Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Haunting Memories

"Papa…Papa!" Nana cried hysterically, reaching for Professor Kurama, who stood a few feet away cradling Mariko in his arms. "Please don't leave me, Papa!" Tears flowed from Kurama's eyes while he gazed into Nana's face. However, before Nana could touch him, he vanished with Mariko…Nana's hands passing through empty air where Kurama had just been. Tears poured from Nana's eyes as she abruptly found herself standing in front of the Buddha on the stone stairs wearing only Kurama's coat, seeing him and Mariko on the footbridge a half mile away on the bay. A few steps away stood the Institute scientist, Isobe, who'd activated the timer on the bomb implanted in Mariko's head. Nana's arms remained outstretched, tears dripping from her eyes as her heart sank into her feet. "No…" she gasped when an explosion consumed Kurama and his daughter. Nana fell to her knees, tears gushing. "He can't…he can't be gone! It's not fair…Papa!"

"You're the only one left…think of the reward!" Isobe crowed, training his pistol on Nana.

She looked at him with a gasp, seeing the pistol. Seconds later, his smug look turned to surprise when his head separated from his neck in slow motion. Blood gushed, splattering on the wall behind him. Isobe's body seemed to stand there forever before collapsing. Everything became hazy and ethereal to Nana; the whole scene slowly fading away as Lucy's face and voice echoed, "Greedy, foolish humans. They're worthless."

"No, they're not!" Nana sobbed. "Papa was…Papa was…"

Lucy's face vanished…her voice echoing in the darkness that swallowed Nana, "Go and live with Kohta in that house. I want you to do what I can't do…as much as I wish I could."

Nana's eyes opened and she abruptly sat up in bed. She glanced at the clock on the nightstand. It read 4:30 am. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she pushed her prosthetic knees to her chest and clenched them, realizing she'd only had a bad dream. Soft sobs erupted from her while she buried her face in her knees, crying, "Papa…Lucy."

Meanwhile, in the thicket down by the bay, Lucy suddenly awoke with a gasp. The crashing of the waves echoed in her ears as the smell of her blood nauseated her. She rolled on her side, trembling violently while looking at her bloodstained sanctuary. Her vision fluctuated wildly; her head throbbing painfully. Yet, she could tell dawn was coming with the twilight glow from the east. "Kohta…" she whispered. A deep, rasping cough erupted from her, setting her nerves and wounds ablaze with pain. Blood rose in her mouth and she vomited it out, after which she gritted her teeth in agony. When the pain subsided to a tolerable level, rivers of tears flowed. "Oh Kohta," she wept. "…to see you just one more time."

Laying her head on the sandy ground, she sobbed quietly, tears running down her cheeks. Blood oozed from her mouth and the bullet wounds she received in the ambush. Her vision trembled as sweat beaded on her brow. "What am I going to do?" she whimpered. "I'm too weak to even get up from here, much less go home to Kohta. What am I going to do?" Desolation began filling her soul when she realized the thicket would most likely be her grave. Haunting laughter began echoing through her tortured mind…the laughter of mocking and hatred. It was laughter she was well acquainted with coming from her dark diclonius self…Dark Lucy.

"Now look at you," Dark Lucy mocked. "Where're your friends now? You're nothing without me and you know it!"

Lucy clenched her eyes shut and moaned, "Oh shut up! I'm not in the mood to hear your lies."

Dark Lucy laughed her to scorn, saying, "Lies? Lies? You're so naïve, Lucy. I never told you lies. I told you the truth when I told you that you'd never be free of me. You can't get rid of me any more than you can stop breathing. I'm a part of you and you know it. Though I must admit, you surprised me earlier. Where's that other diclonius that helped you? I've a score to settle with that bitch."

Lucy suddenly found Dark Lucy looking in her face with a scowl. Dark Lucy looked like someone had sewn her pieces back together. "Where's that bitch, Lucy?" she hissed. "I'm going to rip her apart just like you did to me!"

"I don't know," Lucy replied sullenly. After a lengthy pause, she added, "Even if I did, I wouldn't tell you, you stupid bitch. Now go away and leave me the hell alone."

Dark Lucy's eyes narrowed menacingly. "You DARE speak to me that way? I'll teach you to speak to me that way." Her vectors came out wrapped around Lucy like a snake, picking her up in the air. When they constricted, Lucy's eyes opened wide and a gasp escaped her lips, followed by a gush of blood. Every breath she took allowed Dark Lucy's vectors to get even tighter until she felt her ribs and bones cracking under the strain. "Where's that BITCH?" Dark Lucy roared. Lucy wavered, her heart pounding painfully.

