.hack//EVA: Catharsis: Intertwining Melodies

Disclaimer: In this universe in the quantum foam, I do not own or in any way shape or form hold a claim to the .hack series or Neon Genesis Evangelion.

" " denotes speech

'italics' denotes thought

'bold' denotes location names

'bold italics' denotes skill use

NERV Hospital, Tokyo-3

After the Fifth Angel had been defeated and the pilots recovered by NERV personnel, they were taken separately to the hospital so that their wounds could be treated. All Shinji had needed was to have his hands wrapped with bandages daubed in healing ointment, but Rei, who had suffered the fate of nearly being boiled alive in LCL, required slightly more care.

Taking first-degree burns all over one's skin does tend to wear one out, as anyone who has suffered from extensive sunburn will attest, and so Rei Ayanami slept soundly on one of the hospital beds, a not-so-surprising visitor sitting by her side, waiting for her to awaken and trying not to fall asleep himself.

Another unfamiliar ceiling, Shinji thought, looking up at the perfectly smooth surface painted in that clinically pale shade of white, almost the white of lead. Almost as if the places to heal us make us sicker than we really are sometimes…how I hate hospitals. They're just so… dreary.

Then recalling that Ayanami was his father's favorite, he tried to see if there was anything that would make her room stand out, but…there wasn't. There was nothing that inspired comfort in the extremely utilitarian room of steel-gray and white, though he noted with amusement the cleanliness of his surroundings. That might at least be refreshing to the blue-haired girl, who otherwise lived in a place not fit for human habitation…or for warm water penguin habitation if one came down to it.

Shinji chuckled over that, but found that that sound of muted half-delight quickly changed into a yawn. It would do him no harm to sleep here, he decided, and Ayanami might like to see someone when she awakened. Well, maybe not, considering his intrusion into her apartment the previous day, but she had not made any mention of that, not that she was the type to do so.

In any case, it soon became a moot point, as his eyelids drooped lower and lower, his gaze coming to rest on the pale form of Rei Ayanami lying there in the hospital bed. It had been an eventful night, and she had even smiled at him…a smile that reminded him of moonlight, hinting at mischief and oceans of untapped emotion. The light in the room was dim, and in the dimness, Shinji almost mistook Ayanami's sleeping form for that of Reimeiki.

Reimeiki, he thought, bolting upright with a sudden lurch. I want to see her, to know that she's ok, to hold her in my arms and keep her safe from harm.

Feeling a little sheepish at not having thought of her till now, Shinji let his mind wander to Reimeiki, to her playfulness, walking home with her every day for the last two weeks, how wise she seemed, and yet how fragile she could be. Her smile always found a way to make his heart beat faster, and he remembered the way she had felt in his arms when they had last seen one another. The softness of her skin, the sweetness of her lips, the scent of her hair…ever since Reimeiki had come into his life, she had turned his world upside down.

Come to think of it, she was probably the only person in Tokyo-3 who didn't know he was an Eva pilot, or who, if she knew, never mentioned it, treating him like a normal person. Except he never felt quite normal around her. Instead, he felt elated, embarrassed sometimes, ecstatic…quite possibly the whole list of emotions beginning with the letter "E."

And then, he remembered with a hint of surprise, Reimeiki somehow found a way to get close to Ayanami…Maybe…maybe like draws like…

He shook his head ruefully, and this time, did not fight when sleep came to claim him, carrying him off to a pleasant dream set within The World.

Morganna's Apartment, a day earlier…

Dinner with an archenemy had been a rather interesting affair the evening before. Though Morganna was rather new to living outside the net, and hadn't entertained many people in her apartment before (Helba being the first) she knew enough about human rituals and psychology to manage. And of course, the fact that, Maya (Helba) had been the guest gave Morganna a chance to…show off.

True, Maya was familiar with all the various technologies in use in the apartment, but even she had found the extensive paper-thin LCD screens and 10.2 surround-sound setup impressive, as it did allow one to be fully immersed in a virtual environment, even more so than FMDs. Dinner at the apartment had been about what she imagined a fine meal in The World would have been like…and at Dun Loireag, as well, which Maya remembered had been one of Tsukasa's favorite places.

'He—she was one who often complained of her existence in a ludicrous world,' thought Maya, reminiscing over the beginnings of the Twilight Incident. 'And I will admit that I am pleased that the young wavemaster is doing well these days.'

