The morning had arrived, with streams of light streaking in horizontal lines all across the tiled bathroom floor. Muffled voices came through in distant, incoherent syllables through the door and made about much sense as the window in the most private of all areas within each and everyone's home. Haseo made a small groan, feeling an awkward ache in her shoulders and lower back from having fallen asleep in such an awkward, curled up angle on the hard floor. When had she fallen asleep? Probably somewhere in-between questions one through five hundred… she mused, and dragged herself up into a standing position. Turning the faucet, she splashed cold water onto her face with her body shivering from the chill. Goosebumps rose up and down her arms, legs, and stomach as she continued to do so, ignoring the sensation best she could. The voices were still talking, and though still muffled now that she was more conscious she could make out each relatively well.
There was Silabus talking, and it sounded as though she was finished up explaining what had transpired last night. The Terror of Death froze, one half covering her face with droplets of water slipping down her skin while one red eye stared in a quiet horror. Who was the brunette talking to, and why was she telling them so much? The other hand remained fastened to the tap, knuckles turning white as her grip on it tightened. Silabus did not sound scared, there was definitely concern in her voice along with worry but that was somewhat a given that she would be after last night. Whoever was out there, the other woman more than likely knew. Even so, Haseo sucked in a sharp breath making a soft hissing sound in annoyance. Her eyes narrowed, and she used more force than necessary to turn the water off - whoever wanted to turn the faucet back on was going to have trouble doing so. Her other hand wiped the remaining excess water off, while the one leaving the abused faucet grabbed a towel so she could dry up the remainder of her face.
The other voice was male, and put simply he sounded a little older and more confused than much else. As the two continued to talk about last night's events, it suddenly occurred to Haseo that the entire time they were using her current alias. She had only two, really - Haseo, and Sora. Although, much of her days as Sora were vague recollections and if anyone asked her to describe that year of her life she could only grunt. Neither were her real names. Everyone had an alias, as a person's real name was quite often the equivalent to his or her ID Number. Giving that out was plain stupid. Digressions aside, it occurred to her that only a select few people made the connection between Haseo and the Terror of Death. Silabus was being careful, in a remarkably honest and roundabout way. Much as she wished against it, she had to commend the other for such a clever maneuver.
But at the same time, the man's voice sounded familiar… in a grating, annoying fashion that much as she wanted was unable to place as to why. Combine this with the fact that she refused to remain in the bathroom any longer (especially considering she fell asleep in there), Haseo deftly unlocked the door from the inside and exited with one hand at the ready to grab one of her blades were the need to arise. Red orbs turned to slits seeing the face to the man's voice, and suddenly she realized why she had recognized it but been unable to figure out why. She had been intentionally trying to forget THAT face.
Sitting on the couch, mouth slightly agape was a man a few years older than her with long blue hair pulled back into a ponytail. He was wearing a casual pair of olive slacks, along with a yellow and black shirt that was fairly long. The two stared at one another, while in the background Silabus turned between the two both anxious and incredibly unsure. They recognized each other? From where, and why?
"Hello again, Terror of Death." Kuhn greeted his shocked expression turning into a wide grin. "Y'know, we've been looking for you." He stopped, and turned to the perplexed brunette. "You should have told me she was staying here! Could have made sense of your story a lot sooner if you had. Damn. Hahah, I didn't know you were so good at finding people. Think you can help me find a date for this Friday?"
"How do you know him?" Haseo ground out to Silabus, completely ignoring the babblings of the blunette made.
"Kuhn?" Silabus blinked, and seeing the nod looked to her old friend. "Oh. We met shortly after I moved here. He helped me find my way around, and took care of Canard before I did." She gave a soft smile, though still somewhat uncomfortable. There was an awful lot of constrained anger on Haseo's part, and though Kuhn appeared outwardly relaxed his hand was rested awfully close to his steam gun. He apparently did not trust the Terror of Death to hold back forever. "He left about a month or so ago though, for personal reasons." That he never explained to me went the subtext though it was soft with a since-healed hurt.