"Nyu?" a voice called out, getting the attention of both Dark Lucy and Lucy. They looked, seeing a third avatar of Lucy standing a few feet away with large innocent eyes and a look of horror on her face.

"I was wondering when you'd come out, you worthless little rug rat," Dark Lucy hissed upon seeing Nyu. "I'll deal with you after I teach Lucy a lesson."

"Nyu…Run, Nyu!" Lucy gasped. "Get away, Nyu! She'll…kill…you…if you… AHHHH!" Blood began to dribble on the ground as Dark Lucy's vectors slowly crushed Lucy.

"Shut up, Lucy!" Dark Lucy snapped, squeezing even harder with her vectors. "She can't escape me any more than you can!"

"K…o…h…t…a…" Lucy gurgled, blood rising in her throat.

Nyu's eyes grew wide as she saw the sadistic cruelty of Dark Lucy. Suddenly, Nyu rushed in not knowing the danger, crying, "Lucy!" Before she could reach them, one of Dark Lucy's vectors slapped her brutally, sending her flying.

"Stupid infant!" Dark Lucy hissed. "You dare to challenge me? You don't even have vectors to fight with."

Nyu landed in a heap with a shriek. For a few moments, she lay motionless as Dark Lucy grinned wickedly. "Is that all you've got, Lucy…calling on that child you created when we were shot after escaping the island? What a disappointment."

When Lucy saw the hit to Nyu, she snapped and the white flame reappeared in her eyes. The gurgling moan grew into a roar of rage that even surprised Dark Lucy. "Nyu!" Lucy shrieked. Her vectors sprang from her back in an instant, leaving Dark Lucy's vector cocoon in shreds. Before she hit the ground, two of Lucy's superior vectors caught her while the other four pounded Dark Lucy in the head and chest, sending her flying. Dark Lucy started loosing cohesion from the hits, hemorrhaging pieces of her patchwork body while airborne.

After her vectors set her down, Lucy rushed to Nyu, rolling her over. "Lucy…" Nyu cried softly, tears running down her cheek.

"I'm so sorry, Nyu," Lucy sobbed, cradling her head and shoulders in her lap. Turning her head to Dark Lucy, Lucy's eyes narrowed as a growl rose from her toes. "You'll not touch Nyu ever again, you bitch!"

Dark Lucy staggered forward, missing her left arm and a third of her head with her brain exposed. Blood poured from the wounds as she laughed Lucy to scorn. "You still don't get it? You can't kill me! I'll always come back and I'll do whatever the hell I want to that infant!"

Lucy was about to pounce when yet another version of her appeared behind Dark Lucy. Lucy's eyes grew wide as the new avatar said icily, "She may not be able to, but I can." Dark Lucy wheeled around to see a seven-foot Lucy grabbing her by the throat, lifting her up. Dark Lucy gurgled as this new Giant Lucy pulled her nose to nose. "You're far too sure of your power to be saying Lucy can't kill you. You still don't understand that we're all part of her and she can dispose of any piece she doesn't like, including you."

Dark Lucy looked into the eyes of the Giant Lucy, seeing the telltale white flame there. "So…you're the one who ripped me apart before?" she hissed.

A smile crossed the Giant Lucy's face that sent chills racing down Dark Lucy's spine. "So you want to kill me?" Giant Lucy growled. "I don't think so. You're nothing but a spoiled brat and I'm not going to have you tormenting Lucy any longer."

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Dark Lucy retorted.

"I'm the Queen!" Giant Lucy roared, raising Dark Lucy high in the air by the neck. "I'm the one who decides who lives and who dies!" She body-slammed Dark Lucy into the ground, shattering her body. Blood gushed from Dark Lucy's pieces, soaking into the ground. "In order for Lucy to survive, we must all work together and merge with her. She must know the truth of humanity. Thanks to you, she's only seen the bad side of humanity. She must now see the good side, and then decide how we must proceed as a race. As a queen of our race, it's her choice that will help decide the fate of our race…whether to exterminate humanity like you want or to spare them and become part of their world. You'll not interfere any more with her! If you do, I will make sure she has the power to purge your existence from her mind and soul. Now get the hell out of here."