The past of the dothackers had been mentioned, as that and The World were two of the archrivals' only points in common (aside from being women who fundamentally enjoyed power), and there had been some amusement when Morganna recalled that she had been defeated years ago by a party led by a teenage boy of only 14 –about the age of student she was teaching now.

"That's the trouble with facing human beings," the once-goddess had remarked. "They are so unpredictable when threatened. One would think that they would give up in the face of overwhelming odds, but they don't…unless it is a particularly difficult homework assignment threatening their grade, in which case, they tend to complain and try to get out of it."

Laughter had ensued from the two older ones at the table, while Lycoris had simply raised an eyebrow and chuckled. The silver haired girl couldn't very well deny how her classmates reacted to even the mere mention of homework, as though they were victims of Pavlovian conditioning to moan and groan about it. Not, of course, that there had been any complaints over having to play The World.

Neither she nor Morganna had expected there to be, since most students were hard pressed to simply find time to play without interference from parents. Though Lycoris did wonder whether Morganna was attempting to condition the students for ulterior motives, namely, regaining a part of the power she had once unquestionably held. It would be easy enough with students in a war-torn land, especially if one were to give them what they wanted…escape, security, seeming freedom. But freedom had its cost, as Tsukasa had discovered years ago, and Lycoris wondered what the lesson would be for the students in class 2-A.

Still, it was undeniably easy to read teenage boys (about as easy as a children's book—large print, mostly pictures, etc), and most of them did provide some comic relief—when they weren't busy staring at one of the girls. Sometimes they would even stare at her, or the ones that Hikari referred to as the "Idiot Duo" would make some rather coarse comments about poor Ikari-kun, who admittedly did intrigue her.

Of course, having been a program that collected information on emotional states, and having witnessed romances in The World, Morganna had not missed this development, but had waited until now to reveal her knowledge of it to Lycoris with a sly smile. Maya chuckled over that, noting the foibles of human relationships, and how both Morganna and Lycoris were pretty much human now, in spite of their origins.

From there, they had turned to other topics of conversation, making light of old events and some anew, though Maya had discussed her concerns about the Fifth Angel. She knew that Morganna and Lycoris would not be ones to divulge any confidences, and had felt safe in talking about the wave patterns of the Fourth Angel. Not only had it resembled the harmonic signature of human DNA to an uncanny degree, but the divergences seemed to resemble the markers for something else she had once had to face: the Cursed Wave.

Morganna had been taken aback when this was noted, asking skeptically if Maya thought that she was somehow responsible for the coming of the Angels. There had been a bit of nervous laughter then, but the NERV tech had conceded that though Morganna might be responsible for the loosing of the Cursed Wave, she could not think of how they were related to the Angels.

One thing did concern her though: What would happen if the Angels found a way to access the global network? The World would be a perfect place for them to take up residence, and once there…

The room had quickly sobered, as a repeat of the Twilight Incident was not what anyone wanted, and given their wave characteristics, one angel could easily cause as much damage as a phase, if not more. Angels, after all, could regenerate…and with the AIDA situation being what it was…

Noting this, Maya had asked two favors of Morganna: 1) to note how her virtual room had been made so that she could set up such a chamber for training purposes, as it struck her that full immersion in The World could be far more effective than simply using keyboard and headset; and 2) to join her in her endeavors to protect The World.

Morganna had agreed to both, as it meant that she would be able to take on a rather more important role in The World, regaining a fraction of her old power and prestige. How…ironic that this would be through joining the same group (in name, at least), that had defeated her in the past. She hoped that there would be no players around who remembered the skill "Data Drain" the time of Twilight, or the dumbbell monster that had been sighted with the wavemaster Tsukasa, as that could prove…inconvenient.

Ah, but the players have no doubt changed after 7 years or so, and most are probably gone, though the one called Wiseman does work for CC Corporation now, so I must needs be cautious.

Maya had nodded, though still a bit wary of Morganna's intentions, but desperate situations make for unlikely bed-fellows, and these two were less unlikely than most, having a great deal in common. And as they say, keep your friends close and enemies closer. If only Morganna definitely fell into one category or another. But as long as the world was safe and identities protected, this bit of uncertainty would have to be enough.

The other item discussed was the need for a virtual training chamber, for full immersion into The World, something that Morganna highly approved of. The more that an environment could separate a person from real life, the more likely that the person would take on another role and grow tired of the game less quickly. That, and an interface could be built into a plug suit, leading to a greater range of motion and possibilities for action.