"And while we're at it, how do you two know each other?" Kuhn asked, waving his hand between the two women. Silabus flushed a bit, recalling the exact reason how. Not a subject she was especially eager to share with anyone who did not own a uterus.
"Tampons." Haseo explained point-blank, and though Kuhn was initially thrown off by the level of blunt force from mere words he quickly regained his ground with a short chuckle. "So. Since you know so damn much, any idea what the hell happened last night?" She snapped, eyes flashing as the slits opened just enough to add more force behind her glower. From how her face was currently angled, if they were not opened enough she knew it would appear more as though her eyes were closed - this was not an effective way to intimidate someone. The pony tailed man tilted his head back, blue brows furrowing as he considered an answer while gazing quietly at the ceiling.
"I'm… I'm not really sure, to be honest with you. Yata usually has all of that information, and he keeps Pi better informed than me. You should remember - she did all the talking last time, remember? I was just busy trying to not get stabbed to, hah, death." Here his thoughtful expression resumed a relaxed grin. "But… what Silabus described to me is odd. I mean, yeah we knew about some people acting peculiarly, doing things they would never normally do… and about that usually, by the time we figure out what happened they're already dead, so to speak." He closed his eyes, his visage going completely blank. "But I don't think even I could explain how he found you. Pi and I have Yata with his Serpent of Lore behind us, and we could not even find you. Which, since you turned us down last time, you would not realize how incredible that is."
"How helpful." Haseo sneered, and with a casual but tense movement adjusted her stand to lean against a nearby wall with her arms crossed. Then she snapped her attention to the brunette, and narrowed her eyes. "Did you mention anything to anyone about my staying her? Even using my alias?" She knew Silabus had promised not to share any of the Terror of Death's personal information last night - but that was last night, and who knew what nonsense she had been spouting before then? Speaking of nonsense… it appeared Haseo was wrong. Silabus did have a friend - but did it have to be fucking Kuhn?
"What…? No." The brunette softly shook her head, the shorter parts of her hair dancing with the shake. "I didn't mention you to anyone except Kuhn, and that was this morning when I called him." Shyly, awkwardly she glanced at him before with a wince returning her attention to Haseo. "I called him because I know I can trust him… and he always knew about a lot of strange happenings in Mac Anu… so I figured he would be the best person for me to call. I doubt Moon Tree or the Crimson Knights would be welcomed." In return, Haseo's lip curled in a snarl but she said nothing. At least the brunette had a good head on her shoulders. "But… he did say something strange last night. It might help… with figuring out how he got here. Found, here."
"Oh? Aside from asking where the Terror of Death here was? Hah. Got to commend him. Usually by the point of melting away, they don't have enough brain function of self-control to say much more than necessary." Kuhn stated, his face resuming its thoughtful expression. "This sucks. I don't know enough about the Infected to know if this is normal or bizarre. Shit."
"What'd he say?" Haseo demanded, ignoring Kuhn and jumping at the chance to understand. To know.
"Something about… a trail of blood… always is following her, so long as this reaper thing is resting… or something." Silabus had been too busy defending herself, and indirectly trying to protect Haseo. She had not committed his exact words to memory, and was now mentally berating herself for such a stupid mistake. What if that was important information?
"Shit." Kuhn swore, and stood up immediately. "Then why the fuck did no one find her before?" He hissed, throwing his hands up in defeat.
"You mentioned the Reaper before." Haseo began slowly, her gaze now attempting to see through Kuhn. "Well, that pink-haired woman." The one I saw Kuhn run with to the fire…? Silabus wondered, eyes widening. Was Haseo the reason those two had been running towards it?
"Yes. Skeith." Kuhn answered with a nod. And then he cast a bewildered glance to Silabus, before resuming his gaze to Haseo. "Well, this is certainly a tight place. Not that I mind usually being caught between two attractive women and being in a tight place…"
"Kuhn!"
"Hahah, sorry Silabus." The blunette corrected his own self, flushing in what could only have been shame. "But I don't think I'm allowed to talk about this with normal citizens."
