Pinpoint Zero

Chapter 28: Signify The Torrential Flare

At 19 years old, Orlana Zeruda had left the home of her mother and taken her sister with her to live in a remote little village in Turkey, where she procured a small job to live with. Her mother both loved and disliked this, proud of her oldest daughter making way for her own self and taking care of Carentorzulan but the dreaded fact that her own little children were leaving her. Carentorzulan had always had a very close connection with her older sister and it was actually her that insisted that she come with Orlana. After speaking with her sister and her mother about it, Orlana was ultimately able to persuade the woman that Carentorzulan would be in good hands and that they would visit her as often as they could.

It was in this small village, a quiet town with a population of only 200 people total that Orlana met a young man, 24 of age who owned a large farm near the edge of the village. He was a relatively simple fellow, intelligent in his own right and remarkably pleasant. Of course what really caused Orlana to become smitten with him was the fact that much like her, he had a deep respect for illusionary magic.

"I went to a show when I was a child; it was the most amazing thing I had ever seen in my days." He went on, explaining the many tricks she herself had seen and even preformed yet feeling admiration in knowing another person who shared that same love as herself. Illusions were a special part of life that many people either did not understand and/or did not appreciate as much as she did. This young man, a farmer and yet and intellectual with the same loves as Orlana also had a close connection with her younger sister as well. Perhaps due to him sharing similar likes as her sister, Caren found herself growing attached to him far sooner than either of them had expected.

For a year they lived together in the tiny yet happy parish, Orlana finding romantic insight with her friend that would soon turn to complete passion. They embraced each other on one specific night, kissing each other in his room before they made love in the act of complete intimacy. She would never bear any child for him though, but it was there that she knew what she wanted most of all. She was only happier when it was he that expressed his wish to marry her. Unfortunately for her she would never be granted that specific wish, nor would her surname ever change to match his own. She had been planning on going to Japan with her sister, visit old places that they enjoyed when they were children and when they returned, they would official become a couple.

He even had rings ready. When Orlana and Carentorzulan was in Japan, he would tell the people of his fiancé and how much he loved her. Never again would he see her, the rings would go to another unfamiliar woman and the very thought of that pretty Turkish woman and her strange headed but oh so adorable and respectable little sister would vanish from memories.


Thankfully age had given Caren much more maturity than in the past as she no longer crept out of side out of curiosity. Even with her sister allowing her to roam around freely, she kept close by, intent on being with Orlana the entire time. "I heard you were going to marry him, right?" She asked questioningly, her hands folded in front of her.

"Yes Carentorzulan, once we get back we'll be truly together."

"That's great! Oh, can you show me that trick again." Laughing, Orlana took out the silver pocket watch, holding it closely to Caren's face who giggled childishly. Whatever the woman did couldn't be ascertained by the crowd as to them, the little girl with horns was only laughing at the watch itself. Even if one were to look at the watch directly, nothing particularly amazing would've been found, only a pocket watch. There was not even a picture to gaze upon which for most people, the indication of laughter from the child was obscured. Despite the prospects of possible insanity, Caren laughed as her sister cast a small illusionary image onto her, almost euphoric that would give her little sister merely the pleasures of the item. It might have been surprising that the elder Zeruda sister did not ever take up magic acting or even sword fighting as a primary employment. With her skills and expertise, she would have been great in any field be it in entertainment or actual combat.

The day should have gone without a hitch, two sisters joyfully going through another experience like they had many times before in Japan. Caren had been waiting for the right moment to tell her sister something but had never found the right opportunity or confidence in confiding it to her. Recently she had begun to produce strange hands from her body; ghostly and apparently unseen by others because she remembered vividly waving them in front of one woman's face frantically. It both amazed and scared her, perfectly knowing that such a thing was not normal for any child. As her sister was always there for her, she wished to talk about it but was afraid that it would be so strange that even Orlana would shun her. She should have known that her older sister would never have done it but still she kept waiting, afraid and yet desperate to ask her.

That time would never come.

It had been a very brisk evening, the clouds overlapping the sky as the sun sat down but still high enough to lead the bright end of days. It was slightly windy, not uncomfortably so but enough for the people of Japan to wear long sleeves or light jackets. It was here on that final evening that Orlana and Caren took their last day together at a dock to watch the sea. With the waves overlapping the wooden pier, Caren finally found the courage to speak up.