Of course, the training chamber will be more similar to piloting EVA as well, though I do hope that the Commander doesn't quite catch on to my involvement in this. Perhaps I should just suggest something to dear "Ritsuko-sempai."

There had been agreements made, alliances forged, and so the conversation had gone on, with Morganna now becoming a dothacker, of all things (something which might have made the former heroes of The World fall over in shock). But Lycoris had tired of the conversation and had excused herself to go to her room, where she logged into The World.

Δ Server Eternal City Mac Anu

Golden rings of light rippled into a shady-half existence once again, existing for just long enough to herald the coming of Lycoris, sister to Aura, and a near goddess in her own right. As she emerged from the gate-in chamber out into the streets of Mac Anu, her golden eyes shone out into the darkness, and the silver of her hair caught what little illumination there was to be had from the starlit sky. In her dazzling red dress and cape, unique to all The World, she looked radiant, a small smile on her face as she thought about the worlds she bridged.

Nighttime in The World was always a special time, when more adventures would happen, when certain small intimacies that would not last the light of day might be exchanged. From twilight's dusk to twilight's dawn would be the merry hours of a world's revelry, and Lycoris reflected that the nightlife really wasn't too different in either world.

But Shinji—that was to say, Skari, wasn't there, and the petite girl silver-haired girl drew little comfort from that. She trusted him, it was true, but he had promised to be in The World tonight, and—

The chime of A in C Major hung in the air for a moment, as Rumor gated in, looking rather frazzled and unkempt, a far cry from his usual appearance. There were bags and dark circles under his eyes, and though an AI didn't need to sleep, the little Harvest Cleric looked liked he was in dire need of it. It probably didn't help his appearance that he wobbled about and collapsed, falling upon his knees as if unable to stand.

This was surely something more serious than simply fatigue, which an AI could not feel in the virtual world. Perhaps, then, it was the beginnings of data corruption or something else equally serious. After all, the young grey-haired boy had mentioned shadows arising from errors in the global network.

Lycoris rushed to his side, putting a hand on his shoulder and trying to see whether she could do anything to make Rumor feel better. Then she remembered an ability that her (sister? Niece?) Zefie had had and smiled, thinking that might be of use to her. Fortunately, since Zefie had been based on her program code, she thought she knew just how to add in…that was it.

"Loving Boomerang Hook!" she called, a gloved fist impacting Rumor's face. The young AI looked shocked at being struck, but in the next moment, his data knit back together. The blemishes and scars disappeared, the fatigue draining away as if Rumor had been given a double-shot of quad-espresso.

Opening his eyes, the Harvest Cleric groggily looked around, relieved to find himself back in a relatively safe haven.

"Thank you, my goddess," said Rumor, though he remained on his knees, respectful of the proprieties of his situation. He hesitated for a moment, as if unwilling to be the bearer of bad news, but resigned himself to saying it anyway. "Rumor has it that the shadows are growing more active in this land…"

He trailed off and bowed his head as if disappointed in himself, causing Lycoris to put a hand on his shoulder and bid him to rise.

"What happened?" she asked gently, knowing that anything that could worry Rumor, normally so mirthful, was no doubt something quite serious.

"Rumor has it that AIDA are attempting to infect players now," the little boy said solemnly, the look in his eyes far too old for his youthful form. "But infection does more to AIs than simply change them. It can destroy, corrupt, alter…I was nearly taken over."

And the Azure Knights had been dealing with other anomalies in the system and had not noticed me being ambushed.

Lycoris' face froze into a neutral mask as Rumor related his tale. Granted, she was no longer an AI since having gained a human form, but she remembered what it was like to be hunted, to face the possibility of true death in The World. Memories came flooding back of Hulle Granz and being on the business end of the Spear of Wotan, of how she had faced what she had thought would be her end.

And now the AIDA were a threat not only to The World, but also to AI characters, who could quite possibly be destroyed by them…

"Go and rest. I will tell the Queen of the Dark myself," Lycoris remarked at last, happy that she could remove at least that burden from Rumor's shoulders. "You have risked much in confronting the AIDA…go and rest now."

With that, Lycoris turned to gate out, her stay in The World prematurely ended by a message she would rather not deliver but had to, though four words from the enigmatic Rumor made her pause momentarily in her steps.

"Skari…was here earlier," was the last thing that the silver-haired girl heard as she logged out, a brief flicker of hope among the encroaching darkness of the Void.

