Sorry for not being able to update, but I was "researching" for a non-Rockman related oneshot that I'm trying to write.
Well, there are no real questions for me to individually answer, but thanks for your reviews. They're highly appreciated and it feels good to check my inbox and find that someone's reviewed my fic. I'm sure that you all want to read the next chapter, so here it is:
-----------POV Shift: Normal-----------
Weil's Base
Aile glances around at her temporary living quarters and realizes that it isn't that much different from her jail cell. At least this place has some essential things… There's a wooden mirror and a straw mattress. The room in this room isn't that different from the jail cell, but at least I have a window for now. At the corner of the mirror, Aile notices the door opening and Pandora's reflection.
"Here's your biometal back." Pandora tosses a biometal at Aile, but Aile's hands slips as she reaches for it and the biometal falls down, creating a clink sound as it hits the metal floor.
Aile stares down at the biometal for a few seconds before picking it up. "This isn't mine." Aile looks at the light violet piece of metal metal and its red eyes, unlike the green eyes of all her other biometals.
"Weil modified it a bit so that it will be more… suitable for our battle." Aile turns the biometal around, trying to figure out what it is. "You probably can't tell from looking at it, but that's Model Z."
Now I recognize the shape a bit. I knew that I saw this somewhere. Still, it looks so different now, and I don't just mean the color changes. Aile pockets the biometal and then turns to Pandora. "How did Weil 'modify' it?"
Pandora thinks for a moment and then shrugs. "I have no idea, you'll either have to ask him or find out yourself. You still have more than enough time left to prepare yourself."
Aile nods and continues staring at Model Z. "I need Model X as well."
"You can Rock-On with Model X alone, right?" Aile nods at Pandora's question. "Just do the same with Model Z. It shouldn't be that different now. Is there anything else you need?"
I guess that's all I need to know for now. Aile starts to shake her head, but stops herself as something pops into her mind. "I was wondering, why are you working with Weil again?"
"I've went through this conversation before and I don't feel like going over it again. Alright, I'll respond to that with another question. Why not?" Pandora responds calmly and since the answer isn't the kind that Aile was hoping to hear, it just added to her already bad mood that has been accumulating ever since she got stuck here.
"What do you mean why not!!?? If I tried to list down all the reasons that what you're doing right now is wrong, then the two of us would probably die from either boredom or old age before I finish!" Aile raises her voice as her temper flares like sizzling fireworks.
Pandora dismisses Aile's statement with a wave of her hand as if she's swatting away a fly. "What options do you think I have?" Pandora pauses and glares at Aile, challenging her to answer the question. Aile opens her mouth and then closes it. Pandora waits about twenty more seconds. "That's exactly my point. Just think about this: if, and this is a huge IF, I manage to escape from here, what awaits me? I have been involved in Weil's plans even longer than Serpent. I'd be weakened from escaping and then killed or captured on sight."
"Well, you could-"
"Don't concern yourself with these thoughts. They will just get in the way." Pandora looks at Aile again. "Get stronger, because this is your best and possibly only chance of escaping. I've trapped and bound myself here a long time ago."
Aile stares at Pandora awestruck, going over her words carefully and trying to understand what Pandora's trying to say beneath them. After several tries, Aile reached the same conclusion. "You want me to escape from here?"
"I'm not exactly in a very comfortable position right now with Weil. I can tell that he doesn't trust me and my usefulness is getting closer and closer to nonexistent within each passing day. The fact that you're here just confirms my suspicion that he's planning to replace me."
"So you're saying that you want me out of the picture to prolong your own life?"
"That would be the simplified version of what I just said." Pandora calmly replies. "Enough talk. My life should be the least of your concerns right now. I'll leave you alone here so you can prepare yourself." Pandora raises her hand skywards and warps out of Aile's room.
Somehow, I have a bad feeling about Model Z. Weil had to have done something to it, but it's the only biometal that I have. I obviously can't beat her like this. I have one day to check for anything wrong with it. Hesitantly, Aile lifts up the now violet Model Z and raises it upwards. "Rock-on!"
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Robot Master's Base
"This place is like an ice rink. How do you expect me to fight here?" Vent tries to walk forward, but slips and almost falls before he pushes himself back up again. He can probably move easily like this, but I can't. Every time I breathe, I can see my own breath.
"Alright, Freezeman, we're going back to prepare for the next phase of our plan. Report back after you beat him." Shademan and the other Robot Masters walk away, leaving only Freezeman and Vent on the icy battlefield.