"O-Orlana? I have something I want to talk to you about but it's…kind of…" She wasn't how to explain it. Politely Orlana tilted her head to her sister, rubbing the young girl's head which the young Diclonius giggled at. "You can tell me anything you want Carentorzulan. What is it?'

There were no people around, all had left the docks a while ago leaving only the woman and girl to stand on the wooden dock and stare out at the calm sea. Now or never, Caren first looked around assuming like all the others that her sister wouldn't be able to see them either. If she couldn't prove it somehow, telling her sister she had multiple invisible hands would only make her sound insane. Nothing much but a few used cans sprawled out on the edges but good enough for her. Breathing in and out three times, she felt released her hand, letting it flow out and circle around her once before gazing at Orlana who patiently waited for her sister to finish. Of course, she couldn't see them, so she reached over to the can, ready to grip and only hoping her sister didn't freak out.

*BLAM!*

"Carentorzulan!"

The scream from her older sister reached her after the pain in her left shoulder spread throughout her body and into her mind. The force of the shot threw the poor Diclonius off of her feet, her hand vanishing as her mind couldn't withstand the immense pain coursing through her young body. The only thing she could ascertain at that point was that she had been shot but by the time she could even turn her head to look behind her she was already flat on her face.

Horrified, Orlana rushed over to her sister only to be pulled back two heavily armed men wearing black masks as two others went for Caren who sobbed uncontrollably, clutching her wounded body. "What the hell are you doing! What the hell are you doing with my sister!" Insane, illogical, crazy. They were at the sea, on a dock and her sister wanted to tell her something important. Who the hell were these people? Why did they shoot Carentorzulan and why were they apprehending her.

"Do not fight back; we are taking this Diclonius into custody."

Diclonius? What kind of stupid word was that and what did it have to do with shooting her sister? The woman struggled, her teeth grinding harshly together, attempting to break free.

"Orlana! Orlana, help me! It hurts!" Crying, in pain Caren was dragged off by the men to a large black van where she was injected with something that made her lose consciousness. "YOU BASTARDS!" Infuriated to the point of madness, the woman shrieked at the top of her lungs, tears flowed down her face as the door was shut tight. There she could see the words H.E.R.D, an acronym of some sort and with closer inspection the meaning underneath. "Human Evolution and Research Development."

Just where were they taking her sister?

"GET OFF OF ME! CARENTORZULAN!" But her cries fell on deaf ears; the man produced a short syringe and pushed it into the woman's neck. Gasping from the pressure, the world went fuzzy, her vision blurred as the men released her and left. Still on her feet though incredibly unfocused she attempted to follow them, staggering all over the place. Crying for her sister in a feeble voice, searching for a reason why this had happened. Her steps became more unbalanced; the world seemed to tilt before Orlana collapsed.

"..C…Caren…." Her last words escaped only as a whisper, the last thing she saw was her own hand reaching out as if she thought she could grab the car moving away like a small toy. But most of all, complete uncertainty had filled her entire being, leaving her thoughtlessly in wonder. Only a few minutes ago, she had been standing at the dock, her sister safely with her, but now that was like a trifling dream. It had happened so fast, so sudden, without warning that for a moment it seemed as if this was reality since the beginning and the time with her sister was just some stupid dream.

…And this was the worst part. Unanswered, her pleas had been unanswered; nobody spoke a word to her. Nobody explained that those men had been watching her for a while and that her daughter was a Diclonius capable of being quite dangerous. Nobody explained anything to her, an outcast to the happenings of the world. This was the worst pain in the world.


She awoke some time later, the only sound being the waves of the ocean. She could establish even before her eyes open that it was night, the moon high in the starry black sky casting its gleam upon her fallen body. "Carentorzulan?" Her voice broke out in a desperately whisper, looking around her surroundings, yet knowing she would find nobody. Again, it wasn't just the pain of losing her closest companion and sister that left a bitter taste in Orlana's mouth; it was being shunned from the reality of it. She hated it, like someone in the middle of a scene being kept out and not being told while the others laughed at her.