Tokyo-3 1st Municipal Junior High School, Classroom 2-A

It had only been a couple of days, but rumors (the only things faster than light) were already beginning to spread. And as rumors do, they tended to grow and mutate in the retelling…

"Maybe the Angel killed them," one had stated, sparking life to the rumor mill once more as they waited for Aranami-sensei to arrive.

"Nah…if they were dead we wouldn't still be here. Maybe they're in the hospital after the battle," another had countered, and much of the class had nodded, knowing how dangerous it must be to fight against the Angels.

"Or maybe its just Ayanami who is injured, like she always is, and Ikari is waiting by her side for her to get better," a girl had chimed in, stars in her eyes at the thought of the great Shinji-sama as a romantic hero, suave and debonair as any of those mysterious men in the movies she watched.

Hearing this, Lycoris had felt a pang in her chest, and she grimaced slightly, though aside from that she displayed no reaction. What she was experiencing was highly unfamiliar to her, as she had known joy, sorrow, despair, hope, and other emotions, but essentially, she had been an unwanted child and sentenced to a "death" of sorts. Now there was someone who understood her, someone who she enjoyed spending time with, and she didn't want to see him just vanish.

Is this…jealousy? I have never felt that before in my existence. Jealousy, from the Latin zelosus, meaning full of zeal. There is no reason for me to feel it though…Ikari-kun will come back. I just hope he is well—

Then a rather rude comment came from the larger one of the Idiot Duo, causing the silvery haired girl to visibly cringe.

"Maybe Ikari and Ayanami ran off together and eloped! I always knew he had the hots for her, always staring at her during—OW!" So said Touji indeed, right before he was dragged out into the hallway for cleaning duty. Even in real life, the Class Representative had no patience for those who irritated her.

Then, without warning, an instant message appeared on all the laptops in class. It was from the teacher, Yumi Aranami, and had read as follows:

"Greetings, students. I apologize for not being in the classroom at the moment, but the reasons for that will become clear soon enough. You are to log into The World, using the provided equipment, and meet me in the field called Molasses Mansion Sif Berg, located at 'Θ Hidden Forbidden In Heat.' And just in case you haven't read up on The World's backstory yet, Sif Berg is supposedly where the three goddesses who control desire in The World reside."

"Eh?" was the collective response of most of them, with a few thinking that they might as well "go to the bathroom" and go home, since playing The World didn't require their presence in the classroom. Why be there when a teacher wasn't there, after all?

Just then, another instant message appeared with a friendly ping!, though the contents were decidedly less friendly:

"Just in case any of you were thinking about leaving or skipping, I would recommend against it. I know how long it takes for someone to log in and gate to this field, and I do intend to take roll. Don't worry, I will not ask your offline names, as I know who you are in The World. Just another perk of once being employed by CC Corp, but I suggest you hurry. I do not enjoy having my time wasted."

There was a dangerous undertone to that message, ominously seeming to suggest the possibility of harm in one way or another. Though the students knew of Aranami-sensei as fair and intriguing, she was very different from any teacher, and they suspected that she would be only all too willing to use them as examples to the rest of the class or worse. Most simply hoped that everyone else would not find out their online identities, as that could be the cause of some embarrassment, if not worse.

With that came a frenzied buzz in the classroom, as students scrambled to log in, hastily pulling on headsets and starting up the online game.

Δ Server Eternal City Mac Anu

The sheer number of golden rings that briefly manifested themselves in order to facilitate the gate-in of so many students momentarily froze the server and blinded those looking into the hall of the Chaos Gate. Thirty simultaneous logins were not exactly par for the course, and both server and eyes of observers reeled to recover as chimes sounded and a very motley crew gated in.

For most, this was their first time seeing one another's online identities, and it was amusing how similar or different those seemed from real life, both in appearance and behavior. Notably missing, of course, were Skadi and Skari, but only their partners were quite aware of this, with Lycoris and Tomoyami pairing up for the time being.

As for Aruna and Arano, their actions were slightly more mixed. Arano, for instance, being the rather more logical Shadow Warlock, instinctively edged away from the crowd, intending to wait for everyone to gate out to the field first, but Aruna, every inch the Tribal Grappler and barbarian, had the "brilliant" idea of gawking at the female players, some of whom were very scantily dressed. Two players in particular drew his eyes, standing some distance away from the mob and herding the others to the field.