This place is so cold! It has to be at least below negative ten degrees. Do they keep this whole room air-conditioned everyday? Vent forces his stiff hands to pick up Model X and Model L.
"You shouldn't be complaining about anything, you have an ice-based biometal, right?" Freezeman stares at the shivering Vent and grins. "This place isn't at its coldest right now and you're already shivering. I'll be generous and give you an advantage. I won't even move from this spot during our battle."
"You're way too overconfident in your own abilities." Vent moves the two biometals across from each other. "Rock-on!"
Vent completes his transformation and Freezeman stares at him, unimpressed. "I guess you, there's no reason for me to anything but overconfident. Ready or not, the battle begins now!" As soon as Freezeman finishes talking, he slams his hand into the ice, causing ice spikes to rise from the sheet of ice on the ground.
Vent jumps up when the spikes move towards him and he slams his halberd down, destroying the ice spikes and allowing him to land safely. I won't slip on the ice in this form and I won't freeze myself to death, but I doubt any of the weapons would have an effect on him.
"Rock-on!" Vent whips out Model F from his pocket and transforms. After he finishes, a cold beam of ice pushes Vent against the wall and Freezeman laughs.
"This is just pathetic. You left yourself wide open when transforming. I take back what I said earlier about not even needing to move to defeat you. Not only will I defeat you, but you also won't be able to put a scratch on me."
I just need a bit more time to gather enough firepower to complete melt through all his attacks. Freezeman fires another beam of ice at Vent. Vent sways to the right, but slips on the ice. Vent falls face first and a deafening crack sound is heard, but luckily for him, the fall got him low enough to avoid Freezeman's attack.
"Are you always this pathetic or are you just having a bad day?" Freezeman takes a break from attacking after concluding that Vent is even less of a threat than he originally thought.
"Shut up! I prefer using Model ZX when fighting. I don't use the other biometals as much." Vent stands up again and wipes the ice away from his armor.
"And you're wondering why you're so weak? If you can't utilize your own weapons properly, then how can you hope to counter those of your opponenents?"
"Utilize THIS!" Vent hand shoot up and he fires a searing red heat wave at Freezeman. Freezeman gets caught off guard, but counters by firing a beam of ice and the two attacks meet between the two combatants.
There's a constant fizzing sound as the mixture of ice and fire creates steam. Vent's attack slowly pushes its way forward towards Freezeman as Vent fires numerous weaker buster shots from his twin busters to aid it. "It's over now!"
The steam clears to show a large and melting block of ice where Freezeman once was. The ice melts completely and the steam clears to show Freezeman standing in the same spot since the beginning of the battle unharmed. "This battle was over for you long before it started." Freezeman points his points his clenched hand at Vent and opens spreads his fingers out so that his palm was facing the chosen one. The flat ice around Vent rises up and surrounds him.
Vent fires his FX Busters rapidly in every direction, but the ice keeps rising around him. There's too many of them! More ice just appears in place of the ones that I destroy! Freezeman clenches his hand into a fist and the all the ice simultaneously crunch at Vent. When Freezeman finally unclenches his fist again, Vent is frozen in a large block of ice.
"I don't know whether I should laugh at or admire your determination, but this battle was starting to bore me." Freezeman walks forward to the frozen human. "Now, we'll see if that your hotheadedness will be able to melt through your icy prison and save you. If you don't, then you die."
Freezeman turns away from Vent and walks away. The gate opens and Freezeman stands at the doorway but hears the faint sound of a crack. Freezeman looks at Vent again and the sound increases. CRACK! With one earsplitting crack, the ice shatters and Vent tumbles out, still in his FX armor.
"I'm not done yet! I can still fight." As if to contradict his own statement, Vent's knees are brought down to the ground and his chest heaves in and out while he tries to cling onto his life. His armor glows and separate from Vent, returning to its biometal state.
"I don't know how you managed to break free, but I'm not interested in fighting you anymore." Vent opens his mouth to say something, but Freezeman cuts him off. "I'll grant you your victory if that's what you want since I broke the conditions I set earlier by moving. At first glance, you may seem weak and pathetic, but you managed to break through your icy prison although your energy was drained. I'll have to admit that you have potential."
"So… What now?" Vent asks Freezeman and shivers as the ability to feel slowly returns to his body.
"You have two choices. We can take you back to Innerpeace. We have nothing to lose by doing that, since our signals are undetectable when we teleport and I doubt you know your current location." Freezeman finishes and takes a break before telling Vent the second option. "…or you can stay here and try begging Shademan to help you."