Dark Lucy scowled and her shattered body crumbled to dust. "I'll be watching, Lucy…always watching," her voice echoed as her head blew away like a pile of sand in a sandstorm.

Giant Lucy approached Lucy and Nyu and knelt down in front of them. "Are you all right, Lucy?" she asked.

Lucy nodded, saying, "I guess so. Who are you really?"

"I'm you, Lucy, just as Nyu is you too, and even your dark counterpart," Giant Lucy stated with a smile. Lucy stared at her with a cross, suspicious look and Giant Lucy sighed, saying, "I'm a part of you that you've forgotten…the real you that you lost years ago. My name's Kaeda. I've watched helplessly as your dark self tormented you, setting your path in blood and tears. However, when you confessed to Kohta and confronted your dark counterpart after the ambush, I was finally able to help you. I know you love Kohta and I want you to know and experience that love. So does Nyu, right Nyu?"

"Nyu!" Nyu beamed. "Nyu love Kohta!"

"I know you do," Kaeda replied, patting her on the head as Lucy cradled the piece of her shattered personality that allowed her to connect to Kohta…the piece called Nyu.

Lucy looked at Kaeda, and then Nyu. "What's happened to me?" Lucy moaned, blood trickling from her wounds.

"Lucy…" Kaeda said, suddenly scooping her up. She cradled Lucy carefully in her lap as Nyu touched Lucy on the arm. Lucy stared in disbelief at Kaeda. "Lucy, your mind is shattered," Kaeda said softly. "We're all pieces of you. But you're the core, Lucy. You're the one who has the last say about everything. You created Nyu after escaping the Institute so you could be with Kohta without hurting him. However, your dark self and I have been part of you since the beginning. We're the good and bad parts of you distilled into distinct personalities because of who you are. Let me ask you something…do you remember your parents?"

Lucy looked blankly into Kaeda's face, saying, "No…only that they abandoned me as a baby because I was a freak."

"Oh Lucy…" Kaeda said softly. "You've endured such grief and pain. You've believed what people have said about you for so long. But they're wrong…dead wrong. You're not a freak. You're just as human as they are. Your parents were human, Lucy…full-blooded humans and that makes you human...a very special human, but human nonetheless."

"Yea…right," Lucy hissed with a scowl. "These horns say otherwise. Real humans don't have horns or vectors. They see my horns and despise me because I'm different."

"You don't need to tell me that," Kaeda replied. "I've experienced everything those hate-filled people did to you. But may I point out that you react the same way they do, except that you have the ability to lethally retaliate with your vectors. But they aren't all like that. Kohta isn't that way. Mayu isn't like that and neither was your mother."

"How do you know?" Lucy growled. "I have no memory of my mother."

"That's because of your shattered mind," Kaeda stated, gently caressing Lucy's hair. "The memory of your mother is sealed off because of the trauma of what you've endured. You see, I was sealed off as well until that night on the stone stairs with Kohta. You released me when you confessed and apologized to Kohta. The moment you felt he loved and wanted you in that embrace, I was freed. Thank you for freeing me so I could help. However, your memory of momma is still sealed up. I can help you remember her if you'll let me."

Lucy felt torn about the supposed memory Kaeda spoke about. "I don't know…" Lucy said softly. "Like I said, all I really know is they abandoned me. The children at the orphanage never let me forget it."

"I know," Kaeda replied. "Remember, even though I was sealed away, I did experience everything you did. I saw what they did to you and saw your descent into the darkness because of it. But I always held out hope that someday, you'd find your way out of that darkness and I was right. Kohta is your salvation and curse. He's your curse because of what you did to him. However, he's also your salvation because of his love for you inspite of what happened. The two of you are two sides to the same coin. You and he are forever bound to each other by what happened eight years ago. Momma would've wanted you to do exactly what you did on the stairs. She would've wanted you to be happy."

"You speak as if you knew her," Lucy whispered, thinking about Kohta. "How can I really know?"

"Let me help you remember her," Kaeda pleaded. "I can help you do that, but you'll have to trust me."

A sigh escaped Lucy's lips as the desire to know her mother grew. "Okay, I'll give it a shot. You did help me with my dark half, for which I'm grateful."

"Great!" Kaeda beamed. She suddenly looked at Nyu, asking, "Nyu…do you know your mother?"

Nyu gazed into Kaeda's face. "Nyu know momma? Momma…Lucy only momma Nyu know."