"CARENTORZULAN!" She screamed it, the name, hoping from the bottom of her torn heart that her sister would pop up in front of her. Even though she knew it wasn't true, she even half imagined everyone coming out with her sister and explaining everything as a good televised joke. But cruelty was never so simple, her sister was gone, taken away for reasons she did not know. This time the woman who had stood on her feet fell again, to the knees her body buckled as she collapsed on all four, the pavement splotched with her falling tears. What kind of woman was she, not to protect her own sister? Hearing it even now, the cries of Carentorzulan and she couldn't do a damn thing about it.

Thus she screamed, loud, horrifically, a shrill sound that even she didn't know she could emit. High pitched, crazy it sounded less like a woman in sorrow and more like one being burned at the stake. She screamed even louder, the echo vibrating relentlessly and continued to scream at even higher pitched before her voice became sore. "Caren…Caren….Carentor…Ahhh. Ahhhh…" How many emotions of regret could fill someone's heart? She felt every negative emotion imaginable. Sadness, pain, regret, shame, horror, all of it streaming through body and mind and threatening to crush her.

"Haa…shahahaha….siahahasiaha…." The sound of her broke gasps turned vividly strained as a new emotion unaware to her placed in her soul. For the first time, she felt innate yearning to murder. They took her sister away, no warning, not point, merely took her away like some sick joke and she sick of being left out of the ordeal. The only thing as good as her skills with a sword and illusions as her own memory and she could vividly remember the image on the van.

Human Evolution and Research Development.

She hardly cared what it was or what point it had only that if she could find such a place, she'd ultimately find her sister. She chewed the inside of her cheeks, drawing blood and spitting it out, her frenzy only calmed by her own willful volition. The thought that murder would lead to a terrible consequence never once occurred to her, because she had the very right to do this. Those bastards took Carentorzulan away as if she was some wild animal to be put in a cage, even now she could hear her screams, always ready to haunt her. If it was the last thing she did, she'd kill them all and rescue her baby sister, take her away and make sure those monsters understood their place.

She never thought she'd ever use the long rapier for anything more than educational fencing practice. It was custom made, thin which lacked cutting potential, but still hard enough so that it didn't bend, making it an excellent stabbing weapon. Her hand clutched the silver stopwatch that hung around her neck, gripping it then realizing that she could perhaps even use the illusions to her advantage. No idea what she would be facing, she mentally prepared herself for the worst case scenarios.

Prepared to murder, all for the sake of her sister, Orlana went off. In her frustration she looked throughout the night, gazing at buildings, searching for any indication of the place she was trying to find. Though it pained her, she realized that she would need to rest before she could truly take part in her retribution. Thus on the next day, with her mind sharp she took things to a much more intelligent form. Searching for a place she knew nothing about was like find a specific grain of sand on the beach; she'd waste too much time. Asking around, she found that a place with a similar title was located in Tokyo, Japan. If that was indeed the place that had her sister, she would make them all pay.

The building was large though by no means overwhelming and could easily be overlooked. Even in her state of fury, she kept a calm mind, making sure she didn't do anything too rash. She was definitely willing to kill, that thought had not once left her mind but she also didn't want to do something she'd regret. If this was the wrong place and she created a problem, she might never find her sister again and that truly would be her fault. The first thing she did was double and triple check the place, suspicious at its security but also looking for a specific sign that might indicate what she wanted. Sure enough, the words "Human Evolution Research Development" was plastered up on a sign. High up so that anyone in the city could read it.

It was time to check things out. The first thing she did was check out the entire place, quickly ascertaining that the only possible way in was through the front gate. So be it, she'd get in and she'd figure out this mess one way or the other. Sure enough was she approached she was stopped by two guards, their faces morbidly serious as they ordered her to turn back.

"Why? What's so important about this place that you'd need all this security? What exactly are you doing here?"

"That is none of your business, remove yourself from the vicinity." She glowered at their response before replying back. "I think it is my business, especially when you bastards took my sister away from me. Tell me, do you always kidnapped girls with horns for your own sick amusement."

One of them visibly gasped, then tried to collect himself. "You should forget all about that, go home and never return here."

Perfect! She had waited for such a response because it was irrefutable proof that they knew exactly what was going on. "I am going through, move out of the way." Voice icy cold, she gripped the end of her rapier, watching as the two guards reached to their waists. Underestimating her was their next mistake, her hand flashed with speed that those inexperienced could never comprehend. With the tip pointed she jabbed it into the jugular of the first man, sprouting a fountain of red before he fell. The next one, ignorant of his defenselessness, found the cold steel tip pierce into his own heart.