"I'll stay here, but I'm not going to beg anyone."
"If that's your choice then do whatever you humans do for now. You can roll around in the grass at Plantman's garden…" Freezeman takes a moment to enjoy the look on Vent's face at this suggestion. "… or you can do anything else, but don't come to Shademan's room. We're discussing… Robot Master business that will be none of your concern."
Freezeman warps out of the room so that Vent won't be able to follow him and Vent exits the room to wander aimlessly in the hallway.
-----------POV Shift: Shademan-----------
"Alright, I'm back. How are things going at your end?" Freezeman's voice disturbs my moment of rest as I force my eyes open so that I can look at him. He looked unscratched from his battle, other than a few broken shards of glass on his armor.
"Did you kill the human?"
"I trapped him in a large block of ice but he somehow managed to break free. I didn't feel like fighting anymore after that." Freezeman pauses for a moment and starts stroking his chin, pretending to be a philosopher. "By the way, he wants your help to locate Model W."
"What he still wants to do that despite the fact that you put him in his place?" Freezeman nods to confirm it. What does that human think would happen anyways? That some miracle will occur and save him? Still, he reminds me of that blue robot, Rockman. Despite all of the odds being against him, Rockman still charged recklessly into our base.
A robot is made from two things and two things only, the hardware and the software. Three hundred years ago, our hardware and software were both superior to those of Rockman's not to mention we outnumbered him eight to one. Yet, he ran in with that little toy gun of his and managed to defeat us. I don't know how it was possible, I've been processing that even up to today, but the answer eludes me every time.
Perhaps if I sent that human who reminds me so much of that blue bomber, he'll be able to succeed as well and I'll be able to find the answer. "Alright, I'll help him if that's what he wants."
"What? He's weak, there's no way that he'll be able to put a dent in Weil's plans. He might even turn their attention to us before we complete the preparations for our plans!" Those were the same things that we thought about Rockman three hundred years ago, but this time I won't make the same mistake.
"We'll have to see about that." I clap my hands together above my hands and concentrate. I separate my palms and a dozen bats fly off in every direction. They will be my eyes and ears of the outside world. Model W won't be able to elude us forever.
"The data has been completed." Shadowman hands me a small safe with everything that we need and a key.
"Good, I'll take care of everything else from here. Just leave that here for now and I'll set everything up when the time is right." Shadowman nods. "Alright, all of you are dismissed."
The Robot Masters disperse and leave me to sit in my throne to wallow in my thoughts. It's been three hundred years. Three hundred years in darkness. For years we've been forgotten. Two hundred years, we've been completely replaced, by the reploids.
We fought for the freedom of Robots. Dr. Wily wanted to create a utopia where robots and humans could live peacefully and he wanted to rule it. The humans said that the world should not be ruled, but they have a government and I'm sure there's at least one person with a lot of influence.
The truth is they were afraid of losing their power to robots like us, so they sent Rockman to stop our "uprising". They hailed a robot as a hero for stopping a campaign of bringing equality to robots. If that isn't irony, then I don't know what is.
When the Robot Masters and Rockman were gone, the humans were probably relieved. Despite the fact that my body was destroyed, a part of me was still aware of my surroundings. I watch them create mindless robots to serve as their minions.
Then, the reploids came. They were supposed to be superior to us in every way possible, yet they never tried to question the way things were. They never questioned why their status was lower than their creators and then the Maverick Virus showed up.
The Maverick Virus was Wily's last ditch attempt to revive his campaign, and that's exactly what happened. Now, we have been reborn. Together, we will show them that we're just as good as the reploids. We are no longer bound by the laws of Robotics and we no longer have a purpose, but we found one on our own.
The waves of time have dragged us down and put us in a grave of the forgotten for three hundred years, but we will be forgotten no longer. If there's anything that I have learned, it's that sometimes justice and fate must be forced.
Soon, it will be the end of the age of reploids and we, the Robot Masters will usher in a new golden age. All their wars, achievements, and hardships shall be burnt into the ashes… of history…
Well, I better get things started. I'll need to not attract any attention as I set things up in Innerpeace, so I guess it's time that I put my portable checkpoint to use as soon as I influence her to move to a safe and quiet spot in Innerpeace then I'll go in and set everything up there….
-----------POV Shift: Aile-----------
What do I look like now? I have no idea. The mirror! I look into the reflective glass. This is a bit… different. The most important thing I noticed was the change in my helmet. It's pretty hard to describe because of the simple fact that THERE ISN'T ONE!