"You're so right, Nyu," Kaeda stated. "Lucy's your mother because she made you. But Lucy has a real mother, yet doesn't remember who she is or anything about her."

"Just what are you getting at?" Lucy asked pointedly. "I told you before…I never knew them…end of story!"

A sigh escaped Kaeda's lips as she caressed Lucy's hair. "Lucy…Don't be so ready to bite someone's head off when you don't get a quick answer or the one you like. I'm just explaining things to Nyu. She is just a little girl, remember. She's just as much part of your answer as I am.

"You see, just as your dark self knows the ways of the diclonius, so do I. Your dark counterpart only utilizes the destructive potentials of our kind to get revenge on those who tormented you. But as you've finally realized to your credit, revenge begets revenge and it'll only lead to the annihilation of humanity…human and diclonius alike. Listen to me, Lucy, even if we remake the world the way your dark self wanted, the humans would never allow it. They'd destroy themselves in an effort to kill us. They'd destroy the world rather than let us rise above them. You know this. This is the world your dark half wants…a world of chaos and utter destruction. A species cannot survive in chaos. It's just not possible. Chaos consumes and destroys everything, leaving nothing left. However, your dark self never looked close enough at our powers to realize what we're truly capable of. Yes, we're capable of great destruction. But on the other hand, we're just a capable of doing great good. Did you know that your diclonius power as a queen allows you to heal? Just as your vectors can penetrate into living tissue without harming it, it can repair damage done. For example, I recall an instance where you caused an aneurism in a girl by severing an artery in her brain."

Lucy remembered it vividly. The girl never did anything to her, yet when she passed by, her eyes went dark as she dropped dead on the sidewalk with a gasp. "I can't control it," Lucy moaned as her vector retracted into her back. She walked on without looking back. Tears welled up as she came out of her remembrance, looking into Kaeda's eyes.

"I see you remember it," Kaeda stated softly as Nyu gripped Lucy's hand. "In that instance, had you gone back, you could've repaired the break you caused with much more precision than any surgeon ever could and she would've lived. You can even repair the damage done in the ambush. However, you'll need help. Kohta's your help, Lucy. He'll help you. You can also retrieve lost memories. I know you don't know who your parents are, but I do. What I'm going to say you may not like, but you must hear it. Your mother loved you dearly and refused to part with you. However, she died a couple weeks after giving birth to you. Your father blamed you for her death because you weren't normal. That's why you were abandoned. He despised your existence and left you for the wild animals to devour."

Lucy's heart shattered. Her face told everything with a look of shock and rage. Her eyes grew wide as tears dripped from them. "Why are you telling me this?" she hissed venomously. "Why destroy what's taken me a lifetime to find?"

"I'm not destroying it," Kaeda replied. "The specter of your origin will destroy it only if you let it. Besides, I'm not finished yet. You're mother loved you dearly and believe it or not, you're named after her. Do you know what her name was, Lucy?"

"Kaeda!" Nyu chimed with a broad smile.

"That's right, Nyu," Kaeda replied. "Lucy's real mother was named Kaeda and so Lucy's real name is Kaeda."

"You're nuts!" Lucy balked, squirming to get away from Kaeda. "If my name's Kaeda, then why am I Lucy?"

Kaeda gently sat Lucy up and looked into her eyes. "Because this is the name the humans gave you. This is how they know you. However, you must believe that your mother loved you very much. Here, let me jog your memory." A single vector sprouted from Kaeda's back and gently penetrated into the folds of Lucy's brain.

Lucy's vectors reacted instantly, springing out menacingly, shoving Nyu aside. "What the hell are you doing?" Lucy demanded.

"Relax, Lucy…I'm just unlocking your past like I said I would," Kaeda replied. Before Lucy could respond with her vectors, Kaeda's vector retracted and Lucy gasped. A memory of her mother surfaced.

Lucy found herself looking up at her mother through the eyes of an infant. It startled her that her mother looked so much like she did. She felt so safe and secure in her mother's arms. "Such a beautiful girl, my Kaeda," Lucy's mother whispered to her. "I love you so much, Kaeda. I'll not let anyone take you away from me, no matter how strange you look." She kissed Lucy on the forehead and Lucy choked.

Sobs rose in her as she came out of her remembrance. "Momma…" she cried, looking into Kaeda's face.

Kaeda patted her on the back, saying, "It wasn't your fault, Lucy. Your mother loved you deeply. You were her treasure…the most important thing in the world to her."