"You deserved nothing less…" It was the first time she had killed; it was a strange sensation to say the least. Nothing left to say, there would be no point in talking to fools who could not even explain themselves. Blood lusted, her body arched as she swarmed into the compound. Clutching the stopwatch, the illusionary powder that she possessed was released, an invisible cloud that she was immune to due to taking special antidotes for them. In most cases she would only have released a small amount to please her sister. This was no longer fun, this was pure murder.

The men that came out were left stunned as the world around them seemed to twist and turn into haze. Then their bodies crumbled, some shot wildly at places where they thought she was only to realize to late that the illusions they were shooting would never die. At one point she picked up a small dagger, slashing it across throats and chests while continuing her pursuit to the inside. A woman who specialized in bladed weapons and illusions, these poor fools didn't stand a chance against her. But as she ran towards the door, her path was blocked by a young man, his red eyes shining through the shadows of his wide brimmed brown hat.

"What's going on…?" He silently questioned, keeping his guard up. It had become quite apparent that the men had been under some sort of mental pressure and as he came out, he could understand why. The world around him was oddly distorted and the woman that he could see was definitely not physically clear. Concentration to its top point, a single woman who could do this much collateral damage was definitely not one to be underestimated and he though he saw her, he added the assumption that he was also not seeing her.

The first priority was to protect his head and heart. The only thing he could do was wait, refusing to move from his spot until she made her move, it was his only choice. Orlana, sick of the people getting in her way, charged, aiming for the opening that would best reach his heart. The tip of her rapier passed through the skin, missing his vitals unfortunately before pulling it out. As he thought, he hadn't seen the attack coming or even leave but he could feel it, the small line of blood running down his chest. However he was now ready for her next strike and visible moved his arms down to let a closer strike to his heart be apparent.

A skilled woman she was, it was kind of invigorating that sensation of a challenge he sought all the time. It kept his bloody flowing, his muscles tensed as he readied for the strike. He had to be quick on this one, her speed with a blade of any sort clearly unmatched by even the best experts. The time the tip hit his bare skin, to the time it would reach his heart would be less than a second, not even a time to blink. He couldn't lose one focus, a single touch and his mind would have to go into overdrive.

Then he felt it, like a breeze, a cold spot on his chest, something forcing its way through and he instantly used his ability. Shocked, Orlana found her blade moving through the man's body as if it was some sort of ghost, before she barely saw the flash of Julius' hand rush towards her face. Swerving, half of her world went dark as his fingers scrapped against her face, slashing out one of her eyes and leaving it a smear of blood to run down the side of her face. Knowing that he had missed her, Julius could not leave the time for her to get her distance back, not after he finally knew exactly where she saw. Grabbing where he knew her arm was, he twisted it behind her as he stepped to her back then pushed her down with one foot as he grabbed the other arm, releasing her weapons and pinning her.

"Guh! Gah! Y-You bastard!" Curses fell on deaf ears though as she knew that she had now lost her chance. They'd probably shoot her right now, and the thought sent the same warm tears sprawling down her face. She was supposed to protect her sister and she failed at that. Julius kept his grip tightly on her, ready to deliver the killing blow at any time but waiting for Garder's orders as he emerged. He like Julius could tell some sort of illusion had been cast on the area because when he looked over, to him, Julius was pinning nobody on the ground the woman was struggling some meters away against an unseen force. Did such high powered illusions really exist? No wonder she did so well against his security forces. But for a man who had long since ignored signs in battle, illusions were no threat to him.

"Julius, keep her steady until this…illusion…has passed. Vorono, find and help any possible injured personnel." If they were going to get things done, they would get it under his watch. It was a long lasting one too, ten minutes before things began to become normal and he could finally see the woman truly pinned under the male Diclonius' grip.

"This was quite a surprise, I must give you praise for your abilities woman. However the point remains to this fact, you came here with murderous intentions and the people outside of this place should not know of its true nature. Why did you come here?"

"Why? How dare you say that old man! You bastards know exactly why I'm here! You took my sister away from me!"