One was a young girl clad in a red dress marked with an infinity symbol, an adorable red cape clasped about her delicate shoulders. Her hair, silvery with red streaks, streaming uncased down her lithe form, was twined with crimson ribbons and her golden eyes shone out into the darkness. She looked innocent and compassionate, a spider lily tucked behind one ear as she calmly gestured to the gate.

Hey, she looks like Reimeiki, Aruna thought to himself, leering at her as he thought of how attractive the real-life character was. I'd sure like to get me some of that.

The other girl seemed rather more dangerous, her pale face sporting the sigil of darkness, framed by two long streaming pigtails of lustrous black hair. And though she wore a flowing white dress with blue underskirt, what Aruna noticed first was the rather deadly looking weapon that she held so easily, a scythe like a demon's claw. He picked up on the air of power and malevolence that hung over the woman like a storm cloud and took an involuntary step backwards, a movement that was not missed by eyes accustomed to tracking prey through a field.

One moment the Tribal Grappler was leering, the next he was pushed up against the wall of the gate-in chamber, the haft of a scythe pressed against his neck as Tomoyami of the Shadow looked into his eyes, holding him paralyzed with the intensity of her stare.

"Try that again," she murmured in a deceptively sweet singsong voice, "and I guarantee you death when you next come to a field. That, or I will make sure that your character resembles its namesake, with no legs upon which to stand. Are we clear, my dear Tribal Grappler?"

Aruna could do nothing but nod, stammering out a "Y-yes," in response to the Flick Reaper's quiet rage. Thankfully for him, she shook her head in disgust, and with a swift kick to his character's crotch, returned to her former position over by the silver haired girl, who was looking on in amusement.

She's scarier than the Class Rep! Thought Aruna, his eyes darting about in an attempt to see if any other dangerous players lurking about in the area. Fortunately for him, there were none quite yet, so he made to rejoin his friend the Shadow Warlock, who simply shook his head and snickered at him.

"What? Don't give me no disrespect, man," Aruna drawled, wanting to know just what was so funny.

Arano rolled his eyes, having seen the same thing all too many times, saying only:

"You act exactly the same way in The World as you do in real life. Even with me telling you to think before you act, you never do," he voiced, though for the next part of his statement, he made sure to whisper so no one else could hear them. "There's no difference at all, just a difference in how violently people react sometimes…and you and I both know that the one person who normally doesn't like your actions is the Class Rep. Think about that and the player you just harassed…"

Aruna's face took on a stricken quality as he jumped back and waved his hand frenetically in front of him, laughing nervously. His normally tanned and jovial character seemed somehow diminished, seeming pale and vaguely fearful of something yet to come, as he began to grovel at the feet of a smirking Arano.

"I'll change, man, I'll listen. It's all harmless fun, right? No one saw that display besides you and that girl," he voiced nervously, "No need to tell anyone, least of all the Class Rep."

Arano laughed, causing some of the players to look in their direction before turning away out of boredom or disinterest.

"What I meant was that the one who attacked you probably was the Class Rep," the Shadow Warlock quipped, causing Aruna to pale even further, if that was possible. The Tribal Grappler was about to go over to the pigtailed girl to apologize and turned in his direction only to see her giving him a disdainful look…and the silver-haired girl looking at him with pity. Then those two left for the field, and in the blink of an eye that it took for them to gate out, a certain redhead gated in, only to look upon the pathetic tableau.

Eris, flush from joys of the battlefield, was ready for her next few victims. She had managed to massacre a horde of newbies today, and hopefully had taught them a lesson about trusting others. The fact that most of them were lecherous males who didn't believe that a female could be as good of a gamer had not helped their odds of survival, and in a whirlwind of steel and fire, she had wiped the field free of their taint.

And how satisfying it is to have gained more power. Soon no one will be able to stand against me…not even a bluenette like that girly man who cheated to kill me in the field…or that ice bitch who stood in the way of my kill…or Skari, that despicable Scheißekopf pervert who only acted like a newbie to try and cop a feel off of my lovely body. But wait…what do we have here?

"What's going on?" Eris asked mockingly, her voice sweet and cloying, as she tossed her fiery mane of auburn hair. "Is there a newbie convention that you two missed out on or something? Or a hentai convention, bakas?"

Aruna, getting to his feet and trying to recompose himself, was rather surprised by the entrance of an old enemy and babe, and failing to think, reached for exactly the wrong thing to say.