Tears streamed down her cheeks as Lucy looked down, sobbing as she recalled the only memory of her mother. "Don't cry, Lucy," Nyu cooed. "Why you cry?"

Lucy looked up, seeing Nyu's large, bright eyes and Kaeda's sympathetic face next to her. "I don't know. I just can't seem to stop crying for some reason." Suddenly, the memory of her abandonment surfaced.

"Don't look at me like that, you little beast!" Lucy's father hissed. "You should've never been allowed to live. It's your fault Kaeda's dead!" Lucy looked up at her father through infant eyes, seeing his dark brown hair and eyes. His face was etched with sorrow, anger, and fear as he walked through the woods with her in his arms. Lucy whined as he shouted, "SHUT UP, you little devil! It's time for me to right a serious wrong." With that, he hurled the infant Lucy into a deep ravine. She briefly saw him walking away as she tumbled through the air. The spinning and falling made her nauseous until she hit the side of the ravine. Pain shot through her that elicited a piercing cry, which echoed through the forest. The infant Lucy tumbled down the steep slope, hitting rocks and trees until she came to a rest beside a large oak growing just above the bottom of the ravine. She wailed in pain until she exhausted herself, falling unconscious.

When the flashback faded away, Lucy's demeanor had changed. Her rage and hatred for humans flared as she hissed, "Why did he do that to me? I hope he rots in hell for what he did and if I ever find him, I'll send him there myself!" Tears of rage flowed from the memory as she turned her burning glare to Kaeda. "I wish you'd left the past buried so I couldn't remember it, Kaeda! I just remembered my dad throwing me into a gully in the woods and leaving me! He threw me away because I wasn't human!"

Nyu recoiled in shock at Lucy's venomous temper. Kaeda sighed with a troubled look. "Yes…he did, the bastard," Kaeda replied coldly. "It wasn't right. However, you can't let what he did to you ruin what you discovered about your mother. Not everyone is like him, or Tomoo, Kakuzawa, or even that soldier, Bandoh. Kohta isn't like that. Would you kill him in your rage over what your father did eighteen years ago?"

Lucy's anger froze. Shock crossed her face at Kaeda's words. Nyu moved in and knelt in front of Lucy…inches between their faces. "Please no hurt Kohta…no make Kohta cry again, Lucy! Please no make Kohta cry!" she begged.

Once again, little Kohta's voice echoed through her tortured mind for all to hear. "Stop it! Stop it, please! No more…you have to stop!"

Lucy's eyes grew wide as she heard little Kohta. Tears flowed down her cheeks. "Kohta…" she whimpered, her rage fading. "I must get back to him…we must get back to him."

A smile rose on Kaeda's face. "Yes…it's time to go home, Lucy," she said. Then, without a word, Kaeda's vectors emerged and touched Lucy's wounds. Lucy howled in pain as Kaeda's vectors pulled the bullets from her body. Nyu retreated with tears in her eyes as Lucy writhed in agony. "Just a moment more," Kaeda stated calmly, using her vectors to stabilize Lucy's condition. "There…this should help you get home. Listen to me, Lucy…Use your vectors to heal yourself. I've managed to stabilize your condition so you can get home to Kohta. But you're the one who'll have to do the healing. I've infused some of my strength in you to help you get home. If you need my help, just ask. And be wary of your dark side. She's lurking out there, waiting for your hatred to rise enough to allow her to act."

Lucy's mind fluctuated with the pain as she half-listened to Kaeda. "Want to go home now…" Lucy mumbled through her pain.

"Then by all means, go home," Kaeda encouraged.

"Go home to Kohta," Nyu chimed as Lucy found them fading away.

Moments later, Lucy found herself in her thicket sanctuary, lying on her side with the pain slowly ebbing away. The early morning sun penetrated the thicket, casting shadows around her sanctuary. Her fluctuating sight drifted around until it fell on her open hand, seeing six bullets laying there. "What're these?" she moaned.

The bullets I removed from your body, Kaeda's voice echoed in her mind. Now take my strength and get up. Go home to Kohta. He'll take care of you.

"Go home," Nyu's voice echoed in Lucy's ears. "Make Kohta happy…go home!"

A smile slowly crossed Lucy's lips as she clenched the bullets in her fist. Upon shifting position, she found her strength rising and the pain falling back to a tolerable level. Within moments, she sat up and touched the wound in her side. Pain flared, but the blood flowing from the wounds had all but ceased. You can do it, Kaeda's voice chimed in Lucy's mind.