Garder raised his head then said in a low voice. "Nobody has been brought in today, though I can hazard a guess of what may have happened. This place is indeed as it says, a human research and development location. But it is also a place where horned girls are taken, girls known as Diclonius. Your sister so you call her, has most likely been taken by another one of the facilities."

"…Tsu, and now that your saying this, I guess you're going to kill me too, right?" She retorted angrily.

"Incorrect, if I wanted you dead I'd have done that without explaining any of this. The skills you possess are an admirable trait, one that could be used very well in the skills of a trained assassin. I offer you this choice woman, work for me and live, or refuse and I will shoot you on the spot. Let me tell you though, that with or without sight I am more than a capable man. Your illusions are definitely a formidable weapon, but they are useless to me.

She spat on the ground, though unsure just how she had got herself into such a situation. "Your choice is yours woman, make it now."

"…F-Fine then…" She had to say it because being alive at least meant she had more time to save Carentorzulan. Garder nodded his head at Julius who released his grip though not before taking the two blades away from her as well as the watch whom guarded indicated was the source of her illusionary powers. Defenseless now, she could only glare with revulsion as Vorono lead her inside, she followed him from behind, understanding that it would be futile to run away. Now that she inside the construct, she gazed around at the pristine white walls before a voice broke her concentration.

"I will not ask you to forgive us foolish men, we are all terrible. But please listen to this, some of us do not take pride in what we do. That elderly man out there, went through a total hell during the war and its left a far different person from before. You see, he had a daughter, a beautiful young woman with horns supposedly who was going to be married. But things didn't go as well, terrible things happened and I hope you'll be able to listen.

…I am so sorry…

…so…so sorry…at how powerless we truly are."

If this was a fib, then the man was clearly good at hiding his true intentions. Every word he said seemed to be dripping with true regret and it was just point in which Orlana didn't lower her guard. He brought to her a large but fairly empty room with a single bench at the far end, clearly where she was to be seated. "You'll have to forgive the uncomfortable room, I truly mean it. You'll be staying here for a few hours right now; we're waiting for…someone. We'll provide you a futon and pillow to sleep on as well as some food and water."

She wasn't sure why he hesitated on the word "someone" but that hardly mattered right now. "I guess I'm just a hostage now, great…"

"…I guess so, I'll be back, the door will be locked so it's pointless to try and escape."

That man who attacked me outside, the one in the brown hat, what was he?"

Vorono shook his head sadly. "That was Second Cent, Julius Javel. He's the only male Diclonius that we know of and his abilities are a bit different than his female counterparts." That had reminded her, the use of that same word again and again that even now left her confused.

"I keep hearing that word, Diclonius. What exactly do you mean?"

Vorono tilted his head to the side as if trying to explain the answer in the best way possible though even if he didn't, she'd figure it out soon enough. "There are people with abnormal bone mutations, horns if you will that exist among us. We at first never thought much of it, you know, bone mutations is what we thought it was. But there's a difference between them and us humans, something very different that we never knew of until later. It's hard to explain but, these girls have things called vectors, long and invisible hands capable of different abilities."

If he didn't sound so serious, Orlana would have laughed at such thought. Was this what Carentorzulan wanted to show her? A strange ability that only she could use and that she wanted her sister's truthful answer from it? She had nothing left to say, even though she had many questions left wanting to answer. At the moment her heart stung too much and her anger was too high for her to properly think anymore though she was, if somewhat grudgingly, glad that the guard had answered her respectfully. She had to wonder for a moment if the guard too was here against his own will. Girikuson waited for a few seconds in case the woman had any other questions to ask before leaving. He returned later with the futon and pillow he mentioned before as well as some food.


She didn't eat nor did she lay down, ready to show her conviction by sitting right on the bench until they came back. It was a sign of her own determination even after a staggering seven hours passed by, her cold eyes glaring at the door in front of her. Then at last when even her patience was prone to recede, the doors finally opened up to reveal the group to arrive. The guard came in first before standing at the side of the wall. Julius, the male Diclonius she fought was the next person to come in and taking his place on the opposite wall of Vorono. Third was Garder the tail end of his brown coat fluttering quickly in the air from his speedy pace before the last person came in.