"I got her involved - I think she needs to hear as well." Haseo stated flatly through gritted teeth. "Now, you're going to explain to us what the hell you think is going on and what is up with this Reaper shit or so help me…"
"Fine, fine." Kuhn held up both hands in defeat, an admission further assisted by the fact neither hand was near his weapon. Only an idiot or a prisoner offered their neck like that. Even so, Haseo remained tightly wound - she would strike at him if he pushed her buttons or patience too much, even as a friend to Silabus. For the moment, the Terror of Death felt - in a weird way - grateful to the brunette for helping her last night. She did not even know the other woman could fight, let alone so well. Where had she learned to defend and attack like that? If nothing else, this sealed her theory: one really did have to be more wary of the harmless, and she did need to keep an eye open in case the brunette snapped. Especially now that she knew the other owned a fucking sword under her bed. Were break-ins a problem, or something? "But not here. To talk about the heavy, For You Ears Only stuff we need to get back to Raven. Where, by the way Silabus, you might not exactly be welcome."
"That's fine." The brunette beamed at him. "I'll think of it as an adventure."
"That's my girl." Kuhn laughed. A strange, sudden anger flared in Haseo at those words. His girl? The two were fucking dating? What kind of shit was this? And what self-respecting woman took that from her man? …Haseo conveniently chose to ignore the pot calling the kettle black thought process she had. No, wait more importantly - what sort of lunatic dated THAT kind of lunatic? He meant Silabus dating Kuhn. Sure, the girl was crazy but Kuhn was a class all his own - he chose to stand around the old hag, Pi. No one in their right mind would choose such a fate. "So, the both of you might want to pack everything you want to keep. Neither of you are coming back here."
"What? Why?" Silabus was the first to speak, though her thoughts paralleled Haseo's.
"The Trail leads here. More will come. Usually they send more than one, so I think that was just a scout to confirm. So grab what you need, or can't live without. And Silabus… even if Haseo didn't tell me to tell you everything, I would have made you stay with me. Just for the record." He added with a wink, and stood to stretch. "While you two gather your stuff, I'm going to call ahead to Raven… to ah, warn the dear sweet Pi of our arrival. A scolding and even some praise - I tingle with expectations!"
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To begin with, Haseo had very little. She was packed before the brunette even filled her first duffle with various electronics and gadgets. Despite the circumstances, the Terror of Death was unable to stop herself from thinking: geek. As the brunette packed her clothes around the items as cushion, humming to herself the silver-haired woman watched with furrowed brows. Someone was taking this well. "Hey, Haseo? Do you think they'll provide clothes for you?"
"I can't believe it."
"What?"
"You're still stuck on that." Did the brunette think of anything else? Was she that bothered by the Terror's half-naked appearance? "Speaking of things I can't believe… seriously? Fucking Kuhn?"
"W-well, I told you why… I've known him for awhile, and I trust him so I called him to-"
"No, I meant that literally. You're fucking Kuhn?"
"Wh-what? NO!" Silabus' voice went several levels higher than necessary, and her cheeks were about as red as Haseo's eyes. As the shock dissipated, the brunette shook her head rapidly, trying to dispel any remaining assumptions about THAT, all while her tail whipped about wildly.
"But he called you-"
"Th-that's a term of endearment! He never calls the girls he dates, 'my girl!' Just female friends. Like me. I'm a female friend. No. I… he and I…" Silabus took in a deep breath, trying to calm herself. Of all topics the Terror of Death started with her, the one about dating and relationships was the last she would have expected. That and the topic of religion. "Listen. Kuhn's a really good friend of mine. He's helped me out with so much, and I've done everything I can to repay him for his kindness. But I've never done… th-that with him, and I don't plan to either. He's like an older brother to me. Kuhn's an attractive, nice guy but…" Here she flushed darker, and suddenly resumed her packing with an unexpected interest. "But he's not the guy I would like to date, if I could."
"If you could?" Haseo quirked a brow. Hah. Now who was asking the questions? Wait. This also meant they were having a conversation and would unintentionally encourage delusional ideas of friendship. Shit, why did Silabus always win in the end?