Lucy's face brightened with hope as she realized her sanctuary in the thicket wouldn't be her grave after all. "I'm coming home, Kohta…I'm coming," she whispered sincerely.

Kohta lay face down in his bed as the early morning sun peeked through his bedroom window. A groan rose from him when he rolled over. What's the point, he thought. Nyu's gone forever. I'll never see her again. He glanced at his clock, seeing 5:45 AM on the display. His head throbbed painfully. "Ugh…what a terrible night," he muttered, touching his head. When he felt a bandage there, his heart sank. "It wasn't a nightmare…it really happened." A trembling sigh escaped his lips as he pondered what to do. A knock came to his door. Before he could sit up, the door opened.

"Kohta…are you awake?" Nana whispered while peeking in, wearing a maroon nightgown that matched her eyes.

He struggled to sit up as Nana quietly entered, closing the door behind her. She rushed to his assistance, helping him sit up. When he focused on Nana's face, tears dripped out of his eyes. "What do you want?" he asked gloomily.

Nana knelt and looked into his eyes. Her lips quivered and tears flowed down her cheeks. "I had a bad dream," she whimpered, trembling all over.

"You're not the only one," Kohta murmured sullenly.

Nana abruptly hugged him, crying, "Don't leave us, Kohta. We need you…I need you. Lucy wanted me to live here and do what she said she couldn't, as much as she wanted to. Please, don't go."

Kohta forgot his grief for a moment, totally surprised by Nana's affection and confession of Lucy's last words to her. "I lost my Papa last night just before you lost Lucy. I don't want to loose you like I lost him," she cried.

Kohta hesitantly returned the embrace, saying, "I'm not going to leave, Nana. It's just going to take me time to deal with loosing Nyu."

"You loved her, didn't you?" Nana asked, settling back into a kneeling position in front of him, hands in her lap.

A sigh escaped his lips as he wiped his eyes. "Yes…I did," he admitted after a long pause. "I loved her, even though she was the one who killed my dad and sister."

Shock spread over Nana's face. "She killed your family and you still love her? How can you love the person who killed your family?"

Kohta shook his head. "I don't know. We were ten years old when it happened. But something happened last night I can't forget. Before she left me, Nyu apologized for killing Kanae and my dad. I begged her not to go but she left anyway. After she left, I realized that I really did love her, inspite of what she did to me. Maybe it was the remorse I saw in her or maybe it was my love of her back then before that terrible incident. Maybe it was Nyu and her innocence. I really don't understand it myself, but I've always loved her, even back then." Kohta suddenly glanced to the door, seeing it still shut. "Please don't say anything to Yuka. She just wouldn't understand. I don't want her to worry about me."

"I won't say anything," Nana replied with a whisper, looking into Kohta's face. Tears streamed down her cheeks as soft sobs rose from her chest. "Can I stay here for now?" she whimpered. "I don't want to be alone."

A troubled sigh rose from Kohta as he considered the request. "I don't know. Yuka may not take it the right way. She's way too jealous of me."

"Please…" Nana begged. "We can say I was just checking up on you. You were beat up pretty bad when we found you."

"Don't remind me," he growled as the melancholy returned full force. "Last night was the worst night of my life…even worse than the night I lost Kanae and my dad. I suppose if you, Yuka, and Mayu hadn't shown up on that beach, I'd still be down there."

Nana's mouth fell open as she began to grasp the depth of Kohta's wounded heart. "You would've stayed there forever?" she asked.

"At the time, yes," he replied despondently. "I didn't want to live."

She gasped. "You loved Lucy that much?"

"Yes…I did," he murmured. "But now she's gone forever. I watched those soldiers gun her down. Thirty-on-one wasn't very fair odds at all. By the way, do you have those same abilities Nyu had?"

She nodded, saying, "Yea…but I'm no where near as strong as Lucy. My arms are longer than hers are but not nearly as strong. I use them to move these fake arms and legs I got from my first fight with Lucy in the cemetery just up the road. I lost the fight and she ripped my arms and legs off." Nana pulled her prosthetic left arm off, laying it down in front of Kohta.

He gasped. "Nyu did that to you? Impossible! Nyu doesn't have a mean bone in her body," he retorted.

