh joy…

"VOOOOOIIII!"

Faceless

Chrome was walking home from school one day. It was strange, though… her hair was long and hung loose, no longer mimicking her beloved master's. Her eye felt less heavy and she felt she could see much better. The sky was beautiful and bright with the sun shining down, shedding a warm gold glow over the concrete sidewalk. She thought it was a truly perfect day. A day worthy of being a holiday. It never occurred to her why it was so peaceful, though.

While walking back, there was a thump from her right. Then voices.

"Boss, we caught her."

"Good, bring her in."

There was a series of shuffling and a hard bump followed by a rattling slap of metal against metal. An odd, nervous feeling rose in her chest, and she hid behind a corner. Chrome could see, though. She could see it all. For the people who were talking had walked into a somewhat large clearing of an alley, and were holding a hooded figure.

She narrowed her eyes. Who was this person? She should know everyone in Nanimori.

One man, significantly larger than the rest—and presumably the leader—pointed at a wall.

"Put the trash there," he spat venomously. His voice sent shivers down her spine in more ways than one. It was a …. Strange feeling. The two others did so, leaning the figure none too gently against the wall. In fact, it was more like a throw.

Next came a low moan.

The large one crossed his arms expectantly, and his lackeys moved toward the person again as if it had been a practiced drill and knew exactly what to do. They reached down with their hands… and pulled off the hood.

Chrome almost gasped. She didn't know why. She just did. Weirder still… she couldn't remember knowing this person, yet instinct told her to be worried.

It was a girl, her age, no less. She had strawberry blonde hair and a pretty yet delicate and somehow feral face, even as her eyes were closed as if sleeping. The hair was crimson on the edges, clearly dye, since she hadn't been touched yet. But what caught her eye was the single silver earring on top of her right ear lobe, and the bandage across her nose.

But Chrome could tell it wasn't broken.

Everything else happened in a blur. The girl's eyes fluttered open ever so slightly, yet drowsily. It reminded her of how she was when she woke in the morning for school. Like you want to sleep more, but can't.

"Time to show you what the world's really like, brat!" The big one cackled. It irked her. But the worst part… the worst thing was when the others jumped like hyenas. Those two boys dashed forward and the first kicked her in the stomach. That sure blasted her out of dream land, all right. The girl's pale framed eyes snapped open, revealing her sapphire colors. She arched her back and cried out, real crimson erupting in a bright spray at the ground in front of her. Coincidentally, that crimson also landed on the big guy's shoes.

He looked pissed off.

"Brat!" He yelled, and rose his huge, fat boot.

The boot went down.

Chrome's body acted on its own. Suddenly, she was in front of the girl, crouched in front of her like a human barrier, her back taking the hit solid and full. Chrome gave half a cough, half a scream, feeling pure agony spike up her spine.

Man it hurt.

There was a lot of talking, a lot of yelling, and a lot of moans. Bu tin the speed, half of it wasn't comprehended. All she knew was that now, they were beating on her.

Why am I protecting this girl? She thought. I…I don't even know her…

But thinking those words made something unsettling fly in her stomach. Was that true?

A hard punch came to her ears. Everything rang. Her violet eyes were closed. She was lying on the floor like dead meat, too weak to move, almost too weak to care. The last time she had felt so bad was when the link was temporarily cut with Mukuro. And that was terrible. It was then she was conscious that the beating had ceased, and of the hot liquid pouring out of her mouth.

Was she dead?

No… Chrome felt the steady and pained rise and fall of her chest. She felt the icy ground. Her eyes cracked open at a snail's pace after something warm and comforting touched her chest.

What she saw surprised her. It was that girl… the strawberry one. She was still bleeding, but not as much in the gut that she was over the knuckles. Apparently, that was the chord striking moment, because then Chrome felt aware of her surroundings at last.

The three boys were in a heap at the far corner looking worse than she felt. Somehow, it pleased her.

The girl helped up Chrome to a sitting position against a cleaner wall.

"Are you alright?" She asked with genuine concern. Chrome tried to smile, but was sure it wasn't pretty.

"I'm okay… are… are you fine?"

The girl suddenly turned cheery and put her hand on Chrome's head, ruffling her hair gently.

"Come one, don't worry about me." She laughed. It was then it occurred to her how nice her laugh was, and how hyper and wild and… kind… her eyes seemed. "You got hurt because of me…"

She hesitated.

"You saved me, really."

Chrome looked at her with questioning eyes, so the girl continued.

"Those thugs drugged me with something… I… I'm not sure what it was, but hell it felt good at first. Well, that was probably 'cuz I was out like a bolt. Then I woke up here… felt the punch…"

The girl grinned like a cat and sat cross legged in front of her with a true grateful expression.