"W-well… you know, from a realistic standpoint." Silabus amended, and zipped her duffel bag before standing up suddenly as she pulled the item with her. Before teetering, and trying to reassert her balance. "There is a guy… I have my eyes on, but…" She smiled awkwardly. "He travels a lot. And we've only spoken once."
"Hn." Haseo was not going to fall for that trap again. She was just going to let the topic drop.
"Anyway, that's all about him! I think if I tell you anything more, you might lose what little respect you have for me to begin with, hahah." Silabus chuckled nervously, and began to head out of the master bedroom. Haseo remained inside. "Are you… coming?"
"Your sword." The Terror of Death stated flatly, and walked over to pick up the blade. "Does it have a sheath?"
"Oh, I'm not taking that with-"
"You probably should. In case something happens, and you need it." Haseo continued, ignoring her words as she began to search around the room. The brunette's shoulders slumped.
"Listen, I got lucky last night. I used the sword for exercise." Silabus admitted with awkward shifting.
"You're shitting me."
"N-no. I'm not. I really did get lucky last night. I've never fought in actual combat before. I've practiced the movements, but I've never… really implemented them until last night."
"…I see." Haseo flashed her one of the most diabolical grins anyone ever sent her way. It was enough to send chills tingling up her spine. "You and I should practice together sometime. I want to see how long that practice holds." Seeing the brunette's horror-stricken face, she quickly added, "We won't use actual sharp weapons. It's… it's practice. I wouldn't actually hurt you." Why did it matter? Oh, right. Because if she scared the brunette away, she was not going to spar with her.
"I'll think about it." Silabus finally murmured. Noticing the other was still looking, her shoulders slumped further. "It's under the bed. On the left side." Taking the directions, Haseo grabbed it before sheathing the weapon and exiting the room.
"Then we're all ready, huh?" Haseo smirked, and on silent steps snuck her way next to Kuhn - just enough to scare the man into the wall. "Finished on your end?"
"Was that necessary?" Kuhn gasped, holding his throat - apparently he assumed that was where she was headed.
"Absolutely. Now lead the way." Haseo ordered, and nodded to the door. The blunette grumbled, and started to lead.
"Is that all you're taking?" Kuhn asked in disbelief, seeing the brunette's one bag. A nod. "What about all of these papers…?"
"If I tried to gather all of those, we'd probably still be here by the time the next guys come. I don't need them that badly." Silabus laughed, and turned around to lock the door behind her - reflex. The trio walked down the halls, all three an unusual sight to behold to anyone that had initially planned to leave their room. The Terror of Death, that crazy girl who lived upstairs, and the guy that used to run a homeless shelter. None could make sense of the scene, even after all of them left the building. Not wanting to garner much attention, Kuhn led them all towards Raven through back alleys, short cuts, and using almost any route at his disposal to ensure as few people saw them as possible. It helped that Haseo had mastered the art of slithering through shadows, and even when some people were in the alley as well not all of them even noticed her. No sense in dragging more innocents into the hell she was creating. But if she got her revenge in the end… quietly, to her own self she felt it all would have been worth it.
It was around midday, the sun directly overhead watching everything and nothing at once. People bustled. There was an ebb and flow to the movement, as everyone hurried to have lunch. Silabus realized neither she nor Haseo even had breakfast yet. The other was probably hungry. If she was not at home, how was she going to bribe the other into answering more questions if she did not hold the food hostage? She wanted to know more about the teen. Even if the other viewed her as a nuisance, she was still curious. Interested. Perhaps this was what happened to all of Haseo's admirers; only the brunette had only been rescued by the other once. Twice, actually she corrected herself. Who knew how long she could have gone on defending herself, especially against that thing? The brunette was unsure if she even had it in her to defend herself until the end. She hated hurting others, unless absolutely necessary. And after last night… her stomach churned. She felt sick thinking about it.
I had classes today… she thought in a sudden daze, her mind latching onto the first subject she could to forget the sights, the sounds, and the feels of the past night. Classes. Her project was due today - it was back at home, on the kitchen counter. The Cobalt Knights was the subject. She was comparing and contrasting them with the Crimson Knights, and even added some mention of Moon Tree. She was unable to help herself - after all, she was deeply interested in someone from there that employed his version of justice… all in the name of self-defense, of course. What about Canard? I think Gaspard was going to meet me there after my classes… her head whirled. There was so much she had to take care of, and yet suddenly she found herself unable to do anything about it.