"It wasn't Nyu who did that to me," Nana returned, obviously still hurt by the experience. Tears rose in her eyes as she looked at the fake arm. "It was Lucy I fought with. I didn't understand until later that Lucy and Nyu are two different people in the same body. Nyu is as kind, innocent, and fun as Lucy is mean and dangerous. That night in the graveyard, Lucy was there, not Nyu. If Papa hadn't come at the last minute, I would have died. He saved me and gave me these arms and legs to use and set me free after the Director told him to kill me for failing."

"Why were you fighting Nyu in the first place?" Kohta asked.

"I was trying to get her to return to the Institute," she replied softly. "Papa sent me to find and bring her back. Unfortunately, I wasn't strong enough to do it and now I'm hunted like Lucy. But I've never used my arms to hurt anyone. I'm a good girl." The prosthetic arm suddenly floated back to the stump of her left arm and she flexed it and her fingers. "I just want to be happy. This is the first time I really feel like I have a family."

"Does Mayu know?" he asked, staring at her arm. She nodded and he said, "You shouldn't let Yuka know about them. Who knows how she'd react. It's better she not know, not yet."

"Are you sure?" Nana asked.

"Yep," he returned, wiping his tears away. A thought suddenly occurred to him after hearing how Nana spoke of her Papa. "Would you like to set up a little grave marker or something for your dad, or whoever he was, in the courtyard garden?" he asked. "I think I'm going to set one up for Nyu. Maybe we can put them together under the cherry tree?"

Nana's lips started quivering and tears gushed forth from her eyes. "You'd let me do that, Kohta?" she sobbed. He nodded, tears again streaming down his cheeks. Nana abruptly hugged him again, crying, "Thank you…I know they'll never do that at the Institute."

"I'm sure they wouldn't," he agreed. "Go back to your room and get dressed. We'll do it right now. I'll meet you outside in five minutes so we can pick the spot."

Nana nodded and left with a smile on her face. She quietly closed the door on the way out. Kohta sighed and held his head as it throbbed with each heartbeat. Slowly, he rose and got dressed.

Minutes later, he and Nana were standing out in the courtyard. Wanta…Mayu's little puppy, was still asleep in the doghouse. "Where will we put them?" Nana asked softly.

Kohta walked to the far side of the cherry tree…opposite of Wanta's doghouse and out of its reach. He stopped and stared, remembering how Nyu/Lucy loved to sit under the tree there. "We'll put them here. This was Nyu's favorite spot," he murmured in a distant, depressed tone.

"I like it," Nana chimed. "I hope Lucy doesn't mind being next to Papa. I seem to remember that she didn't like him, though she never actually attacked him."

"I don't think it'll matter," Kohta replied. "She's gone and isn't coming back…not after what I saw." He clenched his fist and looked at the ground trying to keep his composure and his stability. Tears flowed as he began to sway. "I think I should sit down," he stated. "I don't feel very well."

Nana helped him sit down next to the tree and sat beside him, saying, "I'm going to stay with you, just in case you need any help. Besides, I've never seen the sun come up like this before. I'd like to see it."

Kohta cracked a weak smile and patted her on the knee, saying, "Enjoy…maybe when I'm feeling a bit better, we can go to the stone stairs and watch the sun rise over the ocean."

"I'd like that," Nana cooed, becoming drowsy sitting under the tree. A feeling of contentment began pushing her grief away. Suddenly, she felt a faint twinge in her diclonius telepathy. She looked around, and then shook her head, muttering, "Naw…it couldn't be Lucy. Kohta said he saw her die and he wouldn't lie about that." Glancing at Kohta, she noticed he looked very pale and on the verge of falling asleep, like she. The cool morning air was moist with a very light breeze dancing though the trees. Yet, the sunlight was warm where it hit them…so pleasant that it put her to sleep in minutes.

Meanwhile, in the Diclonius Research Institute, Director Kakuzawa looked out the window in his office as Miss Suko Arakawa walked in looking like she'd just woke up. Her hair was haphazardly tied into a ponytail and her dress and lab coat just hung on her frame loosely. "Director…why did you get me up so early in the morning? I didn't get to bed until 2:30 this morning and I haven't even had time to shower," she whined.

Kakuzawa turned to her with icy glare. He walked to his desk and pulled his wig off, throwing it down. Arakawa felt an icy chill race down her spine as fear fell into the pit of her stomach upon seeing his two small horns. Kakuzawa stared at her with the look of a predator sizing up its prey. A sneer curled his lips as he touched a button on the side of his desk. The locks clicked on the doors to the office, sending Arakawa wheeling around. Her heart fell into her feet, fear racing and pulsing through her body.