"Why? Did you want to join us, doll?" he asked, trying to emulate the classy males in old film noir, not realizing that this girl hated being called a doll. That, and he was a sucker for a pretty face and figure every time, and with her striking features and black leather armor that barely covered the essentials, Eris was definitely a looker. Never mind that she had killed him before…it was a new day in The World…right?

Eris' right eyebrow twitched slightly at the sound of the word "doll", and looked critically upon the Tribal Grappler.

Verdammen Sie! I would exterminate this despicable vermin like the scum he is right now, but I can't battle another player in a Root Town, so I have to get him to disclose a field location.

"Maybe I do," she purred, playing with the ends of her hair in a very flirtatious manner designed to overcome any male resistance. "Where are you headed off to?"

"Aruna!" Arano interrupted with a hiss. "We need to be off before we're noticed as missing…I don't know about you, but I do not want to face Aranami's wrath."

This might have bought Aruna a little more time, and he nodded, remembering that the consequences of a certain Class Rep and a Teacher's displeasure could be dire.

"Euh…sorry, but we have to be off to Θ Hidden Forbidden In Heat," the Tribal Grappler said to the Edge Punisher Eris, not wanting to listen to his mind and not his raging hormones. "But here, take my member address. Let's party together sometime."

He winked, and it was all that Eris could do not to shudder as thoughts of what the male had meant by that statement danced disconcertingly in her mind. But for her plan to play out, she had to pretend that she actually was looking forward to it. She winked right back at him and mimed blowing a kiss, saying only:

"Of course, handsome, I look forward to it," in the cutely enthusiastic voice that teenage boys so love. "You boys just be off on your dangerous trip into the wild unknown."

Θ Hidden Forbidden In Heat, eh? I should have guessed it would be something perverted, and that field definitely sounds like a place for a ecchi convention.

Meanwhile, Arano was mentally hitting himself on the head at Aruna's mental thick-headedness. The Shadow Warlock didn't exactly have a death wish in The World, but he might as well have, being Aruna's partner.

All brawn and no brains in his bigger head! Gah! While I know that Eris is good looking, she's betrayed us at least twice before, and Aruna told her exactly where we're going. Doesn't he remember what happened when he didn't take her seriously? We're so doomed if she catches us in the field before we find Aranami-sensei and the class…

"Come on," he said brusquely, pulling Aruna to the gate and activating it, as golden rings of light pulsed into existence and whisked them away to their destination.

Eris waited a minute and then did the same, vanishing with a smirk on her face at the thought of all the weaklings she would likely be able to massacre in the field.

Θ Hidden Forbidden In Heat, Molasses Mansion Sif Berg

Waiting in the antechamber of the mansion was a Shadow Warlock clad in black, with flowing purple-black tresses, dark violet eyes, and of course, the obligatory infinity symbol serving as a brooch, evidence that she was related to Aura and Lycoris. She had once been feared as the Cursed Wave, and perhaps she would be known and feared again, once the AIDA situation was well in hand, though not in the same capacity. CC Corp had taken those critical pieces of herself and turned them into Avatars for Epitaph Wielders, and though the Avatars had escaped, she had a feeling they would not wish to return to her after how she had warped them into living weapons.

Which is a pity, but at least I do have another role from which I can draw some satisfaction, and possess a little bit of power. Some would have provided very interesting material for the black box, once, while it is a wonder how some are still alive in their foolishness. Humanity is…a fascinating species of which I am now apparently part of…I wonder if that was Harald's plan all along?

Given that unsolvable imponderable, as the person in question could not be asked, Morganna frowned slightly, looking out one of the many windows as students began to arrive and file in to the mansion, looking around as if they had never seen the place before.

Though I suppose most of them have not. Only a few people were able to tell me the keywords for any of the lost grounds, and this style of architecture is no doubt unfamiliar to people accustomed to living in very limited spaces.

"Welcome to Molasses Mansion Sif Berg, home to the three Goddesses of Desire in The World…though if anyone thinks that being here will make them luckier in love…you're out of luck," she said in greeting. "Take a few minutes to look around and then have a seat wherever you would like, while I see what's happening outside."

She knew of Skadi's absence, sure enough, but the delay that the others were taking to arrive irked her. There was no reason for this tardiness when all had received their messages at the same time, and Morganna did not exactly enjoy having things contravene her will.

Perhaps it should not have surprised her that Lycoris and Tomoyami would be watching as everyone gated in, that Aruna and Arano had gotten themselves into another altercation…or that a PK named Eris would gate in.