After only two nights with Haseo, she had been dragged into some sort of top secret society beneath the fabric of the one she was accustomed to, one about reapers, infected individuals that became dead yet not… it all sounded like a story. As a reporter she should have loved this chance, this opportunity. Yet instead she was becoming afraid. Afraid because she knew the people involved, and she was scared for them. Scared for herself. The silence let her drift into her own thoughts; acknowledge the internal concerns and fears. She wanted to speak, but the walk was quiet for a reason. She knew Kuhn was a lot like her in that respect - if there was something troubling him, he wanted to talk to get his mind off of it. In his apathetic movements, his tight-lipped manners as he led… she knew he wanted to talk. He was worried about her, and though he did not act like it she had the sneaking suspicion he was angry with Haseo for letting the brunette get involved.
After what felt almost like an eternity, they arrived at a small building. 'Raven' was at the top, the 'v' from the name drooping from where it had originally been tacked up years ago. On the outside, it looked like a tiny public library, a few people inside even browsing or reading. "Looks like a dump." Haseo was the first to break the silence, and Kuhn merely gave an ironic grin in return before he opened the door and politely offered to let the women enter first. Ever the lady, the brunette smiled her thanks and entered. Rather than hold the door and wait for Haseo though, Kuhn entered after and let it close behind him. Correction: Silabus now confirmed Kuhn was silently fuming at the Terror of Death. She sighed.
"What?" Kuhn asked innocently, eyes wide as he looked around. "Oh. Guess I should have held it open for her too, huh?" He smacked his forehead, before shaking his head while tsking himself. "Totally forgot myself there, sorry…" Haseo entered, unperturbed by the whole door-slammed-in-face. Potentially plotting revenge. He walked up to the check-out counter, and from behind it stood a rather… pretty and voluptuous woman with pink hair, most of it let down though a small portion was pulled into a ponytail in the back. She was wearing a white coat, red blouse beneath, and a white skirt. Her eyes were pink, and she adjusted a pair of red glasses resting on her nose seeing the trio arrive.
"So we meet again." The librarian greeted, nodding her head to Haseo. She did not even acknowledge the brunette. "As you may remember, I'm Pi. I'll show you to Master Yata."
"Some kind of bondage thing?" Haseo asked aloud, and received a sudden, scathing glare from the woman.
"He's a man of caliber, and deserving of his title. So not, it's not some... bondage thing." Pi's eyes flicked over the silver-haired girl's attire, and her mouth twitched slightly. "But I suppose you'd be the type to assume such things, hmm?"
"Old hag." Haseo hissed.
"Juvenile delinquent."
"Ugly broad."
"Cheap trash."
"Ladies!" Kuhn interceded, though mostly on Pi's part - he was letting her get in the last word, after all. "We get the idea. Uhm… Pi?"
"Right this way." The woman directed, clenching her teeth and sucked her tongue making a disapproving noise. She led them to behind the counter and nodded to another librarian who walked to the front desk to keep an eye on everything in her place. All four walked down a corridor that seemingly stretched the more they journeyed down it. "Optical illusion." The librarian spoke up suddenly, apparently sensing the confusion. "We take a left here." And hers was a sharp, suddenly movement - right through the wall she went. Kuhn put his arm through, smiling to the other two to show this was normal and that it was okay to proceed. Haseo did not even bat an eye - simply walked right on through.
"I'll be right behind you." Kuhn assured the brunette. She offered him a smile, before following. Seconds later, he joined her as he admired the elevator they found themselves in. Pi swiftly pressed buttons, and it immediately took them down… down… and further down. The shaft stopped, and once more she led the group out - though this time, into an entire room filled with numbers, letters, codes that littered and filled the walls, floors, and ceilings. A multitude of screens flickered with various scenes, news reports, graphs, and tables… so much information spilling all over it. Standing before the screen, his back turned to them was a man at a large console. He was perhaps around Pi's age, if not a few years older yet seemed to already be suffering through premature balding. What little hair he did have was shaved down to a little under an inch, and was blonde. He wore an orange and brown robe, and next to him was a table littered with empty cups and small plastic wrappings.