"Thought I might die, yeah. You took the beating for me before I could wake up…"

"…and you don't even know me," she finished in awe. "Thanks a lot."

Chrome smiled.

"Come to think of it, I haven't introduced myself yet," she said, sticking out her hand for a shake. Chrome did likewise. "My name's Ink. Ink Melody. And if you ever need help—if you're ever in a pinch, I'll find you. Not just because of this, but because…"

She stopped. "…How do I put this…"

"…It's because I feel like I know you more than I know myself."

Ink flashed a smile. "Take this," she said, holding out a black hair band. "It's something my mother gave me. I don't like black, so you can have it!"

When Chrome took it, Ink was talking again.

"Sooo…. What's your name?"

What Chrome said next shocked her most out of everything so far. Her lips… they moved on their own.

"Nagi."

Faceless

Chrome woke in a cold sweat. Her hands were clamming, pruned, and chilled to the bone. She was lying down half covered in blankets in a large white room with no decorations and too many doors. It almost felt like a prison.

Almost.

Kyoko was lying down next to her in another cot. She was sleeping soundly and was snuggled tightly onto Hana's stomach. Both looked peaceful despite the abnormal, undefined fear that pierced her chest. Haru was to Chrome's left and was in her own dream as well, except this time she wasn't sure if it was good or not because she was frowning quite deep.

All of them were in a new hideout. Now that the last one had been found out, it was only natural. The only thing unnatural was that Lambo said it first. On a normal situation she would have giggled thinking about it—half of her thought of him as that little boy from 10 years ago who always got into trouble. But back to the point, all the people who had ties with the Vongola in any way were transported to the hideout for safety… especially since the chains of attacks started up. It was mayhem—every 7 hours another HQ or Branch of Acquainted source would fall, and each one would have little survivors.

The bunk above her squeaked and shuffled, until a head dangled down with two black braids, staring down at Chrome with concern.

"You okay?" Asked I-Pin, sensing her unrest. I-Pin was one of the only escapees of the shootout in the town she was in. It was terrible, I-Pin described. 'Blood…everywhere. Death. Body parts were flying… I was so scared… but I fell more guilty about the fact I wasn't able to save anyone.'

I-Pin was in tears that time. She's not very old, Chrome reflected. Still a teen, just like Lambo. Still like me—only I'm older.

"I'm fine," she replied, incoherently trying to search through the remnants of her dream. She couldn't remember anything now. Only that it was… no, even that is fading. And it confused her. It scared her.

"I can tell you're lying," I-Pin replied, puffing out her cheeks. Chrome rewarded her observation with a small smile. It's no wonder, though—she was frequently with the younger girl ever since the beginning. They were almost like sisters, like how she and Lambo were like siblings as well. Chrome couldn't count how many hours she burned babysitting them.

"Yeah, your right," Chrome murmured, looking away slightly and distantly. "But I don't know what's wrong. It's weird."

"It's all right," I-Pin declared, this time hanging off the bunk completely with her legs hooked over the cushion. She swung and gave Chrome an upside down hug that made her tumble backwards and narrowly miss elbowing Haru in the ribcage. She covered her mouth with both hands to prevent laughing, but I-pin on the other hand couldn't keep it in, and had a fit. Unfortunately for her, she forgot she was dangling at a dangerous angle and fell off, dropping on the edge of Chrome's cot then bouncing right next to Kyoko. Hana apparently woke up and gave I-Pin the death glare, who gulped and inched back up her bunk.

"Off to sleep I guess…" whispered I-Pin nervously, apparently slightly unnerved by Hana. Who could blame her?

But apparently, they won't be getting sleep any time soon. An alarm rang so loud Chrome felt her ears would bleed and jumped from under her covers. I-Pin fell off again, but this time her face was that of pure horror. Hana was up like a bolt. Kyoko was up just as fast, rivaled by Haru, only Haru was more skittish with eyes wide and frightful.

Bianchi and Lal Mirch, who ran out of the bathroom in the urgency, joined the others. Lal cursed. And Bianchi looked ready to fight.

All the girls heard Ryohei over the loudspeaker.

"Intruder at the left wing, advancing fast! Guardian's proceed to the Central HQ, Lal go and assist Bianchi. Men, begin lockdown procedure! Dino and Decimo, proceed to the EAS! Hibari, abandon station and go to the—crap! How the hell did—"

Ryohei Sasagawa was cut off into a pained yell. The loudspeaker was still on, but nothing came out but gritty noise.

Looks like they weren't getting sleep tonight.