Yes, speaking of the self-proclaimed PK, Eris had unsurprisingly followed the Idiot Duo to the field, even as they scurried for their lives towards the mansion.

This will be an easy kill, and then I'll move on to their friends…

Eris grinned wickedly at the sight of those two simpletons moving away, thinking that she would not follow. She had grown rather bolder since their initial encounter, and in her lust for power and revenge, the PK was willing to take her chances. After all, what male could possibly resist her good looks and girlish charm?

She drew her weapon, admiring the way that its blade was always clean despite all the blood that should be upon it. Holding it in ready position, she took a few steps forward, dashing into a run when—

"DIE, BITCH! Reaper's Dance!"

A wave of brute force slammed Eris back into the Chaos Gate, and her HP dropped precipitously, she realized with horror that she recognized the voice of her attacker: it was the PK named Tomoyami of the Shadow.

What is she doing here? Did she beat me to the field again somehow? Oh, Scheiße! She must want revenge on me, or thinks I want to steal HER kill.

Dark laughter came from the Flick Reaper as she confronted her foe, eyes narrowed into angry slits and gleaming with a sort of obsessed madness.

"You stole my kill last time, Bringer of Strife," hissed Tomoyami, her demonic scythe howling through the air to slash at the stricken Edge Punisher. "And you only beat me with the help of that Macabre Dancer. But Skadi isn't around to save you now, bitch. Let's end this!"

Down came the scythe, and Eris was flung to the side by the powerful blow. Clearly, her opponent had also become quite powerful in the time since their last encounter.

Does she have a problem or something? I should have expected this…she's a powerful PK, just as I am. But I don't intend to be killed by her, not this time. I'm not going to let this crazed girl steal MY kills like she tried to do last time.

Eris knew that if she didn't counter attack now and regain the momentum for herself, all was lost.

"Shell Breaker!" she shouted, rushing at Tomoyami and swinging with the full force that an Edge Punisher was capable of. The Flick Reaper blocked with the haft of her scythe, but still stumbled backwards due to the sheer power of the attack. Seeing her opponent falter slightly was promising, and Eris slammed her Flame Sword into the ground, producing a shockwave that flung Tomoyami into the air.

Or at least it would have, had Tomoyami not already leaped into the air in anticipation of this. She knew of an Edge Punisher's strengths, and was not one to be defeated easily. As long as she kept Eris from getting inside her reach, she could win. The Flick Reaper twisted in the air, bringing her Scythe up and around to attack in a spinning flurry of death.

"Heavenly Wheel!" she cried, striking from the air with viciously quick speed, allowing her to charge a very special attack….one that caused a series of explosions about her, damaging the Edge Punisher and blinding her to the next slash of her scythe.

By luck of the draw, Eris just managed to block the intended deathblow, her sword catching the Flick Reaper's weapon only an inch from her flesh as she pressed the attack.

"Armor Break!" she howled, putting everything she had into that attack and managing to land a perfect strike across the other's chest, even as the blade continued down to the ground and caused another shockwave, this one actually knocking Tomoyami to the ground.

Eris advanced upon her supine foe, charging for all she was worth and intending to end things now with her opponent on the ground, but Tomoyami had anticipated this. She waited second by second as the Edge Punisher came closer and closer, then rolled to the side, and whirred her scythe at the other's legs.

"Reaper's Touch!" Tomoyami sang out into the air, her voice a lusty sound of relish as her blow connected and the fiery haired Edge Punisher fell to the ground cursing, her weapon tumbling away from her. Not about to let her opponent regain an advantage, the Flick Reaper snatched up the Flame Sword and put it into her inventory, leaving Eris unarmed.

"So much for being a Bringer of Strife…you can't even protect yourself," she sneered, bringing the butt of her weapon down on the would-be PK's back as Eris tried to crawl away. "Oh, trying to escape now are you? How…pathetic."

Arano and Aruna, who had turned around when they heard a battle going on, thinking that someone might need some help, visibly gulped at how easily Tomoyami was pounding their archrival into the ground.

Never ever get this girl angry, they collectively thought, knowing that if they did, it would probably be the last thing that they would ever do in The World.

The pigtailed fury leapt into the air for a finishing strike, intending to end Eris' existence once and for all, and even as Eris tried rolling away, she found herself pressed against the Chaos Gate, with no hope of living past the next 30 seconds. There was no time to gate out, and being trapped in a battle, there was no way for her to escape, even if discretion were the better part of valor.