I have never seen any reploids battle without a helmet. Oh wait, Giro just wore a visor when he fought, so I guess there's at least one, but the point is, it's very rare. Now my hair's a bit different. Instead of my usual neat brown hair pointing downwards, it seems a lot wilder as if the laws of gravity don't affect it.
Is it just me or does my hair seem a bit shinier then usual? I increase the power of the lights in my room to get a better look and it's definitely a bit brighter. It seems to be reflecting the light somehow.
Okay, I guess checking how my hair changed isn't going to affect anything in the long run other than a fashion statement, so I'll just see what else is different. The armor looks the same other than the fact that it's now a light violet color instead of the usual crimson red. I guess it isn't that different, but why would Weil bother modifying it if it's only for the purpose of removing my helmet? Wait, I haven't checked the weapons yet!
I search in the utility belt and managed to find the pistol first. Now time to find the ZX- I mean Z-Saber. There it is, I think I just found the hilt. Now I just need to pull it out and activate it.
Wait, this is another pistol and it looks identical to the last one. I'm going to use duel guns for my battle with Pandora? Well, I guess that isn't too bad since I'm a lot better at using guns than Vent. Still, it's a bit strange that I don't have a sword of some kind. A Model Z without a sword is almost as strange as a biometal without a helmet.
Why exactly did Weil modify Model Z like this? I really don't see the point unless he wants me to lose. If that's the case, then shouldn't he have just taken away all the weapons? He probably took the helmet away so that my head is more exposed to attacks, but I don't know why he had the twisted idea of replacing the ZX Saber with another gun.
Well, I think I've had enough of looking at myself in the mirror. I better go and test out these weapons to make sure that they're not faulty and get used to them. Is there a training room here? I better ask Pandora.
Wait, why would I want to ask Pandora? I think we're beginning to talk to each other a bit too much, but I certainly don't want to talk to Prometheus, Iris, Phantom, and definitely not Weil. Pandora, in comparison, seems like a better person to talk to.
I'll just check if the door's locked. If it is, then I'll just have to stay here and wait for someone to come here. If they don't come within one hour, I'll have to start shooting at the wall. I put my hand on the doorknob and turn it. It opened! I guess I won't have to worry about that.
I'll just have to search around myself or I can ask anyone I bump into. I open the door and walk around the long hallway. I open the first door I reach and find a room filled with weapons and raw materials. I guess this must be the storage.
This went on for quite a while. Some of the things I saw were just plain disturbing and some other things I couldn't even identify. I'm beginning to doubt that they even have a training room. They probably just go outside, but I don't think I'd be allowed to do that as well.
"Looking for something?" A very egotistical voice asked. How can a voice be egotistical? Well if anyone heard Prometheus talking, then they'd know. Do I really have to ask this guy for help? Well, I guess there's no other choice. I don't want to walk into any other strange rooms.
Sighing with defeat, I clear my throat to prepare myself for whatever snappy or demeaning comment that he's bound to make. "Is there a training room here? I need a place with a lot of open space to use the new biometal."
Prometheus eyes wander to me, probably taking in the appearance of me in this new Model Z Form. His eyes stopped moving to show that he was finished with his inspection and then Prometheus whistled. "Not bad, so this is what my new partner will look like."
That wasn't exactly a snappy comment or anything else I've been expecting, but it infuriated me just the same. "What exactly do you mean by new partner?"
"Nothing, Weil just said that we'll be working together once you join us."
Once I join them? What makes them think that I would want to do that? "Well, then you should tell Weil that he's too sure of himself. I have no plans of joining him whatsoever."
Then, Prometheus laughed as if there was a joke that only he understood in what I said. This guy is just as creepy outside of battle as he is in battle. "You already had no choices left the moment you accepted Weil's challenge." Hearing this, I felt my blood becoming colder and it's as if my whole body just froze.
What does he mean by that? I've been trying to avoid getting myself cornered, but how did accepting Weil's challenge do that? Does he think that there's no way I can defeat Pandora? Well, I'll just have to show them that they underestimated me. Prometheus stopped chuckling and started walking. "Are you coming or not? You wanted to go to the training room, right?"
"Yeah sure, just wait."
-----------POV Shift: Prairie-----------
There's still nothing on Vent yet. Well, at least we didn't find a body or his biometals damaged. The only sign of Vent we found was the blood, but even then, there wasn't enough blood around to confirm that he's dead.