"Miss Arakawa…" Kakuzawa said with a cruel smile, "…as chief of my staff, you're to come whenever I want, day or night. Too many things have gone wrong here recently. Lucy has proven to be much more resilient that I first thought. But she has a weakness and I know what it is now…thanks to you." He picked up the picture of Kohta and held it up as he walked up to her. "This is the boy who saw my son's body and has an attachment to Lucy. She killed his sister and father eight years ago." Desolation fell over Arakawa's face and Kakuzawa laughed cynically. "I know you tried to hide his identity from me. Did you really think I don't know what's going on inside this facility? I know everything about everyone here…including you, my dear."

Arakawa trembled as Kakuzawa threw the picture down, saying, "Seems shooting you didn't get my message across. Maybe something a bit more direct is in order to get you to behave."

"What're you going to do to him?" she suddenly demanded in a brief spurt of courage.

"He's nothing but bait to lure Lucy back here," he growled. "I already know where he is and have him under surveillance. Lucy escaped our SAT teams again and if she's still alive, I believe she may go back to that insect. When she does, we'll snare them both and bring them here. If she doesn't cooperate this time, I'll let her watch while we vivisect him."

Horror flashed over her face. "You monster…that's horrendous! Why would you do such a thing? He's just a boy!"

"That boy is nothing but an animal…that's all," Kakuzawa hissed. "Our kind is the one fated to rule this planet and I intend make that a reality. It's my right to guide this new humanity into a new golden age. However, before it can happen, the old age and its throwbacks must be purged in fire and blood. This world will burn and from the ashes, the new diclonius race will rise supreme! It's survival of the fittest…one of the oldest facts of evolution. Those who are not strong will be culled from the flock."

"You're insane!" she retorted, backing away toward the door.

He glared at her and she froze…panic setting in. Every muscle in her arms and legs refused to move, as if he had some power over them. Terror dripped off her as Kakuzawa approached menacingly. He relished and basked in her terror. "Not so…it's you who're insane by not accepting the change, which is inevitable. It's your fate, my dear. The change is coming whether you like it or not. The diclonius race is slowly building and when their numbers reach critical mass, the culling of humanity will begin. Only those humans who are strong enough will survive this chaos. Are you among that special group of the strong, Miss Arakawa? Will you be able to withstand the diclonius onslaught?"

He smile viciously as he leaned in and sniffed her face and neck, glorying in the fear he smelled rising off her. After sampling her scent, he looked her in the eye; his stare boring holes into her soul. "I have a confession, Suko. My plans for you include more than just having you run the Institute. I'm part diclonius…my genetic material watered down over generations of inbreeding with you humans. That's why I don't have any vectors. It's my goal to reverse that somehow so I can be pureblood diclonius again. That is why Lucy is so important. She must be found so I can breed with her to perpetuate my line and find the means to rejuvenate my diluted diclonius powers. My line must be perpetuated at all costs. And you, my dear, are here to serve me in all matters to make sure that happens. Serve me and you will not perish in the coming annihilation. But disobey me again, and I will make you one of my experiments where we find out whether a pure-blood human can be turned into a pure-blood diclonius."

Suko Arakawa closed her eyes and whimpered as he pushed her to the couch. "Do I make myself clear?" he asked icily, removing her lab coat.

She nodded, thinking, What did I do to deserve this?

"Good," Kakuzawa returned while pushing her down on the couch. "Now you must serve me. Just relax and enjoy it. I know I will."

Moments later as a guard patrolled outside of the director's office, Suko Arakawa's scream echoed through the door. The guard paused, turning to the door. He then shrugged and went on with his patrol, knowing better than to intrude on the Director.

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A/N: I must apologize for taking so long to get this chapter out. When I did the first chapter, I really didn't anticipate how well it would be received. However, thanks to those of you who wrote those amazing reviews, it spurred me to continue the story. I plan on not letting the next chapter take so long. As for the story, there are few more juicy tidbits revealed in this chapter that I think you'll like. Even though Dark Lucy got her butt kicked in the last chapter, she's not done yet. I won't spoil it for you. Just read on to find out Lucy's fate. I hope you like the surprises that are in store. Again, thanks for all the great reviews.

Beowulf Caverias