"Master Yata. The Terror of Death is here." Pi announced. His fingers, once deftly flying over keys and buttons, controlling the flow of information he was receiving paused. At the sudden silence, save for the whispers and hums from the screens and machines, Silabus stopped gaping at the room around her. Mac Anu was strongly powered by steam - what power source was this whole place running on? How did it function? It was so much like the Arena! Rapidly advanced in technology… no, it was greater than the arena!
"Along with a citizen." The man, Yata, replied in a deep and disapproving voice. "I suppose it cannot be helped." He finally sighed, and turned around to face the two. He had the beginnings of a beard, though currently it looked more akin to a goatee. Settled on his face were red-tinted glasses, and various pale yellow markings adorned his face. "Welcome, to the Serpent of Lore. The greatest collection of information the World has seen… and one strangely trumped by your hiding, but not on par with our enemies, it seems."
"Hey, Yata if you don't mind… could Silabus stay with me for the time being?" Kuhn asked suddenly. "I mean, we can't exactly force her out of her life just because of this…"
"If the enemy's scout had enough remaining of it to allow them to identity someone who is associated with the Terror of Death, past of present, she will be a target. I'm sorry, Miss Silabus." Yata offered a polite bow.
"It's okay!" Silabus spoke suddenly, and attempted to wave his apology off with an awkward smile. "I did say I would help H-…the Terror of Death if she needed it, and I intend on keeping my word."
"I thought you offered just a favor." Haseo stated absently.
"N-no… I offered you my help." Silabus murmured quietly.
"How chivalrous of you. But I think this is where you help ends." Yata announced, and nodded to Kuhn who took the brunette by the shoulder. "We appreciate all you have done. We, the Admins, will do our best to ensure the situation is amended quickly, and that you can resume the life you had prior as soon as possible." It almost sounded mechanical, as though he were practicing a well-versed speech.
"What? Why?" She had promised - promised to help Haseo. Silabus also wanted to learn more about her… would she still be able to?
"…very well. If you sign a waiver declaring you won't share what I am about to tell you to anyone, I will explain." Yata sighed, rubbing his temples. Haseo lessened her glare - if she got Silabus involved, she was determined to at least let the other remain in the loop. No sense in forcing someone to get caught up in one's own problems, but never even offer an explanation. "For the past few years, many strange… occurrences have been happening. We Admins have been trying to keep it under control, and for awhile we did." He paused. "Or rather, they did. The Azure Knights. Men and women employed by the Goddess Aura herself, in attempt to quell and silence the Eight Epitaphs of Twilight, legions headed by Morganna herself. You may have heard the Fragments of Legend. The Eight were quelled, all right… and Altered, to then become mere Factors of Morganna. Now the Eight reside within individuals of great promise, be it for positive or negative change.
I am one such of those Factors. Kuhn and Pi are, as well… and so is the Terror of Death. The Reaper mentioned is the Factor that resides within you, Skeith. Not that you can currently employ Skeith any better than I can Fidchell, my Factor. Of course, outside of here… of this room, we refer to these things within us as 'Avatars' - this way, if we need to discuss them outside of the Serpent, we may with little repercussion if anyone overhears. Kuhn and Pi, however, have excelled in their mastery of their Factors. If you would like any practice, or to attempts at calling forth Skeith of your own volition those would be the two to speak with.
As for the events from last night… there is a great many strange, unfortunate aspects regarding it. Our main enemy, whoever or whatever they are, seems to have recruited a few of us - those with Factors - to their collection. They are using those two to now track others with Factors. I have been using the Serpent of Lore to keep Pi, Kuhn, and I hidden and out of sight - and this is also why we have been more actively trying to convince you to stay with us, Terror of Death."
"That doesn't explain much else about last night aside from how it found me." Haseo stated flatly through gritted teeth. "Stop dancing around the subject, and spit it out."