If anyone killed him, then they'd have dumped his body somewhere. If said thing happened, then our satellites and scanners would have easily picked it up, so with that being said, he must be alive.
Well, I better keep myself occupied so that I'll still be around when he is found. I should probably fix the computer. I'll have to delete some of the unnecessary files that I downloaded.
I opened up the computer and logged on. Let's see, I better start off with music. I doubt I'll have any time to listen to any of these, and I don't even know what I was thinking when I downloaded half of them, so I just deleted the whole file and emptied the recycle bin.
Okay, what else is there? I open the next file and find the pictures that I stored. These are too important. I'll have to resort to deleting these if there are still problems after deleting everything else.
After a rigorous cleansing, the computer is now running five hundred percent faster and error free. I log out and shut down the computer before crashing onto the bed. There's nothing to do for now, so I should just take a nap. I need to stop thinking about so many things for a while.
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"Prairie!?" I wake up to someone shaking me. I groggily open my eyes to see Ciel. Why did she have to wake me up, is there some emergency?
"What's wrong?"
"I was going to ask you the same thing. When I came here, you were moaning, tossing, and turning in your sleep. I thought you were just having a night at first, but when it went on for half an hour, I got scared." A nightmare? I don't remember anything from the time I fell asleep and when she shook me awake.
"I don't remember anything."
"Really? It sounded really bad when I got here? Are you feeling alright?" Ciel threw off my blanket and put her palm on my forehead. "Yeowch!" With that scream, she immediately ripped her hand away. If she went any faster, I think her hand would have fallen off.
"Is there anything wrong?"
"What do you mean 'is there anything wrong'!? You're burning! Can't you tell?" I am? I better check my temperature. Let's see, fifty seven degrees Celsius. I really am burning. At that moment, it seems that my senses have awakened and I became aware of the heat in the room.
"I guess you just noticed." Ciel states as I start panting. Why's it so hot in here? Is there anything wrong with my system? I ran an inner diagnostics check and found out that my inner cooling system is malfunctioning. I began the repairs and waited. This might… take a while.
"It's nothing too bad, just a problem with my cooling system. It should be back to normal in about an hour or so." Right now, I'm still panting and sweating. Ciel must have noticed because an expression of concern is painted across her face.
"Want me to get you some ice while it's repairing?" I try to answer, but my mouths felt too dry. Instead I just nodded. That was enough to send Ciel to get the ice. I lied on the bed, trying to stay in contact with anything remotely cold, but the flaw in that plan was that said objects didn't remain cold for long, sending me on another quest for cold items.
Ciel came back quickly with five small plastic bags filled with ice cubes. She hands one to me and I put it against my forehead. There is only one way that I can describe the sensation I felt as the cold ice made contact with my burning forehead. It was heaven.
After all the ice was melted, I felt a bit better. Ciel looks at me as I relax a bit. "Are you going to be okay now?"
I was about to say yes, but another voice in my head told me to do something else. Maybe a nice stroll in Innerpeace will help me. I need to get some fresh air. I better listen to that voice. "I'll go outside to get some fresh air. I think I've been staying in this room for too long."
"Alright, I'll just take care of things for you here." I nod and go to get my coat before pausing for a bit. Was it a good idea to wear my coat when I'm fifty degrees Celsius? Still, it just doesn't feel right if I'm not wearing it. If it gets too hot, then I'll just take it off.
I grab my coat and hat and prepare to leave. Where should I go? I'll buy some ice tea or ice cream and then just take a walk. A place not too crowded with people. Yeah, that seems like a good idea.
Damn it, not now, Burnerman. I need to concentrate. I freeze right after hearing this. Am I going insane? I try to recall what I heard, but can't remember it anymore. Still, I can't shake the feeling that whatever thought I had seemed really out of place.
"Are you feeling okay? You're frozen in place right now."
"Sorry about that. I think I really do need some fresh air right now." Ciel seems skeptical, but I give her an encouraging smile before heading to the trans-server.
-----------POV Shift: Aile-----------
"Target practice? You expect me to get better by shooting targets?" Who does this guy think I am?
Prometheus just rolls his eyes. "I'm sorry. I didn't know that target practice was below the all-mighty chosen one." He's really starting to get on my nerves. I could describe him in ten words off the top of my head and none of them would be positive.
"I do shoot targets for practice, but it's usually a lot harder than this! I'm barely twenty meters away from it. Do you really expect me to get any better by shooting at something that close?"