…until golden rings flared into existence, as an Adept Rogue with long silver-blue hair, crimson eyes, pale skin, slim body form, and charcoal-gray robes with a shimmering water elemental symbol on them shimmered into existence. Skari had chosen that most inopportune moment to gate-in, and ended up taking the mighty blow from Tomoyami head on.

"Oof!" he cried out, as the scythe tore through his armor and robes like tissue paper. He had, after all, not expected to be attacked as soon as he gated into the field, and was thrown on top of Eris by the blow.

Upon Skari's face was a classic 'deer caught in headlights' expression as he found himself in this compromising position, and he drew his weapons, anticipating a need to defend himself. What he didn't expect was for Eris to squeeze his hands until the twin blades fell to the floor before immobilizing him with a kiss, interposing him between a viciously slashing scythe and her own flesh.

More mental anguish blossomed in Skari, as his ambition in life was NOT to be a human shield for someone who had previously tried to kill him. Tomoyami likewise hesitated, staying her hand after a first couple of strikes, but resolved that what was necessary was necessary.

Unfamiliar feelings bubbled up inside him again, artifacts from his increased confidence and time in The World. He detested being humiliated and used, and knowing that this situation was the same as the one his father had put him in, dark thoughts crossed his mind.

And here I am being used again, even in The World. I hate…I burn…I am Ikari…

He had broken the kiss and spun Eris around towards the Scythe, just as Tomoyami struck with "Reaper's Dance!" Both the Adept Rogue and the Edge Punisher were thrown backwards, crashing violently into the Chaos Gate again, but when the dust cleared, the fiery leather clad Bringer of Strife had turned grey and vanished from the field.

Skari dived for his Twin Blades and picked them up, ready to defend himself if at all possible, as he would not go down without a fight, not even to someone who had just defeated a PK with unnerving ease. For Tomoyami now strode towards him, demonically clawed scythe in hand and a considering look on her face, every step one leading towards his doom.

Then the pig-tailed girl had stopped, stepping aside with a bemused grin as Lycoris emerged onto the scene and flung her arms around Skari.

"Well done, Skari-kun," nodded the powerful Flick Reaper, approving of his actions. "You resisted Eris' charms when these two (and here she glared at the Idiot Duo, who were now trying to slink away) fell for her all too easily. Thank you for allowing me pleasure of the kill."

She licked her lips in relish and then turned towards the house, preceded by a certain Tribal Grappler and Shadow Warlock scampering there in an attempt to get away from her fierce wrath. This left Skari alone with Lycoris, who was holding him as tightly as if they had been apart for weeks, sporting a blush worthy of a volcanic eruption on his face.

His arms encircled her frail form and the two simply held one another in silence for a time, before joining hands and heading towards the mansion.

"Thank you for waiting for me," murmured Lycoris, head on his shoulder, as Skari stiffened guiltily, knowing that he had spent a good deal of time with Ayanami the last night, and that perhaps he had been wrong.

"I will always wait for you," he replied, a soft smile on his face as they walked to the house of Desire together, the sweet home of love and desire in this virtual world.

Within the house, Morganna smiled to see such a touching scene, and nodded to herself, happy that her daughter was finding some happiness here.

Though if he hurts her, he will learn the true power of a former goddess of The World…

She made her way from the window to the front of the antechamber, motioning for her students to sit down as she began her lesson for the day.

"From the moment we come into the world, until the time we leave it, we are merely playing roles, putting on different personas as we age. My question, then, is how true is this? Feel free to respond in any manner you want, and to reference your experiences in The World."

One hand rose hesitantly into the air, and he replied to the question in a way that was full of a unique…not quite charm.

"Eh…sometimes da hot girls in The World are really guys?"

Morganna's only reaction to that was to raise an eyebrow, though the rest of the class burst out laughing.

"I suppose that is valid, but how about rephrasing in terms of what else we have learned?"

"Euhh…here we can pretend to be something we're not?"

"This is true. But is it applicable to the real world as well?" asked Morganna. Out of the corner of her eye, she noted that Skari and Lycoris had entered silently, and ended the preliminaries. "Well then, seeing no hands lets us begin with our new lesson, from a different author, but still applicable to the Epitaph and Psychology."

And so the Shadow Warlock began to recite from an old but relevant tome, a wry smirk of amusement evident upon her face:

"'All The World's a stage, and all the men and women merely players…"