"My pardons." Yata's voice almost sounded sarcastic. "Last night, an Infected scout was sent to confirm that you were in fact there. I don't think they have perfected the art of tracking fellow Factors very well as of yet, so while it might have sounded sure it knew you were there… fact was, the enemy knows you can take down just one of them. If they knew you were, for a fact, there they would have sent a swarm instead. The fact you returned to assist the civilian, very commendable and surprising for someone of your status, ultimately verified they were correct. So in effect, the one time you chose to be noble also happened to the worst time to act in opposition to your name."
"You know, that could have been easily avoided if you told the hag someone was tracking me to begin with." Haseo seethed.
"And with your ego, you would have thought you could have outdone them and avoid getting tracked all-together. No, the only way you would have listened was the hard way." He paused and turned to Silabus. "I apologize. We try to not let civilians become involved, but sometimes…"
"You knew this would happen?" It was Kuhn this time, the muscles in his jaw clenching and unclenching. It was one thing that Haseo had allowed this - but in a way, Kuhn knew he should only have been angry about the incident if the twin blade wielder did nothing to assist the brunette. Yet Yata, who knew the blunette's association with Silabus…!
"I did not necessarily know it would happen. It merely knew someone would take her in, and that whoever did would get involved. But better one person, than many. Think of it this way Kuhn - there is no safer place for Silabus to be right now than here. And now… about the Infected. We're still learning about them, but so far this is what we know for a fact. There are two kinds of Infected - those influenced by our enemy, and the few that are influenced by Aura. About a year or so ago, this entity… a curse or a blessing, known simply as 'AIDA' began to turn up. It would infect individuals, making them susceptible to outside influence. Weaker, more easily manipulated. It preyed on their desires, fueled their wants and dwindled their needs. An aphrodisiac for those who sought the easy way out. AIDA spread like a wildfire through the World, quietly and through the seedier places.
Then someone realized that while AIDA was, in effect, unhealthy for individuals… it was not necessarily harmful either. Unless an outside force began to infect it as well - a double infection, if you will. Somewhere, someone is tracking down those with a small bit of AIDA in them, and exploiting the creature within into a full-blown servitude. When our Goddess, Aura realized the manipulation and noticed it was growing almost as quickly as the infection… she began trying to locate those she could, and infected them with a piece of herself. We refer to those being controlled by our enemies as Infected, and those controlled by Aura as Purified. Unfortunately, there is a great many problems She suffers from even now… her daughter, Zefie, is missing. We think it might have something to do with our enemy…" He finished, and looked to the group. "…and no, you may not help find Zefie. We already have a small group of Purified on that mission." It was as if he could read the brunette's thoughts. But she could not help it - the man was insinuating she just sit around like a good little girl and do nothing. She made her life helping others. She tried to jog daily. She was an active young woman, damnit! Silabus needed something to do.
"So how are we combating this enemy, O Wise One?" Haseo sighed, looking bored as ever.
"It's Master Yata." Pi snapped.
"Ladies!" Kuhn intervened, once more. Yata smirked at the black clad woman.
"I think that's the part you'll like best, Terror of Death."
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Disclaimer: Well somebody told me! I don't own dotHack! It made me cry! And sing in the style of a once-popular song! …that I don't own either. Woe is me, for I am immensely uncreative. Whine whine, wail wail… hmm. While I'm whining - WHY DON'T MORE PEOPLE WRITE MORE HASILA? D:
A/N: …I actually am writing these notes before I finished this chapter. But I just have to type this, because it's so damned funny. My cat… he's… he's sleeping with his face in the bed. It's the funniest thing I've seen all day, and naturally I have no camera to take a picture with. So, obviously, this works just as well. Also… all this plot I'm typing is wearing me down. Totally not fun. Ugh, I cannot wait for next chapter… so much more interesting stuff. =A= BEFORE I FORGET. I am not abandoning any of my fics. I just happen to have a very... very busy life, which leaves me with SO LITTLE TIME TO UPDATE. UGH. Just thought you guys might like to know. And stuff and junk and stuff.