"Well, why don't you just try? If you manage to get a bulls-eye, then I'll see to getting some mechaniloids to help you train." Does he think that I'll miss a shot this easy? I'll knock that conceited tone out of his voice.
I raise one pistol up and fire. The energy pellet travels on the straight path I plotted in a perfect line, and then something horrible happened. The shot dropped to the ground like a basketball that lost its force.
What just happened!? How did I miss? I looked at Prometheus, who has a smug grin on his face. I'm not going to give him the satisfaction that he's right! Using the other pistol, I shoot again, but with the same result. Is this weapon faulty or is something wrong with me?
I have to focus and concentrate. I can do this. I charge the energy inside one pistol and fire it. Unlike Model ZX, the charged shot wasn't a big blue ball of energy, but rather it was a small quick purple shot. The attack is quick enough to leave a purple colored trail at behind.
The attack hits the edge of the target and then it bounced off of it. It hit the ceiling, bounced again to the ground, and before my eyes could fully follow it, my pistol is knocked out of my hand and it clangs to the ground.
I looked at Prometheus to see if he did anything, but he was too busy rolling on the floor and laughing to have done that. His laughter and his hands pounding on the floor are really beginning to annoy me. I should have chosen to fight him instead of Pandora.
Prometheus stops laughing and stands up. "Wow, you really are good at shooting. I don't know a lot of people who can disarm themselves with their own weapon." Don't say anything… just ignore him. I grit my teeth and give him one last look before turning back to the target.
Although I'm not looking in his direction, I can still see that smirk plastered across his face. Alright, so the shot is quick and bounces off of flat and smooth surfaces. I calculate the angles, charge up the pistol and fire.
The shot hits the dead center and bounces off before it hits the target.
"OW!" I turn to Prometheus to see a scowl in place of his smirk. His left hand is pressed against his right shoulder where the shot grazed him. Somehow, this was a lot more satisfying then hitting the middle of a target. "I'll make you pay for that, you bit-"
"Prometheus, Weil has something to discuss with us." The two of us turn to find Phantom. When and how did he get here? The door's still closed and I didn't hear anything until he spoke.
"Fine, I'm coming." The two of them leave the room. Now I'm alone and won't have any distractions.
After about an hour of practice, I learned to aim the shots properly and could fire basic shots without them dropping to the ground. Now I know how to use these weapons, but there's no way I can beat Pandora. Her attacks are a lot stronger than mine and I have no weapons to defend myself in melee combat.
"You actually expect to be able to escape from here like that?" I heard a feminine voice and looked around, but no one was there. That's strange, the voice sounded so close, and yet far away at the same time. I know. This voice sounds so familiar…
"Who's there?" The only other females here are Pandora and Iris, but Pandora doesn't sound like that. Also, I don't believe I ever heard Iris talking, but this voice is strangely familiar so it can't be her either…
"Who are you? What do you want?" I turn around to try to find the source of the voice, but I'm alone in this room.
"I want the same thing that you want. Pandora defeated. Then, the two of us will be free." I can't tell where the source is coming from. What does she mean by 'the two of us will be free'? Is she another prisoner?
"Are you working with Weil?" I ask after finally giving up trying to locate the voice.
"Hmm… interesting question… I guess that depends how you answer mine. Are you?" Where's this voice coming from? Is she hiding somewhere in the room?
"No, of course not!"
"Well, then I guess I'm not either." How does my answer affect hers? This conversation is really getting confusing.
"Why are you here?"
"Because you're here also. I've been with you since the day you were born." What does she mean by that? I don't know anyone who's been with me since I was born and I'm certain that I was captured alone.
"I don't know you!"
"Of course you don't. This is the first time that we've actually talked to each other. I haven't been able to for a long time because of you, but now, I'm finally awake." Every answer she gave failed to answer my questions and just raised more.
"Who are you!? I'm growing mad just talking to you." Then I heard a chuckle. It didn't seem to be coming from anywhere in the room, but it filled my head.
"I'm sure you heard my name many times before." Then she stopped chuckling. "Very well, I'll tell you what you want to hear whether you like the answer or not. My name is… Aile."
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Originally, I was planning to have the fight between Aile and Pandora in this chapter, but I guess the other parts took longer than I thought and I took Bookman's advice on having Shademan as the narrator.
During Prairie's POV, the italic parts were Shademan sending her hypnotic suggestions, though that could be easily deduced by his last line.
I'll try to finish a new one-shot I'm planning before the deadline, so a new chapter won't be up for a while.