Vladimir raised an eyebrow, his face both bemused and surprised before casually replying to the elderly director. "Taking woman now are we Zero Cent? That's supposed to be my job, you're trying to make me look bad aren't you?" He laughed though nobody else found it amusing before the man stepped forward, his massive height casting a shadow over the young woman's face. She swallowed hard, unable to believe that a human would think of wearing such a get up and even now she wasn't sure if those rods were really sticking into his back and neck.

"Good evening, my fine little peach. Do you know who I am?"

"No."

"Hahahaha! What a shame, it seems I need to express my desires more often. My name dear woman, is Vladimir Cents." The name, Turkey hadn't faced Cents campaign during the war so she wasn't aware of it as much as everyone else was. Yet she did know her history and her lips frowned. "They said you were dead." She answered back darkly.

Cents chuckled. "Aye, people say a lot of things, stupid things really but whatever. Morotisan here tells me that you have some particularly fine skills at hand. Something about sword fighting and illusions. I'd like to see them."

Something was tossed by her feet, the silver stop watch and her thin rapier that she carefully picked up. Nothing about them that she could notice had changed. Garder stood by the door, his eyes closed and she knew that trying to do anything funny would not work. But if they wanted to see her powers again, so be it. She held her watched, clicked it open and let the illusionary particles waft through the small room. Having already seen it's abilities first hand, Vorono, Garder and Julius were silent. Only Vladimir expressed himself, his eyes widening with glee.

"Ho! Ho! Ho! What an interesting thing we have here, how quaint! Where exactly are you anyways?" He asked, before Orlana spoke from behind him. "Over here." Amused, Cents laughed deeply inside his throat. "That is a very quaint ability you have there, how long does it last?"

"It depends…" She replied sternly. The answer was apparently good enough before he didn't ask anymore. The world returned normally after about two minutes. She had purposely used little as using too much in such a small room would have caused the illusion to last an unnecessarily long time. She could tell what the next question would be though she wasn't sure how she was supposed to properly test her sword skills in the room. Thus her shock came when Cents brought out one of the thin long rods, its side a serrated edge. Preparing herself for an assault, instead Cents beckoned her to attack him instead.

Well, at least she now had a proper reason to attack someone. Her body lunged forward, the tip of her blade going straight to the man's heart. With brilliant reflexes of his own his rod spun, clashed against the sword and parried it away. She didn't let the move falter her judgment as her arm delicately held the handle of her blade, she moved to the side and struck again, this time to the man's opened right side. Again Cents, with his face smirking broadly parried the attack before the woman's foot spun around and kicked the black weapon out of Cent's hand.

"Oh?" Without defenses, she struck again, aiming for his heart that knowing her intended target, moved to the left, letting the thin blade instead pierce his torso away from his beating heart. As the blade she was using was not meant for slashing, she could do nothing else but pull the blade out and keep her guard ready but for Cents, he was pleased enough. He calmly placed his hand on the small wound, delicately licking the blood off then saying in a low tone.

"Very impressive woman, very impressive indeed. What is your name?"

"…Orlana Zeruda."

"How quaint, well then Orlana, here's what I have to offer you. I am the leader of a group of specialized assassins whose job is to kill for money. Under orders you are to do your duty for a specific amount of cash. There is only one thing I require from you, just as I have required it from everyone else. You must have a desire, one above all others that you will not stop until you have grasped it. Even if the world falls around you, you will always hold on to that desire, seek it, and earn it, until the very end of your life. Do you have a desire, one above all others?"

What kind of answer did she need to give, she knew her answer already but there was one thing she wanted to know. "If I join you, will I get what I desire? Will earning money really help my cause?"

"Hahahaha! Do not take desires so lightly nor that of money. Whatever you desire, can often be earned with incredible hard work and a little cold cash."

Was it possible to get Carentorzulan out with money? She couldn't risk going off and trying to save her on her own like she did now. But she would in the end save her, deep down even in this new hellish word she was now taking place in, one where she would murder again and again, she would save her. She would learn more about Diclonius, more about her sister and not once would she lose that unwavering faith that her sister would be saved.

"I will." Her final answer absolute.

"Hahahaha! Perfect, another member I have attained. Welcome…Third Cent, Orlana Zeruda, The Clock Stopper!" Cents exclaimed with joyful abandon before passing his silver etched coin to the young woman who with its glint in her eye, she knew exactly where she would place it.